Nice of Fox to show this during the Saints-Eagles game and stay on her for 5 seconds. Fuck Da Eagles? A trailer somewhere is missing its trash.
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Author: Vin
Vin is a Philly boy who shouldn't be invited into your house because he'll judge you on your book and music collection. He owns Dawkins, Utley, Iverson, and Lindros jerseys, which is all you really need to know about him. He can be reached at [email protected].
(Does anyone still use the term jungle fever anymore? That movie was like what… 1992?)
There’s a rule about lying. If you’re gonna make something up, make it so preposterous that it’s believable. MediaTakeOut.com is rumor-mongering (thank you Al Davis) that Yao Ming is dating 5’2″ Nia Long because he became a huge fan of hers while watching The Fresh Price of Bel Aire in China. First of all, did Fresh Prince of Bel Aire even air in China? Second, wasn’t this the plot of the Borat movie?
Reuters (slightly more credible than MediaTakeOut) has Yao denying the story:
Isn’t it too ridiculous? I saw the news on Internet. The writer is so good at hoaxes. What’s that? She’s only 1.57m. I’m 2.26m. Does it sound reasonable?
Reuters also reports that his long term girlfriend Ye Li is living with him. So if Yao is really dating Nia Long… then kudos to you Yao. Just don’t get caught in Colorado on a rape charge. You’ll never be able to score 81 points.
Links:
[Reuters ]: Basketball star dismisses love interest as tall story
[Media TakeOut.com]: THE WEIRDEST COUPLE EVER!
YAO MING DATING NIA LONG
1. Forgive and Forget? Uh, No.
J.R. Smith is hoping he can earn back some of the cash he lost during his suspension by participating in either the three-point or slam dunk contest at the All-Star Game in Las Vegas. Apparently Smith hasn’t heard about the vendetta David Stern has against the leagues trouble makers. The aftermath from the brawl in Detroit is still being felt in the league today; it’s safe to bet he hasn’t forgotten about Smith’s bad behavior in New York just yet. Smith returned from his ten game suspension on Wednesday and proceeded to shoot and miss all four of his three point attempts; not a good endorsement for his long range skills. But Smith can certainly dunk in impressive fashion and it’s a shame that the fans won’t be able to enjoy his talents because of a flagrant foul gone wild.
2. New Life in New Jersey
For a guy who’s supposed to be going through one of the more traumatic experiences in life, Jason Kidd sure isn’t showing any ill effects on the court. His team is currently winning the Atlantic Division and Kidd picked up the 82 triple-double of his career with 23 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists in a win over the Bulls last night. Since filing for a divorce from an allegedly violent Joumana on Tuesday, J-Kidd has led his team to a perfect 2-0 record and the Nets have won five of their last six games. So, something about the bachelor life must be treating Kidd right. It could be the cold pizza in the morning. It could be Jason simply finds sanctuary from his problems on the court. But it’s probably the lack of physical abuse.
3. The Antique Road Show
The Kings use to be one of the best home teams in the NBA; now, not so much. But one thing remains the same from the early part of the decade, and that is that the Kings are not good hosts. As of now, visitors have a 50/50 chance to take home a win when traveling to Sac Town but that’s still not enough motivation for some players to want to take the trip to Arco Arena. Even coaches hate the accommodations. Phil Jackson recently compared the locker room to a dungeon. It’s situated in a confined area with a small rack for clothes and there’s no television for players to watch while they are kicking back in folding chairs during their stay. Oddly enough, one of the most hated men in Sacramento loves the amenities offered by the Kings. “I’m a traditionalist,” said Kobe Bryant. “Look at that chalk board, the stains all over it. This is Arco. I love coming here. I don’t want them to change a thing.”
Thursday’ Player of the Day: Jason Kidd @ Chicago 43 min, 23 pts (FG: 8-17, 3FG: 3-5, FT: 4-6), 14 reb, 11 ast, 2 stl
Friday’s Game to Watch: Orlando (22-14) @ Los Angeles Lakers (23-13) Orlando has worked their way back to the top of the Southeast Division after a stretch where they lost ten of 14. Behind the play of Dwight Howard, the Magic are riding a five game winning streak into Los Angeles where the Lakers are 16-4. L.A. has amassed a remarkable list of victims who have all fallen within the walls of the Staples Center, including Phoenix, Utah, San Antonio, Houston, and the recent, streak ending victory over Dallas. But the Lakers have lost their last two games; a defeat to the lowly Grizzlies and a 25 point beat-down by the Rockets.
Buzzer Beater: Could any one play better sum up the season of the Boston Celtics than the attempted dunk during the final moments of the game against Indiana on Wednesday? The answer is no. Late in the fourth quarter, guard Tony Allen went for an unnecessary, uncontested dunk after the whistle had blown and in the process of landing tore two ligaments in his left knee which will cause him to miss the remainder of the season. Poetically, Boston lost the game, 97-84. In addition to Allen, the Celtics are without Paul Pierce, Theo Ratliff and Wally Szczerbiak.
In 1969: It might have been the most important victory in football history. It was the new, long-haired upstart vs. the old, crew-cut establishment. It was young, brash Joe Namath vs. the veteran, stoic Johnny Unitas (who, according to Abe Simpson, had “a haircut you could set your watch to”). The New York Jets, a 19-point underdog, faced the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III at the Orange Bowl in Miami. At a banquet a few days before the game, Namath grew tired of the press claiming how bad the Colts were going to make the Jets look. During a speech, someone mentioned it again, and Namath stopped and told him that the Jets would win, and he guaranteed it.
The game was very even statistically. The Jets only outgained the Colts by 13 yards. The difference was five Colts turnovers (four interceptions). The Jets jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the third quarter behind Namath and the running of Matt Snell, who had 121 yards and a touchdown. Namath was efficient, going 17 for 28 for 206 yards. Actually, Unitas only played in the second half, subbing for NFL MVP Earl Morrall, who had thrown three interceptions. The Colts did not score until there was 3:19 remaining, but the game was out of hand. In fact, Namath, who was named MVP, did not have to throw a single pass in the fourth quarter.
The Jets 16-7 victory, the first for the AFL in the Super Bowl, was monumental. Of course, it proved that the AFL was a quality football league that could compete with the NFL (the 14-point dog Chiefs proved it against next year by walloping the Vikings), but it also led to the merger of the two leagues in 1970, which is the beginning of the multi-kagillion dollar Empire/World Ruler/Big Brother it is today. Not only that, but if the Jets were to fail like everyone thought they would, it could have ended the AFL. Commissioner Pete Rozelle was considering at the time of scrapping the AFL-NFL format due to the blowouts in the first two Super Bowls and just letting NFL teams play in the Super Bowl. The Jets, thankfully, changed all that.
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US Soccer just got a lot prettier
I love me some me
David Beckham made it official today and announced that he was leaving Real Madrid at the end of the season in June to join MLS’ LA Galaxy. His new contract is expected to be worth $250M over 5 years. MLS has a salary cap of $2M per season but league rules allow for a “superstar exemption”.
Beckham issued a statement:
I am proud to have played for two of the biggest clubs in football and I look forward to the new challenge of growing the world’s most popular game in a country that is as passionate about its sport as my own.
This is going to be a pretty tough task for Beckham. Pele played in the US at the end of his career but that didn’t increase the popularity of soccer in the US. Despite a lot of criticism from English fans, Beckham can still play (he did bail them out in the Round of 16 game vs Ecuador this year despite barfing during the game). But the question is whether he’ll be covered more in the tabloids or in the sports pages. We’re betting tabloids.
Here’s a hilarious video of Beckham and his alien wife (although she is kinda cool in this clip) being interviewed by Ali G.
Links:
[BBC]: Beckham agrees to LA Galaxy move
[IHT]: David Beckham Fact Box
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Around the Rim: Greg O-Done?
1. With the First Selection
A lot of the draft talk has been about Greg Oden, and deservedly so. Oden will be an immediate blessing to any team that is coming off a lottery level season. But before anyone starts dropping games in order to pick up ping-pong balls for Oden’s rights, they should be willing to be flexible because there’s a kid at Texas who just might change the way the draft plays out. Longhorn guard/forward Kevin Durant is dropping jaws across the nation with his dominance and versatility as a freshman. In 15 games, Durant has averaged 23.4 points (49% FG, 39% 3FG, 85% FT), 10.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists, while blocking 1.9 shots and snatching 1.5 steals per game. Durant torched Colorado for 37 on Saturday and followed that up by picking up his fourth straight double-double with 34 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Missouri last night. Durant’s performances should have teams like the Sixers, Hawks, Celtics and Bobcats reconsidering exactly what all this losing is for.
2. Kings of Comedy
Mike Bibby is trying to get his teammates to rally together and focus on winning, but pointing fingers might not be the way to approach it. Bibby said, “Try to win a game instead of trying to see how many points you can score or how many shots you can get up.” The hot-headed Ron Artest has never been one to take criticism lightly which could lead to problems down the road if he feels Bibby is placing blame on him. But it’s hard for Bibby to accuse others of taking too many shots when he leads the team in shots per game, yet he has one of the worst field goal percentages on his team. The frustrations for the Kings continue to pile up as Sacramento sits at the bottom of their division after losing three in a row and 12 of the last 18 games.
3. Webber Can Come, Garnett’s Got To Go
Chris Webber is a free man and now he’s searching for a team that will bring him a ring. Most rumors are focusing on joining Webber with Kevin Garnett in Minnesota. K.G. has said that he would love to bring Webber aboard, but the move couldn’t possibly bring the Timberwolves any closer to a championship ring than a move for Allen Iverson would have. It’s going to take a lot more than an old Webber who can’t stay healthy to get Garnett into the Finals. Once A.I. was sent to Denver, it became painfully obvious that Minnesota is going to remain a one man show. Perhaps, the time for a K.G. trade is upon us. If Minnesota won’t bring a superstar to Garnett then there are multiple teams who would love to bring Garnett to their superstar.
Wednesday’ Player of the Day: Dwight Howard @ Golden State 45 min, 30 pts (FG: 11-18, FT: 8-15), 25 reb, 2 stl, 1 blk
Thursday’s Game to Watch: Cleveland (22-12) @ Phoenix (26-8) The Suns have been tough to beat this season, but an opponent’s chances are greatly diminished when they must travel to Phoenix where the home team is 15-3. The Cavs are undefeated in 2007 and own the longest winning streak in the Eastern Conference with five in a row, but despite their recent success, Cleveland is only 7-9 on the road. It’s going to be difficult for the Cavaliers to keep up defensively in the transition as Phoenix will try to beat the Cavs down the court on every possession. Cleveland has proven they can produce on offense but Zydrunas Ilgauskus’ abilities on defense could be negated in the up and down game.
Buzzer Beater: You’ve gotta love a short, stocky basketball coach. At least Memphis seems to like theirs. The Grizzlies are 3-3 under their version of Rick Magerus, interim coach Tony Barone. Now, 3-3 might not sound like much, but when you start a season off by going 6-24, a six game stint of 3-3 becomes a big deal. Can Barone keep it up? It depends on if Pau Gasol can remain healthy. Gasol has strung together four consecutive games of 24 or more points and he continues to improve his efforts on the glass. If only Stan Van Gundy were around, he’d be so proud.
The New York Daily News is reporting that Barry Bonds failed a drug test and violated MLB’s amphetamine policy last season but blamed it on a teammate. According to Bonds, he took a substance from Mark Sweeney’s locker and it turned out to be amphetamines. Hmmmm…. so what we have here is a world class athlete under intense scrutiny for performance enhancing drugs just randomly putting stuff in his body that he found in a teammate’s locker. Unless that substance was a bucket of friend chicken he found in Pedro Cerrano’s locker, we’re calling bullshit.
Amphetamines (speed), long used in baseball and known as “greenies” are a performance enhancing drug but does not fall under the steroid category so Bonds wasn’t suspended 50 games. Instead he was given counseling and treatment. A second offense would have meant a 25 game suspension.
Bonds and all his defenders have always said that he never did anything wrong because even if he took steroids, it was before the league banned them outright and he has never failed a drug test. Well, that argument is out the window. He has failed a drug test for a performance enhancer. Is there really any question that Bonds is not a “natural” athlete and a cheater? And on top of that, in a team sport, he throws a teammate under the bus. It really will be a shame if Bonds breaks Hank Aaron’s home run record.
Links:
[NY Daily News]: Failure leaves a testy Barry
[Palm Beach Post]: Baseball and amphetimines
In 1987: A hilarious thing happened to the Cleveland Browns on their way to Super Bowl XXI: John Elway. Old Municipal Stadium (that’s the Mistake by the Lake to you and me) was at Armageddon decibels when Brian Brennan hauled in a 48-yard touchdown pass from Bernie Kosar to tale a 20-13 lead over the Denver Broncos with 5:43 to play in the AFC Championship game. When Denver mishandled the kickoff at the two yard line, it didn’t get much quieter. Elway stepped in, however, and marched the Broncos 98 yards, converting three third downs (including a 3rd and 18) and barely escaping Cleveland’s constant pressure. The Drive, as it would forever be known, ended with an Elway bullet that found Mark Jackson in the end zone to tie the score. Still, the Browns felt confident, as they had won three overtime games already that season (including one against the Jets a week earlier in the playoffs). The Broncos won the coin toss though, and the barefooted Rich Karlis booted a 33-yard field goal minutes later for a 23-20 victory that sent the Broncos to Pasadena, the Browns to the front nine and Elway to the Hall of Fame (or at least put him on a fast track). A friend I had from Cleveland swore to me that he was at the game and most of the crowd stuck around and cheered the team for an hour after the game. I never believed him, because if it were me, I would’ve been too busy alternating between pounding alcohol and a cinder block against my skull as to kill the memories. Of course, the laughs doubled the following year…(remember Cleveland, it got better the following year)
In 1998: Ok. It would only be fair to include another Broncos victory in an AFC Championship game that happened on the same day 11 years later. Once again, Elway went on the road and broke the hearts of the home crowd, this time beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 24-21 at Three Rivers Stadium to go to Super Bowl XXXII in San Diego. Elway had help though, this time from Steelers’ quarterback Kordell Stewart, who began showing his true postseason mettle (more like metal in the space where his brain was believed to have occupied) by throwing three interceptions (two in the Broncos end zone) and losing a fumble, and Steelers’ coach Bill Cowher (who kept relying on Stewart instead of a strong Jerome Bettis). Elway was good enough to lead the Broncos to a 10-point halftime lead which Pittsburgh could never recover from. It would be Denver’s fifth Super Bowl appearance.
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Cheryl Tweedy, meet Carmella Decesare
Most of you probably don’t know who Cheryl Tweedy (Cole) is. That’s ok, she’s just some pop singer in England. But she is also smokin’ hot. The reason why this is sports related? She’s married to a footballer (that’s soccer player) named Ashley Cole, who is rumored to be gay.
Cheryl lashed out today at people who think her husband Ashley is gay and dismissed the rumors as ridiculous.
At first I laughed my head off because the suggestion was so ridiculous. But Ashley wasn’t laughing. It wasn’t very nice for either of us, but it certainly wasn’t a good time for him. But I was there for him when people had a go at him in the street or asked if he was gay. He says it doesn’t hurt him when stuff is said but deep down I know it must do. To be honest, it’s more devastating for me than it is for him because I love him and I know what he’s going through.
So basically, Ashley Cole is the Jeff Garcia of soccer. Remember when Carmella Decesare (2004 Playmate of the Year) came out to defend her boyfriend against the accusation by Terrell Owens that Jeff was gay? (“I can attest 100 percent that he is not gay.”)
We think that Cheryl Tweedy should call up Carmella and ask her for advice on how to deal with the situation. And then maybe meet up for coffee… and then maybe go lingerie shopping together… and then… what were we talking about again?
Links:
[Pink News]: Mrs Ashley Cole attacks “ridiculous” rumours
[YouTube]: How did Jeff Garcia land Carmella? GARY BARBERA!
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Around the Rim: Divorce Court
It’s over?
1. Gold Digger Alert
By this point, everyone is familiar with the unusual circumstances surrounding the divorce proceedings between Jason Kidd and his wife Joumana. But did you know that Kidd isn’t the only Net who is going through a split. In a far less entertaining manner, Vince Carter and his wife, Ellen Rucker, have initiated the paperwork to dissolve their relationship as well. So far, “Half-Man, Half-A Commitment” has not publicly admitted to quitting on the marriage, but the breakup could be the leading factor in a move from New Jersey. Rucker will most likely move to Orlando or her hometown of Charlotte and take the couple’s daughter with her. Carter will become a free agent at the end of the year, making these very tempting destinations as they might be able to offer Vince, the dad, an incentive that no other team could. By the way, the Nets have finally moved into first place in their division thanks to a 15-19 record that management would like to annul.
2. Sixers buyout Chris Webber
Speaking of divorces, the Sixers are getting rid of all their big contracts this year. The latest is a buyout of Chris Webber’s contract. Scheduled to make $45M combined this year and next, Webber is expected to only give back less than $5M and becomes a free agent. This is a win-win because Webber potentially gets to make more money or goes to a contending team for less than his usual asking price while the Sixers get salary cap and luxury tax relief — not to mention no-defense-playing relief.
3. We’re Going Streaking!
Believe it or not, but teams other than Dallas can string together consecutive wins. And since the Mavs latest streak is currently only at one, there’s an opportunity to recognize them as well. Phoenix is no stranger to great spurts of play, and owns the longest active win streak at seven. This comes after the Suns ripped off 15 in a row earlier in the year. The Cavs can take credit as the hottest team in the East after winning their last five games. On the other side of the coin, New Orleans and Seattle get to share the humiliation of being the leagues reigning bottom feeders since both teams have dropped their previous five contests.
4. Five Times the Pain
Nobody has every questioned Bobby Jackson’s work ethic in the past, and now we know why. Jackson was injured during a game in late November against Toronto and it was determined that he had a cracked rib. The painful injury kept him sidelined until January 4th when he returned to play for ten minutes against Detroit. On Tuesday, a CT scan showed that Jackson had played with not one, but five cracked ribs. And the former sixth man of the year is only listed as day to day! Talk about a pain threshold. Luckily, no additional damage was sustained in his brief return to the court, but Jackson might want to reconsider his choice of medical practitioners before his next annual checkup.
Tuesday’s Player of the Day: Nick Collison @ Phoenix 44 min, 29 pts (FG: 12-18, FT: 5-9), 21 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl, 1 blk
Wednesday’s Game to Watch: Chicago (20-15) @ Washington (19-14) Chicago has struggled recently by losing three of their last four games, but they remain one of the strongest teams in the Eastern Conference behind a solid starting five and one of the best sixth men the league has ever witnessed. Ben Gordon leads the Bulls in scoring despite being fourth on the team in minutes. But when it comes to scoring, it’s Washington that has the obvious advantage with MVP candidate Gilbert Arenas. Arenas is second in the league scoring and has been collecting 40 point games like stamps all year long. The Bulls will have to step up their pathetic play on the road against a Wiz team that is 13-3 in D.C. if they plan to escape the Verizon Center with a win.
Buzzer Beater: T.J. Ford had one of the worst games of his career last night against the Nets. In 18 minutes, Ford missed all of his shots (0-8) and finished with zero points and one assist. After being wheeled off the court on a stretcher, this is no big deal for Ford, but Toronto has got to be worried about the recent play from their point guard. An ankle injury has benched Ford in three of the last five games after he averaged 17 points and nine assists with five double-doubles in December.