NBA ownership cannot deprive players of their willingness to play the game of basketball. In the midst of a tantalizing waiting game, NBA players have taken it upon themselves to entertain fans.
The trend started early this summer, with high-profile NBA players, such as Kevin Durant, Lebron James and Kobe Bryant popping up in neighborhood gyms and outdoor courts across the country.
It intensified in September when Carmelo Anthony suggested a match up that would feature a rag-tag group billed as “Team Melo” play against “Team Philly” at Penn basketball’s famed home arena, the Palestra. And is set to continue into the prolonged NBA off-season.
Harvard’s sole current NBA representative and Warrior point guard, Jeremy Lin '10 is among the newest batch of players to perform in a hyped exhibition game. The core of the current 2011-12 roster will take on the core of the underdog 2007 Warriors—memorable for the “We Believe” t-shirts plastered all over their home Oracle Arena during a stunning first-round upset of the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks.
According to the Oakland Tribune, accompanying Lin will be 2009-2010 Rookie of the Year runner-up Stephen Curry, Dorell Wright, Charlie Bell, and rookie Jeremy Tyler. The 2007 squad will include Jason Richardson, Matt Barnes, Kelena Azubuike, and Anthony Morrow.
Members of both teams are still being recruited. Other NBA stars, including such as Gilbert Arenas and Jamal Crawford, are being considered to round out the rosters.
The game will be played on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 6:30 p.m. Proceeds from the game will be donated to the Kaiser Permanente Breast Cancer foundation and Barnes’ Athletes vs. Cancer foundation.
The game will be the only opportunity that Lin will have to play for Warriors’ fans until the lockout ends. The NBA has declared any player who played a 2010-11 regular season game ineligible for the NBA’s equivalent to the minor league, the D-League.
This decree comes as a condition of missed NBA regular season games this season. This means that Lin, who played 29 games last season, will not be able to work on his game in the D-league, scheduled to start in late November. He would have played for the Warriors’ newly acquired Dakota Wizards.
