Hump Day Headlines

In this week's version of Hump Day Headlines, we discuss the latest steroid news in baseball, Mo Williams finally gets his all-star bid, Mike Brown crushes the referees, and the best in hockey duke it out in Beantown...

• A day after the A-Rod steroid saga that has taken up post after post on our blog (thanks for the tremendous feedback by the way), now baseball has a new name to worry about.  Miguel Tejada has been charged with lying to Congress, although it was for lying about an ex-teammate's use of steroids, not his own.  Tejada is a real winner, not only because he himself has been accused of taking steroids by his own former teammate, known 'roider Rafael Palmeiro, but the all-star shortstop also lied about his age after he forged documents when coming to play baseball in America to make him appear to be a younger, more marketable player.  So it's not like lying isn't a trend with Mr. Tejada.  The teammate wasn't identified in the court documents, but apparently played with him in Oakland in 2002.  And for the record, the '02 season was the year Tejada won the American League's Most Valuable Player honor.  Miggy is expected to plead guilty.  If convicted, Tejada could spend a year in jail on the misdemeanor charge, but it is believed he won't get that great a sentence.  (Remember, constitutional law doesn't always apply to athletes.)
• After being snubbed, and then being snubbed again, Mo Williams finally has his all-star selection.  First he wasn't selected as a starter, which was no surprise.  But the curious part of this saga is that he wasn't selected as a reserve by the Eastern Conference coaches, and then was passed over by Commissioner David Stern in favor of the Celtics Ray Allen when Jameer Nelson's injury had him out of the game.  Now that Chris Bosh is out, Williams finally will get a chance to represent the Eastern All-Stars at the game in Phoenix this weekend.  The Cavs' point guard is having a very solid season this year, averaging 17.1 points and 4.2 assists per game, and is one of the biggest reasons for Cleveland's 39-11 start.  He ranks fourth in the NBA in scoring among point guards and second in free-throw percentage.  Congrats on the selection, Mo.  I'm sure you're looking forward to feeding LeBron in the All-Star game on Sunday.
• And while we're talking about the Cavaliers, how about their loss lass night in Indiana?  Two fouls called with less than a second remaining in regulation determined the outcome.  First, with the Pacers leading 95-93 with 0.8 seconds left, the Cavs tried an alley-oop inbounds play to LeBron James.  Danny Granger went up with him, and James drew the foul on the contact.  He hit both free throws to tie the game.  Then with 0.2 seconds left, referee Joey Crawford called a foul on Bron, and Danny Granger hit one of two free throws to ice a 96-95 win.  Cavs coach Mike Brown was livid after the game, calling referee Joey Crawford's call "horse crap" and "the worst call I've ever been a part of."  (Click here to read more of Brown's comments.  They're worth the read.) Expect a fine for that one, Mr. Brown.  But the man has a point.  A foul with 0.2 seconds left?  Seems like a make-up call to me.  That's what Brown alleged, and after seeing the replay, it certainly looks like overtime would have been the better option.  Another point here, why is Joey Crawford still employed?  This guy has butchered many calls over the years.  He thinks fans are coming out to watch him referee.  David Stern should have his pink-slip in the mail today.
• Finally, for all you puckheads out there, a great match-up last night may have changed the argument for which team is the best in hockey.  A lot of hockey experts would probably tell you the Boston Bruins are the best team in the league this year.  In 55 games played, they have accrued the most points, with 85, as they're 39-9-7 on the year.  But last night the best of the west, the San Jose Sharks slapped the B's with a 5-2 win in Boston to come within 4 points of the black and gold.  San Jose, in just 51 games, is 37-7-7 after the win, and scored four goals in the 3rd period on Tim Thomas to win it.  (And no, it's not the same Tim Thomas who Scott awarded a spot on the "All Don't Give a Crap Team".)  San Jose is loaded, just as is Boston, but last night was definitely a statement win, especially when you consider the Bruins only have lost four times in regulation on their home ice.  Granted, I'd say the Eastern Conference is tougher than the Western Conference this year in hockey from top to bottom, but the Sharks definitely showed that the best of the west is just as good if not better than the best in the east.  Oh, and what sweet revenge for former Bruins captain Joe Thornton.  

As Usual, They Got It Wrong Again

Every single year, in every sport, there's a player or two that is some how, some way, left off an All-Star game roster.  Now, I know that a lot of players say they don't care.  A lot of fans say (and they're right, largely) that it doesn't matter, who cares?

Well even if we're operating under the assumption that no one cares, and it doesn't mean that much, there's just certain levels of stupidity that even I can't tolerate. 

You could make honest cases for Ray Allen, Vince Carter, Carmelo Anthony, Jason Terry, Paul Millsap, Rajon Rondo and others.  

But, let's be fair here, just as easily you could also make solid cases against each of them.

Allen only is scoring 18 ppg, and two other Celtics made the team.  Carter is having a great season, but how many Nets can you take when they're playing as poorly as they are?  Melo's missed about a month, and even so, his numbers aren't staggering by any stretch.  Terry's a 6th man that's putting up a great scoring season, but others on the team have better overall numbers.  Paul Millsap is having a solid season, no doubt, but, there's better players at his position that didn't make it.  Finally, Rondo's has truly had an up-and-down season and though most of it has been up, he just isn't playing better than the other points on the roster.

The issue I have is the blatant one, the biggest one, literally.  One Shaquille O'Neal, being selected as a reserve.  Forget the fact that The Big Cactus or The Big Aristotle or The Big Bad Contract Situation or whatever he calls himself nowadays doesn't even always play on back to back nights.  Forget the fact that he's only averaging 18 points a contest.  Forget basically everything about him.  The issue isn't him, so much as whose spot he is taking.

Why, under God's green earth, Al Jefferson wasn't selected is so far beyond my normal, human, non-NBA-insider's mind that I struggle to even finish this post because my brain hurts so much.

Consider that Jefferson is only one of three humans in the NBA that average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds a game.  Consider further that of these three (the other two are in the game, by the way--Duncan and Howard), he is averaging the most points per game, by three.  Consider even further that some how last year, despite averages over over 20 and 10 at the break, he also wasn't selected.  

The only possible explanation I can think of is that his inclusion in the game would be representing the worst team out of any of the other selected players.  Still, the Wolves are 7-3 in their last ten, and frankly, aren't very good.  Not all Jefferson's fault.  

How this has happened twice now, is simply astonishing.  Jefferson, at only slightly above 2 mil a year could be the biggest bargain in sports right now, but he won't be an All-Star.  

Why?

 

I have no clue.

Top Ten Reasons to Hate the Boston Celtics

When you're team is winning, a lot, it's hard to figure why the rest of the country tends to hold your team, your fans, in a general regard of disdain. And, there is obviously truth to that sentiment. As a Yankee fan, my long held credo is, if this was your team, you wouldn't hate them. However, the Celtics aren't my team, so, after a loss to the Knicks last night, here are your top 10 reasons to absolutely hate the Boston Celtics.

10. Umm, they lost to the Knicks? Come on, no one should lose to the Knicks, if they're trying. Losing to the Knicks vindicates the principle that they're even a basketball team, something I try on a twice-daily basis to avoid admitting.

9. They are crybabies. Not in the figurative, cry for fouls sense. No, in the literal sense. Glen Davis has thrown a tantrum, Paul Pierce bawled like a baby earlier this year too.

8. They play in Boston. As if the accent that turns a lovely cereal into the awful "Smahht Stahhht" isn't enough, the fact that they've had championships in professional baseball and football multiple times in the past few years should be enough to anger the rest of the world not getting that 'ship love.

7. The idea that Doc Rivers is a "good coach". Really? This is the same guy that was 39 games under .500 prior to last season. This is the same guy that did win a Coach of the Year, but, is nothing better than the players put in front of him.

6. The idea that somehow they're a next generation of Bird's and McHale's. This team was created, not built. Jeff Green for Ray Allen. A cast of nobodies and Al Jefferson for Kevin Garnett. One summer of work, one championship. Not to take away from what they accomplished, but let's cool it with this next-gen Celtics crap.

5. Simply, they win, a lot. Too much, if you ask me. 95 out of the last 117 times they've gone on the floor, they've won. That has to turn someone's stomach other than mine, no?

4. They actually are good. Despite not having much in the way of a real bench, and having Eddie "Eight Teams in Nine Years" House on the team, they still are really, really good. Great, even. They play great defense, they rebound, they can shoot. They even share the ball, and their superstars have checked their egos. Ugh! It's like a cheesy after-school special, enough to make you want to throw up. It just bothers you that the team you'd love to hate, on the floor, is actually dominant.

3. Ray Allen was disrespectful to Denzel Washington. I don't care if Denzel killed my mom, if enough time had passed, I'd still let him beat me in basketball. Hell, I was even rooting for him at the end of Training Day. There are just some things you don't do, and disrespecting Denzel is one of them.

2. Paul Pierce's ridiculous "sprained knee" episode in last year's finals. For that sort of acting job, people normally win Oscars. He was carried off the court, crying, like he'd been shot through the chest. Sure enough, the next game he played nearly 42 minutes. Not doubting the initial pain, but, there should be a league rule that if you carry on like that, you have to miss at least a week.

1. Kevin Garnett plays for them. Now, I could try to say it better myself, but, I'll simply let this video do the talking. It's a bit long (4 minutes, gasp!), but, if you've read this far, you likely have a few more minutes to spare. If you've ever said a bad word about KG, be prepared to be vindicated.

Hump Day Headlines: New Years Eve Edition

In this week's Hump Day Headlines, we discuss fired NFL coaches, coaches who don't want to be hired, prima-donna Brett, and a look back at a crazy 2008.

• What do Mike Shanahan, Romeo Crennell, Eric Mangini, and Rod Marinelli all have in common?  You guessed it!  All were fired by their respective NFL teams in the last three days.  So on our fired coaches in the last couple months of 2008 ticker, that makes 10 head coaches who have been pink slipped, if you include the NBA head men as well.  2008, to say the least, has not been a good year for coaches.  That is, unless your name is Tom Coughlin, Doc Rivers, Charlie Manuel, or Mike Babcock.  You can also throw the names Les Miles and Bill Self onto that list.  Other than those six men, coaches had a tumultuous year, with countless firings in every sport (i.e. Denis Savard, Barry Melrose, Phillip Fulmer, Greg Robinson, etc.).  Adding to the list of coaches that should have been fired in 2008, look no further than Bills coach Dick Jauron, who was retained by owner Ralph Wilson on Tuesday after completing his third consecutive 7-9 campaign with the Bills on Sunday.
• Since there are obviously many vacancies now in the NFL head coaching fraternity, the most logical choice for any team that's looking for a new head man would be former Steelers coach and current NFL Today analyst Bill Cowher, who was pegged as the next coach of the New York Jets.  Problem is, Cowher apparently doesn't want the job, according to ESPN's Chris Mortensen.  Cowher has apparently also turned down other NFL coaching vacancies, but he would be the best option of any coach currently unemployed.  If someone could woo him away from the CBS Studios, Cowher is the one man out there that could bring stability and success to an NFL team in the near future.  
• Brett Favre's excuse for his abysmal performance over the last five weeks for a Jets team that failed to make the playoffs after starting the year 8-3, (Favre threw two touchdowns and nine interceptions over that stretch) is that he had pain in his throwing shoulder.  Turns out the reason for this, according to doctors, is he has a torn biceps tendon in that right shoulder.  Doctors say Favre's injury can be corrected by avoiding arthroscopic surgery, but it is suggested.  Now, in addition to Favre's retirement watch, the national media has a new topic to cover...Brett Favre's Injury Watch!  WOO I'm psyched.
• 2008 was a wild year in sports.  Here are just some of the crazy things that happened:  Ohio State, a college football powerhouse that seems to reach the BCS title game yearly, was walloped once again by an SEC team in the championship game, losing in January 38-24 to LSU.  Two consecutive years, the same team crushed in the title game.  The Patriots nearly completed the first perfect season since the '72 Dolphins.  Instead, the Giants upset them in the Super Bowl, with a miraculous catch by David Tyree.  Bill Self won his first national championship as an NCAA coach, and the first for one of the winningest programs in college hoops history in twenty years.  The Boston Celtics, a 24 win team in 2006-2007, added Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen.  Along with Paul Pierce the Celts ripped off a league high 66 wins and won the NBA title for the seventeenth time in team history.  Michael Phelps won EIGHT gold medals at the Olympics.  Eight.  And he's my age.  (Edit: Thank you, B.Stein) The Tampa Bay Rays won the AL East.  They reached their first world series in franchise history.  The Chicago Cubs had the best record in the National League.  Then they promptly lost three straight in the playoffs to the Dodgers.  The White Sox and Cubs made the playoffs at the same time for the first time since 1906.  The Philadelphia Phillies ended a twenty five year drought for the city of brotherly love, winning the first championship for Philadelphia since the '83 Sixers.  The Mets blew another playoff berth.  The Brewers made the playoffs for the first time in twenty five years.  The New England Patriots missed the playoffs.  The Broncos had a three game lead with three games left and missed the playoffs.  Tampa Bay lost four straight to miss the playoffs.  The man Brett Favre replaced, Chad Pennington, made the playoffs.  Brett did not.  And, Chad beat Brett to get there.    The Blackhawks lead the NHL in attendance.  The same Blackhawks who didn't have their home games televised until this year.  
• What a crazy 2008.  Here's to hoping for a great 2009.