Categories
Other Sports

NBA TIME

It’s always a wonderful time to be a sports fan but there are certain times of the year when it just seems like bliss.  Today is one of them.  The NBA and college kids are now in full swing on the hardwood, football is heading to crunch time and if racing’s your thing, NASCAR is staging their own Final 4 Shootout on Sunday.  

For this sports installment, it’s time to talk NBA in November.  I know you may be spitting out your coffee and wailing, “NBA in November??  The NBA doesn’t start until the playoffs in April.  How downright stupid can you be to discuss anything other the National Football League?  That’s borderline unpatriotic Bulseyeview!  I think I hate you!”

But the beauty of the first month of the NBA season is to see which teams got it right on draft day and free agency and who got it all wrong.  It’s the ideal time for a geek with a blog (hey that’s me) to applaud or criticize the men and women who get paid to sit in the hot seat and make the big decisions.

So who got it right?  (Disclaimer- These claims are strictly the opinion of the writer based on a comprehensive analysis of box scores and internet articles, viewing NBA Gametime, Warrior telecasts, TNT and ESPN, and listening to KNBR sports talk radio)

Rookie Gold

Karl Anthony Towns (aka KAT):  It’s always a bit risky to pick a 1 and done college frosh, especially one who didn’t dominate the collegiate game, but KAT was the consensus #1 pick on all of the mock drafts and he has lived up to the hype.  Through 11 games KAT is averaging 15-10 and has proved to be a very capable defender.  At just 20 years of age this week, he’s 7’0”, 245 lbs, with quick feet and a fire to improve. As a bonus, he’ll have Kevin Garnett is his ear all season teaching him all of the tricks of the trade.  Now sit back, take a deep breath, and try to visualize the young man when he’s 23, 255 lbs and has range to the 3 point arc and can guard 3 positions.  I think he’s in the rarefied air of Anthony Davis and I’m drooling over the thought of KAT, Wiggins, LaVine, Rubio and Bjelica running the floor together over the next 3-5 years.

Kristaps Porzingis:  I loved it when Commissioner Silver announced, “With the 4th pick in the 2015 NBA draft, the New York Knicks select Kristaps Porzingis,” and the live audience almost started a riot.  The pressure on Phil Jackson was instantly ratched up to 10, but the Zen Master appeared pretty content, and yes, he was correct as usual.  Porzingas is 7’3” with a feathery touch from anywhere inside of 25’ and possesses enough athleticism to survive in the NBA now as a raw 20 year old.  He’s not a scared Euro who shies away from contact.  He seems determined to prove the detractors wrong.  I’m seeing Dirk 2.0.  I’m seeing a young man who’s going to bring glory back to the win starved Madison Square Garden audience and take NYC by storm.  Like KAT, just try to picture what KP will look like with three years of strength training and experience under his belt?  The NBA is in good hands.

All I want for Christmas is a Godzingis Tee
All I want for Christmas is a Godzingis Tee

 

Rookie Silver:  Jahil Oakfor and Emanual Mudiay have the look of 10 year starters in the NBA.

Rookie Busts:  It’s way too early to write a kid off already but I have a feeling Laker fans are going to rue the day Mitch Kupchak selected D’Angelo Russell over Porzingis (and Okafor).  And what has happened to Frank The Tank?  Another MJ lottery pick blunder?  

 

Wildcat Pipeline to the NBA

Everybody knows the well documented story of Coach Cal’s much-ballyhooed draft classes, with a record 4 lottery picks and 6 overall selections in the 2015 class alone, but did you know it’s the rookies from another Wildcats who seem to be getting the big minutes so far?  Yes I’m talking about the Arizona Wildcats here.  To date, only KAT and Willie Cauely-Stein are seeing real minutes on the floor from UK, while Stanley Johnson, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and undrafted point guard TJ McConnell are all playing major roles for their respective (and crappy) clubs.  #TheRealBasketballWildcats.

Free Agent Yes/No/Maybe:

Rockets Signing Ty Lawson – NO.  Nobody can share the ball in the backcourt with The Beard and after 11 games, the panic button was pushed.  GM Daryl Morey rolled the dice to try and find a way to get past the Warriors and after a lackadaisical 4-7 start, McHale is gone.  It seems a little premature to go to those measures but there must have been some serious internal issues between players and coach or philosophical issues between coach and GM.  Just for the heck of it I’ll blame Dwight Howard.  That guy is the Elizabeth Taylor of the NBA.

Spurs Signing LaMarcus Aldridge and David West- Yes (eventually).  The Spurs are always a methodical team who slowly ramp up for the playoffs.  Can you imagine the match up contrast if the Spurs decide to go big with some crazy lineup of Duncan, Aldridge, West, Leonard and Diaw?  Pop has a lot of pieces to play with this year and my dream is to see him match wits against Steve Kerr in the Western Conference Finals.

Clips signing Paul Pierce- Maybe.  Pierce is basically on his last legs but we all know those legs have a game winning buzzer beater coming in the playoffs this year.

Cleveland Signing Mo Williams – Yes.  LeBron needs offensive help.  Mo isn’t a splashy signing but he can shoot and score and The King needs guys around him who can score.  This could go a long ways come spring.

 

Emerging Talent from Obscurity:

  1. Alec Burks – Utah 16/gm – With Gobert, Hayward, Hood, Burke, and Burks, the Jazz are a team of young no namers on the verge of busting out.
  2. CJ McCollum – Portland 20/gm – With the defections of Aldridge and Wes Matthews, McCollum has stepped up to form a lethal backcourt with Lillard.  Too bad the rest of the team are D-Leaguers.  
  3. Evan Fournier – Orlando 19/gm – The young French bomber has found a home in Orlando as he’s become the go to guy for coach Scott Skiles.

 

Us vs Them:

Shut the borders down, these daggone foreigners keep taking jobs from us Americans.  I know that former Commissioner Stern had a vision to make the NBA a global game, but I wonder if even he had the foresight to see his plan working so quickly?  Looking around the league at all of the young upcoming players, many of them were born on foreign soil.

Example- Non USA: Wiggins, Gobert, Greek Freak, Porzingis, Dennis Schroder, Mudiay, Ezeli, Mirotic.  

And the next really big thing in the NBA, the first pick in the 2016 draft, will be Ben Simmons from Australia.

 

Warriors:

The defending champion GS Warriors are better than last year.  After an MVP season and a title, Curry went back into his lab and came back a virtuoso.  His handle and shooting stroke are similar to Steve Nash in his prime, but his range is in another dimension.  It almost feels like I’m watching a guy play a video game who spends too much time on the couch working the controller.  He can jab step in any 360 degree direction with either hand to create space and if you can stay with his first move, he’s already crossed and is by you.  Oh and if you are quick enough to recover from his counter move, he’s stopping on a dime and shooting as your momentum takes you right on by.  Beautiful to watch.  If he can sustain this freakishness and lead the Warriors to a second title over the revamped Spurs, Clips and LeBron’s crew, he’s instantly thrust into the all time great category.  

And his cast looks better than ever.  How many teams have the luxury of bringing the Finals MVP off the bench to anchor the best second unit in the game?  This allows the coaching staff to keep the minutes down and keep everybody healthy for the stretch run.   Draymond Green is playing at an all star level and Festus Ezeli is now a solid NBA big.  I honestly feel sorry for all of the hoop junkies on the East Coast who don’t get to view this performance on the nightly basis.

 

Other Observations…..Boogie Cousins, when of sound mind, may be the best player in the world.  He now strokes the 3 with the touch of a shooting guard, dribbles the rock like a point and has the post moves of a classic 5 man.  The sky’s the limit for this guy if he can keep his head on straight.  In his 7 games this season, he’s averaging 28-11 in 31 mins per game …..It’s nice to see Paul George back to full speed.  Pre leg injury he was a top 5 offensive player in the league and at 24/gm, he looks to be back…….With KD down with another injury, Russell Westbrook continues to bring it on a nightly basis with the ferociousness of a hungry junk yard dog.  Has there ever been a man with more stamina in any sport?  His body should be studied.   Two stats to make you chuckle – Andre Drummond is averaging 18.9 rebounds per game and Hassan Whiteside is averaging 4.6 blocks per game.  Combined they are like having Bill Russell on the floor…….

 

Best Hair

Not only does 2nd year Orlando PG Elfrid Payton have serious game, he’s sporting phenomenal hair.debaterookie032315mov-3553088.576x324

 

Early Season Dunk of the Year

Demar DeRozan posterizing Rudy Gobert just last night.  Yikes!

 

Now for the Silliness

The other day I was looking at box scores and came to the conclusion that most teams in the league could use a new name.  Jazz in Utah?  Lakers in LA?  It’s time for a rethink here.

Here are my picks for New Names

Western Conference:

San Francisco Disrupters

San Antonio Spurs

Dallas Mavericks

Phoenix Cougars

Los Angeles Directors (Clips)

OKC Tycoons

Denver Skunky Nuggets

Memphis Grillers

Utah Latter-day Saints

Minnesota Lottery Pickers

Houston Sprawl

Sacramento Ranadive’s

Portland Craft Brewers

Los Angeles Producers (Lakers)

New Orleans Funk

 

Eastern Conference:

Cleveland ‘Brons

Chicago Bulls

Atlanta Dirty Dirties

Boston Celtics

Miami Bling Blings

Toronto Neighbors

Washington Bureaucrats

Indiana 500’s

Detroit Pistons

New York Knickerbockers

Milwaukee Beers

Orlando Mystery

Charlotte Southern Gentlemen

Brooklyn Hipsters

Philadelphia 76ers

 

I’m getting a laugh over the thought of Mike Tirico saying the following on air:

“Tune in tomorrow for the The Funk taking on the Dirty Dirties in the early game followed by The Directors vs The Producers in the nightcap.”

Enjoy the season and check back here before the playoffs for more exciting basketball discussion!.

Categories
2015 Racing Season

The New Unofficial F1 Weekend Format

It’s my understanding that the FIA is actively seeking recommendations for improving the F1 race weekend experience and after a few closed door meetings, the geniuses involved were unable to come up with any solutions that trump the current format.

Well, this is an opinion from the wrong side of the fence.

In the simplest terms possible, here is an easy solution for enhancing the fan experience, brought to you by a man who has invested way too much time and money into being an F1 aficionado.

For starters, here are my requirements for the on track entertainment that travels to all 18-22 venues with the big show.

  1. F1
  2. GP2
  3. Porsche Supercup
  4. Past F1 Driver Touring Car Shootout

These 4 classes would keep the masses entertained for three days.  I’m already loving the thought of Mika Hakkinen punting Nigel Mansell at Copse and sending the crowd into a frenzy.

3 DAY FORMAT:

Friday

  • 10:00 – 11:00: F1 Free Practice 1:  Nothing like traveling hundreds or thousands of miles and getting to the track on Friday AM all revved up for the first car on track.  It has to be an F1 car.  (And it has to be loud).
  • 12:00 – 2:30:  Support Series Practice
  • 3:00 – 4:00:  F1 FP2
  • 4:15 – 5:15:  REWARD THE BUZZARDS – Pit straight is opened to the fans for 1 hour to walk down and look into the garages.  Teams have to keep the doors open AND drivers have to hang around to greet their fans.  I know, poor guys have to slum it for a bit.  I can already see the promoters pulling their hair out over this proposal, but it needs to be done.  Sure there will be a few drunks or over zealous buzzards to police, but they can manage I’m sure.

 

Saturday

  • 8:00 – 10:30:  Support Series Qualifying
  • 11:00 – 12:00:  F1 FP3
  • 1:00 – 2:30:  F1 Qualifying
  • 3:00 – 3:30 – Past F1 Driver Touring Car Shootout Race 1
  • 4:00 – 5:30 GP2 Feature Race

 

Sunday

  • 9:00 – 10:00:  Porsche Supercup Race
  • 10:30 – 11:00:  Past F1 Driver Touring Car Shootout Race 2
  • 11:30 – 12:30: GP2 Sprint Race
  • 2:00 – 4:00:  F1 Race
  • 4:15: Track gates open to allow spectators to walk the track and run for the podium.

 

For traffic management purposes, give the fans the option of sticking around and watching Manu Chao do a 90 minute concert in the infield after every race. (is there anybody with more world appeal than Manu?)

This is so simple, yet so pleasing.

One other piece of business:  Simply watching and listening to F1 cars is no longer enough to satisfy our frenetic minds, so we need to be able to interact with F1 through our mobile devices as well.  My thoughts, take a page straight out of the NFL book and push fantasy racing leagues.  Fan Duels.  Draft Kings.  PROMOTE GAMBLING!

My game would look something like this:

Pick 10 head to head match-ups, determined after qualifying on Saturday (ex. Nico vs Lewis, Perez vs Hulkenberg), and then rank them 1-10 by the level you feel comfortable with.  If you are positive that Verstappen is going to beat Sainz, then make that your #1 head to head pick that is worth 50 points.

Example:

50 points – Head to Head Pick 1 (ex Verstappen def Sainz)

40 points – Head to Head Pick 2 (ex Vettel def Kimi)

35 points – Head to Head Pick 3 (Rossi def Stevens)

and down the line you go.

And to spice the game up, throw in a bunch of bonus questions:

5 points – First retirement

5 points – Most positions made up in the race

5 points – fastest pit stop

5 points – safety car yes/no

5 points – Race fastest lap

5 points – fastest speed trap mph

Should I keep going here?  You get the idea.  To keep people at home or in the stands engaged, the fantasy leader-board has to be constantly changing with “as they run” scenarios.  Have F1 promote the hell out of their fantasy game and get sponsors to reward prizes for race wins and season wins.  Allow fans to start private leagues and have a overall, season long champion.

Lastly, get up to speed with Social Media!  F1 needs a heavily promoted site where fans can share their content from a race weekend.  Selfies with Bottas, drunk buddy passed out in a McLaren hat, hot girl in Kimi bun shorts, sunrise pic in the campground, new friends in the stands from Columbia.  I just don’t see F1 keeping up with the mind of a millennial.  It’s time to loosen the reigns on their intellectual property.

Lastly 2.0 – They have to get back to loud motors and cars that look difficult to drive.  More decibels, more HP, wider rear wheels, more mechanical, less aero grip, and for the love of Jan Lammers, get rid of the silly DRS.