Pepper On Sports

The Madness is almost upon us.

We are so close (yet so far) from filling out brackets, huddling in front of the TV with the masses, and praying that our teams win, but more importantly, that our crumpled up piece of paper proves that we were right all along! 

In this final weekend of regular season play, college basketball perfectly sets the table for conference tournaments with classic rivalry games across the board.  In a week from now, the conference tournaments, while really not entirely necessary, will build the drama and anticipation for Selection Sunday which will in turn, kick-start the true Madness of March in an instant.

Unlike college football, collegiate basketball gets it right. 

The Olympics and World Cup may be the most-watched international contests, but to me, the NCAA Tournament is the most exciting sporting event in the world. 

As previously mentioned, NCAA basketball has a schedule that is precisely designed to build up to the Tournament.  Every single game from the Midnight Madness scrimmage on, has its place and serves a purpose of getting teams from practice and conditioning mode all the way to full on ratings-bonanza, butt-kicking Tourney play. 

In the next week, we’ll get a taste of what many of these teams are made of.  Not so much the Top 25 teams who we know will make it to the Big Dance regardless of what happens in conference tournaments, but the “bubble” teams, mid-majors and dark horses that nobody has watched play all season (because they are rarely nationally televised, if ever), who finally get a chance to shine and show us A) if they can even make it to the Tourney and B) what we can expect to see from them on basketball’s biggest stage.

The Tourney is a time where loyalties fly out the window and rooting against the favorite is the popular thing to do.  It’s the one time when the big boys get bullied and the little guys play the hero. 

So turn on your TV this weekend and start picking your favorites, both the powerhouses and unknowns and by next weekend, you’ll be ready to select the bracket busters and wrongly choose the next National Champion right along with the rest of us. 

Alrighty ballers, the fun is over. 

You’ve had two months to remember how to play basketball, learn to play alongside your current teammates, and use the fact that you were without an organized off-season as an excuse for playing poorly.  We all had fun watching the All-Star weekend festivities.  We laughed, we cried (well, hopefully not, but I’m sure somebody did) and it seemed like the players enjoyed themselves (sans Kobe’s nose), whether they were in Orlando or relaxing elsewhere and taking advantage of the time off.

With all of that nonsense out of the way, it’s time to quit playing games and step up it up on the court.   After nearly 40 games of the 66-game schedule played thus far, most teams have not impressed during this truncated season.  The Bulls, Heat and Thunder are the cream of the crop, but there’s a significant drop-off after the top three.  The difference isn’t necessarily in wins and losses, but in consistency. 

Oklahoma City is fresh and fierce.  These young bucks have finally honed that killer instinct mentality allowing them to demoralize the opponent and kick it in to high gear down the stretch if need be.  I’m interested to see if the Thunder will lose any firepower once the playoffs start as teams with older rosters will benefit from the rest between games. 

Miami is out of this world when all of the guys are healthy and have their heads screwed on straight.  As most pundits said from day one (and I agree), it’s the Heat’s championship to lose.  Aside from last night’s loss to Utah and the occasional slip-up, I’m curious to see if Miami can maintain the standard they’ve set for themselves.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see it all come crashing down at some point, but as usual, that would most likely come not in the regular season, but in the playoffs where it counts.

I think the Bulls are the most fun team in the league to watch (with the Timberwolves right behind them, believe it not) because they have blended fight and finesse together, creating a smooth yet edgy style of play.  Obviously, if Derrick Rose suffers any relatively long-term injury, the team is in trouble, so lets all say our prayers at night that that doesn’t happen.  For now let’s enjoy Rose, the great team around him and the sweet sounds of Tom Thibodeau screaming about defense from the sidelines. 

As for the other 27 teams in the league, get your act together!  I know it can’t be easy, going from couch potato to NBA player once the owners lifted the lockout, but you should be properly conditioned by now.  If not, perhaps the coaches need to re-evaluate how they rest their players  (see Greg Popovich in San Antonio).

The time is now to put aside any differences or bulging egos in the spirit of team sportsmanship and winning.  Quit hogging the ball and pass it to the open man or someone with a higher shooting percentage than you.  It won’t kill ya!  I promise.  Well, I guess that applies to everyone but LeBron.  Sorry dude.

Sure, some teams aren’t even in the running to make it through April, but so what?  That wouldn’t stop the Honey Badger from playing his butt off, would it?  No.   He don’t give a s*** about the playoffs!  He just wants to kick ass and take names.

Charlotte, I KNOW you can win at least 12 games this season.  Seriously.  If not for your own pride, do it for the poor media that has to cover you and somehow find a different way to write about losing evert night.   A few years ago, the Nets were on the brink of finishing the season with the worst record in modern NBA history and even they managed to escape that fate.  Bobcats, you can do it! 

All of the teams in playoff contention today are talented and worth watching, but the team that excites me the most here in the second half is the Minnesota Timberwolves.  They are only two games out of the final playoff spot out West and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them sneak in as the last few seeds could easily shuffle around several times before the post-season begins. 

They remind me of the 1999-2001 Clippers teams that only won maybe 20-30 games a year, but were so fun to watch.  Those teams had some wonderfully talented guys and decent role players too, they just never found a way to win together, but gave it one hell of a shot on most nights making their games very entertaining. 

I love Kurt Rambis, but Rick Adelman seems to be a better fit for the TWolves, a team with an astounding six players who were Top 5 draft picks.  With a coach who knows how to harvest talent, this team is a move or two away from a Thunder-like assent over the next few seasons.  For now, I’ll watch Kevin Love, Ricky Rubio, Derrick Williams and a red hot Michael Beasley any night.  Rubio is a highlight reel all on his own and once he has an NBA season or two under his belt, WATCH OUT. 

Instead of watching players get injured and burned out, I’m hoping the rest of the NBA regular season is fruitful with skill, drama and competition.  After all, that’s the way it should be. 

I was listening to NFL Network’s Rich Eisen on his self-titled podcast a few weeks ago when he said something to the effect of, mark my words, Robert Griffin III will give Andrew Luck a run for his money because at some point, analysts will pick the Baylor star over the Stanford stud. 

Eisen wasn’t kidding!!   I don’t know about you at home, but I rarely heard Luck’s name coming out of Indianapolis over the last few days as NFL hopefuls attempted to boost their draft status by participating in the exercises, drills, tests and interviews that encompass the combine. 

While RG3’s 40 time sent the media abuzz Sunday, the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback was crowned the king of the combine long before he set foot on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium. 

Luck first, Griffin second seemed to be the consensus on the quarterback order after the college football season ended as both players had monster seasons and wow’d us, each in their own way.  Luck lost a bit of luster for no reason other than the fact that he had become old news, while Griffin was the hot, new guy on the scene who came out of nowhere.  Capping a Heisman-winning season with a bowl game victory consisting of 777 yards of offense, RG3 was already hot heading into the combine and basically lit himself of fire by way of dazzling the media in his press conference on Friday.

The following tweet from Nancy Gay, NFL senior editor for FoxSports.com, echoed the sentiments of just about every media member who was in the room watching RG3 shine:

@nancygay:  RG3 displaying impressive poise, humor, intelligence. He will be a tremendous #NFL leader for the team lucky enough to get him

Griffin was asked about the possibly of becoming an Indianapolis Colt and sitting while Peyton Manning played.  Griffin responded by saying, “I’d hold that clipboard with pride.” 

Seriously?  This kid either had the best media coaching money could buy or he is a genuinely positive person with tremendous character who understands the business of football.  From what I’ve seen of Griffin over the past year, I’m guessing the latter is true.  Nothing excites management more than the idea of a top-notch talent having an ego small enough to allow him to take a back seat in order to help the team.  Finding a guy like that is equivalent to a Unicorn running through your backyard or a Leprechaun offering you a pot of gold.  Very rare, indeed. 

Even so, why was this media session so important for Griffin?  Because the combine, in and of itself doesn’t reveal major secrets, and the scouts know it.

Nothing about the combine accurately replicates playing a football game.  Height, weight, jumping ability, speed and weight lifting mean nothing if you aren’t using that strength to push an offensive lineman or using that vertical leap to elevate higher than the corner covering you in order to make the game-winning catch.  At the end of the day, a pat on the back and top ranking on the NFL Combine’s wikipedia page just isn’t worth that much. 

Griffin’s official 40 time was 4.41 seconds, putting him in third place among quarterbacks since the year 2000.  Who beat him out?  Well, Michael Vick’s official time was 4.33 seconds, followed by Reggie McNeal who ran the famous 40 in 4.40 ticks.  Of the ten quarterbacks who logged the best 40 times since 2000, Vick is the only one to earn a Pro Bowl nod. 

Tom Brady ran a 5.28 at the combine.  No need to expound.  I know you get my point. 

Athleticism and Wonderlich scores don’t necessarily predict sport-specific ability.

I won’t go into the Wonderlich test as we all know of various players who didn’t test well, yet had or have great NFL careers and those who earned near perfect scores whose likenesses won’t be on a bust in Canton any time soon.

Athleticism, however, is worth dissecting a bit.  Does Ben Roethlisberger epitomize the word “athlete” when you look at him?  He’s tall, but he’s a bit chunky, doesn’t move quickly and looks like he’s a few buckets of KFC away from a career as a full-time couch potato.  In reality, Roethlisberger is one of the top five quarterbacks in the NFL.  He’s an elite, Super Bowl-winning quarterback who went 11th overall in the 2004 draft behind Eli Manning and Philip Rivers.  Okay, so Manning has one ring on Big Ben, but I bet the Oakland Raiders regretted drafting o-lineman Robert Gallery with the second overall pick pretty quickly. 

Remember Justin Gatlin, the gold medal-winning Olympian?  The American track star, one of the fastest men on the planet, tried out for the Houston Texans while serving a four-year ban from track and field for doping.  The man ran the 100 meters in 9.85 seconds and couldn’t make the Texans roster, proving that fast and football are not mutually exclusive. 

Yes, Griffin is perhaps an Olympic-caliber track athlete, but that isn’t what defines him as a great pro  prospect.   Both Griffin and Luck decided not to participate in throwing drills at the combine which was no big deal as scouts and coaches have plenty of game tape on them, which serves as the real resume builder in this business. 

Former NFL head coach and current analyst Brian Billick said of Griffin, “This is the best throwing athlete I’ve seen come out in a while.  Far better than Michael Vick in my opinion. Far better than Cam Newton. This guy has as pure a throwing motion for an athletic quarterback [and] clearly has the intelligence to transition. [He] will translate into the NFL very well.”

That’s quite a ringing endorsement, and surely, it had nothing to do with the combine as Griffin did not throw there.

In truth, the combine is more useful as an interviewing tool than anything.  A talented player is of no use if he is suspended, arrested or in jail.  The best player on your team is worthless if he won’t talk to his quarterback, or refuses to go in the game.  Watching a young man’s best attempt at impressing the entire football community over the course of a pressure-filled week can probably give you good insight into one’s character.  Sure, some guys are great actors and might slip through the cracks, but I think coaches and front office members learn much more about the man than the player at the combine.

That’s why RG3 hit a home run in Indy.   The football community already knew what he was physically capable of long before the combine, but now Griffin is recognized as a guy who can walk the walk AND talk the talk, a talent that not many possess in professional sports.

The NBA has the best All-Star game of all the major North American team sports.  Sure, the NHL has done some fairly innovative things with their All-Star weekend events in the last few years, but hockey has yet to catch up to hoops in terms of popularity, therefore the NBA wins this battle.

But what makes the NBA All-Star game worth watching?  For starters, the guys don’t exactly play stellar defense, allowing the possibility of a highlight-worthy offensive play on every possession.  At the same time, if a game is close down the stretch, that’s when each team will pick it up defensively making for a truly competitive and fierce finish which is a lot of fun. 

Basketball is a team sport in which individuals can really shine so getting the best of the best all together on the same court really lets these guys showcase their own talents and their playmaking abilities alongside other elite players. 

Aside from the wild passes, monstrous dunks, and great give-and-goes between in-season foes, dramatic story lines play out before our eyes every few years. 

Perhaps the most memorable moment in All-Star history was when Magic Johnson came out of retirement to play in the 1992 All-Star game after leaving basketball because of contracting HIV.  Not only did Magic play in the game, but he won he MVP award with 25 points, nine assists and five rebounds in 29 minutes. 

Johnson was voted a starter by the fans and as it happens so often in sports, a prominent social issue crossed over from the newspapers and experts into the fun, flashy world of sports.   The ‘92 All-Star game gave Magic the sendoff he deserved and was a wonderful occasion for everyone involved.

On a less serious note, there have been plenty of other great All-Star game moments over the years. 

From the 1993 game in which John Stockton and Karl Malone  shared MVP honors after leading the West to a 135-132 victory in overtime to the double OT game in 2003 where Kevin Garnett won the MVP award, there is rarely a shortage of entertainment in these exhibition games.

As a life-long Lakers fan, one of my favorite moments was watching Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, who had feuded privately and publicly ever since the core of the Lakers broke up in 2004, played on the same team once again, sharing laughs and an MVP award in 2009.  Whether or not they were genuinely happy playing together, the smiles and high-fives made my eyes water as I reminisced about what once was, and what should have been.  They probably still couldn’t stand each other at that point, but as a fan, I ate it up.  It was awesome.  

When thinking about current All-Star festivities, ordinarily I would get giddy thinking of guys like LeBron James and Dwayne Wade playing together…oh wait…THEY ALREADY DO PLAY TOGETHER.  Never mind :)

This year is especially interesting for a few reasons.  First of all, this is the first time Orlando has hosted an All-Star game since 1992 when Magic Johnson stole the show and lit up that arena with his smile and flamboyant style. 

Now Orlando finds itself the center of attention once again as the home team’s best player, Dwight Howard has been the talk of the league for the last two seasons in terms of whether or not he will remain with the Magic or be traded to another team.

To have the host team as the center of league-wide controversy is interesting and puts Howard and the Magic in somewhat of an awkward position.  How will Howard play,  perhaps representing the Magic for the last time on such a grand stage? Will Magic fans cheer him as Howard and other players give executives, coaches and viewers a de-facto audition of what it would be like should he go elsewhere and form a mini-All-Star team, a la the Miami Heat?  Seeing Howard with future teammates isn’t exactly what I’d want to watch if I were a Magic fan at the moment.   Will Howard go for the MVP award on his home court, regardless of the crowd reaction?

LeBron James is having one of the best statistical seasons in NBA history, but will he be able to outshine his fellow All-Stars?  Will James win a third All-Star MVP award? 

How ‘bout the city of LA being represented by four of the five West team starters?  Two Clippers and two Lakers, that has obviously never happened before.  We’ve watched guys like LeBron, DWade and Derrick Rose play together for the last few years, but Kevin Durant, Andrew Bynum, Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and Kobe, as a starting five?  That lineup has epic potential. 

Speaking of Kobe, JerseyChaser.com just dropped a video of the Mamba from the a Drew League game during the lockout where he claimed to be the second best player in NBA History… behind Wilt Chamberlain.  Yes, behind Wilt, and in front of Jordan, who Kobe listed as No. 3 all time! 

That said, Kobe is the fiercest competitor out there and he might just go for a fifth All-Star MVP award.  Kobe won the MVP award on his home court at Staples Center last year but it wouldn’t shock me to see him jack up 40 shots and go for a second straight MVP award. 

There are also eight first-time All-Stars playing in this game so it should be cool to watch them soak up the experience and see how they react to joining an elite class of coworkers.

I have a feeling this is going to be a close, exciting game that will definitely be worth watching.  Hell, the banter between the TNT guys alone will make it worth our time. 

 

The Manny Ramirez era is officially underway for the Oakland A’s!  Hip hip hooray!

Ramirez, one of the most recognized and controversial figures in baseball, has already made a small splash within a hew hours upon arrival at the A’s spring training facility in Phoenix, AZ on Friday morning.

According to the Associated Press, the twelve-time All-Star was expected to have a chat with his new manager, Bob Melvin and take a physical exam before speaking with the media.  Melvin told reporters, “He can be a great example with his work ethic.  We have some young kids and, who knows, maybe something will rub off.”

Apparently, Manny has already started the bonding process with one of those young kids, starting pitcher Brett Anderson.  The 24-year-old lefty, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, tweeted this little gem Friday morning, which quickly caught the attention of Deadspin.com:

@BrettAnderson49: Manny just asked if I was the video coordinator…our relationship can only go up from here.

HA!!!! 

Well Brett, at least that would put you in good company alongside Lakers head coach Mike Brown (thanks for the reminder Metta WP) and Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra who both began their professional careers as video coordinators. 

At this point one could argue an aging Ramirez, who had already retired last season, is closer to a career in video coordinating than Anderson, a young pitcher expected to fully recover from surgery and return to the rotation in August. 

The road to the starting lineup might be tougher for Ramirez who, after signing a minor league deal with the A’s on Monday, must serve a 50-game suspension (reduced from 100 games) after a second positive drug test before he can join the team’s big league club for regular season games.   Ramirez will participate in spring training as well as the team’s exhibition games in Japan. 

It’s nice that Anderson has a sense of humor about this case of mistaken identity as his ego doesn’t seem to be all that bruised.  I doubt this incident came as a surprise to Anderson who in the last few days since his signing, has likely heard many of the old tales of Manny-legend from older veteran guys, thus preparing him to expect the unexpected. 

While I sincerely hope Ramirez makes a comeback big enough to positively impact the A’s, a few more of these fun stories wouldn’t hurt either. 

 

On Tuesday, I saw a flurry of national and global news outlets publish stories about a sport I didn’t even know existed:  Dwarf Bullfighting.  Yes, the bullfighters are dwarfs who play the part of your typical matador, with a few twists.   Instead of going up against an adult bull with the intent of eventually killing it after the pomp and circumstance of a traditional bullfight, these little men take on calves in a staged comedic show in which they say the animals are not physically harmed.  

Check out these two headlines from different news outlets that preceded essentially identical articles:

“Dwarf Bullfighting: where human exploitation and animal cruelty come together to play”

AND

“Dwarf bullfighters ‘trying to change people’s perception of short people”

The difference in headlines is almost more fascinating than the story itself in a way, right?

Both articles detail troupes of dwarf bullfighters (from Mexico and Colombia) who have gained popularity traveling the Americas over the last 30 years, claiming to use the show as a way to prove to the world that yes, little people can be great athletes too. 

From NBC Sports:

“‘There are 10 to 20 bullfighting troupes employing about 200 little people nationwide,’ said Rigoberto Madrigal, president of the Little People of Mexico, a support group for people with dwarfism.  ‘The shows are denigrating, but some of these people have no other way of making a living,’ Madrigal said. He said he worries the shows promote an image of little people as circus oddities.”

 

By the way, the “matadors” are really entertainers and comedians merely playing the part of a bullfighter.  According to a Metro UK article, the traveling troupes don’t only compete against each other in the arena of bullfighting.  They also go head-to-head in various festivals and shows to draw and maintain fan interest in each troupe. 

Javier Landa, of the Original Bullfighting Dwarfs of Mexico told USA Today, “I think Americans may not understand what we do.  They may think we go out there to be laughed at, but that’s not the case.  If a little person can fight a bull, he can do anything. That’s what we’re trying to prove.”

Typically, I sympathize with the bull when pondering the cruel and barbaric nature of bullfighting.  My inner-monologue reads something like, “that matador gets whatever he’s got comin’ to him!”  Here,  I feel compassion for both the animal and the entertainer-turned-matador.  Perhaps there is some underlying hope that people will appreciate his athleticism after seeing a show, but at the end of the day, this version of the sport seems to be little more than a means to an end.  A desperate tactic to put food on the table,  even if it means putting one’s pride aside and allowing others to laugh at his physical features. 

From young bulls growing up in captivity to little people trying to make a living, dwarf bullfighting strikes a small, sad chord in my heart.

 

 

I know, Mardi Gras is a special celebration that transforms the city of New Orleans, its residents and thousands of tourists during the annual Carnival, but did it need to go this far?

Fat Tuesday turned butt ugly real fast as the Hornets donned the uniforms pictured above during their road game against the Indiana Pacers.  While purple, gold and green seem to blend well when strung together in a beaded necklace hanging around the neck of an intoxicated young lady on Bourbon Street, the same cannot be said for these wack-a-doodle NBA jerseys.  It’s hard to tell in the photos, but there is an intricate pattern printed in the yellow side panel of the jersey. 

The getup kind of reminded me of these guys:

 

I fully admire the Hornets for staying true to the traditions of their home town, but this tri-tone jersey is a fashion fail.  In the spirit of Mardi Gras, you get an “A” for effort NOLA, in terms of the attempt at being fashionably festive and nearly knocking off the Pacers in Indy.  The Hornets fell just short as the Pacers notched the 117-108 win in overtime. 

           

Do you ever wonder why professional soccer isn’t popular in mainstream America? Nearly all of my friends and classmates played the sport as kids, either in school or on a club team, yet somewhere between childhood and adulthood, a disconnect happened, leaving soccer - everyone’s once favorite sport to play - in the dust;  soccer uniforms and tube socks end up in the back of the closet or in a bin at Goodwill while parents are out buying cool NFL or NBA jerseys for their kids instead. 

I’ve never understood why soccer can’t seem to stay relevant beyond the youth years for us Americans, but after a recent flurry of negative international soccer news,  I’m not losing any sleep over soccer’s lack of recognition here in the United States.

Usually the only soccer news to hit my ears and eyes (outside of World Cup coverage) comes in the form of random highlights on SportsCenter or the occasional fùtbol folly on ESPN’s SportsNation.  Over the last decade, the focus has steadily migrated from the game itself to fan violence, racism and other ugly aspects of soccer than have nothing to do with the fundamentals of the sport. 

From the ridiculous, such as Argentine soccer star Ever Banega who was lost for the season with a broken leg after accidentally being run over by his own car in a freak accident at a gas station, to more serious situations involving hate speech and deeply rooted world issues, it’s seems like soccer can’t get anything right these days. 

I remember being profoundly horrified a few years ago after watching a feature on HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumble about how soccer stadiums had been transformed into neo-Nazi protest and recruiting platforms.  Video footage showed massive sections of stadiums being bought out by neo-Nazi groups as thousands filled the seats and chanted en masse, saluting Hitler, and hurling obscenities at ethnic players throughout the entirety of professional soccer matches. 

Because of the hate-filled mobs in the crowd, certain teams in Europe have been forced to either play their home games in an empty stadium without any spectators or play scheduled “home” games on the road, away from raucous and racist fans . 

Sadly, the madness has spread from the stands onto the field itself.  The recent “Handshake-Gate” incident at a Liverpool-Manchester United match gained international attention, and was so outrageous that it made top headlines here in the U.S. 

Here’s a quick summary from CBSNews.com:

“Players from both teams had to be separated in the tunnel at halftime after Liverpool’s Luis Suarez refused to shake the hand of United’s Patrice Evra before kickoff. Suarez was making his first start since serving an eight-match ban for racially abusing Evra in October.”

Yes, in a moment that was meant for Suarez (a Uruguayan national) to make peace with Evra (who was born in Senegal and raised in France) after he had previously taunted the Man U player with racist remarks, Suarez instead opted to keep the feud alive with the dramatic handshake snub. 

Does Suarez really hate Evra because he’s Black, or is he just fueling the fire to increase the drama in order to sell tickets and gain publicity? Both possibilities are deplorable. 

To make matters worse, Suarez was strongly defended by his team -which is owned by the parent company of the Boston Red Sox - publicly.  It looks like Suarez was preaching to a fairly large choir as the Greater Manchester Police reportedly, “confiscated 7,500 copies of United’s ‘Red Issue’ fanzine, which featured a cutout Ku Klux Klan-style mask bearing the words, ‘LFC Suarez is innocent,’” according to CSBNews.com

An American soccer star who played professionally in Europe once told me of the confusion he felt he first time he took the field there and heard thousands of fans in the stadium making a strange noise he couldn’t quite decipher.  Once bananas started flying out of the stands and onto the pitch, he realized the sounds coming from the crowd were monkey noises, directed at a Black player on the opposing team.  The player told me he was shocked and had not been warned of such behaviors when he agreed to play in Europe. 

While British law enforcement has involved itself in certain race-related soccer incidences - like in the case of Chelsea player John Terry who was formally charged with “racially abusing” Anton Ferdinand during a game last October- intervention is the rare exception to the rule. 

“After years of pretending racism wasn’t a serious issue, the Italian league is finally making teams pay for their fans behavior,” according to an ABC News article from last July.  “They get fined or forced to play home games on the road. But the police are still afraid or unwilling to go into the worst sections of the stadiums to make arrests.”

As if this behavior isn’t bad enough on its own, confined to a soccer stadium on any given game day, the truth is that conduct like this is never an isolated incident, but instead, a sign of something much bigger, a hate-filled school of thought deeply rooted in an ugly place that we, as Americans, would like to pretend doesn’t exist anymore.

Simon Kuper, author of “Football Against the Enemy” told ABC News, “As these racist and anti-Semitic chants become tolerated at football grounds, it becomes more tolerated in the rest of society to say racist and anti-Semitic things.  And that creates a nasty atmosphere.”

The governing bodies of professional soccer may not be able to police the thoughts of players and fans, nor should they.  But officials do have the responsibility of condemning and punishing offensive actions like verbal abuse before such displays eventually escalate to physical violence inside and outside of the stadium. 

I see a sad irony watching a sport with the greatest global tournament of all, filled with such hate and intolerance.  Until international soccer begins to change the culture from the grassroots level all the way up to the fans and players of Liverpool and Manchester United, I for one, will not be watching, and am encouraging you at home to do the same. 

If the NBA Playoffs started today, hoops fans would be happy campers!  Why?  A first-round Heat vs. Knicks match-up alone would be enough to send ratings through the roof and keep the many TV talking heads yapping from here to eternity. 

Can you imagine?  The Heatles versus Linsanity?  Then again, it would be somewhat of a letdown if the most exciting series of the playoffs came in the first round.  Either way, it’s a win-win situation, right?

If the NBA playoffs started today, we’d have a familiar cast of characters out East:

1.  Miami
2.  Chicago
3.  Philadelphia
4.  Orlando
5.  Atlanta
6.  Indiana
7.  Boston
8.  New York

…and an eclectic and somewhat surprising group in the West:

1.  Oklahoma City
2.  San Antonio
3.  LA Clippers
4.  Dallas
5.  LA Lakers
6.  Memphis
7.  Houston
8.  Denver

The teams in playoff contention (at the moment) in the Western Conference aren’t that shocking in and of themselves, it’s their seeding that brings the element of surprise. 

Before the Chris Paul trade (umm, the second trade… to LA’s “other” team), who would’ve guessed the “Clippers” and “playoffs” would be words spoken in the same sentence?  Sure, the Clippers had potential with a young nucleus of Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, Eric Gordon and a veteran in Chris Kaman, but still… Donald Sterling’s team would be the type of squad to evoke a statement like “I’ll believe it when I see it” in conversation. 

Instead, Chris Paul and the Clippers are only 3.5 games behind the first place Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that has risen to power the old fashioned way; through hard work and experience.  This could be the year we finally see ThunderUp in the NBA Finals.  Perhaps the youth of the Thunder’s roster gives them an advantage in this shortened season as OKC trails only the Heat and Bulls with a 23-7 record.  Could an older, more experienced team catch up to them in the playoffs when everyone has a few days rest between each game?  Sure, but Kevin Durant and Co. look pretty good halfway through the season and have been fascinating to watch in the playoffs in the last two years. 

Sandwiched between the Thunder and Clippers are the aging San Antonio Spurs who could earn Greg Popovich a second Coach of the Year award (he also won the award in 2003).  The Spurs have managed to stay atop the Western Conference without their star guard, Manu Ginobili who has missed 22 of the Spurs’ 31 games with an injury.  What the Spurs have done is quite impressive, and as usual, until the playoffs, San Antonio will be largely ignored by many in the mainstream media.  The Spurs have never been a flashy team full of typical stars or large personalities, but come playoff time, you’d better hope your favorite team doesn’t have to play them. 

The Dallas Mavericks are basically back on track after an ugly start to the season and if they can stay healthy, I think they have a great shot at returning to the NBA finals.   The Lakers, Grizzlies, Rockets and Nuggets are all in the hunt, each within two games of the 4-seed Mavs.  All of these teams have a legitimate shot at making the post season, but it wouldn’t shock me if Portland, Utah or even Minnesota finds a way to sneak in, knocking a current contender out of the race.  With young players like Kevin Love, Ricky Rubio and Derrick Williams sharing the court, the Timberwolves are easily the most entertaining team to watch on any given night.  They remind me of the Thunder a few years ago:  they are one or two pieces short of putting the puzzle together.  If they can make a personnel move or two, these guys will be ready to shine after another year or so of learning how to play together. 

If I had to predict today, who we’ll see in the NBA Finals, I’m going with a rematch (or three-match) of Heat vs. Mavericks, with the possibility of Heat vs. Thunder at a close second. 

The Miami Heat are ON FIRE right now.  So what if they lose a few games here and there, that doesn’t matter too much.  We’ve watched them win with only two of their Big 3 healthy and playing, so barring a catastrophic injury, the Heat can easily survive the wear-and-tear of a typical NBA regular season.  Miami leads the league in scoring, field goal percentage and three-point field goal percentage.  The Heat are third in free throw attempts and somewhere in the middle of the pack when it comes to defense and rebounding.  I think the Heat will roll right through the regular season and will once again have a chance to prove their worth in the NBA Finals.  Of course, all the focus will be on LeBron James and whether or not he has the mental fortitude to win it all.  From taking the last shot to making bizarre comments in the press, it will once again be the LeBrown Show should the Heat make it back to the Finals.  In the words of Bart Scott, CANTWAIT!

The only team I can picture challenging the Heat in the East is Chicago.  If Derrick Rose can overcome his back problems in the near future, there is no reason the Bulls shouldn’t make it to the Conference Finals.  Chicago is second in the NBA in defense allowing 88.1 points per game (the 76ers and Celtics are tied for first, allowing 87.2 ppg), second in rebounding and ninth in scoring.  The Bulls are tied for 15th in free throw attempts (22 per game) which surprises me, and are 25th in terms of free throw makes, capitalizing on only 72 percent of their attempts.  The Bulls are a good team, even without the superstar Rose on the court.  But can Chicago make it to the Conference Finals without Rose?  I don’t think so. 

The 76ers, Magic, and Hawks are all within five games of the Heat and Bulls, but none of them excite me all that much.  I think Philly is the best of the bunch and would welcome a first round playoff series between them and the Indiana Pacers, which is what we’d get if the playoffs began today.

The Pacers are an interesting team that is flying under most peoples’ radars, including mine.  I had forgot that Indiana made the playoffs last season and was reminded of it only when they pulled off an impressive come-from-behind victory over the Lakers at Staples Center back in January.  I see the Pacers as a younger, Eastern Conference version of the the Spurs.  They won’t razzle-dazzle you, but they’ll find a way to beat your team down for the win.  Like last year, I think this group will put up another tough fight in the playoffs with the difference being that I think they’ll pull off a first-round victory this time. 

Now we come to the Celtics and the Knicks.  The Celtics and Lakers, oddly enough, are in the same boat.  Each squad’s Big 3 is no longer good enough on it’s own to propel their teams to victory.  It’s sad watching both LA and Boston unable to do what came quite easily over the last few years knowing each team is probably just one player away from being a championship contender this year.  For the Lakers, it’s a point guard, for the Celtics, it’s a dominant center.  The Celtics are still fun to watch because you never know which team is going to show up each night so there is always an element of mystery when they take the court.  As we’ve seen recently, the Celtics seem to take a nose dive after the half-way point in the season when age and health start to take a toll, but come playoff time, the older guys have adequate time to rest between games and get re-energized.  As long as Boston makes it into the playoffs, they are in good shape.  I’d be shocked if Danny Ainge doesn’t make a move of some sort by the trade deadline so who knows what the Celtics will look like in April. 

Because of the NBA lockout, many teams have needed more time than usual to adjust, working out the kinks long into the start of the regular season.  This might be the year where the NBA looks more like the NHL, where playoff seeding means virtually nothing as the lower seeds frequently beat the higher seeds in post season play. 

The Knicks are a wildcard right now.  Jeremy Lin has seemingly taken over the basketball world and we are all in a tizzy over how he has turned the Knicks around overnight.  The story is sensational, in both meanings of the word, and hopefully New York can keep the train rolling.  When the Knicks are good, it’s good for basketball.  Period. 

The Knicks are playing well at the moment, but who knows how the chemistry will change once Carmelo Anthony returns.  As instrunmental as Lin has been to New York’s success, the addition of JR Smith might prove to be just as important as Smith is already in post season form after playing for several months in China.  Plus, it would be helpful for Amare Stoudemire to turn into his old self by upping his shooting percentage. 

But back to the “important” stuff… If Mike D’Antoni can figure out a way for Lin and Anthony to coexist, we won’t get a first-round Heat/Knicks match-up because there’s no chance New York will head into the playoffs as the eighth and final seed in the east.  If Lin and Anthony can work together, the Knicks will not only make the playoffs for only the second time since 2004, but they could find themselves hosting a first-round series at Madison Square Garden.  Wouldn’t that be something?

Hockey Day In America.  Sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?  NBC is trying to change that as the network hosts its second annual “Hockey Day In America,” a nine-hour block of hockey-related programming across various NBC platforms. 

While hockey can’t seem to find a solid, widespread fan base in the United States, it’s as popular as ever in Canada and Europe and NBC, which owns the broadcast rights to NHL games, would love to see that popularity shift to the U.S. 

Lets dissect what Hockey Day In America will consist of before getting into why hockey isn’t, but should be more successful in the U.S. 

Starting at Noon ET, three different NHL games will be aired on NBC.  Depending on what region of the country you are in on Sunday morning, you’ll see either the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Buffalo Sabres, the San Jose Sharks at the Detroit Red Wings or the St. Louis Blues at the Chicago Blackhawks.

Once the first round of games wraps up, the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins will take on the Minnesota Wild in front of a national audience on NBC.  The fun continues on NBC Sports Network (formerly Versus) with the New Jersey Devils at the Montreal Canadiens, also nationally televised, at around 6pm ET after the conclusion of Bruins at Wild.

NBC chose some great match-ups as each game features star players and intriguing story lines.  From Team USA goaltender Ryan Miller in net for the Sabres to the Red Wings attempting to stretch their home winning streak to a whopping 23 games, there’s something for everyone to gravitate to, including the casual NHL fan and even someone who doesn’t know a thing about hockey.

But nobody is counting on back-to-back-to-back games to do the trick and convert your typical “any sport other than hockey” fan into an NHL sweater-wearing believer.  NBC is weaving the details of the game and its culture throughout the nine-hour telecast in the form of features and human interest stories designed to keep the television audience engaged and actually teach people a thing or two about hockey.  

While many of us think of hockey as a Canadian sport, the U.S. makes plenty of contributions to the game which will be showcased Sunday.  For example, a disproportionate number of NHL players come from two tiny high school hockey programs in Minnesota.   Located in towns with populations under 3,000, Roseau High School and Warroad High School will be featured on NBC as the rival schools  pump out professional hockey players at an abnormally high rate. 

Other tales to be told during Sunday’s telecast are those of a groundbreaking program created by the Tampa Bay Lightning Foundation which provides sled hockey for the physically challenged and “The Program,” which gives American kids interested in hockey a legitimate path to the NHL without having to leave the country for the Canadian junior leagues.  American-born players will be featured and interviewed throughout the telecast. 

The NHL had a small window of opportunity to increase its fan base during the NBA lockout, but in the end, there just wasn’t enough time to forge a grassroots movement to attract new viewers.   

I once had a conversation with a front office employee of a non-Original Six (Bruins, Blackhawks, Red Wings, Canadiens, Rangers and Maple Leafs) NHL team about how hard it is for his team to grow its fan base.  He said the organization had seemingly tried everything to increase ticket sales and TV ratings but nothing would stick.  Putting butts in seats inside the arena wasn’t as much of an issue as the TV ratings, which he said were extremely hard to grow. 

It’s no coincidence that four of the NHL’s Original Six teams will be featured in “Hockey Day In America” as Boston, Chicago, Detroit and Montreal will bring their strong fan bases with them and perhaps NBC’s presentation of the traditions and folklore of those teams can get others outside of those markets interested in the sport and its history. 

Sure, baseball is “American’s Pastime” and its roots run deep through U.S. soil, but football surpassed baseball as the country’s most popular sport years ago and basketball is beloved by Americans from every walk of life.  If only sports fans realized that hockey has the violence of football, the speed of basketball and the agility and skill superior to both, they would certainly fall in love with the NHL. 

They say “hockey doesn’t translate on TV,” and while there is some truth to that, once you learn the rules and understand the game, hockey is just as exciting to watch on television as any other sport.  Seeing a game in person is also a fantastic experience.

Being able to watch hockey on TV was in jeopardy after the NHL lockout as the league was dropped by the networks that carried the games before the 2004-05 season which was lost completely due to the labor dispute.  Luckily, NBC came along and partnered with the NHL (which I think saved the league from collapsing).  NBC got one heck of a deal as they did not have to pay rights fees for the games, instead, agreeing to simply split ad revenue with the league. 

The higher the TV ratings, the more money NBC and the NHL take home.  Unfortunately, this year’s Winter Classic game between the Rangers and Flyers had the lowest ratings in the short history of the event, in it’s fifth year.  It’s not all bad news though because the game was moved from prime time on New Years Day to mid-day on Jan 2 (competing against college football) due to weather conditions which is probably a likely explanation for the ratings drop.  The 2011 Winter Classic between the Capitals and Penguins drew the event’s highest ratings with help from HBO’s reality series “24/7” leading up to the game (the cable network also featured this season’s Winter Classic teams) and because the match-up featured the NHL’s top players in Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin. 

Given the massive programming block of Hockey Day In America, the NHL and NBC should be able to capitalize off a Sunday devoid football or baseball.  Plus, NBC has a full hour of hockey all to itself before any NBA or NCAA basketball games start.  That should be enough time to plant the seed and convert the non-believers into hockey fans, slowly but surely, beginning with nine hours of Hockey Day In America. 

If you haven’t gotten into college hoops yet this season, this weekend is the time to jump in, head first!  Several ranked teams are playing each other including two mid-major teams that could end up in Cinderella’s shoes come March, making this weekend all the more exciting.  Why fly blind into your office pool a few weeks from now when you can watch a great preview and go into March Madness actually knowing a thing or two about several of the teams in your bracket?

To a casual fan, the match-up of Saint Mary’s and Murray State. would exactly scream “excitement” but for those of us who know better, this is in fact the marquee match-up of the weekend! 

Who would’ve guessed that No. 16 Saint Mary’s (23-4, 12-2 WCC) and No. 14 Murray St. (25-1, 13-1 OVC) would be top teams this late in the season? Sure, some may think this pairing has lost some luster as both teams suffered surprising losses recently,  but that disappointment makes this game all the more important moving forward.

Aside from the nostalgia of true March Madness that comes to mind when thinking of these two teams, the Gaels and Racers each have exciting playmakers on their rosters this year.  Saint Mary’s junior point guard Matt Dellavedova leads the Gaels,  averaging 15.7 points per game and 6.4 assists.  Dellavedova is hampered by an ankle injury with head coach Randy Bennett calling him a game-time decision.   Hopefully he’ll play so we can watch him go up against the Racers’ junior point guard Isaiah Canann, averaging 19.2 ppg, 3.8 apg and shooting a whopping 47.3 percent from 3-point range. 

As if Dellavedova’s injury wasn’t bad enough, the Gaels will definitely be without sophomore guard and top defender Stephen Holt who partially tore his MCL in St. Mary’s home loss to Loyola Marymount on Wednesday.  This one hurts the Gaels, both literally and figuratively.

Both teams are expected to receive an at-large bid to the Tournament, but if either team drops a few games, they could find themselves forced to win their conference tournament in order to make it to the Big Dance.  Obviously, nobody wants to play under that kind of pressure when you can secure a Tourney spot with strong regular season play.  In other words, both Murray St. and Saint Mary’s will play their hearts out in front of a national audience at 6pm EST on ESPN.  Expect a close and exciting game, especially if Dellavedova is healthy enough to suit up.  I’m taking Murray St. in this one as the Racers are still likely pissed after losing their only game of the season to Tennessee St. last week and should use that as fuel.  Plus, the Gaels should experience a bit of a learning curve in adjusting to playing without the injured Holt.

There’s another point guard match-up worth watching, and it comes in the big boy conference, the Big Ten;  It’s a classic duel between rivals Ohio State. and Michigan.  Sure, it doesn’t sound as compelling as a football game in the Big House, but these two institutions have proven themselves to be formidable opponents on the hardwood as well. 

Yes, the No. 6 Buckeyes (22-4, 10-3 Big Ten) SMASHED the 19. Wolverines (19-7, 9-4 Big Ten) when they played in Columbus last month, and OSU has won its last six straight games against Michigan.   But here’s the thing, Michigan is 14-0 in Ann Arbor this season, which is where Saturday’s game is being played.  The Buckeyes need the win to stay atop the conference alongside Michigan State.  Although OSU beat Michigan by 15 points in that last meeting, the Wolverines defense showed promise playing Jared Sullinger tough and I would imagine, the D will kick it up a notch given the importance of the game and playing it in front of their home crowd. 

If Tim Hardaway Jr. and Trey Burke play well, I can’t see Michigan losing in Ann Arbor.   Watching point guards Burke for the Wolverines and Aaron Craft for the Buckeyes go at it should be a lot of fun.  The fact that Michigan is finally a contender again after all of these years just adds to the excitement of college hoops this season.  Even though the Wolverines stunk in their last meeting with OSU, I’m picking Michigan at home the second time around.  You can catch this one following St. Mary’s vs. Murray St. on ESPN (scheduled at 9pm EST).

An at-large match-up worth watching is Long Beach State at Creighton.  Both teams are intriguing for different reasons, plus both squads might be dancing come March.  Creighton (22-5, 12-4 MVC) will play host to Long Beach St. (19-6, 12-0 Big West) in hopes of building upon their last game (a victory which snapped a three-game skid) while attempting to spoil the 49ers 12-game winning streak. 

The Bluejays and 49ers both put a lot of points on the board (averaging 79.9 and 74.1 ppg respectively) so we can expect to see plenty of offense and for Creighton, the man leading the way is Doug McDermott averaging 22.7 ppg.  The Bluejays entire starting lineup is well-balanced, comprised of unselfish players who enjoy logging assists, rebounding and letting Ethan Wragge (off the bench) shoot 3-pointers at a solid rate of 45 percent. 

In the visiting 49ers, we’ll see a team that has played the most difficult non-conference schedule this season with most of those games coming on the road.  Long Beach St. beat then-ranked Pittsburgh away from home and Xavier at a neutral site but lost to San Diego State, Louisville, North Carolina and Kansas on the road.  To me, this team screams “Cinderella” having experience against some top programs heading into the Tourney.

Then again, the 49ers have to make it to the Tourney before they can wear the glass slipper, something they haven’t done recently, losing the Big West title game the last two seasons.  A win over over Creighton would get the 49ers one step closer to an at-large bid which would remove the pressure of having to win the Big West tournament to get in to the NCAA’s. 

The 49ers have three players averaging double figures in scoring (senior guard Casper Ware leads the way with 17 ppg) and has two others following close behind averaging nearly 10 ppg. Senior forward T.J. Robinson averages over ten boards per game as well. 

LBSU is holding teams to 65 ppg while Creighton allows 68.6 ppg.  The 49ers will need to bring their “A” game defensively as Creighton’s 79.9 ppg ranks 10th in the nation.  The Bluejays are a solid 12-2 at home while the 49ers are 8-5 on the road, but as we mentioned earlier, they have played one hell of a road schedule. 

Creighton leads the nation in field goal percentage (shooting 51 percent) and ranks third with 18.4 assists per game.  Stats say Creighton should win this game but I’m going with Long Beach St.  The 49ers are due to win this one on the road, plus, they start four seniors and a junior.  That is a lot of experience to counter the Bluejays who have only one senior and and two juniors in their starting five. 

In the ACC, I’m taking No. 21 Florida State (18-7, 9-2 ACC) over North Carolina State (18-8, 7-4) in Raleigh.  Both teams played Thursday, with FSU ending up on the right side of a comeback and the opposite being the case for N.C. State.  I think the Wolfpack are worse for the wear, probably still exhausted from being mentally wounded by Duke’s come-from-behind victory.

Also in the ACC, No. 22 Virginia hosts Maryland.  This game doesn’t do much for me considering neither team can manage to beat Duke, UNC or Florida St.  I give UVA the edge here as they are 12-1 at home while the Terps are a dismal 1-5 on the road. 

Yes, New Mexico has won six straight games heading into Saturday’s showdown against Mountain West rival UNLV.  Yes, UNLV stinks on the road, the Rebels are just 5-6 away from home.  Yes, the Lobos now sit atop the conference coming off a win at No. 15 San Diego St., and their last loss came a lonnnng time ago, at UNLV on Jan 21. 

Having said all of that, I’m taking No. 11 UNLV.  I feel like this is the week the Rebels get back on track on the road.  Could this prediction go up in flames?  Sure.  But my gut tells me Vegas comes up a winner on Saturday.

And finally, in the Big 12, we’ve got Kansas State visiting No. 10 Baylor.  If anyone in the Big 12 aside from Kansas or Missouri can beat the Bears (22-4, 9-4 Big 12), it’s probably the Wildcats (17-8, 6-7 Big 12), but I don’t see it happening Saturday.  Baylor is too good at home (12-2) and this team is on a mission.  From  Brittney Griner and the women’s hoops team to RG III and the football team to men’s basketball, I’m convinced 2011-2012 belongs to Baylor athletics.  The men’s basketball program has overcome such heinous corruption and heartbreak in a relatively short amount of time with this last year being truly special .  Despite losses to the cream of the crop Kansas and Missouri, I see Baylor getting a running start heading into the Tourney.  I think Perry Jones III, Pierre Jackson and Quincy Acy will be too much for the Wildcats to overcome in Waco.

“…coach is a stats guy. His background is video coordinator or whatever. So he’s all stats. But Ron Artest is all feel. He doesn’t understand that.” - Metta World Peace on Mike Brown

Shots. Fired.  Ron Ron the Rottweiler is BACK!

Watching the final minute of the Lakers game against the Raptors this afternoon, my inner-monologue read, “even if the Lakers pull this one out, they can’t be happy with this win.  They need to either make some personnel moves or do some serious soul searching.”

If you didn’t see the game, the Lakers had an 18-point lead over the Raptors in the first quarter of Sunday’s game in Toronto.  LA was shooting 70 percent from the field and eight Lakers scored early.  Everything was going right, but it slipped away shortly after as the Raptors chipped away until they grabbed their first lead of the game in the final two minutes as the Lakers needed a signature Kobe game-winner with 4.2 seconds left to escape the Air Canada Center with a 94-92 victory, if one can even call it a victory.  Toronto was the Lakers’ last stop on a six-game road trip in which LA went 3-3.

I knew a game that ugly would lead to some sort of fall out, but I had no idea it would be public or that it would consist of Metta World Peace blasting head coach Mike Brown. 

The forward formerly known as Ron Artest is a reporter’s dream in the sense that he is spontaneous to the point of dropping a gem of a quotation that can give you a story all on its own during a slow day.  You never know what you’re going to get from World Peace, which is both good and bad I suppose. 

I have blogged several times about the fact that I think a lot of the Lakers problems stem from the fact that most of the players seem to lack an understanding of whatever offensive system Brown - in his first season with LA - is trying to implement.  Kobe Bryant and Steve Blake appeared to be the guys holding the offense together and when Blake went down with an injury, it all seemed to fall apart . 

That said, World Peace really let his coach have it after the Raptors game.  The following quotes are from CBSSports.com:

“I’m trying to win.  And right now, coach is a stats guy. His background is video coordinator or whatever. So he’s all stats. But Ron Artest is all feel. He doesn’t understand that. Having me in (Thursday night’s Celtics) game at the end, he was worried about me shooting bad from the free throw line. And I was like, ‘I could care less because I’m gonna get a stop at the end of the game.’ He didn’t understand the rhythm that we had—me, Fish (Derek Fisher), Kobe (Bryant), Pau (Gasol) and Drew (Andrew Bynum). I’ve been through games where I would have two points, go 1 for 9 and we’d win. That’s what matters. Stats are for people who need stats.”

WOW (By the way, there’s more…hang tight).  Despite being totally unfair, the video coordinator line is classic.  Sure, Brown began his career as an intern with the Nuggets before becoming Denver’s scout and video coordinator, but he did play four years of college basketball at Mesa Community College and the University of San Diego.  We all have to start somewhere, right?

World Peace is understandably upset given the fact that the Lakers are struggling to stay in the top eight out west (they are currently sixth in the Western Conference with a 16-12 record, 5.5 games out of first place) and he is underperforming on a personal level, to say the least.

In his 12th NBA season, World Peace is averaging just over 22 minutes per game (33.8 min. is his career average) of offensively unproductive basketball in which he is shooting 31 percent from the field (and 16.4 percent from 3-point range) for a dismal 4.6 points per game along with 2.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists.  World Peace’s numbers are down in every single category this season and his defense has been nothing to write home about either. 

The fun didn’t stop with the comments above though.  World Peace took his insults to the next level by dragging his former coach, the great Phil Jackson, into the mix.  More from CBSSports.com:

“If I could count how many times another team went away from the best player when I was on him, I’ve got to be like No. 1 in the league.  That’s not a stat, and coach doesn’t … you would have to play basketball to feel that. When Phil Jackson was here, that’s why I was in the game, because he understands that. Philly and Utah, I was on the bench because of stats. … I think he just has to get a better feel of the players.”

I think World Peace is in need of a Zen Master, no matter what his or her name is.  Perhaps World Peace needs to make a phone appointment with his psychiatrist because he let his emotions get the best of him today.  While I appreciate his honesty, I can’t imagine this incident will help the Lakers as a team. 

Most of the criticism Brown faced after accepting the job in LA was in regards to how he would be able to manage Kobe and the rest of an eclectic Lakers roster.  Reports out of Cleveland painted a picture of LeBron James running the Cavaliers leaving other players resentful of James’ power and Brown’s lack of control over the team.  This incident might prove to be Brown’s first real test as the Lakers head coach.  I’m really looking forward to seeing how he handles the situation moving forward.  Lord knows the flight from Toronto to LA is long enough to talk this one out over a drink and a few card games. 

Friday’s game at Madison Square Garden was not the first time Jeremy Lin and the Lakers had crossed paths.  

As an undrafted rookie out of Harvard, Jeremy Lin’s NBA options were limited, to say the least.  After playing for the Dallas Mavericks’ Summer League team (and playing pretty well) in 2010, Lin’s hometown Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Lakers each made him an offer.  Playing for his home team and knowing he would have more of an opportunity to get playing time with the Warriors, Lin signed a two-year deal with Golden State, forgoing a chance to join the reigning NBA champion Lakers.  

For a team without a reliable point guard, watching Lin dominate several phases of the game had to be a painful reality check for the Lakers.   Lin’s 38-point performance pushed the New York Knicks to a fourth consecutive win, trouncing the Lakers late for a 92-85 victory leaving LA’s coaches, management and fan base asking, “what if?”  

Who knows how long the Linsanity will last in New York, but for now, it’s alive and well, boosting the importance of basketball for die-hard and casual fans alike while making a struggling Knicks team relevant once again.  In his last four games (the latter three games being his only career starts in the NBA) Lin’s stats are straight silly as he has logged at least 20 points and seven assists per contest.  In other words, Lin is EXACTLY the kind of player the Lakers need.

Of course, it’s way too early to proclaim Lin the next Chris Paul or Deron Williams, two of the league’s top point guards who are capable of running the offense while scoring at will, a rare breed indeed.   Maybe it’s just a phase or a lucky streak, but after watching Lin play at Harvard while I was a reporter for Comcast SportsNet New England, I believe he is the real deal.  He was good then, and he’s damn good now.  Lin should help Amare Stoudemire get back on track when he returns to the team (death in the family) but I worry about what Lin’s fate will be once Carmelo Anthony heals from a groin injury and gets back on the court.  Lin is not a selfish player who must score, but since he is capable of it, we’ve seen him put the Knicks on his back and carry them across the finish line; something none of the Knicks’ big names have succeeded in doing consistently this season.

The Lakers on the other hand, are offensively challenged, to say the least.  LA has two seven-footers in the starting lineup, yet can’t find a way to consistently get the ball in the hands of Andrew Bynum or Pau Gasol.  

Trading Lamar Odom to the Mavericks and losing Chris Paul when NBA Commissioner David Stern vetoed LA’s trade with the Hornets served as a crushing combination, leaving a talented Lakers team depleted on the wing and at the point.  

Steve Blake’s play early in the season was a pleasant surprise as the nine-year vet was the only Laker aside from Kobe who seemed to understand the new offense implemented by head coach Mike Brown, a hodgepodge of pick & roll and elements of the triangle offense.  Blake was a suitable facilitator and even managed to score some nice baskets, helping the Lakers to a 8-4 record to start the season.  After a rib injury sidelined Blake, the Lakers went 6-7 without their starting point guard before going 1-1 (versus the Celtics and Knicks respectively) after his recent return.  

With an aging Derek Fisher and a half-healthy Steve Blake, the lakers are left with the green Darius Morris and rookie Andrew Goudelock to fill in at point guard.  Shockingly, that isn’t working, thus forcing Kobe to officially do everything at once; score, facilitate, play floor-general, defend the opponent’s best player, cure cancer, end wars, etc. Kobe might be one of the best to ever play the game, but even he can’t win playing 5-on-1 night in and night out in the NBA.  

Rumors have swirled about a possible Gasol-for-Rondo trade which would be perfect for the Lakers, but I don’t see what the Celtics would gain by losing their best player for an older power forward.  Sure, Jermaine O’Neal isn’t cutting it as a starting center and Gasol can play the five quite well, but I don’t see that getting Boston any closer to a championship this season.  

The Lakers could use Rondo or any solid point guard right now to help ease Kobe’s burden.  In theory, the Lakers should never need to take a 3-point shot with Kobe, Gasol and Bynum on the floor.  A good point guard should be able to get the ball to Kobe and allow him to cut to the basket, at worse, missing the shot but drawing fouls and getting to the free throw line.  This theoretical point guard knows where his teammates will be and can dump the ball down low, or find a guy with a passing lane in order to get Bynum and Gasol the touches they deserve.  Sure, LA would most likely lose Gasol in a trade, but a point guard like Williams, Rondo, or even Lin is a dual threat in terms of scoring and assists, so it’s not as if the loss of a big man would kill the Lakers’ scoring ability (which is already lacking).  

Instead of putting the ball in the paint, the Lakers have been forced to play a perimeter game that just isn’t working out.  The Lakers are alone in dead last place, shooting a league-low 28 percent from 3-point land, averaging almost 17 long-range attempts per game and making good on only 4.7 of them.  That’s ugly.  Really ugly.  Why would a team with Gasol and Bynum down low, Kobe and a physical Metta World Peace (in theory) need to jack up nearly 17 three-pointers a game?  The Lakers offense has not figured out how to get the ball inside, even against poor defensive teams.  The Lakers are tied for 20th in the league in scoring, averaging 92.7 points per game and have only hit the 100-point mark twice in their last 10 games.  

The Lakers lost out on the Chris Paul sweepstakes.  That’s okay.  They may not be able to get Deron Williams or Rajon Rondo either, so how about good ol’ Jeremy Lin?  He’s progressing at a fast pace, figuring out where his teammates will be and getting them the ball, plus, he is scoring at will.  Lin doesn’t have much of an ego and I get the feeling he would be honored to play alongside of Kobe Bryant, thus having no problem giving up the ball.  In his explosive performance Friday night, Lin exposed the Lakers biggest weakness; LA’s lack of Jeremy Lin, or a point guard like him.

Tonight’s Lakers  vs. Celtics game reminded me of college when I used to go watch a group of my guy friends play intramural flag football.  My girlfriends and I would cheer them on and sometimes go as far as making corny little signs, just to be supportive and make them feel good.  Most of these guys were athletes whose careers ended with a high school diploma while their competitive spirit long outlasted their physical ability.  I would always chuckle as the guys took flag football SO seriously, celebrating a good play like they won the Super Bowl and becoming furious with the smallest of failures.  Although way past their athletic prime, my buddies loved to compete and played every game like it meant the world to them.

That’s how tonight’s Lakers vs. Celtics game felt to me.  It was such a fun game and between the playoff-like atmosphere in the TD Garden and the close finish, the contest provided more than sufficient entertainment.  At the same time, it made me sad to see two teams, once powerhouses, just shells of their former selves. 

In 53 minutes of play, neither team made it to 90 points, both shooting around 39 percent from the field.  39 percent.  Yikes.  When the Lakers and Celtics were playing for titles in the latter part of the decade, each team had a strong presence down low (Perkins, Gasol and Bynum) and solid bench players; role players who were reliable and knew how to help their team.

If the Celtics can make it to the NBA Finals with Jermaine O’Neal starting at center without a legitimate backup, I’d be speechless…for once.  Ever.  Greg Stiemsa has potential, but he isn’t good enough right now and I don’t see Leon Powe walking through that door anytime soon.  The Lakers outscored the Celtics in the paint 46-38 which isn’t that impressive considering LA has such a huge size advantage over Boston.

Three of the five bench players who played for the Celtics contributed 19 of Boston’s 87 total points, a near mirror-image of the Lakers bench which was responsible for 18 points between three of the four guys who played.  Most of LA’s bench points came late as the non-starters were practically invisible through the majority of the game.

There were some positives though.  Just like the good old days, it came down to Kobe Bryant and Paul Pierce laying it all out on the line; no guts, no glory.  The Celtics captain played 48 minutes in which he scored 18 points, grabbed nine boards and logged seven assists, not to mention sinking a gorgeous jumper to give Boston a 1-point lead with under two minutes to play in overtime.  But it wasn’t enough.

Ray Allen, dropping 22 points and giving us a classic old school 1-on-1 defensive battle with Kobe - holding him to 27 points, well under his 30 points per game average - wasn’t enough either.  Kevin Garnett, once the heart and soul of the Celtics (and perhaps he still is in certain ways) had a miserable shooting night, going 6-23 and missing his last nine consecutive shots. 

The Lakers and Celtics are two of the oldest teams in the NBA so 17 fast break points for Boston (LA scored only six) is one positive to take away from a loss like this.  On the other hand, the free throw opportunities were heavily skewed in LA’s favor, as the Celtics were called for 21 personal fouls to the Lakers’ 12. 

Kobe, a master of drawing fouls, among other things, was superb in the second half, demoralizing Boston with plays like the one in the third quarter when he patiently waited down low, eventually spinning around three defenders for the bucket, followed by a shot right over Allen, who did as much as he could to prevent it.  

Pau Gasol, who has been in a funk since last season finally played the way he has for so many years, picking the right spots, rebounding, tipping and shooting his way to 25 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks, all on the same day as he was left off of the NBA All-Star roster. 

Also with something to prove (and hoping to avoid being traded) is Andrew Bynum who scored 16 points, blocked three shots and more importantly, hauled in 17 boards as he and Gasol combined for 31 rebounds.  Gasol and Bynum were responsible for critical blocks and deflections, Gasol winning the game for the Lakers as he blocked Ray Allen’s layup attempt as time expired in the extra period.

Interestingly, the Lakers are unmatched down low with Bynum and Gasol yet have been unable to find a way to get them the ball which has been a source of the team’s struggles.  It wasn’t pretty, but tonight, they figured it out.

I’m convinced Steve Blake is the key to the Lakers success.  Before he injured his ribs a few weeks ago, the Lakers point guard was playing the best basketball of his professional career.  Blake and Bryant seemed to be the only two Lakers who truly understood Mike Brown’s system (and Blake was actually hitting shots too) so when he went down, it looked like the glue holding the Lakers together had evaporated.  With Blake (not including tonight), the Lakers were 8-4.  Without him, the team found itself in deep trouble going 6-7.  While Blake was beyond rusty tonight, he helped his team get the job done down the stretch. 

As badly as we want this rivalry to be what it once was a few years ago, or what it has been at different points over the past several decades, it just doesn’t feel the same.  The competition is still there, but the level of play is not. 

Remember when Rondo and Bynum represented the future?  Now they are the present, which means some of the best players in hoops history will soon be a thing of the past.

The fact that these two teams were so cordial to each other on the court, conversing, helping each other up when someone hit the deck… perhaps that is their way of acknowledging that they aren’t what, or who they once were;  That they appreciated all of those ugly hard-fought battles and wish so badly to go back to that place in time. 

Whether it’s in the regular season or the playoffs, an all-star game or a charity game, or even a flag football game, we can always count on the fiercest form of competition between these two teams;  the kind that will forever be worth cheering for. 

 

This is why Kendrick Perkins is one of my favorite athletes to cover as a reporter.  He looks mean and scary but the Oklahoma City Thunder center is actually a really nice guy and also happens to be exceptionally honest. 

A week or so after getting dunked on by Clippers forward Blake Griffin, Perkins had a lot to say, not only about the dunk itself, but about LeBron James who famously tweeted after the dunk, “Dunk of the Year! @blakegriffin just dunked on Kendrick Perkins so hard!!! Wow! I guess I’m No. 2 now. Move over #6.”

I was in Indianapolis covering Super Bowl week when the dunk happened, and when I saw James’ tweet up on SportsCenter, my first thought was, “wow, LeBron can’t help but show arrogance even in trying to compliment someone else!  Go figure.”  It turns out I wasn’t alone as Perkins absolutely ripped James in a conversation with Yahoo Sports writer Marc J. Spears.

Take a gander at this missile Perky launched directly at the Heatles super star:

“You don’t see Kobe [Bryant] tweeting,” Perkins said. “You don’t see Michael Jordan tweeting. If you’re an elite player, plays like that don’t excite you. At the end of the day, the guys who are playing for the right reasons who are trying to win championships are not worrying about one play.
“They also are not tweeting about themselves talking about going down to No. 2. I just feel [James] is always looking for attention and he wants the world to like him.”
OOOOH WEEEEEE!!!!!

I had a hot flash reading that.  So juicy.  So angry.  So real. 

Perkins - a former alter boy who once told me he needed custom-made robes to fit his large frame as a child - threw down SO hard on LeBron right there that he should probably go to church and ask for forgiveness. On the other hand, Big Perk is just speaking the truth, isn’t he? 

“The people that move out the way and stuff are the people who have insecurity problems,” preached Perkins.  “That’s my job. How will my teammates look at me if next time I just back out the way and just let him dunk when I’m supposed to be defensive-minded, a shot-blocker? That would be a coward move on me. He’d just have to dunk on me again.”

I love that.  Perkins would rather get posterized while doing the right thing than save himself the embarrassment by backing down.

I have yet to meet a reporter who knows Kendrick Perkins and doesn’t like him.  While the Big 3 and Rajon Rondo possessed the top talent in Boston, Perkins had become the heart and soul of the Celtics.  Perkins represented what that Celtics group was at its core, becoming an extension of Kevin Garnett in terms of ferocity, intimidation and drive.

The Thunder are lucky as hell to have a veteran like Perkins to keep the young guys on track and teach them what defense and determination are all about.  In most cases, I would think a move like this by a player was a calculated way of using the media, but knowing Perk, Spears might have just asked the perfect questions that solicited honest answers from a genuine, hard-working man.

Sunday, March 25… Mark your calendars folks because LeBron and the Heat will face Perky down low and the rest of the Thunder in Oklahoma City.  The teams meet again in Miami on Wednesday, April 4.  I’m guessing LeBron will play with an air of oblivion, as if Perkins did not verbally abuse him in the press.  As for Perkins, I expect him to put on his meanest and nastiest game face yet, using the tweet and his own comments as big-time motivation next time he takes on the Heat.  A la Bart Scott, “CANTWAIT!!!”

To read the rests of Perkins’ gritty comments, click the link for the original story from Marc J. Spears: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=mc-spears_kendrick_perkins_lebron_james_blake_griffin_020712

 

Get off Gisele Bundchen’s back.

Seriously.

Why is it that people are criticizing Gisele for saying exactly what they were screaming at their televisions?

(click here to watch the video of Gisele: http://insdr.co/yYXeHQ )

Who watched the Super Bowl and DIDN’T say, “you HAVE to make that catch!” following Wes Welker’s drop on second and 11 as the Patriots were desperate for a first down to keep the clock running and the ball out of Eli Manning’s hands?

In fact, NBC broadcaster Cris Collinsworth responded to Welker’s drop saying  “Welker makes that catch 100 out of 100 times,” and play-by-play man Al Michaels replied “well this is 101.”

Personally, I think that catch wasn’t as easy as it looked given the fact that Welker had to spin his entire body around in mid-sprint,  but since he got his finger tips on it, the argument can be made that he had it and should’ve held on.

But Welker wasn’t the only one who dropped some pretty well-thrown balls by Gisele’s husband, Pats quarterback Tom Brady.  Veteran wide out Deion Branch and tight end Aaron Hernandez couldn’t get a grasp on some critical balls thrown their way in the Patriots’ final drive of the game.

“My husband cannot f*****g throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time,”  Gisele uttered with frustration inside Lucas Oil Stadium after the Giants beat the Patriots 21-17.  Brady didn’t play a perfect game by any means but Gisele has a valid point.

So why is everyone pouncing on Brady’s wife, Gisele, for speaking the truth?
Well, Gisele already has a few strikes against her:

1. People don’t want to hear a player’s wife criticize the team.
2. Since Brady and Bundchen got together in 2006, the Patriots have yet to win a Super Bowl.
3. Sports fans don’t want their favorite players distracted by anything off the field.
4. This was not the first time Gisele has stirred up controversy

Isn’t it funny how we enjoy freedom of speech and use it to be critical amongst ourselves, yet we don’t care to see others exercise that same right?  It’s okay for us to bash the Patriots receiving corps, but god forbid a player’s wife does it.  How un-Belichickian of Gisele.  Doesn’t she know the rules?  NO TALKING.

Boston seems to have turned Gisele into the Yoko Ono of the Patriots.  Fans are noting the fact the Patriots have yet to win a title since the two started dating, but you know what?  Neither have 26 other NFL teams in that time!  At least the Pats made it to the big game twice since 2006, which is more than can be said for every other team in the league aside from the Steelers and Colts who have also played for the title twice in recent years.  I think New England-area fans have been spoiled by successful sports teams over the last decade and it shows here.

Fans of athletes and celebrities alike tend to view their favorite stars as living in a bubble consisting only of career and public image.  If Tommy Brady can’t win a Super Bowl and be married to a smoke show at the same time, then clearly,  he needs to ditch latter.  After all, what could possibly be more distracting than a five-foot-11 inch Brazilian supermodel?  I highly doubt Gisele has cursed her husband just by being with him, but that logic doesn’t register for some.

I think a lot of people expect someone who makes a living off of their looks to be seen, not heard.  “Put on your lace, walk the runway, and be quiet.”  In reality, most celebrities are multifaceted just like the rest of us and Gisele happens to be quite outspoken.  In fact, I like Gisele because she actually has an opinion.  A while back, Gisele found herself in hot water after controversial comments she made about breast feeding.  Before Super Bowl 46, Brady’s wife emailed friends and family asking them to pray for her husband and the Patriots going into the big game.  I don’t necessarily agree with everything Gisele says, but I commend her for taking a position, speaking her mind and being more than just a pin-up girl.

In the case of Sunday’s post-game comments, it appears as though Gisele did not realize she was on camera or that a microphone would be able to pick up her comments.  In fact, some of the women surrounding her when she made those comments were the wives of other Patriots players.  If we all had microphones in our faces every time we said something after being disappointed or upset, we’d all be in big trouble.  Lets cut her some slack.

I don’t fault Gisele for her comments since she was partly right.  It can’t be denied that the Patriots receivers were lackluster down the stretch, but a team sport is never won or lost by just one, or even a few plays.  The media has turned one impassioned utterance into a news story which is fairly silly given the fact that it just isn’t important. 

But surely it does matter to Patriots poster boy and NFL ambassador Tom Brady.  Many think this will alienate Tom from his teammates, but they all have wives and girlfriends as well.  They know the drill and I doubt any of them will care.  But for the QB himself, as if dealing with another loss to Eli Manning and the New York Giants wasn’t bad enough, now Brady will have to play spokesman on behalf of his wife, which is probably the last thing he wants to do. 

This is why we watch sports. 

Amazing. Unexpected. Incredible. Fabulous. Dramatic. Suspenseful. Joyful. Heartbreaking. Spectacular.  21-17 Giants.

I don’t know about you guys, but I felt physically and emotionally spent as the ball was just short of being bobbled for a game-winning catch by Rob Gronkowski as time expired making the New York Giants super bowl champions once again.

I’m not buying comparisons between Mario Manningham’s catch in this game and David Tyree’s back in Super Bowl 42 since the plays didn’t look the same, weren’t similar in terms of field position, did not happen in the same time frame, etc., etc. 

Nonetheless, Manningham’s catch was stellar, as was the throw by Eli Manning which was just one of several precision passes made by the Super Bowl MVP.  Luckily for the Giants, Ahmad Bradshaw’s failed attempt at going down at the 1-yard line didn’t hurt New York as the timing, coupled with the ineptitude of the Patriots offense down the stretch enabled the G-Men to avoid a Hail Mary upset. 

The irony for the Patriots is that it was their offense that lost the game, not the highly criticized, 31st-ranked defense. 

Going into the game, I had trouble imagining the Patriots losing if Gronkowski was anywhere around 60 percent healthy.  I thought perhaps this would be the revenge game the Patriots organization had yearned for over the last five years.   For whatever reason, I woke up this morning with a bad feeling about the Patriots and felt even worse after Tom Brady looked nervous (in my opinion) on the sideline during the National Anthem.

Then came the intentional grounding-turned-safety on the Patriots’ first offensive possession as that  play turned out to be the only play for the Patriots offense in the first 20 touches of the game.  Despite jumping out to a 9-0 lead in the first, both teams had the jitters.  Obviously, the Patriots giving up a  safety on their first possession was unforgivable and both the Pats and Giants were called for 12 men on the field penalties in the first half proving that nerves and anxiety really are a factor, even for two teams with veterans who have super bowl experience.

During the first half, this reminded me of the Patriots regular season game against the Broncos in Denver when New England looked discombobulated and spooked by the mystique of Tim Tebow in that first quarter before shaking it off and realizing, “we’re the freakin Patriots!”  This game seemed to be on a similar path as the Pats scored 17 unanswered points after an early 9-0 deficit, not to mention putting together impressive back-to-back possessions of 96 and 79 yards. 

But down the stretch, this contest felt more like a basketball game than a football game.  They say that basketball is a game of runs, and whoever goes on the last run usually wins.  The Giants hit a lull in the middle of the game, but picked it up toward in the end, doing enough on both sides of the ball to hang on for the victory.

In the end, one of the league’s top receivers in Wes Welker let a first down slip through his fingertips.  The Giants defense was perfectly placed on third and 11 prohibiting former Super Bowl MVP Deion Branch from making a catch down the middle, forcing the patriots to punt.  In the Patriots final drive, Branch and Aaron Hernandez each dropped passes and the Giants pass rush played fast and furiously, sacking Brady. 

The Giants edged out the Patriots by slim margins in most offensive categories and owned New England in terms of time of possession, but both defenses were outstanding and New York got lucky breaks when they fumbled twice without losing possession, and when the Pats burned a timeout after a failed challenge on the Manningham catch.

Eli Manning was cool, calm and patient, connecting on 30 of 40 pass attempts for 282 yards and a touchdown.  He out-performed Brady, but not by much.  Manning’s teammates came through when it counted, and Brady’s did not.   

Brady and Bill Belichick’s legacies are already hall of fame caliber, and now Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin will join them as the pair has won two Super Bowls in five years.  The Jets might be the Patriots most popularly-loathed rival, just as the Cowboys are for the Giants, but this Super Bowl cements a legitimate rivalry between the Pats and G-Men that should last for years to come.  If these teams played each other next week, the Patriots would probably win by three.  It is a special match up I wouldn’t mind seeing again.  If only these two could play in the Super Bowl every year.