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Achiuwa got up and out early Thursday morning following his big night to appear at his former high school, St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, to talk to students and watch a basketball game between a team of students and a team of NJ State troopers as part of the Building Bridges program, an initiative developed to build bonds of understanding and trust between communities of color and law enforcement. “It’s great for the community and the kids for them to be able to interact on a more personal level with all the different things out there. I think it’s great,” said Achiuwa, who spent his sophomore and junior years at the school before transferring to Montverde Academy in Florida. “I always felt St. Benedict’s was a very dear place in my heart. I love the school and I loved my time there. It’s a beautiful place with beautiful people.”
Shaquille O’Neal: This is my fifth Comebaq court. I’ve done Vegas, Newark, Atlanta. And a couple other cities. My foundation, the Shaquille O’Neal Foundation, the Icy Hot Foundation, we just wanted to affect children. With me being a basketball player, I see a lot of courts not really in good shape. So in areas we grew up in I just want to go and fix up the court. People call it giving back, I call it doing what I was told to do.
Isaiah “Ockee” Williams survived a traumatic childhood in one of Newark’s most violent neighborhoods, including three instances when bullets were fired in his direction, to become an international professional basketball star. His life is the kind of underdog redemption story they make movies about. And now they have.
h.o.o.d_d.r.e.a.m.s: Hood Dreams short film features a player Isaiah “Ockee” Williams from Newark, NJ who has overcame a lot during his basketball journey. From being raised in a single parent household to making it out from a tough neighborhood a lot of people don’t come out of, this is a journey of true grit. In this short, you’ll see the true definition of a leader and hard worker, fueled by a determination to build a life that the outside world didn’t see for him. See how a kid from the inner city changes his narrative - on and off the court!
Newark native Dariq Whitehead is one of those rookies and the Nets chose him with the No. 22 pick in the June Draft with the understanding that he would miss some time after his second foot surgery in May. “We’re definitely not going to rush him,” Marks said. “We love the grit and determination. I wouldn’t put a timeline on when he’ll be back but he will definitely be playing this year.”
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It was “Shaq Day” in Newark on Monday as NBA legend and Brick City native Shaquille O'Neal trekked to the South and Central wards, sending messages to locals in each neighborhood that opportunity and access to a quality life is possible in the state’s largest city. The NBA Hall of Famer was unwavering in his message to a group of youngsters gathered at a newly refurbished community basketball court on Hawthorne Avenue, a project that was headed by O'Neal through his philanthropic foundation and organization partner Icy Hot.
The bottom came in 2012. The Nets were borrowing court time atop the ice at the Devils’ arena in Newark, having broken their lease at the Izod Arena in the Meadowlands, the marshy no man’s land between New York City and the bulk of New Jersey. The team went 22-44 during the lockout-shortened season, good for last place. Merchandise sales were even worse. “Our last year in New Jersey, we ranked 31st out of 30 NBA teams in merchandise sales,” said John Abbamondi, CEO of Nets parent BSE Global. “That’s not a joke. We were behind the defunct Seattle Supersonics.” Times have changed. “Last year, we were No. 2 in the NBA as a team, with three of the top four player jerseys,” said Abbamondi, who came to BSE just over a year ago. “Interest in this team is at an all-time high.”
Myers, 52, used her county card for a trip to Newark, N.J., to “stalk” NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson and former NFL player Richard Seymour, Waters said, in an attempt to talk to them about an undisclosed topic.
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In case playing games at home isn’t possible to start the season, the Raptors have looked into several potential contingency locations – including Newark, Nashville and Tampa Bay, among others. However, they don’t have a locked and loaded Plan B. They believe it’s too early to give up on their very clear Plan A – hosting teams north of the border.
Two weeks ago, The Athletic reported the possibility of the Raptors moving to Newark’s Prudential Center because of Canada’s strict quarantine rules stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Other possible landing spots include sharing Barclays Center with the Nets, or playing in Kansas City, Mo., Seattle or the Tampa Bay area. Oakland native Kamala Harris now is the Vice President-elect after NBC News and multiple other outlets called the election for Joe Biden on Saturday morning, as he surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to clinch the presidency.
According to sources, those sites, including Newark, are long shots, and the likelihood of remaining in Toronto still is very much on the table. According to sources, the NBA is working with governments in both Canada and the United States to come up with new guidelines that would make it feasible for visiting teams to travel to and play in Toronto.
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