Bears-Packers Should Never Be Played In Week 17

November 18, 2006. The Ohio State Buckeyes, ranked number one in the nation, host the number two Michigan Wolverines in the last game of the college football season. Each team enters the game with a perfect 11-0 record. What's at stake is simple: winner plays for the National Championship, and the loser accepts a trip to the Rose Bowl.
Ohio State comes out firing, leading Michigan 28-14 at halftime. Michigan would bounce back in the second half, outscoring Ohio State by eleven points. It wouldn't be enough however, as Ohio State secured a three point victory and went on lose to Florida in the 2007 BCS Championship Game.
This would have been a classic game regardless, but its importance was heightened because of the historical Ohio State-Michigan rivalry. An integral part of this rivalry is the timing -- they play each other the last game of the season every year. This game was dubbed "Game of the Century" for a reason, this match-up never carries the type of implications it did in 2006. A rivalry game played the last game of the season is great when it works out to perfection like it did in 2006. The problem of course, is that it rarely works out that way.
Now consider the Bears-Packers rivalry, the NFL equivalent to Ohio-State Michigan. This Sunday will mark the third time in the last ten years that the NFL rivals have squared off in the last game of the season.
I have just one simple request: don't play this game game in Week 17, ever again.
The last time the Bears and Packers played in Week 17 of the season was in 2006. The Bears were 13-2, had already clinched the number one seed in the NFC playoffs and played their back-ups the majority of the game. The Packers were 7-8, had already been eliminated from playoff contention, and were basically playing for pride. The Packers went on to win 26-7, and the Bears went on to the Super Bowl.
Two years earlier, the Bears and Packers also met in the last game of the season. The Bears' season was already over, as they were 5-10 coming into the game. The Packers were 9-6 and needed the win to hold off the Vikings for the NFC North crown. Not surprisingly, the Packers won in convincing fashion to advance to the playoffs.
The common denominator is that the 2004 and 2006 games didn't decide the fate of both teams. In that respect, the timing of the game was a failure.
Now let's jump to this year's offering, which could possibly mean much more than the previous two meetings. The playoff scenario is simple for the Packers: win and they're in. If they lose, they'll need both the Giants and Bucs to lose to get in.
The Bears' priorities are a little more tricky. They've already clinched at least the second seed in the NFC and a first round bye. There's a slim possibility that they still could secure the top seed. In order for that to happen, the Bears need to win and the Falcons need to lose at home to the 2-13 Carolina Panthers. A Falcons loss is not very likely, especially considering they could drop to the fifth seed if the Saints win at home against Tampa Bay.
Fortunately for the Bears, they'll know where they stand come game time. The Falcons play at 12:00 CT and the Bears game was moved to 3:15 CT. By the time the Bears kickoff, they will know whether it's possible to grab the one seed. If they can't, it's unclear how the Bears will plan on playing this game.
Lovie Smith and his players are saying all the right things:
"We can clinch home field advantage through out the playoffs."
"We have a chance to be the first undefeated team within the division."
"We want to be the one's to end our rival's season." 
It all sounds good, but what if the Bears are already locked into the two seed? Is "ending our rival's season" really a strong enough motivation to risk a key injury in a meaningless game? I would say no.
This is exactly why the second game of this rivalry should never be played on the last week of the season -- to avoid situations where it isn't beneficial for one of the teams to play their starters the entire game. Imagine if this game was played last week, or two weeks ago. Both teams would have everything in the world to play for and football fans could enjoy the best rivalry in the NFL the way it's meant to be played.
As it stands, the Bears will likely play their starters sparingly, if at all. This could have been avoided. Rivalries like the Bears-Packers are spirited regardless of which players are playing, but deserve the best players on the field. The NFL schedule-makers can't hope for a miracle like 2006 Ohio State-Michigan. They need to play it safe and make sure the last game is always played before Week 17.

Panini's For Everyone, Part II

This is Part II of the pack of 2010-11 Panini Threads I opened. Here's Part I, and the football 2010 Panini Classics Pack.

#31 Jason Terry. Terry has been a really solid player his entire career. Unfortunately, I think he's going to be one of those players whose career gets overlooked.

#13 Steve Nash. I could look up a bunch of stats to prove how good Nash is, but I think Gasol's face says it all.

#5 Josh Smith. Smith tops my "Much Better Fantasy Than Real Player" NBA list. Adam Dunn and Tony Romo sit atop the MLB and NFL lists.

#34 Devin Harris. I feel the reason I like Harris so much is because he went to Wisconsin -- probably not a very good reason at all. But if he could just stay healthy and the Nets could add an offensive focal point (Carmelo), I would expect Harris to thrive like he did in Dallas.

#2 Mo Williams. I'm sorry, but the only thing I notice about this card is there's no LeBron.

All in all, this was a pretty good pack. I pulled some personal favorites of mine (Harris and Deng), and a couple of players I really enjoy watching (Ellis and Nash). Add in the Gasol die-cut jersey, and this was three bucks well spent.

Panini's For Everyone, Part I

In addition to the 2010 Panini Classics football pack I opened, I decided to pick up its basketball counterpart -- a pack of 2010-11 Panini Threads. Randomly inserted are rookie autographed cards with a swatch of a game worn jersey. Yeah, I was hoping for one of those.
Again, visit the blog A Pack To Be Named Later where I lifted the idea from. They've opened hundreds of packs across sports and years that will keep you entertained for hours.

#9 Luol Deng. It's nice to get a Bulls player. I suppose I can add this to the collection and look back fondly in 20 years, even if Deng hasn't lived up to his contract.

#15 Vince Carter. Hey, there's an All-Star on this card! It's just not Vince Carter.

#8 Monta Ellis. I have nothing bad to say about Monta. I just wish he didn't play on the West Coast so I could see him play more often.

#10 Samuel Dalembert. Dalembert is referred to as "The Haitian Eraser" on the back of the card. Why has this nickname not caught on? This would catapult to top 5 NBA nicknames, easily.

#16 Pau Gasol Die-Cut Jersey Insert. This was the only insert I received in either of the two packs. It's cut in the shape of Gasol's jersey, put doesn't actually contain any game used jersey. Eh, I guess it looks kind of cool.

Opening Of The Flood Gates

I recently stumbled upon what I have tentatively dubbed, "The Best Blog Ever." It's called A Pack To Be Named Later and makes me wish I was creative enough to come up with a concept like this. The premise of the blog is simple. A bunch of guys buy some random packs of sports cards, open them, and then post the cards that were in the pack.
They never repeat the same pack, and even have an icon at the bottom to allow their readers to judge each pack's merit. I love the idea. Anyone who collected cards as a child can relate to the suspense associated with opening a pack, unaware of what's inside.
I decided to "borrow" their idea for a few posts, mostly because I wanted an excuse to buy some cards for the first time in about ten years. Be sure to visit their blog, linked above. It's strangely addictive.
I decided on a pack of football 2010 Panini Classics. I had never heard of Panini so I thought at first it may not be a legitimate company. However, they did advertise the possibility of pulling a game worn jersey or autographed card, and that sounded legitimate enough to me. The reason why I didn't recognize Panini was because they didn't start manufacturing NBA trading cards until January of 2009, and acquired Donruss' license to manufacture NFL cards two months later. I felt better about the fact that I recognized the Donruss brand. Without further ado...

#27 Ray Rice. The pack started off on a high note and went downhill quickly. Kind of like the Cowboys every year.

#17 Braylon Edwards. This is one of those rare instances where Edwards actually caught the ball, although it does appear to be coming out.

#28 Felix Jones. We've all seen those cards with three player's heads on them. I think if Felix Jones is going to be put on a card, it should be mandatory that he's pictured with Marion Barber and Tashard Choice.

#27 Knowshon Moreno. Moreno has had trouble staying on the field this season. But look at his muscle definition. Looks like he's been spending the extra free time in the weight room.

#8 Matt Hasselbeck. It's hard to believe that Hasselbeck took the Seahawks to a Super Bowl only five years ago. Seriously, that did happen, right?

Wow, this was fun. I'll be back tomorrow to post the basketball cards.

A Lesson Learned

Chris Harris had his best game of the season Sunday afternoon in the Bears' 38-34 victory over the Jets. He recorded 11 tackles, 10 of them solo, recovered a Santonio Holmes fumble in the 1st quarter, and then picked off Sanchez with less than a minute left to clinch the game for Chicago.

To most people, Harris is known as the Bears' hard-hitting safety. To a smaller number of us, he's @ChrisHarrisNFL, his Twitter account, where he interacts with fans and critics alike almost daily. In fact, Chris Harris is one of the most accessible modern athletes. Between Twitter and his blog, he's established a unique way of using social media to showcase his personality and enhance his brand.
Athletes on Twitter often give away tickets to games, usually holding some kind of contest to determine who wins them. On Christmas night, Harris did just that. He had four pairs of tickets for the Jets game and asked four questions about himself. The first person to correctly answer the question would be given a pair of tickets.
I normally don't get caught up in these sort of things because I start convincing myself I have a great chance of winning. This usually leads to disappointment -- that I could have avoided. But I decided to give this contest a try. It was Christmas night and I was Christmased out. The alternative to taking part in a contest to win Bears tickets was watching one of one of four Christmas movies I'd seen ten times a piece, or listen to one of 250 Christmas songs I'd been listening to for the entire month of December.

First question from Harris (all of which I'm paraphrasing, by the way): What was the name of my school mascot?

Google is my friend. Now there's two ways of going about this question. Look up where Chris went to school (Louisiana-Monroe), and either hope the mascot is in the title, or then do another Google search for the mascot. This approach takes too much time. It's a race against anyone else who may be answering, some of who probably didn't need to look it up.
I decided to go all in and typed in "Chris Harris School Mascot." To my surprise, an interview of his with WGN was the second result, and it contained the answer, "War Eagles." I was a little hesitant at first. What if I responded and was wrong? How stupid would that look?
I wrote back. I was right. I was too slow. Someone else won. Next question I would just have to pull the trigger. I decided to leave the tab of the interview up. I thought he might ask another question that could be answered from that page.

Second question: What number did I originally wear as a freshman in college before switching numbers before my sophomore year?

This was a tough one. I thought it might be on the tab I already had up but it wasn't. I immediately realized that this wasn't an answer I or anyone else could simply Google search. It was going to take a little bit of detective work and luck. I typed in "Chris Harris College Number" and clicked on an ESPN.com link. Each year listed him as number 5. I figured that was the number he had switched to after his sophomore year, seeing as the information was so widely available.
I don't remember how I got there, but eventually ended up on Louisiana-Monroe's program for the upcoming 2003 season, Harris' junior year. The article didn't mention Harris' number, but when I scrolled all the way down, there was a picture of a number 20 making a tackle, with the name Harris on the back of his jersey. The caption read: FS Chris Harris. That was my break. I was convinced I had the information others didn't. I was going to be the first to get this question that others were too stupid to figure out. They all probably thought the answer was 5.
I responded to Harris with my answer and patiently waited. I thought I had a great shot. My heart began beating a little faster. I started refreshing the page every ten seconds. About ten minutes later I found out I didn't win. That was my best chance, I thought, and I just wasn't quick enough.

Third question: What was my favorite football team growing up?

The answer was the Dallas Cowboys. It was on the WGN tab I had left open. The same tab everyone else responding was probably consulting as well. I was beat out again.

Fourth and final question: Who is my favorite NFL safety of all time?

Let me preface this question by saying, I had spent the last five minutes memorizing the answers to all of the WGN questions. Two of the three questions were from that list, so I decided to go with the odds and assume the fourth one would come from there. The WGN question was: Favorite player growing up? And the answer was Steve Atwater.
Atwater's name immediately popped into my head. "Write it down," a voice inside my head shouted. "You'll win." Another voice said, "You memorized his name, but you don't know what position Steve Atwater played, you idiot." And I didn't. I had to Google Steve Atwater, saw he played safety, and responded to Harris with the answer. I knew I'd be too slow, and I was. The couple seconds it took to Google Atwater's position were what cost me.

The saying "showing your age" is usually referring to old age. Not in this case. Atwater's name sounded familiar, but I was downright embarrassed when I saw that he retired in 1999, when I was 12 years old. No excuses for not knowing him.
To be fair, on a scale of one 1 to 10, my knowledge of football history is probably about a 3. Basketball is about a 7, and baseball around 5. I blame this disparity on two things:
1) The Bulls won their sixth championship in 1998. I was completely enamored with basketball at the time. I delved into every NBA book I could find and knew more about the NBA than most 12 year-olds.
2) 1998 was also the year that Mark McGwire and Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa rewrote the record books by belting 70 and 66 home runs, respectively. That sparked my love for baseball, and baseball statistics in general. I became pretty familiar with records and players from different eras around that time.
The Bears went 4-12 in 1998, finishing last in what was then the NFC Central. That was their second straight year finishing last in the division and they would finish last for two more years. I wasn't as interested in football as a kid because my team wasn't any good. If they were, I'd probably know the history a little better.
Anyway, I started reading up on Steve Atwater after losing out on the tickets. He played ten of his eleven seasons with the Denver Broncos and was selected to the Pro Bowl eight times. I was especially interested in the way Wade Phillips, who was Denver's defensive coordinator at the time, used Atwater. He played him close to the line of scrimmage, basically as a fourth linebacker.
As a result, Atwater was able to total more than one thousand tackles in his career, an astonishing number for a safety. Atwater is probably best known for a hit he put on Chiefs running back Christian "The Nigerian Powerhouse" Okoye, shown in the video below.




I've always been interested in the way different athletes rise to fame, and especially how certain athletes are inextricably linked through out time. For those who witnessed the hit, Atwater and Okoye will always share a place in NFL history together.
Okoye's story is pretty fascinating as well. Once one of the most dominant power runners in football before injuries and disinterest curbed his career, Okoye established a reputation as a gentle giant and Tecmo Super Bowl legend. Here's a pretty good video on Okoye during his prime, although a bit cringe-worthy during some parts compared to the Politically Correct standards of today.



I didn't win the tickets, but got a nice history lesson in exchange. That's a pretty good consolation prize in my book. Best believe I'll be ready for any Steve Atwater related questions in the near future.

The Chicago Bulls Wish You A Happy Holidays

I'm a sucker for athletes making holiday skits like this. In the 1980s and early 1990s, NBA players blessed us with plenty of hilarious moments via the NBA Draft and post-game press conferences. It's not like that anymore. Players are coached at an early age about how to avoid doing or saying anything stupid to the media. And in all fairness, they get roasted for practically every comment they make, so it's best to err on the side of caution and refrain from letting loose.
These videos are one of the few times athletes can stray from the way they're "supposed" to act and just have fun. In an age where player's media personalities are becoming more and more robotic, videos like this are a breath of fresh air.
Top 3 Reasons To Watch:
1) Kyle Korver channels his inner-Sinatra. I have to applaud Korver for being the lone player who even attempted to sing his part. Although I'm not sure about that "Ode-to-the-Nutcracker" march he added in.
2) Derrick Rose is funny. His head tilt is priceless. I think marketers are slowly starting to pick up on this as Rose has appeared in a funny ESPN and fantasy basketball commercial after being shafted in the Adidas 'Fast Don't Lie' ad. I think guys like LeBron and Dwight Howard are thought of as funnier because they joke around on the court, where as Rose is pretty stoic.
3) Joakim Noah being Joakim Noah. After his playing career he seriously needs a reality show. Here's my top five (in order) of current players I want to see in their own reality show:
1. Ron Artest
2. Joakim Noah
3. Delonte West
4. Zach Randolph
5. Stephen Jackson
Honorable mentions to Yao Ming (not sure if he's still considered a current player), and Shaq (I could see his shtick getting old pretty quick. Plus, he already had a semi-reality show when he faced off against other athletes in their sports).

Happy Holidays, everyone! Don't forget, the Bulls play on Christmas Day for the first time since 1997. The last time the Bulls and Knicks played each other on Christmas was in 1994. The Bulls were victorious 107-104 behind Scottie Pippen's 36 points. Let's hope for a repeat performance.   

A Fond Farewell

In a way, Brett Favre has been a victim of his own success. Through his play over the last two decades, Favre has ingratiated himself with the mainstream media. The media's over-the-top praise of Favre's play, once the reason to celebrate him, has now largely become the reason to hate him.
The sad part about Favre's narrative is he hasn't been an innocent bystander, simply playing the game and letting the media and fans talk about him. His yearly flirtation with retirement is really just a cry for attention -- which brings me to the sad part. Brett Favre didn't need to pander for that kind of attention. People cared about Brett Favre, they didn't need to be convinced to care about him. In fact, his flip-flopping retirement speeches made people stop caring. The exact opposite of what he was trying to accomplish.
In March of 2007 when Favre first retired, most NFL fans were willing to embrace him. While he wasn't universally liked, I think most football fans appreciated what he did for the game and could respect a Hall of Fame career when they saw one.
He came out of retirement shortly thereafter, and hence, the Favre apologists were born. These apologists painted Favre as a man torn between his body and mind. His mind desperately wanted to come back to the game he loved and played so successfully, but his body told him no -- he couldn't hold up. It was quite a heroic picture. Through sheer will and determination, Favre could overcome his body's shortcomings.
Then there was the other side, Favre's critics. They thought of him as an attention-seeking prima donna, concerned primarily with keeping his name in the news, more so than winning. In 2007, most people were on the other side. Now, approaching the end of 2010, they've almost all converted to this side.
While Favre can be criticized for his performance, ego, or various off the field issues, his willingness to play can never be questioned. Favre's consecutive game's started streak ended a week and a half ago when he failed to suit up and face the Giants. He tallied 297 consecutive starts, 321 including the playoffs.
A day before Favre's streak was snapped, the Metrodome roof collapsed. Before the collapse, the Metrodome housed 230 consecutive Vikings games, 91 less than Brett Favre alone. If that doesn't put Favre's accomplishment into perspective, I don't know what does.
Growing up as a Bears fan, I was able to see Favre play often. I watched him rattle off eleven straight victories against us in the 1990s, and then seven straight in the 2000s. I saw him amass a 23-13 record against us playing for both the Packers and Vikings. I hated Favre, but I couldn't help but respect him. And even after all his shenanigans, I still do.
So when he decided to give it a go against the Bears on Monday Night, I was thrilled. I wanted one last chance to beat Brett Favre. From 1992-2003, Favre was 20-4 against the Bears. From 2004-2010 heading into Monday's game, he was 3-8. We couldn't beat him in his prime, so now we have to settle on beating him at the end of his career. As a Bears fan, I want every victory against Favre I can get before he's done.
Speaking of which, I believe this is his last year. I've never believed that before, but now I finally do. He didn't start a game. That's enough evidence for me to believe he can't do it anymore. I'm glad the Bears pulled off one last win, and I'm glad I was able to witness Brett Favre's career.  

Carmelo Anthony Is Handcuffing The Nuggets, In A Nice Way

According to ESPN.com's Chris Sheridan, a source close to Carmelo Anthony said on Sunday that Anthony would not sign the three-year 65 million dollar extension offered by the Nuggets unless he is traded to the Knicks. Anthony has denied the reports.
Anthony's desire to go to New York doesn't exactly come as a surprise. The surprising part is that other teams expected to be in the hunt, teams that can offer much better packages to the Nuggets such as New Jersey or Chicago, now seem to be out of the running.
I'm probably in the minority here, but I think Anthony is actually doing the Nuggets a favor here. That is, if the reports are true, and he does in fact plan to sign with the Knicks through either a sign and trade or free agency.
The post-"Decision" NBA fan understandably doesn't have much sympathy for free agents. Especially maximum level free agents trying to team up with other max level players. But if what the source says is true, Anthony would be best served to confirm the report and lift the cloud of secrecy that will surround him up until the February 24th trade deadline.
If Anthony is only willing to go to New York, then the little bit of leverage the Nuggets had is now dead. However, now they're clear of Anthony's intentions, which in itself, is a huge advantage. I'm sure Cavs management would have preferred to know seven months in advance what LeBron was planning on doing.
Rather than wait around for Anthony, the Nuggets should now be clear that he's not re-signing with them. A fact that I'm pretty sure they were already aware of. They can now do one of three things.
1) Play out the rest of the year with Carmelo knowing he will leave at the end of the season. The Nuggets are currently 14-9, would be a sixth seed if the playoffs started today, and don't figure to improve much more than where they currently stand. So the Nuggets can ride with Carmelo, max out at a possible second round playoff exit and then lose him for nothing.
2) Work out a deal with the Knicks. The Knicks don't have the pieces the Nuggets want, or else a deal would have already been made. It's hard to see the Nuggets accepting some sort of package including Gallinari, Randolph, Curry's expiring deal and a first round draft pick, but if they want to get something of value for Anthony they may have to settle.
3) Out of spite, trade Anthony somewhere other than New York for a second round pick. Anthony feels that he and Nuggets management are "on the same page" and that they wouldn't send him anywhere he didn't want to go. They had seven great years together, but the Nuggets don't owe it to Anthony to trade him to his preferred location, just like he doesn't owe it to the Nuggets to re-sign with them.
For any team other than New York, they know they'd basically be renting Carmelo for three months, which is why they wouldn't be willing to give up anything of serious value unless Anthony signs the extension. That is why a second round pick would make perfect sense. The question is: would the Nuggets be willing to ship Anthony for such a small price, with the knowledge that it would also piss him and the fan base off?
Not likely, but not for the aforementioned reasons. I doubt they would want to help a contender in a playoff push for only a second round pick. And would a non-contender part with a pick just to sell some extra tickets? Probably not.
While Carmelo Anthony is handcuffing the Nuggets, he's doing it in a nice way, you could say. The Nuggets are aware of Anthony's intentions and now have the next two and a half months to assess their options with the knowledge that Anthony will be in New York next season one way or another.
It's not the ideal situation for the Nuggets, but it could be worse. They could be sitting in front of the television set this July and find out at the same time as everyone else.

T'Wolves Provide A New Rebuilding Blueprint

While I watched Kevin Love grab rebound, after rebound, after rebound Saturday night, something dawned on me. Not that Kevin Love is really good, I already knew that. But I began to look around at the Timberwolves team on the floor. Love - Wesley Johnson - Super Cool Beas' lazy eyes - the ever more productive Darko Milicic, and none other than the 16 million dollar man, Luke Ridnour.
And that's when it hit me.
With the exception of Ridnour, Minnesota's four other starters were top five draft picks. (Side Note: While attending college at UW-Madison, I can't even count how many times, while discussing the Bucks with my roommates, one of us prefaced a point by uttering, "With the exception of Luke Ridnour." That man defies convention).
Should Ricky Rubio find is way to America, not only would he instantly become my second favorite NBA point guard/player, but also complete a Minnesota starting lineup composed entirely of top five picks in their respective drafts. I don't know of an economic way of finding out if this has happened before, but I would guess no. At least not in the era of 28 or more teams in the league.
Below are the teams broken down into how many top five picks they have in their starting lineup.

Four
Minnesota

Three
Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Miami, Oklahoma City

Two
Dallas, LA Clippers, LA Lakers, New Orleans, Orlando, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento

One
Chicago, Cleveland, Memphis, Milwaukee, New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Toronto, Utah, Washington

Zero
Charlotte, Detroit, Golden State, Houston, Indiana

What conclusions can be drawn from looking at this list? I feel comfortable making one assumption, and that is: If an NBA team doesn't have a top five pick in their starting lineup, they aren't contending for a Championship. Seemingly obvious stuff.
What about the teams that are contenders? Where do they turn up in this list? Everywhere -- and that's what is so interesting. Boston, Miami, and Oklahoma City in the 'Three' category. Dallas, the Lakers, and Orlando in the 'Two' category. And Chicago, San Antonio, and Utah in the 'One' category. There's no rhyme or reason to that.
Conventional thinking would say, "If you have so many high draft picks in your everyday lineup, then A) You're not very good because you've had so many top selections, or B) You're really good because those top selections are most likely very talented.
Then there's the Timberwolves, who have acquired their four starters in every way imaginable. They signed Milicic as a free agent, traded for Beasley, and drafted Love and Johnson (and Rubio). They're also not very good, which leads me to the point I'm trying to make:
Minnesota, whether intentionally or not, is creating a new blueprint for how to build a team. We just don't know if this will be a successful blueprint, or total bust (Insert Darko joke here).
Of course, there's plenty of flaws in targeting players based on their draft position. An especially loaded or slim draft will skew the results of where a particular player should be drafted. In an attempt to correlate draft position and talent, one must trust the management who made the pick in the first place, which probably isn't the best idea. Then there's also the problem of players whose draft position doesn't at all represent their level of play. Kobe Bryant, Rajon Rondo, and Steve Nash come to mind, none of which were drafted in the top ten.
If building a team around top five draft picks sounds like a somewhat chaotic idea, it's because it is. Watch the Wolves play. They look like a group of talented players thrown together with the hopes that something good will happen out there. Each player's role needs to be clearly defined, and to Coach Kurt Rambis' credit, maybe they have been. It just doesn't look like it. Or maybe all of these talented players, not used to accepting a scaled back role, have been non-responsive to compromising parts of their game.
I think Rubio can control the chaos. A great point guard, and Rubio is that, can make an average team competitive. The thought of him running the break with Johnson and Beasley on each side is thrilling. Speaking of Johnson and Beasley, can't they just switch positions? All I've been hearing is how Johnson isn't a good fit at the two, which I agree with. Why can't Beasley play as the off guard? He'd be a match up nightmare. Don't tell me it's because he can't play defense, because he hurts them just as much in that respect playing small forward. And Darko just needs to be Darko (Insert another Darko joke here). He'll never be good enough because he's constantly compared to LeBron and Melo, two of the best scorers and players of this generation. For this team Darko just needs to score about ten points a game (he's averaging 9.1) and grab five or six boards (Love will get the majority of them anyway). His biggest contribution will be on the defensive end, particularly blocking shots. Milicic is the most underrated shot blocker in the league right now. He's been playing well for the T'Wolves this year, he's just not LeBron or Melo, which will unfairly be the biggest flaw of his career.
This T'Wolves team is young, immensely talented, and still learning how to play together, not to mention how to win in the NBA. Collectively, they're not very good, and may never be. But in a strange way, they're making history.

Shaun Livingston's Knee and the Winter Blues

It's getting colder, snow is starting to pile up, and if that wasn't depressing enough, I thought about Shaun Livingston the other day. I first watched Livingston in 2004 while he was playing for Peoria Central in the Illinois State Championships. I marveled at the way he effortlessly weaved his way through smaller defenders en route to the basket. Think Kevin Durant body type but a little shorter playing the point guard position, exceptional handles, but nowhere near Durant's ability to score -- that was Shaun Livingston in 2004, playing against high schoolers.
Little did I know, Livingston had led Peoria Central to Class AA title the year before against Eddy Curry's alma mater, Thornwood. That would be back-to-back titles and McDonald's All-American honors for Livingston to conclude his high school career.
Livingston committed to Duke but chose to enter the 2004 NBA Draft. He was drafted 4th overall by the Los Angeles Clippers. Livingston's decision to forgo college and his horrific knee injury are the most credited reasons for him not living up to his potential. The former allegation is a gross misjudgement.
Livingston certainly would have benefited from playing a year or two under Coach K -- any player would. He also would have teamed up with JJ Redick and Shelden Williams to form possibly the greatest trio of college basketball players that all went on to mediocre NBA careers.
Livingston probably wouldn't have improved his draft stock much higher than it already was coming out of high school. The first overall picks the next three years were big men (Bogut, Bargnani, and Oden), and teams are much more likely to take a flyer on a big man than point guard with the top overall selection.
The half courts sets in the college game probably aren't suited to what I believe were Livingston's strengths -- pushing the ball, and isolating his defender one-on-one. Some time had Duke would have definitely improved his defense though.
After a promising rookie year, the Clippers traded for Sam Cassell, which halted what was expected to be a spike in Livingston's playing time. Instead, Livingston backed up Cassell at the point and occasionally played shooting guard -- a position that didn't utilize his skills. The 2005-06 Clippers enjoyed their best season in franchise history since moving to Los Angeles. They won 49 games, defeated the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs, and took the Suns all the way to seven games before losing in the Conference Semifinals. Livingston's playoff numbers mirror his career stats: 9 points and 4 assists in 27 minutes per game.
The following year, Livingston would experience his claim to fame, a horrific knee injury that would tear his ACL and PCL, sprain his MCL, and dislocate his kneecap and shinbone. And all that happened on the same play, it's no wonder the video was a YouTube sensation.



Livingston's injury was season-ending and looked at first glance like it could have ended his career. It came at the worst possible time, seeing as Cassell's contract was up after that season, and Livingston would have likely been given the reigns to the Clippers franchise. Instead, the Clippers decided not to pick up his qualifying offer, opting instead to make him an unrestricted free agent.
For the next two years, Livingston spent time with the Heat, Grizzlies, Thunder, and even the D-League's Tulsa 66ers before finding a home at the end of last season with the Wizards. He played well enough in 26 games with Washington to earn a 2 year contract offer this offseason from the Bobcats. In Charlotte he finds himself in a similar situation, backing up D.J. Augustin at the point.
No one will say it, but Livingston's lack of playing time (25 mpg over his career, 17 this season) isn't all related to his play. His knee simply can't handle the stress of 35 or more minutes per game. Livingston was injury plagued before his 2007 injury, that was just the culmination of everything that has went wrong with his career.
Like so many before him, Livingston had the ability to revolutionize his position but couldn't stay healthy. Rather than dwell on what his career could have been, let's instead appreciate the fact that he's still playing. Watch that video again. It's a miracle he can even walk.

LeBron, D. Wade Photo "Isn't That Great"

Morry Gash's sensational picture taken during Miami's 88-78 win over the Bucks on Monday has made its rounds across the Internet. The photo has received an unparalleled amount of praise and already seems to be in the running for 'Best Sports Photo of the Year,' and one of the great sports photos of all-time.

Not to belittle Gash's great work, but have we forgotten the subject? This is the Miami Heat we're talking about. They've won five in a row against teams with a combined .403 winning percentage and all of a sudden they're off the hook? Downgrading every Heat accomplishment this season, strictly for the fun of it, is a full time job, and one that can't be derailed because of a pretty picture.

I present a cold six pack of reasons why this photo "Isn't That Great:"

1) The Christ imagery. Did El Greco take this picture? LeBron did not die for my sins. James conveniently descends upon everyone with his arms out and his head tilted to the side, being touched by his father Dwyane Wade. I feel like a religious agenda is being pushed on me just by looking at this picture, and that, I cannot get down with.

2) While Wade looks like he's presenting a James dunk to the world, he's really just arguing with a referee. He's looking precisely where a referee would be standing in this situation, lobbying for a call. The NBA has made a point of issuing out more technicals this year to players who complain. That's exactly what Wade is doing, and like the NBA, we shouldn't praise him for it.

3) LeBron commented on the photo via Twitter, saying "By far one of the best sports pics I've seen taken." Be honest, doesn't that make you hate him and this photo even more? What if I held up my senior portrait and said, "By far one of the best senior pics I've seen taken?" First 'The Decision,' now this, you know what -- never mind. Commenting on LeBron James' ego is beating a dead horse in every sense of the saying.

4) It just so happens that Wade's finger is in LeBron's ear, a popular form of taunting, and an age old way of annoying the crap out of someone. They're playing Milwaukee, OK. Showing up was one big taunt.

5) It's a little unsettling that there's an American flag in the background. Three famous men who lied, manipulated, and walked all over the little people to team up in a position of power. What's so American about that?

6) I can't help but notice the Bucks players on the floor playing defense, and I use the term defense loosely. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (number 12), Brandon Jennings (standing around the free throw line, just managed to get his head into the photo), and John Salmons (I would recognize those calfs anywhere) are the three defenders in the vicinity of James. All three have combined for .96 blocks per game this season.

Meanwhile, one of the best shot blockers in the league, Andrew Bogut (number 6, 2.6 blocks per game), and Milwaukee's second best shot blocker, Larry Sanders (number 8, 1.4 blocks per game) are at the other end of the floor. Call me when LeBron dunks on someone who's capable of blocking his shot.

I do have one giant reason to love this photo and that is because it symbolizes the Heat's season up to this point. Wade is the focus of attention, face of the franchise if you will, despite not shouldering the scoring load. While James does the dirty work, he still looks like an extension of Wade's hand, or better yet, a Lil' Penny-esque puppet that Wade controls. And Chris Bosh, well, he's at the other end of the court watching, happy to be there.

Tottenham Clinches 'Group A' With Draw

I'm still warming up to the idea of a draw. Should a draw excite me? Is it really something to celebrate? Blame it on all the years of basketball, football, and baseball watching. It's only fitting that Tottenham's Champions League group stage journey ends where it started -- in a tie. A tie that should have been a win nonetheless, but that's besides the point.
It's been a long journey, really long actually. The "six games within the group and one game every two weeks" thing drags on quite a bit. The formula is good because the scheduling essentially builds its own suspense for each game. On the flip side, some fan bases -- Arsenal fans I'm looking at you, have two weeks to think up all of the possible ways your team can blow it.
I have to admit I bought into all the skepticism surrounding Spurs prior to the Champions League. Everyone who seemed to know anything about soccer was basically waiting for them to choke away their first opportunity in 50 years to make a lasting imprint on the national stage. I figured they must know more than me, and what do I really know anyway -- so I equated each moment to familiar Cubs' choke jobs.
First game against Bremen and Spurs jump ahead 1-0 with a gift-wrapped own goal. Fifteen minutes later and they take a 2-0 lead. Game 1 of the 2008 NLDS, Mark DeRosa hits a two run homer in the 4th inning as the Cubs take an early lead, which they eventually surrender. Sure enough, Bremen ties the game just after halftime and doesn't look back. Spurs lose two points and lay the foundation for what looks to be their expected sinking of the ship.
They bounce back in a 4-1 victory at home over Twente. Expected to be the whipping boy of the group, Twente would be heaped with praise at the moment had Spurs not stolen the show and unexpectedly won the Group. At the time, it was a good win for Spurs because they were coming off a Premier League loss, but nothing to get too excited about.

The Inter Milan games sandwiched between the Bremen and Twente rematches were significant because they introduced Gareth Bale to the world. A somewhat obscure name to most soccer fans, Bale burst onto the scene with a three goal performance in the first leg against Inter. He single-handedly carved up Inter's defense and was really the only bright spot in a game that Tottenham had trailed 4-0 at one point. He topped that in the second leg, producing one magnificent run after another and crossed the ball flawlessly to set up two more goals. Bale's play became one of the great stories of the Group Stages, resulting in an onslaught of rumors linking the 21 year-old to a number of big clubs.
A 3-0 blowout at home seemed to be appropriate for a Spurs team that was coming off the high of beating the defending European Champions and a Bremen team that had been shutout at home by Twente. Spurs and Twente both went out in resounding fashion, scoring three times a piece. Both teams already had sealed their fate and played into the wackiness that swirled around this game since the very beginning. I've never seen a goalie whiff like Boschker did...never. Robert Green's mishap looked forgivable compared to that.
Other than Bale, the biggest Champions League story surrounding Tottenham was their home versus road performance. At home they were brilliant, outscoring their opponents 10-2 en route to three wins. On the road, they were outscored 9-8, in two draws and one loss. They need to clear their road woes up. It's been a problem for them all season, including the Premier League. It's not the results that are disappointing, you can live with two draws and a loss on the road, but surrendering nine goals in three games is inexcusable.
But now is not the time to dwell on the negative. This is a historic accomplishment for Spurs. Not only do they advance to the knockout stage, but they earned the top seed in Group A, so they can avoid some of the heavy hitters in the next round.
Let's party like it's 1961. President Kennedy, West Side Story, crumbling US diplomatic relations, but most importantly, quality Spurs football.

My Tribute To Ron Santo, And One Last HOF Plea

Growing up as a Cubs fan, I found out quickly there weren't any teams to reminisce over. Other fan bases could look back on the great teams of so-and-so a year and smile eternally. We as Cubs fans don't have that luxury. Our teams, 1969, 1984, and 2003, are brought up to express bitterness and disappointment -- pain and suffering.
The "judge an athlete by the amount of championships he's won" way of thinking doesn't apply to Cubs players. My theory is that because we don't have championships to celebrate, we need another outlet to celebrate the greatness of our individual players that didn't achieve team success. This outlet is found in MVP and Gold Glove Awards, and ultimately, Hall of Fame induction. We need some sort of order to be restored to the universe. There has to be a silver lining in all the suffering, and that comes in the recognition of great individual effort.
Former Cubs third baseman Ron Santo, who died last Thursday, served as the longstanding symbol of a great Cubs player denied his proper recognition. Santo impressed both offensively and defensively on terrible Cubs teams for the first seven years of his career. While the Cubs achieved a degree of team success later in his career (including the 1969 team), Santo ultimately never played in a playoff game. The playoffs were structured differently and only allowed for the top team from each of the two divisions in each League to face off for a World Series birth.
Taking a look at Santo's numbers, it's hard to argue that he should not be in the Hall of Fame. There are currently thirteen third basemen in the Hall of Fame -- the position with the least amount of players. I compared Santo's career batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, home runs, runs batted in, and runs scored to ten of the thirteen players. I didn't include Hall of Famers Ray Dandridge, Judy Johnson, and Jud Wilson in the statistical comparison because they played in the Negro Leagues, and the statistical data in question is not available for Negro Leauge players.
Here is how Santo would rank compared to the other ten Hall of Fame third basemen in the following six categories: Batting Average - 8th, On Base Percentage - Tie 7th, Slugging Percentage - 4th, Home Runs - 3rd, RBIs - 5th, and Runs Scored - 7th. Santo also won five Gold Gloves, which would be third most among Hall of Fame third basemen.
Statistically speaking, Santo's inclusion seems like a no-brainer, but that's only when compared to other third basemen. Santo's career numbers in the so-called most important categories look like this: .277 AVG, 342 HR, 1,331 RBI, and 2,254 hits; not particularly impressive when compared across positions. We've been told a .300 BA, 500 HRs, 1,500 RBIs, and 3,000 hits are the gold standard and Santo reached none of those. This type of thinking is misguided and probably has played a huge part in Santo's rejection from the Hall. Does it make sense to attach such lofty offensive production to a position that historically has housed more defensive minded players? Would you penalize a center for dishing out less assists than a point guard?
When compared to the more offensive minded first base and outfielder positions, Santo's numbers are dwarfed. Compare him to other Hall of Fame third basemen, take into account the five Gold Gloves, and you see a player that is one of the greatest offensive and defensive third basemen of all time. The voters need to do a better job of differentiating production by position, rather than production overall.
Baseball, more so than any other sport, claims to champion character, honesty, and integrity when selecting their Hall of Famers. Their strict ethical stance is why MLB's all-time hits leader and the greatest home run hitters of my youth aren't sniffing the Hall.
Diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 18, Santo kept his disease a secret, fearing he would get cut from the team. Very little was known about the disease in the 1960s, in fact, most people diagnosed with diabetes were not expected to live into their 30s. In wasn't until the end of his career that Santo announced he had diabetes, and subsequently became of the foremost figures in the fight against the disease. It is estimated that he raised over 60 million dollars for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation over the course of his life. Santo also hosted camps and spoke to kids who were living with diabetes. Numbers aside, Santo possessed all of qualities the voting committee say they care deeply about.
For myself and many Cubs fans around my age, too young to see Santo play, we came to know Ron through his radio broadcasts. He's been criticized over the years for not providing the most insightful commentary, and this criticism was definitely warranted. Santo wasn't the type who was going to pepper you with the details of the game. He was a fan first and foremost, as evidenced by this clip:




Some may call that bad color commentary, and I guess, by definition, it is. Personally, I love it because his reaction was the same as everyone at home. Santo's announcing style was the definition of accessible. He had no intention of being the smug announcer snubbing his nose at the know-nothing fans. He was one of us, who just so happened to blessed with the talent to play professional baseball. Santo was never overly optimistic or pessimistic about the team. His feelings were usually a reflection of the larger fan base. He lent a voice to the frustrations, joys, and general masochism that is being a Cubs fan. For that, he was loved.
The Cubs aren't winning a championship anytime soon. Funny, how that phrase applies every decade. It's my guess that Ron would have wanted to see a championship even more than his Hall of Fame induction. But because we are Cubs fans, we need to settle for Ron's Hall of Fame recognition -- an honor that has been long overdue.

How To Do The "John Wall "

Hailed as the "Next Big Thing" out of the Carolinas, Raleigh's own Troop 41 is here to help you do the "John Wall." As you may have guessed, the "John Wall" involves flexing your bicep from side to side. You know, kind of like the "dance?" John Wall himself made up last year at Kentucky. Well, these kids put a song to it and have themselves over 3 million YouTube views. Someone needs to tell these young athletes on the fast track to super stardom that they need to trademark everything they do. Flexing, sneezing, coughing, if an athlete does it, money can be made off them.
Top 3 Reasons To Listen:
1) One of the rappers is wearing a Cubs hat. This may mark the first time in rap video history that someone has worn a Cubs hat. The Sox hat is much more popular for reasons probably having more to do with NWA than the relationship between hip-hop music, culture, and south side demographics.
2) There's an appearance by a red-headed white girl. Again, if she's not playing the violin, I don't think I've seen a redhead in a rap video.
3) "My jump shot stupid, yeah it's retarded" is one of the lines in this song. And one of the better ones.

LeBron's Long Awaited Return

I'm struggling to try and put LeBron James' return to Cleveland in context. What does it mean to the Miami Heat, the NBA season, the city of Cleveland? Will this game be remembered as a heroic against-all-odds type of performance, or not remembered at all? A mere footnote in James' Hall of Fame career.
There's one thing I do know, and it's that this game -- regular season game -- has the feel of a WWE Pay Per View event. It has been built up as a raucous crowd, full of signs, chants, laughs, boos, and object throwing that I'm not so sure the fans in attendance know how they're going to react, or even how they're supposed to react.
In my constant effort to find cross-sport references, I was reminded of a little baseball incident that occurred in June of 2002. Mets pitcher Shawn Estes found himself in an incredibly uncomfortable situation pitching against Roger Clemens in Shea Stadium. Playing by National League rules, this game would mark the first time since the 2000 World Series that the Mets had the opportunity to pitch to Clemens.
Mets catcher Mike Piazza suffered a concussion after being hit in the head with a Clemens fastball midway through the 2000 season. The two would square off later that year in the World Series. Clemens flung a piece of Piazza's broken bat at him while he ran down the first base line.
Estes' 2002 start was billed as a revenge game for Piazza and the Mets. The Mets would finally have the chance to get Clemens back for the recklessness he exhibited two years prior. Estes wasn't even a member of the Mets in 2000 but tried to bean Clemens because he was supposed to bean Clemens.
The result? A wild fastball in the high 80s that Estes threw about a foot behind Clemens. The build-up had been for naught, as it was clear that Estes wanted no part of beaning a player in the 3rd inning of a 0-0 game.
I'm worried that the same outside pressure to react a certain way has been placed upon the Cleveland fans in attendance. "Tonight, everyone is a Cavs fan" has been a popular saying. Fans of other teams across the country will be tuning in to see how Cleveland reacts. Many of them will be disappointed if mayhem doesn't ensue.
It's easy to be the guy on sideline saying, "Do this, do that," when you're not the one doing it. It's even easier to watch a city burn itself down and watch gleefully because you don't live in that city. I remember a 2001 in Cleveland Browns Stadium. The refs blew a call on the field, allowed the Browns to run another play and then chose to review the call. They overturned a catch that would have given the Browns a first and goal from the nine yard line, down five points, with 48 seconds and no timeouts. They got the call right, but shouldn't have been allowed to review it because another play had already been run.
Browns fans threw bottles onto the field -- at players, coaches, and mostly the referees. When the players returned to the field a half an hour later to complete the game, the sidelines were filled with empty bottles and cans that had to be cleared off the field.
I think many people are hoping for a scene like that. People that have no stake in the Cavs, Heat, or the city of Cleveland.

How about a really good basketball game? An inspired effort from the Cavs defense. A home court advantage coupled with a playoff atmosphere. How about watching to see how LeBron reacts to the crowd. Will he look to score? Is he timid? Does he come out of this having played good bad overall?
Probably the most fascinating aspect of this story, despite being over discussed to the point of nausea, is LeBron's powder toss. A large ball of confusion is is mixed up in that small amount of powder.
Somewhere along the line, LeBron, his powder toss, and Cleveland fans combined to form the holy trinity of Cavaliers basketball. No doubt, the large WITNESS Nike ad that once hung from the Landmark Office Tower had something to do with that.
LeBron is his own separate entity. The powder toss is his pregame routine. It caught on with the Cleveland fans and the advertising world capitalized off it. Why would he change his pregame routine? It's his routine. The sooner that distinction is made clear, the better.
Cleveland can say, throw, or light on fire whatever they want. I'm not from Cleveland and I don't root for the Cavs, none of the reaction will reflect badly on me. We watch basketball because of the product on the court. The players are supposed to be the entertainers, not the fans.
Just a reminder, for those interested in things other than a good basketball game, perhaps you should direct your attention to Thursday night's WWE Smackdown, which also airs at 7 PM.

Blake Griffin In Person

I have a mini basketball hoop that hangs from the top of my closest door. I love it so much in fact, that I wrote about it a few months ago. With the 2010-11 NBA season in full swing, I've practicing quite a bit. I still can't make an open 10-footer consistently, but I have come up with a few interesting dunks.
Over the weekend, I threw the ball off the wall, caught it in my overextended right hand, faded away in the air, and tomahawked the dunk home. The 23-year old me was pretending to by the 21-year old Blake Griffin.
Just yesterday, my girlfriend asked me, "Blake Griffin? (I add the question mark because she was looking for confirmation that she had the name correct). He plays for the Clippers, right?"
"Yeah."
"Good, we're going to see him play on the 18th. I want to see those freckles."
My girlfriend, by her own admission likes weird looking people. Joakim Noah, Blake Griffin, me -- it's only fitting that she'd base my Christmas gift not only around the game I love most, but a chance for her to see freckles.
I became hysterical like a 15-year old Twilight fan waiting for the midnight showing. "Blake Griffin? Oh my gizzod, Blake Griffin? Let me help you find tickets."
I spent all of last night, a good three hours, watching Blake Griffin YouTube highlights and looking up Shawn Kemp's career numbers.
Kemp seems to be the logical historical comparison to Griffin. They're about the same size, Griffin is a little bulkier than the pre-Cleveland Kemp, they're both way more athletic that you'd expect someone their size to be, and they each produce(d) at least one highlight reel dunk a game.
During Kemp's peak years with the Sonics in the mid-90s, he averaged about 18 points and 11 rebounds a game. Griffin is currently at 20 points and 11 rebounds a game, in his rookie year. You saw that right, the rookie Blake Griffin, on a bad team without a Gary Payton, is currently outperforming Shawn Kemp in his peak years. Scary.
My favorite Griffin YouTube video is the one below, taken from Griffin's 44-point game against New York on November 20th.



Everyone has seen the first dunk. Griffin curls his hand around the back of 7'1 Timofy Mozgov, raises up, and the symbolism is clear. It's this type of quiet cockiness that I love about Griffin's game. He doesn't posture and pose after the dunk, in fact, his teammates are more excited than he appears to be. But to even have the audacity to redirect a man's head towards your...um, lower body, speaks volumes. That move was meant to show his opponent up, in a disrespectful, yet legal, and less obviously boisterous way than say, pounding his chest and standing over an opponent.
Griffin's second dunk in the video is less ballyhooed, but even more spectacular to me. This time forward Danilo Gallinari is victimized. I'm starting to think Griffin may have a little Kevin Garnett in him -- the part that hates European players.
Watch carefully at the slow motion part starting at the 45 second mark. In mid-air, Griffin uses his left arm to basically remove Gallinari's outstretched left arm from the picture. The phrase "A man amongst boys" gets thrown around a lot, but I can't think of a better visual representation of that saying.
Griffin's mid-air discarding of Gallinari's defensive effort reminds me of the time he hit his head on the backboard in college while dunking the ball. Griffin is going to get to the basket, it doesn't matter if there's a 7'1 center, lanky left arm, or a backboard in his way. He doesn't bowl over defenders (LeBron) or weave through them (Rondo), he simply removes them. I'm not sure we've seen an NBA player who does this with the ease that Griffin does. The majority of the time it seems like he's playing on a mini hoop against imaginary defenders.
While we'll be sitting too high to get a glimpse of Griffin's freckles, a bird's eye view should be just fine to witness his offensive prowess. I'm just glad I'll be able to say I was there for a moment of his rookie season. The start of what I think is going to be a very special NBA career.