Welcome Back NBA

ITS OVER!!!  The NBA Lockout ended just in time to salvage a season which starts on Christmas day.  The lockout ended so abruptly that it seems the players and owners decided that having a season is more important than actually fixing the issues at hand.  I'm not complaining in fact I support the decision to remember the fans and give them something to cheer for.  The funny part is that since the league was so eager to end the lockout and salvage the season, some of the new rules set in place aren't clearly defined.  Take the new amnesty clause as an example.  This clause allows teams to choose one existing contract to eliminate so that it doesn't affect there salary cap or luxury tax.  The player is then bid upon by teams under the salary cap with the highest bidder getting the player.  If nobody bids on the player they can then go anywhere.  This is a timely rule which saves the owners from over paying underachieving players, but nobody has any clue how the bidding is supposed to work because the league is still working that out.  Also both sides basically agreed to put off the lockout until a later date because the players are required to give back very little of their BRI (Basketball Related Income).  Another huge fact is that both sides have the option to opted out of the contract after 6 years of the 10 year contract.  This foreshadows an even nastier lockout in the near future, but lets try not to dwell on that.

I am excited to see how the free agency situation ends up this year because we have already had many trade rumors and a vetoed trade.  This vetoed trade is something unprecedented in any other sport because it is rare that the league owns a team going into the off-season as the NBA owns the New Orleans Hornets.  Stern said he rejected the three team trade that would send Chris Paul to the Lakers because he wants younger players or draft picks for the Hornets so they are a more appealing team to potential buyers.  This is a baffling situation where the commissioner has the ability to dictate whether a trade is allowed to happen even when the trade fits the guidelines set in place.  In a league where players are pretty much allowed to dictate where they want to go this move is a step in the right direction in my eyes.  The new labor deal also did a good job of limiting this in the future by cutting down on teams ability to sign and trade.  There are three big free agents in this year's free agency pool:  Nene, Tyson Chandler, and Marc Gasol.  This may seem relatively unexciting, but with Chris Paul and Dwight Howard supposedly wanting out the trade possibilities are numerous for any team with a valuable trading chips.  I would like to see the Warriors go after a big free agent center with their newly freed up cap room (gained by the Biedrins amnesty) but they can also trade for one with their numerous trading chips.  With some fancy off-season maneuvering the Warriors can set themselves up nicely for the upcoming season.  Let the games begin.

Still Locked Out, Red Hot 49ers, and College Football Rant

With the NBA still locked out, the outlook isn't a positive one for the 2011-2012 season.  The negotiation attempts have reached a dead end of greed and finger pointing as the players are now trying to sue the owners by claiming that they were illegally locked out.  This is a sad day when the legal mumbo jumbo and reality of the world has invaded the very thing we turn to in attempt to avoid it.  While the NBA sorts out their mess of a lockout I have no choice but to turn to football at this time of year.

Luckily, the 49ers are looking the best they have in recent years moving to 8-1 with their great win over the Giants in week 10.  Alex Smith settled the debate over whether or not he is an elite quarterback in the NFL with his performance last Sunday by picking apart the Giants defense for 242 yard and one touchdown.  Although Eli Manning finished with better numbers (311 yards 2 TDs and 2 INts) Alex Smith proved to be the better quarterback by coming up with a number of clutch throws down the stretch.  Ultimately the driving force behind this victory was once again the defense.  They picked off Eli Manning twice and limited RB Brandon Jacobs to 55 yards.  Harbaugh seems to have found the winning formula as the 49ers have already passed their win total for last year.  The 49ers play the 3-6 Cardinals next week and the Ravens on Thanksgiving night.  This season looks to be full of excitement for the 49ers and I can't wait to see more.

One last note on how deeply flawed the college football system is.  As some of you may know fourth ranked Stanford lost to seventh ranked Oregon last Saturday and because of the absence of a college playoff system this was essentially a must-win if they wanted a shot at the Pac-12 championship.  The college is more worried about keeping the advertisers that support the bowl games and fund the leagues than providing an environment where the top ranked teams all have an equal shot at the national title.  Due to the college bowl system only two teams essentially have a shot at the national title.  No other sport allows only the best two teams to fight for the title and also allow teams to be determined better than each other without ever playing the other team.  At a certain point as a fan your not that thrilled if your team is competing in the frito bean-dip bowl and even if you win you're unsure of what the win means.  College basketball's March Madness system provides the best experience for the fan and allows every team in the tournament an equal shot at the title.  I know that playing a 64-team football tournament is next to impossible due to the violence of the sport, but I"m just asking that college football think of its fans and teams involved rather than selling out to big corporations.

Exciting MLB Playoffs and A Look at the Old School NBA

Wow, this year’s playoffs have been a non-stop roller coaster ride of emotions complete with Cinderella stories and thrilling games that have come down to the wire.  I realize that my predictions have been completely incorrect due to the fact that neither of the teams I predicted to be in the World Series made it out of the first round.  Nonetheless, the playoffs have still proved to be entertaining with the Cardinals coming out of nowhere to take the National League by storm and the Rangers proving that they are a force to be reckoned with in the American League.  The series so far has been close, in Game 6 the Cardinals snatched victory from the jaws of defeat after being down to their last strike 2 times during the late innings.  David Freese came up with a 2 run triple in the bottom of the 9th to tie up the game and continue the Cardinals season.  Lance Berkman also came up with a game tying 1 run single in the bottom of the 10th to keep the Cardinal fans' dreams alive.  After escaping elimination twice David Freese provided the finishing blow with a solo walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th inning.  With Game 7 on Friday at 5:00 pm the series is up for grabs and if Game 7 is half as entertaining as Game 6 I am excited to see the tension build until one team can overcome the adversity and win the ultimate title in baseball, the World Series Trophy.  I am predicting (against my better judgment) that the Cardinals narrow escape in Game 6 is foreshadowing as to what will happen in Game 7 and their resiliency to defeat will allow them to triumph over the Rangers.

With the NBA still M.I.A (Missing In Action) I have turned to the NBA channel's reruns of classic games, dating back to the 1970's up to the 1990's, to quench my basketball thirst.  In watching these games I have realized the following 5 reasons why the old NBA is better than the current NBA:

1. Players were loyal to their teams rather than jumping around from team to team seeking the biggest contract.  The latest example being Lebron leaving his hometown to join his competition of D-Wade and Chris Bosh when Micheal Jordan, in a similar situation decided to build a team around him to combat his competition.
2. The rivalries weren't taken personally.  Back in the day the Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson rivalry reigned supreme as the best rivalry in basketball.  These two players had nothing personal against each other; they just enjoyed beating each other.  These days most NBA stars preference is to call each other out on twitter rather than settling it on the court.
3. The lack of court side advertisements and the fact that weight lifting was not encouraged back in the day gave the game a more homely feel.  The best players were the players with the best skill set rather than the most explosive or powerful player.  Most athletes back in the day looked like regular people you would meet on the street and weren't recognizable unlike the celebrities that the NBA players of the modern era have been built up to be.
4. Referees called the game without the offensive bias that exists today.  In the classic NBA the defender was entitled to his space and the offensive player wasn't allowed to go through the defender on his drive to the basket.  Being defensive minded myself, I hate seeing good defense be ruined by the fact that the offensive player is allowed to go through the defender to get to the rim.
5. The all-star games were competitive basketball games throughout the whole game instead of the modern pattern of a skill showcase for the last three quarters and a competitive last quarter.  Players back in the day played good defense and hustled every play of the all-star games of the era which ultimately made the all-star games better quality games.  Nowadays the all-star games are more of a marketing opportunity than an opportunity to watch a quality basketball game.

So whether the NBA decides that their fans are more important than their personal wealth or not I will be plenty happy watching the classic NBA games being replayed on the NBA channel.

What's Going on in the NBA... and NFL Mid-Season Thoughts

As the days creep on into mid-October the NBA's future is still yet to be determined.  Coverage of the negotiations has been sparse, but it doesn't seem as if either side will budge on their views.  I remember back when the NFL lockout had just been resolved, I heard that the NBA lockout was a more serious matter. I thought at the time it was just an advertising strategy just as with the NFL lockout,but now that the lockout is months old that claim seems to have been a viable one.  The players and owners are just hurting themselves by continuing this lockout as we are seeing support for the NBA diminish due to anger over the two rich parties arguing about how much money each side will get.  Looking back the lockout has been brewing for a couple of years now because the NBA has been slowly pampering its players with bigger contracts and more freedom.  Who would have guessed that when this went to far for the owners to handle that the players would be reluctant to give up that power?  With rumors that an NBA season is in jeopardy of being cancelled I have chosen to ignore this rich soap opera and focus on the NFL season already in progress.

The NFL season so far has had its surprises, tragedies, and upsets.  The San Francisco 49ers have a record of 4-1 and the Oakland Raiders are sitting at 3-2.  Being both a 49er fan and a Stanford fan I came into the season ecstatic at the decision to hire Jim Harbaugh and he has proved his worth in the first 5 games.  I'm especially excited to see what he has done with QB Alex Smith and the revamped offensive attack.  He has simplified Alex Smiths role so that he can utilize his talents and take much of the pressure off of him that has built up over the years.  Although some of the wins haven't been pretty so far they have gotten the job done with the assets they have, using their tight-ends effectively and putting an emphasis on their power run game.  A major concern I have is the season-ending injury to wide-receiver Josh Morgan.  Josh Morgan was the leading wide-receiver on the team 15 catches for 220 yards and 1 touchdown.  This blow to an already struggling passing attack doesn't bode well for their chances against the 5-0 Detroit Lions in their upcoming game.  Nevertheless the 49ers are leading a struggling division and seem to be the favorite to win their division if they continue their outstanding performance throughout the rest of the season.

Crazy Finish, Season Wrap-up and Playoffs Preview

Let me start this post by apologizing if I don't sound as motivated to post this week because, as some of you may know, the Red Sox lost the wild card yesterday after a record of 7 wins and 20 losses in the month of September.  The Red Sox and Rays entered Wednesday tied for the wildcard lead in the American League.  The Red Sox were leading 3-2 over the Baltimore Orioles and Papelbon came in to close out the ninth.  The Orioles eventually tied and won the game on a couple of two out hits striking a crushing blow to the Sox's season.  Meanwhile the Rays had come back from a 7-0 deficit against the Yankees and in the bottom of the 12th inning Evan Longoria hit a walk-off homerun to send the Rays into the playoffs.  I just want to start by saying that I'm not mad nor surprised at these turn of events due to they injuries the pitching staff sustained and the key loss of Kevin Youkilis down the stretch.  I am however upset that we paid Carl Crawford 14 million dollars this year to hit a measly .255 with 56 RBIs and the fact that Lackey was supposed to help our rotation, instead had a 6.41 ERA (plus he strikes me as just a bad person to have on a team).

There has been a lot of debate surrounding the MVP of the American League and whether it can be awarded to a pitcher even though there is already a Cy Young award.  In my opinion, for a player to be determined as the most valuable to their team you should take the candidate and replace him with a mediocre player and see if the team would still be where they are at the end of the season.  Due to my interpretation of the award I would give it to Michael Young in the AL and Ryan Braun in the NL.  Michael YOung not only hit .338 with 106 RBIs for the Rangers but he also helped fill many gaps in the infield they had due to injury throughout the season.  Ryan Braun for the Brewers hit .332 with 33 homeruns and 111 RBIs and was a key contributor down the stretch for Milwaukee.  The Cy Young award in both leagues has a clear cut winner in my opinion with Justin Verlander in the AL and Ian Kennedy in the NL.

The playoffs this year should be interesting due to the last second changes in the Wild Card races.  I am predicting that the Rays and Tigers will meet in the American League Championship series with the Rays beating the Rangers, because the Rays are coming in Red hot and ready for the playoffs, and the Tigers beating the Yankees because of their superior pitching.  The National League Division series' should be easier to predict, I have the Brewers beating the Diamondbacks and the Phillies beating the Cardinals.  In the ALCS it will be close and most likely go seven games, but I'm giving the Rays the edge because they can match up with the Tigers pitching wise and have better clutch hitters (such as Longoria, Matt Joyce, and Dan Johnson). In the NLCS I'm predicting the Phillies will win in five games due to their outstanding pitching and the Brewers lack of a solid, reliable rotation.  Now on to the World Series, I guessing that the Phillies will win it in six games due in large part to their solid pitching rotation and experienced bullpen.  This experienced pitching staff will know how to pitch to Longoria, Joyce, and Johnson and not allow them the chance to perform in clutch situations.

Although the Red Sox, A's, or Giants didn't make the playoffs this year my love of baseball and excitement for the playoffs has not been dampened.  Until next time, I hope you enjoyed and will continue to enjoy my blog. See ya! 

A Sports journalist life is the life for me

As this is my first blog post I will explain what will be happening in this blog.  My aspiration in life is to move to Boston and cover all Boston sports in either a magazine or newspaper.  My Dad was a Red Sox fan in the Carl Yastrzemski and Ted Williams era and I have been brought up to love not only the Red Sox, but the Boston culture as well.  I'm sad to say i have never been to Boston or Fenway park, but my Dad has been and sold me on the sheer beauty and history of the place.  In this blog i will not only be covering Boston sports, but also my thoughts on the Bay area teams such as the Warriors, Giants, A's, 49ers, and Raiders.  I am hoping this blog is the first step on the path to my dream life and a good way to get my ideas out.  Until we meet again, enjoy.