Spurs pounded the Knicks, Ford hurt again

This article is cross-posted at Spurs Basketball.

Tony Parker scored 32 points and the San Antonio Spurs dealt Jeremy Lin and the New York Knicks a third consecutive loss, 118-105 on Wednesday night.

San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili looked like his old self against the New York Knicks.

San Antonio pounded it on the inside, outscoring the Knicks 60-38 on inside points, on their way to a 54.1 percent shooting night.

Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili added 17 points apiece in Ginobili’s second game back after missing two weeks with a strained stomach muscle.

Carmelo Anthony led New York with 27 points.

The Knicks have lost six of nine, they bear little resemblance to their Lin-inspired resurgence before the All-Star break.

Lin came out of nowhere last month and delivered the Knicks the play-making point guard they craved for, but New York’s transition has been anything but seamless since Anthony returned February 20 after missing seven games, mostly because of a groin injury.

Gary Neal to play at Philly-Baltimore hoops showdown

The NBA lockout maybe in full effect, but that won’t stop NBA players to organize another summer hoops event.

Spurs' Gary Neal is set to play in another summer league game later this month.

Since the lockout started, San Antonio Spurs guard Gary Neal has played in numerous summer league events and is now set to play again for Team Melo which defeated the Goodman league last month.

Team Philly, a team made up of basketball stars from the Philly area, will take on Team Melo, a team led by Carmelo Anthony on September 25 at The Palestra.

Team Philly will include Phoenix Suns’ Hakim Warrick  and Markieff Morris, Houston Rockets’ Marcus Morris and Kyle Lowry , Philadelphia Sixers’ Lou Williams, Sacramento Kings’ John Salmons and Jason Thompson, Minnesota Timberwolves’ Wayne Ellington , former NBA player Flip Murray and Philly street ball legend Aaron “AO” Owens.

While Team Melo, comprised of players from the Baltimore area, will include Anthony, Memphis Grizzlies’ Josh Selby , Sacramento Kings’ Donte Greene, Gary Neal of the San Antonio Spurs, Eric Bledsoe of the Los Angeles Clippers and “more suprise (sp.) guests,” according to Rahim Thompson’s Twitter account @RTChosenleague.

Video: Melo League beats Goodman League 149-141 in showdown

As reported by The Washington Times, the Goodman League vs. Melo League held at Morgan State University in Baltimore on Tuesday was a success.

Melo League vs. Goodman League highlights

In a battle that would rival any NBA finals contest, the highlight of the evening was a hard-fought, one-on-one battle between Kevin Durant and LeBron James, each delivering a show-stopping offensive performance while being guarded by the other.

Spurs’ Neal, Anderson and Leonard to play in various Summer League spectacles

With the NBA lockout still in full effect, more NBA players appears to be interested in participating in some summer league games. After the Goodman League defeated Drew League last weekend in Washington, they were soon being dubbed the best summer league in the US.

San Antonio Spurs' James Anderson is reported to be joining some NBA players at Impact Basketball.

However, many other regions that didn’t get a chance to compete disagreed with that sentiment and wanted their shot against Goodman’s finest. (via hoopsworld.com)

On August 30, one league will have that opportunity. The Melo League is located in Baltimore and has had many NBA players in their gym throughout the course of the summer. They’ve been one of the more competitive pro-am leagues in the nation over the last few years and want to see if their All-Stars can take down the group from D.C.

Entering this game, the Melo League is the likely favorite because they’ll have home court advantage in Baltimore and have a star-studded group that is sure to attract plenty of attention.

The Melo League will be represented by Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Chris Paul, Josh Selby, San Antonio Spurs Gary Neal and Donte Greene.

The Goodman League will be represented by Kevin Durant, John Wall, Brandon Jennings, DeMarcus Cousins and Hugh “Baby Shaq” Jones.

Gary Neal shines at Summer Pro-Am Tour

As the NBA lockout continues, players are finding ways to stay in basketball shape and at the same time, give basketball fans something to cheer for.

The Carmelo Anthony Summer Pro-Am tour rolled through Baltimore on Monday night, attracting a packed house to St. Frances for what was billed as a heavyweight battle between NBA stars Kevin Durant and Brandon Jennings.

However, before Durant and Jennings took the court, Baltimore native and current San Antonio Spurs Guard Gary Neal led his squad to a 74-66 victory.

“It’s always good to have pros come back play in an involvement like this, especially in the time during the lockout where the basketball season is in question; it was definitely a good thing for the community.”  Neal said.

NBA stars silent about lockout

With no progress or significant news about the NBA lockout, Orlando Sentinel’s Shannon Owens shares this nice article.

Memo to David Stern, Billy Hunter, Derek Fisher and the NBA stars – the public needs to hear from you.

If you’re like me, then maybe you’ve noticed the leaders in the labor negotiations have been eerily quiet. Even more peculiar is how silent the NBA stars have been when it comes to fighting against hard salary caps in the 2011 NBA lockout.

Stars like Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning were on the front lines for players in the 1998-99 lockout. But that clearly hasn’t been the case this time around.