The Forgotten Dunkers of College Basketball

I am a bit of a basketball purist. I respect the mid-range game of a Brandon Roy. I appreciate the 3-point aptitude of a Jason Kapono. I regard the passing abilities of Deron Williams to be truly classic. However...its something about getting a nasty dunk off that makes me appreciate basketball that much more. Dunking ON someone is damn near euphoria. Sadly, it takes more than hops to get in the league, and over time we might forget some of the nastiest dunkers in the college game's history. Like Beanie said, "Let's reflect..."

Isma'il Muhammad - Georgia Tech


Dahntay Jones - Duke


Deron Washington - Virginia Tech


Melvin Levett - Cincinnati


Darvin Ham - Texas Tech


James White - Florida/Cincinnati


I KNOW I FORGOT SOME PEOPLE, LET ME KNOW WHO...THANKS, AND ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND! IF YOUR IN CINCINNATI GET UP WITH US AT BLACKFINN FOR THE URBAN LEAGUE HAPPY HOUR MIXER, EASY!

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

The Four-Point Play (The Wade-Aid)

ONE - Reunited and It Feels So Good (Yeah Right): Will He Help Boston Repeat?

Stephon Marbury and the Knicks finally ended their marriage, and he’s ready to join Boston…I mean, any team that will take him on. Alright, let’s be for real here. He’s going to go to the Celtics. KG has signed off on this deal (hey, Marbury juiced him before, and one of the key factors in this working would be if Garnett would be willing to play with him again, in my opinion), the other players are cool with it, as is Doc Rivers. Steph has a huge chance to make a lot of people owe him a big apology for writing him off, or to justify their dislike and utter disgust with his antics. We shall see.

TWO - The Last of a Dying Breed: Is It The End of an Era in the NFL?

In the last ten days, we’ve seen the release of Fred Taylor (Ed is silently weeping right now), Marvin Harrison, Warrick Dunn, and Derrick Brooks, and all for various reasons. I still think all of them have something left in the tank, and even if they aren’t the forces of nature they used to be, they can still contribute a lot to a team. Personally, I’d like to see Harrison end up in Philadelphia, so he can catch passes from his old college QB, but I haven’t heard his name come up much, in terms of going out there.

THREE - How Long Will This Number One Team Remain Number One?

This is getting completely ridiculous. Every time people want to show Pittsburgh some love, they’ll do something to justify people having no faith in them during tournament time. They recently lost to Providence, which means another Big East monster, Connecticut, will be the number one team in the land again. At this point, being ranked number one means nothing to me. Once we find out who the four number one seeds are, then I’ll become interested again. Until then, it’ll be nothing more than the team who just happens to get the most votes.

AND ONE - The Art of Self-Promotion: Is Dwayne Wade a Genius?

By now, we’ve all seen Dwayne Wade and his many band-aids that he wears on his face. Honestly, I don’t ever remember seeing him get cut, bleeding, needing stitches, or anything like that. However, since I’m a huge Wade fan, I won’t scream “fraud,” or attempt to pull his card. This dude has a different band-aid on for every game, and every occasion. Hell, did you see this man at the All-Star game??? He had a different one for each outfit! On top of that, the fans have gotten into it. Lil’ Wayne was at a Heat game with a “Wade-Aid” on, and on top of that, Wade is playing at a high level. I think it’s safe to say he can add Band-Aid to the list of his endorsers. If they don’t pick him up, we may just start a line of band-aids on the site, and get him to be our spokesman. Besides, crazier s*** has happened.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda
www.edthesportsfan.com

A Piece of Advice...You're Not Going To Win Your Office Pool

I've been trying to wrap my fingers around this crazy NCAA Basketball season. There have been great games, memorable moments, and breakout players & performances that have captivated fans once again. If there is anything I have learned from this, it is one thing...

DO NOT PLAY IN ANY NCAA TOURNAMENT BRACKETS AND EXPECT TO WIN, PERIOD.

Seriously, we've had FIVE teams ranked #1 SIX times this year, and they are dropping like Plies. Oops, I mean flies. (Look, I don't like Plies...I just don't. I mean, he's a fraud and he's like 5'5" and calls himself a goon, yet he attended school at Miami University in Ohio. I'm sorry.) Also, lets realize that 3 of the teams lost to unranked foes. (UNC lost to BC, Wake lost to VTech, Pitt lost to Providence) So you feel comfortable with UConn, especially after losing Jermaine Dyson?? North Carolina, who plays like the 2005-08 Pistons who feel like they can turn the switch "on" at any moment? Pitt, who once you start actually showing them some love, they lose. They need to stay under appreciated. Duke? Hell naw, I DEFINITELY don't trust Duke. Period. Wake? Same as Pitt, stay under appreciated. My beloved Oklahoma Sooners hasn't faced a quality opponent since they played Butler and Davidson back in November, now they've lost their last 2 games with '09 Player of the Year candidate Blake Griffin against Texas and Kansas, so how do you feel about them? Memphis at 24-3, are they really any good? Who have they beaten all season, Gonzaga? Tennessee?

As you can see I am flabbergasted, I usually am looking forward to playing my 27 brackets and losing hoards of money in the process. Let it be noted right now that I have never won or have known anyone to actually win a bracket. Its always like a co-worker's wife's sister, or your friend's nephew, or your frat brother's 7-year old niece. At this point, I'm going to call my mother and ask her to pick my bracket. I remember last year, when all 4 #1's got to the final four, I think I got 2nd to last in our pool. WTF! I can't deal. So here's my piece of advice, play in your tournament pool at your own risk. Play so you can have fun, don't actually think of winning. If you read this site, then the probability is that you know what goes on in college basketball. By watching all of these games, you have skewed your brain into actually believing who is good and really isn't good. You will make horrible choices. Here are a couple of theories you will use during your bracket selection.

The George Mason Corollary - You will have watched Drexel, Utah State, and Northeastern and somehow believe that they will go to the Elite 8. It ain't happening. You thought George Mason was the gym teacher you had in 4th grade with the shag curl that always looked dry a la Michael Cage.

Picking All The Favorites Theory - You idiot. Do you realize that for the first time in tournament history since seeding began, the top seeded team from each of the four regionals made it to the final four? You think that this is going to happen again?

The Homer - I have always fallen victim to this one, you think I'm not going to be picking Oklahoma all the way to the Final 4? Do you blame me? They are really good. Yet, more than likely they'll lose to The Albuquerque Community College for the Mentally Disabled State University A.M.E. Church of Latter Day Saints in the 1st round. It always happens. It'll happen again, there will be a major upset in the first 2 rounds.

The Statistical Deviant - I personally think my dude Antone will use this one, you know there's that guy that has random excel sheets that factor in strength of schedule, home vs. away records, point differential, and drug charges all factored into some stat rating and thinks he's got it all figured out. Dude, we all remember #15 Hampton beat #2 Iowa State. Stuff happens.

So what does it all mean? It means, go get you a bottle of your favorite hard liquor, throw on some good music and make like 5 brackets. At least you can blame the drink on your brackets going up in flames within 4 hours.

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

One Injury Away

Recently, there have been key injuries to some of the best basketball players in the world, including one that’s season-ending. It’s debatable whether some of these teams were legitimate contenders in the first place, but if they aren’t at full strength, they may not even get out of the first round.

Kevin Garnett will be out for 2-3 weeks with a knee injury. Luckily for the Celtics, they’re in a pretty good position, and have played without KG before. Plus, it gives some of their youngsters a chance to get out there, and show what they can do. On top of that, it allows Garnett to get some rest. Out of all the teams that will be mentioned in this article, this one may be the only one equipped to handle a loss of this magnitude, since they still have a solid team, and because the injury is only short-term.

Amare Stoudemire was nowhere near as fortunate as KG, as he’ll be missing the rest of the regular season with an eye injury. Phoenix was already in a world of trouble before, and hanging on for dear life in the Western Conference. With Stoudemire out, they can forget about the playoffs. It’s a shame too, but I honestly don’t see how Phoenix can make the postseason without Amare in the line-up. They are two games out of the final spot in the West, and now that Utah is getting healthy, that gap will most likely widen.

There’s no true prognosis of Blake Griffin at the moment, due to suffering a concussion against the Texas Longhorns over the weekend. Oklahoma lost that game, as well as last night against Kansas, and even though they were able to compete in both, it’s obvious how much they miss Griffin’s all-around game. Last night against Kansas, Cole Aldrich went berserk in the paint, and I don’t know about you, but I don’t see that happening if Griffin is in the game. No disrespect to Aldrich, because his game is nice, but I’ve seen Griffin murk too many big men this season to believe otherwise. Oklahoma is good, but with Griffin, they are a legitimate Final Four squad. Without him, they are just another team.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda
www.edthesportsfan.com

The Denver Nuggets Will Win the 2009 NBA Championship

**NOTE - There will not be an Unsportsmanlike Conduct post today, just to be honest, I'm tired. I've been in my house for a total of 37 minutes in the last 3 days. I will make it up to you, maybe with this post I did over the weekend. Easy. -Ed.**

Talk about a bold prediction...What??? Are you serious? Have you been smoking that stuff? Maybe so. However, after watching this game we call basketball for the last 3-4 months and looking at the current state of the NBA, there is no team more ready to make a serious run to the NBA Finals than the Nuggets. They are the prime selection to be a darkhorse candidate to win the finals, let me explain before you ask my head on a plate.

Let’s take a look at the personnel of Denver, led by Carmelo Anthony; I would believe that he is poised to take that next step into the pantheon of great players in the league. Carmelo and the Nuggets had a bit of a setback earlier in the year with the broken bone in his hand, but currently at 37-18, they are poised to make a run for the #2 seed in the West. However, after reviewing all of the top teams in the Western Conference, the Nuggets are the only healthy team in the West. Take a look…

Lakers – Andrew Bynum (knee)
Nuggets – None
Spurs – Manu Ginobli
Blazers – Greg Oden
Rockets – Tracy McGrady
Hornets – Tyson Chandler
Mavericks – Jason Terry
Jazz – Carlos Boozer
Suns – Amare Stoudemire

Now I realize that these players are all out for various lengths of time. Some are returning from injury (Boozer), some are down for a couple of weeks (Ginobli, Oden, Chandler, Terry), and some are down for the count (Bynum, Stoudemire). The Nuggets have no such issues, yes, they should’ve went out and got a big man to help depth wise (Ed’s sources say that they are going to make a run at Joe Smith or Mikki Moore as a FA pickup.) but they have all of the tools you need. They’ve got Carmelo as their go-to guy, Chauncey as their floor general and 3-point shooter, Nene and Kenyon are manning the post, and they’ve got athletes on the bench in JR Smith, Dahntay Jones, and Chris “Birdman” Anderson. Coach George Karl’s been here before, remember he took the Sonics against the G.O.A.T. Chi-Town Bulls and took it 6 games with GP and Reignman leading the way. SHOUT TO DETLEF!

Now, I know that this is a bit of a reach. If you remember, I picked the Washington Wizards to make a run last year as my darkhorse candidate. Yeah, that didn’t work out to well. I think this time the Nuggs could make it happen. If Chauncey continues to bring that DETROIT BASKETBALL swag to Denver, and Kenyon can take it to rack like he was back in UC (remember the Jordan Brand jerseys?), and Nene can well…bring it like he was back in Brazil.

But more importantly...Carmelo's gotta bring it like he was in Syracuse in 2002. Its time to make that leap, LeBron did it, DWade did it, Paul Pierce did it. Melo's either going to be another very good player, or he can be great. Being great is a sacrifice, and its got to be something Melo leads them to do. Plus he's half Puerto-Rican like me, so he gotta hold it down.

Well, I believe. They believe. Do you believe?

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

The Four-Point Play (Know Thy Self)

ONE - Identity Crisis: Who Exactly Are The Phoenix Suns Now? I officially don’t understand Phoenix anymore. On Tuesday, they put 140 points on the board against the Clippers, and 142 more last night, and in one sequence, The Big Aristotle actually led the fast break! They finally realized they aren’t a half-court team, so Nash is back to leading the most fun offense to watch in the league, but they will probably go back to their brain-dead defensive ways. We’ve seen this before, and even though it’s the first time they’ve done it with Shaq, I still don’t see them being able to get over the hump. But on the bright side, at least they didn’t trade Amare (yet).

TWO - Turmoil in Lubbock: Is Texas Tech taking Mike Leach for Granted? By no means am I a fan of Texas Tech football, but I know a good fit when I see it, and Mike Leach is ‘The Fit’ for their style of football. They weren’t worth a damn before he got there, and in the nine years he’s led the show, they’ve steadily improved, even being ranked as high as #2 in the country last season. His contract demands may be a little ridiculous, but he’s earned the right to feel himself a little bit, and we’ve seen this story before with different programs: Tech, do the right thing, and give this man what he wants.


THREE - He Got The Juice Now: Who is the best big man in The Big East? Since the start of the season, this answer’s changed at least three times. Initially, people were quick to give it to Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody. Then, people noticed Greg Monroe from Georgetown. Then, Haseem Thabeet started going crazy. The problem is DeJuan Blair from Pitt has murdered all three of them this season, including Monday’s win against Connecticut. He punished their frontline to the tune of 22 points and 23 rounds. He’s an undersized big man, but he has a complete game, and truly is the engine for the Pittsburgh Panthers. Right now, my money’s on Blair, but by the time the conference tournament rolls around, it could easily be someone else. The big men in this conference are that good.

AND ONE - Lamar Odom Has Gone Nuts: Is He the L.A.’s Missing Piece to get The Ring? 28/17, 12/18, 19/19, 15/20, and 22/7. Those are the point and rebound totals for the past five games from Lamar Odom. I’m telling you right now: if this man keeps this up, nobody will beat this team, and that includes the Spurs, the Cavs, and the Celtics. Since Bynum went down for the season (they are saying 8-12 weeks, but that man will not be back this season, watch), he has gone ballistic. Anyone who has seen him play over the years knows he can truly do everything on the court; it’s just a matter of him doing it. This finally may be the time he does so.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda
www.edthesportsfan.com

Just Grow Some Balls Already...

Remember when you've been to your local speakeasy/lounge/nightclub/gathering place/watering hole/bar mitzvah/birthday party/place where you cut a rug and you were with your guys, and your one buddy would always be eye-gouging a chick? Come up to you and say, "Fam, do you see the yellabone chick with her breasts falling out of here tube top? I'm gonna get at her." Yet, at the end of the night some lame who probably has no business getting at her, not only talks to her, but gets the number and heads home with her for the evening and your boy is dumbfounded. (Note - Ed does not condone bringing home bustdowns/jumpoffs/skee-o's/yamps without mutual consent and wrapping it up TWICE) Its almost like the dude was so lame that he wasn't, he didn't know any better that he probably wasn't in the girl's league, but he had the confidence to make the move, and he reaped the benefits. So to speak. LOL.

The point is, like your boy, some of these sports organizations need to grow some and make some moves. Check that, make some educated decisions. Look at the Phoenix Suns, I was reading an article from ESPN's John Hollinger about Steve Kerr, and he mentioned that Kerr's initial vision of what he wanted the Suns to look like just wasn't working. You know, dumping it down to Shaq, milk the 24-second shot clock, and get the highest percentage shot. Yet, that "style" wasn't fit for his personnel. Kerr had the balls enough to trade for Shaq to fit his wanted style, now he makes the move to let his team flourish and go back to the Seven Seconds or Less offense. What happened? The Suns put up 140 last night on the Clippers. I know that the Clippers weren't 100%, and Zach was trying to knock MF's out, but who cares. Amare might come back to form, and Shaq might be beastly for the rest of the year. We'll find out.

So who else needs to just "grow some"? Well for starters I'd look at Cleveland, somehow they feel extremely comfortable with their team, and rightly so. They have the 3rd best record in the league, yet they continue to have a major weakness at the 2-guard position. With Wally Szczerbiak's expiring contract hanging out there, why not go improve at the wing and get another scorer like a Vince Carter or Richard Jefferson? Cleveland is horribly reliant on their main guy, LeBron, and none of the other great times are like that. Make the move and get another guy!


Portland, its time to grow some. You have the most young talent in the league, but you all are scaring me. If you don't make a move or two to improve your team, your going to turn into the 2006-2008 Chicago Bulls. Full of young talent, balked to making some major moves (KOBE), and ended up realizing that their talent were no more than B+ players at best. You have the chance to go get Amare, go get him! You too could use some veteran leadership at the wing, go get a Richard Jefferson or a Vince Carter. You all could make a serious run at this thing, don't let it slip away.

We just talked about them earlier, but Chicago needed to grow some a long time ago. With GM John Paxson at the helm, they had amassed some of the best young talent in the league, Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas, Joakim Noah, Thabo Sefolosha, and now they have the uber-talented Derrick Rose. Yet, they waited so long to see their talent mature is that now they still have no type of post game whatsoever, they have too much personnel on the wings, and a logjam at PG with Hinrich and Rose. Why not package Hinrich and Ty Thomas to get Amare? Send Hinrich to Miami for a Daequan Cook and a pick? Chris Bosh would look really good in the Bulls uniform. Plus here's another question, why are the Bulls a half-court team? You have one of the most talented, athletic young floor generals ever since J. Kidd hit the court in the mid-90's, yet you want to plod up and down the court and set up the offense? You have athletes, let them boys run and get up and down the floor. Its almost insulting to watch.

Am I overreacting? Who else needs to just "grow some" and make a bold move? Let us know your thoughts!

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

What Happened To That Boy: The Fall of Tracy McGrady

(Ed's note: If you remember the NBA to Rap post we did on Friday, T-Mac would be the equivalent of probably Nelly. Nelly was battling to be the #1 artist of his time. Now he done fell off like bad dough. I'll let Kenny explain it to you in detail.)

It pains me to even write this story, because Tracy McGrady is one of my favorite players to ever play this game. At one time, he was arguably the best player in the entire league. He could do just about everything on the court, and did it all well (and some things great). He had the shoe deal (Adidas), the buzzer-beaters, the All-Star Game moments (remember the alley off the backboard in 2002), the dunks (when he yulllllled on the back of Shawn Bradley’s neck in Game One of the 2005 Playoffs). Even though T-Mac failed to get out of the first round, you still respected his gangsta, because he came out to play every single game.

Those days seem like a distant memory now. It seems like if it ain't one thing, it’s another for The Once-Great Tracy McGrady. He’s missed a number of games due to various injuries, from the knee, to the back, to the psyche, and despite the fact the Rockets have a very solid team, it’s been difficult for them to play together for a substantial period of time. If it’s not him missing time, it’s Yao. If it’s not Yao, it’s Artest. If it’s not Artest, it’s Battier. See the pattern here? These guys make reservations to stay in the hospital, and T-Mac is the got dang concierge! The problem is, no matter what, people will continue to blame Tracy McGrady for Houston’s shortcomings. For me, I knew his stock hit rock-bottom when one of my favorite publications, Dime Magazine, had a poll about who was better between him and Manu Ginobili (From DIME - Who's Better: Tracy McGrady or Manu Ginobili), and while I respect Manu Ginobili's game, anyone with basketball sense knows that when T-Mac was on top of his game, he was TWICE as good as Ginobili will ever be. Period.


At this point, it’s pretty safe (and sad) to say his best years are behind him. It’s especially tough for some of us that remember McGrady when he was in the top-five in the league, but even the biggest McGrady fans (me included) will admit he is a shell of himself. He may be able to win a championship, but it’s not gonna be in the lead role. He’d have to take a KG role, and become a second or even third option, for him to get that elusive championship. There’s no reason it can’t happen in Houston. All of the pieces are there; we just need for him to stay on the court long enough for it to happen.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda
www.edthesportsfan.com

Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Reunited and It Feels So Good...

Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Every Monday, Ed The Sports Fan brings you the biggest names over the past week so that you can be thoroughly entertained like when you saw Craig Sager's suit and thought he looked like the white version of A Pimp Named Slickback. Maybe A Pimp Named Sager? WTF...

1. Allen Iverson Cut The Braids. Hairbraiders lose all motivation – I was shocked. It was kinda like how you see a really fine actress/singer/entertainer without makeup, its the kind of double-take that you don't anticipate, yet your completely bamboozled by it. You can tell the man was been so consistent with his braid-game, that he now has a permanent Larry Johnson-esque part in the front of his head now. Crazy thing is, AI now looks 14 vs. 17 now with the taper fade. First Melo, now AI. Next thing you know we're gonna see Ben Wallace with a baldy, yet no one will actually realize its Ben Wallace and think an obscene orangutan has just been let loose in the public.

2. Nate Robinson Steals Again, This Time From Superman – Ok first of all, if you don't agree that Nate Robinson ROBBED Andre Igudoala in the 2007 Slam Dunk contest then you should hit Alt-F4 right now. Ok, don't do that as that will close out your Internet browser, but you see my point. Lets look at the catalog of 4 dunks that Nate did on Saturday night.

Dunk #1 - Off the bounce windmill dunk, very good, not great. Dunk #2 - Step off the back dunk, horrible. Dunk #3 - Off the bounce cock-back between the legs dunk, very good, but is it worth a 50? Dunk #4 - Kinda sorta dunk over fellow competitor Dwight Howard, he did get over him, but he pushed him down to about 6'8. The dunk was still super crazy, but here's your dunk champion?

Now lets look at Dwight Howard's catalog of dunks:

Dunk #1 - Over the backboard dunk from opposite side of the rim, very good, not great. Dunk #2 - Off the backboard dunk FROM A 12 FOOT GOAL, that's a 50. (Plus the theatrics alone should have gotten him an additional 50. From the other goal coming onto the court, to going in the phone booth, and the cape! WTF) Dunk #3 - Off the side of the backboard (bad pass by the way) cock back slam, very very very good, probably a 49 not a 50. Dunk #4 - Dunk from the free throw line...for the record, I've never seen a 7-footer dunk from the free-throw line, and for that he got DISCREDITED? I'm confused.

However, Nate going into the locker room and coming out in the all green Knicks uniform with the absurd green shoes and calling himself Kryptonite was awesome, and he held it down for my people in the 206/253.

3. LeBron puts his name in the hat for the 2010 Slam Dunk Contest – First off, its about damn time LeBron! Your about 2-3 years late but I'm glad to see you stepping up to take your place among the greats. Now realize that I'm not sure if he'll win it or not. I know that my boy JR Giddens (from the crib, OKC stand up!) beat him in the McDonald's high school slam dunk contest. Now, here's my point. Wouldn't it be great to have all the great dunkers get in it one more time? Lets get LeBron, Vince, Kobe, Dwight Howard, Josh Smith, Nate Rob, DWade, and Derrick Rose for a Royal Rumble slam dunk contest in the NEW Texas Stadium. By the way, we can confirm it now Ed and Ken WILL DEFINITELY be in Dallas for the 2010 NBA All-Star competition. Who would you put in the slam-dunk contest?

4. Daequan Cook brings home the 3-point shootout... – From THE Ohio State University (your welcome JAG) the 3-point shootout champion had the backing of Shaq and DWade, however, I personally thought it was hilarious that no one broke 20 points in the contest and that Kenny Smith kept saying that he wasn't going to win it. "The bright lights, the pressure, he'll choke..." Then he won. Hey yo Kenny, you my dude and all, but STFU!!

5. H-O-R-S-E-S-H-*-T... – WTF happened to HORSE? Like seriously, I kept waiting for HORSE to come on Saturday night, and then totally forgot about it. I didn't realize that HORSE was played in the afternoon on a Friday? I totally missed it. Evidently Joe Johnson has never played the game before and OJ Mayo hit a jumper from the stands. Kevin Durant won the trophy in something that looks like a fake horse in a diaramma (You remember those in school? With the shoebox and decorations on the inside? WOW, now its a trophy? WTF!) In the future, GET RID OF THE SHOOTING STARS COMPETITION and put HORSE on Saturday night before the 3-point contest. Get DWade, Dirk, Kobe, and LeBron and let them side bet like $100,000 that one of them can make a half-court hook shot off glass like Billy Hoyle from White Man Can't Jump. I'm just saying.

6. Duke, Xavier, and Butler All Lose To Unranked Foes – So here are your #1 seeds, locked and loaded. East - UConn, Midwest - North Carolina, South - Oklahoma, West - Pitt. I could maybe see Pitt taking the Midwest and moving UNC to the West. We'll find out soon, as #4 Pitt and #1 UConn get ready for battle tonight. I think Pitt pulls the upset and causes a logjam in the Big East. Just for information sake, the Final Four is at Ford Field this year in Detroit. I think I'm going, who's down for a road trip?

7. Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Reunited And It Feels So Good...Yeah Right – Ok, so first of all I'm calling BS to the NBA. I know Kobe had 27 points, but...really? Did you all watch the game? Shaq was THE MAN of the night. How the hell do you steal the show, NOT EVEN BEING THE STARTING CENTER OF THE WEST, and freestyle an entire 2-3 minute show with the Jabbawockeez?? WTF! Oh yeah, bad on the hood for A Pimp Named Sager for misquoting their name, calling them the Wockajabbeez...F that, Shaq KILLED it from the get. Then, he started serving cats in the game. That no-look outlet pass 90 feet down the court to Tony Parker was insane. However, he was just getting started.

CP3 set it up, told him, "GET ON THE WING!" Then Shaqtus got out there with Dwight Howard guarding him. DHo looked like he said something to the effect of, "Don't hurt yourself out here old man," with a wry smile on his face. Shaq didn't even hesitate, went hockey style and went 5-hole on Howard (thru the legs) with a bounce pass to CP3, weaved around and got it back and did a chin-up dunk on the rim. Dwight looked bamboozled and hoodwinked, yet he couldn't do anything but laugh it off. Give DHo credit, he's a good sport, he got YULE'd on by Nate Rob, then got the wool pulled over his eyes by Shaquille. God bless him.

Oh, and Shaq did like 3 chinups after that on another dunk. So when I saw Shaq and Kobe getting Co-MVPs? Seriously? WTF did Kobe do except take it to the rack? Maybe I'm hating, but I don't care. Besides all that, they looked hella ingenuine in my opinion. I'm sorry, but if you go to your hometown in front of throngs of people and yell, "Hey Ed, Tell Me How My Ass Tastes?" or if you commence to try and tell on the Big Homie and say that I've been allegedly smutting out chicks on side besides my wife on national television? Or am salty that I'm Batman and your Robin? I'm gonna try and open-hand smack you, period. Whatever, congrats to them on the MVP. Shaq, hope you get some HGH and hold it down for a couple more years.

Did You Enjoy the All-Star Weekend? Who would you put in the slam dunk contest? Let us know your thoughts!

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

NBA is to Rap as Hoop is to Flow : All-Star Edition

Sometime last week, ETSF and Cephas from WTFMoments.org had a stimulating conversation about rappers and how they compare to athletes. What you read below is partially a gmail chat conversation that lasted nearly 6 hours and arguing that rivaled Barack vs. Hilary, Kobe vs. Bynum, and of course Chris Brown vs. Rihanna.

This article, co-written by Cephas, will give the 2009 All-Star teams a comparison of NBA player to Hip-Hop counterpart. Please be advised that Jay-Z is not available for comparison, as the only real comparison we could've used was Jordan. Consider everything Jay's doing now the equivalent of Jordan at the Wizards. Oh, and we already decided that Biggie and 2Pac was Magic and Bird, KRS-One was Kareem, and Rakim was Bill Russell. Also, Plies is Sasha Vujacic. I'm sure you will disagree, laugh, and yell after reading this. Here we go.

East

Allen Iverson = 50 Cent - Both of these individuals at one time or another were arguably the hottest in their "game". AI not only had some of the hottest non-Nike sneakers (The Reebok Answers, classic) of all-time, but he had crazy handles, and could take an ass whooping like a man. I can't count the number of times I was forced to look away as he took the ball to the hole and earned a trip to the foul line after sinking a fingeroll that collectively made the crowd shriek "WTF". He made a career out of being the lil tough guy you loved to hate, and that you wanted to be like. You hated him because he was everything your mom told you not to be. He was tatted up, had braids, and once kicked his wife out of their mansion half dressed in the winter. Recently he hasn't achieved at the level he has in the past. However, at any moment Allen Iverson could drop 50 on you and then brag about in the post game interview, white T, fitted cap, and jewels in tow.

50 Cent has a similar background. He too hit it big by appealing to America's desire to root for the underdog. It wasn't because of his size or his ability to take a whooping. It was because he got shot nine times, was black balled from the recording industry and then dropped one of the most highly anticipated/acclaimed albums in hip hop history, "Get Rich or Die Trying". Like AI, 50 has fell off a bit. His last few attempts at releasing cd's all but flopped. His reality series was pulled mid-season by MTV . BET began showing the reruns, only to pull them after a few weeks. Like AI, 50 is not to be slept on. He is still good for a hot 16 on anyone's remix. In addition, he has a terrible habit of ending careers and forcing record labels to shelve the cd's of his rivals.

Dwyane Wade = T.I. - "NO ONE ON THE CORNER GOT SWAGGER LIKE US!" On and off the court, D-Wade may be the smoothest, most fluid athletes in sports history. He has a way of putting forth 110% on court, making it obvious he possess a win at all cost attitude, while simultaneously making you look completely foolish. Plainly put, most ball players are not on his level. Despite this fact and his NBA championship he is rarely spoken in the same breath as his peers Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. Last season was shortened by a severe shoulder injury. Mr. Wade preserved and this season is back to his old ways and a leading candidate for the 2009 MVP award.

"You can look me in my eyes and see I'm ready for whatever anything don't kill me make me better" - T.I. As he awaits a yearlong bid in federal penitentiary Clifford "T.I." Harris stands atop of the rap world. Like D-Wade his is often overlooked when fans debate the top rappers in the game. However, his string of platinum albums, production of artists, and successful acting roles (ATL, American Gangster) speaks volumes to his work. He is the KING. His flow is just as smooth as D-Wade's crossover, but when he chose to get after it on the mic, one could liken his ability to crush a MC to the thunder that D-Wade brings when he dunks on his opponents (see TI on Lil Flip and DWade on Jermaine O'Neal - go ahead, YouTube it...right now.)


LeBron James = Lil Wayne - "1 Million, 2 Million oh is it my part?" These words were penned by a then 16-year old boy wonder Lil Wayne, signed to Cash Money Records. Now, we see this man in commercials dusting off his Air 1's in a LeBron commercial. Lil Wayne is the most creative MC the rap game has maybe ever seen. He coins pop culture phrases with every song and finds a way to take common everyday words and make them into a collage of metaphors that leave fans wondering "Where did he get that sh*t from?". His platinum selling album "The Carter III" to many marked his arrival as a top MC. However, I would like to argue that at only 26 years old Wayne has a long way to go. His content lacks purpose, and it will only be so long before fans grow tired of hearing about syrup, weed, and women(NOT THAT WE DON'T LIKE THESE THINGS). These shortcomings only solidify his greatness. In spite of them he has established himself as one of the greatest MC's ever and in the possible debate of one of the "top 5 dead or alive".

Similarly, LeBron James is on the precipice of being one of the greatest. Sure he is a man child of an athlete. An unstoppable force of nature that makes his opponents looks like junior high AAU balers, and forces them to succumb to his explosive approach to the game. With this in mind, he still falls short in the eyes of many. In the 4th quarter, Mr. James would not be the individual I would hand the ball to if my life depended on it. Kevin Durant at age 20 has more game-winners than LeBron. To compare Wayne's subject matter is comparable to LeBron's lack of jumper and post-game. These things are the grassroots fundamentals of hip-hop & basketball. His short comings are not a sign of his failure. After all had he went to college for 4 years he would still be very new to the league. With that in mind, he is worthy of being called one of the greatest players of our time, but not the greatest player of all time...yet.

Kevin Garnett = Busta Rhymes - KG looks like if he wasn't rapping, he might be on someone street corner preparing to smack you in the back of head with a rusty pistol and take your purse. He is grimy! On the court he does it all and does it when he wants to. Do you need KG to score? He will give you 40. Do you need KG to rebound? He will throw in 20 boards. Oh and do you need KG to pass? He got that too. All this from a man that is 7' tall and has been in the game so long that he probably had a high top fade during rookie camp. He has longevity and is just as dominant now as he was 10 years ago. He has been dominate for so long it's almost like he was had 3 careers. There was the young KG with the T-Wolves. Skinny, skilled, talented and on the verge of dominating the league. There was the dominate KG hidden away in the league's worst market with one of its worst teams. Now we have the redeemed KG smiling for no reason showing his championship ring off in Boston.

BUSTA BUST! A real hip hop OG that will drop a platinum album at any moment. He is under appreciated in the game but check his track record. He was a member of the Leaders of the New Skool. A hip-hop group that held its own with the legendary Tribe Called Quest. When he ventured out on his own, he created a style unique to him. No one, I mean no one is as unique as Busta. Don't sleep, he will open hand smack anyone who address him inappropriately. Think about it, he's done TONS of movies (remember him in Higher Learning? LOL) and is killing the game in remixes. Plus, as J. McFly from Mr. Swagger would tell you, he does the greatest live hip-hop shows maybe ever. That deserves a ring by itself.

Dwight Howard = Rick Ross - Dwight Howard is a monster. Literally, the man looks like he stalks and captures the souls of innocent children, all while smiling. Crazy thing is, he's probably one of the better role models in the league right now, yet he is a major bully. Now donning the title of "Superman", he's made himself famous for making the Orlando Magic an elite franchise, and also YUUUUUUULLLLLLLLEEEEE'n in last year's dunk contest. He's only been in the league for 5 seasons, but he has clearly defined himself as one of the best players in the NBA right now.

Rick Ross aka the Biggest Boss is big as hell, some would say big as F*#$ even. Outside of that, he has a crazy delivery and I believe his flow is so sick, that it has the flu. Every bar is a hip-hop quotable. I, on more than one occasion have lovingly looked a young lady in the eye and said "I don't make love, baby I make magic!" It didn't work for me but Ricky pulls it off. His recent beef with 50 Cent is proving that he can hold his own with anyone, and by creating the new diss website www.ThisIsCurly.com (HAHA, its a real site) shows that he has the business acumen to keep up in this entrepreneurial world.

West

Chris Paul = Lupe Fiasco - Both of these men are young, unique, and have a style that reminds of to a time long gone. Lupe reminds us of the back pack hip hop culture of the early 90's. Sure, he butchered a Tribe Called Quest Lyrics at the VH1 hip-hop honors a few years back. We don't really care anymore, the kid has skills. Lupe is verbally nimble. His subject matter is diverse, thought provoking, and worthy of letting your children listen to because it is just that intelligent. He's focused and his lyrical skills are on par with anyone in the game, and at his age, he has the potential to have a major impact on hip-hop when its all said and done.

Chris Paul plays the game like John Stockton wish he could have, like Magic Johnson would have if he were shorter, and like Pee-Wee Reese would have if he would have stayed off the streets and out of jail. He has handles, a steady jumper, great elusiveness, and a bulldog mentality. I've seen CP3 in person and dude has a major mean streak. He does not play. When you combine all of his qualities, you have a real headache for opposing defenses. Plus, he's only been in the league for 4 years! He's paving his way for a place of the all-time greatest PG's ever.

Kobe Bryant = KanYe West - Let me begin by stating that Kobe is an arrogant, dry snitch that would be robbed and beaten if he was on the streets. (Ed totally agrees) Let me also say that Kanye is an arrogant asshole who dresses like a 1980's cheerleader, complete with skinny jeans and deck shoes. (Ed totally disagrees) With that said, both of these men are arguably the best at what they do. Kobe will dunk on you, maybe fall back and drain a fadeaway, or if he so chooses he will dish the ball. He's also become more versatile, with the ability to bring up the ball as needed, play on the ball defense, and faciliate the offense. Ok, the last one is questionable, but still. Jordanesque, is an overused phrase but it fits his style of play. More importantly, in the clutch, there is no other person in the league who needs/wants/deserves the ball in his hands.

Kobe's ability to perform in a clutch is very similar to that of Kanye West. If you haven't seen his performance live in your lifetime is not yet complete. Spaceships, moon boots, half-naked white women, are staples at a Kanye show. Mr. West has a list of classic that solidify him as not only one of the best producers in rap, but one of the best MCs in the game. He has transcended what a rapper says (Jesus Walks), what he wears (LV sneakers, shag haircuts, etc.), and what he stands for (GEORGE BUSH DOESN'T CARE ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE - Mike Myers next to him looking like he just shat himself...LOL). His gangsta is on a totally different level, and his pimp hand is way strong, outselling 50 Cent, creative control at Louis Vuitton, and changing the view of collaboration by working with John Mayer, Coldplay, and Estelle.

Amare Stoudemire = Young Jeezy - These two men are hood! I bet Amare secretly has a thug life tatted on his belly. They are the type of guys you do not want to run into on a dark alley. Every drop step Amare takes is performed with the same passion Jeezy exerted years ago measuring and distributing cocaine. Yeah I said it! Yes, they both have flaws. Amare doesn't play defense, and Jeezy openly backed John McCain at one point. Jeezy has made a career rapping about selling dope, cooking dope, chopping dope, and trafficking dope. Amare made a career on dunking, slamming, jamming, and alley-ooping on anyone in sight. You may not agree with their styles but you can admit, it works for them.

Tim Duncan = Common - Allow me to begin by stating, I do not like Tim Duncan or his style of play. If his game was a food item, it would be plain oatmeal with extra bland sprinkles on top. It doesn't taste like anything, but when it comes to filling your belly it gets the job done. The only reason one can compare him to the hip hop giant Common is because they are both severely underrated, focused on the traditional basics of their respective arts and have quietly amassed a series of championships. Tim Duncan with 4 rings, Common by living through the life and times of Erykah Badu. (I mean come on, dude was wearing the same Hadji wraps that Andre 3000 was wearing. I thought he was gonna come out with a catcher's vest, military pants, and some Jordan VIII's on one time. He's a legend just for living through his Badu phase.)


Who the hell taught Yao that? And he got everyone doing it!
Yao Ming = Eminem/Justin Timberlake - Yao Ming is an international superstar. He is the national treasure of the world's largest, most populated country, China. Don't sleep, Yao has started to hang around some hood dudes while being in Houston (see Artest, Ron and Alston, Rafer) and has develop a mean drop step, nice hook shot, and plays exception defense around the rim. He's clearly one of the best big men in the game. Plus, his pop culture status connects him instantly to several rap artists that are also pop stars. ETSF feels the best comparison was Eminem, as all the Caucasians around the world can hold him as their guy. (See Dave Chappelle's Racial Draft for more evidence) Cephas chose Justin Timberlake. Why? Well there isn't a really a good reason. Justin isn't even a rapper, but hell...he is pop and if you act like you didn't like "Cry Me A River" you're a damned liar.

I hope you had as much fun reading this as we did debating it. Did we get it wrong? Who's your favorite comparison?

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

Be on some Grown Man Sh!t - One Year Later...

**This is the 2nd ever post I created on ETSF. Be on some grown man sh*t is what brought people to this website, and I hope you enjoy it for the first time or again for old-times sake. This article originally posted on February 26, 2008. We will be celebrating our 1-year anniversary on February 21st in Columbus, Ohio so be on the lookout for more info. Enjoy.**

So since Jay-Z came out with "Excuse Me Miss," The term "Grown and Sexy" has been thrown around more than Karrine Stephens backstage at the BET awards. If you're throwing a party, it's for the Grown and Sexy. If you got a car that's a sedan but not a lowrider or a slab, it's grown and sexy. You went and bought a shirt that's not a XXXXXLT white tee, you guessed it, grown and sexy. Grown and Sexy has kind of turned into our generation's "Whoomp, there it is." Ironically enough, the most frequent overusers of this phrase seem to be 23 year olds whose parents still pay their car insurance. When I go to these grown and sexy parties, all I see are people in overdone tacky outfits who are trying to look too hard like they're balling. So since I clearly don't understand the accepted social definition of Grown and Sexy, I'll provide my own list of Grown man shit:

1. I don't have to drink Moet out of the bottle at the club. I don't even like Moet. It's too sweet for my taste. And I don't feel the need to pay triple the liquor store rate to do what looked cool in rap videos in '93. As a High school Sophomore, that looked like the life, now the shit looks ridiculous. Especially, if you drive away from the club in a Kia. Get a table, get some pretty girls, and you usually don't have to pay extra to get some glasses. If I'm going to drink out of the bottle, it'll be at home with some Veuve Cliquot and I'll be pouring the rest down the small of some cute girl's back.

2. I reserve the right to slap the shit out of people who think they're being cultured by calling Moet "Mo-way." That's not how it's pronounced. I know words in French ending in -et typically are pronounced "ay" This is an exception. You sound so stupid, it's not funny.

3. I've learned how to bribe people. I don't have to stand outside milling around the entrance of some spot trying to lie to the doorman about who I know and how much I'm going to spend inside the club. I'm not going to get pissed when there are a hundred other people waiting for the valet to return their car. I just slip the appropriate bill in dude's hand in some kind of convoluted dap as I quietly mention that I'll take care of him. I can always make more money. I don't want one more second of my life than necessary wasted waiting for some shit.

4. If you don't want to talk to me, I'm not gonna get mad. My little display of "fuck you bitch" or "You ain't that cute anyway" I realize is not going to get me any closer to what I want, so I'll just refrain. I don't know why you're not interested. Frankly, I don't care that much. Whatever the reason, that reason might have vanished or been locked up for a few months, so I'm not going to cut down my success ratio with you and the rest of the girls who are watching by showing my ass.

5. If after I buy you a drink, you try to order one for your homegirl too, I'm not gonna get mad and call you a gold-digger. I'm just going to motion to my bartender that you're not on my tab, and keep it moving. I do reserve the right to talk about your triflin' ass to whoever will listen, however.

6. If the shit says black tie, I'll wear a black tie. Not one of them extra short, fat-knotted pink and yellow Murakami Louis Vuitton ones. Save that shit for the BET awards. This is not reflective of minority events however, because at an African American black tie event, you're almost guaranteed never to be the worst dressed person there. I once went to a BET holiday party and I shit you not, one dude had a leather tuxedo and a rhinestone tie on.

7. I still sag my shit, but if I lift my shirt all the way, you shouldn't be able to see any leg-skin between my drawers and my belt loop. That's just ridiculous.

8. I don't wear sunglasses on inside unless I'm high. That shit looks stupid.

9. I'm not gonna spend a lot of time talking shit and bucking up because one of us brushed past the other a little too hard. Either one of us should apologize and the other accept it, or someone needs to take a swing. All them words are wasted energy that could be used toward finding a threesome to cap off the night.

10. I tip appropriately. I might want to come back one day

11. I find out the bartender's name early in the evening and hook them up a little extra up front. A lot easier to grab a drink that way then by pounding on the counter and yelling, "Slim, what's up wit my Hennessy."

12. I ain't paying sixty to get in. That could go to my Scottrade account or a good steak. I'll just come back next week with my little get in free before 11:00 email printout and party with the same exact people for the freesky.

13. More than three buttons on a suit is never appropriate. A square toe two inches wide with a suit is never appropriate. If Slim Thug has a blue Impala the same color as that suit and shoe combination, it's not appropriate.

14. I don't yell "Balllin'" and do the little jump shot dance because I got table service. Warren Buffett is ballin'. I'm just paying a little extra for the convenience of not having to fight through the crowd to get a drink from the bar every time I want one.

15. That .75 carats of flawed fucked up ice in your watch bezel ain't fooling no one. Either save up for the real shit or just get a moderately priced tasteful watch. All your ass is doing is contributing to the misery of one more African in Sierra Leone.

16. My business has revenues, a tax Id, and a business plan. You ain't the CEO of shit if all you have is a cool un-trademarked name and a website with "coming soon" plastered all over it.

17. I give money to my alma mater, savings account, and candidate that I want to win. Money talks, bullshit walks. And complaining about how bad politicians are or how they need to build some new dorms is bullshit. Do your part to make it better.

18. I don't try and act sophisticated by telling people that you should eat red wine with meat and white with fish. Drink whatever the hell you like.

19. If no one's paying y'all to appear in their ads, magazines, fashion shows, etc., I will not refer to you or your homegirls as models. You're recreational picture-takers. If someone is paying you, I give you all the credit in the world because most girls never even get close.

20. I don't have to lie to get ass. I'll show you what I got and you make up your own mind. If I tell you what's what and you're not down, cool. Saves me the stalker experience two months from now. My tires are twenty-inch Z-rated Run-flat Goodyears. I do not know how much they cost and I do not plan to prematurely find out because I fooled you into fucking and now you're vindictive. And handy with a box cutter.

Black history happens everyday. February is just a month that can't make its mind up of how many days it has. 28? 29? Lol, get at me.

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

Four-Point Play: All-Star Weekend Edition

ONE - Who are the best players who will not be playing in Sunday’s game?

For me, this is pretty easy. Deron Williams, Carmelo Anthony, and Big Al Jefferson should definitely be in this game. How two of these players (Williams and Anthony) make the Olympic team, but not even the All-Star game baffles the hell out of me. The knocks against Williams and Anthony are they have missed time due to injury, but they are both having good years for their respective teams. In the case of Jefferson, he plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves, and we all know how much of a trainwreck they have been this season. Of course, Big Al recently tore his ACL, but before that, he was having a monstrous season. I would also like to see Caron Butler in this game, but the Wizards are probably worse off than the T-Wolves. Until that changes, people will probably forget he exists, but this man is a legitimate top-ten player (maybe even top-five), at his position.

TWO - Who will prevail on All=Star Saturday night?

1. H-O-R-S-E: O.J. Mayo

2. Skills Challenge: Tony Parker

3. Three-Point Shootout: Roger Mason over Jason Kapono.

4. Slam-Dunk Contest: JR Smith over Dwight Howard in the final. Dwight yulllllllllllllllled on everyone last year, but I’m telling you; JR Smith can flat-out fly, and he’ll remind everyone of that on Saturday night.

THREE - Who will win the game, and who will take the MVP?

My pick is the East every year, and I don’t see anyone reason for it to be any different. This game is always exciting, and the players always do their best to put on a pretty good show. It’ll be fun to watch Shaq play the point at spurts, and everyone else throw lobs all over the place, and act a fool. In the end, the East will win, and the MVP will be Dwayne Wade.

AND 1 - Which All-Star Game had the flyest jerseys?


The best jerseys were either these joints from back in the day (but they could have gotten these dudes some longer shorts), or the jerseys from the 1997 game, when Shaq smashed all over the back of David Robinson’s head, and threw up the hooks afterwards. There was also the 2003 edition, which was decided in overtime, after the referees sabotaged Michael Jordan’s farewell game by calling a foul on Jermaine O’Neal in the final seconds, on a Kobe jumper. Here’s hoping this weekend will be another great one.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda
www.edthesportsfan.com

The Takeover - Kevin Durant in 2010

I watched the Lakers-Thunder game last night. Don't ask how I did, just know I did. Being one of like 17 actual Oklahoma City Thunder fans that don't reside in Oklahoma, its slow news for us Thundercats (I just made that name up). However, after watching Kobe go for his usual 34 on a hapless Thunder defense, I kept noticing someone coming back with an answer every time on the offensive end.

Kevin Durant.

KD35 is toiling in relative obscurity in OKC, but I'm here to tell you that if Thunder GM Sam Presti and the Thunder organization pull this off right, there could be an emerging powerhouse in the Sooner State. Something that the Bulls failed to pull off, and something that the TrailBlazers are currently embarking upon now.

Think about Durant and what he's done...I'll let ESPN's Bill Simmons break this out for us.

Durant won ROY playing for a disintegrating franchise and currently toils in obscurity in a new town for a team that is the dregs of the league. Yes, GM Sam Presti imploded the team like the Kingdome so he could start over with lottery picks and cap space, building a foundation for 2011. And yes, it's a smart move. But something weird happened in the process: We all stopped thinking about Durant. He's a nonentity. Ask the average fan to tell you who will be the best player in the NBA in three years, and the first five answers will be LeBron, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, D-Wade and either Rose or Carmelo. (Except in LA, where Lakers fans would go with the first three, then Bynum and Trevor Ariza.) I don't see Durant getting many votes. Um...does anyone realize he just turned 20 on Sept. 29, making him younger than Mayo? That he's breaking every scoring benchmark by age? That he's been averaging 26 points, eight rebounds, 48% shooting, 85% from the line and 43% on threes since Thanksgiving? Go online and check out his ESPN.com game log. Do it now. I'll wait.

(Twiddling my thumbs.)

Got it? Now look at those point totals: 28, 25, 26, 26, 28, 26, 25 … You know in Jaws when Richard Dreyfuss calls the shark an "eating machine"? Durant is a scoring machine. He was put on this earth to collect points. We have never seen anyone quite like him before: a 6'9" forward with Plastic Man arms, 30-foot range and the ability to thrive in big moments. He has more career buzzer-beaters than LeBron. Trust me, it's true.

Now realize this, the Thunder have TONS of cap space moving forward for 2009 and 2010. Having the opportunity to offer a max-deal to a big name player like a Carlos Boozer, Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, and others who will be available in the next 2 years. With the core of KD35, Jeff Green (averaging 18 and 7 in the last month), and Russell Westbrook, they are set at 3 of the 5 positions. They are looking to move one of their big men, Joe Smith, for emerging 2-guard John Salmons from Sacramento. So you're telling me that a Carlos Boozer at the 5 couldn't be a force? Bosh could do the same move in 2010, and be hours from his hometown (Dallas stand up).

Am I wrong about this? I dunno, but the Kevin Durant bandwagon is mighty empty right now, and I'm driving this sucker...get on board now before you become lame and get to the party too late.

Is he the breakout player for the 2010's? What about Rose? Mayo? Oden? Is LeBron going to utterly dominate this decade too like he's doing the 2nd-half of the 00's? Let me know your thoughts...

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

Ray Lewis, the Dallas Cowboys Do Not Deserve You

Note: Kenny is a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan, as well as a huge Ray Lewis fan.

Now that football season is over, there have been many trade rumors, retirement talk, coaching changes and players wanting out of their current situations. Down here in Dallas, we hear this type of talk every single day. I’m not too sure how it is in other markets, but the airwaves, newspapers, and televisions talk the Cowboys much more than the Mavericks, Stars, and the Rangers put together. In the midst of The Playmaker Michael Irvin holding tryouts for a reality show for a spot on the Cowboys training camp roster (I still don’t know how to feel about this), and Terrell Owens hosting his own reality show this off-season (anyone who knows me knows how I feel about this man), people tend to think we should make a run at newly-minted free agent, The Great Ray Lewis. At first, I was all for it, but the more I thought about it, the less I was turned off by the prospect of him coming here. Simply put, my team, the Dallas Cowboys, do not deserve Ray Lewis, and he should not be in a Dallas Cowboys uniform next season.

See, we have issues that even The Great Ray-Ray cannot fix. We have a man who is the head coach in title, but does not really run a damn thing. On top of that, we still have no undisputed leader, whatsoever, on our team. We have cats who are more than capable (DeMarcus Ware, Bradie James, Jay Ratliff, and Jason Witten immediately come to mind), but there’s not that one player on the team that people look to, and say “that man is the undisputed leader, and we’ll ride or die on his word.” While that is the role people expect Lewis to fill, it simply cannot and will not happen. When there are issues in the locker room, it always gets out, because there are players on this team that do not know when, or how, to shut the hell up. On top of that, there’s The Jerry Factor, and while I love the fact that he wants to win, and he will spend money to get people here, I hate that he still wants to do it his way, which we now know isn’t the winning way. Remember, we haven’t won a playoff game in 12 years, and the common denominator is him, so that has to count for something.

Plus, I know how we (yes, we being the fans) can be. Granted, all Cowboy fans aren’t stupid, but there are quite a number of them who are. The last thing I want is Ray Lewis to come down here, in a no-win situation, and be disrespected and mistreated in his twilight years. The man deserves much more than that. If there was more stability on the coaching staff and in the front office, I’d be all for it. Since there isn’t, I have to say this, and will continue to stand by it. As long as our team is in shambles, the Dallas Cowboys do not deserve Ray Lewis on this team, period.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda
www.edthesportsfan.com

Unsportsmanlike Conduct - step your game up

Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Every Monday, Ed The Sports Fan brings you the biggest names over the past week so that you can be thoroughly entertained like when you heard Chris Brown smacked Rihanna. Chris probably confused her with several pop-lock moves then gave her a ferocious backhand while popping in a piece of doublemint gum. LMAO.

1. A-Rod tests positive for having gobs of money & steroids... – If you haven't heard, according to a report by Sports Illustrated, Alex Rodriguez tested positive for anabolic steroids in 2003 -- the latest revelation in baseball's steroids saga. Personally, I'm not surprised. Look at what Barry Bonds did, dude was probably the best player in baseball battling with Ken Griffey in the 90's for supremacy. Then Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa come along hella juiced up and started taking his limelight. Bonds said ok, I'm gonna show you how nice I am. I think Alex did the same thing, and he did it on the precipice of signing that 10 year/$252M contract. Dude hit .298 with 40+HRs and 120+RBIs, locked that money up and hasn't tested positive since. Smart but dumb move on his behalf, but I wouldn't be surprised if he started suing somebody like white folks did against OJ in the past 10 years. The test samples were ANONYMOUS, so how the hell do we find out about A-Rod? I dunno...

2. Kobe imitated Jordan's flu game, but wait...is that...Lamar Odom??? – Kobe Bryant was sick. The Cleveland Cavaliers just looked it. With Bryant suffering from the flu, Lamar Odom scored a season-high 28 points - 15 in the third quarter- and Pau Gasol scored 18 as the streak-busting Los Angeles Lakers dominated the second half and handed Cleveland its first home loss this season, 101-91 on Sunday to complete a 6-0 road trip. Bryant was not himself. The superstar vomited before the game, shivered with chills throughout and needed intravenous fluids at halftime. Who he think he is, Jordan? (Oh yeah, he does think he's Jordan, my bad...) But L.O. stole the show, completely beasting the Cavs frontline last night. My thing is, why does he not play like that all the time? The Lake Show have staked their claim as the team to beat in the League.


3. The Darkhorse to win it all, the San Antonio Spurs... – Just when you thought you could throw dirt on them boys, the Spurs clawed back from the dead earlier this year to become relevant again. Now, they are in the elite team discussion, after whooping up on the C's with a 105-99 victory. First off, I haven't seen Matt Bonner since those all-white boy teams that Florida put on the court back like 4-5 years ago. (Matt Walsh, Bonner, David Lee, Teddy DuPay...you don't remember?) Anyway, dude dropped 23 on KG and Co. and I think might have slightly exposed Boston's D. By having a frontline being able to hit those jumpers from the flanks, there's less congestion in the middle, something "The Big Fundamental" was able to take advantage of. Plus, Roger Mason might be the best free agent acquisition of the year, as he's hit 4 game winners for the Spurs this season. The ETSF power rankings as of right now. 5. Magic, 4. Cavs, 3. Spurs, 2. Celtics, 1. Lakers...am I wrong?

4. The 2009 Pro Bowl was also known as the "We get to throw to Larry Fitzgerald" game... – Man, the QB's from this game smiled so hard when Larry was on the field with them. Drew Brees was just like F it and started flinging it down the field towards #11. He brought one down for a 46-yard TD. Eli Manning was like F it, throwing the fade to #11. Brought that one down for a 2-yard TD. I still say Moss is better, but Fitz is killing the game right now. I wonder if he'll restructure that deal to keep Anquan in AZ? I say he tries, but it doesn't matter...Anquan's outta AZ. Gut says he goes to either Philly or Seattle.


5. Duke vs. North Carolina...Who You Got? – Ok, here are a couple of things about this game. Ever since Tyler Hansbrough's been at UNC, my hate level for the Heels has steadily risen. I just feel like the love swoon over Mr. 50 is ridiculous. How the hell did he get player of the year over Michael Beasley? He's probably gonna rob Blake Griffin again this year too. Now realize, I hate Duke even more than UNC, but I'm gonna admit this publicly for the first time minus a couple of text messages. Gerald Henderson is the best 2-guard in the country. (Steph Curry is a 2-guard in a PG's body, so he's a PG for now.) I've been watching him play for 3 years now, and he's come into his own. He makes every big play for the Dookies and I'm not sure if UNC has anyone to check him. My gut says UNC, but my mind says Duke. Final Score, Duke 77, UNC 74. By the way, what's your favorite Duke/UNC memory? I'll take Mr. Stackhouse reversing on like 3 Duke defenders, Dickie V having an aneurysm, and Stack strutting on them boys afterwards. Classic.

6. Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Expanding Your Horizons - USA vs. Mexico in a soccer showdown... – Ok look, I know a lot of you people are like what? Soccer? I'm a big fan of soccer, and this is a rivalry that goes pretty deep. If you watch this match on Wednesday, realize that it will be played in Columbus, Ohio and most of the crowd will support Mexico. Realize that the hood is well represented. DaMarcus Beasley, Oguchi Onyewu, Marvell Wynne, Ricardo Clarke, and my main man Jozy Altidore will all be representing for the darker shades on Wednesday. Plus, my dude Clint Dempsey is probably the most hood dude on the team, as he put out a decent rap video with Big Hawk (Houston stand up) called "Don't Tread."


You might be bored after 6 minutes, but what the hell else are you gonna do on a Wednesday night before the Duke/UNC game at 9pm? Plus, soccer looks really good in HD. So check it out, and watch as "El Tri" aka the Mexican national team fouls Team USA more than Bo Outlaw does in a 5-minute time span.

Oh, and one more thing. Hope you checked out "Swagger Like Us" on the Grammy's last night. That ish was phenomenal. M.I.A. was prego as hell, looked like a fetus was gonna fall out any minute. Kanye was rocking the shag deluxe, and I'm sad for T.I. because he's going to jail real soon, and its his song but he's got probably the wackest verse on it. Oh well. Check the video folks.



Anything I forget? You got your Valentine's Day plans locked up yet? I'll keep you posted on what to and what not to do...lol

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

The Top 10 Wide Receivers In The NFL, We Think...

Where does T.O. rank on the list? Read on to find out...
We've done this before, and this doesn't have just my biased opinion on the best. So, we brought in a couple of consultants and one loyal reader to give us 5 varying opinions on the best flankers, split ends, and slot receivers in the league.

Big thanks to Antone (www.yougotdunkedon.com), Michael (www.mkrob.com), Kenny (ETSF & www.kennymasenda.blogspot.com) and fan favorite B. Lew repping The Great State of Texas. Oh yeah, I chimed in with my own 2 cents as well.

Here we go. (Notation provided by Antone and Ed)

10. Plaxico Burress: Wow, this was a tough decision, because who knows what's going to happen to Plax next season, but he has to make the list, for now at least. One of the best playmakers in the NFL in the redzone, Plax probably would have been good for 10 plus TDs again this season, if not for, you know, that little incident with a gun and his leg.

9. Calvin Johnson: Truth be told, by this time next year, this guy could shoot up all the way to #2 on this list. I probably could put him there now and it wouldn't cause TOO much argument, but for now I have to leave him behind some other strong WR who have been doing it a lot longer than he has. There's not to many WR who would make this list after having just one great season.

8. Brandon Marshall: In the same mold of Calvin Johnson, except I think Brandon thinks he's the best receiver in the league right now. That's not a bad thing, but he's got to work on his game some more. He's put up consecutive 1,000 yard seasons, makes big-time catches, and he is a real problem in the open field. If he can stay consistent for a full season, he might be top 5 in 2009.

7. Terrell Owens: Love him or hate him, when he isn't dropping passes, he's usually getting into the endzone. He's scored double digit touchdowns in 8 seasons over his career, including 3 straight with the Cowboys. I could probably bump him up to third on this list, but I dinged him a spot for all the drops he's had the last few seasons.

6. Anquan Boldin: I initially was not going to include Boldin on my list, but after looking things over, he is one of the few WR's left who has a track record of more than a couple good seasons, who is still in the prime of his career. Boldin is a tough SOB after getting knocked out against the Jets and coming back to play after a face fracture, but he is also is a really damn good WR, who could be someone's # 1 wideout next season.

5. Reggie Wayne: Wayne is a consistent WR who has 5 straight years of 1,000 yards and more than 77 catches. He has replaced Marvin Harrison as Peyton Manning's go-to-guy. The only question about him is if he is a product of Peyton Manning's greatness or if he is just a real damn good WR.

4. Steve Smith: Smith is big time play maker who has got to be considered one of the Top 5 WR in the NFL. He puts up big numbers despite playing with a not-so-great QB. Yeah, I'm talking about YOU, Jake Delhomme. Makes you wonder what he would do with a Pro Bowl level QB. I'd love to see him in San Diego's offense, who loves to throw the deep ball.

3. Andre Johnson: Johnson is certainly a beast, but he has two knocks against him. The first is that he is seen as an injury prone player. However, he has played in 16 games in 4 of the 6 seasons he's played in the NFL, so that knock is not 100% true. The second is that he has never scored more than 8 TDs in a season and to be a great WR, you need to get into the endzone more frequently than that.

2. Randy Moss: I strongly considered Andre Johnson for the # 2 spot, but the fact is that Moss is still averaging more yards per catch and scoring more TDs than Andre Johnson is. Combine that with his history and I have to put Moss at # 2, at least for now. In a year or two, it might be a different story.


1. Larry Fitzgerald: Like you didn't know Larry was gonna be #1 on the list after this and that was before his performance against the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game and his almost legendary performance in the Super Bowl. Larry is going to have some big expectations to fulfill next season, but seeing that he is part Jerry Rice and part Randy Moss, I think he'll have no problem seeing through on those expectations.

Here's the breakout by contributor...



Here's the points breakout...(#1 rank = 10 points, #2 rank = 9 points, etc.)



Who's your Top 10? Did we get it right? Probably not...chime in with your thoughts and enjoy the Pro Bowl this Sunday. Who's down for going to Miami next year for the Pro Bowl?

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com