Codes of the Brotherhood

"Yeah,  whatever dude!"

When you're baptized into the brotherhood there are two laws that have to be respected and they are found in  Section 1: Articles 6  & 7 of the of the Huslta's Handbook. They're as follows, "Never count another man's money!" and "Never throw salt on his opportunity to make it!' Understanding  those core principles are the keys to respecting the brotherhood.  Any one that violates them are subject to a beat down and removal from the family.

Well...Carmelo Anthony is on deck to get tapped up and evicted from the fellowship. When asked earlier this week how he felt about Houston's contract offer to Jeremy Lin he said this, “It's up to the organization to say they want to match that ridiculous contract that's out there," Anthony told reporters Sunday before practice with the U.S. Olympic team. Straight punk move Carmelo because you know the rules bruh!

The standard answer when a reporter asks you a clown question like that is to say, " I hope Lin does what's best for Lin." End of story! You never player hate on a boyz opportunity to get paid. Melo ought to be ashamed of himself for even thinking about that man's contract. This is the same cat that held Denver hostage for nearly a year and a half to force a trade to New York. If some dun would have said that he was acting like a punk during the process and that he didn't deserve his bread he would have been ready to fight in the parking lot and that's real talk!

In my opinion, he's not worth the 3 year $65 million contract that he's got because he doesn't play an ounce of defense. So he really should give half of the joint back until he starts playing  both ends of the floor. What good does it do for him to put up 38 points and give up 37 on the opposite end? That's a net of 1 point for ya'll that's checkin'!  But he has the nerve to hate on another cats money and his potential to make it.  That's why I'm trippin' off of  boyz that already know the rules of the brotherhood that are siding with Melo on this.

"That was kinda foul what I did tho!"

Let's keep it real or all the way 100, whichever comes 1st! Look at who the source is bruh! It's Melo, Mr. Selfish, the ball stopper himself! He doesn't want Lin on the squad anyway because that takes the rock out of his hands. So it only makes sense that he would player hate your boy. All professional athletes are trying to get as much guaranteed money as possible because their careers are so short. So Melo knew what the drill was and that's why he tried to clean it up on Monday by saying that he would really like to have Lin on the Knicks this year. Buster Brown throwing foul balls driving the wrong way in the HOV lane in a smart car that  tried to U-turn at the last minute. Too late bruh you've already totaled the vehicle.

That's like a guy telling a woman that she shouldn't holler at a boy because he's been known to have several women, only for him to try and date her himself. It's a straight punk move and anybody that doesn't think so needs to check his brotherhood card. It's been written in blood that the code is never to be violated. So Carmelo should be brought before the council and tapped up.

Holla At Ya Boy!
Jay Graves
Get @ me on Twitter: @jaygravesreport

"New York Arrogance"

Doesn't matter where I play! As long as the money's green!"

Back in 1975 a couple of cats from the Bronx named DJ Hollywood and his partner Cool Herc started talking over the break beats of records in a rhyme flow at a joint called Club 357.  They soon began plugging their DJ equipment into the street light posts and the Block Party was invented. In 1980 the first recorded rap record was released on Sugarhill Records by the Sugarhill Gang and the genre known as rap music was born. Music execs said that is was just a passing fad and that it would only last a few years. Now it has been incorporated into our every day lives whether we like it or not. It's used to sell everything from food to sneakers and New York gets all the credit for inventing it.

Remember when cats from New York thought because they invented rap that they were the only ones that could do it? When guys from other parts of the country started putting it down they got mad and started saying that it wasn't real hip hop. New York hasn't ran the rap game since the early to mid '90's and boyz wanna to forget that Death Row was in the Finals too! But what blows me away is that if you didn't know any better you'd think that they invented basketball too.

That New York arrogance has kept them from winning a championship since 1973 when the Knicks won their last joint. That same arrogance cost them Jeremy Lin over the weekend. The Houston Rockets offered the restricted free agent a 3 year $25 million deal and all NY had to do was match it. The deal breaks down like this; in year one he would get $5 million, in the second $5.22 million and in the third $14.8 million. However, because of the NBA luxury tax that third year Lin would cost the Knicks $30 million. That New York arrogance kicked in and they decided that he wasn't worth that type of bread. So they signed Raymond Felton! Who? You heard me bruh!

I've been saying for years that players don't win championships, organizations do. That's why I wrote the Hot Joint entitled "The Firm." New York has been terribly run for years and that's why they can't win. Could they have won a title with Lin? Absolutely not! Could they have made a fortune with him on the floor? Absolutely!  Now all what I want to know is who was the genius that was doing the math and pulled the trigger on not signing him? He said that at no point would Lin be worth $30 million to the organization.

Do you know how many people of Asian descent are in this world bruh? Do you realize just how much money they just gave Houston because they were too arrogant to smell it? I heard Stephen A. Smith on ESPN yesterday, a New York cat, saying that the Knicks front office thought that Lin was dogging it during the playoffs on the injury and that he could have played.

However, he got the big head and wouldn't play in fear of risking further injury. Stephen A. then tried to compare Lin to D Wade who was clearly hurt during the playoffs but played through it. Bruh, D Wade is already rich and has made 9 years worth of bread. Jeremy Lin made the league minimum last year of like $652K that was prorated at that because he didn't play the entire season. He was picked up 20 games in!

 You can't be drinking that much New York Kool Aid to think that Lin would care more about New York than getting paid? If he'd done further damage to his injury we'd be talking about this cat's 15 minutes of fame and he'd be working a regular job now. In case you didn't know bruh, he went to Harvard! That means that he's smart. That dun was sitting on the bench during the playoffs counting that money while New Yorker's were trippin' that he wasn't on the floor. It's called professional basketball for a reason son.

Because of your arrogance you just hand delivered Houston more bread than they can count. Lin will be like a traveling road show, a TV ratings dream, an apparel company's gold mine  and a ticket salesman's treasure chest. Ya'll just gave all of that to Houston and they said with a huge smile, "thanks sucka's!" They made that $30 million up this weekend bruh! By the time that third year shows up they'll be so far ahead on money and popularity that they just might be ready to compete for legit superstar free agents that could help them compete for a title. Why, because cats may be willing to come to Houston because of the hype surrounding the popularity of the team. Why, because of the acquisition of Jeremy Lin years before.

 Is he a great player? Absolutely not but he'll start on the Western Conference All-Star team the next 3 years! Why, because of the Asian following that he's got and they make up the majority of the population on the planet bruh and the fans vote for the starters. Just ask Yao Ming what does it mean for Houston? Bread!!!

New York just gave away a gold mine because they thought it was 1980 and it was rap game. They thought at the time that because they invented it they'd always own it. Now 32 years later Jay-Z is the last man standing pulling a Kobe because he's got the entire city on his back. I can hear Rick Ross' "Everyday I'm Hustlin" or better yet DJ Khaled's "All I Do Is Win" joint bumpin' to remind boyz who's got the mic right now in the NBA and they ain't trying to give it up for a while.

Holla At Ya Boy!
Jay Graves
Get @ me on Twitter: @jaygravesreport

Cuz It's All Business!

Lin should be an All-Star this weekend cuz it's all business!

The NBA All-Star Weekend is the league's premier showcase of the year. It's when all of the games biggest talents are on stage for the world to see. The weekend is filled with other exciting events that include the Dunk Contest, the Rookie/Sophomore Game, the 3 Point Shoot Out and the Alumni Game. Not to mention all of the celebrity parties that will be held just for added measure. Orlando will truly be where dreams come true for real this weekend.

I'm as hyped as the next person to see it all play out. However, why isn't the most popular guy in the NBA not on the Eastern Conference All-Star team? The guy that has taken the world by storm and I mean that literally. Jeremy Lin is like the Beatles right now bruh! He should have been added to the starting line up in light of what he's done over the past three weeks. Throw the rules out of the window bruh!

Yeah, I know that he wasn't on the All-Star ballot at the beginning of the season which included sixty players from each conference: 24 guards, 24 forwards and 12 centers for the East and West. They had only played 20 games by the time the East and West All-Stars were named. Lin should however be an exception to the rule because of his worldwide popularity. He's taken the Asian market by storm with his Taiwanese decent and that's worth millions of dollars to the league. It is called professional basketball for a reason bruh!

Let's keep it real the "Linsanity" phenomenon is the hottest ticket in sports right now and quite honestly he deserves to be a starter on the Eastern Conference team for that reason. The All-Star Game is merely a popularity contest and who’s more popular than Lin right now. Since the starters are selected by the fans he could easily be a starter because everybody wants to see Jeremy Lin play. If Magic Johnson could be added to the West All-Star team and win the MVP in 1992 without even being in the league. Then surely Jeremy Lin could be added to the roster after going on an 8 game rock star shooting spree because the NBA can make ridiculous paper off of him. There are millions of dollars to be made in the Asian television market by putting him on the floor. This has nothing to do with who's better or who deserves to play. It's about who's worth more money to the league.

According to Elias Sports Bureau only four players since the NBA-ABA merger have scored more points in their first eight career starts than Lin’s 200. Those players are Bernard King, Shaquille O’Neal, Brandon Jennings and the greatest of player ever to lace them up, Michael Jordan. Also Lin has more points 200 and assists 76 during that period of time than some of the best point guards in history. He has more than Isiah Thomas 184-51, Magic Johnson 147-57 and John Stockton 80-82. I only give you the stats to give you an understanding of why he's so popular to this point. Look, I'm not trying to put him in the Hall of Fame. I'm just saying that for the first half of this season he's clearly a fan favorite and should be an All-Star.

 Magic retired in November of '91 just as the season was about to start due to his diagnosis of HIV. So he wasn't even in the league when David Stern stepped in and allowed him to play in the All-Star Game and that had to have upset a lot of players. Not because he was HIV positive but because he wasn't even in the league and somebody missed an opportunity to play because of it. Yeah boyz said they were cool with it but the cat that got left off of the team wasn't I'll bet you that. If you're retired then you're retired bruh! You can't show up and bum rush some body's spot and act like it was OK just because the commissioner and your superstar homeboys in the league were cool with it.

At least Jeremy Lin is in the league and bustin' heads for the world to see right now. Magic wasn't in the league when the rules were bent for him to play. By no means am I comparing Lin to Magic other than why the rules can be ignored. Quit trippin’ Stern and put this kid on the Eastern Conference All-Star team as a starter and make this money. Not only do the faithful NBA fans want to see it but the Asian market will put major money behind the decision to put him of the floor. Do you realize how much the Asian markets would pay for Ad space overseas?

After all, the Dunk Contest is going to be garbage again this year because the best dunkers in the game refuse to participate unlike they did when guys like Jordan, Dominique and Clyde would get down. Save the drama bruh because the contest last year had one dunk and Blake Griffin jumped over the hood of a KIA. Not the top of it but the hood. How difficult was that? It was like jumping over 5 four year olds. Like my man Patrick Henry once said, "Give me liberty or give me death!" Well give me Linsanity or give me nothing on All-Star Weekend.

Holla At Ya Boy!
Jay Graves
Hit me up on Twitter: @jaygravesreport

Finally Hungry Enough!

"So this is what it feels like to be hungry, huh?"

Cinderella represents one who unexpectedly achieves recognition or success after a period of obscurity and neglect. She finally got the opportunity to roll with the big dawgs and showed up in all of the latest gear, riding in a carriage with 26 inch rims and a sound system that could be heard throughout the kingdom. However, at midnight the joint suddenly turned into a pumpkin as she was trying to get back to the crib. The only thing that remained from that night was her little glass slipper.

The story of Jeremy Lin has been phenomenal and I hope that it continues for him. However, if I was his agent right now I'd buy him a little glass slipper to put in his locker and to carry with him in his bag on road trips so that he understands the sense of urgency that is at hand. He's got to stay focused on the task and not buy into the hype whatsoever. So far he's done that!

According to Forbes, Lin is estimated to be worth $15 million dollars because of the sudden interest in him. However, that money hasn't made its way to him yet. That's why if his agent is worth his weight in his license he'd be out there hustling for every endorsement deal he can find. Lin should only be doing 4 things right now; eating, playing ball, sleeping and shooting commercials!

On days that he's not playing he should still be shooting; not basketballs but photos and commercials. He's in New York for crying out loud. It ain't hard to get in front of people bruh! That's why they call it Madison Ave. When you ride down the street all you here is that Junior Mafia "Get Money" bumpin' from the skyline. Lin's gotta get in on some of that action.

His salary is $762,195, all of which is now guaranteed. Since this season is shortened, Lin is really only making about 80% of that, which is $609,756. His contract was just recently guaranteed by the Knicks on February 10, 2012 (the date set by the collective bargaining agreement as the deadline that teams had to make the decision to cut a player or guarantee his contract). Now that's unbelievable money if he was working on some job in the real world but this is the NBA and that’s peanuts.

Obviously, you can't expect the Knicks to pay him several million dollars right now because they had all of the leverage three weeks ago. He was sleeping on his brother’s couch for crying out loud. If they could have they would have offered him $300K but the Collective Bargaining Agreement wouldn't allow it.

So the plan needs to be for his agent to put on that Wu-Tang Clan "C.R.E.A.M." and ride all day. Don't come back until you've got Jeremy's bread. Then do the same thing again the following day but I want to hear you bumpin' that Puff Daddy & the Family "It's All about the Benjamin’s!" If it starts to skip put on that The Notorious B.I.G. featuring Ma$e & Puff Daddy "Mo' Money, Mo' Problems!" But whatever you gotta do, get Jeremy Lin his paper because he’s allergic to pumpkin pie bruh!

I hear you saying that Lin's jersey was one of the top selling joints of the past couple of weeks so he's getting money for that right? Wrong! In the NBA, the total receipt from jersey sales are lumped into one big pool and then all the players are paid equally from that pool. So for example, Detroit’s Vernon Macklin gets the same amount as LeBron and will give LeBron mad love for putting some additional bread in his pocket when he runs into him. So therefore, Lin's money isn’t going to change just because his jersey is being sold.

Now I know some clown Knicks fan is reading this and saying, "Lin just needs to concentrate on basketball and not worry about the money!" Worrying about the money is what got 90% of the guys in the league their major contracts in the first place bruh. Don't think for one minute kids in the hood want to play in the NBA because of basketball. They wanted to get out of the hood, eat and take care of Big Momma and nem first and foremost and then play basketball. Don’t get it twisted.

The only reason Jeremy Lin was at Harvard in the first place with ALL of that talent was because he wasn't worrying about the money when he went off to college. His parents were probably loaded because they don't give athletic scholarships to play in the Ivy League bruh and it costs a fortune to go there. What does all of that mean? He wasn't as hungry as the guys that he was competing with when he first came into the league. That’s why he was in the D-league bruh! He has an economics degree from Harvard. He wasn't approaching playing basketball with the same intensity as everybody else on the floor. He was going to eat regardless.

Do you think that he woke up one morning a few weeks ago and all of a sudden learned how to play basketball? No, he just woke up hungry and tired of sleeping on his brother’s couch! Now he's able to compete with other hungry cats! Most kids from the suburbs never make it because they aren't as hungry as the guy standing in front of them!

As long as Lin can keeps showing up with his stomach growling bumpin' that Bone Thugs & Harmony "For The Love of Money" everyday and looking at that glass slipper he'll be all right! You better believe that guys like Mello, LeBron and others that grew up poor can remember the social worker by first name bruh. They remember not being able to eat some nights or sleeping on the floor every night for safety reasons because of the gun play in the streets. If you've never experienced that and you show up to compete against guys that have, it's like trying to take raw meat from a lion. It’s nearly impossible to do! Once Lin balls out of control and get's his money. Then he can bump that Jermaine Dupree featuring JayZ "Money Ain't A Thang!" Now money may not ever be the motivator for him but he better find something to keep his stomach growling!

Holla At Ya Boy!
Jay Graves
Hit me up on Twitter: @jaygravesreport