Monday Morning Mehta 11/7/05
Edition # 139
November 7, 2005
Eagles/NFL
After a 17-10 loss at Washington and the Terrell Owens situation only worsening, all I can say is this; It's OK to start to panic now...
Game Negatives:
- Front Four. Mark Brunell is a statue. Get to him and he'll cough up the ball or throw a pick. The Eagles got to him twice but there were too many times where Brunell had all kinds of time to find Santana Moss open somewhere. Like I said last week, I've come to the conclusion this is just not that good of a front four.
- Offensive Line. If I've already come to the conclusion that the D-Line isn't good, if the O-line isn't good, that means we're getting slaughtered in the trenches and you're not going anywhere if that's the case. Not giving up here just yet though, O-line's can gel as the season progresses.
- End of 1st half debacle. An easy 3 points were staring the Eagles right in the face. Yet McNabb decided that was the time he wanted to pull a Dan Marino and pull a fake spike. Problem is, he didn't tell anyone else. Total debacles in the final seconds of a half are becoming Eagles staples. That's coaching and the QB.
- 4 downs, no runs. With 1st and 10 from the 13 yard line, more so 2nd and 4 from the 7 yard line under the two minute warning
- Donovan McNabb. He had a decent enough game, but after the game he went onto say this: "It's tough to lose a guy of his (Owens) caliber, but I think we might be better off without him. Tonight we showed we can play well as a team." First of all, Donny, look at the scoreboard, you showed nada. Secondly, isn't that pretty much exactly what Owens said about you?? McNabb has shown zero leadership skills throughout this whole process.
Game Positives:
- Reggie Brown. Not bad at all. Nothing to go crazy over but looks like he can be a very nice # 2.
Overall, it seems like this team is completely lacking in any purpose. Meaning, they don't have an identity. What is it that we do better than the other guy, and just smash that over and over again. A serious thumping of Dallas on National TV without T.O. is badly needed for the team, the fans and the rest of the NFC.
I completely admit I didn't think the Eagles were this bad. The play has to improve a lot if they're to still make the playoffs.
I really don't know what to say about the whole Hugh Douglas/T.O. fight other than I wish it was a player on the team that had some guts to do whatever Douglas did.
Does L.J. Smith or Jevon Kearse get hurt in every game?
Seriously, I didn't just see Reid take Westbrook out on the final two plays, did I?? I'm glad we signed him long term so that we could play Josh Parry and Lamar Gordon in the clutch.
Our CB's and DB's stink at jump balls.
Around the NFL
Some serious yawners around the league yesterday, but a couple of points.
Carolina is awesome and they're the team to beat in the NFC. Julius Peppers is a maniac. Jake Delhomme and Steve Smith are awesome together. This team is no joke and is probably my half way point team to win it all, they're better than Indy.
What a semi stupid gutsy call by Dick Vermeil to go for the TD with 5 seconds left and no timeouts on the 1 yard line. Larry Johnson will put up some fierce numbers with Priest Holmes out.
I better mention Penn St before Philly Phaf sends negative feedback. PSU is now one win away (vs. MSU) from a BCS game birth and what could be a great match up vs. Alabama. This team is one second away from being unbeaten.
Carson Palmer is great, but there isn't a team in football that I can't stand more than the Ravens. Unmatchable.
The Game of the Year to date in the NFL tonight, as the Patriots host the Colts. Peyton Manning puts his 2-10 record vs. the Patriots and 0-7 in Foxboro on the line in what is always an interesting game. If the Colts win, they'll probably waltz to home field advantage and a Super Bowl berth.
NBA - Derreck Sura
- On October 26th the Milwaukee Bucks sent Desmond Mason, a 2006 first round pick with no restrictions on it, and cash to the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets for Jamaal Magloire. Before I get to my point, I'll address the NO/OKC end of this deal. What was rookie GM Jeff Bower thinking? He traded easily one of the ten best C's in the game for a dime a dozen swingman and a first round pick? Not like the Hornets were going anywhere with Magloire, but they could have done much better then a former Oklahoma State Cowboy. Supposedly Golden State Vice President Chris Mullin offered a first round pick and Troy Murphy, a much better deal in my opinion. Memphis President Jerry West was also rumored to be in the mix, and surely had a better offer on the table then the one Bower accepted.
Now to my point. Some of you out there may not like it, but this trade (made a FULL week before the season started) changes my pre-season predictions in the East. I had NO/OKC last in the West, and there they will stay, but Milwaukee improved themselves with the addition of the "Big Cat". Below are direct quotes from my Eastern Conference preview on the Bucks.
"Milwaukee - I really like the makeup of this team, and was tempted to put them in the playoffs, but a few things stopped me. First, I'm not a big fan of new coach Terry Stotts. Next, they lack quality front court depth. Mainly though, I can't see all 5 teams from any division making the playoffs in the same year."
Well Terry Stotts is still their coach, but their front court is now very deep with big men. Adding Magloire to rookie Andrew Bogut and role player Dan Gadzuric is a serious improvement, and when Joe Smith returns from his sore left knee, the Bucks are only going to keep getting better. I still don't think all five teams from one division can make the playoffs in the same year, so I'm removing the Chicago Bulls from my original predictions. An excerpt from my Chicago preview follows.
Commenting on the Eddy Curry trade. "The one down side for the Bulls is that they are a little small up front now."
Milwaukee got bigger, so I'm switching Chicago out, and the Bucks in. The rest stayed the same more or less (moved Orlando from 10th to 11th).
"Official" post trade Eastern Conference pre-season predictions
1. Pacers
2. Heat
3. Nets
4. Pistons
5. Cavaliers
6. Wizards
7. Bucks
8. Knicks
9. 76ers
10. Bulls
11. Magic
12. Celtics
13. Bobcats
14. Raptors
15. Hawks
Before anyone goes crazy in the "comments" section, Milwaukee's 3-0 start could very easily turn out to be fool's gold.
- Philadelphia started the season off a brutal 0-3, only to hang on and salvage a win in Indiana to go 1-3 for the week. I missed the season opener (stuck in an airport) and the win at Conseco Fieldhouse (napping). Spark and Source both told me the opener was a terrible loss, and I respect their opinions on the Sixers. I wanted to watch the Pacers' game, but the cocktails I had for the California - Oregon game would not let me. The games that I did see in between were awful no effort or enthusiasm contests. It's still way too early to give up hope on this team's season, but there are some very disturbing statistics attached to Philly right now. Keep in mind, there are only 30 teams in the NBA. The Sixers are 30th in points allowed per game (111 ppg) and rebounds per game (34.5 rpg). They are 29th in opponents filed goal percentage (50.5% !!! ) and total rebounding percentage (42.9%). Lastly, Philly is tied for 28th in rebound differential (-11.3 rpg). While some of that can be attributed to Samuel Dalembert missing time with a strained right quadriceps, those numbers are flat out atrocious. The Sixers are off until Wednesday, and hopefully coach Maurice Cheeks will use that time to address his team's utter inability to stop anybody. This week brings Dallas, the Lakers, and the Clippers to Philly. One win would be good, two would be great.
- On opening night the Denver Nuggets (1-3) lost back up big man Nene Hilario for the rest of the season when he blew his right knee to shreds. Nene's injuries include a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus, to go along with a sprained medial collateral ligament. Ouch! This effects the Nuggets on two levels. First is replacing his production in the lineup. This burden falls to Eduardo Najera and Francisco Elson. While Najera is a proven entity (energy guy with a nice shooting touch) Elson has yet to really establish that he belongs. Cisco has about the same physical size and athletic ability as Nene, but Elson has far less skill on offense, and I'm not a big fan Nene's offensive game either if that tells you anything. The bigger picture for Denver is that GM Kiki Vandeweghe just lost his most valuable trade commodity. When Kiki chose to let Nene become a restricted free agent by not extending his contract this summer, that was a sure sign that a trade was in the works. Then after Earl Watson was signed as a third PG, that sealed the deal. It's going to be very tough to package Andre Miller and Nene for a top flight SG now, but it could still happen. One thing is for sure though, if the Nuggets want to be an elite team in the NBA, they need to upgrade their SG situation.
- The Miami Heat (1-2) lost Shaquille O'Neal in second game of the season for two to four weeks with a sprained right ankle. The injury happened early enough in the season that Miami should be fine in the long run. The Heat have the depth at the C position with Alonzo Mourning and Michael Doleac to maintain for however long it takes Shaq to get back. However, this could wind up being enough to keep Miami from getting the best record in the East or overall. There's no guarantee that Shaq will back in four weeks because he's a notoriously slow healer. Even if he is back quickly, it's going to take him a few more weeks to get back up to playing speed. If I'm Heat management, I'd be very careful not to rush the Diesel back
until I'm sure there's very little chance for re-injury.
- Tracy McGrady will be sidelined for up to three weeks with back spasms. Again, as long as this injury does not turn into a recurring thing (very possible when backs are involved), it happened early enough in the season that Houston's long term prospects should be about the same. Winning the Southwest Division over San Antonio is probably out of the question now, but the Rockets (1-1) could still easily finish with the second best record in the West. I'll be looking for Yao Ming to assert control over the team while T-Mac is out. Yao is now 25 years old and in his fourth season. He also had the summer off for the first time since he was drafted #1 in 2002. It's time to step up buddy. To throw in a Rob Schneider pop culture reference, "You can do it!"
- It's good to see that Baron Davis wasted no time not stretching himself out properly before games by straining his left hamstring in Golden State's opening game of the season. He was back for Sunday's matinee win over the Knicks, but he "tried not to push off too hard on it." Ugh. The Warriors' (2-1) players, coaching staff, and fan base all know that B Diddy is the key to their success this season. They clearly are not the same team without him. He is their vocal leader on and off the floor, the catalyst for their fast break, and their go to guy in the clutch. What is with this guy and Sam Cassell? I thought pre-game warm-ups were for stretching? For cripes sakes Baron, just stretch out already, it's really not that hard, I promise.
- Grant Hill is expected to be back for the Orlando Magic (0-3) by mid-December after successful surgery for a sports hernia. I wish I had something good to say about that, but I don't. Hedo Turkoglu is a nice player, but he does not have anywhere near the all around game that Hill does. Frankly, without Hill the Magic are not a good team. They miss his play making, ball handling, rebounding, defense, and overall unselfishness from the SF position. Unfortunately for Orlando fans, I think being without Grant for three to six weeks pretty much kills any playoff hopes they may have had.
NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser
- Few impressions of Denver.....first of all it's one of the hottest cities I've ever been to. (Hot?) Yes hot. Every building had the heat on, even the plane was a flying sweat box. I'm assuming it's because the calendar said it was late October and people think they should have the heat on even though the thermometer says 70 degrees.....in terms of a sporting pecking order a guy told me the Broncos were far and away the number one team, followed by the Avalanche. He said that before the Nuggets got Carmelo Anthony it was like they didn't exist. And the Rockies are off in the distance. I have a feeling the Rockies are like the Phillies, people want to love them but they make it impossible.....our tickets for the Eagles/Broncos game were in the 31st row of the upper section. Every time we had to go to the bathroom or to get a beer the Sir Edmund Hillary-esque trek back to the seats, combined with no oxygen, combined with 30 + years of neglect in regards to working out would leave you so out of breath that you seriously were wondering if you were on the verge of seeing a Jimi Hendrix concert next week. But it wasn't just me, all around us we would see guys gasping for air like the goldfish at the end of the Epic by Faith No More video......little trick I learned from Saurin. When faced with a full crowd scene at the men's room, simply enter through the exit and just blend into the closest line. Trust me, you won't miss a play.
- From the department of "Now There's Something You Don't See Everyday", a few hours after arriving in Denver Saurin and I saw a fall down drunk, Asian midget picking a fight with a bouncer at a club.
- OK...the Avalanche game. First of all the Pepsi Center is amazing. They have two full size restaurants, tons of consessions everywhere you look, plus vendors walking through the stands. Even if you wanted to attend a game and not eat or drink something resistence would be futile. It just seemed to me to be what the Wachovia Center should have been from the start. I didn't like the fact that only people sitting in the lower bowl are allowed to watch the pre-game skate around, I was forced to Jedi mind trick the security card so I could watch practice ("You don't need to see my ticket". "I don't need to see your ticket". "I can go down to the glass". "You can go down to the glass".) The game itself was a good one. It was game 2 of Todd Bertuzzi's return to Colorado after his attempted murder of Steve Moore and the fans didn't miss a beat in terms of booing him every time he had the puck. Unfortunately Bertuzzi did have one assist but he was on the ice when Lanche forward Ian Laperriere scored the game winning goal in overtime. Lanche won the game 4-3.
- One of the lesser known new NHL rules help cost the Minnesota Wild a game against the Calgary Flames last Tuesday. The puck was in the neutral zone when Wild defenseman Andrei Zyuzin's skate blade became dislodged and he went to the bench for repairs. The Flames skate into the Wild offensive zone and before they can send out a replacement for Zyuzin the Wild ice the puck to avoid a shorthanded situation. Only one problem, the new rules say that a team that ices the puck is not allowed to change players so the Wild are stuck with only four players on the ice for the next face off. Plus Alexandre Daigle, a guy with zero defensive prowess, has to take the face off for the Wild. Long story short....Daigle loses the face off, the Flames score to make the score 1 - 0 and go on to win the game 3 - 0.
- If any of the computer geeks out there want a challenge there's a new NHL players only website run by ex-Flyer great Trent Klatt that's purpose is to run NHLPA president Ted Saskin out of a job. The site is www.trentklatt.com. Only you need a username and a password to read it. Might be a cool site to see if anybody out there can help me hack into it.
- Last Thursday the Flyers played the Capitals. The game was an 8 - 1 Flyers win but don't let the score deceive you, the game was nowhere near that close. The Flyers were as dominant as any pro team can be against another pro team; most drubbings like that are reserved for college football or college basketball games that feature Div. 1-A schools versus Div. 2 schools. It was one of those games that you're watching, change the channel to check out the other games, and when you change back 3 goals were scored. "What the....." Plus the Caps were getting destroyed physically. The worst part was that the Caps left goalie Brent Johnson in for the entire game. Why? I have no idea. The Caps did have a game the next night so I guess they didn't want to wear out Olaf Kolzig but Johnson obviously didn't have it so why leave him out there to get embarrassed? Johnson's no kid (he's 28 and he's been around) so he'll probably be OK emotionally but why do that to a guy? Anyway a funny thing happened toward the end of the game.....I was starting to feel sorry for the Caps. The Caps brought a slingshot to a nuclear war and it showed. But unlike when the Rangers were a laughing stock the Caps actually played as hard as they could, they just have no talent with the exception of Alexander Overchkin. Overchkin on this team is the worst waste of talent since Paccino's cameo in "Gigli". The Flyers also had a solid 4 - 3 win against the Thrashers, a game that featured a hat trick by Simon Gagne. Gagne didn't really score the goals as much as he just flicked his wrist after Forsberg put a pinpoint pass right on the tape of his stick. The Flyers are hitting their stride right now, they just have to stay healthy.
November 7, 2005
NEXT MMM: TUESDAY NOVEMBER 15TH
Eagles/NFL
After a 17-10 loss at Washington and the Terrell Owens situation only worsening, all I can say is this; It's OK to start to panic now...
Game Negatives:
- Front Four. Mark Brunell is a statue. Get to him and he'll cough up the ball or throw a pick. The Eagles got to him twice but there were too many times where Brunell had all kinds of time to find Santana Moss open somewhere. Like I said last week, I've come to the conclusion this is just not that good of a front four.
- Offensive Line. If I've already come to the conclusion that the D-Line isn't good, if the O-line isn't good, that means we're getting slaughtered in the trenches and you're not going anywhere if that's the case. Not giving up here just yet though, O-line's can gel as the season progresses.
- End of 1st half debacle. An easy 3 points were staring the Eagles right in the face. Yet McNabb decided that was the time he wanted to pull a Dan Marino and pull a fake spike. Problem is, he didn't tell anyone else. Total debacles in the final seconds of a half are becoming Eagles staples. That's coaching and the QB.
- 4 downs, no runs. With 1st and 10 from the 13 yard line, more so 2nd and 4 from the 7 yard line under the two minute warning
- Donovan McNabb. He had a decent enough game, but after the game he went onto say this: "It's tough to lose a guy of his (Owens) caliber, but I think we might be better off without him. Tonight we showed we can play well as a team." First of all, Donny, look at the scoreboard, you showed nada. Secondly, isn't that pretty much exactly what Owens said about you?? McNabb has shown zero leadership skills throughout this whole process.
Game Positives:
- Reggie Brown. Not bad at all. Nothing to go crazy over but looks like he can be a very nice # 2.
Overall, it seems like this team is completely lacking in any purpose. Meaning, they don't have an identity. What is it that we do better than the other guy, and just smash that over and over again. A serious thumping of Dallas on National TV without T.O. is badly needed for the team, the fans and the rest of the NFC.
I completely admit I didn't think the Eagles were this bad. The play has to improve a lot if they're to still make the playoffs.
I really don't know what to say about the whole Hugh Douglas/T.O. fight other than I wish it was a player on the team that had some guts to do whatever Douglas did.
Does L.J. Smith or Jevon Kearse get hurt in every game?
Seriously, I didn't just see Reid take Westbrook out on the final two plays, did I?? I'm glad we signed him long term so that we could play Josh Parry and Lamar Gordon in the clutch.
Our CB's and DB's stink at jump balls.
Around the NFL
Some serious yawners around the league yesterday, but a couple of points.
Carolina is awesome and they're the team to beat in the NFC. Julius Peppers is a maniac. Jake Delhomme and Steve Smith are awesome together. This team is no joke and is probably my half way point team to win it all, they're better than Indy.
What a semi stupid gutsy call by Dick Vermeil to go for the TD with 5 seconds left and no timeouts on the 1 yard line. Larry Johnson will put up some fierce numbers with Priest Holmes out.
I better mention Penn St before Philly Phaf sends negative feedback. PSU is now one win away (vs. MSU) from a BCS game birth and what could be a great match up vs. Alabama. This team is one second away from being unbeaten.
Carson Palmer is great, but there isn't a team in football that I can't stand more than the Ravens. Unmatchable.
The Game of the Year to date in the NFL tonight, as the Patriots host the Colts. Peyton Manning puts his 2-10 record vs. the Patriots and 0-7 in Foxboro on the line in what is always an interesting game. If the Colts win, they'll probably waltz to home field advantage and a Super Bowl berth.
NBA - Derreck Sura
- On October 26th the Milwaukee Bucks sent Desmond Mason, a 2006 first round pick with no restrictions on it, and cash to the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets for Jamaal Magloire. Before I get to my point, I'll address the NO/OKC end of this deal. What was rookie GM Jeff Bower thinking? He traded easily one of the ten best C's in the game for a dime a dozen swingman and a first round pick? Not like the Hornets were going anywhere with Magloire, but they could have done much better then a former Oklahoma State Cowboy. Supposedly Golden State Vice President Chris Mullin offered a first round pick and Troy Murphy, a much better deal in my opinion. Memphis President Jerry West was also rumored to be in the mix, and surely had a better offer on the table then the one Bower accepted.
Now to my point. Some of you out there may not like it, but this trade (made a FULL week before the season started) changes my pre-season predictions in the East. I had NO/OKC last in the West, and there they will stay, but Milwaukee improved themselves with the addition of the "Big Cat". Below are direct quotes from my Eastern Conference preview on the Bucks.
"Milwaukee - I really like the makeup of this team, and was tempted to put them in the playoffs, but a few things stopped me. First, I'm not a big fan of new coach Terry Stotts. Next, they lack quality front court depth. Mainly though, I can't see all 5 teams from any division making the playoffs in the same year."
Well Terry Stotts is still their coach, but their front court is now very deep with big men. Adding Magloire to rookie Andrew Bogut and role player Dan Gadzuric is a serious improvement, and when Joe Smith returns from his sore left knee, the Bucks are only going to keep getting better. I still don't think all five teams from one division can make the playoffs in the same year, so I'm removing the Chicago Bulls from my original predictions. An excerpt from my Chicago preview follows.
Commenting on the Eddy Curry trade. "The one down side for the Bulls is that they are a little small up front now."
Milwaukee got bigger, so I'm switching Chicago out, and the Bucks in. The rest stayed the same more or less (moved Orlando from 10th to 11th).
"Official" post trade Eastern Conference pre-season predictions
1. Pacers
2. Heat
3. Nets
4. Pistons
5. Cavaliers
6. Wizards
7. Bucks
8. Knicks
9. 76ers
10. Bulls
11. Magic
12. Celtics
13. Bobcats
14. Raptors
15. Hawks
Before anyone goes crazy in the "comments" section, Milwaukee's 3-0 start could very easily turn out to be fool's gold.
- Philadelphia started the season off a brutal 0-3, only to hang on and salvage a win in Indiana to go 1-3 for the week. I missed the season opener (stuck in an airport) and the win at Conseco Fieldhouse (napping). Spark and Source both told me the opener was a terrible loss, and I respect their opinions on the Sixers. I wanted to watch the Pacers' game, but the cocktails I had for the California - Oregon game would not let me. The games that I did see in between were awful no effort or enthusiasm contests. It's still way too early to give up hope on this team's season, but there are some very disturbing statistics attached to Philly right now. Keep in mind, there are only 30 teams in the NBA. The Sixers are 30th in points allowed per game (111 ppg) and rebounds per game (34.5 rpg). They are 29th in opponents filed goal percentage (50.5% !!! ) and total rebounding percentage (42.9%). Lastly, Philly is tied for 28th in rebound differential (-11.3 rpg). While some of that can be attributed to Samuel Dalembert missing time with a strained right quadriceps, those numbers are flat out atrocious. The Sixers are off until Wednesday, and hopefully coach Maurice Cheeks will use that time to address his team's utter inability to stop anybody. This week brings Dallas, the Lakers, and the Clippers to Philly. One win would be good, two would be great.
- On opening night the Denver Nuggets (1-3) lost back up big man Nene Hilario for the rest of the season when he blew his right knee to shreds. Nene's injuries include a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus, to go along with a sprained medial collateral ligament. Ouch! This effects the Nuggets on two levels. First is replacing his production in the lineup. This burden falls to Eduardo Najera and Francisco Elson. While Najera is a proven entity (energy guy with a nice shooting touch) Elson has yet to really establish that he belongs. Cisco has about the same physical size and athletic ability as Nene, but Elson has far less skill on offense, and I'm not a big fan Nene's offensive game either if that tells you anything. The bigger picture for Denver is that GM Kiki Vandeweghe just lost his most valuable trade commodity. When Kiki chose to let Nene become a restricted free agent by not extending his contract this summer, that was a sure sign that a trade was in the works. Then after Earl Watson was signed as a third PG, that sealed the deal. It's going to be very tough to package Andre Miller and Nene for a top flight SG now, but it could still happen. One thing is for sure though, if the Nuggets want to be an elite team in the NBA, they need to upgrade their SG situation.
- The Miami Heat (1-2) lost Shaquille O'Neal in second game of the season for two to four weeks with a sprained right ankle. The injury happened early enough in the season that Miami should be fine in the long run. The Heat have the depth at the C position with Alonzo Mourning and Michael Doleac to maintain for however long it takes Shaq to get back. However, this could wind up being enough to keep Miami from getting the best record in the East or overall. There's no guarantee that Shaq will back in four weeks because he's a notoriously slow healer. Even if he is back quickly, it's going to take him a few more weeks to get back up to playing speed. If I'm Heat management, I'd be very careful not to rush the Diesel back
until I'm sure there's very little chance for re-injury.
- Tracy McGrady will be sidelined for up to three weeks with back spasms. Again, as long as this injury does not turn into a recurring thing (very possible when backs are involved), it happened early enough in the season that Houston's long term prospects should be about the same. Winning the Southwest Division over San Antonio is probably out of the question now, but the Rockets (1-1) could still easily finish with the second best record in the West. I'll be looking for Yao Ming to assert control over the team while T-Mac is out. Yao is now 25 years old and in his fourth season. He also had the summer off for the first time since he was drafted #1 in 2002. It's time to step up buddy. To throw in a Rob Schneider pop culture reference, "You can do it!"
- It's good to see that Baron Davis wasted no time not stretching himself out properly before games by straining his left hamstring in Golden State's opening game of the season. He was back for Sunday's matinee win over the Knicks, but he "tried not to push off too hard on it." Ugh. The Warriors' (2-1) players, coaching staff, and fan base all know that B Diddy is the key to their success this season. They clearly are not the same team without him. He is their vocal leader on and off the floor, the catalyst for their fast break, and their go to guy in the clutch. What is with this guy and Sam Cassell? I thought pre-game warm-ups were for stretching? For cripes sakes Baron, just stretch out already, it's really not that hard, I promise.
- Grant Hill is expected to be back for the Orlando Magic (0-3) by mid-December after successful surgery for a sports hernia. I wish I had something good to say about that, but I don't. Hedo Turkoglu is a nice player, but he does not have anywhere near the all around game that Hill does. Frankly, without Hill the Magic are not a good team. They miss his play making, ball handling, rebounding, defense, and overall unselfishness from the SF position. Unfortunately for Orlando fans, I think being without Grant for three to six weeks pretty much kills any playoff hopes they may have had.
NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser
- Few impressions of Denver.....first of all it's one of the hottest cities I've ever been to. (Hot?) Yes hot. Every building had the heat on, even the plane was a flying sweat box. I'm assuming it's because the calendar said it was late October and people think they should have the heat on even though the thermometer says 70 degrees.....in terms of a sporting pecking order a guy told me the Broncos were far and away the number one team, followed by the Avalanche. He said that before the Nuggets got Carmelo Anthony it was like they didn't exist. And the Rockies are off in the distance. I have a feeling the Rockies are like the Phillies, people want to love them but they make it impossible.....our tickets for the Eagles/Broncos game were in the 31st row of the upper section. Every time we had to go to the bathroom or to get a beer the Sir Edmund Hillary-esque trek back to the seats, combined with no oxygen, combined with 30 + years of neglect in regards to working out would leave you so out of breath that you seriously were wondering if you were on the verge of seeing a Jimi Hendrix concert next week. But it wasn't just me, all around us we would see guys gasping for air like the goldfish at the end of the Epic by Faith No More video......little trick I learned from Saurin. When faced with a full crowd scene at the men's room, simply enter through the exit and just blend into the closest line. Trust me, you won't miss a play.
- From the department of "Now There's Something You Don't See Everyday", a few hours after arriving in Denver Saurin and I saw a fall down drunk, Asian midget picking a fight with a bouncer at a club.
- OK...the Avalanche game. First of all the Pepsi Center is amazing. They have two full size restaurants, tons of consessions everywhere you look, plus vendors walking through the stands. Even if you wanted to attend a game and not eat or drink something resistence would be futile. It just seemed to me to be what the Wachovia Center should have been from the start. I didn't like the fact that only people sitting in the lower bowl are allowed to watch the pre-game skate around, I was forced to Jedi mind trick the security card so I could watch practice ("You don't need to see my ticket". "I don't need to see your ticket". "I can go down to the glass". "You can go down to the glass".) The game itself was a good one. It was game 2 of Todd Bertuzzi's return to Colorado after his attempted murder of Steve Moore and the fans didn't miss a beat in terms of booing him every time he had the puck. Unfortunately Bertuzzi did have one assist but he was on the ice when Lanche forward Ian Laperriere scored the game winning goal in overtime. Lanche won the game 4-3.
- One of the lesser known new NHL rules help cost the Minnesota Wild a game against the Calgary Flames last Tuesday. The puck was in the neutral zone when Wild defenseman Andrei Zyuzin's skate blade became dislodged and he went to the bench for repairs. The Flames skate into the Wild offensive zone and before they can send out a replacement for Zyuzin the Wild ice the puck to avoid a shorthanded situation. Only one problem, the new rules say that a team that ices the puck is not allowed to change players so the Wild are stuck with only four players on the ice for the next face off. Plus Alexandre Daigle, a guy with zero defensive prowess, has to take the face off for the Wild. Long story short....Daigle loses the face off, the Flames score to make the score 1 - 0 and go on to win the game 3 - 0.
- If any of the computer geeks out there want a challenge there's a new NHL players only website run by ex-Flyer great Trent Klatt that's purpose is to run NHLPA president Ted Saskin out of a job. The site is www.trentklatt.com. Only you need a username and a password to read it. Might be a cool site to see if anybody out there can help me hack into it.
- Last Thursday the Flyers played the Capitals. The game was an 8 - 1 Flyers win but don't let the score deceive you, the game was nowhere near that close. The Flyers were as dominant as any pro team can be against another pro team; most drubbings like that are reserved for college football or college basketball games that feature Div. 1-A schools versus Div. 2 schools. It was one of those games that you're watching, change the channel to check out the other games, and when you change back 3 goals were scored. "What the....." Plus the Caps were getting destroyed physically. The worst part was that the Caps left goalie Brent Johnson in for the entire game. Why? I have no idea. The Caps did have a game the next night so I guess they didn't want to wear out Olaf Kolzig but Johnson obviously didn't have it so why leave him out there to get embarrassed? Johnson's no kid (he's 28 and he's been around) so he'll probably be OK emotionally but why do that to a guy? Anyway a funny thing happened toward the end of the game.....I was starting to feel sorry for the Caps. The Caps brought a slingshot to a nuclear war and it showed. But unlike when the Rangers were a laughing stock the Caps actually played as hard as they could, they just have no talent with the exception of Alexander Overchkin. Overchkin on this team is the worst waste of talent since Paccino's cameo in "Gigli". The Flyers also had a solid 4 - 3 win against the Thrashers, a game that featured a hat trick by Simon Gagne. Gagne didn't really score the goals as much as he just flicked his wrist after Forsberg put a pinpoint pass right on the tape of his stick. The Flyers are hitting their stride right now, they just have to stay healthy.
posted by Monday Morning Mehta at 11:45 AM
13 Comments:
Frank, I think it'd be in your best interest to back up off the Sixers until they prove they can defend and rebound. They are letting other teams shoot 50.5% after 4 games. You are not going to win very often when you let the other team shoot better then 50%. And grabbing a paltry 34.5 rebounds per game as a team is a flat out disgrace.
47-53 wins is laughable, and I'm not trying to be a wise ass there.
The Sixers' 2nd game was against Detroit, not SA. Also, I think I was pretty generous in having Philly finish up at 9th. Unbiased and informed is my motto!
- Derreck
Tough schedule?!?!?!? They lost at home to the damn Bobcats!!
EW
I'm not a big fan of Salmons, but he has shown a few signs of life so far this pre & regular season. He'd have to show a lot more for me to resign him this summer though.
As far as Green goes, I guess not having him hurts their overall depth, but it's not like Willie is a defensive stopper or rebounder.
I didn't do a Sixers off season piece this past year, but I'd have signed and traded away KK, Sam D, & Wil G while the rest of the league still thought they could play.
- Derreck
Yes Frank, it was indeed a midget and not just a little fellow. My extensive dealings with jockeys have made me an expert at seeing the difference between a midget and a little dude.
And Dr. is a class act, just ask his illegitimate daughter who he acts like doesn't exist.
EW
Dr. J. didn't have the kid recently, the kid is like 25 years old so that wouldn't qualify as today's standards. And when in doubt looking at a midget just look for a bulbous head, stubby legs, and hands cocked in the wrong direction.
EW
I'm sure it's coming in the next few weeks, but I'm surprised Sura hasn't ripped on the Knicks and LB yet. It's only a matter of time til he unloads, that team is slop...
It's too early to jump to conclusions on any team, including the Knicks and Sixers. Other then regional bias, what's really the difference between these two teams? They are both "slop" to quote MMM.
I expected the Knicks to get off to a slow start, as all LB teams do in his first year. The main difference between the Knicks and Sixers in my mind is that NY will improve over the course of the season, while Philly on the other hand ... let's just say I'm not as optomistic about their chances.
- Derreck
I have nothing to say....I just wanted to have the 14th comment, a new record.
EW
I have a bigger conspiracy theory. Hugh Douglas, a.k.a Eagles ambassador, has a fist fight with Terrell Owens in the Eagles training room. Douglas is no longer an Eagle player, the training room is off limits to everyone excluding players, trainers, and management. What was Douglas doing there? Why wasn't he disciplined for being there let alone the fist fight? Why was Owens suspended for the year and Douglas not even spoken to? Could it be he was sent there by management? Could the role of ambassador, as it does with the US government, include assasinations in the job description? Just asking.....
EW
Apparently Reid blasted Douglas. This is Douglas' first offense, he gets some slack. This was Owens 15th offense since March.
Owens made his bed, and now he must sleep in it. All year he's bitched about how all these other QB's are better and now suddenly he loves McNabb???
Owens can't be defended he's a debacle...although I agree, he may beat up the Douglas...
Is the rumour true that it was actually an MMM reporter that asked Rosenhaus what he had done for TO other than get him kicked off the team?
That was the best question I've ever heard asked at a press conference. Even TO was laughing.
EW
I suppose you missed Dirk getting injured in the 2nd quarter and only playing 17 minutes? The Mavs still shot 47.4% from the field without their best player, not good.
- D$
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