OJ Gets Pranked During Interview

OJ Simpson just doesn't know when to stop. Now he is doing a series of interviews with website MN1...yeah, I don't know what on earth it is either...and while half of the show consists of a scripted interview with MN1, the second half is live call-in questions. Did they really think this was going to end well? TMZ blesses us with this highlight video from the call-in portion of OJ's interview. Watch and enjoy as OJ answers questions such as "Do you think it was a bigger feat to break 2,000 yards in one season or slice two necks in one night?" and "Did you kill Bill Walsh?"

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

The Giants DE Soap Opera

Jealousy. Betrayal. Infighting. Insults.

Is this the plot of your mom's favorite soap opera?

No, it is just the best way to describe the insane situation going on right now with the New York Giant's defensive ends.

First, Michael Strahan decided that he didn't feel that the Giants were going to contend for a Super Bowl this year and has since been mulling retirement instead of reporting to training camp. An aging star thinking about retiring isn't all that odd, but then you throw in this odd phone tag exchange and things just get a little weird;

"Strahan left a phone message late last night for coach Tom Coughlin. Coughlin returned the call at about 5 a.m. today and got Strahan's voicemail. As of right now, Reese has yet to talk to Strahan, and it's unclear if Coughlin has spoken to the six-time Pro Bowl selection"

Thankfully for the Giants, a perfect replacement for Strahan has just in the market, in the person of the recently released Simeon Rice. Losing the current sack leader among active players and gaining the second place guy doesn't sound like too much of drop off. Well, according to Strahan's good buddy/fellow defensive end Osi Umenyiora, it is actually a terrible idea. Smell a little bias in this one, especially considering Umenyiora and Strahan share an agent? Umenyiora has laid out quite the welcome mat for Simeon Rice in the past few days;

"We're not talking about Julius Peppers," Umenyiora said, comparing Rice to the Panthers' stud defensive end. "Simeon Rice is an outstanding pass rusher, but that's what he is."

"I'm not going to go so far as to call him, whatever, what a lot of other people have called him, but people say he's not the best run player," Umenyiora said. "I guess people gave him that reputation for a reason."

"That's kind of crazy, to ask me to move to left defensive end because Simeon Rice is coming in," he said. "It's ridiculous. He can't play left defensive end; that's where teams run the ball at. If the team asks me 'We need you to move to left defensive end because we need you at that position,' I will, but I'm not going to move to left defensive end because Simeon Rice is coming in."

So Osi...you do realize that this guy is probably going to be your teammate in a week or two, right? It might not be the greatest idea to diss his talent, call him one dimensional, and state your unwillingness to accomodate his being on the team, all in one interview. Listening to Umenyiora talk about Rice is like hearing a teenage girl ripping some young hussy that is moving in on a friend's ex-boyfriend. "Psst. I heard Simeon Rice stuffs his shoulder pads, pass it on."

All is not lost though. The Giants still have another promising young DE in Mathias Kiwanuka...oh, except that they moved Kiwanuka to LB, and have said he isn't going back. Well, I'm sure Mathias is doing pretty well at his new position, right? Yes, if you define "doing well" as "getting burned on a pass play by a guard";

The Giants did not practice yesterday but Kiwanuka was still smarting about what transpired in Sunday's afternoon session. Lining up for a field goal, holder Jeff Feagles put on a "Fire" call, which simulates a bad snap. Feagles took the ball, rolled to his right and fired a perfect pass to Seubert, who once played some tight end at Western Illinois. The burly Seubert went slightly airborne to make the catch, with Kiwanuka trailing.

"I think I got both feet off the ground," Seubert deadpanned. "I don't think [Kiwanuka] saw the ball. I guess I can jump a little higher than he can. They should honor me as a receiver now. Jeremy or me, there's no difference."

To recap...one of your starting DEs is threatening to retire, your other starting DE is talking smack about the first guy's potential replacement, and your third best pass rusher is getting burned by an offensive lineman on a passing play. Have fun with that Tom Coughlin.

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

Is This A Good Trade For Boston?

In case you slept through the entire day yesterday, you probably know that Kevin Garnett is going to Boston. (ESPN, SI, and Sportsline all say it is agreed to, so if it falls through blame them, not me.) So now that the deal is essentially done, lets take a look at both what Boston had to give up and what they have left.

Going: First, here is what they are reported to be sending to Minnesota;

Al Jefferson
Gerald Green
Sebastian Telfair
Ryan Gomes
Theo Ratliff
2 future 1st Round Picks

In order to get KG Danny Ainge had to sell his soul and do what he had said all along he didn't want to do; deal all of his young talent. Giving up Al Jefferson really hurts. In case you didn't get the chance to see Jefferson in the second half of the season last year, here is what you need to know. Before the All Star break Jefferson posted these stats; 13.9 PTS, 10.6 REB, 1.45 BLK, .484 FG%. After the break his numbers looked like this; 19.8 PTS, 11.5 REB, 1.68 BLK, .554 FG%. Point being, Jefferson was just starting to come out of his shell at the end of last season, and was poised to become a 20-10 threat this upcoming year. Giving up a 22 year old with that kind of talent is a huge risk for the Celtics to take.

Besides Jefferson, Gerald Green also has potential to develop into a big time player in the NBA. The certainty of his development however, is much less certain than Jefferson's. Some people think Green could be a consistent 20 PPG scorer on the wing; some think he is no better than a backup. If Green comes out somewhere inbetween, the Timberwolves would have a pretty good tandem on their hands with Green and Corey Brewer on the wing.

Telfair and Gomes are both in the trade mainly to even out the salary cap, but both have the potential to be develop into decent bench players. The real key to this trade could be the second draft pick, which is actually the draft pick that Minnesota sent to Boston back in the Wally for Ricky trade a few years back. Considering that the Wolves might be the worst team in the West for the next two seasons, that pick very well could be a top 5 selection. Add a top 5 pick to a core of Jefferson, Green, Brewer, and Randy Foye, and in three years time Kevin McHale and the Timberwolves could end up looking pretty smart.

Coming: There is no questioning that the Celtics are getting a major talent back in this trade. Despite being 31 years old and a 12 year NBA veteran, Garnett is still one of the top ten players in the NBA. (To be more precise since people throw around that phrase all the time, I'd say he is the 7th best player in the league right now.) Garnett still has at least 2-3 years of prime ball left in him, during which time he will be without a doubt 1.) the best passing big man in the East 2.) the best defender in the East and 3.) a dominant offesive force. After those 2-3 prime years? He'll likely lose a little of the explosion he has on defense and offense but he will still be the hungriest guy on the court, and passing skills don't really fade with time.

Left: Here is where the plot thickens. Everyone knows about the newly formed trio of KG, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen. Will they be good? Yeah. Will they make the playoffs? Yeah. Will they win the East? Well, to answer that one lets take a look at what the Celtics will have other than the big three;

Rajon Rondo
Kendrick Perkins
Brian Scalabrine
Tony Allen
Leon Powe
Brandon Wallace
Glen Davis
Gabe Pruitt

Now, consider that two of those players will be starting for the Celtics every night (Rondo and Perkins), and that another two will be playing at least 25 minutes a night, and now you begin to see the potential downside of this deal. Brian Scalabrine is the 6th Man...need I say more? There is an obvious move that the Celtics can make that will help them greatly. Sign Brevin Knight. Sign him tomorrow. Sign him before you even eat breakfast tomorrow. That one deal may well be the difference between next year's Celtics team being a mere playoff team and being the Eastern Conference champions. Knight was made for this role. Think about it; Rondo is talented but raw. Who better to step in for a year to teach him than Knight, who is an undersized defensive specialist just like Rondo? Knight would also be the perfect fit to play with the big three. He doesn't need to take shots, and is one of the best pure passing point guards in the game. The sad thing for the Celtics is that they didn't make this trade two weeks ago. If they had, then in addition to Knight they could have added Jamaal Magloire at center to complete the starting lineup. Tell me a lineup of Knight, Allen, Pierce, Garnett, and Magloire wouldn't be a whole heck of a lot better than a lineup with Rando and Perkins instead.

The Verdict:As things stand right now, Boston will be hard pressed to win the East with their current team. I think both Miami and Detroit would still beat them in a playoff series. Also, if you really think about it, are these new Celtics really any better than Cleveland, Washington, Chicago, Toronto, or New Jersey? And hasn't the three star philosophy been tried recently in the East to lackluster results? (See; Arenas-Jamison-Butler and Kidd-Carter-Jefferson) Also, for all of the "Celtics will smash the East, the East sucks" people, here is a newsflash for you; the East got a lot better when you weren't looking. Let's start at the bottom. Milwaukee had Michael Redd, Charlie Villanueva, and Bobby Simmons hurt for large parts of last season, and now add Yi Jianlian to a now healthy team. The Knicks were able to add Zach Randolph for essentially nothing. The Bobcats traded for Jason Richardson and also look to get full seasons from Primoz Brezec, Sean May, and Walter Herrman. The 76ers ended the season on a 17-9 run when you weren't looking, and then added Thaddeus Young through the draft. The Magic signed Rashard Lewis. The Wizards look to have a healthy Gilbert Arenas. The Heat look forward to full years from the recently injured Shaq and D-Wade. I say all that to say this; if you are ready to say the Celtics, last year's worst Eastern team, are the top team in the East this year, you are ignoring reality. The whole Eastern Conference upgraded this offseason, and the Celtics look to be in the middle of the pack.

So will the trade be worth it? Short-term, yes. The Celtics will be a playoff team, and depending on the secondary moves Ainge makes they could challenge for the East a season or two from now. Will they win a championship? Probably not. They would be completely outclassed at the point and outcoached by any of the top Western Conference teams if the Celts were to reach the Finals. In the long term the trade is awful. Just plain rotten. After their 3-4 year window runs up, and they have maybe won two Eastern Conference titles, they will have nothing but a luxury tax roster with lottery team talent. It is obvious that Ainge made the move knowing his job was likely on the line, but he may well have just given himself a 4 year lease instead of long term security.

As The Daunte Turns

Do you want to know the definition of a really bad day for an NFL QB?

It's when a team chooses to sign Tim Couch instead of you.

That is exactly what happened to Daunte Culpepper this weekend, as the Jaxsonville Jaguars decided to go with the NFL's version of Nikoloz Tskitishvili instead of Daunte. What is especially troublesome about this development for Daunte is that the Jaguars were assumed to be the perfect fit. It was a foregone conclusion that he was going there. So what went wrong? Evidently the deal fell apart because Daunte wanted a one year deal, and the Jaguars were looking for something in the 2-3 year range. In examining the situation, both sides were right to stick to their guns. The Jags want two things, 1.) security behind Byron Leftwich and 2.) someone to push Leftwich. A one year deal would not have really fulfilled either of those needs. For Culpepper, a one year deal will help him prove that he is truly healthy whil allowing him the ability to pursue a starting job next year, or at least get premium backup money. Any contract Culpepper will sign this summer will be at a large discount, so minimizing the length of this deal is to Culpepper's advantage.

Now that the Jaguars are out of the running, where does Daunte land this year?
If you trust John Clayton over at ESPN, Tampa Bay looks like a contender. If that were to actually happen, and the Bucs added Daunte to a stable that already hosts Jeff Garcia, Chris Simms, Bruce Gradkowski, Luke McCown, and the rights to Jake Plummer, I would quit blogging and apply to become the new Bucs GM, since the current one is obviously an imbecile. All kidding aside, Clayton also throws out the Rams and Ravens as possible destinations for Daunte. I'm not sure where he came up with those two teams but hey, it's John Clayton, so I'll cut him some slack.

The momentum in signing Culpepper however, seems to lie with the Raiders. Culpepper is scheduled to work out for the Raiders in California today, and signing with Oakland just might be the perfect deal for him. JaMarcus Russell is still holding out, and with him unlikely the be ready to start at the beggining of the season the Raiders are looking at starting either Josh McCown or Andrew Walter at QB for the first 6-10 games of the season. Would an 80-90% healthy Culpepper be better than those two guys? Probably. Would starting for half a year be better for Culpepper's free agent chances next year than sitting behind Jeff Garcia in Tampa Bay? Certainly. Is there a better QB for Russell to learn from than Culpepper, the man he is a clone of? Not a chance.

Now...there is one other destination for Culpepper; Minnesota. Ok, maybe Daunte did not leave on the best of terms, but for goodness sakes, the Vikings are headed into the season with Tavaris Jackson as their starter with Brooks Bollinger as the backup. If the Vikings were a baby Zygi Wilf and Minnesota management would be charged with child neglect. Seriously, how can you not at least consider bringing in Daunte for a year? After seeing Jackson flee the pocket constantly and throw interceptions in the few games he played last season, does Brad Childress really believe that he couldn't use one more year of learning before being thrown into the fire? Maybe they are blind up in Minnesota, but Daunte looks like a good fit there to me. Wherever he lands, one thing can be for sure; he won't be looking to stay there long.

Ainge's Risk

The story that won't die has reared its head once again; Kevin Garnett might be traded.

The punchline to this joke? The trade being discussed (and in some reports the trade that is done) is KG going to Boston.

Didn't he veto that one already?

This time around the landscape is a little different from both the Celtics' and KG's perspective. For KG, Ray Allen being added to the roster along with Paul Pierce now makes Boston look a lot more attractive, perhaps attractive enough to sign a long-term extension with the Celtics. For the Celtics, having three All-Stars (Pierce, Garnett, and Allen) looks a lot better on paper than having two, and would certainly push them inot the Finals out of the weak East. Right?

Sorry to burst everyone's bubble, but sometimes 2 can be greater than 3. In this case adding either KG or Ray Allen, alone, could have theoretically benefited the Celtics in both the short and long term. Adding both players however, is going to essentially gut the entire Celtics roster. Just take a look at what the Celtics are reported to be giving up in the KG trade;


Al Jefferson
Gerald Green
Sebastian Telfair
Theo Ratliff

Also take a look at what they already gave up for Allen;

Jeff Green
Delonte West
Wally Szczerbiak

Taken alone, both trades would have left the Celtics with some talent to develop around their newly imported All Star. Both trades though? As great as Allen and KG are and have been in their careers, you are talking about two men in their 30's that are likely on the downsides of their careers. To get these two players the Celtics are sacrificing two decent young talents (West and Telfair), two youngsters that could become All Stars (J. Green and G. Green), and one young guy who will be an All Star, and soon (Jefferson).

In spite of the talent purge that would take place if KG were to come to town, in the mind of Danny Ainge it would be worth it if the move led to an NBA championship. The obvious question then, is will adding KG bring a title to Boston? The answer is by no means simple. Having two All Stars on one team can be hard enough (See; Nuggets, Denver), but having three? The success of the deal would hinge entirely on the ability of Pierce, Allen, and KG to come together as a cohesive unit. Whether they will be able to or not is anyone's guess.

So lets just suppose that the experiment does go pretty well. KG leads the Celtics to the Eastern Conference championship. Then what? Would a Celtics team without a PG, without a C, and without any bench depth whatsoever be able to beat the Spurs? The Suns? The Mavs? No way on earth would that happen. In a best case scenario the Celtics might win the East a couple of times in the next 3-4 years. Barring a major dose of luck in the draft however, the Celtics will not be able to add any players of substance to help their All Star trio over the hump to becoming NBA champs. And the aftermath of such a 3-4 year run could be ugly. Aging stars Pierce, Allen, and Garnett will fall off in productivity while their contracts continue to rise, and there won't be a Gerald Green, Jeff Green, or Al Jefferson waiting in the wings to pick up the slack. They will all be too busy playing on the Western Conference All Star team.

"Negative Qoutes About Losers"

Another week down, another post of fun google searches. This week the dominant search that brought people to the site was either some permutation of "mike vick update" or "ron mexico t-shirt". "Snorg girl" and "Mark Kotsay's wife" are still going strong, but have lagged considerably behind the search monster that is the Vick scandal.

Now on to the fun stuff. Here are a few of the odder searches that brought people to this neck of the woods:

"40 and older slam dunk contest"
"battle of the jordan"
"gophergutz"
"marline monroe hot kissing video"

Good searches all, but none of them can stand up to this weeks' winner of the "WTB Search Of The Week Award", which goes to;

"negative qoutes about losers"

Why is this search great? As with all of the great searches I have featured here, the image of the person searching this just cracks me up. With this one I imagine some high school bully who has been recently rebuffed by an intelligent quip by one of his victims. Tired of merely pounding his foil into submission, he goes home and googles "negative qoutes about losers" to find some witty ammo. And what did he find? A post of mine about Yi Jianlian. Go figure.

Dice-K Is Looking Like...Aaron Harang

Going into Sunday night's game against the Devil Rays, the worst team in baseball, most people would have guessed that Dice-K would pitch well and get a win. Well, that would be half right. Dice-K pitched 6.1 innings and only gave up two earned runs, but the Red Sox bats fell silent against Scott Kazmir and the Devil Rays in a 5-2 loss. This was Dice-K's second straight quality start after falling off the wagon a bit with three consecutive non-quality starts in the middle of July. As the Red Sox get ready for the stretch run, with the Yankees creeping ever closer, Boston has to be hoping that they get "Good Dice-K" down the stretch. If "Bad Dice-K" happens to come back, the Red Sox could find themselves in a tough spot come September.

As far as comparisons go, this week was tougher than others. This week Dice-K is looking like Aaron Harang. Harang matches up with Dice-K almost perfectly in three out of the four areas I look at each week, but he is way off in terms of quality start percentage. I decided to investigate as to why, and it turns out that the culprit behind Harang's .49 QS% was 7 starts over six innings in which Harang gave up exactly 4 ER. (You can only give up 3 ER to qualify as a quality start) So even though the number looks bad, Harang is a lot closer to Dice-K that it would seem.


Dice-K 2007:
W%: .6
QS%: .64
ERA: 3.75
WHIP: 1.27
Salary: $6,333,333

Harang 2006:
W%: .59
QS%: .49
ERA: 3.76
WHIP: 1.27
Salary: $2,350,000

Paxson's New Problem

One NBA player being robbed at gunpoint is frightening.

Two NBA players being robbed at gunpoint within weeks of one another, in the same city, sure feels like something even worse.

In an incident eerily similar to what happened to Antoine Walker three weeks ago, the Knicks' Eddy Curry was robbed today at his Chicago area home;

"Deputy chief of police John Madden said three offenders restrained Curry, his family and an employee with duct tape inside the Burr Ridge home."

While the primary concern in both Walker and Curry's situations rests with their safety and well being, the timing and location of the two robberies should also concern someone else;

The Chicago Bulls and GM John Paxson.

Whether it is fair or not, these two robberies are going to give the perception around the NBA that players in Chicago are being targeted. Only time will tell whether or not the two robberies are linked in some way, but at present the robberies are going to make Chicago seem like a much less attractive destination for NBA players than it was at the beggining of July.

The timing is especially troubling given the fact that the Bulls were obviously aiming to make a big push next Summer in free agency. The Bulls were set to enter the 2008 offseason with more cap space than almost any NBA team. The 2008 free agent class should feature far more star power than this year, with the likes of Kevin Garnett, Baron Davis, Antawn Jamison, Shawn Marion, and Jermaine O'Neal likely being available. Now that Chicago seems a little less safe for NBA players than it did just a month ago, how will that change the thinking of a player like Garnett or O'Neal if they are offered similar money by both the Bulls and another team?

What Chicago may end up doing, and what they may have done regardless of the two robberies, is focus on signing their young core to lucrative extensions. It is almost certain that the Bulls will sign Luol Deng long term, but if the Bulls are unable to sign any big ticket free agents next Summer they would be much more likely to re-sign the likes of Ben Gordon and Chris Duhon. Only time will tell if the two recent robberies will force Chicago's hand in choosing whether to maintain their core or to go the free agent route.

Thanks For Choosing Milwaukee

Mo Williams faced a touch choice this Summer as a free agent; take less moeny to go to Miami and possibly be a part of a championship team with Shaq and D-Wade, or take the big money to stay in Milwaukee and be a part of the Bucks' rebuilding process.

Williams chose Milwaukee, but early indications are that perhaps he should have headed down to South Beach. Why? Evidently being in Milwaukee also means having your car robbed;

"...Thursday, however, he was filing information with Milwaukee police alleging that someone broke into his 2005 Dodge Magnum in the 1800 block of E. Kenilworth Ave. about 2:15 a.m.

Thieves got away with two LCD screens from the head rests, a navigation system and a radio/DVD player, according to a police report.

Damage and loss are estimated at $3,000."

I'm sure that this is just the kind of news that Sen. Herb Kohl and Bucks management love to hear while trying to convince Yi Jianlian that Milwaukee really is a wonderful place to live.

Brady Quinn, Meet Reality

The Cleveland Browns have reached contract agreements with two of their top three picks, including third overall pick Joe Thomas. The lone holdout? Brady Quinn of course. Quinn and the Browns find themselves in an odd position. On one hand, the Browns believe that Brady was one of the top players from this year's draft, and that he could possibly be thier quarterback for the next decade so it would figure that they would give him a big contract. On the other hand, Quinn wasn't one of the top players selected in the draft after falling to #22, and as such it would figure that he shouldn't get top ten type money.

The good thing for the Browns in this situation is that even though Quinn's situation is unusual, it is not unique.

Nearly the same exact situation occured just two years ago with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. Rodgers, like Quinn, had been universally projected to go in the first ten picks of the draft only to fall into the twenties. As such, Rodgers' contract with the Packers is a good starting point in attempting to figure out what Quinn's deal should look like.

Rodgers signed a deal with the Packers for five years and $7.7 million, with $5.4 million in guarantees. The contract also contains escalators and incentives, mainly based on Rodgers ability to become the Packers' starter, that could push the total value of the contract to $24.52 million.

Quinn does have a few factors in his favor that would aid in being able to negotiate a larger deal than Rodgers. For one thing, he was selected two spots higher. He also has both a better pedigree than Rodgers did coming out of college, as well as greater marketing potential for the Browns. The league salary cap has alos gone up in the past two years. Given all of these factors, how much more should Brady expect?

First off, he should get higher base compensation so move that $7.7 million to something more like $8.5 million. Then take the guaranteed money and move it from $5.4 million to the $7 million range. Next take the total possible value of the contract after incentives and escalators and move it from $24.52 million to about $28 million.

What makes this situation so contentious and potentially prolonged however, is the fact that Brady and his agent think Brady should get top ten money. Quinn's agent is Tom Condon, who just happens to represent Matt Leinart. Leinart was selected 10th in last year's darft, and also had the distinction of being the longest holdout of any draft pick from last year.

If Quinn and his agent think he should be paid more like Leinart, let's take a peek at the deal Leinart signed with the Cardinals. Leinart's deal was for six years and a total possible value of $50.8 million, with $14 million guaranteed. Compare those numbers to the contract I proposed above based upon Brady's draft position and history, and you can see that there is about a $7 million gap in guaranteed money and over $20 million difference in total value.

Any advantage the Browns gained in selecting Quinn at the #22 spot would be completely mitigated if they were to go much higher than the $30 million deal proposed above. So how is this situation going to play out? If I had to guess, I'd say that Browns fans should be prepared for a long holdout followed by a year of Charlie Frye or Derek Anderson behind center.

Third Time's A Shame

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl just four seasons ago.

Seems longer than that doesn't it?

In the four years since that Super Bowl victory the Bucs have gone 27-37 and are coming off an especially dismal 4-12 campaign. So what has gone wrong? There are a number of possible answers to that question, but one answer has come to the forefront in the past day after the Bucs cut Simeon Rice. Rice was one of the five defensive stars on Tampa's Super Bowl winning team, along with Derrick Brooks, Ronde Barber, John Lynch, and Warren Sapp. Rice is also the third casualty of that group, along with Lynch and Sapp. Both of those players have gone on to make Tampa look foolish by continuing to perform at a high level for their new teams. Will Rice continue that trend?

Consider this; Rice had a shoulder injury that should have sidelined him the entire season. Instead of sitting out though, he played eight mostly ineffective games and only amassed two sacks. So after one injury shortened season the Bucs demanded that Rice take a pay cut, or they would release him. He said no, and they cut him. Never mind the fact that Rice 1.) has the second most sacks of any active player and 2.) had turned in five consecutive seasons with 11 sacks or more for the Bucs prior to last year. Have the Bucs learned nothing from how the Lynch and Sapp situations turned out?

Even worse that the prospect of Rice continuing to perform well for another team though, is the damage that the move has done to the team's morale. Just take a look at this qoute;

"[Derrick] Brooks was almost in tears," said Rice, who ran into the Bucs long-standing weakside linebacker in the hotel parking lot just minutes after being told of his fate.

The Bucs players are scared now. Don't believe me? Just ask their punter;

"Shocker, eh?" punter Josh Bidwell said. "I'd better play well because nobody is safe. I'm as shocked as you are."

The obvious question now is whether or not the Bucs made the right move. My gut feeling is that the answer is a resounding "No". An elite pass rusher like Rice doesn't just lose it after one injury. I'd be willing to wager that Rice will get snatched up by another team quickly (Washington...please?), and will make the Bucs rue the day they decided to cut an aging defensive star for money concerns.

It didn't really change their thinking the first two times it happened, did it?

Examining The "Evidence"

Last night ESPN aired a town hall meeting to discuss the Barry Bonds scandal. After watching it I came away with two clear conclusions; 1.) St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bryan Burwell is pretentious and thinks he is a lot smarter than he is, which is why he was booed numerous times by the crowd, and 2.) the mantra that kept being repeated against Bonds always came back to "look at these pictures, he is so much bigger now" and "how can he be so good at his age"? These two points seem to be the thrust of the Bonds steroids argument. In spite of all of the second hand allegations, there is still no person that has ever said that they saw Bonds taking steroids, and Bonds has never tested positive. So in the absence of any concrete proof, those who are certain that Bonds used steroids always come back to the two common sense arguments based on Bonds' physical change and elite performance at an advanced age.

For arguments sake, lets take a look at the these two arguments on the Bonds side, and then compare those same two arguments to another aging baseball hero; Roger Clemens.

Barry's Change:
Every single time that you hear an argument about Barry Bonds, someone flashes up a picture similar to this;



You really can't argue that Bonds has undergone quite a transformation since his rookie season with the Pirates. He went from being a lithe and skinny speedster to being a hulking slugger. The visuals speak for themselves in this regard. But don't men generally gain muscle mass as they age? Wouldn't being on a pro baseball team and having access to their weight training facilities as well as having the money to buy your own trainers also contribute to a much larger physique?

Barry's Performance:
So how on earth was Barry able to go from a really good home run hitter throughout his career to breaking the single season record at the age of 36 and then continuing to have 40 home run seasons into his 40's? Is there any precedent for such a run? The following year at age 37 Bonds hit 46 home runs, which stands as the second highest mark for a player that age. So who holds the record for age 37? Hank Aaron, with 47 homers. So how come Bonds performing at an elite level at an advanced age is an indictment against him, while Hank Aaron's performance at the end of his career is lauded as a measure of his consistency?

So now that we have looked at these two arguments as they pertain to Bonds, now lets turn our gaze to Clemens:

Roger's Change:
Do you remember what Roger Clemens looked like when he first entered the majors? Now, do you remember what he looked like with the Astros? In case you don't, here is a refresher;



You know what? Clemens got bigger as he got older. Imagine that.

Roger's Performance:
So you thought that Barry Bonds' recent performances were unbelievable for his age? Try this one on for size. In 2005 Clemens posted a 1.87 ERA at the age of 42. So how rare was this? It was the lowest ERA by a starting pitcher in their 40's since 1917, when Eddie Plank posted a 1.79 ERA. So how come Clemens can post historically amazing numbers in his 40's without arousing any suspicion, while Bonds hitting 40 homers in his 40's sets off the steroid alarm?

I'm not saying that Roger Clemens used steroids. I'm also not saying that Barry Bonds didn't use steroids. I'm merely pointing out how flimsy some of the common sense "evidence" against Bonds truly is.

NFL Rookie (Cheerleader) Preview

Now that the Summer is coming to a close, thoughts of football are starting to pop up again in the collective mind of the American sports fan. Training camps. New coaches. Rookies. Hopes and expectations. And soon...

Cheerleaders.

As familiar as most fans are with the new crop of rookies entering the NFL, there seems to be a general lack of awareness concerning the new crop of sideline ladies entering the league this year. Here at WTB, we feel that it is just as important to be familiar with Lauren Gardner as it is to be familiar with JaMarcus Russell. Thankfully, this is a problem that can be easily rectified. Here is a look at this year's top rookies:


Lauren Gardner, Denver Broncos:
If there is a Rookie of the Year favorite, my vote would no doubt go to Lauren from the Broncos. Maybe I just have a thing for redheads, but Lauren is by far the best looking new cheerleader in my opinion. In case you wanted to know a little more about Lauren, she recently won the title of "2007 Face of Champ Car" which evidently involved her posing in a bikni. According to the Champ Car website Lauren is "21 years old, and a full time student. She would like to get into broadcasting."




Erica, Washington Redskins:
I'm not going to lie; I'm a Redskins fan. My bias aside however, I don't think there is much denying that Erica is one extremely attractive cheerleader. According to her bio on the Redskins' website, Erica is 26 years old and works as a public health analyst. Prior to joining the Redskins Erica danced in college at USC with the USC Flygirls.


Lisa, Buffalo Bills:
Buffalo can be an extremely cold place during football season. It's a good thing then that Bills fans will have the Jills to keep the heat up on the sidelines this year. Chief among the Jills' new additions is Lisa, whose favorite foods are "Chicken fingers and cotton candy ice cream". Just in case you were wondering.


Kristie, Carolina Panthers:
The Panthers' cheerleaders don't exactly have the most sterling repuation around the NFL. So what would be the best way to go about repairing that image? Signing up women like Kristie seems like a good place to start. Kristie lists among her greatest achievements "Graduating with bachelor's degree in radiologic science, dean's list member at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill". Brains and beauty? Sounds like David Carr will have some good conversation on the sidelines this year.

Kindle, Tennessee Titans:
Take a look at Kindle's picture real quick. Given the fact that her name also happens to be Kindle, does it really suprise you that her bio on the Titans website contains 40 exclamation points? I don't really care actually; I'd be pretty excited too if I was around a beautiful Southern blonde like Kindle.

Alaina, Philadelphia Eagles:
We move from blonde to brunette with Alaina of the Eagles, who says that her favorite ice cream is Birthday Cake Remix from Cold Stone Creamery. Alaina also went to Rutgers along with LJ Smith of the Eagles, and cheered him while he played football for the Scarlet Knights.


The Entire Houston Texans Rookie Squad:
If you only click one link today, you should do yourself a favor and take a look around the website of the Houston Texans cheerleaders. I have no idea how the Texans were able to bring in such an insanely gorgeous crop of new cheerleaders, but somehow they were able to bring in gorgeous women of all types. If there was a team award for rookies, the Texans would win in a walk. Too bad Mario Williams didn't work out as well for them last year...

You Might Also Like:Hot Fan Showdown: Yanks vs. Sox
Babes In Jerseys
An Interview With The Snorg Girl
Where Are They Now? Sports Movie Tomboys

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

Rasmussen Out....American Streak Back In?

In case you have missed this year's Tour De France, here is a little update for you;

- On July 20th it was revealed that German rider Patrik Sinkewitz tested positive for elevated testosterone levels before the tour.

- Yesterday Alexandre Vinokourov tested positive for a illegal blood transfusion. Vinokourov and his entire team (including the 5th and 8th place riders) pulled out of the tour.

- Italian rider Cristian Moreni and his entire Cofidis team withdrew from the tour today after Moreni's positive test for testosterone was revealed.

- Tour leader Michael Rasmussen was removed from the race today after his team cited violations of team rules. Rasmussen had been under suspicion ever since it was revealed that he had skipped two doping tests leading up to the tour and had been kicked off of the Danish national team.

Suffice it to say, the Tour De France is in a bit of a shambles right now. Now that the dust has settled (maybe) as far as expulsions, the new tour leader is Spaniard Alberto Contador. Contador holds a 1:53 lead with four stages remaining, but in third place lurks a rider that could continue an eight year run at the tour.

American Levi Leipheimer.

Leipheimer stands 2:49 behind Contador, his teammate on the Discovery team. If Leipheimer is able to make up the time between himself and Contador he would join Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis as the ninth straight American winner of the Tour De France. Could it happen? Maybe. Leipheimer would likely have to make up a huge amount of ground in the time trial in stage 19, which is not out of the realm of reason.

Who knows, if a few more tests go the wrong way Leipheimer might end up winning by default.

The Franchise Tag Has To Go

As most NFL fans are aware, premier defenders Asante Samuel of the New England Patriots and Lance Briggs of the Chicago Bears have been threatening to sit out the first ten weeks of the upcoming season due to their teams' use of the dreaded franchise tag upon them. News today has Briggs and the Bears close to an agreement that will get Briggs into camp instead of having him continue his holdout. The agreement, as in almost all of these types of negotiations, appears to be contingent upon the Bears promising Briggs one simple thing; don't do it again. When the franchise tag system always seems to boil down to this same point, it is time for something to change.

First, it is good to understand why exactly the franchise tag exists. Ideally, the tag should be used by teams to keep their star player for an extra season in order for them to negotiate a long term deal. Here is what the tag actually means:

"A franchise player is offered a minimum of the average of the top five salaries at his position in the previous season, or a 20 percent salary increase, whichever is greater. This type of franchise player may negotiate with other clubs. His original club has seven days to match the offer and retain the player, or receive two first-round draft choices as compensation if the original club elects not to match."

You can see the logic behind such a designation; the player gets an extremely good salary, and the team is protected during negotiations by the draft pick compensation. The problem with the system however, is that teams have begun to exploit it by franchising players they have no interest in signing long term deals with, thereby just holding them hostage for a season. They can do this with almost no risk considering that no team in their right mind would be willing to surrender two first round picks for all but a select crust of elite players, players that would never hit the franchiose tag market in the first place. The problem for the franchised player is that he is unable to truly negotiate a deal worth his market value and is unable to secure a long term deal with guaranteed money in case of an injury during the year in which he is franchised. So of course the use of the franchise tag almost inevitably leads to animosity developing between the player and the team, and the request that the team not use the designation again. Does this sound like a system that is allowing teams to keep their franchise players? Or does it sound like one that is securing one year rentals and ticking a lot of people off in the process?

Now that we have examined the problem, here is a look at two solutions to fixing the franchise problem.

Make It One Year: This is by far the simplest solution to the problem, and it would keep the original intent of the tag intact. If teams were only allowed to franchise a player for one season, then the team would still have a reasonable shot at negotiating a long term deal with the player while lessening the risk factor to the player. If the player really doesn't want to be there, fine; he can sign a big money tender for one season and then hit free agency the next summer and sign a long term deal with another club. The franchise tag was never meant to force hostage situations between a team and a franchise player, and limiting the tag to one use per player would put an end to that type of situation.

Reduce The Compensation: The shocking thing in all of this is that technically a franchised player can still sign with another team. It rarely ever happens though, since two first round picks are a ridiculous level of compensation in today's NFL. Again, players that are worth that much would never hit the franchise market in the first place. They would either be locked up to long term deals or be tagged as "exclusive" franchise players. (Meaning that they get more money but can't sign with other teams) So how do you solve this problem? Reduce the compensation to something more reasonable, like a single first round pick, or a second and a third, or even two second round picks. Lowering the compensation level would allow other teams to engage in bidding for the franchised player, which would actually increase the likelihood of the original team signing the franchised player to a long term deal since they would still be allowed the right to match the terms of any offer. And if the player got an outrageous offer? Then the team would still get compensated. Again, this simple change would return the franchise tag to its original purpose.

The Sharks Get A Makeover

Yesterday the San Jose Sharks sought to rectify a problem that had always bothered me personally. The problem? If your team's name is the Sharks, shouldn't you have a much meaner logo than this?



I've always thought so anyway, especially since the slternate logo is even weaker;



I am honestly not very scared by either of those logos. Especially when your team's main color is teal, you really need to bring your A-game so far as striking fear in the hearts of your opponents through your logo. So what does the new Sharks logo look like? Well, take a look at both the standard and the two new alternate logos right here;





Do you see the differences in the two main logos? The new shark has a menacing orange eye, has sharper angled fins, a more menacing posture, and the stick in the logo is now being shattered instead of merely bent. Much better if you ask me.

The real difference though, is in the alternate fin logo. Look at the original one. A gray fin, hell it could be a dolphin for all we know, wading through trainquil white and teal water inside a soothing circle. WEAK. Look at that sexy new fin logo. A black fin, cutting through choppy waves that splash up in the air, set against an orange sky, inside an angular diamond shape. NICE. Whoever did the redesign on these logos deserves a raise, pronto.

Dice-K Is Looking Like...Erik Bedard

If there is one thing that can be said about Dice-K this season, it is that he has been consistently inconsistent. In June Dice-K was one of the top three pitchers in the AL, going 5/5 on quality starts and posting a 1.59 ERA for the month. After Dice-K threw eight shutout innings in his first July start, it looked as if he was finally over the hump and ready to be the staff ace that the Sox had envisioned all along. Then Dice-K went out and laid three straight eggs, going 1-2 with no quality starts over a three game stretch.

So of course, just when it seemed like Dice-K was ready to roll over and play dead, he goes out last night and out-duels CC Sabathia, tossing seven shutout innings to beat the Indians 1-0. Go figure. After his latest performance Dice-K's most comparable pitcher from last year is actually quite good news for both Dice-K and the Sox. The most comparable pitcher is very similar in age to Dice-K and is also experiencing a great deal of sucess this season. So this week, Dice-K is looking like...Erik Bedard.

Dice-K 2007:
W%: .63
QS%: .62
ERA: 3.76
WHIP: 1.27
Salary: $6,333,333

Bedard 2006:
W%: .58
QS%: .61
ERA: 3.76
WHIP: 1.35
Salary: $1,400,000

Bonds' Ex To Appear In Playboy

Just when you thought that the Barry Bonds situation couldn't get any stranger, the New York Times is reporting that Bonds' ex-girlfriend Kimberly Bell is scheduled to appear in the November issue of Playboy. And just like you might have guessed, it won't just be pictures;

Bell’s agent, David Hans Schmidt, said that in addition to the photographs would be an article detailing her “personal and sexual relationship” with Bonds.

So what kind of details might we expect from such an interview? Well, take a peek at this article from the San Francisco Chronicle after Bell testified against Bonds in the BALCO case;

"Kimberly Bell, 35, a graphic artist from San Jose who says she dated Bonds from 1994 to 2003, told the grand jury Thursday that in 2000, the left fielder confided to her that he had begun using steroids, according to two sources familiar with an account of her testimony."

To make things even more interesting, the November issue of Playboy hits newsstands October 1st, right smack in the middle of baseball's playoff drama. So if you are sick of Bonds now, get ready for a whole new round of accusations and controversy just in time to ruin your enjoyment of the playoffs.

"How To Spot Ghosts"

Google Analytics really is a fun little toy. Last week I examined how the main searches that led to WTB were related to Jamie Kotsay and Alice the Snorg Girl, and both remained strong again this week. The undisputed winner however, was Ron Mexico. Here is a sampling of some of the many searches from the past week related to the dog fighting scandal;

"ron mexico dog fighting"
"dirty bird dog fighting"
"dog fighting"
"ron mexico dog"
"mike vick and ron mexico"

And as always, here are some of the more...interesting...searches;

"prices on tim duncan's starting lineup rookie doll"
"take the battle out of winning"
"thank you very much and see you friday at the latest!"
"chris carter cocaine football"

While all of those searches each have their own wonderful aspects, they are not top prize material this week. No, that distinction goes to a search that is oddly similar to last week's "How To Spot If I'm Magical". This week's "WTB Search Of The Week Award" goes to...

"how to spot ghosts"

Just like last week, I am extremely amused by thinking about the person that was googling this phrase. Did they think they were around ghosts? Did they want to find ghosts? Were they just looking for the information just in case they ever did come across a ghost? Sadly I cannot find what post popped up for this search. Maybe it has something to do with having Ghosts of Wayne Fontes on my blogroll? Anyway, maybe next week someone else in the internet world will type in "how to spot...fairies or goblins or if I am dying", and WTB will magically pop up. Actually, that is my official guess for next week's search term. "How to spot if I'm dying". Or something likewise odd.

David Beckham Means Nothing

OMG OMG OMG! David Beckham is here to make the United States care about soccer! Yay!

...

Too bad that isn't going to happen...at all. David Beckham coming to the LA Galaxy will do three things; it will sell lots of Galaxy swag, it will sell lots of Galaxy tickets for a season or two, and it will cause ESPN to show you features on Beckham and Posh until your eyes bleed and puss starts coming out of your ears. That will be pretty much all that happens.

Here is the truth of the matter; American sports fans have a scoring mentality. They like home runs more than nice double plays. They like scorers like Kobe more than defensive stars like Bruce Bowen. They like TD scorers like Reggie Bush more than a field position assassin like Shane Lechler. And they surely are not going to get excited by a 32 year old midfielder that has not been a real goal scoring threat in five years. For those of you who are not familiar with soccer in general or Beckham in particular, here is a crash course. Beckham plays midfield, and even though his skills have declined in the past few years he is still extremely good on crosses, corners, and direct kicks. Translation; he is very good at setting other people up to score and on rare occasions he scores a goal on free kicks. He is not the kind of scoring talent that will finally wake America up to the world's most popular sport. Grief, at this point he is not even one of the top ten players in the world. To make matters even worse, he is on the second worst team in the MLS.

So remind me again how getting an aging, non-scoring, pretty boy and putting him on a terrible team was going to make Bud, Mike, and Dave down at the corner bar turn off NFL training camp coverage and turn on the MLS?

Look at it this way. Thinking that Beckham will save the MLS is about as dumb as sending John Stockton to Europe to stir up interest in basketball. Is he good? Yes. Is he an entertaining scorer? No. Would you send a cannon armed catcher to Japan to stir up interest in baseball by throwing out baserunners? No, of course not. The entire Beckham experiment is based upon one simple assumption; the Galaxy, MLS, and ESPN think you are dumb. They think that they can throw out a celeb name, do a bunch of interviews, and it won't matter whether or not the results on the field ever come. Here is a newsflash; American sports fans do like substance with their style. They turned on Anna Kournikova, they turned on Freddy Adu, they are turning on Michele Wie and Danica Patrick, and in a years time they will have turned on David Beckham once it becomes glaringly obvious that he is not the supreme superstar everyone had been hyping him up to be.

And you can expect an ESPN special all about it.

How To Salvage The Falcons

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past week, you are probably well aware that Michael Vick has been indicted on federal charges stemming from the ongoing investigation concerning dog fighting on his property in Virginia. So given the current situation, what do the Falcons do from here? This is a two part question, and quite a complicated one at that.

First off the Falcons need to determine how to best free themselves of Vick, both from a PR standpoint as well as a business standpoint. (Make no bones about it, Vick is done in Atlanta) While some talking idiots heads (Read; Bayless, Skip) have proposed that the Falcons should cut Vick outright, that action would be asinine. Cutting Vick would only punish the Falcons while still giving Vick millions of dollars in guaranteed money. The Falcons would find themselves with huge cap hits in the next few years for cutting Vick, the kind of cap hell that could theoretically find them fielding a team for two or three seasons that would have to be heavily compromised of undrafted free agents. (Yes, cutting Vick outright would be that bad for their cap)

So if the Falcons can't cut him now, do they just play him? Simply put; no. The most important thing for the Falcons right now is to realize that Vick is done for this season one way or another. An NFL quarterback cannot be expected to prepare for a game during a week when he is distracted by court proceedings, or even worse, actually flying to a different state for a court appearance and missing practices. You may have heard some pundits say that "Hey, Kobe Bryant did it when he was accused of rape, so Vick can too". These pundits are idiots. Have you watched an NBA game? How much game to game preparation do you think Kobe Bryant needs between a Tuesday game against Utah and a Thursday game against Denver? The answer is nothing compared to the type of game-planning that goes into preparing an NFL QB for the myriad of defensive schemes that he has to face from week to week. Missing a week of practice and preparation would be fatal to Vick's (or any QB's) performance in a given week. Now factor in the reality that Bobby Petrino is installing a brand new offensive scheme in Atlanta this year, and you can see that putting an unprepared and distracted Vick on the field this season is a disaster waiting to happen for the Falcons from a football standpoint.

So if you can't cut him for cap reasons and you can't play him for football reasons, what on earth do you do if you are the Falcons? The cold-hearted answer is that they have to suspend him and wait for a charge to stick to Vick in order to void his contract and save themselves from salary cap hell. Forget the "leave of absence" crap that is being floated around; Vick lied to both Arthur Blank and Roger Goodell, and that fact alone is enough for the Falcons to suspend Vick. If they don't want to suspend him, fine. Put him on the inactive list and leave him at home each week. Having Vick at games and even practices is going to lead to a media circus that will engulf the entire Falcons team. Blank must step in before that is allowed to happen.

Now for the second part of the Falcons' dilemma; what do they do at QB? The really sad thing is that the Falcons would have been totally fine if they had not chosen to trade Matt Schaub to the Texans. Now they find themselves with Joey Harrington and DJ Shockley as their QB alternatives in year 1 A.V. (After Vick) I for one, think that Harrington will be a fine place holder for a year or two. He really wasn't that bad last year in Miami, and the truth is that Atlanta has an extremely good running game even without Vick in the lineup. Warrick Dunn and Jerious Norwood are one of the better RB tandems in the league, and by leaning on them many of Harrington's deficiencies would be hidden.

The Falcons do have another option for this year, and his name is Daunte Culpepper . For some reason however, the Falcons have been giving signals that they are not interested in the free agent QB. I personally don't see that much downside in bringing in a former Pro Bowl QB on the cheap to compete with Harrington. Perhaps the Falcons have some misgivings about Culpepper's knee, but for whatever reason the Falcons seem to be against bringing in Culpepper.

So what about year 2 A.V. and beyond? The Falcons are actually in an extremely good position to rebound at the QB position. There was a reason that Joey Harrington was selected #3 overall; the man does have some talent. Between Harrington and Shockley the Falcons will at least be serviceable at the QB spot for the next two seasons. Neither Harrington or Shockley though, are the long term answer for the Falcons at QB. That man may well be one of the pair of extremely talented Louisville QBs (Read; Petrino Disciples) that will be available in the next two NFL Drafts. That is right, two. Everyone knows that Brian Brohm will be the top QB in next year's draft, but not everyone is aware that Brohm's backup Hunter Cantwell is also very highly regarded by NFL scouts. Mel Kiper Jr. even goes so far as ranking Cantwell as the #1 Jr. QB in the entire nation.

Now imagine this; Vick sits out this year one way or another, and Joey Harrington starts this season. Then the Falcons will have two drafts where they can try to draft a QB (Brohm or Cantwell) that is both extremely talented as well as very familiar with the offensive system of the Falcons' new coach. If the Falcons miss on both QBs, then they could finally go out and try to find someone in free agency. No matter what though, the future for Atlanta may not be quite as bleak as some people may think.

*

As Barry Bonds approaches the all-time home run record many people have argued that his exploits are invalid due to the steroid speculation swirling around him, and as such his exploits should have an asterisk affixed to them.

Sadly, the news of the past few days has revealed that there is an even greater need for an asterisk in the world of sports;

2007 NBA Champions: San Antonio Spurs*

Don't get me wrong, the Spurs had no control over the actions of rogue ref Tim Donaghy. Their entire playoff run is however, tainted by the fact that Donaghy was one of the officials in the notoriously poorly officiated Game 3 of the Spurs-Suns series. For those of you that would like to believe that Donaghy did not have an effect on the game, suit yourselves. At least watch the video at the end of this post though, and see if you still hold the same opinion. The video evidence clearly shows Donaghy standing directly in front of a number of obvious Spurs fouls and blatantly ignoring them. The video also shows this foul mentioned by Bill Simmons in his excellent column on the Donaghy situation;

Other than the latest call in NBA history (a shooting foul for Manu Ginobili whistled three seconds after the play, when everyone was already running in the other direction)...

I'll save you the suspense; it was indeed Donaghy that made that particular call.

When the news about Donaghy first broke the initial thought that ran through my mind was "Please, please, please don't let it be a playoff game". As important as the NBA regular season is, there is a sort of insulated illegitimacy involved with a random game in the middle of February. Theoretically the outcome of that game being altered by a crooked ref could have some ultimate bearing on playoff seedings and by extension the path of the playoffs, but such ripples are far offset from the epicenter of the incident in question.

A playoff game though? In a tied series? Between arguably the two best teams remaining in the playoffs at that point? Other than a pivotal Finals game, the fact that Donaghy was involved with Game 3 of the Spurs-Suns series is as big of a nightmare as could have come out of this mess. The saddest part is that the Spurs have no fault in the fact that some hack ref gave them a helping hand in Game 3. (Again, if you still don't believe it just watch the video) The dark legacy of this scandal will always come back to that Game 3 though, along with two words; "What if?" What if the Spurs hadn't shot 9 more free throws than the Suns in a 7 point game? What if Amare Stoudemire had been able to play more than 21 minutes due to foul trouble? What if the Suns had been up 2-1 after Game 3 instead of down 2-1? Would the Amare suspension have mattered after Game 4 if the Suns were up 3-1 instead of tied 2-2? The questions are endless, but the root always comes back to the fact that the Donaghy scandal has forever tainted the 2007 NBA Playoffs. Who knows, had the Suns been given a fair shake in Game 3 maybe they would have gone on to win the title. Or maybe they would have failed to match up well against Carlos Boozer and the Jazz, and the Jazz may have gone on to win the title. Or perhaps the Cavs would have defeated a weary Phoenix squad. Or maybe it wouldn't have mattered at all, and the Spurs would have still won the title. The sad truth is that the Suns, the NBA, and basketball fans everywhere will never get the chance to truly know what would have happened. All we do know is one thing;

2007 NBA Champions: San Antonio Spurs*


(And here is the video I kept referencing)

A Move Most Odd Part II

I thought that the most lopsided trade of the NBA off-season occurred last week when the San Antonio Spurs gave Jackie Butler and Luis Scola (A starting caliber PF) to the Rockets for a 2nd round draft pick and a player (Vassilis Spanoulis) that is never going to play in the NBA again.

Well, I was wrong.

The Phoenix Suns found a way to be even more charitable than the Spurs, as they executed the following trade with the Sonics:

"The Seattle SuperSonics acquired veteran forward Kurt Thomas and the Phoenix Suns' first-round draft choices in 2008 and 2010 on Friday in exchange for a conditional second-round draft choice.

Seattle also sent Phoenix its $8 million trade exception to complete the deal."

The reasoning of course, is that the Suns are trying to clear room so that they can keep the trio of Shawn Marion, Steve Nash, and Amare Stoudemire intact. That is a fine and good rationale in all reality. The way that the Suns are going about doing it however, is absolutely asinine. Lets start by looking at this trade. The Suns shipped two first rounders and an $8 million expiring contract for a conditional second round pick and an $8 million trade exception. The logic would be that getting rid of the first round picks gets rid of two guaranteed contracts down the line. The rest of the deal makes no sense however, as why on earth would a team that is looking to cut cap ever use an $8 million trade exception? The Suns won't use it, so the deal essentially breaks down as two first rounders and Kurt Thomas for a conditional second round pick.

Now, combine this with the fact that the Suns have sold two first round picks in the past two years for a combined $6 million in cash, and now we have a problem. That is four first round picks gone with only one on-court asset coming back to the Suns. Well, one asset if the conditional second round pick from the latest trade is ever triggered. What the Suns are doing right now is sacrificing their future to avoid the luxury tax. Look at it this way; could the Suns have traded each of those four first round picks for a second rounder and a little cash instead of the deals they made? If they had employed that strategy they could have at least had four players to stash in the D-League or Europe, and if Steve Kerr can evaluate talent at all at least one or two of those picks would likely pan out in time.

Here is the truth; these moves are setting the Suns up for disaster as soon as Steve Nash exits the stage. There will be no smooth transition, no minor dip in performance. The team will shatter. Do you really think Shawn Marion will stick around once Nash is gone? No way. Then the Suns will be left with a core of Leandro Barbosa, Stoudemire, and Boris Diaw (whose nearly $10 million a year contract is what is causing all this trouble in the first place). Too bad they won't have any young talent left to ease the transition. It'll all be playing in Seattle.

Tour De France Video Highlights

I know you aren't watching the Tour De France. And I can't blame you; there are no American contenders, and there is yet another doping controversy. So just so you aren't totally left out, here are the video highlights from the Tour De France thus far. And by video highlights I mean crashes and Borat. Enjoy.

Hot Fan Showdown: Yanks vs. Sox

As the Yankees and Red Sox prepare for a battle for the AL East title, a number of questions arise. Will the Yankees be able to improve their middle relief? Will Julio Lugo ever learn how to play baseball again? Can Roger Clemens hold up the rest of the season? Can Curt Schilling hold up the rest of the season? While these questions are all good and pertinent queries, I have a much better question for you; who has the hotter celeb fans, Yanks or Sox?

Red Sox:

C: Giselle






















1B: Eliza Dushku






















2B: Jennifer Garner






















3B: Sarah Silverman






















SS: Maria Menounos






















LF: Shannon Elizabeth






















CF: Rene Russo






















RF: Amy Poehler






















DH: Christie Brinkley

Yankees:

C: Nicole Kidman






















1B: Jennifer Lopez


















2B: Mariah Carey






















3B: Britney Spears






















SS: Sarah Jessica Parker






















LF: Tea Leoni






















CF: Sarah Michelle Gellar






















RF: Kyli Ryan






















DH: Marilyn Monroe

You Might Also Like:David Beckham Means Nothing
How To Salvage The Falcons
Donaghy Scandal Leaves Asterisk On Spurs Title

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

Top 5 Free Agent Signings

Now that the dust has almost completely settled on what ended up being a rather lackluster free agency period, now is the time to do every blogger's favorite thing; declare winners and losers. While I'll put off a full free agency analysis until I get back home from my current trip, here is a look at the top five signings of the free agency period;

5. Jacque Vaughn
No, that is not a typo. The fact that Vaughn makes this list is an indictment of the ridiculous amount of fiscal irresponsibility that was exhibited during the free agency period. Between teams bidding against themselves, overvaluing players, and making just plain stupid deals, the Spurs showed why they have won four championships in nine years. They knew they needed a backup PG, they knew Vaughn fit into their system, and they paid very little in order to get him. (2 years, $2.5 million) In the current NBA landscape, with so many teams languishing in salary cap hell, moves such as getting a solid backup PG for near the league minimum can be much better than throwing a max contract at a so so talent. (See; Lewis, Rashard)

4. Darko Milicic
This is not to say that Darko is going to be some sort of star in Memphis; he likely won't be. The Grizzlies did make a good signing with Milicic on a number of levels. First, they filled a need. Everyone in the NBA knew that Memphis was looking to find a big man to compliment Pau Gasol, and the Grizzlies went hard after both Anderson Varejao and Andres Nocioni. They were able to get Milicic, who in spite of all of the criticism levied against him is actually turning into a pretty serviceable 7 footer. So the Grizzlies filled a need, added a young talent, and most importantly were able to do it without breaking the bank. The Darko deal was for three years and somewhere between $18-$21 million. When you realize that Darko was originally seeking about $9 million a season, this deal looks that much better.

3. Grant Hill
This was a signing that was great for both sides. For the Suns, they were able to add a veteran leader who also filled a need (are you that crazy about Boris Diaw or Raja Bell?) for a low price. (2 years, $3.8 million) For Hill, going to the Suns gives him a chance to play for a championship, play in an exciting system, and to play a significant number of minutes at an age(34) where many teams would have wanted to put him out to pasture. The deal was a steal for the Suns, and adding Hill may well put them over the hump and into the Finals next season. Now, if they could just get rid of Marcus Banks...

2. Jamaal Magloire
When I first saw news of this signing my initial reaction was "Oooph". For those of you unfamiliar with what "Oooph" is, it's the sound that you make when you see something particularly nasty. A six foot blond walking down the street? "Oooph". Sean Taylor knocking a wide receiver head over heels? "Oooph". Coming home and seeing a big fat steak already sitting on the table? "Oooph". The prospect of the Nets starting Jason Kidd, Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson, Nenad Kristic, and Jamaal Magloire next season? "Oooph". That does not even take into account the fact that signing Magloire for one year and only $4 million is both cheap and low risk, and that signing Magloire also prevented them from throwing away money on Mikki Moore. This signing was ridiculously good.

1. Gerald Wallace
Did you see the contract that Rashard Lewis got from the Magic? Now imagine a player that is five years younger, plays the same position as Lewis, has an offensive game that is fast developing to match Lewis', is one of the top five defenders in the NBA, and is just generally better than Lewis in every single way other than perimeter shooting. Now imagine that you just signed him for half as much as the Magic signed Lewis. That is the kind of dream that the Charlotte Bobcats have been having ever since they signed Gerald Wallace to a six year, $57 million deal. Wallace is a star in the making, and if you have watched him at all in the past few years you know that he has been making quantum leaps in his game every single season. The Bobcats easily made the best signing of the year getting Wallace for the money they did.

Courting Disaster

Yesterday I was driving to visit some friends, and along the way I decided to listen to some sports talk on the radio. Eventually I found the local ESPN Radio affiliate, and some random loud guy was on, as per usual. So I listened for a bit, and he started talking about the NFL over/unders for the upcoming season, i.e. how many games Vegas thought each team was going to win. It was an interesting enough discussion, that is, until he got to the Vikings. The line for them was at 6.5 games, and my jaw almost hit the steering wheel. My first instinct was to pull over and call everyone in my phonebook until I reached someone that could place a $1,000 under bet as soon as possible. I mean, the Vikings, winning 7 games or more this year? I don't think there is easier money in this world to be had than betting against that, and allow me to explain why.

Last season the Vikings went 6-10 with Brad Johnson as their main QB. Say what you will about Johnson, but there is little questioning that the man is still at least an efficient QB. He might throw a few more interceptions that he used to, but he is still going to complete 60+% of his passes and get your team first downs on a consistent basis. Johnson was never meant to be the long term answer for the Vikings at QB, but after last season the Vikings decided that they had indeed found their long term solution; Tarvaris Jackson. Yes, that Tarvaris Jackson. The rookie QB from Division I-AA Alabama State that the Vikings drafted in the second round last year, at least two if not three rounds higher than he should have been drafted. The same Tarvaris Jackson that played in a spread offense in college and is now being thrust into the starting spot on an NFL team that plays an extremely precise West Coast offense that depends on a high completion percentage and being able to get first downs consistently via short to mid range passes. To make things even better, the safety net for the Vikings is Brooks Bollinger. The best way to express just how awful the Vikning's QB situation is this; they are heading into the season with two third string caliber QBs as their starter and backup. Seriously, name a backup QB in the NFL you would not put in a game right now over Tarvaris Jackson. To put it another way, if you put Jackson on the Bears, Packers, or Lions, there would be no guarantee that Jackson would even make the roster. And this is your starting QB Minnesota?

Don't get me wrong; this is not meant to be a Tarvaris Jackson hate fest. Jackson does have a number of good tools, and showed last season that he was extremely talented with his feet. My main problem is with the Vikings coaching staff thinking it is a good idea to thrust Jackson into the starting role in year 2. Look at the most recent I-AA to NFL success stories; Tony Romo, Kurt Warner, and Steve McNair all had years to develop properly before they were asked to take over a team. Jackson could one day be a good NFL QB; this year is just not that time.

On top of the terrible QB situation, the Vikings decided that the best way to use the #7 pick in the draft was to draft Adrian Peterson. Yes, that is right, a running back. If you are not familiar with the Vikings, you may not be aware that 1.) they just signed Chester Taylor to a big free agent contract last summer to be their starting RB and 2.) the Vikings also have Mewelde Moore, Artose Pinner, and Ciatrick Fason on their roster who have all seen a decent amount of playing time in recent seasons. So a team that is rolling 4 deep at RB and has Tarvaris Jackson at QB doesn't think drafting, oh, Brady Quinn might be a good idea?

So the Vikings have a logjam at RB, nothing at QB, and the WR corps? Just a few short years ago the Vikings had arguably one of the best units in the NFL, if not the best, when they boasted the likes of Randy Moss, Cris Carter, and Nate Burleson. And now? For all the potential in the world, having Troy Williamson, Sidney Rice, and Bobby Wade as your top WRs is not a good situation. And at TE? In recent seasons the Vikings had employed the services of Jermain Wiggins, who is a pretty darn good receiving TE. And now? Wiggins is in Jacksonville and the Vikings are headed into the season with Jim Kleinsasser as their starting TE.

To answer your question; yes, it is just as bad as it sounds. The Vikings have too many RBs to get any of them a fair amount of carries and a young, raw QB who will go into the season with no weapons at WR or TE. So would you want to put money on the Vikings winning over 6.5 games? No way. I'll take that under bet any day and come out a rich, rich man.

Charlie Villanueva = China's Worst Nightmare

Just when you thought the Yi Jianlian situation could not get any stranger, the Guandong Tigers hit you with a curveball. Today the chief of Yi's Chinese team, Chen Haitao, clarified why exactly there was no way that Yi could play for Milwaukee:

"This is not -- as media reports have said -- because Milwaukee, as a city with very few Chinese people, is not good for Yi's commercial development," Chen said.

"Rather we want to find a team suitable for Yi's growth. That's the root of the problem," he added.

Ok, so why exactly isn't Milwaukee a good place for Yi's growth?

Chen expressed concern that Yi would have trouble getting game time with the Bucks, whose squad boasts Australian 7-footer Andrew Bogut and a number of other tall young players.

"The national team and the Olympic Games are now our key considerations ... If [Yi] goes to a team where he can't compete, that would be being irresponsible to the national team," Chen said.

This explantion has two very important aspects to it, so here is a look at both of them:

We Do Not Understand: The most striking aspect of Chen's explanation is the assertation that Yi might not be able to get much playing time in Milwaukee. Andrew Bogut and "a number of other tall young players" are cited as the cause for his apprehension. Now, if Chen is indeed sincere in his statement, one of two things must be true; either he does not understand the NBA game, or they fear that Charlie Villanueva is an All-Star caliber power forward. As far as not understanding the NBA, or more specifically Yi's role as a player in the NBA, Chen somehow thinks that Yi will be competing with Andrew Bogut for playing time. Here is a quick little news flash; Bogut is a classic center, Yi is a mobile and athletic power forward. Yi is never going to cut into Bogut's minutes or vice versa because the two play different roles. It is obvious that the Bucks drafted Yi because they thought he would compliment Bogut, not compete with him. Also...who exactly are these other young seven footers who are going to keep Yi on the bench? Brian Skinner? Dan Gadzuric? Please. So that leaves only Charlie Villanueva as Yi's main competition for minutes. Villanueva is indeed quite a talented player, and in the future he could reasonably develop into a consistent 16 PPG / 8 RPG kind of guy. Consider however, that Villanueva is coming off shoulder surgery that caused him to miss half of last season, and that even when he did play he started less than half of the time. So this is the big barrier to Yi getting playing time? Does Chen actually think that the Bucks would have used such a high draft pick in a loaded draft on a player they were going to sit behind Villanueva? Give me a break.

For Love Of Country: As far as Milwaukee is concerned, the Bucks should be most worried about Chen's belief that playing in Milwaukee will hurt the Chinese national team in their preparation for the Olympics. China is hosting the 2008 summer games, and it is quite obvious that the Chinese Olympic committee has targeted men's basketball as a marquee event in which they are determined to succeed. Why else would China have gone to the trouble of having the national team (sans Yao) play in the NBA Summer League? It is certainly understandable that China is focused on developing Yi at all costs; the only real hope of medaling in the Olympics for China rests upon Yao and Yi becoming a dominant tandem. Yao is already there, but anyone who watched Yi's summer league performance knows that he has a lot of growing to do between now and next summer. So is there any situation where Yao is going to get substantially more playing time than Milwaukee? This again goes back to point one, that Chen and the rest of Yi's camp are showing that they have no clue how the NBA works. What team is going to give a raw 19 year old more playing time than Milwaukee is offering, and fits the orignal demands of being in a larger media market and having a large Chinese population? I mean, how much playing time would be satisfactory? Bogut played 28.6 minutes per game his rookie season, and it isn't unreasonable to think that Yi could at least approach that number splitting time with Villanueva. Is 25-30 minutes a night not enough for Yi and his camp to be happy? If so, than Yi is not likely to find any team with which he will be pleased this season.

Here is the most important thing to draw from these latest comments. All of the people that have been saying that Yi and his camp don't have the guts to stand their ground are flat wrong. The stakes have been raised substantially and if the real concern is in fact related to preparing Yi for the 2008 Olympics than the Bucks can kiss Yi goodbye, China is not going to back off on that one. So please Milwaukee, do what you should have done in the first place; get Brandan Wright. Don Nelson and the Warriors love Yi, and Wright is about as much value as the Bucks could hope to get out of Yi at this point. The worst outcome of this situation for Milwaukee would be if Larry Harris got into a peeing contest with the Yi camp, and his pride caused the Bucks to walk away empty handed. Now is the time to do the smart thing and walk away from Yi. Too bad Milwaukee couldn't have done that on draft night.

Olsen Is Really Going To Learn His Lesson

You may have seen yesterday that Marlins pitcher Scott Olsen was suspended yesterday for an act of "insubordination" after he was relieved from his start on Sunday. The Marlins and manager Fredi Gonzalez did not elaborate as to exactly what happened, but whatever the incident was it wasn't a first for Olsen as far as misbehavior. Last year Olsen got into a fist fight with Randy Messenger, and just last month Olsen was fined for making an obscene gesture after being taken out of a game. (I guess he doesn't like being taken out...) Well, it certainly is a good thing that the Marlins have suspended him, missing some time on the field will certainly do him....

What? Olsen isn't actually going to miss any time on the field?

That's right, the Marlins chose to dole out the dumbest and most useless punishment in all of sports on Olsen; they suspended a starting pitcher less than five games. Olsen is only suspended for two games, meaning he is in absolutely no danger of missing so much as a single inning he would have otherwise pitched. The only real penalty for Olsen is the roughly $4 thousand in game checks he will be missing out on, but for a young pitcher with a bright future on the mound that is just a drop in the bucket.

So why did the Marlins do it? Why go to all the trouble of "suspending" Olsen when you could have just fined him four grand and had the exact same result. Here is the ugly reason why; the Marlins likely were just looking to save face, and did not want to do anything that might actually hurt the team, i.e. Olsen missing a start. While that might work in some situations, this instance just smells foul. Olsen is not a first time offender. He obviously has not learned how to control himself on the field and in the clubhouse when he is frustrated. So you suspend him for two games he wouldn't pitch in anyway? Please.

Think of it this way. When you were a kid, if you broke your sibling's toys and your mother said to you "You are grounded! As soon as you go to sleep you are not allowed to get out of bed until you wake up! Now go outside and play!"

That makes about as much sense as how the Marlins are handling Olsen.

Just When You Think You Know A Guy

Remember Elijah Dukes? You know, the crazy wife threatening guy who was the star of sports headlines for two weeks at the end of May. It seems that we are not yet done with Dukes. Yesterday in divorce hearings, Dukes' wife dropped a number of big time accussations; drinking to the point of passing out, smoking marijuana, and the big one, using steroids:

NiShea Dukes, testifying in divorce proceedings, accused her baseball-player husband of smoking marijuana daily and using steroids.

Although steroids use remained in question at the end of the 2 1/2 -hour hearing Monday morning, Devil Rays outfielder Elijah Dukes did admit under oath that he smokes marijuana.

Judge Kevin Carey ordered Dukes to take random drug tests for marijuana.

Dukes denied the steroid use at the hearing, and his wife admitted that she had never actually seen him use steroids. The judge did however, order Dukes to go to a drug counselor who would decide if it is neccessary for Dukes to be tested for steroids.

Now if that drug counselor needs any help in determining whether or not there is at least a reasonable suspicion that Dukes may be a steroid user, I would direct them to this story from the spring of 2006, which talks about Dukes sudden physical transformation, which subsequently coincided with a marked improvement in performance. Back in May I had the following analysis of that article, one which I believe holds even more weight in light of the recent accussations by Dukes' wife;

Now not to pile on, but in reading the Saint Petersburg Times article it also seems a bit fishy that Dukes showed up to the 2006 camp with 11 lbs more muscle than the year before, and started tearing up camp as a non-roster invitee. I mean, I'm not sayin what I'm sayin, I'm just sayin. Maybe Dukes and Jason Giambi have a similar training regime...

You Might Also Like: Charlie Villanueva Is China's Worst Nightmare

The Phillies Are NOT The Worst Ever

If you have been watching or reading any sports coverage in the past 24 hours, you have likely seen the following bit of information at least a dozen times today:

"Phillies lose 10,000th game."
"Phillies first pro sports team to lose 10,000 games"

I personally have no clue how on earth this silly little stat, which the media had not even picked up on until a group of Phillies fans started a website, suddenly became the biggest sports story of the day. And worse yet, somehow the angle of this story has shifted to an examination of the Phillies organization as a bunch of losers.

Well, there are a number of things about this stat that the media is neglecting to tell you.

It's Baseball Stupid: Of course baseball teams are going to have more losses in their franchise histories than other sports. Pro baseball has been around longer than any other pro sports league, and the season is almost twice as long as either basketball or hockey, and ten times as long as football. Point being, the "first pro sports team to lose 10,000" headline is a load of crap. No other sport will ever have a team that will challenge baseball as far as total losses go.

Losses Don't Mean You Are Bad: The main reason that the Phillies have 10,000 losses is not that they are a bad organization. It is merely a factor of the Phillies having been a pro team in one form or another since 1883. When you play a lot of games, over time you will end up with a high loss total. I mean, Cy Young is the all time win leader and the all time loss leader. Also consider that the team with the second most losses is Atlanta, an organization that few people would categorize as being bad.

There Are A Lot Worse: If you look at all time win percentages for franchises you will see that the Phillies are by no means the worst franchise of all time. Here is a look at the teams in the three major sports that have lower franchise winning percentages than the Phillies' .468 ;

MLB:
Colorado Rockies, .466
San Diego Padres, .463
Tampa Bay Devil Rays, .397
Texas Rangers, .467

NFL:
Arizona Cardinals, .411
Atlanta Falcons, .409
Cincinnati Bengals, .438
Houston Texans, .300
New Orleans Saints, .407
New York Jets, .454

NBA:
Charlotte Bobcats, .313
Cleveland Cavaliers, .449
Golden State Warriors, .461
LA Clippers, .368
Memphis Grizzlies, .334
Minnesota Timberwolves, .434
New Jersey Nets, .447
Toronto Raptors, .408
Washington Wizards, .459

As you can see, there are plenty of teams that have been worse historicaly than the Phillies. So next time you hear the media trying to bash the Phillies for their 10,000 losses, just remember; the Texans are truly the worst.

End Of The Line

For most American sports fans, July 16th is not an especially important day on the sports calendar. There is some baseball, but the pennant races haven't heated up yet. The NBA free agency period has run out of steam. There is Fed Cup tennis...but the USA has already been eliminated, so the small number of people that cared just got even smaller. So why should you care about today?

You should if you are an NFL fan.

Today is the deadline for players that have been franchised to either sign long-term deals with their club or be stuck with their franchise tender. In a nutshell, for the two prominent players who are threatening to hold out until the 10th week of the NFL season (Lance Briggs and Asante Samuel) today is the do or die day. If Briggs and Samuel are not able to come to terms with the Bears and Patriots respectively, they will be set on a path to self destruction. Because really, what does a ten week hold out accomplish? If a player does hold out, he loses ten weeks of checks and also gets fined for missing training camp. ($14,000 a day in case you were wondering) So why not just play the year out, get a fat paycheck, and then look to hit free agency the next year? It really boggles my mind.

Here is a look at where Briggs and Samuel stand this morning, with the 4:00 P.M. ET deadline looming:

Asante Samuel
From the Boston Globe:

Barring an unexpected turn, the Patriots and cornerback Asante Samuel will not reach a long-term contract agreement before today's 4 p.m. deadline for franchise players. The Patriots have not increased their most recent offer, according to a source directly involved in negotiations.

Samuel is seeking a deal from the Patriots in the neighborhood of the 8 year, $80 million contract that Nate Clements signed with the San Francisco 49ers earlier this offseason. Never mind the fact that Clements is a two time Pro Bowler and Samuel has yet to get there even once. Now lets compare Samuel to another corner, the Bears Nathan Vasher. Vasher is 25 years old, has 16 career interceptions in three seasons, and has been named to one Pro Bowl. Samuel is 26, has 16 career interceptions in four seasons, and has no Pro Bowl appearences to his credit. So Vasher would seem to be the better corner, correct? Now take into consideration the fact that Vasher recently signed an extension with the Bears for 5 years and $28 million. ($5.6 million a year) So why exactly is Samuel throwing a fit about taking a one year, $7.79 million deal from the Pats? It seems to me that he would be getting the better end in such a deal based on his actual market value.

Lance Briggs:
From the Chicago Tribune:

If no deal is completed -- and little progress has been evident since last year -- NFL rules stipulate that the only deal Briggs can sign is the franchise-tag tender offer of $7.2 million for 2007.

Briggs does have a better case than Samuel to be upset. The two time Pro Bowler is arguably one of the top outside linebackers in the NFL, and wishes to be paid as such. Briggs has taken a hard line stance with the Bears, going so far as to declare that he had played his last game for the organization. The situation was further complicated when the Redskins tried to horn in and trade for Briggs, offering their first round pick and agreeing in principle to a long term that would have paid Briggs $7.5 million a year with $20 million guaranteed. The Bears refused the trade offer, but now that Briggs has seen that other teams are indeed willing to give him a monster contract the prospects of reaching a deal with the Bears before 4:00 P.M. today are slim to none.

"How To Spot If I'm Magical"

A few days ago I was reading The Smittblog, and I saw this fantastic post about the most ridiculous searches that brought people to his site. I was so inspired by it that I decided to sign up for Google Analytics to see exactly what people searched that brought them to WTB. So here is this week's breakdown, and I will start doing this weekly for you and I's mutual amusement.

As I looked over the Google searches that popped up with Winning The Turnover Battle as one of the top results, I saw three main trends. First, there were a lot of Snorg / Snorg Girl/ Snorg Model related searches. Second, and somewhat more suprising, was that "Mark Kotsay's wife" seemed to be the second most popular. Evidently there is a much bigger market for Jamie Kotsay on the internet than I knew about. The third general trend was searches involving Yi Jianlian in some way, which does make sense to me since I have done a number of stories over the past few weeks concerning his current situation.

Now on to the good stuff. Here are some of the oddest searches that people put in to bring up the blog:

"sudden attack"
"caucasian wide receiver"
"wie suck fest"
"non alcoholic fufu drinks"
"dog fights in mexico"
"flip flops that don't flip or flop."

Most of these I could reasonably see people searching for, though I am a bit worried about the leisure time activities of the person that searched for "dog fights in mexico". While the above searches are quite amusing, none of them struck a chord with me quite like this gem, which is the winner of the first ever "WTB Search of the Week Award":

"how to spot if im magical"

This search has so many wonderful layers to dissect. Who is the person that searched for this? Were they truly wondering what the answer to the question was? Did they actually think that they were magical? And the best question of course, is how on earth did a sports blog pop up in such a search? I tested out the last one, and it seems that the most pertinent site on the internet for that question is in fact my post about the Orlando Magic signing Rashard Lewis. Go figure.

The Kevin McHale Comedy Hour

I'm sure all of you remember the trade the Celtics made on draft night, sending Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West, and Jeff Green to the Sonics in exchange for Ray Allen. The merits of this deal were widely debated by both Celtics fans and the media. Was it wise to trade such a high draft pick for a 31 guard with bad ankles? Would adding Allen make the Celtics a contender in the East? At first it seemed that everyone would have to wait until the season to see the results of the trade, but something happened today that confirmed that the trade was a bad move by the Celtics. So what happened? The deal was given the worst kiss of death it could have possibly received; the NBA's worst GM, Kevin McHale, said he liked the move:

“The Eastern Conference has a lot of bad teams in it,” said McHale. “As a matter of fact, they sent a bad team (Cleveland) to the NBA Finals. I mean, the top teams in the East wouldn’t fare very well in the West. It’s been like that for a while. Miami came in and won, and then you had Detroit win a couple of years ago, but, you know, in a seven-game series anything can happen.”

As such, McHale thinks it’s quite possible that getting Allen from Seattle could produce results beyond the general expectation.

“I think Ray Allen is going to help,” McHale said. “Ray Allen can flat-out shoot the damn ball. He’s a game-changer in the fact that he can get it rolling on the offensive in a big way.

“He and (Paul) Pierce at the 2 and 3 are potentially as potent as any twosome in the Eastern Conference. The 2 and 3 are key positions in our league right now.. . . So they’re going to be strong at two positions you really need to be strong at to score in our league now.”

Just so you know, this quote pretty much made my day. It is almost as if Kevin McHale sat down last night, channeled Steven Colbert, and decided to say the most audacious series of things that popped into his mind. So lets go through his marvelous quote, just to make sure none of the finer points of hilarity are missed;

The East Sucks: Kevin decided to start off with the standard cliche of "The East is bad, the West rules the NBA". While this was indeed true last year, as McHale himself points out the East has won some championships in recent seasons. Also, McHale completely ignores the fact that a number of Eastern teams other than Boston have made substantial upgrades this offseason (Orlando, Charlotte, New York) or are coming off a season riddled with injuries (New Jersey, Miami, Washington, Milwaukee). Therefore it is by no means a sure thing that merely adding Ray Allen will vault the Celtics above the 14 teams that were better than them in the East last year.

Ray Allen Can Score! Yay!: McHale must think that offense is the greatest need for the Celtics, since his main praise of the trade was that Ray Allen can shoot. This is indeed true. The Celtics already have a fair number of scorers however, in Paul Pierce, Al Jefferson, and Gerald Green. That offense-first attitude is likely way the Timberwolves gave up nearly 100 PPG last season despite having one of the greatest defensive players in the league in Kevin Garnett.

The 2 And 3...So Key: The best part of McHale's rant has to be his assertation that "The 2 and 3 are key positions in our league right now". Well, yeah...but are they any more key than say center, a position from which Tim Duncan and Shaq have essentally ruled the NBA since Jordan left? Are the 2 and 3 more important than the point guard position? Please. Try this on for size. Pierce and Allen are All-Stars at SG and SF. So if given the chance, would you take them over a duo of Chauncey Billups and Dwight Howard? Gilbert Arenas and Shaq? Jason Kidd and Amare Stoudemire? Chris Paul and Yao? Please. Having All Stars at the 2 and 3 didn't exactly work out so great for Denver last year, and there is no certainty it will work out for Boston either.

Perhaps the greatest part about McHale's rant is that it highlights exactly why he is a terrible GM. He would rather try for talent at the swing positions (See: Ricky Davis, Rashad McCants) than get a solid player at point guard or center. He values scoring over defense. He puts more value on quick fixes (See; Mark Blount, Davis, the Joe Smith debacle) than actually developing young talent through the draft. Above all else however, McHale's rant stood out as perhaps the funniest thing I have read all week. For that I am thankful to the old guy.

If Barry Bonds Was An Animal...

This may well be the craziest looking dog you will ever see in your life. There are plenty of examples of extremely tall dogs or extremely fat dogs, but have you ever seen a dog that looks completely 'roided out? Meet Wendy, a four year old whippet from Canada. The Daily Mail explains exactly why Wendy looks so huge:

She was born with a genetic defect which has left her looking like the Incredible Hulk of Hounds.

While her head, heart, lungs and legs are the size of those of a normal whippet, her gene defect means she is "double muscled".

She weighs 4st4lb - twice as much as she should - and has bulging neck muscles, burly shoulders and haunches like a baboon. And unlike ordinary whippets known for their lithe and narrow frame, this four-year-old pedigree doesn't just have a sixpack stomach, she has a 24-pack."

For reference, here is Wendy next to a normal sized whippet;



So who knows, maybe Barry Bonds really hasn't been taking performance enhancers and just has a strange genetic disorder that doubles his muscle mass over time. But....probably not.

Dice-K is looking like...Curt Schilling

On Saturday night Daisuke Matsuzaka once again reminded the nation of the fact that while he is indeed a tremendous talent, he is still struggling with consistency in his rookie campaign. Dice-K got the win against the Blue Jays, mainly on the strength of a five run sixth inning by the Red Sox in their 9-4 win against the Blue Jays. Dice-K gave up all four Blue Jays' runs over the course of six innings, including three in the sixth. The games was Dice-K's second straight lackluster performance after a June run during which he was arguably one of the top five pitchers in all of baseball.

After his latest outing Dice-K's season statistics are again very similar to the pitcher that we compared him to in May. So for this week we have a returning guest, as Dice-K is looking like....Curt Schilling.

Dice-K 2007:
W%: .65
QS%: .63
ERA: 3.97
WHIP: 1.27
Salary: $6,333,333

Schilling 2006:
W%: .68
QS%: .61
ERA: 3.97
WHIP: 1.22
Salary: $13,000,000

Pretty Penny

You probably don't need me to tell you that Brad Penny is having a great season. The Dodgers pitcher is 10-1 and ranks 3rd in the NL in both ERA and WHIP so far this year. Those stats currently have him in the position as the odds on favorite to win the NL Cy Young. (According to ESPN's Cy Young Predictor anyway)

While the Cy Young is a fantastic and career defining accomplishment in and of itself, Penny also has a chance to do something even more special this year than merely win the top pitching award. In addition to Penny's sterling pitching credentials this year he has also been having a very good year at the plate. Penny currently leads all pitchers with 6 RBI and his .273 BA ranks sixth among pitchers with at least 20 AB. Those numbers put Penny right in the mix for the Silver Slugger race for pitchers, with Carlos Zambrano (.279 BA, 2 HR, 5 RBI) as his main competition.

So if Penny were to continue his current success both on the rubber and at the plate, how rare of a feat would it be for a pitcher to win both the Cy Young and the Silver Slugger in the same season? It is actually a fairly rare accomplishment, as in the 27 years that the Silver Slugger has been awarded it has only happened three times to two different pitchers. In 1981 Fernando Valenzuela won both awards, going 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA from the mound while hitting .250 with 7 RBI. The other pitcher to accomplish this feat is Tom Glavine who did it in both 1991 (20-11, 2.55 ERA; .230 BA, 6 RBI) and 1998 (20-6, 2.47 ERA; .239 BA, 7 RBI). Penny faces stiff competition for both awards, but his chase of the dual honors will be one of the more intriguing subplots for the remainder of the season.

Kevin Pritchard, meet Jon Gruden

The Portland TrailBlazers have been arguably the most active team during this NBA offseason. Through a myriad of draft picks, trades, buyouts, and free agent signings the look of the Blazers' roster has changed drastically. The big change of course was the addition of Greg Oden and the subtraction of Zach Randolph. Blazers' GM Kevin Pritchard has not stopped there however, as he has made a number of other less high-profile moves.

There was the trade with the 76ers for the draft rights of PG Petteri Kopponen. Pritchard also drafted PG Taurean Green in the second round. Then today he signed free agent PG Steve Blake. See a pattern? With the Blake signing the Blazers now have the following PGs on their roster:

Jarrett Jack
Sergio Rodriguez
Steve Blake
Taurean Green
Petteri Kopponen

Kopponen will likely spend next season overseas, but that still leaves the Blazers with four PGs (as well as Brandon Roy who sometimes runs the point) on a roster that has the following SFs:

James Jones
Darius Miles

Miles likely won't play at all next season, leaving the Blazers with Jones and a number of unproven young players (Travis Outlaw, Martell Webster, Channing Frye) that would be playing somewhat out of position at the 3 spot.

The question would seem to be, what kind of trade Pritchard will make with his PGs? The Blazers have depth everywhere on the roster except for SF, so the logical answer would be that they would ship one of them (Jack most likely) in a package to get a SF to challenge James Jones for the starting spot. Otherwise, if Pritchard goes into to season paying five PGs (six if you count the Francis buyout) and only one true SF the Blazers could be in quite a bind. The smart money is on the Blazers still having a few trades left in them before the season starts.

Bucks Beware

So now it begins.

Ever since the NBA Draft Yi Jianlian has been oddly silent in regards to his situation with the Milwaukee Bucks. So much so that even when he agreed to an interview with an NBA.com reporter he stipulated that there could be no questions regarding Milwaukee. (And the reporter accepted. Journalistic integrity? Anyone?) Now however, the complexion of Yi's situation is begging to become much clearer than mere speculation. Yesterday both Marc Stein and Chad Sheridan offered new insight on the state of the Yi saga. Sheridan wrote:

"If the stalemate continues, the only way Yi could make himself eligible for the 2008 draft would be to sit out an entire season. If he were to return to his pro team in China for the 2007-08 season, the Bucks would retain his NBA rights.

At this point, if I had to say whether I thought Yi will ever play a game for the Bucks, I'd have to say no. Yi's camp seems extremely determined to force the Bucks to trade his rights, and at a certain point I believe Harris and the Bucks owner, Sen. Herb Kohl, will simply throw their hands up and decide they don't want the headache anymore."

Stein also offered a similar take:

"Yi's camp insists that he won't sign with the Bucks and that the 19-year-old is prepared to play no professional basketball for a year to make himself eligible to re-enter the draft in 2008, unless the Bucks trade his draft rights....

...Yi didn't outright demand a trade but, according to sources, insisted that it remains his wish -- as opposed to an agenda being pushed by Nike or his American agent Dan Fegan -- to play in a bigger market with a larger Asian population."

There are two extremely important points in the above quotes. First, Stein reports that Yi himself (not just his agent) wants out of Milwaukee. The assumption by many was that Yi was merely letting his agent handle the situation, and that he himself did not have a strong feeling either way. Assuming Stein's info is accurate, that does not seem to be the case. The second, and most important point, is that Yi and his camp are making serious rumblings about sitting out a year alltogether and entering the 2008 Draft. (A possibility that I first broke two weeks ago) If Yi is in fact serious about carrying out that threat Milwaukee would find itself forced to either trade Yi or risk losing him for nothing.

Now comes the tricky part. If the Bucks do decide that trading Yi is their only option, what are their options? Yi has expressed a desire to go to a team in a larger media market such as Chicago, New York, or Sacramento, or Golden State. New York would seem to be out of the running after the trade for Zach Randolph, and the Bulls are likely satisfied with their young frontcourt duo of Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah. That leaves Golden State and Sacramento as the most likely trade partners for the Bucks. In examining Sacramento's roster they appear to have very few assets that would be attractive to the Bucks. Milwaukee was seeking to fill a need at either PF or SF through the draft, and the only real trade asset that the Kings have at either position is Ron Artest. The problem for the Kings is that their three top young talents (Kevin Martin, Francisco Garcia, and Quincy Douby) all play SG, where the Bucks already have an All-Star in Michael Redd.

The best trade situation for the Bucks would by far be with Golden State. The Warriors were said to be very high on Yi heading into the draft, and they have the perfect assets to go about acquiring him from the Bucks. Consider; the Bucks need depth at SF and PF. The Warriors have the PF the Bucks would desire in Brandan Wright and could also package one of their free agent SFs (Matt Barnes or Mikael Pietrus) in a sign and trade. Such a deal would benefit both teams, as the Warriors would get the player they coveted all along by merely moving a SF they likely would not have re-signed and the Bucks would add young talent at both of their need positions while saving some face.

Whether or not the Bucks do decide to go the trade route with Yi will likely not be decided for quite some time, as the season is some two and a half months away. What is certain however, is that the Bucks must tread carefully in this situation lest they alienate Yi entirely and lose him for nothing.

A Move Most Odd

Yesterday there was an NBA trade that was mostly lost in the midst of free agent signings and rumors. The Spurs traded Jackie Butler and Luis Scola to the Rockets for a 2nd Round pick and Vassilis Spanoulis . Yes, the same Vassilis Spanoulis declared that he would never play in the NBA again earlier this month. So in essentially the trade saw the Spurs give up two salaried players in exchange for a second round pick. To make things even more odd, Scola is actually quite a promising player. The 27 year old is looking to finally come over to the NBA, and scouts have lauded the 6-9 forward's game for years. So why give him up for essentially nothing? To a team in your own division no less?

The cold hard facts of this trade are that the Spurs were looking to dump salary. They knew that to bring Scola over from Europe that they would have to 1.) help buy out his contract and 2.) sign him to a contract that would make the move to America worth his while. So instead of doing so, they essentially gave Scola to the Rockets for free. What this deal reminds me of is a guy in fantasy football that trades to trade Tom Brady for Cleo Lemon. In your fantasy football league a commissioner would veto such a trade. In the NBA however, there are only trade restrictions concerning salary not equity of talent, so the Spurs are free to give the Rockets the gift of Scola as long as the contracts match up.

A Brief History of Babes in Jerseys

Have you ever had someone tell you that adults shouldn't wear jerseys? Do you think that is a load of crap? If you do, I am here to provide you with the best argument in your favor. And that is; a history of adult babes wearing jerseys. Show your buddies these pictures and then see if they give you a hard time:



Isn't refreshing to see a celebrity-athlete couple where the celeb isn't afraid to support her man? I know I am very thankful Eva Longoria goes to the Spurs' games; she is usually the most entertaining thing to watch.



Ashley Judd is the quintessential sports fan babe. Not only is she married to a race car driver, she is also a huge fan of Kentucky basketball. This very picture was on the wall of my sociology class in high school, and may well have been the sole reason I applied to UK.
















Do you remember back in the 90's when Alyssa Milano was the hot ticket? Back then she was hot enough, and hockey relavent enough, that this picture alone probably gave the Devils an attendance boost.

















Laura Quinn received quite a bit of attention for this jersey creation, but is this what she does everytime she faces a difficult choice? Does she mix Coke and Pepsi? Does she brush half of her mouth with Colgate and the other half with Crest?

















I think that every man that witnessed the amazing display which was Mariah Carey's jersey dress will remember it forever. Most of all, Michael Jordan.






Do you remember back in the late 90's when Tara Reid was a hot mess, and not just a mess? Somebody should bring that Tara back.



















Aww....Kelly Clarkson is so cute.




















This is Mark Kotsay's wife. You can officially begin being jealous.

















If you are a baseball player and you see Anna Benson wearing your jersey, run. Run like never have before. And don't dare look back.

UPDATES:

Giselle (Hat Tip: Steve)

Mya (Hat Tip: Ryan)

Shania Twain (Hat Tip: Anonymous Comment Guy)

You Might Also Like: An Interview With The Snorg Girl
Where Are They Now? Sports Movie Tomboys

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

Brady Quinn Is Mocked By The Males Of America

So Brady Quinn is just walking along, minding his own business when some girls start fawning over him. What happens next?

That's right males of America, laugh and mock!

Link-Fest

- An in-depth look at Yi's Summer League performance. (Pretty Random Ramblings)

- It appears Dan Patrick won't be out of work for long. (The Big Lead)

- The guys at Deuce bring you...the Extremity Games (Deuce of Davenport)

- Seriously, what is up with Kevin Durant's shoe deal? (Sports Business Radio) (h/t to reader Jeremy)

Eli Spits In The Wind

Oh Eli, what are we going to do with you? First you throw a big whiny hissy fit when you get drafted by the Chargers. Then you stink for three years in New York after the Giants traded what became three Pro-Bowlers for you. And now you just had to go and talk smack about Tiki Barber. Peyton really did get the good side of the gene pool, didn't he? When asked how next season would be without Tiki Barber, this was Eli's response:

"I don't think we're concerned," Manning said. "We're excited by the players that we have who wanted to return for this season, and who wanted to be a part of the Giants and play."

Eli is totally off base here in two ways. 1.) He should be very concerned that Tiki is gone. The Giants have arguably relied on their feature running back in the past few years more than any team other than the Chargers and Chiefs. So why isn't Eli concerned that the stud RB that has given the Giants 300+ carries and 50+ receptions in Eli's three seasons is gone? Is he that confident in Brandon Jacobs? Let's just put it this way; if Eli was mediocre with one of the best receiving RBs in the league as a safety valve, he could well be terrible without him. 2.) The "wanted to be a part of the Giants and play" quip is just flat out stupid. Eli should try playing one game at RB in the NFL and see the kind of beating that those guys take. Tiki served the Giants for 10 years and then left the game with his health and mind still intact. Eli just frankly does not have the credibility at this point in his career to even step to Tiki.

So in the comments, can anyone think of something Eli has done right? (Other than be born into a famous family that is)

Wang Zhi Zhi Is Gangsta

Team China was obliterated by the Knicks 88-65 on Tuesday night. Do you think that matters to Wang Zhi Zhi? Oh no. All Wang cared about was taunting Quentin Richardson, who was in the stands watching the game. How'd he do it? Watch the video:

You have to love the sneer he has afterward. Just imagine what he would have done if they had won the game.

The Darko Domino

The Memphis Grizzlies have announced the signing of Darko Milicic to a 3 year, $21 million contract. (According to Ric Bucher) The ramifications of this deal however, go far beyond the Grizzlies lineup. The signing of Darko also has a profound impact on the futures of both Anderson Varejao and Mikki Moore.

Varejao: It has been well documented in the past few weeks that the Grizzlies were seeking an athletic big man to pair with Pau Gasol, and their pursuit of free agents such as Anderson Varejao and Andres Nocioni arguably drove up the asking price for those players. With the signing of Darko however, the Grizzlies will no longer be out there to sign Varejao to an offer sheet. What this likely means is that Varejao will end up staying in Cleveland at a much lower price than he would have received if the Grizzlies had signed him to an offer sheet. Many people had speculated that if the Grizzlies signed Varejao to a contract too far above the mid level exception that the luxury tax wary Cavs would be faced with an extremely difficult choice; either let Varejao leave and focus on signing Sasha Pavlovic, or match the offer sheet and risk going over the luxury tax. The signing of Darko eliminates that difficult quandry alltogether.

Moore: The other player that is affected by the signing of Darko is New Jersey's free agent center Mikki Moore. According to reports Moore has rejected a 3 year, $10 million offer from the Nets and was set to meet this week with Golden State, Chicago, and Memphis. Now that Memphis is out of the running Moore could find it extremely difficult to find much more than the $10 million the Nets have on the table. And if he isn't able to find it, New Jersey may no longer be an option as the Nets have already made contact with Jamaal Magloire. Moore now finds himself in an extremely difficult spot, as he is 31 years old and has had very little playing time or success before this past season. If he has burned bridges with the Nets could quickly realize that not many teams are willing to pay big for an aging and unproven player.

Wallace Stays...Wither Morrison?

Gerald Wallace has re-signed with the Charlotte Bobcats to the tune of 6 years and $57 million, ending speculation that he would end up in Dallas or elsewhere. Thea deal also includes a total of $12 million in bonuses, so the total value of the contract could be pushed up to $69 million. If you read the site reguarly, you are probably already aware that I like Gerald Wallace quite a bit. Why? Wallace has done things the right way on the way to his big payday. He plays hard on D, rebounds, and operates within the team scheme on offense. Think of him as Shawn Marion Lite. I guarantee you that Wallace will be a much better player six years from now than Rashard Lewis, even though Lewis will be making more than twice as much money.

Now that the signing is official, on to two big questions that concern the Bobcats:

Is This A Playoff Team?: Last season the Bobcats finished 33-49, seven games out of the playoffs. That finish continued the general upswing of the team, as they have improved their record in every season of the franchise's existence. Now consider this; the Bobcats posted that record while only getting partial seasons out of Sean May (35 games), Walter Herrman (48 games), and Primoz Brezec (58 games). So will healthy campaigns by those three, coupled with the acquisition of Jason Richardson to start at the 2, lead to the Bobcats having a .500 record next year? On paper it seems to be almost a certainty. Consider; how many teams in the East can boast a frontcourt that rolls six deep (Okafor, Brezec, Wallace, Herrman, May, Morrison) like the Bobcats? Not many. The trouble of course for the Bobcats has been that their backcourt in recent years has been underwhelming in comparison to their young and talented forwards. The Jason Richardson trade along with the re-signing of Matt Carroll will go a long way in righting this imbalance. The only glaring weakness on the roster is at PG, where Ray Felton has looked promising but will no longer have Brevin Knight around to help carry the load. So will Richardson and a healthy stable of forwards put the Bobcats in the playoffs? The answer is only maybe at this juncture, only because a .500 record may not be an automatic ticket into the Eastern playoffs next year. The two bottom playoff teams (Orlando and Washington) should be improved next season, and the Knicks also appear to be poised to make a postseason push with the acquisition of Zach Randolph. That being said, the Bobcats will certainly be in the mix for the final playoff spots.


What About Adam Morrison?: This is the question that I find truly interesting with the Bobcats. Just last season they invested the #3 overall pick in Morrison, with the general assumption that he would ascend to the lead role on the team when Wallace left this Summer. A funny thing happened on the way to Morrison being the next Larry Bird however, as he completely laid an egg last season (366th in PER) and the Bobcats re-signed Wallace. And Carroll. And they traded for Jason Richardson. And they drafted another 1st Round SF in Jared Dudley. If you judge the Bobcats thought process solely based on their transactions this offseason the conclusion is obvious; they are moving on from Morrison after just one season. Remember, Michael Jordan has soured quickly on top draft picks before. (See: Brown, Kwame) Now Morrison will have two $10 million a year swing players in front of him, a backup SG signed to a 6 year deal, and a brand new first rounder to battle him for the backup minutes at SF. The only real question left with Morrison is whether or not the Bobcats will even bother to pick up the final three years on his contract after next season.

Treasure Trove

If you thought the ESPYs gift bag sounded pretty cool, take a look at what Major Leaguers at the All Star Game got for free. See, MLB is far too busy to actually make silly little giftbags; instead, they just let the players go buck crazy like soccer moms on Black Friday:

Major League Baseball set up a room full of merchandise from its vendors and allowed each player to take whatever they liked.

"It's the greatest thing I've ever seen," Justin Morneau joked.

The shopping bazaar included electronic equipment, sunglasses, luggage, jerseys, and all sorts of baseball apparel. Even Santana, who also played in the 2005 and 2006 All-Star Games, was impressed.

"It was unbelievable," Santana said. "Last year, people bring you what you ask for. This year, everything's there and you just keep bringing and bringing stuff. My dad went crazy. I don't think we can put all the stuff in the plane."

Morneau picked up an Apple TV. Torii Hunter received a video iPod. All loaded up on clothing, so much that "they were handing out plastic bags to carry it all," Hunter said. "When it's free, you grab three."

Clothes? Video iPods? Luggage? Johan Santana's dad snatching up everything in sight? This sounds like a great deal for the players, especially some of the lowest paid All-Stars such as Brian McCann ($666,667), Russell Martin ($387,500), and JJ Hardy ($400,000). And of course, Johan's dad.

Big Lady Loves The Steelers

So if you were a compulsive shoplifter, what would you steal? Video games? Movies? Maybe iPods? Evidently the answer is none of the above for one thief in Pennsylvania, who has chosen to make her money stealing tons and tons of Steelers jerseys:

The white woman, described as about 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing between 180 and 200 pounds, was first observed July 2 on security video at the JCPenney store at the mall in Hempfield. The camera caught her placing almost two dozen game jerseys in a large bag and leaving the store without paying, according to state police at Greensburg.

The stolen jerseys were valued at $1,650.


So if you live near Pittsburgh and a 200 pound woman approaches you trying to pawn off a Willie Parker jersey, just know that it is probably stolen. The fun doesn't stop there however, as our Jerome Bettis-sized bandit wasn't satisfied with twenty jerseys; she needed more:

On Sunday, a woman matching the same description was observed by store security personnel entering the store at 2 p.m. while carrying a large shopping bag....

When the woman was confronted in the parking lot by store security, she fled, police said.

When store personnel opened the bag hidden inside the store, it contained 15 Steelers jerseys and bedsheets, valued at more than $1,000.

35 Steelers jerseys? And bedsheets? Again, this woman obviously hasn't seen the re-sale potential of consumer electronics. The best part though, is that she is still at-large. So if you live near Pittsburgh you better hold on tight to your Steelers swag, because there is a big lady coming to get it.

Also On The Docket:
Wang Zhi Zhi Taunts Quentin Richardson (Video)
Eli Manning Talks Smack About Tiki
Treasure Room For MLB All-Stars

Link-Fest

- Everything you ever wanted to know about the other Artest. (DC Sports Bog)

- I would nominate John Jaha for a spot somewhere on the All-Steroid Team. (Sons of Sam Malone)

- Seriously, the Sox have screwed up at shortstop. (Ghosts of Wayne Fontes)

- And finally, Jeanie Zelasko...wasn't paying attention

Tony...What Were You Thinking?

9th inning. Two Outs. Down by a run. Bases loaded. Home field advantage for the World Series hanging in the balance.

Sounds like a pretty good spot to use Albert Pujols right?

Tony La Russa evidently didn't think so, as he elected to let Aaron Rowand take his second at bat with the game on the line. While home field advantage in the World Series doesn't matter much to La Russa and the Cardinals, I am sure fans of the Mets, Brewers, and Padres were sitting at home pulling their hair out over Tony's choice not to have Pujols hit. So was there a method to his madness? According to La Russa, he was trying to protect his team in case the game went into extra innings:

"Once we lost [Miguel] Cabrera and [Freddy] Sanchez, he was the guy we were going to use to protect ourselves in case we kept playing because of Albert's versatility," La Russa said. "I think we had the right guy at bat."

I'm sorry, but that excuse just does not hold water. By that logic, LaRussa would have never inserted Pujols into the lineup unless another player experienced a freak injury in extra innings. LaRussa misses the point of course, that you have to get to extra innings before you can begin strategizing for them.

The bigger problem for La Russa though, is that it is not only fans of National League contenders that are upset with his choice. His star player is as well. After the game, Pujols had the following to say on La Russa's choice to use every other position player except himself:

"It's the All-Star Game. He can do what he wants," Pujols said Tuesday night. "He does whatever he wants. If I wasn't expecting to play, I wouldn't have come up here."

If La Russa was determined to save one player for extra innings, why did he pick his own star player to tick off? And if it was La Russa's strategy all along to save Pujols, shouldn't he have at least given Albert a heads up? A tiff between the manager and the star of the team is certainly not what the struggling Cardinals need right now. The truly odd part of all of this is that La Russa created the situation entirely by himself. No matter how much he attempts to rationalize his choice, La Russa made a bone headed move strategically both in regards to the All Star game and his relationship with Pujols.

Start Your Engines

Today is the first day that NBA free agents can officially sign new contracts. So other than a few deals we already know about being made official, what other storylines are there to follow in the next few days? Here is a look at the current status of some of the top remaining free agents:


Gerald Wallace: Most speculation has Wallace re-signing with Charlotte for a 6 year deal worth in the neighborhood of $60 million. There are persistent rumblings however, that Dallas still has a strong interest in Wallace. The Mavericks have been mentioned in the Wallace discussion ever since free agency began, and for the life of me I can't understand why they are interested. Don't they already have a young and athletic small forward in Josh Howard? Why would Dallas want to bring in another $10 million a year guy just to back him up? Even beyond that however, for Dallas to sign Wallace it would require a sign and trade deal with Charlotte. All signs seem to point to Wallace taking the easy route and taking the long term deal from the Bobcats. The second order effects of that signing would be very interesting to observe in Charlotte, mainly in regards to the future of Adam Morrison. The team just recently brought in Jason Richardson via a trade (signed for the next four years), re-signed SG Matt Carrol to a six year contract, drafted SF Jared Dudley with their 1st Round pick, and are close to re-signing Wallace. What kind of message do those signings send to Morrison after a lackluster rookie campaign? It would seem to me that management might be saying none too subtly that they are ready to cut their losses with Morrison.


Where Does Mo Go?: After Chancey Billups and the Pistons agreed to terms on contract extension Mo Williams suddenly found himself as the best point guard available in free agency. As luck would have it though, three of his potential destinations have dried up; the Lakers took Javaris Crittenton in the draft and then signed Derek Fisher, the Grizzlies took Mike Conley, and the Hawks selected Acie Law. Those moves essentially leave Williams with only two options, one being re-signing with the Bucks to the tune of about $8 million a year, or taking less money to go to the Miami Heat. What his choice essentially boils down to is whether or not he wants to compete for a championship now, which would require taking less money, or if he is willing to stay with Milwaukee through their rebuilding process.


Rashard Lewis is Stinkin Rich: It has just been reported that the Magic and Sonics have agreed upon a sign and trade deal for Rashard Lewis, with Orlando sending Seattle a second round pick. This move will allow Orlando to sign Lewis to a six year deal worth $127.2 million. Lewis will make $25.6 million in the final year of the contract. Read that last sentence again, and then try and tell me this deal is not going to be a disaster for the Magic, especially since it means that they won't have enough money to re-sign Darko Milicic which happens to complicate another situation...


Memphis Wants Your Big Man: One of the more interesting and and least talked about subplots in free agency is the Grizzlies mission to acquire a big man to pair with Pau Gasol. Going into the draft the Grizzlies had two glaring holes in their roster at point guard and power forward, and they wisely chose to address the point guard issue in the draft considering the previously discussed lack of quality point guards on the free agent market. The free agent crop at power forward however, is much more promising. Initially the Grizzlies were rumored to be after Chicago's Andres Nocioni, but the Bulls and Nocioni have since agreed to an extension. That leaves Anderson Varejao and now Darko as the Grizzlies' two main targets. Varejao is a restricted free agent and the Cavs have been saying all along that they will match any offer. So assuming that Memphis does not vastly overpay Varejao in order to dissauade Cleveland (which is in luxury tax territory) from matching the deal, that leaves Memphis with Darko.

Football Video Game Update

NFL Tour...because Madden, Street, Arena, and Head Coach just aren't enough: It seems that EA Sports is adding yet another title to its stable of NFL video games, the newest one being something called "NFL Tour". According to EA's press release (via Kotaku) the arcade style game will suck give gamers a new experience not offered by their current titles:

Gamers will be able to embark on a fictional NFL road show. With real NFL players as teammates, players will travel across the country to play against each of the NFL teams in newly designed stadiums. As players defeat each of the NFL squads, they come one step closer to winning a NFL contract.

So...essentially this is going to be the red-headed stepchild of NFL Street and Blitz? Is that what I'm reading? Maybe it is just me, but I am not too terribly interested in playing a football game that doesn't have a season mode. The real question with this release though, is whether or not this game contributes anything useful to the football video game universe. My money is on no, since it just sounds like a gimmicky version of NFL Street. Too bad the development of this game will likely take some of the programmers away from Roster Update Madden development.

It's coming....: NCAA 08 is set for release in less than a week, and the first question that will have to be answered is whether or not two of the main gameplay problems of recent years have been fixed. Will defensive ends be able to contain...anything? Will wide receivers continue to drop passes at a ridiculous rate? EA has said that both issues have been resolved, but I'll wait and see before I buy that line. The other big question for players (especially online ones) is which teams will be overpowered. The only real guess anyone can make is that Darren McFadden and Arkansas will be nasty, considering the fact that it has already been announced that McFadden will be the only player in the game with a 100 overall rating. My dark horse pick though is West Virginia. Not because of Steve Slaton and Pat White though, but rather because if EA gives incoming freshman Noel Devine an accurate speed rating the Mountaineers will be unstoppable on offense.

If a video game dies and nobody is there to play it...: Releasing on the same day as NCAA will be 2K Sports All-Pro Football 2K8. The plight of the 2K football series is a rather sad one, as it is the technically superior series to Madden yet EA's exclusive license with the NFL has relagated the 2K series to going with the gimmick of making a game featuring solely retired legends. As much as I have enjoyed the 2K games in the past, I just can't see myself putting down $60 for a game just to play as Jerry Rice and John Elway when I can just crank up the 'ole Tecmo Bowl instead. While the game itself may not do well, I do like the commercials for the game.

Link-Fest

Seriously...this is a particuarly good day in the blogosphere. Enjoy.

- The Deuce crew hits you with their second installment of drinks named after athletes. (Deuce of Davenport)

- No joke, I am going to play this bingo game during the All-Star Game tonight. I just have to find someone to do it with me. (Ladies...)

- Who on earth was that guy at the Derby last night with the ugly shirt? (Strike 3 Designs Blog)

- What happened to that Mets bat boy that was going to blow the whistle on all the steroid users? (Our Book of Scrap)

- With Malice sits down with...oh yeah, an Australian Beach Volleyballer. Righteous. (With Malice)

- Pacman Jonesin' has an interview with THE Kige Ramsey, who evidently goes to Western Kentucky University. I had to go their in high school once for a Spanish competition, and let me tell you it is just the strangest campus. It has hills all over campus and the sidewalks wind around like snakes. TMI, I know, but it bothers me to this day just thinking about it. *Shudder* (Pacman Jonesin')

Powerful Supplements

The NFL's Supplemental Draft is being held this Thursday. There are a number of prospects that have declared for the draft, including impressive Maryland OT Jare....

Hey! Seriously, don't fall asleep on me. While many fans view the Supplemental Draft as an inconsequential part of the NFL offseason, looking back at the history of the Supplemental Draft reveals that there really are some diamonds in the rough. Pro Bowlers and even a Hall of Famer have been selected during the other draft. Here is a look at the best players from past Supplemental Drafts.


Mike Wahle, T
Selected: 1998, 2nd Round by the Packers
Pro Bowls: 2005



Jamal Williams, DT
Selected: 1998, 2nd Round by the Chargers
Pro Bowls: 2005, 2006
Career Stats: 237 TKL, 11.5 SK



Rob Moore, WR
Selected: 1990, 1st Round by the Jets
Pro Bowls: 1994, 1997
Career Stats: 628 REC, 9,368 YDS, 49 TD



Bobby Humphrey, RB
Selected: 1989, 1st Round by the Broncos
Pro Bowls: 1990
Career Stats: 2,857 YD, 15 TD; 100 REC, 815 YD, 2 TD



Cris Carter, WR
Selected: 1987, 4th Round by the Eagles
Pro Bowls: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
Career Stats: 1,101 REC, 13,899 YD, 130 TD



Bernie Kosar, QB
Selected: 1985, 1st Round by the Browns
Pro Bowls: 1987
Career Stats: 23,301 YD, 124 TD, 87 INT; 265 RYD, 5 TD

Where Are They Now? Sports Movie Tomboys

If you have watched more than one sports movie in your life, you are aware that the genre has numerous standard conventions that pop up in dozens of movies. Sports movies are filled with plucky youth teams (Bad News Bears, Little Giants, Mighty Ducks), redemption through baseball (Field of Dreams, Bull Durham, The Rookie), and underdog boxers (Million Dollar Baby, Rocky, Cinderella Man) among other conventions. What we are concerned with today however, is the convention in sports movies of precocious tomboy characters. If you just think for a moment I am sure you could think of a number of examples. So what has happened to the actresses that played these tomboys? The answer; they grew up and became hot. (Click on pictures for full size)



The Role: Sheryl Yoast in Remember the Titans
The Actress: Hayden Panittiere
The Aftermath: Panittiere is currently starring in the NBC drama Heroes, and has appeared in numerous films since Titans. She has a reputation as a Hollywood wild child, and taunts the male populous of America with the fact that she is still only 17. To save you the googling, her birthday is August 21st.




The Role: Amanda Whurlitzer in Bad News Bears
The Actress: Tatum O'Neal
The Aftermath: O'Neal went on to have a long career in Hollywood and also established a reputation as a bad girl on the party scene. In 1986 she married tennis star John McEnroe, with whom she had three children. O'Neal and McEnroe divorced in 1992. Most recently she has appeared in a recurring role as Maggie on FX's firefighter drama Rescue Me.




The Role: Connie Moreua in The Mighty Ducks, D2, D3
The Actress: Marguerite Moreau
The Aftermath: After starring in the three Mighty Ducks movies Marguerite has gone on to appear in a number of television shows, including 3rd Rock From the Sun, Smallville, and The O.C. She has also appeared in films such as Queen of the Damned, Wet Hot American Summer, and Runaway Jury. She also has an utterly frightening fansite.




The Role: Julie "The Cat" Gaffney in D2, D3
The Actress: Colombe Jacobsen
The Aftermath: After a few minor film roles Colombe was a contestant on the Food Network's "The Next Food Network Star".




The Role: Becky O'Shea in The Little Giants
The Actress: Shawna Waldron
The Aftermath: Waldron has only done a few movies since Little Giants...but she is really really cute.




The Role: Jules in Bend It Like Beckham
The Actress: Keira Knightley
The Aftermath: Do I really need to tell you what Keira has been up to the past five years?




The Role: Jess in Bend It Like Beckham
The Actress: Parminder Nagra
The Aftermath: Nagra has gone on to star in a recurring role on ER as Dr. Neela Rasgotra for the past four years.

Can you guys think of any others? If so, leave em in the comments.

UPDATE:



The Role: Kimberly Mullen in Ladybugs
The Actress: Vinessa Shaw
The Aftermath: Shaw has been in a number of recognizable films, including Eyes Wide Shut, Corky Romano, 40 Days and 40 Nights, and The Hills Have Eyes.



The Role: Wendy in The Sandlot
The Actress: Marley Shelton
The Aftermath: Marley has been in over thirty movies since The Sandlot, most recently in Grindhouse.

You Might Also Like: An Interview With The Snorg Girl
A History Of Babes In Jerseys

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

Venezuela Is My New Favorite

I wasn't really a big fan of Venezuela's soccer team...until now that is. This camera guy deserves a big raise.

By the way, the video response to this on YouTube is quite hysterical.

Today In The Summer League

The NBA Summer League has a full slate of games today, and as with all of this summer's contests you can catch all the games on ESPN.com via the Summer League scoreboard. Here is a look at today's games:

4:00 P.M. ET: San Antonio vs. Boston (NBA TV)
While the Spurs' Summer League squad is little more than a formality, the Celtics' team has a number of players looking to make the Celtics's NBA roster with a strong Summer performance. Leon Powe and undrafted rookie Brandon Wallace have generated the most buzz for Boston.

6:00 P.M. ET: Detroit vs. Memphis (NBA TV)
The Pistons will be getting a look at their two first round guards, Rodney Stuckey and Aaron Afflalo, as well as seeing if Jason Maxiell is ready to step into a larger role in their frontcourt rotation next season.

8:00 P.M. ET: Golden State vs. Philadelphia (NBA TV)
If you catch any of the games today make sure this is one of them. Golden State's Marco Belinelli looked fantastic in the Warrior's Summer League opener, even fueling some speculation that he might challenge Monta Ellis for the starting SG spot in the regular season. Philly has its own Summer League star in Louis Williams, who put up 32 points in the 76ers first game. If these two players produce games anything like their first performances this game could be quite the shootout.

8:30 P.M. ET: Minnesota vs. New Orleans
The Summer League debut for the Timberwolves will feature a number of recognizable names, as Corey Brewer, Randy Foye, and 2nd Round gem Craig Smith will be in action for Minnesota. For the Hornets it is another chance to see what Julian Wright has to offer.

8:30 P.M. ET: Cleveland vs. Phoenix
After two games the star of Cleveland's Summer League team is Shannon Brown, who has looked very good on offense. Phoenix's Summer League debut will lend some light to two questions. How will rookies D.J. Strawberry and Alando Tucker look in Phoenix's system, and will Marcus Banks ever do anything?

10:00 P.M. ET: Seattle vs. New York
For the Sonics the performance of Kevin Durant and Jeff Green in the Summer League may well take a backseat to Seattle's two centers. These Summer games will go a long way in showing whether or not Seattle will ever get any return on their investments in Johan Petro and Mouhamed Sene. For the Knicks, this will be an opportunity to see what the Knicks might look like in 3-4 years once their bad contracts start coming off the books. Randolph Morris, Renaldo Balkman, Wilson Chandler, Nate Robinson, and Demetris Nichols represent one of the most talented starting fives in the entire Summer League.

Link-Fest

- In case you were wondering what exactly it was Brian Urlacher was texting to the Lord of the Dance's ex-girlfriend...(100% Injury Rate)

- So if it isn't Dan Patrick, which sports figure should host The Price is Right? (Loser With Socks)

- WTB endorses 5 of these 6 selections. (Our Book of Scrap)

- Yet another example of the MSM keepin the blogs down. (AOL Fanhouse)

- Just...wow. (LOL Sportz)

Dead Derby

I'm so excited for the Home Run Derby this year. I mean, who would miss the chance to see Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, and David Ortiz battle it out in a longball shoo....

What?

NONE of those guys are going to be in the Derby?

The Home Run Derby took another step towards total irrelavence this week when almost all of the star home run hitters in the Majors declined to participate, leaving Ryan Howard and Prince Fielder as the two clear favorites in a depleted field. Just how bad is it this year? Alex Rios is participating. Don't worry, I'll wait while you google him....Rios has a career high of 17 home runs this season, and the 26 year old outfielder doesn't exactly exude power potential. The rest of the field also lacks true home run power, as the group of Rios, Howard, Fielder, Justin Morneau, Vlad Guerrero, Albert Pujols, and Magglio Ordonez does not come anywhere near the star power of Derbys of the past that featured the likes of Bonds, Sosa, Griffey, Rodriguez, and McGwire. The contest no longer holds the prestige it did in the mid to late 90's, and that fact coupled with heightened injury concerns after Jim Edmonds injured himself in the contest in 2003 have led to the Derby having to take essentially anyone who is willing to participate, such as non power hitters Pudge Rodriguez, Hee-Sop Choi, and Miguel Tejada in recent years. The big name hitters have decided to take the contest off rather than run the risk of injury.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? Perhaps like the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, which has seen a similar decline in the quality of participants from its peak in the late 80's and early 90's? The same guidelines I advocated for fixing the dunk contest hold true for the Derby. In order to regain relavence the Derby needs to get the big names like Bonds and A-Rod to participate. If that means shortening the number of outs to 8 or 5 instead of 10, or cutting down the total number of contestants to limit the length of the contest so be it. Which would you rather see, this year's field or Bonds, A-Rod, Sosa, and David Ortiz in a four way free for all? The second bit of advice would be that the Derby needs to get the best home run hitters available, regardless of whether or not they are All Stars. Taking out Rios and Ordonez and subbing in Adam Dunn and Gary Sheffield would greatly enhance this year's field both in terms of quality and star power. (MLB could still invite Dunn, since there are currently only 3 NL participants after Miguel Cabrera backed out) If MLB is unable to fix their current participation problem, the Home Run Derby could be doomed to the same fate that befell the dunk contest in the late 90's; cancellation.

UPDATE: Matt Holiday (and his 15 HR) will fill the final spot in tonight's Derby.

Buehrle Must REALLY Love Chicago

Mark Buehrle and his agent had said all along that they would not back down from their demand for a no-trade clause from the Chicago White Sox. In the end however, Buehrle agreed to sign a 4 year, $56 million deal with the Sox which does not contain a full no-trade clause. Instead, the deal has a no-trade clause in the first year alone, and a trade in the second or third season would move his salary from $14 million to $15 million as well as add a fifth season, also at $15 million.

Buehrle's deal raises two questions. First, how much more could he have signed for as a free agent? And secondly, will this contract actually protect him from being traded? To answer the first question let's take a look at Buehrle's performance over the past six years. Buehrle has been remarkably consistent, as is witnessed by the following statistics;

Mark Buehrle
12 Win Seasons: 6
16+ Win Seasons: 4
30+ Start Seasons: 6
200+ IP Seasons: 6

Not only has Buehrle pitched at a very high level, he has added value due to the fact that he is left handed and only 28 years old. To compare, here are the stats in those same categories from the top four pitchers from last year's free agent crop along with their contracts and ages at the end of last season:

Ted Lilly 30, 4 years, $40 million ($10 million per year)
12 Win Seasons: 3
16+ Win Seasons: 0
30+ Start Seasons: 3
200+ IP Seasons: 0


Gil Meche 28, 5 years, $55 million ($11 million per year)
12 Win Seasons: 1
16+ Win Seasons: 0
30+ Start Seasons: 2
200+ IP Seasons: 0


Jason Schmidt 33, 3 years, $47 million ($15.7 million a year)
12 Win Seasons: 5
16+ Win Seasons: 2
30+ Start Seasons: 2
200+ IP Seasons: 3


Barry Zito 28, 7 years, $126 million ($18 million per year)
12 Win Seasons: 5
16+ Win Seasons: 3
30+ Start Seasons: 6
200+ IP Seasons: 6


As you can see, pitchers with poorer results and far less consistencty over the past few years signed deals that were comparable or greater to the one Buehrle just signed. In fact, of the four above pitchers Zito is the most comparable as he was the same age as Buehrle, is also lefthanded, and had almost equal success and consistenct to Buehrle. So if he was able to get $18 million a year, how does Buehrle's contract in light of that fact? If Buehrle had hit the free agent market he would have likely commanded $16-$17 million a year. Proven and consistent lefties are a valuable commodity in baseball, and they are paid accordingly. By signing with the Sox for $14 million a year, Buehrle is likely giving up $8-$12 million over the life of the contract.

From Buehrle's perspective however, giving up that money is worth it if it means being able to stay in Chicago. So will the contract keep him in Chicago? To put it simply; no way on earth. If the White Sox don't improve next season Buehrle will be shipped out, no question about it. Even with the trade kicker, what big market team wouldn't want a 29 year old stud lefty for 4 years and $60 million? At that rate Buehrle would still be at or even slightly below the market value for a left handed pitcher of his age and ability. Buehrle lost big time in these contract negotations, and the money he gave up won't keep him in Chicago any longer than the first year of the contract.

Dice-K is looking like...Tom Glavine

All good things must come to an end, and such was the fate tonight of Daisake Matsuzaka's string of six consecutive quality starts. Dice-K was shelled by the Tigers, giving up six run and ten hits in five innings, including three home runs. While Dice-K and the Red Sox certainly would have hoped for a better start going into the All-Star break, Dice-K's brilliant month of June does buy him a great deal of slack. Another interesting note on Dice-K's performance this season is that his unpredictabilty as a pitcher is not only a rumor, but can be backed up by statistics. To explain, here are Dice-K's out statistics this season; 123 SO, 122 GB, 127 FB. In an age of strikeout specialists and ground ball pitchers it is very interesting that Dice-K has shown the ability to mix up his approach throughout the season. Now, on to the main course. This week, after a bit of a step back, Dice-K is looking like...Tom Glavine.

Dice-K 2007:
W%: .63
QS%: .66
WHIP: 1.24
ERA: 3.84
Salary: $6,333,333

Tom Glavine 2006:
W%: .69
QS%: .68
WHIP: 1.33
ERA: 3.82
Salary: $10,500,000

Introducing...The Yi Meter

When you think about Yi Jianlian's characteristics, a couple of things jump out at you. He is really tall, athletic, and has a very good perimeter shot for his size. When I first heard that description of Yi, three names popped into my head; Dirk Nowitzki, Toni Kukoc, and Nikoloz Tskitishvili. All three of those players fit that same description, yet fall all across the spectrum in how that skill set ended up serving them. Will Yi be an MVP like Dirk? A solid pro like Toni? Or a bust like Nik? From time to time we'll check in on the Yi Meter to see where Yi stands. It will likely be reactionary, and it will unlikely be fair. Enjoy.

For the first installment of the Yi Meter we found Yi somewhere between Toni and Nik territory. Why? Yi did show some scoring skill when he put up 23 points against Memphis in the Summer League, so that points to the hype perhaps being correct on Yi's skills. On the other hand though, this happened:

Getting posterized in a Summer League game, and then getting taunted afterward by the guy? That is a Tskitishvili move if I ever saw one. Therefore, in spite of the 23 points Yi is going halfway between Nik and Toni for this installment of the Yi Meter.

Roger Goodell Cannot Be Pleased

First it was the players. Then it was the punters. Now the latest casualty of NFL arrest-itis is Fox broadcaster Bill Maas. Maas didn't just get pulled over on a reckless driving charge, or some other small transgression. Nope, Maas went all the way Pac-Man style; guns, women, and drugs:

The 45-year-old Maas and a passenger in his Hummer, Sarah J. Murphy, 27, were arrested late Friday by Illinois State Police. During the stop, police indicated Maas seemed nervous, and he agreed to a search of his vehicle.

Police found a .22-caliber revolver, 5 grams of suspected marijuana, 6 grams of suspected cocaine and 28 pills of Ecstasy. Maas and Murphy were charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana. Maas was also booked on a charge of unlawful use of a weapon.

Maas and Murphy are both residents of Lee's Summit MO, so I'll leave it to you to figure out what exactly the two of them were doing 400 miles from home with three different kinds of drugs and a handgun. I'm guessing this isn't the kind of community outreach Maas was involved in when he won the NFL's Extra Effort Award in 1991.

Any discussion of Bill Maas, even this one, would be incomplete without a few of his golden nuggets of wisdom from his broadcasting days with Fox. Here for your enjoyment, via the now defunct No Maas, are some of his better Maas-isms:

"Those neck stingers sting!"
"That look will curl spaghetti around a fork without a spoon."
"More chatter than a dolphin by a fish bucket."
"His hands are like cobras."
”All this talk of men in the box is not about Hannibal Lecter’s lunch pail.”
”The only grass that grows in the desert is called fairways!”

Major League Stats Losers

Most baseball fans would be able to tell you that Alex Rodriquez is the Major League leader in home runs, that Chris Young is the leader in ERA, and that Magglio Ordonez is the best hitter in the league as we approach the All-Star break. What most fans wouldn't know however, is the flip side; the dead last men in each of those categories. So as an All-Star break treat, here is a look at the Major League Stats Losers*:

BA: Julio Lugo, Boston Red Sox
Stat: .189 BA in 296 AB
Everyone knows the Red Sox are stacked this year, but Theo and company can't possibly feel comfortable with their leadoff hitter batting below the Mendoza line. The sad truth is that Lugo is the only SS on the Sox roster, and unless Boston is able to swing a trade Lugo and his $8.25 million salary will continue to be in the lineup every night.

(Side Note: Andruw Jones' struggles this season have been well documented, but for some perspective on just how bad he has been try this one on for size: Lugo is the only qualified batter in the Majors with a lower batting average than Jones' .204.)

HR: Juan Pierre, L.A. Dodgers
Stat: 0 HR in 367 AB
Pierre is the HR chump of the major leagues, with more AB without a homer than any other player. In Pierre's defense, he is not a home run hitter in any sense of the word as witnessed by his career high of three. What should be more worrisome to the Dodgers is Pierre's marked declines in both BA and OBP from his career marks.

RBI: Luis Castillo, Minnesota Twins
Stat: 13 RBI in 292 AB
This is not a new development for Castillo, as he went an entire season in 2000 with only 17 RBI. As the Twins' leadoff hitter he doesn't get too many opportunities to drive in runs, and when he has had the chance he has hit a respectable .283 with runners in scoring position. This is just one of those stats you have to chalk up to being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

SO: Adam Dunn, Cincinnati Reds
Stat: 103 SO in 303 AB
Dunn is no stranger to punch outs, as he has the two highest single season SO totals in Major League history. (195 and 194) What is mind boggling is that Dunn has done nothing to improve, as he is again on pace for 194 Ks. If the 27 year old Dunn keeps up this absurd pace for the next 5 years he will be 3rd on the all time strikeout list by the age of 33.

ERA: Kip Wells, St. Louis Cardinals
Stat: 5.99 ERA
Wells' performance this year should not come as much of a suprise considering the fact that last season he posted an ERA of 6.50 in limited action with the Rangers and Pirates. Wells has only posted a quality start in 4 of his 15 starts this season, and has drifted in and out of the Cardinals starting rotation.

L: Paul Maholm, Pittsburgh Pirates
Stat: 5-11 record
In all fairness Wells also has 11 losses, but for the sake of variety we'll put Maholm here. Maholm hasn't been terrible this season, rather he has performed in the manner one would expect of a 25 year old pitcher on terrible team to perform. He has shown flashes of brilliance (a CG, 3 hit shutout of the Astros) but has been doomed by inconsistency and a lack of run support. (The Pirates have had 3 runs or less in 12 of Malholm's 18 starts)

Stat Loser LVP: Nick Punto, Minnesota Twins
Stats: .209 BA, 1 HR, 15 RBI in 273 AB
While not the biggest loser in any of the three big categories, Punto is the only player with a realistic chance to wear the Triple Crown of Shame. He has the 3rd lowest batting average, 2nd fewest homers, and 2nd fewest RBIs among qualified batters. Simply put, Punto has been the worst regular in baseball this season by a long shot.

*among players qualified for a batting or ERA title

Like A Glove

If you didn't get the chance to see Marco Belinelli's performance in the Warrior's Summer League game yesterday, do yourself favor and head over to NBA.com and watch some of the archive of it. Belinelli was completely nasty yesterday but his stats, although impressive (37 pts, 5 rb, 2 ast), don't do his performance justice. What is lost in those numbers are two things. First, Belinelli was extremely active on the defensive end, and although he only ended up with one steal in the game he was a menace in the passing lanes, deflecting numerous balls and exhibiting great quickness on the defensive end. The second thing that is misleading about those stats is Belinelli's assist total. The only reason that Marco only had two assists was that his teammates missed a number of open shots and also appeared suprised by a number of brilliant long passes made by Belinelli. On four seperate occassions during the game Belinelli made half court passes to wide open shooters that left me stunned. Belinelli did not come in touted as a passer, but his court vision and general basketball IQ appeared to be exponentially higher than anyone else on the court. Belinelli also showed that he is entirely unafraid to shoot from anywhere on the court, as his 37 points came on a wide variety of threes, jumpers, and drives.

What this performance may well signal for the Warriors is that the loss of Jason Richardson might be felt much less than anticipated. Belinelli looked like a natural fit in the Warrior's up tempo transition offense, and his perimeter shooting appeared deadly on Saturday. Belinelli likely won't be asked to start for the Warriors this season, as Monta Ellis and Stephen Jackson will hold down the starting swing positions. What Belinelli will be able to do for the Warriors however, as indicated by his performance Saturday, is provide instant offense and playmaking abilty off the bench as a 6th or 7th man. Belinelli would also soften the blow if the Warriors fail to re-sign Mikael Pietrus or Matt Barnes. Combining the drafting of Belinelli with the Warriors absolute theft of Brandan Wright from the Bobcats, Golden State appears set to maintain their momentum from the playoffs into next season.

The G(m) Spot: No Love For DeShawn

At this point in his career DeShawn Stevenson is known for two things; that he was drafted out of high school, and that he turned down a 3 year, $9 million contract from the Magic last season and instead played for the minumum with the Wizards. What you may not know about Stevenson is that he has started all 82 games in each of the past two seasons and shot 46% from the floor. In fact, his stat lines from the past two seasons have been nearly identical:

2005-2006: 11.0 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 2.0 AST, 10.93 PER
2006-2007: 11.2 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 2.7 AST, 12.92 PER

Not stellar stats of course, but good enough on a team like Washington that doesn't really need too much more scoring with Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler, and Atawn Jamison. As such, the Wizards have offered Stevenson a 4 year, $12 million deal to stay in town. So is this a good deal for DeShawn? To answer that question lets play a little game. Here are the stats for another 26 year old, free agent shooting guard. Let's call him "Player X" for now:

2006-2007: 10.9 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 1.2 AST, 13.87 PER

Pretty close to Stevenson's numbers right? So you would think he would get about the same money, right?

Nope.

Player X is Jason Kapono, and he just agreed to a 4 year, $24 million contract with the Raptors earlier this week, an average of $6 million per season. So is Kapono worth TWICE as much as Stevenson, even though they are the same exact age, have nearly the same stats from last season, and Stevenson in fact has a more consistent track record in the league? The answer is of course no. There is no way that Kapono is worth twice as much as Stevenson. The real question then, is whether it is Kapono that is being overpaid or Stevenson that is being low-balled. To answer that question, lets take a look at yet another 26 year old, free agent shooting guard's stats from last season. Let's call him "Player Y" for now:

2006-2007: 12.1 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 1.3 AST, 14.63 PER

That player is Matt Carroll, who recently agreed to a 6 year, $27 million contract with the Bobcats, which comes out to about $4.5 million a year. So two other players with nearly identical stats to Stevenson, with less starting experience in the league, who are the same exact age as Stevenson, are getting $6 million and $4.5 million a year respectively while Stevenson is being offered $3 million a year from the Wizards. It seems to me that the Wiz probably need to move that deal up to at least the value of Carroll's contract for it not to be an insult to Stevenson.

The Falcons Go East

It is no news flash that the Falcons need help at wide receiver. Any fan that has watched a Falcons game in the past five years could tell you that. So how is Atlanta going to fix it? Well, signing Joe Horn is a good start. Drafting a receiver in the third round of the draft; check. Signing a Japanese kick returner from NFL Europa...Excuse me? Now we're talking:

The Falcons signed wide receiver Noriaki Kinoshita, a native of Osaka, Japan. Kinoshita (pronounced Nor-ee-ah-key Key-no-she-tah) spent the past three years with the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europa and graduated from Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Japan.

Kinoshita, 5 feet 10, 179 pounds, had 909 combined net yards with the Admirals last season, second in NFL Europa. He was the league's fourth-leading kick returner with 532 yards on 23 returns for a 23.6 average. As a receiver, Kinoshita finished with 21 catches for 308 yards and two touchdowns, which was second-best on the Admirals.

Kinoshita would be the first Japanese player to play in the NFL if he makes the team. So will he be able to? Considering he is making the minimum salary, and the Falcons were 26th in the NFL in punt return average, it would seem that he has a decent shot. So Atlanta fans, you know what you have to do; get crackin on those nicknames.

An Interview With Alice (The Snorg Girl)

We have all seen her. We all love her. She is Alice (The Snorg Girl), the undisputed queen of sports blog advertising. She was kind enough to answer a few questions for us, and I must warn you: don't read this unless you are ready to have an even bigger crush on her. She is pretty much awesome.

WTB: First of all, how did you get involved with Snorg? Do you have any future plans with the company?
Alice: I got involved with Snorg through my older brother Rad. He is good friends with the guys that do Snorg Tees and they needed a model and some how my name got brought up to do it and it just kind of went from there. As far as future plans go, I will be modeling t-shirts for them as long as they’ll have me.

WTB: Was it strange the first time you saw yourself in an ad?
Alice: You have no idea. I’ve only seen one once when I was by myself and I freaked out. A few others times I’ve been with my friends when they see it and they make me come over and look at it. The whole thing is still quite strange for me.

WTB: Does Snorg give you a ton of free shirts?
Alice: Of course! That’s the best part about modeling for them. I love t-shirts too so it makes me very happy.


WTB: Do you get recognized in public since you began modeling? Do people at your college know about your work?
Alice: I do get recognized which is so strange for me, I guess I don’t realize how many people see the ad. A lot of people will give me that look like they’ve seen me before but only a few have actually come up to me. People are so nice about it though, it’s so weird to have someone say they are a fan of you. I’m like I just laugh and get pictures taken of me why are you a fan of me?

WTB: What do your friends and family think of your internet fame? Do they give you a hard time about it?
Alice: My friends love that I’m an “internet celebrity”. I mean its fun to have this ad pop up while you’re on myspace, facebook, etc. and say wow that’s one of my friends! One of my best friends from school, Betsy, brags about it all the time to people. It just makes me laugh.

WTB: As a sports blogger I can tell you that you have quite a fan base in the sports blog world. Were you aware of this? And do you read any sports blogs?
Alice: I had no idea actually. I don’t really read any blogs about myself. I did a couple times because I’m not going to lie it can be a real confidence booster when I’m having a bad day but some people are just mean. They say I have a lazy eye and buck teeth. I don’t have a lazy eye my eyes are just huge and as far as the buck teeth go I love my teeth…they are unique. Oh I have also read about how fat I am, I guess it’s not ok to be a model and weigh more than 100 pounds…screw that though I love food!


WTB: Do you consider yourself a sports fan? Are you a fan of a particular team or player?
Alice:I am definitely a sports fan! I am a HUGE Andruw Jones fan. I love the braves, always have, and I have always loved Andruw. He’s one of my top 5 favorite people that I don’t actually know. And of course I am an Auburn football fan as well.

WTB: Did you play any sports growing up?
Alice: I was such a big tomboy growing up. I was playing a different sport every season, and I would play football with the boys on my block. I played soccer for 12 years, tennis for about 3 years, basketball for a couple years, and I was on the neighborhood swim team for a long time as well. I just love playing any sport really. I like ultimate Frisbee and I just recently got into volleyball. I have always been really athletic.

WTB: Yankees or Red Sox?
Alice: I HATE the Yankees so I guess Red Sox.

WTB: What do you see yourself doing for a career?
Alice: I really have no clue. I am a Communications major right now so we will see where that takes me. I could see myself as a sports broadcaster…I would love to be on TV. I feel like there are so many jobs out there I don’t even know about. We’ll see what happens.

WTB: What do you like to do for fun?
Alice: I really like reading. I’m kind of a closet reader. I love reading Harry Potter, and the last book is coming out this month, I’m freaking out. I also really like any kinds of arts and crafts. I need to get back into painting, I love painting. I have the best family and I have a blast just hanging out with them. I have fun friends too, so even if I’m sitting around with them doing nothing we have a good time.


WTB: Are you involved with any clubs or organizations?
Alice: Not really. I was in high school big time. I need to get involved in something I feel passionate about, I already have an idea of some volunteer work I want to do this year.

WTB: What websites do you frequent?
Alice: Mostly just facebook. It’s quite addictive. I like Harry Potter websites too.

WTB: What is the last movie you saw?
Alice: Last move I saw…I watched Home Alone last night. The last movie I saw in theaters was Evan Almighty, I didn’t really like it. But I saw Knocked Up earlier in the summer and it was hilarious, I loved it!

WTB: Finally, the question that could break a million hearts...single?
Alice: Yes actually. I am indeed single. I do like a guy right now but he is being stupid at the moment so we’ll see what happens with that.

Bookmark WTB!
Press [Ctrl + D]

Thursday Free Agency Bullets

- The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the Bulls have offered Andres Nocioni a five year deal worth $38 million. The Grizzlies appear to be their main competition for the forward.

- The Arizona Republic reports that the Suns are expecting Grant Hill to agree to terms with the team today.

- The Denver Post reports that Steve Blake is seeking full mid-level exception money, an amount the Nuggets might accept.

- The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Gerry McNamara is attempting to make the 76ers Summer League team. I have to admit, I'm kind of rooting for the guy.

We're Watching You...

A strange thing happened on Tuesday night in Detroit during a game between the Indians and Tigers. During the 8th and 9th innings Indians reliever Rafael Betancourt fell victim to one of baseball's oddest rules:

That this series carries some extra juice was evident in the bottom of the eighth inning when Wedge charged out onto the field and argued with the umpiring crew after a ball was called on Tribe reliever Rafael Betancourt for not delivering a pitch within 12 seconds (after he receives the ball and with the batter in the batter's box) when nobody is on base. It's a rarely enforced rule, and Wedge's tirade stopped just short of getting him ejected. In the bottom of the ninth, the umpires again called a ball on Betancourt for taking too much time.

After the game Indians manager Eric Wedge accused the Tigers of alerting the umpires to Betancourt's slow delivery, an allegation that Tigers manager Jim leyland flatly denied. So how did the umps know about Betancourt's tendency to have a slow motion? According to the chief umpire from Tuesday night, it is because MLB keeps a naughty list of slow players:

DeMuth said Wednesday that Betancourt is on a list, supplied by Major League Baseball to its umpires, that shows which pitchers and hitters take too much time...

"The players (who take a lot of time) are reported by other crews and evaluators in the stands," DeMuth said. "There are names on this list of batters who constantly take a long time getting into the box. There are names of pitchers who don't immediately go out to the mound for the start of the inning. There are names of pitchers who throw a few pitches in the bullpen after they are signaled into the game. There are all sorts of reasons to get on a list of delaying the pace of the game."

What really gets me about this is that MLB is paying people to essentially spy on players during games to see if they are being too slow. Nevermind the abuse of steroids and HGH in baseball, we need to get those dirty rotten SLOW PITCHERS!!! They are ruining the sanctity of the game!!!

On a more serious note, this particular rule was changed just this year. The rule used to be that a pitcher had twenty seconds to throw a pitch once the batter had stepped into the box, which has now been reduced to twelve. The reason of course behind this rule change, as well as the spies and the slow-mo list, is that MLB is trying to speed up games to satisfy its TV partners who were getting fed up with three hour marathons in recent years. This is yet another example of how MLB only cares about the bottom line.

Home Cookin

You may well have never heard of Vassilis Spanoulis. In case you haven't, he is a little used PG for the Houston Rockets who just finished his rookie season after coming to America from Greece. And if he has it his way, you will never see him in a Houston uniform again, even though he has two years remaining on his contract with the Rockets. What?:

Spanoulis' agent, Miodrag Raznatovic, said he and Spanoulis have told the Rockets 10 times since the end of the season that Spanoulis will never return to play for the Rockets and that nothing would change his mind.

"He told them 10 times, 'I am not coming back,' " Raznatovic said. "In the beginning, it was between him and Jeff Van Gundy. Now it is not. He didn't adjust to the American way of living. 'I cannot survive. I must stay at my home.'

"I've been trying for one month and a half to make them understand. This is crazy. Believe me, he sold everything, his car, his apartment. He is not coming back. I don't understand how they don't understand. He said, 'I cannot live there. I thought I can. I was very happy when I signed the contract. After eight months, 10 months, I don't want a single second more.'

A couple things here. First off, Vassilis cannot sign with any FIBA team while he is still under contract with the Rockets. So for the next two years the Rockets have him whether he likes it or not. Secondly, a story like this combined with the current Yi Jianlian mess in Milwaukee is giving foreign NBA players a bad rap. Both Yi and Vassilis' actions show a complete disregard for the NBA and its rules. They are pretty simple rules too. You want to play in the NBA? You go to the team that drafts you. You sign a contract? You finish that contract. Hopefully these two situations are not the start of a trend, or else David Stern's pet project of global expansion will be going down in flames pretty fast.

It's New Orleans Thank You Very Much

In case you didn't know, the NBA's Summer League starts on Friday. As an extra bonus this year, all 55 games will be available to watch via webcast on NBA.com. So if you find yourself wondering if your favorite team's latest draft picks are any good, or if you are curious about Durant, Oden, and Yi, you should probably give it a look. Especially since you could also get the chance to see something extra special. What you might ask? Well, according to the Summer League website, you will be able to see the rebirth of the Charlotte Hornets. It's like they never left.

Dice-K is looking like...Mike Mussina

Dice-K is proving all of the doubters wrong at this point. The Red Sox young star has shaken off some early season jitters to become one of the best pitchers in the majors in the past month. Dice-K's hot streak continued Tuesday night as he threw 8 shutout innings against the D-Rays while striking out nine batters. Over his past four starts Dice-K has an ERA of .62, giving up only two runs in 29 innings. If Matsuzaka had started his recent hot streak about two starts earlier he would have likely been in the All-Star game, and by the end of the season it could look rather strange if Dice-K is competing for a Cy Young without having been selected for the Mid-Summer Classic. As you might be able to tell by that intro, Dice-K's comparison this week has become substantially better than a month ago when he was looking like a Vicente Padilla clone. So who is it now? To answer that question, Dice-K is looking like...Mike Mussina.

Dice-K 2007:
W%: .67
QS%: .71
WHIP: 1.19
ERA: 3.53
Salary: $6,333,333

Mike Mussina 2006:
W%: .68
QS%: .72
WHIP: 1.11
ERA: 3.51
Salary: $19,000,000

I LOL'D: ESPN Needs Younger Employees

Seriously, ESPN needs to start employing some younger people in their company, if only so things like this do not find their way onto their web pages:





If I have to explain the double etendre to you, you are probably in the same age category as the people that are doing ESPN's website. By the way, my vote is for Diana Taurasi if only because thinking about the other four nominees....

Held Hostage

Hey you.

Yes, YOU.

The one reading this.

I have a little secret for you. You're supposed to hate Barry Bonds. Even more than any of the other accused steroid users that have been in the majors the past few years. More than Sammy Sosa, and even more than Mark McGwire. Bonds is supposed to be epicenter of your moralistic scorn. He has single-handedly ruined baseball, and right now he is pooping on the sacred baseball record books.

Well, at least that is the impression that you would get from watching and reading the media coverage on Barry Bonds the past few years. The media has decided that Barry is a villain, and editors everywhere are just letting unabashed potshots at Barry into stories every single day. A couple of examples. Rob Neyer today wrote this;

I won't bother much with Alex Rodriguez's injury, because apparently nobody's really going to know anything until he gets himself into an MRI machine. Obviously, if he's out for more than a few days, he's probably not going to break Roger Maris' record.

Over at CBSSportsline Scott Miller decided to jump on the bandwagon with this terribly original writing device:

No, the most fascinating development of all -- in either league -- was that San Francisco had to kick its marketing department into high-alert status and paper the house when it came to the resident Hometown Favorite*.

Between the penultimate release of the All-Star voting results and the final count on Sunday, Barry Bonds* made up 119,158 votes on Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano to earn a starting position in what very well could be the final All-Star Game for Bonds* and shove Soriano onto the NL bench.

Just imagine three more asterisks scattered throughout the column and you'll get the idea. The point is, it is both acceptable and downright trendy for the sports media to bash Barry Bonds at every single opportunity. Isn't the main stream media ostensibly supposed to be unbiased and neutral? Shouldn't a neutral media refer to Barry's efforts as a "chase" of the home run record rather than an "assault"? Evidently not, but this week saw something happen that has put a speed bump right in front of the Barry Bonds hate mobile being driven by the media.

The fans told them they were wrong.

Bonds made up a huge margin in the final days of All-Star balloting (119,158 votes behind to be exact) to be named a starter in the Mid-Summer Classic. It is almost comical to see how the media is dealing with this fact. Most are flat out ignoring the story, and the obvious statement that baseball fans don't hate Barry Bonds nearly as much as baseball writers do. Others are trying to explain it away as something else. Check this silly little spin from Miller's column:

Plus, the All-Star Game is being played on Bonds'* personal playground, in the one city in America that remains sympathetic to him.

And yet, until a late surge, he still almost wasn't voted into the game.

So where was all this hate and vitriol last week when Sammy Sosa hit his 600th home run? Why is Jason Giambi, who has actually admitted to using steroids, being painted almost as a sympathetic figure as he heads into his meeting with George Mitchell? The answer is simple. Jason Giambi is a likable human being. Sammy Sosa is a fun loving guy that has always been very cooperative with the media and joked around with them. Barry on the other hand is a recluse. He has never been buddies with the media, and in turn they have turned on him now in viper-like fashion. It really isn't anymore complicated than that. This is middle school style payback. "You stole my brownie, I'm gonna spit on your lunch box".

And yet...

Somehow Barry was still able to be voted into the All-Star game by the fans. How could this be? I mean, isn't he hiking a leg all over the sanctity of the game? Yeah, him, Pete Rose, and Shoeless Joe all are. Those dirty scoundrels. They are the BAD GUYS that the Hall of Fame voters (read: baseball writers) have decided to martyr for the rest of eternity for their variety of sins. Forget that unabashed racists like Ty Cobb and Cap Anson are in the Hall. Or that notorious ball doctoring (read: cheating) pitchers Whitey Ford and Gaylord Perry are in there as well. Bonds and company just are plain old meanies. Booooo!!! I'm gonna spit on their lunch boxes.

Yet somehow baseball fans see beyond all of the media bias. Why? Simply put, baseball fans are a lot smarter than they are given credit for by the media. Perhaps they voted Barry in because, well, he deserved it. And perhaps they recognize that coming out of the Steroid Era in baseball it is utterly foolish to cherry pick a player here and there and label them as the bad guys in this mess, even if it would make them feel better about themselves and satisfy some deep-seated moral fairness complex. Maybe fans just plain get it, that there is no fixing the past and that dumping on a few players isn't going to make the stink of the steroid era go away. That the only way to go forward is to appreciate what is left, because once you start putting asterisks on one record in all fairness you would likely have to strip the majority of records set in the past two decades. As for evidence? Well, there is a lot of circumstantial stuff, a lot of dodged questions, and a lot of freakish photo comparisons. Nothing has been proven though, and as dramatic a change as Bonds and Sosa's bodies have undergone during their careers a similar look at Roger Clemens' physique would be likewise damning if guilt is what you are looking for. (I'm not accusing Clemens, just making a point) There is some hard evidence in all of this though. Barry's selection to the All Star team by the fans shows that he isn't necessarily the hated figure that the media wants him to be, and the media's continued assault on Bonds proves that they are out to get him no matter what. Because he is a bad guy. I'm gonna spit on his lunch box

The G(m) Spot: Magic Sign Lewis

The Deal: Barring a sign and trade, the deal will be a max contract worth roughly $75 million over five years.

For the Magic: To put it bluntly, this is huge for the Magic. Last season Hedo Turkoglu was their starting SF, and to replace him in the starting lineup with an All-Star player makes the Magic an extremely dangerous team in the East. Lewis' perimeter touch and offensive arsenal will take a lot of pressure off of Dwight Howard down on the block, spreading the floor and giving Howard more room to operate. You thought Howard was nasty last season? Just wait and see what kind of havoc he is able to wreak now that teams won't be able to constantly double team him every time he touches the ball. The other shoe that is going to drop in this deal though is that the Magic will have to renounce the rights to Darko Milicic in order for the signing to work under the cap. Losing Darko leaves the Magic precariously thin in the frontcourt behind Howard, but that is obviously a risk they are willing to take in order to get Lewis on board. The Magic might be able to keep Milicic if they are able to convince Seattle to work a sign and trade for Lewis, creating enough space under the cap to retain the rights to Darko.

For the Sonics: I just can't believe that the Sonics thought there was any way that they were going to lose Lewis when they traded Ray Allen. Maybe I am wrong, but the Allen trade seemed to me like the Sonics were sending a message to Lewis that they wanted him to be the star to mentor Kevin Durant. Not to be too terribly harsh but the Sonics better pray to the Lord that Kevin Durant truly is the next great swing player sooner rather than later, otherwise they could be looking at a rough next two or three years. Looking at the Sonics roster, here is what they have; three centers that can be described as projects at best (Robert Swift, Saer Sene, and Johan Petro), three unproven point guards (Luke Ridnour, Earl Watson, and Delonte West), a couple of swing projects (Damien Wilkins and Mikael Gelabale), two decent forwards (Nick Collison and Chris Wilcox), Wally Szczerbiak, and two stud rookies who both happen to play the same position (Durant and Jeff Green). So to recap, no real point guard, no real center, and their four best players play either SF or PF. Eww.

Superman Wants In The D-League

You may not have heard about this, but the NBDL is running a contest where you can send in a video for a chance to win an invite to the NBA Development League Pre-Draft Camp at the end of July. Sounds pretty simple right? Well, as I was looking through some of the videos I noticed one sent in by a user named "dcain". As in, Dean Cain. Yes, that one. Superman Dean Cain wants the chance to play in the D-League. And for your viewing pleasure here is the video that he has submitted:

Here is the catch. The highest rated video gets an automatic invite to the camp. So for the love of all that is good go here and vote Dean up. Because heaven knows there can't be anyone else in this contest that is a better story. I mean, who else is a mix of Steve Kerr, John Paxson, and Bruce Bowen all rolled into one?

You Might Also Like: A Dirty ESPY Award

Your Hot Dog Primer

The Fourth of July means one thing in the sports world. (Besides patriotic baseball swag) It means that it is time once again for the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest. For the past six years it has also meant certain victory for Takeru Kobayashi, the Tiger Woods of competitive eating. A jaw injury for Kobayashi, as well as increased competition, could bring his streak to an end this year. So who will be challenging Kobayashi this year? Here is a look at the contestants in this year's contest, including world record holder Joey Chesnut: (Info from the International Federation of Competitive Eating)

Takeru Kobayashi
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #1
Age: 27
Weight: 160
Why you should like him: You should root for Kobayashi if you like dynasties. Kobayashi is like the Yankees of competitive eating.


Joey Chestnut
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #2
Age: 23
Weight: 230
Why you should like him: Chestnut is the new world record holder in the hot dog eating contest, after having consumed 59.5 hot dogs and buns last month in a regional qualifier.


Patrick Bertoletti
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #3
Age: 21
Weight: 190
Why you should like him: Bertoletti is first person to complete the Sasquatch Burger Contest at Bigfoot Lodge Cafe In Memphis, which requires eating a 4 lb. burger in one sitting.


Sonya Thomas
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #4
Age: 39
Weight: 105
Why you should like her: She is little, cute, and her nickname is "The Black Widow". How do you not like her?


Bob Shoudt
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #5
Age: 39
Weight: 285
Why you should like him: Shoudt is the highest ranked competitive eater in the world that is also a parent.


Chip(Burger) Simpson
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #6
Age: 24
Weight: 200
Why you should like him: Allegedly he has a hot girlfriend. That is good enough for me.


Tim Janus
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #7
Age: 30
Weight: 165
Why you should like him: Also known as "Eater X" Janus is a bit...strange. Don't believe me? Watch the video.


Richard LeFevre
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #8
Age: 62
Weight: 132
Why you should like him: For goodness sakes, the man is 62 years old. How can you not root for Grandpa?


Artutro Rios Jr.
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #9
Age: 30
Weight: ?
Why you should like him: Rios works as a driver for the New York Daily News.


"Crazy Legs" Conti
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #11
Age: 35
Weight: 215
Why you should like him: Dreadlocks. Dreadlocks are just cool.


Dale Boone
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #12
Age: 38
Weight: 303
Why you should like him: Boone enjoys dressing up like Daniel Boone.



Erik Denmark
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #14
Age: 27
Weight: 208
Why you should like him: Denmark ,in additon to being a competitive eater, also has a blog.



Hall Hunt
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #16
Age: 24
Weight: 185
Why you should like him: Hunt is a member of MENSA.



Patrick Philbin
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #24
Age: 41
Weight: 310
Why you should like him: Calls himself "Pat from Moonachie."



Allen Goldstein
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #25
Age: 40
Weight: 195
Why you should like him: His nickname is "Shredder"



Juliet Lee
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #37
Age: 41
Weight: ?
Why you should like her: Lee grew up in China.


Tim Brown
I.F.O.C.E Rank: #47
Age: 27
Weight: ?
Why you should like him: An interview with Brown.

360 Or PS3? Madden Choice Made Easier

With the release of EA Sports' NCAA 08 and Madden 08 fast approaching I have been trying to decide which next gen system to which I should commit my football allegiance. After the Xbox 360 came out a few years back I switched from the PS2, primarily because the graphics were just so much better. Now that the PS3 is out though, I was back to deciding which controller I liked better. Or so I thought that was the only difference. It seems that there is going to be another difference between the 360 and PS3 versions of Madden and NCAA, one that essentially makes my choice for me. From Kotaku:

The PS3, it's a ferocious beast. Which means it's not easily tamed. Not even if you've got a pine chair and your trustiest whip. This ferociousness may be behind EA's and 2K's decision to nueter the PS3 versions of Madden 08, NCAA 08 and APF2K8, which will all be running at 30 frames-per-second. On 360, they'll hum along at 60 fps.

So there you have it; if you go with the PS3 you are going to have to play a graphically gimped version of the football games. Oi. This terribly saddens me mainly because I just wanted something to play on my most expensive paper weight.

Also, hit up the comments if you have an opinion on which is better for football games, the Xbox or PS control scheme. I haven't played one on a PS in quite a bit, so I am just curious to see if their is a consensus either way.

Yi and the CBA

In looking through some of the posts I have seen today pertaining to the Yi Jianlian situation I feel that a clarification of Yi's bargaining position is needed. The first point that needs to be dealt with is the simple question of "How long does Milwaukee have Yi's rights?" To answer that question, here are a pair of excerpts from the NBA's collective bargaining agreement:

Section 4. Negotiating Rights to Draft Rookies.
(a) A Team that drafts a player shall, during the period from the date of such NBA Draft (hereinafter, the “Initial Draft”) to the date of the next Draft (hereinafter, the “Subsequent Draft”), be the only Team with which such player may negotiate or sign a Player Contract, provided that, on or before the July 15 immediately following the Initial Draft (for a First Round Pick), or in the two (2) weeks before the September 5 immediately following the Initial Draft (for a Second Round Pick), such Team has made a Required Tender to such player. If a Team has made a Required Tender to such a player and the player has not signed a Player Contract within the period between the Initial Draft and the Subsequent Draft, the Team that drafted the player shall lose its exclusive right to negotiate with the player and the player will then be eligible for selection in the Subsequent Draft.

Also pertinent to this topic...

Section 5. Effect of Contracts with Other Professional Teams.
If a player is drafted by a Team in either an Initial or Subsequent Draft and, during a period in which he may negotiate and sign a Player Contract with only the Team that drafted him, and either (x) is a party to a previously existing player contract with a professional basketball team not in the NBA that covers all or any part of the NBA Season immediately following said Initial or Subsequent Draft, or (y) signs such a player contract, then the following rules will apply:

(a) Subject to Section 5(b) below, the Team that drafts the player shall retain the exclusive NBA rights to negotiate with and sign him for the period ending one (1) year from the earlier of the following two dates: (i) the date the player notifies such Team that he is available to sign a Player Contract with such Team immediately, provided that such notice will not be effective until the player is under no contractual or other legal impediment to sign and play with such Team for the then-current Season (if applicable) and any future Season; or (ii) the date of the NBA Draft occurring in the twelve-month period from September 1 to August 30 in which the player notifies such Team of his availability and intention to play in the NBA during the Season immediately following said twelve-month period, provided that such notice will not be effective until the player is under no contractual or other legal impediment to sign and play with such Team for the then-current Season (if applicable) and any future Season.

In simple terms what the above sections say i