Wasted Moves Out on the Island

It appears that the moves that Mike Milbury made after the new collective bargaining agreement was reached were not just unpopular with Islanders fans, but they also proved to do absolutely nothing to get this team moving in the right direction.
The Islanders have made the playoffs the last few seasons while their high-priced rivals from Broadway have had to watch them from the comfort of a temmates living room as the Rangers haven't made the playoffs since the last decade.
So, although it has been shown that it takes more than a top 5 payroll to win in this league, New York still hasn't gone deep into the playoffs since they knocked out the defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins in '93.
Many people will never forgive him for letting captain Michael Peca leave. One of the best two-way players in the league, Peca didn't just kill penalties, he turned them into offensive possibilities for the Islanders, making penalty killing an exciting part of the game for fans.
The defensive unit was gutted, with blue line standouts Kenny Jonsson and Adrian Aucoin gone.
Watching this team make moves has been like watching a carousel... the names keep changing but they're not going anywhere.
The fans will have to just watch and wait to see if the team can go on a tear in the remaining games of the season to try to jump into that number eight spot. But it won't be easy - not just because the Islanders have been playing up-and-down hockey, but because the other teams that they're fighting with are suddenly on fire. Atlanta was losing 4-1 against the Devils the other night, only to see the Thrashers come back to win the game at 5-4. Toronto has been tough lately as well, and Montreal has been on fire.
Time will tell if Milbury has made the right moves. So far this season it just seems to be business as usual on the Island.

Raiders Drop Ball... Again

As it has happened all too many times in the recent past, the Oakland Raiders have dropped the ball, and again, it's the quarterback position.

At first, the rumor was that the Raiders were going to reunite their all-world wide receiver Randy Moss with his hookup from Minnesota, Daunte Culpepper. I didn't think that this was a bad idea, considering the success that the tandem had when they were together playing in front of the big Hefty Bag.

All of the signs were there. Culpepper was unhappy in Minnesota (and vice-versa), and Kerry Collins had apparently worn out his welcome in Silver and Black. It seemed like a no-brainer.

That idea didn't work out, as Culpepper decided to go east of Minnesota instead of west, and he signed with the Miami Dolphins.

After that, Drew Brees became expendable in San Diego, as the Chargers decided to put the future of the club in the hands of Phillip Rivers. Brees was dragged through the press his first season or two, but then turned things around for himself in '04. Last year was a bit of a down year for the Chargers, but Brees wasn't the one at fault.

The Raiders should have jumped at Brees. He's got a great arm, he's elevated his game dramatically over the past two seasons, he's young, and I'm sure that he would have loved to play against his old team twice a season, as athletes that change teams always try to prove to their former club that they made a mistake by letting them go.

Instead, the Raiders let him pass them by, and they settled for Aaron Brooks from the Saints.

It seems that ever since Jim Plunkett retired, the Raiders have more than struggled at the quartereback position, with the exception of Rich Gannon. Let's just think of a few. There was Jay Schroeder, a big, strong kid with an awesome arm, and he had a minimum amount of success with Washington. He turned out to be a bad quarterback with a great arm. And, speaking of such, that takes us to Jeff George.

This was basically the same story. George could throw the ball a country mile, but he couldn't run an offense. His best years were with Atlanta, but he failed miserably in his other stops, one of which was Oakland.

There was also the head case from USC, Todd Marinovich. He was supposed to be the next southpaw savior of the team. I think that Al Davis was having Kenny Stabler flashbacks when he saw Marinovich. He turned out to be a flaky flash in the pan and didn't stay too long.

And let's not forget Vince Evans. Another grand scheme to salvage the franchise. We saw how well that worked. I rest my case.

Which brings us to Brooks. several years ago Brooks appeared to be an up-and-coming young quarterback who needed a team around him. I've watched him several times over the last four or five years, and from what I saw of him this season, this seems to be a quarterback who's game is going backwards, not forwards. The Saints got some players to fill the supporting roles, including wideout Joe Horn, who would probably be considered as one of the best receivers in the league if he played just about anywhere but New Orleans.

I was able to watch the Saints a few times this season, in addition to seeing clips of their play from week to week. Aaron Brooks made some very questionable decisions this season, and made some plays that left me scratching my head.

You may want to give him a pass because of all of the turmoil that New Orleans had to endure throughout the season due to hurricane Katrina. If that's your argument, I'll give it to you, because no National Football League team should have to tolerate some of the things that the Saints had to during their season.

Brooks was obviously frustrated last year, and that frustration came to a head as he was quoted in the press at one point claiming that he was going to quit if there was one more change made to the Saints' practice and game schedules.

I haven't been impressed with Brooks for a couple of years now. I will keep an open mind. I have been following sports long enough to know that sometimes all that a struggling player needs is a change of scenery (see Eddie Lee Whitman's departure from the Yankees), and I won't hammer Brooks until at least the third week of the season. I just hope that this isn't going to be another Jay Schroeder or Jeff George era.

Hansbrough turning pro?

So now the latest rumor is that University of North Carolina freshman forward Tyler Hansbrough is going to enter this year's upcoming NBA draft. I think that it would be a tremendous mistake for Hansbrough to go through wih this decision and I'll explain why, for several reasons.

First of all, he's just a freshman. Does he really believe that he has learned everything that he possibly could from Roy Williaams? I don't think so. And also, although it may not be any of his concern, but how is any school supposed to build successful programs if their kids don't stay longer than a year or two? Not good for college basketball, not good for the players, not good for the NCAA coaches.

Second, although he had a spectacular freshman season, what Hansbrough and his fellow Tar Heels achieved this season can only serve as building blocks for the next few seasons. Hansbrough can only get better, as can his team, and perhaps with another big man added, he could dominate his game even further than he is now.

Next, he is only 6' 9". He may be able to get away with playing in the paint as a makeshift center in college, but if he thinks that that's gooing to fly in the NBA, he's got another thing coming. 6' 9" guys are a dime a dozen in the Association, and he should use the next three years of eligibility not only for his team and their future success, but also for himself. Tyler Hansbrough can not take his body into the NBA right now with any success. He's built like Rik Smits, who did have a successful pro career, but the difference in the two is that Smits was a legitimate 7 footer, he wasn't six nine. Those three inches can make all the difference in the world when your batttling for rebounds in the pros.

In closing, if I were to talk to Mr. Hansbrough right now, I would say take the time, if not the whole three years, then maybe two, but take the time to let your body mature, get bigger and stronger, and bettter prepare yourself to make an impact for a career as a power forward in the NBA.

Madness Update

Thanks to the play of this year's higher seeds in the NCAA Tournament, we now have tournament pools where people have gone from the NCAA ashes and are now rising from those ashes as the proverbial Phoenix.
Many of us were knocked out of contention on the first round of the regionals, some still had Final Four teams still alive in the Sweet 16, but that was the point where many that were still remaining with high hopes were pushed off of the college basketball ledge.
For me, the first upset that dented my armour was when Ohio State was booted in the second round by Georgetown. That didn't hurt all that bad, because I still had many teams still alive; especially those that I had picked to go deep into the tournament. When it came to the Sweet 16 round, I had a chance to win seven of the eight games. But that was the round that stuck a dagger in my heart. LSU beat Duke, which under normal circumstances I would have been jubilant, being a Tar Heel fan, but I had chosen the Blue Devils to go to the championship game versus UConn, so that one hurt.
Gonzaga was beaten by UCLA, another killer. I couldn't believe my eyes as I watched that game. Gonazaga completely gave the game away to the Bruins. They didn't score a single point from the seven minute mark until there was about two minutes left in the game. They just kept turning the ball over. I was stunned.
On the other side of the bracket, there was the UNC-Tennessee game...oh wait, no there wasn't...they both got tossed out in the round before, so the matchup ended up being George Mason-Wichita State.
Connecticut and Villanova held up their end of the bargain for me, but the Florida game was useless to me since I had them losing that game to Ohio State.
So, moving to the Elite Eight, I could have been in worse shape. I had my eventual winner, UConn, still alive, and so was 'Nova, so I had that upcoming matchup where I wanted it.
On the other side, I had Texas in the Elite Eight, but I had them losing to Duke, so that game was also useless. Memphis was in, but they were supposed to lose that round to Gonzaga, and since the Bulldogs were out, this was another game which had no meaning to me.
So we come down to the Final Four. I have Duke playing Gonzaga and UConn versus Villanova. Then UConn beats Duke 72-69 for the whole bunch of bananas. Pretty good, huh? Well, it sounded good when I made the selections, but like so many of you out there, my sheet ended up looking like most of my high school report cards....LOTS of red ink!
Don't let me be miserable on my own this tournament...misery loves company, so let me know how you did. Were you knocked out early? Do you ACTUALLY still have a team alive (I'll bet SOMEONE out there has either LSU or UCLA)? Have you already been declared the winner? Let me know.
Till next time, good luck to those of you who still have a chance at the ol' office pool, and for those of us who don't...theres' always next year.

March Madness

Once again, it's March, which to college basketball fans, is the most exciting time of the year as the conference tournaments lead to the field of 64 known as "The Big Dance", or the NCAA College Basketball Torunament.
As usual there were some first round surprises that had pool players jumping out of windows. Many of the matchups were closer than they appeared in the rankings. There was not a huge dropoff of talent from the 5th spot down to the 12th. So, to the casual observer, when #10 Alabama took out #7 Marquette, it was a shocker. Marquette may have showed a better record than 'Bama, as they were 20-10 compared to the Crimson Tide's 17-12, but when you compare conferences and schedules, it isn't hard to understand how Alabama overtook Marquette.
However, there were some surprises that turned even the most seasoned analyst's head. Northwestern State, a team that many don't even know where they came from (most of us have heard of Northwestern University in Chicago, but not Northwestern State.) It was a complete surprise when they took out #3 Iowa, a game that eneded up crossed off of many a tournament pool sheet.
There were a couple of more upsets that had players drawing long red lines through their brackets. When #6 Oklahoma was bounced by #11 Wisconsin-Milwaukee, that game had some heads turning. Georgetown raised more than a few eyebrows when they (a 7 seed) ousted #2 Ohio State. I know that Georgetown did a number on my Minneapolis breacket as I had the Buckeyes going to the final four when I had them beaten by Villanova to represent the bracket.
Another shocker was when fourth seeded Kansas was ousted in the very first round by 13th seeded Bradley.
#7 Wichita State threw a wrench into the Washington, D.C. bracket when they upset second seeded Tennesee.
But without a doubt the biggest surprise in this 2006 NCAA Tournament is the #11 George Mason University. A law school in Fairfax, Virginia, Mason has been more competitive in the last few seasons, but no one expected them to pull off the feats that they have so far in the tournament.
First, they (an 11 seed) upset #6 Michigan State in the first round. Their next matchup was against North Carolina, the defending national champs. Nobody (including myself, a HUGE Tar Heel fan) expected Carolina to successfully defend its title, as we all know that 4/5 of that team bolted for the NBA after they won it all last season. But Roy Williams did a tremendous job with a team that everyone wrote off in the preseason as a having a rebuilding year for UNC due to losing too many players. But they finished at 22-7 and earned a third seed in the bracket. George Mason sent the Tar Heels home prematurely as they beat Carolina by five points in round two.
Now Mason goes up against Wichita State, who let's not forget knocked out Seton Hall and then second seeded Tennesee. So now Mason will try to once again knock off a higher seeded team and keep its Cinderella season alive. They beat North Carolina. Wichita State beat Tennesee. Both teams have beaten national powerhouses on their way to this meeting. It should be a great game, and hopefully this matchup, as well as some of the others, will give us the excitement that they first two rounds have.
My picks for the Final Four: Duke beats Gonzaga and UConn wins the other half of the sheet. I had them beating Ohio State, but now that is no longer possible. For the whole ball of wax I have Connecticut outlasting the Dukies, 72-69.
I'm not in an office pool, but I am in the ESPN pool for $10,000. Since my Elite Eight and Final Four teams are still alive (for the most part), I still have a great shot to win it all. Check in with me and let me know how you did in your pool. Who was your big underdog? Which high seed killed your picks? Where did you end up? Let me know.
Enjoy the rest of the tournament and good luck in your pools!