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Twitter and pro sports have had a tumultuous love affair.  On one hand, leagues have benefitted from players and fans connecting directly.  On the other hand, Larry Johnson.

At one point in 2009, it looked like Twitter and professional sports would never get along.  Teams and media properties were heavily regulating content of tweets or banning it altogether.

Thankfully, we’re to a point now where enough people in decision-making positions understand how Twitter works.  Teams are able to give players social media training.  They have gone from blanket banning to friendly warning if a player gets a little liberal with their tweets.  The change has been great for fans as we can get news and insider views like no other generation of sports fan before us.

Tonight will hopefully be the next step in the evolution of how we view sports.

As the coolest guy at Denuo, I have some shocking news that will likely upset you.  I have a super huge nerdy side.  I know.  You thought I was different.  You thought I would never get locked in a debate between who is better, Thor or Longshot. Don’t worry, that’s still true.  But the nerd side does exist.  And he exists for sports analytics. While I won’t debate blonde dudes in comic books, I will get into a debate about whether Adam Dunn was more valuable to the Nationals than Derek Jeter was to the Yankees in 2010 (Hint: Dunn’s WAR was 1.4 points higher than Jeter’s).

And with that, I shall be releasing Nerd Durbin (Nerbin for short) at the Sloan Sports Analytics conference this weekend in Boston.  It’s a great event put on the by the MIT Sloan School of Management. It’s not just for people who love sports analytics, but also want an inside view into the world of sports business.

I will be on the Twitters, tweetering during the conference (@jdurbin and #ssac).  If you want to follow along, they will be streaming the panels here. For the agenda click here.

Don’t know what panels to check out?  Well lucky you.  Here are my recommendations (note that I did not list everything):

….and we’re back! Last year saw the gaming industry grow in unexpected ways, from social gaming to the rise of digital distribution. 2011 looks to be another year of innovation, business development, and, of course, great games. That said, this issue of PLAYED takes 2011 to task, asking both how and where we’ll all be gaming over the next year, while also recapping and prognosticating about the ever-shifting social gaming space. Also, since the year is getting off to a splendid start for blockbuster titles, we look at how gamers are utilizing unique and innovative ways to try games before plunking down their hard-earned cash well beyond the video store shelf.

Whether its how many friends our brain can process on Facebook, or pulling a “Being John Malkovich” and living vicariously through someone else’s Twitter feed, this week’s Reflecteur is socially aware of all the nutty things our favorite social networks can do to one’s mind. Also, see how mapping APIs are being used to reflect racial issues in urban environments and The Pool’s latest research results for short-form online video.

All this, plus making fun of hipsters, in this week’s Reflecteur.

Download it here!

A sneakerhead, as defined by Mr. Matt Story, is “a person who owns multiple pairs of shoes as a form of collection and fashion.”

How can you become a sneakerhead, you ask? Well simple, check out the presentation after the jump. You’ll learn some sneaker history, find out what Uptowns and Js are, and get up-to-date on the latest in sneaker geekery.

Class is in session – just don’t scuff the kicks on your way in.