The NBA: It's Fantastic!.......by Chitown TOE

Folks, I haven't been this excited about NBA basketball since Jordan was making Mormons cry in 1998. In the ten years that followed, my heart was trampled by my Chicago Bulls. The NBA was lacking excitement and its bona-fide superstars weren't necessarily making the world forget MJ. Now, don't get me wrong, as a basketball coach I enjoy watching the Spurs play, but they don't exactly scream excitement. So here are five reasons why you should tune in to the rest of the 2008 NBA Season:

1. The Superstar: They are everywhere in the NBA these days....even helping build up New Orleans during the NBA All-Star Weekend. Just YouTube a few clips of Kobe, Lebron, D-wade, or Steve Nash and you will be mesmerized. These are the best athletes in the world. We tended to forget that in the post MJ era. We were so busy watching Shaq bowl over people and dunk, we forgot to check out the skill that is now upon us. (Added bonus: The thug image is disappearing. Sure there is still AI, who participates in more illegal activities than Kelvin Sampson, but most of the stars have a good image and are very marketable, ala MJ.)

2. Team Basketball: Ah, the number one complaint from basketball purists. "Everybody just stands around and watches 1 on 1." Now this argument could be made if you only watch the Cavs. But watch the Suns run, watch the 4 guys on the Pistons throw up 15+ a night, check out the Spurs big three pick apart defenses, and watch Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer run the pick-and-roll. Run-and-Gun team basketball is back and better than ever.

3. Dwight Howard. Young, explosive, and a perfect new type of big man. Watch the energy he plays with and the way he throws down. Unbelievable. He has already had two 30+ points, 20+rebound games and three 20-20 games. Just sick! (Maybe Van Gundy should get him the ball a bit more instead of having him run pick and rolls with Jameer Nelson at the 3 point line.)

4. The Wild, Wild West! As of today the top 9 teams are within 5 games of each other. Kobe's got help, Chris Paul is a contender for MVP, leading the Hornets out of the doldrums, and the Mavs just got Jason Kidd, one of the best point guards ever. Teams could lose 2 games in a row and drop 6 spots in the standings. Hang on for a wild ride. By the way, I would never bet against Kobe if I were you.

5. Point Guard Play. This is the best group of point guards in NBA History top to bottom. Just look at my top 5 list: 1) Nash 2) Paul 3) Williams 4) Parker 5) Baron Davis
Jason Kidd isn't even in the top 5 any more. They are young, can run the break and are incredible to watch. They can score when they want, dish when they need to, and rarely turn the ball over. They are coaches and fans dreams.

Folks, if you gave up on it when MJ retired and got sick of Shaq and the Lakers, it is time to tune back in.

Pics: Howard: www.si.com
Nash : www.posters.com

Super Bowl Preview by Chi-town Toe

Super Bowl Picks? Why not? Everybody else seems to be doing them. More money is changing hands during the hour leading up to a Super Bowl party than before Al Capone went to trial. If everybody else thinks their suited to make some picks and predictions, then why can't I? I might be sans appendix and laid up in bed with staples in my gut, but these are picks that are bound to be right. Nevermind the fact that I, myself, will be making no major bets on the big game, but you can still trust these.

I have only seen the Giants play a few times this year, but grew to like them a bit when my Grandma gave me the book THE GM, by Tom Callahan. It was about Ernie Accorsi, the GM of the Giants who retired last year. It was an inside look at the team and now I feel somewhat connected. That being said, I am not a big Eli Manning fan. He has his moment but most of the time looks like a hunter with a gun who's scared of the deer approaching. I don't think he has realized his talent. Plus, he is a Manning and I hate the Mannings and their stupid faces they make when they have failed win a big game. (Which for Peyton, is every game of his life save for a miracle last year.)

The Patriots are a bit of a different story. The news has been following them all year. I think there are more cameras following Tom Brady than Brittney Spears and Lindsay Lohan put together. Plus, with Tom the only story has been a boot, not drunk driving, wearing no underwear, rehab, child custody, more rehab....the list goes on. It would be great to see the Pats win and finally shut up the Dolphins. Plus, I gotta admit, I kinda like Bill Belichick. The hooded sweatshirt on the sidelines is the way to go.

So with those storylines being the background for my predictions here are 5 predictions sure to happen in the Super Bowl.
1. Tom Brady to Randy Moss....not once, but twice in the end zone for the Pats.
2. Initially, the Patriots have trouble stopping Brandon Jacobs. He will pile up like 75 yards in the first half. But the second half belongs to the Pats D. Forcing Fumbles, Interceptions, and chaos all over the field.
3. All the women at the Super Bowl party who actually are wondering why Peyton is now on the Giants, bring up the good looks of Tom Brady at least 5 times per half. That leads to a commentary about how skinny Gisele is and how she really is a skank.
4. First Player to score a touchdown: Laurence Maroney.
5. Final Score: Pats 31 G-men 20
The Giants are only down 3 at half, and then the Pats open a can of Belichek's speciality: Whoopin!

Who else is pumped for Tom Petty at halftime? YES!!! A few themes songs for the Pats/Giants as sung by TP:
"American Girl:" A Song about Eli Manning
"Breakdown:" A song about Tiki Barber now that the Giants are better without him
"Free Fallin:" Eli Manning's career after this game

"Mary Jane's Last Dance:" A song about Randy Moss and his extracurricular activities
"You Don't Know How it Feels:" A song all the Pats will be singing to the Giants after they host their 4th Trophy

Post your Tom Petty Super Bowl Correlations and I will be sure to publish the top 5 after the Super Bowl is over. The winner gets absolutely nothing except free Super Bowl picks next year too!

Pics:
Eil: nydailynews.com
Bill: msnbc.com
Tom: Tompetty.com

Gift Receipt Please... by Chi-town TOE

Ladies and Gentlemen, I trust you had a wonderful holiday season. Now that the holidays are over and the gifts have been unwrapped, it is time for a holiday tradition. I am not talking about taking down the outside lights before the 4th of July, or drinking all the Egg Nog in the fridge before the expiration date runs out. What I am talking about is returning all the crappy gifts people gave you. The ugly sweater, the 22nd Christmas tie, or the candle that burns your nostrils....a pungent odor. So why not return a few crappy sports "gifts" that we have been blessed with. I hope these gifts came with a few gift receipts, because I could use an upgrade.

1. I have numerous Bulls gifts to return.
a. John Paxson. Seriously John, my man crush of 1993 has completely vanished. Horrible draft decisions, your policy of thinking Luol Deng and Michael Jordan are equal, your no-trade clauses, and your firing of Scott Skiles makes me want to return you. "Hey, I passed on KG and Kobe, traded Tyson Chandler, signed the dreadful Capt. Kirk Hinrich to an extension, and blamed my coach for it all. " (By the way, since when was it acceptable in society to fire a coach because he was too hard on players. This isn't 2nd grade church league, although with Ben Gordon's defense it might seem like it, this is the NBA!!)
b. Tyrus Thomas- Pop Quiz: Which player would you want for your team?
Choice A: Averages 18+ a game.
Choice B: Rookie of the Year in 2007.
Choice C: Throws down 2 sick YouTube dunks and sits on the bench the rest of the year because his jump shots is worse than your grandma's.
If you picked choice A, Lamarcus Aldrige, or Choice B, Brandon Roy, you are obviously smarter than Bulls management.
c. Ben Wallace- This guy just sucks. I actually miss Luc Longley.

2. Take back Cedric Benson. What an awesome #4 pick in the draft. He is so motivated and hits the holes so hard. At least he stays healthy the whole year. HAH!! Is Bears management trying to outdo Johnny Pax? (Bears fans, you may ask why I am not returning Rex Grossman. A fair question, but lets be honest I returned him after Christmas in 04.)

3. Whoever that crappy Illinois receiver was who fumbled the ball when the ILLINI were 5 yards from closing the gap to 21-17 in the third quarter of the Rose Bowl.

4. Roger Clemens' Awards. How the mighty have fallen. Heck, I like the guy and love watching him pitch. However, we should have seen something was afoot when each of his quads were all muscle and bigger than my waist after the age of 40.

5. The BCS! Thank you for this beautiful system that sorts out all the confusion and gives us such meaningful games. I was so excited to watch my favorite sport culminate in the beautiful blowouts on New Years Day and the excitement of, hold your breath now, Kansas vs. Va Tech in the Orange Bowl. Speaking of Bowl Games, does anybody else find it completely unfair that all Midwest teams have to play their bowl games essentially on the road? How come the Rose Bowl is always in USC's back yard. Have those West Coast nancies play every other year at Soldier Field and see how Pete Carroll, Snoop Dogg, Will Ferrell, and OJ adjust to real man's weather. "Congratulations Ohio St. You have won a trip to the National Championship. You will play at a neutral cite.....New Orleans! Please ignore the 89% of fans in yellow and blue." What a crock! WE WANT A PLAYOFF!

6. The 72 Dolphins. I really don't dislike them at all or love the 2007 Pats, but do think it is hilarious that they can't all sit together and pop the champagne this year. By the way, the 85 Bears were better anyways.


The holidays weren't all bad. I got some sweet gifts as well. I am not taking back Guitar Hero, Fukudome, or the Irish recruiting class. Those are some gifts I gladly accept and already have me looking forward to a grand 2008. Lets hope the 100th anniversary of the Cubs World Series win brings us Cub fans luck for the new year.


Pics:
Tyrus Thomas: www.nba.com
Clemens: www.art.com

The 12 Weeks of Cowboys by West Coast O

It is Christmas season again, and my favorite team has me feeling like I’m a kid on Christmas morning. The Dallas Cowboys are 11-1 through 12 weeks this season and I’m as giddy as a crotchet enthusiast at the world’s biggest ball of yarn. So what better way to celebrate Christmas and 12 weeks of the NFL season than with my very own Cowboys Christmas Carol?

I have had several inquiries from family and friends on when exactly I would write something regarding my beloved Cowboys, but like any healthily superstitious sports fan, I did not want to risk sabotaging my team’s success. However, my previous blog about the Cleveland Indians propelled them to a game away from the World Series title and in light of the fact that I am couching this blog using song, the story surrounding the birth of Jesus, and the Lord’s Team (note hole in the roof of Texas Stadium for His viewing pleasure.), I thought I would be safe to broach the subject of the Dallas Cowboys (if not slightly sacrilegious).

So, without further ado, I am introducing you all to my very own Cowboys Christmas Carol: The Twelve Weeks of Cowboys. This comes complete with an explanation of each day followed by the sing-a-long lyrics below. Enjoy and feel free to make it your new Christmas tradition…

On the __ week of football, my Cowboys gave to me…

1^st – A Romo Passing TD

Romo has already surpassed the great Cowboys quarterbacks of Meredith, Staubach, White, and Aikman to set the new single season touchdown record. He has currently thrown 38 touchdowns this year!

2^nd – Two Running Backs

Like many NFL teams this year, the Dallas Cowboys run a two-back system with Julius Jones and Marion Barber. Julius is the flash and has the Notre Dame pedigree; while Marion Barber runs so hard he has earned the nickname Marion the Barbarian and has quickly become maybe my favorite Dallas Cowboy on this team.

3^rd – Three Folk Points

Finally, the Cowboys have a good kicker. We Cowboy fans once took this for granted. Now, we are relieved to have a reliable, stud kicker back there that leads all kickers in Fantasy Football scoring (yes, he is on my fantasy team).

4^th – Fourmer Philly Bird

Okay, a bit of a play on words, but this references former Philadelphia Eagle Terrell Owens. After he desecrated the Star when playing with the 49ers, I vowed to always despise him. When the Cowboys signed him I said I would not cheer specifically for him. I gotta tell you, it’s hard not to when you watch the plays he has made this year.

5^th – Five Super Bowl Rings

Yep, when we add our 6^th this year, we will lead NFL franchises in most Super Bowls won!

6^th – Six Blockers Blocking

This refers to the real MVPs of our offense: Andre Gurode (C), Kyle Kosier (LG), Leonard Davis (RG), Flozell Adams (LT), Marc Columbo (RT), and Jason Witten (TE)

7^th – Seven Points-a-Scoring

The Cowboys have scored an NFC leading 48 touchdowns so far this season

8^th – Eight, wait that was Aikman…

The number 8 will forever be linked for me to my boy idol Troy Aikman, who is currently the best commentator in the NFL and has done several Cowboys broadcasts this year.

9^th – Nine, now that’s Romo!

The franchise-quarterback torch has been passed from Aikman to Romo. How can you not love this kid? Certainly Jessica Simpson, Carrie Underwood, and Brittney Spears can’t.

10^th – Ten sacks by Ellis

Despite only playing in 9 of our 12 games this year, our most seasoned veteran and silent leader of the Cowboys, Greg Ellis has a team leading 10 sacks. Demarcus Ware could also be inserted here as he has 10 as well. I love the blitzing, turnover-prone Wade Phillips defense.

11^th – Eleven Wins and Counting

That’s right. We lead the NFC with the best record and if not for those annoying Patriots, we’d be undefeated.

12^th – Twelfth Man, that’s the Fans!

Granted, the bandwagon fans are turning out by the droves again this year. But this goes to the true-blue Cowboy fans that invest their emotional, physical, and spiritual faculties to support the success of our team week in and week out. Cowboys fans unite!

Sing-a-long Song Lyrics:

The song is cumulative with each verse building and repeating until the conclusion. It sings exactly like the popular Christmas Carol “The 12 Days of Christmas” except the lyrics are obviously pertaining to the Cowboys. I have also substituted “my true love” with “the Cowboys”, which are synonymous anyhow. Remember, the only way to spread Christmas (or Cowboy) cheer, is to sing out loud for all to hear…

First Verse:

On the first week of football my Cowboys gave to me

A Romo Passing TD

Second Verse:

On the second week of football my Cowboys gave to me

2 Running Backs,

And a Romo passing TD

…and so forth until the last verse:

On the twelfth week of football my Cowboys gave to me

Twelfth man, that’s the fans!,

Eleven wins and counting,

Ten sacks by Ellis,

Nine, now that’s Romo!,

Eight, wait that’s Aikman…,

Seven points-a-scoring,

Six blockers blocking,

Five Super Bowl Rings…,

Fourmer Philly bird,

Three Folk points,

Two Running backs,

And a Romo passing TD

GO COWBOYS!!!

All Photos from: dallascowboys.com, except Ainkman is form cnnsi.com

Who needs Kobe?.... And other random questions from Chi-town Toe

I do realize the Kobe talk was so last month. However, due to the stellar start by my Chicago Bulls, I felt the need to re-open the wound. I was excited for the Bulls season to start. Can you blame me? They were picked by ESPN and Sports Illustrated to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, the images of Tyrus Thomas dunking on Shaq were fresh in my memory from last year's playoff rout of the Heat, and I was still stuck in a sports coma due to the recent failings of the Cubs, the Irish, and the once mighty Bears defense. (Somewhere Dick Butkus is physically ill watching the 2007 Bears.) Then the supposed opportunity was laid in Paxson's lap to get Kobe. The papers and talk shows were abuzz. Sane people calling in and writing who both had seemingly legitimate arguments. However my friends, as seen in the past 20 years, there is one argument on the Kobe saga that should have trumped them all. I am afraid Johnny Pax, who I will forever love for Game 6 in Phoenix in 1993, didn't look closely enough at NBA history, or his own history to make the right decision. Are you ready for the argument? Here it is: The SuperStar Factor!

Quick: name one SuperStar on the Bulls. Still searching? How about one NBA all-star? Ok, so you came up with Lou Deng and Ben Gordon as POTENTIAL all-stars. In the words of the late, great Chris Farely: La-de-frekin-da! Be sure you watch the Pistons next time they play the Bulls. Watch as Richard Hamilton and Chauncey Billups take turns smoking our size deficient Ben Gordon. What about Loul Deng? Could he be very good? Yes. Great? No! Watch any Bulls game this year and tell me if you really feel you are watching something special when you watch him play. (By they way, he is also the guy that as a Freshman in college fueled the UConn comeback against Duke when he was launching threes with less than 4 minutes to go and 20 seconds on the shot clock with Duke up by 8.)

Now for the history lesson: Name one team in the last 15 years to win a championship without a SuperStar. You can't find one can you. MJ, Hakeem the Dream, MJ again, Shaq and Kobe, Duncan, D-Wade. Ah...but you say the Pistons. Good choice and the only team I can think of. 1 in 15!! Now that is a model to follow.

Kobe is the best player in the game. Period! He would have brought the Bulls to the finals. I am afraid Johnny Pax has gotten a little too conservative on us. He came to two crossroads in his GM career that will cost him. He failed to get Garnett and now Kobe. For all the great things he has done for the Bulls, he should have remembered that #23 who got him so many open shots and laid his cards on the table for Kobe.

Some other thoughts on recent sports events:

1. The BCS rocks! I love it when a 2 loss teams get to play for the title. And when the winner of Mizzou-Kansas actually didn't mean anything. What an awesome system! Start a playoff you idiots.

2. How great is it that we can see how the coaches voted in the polls.
Great Example: Bob Stoops, coach of Oklahoma. #1 OU........... #6 LSU...........HAH!

3. The Twins might seriously trade Johan Santana. Maybe to Boston? I can just hear the gun fire from the New York streets. If Santana goes to Boston, I am laying down $100 bucks on Boston to win the World Series for the next 5 years.

4. Tebow should win the Heisman. He is unbelievable. Enough said.

5. The college basketball season has started...is it March yet?



Kobe picture: www.allposters.com

A crying Irish fan sees a glimmer of hope

I have a crush on College Football. I love everything about it. The weekly matchups, the pageantry, the recruiting, and the dawn of hope that comes each August. Well this August my hope was quickly turned into pain. The kind of pain from taking a red pen and jamming it into your eye. My Irish are 1-7, and apparently, from what I read and hear, the laughing stock of college football. I thought I would share with you the evolution of a fan in this kind of pain. From wanting to jump off the top of my roof, to somehow, some way, seeing a silver lining in what could only be the worse Irish football season of my life. So here we go: the two voices inside my head.

The depressed, want to throw the remote through the tv voice: How could the IRISH be so bad? They are awful. They can't run the ball, can't throw the ball. Their special teams are atrocious and their offense could only be described as an unsightly bunch. A hideous team, plain and simple.

The somehow optimistic voice inside my head:Don't worry about it too much. It is only one season. And despite what Charlie says, this is a rebuilding year.

Remote Thrower: Rebuilding!! I thought Ohio State was going through rebuilding and they are No. 1 in the polls. The University of Notre Dame should still be an average football team when they go through the rebuilding. How in the world are they only 1-7???

Optimistic Voice: Yeah, they are 1-7, which sucks, no doubt about it. However, they have played the toughest record in the NCAA DI so far. Losing at Penn St and Michigan, and against BC and USC at home is nothing to hang your head about. They aren't going around playing Akron and NorthEastern Indiana St.

RT: Who cares? They should just throw in the towel. Where is the talent? The offense line looks like my Grandma's knitting group. My stomach is getting upset just thinking about it. They are never going to win another game again. Should I throw away my IRISH t-shirts? I am too embarrassed to wear my hoody out in public.

OV: Don't worry, the talent is on its way. The kids that are Juniors and Seniors right now weren't even ranked a top 25 class by Rivals100. And both of those classes only had 1 or 2 top 100 players. Ty was bringing in 2 and 3 star guys. Now Charlie has recruited two top 10 classes in a row and they have the number 1 class set to enroll next fall according to Scout.com and Rivals100. The young and inexperienced o-line still needs time to adjust and establish depth to be successful in the future.

RT: Recruits aren't making any difference this year. Jimmy Claussen...woopidy doo! He is awful and can't throw a ball more than five yards. I am so glad he is our reason to hope in the future. Plus, who says Charlie and the coaches can actually mold these guys into players. My alcohol consumed each Saturday is slowly on the rise!

OV: Just give them time to adjust to the speed of the game. NExt year: 8-4 and in 2009: back to BCS bound!! Corwin Brown, the Defensive Coordinator, is just the guy you want leading the defense. And Charlie will be ok once he makes the adjustment to coaching younger college kids instead of the established vets that he had when he came to ND. So get down off that roof and keep those Irish clothes ironed. Touchdown Jesus will uncover his eyes soon and be impressed by what he sees in South Bend.

RT: I will put the razor blades away for now. But if we lose to Navy, Army, or Duke the bonfire of Irish apparel will be at my house over Thanksgiving.