Monday Morning Mehta 12/27/05
Edition # 146
December 27, 2005
Next week's MMM will be on Tuesday January 3rd.
www.mondaymorningmehta.blogspot.com
NFL
It's too late and too boring to go over the Eagles game in depth, and it's pretty much the same thing
that I've written every week (let's see more Moats, McMahon sucks, etc), so I'll spare you the in depth Eagles analysis. Instead, I'll save it for the 2nd Annual Philadelphia Eagles Offseason Guide, coming soon!!
Eagles now finish their season as they'll try to play the spoiler role against the Redskins. Eagles fans may like booting the Skins from the playoffs, but just keep in mind that giving Wash the boot means helping the Cowboys get it.
There were some great games this weekend that really helped shape the playoff picture. The best game may have been the Cowboys/Panthers game. In a possible wild card round preview, this back and forth game may have been decided by the refs. In the final minute of the game, Billy Cundiff of the Cowboys appeared to have missed a game tying FG and seemingly ending the Cowboys playoff hopes. But the Ref called Rouging the kicker in a very phantom call, and the Cowboys drove the ball into the endzone for the winning score. What a travesty. Panthers still get in with a win, but the travel to Atlanta which is a dangerous spot. The Cowboys will get to watch the Panthers and Skins and hope one of them loses before they play Sunday Night vs. the Rams. I can see an Eagles upset.
San Diego is eliminated from playoff contention with a loss over the Chiefs. The win put the Steelers in the drivers seat, who can get in the playoffs without playing next week, if the Chargers beat the Broncos. The Chiefs need to win, a Chargers loss and a Steelers loss (Lions), to get in. Larry Johnson will break rushing records next year.
A team to watch out for in January this year is the Jaguars. Don't underestimate this squad.
Eli Manning appears to be going through a first full season lull the last month or so. College QB's don't play this many games in a season and Manning appears very tired. If Manning doesn't improve, the Giants are going to be an early exit in January.
It's amazing the difference in the Bears the last 6 quarters with Rex Grossman. The defense is so good, that I think this team has a great chance to make it to Detroit.
The Dolphins need a QB, but they are a team to watch out for next year.
Drexel continues to play well as they beat Ball St this week. Light schedule the next week before conference play heats up next week.
The Lions/Saints game could have been the worst close game all year. Just bad football with no offensive TD's the whole game.
I'm a little tired hearing about all the "Last ever Monday Night game on network TV" talk. The way TV contracts work, ABC or one of the other networks could have MNF back within 5 years. And if you don't have ESPN, you really aren't a football fan who watches the games anyway.
Baseball
Signings around the MLB have been light, with one major exception being the Johnny Damon defection to the Yankees.
I'm not really interested in talking about that, but something I find really funny is that Scott Boras continues to stick it to the Rangers. First, he set the franchise back with the debilitation Alex Rodriguez contract. Now, they've signed Kevin Millwood to a 5 year $60 million contract. The Rangers are going to be disppointed to say the least.
The Phillies have been quiet the last few weeks, but I expect Pat Gillick to pick up a solid veteran starter, either via a trade or free agency. Jason Michaels trade value appears to be very minimal as Coco Crisp and Jeremy Reed have emerged as better Center Field candidates for teams in need.
NBA - Derreck Sura
- Philadelphia went 1-1 this past week following up a quality win against Golden State with a terrible loss in Atlanta. Not the best way to start a seven game road trip. The Sixers (14-13) now occupy seventh place in the East, which would pit them against the second place team if the season ended today. Starting this week Philly's schedule gets noticeably tougher then it has been. From now through the end of January the Sixers will play twelve games versus Western Conference teams as well as three division games over the course of the month. If Philly is still above .500 after that stretch I'll tip my cap to them.
This week brings the Sixers: @Denver & @Portland (back to back) then @Utah. If Philly can steal tonight's contest against an inconsistent Nugget team that would make up for the loss to the Hawks. The Trail Blazers are the worst team in the West, but they have been playing a little better as of late. The Jazz are a more difficult team to beat when Andrei Kirilenko is in the lineup. If the Sixers find a way to get to 2-1 this week that would be fantastic for them.
- On December 12th Stan Van Gundy "resigned" as head coach of the Miami Heat (16-12). His replacement? None other then team President Pat Riley. You all remember him, right? Riles was last seen flaming out and sticking SVG with the coaching gig in Miami just days before the 2003-04 season began. After a predictably terrible start, Stan Van went on to lead the Heat to a 42-40 record and the second round of the playoffs that season. Pretty impressive if you ask me. In his second year on the bench SVG got Miami all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals after a 59-23 regular season which included a Division title. Nice progression there in my opinion. Granted he was only 11-10 this season before "resigning", but he also only had Shaquille O'Neal (more on him in a minute) in uniform for three games. One would think that SVG earned some slack after his first two seasons. Guess not.
From my Eastern Conference Preview: "Then he [Riley] made news by suggesting that Miami coach "Stan [Van Gundy] has done a great job", but "I may take a little bit more of an active participation in some of the things." Since then Riles has backed off that statement, but the seed is already planted."
More: "Eyes On - SVG. Riley did him a huge disservice this summer by undermining his authority. If they get off to a slow start, his job security will be in the news."
If you saw the dog and pony show of a press conference that Riles and SVG put on when the announcement was made, then you saw that SVG didn't exactly have the look of someone who had just "resigned to spend more time with his family." Stan Van looked more like someone who's family pet was just hit by a car and he was trying to figure out how to tell his kids.
However, I don't blame just Riley here. According to various reports in South Florida, Shaq had more then a little part in what went down with the Heat's coaching change. Much like he can't/won't let his feud with Kobe Bryant die, Shaq was equally disruptive in undermining SVG's authority. It all started when Shaq thought he didn't get enough touches in crunch time of Miami's game 7 loss to Detroit last year. Never mind that he was hobbled and can't shoot free throws. I think this story from an unnamed Heat player is very telling about what was really going on in South Beach. Basically, Shaq wiggled three fingers near his ear while Stan Van was lecturing the rest of the players about disrespecting his knowledge. That was the Diesel's way of letting his teammates know that he has three rings and SVG has none. I don't really understand why, but the media never seems to cover these types of stories when they involve Shaq. As is always the case in the NBA, when the head coach loses his star player, the rest of the team is soon to follow.
Give Riley credit for one thing, he waited until the Big Fella was back in the lineup before making his move. Many pundits said before this season that only Riles would be able to get the multiple head cases he himself had assembled to play like a team. So now he's laying in the bed he made. Pat is 5-2 so far as Miami's head coach, but the only good team they've beaten is Milwaukee, and the Bucks were playing without Bobby Simmons and Maurice Williams that night. So the jury is still out on how good Riley's Heat are going to be.
I have to end with this tid bit. Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel found out that Miami extended SVG's contract by one year when he "resigned" as head coach. Very interesting. That could be the only time in the history of sports that a coach of any professional franchise got a contract extension for quitting. Like I said, very interesting indeed.
- Certain people out there think I am down Gilbert Arenas. Let's get something straight here. Just because I don't like the way he plays the game, nor would I want him on my team, that DOES NOT mean he is not a good player. Gil is 4th in points (28.8 ppg) and 3rd in minutes (41.8 mpg). He also is 7th in free throws attempted (9 ftapg) and makes them at an 80.1% clip. Another pretty good stat he has going for him is his 3 point shooting. GA is 2nd in the league in 3's attempted (7.8 3fgapg) and makes 39.4% of them. The good numbers end there though. Gil is 3rd overall in field goal attempts (21.1 fgapg) and only shoots 43.8% from the field. His shot selection leaves much to be desired too. My main gripe with him has always been his play making. Someone that has the ability to get into lane at will, and also has the ball as much as he does, should be higher then 17th in assists (6.2 apg). Even worse is that he leads the NBA in turnovers (4 topg) and is 130th in assist to turnover ratio (1.55 a/to).
Unlike last year, I'm willing to cut GA some slack because I think Washington (12-14) needs his gunning this season. Antawn Jamison's numbers are down in scoring and assists to go along with a drop in his field goal, 3 point, and free throw shooting percentages. Big free agent signing Antonio Daniels has been in a word, awful. AD's points (11.2 to 5 ppg), assists (4.1 to 2.5 apg), rebounds, steals, free throw shooting, 3 point shooting (12%!), and field goal shooting (43.8% to 34.3%) are all down from last season. Contract year performance says what? The players President Ernie Grunfeld got in return for Kwame Brown have been unspectacular too. Caron Butler has been his hot and cold self, but Chucky Atkins has been disruptive bordering on a team cancer thus far. Now comes word that Jarvis Hayes, who had been starting at SG, is out "indefinitely" with a fractured right patella (the same injury that ended his season last year).
Add all these factors up and GA is in the untenable position, much like Allen Iverson, of having to be a ball hogging gunner for his team to have a chance to win. That said, GA has never really shown the desire or ability, much like AI until recently, to be anything other then that. Don't get me wrong, for the Wizards to turn things around they are going to have pick their defensive intensity (where they REALLY miss Larry Hughes) to go along with finding some more consistent scoring options. But as AI and Kobe Bryant have figured out, it's much easier to win when you show confidence in your teammates (even if they can't throw it in the ocean). How long it takes Gil to come to that same realization will determine how quickly Washington reaches their full potential as a team.
- The Houston Rockets (10-15) seem to be having one of those years. Just when Tracy McGrady is looking back to normal, they lose Yao Ming to surgery on his right big toe. It will be six to eight weeks before Yao can even begin rehab, so figure a couple more before he's ready for game action. That means Houston is looking at his return some time in early March. Yikes! But wait, it gets worse. Yao's replacement, Dikembe Mutombo, will miss at least the next two games with a dislocated and badly lacerated right middle finger (his status will be reevaluated on Monday). Oh, there's even more. Derek Anderson is out two weeks with a strained right calf muscle, and Jon Barry is day to day with the same injury. Hey guys, how about stretching in warm ups? This for a team already missing their starting PG (Rafer Alston) with a slightly fractured right fibula, and without last year's starting PG Bob Sura (back surgery). There's absolutely no way that the Rockets can make up ground in the playoff chase with all those injuries. The best Houston can hope for is to stay within striking distance (in the loss column) of eight place in the West for the time being.
San Antonio Spurs' guard Manu Ginobili has missed the last seven games with a sprained right foot. Said coach Gregg Popovich, "All directions aren't cleared yet. He can go some ways, some directions. In others, he can't still. It's like a jam under his heel. It's very strange, but he's in a lot of pain." That doesn't sound good. As I've said before, the Spurs (21-7) are not the same team without Ginobili, but they have enough depth and experience to make do for as long as he is out. Supposedly Manu's close to returning, and even though Dallas (21-7) has tied SA for the best record in the West, I see no need to rush him back before he's 100% healthy.
Bonzi Wells will be out three to four weeks with a partial tear of his right groin. This is not good news for the Sacramento Kings (10-17). The Kings are struggling mightily already, and are not particularly deep with swingmen either. Second year player Kevin Martin will start for Bonzi and rookie Francisco Garcia will see more minutes off the bench. Martin and Garcia both have fine offensive potential, but neither is physically strong or a good defender. Cue the 'Jaws' theme for coach Rick Adelman...
The Memphis Grizzlies (16-10) have been without back up PG Bobby Jackson for the last seven games due to a pulled right hamstring. As long as his injury doesn't linger the Griz have the depth at the point to be fine. I like the quickness and play making second year PG Antonio Burks brings to the table as Damon Stoudamire's back up. Burks' shot is a little shaky, but he makes good decisions with ball and can defend his position.
NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser
- The obvious lead story sweeping the hockey world is that "House of Wax" and "The Girl Next Door" beauty Elisha Cuthbert broke off her engagement from Trace Ayala (whose main claim to fame is being Justin Timberlake's best friend) and she's being seen with LA King Sean Avery. As if Avery isn't blessed enough his former girlfriend is Rachel Hunter. Anyway Cuthbert was seen taking care of business with Avery around Los Angeles and Cuthbert was also photographed in Toronto at a Kings/Leafs game in Toronto. The best part of this whole thing is even though Avery is kind of a little dude (5'9") he still has some goonish tendencies so if Ayala ever confronted him on streets of Los Angeles Avery would knock him into next Tuesday.
- From the rumor mill this trade, Flyers goalie Robert Esche for St. Louis Blue Doug Weight. My first problem with the deal was that Weight is too old but then I just read he's actually a year younger then me so I'll scrap that argument. It's not that I don't like the trade it's just that it seems like you need to get more for Esche. And why another scorer? Esche is a decent goalie, capable of sustained flashes of being pretty good, so it's seems to me that the Flyers would need a decent defenseman with some speed in the deal.
- Notes From Around The League.....The Penguins fired Eddie Olczyk which was a long time in coming. He never had a prayer; the guy was a Penguin broadcaster who was plucked from the booth to coach a team that included his boss (Lemeiux) and free agents (LeClair, Recchi) that are turning out to be old slow stiffs. Olczyk was accused of not really having practices as much as they were just free for all goof off time for the players. Seldom have I seen an out going coach with such a look of relief on his face as Olczyk. The guy did his best but he ain't no coach.....replacing Olczyk is disciplinarian Michel Therrien. The headline in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette was "The Country Club is CLOSED!!" This is the classic example of the yelling and screaming minor league coach getting a chance with the big guys. Therrien's previously coached the Canadiens but it's hard to judge how his act played out because he didn't get a long enough look. In Montréal if you don't win a Cup immediately while having an undefeated season the Canadian press wants you out.....Jeremy Roenick is out 6 weeks with a broken finger. No word on whether Roenick broke that finger extending it at USA Hockey GM Don Waddell for not being including on the US Olympic hockey team. Actually he broke his ring finger but I couldn't pass up the joke. Roenick was passed up for the team even though he actively campaigned for the job. I'll do an Olympic preview once all the rosters are all named because there's only 6 teams that really matter, the US, Canada, Sweden, Czech Republic, Finland, and Russia. In a preview to the preview I'll just say the Swedish team is loaded. And I mean LOA-DED!!.....In a sad ending to a brilliant career the new game is claiming another casualty; LA King Luc Robitaille was a healthy scratch in 3 games within the last 2 weeks.....In the battle of Ontario, the Ottawa Senators have beaten the Leafs 4 straight times and have out scored them 27 to 9 and that includes 2 goals the Leafs scored in the 3rd period of a game the Senators were winning 8 to love.
- This actually happened to me on Friday night, I was at a bar and the Flyers were on one TV and the Sixers were on another and I noticed the two Philadelphia teams were both losing to two of the worst teams in the respective sports. The Flyers were losing to the Penguins and the Sixers were losing to the Hawks. Thankfully the Flyers were able to make a comeback and win their game. The Flyers blew a 3 - 0 lead to the Senators on Thursday yet managed to squeak out a 4 - 3 win on home ice. The Flyers also blew a 2 - 0 lead to the pathetic Penguins yet were able to squeak out a 5 - 4 win in Steel Town. I'm just going to bang this drum until the cows come home...and I don't have any cows so it could take a while....NO SPEED ON DEFENSE, NO SPEED ON DEFENSE, NO SPEED ON DEFENSE!!! It's killing the Flyers. They have to get quicker on defense, it's really their only fault because offensively they're playing great.
- Our 2 year old horse Second Story Man ran last Monday, 6 furlong race with Harry Vega in the cockpit. We were having trouble finding him a race so we raised him in class. Here's a lesson in horse racing...the top 5 things that happened before the race which made me think Second Story Man was in deep trouble. 5.) John (Smarty Jones' trainer) Servis had a horse in the race. Word on the street was his horse cost $750,000 or about 100 times more expensive then Second Story Man. 4.) Tim (Afleet Alex's trainer) Ritchey had a horse in the race. Word on the street was his horse was $350,000. 3.) When I looked up the pedigrees of John Servis' horse and Tim Ritchey's horse I saw a lot of names like Seattle Slew, Secretariat, Affirmed, and Fusaichi Pegasus. When you look up Second Story Man's pedigree you see names like Buttercup, Grand Dad's Gal, Best O' Luck, and Top Hat. 4.) I heard that John Servis flew in all the way from Arkansas just to see his horse run in this race. His horse's name Gameboye by the way. 5.) When I saw Tim Ritchey's horse in the paddock I thought he was really a brown elephant, I swear he was that big. I can't confirm it but I think when Ritchey's horse saw Second Story Man he was thinking "are you kidding me??" Anyway Second Story Man ran an immature race and he finished last. He didn't switch leads...basically when a horse leaves the starting gate he leads with his left foot, when he makes the turn for home his switches to leading with his right foot which generally puts him into another gear, Second Story Man never did that. We actually got a new horse named Fort Seattle who ran yesterday, 6.5 furlongs with Luis Rivera Jr. in the irons. This is the first time Rivera has ridden for us but he has 3 wins on Fort Seattle so he got the job. I'm having computers issues at home to I'll put the result of the race on the MMM website this afternoon.
December 27, 2005
Next week's MMM will be on Tuesday January 3rd.
www.mondaymorningmehta.blogspot.com
NFL
It's too late and too boring to go over the Eagles game in depth, and it's pretty much the same thing
that I've written every week (let's see more Moats, McMahon sucks, etc), so I'll spare you the in depth Eagles analysis. Instead, I'll save it for the 2nd Annual Philadelphia Eagles Offseason Guide, coming soon!!
Eagles now finish their season as they'll try to play the spoiler role against the Redskins. Eagles fans may like booting the Skins from the playoffs, but just keep in mind that giving Wash the boot means helping the Cowboys get it.
There were some great games this weekend that really helped shape the playoff picture. The best game may have been the Cowboys/Panthers game. In a possible wild card round preview, this back and forth game may have been decided by the refs. In the final minute of the game, Billy Cundiff of the Cowboys appeared to have missed a game tying FG and seemingly ending the Cowboys playoff hopes. But the Ref called Rouging the kicker in a very phantom call, and the Cowboys drove the ball into the endzone for the winning score. What a travesty. Panthers still get in with a win, but the travel to Atlanta which is a dangerous spot. The Cowboys will get to watch the Panthers and Skins and hope one of them loses before they play Sunday Night vs. the Rams. I can see an Eagles upset.
San Diego is eliminated from playoff contention with a loss over the Chiefs. The win put the Steelers in the drivers seat, who can get in the playoffs without playing next week, if the Chargers beat the Broncos. The Chiefs need to win, a Chargers loss and a Steelers loss (Lions), to get in. Larry Johnson will break rushing records next year.
A team to watch out for in January this year is the Jaguars. Don't underestimate this squad.
Eli Manning appears to be going through a first full season lull the last month or so. College QB's don't play this many games in a season and Manning appears very tired. If Manning doesn't improve, the Giants are going to be an early exit in January.
It's amazing the difference in the Bears the last 6 quarters with Rex Grossman. The defense is so good, that I think this team has a great chance to make it to Detroit.
The Dolphins need a QB, but they are a team to watch out for next year.
Drexel continues to play well as they beat Ball St this week. Light schedule the next week before conference play heats up next week.
The Lions/Saints game could have been the worst close game all year. Just bad football with no offensive TD's the whole game.
I'm a little tired hearing about all the "Last ever Monday Night game on network TV" talk. The way TV contracts work, ABC or one of the other networks could have MNF back within 5 years. And if you don't have ESPN, you really aren't a football fan who watches the games anyway.
Baseball
Signings around the MLB have been light, with one major exception being the Johnny Damon defection to the Yankees.
I'm not really interested in talking about that, but something I find really funny is that Scott Boras continues to stick it to the Rangers. First, he set the franchise back with the debilitation Alex Rodriguez contract. Now, they've signed Kevin Millwood to a 5 year $60 million contract. The Rangers are going to be disppointed to say the least.
The Phillies have been quiet the last few weeks, but I expect Pat Gillick to pick up a solid veteran starter, either via a trade or free agency. Jason Michaels trade value appears to be very minimal as Coco Crisp and Jeremy Reed have emerged as better Center Field candidates for teams in need.
NBA - Derreck Sura
- Philadelphia went 1-1 this past week following up a quality win against Golden State with a terrible loss in Atlanta. Not the best way to start a seven game road trip. The Sixers (14-13) now occupy seventh place in the East, which would pit them against the second place team if the season ended today. Starting this week Philly's schedule gets noticeably tougher then it has been. From now through the end of January the Sixers will play twelve games versus Western Conference teams as well as three division games over the course of the month. If Philly is still above .500 after that stretch I'll tip my cap to them.
This week brings the Sixers: @Denver & @Portland (back to back) then @Utah. If Philly can steal tonight's contest against an inconsistent Nugget team that would make up for the loss to the Hawks. The Trail Blazers are the worst team in the West, but they have been playing a little better as of late. The Jazz are a more difficult team to beat when Andrei Kirilenko is in the lineup. If the Sixers find a way to get to 2-1 this week that would be fantastic for them.
- On December 12th Stan Van Gundy "resigned" as head coach of the Miami Heat (16-12). His replacement? None other then team President Pat Riley. You all remember him, right? Riles was last seen flaming out and sticking SVG with the coaching gig in Miami just days before the 2003-04 season began. After a predictably terrible start, Stan Van went on to lead the Heat to a 42-40 record and the second round of the playoffs that season. Pretty impressive if you ask me. In his second year on the bench SVG got Miami all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals after a 59-23 regular season which included a Division title. Nice progression there in my opinion. Granted he was only 11-10 this season before "resigning", but he also only had Shaquille O'Neal (more on him in a minute) in uniform for three games. One would think that SVG earned some slack after his first two seasons. Guess not.
From my Eastern Conference Preview: "Then he [Riley] made news by suggesting that Miami coach "Stan [Van Gundy] has done a great job", but "I may take a little bit more of an active participation in some of the things." Since then Riles has backed off that statement, but the seed is already planted."
More: "Eyes On - SVG. Riley did him a huge disservice this summer by undermining his authority. If they get off to a slow start, his job security will be in the news."
If you saw the dog and pony show of a press conference that Riles and SVG put on when the announcement was made, then you saw that SVG didn't exactly have the look of someone who had just "resigned to spend more time with his family." Stan Van looked more like someone who's family pet was just hit by a car and he was trying to figure out how to tell his kids.
However, I don't blame just Riley here. According to various reports in South Florida, Shaq had more then a little part in what went down with the Heat's coaching change. Much like he can't/won't let his feud with Kobe Bryant die, Shaq was equally disruptive in undermining SVG's authority. It all started when Shaq thought he didn't get enough touches in crunch time of Miami's game 7 loss to Detroit last year. Never mind that he was hobbled and can't shoot free throws. I think this story from an unnamed Heat player is very telling about what was really going on in South Beach. Basically, Shaq wiggled three fingers near his ear while Stan Van was lecturing the rest of the players about disrespecting his knowledge. That was the Diesel's way of letting his teammates know that he has three rings and SVG has none. I don't really understand why, but the media never seems to cover these types of stories when they involve Shaq. As is always the case in the NBA, when the head coach loses his star player, the rest of the team is soon to follow.
Give Riley credit for one thing, he waited until the Big Fella was back in the lineup before making his move. Many pundits said before this season that only Riles would be able to get the multiple head cases he himself had assembled to play like a team. So now he's laying in the bed he made. Pat is 5-2 so far as Miami's head coach, but the only good team they've beaten is Milwaukee, and the Bucks were playing without Bobby Simmons and Maurice Williams that night. So the jury is still out on how good Riley's Heat are going to be.
I have to end with this tid bit. Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel found out that Miami extended SVG's contract by one year when he "resigned" as head coach. Very interesting. That could be the only time in the history of sports that a coach of any professional franchise got a contract extension for quitting. Like I said, very interesting indeed.
- Certain people out there think I am down Gilbert Arenas. Let's get something straight here. Just because I don't like the way he plays the game, nor would I want him on my team, that DOES NOT mean he is not a good player. Gil is 4th in points (28.8 ppg) and 3rd in minutes (41.8 mpg). He also is 7th in free throws attempted (9 ftapg) and makes them at an 80.1% clip. Another pretty good stat he has going for him is his 3 point shooting. GA is 2nd in the league in 3's attempted (7.8 3fgapg) and makes 39.4% of them. The good numbers end there though. Gil is 3rd overall in field goal attempts (21.1 fgapg) and only shoots 43.8% from the field. His shot selection leaves much to be desired too. My main gripe with him has always been his play making. Someone that has the ability to get into lane at will, and also has the ball as much as he does, should be higher then 17th in assists (6.2 apg). Even worse is that he leads the NBA in turnovers (4 topg) and is 130th in assist to turnover ratio (1.55 a/to).
Unlike last year, I'm willing to cut GA some slack because I think Washington (12-14) needs his gunning this season. Antawn Jamison's numbers are down in scoring and assists to go along with a drop in his field goal, 3 point, and free throw shooting percentages. Big free agent signing Antonio Daniels has been in a word, awful. AD's points (11.2 to 5 ppg), assists (4.1 to 2.5 apg), rebounds, steals, free throw shooting, 3 point shooting (12%!), and field goal shooting (43.8% to 34.3%) are all down from last season. Contract year performance says what? The players President Ernie Grunfeld got in return for Kwame Brown have been unspectacular too. Caron Butler has been his hot and cold self, but Chucky Atkins has been disruptive bordering on a team cancer thus far. Now comes word that Jarvis Hayes, who had been starting at SG, is out "indefinitely" with a fractured right patella (the same injury that ended his season last year).
Add all these factors up and GA is in the untenable position, much like Allen Iverson, of having to be a ball hogging gunner for his team to have a chance to win. That said, GA has never really shown the desire or ability, much like AI until recently, to be anything other then that. Don't get me wrong, for the Wizards to turn things around they are going to have pick their defensive intensity (where they REALLY miss Larry Hughes) to go along with finding some more consistent scoring options. But as AI and Kobe Bryant have figured out, it's much easier to win when you show confidence in your teammates (even if they can't throw it in the ocean). How long it takes Gil to come to that same realization will determine how quickly Washington reaches their full potential as a team.
- The Houston Rockets (10-15) seem to be having one of those years. Just when Tracy McGrady is looking back to normal, they lose Yao Ming to surgery on his right big toe. It will be six to eight weeks before Yao can even begin rehab, so figure a couple more before he's ready for game action. That means Houston is looking at his return some time in early March. Yikes! But wait, it gets worse. Yao's replacement, Dikembe Mutombo, will miss at least the next two games with a dislocated and badly lacerated right middle finger (his status will be reevaluated on Monday). Oh, there's even more. Derek Anderson is out two weeks with a strained right calf muscle, and Jon Barry is day to day with the same injury. Hey guys, how about stretching in warm ups? This for a team already missing their starting PG (Rafer Alston) with a slightly fractured right fibula, and without last year's starting PG Bob Sura (back surgery). There's absolutely no way that the Rockets can make up ground in the playoff chase with all those injuries. The best Houston can hope for is to stay within striking distance (in the loss column) of eight place in the West for the time being.
San Antonio Spurs' guard Manu Ginobili has missed the last seven games with a sprained right foot. Said coach Gregg Popovich, "All directions aren't cleared yet. He can go some ways, some directions. In others, he can't still. It's like a jam under his heel. It's very strange, but he's in a lot of pain." That doesn't sound good. As I've said before, the Spurs (21-7) are not the same team without Ginobili, but they have enough depth and experience to make do for as long as he is out. Supposedly Manu's close to returning, and even though Dallas (21-7) has tied SA for the best record in the West, I see no need to rush him back before he's 100% healthy.
Bonzi Wells will be out three to four weeks with a partial tear of his right groin. This is not good news for the Sacramento Kings (10-17). The Kings are struggling mightily already, and are not particularly deep with swingmen either. Second year player Kevin Martin will start for Bonzi and rookie Francisco Garcia will see more minutes off the bench. Martin and Garcia both have fine offensive potential, but neither is physically strong or a good defender. Cue the 'Jaws' theme for coach Rick Adelman...
The Memphis Grizzlies (16-10) have been without back up PG Bobby Jackson for the last seven games due to a pulled right hamstring. As long as his injury doesn't linger the Griz have the depth at the point to be fine. I like the quickness and play making second year PG Antonio Burks brings to the table as Damon Stoudamire's back up. Burks' shot is a little shaky, but he makes good decisions with ball and can defend his position.
NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser
- The obvious lead story sweeping the hockey world is that "House of Wax" and "The Girl Next Door" beauty Elisha Cuthbert broke off her engagement from Trace Ayala (whose main claim to fame is being Justin Timberlake's best friend) and she's being seen with LA King Sean Avery. As if Avery isn't blessed enough his former girlfriend is Rachel Hunter. Anyway Cuthbert was seen taking care of business with Avery around Los Angeles and Cuthbert was also photographed in Toronto at a Kings/Leafs game in Toronto. The best part of this whole thing is even though Avery is kind of a little dude (5'9") he still has some goonish tendencies so if Ayala ever confronted him on streets of Los Angeles Avery would knock him into next Tuesday.
- From the rumor mill this trade, Flyers goalie Robert Esche for St. Louis Blue Doug Weight. My first problem with the deal was that Weight is too old but then I just read he's actually a year younger then me so I'll scrap that argument. It's not that I don't like the trade it's just that it seems like you need to get more for Esche. And why another scorer? Esche is a decent goalie, capable of sustained flashes of being pretty good, so it's seems to me that the Flyers would need a decent defenseman with some speed in the deal.
- Notes From Around The League.....The Penguins fired Eddie Olczyk which was a long time in coming. He never had a prayer; the guy was a Penguin broadcaster who was plucked from the booth to coach a team that included his boss (Lemeiux) and free agents (LeClair, Recchi) that are turning out to be old slow stiffs. Olczyk was accused of not really having practices as much as they were just free for all goof off time for the players. Seldom have I seen an out going coach with such a look of relief on his face as Olczyk. The guy did his best but he ain't no coach.....replacing Olczyk is disciplinarian Michel Therrien. The headline in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette was "The Country Club is CLOSED!!" This is the classic example of the yelling and screaming minor league coach getting a chance with the big guys. Therrien's previously coached the Canadiens but it's hard to judge how his act played out because he didn't get a long enough look. In Montréal if you don't win a Cup immediately while having an undefeated season the Canadian press wants you out.....Jeremy Roenick is out 6 weeks with a broken finger. No word on whether Roenick broke that finger extending it at USA Hockey GM Don Waddell for not being including on the US Olympic hockey team. Actually he broke his ring finger but I couldn't pass up the joke. Roenick was passed up for the team even though he actively campaigned for the job. I'll do an Olympic preview once all the rosters are all named because there's only 6 teams that really matter, the US, Canada, Sweden, Czech Republic, Finland, and Russia. In a preview to the preview I'll just say the Swedish team is loaded. And I mean LOA-DED!!.....In a sad ending to a brilliant career the new game is claiming another casualty; LA King Luc Robitaille was a healthy scratch in 3 games within the last 2 weeks.....In the battle of Ontario, the Ottawa Senators have beaten the Leafs 4 straight times and have out scored them 27 to 9 and that includes 2 goals the Leafs scored in the 3rd period of a game the Senators were winning 8 to love.
- This actually happened to me on Friday night, I was at a bar and the Flyers were on one TV and the Sixers were on another and I noticed the two Philadelphia teams were both losing to two of the worst teams in the respective sports. The Flyers were losing to the Penguins and the Sixers were losing to the Hawks. Thankfully the Flyers were able to make a comeback and win their game. The Flyers blew a 3 - 0 lead to the Senators on Thursday yet managed to squeak out a 4 - 3 win on home ice. The Flyers also blew a 2 - 0 lead to the pathetic Penguins yet were able to squeak out a 5 - 4 win in Steel Town. I'm just going to bang this drum until the cows come home...and I don't have any cows so it could take a while....NO SPEED ON DEFENSE, NO SPEED ON DEFENSE, NO SPEED ON DEFENSE!!! It's killing the Flyers. They have to get quicker on defense, it's really their only fault because offensively they're playing great.
- Our 2 year old horse Second Story Man ran last Monday, 6 furlong race with Harry Vega in the cockpit. We were having trouble finding him a race so we raised him in class. Here's a lesson in horse racing...the top 5 things that happened before the race which made me think Second Story Man was in deep trouble. 5.) John (Smarty Jones' trainer) Servis had a horse in the race. Word on the street was his horse cost $750,000 or about 100 times more expensive then Second Story Man. 4.) Tim (Afleet Alex's trainer) Ritchey had a horse in the race. Word on the street was his horse was $350,000. 3.) When I looked up the pedigrees of John Servis' horse and Tim Ritchey's horse I saw a lot of names like Seattle Slew, Secretariat, Affirmed, and Fusaichi Pegasus. When you look up Second Story Man's pedigree you see names like Buttercup, Grand Dad's Gal, Best O' Luck, and Top Hat. 4.) I heard that John Servis flew in all the way from Arkansas just to see his horse run in this race. His horse's name Gameboye by the way. 5.) When I saw Tim Ritchey's horse in the paddock I thought he was really a brown elephant, I swear he was that big. I can't confirm it but I think when Ritchey's horse saw Second Story Man he was thinking "are you kidding me??" Anyway Second Story Man ran an immature race and he finished last. He didn't switch leads...basically when a horse leaves the starting gate he leads with his left foot, when he makes the turn for home his switches to leading with his right foot which generally puts him into another gear, Second Story Man never did that. We actually got a new horse named Fort Seattle who ran yesterday, 6.5 furlongs with Luis Rivera Jr. in the irons. This is the first time Rivera has ridden for us but he has 3 wins on Fort Seattle so he got the job. I'm having computers issues at home to I'll put the result of the race on the MMM website this afternoon.
posted by Monday Morning Mehta at 9:21 AM
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