What Gives With The Sudden Popularity of Judaism Among NBA Players?

[Buddahfan]

Andrew Siciliano AndrewSiciliano

LeBron pays a rabbi for spiritual guidance before a marketing meeting? http://bit.ly/diCtPq 32 minutes ago via TweetDeck Retweeted by you and 3 others

https://twitter.com/AndrewSiciliano

TMZ has obtained this exclusive photo of LeBron James in a business meeting earlier today with Rabbi Yishayahu Yosef Pinto ... a man known around New York as the "Rabbi to the Business Stars."

Sources involved with the meeting tell us LeBron had hired Rabbi Pinto for spiritual guidance for a "big merchandising meeting" that took place on a private yacht somewhere off the coast of NY just hours ago.

Rabbi Pinto -- a 37 year-old-man who speaks only Hebrew -- has met with all sorts of business moguls in the past ... and is considered by some to be a "spiritual guide" who consults on business matters.

We're told LeBron paid in the neighborhood of 6-figures to get Rabbi Pinto to sit in on today's meeting ... in which LeBron heard presentations from several "big time" retail execs.

It's been a big summer for the Jews -- with Amar'e Stoudemire meeting with rabbis in Israel ... and Shaq learning Hebrew.

http://www.tmz.com/2010/08/10/lebron...medium=twitter

Shaquille O'Neal -- Let's Drop Some Hebrew!

8/2/2010 5:30 AM PDT by TMZ Staff

Just call him Shaquille O'Nealberg ... because last night at BOA Steakhouse in Hollywood, the 7'1" superstar became the biggest man on the planet to speak Hebrew!

Video on Shaq speaking Hebrew

http://www.tmz.com/2010/08/02/shaqui...-rosh-hashana/

Stoudemire to explore his 'Hebrew roots'

Associated Press

JERUSALEM -- Amare Stoudemire already knows some Hebrew phrases and sports a Star of David tattoo. Now he's come to Israel to explore what might be his Jewish heritage.

http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/n...ory?id=5423084

Stoudemire to Fast on Yom Kippur—If There Is No Basketball Game

by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu


Basketball star Amar’e Stoudemire said in an interview in Israel, "All of us are Jewish” because "this is where it all started.” He says he is going “all the way” to keep Jewish holy days, including fasting on Yom Kippur—unless he has a basketball game.

video of Amir'e being interviewed in Israel on link

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/news.aspx/138925

[LBF]

the stereotype of jews they are smart, good with financing, and have big noses.

[ezz_bee]

yea it is a bit odd, although a few decades ago bhuddism was the pop religion of the stars. Amare is looking into his roots, which is fair, Shaq is Shaq and i'm not sure he even knows what he is doing sometimes. Lebron seems to being on the edge of the diving board ready to leap off the deep end when it comes to "Decision"'s but other than Amare it doesn't look like either Bron or Shaq is interested in actually converting to Judaism.