"They say the hood looking for ya, time to bounce back. Gotta feed the streets, Young, it's in your contract." -Young Jeezy
"Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb."
— Sir Winston Churchill
I just wanted to give my quick spin to what the Browns did Saturday and Sunday. Like I said last night, I think the brain trust was solid in their approach. Stock piling picks and improving the back end of the roster is straight out of the book that Eric Mangini learned from and still subscribes to today. It's a very systematic approach. It requires a rock solid belief in your philosophy, a trust in your personnel evaluation, and the ability to completely not give a fuck about what anyone else thinks. Mangini and Kokinis share those beliefs.
But here's my take. Let's look at this. We trade outta 5 to the Jets. They send us back the 17th pick, Kenyon Coleman, Abram Elam, Brett Ratliff, an inconsequential player and 2nd round pick. Unfrickkin believable right? So we trade back again and stock another pick. Then we trade down again for another pick. We finally take Alex Mack at 21. SO, our Round 1 is complete. At the conclusion of Round 1, we have the best center in the draft. But we also have the best safety in the draft. And we also have the best defensive end in the draft. We are one round into the draft and we have added 3 starters. And this isn't even counting Brett Ratliff, who we will get to later. Now let me qualify a couple points here. There was no safety in this draft that had a first round grade. So in effect, when we add Elam, we are adding the number one safety. And it is even more valuable because he is a proven commodity in the league. We tried to sign this last off-season but Mangini matched the tender offer when he was with the Jets. We add Kenyon Coleman, who I just called the best defensive end in the draft. Now that I would doesn't carry a ton of weight so let me explain. Is he better than Tyson Jackson? I dunno tough to say, probably not. Jackson is an upside speed rusher who kinda came outta nowhere in the last 72 and sky rocketed up the board to 3 from 16 where he was kinda slotted for the last couple months. Nice move for the young man. Probably made himself about $15 million more in guarantees. So we'll see on him. What about Ryan Ayers. Tough sell for me. I think Ayers is a monster. I was watching his Sr. Week tape and he was just insane. A man among boys. Is Coleman better than him? Maybe. My point is that we got a proven commodity in Coleman. A guy who started 12 games last season before getting hurt. He's played a high level in the NFL. The other two guys haven't. Maybin, English, Everette Brown; those guys have the potential to be better than Coleman, but at least we have some evidence that Coleman is a guy who can contribute to an NFL team. So after Round 1, Mangini had to have been gloating a little been in his own mind. He had just traded for 2 proven guys, got the best graded center in the draft, got a quarterback he thinks has potential and picked up 5 picks. Not too shabby.
On the clock at 36; here is where I think we veer off into a retarded direction for the first time all day. Brian Robiskie. Good player. Solid kid. 4 year player at Ohio State. Unguardable when he had a quarterback and a couple other threats around him. I mean, think back to that year with Troy Smith. Robiskie was running free everywhere. You couldn't stop him. He was productive the last two years. He played hurt. He blocked. He really never complained. He grew up around the NFL. He's learned how to be a pro. So he is a good pick. I just don't think you take him there. You gotta take Rey Maluagua here. And I realize why they didn't. He only plays two downs. He struggles in space. That stuff is obvious. How good a player are you if they have to take you out and put in another guy on third down (usually Clay Matthews Jr.) in college? Point taken. That's why he fell to where he fell. But you gotta take him. You take him because everyone knows who he is. Everyone knows he has the crazy hair and plays middle linebacker. The team you coach hasn't had a linebacker worth a shit in forever. Rey Maluagua is a hungry guy who you could develop into a good player. He is coachable and probably improved tremendously at his time with Pete Carroll. His upside is still there. You take him at 36 to get your fans excited about a big name, big hitting, Polamalu like personality thats gonna be running sideline to sideline and trying to get to the quarterback. I think Robiskie would have still been there when you grabbed Massaquoi. And if you didn't think he was gonna be there, and you coveted him, you could have traded back into Round 2 and taken him, while sacrificing a 5 or a 6 or whatever it would have taken. It was an opportunity that I think they fucked up.
Or what about this. What if you would have stayed at 19? You could have taken Jeremy Maclin. I think he is gonna be a stud. And then you take Max Unger from Oregon at 36, the third ranked center in the draft. Mack was the top graded guy, but Eric Wood and Max Unger both had grades very close to that of Mack. That was another thing I thought about after the fact.
Massaquoi was an upside pick. Mangini, when he throws, prefers to throw deep down the field to big athletic receivers and make them make a play. I understand that pick. He'll get better. He's not great right now. But he's improved quickly. Dave Veikune from Hawaii is a speed rusher who can maybe come off the edge for us. Kaluka from USC is in the same mold as those other USC backers. Guys that are big and skilled and getting better at a rapid pace. Mel really liked this guy.
And last but not least, let's talk about our future starting quarterback, Brett Ratliff. This is a guy who Mangini loves. I'm telling you, DO NOT count this guy out in being a significant candidate to be the Browns starting quarterback this season. He would not have been part of the deal if he wasn't. I am anxious to see how good this guy is. I have never seen him play. I look forward to watching him as the season comes closer.
That's all I have really have time for tonight. I will be back this week to talk about the NBA playoffs, Star Trek and the best of what's going on in pop culture. Maholo.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
I GOT WINNERS!
“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” – Abraham Lincoln
“Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.” – Oscar Wilde
"Hopped up out the bed, turned my swag on...Took a look in the mirror and said what's up." -Soulja Boy
Hey kiddies. Ace man here. Gotta get it on. No choice but to get it on. First and foremost let's give it up to Rudy for contributing a very solid first guest post on the YOU GOT JC platform. It was a solid effort. I think we can all agree that we wanted more length and a little more insight into his life. I really appreciated the hustle of him sticking up for this blog. But I wanted more Rudy and less Club Trill. Mark Titus is the man. He has had some very very solid posts. Laugh out loud funny. He's a really cool dude. I have been featured in his blog actually. I wish he would have played in the OAC. That's probably where he should have been. He should have been starting for Wilmington as opposed to hanging out in Columbus. He has a really good thing going though, as he is looking at a future where someone is gonna pay him a lot of money to hang out and write about pop culture for a living. Where as if he was at Wilmington he would only have about 18.5 per game and a couple 2nd team all OAC's to his credit. But having said all that, I would say with supreme confidence that I can go toe for toe with him in terms of having opinions about pop culture and being able to communicate them in a funny way. I just don't have as much time. The advantage would fall slightly to him, but trust me; I have a lot going on in this brain of mine.
I want to talk a lot about the NFL draft because it's definitely one of my favorite things, if not my favorite sports day of the year. But that would take a very long time. The Browns had an unbelievable draft. It had to have fallen exactly how they had hoped it would go. It worked out great. I'm not crazy about the Robiskie pick at where they got him because I think you could have waited on him. And if he was a guy they really coveted they could have traded back into the second round and grabbed him probably 10 picks after where they grabbed him. But a very strong draft. Well played, and now we'll see what else happens in this intermediary period. But I would like to point out that it was consensus among the analysts that matter that Mark Sanchez was the best pick of the draft, as I have been saying for weeks. I have been taking some heat for it, but I really hope that I prove to be correct. But the Jets, whether he is good or bad, have guaranteed themselves about a 40% percent increase in revenue this upcoming season, in the 2nd worst economy in our history.
What I wanted to talk about tonight was one of the most dreaded things that can ever happen to a guy like me. I was at the park that is close to my house "just getting in a quick run." The run should have been the jist of my time there, but I decided to bring a rock to shoot some free throws and cool down after my olympic like training regimen on the mile long scenic park track. So I finished my run and was just stretching and dribbling the ball a little bit. Then it happened. A barrage of men came storming to the court. Old guys. Teenagers. Guys in their 30's. Just not what I wanted to see. So I'm stretching for one last minute and getting out of there as fast as I can. By the way, I should have never gone on this run. I don't go on runs. I work out in a gym or at my house. But then it happened. The most dreaded 5 words you can ever here. HEY MAN, WE ONLY HAVE 9. So I am in the worst position ever. I got 9 weekend gunners trying to get their run in. The Cavs just swept the Pistons. These guys were coming off an emotional basketball high and wanted to get busy. So I said "Yea man, I'll play. The game was up to 9. It last about 20-25 minutes. THIS WAS FAR AND AWAY, THE WORST PICKUP GAME I HAVE EVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR BEEN APART IN THE HISTORY OF MY LIFE. I have been playing hoops for about 2 decades now. I have been caught in some bad pickup games. Pickup games that make you worse for having participated in them. But nothing compared to the one game I played tonight. It was incredible. These were the worst 9 players collectively participating in basketball that I had really ever seen. I am still speechless 5 hours later. Without a doubt, the star of our game was this well say 50 year old man. He was playing on my team. In the contest, he registered 0 points on 0-10 shooting and committed 8 turnovers. He hit the rim on 3 shots, while the rest failed to graze the iron. But 4 of those other 7 jacks did hit the backboard at a high rate of speed. BUT THE GUY KEPT COMING AT YOU. I MEAN THIS GUY WAS SHOOTING THE BALL LIKE HE WAS J.R. SMITH ON A TUESDAY NIGHT GAME IN JANUARY. It was incredible. But again, the 30 minute game gave me a lot of time to reflect on how fortunate I have been as an athlete in my lifetime. And I left that game with a lot of respect for those guys. Needless to say, none of them will be getting a call to play on TEAM JC in this upcoming Lakewood Y Summer Session.
“Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.” – Oscar Wilde
"Hopped up out the bed, turned my swag on...Took a look in the mirror and said what's up." -Soulja Boy
Hey kiddies. Ace man here. Gotta get it on. No choice but to get it on. First and foremost let's give it up to Rudy for contributing a very solid first guest post on the YOU GOT JC platform. It was a solid effort. I think we can all agree that we wanted more length and a little more insight into his life. I really appreciated the hustle of him sticking up for this blog. But I wanted more Rudy and less Club Trill. Mark Titus is the man. He has had some very very solid posts. Laugh out loud funny. He's a really cool dude. I have been featured in his blog actually. I wish he would have played in the OAC. That's probably where he should have been. He should have been starting for Wilmington as opposed to hanging out in Columbus. He has a really good thing going though, as he is looking at a future where someone is gonna pay him a lot of money to hang out and write about pop culture for a living. Where as if he was at Wilmington he would only have about 18.5 per game and a couple 2nd team all OAC's to his credit. But having said all that, I would say with supreme confidence that I can go toe for toe with him in terms of having opinions about pop culture and being able to communicate them in a funny way. I just don't have as much time. The advantage would fall slightly to him, but trust me; I have a lot going on in this brain of mine.
I want to talk a lot about the NFL draft because it's definitely one of my favorite things, if not my favorite sports day of the year. But that would take a very long time. The Browns had an unbelievable draft. It had to have fallen exactly how they had hoped it would go. It worked out great. I'm not crazy about the Robiskie pick at where they got him because I think you could have waited on him. And if he was a guy they really coveted they could have traded back into the second round and grabbed him probably 10 picks after where they grabbed him. But a very strong draft. Well played, and now we'll see what else happens in this intermediary period. But I would like to point out that it was consensus among the analysts that matter that Mark Sanchez was the best pick of the draft, as I have been saying for weeks. I have been taking some heat for it, but I really hope that I prove to be correct. But the Jets, whether he is good or bad, have guaranteed themselves about a 40% percent increase in revenue this upcoming season, in the 2nd worst economy in our history.
What I wanted to talk about tonight was one of the most dreaded things that can ever happen to a guy like me. I was at the park that is close to my house "just getting in a quick run." The run should have been the jist of my time there, but I decided to bring a rock to shoot some free throws and cool down after my olympic like training regimen on the mile long scenic park track. So I finished my run and was just stretching and dribbling the ball a little bit. Then it happened. A barrage of men came storming to the court. Old guys. Teenagers. Guys in their 30's. Just not what I wanted to see. So I'm stretching for one last minute and getting out of there as fast as I can. By the way, I should have never gone on this run. I don't go on runs. I work out in a gym or at my house. But then it happened. The most dreaded 5 words you can ever here. HEY MAN, WE ONLY HAVE 9. So I am in the worst position ever. I got 9 weekend gunners trying to get their run in. The Cavs just swept the Pistons. These guys were coming off an emotional basketball high and wanted to get busy. So I said "Yea man, I'll play. The game was up to 9. It last about 20-25 minutes. THIS WAS FAR AND AWAY, THE WORST PICKUP GAME I HAVE EVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR BEEN APART IN THE HISTORY OF MY LIFE. I have been playing hoops for about 2 decades now. I have been caught in some bad pickup games. Pickup games that make you worse for having participated in them. But nothing compared to the one game I played tonight. It was incredible. These were the worst 9 players collectively participating in basketball that I had really ever seen. I am still speechless 5 hours later. Without a doubt, the star of our game was this well say 50 year old man. He was playing on my team. In the contest, he registered 0 points on 0-10 shooting and committed 8 turnovers. He hit the rim on 3 shots, while the rest failed to graze the iron. But 4 of those other 7 jacks did hit the backboard at a high rate of speed. BUT THE GUY KEPT COMING AT YOU. I MEAN THIS GUY WAS SHOOTING THE BALL LIKE HE WAS J.R. SMITH ON A TUESDAY NIGHT GAME IN JANUARY. It was incredible. But again, the 30 minute game gave me a lot of time to reflect on how fortunate I have been as an athlete in my lifetime. And I left that game with a lot of respect for those guys. Needless to say, none of them will be getting a call to play on TEAM JC in this upcoming Lakewood Y Summer Session.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
TITUS WHO?
For all of you so called sports junkies who have fallen in love with Mark "The Shark" Titus' blog Club Trillion, shame on you. The guys became famous because he sits on the end of the bench, Sweet Dude(kinda awesome). The real sports blogger is JC3. The guys got a real knack for covering topics from all angles. All the Shark does is talk about Evan Turner and how at some point of his life Greg Oden and him were great friends. Don't get me wrong I love reading Titus' blog and I don't mean to piss anyone off. I think its hilarious and I do check it daily but I think I am just jealous my boy JC3 doesn't get more love. JC3 is the future of blogging and I will give you some simple reasons why.
1. One of the greatest OAC Tournament Players of All-Time
2. Voted to the all century CYO 8th grade basketball team
3 He can shoot par, maybe even really drunk
4. I once saw him smoke a cigarette and do a perfect push up at the same time
5. We're boys
I hope the shark gets wind of this blog and challenges JC3 to some sort of blog off. It would be great for both blogs. I give the slight edge to JC3, hes got more game expereince. I would love to have the two meet this summer in some bar in either columbus or cleveland with their lap tops and 5 of their boys. Give them a half hour each 10 beeers three shots and a cigar and let the best man win. We can even bring Erin Andrews to make Titus happy.
In closing I want to leave you all with this. Their are two kinds of people in this world. People who take big shots, and people who make big shots. Who do you want to be?
Big Rud
1. One of the greatest OAC Tournament Players of All-Time
2. Voted to the all century CYO 8th grade basketball team
3 He can shoot par, maybe even really drunk
4. I once saw him smoke a cigarette and do a perfect push up at the same time
5. We're boys
I hope the shark gets wind of this blog and challenges JC3 to some sort of blog off. It would be great for both blogs. I give the slight edge to JC3, hes got more game expereince. I would love to have the two meet this summer in some bar in either columbus or cleveland with their lap tops and 5 of their boys. Give them a half hour each 10 beeers three shots and a cigar and let the best man win. We can even bring Erin Andrews to make Titus happy.
In closing I want to leave you all with this. Their are two kinds of people in this world. People who take big shots, and people who make big shots. Who do you want to be?
Big Rud
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
TUESDAY TOPICS OF INTEREST
I was on my own for dinner last night, and decided to try 5 Guys. For those who are not yet familiar with 5 Guys, let me say this: you should be, and you will be soon. It is an upscale burger and fry franchise. And despite the second worst recession in our nation’s history; business is still strong for them. That says a lot about their offering. The price isn’t ideal, but I think you’ll be able to live with it after the first bite of your burger. It’s fantastic. I had a double bacon cheeseburger with barbecue sauce and fries. It was far and away the most satisfying food I have eaten in April. It’s a great burger, and the fries are VERY strong. I highly recommend it when you’re craving a good burger.
The NFL draft is my favorite day of the year in sports. It just always has been. I have always been very very excited about it. I fancy myself being the guy making decisions in a war room someday. It is something I have always been deeply interested in and have thought about a lot. So I am really looking forward to Saturday. I am really sad though that they moved the first pick back to 4pm. Part of the mystique of why I am so passionate about it comes from waking up at 11 and watching the coverage with my Dad. Then the first pick came out at about 12:15 and we were off and running. It is obviously not as special as it used to be when I was younger, but it is still a very cool day now and probably always will be. But this draft is gonna be fun I think. Especially if you're a Browns fan. I think you can argue that it's a little light talent wise at the top, but there are plenty of good players to pick and they'll always be a ton of good players to find if you do your homework.
I can talk all day about the draft and where I think its gonna go, but I am not gonna do that. I am anxious to see how the Browns new regime plays their hand. They can really do a lot of crazy things. They have a lot of bullets in their chamber. They have the 5, 2 seconds and a third right now. They can hypothetically have 2 firsts, 3 seconds and 2 thirds if they play it right. They can move Braylon and Brady Quinn and reap the picks that they'll earn. Teams are just so careful with their picks though. They treat them like gold.
I have been on the record for a while about Mark Sanchez. I am pushing all my chips to the middle with that guy. I think he is gonna be a great pro. He has that IT that few guys have. He can make all the throws. He has great feet. There is a ton to like about him. He is an alpha male. Plain and simple. He walks into a locker room, and he's just different, and guys can tell right away. He has the kind of swagger and leadership mentality that guys love and commit to. If you told Stafford, Tebow, Bradford, Freeman and Sanchez to go down the street and get something to eat; all those guys are following Sanchez's lead. Cause he's the alpha male. And those kinda guys are the guys that see success in the NFL. I would like to see the Browns move Brady Quinn and draft Sanchez. I would also like to see them draft another great player at 5. I am not necessarily taking Sanchez at 5. I am just stating that I think he is gonna be a nice player in this league rather quickly. They should take Sanchez at 5, move Quinn and Edwards and come back into the top 10 and take Crabtree while they are at it. I'll go to battle with that guy too. Anyway, my gut says that Mangenius is gonna trade outta that 5th pick and into the teens. We'll see though. I am anxious to see what the Browns are gonna do. It's a make or break draft for them. But they all are in the NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE (Jaws trademark phrase).
I love the commercial campaign they are running for the NBA playoffs. I think those are great. My favorite one so far is the Tayshaun Prince block on Reggie Miller. I have only seen it once. It’s a great play. Billups drives the length of the court outta control. Jeff Foster knocks it away. Jamaal Tinsley gets control and throws it down to Reggie for what he thought was an uncontested layup. Tayshaun comes outta nowhere and kills it off the glass. I remember watching that play live. Max effort. They are all good though. The dynamics of the Ginobli to Duncan play were cool. Joe Johnson making Leon Powe fall and sticking a dagger three in round one last year. Great stuff all around.
I love the first round of the NBA playoffs. I would have preferred Nash and Amare instead of the Mavs, but I got some news last week that was very disconcerting. One of my buddies dad’s is good friends with Terry Porter. He told me that Porter told his dad that Nash was just a complete nightmare to coach this year. He said he never practiced hard, if at all. He rarely listened or ran the type of movement Porter wanted him to run. And whenever there was a serious defensive drill to be done in practice, Steve would just walk off the floor and go to the training room. He was a complete dick to Terry Porter, more or less. And while I can understand where Nash is coming from, it doesn’t make it right. Nash has proven to be a great guy over the years. A unique guy, a fabulous player and a great teammate. And he was very close to Mike D’Antoni. They each owe the other about 90% of their mutual success. It just goes to show you that the NBA, as all pro sports are, is a player’s league first and foremost. And even one of the great guys like Nash ,who really get what this game is all about isn’t immune to being premadonna A hole.
J.J Barea has been a great value add over Nash this year anyway. I have been telling anyone who will listen about Barea all season. Barea is a phenomenal player. He is a phenomenal player in the scope of his role. And his role is to come in and make things happen. And he has done that consistently all year. And on top of that, he has had games where he is absolutely incredible. When he gets into a zone, he is un-guardable. I'm telling you. He can score the ball at will and sets up guys for easy buckets. And this has been evidenced by the fact that he has been getting stretch minutes throughout this last term of the season. I am molding my game after his game for the summer session of the Y league. Watch out for me.
These first round series’ have been great so far, with a lot more to come. The Celts Bulls matchup has had two great games. So my focus has in turn been pretty centered around those two games. It’s been a good matchup. I wrote how I liked the Bulls to upset the Magic in the first round. But they lost by 20 to the powerhouse Raptors at home on the last day of the season and drew the Celts instead. It has kind of proven to be a better matchup for them, as they are about a million times more athletic. The Bulls are fun to watch for me because I have always liked a lot of their players. I have always been a big believer in Gordon, and his insane ability to get buckets in a variety of ways. He has been electric the first two games, exploding in the fourth quarter of both games. Shocker that he is in a contract year huh? God, if they didn't guarantee these guys contracts--don't even get me started. I have always had to fight with the barrage of Noah haters in my ear, spewing disinformation simply based on the fact that he’s an obnoxious idiot who celebrated a little too hard after his championships at Florida. They miss the fact that he’s a great high energy floor player, who defends above average, runs the floor like a deer, blocks shots, rebounds at a very high rate on both ends and makes 70 percent of his free throws. He never needs the ball to be effective and hads a winning at all costs mentality. Don’t confuse that praise though, having said all that doesn’t mean I think he’s LeBron. To me, he is simply a rare, very valuable commodity in this league, with the potential to be an important player on a championship caliber team some day. Add Tyrus Thomas, who is coming on like a freight train (and is about 4 seasons away from his peak--scary), the phenomenal Derrick Rose (insane nasty), Hinrich and Brad Miller, and the Bulls are an entertaining team to watch with a very good chance of knocking off the defending champs. Derrick Rose establishing himself in Game 1 was a great thing because it really pushed Rondo to elevate his game level of play. There is a serious alpha dog battle going on between those two guys that is fun to watch. Right now, I’m gonna say Rose has a slight lead, but would certainly not sleep on Rondo.
-Couple other quick playoff hits:
-A Hawks-Cavs second round series would be fun. The Hawks are tough. They can definitely strike some fear into the Cavs worshippers.
-If the Blazers-Rockets play and no one is around to see it, does it really happen?
-The Magic have been a mirage all season. I expect them to recover and squeak past the dismal 76ers.
-A Rockets Lakers series and a Cavs Hawks series are essentially identical matchups for both favorites. Two frisky opponents, who could give them some trouble if a few things fall their way.
The NFL draft is my favorite day of the year in sports. It just always has been. I have always been very very excited about it. I fancy myself being the guy making decisions in a war room someday. It is something I have always been deeply interested in and have thought about a lot. So I am really looking forward to Saturday. I am really sad though that they moved the first pick back to 4pm. Part of the mystique of why I am so passionate about it comes from waking up at 11 and watching the coverage with my Dad. Then the first pick came out at about 12:15 and we were off and running. It is obviously not as special as it used to be when I was younger, but it is still a very cool day now and probably always will be. But this draft is gonna be fun I think. Especially if you're a Browns fan. I think you can argue that it's a little light talent wise at the top, but there are plenty of good players to pick and they'll always be a ton of good players to find if you do your homework.
I can talk all day about the draft and where I think its gonna go, but I am not gonna do that. I am anxious to see how the Browns new regime plays their hand. They can really do a lot of crazy things. They have a lot of bullets in their chamber. They have the 5, 2 seconds and a third right now. They can hypothetically have 2 firsts, 3 seconds and 2 thirds if they play it right. They can move Braylon and Brady Quinn and reap the picks that they'll earn. Teams are just so careful with their picks though. They treat them like gold.
I have been on the record for a while about Mark Sanchez. I am pushing all my chips to the middle with that guy. I think he is gonna be a great pro. He has that IT that few guys have. He can make all the throws. He has great feet. There is a ton to like about him. He is an alpha male. Plain and simple. He walks into a locker room, and he's just different, and guys can tell right away. He has the kind of swagger and leadership mentality that guys love and commit to. If you told Stafford, Tebow, Bradford, Freeman and Sanchez to go down the street and get something to eat; all those guys are following Sanchez's lead. Cause he's the alpha male. And those kinda guys are the guys that see success in the NFL. I would like to see the Browns move Brady Quinn and draft Sanchez. I would also like to see them draft another great player at 5. I am not necessarily taking Sanchez at 5. I am just stating that I think he is gonna be a nice player in this league rather quickly. They should take Sanchez at 5, move Quinn and Edwards and come back into the top 10 and take Crabtree while they are at it. I'll go to battle with that guy too. Anyway, my gut says that Mangenius is gonna trade outta that 5th pick and into the teens. We'll see though. I am anxious to see what the Browns are gonna do. It's a make or break draft for them. But they all are in the NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE (Jaws trademark phrase).
I love the commercial campaign they are running for the NBA playoffs. I think those are great. My favorite one so far is the Tayshaun Prince block on Reggie Miller. I have only seen it once. It’s a great play. Billups drives the length of the court outta control. Jeff Foster knocks it away. Jamaal Tinsley gets control and throws it down to Reggie for what he thought was an uncontested layup. Tayshaun comes outta nowhere and kills it off the glass. I remember watching that play live. Max effort. They are all good though. The dynamics of the Ginobli to Duncan play were cool. Joe Johnson making Leon Powe fall and sticking a dagger three in round one last year. Great stuff all around.
I love the first round of the NBA playoffs. I would have preferred Nash and Amare instead of the Mavs, but I got some news last week that was very disconcerting. One of my buddies dad’s is good friends with Terry Porter. He told me that Porter told his dad that Nash was just a complete nightmare to coach this year. He said he never practiced hard, if at all. He rarely listened or ran the type of movement Porter wanted him to run. And whenever there was a serious defensive drill to be done in practice, Steve would just walk off the floor and go to the training room. He was a complete dick to Terry Porter, more or less. And while I can understand where Nash is coming from, it doesn’t make it right. Nash has proven to be a great guy over the years. A unique guy, a fabulous player and a great teammate. And he was very close to Mike D’Antoni. They each owe the other about 90% of their mutual success. It just goes to show you that the NBA, as all pro sports are, is a player’s league first and foremost. And even one of the great guys like Nash ,who really get what this game is all about isn’t immune to being premadonna A hole.
J.J Barea has been a great value add over Nash this year anyway. I have been telling anyone who will listen about Barea all season. Barea is a phenomenal player. He is a phenomenal player in the scope of his role. And his role is to come in and make things happen. And he has done that consistently all year. And on top of that, he has had games where he is absolutely incredible. When he gets into a zone, he is un-guardable. I'm telling you. He can score the ball at will and sets up guys for easy buckets. And this has been evidenced by the fact that he has been getting stretch minutes throughout this last term of the season. I am molding my game after his game for the summer session of the Y league. Watch out for me.
These first round series’ have been great so far, with a lot more to come. The Celts Bulls matchup has had two great games. So my focus has in turn been pretty centered around those two games. It’s been a good matchup. I wrote how I liked the Bulls to upset the Magic in the first round. But they lost by 20 to the powerhouse Raptors at home on the last day of the season and drew the Celts instead. It has kind of proven to be a better matchup for them, as they are about a million times more athletic. The Bulls are fun to watch for me because I have always liked a lot of their players. I have always been a big believer in Gordon, and his insane ability to get buckets in a variety of ways. He has been electric the first two games, exploding in the fourth quarter of both games. Shocker that he is in a contract year huh? God, if they didn't guarantee these guys contracts--don't even get me started. I have always had to fight with the barrage of Noah haters in my ear, spewing disinformation simply based on the fact that he’s an obnoxious idiot who celebrated a little too hard after his championships at Florida. They miss the fact that he’s a great high energy floor player, who defends above average, runs the floor like a deer, blocks shots, rebounds at a very high rate on both ends and makes 70 percent of his free throws. He never needs the ball to be effective and hads a winning at all costs mentality. Don’t confuse that praise though, having said all that doesn’t mean I think he’s LeBron. To me, he is simply a rare, very valuable commodity in this league, with the potential to be an important player on a championship caliber team some day. Add Tyrus Thomas, who is coming on like a freight train (and is about 4 seasons away from his peak--scary), the phenomenal Derrick Rose (insane nasty), Hinrich and Brad Miller, and the Bulls are an entertaining team to watch with a very good chance of knocking off the defending champs. Derrick Rose establishing himself in Game 1 was a great thing because it really pushed Rondo to elevate his game level of play. There is a serious alpha dog battle going on between those two guys that is fun to watch. Right now, I’m gonna say Rose has a slight lead, but would certainly not sleep on Rondo.
-Couple other quick playoff hits:
-A Hawks-Cavs second round series would be fun. The Hawks are tough. They can definitely strike some fear into the Cavs worshippers.
-If the Blazers-Rockets play and no one is around to see it, does it really happen?
-The Magic have been a mirage all season. I expect them to recover and squeak past the dismal 76ers.
-A Rockets Lakers series and a Cavs Hawks series are essentially identical matchups for both favorites. Two frisky opponents, who could give them some trouble if a few things fall their way.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Rest In Peace Nick Adenhart
"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."
-Teddy Roosevelt
I don't really have much to say on this Tuesday afternoon. I am still very, I don't want to say shaken up; it's more of just kind of sad. I am very unhappy about the tragic death of Nick Adenhart. It's just not very fair. It sucks. We're talking about a guy who was the number 1 prospect in the Angel's organization. A guy who was gonna be a millionaire about 60 times over. A guy who was gonna get to live in L.A. during a great part of his life. He had it all right now, and he had years and years more of great in the future. I don't know what kinda guy he was. I am not gonna pretend I do. But the way his teammates have reacted, the way people in the organization expressed such sadness; he must have been a high character guy.
We have to do something about drunk driving. The guy that hit them was drunk, had a suspended license and two priors. Sounded like a stand up citizen. We are gonna have internet in our cars in probably 2010. There is absolutely no reason why we can't start hatching something to solve drunk driving. And there is no reason why cops can't devise a way to stop this from happening. It makes no frickkin sense.
I don't have time to really get into this. It really puts a lot of things into perspective. I am really trying to be my best self at every moment of everyday. I wanna do great today, in every situation I find myself in. No regrets.
My favorite player in the big leagues, Nick Swisher, has become the King of New York within a week into the season. He has that clubhouse loose. He is scorching the cover off the ball. He has instantly become the most charismatic guy on that team. And I love that. That dude is so good. And the presence that he has is phenomenal. For all of you who have not read Moneyball, you are complete idiots and should order it online after you X out of this post. It's a great read. I read it the summer going into my freshman year at college, and pretty much went cover to cover in 5 days. I read it last summer again. Michael Lewis is a great writer. This is noteworthy because I was way ahead of this, and made the call that Swisher is gonna be a huge presence on this team. I thought he was a New York kinda guy, and he was gonna do wonders for that team and clubhouse. So far I am right on it. We'll see if he can keep this going.
I think I am gonna do a NBA playoff preview this week and next. I am gonna try my best to do a good job and give my fans the data and insight about the NBA that only I can really provide. Here's a couple quick hits:
-I really like the Bulls.
-I don't know where I am at with the Magic as of now. My gut says they're a joke, and a team like the Bulls is gonna beat them in the first round.
-Do the Nuggets have too many ass holes (Birdman, JR Smith), who can crush the flow and postivity of a locker room in a single action, or are they a contender?
-Can the Blazers get outta Round 1?
-Can the Blazers push the Lakers?
-Can Starbury give Boston anything?
There are a lot of topics to dissect. But they almost don't really need to be. At the end of the day, there's 3 contenders: LA, Boston and Cleveland.
-Teddy Roosevelt
I don't really have much to say on this Tuesday afternoon. I am still very, I don't want to say shaken up; it's more of just kind of sad. I am very unhappy about the tragic death of Nick Adenhart. It's just not very fair. It sucks. We're talking about a guy who was the number 1 prospect in the Angel's organization. A guy who was gonna be a millionaire about 60 times over. A guy who was gonna get to live in L.A. during a great part of his life. He had it all right now, and he had years and years more of great in the future. I don't know what kinda guy he was. I am not gonna pretend I do. But the way his teammates have reacted, the way people in the organization expressed such sadness; he must have been a high character guy.
We have to do something about drunk driving. The guy that hit them was drunk, had a suspended license and two priors. Sounded like a stand up citizen. We are gonna have internet in our cars in probably 2010. There is absolutely no reason why we can't start hatching something to solve drunk driving. And there is no reason why cops can't devise a way to stop this from happening. It makes no frickkin sense.
I don't have time to really get into this. It really puts a lot of things into perspective. I am really trying to be my best self at every moment of everyday. I wanna do great today, in every situation I find myself in. No regrets.
My favorite player in the big leagues, Nick Swisher, has become the King of New York within a week into the season. He has that clubhouse loose. He is scorching the cover off the ball. He has instantly become the most charismatic guy on that team. And I love that. That dude is so good. And the presence that he has is phenomenal. For all of you who have not read Moneyball, you are complete idiots and should order it online after you X out of this post. It's a great read. I read it the summer going into my freshman year at college, and pretty much went cover to cover in 5 days. I read it last summer again. Michael Lewis is a great writer. This is noteworthy because I was way ahead of this, and made the call that Swisher is gonna be a huge presence on this team. I thought he was a New York kinda guy, and he was gonna do wonders for that team and clubhouse. So far I am right on it. We'll see if he can keep this going.
I think I am gonna do a NBA playoff preview this week and next. I am gonna try my best to do a good job and give my fans the data and insight about the NBA that only I can really provide. Here's a couple quick hits:
-I really like the Bulls.
-I don't know where I am at with the Magic as of now. My gut says they're a joke, and a team like the Bulls is gonna beat them in the first round.
-Do the Nuggets have too many ass holes (Birdman, JR Smith), who can crush the flow and postivity of a locker room in a single action, or are they a contender?
-Can the Blazers get outta Round 1?
-Can the Blazers push the Lakers?
-Can Starbury give Boston anything?
There are a lot of topics to dissect. But they almost don't really need to be. At the end of the day, there's 3 contenders: LA, Boston and Cleveland.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Chad Ford
I stumbled upon a live chat with Chad Ford on ESPN.com this afternoon. Chad is the NBA draft guru for ESPN. He does a pretty good job. Does a lot of homework. Has some access to the right kind of people making the decisions. I got featured in a Bill Simmons chat last summer, and a David Thorpe chat last week, but never with Chad. I decided to fire about 8-10 questions at him. 3 of them got posted. Here were my questions:
JC: Cleveland: If I was a GM and was living in a world where Greg Monroe and Ed Davis are lottery picks, I am trading every pick I own in this year's draft.
Chad Ford: Welcome to the world of the 13 GMs that won't get a chance to draft Blake Griffin with the No. 1 pick. There just isn't a lot of upside in the draft, so teams will reach for young big guys who might be players in a few years. Davis and Monroe qualify.
E. Davis: Chapel Hill: What did I do this season besides be in the right place at the right time for tip ins and and catch and finish uncontested dunk after feeds from great playmakers?
Chad Ford: You're long, athletic, have a great motor, a good nose for the ball and in a draft as weak as this ... that's going to be enough. Clearly Davis is an upside pick, but if you're drafting in the Top 5 ... you aren't really looking for role players.
JC: Cleveland: If Brandon Jennings and Rickey Rubio played against each other tomorrow, who would get the better of that matchup?
Chad Ford: Rubio, hands down.
Questions that did not get answered, probably only because he ran out of time.
JC: Cleveland: What's Blair's ceiling? Is he more Big Baby or Z Bo? Is a Boozer level reachable?
J. Harden: Tempe: Hey Chad, can you put me on a team, where I can mail it in 3 times a week, settle for contested 3's and get my numbers on a bad team? Thanks.
Chris Wallace: Memphis: I LOVE B.J. MULLENS!
JC: Cleveland: Chad, who sticks the longest: Psycho T, Goran Suton, Dante Cunningham or Jeff Adrien?
JC: Cleveland: If I was a GM and was living in a world where Greg Monroe and Ed Davis are lottery picks, I am trading every pick I own in this year's draft.
Chad Ford: Welcome to the world of the 13 GMs that won't get a chance to draft Blake Griffin with the No. 1 pick. There just isn't a lot of upside in the draft, so teams will reach for young big guys who might be players in a few years. Davis and Monroe qualify.E. Davis: Chapel Hill: What did I do this season besides be in the right place at the right time for tip ins and and catch and finish uncontested dunk after feeds from great playmakers?
Chad Ford: You're long, athletic, have a great motor, a good nose for the ball and in a draft as weak as this ... that's going to be enough. Clearly Davis is an upside pick, but if you're drafting in the Top 5 ... you aren't really looking for role players.JC: Cleveland: If Brandon Jennings and Rickey Rubio played against each other tomorrow, who would get the better of that matchup?
Chad Ford: Rubio, hands down.Questions that did not get answered, probably only because he ran out of time.
JC: Cleveland: What's Blair's ceiling? Is he more Big Baby or Z Bo? Is a Boozer level reachable?
J. Harden: Tempe: Hey Chad, can you put me on a team, where I can mail it in 3 times a week, settle for contested 3's and get my numbers on a bad team? Thanks.
Chris Wallace: Memphis: I LOVE B.J. MULLENS!
JC: Cleveland: Chad, who sticks the longest: Psycho T, Goran Suton, Dante Cunningham or Jeff Adrien?
Tuesday Bullets
I have never felt more stupid than I have after Ty Lawson scored 20 points in the second half of the LSU round of 32 game a couple weeks ago. That’s when I officially tore my bracket up and became a spectator, as I was not going to be in contention to win money in a pool this year. His burst was there, bad toe in all, and no one was going to be able to check him for the rest of the tourney. And with that, North Carolina was a lock to win their 2nd title in 5 years. How could I have ever thought that his toe was going to be an issue? And why would I ever talk myself into it? Why did I ever believe Roy Williams when he said that this was the most frustrating team he has ever coached in his career?
You have to differentiate your picks from the pack in a NCAA pool, and you have to have the winner in order to get in the hunt to win the money. I understand that. But picking those pussies from Gonzaga to beat North Carolina in hindsight was very embarrassing. Like I said last time I wrote, sometimes we just make it very hard on ourselves. North Carolina passes every eye test. North Carolina is the most talented team by a wide margin. The most talented team almost always wins. It’s just that simple.
All in all, the Heels were just a nightmare tough match-up for the Spartans. You cannot convince me that they would win more than one game out of ten against North Carolina. Even one game is a bit of a reach in my opinion. Carolina is better at every position with the exception of point guard, but Lawson has the upper hand.
I think it is important to remember that yes, Roy Williams gets all the best players. But he really coaches them up well, and they are a fundamentally sound, well versed offensively and defensively, play very hard and are unselfish. It’s easy to forget how well they play and just get immersed in the awe of talent. ‘Ol Roy is great. He confuses me all the time though when I hear him talk. I think he’s really interesting. Every time I hear him, I immediately think; “wow, he’s arrogant.” But then he comes back at you with a well articulated philosophy about what he was doing in that given game. Or he glows candidly about the character of his players. Then he talks in the third person. Then he refuses to give any team that beats them a shred of credit and goes on and on about how his team played bad and gave the game away. He’s an interesting speaker. He keeps you guessing about what kind of guy he is, but I like him.
That game was over right off the jump when Hansbrough rag dolled Travis Walton off that botched jump ball. I have watched Tyler very closely a lot. And I have never seen him jaw to the other team a little bit. He talks to refs. He talks to his guys. He talks to the air. But he never really directs it toward the other team. But after they broke up that jump ball he gave two of these to the green team: “All day. All day.” That clinched it for me. The adrenaline that must have been running through that great man’s body must have been at its apex of his threshold. It hooked me. After I saw that my heart beat a little harder and I got the ground and did ten clapper pushups. Travis Walton after the game in the presser had an interesting comment. Some twit asked him about the tie up with Tyler and he said “yea, he is obviously a tough player, who isn’t going back down. I remember two years ago when he got elbowed in the face, he just stood there and stared at the guy and the other team for like a minute. So he’s really tough, but I wasn’t gonna back down either.” Walton’s tone was interesting. Walton by the way really gets it. He is one of the good guys.
So where does Tyler fit in the history of the college game? I have him slotted at 1B, right behind Christian Laetener as the best college player ever. I mean his accolades speak for themselves. I don’t want to get to them. You can look them up. But more than anything, there has never been a guy like that ever. He was amazing. He was just such an unbelievable competitor. MAN’S GAME BITCH. I wish I would have been his roommate during his freshman year. My friend Brian and I are in the midst of writing him a letter, asking him if he can come spend a weekend with us. We might just have to go down to Chapel Hill and try to catch him at a frat party. But that guy is just the truth. I feel bad that he’s gonna get judged a lot on the way he does in the pros. I really wish he had just a little upside. He basically has no upside and that’s a shame. I hope he can drafted somewhere in the late first early second round. Play 8 great years as a rotation guy and helps win an NBA title as an 8th – 9th guy. You know what you’re gonna get with Psycho T.
Speaking of the draft, do you think Ed Davis writes Delvon Roe a hand-written thank you note every week? This was a guy, very legit, but kind of on the outside looking in at his dream schools. Teams liked him but liked other guys better. Then Delvon Roe sleeps on his decision to go to Carolina, decides on Michigan State. Roy is so pissed, that he doesn’t hesitate and brings in Ed Davis immediately. Davis ends up being a perfect fit, gets better in the intermediate period, and becomes the Marvin Williams 2.0. Davis is an absolute lottery pick this year or next as crazy as that seems, whether he earned it or not (he hasn’t, scouts are having their little obsess period, i.e. just like they had with Greg Monroe in December. Plus, look at this draft--ibismal). I mean you just looked at the Roe-Davis matchup and it was an absolute mismatch. He dwarfs Delvon, is bigger quicker fast and more skilled. Del gets back in the discussion with strong passing and good one on one defense when he's on an island. It’s amazing how so many guys get mis-evaluated. And its amazing how much being a good fit shapes the way things play out in careers. It really makes you think how Carolina didn’t have Davis locked up well before they did.
It was a real bummer to see Sean Miller leave Xavier. As a guy that lives in Ohio, I kind of felt a kinship toward him because he was a great coach who wasn’t that far away. I did a clinic with him last summer, and he seemed like a great guy. He focused on the right things and had principles of his own that have created an identity that has proven to be successful. It was an obvious move for him though. A no-brainer. It sucks to leave the hot bed of recruiting that Ohio has created but it won’t suck to recruit in California and Texas either. And I’m sure he will hold on to some of his better Midwest channels. I hope he can get JD Weatherspoon (Columbus Northbrook) to head west. He can be new and improved version of Hassaan Adams (plus 3.5 inches of vert), and help Coach Miller to get off to a decent start recruiting wise. I think Michigan State making it to the Final Two game kind of foiled UA’s plan because they were really gonna target Coach Izzo to come out west. Probably a good thing though because Sean Miller is gonna do a nice job.
I really liked the under the radar hire Memphis made. Well, I really like it because I called it with my dad and a couple of my friends when Cal took the UK job. I only like it okay in the sense of them naming Josh Pastner as the head ball coach. This was the obvious move to me. He’s a great young coach. He has been around a while. I have been following him for about 5 years. I read about him. Walked on to Arizona for 3 years. Became an assistant for UA for a while. Applied for a number of high level jobs when he was like 24 (kinda gimmicky). Made some great calls in recruiting (see: P.J. Hill), made some bad calls too (see: Marcus Williams). But he is a good evaluator of talent. He knows how to cut some corners. He knows how to get players in. He has learned from two very good coaches. He was the son of a coach. I think it was a good decision. The Memphis AD is kind of taking an NFL approach in my opinion. Yea, Scott Drew, Leonard Hamilton, Sean Miller would have been great. But Pastner might be really good too. They might have lightning in a bottle here. So I’ll be interested to see how he does. Might take a couple years, but they play in a crap conference.
I guess they are letting anyone into the basketball hall of fame. How else could you explain the admittance of John Stockton and Michael Jordan? Did anyone see MJ yesterday? Did you see how sad he looked? Has anyone looked more sad at a hall of fame presser? This was kind of like the final nail in his playing days coffin. And he knows it. A guy like him is never gonna be able to fill that void. He burned so passionately for so many years to be the best basketball player to ever live. He needed to be the best more than anything in the world. And now that he cannot do it anymore, I think that is really hard on him. Nothing is going to be able to replace that feeling. Gambling won’t. Tapping the latest 21 year old talent he finds in Vegas or the like won’t. Playing 36 holes a day hasn't. Administrating basketball at the highest level obviously has not fit. I dunno, I just really worry his psyche. Same goes for Tiger Woods. I think he is in that exact same category. I think you can almost say that these guys are gonna die a little earlier than they should, because they can no longer feel complete without that rush of adrenaline that comes with competing at the highest level. It defines them and that emptiness is just too much to endure.
You have to differentiate your picks from the pack in a NCAA pool, and you have to have the winner in order to get in the hunt to win the money. I understand that. But picking those pussies from Gonzaga to beat North Carolina in hindsight was very embarrassing. Like I said last time I wrote, sometimes we just make it very hard on ourselves. North Carolina passes every eye test. North Carolina is the most talented team by a wide margin. The most talented team almost always wins. It’s just that simple.
All in all, the Heels were just a nightmare tough match-up for the Spartans. You cannot convince me that they would win more than one game out of ten against North Carolina. Even one game is a bit of a reach in my opinion. Carolina is better at every position with the exception of point guard, but Lawson has the upper hand.
I think it is important to remember that yes, Roy Williams gets all the best players. But he really coaches them up well, and they are a fundamentally sound, well versed offensively and defensively, play very hard and are unselfish. It’s easy to forget how well they play and just get immersed in the awe of talent. ‘Ol Roy is great. He confuses me all the time though when I hear him talk. I think he’s really interesting. Every time I hear him, I immediately think; “wow, he’s arrogant.” But then he comes back at you with a well articulated philosophy about what he was doing in that given game. Or he glows candidly about the character of his players. Then he talks in the third person. Then he refuses to give any team that beats them a shred of credit and goes on and on about how his team played bad and gave the game away. He’s an interesting speaker. He keeps you guessing about what kind of guy he is, but I like him.
That game was over right off the jump when Hansbrough rag dolled Travis Walton off that botched jump ball. I have watched Tyler very closely a lot. And I have never seen him jaw to the other team a little bit. He talks to refs. He talks to his guys. He talks to the air. But he never really directs it toward the other team. But after they broke up that jump ball he gave two of these to the green team: “All day. All day.” That clinched it for me. The adrenaline that must have been running through that great man’s body must have been at its apex of his threshold. It hooked me. After I saw that my heart beat a little harder and I got the ground and did ten clapper pushups. Travis Walton after the game in the presser had an interesting comment. Some twit asked him about the tie up with Tyler and he said “yea, he is obviously a tough player, who isn’t going back down. I remember two years ago when he got elbowed in the face, he just stood there and stared at the guy and the other team for like a minute. So he’s really tough, but I wasn’t gonna back down either.” Walton’s tone was interesting. Walton by the way really gets it. He is one of the good guys.
So where does Tyler fit in the history of the college game? I have him slotted at 1B, right behind Christian Laetener as the best college player ever. I mean his accolades speak for themselves. I don’t want to get to them. You can look them up. But more than anything, there has never been a guy like that ever. He was amazing. He was just such an unbelievable competitor. MAN’S GAME BITCH. I wish I would have been his roommate during his freshman year. My friend Brian and I are in the midst of writing him a letter, asking him if he can come spend a weekend with us. We might just have to go down to Chapel Hill and try to catch him at a frat party. But that guy is just the truth. I feel bad that he’s gonna get judged a lot on the way he does in the pros. I really wish he had just a little upside. He basically has no upside and that’s a shame. I hope he can drafted somewhere in the late first early second round. Play 8 great years as a rotation guy and helps win an NBA title as an 8th – 9th guy. You know what you’re gonna get with Psycho T.
Speaking of the draft, do you think Ed Davis writes Delvon Roe a hand-written thank you note every week? This was a guy, very legit, but kind of on the outside looking in at his dream schools. Teams liked him but liked other guys better. Then Delvon Roe sleeps on his decision to go to Carolina, decides on Michigan State. Roy is so pissed, that he doesn’t hesitate and brings in Ed Davis immediately. Davis ends up being a perfect fit, gets better in the intermediate period, and becomes the Marvin Williams 2.0. Davis is an absolute lottery pick this year or next as crazy as that seems, whether he earned it or not (he hasn’t, scouts are having their little obsess period, i.e. just like they had with Greg Monroe in December. Plus, look at this draft--ibismal). I mean you just looked at the Roe-Davis matchup and it was an absolute mismatch. He dwarfs Delvon, is bigger quicker fast and more skilled. Del gets back in the discussion with strong passing and good one on one defense when he's on an island. It’s amazing how so many guys get mis-evaluated. And its amazing how much being a good fit shapes the way things play out in careers. It really makes you think how Carolina didn’t have Davis locked up well before they did.
It was a real bummer to see Sean Miller leave Xavier. As a guy that lives in Ohio, I kind of felt a kinship toward him because he was a great coach who wasn’t that far away. I did a clinic with him last summer, and he seemed like a great guy. He focused on the right things and had principles of his own that have created an identity that has proven to be successful. It was an obvious move for him though. A no-brainer. It sucks to leave the hot bed of recruiting that Ohio has created but it won’t suck to recruit in California and Texas either. And I’m sure he will hold on to some of his better Midwest channels. I hope he can get JD Weatherspoon (Columbus Northbrook) to head west. He can be new and improved version of Hassaan Adams (plus 3.5 inches of vert), and help Coach Miller to get off to a decent start recruiting wise. I think Michigan State making it to the Final Two game kind of foiled UA’s plan because they were really gonna target Coach Izzo to come out west. Probably a good thing though because Sean Miller is gonna do a nice job.
I really liked the under the radar hire Memphis made. Well, I really like it because I called it with my dad and a couple of my friends when Cal took the UK job. I only like it okay in the sense of them naming Josh Pastner as the head ball coach. This was the obvious move to me. He’s a great young coach. He has been around a while. I have been following him for about 5 years. I read about him. Walked on to Arizona for 3 years. Became an assistant for UA for a while. Applied for a number of high level jobs when he was like 24 (kinda gimmicky). Made some great calls in recruiting (see: P.J. Hill), made some bad calls too (see: Marcus Williams). But he is a good evaluator of talent. He knows how to cut some corners. He knows how to get players in. He has learned from two very good coaches. He was the son of a coach. I think it was a good decision. The Memphis AD is kind of taking an NFL approach in my opinion. Yea, Scott Drew, Leonard Hamilton, Sean Miller would have been great. But Pastner might be really good too. They might have lightning in a bottle here. So I’ll be interested to see how he does. Might take a couple years, but they play in a crap conference.
I guess they are letting anyone into the basketball hall of fame. How else could you explain the admittance of John Stockton and Michael Jordan? Did anyone see MJ yesterday? Did you see how sad he looked? Has anyone looked more sad at a hall of fame presser? This was kind of like the final nail in his playing days coffin. And he knows it. A guy like him is never gonna be able to fill that void. He burned so passionately for so many years to be the best basketball player to ever live. He needed to be the best more than anything in the world. And now that he cannot do it anymore, I think that is really hard on him. Nothing is going to be able to replace that feeling. Gambling won’t. Tapping the latest 21 year old talent he finds in Vegas or the like won’t. Playing 36 holes a day hasn't. Administrating basketball at the highest level obviously has not fit. I dunno, I just really worry his psyche. Same goes for Tiger Woods. I think he is in that exact same category. I think you can almost say that these guys are gonna die a little earlier than they should, because they can no longer feel complete without that rush of adrenaline that comes with competing at the highest level. It defines them and that emptiness is just too much to endure.
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