Hot Dogs and Basketball – Both Are A Good Time

Basketball season is coming to an end. As a Cavs fan, the season has been over for a long time now. Despite my team not having a chance at the playoffs, I had the privilege of attending the last Cavs home game this season. And I got to enjoy it from floor seats. FREE floor seats.

How did I get free seats you ask? A few weeks back I saw the Cavs (@cavs) tweet out a contest. All I had to do was follow Sugardale Foods (@SugardaleFoods) on Twitter and fill out the entry form. It was as simple as that. If you were selected as the winner, I got two floor seats to an upcoming game and a year supply of Sugardale hot dogs.

The Call

I was at work one day and saw that I had a missed call on my cell phone. I googled the number, and it showed no results for a match. I saw the caller had left a voicemail. It was Sugardale letting me know that I had been selected as the Cleveland Cavaliers “Follow @SugardaleFoods to Win” Sweepstakes winner. Needless to say, I thought it was a joke! I am NOT lucky. The voicemail continued to tell me that I won two floor seats to the Cavaliers vs Washington Wizards fan appreciation night game and a year supply of Sugardale beef franks.

All of my friends, family and co-workers were beyond excited to hear that I won a year supply of hot dogs. All they could think about was how many hot dogs a year supply was. For those of you wondering, it’s 1 lb. of Sugardale beef franks for 52 weeks. In total, I received 52 coupons for free hot dogs. They are even personalized for me!

For weeks now, I’ve gotten countless hot dogs recipes sent to me. Who knew there were so many options for hot dogs?!?

Despite the Cavs playing like a D-League team their last game, I had a great time! Floor seats we’re awesome! We had access to a private bar, hor d’oeuvres, lots of clean bathrooms with no waiting, and nice padded seats. As it turns out, we sat by Browns player Phil Taylor, former Brown Bernie Kosar, Cavaliers great Big Z and Cavs GM Chris Grant. It was a star-studded event 🙂

My PeRspective

Social media is great. It connects so many people and provides many opportunities. It’s crazy to think that all I did was follow @SugardaleFoods on Twitter and I won floor seats and a year supply of hot dogs!

I had such a great time at the game and couldn’t help but tell people about Sugardale. Everyone I work with is now drooling over hot dogs and may have gone out to buy some when talking about winning the sweepstakes with me. It’s a great promotion for Sugardale. And who knows, once I try some of these hot dogs it may make me brand loyal.

The only down side, it was fan appreciate night at the Cavs game and I did not win anything! Maybe I should take that up with Dan Gilbert.

Enjoying our floor seats at the Cavs game!

*Please note, Sugardale Foods and the Cleveland Cavaliers did not ask me to write this post. Neither organization gave me anything monetary. I am responsible for all state and local taxes associated with the sweepstakes.

 

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“The only difference between a good shot and a bad shot is if it goes in or not.”

We’re three weeks into the NBA season. How many games have you watched?

Yeah…….I haven’t really watched many either.

The NBA has kind of lost something for me this year. I can’t exactly put my finger on it. Is it because my team was garbage last season and that made me unmotivated to tune in this season? Yes, it may be. Or it could be the fact that the NBA lockout drug out for soooooooo long and it took away part of the season! Yup, that’s probably it.

I watched the NBA draft. I was so excited when we got the #1 pick! I mean, “What’s not to like?” 🙂

I guess I’m excited for the future of the Cleveland Cavaliers. We’re rebuilding, right? I recognize most of the names on our roster but I’m not too sure about a few. But dang it I’m excited when I watch Kyrie and Tristan play! They are just something else!!

Are people in cities with championship teams pumped that the NBA season is going on?

All-Star Game

What about the NBA All-Star game, anyone excited for that? I feel like the season is shortened so much that the All-Star game seems kind of pointless.

I guess it seems kind of pointless every year to me. I really enjoy watching the dunk contest, but I want to see some good old-fashioned talented dunks! Take away the gimics and take me back to the roots! Nothing compares to a stellar dunk!

Take me back to the high-top fades, the short shorts and the REAL basketball players!

My PeRspective

The Cavs show a lot of promise for the next few seasons as long as they keep adding key players.Maybe if I get to a game this season I will be more excited about the season. I want to get to a game, I want to see Kyrie in person.

But what do you think about the rest of the NBA? Did the lockout just kill the season? I’m just not excited to channel surf and find a game like I normally am. I’d much rather find some college basketball on!

What do you think the NBA has to do to get fans excited again?

Downtown Cleveland

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Born Here. Raised Here. Played Here. Betrayed Here.

Wait, don’t leave my blog post just yet! Don’t let the title fool you!

I know what you’re thinking: Melissa, I don’t care about Le-you-know-who! I’m so mad about what he did!

I’m not going to talk about someones “talents” going to South Beach. I’m not going to talk about how betrayed I feel as a Cavs fan. I’m not going to talk about how mad I am that someone went on national television just to boost their ego in a one hour “special”. I’m not going to talk about the fact I’m not mad that someone left, I’m mad about how someone went about announcing it. I’m not going to talk about how someone possibly threw the playoffs.

Above, are things I’m not going to talk about 🙂

Chris Grant’s Statement

After a one hour “special” to break Cleveland’s heart, the Cavs responded quickly. General Manager Chris Grant issued a statement on the Cavs website:

“We believe in this team, this organization, this community, and what we will do to compete at the highest level. We believe in the new coach and leader we have in Byron Scott, and the world class basketball organization and positive and strong culture we’ve established. Dan Gilbert and our ownership group are firmly committed to reaching our goals and succeeding on the court and in the community, at the highest level.”

“Our fans stepped up and showed their support, to a degree unlike anywhere else. We are fortunate to have the support of the best fans in the NBA. That passion and dedication will be rewarded. We will work relentlessly to continue to build a team that will contend. A team that will win championships. We are all competitors and our one goal is to win, that and Dan Gilbert and our ownership team’s commitment and investment in this organization and community are constants that will not change.”

This statement was 100% appropriate. It was issued in the correct manner, at the correct time.

Dan Gilbert’s Letter

The statement heard around the world is more like it! Dan Gilbert decided to write a letter to Cleveland.

When I first saw it, I thought it was fake! I had to check the Cavs homepage a couple of times to believe that the letter was real. (I also did a screen shot so I’d have the letter just in case it got taken down) Did I mention that the entire letter was in Comic Sans font? It was like a 13 year old girl was writing it! Lots of bold, capital letters and quotation marks, too.

Here’s a little snippet of what Gilbert said after someones decision:

Gilbert also made a big statement in the letter: “I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVILERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE.”

My PeRspective

I love my Cleveland Cavaliers. I will continue to go to games at The Q. I will continue to wear my Cavs gear and smile. I will watch the Cavs when they are televised.

I thought the statement issued by the GM was very classy. He issued a statement to try and reassure fans that it will be okay. It was the right thing to do. He didn’t say anything in the statement that could come back and hurt the organization.

Now, the statement issued by Gilbert……… You have to love his intensity. I truly believe that he meant well by issuing that letter. I love his passion, it jumps off the page. I think he was trying to channel the anger that fans had into positive energy towards the Cavs team next season. I think he wanted everyone to forget about what just happened and keep in a positive mindset with what the Cavs are capable of. Promising a championship…I’ll let that one go.

I think Gilbert could have toned down certain areas of his letter. Maybe he needed to make a draft, sleep on it, then come back and see what he thought. (I would love to see what the original draft looked like). Many people have been reacting to this letter. I don’t think this letter will have a negative impact on the Cavs. If you’re a Cavs fan, you’re still going to buy tickets after reading this letter.

I do believe some parts of the letter were appropriate. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t pumped after reading it. Dan Gilbert got me excited. He made me start to get excited for the things that are to come. I just hope that people aren’t actually offended after reading this letter. If they are, they need to step back and take a look at the entire situation. I’m sure most of us would act irrationally in Gilbert’s situation. I’m looking forward to all of the details coming out about what else fueled the writing of the letter.

If you take anything away from Gilbert’s letter, make sure it’s this:

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Successful Campaigns

When I talked about the NBA Cares in my last post, I realized that I forgot something. I forgot to tell you about my two favorite NBA Cares programs. The reason they are my favorite is because I think they are some of the programs that can actually make the biggest impact in the world.

Vaccines for Teens

The NBA and WNBA have teamed up with the Society for Adolescent Medicine (SAM) and sanofi pasteur (the vaccines division of the sanofi-acentis Group) to launch the program Vaccines for Teens. It is a national multimedia campaign designed to educate teen and their families about the importance of vaccination series, potentially life-threatening diseases.

The program started on February 23, 2009, at an event at Cordova Primary School in Phoenix, Arizona. Grant Hill, a

Barry Gossage/NBAE/Getty Images

seven time All-Star and member of the Phoenix Suns, is the spokesperson for the campaign. Hill will appear in the nationally broadcasted  public service announcement.

Other versions of the public service announcement will feature Lisa Leslie of the Los Angeles Sparks, which will air nationally, Richard Hamilton of the Detroit Pistons, which will air in Detroit and George Gervin, NBA legend and Hall of Famer which will air in San Antonio.

Teens are at risk for meningococcal disease, influenza and whooping cough, which can spread from person to person during everyday activities. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)  and other leading medical groups recommend vaccination for preteens and teens against all three of these diseases.

“Just like on the basketball court, when it comes to protecting teen health, the best offense is a good defense,” said Grant Hill. “Vaccination is an easy way to help teens grow into healthy adults, so our hope is that parents will speak with the child’s health-care provider about immunization.”

The program has a series of additional initiatives as part of the campaign, including educational materials distributed through the league’s Jr. NBA/ Jr. WNBA program and they have created a website  to educate teens and their parents and encourage them to get vaccinated.

Nothing But Nets

This is a grassroots campaign that is trying to save lives by preventing malaria, a leading killer of children in Africa. Even though the UN Foundation has been working with the UN for years to fight malaria, many believe (including myself) that it was a column that Rick Reilly wrote for Sports Illustrated that got readers thinking about helping those in need.

Reilly challenged each of his readers to donate $10 for the purchase of an anti-malaria bed net. The response from Reilly’s article was incredible. Reilly’s article and the response from the people lead to the creation of the Nothing But Nets program. Who knew a sports writer like Reilly would make such a difference in so many lives.

Within a few short months of Reilly’s article being published, over $1 million was raised and Nothing But Nets was created. The UN Foundation has now partnered with groups such as the NBA Cares, The People of the United Methodist Church and Sports Illustrated, along with corporate, multi-media and financial partners to raise awareness and funds to purchase and distribute bed nets to save lives.

With the money raised, the UN Foundation and its partners worked with the Measles Initiative, one of the most successful vaccination efforts ever, to purchase those bed nets and distribute them in the countries and communities in greatest need. In just five years, nearly a quarter billion children have been vaccinated. The Measles Initiative distributes bed nets along with measles vaccinations and other medicines to at risk communities.

It’s amazing to know that an everyday person can make sure a difference. The Milford United Methodist Church provided nets in the Nothing But Nets campaign. On its February 29 blog, they have raised another $166,343 to help save more lives.

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The NBA REALLY Does Care

Disclaimer: This is a long post. The NBA Cares is a program that I am passionate about because of all the lives it has positively effected.

The reason I feel it is necessary to talk about the NBA Cares is because in this tough economic time, they still strive to do the best they can and make a difference in lives. I’m going to walk you through how the NBA Cares program came about and what they are still doing today.

In 2005 the NBA, its players and teams announced a new program called NBA Cares. Through this program the league, players and teams will raise and contribute $100 million for charity, donate more than 1 million hours of hands-on volunteer service to communities around the world, and build more than 100 places where kids can learn and play over the next five years. Now that sounds like a pretty cool idea, huh?

Whelp, everyone had his or her doubts about this program when it first started. Commissioner David Stern said, “Our teams were doing so much individually, but we weren’t feeling the connection to each other.” Really Stern? It sounds like someone told you to say that. He also said, “…professional sports leagues carry a special obligation. The remarkable celebrity that NBA players hold empowers them to effect change.” Now that statement I agree with. It was about time the NBA started to be known for something other than buzzer beaters and fights.

How It Started

Gary Dineen (NBAE/Getty Images)

NBA Cares tipped-off (haha get it? tipped-off) in November and December of 2005. Teams and players hosted coat drives, turkey giveaways and served food at soup kitchens. During the All-Star game they planned to unveil one of the first 100 youth sites in Houston. During the summer sanctioned charity games and Basketball without Borders was planned. Did the Commissioner and players ever imagine that NBA Cares would become what it is today?

Ongoing Outreach: The Beginning

The league continues to support such programs, including, but not limited to:

• National Book Festival

Each year the NBA partners with the White House and the Library of Congress to participate in the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.

• Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF Program

Started in 2001, the NBA and WNBA partnered together to raise money for kids worldwide during Halloween.

• HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS advocacy is supported in a variety of ways, including grassroots events around the world, player PSAs, leadership in the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS and through donations to foundations such as the Magic Johnson Foundation for AIDS Research.

• Read to Achieve

The NBA and its family of players have helped more than 50 million children a year through this campaign designed to help kids develop a life-long love for reading and encourage adults to read regularly with children. Read to Achieve, with the help of its partners, has already created more than 100 Reading and Learning Centers, more than 150 Reading Corners and donated more than 750,000 books and magazines throughout North America. Amazing!

What Has Become

NBA Cares works with internationally-recognized, youth-serving organizations that are geared toward there key social issues:

1. Education
2. Youth and Family Development
3. Health-Related Causes

Education

Each NBA team participates individually in various Read to Achieve activities. They participate in read-aloud and other shared readings at schools, community-based organizations and libraries to name a few

Notable Programs:

• Cleveland Cavaliers Head of the Class and All-Star Kids Program
• Los Angeles Lakers Annual Reading Challenge
• Detroit Pistons “March is Reading Month” Book Drive

Youth and Family Development

NBA Cares strives to provide places where kids and families can live, learn and play. Players serve as role models in sports, fitness and nutrition. The game of basketball is used to teach sportsmanship, respect and teamwork.

Notable Programs:

• Golden State Warriors Get Fit Program
• Greg Oden and Oregon Mentors Team Up for “Team Oden”
• Phoenix Suns Nite Hoops Program

Health and Wellness

NBA Cares wants everyone to make healthy choices and work towards living well.

Notable Programs:

• NBA FIT
• Milwaukee Bucks Kids Summer Lunch Program
• New Orleans Hornets Season of Giving

By the Numbers

Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images

Since October 2005 (as of January 30, 2009) the NBA Cares has raised more than $97 million for charity donated more than 800,000 hours of hands-on volunteer service and built more than 350 places where kids and families can live, learn and play. Those are some VERY impressive numbers.

According to the NBA Cares website, the NBA is dedicated to demonstrating leadership in social responsibility, using the popularity and visibility of its teams, players and the league to effect positive change around the world. The larger NBA Family (including current and former players and coaches, parents, wives, referees and league and team employees) is committed to giving back, motivated by the unique opportunity to make a profound difference.

My Opinion on This Community Outreach

Most of us focus on the bad things in life when things don’t go our way. When a NBA player helps with book readings, learning center dedications, food or blood or coat drives and charity auctions the media looks away. Some people view it as PR material and nothing more. When’s the last time you saw an NBA player recognized on an independent media outlet for the work they did for NBA Cares?

Unless you’ve spent time serving food to the homeless or collecting goods for the poor, you’ve come up short compared to every player in the NBA. Commissioner Stern set a five-year goal for the program and it’s almost passed every mark set!

If you made as much money as a professional athlete would you spend your free time at a homeless shelter? I don’t think so. This is a great program. The bottom line is that we all have a duty to give back. Nothing creates a stronger bond between people than working together to create something for someone less fortunate than ourselves. Don’t criticize such fantastic community outreach programs like NBA Cares before you ask yourself: What have you done to give back?

* Sorry this post was so long. I obviously feel very strongly about this program and don’t understand how anyone can question its motives after all the good it has done worldwide.

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