15 Things I learned from ACC 255

1.  How to add Google ads to a site.
2.  How to create a website using freewebs.
3.  How to submit a website to search engines.
4.  How to setup an Amazon affiliate program.
5.  What Ezine articles are and how to submit them.
6.  How to add Google Analytics to a website.
7.  What CafePress is and how to use it.
8.  How to add a contact page by using kontactr.
9.  What clickbank is and how it is used.
10.  What a sneeze blog post is.
11.  How to create paypal buttons.
12.  Improved knowledge on how to create a business plan.
13.  Learned what an ebook is and why they are used.
14.  How to write better online reviews.
15.  How to create and maintain a blog on blogger.com

Promote Another Blog:LeBron James was not the first to toss chalk. That's MJ's move

For this blog post I would like promote another blog post written by Kelly Dwyer of Yahoo Sports.  The blog post can be found at this link: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/LeBron-James-was-not-the-first-to-toss-chalk-Th?urn=nba-291676

This blog does a nice job of explaining the whole tossing up the chalk in the air thing that LeBron James does and why no one talks about how Michael Jordan was actually the original one to do it.  According to the Dwyer, many people have forgot that Jordan was the originator of the ritual and used to do it in front of the legendary and late Johnny “Red” Kerr. 

The real reason that I like this blog is because Dwyer pays homage to the Kerr.  The great Bulls Broadcaster and coach had a great career with the Bulls and is a true Bulls legend.  I remember listening to Kerr announce during the golden days of the Bulls when Jordan and Pippen played.  Kerr was very insightful and at the same provided great humor to commentary whether he knew it or not.  Dwyer provides a nice recap video of Kerr’s life at the end of the blog.  Dwyer also does a nice job in talking about Kerr’s career and gives him the props that he rightfully deserves.

It’s very unfortunate for the Bulls that Kerr passed away in 2009 on the same day as Norm Van Lier.  These 2 guys were both Bulls legends and will be forever missed by all true Bulls fans.  I will always remember listening to Kerr during the game and then listening to Van Lier on the post-game.  The Bulls have since honored Kerr with a statue featuring Kerr holding a microphone.

Sneeze Page: Preseason Reviews

These are my preseason previews of the top NBA teams of the league and where they are now.

This is my sneeze page which features links to different posts that I have made in the past.  For this page I will be highlighting my team reviews and compare them to what is going on now.

Lakers
http://nbastatus.blogspot.com/2010/09/preview-back-to-back-nba-champion-la.html
The Lakers are off to solid start and my prediction on the rotation appears to be right on cue with what is going on now.  The injury to Bynum has changed the rotation a little bit but once he is back to being healthy it should go back to normal.

Celtics
http://nbastatus.blogspot.com/2010/09/preview-eastern-conference-champs.html
The Celtics are also playing well and Shaq O’Neal is staying healthy and playing better than I thought he would.  The Celtics are still waiting on the return of Kendrick Perkins and are now without Delonte West.  However, the Celtics are off to a good start and had a great start to the season beating the Heat in the season opener.

Heat
http://nbastatus.blogspot.com/2010/09/preview-miami-heat.html
The Heat have struggled a bit out of the gate much more than people thought they would have.  It appears that the big 3 are struggling to find their rhythym with each other but I am sure they will get it together.  I was wrong in thinking that Carlos Arroyo would be the 3^rd PG as he has taken the starting position all season.  The injury to Haslem has really hurt the Heat.

Mavericks
http://nbastatus.blogspot.com/2010/09/preview-dallas-mavericks.html
The Mavericks are the 2^nd best team in the West behind the Lakers right now.  One of the keys that I thought would be important for the Mavs would be defense and right now they are 4^th in the league in points allowed and 9^th in rebounding.  The Mavs will definitely compete with the Lakers for that top spot in the West.

Magic
http://nbastatus.blogspot.com/2010/09/preview-orlando-magic.html
The Magic currently have the 2^nd best record in the Eastern conference behind the Celtics.  This is due to their defensive ability starting with their big man Dwight Howard who is controlling the paint and grabbing every rebound.  Quentin Richardson has played better than I thought he would and has even moved into the starting lineup.

Review Post: Hoopshype.com

For this blog post, I am going to review hoopshype.com.  This website is a NBA rumor site that has a lot of information and is very deep filled with information and links.  For this I will write about both the positive and negative aspects of this website.

When you first visit the site you are hit with a ton of information and links to click on.  They have a scores listed from the past few games, article links, blogs of NBA writers with a picture of their face for you to visit, Twitter posts, and a rumors link.  Most people use this site for the rumors page so let’s look at that. Their rumor page is a bunch of linked snippets of articles surrounding NBA rumors from around the league.  Typically, the stories snippets are from well-respected newspapers and reliable sources.  Every now and then they feature a picture of the player that is being discussed.  They do a great job of updating their material every day and there is always numerous new stories posted every day.  The rumors aren’t always rumors but also general NBA news that might be covered nationwide.

 In addition to the rumor page, you can also see all the available free agents from around the league who haven’t been signed.  They also have every player in the NBA’s salary listed which can be interesting to see.  They also have a page where you can read all the Twitters of NBA players and sports writers.  This is a nice place to go to catch up on what your favorite players are doing at the moment and what people on twitter are talking about.

On to the negative aspects of this site.  With the rumors page the biggest issue that I have with this site is that sometimes when they post the snippets on the articles you have no idea who they are talking about.  They also break down the same article in 2 different sections on the rumor page so you think its 2 different stories but in reality its only one.  There are also quite a few ads on this page that aren’t always pleasant to the page as it makes the page seem crowded.  Their list of blogs is hardly ever updated and their Twitter page doesn’t always have the most interesting people listed.

Hoopshype.com has a lot of positive and negative aspects but at the end of the day it is a very good NBA website.  This website is great for anyone who is looking to read about the NBA as there is so much information on this site about players and news from around the league.  I would recommend this website to anyone who is looking to stay up to date about the NBA.

Visit the website at: http://hoopshype.com/

Lakes Stumble and Lose 4 Out of 5

After a hot start to the NBA season, the 2-time defending champion L.A. Lakers have lost 4 out of their last 5 games.  They were on a 4 game skid until recently beating the Kings on Friday to head into the weekend for a few days off.  Their losses include games against the Jazz, Pacers, Grizzlies, and the Rockets.  Typically, when a team goes on a losing streak it is because their defense is lacking, however with the Lakers it’s been on the offensive side of the ball.

Watching the Lakers, it appears that their offense has become stagnant and the ball is getting stuck way too much.  Because of this, Kobe has been forced to take a lot of tough shots.  Kobe also has been a little more aggressive on the offense side which has been hurting the offensive rhythm.  The Lakers need to  get big man 

Pau Gasol more involved in the offense and get him more looks.  The Lakers will be a much improved team once Andre Bynum gets back who will help sure up the defensive paint and provide rebounding on both sides of the ball.  Once Bynum returns, Lamar Odom will be able to return to the bench and help out the bench where he seems to play the best.

I don’t think you can ever really say anything about the Lakers until the playoffs based on what has happened in the past.  The Lakers have been known to coast through the playoffs and then turn it on when it comes to the playoffs.  The Lakers will continue to win games but it does appear that they will have some challengers to the top seed in the West by the Dallas Mavericks who are also off to a hot start.

Blog Review: Yahoo Sports NBA Blog "Ball Don't Lie"

In this blog I would like to review one of the better NBA blogs out there.  The blog that I would like to review is the Yahoo Sports NBA blog entitled “Ball Don’t Lie.”  The blog is written by Kelly Dwyer, Trey Kerby, Dan Devine, Eric Freeman, and Ben Collins.  I have included a link to the blog at the end of the blog post.  This blog is updated nearly every day and on some days twice a day. 

The best thing about this blog is that it is updated nearly every day and is professionally written.  They use videos, pictures, and also allow you to search for a certain topic as well as comment on each blog post.  Users have the ability to link a particular blog post to Facebook, Twitter among other social networks.  You can also subscribe to the blog as a RSS Feed.

The blog does a great job on writing on a number of different topics throughout the NBA and doesn’t just analyze.  For example, the most recent blog as I am writing this is a blog about the Dunk of the Night by Andre Iguodala and provides a video within the blog to watch it.  The posts are professionally written but are also written in a laid back read which makes it easy and fun to read.

I really like the layout of the blog as it features a search function at the top and then photos and videos along the side of the page.   They also provide links to the Yahoo Sports blogs for the NHL, NFL, MLB, Golf, among other sports.  If you are looking for a fun and interesting blog to read than ”Ball Don’t Lie” is the blog for you to follow.  They keep the topics light and interesting and provide great photos and videos for any NBA fan.

The blog can be found at the following:  http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie