ny slouches, so I dont have any complaints about my drive | Forum

MINNEAPOLIS -- Vern Mikkelsen, a Hall of Fame basketball player who won four NBA titles with the Minneapolis Lakers, has died. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . He was 85. Mikkelsen died on Thursday night surrounded by family, the Los Angeles Lakers announced on Friday. He was a six-time All-Star during 10 years with the Lakers, teaming with George Mikan and Jim Pollard in a frontcourt that to this day is considered one of the best the league has ever seen. Though he was known for his hard-nosed defence, Mikkelsen averaged 14.4 points and 9.4 rebounds in his career and emerged as one of the leagues first true power forwards. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995. "I was a good basketball player, but I attribute greatness to those individuals who sacrifice their time, talents, and efforts for the benefit of others," Mikkelsen wrote in the forward to "The Vern Mikkelsen Story," which was published in 2006. "I did some of that, too, though not nearly as much as I would have liked to, looking back on it." Arild Verner Mikkelson was born in Fresno, Calif., in 1928 and grew up in the northern Minnesota town of Askov, about 95 miles north of Minneapolis. He played college ball at Hamline in St. Paul, at the time a basketball power that sent two other players to the Lakers as well. Mikkelsen was drafted in 1949 and helped lead the Lakers to championships in 1950 and three in a row from 1952-54. One of the leagues original enforcers, Mikkelsen was a physical player and fouled out a record 127 times before retiring in 1959. "He was the protector of Mikan," said Wolves president Flip Saunders, who got to know Mikkelsen during 10 years as a coach in the organization. "He loved being around here. And he was one of the best story tellers." He was later the coach and general manager of the ABAs Minnesota Pipers. "Vern was one of the first in a long line of great Lakers players, and a key link to our franchises early years in Minnesota," Lakers President Jeanie Buss said in a statement. "We appreciate his contributions to the Lakers and our legacy, and we send our condolences and best wishes to his family." Mikkelsens name hangs in the rafters at Staples Center on a banner that also is home to the retired jerseys in the organization. Mikkelsen remained a revered figure in Minnesota long after his playing days, a gracious story teller who remained close to the game long after he retired. In his later years, Mikkelsen overcame two strokes, diabetes, prostate cancer and the death of his wife of 47 years in 2002. And he remained upbeat through it all. "Keep on doing your best with what you have to work with, as we all have an obligation to take care of ourselves and live as long as possible, respecting each day as a great gift with the intention of sharing the simple, meaningful things of life with family, friends and our community," Mikkelsen wrote. He was influential in bringing the NBA back to Minnesota in the 1980s and the Timberwolves planned to hold a moment of silence to honour him on Friday night before they played the Brooklyn Nets. "During his playing days at Hamline University and the Lakers, Vern was a dominant force on the court and one of the games great power forwards," the Wolves said in a statement. "Vern was a great friend to our organization and we offer our condolences to his family." Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys .com) - Christian Ponder will get another chance to prove himself for the Minnesota Vikings, with head coach Leslie Frazier announcing Wednesday that the struggling quarterback will start this weekends game against the Green Bay Packers. Cheap Jerseys Free Shpping . Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest of the route was unveiled Monday. http://www.nfljerseyschinaauthentic.us.com/ . Ashley Youngs cross was inadvertently headed by Chester into his own net in the 66th minute, allowing United to claim a third straight league win. "We had to dig deep with our fighting spirit and weve done that," United striker Wayne Rooney said.SPARTA, Ky. -- Ryan Blaney provided more evidence that Penske Racings No. 22 Ford can win no matter whos driving. Blaney earned his first Nationwide Series victory and another win for the teams Mustang, holding off Austin Dillon and surviving several late cautions to win Saturday nights 300-mile race at Kentucky Speedway. Blaney, who drives for Sprint Cup champion Brad Keselowski in the Camping World Truck Series, used his second start in the No. 22 to claim the cars 10th victory of 2013 and a season sweep at Kentucky. Keselowski drove the car to victory in June. Blaneys win included tense moments over the final 40 laps, from beating Dillon off pit road with a two-tire stop on lap 166 to reclaiming the lead from Dillon after losing it on the restart. More tests followed, including a near-brush with teammate Sam Hornish Jr.s loose Ford and one final restart. "We just had an awesome, awesome Mustang," Blaney said. "The team just kept getting the car better and better and as the race went on. Those restarts were tough. Luckily, I had a good enough car to hold them off." Matt Crafton was third, Hornish fourth and rookie Alex Bowman fifth in a Toyota. Dillon shaved two points off Hornishs series lead and trails by just 15 with six races remaining. Getting closer to Blaney was out of the question for Dillon and just about anyone in contention. Hornish gave it a shot late in the race before that late wiggle left him settling for his 21st top-five finish of the season. Dillon had hope on several restarts, only to let the son of NASCAR veteran Dave Blaney quickly snatch it away on several late restarts. The final one typified the futility: Blaney blasted out on lap 191 to open up a three car-length lead and didnt look back. "He did everything right," Dillon said of Blaneys restarts. "He did everything he could to hold me off and the car was better once he got out front for sure. I felt like if we couldve got out front we could hold him off for eight laps, but disappointed that we couldnt quite clear him." Hornish led 65 laps after starting on the pole, while Dillon led 32. Beating the Noo. Cheap Jerseys China. 22 has been tough for everybody this season. Three other drivers have reached victory lane in it this season, including Keselowski, whos racing in this weekends Cup series race in Loudon, N.H. Blaney, who won a Trucks race in Iowa last year, became the fourth in just his 15th start. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins kept him calm and focused over the radio, and the only direction he ever really needed was to victory lane after taking the checkered flag. The points race meanwhile saw little change. Hornish entered Saturday looking to widen his edge on Dillon, who came into the series final stand-alone race seeking his third Nationwide victory in four Kentucky starts. He helped his prospects Saturday afternoon by clocking 179.235 mph to claim his third pole this season and leading Penskes front-row sweep with Blaney (178.159) taking the outside spot. Dillon was close by in the third spot with a run of 178.042 mph in his Chevy. With Cup regulars racing this weekend in New Hampshire, 41 drivers had the track to themselves, and Nationwide contenders did their best to exploit the freedom. Hornish and Dillon in particular looked forward to racing all-out here, with the points leader especially eager to follow up Junes ninth-place run. After the start was delayed briefly to allow track dryers to blow away some weepers, Hornish went about proving how good his Mustang was. He led the first 65 laps before his teammate won the race off pit road during the third caution and led on the restart. Dillon was second and needed only a lap to move in front -- on lap 68 -- and add another chapter to his impressive Kentucky resume. He led the next 32 laps before Blaney took the first of two leads to establish himself as the best driver in the best car. "Im a pretty lucky guy and privileged to have the drivers we have," Bullins said. "I dont think we have any slouches, so I dont have any complaints about my driver lineup. Ive got it pretty good. Tonight was another example of that. "We brought a good car, and we got somebody driving that knows what to do with it and was able to get the job done." Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys Cheap Soccer Jerseys ' ' '