The Commish has spoken... Blocks Paul to Lakers

The NBA is back in the PR cross hairs this morning, after the Lakers ,Hornets and Rockets worked out a blockbuster trade for Chris Paul, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol being the main components, Stern apparently killed the trade after other owners complained.

I didn't really follow much of the recent lock-out but I know one subject was competitive balance. So for this trade to be proposed or approved in the first place was a mistake. Never mind the fact the Hornets are a league owned team makes the fact that much worse. Throw in the fact that Stern had to step in and block the trade created a public relations mess for the NBA.

Players are pissed as you can see from this article on Pro Basketball Talk. Laker fans are pissed, because most feel this trade some how was going to lead the way for the Lakers to land Dwight Howard, but really this might be a blessing for the Lakers. The odds of them landing Howard for Bynum straight up was unlikely and I did not hear much about a third team involved to get another mega deal done. Even with Paul the Lakers would be down to Bynum as their one big man and let's be honest Bynum is not dependable. So the commish has laid down the law and it might end up the best for the Lakers...

The NBA is back....Whooo Hoooo... I think

So the NBA is back… Do you care? I don’t and frankly I didn’t even notice it was gone. To me the season is too long and too many teams make the playoffs, so if your team misses the playoffs they really suck. Last year was interesting with the whole Lebron to south beach, but this season I just don’t see many story lines. The biggest story coming out of the lockout was all the trades and big free agent signings that were going to take place. So far the biggest talk is Chris Paul to the Celtics, but I would be shocked it that happened.  That said are you happy the NBA is back or could care less?

Chris Kluwe A Breath Of Fresh Air

It’s a breath of fresh air to read this article on Yahoo from Les Carpenter about Vikings punter Chris Kluwe. Most athletes especially football players get lumped in the jock role of not being very bright, a meathead and in this modern NFL all about the money. Chris comes across of the complete opposite of all those and if I wasn’t a Vikings fan I’d would probably have had no idea who he was from his Twitter accounthttp://twitter.com/#!/ChrisWarcraft). Most people I following on Twitter talk about upcoming teams, other players, working out or pitching some product. This is not the case with Chris, usually he is complaining about a video game or mocking the NFL. To all 3 of my readers if you get the time give the article above a read and you’ll appreciate the breath of fresh air Chris has given the NFL

About that Chris Johnson Hold Out...

As Chris Johnson continues to hold out in hopes of a new contract we can again ponder "Is it a good idea?" I am very much on the fence on this one, being a Vikings fan I think Adrian Peterson is more deserving then Johnson of a new contract and handling it the proper way, by showing up and not becoming a distraction to his team. Peterson has been more consistent and a more complete back than Johnson, but this post isn't about that it's about should a player hold out for a new contract?

A NFL running back has one of the shortest playing careers of any position and while great running backs are rare, serviceable good running backs are a dime a dozen.Plus what about the fact that teams can basically cut a player at any time, should we expect a player to honor his contract when the team doesn't have to? I don't think Johnson deserves what he is requesting to be paid as one of the highest impact players not just at his position but the overall. The days of a running back dictating that type of money are gone and qbs are higher impact players than running backs. I think Johnson should be paid as a top tier running back and while I don't think holding out is a great idea for other positions, I feel it is almost justified as a running back. They are one injury away from calling it a career, might as well get as much as possible when you have the leverage.

The Magic Of The 4th Of July.. What Happen???

So I am taking a break from sports to write about the 4th of July and the magic it carried as a good. I don't know it was because I was young or because I had the entire Summer off from school but the 4th always carried special magic. It's was family bbqs,cookouts and fireworks.. Where does the magic go?

Some of my fondest childhood memories happened on the 4th of July. It could be the one summer when I was 6 or 7 and my uncle had a cardboard tube and would launch bottle rockets underneath a bridge where crowds of people's were walking to watch fireworks at the river. Probably not the best idea, but it was the 80's and it was pretty funny. I remember that was the Summer I was introduced to the movie "It's a mad mad world" and lawn Jarts (the dangerous ones).

Or in 95 when Chris Isaak was performing at The Hartford Riverfest. I was 15 at the time and rode my bike everywhere. So myself and a couple friends rode our bikes about 10 miles to Riverfest, along the way taped a couple m80's to a Isaak CD and launch it under a bridge. I remember wondering around Riverfest grabbing food and going down the water slide along with seeing ton's of friends from around town. Picking up a couple boxes of stink bombs from the dollar store and watching a crowd clear.

Life seemed so much simpler and slower back then, even though things were a little more tough. It was tough to get money for things and a lot more work to ride a bike then drive a car. Maybe that is what made it better, the adventure that led to the moment. I have been to numerous cookouts over the years now and have memories from all of them, but none of them seem to capture that same magic. Maybe now that I have a little baby girl I can recapture some of the moments from my childhood. Just looking for that spark to re-create the magic...