Brett Favre apparently told the Vikings he is not coming back to play for them this upcoming season. NOOOO !!! I am so disappointed and shocked. I would have bet my house last month that he was coming back for sure - if I had a house that is. He went under the knife for the Vikes, but still finally gave up. I was as sick of his waffling as anybody else, though I was surprised by how openly the talking heads were ripping him on ESPN this season. I have been sick of his retirement routine even 4 years back or whenever he started it. The media was totally sucking up to him back then and only last year, it became a little too uncomfortable even for the ESPN nuts to support him. And this year, people have been openly bashing him and rightfully so. But to me, it' all part of the NFL entertainment. I am not a big Favre fan and I don't really care about his legacy or his image. Plus who doesn't like to see him play? I think he is still pretty good. So I would have been perfectly fine if he had come back.
A good QB gives me the best reason to watch a team. If Favre is in the league, thats another team I am interested in watching. Vikings were good last season and Favre would have been an intriguing addition for sure. Now he is just a major off-season distraction. The Vikings QBs should be dancing in joy today. They got their job back. As for the rest of the team and the coaching staff, this should be deflating. Thats why you better be careful when you touch Brett Favre. It can go either way. Vikings pursuit of hall of fame QBs always seem to end bad for them. They went after Marino after his last year with Miami and Dan was also very tempted. That team was probably not this well-rounded, but it had Randy Moss and Chris Carter at their peak and they wanted Marino to throw to them. It never happened and now the same result with Favre. But the bottom-line is, I am really excited about football. We are less than 6 weeks away from the season opener and I can't wait - Favre or No Favre, Vick or no Vick, who by the way is conditionally reinstated.
Mark Buehrle threw a perfect game last week. It is always great when that happens. Truly historic to see a perfect game. Dewayne Wise's catch in the 9-Th was AWESOME!! Great managing too because Wise was put in the game for defensive purposes in the 9-Th and he had to step up right away. Buehrle continued his great pitching today and he went onto retire 45 straight dudes between the 2 games. Unfortunately, he took a turn to negative town in the 7-Th inning and ended up losing the game. But it was still an amazing 2 starts for him. He got a standing ovation on the road. That should tell you how impressive he pitched today. The other pitcher in the news these days - Roy Halladay, is still in Toronto. Apparently Boston is dangling some good meat in front of the Jays. When did the Sox become the Yankees? They get everything these days.
In the NBA, New Orleans traded Chandler to Charlotte for Emeka Okefor. Surprising, considering the Hornets were supposed to cut costs and dump Chandler. They actually acquired a better player and a longer term contract, though Okefor is not overpaid. The bad news here is, the West got better because the Hornets took a step back last year and many expected them to decline further this year. Now, I am not sure about that. Okefor is not a super star, but I'll take his 13-10 with 2 blocks at the center position any day of the week over Chandler's injures. The Suns signed Nash for 2 more years for 22 million. Thats great news! Who doesn't like Nash? He is one of those guys who fit any team, any time anywhere even if the Suns go full rebuild mode on us. I also like it from the standpoint that this also means the Suns are not going to go full rebuild. Nash is getting old and would like to stay in a competitive team and I am sure they spoke about the team and contending etc. So this means the Suns have some sort of commitment to at least staying competitive. Amare is also saying he is happy with the moves they made. Thats positive. The Suns missed the playoffs last year, but they are actually not that far off from making the playoffs again. The Suns went 18-13 under Gentry despite losing Amare Stoudemire and scored 117.7 per game. That will win you a lot of games in this league next season especially if Amare is solid.
That makes me excited for the upcoming NBA season too! I guess this is why I am an incorrigible sports fan.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
All Star break
MLB is back after the all star break. Manny got a good reception in LA, but thats no surprise. The all star game was good. AL won it as usual. It was close and the game was quick too for an all star game. Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay were the starters. I loved the fact Halladay was named the starter for AL. He has always been an under-rated superstar in this game because he is in Toronto and every year, they got no shot against the Yankees or the RedSox. He is also now rumored to be on the trade block. I am sure fans of all the contending teams are asking for their team to trade for him on their local radio stations. Both Halladay and Lincecum gave up runs, but it was all good at the end.
The previous day was a big day for all vegetarians as MLB's only vegetarian slugger Prince Fielder won the home run derby. That guy has a violent swing. The derby is kinda lame, but it was good to see some new names and faces this season. The ESPYs was on the Wednesday after the all star game - the only "dead" day in the sports calendar. What a waste if time that is. ESPN seriously needs a competitor. The big news at the ESPYs was that Matt Kemp of the Dodgers got drunk out of his mind and fell down. I guess this is the kind of news sports stations cover to keep themselves busy around the all star break.
In other news, Blake Griffin is looking good in the NBA summer league and Brett Favre is almost back, but not quite. The Lakers apparently have taken the offer off the table for Lamar Odom. He wants 5 years and the Lakers want to give him a 3 year contract. It's interesting that they gave Artest a 5 year deal, but are not willing to do the same with Odom though both are of the same age. He may be expecting more money that Artest, but the Lakers are probably worried about Odom's effort level and motivation once he signs a 5 year contract. Most experts and fans are now saying the Lakers will take a step back without Odom. I agree. Odom is good. But even if they lose Odom, I think the Fakers will be good with Artest. Artest will not be as "easy" as Odom on tam chemistry though. Odom probably is not gone yet anyways. The market is soft because of the economy and Lakers may luck out at the end and sign him after all.
The previous day was a big day for all vegetarians as MLB's only vegetarian slugger Prince Fielder won the home run derby. That guy has a violent swing. The derby is kinda lame, but it was good to see some new names and faces this season. The ESPYs was on the Wednesday after the all star game - the only "dead" day in the sports calendar. What a waste if time that is. ESPN seriously needs a competitor. The big news at the ESPYs was that Matt Kemp of the Dodgers got drunk out of his mind and fell down. I guess this is the kind of news sports stations cover to keep themselves busy around the all star break.
In other news, Blake Griffin is looking good in the NBA summer league and Brett Favre is almost back, but not quite. The Lakers apparently have taken the offer off the table for Lamar Odom. He wants 5 years and the Lakers want to give him a 3 year contract. It's interesting that they gave Artest a 5 year deal, but are not willing to do the same with Odom though both are of the same age. He may be expecting more money that Artest, but the Lakers are probably worried about Odom's effort level and motivation once he signs a 5 year contract. Most experts and fans are now saying the Lakers will take a step back without Odom. I agree. Odom is good. But even if they lose Odom, I think the Fakers will be good with Artest. Artest will not be as "easy" as Odom on tam chemistry though. Odom probably is not gone yet anyways. The market is soft because of the economy and Lakers may luck out at the end and sign him after all.
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
Big news all over the place
The sports World has been incredibly busy the last week. Steve McNair's murder was a shocker. He was playing in the league until very recently and we have all seen him play. Now he has been shot dead and it's hard to believe. It's also a scandalous story involving a persian girlfriend with money troubles and her suspicion that he was involved with another girl. Of course neither of these girls have anything to do with his wife! Weird circumstances for him to go, but it is what it is. He seemed like a good guy, but celebrities and sex go hand in hand and I guess he is not an exception. Whenever guys who have been in your fantasy teams start passing away, something is wrong. Initially I thought he was shot outside a club or something by tough guys, but the story here was much weirder. This was not your normal "athlete goes to a bad club wanting to keep it real, and some thugs take him out." story. Not that thats should be normal, but unfortunately it is more common. But McNair seems to have been involved with some weird, unstable chick. It's sad.
NBA is still a major story in the news. The trade winds have been blowing non-stop. Artest going to LA as a free-agent is HUGE. Between him and Kobe, wing players in the league are going to have an hellish time trying to score on the Fakers. He has swapped places with Ariza, which is interesting because Artest is better, but Ariza is a lot cheaper and younger. I am sure Houston thinks they got a good deal too in locking up Ariza. But actualy he is a much better fit for the Lakers which has an alpha-dog in Kobe. The Rockets on the other hand can use a semi alpha-dog like Artest given that they want to get rid of T-Mac and Yao's career might be in trouble. It's also interesting that LeBron is still recruiting Ariza for Cleveland. He will be a great addition to a talented team like the Cavs. He will be good in Houston too, but Houston may not be good enough to use him right if Yao is hurt.
Shaq finally arrived at Cleveland and was his usual charming self in the interview room. Of course, his performance on the court is what we are all interested in. Boston responded by signing Rasheed Wallace. Thats a great addition. Celtics will be a contender the moment KG comes back healthy. But to have Wallace as an insurance policy behind him is just great. The only issue with Sheed is, he can be too content at times playing the 4-Th fiddle. But he can defend some bigs and if he at least steps up when KG is on the bench or if he is hurt, they should be awesome. The Magic traded away Hedo after trading for Vince. That to me is iffy. A 100% healthy and committed Vinsanity will help them contend, but then again, when was the last time we saw that Vince? I am not sure if Air Canada has even showed up this decade.
So basically the rich have gotten richer - Spurs, Lakers, Cavs and the Celtics are all better. The "rich got richer" cliche is also very true if you consider the fact that most of these trades and player-movement are all money related. Basically only the better teams are making money and hence they are able to add talent and get even better and make even more money. The middle-tier teams and the clipper-teams are all busy dumping salary and talent. Sadly, even the Suns are in that list. The Magic has moved sideways and Dallas got Marion. That should inject some athleticism and energy into the Mavs. Sad to see a true-blood Phoenix Suns guy like the Matrix go to the Mavs. I am not sure how much better they are though. He doesn't solve a lot of their core problems and plays the 3-spot where the dope-head Josh Howard also balls. If his head is screwed on right, Howard is better for that team than Marion. But they will get some consistency with the Matrix. He shows up every night and handles his business.
I noticed something shocking in baseball. Guess who has the second best record in all of NL? It's the San Francisco Giants. How did that happen? This team was riding some great pitching to a few wins earlier in the season and that has given them a boost of confidence and they are winning more and more games now. It seems like a vicious cycle. With a load of mediocre teams in NL, it suddenly looks like they may even make the playoffs. There will be enough teams competing for that wild-card spot, but the Giants are definitely ahead of schedule when it comes to their post-Bonds rebuilding plans thanks to Tim Lincecum. That dude is a stud and Matt Cain aint no joke either. If only they had not paid a boat-load of cash for Barry Zito, they'll look even smarter. But Zito has been pitching half-way decent this year as well. I am surprised and shocked by their performance. In other news, there was a Andruw Jones sighting the other day. He hit 3 home runs in one game for the Texas Rangers after dong nothing at the plate for a couple of years. Lets hope things turn around for Andruw. May be he might even finally realize his name is misspelt and fix it one of these days.
NBA is still a major story in the news. The trade winds have been blowing non-stop. Artest going to LA as a free-agent is HUGE. Between him and Kobe, wing players in the league are going to have an hellish time trying to score on the Fakers. He has swapped places with Ariza, which is interesting because Artest is better, but Ariza is a lot cheaper and younger. I am sure Houston thinks they got a good deal too in locking up Ariza. But actualy he is a much better fit for the Lakers which has an alpha-dog in Kobe. The Rockets on the other hand can use a semi alpha-dog like Artest given that they want to get rid of T-Mac and Yao's career might be in trouble. It's also interesting that LeBron is still recruiting Ariza for Cleveland. He will be a great addition to a talented team like the Cavs. He will be good in Houston too, but Houston may not be good enough to use him right if Yao is hurt.
Shaq finally arrived at Cleveland and was his usual charming self in the interview room. Of course, his performance on the court is what we are all interested in. Boston responded by signing Rasheed Wallace. Thats a great addition. Celtics will be a contender the moment KG comes back healthy. But to have Wallace as an insurance policy behind him is just great. The only issue with Sheed is, he can be too content at times playing the 4-Th fiddle. But he can defend some bigs and if he at least steps up when KG is on the bench or if he is hurt, they should be awesome. The Magic traded away Hedo after trading for Vince. That to me is iffy. A 100% healthy and committed Vinsanity will help them contend, but then again, when was the last time we saw that Vince? I am not sure if Air Canada has even showed up this decade.
So basically the rich have gotten richer - Spurs, Lakers, Cavs and the Celtics are all better. The "rich got richer" cliche is also very true if you consider the fact that most of these trades and player-movement are all money related. Basically only the better teams are making money and hence they are able to add talent and get even better and make even more money. The middle-tier teams and the clipper-teams are all busy dumping salary and talent. Sadly, even the Suns are in that list. The Magic has moved sideways and Dallas got Marion. That should inject some athleticism and energy into the Mavs. Sad to see a true-blood Phoenix Suns guy like the Matrix go to the Mavs. I am not sure how much better they are though. He doesn't solve a lot of their core problems and plays the 3-spot where the dope-head Josh Howard also balls. If his head is screwed on right, Howard is better for that team than Marion. But they will get some consistency with the Matrix. He shows up every night and handles his business.
I noticed something shocking in baseball. Guess who has the second best record in all of NL? It's the San Francisco Giants. How did that happen? This team was riding some great pitching to a few wins earlier in the season and that has given them a boost of confidence and they are winning more and more games now. It seems like a vicious cycle. With a load of mediocre teams in NL, it suddenly looks like they may even make the playoffs. There will be enough teams competing for that wild-card spot, but the Giants are definitely ahead of schedule when it comes to their post-Bonds rebuilding plans thanks to Tim Lincecum. That dude is a stud and Matt Cain aint no joke either. If only they had not paid a boat-load of cash for Barry Zito, they'll look even smarter. But Zito has been pitching half-way decent this year as well. I am surprised and shocked by their performance. In other news, there was a Andruw Jones sighting the other day. He hit 3 home runs in one game for the Texas Rangers after dong nothing at the plate for a couple of years. Lets hope things turn around for Andruw. May be he might even finally realize his name is misspelt and fix it one of these days.
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