Andre Ethier, Batting Clean Up in My Girlfriend’s Heart

Before she met me, my girlfriend hated sports. When we first went out I remember asking her how many professional athletes she could name. She came up with an extensive list that consisted of Brett Favre, someone named “Tion” (turned out to be Terrell Owens), Kobe Bryant, Shaq, Michael Jordan (who had been retired for three years), Scottie Pippen (two years), Mark McGwire (five years) and “that Jeter guy on the Yankees.” Two years and roughly 300 baseball games later, her list is considerably longer and includes almost all of the Dodger starters (though she does sometimes inexplicably confuse Blake DeWitt for Joe Beimel).

Nobody makes her eye twinkle quite like Dodger right fielder (or left field and even occasionally bench, if Joe Torre has a senior moment) Andre Ethier, who she often refers to as “her boyfriend” and likes to remind me that he shops at Target (she caught that in a post game interview and I’m pretty sure that’s what cemented her feelings). We here at WC Bias would like to salute you, Andre. Thank you for being a handsome man and for getting Jessica to watch baseball. Bless you.

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No Comments by BG / May 22, 2008 / Posted in: Andre Ethier, BG, MLB

Lakers comeback or Spurs meltdown?

My wife the Spurs fan, Ryantific the Laker lover and I went round and round on this one last night following Los Angeles’ remarkable comeback in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.
Lakers MVP Kobe Bryant scored all but two of his 27 points in the second half, helping Los Angeles overcome a 20-point deficit to take Wednesday’s series opener 89-85 and, more importantly, keep the home-court advantage in what is shaping up to be another classic series.

So was Game 1 a monumental Spurs meltdown or an extraordinary Lakers comeback?

Being the objective middle man, I have to say it was a little bit of both.
Don’t call it a comeback, call it a meltback – one part meltdown, one part comeback. (After all, it was the second-biggest, second-half comeback in the playoffs since 1998.)
How it happened
To pull off such a rally, in a tone-setting game of this magnitude, the Lakers definitely needed some help. Los Angeles got it in the fourth quarter when a tiring Spurs squad went 3 of 21 from the floor, including 1 of 9 from beyond the arc.
At the same time, the Lakers were bound to come around in front of the hometown crowd after coming out “a little rusty, a little sluggish and a little tentative,” in the words of Bryant, having not played a game since wrapping up the Utah series on Friday.
Los Angeles’ offense finally started clicking in the second half, but the Lakers didn’t do anything they hadn’t been doing all season. In fact, the 46 points they put up over the final two quarters was well off the 54.2 points they’ve averaged in the second half of their first 10 playoff games. The most impressive aspect of that second-half surge was what the Lakers did defensively, holding a veteran Spurs squad to 34 points (including just 13 points in the fourth quarter).
And while Kobe turned in an MVP performance in the second half, the bench also played a big role with 21 points in the game (San Antonio’s bench was limited to 11 points).
Guard play and defense
As I stated in an earlier post, with all of the solid power forwards in the NBA’s Final Four, defense and guard play are key in these series.
In terms of guard play Wednesday, Kobe simply took over the second half with his ability to create shots for himself and dish to Pau Gasol underneath the hoop.
For the Spurs, Manu Ginobili had another off game, going 3 of 13 against Ryantific’s hero, Sasha Vujacic. Ginobili finished with 10 points, half his playoff average. Vujacic’s 10 points marked only the fifth time he’s gone for double digits in the postseason.
The other difference in the game was the three-point shooting.
While the Lakers kept their cool and refrained from bombing away when they fell behind, going 4 of 10 from long range, the Spurs were a sorry 5 of 20 from three-point range.
If Ginobili hits that three at the end, we’re talking about the Lakers blowing Game 1 and possibly the series.
Instead, Los Angeles (52-7 when going up 1-0 in a 7-game series) and Phil Jackson (40-0 after winning Game 1 in a best of seven) survived a scare and kept the Spurs from swiping one on the road, which San Antonio will have to do in Game 2, 5 or 7 if they want to get back to the finals.

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No Comments by Slim / May 22, 2008 / Posted in: BSlim, Editor, Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers, NBA, San Antonio Spurs

Dodgers Sweep Reds; Blogger Won’t Upload Any Photos

Seriously, what is the deal with Blogger? I haven’t been able to upload a pic for the past three days. Who reads blog posts without any photos? Nobody, that’s who. Anyway, The Dodgers swept the visiting Reds earlier this week thanks to some solid pitching from Kuroda and Billingsley (who is starting to resemble the pitcher that we all hoped he would become–3-1 for the month with a BAA of just over .200) and a Reds defense that left a lot to be desired.

Thanks to the Marlins handing Brandon Webb his first loss of the season last night, the Dodgers climbed to within three games of the front running Snakes and welcome the Cardinals into town tomorrow night for a three game set. Also, speaking of the Cards, if you missed Pujols’ line drive off of Chris Young’s face from last night’s game, MLB.com has all the bloody details and video here. Classy move by Pujols and A Gonz to stop for a moment of prayer after the ball knocked Young to the ground (and subsequently out of the game).

CURRENT STANDINGS:

WEST	W	L	PCT	GB	HOME	ROAD	RS	RA	STRK	L10
Arizona	28	18	.609	-	19-8	9-10	241	188	L 2	5-5
LA Dodgers	25	21	.543	3	14-9	11-12	225	203	W 3	6-4
San Francisco	19	29	.396	10	11-15	8-14	171	229	W 2	3-7
Colorado	18	29	.383	10.5	10-13	8-16	198	238	L 2	3-7
San Diego	17	31	.354	12	9-12	8-19	158	232	L 1	3-7

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No Comments by BG / May 22, 2008 / Posted in: BG, Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB

Thank the East!

We here at WCBias, are really passionate about sports on the West Coast. But every once in a while we have to give the East some props. For example, props to the East for having the weaker conference in the NBA. With the NBA Draft determined yesterday, the West has to be thankful that the East took the top two draft picks. If they had not, there could have been some real trouble for playoff-bound teams on the West Coast. Imagine if teams like the Warriors or the Blazers got one of the top three picks. The West Coast would have to try to handle a starting Portland team of Oden, Roy, Aldrige, Outlaw and Rose. Or what about a Warriors team of Jackson, Davis, Ellis, Harrington and Beasley. The Western Conference is tight enough.

Chances were slim of these two teams getting a top three pick. Only two of the West Coast teams had better than a 1% chance of any of the coveted picks. Although the Bulls were able to take advantage of their 1.7% chance. The Sonics were the one Western Conference team to get a Top 3 pick, but they had better than a 17% chance of doing so. Unfortunately for the Sonics, their emotional battle with the city and the possible relocation from Seatle to Oklahoma doesn’t make them a huge threat to the Western race for a few years.

A close call for the West. Thank you Eastern Conference. Thank you.

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2 Comments by Ryantific / May 21, 2008 / Posted in: Golden State Warriors, NBA, Portland Trailblazers, Ryantific, Seatle Supersonics

Giants Fall 60 Games Out of First, Hire Hillary Clinton As Special Advisor

In a stunning move, Brian Sabean and the Giants have hired long shot presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton as a Special Advisor to the team. Following up on Sabean’s outrageous claims last week that the Giants can compete and win this year, Sabean stated at his hastily assembled press conference, “We here in San Francisco have a long history of self-delusion and abject stubbornness. We stood by our Joe Nathan and Franky Liariano trade for Pierzynski. We stood by and watched as Barry’s head grew until he resembled Mr. Potato Head and swore that nothing strange was going on. We feel Hillary Clinton’s complete lack of touch with reality will fit in perfectly with our clubhouse makeup and we look forward to seeing what she will bring to the table.”

On a conference call from Nova Scotia, where Clinton is campaigning in an effort to have it annexed to the US so they can seat one-half of a Super Delegate, Clinton announced her support for Sabean’s overall plan for rebuilding the Giants. “Just like [Sabean], I have a very strong commitment to refusing to admit mistakes and doing irrevocable harm to something I supposedly support. I am proud to be a member of this storied franchise and, God willing, vow to solemnly run it directly into the ground.”

It was unclear what Clinton’s exact role with the team would be or when she would begin her tenure but Clinton hinted that she would likely join the team after she has eventually given up on her hopeless quest of the presidency, so likely by mid-2011. She also alluded to possibly using her husband, former President Bill Clinton as a hitting coach. “Can’t be any worse than whoever they have in there at the moment,” Clinton was quoted as saying.

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No Comments by BG / May 21, 2008 / Posted in: Brian Sabean, Hillary Clinton, San Francisco Giants

Gazing into our crystal ball

The Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs tip off the Western Conference Finals tonight at Staples Center (no Amy Lawrence, they’re not moving it to The Forum).

The Lakers and Spurs, who have combined to win seven of the previous nine championships, split the regular-season series 2-2 with each team winning on its home floor (the Lakers have home court in this one).

The WCBias.com crew is also split when it comes to picking the playoff series between the two West rivals. Here’s how we see the series in our convoluted crystal balls:

GSlim: Lakers in 6. Kobe is too good, Gasol too long, and Duncan too old.

Ryantific: Lakers in 7. It will be a battle but this will come down to two things, Lamar Odom can’t be guarded by the Spurs and the young legs of the Lakers bench.

BG: Spurs in 6, a) to be different b) until they actually lose, they are the team to beat. However, if Stern decides to spring Donahey out of prison so he can blow some whistles in LA’s favor in Game 7 to avoid another awful Pistons-Spurs Finals matchup, then I reserve the right to switch my pick.

BSlim: Spurs in 7. My wife is a huge Spurs fan, her cat is named Duncan and the dog named Ginobili. If I don’t go with the Spurs, I’m sleeping on the couch with Manu. Like BG, I reserve the right to change my pick if Joey Crawford is wearing stripes.

Tale of the Tape (regular-season stats):

	SPURS	LAKERS
PPG	95.4	108.6
RPG	41.3	44.1
APG	21.0	24.4
FG%	45.735	47.639
FT%	76.099	76.916
3PT%	.369	.378

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No Comments by Slim / May 21, 2008 / Posted in: BSlim, Editor, Los Angeles Lakers, NBA, Pick 'em, San Antonio Spurs

Guards, defense will be the difference

A lot is going to be made over the next couple weeks about the power forwards remaining in the Final Four of the NBA playoffs.
Kevin Garnett. Rasheed Wallace. Tim Duncan. Pau Gasol.
It doesn’t get much better than those four No. 4s.
But as Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals showed, the 4s won’t be the lone determining factor in these series.
There are no legit centers in the Final Four (imagine if the Celtics had won the draft lottery last year like they should have and had Greg Oden to add to the mix next year), all four teams have legit power forwards and solid wings/shooting forwards to complement them.
So that leaves the backcourts being the difference as we move forward in the playoffs.
You heard it here first. Just like I said home court would be the difference in the previous round, waaaay before the national media started talking about it, and just like I said Joey Crawford is a hack ref who is out to get the Spurs waaaay before Reggie Miller and Marv the Perv picked up on it, the guards – along with team defense – will be the difference.
KG had a big night tonight with 26 points and nine rebounds, but that’s what you’d expect out of the Big Ticket.
The difference tonight was the guard play by Boston’s Rajon Rondo, who played like a veteran and finished with 11 points, five steals, seven assists and only one turnover. His counterpart, Chauncey Billups, who the players agree is the best point guard in the league, has been slowed by a hammy injury and was held to nine points and two assists.
The Celtics, who were playing at home of course (Give them the trophy right now, they get home court in the NBA Finals as well), also shot 52.3 percent from the floor and held the Pistons to 42.4 percent. Mark my words: guard play and defense will decide the conference finals.
That along with flight delays, which I’m thinking will cost the Spurs a step in Game 1 tonight against RK’s Lakers.

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No Comments by Slim / May 21, 2008 / Posted in: BSlim, Editor, Los Angeles Lakers, NBA, San Antonio Spurs

Bulls or Knicks…Bulls or Knicks…Chicago or New York…

“Well the Knicks have a great shot of getting Rose so I guess I’ll sign with them…”

Welcome to Hell, Coach D’Antoni. Welcome to Hell.

Mike D'Antoni head coach of the Phoenix Suns protests during the game against the Seattle Supersonics

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No Comments by BG / May 20, 2008 / Posted in: BG, NBA

They’re called fanatics for a reason

Meet Mr. and Mrs. Pinhead, taking in Sunday’s game at San Francisco’s AT&T Ballpark. I guess when you’re a Giants fans, you collect pins instead of wins. Add your caption in the comments section below.

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2 Comments by Slim / May 20, 2008 / Posted in: Add A Caption, BSlim, MLB, San Francisco Giants

Say It Ain’t So, Bill. Say It Ain’t So.

I think you can make a pretty good case that Bill Simmons changed sports journalism. Sure, there have been plenty of authors out there who have written books with more journalistic cred than “Now I Can Die in Peace” but you can’t tell me there aren’t a whole legion of bloggers, journalists and assorted columnists who wouldn’t kill to have a following like ESPN’s The Sports Guy. Week after week for the past four-ish years Simmons has turned out (almost without fail) at least 2 columns per week for ESPN, as well as assorted chats and mailbags. That may be coming to a close.

About six months ago Simmons posted a note saying he was going to cut back to only one article every week so he could work on his new book, a stomach-punch moment for those of us trapped at work for 8+ hours per day with nothing better to do than pray for an unannounced Sports Guy chat. After looking at his emails to Deadspin it sounds like he may be about ready to pull the plug on Page 2; his most recent article is actually posted here, on his own blog.

Could ESPN let him walk? This isn’t some middling columnist, this is Bill Freaking Simmons. The guy who gave us Mount Rapmore. The guy who gave us The Annual NBA Trade Value column. I mean, this is the guy who gave us The Vengeance Scale, which offered such gems as:

“Onto the Vengeance Scale, from 0.0 (least vengeful) to 10.0 (most vengeful). And remember, the whole reason we’re doing this is to figure out where Angry Shaq fits in. Anyway …

0.0 — Rocky Balboa beating up Tommy Gunn.

(Note: This was disqualified because “Rocky 5″ never happened.)

0.1 — O.J. Simpson’s valiant attempt to find the “real killers.”

–SNIP–

3.7 — Babe Ruth vowing revenge against the Red Sox (possibly apocryphal).

3.8 — Piazza tipping off all of Clemens’ pitches in the 2004 All-Star game (possibly apocryphal).

3.9 — Babe Ruth’s ghost sending Pedro to the DL in 2001, just days after Pedro’s “Wake up the damn Bambino and have him face me — maybe I’ll drill him in the ass” comment (possibly apocryphal).

4.0 — Daniel LaRusso somehow toppling all of Cobra Kai in one karate tournament (possibly apocryphal).

–SNIP–
6.9 — Mel Gibson in every “Lethal Weapon” movie … George Brett charging the umpire during the Pine Tar Game … Forrest Whitaker’s first football game after his car was trashed (from “Fast Times at Ridgemont High”).
–SNIP–
8.2 — Andy Dufresne escaping from Shawshank through a sewage pipe, setting up the Warden and Hadley on his way out, then escaping to Mexico.

(Reader Red explains: “Andy crawled to freedom through 500 yards of s— -smelling foulness I can’t even imagine. Or maybe I just don’t want to. 500 yards. That’s the length of five football fields. Just shy of half a mile . . . when I think of him heading south in his own car with the top down, it always makes me laugh. Andy Dufresne, who crawled through a river of s— and came out clean on the other side. Andy Dufresne, headed for the Pacific.”)”

And roughly 10,000 other columns. Yes, he writes about the NBA too much. Yes, he is an unabashed Boston homer and thinks KG should have been the MVP this year. Yes, he makes too many pop culture references to Road Rules & Real World (who watches MTV over the age of 16?) but he has been the most reliable good read out there, bar none. He has launched armies of impersonators but nobody has done what he does better.

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