"Free"k Show

     As expected, the NBA free agent bargaining period opened to a flurry of activities, and while the "Big Three," of Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh have all not signed up yet, it has already become a freak show, with things bordering on the ludicrous taking place.  Here is just a sampling of the circus.


Too Much of a Good Thing

     Every year, some poor team throws too much money at some talented yet undeserving free agent in fear of not getting anyone.  This year, with a huge pool of free agents came a huge amount of head-scratching deals as well.  Just check out this list:


Darko Milicic (Minnesota Timberwolves): Four year deal, at least $ 16 million guaranteed
Amir Johnson (Toronto Raptors): Five year deal, $ 34 million
Rudy Gay (Memphis Grizzlies): Five year deal, $ 80 million 
Joe Johnson (Atlanta Hawks): Six year deal, $ 119 million


     Now, I love the talent all these players have, and my fervent hope of Darko redemption is unparalleled, but that's a whole lot of money for guys who haven't or will not do as much on the court as that money will on their teams' salary cap.  Sure, big men are hard to find, but Milicic and (Amir) Johnson's upside is worth a lot less.  They're not exactly coveted by numerous suitors.  As for Gay and JJ, they may be franchise players on their current teams, but the max money they're getting are for franchise players on championship teams, not middling teams struggling in playoff situations.  

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Shorts: Numerology

     Okay, so I turned 31 this week.  Wondering what kind of year my 31st will be, I took a look at some NBA players who have worn the number 31 for most or all of their careers for some answers.  


Pacemaker

      Right out of UCLA, reed-thin Reggie Miller donned the number 31 for the Indiana Pacers.  Known as Cheryl Miller's kid brother, Reggie bucked the odds and silenced the doubters as he proved he could not only survive the NBA but also dominate despite his slight build.  Miller played 18 fruitful seasons (all for the Pacers), marking his career with an amazing 8 point explosion in less than 15 game seconds against the Knicks, over 1000 three point shots converted and timeless playoff battles against John Starks and Michael Jordan.  Unfortunately, the sharpshooter was never rewarded with a championship, coming close in the 2000 NBA finals.  Question is, will my year feature amazing accomplishments like Miller's infamous playoff scoring sprees and duels or will the year be one big heartbreak like Reggie's inability to win a championship?

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Shorts: WTF Moments

Wow Pare, Heavy

     Recently, Patrick "Pato" Gregorio, Smart Sports' top honcho, announced their intention of looking for more boxing prospects for the Amatuer Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP), even as far as the heavyweight division, since there are indeed fewer rivals in Asia in this weighty division.  Then, it all just became surreal.  Continuing his thoughts, Gregorio then revealed his intentions of talking to former Barako Bull Center Alex Crisano, in the hopes of convincing him to train and later compete... in the heavyweight division of boxing!!! WTF?!?!?!  Okay, Crisano may be big and at 6 ft 7 inches, he would have a reach advantage, but he is old, can barely get by without alcohol and has not trained in boxing for three decades. Wow.  Someone must have hit Gregorio on the head, hard... REALLY HARD.  Maybe it was Ethel Booba.








Darko Freed!!??!!

     Former 2nd overall pick Darko Milicic was so traumatized with his constant benching in his four stops (Detroit, Orlando, Memphis and New York) in the NBA that he announced his desire to leave the NBA for Europe next year.  Suddenly though, the Minnesota Timberwolves traded for him in exchange for Brian Cardinal.  The T-Wolves GM David Kahn then had a heart to heart with Darko, convincing him that he would get playing time if he wanted.  Thus, in the T-Wolves outing versus the surging Oklahoma City Thunder, Milicic played 19 (!) productive minutes, scoring 8 points, grabbing 8 rebounds to go along with 2 assists and a block.  Best of all, stats wise, the T-Wolves outscored the Thunder by 35 points during the time Milicic was on the court. WTF!!!???!!!  Interviewed about his play, Milicic gave what will go down as one of the best sound bites in history, saying, "I was trying to focus on breathing.  I was just focusing on breathing so I didn’t die."


Ripped Curl

     In the ongoing 2010 Winter Olympics, Danish Curling Captain Madeleine Dupont cost her team the victory against home team Canada with two errant shots.  Then, she cried (!) and blamed the Canadian fans, who were so raucous in distracting her.  Apparently, such noisy cheering is only socially acceptable before and after shots, like in billiards, tennis or bowling.  That, however, is not the WTF moment. What really got me was this thought.  There are actually enough fans of curling to have caused such a ruckus to cause a distraction and missed shot?  WTF!!??!!  Think about that for while.