Amateurs wanted in Beijing

This was my mother’s idea. So you can credit her with the assist.

My mom grew up figure skating, a sport which is obviously a focal point of the Winter Olympics every four years. Whenever Michelle Kwan or Sarah Hughes was on ESPN performing triple-toe-loops growing up, my dad and I used to joke, “Quick, change the channel before mom sees!”

Anyway, what used to make the Olympics so refreshing was that professionals were not allowed to compete. Think about the Miracle on Ice. A bunch of college kids came together and somehow beat the Soviets amidst the tension of the Cold War. Remember in “Miracle,” Mike Eruzione no longer played for BU; he played for Team USA.

That was cool.

The Dream Teams who dismantled international foes, bearing gold medal after gold medal just can’t compare to The Miracles (don’t forget about the 1960 USA hockey team; the 1980 squad was the second miracle) simply because the players were paid to play.

To me, this issue is most relevant because of the upcoming Beijing Games, specifically basketball. We all know that March Madness is sports’ most exciting time of the year. Imagine those same athletes donned in red, white, and blue, representing the Land of the Free, Home of the Brave.

At the very least, it would give you tips on how to fill out your bracket come next spring, right?

I don’t know, I’ve always been a more of a college hoops fan than an NBA guy myself. But this year especially, I feel like Mike Krzyzewski should be molding the minds of youngsters instead of those of multimillion dollar-making NBA superstars, creating an all-college, all-amateur squad to which fans could relate.

Plus, NBA players are bound by contacts, of course. They play 82 regular season games and in some cases, numerous subsequent postseason affairs. The Celtics suited up 105 times in all this past season. Do they really need any more basketball? If I’m Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak, I don’t want Kobe Bryant playing in China this summer, for risk of injury or simply for fear of fatigue.

I admit, it will be fun to watch the league’s best come together to take on the world. But imagine Tyler Hansbrough out there. Imagine the intensity of March Madness overflowing into the international games.

Professional athletes don’t belong in the Olympics. It should be amateurs only, like the Ancient Greeks intended.

There’s something to be said about rooting for amateurs and not money-hungry pros. I’ve seen enough of Kobe, LeBron, and Melo of late. Let the kids play and improve their games on the international stage.

Do you believe in miracles?

I wish I still could.

International ballers here to do more than just win, baby

If you sniff hard enough, you can smell it. The 2008 NBA Draft is just over 24 hours away, which means two things: 1) The Celtics can no longer bask in the glory of their recent championship because 2) The ’08-’09 season inauguration is already upon us.

No, I’m not going to discuss who the Bulls should select at No. 1 (cough, Derrick Rose, cough, cough); that’s already been beaten like a dead horse.

I’m not even going to ponder teams’ needs as Chicago’s clock continues to tick because quite frankly, Chad Ford, Bill Simmons, Jay Bilas, Andy Katz and Co. can simply do it better than I can.

Instead, I’d like to mull over a recent trend in the new-age NBA: The emergence of international players.

It’s no secret; in today’s world, sports are not only a mean of entertainment; each franchise has become a multimillion dollar business. That said, in some cases, owners and general managers alike have more than just winning on their minds.

In Boston, Red Sox owners John Henry and Tom Werner have made it quite clear that winning championships is atop their annual agenda, as they have accomplished that goal twice in the last four years. Meanwhile, across town, Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs is notorious for pocketing extra cash in lieu of spending it on free agents that could subsequently help his team make a postseason run down the stretch.

The contrast of these two ideals poses an interesting question relative to Thursday’s draft: Do teams always select foreign players strictly to help themselves win games, or does revenue alone have anything to do with it?

Let’s see.

The Houston Rockets make a percentage of every Yao Ming jersey sold in China, which in turn, obviously boosts team revenue and everyone upstairs gets paid. The same can be said about Seattle’s Ichiro Suzuki in Japan or Dallas’s Dirk Nowitzki in Germany.

See, even if Yi Jianlian is a complete bust in Milwaukee (which isn’t the case, yet), the Chinese fan base will still care (see nba.com/bucks/china if you don’t believe me) and theoretically buy Bucks merchandise. So, even though there is a soft salary cap in the NBA, the money has to go somewhere, right? In this case, it would go to Bucks owner and U.S. Senator Herb Kohl, which then begs the question: Was Milwaukee’s Yi selection a year ago a good investment, even if he never helps the Bucks make a championship run?

Where I come from, the answer is no, absolutely not. In Beantown, winning is everything. But what I’ve realized as I grow older and wiser is that that is not the unanimous case around the country. No one cares as much as Bostonians or New Yorkers. Yeah, winning would be nice, but to your average sports fan, it just doesn’t matter that much. And when that is the case, owners don’t feel added pressure to win and can thus worry about things other than winning, like exactly how much loose change goes into their respective pockets.

Aside from Yao – and even he hasn’t accomplished that much since arriving in the states in 2002 – and Dirk – who perennially seems to choke in the postseason – international players have not had that much success in the NBA. That said, players like Italy’s Danilo Gallinari, France’s Alexis Ajinca, and Congo’s Serge Ibaka remain projected first rounders for Thursday's draft.

Will they succeed in the NBA? I have no idea. But maybe success in this case isn’t measured solely on W’s.

Ease the transition: It's time to switch to wood

I found a better analogy. I’m not sure why I didn’t think of it sooner.

On June 17 I wrote about the absurdity of the existence of Major League Baseball’s designated hitter, as it creates polarity within America’s pastime. What I re-realized recently (I realized it before, but was reminded of late, for obvious reasons) was that the usage of aluminum bats in college baseball is even more impractical than the longevity of Big Papi’s position.

College basketball isn’t played with a rubber ball.

It makes no sense to me that at the collegiate level, baseball is played with a completely different hitting utensil than that at the professional level. And do not underestimate the difference between the two, either.

In high school, my conference – the Bay State Conference – was one of the only conferences in Massachusetts to use wood bats, and thus, I have somewhat of a biased perspective. But let me tell you, making the switch from aluminum to wood (which is harder than the other way around) is not exactly like going from Nikes to Reeboks. In high school, our non-conference games were played with aluminum and each time I – along with many of my teammates – had difficulty making the transition.

Swinging with a wood bat is an altogether different phenomenon than that of aluminum. Wood bats are less rewarding. If you fail to make contact with the sweet spot of the bat with wood, hits became that much scarcer, as aluminum is much more forgiving. That’s why college scouts tend to add 100 points to the batting averages of wood bat users, to put everyone on an even playing field.

Like I said, I am biased. I like the wood bat game much better. In high school, wood bat ball was like NL ball, as teams like my Framingham Flyers played more small ball by implementing squeezes and sacrifices more often. Conference games tended to be much lower scoring affairs, as non-conference battles often saw run totals reaching over 20, like we saw last night.

Last evening, staring into the ugly face of elimination, Cinderella Fresno State defeated Georgia 19-10 in Game 2 of the College World Series Championship Series.

To me, that’s not baseball. Growing up, we used to play that game all the time. It’s called Home Run Derby.

Anyone who appreciates a 19-10 slugfest over a 1-0 pitchers’ duel (like my roommate Jordan – forgive him, he’s from L.A.) in a game of such magnitude doesn’t comprehend the true game of baseball. I’ll take a well-executed hit-and-run over a 440-foot solo homer any day of the week.

And I’d be willing to bet that Peter Gammons would, too.

We live in an era with DHs, pitch counts, and lefty specialists, which I guess is O.K. But the NCAA is doing a disservice to these college athletes bound for the pros. Making the adjustment to wood bats – especially for the first time, which is the case for many – isn’t exactly like remembering how to ride a bike. It’s more like finally taking off the training wheels.

Tonight I’ll be watching one Bulldogs team be crowned champions of the college baseball world. I just wish I was hearing the melody made by maple rather than a cacophony pings.

In recruiting world, stars aren't always what they seem

They say ignorance is bliss. But ignorance can also lead to misunderstandings and flat-out mistakes.

I’m a victim of the latter two.

On May 31 I wrote that UW coaches Bo Ryan and Bret Bielema need to dig deeper into the national well of talent and improve their respective recruiting endeavors.

But upon further review, this duo is actually doing just fine.

In my own defense, it is frustrating that Bielema was unable to land any of the Big Ten’s top 20 recruits and Ryan seems to stick to the Brian Butch, Greg Stiemsma, Joe Krabbenhoft, Jon Leuer, (need I say more?) prototype. But I’ve subsequently made two conclusions about the world of college recruiting: 1) Top national recruits don’t always pan out and 2) There are always diamonds in the rough.

My complaints about Ryan’s recruiting regime were that he A) Failed to look past the Midwest bubble and B) Went after players with too similar games (heady, but not exactly outrageously athletic). However, Ryan’s 2008 recruiting class consists of a center from San Antonio (Ian Markolf) and a power forward from Arizona (Ryan Evans). Plus, Evans and shooting guard Robert Wilson from the state of Ohio fit the more athletic style to which I was referring.

Foot has already been inserted in mouth.

In hindsight, Ryan has also done a pretty good job of obtaining nationally acclaimed high schoolers. Keaton Nankivil and Leuer were both four-star recruits (according to scout.com) in ’07. Trevon Hughes (New York), Jason Bohannon, Joe Krabbenhoft, Marcus Landry, and Stiemsma also received four stars upon arriving in Madison.

To put things into perspective, Kammron Taylor was a two-star recruit in ’03 and Maurice Wade and Ray Nixon each received four stars in ’02.

Case in point.

It’s been a similar situation across town during the Bielema/Barry Alvarez era. Bielema’s 2008 recruiting class is highlighted by four-star defensive end Tyler Westphal from Menasha, Wisc.

As a whole, Bielema/Alvarez has done a better job delving into the national recruits than Ryan; just look at the Badger backfield: P.J. Hill (New York), Lance Smith (Ohio), and Zach Brown (Florida). Also, Bielema’s ’08 class consists of 18 three-star recruits, including quarterback Curt Phillips (Tennessee) and cornerback Marcus Cromartie (Texas).

Wide receiver Lance Kendricks received four stars in ’06 while Kyle Jefferson and David Gilreath – next season’s projected starters – each received three stars the following year.

Linebacker Jonathan Casillas – the most productive UW linebacker to date and team captain for the 2008 Badgers – and P.J. Hill – the 2006 National Freshman of the Year – were both two-star recruits in 2005.

Senior tight end Travis Beckum and redshirt freshman offensive tackle Josh Oglesby were both five-star national recruits in their respective years. Beckum could very well be a first round draft pick in the 2009 draft and Oglesby will be the third tackle on an extremely deep and talented 2008 UW o-line.

As you can see, this star rating system is better at creating constellations than it is accurately ranking high school players. That said, given their recent success on a national level, I still think both Wisconsin programs mentioned can improve their respective recruiting efforts. However, both are doing better than I initially believed.

In the world of college recruiting, things aren’t always what they seem. Former Badger Joe Thomas was selected third overall in the 2007 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns, en route to becoming a Pro Bowl selection in his rookie season.

Not bad for a one-star recruit.

Ainge's masterful moves reason for banner No. 17

A roster packed with household names doesn’t always come out on top. The Celtics just happened to take care of business last night; it was by no means a certainty.

In 2003 – after L.A. had just lost to San Antonio in the conference semifinals – Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak assembled his version of the Dream Team, or Big Four, if you will. Kupchak acquired future Hall of Famers Karl Malone and Gary Payton to join superstars Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. They were said to be unstoppable. A fourth title in five years was supposedly inevitable.

But when the Lakeshow realized that there was only one ball on the court, and not enough individual touches for their quartet of prima donnas, things began to go downhill. Phil Jackson’s crew lost to the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Finals that year in five games. To call it a disappointment would be a vast understatement.

Five years later Celtics GM Danny Ainge took a page out of Kupchak’s playbook, only hoping that his results would be a little more positive than those of his yellow counterpart.

So after posting an abysmal 24-58 record a season ago, Ainge decided it was time to play ball and attempt to feed a championship to Celtics fans, something they had been craving for 22 long years.

But Ainge and Co. were stunned last season after obtaining the fifth pick in the draft, erasing the hopes of landing either Ohio State's Greg Oden or Texas's Kevin Durant, both of whom easily could have helped Paul Pierce turn the team around. The Green was doomed.

Or so we thought.

Then Ainge called his buddy Kevin McHale (just like Kupchak called former Lakers legend Jerry West to acquire Pau Gasol from Memphis this season – funny how that happened, isn’t it?) in the Twin Cities. Five players and two draft picks later, 10-time All-Star Kevin Garnett was donned in green and white.

Ainge had already nabbed sharpshooter Ray Allen in a multi-player deal with Seattle that left Boston fans scratching their heads for answers. Until of course the Big Ticket came along. Then it all began to make sense.

Your average fan may have thought that the trio of Garnett, Allen, and Pierce was enough. But Ainge knew otherwise. The offseason signings of James Posey and Eddie House coupled with the midseason acquisitions of P.J. Brown and Sam Cassell proved to be the difference in getting Boston over the hump, ultimately concluding in the raising of banner No. 17 last evening.

Everyone will remember The Big Three. But do not forget about the four I just mentioned. For without them, this storybook season may not have had such a happy ending.

So Ainge did what Kupchak could not in ’03-‘04. He assembled a team containing multiple (more than two) superstars, surrounded them with just the right role players, and won the NBA Title. But how did they do it, exactly?

What made this Celtics team different than the Lakers of five years ago was their unselfishness. The Big Three became one and each had no problem making the extra pass, giving up a shot of his own. The role players accepted their duties and youngsters Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins flourished around the spotlight of the Amigos.

Yes, those individuals had great seasons. But the real reason this team finished on top was because of exactly that, its ability to play team basketball.

Garnett got them fired up with a plethora of screaming and high-fiving, unlike Kobe whose bitching and moaning at teammates and referees (much like his coach Phil Jackson) alike were evident throughout the entire series. Allen led by example. And Pierce taught them all what it meant to wear Celtic Green.

Ask Doc Rivers, and he’ll tell you that this team won 80 games because of two things: Unselfish ball movement and extraordinary team defense.

Garnett was truly the only exceptional defensive player on this championship roster. But Doc taught them how to hedge, recover, and rotate to perfection. Together.

Phil Jackson did not.

The Boston players bought into the system and the Celtics soon became the best defensive team in the land, en route to last night’s culmination.

Rondo learned what it takes to succeed as an NBA point guard. The Celtics were at their best offensively with him calling signals and the ball being shared quickly across the parquet.

Rivers outcoached Jackson, Pierce outplayed Bryant, and the Boston bench beat that of L.A.

Now, Doc and the Big Three will all be showing off their bling shortly, each for the first time. But it wasn’t because they were hungrier than Phil, Kobe, and the rest of the LaLa Land whiners. It was simply because they were the better team.

DH creates unfair home field advantage

Imagine if the NFL’s NFC placekickers had to punt on fourth down, while AFC teams carried punters on their rosters. Or if David Stern’s Western Conference squads were allowed to sub on the fly, allowing the Spurs to insert Bruce Bowen for Robert Horry only on the defensive end of the court.

That’s essentially the way Major League Baseball is set up. Bud Selig’s sport is completely unsymmetrical. And it makes no sense.

The American League implemented the designated hitter position in 1973 for one reason: To sell tickets. More home runs, further balls hit, and simply more offensive firepower in general appeals to the new-age fans; the same fans who scream like bloody hell every time Johnny Damon hits a moon shot 225 feet to the right fielder after being jammed by a 2-2 fastball.

For years I’ve been an advocate of baseball unification. National League ball is better ball. Managing an NL club actually takes strategy. Sacrifices, hit-and-runs, suicide squeezes, and double switches have all been virtually eliminated from AL play because of the DH.

And I think that stinks.

As much as I enjoy rooting for a lineup consisting of Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis, and David Ortiz, I still think the pitchers should hit.

Until yesterday.

Last night I watched the Red Sox-Phillies game on ESPN. The game was played in Philly, meaning pitchers hit; no DH. Boston starter Bartolo Colon came up twice with runners in scoring position early, facing Philly ace Cole Hamels, a southpaw with arguably the nastiest changeup in the game.

Watching Colon try to make contact with any of Hamels’s pitches – changeups and fastballs alike – was like watching George Muresan try and do the limbo. It just wasn’t gonna happen.

Colon gets an A for effort though, as each time he swung with all his might, knocking his helmet off from the force all the while making El Guapo look like Lance Armstrong.

Needless to say, it was frustrating to witness, as Colon stranded runners with two outs on two separate occasions before the middle of the fourth inning. Had it been the sixth or later, the obvious move would be for Terry Francona to pinch hit for the Dominican doughnut, but Tito’s hands were tied, as going to the bullpen in the fourth during the opening game of a series simply makes no sense.

That left me in quite the mental quandary. Coming from a wood bat high school league, I love the NL, small ball strategy. But after watching the Sox’s round righty embarrass himself at the plate last night, I had no idea what to think anymore.

But, regardless of my disliking of the DH, one thing is for sure: The rules need to be unified; this “separate but equal” mentality is a little bit outdated.

American League general managers structure their teams knowing that a DH will be in their respective lineups. The opposite is true for NL GMs. That said, the home team in interleague play has a distinct advantage because AL pitchers can’t hit and NL DHs are typically guys used primarily as pinch hitters, accumulating just a few at-bats per week.

Don’t get me wrong, I think interleague play is one A among many Ds and Fs, sticking out like Sam Cassell on an Abercrombie billboard on Selig’s report card. But in order for it to be completely fair and balanced (like Fox News?), either AL pitchers need to grab a bat, or NL hurlers need to stop hitting the cages.

Although I favor the former, I don’t really care which one happens, just as long as this irregularity is dealt with properly. And timely.

Over the bunker and through the Woods

It just doesn’t get old.

Not for us. Not for me. And especially not for him.

Just when we thought we’d seen it all, he takes his game to new levels.

An eagle on 13. A chip-in on 17. And another eagle on 18.

“It’s like he has a GPS system in his head,” my grandmother put it this morning.

(I do wish they had mid-fairway interviews, like they do in baseball and basketball with managers and coaches. It’s cool to hear what Doc Rivers says during timeouts and in the locker room. Imagine being in Tiger’s mind as he walks down 18.)

It truly is amazing, though, even for him. He could do nothing but laugh after he scorched the flop on 17 that should have skidded 20 feet past the cup. Instead, it hit the stick, slid down, and disappeared from sight.

When that happened, I literally jumped out of my seat, by myself in my apartment. I was uprooted about 15 minutes later on 18. I kid you not.

No cliché even does justice to what we have been so privileged to witness from The Chosen One. No words can describe it. He sprayed his drives from rough to rough, winced at every contact, walked to his ball using his driver as a cane, and somehow shot a 1-under 70.

The man is possessed.

Typically, unbiased fans root for underdogs. The Celtics got old. The Yankees got old. The Patriots are getting old. It’s what makes March Madness so great.

But for some reason golf is different. We watch for one reason.

Maybe it’s because of his focus. Maybe it’s because of his boyish enthusiasm even after claiming 13 major titles. Maybe it’s because you never know what to expect next. I’m not sure. But whatever the reason, everyone roots for Tiger. Look at the replays; when he celebrates, people in the stands high-five each other, as if they made the putt themselves.

It just never gets old.

Michael was Michael. But dominance like this has never existed before in sports. Six NBA Championships doesn’t compare to 13 (and counting) major trophies. I wonder how it feels to be divine among mere mortals.

Someone should ask him that.

ESPN’s Rick Reilly put it best. He never saw Sinatra sing or Koufax pitch. But the coolest part about his journalistic career, he said, is being able to cover Tiger Woods.

It’s true. We may never see anything like this again in our lives. He never ceases to amaze us; that’s why we watch. One day I’ll be sitting on my couch, telling my grandson, “Growing up, I got to watch Tiger Woods play golf. You’ve never seen anything like it.”

Don’t take these moments for granted, because I was only kidding, Tiger is not immortal; he can’t do this forever.

I think?

Thanks for the show, Tiger.

I just can’t wait to watch him again tonight.

My confessions: Lakers Pierced by No. 34

I’ll be the first to admit it: I was wrong. On many accounts.

Early in last night’s second quarter the Celtics were down 24 points and I had had about enough.

“I don’t know how much more I can take of this,” I said to my friend and fellow Celtics fan Bryan. “We can’t come back from this.”

“Chill, the Lakers almost did in Game 2,” Bryan reminded me – as if I needed a reminder.

“Yeah, but we don’t have a superstar like Kobe Bryant to lead a comeback like that,” I stupidly replied.

That’s where I was wrong.

The first quarter of last evening’s Game 4 made my stomach feel similar to that when I finish a general tso’s dinner combo from Asian Kitchen, complete with suspect grayish meat, greasy fried rice and a couple of under-cooked egg rolls.

Nothing was falling for the Celtics. For a minute, or 24, I thought I was watching the ’06-‘07 Green. Nope, the Amigo’s somehow managed to play like Wally, West and Gomes, en route to a 21-point first quarter deficit.

That’s when my phone rang.

“I guess we’ll hafta win Sunday,” my grandfather sobbed on the other end, as if he hadn’t just left Fenway Park after a beautiful 9-2 Red Sox victory – which he had.

“I know, I know,” I agreed.

Bryan just shook his head.

And then it happened.

With ax in hand, Paul Pierce began to chop. First one leg. Then the other. Then “Timber!” The Lakers insurmountable lead came crashing down, the noise quadrupled due to the silenced, celebrity-filled Staples Center crowd.

Allen and Garnett dominated Odom, Gasol, and Vujacic in the second half. Posey and House hit their shots. But it was The Truth’s performance – on both ends of the floor – down the stretch against Kobe that fueled the Celtic comeback.

“Gimme that,” Pierce said as he ripped the MVP trophy away from Kobe last night. “I’m the superstar.”

And he was, or is, now in my mind. Kobe was everything but.

My roommate Mahoney – the biggest Chicago sports (Michael Jordan – what else do they have to root for?) fan I know – and I had the whole Kobe vs. MJ debate a few weeks ago. I claimed that if His Airness is 1, then Kobe is 1a.

Mahoney loudly disagreed, arguing that Kobe is a distant 2.

Well, Mahoney, don’t get used to this, but you were right. Kobe is looking up at Michael from a much shorter podium.

And it showed last night. Paul Pierce was the best player on the floor. Jordan wouldn't have blown that lead.

So, Bryan and Mahoney, here it is in print: You guys were right, and I was wrong. Kobe is still MJ’s tutee and the Celtics are now one win away from banner No. 17. Oh, Bryan, Sasha Vujacic isn’t a terrible defender either, I was wrong about that, too.

God that feels awful.

Here are a couple more thoughts on The Finals I’ve been bottling up inside for a few days. In no particular order…

If Luke’s last name wasn’t Walton, would he even be in the NBA?

Nobody mentioned this, but much of Leon’s Powe-riffic (eh, I tried) performance in Game 2 came while being guarded by the hippie’s son. He can’t play defense and he is a liability on offense. Why is he getting minutes in The NBA Finals again? I’d love to see a one-on-one game: Luke vs. Brian Scalabrine. I’ll take the red-headed wonder at 2:1.

Doc Rivers isn’t an idiot, like we all thought in Boston

However, had he put Sam Cassell in one more time instead of Eddie House, I was personally going to fly home, grab a Bic razor, screw up his fresh lineup, then douse his fly, blue suit in tomato sauce and red wine. But, he finally figured it out. House is the spark the C’s team needed off the bench on the road. Rivers went small late last night, beat L.A.’s traps, and out-coached the Zen Master himself. That’s why he’ll be wearing a ring next week and Phil will still have one empty finger.

If KG ever developed an up-and-under move, he might be the best player ever

Seriously, he fades away on every shot. Imagine him actually going to the rim from the post. Scary.

Why does home court advantage matter so much?

I understand it’s significance. I understand home cooking and crowd energy. But the rim is still ten feet from the floor in Boston and L.A. How come Garnett (in the first six quarters in Lala Land) couldn’t hit the jumper from just inside the arc he hits 80 percent of the time at home and Kobe actually took it to the rim before the fourth quarter? Basketball at home should be basketball on the road. Why do teams look completely different in different venues against the same opponents? I guess it’s beyond me.

David Stern needs new refs

Forget what Tim Donaghy said the other day about the 2002 playoffs. I’m talking about now. The refs’ Game 2 blunders were fully made up in Game 3. The crowds shouldn’t influence calls that much. But they do, which is a pretty big problem.

If I hear the term "X-factor" one more time, I'm going to puke

Every player not named Bryant, Pierce, Allen, or Garnett is not necessary an X-Factor. Enough with the clichés.

Kobe is such a cry baby

He whines at his teammates and complains about every call. How fitting for the league's MVP.

Paul Pierce has become a five-tooled superstar

One. More. Game.

With youth, comes ignorance

BOSTON – In terms of the atmosphere, “electric” is the only word that seems fitting. Chants of “Beat L.A.” filled the air as I walked out of The New Garden after the Celtics’ 98-88 Game 1 victory over Kobe and the Lakers.

That’s right, I did it. I completed the trifecta in a mere four-and-a-half years. I was in Houston in 2004 for the Patriots’ Super Bowl XXXVIII Championship over the Carolina Panthers. I was at Fenway Park for the Red Sox’s Game 1 win over St. Louis after the miraculous comeback against the Yankees. And Thursday, I was in Red Auerbach’s holy place to experience the Celtics-Lakers rivalry for myself, a night I will never forget.

During my eight-day vacation at home last week, I realized that experiences like these are not only invaluable because they will be forever etched in my memory, but because I am able to share them with others for years to come. I will be able to tell my grandchildren, “Yup, I remember when Boston dominated the sports world. I was in attendance for them all.”

Hearing stories like these from elders is pretty damn cool, if you ask me.

I could sit and talk to my dad about how his mother threw away his Mickey Mantle Day program when they moved from Stamford, Conn. to Brookline, Mass. and how my grandfather and his brother watched Ted Williams trot into the Boston dugout and disappear into the clubhouse after the final at-bat of his career for hours. But what I decided this week is that it’s even more rewarding to hear sports stories from people that you don’t interact with on a regular basis.

Monday afternoon I sat next to Sandy Merloni, mother of ex-Red Sox and MLB journeyman Lou Merloni, at the Framingham High School baseball playoff game. I sat in the Bridgewater-Raynham stands with open ears, listening to her tell me the real story about Nomar’s departure from Beantown (Nomar and Lou are still good friends; Sandy was at Nomar and Mia Hamm’s wedding) and the difference between Boston sports fans and well, those of any other U.S. city.

Wednesday night I had the privilege of sitting next to an 85 year-old man at Fenway Park. You’ve got to be in damn good shape to be attending baseball games at that age in sub-60 degree weather. And he was.

This man from Southboro, Mass. has had Red Sox season tickets since 1968, the first year they went on sale, the year after the Sox won the A.L. pennant in ’67. He told me about the times in the 70s when Fenway had less than 500 people in the stands.

Imagine that.

He said when the infielders would talk to each other, you could hear every word, as their voices would echo off of the empty seats. He told me about the miserable days during The Curse.

We talked about life before pitch counts. We both agreed that Francona should have left Manny Delcarmen in for the eighth, after striking out the side in the seventh.

Okajima got the job done instead.

When it comes to sports, I know my stuff. But no matter how hard I try, I was never at The Garden for the Bird-Magic rivalry and I never suffered through the horrors of Buckner.

Some people did.

At times, stories that start with “Back in my day” or ones that refer to “the good ole days” can be tough to sit through; I’m aware. But if you can get yourself to postpone the text messaging for a few minutes, listening may in fact be worth your while.

"Experience" overrated; it's time to play ball

San Antonio head coach Greg Popovich hit the nail on the head a couple of weeks back. During the Spurs’ series with the Hornets, he got at the media for being too cliché.

And he was right.

If the Spurs win, they will say it was because of our “experience,” Popovich explained. If we lose, it will be because we are “too old.”

So after Popovich’s Spurs left the Bayou unscathed after Game 7, of course it was because they had “been there, done that.”

Here we go again.

Tomorrow night the NBA Finals begin. The matchup is intriguing: Kobe Bryant got there after demanding a trade following last season’s disappointments and the Celtics survived the East after completing the biggest one-season turnaround in league history. Bryant and Derek Fisher have each earned three rings. Meanwhile, Doc Rivers, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen are all making their first finals appearances, as James Posey – NBA Champion in 2006 with Miami – tells them “what it’s like.”

Like Popovich, I’ve had enough of this nonsense. Basketball is basketball. Yes, playoff basketball is more intense than that during the regular season, but Doc and The Big Three have all played in Game 7s before. They shouldn’t expect anything different in the upcoming weeks.

Too often, the idea of “experience” is overrated. If the seasoned vets always won, it would be impossible for anyone to win for the first time. In seven game series, the better team usually prevails.

So if the Lakers win the ’08 Finals, it will be because they were the better team – or they at least outplayed the Celtics – not because of Bryant and Fischer’s experience.

And if the Celtics win, it’s not because they were hungrier, either, because you know Kobe wants that ring without Shaq.

Shove all the jargon aside. It’s time to play ball. And may the best team win.

For Yankees' sake, Joba belongs in pen

They used to be the prototype by which all franchises measured themselves.

Boy, how times change.

In the late 90s, they could do no wrong. The New York Yankees won four world championships between 1996 and 2000, creating a seemingly endless dynasty.

Key word: Seemingly.

The Yankees were the best. They used to beat out the Red Sox every year in the AL East. They had the golden boy Derek Jeter. They had the hitting. They had the starting pitching. But most importantly, to me at least, they had a guy named Mariano Rivera, who threw one pitch – a cut fastball – that was virtually unhittable, even by the best of major league hitters. When Mo used to trot out from the bullpen, you knew the game was over. Yankees win. Theeeeeee Yankees win!

Not anymore.

Something magical happened in the fall of 2004. The Red Sox came back from an 0-3 hole to defeat the Bronx Bombers and go on to break the 86 year-old curse by sweeping the Cardinals in the World Series. Call it a miracle. Call it a fluke. Call it what you want, but since then, the boys donned in pinstripes haven’t been the same.

Yankee General Manager Brian Cashman used to be the professor of the class How to Create a Dynasty 101. Now, he’s ripping pages out of Sox GM Theo Epstein’s textbook, wondering what went wrong.

Under Epstein, Boston has created a team loaded with homegrown talent. Aside from the obvious (Jon Lester, Jonathan Papelbon, Kevin Youkilis, and Dustin Pedroia, to name a few), Epstein’s prospects keep coming up and producing at the major league level. Guys like Justin Masterson, Jed Lowrie, and Jacoby Ellsbury have shown that Boston sports fans still have something to look forward to, should these fantasy-like seasons suddenly come to a screeching halt.

The same can’t be said in the Bronx.

Cashman and Co.’s prospects have done everything but give hope to the Yankee faithful. Except one.

Pitchers Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy have been utter disappointments thus far. Joba Chamberlain has not.

Prior to the 2007 season, the Red Sox decided to convert Papelbon back to a starter. They changed their minds come spring training, and that change of heart led to a dominant regular season from the flamethrower from Mississippi State and a subsequent World Series Championship.

You’d think the Yankees would have learned.

Chamberlain has been every bit as dominant as Papelbon since his debut in the major leagues last season. And with Rivera staring retirement in the face, the obvious decision would be to have the kid from Nebraska succeed the cutter-throwing legend.

If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Hank Steinbrenner evidently disagrees.

So Steinbrenner and the Yankees decided to do what the Red Sox chose not to: Make their stud reliever a starter. And in his debut last night, he didn’t make it out of the third inning; how fitting.

I laughed when I saw the line, but I would have liked to have seen a different scenario. I would have loved for Chamberlain to throw a solid seven innings, and then have the Yankee bullpen blow it in the eighth, just to prove how valuable he is as a reliever.

Too bad.

Great closers are a rarity in baseball today. I believe the Yankees have one, they just refuse to believe it.

Good luck Hank, you’ve made an awful mistake.

Framingham 13, Andover 8: An all-around girls lax win

http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/sports/local_sports/x99500198/Framingham-13-Andover-8-An-all-around-girls-lax-win

Bridgewater-Raynham 9, Framingham 3: Campbell shuts down Flyers

http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/sports/x1056106077/Bridgewater-Raynham-9-Framingham-3-Campbell-shuts-down-Flyers

UW coaches must improve Madison marketing skills

The recipe is in place, but for some reason the final product is missing an ingredient.

In college football, schools like USC, Florida, Texas, and Miami set the tone in terms of recruiting. The same can be said about Kansas, North Carolina, Duke, and UCLA in college basketball; and for good reason. The history is there, the coaches are there, the fans are there, and the weather is there.

Travel north into Big Ten territory and Ohio State dominates recruiting in both sports. Michigan is a distant second in football. And then there’s miles separating the rest of the pack.

It’s about time Wisconsin picks up the pace in both sports.

It would be naïve to think that UW would be able to immediately compete with the above-mentioned non-conference powerhouses in the world of recruiting. It’s simply out of the question. But in the close-knit neighborhood known as the Big Ten Conference, there’s no reason Madison shouldn’t be the high on the priority list of any big time recruit.

But right now, it’s not.

According to Lindy’s magazine, Bret Bielema’s staff was unable to land any of the Big Ten’s Top 20 2008 recruits.

The Buckeyes and Wolverines landed the first 10. Fine; I can live with that. But tell me how Ron Zook was able to land No. 11, defensive tackle Corey Liuget from the state of Florida. I’ll give Zook the benefit of the doubt and say it wasn’t by cheating – which may be more benefit than he deserves – but he’s doing something right, that’s for sure.

Even Minnesota cracked the list at No. 15, landing quarterback MarQueis Gray from Indianapolis.

In basketball, Bo Ryan hasn’t been able to do much better. The 2007-08 Badger roster featured one kid from Queens, N.Y. (Trevon Hughes) and the rest from either Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, or South Dakota.

Talk about home cooking.

To his credit, Ryan did branch out this past season and by landing 6-foot-6 forward Ryan Evans from the state of Arizona and 7-footer Ian Markoff from San Antonio. But neither were in Rivals.com’s Top 150 recruits.

Don’t get me wrong; numbers don’t mean everything, by any means. These lists mean virtually nothing at this point. Alando Tucker wasn’t highly recruited and look what he did. There’s something to be said for selecting players that fit the UW systems.

It’s hard to criticize when both Ryan and Bielema’s programs have been so successful over the past few years. They’re obviously doing something right. But I can’t help but wonder what would have happened had Ryan had a couple of athletes from outside the Midwest bubble to compliment Joe Krabbenhoft, Brian Butch, and Michael Flowers or had Coach B had a drop-back, pocket-passing quarterback who could start for three years not named John Stocco.

In their respective sports, Ryan and Bielema have teams that can perennially compete. But for some reason, both have trouble marketing a school that shouldn’t be tough to market at all.

Madison has it all: Great academics, social life, girls, fans, and atmosphere; everything a Division I male athlete could ever dream of.

So what’s the problem? Don’t blame the weather; Columbus isn't exactly L.A.

I have no solution; that’s why I’m typing and not on the sidelines.

But the foundations are in place; both programs are now consistent national contenders. It’s time to put in the effort to bring some national recruits to Madison.

Sunshine State squads great for baseball integrity

Living in the Midwest being a Boston sports fan, as you can imagine, is like a dream come true. I poke fun at the Milwaukee and Minnesota fans while all of my teams are contending for championships. And for them, a comeback is simply nonexistent.

Unless it’s baseball. Then of course you get the “Wow, you guys buy your team every year; good for you, you’ve become the Yankees.” Although Kevin Youlilis, Jon Lester, Dustin Pedroia, Clay Buchholz, Manny Delcarmen, Jonathan Papelbon, and Jacoby Ellsbury are all products of the Boston farm system, it’s still a tough claim to argue against when the salaries of Manny Ramirez, Daisuke Matsuzaka, and J.D. Drew are staring you in the face.

The accomplishments of the Celtics and Patriots especially are that much more impressive because of the salary caps that exist in each sport (of course the NBA has a soft cap and the NFL has a hard cap). Baseball has revenue sharing, but let’s be honest, it isn’t exactly making the rich any less rich.

This is why the first-place Rays and the No. 1 Marlins are so important to the integrity of Major League Baseball. After the Red Sox swept the beloved Brewers two weekends ago in Fenway, I – as any fan would – started to boast to the Miller Park lovers with whom I live. But the reaction I got from my friend Drew (yes, the same Drew that thinks LeBron James is bad for the NBA) was, “I don’t care about baseball, man; baseball is a joke.”

With all the steroid-related nonsense and lack of a decent salary cap, Drew’s claim is not all that ridiculous; baseball is somewhat of a joke (although I believe it’s getting cleaned up and there is light at the end of the tunnel). But now I can point to Tampa and Miami, because on May 28, both small-market teams are playing great baseball, and this is after a notorious Marlins fire sale.

Neither the Rays nor the Fish can come close to filling their stadiums on a regular basis. And we all know that ticket revenue is essential for creating the ability to sign big name free agents down the road. Each Sunshine State team is defying all odds by contending in divisions containing the bullying Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, and Braves: The perennial powerhouses.

And to tell you the truth, neither Florida team is a fluke, either. Tampa’s Scott Kazmir (boy, Omar Minaya must be kicking himself these days; forget the whole Willie Randolph situation) and James Shields are a 1,2 combination to be reckoned with, and is a nice compliment to superstar (at least in my mind) Carl Crawford, last year’s home run king Carlos Pena and future All-Star B.J. Upton.

The Marlins’ Hanley Ramirez is already on his way to becoming the most complete player in baseball – if he isn’t there already – and second baseman Dan Uggla won’t stop slugging home runs.

By the time August rolls around, the Rays won’t be able to keep up with the Red Sox – barring any serious injuries – and the Marlins’ lack of depth in their rotation will keep them from making the playoffs. But the longer they contend in their respective divisions, the better Bug Selig sleeps each night and the better for the game of baseball.

They may not have deep pockets, but the more small-market teams create parody in baseball, the more people – like my friend Drew – become interested on a national level, which is exactly what baseball needs right now.

Each night I watch mlb.com and cheer for Manny and Papi and hope that I can see the Papelbon Stare in the ninth. Don’t tell Red Sox Nation, but the baseball fan in me is secretly rooting for an all-Florida November showdown.

Zach Brown should entertain idea of transfering

Depth at any position can be a coach’s biggest asset. For players trying to see field time, however, depth is a whole different ball game.

Based on the current running back situation at Wisconsin, if I’m Badgers coach Bret Bielema, I’m a pretty happy man. But if my name is Zach Brown, I wouldn’t exactly be having the best night sleeps these days, even after impressing the UW coaches in P.J. Hill and Lance Smith’s absences a season ago.

And quite frankly, I’m not sure why Brown is sticking around for his final three seasons for the Cardinal and White. If I’m Brown, I’m out of here. In a heartbeat.

This spring Brown told me that he is not discouraged in the least and just enjoys being part of a deep backfield that includes Hill, Smith and newcomer John Clay. But if he’s looking to get the touches that he deserves – because he is a talented back – I feel like Wisconsin is the wrong place for him, even if it means losing a year of eligibility to play elsewhere.

Don’t get me wrong; I would love to see Brown in a Badger uniform for three more seasons. He proved last season that he can be productive off the bench and be an every-down back, especially after exploding for 250 yards against Minnesota in the regular season finale. But with Hill and Smith each having two seasons left and Clay being the up-and-coming hometown favorite, Brown’s future as a Badger seems grim.

To me, the kid from Royal Palm, Fla. seems like a fish out of water. He’s like the middle child that nobody pays attention to. Badger Nation is excited about Clay after his 90-yard performance in last month’s spring game; it’s excited about the thought of Smith playing a full season, and Hill, he was the 2006 Freshman Player of the Year; he needs no explanation.

Brown was impressive last season no doubt, but assuming Hill stays healthy and Smith stays out of trouble (which are both big ifs), Brown won’t be the feature back at UW until his senior season. And with Clay on the horizon, I don’t see that happening either.

Brown should merely treat last season as pros treat their contract years; ultimately, it could have been a national tryout for the freshman. I’m sure Brown will have no trouble finding suitors after his 2007 accomplishments.

If Brown was a run-of-the-mill back without a bright future, this topic wouldn’t be worth discussing. But the kid has potential if given the opportunity to be a No. 1 back. Unfortunately, that opportunity doesn’t exist in Madison. So for his sake, I almost hope he goes.

Stern should eliminate lottery from repertoire

In football, the team that finishes the regular season with the worst record gets the first overall pick in the upcoming draft.

Same with hockey. Same with baseball.

Why does the NBA think it’s special?

David Stern finds it necessary to continue the tradition of the NBA Draft lottery – one of the worst traditions in professional sports – which was proven again tonight, as the Chicago Bulls (33-49, which isn’t even that bad in the East) defied less than 50:1 odds to win next month’s draft’s No. 1 selection, a pick with which the Miami Heat – who finished an abysmal 15-67 – should have been “rewarded,” just like their city-mates, the Dolphins, were last month.

Instead, Dwyane Wade and Co. had a 25 percent chance at landing numero uno – who should be Memphis point guard Derrick Rose, in my opinion.

I understand why the lottery exists. It’s not a moneymaking scheme, because no one watches it on TV. It’s in place to keep teams from throwing games at the end of the season. Fair enough, however I don’t think that that’s a problem in the NFL, so I don’t see why the NBA thinks anything will be different for itself.

A bigger problem that has lingered in the NBA over the past decade has been the East-West talent gap, as the West has been the far superior conference for quite some time now.

What makes the NFL so great is the parody, much of which is generated by giving the worst teams the earliest draft picks in the subsequent draft. The NBA Draft lottery is only disallowing the worst teams from bettering themselves and ultimately competing with the elites in the future.

The team with the worst record has only won the lottery three times in its 19-year existence. Now, the Bulls have a chance to add to an already deep, talented roster that merely underachieved this season.

That shouldn’t be.

If the NBA were smart, it would get rid of the lottery in order to create more parody, something it’s been lacking in the recent past.

Whistle-blowers needed in NBA

Maybe it’s because the Memphis-Kansas matchup seems like ages ago. Or perhaps I’ve become so enthralled with the CP3 vs. Kobe debates and the reemergence of the Celtics that I simply forgot.

Well, last weekend I was reminded why college basketball is vastly superior to the product of the NBA.

It’s not because the guys that get paid play isolation basketball or play defense only every once in a while. It’s simply because every time Lebron James, Chris Paul, or Paul Pierce drove to the lane in Round 2, the sequence went something like this: Hop. Skip. Contact. Whistle. Jump. Extra step. Bucket. And-one.

Last time I checked, anything over two steps is a travel. Oh, and the continuation rule is a downright joke.

I was watching Game 7 of the Celtics-Cavs series Sunday with my friend Drew, who had the same opinion as me.

“LeBron is ruining the game,” he said to me after The King converted a four-step three-point play.

Close, but not exactly. I blame the referees. And David Stern for not being, well, stern.

It’s the refs’ fault for allowing James and friends to get away with basketball murder night-in and night-out. Baseball is a mess, but you can’t blame George Steinbrenner for taking advantage of the system and spending the money that Bud Selig allows him to. Just like you can’t blame James.

I understand that today’s NBA athletes can do things that people couldn’t even dream of 30, even 20 years ago. That’s what makes the league so entertaining to watch.

Maybe I’m too old school, but I’m sick of the rules being broken for no apparent reason. The refs need to stop being pansies and blow their whistles when more than two steps are taken.

Also, I’m not sure when this happened, but since when did the NBA become the Italian national soccer team? This whole flopping phenomenon – that perhaps Manu Ginobili brought from Argentina – makes me sick. I hate it in soccer and I hate it even more in the NBA.

Man up, stand your ground, and withstand the contact. Basketball is a physical sport. Deal with it.

Flopping should result in a technical foul. Period.

Not your average no-no

He looks like a kid, but he’s got the strength of men.

And I’m not talking about bench press, either.

In a sports world inundated with Spygate, steroids, and O.J. Mayo scandals, last night 24 year-old Jon Lester reminded us why we should still invest our time and emotions into what are ultimately backyard children’s games.

Following the 2006 season, Lester was diagnosed with lymphoma.

Battling a bases loaded jam in a tie game is one thing. Battling cancer is another.

Less than two years ago, Lester was staring life or death issues in the face; 96-mile per hour fastballs were off his radar.

Not last night.

Soon after winning the fight against cancer, Lester found himself on the mound in Denver last November. Why? Oh, just to start in Game 4 – the clinching game – of the World Series, – which just so happened to be his first career postseason start as well. That’s all.

So last night, after his 129^th pitch, Lester was one strike away from tossing a no-hitter in front of Red Sox Nation and finishing the first complete game of his career. And after No. 130 found the webbing of Captain Varitek’s mitt, Boston manager Terry Francona – the man who became a father figure to Lester after his ’06 diagnosis – was among the first to embrace the youngster.

And if you knew the story, you couldn’t help but get a little choked up.

Society has yet to find a cure for cancer. But some – like Lester – are strong enough to simply beat it. It’s easy for cynics to say that sports don’t matter and that they’re merely games. But if last night Lester inspired just one person to hang in there and keep on fighting, you can chalk up another “W” in the column against the disease that’s touched the lives of so many innocent people.

And you can credit baseball with the save.

Badgers should tap into fountain of QB youth

The quarterback position is arguably the most difficult position to learn in all of sports. There’s a reason why rookie quarterbacks struggle throughout the learning process. Pre-snap audibles, reading defenses, and simply managing an 11-man unit are no walks in the park; nor are they one-year projects by any means.

For Wisconsin’s sake, I hope that head coach Bret Bielema understands this; but I’m not completely sure that he does.

Last season, Bielema gave senior quarterback Tyler Donovan the starting nod over junior Kansas State transfer Allan Evridge, who made six starts for the Wildcats during his freshman season.

Donovan struggled last season against Illinois and Penn State on the road, throwing two picks in each contest, both of which ended in UW losses.

Am I blaming Donovan for these sub-par performances away from Madison in the Big Ten? Absolutely not. Like I said, quarterback is a near-impossible trade to master and good decision-making is a critical part of the long-term learning curve.

That’s why Evridge should have been under center for the Badgers’ 13 games last season.

Well, maybe.

I’ll give Bielema the benefit of the doubt. Evridge was nagged by injuries during the spring of 2007. Perhaps Donovan was that much more game-ready last August when Bielema made the ultimate decision to go with the Hartland, Wis. native. If that were the case, then the second-year head coach made the correct decision.

But if Evridge was anywhere near Donovan in terms of readiness to compete, the kid from Papillon, Neb. should have been thrown under the gun, because in turn, the 2008 Badgers would be that much better, even if the 2007 squad lost, say, one more game than it did with Donovan.

I hate crying over spilt milk and I realize that hindsight is 20/20. It’s easy for me to sit here and point fingers at the Wisconsin coaching staff after a disappointing 2007 campaign. I’m only bringing this up for one reason: The future.

The UW quarterback depth chart is full of eager learners chomping at the bit for a chance to lead the beloved Badgers in the shrine that is Camp Randall Stadium. Evridge is the favorite to be the UW signal caller in ’08, followed by junior Dustin Sherer, sophomore Scott Tolzien, and freshmen James Stallons and Curt Phillips. All have talent and potential, but none – including Donovan a year ago – have really stood out enough to demand the starting role.

To me, that’s a problem.

Ohio State, Illinois, and Michigan finished 1,2,3 in Big Ten play ahead of Wisconsin in 2007. Chad Henne was a four-year starter for the Wolverines, Juice Williams was a second-year starter for the Illini and will be a four-year starter by his senior season, and Todd Boeckman will be under center again this season after leading the Buckeyes to a National Championship Game appearance in January.

Get the point?

If Bielema goes with Evridge in 2008, it will be one-and-done for No. 4. Then comes Sherer for a year, then Tolzien, then probably Phillips. In terms of talent and readiness to play come their respective senior seasons, that may in fact be the correct order. But if Bielema keeps throwing inexperienced seniors under the gun, the Badgers will never be able to compete with the nation’s (or Big Ten’s) elite.

It takes more than a year to become an upper-echelon quarterback in Division I football. It’s nice to reward seniors who have worked hard and paid their dues on the sidelines with the starting spot. But as the coach of a Top 25 football team, you have to put emotions aside and do what’s best for the program. If that means going with the younger guy who isn’t quite ready, in order to rebuild for the following season, then so be it, because if that doesn’t happen, Wisconsin will never get over the hump.

Sorry Allan, Dustin, and Scott, but if UW wants to take the next step, one of you is going to get screwed.