After two previous losses to Puerto Rico and Lithuania, the US Men’s Basketball team are knocked out of gold medal contention by Argentina (and Manu Ginobli.) I saw some of the earlier games, most notably the US-Germany scrimmage which A.I. won on a buzzer-beater 3, and the team definitely seemed confused. I don’t really see this as the death knell of American basketball it’s being made out to be, though. As many others (including Mark Cuban) have noted, the team was just poorly constructed…it needed less All-Stars and more NBA-level role players in the worst way.
Category: Sports
Offsides.
Iraq’s Olympic soccer team ask to be removed from Bush re-election ads. “‘My problems are not with the American people,’ says Iraqi soccer coach Adnan Hamad. ‘They are with what America has done in Iraq: destroy everything.'” Sorry, y’all…it’s just that Dubya has very little to fall back on these days. It’s not like he can campaign on his domestic record.
Lakered.
The Glove balks at Boston. Said Payton of his former team, the Lakers: “It’s about respect. They didn’t respect me. Why should I respect them? They used me so they could get other players.” Well, you know, Glove, that’s the problem with Faustian bargains…
Wally World East.
Wally Szczerbiak for Kurt Thomas? I’m not sure that makes much sense…the Knicks are already rife with guards, even assuming Allan Houston is out again for awhile. We need more Bigs.
Glove in the Hub.
Also in NBA news, Gary Payton is traded to the Celts. The Glove seemed to lose a couple of steps out there in La-La-Land last year, so hopefully Boston will provide a return to form. At least I can root for the guy again now that he’s an ex-Laker. (Yes, I’m talking to you, Vlade…for shame.)
MSG Moves.
After a relatively quiet offseason, the Knicks finally get in the game, giving up Mutombo, Harrington, Frank Williams, and Cezary Trybanski to acquire shooter Jamal Crawford and rebounder Jerome Williams from Chicago. A cap-killer, sure, but I don’t think it’s a bad trade at all…New York needed more scoring in the worst way.
Success is a Choice…Or Not.
“Now every meathead who ever blew a whistle has a lesson about that next corporate takeover, keeping your marriage healthy, or your relationship with God. They won a game. You’ll win the game of life.” Friend and colleague Jeremy Derfner reviews coach actualization lit for Slate.
Turmoil for the Laker Nation.
After months of little public movement, the assault case against Lakers star Kobe Bryant hits a crossroads of sorts. On one hand, because Judge Ruckriegle’s court apparently leaks worse than the Titanic, the accuser is contemplating dropping criminal charges against Bryant (but will still make a civil case.) On the other, another woman has emerged to corroborate a pattern of “aggressive” behavior on Kobe’s part. Hmmm.
The A-Rod Write-Off.
Well, thank goodness the GOP Congress has finally done something to alleviate the financial burden of sports team ownership in this country. When I think of all the pain, misery, and degradation that Mark Cuban, George Steinbrenner, and other multi-millionaires have been subjected to by the tax code of late, my heart just sickens. Now hopefully Congress will turn their attention to eliminating the IRS entirely, and I’ll be able to sleep knowing that no corporate CEO or energy baron will ever again be unduly harrassed in this great nation.
Defending the Champ.
Documentary filmmaker Ken Burns joins with civil rights leaders, John McCain, and – oddly enough – Orrin Hatch to obtain a retroactive pardon for Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight boxing champion in history. A hero to black America during the Progressive Era, Johnson was convicted under the 1913 Mann Act for the then-heinous crime of dating a white woman. You’d think Jackson’s story might cause Senator Hatch to reflect on the appropriate role of the State in private relations and persuade him to rethink his support of the pathetic Marriage Amendment. Baby steps, I guess.