Post-Christmas, Pre-New Year’s Thoughts on 2008
The Things I’m Thankful For:
Chris Paul- I’ve covered this enough already but here’s one more reason why he rules: he breaks obscure 30 year old records that will probably not be broken for another 30. Now if he could just give the rest of the Hornets a kick in the pants.
Doris Burke, Craig Sager & Co.- All sideline reporters are really annoying and offer nothing pertinent to the ongoing game and some coaches don’t even bother masking their disdain for your presence and idiotic questions. Play-by-play commentators are not as pointless but the majority of them fail horrifically at their stated job of in-game analysis. That being said, there’s a small class of people who either provide excellent color commentary that the average viewer enjoys or are just pure comic relief on the sideline. On the latter, Craig Sager is the lone example. He dresses like a schizophrenic hippie on a head full of acid, talks like Fred Willard in Best in Show and is openly mocked and respected all at once by every NBA player. When he covered the baseball playoffs this fall and was wearing an uninspiring TBS logo polo, he just didn’t have that pep. Sager’s just not the same if he’s not wearing a purple pin-stripe suit, with a pink tie and neon green shirt while being reamed by Kevin Garnett. As for the former, Doris Burke is also in a class of her own for being the only female talent in the NBA who actually knows what she’s talking about (I don’t care if it’s sexist, it’s also true). She’s not pretty or perky but she’s got a great basketball IQ and when she calls out the play being run before you even see it happen, do you really need Erin Andrews yapping about nothing? Burke’s a part of the small class of commentators that don’t defend the refs, admire a showboater’s hustle or comment on great timeouts, which includes Walt Frazier (sure he’s biased for the Knicks but the man’s a legend who knows what he’s talking about), Jeff Van Gundy & Marc Jackson (when they’re solo or not acting like they’re best friends), and Ian Eagle & Jim Spanarkel for the Nets isn’t too bad either but after that, you’re better off watching most games with the sound off, not half as inept as the NFL’s announcers though.
Conference Parity- That’s not to say the East has gotten as good as the West but that the West merely has about the same amount of mediocre teams on its side nowadays along with plenty of good ones as well. The Celtics & Cavs are taking on all comers, Orlando & Atlanta won’t contend for a title but could beat a title contender, Detroit’s still a conference leader, and a handful of others are at least moving in the right direction and entertaining. The West is still crowded at the top with more teams attempting to join the fray (Portland & Denver come to mind) but thanks to the efforts of the Kings, Grizz, Clippers, Wolves and Thunder, there’s still plenty of bottom-feeders around to drag the conference down from the elite pedestal most hyperbolic commentators are so apt to put them on.
An Outstanding Rookie Class- Sadly, Danillo Gallinari isn’t the reason this made this made the list, thankfully players like OJ Mayo, Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, Rudy Fernandez, Marc Gasol, DJ Augustin, Sergio Rodriguez and Brook Lopez have stepped up in his absence. Those guys are the ones that are already making an impact and the list from there goes on with others who will be making an impact in the next couple of years. There’s even undrafted surprises like Anthony Morrow getting their points right now (along with other faves Love, Chalmers, Westbrook, Thompson & Anderson). And guys like Fernandez, Gasol and Rodriguez represent an improved trend in drafting European players that have actually proven themselves over guys just with the potential to be great (Danny G, I’m looking at you!). And I know what you’re thinking but Greg Oden doesn’t make this list because he shouldn’t be considered a rookie and his development time is killing the Blazers right now, it’s like they’re playing with four guys once the opposing coaches realize he doesn’t know what he’s doing.
Airing of Grievances:
League Pass Broadband- Minor complaints here since the league pass service overall is pretty awesome, particularly being able to watch three games at once, but I actually enjoyed watching local TV markets’ commercials last year instead of the same NBA and Clone Wars ads repeatedly to the point where I know them word for word and could quite possibly even play the piano tune that accompanies the NBA “where fill in the blank happens” ads although I’ve never played the piano. Also, I can watch any Grizzlies or Kings games but practically no Hornets or Rockets games, what up with that? I get that there will be a few blackout games now and again but for the money I paid, you gotta hook it up a little better.
An Open Letter to Sportscenter- You guys have a monopoly on the market but you’re letting it get to your heads a little bit. If Sportscenter isn’t on, we’ve got ESPNnews, if there’s anything worth getting, you’re the people to usually get it from a large majority of the time. Yet instead of sticking with what got you there, you’re more concerned with analyzing what hasn’t happened yet, promoting your own games and inhibiting horrible athletes to act out and get their own glorification. On a night when there’s only three NBA games, an NFL game and some NHL action, all I want to see for a solid half-hour at least is comprehensive highlights of all of those games, not dissecting Greg Oden’s 2 points and 3 blocks over the rest of a great game, no analysis of the baseball free-agent market when there’s no signings to be had, no BCS controversy BS, and last but not least, no over-hyped NFL news! I understand the fun of sports is talking about what could happen in certain games, who’s great, who’s overrated, who’s getting screwed, possible trades and everything else but when it comes down to it, that’s primarily for the fans, not for the content-providers. I don’t need Bill Walton & John Clayton telling me their playoff contenders when there’s highlights of actual games that have actually been played for viewers to enjoy. It’s crap like that that eventually leads to the unneeded drama around T.O., Brett Favre & Plaxico Burress. It basically turns you into the MTV of sports, you’re not even covering what your stated goal is. In short, nothing wrong with a little extra analysis but people that like sports would prefer a little more highlight action.
PS – that show on ESPN2 where guys play Madden against one another, it’s pointless and idiotic, along with a lot of other random shows, please cancel those for just a show of recent game highlights from the past 48 hours. People at bars for happy hour will appreciate it and you’ll save money.
Chris Paul- I’ve covered this enough already but here’s one more reason why he rules: he breaks obscure 30 year old records that will probably not be broken for another 30. Now if he could just give the rest of the Hornets a kick in the pants.
Doris Burke, Craig Sager & Co.- All sideline reporters are really annoying and offer nothing pertinent to the ongoing game and some coaches don’t even bother masking their disdain for your presence and idiotic questions. Play-by-play commentators are not as pointless but the majority of them fail horrifically at their stated job of in-game analysis. That being said, there’s a small class of people who either provide excellent color commentary that the average viewer enjoys or are just pure comic relief on the sideline. On the latter, Craig Sager is the lone example. He dresses like a schizophrenic hippie on a head full of acid, talks like Fred Willard in Best in Show and is openly mocked and respected all at once by every NBA player. When he covered the baseball playoffs this fall and was wearing an uninspiring TBS logo polo, he just didn’t have that pep. Sager’s just not the same if he’s not wearing a purple pin-stripe suit, with a pink tie and neon green shirt while being reamed by Kevin Garnett. As for the former, Doris Burke is also in a class of her own for being the only female talent in the NBA who actually knows what she’s talking about (I don’t care if it’s sexist, it’s also true). She’s not pretty or perky but she’s got a great basketball IQ and when she calls out the play being run before you even see it happen, do you really need Erin Andrews yapping about nothing? Burke’s a part of the small class of commentators that don’t defend the refs, admire a showboater’s hustle or comment on great timeouts, which includes Walt Frazier (sure he’s biased for the Knicks but the man’s a legend who knows what he’s talking about), Jeff Van Gundy & Marc Jackson (when they’re solo or not acting like they’re best friends), and Ian Eagle & Jim Spanarkel for the Nets isn’t too bad either but after that, you’re better off watching most games with the sound off, not half as inept as the NFL’s announcers though.
Conference Parity- That’s not to say the East has gotten as good as the West but that the West merely has about the same amount of mediocre teams on its side nowadays along with plenty of good ones as well. The Celtics & Cavs are taking on all comers, Orlando & Atlanta won’t contend for a title but could beat a title contender, Detroit’s still a conference leader, and a handful of others are at least moving in the right direction and entertaining. The West is still crowded at the top with more teams attempting to join the fray (Portland & Denver come to mind) but thanks to the efforts of the Kings, Grizz, Clippers, Wolves and Thunder, there’s still plenty of bottom-feeders around to drag the conference down from the elite pedestal most hyperbolic commentators are so apt to put them on.
An Outstanding Rookie Class- Sadly, Danillo Gallinari isn’t the reason this made this made the list, thankfully players like OJ Mayo, Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, Rudy Fernandez, Marc Gasol, DJ Augustin, Sergio Rodriguez and Brook Lopez have stepped up in his absence. Those guys are the ones that are already making an impact and the list from there goes on with others who will be making an impact in the next couple of years. There’s even undrafted surprises like Anthony Morrow getting their points right now (along with other faves Love, Chalmers, Westbrook, Thompson & Anderson). And guys like Fernandez, Gasol and Rodriguez represent an improved trend in drafting European players that have actually proven themselves over guys just with the potential to be great (Danny G, I’m looking at you!). And I know what you’re thinking but Greg Oden doesn’t make this list because he shouldn’t be considered a rookie and his development time is killing the Blazers right now, it’s like they’re playing with four guys once the opposing coaches realize he doesn’t know what he’s doing.
Airing of Grievances:
League Pass Broadband- Minor complaints here since the league pass service overall is pretty awesome, particularly being able to watch three games at once, but I actually enjoyed watching local TV markets’ commercials last year instead of the same NBA and Clone Wars ads repeatedly to the point where I know them word for word and could quite possibly even play the piano tune that accompanies the NBA “where fill in the blank happens” ads although I’ve never played the piano. Also, I can watch any Grizzlies or Kings games but practically no Hornets or Rockets games, what up with that? I get that there will be a few blackout games now and again but for the money I paid, you gotta hook it up a little better.
An Open Letter to Sportscenter- You guys have a monopoly on the market but you’re letting it get to your heads a little bit. If Sportscenter isn’t on, we’ve got ESPNnews, if there’s anything worth getting, you’re the people to usually get it from a large majority of the time. Yet instead of sticking with what got you there, you’re more concerned with analyzing what hasn’t happened yet, promoting your own games and inhibiting horrible athletes to act out and get their own glorification. On a night when there’s only three NBA games, an NFL game and some NHL action, all I want to see for a solid half-hour at least is comprehensive highlights of all of those games, not dissecting Greg Oden’s 2 points and 3 blocks over the rest of a great game, no analysis of the baseball free-agent market when there’s no signings to be had, no BCS controversy BS, and last but not least, no over-hyped NFL news! I understand the fun of sports is talking about what could happen in certain games, who’s great, who’s overrated, who’s getting screwed, possible trades and everything else but when it comes down to it, that’s primarily for the fans, not for the content-providers. I don’t need Bill Walton & John Clayton telling me their playoff contenders when there’s highlights of actual games that have actually been played for viewers to enjoy. It’s crap like that that eventually leads to the unneeded drama around T.O., Brett Favre & Plaxico Burress. It basically turns you into the MTV of sports, you’re not even covering what your stated goal is. In short, nothing wrong with a little extra analysis but people that like sports would prefer a little more highlight action.
PS – that show on ESPN2 where guys play Madden against one another, it’s pointless and idiotic, along with a lot of other random shows, please cancel those for just a show of recent game highlights from the past 48 hours. People at bars for happy hour will appreciate it and you’ll save money.
posted by Gen at
9:08 PM
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