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I was wrong, but …

Tuesday, April 8th, 2008

John Calipari's Memphis team fell apart at the end, by not making their free throws, and Kansas is the best team this season. I still like Calipari as a coach, but Bill Self won the battle last night.

I do have a problem with the end of basketball games. We generally watch 38 minutes of good college basketball and then we play a free-throw, 3-point shooting contest. Heck, we might as well stop the game and vote on a slam dunk contest. In the NBA, shot clock and inbounds rules change the way the game is played in the end.

Change the rule so that after 10 team fouls the team gets two free throws and the ball back.

Playing the regular game, Memphis won last night. But as soon as we stop playing basketball and play the foul (smelling) game, we got a different champion.

Folks want to know why TV ratings are down for NBA and college basketball; all I know is it is pretty unanimous that the end of games make for awful TV.

Can't believe this …

Monday, April 7th, 2008

Here are some things that I find interesting:

– Why does Memphis coach John Calipari get no credit for being a good basketball coach? I know that he can recruit, that he took UMass to the Final Four and that his teams have never gone on probabtion. I know that he struggled in the NBA, but he knows what he is doing on the college level. He outcoached Ben Howland of UCLA, and I expect the same thing tonight against Bill Self and Kansas.

– We received our shipment of MLB media guides this morning, what team do you think produced the thickest book? Try the Tampa Bay Rays. 576 pages; it works out to nearly a page per all-time victories. Very strange.

– If the Cavs end up fifth and then lose in the first round of the playoffs to the Washington Wizards, we all know the calls will be loud for coach Mike Brown to be fired. My guess is that won't happen. I think it is more likely that GM Danny Ferry gets bounced, but even writing that, don't look for a cleaning out of the Cavs by Dan Gilbert.

– Browns GM Phil Savage says he isn't going to trade up in this year's draft. And that is the correct choice. First, I don't think he has anything to trade beside next year's No. 1 or Brady Quinn, and Quinn isn't going anywhere this year. Check back on that this time next season if Derek Anderson goes to the Pro Bowl again. Lastly, Savage has built this team to win now, so he should give it a shot and see what happens this season.

– The first week was choppy for the Tribe, but a heck of a lot better than the Detroit Tigers'. Talk about flaming out.

And another thing …

Monday, October 8th, 2007

The Cavaliers are doing the right thing. They should not give into the demands of Anderson Varejao or Sasha Pavlovic. … The Indians bullpen is the reason they are where they are, and it will be what decides if they win the World Series or not. … Jamal Lewis being healthy is the difference between 8 wins and 5 or 6 wins for the Browns.

Will any team be undefeated in college football come November? … The Big Ten Network has been a dud. … By the way, that will be the only way to watch the OSU-Kent State game Saturday. … I don't think you will miss much.

Roger Clemens, Cooperstown is calling. It is time to trigger your five-year wait. … Dan O'Dowd of the Rockies and Josh Byrnes of the Diamondbacks; both GMs, also both former members of the Tribe front office. … No wonder the Pirates hired Neal Huntington as GM; the Tribe knows how to grow great front office folks.

Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon? I am pulling for Gordon. … Mike Tirico is everywhere.

Cavs grade

Wednesday, August 29th, 2007

Marty Burns of SI.com grades the offseasons for teams in the NBA's Central Division. The Cavaliers got a C.

NBA matters again

Tuesday, July 31st, 2007

The trade of Kevin Garnett to the Boston Celtics is great for the NBA for two reasons. One, one of their classic franchise is in the news for a good reason, and two, with the Eastern Conference weak, it will make the playoffs more interesting.

It also will drive TV audience. Don't forget it is all about TV and the power of the NBA is in the west. Not a good thing for the league.

Take the Celtics to the Western Conference, who knows if they make the playoffs. In the East, they are right there with the Pistons and Cavs.

This is like the trade of Charles Barkley to the Rockets to team with Olajuwon and Drexler.

KG and Paul Pierce and Ray Allen isn't bad. It might be getting old but it isn't bad.

NBA problems

Monday, July 23rd, 2007

Fixing a game is bad enough but Bill Simmons of ESPN.com sums up the problems of the NBA quite well.

Here is a link.

Draft night

Thursday, June 28th, 2007

I remember when the joke was that ESPN was going to broadcast the entire NFL Draft.

Now the baseball draft is (awful) TV but nonetheless is on TV. The NHL Draft is prime time on a Friday night.

Then today I am sitting with my family for lunch at a national restaurant chain and what do I see 7 hours, let me repeat: 7 HOURS, before the draft … THE PREDRAFT SHOW.

Amazing!

Forward/backward

Monday, June 25th, 2007

A look back at the weekend and what is ahead:

The Indians can't seem to get their hitting machine rolling. It is now the end of June and Travis Hafner still is not hitting. That is the bad news. The good news is the Tigers are only 2 games ahead and the Indians lead the wild-card race.

Juan Pablo Montoya won the Nextel Cup race in Sonoma, Calif. It was his first win, but more important for NASCAR, it was a minority driver who won the race. With Lewis Hamilton, a black man, winning twice in Formula One, NASCAR has been getting more questions about its minority program. Montoya's win shows NASCAR is making progress.

Does anybody really care to hear about Kobe Bryant every day? Enough already ESPN.

All indications are that Brady Quinn is going to need a lot of work to be of any good to the Browns this season. Now we see why most didn't think he was a high first-round prospect.

The Cavaliers have a lot of value with veteran contracts that are going to expire after next season. In today's NBA, those can be more valuable than gaining a real player.

Ohio State football is being talked about as being the fourth best team in the Big Ten this season behind Wisconsin, Michigan and Penn State. I just don't see Penn State being better than the Buckeyes. The other two should be, but the Badgers will be like the Buckeyes, going with an inexperienced quarterback.

Greg Oden and Kevin Durant or should I say Kevin Durant and Greg Oden. I think Oden will go first, but the NBA, despite the players being on the West Coast, has to be happy that these two will be playing against each other in the same division for years to come.

As for the draft, I think the Cavs will pass on trading into the proceedings.

Paul Tracy, the Canadian driver, continues to race well in Cleveland. Kudos to Tracy.

Wimbledon gets started today …. wake me when it's over. Speaking of Wimbledon, when it was great in the 80s and 90s, we couldn't watch the early rounds because it was on HBO. Now that it is on ESPN, I see no reason to watch.

It doesn't register on most sports fans' radars, but it was good to see the United States win the Gold Cup this weekend, beating Mexico 2-1. It bodes well for Bob Bradley's plan for the National Team.

TV note from SI

Monday, June 18th, 2007

I have pointed out how inept the NBA is on TV and the lack of folks interested in it, even with LeBron James on center stage.

Well here is more proof from Peter King of SI:


There are approximately 113 million television households in the United States, and the average rating for the NBA Championship Series showed that 6.9 million households watched the series between Cleveland and San Antonio.

Remember the late-night Monday night opener on ESPN last year between Oakland and San Diego? Awful game. San Diego won, 27-0. It was pretty much over at the half, when the Chargers led 13-0 and the Raiders couldn't get out of their own way on offense. The game — after a weekend that started with Thursday night football, went into Sunday afternoon football and Sunday night football, and had a Monday night game before the second game on the West Coast — started at 10:25 p.m. EST and ended at 1:14 a.m. Tuesday. And it was on cable TV, which gets a lower rating anyway because not every TV household in America is wired for cable.

The Raiders-Chargers debacle was seen by 7.9 million American TV households.

We all know football is king in this country, but if the best the NBA has to offer gets trounced by the worst the NFL has to offer … well, the NBA is in more than a little trouble.

Baseball on my mind

Monday, June 18th, 2007

Well, this is the time of the year when baseball becomes the focus.

The NBA and NHL are over. The draft looks to be pretty quiet on the home fronts.

Golf doesn't get back on the radar scene until the British Open and Bridgestone until later in July.

NASCAR has had the Dale Jr. saga end. Only the Pepsi 400 is a big race in July.

The Browns and the NFL are on vacation until the end of July.

So really, it is baseball time. Time to talk Tribe chances of trade, who makes the all-star game and, as always, Barry Bonds.

Enjoy the lull in the schedule.