Friday, February 27, 2009

Why Won't It End?


It what was supposed to be a fantastic birthday present to me from the government, it turns out Barry Bonds' trial will be delayed. According to Mark Fainaru-Wada, the trial may be delayed several months, if not longer!

Someone please make it stop!

TGIF

-Albert Haynesworth is going to be loving the next 13 months of his life. Haynesworth signed a deal with the Washington Redskins that will pay him $100m over the next 7 years. Included in his deal is a guarantee of $41m, $32m of which he will receive over the next 13 months. Not a bad deal in my opinion. Unless of course you are a Redskins fan.

-In other contract news, San Francisco Gians fans should be thanking their lucky stars that after paying Barry Zito $14.5m per season, they will have the regining NL Cy Young winner under contract in 2009 for $650,000. Tim Lincecum agreed to the deal with the Giants last night. He will be eligible for arbitration following the 2009 season where he will cash in.

-When LeBron James has 1 rebound, and 0 assists you probably aren't going to win very many ballgames. That was the case last night as the Rockets pounded the Cavs at the Toyota Center in Houston. Does anyone else realize that the Rockets are really "taking off" since McGrady announced he would be out for the season? M-V-P, M-V-P!

-Tiger Woods fell to Tim Clark at the Accenture Match Play Championships yesterday outside of Tucson. After waiting 8 months for his return to play, I'm sure the PGA Tour would have liked to have seen Woods advance further, but Clark had other plans. Just my thought, but after getting back into the swing of things on tour this week, Woods is going to dominate in his next stop. He will be over answering all the questions about whether or not he is nervous to be back on tour. Whether or not he thinks the knee is going to be able to hold up. Whether or not he is coming back to early. The only question for his next tour stop: how many strokes will he win by?

-Manny Ramirez has rejected the Dodgers contract offer of 2 years and $45 millon. Apparently both sides agree on the amount of money and the length of the deal, but they do not agree on when Manny will receive the money. The Dodgers hope is to defer a large amount of the contract over the next 5 years without interest.

-Maybe I need to re-think my support for President Obama.

-Hahahaha. This is where I will be spending my Friday night.

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Talk About a No-Brainer

According to a report on ESPN.com, Alex Rodriguez has been told by the New York Yankees to keep his dealer, cousin Yuri Sucart away from all ballparks both during the regular season and Spring Training. As I mentioned earlier today in the Tidbits section, A-Rod was spotted driving away from the Yankees game yesterday in Dundin, FL with his cousin. You've got to think that he heard plenty about this from his PR staff. Now if only they could warn him about Madonna.

Thursday's This 'N That

-As it has been mentioned numerous times on the blog, Tiger Woods returned yesterday and defeated Brendan Jones in the first round of the Accenture Match Play Championships. Tiger started out going birdie-eagle, and never really looked back from that point. It will be real interesting to see how he fares at his next tournament, wherever that may be. Once he gets back into the rhythm of being on tour he is going to be even more dangerous than he was in the past.

-Rasheed Wallace picked up his 16th technical foul of the year last night. He will be suspended by the league for the game Friday at Orlando for reaching the sweet 16 mark. I highly recommend checking out the video that I linked above, just to see him launch a towel out of a ballboy's hand into the stands. I can only imagine what the ballboy was thinking.

-Tony Parker is on a roll. Parker led San Antonio past Portland at home last night without Tim Duncan or Manu Ginobili. There is a lot of talk around the league about Deron Williams, and Chris Paul being the top 2 point guards in the league, but I have think that Parker needs to be included in the conversation. Plus, he gets to go home to this every night. HELLLLLLOOOOOOOO!

-Alex Rodriguez homered in his Spring Training debut yesterday. However after the game he was spotted driving away with his cousin Yuri Sucart. Yes, the same cousin who reportedly supplied the Yankees slugger with steroids from 2001-2003. Good PR move A-Rod.

-Even with Kevin Garnett out, the Celtics should never lose to the Clippers. But that's exactly what happened last night. Zach Randolph scored 30 points, and did not take a hamburger break during a key stretch in the 4th quarter. With Garnett and Brian Scalabrine already out with injuries, I'm sure Danny Ainge was thrilled to find out that Paul Pierce dislocated his thumb during the game. Apparently x-rays were negative, and Pierce should not miss much time, if any at all.

-SWEEP!

-Anyone up for a cup of coffee?

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

BlackBerry Addict?

So for anyone who knows me they know that my BlackBerry is either in my hand, or not far from me. My wife thinks that my phone bill might be a little more than it should be. But using a device like this, how can I not get the full usage out of it?

Well, at least my cell phone bill isn't $28,000, like this guy.

Tiger's Back



Tiger Woods returns to the course today at the WGC Match-Play Championships. Jason Sobel is live blogging the event over at ESPN.com. Yes he mentions what Tiger is eating before his round. I know you are on pins and needles.

Wacky Wednesday

-Providence rode the strength of a huge first half to upset #1 Pittsburgh last night on Senior Night at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. Does anyone want to be #1 this year in College Hoops? UNC? Duke? Pitt? UConn? Anyone?

-NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has voluntairly taken a 20% paycut. The NFL has dropped 169 jobs during the economic downturn. Goodell was schedule to make $11m in salary and bonuses this year. I'm sure David Stern, and Bud Selig were thrilled when they heard the news.

-The New York Knicks have finally parted ways with Stephon Marbury. After paying him nearly $21m to do absolutely nothing this year, they have agreed to buyout the remainder of his contract so he will be free to sign with any other team in the NBA. It looks like Marbury will sign with the Celtics.

-Apparently Greg Anderson enjoys spending time behind bars. Barry Bonds' former personal trainer will apparently not testify against Bonds in his upcoming perjury trial which is expected to get underway on Monday. I wonder what kind of prision Anderson enjoys more.

-I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so.

-Apparently in the current economic climate Americans are spending a lot of time watching TV, and using the computer. Now if only I could convince people to read this blog.

-Alta is the place to be. Apparently my brother wasn't crazy when he decided to name his daughter after a ski resort. Interesting development.

-I found this article in the vault at Sports Illustrated. It is a fantastic piece talking about how Nike is taking over the sports world. Only it was written in 1993.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Jim Calhoun Discusses His Salary




I am yet to figure out why reporters try and "dig deep" with coaches in regards to issues that have nothing to do with their teams. All it is going to do is lead to trouble. Coaches are smart people, they know that saying anything political is going to damage their reputation to a certain number of the public, especially college coaches who have to worry about recruiting.

Oh well, at least it makes for good YouTube clips.

Tuesday Tidbits

-Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk. I don't know, I heard that somewhere. KU last night, pulled off an upset over number 3, Oklahoma in Norman. The Sooners were playing without Blake Griffin, and couldn't overcome Tyshawn Taylor's career high 26 points. This is a nice victory for Kansas, especially playing it on the road but you have to think that with Griffin not playing the win can't be as satisfying for the fans in Lawrence. By the way, I know WAY too many Jayhawk fans. I live in Utah for hell's sake.

-We all know that Tiger Woods will be returning at the Accenture Match Play Championships this week in Arizona. In this article Darren Rovell from CNBC.com we learn that Tiger will have a new sponsor on his golf bag for the season.

-Devin Harris made the shot of the year last night in East Rutherford to lead the Nets to a 98-96 win over the 76ers. I have always loved the last second shot in basketball, but this might be one of the best ever. For those that are wondering he did not travel. AI (part 2) knocked the ball loose, Harris recovered and shot-put in the winning basket. Unreal.

-Charles Barkley will serve 5 days in jail in Arizona's infamous Tent City,after pleading guilty to charges of drunken driving. After watching Barkley's apology last Thursday night on TNT, I couldn't help but appreciate his honesty, and I truly do believe he feels bad for what he did. I wonder how The Round Mound of Rebound will look in pink underwear.

-Jon Heyman gives us an update on all of the big name free-agents still left in Major League Baseball. Manny is going to get somewhere in the neighborhood of 26-30 million per season. It's just a matter of whether or not he and Scott Boras are willing to accept a deal for 2 years as opposed to the original 6 that they asked for.

-24 was solid last night. This season has been so much better than season 6. By the way, next Monday I turn 24. Is it any coincidence that there will be a special 2-hour showing of 24 on the same day? I think not.

Boom, Roasted!

Monday, February 23, 2009

Another Reason To Love Dwight Howard

Weekend Update... Only Not As Funny

First before we get to any highlights from the weekend, I wanted to address the passing of Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller. Obviously being a Jazz fan, and living in the state of Utah I have seen first hand what this man has meant not only to the Jazz, but to the entire state. Without him we wouldn't have the ESA, we wouldn't still have the Jazz, and who knows what else.

So much has already been written throughout the local papers and blogs that I figured I'd just link to a couple of my favorites:

Doug Robinson had a fantastic piece in the Deseret News on Sunday.

Ross Siler covered numerous things in regards to the death of the Jazz owner in his blog for the Salt Lake Tribune.

The Jazz will be wearing a memorial patch for Miller on their jerseys for the remainder of the season. Even the folks over at the Uni Watch Blog like the patch.

The official release sent out by the Miller group can be found here.

RIP Larry, you were a great man.

-LeBron did his thing Friday night in Milwaukee. James scored 55 points on only 29 shots against the Bucks. Maybe Kobe could take notes since he took 30 shots to score 39 points in overtime against the Hornets on Friday.

-Dwayne Wade had the crowd chanting MVP on Sunday. The only problem was, the game was in Orlando. Wade scored a career high 50 points in a loss to the Magic. Dwight Howard had 32 and 17 in the win. The Magic are going to be a force to be reckoned with come playoff time. A lot of people are talking about where a potential game 7 would be between the Celtics and the Cavs, don't count out JJ's boys come June.

-Very sad story out of the NFL combine in Indianapolis. Brian Mandeville was told by doctors to retire before his professional career even started. Apparently during a routine exam prior to working out doctors found an irregularity with his heart that could be life threatning if he continued to play football.

-Matt Kenseth turned left better than anyone else on Sunday to win the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Race at Fontana.

-Slumdog Millionaire was the big winner at the 81st Academy Awards last night in LA. Sean Penn, Kate Winslet, and Heath Ledger were among the winners.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

He's Back...

Guess who's back, back again? According to his website Tiger Woods will be returning to the PGA Tour next week at the WGC Match Play Championships. Poor Brendan Jones, if no one withdraws before next week, he will draw Tiger in the first round. Do you think there might be some media following that pairing?

KG on Craig Sager's Suit

Gus Johnson

Need I say more?



Make sure you stick around for Greg Gumble's comment at the end. Priceless.

This Seems Familiar...

Are you serious? Did the Clippers really give up 282 points in back-to-back nights to the Suns? You've got to be kidding me. How can those guys not have a little bit more pride and step it up on the defensive end of the floor? I realize that Suns scores, just like Golden State, and the Knicks are going to inflated by their style, but this is a joke.

Mike Dunleavy has been a terrible coach for that team for years, and for me this puts it over the top. Donald Sterling needs to make a change. There are plenty of good coaches who are out there right now, some of whom were fired this year like Terry Porter, PJ Carlesimo, Marc Ivaroni, and even Isaiah Thomas.... oh wait, nevermind.

I know of at least one Clippers season ticket holder that agrees with me.

Tyson Chandler Returns to New Orleans

After failing his physical it appears that Tyson Chandler is heading back to New Orleans. According to reports the Oklahoma City Thunder team doctor's did not think that Chandler's left big toe was healed enough after performing a surgery on it in April of 2007.

My question is, if this is the same doctor that performed the surgery, and he thinks that Chandler is not healthy enough for the Thunder, shouldn't that be a comment on his performance as a doctor? I'm just saying.

It will be real interesting to see how Chandler accepts coming back to a team that two days ago told him we don't want you anymore. It could be the sort of thing that this team rallies around, or it could bring some turmoil into that locker room if Chandler decides he doesn't want to give it is all for an ownership group that didn't think he was worth the contract that they gave him.

It's a little scary to me, as a Jazz fan, to think of the playoff implications that are going to be caused all by Tyson Chandler's big toe.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Tom Brady Expects To Be Ready For '09

It appears that Tom Brady will be ready to go for the 2009 season. If in fact this turns out to be true, what does the future hold for Matt Cassel? He is on the Patriots books for $14.65m next season after accepting their franchise tag. Will he be traded, or will the Pats keep him as an insurance policy for Brady?

Greg Oden Suffers Bone Chip

According to ESPN, Portland "rookie", Greg Oden has suffered a bone chip in his left knee. He is out for tonight's game against Memphis, and is listed as day-to-day.

All year long I have been mentioning how Oden does not scare me to anyone who will listen. For a guy who was as highly touted as he was coming out of Ohio State he has to start to be labeled as a bust. He only is averaging 9 points, and 7 rebounds in 23 minutes a game. Obviously his playing time is limited by his injuries, but at what point can we just call him an injury proned draft bust?

Compare Oden to a guy like Marc Gasol, who was taken 48th overall in the same draft as Oden. He is playing 30 minutes a game, and averaging 11 points and 7 rebounds, and has played in all 53 of Memphis' game this year. Who would you rather have on your team?

Another 7-footer from the 2007 draft, Spencer Hawes. For $3m less per season you can have a guy who has roughly the same numbers as Oden (10 and 6 in 27 minutes). Oh by the way Hawes has played in 50 of Sacramento's 54 games this season.

Want more? OK. How about Yi Jianlian?Yi has missed some time this season, but he was hurt playing defense. Something that apparently Greg Oden is still strugglingwith. Jianlian has numbers very similar to Spencer Hawes. He is averaging 10 and 6 in 26 minutes per, and is only on the books for $2.9m this season.

Why do I keep mentioning salaries for these teams? Well apparently Portland is going to have some issues with their salary cap in the upcoming seasons, and having Oden on the books for $25m+ for the next 3 seasons could pose a problem.

Around the Association

It's time to take a quick trip Around the Association where we will take a look at some of the highlights from last night in the NBA.

-Obvious first stop is in Orlando where Dwight Howard went off. Being the Duke homer that I am, I decided to check the box score last night and see how J.J. Redick did (20 minutes, 10 points, 3-5 FG, and hit a 3 to send the game into OT, just an FYI) and somehow totally missed Dwight's line. 45-19-8. I'll repeat, 45 points, 19 boards, and 8 blocks, and I didn't even notice it in the box score. Maybe had he gone to Duke this would not have happened.

-Kevin Durant continues to scare the bejeezus out of me. Last night he had 47 points in the loss to New Orleans. This guy is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the Northwest Division for years to come I'm afraid. Not to go unmentioned was David West dropping 37 and 13 to help the Hornets escape with a victory.

-Thanks for coming Terry Porter. Your former employer, the Phoenix Suns, decided to drop 140 on the Clippers in their first game without you at the helm. The Suns shot 76% in the first half, and 63% for the game. Do you think they might have been sending a statement to Terry Porter, that throwing away the 7 Seconds or Less theory might have been a bad idea for a team who was built around it? Just a thought.

-Tracy McGrady is out for the year with Microfracture surgery. I can't decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing for the Rockets. When their big 3 (McGrady, Yao, and Artest) are healthy they seem to be worse off as a team. But when one of them is hurt they seem to play better because it opens up the floor a little bit more for guys like Battier, and Scola who are much more efficent from the floor. I can't help but wonder if this will effect the trade rumors that are circulating between the Rockets and the Nets.

-Good night for Deron Williams. Andrei Kirilenko returned from injury for the Jazz, and it looks like Carlos Boozer is not far behind.

-Thank God.

-Do you think Sean Williams will be attending his 20 year reunion at Boston College? Yeah, me neither.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Away We Go...

Welcome to 8 Hours To Kill. The blog dedicated to getting you through your work day. The majority of the posts on here will be sports news related with some opinions thrown in there. That of course isn't going to stop me from posting about good TV (see: Entourage, 24, or The Office), or other entertainment related news. I will be posting links to articles that are of interest as well as any other links that might help you make it from 9 to 5 each day. 

I'd of course love to feed off of your comments, thoughts, suggestions etc. etc. So feel free to leave them and check back often for updates.

BC