Archive for August 2nd, 2006

August2

Raptors Fans Might Want To Invest In The NBA League Pass

By: the mighty mjd

The NBA released their schedule yesterday, along with the TV schedules for TNT, ESPN, ABC, and NBATV. I’ve gone to the trouble of counting up which teams have the most games on national television (and I’m not counting NBATV in that). Here’s the list, in order. The first number is the total number of games that are on ESPN or ABC, and the second number is the number of games on TNT, and the last number is the total.

1.  Heat: 15/9,        24
    Cavs: 15/9,        24
    Suns: 15/9,        24
    Lakers: 15/9,      24
5.  Mavericks: 14/9,   23
6.  Bulls: 12/9,       21
7.  Pistons: 14/6,     20
8.  Spurs: 12/6,       18
9.  Kings: 10/6,       16
10. Nuggets: 10/5,     15
11. Rockets: 10/3,     13
12. Clippers: 7/5,     12
13. Nets: 6/5,         11
14. Wizards: 9/1,      10
15. Pacers: 6/2,        8
    76ers: 8/0,         8
16. Hornets: 3/2,       5
17. Warriors: 1/2,      3
    Magic: 1/2,         3
19. Grizzlies: 1/1,     2
    Jazz: 1/1,          2
    Sonics: 4/2,        2
    Celtics: 2/0,       2
    Timberwolves: 2/0,  2
24. Bobcats: 0/1,       1
    Bucks: 1/0,         1
26. Toronto: 0/0,       0
    Hawks: 0/0,         0
    Knicks: 0/0,        0
    Blazers: 0/0,       0

It’s a little too early to be making predictions about the NBA season, but I’ll give you two teams that the TV people will wish they had on more, and two teams they’ll wish they could erase from their schedule after the All-Star break.

On too damn much: Bulls. There’s only six games with more than 20 games on national television, and the Bulls are one of them. I think the Bulls are going to be good, and I personally like their style of play… but I’m not penciling them into the league’s Top 6 teams yet, either. They’re also going to average about 85 points a game.

On too damn much: Kings. I think we’re getting a little bit carried away with how well they played in the playoffs against the Spurs. It was nice and all, but for them to be on more than the Clippers? For shame.

Should be on more: Toronto. Not only are they going to contend for a playoff spot, but they’re going to be an entertaining team. They will run, they will shoot, they will score. Of course, being in Canada and having a roster full of names that Bill Walton can’t pronounce isn’t exactly a recipe for TV ratings, either.

Should be on more: The Clippers. I believe they’re going to be right at the top of the Eastern Conference. There are at least three teams with more national TV games that the Clippers will beat in the standings.

Should be on more: Sadly, the Knicks. And I lied, I’m giving you three teams that should be on more. They’re going to be better this year, for a couple of reasons. 1) They’ll play with more confidence under a coach who just won’t care a whole lot what they do on the court. And 2) They’ll be better because they won’t be confused by the concept of trying to learn how to play disciplined, responsible, basketball. I’m serious. I don’t know if I’d go so far as to say that they’ll be in the playoff chase, but I don’t think they’ll be laying face down in the cellar, either.

Posted in: NBA21 comments

August2

Tom Brady Is Mad

By: the mighty mjd

Word on the street (and by street, I mean this quality Michael Silver column at SI.com) is that Tom Brady’s unhappy with the Patriots organization. And it’s not because Bill Belichick is putting his genius wood to his girlfriend, and it’s not because they forgot to order him the special hypoallergenic eyeblack for players with sensitive skin. It’s because they’ve get to come up with the scratch to get Deion Branch into camp.

Tom recently missed three straight days of practice with the Patriots, and no one would say why. You could chalk it up to just typical Belichickian tight-lippededness (that isn’t a word), or you could look for a bigger and better story, that being that Tom Brady is skipping practices because he’s mad that they won’t pay his #1 receiver. Here’s on Tom on Deion Branch:

“Deion is the most important player on our offense,” Brady told SI.com. “When I look at the elite receivers in the game, he is second to nobody. He doesn’t get a lot of the credit, because we do spread the ball around here, and he doesn’t feel a need to promote himself like so many guys at that position. But he is that good.”

“I asked [cornerback] Eric Warfield, who was with the Chiefs until we signed him this year, ‘How does Deion compare with the best receivers in the league?’ He said, ‘Deion was the best I faced last year. He was spectacular.’”

And, as I usually will do in an NFL contract dispute, I’m siding with the player. Deion Branch is scheduled to make $1.05 million this year. For a #1 receiver on a team that wants to contend for the Super Bowl, for the security blanket of the franchise player of all franchise players, that’s absurd.

This is why the NFL’s labor agreement bugs me (and I know someone’s about to accuse me of feeling sorry for millionaires). If Branch’s contract called for him to make an absurdly high number like $9 million this year, and the team thought that was exorbitant, they could just tear up the contract. But Deion branch is making $1.05 million, a bargain-basement price, and he has no recourse but to holdout, something the league just made it more difficult and more expensive to do.

It will all eventually get worked out, and Branch will get paid, I’m sure. But the sooner, the better. It’s not a great idea for the Patriots to be pissed off Tom Brady, is it? Just pay him. Pay that man his money.

Posted in: NFL9 comments

August2

This Damn Confederate Flag Issue

By: the mighty mjd

Against my better judgement, we’re going to get a little “political” today. And I put political in the quotes there, because I don’t really feel like this is a political issue; I think it’s a moral issue. It may be a small part of that issue, it’s a part nonetheless. The NCAA has, since 2001, banned predetermined postseason events from taking place in South Carolina because of their insistence on flying the confederate flag on Statehouse grounds. They are now considering expanding that ban to all postseason football and baseball games, and I hope they do it.

I realize that’s not going to be popular with the “Heritage, Not Hate” crowd, but hey… you win some, you lose some, and I don’t mind losing that one. I don’t even know what the hell that means. If you have to come up with a slogan to attach to your flag that tries to convince people that it’s not a symbol of hate… then yeah, it’s probably best that you just leave your flag in the closet. Just put it down. It hurts people… that’s the beginning and the end of it. It hurts a large group of people, so put your flag down. That’s it.

This is not a free speech issue. I’m not suggesting that they pass a law that would make it illegal for anyone to own or celebrate a confederate flag; I just think the NCAA is making the right call here if they go through with this. It’s not about banning the flag, it’s about politely asking the government to stop endorsing a symbol that stands for racism and slavery, and then the NCAA making their own decisions about things if that government won’t comply. Good for them.

You can celebrate your heritage on your own time. If you want to put up a confederate flag on your front lawn, drink a mint julep, wear a bolo tie, lose a war, grow big puffy sideburns, order an Elvis figurine off of TV, and wash your pick-up truck after taking out an ad in the paper for indentured servants, then hey, have at it. I’d just rather it not be done on government property. Why would anyone need a confederate flag placed on Statehouse grounds to celebrate their heritage? A private listening to a Toby Keith CD should be plenty.

And just to be clear, I’m not saying that all people who fly confederate flags are necessarily bad people. I’m just saying that they’re all doing, knowingly or otherwise, a racist thing. Like it or not, that flag is permanently tied to racism and slavery. And I’m sure there are people out there who look at the flag and somehow, someway, feel some sense of honest pride, but that doesn’t erase the other meaning. Whatever idea that confederate-flag-waver has in his own head does not supercede the fact that it’s a symbol that’s hurtful to a lot of people. So just put it down. All I’m really asking is that you not be an inconsiderate asshole.

So, um… oh yeah, the NCAA. I urge them to go through with it. For all the college athletes in the country, it’s the right thing to do.

Posted in: College Football, College Hoops, Things That Aren't Sports33 comments

August2

The French Are OK With Being… Well, French

By: the mighty mjd

There’s a song in France right now that celebrates the Zidane’s World Cup headbutt of Marco Materazzi. I don’t feel like it’s something to be particularly celebrated, and I’d be willing to chalk it up to just a few French idiots who wanted to write a dumb song, however… the song is the #1 song in France right now. Soccer fans of France, you are skirtbags.

Check out the translated lyrics, courtesy of SI.com.

Watch out, it’s the head-butt dance!
(Head-butt, head-butt)
Head-butt to the right
(Head-butt, head-butt)
Head-butt to the left
(Head-butt, head-butt)

Go, Bleus, Go!
Zidane, he hit [him], Zidane, he slapped (him)
(Head-butt, head-butt. Head-butt, head-butt)

The guido, he was hurt
Zidane hit (him)
The Italian is not doing well
Zidane slapped (him)
The referee saw it on TV
Zidane hit (him)
But we lost the World Cup
We had a good laugh anyway

Well, that’s the best fucking song I’ve heard since Mambo No. 5. Just inspired, Frenchy. Brilliant in its simplicity. It’s good to see that we’re not the only nation prone to falling in love with terrible songs.

What a tremendous thing to celebrate. Hey, we lost, but at least the best player in our nation’s history failed to keep his shit together for long enough to help us out in a penalty shootout. Italy has the World Cup, but at least Zinedine Zidane’s mother doesn’t have to be offended by an insult she never would have heard, anyway. Pat yourselves on the back for that one.

Posted in: Soccer7 comments

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