FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Boy, these blogs are coming off faster than NBA players declining millions of dollars, and in turn trying to get even more millions of dollars. But on a serious note, PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS. Thanks to those of you who do, and I would like even more because I really do want to know what you, the reader, thinks. Thanks.

There's More to It

Much like this picture, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is trying to get ahead of all of the things with the NFL that are wrong, whether it is Michael Vick, Pacman Jones or SpyGate. Recently, Commissioner Goodell might have had the quote of the year when he said that the salaries for rookies in the NFL were "ridiculous". This has led to problems with both the players, and the NFL Players Association (Surprise!). In my opinion, I think that Roger Goodell is 100% correct about that. Take note, Bud!

Jake Long is going to get $30 million. Guaranteed. Matt Ryan has been guaranteed almost $28 million. Darren McFadden has been guaranteed to get $26 million. Hmmm...I know there is some reason why these guys shouldn't be guaranteed more money in six years than the majority of the world makes in their lifetime....I can't put my finger on it. Geez, what is it? Oh yeah! I remember now! They haven't even played yet! Seriously, if ever there was a list about ridiculous things, NFL rookie salaries could have a case for the top of the list.

So, Commissioner Goodell came out and said just that. I respect what he is saying, but if we're on the subject, you know what else is "ridiculous"? Roger Goodell makes around $11.3 million dollars. And many people think that he has earned it. Sorry, but I beg to differ. He oversees and somewhat controls a kid's game, and he is getting paid that? Okay. But you know what else? The NFL is getting paid more than $1 billion by ESPN for Monday Night Football; yes you read that right, $1 billion. NBC is paying the NFL $600 million for Game of the Week on Sunday Night, per season. FOX is paying the NFL more than $550 million, per season. And CBS is paying the NFL multi, multi millions per year, too.

So, looking at it all, the NFL is simply "ridiculous". Does this mean that I don't respect Roger Goodell for talking about rookie salaries? I don't know how much respect I had for him before, but I didn't lose any now. I still will follow the NFL, I'll still root for my favorite players, I'll sill watch some of the games. But it is jus one, big "ridiculous".

Pack Up, You Are Going to the Playoffs

In the days leading up to the NBA Draft, there were countless trade rumors. Out of all of these rumors, only two main ones happened; Richard Jefferson got traded to the Milwaukee Bucks and Jermaine O' Neal got traded to the Tornoto Raptors. In the Jefferson trade, the Nets got Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons, and a lot of cap room. The former big three of Jason Kidd, Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson is now just VC, and there are rumors surrounding him. In return for O' Neal, the Pacers will get T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic and a player to be named later. In an unrelated trade, the Pacers traded Jerryd Bayless to Portland, showing their confidence in Ford.

Let's face it, New Jersey and Indiana probably were not going anywhere this season. The Nets could have maybe been something, but the Pacers were going nowhere. Now, these two stars are in a position where they have a legitimate chance to make the playoffs; yes, Milwaukee does, too. Toronto now has another big man who can operate down low with Chris Bosh. Bosh and O' Neal could form a solid duo in the Eastern Conference, along with Jose Calderon. In Milwaukee, I honestly think that they are a playoff contender. With Michael Redd, Mo Williams, Andrew Bogut and Charlie Villanueva along with RJ, that team is good enough to compete in the Eastern Conference. 

Of course, many people think that both teams made out bad when trading their stars. Indiana frees up a lot of cap space, which will help a lot. They get the point guard that they wanted in T.J. Ford, and a big body with Rasho Nesterovic. Also, they could get someone else, too; but I don't really know who. Now, the Pacers are set up nicely for the future with T.J. Ford, Danny Granger and Mike Dunleavy. Of course, the Nets are another story. They got Yi Jianlian, a former #6 overall pick, and he has tons of potential. Bobby Simmons can help a little, but he will also free up cap space in the future. Of course, cap space may be the issue. With no small forward, and no big contract, all signs point to...LeBron James coming over. We shall see how it all plays out.

But in the mean time, as LeBron is still on the Cavaliers; the Nets will continue their rebuilding process, as will the Pacers. The Raptors will try and win the Atlantic division, and the Bucks will try and show that they should be considered playoff contenders.

You Read That Right

Yes, the Tampa Bay Rays are in first place on July 1st, 2008. In what was supposed to be a process that would lead to the team being competitive in a few years, someone forgot to tell the players. As it stands, the Rays have the best record in the league at 50-32, and are 18 games over .500! What is even more impressive is that the Rays aren't just beating awful teams; they are playing with the both the Red Sox, and the Yankees.

Every year, one team starts out much better than expected. The team gets a lot of attention, and everyone starts to wonder whether they can do it, or not. Eventually, the team falls off, and they are forgotten. This year, people wondered if it was the Rays, but they seemed to erase all doubters when they stood up to the Red Sox at Fenway Park. By doing that, they showed that along with the Devil Rays, that team was gone. The Rays were in, and they were hear to stay. It had the feeling of when Jason Varitek stood up to Alex Rodriguez a few years back, and now, James Shields and the Rays are paying off in a big way,

But, the scariest part of this team? They are all still incredibly young, so they could be doing this for years to come. Dioner Navarro is 25. Jason Bartlett is 28. Akinori Iwamura is 29. Evan Longoria is 22. Carlos Pena is 30. Carl Crawford is 26. B.J. Upton is 23. Talk about a scary lineup in a few years, but that doesn't even mention the pitching staff. Scott Kazmir is 24. Matt Garza is 24. Edwin Jackson is 24. James Shields is 26. Andy Sonnanstine is 25. They also have a great minor league system, led by last year's number one overall pick David Price, and this year's in Tim Beckham.

The team is so young, where is the veteran presence? Troy Percival came out of "retirement" to play in Tampa Bay, and he has done an outstanding job recording 19 saves, so far. Of course, there is also Joe Maddon. Maddon is the manager that many people have never heard of. He has done an outstanding job, and should get some serious Manager of the Year consideration. Combining everything altogether, the Rays could be doing this in the AL East for years to come.

Seriously?

Since the NBA Draft finished, I am probably not the only one who has seen predictions for the 2009 NBA Draft. There have been predictions of what the order will be, who will enter, and most commonly, who the top players are expected to be. I don't really get this, because we all know how much an entire year will change things. For example, who thought O.J. Mayo wouldn't go in the top two? Almost nobody, alright; let's try another one. Who had heard of Danilo Gallinari? Not many; and who thought he'd go sixth overall? Probably not many. Finally, how many people knew that Russell Westbrook would fo fourth overall? The guard from UCLA who averaged 9 minutes a game went fourth, who called that? What is my point? It is very hard to predict what will happen in next year's draft.

Of course, I see another problem with this, although it might not be considered a problem by many. Most of the guys who are projected to be in the top 10, are incoming freshmen. Brandon Jennings at Arizona (Although, that saga could get interesting), B.J. Mullens at Ohio State, Jrue Holiday at UCLA and Demar DeRozan at USC. These kids are only a few years older than me, and they are already considered to be future NBA stars. I'm sure most of them are thinking that anyway, but who knows? My point is that with everyone like Chad Ford saying how they will impact the NBA, they have no reason to stay in school, and most of them will leave after their freshman year. Most people don't consider it a problem, but I guess I kind of do.

So, who is that guy in the picture? His name is Jerel McNeal. He is a 6' 3" guard from Marquette. He averaged almost 15 points, 4 assists and 5 rebounds per game; 14.9, 3.5 and 4.9 to be exact. So, I guess those numbers are kind of different, but anyway, lol. He made a name for himself in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Stanford when he scored 30, along with 8 rebounds. Still, many don't know who he is. He is my pick as the next Russell Westbrook; someone who is hardly known, but has a great season and defies all odds in the NBA Draft 

Jerel McNeal? Why now? Well, the predictions for the 2009 NBA Draft are coming out. I have seen absolutely nobody have anything about him, so I thought I'd get his name out there. Other guys that I can see having big years, as well, include Antonio Anderson from Memphis, Greivis Vasquez (Homer alert!) from Maryland and Cole Aldrich (Minnesota alert!) from Kansas, although he has been mentioned. So, if these guys all turn into candidates for lottery picks next year, remember who said it :)

The "Other" Stars

As the MLB All-Star game approaches and All-Star voting comes to a close, we are once again seeing tons of guys who don't deserve to start getting millions and millions of votes, and securing their place starting in Yankee Stadium later this month. So, who is getting snubbed by the All-Star ballots? Let's take a look at some of the "other" starts this year who have received no love from the fans.

Carlos Quentin is tied for the AL lead in home runs, and is tied for third in RBI's, and is 29th in batting average, which isn't bad for someone who hits with lots of power. Where is he in the All-Star selection process? He isn't even in the top 15! Seriously! Magglio Ordonez is on the DL, but he is ninth. Melky Cabrera is hitting .244, but he is tenth. I have always been forced to look at the big markets, but Chicago could be considered a big market of the AL, along with New York and Boston. How is this guy not in the top 15?

Jose Lopez is hitting .301 with 20 2B's. That places him among the top 20 in the AL in both categories, which isn't too shabby. In All-Star voting? He can't even crack the top 5, as he is currently trailing Dustin Pedroia, Robinson Cano, Brian Roberts, Ian Kinsler and Placido Polanco. I understand that those guys are having good seasons as well, but most people haven't even heard of Jose Lopez. He plays for the Mariners, if you didn't know.

In the National League, it is more of the same. Xavier Nady is an OF for the Pirates. He is currently fifth in the league with a very impressive .315 batting average, and is tied for 18th in the NL in RBI's; although he probably could have more if he wasn't playing in Pittsburgh. Much like Carlos Quentin, where is Nady in the All-Star voting? He can't even crack the top 15.

At SS, Miguel Tejada is eerily close to starting, as he is just over 100,000 votes behind Hanley Ramirez. Yeah, 100,000 seems like a lot, but I guess it isn't all that much when it comes to MLB All-Star voting and the 25 times that you can vote each time you enter an e-mail address. Anyway, guess who isn't in the top 5? Cristian Guzman of the Washinton Nationals. He has 24 2B's to Ramirez's 14 and Tejada's 20. He has a .314 batting average compared to Tejada's .291 and Ramirez's .296. And, he leads the NL in hits! I couldn't believe it either, but I can't believe the lack of respect that this ex-Twin is getting.

Well, that is my take on it all. So, if you pick up an All-Star ballot, or vote online and are wondering who to vote for, cast a vote for someone who doesn't get the credit they deserve. Or, vote for Joe Mauer, who is surprisingly leading the vote at catcher. We'll see if the lead holds up...