From Dwight Perry at Sideline Chatter in The Seattle Times:
Steve Kavanaugh of Seattle has broken the U.S. boomerang record for consecutive catches, snagging 826 return flights to better the old mark of 819, the Washington Boomerang Club announced.
Not only that, you have to like his chances for Comeback Player of the Year.
Sally Jenkins has also had enough —
At what point do we say this is no slump, this is who Tiger Woods really is? What if the former Wonder Boy is just a sour complainer named Eldrick whose manners are as lousy as his play is disappointing?
We could have an endless debate about whether Woods has lost his golf swing, but he’s in definite danger of losing something else, and that’s the good opinion of his audience. The Woods who played in the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills this week was not an especially great player, nor was he a very good guy. Among the things that Woods blamed for his final round of 76, his worst final round in an Open since turning pro, and 10-over-par finish: the weather, the United States Golf Association, modern photography, the press and his former coach, Butch Harmon.
Jenkins has some choice words about caddie Steve Williams, too.
Ron Sirak of Golf World likes “a brutally difficult test of golf for the final round of the U.S. Open…for the national championship that is as it should be.”
He’s clearly skilled, and obviously quite popular with the gallery, but is there anyone who looks less like an athlete than Phil Mickelson? And what’s with the wristwatch? He have an appointment somewhere this afternoon?
Update: Maybe he wore the watch to remember his appointment with the throat specialist.
From Morning Edition in the Los Angeles Times:
Jack Nicklaus, commenting on his steadily declining golf game: “Everyone has always wanted to play like Nicklaus. Now they really can.”
The question, in the NBA and in life, is not whether or not you can shoot. The question is whether or not you can get your shot.
Ralph Wiley at ESPN.com: Page 2 (May 27, 2004).
Wiley died of heart failure this past Sunday at age 52. In the column noted above he speculated that the Pistons “have a better-than-even shot of exploding the Laker Myth.”
NewMexiKen has been a Lakers fan for a long time and remained loyal until way past too late Tuesday. But the Pistons may have won me over.
Rasheed Wallace showed up at the Pistons celebration Thursday wearing a Gordie Howe Detroit Red Wings sweater. Nothing will render a native Detroiter’s heart faster than memories of Mr. Hockey.
Free Press pissed at Pistons:
Teenagers selling T-shirts bearing an image of the Detroit Free Press’ Pistons championship front page were accosted before the team’s victory parade Thursday by Pistons officials who said they could not sell images of the league. …
At issue is whether the First Amendment protects newspapers when they print on something other than paper.
“We have the right to sell the Free Press image whether it’s presented on paper, on cotton or on titanium plates,” Fink said. “It isn’t an image of the NBA, it’s an image of our front page.” …
Some of the kids were able to sell shirts before being confronted by the alleged NBA officials. Detroit police officers were among their customers.
The Queen of Soul’s anthem rendition was recorded at her home last year. See story in the Detroit Free Press.
Well, it was over for the Lakers even if the fat lady didn’t sing.
NewMexiKen posted this item on the Albquerque Isotopes baseball team after attending a game last August. The AAA team is affiliated with the World Champion Florida Marlins.
The Isotopes get their name from the Simpsons. According to the Simpsons Episode Guide, in “Hungry, Hungry, Homer”:
Homer becomes a Good Samaritan after seeing the benefit of helping people. When he attempts to get Lenny a refund on his Springfield Isotopes season tickets, Homer discovers that the baseball team’s new owner, Duff Beer, plans to move the team to Albuquerque. Homer tries to rally the town in protest, however, no one believes his allegation. To expose Duff’s plan, he stages a hunger strike by chaining himself to a light pole near the stadium. Days later, the Duff Corporation deems Homer their ballpark attraction. They unchain him and tempt his cravings with an Isotope Dog Supreme. Before eating it, Homer realizes that the Southwestern ingredients on the hot dog prove that the team is moving to Albuquerque.
Actually the Isotopes moved here from Calgary, where they were the Cannons.
It’s the steering wheel of a Formula One Ferrari. Read about the technology in The New York Times.
General JC Christian writes University of Colorado President Hoffman a letter to praise her for her defense of the c-word (which she did).
T.J. Simers wondered if it was over before it began:
9:04 — Aretha Franklin sings the national anthem. If it’s true what they say, and it’s not over until the fat lady has sung, it’s not looking good for the Lakers.
At the Los Angeles Times the mood is more somber. Bill Plaschke:
The team that was supposed to make basketball history indeed made basketball history Tuesday, doomed forever to symbolize all that is wrong with modern professional sports, a testament to the failure of excess and danger of ego. …
As if sent down by the sports gods to deliver a message, the Detroit Pistons crawled out from the shadows of hard work, away from the anonymity of defense, and into a spotlight that showed the Lakers everything they used to be.
A team that shares the ball. A team that shares the floor burns. A team that shares the glory.
An NBA champion.
This version of the Free Press [pdf file] front page shows whom I would have named MVP — and why. Determined? You think?
Take a look at the front page of the Detroit Free Press [pdf file].
Lakers Pistons in five.
The important thing is I predicted the number of games correctly.
Arizona
Arkansas
Cal State Fullerton
Georgia
LSU
Miami
South Carolina
Texas
Games begin Friday. It’s the first appearance for Arizona since 1986, when they were national champions for the third time.
At first I didn’t mind the prospect of investing an entire afternoon in a sporting event, but that was before I knew that Bob Costas would be involved.
was born on this date in 1913. Lombardi is the legendary football coach; you know, the one the Super Bowl trophy is named for.
Some Lombardisms:
From a report on the Lakers:
Luke Walton brought it down to one word: “Execute.”
Yeah, but who?
Michael Rosenberg in the Detroit Free Press on the 1,500 media credentials issued for the NBA Finals:
With a ratio of 62.5 reporters for every player, you might wonder what the hell we’re all doing here. Well, first of all, we’ll ask the damn questions, OK? And second of all, I have no clue.
How many times in one day can you ask Karl Malone about his knee? My rough estimate: 147. And I guarantee you that when Malone walks away after a thorough grilling about his knee, a reporter will turn to the guy next to him and ask, “Which knee is it again?” …
To accommodate the masses, the Pistons cleared off 16 rows behind one baseline for reporters and their portable solitaire machines, also known as laptops.
From Mitch Albom in the Detroit Free Press:
Their one guard was supposed to outshine the entire Pistons backcourt. Heck, after Kobe Bryant’s miracle shot in Game 2, he threatened to outshine the entire Pistons roster. It was Kobe this and Kobe that. Kobe’s destiny. Kobe’s greatness. That kind of stuff can give you an upset stomach — especially if you’re the other guards. You know, the ones who play against him?
Little wonder then that there were a few extra fist shakes and head nods from Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton as they banged down one three-pointer after another Thursday night, as they laid up a fast break here, a banker off the glass there. Oh, it might not have been a last-second desperation heave with the whole world anticipating it. But you know what? It counts the same. Points are points. Two guards are better than one. And on this night, Billups and Hamilton were twin klieg lights at a shopping mall opening, and Kobe was a 25-watt bulb.
From Dwight Perry, Sideline Chatter:
Bill Davidson, whose Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup and whose Detroit Shock is the reigning WNBA champion, will make it three if his Detroit Pistons win the NBA title.
Davidson, not taking any chances, is refusing all collect calls from Smarty Jones.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
Powered by WordPress.