I’m not usually a fan of public trade demands, but this one was neither public, nor a demand. Oswalt, or his agent to be exact, asked Astros owner, Drayton McLane to be traded recently. This isn’t your typical problem child trying to pass blame on his organization. We’re talking about a standup guy, a real quality player here. Oswalt is in his 10th big league season with the Astros and has done nothing but anchor their rotation for the entire decade. He has a career record of 139-76 and a 3.21 ERA. He’s got an NLCS MVP under his belt, is a three-time All-Star, and has finished in the top 5 in Cy Young voting 5 of his 10 seasons. You don’t hear much from him, which is a good thing. But the guy’s 32, and his team is clearly on the fast track to nowhere. It’s time for Houston to let him go to a contender for the latter part of his career. GM Ed Wade says he wants to win with Oswalt on the team. Clearly that isn’t going to happen this year. Houston has the second worst record in baseball, and the worst in the National League. When a veteran who is your best player wants out, it’s time to honor that request. Oswalt ranks 5th in strikeouts, 7th in innings pitched, and 10th in ERA in the National League. All nine of his starts have been quality starts, yet he has a 2-6 record, thanks to the lowest run support in the NL. Memo to McLane and Wade….. your team isn’t going anywhere this year, or the next to be precise. Don’t hold the guy hostage. Again, this is very atypical coming from me, but I think Oswalt has kept himself in line for a solid decade and has done nothing but go out and play the game. If he wants to be somewhere else, you’ve got to honor that request. I swear none of this has to do with Oswalt being on my fantasy team. I’d love to see a few more W’s to go with his otherwise stellar numbers – don’t get me wrong. I just think some solid prospects would be a lot more beneficial to the Astros’ future than Oswalt is. Poor Roy is getting Munsoned down there in Houston and he really deserves to be somewhere else…. like, say,…. Oakland.
Well, another rigged NBA Lottery is in the books. To no one’s surprise, two East Coast franchises leapfrogged the likes of Minnesota, Sacramento, and Golden State. Fans across those three cities are moaning and groaning while Wizards and Sixers fans are wondering how they got such good luck. Fortunately, the two best rookies from last year’s draft ended up in Northern California despite David Stern’s best (or worst, depending on how you look at) efforts. No need to worry Kings and Warriors fans. The two best players came at picks number 4 and 7…. No reason to think they can’t come at the 5th and 6th position. Let’s break down how this year’s draft is going to pan out….
1. Washington Wizards – John Wall – Part of me thinks that the late Abe Pollin made this happen from up above. The other part of me thinks Stern did this from down below. At any rate, the Wizards will win the John Wall sweepstakes, but it’s not going to change their fortunes. This franchise has found a way to lose under any circumstance. They had a solid core with Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison, and Caron Butler and still managed to be a lottery team. This year, they’ll try to ease Wall along, if only to keep Arenas happy. John Wall will go on to have an Antonio Daniels like career and the Wizards will be back in Secaucus next year….and the year after that….and the year after that.
2. Philadelphia Sixers – Evan Turner – Evan Turner is the consensus #2 pick, but his game is strikingly similar to Andre Iguodala. He’ll also fight for playing time on the wing with Thaddeus Young. In the end, the Sixers will keep Turner on the court to try and prove that they drafted better than last year with Jrue Holiday, and they’ll miss the playoffs once again. I’m setting the over/under on Evan Turner’s rookie season right at, let’s say, Corey Brewer.
3. New Jersey Nets – Derrick Favors – The Nets have a solid 1-2 in Devin Harris and Brook Lopez. Therefore, they look to the wing and select Derrick Favors. Problem is, no one’s really sure that Favors really likes playing basketball. Prediction: Favors and Terrence Williams still make little to no impact on the Nets in 2010-11.
We’re only one game into each series. Technically, game one isn’t even over in Los Angeles, but watching Jason Richardson and Louis Amundson fight with each other for a rebound en route to a 26 point deficit five minutes into the fourth doesn’t really spark much optimism. The Lakers are headed to dominant defeat of the Suns in the opening game of the Western Conference Finals, and we all know what happened in the first game of the Boston-Orlando series. The Conference Finals look like nothing more than a formality at this point. Sure, a lot of people are convinced that the Magic made proper adjustments in the second half against the Celtics and appear poised to strike back in game two, but I’m not convinced. Granted, I didn’t catch game one due to my watching the Amgen Tour of California ride down the Auburn streets that I used to stomp on in my younger days, but it’s clear the Magic just can’t match up with a more driven Celtics team. Everyone thinks the Magic will adjust their game plan, but what’s to say the Celtics won’t. The Big Three know that the window is closing; meanwhile, Rajon Rondo is busy establishing himself as one of the premier players in the league. I’ll be the first to admit I was a huge Rondo doubter coming out of Kentucky. I thought he’d be nothing more than a role player at best. But four years later, I’m ready to give the kid his due. I’m sorry, but 29, 18, and 13 in any game, let alone a pivotal postseason game, is enough to convince me that he’s for real. I was all but ready to post about Rondo last Sunday had it not been for Dallas Braden’s perfect game. As stacked as the Magic are, they simply won’t be able to outlast the Celtics this time.
Back to the West Coast, it seemed like Phoenix would at least be able to hang with the Lake Show. After watching this debacle tonight, I’m not so sure. The Suns have the same problem they seem to have every year. They’re talented, they can run, and they have plenty of firepower, but they just don’t have the drive and competitiveness. The Lakers are simply to big and even too fast. There’s no debating that Amare Stoudamire is a beast down low, but no combination of Suns can stop the trio of Gasol, Bynum, and Odom. It might be a different game in Phoenix, but they’ll likely be down 0-2, so they’ll be lucky to head back to Southern California with anything better than a 3-1 deficit. Thus, it seems pretty much inevitable that we’re going to see a Boston-LA rematch of the 2008 NBA Finals. Boston got the best of LA last time, but the Lakers are clearly better. Can we really say the same about the Celtics? I’m not so sure.
I may not be the biggest fan of the NBA these days, but the history is, well, amazing. You’re bound to see some classic buzzer beaters that you may or may not remember. Of course there’s plenty of Jordan included, but it’s shots like Dana Barros’s that stand out in my memory. The catch and shoot inbounds play will forever be cemented in my history. The Chuck Person game winner in Sacramento also stands out. I was chosen to shoot two free throws to win free bottles of water for my whole section. Unfortunately, I failed to deliver in front of a capacity crowd, but nonetheless, I’ll never forget that buzzer beater.
The 209 hasn’t gotten this much love since Celly Cel’s 1998 heater, “The Bay”
Last week, Dallas Braden was only known outside of Northern California as the guy who called A-Roid out. The guy who has accomplished nothing in his major league career, but was blasting one of the game’s highest profile stars in the media. Many outside of the Bay Area simply shook their heads saying, “who is this guy to call out A-Rod?” But then, to the surprise of everyone, Braden comes out and throws just the 19th perfect game in the history of baseball, and the ultimate “what now” to Rodriguez. A-Rod’s last comments were that he didn’t want to extend Braden’s 15 minutes of fame. Well, Braden’s going to have more than 15 minutes now. He accomplished the rarest feat in all of sports, something A-Rod will never do. Sure, Rodriguez tied Frank Robinson on the all-time Home Run list, but you can win $2 on a lottery ticket 500 times and it doesn’t stack up to winning the jackpot. Here’s a rundown of all the publicity Dallas Braden is garnering now….
Normally I wouldn’t piggyback on Chappy’s post on the same subject, but today’s gem by Dallas Braden is just too significant on too many levels for me to pass up. The obvious part is that he dons the green and gold. I’ve been a lifelong A’s fan and this is the first perfect game by an Athletic in my lifetime. The only other one was Catfish Hunter’s in 1968. It also helps that Braden has been making a lot of noise in the media as a result of his encounter with Alex Rodriguez. While most baseball traditionalists agreed with Braden’s sentiments, many others were asking, “Who is Dallas Braden?” Even A-Rod dusted off Braden’s objections because he “only has a handful of wins.” I get that, but it doesn’t matter who you are at that point. I was hoping that Braden would have a good season to back up his comments a little bit, but I never could have begun to hope for this. I’m pretty sure everyone in baseball knows who he is now.
What many people don’t know – or at least didn’t before today – is Braden lost his mother to cancer in high school. So, to accomplish this feat on Mother’s Day is an amazing tribute. Though, while she wasn’t at the stadium to witness it today, his grandmother was, and he shared an emotional hug with her in front of the dugout after the game. He also had the support of his usual Stockton contingent, or section 209, which is also the area code of Stockton.
Dallas Braden was never supposed to be a factor in the big leagues. He was a 24th round draft pick of the A’s in 2004. I remember seeing his major league debut in 2007. I thought, who is this guy with the flat bill on his cap? He won his first decision, but finished the season with a 1-8 record. When I moved from the Bay Area to Sacramento in the middle of the season, Braden also was sent down to AAA-Sacramento. He wasn’t exactly dominant, but he did show signs of brilliance, in particular when he struck out 17 batters in a game late that season. Over the next season, he looked like he was going to be mired in the minor leagues for life, but he kept working, and there’s one thing you can say about Braden, he’s all business on the field. As a result, Braden has proved over the course of the last season and a half that he belongs. Today though, he proved more than that.
I wasn’t THAT into Marble Madness, but it sure was challenging. I never had the patience for it. This guy, though, puts us all to shame. This has to be one of the greatest video game performances I’ve ever seen. I hate to think how many hours this fellow wasted to perfect his game, but you know what? It paid off for this exhibition of world-class marbling….
Two seasons ago, the Chicago Bulls, to the surprise of many, announced Vinny Del Negro as their new head coach. The media knew it was a questionable hire, the fans knew it was questionable, and I knew. There are certain players in the game today that announcers will say, “he’s going to be a head coach in this league when his playing days are over.” I don’t remember anyone saying that about Vinny D. Somehow though, he managed to convince the Bulls he was the right man for the job. In two seasons, though, he has won over a lot of the basketball community – not necessarily for his success on the court, but in large part due to the animosity he has dealt with during his tenure. The Bulls were in rebuilding mode. They were coming off a 33-49 season, but they had reason for optimism with the arrival of #1 draft pick, Derrick Rose. They also had a solid core of young players in Joakim Noah and Luol Deng, among others. In his first season at the helm, Del Negro took the team to the postseason with a 41-41 record and ultimately took the defending champion Boston Celtics to the full seven games in their opening round series. Despite all that, Del Negro remained on the hot seat in which he was firmly planted very shortly into his career. The team clearly was on the ascent though, as no one expected them to make that much noise in the playoffs. This year, it was no secret that management was waiting for any excuse to can him. Still though, he led the team to another .500 season, but this time only managed one win against the top seed Cleveland Cavaliers.
Now that the team has gone out on a losing note, John Paxson and co. finally had an excuse to relieve Del Negro of his duties. Regardless of his success, or lack thereof, many fans are in agreement that Vinny was a bit shafted in his tenure in Chicago and was never really given the freedom to succeed. Kelly Dwyer of Yahoo Sports begs to differ, but that’s nothing really out of the ordinary. I just don’t know who could do a better job with that squad. Sure, Derrick Rose is a nice centerpiece, but are the Bulls really a contender? John Calipari has already reportedly expressed interest, but we all know what happened in his last NBA endeavor. Do I think Del Negro is the best head coach out there? Certainly not. Do I think he did an admiral job considering what he had to work with? Absolutely. There are two things I know about Vinny D…..
He once lifted me up so I could dunk a basketball at Arco Arena during his days a player in Sacramento
He likes to walk around the locker room naked, according to former teammates.
What does this have to do with coaching? Absolutely nothing. I just had to share those two tidbits about Vinny and likely wouldn’t have another chance to do so. While I hope he gets another shot at the helm of an NBA team, I’m also hoping neither of my local franchises are looking for a new coach. The Kings seem pretty content giving Paul Westphal another year to try and improve on an overachieving 2009-2010 campaign, but the Warriors I am worried about. Many feel that Don Nelson checked out a while ago, and now that he has the all-time Wins record, one can only imagine what he will decide this offseason. Here’s hoping Vinny gets another shot, but just somewhere else.
Things are a little slow over here at Doin Work this weekend. But when all five of us call California home, it’s a little difficult to sit at home on the computer when it’s 81 degrees and sunny outside. Although that’s just me… Chappy’s down in LA where it’s 69 and Tony, Dre, and By are in a brisk 59 degree San Francisco day. Nonetheless, sometimes there’s just too much going on to blog about the playoff games we all saw. Lebron showed he expects to have little trouble with an aging Celtics team. The Hawks nonchalantly dismissed the Bucks from the postseason. And, the Lakers gained the upper hand in their series against the Utah Jazz. But no matter how busy you are, everyone’s got time for a little music, and no matter where you live, chances are you have that one radio station that plays nothing but old school jams on Sunday nights. Consider Doin Work that radio station for this time and place….
A couple weeks ago I got to take part in a little spring training for the upcoming wiffle ball season. In case you missed it back in December, Golden Stick Wiffle Ball League is expanding into Northern California next year. Here’s some highlights courtesy of Tony Wagoner. I’m the guy taking all the called strike threes looking, but make no mistake about it, those other guys are some ballers. There’s some filthy stuff here.
If you’re in Northern California – from Santa Cruz to Alturas, Crescent City to Visalia – check out www.wifflebawl.com for more information on tournaments, leagues, etc.
It may not be a secret, but chances are you heard it here first. Not that it’s tremendously unpredictable, but Tyreke Evans will be presented with the NBA Rookie of the Year trophy on Thursday. Today, the Sacramento Kings issued a press release announcing a “Major NBA Award Presentation” tomorrow. Unless Carl Landry is winning the MVP, one can only guess what this press conference entails. Unfortunately, this writer will be unable to attend the press conference due to other work obligations, but this announcement comes as little surprise to anyone on this panel. Evans became just the fourth player in NBA history to average more than 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in his rookie season, joining the likes of Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan, and Lebron James. It is truly an honor well-deserved. Congratulations Tyreke on a great rookie campaign.
This isn’t exactly breaking news, but former Warriors owner, Franklin Mieuli, passed away at the age of 89 on Monday. Chances are you’ve never heard of him, but you’re probably aware that the Golden State Warriors’ fan base is not particularly enthralled with their current owner. That makes the news of Mieuli’s passing that much more sad. He owned the Warriors for 24 years, from 1962 to 1986 and remained loyal to the franchise to this day. He actually was largely responsible for moving the franchise from Philadelphia to the Bay Area. He was commonly seen at W’s games and remained a season ticket holder. You’d recognize him by his signature hats. It’s too bad he didn’t get to see the W’s return to their glory days, but I’ll bet that memorable run in 2007 was a decent consolation. If nothing else, he at least was able to capture an NBA Championship in 1975 as owner of the team. Thank you, Mr. Mieuli, for all that you’ve done for this franchise. Hopefully someone else can take it back to where you had it.
Nostalgia and sports sometimes seem to go together like walkoff homeruns and head rubbing. There’s nothing like thinking back to yesteryear, when things that don’t exist anymore existed. You might see a little more of this in my next post. But today, I was driving behind an SUV with a Houston Oilers license plate frame and it got me thinking about franchises I miss. Note that not all of these franchises are technically defunct – many of them simply moved. But as anyone who reads this blog knows, an Oklahoma City Thunder is nothing compared to a Seattle SuperSonic. Because where would we be without “I had the booze, she had the chronic, the Lakers beat the SuperSonics.” ?
5. Quebec Nordiques – Sure, they technically still exist as the Colorado Avalanche, but in their day, few teams could challenge the Nordiques for the least threatening logo and color scheme. Still, the old days of Joe Sakic and Jocelyn Thibault are something to remember.
4. Montreal Expos – Funny how two of the top 5 defunct franchises are based in Quebec, Canada – a place not often associated with sports. But many of baseball’s greats have come through the Expos’ system. Though mostly a breeding ground for major league prospects, the Expos finally seemed to be putting together a perennial contender, but the strike season of 94 cut short a campaign in which a stacked Montreal squad was forced to surrender a 74-40 start, which many believe led to the ultimate demise of the franchise.
3. Hatford Whalers – It’s odd that two of the top five teams here are hockey teams, but the Whalers make this list for one reason and one reason alone: Brass Bonanza. It still perseveres as one of the greatest sports anthems of all time. If anyone out there in the marketing world is looking for a new campaign, it should center around this classic tune. It’s been thirteen years since professional sports were played in Hartford, somebody needs to at least pick that song up.
2. Houston Oilers – I know the Titans are still the same franchise, and I know Houston has a football team of their own now, but it’s not the same. I can’t watch old highlights of Earl Campbell and Warren Moon without wishing those uniforms were still around. They might challenge the Nordiques for that least threatening logo title – it must be the baby blue and red – but why isn’t anybody suggesting that the Texans reclaim the Oilers’ name?
1. Seattle SuperSonics – I actually hated the Sonics for most of my childhood, mainly because they frequently dominated the Western Conference. But, as we’ve said over and over again here, it’s just not the same without pro basketball in the Emerald City. Seattle just has so much more character than Oklahoma City. They may have a nice thing going with Durant and Westbrook in Oklahoma, but they’ll never touch the duo of Kemp and Payton. Besides, every league should have a team donning the green and gold. NO team should be rocking sky blue and orange. That’s just ridiculous.
From the Los Angeles Times – Actor Randy Quaid and his wife were booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on Monday afternoon on felony charges connected to their alleged failure to pay a hotel bill, authorities said. Quaid and his wife, Evi, had previously failed to appear in court on felony charges of defrauding an innkeeper, burglary and criminal conspiracy, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department said. Both were booked in lieu of $100,000 bail, which they posted. The couple left the jail complex about 4:30 p.m. Monday, the department said.
This is too bad. Randy Quaid is three times immortal in my book. First, he became an instant legend in his role as Uncle Eddie in the National Lampoon’s Vacation series. Third, he played Ishmail in one of the Top Two bowling films of all time, Kingpin. Sandwiched in between those two landmark roles was a smaller part but just as legendary. Quaid portrayed a die hard Cleveland Indians fan in Major League, and anyone associated with that movie in any way is all right in my book. I’m not sure how they managed to rack up so many felony charges for simply neglecting to pay a hotel bill. They should’ve gotten it free in the first place. If the weirder Quaid showed up at my Inn, I’d gladly give him a place to stay. You can’t just let Randy Quaid get munsoned out in the middle of nowhere!
(Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
Sunday featured a full docket of NBA Playoff games to keep fans busy. I’m a little over 7/8 of the way through the quadruple header, and I’m going out on a limb to assume the Jazz will hold on to their 20 point lead at the time of posting. First, Miami was able to stay alive thanks to the heroic effort of Dwyane Wade. I got a sense of overexposure dating back to the Heat’s last Championship run – Wade was everywhere and got all the calls. But now that his team is a lower seed again, I’ve come to appreciate, once again, the will and ability of one of the game’s great players. D-Wade single-handedly took over the fourth quarter with a barrage of clutch baskets. He finished with 46 to make sure the Heat held on to this one to send the series back to Boston for at least one more game.
In Chicago, the Cavs ran away from the Bulls despite a monstrous effort from Joakim Noah. I had all the doubts in the world about this kid coming out of Florida. I didn’t see him ever becoming anything more than a role player, but today, he was the Bulls best player on the floor. Noah put up 21 points to go with 20 rebounds, and repeatedly came up with big buckets when other Bulls couldn’t. Problem is, too often were the times no one else could come through. On the other side of the ball, Lebron James was dominant once again, posting his fifth career postseason triple-double with 37 pts, 12 reb, and 11 ast. Mo Williams chipped in a couple huge three pointers and finished with 19.
In San Antonio, the 7th seed Spurs took a stronghold on their series with the Mavs, notching a 92-89 win to send the series back to Dallas with the home team in a 3-1 deficit. George Hill had a breakout game with 29 points to lead the way for the Spurs. The Mavs meanwhile looked like the same familiar disappointing team that continually fails to show up in the postseason. Jason Terry led a respectful comeback attempt, but the Spurs showed that they’re still the better team when the games mean something.
There’s still a lot of basketball left to be played in Utah, but barring a miraculous fourth quarter, the Jazz look poised to take a 3-1 lead back to Denver with three chances to close out the series. Deron Williams is building upon his legacy, further cementing his status as one of the top point guards in the league. Also, Carlos Boozer is showing that he can still be a dominating force in the post, something that teams with cap space will certainly be looking to add to their roster in the upcoming offseason.
me, but I think Oswalt has kept himself in line for a solid decade and has done nothing but go out and play the game. If he wants to be somewhere else, you’ve got to honor that request. I swear none of this has to do with Oswalt being on my fantasy team. I’d love to see a few more W’s to go with his otherwise stellar numbers – don’t get me wrong. I just think some solid prospects would be a lot more beneficial to the Astros’ future than Oswalt is. Poor Roy is getting Munsoned down there in Houston and he really deserves to be somewhere else…. like, say,…. Oakland.
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Doin Work 
