Some Faves to Hold You Over

So, It's time For Vacation

As a guy who works for myself, going on vacation means no cash flow in and a lot of cash flow out. But, nevertheless, off I head to Syracuse, NY to go to the Maven family reunion (HM, PM, get it?). I pack up the car tonight after soccer and baseball, sleep 4 hours and then hit the highway in the black and tan minivan, hoping to reach Erie, PA before I lose my mind or AM (Accounting Maven) and I are too tired to drive anymore tomorrow. Since over the next week I will leave you with minimal posts (my dad's computer may be the slowest computer ever invented -- I think it is a Colleco or Commodore 64), I will post a few pics of a favorite of mine, the lovely (and age-appropriate for me) Sandra Bullock. I will throw up a few old faves as pics in the post above to hold you over as well. Miss me..............stay as cool as you are and you'll do great!....................your pal...........................BFF...............HM.

Suprme Court Barely Blocks military tribunals

http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/06/29/scotus.tribunals/index.html. Had Roberts been permitted to vote it would have been 5-4. My translation of GWB's promise to abide by the decision: "I am not going to abide by this decision if I can get away with it. If I don't get away with it, I will claim that I have inherent Presidential power not to. If that doesn't sell, I will just delay compliance until 2009 when it will be Bill Frist's problem (unless Jenna is old enough to be President by then. Will she?)."

Minnesota Timberwolves -- Still In Awful Disarray

Why in the world would you trade the 6th pick in the draft for the 7th pick in the draft plus a paltry sum of cash? Per the Minneapolis Star Tribune, "Coach" Dwane Casey states that the decision on Brandon Roy v. Randy Foye was so hard that the Wolves brass (should this say "dross"?) argued about it for almost half an hour. You are going into an NBA draft. You have known for a long time that Foye and Roy might both be available at #6. You pick one guy and then trade him for the other guy plus a miniscule amount of cash? Don't pick up a pick or a player? (Portland had picks 30 and 31 for God's sake, couldn't get one of those???) This can only be described as bizarre. But I like Foye, so let's move on......................................................................................... The Wolves picked up 3 additional 2nd round picks through trades this past year. Let's toss out the low #2 they got for Skita, that was a straight dump. But you pick up a couple #2s. Isn't the message you are sending to your fans that the #2s are worth something? If so, then why do you trade away the #37 pick (Bobby Jones) for a FUTURE #2!?!?! I mean, basic math probability skills will tell you that the pick you get will be probably be WORSE than #37. So, you traded a pick you felt was worthless for a future pick that will almost certainly be more worthless. Um, OK. If #2 picks are so worthless, why ACQUIRE them through trades!?!?....................................................................Moving on. If Rashad McCants cannot play anymore after his knee surgery, the Wolves drafts since Kevin Garnett in 1995 have netted them on their roster: Ricky Davis and Mark Blount and Marko Jaric and Randy Foye, so, one possible good NBA starter (Foye), a 6th man (Davis) and two 7th men (Blount and Jaric) in 11 drafts (8 drafts if you don't count the 3 lost Joe Smith picks). The remarkable thing is not that Garnett has not led his team to the championship. The remarkable thing is that the Wolves franchise continues to exist in light of this 11 year history of incompetence.............................Oh, but wait, it gets sadder. The Wolves gave away two future #1 picks to get the juggernaut that is Davis, Blount and Jaric. http://aol.nba.com/celtics/stats/inside-the-numbers/numbers042006.html (ironically, if the Wolves could just really suck through 2012 they won't lose either pick b/c the league forbids trading #1s more than 7 years out!!). So, say the Wolves limp to 38-44 this year behind a great year from Rookie of the Year Randy Foye. Clippers get the Wolves' #1 for 2007 and the Celtics get in line and look to get the Wolves' #1 for 2009. So, adding talent to a mediocre-but-improving club through the draft appears unlikely...............................................All in all, things look mighty bleak at Target Center. Which is why, if you have an extra $200 lying around, you can watch all 43 MN home games this year. http://aol.nba.com/timberwolves/tickets/199_season_ticket_special.html. And yet Kevin McHale keeps his job...................

A Few Thoughts On the NBA Draft

Winners: Portland (although they made a dizzying array of trades --4 or 5 at last look) they did get Lamarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy, two of the three most talented guys in the draft (Rudy Gay being the other). New Jersey (while I did not like fat computer stealing Marcus Williams, he was lauded as high as #8, they got him at #22), Utah (I think Ronny Brewer will be a very good player and Utah is sadly lacking in very good players)..................................................Losers -- Lakers (only because adding Jordan Farmar completes the Shaq deal. They end up with Kwame Brown, Lamar Odom, and Jordan Farmar. Miami ends up with a title.); Knicks (believe it or not I understand what Isiah is trying to do -- add guys who will play hard, defend, and don't want or need the ball, sadly he could have drafted Marcus Williams and then moved him to someone later on for the draft rights to balkman plus something else). Seattle -- are the Sonics trying to corner the market on mediocre big men? Johan Petro, Robert Swift, this Senegal guy, I guess this means they have offically given up on 7' 205 pound Peter Fehse.........................................I like their two picks, but the Hawks had a bizarre Golden State-esque draft. You have Marvin Williams and Al Harrington and Zaza Pachulia up front. You have Joe Johnson and the Joshes (Smith and Childress at the wing positions), why aren't you at least looking point guard here? Why let everyone know you are going to pick Shelden Williams? Why not say that you are going to pick Randy Foye? A) you might like to have him; and B) you have no one at the point; and C) someone (Portland, MN) might believe you and give you something to move up. Odd................................................Side Notes -- Shane Battier is never going to be an NBA all-star level player, but I don't know if trading the nicest guy you have for a non-worker like Rudy Gay is really what you want to do if you are the Grizzle. Battier is a winner, so I have to give Houston props for getting him. Battier, unlike McGrady and Yao, will always play hard. Chicago, by the by, is practically cornering the market on young talent. Look, you have Hinrich, Duhon, Gordon, Tyrus Thomas, Luol Deng, Nocioni, Tyson Chandler, Kryhapa, the Swiss guy they just picked. None of these guys can leave them or get a bigger contract for the next two years. So, you have a TON of great young talent, all you need is a superstar. Seems to me that Garnett to Chicago should have already occurred. If you have Hinrich, Duhon, Thomas, Nocioni, Kryhapa and the Swiss guy, why do you need Gordon, Deng and Chandler? You don't. Or you set aside Hinrich and tell Minnesota that they can have any 4 of the others for Garnett. In less than a year, Danny Ainge has moved both Mark Blount and Raef LaFrentz off his books. I would have bet a million dollars that he could never do that. Danny will learn quickly that Telfair is not the answer (unless the question is "Name a mediocre 5'10" backup point guard"). Jerry West basically hinted last night that Rudy Gay may not end up as a Grizzle "There are certain things we are doing that we aren't allowed to talk about"). If true, then whom is he packaging Gay with and where is Gay ending up?

Bill Simmons' Top 9 in Draft

(Again, not by me, not trying to rip anyone off, just posting): http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/060628. Two funniest lines -- 1) McHale is "that guy" in your fantasy football draft who will take a kicker or defense in the 3rd round; 2) "Warriors are trying to shop Mike Dunleavy." What would be even funnier to hear is what they are trying to GET for him. Um, well, I have a 1987 Chevy Chevette that I just bought for $100,000. What say you give me, oh, your Ferrari??? The prices basically match up.

Biggest Draft Rumors

1) Iverson to Boston for Wally and the #7. 2) Battier plus the #24 available to anyone who will let the Grizzle get Foye or (fat computer stealer) Marcus Williams. 3) KG to Chicago for Gordon/Chandler/#2 pick. If I were the Wolves I would make the Bulls toss in Deng. Here is something that is NOT a rumor -- Kevin McHale will find a way to mess up the Wolves. Philly reportedly trying to move Iverson's $60MM over the next three years -- hey Sixers, it ain't this $60MM that will kill you. It is the $100MM you still owe Webber and Dalembert and Korver...

France 3, Spain 1

Not since the War of the Pyrenees http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Pyrenees has France administered such an awful ass kicking to the Spanish side. If I am not mistaken, that means that the last two World Cup champions will face off in the quarters -- France v. Brazil. As a big history buff, I have to say that I greatly enjoy the dominance of Europe in this field. It allows me to dredge up references like, well, the War of the Pyrenees. I am hoping that England and Argentina can meet so I can make a Falkland Islands reference (oh wait, just did).........

NBA Draft Preview 2006

HM's NBA Draft Preview 2006


Using the picks identified on nbadraft.net at noon today, I have come up with my initial thoughts on the top 11 and a few other guys. I will give a 1-100 rating at the end of each guy, 100 being the next LeBron, 84-100 being a multiple time NBA all-star player; 70+ being a consistent NBA starter, 45-69 being a guy who will see decent time but not start. Enjoy.

1. Toronto Andrea Bargnani 6-11 240 PF Italy 1985 (73)

At Best – Dirk Nowitski; At Worst – Matt Bullard; Probably – Darko Milicic (which is not as big of an insult as it seems, barring injury, Darko will be a 15/8/2 man in this league for 8-10 years)

2. Chicago Tyrus Thomas 6-8 217 PF LSU Fr. (53)

At Best – a young Antonio McDyess; At Worst – Kenny Battle; Probably – a slightly better Stromile Swift

3. Charlotte Rudy Gay 6-8 222 SF UConn (74)

At Best – young Grant Hill; At Worst – DerMarr Johnson; Probably – Ron Harper/Jerry Stackhouse

4. Portland Adam Morrison 6-8 198 SF Gonzaga Jr. (72)

At Best – Reggie Miller; At Worst – Kyle Korver; Probably – Wally Szczerbiak

5. Atlanta Shelden Williams 6-9 258 PF/C Duke Sr. (68)

At Best – Karl Malone; At Worst – Doug Smith; Probably – Carlos Boozer


6. *Minnesota Brandon Roy 6-6 207 SG Washington Sr. (82)

At Best – Paul Pierce; At Worst – Courtney Alexander; Probably – Corey Maggette


7. *Boston LaMarcus Aldridge 6-11 234 PF Tex. (81)

At Best – Kevin Garnett; At Worst – John Wallace; Probably – a better Tyson Chandler

8. Houston Randy Foye 6-3 212 PG Villanova (77)

At Best – Joe Dumars; At Worst – Sebastian Telfair; Probably – Raymond Felton (whom I like)


9. Golden St. Rodney Carney 6-6 204 SF Memphis Sr. (55)
At Best – young Michael Finley; At Worst – Ndudi Ebi; Probably – Andre Iguodala


10. Seattle Patrick O'Bryant 7-0 249 C Bradley So. (72)

At Best – Brad Daughtery; At Worst – Rasho Nesterovich; Probably – a better Sam Dalembert (or just Sam D. when he used to try)

11. Orlando JJ Redick 6-5 190 SG Duke Sr. (68)

At Best – Jeff Hornacek or Jeff Malone; At Worst – Damon Bailey; Probably – Voshon Lenard


Guys I Like After 11 (not in order):

Daniel Gibson 6-2 190 PG Texas So. (can actually play basketball, yet is projected late 2nd) 44


Ronnie Brewer 6-7 223 SG Arkansas Jr. (his dad was a great player in college, Ronnie will be the better pro) 72


Hassan Adams 6-4 201 SF Arizona Sr. (played at a high level, projected very low) 39


Eric Williams 6-8 285 PF Wake Forest Sr. (if he can get in shape, he could be a great bench forward; will never play enough D to start, but can score) 48

Pops Mensah-Bonsu 6-9 232 PF GW Sr. (tremendous physical ability, when he went down, GW was not nearly as good) 54

Rajon Rondo 6-2 171 PG Kentucky So. (picking guys who starred at Kentucky is always a pretty good bet, they are in the league forever) 66

Alexander Johnson 6-9 230 PF FSU Jr. (lost a lot of weight, could be a very good player) 54

Nik Caner-Medley 6-8 234 SF Mary. Sr. (lookk, I personally hate all Terps, but Nik does not suk so badly that he deserves to be projected at 50-58; explain to me how Luk(e) Jackson is a lottery pik but Niky is almost out of the draft completely? I thikk they are the same player). 44

Darius Washington, 5’10” 195, PG Memphis – I like his mental and physical toughness and the fact that he is a winner 56


Guys I don’t Like

Marcus Williams 6-3 215 PG UConn Jr. (fat computer stealer) 57

Allan Ray SG Villanova Sr. – (not before #50-58, you can find a selfish inaccurate gunner on any playground w/o having to spend a draft pick) 22

Saer Sene 7-0 237 C Sen. 1986 (Projected to go way too high -- Yinka Dare anyone?) 40


Their Own Category

Shawne Williams 6-8 227 SF Memphis Fr. (you have to like a guy whom everyone who has worked him out says is good, but I just can’t get over a supposed world-class athlete showing up for a combine and not being able to bench 185 one time.) 49

Kevin Pittsnogle 6-10, C-F West Va. -- I grew up on the sticks, so I knew a lot of guys who look like Pittsnogle, and none could play ball. So I am torn. I can't imagine him playing in the NBA, but a law school classmate once called me "the worst-looking great athlete I have ever seen" so I sort of owe it to Pittsnogle to support the poor body-type guys. If pushed, I guess I gotta go pro-KP unless he heads to a team (Phoenix, Lakers for example) I hate............... 35

Rush Limbaugh -- Can't Get It Up?

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/bottle-of-viagra-gets-limbaugh-held-at/20060626213709990001?_mpc=news%2e10%2e4&cid=2359

Flag Burning Amendment -- A Travesty

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/senate-vote-on-flag-burning-may-be/20060626174109990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001. 66 U.S. Senators are now in favor of an amendment that would limit freedom of speech. That is a damned shame. What is the proper way to dispose of a flag? Burn it: The only definitive answer is found in the US Flag Code. TITLE 4 > CHAPTER 1 > Sec. 8(k). It states:
"The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning." You can't burn someone ELSE'S flag, that is a crime. You can't burn a flag where it would cause a nuisance or a danger. That is a crime. So, what this amendment is intended to do is to prevent me from burning a flag that I bought somewhere when the burning causes neither a hazard nor a nuisance. Oh, but I can still burn the flag if I do so in a "dignified way." So, this proposed amendment would allow Congress or a state government to punish its citizens for criticizing the government. Plain and simple. Next up -- no burning pictures of the President, no burning souvenirs of the Capitol Building, no burning souvenir copies of the Constitution. Oh wait, we are in the process of destroying the Bill of Rights, so I guess no one gives a damn about the Constitution anymore. Political satire that makes politicians mad will be fast behind (we are already hearing the NY Times called "treasonous" for publishing reports about government searches).......................................Pictured -- crime or no crime???????????

Brazil -- Ghana

A quick review of the coverage on worldcup.org shows that Ghana has had the better of the play against Brazil, but the champions lead it 2-0. Having watched Brazil twice so far, I will say this -- 1) they play no defense, you will get a ton of chances; 2) their goalie is not particularly good; 3) they appear extremely disinterested. That said, there is no team in the tourney even close to Brazil in pure talent with the ball and scoring ability. Brazil could have had 10 against Japan the other day. Their ability to control virtually any pass is astounding. And a final note, Ronaldo may be fat, but that man can really score goals. Since good strikers rarely cover even half of the field, I am confused by the obsession over the man's weight. Could he be thinner? Sure. Is he a top 5 scorer still -- um, yeah.

More Chad Ford -- This Time, Draft Sleepers

Note -- I am not providing this analysis. This is by Chad Ford of ESPN. I am posting it as a service to my readers. It was forwarded to me in e-mail form by a subscriber to the "insider" service......................................................................................The best draft prospects you don't know ... yet--------------------------------------------------------------------------------By Chad FordESPN Insider......................................................You know Adam Morrison. Cheered for (or against) J.J. Redick. Believe that Brandon Roy is the most complete player in the draft. Think that Shelden Williams could be the next Antonio Davis.But who don't you know? In 2005, it was New Mexico's Danny Granger. In 2004, Kevin Martin. In 2003, a kid from France named Boris Diaw.They're the draft sleepers, talented prospects who haven't received the press or the love they probably deserve.This year, there is an abundance of such players. Here are 10 guys you may not know much about who could end up helping your favorite NBA team................................................................Mouhamed Saer Sene, C, Senegal.I have watched a few hours of Sene on DVD, and the resemblance to Dikembe Mutombo is uncanny. Sene is a 7-footer from Senegal who played in Belgium this year. He's gotten some publicity for his incredible 7-8 wingspan and his dominating, nine-block performance at the Nike Hoop Summit in Memphis in April, but most fans still don't know much else.But perhaps his most impressive attribute has been his development over the past year. While his body has filled out and gotten stronger, his on-court progress has been even more remarkable. One year ago, when I saw him at the 2005 Reebok Eurocamp, his wingspan was the only positive I could come up with. When attempting layups, Sene didn't even know which foot to jump from. That's all changed this year. On defense, he's already close to being able to contribute in the NBA. On offense, he's got a ways to go, but he has become much more aggressive and is picking up some low-post moves. Teams see him as a potentially dominating defensive force in the paint. In a draft short on big men, that makes him a hot name.Look for him to go as high as the Jazz at No. 14 and no lower than the Suns at No. 21................................................................................................................................Alexander Johnson, PF, Florida StateAt one time, Johnson was the overweight kid who could play. But he always seemed like an underachiever, because his body was holding him back. Not anymore. Johnson got with personal coach David Thorpe last summer, dropped down to 225 and looked like a completely different player, both physically and on the court.It took him a little while to get used to his sleeker, quicker body (in part because Johnson loves to mix it up in the paint), but when he did the results turned heads. He had 22 points and 13 rebounds in 26 minutes against Duke in May and averaged 21 ppg and 9.5 rpg in the NIT this year. In workouts he's wowed teams with his combination of athleticism (a 40-inch vertical leap) and power. He's still developing, which isn't necessarily a good thing at the age of 23. But enough teams see the similarities to Kenyon Martin to take him much higher than he was projected when he came out of school.Look for Johnson to go as high as the Bulls at No. 16 and probably no lower than the Grizzlies at No. 24.......................................................................................................................Thabo Sefolosha, G/F, Switzerland Suddenly, he's one of the hottest names in the draft. Sefolosha has been on NBA radar screens for several years but didn't declare for the draft until this year. His play in Italy was very solid last season, but he still didn't get much recognition. Within days of his arrival in the U.S. for workouts, the buzz began.He's a versatile forward who can shoot, score, rebound and bring the ball up the floor. He's not great in any one category, but he's excellent all-around. Scouts compare him to Dallas' Josh Howard as a player, and his super-long wingspan is reminiscent of Tayshaun Prince's. After being rated as a second-round pick by scouts most of the year, he's now got a great chance to go in the late lottery to mid-first round.Look for Sefalosha to go as high as the Hornets at No. 12 and no lower than the Knicks at No. 20...........................................................................................................................................James White, G/F, Cincinnati There was a time when White was considered one of the best high school prospects in the country, a super athlete who could jump out of the gym and fly up and down the floor. Things didn't work out at Florida and White transferred to Cincinnati. He had to sit out a year to regain eligibility and slipped off most draft boards until this season.He was great for Cincinnati this year on both ends of the floor. On defense, he has the length and speed to guard ones, twos and threes. On offense, he's awesome in the open court and has really improved his jumper, especially off the dribble. White's the type of player who could be a much better player in the NBA than in college.He could go as high the Nets at No. 23 and should go no lower than the Raptors at No. 35........................................................................Yotam Halperin, G, IsraelHalperin excelled in the Euroleague last season and followed up with a similar performance at the Reebok Eurocamp. In the past week, the Suns and Pacers have raved about his play in workouts against higher-ranked players.As a savvy combo guard who can shoot, Halperin is often compared to San Antonio's Beno Udrih. But Halperin is actually a better shooter with has more court vision, and he's bigger.The fact that he could become Israel's first NBA player is also intriguing. Israelis are NBA fanatics and could provide a boon in the form of a new market to the team that drafts him.He could go as high as the Suns at No. 27 and probably doesn't slip past Hawks at No. 33..............................................................Leon Powe, PF, California Without his two ACL injuries, Powe would be a likely lottery pick. He's an explosive scorer and rebounder who can play tough defense. While a little undersized for his position, he makes up for it with long arms and his ability to get off the floor.Last season, Powe had to play himself back into shape after injuries and was not as athletic or explosive as he had looked in high school. Lately, though, teams have reported that he looks as good as ever and that his knees seem to be fine.We said all year that if Powe's knees checked out, he could be a first-round pick. Right now, that seems a bit of a long shot given the lack of buzz surrounding him, but on talent, he should probably be there. If Ike Diogu can go No. 9, as he did last year, then Powe should be worthy of the late first round, at worst..............................................................................................................Joel Freeland, F, England Freeland was bagging groceries three years ago in England and has played high-level organized ball for only one year. He admitted to us in Italy that he hadn't even watched an NBA game before last season.But based on his performance in the Reebok Eurocamp, he's now worked his way up into consideration for the first round. His skills are still developing, but he has great energy and pesky athleticism for a 6-10 kid. He needs a few years in Europe to hone his skills, but coaches were amazed at how well he picked up things in the camp. He could go as high as the Suns at No. 27 and probably doesn't slip past the Clippers at No. 34.............................................................................................................Solomon Jones, F/C, South Florida I'm not a huge Jones fan. He does have NBA size and athletic ability, but his body is frail and he put up only OK numbers for a terrible team. He's a good rebounder and shot blocker but not much of a presence on offense. He ended the season in impressive fashion, with two strong games against UConn and Georgetown. He played well at the Portsmouth predraft camp and not so well at the Orlando predraft camp. His size and athleticism seem to be pushing up his draft stock. We've heard he could go as early as No. 29 or No. 30 ... or he could slide down to the bottom of the second round.P.J. Tucker, F, Texas Fans know Tucker, but he's been lost in the shuffle a bit with his two higher-profile teammates, LaMarcus Aldridge and Daniel Gibson, entering the draft. Tucker doesn't look like much of an NBA prospect. Though 6-5, he plays like a power forward. He has almost no range on his jump shot and is a shaky ball-handler.How can a guy like that be a sleeper? Because several teams think Tucker has the intangibles to be a great player. He is tough, has a nose for the ball and finds ways to score around bigger opponents. More than one scout has referred to him as a poor man's Charles Barkley. So it looks like someone's going to snatch him up no later than early in the second round.............................................................................Damir Markota, F, Serbia The small forward formerly known as Damir Omerhodzic has gone under a major identity shift both off and on the court this year. Markota has been a prospect in Croatia for years but finally got major playing time on a Euroleague team this season and responded. He has great athleticism and size for his position and is an excellent perimeter shooter. In a league where "length" is valued so greatly, his arms are on the short side -- one scout called him a "T-Rex." But he makes up for that with his size and elevation on his jump shot.I watched a tape of a workout that his agent Marc Cornstein held for him and Vladimir Veremeenko in New York on June 12. Markota shot the ball very well, especially at the beginning of the workout, and showed off his above-average athleticism. (Veremeenko actually showed himself to be a little more skilled in the workout, but scouts are concerned he will be a player without a position in the NBA.) With a number of NBA teams in attendance, no doubt many walked away impressed, and even more have become fans in private workouts.What's really kept Markota's stock down is the notion that he's immature and prone to trouble off the court. The stories about his escapades in Europe and in the United States are voluminous, but the word is that Markota matured in the last year and stuck to playing basketball. A few teams that have interviewed him said they came away with the impression that Markota is a changed man.On talent, he's a definite first-rounder, but on reputation he may be forced into the second round. If he really has changed, the team that gets him in Round 2 is getting a steal.

June 26 -- Dark day for Soccer

2 Games -- no goals scored in regular play 11 on 11. 1 total goal, scored on a wrongly-called PK in injury time. The Swiss became the first team in World cup history to go regulation, OT and PK's without putting the ball in the net AT ALL!!!! Imagine a Saturday in the first round of NFL playoffs where the score was 3-0 in one game and 2-0 in quadruple OT of the second game. That's what you have here. Yuck.

East Coast Swamped By Rain

To quote Peter Townshend, "what the papers say, just seems to bring down heavier rain..." To my East Coast readers -- hang in there folks. I will be out to Syracuse, NY by Saturday AM and I will try to bring you some of the dry (at least drier) Midwest weather.

Aaron Spelling and ANS's Nemesis Both Dead

I missed a couple deaths and I was going to let them go by without comment. BUT:
http://celebrity.aol.com/people/ataol/articles/0,26618,1207887,00.html I have to say that several things come to mind -- a) at least dad got to have sex with a hot ex-stripper, ex-playmate once or twice before he went, right about now I bet that seems like a good deal to sonny; b) "you can't take it with you;" and c) "over my dead body."

http://celebrity.aol.com/people/ataol/articles/0,26618,1204650,00.html. Aaron Spelling made a fortune by never overestimating the taste of the American people. With the fractionalization of television, I doubt that we will ever see his equal ever again. When everyone had three stations (or sometimes 4 or 5) in the 1970s and early 1980s, you always tuned into a guilty pleasure offered up by Spelling. Read the article, it has awesome stuff, including a description of his house. His trophy wife -- now age 60. I have a feeling that Aaron will be riding that thin line between heaven and the other destination; which means, in my opinion, he had a great life.

Victoria Adams-Beckham

If ya wanna be my lover, ya gotta, gotta score a goal. Now we know why Posh Spice's hubby came through in the clutch against Ecuador. David Beckham, by the way, is an odd player. Not fast, not particularly good with the ball. Not good in the air, not explosive, but he is an unbelievably great passer and probably the best in the world on free kicks and set pieces. Sort of like a great DH in baseball. Doesn't do much, but what he does can win you games.

Chad Ford on the NBA Draft

Trades might shake up draft, from top to bottom--------------------------------------------------------------------------------By Chad FordESPN InsiderWith less than a week to go before the June 28 NBA draft, very few teams are on solid footing. Not only are most teams uncertain about who will be available when they make their pick, but also there is a major factor that is simply impossible for them to calculate accurately -- the trades that most think are coming.Here's a take on the top prospects from an NBA team executive drafting in the high lottery."There are warts everywhere," he said. "Do you take a risk and go with upside or do you take a player who's going to be solid? Usually when you're drafting this high, you get a little of both. This year is different. I think there's one star, Adam Morrison. But he may not be the best player in the draft. I think this has led to all of the trade talk."This "trade talk" is what could, more than anything else, upset everyone's expectations about how the draft will play out. After all, when you don't even know which teams are making the picks, how can you figure out who they're taking?To try to sort things out, Insider has its ear to the ground, listening for trade rumblings. Here's what we're hearing about potential deals affecting the draft:1. Toronto RaptorsSince the regular season ended, two small trades have gone down in the NBA, both involving the Raptors. Toronto sent Rafael Araujo to the Jazz for Kris Humphries and Robert Whaley. Then, on Wednesday, they sent Eric Williams and Matt Bonner to the Spurs for Rasho Nesterovic.But just about everyone believes that another big trade is in the works, involving either the No. 1 pick or Charlie Villanueva.So far, a number of rumors have popped up, involving Jermaine O'Neal, Samuel Dalembert, Jamaal Magloire and Brevin Knight. So far, all of them have been bogus.Over the past few days, GM Bryan Colangelo has shot holes through all the scenarios. O'Neal would hurt their cap flexibility. Dalembert is overpaid. Magloire isn't worth the No. 1 pick. Knight isn't enough to motivate a swap of the No. 1 pick for Charlotte's No. 3 pick. Colangelo reiterated on Wednesday that it would have to be something "much bigger" to move the pick at this point. That probably shoots holes in some other trade scenarios currently out there.The most popular has the Portland Trail Blazers packaging No. 4 and No. 30 along with Travis Outlaw or one of their young point guards to get up to No. 1. The deal would allow the Raptors to pick up a few extra assets and still be in a position to take Andrea Bargnani at No. 4. However, the word is that the Raptors aren't interested and that the Blazers are unwilling to sweeten the pot. They want Adam Morrison badly but apparently won't mortgage the franchise for a guy who could very well be there when they pick at No. 4.The Houston Rockets have also tried to move up to get the No. 1 pick but just don't have the assets. Ditto for the Memphis Grizzlies. They'd be willing to offer just about anyone on their roster for No. 1 with the exception of Pau Gasol -- who is the only guy the Raptors would consider.At this point, it appears the Raptors are leaning toward keeping the pick. But they're probably not done trading. Look for them to work a sign-and-trade deal to move Mike James this summer. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------2./16. Chicago BullsThings have been pretty quiet in Chicago. Almost too quiet. The Bulls have more moveable assets than anyone else in the NBA at the moment. They have two very desirable first-round picks (No. 2 and No. 16), lots of young players with tradable contracts and plenty of cap room this summer.So are they going to make a deal? A rumor that was floated last week had them talking with the Los Angeles Lakers about a deal that would send Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum to Chicago for Tyson Chandler and the No. 2 pick. On Wednesday, a source said the Bulls might be considering trading the No. 2 pick and Chandler to the Phoenix Suns for Shawn Marion. With the pick, the Suns would select Tyrus Thomas. The move would help the Suns get the their salary-cap situation under control and allow them to re-sign Boris Diaw and Leandro Barbosa next summer.More likely, the Bulls are keeping the pick and deciding between Thomas and Brandon Roy. A source in Chicago reiterated to Insider on Wednesday that they hadn't promised to draft Thomas and were still trying to decide which way to go. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------3. Charlotte BobcatsGM Bernie Bickerstaff has been active in trying to trade up or down in the draft. The recently rumored swap that would send Brevin Knight and the No. 3 pick to Toronto for Alvin Williams and the No. 1 was shot down by Colangelo on Wednesday.It's still unclear, however, what the Bobcats want to accomplish. With Michael Jordan in a decision-making role, will they dump their strategy of building slowly through the draft and opt for a more aggressive approach that brings in veterans?At this point, the Bobcats look more and more likely to stay at No. 3. They are zeroing in on Roy, who's likely to be available when they pick. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------4./30. Portland Trail BlazersThe Blazers might be happy at No. 4, but they'd be happier if they could move up to No. 1. Adam Morrison is the top guy on their draft board not only because of his talent but also because of his popularity in Portland. The Blazers have created a huge gulf between the team and their fans, and drafting Morrison would definitely help bridge it. And their dream scenario is to find a way to get both Morrison and Brandon Roy. The Blazers have to do something to change their local image and their locker-room culture, and adding Morrison and/or Roy would be a huge step. The problem is that the Blazers appear unwilling to give up the two guys most teams are interested in, Martell Webster and Jarrett Jack. Instead, they are hoping that a combination of a young player plus No. 4, No. 30 and/or No. 31 will be enough. They have been shopping Zach Randolph, Darius Miles and Theo Ratliff, and they're willing to move some other players, as well.I'm not so sure any of that will help the Blazers get Toronto's No. 1 pick. Whatever interest the Raptors might have in Travis Outlaw and Sebastian Telfair does not appear to be strong enough for the Raptors to give up the top pick, even with the Blazers' picks in the deal.Look for the Blazers to get more suitors this summer when Joel Przybilla can be had via sign-and-trade.UPDATE: It looks like the Blazers may have to settle for packaging picks No. 30 and No. 31 and moving up in the draft. One potential acquisition is the No. 23 pick in a swap with the New Jersey Nets. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------5. Atlanta HawksBesides the Raptors, the Hawks have the most rumors swirling around them. The hottest talk is that they promised to pick Shelden Williams. But, if so, when? Was it with the No. 5 pick? Or did they know they were trading down and wanted to try to improve their chances to get him in the lottery?Or is it another team that has promised Williams and is ready to move up to No. 5 to get him?One candidate might be the Philadelphia 76ers. The Hawks have interest in Allen Iverson, and the Sixers have interest in moving him. Sixers GM Billy King is a big fan of Williams and needs a young player to eventually replace the aging Chris Webber. Would the No. 5 pick and Al Harrington (via sign-and-trade) be enough for the Sixers to part with Iverson?Another team could be the Seattle SuperSonics, who might be willing to offer Nick Collison and the No. 10 to Atlanta for the No. 5. With that pick the Hawks could get another forward and then take a point guard or combo guard -- UConn's Marcus Williams, Kentucky's Rajon Rondo or Villanova's Randy Foye -- at No. 10.UPDATE: Another possible deal could have the Hawks moving down a few spots in the draft to get Williams. They could swap first-round picks with a team like the Rockets (No. 8) and perhaps get a player like Luther Head as part of the deal. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------6. Minnesota TimberwolvesThe Wolves have what it takes to get the No. 1 pick in the draft. All they have to do is say that Kevin Garnett is yours, and they get No. 1. But team president Kevin McHale says he's not trading Garnett and that no one at the top of the draft is worth Garnett.However ... if the Raptors were to throw Charlie Villanueva into the deal and perhaps Mike James in a sign-and-trade, it might get more interesting. The Wolves can get better offers, though. The Bulls and Warriors both have more assets than Toronto, if the Wolves want to deal. Right now it appears that they don't.More likely, the team moves Marko Jaric and perhaps Ricky Davis to the Nuggets for Kenyon Martin. UPDATE: Another possibility for the Wolves is to move down a few spots and pick up an asset. There's talk that the Wolves might be willing to do something with the Rockets, taking back Luther Head and the No. 8 pick. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------7. Boston CelticsThe team doesn't have an acute need for the No. 7 pick, because it's unlikely the Celts can draft anyone there who can help immediately. Rather, they need veterans in the backcourt and in the middle who can help Paul Pierce and Wally Szczerbiak now.But unless the Celtics can get a future pick (2007 first-round picks are highly valued right now), it appears unlikely Boston will trade its pick.The alternative is trading Pierce, and the Celtics say they're not doing that. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------8. Houston RocketsThe Rockets have made attempts to move up in the draft. Morrison, with a healthy Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, would help make the Rockets instant contenders. The problem is that, since the McGrady trade, the Rockets have had few assets to offer in a trade. Stromile Swift and Luther Head are possibilities, but neither player's trade value is that high at the moment.More likely, the Rockets will try to trade down or out of the draft in exchange for a veteran. The Rockets are in win-now mode. With the exception of J.J. Redick, it's unclear anyone on the board can help them at No. 8.UPDATE: There have been some rumblings about the Rockets using Luther Head to move up a few spots in the draft, possibly to get the Hawks' No. 5 pick or the Wolves' No. 6 pick. If they get up that high, Brandon Roy could be the selection, if available. Roy's agent, Arn Tellem, is also Tracy McGrady's agent, and it was Tellem who helped deliver McGrady to Houston a few years ago. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------9. Golden State WarriorsThey are one of the most active teams in trade talks at the moment. The team they put together didn't gel, and the Warriors need to make some serious changes. It appears that Mike Dunleavy, Troy Murphy and the No. 9 pick are the assets they're looking to move. However, considering the big contracts of Dunleavy and Murphy, they may have to include a young prospect like Andris Biedrins or Mickael Pietrus.One rumored deal has the Warriors trading Dunleavy, Murphy and the No. 9 pick to the Lakers for Lamar Odom and Aaron McKie. Another has the Warriors sending Pietrus, Murphy and the No. 9 to the Bulls for Tyson Chandler and the No. 16.Utah could be another trading partner. A deal that would send Pietrus and Murphy to Utah for Carlos Boozer has been rumored since February. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------10. Seattle SuperSonicsThere's talk that Seattle may be willing to move out of the draft completely, especially if a team is willing to offer a first-round pick in next year's draft. Nick Collison is also rumored to be available at the right price. The Sonics are high on Shelden Williams, especially after losing their best rebounder, Reggie Evans, in February, so they could try to move up to get Williams. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------11. Orlando MagicOrlando has been trying to move up in the draft to get Brandon Roy. But it appears the Magic need to convince a team to take a combo of Hedo Turkoglu and the No. 11 pick, and they've been striking out.Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson and Darko Milicic are untouchable right now. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------12./15. New Orleans/Oklahoma City HornetsThe Hornets have been trying to pair their two picks (No. 12 and No. 15), along with J. R. Smith, to move up high in the draft. There was speculation that Charlotte (No. 3) might be the trade partner, but that has been shot down by the Bobcats.Another possibility might be the Rockets' No. 8 pick, though that offer sounds a little high just to move up a few spots. But the move could get them Patrick O'Bryant, the big man they're after. The Rockets need assets right now and might be willing to throw in Stromile Swift to make a deal. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------13. Philadelphia 76ersWe expect them to be among the most active teams this summer. Iverson is finally on the block. So are Chris Webber and Samuel Dalembert. The problem is that all three have terrible contracts, making it difficult for Billy King to do a good deal with anyone other than the Knicks.A deal with Atlanta might be a possibility for Iverson. San Antonio has some interest in Samuel Dalembert. Moving Webber? Good luck. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------14. Utah JazzThe Jazz have been trying to package Boozer in a trade that gets them up into the top 10, with the goal of getting Brandon Roy or Randy Foye. But no one's biting.One possibility might to be to package a future first-round pick (their own or the Knicks' future pick owned by the Jazz) in a trade for Seattle's No. 10 pick. The word is that the Sonics are trying to keep costs under control right now so they can sign Chris Wilcox. Still, it's unclear whether Foye would be on the board at No. 10.Other interesting trade scenarios have cropped up for the Jazz. In particular, the Warriors, Lakers and Bucks have shown interest in Boozer. The Bucks might be willing to part with Jamaal Magloire and Mo Williams in return for Boozer. That would be an intriguing deal for the Jazz, who could address their needs in the frontcourt and the backcourt in one fell swoop.The Lakers deal probably would have to be a three-way trade: Boozer and the No. 14 going to L.A., with Odom ending up at another destination. Odom wouldn't be a great fit for Utah, but he could be the player to get them the two-guard they want. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------17. Indiana PacersThe Pacers are unhappy with how their team responded last season and have had conversations about blowing it up. That means Jermaine O'Neal, for the first time in his Pacers career, is not untouchable.While rumors of a swap with the Raptors appear bogus, at least two teams might be willing to give the Pacers what they want for O'Neal: a high draft pick, a young prospect and salary-cap room for the summer of 2007.The Bulls have a number of ways to make that scenario work. For instance, they could trade the No. 2 and Ben Gordon or Luol Deng for O'Neal, because they are under the salary cap.The Hawks could offer a similar deal: the No. 5, Marvin Williams or Josh Smith and Zaza Pachulia for O'Neal. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------18. Washington WizardsThe Wizards look like they're going to be pretty quiet. There's not much trade talk involving the draft or anything else.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------19. Sacramento KingsThe Kings have been pretty quiet, though teams report that Kenny Thomas is available. Sacramento wouldn't mind moving up to get an athletic big, but a combo of No. 19 and Thomas probably won't get it done. Thomas is just too overpaid.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------20./29. New York KnicksKnicks president (and new coach) Isiah Thomas had just about everyone on the trading block along with the No. 20 and No. 29 picks. However, unless Channing Frye is included in the deal (he won't be, according to a Knicks source), they probably won't be moving up significantly in the draft. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------21./27. Phoenix SunsThe Suns have been trying to package the No. 21 and No. 27 picks to move up. Their target is presumably a big man like Mouhamed Saer Sene or Hilton Armstrong, though Rajon Rondo and Sergio Rodriguez are also high on their list. The Suns are willing to do a bigger deal if they can get into the top three. Leandro Barbosa can be had. The Suns love him but aren't sure they can afford to re-sign him next summer. Shawn Marion is a long shot -- a team would have to offer a great player and a high pick to get him. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------22./23.New Jersey NetsThe Nets would love to be able to package the No. 22 and No. 23 picks to move up and get an athletic big man. Another option would be to package Antoine Wright and Zoran Planinic with one of their picks to move up. As for the rumors that Richard Jefferson is on the block, I'm told they're bogus. UPDATE: If the Nets can't package their picks, they may decide to move No. 23 to Portland for No. 30 and No. 31. If so, don't be surprised to see the Nets take P. J. Tucker with one of those picks.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------24. Memphis GrizzliesAfter another first-round playoff exit, the Grizzlies are back at the drawing board. They desperately need a point guard and are still paper-thin in the middle. I've heard that just about anyone on the roster, other than Pau Gasol, is available. The Grizzlies have been trying to move up to get Adam Morrison. While he doesn't currently fit a need, maybe Jerry West has something else going on. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------25. Cleveland CavaliersDrew Gooden will likely be available via sign-and-trade this summer, and Damon Jones is definitely on the block. But it's unlikely that either of them will fit into a draft-day trade. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------26. Los Angeles LakersThe Lakers have been shopping Andrew Bynum and Chris Mihm. Lamar Odom can be had, too, but the price is significantly higher. Their target in the draft? Brandon Roy. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------28. Dallas MavericksThat Mavs don't have any acute needs, and the chances of a rookie cracking the rotation are slim. Look for Dallas to address any problems via free agency this summer. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Denver Nuggets (no first-round pick)The Nuggets are interested in trading Kenyon Martin (to the Knicks or Timberwolves) and Andre Miller (to the Celtics) to clear cap space or move up in the draft. There also has been talk of Marcus Camby going to the Bulls in exchange for Tyson Chandler and the No. 16. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Los Angeles Clippers (no first-round pick)It sounds like Corey Maggette will be available this summer, but it's unlikely he'll be part of a draft-day deal. The Clippers prefer to get a veteran big man in return. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Milwaukee Bucks (no first-round pick)Jamaal Magloire and Mo Williams have already been shopped to several teams in the league. Milwaukee needs to cut payroll and won't be able to afford to re-sign Magloire and Williams when they hit free agency this summer. An ideal trade would be for a mid-to-high first-round pick. Their target appears to be Rodney Carney, though a bruising big guy like Shelden Williams or Cedric Simmons could also make some sense here. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Detroit Pistons (no first-round pick)Pistons president Joe Dumars says he's happy at No. 60. Detroit already has three young players -- Jason Maxiell, Amir Johnson and Alex Acker -- who rarely played last season. The big question will come in free agency: Can the Pistons re-sign Ben Wallace? If they can't, expect the Pistons to start working the phones. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------San Antonio Spurs (no first-round pick)The Spurs want an athletic big man who can play some center, but will probably add him via trade this summer.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Miami Heat (no first-round pick)The Heat are trying to use Dorell Wright to move up in the draft to get their hands on a Pat Riley favorite -- Guillermo Diaz.

The Onion Rips Movie Classics

http://www.avclub.com/content/node/49630. Thoughts?

How to Fix the Knicks

http://www.hoopshype.com/salaries/new_york.htm. OK, so through 2009, based upon contract that are already signed, you are over the salary cap. That is even with Allan Houston and Jalen Rose and Mo Taylor ($46MM of salary) coming off the books. You have big deals in place with Jamal Crawford and Malik Rose and Jerome James and Quentin Richardson. Plus you owe Marbury and Francis $33-40MM a year through 2009. OK, what can you possibly do? (True answer -- Isiah is your coach and GM, you are screwed, but let's pretend that Larry Brown won the power struggle or that Isiah is imprisoned for sexual harassment)..............................Step 1, pick either Stephon or Francis. You can't play both. Trade the other for whatever other teams will give. Step 2, pursue either Grant Hill or Chris Webber. Hill has an expiring contract. The Magic might want, say, Jamal Crawford for him plus Quentin Richardson or Malik Rose. Webber is making $20MM in Philly and is not a good match with Iverson. But Chris is only under contract through 2008, so while he is a bad deal for any OTHER team, he may actually help YOUR salary situation. The Sixers might even be willing to throw in Jamal Mashburn at $10MM. So, maybe Francis and Crawford and Rose for Webber and Mash. Step 3 -- focus on actually putting together a starting lineup. So, actually sit down and say "we can go with A, B, C, D, and E and hope to go .500." Not sure who that would be, but maybe if you say Stephon, Rose, Curry, Frye and Webber, with your young guys off the bench you could possibly get to .500. Step 4 -- stop making things worse. When Rose and Mo Taylor and Houston are about to come off the books LET THEM COME OFF THE BOOKS, do not acquire more salary obligations for these guys. Step 5 -- get Rick Adelman to coach your squad. All the Knicks have is offensive-oriented players. Get an offensive-oriented coach. Step 6 -- pray....a lot.

Well-Paid Heat

I would be remiss if I did not mention the fact that the Heat had three guys (I mean, NBA champions) still being paid by other organizations NOT to play for them: 1) Shandon Anderson ($7MM from the Knicks); 2) Derek Anderson ($9MM from the Blazers); and 3) Alonzo Mourning ($4MM from Toronto). The Heat payroll for future years will be a little tough to manage. Shaq is in for $20MM until forever, White Pylon and Antoine Walker are drawing $18MM combined for a few years still. The Heat have Wade cheap until 2007-08, but then he will be a max salary guy. They also have to make a decision on James Posey soon. http://www.hoopshype.com/salaries/miami.htm

Errata

By the way, I am more embarrassed than Claudio Reyna by the fact that I have misspelled "Dwyane" Wade's name as "Dwayne" forever. Mea culpa. At least I always get "Isiah" Thomas correct.......

Dirk Nowitzki Back to Shaved Head

Media reports this AM state that he has gone back to the shaved head because he was bored and hot........... He tried to drink some cold water, but it didn't do nothing. Also pictured -- two very drunk non-American NBA'ers when they played together.

Part II of Judgment in Nuremburg -- U.S. Loses

2-1, the flopping Ghana Black Stars prevail. Movie-style review U.S. Team -- 3 stars out of 10. 1) Landon Donovan -- commending him for playing in the MLS is like commending Khalid El-Amin for playing in Europe. Possesses no world-class striker skills. None. Not explosive, not strong. Poor in the air. Not good on free kicks or set plays. Gee, wonder why he isn't on the pitch for Arsenal??? 2) Bruce Arena -- on the sideline he looked like a guy named Gil who just lost his job at the auto dealership's credit department so he had the free time to coach a soccer team. Seemed to blame everything on his players. The U.S. "style" of play is, um, well, you tell me. Keep it close and hope? Gilbert Arenas would have done a better job, even while playing internet poker on the sidelines during play. 3) Kasey Keller. Had one good save in the tourney on a ball that was going wide anyway. Call me crazy, but there are 2,000,000 goalkeepers in the U.S., can't we find one who is not ready to qualify for AARP? 4) Claudio Reyna -- let me add to my prior Blog comment that Kid Rock's groupies should not feel nearly as embarrassed by their actions. I think that (NBA Champion) Gary Payton has more left in the tank. Guys who actually are world-class level: Brian McBride (playing with Donovan can't help him find space); Eddie Johnson (hey, the guy can score yet Old Gil never plays him -- I guess 1 goal scored by us in 3 games is sufficient); DeMarcus Beasley (Donovan's best friend per today's announcers, I guess we all need someone around who makes us look better by comparison). So, if we can just find 8 new guys by 2010 we are well on our way to maybe scoring, what? 3 goals?

Judgment in Nuremburg -- Part I

U.S. down 2-1 as the referee makes an AWFUL foul call in the box late in the half to give Ghana the go-ahead penalty kick. Claudio Reyna stripped cleaner than a Kid Rock groupie for goal #1. Clint Dempsey with the U.S. goal on a play where he was probably offside. Italy up 1-0 on Czechs.

Larry Brown Out -- Isiah In As Coach

Reported this morning on ESPN. Zeke's path to the 2020 GOP Presidential nomination continues. Brown now offically surpasses Jon Koncak on the all-time list for "most money made while doing nothing." Next up on the list, well, Isiah Thomas.

Argentina-Netherlands Play to a Nil-Nil Draw

Argentian wins the group, Dutch finish second. To the supporters of Clockwork Orange, there is no truth to the rumor that Coach Marco van Basten muttered, "Johann Cruyff, Dennis Bergkamp and I aren't walking through that door and onto the pitch any time soon...." If Diego Maradona was watching, he was no doubt wondering why the Argentines couldn't just knock the ball down with their hands and then score.

A Chicago Post to Piss off "The K"

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2494491
Let's see how much I can piss off K in one post. Here we have Chicago at its finest: 1) The manager who refuses to retire when he promised he would if he won the World Series; 2) the same manager sends a guy to the minors for failing to bean an opposing player; 3) a Chicago reporter (who is generally awful in TV appearances I have seen) complains about the act of the should-be-retired manager; 4) the Chicago manager calls the Chicago reporter a "f-ing fag;" (is this true? If so, are most Chicago sportswriters fags?); 5) When queried about his position, the Manager says that in his home country calling a guy a fag is like calling him a coward; 6) we get to see someone trot out the whole "some of my best friends are gay" line of response.

The Windy City...........

The Party of Lincoln.................

http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/house-delays-renewal-of-voting-rights/n20060621125609990002.

Voting Rights Act of 1965 -- unworthy of renewal. How dare anyone suggest that there is a pattern of racial discrimination in the old Confederacy! Up next -- 2007 Jim Crow.......Hopefully Hastert will also find a way to do away with the pesky 13th-15th Amendments. After all, those things were enacted a LONG time ago.

Test my picture postings

I think the Hicks video screwed me up.......Testing.

World Cup Update

While Portugal advances over Mexico, Mexico still moves on since Iran managed to tie Angola. Iran-Angola -- battle of two oil-rich nations with not exactly the greatest human rights records. True soccer fans in Angola may even wish that they hadn't overthrown Portugese rule in 1975. If they were part of Portugal, they would still be in it. Maybe this respite from the World Cup will provide the Angolan "President" with sufficient opportunity to call the elections that he has been promising since........................1992.......Official currency of Angola? The "Kwanza." Impressed, Bush now considering bill to change U.S. currency to the "Christma"..............

Ten Things I Will Remember About The 2006 Finals

10) The crowning of great champions like Jason Kapono, Michael Doleac, Shandon Anderson and Derek Anderson.

9) The chance that Gary Payton and Alonzo Mourning may finally retire now.

8) The comparison between this final and two others -- 1977 Portland over Philly and 1990 Detroit over Portland. Philly and Portland had far superior physical talent but lost -- Philly done in by Bill Walton and Portland's team mentality and Portland done in by their constant whining about the officiating. Lesson from 1977 -- when you take your boot off the inferior team's throat, you will regret it. Lesson from 1990 -- when you are physically superior, don't allow mental distractions to overcome you. Mavs have now learned both lessons.

7) How bad Stan Van Gundy must feel. Wade stays healthy, the Heat beat Detroit last year and possibly beat the Spurs. Van Gundy is then hailed as a great NBA coach. Instead, Wade goes down, Riley swoops in like a vulture for 2005-06, Van Gundy is now out doing Ron Jeremy lookalike contests somewhere.

6) Jason Terry -- meet John Starks. Knicks fans from 1994 had to be having awful nightmares about JS's 2-18 effort in Game 7 against the Rockets. Riley was on the correct side of the ledger this time.

5) Dirk/Hasselhoff controversy -- does he like him? Doesn't he? Come on. You know he did but is now embarrassed to admit it. Sort of like a white American player age 25 saying "Hey, I never liked N'Sync." Come on, we all know you did.

4) Mark Cuban coming onto the court in a road arena and screaming at the officials and staring down the Commissioner. Hard to believe that we will ever see that again (unless Bob Knight becomes an NBA owner).

3) Shaq getting #4 as a supporting cast figure. Kinda like Wilt in 1972. I hope Lamar Odom and Kwame Brown are sufficient compensation for losing the Diesel. Rings without each other: Kobe 0; Shaq 1.

2) Dirk kicking stuff and knocking over the exercise bike after Game 5. Shades of Will Ferrell in "Old School" crashing the chair against the lockers repeatedly screaming, "We can't lose our COMPOSURE!!!"

1) Wade becoming a true all-time great NBA superstar. Has there ever been a guy who rose up and powered his team to a title out of nowhere more than Wade? Maybe Rick Barry with the 1975 (76?) Warriors. But he had a couple good players on that team who actually scored a lot and could play ball. Walton with the Blazers probably is a better example. Hakeem and Houston in 1994 is another. But the example are few and far between. Winning a finals by yourself when your team has never won one before is so rare that if Wade were to retire tomorrow he would probably have earned himself a spot in the Hall of Fame (Walton's career post-1977 was sketchy at best, he is in the Hall).

Great playoffs, great series. And I won a bet for 3 free lunches!!!!!!!!!

NBA Fines Cuban $250,000

http://sports.aol.com/nba/story/_a/cuban-fined-250000-for-game-5-outbursts/20060620142309990001. Should have been a lot more. On a net worth % basis, this would be like fining me $50. But, for example, paying 1% of $2,000,000,000 hurts nowhere near the same as paying 1% of $200,000. A 48 year old guy with a net worth of $200,000 probably has most of that in retirement funds and his house. If he has to pay $2,000 he probably has to now go without something relatively important to him ($2,000 less in his kid's college fund, $2,000 he might have spent on a vacation for the family, etc.). A 48 year old guy who is worth $2,000,000,000 and gets fined $250,000 is still going on the same vacation, has college fully funded, has 6 cars and three houses. If that same person has even $250,000,000 of his money invested at 6%, he is making $41,095.89 a day in income. He will make back the $250,000 in 6 days (12 days after taxes).

Answer to Baseball Quiz

A FORCE PLAY is a play in which a runner legally loses his right to occupy a base by reason of the batter becoming a runner.Rule 2.00 (Force Play) .............................Example: Not a force out. One out. Runner on first and third. Batter flies out. Two out. Runner on third tags up and scores. Runner on first tries to retouch before throw from fielder reaches first baseman, but does not get back in time and is out. Three outs. If, in umpire’s judgment, the runner from third touched home before the ball was held at first base, the run counts.

Mark Cuban on Swearing

http://www.blogmaverick.com/entry/1234000643073757/. I will start by (egad!) supporting Mr. Cuban. I am always amazed that folks in the Bible Belt working on their fourth marriage with 3-4 degrees of illegitimate kids always get so upset when someone actually swears!! Ever play ball? Ever been inside a locker room? Lot of swearing goes on. Ruining a kid's life forever or saying F***? Hmm...........Swearing is, in fact, no the end of the world. That said, Cuban seems to miss the point. His outburst to the reporter is just part of a bigger pattern of childish/boorish behavior that people like me find unappealing. Cuban is married. He has a small kid. But he basically feels like he can just continue living and acting like a teenager. He probably can, since he is unbelievably rich. But the fact that his wealth allows him to get public attention and act in an unacceptable manner doesn't mean that people have to like how he acts.

Baseball Quiz

Bases are loaded, 1 out. Batter hits a deep fly ball to center. Runners A and B from 3rd and 2nd base both tag up. Runner C from first base thinks there are two outs and starts jogging to second. Outfielder catches the ball and throws to the cutoff man. Runner A scores, Runner B decides he will try to score also, throw is off line and Runner B scores. Then the catcher finally realizes that Runner C never tagged up. Catcher throws to first for the third out. Do any runs score on the play and, if so, how many????

Host Germans Drilling Ecuador

Perhaps still mad about the Peru/Ecuador Alliance of 1941 (where the two hated rivals vowed to stop fighting each other and oppose the Axis Powers), the Germans are up 3-nil and Ecuador is moving about as quickly as a Galapagos Island tortoise. The remainder of the day in Ecuador will be dedicated to 1) amateur bullfighting, 2) attending another Catholic mass, and 3) checking to see whether the Congress has removed the President yet again...................http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecuador. I vote "probably not" on #3 because Ecuador will advance to the next round nevertheless.

Dwayne Wade -- Not "Over and Back"

While watching the end of the game last night, I wondered on the last in-bounds pass whether Dwayne Wade was over-and-back when he caught the ball in the air over the frontcourt and floated to land in the backcourt. I recall that my former backcourt mate KL taught me in about 1994 that, generally, all 3 points (2 feet and the ball) need to be "over" before the call can be made "over and back." (You have to be all of the way "over" to be over and back).....So, while I was unsure, I thought the call was correct.

The Mavs' bevy of assistant coaches had someone who disagreed:
Shaking his head while gathering his thoughts before speaking to reporters, assistant coach Larry Riley told Cuban that there was another mistake - Wade going into the backcourt after catching the ball in the frontcourt. "You can't be established in the frontcourt, then jump into the backcourt," Cuban said after watching a replay. "My understanding from the rule book is, if you are going to catch the ball in the backcourt, you have to be in the backcourt to catch it. You can't be established into the backcourt after you catch it or that's a backcourt violation."

Now, putting to one side that Larry Riley perhaps could have been concentrating on advising his head coach not to signal for a bad time out, we need to check out Mark Cuban's "understanding" of the rule book (which, hopefully, is better than his understanding of proper owner decorum).

Rule 10 defines the backcourt violation (which I prefer to call "over and back"): http://aol.nba.com/analysis/rules_10.html?nav=ArticleList

Rule 8 says you can't in-bound into the backcourt from the front court UNLESS you are in the last two minutes of the game, in which case the ball may be thrown in anywhere on the court. http://aol.nba.com/analysis/rules_8.html?nav=ArticleList. See Rule 8, Section III(e), specifically stated exception (this exception was put in because teams were not getting sufficient benefit from late game timeout calls because they had to throw the ball forward).

So, Miami can throw in to anyone located anywhere on the court. Some have opined on the Dallas Morning News blog that the word "anywhere" ends the discussion. I would agree that that word favors the Heat and that the league's "anywhere" rule would not support the position taken by Cuban. Add in the fact that Wade's "3 points" were never in the front court (his feet were in the air, not planted in the front court) and I think the correct call was made.

The NCAA has a far clearer rule on the situation -- Rule 9, Section 12, Article 6 states that a player on an in-bounds pass may come down with one or two feet in the backcourt and he will not be deemed over and back.
http://www.ncaa.org/library/rules/2006/2006_m_w_basketball_rules.pdf

Blogs

I have recommended theputdown.com, and k-line.blogspot.com. Now, for a change of pace, feel free to refer to any of the blogs mentioned in THIS article -- http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20060619/ts_csm/osaudiblog. HM

Numbered World Cup Quips

Togo better get their sauerkraut & sausages to-go (1)..... because they are on their way back to the phosphate mines (2) after game 3. Swiss dominated them as if it were a remake of "Cool Runnings" (sans the late, great John Candy of course -- "If you're not good enough without that gold medal, you'll never be good enough with it...") (3). Togo neighbor Ghana (English translation "dine in") (4) can advance. How painful would that be for Togo -- oh wait, as a U.S. citizen I think I know the feeling of watching Ghana advance while my team stays behind.............................................................. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (note that our ally in a region where we allegedly encourage democracy has, as its name, "Kingdom of") players voted to refuse to accept FIFA "Man of The Match" award if one is voted MOTM. Um, OK, right now Ukraine is kicking your asses worse than a worldwide oil glut (5), so I am not sure you need to worry a whole lot.................................I think they ought to play one set of games in the World Cup on U.S. Open rough. (6). The U.S. manages a tie with Italy despite playing with 9 guys. Buddy Bell (19-49) is home watching the tape right now to learn how a 9-man team can keep a game close (7). Thank you, good day! HM

Phil and Amy Mickelson Dance Away the Pain Of Him Being An "Idiot"

I am told that this is footage from a high school dance in Central Islip, NY where Phil agreed to chaperone last night to take his mind off the Open. Rumor I hear is that Amy (apparently no longer coloring her hair) got a sitter for the kids and dressed up. Phil liked her sleeves; they were real big.

Mickelson and Monty melt down, Ogilvy handed U.S. Open

I hate ripping Phil. So I will only say that Jan Van de Velde is now officially off the hook......................Let's not forget that Colin Montgomery was in the fairway 150 or so yards out and shanked it in the deep rough around the green to make double bogey or he wins.......................Let me say this, the bad thing about Tiger's utter dominance from 2000-2004 was that he always won and their was little real competition or drama unless he played just awful. The GOOD thing was that there was actually SOMEBODY on the golf course playing good golf. How many times on Sunday did we see guys 30-40 yards off the fairway? Guys missig the green completely from middle of the fairway? Balls weren't richocheting wildly off the greens. The greens weren't baked out and like pavement like they sometimes can be at the Open. What basically was happening was guys couldn't hit the ball straight or make putts. Jim Furyk looked over that putt at 18, what? 7 times? Just step up and hit the frigging putt. For God's sake, Jim. It is 6 feet, if it is that unreadable, just ram it toward the middle full speed and hope. Imagine trying to shoot a free throw (Erick Dampier or Josh Howard come to mind) and sitting there lining up the shot for 70 seconds. When you get past 10 seconds, are you more likely to make it? 20? 40? 58? Only gonna get worse. Tough course, but a lot of bad golf............

Avery

[Avery has changed his shirt.] Avery refuses to answer the question about Wade drive and whether Wade was fouled. Avery being a dick to the Dallas reporter. "You have people [here] from Israel, Minnesota, Germany, Dallas........" (Minnesota???). Avery surprised to see the refs gave him the timeout. Avery says many other situations he was disappointed in. Avery -- "great focus....Wade got away from us.........sent three people at Wade......Wade went to line more than entire Dallas team........" Avery notes the Mavs are tough minded..............fans will be crazy......there's no tomorrow............I like that for our team..............The woman reporter gets her question cut off...........

Heat Sweeps at Home, Wade goes nuts again

1) Jerry Stackhouse's flagrant foul on Shaq in Game 4 was one of the dirtiest fouls I have seen in a playoff game since McHale/Rambis 20 years ago. How Cuban can be such a whining crybaby and wear the Stackhouse jersey like Jerry was unjustly imprisoned is about all you need to know about Mark Cuban....................................................................................2) Dirk pussing his way to the locker room pushing and kicking stuff -- wussy reflection of his crybaby owner. Jason Terry yelling at Heat fans -- ditto.................................3) I am kind of sad to see Bob Petit's fouls shots made record fall. Petit's body of work as a pro is awesome, but he is relatively unknown to most casual NBA fans................................4) Was Wade fouled with 1.9 left? It looked like it in fast motion. Probably wasn't, but there's your home cooking when you go aggressively to the basket as a star............................................................5) Josh Howard -- meet Chris Webber -- Chris called a stupid timeout that cost his team a game, too..................................................................................6) Soap -- when you make the timeout signal to your players, one of them might call a timeout..............................7) Great call by Greg Anthony post-game -- "This series reminds me of 1994 when we were up 3-2 on Houston but they knew they could beat us in Houston..........and they did"..............................................................................................8) Pat Riley says that the last play was basically "Give Dwayne the ball and get out of the way." This is something that every bad NBA coach should hear. Just let your star players play. ..............................................and, finally...........................9) Gary Payton almost hits a game winner again??????? I looked around to find my youngest daughter because her being around would confirm that I had not been teleported back to the 1996 NBA finals................................................................10) Radio guy, "Riley may have gained some confidence in Shandon Anderson." Um, why, did Shandon deliver Pat's Fed Ex packages on time???????????? What could have been an embarassing 4 game sweep has now turned into a very good series...................Avery just took the platform.

Tiger Woods Likely To Miss The Cut

Tiger ends round 2 at a score of +12. I realize that losing your dad is hard, but I am not sure that Tiger's apparent regimen of eating and weightlifting 24/7 really helped him here. (He looks like Magic Johnson during his second comeback attempt, not fat, but, um, far from sleek.) Steve Stricker gets in at -1, so Tiger will NOT be within 10 shots of the lead and he is currently tied for 115th. Top 60 and ties make the cut. I predict that the top 60 and ties will be at 11 over and Tiger will miss the cut by 1 stroke.

Uh Oh! Here Come(s) the Heat

I never know what to do with those singular nicknames. Anyway, what in the world has Mark Cuban done to his Dallas team? His general overall business luckiness must be absorbing all of the luck in Dallas and robbing the Mavs of any good fortune in this series -- or maybe it is Cuban's awful haircut? Or maybe his obnoxious request for a traveling call on Gary Payton in Game 3? Whatever it is, Cuban's presence is sapping the Mavs' strength in a Sampson-esque manner. Could Cuban really f-up his team so badly that they lose this series? Dirk looks like Matt Bullard. Wade looks like Jordan about 1991. The Diesel has begun running down the track again. James Posey (as I predicted, pat on the back to me) has been a huge key. Is it conceivable that a team powered at the point by White Pylon and The Loose-Fitting Shawl can get off the floor down 0-2 and 13 points down in the 4th and actually win an NBA title with, well, basically 2 good guys??????????? If they do, I blame Mark Cuban, no one else. No wonder the Pirates won't let you buy them, Mark!

Gold!

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20060615070009990004&ncid=NWS00010000000001. My thoughts: 1) "You're digging for gold, you're throwing away, a fortune in feelings, but someday you'll pay." 2) "Drivin' over Kanan, singin' to my soul, there's people out there turnin' music into gold." (Shout out to my buddy Jim Bass.) 3) What if he had found the sports entertainer pictured on the far left down there? Songs and performers for ##1 and 2 anyone?

Speeding

http://sports.aol.com/mlb/story/_a/as-loaiza-arrested-on-suspicion-of-dui/20060615111409990002. In 1982, I went 135-140 in my dad's Oldsmobile 98. I was taking my brother to summer baseball practice and we were chasing a motorcycle that had passed me. He saw us coming and took off. We covered the first 7 miles of straight country highway in about 3 1/2 minutes. When the cycle made the right turn at 100, we let him go. Still a good story (and one of the few where I don't end up ticketed). HM

U.S. Open

My favorite tourney of the year because guys actually have to hit the ball straight or they are severely penalized (novel idea, huh?). It appears that Wingfoot can take its toll. Dillon Doughtery on holes 11-18: bogey, triple, par, bogey, bogey, par, par, triple. John Rollins on holes 6-15: bogey, par, double, bogey, par, double, bogey, double, bogey, bogey. As I write, sadly, Vijay is tied for the lead -- can't stand Vijay. http://scoreboards.aol.com/golf/pga/38351/leaders.aspx. Phil hanging in at 1 over and he is finishing on the front 9 (which appears slightly easier)....

Jessica Biel -- Wonder Woman???

Seems to me that there is no reason for Jessica Biel to be THIS huge unless she has been tapped for the upcoming "Wonder Woman" movie. Good lord, Jess, somewhere underneath all of those bull hormones is the girl in the red bikini we learned to love in "Summer Catch." It would be nice to see her again.....

What Would Have Happened To Me If....

I had tried to start a "Girls Gone Wild" type of franchise at age 30: http://sports.aol.com/worldcup/story/_a/police-arrest-italian-tv-crew-for/20060614105009990001

Germany v. Poland

While I can't seem to find much compelling in Italy/Ghana or Tunisia/KSA, I don't think you have to go far to see the human interest in Germany/Poland (currently scoreless early on). For you non-historians, the German invasion of Poland on 9/1/39 basically started WWII. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/1/newsid_3506000/3506335.stm

Soccer

Sometimes when two great soccer powers get together and play, they negate each other and play to an entertaining draw. Having said that, I will change subjects and also note that Tunisia and Saudi Arabia just played to a 2-2 draw.

Federline Clean(er)

http://usmagazine.com/2006/591/kfed/kfed.php. Sadly, he is not really that good looking even when cleaned up. "If I go out and work, I am a bad dad. If I don't work, I am a bad dad. I lose either way." K-Fed -- if you would just simply contribute significant MONEY or HOMEMAKING SKILLS to the family, I would be willing to let you win. If, instead, you contribute NOTHING while your wife makes the dough and hires a male nanny from her own money to take care of the kid, then yes, you are a bad dad.

The Reign of Spain Starts Mainly With Whipping of Ukraine

http://www.worldcup.org/.......................................................... List of worst Ukrainian Disasters: 1-100) Chernobyl; 101) This World Cup loss. A lot of folks going to the Eastern Orthodox Church tomorrow to ask God for a better side for 2012....

Two World Cup Fans Dead

http://sports.aol.com/worldcup/story/_a/two-fans-shot-killed-for-cheering-too/20060613234209990001?cid=1690. That will teach them to root against the former British Togoland entry! (Come on, we have all wanted to kill someone in a bar for rooting against another country's soccer side that is based 3,000 miles away......). This plus the Croatian fans' decision to light actual flares in the stands (Italian footage pictured) during their 1-0 loss to Brazil (Brazil, by the by, played like crap and should have lost) leads you to really appreciate the U.S. of A. where we only toss batteries and ice balls and boo Santa Claus.....

Wade Saves Heat From Sweep -- Mavs Lead 2-1

Dwayne Wade puts up 42 points and 13 rebounds, knocks away the final lob pass and then scrubs the floor, washes everyone's white shirt and turns out the lights before leaving the arena. Shaq hits two of two from the line at a key moment while Dirk misses one. Since I cannot imagine that Avery drew up a play in which Dirk tried to throw the ball 50 feet over Dwayne Wade's head, I can only surmise that Dirk missed the wide-open Jerry Stackhouse in the corner (ostensibly "guarded" by Gary Payton). Heat come back from 13 down and win by 2 -- 98-96. Now, what can we (as Heat fans) take from this win? Well, if Wade goes 42-13 every night, Shaq gets 16 and hits most of his free throws, Dirk f's up twice late and Gary Payton hits the game winner in the clutch, we might win by 2. Not exactly a great foundation to build upon, but you know what? It is still better than being down 3-0. What the first three games have shown us is that the Heat needs to shoot 50%+, hold the Mavs under 40%, outrebound them by 10+ and not turn the ball over. If all these things occur, then the Heat can win by under 10. I hope it happens, but that isn't the way to bet...

Hey J.J. (What?) -- What You Been Doin'? You Say Your Car Broke Down That Thing Just Isn't Movin'

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/draft2006/news/story?id=2482061. In keeping with the great Robbie Neville lyrics, Redick out drinkin' and carousin' a little bit. Now if you are drafting top 15 you have a slow, white, non-jumping prospect who has a drinking problem. Replies Redick, "I t'aint got a drinkin' problem, I drink, I gets arrested, no problem." A Virginia redneck soon to cash a big paycheck driving drunk? Knock me over with a feather. My take on what Coach K was really thinking: "Hey. Not my problem anymore. The day he couldn't score for shit against LSU I wrote his ass off and moved on to my new recruiting class."

France/Switzerland Tie, Affirm All Stereotypes

http://scoreboards.aol.com/en/matchcast/?41031. Imagine a battle between two countries -- one who remains consistently neutral and refuses to attack, and one who generally surrenders at the slightest risk of attack. So, basically the completely resistable force against the completely movable object. Result? 0-0 tie. Both teams now will enjoy good wine and cheese and perhaps a little chocolate and go home to rest a few days before their next 0-0 tie.

It is, after all, "The Beautiful Game."

South Korea -- too Much

http://scoreboards.aol.com/en/matchcast/?41032. I can't believe that Togo choked so badly. Come on Togo! Formerly "French Togoland" but you can't get it done on the pitch??? What are all of the cotton farmers and phosphate miners going to do today -- cry in their coffee???? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Togo. While the 2-1 loss is better than Ghana's 2-0 punishment at the hands of Italy (Ghana, the new home to the former "British Togoland"), it does not make Military Dictator/Two-Time President Faure Gnassingbe very proud. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faure_Gnassingb%C3%A9.

"Cars" by Disney

My son (age 10, therefore the primary target audience) gives "Cars" a 10 out of 10. So, if the boys go see it they will like it. The problem I foresee is that the subject (basically a NASCAR film) will not appeal to young girls or to urban Blue Staters.

Se Ri Pak

http://www.lpga.com/player_results.aspx?id=157. While it appears to me that women's golf has time warped back to 1999 (Karrie Webb? Se Ri Pak? I hope we are prepared for Y2K!), I want to toss a bone to Se Ri Pak. She has slimmed down, improved her outlook on life and improved her appearance. As a result she has improved her game back to where it was pre-Iraqi Freedom. Tip of the cap/visor to Pak.

Charlie Batch Seen Fleeing the Scene???

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/football/nfl/06/12/bc.fbn.apnewsalert.ap/index.html?cnn=yes. I hope Ben is not in serious danger. As his life flashed before his eyes, Ben saw himself holding the Lombardi Trophy and Natlie Gulbis's unclothed body http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page3/story?page=mcintyre/bennatalie. He has done awfully well in his first few years.

Palestinian Shootout

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060612/ap_on_re_mi_ea/palestinians_shootout. Noted Hamas leaders, "We see it as a terrorist act......which, um, I guess you have to appreciate and give them their props........we hope to be able to respond in kind soon."

Lethal Injection -- Too Painful??

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20060612105809990007&cid=2194. I have finally reached the point where I am starting to lose faith in the practicality of capital punishment. You cannot execute minors. You cannot execute the mentally retarded. You cannot execute anyone for any crime that is not murder. You need to find aggravating factors to execute a murderer. Now you cannot even convince the right-wingers on the U.S. Supreme Court that you can execute an intelligent adult who is a cold-blooded murderer who killed someone in such a way that he stands out from other types of murderers? Because lethal injection might be kinda ouchy? I mean, haven't we sort of lost our way on this whole deal? We had the 8th Amendment before 1800. We have had a number of public hangings since 1800. Ya don't think that that hurt a little when the rope snapped tight?

Czech-Mate

U.S falls 3-0. The U.S. entry looks as pathetic as a wet beagle puppy standing outside your front door. To say the U.S. had their asses kicked is like saying that there have been better NBA teams than the Atlanta Hawks over the past few years -- true, but hardly conveys the idea strongly enough......................................... Another debacle for the U.S. on the international stage. Have our sports programs become so pathetic that we now get our hats handed to us by a country with a population (10MM) less than the New York or L.A. metro areas and almost exactly the same size as Chicago? 39.8% of the Czech population is AETHEIST for goodness sake -- they can ADMIT that God was on our side and yet STILL kick our ass! The "goaltending" skills of Kasey Keller (whom I believe used to be the keeper for the Cosmos when Pele first came over) allowed him to stop 1 of the 4 shots the Czechs put on net. Meaning I would have only allowed 4 goals while Keller allowed 3. Maybe it is time for Bruce Arenas to try someone as keeper who is not old enough to be Freddy adu's father???? (Side note -- if you think this entry is unduly harsh, you should compare it to how the international media treats World Cup losses. For example, I doubt that the Paraguay guy who scored in his own net will return home any time soon.)

Czech

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/gamecast/gamecast?matchId=191927&date=20060612&lang=en&league=fifa.world&cc=%. U.S.A., a great soccer power??? Um, not so far. Down 2-0 to the Czechs. Next up -- Czech-mate.

Heat In Awful Trouble -- Mavs Up 2-0

http://sports.aol.com/nba/story/_a/mavs-bury-heat-in-convincing-game-2-win/20060612000009990001. I think that Shaq was better in "Steel" (3 out of 10 stars from me) than he was last night -- of course he had a far better supporting cast. Pat Riley goes directly against my advice and common sense by seemingly playing JWill and The (ratty, fingerless) Glove MORE time in Game 2. They actually combined for over 48 minutes total. Haslem gets hurt, so he wasn't worth much. Shandon Anderson actually blew the dust off for 1 minute. Look, Dallas is clearly the better team. They are younger, far more versatile. They have two huge big men to guard Shaq. They have guys (unlike Miami) who when left alone can hit a wide open 3. Now, the Heat may win a couple in Miami (they get 3 chances), but if Shaq continues his moribund play the Heat may as well start using their AARP cards for vacation discounts worldwide cuz they aren't gonna be having a victory parade. OTHER LESSONS -- 1) The Spurs are the #2 team in the NBA. Ginobili has to be watching this series and crying, "Why did I have to foul Dirk? Why???"; 2) Flip's playoff coaching now REALLY has to be called into question. I thought the Heat would be lucky to get a game against the Pistons. Turns out that I should have been right. The Heat really do suck, but Flip just simply was outcoached all series and allowed the Heat to emphasize their strengths offensively. The Heat have not come close to 90 against the Mavs.

Duke Lacrosse

http://www.newsobserver.com/1185/story/448437.html. At some point does the phrase "proof beyond a reasonable doubt" mean ANYTHING to the prosecutor? You have a victim who claims to have been choked and raped by 3 guys for 30 minutes, to which her fellow entertainer replies almost immediately, "That's a crock. I was with her for all but 5 minutes." The FE then switches sides when she sees she can get her charges on another criminal matter reduced. She, in fact, gets her relief from the prosecutor. Now, imagine if these were, say, black Duke basketball players and the ladies in question were white. Jesse Jackson would be down in Durham taking up residence. The media would call the prosecution an infringement on civil rights. The town would be on fire, figuratively and/or literally.

Game 1 to Dallas....

90-80. If Shaq does not clear 25 points in a game, this is a sweep. As predicted, Jason Terry has an enormous scoring game against the "defense" of Jason Williams (aka "White Pylon") and Gary Payton (aka "The Loose-Fitting Light Macrame Poncho"). If Riley wants to win this series, he is going to have to try to play with no point guard and play Wade and James Posey in the backcourt, Walker, Haslem and O'Neal up front. Williams can sub in when Terry is on the bench. Why this makes sense: 1) avoid the awful defense of your point guards; 2) Wade often brings the ball up anyway; 3) Payton is a huge offensive liability as well; 4) you are trying to slow tempo anyway, so you might as well walk it up; 5) can't hurt your rebounding. It is only one game, but the point guard mismatch is striking.

Wrestler "Earthquake/Avalanche" John Tenta Dead at 42

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Tenta.v Tenta was going to be 43 on June 22. I saw Tenta wrestle in 1991 or 1992. At 6'6" tall, he really WAS pushing 450+ pounds. I was in the second row and even minimal movement from the big man splashed sweat as far as my row (my wife -- then fiancee -- was amazed at how much sweat was poring from Earthquake). Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 2003 named him the 234th best wrestler of all-time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PWI_Years. The "Natural Disasters" tag team (pictured) deserved a spot on the top 100 tag teams as well, but were denied. Former LSU wrestler; lost his battle with bladder cancer yesterday. I post the image of Golga (a wrestler obsessed with Eric Cartman) not to demean Tenta at all, but rather because I do not recall the bit and hope that someone may..................................................RIP big man............................................

Movie Review -- "Date Movie"

I used to think that I did not like the "Scary Movie" bits because I did not understand the parodies. I have watched every single movie parodied in "Date Movie" (and there are about 20), and have determined that I don't like the movies because, well, they aren't very good. I will , however, give the movie 5 out of 10. Here is how it gets its stars: overall writing -- minus 1; spilling grandma's remains scene -- +1; Sophie Monk wearing practically nothing throughout the show -- +2; the worthy (and thankless) efforts of Ms. Hannigan as the female lead trying gamely to make the thing work-- +1. The dwarf who plays Hitch -- +1; redux of the "I Say A Little Prayer For You" scene from "My Best Friend's Wedding" -- +1. HM

HM Named 5th Grade B Coach

So, having endured the most difficult interview process of my 42 years, I finally was told that I did not win the "A" coaching spot (which went to a guy whose team was 10-0 and 9-1 the past two years -- let me be a little bitter here, he had 7 very good athletes, I had 2.5 and went 8-2. If I had his roster, I would not have even scheduled practices). I was, however, offered the B job, which I took with the proviso that I would not coach if PM made the A team (he is 5'1" at age 10, his mom is 5'9"+, he might make A). The best thing about getting the job is that PM is now assured of making a team. He doesn't make A, I automatically get him on B. After the, um, rather shaky evaluation of my daughter last year, that is worth a lot of piece of mind to me...................................................HM.

PM Gains Benefit of kind scoring, hits first ever home run

Playing at 233rd Avenue North (yes, they still keep numbering them way up there based upon where downtown is), the left-handed hitting Playstation Maven took an inside fastball and drilled it in the gap between right and center fields. He had an easy triple and scored when the second baseman dropped the relay throw. So, PM's dad (i.e., me) is scoring the play. Can I really give him a homer? I consulted with the dads watching the game and asked whether PM was being waved home by the coach before the relay was dropped. It was unanimous (not Fox's "Unanimous") that he was. So, given that PM is pretty fast and that a 10B level second baseman would have to have made an accurate throw to the catcher from a step on the grass to get him, I gave him the homer. So shoot me.........................

al-zarqawi Dead -- Video of Bombing

http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/world/2006/06/08/vo.zarqawi.bomb.dod. I guess we can pack up and leave now that we have made Iraq safe for the new government...

Family Guy Quotes

http://www.familyguyquotes.com/top-rated-quotes-2.html. As a fan of "The Simpsons" it has always bothered me how derivative Family Guy is. Plus, I can't watch it with the kids b/c it is just too coarse. That said, there are definitely a ton of laugh out loud moments in the show quotes. Stewie's rant about the babysitter's boyfriend is so good, I won't even make you click the link: Stewie (to Jeremy, the babysitter's boyfriend):Ha! I got your hat! Take that, hatless! Now go back to the quad and resume your hackey sac tourney! I'm not gonna lay down for some frat boy bastard with his damn Teva sandals and his Skoal Bandits and his Abercrombie and Fitch long sleeved, open stitched, crew neck Henley smoking his sticky buds out of a soda can while watching his favorite downloaded Simpsons episodes every night! Yes, we all love "Mr. Plow"! Oh, you've got the song memorized, do you? SO DOES EVERYONE ELSE! That is exactly the kind of idiot you see at Taco Bell at 1 in the morning! The guy who just whiffed his way down the bar skank ladder!

Sac Bee Article on Flip

The saddest thing about this article is that Flip is verbally bitch-slapped by his veterans and then is thought less of for being upset about it -- makes you wish you were still coaching KG, huh Phil?????????????????? Here's the article:............................................................................ So you're going to be an NBA head coach, again, Mr. Musselman (***reference is to new Sac Kings head man Eric Musselman***)? Well, take your motion-sickness pills and prepare for the ride.
Consider Detroit's Flip Saunders. In a month's time, he went from a guy whom many believed should have received more support for Coach of the Year to a guy whose job stability has been questioned.
Last summer, Saunders fended off job opportunities, knowing he was going to get the Pistons' gig once the organization figured out how much money it would take to ease Larry Brown out the door. Then the Saunders-led Pistons jumped out to a great start and played much of the season's first half with experts believing they had a legitimate chance to post more than the record 72 victories accomplished by the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls. The Pistons finished with a franchise-record 64 victories.
But fast-forward to late in the season, when center Ben Wallace (a free agent-to-be and another huge decision for president Joe Dumars this summer) decided not to re-enter a game in Orlando despite Saunders' repeated requests.
The buzz is that Saunders lost a great deal of respect in the locker room when he talked about Wallace's decision and then told the team it was not going to win the championship because of incidents such as that one.
That did not go over well with the Pistons, and Saunders was told in direct terms by one veteran not to say anything like that again to the team.
As players left the locker room, they saw Saunders being consoled by assistant coach Sidney Lowe. And with that sight, Saunders lost more respect.
When the Pistons struggled in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Saunders' methods became the target of some of his players, Wallace included. It wasn't as if the Pistons had never sailed through rocky waters, but the loss of respect for Saunders led to leaks in the craft.
And although the Pistons got past the Cavs, the ship ultimately sank against the Miami Heat.
Now, with Saunders set for another three years at $4 million per, what does Dumars do? Perhaps the only thing harder to regain than respect is life itself.
And Wallace, who turns 32 on Sept. 10, will be looking for big bucks in what figures to be his last shot at a huge payday. While he deserves whatever he can get, how much money does a team want to pay for a guy who must not look at any game tape of himself at the offensive end?
His best offensive move is an unchallenged putback. Correction, that's his only move. He has no touch around the basket and shoots many free throws as if they were the first attempts of his life. As great a team defender and rebounder as Wallace is, his position at the offensive end is a liability.
Hey, Eric, good luck, bro.

Not a good week to be 55-60, famous and black

Former NL umpire Eric Gregg dies at age 55 from a stroke. http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=football&id=4240912. Eric Gregg's biggest contribution to sports was forever putting to rest the claim that any consistent strike zone was a good one when he led the [correction -- Florida Marlins] and Livan Hernandez to victory over the Braves by calling strikes 6-18 inches off the outside of the plate during a playoff game. Gregg's bizarre strike zone had batters flailing at balls that they needed 40-45 inch bats to effectively hit. Note to readers -- going 400+ on the scales may lead to stroke.............................................Then today we see the death of 59 year old Billy Preston. Piano man for the Beatles. Solo artist with "Nothin' from Nothin'" and "Will It Go Round In Circles." Hopefully he will be "Born Again" and his spirit will reside in some newborn musician to entertain future generations. And today, Billy, I finally forgive you for the awful finger zapping antics during the "Sgt. Pepper's" movie remake....If this pattern keeps up, Heat Assistant Bob McAdoo had better see the doc in September for a 55 year old checkup!!

Avery Johnson

The Soap-Man cometh to take a stand (albeit a very undersized, tiny one) for black NBA coaches. Avery hopes to join Lenny Wilkins and K.C. Jones as black NBA guards turned head coaches to win a title. In light of Avery's chance at greatness, here is my ranking of black coaches currently plying their trade in the NBA:
Guidelines: 100 = Phil Jackson; 0 = Magic Johnson's coaching effort; Flip = 80; Mike Dunleavy = 55; Isiah Thomas = 12.


1. Avery Johnson -- 90

2. Byron Scott -- 76

3. Nate McMillan -- 65

4. Mike Brown -- 55

5. Doc Rivers -- 50

6. Eddie Jordan -- 50

7. Mo Cheeks -- 50

8. Dwane Casey -- 25

9. Sam Mitchell -- 19

10. Bernie Bickerstaff -- 12

11. Mike Woodson -- 3

A Lot Comes Down to "Kazaam"

If Kazaam can force the Mavericks to play Diop and Dampier, that will keep the Mavs' scoring down to the point where Miami can win. The Heat can get 25 from Wade and from Shaq, and 35-40 from the rest of the motley Crue, er crew. So, they have to keep the Mavs under 90. Jason Terry will be a problem for the Heat. I don't see Avery getting a chance to play two point guards (ala SA series) because Wade will light his guy up at the other end. So, you are likely to see Diop/Dirk/Howard/Stack/Terry versus Shaq/Haslem/Walker/Wade/Williams (unlike the Detroit series, Gary Payton just does not match up here; an orange pylon might offer more resistance to dribble penetration). Walker will struggle to defend anyone. James Posey may have to play a lot (Shandon or Derek Anderson would match up well.........if this were the year 2000....). I REALLY would prefer Shaq to win #4, but I think that any fair analysis leads to a conclusion of..............................Mavs in 6. If Kazaam is a flop (again), then the Mavs sweep. HM

Pistons' Run is Done -- Weren't That Good Anyhow

OK, so, since no one appears willing to step up in Detroit, let me give you my view of the Pistons: They weren't ever that great, and they are now officially done. Since Michael Jordan left the Bulls, the Western Conference has won every single NBA title except the one that the Pistons won in 2004. The two best teams in the East during those years? Probably the Nets and the Pistons. So, to reach the NBA finals the first time around, the Pistons had to defeat the Nets. The second time they had to beat a Miami team with a less than 100% Shaq, a seriously injured Wade and the legendary Stan Van Gundy (admittedly a better coach than Larry Frank) at the helm. In 2004, the Pistons beat 100 year old Reggie Miller and then move on to beat the Lakers. In 2004, the Lakers were the third best team in the West. Minnesota was better but lost Sam Cassell and Troy Hudson in the playoffs and ended up playing Kevin Garnett/Fred Hoiberg/Derrick Martin at point guard against Lakers. The Spurs were better, but became deflated by the Derek Fisher miracle shot with 0.4 on the clock and were upset by the Lakers. So, to win their title, the Pistons defeated the Nets/Pacers and the West's 3rd best team (recall that Kobe and Shaq were warring, Diesel was about 365, Phil was on the verge of quitting, it was an ugly scene). The Pistons should not have even faced the Spurs in 2005, but Wade's injury allowed the Pistons to reach the finals (admittedly they played with great heart, but still lost 4-3). Then this year, faced with a healthy Shaq and Wade (and Pat Riley) the Pistons lost. The Pistons now have an aging frontcourt (Wallace, Wallace, Davis, McDyess), no good reserve guards, no good draft picks, a middling playoff coach, and they will have to spend $10MM/year to re-sign 40% free throw shooter Ben Wallace (soon to be 32). The Pistons, in short, are done as a title contender............................................................ So, where does this run put the Pistons on the pantheon of all-time great NBA clubs? Certainly they aren't the Lakers, Celtics, Bulls, or Spurs. They did not go back-to-back against good competition like the 1989-90 Pistons did. One could argue that they were as good as Hakeem's Rockets who won the title twice when Jordan first quit. But while the league was down in 1994-95. the Pistons a) did not win twice; and b) did not have to go through a conference featuring David Robinson and Charles Barkley in their primes. So, harkening back to my youth, I think that what we have seen in the Pistons is basically the 1977-1980 Seattle Supersonics. The Sonics reached the finals twice, winning once, extremely ugly basketball was played in each instance, then the Sonics lost in the conference finals to Magic's squad and were a non-factor thereafter. They had good players (Dennis Johnson, Gus Williams, Jack Sikma) but ultimately no one will call their reign the glory days of the NBA and people were glad to see it end. So, congrats to the Pistons -- you did your best and took advantage of your opportunities, but the time has come to get into the slow lane and allow the young and improving NBA teams to blow by.............

Heat and Mavs Advance

The Mavs were just the better team and Nash and D'Antoni are certainly not the equal of Dirk and Soap. So, that one should really surprise no one. I refuse to say anything good about any Sun other than Boris Diaw, so let's move on............................................Heat over Pistons -- I think Ben Wallace (7 points, 7 boards, allowed Shaq to shoot 90% and patrol the middle) made a rather obvious "I am not gonna play for Flip" statement without having to say a word. Big Ben is a free agent, so the Pistons management now has to make a real decision -- can they win with Flip and without Ben or can they win with Ben and whomever is out there to sign as a coach???? I can say this -- I am embarrassed as an NBA fan by the gutless effort displayed by Ben Wallace in Game 6. Whether you think Flip is a winning playoff coach or not, you don't just quit and start getting ready for post-game hugs (of which there were FAR too many) at the start of the 3rd quarter. Drew Sharp calls for more respect for Flip and no firing: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060605/SPORTS03/606050330. Krista Jahnke dishes up some of the worst pablum I have ever read from a sports column: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060605/SPORTS03/606050374. I am put in mind of Sam Malone's stint as a TV sports anchor where his first opinion piece was "root for the home team." Awful. I would bet that the letters to the Free Press are FAR more insightful and entertaining....

Aniston/Vaughn "Break Up" #1 at the Box Office

http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/boxoffice/;_ylt=AvWVM8Scu7s0s28pDJlx2ApfVXcA. A surprise to me, given the fact that reviews by people (not critics) who have posted on Yahoo (3,817 people) grade out at B-. This just shows the box office power of Vaughn and the remarkable paucity of date movies during the summer ("Just My Luck" is the only other choice out there and its stars are under 25). The Da Vinci Code continues solid but unspectacular U.S. performance, but it has already cracked the top 35 for worldwide box office. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/. Interestingly "Code" is doing about 30% of its box office in the U.S. whereas "The Passion of The Christ" did about 60% in the U.S. Reach your own conclusions here....

Killing of Iraqi Civilians

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20060601032209990008. I used to watch an old game show named "The Joker's Wild." Contestants would pull a slot machine handle and get either categories or jokers on large screens. Anyway, if you didn't like the category that came up and you had at least one joker you could go "off the board." So let me go "off the board" here. What has been the Bush Administration's response to any criticism of its decision to go to war or its execution of its invasion/rebuilding plan? "Support the Troops. If you criticize us at all, you are hurting the troops." This is a load of crapola (the troops just do what they are told, troops, in fact, routinely criticize their civilian and military leaders -- read some military history). Even so, let's assume that your true message and concern is supporting the troops. Why, then, do we not have some compassion/support for our troops when they are pushed into an almost impossible situation where they are regularly assaulted by people not in uniform and dressed as civilians? You send 20 year old men into a situation where 60% of the civilians hates you and would bomb you if given the chance, then you quickly wash your hands when those same 20 year olds snap and do something atrocious (allegedly)??? Seems to me that the true message GWB is sending is "Support Me and Don Rumsfeld."

Buffalo Sabres, um, no

Continuing in the fine tradition of the Bills, Braves and, yes, the Sabres of the past, the Buffalo team cannot get the job done and loses to Carolina 4 games to 3. My hope is that some day oil or gold is found 60 miles southeast of Buffalo. Until then, things still looking mighty bleak for the folk of Western NY...........

Christina Milian on stage

Dirk Goes for 50 -- Mavs up 3-2

For those of you (which would include Marv Albert, Doug Collins and Steve Kerr) who were wondering what the heck Tim Thomas was doing waving his hand in front of his face in the 3rd quarter -- that is a taunt made famous by WWE champion John Cena (pictured). For you 1980s fans, it is the equivalent of Hulk Hogan shaking his head before he started his closing series of punch-punch-punch-boot-leg drop. Allegedly it means "you can't see me" though that makes no sense to me. I am so torn by this series: Hate Cuban and Dirk, but hate Nash and D'Antoni as much. Hate the Suns' utter indifference to D, but how much success does the state of Teaxs really need??? Do we really need to add the name "Jerry Stackhouse" or "Darrell Armstrong" to the list of NBA champions? But how about "Tim Thomas" or "Eddie House"? I like Avery as a coach, so I am rooting for his squad. Note to Dirk -- you got 50, but your interior defense is still abysmal.....

Jesus Take the Wheel

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20060530124809990007.

"Saved By The Bell" Update

http://news.aol.com/entertainment/tv/articles/_a/saved-by-the-bell-actress-sues-tabloid/20060601065809990001. What next? Will some cruel tabloid claim A.C. Slater was gay? Not to dispute Ms. Vorhies' damages, but since 2000, here is her entire work history: TV Guest star: Fire & Ice (2001) (TV); "Grown Ups" (2000)
Mini-Series: "Widows" (2002)
Movie Roles: Civil Brand (2002) How High (2001)............................... One could argue that ANY publicity would actually HELP her get roles at a pace greater than 5 roles in 6 years (and 0 between 2003 and the alleged defamation in 2005).

Stacy Keibler Pic

In light of a commenter's request for a Stacy Keibler pic (he has TiVo yet does not tape WWE or Dancing With the Stars apparently), how can I refuse? I also STRONGLY suggest a Google image search for several pics focusing more on the greatest asset of the woman I view as hottest on the Maxim top 10 list.