Staples Center

Phoenix Bach Choir and the Grammys

Jordin Sparks, Other Phoenix Music Artists Garner Grammy Nominations

Glendale resident and American Idol winner Jordin Sparks has received a Grammy nomination for her song "No Air." The song, nominated for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, is a duet with R&B singer Chris Brown. It's also the first of two (thus far) top 10 Billboard hits for Sparks -- the other bein ... More >>

Return of the Joker: Shaq-Less Suns at L.A. Lakers Tonight

98-119. 115-122. 106-98. 124-130. 92-105. Alas, these are not Steve Kerr's winning lottery numbers. They're actually grim statistics reflecting an alarming trend: the full-on revival of the Los Angeles Lakers as a major pain in the Phoenix Suns' butt. And they may be an even bigger pain in th ... More >>

Temporarily Depleted by the Monster Trade, Suns Still Give Lakers All They Can Handle in L.A.

Down three players, the Phoenix Suns played toe to toe with the Los Angeles Lakers for four quarters before losing 115-110 at Staples Center. With the usual assortment of show-biz types in attendance Wednesday night, the Suns, with just eight players available, looked much better ... More >>

MyStudio Music Offers Phoenix Residents a Chance to Win Two Tickets to the Grammys

Video may have killed the radio star, but video could also nab one Valley resident a free trip to this year's Grammy Awards at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.

Loss Angeles: Phoenix Suns vs. Star-Crossed Clippers on Sunday Afternoon

It's the best of times and the worst of times for the Angeleno sports fan. There's still no NFL, and none on the near horizon, which seems to bother the NFL more than it does L.A. Jack Nicholson's once again grinning like a pre-lobotomy Randle Patrick McMurphy since his pet franchise, the Lakers ... More >>

Weekend Wars: Not a Brick in Sight for Shaq as Suns Blow Out Rival Mavs and Beat Lowly Clippers

The big news here's that the really big guy went 12 for 12 from the free-throw line in weekend wins against the Dallas Mavericks and the Los Angeles Clippers. Shaquille O'Neal's been saying he's gone back to the basics his father taught him when he was a little boy of 6-9. Well, ... More >>

Pregnant M.I.A. Steals the Show at the Grammys

No, you weirdo, she's actually pregnantFor those of you who tuned into the 51st annual Grammy Awards Sunday night, you were most likely treated to a lamely named performance of the "Rap Pack:" Jay-Z, Kanye West, T.I., and Lil' Wayne. The four artists gave a dapper performance, no doubt f ... More >>

Breakneck Mountain: Phoenix Suns to Revive the Seven-and-Shoot Tonight Against Clippers Tuesday and Wednesday

This just in from Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver and general manager Steve Kerr: Oops. Our bad. Terry Porter, we hardly knew ye. Here's a sack full of cash to salve your wounds. Amar'e -- ha ha. Those trade rumors? We were just kidding. Ya know we love ya, ya big lug. The rest of you guys, run li ... More >>

Looking Like the Suns of Old After the Coaching Change, Phoenix Blows Out the Hapless L.A. Clippers

It was a game in which Goran Dragic slam-dunked. Goran who? You know, the highly touted backup point guard whom fired Suns Coach Terry Porter used to ream a new one from the sidelines everytime he made a blunder. The Slovenian rookie (pictured) played with reckless ab ... More >>

Amar'e Stoudemire Scores 42 in Phoenix Suns' Second-Night-in-a-Row Rout of Clippers

The once-again run-and-gun Phoenix Suns looked great again Wednesday night, scoring 140 points or more for the second game in a row against the dog-ass Los Angeles Clippers. This time, the score was 142-119, and supposedly on-the-trading-block Amar'e Stoudemire scored 42 points of that and ... More >>

Phoenix Suns' Amar'e Stoudemire Undergoes Eye Surgery; Probably Out for Rest of the Regular Season

Just when things were beginning to look up for the Phoenix Suns. The team announced that power forward Amar'e Stoudemire -- on the trading block until he stepped up his game after a recent coaching change -- underwent surgery today for a "partially detached re ... More >>

Phoenix Suns Hold Off Boris Diaw, Raja Bell, and the Charlotte Hornets 112-102

There were hugs all around, before Tuesday night's game got started and after the final buzzer. Raja Bell and Boris Diaw seemed happy to be back home in Phoenix, even if they are now starters for head coach Larry Brown's Charlotte Bobcats. So much so that they were the high scorers in ... More >>

Beat L.A.: Potential First-Round NBA Playoff Preview Tonight at Staples Center

www.nba.comKobe Bryant With a 4-1 record in the Alvin Gentry era, the Phoenix Suns are winning the games they're supposed to win. However, they're still faltering against the NBA's elite, evident by Sunday's ass-whopping against the defending champion Boston Celtics. But that's ok. The reason Terr ... More >>

Arizona May Need Win Over ASU Tomorrow to Get to Big Dance

Time was that the Arizona Wildcats hated the Pac-10 postseason basketball tournament with a passion. That was when the `Cats routinely dominated league play, finishing first or second seemingly every year after now-retired Lute Olson revved up the program in the mid-1980s. Olson and his minions cons ... More >>

ASU's James Harden Excels and U of A's Chase Budinger Doesn't in the Devils' Victory Over the 'Cats

www.pac-10.orgJames Harden scored 27 against U of A.Arizona State's 68-56 win over the boys from Tucson in a Pac-10 tourney game that ended a few minutes ago can be attributed to one player's piss-poor performance: Arizona's Chase Budinger. The highly touted Wildcats' forward played as soft as a c ... More >>

Wild-Card Studs: Phoenix Suns Seek Revenge Against Young-Gun Philadelphia 76ers Tonight

search.espn.go.com Sixers rookie Marreese Speights spanked the Suns in Philly. When last we met the Philadelphia 76ers, back in Philly on February 9, the Sixers' young and relatively rested legs made quick work of the punchy Phoenix Suns, who were coming off a tough win the previous night in ... More >>

What's Age Got to Do with It?

Superfly songstress is still rocking it at 68

Scenes From Nowhere

A Coachella diary from that other desert to the left

BOBilicious!

There's BOB hope for hungry and thirsty Diamondback fans

Problem Solved

With his solo debut, the Negro Problem's singer-songwriter Stew takes pop in profound directions

Follow Michael Jackson Memorial Online

KCRW, the Santa Monica, California-based public broadcast channel most famous for "Morning Becomes Eclectic" will be broadcasting from Michael Jackson's memorial service at the Staples Center today beginning at 10 a.m. Listen here.Also check out the music blog at our sister paper, LA Weekly, where a ... More >>

Hot Links: T-Gen's Tissues, Cappie's Props, and Jacko's Service

A company in Luxembourg is funding research for Valley company T-gen. The research will involve testing and storing blood and tissue samples.T-gen doctor Jeffrey Trent called the Luxembourg contract big news for the Arizona bio-research community...Police are still investigating a possible case of s ... More >>

Kanye West, Lady Gaga Plot Tour: Phoenix is First Stop

​Kanye West and Lady Gaga are coming to U.S. Airways Center on November 10, the first date on their Fame Kills joint tour.Having been blown away by Kanye's last tour, I'm super excited, as you should be, even if that Taylor Swift stunt pissed you off, as it did Michael Lopez.Full concert dates bel ... More >>

Steve Nash Helps Suns Squeak Out 109-107 Win Over the Los Angeles Clippers in Season Opener

Steve Nash still has it, as the Suns player helped lift his team to victory over the L.A. Clippers.​Welcome back, Steve Nash.One of the countless questions hanging over the Phoenix Suns 2009-2010 season was whether or not the team's 35-year-old captain still had any hustle left despite his advanci ... More >>

It Was a Good Old-Fashioned Beat-Down, and (Damn!) it Was the Suns Doin' the Beatin'. Next Up: the Lakers Tonight.

suns.com Lou Amundson's in-your-face block in the second quarter was symbolic of the whipping the Suns gave the Hornets.​Man, we've waited a long time for this! The Phoenix Suns dominated Chris Paul and New Orleans from the start at US Airways Center last night and wound up blowing ou ... More >>

Phoenix Suns Stomped by Los Angeles Lakers in Lopsided Loss. Next Up: Toronto Raptors on Sunday.

www.nba.comKobe Bryant and the rest of the Los Angeles Lakers proved why they're the defending NBA champions in last night's defeat of the Phoenix Suns.​Welcome back to reality, Phoenix Suns fans. After your team amassed a surprising 8-1 record over the past two weeks (including spectacular wins ... More >>

The NBA's Best -- aka Your Phoenix Suns -- Take on the Houston Rockets, Sans Two Superstars

PG Aaron Brooks poured in a career-high 33 against the Lakers Sunday night.​ No Yao Ming or Tracy McGrady? No worries for the Houston Rockets on Sunday night when they took down the reigning-champeen Los Angeles Lakers, 101-91, at Staples Center. Without Ming, who is done for the season, an ... More >>

Suns Survive Sacramento Kings, Get Destroyed By Los Angeles Lakers In Weekend Action. Up Next: Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday

www.nba.comKobe Bryant continued to make the Phoenix Suns his personal bitches last night. The Phoenix Suns have developed two rather distinct personalities so into the 2009-2010 season. There's the straight ballers that dismantle feeble opponents and occasionally squeak out tough, hard fought win ... More >>

Sun Devils Move Into First-Place Tie With Cal After Nipping Hated Wildcats In Tucson Yesterday

Picked by the pre-season pundits to finish in seventh place, the Arizona State Sun Devils improbably moved into a virtual first-place tie with Cal on Sunday afternoon as the Pac-10 men's basketball into the homestretch.​ASU beat the fading Arizona Wildcats 73-69 in an especially intense game yeste ... More >>

Arizona Wildcats Amazing Streak of NCAA Championship Appearances Comes to End

A loud cheer erupted a few minutes ago here at the Staples Center in sunny Los Angeles. ​ It wasn't in response to news that Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Peyton Thomas (and his master, Sheriff Joe Arpaio) gave up on a lame-brained (and costly) RICO case against the near world, i.e. the n ... More >>

Phil Jackson's Asinine, Nativist Remarks About Los Suns and SB 1070

from AltoArizona.comSay it ain't so, Phil...Is Lakers head coach Phil Jackson -- generally known for his lefty ways -- a nativist as well?That's the only conclusion one can draw from his recent statements to ESPN in support of SB 1070, a law sponsored by neo-Nazi hugging Mexican-hater, state Senator ... More >>

Phoenix Suns Now 2-2 With Lakers in Western Conference Finals on Bench's 54-Point Performance. Most Important Game Since Charles Barkley Era on Thursday Night in L.A.

suns.com (L-R) Goran Dragic, Lou Amundson, Jared Dudley, and Channing Frye (suns.com)​"All we've done is earn ourselves a great opportunity," Steve Nash told reporters, after the Phoenix Suns defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 115-106 at US Airways Center last night. "We can't be ... More >>

Rockaroke, Suns Viewing Party, Domo, Deathface, and Other Memorial Day Weekend Thrills

Expect to see this kinda scene at the Sail Inn in Tempe tonight during rockaroke.​The Yucca Tap's loss is the Sail Inn's gain. In case you're not up on the comings and goings of the Valley's music scene, local legends the Zen Lunatics packed up their popular -- and award-winning -- rockaroke nigh ... More >>

Arizona Schools Sweep Weekend Basketball Games, Pac-10 Tourney Looms

We hadn't used that headline even once during this men's college basketball season.But the improbable happened, and both the Arizona Wildcats and the ASU Sun Devils won their weekend games against the Oregon schools fairly easily to close out the regular season in fine fashion.Herb Sendek and his AS ... More >>

ASU Basketball Season Ends -- Lord Have Mercy! -- in LA Smackdown; Arizona Up Next

Just last week, Arizona State laid a hurtin' on the Oregon Ducks over in Tempe, and the rematch looked favorable for the Sun Devils in the first round of the Pac-10 men's basketball tournament in Los Angeles. Pac-10 Coach of the Year Sean Miller ​But last night's season-ending 76-69 loss t ... More >>

Arizona Wildcats Slip Into Pac-10 Semis: Tough One Vs. USC Later Today

This edition of the Arizona Wildcats is unlikely to get too deep into the upcoming NCAA tournament--inexperience at the point guard position and other shortcomings surely will spell their doom, hopefully in the second weekend, not the first. We like Derrick Williams, the Pac-10's best player. ... More >>

Arizona Pulls Off Another Wild Win At Cal, As Sun Devils Lose Badly To Stanford

The Arizona Wildcats' triple-overtime road win last year over California-Berkeley was one of the best college games we've seen in awhile, and not just because our alma mater came out on top by a score of 107-105 Big win last night for Arizona over rival Cal but not with the overrated old-school ... More >>