Do The Right Thing turns 20
I noticed this on Cinemablend.com and decided to post it since I still have family in town and don't have anything more interesting to post.
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I noticed this on Cinemablend.com and decided to post it since I still have family in town and don't have anything more interesting to post.
My dad's visiting so I don't really have time to look for new music this week. With him in town and the temperature getting up there, I thought I'd go with one of his favorite CD's "December" by George Winston. So cool out with some calming piano music.
Randomly this song came up in a conversation today and I forgot how it went exactly. Now I know.
To start, I wish I could say that "The Hurt Locker" was a great film but it isn't. It's a decent thriller. Some people seem to think that it is an intense film but I just never got into it. It felt more like four or five loosely tied together set pieces than one cohesive movie. I also thought some of the directorial choices hurt the film and hurt some of the tense moments. (For an example, click Continue Reading below) The acting was solid but overall it's an interesting yet forgettable film.
The film did get me thinking about Iraq War films and how they never really seem to be all that great. The best modern war movie that's actually about war would probably be "Jarhead", which is hardly a universally loved (or even liked) movie. "Generation Kill" might be the best produced piece on the war but not many people saw it and it's also not all that memorable. (That being said, I still recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it. Throw it on your Netflix queue ASAP).
The fact of the matter is: if there is going to be a great Iraq war movie, it probably won't focus on the American military. There's really not a great story to tell. WWII had the Nazis. Vietnam had the draft. iraq doesn't really have an angle when it comes to creating a riveting fiction piece.
I think the best war movie might be a "Thin Red Line" type meditation that went into the psyches of: a Marine, a member of Blackwater, and an insurgent from Saudi Arabia. The insurgents andBlackwater soldiers who see war as their job have far more interesting angles to them IMO. (The founder of Blackwater said he wants his company to be to the US Armed Forces what UPS is to the US Postal Service.) Even the Iraqi forces have a more interesting predicament: do they defend their religion by standing with their corrupt country or do they surrender.
The film could compare the core beliefs of the Marine and the insurgent and how some of what makes the US the Great Satan is what conservatives decry here in the US. The film could examine the Saudi man torn between progress and the corrupting powers of freedom. He could see how Western influence is pulling people away from Allah. This wouldn't be too far off from what some of the staunch members of the Religious Right feel.
And then there's the Blackwater soldier. I think it's surprising that we haven't seen a movie about them yet. If the Middle East is the new Wild West then Blackwater is the new Pinkertons. In fact, the handful of Marines that I've spoken to about Blackwater have all used the same word to describe them: cowboys. And they meant that in both a positive and negative light.
It's on the nose but I could see a scene with the Marine praying to Jesus, the Saudi insurgent to Allah, and the Blackwater operative saying, "They don't pay me enough for this shit."
Just as I thought that Dan White's story was more interesting than that of Harvey Milk's, the Iraqi conundrum is far more interesting than a bunch of US grunts just following orders. "Traitor" was flawed (but also decent and on par with "The Hurt Locker" but I think that it came closer to what I was looking for than any other film. It's a tough film to write since respecting the insurgents while not glorifying them is a fine line to walk (and one that has gotten some people, like Bill Maher, fired in the past) and not a project that most studios or investors would be interested in funding.
The rest of this post includes spoilers and is a bit rambling so proceed with caution.
The one scene that I really thought was indicative of the problems with the direction was in the standoff when Brian Geraghty's character, Eldridge (the guy who was focused on dying) didn't know if he should shoot the gunman on the tracks. The way he kept asking if he should shoot made no sense to me. Earlier, he didn't pull the trigger to prevent Guy Pearce from being blown up and I thought he'd be trigger happy and perhaps shoot an innocent person. Why he would still be worried about shooting someone after he "let" one fellow soldier die seemed inexplicable to me. Maybe he was just incapable of taking another man's life even to defend his fellow soldier but I didn't really get that from him.
On top of that, we see from the get go that the person on the tracks is indeed a gunman. That basically put the whole weight of the scene on Eldridge's non-dilemma/weak internal conflict. The scene would have been a little more powerful IMO if he (and the audience) wasn't sure if the person on the tracks was just a shepherd or an actual insurgent. Do you risk taking an innocent life? is a better question than "Should I shoot this guy with a gun who's going to try to shoot me and my friends?"
I felt like they could have lost a couple of the bomb scenes and added something else to help develop the characters. This film felt like a dumber action movie version of "Tigerland" to me. Not that this film is "dumb" but it just didn't have the same depth as even a film like "Tigerland" did. It was just kind of empty to me.
I mean, if you're going to show a movie about how soldiers are becoming adrenaline junkies, at least show more of how that is affecting the others around them (both in their own military and the people of Iraq) To me, the best shot of the whole movie was Jeremy Renner's character standing in the ceral aisle. As a drug film, this movie just kind of focused 90% of the time on the guys getting high and very little on the actual ramifications of their actions.
Also (and this sounds bad, I know), one of the strengths of "Band of Brothers" was that you never knew who was going to make it. In this film, you pretty much knew that none of the major guys was going to die. It was like a horror movie sequel in that every time a new face showed up, you just knew that was the guy who'd get it, not the main characters.
I really think that there could be some interesting films about modern war made but writers and directors need to break from the model of the conventional war film. One of the great lines from "Jarhead" was when someone started playing The Doors and Swafford complained, "That's Vietnam music... can't we get our own music?" Hollywood can't keep trying to make Vietnam or WWII movies about what's going on in the Middle East. This conflict doesn't compare so the movies need to take a new approach if they want to truly be great.
With the NBA draft behind us, the focus is now on free agency and trades. The draft left some unanswered questions and the blockbuster deals sent a message to contenders that they better up their game if they want to keep up. Clearly, the craziness of the NBA offseason is only just beginnning.
The Amar'e rumor and some of the other trades are going to force the issue. As I've said before, a number of the big name 2010 free agents could find themselves off the market before the end of this offseason so teams can't really sit around and just wait for the other shoe to drop. Chris Bosh and Joe Johnson could find new homes this offseason, the Hornets are desperately trying to cut cap space and the Wolves now have the Ricky Rubio situation to deal with. Teams that are proactive will get the better of these deals while the ones that wait around might find themselves left out in the cold.
So what might transpire?
The Mighty Bosh and the Mightier Dollar
I'm torn on this deal but I think it works for all three teams. The Hornets need to cut payroll in the future, the Heat need to keep Dwyane Wade happy, and the Raptors need to move Bosh so what could happen is:
The Heat acquire Chris Bosh, Tyson Chandler, and Peja Stojakovic
The Hornets get Michael Beasley, Jermaine O'Neal* and Mark Blount*
The Raptors receive David West, Udonis Haslem*
*denotes expiring deal
The biggest question for me is whether the Raptors would prefer West or Beasley. West would help the team win now which would keep people in the seats but Beasley has more potential and also is on a cheap rookie contract and will be a restricted free agent when that deal is up (whereas West could leave in a couple of years). Then again, there's something to be said for a known commodity like West as opposed to adding a tweener in Beasley alongside a question mark in Bargnani and a project like DeMar DeRozen. Also, the Hornets might prefer instant cap relief.
Still, I think Bosh to Miami is happening and the JO/Bosh frontcourt has already failed once so this deal could make sense for everyone involved.
Ricky's Lament
It seems pretty clear that Ricky Rubio has little interest in playing in Minnesota. But there is a light of hope for the 'Wolves. Reports are now surfacing that the Nets wanted Ricky Rubio and were willing to give up Devin Harris to get the #2 pick so they could draft him. That seems like a solid deal but since David Kahn seems to love Flynn, I'm not sure he'd want Harris. Enter the Portland Trailblazers. (The deal would have to wait until August so Etan Thomas can be in the deal and Devin's BYC status is up but the key elements of the deal would be...)
The Blazers get Devin Harris
The Nets get Ricky Rubio and Etan Thomas*
The Wolves get Rudy Fernandez, Steve Blake* and either Martell Webster or Travis Outlaw*.
The Wolves could take Webster to get someone who is under contract and won't bolt after the year or they could grab Outlaw and try to move him in another deal for a long term small forward. (Maybe make a run at Gerald Wallace if the Bobcats are trying to cut salary). The Blazers get an All-Star PG for Rudy and two guys who'll probably be backups at best next year for them. I don't like the deal for the Nets but they apparently seem committed to dumping salary and they like Rubio.
Next up in The Other Shoe could be Joe Johnson, the Dallas Mavericks, and the always interesting (but ultimately stagnant) Chicago Bulls.This trailer for "Daybreakers" is pretty interesting. A new take on the genre with the humans being in the minority and the vampires needing to find them since they are running out of blood. Kind of like "What if Blade lost..." Who knows if it'll live up to this trailer but it's definitely on the radar now.
I came in early to do work but have been sidetracked by the fact that "experts" seem to like the Washington Wizards draft. They could have had Ricky Rubio and DeJuan Blair (or a number of other prospects who fell to the second round) and instead have Randy Foye and Mike Miller. Granted, Rubio isn't ready to help from day 1 (in fact, that Dia Uno might not be until dos anos) but he has some trade value, more than Foye.
There's no worse article than Sean Deveney's piece for the Sporting News. In it, he claims that the Wizards were the ones that caused all of the crazy trades. He wrote, "Other teams around the East took notice of Washington's activity. And reacted."
No. They didn't.
To think that the Cavs and Magic were just going to stand pat but then the Wizards shook up the world is ridiculous. I mean, look at how Deveney describes the Wiz.
The Wizards started all of this. On Wednesday, Washington dealt away its No. 5 pick in the draft to Minnesota for guards Randy Foye and Mike Miller. Foye is a combo guard who had a breakthrough in the second half of last year, averaging 16.3 points. Miller is a nine-year veteran who has averaged 13.9 points and shot 40.1 percent on 3-pointers during his career.Remember, these guys -- quality players both -- are likely to be coming off Washington's bench. Look at the Wizards, top to bottom, if they're healthy. The starting five is Gilbert Arenas, DeShawn Stevenson, Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison and Brendan Haywood with Miller and Foye (plus Nick Young, Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee) off the bench. You won't find a deeper team in the league.
This draft seemed like it was going to be hopelessly lost in the shadows. The talent pool wasn't all that intriguing, the trade of Vince Carter earlier in the day (along with the Shaq deal the day before) was the big news and then the world learned that the King of Pop Michael Jackson had passed away.
But then something strange happened. Actually a few things strange happened.
The Minnesota Timberwolves had five picks and drafted four point guard. DeJuan Blair plummeted along with a few other recognizable prospects. And the Celtics drafted a guy who somehow played D1 ball despite never being able to graduate from high school or junior college.
I'll write a longer post this weekend or maybe later next week but here are my quick thoughts.
- Memphis made the least out of the first round and the most out of the second. Still, there's nothing about a Thabeet/Gasol, Carroll/Arthur, Gay/Young, Mayo, Conley lineup that makes me think playoffs.
- OK City had a great draft. They added a perfect fit between Westbrook and Durant in Harden and then were able to roll the dice on BJ Mullens with their late first round pick. It would have been hard to draw up a better draft for them.
- The Timberwolves might have had a weird looking draft night but it turned out OK. They got the best trade asset in Rubio, the PG they wanted in Flynn, and possible future lottery pick for #18 Ty Lawson. Wayne Ellington might not have been my first choice but he was a solid pick. Their second round pick was a bit of a whiff but all in all, they are heading into the offseason with a new point guard, a guy who might replace Foye (or could just be another McCants), and a great trade piece in Rubio.
- The Golden State deal acquiring Amar'e Stoudemire seems like they are giving up a lot. I'm a fan of Brandan Wright and think Biedrins is also a very talented big man. Stoudemire should love Nellieball but I don't think anyone can really gauge a Stoudemire/Randolph/Jackson/Curry/Ellis lineup until they actually see it. It'll probably be fun to watch but will they win?
- Phoenix has to be thrilled to get so much for Amare but Biedrins/Wright/Earl Clark is a very skinny frontcourt. They're going to need to move Ben Wallace's deal for some bulk. It also should be interesting to see what they do with Steve Nash's expiring deal.
- Toronto must love the Amare deal because it helps them ask for more in return for Chris Bosh. Houston could give up T-Mac, Scola, and Brooks for Bosh and Calderon or the Heat could deal Beasley and some filler for just CB4. The question is: where does Chris want to go? I have to believe that David Stern is hoping he heads to Miami to give Dwyane Wade some help.
- On the other hand, why did the Nets hold out for so long when it came to dealing Vince? Were they really getting no offers? Any team with an expiring deal and any hope of winning should be ashamed of themselves right now. The Nets essentially moved down a spot in the 2008 draft (moving Ryan Anderson who they picked over Courtney Lee) and added a couple backups for their best player. They then added Terrence Williams who is an interesting pick but also seems best suited for SG. On the bright side, they will have a talented team and likely a high lottery pick next year to go with the cap space. I just can't believe that Houston, the Clippers or a number of other teams didn't make a better offer.
- The only draft that I think I hated more than the Wizards' was the Knicks. They could have had Brandon Jennings and DeJuan Blair and ended up with Jordan Hill and Toney Douglas. They are supposedly making a run at Rubio but I'm not sure how they get that done without giving up Wilson Chandler.
- I really don't get the Hansbrough pick for Indiana. Yeah, he might be able to help out immediately but is he better than Troy Murphy and Jeff Foster? The young trio of Hibbert, Rush, and Psycho T is interesting but Danny Granger is going to have to do a lot of heavy lifting.
- Detroit had a decent enough draft although I wish they had kept Budinger. I'm not convinced that Austin Daye will make it in the pros but they hedged their bet by landing Dajuan Summers later in the draft. Not to shabby.
- Really, Chicago? You couldn't have made a better offer for Vince Carter?
- Jrue Holday could be a great pick but it's a long term move and this team needs a point guard right now. Can they move Brand for a point guard? Ty Lawson seemed like a perfect fit; an up-tempo PG for an up-tempo team. I'm also not sure if Holiday is a great fit since Andre Iguodala handles the ball so much.
- If the Hawks expect Jamal Crawford and Jeff Teague to replace Mike Bibby, they should expect to lose Joe Johnson next season. Bibby's not the greatest but the Hawks just lost a key player and added two question marks. Teague could be a nice pick but he's probably not ready to contribute next year. I still think that the Hawks need to seriously consider dealing Joe Johnson so they don't lose him for nothing.
- The Blazers rolled the dice on Claver and then added three more rookies who seem to duplicate what they already have. They need to make a trade but I'm really not sure what they can get without giving up a core piece.
- Not that the Mavericks were going to shake up their lineup on draft night but Dirk's personal life isn't the only thing he should be worrying about right now.
- Danny Ferry drafts another project instead of someone who might actually help LeBron. Luckily, Danny Green fell to their second round pick and could supply a solid backup.
- As bad as DeJuan Blair's night must have seemed, he might be the big winner since he's joining the Spurs.
- The Bobcats had a solid draft with Gerald Henderson and Derrick Brown. But they still need to make a trade or two to get them out of lottery limbo.
There were a few undrafted prospects that I hope the C's can nab like Dionte Christmas or Josh Heytvelt but Lester Hudson seems like an interesting story. The release on his shot seems to be a bit slow but I'll gladly let him take over the Gabe Pruitt spot in the lineup.
This film is based on a Twilight Zone episode but they definitely have expanded the scope of the story. The original episode, or what I remember about it, took place in a single room. It was more of a psychological drama with no detective work or lines about killing wives.
The additional stuff makes me nervous because Richard Kelly is probably films foremost pseudo-intellectual. His films seem like they have something going on but they are really just silly. Listening to the director's commentary of Donnie Darko really made me lose a lot of respect for the film. And then there was Southland Tales, a car crash of a movie. It's somehow watchable even though it's all over the place.
The last mock draft before the actual draft and I've decided to forego the fake trades and just put forth who I think the teams should take with each pick.
1. LA Clippers: Blake Griffin - He's pretty much a no brainer.
2. Memphis Grizzlies: Ricky Rubio - I doubt they keep him for long but he has the most trade value and none of the other top picks are worth more on the Grizz roster than Rubio is worth in a trade.
3. OK City Thunder: James Harden - The way people talk about him, you'd think he had nowhere to go but down. The kid is only 19, talented, and can still improve. Even better, he seems to be a great fit between Westbrook and Durant.
4. Sacramento Kings: Tyreke Evans - Evans can't shoot but everyone else on the Kings can so I don't think it'd be a big problem. He might not be a true PG but he's better than Beno Udrih. Sacramento isn't going anywhere soon so they can afford to waste a year on the Evans at PG experiment.
5. Minnesota Timberwolves: Hasheem Thabeet - They should look to deal this but if they have to use it, why not take a flyer on the big man? He'll have a year off of the pine behind Big Al and Love (or replace Big Al when he gets hurt again). The Wolves, if they make this pick, should immediately go after Clifford Ray to work with their bigs.
6. Minnesota Timberwolves: Brandon Jennings - Yeah, he reminds me of Telfair, whom they already have but I still think he has the most upside of any of the point guards.
7. Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry - Two 6'3, 180 guards sharing the backcourt might not seem like a great idea but I think it might just work. Curry is a smaller, better version of Anthony Morrow who seemed to light it up in Nellieball so there is hope. Curry's shooting ability also allows him to be efficient in spite of Ellis having the ball in his hands most of the time. Worst case scenario, Curry's a backup for Ellis.
8. New York Knicks: Jonny Flynn - Flynn moves downstate to take over the reins of D'Antoni's offense. The 'Wolves should take a long hard look at him at #6 (and the Warriors should probably look at him and try to move Monta Ellis) but I think he falls to New York where he joins Wilson Chandler as the only other core pieces on the current Knicks roster.
9. Toronto Raptors: DeMar DeRozan - He has a ton of upside and all reports say that he is a hard worker which might be the most important thing. At worst, I think he could blossom into a great defender, if not the superstar that people think he could be. Actually, at worst he could pan out to be Gerald Green but I think he'll at least turn out to be a solid enough role player ala Joey Graham.
10. Milwaukee Bucks: Ty Lawson - People have been making excuses for Jrue Holiday left and right, one of them being that his coach was too hard on him. In that case, I'm not sure you can really put him on a Scott Skiles team. Lawson seems like someone who could step in and run the show or be a perfect second unit PG behind Ramon Sessions. And yes, in this draft, getting a solid second unit PG is probably worth the #10 pick.
11. New Jersey Nets: Earl Clark - A tough call but I think Clark's versatility fits well with the Nets. With Devin Harris and Brook Lopez as the young core pieces, Clark can settle into the forward spot in a Lamar Odom fashion. Or he could settle down in Hoboken and not really give a damn about basketball. This year's crop, more than any other recent draft, seems the most likely to waste their potential.
12. Charlotte Bobcats: Gerald Henderson - Terrence Williams might be better but Gerald Henderson seems steadier. I could see him gelling with Larry Brown a lot easier than Williams. Going with the "safe" bet is usually the kiss of death on draft night but I'm going to do it.
13. Indiana Pacers: Jrue Holiday - Jim O'Brien usually doesn't like to play rookies and that's probably a great thing for Holiday, who could use a year to learn. But other than his rookie status, he seems like a guy that Obie could like: works on defense, steady point guard with an improving shot. He could turn out to be a steal at 13 or a wasted pick. Then again, the last couple Bucks picks were thrown away on Yi Jianlian and Joe Alexander so the bar isn't too high for Holiday.
14. Phoenix Suns: Terrence Williams - I can't imagine that they won't look to move Jason Richardson ASAP and Williams would be able to fill that void.
15. Detroit Pistons: Jordan Hill - Honestly, I'm not a fan of Hill but at this point he's worth the risk.
16. Chicago Bulls: BJ Mullens - The Bulls can snag the young prospect and give him some time to learn on the pine.
17. Philadelphia 76ers: Eric Maynor - They need a PG and Maynor might be the best left on the board.
18. Minnesota Timberwolves: Sam Young - He's only a few months younger than Al Jefferson but he'll add some toughness to the Wolves. They could also take a look at Austin Daye, Omri Casspi, or Dajuan Summers here but I think Young will be a solid choice.
19. Atlanta Hawks: Jeff Teague - Might not be ready for prime time but could be a good backup and future replacement of Mike Bibby. He isn't a pure point guard but if the Hawks' other choice is Jamal Crawford, Teague will do just fine.
20. Utah Jazz: DeJuan Blair - Replaces the departing Paul Milsap.
21. New Orleans Hornets: Chase Budinger - If this kid has any shot of making it in the NBA, it'll be by using his athleticism on the break with Chris Paul.
22 Portland Trailblazers: Dajuan Summers - The Blazers need a small forward and while Austin Daye might have more potential, I also think he seems like a bit of a bust. Summers has lotto talent but hasn't been able to put it all together. With so many talented players around him, he won't have to do as much and could fit into a very nice role for the Blazers.
23. Sacramento Kings: Darren Collison - They could go after Austin Daye but they already have a similar player in Donte Greene. Collison gives them a backup point and some insurance if the Evans at PG trials don't go well.
24. Dallas Mavericks: Nick Calathes - I'm really not sure what the Mavericks do here but the best bet is probably just adding Calathes to their future haul. I'm not sure who here is really going to step in and make a huge difference so getting a head start on the rebuilding plan might be the best move.
25. OK City Thunder: James Johnson- He showed up out of shape which didn't help his stock any but he's a solid option at the forward spots and could turn out to be a nice fit in a rotation with Kevin Durant and Jeff Green.
26. Chicago Bulls: Tyler Hansbrough - Austin Daye might be a better option but I want the Bulls to form the most annoying frontcourt ever of Jo Noah and Hanbrough.
27. Memphis Grizzlies: DeMarre Carroll - Fiery, tough, which is what the Grizz need in the paint. I don't think anyone here is going to be better than Darrell Arthur but Carroll brings a new dimension.
28. Minnesota Timberwolves: Austin Daye - Keeping four rookies doesn't seem realistic but when Daye falls here, they have to take a flyer on him.
29. LA Lakers: Victor Claver - They probably don't have a dime to spare if they want to bring back Ariza and Odom so they'll add a foreigner to keep overseas. Omri Casspi and this Jonas Jerebko dude people are talking about seem like other options.
30. Cleveland Cavaliers: Jeff Pendergraph - He could replace Sideshow Anderson Varejao or serve as Shaq backup if they decide to move Big Z. At the very least, he's another 6 fouls against Dwight Howard. They might want a PF with more perimeter shooting skills but I like Pendergraph here.
As with every mock draft, I might change my mind on some of this in an hour but right now, that's where I stand.
Well, seeing how much LeBron whines about calls, maybe it should be "Shaq and Awwww" but let me put my hate aside.
The Cavs landing the Shaq likely puts them at the top of the East's pecking order. However what could be even bigger is that they made the deal without giving up much of anything. They still have Zydrunas Ilgauskas's expiring deal to play with and they way this offseason has started, they could get a pretty good player in return. I wouldn't be stunned if they were able to swing that for someone and then make a run at a couple of ring chasing free agents with the MLE. Hell, if they can make a deal for one of the free agent PG's, they could also look to swap out Mo Williams for someone.
The Suns, on the other hand, ended the worst era in Shaq's illustrious career. It turns out that losing Shawn Marion really wasn't much of a loss but it's kind of pathetic that they gave up Shaq for nothing. The Suns should begin rebuilding but that might be delayed a bit since they don't even own the rights to their own first round draft pick (The Thunder own that from the Kurt Thomas salary dump). The team gave away draft picks left and right and failed to add cheap young talent to help support (and eventually replace) their veterans. Who knows what Steve Kerr's next move might be. (One would assume that it is an Amar'e deal but Kerr probably just hurt his trade position by giving away Shaq).
On the other end of the spectrum, the Atlanta Hawks inexplicably added salary. This is a team that isn't flush with money and has to deal with Mike Bibby, Marvin Williams, and Josh Childress as free agent (and Joe Johnson's extension next offseason) and they added 2 years, 20 million of Jamal Crawford. Now, I think Jamal got a bad rap in Golden State and he always seemed to brush off Don Nelson's cranky complaints but he's overpaid and really doesn't improve the Hawks all that much. If anything, the cap space they lost is probably more valuable than what Crawford brings.
The Warriors gave up nothing but got the best part of the deal. They also could use Speedy Claxton's expiring deal to perhaps make another trade in the near future.
So far this offseason has seen the rich get richer, the poor get poorer in talent so they don't get poorer financially and the Hawks doing what only the Hawks understand. But it doesn't seem like things are going to calm down tomorrow or even in the weeks after the draft.
I'm not sure this could ever live up to "Band of Brothers" but the companion piece to that mini-series (arguably the greatest mini-series of all-time) isn't airing until next year but here's a trailer.
On a side note, why the lack of any recent American-made WWI movies? I think Flyboys might have been the only one of late and that hardly counts. Granted, it's hard to top: Dr. Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, or Paths of Glory (or All Quiet on the Western Front) but you'd think that there was some sort of story to tell.
In other HBO news, they are re-airing the interesting Spanish language series "Epitafios". I'm still stunned that they didn't remake this into an English version or at least turn it into a movie. The story is pretty good although it does wander into telenovela silliness at times. The first episode features one of the more inexplicable faceoffs with a guy staring down to dogs but overall it's still a very good series and worth the watch. I'm not sure they are reairing the eps throughout the week so you might not be able to catch up with the first episode but you should be able to catch up no problem. The second episode is on HBO on this weekend (The reair runs at odd hours. My DVR is set to the HBO2 airing on Saturday nights at 11 pm)
I'm not sure how much I can quote from Hollinger's latest article since it's on ESPN Insider but he claimed that the trade of Randy Foye/Mike Miller for #5 pick showed that the Wizards were on the same path as the 2007 Celtics.
Huh?
I can see that he's saying that the Wizards are trying to win now but to compare the Wizards move to the Celtics' 2007 offseason is an overstatement that would make even Skip Bayless blush.
The most obvious difference is that they didn't improve on their core. The Celtics added Ray Allen and then moved Al Jefferson for Kevin Garnett. The Wizards added Randy Foye and Mike Miller to a core that has been together for four years and, when they were all healthy, mustered a 42 wins and a first round exit.
If the Wizards were really going for it ala the Celtics, shouldn't they have been willing to part with their best young player in order to land the big fish? The Wizards turned down a deal for Amar'e Stoudemire. I'm not saying Amar'e made the most sense but it would have been more like the "Celtics route" than this deal. If anything, the Foye/Miller trade is more like the Celtics' 2006 route of dealing the #7 and Raef LaFrentz for Bassy Telfair and Theo Ratliff.
Granted, Hollinger does write that he doubts that the Wizards' plan will work but if you have no faith, why pretend it's a good move or go so far to compare it to the offseason that led to the title coming back to Boston?
Finally, at the end of his article, Hollinger decides to stop making sense at all and contradicts himself. First he says that the Wizards gave up the #5 pick in order to dump undesirable contracts but then, in his summary, lauds them for not being afraid to spend money. He said that they were like the Spurs, who added Richard Jefferson for expiring deals.
Except the Wizard didn't add payroll. I'm pretty sure they cut it. The Spurs added 15 million to their 2010-11 ledger while the Wizards dumped 4.8 million off of theirs. I also believe that they cut some money off of next year's salary as well. Saying the Wizards are going the Celtics route is a massive overstatement but to compare their move to the Spurs' RJ deal just seems to be completely and utterly wrong.
The bottom line is that the Wizards held one tradeable asset this offseason and they just dumped it for two mediocre players and some savings. They didn't improve on any of their current stars. Hollinger is usually, despite his numbers fetish, a smart hoops writer but in this case, he simply looks lost.
As for my take, I think the Wizards could regret this deal very soon. For starters, the rumors that were out there (and yes, they were just rumors) made a lot more sense. Sure, there were some bad ones like Larry Hughes and the #5 but there was also the Josh Howard and #22 offer from Dallas who supposedly wanted Jordan Hill. Even trying to get a three team deal could work. The Clippers were reportedly interested in Mike Miller for Marcus Camby so why not make that part of the swap (which they still could, and probably should).
Even if those deals didn't work out, the odds are that somebody was going to be available at #5 that would have tickled a rival GM's fancy. There is more and more talk of Ricky Rubio falling to #5. If that happened, the Wizards would have had a great trade chip to make a bigger deal. Even if someone like Thabeet or Harden fell, they could make a deal.
The Wizards had one trade chip and spent it on two guys who are probably best suited for the bench.
The Wolves, on the other hand, came away as the big winners. They added 5 million dollars to their 2010-2011 payroll but let's be honest, who's signing with Minnesota? Losing that money won't hurt them that much. More importantly, they upgraded their trade position. They now have four first round picks and around 20 million dollars in expiring deals. They could spin this deal into a blockbuster.
Granted, new GM Kahn (I'm sure he has a first name but he'll be known as just Kahn for now and forever) could completely screw it up and draft two busts with the #5 and #6 picks but, honestly, the Wolves wouldn't be much worse off than they were last year with Foye and Miller.
As for the Spurs trade, it was highway robbery. I'm surprised nobody could come up with a better offer, although the instant savings of Oberto and Bowen's non-guaranteed contracts was something that only a handful of teams could match. It puts the Spurs right back into title contention... if everyone is healthy.
Should be interesting to see what the next couple of days bring. A stunning open to the Draft Week so far.
Thanks for Josh aka commenter JK aka the guy who almost started an internet fracas with Ty Burr over "Knowing" for recommending "Band of Skulls". An interesting listen, the band called Band are clearly inspired by The White Stripes but since I like the Stripes, that's not a bad thing.
The draft is just three days away and still nothing seems to be set. Rumors have flown and almost all of them crash landed. Perhaps some big deals will start to emerge this week but right now it seems like teams might be forced to take the best player available and then work out a deal later.
One issue, of course, is that most of the big trade assets (like Bosh and Amar'e) won't be dealt until they agree to a contract extension while there are other players who might be a part of a sign-and-trade. Also, the recession and promise of the 2010 market seems to be keeping people from wanting to add salary. Even the teams that are willing to add some money to their ledger (like Houston) will probably prefer to hold out for better deals than give up a trade asset like Tracy McGrady's expiring deal for anyone in this draft.
Still, none of that means that I have to stop concocting deals. I might hate some of these deals when I re-read this later on today but here's what I've got right now.
1. Los Angeles Clippers: Blake Griffin – I'm not sure what offer might be out there but right now the best bet seems to just hold onto the pick and grab Griffin.
2. Memphis Grizzlies: Ricky Rubio – I wouldn’t expect Rubio to remain a Grizzly for long but he’s the best trade asset that is out there. Chris Wallace apparently wants Hasheem Thabeet but I think grabbing Rubio is the better play here.
3. OK City Thunder: James Harden – Harden might just be a role player but that’s what the Thunder need alongside Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.
4. Sacramento Kings: Tyreke Evans – Evans seems to have the Type A personality that this team needs while most of this squad has the perimeter skills that would play perfectly off of Evans' skills. Hopefully, Donte Greene has been working on his game this summer because he is a huge X-Factor in the Kings’ future plans.
5. Detroit Pistons (from the Washington Wizards): Stephen Curry – The Wizards kick off the draft by agreeing to deal Antawn Jamison and Mike James to Philly for Elton Brand. Washington then adds another veteran by swapping Etan Thomas, DeShawn Stevenson, and the #5 pick for Rip Hamilton, giving the Wiz a starting lineup of: Haywood/McGee, Brand, Butler, Rip, and Arenas.
As for the Pistons, they begin their remodel by getting rid of the unhappy Hamilton and replacing him with a somewhat similar albeit shorter player. Stuckey and Curry could be a poor man's version of Chauncey and Rip and the move also increases their 2010 payroll so that they could make a big run at a big name big man.
6. Memphis Grizzlies (from Minnesota Timberwolves): Hasheem Thabeet – When Thabeet falls to the #6 spot, the Grizz and Wolves decide to swap picks. The Wolves get Ricky Rubio and #27 while the Grizz get Thabeet, #18, #28, and Craig Smith (or Ryan Gomes). Rubio is probably a year away but he might be a great complement to Randy Foye in the backcourt.
The Grizz get Thabeet and add the #18 where they should be able to grab a power forward to fill out their frontcourt.
7. Golden State Warriors: Terrence Williams – The draft is always good for one shock and Williams might be it. He is a MAJOR risk at #7 but if the Warriors liked Corey Maggette and Stephen Jackson, they’ll LOVE Williams who has the potential to be those two players combined. He also has enough ball handling and passing skills to be a great complement to Monta Ellis. He also seems to have the kind of personality that the Bay Area would love.
The Warriors could trade the pick but I really don't see any team that would be willing to, right now, take on the deals of Corey Maggette, Stephen Jackson, or Jamal Crawford. I wouldn't be surprised if someone took that gamble (Houston could make a big move with T-Mac's expiring contract) but for now I'll have them taking T-Will.
8. New York Knicks: Brandon Jennings - Jennings was born to play in NY and I think he’s also a player that guys would love to play with, which could help the Knicks bring in some free agents in 2010. I could see D'Antoni opting for Jonny Flynn instead but I think that Jennings has the most upside. Yes, he's raw but it's not like the Knicks are actually trying to win next year.
9. Toronto Raptors: Demar DeRozan – Things come full circle. When Vince Carter wanted out, the Rapz got Chris Bosh. Now Bosh wants out, they grab a Vince Carter clone. DeRozan reminds me an awful lot of Gerald Green but I think the Raptors still go for his upside here. Once the draft closes, their focus is 100% on trying to deal Bosh and also moving Jose Calderon who really has no business being on a rebuilding team.
10. Milwaukee Bucks: Jrue Holiday – The Ramon Sessions Era in Milwaukee likely has come to a close. Holiday isn't a sure thing but he seems like the kind of point guard that Scott Skiles would love.
11. Dallas Mavericks (from New Jersey Nets): Jordan Hill – One of the rumors that seemed to be the most grounded in reality was that a) the Mavs were looking to move Josh Howard and b) wanted to move up to get Jordan Hill. I'm not completely sold on Hill as being all that great but the Mavs get their wish when Hill falls to the Nets who move Hill, Yi Jianlian, Sean Williams, Bobby Simmons, and Keyon Dooling for Josh Howard and Erick Dampier. The Nets gets the best player in the deal and also the best end of it financially as Howard and Dampier are essentially expiring deals. They also should be able to win some games this year with their Harris, Carter, Howard backcourt.
12. Atlanta Hawks (from Charlotte Bobcats): Jonny Flynn – The Terrence Williams shock becomes an afterthought when the Hawks move Joe Johnson for Emeka Okafor, Raja Bell, and #12 pick. (The deal can't go down until June 30th when Okafor's BYC status is up) The Hawks make the move to get a big man to pair with Al Horford as well as a shot at a top young PG. Joe Johnson is an expiring deal and the Hawks don't want to risk losing him for nothing. Also, why keep together a team that seems to have a limited ceiling.
The Hawks then fill the void at SG by dealing Josh Smith and Speedy Claxton for Jason Richardson and Alando Tucker.
13. Dallas Mavericks (from Indiana Pacers): Gerald Henderson – The Pacers drop down in the draft, moving TJ Ford, Jamaal Tinsley, and #11 for Jason Terry, Jerry Stackhouse, #22. Texan TJ Ford takes over the starting role in Dallas and Henderson fills the shooting guard spot.
14. Chicago Bulls (from Phoenix Suns): Earl Clark The Diesel is going to Chicago. Shaq might want to go to Cleveland but they really don't have anything to offer. Instead, Steve Kerr begins the Suns renovation by dealing Shaq and #14 pick for Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, and #16, #26. Chicago moves up to grab Earl Clark to replace Deng.
15. Detroit Pistons: BJ Mullens – The Pistons are rebuilding and decide to roll the dice on the player with the best long range potential remaining. This kid could be the next Kwame Brown but the Pistons can roll the dice since everyone else available seems to be a long shot and neither DeJuan Blair or James Johnson really seem like better investments (especially since the Pistons already have Maxiell).
16. Phoenix Suns (from Chicago): Austin Daye - Daye is, like Mullens, a pick on potential. He's weak and a step slow but he could develop into one hell of a perimeter option in the NBA. With the newly acquired Deng manning the SF spot and another pick at #26, the Suns can gamble on Daye.
17. Philadelphia 76ers: Ty Lawson - The Sixers could lose Andre Miller and if they get Lawson, they might not actually be all that interested in keeping Miller around anyway.
18. Memphis Grizzlies (from Minnesota): DeJuan Blair - The Grizz added height to their frontcourt with Thabeet and now they add girth with Blair. Getting beat up by Blair in practice could help Thabeet toughen up.
19. Atlanta Hawks: James Johnson - Johnson has apparently shown up to workouts out of shape but he's worth a shot here. He'd be a nice fit off the bench since he's a big with a decent perimeter game.
20. Utah Jazz: Tyler Hansbrough - I still think this is a match made in heaven.
21. New Orleans Hornets: Nick Calathes - The odds are that the Hornets just sell this pick since they need money but if they keep it, they could grab Calathes who they won't have to pay right away since he's signed to play overseas for the next couple of years.
22. Indiana Pacers (from Dallas): Eric Maynor - The Pacers drop back in the draft but still get the guy that they might have taken at 11. They should still look to re-sign Jarrett Jack but Maynor is a great insurance policy and an even better backup.
23. Sacramento Kings: Jeff Teague - Teague probably has the most upside of any remaining player and he also would be a nice backup combo guard for the Kings. He could be a nice complement to Tyreke Evans if the Kings decide to move Kevin Martin.
24. Portland Trailblazers: Victor Claver - The Blazers add to their foreign arsenal and roll the dice on Claver.
25. OKC Thunder: Jonas Jerebko - Who? I don't know but he's getting some hype now and Sam Presti always seemed to like the foreigners.
26. Phoenix Suns (from Chicago): Danny Green - A nice role player who can handle the
27. Minnesota Timberwolves (from Memphis): Sam Young - Already 24, Young is anything but. Still, he should be able to step in and get minutes immediately at the SF and also can help improve the Wolves' defense.
28. Memphis Grizzlies (from Minnesota) - Chase Budinger: The Grizz add a shooter off the bench.
29. LA Lakers: Toney Douglas - Why not?
30. Cleveland Cavaliers: Danny Green - Green is a nice role player who could be the starting shooting guard in his rookie season. Although that says more about the Cavs' current SG's than it does about Green.
To start, I have to say that the DailyKos often goes too far with their commentary and that the health care question needs more debate and the much discussed upcoming ABC News special probably isn't going to really add to the discussion much (more than it'll just be an argument for one side) but this little clip pointing out the hypocrisy of Fox News' outrage over it is pretty damning.
Sean Hannity has also pointed out that a former ABC News employee works in the White House communications department which sounds about right since when Fox got their "unprecedented" coverage, the White House press secretary was former Fox anchor Tony Snow.
Thankfully, not everyone is feigning outrage. Dana Perino laughed, "Yeah, look, I think there are a lot of double standards. Both, maybe you know, from the right and the left. And so I try not to use it as an excuse or a grudge."
For three years now, ESPN's Math Man John Hollinger has floated his regression analysis of college players and claimed that it was a better predictor of success than the current scouting system. He cites his formula's success since 2002... even though he didn't unveil the plan since 2007 (and continually updates it to make up for his past mistakes). It's a brilliant scam; he uses sleepers and surprise success stories to help figure out how to create and perfect his formula and then he comes out and claims that his formula predicted the said sleepers.
Unfortunately, the system hasn't actually worked in the two years since he's unveiled it. Last year's draft was an utter disaster and 2007 had as many mistakes as it did improvements.
This year's article was especially full of itself so I felt the need to write Hollinger a little note.
Dear John,
We are now in year three of your Draft Rater system. I believe that the Draft Rater could be a useful reference point but the way that you overhype it does the formula (and your own reputation) a disservice. It's especially surprising that after the system's 2008 performance, this year's articles come off as more self-congratulatory, misleading, and disingenuous than ever.
The first issue is one of language. When you write about past drafts, you describe the Draft Rater's performance in the past tense, as if the current system was actually in place at those times. For instance, you wrote "Additionally, the Draft Rater has come up with some big draft steals" or "2002 was a strong season for the Draft Rater, as it correctly recommended avoiding four players (Wagner, Ely, Haislip and Jones) selected among the top 10 collegians and made only one bad recommendation (Logan) in their stead."
Obviously, these types of comments are misleading because the Draft Rater wasn't introduced until 2007. The system didn't actually "come up" with anything nor had it "correctly recommended" anyone. In fact, the complete opposite is true and that's what makes your article so disappointing. Were these steals and busts discovered by your Draft Rater or were they actually the very information that you used to formulate your system? You claim that The Draft Rater predicted Carlos Boozer but it would seem that the truth is that Carlos Boozer helped create the Draft Rater.
This is the key problem that you fail to address in any of your articles. While the Draft Rater is great when it has the benefit of hindsight, it doesn't fare so well in the actual moment.
If someone in 2007 had consulted the draft rater, they would have gotten a top 10 (in order) of: Kevin Durant, Greg Oden, Mike Conley Jr., Thaddeus Young, Brandan Wright, Al Horford, Nick Fazekas, Josh McRoberts, Rodney Stuckey, and Jared Dudley. While I'm sure someone might have thanked you for Stuckey over Law and Young over Brewer, you'd have some serious explaining to do for Fazekas and McRoberts. The Rater successfully pegged Big Baby Davis as a steal but, then again, it had him ahead of Jeff Green, who was about even with Kyle Visser and Herbert Hill.
The only other example we have of the Draft Rater in action was last year and even you had to acknowledge what a mess that was. However, blaming the one-and-dones doesn't really help since it's not like the system did a bang up job with the other collegians. Darrell Arthur and Mareese Speights over Brook Lopez. Darnell Jackson and Richard Hendrix over Jason Thompson. Ryan Anderson was considered almost undraftworthy. And that's just the big men. Jamont Gordon was your sleeper (better than Westbrook said the numbers) and Courtney Lee was a "fringe second rounder". Probably the biggest sleeper of the draft, the undrafted Anthony Morrow, didn't get any help from the Draft Rater either; he wasn't mentioned at all in your article.
This isn't the only sin of omission that your article commits though. You constantly highlight the benefits and ignore the mistakes of the system. You commend your current system for passing over Patrick O'Bryant, Randy Foye, and JJ Redick but they were replaced with Shawne Williams, Hilton Armstrong, and Ronnie Brewer. Even if you cop a plea for Williams' attitude, that's still not impressive, especially since your current system is working with three years of hindsight and actual knowledge of how these guys performed.
Also, you commend your system for avoiding the likes of Patrick O'Bryant but it took you two years to get the system to be able to do that. He was #6 in 2007 and last year, the Draft Rater still had O'Bryant as having the third most potential of any big man in the draft (#2 was Shelden Williams and #4 was LaMarcus Aldridge).
The bottom line is that the system is just as flawed as the current results. For every Rajon Rondo, there's a Marcus Williams. You might spare a team from drafting Marcus Haislip but they'll end up with Casey Jacobsen instead.
I'm not sure if ESPN pushes you to make such bold pronouncements or if you really just have a blind faith in your system that causes you to miss all the problems but the fact of the matter is that the Draft Rater is an interesting reference but it's hardly as helpful as tool as you like to paint it. You're already copping pleas for Ty Lawson (citing work ethic and injury issues) but how could anyone really doubt a player with the fifth highest projection since 2002? The only guys with higher marks were: Durant, Wade, 'Melo... and Mike Conley Jr.
So I guess you can take it for what it's worth and what it's worth isn't as much as you seem to think
Sincerely,
Kevin Mendonca
I'm not really sure if this film has much in the way of characters or an honest human story but then again I'm not sure it's going to need one.
This trailer should come with a spoiler warning. Pretty much all that's left to see is which people make it out alive in the last ten minutes of the film (and I'd assume it's all of the good guys). I'm not sure the last time I saw a trailer that gave away this much of the movie.
Now I'm not sure if Fox or the Daily Beast cut out the question but to put the answer in context, the interviewer asked: "When you and I spoke in January, you said — I observed that you hadn’t gotten much bad press. You said it’s coming. Media critics would say not only has it not come but that you've got such favorable press, either because of bias or because good box office, that it's hurting the country because you're not being sufficiently held accountable for your policies -- that."”
Obama responded, "It’s very hard for me to swallow that one. First of all, I’ve got one television station that is entirely devoted to attacking my administration. I mean, you know, that’s a pretty… big megaphone. And you’d be hard pressed if you watched the entire day to find a positive story about me on that front." (Note: Where the ellipsis is, the interviewer said, "I assume you’re talking about Fox."
Yes, the word "devoted" was probably a poor choice of words but I really don't see how Cavuto can say that Obama was trying to "dismiss" Fox News. If anything, he was the one actually pointing them out as an alternate voice, a channel that is criticizing and holding him accountable. Honestly, how can the President bring up Fox News and then be accused of ignoring them? Cavuto then seems to insinuate that Obama's said that his staff doesn't watch Fox News which is completely opposite of what Rahm Emmanuel said (from the News & Observer)
The anchor of "Special Report with Bret Baier" recently ran into Rahm Emanuel, chief of staff for President Barack Obama. Emanuel told Baier, a former WRAL reporter, he was doing a great job since replacing Brit Hume as anchor on the Fox News Channel program on Jan. 5.
Emanuel told Baier the White House senior staff watches his show every night.
"I said, 'Oh come on ...,'" Baier says. "And he said, 'Now sometimes we have the volume down, but we watch it every night.'"
Now maybe something else has come up in the two months since that show aired but I'm really not sure why Cavuto is acting like the Obama Administration has been so rude, dismissive, or unpresidential. This is exactly the kind of thing that, had Bush said it, the liberal media would have picked up on and Fox would have called them all soft, whiny, oversensitive loons.
The shoe is on the other foot but, unfortunately, the media is still just walking in place.
EDIT: Apparently the White House wouldn't send anyone from Treasury to do Cavuto's show and claimed that Cavuto was not a "financial show" (which seems more than a bit odd) so his anger has some context. I still think his reply was poorly constructed and didn't further his point but it appears that he does have a legitimate cause for concern.
For those of you who didn't follow my Can Danny blog, I called the Golden State Warriors my favorite soap opera and always liked to follow the latest goings-on in the Bay Area. The newest development for the Warriors is that Monta Ellis, their young combo guard (but PG in his own mind), is now allegedly threatening to demand a trade if the Warriors draft a PG in the upcoming NBA draft. Ellis wants to run the show and is distressed that the Warriors might actually add someone else to take that role away from him.
Only in the NBA does someone threaten to make demands.
So what can the Warriors do to fix this?
If you aren't familiar with Monta Ellis, he signed a 6 year, 66 million dollar deal last offseason to stay with the Warriors. As with most pro sports contracts, there were restrictions as to what he could do but that didn't seem to bother Ellis. Soon after he inked his deal, he broke the rules by riding a moped. Even worse, he hurt himself while riding said two-wheeler. Even worser, he then lied about the injury because he didn't want his contract voided. Now while I like Ellis, I can't say that he really seems like he uses the best judgment nor does he seem like the kind of guy who should be making demands (or threatening to make demands).
But there is that one thing: Monta Ellis is a damn good basketball player. In America, that seems to count for a lot. But how much should it matter to Golden State? This is a team that's missed the playoffs 14 out of the last 15 years. They have an ugly payroll. Yes, Ellis can play but he might actually mean more to them as a trade asset and a talent that could convince another team to take on some of the other bad contracts that the Warriors have.
While the ideal trade would be to package Ellis and Brandan Wright for a star like Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire, I'm not sure those deals will go down. If the Suns and Raptors are rebuilding, they aren't going to want to waste big money on someone like Corey Maggette or Stephen Jackson (or, at least, they shouldn't). They could go after another big contract but is adding Elton Brand really a step in the right direction?
A possible deal could be with Houston for Tracy McGrady's expiring contract. They could use Ellis to dump Stephen Jackson and Jamal Crawford and possibly get back Carl Landy and Kyle Lowry (or Aaron Brooks). That would clear over 20 million from the Warriors ledger and allow them to go after some big name free agents in 2010.
There's always the Ellis for Josh Smith deal that seems like it makes sense for both teams (but doesn't help Golden State in the crazy dept.). If a salary dump is the desire, the Warriors could make a deal with Cleveland for Ben Wallace or one of their other expiring deals. Minnesota is also an option with Mike Miller's expiring deal and their draft picks.
For me, the bottom line is that, while Ellis is a very good player, he simply isn't good enough to put up with all of the nonsense. The Warriors are a team that desperately needs to instill a culture of sanity before they can even really consider trying to establish a culture of winning. While the PG's in this draft are a crap shoot, it's almost better to just start over, use Ellis to try to get rid of another contract or two, and move on.
Losing Monta might hurt but not as much as keeping the status quo.
As I work on my suphero TV show idea, I'm running into some unforeseen difficulties. The first is coming up with superhero names that haven't been used. That's pretty tough since there are so many heroes out there but I think I'm doing alright. The one name I'm using that is a duplicate is Rubble, but I think that's just the name of a Transformer so I think I can get away with it.
The bigger problem is the name of the city that it takes place in. Right now I'm leaning towards Harding City, namd after one of our worst presidents. However, another issue I'm having is tone; I want it to have some funny stuff but still be more of a drama and I think that might push it too far towards being a straight comedy. I know they are big shoes to fill but I liked the tone of The West Wing; a lot of comedy but very much a serious drama.
The title of the show was already taken. I want to call it "The Dying Breed" but there was an indie horror film with that name recently. I don't think that should be too much of a problem either since nobody really saw that film.
Anyway, I think the opening of the show I have is pretty good. Two acts are down and I'm just nervous about the actual case that they have to solve, whether there's enough going on. I'm going to go back and breakdown the pilots for NYPD Blue and maybe a couple other cop shows to see how the format is. Don't be surprised to see a future post about that.
I know that I keep saying that I'll stop watching Fox News and MSNBC but I keep tuning in. I also waste too much time on The Fox Nation which is honestly embarrassing with the ridiculous spin it puts on stories and the constant and unrelenting Obama bashing. What was really funny was that today they took umbrage over the President saying that Fox was "devoted" to criticizing him. Mind you, this was on a site that was filled with anti-Obama administration articles. The reader comments also missed the fact that Obama's answer wasn't really attacking Fox News; the interviewer asked if the President thought that he wasn't getting enough criticism and if that was bad for the country. He cited Fox as always criticizing him so the idea that nobody is calling him out seemed like a weak argument. Maybe he shouldn't have used the word "devoted" but to try to make it into a controversy is odd. There's also an unsettling us vs. them attitude on the entire site, although that shouldn't be surprising since the Left cultivated the same Us & Them attitude during the Bush years.
On the bright side, Bill O'Reilly actually identified the tenuous position that President Obama is in with Iran. Sean Hannity, unfortunately, pulled his usua routine; he questioned Obama's restraint in denouncing the election... and then moments later, in what he considered a different thought, started talking about how Mousavi was a leader in the Iranian nuclear program and how he's not really a moderate. It was almost like he was hedging his bet so that if Obama did speak out, he could rail against the President backing Mousavi.
That being said, I think the President's health care idea might need to go. I know that the co-op compromise isn't perfect but I think it's a good first step and might eventually lead to more public support for the government assisted system. Also, the pork system is still all-systems-go in D.C. It was probably unrealistic to think that Obama could change it (especially in less than a year) but if he spent as much time publicizing the problems with earmarks as opposed to just giving one speech/TV appearance after another, he could help the cause.
Anyway, add Tuning Out MSNBC/Fox News to my list of new mid-year resolutions.
For now, I've changed my basketball entries from "Can Danny?" to "Will Wyc?" because that's the question that really determines the Celtics' offseason. If owner Wyc Grousbeck and partners aren't willing to spend some money, then there's really nothing that Danny Ainge can do. If they will spend money, the C's could buy a first round pick (from New Orleans), use the MLE to sign a player or two, and perhaps make a trade to improve the squad, even if it does add money to the future payroll.
I've been thinking about my second Mock Draft but haven't really put too much time into it. Keep reading to get the rough draft with the first six picks and then some thoughts on the rest of the top 10.
1. LA Clippers - Blake Griffin: Unless some sort of amazing deal comes out of nowhere, Griffin might as well already be looking for real estate in the LA area.
2. Memphis Grizzlies - Hasheem Thabeet: There are deals to be made but I'm really not sure that Michael Heisley or Chris Wallace are the men to be making them. The Rondo deal is intriguing but I think it requires the Grizzlies giving up Mike Conley Jr. and I don't see that happening. Most deals seem like they won't pan out so Memphis goes with who they reportedly want and look to move Marc Gasol for a PF (perhaps to Atlanta for Josh Smith once the trade restriction is up).
3. Oklahoma City Thunder - James Harden: Harden is a nice complement to Westbrook and solidifies the backcourt of the future for the Thunder. OK City also holds onto their cap space for 2010 to try to sign or get someone in a trade.
4. Sacramento Kings - Ricky Rubio: There are some reports that the Kings are falling out of love with Rubio but I think that's a misinformation campaign to get Rubio to fall to them at 4.
5. Dallas Mavericks (from Washington) - Jordan Hill: The Wizards first make noise by dealing Antawn Jamison and Mike James to Philly for Elton Brand and the #17. The Sixers add a shooter and a couple shorter contracts. The Wizards begin their focus on defense by adding Brand. They then move Etan Thomas and Darius Songaila (or Aundray Blatche) to Dallas for Josh Howard and the #22. The Mavericks add Hill, a player they've inexplicably been interested in but if they want him, they can have him.
6. New York Knicks (from Minnesota) - Stephen Curry: I'm not really sure that the Wolves are sold on any point guard at 6 so they trade down a couple of spots. The Knicks pick up Curry, the object of their rumored affections, and take back Brian Cardinal while the Wolves get Chris Duhon and the #8.
Here's where I've left off. The rest is just spitballing.
7. Golden State Warriors: The Warriors could grab a PG here but I have to think that Don Nelson wants a veteran and is looking to trade the pick. Right now, I'm just not sure what's out there. Perhaps Jamal Crawford and the #7 for Jose Calderon but that seems like a lot to give up for Calderon.
8. Minnesota (from NY): The Wolves would grab whatever PG seems to be here, probably Tyreke Evans or Jonny Flynn, depending on who is remaining.
9. Toronto Raptors: I still really like the idea of Nash, Lopez, #14 for Calderon, Bargnani but I'm not sure if the Suns are interested in Calderon's contract. Of course, they are looking at adding Luol Deng so Jose's contract looks downright cozy compared to Deng's deal. The Raptors add a national icon and dump Calderon's contract. Robin Lopez is a solid enough big man and I'm just not sold on Bargnani (although he could be a nice fit in Phoenix's offense). As for the pick, Toronto moves towards the future with Dermar DeRozen.
10. Milwaukee Bucks: The Bucks definitey should try to move down in the draft and dump Luke Ridnour's contract but I'm not sure who they can swing a deal with. I had Detroit but I'm not sure they take on the salary since they are going after Boozer. Maybe Memphis agrees to it but then the drop is 10 to 27. Could be made up by including Darrell Arthur (who could take over the PF spot). If the Grizzlies can make that move, maybe it changes what they do at #2.
After that, I'm not sure what happens. I might have the completed draft tomorrow or I might want until the weekend to work on it.
As for the Hedo Turkoglu news, I'm not sure what team with cap space would make a deal for him but there could be a sign-and-trade. Minnesota would make the most sense as they have expiring deals like Brian Cardinal and Mike Miller, along with picks. And a Hedo and Rafer Alston deal (the Magic have to get rid of one of their PG's) would help solve both of their major position problems (although it doesn't go too far in beefing up their defense).
Well, it's going to take a lot to get Elizabeth & The Catapult off of heavy rotation but I thought a group called The Kickdrums might be the ones to do it. After all, who doesn't love kickdrums? The first listen to the albums makes it seem like most of the songs are floaters but, then again, I wasn't sold on The Catapult when I first listened to it. The band seems a lot like G. Love with a tinge of Gorillaz. Songs that first caught my ear were: "Things Work Out", "Death of a Dream Machine", "Impatient (Slow Down). Right now, I'd go with a poor man's G. Love & Special Sauce but maybe it'll grow on me.
And since I'm trying to focus more on actually writing, I didn't spend as much time checkout out new music. I noticed Bedouin Soundclash had a new EP, the soundtrack for some surf movie "The Present" looks interesting (and features "Good Friend", a great song by Plants and Animals), there's an old album from The Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, and in case you were wondering what "alternative dance" music sounded like then you can try City Center. Also, Song of the Day Blackstone Heist have an intriguing EP out.
As always, I'm open for suggestions. What new music (or old favorites) are you listening to?
I've pretty much crapped the bed on sticking with my resolutions so here's a new revamped list.
1. Write a scene a day: This could lead to less blogging but I shouldn't be going a day without writing at least one scene. And if I do, I should make it up by writing a couple of scenes another day. So from here on in, I'll be either writing a scene a day of "The Dying Breed", the superhero pilot I have plotted out, or rewriting "The Lost Angels", a comedy/spoof pilot which is done but I need to fix a couple of scenes. I also could work a bit on "Really", the reality webisode project. Or maybe even start something new. The bottom line is that I have too many ideas floating around to not write.
2. 100 sit-ups a day: I was doing this for a bit and then stopped. Going to the gym might not be in the cards but there's no reason that I can't be doing 100 crunches a day.
3. Back to Diet Soda/Water: Again, something I was doing well but have fallen off. Hard. I now have a Mountain Dew and Miiky Way Dark bar for breakfast every morning. (Sidenote: Milky Way Dark is the best candy bar out there, bar none). I've done a good job cutting down on my lunch (not going out, bringing pita and cold cuts) but the soda consumption is up and none of it diet soda.
4. K.I.T.: I've never been good at keeping in contact with people and probably won't start this until mid-July but I need to keep in contact with people.
5. "Do Gooder": The trainer at my high school used to say this and it's something I really need to start trying. Just be a little bit better, a little less lazy, a little more caring, what have you.
The stuff with The Edge showing the difference between what the effects and foot pedals sound like and what he's actually playing is the best part of the trailer. I hope there's more of that but then I'd have to assume that the real guitar afficionados already know stuff like that. Still, this could be an interesting little film.
So why not just look at Amy Adams for a bit.
Or how about watch a favorite movie from my childhood.
In honor of Gay Pride Weekend, I suggest that everyone watch "Drag Me to Hell" with a stereotypically catty gay couple who don't know what kind of movie they should be expecting. While I liked Sam Raimi's latest, I can't help but credit a bit of the fun of the film to the two guys in my row who kept remarking, "Oh, this is terrible" or "Oh no!" or "Look, he's just sitting there like 'Hey, I'm Bruno.'" (All actual quotes) At the end of the film, most of the audience applauded which elicited an almost offended, "Why are you clapping?!"
The reason the people were clapping is because the film was a blast. It's schlocky and silly with some cheap shocks/scares but it was a lot of fun. It has possibly the second best scene of the year (next to Taken's "It's a flesh wound!") which features the best use of a certain cute kitty poster. The film isn't perfect and there were a few moments that dragged and the standard, "Wait, why didn't they..." but the shlock moments and dead-pan delivery of Dileep Rao are priceless. Well, maybe not priceless but they are, at the very least, worth the 14.50 ticket price at Arciight.
On a related note, Alison Loman turns 30 this year and I swear that she could still play 13.
Eric and Taylor, two of my co-workers, just showed me a couple of cool youtube clips. Yes, it's a slow Friday. The first is a very interesting card trick
The second is an awareness test. See if you can count the right amount of passes on the first try.
I've finally come to admit that setting my alarm doesn't mean that I'm going to get up earlier, just more often. Damn you snooze button!
I guess I'm going to have to check out Zappos.com. A couple of people have now told me that I have to use it to buy shoes although I would really prefer to just buy my kicks in person rather than online. Also, "The Week" is a magazine that might have to subscribe to. Perfect toilet reading as it gives a rundown of news coverage on the prior week's events.
So who is going to invent the next social networking portal that will make billions? It seems like Facebook has just about run its course.
What we can and what we should make jokes about are two different things. Bristol Palin has chosen to be a public figure so she's fair game but that doesn't mean that people like Letterman should be making jokes about her. Then again, Sarah Palin's explanation of her own Willow comment was depressing. She should be trying to keep her daugher's name out of the story, not invite speculation on what might happen if Willow and Letterman met. It was an ill-conceived comment that served no purpose. Also, could people stop saying "What if this joke was about Malia Obama?" I'm sure the Left would be up in arms and the Right would be saying that Obama is using his daughter and exploiting the situation for political gain. Can't we focus on the issue rather than the people involved?
Better gum: Juicy Fruit or Big Red?
The Holocaust Museum shooter has ushered in a new round of the Blame Game. Liberals are saying he was a conservative nutjob. Conservatives are claiming he was more like someone on the extreme left. Democrats point out the KKK connection and Republicans remind us that the KKK was originally born out of the Donkey. Unfortunately what nobody in the media will say is that this is a sign of how ignorance and a belief system driven to the extreme can becomes dangerous and even deadly. They won't say that because to a lesser extent, driving beliefs to one far corner is where they make their money.
The media makes this world seem like you have two choices and those choices are Perez Hilton or Carrie Prejean. The same people who were saying that people threatening to leave the US because of George W. Bush were un-American are now saying that their American pride is going to drive them to secede. Glen Beck seemed like he was on a logical path as he explained how there are crazies on all sides and we need to realize that. A nice thought that he then basically ignored when he, moments later, said that America resembled early Nazi era Germany and that we were becoming a facist country. So much for a calming influence.
So instead of trying to find actual answers or maybe even ways that the average Joe can help improve their own life or the life of their fellow Americans, we have more and more stories designed to be "us or them". Letterman v. Palin is the latest. But guess what, there's a middle ground. Letterman shouldn't have made the joke and he should have apologized for it (and probably cut it out from the West Coast feed like SNL did when they had a rude Chelsea Clinton joke on Wayne's World). At the same time, the Palin's also have to realize that they helped make their daughter a public figure, a role which she then embraced by going on talk shows and appearing on the covers of magazine as a spokesperson on preventing teen pregnancy. As with most debates nowadays, both sides go so far to one side that they end up both being wrong.
To quote Chris Rock,
"Everybody's so busy wanting to be down with the gang. "I'm conservative", "I'm liberal", "I'm conservative". Bullshit! Be a fucking person! Lis-ten! Let it swirl around your head. Then form your opinion. No normal, decent person is one thing, okay?"
Maybe rather than using tragedies like the Holocaust shooting to place blame on others, we can try to use these events to bring Americans together. I know that might not necessarily get ratings but maybe we can not let the paper chase effect everything, put monetary issues aside, and do what's best for the country.
That'll be the day.
The trailer for Martin Scorsese's latest, "Shutter Island", doesn't do much for me but the premise along is intriguing. Scorsese, a ridiculous cast, based on a novel by Dennis Lehane (Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone)? That seems like an awful lot of talent for it to turn out bad. But right now, it just seems like a fairly standard horror film. We shall see.
I haven't been seeing a lot of movies this year and I'm just pretty grouchy every time I walk out and don't feel like spending too much time responding/reacting to them so the reviews haven't been that great. But there have to be other voices on the web that I can share so I thought I would start looking for other reviews to link to.
So behold "Blood Has Been Shed, Jerry" and the review for "The Girlfriend Experience". The views expressed on that blog are not held by SoulHonky.com and there's really no connection at all with SoulHonky.com besides the fact that Blood Has Been Shed, Jerry is written by a friend of a friend. But the reviews are thoughtful, well-written, and... well, isn't thoughtful and well-written enough?
A taste of the BHBS,J review:"So I was all prepared to dismiss The Girlfriend Experience as another one of Soderbergh's little formalist experimentations and Grey as an interesting but not all that promising mainstream actress. But then -- just as I was checking out -- they sank the hooks in. I have to give them credit. They were one step ahead of me the whole time..."Click here to read the full review.
With their veterans getting older, the Celtics can't really give away their starting point guard for a kid who might not be ready to even be a backup next season. Hasheem Thabeet doesn't really make much more sense and James Harden looks to much like a role player to give up Rondo. But that doesn't mean a deal isn't out there.
With a little wheeling and dealing, the Celtics could turn a deal that could bolster their bench by the end of draft night.
For starters, the deal would have to be Rondo for Conley and the #2. That seems like a lot but this draft isn't that strong so the value of the #2 is lower than you'd think, especially if Rondo doesn't want to go to Memphis. Hasheem Thabeet? Would he really be enough for you to turn down a deal of Conley for Rondo? Which player in the draft is such a surefire star that you'd rather risk getting him than get a surefire young PG in Rajon. James Harden? Tyreke Evans or Jordan Hill? I'm just not sold on this draft so I think the Celtics could possibly snag Conley, an underrated player, and the pick for Rondo and maybe a 2010 pick or JR Giddens.
So if the Celtics get the #2 and Conley, their first move should be to start seeing what they could get for the #2. Could the Celtics possibly get Wilson Chandler and Chris Duhon along with the #8 for the #2 pick? What would Golden State give up for Rubio? The most likely deal is with Sacramento. They could possibly grab Jason Thompson and the #4 since the Kings really want Rubio. Worst case scenario, they could grab Nocioni and the #4 for the #2 and Veal/Allen's expiring deals.
Sitting at #4 also could have some advantages. If it's true that many teams are looking at Stephen Curry, someone might want to trade up a bit. If Thabeet drops, I wouldn't be surprised if the Celtics could swing the #4 for the #6 and maybe pick up a player (maybe roll the dice on Corey Brewer?) or the #18 pick from the Wolves. The Warriors, Knicks, and Bucks might all consider making a deal to get to #4. I'd love to try to get Wilson Chandler and the #8 from the Knicks but I'm not sure they are that high on Curry. If the Celtics want to deal Ray Allen, the Mavericks have been looking to move up to get Jordan Hill and some say that Josh Howard is on the block; Ray and the #4 for Howard, Jason Terry, and the #22 is a deal the C's could consider. (Although I think I'd pass and go for a cheaper deal.)
In the end, while Rondo for the #2 straight up is a deal that makes no sense, it's possible that those trade talks could set off a string of trades that might land the Celtics four or five players, which would help keep Pierce, Allen, and Garnett rested during the season (and also give the C's more young talent for the future). It might not be popular with the Celtics faithful but it is a deal that the Celtics should consider.
My original plan was to feature Mos Def's new album but a quick listen to the first tracks left me a bit underwhelmed. I put up "Quiet Dog" as the Song of the Day since that was the only song that really jumped out at me. Maybe it'll grow on me but I thought the album was fairly average. I hope Mos gets back with Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek to get another Black Star album together. They are better as a team than as solo artists.
I'm not sure who writes the music for Dredj but they should get into film scoring. The riffs and instrumentals seem pretty good but the lead singer offers very little. In fact, he probably takes away a lot from the songs. I wish we could see what other artists could do with some of the songs. Give a song like "Gathering Pebbles" to Radiohead and also to Timberlake/Timbaland and see what they come back with. Some interesting sounds here but no good songs, unfortunately.
Pitchfork loved Dirty Projectors' latest but I only listened to two songs and decided to look elsewhere.
I stumbled upon The Phantom Band and Balmorhea but I wasn't exactly sold on either.
In the end, I decided to go with Elizabeth and the Catapults. It's like School of Seven Bells meets Joni Mitchell or Edie Brickell.
EDIT: On second listen, I'm a fan. It's definitely a mish-mash of genres/influences but it's working for me this morning. Plus, it's only $6.99 on ITunes.
Should have stuck to my gut.
After selling my IMAX stock, I reinvested in it and it has become my big loser. I've lost almost 10% of my investment in it. The other stock that I was already holding, Yamana Gold, has seen a boost, moving up 21%. Unfortunately, since I have more money tied up in IMAX, I'm actually still down. (Only three dollars. It's not iike I'm throwing tons of money into the market.)
The two new buys actually are doing well. Bank of America dropped when I first bought it but now it's even. Ford, on the other hand, is up 10%, making me a cool 22 dollar profit to start planning my retirement on.
I'm really considering dumping my IMAX stock but I think I'll go another week or so before I pull the trigger.
I consider myself to be a pretty personable guy but when it comes to job interviews, I always freeze up and drop the ball. A recent interview went pretty poorly as I was just on a different page as the interviewer. I'd tell a story and she'd draw a completely wrong conclusion. I'd tell a joke and it would fall flat. Basically, if I had just walked in, farted, and walked out, I probably would have left a better lasting impression.
That wasn't my worst interview though. One of my first job interviews, I was basically a mute, too nervous to talk. Then in an interview with writer/director Jake Kasdan, to be his assistant on "Orange County", I walked in and noticed a chair that was pretty far away from his desk. He even mentioned that it was pretty far back. So I decided to sit on the bench in between his desk and the chair. Now, anyone who has ever been in any sort of office would immediately recognize the "bench" that is in front of a couple of chairs as actually being a coffee table but for some reason I didn't. I plopped my posterior down, Kasdan seemed surprised, and I immediately realized what I had done. Interviews are hard enough but they become immediately more difficult when you're constantly thinking "I can't believe I'm sitting on his coffee table".
Then again, not every bad interview has been my fault. I was actually having a great interview for one company. They then explained what their show was: "Small Medium at Large". I don't know if the show ever aired but it was about a midget psychic who went around helping people. He would "see" the problem of a person and then unleash a team of little people to help out. Kind of like a little person version of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. I thought it was odd since little people don't really have the stereotype of being fashionable or whatever but I glossed over that question. I did have to ask how they planned to prepare for the shows. I mean, if they were going to be able to produce it, they'd have to know ahead of time what the issue at hand was. The answer was that they would know in casting what the problem was. I then wondered why have the psychic involved since it was complete hooey. The answer, "We just really like the title."
My first job in reality TV was basically a comedy of errors. I applied for a job as a casting assistant and got a call about it. The phone intervew went really well until I mentioned I wanted to be a writer. The interviewer asked what I was writing and I explained the plot of "Freaks"; in the Old West, a traveling freak show gets stranded in a town of xenophobic, homicidal maniacs. The travelers have to realize that the townspeople are the true freaks and find a way to escape before it's too late.
As soon as I mentioned the premise of my script, the tone of the interview changed. The guy seemed like he wanted to get off the phone with me ASAP and basically just told me to send in my resume and he'd get back to me. When I reminded him that I had sent him my resume (which, you know, was the whole reason he called me in the first place), he seemed flustered and said he'd get back to me.
About a month passed and I applied for a different job at the same company. And then the same guy called me up. Two things became immediately apparent: a) this call was about the same casting assistant job (and not the logging job I'd more recently applied for) and b) the interviewee had absolutely no recollection of me whatsoever. I basically did the whole phone interview exactly the same as I did before, this time omitting the mention of "Freaks", and the guy told me to come in the next day for a formal interview.
The next day, I met with HR and said I preferred the logging job (since it already seemed like the casting dept. was, if not disorganized, a bit flighty). I went upstars and met with someone and it went well. They wanted to give me the job. Then I left. I drove about two miles before I realized that I probably wasn't supposed to have left and that I should have met with the HR person again to finalize the details about the job. I pulled a U-Turn and got back to the office. I popped back into the HR office and the woman was like, "There you are. I couldn't find you. Where'd you go?" I can't remember how I explained my disappearance. I might have said I went to the bathroom or maybe that I got lost but it was enough because I ended up getting the job.
And so began my career in reality TV.So I finally watched the performance of "Don't Stop Believin'" from Glee and while it's very good, it's not enough to get me to go back and try to watch the show. I tried to watch the show when it first aired but only made it through one commercial break. It was a little too silly and cutesy for my taste.
This performance is great but I'm not as wowed as everyone else seems to be. First off, it's a great song. It's pretty hard to screw it up. Also, even in this video, the main girl annoyed me. I just couldn't stand her character when I watched it and it really stuck with me because I still didn't like her. Finally, the autotune really bugged me. I know that's nitpicky but it took something away from the performance for me.
Anyway, a nice rendition of a great song but not enough to get me to watch Fox's version of High School Musical.
Thank goodness nobody took me up on my Summer Box Office challenge. I've been pretty far off on most of my picks. Let's take a look at the films that have already come out.
10. Wolverine: 205 million: Wolverine has made 173 million and I can't imagine it is still playing in many theaters so I probably will end up being off by 30 million. This has to be a disappointing take for the film but that, of course, won't stop Marvel.
9. Angels and Demons: 207 million: I really wanted to lowball this one but I decided to go with Tom Hanks and the Christian imagery to make over 200 million. The movie has made 116 million and only around 6.5 million this weekend so 200 million isn't happening. 150 million probably won't even happen. No way this film finishes in the Top 10.
7. Night at the Museum 2 - 218 million
It added 15 million this weekend to bump up to 137 million but 200 million is looking like it might be out of reach. On the bright side, Land of the Lost tanked so that won't offer up much competition but it's still looking like I overshot this prediction.
6. Up - 220 million
It's only taken two weekends for Up to make 117 million and they made a strong 44 million in the second weekend (dropping on 38%) so there still might be hope for this being the second 200 million dollar film of the Summer of '09. I'm not sure about 220 but this film looks to be a lock for the Top 10. Don't bet against Pixar.
5. Terminator: Salvation - 245 million
The trailer fooled me. I'll admit it. Apparently I was the only one who fell for it as it has taken three weeks for the film to just cross 100 million.
4. Star Trek - 265 million
Star Trek is at around 225 million so this is probably my best guess. It has more staying power than Wolverine so it'll probably get closer to my predicted box office than 30 million.
Still, in terms of a Top 10, I'm looking OK. The only movie that I might have missed on so far is "The Hangover" opened at 40+ million and has a decent chance to crack the Top 10. It made about the same amount as Terminator: Salvvation did on opening weekend and it has a lot better word of mouth. As it should since it is one of the better movies this year whereas Terminator was one of the worst. Well, worst of the ones I saw.
While I wouldn't say that it is one of the funniest films of the decade, "The Hangover" is still a very funny flick and a film I'd definitely recommend. It has a few slow parts but it never really drags. The directing/pacing is good enough but the film really relies on its actors for all of the laughs. Even still, it's definitely a step in the right direction for Todd Phillips, who followed "Old School" with "Starsky & Hutch" and "School for Scoundrels".
Bradley Cooper seems like he might be ready for his shot at the A-list but he still seems to be getting supporting roles and sites like Deadline Hollywood Daily still seem to ignore his growing success. Then again, maybe they are right because while Cooper's films are making more money, I'm not sure how many people are drawn to him. He doesn't have the indie background that helped Owen Wilson rise to fame nor does he have the charisma that is helping Ryan Reynolds forge forward with leading man roles. While I like Cooper, I think he's lacking "it" and I also am not sure with him as a choice for Templeton "Face" Peck in The A-Team movie.
Still, "The Hangover" is a fun movie and an enjoyable filmgoing experience. Check it out.
I'm an unrepentant soda monster. I don't care how knows it. I've recently fallen into a terrible habit of kicking off my day with a glorious, ice cold Mountain Dew. The Dew has to be some sort of drug. I often go in and out of phases with drinks; in college I was addicted to Dr. Pepper which I began to affectionately call The Pepper M.D. Now and then a root beer phase will come in and some times, I just want Gatorade.
Why am I rambling about this? Well, because this week's Small Talk is going to be about favorite drinks? What are your favorite beverages? And I'm talking from coffee to aqua to booze. If you could only have five drinks for the rest of your life, what would they be?
5. Mountain Dew. I'm addicted. If heroin was a liquid and delcious, it still wouldn't match my addiction to the Dew.
4. Amstel Light: I don't particularly like Amstel Light but I don't particularly taste it ether and when it comes to beer, that's a winner for me. Just go down the hatch and kill the brain cells. No need to this whole bouquet/flavor/aftertaste bullshit.
3. Chocolate Fribbles (or Awful Awfuls): I almost went with hot chocolate here but I rarely if ever drink it. The one thing that I have been craving though is the extra thick shake from Friendy's (or the one from the Newport Creamery). One of the worst things about living in Southern California is that there are no Friendlies out here. I went to Friendly's website to find the closest one to me and the answer was Defiance, OH. People can talk about In & Out all they want but give me a Friendly's or Dunkin' Donuts anyday. (Dunkin Donuts doesn't even tease me with a nearest location. They just say no results found).
2. Cherry Coke. The CVS next to my work hasn't been stocked up on Cherry Coke this week and I actually made a point to seek out the manager to ask him what was up. So not only do I drink too much soda but I'm becoming a crotchety old man.
1. Chocalate Milk. Nothing better than dumping way too much Hershey's Syrup into a big glass of milk, stirring it up, and chugging it down.
Needless to say, I'm a very healthy person.
Honorable Mention goes to water. Dasani or Smart. Something about Arrowhead just doesn't do it for me.
The man who was Jesus (Shuttlesworth, that is) might need to be moved to help the Celtics fill out their bench. As it stands, the Celtics' bench is non-existant and things are only getting worse since Big Baby is a free agent and Tony Allen isn't. If the Celtics don't want to deal Rondo (which seems to be how most people feel), then Ray might be the odd man out.
Allen has a ton of trade value since he's a big expiring deal and an All-Star to boot. Teams that are building would love him because he has a killer worth ethic that you'd love your prospects to pick up and contenders would love to add him as a final piece to the puzzle.
So where might he go?
Honestly, I don't know.
The main problem with dealing Ray Allen is that the Celtics will likely have to take back a bad contract to make the deal work and if they do that, it limits their ability to use the MLE. And if the C's can't use the MLE then Allen's deal has to give: a starting SG, backup swingman, and backup big man.
The only deal that came close to that was: Ray Allen for Brandan Wright, Corey Maggette, Kelenna Azubuike, and Jamal Crawford. And to be honest, I don't think there's any way that the Warriors agree to that. They'd probably replace Azubuike with Belinelli but even then I have to imagine they'd want more for Wright and one of their young guards than a one year rental of Ray Allen.
Another option is Ray Allen for Kyle Korver, Andrei Kirilenko, and the #20 pick. The Jazz dump the last year of AK-47's deal which might make it easier for them to re-sign Paul Millsap and Mehmet Okur. They also get the best SG they've had since Adrian Dantley (no offense to Blue Edwards). There should be a talented player let at #20 to help fill out the roster. Still, part of me prefers just sticking with Ray. We could go after Koufos and the #20 instead of Korver but I'm not sure if Utah does that.
Andrea Bargnani, Jason Kapono, and Anthony Parker (S&T) is nice but it still leaves us with Parker as our starting SG and we'd have to find a cheap SG to back up him.
These deals don't work which leaves the option of Rondo and Allen moved together in a deal but I think that limits what the Celtics can get in return. They might get a better player but I doubt it solves any of their current problems, primarily that Paul Pierce simply can not be expected to deliver in the playoffs if he has to play 37 minutes a night during the regular season.
A big part of me wants to just stick with what we have but I know that the odds of that working out aren't great. Something's got to give and if we stand pat, that something's probably the bodies of our Big Three.
I have to admit, I still have my doubts about Rajon Rondo. I like him as the Celtics PG but i don't like him as one of our top three players and I flat out don't like him as the main cog in our offense. Granted, that doesn't mean I'm going to ship him (and Ray Allen) out for a one year rental of Amar'e Stoudemire either. But this is the offseason before he's due a big raise so now's the time to try to sell high on him.
So what could the Celtics get for him? Does it make sense to move him?
The team that first jumps out at me is Portland. They have young talent to spare and a need for a point guard. Blazers Edge seems to think that Jerryd Bayless has a big fan in GM Kevin Pritchard but I still think that they'd be interested in Rondo. But what would they give up?
Ideally, I'd get Rudy Fernandez, Nicolas Batum, and Jerryd Bayless but I don't see that happening. Still, I'd probably press for two of the three. (EDIT: After thinking about it, I'd want all three.) Rondo and Tony Allen for Rudy and Nic or Bayless? It's a lot to give up for the Blazers but Rondo was a borderline All-Star PG last year. The Blazers also have a number of guys playing the same position as Rudy and Nic so they could afford to move them for a starting PG. Right now, I'd focus on those three guys because Travis Outlaw is too much of a wild card, Steve Blake is too mediocre, and Sergio Rodriguez just isn't that good. Unfortunately, they are all better than what the Celtics have to offer (JR Giddens, anyone?) but the one piece that could help the Celtics out is Big Baby. He might be a decent backup for Aldridge and I'd be down for a sign-and-trade to sweeten up the pot.
Still, I wouldn't be surprised if those talks went nowhere. So what else is there?
Sacramento: Rondo (and Giddens) for Jason Thompson and the #5? Seems very steep although Rondo is a sure thing while the PG's in this draft are all over the place. Again, a Big Baby sign-and-trade might help things and maybe the C's move their expiring deals and take Andres Nocioni's contract off of the Maloofs' hands but it's more of a longshot than the Blazers deal.
Philadelphia: Rondo and Allen for Thad Young and Marreese Speights? The C's would have to deal Ray Allen for a PG or sign one for the MLE. I'm a huge Thad fan and think Speights could be a monster if he worked with Clifford Ray for one summer but I'm not sure if dealing Rondo for two backups makes much sense.
Minnesota: Rondo for Love: I blogged about this a while back but, again, it'd be trading a starter for a backup to KG. Keeping Rajon seems like the wiser choice (although the owners would like that Love is at the start of his rookie deal)
After that, I'm not so sure. If Milwaukee can't afford to sign Ramon Sessions, how are they going to be able to pay Rondo? A Rondo/Ray deal to Golden State could work but would Rondo fit Nellie's offense? And is Monta Ellis, Brandan Wright, Kelenna Azubuike with Jamal Crawford's contract better than the status quo? I think that it would be like the Portland deal, the C's would want more young talent than the Warriors are willing to deal.
So it looks like, unless Ainge could work a deal out with Portland or Golden State, that Rondo is going to stay a Celtic. But the team desperately needs to rebuild its bench and they don't have the money to do it via free agency which means someone is going to have to be dealt.
It's looking like that someone is Ray Allen. I'll check out those possible deals tomorrow.
I keep trying to find new features to run consistently (SoulStocks didn't make much sense) so I'm going to try this one for now. Words to live by, this week featuring Stringer Bell.
The most talked about name of this offseason will most likely be Amar'e Stoudemire. While most teams would probably prefer to go after Chris Bosh, the odds are that Bosh will choose his destination. Amar'e, on the other hand, is a man without a country. He's a super talent but he's also injury prone and has a lousy reputation as a locker room malcontent. The Suns haven't really hid the fact that they want to move him but they couldn't find any takers. So while Amar'e might actually be a better talent than Bosh, he could end up getting treated like the best expiring deal/salary dump ever.
So what deals are out there?
The better question might be, are there any deals out there?
The Suns didn't get much interest in Stoudemire when he was available at the trade deadline. After the deadline, Amar'e got surgery on his eye and missed the rest of the season. I doubt that helped his trade value much.
Some people were already saying Amar'e might be a bit of a stat whore, citing that he doesn't play much defense and the last time the Suns got to the Conference Finals was when Amare missed almost the entire season due to injury.
On top of that, the recession coupled with a lower salary cap has teams fearing the luxury tax and being more mindful of the bottom line, especially in terms of second max contracts. Stoudemire might be a prodigious offensive talent but he comes with so many red flags that most owners will probably be scared away.
Case in point, the rumor du jour has Amar'e heading to Washington for Antawn Jamison and the #5 pick (and Mike James's expiring deal). I can't imagine the Wizards' owners are about to invest another 100 million on a guy who's coming off injury and has had microfracture surgery in the last few years. The Gilbert Arenas gamble didn't exactly pay off and they'd essentially be doubling down on two players with two good knees between them.
Another option is Chicago for Luol Deng (and Jerome James) but would the Suns really put themselves back behind the financial 8 ball by adding Deng's contract? Are the Bulls willing to bet Derrick Rose's future on Amar'e's? The better option might be Brad Miller's expiring contract and Ty Thomas, although Thomas has all of Stoudemire's attitude and half of the talent so I'm not sure how excited Phoenix is to acquiring and soon having to negotiate a contract with him. And, of course, after his showing in the first round, I wouldn't be stunned if some Bulls loyalists feel that Thomas is, all things considered, just plain better than Amar'e. (And given Stoudemire's lack of defense and probable contract demands, it's not a completely silly argument)
Cleveland could look to add him in order to appease King James and the new investors from China probably give the Cavs enough capital to afford two second max deals but they don't really have anything to give up except another expiring deal so I'm not sure why Phoenix makes the trade unless Cleveland also agrees to take back another contract. Still, Amar'e and Jason Richardson for Z Ilgauskas, Ben Wallace, and JJ Hickson would probably be the most lopsided trade in NBA history. The Suns have to do better than that, no?
Dallas is an option if the Mavs and Suns want to shuffle talented yet at times troublesome expiring deals in a trade of Amar'e for Josh Howard (and filler). I could see Mark Cuban being crazy enough to make this trade; it would make Dallas an interesting team but I'm not sure how much better they'd actually get.
New York could get a deal done (especially if they do a sign-and-trade with David Lee) but does Mike D'Antoni really want to deal with Stoudemire again? If D'Antoni is down for it, the best deal might be some sort of sign-and-trade with David Lee, an expiring deal, and the #8 pick for Amar'e. Of course, I doubt that the Knicks would be willing to give up the #7 pick. After all, Stoudemire has said he wants to go to New York so they have all the leverage in the deal. They could just sit back and wait for Amar'e to come as a free agent so why would they give up the #7 pick or a talent like Wilson Chandler? In fact, it'd almost be better for them to wait out the year to see how Stoudemire recovers. (And from the Suns POV, I think David Lee is about to get overpaid this year so I'm not sure I'd want his contract in return for Stoudemire).
If Detroit misses out on Carlos Boozer would they make a run at Stoudemire? If Miami can't get Bosh, could they look to use Jermaine O'Neal's expiring contract to grab Amare? (Hell, they could go all out and go after both Amar'e and Bosh).
Finally, there's Amar'e, Jared Dudley, #14 for Brandan Wright, Stephen Jackson (or Corey Maggette), Jamal Crawford, and #7. An interesting offer as the Suns get a young prospect in Wright and move up the draft while the Warriors dump some contracts and add a guy who could be amazing in Don Nelson's offense but would the Warriors re-sign Amar'e? Would they be willing to give up Wright and move down for a one year rental and a slashing of a couple of salaries? Would Phoenix think Wright and the pick are worth taking on the 20 million in 2010 that Crawford and Jackson will cost? It seems like a long shot.
The Chicago deal is probably the best but I really have to wonder if the Bulls (and everyone else) won't just wait until next year when they can just sign Amar'e rather than having to give up anything of value for him. The Suns could just wait until the trade deadline but then they'd have even less leverage. Everyone knows that Amar'e wants out and, so far, nobody has shown the desire to give up much of anything in return for him. Suns fans can't be happy right now as they now that the odds are looking like they favor the Suns getting the worse end of the deal for one of their best players.
The best rated album of late, the new one from Grizzly Bear, isn't on Lala so I've decided to go back into the vaults and pull out an underrated silly album of the 90's. The Fine Young Cannibals' "The Raw and the Cooked" is a mish-mash of different styles. At one point they seem like they want to be KC and the Sunshine Band, then they want to be a pop rock band, then it's doo wop style, and then some schmaltzy light R&B stylings. Throughout it all, the album just has a light, fun feel to it, probably because lead singer Roland Gift's voice is so odd. A song like "I'm Not The Man I Used To Be" isn't really all that great but his voice just makes you want to mimic him and sing along.
The album does have three standouts (Good Thing, She Drives Me Crazy, and Don't Look Back) and Tell Me What is just plain catchy. Honestly, this album almost sounds like someone goofing around at karaoke.
Here's the video for the least famous song, Don't Look Back. It's kind of fun to see the riveting effects of the video. While you gasp at the technical wizardry, also ponder why, of all the things they decided not to blur, would they just leave Gift's jacked up front teeth crisp and clean for all to see?
I've been cutting down on my cable news viewing of late because, well, it's really just a waste of time but I caught a bit of Rachel Maddow's show and it didn't take me long to get frustrated. Two things on her show that really stuck out to me was the defense of Obama's date night and the Right's war on abortion. It was annoying but it was actually more tolerable than Bill O'Reilly's reaction to the murder of abortion doctor George Tiller.
On Maddow's show, a lot was made about the RNC's attack of President Obama's date night in NYC. Criticizing Obama's date night is petty but let's not act like liberals wouldn't have been all over Bush if he had taken a plane (even a smaller jetstream) to NY to watch a play while he's telling newly unemployed workers that they've been called to make sacrifices. MSNBC would have had a carbon footprint diagram of the trip. Olbermann would be ranting about "What about YOUR sacrifices, MR. PRESIDENT?!"
But the saddest part (and what should have been the focus) is how snarky the press release out of the RNC was. It sounded like a comment on The Fox Nation more than a missive from the head of one of the two major parties of the United States of America. A strong government requires multiple strong parties (more than two, but that's another topic for another blog) and right now we only have one. It's stunning how inept Michael Steele is and I can only think that the Conservatives are already expecting to lose more seats in the 2010 election and are keeping Steele around so they can have a fall guy.
So was date night an awful insult to America? Of course not. But it does seem as poorly timed, if not downright hypocritical, when you look at it objectively. I'm sorry but if you are pushing for new environmental standards, the first one should be a personal pledge to not fly somewhere just to have dinner and see a play. To me, it's another example of Obama being a bit tone deaf to his appearance.
The abortion issue stemmed from one line in which Maddow decried the fact that some states required a woman to talk to a doctor twice, and miss two days of work, in order to have an abortion. Maybe I'm getting more conservative as I get older but I really don't see the problem with this. Abortion is no small decision and clinics probably shouldn't be a one stop shop.
I really wish the abortion and civil union issues would swap the way they are handled. Make a federal law giving all couples, straight or gay, civil unions and equal protection under the law and make abortion a state issue. I get the arguments on both sides of the abortion debate and I really don't see it as a purely woman's choice issue. The woman made her choice (except in cases of rape) when she chose to have sex. To say that she then has the choice whether or not to live with the repercussions of her actions seems a bit off. I'm fine with the morning after pill, agree that abortion should be an option if the life of the mother is in jeopardy or in cases or rape and incest, but I'm not ready to say that abortion is an inalienable right.
Of course, on the other far side of the docket, Bill O'Reilly didn't exactly have a banner day either. He still stands by his comments about the murdered Dr. Tiller and claimed he was just being honest and all of his analysis was based on the facts. Sorry Bill but you cant say that you're in the No Spin Zone and then compare Tiller to the Nazis and say things like, "If the state of Kansas doesn't stop this man, then anybody who prevents that from happening has blood on their hands." and "No question Dr. Tiller has blood on his hands. But now so does Governor Sebelius. She is not fit to serve. Nor is any Kansas politician who supports Tiller's business of destruction. I wouldn't want to be these people if there is a Judgment Day. I just -- you know ... Kansas is a great state, but this is a disgrace upon everyone who lives in Kansas. Is it not?" So if someone disagrees with Bill O'Reilly on abortion, they aren't fit to serve?
O'Reilly's whole take on today's news was a sad moment for him and really the height of his hypocrisy. He continued to rant against Tiller and say that he should have been stopped but then, seconds later, tried to play the victim because people are now ranting against him and trying to get him to stop calling out abortion doctors. He then said the Left was exploting the tragedy. If The Left is guilty of exploiting Dr. Tiller's death, then O'Reilly is guilty of exploiting the 60,000 fetuses that Dr. Tiller aborted. It also doesn't help that Fox made a huge to do about the Obama Administration investigating Right Wing Extremist groups and then the killer be a member of a Right Wing Extremist group.
It's just upsetting that the biggest names in news are so one-sided and borderline closed-minded. Is Bill O'Reilly to blame for the murder? Of course not. But the deeper wound is the example he sets for his millions of viewers, his inability to listen to and respect the criticism that he is so ready and willing to lash out. I don't mind people preaching to the choir but the cable news world is filled with people promoting distrust, disrespect, and occassionally outright hate of those who aren't in the choir.
If there's such a thing as lowly recommending a film, I'd lowly recommend M. Night Shymalan's "The Happening". The film, in which people mysteriously start offing themselves, is a disasterpiece; so ridiculously bad that it's good. I personally believe that this was Shymalan's intention but the film isn't really funny enough to work that well as a Raimi-esque horror-comedy. In order for this film to work, I think people have to know that you're in on the joke and, in this case, Shymalan did such a good job making a bad movie that it looks and feels just like a bad movie. And that's not good.
Still, the film is on the cable movie channels now and is on DVD and I suggest people take a loot at it (unless, of course, they have anything remotely productive that they could do instead). For a taste of the grateness, here's a little scene.
The reason that I bring up that film is because the NBA is entering it's silly season. The summer is ripe for bad signings and stupid trades. Also, the NBA is still working in the shadows of an infamous year (and two days) in which some mind-blowingly bad trades were made (For the details on this, click the Continue Reading link). I doubt that this summer could be as terrible (one of the few good things to come out of the recession is that team's might use their brains before throwing money around) but it's already started off with a fizzle.
Anderson Varejao is reportedly opting out of the final year of his contract. The move is inexplicable for two reasons: a) he's probably not going to make more than the 6 million that he was due and b) next offseason is when people will have money to spend; this offseason has a limited amount of teams with cap space and most of them might be spending it on top notch players or saving it for the mythical 2010 season. And if you need a third reason, Varejao didn't exactly earn himself any money with his performance in the playoffs. The only move that might do a better job of putting the off in offseason is if Jamal Crawford opts out of his deal, worth 2 years, 20 million.
Hopefully teams will snap out of it and use their heads this summer. Maybe players will embrace common sense and agree to terms that help themselves and their teams. Probably not but one can dream, right?
As a service to GM's and players, I'd like to remind them of their mistakes of last summer. Mind you, this is only for last summer so deals like Billups and Shaq for Marion aren't eligible. Here is my take on the Ten Worst Moves of the OFFseason '08.
Honorable Mention: JJ Hickson over Courtney Lee - LeBron needed help now. Immediately. So Danny Ferry decided to take a raw PF. A few picks later, the Magic land Lee who played a large part in their run to the Finals and upset of the Cavs.
10. Wizards re-sign Antawn Jamison: Not that Jamison is bad but he's not worth the money they offered him (4 years, 50 million) and they were keeping together a core that would have to overachieve to win a game in the 2nd round of the playoffs (if they could make it back).
8. Ben Gordon turns down 5 years, $50 million: Ben had a nice playoffs... and still might not be able to get a deal as good as this one.
7. Sixers sign Elton Brand: Brand didn't fit the Sixers offense, then got hurt, then tried to come back but everyone realized they'd probably just be better without him. I'd be stunned if priority #1 this offseason for Philly wasn't finding a taker for Brand.
6. Boston Celtics don't re-sign James Posey: Would Posey have made the difference in the Magic series? Perhaps. One thing that is for certain is that relying on Tony Allen is about as bad of a plan as thinking Patrick O'Bryant or Mikki Moore can bring something, anything to the table. Oddly enough, the Hornets signing James Posey also backfired as the Hornets are now desperate to cut costs and would love to get rid of Posey's contract.
5. The Bulls re-sign Luol Deng: Mr. Untouchable was the reason many a trade didn't go down for the Bulls and now they can't wait to dump him. I still have faith in Deng and think that, talent-wise, he'd be an almost perfect fit in Portland. I just don't know if they can afford his contract with Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge coming due for contract extensions.
4. The Warriors sign Corey Maggette: Most basketball fans were talking about where Corey would end up as an MLE signing. The Warriors then rushed in and offered him a surprising five year, 50 million dollar contract. Corey had a decent season but the MLE was more fitting, not because that's how much he's worth but because he is a "ME" first guy and that leads to an L for the team. (I'm so clever)
3. Clippers sign Baron Davis: Maybe Baron can turn it around but right now he looks like a banged up veteran who isn't as good as he once was and doesn't seem completely focused on trying to get back to his past glory. Before the season, I really think Davis was more focused on his website than winning. Maybe the arrival of Blake Griffin and the insult of the Clippers not being able to literally give him away will get the fight back in him. But even then, there's the question of how much fight his body has left in it.
2. Wizards re-sign Gilbert Arenas: Any team that wants to sign Amar'e Stoudemire is going to think twice because of Arenas. Gil, like Stoudemire, was a super-talented 26 year old who was coming off of a major injury. The Wizards had faith and invested in him to the tune of 6 years, 111 million. And then Gilbert got hurt again. In 2009, Gil Arenas basically made a million dollars for every game he played in the last two years.
1. Kings re-sign Beno Udrih: While Udrih's 5 year, 32 million dollar contract pales in comparison to Arenas's deal, Beno's deal is worse becaue Gilbert can actually play. Udrih was a 25 year old PG coming off of a career year of... 12 points and 4 assists a game. Now he's due to make 8 million dollars in 2012. And after spending that money on Udrih, the Kings' most pressing need that many would call a desperate need is an actual point guard. The recession hitting Vegas and the Maloof's hard doesn't help make the contract look any better.
As for the blow-by-blow of the Year (and 2 Days) of Living Dangerously Stupid, keep reading.
The Year and a Day started quietly enough on November 20th 2007 with a deal that wasn't THAT bad.
The Orlando Magic dealt Trevor Ariza for Mo Evans and Brian Cook: Needless to say, Ariza became a key player for the Lakers while Mo Evans left and nobody's sure if Cook ever arrived. Orlando's in the Finals though so you can't really complain that much.
The move that followed was just odd.
Nazr Mohammed for Walter Herrman & Primov Brezec
Walter Herrman and Brezec aren't great but they were expiring deals while Nazr had three years and almost 20 million left. Why one of the cheaper teams in the league thought adding this contract was a good idea is beyond me. Especially when it helps a division rival clear cap space. Mohammed held up his end of the bad deal by playing in 39 games and averaging 2 points and 2 rebounds.
Then came the monster deals:
Pau Gasol to the Lakers
Shaq for Shawn Marion
Devin Harris for Jason Kidd
The Gasol deal didn't turn out THAT poorly because Marc Gasol is a solid player and they got Darrell Arthur with one of the picks but you'd think that the Grizz could have gotten better return for their franchise player.
The Shaq deal was terrible for both teams. The Suns didn't make the playoffs this year and Shawn Marion almost immediately started whining about the "boring" style of play in Miami and yapped his way out of town.
Devin Harris immediately blossomed when he got to New Jersey while Jason Kidd had to start guarding two guards because he couldn't stay in front of even the most modestly quick point guards.
The trade deadline finally came with one final "This helps nobody" deal of Larry Hughes for Ben Wallace.
Unfortunately, it seemed like the time between the trade deadline and the beginning of the offseason allowed the stupidity in GM's brains to build up so when it came time to talk trade and re-sign players, all hell broke loose.
July 31: Bulls re-sign Luol Deng
July 23: Celtics re-sign Tony Allen
July 23: Wolves re-sign Telfair
July 15: Nuggets give away Camby
July 13: Wizards re-sign Gilbert Arenas
July 10: Corey Maggette joins Warriors
July 10: Clippers sign Baron Davis
July 9: Sixers add Elton Brand
July 9: Kings re-sign Udrih
July 9: Mavs sign Diop
July 9: Raptors obtain Jermaine O'Neal
June 30: Wizards extend Jamison
June 26: Bucks acquire Richard Jefferson
The final crappy deal was one that actually helped neither team and now both Milwaukee and New Jersey would be happy to be rid of their acquisition.
The start of the season didn't mean that the stupidity ended though.
The Pistons helped Denver become a contender by sending Chauncey Billups over for Allen Iverson. Yes, the deal gave them cap space that they could use on Carlos Boozer (who might not be worth the deal he's about to sign) but I'm not sure that it was worth the headaches.
The Warriors then decided that they hadn't thrown away enough money on the bad contract of Maggette and the reasonable one they regretted giving Monta Ellis so they extended Stephen Jackson for three years 28 million.
Thankfully, the year ended without anymore deals. November 19th came and I'm sure many fans and owners exhaled, hoping the year of awful moves was over.
Two days later, the Clippers dealt for Zach Randolph.
Much like the horror of The Happening wasn't REALLY gone (and no, that's not really a spoiler), neither was the stupidity. And who knows when it might rear it's ugly head again.
I'm thinking about folding my other blog "Can Danny" into the main SoulHonky.com. It's nice to have all of my basketball rantings corralled in another blog but I really don't have time (or I shouldn't be wasting the time) to keep up content for two sites. I'll still call my hoops stuff Can Danny for now but I need a new names. In fact, I'm trying to figure out a new name for the blog as a whole; I've been thinking "Mainstreamish" but I'm not really sold on that.
Anyway, onto hoops! The NBA Draft is usually when I'm at my peak of hoops posting so I hope people won't be too thrown by the amount of basketball discussion here.
For the first post, I'll unveil my first mock draft for 2009, complete with a number of trades that I think could help both teams (and, I'm sure, a couple of deals that I'll look back at in a few hours and wonder, "I didn't really type that, did I?"). So here it is:
2009 NBA Mock Draft v1
#1. Los Angeles Clippers: Blake Griffin
#2. Los Angeles Lakers (via Memphis Grizzlies): Ricky Rubio
#3. Oklahoma City Thunder: Hasheem Thabeet
#4. Sacramento Kings: Tyreke Evans
#5. New Jersey Nets (via Washington Wizards): James Harden
#6. Golden State Warriors (via Minnesota Timberwolves): Stephen Curry
#7. Charlotte Bobcats (via Minnesota Timberwolves via Golden State Warriors): Jordan Hill
#8. New York Knicks: Brandon Jennings
#9. Toronto Raptors: Dermar DeRozan
#10. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Milwaukee Bucks): Jrue Holiday
#11. New Jersey Nets: Earl Clark<
#12. Charlotte Bobcats: Gerald Henderson
#13. Indiana Pacers: Jonny Flynn
#14. Toronto Raptors (via Phoenix Suns): BJ Mullens
#15. Detroit Pistons: Terrence Williams
#16. Chicago Bulls: DeJuan Blair
#17. Philadelphia 76ers: Jeff Teague
#18. Milwaukee Bucks: Eric Maynor
#19. Atlanta Hawks: Ty Lawson
#20. Utah Jazz: Tyler Hansbrough
#21. New Orleans Hornets: Austin Daye
#22. Los Angeles Clippers (via Dallas Mavericks): Darren Collison
#23. Sacramento Kings: Nick Calathes
#24. Portland Trailblazers: Victor Claver
#25. Oklahoma City Thunder: Chase Buddinger
#26. Chicago Bulls: James Johnson
#28. Golden State Warriors (via Minnesota Timberwolves): Sam Young
#29. Los Angeles Lakers: Dajuan Summers
#30. Cleveland Cavaliers: Marcus Thornton
The Lakers at #2? New Jersey at #5? To see the trades that went down and a more involved discussion of the mock, keep reading.
#1. Los Angeles Clippers: Blake Griffin
It just doesn't make sense for the Clippers to deal this. Unless they can dump Baron Davis and Zach Randolph's contract while only dropping to the #2 (which could happen but is highly unlikely), the Clippers should bring in the best prospect of the draft and the power forward of the future (and probably the present as well).
#2. Los Angeles Lakers (via Memphis Grizzlies): Ricky Rubio
The Grizzlies acquire LA's young big man in return for the Spanish prodigy. I'm still not completely sold on this deal but the Lakers need cap space so they can afford to re-sign Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom and they'd probably be better off bringing in a veteran big man like Antonio McDyess. Honestly, Rasheed Wallace would probably have an easier time with the Laker faithful than Andrew. The Grizzlies add a top center prospect who is better than Hasheem Thabeet, the guy they'd have taken here.
#3. Oklahoma City Thunder: Hasheem Thabeet
Fourth times the charm! One of the reasons the Seattle Supersonics fell from grace was that they draft scrub centers in the first round for three straight years. Robert Swift, Johan Petro, and Saer Sene all bottomed out, for one reason or another. It's only fitting that they end the decade by taking one more shot at a big man.
I'm not a fan of Thabeet but he's what the Thunder need. A defensive anchor who won't demand shots. The presence of Nenad Krstic also means that OKC can afford to bring the big man along slowly and not throw him into the deep end from day 1.
#4. Sacramento Kings: Tyreke Evans
Evans is a ball dominant, scoring point guard but that actually could work with this team. Kevin Martin is there for kickouts while the shooting ability of Spencer Hawes and Jason Thompson helps on the pick and pop.
#5. New Jersey Nets (via Washington Wizards): James Harden
If you’re going to be in the luxury tax, you might as well try to compete. The Wizards have too many highly paid veteran to pull up stakes and head to Rebuildington so they add Vince, who could draw in some fans, as well as Yi, who’ll bring in the Chinese market for the Wizards. If healthy, Arenas, Vince, Butler, and Jamison is a great team. Then again, this is the same thinking that has endeared Daniel Snyder to the D.C. faithful.
#6. Golden State Warriors (via Minnesota Timberwolves): Stephen Curry
The Warriors add Kevin Love to be their center. He could be a perfect fit in coach Don Nelson's system and is a solid complement to Anthony Randolph. They also add a late pick, a veteran shooter with an expiring deal in Miller, and move up to make sure that they get their top choice, Stephen Curry.
Thanks to the folks and fans over at Canis Hoopus for helping out with this idea (and the idea in the next pick as well).
#7. Charlotte Bobcats (via Minnesota Timberwolves via Golden State Warriors): Jordan Hill
I originally had the Wolves going after Richard Jefferson but Wallace might be a better fit. He's signed for longer and is more injury prone but he works more on defense and he and Biedrins should more than make up for Big Al Jefferson's shortcomings on that end of the floor. Maybe they could even inspire him to give a damn on defense. The Bobcats add a legit power forward to team with Emeka Okafor and cut salary, which should help Bob Johnson sell the team. And in the long run, anything that helps this team get out of control of Bob Johnson is the right move.
#8. New York Knicks: Brandon Jennings
If anyone in this draft was built for NYC, it's Jennings. He has his issues and is a little too reminiscint of Sebastian Telfair for my liking but this kid is potentially the best point guard in the draft. He seriously needs to work on his jumper but I think the Knicks roll the dice with him rather than adding upstate New York's Jonny Flynn.
#9. Toronto Raptors: Dermar DeRozan
Life really does work in cycles. When Vince Carter was pushing his way out of Toronto, the Raptors draft Chris Bosh. Now that Bosh looks like he's on the outs, the Raptors add a kid who many people compare to Vince Carter. The downside (and in this draft, everyone has a severe downside) is that he also seems a bit like Gerald Green.
All of the talk will be on Bosh and where he might end up, something I'll address later this week.
#10. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Milwaukee Bucks): Jrue Holiday
I'm not 100% sure about the logistics but I believe the Wolves are a bit under the salary cap so they'll be able to eat Luke Ridnour's expiring deal. The Bucks agree to do this so that they can re-sign their young PG Ramon Sessions. The team is right at the luxury tax right now so without a move like this, the Bucks wouldn't be able to keep their young prospect. And as the saying goes, a bird in the hand is worth more than Jrue in the bush.
The Wolves move up and grab Holiday. The 6'4 PG struggled in his frst year at UCLA but he has size and makes a great complement to Randy Foye. Holiday is a strong defender who struggles against quicker guards so Foye could help him out there. The kid could be a complete bust but his height, defense, and potential makes him hard to pass up, especially since he does fit so well into the current Wolves lineup.
#11. New Jersey Nets: Earl Clark
No matter how things shape up for the Nets, all that matters is where things shape up. If the move to Brooklyn doesn't look likely (and right now it doesn't), the Nets are going to struggle to add a top talent in 2010. They may be the one team that's willing to offer Amar'e Stoudemire a full 2nd max contract.
But, as it stands, the Nets are putting together a very impressive young squad. Adding Harden with the 5 shores up the backcourt and now they look for either a SF or PF to team with Brook Lopez. Austin Daye is an interesting prospect but for now I'll go with the enigmatic Earl Clark, a kid who potentially could be the best young player the Nets have but will probably be best suited settling into the third wheel role behind Devin harris and Brook Lopez. (I think Harden is a role player, which is perfect for the Nets).
#12. Charlotte Bobcats: Gerald Henderson
The perfect fit. Henderson is a smart player and coachable so Larry Brown will like him, he fills a need a SG for the Bobcats, and he went to college in Carolina like almost half of Charlotte's past draft picks.
#13. Indiana Pacers: Jonny Flynn
I like TJ Ford but this will now be the third team he's bitched himself off of. Granted, he handled the demotion here a little better than he did in Toronto but it's still a shame. He's a great talent who can help teams win when he's happy. Unfortunately, he's not so good that you'd be willing to put up with whatever it takes to keep him happy.
Jonny Flynn seems to have the tough streak that should endear him to new coach Jim O'Brien. The Pacers might opt for someone like Eric Maynor or even a scoring combo guard like Jeff Teague but, for now, I'll pencil in Flynn.
#14. Toronto Raptors (via Phoenix Suns): BJ Mullens
The Raptors get a local hero who'll bring people out to games while the Suns get a poor man's version of Nash (who's much younger) and a promising big man who could be a great complement to Shaq (if they decide to keep the original Superman). The 14th pick might be a little too much for Phoenix to give up but I think the team is going to be making some major moves this offseason, possibly adding some payroll and they (as usual) will be more than happy to just dump the draft pick and save 3 million bucks. It's a perfect move for the Raptors; if Nash's presence doesn't change Bosh's mind, the Canadien is an expiring contract so they'll still have dumped some fifteen million dollars of salary.
As for the pick, the Raptors trade one project for another. Mullens was the biggest disappointment of a disappointing freshman class but he's tall, athletic, and needs the money. He and DeRozan could be complete busts but they could pan out to be as good as they advertised. Pre-season, they projected to be two of the top five players in the draft. That being said, if the Raptors think that they are keeping Bosh, they likely switch their picks to Gerald Henderson and someone like DeJuan Blair or James Johnson.
#15. Detroit Pistons: Terrence Williams
The Pistons could take a look at James Johnson or DeJuan Blair but I'm not really familiar with Johnson and Blair doesn't make sense as they already have the undersized Jason Maxiell. If they are going with Rodney Stuckey as their point guard, Williams makes sense at the 2. He can handle the ball and has all-around skills that will fit the Pistons lineup nicely. Also, if Detroit moves the unhappy Rip Hamilton, Williams might be able to step in and start from Day 1.
#16. Chicago Bulls: DeJuan Blair
The Bulls could use some bulk in the frontcourt and that's one thing that Blair can most certainly provide. I'm not completely sold on him as a pro prospect but the Bulls are better off with players who can help sooner than later so I don't see them going after projects like Austin Daye or Jeff Teague.
#17. Philadelphia 76ers: Jeff Teague
The Sixers are probably going to go after a veteran PG this offseason so I don't think a guy like Ty Lawson or Eric Maynor makes as much sense as Teague, who can play both guard positions. Also, Teague is the best of the three at playing without the rock, which will likely be in Andre Iguodala's hands more than their own. one concern is that he might duplicate Lou Williams a bit.
#18. Milwaukee Bucks: Eric Maynor
The Bucks hedge their bets a bit and grab Eric Maynor, just in case something happens with Sessions. Also, it can't hurt to bring in a solid backup point guard. I think working with Scott Skiles could be the best thing for Maynor, who needs some work on his defense.
#19. Atlanta Hawks: Ty Lawson
I think this is a great fit for Lawson and the Hawks. He's ready to step in and play for the playoff team and shold be able to feed off the play of others and get his points within the offense. His defense could also make the Hawks a tougher unit. Unfortunately, he'll have to live with constant comparisons to The One That Got Away (aka Chris Paul) but this is a perfect squad for Lawson.
#20. Utah Jazz: Tyler Hansbrough
It just feels right.
#21. New Orleans Hornets: Austin Daye
The Hornets grab the best player available in Daye. He needs time to mature as a player but I really doubt that the Hornets are expecting their draft pick to step in and play immediately. Daye is the heir apparent to Peja Stojakovic's small forward spot (a spot he probably should have relinquished two years ago).
#22. Los Angeles Clippers (via Dallas Mavericks): Darren Collison
Picture it this way: Chris Kaman for Josh Howard; Baron Davis for an expiring deal and #22. The Clippers were trying to dump Baron last year but this time I think Mark Cuban makes the move since he doesn’t have Jason Kidd anymore.Clippers fans who think they are going to compete next year won’t like it but I believe this is a better option for the long term.
Collison is most likely a backup point guard but he's a guy who lives to defend, which is a mindset the Clippers could use.
#23. Sacramento Kings: Nick Calathes
Calathes could eventually be a nice complement to Tyreke Evans (or maybe take over the spot if Evans doesn't pan out) but the most important thing is that he signed to play overseas so the Maloofs won't have to pay him this year. It was around this time last year that teams started going for the overseas picks. I wouldn't be surprised if this becomes the norm since so many teams are looking to save money.
#24. Portland Trailblazers: Victor Claver
Claver has potential and also is recuperating from a broken leg so he probably won't be expecting to play in the US next season anyway. I can't imagine that the Blazers really want to add another youngster to their roster so they invest in a foreign kid who they can stash overseas for a while.
#25. Oklahoma City Thunder: Chase Buddinger
The Thunder are thrilled to have Buddinger fall to them. He's a potential starting SG but will most likely backup Thabo Sefalosha this season.
#26. Chicago Bulls: James Johnson
The Bulls had to choose between Blair and Johnson at #16. They just grab up Johnson to cover their bet.
#27. Memphis Grizzlies: Gani Lawai
The Grizz add a physical PF to team with newly acquired Andrew Bynum.
#28. Golden State Warriors (via Minnesota Timberwolves): Sam Young
The Warriors could pick from a number of small forwards here but I like Young toughness.
#29. Los Angeles Lakers: Dajuan Summers
They could reach for Jeff Pendergraph or take a backup SG like Wayne Ellington. I wouldn't be stunned if they just sold the pick straight up for cash.
#30. Cleveland Cavaliers: Marcus Thornton
There aren't really any big men that are going to make a difference (or are better prospects than JJ Hickson) and the Cavs could use another SG.
