The End of An Era: Farewell Rasheed Wallace

        Just a short few days ago the Los Angeles Lakers went on to win the franchises 16th NBA Championship in game 7 against their rival Boston Celtics. In the aftermath of their celebration Celtics F/C Rasheed Wallace waited patiently outside the refs locker room. Normally hearing this one might think that Wallace was there wanting to argue with the refs about fouling out in the finals minutes of the game but it seemed that Wallace had another reason. He just wished to speak with the veteran refs as a farewell to his playing career. He might not have always gotten along with the officials but you cannot deny the respect he has for their profession and the game of basketball itself. After a few minutes arena security came by and had ‘Sheed leave still dressed in his jersey with a towel wrapped around his neck he made his way back to his team to leave the Staples Center for the final time.
        In the postgame interview Doc Rivers praised ‘Sheeds play, "He was a warrior. You know, I don't know if Rasheed will ever play again. You know, he's one of them. I think he took that out on the floor with him. I think he's thinking about retiring, and I thought you could see that in his play." After hearing this, the reports started coming out that Rasheed was set to retire nothing was final but we all knew he was done. Knowing that he has 2 years left on the contract he signed last summer Wallace hasn’t and probably won’t sign and turn in his retirement papers so that the Celtics can use him as a trading chip to clear up cap space or bring in a player who can help them. It’s these little things that show us who Wallace really is. He has always been portrayed as a person who can’t keep his anger or immaturity in check, as he’s the NBA leader in career technical fouls; he’s just a player who wears his emotions on his sleeve. He’s going to let you know how he feels about something but all his teammates and coaches say he one of the best teammates around.
        For me personally this is a sad day in sports, Rasheed might not have always done the right thing while playing basketball but when called upon he was always up to the challenge. A lot has been said about him coasting through the regular season this year and playing his way into shape instead of coming in that way. That can’t be denied he stated himself that he wasn’t brought in for the regular season but for the playoffs, and that’s exactly how he played. Rethinking about game 7 makes me recall a younger ‘Sheed when he played for my hometown Portland Trailblazers. He didn’t have the greatest stats but he played his usually great low post defense, voiced his opinion and concerns during play and timeouts and was an emotional leader.
        Wallace may not make it into the Hall of Fame but nobody can say he didn’t have Hall of Fame talent; he was a player who just enjoyed playing the game. Back in 2007 Charles Barkley stated that if Wallace had the mindset of Kobe Bryant he would have been the best player in the league. He didn’t want to be a superstar even though he has all the tools, great low post threat that can get his shot off against anyone and someone who can go out and spread the floor. Maybe he played away from the basket to often but when your 6’11 and can shoot the 3 as well as him it’s easy to stand out there and fire them up. For the last 15 seasons we have all been fascinated with Rasheed whether it was with his on court outburst, his postgame interviews or his suburb talent the NBA won’t be the same without him.
        On a closing note I wanted to list a few of my favorite ‘Sheed stories, the first happened the summer after he graduated high school. He was selected to the McDonald All-American game as one of the best senior players in the country. In the game he played his normal game he went 4-7 with 9 points but the thing that really stands out is that he became the first and only player to ever be ejected from it. Another story was during practice while at the University of North Carolina “during a scrimmage Wallace’s freshman year. Montross and Salvadori had been pushing Wallace up and down the court, double teaming him down low and talking shit the whole time. Evidently Wallace went up for a turnaround jumper in the lane only to have Montross and Salvadori club him and block his shot. Each telling him to never bring that shit inside again. Next time down the court Wallace caught a ball coming off of the rim at which time he did one of his backboard shaking monster dunks (a 9.5 on Pat Sullivan's grading scale) on Montross and Salvadori. Upon landing on his feet Ra pushed Montross into Salvadori and yelled, "You better recognize. Motherf***er! Your job is mine!" This outburst infuriated Montross as he chased Wallace down the court as the entire team tried to break it up. Rasheed ran laps for the rest of the practice.” (story courtesy of http://www.detroitbadboys.com/2006/4/3/1214256/100-reasons-and-more-to-love). Anyway we’ll obviously see another player who doesn’t play up to their talent level but we will never get another player with the personality of Rasheed. Here’s a quote from former Blazers coach Mike Dunleavy on ‘Sheed that sums him up nicely, “When I was coaching in Portland, I had Rasheed Wallace. He was a great player and somebody everyone on the team liked. The thing was, he just didn't want to be the go-to guy at the end of a game. He didn't want you to call a play for him, yet if you gave him the ball at the end he would deliver. To counter that, I would run a play for somebody else, even though the ball would ultimately wind up in Rasheed's hands. I'd tell him, "OK, Rasheed, we're going to run a play for Scottie Pippen. Pipp, you come off that screen and knock down that 17-foot jumper." And then as they were walking away from the huddle, I'd grab Pipp and tell him, "Don't even think about shooting that jump shot. Drop the ball into Rasheed." And he'd do that, and Rasheed would turn around and hit the game-winner off the glass.” Well there you have it I wish Rasheed the best in his post career endeavors and I will miss watching him play this game that he so loved.

Then & Now: The Evolution of a Sports Fan

           In the past few weeks I have discovered that I get a variety of sports channels that I didn’t before. Since I’m not that much of a baseball fan the summer is really dull for me. Imagine my excitement when I stumbled across NBA TV, NFL Network and NHL TV I got to relive my youth while watching old school games. Looking back to when I first started watching sports back in 1991 at the tender age of 6 to the 24 year old person I am today I miss the kid I was. Growing up in St. Louis, MO we only had the Cardinals and Blues in town and at that point in my life I wasn’t a fan of baseball or hockey. I only watched football and baseball so naturally I had to adopt another’s cities teams as my own and the best way to do so was whom ever I saw the most. Since Chicago is only a short trip away and Michael Jordan was on the quest to leading the Bulls to their first NBA title they were on all the time and I got hooked to the grace that Jordan played with. Also on the football end the Dallas Cowboys were starting to become the team of the 90s. After relocating to Portland in the summer of ’92 which was the same year the Clyde Drexler led Blazers met the Bulls in the NBA finals. It wasn’t right for me to claim my new hometown team as my own even to this day I don’t get the pride when I watch the Blazers play.

By the way I became a fan of my teams it was already obvious that they were good so I got to celebrate a lot of championships in those days. Nothing could have been better then ’92 and ’93 when both the Bulls and Cowboys won their respective championships. I couldn’t have been a happier kid when it came to sports but then in ’94 things were a little disappointing Jordan retired the ‘Boys got knocked off by the San Francisco 49ers and I thought things were going downhill fast. The next two years I expanded my horizons and started watching a little bit of baseball and a bit of hockey, I came to be a fan of the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Red Wings. In ’95 Jordan came back to almost lead the Bulls back to the NBA finals only to lose in the Conference Semi-Finals to the Orlando Magic, the Cowboys signed Deion Sanders and bounced back with their last Super Bowl victory and my new favorite team the Red Wings would extend their Stanley Cup drought to 41 seasons after getting swept by the New Jersey Devils. The Cleveland Indians also made the World Series for the first time since 1954 but ended up losing to the Atlanta Braves in 6 games. In the remainder of the 90s the Bulls obtained their 2^nd three-peat, the Red Wings won back to back titles in ’97 and ’98, the Indians lost a devastating game 7 of the ’97 World Series and the Cowboys won their last playoff game in ’96.

At the turn of the millennium I got a chance to experience what most sports fans do disappointment in your team. I now know what a true fan is once your team goes through losing and disappointing season how long are you going to stay with them. Looking back only the Red Wings have had any type of success since 1998 winning two Stanley Cups (2002, 2008) and losing last season. Luckily since of my love of basketball and of Jordan I naturally became a North Carolina Tar Heels fan I missed there title in 1993 but have watched and cheered them on for their two titles in 2005 and 2009.

Overall I am a more complete fan then I was in my adolescents as much as I appreciate all the wins and championships I got to watch as a kid I enjoy the way I feel when I can turn back and watch a Jordan or a Emmitt Smith in their primes do what they do best. Hopefully in the years ahead I will be able to experience the joy of watching titles won and one day I’ll be able to look back to now and know that as a sports fan I am very lucky to love the teams that I do through all their ups and downs.

A Welcomed Return

I realize that every major sports outlet is talking about this but it has been made into a big topic. Michael Vick returned to action Thursday nigh in his first preseason game. No on could foresee Vick coming out on the second play of the game but with 15 seconds gone in the first quarter he trotted onto the field. Knowing how Philadelphia fans are I was expecting to hear some cheers and a lot of boos but to my surprise most of the crowd cheered him on as if he has been in that Eagles jersey for his whole career. Coach Andy Reid did a very smart thing getting him in early for a few reasons. One to get it over with and not having everyone wondering when he would play and also getting him some work with the first team offense. He also chose good plays for Vick to run nothing that would overwhelm him, he was in for 6 plays all in the first half they consisted of 4 passes which were all completed for 19 yards, a run for 1 yard and also lined him up as a slot receiver. Naturally SportsCenter showed all 6 plays and I find the formation when he or Donovan McNabb is in the slot because you have two players who can throw so you can’t count out a lateral to one and a bomb down the field.

As Vick gets more comfortable with the offense and gets back into football shape I’m sure we will start to see his speed and explosiveness come back. When he left the game 2 years ago he was the most dynamic QB to ever play the game and I’m sure he will regain that title. The only QB I see who can have the same effect on defensive is Pat White of the Miami Dolphins. Wouldn’t it be great to see those two teams playing each other, Vick the ultimate Wildcat threat and Miami the team that made the Wildcat so popular last year with Ronnie Brown running the show. Now after using a second round pick on White (who showed everyone with his last game at West Virginia and the combine that he can pass as well as run) they are an even more potent Wildcat team.

If you happened to catch the post game press conference it sure doesn’t seem that McNabb is too happy with the way they are integrating Vick into the lineup. This from the man who supposedly lobbied for Vick to come to Philadelphia and now he realizes that the more Vick is on the field the less snaps and play that McNabb will have. Even though Vick was out there for only 6 plays McNabb stated that it was hard for him to get in a comfort zone with his lineman, backs and receivers. If this is an extended thing how do you feel the Eagles are going to hold up the rest of the season. This will be an interesting dilemma to watch as Vick gets back into shape and gets even more plays under his belt.

Dallas Cowboys: An End to Misery

Optimism is riding high for me as it should for all Dallas Cowboy fans. We have sat and waited for the past 13 years for the 'Boys to make some noise in the playoffs and I'm feeling that this could be the year for them to do so. Yes I do realize that they are in a very difficult division with the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins. Washington has gotten better on the defensive line with the signing of Albert Haynesworth but their offense isn't something to worry about until Jason Campbell can show he has made progress as a QB. Obviously as I wrote in my earlier post the Eagles signed Mike Vick which depending how things go will be a huge upgrade and their defense is always one of their strong suits. Well the other two have added players the Giants lost their top to receivers and will now have to rely on young inexperienced ones to contend with.

People can point out the fact that the Cowboys also lost their top receiving threat in Terrell Owens but I truly believe that with a full off-season under their belts Roy Williams and Tony Romo will finally be on the same page and should have a dynamic season together. Add in Romo's safety valve in All Pro Tight End Jason Witten and you have a duo that should compile at least 2,000 receiving yards together. Adding to a already potent offense Running Back Felix Jones is healthy again and adding him to the group with Marion Barber and Tashard Choice (who played exceptionally well in limited action last year) makes them perhaps the deepest and most talented RB group in the NFL. Now if one of the other wide outs can step up and play at a consistent level this could be one of the best offensive units.

In addition to that offensive the 'Boys had the 8th best defense last year in terms of yards per game. They do have a few new starters on all three levels of the defense with Igor Olshansky, Keith Brooking, Anthony Spencer, Mike Jenkins and Gerald Sensabaugh taking the places of Chris Canty, Zach Thomas, Greg Ellis, Anthony Henry and Roy L. Williams respectively. Even with so many new faces the Cowboys should improve on a defense that led the league with 59 sacks last year. With the addition of Sensabaugh they finally have two safeties that can cover receivers down the field which should result in their ability to blitz more that'll help generate more sacks and turnovers. With Terrance Newman anchoring one side and the maturity and added experience from both second year cornerbacks (Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick) the Cowboys should improve in coverage and get more than the 8 interceptions they had last year (which only Detroit and Denver has less).

Of course this defensive unit is led by arguably the best linebacker in the league DeMarcus Ware who attributed 20 of the teams 59 sacks not only is he a great pass rusher but he is great at stopping the run and is athletic enough to cover backs out of the back field. The only reason he didn’t win Defensive Player of the Year is because the team didn’t make it into the playoffs. (insane interception at the end of the video)

After a very disappointing season last year especially with the way that it ended a 44-6 thrashing to the Eagles which knocked them out of the playoff picture. The Cowboys have a lot to prove they must show everyone that they can win games with Owens and also that they can win games that matter at the end of the year (they haven’t had a winning record since 1996 which is coincidently the last time they won a playoff game). At the start of every new season I feel encouraged and hopeful that we’ll be able to relive the glory days of the ‘90s when the Cowboys were on top sadly each year we have all been disappointed but hopefully with a new stadium and a new focus the ‘Boys can show us why they are nicknamed America’s Team.



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Bitter Sweet

During the Arizona Cardinals Pittsburgh Steelers preseason game an announcement took place; something that got me thinking and mixed my emotions. Michael Vick is back in the NFL having signed a two year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. My mixed emotions come from my happiness and excitement that Vick is back in the league. He is one player who I have always loved to watch dating back to his days at Virginia Tech. The only issue I have is why the Eagles as a diehard Cowboys fan I can't stand the thought that he will be lacing up against them twice a year. During the Monday Night Countdown special it was reported that the Cowboys could surprise people and try to acquire Vick. I realize that weeks ago Jerry Jones ruled out the intent to sign Vick but looking at Jones' history he has always rolled the dice (e.g. Tank Johnson, T.O. and Adam Jones). I believe that signing Vick would have been good for the 'Boys especially looking at how they did once Romo got hurt last year. I had dreams of lining Vick in the wildcat formation with Felix Jones I can't think of a better tandem in the wildcat then that. Both are playmakers who can juke you in the open field and then turn on the after burners and outrun you to the end zone. As much as I want Vick to play well and get his life back on a positive track it pains me accept the fact that he's going to a division rival. I know once Goddell fully reinstates him (which I hope is before week 6) I will follow his progress and be delighted to see if he can regain an ounce of his former talent.



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Importance of the Andre Miller Signing

As an avid NBA fan as well as a Portland, OR resident I'm not sure if people understand the importance of the Andre Miller siging which accured a few weeks back. For the last few years watching the Blazers move from the dweller of the NBA to a 54 win season. I've always felt that they were a good point guard away from being a regular playoff contender. Not taking anything away from current starting point guard Steve Blake, the Blazers needed someone who can direct the offense and take the burden of of Brandon Roy's shoulders. Looking over the entire roster the PG position had to be the weakest on the team. When you look at the center tandem of Oden and Pryzbilla, Fernandez and Roy at the 2, the plethora of small forwards (Webster, Batum, Outlaw even Fernandez can slide over to the 3) and with Aldridge at the 4 spot with news that Outlaw will be the primary backup there. Adding Miller who thrives in a more uptempo offense which the Blazers didn't really apply last year they have five position players who are athletic and can get out to fill the lanes. He's had some of his best years in Denver playing along side a mobile Marcus Camby, fleet footed Nene and a young Carmelo running with him. I have no doubt that Aldridge can fill the lanes better then most other PF in the game and don't count out Oden being healthy and getting out on the break ala Dwight Howard. Even has he grows older he is a bigger guard and better defensive player then Blake is. I don't think the Blazers will miss a step with Miller either coming off the bench or starting. The mixture of the two guards will bring a good change of pace that opponents will have to adjust to, as Blake is a better outside shooter than Miller. Not many people have dicussed this topic in the lue of the bigger free agents on the market (Turkoglu, Odom) and the trades of Shawon Marion and Vince Carter. The Blazers finished the season with a tie for the second most victories in the Western Conference and if they continue to improve as the have each of the last 4 years don't be too surprised if they get close to cracking the 60 win mark for the first time since they won 59 in 2000 when they lost to the Lakers in 7 games during the Western Conference finals. Adding a vetern leader and with the increased maturity of the young players that encompass the roster I see the Blazers getting out of the first round and being a team that most won't want to see in the playoffs. As long as everyone can manage to stay healthy they will have a young, talented, deep and hungry. The only questions I can forsee is how Coach McMillan will juggle the minutes to keep everyone happy, especailly with the return of Webster who was suppose to be a starter last season, and how injure plagued will they be again this season. All these issues and question will be answered once the season gets underway.

I'd love to hear your comments and thoughts on this so please feel free to express yourself.



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