The NBA Is No Longer Boring

Despite my love for the sport of basketball, I must admit that the NBA regular season is usually rather dull. The current playoff format makes for mediocre to bad teams (if they're in the East) duking it out for the final playoff spot during the final weeks of the season while the top dogs cruise to the post season. When those final teams are in contention don't happen to include the Hawks, I find it rather unsatisfying to watch mediocre basketball games. Unlike baseball, where the wild card team has a legitimate shot to win the title each and every year, the eight seeds are the equivalent of a 12 seed in the NCAA tournament. Perhaps they have a chance to raise some eyebrows in the early rounds and pull of an upset or two, but they have no real chance of winning the whole thing. This year, however, is entirely different, with a myriad of interesting story lines grabbing my attention.

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Story line: Blockbuster trades

In a league often derided as the "No Balls Association," general managers have broken out of their shells and made some truly gutsy trades that have involved superstar caliber players. It all started last year when Iverson was sent to the Nuggets, continued through the summer as KG finally left the Minnesota tundra for Beantown, and reached its climax with an array of deals leading up to this year's trade deadline. Gasol goes to the Lakers. J-Kidd returns to Dallas. Shaq ends up in Phoenix. Bibby finds his way to Atlanta. While some of these deals were steals (Gasol), some were great moves (Garnett, Allen), some were questionable (J-Kidd), and some were head-scratchers, at least in my opinion (Shaq), the avalanche of deals has certainly made regular season games more interesting as I watch to see how the relocated stars adapt to their new teams.

Story line: The Wild West

I'm a Hawks fan and would be more inclined to root for an Eastern Conference team to win it all. However, I don't think anyone can deny that the battle for supremacy in the Western Conference will make for one of the most exciting regular season finishes in years and create a playoff picture in which virtually no team could be counted out. The Lakers are an offensive juggernaut having added Gasol to Kobe and Odom. Farmar and Fisher have held down the point. When Bynum returns from injury, this team will be one of the most dynamic offensive teams we've seen in a while. They can bang inside, shoot the three, break down defenses off the dribble, isolate, pass out of double teams . . . they are loaded. The Suns and the Mavs, despite their questionable trades for aging superstars remain near the top. New Orleans could potentially go as far as Chris Paul can take them. And judging from his performance so far this year, he could take them a very, very long way (someone tell me why he's not in a Hawks jersey, again). The Jazz may actually be better than they were last year, when they made it all the way to the conference final before falling to San Antonio. Of course, San Antonio may still be the team to beat. Tony Parker is now healthy. Manu Ginobli is arguably the best shooting guard in the game. Tim Duncan is still Tim Duncan. And, with a team full of savvy veterans who have won multiple championship rings before, it would not be surprising if the Spurs emerged yet again as the Western Conference Champs. Even the teams vying for the lower seeds are entertaining. Golden State is perhaps the most schizophrenic team in the league, but when they're on, they are fun to watch. Portland is full of young stars. The Nuggets, despite being ravaged by injury, still are entertaining with the Melo-Iverson combo running the show. It's exciting stuff.

Story Line: Celtics Revival

The Celtics have been irrelevant for so long that when I thought of the Celtics, I could only recall replays of Bird and Co. from the '80s. It is a sad fate for such a storied franchise. However, the Garnett and Allen deals have immediately turned that around. Garnett has been one of the best players in the league since he first set foot on an NBA court over a decade ago. After languishing in the backwoods of Minnesota for years, Garnett finally has a chance to flash his skills under the bright lights of Boston. Garnett, Allen, and Pierce combine to comprise a group of likeable superstars who, up until this point, were forced to suffer while playing for subpar teams. Now, all three have a legitimate shot to win the title while wearing the Celtics jersey. As much as I'd hate to see Boston enjoy post season glory with the Patriots, the Red Sox, and the Celtics, it is intriguing to watch these three stars revive the Celtic machine while simultaneously finally receiving an opportunity to play for a true contender.

The only thing that could make these story lines even more interesting would be a Hawks playoff run. Here's to eternal optimism!

I Love the Smell of Baseball in the Morning

That's right folks. Between all the wonderful soccer (yeah Spurs!), talk of college basketball and March Madness, an exciting NBA regular season (as unbelievable as that sounds), and the NFL draft (which takes up way too much room on the ESPN headlines than it should), it's easy to forget that Spring Training is running at full force now in Arizona and Florida. Here's a quick look at how the Braves lineup will probably shake down.

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The Braves' starting lineup for opening day projects to look something like this.

2B Kelly Johnson
SS Yunel Escobar
3B Chipper Jones
1B Mark Teixeira
RF Jeff Francoeur
C Brian McCann
CF Mark Kotsay
LF Matt Diaz (possibly in platoon with rookie Brandon Jones)


From an offensive standpoint, the 3-7 spots are extremely intimidating to opposing teams. The switch-hitting power combo of Chipper and Tex is right up there with the best heart-of-the-order tandems in baseball. Francoeur is now entering his third full season in the bigs and, if he can combine his power numbers of '06 with the average of '07 and continue to improve on his BB/K ratio, could look to make the transition from local star to national star. Brian McCann battled an unfortunate hand injury that hurt his average through the middle of the season. However, if he can remain healthy, he is one of the very best offensive catchers in baseball and should hit close to .300 with 20 HR's and 90+ RBIs. Two switch hitters followed by a righty-lefty combo in Francoeur and McCann will make late game situations difficult for opposing managers. If Chipper can play 140 games, this group could easily go for 400+ RBIS, 90-100 HR's and a composite BA right around .300.

However, outside of this core, there are a lot of lingering questions. There is a lot of pressure on Escobar to live up to his stellar rookie campaign. Bobby Cox may consider batting Escobar later in the order against right-handed starters to ease some of the pressure on the young Cuban. Mark Kotsay will not be able to replicate the power numbers of Andruw Jones, but he will also be under pressure to hit upward of .260 and get on base consistently. It will also be interesting to see if Matt Diaz, who has been one of the best hitters for average in all of baseball over the past few years, continues to succeed as he enters his third season with the Braves. If Kotsay, Escobar, or Johnson struggle in the one or two holes, Diaz could fill their spot. However, Kelly Johnson may actually be the most important key to success for the Atlanta offense. In 2005, Johnson was heralded as the Braves top offensive prospect, ahead of Francoeur and McCann. However, an 0-30 start to his big league career followed by a lost season in 2006 recovering from Tommy John surgery have caused him to fall of the radar. Yet Johnson is only 25 years old and is coming off his first full season in which he posted an OPS in excess of .800, which is excellent for a second baseman. A late slump hurt his average but that is common for young players. Now that he has gotten comfortable with his new position at 2B and has a year and a half of experience, look for Kelly Johnson as a sleeper to emerge as one of Atlanta's best offensive weapons. He has enough speed to be effective in the leadoff spot. He has the eye to bat second. And he has enough power to bring some pop to the back of the lineup. A season hitting .280 with 15 HR and 60 RBIs should be no problem, but I would not be surprised if he were able to push his average closer to .300 and hit 20 HR. If he hits in the 1 or 2 spots all season, I look for him to pass 100 R. The Braves have not had a 2B who has had numbers like that since the All-Star seasons of Marcus Giles four and five years ago. Such a performance from Johnson this season would ease some of the pressure on Escobar and Kotsay as well as give Tex and Chipper more RBI opportunities. Excluding the Phillies Chase Utley, 2B is a weakness for NL East teams. Johnson has a chance to become one of the better offensive 2B in the NL and give the Braves a weapon as second base that they have lacked for a few years.

While Atlanta is excited about Jordan Schafer, the power-hitting, base-stealing 21 year-old heir apparent to the CF job in 2009, there is another youngster who may have a bigger role to play this year. AAA Richmond shortstop and stud prospect Brent Lillibridge came over from the Pirates last year when the Braves sent LaRoche to Pittsburgh and, if not for the emergence of the slightly older Escobar, would probably be penciled in as the Braves SS of the future. He can hit for average, has great gap power with occasional HR distance, and has great speed on the bases. In addition, he is a wizard with the glove. He lacks the arm strength of Escobar but still has plenty of strength to make all the throws. He also has the ability to play the outfield, as well. Although Omar Infante will start the season as the Braves utility player (provided he recovers from the broken hand he suffered in winter ball), I personally would like to see where Lillibridge will fit in. Though he's inexperienced, he's well seasoned having been drafted after his junior year of college and spending last year in AAA Richmond. His ability to play 2B, SS, 3B and the outfield make him a wonderful asset and his speed fills the stolen bases void that opened after Furcal left for Dodgertown a few years back. He is great insurance if Escobar or Johnson sruggles or goes down with injury. Many scouts regard Lillibridge as a better overall prospect than Escobar. It will be interesting to see how Bobby Cox envisions Lillibridge's role with the Braves. He will probably start the year in Richmond so that he can continue to play everyday, but don't be surprised if Lillibridge becomes an important component of the Braves lineup come July and/or August.

I'll give a rundown of the Braves starting pitchers in a couple days. Until next time . . .

Spurs are on their way to wembley because we beat the scum 5-1, and we'll do the business that's for sure! -- SUPER DELUXE GUEST POST!!!

so tomorrow is the big day. the mighty tottenham hostpur vs. the blue meanie, commie bastard, evil chelsea scum in the carling cup final. 'curry' and i are sitting around in his basement drinking and listening to 'ossie's dream -- spurs are on their way to wembley' on repeat with 'under siege' muted in the background. oddly fitting, since spurs will probably be in that condition from the word 'go' at wembley tomorrow, and they'll have to play with the same skill and passion as they did when they destroyed the significantly more evil, dirty, filthy, whiny, gooner scum last month. still, i've got a good feeling going into the game, much like the semi-final, or at least i'm not shitting my pants, but i could just be delusional.

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despite having played their uefa cup game on thursday, scraping through against slavia prague, spurs are in good shape heading into cup final sunday. keane and berbatov only played 45 minutes each, lennon came off after an hour, jenas got 30 minutes, robbo had a good game coming back off the bench and looks set to start, and the king remained wrapped in his cotton wool. meanwhile, reports are that frank lampard and john terry may be out for chelsea, but that could just as easily be avram grant misinformation. typical soviet politburo deception and such.

whatever, it's high time for tottenham to bring home a cup again, and i couldn't be more excited for tomorrow -- hopefully it'll end without me wanting to jump off the george washington bridge.

LISTEN TO ME SPURS -- IT'S ALL IN YOUR HANDS! and since i can't think of anything else to say, here's who i think will/should start for spurs tomorrow:

Berbatov -- Keane

Malbranque -- Jenas -- Tainio -- Lennon

Chimbonda -- Woodgate -- King -- Hutton

Robinson


so there.


14 hrs., 27 min. to go.... COME ON YOU SPURS!


-- sir alec GUINNESS (from the grave)
(a.k.a. captain james mcbride)

Mid-Week Rundown

Work, music, and travel have kept me away from more important things . . . like blogging, but I'm back with a quick overview of some of the top sports stories I've been following.

The Champions League is back in action with matches today and yesterday. No, Spurs isn't in the competition, but it still remains perhaps the most exciting club competition in all of professional sports. What more can you ask for than the best teams from the best European leagues competing to become European (and, by extension, world) Champs?

In college hoops, Duke looks to rebound after an abysmal loss to Wake Forest on Sunday. (22 turnovers! Forget the cold shooting night. No one can turn the ball over that many times and expect to win!) Miami, however, is in a similar situation as Wake Forest in that a win against Duke is a must if they are to entertain any notions of playing come March.

And in the NBA, Shaq and Kobe square off as the Suns battle the Lakers in what will be Shaq's first start with Phoenix.

Also, with Spring Training getting off the ground in Florida and Arizona, I'll be keeping up with news from around MLB. Hopefully it won't have to do with steroids.

I'll be checking in later with a rundown of some of the day's games.

Live Blogging from... the NBA All-Star Dunk Contest!

This competition used to be something magical. Dominique, MJ... it used to be legendary. It used to display all that set basketball apart from other sports - the pure aesthetics of a guy gliding through air the rest of us can only dream of reaching, effortlessly, and punctuating the art with power. Unfortunately, these days, we see little but derivative dunks and people overhyping mediocre attempts. The competition now means nothing. But I'm sick at home, watching this and eating pizza, so... let's go!

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Jamario Moon, Dunk 1: Impressive. Lobbed it perfectly, caught it with one hand and went for the windmill. Good height, nailed it on the first try, a solid 9 in my eyes. Aesthetically nice and athletic - reminds me of the great old school dunks.
Score: 46

Rudy Gay, Dunk 1: Missed the first attempt. Simple two handed double pump, nothing special. A 7 in my eyes.
Score: 37

Dwight Howard, Dunk 1: Had my favorite dunk of last year, when he slapped up a sticker of himself with a goofy smile on the top of the backboard with one hand while slamming home with the other. Missed the first attempt. Pretty good dunk - bounced off the back of the backboard, and actually kind of screwed up the toss so it bounced off the rubber on the edge of the board, but was still able to grab it and complete a pretty impressive windmill from the side, ducking under the backboard. I think it's a 9; the judges are more impressed.
Score: 50

Gerald Green, Dunk 1: Last year's winner has been talking up this dunk for a while. He calls it "The Birthday Cake". First, a teammate puts a cupcake on the back of the rim and lights the birthday candle in it. Hm. Green goes for the dunk - blows out the candle! - and slams it home. OK, that's a 10 just for creativity and the slow mo replay of him blowing out the candle. Haha, very nice. But apparently a couple of the judges either missed the candle, or don't like gimmicks.
Score: 46

Rudy Gay, Dunk 2: Kyle Lowry throws it off the basket support, Gay runs down the baseline and slams it in. Not really that great, and Chuck hates it, but the judges like it. See, this is why this competition now means nothing.
Score: 48

Jamario Moon, Dunk 2: He runs from way back, Jason Kapono bounces it to him.. failure. Second try - nails it. Takes off with a foot inside the free throw line. Another kind of old school athletic dunk. I like it a lot. Again, aesthetically pleasing. This guy is growing on me.
Score: 44

Gerald Green, Dunk 2: Rashad McCants sits on a ladder in front of the basket, slightly to the side, with the ball. Green at halfcourt. McCants holds the ball out, drops it to Green, who comes in and slams windmill style. Good height. Not particularly impressive.
Score: 45

Dwight Howard, Dunk 2: Jameer Nelson holds a Superman cape and puts it on Howard, who is wearing a Superman costume underneath his jersey - haha, funny. Nelson tosses the ball to Howard from behind the basket, Howards comes flying in, wow, what height, what power! But he didn't actually dunk it, he threw the ball through the basket. Looked good enough though.
Score: 50

So Jamario Moon is unfairly knocked out - Green's first dunk was great from a showmanship perspective, but neither of his dunks were particularly impressive, while Moon looked artful with both of his dunks. Gay is rightfully gone, and Howard powers through with a perfect score, which is fine by me - he deserved it last year, in my opinion. No scoring for the second round - the judges will each reveal who he thinks is the winner after watching all four dunks.

Gerald Green, Dunk 3: A teammate lobs the ball over the basket from behind. Bad lobs the first few times. Green tries for a through the legs dunk and hits it on the second try. Impressive, reminiscent of Vince Carter. Too derivative, but a good dunk in and of itself.

Dwight Howard, Dunk 3: From midcourt sideline, Howard runs in, throws the ball up, it bounces... HOLY CRAP! He taps it off the backboard with his left hand and dunks it with his right! Kenny Smith proclaims it's over, and he's right! Amazing! That one will be remembered!

Gerald Green, Dunk 4: He takes off his shoes, autographs, them, and puts them on the judges' table. Um, OK, you're not good enough to be handing your signed shoes to Doctor J. Then he does the same through the legs dunk with no shoes. Sorry Gerald. Yeah, it's harder without shoes. But the dunk did not look impressive.

Dwight Howard, Dunk 4: This is practically a formality, but let's see. Hm, he's holding one of those small hoops with suction cups on the backboard, and he's calling for the ladder. The small hoop is attached to the backboard, on the right side. The ball rests in it. He grabs the ball from the small hoop and goes for the roundhouse, but misses. He has them raise the small basket. Attempt 2 is successful. Not as impressive as the others, but he'd already set the bar really high.

Chocolate Thunder, aka Daryl Dawkins, declares that Howard brought power and "magistration". I have to agree. All the judges choose Howard, and he wins the fan vote. Howard deserves it, far and away. But props to Jamario Moon, who also impressed. That was actually kind of fun.

'Roid Wrap-up

Waxman wraps things up, and the main story is that we know that Pettite and Knoblauch have corroborated McNamee's story. He struck his gavel as Clemens tried to speak out during the close. Waxman apologized to McNamee, and rightly so - he took some really unwarranted abuse from some of the more deranged members of the committee. It becomes very clear during this kind of testimony which Congresspeople have law degrees and which do not.

Waxman appears to be biased against Clemens, but as the committee member who has spent the most time on this, it's understandable. The evidence is stacked against Clemens. Pettite and McNamee were both good friends of Clemens who in the past had stridently defended him, but in the end, under oath, they both told the truth. Knoblauch as well. McNamee's story holds up to scrutiny; Clemens' is highly implausible (and he doesn't have much of a response, really, aside from talking about how awesome he is and attacking McNamee's character).

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McNamee's behavior in response to a lot of the questioning was surprisingly composed. If anyone had come at me the way Burton had, I would have angrily asked him whether he was really seriously putting his committee and NY tabloid papers on the same level. But he calmly answered Yes or No to most of the questions from his assailants. Only when Shays (R-CT, again, a Republican) characterized him as a drug dealer towards the end did McNamee say anything more in response to an attack, and that was only to say "In your opinion." McNamee, it must be said, was literally a "drug dealer", but to characterize him as a common crack hood is misleading, as HGH and steroids are not exactly drugs of recreational abuse, and his illegal work was at the behest of two or three pretty rich and famous people. Waxman pointed out the latter fact (pointing at Clemens) after Shays ceased his attack.

Cummings was just being interviewed on TV upon conclusion of the session. He said that he thought these proceedings cleared up a lot for him. I think they did for the public as well. Clemens' ship is sinking. His attempt to silence the nanny before she spoke to the committee is really damaging. You just can't make this stuff up, can you? What a bizarre circus.

It's odd, as a sports fan working in Washington, DC, to sit here and see these two worlds collide. As Jayson Stark pointed out, it's sad, because most of us enjoy sports largely because they're an escape from real life. But in sports, as in politics, justice is paramount. Nothing today was definitive, but the session was clarifying. We might not be sure of Clemens' guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, but I think we're getting to the point where a preponderance of the evidence weighs against Clemens. Someone committed perjury here today. I think the Rocket's future destination may well be federal prison.

Partisanship and Baseball

Virginia Foxx opens her mouth again and attacks the Mitchell Committee representative for saying that they had evidence against Clemens when in her estimation they only had allegations. Ms. Foxx, you might be surprised to know that statements people make can be entered as evidence. Foxx tries to continue but Waxman cuts her off, as she's gone well over her time.

It has to be said: so far the Republicans appear to be big Clemens fans who will defend him in the face of all evidence to the contrary. The conduct of Foxx and Burton today has been shameful, and Issa (R-CA) has been almost as bad. Is Clemens a major Republican party donor?

The proceedings return to Rep. Cummings, who sensibly brings back up the point that the most believable people here are Pettite and Knoblauch, and that for Clemens' account to be true, it would require a lot of other people to be lying and for his implausible story to be true. Clemens repeats that he can't believe Pettite used HGH, and that Pettite must be mistaken about Clemens. Pettite's wife has also submitted an affidavit that Pettite and Clemens talked about his steroid use. "It is very hard to believe you," says Cummings.

Where do we FIND these people?

Virginia Foxx (R-NC) just displayed four photos of Clemens from across the years and declared that Clemens doesn't look any bigger in the later ones (though he clearly does, even if it's just his gut) and then invited Clemens to talk about his training regimen. Of course, rather than talking about his exercise, he's talking about his accomplishments in baseball. Waxman, thankfully, shut him up. How can such a brainless person as Foxx hold elected office?

DC has a voice!

Eleanor Norton Holmes, DC's (nonvoting) Representative, has asked the question we all were wondering: if McNamee was such a bad guy, why did Clemens continue to have close relations with him until after the Mitchell Report was released? Clemens' response: "I'm a forgiving guy."

It's hard to believe a word of what Clemens is saying at this point.

The Wax Man Speaketh

The committee chair is now questioning Clemens.



A bombshell here regarding the party at Canseco's, which has been used as an attempt to show that McNamee is unreliable. McNamee spoke (in detail, again) about Clemens' nanny, who was at the party. The committee asked Clemens last Friday for the nanny's name. Clemens - what incredible gall - is telling the committee that he "did them a favor" by finding the nanny's contact info and fulfilling their request. Amazing. Then, Camp Clemens contacted the nanny before she spoke to the committee! Amazing! He invited her TO HIS HOME and talked to her about the party, and this was before he turned over her contact info to the committee. Talk about tampering. Turns out that after the Committee actually spoke to the nanny, she revealed that he WAS INDEED at the party. There goes the attempt to discredit McNamee (and Clemens' attempt to silence the nanny, apparently). It seems to me that the true story is that Clemens went golfing the morning of the barbecue and then showed up later.

Clemens is pathetic. He is speaking right now continuing to say that he is doing the committee a favor. His lawyers are standing up behind him and speaking out of turn (they are not allowed to speak). This will be the enduring image of the hearing, and it looks really bad for Clemens.

Congressman Dan Burton is not very smart.

Well, here we have the first Congressman who is clearly an unabashed Clemens fan. The Republican from Indiana called Clemens a "titan" of baseball and brought up a number of statements that McNamee made to various newspapers about not being involved in steroids, and then yelled at McNamee for "lying to this committee". He told McNamee to his face that he didn't believe a word he said and called him a liar. Uh, Congressman. He's saying one thing under oath to a Congressional committee and another to the NY Post. Obviously he lied to the papers; who wouldn't? Why would he incriminate himself in talking to the freaking Post? And why would be perjure himself now? I wish McNamee had pointed this out to Burton.



How do we elect people like this to Congress?

By the way, McNamee is too confidently providing details of his accounts upon questioning for him to be lying. The man is obviously not very smart, so there's no way that he could be making this up off the cuff.

Turns out that Burton is a scumbag, according to Salon. Unbelievable that he railed on the committee for slandering Clemens and yet he led an all out attack on Clinton, all while having serious ethical scandals in his own recent past. Pathetic, hypocritical human being - and I'm being generous with the "human being" part. I cannot believe he's still in office. Indiana, wake up.

The Misrememberment Plan

Early on in this morning's hearing, Roger Clemens is going down in flames.

There's just no way around it.

I've got this morning's Congressional hearing streaming in one ear, and I'm almost embarrassed for Clemens. The opening statements by Clemens was pretty much what you'd expect: Roger on his high horse, talking about how great he is and how he never used steroids.

McNamee did not budge in his opening statement. He spoke honestly and confidently about Clemens' use of HGH and steroids. He pointed out that he had been a NY city police officer and that he didn't trust Clemens, which is why he kept those syringes and other evidence to back up his word.

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Clemens was unable to defend himself against the opening salvo from Rep. Elijah Cummings. Pettite has told the committee a number of times, under oath, written and in person, that Clemens has used steroids and HGH. As Rep. Cummings questioned Clemens about each of the inconsistencies between Clemens' and Pettite's statements, Clemens continually responded "I think he misremembers." Rep. Cummings pointed out that Pettite was his good friend, and would not say something repeatedly unless he was sure beyond any doubt about it. Clemens repeated "I think he misremembers." Rep. Cummings pointed out that some of Clemens' claims were impossible because of timeline issues between his account and Pettite's. Clemens repeated "I think he misremembers." This does not sound convincing.

McNamee has taken a couple of shots too, though. He testified about a barbecue at Jose Canseco's house where he and Clemens spoke about steroids. It seems as though Clemens was not at that party, according to Canseco, his wife, and Clemens' receipt from a golf course that day. Also, McNamee has in the past not been entirely truthful with federal investigators regarding a date rape incident in Florida (which I admittedly know nothing about) and also regarding the extent to which he initially said Clemens, Pettite, and Knoblauch used steroids and/or HGH.

But overall, this looks worse for Clemens. Clemens stated that Pettite misheard what he said about HGH in one of the disputed conversations. He said that he was actually talking about a TV commercial where elderly people said they had used HGH and it had improved their quality of life. He said that Pettite must have thought he was talking about himself. Uh, yeah, right.

The current Congressman (Davis?) is continuing to throw doubt into Clemens' credibility. Clemens has stated in separate accounts that he has never done any research into HGH, but that his wife used HGH and that she had some side effects from the drug. So he wants us to believe that in the aftermath of that that he never tried to learn anything about the drug. Right.

More to come...

Foul Call

In case you missed it, this is how the Georgetown/Villanova game ended last night.



Lets just say I'm glad I'm not the ref who made that call. Granting game winning shots from the charity stripe for a foul 50 feet from the basket with .1 second left is just wrong.

Did DC United fleece the CRapids?

In an interesting recent trade in MLS, DC United sent the Colorado Rapids the rights to Christian Gomez in exchange for the Rapids' first round draft pick next year, and the rights to their DP slot for the next two years. As part of the deal, the Rapids came to a two year agreement with Gomez, who was out of a contract, for about $500k per year. The Rapids have an additional option year on the deal, which, if exercised, gives DC their DP slot for one more year.

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Some background on the deal: Gomez could only sign with whatever MLS team held his rights. The 33 year old, who was the MLS MVP in 2006, was looking for the kind of deal he got from Colorado. DC had no intention of resigning him for that money or length of time and was prepared to let him leave MLS. The league, as part of its single entity salary structure, will pay all of Gomez's salary (as part of an effort to keep the league from collapsing financially the way the old NASL did, all MLS players sign contracts with the league and are allocated to their respective teams, though teams pay a portion of DP salaries). Colorado, a notably thrifty team, had not used its DP slot and appeared to have no intention to do so. Before this deal, only one DP slot had been traded in MLS history: Chivas USA traded their DP slot (indefinitely, it appears) to Red Bull New York in exchange for former league MVP Amado Guevara, who was a playmaking central midfielder much like Gomez (albeit one with more of an attitude problem).

In this article, Ives Galarcep, who is my favorite soccer writer, argues that DC found a sucker in Colorado for squeezing such valuable assets from them for a player it never intended to resign. As much as I usually find Ives' analysis to be the most sensible out there, I very much disagree with him on this one. This was my response to Ives' article, which I posted on his blog:

Ives, I pretty strongly disagree with you on this one. You're greatly simplifying the issue. Gomez and Guevara are pretty similarly valuable players impact-wise, both fairly recent MVPs in central midfield, and two years of a DP slot and a first round pick sounds like less than a permanent DP slot to me. From DC's perspective, yes, it's a steal, but I don't think it's a bad deal from Colorado's perspective. Ask yourself this question: can you imagine them possibly getting a player better than Gomez for two years of a DP and a draft pick? I can't fathom how they could. You criticize the Rapids for being disingenuous by touting this as an example of their willingness to pull out all the stops, but if they had no intention to use their DP slot in the next two years - and there's absolutely nothing to suggest they did - then this is a case of two teams each with an asset it had no use for. They trade them for each other and everyone wins. This isn't a zero sum game.

So yeah, that's my take on that. Seems like a fair deal to me. First round picks can be valuable, but I don't think they're much more valuable than second round picks. Most MLS draft picks either don't pan out or are highly replaceable. Even a DP, if DC signs one, is no sure thing. I think the Rapids made out well. For now, I'll relieve them of the nickname CRapids... until they go out and stink up the joint this season anyway. Ives is right about one thing: even with Gomez, they don't have much of a team.

UPDATE: Ives responded to my comment, and I responded again. The exchange...

Joamiq, no other team in MLS was giving DC United a designated player slot for Gomez. NONE. The only other team still interested in Gomez at the time Colorado acquired him was Chivas USA, which you know has no designated player slot to trade.

From a pure value standpoint, yes, you can argue that it's a fair trade and not far off from Guevara for a DP, but it's not that simple. Guevara was under contract, Gomez was not. Guevara cost about $280K to $300K, Gomez will cost at least $4ooK. Gomez's price tag at his age is why the list of suitors dwindled toward the end, but rather than negotiate, Colorado gave up the store.

And yes, I get that Colorado probably never intended to use its DP slot, but by giving it up when it didn't have to the Rapids missed out on trading it in a separate deal for a useful package.

Each team only has a certain number of chips in this MLS game, and whenever you give up more than you should it's tough to make it back up. Colorado was already at a disadvantage. The Rapids had a chance to make some real progress, some quality moves, but they didn't do as much as they could have. Gomez should help Colorado be better, but the Rapids missed a chance to do even more.

Posted by: Ives | February 11, 2008 at 11:33 PM

Ives, I ask again, what more could they hope to get for two years of their DP slot than Christian Gomez? I will grant you that Gomez costs more than Guevara in salary, but to me, that's compensated for by the fact that indefinite DP slot > 2 year loan of DP + draft pick. I really think you're overvaluing that 2 year DP slot loan. I can't see how they could get a better player, or more than one really useful player, or players under contract for longer than the length of the loan, for that temporary asset. It seems like you're only looking at this trade from DC's point of view (and I think you're neglecting part of that point of view - I'm sure they'd rather see him out of the league than on another team with just a draft pick to show for it). If you look at it from Colorado's point of view, it's really not bad at all. I think you're right that the team still isn't much good, but I don't see what DP trade would have made them better off.

Posted by: Joamiq | February 12, 2008 at 12:51 PM

UPDATE: I concede. Ives emailed me privately with a little inside info, and let's just say that the Rapids could have gotten the deal done without the DP. I'm still not sure how much they could have gotten for a 2 year DP slot loan, but it's probably a little more than a partial allocation. I still don't think this is a terrible deal value-wise, but it certainly looks like Colorado could have come out much better in the end overall if they had evaluated the situation a bit more wisely.

By the way, readers, that's about as much inside access you're ever going to get from this blog, so I hope you enjoyed that.

Rocker on Rocker

From espn.com:

He tried to come back in 2005 in the minor leagues, but later quit. That year, he told ESPN.com: "I've taken a lot of crap from a lot of people. Probably more than anybody in the history of this sport. I know Hank [Aaron] and Jackie [Robinson] took a good deal of crap, but I guarantee it wasn't for six years. I just keep thinking: How much more am I supposed to take?"

Right, John. Hank Aaron and Jackie Robinson just took less than six years of crap. They've got nothing on your suffering. Poor you!

What a pathetic excuse for a human being.

Seven Deadly Sins: Hubris

Barry Bonds has been accused of arrogance in his handling of the BALCO scandal. He rarely provided a straight answer to any of the allegations and instead allowed his lawyers to handle the case (which may even land him in jail for a few months). However, the secrecy surrounding Bonds is nothing compared to the hubris of Clemens. Clemens has repeatedly used his twenty five-odd years in the public eye as reason for MLB fans to give him the benefit of the doubt. In effect, he has attempted to shame the fans of baseball for doubting him! What Clemens does not understand is that virtually all of the non-Astros, Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays fans already disliked him before the Mitchell report. I already disliked him in part because he pitched for teams that defeated my teams and in part because I already disliked his attitude and his pitch-half-the-season-for-a-bajillion-dollars tactic he has employed for the past few seasons. But most importantly, I disliked him just like I disliked Bonds. I always assumed he was doing steroids. Perhaps this wasn't fair, but his size combined with his uncanny ability to continue to throw in the mid-90's always made me suspicious. Since I had no reason to like him and multiple reasons to hate him (his Astros knocked the Braves out of the playoffs two years in a row), I certainly didn't mind assuming the worst. Neither did legions of other fans who were looking for a reason, any reason to justify their hate for an opposing team's pitcher.


Now, after my suspicions have been confirmed (or at least as confirmed as they will ever be, most likely) and I have justification for my previously irrational dislike for the "Greatest Pitcher of His Generation," forgive me if I find it entirely laughable that he now asks me to give him the benefit of the doubt because he's been in the public eye for the better part of three decades. You've been in the public eye, all right. You've beaten my teams. You've milked the Astros and the Yankees for millions while only putting in a half-season's work. You've gotten bigger and better as you've gotten older (check out his career stats). Maybe you never touched HGH. Perhaps you never even knew that steroids existed. Yet when steroids becomes an issue so large it threatens to swallow the game of baseball, when your own teammate and friend admits to using HGH, when your once-friend-turned-accuser appears to be telling the truth about multiple other instances of steroids use, when Senator Mitchell already provided you with a chance to respond to his findings in the Mitchell Report before releasing his evidence to the public, when Palmeiro, McGuire and others have already gone down in flames, you better do something other than attempt to shame me, the lifelong baseball fan, for doubting you. Assuming he's innocent (or even if he's guilty), he could have used this moment to take a strong, public stand against steroids, explaining how the scandal is affecting the reputations of clean players and it's up to the sport to find some way to clean up the mess. He also could have remained entirely tight-lipped a la Bonds and accepted that the world will hate him while his lawyers fought on behind the scenes. He could even have vehemently denied steroids use, called McNamee a liar, and announced his intentions to fight all charges . . . had he done so without calling out the fans. I don't owe you anything, Roger. In fact, I don't even care anymore if the charges are true or false. You showed your true colors by rebuking fans who "rushed" to judgment in the face of seemingly reasonable evidence. Remember, most of the baseball world was already secretly (or publicly) searching for reasons to justify our dislike. My suspicions have been confirmed. You are every bit as arrogant as I have always believed.

Beasts of the East

The Celtics are legit. Watching their 98-90 win against the Spurs today (at home, but without KG, while the Spurs were without Parker) I saw a team that was, to a man, outworking a formidable opponent. It got to the point where 3 or 4 Celtics were slamming into each other as they fought to secure an offensive rebound. They dive for balls going out of bounds, fill passing lanes to grab steals, and are relentless in their pursuit of perimeter shooters (they lead the league in 3pt defense). This team is playing hard. Obviously they have their superstars, but the role players, who are the real key to this team, are filling in nicely. Rondo has really found his niche. His defense and distribution on the break has impressed me, and his shot has improved. Big Baby Davis has proved all of his detractors wrong. He has toned his body to the point where he has an excellent NBA power forward body. He's smart, agile, and very good around the rim. James Posey is an oft-overlooked veteran who can shoot from outside and play defense. This is a very, very good team, and with an absolutely stunning 16-0 (16! and 0!) record against the West, you have to say that this is the best team in the NBA.

Clash of the Titans

It's Duke and UNC baby! The greatest rivalry in all of the world baby!! The heart! The passion! The P-T-P'ers! The Diaper Dandies! It's the greatest game in the universe!

Actually, thanks to Raycom, which controls all of ACC country, I didn't get to hear the triumphant return of Dick Vitale. Instead, I was forced to endure Billy "Scrooge" Packer on WATL. I know many of you probably aren't huge Vitale fans, but at least he actually loves the sport of college basketball. In a previous post, my esteemed colleague Curry criticized Joe Buck for failing to adequately dramatize one of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history. Joe Buck did this because he's Joe Buck and he doesn't know enough about football to recognize historic moments. Billy Packer, however, fails to dramatize important moments because he is so egotistical and condescending, he would rather lead the audience to believe that no matter how incredible a moment in the game might be, he, Billy "Scrooge" Packer, has seen better. Much better. In fact, that the sweet turnaround jumper that Kyle Singler made over Hansbrough at a critical moment in the game was not even worth mentioning. Indeed, Paulus' three point assault only moved Scrooge to complain about Paulus' choice to shoot quickly before getting his feet set (despite the fact that he does set his feet set and a quick release is a good thing, plus the guy shoots well over 40%, so I would think he knows what he's doing). To be fair, Packer doesn't only fail to praise Duke for solid play. He didn't even bother to get excited when UNC went on a nice run to come within three points of Duke at the half. The Dean Dome was rocking. The momentum appeared to be turning, pointing to an exciting second half and another classic finish to a Duke/UNC matchup. There wasn't one person in the entire stadium that wasn't excited . . . except for Scrooge, that is. Dick Vitale maybe over the top, but at least he cares. Ok, enough about that. My rundown of the Duke/UNC Round 1, 2008 edition is after the jump.

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The Duke/UNC game this Wednesday says far more about UNC than it does about Duke. Needless to say, I was ecstatic to witness Duke handle a strong and supposedly deep UNC team so easily. Though Tar Heel stud Ty Lawson was unable to play due to injury, Duke demonstrated that the doom and gloom from media and blogs in the preseason was premature. Yes, Duke lacks a "true" post presence, but they make up for it in other ways (more on this in a minute). While Lawson would obviously have made a difference for UNC, there is no guarantee he would have been able to win the game for the boys in Powder Blue. In fact, it is possible that the result would have been exactly the same. Why, you ask? UNC has a flaw that is actually more severe than Duke's lack of size in the post. How do I know this? Because Duke had the exact same flaw for the three previous years.

Although J.J. Redick will always be one of my all-time favorite Dukies, he never was able to become a strong defender. He was a smart and savvy player who made up for his lack of quickness with a high basketball IQ. But he could do nothing to prevent opposing guards from entering the paint at will. Last year, the injured Greg Paulus was forced to play mega-minutes through pain, wearing down as the game wore on, and eventually surrendering the paint to the opposing point guard. On all three of those teams, a lack of depth at the guard positions hurt. While Sean Dockery was a quality defender, his inability to run the offense made it difficult for him to make a serious impact. In 2005, Duke only could offer Redick, Daniel Ewing, and Sean Dockery as viable options at guard due to an injury that slowed DeMarcus Nelson. In 2006, after the departure of Ewing through graduation, freshman Greg Paulus was forced to play super minutes at the point, wearing down as the season wore on. 2007 was no different, with Nelson, Scheyer, and Paulus forced to handle all opposing guards as Henderson was not yet ready to help out. While the 2005 and 2006 teams were still really good, this was due to the offensive and defensive presence of Sheldon Williams in the paint. Sheldon could block shots, rebound, and score at the other end. This negated some of the effectiveness of opposing guards. Once Williams departed, McRoberts, who was inferior both defensively and offensively, failed to fill the void, making dribble penetration a big reason why Duke was ousted in the first rounds of the ACC and NCAA tournaments.

With the injury to Bobby Frasor earlier in the season, UNC now has a much smaller arsenal of guards to choose from. Thomas is a serviceable point guard similar to Dockery in that he is significantly better at defense than offense and seems unable to play significant minutes without making important mistakes on the offensive side and wearing down defensively. While speedy starter Lawson was injured during the Duke game, he is actually worse than Thomas at defense as he lacks the size (he's listed at 6 feet but he's probably closer to 5-11 or 5-10), the length (shorter point guards such as Chris Duhon of Duke and Ray Felton of UNC made up for shortness in size with armspan, although neither player is as short as Lawson), and the strength to significantly bother opposing point guards. Wayne Ellington is a solid player, but his quickness is actually little overrated. He struggles to get his shot off against quick and strong defenders and is even more suspect when guarding quick, strong players (such as Demarcus Nelson or former high school teammate Gerald Henderson). On the interior, Hansbrough, despite his amazing work ethic and eye-popping offensive ability, is merely an average defender. He averages only 0.2 blocks per game and lacks the armspan and the athleticism to alter shots. He plays smart defense and is able to compensate for his deficiencies through heady play (much like Redick, actually), but is ultimately a defensive liability.

Which finally brings me to the game itself. Analysts attribute Duke's relatively easy win to hot outside shooting and the absence of Lawson. However, even with Lawson, UNC would have been unable to slow Duke's five guard attack. UNC simply does not have the personnel to match Scheyer, Paulus, Henderson, Nelson, and reserve Nolan Smith. While Hansbrough dominated in the post from an offensive standpoint (28 points), his lack of defensive prowess was exposed by Singler, who was easily able to drive by Hansbrough or shoot over him, and Lance Thomas. In fact, Lance Thomas may have been the biggest surprise of the game. The world knows that Duke can shoot the three and that Singler poses a mismatch to opposing forwards. However, who knew that Thomas could score in the post on Hansbrough? Thomas, in fact, scored at will against Hansbrough. Though he is probably the eighth offensive option on a deep Duke squad and rarely even receives the ball on offense, he was able to catch the ball in the post and use his quickness to shoot right over Hansbrough, finishing 5/6 from the field with 10 points . . . 10 very easy points. The threes certainly were falling for Duke, which made it unnecessary to rely on Thomas or Singler for much offense in the post, but the few times either of those two players squared off against Hansbrough, they were almost always able to score a bucket. For UNC fans, this is now four separate games when quick forwards have been able to score at will against Hansbrough, Thompson and the other UNC post defenders. If Hansbrough had been less effective offensively, scoring even 20 points, it may even be possible to make the argument that Duke won the battle in the post as well as on the perimeter.

Hanbrough's season has been incredible and I actually really like the guy, despite the U-N-C written across his jersey. However, his staggering offensive output is masking the serious defensive liabilities of his team, both in the post and on the perimeter. Since it seems unlikely that Hansbrough, Lawson, and Ellington will develop into stud defenders, there is no reason to think UNC's defensive deficiencies will be fixed. Outscoring opponents will be hard to do against high scoring teams like Duke, Tennessee, Memphis, or Kansas that feature quality guard play. Similarly, disciplined teams with strong defensive post presences like Georgetown in last year's Elite Eight, will be able to slow or even neutralize Hansbrough who, for all of his strengths, is not particularly quick. If Ellington is not hitting his shots and Lawson isn't preventing dribble penetration, Carolina can lose to anyone, just as Duke could lose to anyone in 2005 if Redick failed to hit his shots and Paulus was unable to contain the opposing point guard. Carolina's margin for error is far slimmer than I had envisioned at the beginning of the season, just as Duke's was much smaller in 2005 than most realized thanks to the phenomenal year J.J. Redick had. In fact, it may be smaller than 2008 Duke's, which brings me to my final point. The Heels can make a run at a title, but Lawson, Ellington, and Thomas will either have to morph into lock-down perimeter defenders or their high octane offense will have to operate at max power for six consecutive games against increasingly difficult competition.

Many in the media, including Jay "I swear I never went to Duke" Bilas, have argued that Duke will lose when it faces strong inside team. Many point to the loss to Pitt in Madison Square Garden six weeks ago as proof of that theory. However, this is actually wrong. Duke has won many games in which they've been on the short end of double-digit rebounding deficits. Perhaps even more telling, they've even won those games when they've shot relatively poorly from three-land (Maryland and Clemson games). They've allowed opposing forwards to utterly dominate in the paint and have still rolled on to comfortable victories (J.J. Hickson of NC State). What doomed Duke against Pitt was an inability to exploit their biggest strength, perimeter defense, into a large turnover differential. If Duke is not hitting from outside, turnover margin becomes the most important stat of the game. Against Pitt, Duke turned it over 19 times to Pitt's 22, leading to multiple easy buckets for Pitt which entirely negated the points off turnovers earned by Duke's solid defense. The most recent Forde Minutes on ESPN.com claims that Duke will lose because an opposing forward will dominate them inside the way Dejuan Blair of Pitt was able to. Hansbrough dominated inside more than Blair and UNC has more all around talent than Pitt, yet Duke still won easily. Similar, they defeated Maryland despite stellar games from Gist and Osby. What Pitt was able to do is match Duke's guard play. While Pitt was not exactly turnover free, Levance Fields and company were able to give as much as they received, forcing Duke's guards into multiple unforced errors. Despite poor free-throw shooting (55%) and despite an anemic 22% from three-point land, Duke still could have ground out a victory if they had protected the basketball better at the guard positions. The lack of a large turnover differential made rebounds the deciding factor, something Duke cannot afford. Duke will not necessarily lose when they face a dominant post presence. They will not necessarily lose when they can't hit three's or shoot free throws. As long as Duke's guards take care of the basketball and force turnovers, they do not need to be reliant on the three point shot. The teams that are most dangerous to Duke are teams with strong inside play combined with quality guard play who can take care of the basketball and make sure that Duke's strong perimeter play does not give them an edge in turnovers.

However, keep in mind that Duke was a made free-throw and a made put-back by Singler at the buzzer away from scraping out a win. While Duke is not quite in the same realm as UCLA, Kansas, Memphis, or possibly even a fully healthy UNC, they are very, very close. If opposing guards aren't up to the challenge posed by Duke's strong backcourt and turn the ball over, Duke can beat anyone whether or not the threes are falling. And that is especially true for teams such as UNC that are unable to put pressure on Duke's guards and do not pose much of a shot-blocking threat to Duke's slashers. While there's no doubt that Duke would be an even better team with a strong scorer on the block, chalking Duke's victories up to strong perimeter shooting fails to grasp the more important reason why Duke is looking like Duke again.

USA vs. Mexico: There Will Be Blood

Oguchi Onyewu eats Mexicans for breakfast.

--The Rivalry--
Tonight at 9 p.m. on ESPN2, we will witness the latest chapter in our nation's biggest, most bitter international sporting rivalry, USA vs. Mexico. On the world stage, Mexico is thought of as North and Central America's biggest soccer power, but the actual results show otherwise. The US has lost to Mexico just twice since 2000, both times by a single goal in Mexico City. Otherwise, the US has dominated - Mexico has scored just one goal in the 10 games in the US and on neutral soil since 2000, drawing once and losing nine times, including in the Round of 16 in the 2002 World Cup in Korea, and in the Gold Cup final last June. The US has held the region's championship trophy since 2005. This does not please the fans of El Tri. The battles are always heated, and this one will be even more so thanks to last summer's Superliga. The inaugural tournament between Mexican and American club teams featured fights in almost every game. Expect physicality and cards.

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--The Debutantes--
Tonight's clash in Houston will provide a fascinating look at the next generation of this bitter rivalry. There is a lot of buzz surrounding this match, largely due to the new blood that will be on display. The future of the USMNT lies on the shoulders of three talented young players who have begun to break out in their respective professional leagues: Michael Bradley, who has set the all-time single season scoring record for an American in top flight European soccer with 16 goals so far this season for Heerenveen; Freddy Adu, who is finally living up to the hype as Benfica's 18 year old super-sub with 5 goals so far this season; and Jozy Altidore, who has 13 goals thus far in his MLS career, also at the age of 18, and is simply the most talented American striker ever (oh, and did I mention he's on the cover of FIFA '08? Yeah. At 18). These three are all set to make their debuts in the USA-Mexico rivalry tonight.

On the Mexico side, a couple of their young starlets will enter the fray for the first time as well. Giovani Dos Santos of Barcelona and Carlos Vela of Osasuna are considered two of the most talented young players in the world. Two others, Nery Castillo and Andres Guardado, will miss this match with injury and have faced the US before, but these seven young players all together will form the core of the rivalry for the next 10-12 years.

Bradley, Adu, Altidore

--The Lineup--
So who can we expect to see play for the US tonight? One given is that Everton netminder Tim Howard will be between the posts for the US. His very talented and capable backup Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), whose transfer to Aston Villa was just held up by the UK's preposterous work permit rules, will be standing ready. You can also be pretty sure that Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham) and Oguchi Onyewu (Standard Liege) will be continuing their partnership as the first choice US center half pairing. The pair's play, however, has been up and down over the past year and a half, however. Bocanegra lost and then regained his starting spot with the sinking ship that is Fulham, and while Onyewu remains one of the best defenders in Belgium, it's still just Belgium and his US form has been poor since the phantom penalty called against him in the 2006 World Cup against Ghana. He seems to be afraid to be physical now, with refs calling the 6'4" Gooch for fouls every time he breathes on an opponent. He is known for his physicality against Mexico, however, and one can only hope that he will regain his confidence tonight. Eddie Robinson (Houston), the first goalscorer against Sweden last month, may get some time.

Nothing is clear at fullback. Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock) has had an up and down season. Ramiro Corrales (Brann) is having a career year in Norway, but while his defending is solid he offers little going forward. Look for Corrales to get the start to see if he can build on his performance in last month's win over Sweden, but don't be surprised to see Pearce get at least significant minutes. On the right side, Drew Moor is the only natural right back who was called in, but he isn't very good. That he won't have to deal with the dangerous Guardado should help, but this superfan/amateur analyst would still rather see Michael Parkhurst (New England) get the call. Parkhurst is a talented defender with good positional and tackling instincts. His future with the national team is much brighter than Moors. He is, however, limited going forward, as he's a natural centerback.
The midfield is where the US strength lies. Bradley is a lock to start in the center. However, his traditional role with the US has been more defensive, whereas his stellar play this season has been as a two way midfielder, so look for Coach Bradley (yes, his dad) to give him the freedom to roam forward and get into those dangerous positions from which his scoring touch has proved so adept. Another young rising star for the US is defensive midfielder Maurice Edu (Toronto). He has looked composed beyond his experience level with the MNT in his caps thus far, and he could be an intimidating force in the middle against Mexico, so I'd look for him to start in the middle next to Bradley. Ricardo Clark (Houston) has played OK for the MNT, but he's clearly lower in the pecking order than Bradley and Edu. If the team goes with two central mids, Clark is out. Meanwhile, Adu will most likely not start, but get some time in the second half to show his stuff.

With DaMarcus Beasley (Rangers) injured, Bobby Convey (Reading) is a lock to start at left wing. It will be interesting to see what Bradley does on the right side. The US has no natural right wing. Clint Dempsey (Fulham) has traditionally played there for the national team, but he's done well up top in England. Meanwhile, Landon Donovan (Los Angeles) is ever positionless. As a forward, he sometimes doesn't involve himself in the play enough. As a center mid, he's too wary of moving around and stepping on teammates' toes. As a wing mid, he's not a particularly good crosser. But on the wing he does get the space to run at people, and he's more involved in the play. Pat Noonan (New England) offers the team almost nothing at wing mid or forward. I'd look for Donovan to get the start at right wing.

Up top, we will almost certainly see Dempsey. The big question is whether Altidore will start. He is almost certain to see playing time.

--The Tactics--
The final spot in the starting XI is likely to go to Clark as a second defensive midfielder. This would leave Dempsey alone up top:

-------------Dempsey-------------
-Convey------Bradley-----Donovan-
-----------Edu----Clark----------
Pearce-Bocanegra--Onyewu----Moor-
--------------Howard-------------

Tactically, this is not ideal. The US has trouble creating offense. Playing a four man back line with a two defensive midfielders is asking for trouble on offense. It would call on Bradley to do most of the creating, but even worse calls for too much of a burden on Dempsey. He is not a natural target forward and asking him to play alone up top wastes his skill in going at people. Nevertheless, this is what we are likely to see to start, just because Bradley may not be comfortable starting Altidore. It's not altogether bad, as it may stabilize the game by making it very difficult for Mexico to score. If we see this starting XI, Altidore is likely to be subbed in in the second half. If he replaces Clark, we could see this:

--------Altidore-----------------
------------------Dempsey--------
-Convey------Bradley-----Donovan-
---------------Edu---------------
Pearce-Bocanegra--Onyewu----Moor-
--------------Howard-------------

This opens up the offense considerably. With Altidore receiving the ball up top, Convey, Bradley, and Dempsey are all free to run off of him. Expect Altidore to occasionally drift out left to receive the ball facing the goal, which is his favorite position. From here, he can take on defenders one on one, shoot from distance, or combine with Bradley or Dempsey. Watching Rafa Marquez (Barcelona) try to deal with Altidore will be fascinating. He will likely be the focus of the Mexican defense, which should open up opportunities for Bradley, Dempsey, and Donovan, and perhaps even Edu, who may get some cracks from 25 yards out if the Mexican defense collapses inside. Altidore is the key for the US offense going forward. He is the first world-class striker prospect this country has ever produced.

Adu will also come in in the second half. If he replaces Dempsey, then watch out. Altidore and Adu have uncannily good chemistry, and they have been playing with Bradley in the US youth teams for years. Their attacking triangle is the future for the US, and getting to see if operate tonight would be a treat.

--The Result--
Mexico coach Hugo Sanchez has brought a strong squad to Houston. In addition to Dos Santos, Vela, and Marquez, Carlos Salcido (PSV Eindhoven) and Pavel Pardo (Stuttgart) are international veterans who will help Mexico stamp their identity on the game. The two teams will battle in the midfield, but both teams are strong offensively and defensively in the center of the pitch. Expect Vela and Dos Santos to give some trouble to the relatively slower Bocanegra and Onyewu for Mexico. For the US, wing play will be paramount. Convey and Donovan will have to use their speed to frustrate the Mexican wingers and fullbacks. I predict that the quick Mexican attackers will sneak in the first goal, with the US responding on a counterattack. In the second half, I expect that the young Americans will take over and have the better of the play, creating what I am sure will be an exciting winning goal. Most of all, I expect all of the young stars to come out of their first USA-Mexico match with invaluable experience - and a newfound hatred for each other.

Prediction: USA 2, Mexico 1

The Team America Loves to Hate

You know that team. The team whose fans consider anything less than a championship each and every year an abject failure. The team with the old, curmudgeon-y coach who just cannot stand to lose. The team with the clean-cut, golden-boy hero who splits his time between dating various movie stars, appearing on your least favorite commercials, and finding new, previously unimaginable ways to heap utter misery upon your hometown boys or girls. The team that is omnipresent, appearing on hats, t-shirts,
The Yankees, Notre Dame, Duke, the LA Lakers, Manchester United, Arsenal (COYS!), the Patriots and the Red Sox all fit this bill . . . wait, did I detect a hind of indignation? Did you just point your right index finger at your chest and say “Who? Moi? You mean my team? My beloved Red Sox, America’s loveable underdogs who beat the evil Yankee machine? My adorable Patriots and our 1,999th draft choice quarterback/heartthrob who has risen to the pinnacle of NFL success against all odds?” If that’s you, then you are a Bostonian (or bandwagoner) in denial. The sad truth is that every last one of the other (two) people who read the above sentence didn’t even flinch when I lumped the Pats and BoSox into the list of loathsome teams. That’s because, you, the New Englander in our midst, has graduated . . . or at least your team has. Your teams have finally become everything the rest of us despise. The collective roar that erupted across the nation when the game clock struck one second in the Arizona desert confirmed your teams’ entry into the pantheon of most hated teams. The entire non-New England portion of the country was rooting for Manning and the Giants . . . and that sentence alone should remove any remaining doubt that your team is now the villain. A New York team played the role of America’s underdog. Most Americans (myself, included) tend to root against New York teams on principle, considering the city a bastion of athletic evil. Yet the Patriots managed to evoke enough hatred that the New York Giants, for a four-hour period, captured the collective heart of Anti-Patriot Nation as we watched the dismantling of the Evil Empire before our eyes. This morning, most of the nation awoke with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside knowing that our Patriot-loving friends and neighbors were all still frozen in shock, having seen “The Best Team of All Time” crack under the pressure when it mattered most.
Yes, Bostonians, we abhor your teams. We cannot stand to see them win. A Rockies’ victory over the BoSox would have been second only to the Giants’ victory. Your teams are rich (see: BoSox payroll), they cheat (see: Belicheat), and their coaches look like infamous dictators, sort of (see: above). But all you’ve got to do is learn to embrace it. Wipe that indignant smile off your face and replace it with a smug grin. Stop denying the accusations of arrogance and accept them with pride. Take it from a Duke fan. The hatred means one thing and one thing only. Your teams are good. Really, really good. And they probably will be for a long time to come. Super Bowl XLII was much more than a victory for the Giants and an epic defeat for the Patriots. It was an inauguration. The Patriots may have lost the battle, but they can still claim victory. They (along with the BoSox), have entered an elite circle, a position that is loathed and envied among the rest of the sports universe.
And that is why, despite my glee in seeing the Pats crumble on the biggest stage of all, I am not entirely satisfied. That is why constant replays and YouTube videos of the Giants defense sacking Tom Brady fail to bring a lasting smile to my face. That is why the warm-fuzzy feeling is already giving way to nausea. The most essential element of that team is that no defeat, no matter how epic, and no collapse, no matter how devastating, can ever fill the bottomless pit of hatred felt by all opposing fans. Bostonians, take solace in the fact that all the ill will directed toward your teams is born of fear. We fear that next year (and the year after that, and the year after that, and the year after), you will be back on the verge of watching your team compete for another World Series Championship or Super Bowl ring while we look on, helplessly, clinging to the only thing we have left: hate. But don’t ever, ever refer to one of your teams as America’s loveable underdogs again.

The Balance of All Things

Judgment Day came and went. And mine eyes have seen the glory of the Lord.

Thank you God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, for righting the wrongs, for leading my skeptic sight to the gridiron and the light.

I had sinned. Well, I hadn't really sinned myself, but was guilty by association. You see, I am a fan of the New York Jets. In week 1 of this NFL season, a season that would be largely meaningless for my team, we played the New England Patriots. We lost, but of course it from that game that Spygate arose. Eric Mangini lifted his hand and pointed at his former mentor, and Belicheat and Brady's reputation was tarnished. That's no dynasty, us NFL fans shouted, that's a fraud. And that made Belicheat and the Golden Boy angry. How dare they, they seethed late at night in the Patriot Cave, deep underground, around a fire where they boiled their witches brew. We'll show them, they swore.

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What they brewed was a storm of destruction like nothing ever before seen. They had no mercy. They beat the crap out of teams for fun. Having sold their souls to the devil, they rained his fury down upon their opponents. Their offense was like something out of Madden. What have we done, I thought as I trembled in fear. How could we have released this beast?

But the cracks in the armor began to show. A narrow win over the then-unbeaten Colts was hailed as proof of their dominance, but showed that they were vulnerable. Later came a narrower escape against the Eagles, and a narrower still Houdini-like escape against the Ravens. That team in purple and black did just about everything they could possibly do to let Belicheat win, I thought to myself angrily in the closing moments of that game. Something unnatural was afoot, and I was afraid that it was partially my fault. I was jaded, I was cynical, and I had lost all faith in the hope that anyone could stop our rivals before they had conquered us all.

Win number 16 sparked big debate across the country, but especially in NY/NJ: with the Giants having already locked up a playoff spot, should they rest their starters, or go all out to try to beat the Patriots? As it turned out, the G-men went all out and played a hell of a game. While the performance was encouraging, one had to wonder going into the Super Bowl whether this would lull the Giants into complacency for the game that really mattered. And surely, having seen the Giants at their best once, Belicheat and his staff would be prepared to destroy the Giants in round 2. Right?

The playoffs continued to reveal the holes in the Patriot armor, but their less than impressive performances against the Jaguars and a seriously undermanned Chargers team were still wins, and so it was perfection in their record that people focused on rather than the imperfections in their play. But Tom Coughlin (?!) and Eli Manning (?!?) found those imperfections and exploited them.

The result was as much of a beating as 17-14 has ever been. I mean this in a literal sense: the Giants' defensive front pounded Tom Brady into the ground time and time again. Eli and the attack had trouble capitalizing, but at least the Giants' possessions ate up significant clock time. This combined with the Patriot O-line being being about as resilient as a scoop of ice cream at noon in Nairobi prevented the Patriot offense from ever establishing any rhythm. It wasn't, as Bill Simmons tries to claim, a matter of the Patriots not playing they way they had all season tactically - they weren't allowed to. The Giants outplayed them. Of course, the late Patriot scoring drive was inevitable, but it wasn't enough. Not on a day when divine retribution triumphed, as Eli, on 3rd and 5 from his own 44 with 1:15 left, somehow wriggled out of a certain sack and launched a prayer to David Tyree, who somehow caught the ball... with his helmet. WITH HIS HELMET!!!


(By the way, this is one of the worst calls ever. Joe Buck will forever be remembered for failing to dramatize one of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history. He sounds disappointed at a moment where the rest of the nation screamed in wonder. Screw you, Joe Buck, for failing to properly immortalize the audio portion of this moment.)

With this play, everything changed. When it was all over (or almost all over, Belicheat - hah!) and the dust of the heavens settled, I saw the world in a new light. My burden had been lifted. There was order in the universe. There truly was a God, and he had worked in his own mysterious way to provide Belicheat with as painful a moment as possible as retribution for HIS sins. It wasn't my fault that my team's coach accused him of cheating - it was his fault for cheating in the first place! I was saved.

AND BELICHEAT LOST! YOU LOSER, YOU JERK, YOU CHEATER, YOU LOST! YOU COULD HAVE EVEN KICKED A FIELD GOAL TO COVER THE DIFFERENCE BUT YOU DIDN'T BECAUSE YOU'RE A LOSER WHO LOST LOST LOST!

Final note: There is only one bad thing about the Patriots losing, and that's Mercury Morris and the rest of the '72 Dolphins having one more champagne party to celebrate their undefeated season still being the only one ever. Mercury, you need to shut up. You think you're the greatest thing since sliced anything, but you're really just an arrogant prick. Your Fins played the third easiest schedule in the ENTIRE MODERN HISTORY of the NFL. You didn't play a single team with a winning record all through the regular season. Congrats on your undefeated season, and I hope you find some other raison d'être before you die, but even a Patriots hater has to admit that this Patriot team would have murdered your boys.

Obama endorses Curry and Rice Sports

This just in. Illinois Senator and Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama confesses his love for Curry and Rice Sports. When asked by an unnamed reporter what he likes to read in his spare time while on the campaign trail, Obama responded, "Curry and Rice Sports," without hesitation. "For most of the campaign, I have migrated from one sports blog to the next, never finding one that satisfied my desire for intelligent writing and insightful analysis . . . that is until a few days ago when I found Curry and Rice Sports." When asked what draws him to Curry and Rice Sports, Mr. Obama responded, "Well, in addition to their unparalleled sports analysis, I also happen to be an ardent supporter of Tottenham Hotspur, the greatest football team in the world. COYS! Plus, those guys are just plain awesome and I thought to myself, if I want to be awesome, I better read Curry and Rice Sports."
(source unknown)

Well, Mr. Obama, if we're cool enough for you, then you are definitely cool enough for us. Obama '08, baby!

Notes: When asked this past Saturday about the report that pegs the candidate as a West Ham fan, Mr. Obama angrily retorted "That is a lie! Nothing but slander!" before donning a Keane Jersey and walking off to the local pub to take in the Spurs/ManU match.

Take a bow, Michael Dawson

Truth be told, when we set out to start this blog I don't think that we would have predicted that the first three posts would be about Spurs, and that two of the three would heavily focus on Michael Dawson, but North London is where the action is these days. That's where it was this morning at least (or afternoon over there) as Manchester United came to town.

Spurs last beat United in 2001, and the Red Devils came out on top in last week's FA Cup match thanks largely to some boneheaded plays by one Michael "RAWR" Dawson (see two posts down). Well, 6 days later, he did it again. Take a bow, you numbskull.

Spurs put together a fantastic team effort and stymied United for all but the final 20 seconds, when Dawson saw fit to leave one Carlos Tevez unmarked at the near post on a corner. The possibly insane Argentinian tapped it in to erase the earlier tap in from the Berbatov Cocktail (Shawn H. gets credit for that one) and leave all Spurs fans pondering for the 23448th time this season exactly how they should kill themselves.

When one steps back and looks at the big picture, it's really not all that bad. Taking a point off of Man U is good. The team played very well. The passing was sharp and the movement was cohesive. Aside from Dawson, the defense kept its shape and everyone tackled well. New signing Alan Hutton looked especially sharp, marking tight, making timely tackles, and springing forward when given the opportunity. But this game continues the Spurs disease of giving up late goals to blow leads and throw away points. And Dawson's mental lapses continue to be troublesome, especially in light of this report. It may be that we will never see the dream Spurs defense that I alluded to two posts ago - not for more than one match at a time, at least. For now, the team will have to take what consolation it can from its strong performance and move on.

SPURS TRANSFER UPDATE

It's official: Jermain Defoe has been sold. Nine million pounds and just like that - he's gone.










I have never understood why Spurs have been so keen to push him out the door. He just scores goals like its his sole pursuit in life. He probably has the highest per minute scoring average on the team. He is the IDEAL striker off the bench. He does not need service. He's aggressive. Good shot from anywhere, fantastic finisher in front of goals, fast, HUNGRY. And he was always dedicated to Spurs. It was heartbreaking - the more they repeated their desire to be rid of him, the more he declared that White Hart Lane was his home.

The only explanation is that Spurs are determined to get some production out of that 16 million pound albatross, Darren Bent. Well, good luck to you, Darren. You have some huge shoes to fill. Defoe was one of my absolute favorite Spurs. Do what he did. Just score goals. And Defoe: best of luck to you. I've no doubt you'll continue to score goals in bunches.

As for the other last second Spurs transfer news, the team has acquired Gilberto from Hertha Berlin. I don't like this move either. What the hell is the point? When Bale comes back, he's obviously the starter, right? I mean, Gareth Bale, at 18, is the most incredible attacking left fullback I have EVER seen. EVER. So what the hell are Spurs going to do with this 31 year old Brazilian, more flash than substance? Play him at left midfield? That wouldn't make any sense when Steed Malbranque has been one of Spurs' most consistent players all year long. Don't get it. (UPDATE: Bale has since been ruled out for the rest of the year. This move is making much more sense now.)










I think these two moves are crazy. Prove me wrong, Juande.