The End of Kevin Garnett

Welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. In this entry I'm going to try and decode the past to predict the future of the Celtics and decide whether Kevin Garnett is done.

"I would've traded Larry Bird"-Danny Ainge

Let me take you back in time to 1991.

The Celtics were led by a different big three, the original big three, Larry Bird, Kevin Mchale, and Robert Parish. Larry Bird had a problematic back and feet that were falling apart, Mchale had lingering effects from a broken foot that he played on throughout the 1987 playoffs, Parish was healthy but, as with the other two, wasn't immune to father time. The front office at the time was faced with the decision of whether to trade Bird, Mchale, and/or Parish to try and bring in youth or allow them all to keep playing until they retired. Management chose to allow them to keep playing, losing Bird in 1992 to retirement, Mchale in 1993 also to retirement, and Parish in 1994 to free agency. When those guys were gone the Celtics were left with nothing and struggled for the next 15 years until Danny Ainge brought in Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. To be fair, the deaths of Len Bias and Reggie Lewis also helped set the franchise back, but the death of Bias happened in 1986 well before decisions had to be made.

Let's flash forward now to present day.

The Celtics of today are led by a big three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen. They won the NBA Championship in 2008, but today things are quite different. Garnett has had major knee surgery, Ray Allen had ankle issues before getting to Boston, and Paul Pierce, like Robert Parish, isn't getting any younger. The 1991 and 2011 teams are remarkably similar in that neither team is/was favored to win the championship, but they are/were a good enough team to not get a good draft pick. The major difference between the two teams is that Danny Ainge is the general manager in 2011. I have faith that he's not going to allow history to repeat itself in Boston. I will go on record right now saying that by the end of this season Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, or Paul Pierce will have been traded.

Out of everyone on the roster right now the only guys I'd like to see kept for next year are Rajon Rondo, Greg Stiemsma, Jajuan Johnson, and Brandon Bass. Selfishly I'd love to see Paul Pierce end his career in Boston as well. Everyone else can go.

In my mind the BIGGEST issue with the Celtics over these first few games has been Kevin Garnett. His athleticism is completely gone. The knee injury he sustained against Utah in the 2008-2009 season took away what little lift he had left and KG is now a shell of a shadow of his former self. Just watch this video from the 2008 finals, it shows you just how far he's fallen in the last three years. It's not just his physical skills either, his aggressiveness is gone. KG doesn't take it to the basket anymore and even his vaunted defense is going down hill. There should never be a basketball game where Kevin Garnett is the 3rd best big man on his own team, and that happened against New Orleans. I don't want to disrespect Kevin, he's a former NBA MVP, NBA Defensive Player of the Year, 14 time all star, 9 time all NBA selection, and 11 time all defensive team player. He's clearly one of the top 30 players of all time and the main reason that I got to feel the elation of watching my team win a championship. Just like watching Shaq last year though, it's very obvious that he's an AVERAGE player now. He can still give you 12 points and 7 rebounds a night while being a solid jump shooter, but he's not an all star or a big time player anymore. To be honest, the Celtics right now are a big 1 with that one being Rajon Rondo. Garnett is a jump shooting big man with above average defense and Ray Allen is a spot up shooter, granted he's the best spot up shooter in the league, but he's not the old Ray Allen. When Paul Pierce gets back we might have a big 2, but it's still up in the air on whether or not he's lost a step.

Father time is the cruelest injury of all. Paul Pierce and Ray Allen are still able to hold it off and keep up good play, but KG is starting to succumb. He's been in the league since 1995 as a kid fresh out of high school, in fact his nickname was "The Kid" back then. Now "The Kid" is 35 years old and slowing down. His contract expires after this year, and it wouldn't shock me if he decided to call it a career. When he does I'll be the first one to write about how amazing Kevin Garnett was to watch in his prime, carrying the Timberwolves, how he transformed my beloved Celtics into champions, and how he was the most intense player I've ever watched. For now though, I simply call for him to be traded, because I'm a Celtics fan and it's for the greater good.

Thanks for reading, leave a comment, go back and read all my other articles, follow me on twitter @joshviola19, and keep watching the Celtics because you never know when you might get to see that moment when a former superstar gets the Garden crowd rocking one more time. Mchale did it in 1993 and I hope KG can do it in 2012.

-Josh

Year End Awards

Welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. This entry will be my end-of-the-year thoughts and awards. 2011 was the year of the "good guy" in sports. Without further adieu, here are the 2011 Thoughts of a Sports Addict Awards.

The Charlie Sheen "Winning" Award- This is presented to the best championship team of the year. The contenders this year were the Green Bay Packers, Boston Bruins, Dallas Mavericks, and St. Louis Cardinals. All four teams were the champions in their respective sports, so which team will we remember 20 years from now when talking about 2011. As impressive as the Packers and Cardinals were, neither had a defining moment that sticks out in the fans mind so I'm eliminating them. This leaves us with the Bruins and Mavs. As a Boston fan I'm tempted to pick the Bruins, they had a historic run through the playoffs and won a Stanley Cup final in seven games. As much as a I liked watching them though, they fall just short to the Dallas Mavericks as the best championship team of the year.

Winner: Dallas Mavericks......Jason Kidd, Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion, Peja Stojakovic, Tyson Chandler, Jason Terry, and Caron Butler are the reason that they are winning this award. The absolute height of my sports fanaticism was between the years of 2001 and 2006. During those years the NBA was dominated by the men listed above (with the exception of Butler). I was so thrilled to see not only Kidd and Dirk, future 1st ballot hall of famers, but Shawn Marion and Peja Stojakovic, severely underrated and under-appreciated players that most wouldn't guess were one time MVP candidates, win a title. For me, seeing the Mavs raise the trophy was the feel good moment of the year. (It also didn't hurt that they beat the Heat to do it, suck it Lebron)

Ashton Kutcher "Free Agent Pickup of the Year" Award- In honor of Ashton once again being a free agent, I've named this award after him. The nominees are: Albert Pujols, CJ Wilson, Tyson Chandler, and Jose Reyes. These were the four biggest signings of the year and, oddly enough, they all came at the same time in the year. To pick a winner you have to look at what the point of signing a free agent is, and then which one of these four hits that point. For me, there are several reasons to sign a big time free agent: Put a team over the top for a championship, revive interest in the team, be the centerpiece to build around, or sell merchandise. The man that fits all of these areas is our winner and he is...........

Winner: Jose Reyes. Pujols and CJ are both going to the same team, simultaneously lowering the impact of each. They make the Angels better, but they were already a great team and neither is going to get the credit that Reyes will if the Marlins turn it around. Tyson Chandler is a big signing for the Knicks but he's their third best player and could very well end up injured before the season is over. Reyes has the opportunity to be the star for a Marlins team that is moving into a new ball park and has a pitching staff that will make them competitive. Reyes is going to be responsible for drawing the fans, selling merchandise, and being the teams best player. That makes him the best free agent pickup of 2011.

We Remember The Stars That Left the Party in 2011

Anthony Weiner "Worst Decision of the Year" Award- For those of you who don't remember, Weiner was the politician who tweeted pictures of his junk for the world to see. The nominees for the award are: Billy Hunter for his handling of the NBA lockout, Ron Artest for changing his name to Metta World Peace, Colts management for giving Peyton Manning a 5 year 90 million dollar contract, and David Stern for vetoing the Chris Paul trade. Picking a winner from this is actually pretty difficult. Ron Artest changing his name was one of the least surprising moments of the year, but what he changed it to was the surprising part. For a guy that charged into the stands in Detroit back in 2004, I would've anticipated a name change to something like "He Hate Me" or "One Man Gang", but Metta World Peace.....really? Peyton Manning re-signing with the Colts might kill the Indianapolis franchise, because his neck seems pretty screwed up, but the other two might kill an entire league. Billy Hunter handled the lockout in possibly the worst way possible, but was outdone by our winner......

Winner: David Stern for vetoing the Chris Paul trade. This one act pushed a league that was just coming out of a lockout and was less than 3 years removed from finding out one its refs was cheating, even closer to the WWE-lite claims. Vetoing a trade that had been agreed to by two teams and appeared to be a fair trade will not go down as David Stern's best idea. Good luck trying to rebuild the good faith that was starting to come back after the, unexpected, resolution to the lockout.

The Blake Griffin "Breakout Star of 2011" Award- Blake Griffin was the 2010 breakout star of the year, and this year we are looking at another great crop. The 2011 nominees are: Justin Verlander, Derrick Rose, Aaron Rodgers, and Tim Thomas. All four guys were already stars in their respective sports, but they all took a giant step towards becoming household names this year. Verlander and Rose had amazing regular seasons culminating in Verlander being awarded the Cy Young award and Rose becoming the youngest MVP in NBA history. Being great in the regular season makes you a star, but the playoffs and finals are where legends are made and these two both came up short. Aaron Rodgers took the final step out of Brett Favre's shadow by winning the Superbowl and then following it up with one of the greatest statistical seasons in the history of football. He comes up short in this contest though to our winner........

Winner: Tim Thomas. Not only did he lead the Bruins to their first Stanley Cup Finals victory since 1972, but he did so in record setting fashion. Never has someone come up so big in so many games during the same playoffs. I had never been much of a hockey fan, but I watched the playoffs to see what Tim Thomas would do next, that's a star. Not to mention he had a great beard.

Betty White "Lifetime Achievement" Award- No nominees for this one, as there's really only one person who can win it. Derek Jeter is the recipient of this award. This year he got to 3000 hits, the 3000th coming on a home run at Yankee Stadium, and signed on with the Yankees for 4 more years. He has 4 World Series titles and was still good enough to make the all star game. He's a surefire first ballot hall of famer and even this Red Sox fan can acknowledge that Derek Jeter is the best shortstop I've ever watched play. (Sorry Nomar).

Happy Trails-We saw a lot of great stars send in their retirement papers this year. Shaquille O'Neal is probably the biggest star to walk into the sunset this year. The Diesel leaves behind a 19 year NBA career in which he won 4 NBA titles, 1 MVP award, and took three different teams to the finals. The Shaqtus joins Chris Webber and company as an analyst for NBATV. Other stars retiring this year include Peja Stojakovic, Brandon Roy (unfortunately due to injury), Garrett Anderson, and Rocco Baldelli (illness). These players will all be missed by their fans.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this. Leave a comment, go back and read all my other entrys, follow me on twitter @joshviola19, and Happy New Year.

-Josh

Christmas Crisis

Thanks for coming back for another entry of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. Today I take on a different topic that has been bothering me lately...Christmas.

Let me start of by saying that for a long time Christmas was my favorite holiday. I looked forward to it more than any other day of the year, because it meant Santa Claus, presents, big family dinners, and school vacation. I have gotten to the point now however, where I'm just sick of the whole thing. Christmas has become too commercialized, the meaning has been completely twisted.

I've been thinking a lot lately about my future and what kinds of things I want to do. Anyone who knows me can tell you that I'm about as far away from having kids as anyone could be, but I've often thought about how I'd like to raise them. In the last few weeks my thoughts have turned to how I want to celebrate Christmas with them, and I decided that the status quo just isn't going to work. When I stepped back and looked at the things that I really loved about Christmas, I realized that it had nothing to do with receiving presents. To be honest, I probably couldn't name more than one or two things I received last year. I did realize though, that I LOVE giving gifts to other people, especially when I feel like they really appreciate it. I know the old saying "It's better to give than receive" is cliched these days, but it's true.

My ideal Christmas time would be different than most. I want my kids to grow up as givers, people who have a deep conscience and a strong desire to give a helping hand when someone needs it. Things like working at the soup kitchen or giving a hand up to the less fortunate is what I believe is the true spirit of Christmas. Currently the "spirit" of Christmas for most people means racking their brain to figure out what useless gift they can give to someone who already has it all. Please don't think I'm taking a "Holier than though" stance on this, as I'm just as guilty as anyone, I've asked for and been given many things that I simply didn't need just because I could. I grew up though and I'm a simple man, I've never been greedy for money, in fact when I dream of being rich it's always about the cool charitable stuff I could do with all that money. As awesome as it would be to be a pro athlete or celebrity, the coolest part would be making a sick kids day when you visit them in the hospital or donating a whole bunch of money in scholarship to underprivileged students. Maybe it makes me different, but I don't dream of having a garage full of cars or a huge mansion.

I know I've rambled a bit, but my disappointment in what Christmas has turned into has been rolling around in my head for a while. Christmas time is about spreading holiday cheer and helping out the less fortunate. Unfortunately it's turned into a month long contest to see who can buy the coolest new merchandise for the cheapest amount of money. Well I'm done with it, I'd rather do something to make a memorable Christmas for even 1 person, than buy presents for 100 people who won't even remember it a week later.

Maybe I'm just weird though, I've always seen myself like Hermie from the Rudolph movie. "Why am I such a misfit? I am not just a nitwit. I just don't fit in" But this time, I don't think I want to fit in.

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. Remember, follow me on twitter @joshviola19 and keep your eyes out for my next blog entry...an end of the year "awards" column.

-Josh

NBA, Tebow, and More!

Hello and welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. Today I'm going to talk about the Celtics first preseason game, Tim Tebow, and some thoughts on the TLC wrestling ppv. Let's jump right in, because today was like Christmas for me.

211 days. 211 days since I last saw the Celtics play a game of basketball. In those 211 days I lost a job, found a new job, made my coaching debut, ran the Beach to Beacon, started and finished P90X, and completed three more college courses. Needless to say, it had been too long. I watched pre-game, post-game, and was even so excited that I watched another preseason game (Mavs vs. Thunder) because I just couldn't get enough. So here are my thoughts on this game and the 2011/2012 Boston Celtics.

Starters: The starting lineup looks like it's going to be Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jermaine O'Neal. This is definitely a veteran unit and shouldn't offer too many surprises. Pierce and Allen have aged well, so I would expect that their play will be much the same as it was last year. Kevin Garnett looked good today, but is still a far cry from the KG that arrived in Boston four years ago. The real question with KG is what he'll be feeling like in April. According to Shaq's new autobiography, KG was in intense pain last year playing every day and had a hard time just making it through the games......not good news. This is the last year of his contract, and it wouldn't shock me if this ended up being the last year of his career. If you're a KG fan, like I am, then enjoy this year because it could be the last time you'll get to see "The Big Ticket" play in the NBA. At this point in his career Jermaine O'Neal is what he is, he'll give the Celtics somewhere around 1o points and probably 7 rebounds a game this year with a block or two a game. If this was 5 years ago I'm not sure this team would lose a single game all season, but being 2011 and not 2006, the starters are going to need some nights off.

Bench: VERY IMPRESSIVE. After the unfortunate news about Jeff Green needing heart surgery, the idea of having a great bench didn't seem likely, but I was pleasantly surprised today. Marquis Daniels, starting today because of a minor Pierce injury, played very well. He appeared to be completely over the spinal injury that ended his season last year, making cuts to the basket and playing good defense. Of every player, he probably had the best game for the Celtics today. Brandon Bass and Chris Wilcox were solid off the bench as well, providing solid minutes and giving the Celtics much needed athleticism. Having Big Baby be the best sub the past few years has made me forget what an actual athletic big man can do. Bass and Wilcox both DUNKED today, something Big Baby never did. Keyon Dooling played well and will probably backup both Rondo and Ray Allen, while Avery Bradley played fairly well and will see playing time this year as a backup.

Rookies: Jajuan Johnson (JJJ) and E'twaun Moore played decently for their first NBA game. Moore, the second round pick, actually looked like he could handle some playing time this year and Johnson showed flashes of great defense. With multiple back to back games and even one back to back to back set of games, Johnson and Moore will get their chance to play.

Bottom Line: As much as I love the Celtics, I had VERY little faith in their ability to win a championship this year, but I'm coming around. I know it was only a preseason game and against the Raptors at that, but the bench showed that they can play and actually provide a break for our starters. If they can find one more guy to come off the bench, either a scoring guard or rebounding big man, then they are right back in the championship hunt. Don't write off this veteran bunch yet.

TIM TEBOW

When I sat down to write this column, the Patriots vs Broncos game hadn't started yet, but I was already planning on writing about how Tim Tebow had beaten Tom Brady. Even though it didn't happen, I think it says everything you need to know about how I feel about Tebow that I was confident he'd beat Tom Brady. He's taking the nation by storm with his Tebowing, 4th quarter comebacks, and Bible banter. He is the best thing to happen for religion in sports and seems to be that "good guy" that every professional sports league is looking for to market. His future is bright and as long as he keeps winning, he'll continue to be a fan favorite.

TLC

For those of you who don't know....oh ok, I know that none of you know....TLC stands for Tables, Ladders, and Chairs (oh my). It's a wrestling pay per view where there is a match type for each of the letters (a tables match, ladder match, chairs match). There's really only two reasons that this is even getting a part of the blog, and the first is because ZACK RYDER won the United States Title. At the beginning of the year he was one of the guys that you looked and knew he wasn't going to be employed much longer. He was never on Raw or Smackdown (Zackdown) and certainly never made any appearances on pay per view, but then he took the reigns on his career. He started a Youtube show called Z True Long Island Story, proclaiming himself the "Internet Champion". He played up his Jersey Shore roots and made entertaining videos that ran for about 5 minutes once a week. The videos were hilariously funny and poked fun at the fact that he was never on the shows and had no merchandise. Amazingly, fans started flocking to the videos and he started to become a fan favorite. At first it was just a noticeable reaction the few times he was on t.v., but then it grew to fans chanting his name during shows, demanding that he be on Raw or Smackdown. By the end of the summer he had enough of a following to not only stave off being fired, but was starting to appear on Raw regularly. I may have even bought his t-shirt. Fast forward to the last pay per view of the year and he FINALLY won the United States title, one of the second tier championships in the WWE. For wrestling fans this was truly the year of the Long Island Iced Z, Zack Ryder.

The second reason is because Daniel Bryan won the World Heavyweight Championship. I know that none of you have any idea who Daniel Bryan is, and that's ok because there's really only one thing I want to point out. According to wwe.com, he is 5'10" tall and 210lbs. Those numbers are curiously close to someone else I know who has always been told they were too small to be a professional wrestler. But if it's good enough for the World Champion, then maybe it's not too small. Congrats to D-Bry.

Once again thanks for reading, be sure to go back and read all my other blog entries, leave a comment, follow me on twitter @joshviola19, and one more time for Zack Ryder....Woo Woo Woo.....You Know It.

-Josh

Showtime Clippers?

Welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. Today I'm going to explain why the Chris Paul to the Clippers trade changes the NBA and whether the Clippers are actually a better ticket than the Lakers.

"Finally", that was what everyone who followed the Chris Paul trade saga was thinking when he was finally sent to the Clippers on Wednesday. I didn't care if he was traded to the Lakers, Clippers, or Red Claws, just as long as he was traded and we could all stop talking about it. His name had only been in trade rumors for two weeks, but it felt like every team in the league had been connected to him and the league had shot down a proposal from all of them. Incredibly six teams were affected by this, the Lakers, Clippers, Hornets, Rockets, Celtics, and Pacers. It's obvious how the Hornets and Clippers were affected, but lets look quickly at the other four. The Lakers tried to trade Lamar Odom for Paul, hurting his feelings to the point that, even though the trade fell through, they still had to send him to the highest bidder (Dallas for a TPE). The Rockets were the third team in the original Chris Paul to the Lakers trade, and missed out on getting Pau Gasol and the possibility of signing Nene, setting them back at least a few years. The Celtics missed out on Paul, upsetting Rajon Rondo, and then because of the lack of an owner in New Orleans they couldn't get a David West trade done and he signed with the Pacers. Indiana really ended up as the winner of this whole fiasco because they got David West after the Celtics trade fell apart. Six teams affected because of one dysfunctional team, ridiculous.

In reality, the NBA owns the Hornets and any trade that was to be completed would have to get approval from them. The Lakers appeared to have netted Chris Paul last week in a three team trade with the Rockets (for a full breakdown see "Los Angeles Wins the Day"). This was shot down by Commissioner David Stern however, for what he deemed "basketball reasons". Many fans theorized that these reasons were because the league had just ended a lockout, that had cost almost two months of the regular season, primarily based on the fact that small market teams were losing big name players. To end the lockout with an immediate trade of a big name player to a big market was not exactly an ideal return for David Stern. So he did his best Vince Mcmahon impression and became the villain of the NBA, telling the Lakers that they would have to improve their offer or find another star to trade for.

Then, a team decided that after 30 years of disappointment and losing they were going to step out of the Lakers' shadow and become the best team in Los Angeles. The Clippers swooped in and made a deal for Chris Paul, the first legitimate superstar to be traded to the Clippers since...well since....umm....ever. This is literally the most important trade in Clipper history. If Chris Paul works out as a Clipper, it will change EVERYTHING. Great players have historically avoided the Clippers like a fat kid avoids the gym. A place that great players don't avoid though is Los Angeles. Looking at the Lakers' history shows that great players LOVE to play in Los Angeles, just as long as it isn't for the Clippers. If CP3 comes to the Clippers, the team starts to succeed, and he signs long term, then the Clippers could become the desired team to go to in Los Angeles. On the other hand, and to be honest the more likely hand, if Chris doesn't like being a Clipper, the team struggles, and he gets hurt or leaves in free agency, then it's back to the status quo with the Clippers being a distant second to the Lakers in LA.

I'm an optimist though, so lets look at the new-look Clippers. They have Chris Paul, Chauncey Billups, Caron Butler, Blake Griffin, and Deandre Jordan in the starting lineup, with Randy Foye, Ryan Gomes, Eric Bledsoe and Mo Williams off the bench. This lineup should get them to the playoffs, perhaps not as a top seed, but somewhere in the 4-6 range. The most important piece of this trade though is that the Clippers have Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. If you haven't seen Blake Griffin, go ahead and type his name into youtube, sit back and watch I'll wait.......still waiting........keep watching.............impressed right? Well now youtube Chris Paul and watch the passes he throws......yup he just did that......and yeah that too......pretty good passer eh? Now imagine Chris Paul throwing ally oop passes to Blake Griffin......HOLY $#!%.....! This is going to be the most fun team to watch in a long time. The phrase "Showtime" comes from when Magic Johnson was running the Lakers, but this could provide highlights that even surpass that.

So even if you're not a basketball fan, if you see a Clippers game on your television, sit back relax and watch because who knows what could happen. For the first time ever, there's going to be a battle in Los Angeles over who the best team in the city is, and the Clippers have fired the first shot. I think the Lakers will still have a better season, but if I could only watch one game at Staples Center this year, I'd pick the Clippers.

Anti-Jinx Addendum: I felt the need to add this because every time the Clippers seem to have a decent player or team something always goes wrong. They have a history of guys blowing out their knees, and I don't want to jinx Chris Paul in that way. I hate that he didn't want to come to Boston, but I wouldn't wish injury on any athlete (not even Kobe).

Thanks for reading, subscribe to my page, go back and read all my other entries, leave a comment, follow me on twitter @JoshViola19, and getcha popcorn ready, the Clippers are coming.

-Josh

A Question Answered

Welcome back to Thoughts of a Sports Addict. My Anatomy and Physiology final has been completed and more of my time can now be devoted to updating this blog a little more often. This column is going to be a bit different from the more recent ones that focused on basketball, as this "sport" is a bit off the beaten path. It's one of my favorites however, and it will make semi-frequent appearances in this blog. So without further adieu, this will be my first blog entry about professional wrestling. (And 95% of you just stopped reading....Try it, you might like it)

For the last 20 years I've heard one question more than any other, yes even more than "why don't you drink?". That question is "Why do you watch that crap (wrestling)?". I hear it from my friends, students, coworkers, and family (except my dad, he loves that I watch). My mom will tell me that I'm "too smart to watch that crap", my students say "you know it's fake right?", and my friends just say, "you know how gay that is right?". It's right a the top for "Most Frustrating Conversations I've Ever Had", because no matter how much I say, no one ever listens. So here is the explanation for why I watch wrestling, please don't ever ask again.

This all started when I was 3 years old watching television. I just so happened to be flipping through the channels and was captivated by one of the programs. There, in front of me on the television, was a man with bright colored face-paint, bright colored tassels around his biceps and boots, and he was sprinting as fast as possible to the ring. When he got there he shook the ropes like a crazy man and proceeded to dominate the pasty white guy with the beer belly who he was wrestling. This man's name was the Ultimate Warrior, (Watch the whole video and tell me that's not exciting) and he is the reason that I started watching wrestling. From that day forward, I watched as much as I could even begging my dad to bring me to the Civic Center when they came to Portland. In that building I was lucky enough to see all the big stars: Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Macho Man Randy Savage, Jake the Snake Roberts, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Undertaker, Triple H, John Cena, and so many more.

As I grew up, middle school came and with it came a time where pro wrestling was mainstream. I didn't have to hide the fact that I watched wrestling anymore. All the popular kids in school watched it and wore the t-shirts to school, it was great. Well unfortunately, like Beanie Babies, Pokemon cards, and MySpace, wrestling didn't stay in the mainstream for long and I was back in the minority again soon. This was okay with me though, I'm not the kind of person who needs to follow the crowd, marching to the beat of my own drum is something that I take pride in. Just because it wasn't popular anymore, wasn't a good enough reason for me to stop watching it, so I continued. I mean can you really blame me when they had people like Trish Stratus and Stacy Kiebler wrestling in bra and panties matches?

As I got older, into my late teens and early twenties, I grew to respect the performers that put on the show. These men and women travel and perform over 250 days a year in every part of the world. They do a special show called Tribute to the Troops every year, which entails going overseas to Iraq/Afghanistan to do a special show for the military. Can you name another sport or entertainment group that does that? Though it may be "fake", they still get hurt and work through injuries. These men and women are committed to what they do, and when they become great it is a beautiful art, like a great dance between two experts. If you're interested try Youtubing something with Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, or Ric Flair, probably the three best ever.

Today I still watch for one reason. It entertains me! Some people call it "low brow" or "white trash" entertainment, and if that's true then I'm fine with that, I don't mind being called "low brow" or "white trash". In the same way people watch a movie or television show because they are entertained, I watch wrestling. The idea of not knowing that it's fake is one that I always get a good laugh at. I would like to ask the same "you know it's fake right?" question to all the people who cried when Leonardo DiCaprio died in Titanic or cheered when Voldemort was killed in Harry Potter. Television shows and movies are MEANT for the viewer to get lost in and believe in for that 2 hours or so. You can pick apart any movie, pointing out things that are "fake" but no normal person does that, they allow themselves to get absorbed in the entertainment.

In my life, I have had two dream jobs. The first was to be the point guard for the Boston Celtics.....and that dream died when I stopped growing at 5'10". I suppose Rajon Rondo is doing alright too. The other dream I had was to step into a wrestling ring, not to be a champion or even wrestle a match, but just to climb in a ring and bounce around. I will never get the opportunity to suit up for the Celtics in the Boston Garden, but I did get the opportunity to bounce around a wrestling ring last year. It was one of the coolest experiences of my life, and one that I fully intend to try again (Hopefully no concussion this time). It brought my level of appreciation for what they do, to a whole new level.

To finish this off, I'm 23 years old and I watch professional wrestling. I choose not to drink alcohol, do drugs, or smoke, I'm a teacher and love being a positive influence on teenagers, but for some people the fact that I watch wrestling overshadows all of that. It doesn't bother me other than the fact that I feel bad that some people can be so closed minded. My drum is going to keep beating, and I'm going to keep marching to it. Thanks for reading.

I hope you enjoyed this edition of Thoughts of Sports Addict. The next entry will be back to the usual stuff, probably about the end of free agency in the NBA and Tebowmania running wild after he beats the Patriots. Remember, leave a comment, subscribe to this page, follow me on twitter @joshviola19, and have a good one.

-Josh

Los Angeles Rules the Day

Welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. Chris Paul is a Laker, Albert Pujols and CJ Wilson are Angels, and Greg Oden is two weeks from another lost season (maybe).

Let's do baseball first because my thoughts on the Rockets/Lakers/Hornets blockbuster will be longer and more in depth.

250 Million Dollars for Albert Pujols......really? Maybe I'm just a jaded Red Sox fan, but is there ANYONE in the league that you would feel comfortable with signing to a 10 year contract worth a quarter of a billion dollars? The last person (and only other person) to sign a contract that large had to be traded halfway through it because his team couldn't afford to sign anyone else. In five years is Albert going to be a Yankee, because I'm not sure that anyone else will be able to afford that contract? Taking nothing away from Pujols, he's a great player who is absolutely a first ballot hall of famer, but he's on the wrong side of 30 (32 years old) and already showed signs of breaking down at the beginning of last year. If the Angels can win a World Series with him, then it will be considered a good signing. To be honest, they will probably be able to pay off his contract just from all the merchandise that he'll sell.

But then again, maybe I'm just pissed that the Red Sox spent 225 million dollars on John Lackey and Carl Crawford......maybe it's for the best that Theo left.

The Angels weren't done today though, signing C.J. Wilson to a 5 year 75 million dollar contract. I wasn't crazy about this signing until I looked at the salary that John Lackey and Dice-K have been pulling in over the last few years. At 32, C.J. is also on the wrong side of 30 and has only been "great" for two years. This situation is perfect for him though. He gets to join an Angels staff that already has Jered Weaver, Dan Haren, and Ervin Santana. CJ gets to be the 3rd starter on the Angels, taking the pressure off him signing a big new contract.

So that's my take on the two big baseball signings today. The Angels should easily win the division this year, as they just took Texas' best pitcher.

Now onto the MAIN EVENT

Let's first just break down all the moving parts.

New Orleans Hornets Receive: Lamar Odom, Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, Goran Dragic

Houston Rockets Receive: Pau Gasol

Los Angeles Lakers Receive: Chris Paul

There's the trade, possibly with some picks thrown in going to New Orleans. So lets break it down and see who won. I'll be honest, I'm not sure that the Lakers are the big winners in this trade, although they certainly didn't lose. The winners of the whole trade might be the Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors, and Los Angeles Clippers. I know it sounds weird to say that these teams were winners, but with the packages that the Hornets were asking for these teams were better off keeping the players they had. The Celtics were being asked to part with Rajon Rondo, which reportedly they were only too happy to do, but looking forward if Chris Paul refused to re-sign then they'd be left with an old Paul Pierce and not much else. Much better off to still have an all star point guard next year, than nothing. New Orleans wanted Eric Gordon from the Clippers, who for the first time in a VERY long time are looking to be competitive. Showing remarkable restraint, the Clippers refused to include Gordon, and it was the right move because with Blake Griffin, Eric Gordon, and Deandre Jordan, they might be the OKC Thunder of this year. The Warriors were asked to include Steph Curry, but refused and cut off negotiations when the Hornets insisted on Curry instead of Monta Ellis. Smart move by the Warriors, because they need someone bigger in the back court to go with Curry, not another small, ball dominant player, to go with Monta.

For the teams that actually participated in the trade, I give the edge to New Orleans as the winner. They got a very good haul for a player that had already said he wasn't going to re-sign. They did what the Raptors and Cavaliers should have done during the last offseason, entertained offers and got the very best one they could. For the Hornets it isn't about winning this year, but getting assets for the future. Kevin Martin is a scorer who will keep them in games this year, Scola is an above average big man, and Goran Dragic can step in and start at the point guard spot this year. I would be very surprised if Lamar Odom ever suits up for the Hornets, he'll either be traded quickly or bought out.

The Lakers of course got the best player in the trade, but they aren't going to get any better this year. They now have a serious lack of big men, with Andrew Bynum being their only big time big man left, and Andrew Bynum is a member of the Greg Oden school of injuries. The Lakers do now own the best backcourt in basketball with CP3 and Kobe Bryant, but a front court that boasts Bynum, Derrick Caracter, Devin Ebanks, Ater Majok, Theo Ratliff, and Joe Smith isn't scaring anyone. Obviously the offseason isn't over yet, in fact it hasn't even officially started, but if the Lakers don't fix their front court, then I have to change my NBA champion pick. And if they somehow get Dwight Howard I have to light myself on fire. Be prepared.

The Rockets got Pau Gasol. I'm confused as to why they bothered with this trade. They needed a big man, but they needed to team him up with Scola and Martin, not trade them away to get him. They are the loser of this trade, unless they have something else lined up to get themselves some back court help.

Also Lamar Odom really lost. Not only did he get sent to New Orleans, but now Khloe Kardashian is DEFINITELY going to divorce him, she's not leaving LA.

Well thanks for reading, leave a comment letting me know if you agree or disagree with my assessment, follow me on twitter @JoshViola19.

-Josh

The Final Five

Let's not waste time with an introduction, this is the second half of my last blog.

6. The Rookies

Most experts are saying that this is going to be a weak rookie class and all signs, unfortunately, point to that being true. The top pick was Kyrie Irving out of Duke, and while he clearly has talent he didn't get to show much of it in an injury plagued year at Duke. Some people are expecting big things from Jimmer Fredette and Kemba Walker, but we already have a sports star that is beating all the odds to be a good player this year and neither of these guys is Tim Tebow. I'm not sure I would expect Jimmer to be any better than JJ Redick, his best case scenario is a rich mans Louis Williams. Kemba is tricky, but he just seems too small to be able to get his shot off in the pros. He was fading away seemingly every time I saw him shoot at UCONN and the NBA defense is going to be even better. I could see Kemba's best case scenario being a guy like Jamal Crawford, who can come in and score in bunches but won't be a starter on a good team.

7. RICKY RUBIO!

This is the guy that I'm going to be watching every chance I get this year. A lot of experts are down on him and think that he's too slow or not a good enough shooter, but I don't agree. I watched him hold his own against the US Olympic team when he was only 17, he's a player. His stats in Europe are constantly used to criticize him, but you have to remember how young he is and how the European game is much different stylistically compared to basketball in the states. The Wolves are going to surprise this year, with Rubio, Love, Derrick Williams, and Michael Beasley they are going to be, if nothing else, fun to watch.

8. Dirk Defends Crown

Last year at this time no one was predicting the Mavs to be the NBA champions, and certainly not without making a major trade. Well, they proved all the experts wrong and beat the Lakers and the Heat (public enemies 1 and 2) to win the first title for Dallas. The absolute best part of seeing Dallas win the championship was seeing Dirk finally shake the "soft" label that has dogged him for his entire career. It was ridiculous that he had that label in the first place but it's gone and he's turned into the German Terminator. Can he do it again though? He went to another planet for the playoffs last year, raising his game to a level that very few EVER have. What about Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Peja Stojakovic, and Jason Terry? They all played huge roles last year in the playoffs, but they are another year older. Will they re-sign Tyson Chandler? I don't want to say that the Mavs can't repeat, but if I'm a Dallas fan I bask in the glow of this championship because there probably won't be another one.

9. Social Media

Sure, Twitter and Facebook have been around for a few years and most of the players use them to chat with fans and post updates, but it's a bigger deal now than it has ever been. I can't be the only person who is almost giddy to see which player is the first one to start attacking another player through Twitter or which player posts an obscenity laden tirade on their Facebook page. Already this Fall we've seen players post opinions on the lockout that had to be taken down because they were detrimental to the Union's position, and I'm sure that this winter we'll get some that will have to be taken down under threat of fine from the league. I believe the reason Tommy Heinsohn doesn't have a twitter is because he'd owe the league too much money after complaining about the referees (not to mention 140 characters is simply not enough for him). My bet is on Demarcus Cousins being the first to publicly freak out on Twitter.....I mean first to have his account "hacked".

10. My Final Predictions:

MVP- So many candidates. The usual suspects, Lebron, DRose, Dwight Howard, and Kevin Durant are all players that I'd love to predict as the MVP of the league, but I just don't think it's going to be any of them. My pick for the MVP of the NBA this year is also a three figure acronym.....CP3. He's going to be traded to a team with talent, whether it's the Clippers, Knicks, or anyone else and he'll do his Steve Nash on steroids routine. MVP=Chris Paul

Rookie of the Year- As we discussed before, not a very strong field, but I'm going to go with Kyrie Irving. I'd love to give it to Derrick Williams, but he's not going to get as much of an opportunity as Kyrie. The Cavs are terrible and Kyrie Irving is going to be their best player, so he'll get the playing time and possessions to score points and dish assists. In the long run I think Derrick Williams will be the best player from this draft, but he'll miss out on this award.

ROY=Kyrie Irving

Comeback Player of the Year- I still have faith in Greg Oden. In the few games he's managed to play in his career, he's been on Dwight's level. If he can manage to stay healthy, and Brandon Roy stays healthy, the Blazers could surprise everyone.

Teams Movin' On Up- Clippers, Pacers, Nets, and Wizards will all make the playoffs this year.

Teams Movin' On Down- San Antonio, Boston (unfortunately), Phoenix, and Denver will all either fall out of the playoff picture or move down a few seeds.

NBA Champion- The big question, who's going to win the NBA title this season? It's a tricky question because of the lockout shortened regular season and the extra rest that every team has gotten. I decided that whichever team I chose had to hit certain checkpoints on my rubric for success. They had to be a team that wasn't trying to integrate a new player into a large role this season, had championship pedigree, benefitted from the extra rest time, and had an MVP candidate on their team who would definitely have been working hard the whole off season. I started to look at teams that had the talent to win a championship and they all failed in at least one of these categories. Only two teams hit every checkmark on the list, the Lakers and the Mavs. So as much as it hurts, I'm picking the Los Angeles Lakers as the NBA Champions this year. They already have a lineup that has played together for years and they've won two championships together. The most important piece of my picking them though is Kobe Bryant. He's had more rest this offseason than any year in the past four. He played in the NBA Finals in 2008, 2009, and 2010, while also playing in the olympics in 2008. In 2011 the Lakers lost in the second round, and with no olympics Kobe has had 7 months to rest and fix his knee. So hope for the Celtics but don't be surprised when the storyline at the end of the year is about Kobe Bryant regaining his throne.

Thanks for reading, and remember to favorite my page, leave a comment, follow me on twitter @JoshViola19, and take care, play fair.

-Josh

10 Things About The New NBA Season

I'm back with another installment of Thoughts of a Sports Addict, and this week I'll be talking about 10 things to look forward to this season in the NBA. So let me tell you why this season might be the most exciting year of professional basketball ever.....yes that's right EVER.

1. Free Agency/Training Camp

For those of you who haven't followed the process of the lockout on twitter/facebook/espn.com/nba.com and every other possibly media outlet (aka for all the normal people), let me break down what's about to happen. Training camp and the first day to sign free agents and make trades ALL land on December 9th. If you thought that the NFL free agent frenzy was entertaining, just wait until this. With the new amnesty provision, restructured mid level exceptions, and teams that are desperate to get new players in for training camp this is going to be the most exciting two weeks in NBA offseason history. Which players will hold out for more money and risk missing training camp (Jeff Green)? Which star player becomes a surprising amnesty cut (Ron Metta World Peace Artest)? Which free agents will get horrendously overpaid (Tyson Chandler/Marc Gasol/Nene)? Which player will come into camp 50 pounds overweight (Baron Davis)? And this is all going to happen in a weeks time. Getcha popcorn ready.

2. A Country for Old Men.....Sort of

I know, I know, you're saying that there are going to be some back to back to back games this year, and old legs just can't handle that, but hear me out on this one. Let's take a look at some of the older players and more injured players in the league. Kobe Bryant, KG, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Tracy Mcgrady, Greg Oden (allegedly still a young man), Tim Duncan, and all the other guys who were drafted before the turn of the millenium. For Kobe, the Celtics Big 3, Tim Duncan, and Mcgrady this was the longest break they've had in almost 10 years. They say that time heals all wounds, and in this case time heals all knees. Garnett got extra rest for his troublesome knee and Kobe took the time to go to Germany and get his knee fixed. This is the last hurrah for all of these guys, and they should be as fresh as they've been in years. Tracy Mcgrady's agent has gone on record saying that Tracy's athleticism is completely back. If that's true, I'm excited, because prime TMac was out of this world.

3. Year 2 of the South Beach Experience

The NBA's version of the nWo gets another year to try and win the championship. Perhaps the only upside of the lockout was that it looked like it might take another year of Lebron's prime away before he could win a championship. Following the Miami Heat is like watching Basketball Wives on Vh1, because the Miami Big 3 pretend like they get along, but underneath it all you can sense that they really aren't big fans of each other. Lebron and Dwyane Wade having silent battles over who is "the man" on the team, and Chris Bosh playing nervous because he's not sure how to fit in with the other two. They have all the talent in the world, but until they embrace the fact that they're hated in every opposing city, they'll never win a title. If they find a competent point guard and center though, then the rest of the league may as well quit now, because this is the most talented trio in the league. Unfortunately for the Heat, it's another T word that matters more than talent, and that's Teamwork.

4. The Impending Trades of Chris Paul and Dwight Howard

Where are CP3 and Dwight going to be playing on Christmas? The smart money is anywhere except Orlando and New Orleans. In what has become the single biggest problem in the NBA, star players are continuing to force their way to big markets where they can play together. Boston made a play for Chris Paul, offering Rajon Rondo, but Paul said he wouldn't sign an extension with Boston and effectively killed the trade. He would rather go join Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire in New York.....completely killing the New Orleans franchise in the process. Dwight has his eyes set on the bright lights of L.A. where he can become the second best center to leave Orlando in favor of Hollywood. At least the Magic fans know what to do when a franchise center leaves their team for the Lakers. The NBA....it's Fannnntastic (as long as you live in LA, Boston, New York, or Chicago).

5. Are the Grizzlies and Clippers really going to be GOOD teams in the West?

The Grizzlies shocked everyone last year by beating the Spurs in the first round, even if all the "experts" tried to claim that they picked the upset afterwards, and proved that they were a team on the rise. In one playoff run the Grizzlies have gone from underrated to CRIMINALLY overrated. Other than a few weeks last May, Zach Randolph has built a career on being an underachiever. He's the classic case of a guy that puts up stats, gets paid huge money, and doesn't carry his team even close to a championship (hey Vince Carter). Marc Gasol is a free agent, OJ Mayo is apparently on the trade block in a "We're REALLY open to trading him" kind of way, and Rudy Gay has to be reintegrated to the team. The Clippers are also a trendy team to pick as a dark horse by the experts. As opposed to the Grizzlies, I LOVE the Clippers this year. They have Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon, quite possibly the best young power forward and shooting guard in the league along with a veteran center named Chris Kaman who has been underrated for a long time. Throw in Mo Williams, Eric Bledsoe, a resigned Deandre Jordan, and a signing of someone like Tayshaun Prince means this team is good enough to make the playoffs and maybe even make some noise when they start.

Well, that's the first 5 things to look forward to this season in the NBA, check out my next entry where I talk about Ricky Rubio, the 2011/2012 rookie class, and who's going to win the championship this year with my next 5 things to look forward to.

So remember, leave a comment, favorite my page, follow me on twitter, and take care, play fair.

-Josh

The Best Christmas Present: NBA Basketball

Well it's been a while. I admit, the NBA lockout really killed my passion for writing about sports over the last few months. But now the NBA is back and I've been inspired to put fingers to keyboard once again. Let's take a quick look at the headlines I missed during my absence....

"Red Sox Collapse", "Bruins Stumble Out of the Gate", "Patriots Have 32nd Ranked Defense", "NBA Lockout Hits Day 1,2,3....135,136,136.."

Between all the beer, fried chicken, unmotivated linemen, and greedy owners and players, I think that putting away the blog for the last few months might have been good for my health.

The real reason for my return to blogging is because the NBA lockout is over. The players and owners have come to a consensus over how to split all Basketball Related Income (BRI) for the next seven years. I'll leave out the painfully boring details of how everything shakes out, but suffice it to say that the owners got a much better deal than they did last time. I followed the progress of the lockout as obsessively as Jerry Sandusky follows a 10 year old. Knowing everything about the lockout and what everyone was arguing about was my goal. There were times where the experts tweeted that they were close and I stayed up until 2am hoping for a deal. I got trolled more than the Three Billy Goats Gruff, and proved the old saying of why they say you should never assume anything.

So what does an NBA fanatic do when there isn't basketball? I did what Bill Simmons did, tried as hard as I could to like hockey. The Bruins turned me into a big fan last year during the playoffs and I thought that following them would keep me occupied until the NBA figured it out. Well, that didn't exactly work out great. Don't get me wrong, watching hockey is a great time, but when I'm making up reasons for why a ref has blown his whistle because I don't know the rules, some of the fun is taken out of it. Thanks Tyler Seguin, Zdeno Chara, and Brad Marchand (my favorite Bruins), but now that I have Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, and KG back we may not be seeing much of each other anymore.

Time to raise Banner 18 and then sign Dwight Howard next year. Expect another blog when Free Agency starts, possibly before seeing as how my class is ending and I'm unemployed.

Thanks for reading and be sure to Follow me on Twitter @JoshViola19

Why so Friendly?

Welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of a Sports Addict. The NBA lockout has gotten me thinking about what exactly is wrong with the NBA and why the game doesn't seem to be as loved today as it was back in the 1980's and 1990's. Don't get me wrong, the 90's brand of basketball was pretty bad, with lots of defense and a slow it down style that produced some dreadfully low final scores, but I think fans actually enjoyed it more. There is one simple reason for this and the root of the problem is unfortunately not going to change anytime soon. So why isn't the NBA as popular anymore?

The players are all friends.

Really, that's the reason that the NBA is failing right now. While everyone else is pointing towards collective bargaining and revenue sharing, I want to explore the problem of having AAU leagues, nationwide basketball camps, free agency, and an unequal college landscape. The NBA is devoid of real rivalries right now because all the players like each other. Sure there is the occasional outlier that no one likes or that has no real friends in the league that aren't on there own team, but for the most part all the guys in the NBA act like brothers in a fraternity.

Let's look at some of the biggest "rivalries" of the past few years and break them down. One of the biggest ones was the Celtics and the Cavaliers. Boston fans hated Lebron James, Cavs fans hated Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, but did the players really HATE each other? No, they didn't.

Maybe 20 years ago they would have, but in the age of AAU basketball Lebron was actually a former teammate of Leon Powe and Kendrick Perkins, two of the Celtics premier big men. Now I'm not saying that any of the three were holding anything back in the games between the two teams, but when you've been teammates with someone, it becomes much harder to play with that ruthless aggression that you should. Let's not forget that Delonte West was a Cavalier in those series, but was a former Celtic and would resign with Boston after leaving the Cavs.

Let's look at another rivalry, the Magic and the Hawks. Two teams in the same division that are supposed to be hated rivals. One problem with saying that, and that's that Dwight Howard was actually an AAU teammate of Josh Smith and Javaris Crittenton when they were all in high school and playing for the Atlanta Celtics. You're telling me that Dwight is going to be throwing elbows at someone that was one of his best friends in high school? I don't think so. He's going to play hard, but he's going to be holding something back, even if only subconsciously.

These aren't the only players that were on the same AAU teams. Kevin Durant and Ty Lawson were on the same team in their youth. Kevin Love, Brandon Jennings, and Chase Budinger were all part of the same team in their youth as well. Kobe Bryant and Richard Hamilton played together when they were both AAU players, while years later Greg Oden, Michael Conley Jr., Daquan Cook, and Josh McRoberts teamed up. That's not all though, we also had Eric Gordon playing with Derrick Rose for the Mean Streets Express. Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, and Elton Brand were all on a team from NYC back in the mid 90's. Keep in mind that these are just the people that were teammates on AAU teams, not including college teammates or NBA teammates that are now playing for different teams.

Back in the 1980's AAU was in its infancy, players participated in high school basketball and maybe some private leagues around the area the lived, but there was very little recruitment other than for college. There was no AAU team that had Larry Bird catching passes from Magic Johnson, which everyone should be thankful for, because the Lakers vs Celtics finals from the 1980's wouldn't be nearly as memorable if Bird and Magic had hugged and joked with each other after the games. After reading When the Game Was Ours, the excellent book by Jackie Macmullan, it becomes obvious that Larry Bird truly hated Magic Johnson when the two were playing against each other, and Magic felt the same way. That was the extra bit that made those series so memorable, it was obvious that both teams would do whatever it took to win the game.

Today, Chris Paul has opposing players over his house when they come to New Orleans so that they can hang out. Back in the 1980's Isaiah Thomas wasn't having opposing players over for a pregame meal and video game night, because he was too worried about how he was going to destroy them. The Bad Boy Pistons thrived on intimidation, and that's not present in todays game because the players have grown up together, played AAU together, gone to college together, and played professionally with each other. They all know and seem to be friendly with each other, and it's killing the game.

So for the good of the game, I hope that the stars stop teaming up and let rivalries build. The NBA needs less "Big 3's" and more stars staying with their team, trying to lead them to a title. The NBA, in my opinion, would be much better if free agency was eliminated and players had an incentive to stay with the team that drafted them. It would build up rivalries and breed genuine hatred between players, making for a better game.

And that's what I will always appreciate Ron Artest.....unless he's hitting shots against the Celtics.

Mr. 3000

Welcome back, this has been another wild week in the world of sports. The main topic of this weeks blog will be Derek Jeter and his journey to 3000 hits. As people who know me can tell you, the Yankees are not a team that I generally cheer for and in early October of 2003 they were the bane of my existence, but Derek Jeter is different. So this blog is dedicated to him and his career.

May 30th, 1995. I was 7 years old, Bill Clinton was the President, Shaq and the Magic battled Hakeem and the Rockets in the NBA Finals, and Derek Jeter recorded his first hit in the Major Leagues. It happened in Seattle against the Mariners when Jeter was only 20 years old. While most 20 year old young men are finishing up their sophomore year of college or maybe getting a raise for their second year at a job, Jeter had blazed through the minor leagues and was the number 9 hitter for the New York Yankees. Not to say that everything was easy for Jeter early on. His first year was mired in controversy as he hit a paltry .210 and then followed it up the next year by making 56, yes 56, errors. The Yankees were patient with Jeter though and he quickly became a cornerstone of the franchise.

In September of 2000, Jeter recorded his 1000th hit, a third of the way to the 3000 hit milestone. At this point in his career Jeter had already won the World Series 3 times and was on his way to a fourth. At the time it was a four horse race for the title of "Best Shortstop in the American League". If you remember, in addition to Jeter, there was also Nomar Garciaparra, Miguel Tejada, and Alex Rodriguez vying for the title. At the time Nomar was probably the best all around hitter of the four, while Rodriguez had the most power, and Tejada the best glove. But Jeter had something that the other three would have traded everything for, rings. Another player may have ended up being a case of the too much too soon trap (something I'll go into detail about further down the page), but Jeter has always showed wisdom and class beyond his years.

Jeter's 3000th hit came on a day that was perfect for him. He went five for five including the game winning homerun. He is one of only two players to ever have their 3000th hit be a homerun. As luck would have it for Jeter, the fan who caught the ball had the class to match Jeter. Most fans would have auctioned the ball off to the highest bidder or held the Yankees up for as much money as they could get, but the 24 year old cell phone salesman that caught it asked for nothing. He gave Jeter the ball because, as he said "Jeter deserved it". The Yankees appreciated the fans gesture and rewarded him with multiple autographed bats and jerseys, as well as tickets to every game for the rest of the year. Truly the perfect ending to the quest for 3000.

Let's take Jeter and compare him to someone else who got too much too soon, Lebron James. While Jeter was able to win championships early in his career, James was able to make more money than he could have ever imagined while becoming a polarizing figure for the NBA. They both were excellent candidates for the too much too soon trap, but Jeter was surrounded by older veterans who he could talk to and get advice from, men like Tino Martinez, Paul O'Neill, and Wade Boggs. Lebron was brought onto a team with Ricky Davis, Jeff McInnis, and Darius Miles, not exactly the group of players you want around your 18 year old star rookie. Not to make excuses for Lebron, but maybe that's why he never seemed to mature. Imagine if he had gone second in his draft and gotten to grow up on a team with Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton, and Ben Wallace, needless to say things may have gone a little differently for him. Some of the greatest talents in all walks of life have suffered from the too much too soon trap, including Michael Jackson, Eddie Murphy, Vince Carter, and three quarters of the number 1 draft picks in NFL history. Thankfully Derek Jeter wasn't one of these cases.

The most impressive part of Derek Jeter's career isn't that he's gotten to 3000 hits, it's the way that he's done it. He is one of the few players in any sport that can claim no off field issues, he's never been arrested, cheated on his spouse, ripped teammates in the press, or embarrassed his team in any way. Much like Peyton Manning in football, there is just no good reason to hate the man, no matter what team he plays for. So congratulations Derek, even Red Sox fans are happy for you.....even if most of them won't admit it.

Now I need to go take a shower because saying so much good stuff about a Yankee has made me feel dirty. Thanks for reading, and remember to check out my past entries and follow me on twitter: @joshviola19.

The NBA: Where Lockouts Happen

Welcome back to another edition of Thoughts of Sports Addict, today I'm going to talk about the lockout in the NFL, the lockout in the NBA, and some other odds and ends in the sports world. As always, leave a comment to let me know what you think.

The NFL lockout started over a hundred days ago and is still going strong, albeit with a light now almost visible at the end of the tunnel. Since it has begun, the NFL lockout has provided fans with very little entertainment. NFL Live has turned into a show that is 90% lockout talk and 10% fantasy football, you either need to have passed the bar exam or be Matthew Berry to actually enjoy the show. In other NFL related news, 3 time Superbowl champion Tom Brady can be seen hanging out in Brazil rocking a pony tail and riding down water slides in the most effeminate way imaginable. Can we all now finally agree that Giselle Bundchen is the Yoko Ono of the New England Patriots? Before she came into Tom Brady's life he had a beard, short hair, and a game face that was matched by no one else in the NFL. Now he looks like this....

I can't be the only Patriot fan that has watched his entire career and can honestly say that they didn't see this coming. Somehow I can't see Joe Montana, John Elway, or dare I say it, Peyton Manning allowing themselves to get distracted like this and stop coming through in clutch situations. With all that said, lets hope Tom Brady was watching when Tim Thomas and the Bruins won the Stanley cup, because if he was I don't think there's any way that he didn't immediately go to the bathroom, grab a straight razor and shave his own head. Just in case he forgot, the Patriots are now the Boston team with the longest championship drought, so lets go Tom Terrific, it's time to lead us to another Superbowl.

The NBA has just entered into the infancy stage of its own lockout, and this one has no end in sight. Most experts agree that this lockout, unlike the NFL lockout, may take out the entire season. For NBA nuts like myself, they may just as well have said that Christmas had been cancelled. I love basketball, I love the NBA, and most of all I love the Celtics. Don't get me wrong, I like all sports and all the Boston teams, but the Celtics are by far my favorite. I watch all their preseason games, I watch all their regular season games, I get nervous for playoff games, and to be completely honest, I cried when they won the Eastern Conference championship in 2008. Sure it was great to watch the Red Sox win the World Series in 2004 and 2007, the Patriots win the Superbowl in 2001, 2003, and 2004, and the Bruins win the Stanley Cup this year, but none of those put me even close to tears. This NBA lockout has me very concerned that I may have seen the last game of the Big 3 era for the Celtics and that they're going to go out with a loss to Lebron James. If they do indeed miss the entire season, then Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen will both be free agents, unlikely to be resigned.

Taking the emotion out of it, the NBA lockout is happening because 22 of the 30 teams lost money this year and with a soft cap, the rich teams gain a competitive advantage and the equity of the league gets thrown off. Superstars have started joining forces and going to big market teams in order to win championships, which is killing the smaller markets. Teams like Sacramento, Milwaukee, and Charlotte, can never compete with the larger markets because superstars will never sign with them. The solution to this is a hard cap. A hard cap would be much like the NFL system where teams aren't allowed to go over a certain salary threshold. This would help the smaller markets because the superstars are money motivated and will go to where the money is, which means smaller markets can pull in superstars with more regularity. It will also prevent superstars from teaming up, unless they take very large pay cuts.

So right now, lockouts are the popular thing to do in sports. This fall, let's hope that both the NFL and the NBA are starting on time, because it will be a long winter without football or basketball. Thank God the Bruins are good, because hockey may be all we have.

ODDS AND ENDS

-Charlie Furbush, the pride of South Portland, makes his first start for the Tigers on July 4th. He has been sensational in relief for Detroit and hopefully can roll that momentum into his first major league start.

-The NBA draft happened amid the lockout talk last week. The big news was Kyrie Irving going first and Kawhi Leonard dropping all the way to 15. I think the guy to watch out for is Kemba Walker, he showed his true colors this year leading UCONN to a national championship. Another thing to remember is that if the NBA does lockout all year, we'll have 120+ rookies next year vying for the Rookie of the Year honors.

-The Red Sox have been surprisingly terrible at interleague play, dropping series to the Pirates and Phillies.

-The All Star rosters were announced today, and for the first time I have no complaints about either roster. I don't know if that's because I haven't been paying real close attention to baseball this year, or because the coaches, fans, and players did a good job. Either way I like it.

Well that's all for this week, be sure to leave a comment, and even follow me on twitter: @Joshviola19

Black and Gold

What a great decision to jump on the Bruins bandwagon this year. Usually when I jump on a team's bandwagon that ends up being the kiss of death, but apparently, just like everything else in hockey, this was different.

The Stanley Cup finals were incredible, mostly for Bruins fans, but even people that were just hockey fans and love to see great games. The games for the most part were exciting, suspenseful, and overall entertaining. I used to watch a hockey game and be bored after about five minutes, because I didn't understand the game and the scoring was too low. I didn't understand the beauty of the game and the skill it took to play it. Like just about every other bandwagon hockey fan, I would tune in and watch a big game every now and again, but I just couldn't make myself watch more than a game or two a year. Not having played the game, I didn't understand the rules, so when a whistle blew for something like icing, I had no idea what was going on. Hockey also features players who seem to have picked out the letters for their last name much in the same way a lottery might be drawn, by picking letters out of a bag and just putting them all together.

But this year was different. I tried to jump on the bandwagon last year, but two things were working against the Bruins. The first was that the Celtics made it all the way to the finals, so they were my main focus and also the Bruins blew a 3-0 series lead against the Flyers, disappointing me during my first full series of watching. This year everything fell perfectly into place for the Bruins and my fandom. The Celtics disappointingly bowed out in the second round of the playoffs, and the Bruins played perhaps the most exciting month and a half of hockey in the history of the NHL. Three game 7's, multiple overtime games, a goalie that was locked in for a solid month, and a team that was as gritty and hard nosed as any.

I'd love to talk about some of the great plays and games from this playoff run, but I think that would be an insult to the hardcore fans of the Bruins. I'd probably butcher explanations and completely miss the ideas behind doing certain things. It would be no different than a bandwagon basketball fan trying to analyze the Celtics. I will say this though, Brad Marchand is a guy that I hope is a Bruin for a long time. In my limited time watching the team, he has become a guy that I really enjoy watching and came up big in the biggest moment with two goals in game 7. Maybe he'll never be a star, but to make an NBA comparison, he could be the Robert Horry of the NHL. Also I'd like to mention Patrice Bergeron. When I first tried out being a hockey fan about 7 years ago, Bergeron was a rookie and in the game I watched he played great. From that point forward he was my favorite player on the team and someone that I always pulled for to win a Cup. Well, Wednesday night it was a really cool feeling to see him score a goal and then raise the cup, celebrating a championship that, after multiple concussions, I'm sure he thought might never come.

Anyways, that's really all I can say about the Bruins. They completed the grandslam of championships for Boston in this decade and Tim Thomas' playoff run ranks up their with David Ortiz's run in 2004 in terms of great playoff runs by Boston athletes. For me, this ranks behind the 2008 Celtics, 2004 Red Sox, and 2001 Patriots, as far as Boston championships go, but it was no less exciting than any of those three. I guess that's the perils of being a bandwagon fan, you love to see the team win, but it's always sweeter when you're with the team through the tough times. It's why nothing will surpass that 2008 Celtics title for me, I actually started to tear up watching Paul Pierce raise that Larry O'Brien trophy, it just meant so much after watching him struggle with bad teams for so long. Those are the sweetest moments for fans, and that's why I'm so happy for those hardcore Bruins fans who got to have that moment on Wednesday night. It may have come later for them than it did for any of the other Boston sports fans, but I guarantee it was every bit as sweet.

Other Stuff:

-The sports God's have apparently decided this is their year to act, because no "bad" people seem to be winning titles this year. Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers were able to beat Big Ben, rumored rapist, and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl. Then Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs were able to overcome Lebron, who completely screwed Cleveland, and the Heat in the NBA Finals, and finally Tim Thomas and the Bruins were able to defeat Alex "The Biter" Burrows, Roberto Luongo and the Canucks in the Stanley Cup Finals.

-If you go back through my blogs, you'll see that I made my predictions for the NHL and NBA Finals before either started and I called both the winner and the amount of games it would take for both of them. Just saying, that's pretty impressive considering I was so far off throughout the other rounds of the NBA playoffs and that I only had watched hockey for a month.

Well thanks for reading. Hopefully with school ending these will be a bit more frequent.

Win or Lose Dirk is No Longer "Soft"

Welcome back to another edition of "Thoughts of a Sports Addict". This week I'm going to explore the revolution in the popular opinion of Dirk Nowitzki and what that means for other European players. Also a little tribute to Paul Pierce, Kobe Bryant, and Tim Duncan for being part of an exclusive club, that Dirk is trying to join and that Lebron can never be a part of.

If I asked you a year ago what words came to mind when you thought of Dirk Nowitzki, what would they have been? Probably something like "soft", "choker", "typical European big man", "hates contact", "soft", "soft", "soft" and well you get the idea. Even though he has career averages of 23points, 8.4rebounds, 2.7assists, and 1 block, Dirk was always considered a "lesser" superstar by many people. Aside from one finals appearance in 2006, when he was a victim of the worst officiating in NBA history, the Mavs always seemed to run into the worst possible matchup in the playoffs. The 2007 Warriors may have been the epitome of this problem, as they were literally the only team in the Western Conference that had a chance against that Mavs team. That was Dirk's best year, he was named MVP and presented the trophy in a very awkward ceremony that took place after his team had been eliminated, and that Mavs team won a league best 67 games.

Dirk's other issue was that he was constantly being compared to the "other" great power forward in Texas, Tim Duncan. Duncan, as great a player as he is, always seemed to catch the lucky breaks that eluded Dirk his entire career. No break may have been luckier than when the Warriors knocked off that 2007 Mavs team and opened up the West for the Spurs. Fans all over saw Duncan winning championships while Dirk was constantly coming up short and assumed that it was because Duncan was a leader and Dirk was a soft, jump shooting big man who could never win a title. What people seemed to overlook is that Duncan had at different points, David Robinson, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker as teammates. Dirk was always trying to carry guys way past their prime or guys who were too young to really help. His best teammates have been Jason Terry, a slightly over the hill Michael Finley, and a not yet an MVP candidate Steve Nash.

This year Dirk has changed everyone's opinion. He's been anything but soft in the playoffs. While last year the playoff news was dominated by Lebron and LeElbow, this year has been about Dirk playing through a torn tendon in his non-shooting hand without any complaint or hesitation. It's been about Dirk leading a team of over-the-hill former all stars to the finals while playing the best basketball of his career. It's been about Dirk trying to outplay three of the best players in the league, all in their prime, and bring the Mavs their first title. He's earned my respect for how he's played this year, it's been a true pleasure to watch him get an edge and show the world that he belongs in the upper tier of superstars in the NBA. For future European big men, this is also a blessing, because Dirk has shown that just because they are good shooters, doesn't mean they're soft. He is changing the perception of European big men much like Vlade Divac, Drazen Petrovic, and Arvydas Sabonis showed that European's could hang with NBA guys almost 20 years ago.

Fun picture, check this out and tell me what the odds of this picture featuring two future MVP's was when it was taken?

So now onto the second part of what I want to talk about in this entry. I know you've all been anxiously waiting to see what group Paul Pierce, Kobe Bryant, and Tim Duncan all belong to, and Dirk is trying to join that Lebron can never be in. Well the group is of current players that stayed with the team that drafted them and went on to win a championship and be the MVP of the finals. In the age of free agency and superstars getting traded to any team they want, it's rare for a guy to be with the same team his whole career. These three guys have all been in the league for over 10 years, all with the same team and all led that team to at least one championship. All also went through trials and tribulations to get to that moment, which makes it even better. Kobe had, mostly, self inflicted problems in his time with the Lakers. First he pushed Shaq out of town and then he had the rape case in Colorado, but through it all he stayed with the Lakers and is one of the most competitive players in league history. I'm not a fan, because he plays for the Lakers and because he just seems like a terrible teammate, but it can't be denied that he's one of the greatest to every play. It might be a surprise to some to see Tim Duncan, and tribulations mentioned in the same sentence, because Tim is such a class guy, but he almost ended up leaving the Spurs for Orlando to join Grant Hill. It was only at the last minute where he decided against it and went back to the Spurs. We all know what happened in Orlando, Grant Hill barely played because of injury, and Tracy Mcgrady turned into a superstar, but imagine how different it would have been if Tim Duncan was there. Paul Pierce is my favorite example of this. He came to Boston, was stabbed in the face in a Philly nightclub after his rookie year, but returned and played with a vengeance. Pierce then became a punk for a few seasons, and was very nearly traded for the 3rd pick in the 2005 draft (presumably so the Celtics could select Chris Paul). After the near trade, where Pierce actually refused to show up in Portland if the trade was completed, Paul turned into a mature superstar who played like he was proud to be a Celtic and really enjoyed carrying the team on his back every night. Speaking for every Boston fan, it was an honor to watch Paul Pierce grow up before our eyes and I know I wasn't the only Celtics' fan to tear up when I watched him celebrate with the Finals MVP award.

Fans of Boston, San Antonio, and the Lakers know how it feels to watch rookies grow into superstars and eventually win championships, and I for one hope that Dallas fans will get to have this same experience this year. Sorry Lebron, you blew it in Cleveland, have fun making memories for Dwyane Wade's team.

Well that's it for this week. Hope you enjoyed it. Leave a comment.

The NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Finals, and more

Here we are in the best sports month of the year. June features the finals for both the NBA and the NHL, the Belmont Stakes, the U.S. Open, and intensified baseball division races. In this weeks blog entry, I'm going to break down the NBA Finals, NHL Finals, and then give my thoughts on a few other topics.

NBA FINALS

Dallas Mavericks over the Miami Heat

Have you ever seen the movie Jaws? You know the scene where Quint talks about being on the USS Indianapolis? If not here's the clip. Well if the refs screw Dirk out of the finals again, like they did in 2006, this is how I expect most all of his interviews to go after he retires. Of all the teams in the Eastern Conference, I think that this is the one that Dirk wanted to see the least. The psychological advantage that the Heat already have is enormous. So why am I predicting the Mavs to win? Well, it comes to down to a few main ideas.

1. The most important of which is that I don't think anyone can guard Dirk. He's one of the few players in the league that is completely unique, because he's a legit 7 feet tall and can shoot the three as well as anyone. The best chance the Heat have is to put Lebron on him and hope that Lebron can use his athleticism to contest Dirk's shot. In the past it has always been the bigger, super athletic guys that have been able to contain Dirk. Shawn Marion did a great job back when he was with Phoenix, but Marion is now Dirk's teammate.

2. Dwyane Wade is hurt. Wade hasn't complained, but it's been reported and can be seen that his shoulder is giving him trouble. Wade didn't play that well against Chicago and I think that having someone like Jason Kidd guarding him could actually be a big problem for Miami. Even in his advanced age, Kidd is still a good defender and will be able to contain Wade.

3. DESIRE. I'm so sick of hearing how much Lebron and Chris Bosh want a championship. The talking heads on ESPN talk about this all the time, like it's their God-Given right to be multi time champions. Lebron, Bosh, and Wade have been in the league for a combined 24 years and have 1 championship combined (Wade's 2006 title). Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Jason Terry, and Peja Stojakovic have a combined 62 years experience and no rings to show for it. Tell me which group probably wants it more. This Mavs team NEEDS to win now. The Heat want it, but the urgency just isn't there for them.

So my final pick.

Dallas over Miami in 6 games........I hope

NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS

Boston Bruins over Vancouver Canucks

DISCLAIMER: I have only been a hockey fan for a little over 3 weeks, so these predictions are probably terrible.

I became a hockey fan when my precious Celtics were knocked out of the NBA playoffs. The Boston Bruins were still in the hockey playoffs, and there is something that is just more exciting about playoff hockey than regular season hockey. Anyways, this particular Bruins team has me hooked on hockey right now. They have every ingredient of a successful and entertaining team. Let's start with the goaltender. Tim Thomas grew up extremely poor and has played all around the world. His incredible will and determination led the Bruins to signing him and his improvement has given him the opportunity to be the starter. He has been, unquestionably, the best goalie in the playoffs, even going so far as to guarantee the Bruins would beat the Lightning in the conference finals and coming through with a Game 7 shutout. The Bruins defense, from what I've seen, is pretty solid. With Chara and others on the defensive side of the ice, the Bruins leads are usually safe. On offense they have Nathan Horton, Milan Lucic, David Krejci, Tyler Seguin, and Patrice Bergeron as their big time players. Again, I'm not an expert on hockey by any means, but these guys have come through in every series so far and I have no reason to think that they'll let me down now.

I'll be honest, I probably couldn't name more than one guy on Vancouver's team, and I have never seen them play, but I like what I see from the Bruins.

Final Score

Bruins bring home the Stanley Cup in 7 games. Boston has a party.

Other Sports odds and ends:

-Congratulations to Charlie Furbush on making his big league debut with the Tigers. It was very surreal to see someone that I went to high school with pitching on a major league mound against the Red Sox. Making South Portland proud, keep up the great work.

-Speaking of the Red Sox, it looks like they're starting to roll. Everything is starting to come together for the Sox right now as the pitching has been excellent and the hitting timely. With everything else sports related going on now, it's tough to keep up with the Sox, but if they are lucky enough to still be playing in October, we might point to this as when they turned it around.

-Scottie Pippen called Lebron a "better basketball player" than Michael Jordan. Really? Really Scottie? You could probably say better than anyone else how good Michael was, but are you really going to put Lebron over him? Maybe you forgot about the six rings MJ won you or how he was the MVP in all six of those NBA Finals. Let's wait until Lebron wins at least a couple before we start to throw him into the "Best Player Ever" conversation.

-Fun fact about the Bruins: If they win the Stanley Cup, then the Patriots will be the Boston team with the longest Championship drought. It's been a pretty good past 10 years for New England sports.

Well thanks for reading, and as always please leave a comment telling me what you thought of it.

Good-Bye Macho Man

Thank you for the comments on my last entry, and I'd love see even more on this one.

Very few times in life do you meet someone or see someone on t.v. that you truly believe is going to live forever. You know that no one can live forever, but there's just something about the person that makes you believe they will never get older. It's usually a person that you don't see on a regular basis and maybe haven't seen in many years. You know the years are going by, but memories don't age, and every time you think of them they are the same age that you remember them at.

Macho Man Randy Savage was one of those guys for me. He was one of the greatest wrestlers of all time and someone that I grew up watching and idolizing. In my mind he will always look like this:

Unfortunately, people do age and Macho was no exception. Out of the public eye since 2004, he had stopped dying his beard and hair, dropped the flashy outfits and sunglasses, and ditched the cowboy hat. More recent pictures of Savage were less flattering with a clearly aged Savage, now 58, although he still had the charisma that made him famous. He now resembled Santa Clause more than the Macho Man I remembered.

After doing some digging, I found that this new Macho Man Randy Savage had just gotten married and was fully at peace with his life. For those of you that don't know, Savage's first wife was the First Lady of Wrestling Miss Elizabeth. The two were wrestling's perfect couple until their divorce in the early nineties. Unfortunately Miss Elizabeth would pass away in the early 2000's from an accidental drug overdose.

For over 30 years the Macho Man Randy Savage entertained me and millions of others around the world by sharing his incredible talents. Whether it was on the mic or in the ring, Randy Savage was world class and always a cut above the rest. He was one of the greatest characters in the history of professional wrestling, appreciated by more than just wrestling fans as evidenced by the respects paid by Sportscenter, PTI, Around the Horn, CNN, FoxNews, and many other national media outlets. A whole generation of kids grew up in the 80's and 90's watching the Macho Man, with his trademark catch phrase of "Oooooooohhh Yeahhhhhh" and his advice to everyone to "Snap into a Slim Jim". If you haven't tried to do an imitation of the Macho Man's trademark voice, then you're one of the few.

So now, I end this blog with some links to a sampling of some of the greatest hits of the Macho Man. First, his legendary match with Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat at Wrestlemania III in front of 93,000 people. If matches aren't really your thing, check out some of his greatest promos. He pulled off the intense, crazy guy better than anyone. And as you can see, even 7 years after leaving the spotlight, and less than a year before his passing, the man still had it.

RIP Randy Poffo aka Macho Man Randy Savage. Thank you for making me believe in you when I was a little kid, you were the best.

Reunited.

P.S. The rumor is that Macho saved us from the Rapture that was supposed to happen Saturday.