Line of the Night

30 points. 6 rebounds. 5 assists. 2 steals. Mike Dunleavy. 

15 Minutes with the Boss

Bruce Springsteen swears he's going to limit his Super Bowl halftime performance to a very un-Bruce-like 12 minutes. Although he's played short sets before, I just can't see him getting his mini-concert in under the NFL-mandated 720 seconds. I fully expect him to go off script, at least a little bit.    

For all of Springsteen's anti-establishment shtick, he's always been a professional and, at least to me, always seemed more than happy to work within the parameters established by the network suits or, more recently, the Inaugural event planners above him. A rebel with a yeoman's work ethic, Springsteen is a rabble-rouser in name only: he's the kind of blue-collar worker who will help organize a union strike, but also make sure to punch out on his way to the picket line. That's just the way he's built; it's the middle-class Jersey boy in him. 

Springsteen, then, will take some liberties Sunday night, but he's not about to ruin the party.

I figure he and the E Street Band will play for about 15 minutes, which should give them just enough time for three, maybe four songs. Springsteen's known for engaging the audience in between songs, so the fourth song is, in gamblers' parlance, definitely the over.

Speaking of gambling, the odds are already up for which songs Springsteen is going to play. So, in the proud WGASIG tradition of spouting off about things, I'm going to pick Springsteen's set, which, given the Boss's lengthy oeuvre, is kind of like trying to divine the penultimate paragraph of President Obama's 2012 Democratic Convention speech. But I'll give it a shot. 

Opening Song: "Promised Land"

Not only has Springsteen been opening recent shows with "Promised Land," but the song's imagery, if not exactly the lyrics, fits the theme of the night. It's also guaranteed to get the place rocking because 1.) everybody knows it and 2.) it's a great freakin' song. 

Second Song: "Radio Nowhere"

The opening track of "Magic," this is yet another stadium-rocker Springsteen can pull out of his hat when he wants to work the audience into a frenzy. "Is anybody alive out there?" Although far from his greatest tune, I'd be surprised if he didn't play it Sunday night. Incidentally, a friend of mine recently admitted he thought this was a Pearl Jam song. I understand his confusion. 

Third Song: "My Lucky Day"

This is when Springsteen takes it down a notch—and promotes his new record at the same time! Like "Promised Land," this new song capitalizes on the night's theme, without speaking directly to it. I figure he'll either play it or producers will save it for the cheesy montage at the end of the game. ("Big man, cue the confetti!") Either way, chances are you'll hear it at some point Sunday night.

Closing Song: "Born to Run"

What? You were expecting "Born in the U.S.A."? Highly unlikely. Despite the fact that he hasn't watched a football game since Terry Bradshaw was behind center for the Steelers, Springsteen understands the significance of the event. He's not going to call up a song about Vietnam veterans struggling to survive in the great old U.S. of A on football's biggest night. The Boss is not big on irony.

He won't play "Glory Days" either. That's about washed-up high school baseball players, not concussed former football players. He'll save "Glory Days" for the next time he plays Fenway Park.

Springsteen knows how to put on a good show, which means he usually gives the people exactly what they want. "Born to Run" is that song, and he's going to play it.

You can take it to the bank.

Line of the Night

30 points. 9 rebounds. 3 assists. 2 steals. Manu Ginobili. 

The Best Player in the World, Blindfolded

Well, sort of. From Chris Ballard's amazing profile of LeBron James comes this startling fact about the most dominant player in the league. Until last year, LeBron couldn't see six feet in front of his own nose. Seriously. 

Ballard writes:

Despite his estimable court vision, up until a year ago, James had trouble seeing certain things. Like, say, road signs. 

[...] Thus during high school and his first five years in the NBA, James operated in something of a haze, which must make all the players who got torched by him feel great. Only James claims it never affected his game. "I could see everything on the court. I never had a problem with here" -- he holds his hands to the side of his head, indicating his peripheral vision -- "it was right here in front that I had the problem."

Then, a little over a year ago, James got Lasik surgery. Now, as he puts it, "it's kind of cool, because I can see stuff in the distance. I'm like, So that's what that is! 

Pressed, he admits it's probably improved his on-court performance too, saying, "Well, I have gotten better."

I thought LeBron, like all great players, would improve his game by refining his jump shot, or picking up his intensity on the defensive end. Both of which he's already well on his way toward accomplishing. I never thought, though, that he would get to the next level simply by addressing an easily correctable physical disadvantage. It's like he's been playing his entire career right-handed before finally realizing that he is, in fact, better with his left.  Or that his vertical leap has been hindered somewhat by an undiagnosed bout of polio.  

Is it really possible that the greatest player in the world is only now, in his fifth season in the league, finally operating at full capacity? 

(Via TrueHoop)

Line of the Night

35 points. 10 rebounds. 6 assists. 4 blocks. Kevin Durant. 

Nate the Great?

Not only did Nate Robinson put up 20 4th-quarter points last night to lead the suddenly playoff-bound Knicks over the Atlanta Hawks, but little Nate also laid claim to the 10th most popular jersey in the NBA. Robinson, seen here showing, contrary to popular belief, league-sanctioned jerseys are not reversible, beat out perennial All-Stars Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, Ray Allen and Carmelo Anthony, whose respective jerseys came in at numbers 11, 12, 13 and 15. 

Robinson's isn't the only Knickerbocker jersey cluttering up fans' closets this season. David Lee, who recorded his ninth consecutive double-double last night--his 34th DD of the season--came in with the 14th best-selling jersey in the league. Not too shabby. 

Kobe, Kevin Garnett, LeBron, Chris Paul and Allen Iverson fill out the top five.   

Line of the Night

43 points. 11 assists. 8 rebounds. 1 steal. Mo Williams.

Shaq-tastic Photo

Per their game, Ball Don't Lie is asking readers to caption this amazing photograph of Gerald Wallace getting obliterated by Shaquille O'Neal, a ridiculously large man. 

The unstoppable force meets the immovable object obviously comes to mind, but my favorite submission thus far is, "Gerald, tell me how my abs taste," which if it sounds a bit obtuse, check out this clip of Shaq rapping about Kobe Bryant for a quick reference point. Well played, Killamari, whoever you are. 

Really, though, I'm not particularly interested in the caption contest. (The winner supposedly gets this). I just wanted an excuse to post this ridiculous photo. No matter how many times I look at it, I'm always overcome with how freakin' big Shaq is. Good lord. 

Line of the Night

27 points. 15 assists. 10 rebounds. 7 steals. 1 block. Chris Paul. 

Out-Blagoing Blagojevich

Stephon Marbury continues to demonstrate his grasp of reality is even more tenuous than Rod Blagojevich’s. Despite numerous reports to the contrary, Steph continues to insist teams are very much interested in his services, even though the Knicks refuse to buy out the last year of his contract.  

It's exactly this kind of crazy that got Steph into this mess in the first place.

Doting the I's and Crossing the T, T, T, and T

All this talk about Torre's ugly divorce from the Yankees is giving me a headache. I can't make much sense of it, no matter how hard I try. Who's right? Torre or Cashman? Whose side should we take? It's impossible to know for sure, kind of like trying to choose which parent to back in a custody battle. Or so I've been told.   

I need some good news out of Yankees land. And fast. Fortunately, Andy Pettitte is more than happy to lend a hand.  The veteran lefty is reportedly coming back to the Bronx one last time in a deal that is expected to be announced later this afternoon. Pettitte's return gives the Yankees a formidable staring rotation of CC Sabathia, Chien-Ming Wang, A.J. Burnett, Joba Chamberlain and Pettitte, with Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy and Al Aceves waiting in the wings for the occasional spot start, or if someone goes down with an injury. I'm going to go out on a limb here and call this the best rotation, 1-5, the Yankees have featured since 1999.

He Said, He Said

An excerpt of Torre's book is now available here. Check it out for yourself. It isn't pretty but, again, not particularly surprising. The details, as I recall them, are pretty similar to what was reported at the time of Torre's departure. I even remember hearing about Hal's semi-serious offer to Torre to announce Yankees games on YES, the Yankees entertainment and sports network. 

Although I understand why Torre is still pissed off by the way his final negotiations with the team were handled, I can't really get too upset with the way Cashman comported himself either. At the end of the 2007 season, it was an almost foregone conclusion that Torre was on his way out. It wouldn't have mattered if Derek Jeter, Mike Mussina, Andy Pettitte and Cashman had all asked the Steinbrenners to keep Torre. George, Hal and Hank wanted to go in a new direction. Hence the offer Torre could refuse. 

In an ideal situation, Cashman, who knew better than anyone that the organization wanted to go in a different direction, would have spoken up and fought for Torre. As Verducci's and Torre's excerpt demonstrates, however, he did not. Cashman most likely wanted a new manager too. But even if he didn't particularly have Torre's back, I don't think anyone can say that he stabbed Torre there either. Granted, Cashman reportedly never relayed Torre's complicated two-year proposal to the Steinbrenners before the fateful last meeting down in Tampa, but does anyone, including Torre, really think it would have made a difference in the end? 

Torre's oddly timed postmortem of his final days with the Yankees will never take away from his many accomplishments as manager, which he and Verducci describe throughout the rest of the book. A part of me, though, can't help but wish that Torre would have kept the details of his negotiations--and what occurred inside his clubhouse--to himself. 

Line of the Night

28 points. 12 field goal attempts. 12 field goals. 9 rebounds. 4 steals. 1 assist. 1 steal. Nene. 

Et tu, B-Cash?

Former Yankees skipper Joe Torre is still less than pleased with the way his tenure with the club ended. According to Bill Madden of New York's "Daily News," in his new book, The Yankees Years, which was co-written by "Sports Illustrated" writer Tom Verducci, Torre lashes out against Alex Rodriguez and General Manager Brian Cashman.

While discussing the complicated talents of Rodriguez, Torre reportedly reveals that a number of Yankees referred to A-Rod as "A-Fraud," and writes that Rodriguez was "obsessed" with his rivalry with Derek Jeter. No big surprises there. Rodriguez's tenuous relationship with Jeter and his other teammates is already pretty well-documented, most notably in this damning "Sports Illustrated" profile of Rodriguez, which was written by, yep, Tom Verducci prior to the Yankees' first-round loss to the eventual World Series champions Detroit Tigers in 2006.  Anyone who follows baseball knows that A-Rod is fragile, to say the least. The fact that the 30 or so guys who spend approximately two-thirds of the year with him are also aware of Alex's fragility should come as little or no surprise.  

Torre also goes on to cast a startling light on how Yankees owner George Steinbrenner goes about his shadowy business, reportedly keeping a close tab on Torre via strategically placed spies in every corner of the clubhouse. According to Madden, Steinbrenner already knew about Torre's prostrate cancer diagnosis before Torre even had a chance to inform him of the news. Super creepy, even if, again, not particularly surprising.

What is surprising, however, is Torre's public outing of Brian Cashman as a traitor. Since Torre left the Yankees to manage the Los Angeles Dodgers, the official line has been that Hal and Hank Steinbrenner wanted Torre out, while Cashman fought unsuccessfully for retaining Torre, the skipper who guided the Yankees to four championships, six American League pennants and 12 divisional titles in each of his 12 seasons managing the club. Not the case. Torre claims Cashman betrayed him on "several fronts."

I'm sure much of this is Torre just wanting to set the record straight about what really went down during his tenure with the Yankees, and the majority of the book probably deals with the team's many successes. Torre simply doesn't burn bridges or hardly ever talks out of school, and any controversy surrounding the book's publication, which is slated for February 1, should die down before Spring Training. 

Still, this new insight into the inner workings of the Yankees organization is sure to rub longtime Yankees fans the wrong way, especially those of us who hold Torre in the highest of regard.

UPDATE: According to ESPN's Buster Olney, Torre called Brian Cashman yesterday afternoon to clear the air. Cashman told Olney that he holds no hard feelings and that he still considers Torre a friend, saying he is "very comfortable with my relationship with him."  

Meanwhile, Tom Verducci told "Sports Illustrated" that context is everything. He says:

I think it's important to understand context here. The book is not a first-person book by Joe Torre, it's a third-person narrative based on 12 years of knowing the Yankees and it's about the changes in the game in that period. [...] Joe Torre does not rip anybody in the book. The book really needs to be read in context.

Anybody who knows Joe, especially during his time in New York, knows he's a very honest man and he is very honest in the pages of this book. People also know Joe Torre doesn't go around ripping people and he doesn't do that in the pages of this book. There is a lot of information in this book over a tremendous period of baseball history. It's been reported out by me as well as informed by Torre's own insights into that period.

So there you have it. It is interesting, though, that neither Torre nor Verducci, when given the chance, didn't exactly back down from what Torre reportedly said about Cashman.  

Line of the Night

33 points. 14 rebounds. 9 assists. 1 steal. LeBron James. 

Line of the Night

41 points. 4 assists. 2 rebounds. 1 steal. Eric Gordon.

Line of the Night

27 points. 10 rebounds. 4 assists. 2 steals. Paul Pierce. 

Odds & Sods

Stephen Marbury considers distant shores, while Alonzo Mourning is once again put out to pasture.  Major League Baseball may have a major league bat problem on their hands, but Melky Cabrera, a AAAA outfielder if there ever was one, has about 1.4 million new reasons to celebrate. Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan says his team will get to meet President Obama one day, while the president's brother-in-law is still just looking for another win. 

Best Line of the Night

“Are you ready to take the oath?” Chief Justice Roberts said.

“I am,” Mr. Obama replied. “And we’re going to do it very slowly.”

President Barack Hussein Obama.

Line of the Night

42 points. 15 rebounds. 3 blocks. Andrew Bynum.

Miller, Morgan and Pray for Rain

Just when I thought we'd finally put an end to Joe Morgan, he's back. This time with a vengeance. Like a killer in a teen slasher movie, Morgan just won't die. Regrettably, it appears Morgan will continue to broadcast ESPN's Sunday night baseball games with John Miller, just as he has for the past 19 years. 

As if this starling fact alone won't haunt baseball fans well into Monday mornings at least through the month of October, the news gets even scarier. Much, much scarier. 

Via RAB, ESPN is also ready to announce that joining Miller and Morgan in the booth this season will be Steve Phillips, the former Mets general manager whose grasp of the game makes fellow "analyst" John Kruk look like Bill James in comparison.  

Yes, this Steve Phillips. And, yes, that Steve Phillips, too.

The good news? Baseball Hall of Fame writer Peter Gammons will take Phillips's spot in the ESPN studio, which isn't particularly comforting given what the worldwide leader plans on putting baseball fans through every Sunday night this season. 

I guess there's always the radio, or the MLB Network, which seems to be the only thing in the world likely to benefit from ESPN's eyes-averting decision. 

Line of the Night

31 points. 6 assists. 5 steals. 2 rebounds. Mike Bibby. 

TrueHoops Nation

Henry Abbot's wonderful site TrueHoop, which is hosted by the worldwide leader, has brought into their influence an impressive cadre of previously established and independent basketball blogs from around the country to offer unique perspectives on every team in the National Basketball Association, from Toronto to Portland.  

The goal of the TrueHoop network, according to Abbot, is "to find and foster excellence in online basketball writing." I'm all for that, even if I wasn't invited to the party. 

Here's Abbot explaining how the network, which is basically an aggregated basketball blog, is going to work:

Put those talented new voices together with the stuff every sports fan wants to know about their team day in and day out, and I believe you have something that will prove to be must-read. To savvy fans in many markets, those kinds of blogs are already must-read. And they have tremendous promise to get even better over the following years.

[...] The nuts and bolts of the TrueHoop Network are quite simple. In a nutshell: Bloggers maintain their own sites, which they run as they see fit (even with their own ads they sell, if they'd like). They agree to carry some ESPN stuff on their blogs (like that video player), and to generally be responsible. And ESPN.com promotes the blogs' work and content.

The good folks over at Knickerblogger get the honor of covering the team for what I can only assume will be a much wider audience. I trust they'll continue to run their fantastic "7 Seconds or Mess" webisodes, which I steal from, both on the blog and in my personal life, all the time.

Line of the Night

24 points. 15 rebounds. 2 steals. 2 assists. Greg Oden. 

Who are You?

As of five minutes ago, I'd never heard of Bettye Lavette. Or, if I had, I'd forgotten. After watching her version of "Love Reign o'er Me," however, I doubt I'll ever let her name-- or her pipes-- slip so easily from my memory. Lavette performed Pete Townshend's amazing song last month at the Kennedy Center Honors in recognition of the Who, the first rock band to receive the prestigious cultural award. (Take that, Mr. McCartney!)

Lavette's interpretation of Townshend's best seems wholly appropriate for this morning's historic festivities. Enjoy. 

For those keeping score at home, you can listen to the Who's original version here and, for my money, the best straight-up cover of the song, plus a killer bonus cover of "The Real Me," here. Enjoy, again and again. 

UPDATE: The bastards at VH1 removed the bonus links to Pearl Jam's version of "Love Reign o'er Me" and "The Real Me." You'll have to find these covers yourself. 

(Thanks to the lovely GHS for bringing Ms. Lavette to my attention.)

Tryin' Ryan

I hope to have more on this later, but, as of this morning, I think this is a very good move for the Jets, a normally hapless organization. As much as I liked Mangini, or rather as much as I rooted for his success, he never looked like he was particularly enjoying himself on the sidelines. Nor did he inspire much confidence with his perpetual, petulant smirk. In this regard, Ryan, who is reportedly beloved by his defensive players, is the anti-Mangini: a fiery, personable and animated coach.

Said Jets General Manager Mike Tannenbaum:

During our search, we were looking for a great football mind and a passionate leader. Rex is a coach with an established track record who is universally respected by players and coaches for his skills as a communicator and his creativity.

My first instinct is to say that Ryan will do well in New York. The Jets should be better defensively under Ryan's direction and, I think, better prepared each week. Of course, I've been known to be wrong about such football-related things before. 

UPDATE:

It seems Ryan as the anti-Mangini is the catchphrase of the morning. 

Writes Daily News sports reporter Rich Cimini:

[The Jets'] unspoken quest was to find the anti-Mangini, a charismatic and fiery leader to change the stuffy, paranoid culture that permeated the organization. In other words, they wanted a player's coach, someone who could make football fun again. It led them to Rex Ryan.

And Gary Myers elaborates on Ryan's anti-Manginess:

[The Jets] recouped nicely Monday by hiring Ravens charismatic defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, an anti-Mangini, which is just what the Jets needed.

[...]Mangini was paranoid, secretive, bland - and the worst indictment of all, was an awful game-day manager with no feel for the game or his team. His players threw him under the bus when they failed to play with intensity the last month of the season.

Ryan has lots of personality, is passionate, his players love playing for him, he makes it fun and his imaginative defensive schemes will result in more game-changing plays. He may be unknown as a head coach, but we know the Jets were going nowhere with Mangini.

Ryan gives the Jets an identity. He won't look like he's ready to take a nap on the sidelines like Mangini.

The more I think about Ryan's hiring, the more I like it. He's an emotional and player-friendly defensive whiz who understands football's many intricacies. Ironically, Ryan seems, at first blush, a hybrid of Herm Edwards' strategy-deficient passion and Mangini's passionless schemes -- a healthy combination of both former Jets coaches, minus the duo's well-documented shortcomings. 

A good hire, me thinks. 

Line of the Night

279 yards. 21 completions. 4 touchdowns. 0 interceptions. Kurt Warner.

The Charms of Bodymore: An AFC Championship Haiku

Rookie stares them down 

Ravens win going away:

Third time is the charm. 

Baltimore 23 Steelers 17

Passerine Feat: An NFC Championship Haiku

Woe-beholden birds,

The Cards’ final call comes late,

Respite from the past

Cardinals 27 Eagles 17

Line of the Night

31 points. 16 rebounds. 3 assists. 2 steals. 1 block. Gerald Wallace. 

Line of the Night

44 points. 4 assists. 2 steals. 1 rebound. Michael Redd. 

Vinsanity, Indeed

The metropolitan area is still abuzz today about the US Airways passenger jet that crash-landed on the Hudson River yesterday afternoon, after a flock of birds flew into its engine. And rightfully so. Let me repeat: A US Airways passenger jet fucking crash-landed on the Hudson River yesterday afternoon.  

While most people only caught taped footage of the plane bobbing on the Hudson like an oversized bath toy, Vince Carter actually witnessed the emergency landing as it happened, from his apartment in Weehawken, New Jersey, which is probably a lot nicer of a place to live than it sounds.

I was just sitting there, looking out the window -- dead even where the plane hit.

[. . .] I thought I was watching TV. It landed like it was a movie. It hit like nose first, and you could (hear) the impact. Couldn't believe it. Just couldn't believe it.

A few hours later, a still-incredulous Carter shot a miserable 4-14 from the floor against the Portland Trailblazers, although he did manage to finish with a respectable-ish 13 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals in the Nets' 105-99 loss. 

In comparison, US Airways pilot Chesley (Sully) Sullenberger III saved the lives of the 155 people aboard Flight 1549, managed to avoid the George Washington Bridge, the West Side Highway and a bunch of tall buildings, and still had enough left in the tank to check the overhead compartments twice, before finally calling it quits.    

I'll let you decide, dear reader, which man had a better day at the office.

Line of the Night

28 points. 12 rebounds. 3 blocks. 1 steal. Tyler Hansbrough. 

Off the Wire: The Life and Times of Kevin Reese

Buried in this story about the Yankees extending 20 non-roster invitations to Spring Training, is an interesting tidbit about the team also adding five professional scouts to their staff for the 2009 season. New full-time members include Dan Freed, Bill Livesey, Tom Wilson and, most notably (at least to me), Kevin Reese, a middling former prospect for the Bombers. 

Although Reese was never once considered the next great Yankee, he was often brandied about as a potential future contributor to the team, which was, of course, designed only to inflate his trade value. Still, he was one of the few farmhands I even knew about back then, before I started paying attention to such things.

Drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 27th round of the 2000 draft, Reese came to the Yankees in December 2001, when the Padres swapped him for Bernie Castro, a second baseman. Reese was called up to the majors on June 26, 2005, drawing a walk in his first major league plate appearance against the Mets. Later that game, in his first official at-bat, Reese struck out against Mets starting pitcher Kris Benson. Check out the box score here. 

On May 12, 2006, the Yanks recalled Reese from AAA after Hideki Matsui broke his wrist. He collected his first major league hit in a game against the Mets, on May 20, 2006. His final game with the Yankees was a July 4th 19-1 drubbing against the Cleveland Indians. Reese went 1-3, with a walk, flying out to centerfielder Joey Inglett in the top of the ninth inning, Reese’s final major league at bat.

The following year, Reese was designated for assignment and was outrighted back to the minors after he cleared waivers, on August 15, essentially ending his career because, well, nobody wanted him. He retired before the start of the 2008 season and, according to our good friends at Wikipedia, eventually accepted a job with the Yankees as a minor league scout for the South Atlantic and Carolina Leagues. 

Although Reese only managed a cup of coffee with the Yankees, he still gets to make a living at a major league ballpark, in the employ of the team that once thought enough of him to call him up to the show on two different occasions. Good for him; he might even get a World Series ring for his efforts.  

One Lunar Cycle Away

29 days until Spring Training. Know hope. 

Line of the Night

33 points. 11 assists. 10 rebounds. 7 steals. 2 turnovers. Chris Paul. 

"That Next Goddam Guy Up, Rickey."

Roger Angell picks off recent Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Rickey Henderson, who was, according to Angell, one of the greatest--and most annoying--players in the history of baseball. Why was Rickey such a pain in the ass? Because Rickey made it thus: 

It was all on purpose, of course. Rickey’s plan, from the first day, was to get into the minds of the other team’s pitcher and the other team’s manager and the other team’s infielders, and their fans, too, and get them thinking about Rickey instead of the business at hand. That at-bat scrunch shrivelled the strike zone to the size of a Kleenex; his furrowy, imperious frown, twisting head, and curatorial glare at each passing pitch turned the home-plate ump’s calls his way. Once he was on base, that squinting, finger-twitching pause when leading away from first made the infielders sidle to more awkward places in the diamond, and insufferably burdened the pitchers’ attention. Managers, out of their gourds with anxiety, more than once ordered an opposing lead-off batter walked intentionally, with nobody on base, to clog up the base-paths and avert more potential damage by that next goddam guy up, Rickey.

For a look at Henderson's, um, impressive lifetime stats, take a look over here. To get the complete story of Rickey, though, feast your eyes on this. 

Line of the Night

54 points. 8 rebounds. 4 assists. 1 steal. 1 turnover. Jodie Meeks. 

Witness, Again

FreeDarko weighs in on the significance of LeBron's Friday night magnificence against the Celtics, in relation to Kobe's equally impressive--yet entirely different-- Friday night gem against the Pacers.

One thing's for certain: As of right now, LeBron's play casts Kobe in an entirely new light. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that Kobe is mortal. He pushes himself, not the laws of what's possible. His vocabulary is all that basketball has to offer, not the possibility of total transcendence and reinvention of those parameters. Don't get me wrong, the Lakers' finest remains larger-than-life, but it's not the same as LeBron's ability to make us rethink what might happen on the court.

I touched on this briefly here, in Saturday's edition of "Line of the Night," although not nearly as deeply. My comment was basically this: Kobe good; LeBron REALLY good. 

The point remains, however, that LeBron can, at this point in his young career, do things on the court that Kobe could never do. Does that make him a better basketball player? I don't know. I think it just means that LeBron is much more fun to watch.   

The rest is just details. 

Today's Knicks Sexual Harassment Story Brought to You by the Letter "E"

Not a good week for Eddy Curry. After pulling himself out of Sunday night's game against the Rockets, he gets nailed with this ridiculous sexual harassment suit from his former driver, David Kuchinsky, who claims Curry, on two separate occasions, exposed himself and told Kuchinsky "to look and to touch him," according to Kuchinsky's attorney. 

The suit also alleges Curry referred to Kuchinsky in racially offensive terms.

Curry denied the charges, presumably from the Knicks' bench, where he's been planted for all but 158 seconds this season. "This is absolutely false," he said. "It's incredible. I can't even believe it."

In Curry's defense, this sounds like total crap. Kuchinsky has been trying to extort money from Curry since late last year, when Curry fired Kuchinsky. Explains Curry:

He had approached my friends and me a while back trying to get money and stuff like that. I just never thought -- especially with the past that me and him had -- I never thought that it would go past where it did, which is idle threats; 'I want some money or else' kind of stuff. I guess it's just like a prime example of you just got to watch who you have around you. This is a guy who I really thought was my friend up until the last four or five months. I can't even believe this has happened.

Teammate Malik Rose put it even more succinctly: "I know for a fact Eddy’s not gay." 

Way to lend a hand, Malik. You're about as good a character witness as you are an on-the-ball defender. 

Still, Kuchinsky's lawsuit will probably go away, unlike Anucha Browne Sanders' very real sexual harassment charge against Isiah Thomas and Madison Square Garden, which cost Knicks owner James Dolan $11.5 million and helped put the final nail in Isiah's coffin. That, and the 56-109 record as head coach. And the $100 million salary cap.

If Donnie Walsh really did have an inkling to trade Curry, he has even more work cut out for him than I originally feared. Which team wants to add an overweight, unmotivated center who doesn't rebound or defend, with a sexual harassment suit hanging over his head?

“Eddy’s brand is tarnished forever,”said Rose. “People are always going to associate those words and those actions with him."

But he's totally not gay. 

Line of the Night

43 points. 9 rebounds. 3 assists. 1 steal. Mehmet Okur.

Picked Apart

Jimmy the Greek I am not. 

I had as much success predicting the outcomes of this weekend’s playoff games as Donald Rumsfeld did planning the occupation of Iraq. I went an embarrassing 0 for 4, bringing my postseason tally to an underwhelming 2-6. I guess I could spin this statistic, dear reader, and say that your intrepid blogger accurately calls one-third of all sporting events, but I’d rather wallow in the ineptitude of my own picks and not take up valuable Internet space dissembling about known unknowns or known knowns. 

Still, aside from the last-minute Chargers nod, I was confident in my selections. Tennessee gave the game to Joey Flacco and the Ravens, with a helping hand from the referees, too, I might add. Nobody—and I mean nobody—gave the Cardinals even a puncher’s chance against Carolina. I don’t think many people could blame me for taking either team.  

The Giants, on the other hand, totally exposed my handicapping abilities. That one hurt. I’m usually pretty good at spotting trends. This Eagles team is eerily reminiscent of last year’s Giants team, which came out of nowhere to win three straight playoff games on the road, before eventually knocking off the Patriots in the Super Bowl. The Eagles and the Giants are so much alike I actually refused to believe it. No way, I thought, is another low-ranking NFC East team going to win three road games to get to the Super Bowl, especially after a terrible up-and-down season. Even with the playoff beards. I just wasn’t ready to buy into them. Hell, I’m still not. As solid as the Eagles played yesterday, the Giants looked like absolute hell. They were about as ready to defend their title as the Celtics have been since they finally started playing games away from Boston. Just a brutal loss for the Jints. 

As for the San Diego pick? What can I say, I took a shot. I actually like Pittsburgh. A lot. As late as Saturday night, I had in my mind a Steelers-Giants Super Bowl. I went with the hot hand and got burned. I should have stuck with my gut. 

I’m going to take a few days to think about what I did. It’s exactly this kind of sloppiness that justifies the recent shunning from my peers.  

Line of the Night

34 points. 6 rebounds. 4 assists. 1 steal. Jeff Teague. 

Lightning Strikes Twice: A Fourth Playoff Haiku

Bolts, twice in two weeks,

Will overachieve and play

Host to Baltimore. 

Bolts 24 Steelers 16

Somewhere in the Swamps of Jersey: A Third Playoff Haiku

Jints-Iggles, again

Impossible to predict

Eli wins it late?

Giants 24 Eagles 23

Line of the Night

28 points. 12 rebounds. 4 steals. 2 assists. Kevin Durant.

Thundercats, Ho! A Second Playoff Haiku

Listen to Vegas:

Watch Carolina cover

and Warner go home. 

Panthers 31 Cardinals 17

Titans Anonymous: A Playoff Haiku

No Mawae? No sweat.

Remember the Titans have

Johnson, Kerry, White. 

Titans 20 Ravens 13

Ready Eddy?

Eddy Curry, who was once considered the cornerstone of the Knicks franchise, made his season debut the other night against the Dallas Mavs, and the reviews aren't good. Writes Jonathan Abrams in the NYT:

During his two-plus minutes on Thursday night, Curry scored a basket and grabbed a couple of rebounds. He also seemed out of sorts on a high pick-and-roll, where the big men usually position themselves in Coach Mike D’Antoni’s offense, rather than the back-to-the-post spot Curry is familiar with.

Curry also lacked game conditioning, a point that was illustrated when Dallas’s James Singleton grabbed two offensive rebounds before Curry made his way into the play.

Curry played a grand total of two minutes and 38 seconds, or about 158 seconds too long.  If Walsh's plan is to showcase Curry for a future trade, he might have to come up with a plan B, C and D.  

Line of the Night

38 points. 7 rebounds. 6 assists. 4 steals. 3 blocks. LeBron James. 

Denied

Oh well. There's always next year. I'm like Brady Quinn on draft day. My time will come. 

Weird. Weirder. Weirdest.

Some, um, weird-ass videos to get you through what has to be the longest week of the year.



(Via The Dagger)




Via With Leather 




Via Andrew Sullivan 

Line of the Night

231 passing yards. 109 rushing yards. 22 carries. 18 completions. 2 touchdown passes. 2 interceptions. Tim Tebow. 

Truth Be Told: The Legend of Danny Granger

I've mentioned briefly about how much I love me some Danny Granger. Kid does something for me. His game, like Brandon Roy's, is impeccable and, to co-opt a phrase, fierce-terrible. He's a total gamer, and I would welcome him on the Knicks in a second. No surprise there. 

I first saw Granger play in 2005, when he was a senior at New Mexico. His Lobos were playing Utah, which featured consensus Naismith Award winner and presumptive number one pick Andrew Bogut, who was in the middle of an impressive sophomore year in which he logged 26 double-doubles. Granger, though, give the big man fits all night long and, according to the announcers, had his way against the Aussie throughout Bogut’s two-year collegiate career.

I remember liking Granger’s game but not giving him much thought at that time. I never imagined he’d have much impact in the NBA. More of a defensive guy, I thought, than a true offensive threat. (Full disclosure: I was more excited about sleeper picks Joey Graham and Hakim Warrick, who were selected 16th and 19th, respectively, in the NBA Draft later that spring.)  Donnie Walsh, though, as the then-general manager of the Pacers, grabbed up Granger with the 17th pick, and, in the three seasons since, Granger has become one of the most talented young players in the league, averaging 25 points a night.

How good is he? I’m going to go out on a limb and say he could one day be as good as Paul Pierce. Seriously. I'm not kidding. Granger's just that talented. 

To wit: In his last three games, Granger has put up 35, 36 and, last night against Phoenix, a cool 37 points, including this ridiculous three at the buzzer to steal the game from the Suns, via NBA Fanhouse. 

Welcome to Danny Granger's coming-out party. You've arrived just in time.

(Via NBA Fanhouse)

Line of the Night

27 points. 8 assists. 6 steals. 3 rebounds. 2 blocks. Jeremy Lin

Not OK

Roughly 48 hours after defeating the Boston Celtics, the Knicks set organized basketball back 15 years last night against the Oklahoma City Thunder, with the worst display of the slowly unraveling first season of the D’Antoni/Walsh era. How bad was it? At one point, the Knicks were down 23 points to the four-win Thunder, the team’s largest lead of the season. Kevin Durant and Jeff Green both put up 27 points, while Russell Westbrook made Chris Duhon look like post-op Jay Williams all night.

Just when I didn’t think it could get any worse, the decaying corpse of Joe Smith made a brief appearance, blocking four shots (David Lee twice) in 20 minutes.

Of course, the Knicks, losers of eight of 10, pulled within a basket with nine minutes to play. I should know by now, however, that the team, specifically Nate Robinson, likes to call a game in their favor long before the game is, you know, actually over. If you ever see Nate pound the floor or scream at the rafters after sinking a contested shot, mark it down for another Knicks’ loss. Trust me.

Last night’s game was straight out of Isiah’s tenure. Old habits die hard, I suppose. Still, I’ve come to expect more from D’Antoni’s squad, even if they are sitting seven games under .500.

Line of the Night

40 points. 11 rebounds. 2 steals. David West. 

Deep Thought

Roland Burris is the new Joe Morgan. 

Line of the Night

414 passing yards. 41 completions. 2 touchdowns. 1 rushing touchdown. 1 interception. Colt McCoy

Wild-Card Detox

I watched approximately 12 hours of football this weekend, or roughly four times as much football as I took in during the previous 17 weeks, combined. I even went so far as to make a few predictions, too. Considering my general lack of interest in the NFL, I’m kind of pleased with myself for breaking even. (Less so for the lame haikus). In fact, until Michael Westbrook scrambled for 71 yards in the 4th quarter against the Vikings, I was a Ryan Longwell field goal away from getting out of the Wild-Card weekend with three correct picks out of four. 

There were three solid games this weekend, possibly four, depending on how much money you had on either the Eagles or the Vikings. By far, though, the most entertaining game was Saturday night’s Chargers-Colts match-up. I don’t know anyone who thought the 8-8 Chargers even had a shot against the Colts, winners of 9 straight. If you say you even heard of Darren Sproles before Saturday night, I’m going to have to call bullshit on that, dear reader. Four years ago, the guy went undrafted out of Kansas State and, this year, carried the ball 61 times all season. Nobody expected him to turn into Bird Williams against the Colts’ defense, including the Colts’ defense. Isn’t that right, Mr. Meeks?

As impressive as Sproles’s performance was, I’m a little confused as to why he has to share the spotlight with Chargers punter Mike Scifres, whose booming kicks pinned the Colts inside their own 15 six out of six times. Granted, the guy can kick the hell out of the ball, but it's hardly akin to Sproles running wild for 328 all-purpose yards against one of the league's better teams. I had to laugh this morning, when Peter King likened Scifres’s performance to Plaxico Burress’s against Green Bay in last season’s NFC Championship Game and, wait for it, Kobe Bryant’s 84-point [sic] performance against the Raptors. Just stop it. Right now. 

I hate it when hyperbole gets in the way of a good weekend of sports. 

The next five days off should get me ready for a second overdose of non-stop football. Incidentally, this is, by far, the best weekend of the NFL's season. The conference championships and Super Bowl are, historically speaking, pretty anti-climactic. It's all down hill after Sunday night. 

Line of the Night

25 points. 8 assists. 5 rebounds. 1 steal. Tyrese Rice. 

L'Étoile du Nord: A Fourth Wild-Card Haiku

Westbrook contained, while
Peterson runs wild all day
Vikings buck the trend

Vikings 27 Eagles 20

Nevermore: A Third Wild-Card Haiku

3-4 defense stops 

Pennington's resurrection

Ravens escape late

Baltimore 17 Dolphins 13

Line of the Night

328 all-purpose yards. 23 carries. 5 catches. 4 kickoff returns. 3 punt returns. 2 rushing touchdowns. Darren Sproles.

Indy Spirit: A Second Wild-Card Haiku

Rivers runs alone
Peyton Manning, MVP
Coaches final games?

Colts 27 Chargers 16

Pick Pitt at Your Peril?

For years, I advised friends and colleagues to stay away from the University of Pittsburgh during the NCAA tournament. No matter how good they look during the regular season or in the Big East tournament, I told anyone who would listen,  the Panthers always fold against the larger field of 64. 

This afternoon's dismantling of Georgetown, however, might make me reevaluate my long-standing maxim. I know it's still early, but the No. 3 Panthers, led by sophomore DeJuan Blair, absolutely beat up the 11th ranked Hoyas, in D.C., where Georgetown previously defeated 29 straight opponents, including 15 against Big East rivals. The final score, 70-54, wasn't even that close. Pitt outrebounded G'Town 46 to 21 and outscored the Hoyas in the paint by 26 points. Total domination. Especially by Blair. 

Sports Illustrated scribe Nina Mandell sums up Pitt's--and Blair's-- big day nicely. 

After months of playing second-fiddle to Big East powers UConn and Louisville, the Panthers weren't ready to let the Hoyas become the new talk of the town after their surprising defeat of the Huskies on Monday. Instead, [DeJuan] Blair and his frontcourt partner and roommate Tyrell Biggs dominated the game inside, leaving the Hoyas struggling for any chance at the boards. The two combined for 34 points in the paint while Blair pulled down a Hoya-heartbreaking 18 boards.

With Louisville tripping over its own feet, and Connecticut still trying to find its way, the Big East, I think, is Pitt's to lose. Not only do they have an imposing front line of Blair, Biggs, and Sam Young but the Panthers, under the direction of senior point guard Levance Fields, don't turn the ball over and simply don't take bad shots. That's a winning formula for regular season and post-season play, even against a larger field, regardless of past prejudices. 

Line of the Night

40 points. 7 rebounds. 4 assists. 2 steals. 1 block. Kobe Bryant. 

Birds of Prey: A Wild-Card Haiku

Last minute sell out
Warner, Boldin, Fitzgerald
Cardinals move on

Cardinals 41 Falcons 17

Line of the Night

413 passing yards. 28 completions. 16 rushing yards. 4 touchdowns. 1 rushing touchdown. 0 interceptions. Mark Sanchez.