Tuesday July 8, 2003
Here we go again!
It’s been a big week in the NBA. July 1st was the first day that teams could visit with free agents. So, of course, the big pieces to that puzzle are Jason Kidd (who I believe will stay with the Nets) and Jermaine O’Neal (who I believe will stay with the Pacers). After that, it’s pretty clear that Gary Payton will end up a Laker, with Karl Malone probably joining him there. It really sounds like a deal between the Timberwolves and Rasho Nesterovich is imminent.
The Summer Leagues for rookies and free agents will start today, so Lebron James will get his first pro action and it will be heavily scrutinized I’m sure.
There’ll be signings and trades and there will be excitement around the NBA.
But what always happens with the NBA? They give reason to the cynic’s belief that NBA players are a bunch of thugs and potheads.
No surprise to anyone, Portland PG Damon Stoudemire was again arrested for marijuana possession. That’s his third strike for having marijuana. He was released on his own recognizance (interesting). He’s a Portland Trailblazer and stuff like that happens all the time to players out there…
On a more surprising level, Orlando PG Darrell Armstrong was arrested for getting into a verbal, and maybe a physical, confrontation with a police woman outside a club in Orlando. He was trying to get into a full taxi cab and was told to get out of it by the officer.
And in the surprise of the year (as I mentioned briefly yesterday), Kobe Bryant was arrested in Colorado for felony sexual assault. He was released on $25,000 bail. The woman who is alleging that Bryant did these things (things we don’t know any details about at this time, by judges orders) is 19, an adult. So, if these things are true, it’s better than her being a minor, I guess. It’s important to remember that right now, these are just accusations, no probable cause at this point, and no charges have been brought against Bryant.
I think this situation brings two issues to light.
First, athletes get in way too much trouble! The lists go on and on. Gary Payton and two teammates were arrested for getting in a fight. Former Cowboys offensive lineman Nate Newton has been arrested a couple of times with massive quantities of marijuana. Jason Williams is on trial for murder. Former Viking/Current Saints backup quarterback Todd Bouman was charged with sexual assault this winter at a Vikings charity event. Randy Moss drove over a Minneapolis traffic officer who got in his way. Anthony Carter is being accused of beating his wife. Allen Iverson is usually in trouble for something, just because he has chosen to remain friends with the people that he’s been friends with his whole life. There are numerous examples throughout the major sports, and this list could go on and on, but you get my point.
Second, it’s important to remember that in this country, people are supposed to be considered innocent until proven guilty. Ray Lewis was charged in a double-murder. Ends up that he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Poor judgment? Yes. Criminal? No. From a local perspective, Kirby Puckett was charged with sex crimes and, after a court case, he was found not guilty of the crimes. Was Puckett guilty of poor judgment? Absolutely. But, were his actions criminal? No.
I think the lesson here is that athletes are on a pedestal. They want to tell us that more is expected of them than us average folk. That’s not true. We all are expected to follow the laws of the land. That’s fair. The only difference is that if you and I were to get charged with these things, we would just go to court, get our sentence and a blurb in the paper about it, and it would be done. In court, we are innocent until proven guilty.
Now compare that to how an infamous athlete is treated for these things. In the court of public opinion, they are guilty until proven innocent. Once SportsCenter tells about allegations, viewers automatically get that “here we go again” attitude and instantly associate guilt to that person. Even if found not-guilty in court, that player’s life will never be the same. The allegations will always loom over their head. (with the possible exception of Ray Lewis, who’s popularity and marketability have actually increased since his encounter, although he’s been a model citizen since those events) Look at Kirby Puckett… His image is shot! And, in possibly the worst example of this, OJ Simpson will never be looked at the same. Is that fair? No. Is that how it works? Unfortunately.
So, bringing it all back to the Bryant situation. Let’s not assume guilt until he’s proven guilty. No charges have even been brought upon him. Until he’s guilty, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt. His character has been impeccable since he came up. There is nothing in his past that would hint at something like this happening.
Could he be guilty? Could he have thought “I’m Kobe Bryant. I can do whatever I want. No one will say anything. I can’t be hurt!”? Maybe. I don’t think it’s likely. First, he brought his wife with him to Colorado to visit a shoulder specialist.
Could she just be someone who is a big Sacramento Kings or Denver Nuggets fan who is out to defame Kobe Bryant. Bryant is a very sensitive individual. Allegations like this could hurt him bad! Maybe she’ll make a little money. Who knows?
For anyone to think that athletes, or any celebrity, are not targets are fooling themselves. There are a lot of people in this world who begrudge people in the entertainment industries (sports included) for making so much money, and this is a way to get themselves in the spotlight, and maybe cash in on some money.
My guess - Within a couple of days, the police reports will have been analyzed and they will have determined that there is not enough evidence to formally charge Bryant with any crime. If that happens, I really hope people, especially basketball fans, and especially Lakers fans, can put the whole situation behind him.
If he’s found guilty, then at that time, he deserves any bashing he may get.
It sounds like it’s pretty imminent that the Wolves will re-sign C Rasho Nesterovich to a multi-year contract. He’s the best center on the free agent market, outside of Jermaine O’Neal, so it’s a good signing for the Wolves. Hopefully it won’t be a maximum deal, but I’m guessing it may be close.
Anthony Peeler was waived by the Milwaukee Bucks yesterday. That move is not at all a surprise. The Bucks made that trade to save cap room. I think they wanted to think that they could then sign Gary Payton. But, Payton has narrowed his choices to the Lakers and Blazers (obviously the Lakers #1), so the Bucks will have to look elsewhere. Will the Timberwolves contact Peeler again?
One free agent I would really, really like to see the Wolves pursue is SG Eric Piatkowski. He’s spent so long with the Clippers. If he re-signs with them, he’s dumb! But, he can flat-out shoot! And, he can consistently knock down 3-pointers. If he can be had for a reasonable price, I definitely think the Wolves should go after him!
No Twins game last night, so I really don’t have anything to write about them. I will point out, though, that they did come to terms with their first round pick, Matt Moses yesterday. So, he’ll report to rookie league and get his career going.
The big news, in my opinion, of the day is the season-ending knee injury to Cubs CF Corey Patterson. He had been experiencing a breakout season when he tore his ACL on a play at first base on Sunday. He was hitting .298/.329/.511 with 17 doubles, 7 triples, 13 homers and 55 RBI. Oh, and he’s got 16 stolen bases, while playing a very solid center field. Patterson was one of 5 National League players who could have been voted in by fans on the internet as the 32nd member of the NL All-Star team. That spot has been now taken by Pirates CF Kenny Lofton. Rumors have it that the Cubs are definitely interested in trading for Lofton for the remainder of the season.
Should the Twins be involved in trade talk now with the Cubs? We have numerous OF options that could go to the Cubs in exchange for something we may want/need.
First, who would the Twins send to the Cubs to play CF. Well, right now, the Cubs CF options are Tom Goodwin and Trenidad Hubbard. So, to improve that, we could send them Torii Hunter, Jacque Jones, Bobby Kielty, Dustan Mohr or Lew Ford, and it would be an improvement. That said, I don’t think the Twins will be trading Hunter, and I don’t think that the Cubs would have any interest in either Ford or Mohr (for the starting CF job). That leaves two options.
It is also unlikely the Twins would trade Jacque Jones mid-season, but he could definitely slide into center field for the Cubs and contribute almost equally (to Patterson) to their success. For Jones, I would think that the Twins could be able to acquire a top-level pitcher (not Prior or Wood) and a prospect. How about Carlos Zambrano and Mike Remlinger? So, that trade proposal would be: Carlos Zambrano and Mike Remlinger for Jacque Jones and Adam Johnson. (Not likely. How would Torii Hunter react to his best friend, and the 2nd member of the Soul Patrol, being traded?)
But, more likely, I could see the Cubs wanting Bobby Kielty. He could lead off for them, he could bat anywhere in their order. Personally, I would prefer the Twins keep him and play him every day in RF. But, Kielty’s stock is high, and Gardy doesn’t know how to use him correctly. That trade proposal: Bobby Kielty and Adam Johnson for Juan Cruz and Mike Remlinger. I like Remlinger. I’d love to see him as the second, maybe first, lefty out in the Twins bullpen!
One more baseball thought. I’ve been reading so much about how Rocco Baldelli, not Larry Carter, should be the Tampa Bay Devil Rays All-Star representative. First, I totally agree that Baldelli would be a far better option than Carter. I even mention that in my All-Star rants yesterday. However, I am curious as to why Baldelli is getting all the publicity, when in actuality, Aubrey Huff is the better choice. Don’t get me wrong, I think Baldelli is great and deserves much consideration. He, not the Yankees Hideki Matsui, would be the AL rookie of the year if it were determined now. I don’t want to change anyone’s opinion, I am just going to put their statistics together below and let you make up your mind. Send me an e-mail and let me know what you think. Why is Baldelli thought of higher, this year, than Huff? Is it because he’s a rookie? Well, Huff only played half a season of big league ball before this year. Is it because he has a cool name and has been compared to Joe Dimaggio? Likely.
|
|
G |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
BB |
SO |
SB |
BA |
OBP |
SLG |
OPS |
|
Rocco Baldelli |
83 |
333 |
43 |
103 |
18 |
7 |
5 |
40 |
13 |
69 |
16 |
0.309 |
0.337 |
0.450 |
0.788 |
|
Aubrey Huff |
86 |
332 |
47 |
102 |
30 |
1 |
16 |
49 |
27 |
51 |
1 |
0.307 |
0.366 |
0.548 |
0.914 |
One more trade
One final Twins note, I hope you don’t mind. Today, in my fantasy baseball league, I traded Luis Castillo, Torii Hunter and Kevin Millwood for Albert Pujols and Jacque Jones.
My thinking was - Jones and Hunter wash each other out, especially if Jacque gets into an RBI spot in the order when he comes back off the disabled list. I ranked Albert Pujols 5th overall in my pre-season draft board, so I really like having him in my lineup. Is he worth Castillo and Millwood? Well, I guess we’ll see. Now I need to pick up another 2B though. I want Vidro, but don’t know if that’s possible! Let me know what you think?
Did anyone else watch the finale of For Love or Money last night? What a dumb show! But, I couldn’t not watch it. I hadn’t watched any of the previous episodes. All I know is Erin was too cool for Rob, and Rob was a moron for not picking Paige. Now, next Monday, Erin will get to be on the other side of the picking.
Simon Cowell agreed to stay with American Idol for 3 more years. This is good news, I think. American Idol without the snarly Cowell wouldn’t have been the same! Canadian Idol is down to 30 contestants. They’re in 3 groups of 10, and after call in votes, they’ll get down to the final 10. Of the 10 that sang last night, maybe 3 of them were at all good.
Tonight is the premiere of Big Brother 4!! Should be interesting. There is a definite twist this season. Right now, we only know eight of the houseguests that will be entering the Big Brother house tonight. The reason, the other five guests will be ex’s of theirs. Should create an interesting dynamic within the house. It’ll be on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday nights.
I rented and watched ‘How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days’ this weekend. It is absolutely one of the funniest movies I have seen in a long time. Kate Hudson is great! Matthew McConaughey is hilarious. The lines are funny. The situations are laugh-outloud funny! And I did. A lot! I would definitely suggest renting the movie to anyone!
OK, that’s it for today. If you have any questions or comments on anything above, please e-mail me you thoughts! Have a great Tuesday!