Friday, July 24, 2009

Hiatus (A Brief one, however)

Due to travel/lack of resources...I will be taking a hiatus until I return to town on August 10th...Don't think I'm ignoring you...and when I return....will be getting big into football...so brace yourselves....enjoy!

Monday, July 20, 2009

Watson crumbles, Roy Halladay, etc.

Still not overly busy on the sporting front...but alas..
  • Tom Watson misses a short par putt....and the British Open title....It came down to the short-to-intermediate putting game down the stretch and Senior Watson couldn't handle it...one of the great golf stories I can remember failed to finish the storybook ending the way that Nicklaus did in 1986 at Augusta....Stewart Cink calmly put his foot to the floor and smashed Watson by 6 shots in their 4-hole playoff...but that's not the story...Watson was fantastic for the game and saved the Tiger-less weekend for the TV....but we all wanted him to win it...
  • Roy Halladay just plugging right along... A complete game 6-hitter despite all the trade rumors... oh yeah...and he beat the best team in the AL in Boston.... he's a horse...
  • The A's and Angels played 10-inning 1-0 game that featured a perfect game into the 7th by youngster Brian Anderson, a 9 inning, 3 hit, 0 ER performance by John Lackey, and a game-winning bomb in the 10th by Bobby Abreu...sounds like a game I should've been watching...
  • Chris Wilcox to Detroit....Not really sure about the fit of that one...but the money (2 years, 6 million) isn't bad to take a flier on him here... I'm still a little confused by their frontcourt rotation of Prince, Charlie V, Daye, and Wilcox...but maybe Wilcox can play some center? 
  • I'm going to need someone to sign Ramon Sessions...
  • I know he catches flack from people in the media (a la Stephen A Smith)...but Rasho Nesterovic is a capable NBA center...and there aren't many of those...get that man a job as well...
More later

Saturday, July 18, 2009

MLB 2nd half predictions, Tiger misses the cut, etc.

Probably the most boring week in sports all year is finally ramping up....but first...here are my quick MLB predictions for the 2nd half....

  • AL East Winner- Boston...deepest team in the league and if they make the Halladay move it'll get ugly (NYY- Wild Card after the emergence of Phil Hughes as their dominant setup man)
  • AL Central- Minnesota- The pitching can only get better (Liriano has been woeful and Baker started a little slow) and they have the division's best run differential....
  • AL West- Texas- I feel like they are right on the brink, and they definitely have a move to be made with their ridiculous farm-system depth... if they get a pitcher, this becomes more secure
  • NL East- Philly- Rollins is hitting now...the only question I have (and anyone else has) is about their starting pitching without Brett Myers...but they are smashing everyone in run differential and have the best lineup by leaps and bounds
  • NL Central- Chicago- I know St. Louis is right there but I feel like Chicago's talent will win out...Milton Bradley will go on that tear where he hits .400 for a month and Soriano will emerge...
  • NL West- LA Dodgers- Best team in baseball this year and Manny is back now... slam dunk of all slam dunks... San Fran gets the wild card based on that ridiculously good pitching staff....
  • Albert Pujols WILL hit 60 home runs....but not more than 65....
  • Albert Pujols WILL NOT win the triple crown....but he'll come in the top 3 in average and win both HR and RBI....
  • Everyone will laugh at the ridiculous Joe Mauer .400 talk...he may hit .360...
  • Dan Haren will have an ERA under 2.00....but won't win more than 17 games because their lineup is so putrid....
That's it for that....to more current issues...
  • Tiger misses the Cut at the British....pretty shocking to me...only his 2nd missed cut in a major in his career (the other being right after his Dad died) so pretty crazy to me.... but he's almost being upstaged (at least to actual golf fans) by the Tom Watson story...the man has been on the senior tour for as long as I can remember...that should be enough to warrant crazy talk about his performance through 2 days...but seeing the way his putter is working is special...
  • The Braves retire Greg Maddux's #31....the best control pitcher I've ever seen...and it's not close...I remember watching him in 1995 when he had the 1.63 ERA and went 19-2...THINK about that....and from a guy without an elite fastball by any stretch....
  • Blake Griffin is impressing everyone at the Summer League with not just his talent but his effort level...that shouldn't shock you...what WILL shock you is just how good Anthony Randolph of the Warriors is... I can't emphasize how crazy the kid's skill set is... he could be an elite player and quick...
  • I can't fathom the LA Lakers letting both Ariza and Odom go in the same offseason...Ron Artest can't possibly duplicate their production...combined with Boston getting KG back, Cleveland being all kinds of motivated, and the crazy rosters Orlando and San Antonio have put together....can't really make the Lakers the favorite to repeat at this stage....
More later...

Monday, July 13, 2009

British Open, Manny Acta fired, etc.

Man, what a slow week in sports....I apologize for the scarcity of posts lately, but once free agency slowed down, sports is at a grinding halt...alas, here I am...
  • First off.... I have pretty minimal interest in the MLB All-Star festivities....America's pastime, the pageantry, etc. etc. blah blah blah... It was already a bad exhibition, and adding the "homefield" for the World Series based upon a meaningless game is probably the dumbest thing I can ever think of in baseball... pointless...It makes me not want to watch a game in which Lincecum and Halladay are pitching against each other...that says something....
  • The British Open is this week...Turnberry is the site...I know nothing about the course...I know nothing about the tournament other than Tiger is the favorite..but I'd still watch if I were you
  • Manny Acta out as Nats manager....The old "throw the manager under the bus" move by management when the team they assembled is so dreadful that there's nothing can be done....awesome....
  • Jarrett Jack to the Raptors...not gonna lie, I don't have any idea what Bryan Colangelo is doing....but I do like Jarrett Jack and Jose Calderon is apparently not a guy who can carry the entire load at the point...
  • I saw some illegal clips of the NBA summer league and stumbled along James Harden...and I really like Ric Bucher's Brandon Roy comparison...probably not as talented, but the lefty has more Roy than Manu in him...he plays at his own pace...always seems in control...probably the most NBA-ready guy in this class outside of Griffin
  • I can't get over Paul Millsap going to Portland...it makes no sense to me whatsoever.....
  • George Hill is way too good to be Tony Parker's backup...let me just say that now....I think he's a top 25 PG in the league right now...he just happens to be backing up a top 8 one...
That's it for now...

Friday, July 10, 2009

Few quick things...

The twitter is going full steam ahead...but coming here for a few thoughts...
  • How is it possible to get a win for a team you don't even pitch for? Ask Joel Hanrahan...he was in line for the win for the Nationals in a rain-suspended game before being traded earlier in the year....well, the Nats won last night...and he got the win...while 1500 miles away...I'd say that's rare
  • Donte Stallworth being released already is a travesty before God and man...
  • Memo to ESPN: I know Lance Armstrong used to matter to cycling and carry your Tour de France coverage...that was before all the steroid allegations and his 3 year absence...he doesn't help you now...in fact, nothing does...cycling is totally dead
  • Shawn Marion to Dallas creates an absolute logjam for them....Josh Howard (who played center in college btw) will in theory be pushed to the 2 (at 6'8) with Marion and Dirk at the forward spots...that's all fine and good until you consider they will effectively be burying JJ Barea (who was a top 6-7 guy for them last year) and they inevitably either must play Dirk at the 5 or slash Jason Terry's (or maybe Howard's) minutes significantly...just doesn't add up to me right now....
  • The proposed Carlos Boozer to Chicago deal is good for all parties IMO....the only way this ends badly for someone is if Utah can't resign Millsap (and they still lose Boozer) b/c Ty Thomas isn't a scorer and couldn't possibly replicate their production....for Chicago? They finally get the post scorer they've coveted for 1/2 a decade in Boozer and Thomas' athleticism can be replaced by either of their top picks...I love it for Portland (pending actually seeing who they would be dealing) b/c Hinrich is a legit starting PG that they haven't had that will take pressure of Brandon Roy and immediately improve them....
That'll do it..

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Bibby Re-Ups....

I'm on record that I would hate this move regardless....but I ESPECIALLY hate it now...

Mike Bibby signs for 3 years/18 million.....yes, the 6 million per is semi-reasonable, I'll grant you that...his open-market value is definitely in that neighborhood....but there are 5 main reasons I dislike this move....

1) 3 years is absolutely absurd for a point guard with declining skills, ESPECIALLY when you just drafted a 1st round PG....
2) Speaking of that 1st round PG, how can you get him enough floor time with Bibby/Crawford/Joe? This has all the makings of an Acie Law burial on the bench....and that can't be justified....
3) You've just signed a point guard who can't push the ball, can't distribute, and may be the worst defensive PG in the entire league right now...So you have 4 guards right now (5 if you count Mo Evans as a guard) and exactly zero of them are distributors....the best passer is Joe Johnson who is also the leading scorer....and Jamal Crawford, Teague, and Bibby are all well-below average defenders (reportedly Teague is flat-out awful at this stage)...
4) Where is the money now? By my calculations...there are still some pretty significant holes on this team....the starting swing position occupied by Marvin Williams is currently open...yes, Marvin is reportedly favoring returning to the Hawks, but if somebody blows him out of the water and the Hawks don't match...that hole is gaping....same for ZaZa Pachulia...he's unrestricted...meaning no matching possibility... and he's the only capable backup to Al Horford OR Josh Smith currently on the roster....that's bad news.....and then there's Josh Childress...still owned by the Hawks...restricted free agent...Milwaukee is interested...but the Hawks are going to instantly match any offer sheet in an effort to engineer a sign-and-trade...needless to say....there isn't a lot of money and there are a lot of holes...
5) Where is this team headed? This move signals a laziness on the part of the ownership/GM by basically bidding to keep a 47-win team together with Jamal Crawford instead of Flip Murray (an upgrade, sure, but an overpriced, minimal one)... You can't pay Crawford $9 million to be this year's Flip Murray when Murray was making 1/5 of that last year to do the same thing (roughly)...I can't wait for the Marvin qualifying offer to round things off for 2009-10 in a stagnant mess...

All in all...I don't hate Mike Bibby...I don't even hate his game...he's a very above-average shooter for the position (maybe one of the top 3-5 in the L), but I dislike the fit...and the length (most of all)....Rick Sund...not on my favorites list...

Sunday, July 5, 2009

McNair, Wimbledon, etc.

Alot going on....
  • I know this is late (mentioned on Twitter @browismyhero) but...RIP Steve McNair...One of my favorite players when he was playing.... dead of an apparent murder...crazy stuff....
  • Roger Federer outlasts Andy Roddick 16-14 in the 5th....16-14!! That's not even a tennis score...crazy match...I didn't see it (sigh) but wow...that's one for the ages...Good to see the only American hope on grass come through with everything he had...
  • NBA Free Agency: Rasheed to Boston ....I can see the upside (a very, very good 3rd big for them) but I think they would've been better served targeting a guy like Josh Childress with their mid-level.... Kidd stays.... Remaining in Dallas for 3 years/25 million....that's too much IMO...just for length alone...you'd have a very hard time convincing me Kidd will be worth 8+ million in that 3rd year....Hedo to Toronto...I mentioned he was going to Portland...whoops...like the fit in Toronto too...Marion was already not a lock to stay and they DESPERATELY need a wing scorer/creator....
  • Tiger takes the AT&T National...yes, his own tournament....it should never be under-stated how good he is at golf...simple as that...
  • MLB All-star voting....I won't rant and rave...the system is flawed (why does every team need an All-star again?)....
More later...

Saturday, July 4, 2009

A Twitter Plug

If you read this blog....head over to my twitter @browismyhero and follow me...it's 99% sports-related so it'll fit right in...

Friday, July 3, 2009

Free Agency Continues, Taurasi, etc.

Just a few things...
  • Hedo Turkoglu agrees to terms with Portland as of this afternoon....Big news as he was likely the most coveted free agent on the market after his opt-out... I'm interested as to the fit b/c of the fact that Portland is pretty wing-heavy with Outlaw, Batum, Rudy, and Roy already....this signals (to me at least) that Outlaw, Batum, or even both could be on the outs...I realize Rudy has said he would like to be dealt (or go back to Europe even), but if they are smart, they'll hang on to him over the other 2 options....
  • Trevor Ariza to the Rockets and Ron Artest to the Lake-show.... Well, it wasn't a trade on paper but literally, these 2 were basically swapped for each other...Ariza is younger and likely a better fit for the Rockets if he plays at the same playoff level we've recently seen...I'm a bit wary of Artest to the Lakers but not from a talent standpoint...he's a great fit basketball-wise b/c he can absolutely lock-down on D, take the pressure off Kobe in that role, and can knock down jumpers...the question is...can they keep a lid on the Ron-Ron volcano? If anyone can, it's Phil...but even if they keep him from exploding emotionally...they also have to deal with keeping him from starting to absolutely jack jumpers...
  • Iverson to the Grizzlies? I'm interested in that because...they have Mayo and Conley alrady...and clearly they have confidence in Conley down the road or they would've gone with a point guard in the draft... and Mayo is their "franchise" guy... so I really don't get it...but he's a valuable asset except I have no idea if they could keep him in a 6th-man type role...
  • Try to explain to me why Boston is going after Rasheed Wallace instead of a swing guy like Ariza or Childress...go ahead...try...you'll fail...
  • The Braves suddenly have it going....and it's about time...4 straight including a sweep over the Phillies (not so coincidentally coinciding with the insertion of Martin Prado at 2B instead of the hapless Kelly Johnson)...the pitching is there and it'll stay there...but if the bats continue, it'll be a dangerous squad...
  • Diana Taurasi cited for DUI... I know you're not hearing about it much b/c it's the WNBA...but she may be the most famous women's player in America...so that's news...
  • Wimbledon finals....Roddick and Federer....there's pretty much no better matchup for the American tennis fan than that b/c Roddick is the only chance...and Federer, is well, Federer...Big for American men's tennis...
More later..

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Detroit Gets Active, An Important Trade, etc.

Couple quick NBA things...
  • Detroit agrees to deals with Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva for 5 years/55 million and 5 years/35 million respectively....Gordon first....I think this is #1) Too much money for a one-dimensional player who is position-less and #2) I don't know where he plays if they bring Rip back....There has been a long-standing rumor that Rip Hamilton and Michael Curry didn't get along...they just fired Curry, assumedly to appease Hamilton, and then they gave $11 million to a combo-shooting guard type...Don't really know the direction....as far as Charlie V...I think that's pretty good value...$7 million is about what I see him getting...he's a talented combo forward who can defend and was fairly huge in the 2nd half last year for Milwaukee with both Redd and Bogut out...
  • The Clips unload Zach Randolph to Memphis for Quentin Richardson....This is huge in 2 senses....#1) It clears the way for Blake Griffin to start right away at the 4....That can't be undersold b/c it was looking like Griffin would be stuck in a logjam up-front...and #2) Randolph was on the books for 2 more years at a total of 33.3 million dollars....and Richardson is only making around $9 million for one year...that's a coup for the Clippers in what is a blind salary dump, but it gets them out of that horrendous mistake of getting Randolph in the first place, and enables them to have 2010 FA money (in an attractive market, even if it IS the Clippers)
More later..