- The Celtics must be out to prove how little value Kevin Garnett actually has to the team's success. Boston is now 4-2 without "The Big Ticket" in the lineup, and put forth an outstanding effort at home Friday night against the Cavs. A game back in the race for the top seed in the Eastern Conference heading into the game, Boston came out on a mission and out-willed Cleveland 105-94. The Celts made it their mission not to let LeBron James beat them, and they succeeded. LBJ had just 21 points, six rebounds and five assists, but shot a miserable 33-percent from the field. Mo Williams was great, scoring 26 points on 8-15 shooting, but if he's the only guy doing well for Cleveland you know they're in trouble. Granted, the game was in Boston which no doubt was an advantage for the Celtics. But the fact that Cleveland played as poorly as it did last night at TD Bank North Garden sends the message that if they don't nail down that top seed before the regular season ends, they're going to have to figure out a way to win in Beantown if they hope to reach the NBA Finals. The Celtics are now 49-14 and while KG may be out another week or so, Boston is showing it doesn't need him for now. A big statement was made between the top two teams in the East, and right now it appears Boston has the upper hand.
- Speaking of the Association, while the top teams in the East are the cream of the crop in the NBA, the opposite could be said about the teams holding the bottom seeds in the conference. With their 15-point victory over Milwaukee Friday night, the lowly Chicago Bulls have now taken sole possession of the 8th seed in the East. Let me be the first to tell you this Bulls team is not good. The fact that they would make the playoffs if the season ended today is merely a product of the fact that there are just too many teams that qualify for the post season in the NBA. I know, I know. It would theoretically be good for the league if the Bulls made the playoffs because of Chicago's market size and the fact that Derrick Rose is one of the league's bright young stars. But if the NBA were smart, they'd allow just 6 teams from each conference to make the post season and have the top two seeds earn a bye like the NFL. Is it perfect solution? Well, no, frankly. But it's better than having teams like Chicago or Milwaukee who are five and six games below .500 respectively earning a spot in the playoffs. That's really a joke, isn't it?
- Thankfully I didn't go to Florida State, nor am I a fan of their athletics. It's not that I don't like them, but man are their fans bumming tonight. The NCAA slapped the Seminoles with four years of probation and may force the football program to forfeit some of their wins in the record books as punishment for their academic cheating scandal. Bobby Bowden's 382 wins ranks 2nd all time to Joe Paterno, who has just one more career win. But if he has to give back some wins JoePa really distances himself in that book, doesn't he? The 'Noles football program will have to forfeit two scholarships in recruiting this year and one next season, and that's just part of the problem. Other sports are going to lose a bunch of scholarships and victories too. Apparently the track and field program will have to give up three NCAA championship crowns. That's what happens when a reported sixty-one FSU athletes cheated on an online test in 2006 and 2007, and also were provided the answers to tests and had papers written for them by university staff. A couple of things I thought when I saw this: 1) While this is pretty significant corruption, athletes at every school in America cheat. If they were going to cheat, they should have been better cheaters. 2) What does it say about the pressure to win at FSU when university staffers are cheating for these athletes? Apparently Myron Rolle didn't need the help. Maybe they should be recruiting smarter athletes so they can handle the academics so FSU doesn't have to spoon feed them to keep them on their respective teams. Or here's a thought, mandate some study time in their practice schedule! Florida State basketball is actually good this year, but forget about that for a while. Now that recruiting takes a hit the upstart team will decline, and so will seemingly every other sports team in Tallahassee. Yikes.
- Is there a bigger joke than agent Drew Rosenhaus's claim that there are "several teams" interesting in signing Terrell Owens? I guess the thought would be plausible if he hadn't thrown in the thought that he won't identify the teams that are in fact interested. If you can't identify teams, then how can we believe there are several teams interested? Conventional wisdom would suggest Oakland is interested, because they'll take anything they can get. But beyond that, who? San Francisco? Maybe Washington? That's three teams, which wouldn't suffice for my definition of several. This could end up going a lot like the Manny Ramirez situation went. No, T.O. won't end up signing back with the Cowboys, but Rosenhaus will try to create a market that doesn't exist for a player with significant character flaws. Like Ramirez, there's no question that you'd want T.O. for the talent he possesses. But how many teams want a guy who seemingly obliterates every locker room he enters? Rosenhaus is doing his job as an agent, trying to create some leverage to find Owens a contract. But please, enough with this garbage about how there are several teams interested. I cannot believe that's true. Can you?
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Weekend Headlines
A few musings from Friday night in the world of sports...
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There have got to be 'bigger jokes' that rosenhaus's claim that several teams are interested in TO. The guy has led the league in TD receptions since he became a cowboy and that certainly would be something a team might be interested in. Also, agents don't go running around shouting out who is interested in their client, so I wouldn't read too much into that.
ReplyDeleteThe other thing that seems a little ridiculous is that TO seems to be coming off as the sole reason why Dallas has struggled in the post season and the reason why he should be removed. We know that he calls out his teammates and can be a major problem in the clubhouse, but some accountability should be put on the coaching staff for some of these losses. The Cowboys not making the playoffs this year had way more to do with their horrendous D down the stretch then TO. Their playoff loss in 2006 would have been forgotten if Romo hadn't choked it away. In 2007 Owens scored the lone receiving TD for the cowboys and Romo choked the game away again with a late INT. I have heard numerous people place the blame on the Cowboys success on TO, but it seems way overblown. He is a major reason why they got to the playoffs and if Tony Romo didn't choke in both those games then we may not be having this conversation right now. The coaching staff in Dallas has the best talent around and it's a joke that they can't play good football on both sides of the ball.
By the way, several means more than 2, but fewer than many (many usually means 50%) so it doesn't seem that ridiculous that he said several teams could be in the mix especially since you listed 3 yourself.
I wouldn't take TO on my team if the agent paid me or the team itself to take him. Anonymous #1 must be related to TO.
ReplyDeleteIf TO is such a cherished teammate ask Philadelphia if they want him back. Ask the old SF organization if they would take him back. It seems that those teams couldn't wait to get rid of him. In fact, if memory serves me correct, didn't Philly go on their winning streak to even make the Super Bowl after TO got hurt? And didn't they lose the Super Bowl after he made his grand return. Granted he was a great receiver, even with the extra baggage, but he is 35 and on the downside of his career. Wouldnt be my choice. He was well suited in the soap opera atmosphere of Dallas. Only thing that was missing there was JR Ewing.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 1: When I say is there a "bigger joke" I'm being facetious. Yes, there are bigger jokes. That wasn't intended to be taken exactly literally.
ReplyDelete2. I do agree with you that Romo is much more to blame for the team's lack of success in the playoffs than anyone else. And of course TO contributes on the field, and has contributed at a high level everywhere he's ever played, but he has had a gross number of drops over the last couple years.
3. I don't usually consider 3 to be several, and don't believe contextually people usually mean 3 when they say several, yet this is a pretty silly technicality you pointed out. No?
4. I think you agree that TO is a divisive force in the locker room, but I think you underestimate its effect on the team. This is obviously well documented, but TO's meddling in the relationship between Romo and the rest of his receivers, AKA Jason Witten, in a public forum had to have been very difficult for his teammates to overcome down the stretch. TO demands the ball, and he won't settle unless he's being thrown to the most even if it's not the best option for the team. And his ability to destroy the locker room does not make it easy to win considering all the distraction he causes. I think some of that is his doing and some is the media's doing, sure. But everywhere he goes he is a locker room killer.
Risrads-I think you're arguing two different points. He's not cherished as a teammate. He never has been. But I don't think that has anything to do with the Eagles success or lack there of without him in their Super Bowl year. They were a great team when they went to the Super Bowl, and any NFL expert would tell you they got there because they had his presence, and it gave them the confidence to win without him. And they didn't lose the Super Bowl because of him. In fact, TO played brilliantly while injured in that game. They lost because they couldn't score on their final drive while McNabb was puking.
Good job, posters. Keep commenting! And thanks for reading.
I think it's more silly that you don't understand the meaning of the term several and think its 'ridiculous' that an agent would use this term to describe teams interested in his client. You can say its a silly technicality(more than 2, is this really that silly?), but you should know the meaning of a word before calling out someone for using the term, without knowing what its true meaning is.
ReplyDeleteI think you overestimate the effect of TO in the locker room. But who are we kidding, we haven't been in a NFL locker room we don't really know. All we know is the media makes a big deal about everything and maybe that effect is really the major problem. Maybe Jerry Jones is just sick of dealing with the questions and the constant inquiries from reporters. Maybe the huge media presence that TO brings is more of a problem then the actual 'encounters; he has with teammates.
The other part of the equation is winning. Had they won those games we wouldn't be here today. Those playoff wins fall on Tony Romo and even this season with his injury can be a major reason. Had the cowboys won they wouldn't have gotten rid of TO and for the most part the lack of winning wasn't his fault.
I understand the meaning of the word several. I'm fully aware of what the word means and how it is properly used, and stand by the comments I made in the post. However, thanks for reading and posting a comment.
ReplyDeleteI think that are SEVERAL more comments than necessary on what the word several means. Few would have been more appropriate to comment on it. None would have been best.
ReplyDelete@ above anonymous, each post also had a legitimate comment towards the SPORTS related items of this post. But when the author points out that..."That's three teams, which wouldn't suffice for my definition of several. " and is inaccurate then something can be made. I'm sure the author of a blog can handle some criticism when he stresses a point that is inaccurate.
ReplyDeleteOn a side note perhaps that whole comment wasn't relevant at all and maybe Rosenhaus wasn't acting like Scott Boras and should be given some credit. His client DID sign within 48 hours of his departure from Dallas. Smaller media market will help Owens and the touchdowns will help Buffalo. Whether this works or doesn't work for the Cowboys the bottomline is Romo hasn't come through in the clutch and they have now lost one of the most feared receivers in the game. If Romo can't handle a little criticism then he should just get out of the kitchen or in this case off the football field because they had the best offense in the league the past couple of years and now have a significant downgrade to deal with
Did you thank yourself for not going to Florida State when you were trudging through 16 inches of snow, 20 degree temperature, and 25 mph winds while walking to class in the morning?
ReplyDelete