Yahoo- Christian Hackenberg apparently blundered during interviews with NFL teams in advance of next month's draft by telling the truth.
As a freshman at Penn State, the quarterback completed 58.9 percent of his passes, throwing for 20 touchdowns against just 10 interceptions. Some pegged him as an eventual No. 1 overall selection. After that season however, Bill O'Brien left to go coach the NFL's Houston Texans. James Franklin took over with an offense that has traditionally skewed more to the spread than O'Brien's pro-style. Hackenberg's numbers dropped to 12 TDs and 15 picks as a sophomore, only to rebound to 16 TDs, six interceptions as a junior. He isn't viewed as a great prospect anymore and is unlikely to be taken in the first round, let alone at the top of it. Now he's dealing with interview issues. According to Robert Klemko of MMQB, at least two front-office executives said "when asked to explain his declining sophomore and junior numbers … Hackenberg has shifted blame to Coach James Franklin." "Despite the fact that it's probably true," one source told MMQB, "you don't want to hear a kid say that." You know what the best part about this story is? The fact that I don't even have to pick a side. Was Christian Hackenberg wrong for blaming his Head Coach for his troubles in college? Probably. Was he technically right about James Franklin putting him in a position to fail? Probably. Who fucking cares either way? Christian Hackenberg is an overrated, out of shape quarterback that never lived up to the insane amount of hype that surrounded him, and James Franklin is an incompetent Head Coach that did nothing to fix an utterly disgraceful offensive line that contributed mightily to Hackenberg's woes. As far as I am concerned the only takeaway here is that they both suck at their jobs, and they had an undeniably negative impact on each other's careers. Considering those careers took place at Penn State, I couldn't be happier to say they are both at fault. James Franklin for fielding a line that couldn't block a two man rush for more than a half second... ...and Christian Hackenberg for having an inability to use his illustrious skill set to get the ball out quick and overcome bad coaching. I don't necessarily think that a player should be using his coach as a scapegoat, but most coaches aren't as deserving of being scapegoated as James Franklin. I'm just glad his decision to do so is costing him valuable draft positioning, because I have never seen the potential that made people think that Hackenberg was worthy of being a first round pick. It's like the skies opened up and God smiled down upon me. He blessed me with a story that makes Penn State look bad no matter what stance you take on the matter. If only Joe Paterno's morally bankrupt ass was still around to see the players and the coaches of his beloved university inadvertently dragging each other reputations through the dirt. Just a bunch of Nittany Lions jeopardizing each other's futures like their good buddy Jerry Sandusky once taught them.
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BSO- “I think the health ramifications and where we need to go, pushing the envelope quickly to catch up to speed with what we’re dealing with — I would say, simply, start with the helmet. I would say we’re way behind where should be right now with what we’re putting on the players.”
That technology may be well on it’s way. Payton referenced a prototype he was able to see at the Senior Bowl. “It’s amazing to see,” he said. “If you took the analogy of an automobile in the ’60s and ’70s and how much of the impact passengers received in a collision and fast-forward to where we are now … I think the same thing is happening and needs to happen with the helmet that we’re wearing. So what we’re used to right now as a helmet, I think, is going to change at warp speed right in front of our eyes in the next two or three years. It really is behind. And it’s not until the noise gets real loud that you really see change in any one area. And I think every one of us in this industry hears it, and it’s deafening.” You really gotta tip your cap to Sean Payton here. I know he didn't exactly reveal any ground breaking information. He did, however, mention that football has a CTE issue, and admitting that you have a problem is always the first step you have to take to come up with a solution. Not sure the surefire solution is to strap revolutionary auto parts to the player's heads, but hey - it can't be any more dangerous than what they are currently doing. Pretty sure Sean Payton didn't put an end to head injuries in football by suggesting improvements that have been suggested thousands of times before, but at least he's attempting to make strides. That's commendable considering the people that ultimately pay his salary fell off that wagon about 5 minutes after they got on it. Let's be honest. Football could be played in a padded room with the participants wrapped in bubble wrap, and concussions - as well as the long term ramifications of repeated concussions - are going to remain a significant health hazard. I don't care how far car manufacturers have come in ensuring the safety of their drivers. You drive a 2015 Ford truck head on into another 2015 Ford truck enough times the end result is going to be a hell of a lot of cumulative damage. I'm not saying that improvements can't be made in protective headgear, but I am saying that - given the nature of football - expectations should remain tempered. Still, it's refreshing to see someone that is technically employed by a negligent league speak out on behalf of a dilemma that they are clearly facing, but are usually so quick to ignore. Sean Payton's plan of attack may be completely unrealistic, but as a part of a senseless organization it really is the thought that counts. P.S. Considering the relationship that Sean Payton has with the NFL I wouldn't put it past him to be the one to bring up concussions and once again cast a negative shadow on the league that has caused him so many problems in his career.
Boombox- Kehlani is under fire after PARTYNEXTDOOR posted up a photo of the Oakland singer in his bed.
The photo sparked a flurry online because Kehlani went public with her relationship with Cleveland Cavaliers star Kyrie Irving earlier this year. Now, social media is giving a skeptical eye to the entire situation. In the now-deleted photo, PARTYNEXTDOOR’s arm is seen next to Kehlani’s famously tatted hand as the two watched Dope. “After all her shenanigans, still got the r&b singer back in my bed,” read the caption of the post. I'm not going to focus on the fact that Kyrie Irving got on cheated on with some lame ass R&B singer that no one has ever heard of, had it aired out on social media, and basically got emasculated in front of the whole country. Considering the type of women that NBA players generally keep as their company, it's not all that surprisingly. Humiliating? Yes. Cold hearted? Definitely. Shocking? Not in the least. So instead I would like to move on to the more pressing questions, and that is whether or not the Cleveland Cavaliers are the most dysfunctional championship contender in NBA history? There hasn't come a point when we have stopped penciling them into this year's NBA finals, but maybe it's time we start considering that a possibility. Just look at all the injuries they have to overcome. LeBron James has been battling hurt feelings all year (thanks a lot Steph Curry). Kevin Love's ego has been bruised from the second he stepped foot on the floor in Cleveland. Now Kyrie Irving's broken heart has to heal in time for the playoffs? The Cleveland Cavaliers may very well represent the Eastern Conference, but it's certainly not a forgone conclusion. Think about all the issues they have dealt with this year. LeBron only taking time away from acting like a petulant child on social media to get his 30-11 head coach fired. Kyrie Irving basically announcing that he wants out of Cleveland midseason while they are in FIRST PLACE. The Cavaliers have more wins this year than the Sixers have in like the last three years, yet they still have more negativity surrounding their franchise than a team that is actively trying to lose. Joe Johnson knew his services were wanted in Cleveland and he was still stubborn about leaving a D-League team in Brooklyn. The Knicks stink, their salary cap is being weighed down by Melo's anchor of a contract, they have no first round pick, and even the spirits in MSG are higher than they are Cleveland. It has to be the most miserable winning team in history, and I am including the Lakers when Kobe and Shaq wanted each other dead. The Golden State Warriors look like they are having the most fun season of all time, and their presumed opposition has more in-fighting than a sorority house. You know how bad this season has been for the Cavs? Their starting point guard had the PG version of his girlfriend sucking another dude's dick posted on the internet, and it might not even make the Top 5 headaches they have had to endure this season. P.S. The internet has no chill...
Let's just call it quits and get rid of any and all dunk contests forever. What's even the point anymore? I don't think anything can ever top the show that Zach Lavine and Aaron Gordon put on during NBA All Star Weekend, and nothing proves that quite like my instinctual reaction to this high school kid launching himself over multiple people to throw one down. I watched this dunk and thought "meh, I have seen better". I started critiquing the fact that he didn't get his second leg fully over the THREE grown ass men he was jumping over. At first I even thought the celebratory backflip that he did at the end was more impressive than what he was actually celebrating. The whole gym went nuts and all I could think was "okay, settle down, it wasn't THAT great" like some old curmudgeon that thinks the art of the layup has been lost. Thankfully I am not an old curmudgeon, but what I am is someone that has seen too many unthinkably athletic slam dunks to let one that's not properly executed get my dick hard. If I was there would I be screaming, yelling, jumping up and down and waving my '10' card around in the air so fast that it was unreadable? That goes without saying. However, while watching it through a computer screen I have no choice but to give it an '8', and that says all you need to know about how insatiable I have become watching people that are ridiculously more athletic than myself do things I could never even dream of doing. The market has become saturated, and you're going to need to do more to stand out than only partially hurdling an entire family's worth of people. Metro- A 21-year-old has finally tried fruit for the first time after her seeing a hypnotherapist about her fear of food, which left her only able to stomach KFC.
Georgie Scotney from Portsmouth developed Selective Eating Disorder (SED) at a young age. Sufferers of the disorder have an inability to eat certain foods. ‘Safe’ foods are often limited to certain food types and even specific brands. When she was little, Georgie would only eat chicken and chips, but it eventually got to the point where only a certain brand of fried chicken would do. For the last three years, she has survived on KFC takeaways (with the occasional slice of toast or chocolate bar). ‘Growing up I’d always been really stubborn with what I’d eat, it started off as just southern fried chicken and chips but it then got to the point where it’d only be chicken from KFC – I’d go there everyday without fail,’ Georgie recalls. ‘I was just never fed up with it, I loved to put loads of salt on it too, which I now see wasn’t such a good idea – I do think that it had a lot to do with me being scared of a lot of foods, especially sauce, that was the worst fear of mine.’ I don't want to belittle anybody's phobia, because there are a lot of people out there that are scared of a lot of weird shit, but being scared of any food that is NOT KFC is not a valid fear. The fact that this chick is afraid of foods that aren't Kentucky Fried just means that her only real fear is of food that's not fried, because you could literally find anything in your bucket of Original Recipe. Let's just say that if you enjoy Colonel's Crispy Strips then don't Google 'found in KFC' because you more than likely to lose your lunch. I am talking rats, mice, cockroaches, brains, dried blood, chicken organs, and that's only the first page of results. If someone said name one fast food chain whose food you are relatively scared to eat the answer would probably be KFC. So meet the bravest woman in the world. The women that has been eating KFC everyday for THREE years. She's actually not afraid of anything, she's just afraid of it when it's not battered beyond recognition. She overcame her fear and she didn't even know she was doing it. If you have KFC well over 500 times then you've easily eaten well over 50 different things. Her diet is actually pretty diverse now that I think about. Insanely unhealthy, but extremely diverse. I can't name 50 different things that I have eaten in the last year, and this broad has indigested 50 different things without even changing her order. She's either on death's door or she's got the strongest immune system in the entire world, but one thing this broad doesn't have is an irrational fear of putting unfamiliar things in her mouth. BSO- A violent sex offender distracted by pornography on his cell phone was struck and killed by a runaway trailer on a Tennessee street Wednesday, according to a local report.
Kevin C. Jordan, 55, died a block from his East Memphis home when a 15-foot trailer hauling a load of tires smashed into a fence, tree and the convicted felon, authorities said. He later learned of Jordan’s extensive rap sheet — four rape convictions — and the pornography police found on the victim’s cell phone after the crash. “I think it’s ironic that he was watching porn,” Trimble told WMC—TV. “This dealt with some of the crimes he may have perpetuated.” A punishment fit for a serial rapist, as they say. I am not exactly sure why a man that was convicted of four separate rape charges was anywhere near his East Memphis home and not getting sodomized in a maximum security prison, but I am pretty damn glad he was. Not just because he was a danger to women everywhere, but because a person that watches porn in public is a danger to everyone. Rape is like standard operating procedure for someone that doesn't mind walking around watching handheld sex. That requires a lack of shame that can only be found in the minds of most sick, twisted, and perverted criminals. Call it irony. Call it karma. Hell, call it whatever the fuck you want, but it was no accident that this guy died at the hands of a wayward trailer of tires while probably watching some poor, broke 22 year old girl who claims she's 18 get bound and gagged. It was going to take an extreme event to rid the world of some dude that has gotten off scot-free from nearly a handful of sexual assaults, and there's no event more extreme than a runaway train going off the tracks and seeking out the person that was most in need of an untimely death. It literally sounds like a scene from 'Final Destination' if 'Final Destination' was called 'Final Desecration' and rated XXX. Spoiler Alert: The happy ending didn't involve a mess of semen...I don't think. DailyNews- Kylie Jenner doesn't think that Dave Chappelle is all that funny.
The 18-year-old reality startlet was decidedly not amused when the comedian cracked a joke about her parent Caitlyn Jenner during a routine at the Hollywood Palladium. Jenner, who was with beau, rapper Tyga, is said to have sat there stone-faced while the ex-Comedy Central star ripped into her transgender parent who transitioned from Bruce Jenner to Caitlyn Jenner. Chappelle reportedly recalled how he remembered the Olympic medalist as a "Superman" who was "beating Africans" on his way to clinching gold in the grueling decathlon competition at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. He said he knew something was amiss when he ran into Kanye and said, "Kanye…why the long face? And Kanye replied, 'Man, you'll see.'" The punch line earned huge guffaws from the audience, including Tyga who laughed while his teen gal pal sat unamused. Well, color me shocked. The young, attractive starlet that has never needed a personality to get something that she's wanted doesn't have a sense of humor? A member of a family that has gotten rich off treating terrible reality television like it's life or death doesn't possess the ability to laugh at herself? I guess you can't have it all. Can't be hot, rich, famous, and fun loving enough to crack a smile at a joke made at the expense of your daddy turned man-mommy. This is actually on Tyga, because the LAST place I would take Kylie would be a comedy club. Probably save that one for a boy's night out. Don't want to waste your time at a Dave Chappelle show trying to convince your braindead girlfriend that he's only kidding. How's he going to follow that one up? Take her home to watch 'Inception' and try to explain the entire movie to that mindless pair of tits while they watch it. That's the tradeoff Tyga. You get to have sex with your super sexy girlfriend, but you don't get to have a good time when you bring her places and do things that require the intelligence to have an open mind. Nothing worse than laughing when the person next to you to you isn't, and that's why I think I would rather go shopping with Kylie Jenner than go to a comedy show with her. At least the former is supposed to be suicide-inducing, whereas the only thing that could make the latter painful is an uptight girlfriend that can't look outside of herself and appreciate funny for funny's sake. First Jim Boeheim pissed himself, and now Roy Williams is slicing his hand open doing something as simple as cutting down a net? I gotta say, these long tenured, highly accomplished college basketball coaches are starting to lose it right in front of our very eyes. It's easy to overlook how old they are getting because they are still animated guys that are great at their job. Look no further than their appearances in the Final Four to show you that. Still, can't say Father Time isn't showing his hand when Roy Williams can't even keep his steady enough to avoid needing medical attention during an on-court celebration. It's a credit to them that - despite not looking the least bit young - they are able to appear youthful with how well they do their job and relate to their players, but no amount of National Championships can hide the literal and figurative accidents that are reserved for men their age. If he already can't be trusted with scissors then it can't be long before we have to start worrying about Roy Williams ability to stand atop a ladder. I am not trying to prematurely ship one of the most decorated coaches in all of sports into the retirement home, but if he wants to keep his job for the foreseeable future than we better get the North Carolina staff a pair of safety scissors, and maybe one of those electric stairlifts to get him up to the rim safely. Can't be concerning ourselves with whether or not Roy Williams 'Life Alert' is going off in the midst of every victory celebration. I Am Truly Envious Of Kyle Lowry's Ability To Give A Decent Interview While Watching Villanova Play3/28/2016 Kyle Lowry is an All Star caliber NBA player and the biggest difference between us might be that he can interact while focusing intently on a game that he is truly invested in. I think I am actually closer to being paid money millions of dollars to play professional basketball than I am to being personable, engaging, and informative while watching my team play. That one minute interview probably ranks in the top 5 of most impressive things I have seen an athlete do - on or off the court. Hell, if he didn't casually interject to narrate plays that were happening in real time during the Villanova game then I would have had no idea he was multitasking. Maybe I would have thought he was falling in love with the wall or something, but I wouldn't have known he was tempering his emotions while his alma mater was in the process of winning themselves a Final Four berth. This interview reminds me of when talking on the phone was actually a thing people did (when they weren't just in desperate need of an ambulance), and girls would always find the most inopportune time to try to do it. Then you would sit there "talking" for an hour giving more canned one word answers than you would while sitting in a doctor's office. Thank God those days are over, because while women might tell you they were of detriment to healthy relationships, I would tell you they were of detriment to the sports viewing experience. If this were me it would have been 60 seconds of uh-huh's, yeah's, and what's like I was pretending to listen to a story that a friend was accidentally telling me for the 15th time, but Kyle Lowry responded to original questions (relatively speaking considering the state of sports media) with acceptable answers. I think I speak on behalf of every single one of my ex-girlfriends when I tell you that's simply not something I will ever be capable of. TMZ- The LAPD is on the hunt for the social media scumbag who threatened to kill Chris Paul's wife, Jada, on Twitter ... TMZ Sports has learned.
It's all over a tweet sent to Paul on March 14th which read: "@CP3 if I knew where you lived I'd probably kill your wife and frame you for it. I watch dateline I get away with it." Clippers security saw the tweet and notified the LAPD which launched an investigation to track down the person behind the threat ... but so far, no arrests have been made. It's just the latest online issue for Paul -- who had already contacted cops about an Instagram troll who's been harassing him and his wife for more than a year. According to official docs, Paul claims the troll never threatened physical harm -- but was on a campaign of cyber-humiliation by posting "annoying comments" on family pics. Paul points out one example from Oct. '14 when the troll referred to Jada as "Jay Leno chin." And there you have it, the biggest problem with Twitter trolls. They simply can't rest until they outdo themselves. This guy's persistence is what's ultimately responsible for the cops that are currently on his tail. Not only did he get himself in legal trouble, but his undying desire to be more outrageous turned Chris Paul into a true victim. It's all good when you are referring to the wife of an athlete as an exaggerated body part of a former 'Tonight Show' host, but when you venture into the unfolding of murder plots from a popular, reality based crime show then you have simply gone into far too much detail. Think about it this way, when Chris Paul was calling the police over a Jay Leno joke he was overreacting. When you threaten homicide against one of his immediate family members, and forewarn that you'll conspire to frame it on him then you are the bad guy. I don't support a person's right to badger professional athletes and their family members online, but I do understand that it happens quite often. Often enough - in fact - that people have no choice but to ignore most of it. This kid's biggest mistake was feeling the need to stand out from the rest of his hobby-less peers that have nothing better to do than annoy Chris Paul on the internet, and he fucked around and made the threat too real. You can never make the threat too real. Kevin Harlan Made Mention Of The Resurrection In Calling The End Of Syracuse's Comeback Win3/28/2016
LBS- Announcer Kevin Harlan punctuated Syracuse’s comeback win over Virginia in the Elite Eight with a controversial line.
Syracuse, which trailed by 14 points at halftime and overcame a 13-point deficit with under nine minutes left, came back to beat the Cavaliers 68-62. Harlan, who announced the game for TBS, said that Virginia had come “back from the dead”. Kevin Harlan is going to come under a lot of scrutiny for referencing religion to aide in his calling of a sporting event, and while I'm not the most spiritual of people - I understand the backlash. Not because I feel like it's worthy of getting upset over, but because you have to know - given the state of society - that a comment like that is going to over step the all-to-constricting bounds of what people consider politically correct. So while I wouldn't want to be friends with the people that are working themselves into a frenzy over an incredibly spot-on call - of a pretty unbelievable game - that happened to mention Jesus Christ, I am certainly not surprised that they exist. I guess the main problem I have is that Kevin Harlan really had no choice. Syracuse, quite literally, came back from the dead. Down double digits to one of the most smothering defensive teams in the nation with mere minutes left in the contest? There's no good comparison for that type of revival other than the rising of Christ himself. I haven't gone to church enough to tell you whether or not Kevin Harlan jeopardized the teachings of the Bible by using them to his advantage during a basketball game, but I do know that he was suffering from a lack of options. If Jesus didn't want to be made sport of then maybe he shouldn't have gone around doing things that were irreplicable by the average man. Ever think of that? The guy basically cornered the resurrection market, and in doing so he cornered the market on topical resurgence comparisons on Easter Sunday. I suppose you can be upset with him for "using" the Lord's work to his benefit, but you can't find someone that had a more accurate call of the Syracuse-Virginia game. Maybe he didn't uphold his obligation to the church, but he upheld his obligation to the NCAA tournament. So let's just give him a pass this one time, because going cold turkey on something you love for 40 days can have quite the effect on a man's filter, but he should be commended for it not having an effect on his sharpness. Marshawn Lynch Took The Hat Of A Fan That Was Looking For An Autograph And Walked Off With It3/28/2016 If it were any other athlete, and I mean literally any other athlete then I would say this was a complete dickhead move. Unfortunately, it's not another athlete. It's Marshawn Lynch, and Marshawn Lynch gets a pass from me. Not just because I have a soft spot for Marshawn Lynch, but because Marshawn Lynch retired from the NFL to get away from situations like this. He didn't retire because his body couldn't handle football anymore or because he no longer loved the game. He retired because he could no longer stand being in the public eye and being forced into unwanted interactions. Marshawn Lynch was so tired of being in front of a camera that this is how he chose to announce his retirement... So while he looks like an asshole for taking a fan's hat, the real asshole is the fan that put him in a position to do so. Asking for Marshawn Lynch's autograph in a public place is like running up on Marcus Lattimore in the mall and chop blocking him in the back of the ankle while he's shoe shopping. It's like daring Calvin Johnson to break a wood board with his head. It's putting a former professional athlete in a position to do something that he walked away from millions of dollars to avoid doing. Marshawn Lynch left football to get away from interviews and autographs. Unfortunately it took one kid's stolen $20 hat to remind us of that, because apparently nearly 5 minutes of hilariously awkward footage wasn't enough to do so... Samuel L. Jackson Has Beef With Coach K For Without A Doubt The Stupidest Reason Of All Time3/27/2016
NYPost- “Today, I spoke with Oregon head coach Dana Altman and apologized to him for my remarks to Dillon Brooks following our game,” Krzyzewski said in a statement. “It is not my place to talk to another team’s player, and doing so took the focus away from the terrific game that Dillon played.”
Right after the game, the Duke coach angrily denied he had lectured Brooks about showboating during the post-game handshake. When he was told by a reporter who had just spoken to Brooks in the Ducks locker room that Brooks said Krzyzewski told him he was “too good of a player to be showing off in the end,” the Duke coach grew flustered. “In the postgame press conference, I reacted incorrectly to a reporter’s question about my comment to Dillon,” Krzyzewski said.
Now Samuel L. does deserve credit for one thing and that is holding old white men in positions of power accountable for the things that come out of their mouth. There's definitely not enough people doing that these days. So I like what he's doing in theory, but his execution could use some work. If I were going to start somewhere I probably wouldn't choose the old white guy that has the most clout with the young urban community. Far too many old white dudes talking out of their ass to choose the one that's helped hundreds of kids achieve their dream of playing professional basketball. Especially when all he did was give some constructive criticism to a young, up and coming player. Not saying he had perfect timing, but I have been "dogged" a few times in my life and it's never started out with "you're too good of a player to (insert universally frowned upon decision here)". I would have to check Urban Dictionary, but I don't think the act of "dogging" is supposed to be complimentary. Granted, I am combative by nature, but I have never responded to a "dogging" by immediately apologizing. Something tells me Dillon Brooks reaction tells you all you need to know about this situation, and that is that he already knew he was in the wrong. Did Coach K lie? Sure, he lied. Do I care? Not even a little bit. That lie was so white that it made Marshall Plumlee look like he got some color. Honestly, the only thing that's worse than Coach K lying about pseudo-scolding a player is his decision to give in and apologize for doing absolutely nothing wrong. When people start apologizing every time one person doesn't like what they have to say then apologies become "half assed" and meaningless. So maybe Samuel L. Jackson can stop acting like Coach K deserves to die and hoping he burns in hell, because he has enough of a track record to tell a kid on an opposing team the proper way to conduct themselves on a basketball court. I love Samuel L. Jackson when he's casually bickering with Charles Barkley and Spike during a March Madness road trip, but how about we leave the actual basketball to the people that have made a name for themselves in the sport. I guess what I am trying to say is yes - it's all good.
I don't want to turn this into a math blog, but we are - begrudgingly - going to have to take a little look at numbers here. Steph Curry shoots 45% from behind the arch. That means on any given 3 point shot he stands a greater chance of missing it than he does making it. The fact that that comes off sounding like an insult just goes to show you how impressive of a year he has had to this point. Regardless, there's probably been around 85 different shots where Steph Curry has turned around and run back down the floor before the ball has even gone through the net. On three point shots that Steph Curry has prematurely celebrated he is shooting 100%. I understand that he only celebrates when it "feels right" leaving his hand, but to be able to make that designation in the moment with a rate of success that can only be described as flawless is incredible. So incredible in fact that it might be the most ridiculous stat that Steph Curry has put up this year. A player that averages over 30 points per game while shooting 50/45/90 (FG/3FG/FT), broke his own record for threes made in a season, and is going to be the unanimous MVP of the NBA, but what's his most extraordinary thing about him? That - statistically speaking - is more likely to pass it off his teammate's leg while his teammate is celebrating a three pointer he hasn't even taken yet than he is too miss a three pointer while his own back is turned.
LBS- Michael Sam already admitted that he wasn’t surprised by the report that the St. Louis Rams drafted him as part of a deal with the league to avoid appearing on “Hard Knocks,” and he elaborated on that on Thursday.
Sam told the Dan Patrick Show that in light of the report, a lot of things made sense. “Not surprised that the NFL had a deal with the Rams,” Sam said. “Makes sense to me why they cut me and not Ethan Westbrooks even though I out preformed him in our production. Makes sense why Coach Fisher was very vague the day he cut me from the team.” “The denials are not surprising,” Balzer wrote. “The Rams’ choices were to acknowledge the report was accurate, which wasn’t going to happen; say nothing, which would be a tacit admission; or deny, deny, deny. And that’s what they did.” Let's just get this out in the open, I dislike Michael Sam as much as you can dislike an "athlete" that you don't personally know. Michael Sam might tell you that I dislike him because he's gay, but the truth is I wouldn't care if every single one of my friends were gay, as long as they didn't incessantly bring up their sexuality. It would probably make my life a lot more blog worthy, but I wouldn't care. I dislike Michael Sam because his ENTIRE identity is centered around the fact that he's homosexual, and I find that to be - well - nauseating to be honest. With that said, I respect Michael Sam. Actually, I shouldn't say I respect Michael Sam as a person, but I do respect his narcissism. In a world in which 99% of people could be diagnosed with narcissism, Michael Sam's words can stop you in your tracks and make you say "hey, that guy is super narcissistic". That's not something you encounter on a daily basis - a person that is so self absorbed that they can't even look outside themselves and realize that they are self absorbed. It's a lack of societal awareness that must make it pretty awesome to be Michael Sam. Sure, he's got people like me criticizing him on the internet, but the beauty is that he is too self involved to actually notice. In the eyes of Michael Sam the world is just one never-ending episode of 'The Michael Sam Show' and he's got the starring role playing himself. Everything that is happening in the world around us happens on the show too, but Michael Sam's director's cut decides whether or not we see it. In this week's episode you might catch the attacks in Brussels taking place on a television in the background while the camera pans to something far more important. That something is Michael Sam looking at his Twitter feed as news of the arrangement between the St. Louis Rams and The NFL that ultimately got him drafted pops up. Now almost every rational person heard about that deal and said to themselves "oh man, look how corrupt the NFL for trying to fix the drafting of an openly gay player", but not Michael Sam. He used a little tool we call subjective bias to use this deal - a deal that got him an NFL job - to explain why he is no longer in the NFL. His decision to try to film the 'The Oprah Show' in the locker room? Oddly enough it got edited out. The game film of him actually playing football? Also left on the cutting room floor. That deal though? A deal that he was the clear beneficiary of? A deal that flat out gave him an opportunity? That's what cost him his chance to make a living playing professional football. Some nifty camera work, complete ignorance to literally every single exterior factor, and it all makes perfect sense. Here's A Devils Fan Getting Kicked Out For Presumably Being A Jackass At Last Night Penguins Game3/25/2016 Well ladies and gents, the Devils are back! Maybe not back to being a playoff team, and definitely not back to being a championship contender. However, we are back to respectability, and I know this because we have fans getting far too drunk and belligerent at away stadiums. Not saying you can't be an asshole fan of a terrible team, but you can't be an asshole fan of a terrible team and be cocky enough to make this face as you Rick Flair right in an overreacting usher's face... That's the face of resilience. That's a face that says "I don't care that their are a handful of security guards ready to carry me out, I'm not leaving without a fight". You can choke that guy out. You can toss him out of the building. You can put slap some cuffs on him. He's not going to shut the fuck, and he's certainly not going to admit defeat. That might just be the jersey in him, but it's also the New Jersey Devil in him. This team has battled all year and apparently some of it's fans have adopted it's personality after about a dozen beers and a couple insurance goals. Not the most commendable thing to be throwing hands with some loser from Pittsburgh during a game that's relatively meaningless to your season, but if you are going to do it then you better not back down due to something as insignificant as being outnumbered 15,000-to-1. Much like this current Devils team, this dude really thought he could battle the odds and win. The Devils have believed in themselves all year, and I guess that attitude has spread throughout the fanbase because nothing speaks to a "can't lose" mentality quite like resisting arrest.
PFT- Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Fairley is expected to sign with the Saints, who met with Fairley last week. Rapoport reports the Patriots are out of the running for his services and presumably the Jets and Eagles, who also showed interest, have fallen out of the running as well.
Fairley would likely slot in next to nose tackle John Jenkins on the interior of the New Orleans line. That would likely lead to more playing time than Fairley saw as a member of the Rams last season. Fairley played behind Aaron Donald and Michael Brockers and saw 422 snaps on defense over the course of the year. Defense? DEFENSE!?! This doesn't sound right. Somebody's got their sources out of whack. Why would the Saints take a chance on a guy that can potentially help shore up their front seven? If I know anything about defensive tackles it's that they can't catch passes worth a lick. That's why I am absolutely certain that this is a mistake. Can't be wasting valuable cap space on the side of the ball that isn't responsible for putting points on the board. In all seriousness, this looks like a solid move. Hopefully not a solid move that breaks the bank, but a solid move nonetheless. Nick Fairley hasn't been the wrecking ball that he was in college, but he's still been a productive player that can push the pocket a little bit and cause havoc in the trenches. He's not going to transform a defense by himself, but the market value on miracle workers is unfortunately way out of the Saints price range. I guess we will have to settle for a contributor that has the ability to clog up the middle and take some pressure off Cameron Jordan. He's had his issues with work ethic but his talent is unquestionable, and talent is exactly what this defense needs. Hopefully pairing him up with his starting middle linebacker from last year - James Laurinaitis - will help spark a fire under him. With the ceiling he had coming out of Auburn it's not crazy to say that his best has yet to come, but honestly, even his worst is probably a huge upgrade. Especially since he's already got the whole "marchin' in" thing down pat... Can I ask you a question Mr. Shero? What the hell are you waiting for? Did you even see the game last night? Scott Wedgewood let up ZERO goals. A big fat goose egg. Completely shutout your former team. If that's not enough to ship an injured Vezina caliber goaltender out of town then I don't know what is. That's one goal allowed in two games. I don't know how your math is, but mine says that a GAA that good was the only thing the Devils needed to make the playoffs this year. Yup, it might sound ridiculous, but an AHL goalie with 120 minutes of NHL experience was the savior all along and we had him playing meaningless games in upstate New York. Sorry Cory, but the NHL is a "what have you done for me lately?" league, and you haven't done anything lately while recovering from the injuries you sustained singlehandedly carrying this team well beyond it's expectations. Thanks for all you've done in the past, but don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. We have this 23 year old whose record speaks for itself. Can't be wasting our time with a 30 year old goalie in his prime that only has two years of flawless starting experience under his belt. Not when he's such a valuable asset. Everyone knows that the position that always returns the most in a trade is goaltender. We will totally get fair market value for someone that has been quite possibly been the best player at his position all year. You guys know how this goes. The more consistently great a player is the better off you are trading them. Think about it. There is nowhere to go but down. Cory Schneider has finally peaked and we need to make sure he is wearing a different colored jersey when he inevitably falls off that cliff in the distant future. The first step to rebuilding is completely destroying the foundation you already have set in place, and you can't tell me that Scott Wedgewood - with his 2 career wins - isn't the perfect person to put in charge of the reconstruction crew. P.S. Remember when people thought Kinkaid could start? Yeah, this is totally not the same situation. Does Jeremy Lin Get Questioned At Opposing Arenas Because He's Asian, Or Because Of His Hair?3/25/2016 Uproxx- “It’s one of those things where it literally happens everywhere…. At opposing arenas, it happens all the time. Just the other night in Brooklyn, I was trying to leave [Barclays Center] and one of the ladies was like, ‘Hey, I need your credentials for you to pass.’ And then someone else was like, ‘Oh, he’s a player. He’s good.’ I’m used to it by now. It’s just part of being Asian in the NBA.” Okay, so I am not ready to say that Jeremy Lin getting stopped by security has nothing to do with being Asian, but am I really supposed to believe that the fact that he looks like he came straight from Dragon Ball Z tent at Comic-Con isn't at least a little responsible? Pretty sure Yao Ming's larger than life ass didn't have to show his credentials upon entering the building. That means one of every two Asians gets vetted before coming in NBA arenas. That just sounds like proper safety protocol to me. Sorry, but that sample size just isn't big enough for me to claim racism. Yeah sure, Jeremy Lin probably wouldn't get questioned if he were black, but that's not the only factor at play here. Let's not act like Jeremy Lin doesn't do anything and everything in his power to look like he's not in the NBA. On top of being racially profiled, he is being follically profiled, and that's something he willingly brings upon himself. His biggest problem might be that he's Asian, but it's certainly rivaled by the fact that he's eclectic. I'm supposed to be surprised he got checked walking out of the Barclays Center? Dude looks like the hipster's hipster, of course he did. Don't want to draw attention? Then don't wear your hair like this... Or this... Or this... Or this... Because when you looked like this the fact that you were Asian was only helping you get identified...
Say what you want about Gerald Henderson, but he found it. He found the one instance in which the whole "oh yeah, why don't you watch this?" routine provided a risk that was bigger than the reward. Best case scenario here? Gerald Henderson makes a free throw - a shot he is SUPPOSED to make - after he chirps DeAndre Jordan about missing his and it's a complete non-story. Worst case scenario? He misses said free throw and the entire internet laughs at his expense for something that wouldn't even be mildly embarrassing if he had just kept his damn mouth shut. Let's just say calling your shot is a whole lot more impressive if your shot isn't an uncontested 15 foot set-shot, and failing after calling your shot isn't all that shameful unless your shot is an uncontested 15 foot set-shot. I am a huge advocate of shit talking on the court. I am a huge advocate of frivolously guaranteeing things. What I am not a huge advocate of is talking shit and making a frivolous guarantee when the upside to said guarantee is so limited. That ball sitting on the rim for what seemed like a half hour was the basketball God's way of telling Gerald Henderson that he needs to think bigger by making his bungled attempt at showing up DeAndre Jordan as long and as painful as possible. Congratulations Gerald, you played yourself...
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