Stop Mike Lupica

The NBA: Now With 30% Less Euro

2008-06-26T15:59:40Z

With the NBA Draft occuring tonight, here are some last minute thoughts and questions on what's going on:

What are the Blazers going to do with all them picks?

Really, the Blazers just went out and brought the 27th pick yesterday from the Hornets?

Sidenote: What the hell is with the Hornets being so cheap? They now have no picks this draft, and selling a late first round pick (hello Suns) is generally an iffy proposition. Yes, you save money, and it is fiscally smart, plus it keeps your roster flexible. I would, if I was an NBA GM, prefer a second-round pick to a late first rounder. Less of a commitment in terms of length of contract and money (in fact, second-rounders aren't even guaranteed, right?). But selling picks for nothing, as opposed to getting a future pick or at least two of those Blazer second-rounders (again, nothing to lose)?!? That seems cheap more than smart. End sidenote.

Back to the Blazers: What the hell are they going to do with 5 picks this year, plus a few next year (three?), plus Rudy Fernandez and Greg Oden joining the team this year? Maybe they'll go long-term, and use a bunch of picks on Euro players to stash overseas. Still, if any team should be dealing tonight, it should be the Blazers. You would hate to waste two or three picks (or more) on players that will just get cut after the summer league.

Where are the Euros?

Indeed, the rarely talked about story is the diminishing Euro presence in the NBA. A couple of factors at play here. One is the failure of a Euro superstar to emerge in the past seven drafts. According to the NJ Ledger writer David D'Alessandro, drafting Euros is declining:

Consider: Europe hasn't produced a single NBA star since early in the decade, when Tony Parker, Pau Gasol and Mehmet Okur came out of the 2001 draft. It has produced a large number of good but flawed players -- Boris Diaw, Andris Biedrins, Nenad Krstic and Sasha Vujacic the best of them.

Indeed, Manu Ginobili, Dirk Nowitzki, et al... they are all from pre-2001. This seems supported by the fact that only one foreigner is ranked in the top-15 this year: Danilo Gallinari.

Even more surprising: there is an overall declining trend in Euros, period:

The bigger picture reveals that in just half a decade -- from 2000-01 to 2005-06 -- the number of Europeans in the NBA doubled from 26 to 52. But in the past two seasons, that number has dropped significantly, with 40 Euros on opening day rosters for 2007-08.

And many of them are actually returning to Europe long before retirement age, including Jorge Garbajosa, Sarunas Jasikevicius, Ersan Ilyasova, Zoran Planinic and Victor Khryapa in the past two years alone.

Indeed. Jorge Garbojosa accepted a buyout of his contract so he could go back to play in Spain. This despite being on a Euro-friendly Raptors team that just gave another Spaniard - Jose Calderon - the reins. Another Spaniard point guard (this time Juan Navarro) has left the Memphis Grizzlies to sign a $24 million deal with a Euro team. And there are rumors floating that a Greek team has made a tempting offer to Carlos Delfino (not a Euro, technically, but an Argentine. They have tripled from 2 to 6 in the timespan discussed; not sure if David D'Allesandro included them in as "Euros" or not), and even a rumor that Anthony Parker has attracted interest from overseas.

The Serious Tip has a post up about Brandon Jennings (having a tough time getting into a competitive college) possibly spending a season playing overseas in Euro before returning to America.

So two storylines to keep an eye on here: One, the emerging declining interest or reluctance to draft Euros high. When was the last season two American-born white players (in this case, Kevin "Bill Walton" Love and Joe "Tom Chambers" Alexander) went before the first Euro was picked? Could happen tonight.

Two, the Euro League are competitively stealing away talent from the NBA. They have some money, and the larger and more profitable those clubs get, the more they can really become a problem for the NBA. Right now losing some mid-level talent (all four players mentioned are starters or in the 8-man rotation for their respective teams), particularly talent that was originally from the Euro leagues, isn't that bad. But it does send a sign to other players that playing in Europe isn't that bad. After all, all four players chose to go back, even after getting into the NBA and making their mark. It might make a few players think about Europe. Especially if Brandon Jennings exploits Europe for one or two seasons.

Who is the big dog in Toronto?

Speaking of the Raptors (looking at losing three players to Europe!)... the big pre-draft day deal seems to be Jermaine O'Neal finally leaving Indianapolis (one year too late to be team with Kobe), heading to the Raptors in exchange for TJ Ford and spare parts.

This seems a great trade on the surface for the Raptors: they give up a surplus player, one who is only in the way of Jose Calderon's emergence (his numbers last year as a starting point guard are astonishing), and fill a huge need: another big man to help Chris Bosh out, especially since Bosh seems more suited to play PF, not C. O'Neal is injury-prone, but it's not like TJ Ford is much better. And the best part for the Raptors: O'Neal's contract might be bigger than Ford's, but is not longer. The Raptors immediately become a top-4 team in the East, no?

Well, only if one question is answered during the season, and quickly: Who is the top dog (what is the pecking order)? You might think this is a simple question to answer, but it's going to be hard. See, here you have three players, all coming from different places, with the same determination to prove themselves. Bosh has been the top dog in the pecking order for a few years now. O'Neal was the top dog in Indy for many years, and unlike Bosh, he's played a big role on teams that have made it deep into the playoffs. He may not defer to Bosh, and vice versa. Oh, and then you add in Jose Calderon, who may not shot much, but is a high % shooter when he does, and who will control the offense and the ball. Come clutch time, he might want to establish himself, too, as the go-to guy.

The worst case scenario for the Raptors: a situation where everyone gets good stats and numbers, but where the lack of a structure causes numerous breakdowns in the final minute, and a lack of "chemisty" not unlike what the Bucks have. Is it Mo Williams night, or Michael Redd's? Or is Bogut or Yi?

The best case scenario: Sam Mitchell quickly lays it out, puts some hierachy in place (they can always change, depending on how things go), and let's everyone know their role. O'Neal emerges as the top dog, with Bosh and Calderon and Bargnani all learning and accepting their roles. The Raptors become a top-4 team next season, outgunning the Magic, only behind the big three in the East: Celtics (due for a letdown), Cavs and Pistons.

We'll go more into depth next week, when we hopefully talk to a couple of Raptor bloggers.

Who is Gunnin For That #1 Spot?

I am seriously thinking of checking out this new documentary from that Beastie Boy (MCA/Adam Yauch) about the first annual Elite-24 high schooler game at Ruckers a few years back. Check out the lineup: four guys going in the top-15 tonight: Michael Beasley (seen clowning around in the trailer), Kevin Love (seen talking about sneaker companies again), Jerryd Bayless (more on him in a bit), and Donta Greene. Also, the aformentioned Brandon Jennings, and my favorite, Coney Island legend Lance Stevenson (and 2010 #1 pick), seen in the trailer schooling cats three years older than him. Expect a review next week.

What are the Knicks going to do/the Brook Lopez factor?

Finally, let's end with a Knick topic, since I am a Knick blogger at heart. The Knicks are picking #6, with rumors swirling that they have a deal with the Grizzlies to get the #5 pick (for Malik Rose and David Lee, supposedly). It seems unlikely to me that the Grizzlies like Lee that much, but if they do, let's go for it. I've left my thoughts on this over in the comments in Posting And Toasting's recent posts on this very topic. The bottom line is that I've always been an advocate of trading Lee while his value is at its highest, provide we get something good back for him. The #5 pick seems good to me, since coupled with the #6 pick it gives the Knicks a chance to really rebuild.

The key for the Knicks tonight, regardless of whether they get the #5 pick or not, is to see what happens in the top-four. Because the top four teams are very likely to pick from this five-man group: Rose, Beasley, Mayo, Bayless, and possibly Brook Lopez. If Lopez does go in the top-four, the Knicks then have a good chance at Bayless (or, a longer shot, Mayo), since the rumor is the Grizzlies will take Kevin Love at #5 (provided no trade with the Knicks occurs, and I'm betting it won't happen).

Knicks fans have to be hoping someone pulls the trigger on Lopez. Because, realistically, here are your top-choices if you are the Knicks: OJ Mayo, Jerryd Bayless, then either Danilo or Russell Westbrook. There are two other good options, but not at #6: Joe Alexander and DJ Augustin. I wouldn't be oppose to trading down for those guys, especially Augustin. He might be a good fit for the Knicks, even if him and Nate Robinson could combine at times to form the smallest backcourt in NBA history!

If I'm home tonight (I will try), I will try to do something along the lines of a live posting of the NBA draft over at Sports On My Mind.

Steve Nash, Baron Davis and Jason Kidd in "The Showdown In Chinatown"

2008-06-26T03:55:49Z

Alternative title: Baron Davis has surpassed Gilbert Arenas as the most likeable, light-hearted (goofy) NBA player.

You may have read about this charity, free to the public, soccer event Steve Nash held today at Stanton Field in Sara Roosevelt Park in Manhattan. Labeled "The Showdown in Chinatown" (though Stanton and Forsyth is borderline Chinatown, and more LES nowadays than Chinatown, but we'll save that discussion for Friday), Steve Nash brought together a nice crew of NBA and MLS All-stars to the game. I decided to head down there, and take some pics of the event. And, man, did I have a great location to see the players, if not the game itself.

The crowd was huge. Everywhere around the field there were people to be found:
Steve Nash's teammate, Leandro Barbosa, was first to arrive. The stars all came via car, and entered by the back entrance that I was lucky enough to have staked out. Here's Barbosa:

]]> I love that a fan stopped Barbosa and apparently asked him to autograph a picture of that fan and Spike Lee:

Jason Kidd apparently did not get as much attention from the crowd as whoever it was that was entering after him:
Funny thing about most of the point guards in this event: they kinda looked short in real life. Kidd is barely 6'2, despite being listed in most media guides as taller than that (6'4). Steve Nash was shorter still - he barely breaks 6'0. Barbosa was tall, though... he was at least 6'3.5, in my opinion.

Oh, and Jason Kidd has seen into my soul:
Okay, I admittedly don't know if this is Robbie Fowler or Steve McManaman, but both were there today:
I know Claudio Reyna. Homeboy is mad old... I remember Pele once said that it was Reyna who taught him the game...
Baron Davis is the coolest guy, period. The fans loved him. He seemed to like me (or at least my Argentina jersey). He even took a pic of me:

Next up, the man himself, rocking the $5,000 faux-hawk, Steve Nash:
Also there were Raja Bell, and last-minute surprise Thierry Henry. Well, he was only a surprise if you actually thought France was going to advance to the quarterfinal round of the Euro2008.

The crowd was pretty packed at points - here is another pic to emphasize the point:
Once the game started, the fan favorite was clearly the one dude playing soccer in a baseball cap:
I forget who actually scored the first goal, but I do know who had the assist. Really, to no one's surprise... Jason Kidd. He may be aging, but I'm better he still has one monster season left in him.

Baron Davis was clearly the most inexperienced player on the field, which combined with his silly fun antics made him a crowd favorite. When he miraculous scored the second goal of the game (I don't even know how it happened), the crowd had it's biggest applause, and promptly broke into a clap-clap-clap "Ba-ron Da-vis" chant. Though the rumor seems to be that he is on his way to Detroit, I think he would make a great Knick. The city would love him.

Here's more of the crazy crowd - those guys spent the whole game, almost 2 hours, in that position on the fence:
Claudio Reyna resembles Elliot Gould in that pic, no?

Here's more of those fans, plus Baron Davis in his cap and basketball kicks:

This guy was my favorite fan of the game though...
Why is he my favorite? Check out what he's standing on to get a better view:
The second half highlight was one of the MLS players faking an injury, and Baron Davis jumping on top of him while he was laying on the ground.

Also, there was Baron Davis (again, he's the entertainment) committing a foul in the goal area, drawing a yellow card and giving up the easy penalty kick for Henry. Not a good foul, Baron.

The game ended in spectacular style, as Steve Nash did his version of Maxi Rodriguez' famous goal against Mexico. Nash took a long outlet pass, bounced it off his chest, and whipped in the hard kick past the goaltender. That must have felt good for Nash.

Here's a very meta photo of Barbosa on the way out... or really, a photo of the man taking a photo of the man, while standing next to the man:
Everyone wanted a word with Baron Davis:
Thierry Henry, departing after losing his shirt:
One more Steve Nash pic:
Jason Kidd was always the easier person to photograph, because he is taller than Steve Nash.

It was a great event. Here's hoping more athletes will try to do fun events in NYC similar to this one today.

The Big Lead Is The New Big Boss?

2008-06-25T04:07:18Z

Note to Shanoff: The Big Lead is now the Boss.

... so feel free to leave the blogging world, if you really mean what you wrote.

Now to the more adult conversation: Let's start of with a link to Dave Lozo's excellent breakdown of Will Leitch's weird post the other day in which he took a few shots at Deadspin's primary rival, The Big Lead. Lozo's post goes methodically through Leitch's words, line by line, and credits Leitch wherever he made a valid point, while properly taking Will to task whenever he was BS-ing. Simply: Young William got schooled by Lozo. No more Big Willy!

One of the more interesting results of Will's column was that, despite very little response from TBL (other than to briefly drop a few lines here and there in the comments section of his own site, on this topic), several of Leitch's cronies have taken this opponent to jump into the fray and bash TBL even more on this topic. They must not have gotten the memo that Leitch's original post seemed slightly bitter and unnecessarily harsh.

It seems a good time to mention that TBL is getting bashed over two quotes he gave an LA Times article. While Leitch and his minions (more on them in a minute) are right in that not every blogger agrees with Buzz Bissinger in that blogs should exercise more, um, restraint, there are some prominent bloggers besides TBL who think Buzz might have had a point. Leitch doesn't agree, referencing Dan Steinberg's column (a good column, by a really good writer, but one that misses the point: Buzz says most, if not all, blogs are sh*t. Yeah, so most, if not all, journalism writing is sh*t, too. That doesn't necessarily counter Buzz's point; all it does is expend Buzz's contentions to another medium).

But perhaps Leitch and crew missed this article by Adam Reilly in The Phoenix on the topic, in which he got a quote from none other than the original king of sports blogs, and therefore another prominent blogger, Bill Simmons:

The bloggers, too, are capable of a modicum of self-reflection. For his part, Simmons argues that the lad-maggiest sports blogs, like Deadspin and the Big Lead, should ease up on traffic-generating but salacious posts about drunk athletes and the like. And in time, he predicts, they will. “The blogs will figure it out,” he says. “It’s still early. I have faith.”

Bill Simmons might have faith, but posts like this from Simmon's former "long-time" Page 2 colleague, Dan Shanoff (in the blogging biz, apparently being an employed writer for a few years = "long-time"), make me a bit doubtful. Overreacting to the quotes even more so than his hero, Leitch, Shanoff calls it "quite possibly... the era's lowest point..."

Shanoff goes on to write that he doesn't appreciate that Jason McIntyre of TBL "doesn't speak for [Shanoff]", and that he "doesn't speak for the rest of us". Later on, though, Shanoff hints at the clique-y nature of the sports blogging world:

I find it hard to find anyone who says they respect Jason McIntyre or The Big Lead. The rep: McIntyre as an empty apple-polisher who lacks a position of authority or respect among his peers.

I'll wrap this up quickly: Shanoff's column is full of venomous attacks. My fave: on TBL best-known feature, Shanoff describes it as "95% of the time, functionally retarded" (did Shanoff learn such stellar writing techniques while attending arguably the second best J-school in the country, Medill?). I'm not sure what TBL has done to warrant this type of attack from "his peers" (Shanoff, Leitch, Ufford), but I'm going to give ya'll my opinion. And yes, I am speaking for only myself, not the clique of bloggers that I roll with or whatever.

It seems TBL is wearing the crown. Simple as that. And some of ya'll might think this means we've answered the question of "Who will replace Will Leitch (as de facto King of the Blogs) now that he's leaving the sports blog biz?"

If so, then you missed the larger point. Leitch was already replaced, and he knew it. In between writing his book, promoting his book, and changing the vision of his site (oops, you should never change the vision of your site), Deadspin was passed by TBL. I won't spend time on how it surpassed Deadspin (I can answer those questions in the comments), but summing it up: Deadspin was losing its edge as the most popular sports blog, or whatever you want to call it, and Leitch knew that. He surrendered, and took a job in the old media world. In the meanwhile, he's trying to fire a last shot, as he's leaving the room, at the man/site that essentially forced him out.

Why go after TBL, when other bloggers, including Bill Simmons, agree with him? Perhaps Will Leitch is still thankful towards Jimmy Kimmel for laughing at his poor Woody Allen impersonation (oddly similar to the one Leitch put on during his HBO appearance, while Buzz Bissinger screamed on him), and therefore doesn't want to attack Kimmel's good friend, Bill Simmons?

Or perhaps the likelier truth is simply that there is a bit of jealousy among Leitch and his "peers" at The Big Lead's success, in areas that Deadspin itself failed (reaching out to real media types, maintaining credibility, reaching out and being able to post on various different topics and sites without snark, etc)? Whatever the true motivations for the recent attacks on The Big Lead, this much is clear: there seems to be a cabal of sports blogs out there that admittedly and openly disdain TBL.
And with all that said, we're going to add only one last though: D-Wil is right... I don't care who is in charge of these "sports bloggers", and whatever silly values they represent while trying not to say anything different, or have too strong of an opinion! It's time for representation for the Independent (Sports) Media... and I want guys like David Zirin, D.K. Wilson, Charles Modiano, and Mike Tillery representing. Newspaper writers looking for a quote and an opinion... that's where you should go to. Why keep asking guys who have no opinion on anything (except when they are leaving the business, then they are suddenly not so apolitical anymore!), when you can ask the aforementioned quartet? Just a thought....

Bissenleitch For The Final Time; or, So You're Saying I Was Right?

2008-06-23T17:23:20Z

Leitch on 4/30/08:
We cannot imagine any reasonable human being watching that display and saying, "doggone it, that raving man has a point!"

DJM on 5/1/08:
I come not to bury Bissinger, nor to praise him. I come to say, however, that he did have a point...

So here's my hope: the next time somebody asks Leitch to defend blogs, he say something like "I don't speak for all blogs. I speak for my blog, which is often juvenile and deals with certain aspects of public humiliation because I think they're funny, newsworthy, and our business." Or something. And then we can have the debate over whether pictures of quarterbacks at birthday parties or at clubs are funny, newsworthy, and any of our goddamn business.

Bissinger is a total idiot. He's also not totally wrong.

Leitch today:
The best sports blogs are based in truth and passion, and, yeah, sometimes that truth and passion come out in profane bursts, and sometimes they involve quarterbacks doing beer bongs. So freaking what? Did Buzz Bissinger really convince people there was something wrong with that? Or was everyone just faking in the first place?...

We're proud of the work we've done here. Some of it has been stupid and juvenile; some of it has at least attempted to be intelligent; some of it has been masturbatory. If you liked it, awesome, we were glad to have you. If you didn't, there are tons of other options.

Of course. WILL: OF COURSE. A thousand times of course.

However, this means that Will agrees that Bissinger did have a point [again, a very very poorly made point, but a point nonetheless]. And since Leitch is presumably a "reasonable human being" I think it's fair to ask: Will, what the hell was that argument you were making earlier?

SML has some thoughts about blog credibility that I'll let him fill in here. I'm glad to see that the honest response has finally come out, which is "We're having fun and fuck everyone who doesn't like it." As long as we're on honest ground now, we can talk about that argument like grown-ups. Pretending that it wasn't the case wasn't helping a goddamn thing, like most everyone was doing by shaking their heads about the crazy old man and his crazy ideas. He had. A fucking. Point.

"I don't give a shit!" is a fine response.

"He's a loon!" is not.

Glad to see that we've gotten to this point. But it really shouldn't have taken this long.

SML aside on credibility: Just a quick thought on Will Leitch's semi-attack (or at least a friendly lob at The Big Lead for their quote in the LA Times article on not running a post with the Kobe Bryant rumor): It seems to me that TBL was making a case that, now that he is a big blog with a big readership, he needs to maintain some (journalistic) credibility. I don't see why that offends or bothers Leitch so much.

I think TBL has always tried to be a more journalistic site than Deadspin (though Deadspin is now playing catchup in that game), making it's name on interviews with sports writers (the Whitlock interview remains the big break-through). It certainly takes popular blog elements (link dumps, pics of girls in bikinis, drunk athlete posts) but it combines it with these journalistic tendencies. So Jason McIntyre does have a reason to attempt to maintain some credibility.

To be fair, I think Will Leitch's point was directed more at Jason stating that "two years ago I would have run with [the Kobe affair story]". Leitch's specific comments on this seem to be aimed at the change in McIntyre's mind over the hypothetical two year period:

But seriously: If you have a vision for a site, don't you have to just follow through with it? Why would you change your vision for a site just because more people are reading it?

Of course "visions" can change in two years. The market changes. You adapt. Specifically, there is more of a backlash against blogs (and "real" media, too) nowadays that post rumors that turn out to be false than maybe there was a few years back. Will Leitch himself caught a lot of flack for posting the rumor that Albert Pujols was directly linked to HGH (via Jason Grimley's trainer). So I guess the question to Will Leitch is this: Would you still post that rumor if it came up today? Or have you maybe learned a bit about the blogging world? Maybe you've changed that aspect of "your vision"?

Seriously, I don't get how not posting a rumor now like you might have two years ago indicates a change in your overall blogging philosophy... The Big Lead doesn't seem too much different now than it was two years ago. But it has adapted over the years, has as Deadspin.

Euro 2008 Update - The Semi Finals

2008-06-23T14:12:28Z

Okay, we’ll start the day off with a quick update on the Euro2008 soccer tournament, as it reaches its final four. Later on I’ll have a look at draft combine results of some of the NBA draft’s biggest names.

The quarterfinals went according to script; none of the previously undefeated group winners won their games. Two of them lost outright; two ended in draws, and only one advanced to the semi-finals via penalty kick shootout. If you bet on any of the four first round group winners (Portugal, Croatia, The Netherlands, Spain), previously 12-0 in the tournament to win, you lost all four times. The gambling syndicates must have made a killing.

Let’s quickly review the exciting action of the past week before previewing the final three games:

Portugal 2 - Germany 3. The taller and larger Germany team used it’s size advantage over Portugal to win this mild upset. Portugal were emerging as the favorites to win the title (behind Player of the Year favorite Christiano Ronaldo), but Germany struck first behind a beautiful goal by Schweinsteiger. Actually, the lead pass was beautiful - check the 20 second mark of this video to see the goal.

In the second half, after Portugal cut the lead to 2-1, Germany put the game away with a nice header goal during a free kick from their captain Michael Ballack, who got away with a bit of a push in the back on the Porto defender. The Portugese needed a bit of help from the referees if they were going to beat the larger, taller, more physical German squad, or a big game from Ronaldo. They did not get either.

Croatia 1 - Turkey 1. After already giving the Euro2008 tournament the most memorable game of the first round, Turkey on Friday gave us another one for the ages. Regardless of who actually wins, this tournament will be remember most for Turkey’s incredible comebacks.

After playing to 0-0 draw for over 119 minutes (soccer rules: 90 minutes of play; if tied, one 15 minute OT, followed by a second 15 minute OT), the ancient Turkish goalkeeper Ruster Recber (a sub, since the GK for the Turks in the first round, Volkan Demirel, was suspended from two games due to a late red card at the end of the last quarterfinal game) made a mistake, and that should have been the end of Turkey’s run. But Recber made up for it with a beautiful free kick in stoppage time (the 122th minute), which set up an amazing goal from Semih Senturk, tying the game. No goals in 119 minutes, followed by two goals in two and half minutes?

The shootout went Turkey’s way, as Croatia missed penalty shot after shot.

The Croatian team dominated the action through most of the game, with a very strong passing attack, but they lacked the finisher, the striker, to actually put the ball into the goal. If ever Brazilian-born Croatian striker Eduardo Da Silva was needed, it was this game. Unfortunately he was out recovering from a brutal broken leg suffered during a match for the Arsenal.

The Turkish team advances yet again, despite more than a few injuries of their own, and despite Volkan’s suspension. Recber gets one more game in goal, in the semis against the German team. I’ll be rooting for the Turkish team to pull off one more miracle against the big bullies.

Holland 1 - Russia 3: I would cite this game, Tim Donaghy-style, as the prime example of how international soccer must fixed, but the refereeing in the game seemed fine. Besides, the Dutch always choke in the quarterfinals, don’t they (actually not true: they have lost in the semi-finals the past two Euros, and three of the previous four overall)?

Russia had no business winning this game, against a Netherlands team that destroyed the World Cup winner and runnerup teams, Italy and France, in the first round.

Spain 0 - Italy 0: The Italians did what they do best - played tough defense, and held the Spaniards to no goals. The Spaniard team, arguably the deepest in the tournament - their bench looks like an All-Star team - won on penalty kicks, though. In doing so, they upped their undefeated streak in international competitions to 20 games in a row, with the weak Russia team the only thing in the way of an appearance in the Euro2008 Finals.

I’m gonna go ahead and pencil Spain into the Finals.

Germany-Turkey (a must-see) is Wednesday the 25th, at 2:45 EST. Spain-Russia is the next day, also at 2:45 EST. The final game is scheduled for Sunday the 29th at 2:45 EST.

Know The Prospect: Anthony Randolph

2008-06-19T21:34:55Z

Anthony Randolph:

Anthony Randolph is listed as a 20-year old, 6’11, 220 lb SF/PF from LSU.

Should the Knicks add a third Randolph to their front court, alongside Zach Randolph and Randolph Morris?

Right off the bat: he's a stringbean. He averaged 15.6 ppg, 8.5 rpg, and 1.2 apg last year at LSU. He also had an impressive 1.1 spg and 2.3 bpg. Good numbers for a really young guy, right?

Now let’s look at the bad: 46.4 FG%. Not a good enough jumper to be a SF, not reliable enough to be a PF. 69.3 FT%. 10.5 3PT%. Ouch.

Also: 3.0 turnovers a game. That number fits in all too well with Zach Randolph and Eddy Curry in the front court. Not that the Knicks even need a PF, with Zach Randolph and David Lee already vying for time there.

Anthony is left-handed, which will no doubt delight Stephon Marbury. Damn, I miss Stephon's interviews. Randolph is long, quick, lanky, thin. He’s often compared to Brandon Wright, Tayshaun Prince, and Chris Bosh. Those names come up repeatedly in his various draft profiles. But are they valid comparisons?

He’s not a strong, take-it-to-the-hoop PF. He has finesse moves. In fact, let’s quote Draft Express for this one:

“…settling for weak, off-balance, turn-around jumpers from midrange, fading away from contact in the post…”

Snap Judgment: Not good. But let’s delve deeper. Here is what is written in his NBA Draft profile:

" Runs the floor like a deer and has amazing fluidity ... "

What the f*ck do I want a Bambi on the Knicks? I suppose that's a better compliment than "runs the floor like a gazelle".

Randolph scored a 10 in size. So does Eddy Curry.

He also get a 10 for "potential". Again, so does Curry.

When it comes to, you know, actual basketball skills, like "defense", "jump shot", and "passing", he gets an overly-generous 7 in those categories (try finding a draft pick with less than a 7 in any category).

He sorta sounds like a short Marcus Camby, or maybe the next Andrei Kirilenko? Keep in mind that Camby at least dominated college, enough to be the #1 overall pick, before moving into the NBA. Then keep in mind that it took him a lot of years, and a few injuries, before he become a strong center in the NBA and an All-Star.

"A high risk, high reward type pick at this stage of his career."

How many times has that turned out good for anyone? Free Darko calls this "The Myth of the Next (Andrew Bynum/Jermaine O'Neal, etc)...". It’s rarely works out for a team. Wait, there’s more:

"Must gain confidence and not get discouraged when things aren't going well "

"He's a very shy, quiet kid, and the year in Baton Rouge has been great for him but he could really use a second year to continue his maturity and off court development before taking on the bright lights and distractions that exist at the next level. "

"Must get a lot stronger physically, needs about 25-30 pounds minimum ... Also must get a lot tougher mentally ... "

Okay, I’m now totally sold on the idea that Randolph is a skinny version of Eddy Curry. Maybe the Knicks can lock them in a room together with a plastic surgeon, and have the surgeon graft 25-40 lbs of fat/muscle off Curry and onto Randolph?

It’s clear that Randolph’s long neck is why he is sometimes compared to Chris Bosh.

Combine Results: Decent strength for a skinny guy, with 7 bench presses of 185 (not bad, though, for comparison, Joe Alexander benched it 22 times, for the second highest score, and little DJ Augustin benched it twice for the lowest score). Randolph put up decent, run of the mill times in the ¾ Court Sprint (3.26 seconds), Lane Agility (11.86) and vertical jump (35 inches).

More important in his case, though, is the measurement results, since that is what his potential is based on, right? Well, turns out his height and weight are actually a bit misrepresented. He’s 6'9 without shoes, 6'10.25 with shoes. Close enough. He also weighs a whopping 197 lbs. For personal reference, I weigh 205, am 6’2, and am considered “slim”. A guy 8 inches taller than me, weighing 10 pounds less? “Anorexic” is the first adjective that comes to mind.

He does have a 7'3 wingspan, hence, the Tayshaun Prince comparisons. He has a 9'1 standing reach, and 4.7% body fat. But before we assume that he’s the next Tayshaun Prince, let’s give Tay some credit: he’s not just good defensively simply because he’s tall and lanky. He worked hard at the craft of playing defense, and he’s got quick feet. He’s Draft Express on Randolph’s defense:

“Where Randolph seems to need the most work, especially when considering how he’ll have to be used at the next level, in his defense. He gets pushed around in the post mercilessly; being unable to hold his spot on the block, and thus letting most big men just have their way with him as they please.”

Conclusion: Anthony Randolph is exactly the kind of player I hate at #6: a guy with upside based on nothing more than his height and size. The Knicks certainly need defense, but Randolph isn’t strong enough to be a PF, and his jumper is not reliable enough from the outside to be a SF. The best case scenario for Randolph is that someone drafts him to play SF, a team that has enough offense already to not need Randolph to contribute too much, and he becomes a defensive stopper. Sort of like what happened to Prince. Of course, Prince dropped to the Pistons; Randolph is surely a lottery pick. The best case scenario for him would be to be picked by the Nets (teamed with Sean Williams in the front court) or the Kings, teams with strong scorers on the wing already. He would also be a great defensive anchor on the Blazers, if he fell that far.

Worst case scenario:

For other previews of potential draft picks, see:

Russell Westrook; Joe Alexander; Jerryd Bayless; Eric Gordon; Danilo Gallinari; OJ Mayo.

Euro 2008 Update

2008-06-18T23:10:57Z

Another exciting day in the Euro2008 Tourney. Just to get you caught up: this is the biggest soccer tournament in the world outside of the World Cup. The Euro happens every four years, right at the halfway point between World Cups, and features 16 of Europe's best teams, battling for the right to be called the third best soccer team in the world.

The first round has been going on for the past two weeks; it wrapped up today with the last two games of Group D (Spain-Greece, Sweden-Russia) going on at the same time - 2:45 PM (EST), on ESPN. Spain beat Greece to go undefeated in the first round (3-0), while Russia beat Sweden to advance to the second round.

Let's get ya'll caught up with the key plot lines, as the quarterfinals will kick off on Thursday (again, at 2:45 PM EST):

Quarterfinal Game 1 (Thursday, 2:45):
Portugal vs. Germany
As expected Portugal made it to the QF behind the stellar play of the best Euro player in the world right now, Cristiano Ronaldo (named after Ronald Reagan). The quiet star of the team has been striker Deco, who has been doing the work that keeps the opposing defense honest against Ronaldo.

Unfortunately, the reward for going undefeated in the first round is the toughest second-round matchup: a game against the Germany team. Germany and Italy are the only two of the four traditional European powerhouses to advance to the second round; France got bumped off in the first round, and England didn't even qualify. What makes those four teams the "powerhouses"? They are the four European countries to actually win a World Cup (the other three countries are all South American - Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay).

Portugal is at least a bit rested (having taken it easy in the final game of the first round), whereas the German team had to fight it's way into the quarterfinals, after losing to Croatia in the second game. These teams battled for third place in the World Cup, with Portugal losing 3-1. Portugal has the most explosive player, and offense, of any of the teams left. The key for Germany is to get an early score, and play the tough defense they are known for. Better yet, expect Germany to try to play for penalty kicks. They always do that when they are up against a tough offense!

Prediction: Either Portugal wins 3-1, or it ends in a 1-1 tie, with Germany winning the PK shootout. My instincts say "bet on Ronaldo & Deco"

Quarterfinal Game 2 (Friday, 2:45):
Croatia vs. Turkey

Who is the bigger surprise? Well, while Croatia was ranked 15th overall in the world, and seemed a good bet to advance to the second round, nobody expected them to destroy their grouping the way they did. 3-0, including a solid 2-1 victory over the Germans? Their defense was tight. That one goal to the Germans was the only goal they allowed in their three games.

As for the Turkish team... down 2-0 to the Czech Republic at the 75 minute mark. They needed at least a tie to have a chance to advance to the quarterfinals. That's like being down 8-0 in the 7th inning of a baseball game. Then one goal, plus another one at the 88 minute mark to tie. The stadium is melting down with the joy of the Turkish fans, and the anguish of the Czech fans. A tie would mean penalty kicks would decide who advances to the quarterfinals.

But one more goal two minutes later for Turkey caps one of the most unbelievable comebacks in Euro tournament history.

There was bad news for the European team from the Asian continent: goalkeeper Volkan Demirel will miss the game against Croatia due to a suspension for a red card foul at the end of the Croatia game. The reserve keeper is no novice - he was the Turkish keeper in the 2002 World Cup. That was six years ago. Expect the rusty reserve to give up more goals than the stingy Croatian defense.

Prediction: Croatia 2, Turkey 1.

Quarterfinal Game 3 (Saturday, 2:45):
Netherlands vs. Russia
I hate the Dutch soccer team. But the numbers speak for themselves: 3-0, 9 goals scored, 1 goal allowed, in the toughest grouping of the first round. The Netherland, ranked #10 in the world at the start of the tournament, took on the #3 team (defending World Cup champions) Italy, the #7 team (World Cup runner up France), and the #12 team (Romania, who fought those other two teams to draws) on, and demolished all three squads.

And for their troubles, they get a pretty clear path to the Finals. To make it to the semi-finals, they have to beat a 24th-ranked Russian team that beat Sweden (the worst team in the tournament) and Greece (0-3 in the first round) to make it this far. Not exactly staring down the Juggernaut there.

Prediction: After surely beating the Ruskies easily (unless the Dutch players go on the polonium-210 diet), the Netherlands will take on the winner of the Spain-Italy game. Having already spanked Italy once in the tournament, you have to believe the high-scoring Netherlands team will be a pretty confident bunch. Their next challenge may not come until the Finals. Speaking of the Spain-Italy game...

Quarterfinal Game 4 (Sunday, 2:45):
Spain vs. Italy
Spain also went 3-0 in the first round, meaning the four group winners (Portugal, Croatia, Netherlands, Spain) absolutely dominated the first round. If Storyline # 1 of Euro2008 so far has been the failure of the traditional four teams, then Storyline # 2 has been the dominance of the top four teams in this tourney. Don't expect any of them to lose in the second round, as the second-place finishers (Germany, Turkey, Russia, Italy) aren't quite playing their best yet. Time is running out for them.

How is Spain playing? Sh*t, that's 19 unbeaten matches in a row now for Spain. They are en fuego. Their hot streak going into the tourney pushed their ranking up to #4 overall in the world.

Note: the top three teams are the South American powerhouses Argentina and Brazil, followed by Italy. So yes, the Italian team has some life of it's own. After getting spanked in the opening game by the Dutch team, then being able to barely draw the Romania team, they are starting to gel again. The 2-0 victory over the French, coupled with the Romania loss, gave the Italians a last second entry into these quarterfinals. Let's see if they will make anything of it.

Prediction: Spain is pretty tough to stop right now. The flopping blue team will need some referee help to advance past Espana. I wouldn't bet on it. Spain wins 2-0.

2008 Olympic Preview: Armenia

2008-06-18T14:31:03Z

                                                                          Armenia:

Stereotype: Weren’t they all… like… genocided, or whatever?

Truth: No. NO! THERE WAS NO GENOCIDE! HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY THINK THAT? NO GENOCIDE! THERE WASN’T ANY NO NONE NO NEVER GENOCIDE. DON’T YOU EVER EVER SAY THAT AGAIN.

Previous Olympic History:
Armenia first participated as an independent country in the 1994 Olympic Games. They have since participated in the 1996, 2000, 2004 Summer Games, apparently after learning in 1994 that winter sports were not their particular forte.

In 1996 Armenia won its first two medals, both in wrestling. Armen Nazarian won a gold medal, and Armen Mkerchian won a silver. In 2000 Arsen Melikyan (not actually Armenian, but in fact from Arsenia) won a bronze in weightlifting. Later, Armen Arsenian and Arsen Armenian wrestled so hard they fused into one man: Arsenmen Armensenian. And he, of course, is now in fucking prison.

After winning the gold medal in 1996 for Armenia, Armen Nazarian switched his citizenship to Bulgaria, and wrestled for them in the 2000 and 2004 games, winning another gold, plus a bronze. He’s also a traitor, so, you know, hope you sleep well, Armen. With one eye open.

In the 2004 games Armenia sent 6 competitors. Only one came home alive. Wait, no, that’s not true. A couple did okay: Armen Martirosyan lost in round 1 of the Men's triple jump; Armen Nazaryan was defeated in the Men's Judo (60 kg) first round. It's worth noting that he is not related to Armen Nazarian (different last names, yo!), and that he has won four medals in the European championships in Judo - one every year from 2003 to 2006. He is the best bet for an Armenian winning a medal in the 2008 Olympic games.

Also note that Ara Abrahamian won a silver medal in 2004, but for Sweden (his country of residence). He would have competed for Armenia, but only people named “Armen” are permitted. Luckily, 94% of the population is named Armen.

2008 Olympic Prospects:
Pretty limited. The country is smaller than Maryland, you know. So let’s focus on Olympic gymnast Jordan Jovtchev, who is competing for Bulgaria (Bulgaria, Armenia - same ish). He’s a 35 year old ring and floor specialist (ooh, boy!) who has had a brilliant career so far. He won a silver and a bronze in 2004, and two bronzes in 2000. He has won four golds, four silvers, and four bronzes (the man is symmetric) in world championships, going as far back as 1995, up to as recent as 2007. If he wins one more bronze, he can trade all those in for a gold! And then he can waggle them in Armenia’s face and be like “Yeah, boyee! Bulgaria represent! WHAT!?” and then he’ll do a little dance.

He’s also that tough little guy from the Ninja Warrior specials. On that crazy Japanese game show that makes American Gladiators look like little kids’ stuff [DJM’s note: isn’t it kids’ stuff?], Jordan has made it to the final (fourth) stage one time, in the 8th competition, but rain hampered his performance (pussy). He therefore earned the moniker “the world’s toughest gymnast”. But he’s not Armenian. So, uh, it’s sort of off-topic. Shut up. You try finding stuff to write about a country the size of midtown.
                                                             Superman dat flo'!

Armenian History:
In 301, Armenia became the first nation to adopt Christianity as its official state religion. The Church rejected all other churches that came later, and Armenia Orthodox is independent of both Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. The Persians took over not too long later. They tried to impose the Zoroastrian religion on Armenia (holla, Freddie Mercury), but the Armenians resisted. So thus came the Battle of Avarayr (451), a sequel to the Battle of Thermopylae (as depicted in "300"), in which 66,000 Armenian troops, lead by Saint Vartan, fought, and lost, to a 200,000 strong Persian Army lead by those Immortals and War Elephants (motto: "crushing Spartans and Vartans for over a hundred years").

The Byzantines beat the Persians in 591, and took over Armenia. The usual players in history have ruled over Armenia - Persians, Greeks, Byzantines, Arabs, Mongols, Turks, and your mom.

Oh. Snap.

The Ottoman Empire took over in the 1400's. From 1915 -1923, when the Ottoman Empire was falling apart, the ethnic cleansing of Armenians (over 1.5 million died) “supposedly” took place. To avoid controversy, we’ll use the passage from Wikipedia: "The Ottoman Turks accused the (Christian) Armenians as liable to ally with Imperial Russia, and used it as a pretext to deal with the entire Armenian population as an enemy within their empire". The Turkish side of the story is that the death were caused by a civil war and famine. The famine part might have been related to the mass deportations of Armenians that took place - they were sent off into the desert to die. Okay, very touchy subject handled delicately and objectively.

Now the true story: GENOCIDE GENOCIDE GENOCIDE! What are you gonna do about it, Turkey? Cry?

The Democratic Republic of Armenia (DRA) was established in 1918. Two years later they declared war on Turkey, which only had a population that was about 20 times larger. Four months later, Armenia had lost the war badly, and, per the treaty, had to disarm its military, and give up over 50% of its land. Rough stuff.

While the negotiations were taking place, the nearby Soviet Russian empire invaded (rolled three sixes to Armenia’s two fours. Ouch), via Azerbaijan, and took over Armenia. They kicked the Turks out, but then decided to make a deal with them. Russia would get Adjara (see our Georgia preview for more info on that mess), and the Turks would get the Kars territory. Though the Kars territory isn't that big in size, it contains some pretty important Armenian sites, including Mt. Ararat (the landing place of Noah's Ark), Mt. Rararat (the landing place of the Lusitania) and Mt. Ratatat (groovy synth music). And Armenia was now under the USSR's rule. Armenians are no doubt still a bit pissed about that genocide [IT WASN’T GENOCIDE! I’LL KILL YOU!] thing, as well as that “taking our holy mountain” thing, too. So yes, they don’t like Turkey very much. They only eat ham. Ba-dum-ching.

Armenia became independent of the USSR in 1991. There was some beef [hey-oh! OK, we’ll stop] prior to that, in 1988, when Armenia took a small chunk (Nagorno-Karabakh) with a large Armenian population (130,000 Armenians) out of neighboring satellite country Azerbaijan. Follow the Armenian victory against Azerbaijan's army, the countries of Azerbaijan and Turkey both imposed a blockade against Armenia. That remains to this day. As for Nagorno-Karabakh, it is considered a de facto independent republic that is part of Azerbaijan, but controlled independently, receiving protection from the Armenian army. Also, Armenia said “eff it”, and took over some extra Azeri land, too. For a small country, Armenia loves to go at it with the big guys in the neighborhood.

And, if you are keeping score at home - we have now covered five (5!) of the six "unrecognized republics" in the world. To recap those 5: Abkhazia (see our Georgia preview), Kosovo (as predicted in our Albania preview), South Ossetia (what up, Georgia?), Transnistria (Moldova), and now Nagorno-Karabakh. We'll save the 6th one for next week, as it gets its own Olympic Preview.

Pop Culture:
Most Armenians live in other countries, due to the diaspora that occurred during the genocide [IT WAS A FAMINE! A FAAAAMIIIINE!]. Armenia's population itself is only 3.2M, but Russia has 1.1M people of Armenian descent; the Ukraine has 100K; the US has 385K; France has 500K but they’re not allowed to say so; Iran has 40K but Ahmedinajad denies that they exist; Georgia has 250K; Syria, Jordan and Lebanon have about 400K combined. Even Argentina has 130K. Germany, Canada, Uzbekistan, Brazil, Greece, Turkmenistan, Hungary, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Iraq... you name it, and Armenians are there. There are over 5 million Armenians in the world outside of Armenia. Their last names always end in –ian, except for the occasional -yan.

Famous Armenians:
Kim Kardashian (daughter of OJ lawyer Robert Kardashian):
                                Our chances of getting linked to by The Big Lead just went up 400%.

Atom Egoyan - the Canadian-Armenian director of The Sweet Hereafter and Afarat.

Michael Omartian - produced all those classic Donna Summer albums from the 70’s. My favorite Donna Summer song? This Time Its For Real just edges out that weird one about the cake melting in the San Francisco park.

Armen Keteyian - Sports Reporter, generic Armenia name.
Tim Kurkjian - ESPN analyst.

Cher (real name Cherilyn Sarkisian). The Armenian Donna Summer, but with an Oscar. Um, I could have posted a clip from If I Could Turn Back Time, but rather than to look at Cher's thong again, here's (nerd alert) the ending of the X-Files episode "Post-Modern Prometheus", one of the best episodes in X-Files history:

Athletes:
Andre Agassi, sort of. Agassi’s father was Iranian of Armenian descent, and represented Iran at the Olympics as a boxer in the 50's.   He lost the “-ian” ending in Iran.

Argentine Tennis player David Nalbandian.

Garo Yepremian, former NFL kicker credited with “the worst pass attempt in NFL history” except for every one thrown by Ryan Leaf:

Garry Kasparov, chess champion (lost the -ian ending in Russia in a bet with Bobby Fischerian)

Jerry "the shark" Tarkanian (former coach of those great UNLV that maked the Suns look like the Spurs) and Steve Bedrosian, former pitcher.

Others:
Ross Bagdasarian, creator of Alvin & The Chipmunks

System of a Down.

Leon Redbone – not the singer of Come and Get Your Loving (that’s just “Redbone”). His real name might be Dickran Gobalian. No one knows for sure. Nothing is known about Leon, despite many appearances, dating back to the 70's. Most people thought he was Andy Kaufman, but that rumor died down when Kaufman died, yet Redbone lived on. Others think he's really the comedian who places Father Guido Sarducci.

Joe Strummer, drummer for The Clash. Favorite Clash song: have to say it’s a tough call… but here's a video for Straight To Hell:

Conclusion: SAY GENOCIDE JUST ONE MORE TIME AND WATCH WHAT HAPPENS! WATCH!

Special Thanks to Canadian DJM for inserting humor and insight into this post. Always appreciated!

Danilo Likes NY...

2008-06-17T13:40:07Z

Via Slam Online, quoting Danilo Gallinari in The Star-Ledger:

“I like New Jersey and New York. I like those two places,” the Italian forward said matter-of-factly after his one-hour, one-man workout with the Nets yesterday in East Rutherford. “Now I will work out for New Jersey and New York (today), then I don’t know (about) other teams.”

The reason being? He has all the leverage a teenager needs, in the form of a very lucrative multiyear offer from his team in Milan, so he doesn’t have to play in the NBA at all.

And so we have a nice synergy between the blogger at Slam Online, backing the writer at Star-Ledger, in assuming this is some sort of slight at the rest of the US.
Certainly that is possible. Hey, maybe Danilo Gallinari, like Yi Jianlian and his handlers last year, wants to push to be in a city where he will be more comfortable. Certainly the Italian food in NJ, and NYC, is far better than the Italian food in the rest of the US (exception: Providence, supposedly. Oh, and New Haven has really good pizza). But is that really what Danilo Gallinari was saying here?

Read that quote again:

“Now I will work out for New Jersey and New York (today), then I don’t know (about) other teams.”
Now, keeping in mind that English is not Danilo's first language, doesn't it seem possible... more likely, even... that what Danilo meant is that he doesn't know when he will be working out for other teams? As in, "Hey, I don't know my schedule". It seems that way to me. Especially since, well, I'll bet big money that Danilo will work out for other teams in the upcoming weeks.

I think what here we have a local beat writer for the Nets trying to make it seem like the Nets, with pick #21, are somehow in play for a top-7 talent. And the way the media works nowadays, one big blogger (soon to be followed by other bloggers wanting an easy post) follows the lead blindly, without giving much thought to the context of the quote, or motivation of the original writer.

Next thing you know, there will be a discussion on ESPN about Danilo as the next Yi Jianlian (or Steve Francis, or Kobe Bryant), a draft pick with the balls or hubris or ego to demand a trade if they don't like where they were picked. And yes, there will be a discussion of the Milan contract offer as leverage, and whether the NBA is going to have to deal with this competition from Europe in the future. And the reality is this: Danilo played for Milan for the past three seasons. If he wanted to stay in Europe, he didn't need to declare for the draft, period.

This is the second straight season the likely top foreign draft pick (a tall SF, ironically) has been rumored to be a prima donna, demanding the location of his choice. Yet as we saw last year, Yi Jianlian "settled" for Milwaukee with minor arm-twisting. Perhaps the beat writers should focus more on actually trying to give us insight into Gallinari's game... will he be able to adjust to the NBA or not?...

Euro2008 Preview; Argentina Soccer Updates

2008-06-05T03:14:35Z

Let's talk futbol (soccer):

The number one ranked team in the world, ARGENTINA, is here on Sunday to play the US national team in a friendly at Giants Stadium. I will be there, thanks to my wonderful GF.

The US team played Spain in Madrid last night, and lost 1-0 in a defensive battle. The Argentina team took on Mexico in San Diego in a game that started at 11:00 PM EST. Argentina is looking to continue expend on it's number one ranking (it helps come time for the World Cup groupings) over Brazil (they play in Boston on Saturday night) with victories over Mexico and the U.S.

The last time Argentina played the U.S., they crushed them 4-1 in the Copa America tournament (2007). The American team was a bit short-handed then. This time the America team is suppose to be fully loaded, while Argentina will be resting one of the best players in the world: Carlos Tevez of Manchester United, who needs some rest after a long Premiership season that didn't end until penalty kicks earned Man U the Champions League final victory against Chelsea less two weeks ago. But Argentina still has Lionel Messi, Maxi Rodriguez, Hernan Crespo, Javier Saviola and even aging captain Juan Riquelme. It's for that reason that you probably see the odds of a US victory, even in a meaningless Friendly, are so long: 4-1.

One last personal note that nobody who reads this site will care about but me: Boca Juniors lost in the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores against Fluminense ("The Flu" are a Brazilian club) 3-1, eliminating them from a chance to repeat as the champs of South America. Despite having taken 13 shots on goals (that's a lot for a soccer game), Boca could only convert one. Since these teams tied in the earlier semi-final matchup between the clubs (the Copa Libertadores works in that semi-finals are a home-and-road matchup), Boca faced the tough task of going into the Maracana having to beat a team that was undefeated in the previous five tourney games at home, outscoring opponents 13-1. That's a home stadium advantage! The Flu goes against Ecuador's LDU club in the Finals.

The Euro 2008 Tourney starts this Saturday.
Saturday's action:

Noon game: Switzerland vs. The Czech Republic. The most even game of the first round. The Czech team is much better (they are the fourth highest ranked team in the Euro 2008), but since this game is being played in Geneva, in front of a home country Swiss crowd... that makes the #44 ranked Swiss team dangerous - anything can happen. Crucial game for both teams, especially the Czech team. They can't afford to lose this game, in a tight grouping that features the tourney-favorite Portugal, and a strong Turkey team. A loss here could open the door for Turkey to advance to the second round instead of the Czech team. Tough game to open the tourney for the Czechs - having to go against wild home country crowd in a "better win or else" game.

2:45 game: Portugal at Turkey. Turkey would love to pull a tie off with the favorites of the tourney. We're putting our money on Portugal, and Cristiano Ronaldo (the best player in the Premiership this past season) and our old favorites Deco (supremely underrated) and Nani (always on the opposite from Ronaldo, providing a second option to keep the defense honest). It's a good bet, since the Portugal team is only ranked #11 overall, and paying out good money if you take them to win the tourney. This is a team that's done exceedingly well in recent history: Portugal finished second in Euro 2004, and made it to the semi-finals of the World Cup (4th place finish). Bet on them to advance to the quarter-finals, and beyond.

Sunday's action:
12:00 Austria vs. Croatia. The Croatia team is in good position to go deep in the tournament. They will struggle against the mighty (but aging) Germany team, but Austria and Poland are very beatable. Austria is en frio, with only one win in its last 14 friendlies. They are the KC Royals of Europe. On the plus side: they have home field advantage (they are co-hosts along with the Swiss). The hopes of the former Yugoslavia are riding on Croatia. Keep a close eye on Luka Modric of Croatia, the fundamentally-strong passer who recently was transferred to Tottenham for over $35 million dollars.

2:45: Germany will destroy Poland (7-1 underdogs to win) like it's 1941 again. That joke never gets old for me.

Monday:
Cutting work at 12:00 to go check out the Romania-France game, the start of a day of great matches in the toughest grouping of the tournament. Mainly because France looks weak. What's with Romania getting almost respectable 4.75-1 odds here against the #7 team in the world? When did Romania, who failed to make the World Cup two years ago, climb up to #12 overall in FIFA's rankings? It doesn't help that France is possibly without Patrick Vieira, that Thierry Henry doesn't show up enough in big games, that Zidane is retired, and that Franck Ribery is probably should join Zidane in retirement soon.

2:45: The best game of the week: The Netherlands (Argentina's World Cup tormentor) versus defending WC champs Italy. Azzurri is the highest ranked team (according to FIFA) in tourney, being #3 behind the South American powerhouses (Argentina and Brazil). The Netherlands are in their usually range, at #10 overall. They always seem to be in that second tier, in the #7-10 range, just behind the perpetually overrated England team. Not surprisingly, guess who is #9 overall? Sadly, the loser here may not even make it out of the first round, as this group is that stacked with talent.

Tuesday:
Spain vs. Russia
Greece vs. Sweden.

This grouping is a joke. Spain is the favorites here - they are #4 overall, and the second-best team of the tourney. They are big favorites over a weak Russia team,one which failed to make the WC in 2008. Greece may not have made the Cup, either, but they are the defending champs and ranked #8 overall, just ahead of England.

Still, Spain has historically underachieved in big tournaments, and Greece may have won the last Euro, but their World Cup performance is atrocious. Point being, neither team, despite their high rankings, is really clutch. And if another strong team was in this group - say Croatia - I would feel more confident in them than either Greece or Spain. Spain is one of those teams that does well in pre-tourney games because they are very patient, and don't make many mistakes. That's an excellent strategy against weak opponents. Against good teams with talented playmakers, though, you have to eventually step up and make a move. The Spaniards haven't had a big name world-wide talent in a long time.

We'll be rooting for the Greek team, given our affinity for Greek people (The Greek Professor, the various Greek Ex-GFs, Tas from The Basketball Jones).

Thankfully for both teams, they will face little competition from the "slightly better than Denmark" vodka-swigging duo of Sweden and Russia ("we can crush Lithuania!").

Upset pick of the first round: Romania over France.
Most likely to tie: Netherlands-Italy; Czech Republic-Switzerland.
Straight up winners: Portugal, Germany, Croatia, Spain, Greece.

How To Get From The Wu-Tang Clan to Amy Winehouse? Use The Funk.

2008-05-29T15:02:37Z

Raw I'ma give it to ya, with some trivia: About four years back, I download a track from somewhere (can't remember where I found it) - it was El Michels Affair, "Glaciers of Ice". I thought I had found the sample Raekwon used on what I would call the one of the best songs off the Cuban Linx album. It took me a couple of years before I came to the realization who El Michels Affair is.

Turns out that El Michels Affair is a backing band that performs for the Wu-Tang (or, really, for Ghost and Raekwon). Leon Michels is the head of the group, and the co-founder of a record label called Truth & Soul, which specializes in nu-funk/soul music. El Michels Affair has a sound that could be from the 70's, but that's not where they come from. Instead, the band is mostly seen playing live for Raek & Ghost, or releasing "instrumental" versions of Wu classics. Peep the video below to see some footage of El Michels Affair and the Wu doing C.R.E.A.M. live:

Why stop there? Raek & the EMA performing Ice Cream live (apparently minus Cab-badonna, who was no doubt making pickups in Baltimore, which he loves like he love his d*ck size):

And here's a soulful instrumental version of C.R.E.A.M. recorded by El Michels Affair (not to be mistaken with the actual song The Rza sampled for C.R.E.A.M., which is "As Long As I Got You" by The Charmels):

Rap styles vary: In case you are wondering how EMA got that sweet 70's sound down - one of the first cats they signed to the label was an old-timer who goes by the name of Tyron Ashley, from Plainview, NJ. When he was a young man playing in bands in the 70's, Plainview was the spot for funk/soul music. It's the hometown of Parliment (yes, George Clinton grew up there), and there was lots of black musicians in the city back in those days - gospel, R&B, soul, funk, doo wop - you name it. And the studio that everyone supposedly passed through belong to none other than... Tyrone Ashley. This is a man who might have heard some good music in his time, you dig?

The Saga Continues: Truth & Soul operates out of a studio in Brooklyn, on North 10th Street in Williamsburg. That's really Williamsburg, not Bushwick a.k.a. "East Williamsburg" as the realty stars have been known to sell it. That kinda kills me, actually. It's funny how Bushwick, Flatbush, Crown Heights, and even Bed-Stuy have all sort of disappeared or shrunk over the past ten to fifteen years, to be replaced with new names. Sh*t, from now on I'm no longer telling people I live in Queens, but in "East Manhattan". But I'm digressing.

Enter the Wu-Tang Zone: Truth & Soul recently did a remix for Amy Winehouse of "Love Is A Losing Game". This is not Amy Winehouse's (or her music producers) first foray into North Brooklyn. Not less than a mile away from Truth & Soul's studio is the Mehanan Street Studio, home of Daptones Records and Amy's backing band of choice, The Daptones. We wrote about that connection when we did this post earlier this year about Jay-Z , Sharon Jones, the Daptones, and Amy Winehouse.

Rappening is what's happening: That British cokehead sure does know where to go to find some retro-sounding bands, doesn't she? And the answer is North Brooklyn. The day of Brooklyn as the center of hip-hop may have passed (thank Rudy Guiliani and gentrification for that), but even if D&D studios isn't as influential it once was, Brooklyn is still churning out hits in a new form. For the record, here's my favorite Brooklyn track from that era, if only because it still cracks me up to hear Chubb Rock getting angry political on a track.

In '95 we take back Ebbets' Field: Completely unrelated piece of trivia to share - Charles Ebbets's (the sports executive for whom Ebbets' Field was named after) nephew (Charles C. Ebbets) was a photographer during 20's and 30's, and took one of the most famous and iconoclastic photos of NYC ever - "Lunch Atop A Skyscraper":

Some more stuff to check out: The El Michels Affair's cover of "Walk On By" (sounds like the Isaac Hayes soul version, not so much the DIonne Warrick + Burt Bucharach original version):
http://www.ubiquityrecords.com/mpeg/ur195_01.mp3

Know The Prospect: Danilo Gallinari

2008-05-27T03:11:57Z

Like we always do at this time... last year our long-time blog buddy Seth from Posting and Toasting and I split up the possible available draft options for the Knicks. I don't remember who got Wilson Chandler in the end, though I do remember both of us being strongly in favor of Sean Williams (who unfortunately was not available when the Knicks finally picked). This year we are once again splitting up the prospects. Who will the Knicks pick at #6?

We decided to start off by looking at the top two candidate: Seth has already done his OJ Mayo preview post, so check it out. And I'm now given you the goods on the other most-mentioned candidate, Danilo Gallinari.

Danilo "Gallo" Gallinari is a 19-year old, 6'9 208 SF from Italy (he can also play SG and/or PF). He plays for Olimpia (Armani Jeans) Milano.

Milano has a long history of success in Italy. Former NBAers like Bob McAdoo, and former Knicks Bill Bradley, Rolando Blackman, Lee Nailon, Antonio Davis and DeMarco Johnson have all played for the franchise. So the franchise does seem to have a connection with the Knicks, in that they seem to have a habit of picking up former players. Perhaps this time it will be the other way around, for once.

The leading scorer in Olimpia Milano history, and the biggest star in franchise history? The Knicks new head coach Mike D'Antoni. He led Olimpia Milano to 5 Italian League titles, 2 Euroleague titles, two Cups of Italy (one point guard, two cups), one Korac Cup, and one Intercontinental Cup. F*ck, that's a lot of cups.

It was playing for Milano where D'Antonio got his nickname - Arsene Lupin (the french version of Sherlock Holmes was a master thief in the French series of detective books). What's the Italian word for "cupboard"?

Danilo is considered the top foreign player in the draft, and one of the top small forwards available. Danilo's dad (and agent) Vittorio was an Italian basketball star, too. He played on the Italian National Team during the 80's. Oddly enough, he was more known for his supreme defensive prowess - he was a lock down defender - and dirty play (the Bruce Bowen of Italy) than any offensive skills (he rarely topped a handful of points a game). He played for many years in the leagues, including nine seasons on Milano as a teammate of... Mike D'Antoni. You get the feeling yet that D'Antoni might be familiar with Gallinari?

Danilo's nickname is "gallo", (Italian/Spanish for "rooster". Or "cock"). He's already signed a deal with Reebok. He played point guard through most of his teenage years, which is why he is credited with having good court vision for a forward.

Stats: He shot 50.6% (90-178) during the 06-07 season on two-pointers, 40.5% (53-131) on three-pointers, and hit 85.5% (161 of 188) FTs. Note that he took more FTAs than FGAs, which generally means he gets to the basket pretty well. In 07-08 he hit 52.6% (121-230) on twos, 40.0% (64-160) on threes, and 86.0 (190-221) on FTs.
He is a poor rebounder (3.8 rpg in 06-07, up to 5.9 in 07-08), but has a good handle and can pass exceptionally well for a SF. He's 6'9, but still has a few more years, so 6'10 or 6'11 isn't out of the question (SML himself went from 6'0 to 6'2 after turning 19).

Past Injuries: He had a knee strain in January 2008, and a few years back had to sit out three months with a "growth problem" that has since been fixed. He draws a lot of fouls partial because he likes to finish strong (lots of dunks), though that aggressiveness may not carry over to the NBA. Peep video of an Italian Robin Leach talking about Danilo highlights:

link

Big Warning: The other Italians in the NBA are Andrea Bargnani (not living up to #1 pick status) and Marco Belinelli (did not have much of an impact in GS during his rookie season, where most thought he would be an ideal fit). Danilo's ability to draw fouls, which is a key part of his Italian success, might not work for him in the NBA. He might shy away from contact, and become strictly a three-point shooter (as is the case with Bargnani a lot). He lacks the lateral quickness to be a good defender or rebounder, though both can be improved on by sheer determination. Perhaps his dad can instill some of his work ethic on that end into his son?

I would say that he seems a bit of a project at #6 - he's only 19 years old, and needs to work on his strength, speed, and defense. He's a great shooter with height, and while that translates pretty easily in the NBA, that doesn't necessarily mean he's Dirk just yet. Bargnani, a good comparison, has taken more than two seasons without yet reaching the next level. NYC isn't about patience when it comes to guys with potential (see Phil Hughes).

On the other hand, he's certainly a solid player with upside, which is realistically the best you can do with a #6 pick. He's young enough to still grow physically, and he will get more strength. With patience, he could be a very key player in the core of this team. He's comfort level and family familiarity with Mike D'Antoni makes the Knicks the perfect team for him in the NBA. And the Knicks need an upgrade at SF as much as they need anything. If the Knicks draft him, they should make sure to make it clear to fans that Danilo, even if he starts, is three years away from reaching whatever his potential is. Which, from what I've read, is anywhere from Detler Schmephf to Peja Stojakovic to Toni Kukoc. Lazy Euro-comparisons aside (though, given his leadership and touch from all over at a young age, he is comparable to Dirk), he might best be compared to a potential Rashard Lewis.

The biggest question in determining Danilo's possible success in the NBA, besides his effort and comfort/aggression level, is his footspeed. Every video I've seen of Danilo (there are plenty on YouTube) shows him either finishing with a dunk, via alley oop or wide open lane, or it shows him hitting a wildly improbably layup/drive. The latter will not translate to the NBA, as they are too out of control and crazy to succeed. He resembles the worst of Manu Ginobili at those moments. You have to wonder if he has the right speed to resemble the best of Manu, too. The good news (for a team that drafts him) is that he creates the contact and spacing on his drives not because of his speed, but because of his above average ballhandling skills and odd angles that he shoots from. Check out this six minute clip from a Italian League game for the best overall presentation of Danilo's whole skill set, both good and bad:

And, of course, if you want the opinion of someone who knows little about basketball, but plenty about dick jokes, you can always check out Deadspin's post on this very topic.

Conclusion: If anyone knows whether Danilo Gallinari can play in the NBA, and what he can do, it's gotta be Mike D'Antoni and the Knicks. They have assigned Isiah Thomas to scout him already in Europe; D'Antoni knows his family pretty well, and I'm sure D'Antoni still has lots of connections to the Milano franchise (if not, it would be like Karl Malone not knowing anything about what's going on with the Jazz). So if the Knicks draft him at #6, then you know they feel pretty comfortable with Danilo's long term capabilities. And, if the Knicks pass up on him at #6, or trade down if he's available - well, that would be pretty telling. That would not bode well for Danilo's potential in the NBA.

Seth will be up next with another draft prospect. Also, check out this interesting post from Joey at Straight Bangin' about Chris Douglas-Roberts of Memphis.

Yacht Rock #11

2008-05-24T15:58:05Z

Just a special Memorial Day note: Apparently, two years after winding up the most successful run in Channel 101 history (topping even Jack Black's show), Yacht Rock released a special new episode in January. I noticed the other day that it has been uploaded to YouTube (as have most of the other episodes), so here it is:

Enjoy your long weekend!

David Stern Saves John Paxson's Job; No Fix, Knicks Picks Sixth.

2008-05-21T15:42:12Z

Here's what last night's NBA Lottery Drawing means:

1. John Paxson will survive to mess up the Bulls once again.

Let me start from the beginning, at the top of the list, knowhatI'mean?

What this means for the Bulls: Simply, Michael Beasley.

Forget all that "Derrick Rose is from Chicago" stuff. The Bulls have a point guard. Captain Kirk Hinrich has proven that, when surrounded by talent and a system that allows him to do what he does well (defense, three point shooting when open) he can lead the Bulls to 50 wins. Why throw him away, for a talented, yet unproven, point guard? Not when the most talented player in the draft is Beasley. Beasley also happens to be what the Bulls have been looking for years now: a low-post threat. Think the Bulls aren't the luckiest franchise in NBA history? First they get Jordan with the third pick, then they beat the odds (1.7%) yesterday to land the top pick in the draft, who just happens to fill their most crucial need.

If they pick anyone other than Beasley, not only does Paxson need to get fired right away, but you can beat on Beasley using the snub as motivation, and dropping 30 points on the Bulls everytime the Heat play them.

So here's one you can beat on: Beasley is a Bull.

2. Miami Heat - we told ya.

Yep, we said way back in February, when the Shaq deal went down, that Pat Riley was a genius. He still is. Man, I miss old greasy hair Riles. Peep the nucleus of the 2008 Heat: Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, Shawn Marion, Udonis Haslem.

Now all they have to do is get under the cap just enough to offer Elton Brand a free agent deal.

How about this trade: Jared Jeffries (6 million) + Fred Jones expiring contract (3.3 million) for Mark Blount (6.73M) and Smush Parker (2.4M)? The deal clears $3.3 million off the cap for the Heat to offer free agents this summer, bringing the Heat to $49 million, or $10.5 million under the cap.

Their cap allocation: $17.1M for Shawn Marion, $14.4M for Dwayne, $6.575M for Haslem, $4.176M for Marcus Banks, $1.27M for Daequan Cook, and now $6M for Jeffries (who is more useful to the 2008 Heat than either Banks or Blount). That's $10 million under the cap, enough to maybe eek out a deal for Brand (with $1 million increases every season).

Of course, there are other teams the Heat could make a similar deal with, to clear enough space (maybe Banks, Blount, and Parker all go, plus even Haslem) to offer Brand a decent contract.

Doubtful? Fine. How about instead of Brand, a next-tier forward, like... Josh Smith?

Get ready for the high-flying, running Heat next season.

3. What will the Knicks do?

Several options, in order of preference:

A. Draft OJ Mayo if he falls that far. Can he fall that far? We know that the Grizzlies pick 5th, ahead of the Knicks. They are loaded with points. They will be looking at anyone but Mayo. The question is what happens at #3 and #4? Will the Wolves or Sonics draft a point?

The Wolves seem less likely, since they still have a couple of points that are decent (Rashard McCants, Sebastian Telfair). If anyone is picking Eric Gordon, it's the Wolves, to load up with Al Jefferson.

The Sonics? Not so easy. They have Durant (SG/SF), and little else. If anyone could benefit from a point guard upgrade, it's the Sonics. However, there is the possibility that they could get scared off by the "reputation" of OJ Mayo, particularly since they are in the process of moving the team to Oklahoma City, and want to make sure they have a pretty face on the franchise (hence, all-around guys like Durant and Jeff Green). They might go conservative, and take a Brooks Lopez here. If so, then, yes, the Knicks might get a break, and have Mayo fall to them.

Folks, that would be a good thing. I know there are plenty of people who are turned off by the negative press that has hounded Mayo. Remember that Mayo is the third best prospect in this draft, and fills an urgent need. Value is value.

B. If Mayo is not available, the plan shifts a bit. The new plan might be maybe trade down, and try to get Danilo or DJ Augustin at a later point (like #8 or #9).

The next picks are: Clippers (#7), Milwaukee (#8), Charlotte (#9), and the Nets (#10).

The Nets and Knicks could work out a deal: how about Richard Jefferson ($12.2) + #10 pick for Zach Randolph ($13.33) + #6 pick? The Nets can throw in cap fodder to balance out the trade. Jefferson and Randolph both have long contracts that run until the end of the 2011 season; for the Knicks, this wouldn't be a great deal, in terms of getting under the salary cap by 2010 (though it will save them around $3 million in 2010). However, they do get a player who fits one big need - a quality starting SF. And Randolph is just a bad fit for the Knicks roster.

On the Nets side, they have too much money invested in their wing players (Vince Carter, Devin Harris and Jefferson are signed for big money through 2011 and beyond). Randolph gives the team balance, plus the defense-oriented, shot-blocking Sean Williams is a good center for Randolph to be paired up with in the frontcourt.
Why would the Nets care to move up 6 places? Perhaps if there is a player they really have their eye on, like a Danilo Gallinari (who can instantly replace Jefferson at 1/10th the cost). For the Knicks, the hope would then be that DJ Augustin is available; considering that Rose, OJ Mayo and Jerryd Bayless are the three point guards who would probably go before Augustin, and the only teams definitely looking for points before the 10-spot are the Heat, possibly the Sonics, and the Clippers... that might work out beautifully for the Knicks (depending on other trades, of course).

C. Stay put, and take Danilo or Bayless, depending on who works out better and which one fills the greater need.

My guess: The Knicks roll the dice with Marbury for a year. No harm in trying it. If he doesn't work out, then the Knicks can try to draft a point with their top-5 pick next season. If so, then the Knicks will need to address the SF situation more; that would mean they might lean towards Danilo. Conversely, they could go and try to fill their need via a trade: one option is Crawford for TJ Ford.

Another option, though, might be this: the Pistons, under Joe Dumars, have been the smartest team in cap management for a long time now. They are the ideal standard in the NBA. The Pistons have been the best team in the Eastern Conference for 4 years running now, and while doing it have also found time to rebuild the team subtly. Gone is Ben Wallace, eventually replaced by Jason Maxiell (with Webber and McDyess holding it down in the meanwhile). There is no urgency on this issue for the Pistons, but at some point Billups is going to have to get traded - he's contract runs until 2012, and Rodney Stuckey might prove by then that he is capable of running the point for the Pistons.

Though he was very impressive in knockign the Magic out of the playoffs last round, he hasn't proven it yet. However, at the same time, there is enough playoff left for Stuckey to make a strong case, not unlike a backup QB trying to seize the opportunity to take the job from the incumbent. If Stuckey has a big series against the Celtics, and helps the Pistons beat Boston... Billups days in Detroit will start counting down. Not immediately, in all likelihood.

But maybe a year down the line? Maybe midseason next year, if the Pistons and/or Billups start off slow? Malik Rose's expiring contract, plus a future pick, or some young talent (bye-bye David Lee) might get the Pistons to pry Billups loose. Joe Dumars is too savvy to not know when to sell a declining asset (see Ben Wallace). And he's going to do it before Billups gets too devalued. Perhaps it might happen next year around the trading deadline.

This is one more reason the Knicks might want to pass up on jumping at a second-tier point guard, and instead work on fixing their SF situation first....