Stay tuned as we will keep you updated on how these former Tigers do in the remainder of this season.

Joey Dorsey

Former Tiger Joey Dorsey has had several moves this season.

(Courtesy of NBA.com)

He started the season playing alongside former teammate Antonio Anderson with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.  After playing well with the Vipers, he was called up to the Houston Rockets.  The Rockets subsequently made a trade involving the Knicks and the Kings, which sent Dorsey to Sacramento.  After only playing several games with the Kings, Dorsey was waived.

Until now, Dorsey’s future in the NBA was an unknown.  On April 5, it was announced that Dorsey is heading to Toronto to join the Raptors for the rest of the season.

The Raptors will be playing at Cleveland on Tuesday, April 6.

Earl Barron

(AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)

After a strong season full of explosive performances, Earl Barron has been given his chance to impress even more.  Barron has been signed to a 10-day contract with the New York Knicks.

In his first appearance with the Knicks, Barron played 18 minutes and tallied up 10 points and 6 rebounds along with 1 assist.

Barron has spent the majority of this season playing with the NBA Development League’s Iowa Energy.  This season with the Energy, he averaged 16.2 points and 10.2 rebounds per game in 31.7 minutes.  He also registered 24 double-doubles this season.  His efforts with Iowa Energy are a major reason why the Energy are the No. 1 seed heading into the D-League Playoffs.

Antonio Anderson

Since the last edition of In the Bigs, Antonio Anderson has had 4 astounding games.  On March 30, Anderson registered 25 points, 7 assists, and 3 steals.  The next evening, followed suit with career high 37 points, along with 8 assists, 5 rebounds, and 1 steal.  In his 2 most recent games, Anderson also had solid games, with 18 points/6 assists/7 rebounds and 21 points/7 assists/5 rebounds.  He now stands at a season average of 16.2 points, 6.1 assists, and 4 rebounds per game.

The Rio Grande Valley Vipers have secured the Western Conference title, and are the No. 2 seed in the upcoming D-League Playoffs.  The No. 1 seed, Iowa Energy, featured former Tiger Earl Barron this season who is now playing with the New York Knicks.

The D-League Playoffs featurs a best-of-3 game format.  Rio Grande Valley will play their first playoff game at Reno on April 10.  Game 2 will be played at Rio Grande Valley on April 12.  If the Vipers are able to win the first two games, they will advance.  If not, then a third and final game will be played at Rio Grande Valley on April 13.

Antonio Anderson

Courtesy of NBA.com

After returning to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Anderson has gotten back into the swing of things in his last two games.  In his most recent game, he had 19 points, 10 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and 1 block.  Prior to that, he had 18 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, and 1 steal.

Anderson is averaging 15 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds per game with the Vipers.

The Vipers will now make their playoff appearance.  The Vipers will host game 2 and 3 (if necessary) on Monday, April 12 and Tuesday, April 13.

With a 33-13 record, the Vipers lead the D-League Western Conference, and are close to clinching the Western Conference Championship.  The Vipers are guaranteed a 3-seed in the playoffs, but if they clinch the Western Conference Championship, they will clinch the 2-seed position and homecourt advantage for playoff semifinals.

The Vipers have the second best record in the NBA D-League, trailing former Tiger Earl Barron and the Iowa Energy, who have a record of 36-12.  If the Vipers and Energy were to finish the season with identical records, then the Vipers would be considered the 1-seed due to the fact that they have beaten the Energy in both games this year.

This is the NBA D-League playoff format:

The NBA Development League is using an expanded playoff format this season. The conference winners will be the top two seeds while the remaining six teams will be chosen in order of best record, regardless of conference. The top three seeds will get to select their first round opponent from the bottom four teams. Each of the three rounds of playoffs will use a best-of-three format, with the lower seed hosting game one and the higher seed hosting games two and three if necessary.

Stephen Gostkowski

Apparently a radio host made a bet with former Tiger and current Patriot kicker Stephen Gostkowski.  The radio host ended up paying for it by getting clobbered with several kicked footballs through the uprights.

If you have not seen this video that was posted in the Football Forum, here it is for your enjoyment.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Tyreke Evans

Evans hopes to return to the court today for the Kings after suffering a concussion, lacerated gums, and a chipped tooth last week due to a loose elbow in a game against the Bucks.  Medical staff first thought he may have also had a broken jaw, but an MRI revealed that he did not.  Evans has since sat out 5 games.

Some people are questioning if this will affect his Rookie of the Year hopes, while others contend that it will not.  Regardless, hopefully Evans will overcome this and return to the court soon.

Joey Dorsey

Dorsey has been waived by the Sacramento Kings.  This comes after an impressive D-League season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers which earned him a call up to the Houston Rockets.  Dorsey was later involved in a trade which landed him in Sacramento.  Dorsey was with the Kings through 20 games, in which he only played 7 games for a total of 53 minutes.

DeAngelo Williams

After chatter of the possibility of Williams being traded to another team, but that talk was put to rest recently.  In a spring practice meeting, coach John Fox stated that he did not plan on breaking up the Panther RB duo of Johnathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams.

Antonio Anderson

After 2 consecutive 10-day assignments with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Antonio Anderson returns to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.  Anderson was the second former Tiger to be called up from the D-League, the first being Joey Dorsey who was also playing for the Vipers.  With Rio Grande Valley, Anderson averages 15 points, 4 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 1.3 steals per game.  Anderson will now help lead the Vipers through the D-League Playoffs.

A game between Rio Grande Valley and Los Angeles will be televised on the ‘Versus’ channel (Dish Network channel 151, DirecTV channel 603, Comcast channel 852) on Saturday, March 27 at 10:00 pm CST.

Shawn Taggart

Former Tiger Shawn Taggart is playing in with the Spanish team, Caceres 2016.  He is currently averaging 8.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in 20.2 minutes per game.  He has played 9 games since joining the team, but previously played in Israel with Ironi Nahariya for 10 games.  In Israel, he averaged 14.8 points and 6.9 rebounds.

Below is a highlight video of Caceres 2016’s most recent game against Autocid Ford Burgos.  Taggart (number 7) had 8 points and 5 rebounds.

Enjoy the English Electro Pop as well!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Earl Barron

Iowa Energy center Earl Barron continues adding to his stats sheet in what has been a monstrous season.  In the month of March over the course of 7 games, Barron has averaged 21.3 points and 14 rebounds per game.  Two of his best performances to date came this month, with a 35 point/24 rebound performance on March 5 and a 37 point/17 rebound performance on March 20.  In his last 10 games, he had 9 double-doubles.

Quote of the Week

“I want to finish the year strong. As long as you’re playing — no matter position the team is in — you compete. I’m going to continue to compete, no matter what the record is.” — Chris Douglas-Roberts

Tyreke Evans

(AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

Over the past week, Evans has nearly cemented himself as the Rookie of the Year.  In a win against Toronto, Evans recorded his first triple-double this season.  He racked up 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists as he and Beno Udrih led the Kings in a 113-90 victory over the Raptors.

Several days later, Evans barely missed recording his second triple-double in a win against Minnesota.  This time, he added 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 11 assists and also mixed in 2 steals. He followed that performance with a 25 points, 11 rebound, 9 assist game, but the Kings fell to the Lakers in Los Angeles 99-106.

So, in the course of 4 games, Evans recorded a triple-double, and 3 double-doubles, two of which were one rebound or assist shy of being triple-doubles.

Evans currently is averaging 5.6 assists per game, ranking 16th in the NBA.  Fellow Rookie competitor Brandon Jennings is averaging 6.1 assists per game (12th).  Stephen Curry is averaging 5.5 per game (20th).

Evans ranks 15th in scoring with 20.3 points per game, considerably higher than Curry and Jennings, who rank 43rd and 48th respectively.

One area that Evans could certainly improve on is his 3-point shooting, currently shooting 25.4 percent (254th in NBA).  Curry and Jennings both rank considerably higher (29th and 60th, respectively).

With his 20.3 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game average, Evans is en route to join Michael Jordan, Oscar Robertson, and LeBron James as the only players to average 20/5/5 in their rookie seasons.

Antonio Anderson

After completing two 10-day assignments with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Antonio Anderson has been released by the Thunder.  The release was made to make room for guard Mustafa Shakur who was called up from the Tulsa 66ers.

In his time with the Thunder, Anderson was used primarily as a practice player.  He only played in one game for 15 minutes and had 2 points, 1 rebounds, 1 turnover, and 1 personal foul.

Assuming that Anderson returns to the Rio Grande Valley, he will have the opportunity to help lead the Vipers through the D-League playoffs.

DeAngelo Williams

It appears that DeAngelo Williams will be staying in Charlotte.  ESPN insider Len Pasquarelli reported that the Panthers will seek to extend Williams’ contract.

This season, Williams participated in his first Pro Bowl, in which he had a 7-yard touchdown run.  Williams missed the last few games of the season due to an ankle injury.

Isaac Bruce

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that former Tiger and 16-year NFL veteran Isaac Bruce will be appearing in several television shows soon.

(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Bruce will be appearing as a cast member in Spike TV’s “Pros vs. Joes” new season, which will begin airing on July 14th.  “Pros vs. Joes,” which will feature basketball and football this season, is a reality game show in which amateur, “regular” guys compete against pro-athletes.

As previously reported on Memphis Roar, former Tiger football player Jeremy Williams will be featured in an episode of “Extreme Home Makeover” in which he and his family will receive a new home and wheelchair accessible van.  Being a friend of Williams, Isaac Bruce will be one of the featured guests on this episode.  Leigh Ann Tuohy will serve as interior decorator for the home makeover.

This former Tiger played 14 seasons with the Rams and 2 seasons with the 49ers, and is now likely to retire, although he has not official announced his retirement. Bruce is 2nd all time in receiving yards with 15,208 and is also ranked 2nd all time in yards gained in a single season with 1,781. Bruce has 1,024 career receptions.

By Nick Friedell

ESPNChicago.com

MEMPHIS — Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose doesn’t hold any grudges against the NCAA for coming down hard on his beloved Memphis Tigers after finding numerous rules violations during Rose’s one season at the school.

Memphis was accused of several major rules violations, some of which reportedly centered upon Rose, and was forced to vacate its 2007-08 record, which included a run to the 2008 national championship game.

The Bulls played the Grizzlies on Tuesday, and Rose said he doesn’t feel weird coming back.

“No, not really,” he said after the Bulls shootaround on Tuesday morning. “The NCAA [tournament] is going to be exciting anyway.

“No hard feelings or anything like that. It’s too bad Memphis is not in the tournament [this year], but I miss [school], though.”

Rose couldn’t help but reminisce about all the good times he had in college as he set in a folding chair in FedEx Forum, the place he used to call home with the Tigers.

“You just don’t know, man,” he said with a smile. “Sometimes it’s so hard on the next level where you just want to be a kid sometimes. I’m only 21. It’s hard, man.

Read the rest here.

Derrick Rose interviewed by MyFox Memphis:

Another route that some may take in their careers is joining an overseas basketball league in order to continue their ambitions of playing basketball for a living.  For former Tigers Jeremy Hunt, Robert Dozier, Shawn Taggart, and Chris Massie, this was the route that was traveled, taking them far from home.

Jeremy Hunt, a four year player for the Tigers, averaged 24.4 minutes per game in his career, and averaged 14.1 points per game in his senior year.  He was a part of three NCAA tournament appearances, including an Elite 8 run in which he led the team in points for three of their tournament games coming off the bench (16 points against No. 13 Nevada, 19 points against No. 9 Texas A&M, and 26 points in a loss against No. 1 Ohio State).

After playing with the Tigers, Hunt decided to travel overseas to play professional basketball.  Last season, he played 32 games with the German team, Koein 99ers where he averaged 12.7 points and 3.6 rebounds in 26 minutes.  This season, Hunt joined the Portuguese team, FC Porto Ferpinta; in 12 games, he averaged 12.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.2 steals in 23.2 minutes.

This past weekend, Hunt and FC Porto Ferpinta won the Portuguese Cup, triumphing over Ovarense, 82-72.  Hunt lead his team with 23 points.

Two-thousand miles away, former Tiger Robert Dozier plays for the Greek team, VAP Kolossos.

Dozier, another four year player, averaged 12.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game as a senior, and was an integral part to multiple NCAA Tournament runs, including the National Title game against Kansas in 2008.  Dozier was drafted by the Miami Heat with the final draft pick in 2009, but went on to sign a one-year contract with the Greek team and Miami retained his rights.

With VAP Kolossos, Dozier has played 19 games and is averaging 26.7 minutes, 9.2 points, and 6.3 rebounds per game.  He has posted one double-double with the team, as well as 8 double-digit point performances (season high of 21 points).

Shawn Taggart, who started his collegiate career at Iowa State, played two seasons with the Tigers.  In his final season, Taggart added 10.4 points and 7.6 rebounds per game to the stat sheet in 25 minutes of playing time.

Taggart decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and declared for the NBA draft.  As the picks were made, Taggart’s chances grew slimmer.  After not being selected in the draft, Taggart inked a deal with the Israeli team Ironi Nahariya.

In the ten games that he played with Ironi Nahariya, Taggart scored 14.8 points per game and 6.9 rebounds per game.  He was shooting 46.7% from beyond the arc and 78.6% from the free throw line.

Taggart began to look elsewhere and eventually signed another contract with the Spanish team, Caceres 2016 C.B.  Since joining his new team, Taggart has played in seven games and has gradually gained more playing time.

Chris Massie is another former TIger also playing basketball in Greece, for the team Gymnastikos Olympia Larissas. As a Tiger, Massie played for two seasons, averaging 16.8 points and 10.9 rebounds per game in his final season.

Massie is currently averaging 14.4 points and 10.7 rebounds per game with the Greek team.  In 18 games, he had 8 double-doubles, with his best performance being a 19 point/23 rebound/6 assist performance on February 6.

Quick Hits

• Antonio Anderson was signed to a second 10-day contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder after first signing an initial 10-day contract on February 22.  Since joining the Thunder, Anderson has played in one game for 15 minutes, in which he scored 2 points and had 1 offensive rebound.

• Earl Barron continues to have double-double performances with the Iowa Energy of the NBA Developmental League.  On March 5, Barron had his best game of the season with 35 points and 24 rebounds, along with 1 block and 1 assist.

• Stephen Gostkowski, the New England Patriots’ kicker, was assigned a second-round tender of 1.75 million dollars.

• Tony Brown, a defensive tackle for the Tennessee Titans, was assigned a first-round tender of 2.621 million dollars.

Evans congratulated by Dorsey and teammates

Tyreke Evans, the Kings’ rookie point guard, has dazzled fans and opposing players alike this season with high-point performances and is equally impressive in assists and rebounds. Evans, who has sat out 5 games this season due to minor ankle, finger, and hip injuries, is averaging 20.4 points per game with a career high 34-point performance and two 32-point performances.  He is also averaging 5.4 assists per game on the season, with an assist average of 7 per game in the month of February in which he dished out a career high 13 assists against Detroit.  Evans also adds 4.9 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game to the stat sheet.

And, on average, he does all of this in 37.1 minutes per game.  Impressive, indeed.

One announcer would say, “That’s Ty-rrific!”

February has been a great month for Evans.  Of his 7 double-doubles on the season, 4 of them have come in February.  He started the month with a 32 point, 8 assist, 7 rebound, 2 steal, 1 block beastly performance, playing 39 minutes.  A week later, he went for 27 points, 7 assists, 10 rebounds, and 1 steal in 45 minutes.  More recently, he added 28 points, 13 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals in a home loss against Detroit.

The Kings, with a record of 20-39, have relied immensely on Evans in every game to provide a bevy of points, along with several game-winning shots that Evans has provided.

The Rookie of the Year contest was once considered a race between Evans and fellow rookie Brandon Jennings, but recently Jennings has been in a slump.  Now Stephen Curry is considered to be the greatest threat to Evans’ Rookie of the Year campaign.  Bleacher Report notes that the only area that Evans could improve upon is his 3-point shooting.  “The guy gets it done every night and is the most solid, well-balanced, and dominant point guard. In a class completely dominated by point guard play, Evans is far and away still the top dog.”

Evans also has the opportunity to be the fourth rookie to average 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in a rookie season, with the other three being LeBron James, Oscar Robertson, and Michael Jordan.  Evans is currently averaging 20.4/4.9/5.4.

*Make sure to visit the newly released site Stand with Tyreke.  This site is dedicated to Evans’ Rookie of the Year Campaign, and offers game highlights, interviews, and a section that goes more in depth about Evans’ personal life.  Fans can also sign an online petition endorsing Evans for Rookie of the Year.*

Click here to view the embedded video.

With Jason Thompson injured and out for up to two weeks, Joey Dorsey could be picking up more minutes with the Kings.  In his first game with the Kings, Dorsey only played for 2 minutes in which he pulled down 1 rebound.  After sitting out the following game, Dorsey was given 12 minutes in which he accounted for 1 steal, 3 rebounds, and 3 points.  It only took 12 minutes for Dorsey to impress coach Paul Westphal, who later said Dorsey is already the Kings’ best defender:

“One thing I would say is he’s our best defensive big man right now,” Westphal said. “I could say that after one quarter. He’s more alert to helping, he’s a physical presence, he likes physical play and that’s his thing… He obviously is not a highly skilled offensive player, but he’s got a pretty good feel for setting screens and offensive rebounding…He gives a lot on the defensive end of the floor, and offensively he’s somebody you don’t want to run a lot of plays for.”

Quick Hits

• Earl Barron continues to be a key player for the Iowa Energy.  In his most recent game, Barron scored a season high 28 points, outperforming his previous high score of 26 points from the previous night.  On February 26th, Barron had his most impressive game of the season with 26 points, 12 rebounds, 5 blocks, 1 steal, and 1 assist.

• After being called up to join the Oklahoma City Thunder, Antonio Anderson has yet to play any minutes for the team.

Joey Dorsey

Dorsey makes his move to Sacramento

Dorsey was the seventh Vipers alumnus to reach the NBA, when he was called up by the Houston Rockets.  Now he will join forces with another former Tiger, Tyreke Evans.  In a three-team trade with the Houston Rockets and the New York Knicks, the Sacramento Kings acquired the services of big man Joey Dorsey, along with Carl Landry and Larry Hughes. 

“We particularly feel that we’ve augmented our frontcourt with Landry’s ability to score the ball inside and out and Dorsey as an interior rebounder and shot-blocker,” said  Kings President of Basketball Operation Geoff Petrie.  “They’ll bring an additional level of toughness and productivity that will help us going forward.”  In his first outing with the Kings, Dorsey logged 2 minutes with 1 rebound and 1 foul.

Sactown Royalty had this to say about Dorsey:

He lost a lot of baby fat and gained a lot of muscle in the right places. Rebounding is what they focused him on, and he was beastly. There are four types of guys in the D-League: guys who are there for the coaches to pick on, guys signed because of local appeal to sell tickets, guys who are long-term projects but have some talent, and guys who are obviously and profoundly better than the talent around them, but need to focus on what the NBA team in question wants from them. Dorsey is the latter. He just threw guys around this year. He’s got an obsessive approach to the rebounding, like he blames the ball for sticking him in McAllen, Texas.

Dorsey shares his thoughts on the move:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Antonio Anderson

Anderson’s move to the Oklahoma City Thunder makes him the sixth former Tiger to be currently playing in the NBA.  He signed a 10-day contract with the Thunder, being the sixth Gatorade Call-Up in Vipers history and their eighth alumnus in the NBA.  Anderson should log in some minutes in the Thunder’s game against Phoenix on Tuesday.

Tony Brown

Tony Brown is seeking contract extension

Former Tiger football player Tony Brown could be on the move as well.  He is currently in his fifth year as defensive tackle with the Tennessee Titans and is an upcoming restricted free agent, but is seeking a contract extension.

If a new Collective Bargaining Agreement isn’t reached before free agency, Brown would become a restricted free agent. That means the Titans could try and keep him with a one-year tender.

Under that scenario, another team has the option of signing Brown to an offer sheet, and the Titans would have the right to match any offer.

Brown, a first alternate to the Pro Bowl last season, is one of the team’s most valuable free agents. He’s been a steady performer and solid locker room guy.

DeAngelo Williams

Will DeAngelo Williams remain a Panther?

Could Williams be leaving the Panthers and be headed out west?  Or maybe headed to the wintry north?  Jason Lowry and Bill Barnwell discuss the possibility of Williams heading to the San Diego Chargers in return for the 28th pick in the draft.  There is also the possibility of him heading to the Detroit Lions in return for their second round pick.

Meanwhile, the star running back had minor surgery on his ankle to correct the problems that left him sidelined for the last 2 games of the Panthers’ season.

Earl Barron

Barron is among several American players being looked at by Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas to help improve the country’s bid for the 2012 London Olympics.  Barron spent a brief stint playing in the Philippine Basketball Association before playing with the Miami Heat.  Baron currently plays in the NBA D-League with the Iowa Energy, where he recently played in the league’s All-Star game, scoring 20 points.

Chris Douglas-Roberts

Known by many for his outspoken “tweets,” Douglas-Roberts has started his own radio show, entitled “The Show with Chris Douglas-Roberts.”  “I feel I’ll be a natural at this,” Douglas-Roberts said. “This is right up my alley, really. Just saying what you feel, taking questions and answering them. I look forward to taking questions from the people around here.”

The show debuted on Thursday, Feb 18th and will air every other Thursday.  You can listen in at www.sportsjourney.com.

Tyreke Evans

Evans was one of 30 guests invited to dinner with President Obama at Kings’ co-owner Joe Maloof’s Las Vegas home.  The Rookie game MVP was felt honored to have this opportunity.

In an interview, Evans discusses the experience:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Evans in the Rookie Challenge

This weekend was set to be a momentous one for five former Tiger basketball players.

Sacremento Kings’ guard, Tyreke Evans, who is considered by some to be the NBA Rookie of the Year, put on a show in the NBA Rookie Challenge on Friday night.  Evans was named the MVP of the game and tallied 26 points (11-15 FG, 4-5 FT), 5 assists, 5 steals, and 6 rebounds in 30 minutes of action.  Along with the help of Brandon Jennings (22 pts, 8 ast, 6 reb, 4 st) and DeJuan Blair (22 pts, 22 reb), the Rookies came away with a victory, ending a 7-year drought for the Rookies.  When awarded the MVP award, not wanting to take all of the credit, Evans shared the honor with Rookie teammate DeJuan Blair.

“I mean, he set the tone for us,” said Evans. “He started getting the rebounds for us before the game started. He said to everyone to just get out of the way, because he was going to get every rebound and that’s what he did, so that’s why I wanted to share it with him.”

Now with the Rookie Challenge behind him, Evans can focus on the remainder of the season and race to the finish in what analysts are considering a two-man race.  His competitor: Bucks’ guard Brandon Jennings.  The prize: Rookie of the Year.  Bleacher Report provides an in-depth analysis of both rookies, breaking down their offensive and defensive abilities, as well as other attributes of their game.  Their conclusion: “Evans, and it’s not even close.”

Rose answers questions about the All-Star game

The next Tiger to join in on this weekend’s star-studded events was Bulls’ guard Derrick Rose.  Rose was first selected to lead the Sophomores against Evans and the Rookies in the Rookie Challenge game, but was later asked to participate in the NBA All-Star game instead.  Rose was also asked to participate in the Taco Bell Skills Challenge, where he would defend his crown from last year’s victory, in which he finished with an emphatic double-pump reverse dunk.  In a game against Orlando, Rose went up for a layup and was fouled hard by big man Dwight Howard after only 2 minutes of the game, causing Rose to fall hard on his right hip.  Bulls’ medical staff later confirmed that Rose had a bruised hip and his status for All-Star weekend was iffy.  Rose decided to sit out of the Skills Challenge but to continue with the All-Star game.  In his first All-Star appearance, Rose added 8 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals in 15 minutes for the East team.  The East team came away with a victory over the West, 141-139.

Rose has also been chosen for the 2010-2012 U.S. national team roster, with a chance to participate in this summer’s world championships and the 2012 Olympics in London.

 

Rose said before Wednesday’s game against the Orlando Magic that he’s just happy to be a part of the team right now.

 

“In the summer, I’ll try hard just to make the team, try to impress the coaches,” Rose said. “And for me to go there and have the opportunity to be on that team in 2012 means a lot.”

 

That said, Rose seems to like his chances to make the team.

 

“I got a chance,” he said. “A pretty good chance, to tell you the truth. I just got to continue to play hard [and] make sure Coach K and [the assistant coaches] make sure I do everything right for them. I kind of look up to them. They’re very good coaches.”

Antonio Anderson (Rio Grande Valley Vipers), Joey Dorsey (Rio Grande Valley Vipers/Houston Rockets), and Earl Barron (Iowa Energy) were all chosen to participate in the NBA Development League’s 2010 All-Star game.

Since joining the team, Anderson has made great contributions averaging 39.5 minutes, 15.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game over 31 games.  In only his second game with the Vipers, he scored 28 points.  In three December games, Anderson scored 23, 27, and 28 points, which tied his career high for the Vipers, and also had two double-doubles (17pts-13ast, 12pts-12ast) that month.  This played a large part in Anderson being selected for the D-League Player of the Month in December.  On Feb 5th during a game at Albuquerque, Anderson came away with a separated right shoulder but continued to play through two more games.  With the long off-weekend filled with All-Star festivities, the Vipers’ medical staff decided this would be a good time for Anderson to recover, so the guard was given a replacement.

Vipers teammate and former collegiate teammate, Joey Dorsey, was also coming up big on the stats sheet in his first 16 games with Rio Grande Valley.  Dorsey averaged 31.6 minutes, 14.9 points, and 13.3 rebounds and had 9 double-doubles, with standout performances of 22pts-17reb, 18pts-18reb, 27pts-15reb, and 27pts-22reb.  This caused the Houston Rockets to call him up to play for them, making him ineligible to play for the D-League All-Star game.

Iowa Energy center, Earl Barron, was another former Tiger selected for the D-League All-Star game and ended up being the only one able to participate.  Over 31 games, Barron averaged 30.5 minutes, 14.4 points, and 9.4 rebounds.  In the D-League All-Star game, Barron racked up 20 points and 7 rebounds in 22 minutes of playing for the East, making him the leading scorer and second-leading rebounder of the game.  Unfortunately, the West won the game, 98-81.

Although this highly anticipated weekend was somewhat diminished due to injuries, the honor that these five former Tigers received by their respective leagues speaks volumes about their abilities.

 

**Check back every week for the In the Bigs Spotlight article for the latest news on former Tiger players.

Derrick Rose

Rose at last year's Skills Challenge

With all of the excitement surrounding Rose’s inclusion in the 2010 All-Star game, he will also be defending his crown in the Taco Bell Skills challenge. The Skills Challenge tests the players’ dribbling, passing, and shooting abilities, showcasing their all-around game. This year, the contestants for the Skills Challenge are Rose (2009 winner), Steve Nash (2005 winner), Deron Williams (2008 winner and current record holder), and Brandon Jennings. Although some may consider the 4-minute long Skills Challenge not all that important, Rose told the Chicago Tribune that he is looking forward to the Skills Challenge.

“It’s just fun,” Rose said. “When you’re out there, the crowd gets into it. That maze is real hard when you first start off with it until you get some practice.”

Rose, the first NBA rookie to win the Skills Challenge, will have a chance to repeat what Dwayne Wade accomplished in 2007 if he is able to win the Challenge in back-to-back years.

• Rose to defend title in Taco Bell Skills Challenge

Williams, a Dallas native, holds the course record of 25.5 seconds, which he set in the final round in 2008.

Last year in Phoenix, Rose finished his winning time of 35.3 seconds with an emphatic double-pump reverse dunk, as he became the first rookie to win the Taco Bell Skills Challenge.

Dwayne Wade, a Chicago native, had nothing but good things to say to The Miami Herald about having the chance to play with Rose in the NBA All-Star game.

“He’s phenomenal,” Wade said of Rose before Saturday’s game at United Center. “I saw it last year when he was a rookie. He’s really having a great year. You can tell he’s going to be one of the great point guards. I’m proud of Derrick. To see another Chicago guy in the All-Star Game is big. It’ll be a good time.”

With the Bulls going 2-3 in the last 5 games, Rose has led the team in points in only one game with a breakout performance of 30 points against the 76ers. Over the last 5 games (2/2-2/9), he averaged 22 points and 5.6 assists per game. In a game against the Atlanta Hawks, Rose demonstrated some high-flying acrobatics with a one-handed alley-oop dunk in transition, which left the announcers stunned.

“I’m still wondering what was that red thing that came flying down from the ceiling, that just threw a ball down as hard as I’ve ever seen…Yes, that is a point guard, ladies and gentlemen.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Chris Douglas-Roberts

Could Douglas-Roberts be headed back to Memphis?

The rumor mills have been a churnin’. Could our beloved CDR be headed back to Memphis? The Commercial Appeal reported that “recent trade rumors link the Griz to former University of Memphis swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts, who is in his second season with the New Jersey Nets.”

According to internet reports, Douglas-Roberts has fallen out of favor with the Nets and has been relegated to the bench. He would fit the description of the type of player Memphis seems to be inquiring about: an athletic, guard/forward who can score and is aggressive on defense.

What does CDR think about this? According to a report by the Daily News, Douglas-Roberts wants to stay with the Nets, although he has much love for his Memphis fans. On Twitter, he wrote “I LOVE my Memphis people!!!”

When asked about this comment, Douglas-Roberts responded saying, “As much negativity as I get from the Jersey area, I get equal the support from the Memphis area. No matter what, [Memphis fans] always will be behind me. So that’s why I said that.” He said that he will not spend much time worrying about where he ends up.

“I want to be wherever they want me,” he said. “If they want me to be here I want to be here. I’m going to give 100 (%) no matter what, wherever, no matter what.

I just have to do what I’ve been doing and get all that other stuff out of the way and be numb to the world.”

Joey Dorsey

The former Memphis center, Joey Dorsey, could soon log more minutes with the Houston Rockets. After playing exceptionally well in the NBA D-League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, he was given the nod by the Rockets to fill in some of their own gaps. He has recently gained some first-half minutes against both the Suns and Grizzlies, and the Houston Chronicle reports that Rockets coach Rick Adelman said he would be looking Dorsey’s way for more playing opportunities.

“It will be probably somewhat (about) matchups at times, but (Dorsey) certainly deserves a chance to play.”

“If Joey can be consistent, it gives us a couple options there,” said Adelman, who played Dorsey 18 minutes Saturday against the 76ers.

In 19 minutes of action against the Grizzlies, Dorsey led the Rockets with 12 rebounds and also added 7 points, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 1 block. Dorsey told the Associated Press that he was excited, yet nervous, to return to his former college arena.

“It felt like I was in college all over again. It’s been a long time since I had that feeling of everybody congratulating me and everything like that. It’s very exciting to come back home and play in this arena and do what I did.”

Shawn Taggart

Click here to view the embedded video.

Stephen Gostkowski

With the NFL season now over, the New England Patriots finished 10-6 after a loss to Baltimore in their first playoff game. In these 16 games, Patriots kicker Gostkowski finished the season with 21 touchbacks, which tied him for 6th in the NFL. The former Tigers kicker notes that kicking touchbacks in cold weather is nearly impossible, and rather than aiming for the endzone, his main goal is to provide hang time.

I pride myself on getting good hang time and giving my guys a chance to get down there and I feel like my hang time has gotten better each year.

Touchbacks are kind of like home runs — if you’re trying to hit them, you’re not going to. You just want to swing easy and make good contact, then they happen. As a kicker, you realize how your teammates appreciate touchbacks when they’re running down there, busting up the wedge and getting yelled at when we cross the 30. When you can have [21] opportunities to save us from possibly giving up a long play, that’s something I take a lot of pride in. I want to be a quality kicker and a quality kickoff guy.

In his first four NFL seasons, Gostkowski was only the second player in NFL history to score 500 points in such a short amount of time. This comes from his consistent ability to kick accurately. According to ESPN, he has never missed more than one field goal in a game, and from 2006-2009 he kicked field goal percentages of 76.9, 87.5, 90, and 83.8, respectively. Gostkowski is now a restricted free agent.

DeAngelo Williams

After participating in his first Pro Bowl, in which he completed a 7-yard touchdown run, Williams shares his thoughts on the experience.

“It was cool,” Williams said of scoring in his first career Pro Bowl. “This is a ball that is going up in my house. I like it.” He admitted that missing the last part of the regular season was tough. “Being able to come back, basically in the same season, it gives me great confidence going into next season that this injury is healed and that I’m back doing what I love doing.”

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** Please be sure to check back next week for the In the Bigs Spotlight article. I will be sure to cover details of the D-League and NBA All-Star games, the NBA Rookie Challenge, and the NBA Skills Challenge, all of which feature former Memphis Tigers. **