NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says the NFL has “not found a saturation point for pro football, which is a good thing. I don’t want to be around if we do.” Are you sure, Roger? Regarding the NFL expanding to 17 or 18 (we all know he’s looking at 18) regular season games, Goodell said, “The idea has merit, I think. You are taking the quality and improving it, taking two meaningless games and making them meaningful within the 20-game framework.” Uh, no. You are taking away two games in the pre-season that coaches use to coach and evaluate talent with the intent of putting the best players on the roster, and expecting to have the same product. You are not taking the quality and improving it. You are just expanding it, which as we all know from the history of professional sports leagues in America, means watering it down. What NFL fan wouldn’t salivate over seeing more players getting injured, more opportunities for your officials to be scrutinized, more examples of a lack of depth in this free agent/salary cap era, and the overall quality that Goodell speaks of being compromised? Hey, don’t sign ME up. It ain’t broke, but let’s fix it anyway. Best of luck to you, Roger. Now run along and schedule a Super Bowl in London. Can we have the World Cricket Championship in return? Please say yes.
Here’s hoping that Yao Ming can stay healthy for the remainder of his years in the NBA. If he does, the young NBA fans can see the kind of center play that those of use from yesteryear witnessed on a regular basis. It used to be commonplace for a big man to have an inside game on both ends of the floor, an attitude, a mid-range game, and be able to shoot free throws. It saddens me as a lover of the game of basketball that in the last ten or fifteen years Shaquille O’Neal and later Dwight Howard have been referred to as great centers. But I’m still convinced Moses Malone work either of them pretty good over a seven game series. Like Moses, Ming has the game to make other centers Wilt with his game. If you haven’t already, it’s time to enjoy the play of the best center of our era, Mr. Yao.
The commercial that keeps running during the NBA playoffs where amazing happens, when Kobe hits the shot versus the Suns to win the game, cracks me up. That’s the same series where Kobe took a big dump in game seven, taking one shot in the second half while his teammates were looking for something, anything, before going down to defeat. Now THAT was amazing. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Kobe hater. I just feel the need to point out things. I actually enjoy the commercial, really. Irony is one of my favorite aspects of sports.
Why is Joey Crawford still officiating NBA games? Did he win a bet with Tim Donaghy and/or David Stern? Any information on the matter would be welcomed.
Detroit Lions front office, listen up, if it’s not too late. Matthew Stafford, no. Aaron Curry, yes. I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention, but a quarterback taken in your position is not a wise pick. Have you been paying attention to the Oakland Raiders the last few years? They’ve drafted quarterbacks Andrew Walter from ASU and Jemarcus Russell from LSU in the first round. Neither of which filled any of the gaping holes they had on either side of the line of scrimmage. In the right situation, both could be very good QBs in the NFL. But that situation is not applicable here, so fill some other holes and go with the QB you already have. Or get one in the later rounds. QB or not QB is not going to make the difference anytime soon, trust me. And why you and other teams constantly fail to realize that is beyond me. Besides, Curry said he would welcome the opportunity to make you better, and for less money. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. And more importantly, don’t outthink yourself or the process.
Anquan Boldin will still be a Cardinal come Monday, and will have an extension before next season. Any thoughts to the contrary are simply not worth discussing.
Okay, I’m done. For now. Thanks for taking the time to read.
Photo from Yahoo sports/Getty Images.
Can I reserve my cricket tickets now?
I don’t know who the best center of our era is, but I’m not certain it’s Yao…even if you toss out his durability concerns. If you take just a very basic stat, Shaq actually comes out as the more efficient overall scorer (career averages).
Points per field goal attempt:
Yao – 1.44 (19.1 PPG, 13.3A)
Shaq – 1.47 (24.7 PPG, 16.8A)
(let me know if I goofed the numbers somewhere. it happens)
Even more tilted towards Shaq if you look at this year’s totals. Of course, that’s just one number…which doesn’t tell the whole story. But it’s a starting point.
I think it’s easier to appreciate Yao’s game because his free throw percentage and shooting range seems to indicate a certain work ethic that others like Shaq & Dwight don’t have. Hell, missed free throws are a pet peeve of mine, too. But Yao has his weaknesses as well…like mobility.
I guess I saw that come into play a couple of years ago when they faced the Jazz in the first round. We all know how bad the Jazz suck on interior defense. But they put him well below 50% FG, and up to around 5 turnovers a game. And maybe more importantly, Boozer & Okur eventually figured out a way to abuse him on offense…by attacking his lack of mobility.
Anyway, I’m really not trying to tear down his game…because I really do understand your point. Just finally found something I could disagree with you on a bit, thought it would be interesting to discuss. Yao really is an incredible player, it would be great if he could stay healthy.
I guess my point is that our era is defined by centers who all have weaknesses, all incomplete as basketball players. But at least in Yao’s case, his only real weakness is a physical limitation beyond his control. Guys like Dwight and Shaq, it’s more of falling back on their natural abilities…and not working on all areas of their game.
Left by ShooterB on April 27th, 2009