No Country

After thinking about it for a little over a week, I liked this movie a lot. I think.

I'm starting to feel.....a draft?

Here are my top five prospects for next weeks draft. This doesn’t seem like a great draft so I’ll focus on the top and maybe later on the picks themselves. I don’t have too much to say about the playoffs because it has all been said. Shaq is a shell of himself but I would almost give anything to see the big guy hoist the trophy tonight. Mark Cuban has gone from a guy I like to a complete cry-baby-tool in one week. That’s saying something.

*Andrea Bargnani
A legitimate seven footer. Can catch and shoot as well as create his own shot with the ball in his hands. When plays in the post, scores moving toward the basket as apposed to settling for less contact by fading away. Playing successfully in Italy/Euroleague for a good club. Uses his size well to get rebounds. Not a great jumper or athlete but has good timing on defense for blocking shots and has great timing on offence for getting his shot off. Can jump a little and will dunk in the flow of the game but he’s not going to win any dunk contests. Needs to get stronger to be able to finish plays in the NBA.

*Tyrus Thomas
A great athlete with a good feel for the game. A great shot blocker with the tools and the knowledge to alter the offense’s team mentality. Plays great defense with his hands and shows quick lateral movement to be able to stay in front of his man. Can handle the ball a little, that matched with his mid-range game and his speed make him a triple-threat(drive, shoot, or pass -probably in that order). An old freshman, will be 20 this year. Biggest negative is his size. Measured in at 6'8 with shoes on. Not sure if he has the size to play PF or the skills to play SF. I would think he will end up as a PF.

*Rudy Gay
A great athlete. Can do almost everything well. Great finisher and has good speed. A pure all-around talent as a SF. Rumored to have outplayed Morrison at private workouts. Has great physical tools but his heart has been questioned. Has not needed to be "the guy" on great UCONN teams. We will see soon if he can achieve his full potential.

*LaMarcus Aldridge
Great size and athleticism. Good skill set. Can shoot well, handle the ball well(for 6'11) and will dunk when given the opportunity. Gets up and down the court quick. Good timing and jumping ability make him a good shot blocker. Doesn’t like contact. Sometimes he will let the opposing player get position and then try and block the shot rather than fight him for position. Needs to get bigger. Being a good PF/C would be easier for him then being a good SF/PF. Health concerns. It’s not good when a teenager has back problems(Tyson Chandler). Good fit for an up and down team that isn’t going to need him to control the paint right away.

*Adam Morrison
Great scorer on the collegiate level. Can do some other things but scoring is his bread and butter. Is the same height as Gay and Thomas(says more about Thomas than the other two). Work ethic will not be questioned at the next level. Foot-speed has been a question but it’s hard to complain by the way he dominated the NCAA. Huge heart, one of the few players around who would rather lose a limb then lose a game. I don’t feel that his on court crying or his diabetes will be too much of a concern at the next level. Compared to Gay, it will be interesting to see which one turns out to be more successful in the NBA.

-why the pic? i'm a heels fan.-

Clippers, Strippers, and....Kurt Thomas?

Over the weekend I had the chance to attend a playoff NBA game(Clippers/Suns game 3) and a mixed martial arts match featuring the first sanctioned women’s fight in California. The fight went the distance and was surprisingly entertaining. The organizers had strippers parading around as ring girls and they danced during intermissions(fully clothed, well not fully but clothed). I would imagine that would make it a bitter-sweet night for all the feminist in attendance who came to see woman fighters finally achieve equality. There were a few more fights but not as entertaining as the chick fight.

The Clipper game was great. The crowd was loud and it came down to a last second Radmonovic missed three that would have sent it into overtime. Dunleavy left Livingston in the game for a majority of the fourth quarter for defense and when he needed a big shot he put in Cassell who put up an air-ball. Amare Stoudamire was great to watch. He didn’t play, but he danced around doing the Tony Yayo you can’t see me face thing for the entire halftime shoot around. The weirdest part of the night came a half hour after the game down at the Staples Center gift shop. Fans had gathered to purchase jerseys and Sam Cassell giant head t-shirts when Kurt Thomas showed up. He didn’t actually come in, he just stood in the doorway looking at all the people. When everyone noticed a fan yelled, "Boo Kurt Thomas, Boo Suns!". Everyone laughed but Kurt just stood there and after a while he started making the hand talking sign and shaking his head while staring at the guy. This went on for a few minutes. He just stood there, in the Clippers gift shop, looking at the clipper fans. It was weird. Oh, and Kurt Thomas is an asshole.

Tonight's Game.

I just got word that I will be attending tonight’s Clippers/Suns game. A family friend works for the Clippers. I have an Uncle who workered for the Clippers as well as the San Diego Soccers(which, believe it or not, was somewhat of a big deal at one time). Point being I get to go to clippers games for free. Also one of my Uncles best friends is an ex-NBA coach which privies me to unlimited stories of players buying a watches that cost as much as their post tax salary and a player who missed most of the regular season do to a STD and the "coverup" that ensued. I love this game! I’ll post something after the game.

It begins....

*Who am I? David from the Tri-City area. Those of you who are not familiar with the metropolis that is the Tri-City area(I’m guessing all but the 500k or so who live here), it is made up of Vista, Oceanside, and Carlsbad California. I’m sure I will get into the landscape in more detail a little later but just fyi it breaks out like this; Vista(Bista) is inland, Oceanside(Oceancrime) north coastal, and Carlsbad(C-bad) is south costal and preppie(if people even use preppie anymore).

*Why King Perkins? At the Apex of my childhood I remember watching Smooth Sam Perkins play for the Indiana Pacers on tv. I thought he must have been 40+, overweight, and his braids were struggling to hang on to his balding head. He was stretching defenses by camping out at the top of the three point line drilling three after three. He could really do nothing else, well except give six fouls. Yet there he was killing Shaq, the Orlando Magic, and any other team that had their center crash the boards or stray towards the basket to help out on defense . Now I love Shaq(no-homo), but have always been a Knick’s and Buffalo Bills fan. Since as long as I can remember, even before I knew that both teams were in New York. Anyway back to Sam, he never was my favorite player or anything, I just loved the idea of something so simple as an old fat seven footer changing how an entire team, or two, plays. And all the other names I wanted were taken.

*What will this blog be about? Mostly sports. I’m sure I will stray into other interest or experiences from time to time. But I really cannot say for sure.

*What are my qualifications/credentials? None. I love sports and my life revolves around the NBA draft. I have been blessed with a lot more player/fan interactions then most casual sports enthusiast. Other than that, like I said, none. I haven’t played sports on a higher level than highschool and I have never coached or interned. But, I’ll give this a shot anyway.