Coach of the Year

In case you haven't been paying attention, the NY Knicks are playing tough, gritty, inspired basketball of late. News flash: they have kept 11 teams in a row under 100 points. And, with a win in NJ tonight, they will have their first winning month of the regular season since 2003. While they certainly aren't the Pat Riley Knicks of the 90's, they are getting close to being watchable and have a real crack at losing to the Celts or Cavs in the first round of the playoffs.

This is resurgence is a total credit to the coaching job being done by Mike D'Antoni. Too often coaches try to fit talent into their system versus building a system to suit their talent. D'Antoni was guilty of this offense last season by force-feeding his "7 seconds or less" approach on a group of players ill equipped to run that system. It looked as though he would continue down the wrong path as the Knicks looked awful offensively and even worse defensively the first month of this season. Since that time, D'Antoni has slowed it down, employs a pick and roll offense and benched anyone who can't play a lick of defense (see Nate Robinson and Eddy Curry - "The DNP Brothers"). The results speak for themselves. It was easy to win with all that talent in Phoenix. Now, D'Antoni is doing the best coaching job of his career. Let the campaign begin - D'Antoni for coach of the year!

(Doesn't hurt that he's a fellow Paesan)

Short Memories

Watch out world, here come the Yankee fans again. 5 wins in a row and sole possession of first place in the AL East has Yankee Universe telling anyone who will listen about the "new yankees" - small ball and bullpen. Ha! While Met Nation has gone into an early hibernation for the winter, Yankee Universe couldn't be feeling better. But how easily blinded we become after a few wins against sub-par teams (ok, Detroit was playing well but let's be honest, they're the worst of the 3 teams competing for the Central). Here are the facts: (i) there's still a huge hole in the 3-5 slots in the rotation (don't let 1 good start from Joba and AP make you forget about their struggles), (ii) they boast the worst defensive outfield in all of baseball, and I guarantee that it will cost them important games down the stretch and (iii) the Yankees historically beat up on bad teams (see the Twins and Orioles records against the bombers over the past 5 years). Oh, and did we forget already that the Yanks were swept by the Angels - WITHOUT HUNTER, GUERRERO AND JUAN RIVERA!!? So pipe down Yankee fans, and let's see the bombers beat the Red Sox before we start throwing parades for Phil Hughes and Alfredo Aceves. And is anything more akward than A-Rod's celebrations after walk-off wins?

Have No Fear NY Sports Fan...Help Is On The Way

I know it looks grim for NY sports fans right now - the Yankees can't beat a good team (and have HUGE holes in the 3rd-5th spots in the rotation); the Met fans have all but mailed it in after the entire roster was put on the DL; the Knicks can't even overpay an over-the-hill veteran to come to NY (bad omen heading into 2010?) and Jet Nation is mourning the loss of Calvin Pace for the first 4 games of the season (3 of which happen to be against offensive juggernauts). But don't fret, New York sports fans, because Eddy Curry showed up to the Vegas Summer League 30 pounds lighter than last year. Things are looking up at MSG! (Note: in order to appreciate this you will have to try to put aside the fact that Curry, a former #1 pick and the centerpiece of Zeke's plan for the Knicks, is now playing in the summer league with rookies and sophomores who are trying to make a roster).
-This blog comes from the "Sad but True" department at Sibling Rivalry Spors

"ANOTHER CHANCE TO GET IT RIGHT" -Chris D

Today not only marks the start of the Western Conference Finals, but it kicks of the NBA "draft season" with tonight's lottery selection. Despite the odds, if the Knicks can get into the top 3 picks, it can change the future of the franchise for the next decade, regardless of whether or not the King comes to MSG in 2010. Ricky Rubio, the stud Spanish point guard, would impact this franchise much the same way Chris Paul has done for the Hornets. He would also add a youthful, international and flashy aspect to the product that D'Antoni leads on the floor every night.
Don't believe me that a draft pick can change a franchise? Just look at the impact Patrick Ewing had on the Knicks. While he didn’t deliver the ultimate prize (a Championship), he turned a loser into a winner and led the Knicks to the finals in the greatest year of my sports life: the Summer of '94. So root on those ping pong balls tonight, because they represent a brighter future for us Knick fans. Hopefully Allan Houston can deliver for us once and for all!

THE KNICKS WIN NUMBER 30!!! CHRIS GOES BALD!!!

A few months back, Chris and I made an over/under bet whether the NY Knicks would win more than 29 games this season. Chris took the under and I took the over (big bro always knows best) - loser must shave his head. We agreed it would be more of a 1 on your garden variety hair clippers versus a fully shaved head.

THE KNICKS NOTCHED THEIR 30TH VICTORY LAST NIGHT - Chris must shave his head!!!! Stay tuned for video footage of the shaving....

~Rob

WEEKLY RECAP by Chris D

In what would otherwise be a boring sports week, Alex Rodriguez, Stephon Marbury and NFL Free Agency gave us lots to chew on. We learned that you shouldn't keep the guy that injects you with steroids on your payroll, that the NFL is recession proof and that no matter who is sitting in the chair the Knicks GM is a moron. So Boli-Rod was told to keep his cousin Yuri (pronounced Judy) Sucart away from the team, NFL free agents made hundreds of millions of dollars (despite the league laying off 20% of its staff not too long ago) and the Knicks bought out Marbury just in time so that he can go to the hated Celtics and win a championship. Can anyone explain why the Knicks would wait all season and then release Marbury so he can become a Celtic? Was it for the 1M they are saving? Did Donnie Walsh forget that Cablevision owns the Knicks, and 1M doesn't even make a dent? Did he forget about Steph's performance at last summer's sexual harassment case? Did he forget that Steph is the worst person on earth. Somebody please explain that one to me.
Other Thoughts from the Week:
-Good riddens Laverneus Coles, a big-mouthed, under-sized and overrated player;
-Have you heard the Rex Ryan recruiting story? On the 1st morning of free agency he went to Bart Scott's house with the coaching staff, stood in the driveway until Scott came out and told him he wouldn't leave until Scott signed with the Jets. CHAMPIONSHIP!
-Does anyone actually believe the Knicks can win 40 games this year (including D'antoni)?
-Does anyone else love that Clyde Frazier still refers to the players as the fan's "heroes"?

REDEMPTION SONG

-Chris D
I already had a chance to give my opinion on the Boli-Rod press conference on this week’s radio show (click on the player above). And while I think it was a poor performance and I can’t believe that he paid a crisis management team for that performance, I can’t help but think about Jose Canseco. For as bad as A Rod looked on Tuesday, Canseco came out of it looking that good. Has anyone been validated like Canseco has in this A-Rod scandal? Ok, maybe Chad Pennington, who my co-host claims had a better year than anyone in the world (Barack Obama included). Chad P returned to the office where he was fired, knocked his old team out of the playoffs, won a playoff berth for his new team and got his old coach fired. Certainly a strong case, but Jose Canseco has gone from MLB cast off – and butt of every media joke - to the oracle of the steroid era. If he is still broke and forced to smuggle “male-enhancement” drugs across the border from Mexico to make a living, we should all get together and give money to the only honest athlete in the Steroid Era. We shall give to the Jose and Ozzie Canseco Fund. That’s right – I’m throwing his twin brother Ozzie in there too because as many of you know the Canseco brothers are my all-time favorite sibling tandem in sports.
I have to go now and find out if Honest Abe (uh, I mean Jose) is dropping any gems on Twitter (and don’t forget to visit SiblingRivals on Twitter while you’re there)!

Where Have You Gone Joe DiMaggio?

By Rob DeAngelis

Are you kidding me with the news coming out of Major League Baseball in the last few weeks? What an embarrassment for a sport that is starting to appear more like the Jerry Springer Show than America’s favorite pastime. The “A-Roid” (this could be my new favorite sports nickname supplanting recent favorite “Law Firm” referring to Patriots running back Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis) steroid abuse and pathetic admission of guilt while donning pink lipstick has received the majority of the attention and rightly so – he WAS the best player in baseball. That title shifted back to the clean and once very talented Ken Griffey Jr on Sunday.

Despite A-Roid, I was beginning to hope that we might turn our attention away from the controversial books (Torre, Canseco) and the cheating athletes (take your pick) to focus on pitchers and catchers reporting to camp. Then I picked up the NY papers yesterday and read the utterly disturbing Robbie Alomar and Darryl Strawberry stories – they make A-Roid look like Jeter.

Their level of fame is nowhere near Joe Torre, Barry Bonds or A-Roid, but their stories are even more shocking. I can only imagine what guys like Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio would think if they picked up the New York Post yesterday and took in the details of Alomar’s rape, full-blown AIDS and subsequent deception over a cup of coffee (Joe D would be dunking his donut no doubt). If you haven’t read the Alomar story yet, it is pure “shock and awe.” The same guy, who pulled the classy move of spitting in an umpire’s face in 1994, is being sued for engaging in unprotected sex with an ex-girlfriend while knowingly carrying full blown AIDS. We also learn in the article that he suffers from erectile dysfunction from being raped by two Mexican men after a baseball game in New Mexico when he was 17 (not sure if the two stories are related). WHAAAAAAAT! Somebody call Springer right now! He is the only person equipped to deal with such irresponsible, disgusting behavior. He should also bring that bald bouncer along as Alomar has a father and an endless supply of brothers who have all played professional baseball.

Strawberry, not to be outdone by Canseco, Alomar or anyone else, thought that this would be the appropriate time to release a book about his sexcapades with the ’86 NY Mets. The exploits of this team have already been well documented, but Straw makes sure to take some of his teammates down with him. How do you think Straw’s co-workers at SNY, Ron Darling and Keith Hernandez, feel about the detailed accounts of their boozing, speed balling and sex romps on road trips. If the timing isn’t curious enough, how about giving your kids a break Straw? They have lived through your various addictions and multiple trips to rehab – do you think DJ was really pining for a detailed account of that journey? I think not.

All of a sudden, Pete Rose doesn’t look so bad (make sure to check out our daily sports picks in “Bro Bets”)….


We post our next radio show Wednesday, February 18th…stay tuned.

Drugs Are GOOD, Mmm - Kay?

By Rob DeAngelis

Pot heads everywhere rejoice! In the last week, the sports world has contributed two new, very high-profile poster children: Michael Phelps and Santonio Holmes. These two men have reached the pinnacle of success in their respective sports while enjoying “herbal refreshments.” Santonio Holmes was named Super Bowl XLIII MVP in Tampa Bay last Sunday and, in case you left the planet last summer and missed it, Phelps set the world record for most gold medals won in a single Olympic games. These men also excel off the field and, out of the pool, at smoking reefer as evidenced by their recent transgressions.

We know that Holmes prefers your run of the mill Phillies Blunt as he was arrested by Pittsburgh police for having 3 blunts in his car ashtray and being a little “insane in the membrane” behind the steering wheel. This goes along with selling drugs as a teenager in Florida and two domestic violence charges in the last 4 years. It is no wonder that the Walt Disney Company asked Ben Roethlisberger to join (or supervise) Santonio for the annual “I’m going to Disney World…” commercial spot. How classic would it be if he followed it with an “I’m going to Amsterdam…” spot for Phillies Blunt? He would reach legendary status within the ganja smoking community and would probably be invited to Matthew McConaghy’s house for some naked bongo playing.

Michael Phelps, on the other hand, learned the fine art of bong smoking in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan. I guess he answered the question of how could anyone possibly eat 12,000 calories per day – he clearly had the munchies! His incredible feats at the Beijing Olympics run counter to some of the known effects of smoking bud. He showed no signs of sluggishness in his training regimen, he remained extremely focused on being the best in the world and he now exhibits a high level of responsibility by showing up to his myriad of appearances on time. Instead of dropping him as an endorsee, Kellogg’s should give him more props for overcoming even longer odds than anyone could have imagined last summer. I don’t think I’m going out on a limb when I suggest that he was probably the only guy in the pool who partook in frequent “bingers.”

FROM A-GOD to A-FRAUD: The Impact of a Self-Destructive Superstar

By Chris DeAngelis

While I desperately wanted to talk about Sean Avery’s return to the Rangers, and despite the constant coverage already underway, I would be remiss if I didn’t address the A-Rod steroid revelation. In the process I will try to incorporate every nickname ever created for Rodriguez that begins with an “A-___”.

While Yankee fans and haters alike point to Louis Gonzalez’s walk-off single against Mo as the beginning of the end for the Yankee dynasty, I would have to disagree. No team can be expected to win every year, and the Yankees have been back to the World Series since that loss to Arizona. The true end to the Yankee dynasty occurred on December 18, 2003, when the A-God trade to Boston died. Since then, the light of the Yankee star has gone out. One man – an arrogant, insecure and ultra image-conscious man – has single handedly tarnished a mystique that has been built up over a 100 years. From Ruth to Gehrig to DiMaggio to Mantle to Maris to Jeter, the Yankees are the gold standard for successful sports franchises. And now that franchise must face the greatest mistake they’ve ever made: the acquisition of A-Fraud. Since that fateful day when he landed in New York, A-Hole’s massive ego and inability to come through in the clutch has destroyed this once proud franchise. And the damage didn’t stop in the Bronx. Since the Yankees acquired A-Choke, the Boston Red Sox have won 2 titles, broke an 86 year old curse and have become the model franchise, especially when compared to the dysfunctional group operating out of the Bronx (watch out for Brad Penny and John Smoltz in Fenway this season).

While hanging out with strippers in Toronto, slumping in October and announcing his opt-out from his contract in the middle of the World Series were all offenses worthy of the back page coverage they received in the New York Post, they all pale in comparison to this latest controversy. No matter what you thought about Gay-Rod, his career statistics were the one thing that couldn’t be disputed. He was the greatest offense player of his generation and maybe of all time. But now even his statistics are a fraud. And the Yankees, not the Texas Rangers, are left to answer questions and cleanup his mess. What a way to open the new temple in the Bronx. The worst part is that Alex isn’t the only one to blame here. Everyone is to blame: A-Roid for taking steroids, Major League Baseball for not suspending players who tested positive (a rule that was changed in 2004) and for not destroying the 2003 survey test results, the player’s union who defends their criminals no matter what the evidence says and the team owners who chose to ignore the use of steroids because homeruns equaled big dollars (Chicks dig the long ball!). If anyone should feel slighted here, it’s the Yankees, who just 15 months ago had a chance to part ways with Asterix-Rod. I can’t help but wonder 3 things:

1) Why didn’t the Yankees know about the failed 2003 test (or did they)?
2) Is Cynthia Rodriguez, A-Roid’s ex-wife, one of SI’s sources that broke the story?
3) Where is Derek Jeter celebrating this great news…