The McDonald's All-American selection committee recently announced final rosters for the 33rd annual Boys Game and Girls Game. The Games will be played on March 31 at the Value City Arena in Columbus, OH. Despite the plethora of rankings and lists, McDonald's is still the bible of All-American games and the most prestigious ... surpassing Street & Smith and Parade All-American lists which have historically been the most respected. The 2010 members join a storied list of schoolboys which include the likes of Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Chris Mullen, Patrick Ewing, Michael Jordan, etc. As a high school player myself, I memorized the list each year and followed their careers throughout college and into the NBA. The 2010 list includes three New Yorkers, Doron Lamb (Oak Hill) and Jayvaughn Pinkston (Bishop Loughlin) who performed in http://clicky.me/ShockExchangeComesToHarlem09 and Tobias Harris out of Half Hollow Hills High School in Long Island. Keep reading for the rest of the list.
Yesterday I spoke to John McGlaughin of the Rockland Falcons whose son was playing with Tappan Zee against the Peekskill Red Devils ... the five time Class A defending champions ... yeah those Peekskill Red Devils. I had heard a lot about Peekskill's exciting point guard, Daquan Brickhouse, and I had never seen a high school game in Westchester County so I drove up to White Plains to see what all the fuss was about. I got there at halftime with Peekskills in command. However, Tappan Zee stayed within striking distance, only down 44-37 at the end of the third quarter. Daquan Brickhouse ("DQ") who has already been offered by Central Connecticut State, was the focal point for Peekskill. He simply played at a different speed, almost defying the laws of physics ... there's mach speed, warp speed, then there's "DQ". I was curious to see how the alumni from Harlem's own Rockland Falcons http://clicky.me/ShockExchangeComesToHarlem09 ... those Rockland Falcons, would respond.
Just in . . . SLAM Magazine is set to cover Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem, April 2-3 at Columbia University. Launched in 1994 as a magazine that fused the sport of basketball with hip hop culture, SLAM has become the premier basketball magazine in the country. Having hipped the world to phenoms like Lebron James, Dwight Howard, and OJ Mayo, SLAM's coverage of high school basketball is unmatched. When we started this event a few years ago, our goal was to bring a high profile tournament to the City. Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem attracts the top talent in the tri-state area but also attracts guys like Tom Konchalski, the top college recruiter in the country and a member of the McDonald's All-America selection committee, and now SLAM. In addition to testing yourself against the City's best, for those who "put the work in" it also provides an opportunity to be recognized amongst your peers and college coaches.
The age group for the event is 12U -17U. The registration deadline is March 19th. Space is limited so please register as soon as possible. For more information please contact Ralph Baker at or 917-697-8168.
On September 11, 2009 Jay-Z held a his "Answer the Call" concert to benefit the victims of the September 11 attack.It turned out to be one of the largest and most successful hip-hop events of all time, watched by millions on the FUSE network and featured the likes of Rihanna, Beyonce, Kanye, and John Mayer.The untold millions raised from the event went toward the family members of those injured or who lost their lives due to the attack.I am convinced that only Jay-Z, with his star power and web of connections could have pulled off such an event on such a grand scale … another indication that he may be indeed larger than rap.That said, the concert held special meaning to me as I was actually in the World Trade Center the morning of the attacks.
A bomb exploded Tuesday outside the Athens office of JPMorgan Chase, but no injuries were reported. The bombing comes as Greece has been under severe pressure due to the financial crisis. The country has been teetering under a mountain of debt and has been looking to wealthier nations for a bailout, lest all of the Europe fears a collapse. However, Germany is opposed such a bailout. According to Xinhua: "The blast occurred 30 minutes after an unidentified man made a warning call to a Greek daily newspaper, so police had time to evacuate the building. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Foreign economic targets are the main targets of attacks of terrorist groups operating in Greece for years. Terrorist attacks have been stepped up since December 2008, when a teenager was shot dead by police fire". For the Xinhua article go to http://bit.ly/aLzZRY . (Picture courtesy of Xinhua)
In the uptown action adventure, Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem, Mr. Baker has recently learned that Harlem is about to be attacked by some of the most devastating travel basketball teams in the US and maybe even Canada. They are plotting to wrest the title of "basketball mecca" from the NYC. They plan to bring weapons such as the "slam dunk" , the "sky hook", the "fade away", and the "killer crossover" . . . killer crossover?. They may even employ strategies such as the "full court press", the "give-and-go" and the "1-3-1 zone". America's Favorite Investment Ballers, brave as they are, have been summoned to defend Harlem against these interlopers.
Last year they came with charming names like Falcons, Rockets, Metrohawks, Gauchos, Skyliners, Almighty Force, The City, Leading Through Sports, Lightning, Cyclones, GOSH, Elite, and Mavericks. The battle will take place not coincidentally at Columbia University, the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York. For more information contact Ralph Baker at or 917-697-8168.
On Monday February 8th 2010 the ladies of LoNoLi (www.lonoli.com), Jenn Clunis, Dana Whitfield, and Dayna Gilliard had a screening of the "What about Pep" episode that included Mr. Baker. Along with A Belle in Brooklyn, they hosted their Second Annual Pre-Valentine’s Day Lock and Key event. The events took place at Japonais Restaurant at 111 E. 18th Street in Union Square and was designed to provide a unique networking opportunity for professional singles. Men were given a key and women were given a lock. Singles had to mix and mingle to find a match. The place was packed with a festive atmosphere. For some reason, about 15 women ran over to Coach Baker with a lock but he only had one key ... go figure. Overall I think the ladies outdid themselves with this one.
When we started the Shock Exchange to teach competitive basketball skills and financial literacy to local kids we had no idea that financial literacy would become all the rage. To continue his quest to educate not only kids but the public at large, Mr. Baker has decided to write a book about investing. At press time Mr. Baker had this to say: "People tend to make high finance a mystical science so I wanted to explain it in laymen's terms to the masses. And who better to do it than someone with a passion for risk-taking, an understanding of how to quantify risk, and a practical experience in investing. I see the endeavor as a combination of Southern style story-telling and investing fundamentals. I have a sketch of what I want to write but the science comes in doing the nuts and bolts research to support my arguments." Always modest, Ralph went on to say that "While I may have taught you everything you know about investing, if you want to learn everything I know then you will you will have to buy the book".
Recently Ralph was one of several men in the NYC who had the pleasure of meeting Pepa via Love No Limit Matchmaking Service (http://www.lonoli.com/). The encounter will appear on VH1's hit show "Let's Talk About Pep" and will run Monday February 8th at 10:30pm. "Let's Talk About Pep" has been the surprise hit of the season, winning rave reviews from women on the interplay between Pepa and her girlfriends. The sneak peak to the episode is below. Does Coach Baker spit game off the court as well as he does on it? Heck, one dude actually presented Pep with a magic scepter ... check out the episode Monday to see if Pep drops the scepter ... putting all of mankind at risk!
The McDonald's All-American selection committee recently announced final rosters for the 33rd annual Boys Game and Girls Game. The Games will be played on March 31 at the Value City Arena in Columbus, OH. Despite the plethora of rankings and lists, McDonald's is still the bible of All-American games and the most prestigious ... surpassing Street & Smith and Parade All-American lists which have historically been the most respected. The 2010 members join a storied list of schoolboys which include the likes of Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Chris Mullen, Patrick Ewing, Michael Jordan, etc. As a high school player myself, I memorized the list each year and followed their careers throughout college and into the NBA. The 2010 list includes three New Yorkers, Doron Lamb (Oak Hill) and Jayvaughn Pinkston (Bishop Loughlin) who performed in 
Just in . . . SLAM Magazine is set to cover Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem, April 2-3 at Columbia University. Launched in 1994 as a magazine that fused the sport of basketball with hip hop culture, SLAM has become the premier basketball magazine in the country. Having hipped the world to phenoms like Lebron James, Dwight Howard, and OJ Mayo, SLAM's coverage of high school basketball is unmatched. When we started this event a few years ago, our goal was to bring a high profile tournament to the City. Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem attracts the top talent in the tri-state area but also attracts guys like Tom Konchalski, the top college recruiter in the country and a member of the McDonald's All-America selection committee, and now SLAM. In addition to testing yourself against the City's best, for those who "put the work in" it also provides an opportunity to be recognized amongst your peers and college coaches. 
