My three-day NBA Draft lead-up coverage begins today. I have a handful of posts planned. I'll do Durant vs. Oden today, because that deserves its own day. I'll do a hodge-podge of storylines tomorrow. I'll post my mock draft on Thursday. Check back (or your Reader). Meanwhile...
Kevin Garnett to the Lakers? It would be great for Kobe, but yesterday's sizzling trade rumor – four teams – is today's squashed idea, because one of those teams – Boston – apparently didn't like that they were "only" getting Jermaine O'Neal.
Hey, the Celtics are the misguided fools who want to "win now." I thought the T'wolves were about to come out as the big winners, landing Al Jefferson and the Celtics' No. 5 pick, to go with their own No. 7 pick.
Regardless of who
Blazers trying to trade LaMarcus Aldridge? That would suggest they are taking Greg Oden, to pair with Zach Randolph (rather than Kevin Durant, to pair with Zach Randolph).
Want to read the most refreshingly honest draft analysis I've seen all year? Check out ex-Penn center Stephen Danley's piece from the New York Times.
Oh, and here's something kind of funny: If NBA teams were drafting sports bloggers instead of players. I fell out of the Lottery to the Lakers at No. 19. (However, I would get to fulfill my dream by creating the "Bar-mitzvah Backcourt" with Kobe Jordan Farmar.)
Chauncey Billups is a free agent: If he wants to win, he should stay with the Pistons. If he wants to be more of The Man, he should go to another team. The Pistons are on the way down, not up.
NFL: The most must-see NFL moment of the offseason between the Draft and the first week of training camp comes today when Congress holds its hearings into the NFL's sketchy history handling player disability.
Bears cut Tank Johnson: Who didn't see this coming? But you have to wonder: If this happened during the reign of Paul "Let It Slide" Tagliabue rather than Roger "Get Tough" Goodell, would the Bears have cut him? I think not.
Club bouncer sues Pac-Man: Adding insult to injury (or vice versa... at this point with Jones, I've lost track), he's being sued by the strip-club bouncer who says Jones bit him back in February.
MLB Stud, Batter: Shawn Green, who hit the 11th-inning, game-winning, walk-off home run to lead the Mets over the (new-rival) Cardinals last night.
MLB Stud, Pitcher: CC Sabathia, who won his 11th game with a complete-game win over the A's.
MLB Dud: Cristian Guzman. Just when he and the Nats had it together in hopeful way, he goes out for the season with that injured thumb.
TV Watch: "Shaq's Big Challenge." Cynical NBA fans may scoff, but if Shaq can do anything to erode the grip of childhood obesity that is one of this country's biggest epidemics, I'll stand up and cheer him. Speaking of bad eating habits...
Kobayashi is out of the Hot Dog Eating Contest! Apparently, arthritis means he can barely open his mouth. Knowing about the guys who are run the competitive eating league, this is a dubious as the WWE's "death" of Vince McMahon.
Speaking of Kevin Durant, he'll be on the cover of EA's NCAA Madness '08. Like Adam Morrison a year ago, he was the most dynamic player of the previous season, but – actually IN March – his team underachieved.
(Update: I just saw the picture of Durant they used on the cover of the game. I hope that's a placeholder, because otherwise? Worst. Cover Image. Ever.)R.I.P. Chris Benoit, his wife and his 7-year-old son, found dead Monday. Condolences to family, friends and fans of the pro-wrestling superstar and his family, who were killed under extremely mysterious circumstances that are sure to continue to be a huge story. UPDATE: Murder-suicide? Cripes, that is horrifying.
-- D.S.
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50 comments:
If Danny Ainge trades Jefferson and the #5 and only get Jermaine O'Neal back he should be fired on the spot. Talk about making your team worse but if the trade as the Boston globe has it is correct it makes the Celtics better. According to the Boston Globe the Celtics are giving up Green, Telfair, Ratliff and the #5 and getting O'Neal back. The hold up is that the Celtics do not want to trade jefferson and minnesota does not want to the deal without getting Jefferson
Always liked Benoit when I watched wrestling back in the day. I always find it a little sad when a wrestler dies at a young age as the first thing one thinks of is steroids or some other kind of issue that messes with their mind.
I do hope it was foul play from the outside..as opposed to a murder/suicide situation.
Anyway, does anyone expect the Celtics to do anything right anymore?
Oden and Randolph. No good. It should be Oden and Aldridge.
I don't like the assumption (made by the NYTimes, then furthered by Henry Abbott and others) that because Stephen Danley played a little ball at a smart college he therefore is perfect to write a draft report. I found the article bland, uninteresting, and pretty useless. A story about Jeff Green from a summer ball pickup game? What? Any of the guys he talks about would wipe the floor with the Penn team (some of them have). He's not their peer and is totally unable to rate them as such. Instead, he's an inexperienced writer in over his head. I get my draft information from the professionals.
I think the Celtics need to trade Paul Pierce to the Lakers and get Lamar Oden and Andrew Bynum back, maybe a pick as well.
The Celtics would then have a core of:
pg Rajon Rondo
sg Delonte West
sf Lamar Oden
pf Al Jefferson
c Andrew Bynum
Reserves: Kendrick Perkins, Wally Szc, Gerald Green...
I think that makes them at least a playoff team this year, and they keep their draft pick and if Bynum and Jefferson continue to develop, you have the best front court in the east in a year.
(this is all based on the fact that Paul Pierce has asked to be traded if Boston can't land a high profile veteran before Thursday)
As a pro wrestling fan...and a HUGE Chris Benoit fan...the last twenty four hours have been very surreal. It's kind of hard to continue basically idolizing someone when news like this breaks out.
So true Jason.
I was and is a huge wrestling fan and unfortunately it appears that it may be a murder/suicide.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19424899/
MLB Stud/Dud- Chicago White Sox. Stud for finally winning a damn game. Dud for 15k's and 11 LOB.
I don't watch wrestling anymore, but when I did the guys I liked were Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho. Kinda hard to wrap my head around the idea that 2 of them are dead and one of the dead is also double-murderer.
Is it really ok to call Mets Cards a rivalry. I can't stand the fabricated rivalries that come and go within a year because they saw each other in the playoffs. This is one of my new big pet peaves.
RIP to the Canadian Crippler
Jason,
Aren't you just a little embarrassed to admit in public that you watch pro-wrestling? I think pro-wrestling is the male equivalent of soap operas.
Michael, I'm young myself but Mets/Cards have battled it out in the NL in the 80s as well. I get your point about manufactured rivalries but I don't see this one as such.
RIP Benoit, always a great entertainer for the time i watched wrestling
cycledan:
No. No I'm not. I've been watching since I was 5 and although my reasons for watching have changed from watching Hulk Hogan beat up Ted DiBiase to watching and appreciating the athleticism of guys - not for sport, since it's predetermined, but for entertainment - and Chris Benoit was very, very good at what he did in the ring.
So in short, I'm not embarassed. Never have been. I know most people don't understand how an otherwise normal twenty-three year old college educated guy can love seeing two muscly guys in tights beat each other up despite it being "fake" and sometimes I don't understand why I do either. But I do.
So does Vince McMahon pop up alive now? I guess they canceled RAW last night to do a Benoit tribute.
The Celtics need to trade Pierce (with a nice gold watch to thank him), and tank again next year. Keep tanking until you hit the lottery, it's the only way out!
Too bad Wimbledon can't get some of this scorching-dry weather on the east coast for the first round...
Benoit is no hero, evidence points to the fact that he murdered his wife and son and then a day later killed himself! Roid Rage anyone???
They started last night with Vince McMahon addressing an empty arena (they turned people away from the arena because of how sudden everything happened).
The actual clip is here...it hurt to watch last night:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2dkfy_vince-speaks-about-benoit-death-on
I have no sympathy for someone that can kill anyone, let alone their own child.
Hey, Dan gave props to an Indians player! Yessss. CC was shaky through the first two innings and then was locked in. He makes me nervous when he fields with his pitching hand.
J and Jen I agree with you. If the stories out there are true and benoit did Kill his wife and child before killing himself then the man does not deserve to be honored at all.
J, Jen, and CMFost, I agree with all three of you that if the double murder-suicide thing is true then any and all respect I had for him is gone.
That said, I've been a big fan of his since I was 11. Everything has been so sudden that it's very, very hard to come to terms with what was and what apparently is.
Shanoff, if you make the argument that Durant should be taken over Oden like I suspect you're going to, you're deluding yourself at whole new levels.
But yeah, FINALLY someone mentions Sabathia. Dude should be the all-star starter (yes, over Beckett!) and a Cy Young candidate and NO ONE is talking about him.
You know why no one is talking about CC? Because his jersey does not say Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, Cubs, or Cardinals. His head isn't the size of a watermelon and he isn't a pain in the butt.
That is why ESPN and the rest of the media aren't talking about CC.
I agree with Jason and a lot of the others who have posted here. I used to "follow" pro wrestling, and now just flip it on when I'm bored on Monday Nights (i.e. NOT during football season). Benoit's death was a total shock to me yesterday.
But I don't want to condemn the man until all the facts are heard. Let's not idolize him, but let's not crucify him yet either.
It does sound like this might end up being an extremely bizarre story when it's all said and done though.
I think the AL All-star starter comes down to 4 people, CC, Beckett, Haren and Verlander. And I think because Leyland is the manger it will be Verlander even though all 4 are deserving. Look at the stats
CC - 11-2, 3.28 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, .262 BAA
Beckett - 11-1, 3.07, 1.05, .222
Haren - 9-2, 1.78, 0.90, .187
Verlander - 9-2, 2.78, 1.13, .213
Personally I think Haren is the AL Cy Young so far but I love Sabathia.
What rumor did you see? The one on ESPN.com had the C's giving up Telfair, Ratliff, Green, and the #5 to Minnesota, not Jefferson. There's no way they give up Jefferson for Jermaine O'Neal...
Kevin, ESPN Radio keeps talking about it being Jefferson and the #5. Mike and Mike were saying that this morning and that is how I orginally heard the story yesterday afternoon.
Jason, I was kind of kidding and said that tongue in cheek. No more reason to be embarrassed than for anything else. Sorry, tone doesn't come across the right way in text communications.
No problem, Dan. My apologies for reacting the way I did. Interpretation and meaning are lost over the net.
If he wants to win, he should stay with the Pistons. If he wants to be more of The Man, he should go to another team. The Pistons are on the way down, not up.
Am I misreading this? If the Pistons are on their way down shouldn't he head somewhere else to win?
cmfrost, good analysis, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Look also at strikeouts, walks, innings pitched, CG, team record... the case for Sabathia looks far better when you take all of that into account. But yeah, I think you're right that it will be Verlander in a hometown move. I suppose I can't argue with that -- managers always want to give their own guys the start. Although CC is from the Bay Area, so it would be special to let him start there in front of friends/family, etc. I don't think it's gonna happen though.
I think Haren deserves to and will start because he has the best ERA in the league and the game is being played a half hour from his home stadium
Todd, Thanks. I really quickly looked at the numbers but all 4 have been impressive and it would be really hard to pick one over the other. Some it might also have to do with when they pitch there last game before the all-star break. If any of the 4 start one of the last 2 games before the all-star break then that would rule them out.
I never am shocked at some of the things pro wrestlers do because of the roids and the fact that they are mostly a mcnugget short of a happy meal for doing the things to their body that they do. My personal favorite involved Macho Man. 2 in the morning at a 7-11 across from my parents old place on st pete beach I am buying a slim jim and a can of Kodiak when in walks the Macho Man. He is behind me in line with two cases of beer under each arm when I ask him to say it while offering him my slim jim. He not only growled "Oh yeah, Snap into it, but he invited me to his after party. He lived about three blocks from my parents so I walked over there and had a beer with him.
So who is everyones favorite wrestler and/or favorite moment in wrasslin.
RIP Chris Benoit
Give me a Demolition match from about '87 any day....
I think Leyland should send all 4 of those studs out for 2 innings each. Maybe the NL could get no-hit :)
Who really cares who starts the All-Star game? They'll all get to pitch anyways (although the starter will probably get one extra inning). You can theorize all you want about who the starter will be, but it will probably come down to how rested each of the pitchers will be going into the game. Isn't that the reason that The Gambler started last year..the other pitchers had started games too close to(e.g. on the Sunday before) the All-Star Game?
Heroin Sheik-a can of Kodiak!? I thought my brothers were the only ones that chewed Kodiak! ha
Always liked Jake the Snake and Ted DiBiase.
Mostly for that old Royal Rumble arcade game.
It is weird but they sell kodiak everywhere but I don't know anyone who chews it. Hell I even switched brands to grizzly because of how expensive it got. Everyone I have met in Chicago thinks I'm some hillbilly yokel because I am always working a lip.
As for AL starters making the ASG, don't forget about Lackey and Escobar from the Angels. Although Lackey didn't help his case last night...
Stooncer - Lackey might be hurt by the fact he has 5 loses when none of these other guys currently have more then 2
Sheilds from the Rays probably wont even make the All Star team but he should get some consideration for what he has done in the first half of the season. I can't wait to watch him pitch tonite against the White Sux.
shiek~ haha "White Sux"...I like that! They are falling apart.
This is great a must read.
check it out
The Associated Press is reporting that pro wrestler Chris Benoit strangled his wife and smothered his son before hanging himself in his weight room.
This AP report makes me lose all respect for Benoit. How does a person get to a point that he would do something like that.
I'm sure there are lots of things to be blamed. Likely self inflicted.
and Sheik..if you're using snuff..well..you ARE a yokel. :p
The thing is I only dip because I work in a kitchen and can't smoke while I work. I can take a pinch and not have to spit for like a half hour and still get my fix, But thats the only redneck thing about me. Hell I grew up in L.A. and Scotland and didn't move to Florida til I was 16.
The Benoit story is crazy. That is like the fifth time in a week or two where a dad has snuffed out his family. I can't fathom how a mom or dad could kill their entire family. At least Benoit was creative in using three different techniques of death, but then he was always a guy with great technique in the ring so you would expect no less.
The whole Benoit story has me wanting to just spend more time with my young son and telling him how much I love him. Cannot understand what would bring a man to hurt his own.
Sparty~ I'm with you...I can't wait to get to my mom's and squeeze my baby with a big hug (he's a big 2-1/2 year old so he can take a squeeze from his petite mama! LOL)
I can't even type how I feel about this situation. I guess all I can say is "wow".
I'm with Adam Giblin (way up thread). Danley's got the writing mechanics and potential to amuse/inform, but all I could think of was how terrible he played versus the guys he critiques. I posted to my blog on this very issue.
I wonder, though, if Danley was a 22-year-old writer who'd covered college basketball for four years--rather than a mediocre D1 player--whether we'd be more receptive to his thoughts.
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