From Coast to Coast

So, I just realized this blog hasn't been touched in about a year. Sad. That's going to change. I've moved from coast to coast and that may or may not be the reason for my absence of writing on this blog. Ha. But seriously, let's get down to business:

I've been in Connecticut for the past 4 months, working for ESPN, the nation's sports headquarters. It is here in Bristol where all the madness gets started. SportsCenter is not what it seems, but rather, much, much more.

For more sports updates, stay tuned. I'll be updating this more often than not. Hopefully!

Today's Craziness in the MLB and NBA

Saturday, May 29, 2010 was by far one of the craziest days in professional baseball and basketball. Why? Well, let’s start off with the one highlight sports fans have probably seen over and over again: Kendry Morales celebrating his walk-off grand slam by jumping onto home plate and breaking his ankle. Watch the replay and it all seems as “happy-go-lucky” as can be for Morales, as he jumps into the air to celebrate the victory, surrounded by his fellow Angels and collapses to later find out he broke his ankle. What a bust, but definitely something many are still laughing about.

Just a few hours later, Roy Halladay pitched a perfect game for the Phillies, something that was done just 20 days before by A’s pitcher Dallas Braden. Nonetheless, Halladay earned the respect of many at the Sun Life Stadium as the Phillies went on to beat the Marlins 1-0 in front of a crowd of 25,086. A perfect game is always something to be celebrated, as there have only been a total of 20 in MLB history.

Let’s transition to basketball, shall we? NBA Finals, Game 6: Lakers at Suns. With a 12 point lead at the half, LA thought they had it all. And they were right. The Lakeshow went on to finish the series and beat Phoenix 111-103. LA was on it tonight. Hopefully they’ll keep this momentum for Thursday when Boston comes to town for Game 1 of the 2010 NBA Championship Series.



Highlights of the game included Kobe’s off-balanced, yet incredibly clutch jumper with under a minute to go, then looking eye to eye with the Suns bench and motioning the “ I fly like an airplane” with his arms as he heads to the Laker bench. Artest is also one to thank for the second game in a row.

Just as Morales made people laugh with his unexpected injury in his moment under the spotlight, so did the camera man under the basket at the final game of the Western Conference Finals. As the Suns airballed a jumper, an innocent camera man was stepped on the neck by a Phoenix player as he went for the rebound.

Craziness? I think so. If you ask me, today’s MLB and NBA Headlines might as well read, “Success and Injuries are Plentiful on a Sports Day Like Today”.

Laker Fans Expect Another Championship

Why is it that Laker fans always have the confidence to win? Is it because of all those Kobe last-second buzzer beaters? Is it Phil Jackson’s strategic plays at the tail end of a game? Or is it the fact that since we are in fact a “Championship Franchise”, that’s all the fans think of when it comes to the playoffs? Whatever the reason may be, it seems that Laker fans still see another championship in store, despite Thursday’s loss against the Thunder.

When interviewing a handful of LA fans at the Nokia Center this afternoon, it was apparent that there is no doubt on whether the Lakers are going to sweep the series. In fact, some fans feel the loss was done on purpose so that if need be, the Lakers will have another home court advantage in a crucial time like the playoffs. Still, a loss is a loss, and if that was in fact on purpose, the Lakers must pull through and beat Oklahoma City tonight so they don’t fall short when they come home for Game 5 on Tuesday at STAPLES.

California Love?

Born and raised in Southern California my whole life and being an avid sports fan in the great city of Los Angeles, I cant help but to appreciate the numerous franchises we have. I came to realize this week though the amount of multiple southern California sports team we have for each respective sports in the NBA, (Lakers, Clippers) MLB, (Dodgers, Angels) and the NHL (Kings, Ducks)

I understand that their is a great deal of rivalry between inner city teams which is great for our city and adds to the competitive nature. But along with the love, I sense their is a deal of "not wanting" the other to succeed. I attended a Ducks game the past week and when the scoreboard posted that the Kings had lost, the arena erupted into cheer. Especially with the Ducks clearly out of playoff contention and the Kings on the verge, I would be upset as a fan in that I would hope at least one SoCal team could represent us in the playoffs.

When asked the question whether I'm a Dodgers/Angels fan, I'll reply that I am loyal to my Bluecrew, but with the pattern of the Dodgers making early exits from the playoffs I need another hometown team to support in the post season. I'd rather see an LA team win over other cities such as Boston or New York any day!

In head to head match ups and rivalries that exist throughout the season, support your respective LA team to the fullest, but outside of that I challenge you to have the same enthusiasm for all our hometown teams.

If you don't want to do it for me, at least do it for one of the most influential fallen rappers of our time who said it best.... "California Love!"

I love March Madness. And yes, I'm a girl.

What better month for basketball than March, right?! Well, unless we’re talking about April and the start of NBA playoffs. But still, March has got to the best time of year for college basketball fans like myself. Turn on CBS in the first week of round one games and BAM! – there’s a game on TV. Not only is it convenient to have sports on demand pretty much whenever you wish, but the entertainment and suspense that comes along with it seems to be the best part of this “madness”.

Buzzer beaters and close games are two thrilling factors that keep this madness alive. Take the Vanderbilt and Murray State first round game for instance. Of course this wasn’t the only close game during the tourney, but it’s definitely one to remember for it’s climatic ending. Vanderbilt came into the tournament as a number 4 seed and was expected and favored to win over Murray State, a 13 seed, but with a last-second jumper, the Murray State Racers advanced to the second round with a win over their opponent.

This year, one of the biggest upsets was number 9 Northern Iowa beating Kansas, who was expected by many to go past the second round (I mean, come on, they’re Kansas and a #1 seed). This was the first time the Northern Iowa Panthers clinched a Sweet Sixteen spot and although they were knocked out in the regional semifinals by Michigan State, I think people will remember their incredible win over the favored Jayhawks.

This is the beauty of March Madness – a month of uplifting Division I college basketball that truly captures its audience. After all, anything can happen, and that’s exactly why people go MAD during the month of March.

Team Championship + MVP = The “Best” Player

Have you ever really argued about who the best player in the NBA is? We’re talking past or present here: Michael Jordan vs. Larry Bird, Bill Russell vs. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, or Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James. I’m sure you have. And if not, I’m sure you will.

But let’s get the facts straight. How do you even define what the “best” player is? Do we measure this by the number of MVPs he’s won or do we measure it by the number of team championships gained? This, ladies and gentlemen, is where it gets interesting.

To be honest, I think the “best” player has to have a combination of individual skill and talent as well as the ability to make his or her team better. Let’s look at Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who played college ball at UCLA, contributing in large part to the Bruins’ 88 win and 2 losses over the course of three national championship seasons.

Not only was he a standout in his college years, but Kareem continued to shine in the big leagues with his 20-year long career in the NBA. He currently holds the record for most team championships and MVP titles, with 6 a piece, denoting that yes, both accomplishments define who the best player really is. Next in line is Michael Jordan, with 6 championships and 5 MVPs, who many argue to be another one of the “best” players in NBA history.

This is a very debatable topic, one that sports fanatics like myself truly enjoy talking about. With Kobe and LeBron fans clashing views day in and day out, it’s obvious that the best player is, and will probably always be a personal opinion. But really, the best player can only REALLY be defined in time, once they’ve made a mark and some type of history. Right now, Kobe leads LeBron in championships with 4 (LeBron has yet to win one) but the two NBA All-Stars are tied with one MVP a piece. Again, these players are still young and in due time we shall see who the “better” player is.

In terms of actually defining what makes the “best” player, it’s definitely a combination of both individual skill and the ability to make a team better. Just look at Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He was a team player and an outstanding athlete – the 6 Championships and 6 MVPs prove it. If you don’t think he’s one of the best to play the game of hoops, you have a lot of schooling to do. When people hear his name, sports fans or not, they don’t even question who he is because he was THAT good. If you don’t believe me, just ask Coach John Wooden.

Bill Parcells helps Saints win the Super Bowl

Trailing Indianapolis 10-6 at halftime of Super Bowl XLIV on Sunday night, Saints head coach Sean Payton wanted to take control starting with a shift in momentum. So he called an onside kick. Kicker Thomas Morstead got the right bounce with his kick, and after it deflected off Indianapolis receiver Hank Baskett, New Orleans’ Chris Reis was on the bottom of the pile with the ball at the Saints’ 42. Six plays later New Orleans scored a touchdown for a 12-10 lead seizing momentum of the game, which they ultimately won 31-17.

As the refs made the call signaling that Reis had indeed come up with the loose ball I couldn’t help but think of how Payton became the type of coach to make such a bold move. The next thought that popped into my head was of another gutsy postseason call, one made by Bill Parcells in the 1990 NFC Championship game; a 30-yard run by Giants linebacker Gary Reasons on a fake punt against the two-time defending champion 49ers.

Reasons, the signal-caller on punt formation, took a direct snap in front of punter Sean Landeta and veered right. It was wide open for him. Moments before, Reasons was given the green light by Parcells, the Giants coach.

The daring move set up Bahr's fourth of five field goals, a 38-yarder with 5:47 remaining, and the Giants were down 13-12. They would go on to win 15-13 and win Super Bowl XXV against the Bills.

Parcells is known for taking risks in big games. In Super Bowl XXI against the Broncos, the Giants had fourth-and-1 from their own 46 on their first possession of the third quarter, trailing 10-9. Backup quarterback Jeff Rutledge moved up behind center and ran a sneak for two yards and the first down. Five plays later, Phil Simms threw a touchdown pass to Mark Bavaro and the Giants took the lead in route to a 39-20 victory.

It was Parcells, Dolphins Executive Vice President of Football Operations who hired Payton to his Dallas staff as assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach from 2003-05. Payton said he had a "number of conversations" with Parcells leading up to the Super Bowl. "You are going to have to have guts to win this game," Parcells told the Daily News Monday. "You can't coach scared in the big games. You've got to try to win."

Parcells has become a father figure to Payton whose own father passed away. After the game he received a phone call from Bill congratulating him on the big win. “He was proud” said Payton, “just proud.” "He taught me so much." "Just about people and about teaching and about evaluation and about preparation. I'm better having had a chance to work with him."

Payton became the third member of the legendary Parcells coaching tree to lead his team to a Super Bowl championship, joining Bill Belichick with the Patriots and Tom Coughlin with the Giants. All together they’ve won five of the last nine Super Bowl titles.


Written by Eric Doppelt