Peja for Artest? That’s one more nail in the coffin of the Kings team of old, and, to my mind, probably a bad move on Sacramento’s part. I always had Latrell Sprewell’s back when he came to the Knicks after the Carlesimo episode, but Ron Artest — unlike Spree — seems like both a legitimate head case and a locker room cancer. As for Peja, he should have no problem filling the Reggie Miller role in Indiana’s offense, but that still probably won’t put the Pacers in contention with Detroit. At any rate, hopefully this going through will break the gridlock on trades, and we’ll start to see some movement around the league. Update: It begins, with Wally World for Ricky Davis. Advantage: T-Wolves.
Tag: Sports
Pass the Ball, Dog…
I must admit, between the relentless, team-killing ego and that highly suspect night in Colorado, Kobe Bryant is far and away my least favorite player in the league. But, 81 is 81. Even given that Kobe never passes up a single shot and clearly makes his teammates worse, that’s a pretty impressive night of work against any NBA team, even the lowly Raptors. (And, oh yes, congrats to the Steelers and Seahawks on lopsided victories…see y’all in Detroit.)
Go NY Go NY Go.
Hey, don’t look now, but the New York Knickbockers, the worst team in the league in late 2005, are “starting to percolate” as Walt Frazier would put it, and are now undefeated five games into 2006, including impressive wins against Phoenix, Dallas, and Cleveland on the road. And, given that at 12-21 we’re only two games out of the eight-spot in the woeful East, we may actually have a season on our hands. Is it too late to get on board the Larry Brown bandwagon? Update: Make it six.
Cooled Off.
The current number of Van Gundy’s in the NBA has dropped to one, as Stan Van Gundy abruptly leaves the Miami Heat “for family reasons.” That’s really too bad…I’ve always rooted for the Van Gundy boys since Jeff’s Knicks stint (which ended almost four years ago to the day.) At any rate, Pat Riley will take the helm once again in Miami.
E is for Football.
The groups for World Cup 2006 are drawn, and while there’s no “Group of Death” this time around, the USA will face some tough competition in Group E: Ghana, the Czech Republic, and Italy. Update: Salon‘s Andrew O’Hehir sees trouble ahead for the USA.
Paging Qyntel, Lamenting James.
As the Knicks front office roll the dice yet again with SF Qyntel Woods (who will replace the recently waived Matt Barnes and likely back up Quentin Richardson), ESPN’s Frank Hughes surveys the 7-foot dud that has been the Jerome James Era in New York (so far).
Kings for a Day.
Say what you will about the Larry Brown era in New York…at least we won’t go 0-82.
Juiced.
“Who knew? We all knew: the trainers who looked the other way as they were treating a whole new class of injuries; the players who saw teammates inject themselves but kept the clubhouse code of silence; the journalists who ‘buried the lead’ and told jokes among themselves about the newly muscled; the GMs who wittingly acquired players on steroids; and, yes, owners and players, who openly applauded the home run boom and moved at glacial speed to address the problem that fueled the explosion.” ESPN Magazine surveys the ascent of baseball’s Steroid Era.
0-1 in the Brown Era.
A closely-fought game at the Garden Formerly Known as Fleet for 48 minutes, followed by the worst overtime loss in Knicks history…oof, it’s going to be a long season. Tighten the screws, Larry…we need some defensive boards in the worst way.
Time waits for no club.
While Larry Brown’s New-Look Knicks might not be ready until January, the NBA 2005-06 season nevertheless begins tonight with a TNT western conference doubleheader: Spurs-Nuggets and Mavs-Suns. Well, dress code or no, I love this game…and particularly if the Knicks can end their post-Ewing slump this year.