I can’t believe I did it yet again. That’s right—I underestimated the Spurs. I seriously thought they were too old and that they were completely overmatched against the talented Mavericks. Looks like I was wrong. It kills me to write this, because it means another round of watching the Spurs boring yet oh-so-effective brand of basketball. The Spurs are like the Energizer Bunny—they keep going and going and going.

They are led by the big 3: Ginobli, Parker, and Duncan. As much as I hate Ginobli, the guy can play. That doesn’t mean I have to prevent myself from gouging my eyes out every time I watch him play—Ginobli flops more than Free Willy. Parker is probably the most enjoyable to watch, and anytime I get sad I can always go watch his ill-fated rapping career. Last we have Tim Duncan. After watching Lebron play, it’s like going from 300 to Pride and Prejudice—the excitement just isn’t the same. However, I must say that Duncan is sickeningly effective. I hate how good he is.

So the Spurs are going to play the winner of the Trailblazers-Suns series. As of right now (I am writing during Game 7 and the Suns are up by 12) it looks like the Suns are going to win. I do know that while I will be vehemently cheering against the Spurs, my heart knows that most likely I will have to watch them in yet another Western Conference Finals.

The NBA playoffs could not be more exciting right now. Let’s be honest; every series is proving to be competitive. Even my lowly Heat have made their series exciting with a win this morning over the Celtics. However, the most exciting series by far has to be the Laker-Thunder series.

Laker fans have some legitimate worries about the coming games. This series could easily be 3-1 if Russell Westbrook had stayed out of foul trouble in game 2, and it was pretty hard to even call game 4 a game. The Thunder flat out dominated from beginning to end. For me, the defining moment of that game came in the first half by none other than Serge Ibaka. The Lakers were on a fast break and Ibaka blocked the first shot, the Lakers recovered, shot again, and Ibaka got that one too.

The Lakers seem like they don’t even want to be there. There season so far has been like Ocean’s 12—great cast, bad movie. With the exception of the Laker big men, the rest of the team was quite atrocious. Kobe didn’t take a shot until the middle of the second quarter and ended up with 12 points. Ron Artest needs to stop working on his newest hair-do and start working on his jump shot, because 2-9 and 0-4 from three just doesn’t cut it.

They just seem like they are forced to play basketball. Contrast that with the Thunder, who look like they are having the time of their lives out there, and it’s no surprise that this series is so close. If the Lakers don’t get their act together, they could easily be upset like Kimbo Slice and go down as the biggest letdown in NBA history.

I wrote a couple weeks ago that I thought this whole Ben Roethlisberger saga was over. Looks like I was wrong. Every time I go online or turn on ESPN there seems to be something new having to do with Roethlisberger, and I’m beyond tired of hearing about it.

By no means am I condoning Roethlisberger’s actions from that night, but in the grand scheme of all that goes on in the NFL, this whole situation has been blown out of proportion. Roethlisberger was not charged because there wasn’t any proof beyond reasonable doubt, and the DA even stated that they “do not prosecute morals. [They] prosecute crimes.”

Clearly, Roethlisberger messed up that night, but I find it hard to believe that he did anything out of the NFL norm. While the exact details of that ill-fated night are unknown, at the least Roethlisberger “contributed to the irresponsible consumption of alcohol by purchasing [or facilitating the purchase of] alcoholic beverages for underage college students.”

Now, Roger Goodell was acting within his powers, because he is right in stating that NFL players are held to a higher standard. However, that seems a bit harsh. He gets a six game suspension for providing alcohol to underage college students, which seems ridiculous in light of the other suspensions Goodell has handed out as commissioner (courtesy of espn.com):

·         Fabian Washington, domestic violence, 1 game

·         Michael Boley, domestic abuse, 1 game

·         Fred Evans, fight with police, 2 games

·         Ricky Manning, felony assault, 1 game

·         Brandon Marshall, various (including assaulting girlfriend), 1 game

So according to the NFL, providing alcohol to underage college students is worse that abusing one’s significant other, assaulting someone, or fighting with the police. Then include the fact that Roethlisberger is the only player suspended who hasn’t been convicted of a crime, and I think you understand why this whole situation seems a little ridiculous. It’s time to move onto something else sports world.

The other day I was looking at Rivals and checking out where all the college basketball recruits had signed. I was thrilled when I discovered that Brandon Knight, debatably the number one recruit, was coming to Kentucky, and that two other 5-star recruits had made verbal commitments. Retrospectively, I am not sure if I am really so happy.

I was talking to my buddy Hector about Brandon Knight and he basically said “There goes another Kentucky one-and-done.” I thought about what he said, and he’s probably right. Don’t get me wrong, I am ecstatic about getting the arguable best high school player in the country (who some have called John Wall with a jump shot).

Is Kentucky really going to win a national championship led solely by a whole bunch of freshman? My honest answer is probably not. Which brings me to my question. Would it be better for teams to get lower ranked recruits who are more likely to stay for several years? Look at this year’s champion, Duke. Duke’s best players stayed for several years. North Carolina won in 2009 led predominately by seniors and juniors. I could give more examples, but I think you get the point.

My question goes against the logical recruiting position—to go out and try to get the best players possible. But in the current situation where players can leave after just one season, it is hard to win a championship when the majority of your best players are freshman. In an ideal world, the NCAA and NBA would work together and change the rule so that players had to stay two years or ideally three (like college football). Unfortunately, I don’t see that happening anytime soon, so I guess I am left hoping that the one-and-done’s in Kentucky either win a championship or miraculously decide to stay another year.

Readers,

I apologize for yesterday's blog. I did not articulate my point very well, in particular the third point. Clearly, there are busts in every draft, including the NBA, MLB, etc. What I was trying to say was that ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and the like make a much bigger deal and spend way much more time, energy, and money on the NFL draft. By no means am I saying that there shouldn't be a draft, just that it is over-hyped. Also, it annoys me how certain all of the analysts are. They are so confident about something that is really an inexact science.

As far as the busts go, I guess I didn't do as good of a job identifying busts. I should have stated Akili Smith, Heath Shuler, Tim Couch,  and others like that. As far as the comment from Poop Patrol about Reggie Bush, I did say that he was a solid NFL player, just that he has not met the hype (where he was supposed to be the next Gale Sayers or Barry Sanders).

Again, I don't think the draft should be done away with--just the excessive attention and length that comes with it. I am sorry for not making my point more clear.

Joe Marshall

Tomorrow begins the single most overhyped event in America not named the Bachelor/American Idol Finale—the NFL Draft. Now I know that many a football fan will attack me on this, but hear me out.

First, a minor point. It involves countless hours of watching Mel Kiper, Jr., who is in direct competition with Donald Trump for Worst Possible Haircut Award.

Second, the draft is waaayyyyyyy too long to the point of being unnecessary. It’s three days long for goodness sake. Each team gets 10 minutes in the first round, 7 in the second round, and 5 each round thereafter. It’s literally ridiculous. For as much analysis as each team does, there is no way it should take them 5 minutes to pick a player, let alone 10.

Which brings me to my third point. The NFL draft, like basically every other draft, is just one huge crapshoot. For all the money, time, and energy these teams spend, there is absolutely no guarantee of how good a player will be. Ryan Leaf, bust. Matt Leinart, bust. To an extent Reggie Bush was a bust (I know he has developed into a solid NFL player, but compared to the pre-draft hype, the guy is the equivalent of Pluto Nash, which incidentally lost $134 million). Then you have someone like Marques Colston, a guy who was drafted in the 7th round and has turned into a star receiver.

What I am trying to say is that the NFL draft is just a waste of time. Instead of watching the whole thing, which could potentially take you close to 28 hours to watch, you could just look online the a couple minutes after the day’s draft is done and save yourself a whole lot of time, and more importantly, a whole less of Mel Kiper, Jr.

I know that I did an NHL preview the other day, and if you couldn’t tell, hockey isn’t really my number one sport. But now, with the exception of maybe March Madness, my single favorite sporting event of the year is here—(in the voice of Dick Vitale) IT’S NBA PLAYOFFS BABY! So in honor of this hallowed and revered time of year, I give you an NBA playoffs preview (first round only):

Western Conference

Before I get into a deeper analysis, let me just say the Western Conference makes me giddy. I don’t know if you could possibly ask for a more exciting first round. 8 teams great teams, all of whom won 50 games, 7 are fun to watch (sorry Spurs fans. There is no beating around the bush. You have a great team but they are just miserable to watch), and 6 out of the 8 are legit title contenders (OKC is just too young, as much as I love them, and Portland has no chance if Brandon Roy is injured). In a nutshell, the West is a smorgasbord of excellence

#1 Los Angeles Lakers vs #8 Oklahoma City Thunder

I would say this is my pick for most exciting first round matchup, but honestly, there are just too many great first round series. Nevertheless, it will be fun to watch.  As I wrote several weeks ago, the Lakers are prime for an upset. However, it will not be this round. Despite the Lakers woes the last few weeks, this is a veteran team with countless playoff experience, and (hold your breath) they have Kobe Bryant. As much as I hope the Lakers will, there is no way they are losing this series. Nobody on the Thunder has a chance at guarding Kobe. Ron Artest is going to make Kevin Durant work as hard as Durant has all season for his points. The Thunder do have an advantage at the point guard spot, but Derik Fisher lives for the playoffs. And beyond all that, the Thunder have literally no way of guarding the Lakers down low. I’m sorry, but “no game” Nenad Kristic is going to get abused by Pau Gasol (who incidentally personifies the meaning of Mog—half man, half dog—from Spaceballs. John Candy may actually be better looking though…), and as much as I love Jeff Green, he cannot guard Andrew Bynum down low. While the Thunder may have a better bench, it still will not be enough to overcome the Lakers.

Prediction: Lakers in 5.5 (I know that makes no sense, but I just really can’t decide between Lakers in 5 or in 6. But if you don’t like it, sue me. I write the column)

#2 Dallas Mavericks vs #7 San Antonio Spurs

Hands down the most boring playoff series, solely because the Spurs are in it. Listen, I respect the Spurs tremendously, but they make for low ratings and boring basketball. The Mavericks can thank the Wizards for the 2 seed and a legit chance to make it to the finals for the absolute gifts given to them in Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood (who, in the likes of Tim Thomas, is playing out of his mind because it’s a contract year). Let’s get to the point—the Dallas Mavericks are stacked. J-Kidd running the point, Caron Butler at the 2, a motivated Marion at the 3, European, poor man’s Larry Bird aka Dirk Nowitzki at the 4, Erick Dampier/Haywood at center, and Jason Terry and DeShawn Stevenson coming off the bench (yes, I am intentionally forgetting Jose Juan Barrea. I just don’t like him)!! Dallas has a chance to redeem themselves from 2006, when they choked more famously than the Knicks did against Reggie Miller and the Pacers. As good as the Spurs are, they are not going to win this one.

As far as the matchups go, Dallas has this series. They are too deep and have great players at every position except center, but even there they are in good shape. Kidd is in the perfect position at this point in his career. He is completely surrounded by talent and can throw alley-oops all day to Butler and Marion. However Tony Parker will look like Roadrunner out there against Kidd’s aging body and nonexistent defense. Butler and Ginobli essentially cancel each other out. Richard Jefferson has been quite a disappointment this year, and Marion is playing in a system that is almost perfect for him (the only system better is still the Phoenix Suns), so I give Marion the advantage here, plus Marion is a better defender when he wants to be. I don’t really know how the rest of the matchups are going to work. If San Antonio starts both Tim Duncan and Antonio McDyess, Nowitzki is going to have a field day and I legitimately would not be surprised if he shot 60% for the series. However, if the Spurs start Duncan at center and put Blair or Bonner on Nowitzki, it really is not going to make that much of a difference, although Duncan will probably destroy Haywood/Dampier. And as far as the bench goes, the Spurs are completely outmatched. Terry is one of the best 6th men in the league, and no one on San Antonio except maybe Roger Mason scares me.

Prediction: Dallas in 6

#3 Phoenix Suns vs. #6 Portland Trailblazers

This had potential to be another great series, but without their leader in Brandon Roy, I just don’t see the Trailblazers winning this series. I honestly feel bad for the Blazers. They are without Oden and Roy. With them, they would also be contenders. Without them, the Blazers are going to get run back to Portland in time for hunting/fishing season by the surprise of this year in the Phoenix Suns. Andre Miller, who somehow has revitalized his career, will not be able to keep up with Nash (Nash is pretty much like Yoda in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. He is just so wise and crafty, and his play is absolutely out of this world, a la Yoda’s battle with Count Dooku). Jason Richardson is without a doubt better than Rudy Fernandez, who will be starting in place of Roy. Nicholas Batum and Grant Hill pretty much cancel each other out, although I may give Hill the advantage only because he has more experience. Amare Stoudamire against LaMarcus Aldridge is not really fair. The over/under for times Amare dunks on Aldridge is about 2.5 Marcus Camby is definitely better than Jarron Collins, but not enough so to make up for Roy’s absence.

Prediction: Suns in 5

#4 Denver Thuggets er, I mean Nuggets vs. #5 Utah Jazz

A quick side note: When watching the Nuggets play, I sometimes feel like I accidentally went to the wrong channel and am watching an episode of Miami Ink or something. It is absolutely ridiculous how many tattoos the Nuggets players have, especially Birdman, Kenyon Martin, Carmelo Anthony, and J.R. Smith (he may have the most tattoos in the NBA, an amazing accomplishment if you think about it).

But back to the point. This will be another fantastic first round, although I think the Nuggets have too much firepower. I could be completely wrong because Utah has better chemistry, and that definitely counts for something. Nevertheless, it will be a great series. Chauncey Billups against Deron Williams is a great matchup of point guards, and although Williams is better, Billups plays amazing in the playoffs. Advantage Williams, but not by much. Neither team has good shooting guards if Denver brings J.R. Smith off the bench. Aaron Afflalo against Wesley Matthews is not really a key matchup, although J.R. Smith off the bench will is definitely an advantage for the Nuggets (especially if they are playing at home. See last season’s series against the Lakers—Smith was nonexistent on the road but an absolute monster at home). Carmelo Anthony is going to absolutely destroy C.J. Miles, nothing more needs to be said (ok, I lied.This matchup would not be nearly as one-sided if Andrei Kirilenko was still healthy). Carlos Boozer is worlds better than old Kenyon Martin, although Martin may surprise people if he isn’t still mad about the whole popcorn incident. And while it seems Mehmet Okur is way better than Nene Hilario, I disagree. Nene is without a doubt the most underrated center in the league. Like my buddy J-Mill says, Nene plays great D and throws down some nasty dunks. I give Nene the advantage here.

Prediction: Nuggets in 7

Eastern Conference

Unfortunately, the Eastern Conference is not as balanced as the West is. I don’t think many of the series will be that close or fun until the second round.  The East is just so one-sided, but I am sure I will be pleasantly surprised by at least one series.

#1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. #8 Chicago Bulls

One word: Lebron

Prediction: Cavs sweep

Additional comment: On ESPN.com today it asked if Mo Williams and the Cavs could avoid an upset and beat the Bulls. On what world is Mo Williams the leader of the Cavs?! I am seriously insulted, and if I was the editor of ESPN, I would fire whoever put that up. Such stupidity is not tolerable.

#2 Orlando Magic vs. #7 Charlotte Bobcats

I have to say I am pleasantly surprised by the fact that the Bobcats got the 7 seed. After years of mediocrity it is nice to see Charlotte make the playoffs. However, the fun will be short-lived. Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis are going to make Boris Diaw and Theo “Methuselah” Ratliff look silly. Jameer Nelson, who hasn’t been quite the same since hurting himself last year, is still better than Raymond Felton (yet another disappointing product from UNC in recent years. See Marvin Williams, Tyler Hansboro, Rashad McCants, Sean May, David Noel, Brandon Wright). As much as I hate to admit it, Stephen Jackson has the advantage over Vince Carter for two reasons. Vince Carter is a complete disappointment and chokes in big situations, and Jackson is playing out of his mind since the trade. Gerald Wallace is also better than Matt Barnes despite Wallace’s complete disappointment in the dunk contest.

Prediction: Orlando in 5

#3 Atlanta Hawks vs. #6 Milwaukee Bucks

Just so you know, the most exciting finals would be Atlanta-Oklahoma City hands down. The sheer amount of dunks and Sportscenter-esque plays would be ridiculous. They would have to have a separate top-ten each night dedicated solely to the number of alley-oops thrown. Unfortunately, this matchup has no chance of happening.

Milwaukee is another feel good team this year, and their whole “Fear the Deer” campaign is downright hilarious. However, it’s not going to get them past the Hawks. Milwaukee is just plain out-manned at every position at point guard, and even that advantage is decreasing just as is Brandon Jennings’ field goal percentage. Jennings has way more talent than an aging Bibby does, and Bibby’s defense is up there with Nash and Kidd for most atrocious in the league by a player not named Tim Thomas or Sasha Vujacic (if you don’t believe me about Sasha, watch this video). However, Joe Johnson is clearly better than John Salmons in pretty much every aspect. Furthermore, Josh Smith, the most athletic player in the league sans Lebron, is going to posterize Luc Richard “I got tired of typing his name” so many times its going to make Shawn Bradley feel good about himself again. The first time Smith sends Mbah a Moute’s shot into the 12th row, Mbah a Moute is going to disappear just like Jimmy Hoffa. And without Bogut, the center matchup is also one-sided as Al Horford will have his cake and eat it too against Kurt Thomas.

Prediction: Hawks in 5

#4 Boston Celtics vs. #5 Miami Heat

I must say I am so happy the Heat are playing the Celtics in the first round. As a Heat fan, I must say I was not really looking forward to this year’s playoffs. I don’t care what anyone else says, other than Dwyane Wade the Heat are a bunch of average NBA players and good D-Leaguers. I am fairly confident that as far as scoring options go for the Heat it is 1. Dwyane Wade 2. Dwyane Wade and 3. Dwyane Wade.

On paper, this series should be a joke. The Heat are absolutely outmanned at every position except for shooting guard. Rondo kills Chalmers, Pierce kills Quentin Richardson, Kevin Garnett destroys the biggest disappointment for me in recent history, Michael Beasley, and even Rasheed Wallace is better than Miami’s grotesque assembly of centers (I refuse to offer even one compliment to Jermaine O’Neal. When you are the highest paid player in the NBA, you better average better than 14-7. Enough said).

However, Miami may have a chance. The Celtics have been as painful to watch since the All-Star break as Kevin Garnett’s knees. I am assuming that the Celtics are going the old Shaq route—mail it in until the playoffs and then start playing again. If they don’t, the Celtics could be severely disappointed. Wade has the potential to win this one for the Heat.

Prediction: Celtics in 7 (I just have to. I cannot believe that Boston is this bad. They will get it together for at least one round in the playoffs)

 

Alright, so I went a little long. Hopefully you can tell I am a little excited for the playoffs. I can’t wait to watch the games, and hopefully there will be some pleasant surprises along the way (come on Thunder, come on Thunder!!). As always, until next time…

It’s NHL playoff time people!!

Normally, the NHL does not inspire me to ever even think about watching a game, but this year I might reconsider. Granted, I am not going to be a fanatic cheering throughout the first round, yet I may not spend my April, May, and June solely watching the NBA playoffs.

Let’s just be honest. I know basically nothing about hockey. I like watching them fight, and Sportscenter shows some sick goals. I don’t know too many players; I can’t name half the teams. However, I do know Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. That being said, I might watch the Eastern Conference second round, when Ovechkin and Crosby’s respective teams could potentially face off.

Yeah, that makes me a shallow fan, but it is better than nothing. I have been hearing for some time now about Ovechkin and Crosby’s legendary battles. Now, my buddy Wheeler hates me for this. He says I just encourage the East Coast bias. I guess that is true. However, the only team I remotely care about (as of now) is the Anaheim Ducks, but they were horrible this season. I am not going to cheer for a team just because they are from the West Coast. As a matter of fact, I am not going to cheer for any team.

Basically, I am hoping that this year’s NHL playoffs make me more of a hockey fan. I would love to become a more well-rounded sports fan and hockey finally has enough marquee players to draw in people who don’t normally watch, like me.

Finally it is over. I no longer have to see nor hear anything else about Ben Roethlisberger, aka just Will Ferrell as a football player—so Will Ferrell 2.0. 2.0’s saga has been well documented these last few months and Monday it finally came to an end as the prosecutor decided not to press charges against 2.0 for allegedly assaulting a 20-year old at a nightclub.

Besides having to see 2.0 every day for some time (I guess 2.0 is only an upgrade in an athletic sense. He isn’t nearly as funny as the original. Oh well, you win some and you lose some), I am starting to get tired of hearing about all the sex-related athlete news these days.

Which brings me to my point: athletes live in a completely different world that you and I do. I can’t speak for the athletes, but it seems like they think they are invincible and that nothing can touch them. Despite all of the troubles surrounding their fellow athletes, they think they will still be ok. While 2.0 is innocent here, there still have been so many cases lately of athletes and sex, and beyond that, athletes in trouble with the law in general.

As many have stated before me, many of these athletes were given so much so early. Many of them became professionals about the time they could drink or before, and yet they are being paid salaries fit for Manhattan investment bankers. I can’t even imagine being put in situations like they are—it’s no wonder they mess up.

Now, I am no math major, but this lack of maturity coupled with too much money and few guiding figures is an equation for social Chernobyl. There needs to be an increase in accountability among athletes, otherwise our role models will continue to let us down.

Tiger’s Masters Meltdown. Tiger’s Swing Badly in Need of Repair. Tiger’s performance was “lackluster, inconsistent, and never put him in contention to win during the four rounds of golf from Augusta.”1

These are just a few of the headlines after the conclusion of Sunday’s Masters. Here’s a news flash to every writer bagging on Tiger’s golf game: He did pretty well.

Think about it. The guy has been taking a break since his troubles started back in November. Give or take a few days, that’s about 5 months. If Lebron or Kobe or Peyton Manning or Albert Pujols or any other athlete took 5 whole months off of their respective sports, I guarantee they would not play amazing their first game back.

Second of all, Tiger finished fourth. Fourth place. That’s pretty amazing. After all that time off, Tiger still beat 92 out of the 96 golfers at the Masters. For any other golfer, that would be totally fine. However, we are so used to Tiger winning and dominating that if he doesn’t automatically  win then there must be something horribly wrong.

Sure, Tiger’s swing was not picture perfect. Give the guy some time. He will return to his old form in due time. From a purely golf standpoint, I view Tiger’s swing struggles as comparable to those in 2003 and 2004. Tiger will come back and be as good as ever. Just give him a chance to prove himself… in golf at least.

 

1. news.lalate.com