SHEED SHOOTS ANOTHER BLANK

As a die hard New York sports fan it's hard to root for anything with that "Boston" across the jersey, but Rasheed Wallace is the trump card. It's physically impossible to wish him well at all.
He's a classless, selfish, and has the emotional control of a small child. In the biggest game of the season for the Pistons he went 2 of 12 from the field and had nearly as many turnovers(3) as points (4). This clown is one of the most overrated, underachieving ballplayers I've ever seen. With his talent, if he had any character, he'd be a 20 point/10 rebound guy night in and night out.
Now I know this is gonna be a great weekend.
As for the Finals, Boston beat LA in both meetings, but they took place before the Lakers acquired Pao Gasol and turned into a championship caliber team. LA hasn't lost at home since late March. I'm leaning towards Los Angeles in 5 or 6. Since the series doesn't begin until Thursday, I'll reserve final judgement until later in the week.

MY DUCK RECRUIT THOUGHTS

Read Rob Moseley's piece in today's Guard about Dewitt Stuckey, the Oregon football recruit arrested on some serious charges including felonious battery and assault with a deadly weapon. An arrest is not the end all to me in most cases. If a prosecutor moves full steam ahead and formal charges are filed I'm leaning towards pulling the scholarship. I know legalities are involved, but I've always been a firm believer it's not that hard to avoid slippery situations. You've been offered a dream like a D-1 scholarship and trouble surfaces, walk the heck away. On SportsTalk you always hear me say that the idiotic logic "innocent until proven guilty" is a myth. It's administrative or clerical as far as which stamp to use. When a crime is committed, guilt exists, period! The court process simply makes it official and a part of the public record. If it looks like this kid caused serious harm to another without his safety being threatened, who needs him? I'm reserving judgment on this as the victim hasn't fingered Stuckey. I also would be quite concerned if this young guy was involved and even failed to throw a punch. Again, this is a red flag and a case of horrible decision making. We know the Oregon staff will remain mum as it's an ongoing investigation. We'll keep an eye on this with the 'smoke & fire' theory burning in my mind.

SOSA RETIRES...FROM WHAT?

Read on ESPN's site that Sammy Sosa says he'll retire after next spring's World Baseball Classic. Reminds me of the old Rodney Dangerfield joke about his first shot at the entertainment business. He was doing so well, when he quit, he was the only one who knew he quit. I think SS was the ultimate case of owners distancing themselves from the Steroid Patrol. At least Sammy put up respectable numbers with Texas last year bopping 21 big flies and driving home 92 in just over 400 at bats. Barry(Bay Area Baloonhead) and Clemens were too toxic and facing legal issues.
I take full responsibility for a boring first two games of the NHL Finals. I built it up way too much like a blind date. I never should have told everyone the looks matched the great personality. The Red Wing defense is ruining it for everyone. They won't let the Penguins mount the slightest attack. As mentioned on SportsTalk, the annual Selke Award goes to the league's best defensive forwards/centers. Of the 3 Finalists, 2(Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk) play for Detroit. The best way to describe them is as offensive players who excel on defense. They've lead an amazing display of forechecking so Pittsburgh can barely get the puck out of their own zone. Wing goalie Chris Osgood is facing almost no tough scoring chances as the defense in front of him provides great sight lines and a good look at the puck. Hopefully the young Pens can solve this mystery, win tonight & make a series out of this yet.

IT IS ILLEGAL GENIUS!

I somewhat understand former French Open winner Yannick Noah backing his son Joakim, recently busted for holding some weed and having an open container of alcohol. Sure, on the list of major societal threats that doesn't rank among the top million. This just in. Marijuana is illegal in the U.S unless a doctor writes you a scrip for medicinal purposes. I could go on for hours about how ridiculous and money wasting the "War on Drugs" has been and always will be. The legal stuff, nicotine, caffeine and absolutely alcohol causes so many more problems than weed it's laughable. The knuckleheads who refuse to examine the benefits of legalization of the wacky tobacky probably do so after knocking back 2 cups of joe in the morning and a few martinis after work. Not to mention the cholesterol medication or viagra they intake or the ritalin that keeps their child manageable. That's all debatable. The fact spleef is illegal is not. Noah must realize his son is breaking the law and risking his lucrative pro hoop career. If he wants to defend Joakim's right to toke, gather up some of your wealthy, influential friends and buy off a politician or lobbyist and show true American capitalism!
While my last post condemned the "sky is falling" mentality of the pundits sharing their NBA playoff thoughts, I will say this is pretty much a must for the Spurs tonight. After LA overcame the 20 point hole in the opener we got back to the nature of this post season. The home team wins by a bunch at home. Lakers by 19 in game two with San Antonio taking LA apart in game three. Kobe's so-called supporting cast took the last game off. Pao Gasol did score 15 points but launched 18 shots. Derek Fisher was invisible with one bucket. Lamar Odom, who I've praised since the Gasol trade, thought he was Ray Allen and clanged 9 of his 11 field goal attempts. Odom, to his credit, did not sulk over his shooting misfortunes and crashed the glass with 11 rebounds and dished out 6 assists. The Lakers can not only push the Spurs most of the way out the door, but buy some rest time as it looks like Detroit/Boston will go the distance!

THE SKY IS FALLING! PLUS PUCKS

Why is it after each game the analysts(save Barkely) try to take everything to the nth degree and make a blanket statement. The Spurs were dead in the water against the Hornets because they'd gotten smoked the first 3 games in New Orleans. Boston's road woes meant it was just a matter of time until they were counted out. These clowns need to pay attention! Everyone is losing away from their home court then rebounding to make a series of it. I don't know when the sports we follow became hysterics central. I guess it follows a society where some people actually think Homeland Security saying the status is Yellow means something more than fear mongering! This just in, the Spurs have won all their home games during this post season so this thing is far from over. Now if Ginnobli's ankle is an issue and LA wins game 3 in San Antonio, then I'll be leading the "it's over" cry. Until then, the knucklehead national pundits need to take a valium, and calm the heck down. I will say this. I've been really impressed with the Laker defense. Kobe is a terror and Pao Gasol is way better than I thought, especially helping patrol the paint.
My mission to get some of you to check out the NHL has kicked into high gear. Game one of the Stanley Cup finals is at 5pm tonight(Sat). Unfortunately Versus is carrying the action the first two games before NBC takes over on Wednesday for the remaining games. Detroit and Pittsburgh are just loaded with skill, speed and depth. No question these are the two best teams representing their respective conferences. Don't be surprised to see some serious scoring as both goalies, Marc Andre Fleury of the Pens and the Wing's Chris Osgood have been playing well but are not what you would call elite netminders. If you haven't had the chance, enjoy the Penguins young superduperstar Sid "The Kid" Crosby. He wears number 87 and is one of those special, special talents. He was the top overall pick in the 2005 draft and in his first 3 seasons in the league has scored 99 goals. Oh by the way, he's all of 20 years old. He was born the summer AFTER the Celtics and Lakers last played each other in the NBA Finals back in 1987.
Have a great, safe holiday weekend and take a moment to pay homage to those men & women who sacrificed for us regardless of your current political feelings.

COME ON WILLIE!

Was very disappointed to read Met manager Willie Randolph use race as a reason he's been taking heat in the Big Apple papers. When he was a player during the Bronx Zoo era of George, Reggie and Billy, the writers never had a bad word to say about him and he was painted as the ultimate pro, a total class act. He knows better and he let frustration dictate policy. Because of the scribes his reputation was so high level he became the first Yankee captain since Lou Gherig. He cites how they ripped Isiah Thomas during his Knick tenure. Are you freaking kidding? The papers tore into Thomas because he was black. If he'd have been Mother Theresa and produced those embarassing results they'd have torn him a new one. And the mention of ex-Jet coach Herm Edwards was also way off base. Edwards went 4 & 12 his final season running his overall mark as the head Jet to 39 & 41, including 2 & 4 in the playoffs. Not exactly Bill Walsh or Vince Lombardi. Randolph did back off those remarks but I can't believe he even attempted to play that card!
During today's Hall of Fame talk a couple of pitchers generated the most interest, Pedro Martinez and Curt Shilling. Pete is 209 & 93 an insane winning percentage & his career ERA of 2.81 is the best among active pitchers. That winning percentage of .692 is by far the best of the modern era, and third all time. He did get his ring with the 2004 Red Sox, so throw in the 3-thousand whiffs plus 3 Cy-Youngs(2 AL/1NL) and I say he's in.
Shilling is a rock solid 216 & 146, nearly a .600 winning percentage with over 31-hundred kays and while he's never won the Cy, he's a 3 time runner up. He's also been named the NLCS MVP(93 Philly) and shared the award with Randy Johnson after the 2001 World Series. Shill has collected 3 championship rings(1 w/AZ & 2 w/BSN) and also pitched that Philadelphia team to the 93 series. That's quite an accomplishment being at the front end of 4 League Champions.
He gets my edge over Pedro in the horse categories like innings pitched as he's led the majors twice and been in the top 5 on three other occasions. Both have posted multiple 20 win seasons(PM had 2/Shilling 3). They've each won league strikeout titles(Shill 3/Pete 2).
I say Martinez is in as well.

LOTTERY, GLOVE WORK AND GAMBLING!

On the Tuesday show we compared notes in trying to come up with the best defensive players we'd seen during our years watching major league baseball. All was going well until I got an e-mail putting A-Rod as the top glove man at both SS & 3B. I'm thinking a 30 day ban on e-mails or even leaving the house is warranted. Alex was a fine shortstop and has done an admiral job at the hot corner since ruining my Yankees. To mention him in the same breath as Mike Schmidt, Brooks Robinson, Ozzie Smith or Omar Vizquel is baseball blasphemy, period!
Soon they'll mix up those ping pong balls and decide the draft positions for the NBA's late June event. I don't see a player who will cause a meteoric rise from the garbage teams like the Heat. I do think a stud point guard like Derrick Rose of Memphis or K-State's Michael Beasley might put a team with some proper pieces in place over the top. Imagine if the Blazers won the lottery or caught the #2 and were able to add a healthy Greg Oden and Rose to that mix? There would be talk of making a deep post season run. How about Golden State. They have enough small ball talent to have upset the top seeded Mavs last spring and were the last team out this year. Think Mike Beasley would push them up the charts??
On tomorrow's show we'll talk sports gambling. I laugh my head off when people bury their head in the sand over this issue. "JUST SAY NO" right? That's worked so well keeping kids off drugs and from having sex! Can't wait to see what you all come up with here!

TIME FOR REPLAY MORONS!

Lot being made about the genius ump blowing the call in Sunday night's Mets blowout of the Yankees. Carlos Delgado lofts one down the left field line and 3rd base umpire Mike Reilly correctly gives the 'circle the bases' signal for a dinger. Then the rocket scientist behind the plate, Bob Davidson overrules him and calls it foul. I was watching 28-hundred miles from the Bronx and saw the freaking thing hit the foul pole and I'm a die hard Yankees fan. Then today(mon), Davidson admits his error and drops a bunch of "F" bombs. Didn't matter cause the NL team from NY thumped, but down the road, who knows? Let's see, if only the technology existed to take a look at the play again and render a proper decision????? Oh it's called "INSTANT REPLAY"! Time for the powers that be in baseball pull their heads out and use the freaking thing. Public admissions and apologies are worthless. The remedy is simple. I'm not talking balls and strikes, plays at the bases or anything dramatic but fair or foul on a homer is EZ!
Moving to the NFL, don't etch it in stone that Pacman Jones will play for the Cowboys this season. If he shows remorse and avoids having another "dinner" at a Manhattan strip club prior to his meeting with the commissioner over the summer it could happen. Right now Roger Goodell has made it clear Mr. Jones doesn't warrant any special consideration. At least in his most recent interview the Constant Defendant said all the right things and might actually get that this is his last chance.

NEW BOSS IS JUST AS NUTS!

Little George, aka Hank Steinbrenner is running his mouth in the press saying the Yankees should be more like Tampa Bay and start "playing their butts off". I rarely agree with ESPN's Steve Phillips but he's dead on when he claims the guys in pinstripes take these comments with a grain of salt and rolled eyes. Does anyone really think Jeter, Posada, Rivera and the high line pros they have in that clubhouse need to be motivated by a cuckoo owner? Please. What they NEED is the back end of the rotation to start pumping out quality starts, Arod & Posada to heal up plus Giambi and Cano to get their batting averages above .225!
Interleague play starts this weekend! Woo Hoo! I really love it. The Mets/Yankees or Dodgers/Angels will get lots of ink as they represent the 2 largest markets in America but I'm intrigued by the baseball match-ups. Oakland at Atlanta features a pair of talented young teams put together by rock solid organizations. Ironically it's the seasoned vet, Chipper Jones of the Braves whose having the monster year with a B/A around .420 and big power numbers. The A's throw their excellent young righty Dana Eveland who they picked up in the Danny Haren trade with Arizona. Atlanta got their outstanding looking 22-year old starter in a deal as well when they traded SS Edgar Renteria to the Tigers. Jair Jurrjens has that mound presence you rarely see in such a young guy. They think so much of him that as opposed to bringing up a minor leaguer to start this game, JJ is going on 3 days rest.

Was listening to Justin on the way home at around 4:30 today(Wed) and a caller questioned The Idol on the declining interest in baseball, as opposed to say UFC. WHAT??? Baseball set an attendance record in 2007 with the Red Sox, Cubs, Tigers, Mets, Yankee, Dodgers, Brewers and Cardinals all setting single season marks for fans pushing through the turnstiles. Bud Selig(moron in charge) said they also broke the revenue record.
It's difficult to compare the two as, like boxing, the real test in that sport is pay-per-view as opposed to tickets sold. Now that we've reached to post-steroids era, it appears our national pastime is thriving.
Obviously, as the caller pointed out, demographics come into play. Many in the 35+ age range love baseball because we don't have any attention deficit disorders and can actually sit back, drink in the atmosphere and ponder strategy. Lot's of younger folks are FOX TV trained and need constant bells & whistles to keep their interest.
Here's my challenge. According to an article in Forbes Magazine, UFC was founded in 1993 and is experiencing lot's of success at the gate. See if it can sustain for another decade to avoid becoming a fad in the realm of "remember when UFC events sold out"?

JOY IN THE MISERY OF A PINHEAD

Was watching Magic/Pistons in Game 5 of that playoff series, getting a tad annoyed with the constant Orlando miscues and bricked free throws when the good news hit the wire. The Feds have tacked on 10 more counts of perjury than originally filed against Barry Bonds. Thus far 8 knuckleheads related to the BALCO mess have entered guilty pleas including track superstar Marion Jones who is just over 2 months into her 6 month vacation in a penitentiary. Right now the smart money says unless Bonds cops a plea and finally admits what everyone knows, he's likely facing even more times than Jones. Remember how adamant she was about being clean during her time dominating the sport. I personally spoke with her on a couple of occasions covering the Prefontaine Classic. I actually found her to be engaging, believable and a pretty classy lady. Who knew she was a con artist and a cheat. I have no doubts about Bonds. The story about going to sleep with the ground clear comes to mind but waking up to find snow??? You might not have witnessed the snowfall first hand, but you know it happened. Let's face it, at this point even the most pathetic Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, Sosa, ect apologists around have to throw in the towel. Your guy is a juicer. Period! HA HA HA HA HA!

Gimme a Reason

Lot of Celtic fans talking about the Big 3 taking over in Game 4 at Cleveland. Why should we believe they'll snap out of their road funk at a much more difficult venue than say, Atlanta?
Boston won the ugly opener on the home floor, then thumped when LeBron remained ice cold in game two, but when the scene shifted to the Cavs house, inexplicably the defense remained in Beantown. No question certain venues can throw off your shooting, but 'D' should remain a constant and they allowed the Cavaliers to score 108 points and make a ton of easy shots. It will fall on Doc Rivers and maybe Kevin Garnett to pitch the defense from the opening gun. Remember, of the two teams, only Cleveland has had recent post season success.
Leaping to baseball, the Pirates haven't been remotely competitive since the 1999 season when they were just 5 games below .500. Now this storied franchise is in the midst of three straight years of losing at least 94 games. The current 6 game win streak has pushed them to 18 & 19, a quantum jump forward. Maybe the new skipper, John Russell, a utility guy during an 8-10 year career from the mid-80's to the early 90's will push the right buttons. Keep an eye out for the new centerfielder, Nate McLouth. Getting a chance to play everyday he's really producing with the bat. I'll have more on these good young teams on tomorrow's show from noon-2pm.

Debut Post

Gang. It's Friday afternoon, I'm switching between watching the Yanks get punished by the Tigers and Penguins handling the Flyers in game one of that NHL East Final, awaiting Lakers/Jazz. Will soon be heading down to Quackers for T-Bone's going away soiree.
I've only been with Cumulus 2 weeks but he's been huge as far as getting me set up,
and on the air and not sounding(too much), like a moron. The Idol, me and anyone who works with T-Bone will miss him, but wish him the best in his new venture in Newport. Enough butt kissing for one blog. I'm gonna turn this into a daily afternoon event. Looking for your suggestions on what you'd like to hear about. Enjoy the weekend and remember, regardless of circumstances, the Huskies suck! I know, I'm a class act!