WHAT YEAR IS IT?

Last Thursday morning at approximately 7:35am I received a text message from a friend and regular STRAIGHT CASH HOMEY!!!! reader (I wasn’t going to say his name here, but he insisted. It was none other than Pharaoh Goolsby). It read (I am paraphrasing), NOW THAT THEY HAVE SHAQ, CLEVELAND WILL WIN THE NBA CHAMPIONSHIP NEXT YEAR! I immediately jumped up and headed to Best Buy to pick up the new Outkast album STANKONIA. Later that evening, I planned to take my girlfriend to see the new Omar Epps and Sanaa Lathan movie Love & Basketball. Then I looked at the calendar and realized that the year was 2009 and not 2000. Since the text message basically said that a team was going to win a championship simply by getting Shaq, I just assumed it had to be the year 2000, when Shaq was the MOST DOMINANT PLAYER IN THE NBA! But it’s not, it is actually 2009 and the current version is now a 37-year-old, hardly ever in shape, huge check cashing, part-time basketball player. That is hardly the player that I will declare to be the immediate difference maker on a team with championship aspirations.

Truthfully, I wasn’t even going to talk about this trade this week. Instead, I was going to talk about the NBA Draft. Then along with the text from Goolsby, I also got a call from my mother saying that my little sister wanted me to talk about the Shaq trade this week. She also said that I never use any of her topic suggestions. That being said, this blog should make my little sister happy as well as share Mr. Goolsby’s thoughts with the world (per his request).

Shaquille O’Neal is a sure fire Hall-Of-Famer and is arguably the best center to ever play in the NBA (not matter who you think is the best, he can be placed no lower than fourth). He has already won three NBA championships as “Batman” and one title as “Robin”. He is great and nothing said in this blog is meant to diminish his accomplishments or his greatness. That being said, he is no longer the double-team demanding, game controlling beast that he was in his prime. To be perfectly honest, the current version of Shaq is even a shell of the 2004-05 version that won a title with DeWayne Wade and his band of merry men. So, do you really think that he is the missing piece to the Cleveland championship picture?

There are several REAL reasons why anyone who feels that Shaq, LeBron, and the current incarnation of the Pips will be good enough to bring a title to Cleveland will be disappointed when another team raises the Larry O’Brien Trophy next June. These reasons are as follows:

Cleveland had a difficult time defending Dwight Howard in Orlando’s pick-and-roll offense. Guess what Shaq’s biggest defensive weakness is. Anyone? Anybody? OK, I’ll tell you. Shaq struggles defending the pick-and-roll. If you don’t believe me, take a look at any game last season and count the number of pick-and-rolls they ran at Shaq successfully. For further evidence, take a look at the 2004 NBA Finals. Detroit’s stated goal was to involve Shaq in as many pick-and-rolls as possible, because they felt as though he couldn’t consistently flash out to the guard and then recover to cover the roll guy. They were right. Keep in mind that he was five years younger when they exposed him. Trust me; his quickness has not improved in five years.

Cleveland was very successful this regular season because they were able to spread the floor and allow LeBron to operate in the lane and on the block. Big men such as Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao have the ability to spread the floor and consistently make 15ft jump shots (which Shaq does not). This allows LeBron to live in the paint and drive to the basket as he pleases. Shaq on the other hand is a space-eater and clogs the lane. I have a feeling that LeBron will be taking a lot more jumpers next season, because there will be two right lanes blocked going down the paint. While LeBron does have a pretty good jump shot (he also isn’t Ray Allen), he makes his money in the paint.

Shaq can’t guard Dwight Howard. Simply put, he is too old. True enough the Shaq of 2000 would OWN Howard, but as I said earlier, STANKONIA came out nine years ago!

Shaq can’t guard Rashard Lewis or Hedo Turkoglu. Cleveland didn’t have an answer for this dynamic duo in the playoffs, and they didn’t just acquire that answer from Phoenix.

Boston will be healthy. Enough said.

Orlando has also improved. For those of you that were blinded by the Kobe – LeBron Nike and Vitamin Water commercials and didn’t get a chance to actually see the Orlando v/s Cleveland Series, I would like to let you know that Orlando won the series rather handily. Also, in case you haven’t heard; that Orlando team that easily beat LeBron James and the Harlem Boys Choir in the playoffs also improved quite a bit. They added a guy named Vince Carter. While it may be true that he hasn’t always played to the peak of his talent, it is also true that he is so much better than Courtney Lee that it is laughable. Comparing Courtney Lee to Vince Carter is like comparing Acie Law to Chris Paul (Sorry I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to hit Acie with a parting shot on his way to the airport. That’s one more shot than he hit as a Hawk).

Signing Shaq at this stage of his career is basically an act of desperation by the Cavaliers to try to get a title out of LeBron before he bolts next year or show him that Cleveland can be consistently competitive so that he will stay. Either way, it reminds me of other superstar signings that didn’t work out. Remember that KARL MALONE & GARY PAYTON both joined Shaq and Kobe in LA and didn’t manage to win a title. I know that both of them were well past their prime, but SO IS SHAQ! And let’s not forget the Jets (last season) and the Vikings (this season) thinking that Diva Favre is the missing piece to their championship. We have seen that the Jets were definitely wrong (by the way Mr. Diva did lead the league in interceptions), and I can assure that Favre won’t be leading the Vikings to a championship this season either.

I do believe that the Cleveland Cavaliers are a better team with Shaq than they were pre-Shaq. I just don’t feel that their roster as of June 28, 2009 is good enough to win a championship. That could all change if they add one more bona-fide player to the mix at power forward or as a perimeter scorer off of the bench (Carl, if you mention Damon Jones here, I will delete your post). Truthfully, I am a big LeBron James fan and I would love to see him win a championship. If the people of Cleveland expect this to be the year, they better get LeBron some more help, because Shaq simply isn’t enough.

AND NOW FOR MY BALLER & SCRUB OF THE WEEK

BALLER: Atlanta Hawks Management & US Men's Soccer - This week I have Co-Baller's of the Week. First, the Management of the Atlanta Hawks. I must commend the decision makers of my favorite NBA Team for an excellent NBA Draft night. On Thursday night, we drafted a player that I enjoyed watching in college and that I think can be our Point Guard of the Future in Jeff Teague, from Wake Forest. It seems as though we learned our lesson and decided not to pass up on another Point Guard from Wake Forest. That wasn't even the best part of the night. We also landed Jamal Crawford, who is a bona-fide scorer and will be ready to play big the next time Joe Johnson decides to play small in the playoffs. That's still not why the Hawks management in Baller of the Week. They earned this award for FINDING A TEAM DUMB ENOUGH TO TAKE THE SECOND BIGGEST DRAFT BUST IN RECENT HAWKS HISTORY OFF OUR HANDS!!!! ACIE LAW IS NO LONGER A HAWK!!!! We were able to unload him in the deal that brought us Jamal Crawford. I must give the Hawks credit. They have made two monumental draft mistakes in the past three years (Shelden Williams being the other) and managed to find teams stupid enough to take them both off of our hands. GREAT JOB!!!!

BALLER: US Men's Soccer Team - Although I am not a big fan of soccer (except the World Cup), I must congratulate the US Men's Soccer Team for making the finals of the FIFA Confederations Cup Soccer Tournament. Not only did the make the finals, they also beat the # 1 Team in the world along the way (SPAIN). I would say more about it, but I am sure that Northside Marty will take care of that in his comment. So be sure to check out his comment to read all about it.

SCRUB: Billy Gillispie (Former Head Basketball Coach at the University of Kentucky & Texas A&M) - Everyone who knows me or who reads this blog know that I am a huge basketball fan (it's my second favorite sport). You should have also noticed that my two favorite teams are the Atlanta Hawks and the University of Kentucky Wildcats. That being said, I am honoring Billy Gillispie as my SCRUB OF THE WEEK because I just realized the negative affect that this one man has had on my two favorite basketball teams. First he sends that pathetic excuse for a point guard (Acie Law) to my Hawks, and then to pour salt on my wound he takes the best job in college basketball (University of Kentucky) and manages to totally bomb there. I would have never thought that you could manage to miss the NCAA tournament at UK, but Billy managed to do it. So, Billy Gillispie you are my scrub of the week and I hope to never see you employed by or communicating with any organization near and dear to my heart ever again. Even though I went to a small Engineering school that plays NAIA sports, I sincerely hope that they never hire you either.

ON A MELANCHOLY NOTE:

As you all know, Michael Jackson passed earlier this week. I know that this is a sports blog, but I feel as though I would be remissed not mention the passing of such a world ICON. I also heard a very interesting nugget about Michael Jackson this week. Apparently, his performance at halftime of Super Bowl XXVII marked the first time in Super Bowl history that viewership actually increased during halftime. That means that MORE PEOPLE TUNED IN TO SEE MICHAEL JACKSON, THAN THE ACTUAL SUPER BOWL!!!!! That is amazing. So please take a moment to think about the loved ones that he left behind. Also, click on the video below and enjoy a portion of his performance from Super Bowl XXVII.

VINCE YOUNG IS RESTLESS

“I definitely want to get back out there playing ball and picking up where I left off, winning games and having a good time with my teammates and with the fans, at the same time, if them guys don’t want me to be in there, it’s time for me to make a career change for myself. Because the fact is I’m ready to play ball. If they’re not ready for me to play ball, then somebody is.”
(I do apologize for the incorrect use of the word them in the opening quote, but it is a quote, and that is exactly what he said. He was a star football player at Texas, do you really think he was forced to pay attention in all of his English classes? )

This is a statement that Vince Young made to a Baltimore media outlet concerning his current position on the Titans quarterback depth chart. Kerry Collins is currently the starter. He led the Titans to a 13 – 3 record and the AFC South Championship. Vince Young is currently the backup quarterback, and it looks like his only hope of starting for the Titans is if Collins gets injured or retires.

There were many people in the media who took shots at Young for making these comments. They made it seem as though he was whining or sulking and basically being a BRETT FAVRE (my new official term for DIVA), by saying that he must be given the starting job or he will take his ball and go home. In my opinion, these guys have it all wrong. Personally, I don’t have a problem with Young’s comments at all. What he was saying was that he has been working hard and really wants a chance to win back his old job (that he should have never had). I gather that he wants to play, and he feels that he is good enough to be someone’s starting quarterback, whether it is in Tennessee or elsewhere.

I applaud Young’s comments, because it shows that he is not content being a backup. Let’s be honest, does anyone want a player on their team who is content to be a backup. I want a team full of guys that will work their hardest to always get better and be on the field as much as possible. What do you think those same critics of Young would be saying if he instead said, “Man, I have the best job in the world. They just paid me over $7 million last season to wear a baseball cap and hold a clipboard. I can’t wait until next season starts so that I can watch Kerry do his thing, while I do my best Peerless Price impersonation and continue to rob them blind.” If that was his comment, everyone would be saying that we need a guy on our team that has more competitive fire and that is not content to be a backup. Truth be told, the best thing that Vince could have done was say nothing, because he was definitely in a no-win situation. He was going to be criticized no matter what he said.

Now, I must be honest. Although I applaud Young’s competitive fire and his desire to get back on the field, I must say that if he or anyone else believes that he can be a starting quarterback on a good team in this league, they are out of their minds. If you look at Vince Young’s history in the NFL, it is easy to see how he has a distorted view of his abilities. First of all, he was drafted waaaayyyy to high (He was drafted third overall in the 2006 draft, but that was also the year that Vernon Davis was drafted sixth overall by San Francisco. Let’s just say that the talent evaluators had an off year). That must have really had him thinking that he was the man. Then things got even more distorted when he was named Rookie of the Year (this was really because he turned out to be a better rookie running back than Reggie Bush and Maurice Jones-Drew). To make matters worse, he even made the Pro Bowl (actually he was an injury replacement’s, injury replacement). So basically, Young got a lot of undeserved accolades very early in his career, which gave him a supreme sense of entitlement.

The truth of the matter is, Vince Young has a loooonnnnng way to go before I would feel comfortable with him as my starting quarterback. There are those that would look at the fact that Young led the Titans to 8 wins as a rookie and 10 wins in second season, and say that he is a winner no matter what his statistics say. I strongly disagree. As a matter of fact, I can honestly say that the Titans had that moderate level of success IN SPITE OF Vince Young’s play at quarterback. His career statistics are simply terrible (for a lack of a better word). First of all, he has thrown for less than 5,000 yards in his entire career (33 games played). To put that in perspective, Peyton Manning threw for over 4,500 in 2004 alone. Tom Brady threw for over 4,800 in 2007. As a matter of fact, Brady’s 2007 total is only 158 yards less than Young’s career total. Drew Brees threw for 5,069 yards last season (105 more than Young’s career total), and even fellow 2006 draftee Jay Cutler topped 4,500 yards last season. I know that you are thinking that all of these players played with good to great wide receivers. That is true, but Donovan McNabb didn’t have a proven receiver going into last season and he still threw for almost 4,000 yards. Further proof that the Titans were winning in spite of Young’s play at quarterback can be seen in his 0.69 to 1 career touchdown to interception ratio (22 touchdowns to 32 interceptions). This means that he throws far less than one touchdown for every interception that he throws. Michael Vick (who is routinely criticized for his passing skills) even has a touchdown to interception ratio of 1.39 to 1, which is double that of Young. Basically he is half the passer that Michael Vick is/was (which is not saying much at all). Ideally, you would want this number to be 2 to 1 or higher, which Young’s is not even close to accomplishing. As a matter of fact, he has never thrown more touchdowns than interceptions in any NFL season.

Vince Young is a great athlete, but a terrible quarterback. I love his desire and competitive fire, but I hate his work ethic. While I have never attended a Titans practice, I am fairly comfortable saying that he doesn’t work hard because he is one player that I can honestly say has not gotten any better since he left college. There has been absolutely NO IMPROVEMENT IN HIS GAME. He is the same player that he was when he entered the league, and that player is not ready to be anyone’s starter.

My advice to Vince is to learn as much as you can from Collins, study film like there is no tomorrow and throw, throw, throw. Practice makes perfect. I sincerely hope that you are putting the work in, and will be ready when you get another opportunity to start. I wouldn’t give you that opportunity, but I am sure that someone definitely will.

AND NOW FOR MY BALLER & SCRUB OF THE WEEK

BALLER: Chad Ochocinco (Wide Receiver Cincinnati Bengals) - You earn this honor because you finally realized that the Bengals WILL NOT TRADE YOU, no matter what you do. That being said, all signs point to you working hard this off-season to return to the beast of a receiver that you truly are. No matter what the haters say, the game needs you. Football is at its best when Chad Ochocinco is at his best. Now go ball out and lead the Bengals to the playoffs. Carson is healthy, so THERE ARE NO EXCUSES!

SCRUB: Chad Ochocinco (Wide Receiver Cincinnati Bengals) - You get this dubious distinction for not being prepared at all for last season. I heard you say in a recent interview that you didn't lift one weight, run one route, or excercise in preparation for last season. Even if you were focused on getting out of Cincy, you should have prepared and played your hardest. I mean, you did cash thier checks, didn't you? The fans still bought expensive tickets in a recession to see you play, didn't they? I appreciate your honesty, but you should be ashamed of yourself. I EXPECT AN ALL-PRO SEASON THIS YEAR! Now go ball out and lead the Bengals to the playoffs. Carson is healthy, so THERE ARE NO EXCUSES!