Outside The NBA

Saying goodbye in kind

True landmark moments don’t come around too often. Events that change the course of history or an entire peoples perception or realities simply CAN’T come around too often, we’d be living in a world with constant upheaval if life changed at the drop of a hat. Yesterday’s LeBronathon was one of those moments. No, LeBron announcing he was going to the Heat on ESPN didn’t alter the course of history (as far as we know anyways), but is anyone ever going to look at sports and athletes the same way again? The idea that modern sports fandom is ultimately nothing more than rooting for laundry isn’t a new concept but neither has it ever been so plain to see, dangled mockingly in our faces. What happened? Yesterday LeBron James did his best to murder sports in the state of Ohio. His home state, the state his friends and his family live it. The state he grew up in. Read the rest of this entry »

Ah the good old days

Bryan Colangelo is my man. I was more excited about him coming to the Raptors then any player, whether they were acquired via trade, draft or free agency. I like his logic, his way of looking at the game of basketball. I enjoy his focus on offense, on winning while being entertaining. I respect his personal style, his business like attitude and his professionalism (not always the same thing). His innate ability to create fluid teams seemingly at will is impressive, as are the 2 Executive of the Years on his resume. And yet, his teams win loss ratio hasn’t been great since… well a while. Read the rest of this entry »

Fernando Medina/Getty Images

Here are few haikus
That involve the NBA.
I hope you enjoy.

I love three pointers,
The release, the stroke, the swish,
Mike Breen: “For three… BANG!”

Hey, look what James found
Action figure Mike Bibby,
“D” Not Included.

Rasheed is on fire!
Two of five from three-point-land,
Break out the champagne.

Open up TweetDeck,
It’s LeBron, LeBron, LeBron.
There goes my boner.

Turkoglu traded,
Raptors win draft lottery.
Need new underwear.

“Ginobili: White?
Let’s look at his family tree.”
RealGM… So dumb.

Vince with the slam dunk!
23 points and 5 boards!
Orlando loses.

Broussard on LeBron:
“That’s the latest Scuttlebutt”
Shut up you moron.

Dwight Howard post up:
Dribble, dribble, bumble, whoops.
Whine to ref, fake smile.

Steve Nash pick and roll,
Amar’e with the huge jam!
Suns lose by 50.

Hoopsworld: Bosh is gone!
Bosh sign and trade for Beasley!
Oh right, it’s Hoopsworld.

LeBron signs with Clips!
Later on that afternoon:
LeBron’s legs explode.

Marv says to Reggie,
“Pick your sixth man of the year”
Reggie: “Tim Duncan.”

Twitter simplified:
“Read my blog about LeBron
Where I say dumb things.”

“You’re better than that”
and “Mama there goes that man!”
Please stop Mark Jackson.

Antawn Jamison
Will spread the floor and allow
LeBron to attack.

The Boston Celtics,
Mean, cranky, old, effective,
“Get off my damn lawn.”

Reggie: “Blah blah blah”
I can’t find the mute button.
Marv, please end my pain.

Wow! Joe Johnson’s truck
Looks like his future contract,
Huge and retarded.

Ron Turenne/Getty Images

Oh when it all, it all falls down. I’m telling you ohh, it all falls down…

Seasons come and seasons go. As sports fans we are conditioned to have short term memories, reactions and expectations. When TFC missed the playoffs last year I was upset for 2 days before throwing myself headfirst into a new Leafs and Raptors season. When the Leafs season ended in disappointment I celebrated by throwing myself into the world beating Blue Jays (disclaimer: that title has a timed expiration date of… well, probably 2 weeks). This Raptors season for me, I don’t know. I can deal with bad teams, lord knows I’ve seen plenty coming out of the T-dot over the past few years. I can deal with teams underachieving, again, lord knows I’ve seen plenty of that coming out of the 416 area. What I don’t know if I can deal with is a collapse of epic proportions that screws several other teams and fan bases in the process. I don’t know if, as a sports fan, I WANT the Raptors to make the playoffs today. It feels… dirty that they even still have a chance. Read the rest of this entry »

What a tweet.

A broken hand, a dislocated elbow, and a sprained wrist. A season ended terribly, and terribly prematurely. A group of teammates who must go on without him, possessing heart, hustle, and skill, but now in need of a low post presence and defensive anchor. This is what Andrew Bogut is dealing with. Read the rest of this entry »

Sports is a funny thing. It’s like real life, only it’s not real life. We are drawn to sports because it is a microcosm for life. We get to play voyeur and watch a person develop from a kid to a man to a grown-ass man. We see him learn the ways of the world on his journey from being a wide-eyed rookie to a hardened, smart veteran. The other thing we like about sports is, unlike real life, there are clear winners and losers. Read the rest of this entry »

Pat Sullivan/AP

We know Houston’s trade deadline deal was very, very good. Few would argue that Carl Landry is a better fit than Kevin Martin and it’s not hard to understand the value of a 22-year-old big man with potential and future first-round picks, especially considering the track record of the man who has the power to use them.

It’s important to note, though, that Daryl Morey would have done the Landry-Martin swap even if he had not received all those goodies from the Knicks. If we’re to believe the reports that surfaced late last Tuesday night, the Rockets were prepared to receive Sergio Rodriguez and Kenny Thomas (and their expiring deals) from Sacramento to complete the trade if New York was not going to be involved. Read the rest of this entry »

From Clutchfans.net, obviously.

Trade deadline day! So much fun, so much to talk about. So Julian and I talked, for just under 57 minutes, about all of the madness that went on in the Association. Wagman earned another DNP-CD.

Click here to listen to the podcast.

“]

Different uniforms, now. (Ned Dishman/Getty Images)

• The Washington Wizards started a lineup of Randy Foye, Nick Young, Mike Miller, Andray Blatche, and JaVale McGee. Josh Howard came off the bench, wearing #55. Blatche scored 33 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Washington beat Minnesota, 108-99.

• The Memphis Grizzlies scored 5 points in the last 37 seconds of the 4th quarter to force overtime in Toronto. In OT, Rudy Gay scored 8 of his team’s 12 points because the Raptors kept switching Jose Calderon onto him when they ran the same play over and over. Grizz win, 109-102.

• In that MEM/TOR game, Hedo Turkoglu scored 1 point on 0-5 shooting and added 1 rebound, 2 assists, 3 turnovers, and 3 fouls in over 29 minutes of action. Amir Johnson, in less than 18 minutes of action, scored 10 points on 5-5 shooting and added 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks, and, yes, 3 fouls.

Read the rest of this entry »

Fernando Medina/Getty Images

Tuesday night, Julian and I chatted about all things NBA. Or, more accurately, some things NBA. Like the Raptors, Nets, Hawks, Thunder, Warriors, Magic, Bulls, Bucks, and Bobcats. And Joe Johnson, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Omri Casspi, Kevin Martin, Vince Carter, Courtney Lee, and Vinny Del Negro. And, y’know, a bunch of other stuff. Totally forgot to talk about Darko’s weird, expletive-laden interview, though. Next time.

And next time, Eric Wagman will join us. We were kidding about him hurting himself.

Click here to listen to the podcast.