Its NBA free agency, everyone has an opinion, and that includes yours truly. Let’s jump right into this and break it down, starting with the Suns. I think the Suns are in trouble. The front office seems to be in shambles right now. Robert Sarver is a much bigger factor than we realized. Both general manager Steve Kerr and assistant GM David Griffin felt the need to resign, with rumors pointing to lowball contract offers from Sarver. Like I wrote earlier, Kerr’s resignation is just a harbinger for Stoudemire’s departure. I cannot fathom a situation in which Sarver is willing to give Amare the money and years that he wants. There has to be at least one team that is willing to give Amare the max. The Suns just have to hope that the current roster will be able to communally absorb Amare’s scoring and rebounding (yes, Amare did get SOME rebounds).
Now on to Channing Frye and Lou Amundsen. I think Frye will be back. He’ll opt out to see what his offers are, but I don’t think there will be a team that will really over spend on a tissue-soft, three-point shooting center. His stock is probably about as high as it will get, but he won’t find a better situation than Phoenix, maybe a little more money, but not an overall better situation. As for Lou, I think we can all agree that this year’s picks of Gani Lawal and Dwayne Collins guarantee that Lou has played his last game with the Suns. He was a great pickup and was a fan favorite, but he’s due for a pay raise.
One thing is for sure, and that is this summer could end up the craziest in NBA history, and at least one team will end up completely happy. Yup you guessed it. The team that signs LeBron James is going to be the overall winner in free agency regardless of what any other team does. Teams have been looking forward to this summer for nearly three years now.
It’s the $100 million dollar question. Where will LeBron go? If he’s smart, he’ll leave Cleveland. Let me explain: the current cast of LeBronettes is terrible. His supporting cast in Cleveland was FAR overrated. Think about it, his two best teammates at the outset of the season were Mo Williams, an undersized two guard who wouldn’t start on a third of NBA teams and a 380 pound Shaq, who is perhaps the most overrated big man in league history. Strong claims? Yes, but he’s never won anything without a “sidekick” who can take over a game in crunch time (Penny Hardaway in Orlando, Kobe in LA, Dwayne Wade in Miami, Steve Nash in Phoenix and LeBron in Cleveland). The Cavs did pickup Antawn Jamison, a talented player, but consistently disappears in big games, a la the Boston series. They have some other decent parts: Varejao, Delonte West, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, but nothing extraordinary. This type of talent can be picked up any year in free agency.
LeBron wants to be a worldwide mogul. The best way to do this is to win. Take Kobe for example. He’s a much bigger international start than LeBron, and it’s not because he speaks Italian. It’s because of those five rings he’s earned. A bigger market, with a free-spending owner is going to give LeBron a much better shot at winning. Whether that’s in New York, Chicago, New Jersey, it doesn’t really matter because they can assemble a team just as good as Cleveland this year. It’s all about the organization as a whole, which includes ownership. That’s why I think this year’s class is going to break down like this:
LeBron goes to….DALLAS!!!!!!!
Yup, LeBron signs with Dallas; great organization with great ownership. The only problem is, as currently constituted the team might not be quite as flashy as LeBron wants. But, rumors are circulating that the infamous Worldwide Wes is trying to broker a deal that would bring Chris Paul to a LeBron suitor. That’s why I came up with this doozy via the ESPN NBA Trade Machine. Chris Paul goes to Dallas, Jason Kidd goes to Miami and a hoard of young, talented players go to New Orleans. Win, win, win. Well, not as much for New Orleans, but still feasible. Miami also becomes a more attractive spot for free agents including LeBron with Kidd on board, but Dallas would still end up as LeBron’s choice.
With LeBron going to Dallas, that leaves New York searching for a Plan B. I don’t think anything will be able to console Knicks fans if they don’t get LeBron, but a decent consolation prize will be Amare Stoudemire and Joe Johnson reuniting with old coach Mike D’Antoni. They have the cap room to overpay both of these guys and possibly have room to make a real basketball team.
Unfortunately for Miami, they don’t pick up anyone else after the Jason Kidd trade, but do keep Wade around and still end up with a much more competitive team with the stellar back court of Wade and Kidd.
Miami’s misfortunes are Chicago’s gains as Chris Bosh signs with Chicago. The addition of Bosh instantly makes Chicago a threat in the East. They are, however, one talented swing player away from becoming the 2008 Boston Celtics; because of new head coach Tom Thibodeau, former assistant coach of said 2008 Celtics team.
Now we come full circle in this post because Dallas doesn’t have the cap space to keep Dirk Nowitzki. Yup, you guessed it. Nowitzki reunites with former teammate and buddy Steve Nash and signs with the Phoenix Suns! And that is how the summer of 2010 will turn out.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Loss n’ Passion
The Diamondbacks may have just finished their most exciting series of the year thus far. The fact that the series was against the Yankees sure didn’t hurt the excitement factor either. Unfortunately for D-Backs’ fans, the most exciting series of the year was also a series loss. Game three is in the books and the Diamondbacks lost the rubber match. I attended this game, which was my first of the year, and came away a little put off, mostly because of the energy of the team (except for Kelly Johnson who apparently has narcolepsy, which is the only explanation for stopping 10 feet from home plate in the first inning, and not budging at first base as the ball rolled away from the catcher). Now that may be confusing to many who watched the series. That’s just it; the energy for the entire series was great. Why? Was it because the Yankees were in town and nearly half of the crowd were Yankee fans? Was it because the game one was nationally televised? The answer: probably, but that should NOT be the case. I understand that with 182 games in a season that it might be too much to ask to have every player running onto the field like Ray Lewis, but can we get a little more energy? Maybe we could appeal Commissioner Selig to let this team have some of that special “coffee” that they used to brew in the 70’s. Just kidding everyone, it’s just a joke. I’m not really condoning amphetamines. But seriously, they couldn’t hurt.
And another thing, when does somebody do something about Mark Reynolds? It was a little cute the last couple of years when Reynolds set the major league record for strikeouts. He came up with timely hits and had lots of home runs. Heck, it was even a little cool to get a little extra exposure from the national media when he got mentioned. But this is just getting ridiculous. We have seen his strikeouts increase, and his production decrease…drastically. Sure, he’s still on pace to hit 35-40 bombs, but he’s only hitting .215. That’s dreadful! When is someone going to get this guy to change his approach with two strikes? Again, I know that home runs are the driving force behind high salaries, but there has to be some threshold where poor batting average and strikeouts start to bring down the effect of home runs. I think it’s time to change Mark Reynold’s nickname from “The Sheriff” to “K-9.”
And one more thing, it’s time to start putting some of this blame on the manager. Why hasn’t A.J. Hinch sat down with Mark Reynolds and talked about shortening up the swing with two strikes? And if he already has, it’s an even worse indictment on his leadership skills if Reynolds refuses to change. The energy of this ballclub is the same thing. It’s time to put the onus on the manager, and don’t even get me started on this horrendous bullpen. My hopes for the year: if things are not turned around by the All-Star break management fires A.J. Hinch and brings down Mark Grace from the broadcast booth. Please Josh Byrnes, follow Steve Kerr and recognize your mistake. This team showed this series that they have the talent to compete, but they need some leadership. It’s time.
And another thing, when does somebody do something about Mark Reynolds? It was a little cute the last couple of years when Reynolds set the major league record for strikeouts. He came up with timely hits and had lots of home runs. Heck, it was even a little cool to get a little extra exposure from the national media when he got mentioned. But this is just getting ridiculous. We have seen his strikeouts increase, and his production decrease…drastically. Sure, he’s still on pace to hit 35-40 bombs, but he’s only hitting .215. That’s dreadful! When is someone going to get this guy to change his approach with two strikes? Again, I know that home runs are the driving force behind high salaries, but there has to be some threshold where poor batting average and strikeouts start to bring down the effect of home runs. I think it’s time to change Mark Reynold’s nickname from “The Sheriff” to “K-9.”
And one more thing, it’s time to start putting some of this blame on the manager. Why hasn’t A.J. Hinch sat down with Mark Reynolds and talked about shortening up the swing with two strikes? And if he already has, it’s an even worse indictment on his leadership skills if Reynolds refuses to change. The energy of this ballclub is the same thing. It’s time to put the onus on the manager, and don’t even get me started on this horrendous bullpen. My hopes for the year: if things are not turned around by the All-Star break management fires A.J. Hinch and brings down Mark Grace from the broadcast booth. Please Josh Byrnes, follow Steve Kerr and recognize your mistake. This team showed this series that they have the talent to compete, but they need some leadership. It’s time.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Vindication and Confusion
A few weeks ago as the Suns’ season was coming to a close I had planned on writing a nice little post about Steve Kerr and the vindication he must have felt due to the success of the season. He received all kinds of criticism after taking the general manager position on a team that was consistently winning 55-60 games every year. Now I’m a little confused after Kerr resigned earlier this week. There has to be some sort of explanation that we just aren’t hearing about.
Kerr, despite the criticism, has done an excellent job under the circumstances that he entered into. Now, without gaining any more actual information we still have better understanding of the difficulty of the job that Kerr was dealing with. Let’s run down the list of poor front office moves the Suns have had the last few years and take a closer look at who was at fault for these. All dates courtesy of Wikipedia.
Spring 2004: Robert Sarver takes over as majority owner of the Phoenix Suns.
No one really knew what this meant at the time, but anytime a well-respected basketball man and owner (Jerry Colangelo) leaves power things can get dicey.
Summer 2004: Steve Nash signs six-year, $63 million dollar contract.
Obviously this is one of the greatest offseason pickups in the history of the NBA. If you need any more enlightenment as to why this was good then you really have no business reading this blog.
2004 Draft: Suns draft Luol Deng with the seventh pick
A good pick by the Suns, as Deng has turned out to be a nice player. Unfortunately this pick started a long string of draft pick trades as Deng was promptly traded to Chicago for cash and a future-first round pick before Deng could ever put on a Suns jersey.
2005 Draft: Suns pick Nate Robinson with the twenty-first pick
For the second year in a row, the Suns trade away their first round pick as it becomes more evident that Mike D’Antoni is not willing to play any young players. Robinson was traded to the Knicks with Quinton Richardson for Kurt Thomas
Summer 2005: Suns decline match an offer sheet by Atlanta for Joe Johnson at five-years $70 million
Instead the Suns swap Johnson in a sign and trade with Atlanta bringing back Boris Diaw and two lottery-protected first round draft picks. This didn’t turn out to be too awful because D’Antoni really knew how to take advantage of Diaw’s versatility. He was especially useful in the year’s Amare Stoudemire was out with injuries. Although, even with Diaw’s success, Johnson has since turned into a superstar and would have been a great weapon on D’Antoni teams.
February 26, 2006: Bryan Colangelo resigns as General Manager leaving Mike D’Antoni to perform double duty as General Manager and Head Coach. I cannot think of a single scenario in sports where the GM/Coach combination has ever worked. And, as it turns out, it didn’t work this time either. It is difficult to say whether Colangelo left because he really thought Toronto was a better job or if he felt hamstrung working with an owner unwilling to spend or a coach that was too stubborn to play more than seven players.
2006 Draft: Suns draft Rajon Rondo with the twenty-first pick
The Suns did not have a backup point guard at this time, and for at least one second it looked as if the Suns might have found a player to help Steve Nash preserve his legs for the end of the season and playoffs. Continuing the trend, the Suns sent Rondo and Brian Grant to Boston for the Cavaliers 2007 first round draft pick. Three years down the road, Rondo is one of the best young point guards in the NBA, and the Suns had different plans for the backup point guard position.
July 20, 2006: Suns sign Marcus Banks to five-year $21.3 million contract
I won’t beat around the bush on this one. According to almost anyone you ask, this was the worst signings in franchise history, maybe even the history of the NBA. Marcus Banks couldn’t play. He didn’t play for the Suns. I guess you do have to give Mike D’Antoni some credit. He signed Banks and could have played him for fear of getting egg on his face after such a poor signing.
June 2, 2007: Steve Kerr becomes General Manager of the Phoenix Suns
Finally after only one season Mike D’Antoni get some relief as Steve Kerr is hired as general manager.
June 28, 2007: Suns Draft Rudy Fernandez 24th overall and Alando Tucker 27th overall
This draft bucked the trend slightly, in that the Suns kept Tucker long enough for him to actually play a time or two for the Suns. Fernandez, on the other hand, was traded away just like the previous three first round picks by the Suns, this time to Portland for cash. As luck may have it, Fernandez has turned out to be a much better player and fan favorite in Portland.
July 11, 2007: Suns sign Grant Hill
This has turned out to be a spectacular signing for the Suns. There was very little risk involved, and much of the credit needs to be given to the ballyhooed training staff for helping Hill stay on the court and able to contribute.
February 6, 2008: Suns trade Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks for Shaquille O’Neal
I actually screamed out loud in terror when I read this in a computer club in Ukraine. Shaq was past his prime in 2006 when Dwyane Wade won him a championship in 2006. This trade was inexcusable. I don’t care if you got rid of Marcus Banks’ awful contract, or if Shawn Marion was pouting like a three year-old. There is however, some leeway for Steve Kerr. Kerr did not want to make this trade. He did his job in that he looked around the league to see what the options were seeing as how Shawn Marion no longer wanted to play in Phoenix and was starting to wear on the locker room. Mike D’Antoni is the one who really pushed for the trade. I know, Kerr is still responsible for the trades that happen and he will be the first one to say that it was his mistake, but D’Antoni needs his share of the blame too.
June 2008: Mike D’Antoni leaves Phoenix to Coach the Knicks and the Suns hire Terry Porter as his replacement.
This was Steve Kerr’s biggest mistake. Something rubbed D’Antoni the wrong way and he decided his days were numbered if he stayed. Bringing Terry Porter was a huge oversight. Alvin Gentry was the lead assistant under D’Antoni and the players all wanted Gentry to take over. It made perfect sense. He coached under D’Antoni and knew the players and how to coach a fast-paced system with Steve Nash, and most importantly, he was much more willing to bend than D’Antoni was. He had previous head coaching experience and understood the importance of developing young talent , playing a bench and have some sort of defensive focus.
2008 Draft: Suns pick Robin Lopez with the 15th pick and Goran Dragic with the 45th pick
If you watched any of last season, especially the playoffs, you would understand how good these two picks have been. These two players brought exactly what the Suns needed. Defensive toughness from Lopez and anyone who could play consistently at the backup point guard spot to give Steve Nash some rest. These two brought that and more for the Suns.
December 10, 2008: Suns trade Boris Diaw and Raja Bell for Jared Dudley and Jason Richardson
This was another excellent trade for the Suns and Steve Kerr. Not only did he get rid of Raja Bell who seemed to think that the Suns were still playing “seven seconds or less” style of offense, but he also traded Diaw’s bad contract that D’Antoni signed him to after only one season. What the Suns got in return, was an explosive third option in Jason Richardson, who thrived once he didn’t have the burden of being the team’s leading scorer, and a scrappy, hard-nosed fan favorite in Jared Dudley. Once again…excellent trade.
February 16, 2009: Suns fire Terry Porter and make Alvin Gentry interim head coach
Steve Kerr sucks up his pride and makes amends on his worst decision by getting rid of Terry Porter who was sucking the life out of a fast paced style team, not to mention a coach who was nailing a promising Dragic to the bench and stripping him of whatever confidence he had entering the league. Gentry was exactly what the Suns needed.
Now, to sum up everything that we just read: Robert Sarver and Mike D’Antoni are much more to blame for recent Suns bumbling than Steve Kerr is. That’s what makes this recent resigning so perplexing. It begs the question. How hard is it to work with Robert Sarver? Reports are out that Steve Kerr’s contract negations were slowed by low-ball offers from Sarver. David Griffin, Senior Assistant General Manager, reportedly also had issues with Sarver. Robert Sarver’s frugality and Mike D’Antoni’s stubbornness are really what held this team back. Now don’t get me wrong. I also, don’t think the Suns could have accomplished half of what they did without D’Antoni. That’s the irony of it all. The guiding light behind the success was too bright and too hot to move and guide to where the team needed to go.
Now there are more questions than answers. What is the philosophy heading into the draft? Steve Kerr and David Griffin are still going to handle the draft. What is the status of the Amare Stoudemire contract negotiations? I was 50-50 since the end of the season that Amare would stay, but now I don’t see any way that he can stay. This situation is a mess, and high profile, star athletes do not sign with muddled, disjointed teams. This is what makes me wonder what is really happening behind the scenes. Did Sarver low-ball Stoudemire? Did Kerr see the writing on the wall with a Stoudemire-less team? Again, there are too many questions and not enough answers. I just hope someone knows what they are doing.
Kerr, despite the criticism, has done an excellent job under the circumstances that he entered into. Now, without gaining any more actual information we still have better understanding of the difficulty of the job that Kerr was dealing with. Let’s run down the list of poor front office moves the Suns have had the last few years and take a closer look at who was at fault for these. All dates courtesy of Wikipedia.
Spring 2004: Robert Sarver takes over as majority owner of the Phoenix Suns.
No one really knew what this meant at the time, but anytime a well-respected basketball man and owner (Jerry Colangelo) leaves power things can get dicey.
Summer 2004: Steve Nash signs six-year, $63 million dollar contract.
Obviously this is one of the greatest offseason pickups in the history of the NBA. If you need any more enlightenment as to why this was good then you really have no business reading this blog.
2004 Draft: Suns draft Luol Deng with the seventh pick
A good pick by the Suns, as Deng has turned out to be a nice player. Unfortunately this pick started a long string of draft pick trades as Deng was promptly traded to Chicago for cash and a future-first round pick before Deng could ever put on a Suns jersey.
2005 Draft: Suns pick Nate Robinson with the twenty-first pick
For the second year in a row, the Suns trade away their first round pick as it becomes more evident that Mike D’Antoni is not willing to play any young players. Robinson was traded to the Knicks with Quinton Richardson for Kurt Thomas
Summer 2005: Suns decline match an offer sheet by Atlanta for Joe Johnson at five-years $70 million
Instead the Suns swap Johnson in a sign and trade with Atlanta bringing back Boris Diaw and two lottery-protected first round draft picks. This didn’t turn out to be too awful because D’Antoni really knew how to take advantage of Diaw’s versatility. He was especially useful in the year’s Amare Stoudemire was out with injuries. Although, even with Diaw’s success, Johnson has since turned into a superstar and would have been a great weapon on D’Antoni teams.
February 26, 2006: Bryan Colangelo resigns as General Manager leaving Mike D’Antoni to perform double duty as General Manager and Head Coach. I cannot think of a single scenario in sports where the GM/Coach combination has ever worked. And, as it turns out, it didn’t work this time either. It is difficult to say whether Colangelo left because he really thought Toronto was a better job or if he felt hamstrung working with an owner unwilling to spend or a coach that was too stubborn to play more than seven players.
2006 Draft: Suns draft Rajon Rondo with the twenty-first pick
The Suns did not have a backup point guard at this time, and for at least one second it looked as if the Suns might have found a player to help Steve Nash preserve his legs for the end of the season and playoffs. Continuing the trend, the Suns sent Rondo and Brian Grant to Boston for the Cavaliers 2007 first round draft pick. Three years down the road, Rondo is one of the best young point guards in the NBA, and the Suns had different plans for the backup point guard position.
July 20, 2006: Suns sign Marcus Banks to five-year $21.3 million contract
I won’t beat around the bush on this one. According to almost anyone you ask, this was the worst signings in franchise history, maybe even the history of the NBA. Marcus Banks couldn’t play. He didn’t play for the Suns. I guess you do have to give Mike D’Antoni some credit. He signed Banks and could have played him for fear of getting egg on his face after such a poor signing.
June 2, 2007: Steve Kerr becomes General Manager of the Phoenix Suns
Finally after only one season Mike D’Antoni get some relief as Steve Kerr is hired as general manager.
June 28, 2007: Suns Draft Rudy Fernandez 24th overall and Alando Tucker 27th overall
This draft bucked the trend slightly, in that the Suns kept Tucker long enough for him to actually play a time or two for the Suns. Fernandez, on the other hand, was traded away just like the previous three first round picks by the Suns, this time to Portland for cash. As luck may have it, Fernandez has turned out to be a much better player and fan favorite in Portland.
July 11, 2007: Suns sign Grant Hill
This has turned out to be a spectacular signing for the Suns. There was very little risk involved, and much of the credit needs to be given to the ballyhooed training staff for helping Hill stay on the court and able to contribute.
February 6, 2008: Suns trade Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks for Shaquille O’Neal
I actually screamed out loud in terror when I read this in a computer club in Ukraine. Shaq was past his prime in 2006 when Dwyane Wade won him a championship in 2006. This trade was inexcusable. I don’t care if you got rid of Marcus Banks’ awful contract, or if Shawn Marion was pouting like a three year-old. There is however, some leeway for Steve Kerr. Kerr did not want to make this trade. He did his job in that he looked around the league to see what the options were seeing as how Shawn Marion no longer wanted to play in Phoenix and was starting to wear on the locker room. Mike D’Antoni is the one who really pushed for the trade. I know, Kerr is still responsible for the trades that happen and he will be the first one to say that it was his mistake, but D’Antoni needs his share of the blame too.
June 2008: Mike D’Antoni leaves Phoenix to Coach the Knicks and the Suns hire Terry Porter as his replacement.
This was Steve Kerr’s biggest mistake. Something rubbed D’Antoni the wrong way and he decided his days were numbered if he stayed. Bringing Terry Porter was a huge oversight. Alvin Gentry was the lead assistant under D’Antoni and the players all wanted Gentry to take over. It made perfect sense. He coached under D’Antoni and knew the players and how to coach a fast-paced system with Steve Nash, and most importantly, he was much more willing to bend than D’Antoni was. He had previous head coaching experience and understood the importance of developing young talent , playing a bench and have some sort of defensive focus.
2008 Draft: Suns pick Robin Lopez with the 15th pick and Goran Dragic with the 45th pick
If you watched any of last season, especially the playoffs, you would understand how good these two picks have been. These two players brought exactly what the Suns needed. Defensive toughness from Lopez and anyone who could play consistently at the backup point guard spot to give Steve Nash some rest. These two brought that and more for the Suns.
December 10, 2008: Suns trade Boris Diaw and Raja Bell for Jared Dudley and Jason Richardson
This was another excellent trade for the Suns and Steve Kerr. Not only did he get rid of Raja Bell who seemed to think that the Suns were still playing “seven seconds or less” style of offense, but he also traded Diaw’s bad contract that D’Antoni signed him to after only one season. What the Suns got in return, was an explosive third option in Jason Richardson, who thrived once he didn’t have the burden of being the team’s leading scorer, and a scrappy, hard-nosed fan favorite in Jared Dudley. Once again…excellent trade.
February 16, 2009: Suns fire Terry Porter and make Alvin Gentry interim head coach
Steve Kerr sucks up his pride and makes amends on his worst decision by getting rid of Terry Porter who was sucking the life out of a fast paced style team, not to mention a coach who was nailing a promising Dragic to the bench and stripping him of whatever confidence he had entering the league. Gentry was exactly what the Suns needed.
Now, to sum up everything that we just read: Robert Sarver and Mike D’Antoni are much more to blame for recent Suns bumbling than Steve Kerr is. That’s what makes this recent resigning so perplexing. It begs the question. How hard is it to work with Robert Sarver? Reports are out that Steve Kerr’s contract negations were slowed by low-ball offers from Sarver. David Griffin, Senior Assistant General Manager, reportedly also had issues with Sarver. Robert Sarver’s frugality and Mike D’Antoni’s stubbornness are really what held this team back. Now don’t get me wrong. I also, don’t think the Suns could have accomplished half of what they did without D’Antoni. That’s the irony of it all. The guiding light behind the success was too bright and too hot to move and guide to where the team needed to go.
Now there are more questions than answers. What is the philosophy heading into the draft? Steve Kerr and David Griffin are still going to handle the draft. What is the status of the Amare Stoudemire contract negotiations? I was 50-50 since the end of the season that Amare would stay, but now I don’t see any way that he can stay. This situation is a mess, and high profile, star athletes do not sign with muddled, disjointed teams. This is what makes me wonder what is really happening behind the scenes. Did Sarver low-ball Stoudemire? Did Kerr see the writing on the wall with a Stoudemire-less team? Again, there are too many questions and not enough answers. I just hope someone knows what they are doing.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
College Football: 2 of 2
Okay, okay. I know that this was supposed to come on Sunday, but I got lazy. It’s not like anyone is reading this anyway. So, to all of my fans out there…I apologize.
Really though, it’s a good thing I waited until today. Things have really cleared up regarding conference expansion. It turns out that only Colorado and Nebraska left the Big 12. So now we have ten teams in the Big 12 and twelve teams in the Big 10. The most recent big news in the college football world (because really, this is all about football and every other collegiate sport is just left in the wake. This includes basketball which almost left Kansas with no choice but to join the Mountain West Conference). Utah’s move to the Pac-10 now makes twelve. I don’t think there is any better indication of the absurdity of college football then this. It is not what it purports to be. I think the Utah move to the Pac-10 is very interesting. I have been a huge supporter of the so-called “mid-majors” for as long as I can remember. I’m just like everyone else in that I HATE the BCS. I do understand that it is better than the old strictly conference tie-in format, but if you are going to make the effort to drastically change the bowl tradition and postseason format, why not find a way to come up with a real champion…especially after butchering the championship matchup year after year? This is where Utah comes in. They have played in two BCS bowls since rules were changed to allow for non AQ teams to have a chance to get in. They have also won twice, including beating an Alabama team that was ranked #1 for much of the season and was one game away from playing for the national championship. And I don’t want to hear the “they didn’t want to be there, so they didn’t prepare” argument. Utah will have a chance starting in 2011 to really obliterate the arguments that the little guys can’t hang with the big boys. College football is a lot more even than most people think and Utah can really put what should be the last nail in BCS coffin. (Well not really, because it’s all about the power, but we can still argue about what should happen because that’s what fans do.)
With that said, let’s move on to what the fans want…a playoff. I’ve seen lots of different formats for a playoff. There is one that stands out above the rest. I really think they nailed it. I’m not sure who the initial inventor was, but it was published by the ESPN college football writers. Basically the idea breaks down like this. Get rid of all conferences. Forget about them. There will be four new conferences/divisions. We can call them conferences just for tradition’s sake. Each of these four conferences will have ten teams and will play a true round robin conference schedule a la the old Pac-10. The four winners of these conferences will play in a four team playoff for the national championship. This does not dilute any of the regular season that playoff opponents love to talk about.
Now, I know what you are thinking. “You’re just cutting the pie into fewer pieces and making the rich richer.” I know, just wait. There will still be 80 teams left and will be organized into eight additional ten-team conferences. These can easily be organized into an eight-team playoff of conference champions. The next part is the best and most fascinating part of the whole idea. The last placed team in each of the top four conferences will be relegated premier league soccer style to the bottom eight conferences, and the final four teams of the lower conference playoff will get bumped up to the one of the four higher conferences. Every team has a shot. Year-to-year consistence will be rewarded. I can’t think of a better idea. We can keep the current bowls and bowl locations. You know, for tradition’s sake. But maybe put them in control of the NCAA and open up a bidding war for new sponsors. Listen, if you have any influence at all send pitch this idea. We can make this happen.
Here is a link that should give a good idea of what they proposed. Check the side links to see the different conferences.
Really though, it’s a good thing I waited until today. Things have really cleared up regarding conference expansion. It turns out that only Colorado and Nebraska left the Big 12. So now we have ten teams in the Big 12 and twelve teams in the Big 10. The most recent big news in the college football world (because really, this is all about football and every other collegiate sport is just left in the wake. This includes basketball which almost left Kansas with no choice but to join the Mountain West Conference). Utah’s move to the Pac-10 now makes twelve. I don’t think there is any better indication of the absurdity of college football then this. It is not what it purports to be. I think the Utah move to the Pac-10 is very interesting. I have been a huge supporter of the so-called “mid-majors” for as long as I can remember. I’m just like everyone else in that I HATE the BCS. I do understand that it is better than the old strictly conference tie-in format, but if you are going to make the effort to drastically change the bowl tradition and postseason format, why not find a way to come up with a real champion…especially after butchering the championship matchup year after year? This is where Utah comes in. They have played in two BCS bowls since rules were changed to allow for non AQ teams to have a chance to get in. They have also won twice, including beating an Alabama team that was ranked #1 for much of the season and was one game away from playing for the national championship. And I don’t want to hear the “they didn’t want to be there, so they didn’t prepare” argument. Utah will have a chance starting in 2011 to really obliterate the arguments that the little guys can’t hang with the big boys. College football is a lot more even than most people think and Utah can really put what should be the last nail in BCS coffin. (Well not really, because it’s all about the power, but we can still argue about what should happen because that’s what fans do.)
With that said, let’s move on to what the fans want…a playoff. I’ve seen lots of different formats for a playoff. There is one that stands out above the rest. I really think they nailed it. I’m not sure who the initial inventor was, but it was published by the ESPN college football writers. Basically the idea breaks down like this. Get rid of all conferences. Forget about them. There will be four new conferences/divisions. We can call them conferences just for tradition’s sake. Each of these four conferences will have ten teams and will play a true round robin conference schedule a la the old Pac-10. The four winners of these conferences will play in a four team playoff for the national championship. This does not dilute any of the regular season that playoff opponents love to talk about.
Now, I know what you are thinking. “You’re just cutting the pie into fewer pieces and making the rich richer.” I know, just wait. There will still be 80 teams left and will be organized into eight additional ten-team conferences. These can easily be organized into an eight-team playoff of conference champions. The next part is the best and most fascinating part of the whole idea. The last placed team in each of the top four conferences will be relegated premier league soccer style to the bottom eight conferences, and the final four teams of the lower conference playoff will get bumped up to the one of the four higher conferences. Every team has a shot. Year-to-year consistence will be rewarded. I can’t think of a better idea. We can keep the current bowls and bowl locations. You know, for tradition’s sake. But maybe put them in control of the NCAA and open up a bidding war for new sponsors. Listen, if you have any influence at all send pitch this idea. We can make this happen.
Here is a link that should give a good idea of what they proposed. Check the side links to see the different conferences.
Friday, June 11, 2010
College Football Par 1 of 2
Strange things are happening in the world of college athletics. As I type, there are important people making important decisions. Colorado has already moved to the Pac-10. Nebraska has apparently accepted an invitation to the Big 10 and Boise State joined the Mountain West Conference. This is not all however; rumors and inside reports are swirling that five more teams from the Big 12 will do as Colorado and join the Pac-10. Those five teams are Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and Texas A&M, although A&M is also rumored to be considering joining the SEC. This would give the Pac-10 fifteen or sixteen teams and create what some are calling a “super conference,” and would start a domino effect of teams jumping conferences left and right with the potential to end up with four of these so-called “super conferences.” I have to say, that I don’t think there is anything “super” about a sixteen team conference. I just don’t see how this can turn out to be a good thing. Many have speculated that these over-sized conferences would eventually lead to a college football playoff. This may be true, but it’s still not going to make it any easier to find a true national champion. Let me explain.
This current conference realignment is only rearranging the current haves in college football and still leaving out the have-nots. One of the biggest problems in the current college football postseason is that it only allows about half of the bowl subdivision teams to even half the chance to play for the national championship. It is already very apparent that the so-called “mid-majors” can be just as talented as the traditional college football elite manifested by bowl wins by Boise State over Oklahoma and Utah over Alabama not to mention the other regular season wins by these and other programs. This whole mess is just a power grab. Those that have the power are bent on keeping it, all the while telling fans that it is better and that they are getting what they want…a playoff. This isn’t going to make anything better or even any clearer when it comes time to pick teams for a playoff. With sixteen teams in each conference it is very likely that more than one team or even possible that more than two teams can go undefeated in a conference. And then what? There will be more disputing who is qualified enough to be in this playoff, not to mention the Utahs, Boise States, TCUs and BYUs of the college football world who will continue to win and will continue to beat the traditional powerhouses.
I know it is wishful thinking to expect anything fair, equitable and competitive. All college football is to these universities is a fundraiser. The only difference between now and 20 years ago is that the university presidents aren’t trying to hide it anymore. None of this is done for the “student athletes.” None of this is being done because of the rich tradition and heritage of college football. It’s all about dollars, but this is nothing new. We knew this already. If it’s all about the money, why don’t we just accept radical change and give the fans what they want? And what we want is competitive football and a chance to see who the best team is. We demand football and advertising dollars follow us wherever we go. Now, let’s make college football the way we want it.
Check back for part 2 and you can read my proposal on how to fix college football.
This current conference realignment is only rearranging the current haves in college football and still leaving out the have-nots. One of the biggest problems in the current college football postseason is that it only allows about half of the bowl subdivision teams to even half the chance to play for the national championship. It is already very apparent that the so-called “mid-majors” can be just as talented as the traditional college football elite manifested by bowl wins by Boise State over Oklahoma and Utah over Alabama not to mention the other regular season wins by these and other programs. This whole mess is just a power grab. Those that have the power are bent on keeping it, all the while telling fans that it is better and that they are getting what they want…a playoff. This isn’t going to make anything better or even any clearer when it comes time to pick teams for a playoff. With sixteen teams in each conference it is very likely that more than one team or even possible that more than two teams can go undefeated in a conference. And then what? There will be more disputing who is qualified enough to be in this playoff, not to mention the Utahs, Boise States, TCUs and BYUs of the college football world who will continue to win and will continue to beat the traditional powerhouses.
I know it is wishful thinking to expect anything fair, equitable and competitive. All college football is to these universities is a fundraiser. The only difference between now and 20 years ago is that the university presidents aren’t trying to hide it anymore. None of this is done for the “student athletes.” None of this is being done because of the rich tradition and heritage of college football. It’s all about dollars, but this is nothing new. We knew this already. If it’s all about the money, why don’t we just accept radical change and give the fans what they want? And what we want is competitive football and a chance to see who the best team is. We demand football and advertising dollars follow us wherever we go. Now, let’s make college football the way we want it.
Check back for part 2 and you can read my proposal on how to fix college football.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Miscellaneous Thoughts
Last week I mentioned that there were at 15-20 players in the past 20 years with Kobe Bryant’s physical talent. Well, I don’t want to throw out any hollow statements to my many readers. So here is the list of players that I believe could have been as good as Kobe if they had they his mental makeup. These are all players that entered the league since 1990 in order of when they were drafted. If you don’t like the list…tough. Let me know your thoughts and how else you would change it. But if you are a Lakers fan who thinks Kobe was sent straight from the basketball gods with no equal, then I don’t want to hear from you.
Harold Miner
Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway
Isaiah Rider
Calbert Cheney
Grant Hill
Eddie Jones
Jerry Stackhouse
Michael Finley
Tracy McGrady
Vince Carter
Corey Maggette
Jason Richardson
Joe Johnson
LeBron James
Carmelo Anthony
Dwayne Wade
Josh Howard
Andre Iguodala
J.R. Smith
Gerald Green
Brandon Roy
Rudy Gay
Kevin Durant
Bullpen revisited:
I wrote not long ago about how this year’s Diamondbacks team could be the most exciting watch this summer. I half expected that those words would work as a reverse jinx and that the bullpen would return to being average and the Diamondbacks could start thinking about competing for the division. Well, they’ve gotten worse. This recent homestand was amazing. We saw four straight walk off games, two straight 1-0 games and two team records were broken. I have to believe that ticket sales skyrocket when this team comes into visiting ballparks. As a matter of fact, I think the front office should be all over trying to collect some sort of gift tax for these games.
World Cup:
I am stoked for the upcoming World Cup. But, it is not because of ESPN’s attempts to brainwash America into thinking that they love soccer and even care about this tournament because they spent a kajillion dollars on the broadcasting rights. No, I am looking forward to this because I really do enjoy watching soccer. I grew up playing soccer, but never really got to watch it on television like all of the other sports that I loved, except for the World Cup. It only came on every four years, and I always seemed to stumble onto the games by accident at five or six o’clock in the morning during the summer. When I realized it was on, I would wake up as early as possible to watch these games in the wee hours of the morning. It was awesome, and I look forward to doing the same thing this year.
Harold Miner
Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway
Isaiah Rider
Calbert Cheney
Grant Hill
Eddie Jones
Jerry Stackhouse
Michael Finley
Tracy McGrady
Vince Carter
Corey Maggette
Jason Richardson
Joe Johnson
LeBron James
Carmelo Anthony
Dwayne Wade
Josh Howard
Andre Iguodala
J.R. Smith
Gerald Green
Brandon Roy
Rudy Gay
Kevin Durant
Bullpen revisited:
I wrote not long ago about how this year’s Diamondbacks team could be the most exciting watch this summer. I half expected that those words would work as a reverse jinx and that the bullpen would return to being average and the Diamondbacks could start thinking about competing for the division. Well, they’ve gotten worse. This recent homestand was amazing. We saw four straight walk off games, two straight 1-0 games and two team records were broken. I have to believe that ticket sales skyrocket when this team comes into visiting ballparks. As a matter of fact, I think the front office should be all over trying to collect some sort of gift tax for these games.
World Cup:
I am stoked for the upcoming World Cup. But, it is not because of ESPN’s attempts to brainwash America into thinking that they love soccer and even care about this tournament because they spent a kajillion dollars on the broadcasting rights. No, I am looking forward to this because I really do enjoy watching soccer. I grew up playing soccer, but never really got to watch it on television like all of the other sports that I loved, except for the World Cup. It only came on every four years, and I always seemed to stumble onto the games by accident at five or six o’clock in the morning during the summer. When I realized it was on, I would wake up as early as possible to watch these games in the wee hours of the morning. It was awesome, and I look forward to doing the same thing this year.
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