TweetThoughts and prayers with the families of the tragic shooting in Connecticut, it is sad that not even children are safe from gun violence. Hopefully a serious re-examination of gun control initiatives will occur as a result of this terrible tragedy.
I decided to leave some time between the writing of this post and the actual trade in order to have a fair evaluation of the trades' outcome. By now, all NBA fans are well aware that James Harden now plays (and stars) for the Houston Rockets while Kevin Martin is filling in Harden's old role at Oklahoma City. One could make the case that both teams benefited from the trade. Houston once again has a legitimate NBA star (and a lock-in to be in the all-star game) in Harden, who is averaging career bests in points (25.0), assists (5.4), and rebounds (4.4). Now that he is no longer confined to a 6th man role, and does not have to share the ball with two other stars, we are able to see exactly why Rockets GM Daryl Morey pulled the trigger on this trade. Oklahoma city meanwhile, sits on top of the West and as of this writing, is working on a 9-game winning streak. They do not have to play with the distraction of Harden's contract situation, they can secure Ibaka long term, and Kevin Martin has proven to be at least an adequate fill-in for Harden.
Questions remain about their ability to perform in the playoffs (no way to answer how they will do until we actually see them in action) and their potential to take the next step and win the NBA title, but for now things are looking good. So, the answer to the question posed in the title of this post appears to be easy: Oklahoma will not regret the trade. But is it that simple? In the short-term they appear to be playing just as well as last year and their main threat (the "reloaded" Lakers) could not be in more disarray at the moment. However, we need to consider how they will play against the top teams in the league without Harden. Can they beat the Spurs in a playoff series without him? Harden was a key part of the reason that OKC managed to beat the best team in the league last year, so how do you think San Antonio felt when they learned about the trade? What about Memphis? The Grizzlies could not cope with Oklahoma having all three of Harden, Durant, and Westbrook in the game, but Memphis handled the new-look OKC with relative ease in their game earlier this year. What about the Clippers? Can OKC keep up with them without Harden's play-making ability? No disrespect to Kevin Martin, he is a good scorer and a definite threat, but he is not able to create plays for his teammates as well as Harden is. Again, only time will answer these questions, but if you ask any team in the NBA who they would rather have: Martin? or Harden? I think that almost all of them would take Harden.
It is for that reason that I believe that the long-term answer to the question this post asks appears to be that Oklahoma will, in fact, regret trading Harden. It is as simple as: they gave up the better player in the deal. NBA history is littered with examples of teams having regret over trading more talent for less talent. The ones that immediately come to mind are: the Lakers and Heat Shaq trade, The Toronto Vince Carter trade (the franchise is still recovering from that one) and the Pau Gasol trade, just to name a few. All of those trades either made title contenders out of average teams, or doomed the team that gave up talent to mediocrity. Oklahoma will not be mediocre because they have immense talent on their roster already, but the ceiling of the team's potential went from "potential dynasty" to "lucky to win one title". I think that this drop-off will surface during the playoffs this year (I am not expecting this team to make the finals again) where Oklahoma city will look way less dominant (12-3 in the West playoffs last year) and lose to a team that they would have beaten with Harden on the roster.
Daki: I
don't think that there could be a better way to reunite the founding members of
the Millennium blog than with a discussion about all things Toronto Raptors and
some NBA talk. So I hit up Jovan and Luka with this message after another
gritty effort by the Raps fell short (a 6-point loss to Brooklyn without 6
rotation players). Guys, we may or may not have placed a decent sum of money on
the "over" for the Raptors win total (which we thought was a
hilarious number of 'only' 32.5). My question to you is: On a scale of one to
ten; with ten being "we may as well have lit our money on fire" how
depressed are you right now? Furthermore what do you guys think is the matter
with this team? Things have gotten so bad that even Amir Johnson lost his cool
in a very bizarre manner and threw his mouth-guard at a ref. Reading the RealGM
forums is making me clinically depressed about this team, and the Leafs are
outselling the Raptors and they don't even have a season! Please share your
thoughts.
Luka: Hate
to answer your question with another question but what isn't wrong with these
guys? The defense that Dwane Casey managed to squeeze out of the rag-tag
line-up we had last year (shout out to Uzoh) is completely gone. I'm pretty
sure we hold the record for allowed wide open threes after several blown
rotations followed by a guy standing and watching instead of properly closing
out. Our rotations are an absolute disaster as well because Casey refuses to
play Davis (really improved this year, looks legit and plays well every
time he gets minutes) and Valanciunas (love everything I've seen from him
this year, will make mistakes as all rookies do) at the same time, instead
giving those minutes to Amir "Can you believe I am making almost 20 million
for the next 3 years" Johnson, Aaron "You couldn't move
slower if you tried" Gray and Bargs who quite frankly isn't worth
mentioning the way he's played this year. Jose continues to troll the
organization by looking fantastic as a starter and then like absolute garbage
(compliment) as a bench guy despite playing against weaker opposition in the
latter scenario. It's almost as if he wants another PG controversy so he can
win over the job and then become absolutely mediocre once he gets it. You could
say I should cut the Raps some slack, their top 2 small forwards have been out
for most of the year after all until you realize they're Landry Fields and Alan
fucking Anderson. The few bright spots this year have been Davis, Val and
DeRozan whose play has quieted the critics of his contract extension. I never
had a problem with the deal because that's the market price for a player of
Demar's caliber and to his credit he's been much improved this year.
The big reason that I've already typed this many words on a 4-19 team is Andrea
Bargnani. Remember when Bargs showed us the "player he could be" last
year in that magical 13-game stretch? I think Bargs drowned that guy in a big
bowl of Pasta Primo and sauce before the year. All in all I've never seen less
fucks given on the basketball court by a "marquee" guy. I mean if I
have to watch Andrea brick one more flat-footed contested long 2 followed by
that completely blank stare, I'm going to lose it. Just get him out. I don't
care for who at this point. The guy is everything that's wrong with this team.
Jovan: The
scale is definitely at a 10. I’m willing to accept that we have lost our money
because the way this team is playing right now, there is no chance they are
winning another 29 games. They are 1-14 on the road right now and I don’t even
see how they could win a second game. Lowry was a good offseason addition, but
since his injury three games in, the Raps have been shitting the bed. Bargnani
has reached a new low – he was never good on defense (and he is challenging
Jose as the worst help defender in the NBA), and the only part of his game that
was of any use (his offense) has completely disappeared. Ed Davis would be a
much better option for this team, as his overall ability has vastly improved
since last season, but the front office is still telling Casey to play Bargs.
Other than Bargnani, we have Jose, who only knows how to rack up assists (when
he starts) and do nothing else. Valanciunas has been average in his rookie
season and the others haven’t done anything of any value. Thankfully, the Raps
got rid of McGuire and brought in Pietrus, who is a decent defender, but lacks
consistency on offense. Casey can’t coach in the fourth, and Colangelo hasn’t
been able to do anything since Garbajosa’s injury. This team is spiralling
downward and they need to start making some changes. They need a fresh start.
Daki: Man,
I am so glad you brought up Garbajosa, a player so vastly underrated by Raptors
fans that it saddens me that some people still think he was not an important
part of those competitive Raptors teams. That brings up the bigger picture, BC
and the front office need to stop this love affair with Bargs and Jose. Swallow
your pride and bring Bargnani off of the bench until he can prove that he
deserves to start. I am a Casey fan and I think he has been dealt a tough hand,
but the man needs to grow some balls and stand up to the front office. I feel
that once a coach does this, the organization could move forward after being
stuck in the same spot for almost a decade now. To comment on your thoughts,
Derozan's play has been a major positive and its nice to see that guys on this
team at least still care and try hard. I feel that the early losses, all of
which hinged on two or three plays and one or two missed calls (awarding the
ball to Indiana based on "inconclusive" evidence and the no call on
Gilchrist when he fouled Bargnani being the examples which stand out the most)
have really affected the psyche of this team. But do you know what the worst
part is? Oklahoma City has our pick if it is not in the top 3! When will people
realize that Colangelo is not a good GM and that his dad was calling all the
shots for the Suns when they were contenders? The key to a good organization
starts at the top, and right now, we should be clearing house.
Luka: It
should let you know how successful the Raptors have been over the last few
years when die-hard fans consistently remember a Spanish role player who may or
may not have known how to shower as a franchise high point. This year's edition
of the Raps and in general the team going forward is one that I believe can't
succeed with Bargs as a part of it. Casey's Raptors are striving to be this
tough, defensive-minded team that hustles for every loose ball and never gives
up. Does that sound anything like Andrea Bargnani to you guys? No and that's
why he has to go. If the rumored trade of Pau Gasol for Jose, Kleiza, and Bargs
somehow happens, we’ll be forced to realize a few things. One, that the Lakers
whose major weakpoint is D don't watch basketball because that could be the
only reason they'd want two pylons on the defensive end (hey but at least jose
does the fake hustle crap and claps every time someone shoots. Please LA, take
these clowns.) and two, that we'd be on Kobe homicide watch playing with
Bargnani. Can you imagine a worse pairing than that? One is the most
competitive guy in the league who is only second to Jordan in completely
belittling his teammates while the other guy is 7 ft tall, gets about 2 boards
a game and probably feels proud of his achievements. Either way I'm praying at
the altar of Gasol for this to happen.
Jovan: The trade for Gasol unfortunately won't happen
because Kobe isn't stupid enough to allow it. As you said, no one in their
right mind would want Bargnani right now. He still has another year left
on his ridiculous contract (for the way he's currently playing, he should
be getting D-League salary) and is of no use to any team in the NBA
because no one wants a hole on defense. I don't understand why they keep
pushing this guy to try and become the player everything thought he could
be. He had the potential, but lacks basic defensive intelligence and can’t
catch a rebound to save his life. Perhaps he isn't playing this badly on
purpose, but the lack of effort to become the player he could have been is
almost worse than what Carter did to us. At least he said he didn't want
to play for the Raps. Bargs is consistently playing like shit and isn't
making any efforts to help us get any wins. Either sit the fuck down on the
bench or start making a contribution to this team. Colangelo needs to
realize this as well. You gave him the contract (and you also gave Jose
his contract) - you know, when you think about it, Colangelo
hasn't been able to do anything useful in a long time. This entire
organization is falling apart, and as Daki mentioned, it's time we start
clearing house. We have a few good pieces, but with the record that we
have now, it's evident that major changes have to be made. First
and foremost however, get rid of Il Mago - he's anything but a magician.
No NBA team wants to be a laughingstock, but the Raptors are at the bottom
of the power rankings in my book.
Daki: I am praying for that trade to happen for so
many reasons. Gasol is a legitimate star, the Kobe-Bargnani dynamic would be
amazing, especially because Kobe is fluent in Italian, and the Raptors would
finally have a foundation. But knowing the Raptors (and the Lakers) this is
more likely to happen: Bargnani would morph into Dirk 2.0, Jose and Nash will
be the first point guard tandem to have the much coveted 50-40-90 percentages,
and Kleiza would morph into a poor man's Robert Horry, and Sports Illustrated
will be publishing "the genius of D'antoni" articles. On the flip
side, Gasol would revitalize the franchise, we would make the playoffs next
season and then he would leave as a free agent. I realize that this scenario is
unlikely, but the fact that it would not shock anyone if it happened speaks
volumes. Can the Raptors even push for the heady heights of 11th in the East
this year? Just for fun: if you guys had any say, what three things would you
change right now to make this season more watchable? Bonus points for creative
answers.
My three:
The fans: Dust off those "VC sucks" chants and
just go a letter higher in the alphabet so we can get some nice "BC
sucks" chants going. Seriously, do this and not even Leo will be able to
sugar-coat it, and that guy sugar-coats the Raptors more than anyone. Want
proof? Here, taken directly off Raptorsrepublic (A great blog if you are a fan
of the Raptors by the way)
"Gotta love Leo Rautins ripping Andray Blatche and Joe
Johnson for lack of effort when we got Andrea Bargnani on the team. Who he
should be ripping is the coach who, for some reason, let one of our hottest
players in JV ride the bench way too long in the fourth."
If it’s one thing Toronto is good at, its letting people in
the sports world know when they suck at their job, let’s put some pressure on
the organization and run Colangelo out of town so that he can destroy another
team.
Secondly, pay Bargnani by the rebound. I for one would love
to see how much effort he would give if he could only earn money by rebounding.
Luka: Because this season has been so un-watchable,
I'm going to cheat and give more than 3.
Fire Leo Rautins. Watching games where Leo is doing the
color commentary have become painful, the guy doesn't really have anything
useful to say and it honestly feels like Matt Devlin hates him (who can blame
him?).
Take away the 100-point pizza offer. Our on-court product
is embarrassing enough as it is. We don't need to cringe every time we score
100 points in a blowout and the fans react like the Leafs just won the cup.
It's a slice of pizza. Just because you're getting it for free doesn't make it
any more important. Just chill when you get it.
Play Ed and Val way more. I'll take mistakes from these two
because they're trying their hearts out over laziness and lack of care any day.
Bring back the striped Raptors jerseys!! It seems like
every single team in the NBA has had a retro night with every single jersey in
that team's history except for the Raps who've only played in those Huskies
jerseys which are fine but they're not the ones we want.
Make Casey coach an entire game wearing a hat. Dwane Casey
doesn't know how to put on a hat. Seriously watch any of his interviews where
he's wearing one. It looks like he purposely laid it on top of his head just
enough so it wouldn't fall off. I'd definitely watch this game with way more
interest than any others.
Fire BC and trade Bargnani. With these two guys gone (and
hopefully Jose) we'll finally be able to move from the "Euro" era of
the Raptors into the future. Let's get this done.
Jovan: Bring back Chuck Swirsky. As good as Devlin is,
I really miss our players hitting shots from downtown Petersborough and making
other teams eat Spalding. The salami and cheese would never be taken out for
its intended use because of the way the Raps have been playing, but at least
you could get some laughs throughout the game even though you would probably
already be laughing at how bad the Raps are.
I’m going to repeat one of the points above. Fire BC and
get rid of Bargs. Both of them have done nothing of any use for this franchise.
I don’t understand why BC was rehired a few years back when the Raps were
already going downhill. Maybe the owners don’t want the Raps to ever be a good
team.
Rather than taking away the 100-point pizza offer, I would
cut it down to 75 points. Air Canada is currently offering fans the chance to
win a prize if they can correctly guess who will score the 75th point, but
twice this year (if not more) fans lost their chance to win because the Raps
couldn’t even manage 75 points. It’s kind of embarrassing. This wouldn’t make
the season more watchable, but at this point, I don’t really know if anything
could.
Lastly, for the love of God, start winning some more games.
Otherwise, forfeit the season so that we don’t lose our lottery pick.
This seems like a good spot to end
it, hopefully things will improve and the team will start to play better,
otherwise; fire everybody. Cheers!
There aren’t many surprises here. There are three films
currently competing for the Oscar for Best Motion Picture, and all three have
been nominated. The two dramas are Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty and the other
is Les Miserables. For the dramas, it will come down to whether the voters have
a higher honor for their history or their politics. And Les Miserables seems to
be a lock at this moment in the Musical/Comedy category.
Movies – Best
Actor/Actress
Lead actor for a drama will most likely go to Daniel Day-Lewis,
as he delivered an excellent performance as the 16th US president
and voters are aware of his acting abilities (he may become the first actor to
win three Oscars for Best Actor in February). Joaquin Phoenix’s performance was
insane and he’s definitely the runner-up in my book, but I don’t see votes
picking him over DDL.
Lead actor for a musical or comedy is going to have no
effect on the Oscars because none of these guys will win, but Hugh Jackman is
currently the frontrunner and it’s good to see Bradley Cooper nominated for his
terrific portrayal of a man with bi-polar struggling to deal with himself and
his family.
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Wow! It feels like its been forever since I last posted something. One would think that after four years of University I would have learned to manage my time by now but this clearly is not the case. Better late than never I suppose.
Continuing my take on the NBA, I feel that tonight is a good night to talk about the Spurs, especially since Pop ruined TNT's potential ratings by sending Tony Parker, Danny Green, Manu Ginobili, and Tim Duncan home early, right before a marquee match-up with the Miami Heat. My first thought? "About time!" I have been waiting for a quirky Popovich story for quite some time now and am glad that he delivered in a big way. Obviously, not everyone was happy about this, but I actually think its both brilliant and hilarious. The reason I like this move by the Spurs is that they know championships are not won on a Thursday night in November. Popovich is thinking long term all the way here, he is absolutely entitled to give his best players a rest if he thinks that they need one. To him, it doesn't matter if they lose an extra regular season game, what matters is that he keeps his players fresh for the games that actually count. Am I a little bit upset that I wont get to watch the best match-up of the year so far? Absolutely. Am I mad at Popovich? Absolutely not, the man is a brilliant coach and people should not be questioning him at this point. As an added bonus, Popovich will get to see what he really has on his roster. He can see if guys like Gary Neal, Cory Joseph, and DeJuan Blair deserve spots in the rotation or not (what better way to evaluate your players than against the defending NBA champions?), and he ultimately may find an x-factor for the playoffs that he didn't know he had.
Now that the major talking point of tonight's game is out of the way I can talk a bit about the Spurs in general. First of all; how are these guys still so relevant? They are winning games and dismantling teams like its 2003 and Tim Duncan has not looked this good in almost five seasons! How good has Duncan been this year? Apart from his numbers being up across the board, he is also top-5 in the league in PER, the go-to formula for evaluating NBA players. Duncan is playing so well that I am beginning to think that he was injured over the past two seasons and was just playing through it. Whatever the case is, if he can maintain this level of performance throughout the season, the Spurs should be considered a serious contender for the title. The more I follow the NBA the more I realize that teams like the Spurs (particularly from 1999 and on) are very rare and it saddens me to know that they can't continue this forever, at least not with this group of players. When was the last time a team in the NBA was picked to 'finally fall off' for almost eight years running and never wavered? Will we ever see another team put together a decade's worth of fifty win seasons, multiple titles, and several great players while flying completely under-the-radar? A team so many people labeled as 'boring' and dismissed them just because ESPN told them to do it, yet even when they give people what they want (a high-scoring Juggernaut that plays beautiful basketball) the people still disrespect them? I realize that most of what I have said does not apply to die-hard NBA fans who take their time and actually watch the games before forming opinions, but these fans are few and far between. So I urge you: forget about your bias, watch this team, and appreciate the things they do, it might be a long time before you see something like them again.
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With NBA previews and predictions up seemingly everywhere, it seems redundant to rehash the same old questions: Who will be the MVP, who will win the title, who will make the playoffs etc. There is a lot more to an NBA season's stories than just numbers, awards, and predictions. So in the coming weeks, as the NBA picture begins to unfold, we will examine some of the more interesting teams and story lines associated with them.In the first part of what will be many features about the 2012/2013 NBA season, we will examine the overhauled Los Angeles Lakers and a potential change in mentality of Kobe Bryant.
When the news that Kobe plans to retire at the end of the 2014 season came out, I was genuinely surprised. Like many, I thought that Kobe would attempt to break the all-time scoring record before he hung it up, but it seems that he wants to try and accomplish what so few in the NBA have done: go out both as the leader of your team and as a winner (Bill Russell is the only one I can think of that did this, Jordan did too until he ruined the perfect end to a career by playing with the Wizards). Think about it, Magic, Bird, Shaq, Isiah, Hakeem, Barkley, Miller, Stockton, Malone, Payton, Ewing, and many others, how did their careers end? Some said "F*ck it, I gave it my all, I am happy with what I've accomplished and wont resort to latching onto a contender to try and win a ring" - Stockton, Reggie, Barkley, Ewing. Some just realized that their run was over and that they would never be the main guy on a title team, so they too called it quits - Bird, Magic, Isiah, Hakeem, Shaq (who actually managed to try and latch on to every contender he could in a sad attempt to tie Kobe). While the rest shamelessly pursued a ring, regardless of their role on the team and in some cases succeeded (Gary Payton) or failed (Malone). If the Lakers manage to capture the title in Kobe's last season, it would be a truly unique accomplishment that very few NBA players can say they achieved. You can make the argument that Kobe wont be the best player on the team, but this is still very much 'his' team as far as anyone is concerned. You don't associate Dwight Howard with the Lakers, you do associate Kobe Bryant with them.
TweetDaki: Luka, I just realized that once the NBA starts we may never talk about anything else on this blog. I think this is a perfect time to bust out the time tested gimmick of exchanging e-mails and talk NFL picks (for maybe the last time until playoffs). Just to drive that point home I will sprinkle in random NBA tidbits throughout the post. But first, we might as well start with one of the games of the week in the NFL. The Atlanta Falcons going up against the Eagles of Philadelphia. How do you think your Eagles will do this week against the undefeated Falcons? The line has moved all the way to -3 and it seems that people are trusting Andy Reid off a bye-week vs. Andy Reid in any other game.
Atlanta (+3) At Philadelphia
I gotta say, I love the Eagles to win here, can't really explain why, but I just think that they are too talented to be so mediocre and with Andrew Bunym's knee injury, the people of Philadelphia need hope!
Luka: My favorite Eagles week this year was last week and we had it off. Everyone says the same thing when they talk about this team, that they could win by 40 or lose by 40 any given week and it's true. For this week though, I also am feeling an Eagles win. Reid is inexplicably great after bye weeks and a Falcons team that has practically clinched their division already (Let-Down game!!) adds up to a possible Philly victory that will get all their fans (myself included) praising the likes of Vick and Jackson as the second-coming of Montana and Rice. I'm personally excited to start calling a (hopefully) 4-3 team the Super-Bowl favorites next week. As for Bynum and the Sixers, I don't think any fan will tell you they were shocked when they started hearing Bynum injured stories. That comes with the territory but I do hope he gets better and we have an NBA season where the Atlantic Division is undoubtedly the strongest (maybe the Mayans were right).
Daki: Yes, for the first time in a long time it seems that the East actually managed to get stronger across the conference. Speaking of strong conferences, how about this NFC? I am making a slightly bold prediction that 11 wins might not be enough for the playoffs and that one team from the NFC East, North, and West will legitimately feel that they could have made the playoffs in almost any other season. Which is what makes games like these:
Carolina (+7.5) At Chicago
So important. Chicago has relatively few "easy" games left and has to win them all to a) keep up with Atlanta for home-field advantage and b) fend off teams like the Giants and Packers for a first-round bye. Am I crazy or does Carolina get random respect from Vegas? Chicago by 2+ touchdowns lock it down.
Luka:I agree with your point on Vegas' unfounded respect for the Panthers and think it has to come from the Cam Newton effect. But is he even that good? I mean don't get me wrong, hes incredibly gifted physically but his team is 1-5 and it seems like every week more and more stories of Cam throwing his teammates under the bus seem to surface. I too like the Bears to cover this game. Chicago is somehow a sneaky 5-1.
Daki: Chicago is playing the old San Antonio Spurs trick of not drawing any attention as they demolish the league.
Indianapolis (+3.5) At Tennessee
Is it possible that one of these two teams could sneak into the AFC playoffs? Have they caught the guy giving Chris Johnson steroids? That has to be the logical explanation of his sudden re-emergence as a running back who can beat teams by himself. Johnson scares me enough to pick the Titans at home here
Luka: Lance Armstrong's guy had to find a new client. As for the game I feel like it'll come down to whether or not you trust Chris Johnson's ability to string consistent games together (Matt Hasselbeck is starting for the Titans. Yes, you read that correctly) and personally I feel like until I see it again, I'm not jumping back onto that ship. So give me Luck and the Colts to somehow be 4-3 after this game. Quick, let's go to the next game though before I change my mind.
Jacksonville (-14.5) At Green Bay
Daki: *sigh* The Jaguars? We have to talk about one of the least interesting franchises in North American sports? CFL teams are more interesting than these guys. At least they get to be one of the teams that the Packers slaughter on their way back to 'Superbowl team' status. Why isn't David Stern running the NFL? He would have moved the Jaguars to Toronto years ago. Even better, nobody would have cared (unlike the Seattle Sonics fans). On that note what do you think of Stern announcing his retirement (15 months early?) I will always remember him as the guy who screwed the 02' Kings out of a title and as a stubborn old man who to this day refuses to acknowledge that his league has a massive officiating problem.
Luka: I just thought of something, how amazing would it be if the NFL adopted a relegation system with the CFL where the worst two teams in the NFL get replaced by the two best CFL teams each year? You're telling me this game wouldn't be more fun to talk about if Green Bay had to go to Saskatchewan to take on the Rough Riders instead? Goodell and CFL commissioner whose name I didn't even bother googling. Let's make this happen. Green Bay should demolish the Jags at home so i'll pick them to cover although I'm not feeling it's a lock they'll win by 2+ touchdowns. David Stern I'll always remember as this sort of grumpy old bully who despite some missteps (the microfiber ball? that was fun) has made the NBA a juggernaut of a league worldwide. All i ask from him before he retires is to move a team back to Seattle and to give the Kings the 02 title. The early 2000's Lakers were the most unlikable team in that era (Fuck Rick Fox) so who's saying no to this?
Daki: The people who are saying no to that are those moronic Laker fans who think that Kobe is the best player in the league today (sorry, he may not be top 5 anymore). I love the relegation idea, if anything it would single-handily save the CFL. Can you imagine if the Redskins had to go to Montreal (the team who they stole the Expos from) for a playoff game? Nazi Germany would receive a better welcome. If by some miracle anyone in the NFL/CFL is reading this make it happen! All we ask is for credit and royalties. Anyways, on to the next game:
Miami Dolphins (+3) At New York Jets
A perplexing line to me. I think that this Jets team is sneaky underrated and will take care of business in this key division game.
Luka: A good defense combined with a wacky offense and the dynamic duo of Sanchez and Tebow (kidding, obviously) spells trouble for the Dolphins this week. I'll take the Jets too although i wouldn't be surprised if I turn on the game in the second quarter to see a score of 24-0 for the Dolphins while the Jets fans boo Sanchez and plea for Tebow. Also, Rex Ryan has to be in the conversation for coach of the year right? I mean who's on this Jets team?
Daki: Absolutely.
New England (-7) Vs. Rams - From London England!
Perplexing that this game will be on at the same time that Chelsea takes on Man U and Liverpool plays Everton in the Merseyside derby. Just poor decision making from the NFL schedule makers here. I think that the Rams cover this week, the Patriots need to prove that they are a good team before spreads over 4 points are applied to them.
Luka: I`m taking the Patriots, Chelsea, and a draw in the Merseyside derby. I`m not sure anyone in London even cares that they get an NFL game each year. If the NFL was serious in expanding its popularity across the globe, you`d think that this game would be a bigger deal each year and yet it never is. Strange.
Daki: San Diego (-3) At Cleveland A.k.a: Free money!
Luka: It should tell you how bad the Chargers season is going that I was going to pick the Browns this week before reading that Trent Richardson might be out. Without Richardson I think that Cleveland's offense will be more reliant on Brandon Weeden and no one should have to bet on a team "more reliant on Brandon Weeden". So give me the mediocre Chargers on the road.
Daki: Seattle (+2.5) At Detroit
At first I almost wagered all I had on this game, then I realized that the game is being played in Detroit and not in Seattle. The fact of the matter is that the Seahawks are not a very good road team and I fully expect the Lions to cement that notion.
***The James Harden Trade put everything into flux for this post, so we shelved it and decided to stop here.
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It has been a really long time since I've done a serious 'entertainment' post. On a blog that prides itself on writing about sports and entertainment, you would think something like this would be written more often. In my defense, there really has not been anything interesting to write about entertainment-wise, since breaking bad ended. Yes, there have been a few movies that have come out but are you really going to care about our reviews when you have websites like collider, rottentomatoes, and IMDB? I thought so. Luckily for you (all six of you that care about my TV opinions), there has been a flood of watchable shows on television recently, well... maybe not a flood, but enough to give me material to write about. So without further ado, here is a mini rundown of some shows that I have been watching. There maybe some minor spoilers ahead so be careful.
Dexter
With Dexter seasons you just know. Seasons one, two, and four were good; the other seasons either sucked or were very forgettable (with season 6 being being just mediocre at best). This season, I am happy to say, falls in the 'good' category, at least so far. I wont get too much into it as I am considering doing full out reviews for the rest of the Dexter season, but I will point out some things that I like about this season. In no particular order, here are the things that are making this season click, presented in note form:
-The main villain is actually pretty interesting
Who would have thought that Isaac would make for a really decent 'main' bad guy? He is smart, ruthless,and the king of some weird human exploitation empire. He already found out that Dexter killed one of his henchmen (and we are not even at episode four yet), and who ever the actor is that is playing him, is doing a really good job. We have not had a villain this interesting in Dexter since season four (the trinity killer), which was easily the best season, so these are all good things!
-The supporting characters actually have things to do
Whereas in past Dexter seasons, particularly the brutal third season, LaGuerta, Quinn, and company had really dull and useless side-plots (usually culminating in personal problems and self-rediscovery) this season there is actually *gasp* development! LaGuerta actually acts like a police officer and starts investigating a Dexter mistake (a forgotten blood slide) which is leading her to re-opening the 'Bay-Harbor Butcher' investigation. This is a genuinely interesting side-plot that does not make you groan when it comes up. Louis was shaping up to be an interesting character (more on him in the future), Quinn's story-line is just asking for trouble. For the first time in a really long time, Dexter episodes are complete and not just 20 minutes of content you care about with the rest being fast-forwarded.
-The story is developing at a good pace
A lot of people who watch the show complained that the second episode of the season was a major disappointment. In some sense they had a point. The episode did not really have much action and focused more on the characters and their development. So why did I still enjoy it? Because unlike other seasons' this was actually interesting. It is fun watching a story grow into something bigger (a simple 'Dexter' kill that leads to Ukrainian mob bosses coming to Miami for example).
That is all I will choose to comment on at this time about Dexter, as you can see, I will probably write about the show a lot more.
Arrow
Based on the popular DC comics character "Green Arrow" This is a new show on the CW (think Smallville) that takes a darker and more gritty approach to a super hero story (I know, I know shocking). To be fair, the original story is pretty dark in itself so this is not much of a reach at all, in fact, it works really well. For those of you who don't know: "Green Arrow" is the super-hero identity of one Oliver Queen (Bruce Wayne without the dead parents). There are a lot of variations to his origin so I will keep it basic. Essentially, Queen is left for dead in the middle of the Ocean, betrayed by the same men who betrayed his father, he washes up on an island and has to learn how to survive. For five long years he hunts, builds arrows, and forages on the unknown island until he notices a ship and promptly signals to be rescued. The experience on the island changed him vastly. No longer will he squander his wealth on partying, but will instead seek to avenge his father by bringing an end to the corruption of Star City (basically Gotham). Sounds cool right? Here is a trailer if you aren't convinced.
The best part? The writers have promised that other DC universe characters (Batman, Superman, Flash, Green Lantern to name a few) will be making appearances in the show and will probably be significant parts of the story. For now I am definitely in on arrow.
So this took up a lot more space than I initially imagined, so I will make this a 2-part feature! I will leave you with this clip from South Park that just screams awesome.
This was supposed to be the year where I managed to make picks for every week of the season. The year I could accurately gauge my results and see how much I actually know about predicting the outcomes of football games with point spreads. The year where I would manage my time appropriately and not let school overwhelm me to the point where I could not do the things I liked to do (like write on this blog for example). So much for that. A test, two assignments and a presentation squeezed in-between a trip to Kingston quickly dashed any hope of a week 4 picks post. With some luck that will be the only lost week we have. To get this thing off to a fresh start, Luka and I decided to do a nice back-and-forth for the slate of games in week 5 of NFL action. I kicked things off with the most puzzling spread of the week.
Atlanta Falcons (-3) At Washington Redskins
Daki: Luka, this has to be the weirdest line of the week right? Atlanta is undefeated and coming off of a tough game, looking to prove that they are a much better team than the one that almost lost to Carolina last week. The Atlanta offense vs. the Redskins defense seems like a bigger mismatch than Ron Artest vs. Sanity. Does Vegas know something we don't!?
Luka: The only thing i can think of is Vegas must have a case of RG3 fever because based on their play this season there's no reason Atlanta shouldn't be favored by more than a touchdown. That being said, the Falcons didn't play well at all last week against Carolina and only won due to Andy Reid-like coaching from Ron Rivera and terrible plays by a poor Panthers secondary. With the Nationals making the playoffs for the first time in forever, maybe the Redskins can pull off this upset and make this a Washington weekend. I doubt it though so I'm taking Matty Ice (horrible nickname) and the Falcons.
Daki: I too am taking the Falcons.
Baltimore Ravens (-6.5) At Kansas City Chiefs
Daki: This one seems almost too easy doesn't it? One team (The Ravens) is clearly better than the other and should win this game comfortably. So why do I have an absolutely horrible feeling about taking the Ravens here?
Luka: You shouldn't. Baltimore's going to put KC in a vacant this week. Let's move on.
Cleveland Browns (+8.5) At New York Giants
Daki: Can we just rename the Ravens to be 'The Baltimore Wire'? I would like the team 15x more if this happened. As for this game (and for all six people who plan on watching it) I see the Giants winning but the Browns covering the spread. This Giants team cant play the role of favorites, had they come into this game with only 20 available players I would have taken them without hesitation.
Luka: They could even play the Clay Davis "Shieeeeeeeetttt" soundbite each time they got a penalty. Come on Baltimore, let's make this happen. As for the Giants, I'm not sure they've recovered from the beatdown (extremely close and lucky win) my Philadelphia Eagles put on them last week. In all seriousness though, I can already see what's going to happen with this game. With about 10 minutes left in the 4th quarter the scores will come up on whatever game you're watching and it'll show the Browns up by 7 with the ball. Next thing you know a Brandon Weeden pick-6 will be followed by an Eli late-game drive to give the G-men the win.
Green Bay Packers (-7) At Indianapolis Colts
Daki: And you know that when you finally see the highlights from the game there will be a combination of at least two of the following: miraculously avoided sacks by Eli, sure picks dropped by Browns defenders, A Giants fumble that gets ruled 'down by contact'or blown dead for no reason, a miraculous catch by a Giants wide-receiver. I am anticipating that we will see those highlights at some point of this Packers obliteration of the Colts. Seriously Green Bay, you have not played one complete game of football yet. Make this the week where you send out a friendly reminder to the rest of the NFL that you should be taken seriously, I think this one is over at half.
Luka: Based on talent alone this game shouldn't be close. However, Colts head Coach Steve Spagnolo was sadly diagnosed with leukemia this past week and will not be at the game as he continues to battle the disease. We've seen these types of stories before and these games usually go one of two ways. Either the team battling off-field issues is too emotionally drained to show up or they're as fired up as a team can be. I'm still taking the Packers but this game has a "DO IT FOR COACH" factor that could lead to an upset. Also I'm hoping the Packers continue to get screwed by the refs since it's become a funny subplot of this season.
Miami Dolphins (+3) At Cincinnati Bengals
Daki: Funny for everyone who is not a Packers fan that is. I legitimately feel bad for them, its a real testament to them that they're still finding ways to win. I am also terrified of the "DO IT FOR COACH" factor. As for this Dolphins-Bengals game (If you're scoring at home: that is now four out of a possible five games that will be absolutely terrible to watch on paper) who really knows? The Bengals are 3-1 and I don't think that we could name the teams they've beaten without the aid of the internet. the Dolphins almost beat Arizona last week and honestly, that is the only relevant thing I can think of with them. Is it wrong of me to not care about teams that have no shot at winning the Super Bowl? I'm taking the home-team with the better record here.
Luka: How come the Bengals get no slack for being a shitty 3-1 team and the Eagles do? At least we beat the Giants AND the Ravens! As for this game, stay away unless you have a gambling problem because literally anything could happen. If i had to pick I'd take the Dolphins only because Ace Ventura rescued their mascot and Dan Marino from Ray Finkle (What do you mean that was a movie?!?).
Philadelphia Eagles (+3.5) At Pittsburgh Steelers
Daki: Speak of the devil! To answer your question in the simplest way possible: The Bengals get slack because they do not have a -17 point differential, they are not expected to do anything (the Eagles are), and frankly, no one cares about the Bengals. Its in my nature to hate the Dolphins simply for that whole 'get together and celebrate when the last unbeaten team loses' tradition that is on par with thinking that the early 2000's Lakers squad was a bunch of classy guys. But I could write 50, 000 words about those topics so I will save them for another time. Anyways, your Eagles are long overdue for an absolute Andy Reid time management cluster-fuck that costs them a game (so far he's tried, but has not succeeded in losing a game in this way). He has been getting closer though, and I think that this is the week he pulls it off. I am taking the Steelers who have had the extra week to prepare, are at home, and can't afford to go 1-3.
Luka: I can't handle this Eagles team anymore. I feel like i should be writing a 10000 page hate-filled rant about the season so far and then i look at our record and we're 3-1!! I mean has there ever been a team so talented winning games in spite of themselves? It's nerve-wracking to watch and yet I like our chances this week. Philly is kind of like the Giants in the sense that when they should win, they don't. So I love how no one is picking the Eagles this week. Also, the Andy Reid thing is really getting out of hand. Do you think he thinks he's a horrible coach or that the moronic, impossible to understand decisions he makes week after week are actually beneficial to his team? Can the NFL just make us play with no timeouts since that's 3 less ways he can fuck up the game. Just really really bad coaching. On a positive note though, our pass rush is going to make Ben feel like he made that girl feel in that bathroom (too soon?).
Chicago Bears (-5.5) At Jacksonville Jaguars
Daki: I don't think its ever too soon for Ben jokes (Also I think I just figured out why announcers affectionately call "Ben" by his first name, its a lot easier to say and type than his last name, which I wont bother with). All I know is that I am looking forward to sending you my now weekly "hey, have the Eagles ever finished a game with three time-outs?" BBM. That game will definitely be on a television in the house, a perfect tie-in with this Bears game that even Chicago-area bars might have second-thoughts about showing. I personally think this line is ridiculous and that Vegas is throwing free money at people. So naturally at some point on Sunday I will stare blankly as the ticker at the bottom flashes: Jags 15 Bears 14 (because you know it will be some odd scoreline).
Luka: "YOU DON'T GO IN TO THE HOUSE GABBERT BUILT AND GET A WIN THAT EASY" - no one ever. This line gets even weirder when you realize that the Jags lost to the Bengals last week by 17. The only thing I can think of that would make Vegas put this line so low is that they (like the rest of us) hate Jay Cutler because he's a huge douche. And that's something I can get behind. Take the Bears though, that defense could beat Jacksonville by themselves.
Seattle Seahawks (+3) At Carolina Panthers
Daki: Its like the NFL made sure that everyone would have to watch Brady and Manning by offering can't miss games like these. Seriously, I am on at least my sixth "man this is a crappy game" joke and we only have half as many Wire references? This needs to change. So I'm gonna let your boy Stringer Bell talk to us about this Panthers season so far:
This week the Panthers submit another 40-degree day.
Luka: Best Wire character (possibly greatest TV character) hands down. Also that clip became 100x times better after I pictured Pete Caroll delivering that exact same speech to his team before the game tomorrow. At least we know what we're getting from the Panthers though, a few great Cam Newton plays combined with a lot of other bad stuff. The Seahawks? They're the most confusing team in the league. Russell Wilson might be really bad and this team should be 1-3 not 2-2. If GOLDEN TATE doesn't happen, are the Seahawks even relevant anymore? In my opinion they have to show up for this game and beat the Panthers convincingly if they want to be taken seriously and in my opinion they will. I'm taking the Hawks.
Buffalo (+9.5) At San Francisco
Daki: This is only San Francisco's second home game? Other than that I don't really have much to say as I abstain from commenting or making predictions on the games that involve my favorite team. I will say this though: how is it possible that the NFC West could be the best division in football? In the same year that the Atlantic division in the NBA might be the best one, the Orioles made the playoffs and Oakland is 'money-balling' again miraculously. What's next? A Leafs Stanley Cup?
Luka: The one good thing about the NHL lockout? I can delay my Maple Leafs-induced sadness for a few months. Moving on, how many passes does Fitzpatrick complete? 4? 5? Is it possible to throw for negative yardage? Unless you're a Niners fan, don't watch because this one won't be close. So instead, watch this clip from the greatest Michael Bay movie of all time, 'The Rock' (yes that's Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage in a chase scene in the streets of San Francisco and yes, Connery is driving a Hummer. You can thank me later.)
Denver Broncos (+6) At New England Patriots
Daki: Can we get Bay and Cage in on 'Fast and Furious 6'? Is it too late? Would a movie ever be as unintentionally funny as that one? But I digress. This is easily the game of the week for the NFL. They get to trot out their two golden boys and hype the match-up beyond proportions. So on Sunday expect: Every game's announcers to mention this one. Every studio break will talk about this game. At least 12 "Isn't it great to see these two play against each other again" quotes, and some questionable officiating to keep the game close.
Luka: At this point I'd pay to see Cage in anything. I can't wait for this game even though every Manning pass thrown for more than 20 yards looks like a punt. Am I the only who thinks the Pats are going to kill the Broncos? They have better players at each position and are playing at home. Everyone's going to be watching this game though. Can't wait.
Tennessee Titans (+5.5) At Minnesota Vikings
Daki: You are not the only one, but the NFL be damned if their marquee match-up is a blow out. This next game sucks. I want the Vikings to win though, so I am gonna pick them.
Luka: This game does suck but Minnesota appears to be good (if not good at least average) which defies everything anyone said prior to the season starting. You remember how everyone was deservedly hating on Ponder last season and look at him now. He's done a decent job at a John Elway impression these past 4 weeks and has silenced (for the time being) all of the naysayers. The one thing Vikings fans should be worried about is Matt Hasselbeck starting for the Titans. What's that? It's not 2005? Okay scratch that last thing I said. Let's take the Vikings in this game and move on.
San Diego Chargers (+3.5) At New Orleans Saints
Daki: People laughed at me when I said the Saints would go 6-10, well who's laughing now! On that note, how is an 0-4 team favored in any game? I mean sure that touchdown streak is pretty cool but does anyone actually care? I personally think that if Brees was offered 4-0 and no record, that he would take that option. Also I know that the Matt Ryan MVP bandwagon is gaining steam, so is this not the game for Rivers to throw his hat into the race?
Luka: As weird as this sounds, do you know who I think is loving this Saints season more than anyone else? Sean Payton. He finally has ammunition whenever anyone says he isn't a great coach or that coaching in general isn't important. As for the game, I'm not sure I've seen one snap of Chargers football all year but no matter who they have on the offensive side they should be able to score 30+ points on this terrible Saints D. If I were the Saints defensive coordinator, I'd bring back the bounty system because what's worse? Getting embarrassed each and every week with teams scoring at will on you or the chance that somewhere down the line you get caught by the NFL and punished justly. Alright so that wasn't serious but you have to admit there's some weird logic to it. I'm taking the Chargers in a very high-scoring affair that should be fun to watch.
Monday Night Football: Houston Texans (-8.5) At New York Jets
Daki: Sean Payton must be getting more excited by each loss, because it sets up a dream scenario for him next season: the savior. Its basically a no-lose situation for him (the exact opposite of the replacement refs) If the team does well it is because of him, if they don't then it is because the team is poorly built to begin with. Finally for our last game we get to TEEEEEEBOOOOOOWWWW. Why is Rex Ryan insisting on keeping faith with the Sanchize? Did he not watch football last year? This is an ideal scenario to throw Tebow into. At the very worst he would generate excitement and intrigue about the Jets, and maybe even spark them to a few extra wins. If Tebow were starting I would take the Jets without blinking, but he is not, so I am taking the best team in football (so far) to cover.
Luka: I feel bad for Mark Sanchez, as bad as you can feel for a multi-millionaire that plays football for a living that is. How much must it suck for all of your team's fans to be clamoring for your head on a plate while at the same time begging the coach to play your backup who in every single conceivable, logical way is a much worse quarterback then you?!?! I get that Tebow has magical powers and is the second coming of Jesus but I don't think we'll be seeing him pull his shit this week. If anything, he'll come in with the Jets down 20+ points and proceed to look frisky but that's it. Houston is too good for Tebowmania to strike them. However when the Jets play the Colts next week, watch out. That'll be the first week this year where Tebow turns into TEEEEEEEEEBBOOOOOOOOOWWWWWW. For this week's game beware the backdoor cover by the Jets but nothing more. I'm taking the Texans.
Daki: I really do hope Tebow starts defying the odds again so we can watch fun arguments between analysts and former pro's about whether or not Tebow is actually good. Is it so wrong to cheer for a hard-working athlete who nobody believes in? If Rex eventually gives in and starts playing Tebow and the Jets start winning, it will be another classic 'overcame the odds' story and I don't think that there is a person on the planet who does not enjoy those. In any case, this exchange was actually a lot of fun and we should do it more often.
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Sorry for the lack of an NFL 'big picture' post this week, but I left town to visit my sister on Thursday and had just enough time to post a pick for the Thursday night game. Luckily for me (and my pick) Eli, Tom Coughlin and the Giants came through in a game that no one expected them to win... wait! Did I say luckily? I meant totally expectedly. Bill Belichick and Brady passed that torch to Tom Coughlin and Eli a long time ago and I don't think they will be giving it up any time soon. I have to give credit where credit is due: the Giants are the current model franchise of the NFL. That Thursday night game could have easily been a write-off, yet the smart draft-choices they made (Bill Barnwell of Grantland mentioned an interesting point: since the Eli Manning trade, the Giants have always had their top four picks in each subsequent draft) came into the game and fired on all cylinders. Anyways, lets move on to the rest of the games.
Buffalo (-3) At Cleveland
Ugh. What a terrible game. The Bills got curb-stomped in their opening game, then proceeded to embarrass the Kansas City Chiefs at home. Is Buffalo just going to be good at home? This game will tell us a lot. As for the Browns and their poor fans, this could be one of the only games that they can actually win this year...yay?
The pick: Buffalo
Cincinnati (+3) At Washington
Okay, rising star RG3 took about 50 cheap-shots last week against the rams, and the incompetent replacement officials (their new name) ignored every single one of them. The commissioner will make sure to 'remind' the refs of who the league's stars are and RG3 will draw flags if a defender so much as looks at him this week. Wait a second, this is not the NBA and this is not David Stern pulling the strings. If this were the NBA, I would pick the Redskins in a heart-beat, but its not, so I am going with the Bengals.
The pick: Bengals
Detroit (-4) At Tennessee
I think that this Titans team really sucks and the artist formerly known as Chris Johnson is among the primary reasons why. I think a corpse would gain more yards than he has this season. Take the Lions and the money.
The pick: Detroit
Jacksonville (+3) At Indianapolis
Andrew Luck really showed something at the end of last weeks game against the Vikings. He set up Vinateri (he's still got it) for a game-winning kick in less than 18 seconds! Once the Colts win this game, look for a slew of: "Here come the Colts" stories. Will they really be 2-1?
The pick: Colts
Kansas City (+9) At New Orleans
Both teams are 0-2, both teams desperately need a win to avoid a nightmare-ish 0-3 start, (I can't think of many teams that overcame such starts to make the playoffs, but I am pretty sure the numbers are not good), and both teams might not even be that good. Also working against the saints is D-block reminding me that football teams with major off-the field issues never do well. Kansas might lose, but they can cover the spread.
The pick: Kansas City
New York Jets (-1) At Miami
I think that this is a pretty good Jets team that simply got overwhelmed by a much better Pittsburgh squad last week. This is their chance to prove that point (and make me look really smart).
The pick: Jets
San Francisco At Minnesota
Once again, as I am a fan of the 49ers, I will not be picking their game.
St. Louis (+7) At Chicago
Not since LaDanian Tomlinson was in his heyday with the Chargers has a player (in this case two players) eaten so much crow when talking pre-game. Cutler and Marshal submitted comically bad performances against the Packers of Green Bay in their last outing. Luckily for them, the schedule gives them the Rams this week.
The pick: Chicago
Tampa Bay (+8) At Dallas
Tampa really blew it last week. They had a chance to go 2-0 and send the Giants into a potential tailspin, but instead they are 1-1 and now face the second of their NFC East test. This line is just a little bit too high for my liking.
The pick: Tampa Bay
Atlanta (+3) At San Diego
I know, I am just as baffled as you are that the Chargers are favoured in this game.
The pick: Atlanta
Philadelphia (-3) At Arizona
Okay Arizona, you managed to upset the Patriots in one of the most poorly played last minutes of a game I have ever seen. The Patriots and Cardinals were trying to out-do each other to see who could blow the game in a worse way with the Patriots coming out on top (but not by much). Now you are coming up against a team that I have no idea what to expect from. The Eagles could win by 50 or lose by 50 and I don't think that I would bat an eyelash. Tragically, Vegas took the odds of "Andy Reid screwing up a clock-management situation" props off of the board after they almost went bankrupt last week.
The pick: Eagles
Houston (-1.5) At Denver
Here you go Houston, you know that attention will be paid to this game, this is your chance to send the rest of the AFC (and the league) a message that you are for real.
The pick: Houston
Sunday Night Football/Game of the Week: New England (+2) At Baltimore
The Ravens make their second straight appearance in my gimmicky "game of the week" feature, and what a game this could be! Both teams are coming off losses in games that they feel should have been wins. Both teams do not like each other, and both teams will bring it. It is hard to fathom that one of these two teams will be 1-2 after this game (unless they tie... don't bet on it). Also last week I received a rather annoying post on my Facebook wall about Ray Lewis' performance in week one, so I will return the favour here by posting his stellar week 2 stat-line: 5 whole tackles. That is all. As for the betting aspect of this game, this is one of those that you stay-the-hell away from at all costs and just enjoy what should be a spectacular duel between two AFC contenders.
The pick (since I have to): Ravens
Green Bay (-3.5) At Seattle
I do not fear Qwest Field.
The pick: Packers (and the over)
The results so far
Thursday night games: 2-0
All other games: 7-7
Overall: 9-7
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I am keeping this very brief for reasons that I will explain in the next picks post (coming either Saturday or early Sunday). Tonight's game puts the New York Giants, comeback kings, versus the Carolina Panthers who are led by the dynamic Cam Newton. Eli and Cam could not be more different in terms of athletic ability, one guy looks like an athlete and the other looks like a middle school math teacher (think 'presbo' from the Wire). Anyways, all signs point to a Carolina win tonight: at home, less injured, much better than people gave them credit for over the first two weeks and so on. For this reason I am picking the Giants (-3). Eli and co. have pulled this trick on us before, I am not falling for it again.
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It has been waaaaaaaaaay too long since I did one of these.
For this feature I really dug deep to find a show that I am sure everyone watched religiously as a kid. The show I chose was incredibly fun to watch and (not surprisingly) still holds up today. Not only were the characters interesting and dynamic, the writing was excellent. These are things that modern-day cartoons are severely lacking in, which just further supports the notion that growing up in the 90's was better than growing up in any other decade.
So what cartoon did I chose? Just look below.
That's right, Hey Arnold!
To this day I have yet to find anyone that did not like this show (more likely they have not seen it, and in that case I feel bad for their deprived childhood). I can't do this show any justice by talking about it, so if you have some time to kill definitely check out the link I posted (and then watch several more when you remember how good this show is). I promise 'Best Cartoons VI will come soon. Cheers!
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I initially planned to do these sometime on Saturday, but that plan fell through and I am making the picks for week 2 of the NFL season on Sunday morning. On Thursday, my last-second pick of the Packers over the Bears turned out to be golden. Hopefully that carries over.
Arizona (+14) At New England
The Patriots open their season at home against a team with a weak secondary, a mediocre QB, and not much talent. Expect Tom Brady to put up huge numbers in this one in a blow out.
The pick: Patriots
Game of the week: Baltimore (+3) At Philadelphia
It might be a really bad sign for the Eagles that every person in North America is taking the Ravens in this game (with confidence). To be honest, I have no idea how they came up with this line. The Ravens routed a descent team, while the Eagles barely beat the Browns... the Browns! Perhaps Vegas thinks that the Eagles will actually run the ball more today and be effective doing it, or they are afraid of Vick having one of those games where he just beats a team by himself. Regardless, this week the Ravens send a message to the rest of the NFL.
The pick: Ravens
Cleveland (+7) At Cincinnati
The two teams that lost to the Eagles and Ravens last week! We get a chance to see if Cleveland is actually better than we think, and the Bengals worse. Don't count on it though.
The pick: Cincy
Houston (-6.5) At Jacksonville
AFC contender vs. AFC doormat. Houston has been making noise the past few seasons, and if they want people to take them seriously as contenders they need to brush teams like the Jaguars away convincingly. I think they are contenders and I think they show it by beating up on a much weaker team.
The pick: Houston
Kansas City (+3) At Buffalo
Neither team wants to start 0-2 (well, I don't think anyone actually wants to start off without a win in their first two games) but both teams will look at this as an opportunity to get a W.
The pick: Kansas City
Minnesota (-2.5) At Indianapolis
Andrew Luck should fare much better against a defense that isn't the Bears, but Adrian Peterson should run this Colts team ragged.
The pick: Vikings
Upset Special: New Orleans (-3) At Carolina
This game reminds us of how important coaching is in the NFL and we are treated to a variety of "Whats wrong with the Saints" stories all of next week. Cam Newton wins a fantasy football match-up by himself
The pick: Panthers
Oakland (-1.5) At Miami
A West-coast team travelling East to play a 1pm game in the blistering Miami conditions after having a shorter week to prepare? And Carson Palmer is involved? Take the Dolphins and the money.
The pick: Dolphins
Tampa Bay (+7.5) At New York Giants
Before the season started, I jumped on 16-1 odds on Tampa to win the division. Those odds are now down to 8-1 and I am picking Tampa to win outright today! Of course this means that Eli will tear them apart and make me regret ever typing this.
The pick: Tampa
Dallas (-3.5) At Seattle
Am I the only one who thought the Cowboys defense was really impressive in their season opening win over the Giants? This team might be a sleeper and we just don't see it yet. The Seattle home-field advantage is offset by virtue of the Cowboys getting an extra 3 days to prepare, having played their week 1 game on a Wednesday night.
The pick: Dallas
Washington (-3.5) At St. Louis
The RG3 Band-wagon really takes off after this game once everyone realizes that the Redskins are somehow 2-0.
The pick: Redskins
New York Jets (+4.5) At Pittsburgh Steelers
The team Tebow beat in the playoffs! But that will be about the only good thing going for the Jets this game. Expect a tough, defensive battle, with Pittsburgh shaking off the stink Peyton Manning put on them last week.
The pick: Steelers
Tennessee (+6.5) At San Diego
When you are not sure, take the points.
The pick: Titans
Detroit At San Francisco
Being a 49ers fan, I will abstain from picking their games as I will clearly be biased.
Monday Night Football: Denver (+3) At Atlanta
Peyton Manning gets to play in a dome. Conditions that he has dominated over the course of his career. The Broncos come up against a Falcons team that absolutely trashed the Chiefs in week 1 (on the road no less) and will be looking to establish a lead in their division. Personally, I am torn. I don't think that this Falcons team is legit, but I also have not seen Manning take a big hit yet. But then again, its a Monday night game on prime-time television, and we know Manning will deliver.
He is back, and he looked good. Look out AFC West!
After a wild opening day filled with great finishes, great stories, ripping into replacement officials, and overall FOOTBALL related activity, here are some burning questions for week 2 of the NFL season. We will start with the most competitive division in football.
# 5 With the Redskins' surprising victory over the Saints, the Cowboys looking impressive, and the Eagles (great expectations) and Giants (less than Philadelphia, but still recognized as the defending champions) to round off the division; is the NFC East the most interesting division in football? Which team will ultimately emerge and win the division and the automatic playoff berth that comes with it?
To put it simply, this is a division where any team can beat the other, and every division game matters. Just to put into context how wacky this division actually can be, last year the Eagles had the best division record at 5-1 yet did not finish first (if you watched their game against the Browns, you might see why that occured), perhaps even more odd is that the Redskins managed to beat the eventual Superbowl champion New York Giants twice! If RG3 can replicate his effort against the Saints and play the whole season like he did in week one, it is very possible that all four teams could be competing for a division title in the last two weeks of the season. This division will definitely be one of the main points of discussion all season not just on this blog, but on major sports networks as well. There is no way to make an accurate prediction until more games are watched, but at gunpoint I would pick the Cowboys right now.
# 4 Did you know that there is a Thursday night game in every week of the season? Is this a good idea? Bad idea?
I was really happy when I heard that the NFL network would air Thursday night games throughout the season. This is a nice bridge between the six-day wait between the Monday night game and the early Sunday games, and gives us a nice football fix in the middle of the week. Whether its a good idea or not remains to be seen. For fans I think its great, but what about the teams? The Packers (more on them in a bit) and Bears only had 96 hours to prepare for a crucial game. How will their performance be affected? What if one team has more time to prepare for the other, even if it isn't their BYE week? Does it benefit teams for their next game? (The Giants and Cowboys have had a lot of extra time to prepare for their games against the Bucs and Sea-hawks respectively). Only time will tell, but I would be very interested to see statistics of the records on Thursday night and then of the following game(s).
# 3 Can the Green Bay Packers avoid going into an early 0-2 hole against their division rival: the Chicago Bears? Will the Bears take advantage of this opportunity and nick an important division win and start off strong at 2-0?
Speaking of Thursday night games, this is our first one, and what a match-up it is! This game will be Green Bay's second home game already so it puts that much more importance on it, as starting 0-2 with 8 road games to go has 'disappointing' season written all over it. Having said that, I fully expect Aaron Rodgers and his Packers team to recover and beat Chicago in convincing fashion. They are simply too good to go 0-2 (Then again, we thought the same thing about the Eagles last year, the NFL is a weird league and weirder things have happened). This seems like a good place to mention that I will be making picks throughout the year against the spread, and will post the meaningless results in every week's 'big picture' post. For this game I pick the Packers (-5.5) over the Bears.
I don't think its a coincidence that one of the worst days of the year (the end of summer) is followed by one of the best (the kickoff to the NFL season). Needless to say, we at Millennium are extremely excited about having the NFL back in our lives and will be sharing our opinions on it with you. For our season preview I decided to send five 'big picture' questions (from the whole league) to Luka and Cabrock and have them offer their takes on them. In addition to the 'big' five, I also posed three questions about our regular season opener between bitter rivals the Dallas Cowboys and the defending Superbowl champions; the New York Giants. We begin our discussion with one of the biggest stories of last year: Tebowmania.
What are your thoughts on Tim Tebow and his new team, the New York Jets? Will Tebow thrive in the specialty role that Rex Ryan plans to use him in (short, goal-line situations)? Will the media circus make this team implode? Is the Sanchize even a good quarterback?
Luka:
First let me just say one thing, FOOTBALL!!!. These last few weeks after The Olympics have been rough but with the season set to kickoff tonight I can hardly wait. However being an Eagles fan I would have probably been more excited with any other two teams (except the Browns and Dolphins) kicking the season off. I can't stand the Giants or the Cowboys so I'm interested to see who I end up rooting for tonight.
I'm a Tebow guy. Ever since I lost money betting against him in his first miracle win of the season last year I've grown to like him and his goofy style of play that leads to Disney-style endings week after week. That being said I don't think there's a worse pairing than Tebow and the Jets. The Jets anemic offense mixed with the New York media combined with the lack of faith Jets fans have in Mark Sanchez can only lead to one of the more distracting, side-show filled professional sports teams of recent memory. Because of this I either see the Jets being bad (more likely even though their defense is still solid) or riding a sports-movie inspired script to the playoffs. Think about it, the tough takes no shit coach, the defense that doubles as the heart of the team, a talented but lacking in confidence starting QB, and a heavily religious back-up QB that carries the team to the promised land on and off the field. I can already hear someone, somewhere writing up the script. In all seriousness though, I hope Jets fans are happy with 6-10 this year.
Daki:
Have to say that I am very disappointed that I forgot the obligatory FOOTBALL!!! in all caps and with exclamation points, not a good start for me. I too am a Tebow guy and I honestly think that he will take over the starting role from Sanchez around week 6. The Jets are too good defensively and play in a division that is too weak (other than the ever present Patriots), for them to be that bad. I can see them being a very respectable 8-8 this year, with lots of trash-talk from Rex Ryan and a lot of team prayer sessions following the game. Gotta say I love the movie pitch, but you forgot to include the rival team (the Giants?) embarrassing our protagonists (leading the tough-takes-no-shit-coach to finally start the religious QB) and then losing to them at the end with guys saying things like: "You guys are alright!"Actually, can this happen in real life?
Cabrock:
Guess who’s back? It feels good to finally be writing about football again :’) For some reason, today has been one of the more busy days of the summer so I wont be writing an overly long article, but hopefully there’s some insightful tidbits in here. Anyways, lets get to the questions:
We all know I hate Tim Tebow; that’s not even a discussion. However, this is probably the one role I can see him thriving in. In college, Tebow was Superman and shit on most of the NCAA. However, in my opinion, the best Florida team during the Tebow years was the season that Chris Leak was the starter and Tebow contributed as the “change of pace” QB. People give Rex Ryan too much credit. He got his job by excelling as the D-coordinator of the ferocious Ravens defence. When you really think about it, my little sister could have walked in on Sunday and said “everyone stand in front of the guy in front of you” and the Ravens wouldn’t have allowed more than 20 points per game. Rex talks way too much shit and consistently fails to back it up. I wouldn’t say the Sanchize is a franchise QB, but I feel like he could be a solid starter that could run a simple offense if given the opportunity. Basically, I don’t have much hope for the Jets. I think they go 7-9 this season and a lot of people lose their jobs in the offseason.
Sticking to the AFC, a lot of people feel that the Houston Texans would have made the Superbowl last season had it not been for injuries. This notion is heavily supported by the fact that the Texans came close to beating the Ravens with a third-string QB. So guys, are the Texans for real? Or was their success last year smoke and mirrors?
Finally the stage is set for the conclusion of Breaking Bad. Its just a shame that we will have to wait more than half a year to see it. I already complained about AMC splitting this season into two parts (way back in the first review of this season), but now having seen where they left us, and where things stand, can you blame me for bitching about it again? Thank God that the NFL kicks off this Thursday, otherwise this would have been a really depressing stretch of television. But anyways, on to my thoughts about the episode.
'Gliding All Over' really felt like a simple episode to me. Not that this is a necessarily bad thing, but I can't help but feel a bit disappointed by it. The gem of this episode; the prison killings were really well done. We got to see each and every one of Mike's "nine guys" plus the lawyer become the latest victims of W.W.'s reign of terror. From the music, to Walter's indifference at the very end of the scene, it was easily the best 3 minutes of the episode. The rest of the episode? Underwhelming to say the least. In the past, Breaking Bad would have methodically showed us the expansion of Walt's new-found empire into European territory, here we got to see it all in roughly five minutes, with a little montage to guide us through it. I don't know about you, but I expected more from an episode that will be the last one we see for a while.
TweetAs always, there are going to be spoilers below, do not continue reading past this until you have seen the episode.
"Shut the f*ck up and let me die in peace" - Mike's last words of the series... very fitting of such a great character.
We knew after last week's set-up episode that something drastic was going to happen in this one. Unfortunately for Mike (who probably grew to be one of the more liked characters of the show) that drastic occurrence was his death. Before we talk about it, we should see how the episode set up Walter white's latest victim.
Firstly, we picked up right where the last episode left off, with Walt delivering on his promise to pay Mike and Jesse their share (technically, only Mike got paid as Walt tried one last time to draw Jesse back in) while retaining his growing 'empire'. I have to say that this scene was really enjoyable, Walt has really mastered weaseling his way out of death to the point where you are excited to see how he does it. From standing up to Tuco all the way back in season one, to orchestrating Gale's death at the perfect time (right as Mike was about to kill him) was there a doubt that he would escape unharmed from the meeting with the guys who wanted to buy the methyl-amine? Bonus points for the "Say my name" line, it really gave a nice finishing touch to an already good scene.
From that point things slowed down a bit. We had a few more awkward exchanges between Walt and Skyler, we saw Mike and Jesse both leave the game officially, the former taking care of the legacy fund, and the latter being fed up with all of the killing. It was really nice to see Jesse stand up to Walter and flat out refuse to continue cooking with him. Jesse even turned down an offer of five million dollars and endless taunts by Walter that were aimed at drawing him back in. Jesse, as a character, has shown the most development since season one and of all the characters in the show, the only one the audience may legitimately be rooting for (other than Hank) at this point is Jesse, and I hope he wins in the end. As for Mike, after leaving (and destroying all evidence of criminal activity) he starts to live a normal, boring, old man life, enjoying spending time with his granddaughter (whose legacy fund is fully re-filled). However, Hank's instincts led him to one last attempt at catching Mike (by following his lawyer, and it was the final attempt because if that had not worked out, Mike would never have been caught) and they catch the lawyer red-handed. To make matters worse, the lawyer is absolutely ready to flip and gives up Mike right away, dragging Mike back into the thick of things (including a truly sad scene where he could not even say bye to his granddaughter).
From there, everything was set up for Mike's demise. Saul's refusal to get Mike's bag (which had his remaining money and his gun in it) followed by Mike's refusal to let Jesse get it for him left only one person who could: Heisenberg. As soon as we saw the gun inside the bag, I think we all knew what was going to happen. After an inevitable and heated confrontation, Walt shoots Mike. For a brief second after the shot, it looked as if Mike managed to get away, but tragically, that was not the case. Walt immediately realized that he could have easily got the names from Lydia, prompting Mike to utter his excellent last words. We keep waiting for the mistake that will inevitably do Walter White in, this may have been the one.
Overall score for this episode: 9.7/10 - Almost perfect, Mike's death was a bit rushed, and it feels like the writers wanted to get it out of the way to set up the half-season finale twist that inevitably looms. Also, last week's episode was not officially reviewed, but would have received a 7.8/10 if you are wondering. Best scene: Mike dying, a not so fitting end, to a phenomenal character. Best quote: Mike's last words, which lead off, and end this review: "Shut the F*ck up, and let me die in peace"
To everyone still missing the Olympics (If you’re like me,
you weren’t ready to have Dressage pulled out of your life so abruptly) and to
everyone counting down the seconds until the NFL season starts, I have a
solution for you. The English Premier League (The EPL). The EPL kicked off its season
last week with an exciting Matchday 1 that featured thrilling comebacks,
blowouts, controversial officiating decisions, Robin Van Persie in a Manchester
United jersey, Andres Villas-Boas abandoning the fashionable trench coat in
order to look like a highschool gym teacher and more! In this weekly (hopefully
weekly) column I will be previewing the upcoming Matchday by highlighting the
key games to watch. That is until Michael Vick gets injured in week 3 and I go into
a deep depression that ends in me sobbing into my retro Reggie White jersey.
Until then though here are the top 5 games to look out for in Matchday 2.
5. West Ham United at Swansea City (Saturday August 25, 2012
– 7:45 AM ET)
Why wake up at 7:45 in the morning on a Saturday now that
Fox Kids is long gone (why wouldn’t they bring back good Saturday morning
cartoons? Never understood this) you ask? Because this is (somehow) a battle of
two teams coming off of week 1 wins. Newly promoted West Ham started the
campaign with a victory that came off of Kevin Nolan’s boot as The Hammers beat
Aston Villa 1-0 at Upton Park while the surprise of last year Swansea
demolished QPR 5-0 on the road no less with 2 goals coming from new signing
Michu (no idea how to pronounce this and based on last week, neither do the
announcers). Swansea appears to be the favorite as they seem to not have missed
a step despite switching managers in the off-season (Brendan Rodgers out,
Michael Laudrup in) and will look to play their fluid “tiki-taka” (Is there
really no better phrase to describe this brand of football than this? I mean
really?) style in front of their home support. I expect West Ham to stay back
and look for chances via the counter-attack and whatever set piece they manage
to get. If you manage to wake up this early on Saturday, this game will be fun
to watch.
Prediction: Draw
Drinking Game: Drink each time Michael Laudrup gets referred
to as “The Great Dane” or every time they cut to a shot of Michu adjusting his
hair. (I Don’t actually suggest drinking alcohol this early in the morning…unless
you haven’t stopped from the night before, if that’s the case then cheers!)
4. Arsenal FC at Stoke City (Sunday August 26, 2012 – 8:30
AM ET)
Ah what better way to cure your Saturday hangover than
watching one team try and play the game of football the “right way” with crisp
passes and fluid movements face off against a team who takes the “beautiful
game” behind the toolshed and beats it mercilessly with long balls, rugby
tackles and long throw-ins. I can’t wait. In all seriousness Arsenal will look
to get their first win and goal of the season as they take on Stoke City,
another team who could only manage a draw in the first week. Arsenal fans were
in a panic after the first game calling for Wenger’s head and all other sorts
of over-exaggerations that fans typically exhibit. However, new signing Santi
Cazorla looked lively and the Arsenal attack looked decent against a Sunderland
side that parked the bus effectively for 90 minutes. And yes, Olivier Giroud
missed a pretty easy chance but these things happen and it’s no time to panic
especially with the talent this team possesses. Stoke City will look like the
same side we’ve seen over the last few years, dull but stubborn and very
difficult to beat at home.
Prediction: An Arsenal victory (no real reason here, just a
gut feeling. Should let people know though that my “gut feelings” on gambling
on soccer have given me a Krusty-esque track record.)
Drinking Game: Drink each time Stoke City throws the ball
directly into the Arsenal box off a throw-in. Drink each time you’re confused
about Gervinho’s hairline (take very very small sips).
3. Fulham at Manchester United (Saturday August 25, 2012 –
10:00 AM ET)
One of these teams is coming off a 5-0 thrashing of Norwich
City and the other is Man U. Fulham began their campaign with a demolition of
an admittedly bad Norwich side at Craven Cottage. Norwich’s problems aside,
five goals is nothing to scoff at with one coming from Damien Duff (yes, he is
still alive) and two from new signing Mladen Petric could be signs that Fulham
will be more dangerous this season than in years past. United on the other hand, RVP
signing and all could do nothing but watch as Marouane Fellaini and his Sideshow Bob-like hair weaved in and out of
their defense leading Everton to a 1-0 victory. It will be very interesting to
see how Ferguson will use Van Persie from now on as I expect him to get the
start this week but for who is the real question. Kagawa looked impressive in
his debut being the lone piece of good news for United fans. Another question that will be answered on
Saturday is who gets the start alongside Vidic and his regrown hair at
centerback. In my opinion, Michael Carrick didn’t do a bad job against Everton
all things considered and should have an easier time at it playing against the
Fulham attack than he did against Fellaini and Jelavic. Panicking after one
game makes no sense but seeing 1 or maybe 0 points out of a possible 6 for
United will be a cause for concern meaning that the Red Devils should be in
attack mode from the get go on Saturday. That being said Fulham is no pushover
so this should be a good one to watch.
Prediction: Manchester United victory
Drinking Game: Drink each time the words
“little boy” and Van Persie are mentioned together. Drink for every minute of “Fergie
Time” (stay away from the hard liquor for this one).
