Griffin, Irving are first two picks in Rising Stars Draft

NEW YORK -- TNT analysts Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal, serving as general managers for the 2012 BBVA Rising Stars Challenge, made their player selections Thursday night on NBA TV.

With the first pick of the first-ever draft for the event, TEAM SHAQ selected Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers while TEAM CHUCK countered by tapping Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers with the second overall selection. Each former All-Star then filled their rosters through the draft process.

In a Draft night surprise, TNT's Kenny Smith, the Honorary Commissioner of the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge, added Norris Cole of the Miami Heat and Jeremy Lin of the New York Knicks to the player pool.

The 2012 BBVA Rising Stars Challenge will be played Friday, Feb. 24, in Orlando during NBA All-Star 2012. While Barkley and O'Neal functioned as the general managers for the draft, Smith served as the honorary commissioner and Ernie Johnson performed the hosting role.

Joining Griffin, Lin and Cole on TEAM SHAQ are Ricky Rubio (Minnesota Timberwolves), Markieff Morris (Phoenix Suns), Kemba Walker (Charlotte Bobcats), Landry Fields (New York Knicks), Brandon Knight (Detroit Pistons), Tristan Thompson (Cleveland Cavaliers) and Greg Monroe (Detroit Pistons).

Besides Irving, TEAM CHUCK is comprised of DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings), Derrick Williams (Minnesota Timberwolves), Paul George (Indiana Pacers), MarShon Brooks (New Jersey Nets), John Wall (Washington Wizards), Tiago Splitter (San Antonio Spurs), Evan Turner (Philadelphia 76ers), Gordon Hayward (Utah Jazz), Kawhi Leonard (San Antonio Spurs).

This marks the first year in which rookies and sophomores have been mixed together on teams. Historically, the game featured NBA rookies facing off against sophomores. The participants in the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge were selected by the NBA's assistant coaches, with each team submitting one ballot.

TNT analysts Mike Fratello and Steve Kerr will be part of the coaching staffs for the teams, with Fratello joining TEAM CHUCK and Kerr joining TEAM SHAQ. The head coaches for both teams are the lead assistant coaches from the 2012 NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs. The Chicago Bulls' Ron Adams will lead TEAM SHAQ and the Oklahoma City Thunder's Maurice Cheeks will man the sidelines for TEAM CHUCK.

The BBVA Rising Stars Challenge will be televised live nationally on TNT at 9 p.m. ET and also will be broadcast live on ESPN Radio, while NBA.com will make live audio available to fans in multiple languages.

Last year in Los Angeles, the Rookies won for the second consecutive year, 148-140. Wall earned MVP honors after recording a record 22 assists, five more than Chris Paul managed in 2007.

Tickets to the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge are available for $35 for the upper bowl and $50 for the lower bowl, and fans can visit NBA.com/allstar2012 to purchase them.

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Team Atlanta aims to be first repeat Shooting Stars Champion

NEW YORK -- Team Atlanta will attempt to become the first repeat Haier Shooting Stars champion as it competes against a field that includes squads representing New York, Texas and NBA All-Star 2012 host city Orlando at Amway Center on Feb. 25.

The home team, Team Orlando, includes the Orlando Magic's Jameer Nelson, an All-Star in 2009; Florida native and three-time WNBA All-Star Marie Ferdinand-Harris; and former Magic great Dennis Scott, who spent seven seasons with Orlando after the team made him the fourth overall selection of the 1990 NBA Draft.

Team Atlanta features the Atlanta Hawks' Joe Johnson, who was named an All-Star for the sixth time this year; Lindsey Harding of the reigning WNBA Eastern Conference champion Atlanta Dream; and NBA TV analyst Steve Smith, an All-Star selection in 1998 with the Hawks and a member of the 2003 NBA champion San Antonio Spurs.

Team New York is comprised of the New York Knicks' Landry Fields, who will also play for Team Shaq in the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge during All-Star Weekend; the New York Liberty's Cappie Pondexter, a four-time WNBA All-Star and one of the league's top scorers; and former Knicks great Allan Houston, who averaged 17.3 points over his 12-year NBA career, and currently works in New York's front office as an assistant general manager.

Team Texas is represented by the Houston Rockets' Chandler Parsons, an Orlando-area native and second-round pick in 2011, who's worked his way into the Rockets' starting lineup as a rookie; the San Antonio Silver Stars' Sophia Young, a four-time WNBA All-Star, who averaged 13.2 points and 6.4 rebounds in 2011; and TNT analyst Kenny Smith, a two-time NBA champion with the Houston Rockets (1994, 1995).

In last year's competition, Team Atlanta, which featured Smith, the Hawks'

Al Horford and the Dream's Coco Miller, defeated Team Texas in the final round with a time of 1:10.

Haier Shooting Stars will be televised live nationally as part of the NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm, which will also feature the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest, Sprite Slam Dunk, and Taco Bell Skills Challenge. TNT and ESPN Radio's national coverage will begin at 8 p.m. EST from Amway Center. The NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 26, will air live on TNT, ESPN Radio and in more than 200 countries and will be broadcast in more than 40 languages.

The Haier Shooting Stars contest features one current NBA player, one current WNBA player and one TNT on-air talent/NBA legend on each team.

There are six numbered shooting locations of increasing difficulty, with each team attempting to make all shots in numeric order in the fastest time. Each team will select a specific player rotation to follow throughout the competition. Each shot must be made before the next player begins shooting in succession. Teams have up to two minutes to complete the entire shooting course and the team that completes all six shots in the least amount of time is declared the winner. In the case of a tie, a shoot-off will be used to determine the winner.

Listed below are the previous winning teams from the Haier Shooting Star competition:

2004 (Los Angeles) Magic Johnson (L.A. Lakers legend), Derek Fisher (L.A. Lakers), Lisa Leslie (L.A. Sparks)

2005 (Denver) Dan Majerle (Phoenix Suns legend), Shawn Marion (Phoenix Suns), Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury)

2006 (Houston) Steve Kerr (San Antonio Spurs legend), Tony Parker (San Antonio Spurs), Kendra Wecker (San Antonio Silver Stars)

2007 (Las Vegas) Bill Laimbeer (Detroit Pistons legend), Chauncey Billups (Detroit Pistons), Swin Cash (Detroit Shock)

2008 (New Orleans) David Robinson (San Antonio legend), Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs), Becky Hammon (San Antonio Silver Stars)

2009 (Phoenix) Bill Laimbeer (Detroit legend), Aaron Afflalo (Detroit Pistons), Katie Smith (Detroit Shock)

2010 (Dallas) Kenny Smith (Texas legend), Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas Mavericks), Becky Hammon (San Antonio Silver Stars)

2011 (Atlanta) Steve Smith (Texas legend), Al Horford (Atlanta Hawks), Coco Miller (Atlanta Dream)

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Curry to defend title in Taco Bell skills challenge

Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors will defend his Taco Bell Skills Challenge title against a field consisting of Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs, John Wall of the Washington Wizards, Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder, and Deron Williams of the New Jersey Nets. The 2012 Taco Bell Skills Challenge will take place on Feb. 25, at Amway Center in Orlando.

Curry will attempt to join the Phoenix Suns' Steve Nash (2005 and 2010) and the Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade (2006 and 2007) as the only two-time winners in Taco Bell Skills Challenge history. This year's Taco Bell Skills Challenge will feature an expanded field from five to six participants.

Curry, who leads the Warriors in assists with 6.5 per game and averages 17.2 points and 1.8 steals, won last year's Taco Bell Skills Challenge with a final-round time of 28.2 seconds to beat Westbrook. Irving, the overall top selection in the 2011 NBA Draft, who also is participating in the BBVA Rising Star Challenge, leads rookies in scoring (18.3 ppg) and ranks second in assists (4.8 apg). Parker, a 2012 NBA All-Star, paces the Spurs in both scoring (19.4 ppg) and assists (7.8 apg). Wall, the No. 1 selection in the 2010 NBA Draft, averages a team-high 7.5 assists to go along with 16.9 points. Westbrook, the 2011 Taco Bell Skills Challenge runner-up and a 2012 NBA All-Star, ranks fifth in the league in scoring (23.2 ppg) and seventh in steals (1.9 spg), while adding 5.5 apg. Williams, the current record holder in the event at 25.5 seconds which he set in 2008 in New Orleans, is a 2012 NBA All-Star, ranks sixth in assists (8.3 apg) and eighth in scoring (21.7 ppg).

This is the third year Taco Bell has offered the Graduate To Go experience for teens at the Taco Bell Skills Challenge. In partnership with NBA Cares and the Taco Bell Foundation for Teens, each Taco Bell Skills Challenge player will be paired with an All-Star teen from an Orlando area Boys & Girls Club who has shown outstanding leadership and determination to stay in school despite personal obstacles. All participating teens will receive the Graduate to Go experience of a lifetime: a behind-the-scenes career tour of NBA All-Star; an opportunity to meet with NBA players; the chance to be on the court during the Taco Bell Skills Challenge to cheer on their NBA player; and an educational scholarship. At the conclusion of this event, $55,000 in educational scholarships will be awarded to the participating All-Star teens. The teen paired with the winning Taco Bell Skills Challenge player will receive a $25,000 educational scholarship.

The Taco Bell Skills Challenge was introduced at NBA All-Star 2003 in Atlanta and features players competing in a two-round timed "obstacle course" consisting of dribbling, passing and shooting stations. All players must observe basic NBA ball-handling rules while completing the course. The three players with the fastest times from the first round advance to the finals with the order of competition determined by inverse order of the first round times. At the discretion of the referee, television instant replay may be consulted for clarification of rules compliance.

The Taco Bell Skills Challenge will be televised live nationally as part of the NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm, which will also feature the Haier Shooting Stars, Foot Locker Three-Point Contest and Sprite Slam Dunk. TNT and ESPN Radio's national coverage will begin at 7 p.m. ET from Amway Center in Orlando. The 61st NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 26, will air live on TNT and ESPN Radio, and in more than 200 countries in more than 40 languages.

Past winners

2003 -- Jason Kidd, New Jersey 2004 -- Baron Davis, New Orleans 2005 -- Steve Nash, Phoenix 2006 -- Dwyane Wade, Miami 2007 -- Dwyane Wade, Miami 2008 -- Deron Williams, Utah 2009 -- Derrick Rose, Chicago 2010 -- Steve Nash, Phoenix 2011 -- Stephen Curry, Golden State

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iphone 4s activation

This article is for people who haven't had an iPhone before and want to activate their new iPhone. It also assumes that you're using iOS 5 or higher (which is what runs on the iPhone 4S, and some late 2011 iPhone 4 and 3GS models)

 

Begin by turning on your iPhone by holding down the sleep/power button in the top right corner. When the screen lights up, you'll see the image above. Swipe the slider to the right to begin iPhone activation.

 

Set Language and Location

 

The first step in activating your iPhone is to set the location where you'll be using it. That  

involves selecting the language you want the phone to work in (what language will be shown onscreen) and set your home country.  Begin by tapping on the language you want to use and then tap the Next button in the top right corner of the screen. With that done, tap on the country you want to use the phone in (this won't prevent you from using it elsewhere, but it determines what your home country is) and tap the Next button. 

 

The next thing you need to decide when activating your iPhone is whether you want to turn on Location  Services or not. Location Services are the iPhone'sGPS features, the features that allow you to get driving directions, find movies and restaurants nearby, and other things that depend on knowing your location.

 

Some people may not want to turn this on, but I recommend it. Not having it on will remove a lot of useful functionality from your iPhone. Tap on your choice and then tap Next in the top right corner to proceed.

 

The next option is to connect to a Wi-Fi network, if you have one. This isn't required, but if you have a Wi-Fi network where you're activating your iPhone, tap on it and then enter its password (if it has one). Your iPhone will remember the password from now and you'll be able to connect to the network any time you're in range. Tap the Next button to proceed. 

 

iPhone Set up

Set Up As New iPhone - This is your choice if you haven't had an iPhone, iPad, or iPod before. This means you're starting completely from scratch.

 

Restore from iCloud Backup - If you haven't had an iOS device before this doesn't apply to you. However, if  you've used iCloud to backup your data, apps, and other content from other devices, choose this to download the data from your iCloud account to your iPhone. 

 

Restore from iTunes Backup - Again, this won't work if you haven't had an iPhone, iPod, or iPad before. If you have, though, you can install your apps, music, settings, and other data on your new iPhone from the backups that already exist on your PC. This isn't required--you can always set up as new if you want--but it's an option that makes the transition to a new device smooth. 

 

Create or Enter Your Apple ID

 

Once that's done, you'll be asked to either enter an existing Apple ID  or create a new one. YourApple ID is an  account that you'll use for a lot of things, from buying at iTunes to using iCloud to making Genius Bar support appointments, and more. If you have an existing Apple ID that you've used with a previous Apple product or to buy an iTunes, log in with it here. If not, you'll need to create one. 

 

Tap the button to create a new Apple ID and follow the onscreen prompts. You'll need to enter information like your birthday, name, and email address to create your account.

 

Enable iCloud

 

You'll see a screen or two of terms and conditions. You're required to agree to them in order to use your  iPhone, so go ahead and agree. Once you've done that, you'll have a pair of options related to iCloud, a free web-based service Apple offers to its customers that allows you to do many things. Generally speaking, I recommend using iCloud since it allows you to do the following: 

 

                 Use Find My iPhone

• Redownload Purchases from iTunes
• Use PhotoStream to store and access photos online
• Store and access Pages, Keynote, and Numbers documents online
• Backup your iPhone data and restore from backup over the Internet
• Use your iCloud as a central account for your calendar, contact, and email and sync them to all iCloud-compatible devices
• Use iTunes Match

Your iCloud account will be added to the Apple ID that you entered or created in the last step.

To enable iCloud, slide the button to On, or leave it off and tap Next.

 

Next, decide where you want to backup your iPhone. If you choose iCloud, your data will be backed up to iCloud each day via Wi-Fi. This has a number of advantages--your data isn't on your computer, so a hard drive crash can't lose it; you can restore over the Internet (as seen in step 3)--but you may prefer to backup your iPhone to your computer each time you sync.

 

Tap on the option you want and then tap the Next button to continue. 

 

Enable Siri

  

This step applies only to the iPhone 4S and newer models. 

Here, you  need to decide  whether you want to enable Siri, the iPhone's voice-activated assistant that you can talk to to perform actions. Siri is one of the most exciting features of the iPhone 4S. I recommend enabling it, but it's not required. Make your choice and tap the Next button to head to the final few steps. 

 

Find My iPhone and Complete Activation

 

First, you have to decide whether you want to enable Find My iPhone. I recommend that all iPhone users do this. It allows you touse the phone's built-in GPS to locate a lost or stolen iPhone so  you can recover it. If you ever lose your iPhone, you'll be glad you have it.

 

Tap to make your choice and then tap Next to continue.

 

Apple will then ask if you want to share information about your iPhone--basically information about how the iPhone is working and whether it crashes, etc.; no personal information is shared--with them. It helps improve the overall experience of using the iPhone, but is strictly optional.

 

Once you've done that, you're ready to go!

Since you didn't set up your iPhone using data from iCloud or a backup, you'll need to add content to your iPhone from your PC

Sent from my iPhone

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Prescription Savings Clubs at Walgreens

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Walgreens for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Everyone's dream is to have a  healthy family lifestyle. Here in the Philippines, health issues often got negative feedbacks from common people because of lack of health care budget or mostly have insufficient prescription coverage that should be given to those in need. 

Having the great opportunity to be able to get information about Prescription Savings Club at Walgreens whom I wish it will be available and offered here, who in this time is giving away a special discount on its annual membership.

 

For $20 a year, a family membership covers everyone in your immediate family, including a spouse, dependents 22 and younger and pets. Join and receive discount prices on your prescriptions.

Other benefits include:

-Savings on more than 8,000 brand-name and all generic medications

-Discounts on flu shots, pet prescriptions, nebulizers and diabetic supplies

-Bonuses when you purchase Walgreens brand products and photofinishing services

 

So I encourage everyone if you are currently lack or have insufficient prescription drug coverage, then this plan might be a beneficial help for you and your family.

Grab the offer now and check this out for more information.

Support and follow Walgreens on Twitter and stay updated by liking Walgreens on Facebook . 

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