Monthly Archive for May, 2007

NBA at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 31, 2007
in NBA and Utah Jazz
. 0 Comments

And now for the segment that’s sweeping the nation (and by “sweeping the nation” I mean “not interesting for most people”), it’s the Off-Season Preview: Utah Jazz edition.

When I’m wrong, I will admit it. Like when I said Lindsay Lohan would win an Oscar by 22 and Kris Kross would revolutionize rap music. I was also wrong with the Utah Jazz. I thought they had no chance winning that Game 7 in Houston in the 1st Round. I still believe that Houston was a better team. Boozer and Williams are amazing, but I don’t really like any other player on the Jazz (actually, I do like Paul Millsap). Okur is too inconsistent and every other player also has huge weaknesses.

So going into the draft, the Jazz need to upgrade their roster to compete in the West. This year was as far as they are ever going to go, I don’t care how much Deron improves. They have the 25th and 55th overall selections- even with a deep draft, not really anything that will get you someone that can contribute on this team, with 10 decent players under contract already for next year:

G - Deron Williams
G - Derek Fisher
G - Gordan Giricek
G - Ronnie Brewer
F - Matt Harpring
F - Andrei Kirilenko
F - Paul Millsap
F - Carlos Boozer
C - Mehmet Okur
C - Jarron Collins

Obviously the hole is at SG, but I never understood why Jerry Sloan didn’t give Matt Harpring more minutes there. Maybe it’s because he’s too injury prone or too slow, but Allan Houston played SG for a team that went to the Finals. The Jazz would be fine with a Williams, Harpring, Kirilenko, Boozer, and Okur starting lineup with Fisher and Millsap playing big minutes off the bench.

If Sloan thinks Harpring at SG is out of position, he obviously knows Kirilenko at the 3 is also out of position. Since Boozer’s arrival Kirilenko has not lived up to his enormous contract. So, initially you would think to try to trade Kirilenko, Millsap, and some picks for a good SG, but no one in their right mind would take Kirilenko right now, no matter how good defensively he looked in the playoffs. And there are a lot of NBA GM’s not in their right mind, but, seriously, no one would take that awful contract. Unless you want Steve Francis in return, which the Jazz definitely do not want.

So Kirilenko is going to stay a member of the Jazz. Deron Williams and Boozer are untradeable and I doubt they would trade Okur. So, everyone else is tradeable, with Paul Millsap being their best bargaining chip. First you shoot for the stars. Millsap, Giricek’s expiring contract, the 25th overall pick, and next year’s 1st Rounder for Ben Gordon. If I’m Chicago and I can’t get a better low post scorer, I think about this for a second before I say no. Next, you offer Millsap, the 25th pick, and your 2009 1st Round Pick for the 76ers’ 12th pick and Louis Williams. You go for Jeff Green or Nick Young there. I think it actually is a good deal for both teams, but I don’t see Philly wanting to give up their highest pick.

It seems very hard for the Jazz to make a realistic trade that will actually improve their roster, so is it time to trade Boozer when his value is this high? You could easily swing Ben Gordon and the 9th pick (and change) from Chicago. Millsap could fill the void a bit and be a lot cheaper in the future. As much as I would want to try to change it up for the sake of this article, the Jazz should not trade a guaranteed 20 and 10 guy for anything less than another established star.

The Jazz are also going to be over the Cap, but under the Tax, so they won’t be able to sign anyone unless they do the mid-level, which I doubt they will. Ideally, they should sign Morris Peterson to the mid-level, but I say that about almost every team (he’s good, Sam Mitchell just didn’t like him for some reason).

I want to say they should take a shot at Marco Belinelli, the SG from Italy, but I’ve never seen him play, I’d just be taking Chad Ford’s word for it and I hate people who write like that. They can hope one of the Youngs (Nick or Thaddeus) falls to them (which won’t happen), but other than that I don’t see a player who will be much of an improvement over Ronnie Brewer. I say they take Derrick Byars from Vanderbilt and get D.J. Strawberry in Round 2. Sloan will like Strawberry’s toughness and maybe his offensive game will translate to the NBA (I see no chance in that, but, hey, it’s a 2nd Round Pick). One of Byars, Strawberry, or Brewer will hopefully emerge as a starter caliber NBA player and after you re-sign Deron and Millsap, the 2008-2009 Utah Jazz could make a run for a title.

But for this next season, start Harpring at the 2. Leave Kirilenko at the 3 and let him shut down the best wingman on the opposing team, whether it’s a 2 or a 3, and if Boozer is having trouble guarding a quick big man, try Kirilenko there. He is a very useful player, just not worth in the mid-teen millions because he flat out can’t shoot. Golden State wasn’t even guarding him outside the paint and he still would barely hit the rim.

So, anyway, here’s the lineup:

PG - Deron Williams
SG - Matt Harpring
SF - Andrei Kirilenko
PF - Carlos Boozer
C - Mehmet Okur

And just insert Derek Fisher in there for either Harpring or Kirilenko for the crunch time lineup. Millsap will play 25 minutes a night off the bench and the trio of Brewer/Strawberry/Byars would eventually get big minutes (or one of them if they step up) by the Playoffs. Insert this team in 2nd Place in the Northwest and the 6 seed. I don’t see any realistic moves to improve the roster. Kirilenko’s contract and the need to re-sign Deron soon without going over the Tax really limits them.

SPORTS AT RANDOM OFF-SEASON PREVIEWS:

CHICAGO BULLS
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
DENVER NUGGETS
LOS ANGELES LAKERS

MLB at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 31, 2007
in MLB and New York Yankees
. 0 Comments

I’ve never been one to stick up for A-Rod, but this really is overblown:

Look at A-Rod. He wasn’t even paying attention. He just let out a shout. It happens all the time. It happened to me in Little League; I didn’t cry about it.

And first off, that’s the shortstop’s ball. He owns the infield and he should call the 3rd Baseman off. And if he doesn’t, he needs to get over to cover third base. He should have never been behind the 3rd baseman (where A-Rod ran past) unless he was calling that ball, I don’t care how routine that play should have been.

So now it’s just more ammo for the A-Rod haters, which is fine with me, I’ve hated A-Rod, despite being a Yankees fan (my childhood dream will come true when Don Mattingly finally wins a World Series with the Yankees), ever since he forced “Punk’d” not to air their prank on him. (which was apparently an actor posing as a waiter who was a huge Red Sox fan and telling A-Rod he’s a loser who will never win anything. That would be some great video- just to see A-Rod’s face. But, alas, A-Rod ordered the tape to be destroyed.) But, at this point, I’m starting to feel sorry for this guy.

Jesus, what is happening to me? First I side with Kobe and feel for him and now I’m siding with A-Rod? Have I become totally soft? What happened to the 18-year-old kid that made this list of people he hates for no apparent reason?

Quick, I need to watch some Carson Daly clips… ah, that’s better. What a douche.

Thoughts at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 30, 2007
in Los Angeles Lakers, MLB, My Roommate, NBA, Thoughts and Utah Jazz
. 0 Comments

- So, Johnny, what do you think about baseball?

Our sentiments exactly.

- I wanted to say this before the Jazz got knocked out, and that might happen tonight, so here goes: Deron Williams has the worst haircut I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Look at it. It’s all square and nerdy looking. He used to have a thin sideburn line going down past his ear. Now he just shaves it straight across, above his ear, like My Roommate when I met him Freshmen year at Syracuse. It’s disgusting. And Deron is sort of balding in the back, too. It’s awful. He had a cool haircut back at Illinois, but now it just looks like some guy in Utah got to him and showed him how white trash cut their hair.

- Audio of Kobe saying he wants to stay a Laker. We here at Sports at Random may already be sick of this story.

- Two stories that are either creepy or funny: A Cable Guy in Wisconsin has allegedly stole around 1,500 shoes from girls because, as Lt. Graham of Waukesha County said, “He liked to smell them.” He was also convicted of this in 2005, but, obviously, that did nothing towards stopping him (not that he’s hurting anyone (unless they were forced to walk home without shoes and stepped in glass and it got infected and they had their foot amputated. But that’s still not the Shoe Thief’s fault exactly)).

And from Ontario, Canada, apparently there has been a Serial Question Asker around the town of Guelph. The problem is, the question is “Will you kick me in the groin?” He’s also not hurting anyone (except for himself if someone actually took him up on the offer). But Police Sergeant Cate Welsh is extremely concerned, despite the question not being an actual crime. “That kind of behavior tends to be a precursor for sexual assault, ” Welsh explained. Yeah, Cate, on yourself. If this was a woman asking to be smacked on the ass would you still be searching for her, Cate? Yeah, I didn’t think so.

And if asking a sexual question is a precursor for sexual assault, shouldn’t Dikembe Mutombo be in jail right now?


(I always thought he said “Dikembe”, not “Mutombo”- but to each his own)

NBA at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 30, 2007
in Cleveland Cavaliers, My Roommate and NBA
. 0 Comments

My Roommate takes a stab (excuse the pun that you’ll get later) at Game 4 and looks back upon the Cavs/Pistons Series so far:


“I know I’m not the only Cavs fan who thinks Geraldo in his flaming mo’ ensemble (red sweater draped over his shoulders, red tinted glasses with button down shirt) should be banned from all future NBA games. If he becomes the Cavs’ “celebrity fan”, I’m going to be devastated. This blog has already questioned Usher’s appeal, but at least he put his money where his mouth is. Other than that, they got…. um…. Brady Quinn…. speaking of flaming moes.


So how bout Boobie, huh? The man must be smart (see Daniel-san’s earlier entry) because with a two-year deal playing on a team with some of the most one dimensional, overpaid point guards in the league, he’s using his biggest media platform thus far to begin his campaign to get paid. And he’s gonna. I fully expect to update this blog entry later today with a audio of the local LA sports station saying “we could have had Boobie…instead we have a pissed Kobe and Jordan Farmar”. He did get 4 fouls, validating some of my fears that he’s going to have to be smart on when to go for the blocks/strips on D, but he was a stud. And Henry Abbott says he’s a flopper- well he’s an ass. He hit the floor on his ‘And 1′ jumper, but if you want to criticize someone, criticize the master at trying to get the ‘And 1′ on jumpers… Chauncey (coincidentally enough, his idol). Gibson knew they’d crowd him at the 3-point line, and to his credit, he took it hard. Most diehard Cavs fans will remember when he did that at the very beginning of the season, but it was a welcome sight in these playoffs because over the second half of the year, I was beginning to fear that Damon’s influence was turning him into a 3-point camper.


As for the difference between he and Larry, well, if it was Larry with the ball, sure he’d take it to the hoop, until there was a guy in front of him and then he’d throw up a leaner or fadeaway. The correct course of action is what Gibson did. When you are at a serious size disadvantage, sometimes you need to just concede that you won’t get a good look off at all. Take it right into the trees and just make the refs send you to the line. Don’t try to get the And 1 when your body is ill equipped to deliver it. 21 points on 7 shots speaks for itself. He may be a small two guard stuck behind a 14 million dollar albatross, but if nothing else, he’s a good bargaining chip while the Cavs wait out Larry’s deal.


As critical as I am of Larry, him getting out at the start was nice to see. If nothing else, he saved a few minutes of potential fouls for Boobie and that allowed him to be in when it counted.


Drew rarely, if ever, gets interviewed following games, but I must say this: He’s surprisingly composed and articulate for a guy who makes me want to jam my penis into the back of his neck. (if you can’t figure out my poor attempt as a new spin at commenting on his hair patch then you suck). (editor’s note: YIKES) He’s never got his due with the Cavs (in part due to a certain Brazilian who goes all out stuck behind him), but he’s handled all the criticism and trade scenarios amazingly professionally over the last 3 years.


As for the odds of winning the series, well, I’m hopeful. I’m less cynical that the Piston’s struggles are just a trend now that some of their guys have consistently sucked for four straight games. Webber no longer scares me. Big men who could shoot have killed the Cavs in the past. (Jamison, Webber pre-Detroit, Rasheed) If they do steal game 5 though, well it’s a second year in a row of being up 3-2 going home trying to take the series. This year , though, I actually would feel like they earned it.”

NBA at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 30, 2007
in Los Angeles Lakers and NBA
. 0 Comments

I’d love to discuss how Kobe Bryant is turning his daughter into, as Ludacris so delicately put it, “A lady in the street but a freak in the bed” (his daughter loves dancing like Shakira, but he tells her she can only do that at home, not in public), but I want to look back at what the Lakers have done since losing to the Pistons in 2004 to see if they are rebuilding, as Phil Jackson was allegedly told, or if they are trying to compete for a championship, as Kobe Bryant was told.

2004 Off-Season

REBUILDING:

Firing/departure of Phil Jackson - he never has shown the knack for developing young players
Trading of Shaquille O’Neal - got much younger with Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, and a future #1
Derek Fisher, Karl Malone, Rick Fox, and Gary Payton - all left the team in some way (trade, retirement, via free agency, etc.)

COMPETING FOR CHAMPIONSHIP:

Re-signed Kobe Bryant
Traded for Chucky Atkins
Signed Vlade Divac
Added Rudy Tomjanovich as coach

Then the Lakers went 34-48, Rudy Tomjanovich left the team and Frank Hamblen took over for the last 39 games.

2005 Off-Season

REBUILDING:

17 year-old Andrew Bynum was drafted
Brian Grant was waived
Vlade Divac retired

COMPETING FOR CHAMPIONSHIP:

Smush Parker, Aaron McKie, and Jim Jackson (during season) were signed
Luke Walton was re-signed
Phil Jackson brought back as Coach

I’m not sure where to put the Kwame Brown/Caron Butler trade on this list. It was just a bad move, although Caron did not play even close to All-Star level with the Lakers and with Kobe there he might never have. Anyway, the team went 45-37 and was up 3-1 on the Suns before self-destructing in the 1st Round of the Playoffs.

2006 Off-Season

REBUILDING:

Drafted Jordan Farmar
Didn’t trade away Andrew Bynum during the season

COMPETING FOR CHAMPIONSHIP:

Traded for Maurice Evans
Signed Vladimir Radmanovic to the mid-level

They finished 42-40 and lost to the Suns, again, in the 1st Round of the Playoffs.

Just looking at that, it is clear to me what kind of plan the Lakers have instituted since 2004: NONE.

NBA at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 29, 2007
in Los Angeles Lakers and NBA
. 2 Comments
With all the trash movies in Hollywood right now, obviously reality would have to deliver the real drama.

After Kobe Bryant allegedly told ESPN’s Ric Bucher that he would demand a trade if they didn’t get Jerry West and a Lakers Insider reportedly said Kobe was the one who demanded Shaq be traded, Kobe was to appear on the 2 local sports radio stations and everyone thought he would just mop up this mess and that would be that. Instead, Kobe did the exact opposite.

On the Petros and Money Show on AM 570 KLAC, Kobe called the front office a “mess” (because of this and Jerry Buss getting arrested last night on suspicion of DUI (with a girl 51 years younger than him in the car, I might add)) and went on and on about “trust issues” that he now has with the team. It “pissed” him off when he found out about this “Lakers Insider” report this morning that blamed him for the trading of Shaquille O’Neal. Kobe said he had nothing to do with that. He said that when it went down, he didn’t care that people blamed him, he thought it was just the media doing that. But when he saw a “Lakers Insider” said it now, he wasn’t willing to take that bullet anymore. He had to set the record straight. He said Jerry Buss told him he was going to trade Shaq on the eve of the day Kobe re-signed with the Lakers and he was going to trade him regardless of if Kobe came back or not. I obviously see that as Jerry Buss just trying to do what he thought Kobe wanted- so that is not news to anyone. But it’s what Kobe went on to say that really hits the Lakers hard.

Here’s the basic story:

During exit interviews after the 2004 season (when the Lakers lost to the Pistons in 5 games), Lakers management (be that Jerry Buss, Jim Buss, and/or GM Mitch Kupchak) told Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant different things. Kobe just found this out today. After that Insider report this morning, Kobe texted Phil Jackson: “Phil, please call me. ASAP. It’s extremely important”. Kobe said he never talked to Phil about the end of that season, he never talked to Phil about the book (that trashed Kobe); he wanted to know what the Lakers were telling Phil. Phil called Kobe right back and told him about his exit meeting after the 2004 season. Management told Phil they wanted to “scale back, they want to try to get under the cap, they have a long-term plan and he (Phil Jackson) wouldn’t be a part of it…”

That was “drastically different” than what they were telling Kobe. They told Kobe they wanted to win right now- “they’re going to do everything they can to get this team to an elite level- right now. They said nothing- NOTHING- to me about some long-term plan. Absolutely NOTHING.” (you need to hear his voice (link below) to really hear how he is saying it- he’s devastated, betrayed).

Earlier in the interview he mentioned that Baron Davis called him and told him he wanted to be a Laker for less money and GM Mitch Kupchak told Kobe that Baron was too injury prone. Then Carlos Boozer called him and said he wanted to be a Laker and Kupchak said he couldn’t guard Forwards. Even Ron Artest has called Kobe and told him he wants to be a Laker. Each time Kobe went to Lakers management and got all excited and told them these guys want to be on his team and each time they denied him. Now, looking back, Kobe said “I’m lookin’ like a fool” because they are on “some long-term plan that I have no clue about”.

Then, when asked if this whole thing is repairable, Kobe said, “I don’t know.”

Now, Kobe never demanded a trade, and when asked on 710 ESPN Radio if this is demanding a trade without really demanding a trade, he vehemently denied it. He said he wants to wear the purple and gold and win championships there. I take him at his word, too.

Kobe was very honest and candid during both interviews. The Admiral of Sports Talk, Petros Papadakis (on AM 570 KLAC), even admitted to liking Kobe after the interview after being a Kobe detractor for the last several years. And I, reluctantly, have to agree with Petros. Listen to the interview. Kobe comes off very likable. He throws Lakers management under the bus (excuse the unintentional pun) and demands answers from them. You even feel for Kobe if they really did betray him. It’s amazing. This utterly unlikable guy turned Petros and myself (and maybe many more) in one 15 minute interview.

What will happen next? Well, Jerry Bruckheimer isn’t in charge here, so hopefully it will be highly enjoyable and not too convoluted.

KOBE BRYANT INTERVIEW WITH PMS (AM 570 KLAC)

KOBE BRYANT INTERVIEW WITH THE BIG SHOW (ESPN RADIO 710)

BY THE WAY: Matt “Money” Smith of AM 570 has said that he has called his sources in Chicago (where he’s from) and they have said the Bulls have already called the Lakers to just let them know that they have the pieces to make a trade for Kobe Bryant. Wow.

NBA at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 29, 2007
in Cleveland Cavaliers, My Roommate and NBA
. 0 Comments

The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking to tie the Eastern Conference Finals at 2-games apiece tonight, and their starting Point Guard (kind of), the man who is making over $15 million this season, Larry Hughes, is probably going to miss Game 4 with an injury to his left foot. And many Cavs fans couldn’t be happier.

That is because of a rookie named Daniel Gibson. So, before My Roommate breaks down what will happen in Hughes’ absence on the court, let’s take a closer look at Daniel Gibson:

He’s from Houston, Texas and brought a state title to Jesse Jones High School as a Senior. He graduated 6th in his class (out of over 200 people) and that kind of intelligence has shown so far this year in the NBA. It didn’t really show during his college career at Texas, though, as I remember him as more of a chucker- a guy who no one thought could be a true Point Guard (not that he is now, either, but he seems to be a much better decision maker). That caused him to fall to 47th in the 2006 NBA Draft, where the Cleveland Cavaliers apparently got quite the steal (he also stopped working out for teams after he worked out for the Cavs before the Draft, so that might have something to do with it).

He seems to have a very close-nit family and, despite the area he grew up in, he seems to always follow his Grandmother’s advice: “Don’t let hard times make you a hard person.” Now he is closest with his fellow rookie, Shannon Brown, and has learned a lot from Eric Snow (who he has to get the paper for everyday), whose house he went over for Thanksgiving. Eric also had Shannon Brown and Dwayne Jones over that day. The people with nowhere else to go were invited over to Eric’s house, it seems. The on-court value of Eric Snow will be debated later in this article, but he seems to be a great teammate and great veteran leader for these young guys. So while Damon Jones, LeBron, and Larry Hughes are trying to take Gibson’s money, Eric Snow is showing him how to act on and off the court, how to be a better teammate, and, it seems to me, how to be a better person.

Anyway, onto Game 4. My Roommate is excited by Gibson’s more significant role, but still admits they will miss Hughes; even a little bit:

“Hughes is a volume shooter whose points rarely came in the flow of the Offense. In fact, they feel like they come in spite of it. He takes 15-20 shots a game most nights. He’s going to score a fair amount by default. As far as Gibson, though, he’s not a volume shooter, but a more efficient scorer. If anything, he’s hesitant to pull the trigger. That’s what worries me. But as long as he knocks down a fair amount of what’s there for him, he’ll continue to be a far better shooter than Hughes.

Defensively, Gibson’s just as quick as Larry. The only negative as I see it is that he’s not as big/strong as Hughes and likely will get more ticky-tack stuff called on him because he’s a rookie. Plus they’ll take Tayshaun and Chauncey right at him in hopes of getting some more open 3-ball looks for their teammates when help comes. That’s where Snow comes in useful. He’s strong enough and he’s got quick enough hands to keep either of those two from backing him down or requiring help. Snow is a shitty shooter, though. As long as he’s not forced to take shots, I have no problem with him getting 15-18 minutes a game. He’s a good defender and will be needed to spell Gibson. He just can’t shoot to save his life. Neither could Hughes, though.

Just as important as Gibson, though, in my view, is Sasha Pavlovic being even more aggressive going to the hoop so that Gibson will get as many clean looks as possible.”

I feel like My Roommate is being a reasonable Cavs fan. He’s accepted the contracts of people like Snow and Hughes (because you can’t get rid of them anyway), so despite Hughes not producing $15 million worth, you can still see he’s worth something. This is in direct contrast to Yankee fans (last year) with A-Rod, who didn’t care that he was producing more than 99% of the players in the league, they wanted more for $25 million. Hughes will never be worth the amount the Cavs are paying him, so he will always be hated- but is he valuable? Sure, it’s not good that he’s injured- but maybe playing 25 minutes a game would be the answer, not the 40 minutes a game he’s been getting.

But for Game 4, a rookie must step up along with the veteran that has led him this far.

Thoughts at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 25, 2007
in Movies, NBA and Thoughts
. 3 Comments

- Kevin Durant is one of the most likable players in the entire 2007 NBA Draft. He works hard, doesn’t gloat, and seems to play with passion during the game. That is why this is so hard for me, but I still have to report what I read. This is from ESPN.com’s SPORTSNATION chat with Kevin Durant:

John Balcita (Carson, CA): Before a game, do you listen to any music to pump you up? What’s your pre-game ritual?

SportsNation Kevin Durant: Before the game, I just sit and be focused. I listen to Usher before the game. It calms me down a little bit.

Jesus, Kevin. Usher? Is that a joke? Who listens to Usher? Especially before a game, Man, come on. Not even any member of the Cavaliers would be caught dead listening to Usher, and Dude is a part-owner! Ah Man, Kevin- I really wanted to like you- but this just crosses the line. (Although, if anyone in the League listens to Usher, it would be Ray Allen- so he’s got that going for him in Seattle)

- As many of my personal acquaintances know, I enjoy the Slip-N-Slide. I think the inventor of the Slip-N-Slide should be up there with the Wright Brothers, Philo Farnsworth, and Jonas Salk. Even though I live in an apartment with no access to any sort of yard, nonetheless the 30 or so feet you need to adequately have fun on a Slip-N-Slide, I own one- I don’t know why, but I’m ready if the opportunity to slide ever arises.

Anyway, I’d like to just present the best homemade Slip-N-Slide I’ve ever seen:

- So Henry Charles James, a former NBA Journeyman was charged with selling crack on two separate occasions to an undercover police officer. The second time, he brought his 6 children, ranging from ages 3 months to 6 years, with him. Obviously, that is a big deal. I’m sure if you’re selling crack it’s tough to get a babysitter, but I want to skip by that aspect of this case and ask the Fort Wayne, Indiana Police why they didn’t arrest him after the first sale? He sold them crack, then they waited more than a week until he sold it to them again to arrest him. How much more evidence do you need? He sold it to you. If you want to arrest him, arrest him. I don’t want to get all conservative here, but if Henry Charles James is selling crack, I don’t want him out there on the streets. So if you have the evidence on him, arrest him, don’t wait another week when who knows what sort of trouble he could have gotten himself into.

Also, you can’t be a 6′8“ Drug Dealer. I’m sorry, if you are above like 6′3″, just don’t enter that field. You can do many other sorts of things surrounding the drug game, like beating up people or making the crack, just don’t be the one to actually deal. You stand out. People are going to notice Malik Rose standing on a street corner day after day- they are much less likely to notice Nate Robinson. He couldn’t get his 6-year-old to sling some crack for him? Seriously, that’s even less noticeable than a 6′8″ Dude.

- I’ve never had a friend call me to tell me to not see a movie until today. He saw Pirates last night and said, “Please, don’t waste your time. Do not see that movie. It was awful.” I wasn’t really planning on seeing it anyway, but now I definitely cannot. What kind of movie inspires you to call people to tell them, “Do not see this movie!”? That’s the only reason he called, too. That is truly amazing.

So, I’ve already failed on seeing Spider-Man 3 (soooo bad), but from now on I’m going to try to not see any sequels, threequels, or something originally made from a TV show or it originally was a doll, etc., etc. (of course I’m excluding The Simpsons and Die Hard IV: Die Hardest- I don’t mess around with Homer Simpson or John McClane). So, here’s the list:

Spider-Man 3
Shrek the Third
28 Weeks Later
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Ocean’s 13
Hostel: Part II
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
Nancy Drew
DOA: Dead or Alive
Evan Almighty
Transformers
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Hairspray
Underdog
The Bourne Ultimatum
Bratz: The Movie
Rush Hour 3
The Invasion
Mr. Bean’s Holiday
Virgin Territory
Death Sentence

That’s a lot of freaking movies to boycott. It will be tough, but I can do it. I loved Transformers when I was little, they were my favorite toys, but my hatred of Michael Bay might just outweigh the love for Transformers and I may be able to do it. That’ll be the toughest one.

One last movie: in my research of all the remakes and sequels and so forth, I came across a gem that I cannot put on this list (it goes on The Simpsons and Die Hard IV list): Daddy Day Camp, the sequel to Daddy Day Care. No one is back from the original cast and they changed directors: to Fred Savage. Yes, that Fred Savage. Now, I’ve never seen the first one, so I’m sure I’ll be lost- but I think I’m still going to give this one a chance. Kevin Arnold deserves that much.

NBA at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 25, 2007
in Cleveland Cavaliers, My Roommate and NBA
. 0 Comments

I checked my email this morning and I didn’t see anything from Sports at Random’s biggest Cavs fan, My Roommate. That’s weird, considering all that transpired last night. So, I sent him this email:

“got anything for me this morning?
any solace in the losses? I think not, you are down 2-0, doesn’t matter if u were right there both times. Blew a huge opportunity.
any analysis of what happened and what they should do back in cleveland? like not play Larry in crunch time or something”

Then this is what I received back about 1 minute later from My Roommate:

“dude i’m too frustrated. anything i write now will just read like sour grapes. It’s not like larry sucking when it matters or lebron not getting calls against the “respected teams” is unexpected. Bitching about that is like complaining that I woke up and my skin is still white. It’s the hand your dealt. If the Cavs can’t play through that and avoid putting themselves in situations where one play determines the outcome, then this is what is gonna happen. They have to win handily. Cause they’re not respected enough, their supporting cast isn’t reliable enough, and a one man offense (for all intents and purposes) is a lot easier to stop for one play then a well rounded team that can get offense from many places. Plus putting themselves in these one possession losses just allows the media to pile on and overanalyze and then all these role guys clutch up. You want a one liner for deadspin. Here goes. I like the Cavs chances of winning that game better with Larry’s brother taking the shot.”

NBA Draft at Random

Published
by
Daniel-San
on May 24, 2007
in NBA, NBA Draft 2007 and Puja
. 1 Comment

Now with every Boston Celtics fan nervous and/or excited to possibly get Yi Jianlian, Sports at Random columnist Puja would like to take a look at another tall, foreign born player who many GM’s (especially Joe Dumars) had very high expectations for:

“Looking Back: The Human Victory Cigar

Since Draft talk is once again upon us, it is now the time of year to discuss 20-20 hindsight. As such, I would like to post some excerpts from everyone’s favorite 2003 pre-Draft prospect interview. Actually, I have yet to meet anyone who read, remembers, or even heard of this Q&A with Darko. This is a bigger mystery to me than Josh Howard’s 2003 slide to #29. Even if it was published in a high school newspaper, ESPN should’ve found this and plopped it on PTI, Around the Horn, and every other shark program out there. Yes, this was an actual interview with Darko for NBADraft.net:

It’s almost like his mouth is falling down a flight of stairs. Darko compares himself to Kevin Garnett, but not without noting that he—DARKO MILICIC— is the better passer of the two. Do they even have PR agents in Europe??? This couldn’t have gone worse if he took off his shoe and started beating the table with it, shouting, “VE VILL BURY THE AMERICANS!!!”

If you didn’t read the interview, allow me to summarize “the World According to Darko:”

  1. Michael Jordan is not responsible for the growth of basketball overseas
  2. the Olympic gold medal is more important than the NBA championship
  3. Darko’s game is most similar to that of Kevin Garnett and he is a better passer than KG
  4. Darko would’ve chosen DUKE if he played college ball [ouch]
  5. His aggression/mentality is what separates him from other prospects, and
  6. Darko Milicic is both loved AND feared

Let’s remember that according to NBA-logic, this kid (who has played professionally overseas since he was 15) was supposed to be better prepared for NBA basketball than your average ego-ridden high school star– be it OJ Mayo, Kobe, or the likes of Korleone Young. With today’s rules in place, these guys would all need the Oden/Durant one-year treatment. Not to say the new system is wrong, but in my opinion, it’s even worse when the kid comes out of Europe as a 2 or 3 year pro. When a player goes to college for a year and gets schooled by a Mark Madsen, Fred Hoiberg, Todd Billet (you get the point) he knows he’s got a lot of work to do. With Darko, we’ve got a guy who played 30 pro games in 2 years (less than most college teams play in one season), averaged less than 8 points per game, and shot a cool 20% from the ultra short Euro 3-stripe. And he still thought he was the Great White Hope. At least Mayo & Co. only talk about their own games. Here we’ve got Darko mildly slinging mud and All-NBA Lebron James (even then it was set in stone), MVP-caliber Garnett and the GOAT, Air Jordan… in one mild web interview.

Hopefully Dirk’s recent choke job will serve to reinforce the blatant European stereotype of a weak, perimeter player who can’t muster the intensity to adequately rebound or play defense… but do so- not for the NBA execs who know better- rather, reinforce it for the psyche of the young Euro prospects themselves. Don’t come over here waving your gold medal, wearing your Vlade throwback, with an entourage like Kyle Korver’s, touting your 5 mins per game vs. Pat Burke (ooooh).

Join the Association ready to earn your stripes like Josh Howard, Carlos Boozer, Agent Zero (HIBACHI!), and all the other non-Lottery college stars who had to come to work every day in practice and then actually show up in games when their number was finally called. Take a page from Ginobli or Barbosa. There is no room for a Human Victory Cigar—especially if said player pouts when Larry Brown finally sends him to the scorer’s table.”