Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Former Tennessee basketball player Jordan Bone has signed with Orlando.
Former University of Tennessee guard Jordan Bone has signed a two-way contract with the Orlando Magic.
The former Vol was selected in the second round (57th overall) of the 2019 NBA draft by New Orleans. He played in 10 games last season with Detroit.
Bone also played in 31 games with Grand Rapids of the NBA G League last season.
At Tennessee, Bone played in 95 games during three seasons for the Vols.
Bone previously discussed his journey to the NBA with Vols Wire.
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According to Seth Davis of The Athletic, plans for a college basketball bubble have fallen apart.
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For the past month, the expectation for Michigan State Basketball and other college basketball programs around the country was that they would be starting their season in Orlando, Florida, in a bubble environment similar to what the NBA pulled off with great success.
The Spartans were originally slated to play the Champions Classic, and at least two more games in Orlando. On Monday, however, those plans were reportedly scrapped. This was first reported by Seth Davis of The Athletic and then confirmed by Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.
According to Davis, this was a decision made by ESPN, who was going to be hosting the college basketball bubble. The current goal, again according to Davis, is that the Champions Classic will still be held, possibly in a location like Indianapolis.
Sources: Teams that were slated to be in Orlando's early season college basketball events have been informed that there will be an official cancelation by EOB today.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) October 26, 2020
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Notre Dame hasn’t gotten a ton of love from CBS in their weekly bowl projections this season but got a boost in the latest release.
The last few weeks we’ve taken a look at the CBS bowl projections we’ve seen Notre Dame headed to what has become a familiar destination, Orlando, Florida.
Two of Notre Dame’s last three seasons have ended in Orlando with a trip to each the Capital One Bowl to cap 2017 and the Camping World Bowl to close the 2019 season.
The latest CBS projection done by Jerry Palm has a new destination for the Irish this week though, and it’s another familiar place for the Fighting Irish as it’s where their 2018 season ended.
Latest CBS Bowl Projection for Notre Dame:
Cotton Bowl vs. Oklahoma State – Dec. 30
Now this year the Cotton Bowl isn’t part of the College Football Playoff so that would be a bit disappointing for optimistic Notre Dame fans but another trip to Dallas sounds a heckuva lot better than another season ending in Orlando.
Last week we also asked how Palm could have Oregon, who can only play as many as seven games this regular season, in his College Football Playoff. This week he offered this:
One thing they have yet to do is leave an undefeated, major conference team out of the playoff. I am projecting Oregon to finish 7-0 and therefore find a spot in the CFP. Until the committee (or the Ducks) give me a reason to change that, Oregon will still be there. – Jerry Palm
I appreciate him giving the reasoning but I’ll be pretty steamed if a seven win Oregon team or any other team from the Pac-12 wound up in the College Football Playoff for that exact reason of playing so few games compared to the best in the ACC, SEC and even a couple less than those in the Big Ten.
Notre Dame has finished their season in Orlando twice in the last three years. On New Years Day 2018 it was Ian Book finding Miles Boykin late to propel Notre Dame to a Capital One Bowl victory over LSU to cap the 2017 season and finish 10-3. Then …
Notre Dame has finished their season in Orlando twice in the last three years.
On New Years Day 2018 it was Ian Book finding Miles Boykin late to propel Notre Dame to a Capital One Bowl victory over LSU to cap the 2017 season and finish 10-3.
Then last December it was Notre Dame laying down the hammer on Iowa State, 33-9 as the Irish capped the 2019 year with an 11-2 record and winners of the Camping World Bowl.
Now if CBS is correct in their early bowl projections, it’d be yet another trip to Orlando for Notre Dame to end the 2020 college football season.
CBS released their latest bowl projections this week and they have Notre Dame again headed to Orlando to play a Big 12 opponent for the second straight postseason.
CBS Bowl Projection – 10/6/2020
Cheez-It Bowl
Notre Dame vs. TCU
Notre Dame fans are hoping for a return trip to the College Football Playoff but would clearly be pretty upset if 2020 ended without an appearance even in the New Year’s Six.
Notre Dame and TCU have played in football just once as the Irish beat the Horned Frogs 21-0 in 1972.
There is a way to become a virtual fan for the Philadelphia 76ers in the Orlando restart.
The Philadelphia 76ers are getting set to resume the 2019-20 season inside the bubble in Orlando. While there is excitement about the season resuming and the Sixers having a new shot at winning an NBA championship, the absence of the fans will be felt at Disney World.
So, the league is trying to compensate by allowing fans virtually on video boards around the arena that the teams are playing in. The NBA is teaming up with MICHELOB Ultra and Microsoft to make this happen and the Microsoft company described how it will all work in their blog post:
In partnership with the NBA, we are announcing a reimagined fan experience powered by a new feature in Microsoft Teams called Together mode. Together mode uses AI segmentation technology to bring people together into a shared background like a conference room, coffee shop, or arena.
Using scientific principles of cognition and social perception, Together mode is more than a virtual background — it makes being together virtually actually feel like being together in-person. It’s easy to maintain natural eye contact, for instance, or register fellow participants’ emotions as they react to what’s happening — whether it’s a meeting announcement, a class presentation, or the sight of a favorite NBA player about to score a 3-pointer.
The objective is simple for Microsoft and the league. There is nothing normal about this situation and they are trying to do their best to make this a little more familiar for players.
Microsoft added:
This new experience — the first to go live as a result of the NBA/Microsoft partnership — gives participating fans the feeling of sitting next to one another at a live game without leaving the comfort and safety of their homes.
Players, meanwhile, will experience their energy and support as they dribble down the court and see fans’ real-time reaction. And viewers tuning in to the game from home will feel the crowd’s energy as well as they see the virtual stands filled with fans.
Nothing will exactly replace the passionate Philadelphia fan base, but if there is an option to boo the players for when the time calls for it, then they will definitely take advantage of the opportunity.
The Sixers resume their season on Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. EST against the Indiana Pacers. [lawrence-related id=35939,35933,35920]
The Philadelphia 76ers coaching staff is impressed with how the NBA has handled the bubble down in Orlando.
On March 11, the NBA season went into an indefinite hiatus. The novel coronavirus had hit the league and it caused a lot of disruption for everybody involved. There was still a season to finish though and commissioner Adam Silver had to figure out a way to safely return to play in the middle of a pandemic.
Months and months went by and it was filled with looking at data from scientists and input from managing partners, players, and general managers. After a few months, the league agreed on a bubble idea inside of Disney World to have 22 teams resume the season and get back at it. There would be no fans and there would be tons of safety measurements to be implemented.
On Friday, the Philadelphia 76ers played in their first scrimmage game of the restart and coach Brett Brown was impressed with how the bubble has worked and how it has been great for his players to get back in the swing of things and being competitive again.
“Just to see the guys and watch the interactions in the locker room, everybody can’t believe how spectacular the NBA has been on pulling this off to date,” said Brown pregame on Friday. “It is just wildly efficient, wildly professional, and so all those things equal a sense of familiarity with what we have been used to. Our guys feel it and we’re excited to go play again.”
The team’s neuromuscular therapist, Doris Matel, also was impressed with the way the bubble is set up. After all of the work she has to perform on the players after practice and helping them recover from long arduous practices, she enjoys her set up at her hotel with the balcony and the fishing that’s available.
She told Mark Medina of USA Today:
It’s great here. The setup is pretty cool and I like our hotel. We have a balcony, so there was access to getting outside even when we were in quarantine. We have a restaurant open for breakfast and dinner. We have food three to four times during the day and snacks are available, so we have everything we need. Life on the campus is better than I expected. I prepared myself for the worst. I was really surprised by the effort the NBA gave to give us a sense of normalcy. It’s been a pretty good experience on my part. I’ve gone to one fishing trip. I don’t fish unless I know I’m going to eat the fish I’m going to catch.
The bubble appears to be working as there have been zero positive cases reported by the NBA since bubble life began in early July. One can only hope that remains to be the case and they can safely finish the season. [lawrence-related id=35458,35449,35400]
On the first day of scrimmages in the Orlando Bubble, Former Warrior Andre Iguodala tallied 11 points and two rebounds in 20 minutes.
After four months without basketball, players returned to the court for scrimmages prior to the NBA’s much-anticipated restart.
Although the Golden State Warriors are on the outside of the Orlando Bubble, several former members of the Bay Area basketball team will be on display at Disney World.
After helping push the Warriors to five consecutive trips to the NBA Finals, Andre Iguodala will be apart of the Miami Heat’s stretch run. Alongside Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro, the former Golden State Warriors forward suited up for a scrimmage against the Sacramento Kings.
In the Heat’s scrimmage, Iguodala tallied 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting with two rebounds, an assist and a steal in 20 minutes. In Miami’s 104-98 victory, Iguodala took a page out of Steph Curry’s book, hitting a pair of 3-pointers. Duncan Robinson led the way for the Heat, scoring 18 points on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.
View @SBRSportsPicks on Twitter:
Andre Iguodala and Tyler Herro looking strong for the Heat!#WholeNewGame #HEATCulture pic.twitter.com/ECxLErIgRN
— SBR Sports Picks (@SBRSportsPicks) July 23, 2020
Heading into the Bubble, Erik Spoelstra’s squad sits as the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, 2.5 games back from the third-seeded Boston Celtics. The former Golden State Finals Most Valuable Player and the Miami Heat play their first official game in the Orlando Bubble on Aug. 1 against the Denver Nuggets.
Iguodala will be one of 12 former members of the Golden State Warriors in action in Orlando.
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The NBA bubble in Orlando has seen a number of players hit the links, including Kemba Walker of the Boston Celtics, and J.J. Redick.
New Orleans Pelicans guard J.J. Redick played a round of golf Saturday at the Disney compound and planned another round on Sunday with the promise to shotgun a can of Bud Light if users reached 10,000 retweets.
“Didn’t expect that tweet to get 10,000 retweets,” Redick said, “but NBA Twitter never fails.”
Pelicans vice president of basketball operations David Griffin pleaded for this not to happen. But it happened alright, Redick shotgunning a beer from a portable ice bath.
Welcome to life inside the NBA bubble-like environment — an AAU-style basketball camp for millionaires. The best place to watch is on social media where players are giving behind-the-scenes access to what’s happening.
Sorry meant to post this earlier. Multitasking post practice. @budlight @NBABubbleLife pic.twitter.com/pBsau1SHoQ
— JJ Redick (@jj_redick) July 12, 2020
“When I was growing up, you had AAU days, and once the AAU season is over you go back to your respective cities and then AAU season starts back up again that next spring and it’s like you never left,” Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James said.
The Philadelphia 76ers, among other teams, went fishing on one of the Disney lakes. Star guard Ben Simmons caught a fish but didn’t know how to properly release it back into the water, dropping it on the pier as the fish flopped back into the water.
kemba gotta be the best golf hype man in the bubble 🗣⛳️🏌🏾♂️ @KembaWalker @jaytatum0 pic.twitter.com/DwGWiDN1vX
— NBA Bubble Life (@NBABubbleLife) July 13, 2020
Noted bassmaster and Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George and teammate Montrezl Harrell each landed big bass.
Los Angeles Lakers center JaVale McGee brought his bike. Milwaukee Bucks guard Kyle Korver, who confirmed to USA TODAY Sports he will wear “Black Lives Matter” on the back of his jersey, is among several players who brought golf clubs. Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse brought his guitar.
Some players posted video of taking a COVID-19 tests — with the nasopharyngeal swab collecting a sample from a nostril. And several players traveled with their gaming systems and set them up in their rooms.
“I’ve been playing video games with other guys on the team,” Lakers forward Anthony Davis said. “Everyone has brought their gaming system so we’re online playing against each other or being teammates.”
Houston’s P.J. Tucker brought an 85-inch TV. “It’s my home for the next three months,” Tucker said. “So, I have to make it as much as home as I could.”
The NBA is providing several activities, including visits to Disney attractions after hours.
“Getting outside and playing some golf was key,” Redick said. “Bubble life has been fine. I think (Memphis guard) Ja Morant said it best. The hotel is fine. The food is fine. Everything is fine. We’re here to play basketball, to further our mission. We have a responsibility and a job to do. It’s fine.”
THE BUBBLE: How NBA campus has taken shape in Orlando
The 22 teams participating in the NBA’s restart are out of quarantine and have practiced at least once in preparation for the eight-game restart on July 30.
Video emerging from practices reveal players without masks (which is allowed) and coaches wearing masks. Convention center and ballroom spaces at Disney have been turned into practice courts.
“The freedom of a gymnasium is priceless,” Sixers coach Brett Brown said. “You take off your mask and you have a basketball in your hands and you have a passport to what you remember and what brings you to a level of normalcy none of us had.”
Teams are slowly getting back into practice mode after four months off. The past four days in Orlando are among the first full-team practices since the season was suspended on March 11.
For teams expecting a deep run in the playoffs, such as the Lakers, Clippers, Raptors and Bucks, their approach may be different than a team trying to improve their seeding or get into the playoffs.
Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra conducted his press conference on Sunday wearing a mask.
“It’s a little bit different than a normal road routine,” Spoelstra said. “But we do have our team room, which also serves as our meal room and our meeting room. So we tend to be in there quite a bit. There’s a nice walking path. There’s a restaurant on campus where you can eat indoor or outdoors. We’ll continue to explore. But that team room we’ve spent a lot of time in.”
The Heat placed players’ family photos in the team room to provide a sense of comfort.
“It touched me seeing my daughter on the wall, and I’m sure it touched other players as well,” forward Jae Crowder said.
On Saturday night, Heat players watched UFC fights and played dominoes — a Jimmy Butler favorite — in the team room.
“That’s our safe haven,” Crowder said. “We get together and talk it out.”
Yes, there have been some complaints about the food and hotel rooms. And while those have gotten attention, the complaints have been minimal.
Miami’s Meyers Leonard videoed himself walking in a hallway saying he reached out to the Disney concierge service for 12-ounce cans of Coors Light. Disney can provide that, and on Sunday, Meyers joined Redick in the Shotgun Club.
Philadelphia’s visual arts expert Matisse Thybulle already produced a nine-minute video titled “Welcome To The Bubble — Day 1.” YouTube personality Casey Neistat, who has 12 million subscribers, watched it and replied to Thybulle on Twitter, “MATISSE, LETS COLLABORATE.”
Thybulle responded: “Aside from being able to play basketball again, you just made this whole bubble thing worth it. Let’s figure something out when I’m free.”
And Sixers forward Tobias Harris, who is good friends with Dallas’ Boban Marjanovic, couldn’t help notice Marjanovic hanging with someone else.
On Instagram, Harris posted a video of Marjanovic walking on a pier and said, “Look at this man, hanging out with Luka (Donic). Shhh.”
It’s early and it might not always be easy, but the players are finding a way to make this work.
Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.
This looks so dope.
Plenty of NBA players have done a lot of complaining about their situation in the league’s Disney World bubble they’re about to be stuck in for the next three months.
Whether it’s been about the food or the rooms, players have had some sort of gripe to go with it.
And, look, when you’re putting your health and well-being on the line in a situation like this while being away from your family for three months, complaints are totally understandable and even valid.
But everything doesn’t seem to be all bad! From a small peek given to us by Orlando Magic guard Terrence Ross, things actually seem pretty sweet.
Ross posted a video of the players’ lounge the NBA’s stars will have access to while staying in Orlando. And, fam, it looks absolutely fantastic.
Terrence Ross gives a first look at the players’ lounge 👀
(via @TerrenceRoss) pic.twitter.com/KDI6SITmJA
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 9, 2020
There are gaming stations, comfortable chairs, ping pong tables, arcade games, a pool table and so much more. Just imagine how many hours you could spend in a spot like that.
Who needs to go outside when all of that is available? Sheesh.
A multitude of Philadelphia 76ers players have expressed concerns over the Orlando bubble.
The good news is, the NBA is returning! After being in suspension since March 11, the league has found a way to safely resume the season at Disney World in Orlando.
The bad news is, the world is still dealing with a global pandemic and it can be tough playing under such conditions and Joel Embiid already expressed that he hated this idea. The Philadelphia 76ers will be one of the 22 teams heading down to Orlando on Thursday to resume the season and it can be tough to play this way, but in the current circumstances, this is probably the best way they can handle things.
“I don’t think we should be playing, but I think the NBA is doing all that they can to make the environment safe as possible,” said Shake Milton. “So, my teammates want to play. We’re going down there to try and get a win.”
Glenn Robinson III agreed with Milton that this is probably the best idea the NBA could come up with to keep everybody safe at the moment.
“Obviously, you see all of the stuff on social media and hear all of the talks about it, but honestly, it’s as good of a job as they can do right now,” he echoed. “We see all of the money they’re spending. Just seeing the plan, hearing the action, I don’t know if we could get better than this right now for something that we’ve never done, but it should be interesting. It’s just the unknown, if someone gets it what happens? I think all of us are just thinking like that, but in terms of the NBA, I think it’s as good a job as they can do.”
Shake Milton: “I don’t think that we should be playing.” He did add that he thinks the NBA is doing the best job it can to keep everybody safe. #Sixers
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) July 7, 2020
A few members of the Sixers roster are fathers and they will be leaving their children for a while to go play basketball in the middle of a pandemic and a huge Civil Rights movement at the moment. All of that can be tough and draining for anybody.
“We’re just going off of ‘we’ll see’,” said Mike Scott “We just can only go off of what people are saying, explaining what it’s going to be like down there, and giving us an idea of what’s to come, but we don’t really know. We’re really just going off of ‘we’ll see what happens when we get down there’. Hopefully, they’ll try and make everybody safe, but that’s how I feel. We’ll see. I don’t know anything until I get down there and see.”
The Sixers will be staying at a hotel at Disney World for weeks and possibly months depending on how far they go into the playoffs. That can be really tough for a lot of guys to stay away from their family like that.
“I think the hardest thing will be just being away from the people we love and being away from our friends and family,” said guard Raul Neto. “I think that’s the thing I’m most concerned about and I think it’s going to be the hardest for me personally, because I think the NBA is doing a great job just setting the bubble the way they did with a lot of entertainment for us, with a lot of things that we can do besides basketball, protecting us.”
It is difficult for anybody to be away from their family and friends for this long time and try to focus on doing their job and playing basketball. None of this is going to be easy for anybody in the Orlando bubble.
“It’s pretty difficult,” Josh Richardson added. “I’m not excited to be in that situation, but I’m excited to play. I’m excited to go to war with my teammates so it’s a silver lining to everything so I’m excited for it.”
Even for a veteran like Al Horford, this is all so entirely new to him. He has been in the NBA for 13 years now and his mindset is so focused on just being prepared for any challenge thrown at him while in Orlando.
“The reality is that the world has changed for all of us,” he explained. “These are things that are unexpected and you can’t predict. Now, the way that I look at it we have another opportunity. We have a reset type of button and we’re healthy as a team. For me, it’s just about being as prepared as I can.”
Philadelphia begins their biggest challenge on August 1 against the Indiana Pacers. [lawrence-related id=34358,34321,34335]
