25 Random Things (I think about sports)

Posted by Dave at Wednesday, February 04, 2009 11:51 PM
Categories: National sports scene,Boston sports scene

Image: WoodleyIf you're among the millions who have helped make Facebook the latest digital phenomenon, you've surely seen it.

It's where you've learned Steve likes to sing in the shower. It's where you found out tough-guy Mark really enjoys romantic comedies. And it's where Pete professed to having a Paula Dean season pass set for his TiVo.

It's the 25 Random Things, and while I'm personally not interesting enough to sustain such a long list about myself — shorten it to 8, maybe 8 1/2, and we're talking — the sports scene is a different story. Even while we wait for pitchers and catchers to report there's still plenty of good stuff going on, so whaddya say we take a look at it. Here we go: 25 Random Things (I think about sports):

1. I've still yet to hear a good explanation about why the Super Bowl wasn't stopped so the officials could review Kurt Warner's so-ruled fumble on the Cardinals' final offensive play. I've read the reasoning that the play was reviewed by officials upstairs — but that doesn't suffice. The NFL has set up its officiating system so every other review throughtout the game (and season, basically) is ruled upon by the on-field referee, and it wasn't fair to Arizona, football fans, or the integrity of the sport to skip that protocol for the sake of spoiling a celebration.

2. If the NFL wants to adapt the NHL review system, where the interpretation and ruling is made by somebody in a booth and phoned down to the official on the ice, that's fine. It'd probably save time and speed up the process, with little sacrifice in accuracy — but whatever they do next year, they should do for the entire season. Not change up on the last play, particularly one where (as the photo above shows) it seemed the ball was still in the forward-moving hand of the quarterback before it flung forward.

3. Can we please couch the "Team of the Decade" talk until next season (at the earliest)? At this point, with fewer wins, fewer Super Bowl appearances, and — most importantly — fewer championships, the Steelers have absolutely no claim to the title of the best team of the 2000s. It's still the Patriots, and unless Pittsburgh gets to four championships by February of 2011, New England's two AFC title wins at Heinz Field ensure it always will be the decade's best.

4. It'll be hard resisting the urge to get all jacked and pumped about it — particularly if it's close late — but there's a pretty good chance tonight's Celtics-Lakers game won't tell us a damn thing that'll be worth remembering come June. LA comes in on the second half of a back to back, playing their fifth road game in the span of seven days, and the rested Celtics come out with reason to seek revenge. So, even in a Celtics rout, you needn't get too excited.

5. That said, if Kevin Garnett sits out tonight then my name isn't Clark Rockefeller.

6. This could be a make-or-break year for a couple of sports perpetually trying to crack the consciousness of the mainstream American sports fan. Soccer could be pushed to the breaking point by the global dissing of MLS by David Beckham, while NASCAR will struggle all season to keep off its fender an economy capable of blowing up its entire financial engine.

7. Despite scoring nine fewer points, LeBron's triple-double was more impressive than Kobe's 61-point performance a couple nights earlier. And it's really not close, considering Kobe didn't have even a single rebound in 37 minutes that night — with his starting center out of the lineup.

8. Especially considering the Associated Press says 40 percent of people older than 12 have tried pot in their lives, Michael Phelps deserves some slack for his slip up. But there's still been an embarrassing double standard with which this story has been treated. Here's a guy who was bagged for drunk driving at 19, then stupid enough to have his picture taken during a bong hit at a house party — and who, were he a football or basketball player, or perhaps a person with a darker complexion, might not have got off so easily in the court of public opinion.

9. Then again, apparently a Super Bowl MVP award can sweep some discretions under the rug, so why shouldn't a shipwreck's worth of gold count for something?

10. Oh, and by the way: Has Phelps never heard of Larry Eustachy? Celebrities and college parties don't mix, but if they must, couldn't he just have enjoyed a nice, cold Natty Light?

    

11. While the Barry Bonds perjury trial is likely to leave us with no doubt about whether or not he took performance-enhancing drugs, or when he was taking them, it shouldn't mean he's removed from baseball's record books. He surely wasn't the only one juicing, and it's more than likely he hit a fair share of his homers against fellow abusers, so the best case scenario is that he's sent to the slammer and we can all move on ... 

12. ... until A-Rod restores baseball's integrity by breaking Bonds's record a few years down the line.

13. By now it's no secret that the Bruins are a really, REALLY good hockey team. But if you truly want it to sink in, take a gander at the NHL's Eastern Conference standings. Even 52 games into the season, they have half as many regulation losses as the next-best team. That is absolutely amazing.

14. Now, those standings have some scariness about them, too. With a miraculous comeback Wednesday night the Pittsburgh Penguins continue to waddle toward the No. 8 seed, and if they're able to secure it come playoff time, they could present Boston quite the frightful scenario. It would mean the Bruins' road to a Stanley Cup might include series against Crosby and Malkin in Round 1; the never-easy-to-eliminate Canadiens in Round 2; Ovechkin in Round 3; then the uberloaded Red Wings or Sharks in the Finals. Yikes.

15. If you're a pure hockey fan, you'll want to tune in to Monday night's Beanpot final between BU and Northeastern. The Terriers and Huskies are two of the nation's five best teams, and with Boston bragging rights at stake it's sure to be an entertaining dog fight. (Pun intended. Yes!)

16. Additionally, a Beanpot participant has seven times won a national championship since the tournament began in 1952 — and all seven times that team kickstarted its title run by first hoisting the 'Pot. That bodes well for Monday's winner (BU), but — tearfully — not Boston College. Or, as the initials BC will heretofore represent, Beanpot Consolation.

17. There's no doubt Mo Williams — among the chief reasons the Cavs have gone from competitor to contender — should take Jameer Nelson's all-star spot over Ray Allen. The inconsistent Rajon Rondo shouldn't even be in the discussion.

18. My dream lineup for this year's 3-point shot contest: Jason Kapono, Kevin Martin, Peja Stojakovic, Eddie House, Ray Allen and Matt Bonner — the latter donning a T-shirt over his jersey that reads, "I came, I saw, I Concord."

19. Love the idea of HORSE at NBA All-Star weekend, especially because they're not going to draw it out and leave themselves susceptible to boredom by staging it in the arena on Saturday night. Now pick the right guys: Kobe, LeBron and Steve Nash.

20. Yeah, it was surprising to learn Bud Selig made $17.5 million as the commissioner of baseball in 2007. And it sure does seem a lot for a guy who's rightfully subject to his share of criticism. But it doesn't bother me. Think about it this way: He's the head of an industry that had created $5.5 billion in revenue that same year. Say he was the top of a smaller, but successful company that generated $10 million in revenue, and on a percentage basis he'd be raking in $31,818. Suddenly it doesn't seem so bad, considering the ratio between compensation and responsibility.

21. If I'm the bargain-hunting Billy Beane, I'm looking to land one of the free-agent all-stars likely to sign for relatively short money. He's improved his Oakland team this winter, and with the Angels opting to stand pat — despite losing Mark Teixeira, Francisco Rodriguez, plus Jon Garland and Garret Anderson — the AL West is far more wide open than most people realize. It's easily there for the A's taking if they were to bring in Bobby Abreu, Adam Dunn or even Juan Cruz.

22. Was Scott Boras serious when he told Yahoo! Sports, "You better watch out when you’re playing chicken”, in respect to the Dodgers' dealings with Manny Ramirez? Here's the guy who just got beat when the Red Sox were willing to wait out Jason Varitek, neraly let Daisuke Matsuzaka get back on a plane to Japan before ultimately blinking, and who has now — in my opinion — masterminded a plan that could cost Manny millions, too. Okay, tough guy. Why don't you go play chicken yourself. I know plenty of baseball fans who wouldn't even tap their brakes when they saw you lying there.

23. I liked what I saw from Mark Kotsay during his time in Boston last season, and was a fan of his re-signing last month. But it seems a little slimy that he waited until after he received his new deal that he decided to have back surgery. His absence over the first month will leave the Sox bench a bit short, but — without a back-up first baseman on the club — it may give the Nation its first look at top prospect Lars Anderson.

24. SI's Chris Mannix just told WEEI the Cavaliers will acquire Marcus Camby later this season. And, if that's the case, Cleveland is absolutely the team to beat in the East. No questions asked. The guy simply refuses to lose.

25. Just when we thought it couldn't get any more embarrassing for Roger Clemens ... it did.

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