I realize I should have been a sports writer – whether I know anything about it or not. That’s all I seem to write about lately. I can’t help it. Here’s five more things that have been sticking in my craw.
No. 1. Peyton Manning. Have you ever heard of anything so ridiculous as Peyton Manning not staying with the Indianapolis Colts? That’s like the Yankees refusing to sign Ruth, the Dodgers trading Mike Piazza (Oh, wait a minute. They did trade Mike Piazza.) or the Lakers firing Magic Johnson. Unheard of, right? Well, the problem seems to be that owner Jim Irsay owes him $35 million and doesn’t want to pay that, especially if he is unsure if Peyton is healthy enough to play. And Peyton is willing to go elsewhere if someone else takes a chance and pays him big bucks. This is ludicrous. The two should reach an agreement for Colt fans if nothing else. Peyton needs to sign with Indianapolis under the condition that if he delivers, he gets paid. If he does not, he retires. Simple, huh? Well, I’m sure Irsay would go along with that, but I am also sure that Peyton wants his big bucks guaranteed, injuries or not. Who cares what the Colt fans want?
No. 2. Dodgers. If Frank McCourt is allowed to keep ownership of Dodger Stadium parking lot, then I should get in all games free - if I wanted to go. The problem is that if McCourt is parking cars, I don’t want any part of that place. That guy needs to sever his ties with Los Angeles and return to Boston. I don’t even want him to be allowed to go to a game. Let him drink beer with the Red Sox. He did enough to wreck the Dodgers.
No. 3. Lakers. Los Angeles needs to get a point guard – and now. The Lakers do not need to trade Pao Gasol and Andrew Bynum for Dwight Howard. Are you kidding me? Pao and Andrew are averaging 32.9 points and 23.2 rebounds a game to 14.9 rebounds and 20.8 points for Dwight. Meanwhile, any point guard has to be better than what the Lakers have now. I love Fish, but we know his contributions need to be abetted. It’s time to get someone with speed and shooting ability. And what about a coach who can motivate players to beat the mighty Detroit Pistons and the Washington Wizards?
No. 4. Dodgers. Ho hum. I get tired of saying this, but the Dodgers really are a bunch of Bums – until they prove differently. They have Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp. They need a catcher, a second baseman, a shortstop, a third baseman, a left fielder and at least one starting pitcher. If they can’t get all those, then one super everyday player and one super pitcher would do. That’s about all. Don’t want much , huh?
5. UCLA Bruins: When Ben Howland arrived at UCLA few years ago, I even wrote to Phil Jackson urging the Lakers to watch the Bruins play defense to learn how. They were relentless and great. Many people said Howland was a jerk, but he was a disciplinarian and a coach. According to a recent Sports Illustrated article, his program has gone awry. The main reason, I think, is that it gets harder to coach every year when players are “one and done.” First off, change the rules back requiring that a guy’s class has to graduate before he can play in the NBA or make the minimum age 21. Then Howland – and other coaches - won’t have to bend over backwards trying to have a good team by mollycoddling players.
Don Lechman is a former reporter, critic and editor for the Daily Breeze. Codicil: He has never been a sportswriter – professionally.
No. 1. Peyton Manning. Have you ever heard of anything so ridiculous as Peyton Manning not staying with the Indianapolis Colts? That’s like the Yankees refusing to sign Ruth, the Dodgers trading Mike Piazza (Oh, wait a minute. They did trade Mike Piazza.) or the Lakers firing Magic Johnson. Unheard of, right? Well, the problem seems to be that owner Jim Irsay owes him $35 million and doesn’t want to pay that, especially if he is unsure if Peyton is healthy enough to play. And Peyton is willing to go elsewhere if someone else takes a chance and pays him big bucks. This is ludicrous. The two should reach an agreement for Colt fans if nothing else. Peyton needs to sign with Indianapolis under the condition that if he delivers, he gets paid. If he does not, he retires. Simple, huh? Well, I’m sure Irsay would go along with that, but I am also sure that Peyton wants his big bucks guaranteed, injuries or not. Who cares what the Colt fans want?
No. 2. Dodgers. If Frank McCourt is allowed to keep ownership of Dodger Stadium parking lot, then I should get in all games free - if I wanted to go. The problem is that if McCourt is parking cars, I don’t want any part of that place. That guy needs to sever his ties with Los Angeles and return to Boston. I don’t even want him to be allowed to go to a game. Let him drink beer with the Red Sox. He did enough to wreck the Dodgers.
No. 3. Lakers. Los Angeles needs to get a point guard – and now. The Lakers do not need to trade Pao Gasol and Andrew Bynum for Dwight Howard. Are you kidding me? Pao and Andrew are averaging 32.9 points and 23.2 rebounds a game to 14.9 rebounds and 20.8 points for Dwight. Meanwhile, any point guard has to be better than what the Lakers have now. I love Fish, but we know his contributions need to be abetted. It’s time to get someone with speed and shooting ability. And what about a coach who can motivate players to beat the mighty Detroit Pistons and the Washington Wizards?
No. 4. Dodgers. Ho hum. I get tired of saying this, but the Dodgers really are a bunch of Bums – until they prove differently. They have Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp. They need a catcher, a second baseman, a shortstop, a third baseman, a left fielder and at least one starting pitcher. If they can’t get all those, then one super everyday player and one super pitcher would do. That’s about all. Don’t want much , huh?
5. UCLA Bruins: When Ben Howland arrived at UCLA few years ago, I even wrote to Phil Jackson urging the Lakers to watch the Bruins play defense to learn how. They were relentless and great. Many people said Howland was a jerk, but he was a disciplinarian and a coach. According to a recent Sports Illustrated article, his program has gone awry. The main reason, I think, is that it gets harder to coach every year when players are “one and done.” First off, change the rules back requiring that a guy’s class has to graduate before he can play in the NBA or make the minimum age 21. Then Howland – and other coaches - won’t have to bend over backwards trying to have a good team by mollycoddling players.
Don Lechman is a former reporter, critic and editor for the Daily Breeze. Codicil: He has never been a sportswriter – professionally.
No comments:
Post a Comment