A huge, monumental, incredible trade occurred last week. Shaquille O’Neal was purchased for the low, low price of expiring contracts. What are the ramifications, you ask? That’s why I’m here. Some of fans’ burning questions about the Shaq-to-Cleveland trade.
Q: How will Mike Brown integrate Shaq into the offense?
A: He’ll think up a second play. Play 1: Stand around and watch LeBron. Play 2: Stand around and watch Shaq. He spent all of Friday working on that. See, here’s page 3 of Brown’s playbook. Read the rest of this entry »
Editors Note: This post was written by Lucas Walker. He writes at Toronto Sports Blog (http://tosportsblog.wordpress.com/), but he’ll be contributing here from time to time. If you enjoy this post, be sure to check out his blog and hit him up on Twitter.
There are two ways two measure manliness in this world; sports and mustaches. The manliest of men balance both at the same-time, and this article is a recognizes those who have given the time to groom the finest lipticklers around, while being some of the most overpaid men in the world. Read the rest of this entry »
Editor’s Note: I’d like to welcome another contributor. CM Sexton has his own blog at http://www.oursamedifference.com/. He’ll be bringing some of his perspective to TSG every Monday with his Quick Hits. If you enjoy this post, be sure to check out his blog and follow him on Twitter.
Could the draft have gone worse for David Stern? The three most marketable players are now in Golden State, Clipperville & Minnesota? The NBA should rig these lotteries, get the big players in the big markets.
The Big Cactus is now the Big Shaqalier. But really, he should be called the big ego. If Shaq helps Lebron win his first title, he will be responsible for Kobe Bryant, Dwayne Wade and LeBron getting their first titles. His ego will need its own wing in Springfield.
Manny playing for the Isotopes is unacceptable. If he wants to rehab or they want to allow suspended players to play in the minors he should have played every game down in the minors without pay.
Last time I wrote, I brought NBA referees answers to their most Frequently Asked Questions. Now it’s time to bring my fellow Americans up to speed on soccer in time for Sunday’s improbable FIFA Confederations Cup Final between USA and Brazil.
Q: This is booooooooooring. When are they gonna score?
A: You’re watching soccer on the wrong channel. Watch it on the Spanish channel and tell me soccer isn’t exciting.
Q: Are soccer players magical? It only takes them 30 seconds to recover from catastrophic inuries.
A: Soccer players aren’t magical. Their doctors are.
Q: Is my TV broken? There’s some weird background noise coming out of my speakers.
A:That’s the sound of music! Don’t worry, foreign sports fans are much better singers than Americans. All we have to show for ourselves is that lametomahawk chop song and the pre-game national anthem. (PS: Can someone tell me why it’s ok that there’s fire in the stands during that first video? That seems dangerous.)
If your TV was tuned to last weekend’s U.S. Open for more than 2 hours, you either fell asleep and left it on accidentally, or you’re Ricky Barnes’ mom. The ever-rain-delayed tournament was stretched out over what seemed like weeks, causing television ratings to tank. Last year’s Open was as good as it gets, as an injured Tiger Woods battled relative unknown Rocco Mediate for the title in an epic 19-hole playoff on Monday. But, that’s the exception, not the rule. In 2007, even the highest rated golf ranked below every game of a Red Sox World Series sweep, several NASCAR races and regional NFL action in November. The problem with the PGA is the lack of interesting, different and diverse athletes. Any two guys are basically the same. We, all know Tiger’s the best, but golf needs a few players that can get viewers and create compelling action even if its raining or, God forbid, Tiger isn’t there. Golf at its core is a great game that can be enjoyed by anyone, but for some reason its traditionally marketed to rich white people, and there’s no reason we can’t change that. Here are the four guys golf needs to make things a bit more interesting:
If you’ve watched any SportsCenter or read a newspaper over the past few weeks, you have surely heard about the ongoing saga that is Brett Favre and his retirement status. After 16 illustrious seasons at the helm of the Green Bay Packers, Favre decided to call it quits. That lasted all of about five months and Favre ended up in a New York Jets uniform. He started out the season well leading the Jets to an 8-3 record but he fizzled during the final five games of the season winning only one game during that stretch and throwing just two touchdowns in comparison to nine interceptions. Many attributed his slide in performance to his age and felt that Favre, at age 39, was simply too old and too tired to compete for a full 16 regular season games plus any playoff games on top of it.
What I’m about to say may be called blasphemy in the state of Minnesota where I was born and raised, but I grew up a Brett Favre fan which made me a Green Bay Packer fan. I liked the Vikings, but when they came head to head I was cheering for Favre. There is something about the way he played the game with passion, toughness, and (for lack of a better word) balls that made me root for him. Another reason that I wasn’t a die-hard Vikings fan had to do with Dennis Green and Daunte Culpepper, but that’s another story. I have to say that I have become a bigger Vikings fan with the arrival of Adrian Peterson and Jared Allen. As the talk about Brett Favre continues this summer and questions of his arm strength, age, and other factors are debated, I decided to take a look into why Brett Favre “works” for the Vikings this season and why it would be a mistake for them not to sign him.
This season will be easier on Favre’s body than last season. Although Favre will be a year older, he’s coming off of a surgery that should help with the soreness in his throwing arm/shoulder. While I’m sure there are some out there who would disagree with me, I think that the Vikings offensive line is better than that of the Jets and will be able to provide Favre the protection he needs (I’ve searched for offensive line rankings in several locations but many are based on fantasy related aspects which isn’t what we are looking, such as here and here). Some say the Jets have better pass protection than the Vikings, but everyone knew the Vikings were going to run last year and defenses planned for it but the Vikings still ran and ran well. I believe that with a legitimate threat at quarterback, a quarterback who can get rid of the ball quick and make fast reads, the Vikings offensive line will soon be called one of the best at pass protection as well as the best to rush behind.
If you look at last year’s New York Jets’ schedule, Favre played in six games from November on that were in cold weather, outdoor stadium cities. That takes a toll on anybody and especially quarterbacks who have to throw in bad conditions with cold hands. Looking at the Vikings schedule this year, from November on the Vikings have just two outdoor games in cold weather cities. The warm confines of the Metrodome will keep Favre out of the elements late in the season for the most part. The Vikings also have the second easiest schedule this year in terms of strength of schedule and while this doesn’t guarantee that the Vikings will win games, there are definitely some weak teams on their schedule.
Disclaimer: Yes, I know that the Magic lost in the Finals. Stan Van Gundy and Dwight Howard deserve a lot of blame for that, but in truth, they just weren’t as good as the Lakers. They also weren’t as good as the Celtics or Cavs, but they still won because of their unique offense. I guess they got unlucky, or the Lakers were that much better than all of the teams that the Magic had conquered so far. Anyway, Because Orlando’s offense was so interesting and effective, I felt that it deserved to be studied, so here ya go. – Will
Every couple of years, every sport is faced with something that changes the game, and the way teams react to it will dictate how they will fare in the future. One of the primary game-changers in football was the Spread Offense. The Spread is employed when teams come out in the shotgun, mostly employing 3, 4, or 5 reciever sets. This offense allows for fluidity and many offensive options, and has served as the basis for some of the most influential and inventive offenses in football, Urban Meyer’s offenses at Utah and Florida that utilized the mobility and decision making of Alex Smith and Tim Tebow, Rich Rodriguez’s Spread Option at West Virginia, Hawaii’s offense that made Colt Brennan the most successful QB in the history of NCAA Football, Texas Tech’s “Air Raid” offense used to beat Texas this year, the Wildcat offense used by the Dolphins, and the now-defunct A-11 offense that you probably read a couple of articles about this year. The Spread Offense is (pardon the pun) spreading, and has to be recognized and planned for by defenses. Playing with the spread involves increasing a team’s overall speed, because they have to be able to take advantage of the vertical seams that are created in the defense. Defending the spread also requires increased speed, in order to fill these channels. Disparities in team speed can be disastrous for the slower team, as could be seen in the case of the 2007 BCS Championship Game, where the zippy Florida Gators trounced the hulking favorites, Ohio State, 41-14.
One may ask, when reading that first section, “What the hell does this have to do with the Orlando Magic, Will? How does a football offense relate to the offense the Magic employ?” Patience, dear reader. As a Celtics fan, I was hugely frustrated by the way Orlando played basketball. They didn’t attempt to duplicate the Celtic’s excellent ball movement, and Ray Allen’s amazing ability to come off screens, or Kendrick Perkins’ solid post moves. No, they were content to feed the ball to Dwight, have the defense collapse around him, and have him kick it out to an open Rashard Lewis/Hedo Turkoglu/Rafer Alston/Mickael Pietrus/Courtney Lee/J.J. Redick for an open three, which inevitably dropped in. Sure, Hedo and Lewis would occasionally hit midrange jumpers, and Pietrus would throw down a dunk or two, but most of the Magic’s O was built upon the three. On the inside, Perkins defended Howard fairly well, but oftentimes when Dwight didn’t get doubled he wouldn’t deal with the semantics of a skyhook, an up an under, or any other low post moves. He’d just dunk. However, his presence is even more important on the defensive end of the court, and he ran away with the blocks title and was a beast on the boards. Howard’s defensive domination allowed the Magic to play Rashard Lewis at 4 and Hedo Turkoglu at 3, who aren’t exactly Bill Walton and Scottie Pippen on the defensive end. ‘Shard and Turkoglu make up for their defensive uselessness by being great three point shooters.
As unique as this 4-out 1-in offensive system is to the NBA, it, like the spread offense, rose to the pros after being used successfully in college. It is a distant cousin of Memphis’s Dribble-Drive offense, which you can read about here. Pittsburgh and Villanova, who met in the Elite Eight this year, were probably the most well-known of those that used the 4-out 1-in, and they both used it very effectively. Pitt in particular had very similar personnel to the Magic, with a dominating inside presence, (Dejuan Blair) and a stable of solid perimeter shooters (Sam Young, Levance Fields, Brad Wanamaker, Jermaine Dixon, Ashton Gibbs.) Anyway, there are a few reasons I made the comparison between Orlando’s offense and football’s spread offense. One reason is that they are ostensibly similar, as they both spread out the defense and take advantage of the increased space. Another is that they have a similar etymology, coming up from the college ranks to be used in the pros. A third is that they both require very specific personnel. The spread requires speedy receivers, and a quarterback who can be both a field general and a mobile threat, a la Tebow, Brennan (sorta), and Graham Harrell. The Magic’s offense also requires 3 or 4 three point threats on the court at once, and a defensively dominating center who demands a double team. Because Orlando was so effective in the Conference Semis and Conference Finals with this offense, when I was thinking of ways to improve it, I couldn’t come up with any strategic improvements, but only better players to pull off the roles. So I decided to share my idea of what a perfect team running Orlando’s 4-out 1-in spread offense would look like. I have figured out everyone’s role and found a player who could play it better. Of course, I stayed under the Magic’s current salary, $68,713,618. I also tried to make it realistic, as there’s no way that you could have a team of all-stars, even if their salaries worked out. People would start bitching about playing time and fighting over groupies, and it would just be a mess. (I’m not including Jameer Nelson in this, as they played much better without him during the playoffs.)
Editor’s Note: Introducing yet another new writer to theSportsGeeks.com. Here’s Matt’s first post. There are a lot of video links on this one. Click them; its worth it.
Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the NBA. All pictures and videos are property of their respective copyright owners. Please don’t fine me for criticizing officials, Mr. Stern. I don’t have 25,000 dollars! I’m just joking! Really!
I recently visited NBA.com to settle an argument about the kickball rule. While on the site, I stumbled upon a link to “Ask Bernie [Director of Officiating].” I thought about how helpful it was that Bernie would answer questions from referees about some of the trickier rules, but to my surprise, the page was meant for fans!
But what about our dear officials? They certainly have questions too! As a true fan, I’m here to help out the NBA in any way I can. Here’s an FAQ for some of our referees’ biggest questions because clearly they need some help.
Sports fans have a habbit of assigning nicknames to everything. Players, coaches, even stadiums and arenas. Here are, in my opinion, the top 10 sporting venue nicknames in the U.S. along with a bit of info about each stadium (and whatever else I dug up that happened to be interesting).
A few that didn’t quite make the list: “The Dean Dome” (Dean Smith Center, Chappel Hill, NC), “The Trop” (Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL), “The Igloo” (Mellon Arena, Pittsburgh, PA), “The Q” (Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, OH).
10. “The Vet” – Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia, PA - Some of the nicknames on this list have someone mysterious origins, but its not hard to imagine how someone came up with “The Vet”. Once home to the Phillies and the Eagles, the stadium, destroyed in 2004, was notorious for the poorly installed artificial surface, so much so that the turf earned its own nickname: “Field of Seams.” Even after the turf was redone, Baltimore Ravens’ coach Brian Billick refused to let his team take the field for a preseason game after seeing the condition, resulting in the cancellation of the game.
9. “Death Valley” – Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, LA – Home of the Louisiana State University Tigers, “Death Valley” is widely regarded as the loudest stadium in college football, with recorded decibel noise levels of 119 and 130. The nickname was originally “deaf valley” because of the voluminous cheering of the 92,000 fans, but over time, I was misunderstood and became “Death Valley”. Clemson fans call their stadium “Death Valley” too, but I’d give the nod to LSU because of the program’s overall reputation and recent success.
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