ATLANTA - Kyle Korver spent most of his career running around behind the 3-point stripe, a guy whose singular quest was to get open for a long-range shot at the basket. [url=http://www.broncosrookiestore.com/Broncos-Gary-Zimmerman-Jersey/]Ga ry Zimmerman Jersey[/url] .Turns out, he was so much more.At

ATLANTA - Kyle Korver spent most of his career running around behind the 3-point stripe, a guy whose singular quest was to get open for a long-range shot at the basket. Gary Zimmerman Jersey .Turns out, he was so much more.At age 33, Korver has emerged as one of the key players on the NBAs most surprising team, helping propel the Atlanta Hawks to the best record in the Eastern Conference (35-8) just past the midway point of the season.Even Korver seems a bit amazed by it all.A lot of things have come together, he said. Ive played for some really good coaches, been on some really good teams. I learned a lot. Maybe I didnt play quite as many minutes, but I tried absorb it all and kept on trying to get better.Korver still shoots plenty of 3s, still does it better than anyone. But its the rest of his game thats been valuable to the Hawks.Crushing screens. Banging for rebounds. Crisp passes. Tougher-than-expected defence.Im not sure I understood how much Kyle could help us on both ends, said coach Mike Budenholzer, whose team has tied a franchise record with 14 straight wins and leads the East by a whopping six games.I think hes underrated defensively and just his versatility, his ability to pass, his unselfishness. He sets the most unbelievable screens. You would think people are supposed to be setting screens for him. But he loves to be physical, to get someone else open. He loves to pass. He wants to make sure guys are in the right spots. Hes just an unselfish pro in every way.Korver is having what could be a historic shooting season. He is making nearly 52 per cent from the field, hitting more than 53 per cent of his 3-point attempts, and connecting on 92 per cent of his free throws. Steve Kerr is the only other member of the 50-50-90 club, from the 1995-96 season with the Chicago Bulls, and he wasnt a starter like Korver.Of course, Korver wasnt a starter for most of his career, coming off the bench in 554 of 664 games over his first nine years in the league. Only after he was dealt from Chicago to the Hawks in 2012 — for nothing more than cash and a trade exception — did he land with a team that seemed to appreciate him as more than a role player.When Budenholzer took over as coach the following year, bringing along a San Antonio-style system that stressed teamwork over one or two guys carrying the load, Korver really began to blossom. He got a tryout with the U.S. national team last summer; while he was cut before the world championships, the experience helped to bolster his confidence even more.Now, on a team where all five starters are in double figures but no one is averaging more than 17.2 points a game, Korver is being mentioned as a candidate for the All-Star Game.That really blows him away.A couple of years ago, I dont think people really thought I was a starter in the NBA, he said, chuckling a bit under his breath. But were all benefiting from each other and the system and coach Buds style. It doesnt matter what happens with the All-Star selections. Well be happy for whoever goes.While Korver will tell you he no longer cares about proving people wrong, teammate Elton Brand thinks otherwise.He might not say it, but I think so, Brand said. Hes working hard. Hes not just working on his shot, either. Hes working on his strength, his athleticism, his movement.Hawks forward Paul Millsap said those talents were there all along, but no one gave Korver much of a chance to show them until he got to Atlanta. The two had previously played together for almost three years in Utah, where Korver started just two of 180 games.The teams hes been on, they just relied on him to sit in the corner and shoot the basketball, Millsap said. On this team, hes got a little more freedom to make plays.Even to dunk.After being needled mercilessly by his teammates about his lack of above-the-rim skills, the 6-foot-7 Korver pulled off his first dunk in nearly two years in Atlantas latest win, a 110-91 blowout of Indiana on Wednesday night.Korver felt he got some pretty good air on the play.Later, when he watched a replay at home with his wife, he realized that he barely cleared the rim.I thought I was up kind of high, Korver said. My wife was like, Im really glad youre good at what you actually do.Thats good enough for the Hawks.___Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 Dalton Risner Womens Jersey . For Sweed, a second round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008, this will be his second go around in the CFL after previously having spent time with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Dalton Risner Broncos Jersey . He was still a kid, going into his senior year of high school. Thursday, the point guard stood in front of a couple dozen members of the media and spoke with poise about how much hed grown since then, and how hes ready for the next level. http://www.broncosrookiestore.com/Broncos-Demarcus-Ware-Jersey/ . Bryant underwent an operation in December to correct an irregular heartbeat. His season ended with four games left because of a rapid heartbeat, a condition he has known about for several years and had been treated for in the past.SAO PAULO - The World Cup stadium in the Brazilian host city of Cuiaba is staging its first official match with only half of its seats installed and construction work still underway. The Arena Pantanal will open on Wednesday with a Brazilian Cup match between Santos and Mixto, but work is far from complete at the stadium, one of three yet to be declared ready for the World Cup in two months time. The official inauguration is set for April 26. The opening match in Cuiaba comes a day after labour officials prevented construction from resuming in part of the stadium hosting the World Cup opener in Sao Paulo. The decision was made because of safety concerns following a workers death over the weekend, the third at the venue and seventh overall. As in most World Cup stadiums in Brazil, infrastructure work around the Arena Pantanal continues at full speed, with bulldozers, cranes and dump trucks still at the site as hundreds of workers try to finish access roads, sidewalks and temporary structures. Wednesdays match will have limited attendance because organizers could only install about 20,000 of the 41,000 seats at the stadium. Fans will only occupy the lower seating sections. The delay came in part because the initial bidding process for the seats was suspended over prosecutors claims that they were overpriced. A court battle ensued over thee suppliers and the installation took longer than expected to begin. Joe Flacco Youth Jersey. The match is not going to be considered an official test event for local the World Cup organizing committee in part because not all security measures will be in place. The stadium was one of the six that were not finished by the end of last year as expected by FIFA. Sao Paulo was already behind schedule even before the death of a 23-year-old worker on Saturday, which prompted labour officials to halt the installation of the temporary seats that will be needed for the Brazil-Croatia opener. Work isnt expected to resume until next week as constructors scramble to add safety features to the site. Local organizers and FIFA said the work stoppage is not expected to significantly delay the stadiums date of completion. Local officials said it will be inaugurated in April, but FIFA expects the stadium fully ready only in mid-May, about a month before the opener. The Arena da Baixada, in the southern city of Curitiba, is also expected to be ready in May. But last week the local governments watchdog group recommended a halt on public financing for the stadiums renovation until organizers can explain alleged irregularities in the stadiums budget. FIFA almost excluded Curitiba from the tournament earlier this year because of the delays at the stadium. ' ' '