Month: May 2006

Bulls Chug Along, Kobe on a Rampage, and the World’s Highest Paid Couch Potato is Awake

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Bulls, NBA Basketball, SportsLeave a comment

Some thoughts on the NBA Playoffs heading into tonight's action:

1) Can the Bulls Win on the Road? – The old adage is that a series doesn't start until a road team wins a game, which means this series is still up in the air. The fortunate thing for the Bulls is that Miami might very well have the worst home crowd in the NBA. Heat fans make Lakers fans look like diehard students of the game by comparison. On the other hand, the bad thing for is that I'm just bracing for Shaq to go off on a 40-point 20-rebound rampage, especially with Tyson Chandler sitting out with a sprained ankle. I also have a hard time believing that Dwyane Wade can be kept down on a consistent basis, although Kirk Hinrich has proven time and time again that he's a top-notch defender (and has shown some intestinal fortitude on the offensive end this series, as well).

I love watching this Bulls team overachieve, but the pessimist in me (World Series or not, this is at the core of all Sox fans) knows that they have been playing pretty much flawless basketball these first four games and only have a 2-2 tie to show for it. That's a testament to how well the Bulls have coalesced as a team yet also displays that there's a ceiling to how successful you can be in the NBA without a star (don't give me some line about how the Pistons have won without stars – Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton, Ben Wallace, and Rasheed Wallace are all certified gamebreakers). Honestly, this series is going to be determined by whether the Heat can wake up and finally turn it on more than anything that the Bulls do from here on out. Here's to hoping that they continue to underestimate us.

2) Kobe the Destroyer – Other than the Bulls-Heat games, I've been paying attention to the Lakers-Suns series more than anything else in the NBA Playoffs right now. Kobe Bryant is tearing the heart out of MVP-to-be Steve Nash and Phoenix the way Michael Jordan did it to Charles Barkley's 1993 Suns and Karl Malone's 1997 Jazz when His Airness got snubbed in favor of those players for the MVP. The way that Nash melted down at both the ends of regulation and overtime and how Kobe capitalized on each of the mistakes on two buzzer-beaters in the same game on Sunday was spectacular but hardly unexpected. Kobe is leaving no doubt in anyone's mind as to who the best player in basketball in the world is today. Believe me, Nash is a top-level player, but should he have won even one MVP award much less two in a row? Don't be so naive to believe that there isn't a "Great White Hope" factor playing into this.

3) From World's Highest Paid Couch Potato to Star in the Playoffs – An unintended consequence of following the Lakers-Suns series closely is observing Bulls outcast Tim Thomas tear it up for the Suns. I had a post written back in February entitled "The World's Highest Page Couch Potato" about Thomas' strange falling out with Scott Skiles and how the Bulls sent him to sit at home even though (1) they desperately needed the size that Thomas could provide for them and (2) they were still paying $14 million for the season as the highest paid player on the team. However, by the time I was ready to post that column, he was released by the Bulls and the Suns picked him up. So far in the first four games of the Lakers series, Thomas is averaging 15.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game for Phoenix (and that's including him missing some time at the end of game 3 due to a sprained left knee).

This begs a couple of questions. First, did Thomas really have so horrible of a work ethic that the Bulls absolutely had to send him home to sit around and collect the highest paycheck on the entire team? When the Bulls released Thomas, the two teams that wanted him the most were the Suns and the Spurs, the two best teams in the vastly superior Western Conference that also have no-nonsense coaches. It makes me question whether Thomas could have possibly been that much of a detriment. Second, if the Bulls had actually used Thomas, could they have been the most legitimate threat to the Pistons in the East this season? The Bulls are clearly overachieving right now with a team full of undersized guards and forwards. If they can get past the Heat, they could possibly make it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they would promptly get crushed by Detroit. By adding a 6'10" player that can actually shoot three-pointers extremely well, however, the Bulls could have presented a true challenge to the Pistons (and at the very least, would have had enough talent to not have to play perfect games against teams like the Heat in order to even have a chance to win).

Would Thomas have disrupted the Bulls' undeniable team chemistry? That must have been in the thoughts of both Skiles and John Paxson when they made the decision to send him home. However, when it became clear that Thomas was desired by winning teams like the Suns and Spurs, it gave me doubts as to what the hell the Bulls were looking for. Especially in light of Tyson Chandler's repeated injury problems, I don't know how the Bulls just let 15-plus points and 9-plus rebounds get away without anything in return.

Clueless Bears, Houston Has a Problem, and Other NFL Draft Thoughts

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Bears, NFL Football, Sports4 Comments

I watched NFL Draft coverage from its start on Saturday morning until my eyes finally glazed over after the Bears' second pick in the second round about seven hours later. After all of that "work," here's my synopsis of the event:

1) WTF, Bears?! – If you read my NFL Draft preview on Friday, you know that I'm not surprised that the Bears traded out of the first round on Saturday. However, there's nothing quite like watching the NFL Draft for four hours in anticipation of your team making a pick, getting excited because the top-rated and fastest wide receiver in the draft in Chad Jackson is unexepctedly there for the taking at the #26 spot, seeing the Buffalo Bills all of the sudden go up on the clock signaling that the Bears traded their first round pick, and then having to go online to find out exactly what happened since that blowhard Chris Berman and his ESPN crew didn't bother to explain the details of the trade (instead, Boomer chose to yap about how Bryant Young's uniform was hanging behind Steve Young, who was doing a live remote from the 49ers lockeroom, where Boomer then spent ten minutes about how it looked like Steve had his own jersey ready for a comeback attempt and blah blah blah blah redrum redrum).

Even better is waiting until the second round and seeing Sinorice Moss, another speedy wide receiver, fall into the Bears' lap in the second round yet watching Chicago take Danieal Manning, a defensive back from Abilene Christian (I won't knock Division 1-AA schools as a general principle only because Jackson State blessed the world with Walter Payton, but let's just say I was confused here considering we just signed a cornerback in Ricky Manning Jr. The only way this could possibly work is if Manning can play safety in order to spot oft-injured Mike Brown). The Bears then used their next pick in the second round to grab Devin Hester, another cornerback, who really will be used as a kick returner. That's fine, but I question this move when Hester's Miami teammate Moss could have been grabbed earlier which would have shored up both our kick returning and wide receiver needs in one swoop. Add in the fact that we subsequently failed to draft a tight end and I've got to tell you that I'm not impressed with the Bears' draft.

2) Mario "Sam Bowie" Williams – It's not Mario Williams' fault that he was the first pick in this year's NFL Draft. I wouldn't expect him to tell the Texans that they made what could turn out to be the most boneheaded mistake in NFL history by picking him over Reggie Bush when he's being offered the richest rookie contract ever. I'm sure Mario Williams will become an upper-tier defensive player. However, unless Williams at the very least becomes the Reggie White of his generation, Houston's decision to pass on Bush is going to be the football equivalent of the Portland Trailblazers taking Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan. I don't know if I've ever seen more of a sure thing to hit it big at the pro level than Reggie Bush in my lifetime, so the Texans either have the cajones of a bull or are recklessly endangering their franchise. Early returns point to the latter.

3) Jets Fans Have Some Brains – I was fully expecting the largest cascade of boos in the history of the NFL Draft (and that's saying something) when it was apparent that the Jets were going to be taking an offensive lineman over Hollywood heartthrob quarterback Matt Leinart. The average Jets fan would boo his own son being picked if he didn't believe that the move fit into the team's schemes. However, I was thoroughly impressed to see the Jets faithful at Radio City Music Hall applaud the pick of D'Brickashaw Ferguson at #4. I've got to give the Jets fans credit – they knew that a flashy QB wasn't nearly as important to their team as getting some semblance of protection for the QBs that they already have. New Yorkers might be loud and insufferable, but they have a pretty high collective sports IQ.

4) Leinart Comes Tumbling Down – Speaking of Matt Leinart, after the Titans and Jets passed him up, pretty much everyone knew that he would be dropping to at least the #10 spot since all of the teams in between had more pressing needs than quarterback. This goes to show you that if you are coming off a national championship in any sport and are projected to the #1 pick in the draft right afterwards, you've got to turn pro immediately for your own sake. Leinart was a complete lock to be the #1 pick last year if he had come out then but has now given up millions of dollars and didn't even win another national championship in the process. Apparently, basketball counterpart Joakim Noah hasn't learned anything from the Leinart experience.

5) Packers Scary Again – The proverbial "grass is always greener" line applies here, as uber-Packer fan Minneapolis Red Sox has bemoaned the Green Bay draft. From my perspective as a Bears fan, the Packers are back on the radar because they now have a defense again (which is more important for 2006 than Brett Favre returning). The combination of signing Charles Woodson and then drafting A.J. Hawk is going to give Green Bay two legitimate playmakers on the defensive side of the ball. (By the way, was it just me or did half of Ohio State's starting lineup on both offense and defense get drafted this past weekend? A lot of people believe that the Buckeyes will be the #1 college team this fall, yet it looks like they're going to have to replace a ridiculous number of people. Troy Smith better continue improving at the same rapid pace as he did last season if they're going to come close to meeting those expectations. Otherwise, I'm shorting OSU this year.) I don't buy Minneapolis Red Sox's thought that A.J. Hawk is the reincarnation of Brian Bosworth – Hawk, rather than being an underachieving showboating pompous ass, is one of the hardest-working players you'll ever see. Sure, the Packers are still going to need to develop a pass rush at some point (and I'm not in a rush to see that happen), but this is a great start.

All in all, it was another fun NFL Draft. I just hope that I'm wrong about the Bears.

Land-o-Links – 5/1/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Land-o-Links, Random Thoughts1 Comment

NFL Draft thoughts coming later today and some NBA Playoff talk is on the board for tomorrow. Until then, here are today's links:

1) ABC Gives Fans a "Lost Experience" – I'm a big "Lost" fan, so this sounds like a great idea. We'll see how this plays out over the summer.

2) Atlantic City May Lose in New Monopoly – Hasbro is putting out a "Here and Now" edition of Monopoly that dedicates a spot on the board for 22 different American cities, but Atlantic City was not included. Not surprisingly, Atlantic City boosters aren't exactly happy about diluting their most famous claim to fame outside of Donald Trump's bankrupt casinos (a "classic edition" of Monopoly with the original board will still be produced). If you've never been to Atlantic City, just picture Joliet with bigger casinos, trashier ghettos, and a lot of seagulls and water taffy shops. As a result, I'm not surprised that Hasbro wanted to upgrade their board game's image. However, I do give some credence to their gripe after finding out that Cleveland, out of all places, is getting a spot on the board.

The other part of this story is that everyone gets to vote on which famous site gets to represent each city on Monopoly.com for the next couple of weeks. Chicago actually will get two spots on the board – one is a regular spot and the other will be O'Hare since airports will be replacing the railroads (JFK, LAX, and Atlanta are the other air hubs being included). The 3 choices for Chicago are Wrigley Field (which is winning by a landslide right now), Michigan Avenue, and Navy Pier. Now, even this Sox fan can understand Wrigley's inclusion as choice, but why on Earth is Navy Pier on this list over obvious sites such as the Sears Tower, Millennium Park, and Buckingham Fountain? Anyway, the top vote-getter out of all of the sites in the country will receive the coveted Boardwalk space.

3) Snoop Dogg Arrested in London Airport – My wife and I actually had to sleep overnight in Heathrow when our flight back home from London was stuck in New York as a result of the 2003 blackout. Needless to say, it would have been a lot more fun experience if I was able to hit the duty free store with Snoop.

And finally…

4) 50 Cent Joins Campaign to Prevent Childhood Obesity – Note that 50 Cent sells grape drink, NOT grape juice. I want that purple stuff!