This video is making the rounds in cyberspace right now. Check out the Brandon Spikes of women’s college soccer….
Category Archives: Sports
Did Iranian Gov’t Forbid Hamed Haddadi From Playing Against Kings?
On Monday, many international basketball media were reporting on the anticipated matchup between Grizzlies’ center, Hamed Haddadi, the NBA’s first Iranian player, and Kings forward Omri Casspi, the first Isreali-born player in the league. What HASN’T been reported on, however, is the fact that Haddadi was a no show for the game. I was in attendance on Monday in Sacramento, and quickly noticed that Haddadi was not present. I didn’t think anything of it at the time, as Hadaddi is frequently on the inactive list for Memphis. I figured he stayed home for the road trip. Last night, though, I was at Oracle Arena for the Grizzlies’ game against the Golden State Warriors, and Haddadi WAS present. SO, does this mean he was told to stay away from Arco Arena?
Did Iranian Government officials send this guy to yank Haddadi off the court?
Doin Lines Week 9
Last week was good to get out of the way! The teams that had been covering all season (Indy and New Orleans) finally let me down. Oh well, I’m sure they could care less that their undefeated streak vs. the spread was broken. I had a really hard time last week flip flopping on my choices all the way up to game day, and this week looks like I might be having more tough decisions again. I went 2-4 and now am 20-22-1 on the year. You know how there are people that smell so bad that you can almost taste their awfulness? That tasty smell are the teams that have a week 9 bye; Oakland, Cleveland, Buffalo and St. Louis. What makes this week even more interesting is that there are a lot of 10+ point spreads with the mentioned teams sitting it out! I guess that shows you the parity in the league this season. As usual the home teams are in bold.
Cincinnati (+3) Over Baltimore
Carson's been with Chad long enough to understand him... Or not!
The cardiac cats always seem to be in very tight games whether they end up pulling out the W or having a heartbreaker. Baltimore played an inspired game last week blowing out the Broncos and showed that they are still the force that many people put as the best team in the league early on. Baltimore seems to have a hard time putting in efforts like that in back to back weeks, so I see this being a close one. Cincy showed some promising flashbacks from that very explosive offense they had a couple of years ago. I don’t see Palmer and Benson having that same kind of success they had against the Bears, because this Ravens unit is better. It does look like their offense is rejuvenated, and with the presence of a running game they can move the ball late to tire out the elders on the Baltimore D. Since the Bengals are at home it’s tough for me not to take the points, especially since I could see them winning outright!
Atlanta (-10) Over Washington
Washington is arguably the worst team in the league, and I doubt they have enough in them to pull out any kind of upset on the road or even have enough defense to keep this one close. Atlanta is coming off a short week, but who cares when you get to play a team that can’t seem to do anything right. Matt Ryan and Gonzo should shred the middle of this defense all day long. If Zorn was a brand, he should probably start looking for a bailout plan. It’s been so bad in DC that the fans aren’t even allowed to bring in signs that make fun of this pathetic team. If I wasted my money to go watch my team lose games, I would demand the right to bring whatever sign I want into the stadium! I forecast Atlanta going up big early, and heavy doses of Turner throughout the second half.
Announcers talking about Brett Favre on Minnesota’s Bye Week (-50) Over the amount of coverage the Rams receive for the rest of the season.
I mean this line is self explanatory, but I would seriously bet on this! This would be exclude plays and mentions of the Rams defense getting shredded against a good team!
Green Bay (-10) Over Tampa Bay
Ah, we move onto the only team left that still could match the Lions amazing winless record. The Bucs haven’t really shown that they even want to be out there on Sundays, and especially don’t show up against any team that is deemed competent. I wonder if you’ll be able to hear Packers fans in the stands since there’s no way this one will be sold out. Tampa does have an amazing crop of cheerleaders though, so fortunately Rachel won’t be the only one we see this season! It could very well be a fantasy firework show from Aaron Rodgers who has put up big numbers against some of the best of defenses in the league, and going up against one of the worst I foresee a 5 TD day. I bet the Packers D might even out score the Bucs in this one.
New Orleans (-13) Over Carolina
I was disappointed to see the Saints not cover last weekend. I guess it was the opposite of the week before where Sharper snagged a pick 6 to cover with two minutes to go. This weekend, Atlanta scored in the last two minutes to cut the lead to 8 which killed the beating the spread hope, oh those Vegas guys always get you back (shaking fist in the air)! It was easily the Miller Lite disappointing moment of my Monday. New Orleans has proved they are good at two things. Scoring points, and putting pressure on opposing offense and making them make mistakes. Carolina’s offense just happens to have Jake Delhomme, who is turning the ball over like Matsui getting RBI’s. NOT a good thing going on anytime they are trailing, so I see no reason to doubt that the Saints will have neutralized the Panthers running game by being up by 21 at the half and forcing them to put it in Delhomme’s hands.
San Francisco (-4) Over Tennessee
I don’t really like this pick that much, but since the Niners held Indy in check I don’t see any reason that they can’t take the Titans down during their miserable season. The SF offense has looked a little better as of late with Alex Smith taking over. The emergence of Crabtree last weekend coupled with Vernon Davis’s breakout year it has to mean only better things are in store for them! Having some threats will even open up some more room for Frank Gore to run, and maybe give him a little less wear and tear so he can stay in the lineup. Tennessee has officially fallen into the crappy team section, which confirmed my preseason thought that they were a fluke last year. A Kerry Collins led team is never the way to go! They finally figured that out and threw Vince in there, but it doesn’t seem to matter at this point. The only thing exciting about them is Chris Johnson.
Philadelphia (-3) Over Dallas
This should be a good one. I think it all comes down to Romosexual and whether he shows up or not. The Cowboys are so reliant on him, it’s pathetic. Any game he plays bad in they never win. In the always unfriendly City of Brotherly Love, I have my doubts of him settling down in this one. Frank Drebin, I mean Wade Phillips is lucky anytime they are successful. He doesn’t put them in good positions to succeed, but just gets plain lucky. On the other side Philly looks about as good as they ever have. Team chunky soup was supposed to be explosive because of Westbrook and Vick, and Brian has been in and out and Vick is ineffective thus far. The good news is they haven’t needed them as they have weapons all over the field, in Desean, Maclin, and McCoy. Mcnabb is always on the verge of Romo type stinker game too, but it usually comes on the heals of an injury opposed to randomly popping up, except that Oakland one he got a pass since the offensive line forgot they were blocking that day.
Referees Take Yet Another Blow
I'm sure Kobe will get the next call in his favor...
Well, I’ve finally decided to scan the internet to read more excerpts from Tim Donaghy’s new book The Book The NBA Doesn’t Want You To Read. I think a few months back when I wrote Officiating the NBA Referees maybe I was looking from the wrong point of view. I no longer believe it’s slow reaction time because of old age. I no longer believe that flopping is the reason for these terrible calls. I mean honestly deep down, I kind of had an idea that the referees are screwing with us most of the time, which must have been why I was so pumped about the referee lockout originally! I truly do wish we started this season with the replacement refs. Sure there might have been bad or some missed calls here and there, but SERIOUSLY, aren’t we used to it no matter who is out there? I can’t fully believe everything he said in the book, since he does have some strong motives in his quest to deface the NBA. I CAN however buy the face value of the information that a lot of calls and miscues by crews DO have some hidden motives behind them, and I must’ve been blocking that out for years. Reading through the excerpts felt like when you know that your girlfriend is cheating on you, but you aren’t really sure, and then you finally find out that it’s true. Yes Tim, your revelations have hurt me, and damaged me for every future relationship I have with refs for years to come.
If the refs are indeed Stern’s puppets, playing with teams and players abilities to make the playoffs we may as well get Vince McMahon in there setting up the plotline for the season. We could turn these great athletes into a show instead of a sport, wouldn’t that be great. Are we heading to a league that resembles the Globetrotters vs. the Admirals? I figured that the refs had bias’s against players, teams, or coaches, but didn’t want to believe that they were truly effecting the outcome of the games. I know, it sounds nieve, but maybe I got used to it being shoved in my face for the past decade, so why didn’t I see it as a flaw? A) I guess I just accepted that some guys are going to get calls, and when it comes down to it, these refs I’m sure get caught up in the heat of the moment. B) I didn’t want to see in writing what I’d obviously already suspected, like the excerpt on the 2002 Western Conference Championship game 6 or the Spurs and Suns playoff series. C) Aside from the Lakers getting gifts like Pau Gasol and Artest for nothing, they are getting calls in crucial games, because the league hinted the refs should give them more calls in their favor. The Lakers seem to be one of the most hated teams in the league, and could this be a reason why?
Deadspin had some good transcript on the jest of what he said in his book.
Rondo is Gettin Paid
Rajon Rondo has agreed to an extension with the Celtics reportedly worth $55 million over 5 years. I guess I kind of forgot how players should really go about getting a contract, and he showed that sometimes they don’t cause a lot of distractions. I really couldn’t figure out why Boston wasn’t sold on him. He’s pretty much done everything possible to win a franchise over, and the fans have appreciated him, but they seemed to be fairly sluggish in doing it. I still don’t see why it took so long, and if they were going to do it why wait till the last minute. I sounded like maybe they were scared of his lack of leadership or his label as a “loner”, but he’s only 23 so that can only improve with maturity. He also came into the season bulked up and ready to go. I haven’t seen him do anything on the court NOT worthy of making him the franchise point for years to come. Nor has anyone on the team shown any problems with how he’s gone about his business. They seem to have no problem throwing money at aging starts, so it’s got to feel comforting for Boston fans that they locked up what limited young guys they do have. Now that he’s getting paid he can start picking fights with guys like CP3 without being scared of how that fine will affect his salary!
Observations From Week 8
Week 8 in the NFL may as well have been called Brett Favre week. With league sweetheart teams like the Steelers and Patriots off, all the bright lights were on Brett Favre as he was set to make his return to Lambeau as a member of the rival Vikings. However, much to the surprise of many, it ended up being just another football game. The Green Bay fans rode Favre all game long, showering him with hearty helping of boos from whistle to whistle. Beyond that, however, it took the form of a typical division showdown. The Vikings were out to prove their supremacy in the NFC North, and Packers had their sights on knocking off the team with the lead. In the end, the Vikings won the game and took a huge step forward in the division race. Here are some other things I learned this week….
The Eagles are better than we all think. They’ve flown under the radar thanks to a mediocre record against a very weak schedule. Their only good opponent, New Orleans, beat them handily, and their other loss came at the hands of the Raiders. If the NFL had a BCS-style ranking system, that loss alone would’ve dropped the Eagles out of the top 25 altogether. BUT, if you take away those two games, they’ve handled their competition, albeit weaker competition, to the tune of double digit margins of victory. They got their first true test today, and dominated the Giants 40-17. Philadelphia’s remaining schedule is anything but easy, so we’ll see if their for real soon.
Alex Smith is better than Shaun Hill. Of course, Joey Harrington is better than Ryan Leaf, fender benders are better than 16 car pileups, and HIV is better than AIDS… so that’s not saying much. However, it was debated going into this week. Today, Alex Smith proved he belongs as the 49ers starter moving forward. He wasn’t great, but he played mostly mistake free – his one interception was a tipped pass – and had a presence in the pocket that Hill did not. The 49ers still have other issues to address, though, namely holding on to leads in the 4th quarter.
Steve Slaton just crushed a lot of fantasy dreams. Coming off a strong year, Steve Slaton had worked his way into the late first / early second round of fantasy draft boards. He has struggled thus far, but has had a few bright spots. Well, today all that came crashing down, as Slaton had one “carry” for a yard before coughing it up, getting benched, and watching his replacement run for 126 yds and 3 TDs.
Jamarcus Russell is who we thought he was. Pardon the overused cliché, but it’s true. Each week, critics are intrigued by how Jamarcus Russell will respond from one week to the next. It’s finally clear that he doesn’t. He plays the SAME GAME week in and week out. He completes one of every three checkdown passes, he otherthrows his receivers wildly on the few long balls he attempts, and most of the time, he holds the ball too long, dances around in the pocket, and gets sacked, fumbles, or forces a throw which results in a pick. Watching Jamarcus Russell is like watching the Bill Murray classic, “Groundhog Day.” Only problem is, I know what happens in “Groundhog Day” so I at least don’t watch it anymore. Hopefully next weekend when the Raiders are on I’ll remember that I’ve seen this already.
There won’t be any 0-16 teams this year……. OR WILL THERE??? St. Louis and Tennessee both got off the hook today with wins. The Rams benefited from playing last year’s big winner’s, the Lions, who, in a great show of sportsmanship, elected to lay down for their opponents since they already had their win for the season. The Titans, on the other hand, opted for a little strategy called “shut down everyone on the Jaguars except Maurice Jones-Drew,” and it worked. Chris Johnson ran for 224 yds and 2 TDs to lead the old Oilers to victory. That leaves idle Tampa Bay (0-7) as the only remaining team without a win. Their remaining schedule is no cake walk either, but they two winnable games on the docket. The Bucs should be able to manage a win against either Carolina or Seattle. If they don’t, their best hope would be to play a New Orleans or Atlanta team that has clinched a playoff spot and thus resting their starters in either of the last two weeks of the season.
Fans in Tampa stick around in a show of support after the Buccaneers were defeated by the South Florida Bulls, 27-6
World Series Game 4 Preview
I’m still having trouble getting excited about the World Series this year. This game is intriguing to me though. I guess it took sending a former A’s player to the mound in Joe Blanton for me to get excited about it. I think Blanton will do better than people expect him to, especially since fans in Philly and New York are doubting him. He could go six and hold the Yankees to two or three. I was kind of excited to see Swisher actually do something last night, but in the midst of Halloween celebrations, there were other things that were more worthy of my attention. The old CC on short rest storyline is always over hyped. The guy has done it like fifty times already, we don’t need to keep hearing about it. I’m sure he’ll be extra fired up after losing the first one to Lee. One thing I’ll never understand about A-Rod is how all of New York forgives him when he gets one hit. If we start hearing the Mr. October bs again, I might have to boycott the rest of the series. Hasn’t he been sucking just as bad as Ryan Howard this whole series? Hopefully Blanton’s tendency to give up the long ball doesn’t include him serving one up to A-Rod… Jayson Werth has been hands down the scariest hitter on either team. I hope Philly can pull out a win, but they might have to wait another night like when they have Lee on the mound. I’m hoping for a slugfest tonight, which would improve Philly’s winning odds. Hopefully they can get to CC early or else they probably won’t get to him at all.
Blazers and Nuggets Battling It Out to Challenge the Lakers
So far, the start of the NBA season has been somewhat of a disappointment. Both Cleveland and Boston as well as the Lakers and Clippers all looked like they were still tuning up for the season on opening night. The Rockets waited three quarters before showing up against the Blazers, and many other games fell short of expectations. Earlier tonight, the Bulls handled the Spurs with little resistance. All that came to a head later tonight when the Blazers and Nuggets tipped off. So far, this has easily been the best nationally televised game of the young season. Not only do you have the usual suspects, e.g. Brandon Roy, Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, and Lamarcus Aldridge, but also making their presence felt are newcomers Andre Miller and Ty Lawson. This is the first game I’ve seen this season that had a competitive feel to it. At the time of writing, Denver has a 93-91 lead with just over a minute to go in the game.
Coach Mac, why is this guy still in the game? He's 0-3 from the field and 0-2 from the line!
This got me thinking, are we watching the 2nd and 3rd best teams in the Western Conference? The Spurs look like they don’t care, and instead are waiting until next year for their once-every-four-year run at the title. New Orleans appears to have taken a step back. Phoenix dropped off the radar a while ago, and Houston, with the exception of their slim victory over the lowly Warriors, look like they’ll be lucky to make the playoffs this year. So, who’s left to challenge the Lakers? It’s looking A LOT like it’s going to come down to Denver and Portland. On the Nuggets’ side, Carmelo looks more focused and motivated than anyone in the league thus far. We know what Billups can do, and Nene looks even better this year, and Ty Lawson is already a key piece in the Nuggets’ rotation. On the Blazers’ side, Brandon Roy appears to have elevated his game yet again, and he’s quickly becoming one of the most clutch performers in the league. I can’t wait to see what he does as the game winds down tonight. Martell Webster looks like he’s finally figured it out, and Juwan Howard is surprisingly playing a key role for the Blazers. All things considered, we can’t be surprised if we find ourselves watching these two teams battle it out in a Game 7 in the Western Conference Semis, for the right to play the defending champs, who will probably watching from home, waiting, after sweeping whoever their second round opponent was.
Doin Lines Week 8
If you ever have a chance, you should check out the Jacksonville cheer leading squad. They have as much talent as the Colts and Saints.
Last week went as expected with an easy slate of games on the menu. Three of these were easier to bet on than picking the sun to rise from the east. It yielded my best week in the last four going 4-2-1. It kind of sucks that I’m .500 on the year when there are so many crappy teams out there, that should make this an easy gambling season. Alas, I find this weeks slate a little tougher, so I hopefully I’m not setting myself up for another sub par performance. Oh well, we’ll see if the 2nd half of the season treats me a little kinder. As usual the home teams are in bold.
Chicago (-13.5) Over Cleveland
Not that I think Chicago is all that great, but I do think Cleveland is that bad. I was pretty shocked to see Cedric Benson and Carson Palmer destroy the Bears defense this past weekend.
I guess that’s how important Tommie Harris is to the Beard D, who, by the way practiced, and should be back this weekend. Derek Anderson is the proud owner of the leagues lowest QB rating, which can’t go down, right? I guess it could, but I think this should give the Bears D some much needed confidence after an ugly loss. Cutler hasn’t exactly been a Pro Bowler in Chicago, but maybe they just don’t know what to do with a quarterback since it’s been so long since they had one. It’s also a strong possibility that Cutlers’ receivers were just THAT good in Denver. They’re obviously are doing fine without him, so maybe Cutler was a little overrated. Matt Forte has been a ghost in the offense this year, but I’ll give both of their crappy starts a pass. They’ve had a fairly difficult schedule so far this season. Having the hapless Browns at home should be a good cure for them. Remember they beat Detroit 48-24 two weeks ago, so they are good enough to run the score up on crappy teams!
Houston (-3.5) Over Buffalo
I don’t know whats wrong with Buffalo. They looked like they were moving in the right direction last season, but this year just like Jamarcus, they’ve regressed. Unfortunately for them, the peak of their season may have come in week 1 when they nearly beat Patriots. They haven’t really shown they can run or throw the ball since, which makes me think they won’t be breaking out of the funk. Even TO has said that his numbers are “pathetic” (18 receptions 242 yards with one TD), which shows that even the places they were supposed to improve are regressing to in Buffalo. Houston almost blew a lead last week against SF, but the Niners offense looks better than the Bills, sadly. If Houston can get their defense straightened out, they could be a playoff team. I see Andre Johnson tearing up this suspect secondary all game long, which makes this a pretty easy pick.
Green Bay (-3) Over Minnesota
This is probably the pick Im most worried about. I missed it the last time these two teams played each other by a couple points as Minnesota won. I think this game will be more emotional for Favre in his first return to Lambeau on the opposing sideline.
I know I reminisce whenever I go back to a former workplace whether its good or bad memories there are emotional ties, so I can’t see Brett being any different since he spent more time there than anyone expected. I’m looking for the crowd to get to him since they know him better than anyone. Rodgers on the other hand, looked bad in their last meeting as he was getting knocked down more times than Quagmire has pickup lines. I think he won’t be holding the ball quite as long this time around, and hopefully won’t try to force as many throws. Plus, wasnt it this time last year everybody loved the Jets because they were 4-2? I’m getting excited, it looks like Favre could still be on the path to mediocrity, and he’s one Charles Woodson interception away from losing two in a row. It might just be me, but don’t you think Aaron Kampman and Jared Allen should start a butt rock band 90’s style? Sure, Kampman cut his hair, but everyone got a glimpse of the long headbanger hair in his first year he can grow it!
Indianapolis (-12.5) Over San Francisco
It’s tough to tell who is the best team in the league between the Colts and the Saints, but both teams have been amazing.
I’ve been riding the Niners bandwagon for most of the season, but I’ll have to step off their train since they’ve lost for me two weeks in a row. I’m sure the Colts will give them all they can handle. Austin Collie has slipped into a very nice complement receiver to Reggie Wayne. The Colts defense is also going to get back Bob Sanders which should give them a little extra swagger. The Niners defense has been pretty good this season, but they haven’t faced an offense as good as the Colts. If the 49ers can somehow get the running game going, their stagnant offense might start producing. I’m not sure I buy the Alex Smith is a worthy first round pick yet, but he can’t be much worse than that Shaun Hill was under center.
Arizona (-10) Over Carolina
I’ve come to the realization that Arizona is in fact for real, and making it to the Super Bowl on a hot streak. Their defense is actually pretty strong, and they may not need to put up 35+ every week to win. Carolina, has been very disappointing to say the least, and I thought they’d rebound and get it together, but it seems like they have given up on this season. Jake Delhomme could be one of the worst QB’s in the league at the moment, and has shown nothing to think the contrary. They have a running game, but what good is that when you can’t throw the ball. What could be worse for Panther fans? They traded away their 2010 first round pick to the 49ers in the Everett Brown trade last off season. Sorry Carolina, but you’ve earned the hottie of the week!
Bye week (-28) Over Jim Zorn
This guy can’t win in the media or on the field. I kind of feel bad for him, but at the same time I don’t really care. The Bye week should be a tough opponent, but I still see him losing popularity and responsibilities before their next game!
New Orleans (-10) Over Atlanta
Maybe I hyped Atlanta too much last weekend, so they showed me up by throwing in a stinker against Dallas. I really don’t think Dallas is for real, since they only are in the game when Romo plays well. There’s really only a 50/50 chance of that. I think I might have picked the Saints every week so far this season, and miraculously they’ve covered every time! Thank you Darren Sharper for that pick six with two minutes to go last week! Darren, you made the Miller Lite gambling cover of the week! I don’t like Bush saying they can go undefeated, but looking at them at this point in the season it’s hard for me to say they can’t. I see them coming out strong in this one after being worked in the first half of last weeks game.
Two Points the Hard Way
I know this is an older clip, but in light of the start of the NBA season, I thought I’d show the hardest way to score a basket, with a person… I wonder if they had any misfires before this actually went down? It looks like she may have caught part of her head on the rim on the way down as she was grabbing it after wards. Good thing the guys were too excited to notice! This is by far the hardest shot I’ve ever seen!
RFP of the Day – Rey Quinones
Somewhere in the late 80s I took a liking to the Seattle Mariners. I know what you’re thinking…. Oh, I bet it was 1989 when Ken Griffey Jr. joined the team. Not so fast, though, random forgotten baseball fan. My Mariners fandom came to be somewhere around 1987 or 1988. But I’m a lifelong A’s fan, how could I root for a division rival? Well, it’s simple see… I’m a fan of underdogs. In those rare cases where my team is actually good, (see 1988-1990 A’s, 1994 49ers, and 2000-2002 Kings) I’ll sometimes start rooting for a less competitive team. I won’t stop rooting for my own team, it’s just something else to root for to stay grounded, if you will. Well, the 1987-1988 Mariners were that team for me in those days. I believe it started with my admiration for Harold Reynolds, who could’ve had a solid career as an RFP if it weren’t for his later endeavor into the TV world at ESPN. Nonetheless, he was one of the best “average” second basemen of the times, and being a middle infielder myself, those were the players I looked up to. Naturally, I rooted for Reynolds’ double play partner as well. That guy was none other than Rey Quiñones.
Quiñones was acquired by the Mariners from the Red Sox for Dave Henderson, among others, and was really only the starting SS for those two seasons in Seattle. His power numbers were basically identical (12 HRs and 56 and 52 RBI, respectively), but his average dipped from .276 to .248 in ’88. After playing just 7 games and going 2 for 19, the Mariners traded him to Pittsburgh, where he would finish his last season in the major leagues with a lowly .209 batting average.
Quiñones compiled a lifetime average of .243 with 29 HR and 159 RBI in 1,668 plate appearances over his 4 year career.
Lakers-Clippers LIVE Blog Tonight
The NBA regular season kicks off Tuesday night, with TNT carrying a double header featuring the Cavs-Celtics and Lakers-Clippers. Although the latter is a much less enticing game, Doin Work will be having a live blog following what should be a nailbiter. The Lake Show always brings out the best in Doin Work, since we’re comprised of two die hard Laker fans and two diehard Laker haters. Should be an amusing one. If you’re watching the game, might as well pull up our Live Blog and follow the action with us.
49ers Quarterback Controversy
As my favorite football saying goes…. If you have two quarterbacks, you don’t have one.
Such is the situation for the San Francisco 49ers. Now, first off, let me just disclose the fact that I really couldn’t care less who Singletary names the starter. I’m not much of a Niners fan, but when you live in Northern California, you take what you can get in terms of winning teams. The 49ers sit at 3-3 after losing two in a row. They’re a game back of division leading Arizona. So, that creates an interesting situation for the team as they decide which direction to go. The sentiment coming from SF fans is simply, Alex Smith played better than Shaun Hill, so he should be the starter. You can’t argue that, but you can argue that he came into the game down 21-0 when the pressure was off. Houston’s defensive gameplan also goes out the window as they most likely spent their week preparing for Hill. One Houston defender even went on to say he didn’t even know who #11 was!
Now, simple logic states that you go with whoever gives you the best chance to win the football game. But, the 49ers travel to Indianapolis to play the Colts next week, so they probably don’t have a chance regardless of who’s dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodging lineman in the collapsed pocket all day. Therefore, here’s hoping the Niners go with Smith to finish out the season. They’re still paying him a ton of money, and they owe it one more shot to see if he can salvage his career and be the starting QB they picked him to be. No word on whether Coach Singletary plans to announce who the starter will be in today’s press conference yet, but it’ll be interesting to see how they handle it.
UPDATE: Mike Singletary did, in fact, name Alex Smith the starter for this Sunday.
Warriors 2009-10 Season Preview: Lots of Upside, and Probably Lots of Growing Pains
Anthony Randolph won't hit his full stride for a few years, but this season we will see his true potential!
Ready or not dubs fans the season is about to start for us on Wednesday against the Suns. We have about the same ceiling/basement as most recent Warriors seasons. I’m guessing our ceiling would be a 7th or 8th seed in the west, and our basement is, well, we know what the basement is all about from the last decade plus. I can understand why some of the players (Jackson and Ellis) are somewhat confused at the organizations lack of movement in any one direction this offseason. Even the movement they did make it was pretty suspect as they added even more guards to the roster. I can’t say there’s any reason to be shocked, and nor should any long time Warriors fan. It’s rough watching Rowell sign extensions and trade for point guards, but we understand that our ownership just doesn’t like to make normal decisions. Maybe Al Davis and Cohan speak regularly on how to make Bay Area fans miserable. The thing that has bugged me the most out of all of these years, is that we do have a great fan base, and are the fifth largest basketball market in the country. It’s been a widespread hope for years that Cohan would sell the team, but fans have been disappointed as talks died down each time. It’s just amazing that bigger named players can’t be brought here, since they are in such a good market. I guess the Cohan’s (losing) label has stuck a little too well forcing all free agents to head for the hills when the W’s call. Anyways, I have high hopes for this team in the near future maybe not this year per say, but sooner than later they should mold into a solid cast, if we actually CAN keep them together.
Let’s start with the trouble makers that kept the Warriors camp relevant in the NBA news over the summer. I think I’ve said about all I can on Stephen Jackson, and how his time in a Warriors jersey was much appreciated, but now it’s time to for us and him to move on. I’ve been a huge fan of Monta Ellis since he was drafted by the Warriors, but this summer he proved that he still is slightly childish. He didn’t want the W’s to take a guard in the draft. Sure enough, they did. At the time I felt it would have been a big mistake to take anyone other than Curry, so I’m glad we did. He said that Curry and himself couldn’t play together, and it looks like they’re both in the starting lineup for Friday night. Maybe I just never noticed it, or maybe Jackson has rubbed off on Monta with his gripes. I can understand his points and where he’s coming from, but he should have done a little more research before he signed his contract! I hope he can suck it up, and just play like the guy that flew around the court and gave oppositions nightmares on defense. I think he will, and Nelson will use his ability’s well at the 2. I haven’t really seen anything promising as far as distributing the ball with him, so I’m not really buying he was cut out to man the point. I’m down for a surprise, if he can prove me wrong!
Curry didn't shoot well in the preseason, but he'll find his stroke.
Which moves us to Curry. He seems to be the most professional about all the drama that has unfolded this offseason (maybe his daddy Del helped him out with that), but he’s been very composed considering a lot of it has surrounded him. I had mixed feelings when we drafted him as I’ve had a mancrush on him for at least three years, but it sounded like he didn’t want to come to Golden State. Before the draft he didn’t even want to work out for the W’s, and it was already upsetting one of our young stars (Monta) that he was being considered. Alas, I’ve come around after watching him play in a few games this pre-season with some actual pros. I really liked how he managed the game, and seemed to know how to run an offense showing off his high basketball IQ, which must just be a hereditary thing. Now that he’s been named the starter for opening night, I can only hope he makes more correct decisions that wrong ones. If he struggles early, I could see him out of the starting lineup quick, but with very little competition at PG I think he might stick. I’m sure some of his training this offseason with CP3 taught him a thing or two about being prepared. Nellie has been glowing about him, calling him a young Steve Nash. It’s pretty high praises, but Nellie says a lot of weird stuff!
Stephen Jackson, Anthony Randolph, and Andris Biendris are supposed to round out the lineup. Although Jackson and Randolph are both questionable it looks as though they will both play in the opener. Randolph’s back is slightly more concerning, but there are still a few days before the season starts for him to rest. The freakishly gifted Randolph showed off at the Summer Leagues, and is rinally ready to reel in some minutes, that should bump up his already impressive stats in a small sample size. It’s crazy that he might not even peak for another five years! He is finally out of Nellie’s doghouse through working extremely hard through the offseason, and once again is a main reason for optimism in Oakland. He added 20 pounds of muscle, and was constantly working on his game which should translate to a breakout campaign.
Biens blocking Josh Smith!
Biens could possibly be my favorite player on their team. I guess that Latvian charm wore off on me because I’m not really big on his style of play or the excitement level he creates when he’s on the court. It’s more on how he approaches the game, and has handled himself throughout his career as a Warrior. He never complained once about not having a contract until his was up. He has consistently gotten better each season in one area or another. He’s only 23! He appreciates the game and what he is a part of. This summer he reportedly has been expanding his offensive game. Word is he has been working on facing up, and post moves as defenders were playing his tendencies too much last season. It’s the one facet of his game that has always had criticism, and now he’s addressing it. Just one more reason to like this kid! No matter what happens, I think we’ll get our money’s worth out of him on the court.
Morrow was stroking it in the preseason!
Our bench should be very interesting this year. It will be shuffling who is coming off the bench based on who is starting, but with Morrow/Curry, Maggette, Turiaf, and Azubuike it looks like we should be able to outscore a lot of second teams in the league. Morrow and Maggette have been great this pre-season, and possibly the best looking players on the team at times. They are very efficient in scoring, so hopefully that will continue to through the start of the regular season. Morrow could be the most interesting Warrior this year. It’s likely he’ll see the same 20-25 minutes per game since Nellie loves the three, but since he has been working hard on his defense, he might find a few extra minutes if he truly has improved. I find that a lot of people forget we even have Maggette, which is understandable, but he is the physical type of player we need to wear teams down and get the foul counts up to be in the bonus late in games. We have plenty of scoring, but our main problem once again is that we’re painfully thin at forward, and really only have one true center on the roster. Hopefully a speedy recovery from Branden Wright can help that. I’m worried having a rotation of bigs that includes Mikki Moore. Should be an interesting season! I’m hoping for the best, but as always I will be prepared for the worst!
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