Enough about me, not that important.
College basketball season has begun rocking and one thing that stands out about watching the early run of games is that there is no clear frontrunner this season. Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State all narrowly escape getting pantsed on opening night, anthough for 'tucky fans, it would be nothing of a surprise siing the last two seasons they've been taken out by VMI and Gardner Webb in their opener. Bottom line with them though, don't ever say they're too young to win it this year. The big knock on the Cats this year is the youth on the floor isn't going to translate into a title when up against the likes of grizzled vets like Cole Aldrich and Kansas. Coach Cal will have this team dancing into the National Championship game, just hoping we don't see Mario Chalmers suiting up again to send Cal off a loser and making his bajillion dollar investment into the pocket of an AAU coach for a point guard a failure once again. As far as the Spartans of MSU go, well they play in the Big 10, so yea...they suck.
Not even sure what to think of the Big East this year. Really, it's a very strange season. Normally my thought now would be to say the Big East is the Jr. NBA and someone from there will go dancing in the end unless they all kick each other ass all year long to the point where they limp into the Final 4. Let's be real, if the Pac-10 tournament had a 6 OT game going on, fans would've arrived about the time the second half tipped off and been too pissed to wait around after the 3rd OT because they exceeded the west coast fan's time limit at a game. Too many things to do over there like see Tony Franco coach the defense.
Back to the Big East, 'Nova and West Virginia will be there in the end, Louisville will be there after Pitino decides he's out for blood to stick it to every fan who holds up a "No means no" sign in an arena (I cannot wait for the new white and black men at the Dunk to hold up anti-Pitino signs and hear Pitino in the huddle tell Samardo Samuels to tell them to shut the fuck up and see him go out for 40 and 20 and slap Keno's ass on the way by and say it would help to get out of a matchup zone for once when you play a team with a good big man, you're not in the MVC anymore buddy). Rounding out my top 5 for the B.E. I like Notre Dame to surprise some people with Harangody taking home Nat'l Player of the Year and rounding out the top 5 is Syracuse, who really isn't as bad as they looked against D2 juggernaut LeMoyne (joke, guys). Uconn well, they can fuck themselves, maybe Calhoun will go cycling again and never come back for the benefit of the world, and Georgetown, they'll crumble apart just like last year. Need a shooter fellas.
Quick NBA note, I'll go back to this in detail tomorrow as I will likely do as the NBA is by far my favorite sport to talk about, but a couple of early season things that have caught my attention:
1) 3 teams can win it this year. That's it. No the Hawks aren't one of these.
2) Allen Iverson, you have one option left as a player.
3) Danny Ferry, you are on par with Isiah as a GM.
4) The Grizzlies and Clippers will never be good in our lifetime.
Don't want to talk too much about this all today since I do want to go home, but I'll start it off with the contenders in the league this season. The Celts, Lakers, and Nuggets are the only three teams that have ANY shot this year (barring any sort of trade such as 2 years ago when Gasol gets traded for KWAME BROWN). I can see the Spurs fleecing someone like that. The Celts proved why they are and why they aren't the best team in the first 12 games of the season. When rested and clicking, they have no holes on the roster. None. When Rasheed isn't putting up 10 3's a game and making 2 of them, Eddie House isn't clanking, Pierce and KG aren't hurting, and Scal isn't in the arena, they are a well oiled machine, but this is what we've seen recently, and old team that is settling for playing down to their talent.
The Lakers haven't had that flaming metrosexual Pau Gasol play yet this year and rumor is that his hammy is a lot more beaten up than first noted. There is no timetable for his return and in the meantime, the Lakers have won games, but have needed overtimes to beat the likes of the Thunder and got thoroughly manhandled by the Nuggets the other night. If Pau comes back in time to do that "i'm going into labor fist pump" one more time this year, they have a shot, but if they shoot themselves in the head thinking that Artest can carry an offensive load in place of Gasol, well then we have a comedy show on our hands. Note to Jack Nicholson- don't drop your beer if Artest comes flying into the stands, he may think it's a guy 10 rows back and charge him, however it would be fantastic to see Sasha Vujacic try to be a tough ass and run into try to "protect" him and wind up getting smoked in the face. Just hope that Stephen Jackson and the Bobcats aren't in town that night or else he'll surely join in the fun.
The Nuggets are good too, but need to see a full season from them to annoint them as the overwhelming frontrunner. The Magic- way to go in picking up Vince Carter, that may ahve single handedly been the most retarded move I have seen since the Knicks traded for Steve Francis. How in holy Hell did anyone expect him to not only take a team back to the Finals, but to put them over the hump? This guy is the definition of a player that was a stud out of college, made himself a cool nickname, won a dunk contest, and all of a sudden found out his knees are as fragile as Manute Bol's and whenever asked to shoulder a load, tweaks an ankle and loses 2 seasons worth of games. I hate Vince Carter with an overwhelming passion since the days when people said he was the better pick than Paul Pierce in that draft. A Finals MVP and about 21489035019753 more games played later, I think its fair to say that question was answered.
Love the story of that draft by the way, one of the most humerous episiodes of why some teams, well, suck. It all starts in the draft people. Teams that don't draft well are never ever ever gonna win. Let's travel back for a moment in history and relive this June day in 1998. I will spit out for you the top 10 picks in this draft, let's look at their careers to this day, and how the teams that took them are faring. History repeats itself and the teams drafting habits have not changed 11 years later, so its fair to assume that if they fucked up that draft, they fucked up plenty more along the road.
With the first pick in the draft, the ... select Michael Olowokandi
The logic behind this pick, "Well we need a big man, this guy put up great number at the University of Pacific, he's kind of goofy but put up great college numbers even though the tallest guy in his conference other than him was about 6'7, but what the hell, we're the Clippers, let's do it.
Now- Not even in the league.
The Team- Yup, the Clips, same team that went on to take the likes of Yaroslav Korolev in the Lottery.
Pick #2- Mike Bibby by the Grizzzz
Logic- Needed a PG, best in the class.
Now- Still in the NBA, put together a solid career, but wouldn't you know the Grizz would later trade him for White-Chocolate Jason Williams and Bibby would go on to be a part of arguably the best team to never win a championship in the 2000's.
Pick #3- Raef LaFrentz
Logic- Good in college, but come on.
Now- Raef was better known for his expiring contrac tup until last season and now is out of the NBA. The Nuggets went on to stink up many more drafts until Joe Dumars and the Pistons threw them a bone and took Darko over 'Melo. Phew, saved the Nug's ass on that one Joe.
Pick #4 and #5- Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison (traded for each other on draft night)
Logic- Raptors and Warriors each took the guys and said what the hell, why don't we just swap them. (The conspiracy theorist would say that the Warriors saw Carter's physical and said get him the fuck outta here) Jamison has had an above average career, but as far as taking a team to the top, neither have some close. And the nickname "Air Canada" that Vince took then ditched is more of an insult than a compliment, right?
Now- Both hurt, both on their 3rd team, and you guessed it, both going nowhere.
Pick #6- Robert "Tractor" Traylor
Logic (Stupidity)- No this isn't a joke. This actually happened. Dallas took him here but in reality this may have been the best move in the history of the Dallas Mav's franchise. Why? No i'm not on crack. Team president Donny Nelson immediately shipped him to the pathetic Bucks for their draft choice at pick #9. Wait 'till we see who this turns out to be.
Now- Tractor Traylor has been arrested on drug charges, and there's a rumor his diet in 2004 could've fed a starving nation. He is long gone from the NBA after maybe one of the worst lottery pick careers we've ever seen.
Pick #7- Jason "White Chocolate" Williams
Logic- Blew away the crowd at the Rookie game this season with the Kings with his ridiculously (stupid) passes and was traded away the following year for Bibby after a team realizeed he couldn't lead an offense.
Now- Well, he's had quite a roller coaster of a career, but got his ring with the Heat a few years back. The ring gives you respect, but those tattoos he's got take that respect all back.
Pick #8- Larry Hughes
Logic- I remember this part of the draft vividly. As a Celtics fan I'm sitting in my family room yelling please, please, please Philly don't take Pierce. Pierce is on the verge of tears in the Green room as projections said he was going to be a top 3 pick, going as high as #2. The rumors all day leading up said that if Pierce slid, the Sixers needed that guard. Well, he slid, and the Sixers took Hughes. WOW. Yes! Giving high Fives to everyone around me, I scream out that only two picks remain, we just need PP to slip pas the Bucks, who hold the 9th pick (owed to Dallas).
Now- Hughes has one good season in his career, which he cashed into a huge contract with the Cavs, and now finds himself on the Knicks for the sole purpose that his contract is up after the season and in time for it to be off the books for the summer of 2010.
Pick #9- Dirk Nowitzki
Logic- Lot of hype on this guy heading in. Tall, skinny, white guy from Germany that apparently can shoot but nobody thinks his game can translate. Comparisons to Larry Bird's stroke and athleticism drew laughs from many. Fell to the Bucks, who I guess felt that their cafeteria wasn't getting enough love and wanted the Tractor, so they shipped Dirk off to Dallas or Traylor. Ouch.
Now- Dirk's an 8 time all star, 4 time all NBA first team, MVP, likely Hall of Famer, and nearly carried a team to the title. He's done ok.
Pick #10- Paul Pierce
Logic- No brainer- Even Rick Pitino can't fuck this one up.
Now- After bandwagoners all across New England swore him off after he vented his frusteration that he was sick and tired of having Ricky Davis and Tony Delk as his sidekicks, he bites the bullet, gets his help, and outduels LeBron and Kobe for a title and Finals MVP. Will likely finish as the leading scorer in Celt's history before it's all said and dont and the #34 will join the others in the rafters. We all knew it on Draft Day, the obvious choice, even Pitino couldn't fuck it up.
Will go down as one of the most lopsided drafts ever- and the reason the Clippers will always be the Clippers.
Other news and thought of the NBA-
- Allen Iverson, you want to be the man for one more season, you have one more team to try that on. The Knicks. They have clearly nothing to play for this season and have the aforementioned Larry Hughes starting at the 2. Sign with them AI, it's your last hope as a pro.
- Danny Ferry, did you really thing Shaq was the answer? You said no to Amare last year because you didn't want to take on the money, and this was your answer? It's ok though, Amare's a free agent after the seasons over, you can get him again, because you'll have the cap space once LeBron flips you off on the way out of town.
I'll dig into a little pro and college football, as well as maybe some baseball tomorrow.
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