Sportsmeat

It’s been a while so I thought I’d chime in on the four major sports. Please agree, disagree, start a new argument, etc., below. Anyway, here goes:

NFL Draft Thoughts:

All in all, a pretty boring draft. No big surprises, no Brady Quinn-like plummets down the first round. Still, I dig the draft. This has a lot to do with being a Jet fan, which means a) my team usually has a high pick and b) I’m looking for hope anywhere I can find it.

-) As to the Jets draft, they probably took the right player at No. 6 in Vernon Gholston, but I was really hoping Chris Long would fall to them. Also, workout wonders scare the crap out of me – which didn’t make me feel better about the Jets trading back into the first round for tight end Dustin Keller. They clearly thought the Giants might go for Keller and trade Shockey, but it obviously didn’t happen and the Jets probably could have stayed where they were and taken Keller. I do, however, like the pick of corner Dwight Lowery from San Jose State. (By the way, for that pick the Jets actually traded for their own selection. They originally traded out of No. 113 and, two deals later, ended up back there to pick Lowery. Odd.)

-) I know there are a lot of best draft debates going on, with most people picking the Chiefs. I’d make the argument, however, that trades you make factor into the draft you have, and while it was the right move to trade Jared Allen, he’s the reason they had so many picks. All that said, I’ll go with the Steelers, who got back-to-back steals in the draft’s best running back (Rashard Mendenhall, though I do like Jonathan Stewart a lot) and the best wideout (Limas Sweed, who I was hoping would be a Jet). Neither are locks for NFL success (Sweed catches the ball against his body too often) but they are two very good skill position players on an already very good team.

MLB Thoughts:

-) Not much here, except old players continue to get hurt because that’s what happens to old players. It’s why the Mets, the best collection of talent in the NL, won’t win the league but the Diamondbacks (very young) will. I do think, however, that the Mets can position themselves well for 2009 with a few moves – like putting Aaron Heilman in the rotation, promoting some power arms into the bullpen, handing the left-field job to Fernando Martinez. The big key will be replacing Carlos Delgado at first. Mark Teixiera would be perfect there but he’s going to command a lot of money (and the Yankees have a need at first as well).

NBA Thoughts:

-) I’ll bet the Mavs wished they had a guy like Devin Harris to defend Chris Paul in the playoffs. That was a bad trade from the get-go, though I can’t say I feel too bad for Jason Kidd, the most selfish un-selfish player I can think of.

-) On the flip side, I thought the Suns made the right move by trading for Shaq (though it clearly ignores my old player theory). I really thought that series would be closer – it seems I never learn my lesson by underestimating the Spurs.

NHL Thoughts:

-) I’m bummed the Caps lost, and that’s about all I have here. Otherwise, I pretty much root for the Canadian teams. I dig the Penguins, too. That team has too much history to leave Pittsburgh so any success will probably help. On that note, can the Stars move back to Minnesota? I know two professional teams in Minnesota seems counterintuitive, but this is hockey. No team from Texas should be competing for the Stanley Cup.

On Saturday, loyal 'meater Joseph accused us of allowing the blog to die a slow, boring death. So in an effort to breathe some life into this corpse, I'm posting the latest hockey (yes, hockey Joe!) news from Scraton, Pa.:

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton hockey player caught streaking
The Associated Press
(AP) - The captain of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins was charged with indecent exposure after a police officer saw him running naked on a downtown street early Sunday, and a teammate was arrested for public drunkenness.
(FULL STORY)

The player, Nathan Smith, was charged with misdemeanor counts of indecent exposure, open lewdness and disorderly conduct, as well as public drunkenness, according to the AP. In his apology, he called his actions -- prompted by a bet -- "regrettable."

Well, I'm guessing that every reader of Sportsmeat has been in a situation where this bet was on the table. And a few of us have been to Scranton. I don't remember ever having this bet on the table in Scranton, but I'd guess that the locale makes it a more attractive option, if for no other reason than to spice up a slow night. Criminal? Technically, I guess -- but if he wasn't stopping traffic or kicking in windows, I don't see it as much more than a prank.

At the very least, he should get a cameo on a future episode of The Office. Or Slapshot 4.

Two things that may be hard to believe:
First, the Eagles seem to think fans care what's happened to Bobby "Bounce Pass" Hoying since he left the NFL. Second, a grown man (and presumably a professional writer) used the "Webster's Dictionary defines..." lede. Click here if you want a flashback of watching a game with a paper bag over your head, or read my one-sentence summary: He's in real-estate, and he still sucks.

"You shake the tree, a leopard's gonna fall out." -- Kobe Bryant on the trash-talking Nuggets.

Other things that might happen with that tree, courtesy of the Random Word Generator:
You pick the tree, a microphone's gonna fall out.
You document the tree, prey's gonna fall out.
You bump the tree, morphology's gonna fall out.
You bless the tree, an armrest's gonna fall out.
You civilize the tree, an archfiend's gonna fall out.
You chase the tree, heterodoxy's gonna fall out.
You distribute the tree, a propellant's gonna fall out.
You incise the tree, a draftee's gonna fall out.
You domineer the tree, a cogwheel's gonna fall out.
You suffocate the tree, a salamander's gonna fall out.

Best TV Spin-offs

So Joe and I were emailing and he openly wondered what the best spin-off in TV history is. He figured Frasier and, after some research, I have to back him up. I also discovered that most spin-offs are god awful.

To the point, my criteria for the list below is TV sitcoms and dramas (not game shows or reality shows or cartoons), and they were all shows that I’ve actually seen. (Apparently some people love Rhoda, but I have nothing to add on that one.)

Anyway, here it goes:

1. Frasier (Cheers)
2. Benson (Soap)
3. The Bionic Woman (Six Million Dollar Man)
4. Empty Nest (Golden Girls)
5. A Different World (Cosby Show)
6. The Facts of Life (Diff’rent Strokes)
7. Saved by the Bell: The College Years (Saved by the Bell)
8. Just the Ten of Us (Growing Pains)
9. Melrose Place (90210)
10. Booker (21 Jump Street)

Also deserving consideration, though not true spin-offs and thus not on the list, are the Muppet Show (derived from Sesame Street) and The Simpsons (which came from the Tracey Ullman Show).

In doing research for this post, I came across the following: The spin-off from “BJ and the Bear” was called “The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo.” If someone has seen this and can comment, it would be greatly appreciated.

Also, did anyone catch “The Tortellis”? The Cheers spin-off. I can’t say I remembered this at all.

The Meaters have put their not-so-mighty heads together and come up with some baseball predictions. We'll review at season's end unless I miss on every one, in which case I'll hope everyone forgets about this by then.

The consensus picks have been labeled; the only race that did not have a consensus was the NL MVP. Interestingly, the only unanimous pick was the Phillies winning the wild card, while Budds and BT picked the Mets to win the NL East and I picked the Braves.

On to the picks:

Budds
AL East: Red Sox (consenus Meat pick)
AL Central: Indians (consenus Meat pick)
AL West: Angels (consenus Meat pick)
Wild Card: Yankees (consenus Meat pick)
AL MVP: Alex Rodriguez, Yankees (consenus Meat pick)
AL Cy Young: Josh Beckett, Red Sox (consenus Meat pick)

BT
AL East: Yankees
AL Central: Tigers
AL West: Mariners
Wild Card: Indians
AL MVP: Alex Rodriguez, Yankees
AL Cy Young: Josh Beckett, Red Sox

EJ
AL East: Red Sox
AL Central: Indians
AL West: Angels
Wild Card: Yankees
AL MVP: Manny Ramirez, Red Sox
AL Cy Young: Roy Halladay, Blue Jays

NL East: Braves
NL Central: Cubs (consenus Meat pick)
NL West: Diamondbacks (consenus Meat pick)
Wild Card: Phillies (consenus Meat pick)
NL MVP: Case Utley, Phillies
NL Cy Young: Johan Santana, Mets (consenus Meat pick)

BT
NL East: Mets
NL Central: Brewers
NL West: Diamondbacks
Wild Card: Phillies
NL MVP: Matt Holliday, Rockies
NL Cy Young: Johan Santana, Mets

Budds:
NL East: Mets
NL Central: Cubs
NL West: Dodgers
Wild Card: Phillies
NL MVP: Ryan Howard, Phillies
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy, Padres

World Series
BT: Yankees over Mets
Budds: Yankees over Dodgers
EJ: Diamondbacks over Angels

This week Sports Illustrated has a small piece on former Alabama quarterback Jay Barker (QB of national championship team in 1992) getting married to a country music singer of some sort. No big deal there, but then the piece casually mentions that Barker hosts a radio show in Birmingham, Ala., with former place-kicker Al Del Greco. Huh??!! How do you just drop that and walk away. The Auburn-Alabama thing aside, how did these two end up doing a radio show together? And what is a guy named Al Del Greco doing sticking around Birmingham, Ala.? And, most of all, why does he have a listing on IMDB?

I tried to explain the overall oddness of this to Debbie but, having heard of neither of the aforementioned odd couple, she seemed pretty non-plussed. Thus, it is now a blog. Make of it what you will.

In the aftermath of a great title game that redeemed a largely boring NCAA tournament, here is my list of the top ten individual performers for the fortnight (plus a week).

10. Antonio Anderson, SG, Memphis - You won't be surprised to hear that the list is heavy on players from teams that progressed furthest (farthest? why don't I know English?) in the tournament. Anderson was the unsung hero for Memphis, the best team over the course of the tournament. Though his offensive numbers were healthy (10 points, 5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1 turnover per game), he was the best defensive player in the tournament. In three successive games, he blanketed three All-American-caliber guards -- Drew Neitzel, D.J. Augustin and Darren Collison. Those three, who average a combined 47.6 points per game, were held to a total of 24 points on 7 for 35 shooting. And a large number of those 24 points were scored during a furious Texas rally where Anderson really wasn't covering Augustin. He (and the entire Memphis team) really dominated most of his games defensively. NBA prospects: Anderson can find a place on an NBA team by focusing on his defense and 3 point shooting (currently 33%). I can see him being a slightly poorer man's version of Stacy Augmon.

9. Joe Alexander, SF, West Virginia - Alexander was the chief architect for what many fans would consider to be the most satisfying upset of the tournament, West Virginia's disposal of Duke in the second round (though some would argue if it was even an upset). For the tournament, he averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds per game, including a 22 point, 11 rebound (and 3 block) performance in the aforementioned Duke game. Beyond that, he was West Virginia's undisputed leader -- as shown by the fact that his team fell apart after he fouled out in overtime against Xavier. Alexander left with WVU up by 3, but Xavier went on a 15-8 run in the final minutes to send the Mountaineers home. NBA prospects: Say hello to the NBDL, Joe. Alexander will be Pittsnogled.

8. Brook Lopez, C, Stanford - Lopez, whose parents apparently hate him and his brother, was very close to being the best big man in the tournament (for the best, see #3 below). After playing just 15 minutes an opening round blowout of Cornell (RIP, Big Red), Lopez went for 56 against Marquette and Texas. That total is additionally impressive when considering the fact that he was basically the only offensive option on Stanford's team. He scored 8 of Stanford's 11 overtime points against Marquette, including the game winner with 3 seconds remaining. His point total would have been higher yet had Stanford coach Trent Johnson realized while playing Texas that Lopez should be touching the ball 3 out of every 4 trips down the court (at a minimum). NBA prospects: Lopez is more athletic and more coordinated then most people realize. Plus, he competes. While he won't be an All-Star, I can see him being an above average NBA starter for a long time.

7. Brandon Rush, SF, Kansas - Rush's ACL tear while playing a pickup game last June was one of the key factors contributing to Kansas' national championship. After the injury, Rush was forced to stay in school. With a full rehab, Rush returned to become the closest thing Kansas had to a go-to guy in the tournament. Rush averaged 16 points and 6 rebounds per game, including a 25 point outburst in the national semifinal win over UNC. He was also consistent, scoring at least 12 in each game. On almost any other college team, he would clearly be the best player, and average 18+ ppg. Kansas was just so loaded that he embraced the team, to everyone's benefit. NBA prospects: Despite his injury, Rush still is a great athlete. He has decent height (6-6), shoots well from deep (42%) and can handle the ball. I could see him making some All-Star teams down the road.

**Note** I need to insert a special recognition of Darrell Arthur, who, despite being a first team All Big 12 player and going for 20 and 10 last night, garnered nary a mention by any of the experts. His dominance over Joey Dorsey was what kept Kansas in the game.

6. Stephen Curry, SG, Davidson - This seems like a low ranking for Curry, but I find it hard to put him above others on the list. Everyone knows what he did, carrying Davidson to within a last minute three pointer of a Final Four birth. What I found most impressive, though, was the fact that he almost never seemed to play beyond the bounds of Davidson's offense, despite being public enemy number one of the opposing team. For the record, he scored 32 per game, shooting 46% from the field, 44% from three (on the way to setting an NCAA single season record for three pointers made), and 88% from the line. Plus, his mom... NBA prospects: He's small, but with that skill set, he'll find a role with some team. I see him being a sixth man for most of his career.

5. Tyler Hansborough, PF, UNC - I hate UNC. I particularly hate Hansborough. Just seeing his ugly game and his retarded celebration dances and listening to Jay Bilas verbally fellate him drives me crazy. So you know that Hansborough earned his spot on this list. Hansborough was good for 20 points and 9 rebounds per game, but what gets him this high was his performance against against Louisville, where he carried Carolina on his back via put-back dunks, old fashioned three point plays, and even a couple long distance jumpers. NBA prospects: Joe Kleine-lite. Or, as a colleague recently said, "If he'd like to appear on national TV again, he'll return for his senior season at UNC."

4. Mario Chalmers, PG/SG, Kansas - "Super Mario" (or, as I prefer, "Supernintendo Chalmers") was good all tournament, but great when it counted. In total, he averaged 15 points, 3 boards and 3 assists per game (after torching Texas for 30 in a great Big 12 championship game). Throughout the tournament, though, he stood out for his intuitive defense and quick hands, averaging 3 steals per game. But all Jayhawk fans will remember is the three from the top of the key, drifting to his left with Derrick Rose's hand in his face and the clock showing 3 seconds in the game. One of the greatest shots in NCAA history. NBA prospects: As with all of the Kansas players, it is difficult to judge how good they are because there was so much offensive talent on that team. Chalmers is small (6-1), but very quick. He shot 47% from deep for the year, and picked 2.5 pockets per game. My bet is that he'll find a way to stay on NBA rosters for awhile.

**How can the MVP of the Final Four come in at #4 on the list? Because 3 players performed better than he did (duh).**

3. Kevin Love, C, UCLA - The press goes absolutely berzerk for Love and his Color Me Badd beard (credit to the Sports Guy for the reference), but Love frankly backs it up with his play. To use a stupid term, he has about the best basketball I.Q. of any freshman I've ever seen. He can shoot, pass, rebound and block shots. He competes hard, and seems comfortable in tight situations. For the tournament, he averaged 20 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks per game (including 7 blocks in a 2 point win over Texas A&M). He shot 57% from the field and 81% from the line. His most impressive moment of the tournament, though, came during a shootaround before the Xavier game. He stood flat-footed beyond the far endline and heaved a chest pass that swished through the net a mere 95 feet away. NBA prospects: I have no idea. He could be a stud perennial All-Star. He could be out of the league in 4 years (though I doubt it). I really don't know. His ability to shoot and pass should allow him to keep a job at the least. But if you see him trudging up and down the court at the end of a game, you have to wonder how he is going to handle an 82 game season against the best athletes in the world.

2. Chris Douglas-Roberts, SF, Memphis - CDR was the leader of the best team in the tournament. His herky-jerk offensive game netted more points than anyone in the tournament, at 23+ per game, which was complemented nicely by 4+ assists per game and more than a steal per game. Even in defeat, he dropped 22. When Memphis needed a bucket (which wasn't very often, as they were usually blowing teams out), he was good for one. He even upped his free throw percentage from 71% for the regular season to 81% in the tournament. Unfortunately, if he had shot 82% for the tournament, Memphis would be champions. NBA prospects: I just don't have a good feeling about CDR in the Association. Granted, he has size (6-7) and he can shoot from deep (41%). But how many successful NBA players are like him? His game is largely comprised of creative running one-handers from mid-range, sprinkled in with the occasional three. Who compares? Richard Hamilton? Manu Ginobli? Maybe I just changed my mind on his prospects...

1. Derrick Rose, PG, Memphis - This dude was just a revelation in the tournament. The numbers (21 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and less than 2 turnovers per game) are eye-popping. But just watching him play leaves you more impressed. He's great with the ball, he runs the game incredibly well for a freshman, and he always plays in control. He also had two of the more impressive plays in the tournament: the first was a double-clutch dunk to finish a fast break against Texas where he took off, kept the ball low, let a defender fly by, hung in the air, and brought the ball up to dunk it. The second was in last night's game during a broken play where he received the ball while cutting down the lane, elevated, took a full collision from Mario Chalmers, gathered himself in the air, and still layed it in for a three point play. He would be a great finisher for a 6-8 senior small forward. As a 6-4 freshman point guard, he is incredible. NBA prospects: To quote Ben Stiller in Meet the Parents, his prospects are "strong ... to quite strong." He has everything. If there ever was a freshman who had no need for further college ball, this is it. He just needs to curb his gummy bears habit.


Honorable Mention: Scottie Reynolds, Villanova; Tyrone Brazelton, Western Kentucky; Darrell Arthur, Kansas; Michael Beasley, Kansas State; A.J. Abrams, Texas; Jerel McNeal, Marquette; Wayne Ellington, UNC; Christian Laettner, Duke

Labels: March Madness, NCAA

The New York Times has gotten into the habit of choosing some oddly news-deficient political stories for its front page (Obama’s friends say he wasn’t a cokehead; McCain’s aids may have confronted him on an affair that looked like it might have, could have maybe happened; Hillary Clinton wrote letters in college – to a boy!). The trend now seems to have spilled over to the sports pages with the revelation that a man named William Wesley has many friends, including some in the Memphis basketball program. The story seems to suggest that something shady is happening with Wesley (or “Daddy Wes,” as Kriss Kross once called him), and he may have even admitted as much, off the record. But the story reveals nothing:

What does Wesley do? How does he make his money? How did he become so influential? The questions are often greeted with more questions.

And a D1 feature should answer at least some of these questions. The only one the story makes an honest attempt to address is the third – how he became influential. He worked at a popular sneaker store, became friendly with athletes, and simply hung around as often as possible. Now, he turns up everywhere – on the court at the Final Four, in team USA’s quarters on the Queen Mary II in Athens, courtside with LeBron. A nice life, for sure, but why do I care?
And why did this story run in Saturday’s Times? My best guess is that they were on the trail to revealing something more concrete and simply ran out of time. Memphis was facing elimination, so they wanted to strike while the iron was, er, warm-ish. And now, all we know is that William Wesley is someone influential who we hadn’t heard of before.

Labels: new york times, william wesley