An NBA Draft Worth Watching Again
Greg Oden, Kevin Durant and then what?
That's the main question headed into tonight's NBA Draft. Will Atlanta grab Ohio State point guard Mike Conley, Jr. at number three? How about Florida Center Al Horford? Or Chinese 7-footer Yi Jianlian? A lot of big names sit atop the board this year: it's probably the deepest draft in ten years.
The big trade rumor in the days leading up to Selection Thursday has circled around the future of Kevin Garnett. It sure sounds like the Timberwolves are finally ready to pull the trigger on a deal for their franchise leader of the past eleven years.
All Minnesota wants back is a couple of high draft picks, which isn't asking all that much when you consider that KG is the only player in NBA history to average 20+ points, 10 + rebounds and 4 + assists for ten consecutive seasons.
Whose going to get him though? The Boston Celtics make no sense . . . Why would KG want to languish in the lottery there when he can stay at home and do it Minnesota? I don't think the Lakers really make all that much sense either . . . KG and Kobe co-existing with no other legitimate help to speak of? Not likely.
But the Phoenix Suns, now there's an idea. NBA sources say Phoenix has been talking to Minnesota and Atlanta about a three-team trade that would net them the Big Ticket's services for a package starting with the #5 pick in the draft.
Sounds good, but if you're Phoenix, you can't give up Amare Stoudemire to make this deal happen. Shawn Marion---versatile as he is---would make way more dispensable sense because he tends to be a perimeter player, much like Kevin Garnett. But you need to keep Amare to have a threat in the low post.
If this deal somehow goes down, and Phoenix trots out a lineup with Stoudemire, Garnett, Nash, Diaw and Barbosa next year, you can forget about it already. The Suns are your 2008 NBA Champions.
Finally, The Year's First Really Good Movie
This year's class of movies has been routinely awful. There's no other way to put it. Spiderman 3 . . . Pirates 3 . . . Shrek 3 . . . Enough with the garbage sequels already!
There really haven't even been any truly good DVD releases of late, which downright stinks for a moviehead like me. But finally, there's something to feel good about. It's called Knocked Up.
Judd Apatow (40 Year-Old Virgin, Anchor Man) directs the film, which focuses on the plight of a slacker (played by Seth Rogen) who has a one-night stand with a motivated entertainment reporter (played by Katherine Heigl). Of course, the night of fun leads to an unexpected pregnancy, but the movie isn't about morality lessons. Instead, it's about growing up and becoming a responsible adult, something that Rogen's slacker is forced to do in a hurry.
Plot details aside, the movie is seriously funny. (I literally caught myself laughing out loud four or five times in the first half hour.) And the best part about it is that never once do you feel like the flick is trying too hard, something that most definitely can't be said about the aformentiened triquels, or whatever you want to call them.
If you stick with it, you'll see that---much like Virgin---Knocked Up has a heart to it too. I'll give it a strong four stars out of five. Director/Writer Apatow is clearly a talent to be reckoned with. And so, in a movie year that's vying for the right to be called the worst of all-time, Knocked Up sits on top of the heap as the best of the year.
2007 Razorback Football Schedule Looms Tough
For the first time in three years, there's no early-season game with USC (thank goodness), but that doesn't mean Arkansas won't have its hand full with plenty of brutal SEC games. Two months to go until the season opener with Troy, here's my ranking of the five most difficult games on the '07 slate for the Hogs.
#1- at LSU, November 23rd. The Tigers are scary wherever you play them, so going to Baton Rouge the day after Thanksgiving is downright brutal for the Hogs. QB Jamarcus Russell is gone, but all LSU does is reload yearly with one of the four or five deepest recruiting wells in America. This game looms as large and as difficult as last year's season finale defeat against the Tigers in Little Rock.
#2- at Tennessee, November 10th. The Volunteers hate losing to Arkansas and should be out for revenge after getting pounded on national television last year in Fayetteville. Neyland Stadium is always a very difficult place to play, and you'd figure Phil Fulmer already has this game circled as a key contest on his calendar.
#3- home for Auburn, October 13th. I realize Arkansas dominated the Tigers at Auburn last year, but Tommy Tubberville is already out to prove that it was a fluke. Like many of Arkansas' opponents this year, Auburn will come to Fayetteville with a chip on its shoulder. And two linebackers keyed in on Darren McFadden at all times.
#4- home for Kentucky, September 22nd. Some folks may want to scoff at this pick. Ahead of Alabama? Yeah, I think so. The Wildcats were one of the most improved teams in the country last year (9 wins, crushed Clemson in a bowl) and they return a host of talent. None more gifted than QB Andre Woodson, who's undoubtedly the best quarterback in the SEC this year. Throw in the fact that Kentucky has a history of playing Arkansas tough (seven overtimes ring a bell?) and there's no reason to think the Wildcats won't make it another nail-biter this year.
#5- at Alabama, September 15th. This is clearly the key game to the season, but it's not nearly the toughest. Surely, Nick Saban will have his Crimson Tide up and ready for the game in Tuscaloosa, and there's no question that the fans will be whipped up and into a drunken frenzy by the time the nationally televised game gets going at six o'clock. But it's my belief that the Razorbacks are getting 'Bama at the right time of the year: early. I just don't see how Alabama's porous defense is going to contain Arkansas' ground attack.
-JAB
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
Josh's June News, Notes and Nuggets
U.S. Open Finishes Tight as a Wire
Angel Cabrera sent a message to the youth of the world at Oakmont yesterday: who needs a physique when you've got Marlboro Lights? The 36-year-old Argentine drove his way to the U.S. Open crown with a number of big tee shots, none larger than his smack-down-the-middle leadoff shot on eighteen. Chain smoking all the way, with a sagging waistline to boot, Cabrera was far from the picture of golfing beauty, but he still made enough shots to stymie the Tiger, who fell just one stroke short. It's not a misprint: five over par was enough to win the year's second major, making it more of a survival test than an actual high level competition. But there was still drama at the end, with Woods and Furyk pressing close, but Cabrera managing to puff his way past.
I guess the big winner here---besides Cabrera, of course---was Oakmont itself. Clearly, there's no more difficult a course you could hold a major on.
Interleague Slate Wrapping Up
Some thoughts on the Interleague baseball over the weekend:
Cardinals' fans rejoice! Kip Wells has finally been banished from the starting rotation. Sporting a 2-10 record with an ERA of almost seven, it's been a long time coming for the Pirates' defector. Unfortunately for the Redbirds, Wells' exit to the bullpen means Anthony Reyes gets another shot in the rotation. Called back up from Triple A Memphis, Reyes got a no-decision in a 10-6 win over the A's yesterday. He's still 0-8 on the year with an ERA over six. And you wondered why it feels like Saint Louis has had to come from behind so often this year....
Barry Bonds is an stoppable force. So is Alex Rodriguez. Bonds will get his home run record sometime in the next month when he passes Hank Aaron, but he won't get to keep it for long. Barring a run of unforeseen injuries, A-Rod is on course with destiny for sometime around 2014. Just nine dingers shy of 500---at the age of 30---all you have to do is a little quick math to see that Rodriguez only needs to average 40 longballs a year for the next seven years to get to 800. As amazing as that is to say, it's the absolute truth, and perhaps the only consolation for baseball fans like myself who want no part of watching Barry break Hammerin' Hank's record. A-Rod to the rescue? In this regard, I guess so....
Speaking of records, Pete Rose's career hits mark may not be all that safe either. Once thought untouchable, Charlie Hustle's total of over 4,200 career hits may be in the sights of another Yankee. Derek Jeter is 32 years old and has fifty more hits than Rose did at the same point in his career. A phenomenal base hit guy, DJ still looks and plays young. If he can stay hungry and healthy till he's in his early 40s, Jeter actually has a realistic shot at the mark....
Meanwhile, the Mets have major problems. All of a sudden, my pick---in both heart and mind---for the 2007 World Series crown is looking more and more perilous by the day. Tom Glavine has lost his location, El Duque has lost his zip, the once strong bullpen has sprung leaks all over, and the offense just doesn't have its groove.
Can Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado still turn it around? Of course. But unless the Mets trade for more pitching, or Pedro Martinez comes back and pitches like his younger self---an unlikely proposition---the Mets don't look any more likely to win it all this year than they did a year ago....
75 Days Till Troy!
The Hogs open the 2007 football season on September 1st, and for most folks around the Natural State, it can't come quickly enough. For a Razorback nation so snake-bitten by gossip, drama and hearsay over the last 12 months, it's ultimately going to take a new gridiron slate to fully wash last year's clean. Not that there aren't blocks to build upon from a year ago---ten overall wins, 7-1 in the SEC West, D-Mac and Felix, Monk as a go-to wideout, Antowain Robinson as an elite pass-rushing force, to name a few---there's still some hangover as well. Over what? How about a three game losing streak to close the year? How about the names Malzahn and Mustain and Williams? How bout Mama-gate? And Broyles-gate? And Bragg-gate? Or the McAfee stuff?
Yes, the sooner the 2007 season gets here, the better for Hogs' fans everywhere.
-JAB
Angel Cabrera sent a message to the youth of the world at Oakmont yesterday: who needs a physique when you've got Marlboro Lights? The 36-year-old Argentine drove his way to the U.S. Open crown with a number of big tee shots, none larger than his smack-down-the-middle leadoff shot on eighteen. Chain smoking all the way, with a sagging waistline to boot, Cabrera was far from the picture of golfing beauty, but he still made enough shots to stymie the Tiger, who fell just one stroke short. It's not a misprint: five over par was enough to win the year's second major, making it more of a survival test than an actual high level competition. But there was still drama at the end, with Woods and Furyk pressing close, but Cabrera managing to puff his way past.
I guess the big winner here---besides Cabrera, of course---was Oakmont itself. Clearly, there's no more difficult a course you could hold a major on.
Interleague Slate Wrapping Up
Some thoughts on the Interleague baseball over the weekend:
Cardinals' fans rejoice! Kip Wells has finally been banished from the starting rotation. Sporting a 2-10 record with an ERA of almost seven, it's been a long time coming for the Pirates' defector. Unfortunately for the Redbirds, Wells' exit to the bullpen means Anthony Reyes gets another shot in the rotation. Called back up from Triple A Memphis, Reyes got a no-decision in a 10-6 win over the A's yesterday. He's still 0-8 on the year with an ERA over six. And you wondered why it feels like Saint Louis has had to come from behind so often this year....
Barry Bonds is an stoppable force. So is Alex Rodriguez. Bonds will get his home run record sometime in the next month when he passes Hank Aaron, but he won't get to keep it for long. Barring a run of unforeseen injuries, A-Rod is on course with destiny for sometime around 2014. Just nine dingers shy of 500---at the age of 30---all you have to do is a little quick math to see that Rodriguez only needs to average 40 longballs a year for the next seven years to get to 800. As amazing as that is to say, it's the absolute truth, and perhaps the only consolation for baseball fans like myself who want no part of watching Barry break Hammerin' Hank's record. A-Rod to the rescue? In this regard, I guess so....
Speaking of records, Pete Rose's career hits mark may not be all that safe either. Once thought untouchable, Charlie Hustle's total of over 4,200 career hits may be in the sights of another Yankee. Derek Jeter is 32 years old and has fifty more hits than Rose did at the same point in his career. A phenomenal base hit guy, DJ still looks and plays young. If he can stay hungry and healthy till he's in his early 40s, Jeter actually has a realistic shot at the mark....
Meanwhile, the Mets have major problems. All of a sudden, my pick---in both heart and mind---for the 2007 World Series crown is looking more and more perilous by the day. Tom Glavine has lost his location, El Duque has lost his zip, the once strong bullpen has sprung leaks all over, and the offense just doesn't have its groove.
Can Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado still turn it around? Of course. But unless the Mets trade for more pitching, or Pedro Martinez comes back and pitches like his younger self---an unlikely proposition---the Mets don't look any more likely to win it all this year than they did a year ago....
75 Days Till Troy!
The Hogs open the 2007 football season on September 1st, and for most folks around the Natural State, it can't come quickly enough. For a Razorback nation so snake-bitten by gossip, drama and hearsay over the last 12 months, it's ultimately going to take a new gridiron slate to fully wash last year's clean. Not that there aren't blocks to build upon from a year ago---ten overall wins, 7-1 in the SEC West, D-Mac and Felix, Monk as a go-to wideout, Antowain Robinson as an elite pass-rushing force, to name a few---there's still some hangover as well. Over what? How about a three game losing streak to close the year? How about the names Malzahn and Mustain and Williams? How bout Mama-gate? And Broyles-gate? And Bragg-gate? Or the McAfee stuff?
Yes, the sooner the 2007 season gets here, the better for Hogs' fans everywhere.
-JAB
Monday, June 11, 2007
June's Sports Lacking Drama, So Leave It to HBO
I'm not sure what was worse to watch over the weekend: LeBron and the Cavs getting squashed by the Spurs in the second game of the NBA Finals, or my Mets getting spanked around Comerica Park by the Tigers in Interleague play. On that note, watching the Rocket pitch the Yankees to another win on Saturday was enough to make my stomach churn too.
What can you do? We're into that summer stretch of the sports year when events like the French Open final (Nadal just owns Federer on the clay) and the Belmont Stakes (Curlin nipped by a nose!) give way to tournaments like golf's U.S. Open and the NCAA's College World Series. Primo material? Absolutely not, but then, it sure is hard to find right now.
Let's face it: the Cavaliers have no chance of beating the Spurs this year. As in zero percent of possibility. As in nada. Cleveland just doesn't have enough weapons besides the King-ly one. Sasha Pavlovic and Larry Hughes? Anderson Varejao and Drew Gooden? Gimme a break! You can make the argument that this year's Cavs are the worst team ever to make an NBA Finals. Which isn't to take anything away from the Spurs---a Patriots-like organization that is now on the verge of its fourth championship in nine years. Tim Duncan is flat-out the best power forward of all-time. Tony Parker is an all-world point guard and Manu Ginobli is as versatile a perimeter player as there is in the game today. But San Antonio just isn't sexy.
Sexy is something the NBA hasn't really had since MJ left Chicago. It's something a lot of sports still lack. But HBO's long-running mob drama Sopranos has always had it in droves. Finally, after seven plus seasons of high-level entertainment, the Jersey-based program hung it up for good---supposedly---last night. And what can you say about the finale? There was never going to be a closing storyline that made everyone happy, there was no way it was ever going to completely appease the masses. Yet I think David Chase ended his show relatively strongly.
Look at what you had in the capper: AJ wakes from his season long depression after narrowly avoiding being blown up his car. Meadow has her eyes set on a legal career. Tony's crew hits back at the New York contingent by tracking down (with the Feds' help) and whacking Phil Leotardo. Nothing happens to Paulie or Uncle Junior; they're left to wallow in their delirious realities. It's the last scene though, that's left everyone up in arms.
The Sopranos---one by one---make their way into a diner for a meal. Tony cues up Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" on the jukebox. The camera gets ominous as it pans around to a couple of sketchy guys who eyeball the Soprano crew. The tension builds and the viewer is made to believe that something---big, small, whatever---is about to happen. But it never does. As Meadow heads through the door, Tony's eyes dart up, and the camera cuts quickly to black . . . No last line, no slam bang finale. Just the end.
I'm a big believer that the show should have ended two years ago when it was still truly relevant and on top of its game. But this final season did not disappoint. Instead we were left with the Soprano family struggling to keep its balance, eyes always looking over the shoulder, warily moving on into the future. To paraphrase MacArthur, here in the context of Sopranos, "Great shows never die, they just fade away...."
Ain't it the truth.
-JAB
What can you do? We're into that summer stretch of the sports year when events like the French Open final (Nadal just owns Federer on the clay) and the Belmont Stakes (Curlin nipped by a nose!) give way to tournaments like golf's U.S. Open and the NCAA's College World Series. Primo material? Absolutely not, but then, it sure is hard to find right now.
Let's face it: the Cavaliers have no chance of beating the Spurs this year. As in zero percent of possibility. As in nada. Cleveland just doesn't have enough weapons besides the King-ly one. Sasha Pavlovic and Larry Hughes? Anderson Varejao and Drew Gooden? Gimme a break! You can make the argument that this year's Cavs are the worst team ever to make an NBA Finals. Which isn't to take anything away from the Spurs---a Patriots-like organization that is now on the verge of its fourth championship in nine years. Tim Duncan is flat-out the best power forward of all-time. Tony Parker is an all-world point guard and Manu Ginobli is as versatile a perimeter player as there is in the game today. But San Antonio just isn't sexy.
Sexy is something the NBA hasn't really had since MJ left Chicago. It's something a lot of sports still lack. But HBO's long-running mob drama Sopranos has always had it in droves. Finally, after seven plus seasons of high-level entertainment, the Jersey-based program hung it up for good---supposedly---last night. And what can you say about the finale? There was never going to be a closing storyline that made everyone happy, there was no way it was ever going to completely appease the masses. Yet I think David Chase ended his show relatively strongly.
Look at what you had in the capper: AJ wakes from his season long depression after narrowly avoiding being blown up his car. Meadow has her eyes set on a legal career. Tony's crew hits back at the New York contingent by tracking down (with the Feds' help) and whacking Phil Leotardo. Nothing happens to Paulie or Uncle Junior; they're left to wallow in their delirious realities. It's the last scene though, that's left everyone up in arms.
The Sopranos---one by one---make their way into a diner for a meal. Tony cues up Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" on the jukebox. The camera gets ominous as it pans around to a couple of sketchy guys who eyeball the Soprano crew. The tension builds and the viewer is made to believe that something---big, small, whatever---is about to happen. But it never does. As Meadow heads through the door, Tony's eyes dart up, and the camera cuts quickly to black . . . No last line, no slam bang finale. Just the end.
I'm a big believer that the show should have ended two years ago when it was still truly relevant and on top of its game. But this final season did not disappoint. Instead we were left with the Soprano family struggling to keep its balance, eyes always looking over the shoulder, warily moving on into the future. To paraphrase MacArthur, here in the context of Sopranos, "Great shows never die, they just fade away...."
Ain't it the truth.
-JAB
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Bron-Bron Rises Up
Seems like every nine years---to a tee---we get an era-defining shot in the NBA.
A shot that serves as a sign that a new day is dawning.
There's Magic Johnson with the skyhook to win Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals for his Lakers . . . There's Michael Jordan with the hanging winner against Cleveland in a first round Game 5 in 1989 . . . MJ again with the (what should've been) career-capper versus Utah in 1998 . . . Skip to the now, nine years later, and there's LeBron James with a fadeaway 3-pointer from the left wing to help push his Cavs versus the Pistons in Game 5 of the 2007 East Finals....
Picking one shot from that phenomenal 48 point, 9 rebound, 7 assist performance is darn near impossible to do, there were just so many tremendous shots on display from LBJ's already-vast repertoire. But clearly the fadeaway three, the shot that tied that Game 5 up at 107 in double overtime at Detroit, that was the shot that stabilized Cleveland, that was the shot that set up James' winner a little over a minute later, and maybe it was the shot that changed the future of the NBA.
You know it's a big deal when His Airness himself, Michael Jordan aka the Greatest Player of All-Time---a guy who's always been hesitant to dole out compliments to other players----he says that LeBron's performance against Detroit was "one of the best I've ever seen."
The guy hit jumpshots, he drove with authority, he slammed, he passed, he willed his team to victory against a decidedly more talented collective. Doing it so smoothly against a series of double and triple-teams was probably the most impressive part of LeBron's Eastern Conference Final performance this year, if mostly because the guy played like he'd been there before. Obviously, at just 22 years of age, James hadn't been there---not yet, at least---but he sure played the part, and at long last the NBA has a Finals storyline that it can sell again.
Watch LeBron James and his band of merry thieves as they try to rob the crown from the title rich Spurs fans of San Antonio and give it to the poor souls rooting for anything Cleveland! Alas, the Browns, Cavs and Indians have long been amongst the doormats of their respective leagues, but maybe, just maybe, that's about to change.
If LeBron James can continue playing at his current extraordinary level---a major if against the defensively-minded Spurs, even for Lebron---then the Cavs have a chance.
If Daniel Gibson and Larry Hughes and Donyell Marshall and Sasha Pavlovic can consistently make open three-pointers---another major if---then the Cavs have an even better chance.
If Drew Gooden and Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao can step up their defense, use their fouls wisely and frustrate the heck out of Tim Duncan---maybe the most unrealistic of the ifs---then the Cavs are seriously in business.
Of course all this involves a combined breakdown of San Antonio's backcourt play by Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili---a solar eclipse is probably more likely to come first----but it's okay to dream right?
All major ifs, but you know the NBA wants it to happen sooo badly. It's a chance to officially pass the torch from Jordan to the next great marketable player in the league (no offense to Kobe and Dwyane).
Call him Bron-Bron if you want, or King James if you want to be formal---the guy is a stud of a basketball player.
Physically, Magic Johnson meets Karl Malone.
Competitively, hungry like Mike.
And if in some metaphysical fluke the basketball stars align just right over the next two weeks, LeBron James will walk away with the first of what's sure to be multiple NBA titles.
A lot of ifs. But at least there's something finally worth rooting for in an NBA postseason that has so desperately needed anything.
I'm rooting for you, LeBron. It's fun to dream every once and a while.
NBA Finals Prediction: San Antonio in six games
-JAB
A shot that serves as a sign that a new day is dawning.
There's Magic Johnson with the skyhook to win Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals for his Lakers . . . There's Michael Jordan with the hanging winner against Cleveland in a first round Game 5 in 1989 . . . MJ again with the (what should've been) career-capper versus Utah in 1998 . . . Skip to the now, nine years later, and there's LeBron James with a fadeaway 3-pointer from the left wing to help push his Cavs versus the Pistons in Game 5 of the 2007 East Finals....
Picking one shot from that phenomenal 48 point, 9 rebound, 7 assist performance is darn near impossible to do, there were just so many tremendous shots on display from LBJ's already-vast repertoire. But clearly the fadeaway three, the shot that tied that Game 5 up at 107 in double overtime at Detroit, that was the shot that stabilized Cleveland, that was the shot that set up James' winner a little over a minute later, and maybe it was the shot that changed the future of the NBA.
You know it's a big deal when His Airness himself, Michael Jordan aka the Greatest Player of All-Time---a guy who's always been hesitant to dole out compliments to other players----he says that LeBron's performance against Detroit was "one of the best I've ever seen."
The guy hit jumpshots, he drove with authority, he slammed, he passed, he willed his team to victory against a decidedly more talented collective. Doing it so smoothly against a series of double and triple-teams was probably the most impressive part of LeBron's Eastern Conference Final performance this year, if mostly because the guy played like he'd been there before. Obviously, at just 22 years of age, James hadn't been there---not yet, at least---but he sure played the part, and at long last the NBA has a Finals storyline that it can sell again.
Watch LeBron James and his band of merry thieves as they try to rob the crown from the title rich Spurs fans of San Antonio and give it to the poor souls rooting for anything Cleveland! Alas, the Browns, Cavs and Indians have long been amongst the doormats of their respective leagues, but maybe, just maybe, that's about to change.
If LeBron James can continue playing at his current extraordinary level---a major if against the defensively-minded Spurs, even for Lebron---then the Cavs have a chance.
If Daniel Gibson and Larry Hughes and Donyell Marshall and Sasha Pavlovic can consistently make open three-pointers---another major if---then the Cavs have an even better chance.
If Drew Gooden and Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao can step up their defense, use their fouls wisely and frustrate the heck out of Tim Duncan---maybe the most unrealistic of the ifs---then the Cavs are seriously in business.
Of course all this involves a combined breakdown of San Antonio's backcourt play by Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili---a solar eclipse is probably more likely to come first----but it's okay to dream right?
All major ifs, but you know the NBA wants it to happen sooo badly. It's a chance to officially pass the torch from Jordan to the next great marketable player in the league (no offense to Kobe and Dwyane).
Call him Bron-Bron if you want, or King James if you want to be formal---the guy is a stud of a basketball player.
Physically, Magic Johnson meets Karl Malone.
Competitively, hungry like Mike.
And if in some metaphysical fluke the basketball stars align just right over the next two weeks, LeBron James will walk away with the first of what's sure to be multiple NBA titles.
A lot of ifs. But at least there's something finally worth rooting for in an NBA postseason that has so desperately needed anything.
I'm rooting for you, LeBron. It's fun to dream every once and a while.
NBA Finals Prediction: San Antonio in six games
-JAB
Monday, June 04, 2007
Hogs Bounced at Baum, While Billy 'D' Bails
Razorbacks Tripped Up in Baum Regional by OSU---Again
Well, that was quick, wasn't it? A bad outing from starter Jess Todd on Saturday against Oklahoma State, not enough run support on Sunday for a beleaguered bullpen in a Cowboys' rematch and the Razorbacks spit the bit in the Baum Regional Round against OSU for the second straight year. This one hurts more than last year's defeat though; it has to, when you consider that Arkansas had three potential first round draft picks in its rotation with Nick Schmidt, Jess Todd and Duke Welker.
But them's be the breaks in the world of baseball. If you don't hit, more often than not, you ain't gonna win. With Jake Dugger and Casey Coon battling through slumps at the end of the year, the honus was even more so on the backs of Danny Hamblin and Logan Forsythe, and the talented Razorback cornermen couldn't quite deliver.
So it's back to the drawing board for skipper Dave Van Horn. With Hamblin and Forsythe the only regulars leaving the lineup, you would think the offense and defense will be even better a year from now. But replenishing the pitching will be the key if the Hogs hope to not only get back to a Regional next year, but take it a step further.
And This Week's Dana Altman Award Goes To....
Billy Donovan, Florida Gators. You win back-to-back NCAA basketball championships---for the first time ever, mind you, with the same starting five---you've created an already unmatched resume at Florida, a place that didn't even know it had a basketball team until you got there, and you're leaving for the Orlando Magic? Just so you know, they don't have Shaq or Penny anymore....
See, it didn't even make sense to begin with, and now you've already signed the deal to hop to the NBA! Billy Donovan, what are you doing, buddy?
In case you didn't know, Donovan now wants out of his five-million-a-year deal with Orlando. Considering Florida will probably willingly take him back for three million dollars a year, the only loser here will be the Magic. If I were running them, I'd play hardball with Donovan, make him sweat it out a bit, if only to make a point.
-JAB
(Tomorrow's Blog Entry: LeBron Rises Up! '07 NBA Finals Preview)
Well, that was quick, wasn't it? A bad outing from starter Jess Todd on Saturday against Oklahoma State, not enough run support on Sunday for a beleaguered bullpen in a Cowboys' rematch and the Razorbacks spit the bit in the Baum Regional Round against OSU for the second straight year. This one hurts more than last year's defeat though; it has to, when you consider that Arkansas had three potential first round draft picks in its rotation with Nick Schmidt, Jess Todd and Duke Welker.
But them's be the breaks in the world of baseball. If you don't hit, more often than not, you ain't gonna win. With Jake Dugger and Casey Coon battling through slumps at the end of the year, the honus was even more so on the backs of Danny Hamblin and Logan Forsythe, and the talented Razorback cornermen couldn't quite deliver.
So it's back to the drawing board for skipper Dave Van Horn. With Hamblin and Forsythe the only regulars leaving the lineup, you would think the offense and defense will be even better a year from now. But replenishing the pitching will be the key if the Hogs hope to not only get back to a Regional next year, but take it a step further.
And This Week's Dana Altman Award Goes To....
Billy Donovan, Florida Gators. You win back-to-back NCAA basketball championships---for the first time ever, mind you, with the same starting five---you've created an already unmatched resume at Florida, a place that didn't even know it had a basketball team until you got there, and you're leaving for the Orlando Magic? Just so you know, they don't have Shaq or Penny anymore....
See, it didn't even make sense to begin with, and now you've already signed the deal to hop to the NBA! Billy Donovan, what are you doing, buddy?
In case you didn't know, Donovan now wants out of his five-million-a-year deal with Orlando. Considering Florida will probably willingly take him back for three million dollars a year, the only loser here will be the Magic. If I were running them, I'd play hardball with Donovan, make him sweat it out a bit, if only to make a point.
-JAB
(Tomorrow's Blog Entry: LeBron Rises Up! '07 NBA Finals Preview)
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