Musicians announce Founders Club

December 23, 2005 - World Basketball Association (WBA)
Murfreesboro Musicians News Release


The Murfreesboro Musicians Professional Basketball Team is the first Professional Sports Franchise in Rutherford County and surrounding areas. We will be tipping off our first season in April 2006 with a 30 game season schedule (16 home/14 away games).

A 6'6 former pro basketball guard and noted Grammy Award nominated jazz Musician, Ben Tankard (who now works with NBA Player Development), serves as Musicians General Manager. He along with Team President and noted Murfreesboro dentist, Dr. Aldrich T. Perry, have brought in top veteran Head Coach, Steve Tucker to lead the Murfreesboro Musicians to the WBA Championship. Coach Tucker is one of the premier basketball coaches in Pro Basketball.

The World Basketball Association (WBA) is a minor league system to the NBA, and was formed as a development league to prepare and propel talented players to the NBA and other professional leagues. The WBA and the Musicians are committed to bringing Professional Sports back to the Youth of America and their Families at a price they can afford. Tickets start at $10.00! (Great savings compared to NBA games, which run $45.00 to $450.00 per ticket. The Atlanta Hawks and Memphis Grizzlies are 3-4 hours drive away).

MUSICIANS FOUNDERS CLUB

The Musicians Founders Club was established to help underwrite ticket giveaways to YOUTH as well as to fund special programs in the community lik youth camps, clinics, read-a-thons, etc. Founders Club members can also use tickets as incentives for their employees and clients. Everyone wins when you join the Founders Club for $999.00! Contact our Sales Department today.

Founders Club Members Get:

* 10 tickets donated by you to a charitable organization or to your employees for 1 game

* 2 Courtside Season Tickets

* Certificate of Membership & ID Card

* Official Murfreesboro Musicians T-Shirt

* An Official WBA Basketball (autographed by the Musicians Players & Staff)

* Free Concessions at Home Games

* Your Name & Business Posted on the Musicians Website

* 1/2 page ad in the Musicians Media Guide

* Your Names will appear on the Musicians Founders Club Banner hung at all Musicians Home Games

All this for only $999.00! Best Value! Call Today, only a limited number of Founders Club Certificates will be given.

FOUNDERS CLUB MISSION STATEMENT

The WBA is a Professional Basketball League with high standards and presents a high quality product both on and off the basketball court in the community and surrounding areas. We are committed to the professional experience! Therefore our Pro Basketball Franchise will hire and utilize NBA caliber players, coaches, and staff who truly recognize the fan as a priority! We are creating an "ENVIROMENT-OF-EMPOWERMENT FOR CHILDREN."

For further information about becoming a Musicians Founders Club Member, just contact the Musicians Offices. Customized sponsorship packages are also available. Call now to get your company exposed...

GET PLUGGED IN! GO MUSICIANS!!!

SPONSORSHIP & ADVERTISEMENTS

* Customized sponsorship packages are available ranging from $199.00 - $19,999.00

* Courtside Rotational Signage

* Team Bench, Wall Marquees, or Banner Signage

* Score Table Signage

* Website Banner & Advertising

* Musicians Bus Signage

* Ticket Signage

* Game Promotions & Give-A-Ways

And Much More... Contact the Musicians Today & GET PLUGGED IN! GO MUSICIANS!!!

Call: #615/207-6292 or #615/995-5171

GET INVOLVED WITH YOUR CITIES & COUNTIES ONLY PROFESSIONAL SPORTS FRANCHISE, YOUR MURFREESBORO MUSICIANS

Murfreesboro Musicians Pro Basketball 1510 Memorial Blvd. Suites 101-103 Murfreesboro, TN 37129 Phone: #615/207-6292 or #615/995-5171 Fax: #615/523-8381 Official Musicians Website: www.musicianproball.com League Website: www.wbaball.net

MUSICIANS TO HOLD FIRST TRYOUT CAMP ON JANUARY 28, 2006: Head Coach and Director of Basketball Operations-Steve Tucker announces our Murfreesboro Musicians First Open Tryout Camp! Jan. 28, 2006, 8am-5pm at Sports Com Recreation Center, 2310 Memorial Blvd., Murfreesboro, TN 37129, Sports Com Phone Number-#615/895-5040 (all inquiries about the camp call the number below). Registration is $100 in advance or $150 walk up registation fee on the day of the camp. For further Info call: Ph: #615-207-6292 or Email: musiciansproball@aol.com

"Come Show Your Stuff At The First Musicians Tryout Camp!"

COACH TUCKER TO WRITE FOR NRV SPORTS.COM

Murfreesboro Musicians Director of Basketball Operations & Head Coach, Steve Tucker will be writing for the Coaches Corner on NRV Sports.com (www.nrvsports.com) during the upcoming basketball season. "It is really a pleasure and an honor to have this opportunity to write for this excellent sports website. A good friend of mine, John Hale, who has done an outstanding job of developing this website for the New River Valley area in Virginia asked me to do this. I've known John for years and he is on my mailing list for my Hoops Report USA Newsletter and now for our Musicians Newsletter & Courtside Special News Editions. I have been very impressed with NRV Sports.com and I'm now excited to be a part of what they're doing with this website. I will primarily be writing columns on the NBA & the ACC. I've already written a Preview for ACC Basketball for this season and an overview of the NBA Season thus far. I'll be writing bi-weekly and weekly updates about the ACC & NBA throughout this basketball season." states Murfreesboro Musicians Director of Basketball Operation & Head Coach, Coach Steve Tucker.

So do log on and check out www.nrvsports.com and make sure you read the Coaches Corner, which now features Coach Steve Tucker's views on the NBA, ACC, and Pro & College Hoops in general.

COACHES CORNER:

PLAYER PERSONNEL CRITERIA By Coach Steve C. Tucker Director Of Basketball Operations/Head Coach

In locating player personnel, it is imperative that we find the best players that fit the mold of what we are looking for in a player and a person. Not everyone fits into this mold and we must carefully screen the players that we are interested in to make sure that they fit every characteristic that we set forth in looking for the players who will fill our roster. This is difficult at times, for it is very hard to find players who fit into the mold of every area we look for in a player. It takes patience, hard work, and meticulous checking. There can be no short cuts in this most important area, for that is the surest way to fail! It is easy to find talented players, for at this level all players have talent! Now is their talents on the same level as the players within our League? That is one of the questions we must answer! But their are so many other areas we must look at in filling the player personnel needs for our Professinal Basketball Franchise:

ABILITY: As I mentioned before, players at this level must be able to play the game of basketball at a high level of skill & athleticism! There is no substitute for ability!!! Players either have the level of skill we are lookng for or they don't. You cannot give a player ability! And you must carefully evaluate a players skill level before you move on with the process of looking at this player to see if he fits the mold of a player that we want as a part of our Team & Franchise.

WORK ETHIC: We want players on our Team who are going to work hard both in games and in practices. There is no substitute for hard work, and any time we are on the playing court we want our players working to improve their individual skills, so they can help our Team become the best it can be. We must have players who will push themselves and who have great desire & internal drive! We don't want a player who only plays hard when our coaching staff is pushing him, but we want players who will push themselves. Those are the kinds of players who "WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS!!!"

PLAYERS WHO ARE COACHABLE: Our players will be coachable! They will be open to coaches working with them in every way. We will only be successful if a player allows us to coach him to improve his skills, and if the players on our Team allow us as coaches to mold them into a fine tuned unit that works well together in every way! Then & only then, we will allow ourselves the opportunity to achieve Success as a Team.

CHARACTER: We want Players with Character on our Team, and not players who are characters!!! You only succeed with players of High Character! Every player who is a part of our Team & Franchise will have Great Character that is condusive to Winning! They must be Responsible, Trustworthy, Morally Sound, Honest, and Loyal!!! There will be no room on our Team or within our Franchise for anyone who does not fulfill all of these most important characteristics.

GOOD CITIZENS & ROLE MODELS: Any player within our Team must represent our Franchise with Honor & Integrity both on and off the playing court! We want players who will represent our Professional Basketball Franchise well in our community, and who will be looked up to by everyone who follows and supports our Pro Hoops Team.

PLAYERS WITH HEART, DRIVE, & COURAGE: We want players with Big Hearts, who Drive Themselves, and Will our Team to "WIN!" There is no greater element in a True Warrior & Winner than Heart and Drive!!! For this player, never gives into defeat, and he always finds a way to "WIN!" We want players who have Courage, who are not afraid to look straight at failure with no fear of it, and who will push themselves & their teammates beyond failure and to Success...

TEAM PLAYERS: We want Players who are Happier for a Teammates Success than their very own!!! Players like that will work with all other players on our Team with one ultimate goal in mind, and that is the Success of our Basketball Team! Unselfish players like this make up Special Teams, and that is what WE want to have! For Special Teams, "WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS", and that is what WE want to do; "WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS, TROPHIES, & SET A STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR ALL OTHERS TO FOLLOW..."

WINNERS: We look for players who have a Winning Background, and who have been a part of Winning Teams & Programs! Those kinds of players expect to Win, and will always do what it takes to Win! Winning is habit forming, unfortuately so is losing! We only want Winners on our Team and within our Franchise, who will accept nothing less than being "THE BEST!"

PLAYERS WHO ARE TOUGH: Along with ability must be Toughness! We want players who will not back down from any challenge of any kind! Our players must have both Mental & Physical Toughness. They must be able to adapt to every situation, and find a way to overcome adversity. I have seen during my career & I know you have too players who had great skills, but who were weak mentally, physically, or both in reference to toughness. Those players most always fail on a consistent basis! Players that make up our Team will be both Mentally & Physically Tough! They will accept the challenge and work in every way to Adapt & Overcome whatever confronts him or our Team.

PLAYERS WHO WANT TO BE PART OF A TEAM: Players on our Team must be players who want to be part of a Team & Family! Our entire Professional Basketball Franchise is a Basketball Family!!! Every Player on our Team will have a role that will be defined & communicated to him by our Coaching Staff.

For our Team to reach our Goals as a Team and to achieve Success, every Player must be willing to accept his role on our Team! He must put everything else aside in our quest to be the best Professional Basketball Team & Franchise within our League!

So as you can see, it is difficult to find players who possess all of these qualities! But when you do, you truly have a Special Player, and Special Players make up Special Teams!!! Fortunately during my coaching career I have been able to locate, recruit, sign, & coach many players like the ones I have described for you. Now, I'm not going to try to make you believe that every player I've coached has been just like this and fits all of these catagories, but the ones who have stayed with me have! I do not settle for anything less than what I've laid out for you here! I am Honest, Loyal, Consistent, & Straight Forward with everyone within our Organization. I am demanding, and I will not settle for less than the best a player can offer our Team & Franchise! Those players who do not fulfill the areas laid out above end up playing somewhere else or not playing at all. I will Guarantee you that our Team will always Play Hard & Together. We will work as "ONE" in our Efforts & Drive to "WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS..."

WBA NEWS:

2006 Black College All-Star Game To Be Played As Double-Header With NBA's Hawks In March... Atlanta, Georgia (December 13, 2005) --

The World Basketball Association (WBA) Foundation will host its third annual Black College All-Star Classic on Sunday, March 19, 2006 in conjunction with the NBA's Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena. The game will have a tape-delayed broadcast on Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast. "This event showcases the top players from historically Black Colleges around the country," said Leroy McMath, President and Chairman of the World Basketball Association. "These players are often overlooked so we are providing an outlet for them to be seen by both U.S. and International scouts to further their careers in the game of basketball." This year's showcase will be held at Philips Arena following an NBA regular season game between the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic. The Black College All-Star Classic is tentatively scheduled for 4:30 pm EST. The mission of the event is to create an avenue for athletes who have not only achieved academically, but also who have displayed superior athletic ability throughout their collegiate career. "We are thrilled to partner with the World Basketball Association to continue to make the Black College All-Star Classic a first-class event," said Bernie Mullin, President and CEO of Atlanta Spirit, LLC, parent company of the Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Thrashers and Philips Arena. "We invite fans to join us for an entertaining showcase of these terrific athletes and welcome everyone to take advantage of this unique doubleheader at Philips Arena." Tickets will go on sale later this season and fans will have the opportunity to attend both the Hawks Game and Black College All-Star Classic. For more information on the Black College All-Star Classic, please visit its official web site at www.bcasclassic.com or the official web site of the World Basketball Association at www.wbaball.net.

BASKETBALL NEWS:

Kobe Lights Up Mavs for Career-Best 62 Points Scores Franchise-Record 30 in Third Quarter, Sits Out Fourth By JOHN NADEL, AP Sports

E-mail pho

LOS ANGELES (Dec. 20) - Two nights after a most annoying loss, Kobe Bryant took out his anger and frustration the poor Dallas Mavericks.

Bryant was at his incredible best Tuesday night, scoring a career-high 62 points in just three quarters to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 112-90 victory over the Mavericks.

The 27-year-old Bryant, who brought a 31.3-point average into the game, shot 18-of-31, including 4-of-10 from 3-point range, and made 22 of 25 foul shots while playing only 33 minutes.

When he left the game, he had outscored the Mavericks by himself, 62-61.

"I was so frustrated by the loss the other night I was going to will us to victory," Bryant said, referring to a 76-74 loss to the Houston Rockets. Bryant scored 24 points in that game - a total he matched in the first 16 1/2 minutes against the Mavericks.

"I was very angry, I felt like I wanted to come out and send a message, that we're going to dominate at home," he said. "We're going to hit you, we're going to bring it to you. I wanted to send that message."

Message received.

"We had no answer for him," Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said. "We tried to double-team him, we tried to zone him, we tried to trap him in the backcourt, and nothing worked. He had his way with us tonight."

Bryant scored 15 points in the first quarter, 17 in the second, and a franchise-record 30 in the third before taking a seat for good with the Lakers leading 95-61.

"I just felt like I could continue to attack these guys," Bryant said. "It was just determination, take it to them. It's definitely the best scoring game I've ever had."

The previous Lakers record for points in a quarter was 24 shared by Bryant and Hall of Famers Jerry West and Elgin Baylor.

Riley's Return No Surprise By Coach Steve Tucker , NRV Sports.com Writer Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Since their Game 7 loss to the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals, it has been rumored that coaching legend, Pat Riley would return to once again walk the sidelines and lead the Miami Heat. Yesterday it happened! Riley himself more than said last summer that he missed coaching, and then denied it to protect his longtime assistant coach and friend, Stan Van Gundy. Van Gundy is what is called a lifer as a coach and worked his way up through the coaching ranks in the NBA as an assistant coach. Van Gundy more than deserved the opportunity to be Head Coach of the Heat when Riley stepped down suffering from burn out two seasons ago.

Coach Stan Van Gundy did a good job with the Heat leading the Heat to a 42-40 record his first season and a place in the NBA Playoffs, and then last season leading Miami to 59 wins and to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they ran into Defending NBA Champion, the Detroit Pistons. If Dwayne Wade does not get hurt in that series, it could have been the Heat in the NBA Finals vs the San Antonio Spurs. But fate intervened and with Wade & Shaquille O'Neal hobbling, the Heat fell to the Pistons in 7 games. That failure led to rumors surfacing about a Riley return and has hovered over Van Gundy ever since! Yesterday the clouds burst and Riles returned refreshed from his layoff and ready to win another NBA Championship.

It was obvious with silent rumors and rumblings that there were players in the Heat organization that favored Riley as a coach and who had doubts that Van Gundy was the coach that could lead them to an NBA Championship! Many felt that O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning (who had starred for Riley in his first stint with the team) wanted Riley back. But there was also those who felt that Dwayne Wade favored Van Gundy, who has been his coach since entering the NBA. So behind the scenes there seemed to be a power struggle going on and many going to Riley (as president of the Heat) on both sides to give their feelings and views!

Situations like these are not uncommon in a professional sports franchises. Most times these situations are kept quiet and with Riley being a former coach, it is a natural that he kept this quiet, for I'm sure in his mind, this was a family matter, for coaches view a team & franchise as a true family situation, and it is common to keep things of this nature in house!

Clearly Pat Riley has been torn about this for months as well. There is no doubt that Riley wanted to come back to coach, but his good friend and protegee still wanted to coach too. How could Riley, who is known for his loyalty and high standards make this change and not go against the things he believes in wholeheartedly! That has obviously been the dilemma that he has faced since last summer and has been looking for a way to make a change without hurting his reputation as a coach and man!

The window may have opened when O'Neal went down with an ankle injury in the second game of the season and led to him missing 18 games. The Heat have struggled going 11-10 under Van Gundy thus far this season. As well, newly acquired Antione Walker and Jayson Williams have seemed lost in the Heat scheme in every phase of the game this season. It seems obvious when Riley retooled this team in the off-season and acquired these two NBA misfits (in Walker & Williams) that this was a team that was better suited for Coach Pat Riley than Coach Stan Van Gundy. Riley has made a living straightening out such players as Walker and Williams. So the signs of an eventual return were there all along.

Recently, Wade has seemed to become frustrated with the way things were going with the Heat this season, for he and Mourning have carried the Heat since O'Neal went down with his injury. Wade seemed frustrated with losing and with the lack of consistency with this season's Heat. This may have wavered his support for Van Gundy and may have given Riley his last piece to slide through the window of opportunity that had opened with Shaq's injury and with the Heat underachieving. So the stage was set and all that was left was a sit down with Van Gundy to work out an exit and return scenario to be acted out over the next few seasons.

It is suspicious that Riley would return as Shaq returns and with the Heat finally being at full strength! It is obvious that there is much more to this story than what is being presented or that anyone will ever know. One thing is for certain, Pat Riley is once again back where he belongs and that is on the sidelines leading the Miami Heat, a franchise that he took over in the mid-1990's and built in his vision both on and off the basketball court. He is also a man that gave a young NBA assistant coach the opportunity to be a Head Coach in the NBA! It is as well for sure that he has and will take care of Stan Van Gundy, and you can bet, that with this plan that there is a plan for Van Gundy to one day return as Miami Heat Head Coach. For years now, it has been believed that the Heat Head Coaching Position was Van Gundy's on loan anyway and that Riley would one day return. It has never sat well with Riley on how he left the game, for if not for Mourning's kidney illness and ultimate transplant, the Heat would have continued forward as a dominate team in the Eastern Conference. Yet, without Mourning and with little room to move within the NBA Salary Cap, Riley was imprisoned with mediocrity, and that wore on him, and ultimately led to him stepping away from the game.

It'll be debated by the so called experts on what occurred in Miami on Monday, but take it for what it is, and that is that an Ol' Hoops Coach came back to take back what was rightfully his and to finish a job that he started long ago. Along with that was a younger coaches loyalty to his mentor, and his willingness to step aside to allow that Legendary Coach to finish his Legacy in the NBA in the right way, and on his terms.

In the end, it'll be fun watching Coach Pat Riley with that hair slicked back and in those dynamic suites patrolling the Heat Sidelines. With that and the best tandem in professional basketball on court in Shaq & D-Wade, this could be the beginning of a fairytale story that may end in June with an NBA Championship coming to the Miami Heat!

COURTSIDE:

Texas Tech's Knight Still Intense as Career Winds Down

Season No. 40 Off to Rough Start as Coach Chases 880 Wins By BETSY BLANEY, AP Sports

LUBBOCK, Texas (Dec. 20) - It's been quite an unusual 40th season for Texas Tech coach Bob Knight so far: His successor has already been picked, he's off to his worst start in a decade, but he's still got the same intensity that helped him win three national championships with Indiana.

"I'm still coaching. My name is still on there as the coach," the 65-year-old Knight said. "My name's on there, then that's what I'm doing."

Knight, with 860 career wins, needs 20 to overtake Dean Smith for No. 1 on the all-time list. But with a team that's struggling and 19 games remaining before postseason play, passing Smith seems like it will have to wait for next season.

After last year's team made a surprising run to the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament, this year's Red Raiders are the most inexperienced team Knight has ever coached. There are seven freshmen and one junior college transfer on the roster. The influx of new players and the fact that several interior players have been hobbled by injuries means Knight is off to his slowest start as a coach since 1995 at Indiana.

"We've got an awful lot of work to do to be competitive," Knight said. "Forgetting the injuries, we're not where I had hoped we would be at this point."

Knight said he's "disappointed" so far by this team, which plays Arkansas (8-2) for the first time since 1991 Wednesday in Dallas.

Knight pointed to a leadership void and the departure of former walk-on Ronald Ross, one of the sparks during the NCAA tournament, as major factors in the team's struggles.

"That has been a huge," Knight said. "I did not think that replacing Ronald, as good as he was and as much as he meant to that team, would be as difficult as it is." Pat Knight, who signed a contract in October that designated him as his father's successor as Texas Tech's coach, said the team has been inconsistent without a leader.

"We told our team it doesn't need to one guy," he said. "It can be the whole team, just as long as somebody takes the burden off the coaching staff."

Tech started 10-1 in each of Bob Knight's first two seasons, and the Raiders have won at least 20 games all four years since he arrived - a first for the school. Despite Knight's first slow start in Lubbock, some who have watched him for years see him doing utilizing the same techniques he's been doing since 1965, when he became the youngest coach in Division I history when Army hired him at age 24.

"I don't see any changes since they made the (successor) announcement," said Tech senior associate athletic director Steve Downing, who played for Knight in 1972-73 at Indiana and followed him to Lubbock. "He's doing exactly the same things that he did when he was at Indiana when I was a player."

Tech athletic director Gerald Myers said he believes that "gradually" his longtime friend and colleague would shift some of the head coaching responsibilities to his son. For now, though, Pat Knight is helping his father in much the same way he always has, though some of the players may view him differently.

"I would think that they would look at him as a person with a little more authority than maybe they thought he had, as far as having a lot of input in the program," Myers said. "He's always been active in workouts and practices."

The line of succession has "already had a positive effect" in recruiting, both for the players and Pat Knight, Myers said.

"The players can feel comfortable in that they would still be part of the program as far as why they were recruited," Myers said. "I think that now he will have a bigger interest in the players he's evaluating, not only trying to evaluate for his dad as the head coach, but also looking at it from his own perspective."

Myers believes Bob Knight probably will stay in Lubbock after he retires. His contract, which was extended in September, expires in 2009.

"He likes it here," Myers said. "A lot of good recreation that he likes. Plus, his son will be coaching. He'll want to see him coach some."

HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! WE ALL HERE WITH OUR MURFREESBORO MUSICIANS PRO BASKETBALL FRANCHISE WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY & SAFE HOLIDAY SEASON!

ALL THE BEST & GOD BLESS... BEST WISHES!



World Basketball Association Stories from December 23, 2005


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