Ron Artest is going to sign a 3 year $18 million deal with the LA Lakers to go after a championship. Artest said on ESPN last night that he does making money in the NBA and is ready for a championship. It’s funny; I thought $6 million a year was pretty good. I know Artest is talented and a great defender, who talks trash to Kobe when he is down by 20 but I think he could be another piece in the puzzle for the Lakers repeating. Artest went on to say that he and Kobe have a good relationship. I am surprised anybody has a good relationship with Ron Artest.
Why did Ron Artest leave the game early? He wanted to beat the crowd.
Trevor Ariza will sign a deal to join Houston. The Rockets season is in doubt with Tracy MacGrady injured and Yao Ming out for the season and possibly for his career with a left foot injury. They probably need more pieces to compete in the loaded Western Conference, especially not having any picks in last week’s draft.
Allen Iverson still has not signed with anybody. It will be interesting to see where he will go, as he has never been a free agent. Although older and definitely not in his prime, he could still get a large deal to go somewhere. I can see him going to a contender to get his elusive NBA championship ring, but definitely could see him going to a bad team for big money. Maybe a trip to Charlotte to reunite with Larry Brown?
The MLB All Star game is fast approaching as July 14th we can watch the MLB’s best slug it out for home field advantage in the World Series. AL Manager Joe Madden and NL Manager Charlie Manuel have an extra roster spot that will assuredly be used for a pitcher in case the game goes extra innings. The 33 roster spots should help avoid controversy that almost plagued the festivities last year. Let’s hope that the game and the Home Run Derby top last year’s fun.
Wimbledon finals are this weekend, as for the women’s finals it will be the Williams sisters duking it out for the title, and the men’s final is going to be Roger Federer, who looks and feels unbeatable versus Andy Roddick.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Thursday, July 2, 2009
NHL Free Agency heats up
The Blackhawks struck gold in this year’s free agency period, signing Marian Hossa and Thomas Kopecky from the Red Wings. Hossa’s deal is 12 years $63.5 million and Kopecky’s is for 2 years. Hossa signed with an up and coming team and the rivalry will certainly heat up between the Blackhawks and Red Wings. The young Blackhawks got some much needed experience and got much better offensively. Kopecky adds some physical grittiness, valuable come playoff time. Chicago showed their confidence in Huet by letting Khabibulin leave for the next 4 years in Edmonton.
Marian Gaborik signed a 5 year $37 million dollar deal with the New York Rangers. The rebuilding Rangers signed the dynamic Slovak, who despite his injury problems is ultra talented.
Although I wanted the Wings to sign him, in not doing so Holland puts Detroit well under the cap. Conklin was also allowed to leave in free agency going to St Louis for the next two years.
This should be a quiet year for the Red Wings, as the only players they would sign is someone for depth or a role player or two.
Marian Gaborik signed a 5 year $37 million dollar deal with the New York Rangers. The rebuilding Rangers signed the dynamic Slovak, who despite his injury problems is ultra talented.
Although I wanted the Wings to sign him, in not doing so Holland puts Detroit well under the cap. Conklin was also allowed to leave in free agency going to St Louis for the next two years.
This should be a quiet year for the Red Wings, as the only players they would sign is someone for depth or a role player or two.
Pistons Sign a Pair, Possible Coaching Candidates
The Detroit Pistons signed a pair of free agents. Ben Gordon signed a 5 year $55 million deal to play in Motown, and Charlie Villanueva joined Gordon for a 5 year $40 million deal the same day. Although overpriced, these are two of the better free agents in this year’s class. Gordon is an elite six man but has not shown the ability to be more in the Association. Rasheed Wallace is being courted to play for the Celtics, although he has previously said he would retire at the end of his current contract.
The Head Coaching search continues for the Pistons, but the list is getting smaller. Bill Laimbeer and Doug Collins have been removed from the job search, but Avery Johnson is still being looked at. I am not a fan of Johnson being head coach. He was looked over for all the coaching jobs last year, and may have just fallen into a great situation with a great team with the Mavericks. Anyways, Mark Cuban is paying him $4 million a year for the next two years, in addition to his cushy ESPN job. He did have a few meltdowns in the playoffs, an 8 seed over a 1 when Golden State beat Dallas and the NBA Finals loss against the Heat when their boot was on their throat. I can see Johnson getting the job, or an assistant from some other team. I find it unlikely a college coach to be picked.
The Head Coaching search continues for the Pistons, but the list is getting smaller. Bill Laimbeer and Doug Collins have been removed from the job search, but Avery Johnson is still being looked at. I am not a fan of Johnson being head coach. He was looked over for all the coaching jobs last year, and may have just fallen into a great situation with a great team with the Mavericks. Anyways, Mark Cuban is paying him $4 million a year for the next two years, in addition to his cushy ESPN job. He did have a few meltdowns in the playoffs, an 8 seed over a 1 when Golden State beat Dallas and the NBA Finals loss against the Heat when their boot was on their throat. I can see Johnson getting the job, or an assistant from some other team. I find it unlikely a college coach to be picked.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Pistons Fire Curry and Today’s Other Headlines
The Detroit Pistons fired Coach Michael Curry today after one disappointing season. The Pistons snapped their 6 conference finals streak after free falling to the Eastern Conference 8 seed before losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers in round 1 of the playoffs. The Cavs swept the Pistons with double digit wins in each game. They could not even sell out playoffs games after ticket sales plummeted.
I find the timing surprising and do not agree with this decision. In firing his old teammate, GM Joe Dumars put the Pistons in an odd position. A day before the free agency period starts, the Pistons are coach less. Dumars said Curry was safe after the first round exit, but went back on his word. With no clear cut replacement available (although former Bad Boy Bill Laimbeer resigned from the Detroit Shock for an NBA job and Avery Johnson is sitting at ESPN waiting by his phone), the Pistons are now paying Larry Brown, Flip Saunders and Michael Curry, in addition to the new coach. With so much locked up in coaching for the time being, it could take some away from free agents. Given only one year, and a terrible situation where an obvious cap (and jersey and ticket sales) deal was made, Curry was asked to play youngsters as they tried to create a new core of talent. Sure, he juggled the lineup a lot (like having Rip come off the bench) but that was more out of desperation. If he was “the guy” then he was not given time to reach his potential. The Pistons, all though loaded with talent and potential, may slip farther behind the Celtics, Magic, Cavaliers (now with Shaq) and the Bulls.
Jason Kidd is being courted to come back to the Mavericks or quarterback the New York Knicks. The Knicks, which are using a Coach D’Antonio high flying offense, could be appealing for the aging All-Star. Mark Cuban is meeting with Kidd tonight when free agency begins.
Scott Gomez was traded to the Montreal Canadiens from the New York Rangers in a 6 player deal. The former New Jersey Devil star never caught on in New York, scoring 28 Goals in two seasons with the Rangers. The Canadiens, under new ownership with the Molson Family, are looking to reload and the Rangers are looking to clear up cap space and rebuild. NHL and NBA free agency begins at July 1st.
Jay Bouwmeester just inked a 5 year $33 million dollar deal with the Calgary Flames after having his rights traded to them earlier this week. The Florida Panthers kept Bouwmeester in hopes of making the playoffs, but narrowly missed out to the Canadiens. The Panthers received defenseman Jordan Leopold in the deal. Yes that’s right, the Calgary Flames have Robyn Regehr, Dion Phaneuf and Jay Bouwmeester on the same roster.
The Cubs are 3.5 out of first place after being blanked by the Pirates. The Cubs have the fifth best team ERA in the MLB with 3.83 but cannot get the offense going.
I find the timing surprising and do not agree with this decision. In firing his old teammate, GM Joe Dumars put the Pistons in an odd position. A day before the free agency period starts, the Pistons are coach less. Dumars said Curry was safe after the first round exit, but went back on his word. With no clear cut replacement available (although former Bad Boy Bill Laimbeer resigned from the Detroit Shock for an NBA job and Avery Johnson is sitting at ESPN waiting by his phone), the Pistons are now paying Larry Brown, Flip Saunders and Michael Curry, in addition to the new coach. With so much locked up in coaching for the time being, it could take some away from free agents. Given only one year, and a terrible situation where an obvious cap (and jersey and ticket sales) deal was made, Curry was asked to play youngsters as they tried to create a new core of talent. Sure, he juggled the lineup a lot (like having Rip come off the bench) but that was more out of desperation. If he was “the guy” then he was not given time to reach his potential. The Pistons, all though loaded with talent and potential, may slip farther behind the Celtics, Magic, Cavaliers (now with Shaq) and the Bulls.
Jason Kidd is being courted to come back to the Mavericks or quarterback the New York Knicks. The Knicks, which are using a Coach D’Antonio high flying offense, could be appealing for the aging All-Star. Mark Cuban is meeting with Kidd tonight when free agency begins.
Scott Gomez was traded to the Montreal Canadiens from the New York Rangers in a 6 player deal. The former New Jersey Devil star never caught on in New York, scoring 28 Goals in two seasons with the Rangers. The Canadiens, under new ownership with the Molson Family, are looking to reload and the Rangers are looking to clear up cap space and rebuild. NHL and NBA free agency begins at July 1st.
Jay Bouwmeester just inked a 5 year $33 million dollar deal with the Calgary Flames after having his rights traded to them earlier this week. The Florida Panthers kept Bouwmeester in hopes of making the playoffs, but narrowly missed out to the Canadiens. The Panthers received defenseman Jordan Leopold in the deal. Yes that’s right, the Calgary Flames have Robyn Regehr, Dion Phaneuf and Jay Bouwmeester on the same roster.
The Cubs are 3.5 out of first place after being blanked by the Pirates. The Cubs have the fifth best team ERA in the MLB with 3.83 but cannot get the offense going.
Thoughts From My Desk June 30th Edition
- Ed Belfour, 44 years old, wishes to make a comeback in the NHL. His agent is contacting teams for a possible deal to be signed before training camps start. The Red Wings always want to sign veteran goalies and could be a logical choice. The Wings showed interest in Belfour before signing Dominick Hasek in 2003. Belfour last played in Sweden in the 2007-2008 season.
- The K-Wings, Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo are working out a deal to build a new arena in downtown Kalamazoo for Hockey and Basketball. The K-Wings are moving up in minor league Hockey, from the International Hockey League to the East Coast Hockey League (equivalent to baseball's AA leagues. The American Hockey League would be AAA.) and desperately need a new arena. The same can be said for the Broncos, with Lawson Arena being over 35 years old. We all saw what happened to Miami of Ohio when the built new facilities and made the Frozen Four this year before a monumental collapse kept them from the title game. Who is paying for all this and how much has not been determined, but a idea thrown around has been raising restaurant taxes from 6% to 7% for Kalamazoo. In November a vote will determine how far this can go. Bronco Men's Basketball could also be involved as University Arena is also in need of some repairs. More on this story when it becomes available.
- The Detroit Lions traded for Wide Receiver Dennis Northcutt from the Jacksonville Jaguars for Safety Gerald Alexander. With 7 safeties on the roster the injury prone Alexander was deemed expendable for the 31 year old Northcutt, who is now the most veteran wide receiver on the roster. He adds depth behind Calvin "Megatron" Johnson for the upcoming season.
NBA Analysis from Guest Correspondent Nick Felver
Since Basketball is not my strongest sport (I think I can hold my own in college but definitely not the NBA) and all the major sports networks and publications have their own guest correspondents, so will I. Introducing the newest member of Season Tickets With Weston Corbitt, my roommate and local Basketball expert, Nick Felver. A Bulls fan and a wealth of knowledge, look for him to breakdown everything on the hardwood.
-Weston Corbitt
The big story of the draft has to be the Timberwolves parlaying their multitude of picks into four point guards and a shooting guard. Apparently, there are no other positions on a basketball squad. While at first glance, the drafting of four point guards is sheer lunacy, the T-wolves have been wheeling and dealing and are now down to two, Johnny Flynn and Ricky Rubio. Rubio could fetch some value on the trade market, making Flynn Minnesota’s point guard of the future.
Blake Griffin is a freak of nature. If only it wasn’t for that durned Clippers curse…
At first I was thrilled with the Bull’s draft. They needed to get some scoring power down low and taking James Johnson at 16, while a bit undersized, fits the bill. I was excited about Taj Gibson because he is a 6’10” beast, but it seems like his game mirrors that of Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas in that he’s not much of a scorer. Perhaps this pick could have been used to shore up the perimeter with the expected loss of Ben Gordon to free agency and the potential loss of Kirk Hinrich to a trade. Wayne Ellington or Sam Young would have been nice here.
Hansbrough could be the next Christian Laettner. A ringing endorsement, I know. He’s physical enough for the NBA but that patented flip-shot of his will get blocked now.
I’m totally flabbergasted by the hornets taking a point guard with their first pick. Hey New Orleans, you have this dude named Chris Paul. He’s pretty good.
Not too sure about the Pistons. Austin Daye has great height at 6’11” but doesn’t have the weight to play down low. DaJuan Summers is a strong physical player at 6’9” and 243 pounds. They have potential but isn’t Detroit pretty set on the wings with Tayshawn and Rip? Could be some trades coming. After all, no one is safe according to Dumars.
On another local note, MSU alum Goran Suton gets a look in the second round from the Utah Jazz. He fits in at least visually with the crew of white forwards that the Jazz have assembled. He’ll get a chance because he’s long and can shoot, but he could be playing in Europe for a year or two.
The Spurs get another late steal in DaJuan Blair. He breaks faces, arms, and wills in his quest for rebounds. He and Tim Duncan should become good buddies down low for San Antonio.
Richard Jefferson Starship to the Spurs revitalizes Duncan and Co. Shaq to the Cavs will be more fun than a barrel of spider monkeys. Oh yeah, he should help on the court also. Vince Carter will be fun to watch in Orlando but they must re-sign Turkoglu.
Free agency starts July 1st. I love this time of year and can’t wait for next season.
-Nick Felver
-Weston Corbitt
The big story of the draft has to be the Timberwolves parlaying their multitude of picks into four point guards and a shooting guard. Apparently, there are no other positions on a basketball squad. While at first glance, the drafting of four point guards is sheer lunacy, the T-wolves have been wheeling and dealing and are now down to two, Johnny Flynn and Ricky Rubio. Rubio could fetch some value on the trade market, making Flynn Minnesota’s point guard of the future.
Blake Griffin is a freak of nature. If only it wasn’t for that durned Clippers curse…
At first I was thrilled with the Bull’s draft. They needed to get some scoring power down low and taking James Johnson at 16, while a bit undersized, fits the bill. I was excited about Taj Gibson because he is a 6’10” beast, but it seems like his game mirrors that of Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas in that he’s not much of a scorer. Perhaps this pick could have been used to shore up the perimeter with the expected loss of Ben Gordon to free agency and the potential loss of Kirk Hinrich to a trade. Wayne Ellington or Sam Young would have been nice here.
Hansbrough could be the next Christian Laettner. A ringing endorsement, I know. He’s physical enough for the NBA but that patented flip-shot of his will get blocked now.
I’m totally flabbergasted by the hornets taking a point guard with their first pick. Hey New Orleans, you have this dude named Chris Paul. He’s pretty good.
Not too sure about the Pistons. Austin Daye has great height at 6’11” but doesn’t have the weight to play down low. DaJuan Summers is a strong physical player at 6’9” and 243 pounds. They have potential but isn’t Detroit pretty set on the wings with Tayshawn and Rip? Could be some trades coming. After all, no one is safe according to Dumars.
On another local note, MSU alum Goran Suton gets a look in the second round from the Utah Jazz. He fits in at least visually with the crew of white forwards that the Jazz have assembled. He’ll get a chance because he’s long and can shoot, but he could be playing in Europe for a year or two.
The Spurs get another late steal in DaJuan Blair. He breaks faces, arms, and wills in his quest for rebounds. He and Tim Duncan should become good buddies down low for San Antonio.
Richard Jefferson Starship to the Spurs revitalizes Duncan and Co. Shaq to the Cavs will be more fun than a barrel of spider monkeys. Oh yeah, he should help on the court also. Vince Carter will be fun to watch in Orlando but they must re-sign Turkoglu.
Free agency starts July 1st. I love this time of year and can’t wait for next season.
-Nick Felver
Sunday, June 28, 2009
US Soccer: So Close Yet So Far
After watching US Soccer play as well as they did against Spain, beating the top ranked team in the world with a record winning streak on the line, and as bad as they have in a loss in Costa Rica I have mixed feelings about the Americans chances in next year’s World Cup. Of course the US has the talent to hang with the best teams in the world. We beat Spain with a lot on the line and outplayed Brazil, the fifth ranked team, for almost 46 minutes. Then a collapse of monumental proportions saw the Americans give up three (maybe four, as Kaka had a possible goal turned away by the refs after Tim Howard pushed it away ) goals and played on their heels for the entire second half. Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan showed their world class talent with two quick strike goals carrying over the momentum from the semifinal match versus the Spanish. Sure, the US were without Michael Bradley (red card) and Brian Ching (leg injury) but that is no excuse to blow a 2-0 lead. Hopefully we continue to improve and carry this over into qualifying and the World Cup next summer in South Africa. We probably do not have the depth or overall talent to consistently beat the best teams in the world.
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