The Separation of Skate and State

  By Chris Speziale | 01/25/2012 - 4:22 pm | Musings
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Perhaps Tim Thomas could use his Conn Smythe as a soap box?

Maybe it’s because we’re in an election year.  Maybe it’s because our President just gave the State of the Union address. Heck, maybe it’s just because I feel connected to what’s going on in the world around me.  For whatever reason, Tim Thomas refusing to visit the White House really struck a chord with me.

Now, it’s no secret where my political affiliations lie, I’m a proud democrat, who believes in a liberal social and financial agenda.  And while I support the left, it’s become evident that the Bruins Vezina Trophy winning goalie clearly has a right leaning mentality.  I don’t want to hear that the statement he made to excuse himself from the visit was bipartisan or centrist.  I don’t want to hear that he was speaking out against government as a whole.  Dig a little deeper and you’ll learn that this is a man who rallies around the fear-mongering of conservative talking heads like Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh.  Tim Thomas chose not to visit the White House because he doesn’t agree with the administration, and I think he made a mistake.

I had to stop for a second when I first read the story.  I was shocked by it, and I just couldn’t find a good justification.  I put myself in this hypothetical situation:  I’m a star athlete (wouldn’t that be nice) and my team is scheduled to make a trip to the Oval Office in the year following a championship run.  Let’s say that we’re in the middle of the previous republican administration.  I can’t imagine a scenario where I’m not standing on that stage with the rest of my teammates shaking hands with President George W. Bush; a man with whom I vehemently disagreed on almost every issue presented during his tenure.  But you don’t have to agree with what he’s done with his time in office, you don’t have to agree with his policies or beliefs, all you have to do it stand there and smile.  And you know, I might even take that opportunity to have a conversation with the man (or woman) making the big decisions.  You just don’t get invited to the White House all that often.

But it goes beyond even turning down an invitation.  We live in a world where news and information are instantly available, and it’s incredibly easy to connect to people in even the remotest of locations.  Because of this far reach, we’re noticing more and more athletes/actors/celebrities taking to the soap box, and spewing their beliefs and ideologies all over the place.  I just can’t seem to set aside my belief that the sporting world isn’t the right place for this.  Turning to an athlete for political advice would be like turning to a politician to take the last penalty shot in an overtime shootout.  It’s something you just don’t do.  Can we take this for what it’s worth?  I say no.  One guy taking a stand to protect what he believes in is one thing, and yes, everyone (Tim Thomas included) has a right to free speech, but just because you have the right, doesn’t make it right.  What TT did on Monday was childish.  He put himself ahead of his team, and turned what was supposed to be a highlight for the city of Boston, and the Bruins organization, into a media circus.

As an athlete, your talent and physical skill get you millions of dollars, the admiration of thousands of fans, and a platform to spread whatever message you choose.  We listen to you, we idolize you, and we cast you as the role model, so you need to be careful with what you say and how your present yourself to the public.  If upon your retirement, you want lobby for republican politics or start your own bigoted talk radio show, then by all means, go right ahead.  But now? Now, your job is not to campaign for the next Republican Presidential nominee, it’s to stop that little, black, rubber disk from making it’s way into the back of the net.  Maybe I’m naïve, or maybe I have a hard time coming to grips with the fact that some of the athletes I root for don’t share my beliefs.  But had Thomas just put politics aside, supported his teammates, and been gracious in receiving an honor from the President of the United States, we wouldn’t be in this mess in the first place.

The Road to Indy: Five Keys to the NFC Championship

  By Chris Speziale | 01/17/2012 - 5:04 pm | Musings
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Vernon Davis is important, but stopping him doesn't make the list of keys to the game

Yesterday, we ran through some important keys to the AFC Championship Game between the Baltimore Ravens and the New England Patriots, and today we’ll attempt to break down the NFC title bout between the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers. Here are five keys to a Giant victory in this Sunday’s NFC Championship game.

Jekyll and Hyde – If I had to pick a single key to this game, it would be this: which Giants running attack shows up on Sunday in San Fran?  The Giants ranked dead last in the NFL in rushing during the regular season, but in the last four games they’re averaging 122 yards, which is almost 45 yards per game higher than their regular season mark. That said, it’ll be an exceptionally difficult task for Bradshaw and Jacobs this weekend as they go up against the most stout run defense in the league.  San Fran allows 77 yards per game on the ground, and last week held New Orleans, who had come into the contest with the sixth ranked run game, to 37 yards out of the backfield.

Pass Rush – It’s rare to find two teams with a similar defensive strength facing each other this late in the season, but both New York and San Francisco have made their money rushing the passer, and both will need to keep up the pace in order to stay ahead on Sunday.  The Giants rank third in sacks, while the 49ers are seventh.  It may be more important for the Niners get to Eli than vice versa.  New York will most likely have to rely on the passing game to get ahead of a San Francisco team that will focus on slowing down Bradshaw and Jacobs out of the backfield.  The more dropbacks for Eli, the more opportunity for an effective San Francisco pass rush to turn the tide.  New York allows a full sack less per game in wins than in losses, so keep Eli upright.

Lost Puppy Face – Take keys one and two…and you get key number three.  If Giant fans end up getting a whole bunch of Eli Manning close-ups with that lost puppy look, they’re in big trouble.  As we’ve already pointed out, the 49ers will attempt to force Eli Manning to throw the ball by controlling the run game.  And lets not forget that this is a quarterback who is less than a season removed from a 25 interception campaign.  Often times his decision making is called into question, and if the San Francisco pass rush can flush Eli from the pocket or force him into throwing the ball before he’s ready, he is prone to turning it over.  In the seven Giant losses this year, Eli owns an 82.3 QB rating and has thrown 12 of his 16 interceptions.  Keeping the ball out of the hands of the San Fran defensive backs will be paramount to a Giant victory.

Wideouts – One of the ways that New York can limit the Eli turnovers will be the play of their wideouts.  Both Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz have been outstanding for the Giants this year, and with the return of Mario Manningham from injury, New York has one of the strongest receiving corps in the league.  Nicks and Cruz are more than capable of making big plays and really controlling a defensive backfield.  Jets fans will surely remember the 99 yard touchdown catch that Cruz made in the second quarter of their Christmas Eve clash.  The grab gave the G-Men a lead they would never relinquish, and the Jets would ultimately miss the playoffs.  Keeping that in mind, it’s also important to note that the Giants #1 and #2 receivers have been guilty of dropping a number of passes this season.  The two have combined for 14 dropped balls, which is a higher number than it might appear.  They both rank in the top ten in that category in the league.

Flagged – Lastly, the 49ers have struggled with penalties this year, and while the home crowd should help keep the mental mistakes to a minimum, the Giants will need to exploit this advantage if they want to make their second trip to the Super Bowl in the last five seasons.  San Fran has committed 113 penalties this season equaling 1014 yards, which is sixth worst in the NFL.  Conversely, the Giants have forced their opponents into 110 penalties on the season which is ninth best in the league.

If the Giants can hit on all five of these keys to victory, it’s ALMOST a sure bet that they’ll be headed to Indy to take on either the Ravens or the Patriots on February 5th.  I do think that these two squads are evenly matched and very balanced.  It’ll be a game that comes down to the wire, and will most likely be low scoring.  In the end, I feel that home field and a possible rain storm moving through the area swing this one to the Niners, who’ll be heading to the Super Bowl looking for their sixth Lombardi Trophy.  Final: 26-19, San Fran

The Road to Indy: Five Keys to the AFC Championship

  By Chris Speziale | 01/16/2012 - 6:30 pm | Musings
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Tom Brady and the Pats are 6-1 against Joe Flacco and the Ravens

We’ve got a whole week to breakdown the matchup between the Patriots and the Ravens, but while the rest of the ESPN family of networks break down what happened in the divisional round, why don’t we jump ahead a bit, shall we? Here are five keys to a Patriot victory on Sunday, when they host Baltimore.

Protect the Ball – I know what you’re thinking.  “Really? He’s gonna start with protecting the ball? Freakin duh!”  I get it, but I don’t think you really grasp how important this will be this weekend.  The Ravens are first in the NFL in forced fumbles this season, and while New England has done a particularly good job of not putting it on the turf, that Ray Lewis led D will be in full ball hawk mode.  The Pats are first in the AFC in turnover differential, and they’ll need to win the turnover battle this weekend if they hope to knock the Ravens out of this thing.  That starts with holding on to the football.

Protect the QB – Noticing a theme here? Clearly what I’m trying to tell you is that the Ravens defense is pretty darn good.  Not only are they 1st in the NFL in forced fumbles, but they’re also first in the AFC in sacks, they hold the QB to the lowest rating in the league, and have allowed only 11 passing touchdowns this season, which, as you may have guessed is also best in the league.  Those rankings are scary if you’re a Patriot fan, but fear not! The Pats offensive line is getting healthy at just the right time, and consists of three pro-bowlers, as well as a rookie who’s played well beyond expectations this season.  They held the Broncos sackless in the massacre on Saturday night, and they’ve only allowed 11 sacks over their last five games.

Contain Ray Rice – You can’t stop him, you can only HOPE to contain him. Ray Rice leads the league in yards from scrimmage, and is fourth in total touchdowns with 15 rushing and receiving scores this season.  I don’t think there’s even a slim chance that the Pats neutralize this guy, but they must hope that the can at least keep him from having a monster game.  In the four Baltimore losses, Rice was able to get up over 100 total yards only once in a 34-14 loss to San Diego in week 14.  Additionally, the fourth year back carried the ball 13 times or less in five contests this year.  Four of those five were in losing efforts, and the fifth was in a 37-7 blowout where he saw his playing time cut down.  New England must get a lead early to force the Ravens into passing situations and keep Rice from getting his carries.

Return that Kick – Neither team will score on every possession in this game, so the kicking game will be important for both sides.  The Ravens special teams unit allows 12 yards per return on punts, and New England will need every one of those yards.  If the Pats offense gets held down, and they will occasionally, they’ll need to at least push the ball up close to midfield in order to get the Ravens pinned close to their own goal line.  The Ravens have really struggled to sustain long touchdown drives this season, managing a measly eight of more than 80 yards, only one of which came after week 9.  Field goals simply will not be enough to take down Brady and the Pats, so if New England pins them deep they’ll have a good shot.  Proof is in the pudding.

Feed the Beast – New England is 14-3 on the season, and they largely got that record using their large body.  Rob Gronkowski has been a match-up nightmare for every team in the league so far, and there’s no reason to think that that will be any different this weekend.  With no running game or deep threat, many in the sports media world discounted New Endgland’s convention defying offense.  But they persist, and it is this sportscasters opinion that they should hold true.  Why mess with a good thing? Gronk has 17 touchdowns and is averaging a ridiculous 14.7 yards per catch.  Get him the ball as often as you can, and you’ve got a great chance of winning.

Ultimately, I think the Patriots will be able to score 30, and even with a weak Patriot defense, I can’t imagine that Joe Flacco will be able to muster up enough offense to take down New England.  It’s going to be an ugly, physical, bloody battle, but it’s gonna be so much fun to watch.  Ray Lewis vs. Tom Brady for a chance to go to the Super Bowl? Sign me up.  Final: 31-23 New England

Defending Offense

  By Chris Speziale | 01/04/2012 - 2:11 pm | Musings
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These three guys lead the leagues best offenses. Will the O be enough to get them to Indy for Superbowl XLVI?

I’ve been hearing a lot about the Patriots lack of defensive prowess, and the hindrance that that might become down the line in the NFL playoffs, which start this weekend.  The Pats are ranked 31st in total defense, and have allowed a whopping 293 yards per game through the air to opposing offenses.  But what’s getting lost in all of this is that they’ve got the most potent offensive attack in the AFC, and they lead the conference in both point differential and turnover margin.

When the Saints made that improbable run to win the Superbowl in ’09, guess where they ranked in those two categories: first in differential and third turnover margin.  They had a top three offense, a middle of the road defense, and the number one seed in a highly competitive NFC Playoff that featured four future Hall of Fame QB’s; Favre, Rodgers, Warner and Brees.  The major difference between the ’09 Saints and the ’11 Pats? New England has, arguably, an easier road to the Superbowl!

New England won eight in a row down the stretch to ensure that as long as they were playing, they’d be playing at home, where they’ve lost only three times since 2008.  And while I’m not one to make guarantees, I’m going out on a limb and calling it now: New England will take on either the Steelers or Ravens to get to the Superbowl this year, and neither of those teams scare me. Pittsburgh is banged up at some key positions and may have already gone through two tough road games before getting to Gillette. Baltimore has struggled with offensive identity this season, and while their defense is still one of the best in the game, the team is 1-6 against New England all time.  Granted, that one win came on the road in the playoffs two years ago.

But let’s step away from the AFC for a second.  As the NFL season progressed and the Packers rattled off win after win after win in the NFC, they were pretty much crowned as the most likely repeat champs since the 2004 Pats.  But here’s the wild thing…they’re D is worse than New England’s.  So while all of the acclaim and hype was following the cheeseheads around during the regular season, opposing offenses continued to slowly figure out how to score on these guys which finally led to an abysmal week 17 performance against the Lions where they allowed 575 yards of total offense and 41 points. They rank dead last in yards allowed and passing yards allowed, while hanging around the middle third of the league in rush yards and points against. Their pass rush is suspect, they have some holes in the secondary, and the health of a couple of key defensive starters is in question heading into postseason play.

So if it’s so much of a slam dunk that the Pack will be representing the NFC with all those holes, why aren’t the Pats getting the same kind of love? The two teams almost seem like mirror images in different conferences.  And if it happens the way I think it will, the Pack and the Pats will meet in a rematch of Superbowl XXXI, and we’ll have one of the highest scoring title games in the history of the big game.  The record currently stands at 75 combined points, and we may beat that by the third quarter.

The modern cliché is that defense wins championships, and as it stands, never in the history of the league have the two worst regular season defenses played each other in the Superbowl.  But this is the year of the offense, and with McCarthy and Rodgers in the NFC, and Belichick and Brady in the AFC, how can you not root for it?

Trade Bait

  By Chris Speziale | 07/19/2011 - 11:58 am | Musings
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We knew they'd hit, but could the Sox starters hold it down?

The sights, and sounds, and smells of summer are in full swing, but it feels like Christmas!  Christmas in July, that is.  The Major League Baseball non-waiver trading deadline is under two weeks away, and it’s no secret that July 31st is one of my favorite days of the year.  It takes a lot to win a World Series Championship, and most teams don’t have all the pieces right at the outset.  The trading deadline allows the major players in the league to go out and get those missing pieces that they hope will put them over the top.  The coverage is always completely ridiculous, and now with most of the “insiders” using Twitter, this season promises to be even more in your face.  It’s exciting to follow along to see where the pieces land, which is why it’s so hard for me to say that the Sox need to stand pat.  Momentum can swing in a huge way after this day has come and gone, but as we approach this yearly shift in baseball, a warning: don’t sell the farm.

 

The Red Sox are in first place in the A.L. East, and show no signs of slowing down over the last three months of the season.  There are a number of positions that are producing at numbers that don’t quite live up to expectations, but we’re alright.  With a one game lead and 68 games to play in the season, the Red Sox will pick up major pieces without having to trade for anyone.  If you run down the roster, there are two positions that you could highlight as trouble spots for the Sox as they head down the stretch—starting-pitching and right field.

 

As we entered the season, the offense was supposed to be monstrous, and it has been.  So why mess?  Yes, JD Drew has been lackluster at best in right, but with Josh Reddick knocking the cover off the ball, we’ve got a nice platoon out there in right. The two big guns on the trade market, Carlos Beltran and Ryan Ludwick, wouldn’t provide enough of an upgrade to warrant a farm system fire sale, and there will surely be a piece that will pass through waivers later in the summer that Boston could use to spell Drew and Reddick at the 9thposition.  The Sox have scored more runs, have more extra base hits, and have the highest batting average in the majors.  They are who we thought they were, so let’s leave them be.  It’s the starting rotation that had all the question marks back in March.

 

Is Josh Beckett due for a comeback?  Which Clay Buchholz will we see to start the season?  Do Dice-K and Wakefield have anything left in the tank?  And finally, was the worst free agent pitching contract in Red Sox history signed by John Lackey?  Now that we’ve gone through two-thirds of the season, we can answer a number of those questions.  Yes, Beckett was due for a comeback, and he has been tremendous.  Buchholz isn’t quite as good as his break-out 2010 campaign may have shown, but when healthy, he may be the best number three starter in the league.  Dice-K is done, and Wakefield is spitting straight in the face of father time.  And yes, John Lackey is just plain terrible.  All of that said—the Red Sox don’t need to go out and get a starting pitcher.

 

When Lester and Buchholz come back from the DL, and it is my personal opinion that we shouldn’t see either of them back in the bigs for at least a month, it will be like they went out and got a true number one and a true number three.  Let’s not forget here people, Boston is in first place in the toughest division in the league.  So Theo, if you’re reading, give those guys some time to get themselves right, trust the team you have, and don’t mortgage the farm to get a starting arm come the deadline.

Yooouuuuu-ouch

  By Chris Speziale | 06/22/2011 - 12:50 pm | Musings
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Kevin Youkilis is too important to the Boston Red Sox to be playing through pain in June.

Maybe I’m crazy.  Maybe I’m completely and totally out of my gourd.  Maybe I’m so wrong that it makes “The Decision” look like a good idea, but isn’t Kevin Youkilis important to the Boston Red Sox?  This seems like an almost redundant question, doesn’t it?  But if that’s truly the case, why is he being handled this way?

 

Youk has been playing through some pretty severe pain over the last ten days, as he contends with an ankle sprain of unknown severity.  For some unclear reason, Terry Francona and the Sox bigwigs have been trotting him out to play third base in meaningless early June games.  It was most evident in a game against the Milwaukee Brewers last week.  The Red Sox All-Star hit a chopper up the first base line and as he started toward the base, he clearly pulled up and grimaced in pain.  The following half inning, and every inning since, Youk has been out in the field playing a very difficult position that requires agility and a quickness on your feet that he clearly doesn’t have at the moment.

 

To his credit, and in form with his true competitive nature, he hasn’t let the ankle get the better of him. And perhaps that’s the reason that Francona has left him in games.  But it just doesn’t make sense to have your clean-up hitter playing through pain in June!  Let Youk sit for a couple games, and give one of the two Sox corner infield prospects a shot.  Better yet, let BOTH of them have a chance.

 

Drew Sutton has performed more than admirably in his time with the big club, hitting .314 while slugging .514 and committing only a single error in 17 games.  Then there’s Yamaico Navarro, who’s currently sitting on a .925 OPS in Pawtucket while playing the hot corner for the Sox.

 

Here’s my thought: Put Youk on the 15-day DL and call up Navarro.  Insert Navarro against lefties, and Sutton against righties.  The minor leaguer is hitting over .320 against southpaws this season, while Sutton is over .340 against righties.  Hello!  This thing on?  Why risk further injury to one of your most important players, when you have two completely capable backups who could clearly benefit from playing time on the big league level?

 

I understand the argument that Youk is an integral part of the Red Sox lineup, and that he’s finally catching his stride after an excruciatingly slow start, but let me leave you with a couple more numbers to make my case.  The 2010 Red Sox were 60-44 with Kevin Youkilis in the lineup, and 29-29 without him.  The 2011 version will need to play better than .500 ball if they hope to stay ahead of a very talented Yankee team and a very resilient Tampa team.  Can Theo and Tito really risk losing this guy?  I say no, hot hitter or not.

Zen and the Art of Becoming a Sports Broadcaster

  By Chris Speziale | 06/14/2011 - 3:45 pm | Musings
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Mascoting for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks

My story is a strange one.  Growing up in Massachusetts, and having a sports obsessed family led me to my great love of all things Boston sports.  I’ve rooted for the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots and Red Sox my entire life.  But growing up, I never imagined I’d be where I am today…in the heart of New York City.  Our most loathed rivals across all four of the major professional American sports.  And while sports were a huge part of my upbringing, I didn’t set out to do what I’m doing today.

While in high school I was coaxed into auditioning for the school play in the fall of my freshman year.  I got a small part and fell in love with the idea of theater.  I would go on to audition for and be cast in all eight of the school’s productions during my four high school years.  I loved it.  I loved being on stage, making people laugh, and think, and cry.  I loved the adrenaline rush I would get walking onstage for the first time each night.  All of this led me to audition for acting programs at the collegiate level.  And this is where we get to New York.

I ended up at a small branch of Long Island University (C.W. Post) in Brookville, New York.  They aren’t kidding when they say that your college years are the best of your life.  I made amazing, lifelong friends, learned a ton, and performed in some pretty incredible pieces of theater.  But the one thing that I never took away from college was what to do when I graduated.  My school did a tremendous job of building my talent and confidence both on and off stage, but when it came time to go out into the mean streets of New York City (the artistic haven of thousands of wannabe actors), I was lost.

I bounced around the Off-Off-Off Broadway scene for five years before I decided that enough was enough.  I did a lot of work that I was very proud of in that time, but it was never enough to get me to that next level, or pocket a decent paycheck.  I decided that it was time that I go back to the thing that I loved most as a kid.  Sports.

The Molloy Days

The first step was education.  Having an acting background certainly helped when the microphone turned on and the camera’s started rolling, but I knew that there was so much more that I would need to know, so I turned to Hofstra’s Summer Sportcasting Institute.  I enrolled in a week-long intensive training course, taught by the legendary Ed Ingles and co-facilitated by a number of broadcasters close to my own age.  I would come to learn that, aside from your voice and viewpoint, networking is the best tool that a broadcaster has.  I used the connections that I made at the Institute to get jobs at Molloy College, St. Johns University, Fios 1 Sports, and CUNY TV, among others.  But why podcasting?  Why now?  The answer is quite simple really.  Exposure.

The media market is over-saturated with sports coverage, but in order to make it in this business, you need to find a way to get your voice out into the world.  A lot of companies will pass you over if you don’t have experience, but without those same companies, you can’t get the experience that they require.  So you put in the time, the hard work, and dedication, to make it happen for yourself.  That’s where The Rebel Podcast comes in.

"The Hawk's Nest"

I know Boston sports, but I don’t get the same media that a Boston fan living in Massachusetts would get.  Being in New York I get an interesting viewpoint into the world of “The Nation,” and it’s my goal to share what’s being said about our favorite teams outside of the bubble that we call New England.  I hope that if you listen or read, you’ll enjoy.  I hope that I can stir up some things that perhaps you hadn’t thought about before, and most of all, I hope that you come away feeling more confident about your knowledge of our teams and the rivals you love to hate.

Thanks for your time,

Chris Speziale

Loathing Luongo’s Linguistics

  By Chris Speziale | 06/13/2011 - 4:43 pm | Musings, Predictions
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Roberto Luongo may have just disturbed the sleeping bear....

Roberto Luongo may have made the gravest mistake of his career on Friday.  After Vancouver’s 1-0 victory at the Rogers Centre, the Canuck goalie made comments in his post-game press conference criticizing his Bruins counterpart.  Tim Thomas played his usual aggressive style in Game 5, and it cost him dearly in the final period of play.  With over 13 minutes remaining, a hard shot off the end boards from the right point deflected right to the waiting stick of Maxim Lapierre, who had all day to bury the puck in the back of the net.  Thomas had been out of the paint, trying to cut down the angle on the shot from the point, and it led to the game’s only goal.

 

The issue at hand isn’t at all about Thomas being out of position, but rather how are Thomas’ teammates going to take to the Vancouver goalie calling him out?  On a scale of “One to Rex Ryan”, Luongo’s comments probably rank right around a six.  In reference to making the save that Thomas couldn’t, “an easy save for me, but if you’re wandering out and aggressive like [Thomas] is, that’s going to happen.”  It wasn’t the grandest of shots, but the media heard it.  The players heard it.  And the fans heard it.

 

If you think this physical Bruins team is going to stand by and let another team take shots at the heart and soul of their team, you’ve got another think coming.  The B’s have played well at home (as Luongo could certainly tell you) and will need to force the Canucks to play their style when the puck drops at TD Garden tonight.  Boston has continuously started off on the wrong foot when hitting the road for Vancouver in this series, and they know it.

 

If the Stanley Cup is going to come back to Boston for the first time since 1972, the Bruins will need to establish their aggressive style early and hope that they can carry it through six more periods of play.  The bad news for Vancouver?  They may have just given the Bruins that extra little fire to carry them through.  Remember what happened after Nathan Horton went down with his concussion; the Bruins played inspired hockey for the rest of that Game 3 and into Game 4.  Now you’re messing with Papa bear, and Papa bear and his teammates won’t take it lying down.

Melo Madness

  By Chris Speziale | 02/23/2011 - 2:55 pm | Musings
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It was written in the stars. Well, it's more like DEMANDED in the stars. Yah, that makes a little more sense.

Well, it finally happened—Carmelo Anthony got traded to the Knicks. And even though this thing has dragged on for months, upon months, upon MONTHS…I’m still extremely intrigued by the whole process. There are three aspects of the trade and its surrounding implications that had me scratching my head.

 

The first issue is the trade itself. The Knicks have been so bad for so long, that a near .500 record had Madison Square Garden in a tizzy. But you need to look at it this way: With that same .500 record they would be out of the playoffs in the West. The Knicks have taken advantage of a very weak Eastern Conference, having won 18 of their 28 games against the bottom dwellers in the East.

 

Now with Melo in the fold, the New York fans are expecting the team to win immediately. And the Knicks are sure to improve, but that improvement aside, they still don’t have the talent or depth to take down one of the East powerhouses, let alone the three they’d need to beat, to make the NBA Finals. What Knick diehards are going to need to come to grips with is that this is still a rebuilding team.

 

New York put all its eggs into the Lebron basket and came out of the sweepstakes with very little to show for it. Now they’ve got some cap space, and they’ve got two fantastic pieces, but as the Celtics (and now the Heat) have proved—it takes three. The general notion in the sporting world is that either Deron Williams or Chris Paul will be joining the team when they hit free agency in 2012, which is all well and good, but it doesn’t lead to winning in the 2010-2011 season. It does, however, lead me to my next point.

 

How is it that we have gotten to the point where players can dictate where and how they get to their next destination? I understand the years of service business, and that players have a right to determine where they want to play, but I’m still confused about how the power to put a team together got taken away from the owners, general managers, and coaches.

Look at what happened in Miami. Look at what ALMOST happened with Chris Paul in New Orleans. And now this with Carmelo. More and more we’re seeing players colluding in back rooms and having secret “summits” to put their own super-teams together. Forgive me if I’m speaking out of turn here, but doesn’t that take ALL the fun out of the off-season? If it’s all predetermined, then what’s the point? My hope is that the new CBA being hammered out by the NBA and the Players Association will address this because it’s truly getting out of hand. If the league isn’t careful they’ll end up with six good teams, in the six good markets, and lousy teams throughout the rest of the country

 

In 2008, the Celtics went out and got Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to team up with Paul Pierce in Boston. The three amigos turned the Celtics around so dramatically that every team in the NBA is now trying to duplicate it. Here’s the difference: the Celtics front office went out and GOT Allen and KG. There was no posturing from Garnett. Allen didn’t come out and say that he was going to refuse a contract extension from Seattle. Boston made a plan, and then they went out and made it happen.

 

Here’s the part where I sound kind of like a hypocrite. The third aspect of this whole ordeal that caught my attention was that Melo did this completely right! Yes, it’s ridiculous that players are setting themselves up with other players to create incredible teams. But at the same time, Carmelo Anthony did right by his previous organization by letting them know that he had no interest in re-signing. Loosing a superstar to free agency can be brutal for an organization. All I need do is remind you of “The Decision” this past summer.

 

Lebron James was absolutely skewered by the media, the fans, and even the players in some cases. And for leaving the Cavaliers the way he did, he had every reason to be. Now I’m not trying to compare Cleveland to Denver—the Rocky Mountain sports fan has had a LOT more to cheer about lately—but imagine a world where Carmelo keeps his mouth shut until the end of the year and then bolts from Denver to the Big Apple. The Nuggets are stuck rebuilding for the next seven years if that’s the case. Instead, this savvy player sits down with his GM and says, “Get whatever you can for me. I’ve appreciated my time here, but I need to move on.” And they did—Denver got a great haul for Carmelo from New York.

 

What bugs me is the guy is getting roasted for it, and I think it was a classy move. Would it have been even classier for him to say that he’d go to wherever the Nuggets front office could get the best deal? Oh, yah. You bet. But that’s what we should be riding him for. Not for giving his former team—a team that drafted him top-five in the first round in 2003—a chance to get pieces back, but for restricting their options.

 

Melo will take the floor for the first time in a Knicks uniform tonight against the Bucks, and the Garden will surely be electric as they usher in a new era of Knicks basketball. It will certainly be interesting to see how quickly their two stars gel. But while the players get it together on the court, don’t let your eyes stray too far away from the fans, the owners and the media. They all play a huge role in this as well.

 

Obituary: 2010 New England Patriots

  By Chris Speziale | 10/08/2010 - 8:04 pm | Musings, Predictions
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It'll be halloween when Randy comes back to Gillette. But that purple outfit won't be a costume, it'll be a nightmarish reminder of what they let go.

Well, it’s been a while since I’ve thrown something up on the site. But I can be silent no longer. My beloved New England Patriots made, I think, one of the most heinous mistakes in a decade. Think back, if you will, to 2004 when we were talking about the Pats as a dynasty. They had won 3 of the last 5 Superbowls, and they started the season as the favorite to make it 4 in 6. Well, of course, that didn’t happen. New England won the division, wrecked the Jags in the Wild Card round before getting walloped themselves by the Broncos in Denver. This is when it started. The naysayers descended on the New England clubhouse. Deion Branch held out and was ultimately traded to the Seahawks for a first rounder. And everyone wondered who would catch passes from Tom Brady. The answer wasn’t the one that New England fans expected; the Pats brass held firm and kept the receiving corp the way it was. The 2006 leading receiver for the Patriots was Reche Caldwell. RECHE CALDWELL! He finished with just under 800 yards and 4 touchdowns. And despite all of that, the Patriots made it all the way to Indy, where they lost a heartbreaker to the Colts in the AFC title game.

 

Something had to change. And who better to make that change than Randy Moss. Fresh off the plane from Oakland, he was talking a big game. He yammered on and on about how this was a great fit for him because he wanted to win a championship. He had the right attitude, he looked motivated and in shape, and it appeared that the Pats had just completely changed their offense. Tom Brady was (and still is) the king of the screen. Now he had a deep target, and boy did he use it. All Moss did in his first season with the Patriots was catch 98 passes for over 1400 yards and 23 touchdowns. Are you kidding me? And yes, everyone and their mom knows what happened at the end of the 18-1 season. The helmet catch, the sieve that was the Patriots offensive line, and the NRA spokesman, Plaxico Burress, who stole the perfect season from New England. You may have thought, like I did, that that was it for Randy. That things would have gone sour in the Patriots locker room. That he’d whine and complain. After all, this is the guy whose own ego and complacent attitude got him run out of his two previous homes. But no, to everyone’s surprise, he came back the next season ready to roll. And had Brady not gone down with that knee injury, we could be talking right now about the Perfect Patriots of 2008. But he did, and even still, with Cassel at quarterback and Wes Welker emerging as the best possession receiver in the NFL, he had over a thousand yards and more touchdowns than anyone on the team.

 

Randy Moss is a hall of famer and will go down as the greatest deep threat receiver in the history of the NFL. No one will challenge his single season touchdown receptions record for years and years. And now he’s gone. Not only is it sad from a nostalgic Pats fan perspective, it straight up just killed the season for the Patriots, and I’ll tell you why. New England could basically do whatever they wanted on offense when Randy was between the lines. They could run him out deep to open the middle for Welker or Edelman, they could send him on crossing routes, they could put him in motion to confuse the secondary, the possibilities were endless. The passing game was lethal, and Brady was a masterful wizard running it. After a quarter of passing the ball, the Pats could run play-action for the rest of game. Opposing defenses never knew what hit ‘em. Not only could he catch just about anything that was thrown his way, Randy made people better. An example: the 2007 Patriots ran the ball for over 1800 yards, with Maroney (overrated), Morris (never could get it together to have a break-out year), and Faulk (much better catching the ball out of the backfield). You could never load up the box to stop the run on these guys, because Moss would absolutely murder you down the field. Cut back to the 2010 team with BenJarvus Green-Ellis, the same unexplosive Morris, and some undrafted kid out of Division II Chadron State. You can essentially count the run game out. Which leads us to the now Moss-less receiving corp.

 

Welker will now be the focal point of this Patriots offense, and every team will know it. Will he still have over a hundred catches this season? You bet he will. Problem is—with Moss gone, the opposing secondary can bring safety help over the top to cut down on his yards after the catch. This’ll limit the amount of first downs New England is able to get without relying on that weak running attack to convert on short yardage scenarios. I’ve read a lot over the last couple of days about the Patriots trading draft picks for a different team-first wide receiver, and every article just makes me lol (that’s right Mr. Anderson-Hewitt, I put it in a column). The day that Bill Belichick trades away draft picks in the middle of a season is the day I streak naked through Times Square. It’s just not going to happen. And that leaves us with Welker, Edelman, and Brandon Tate. Has Tate shown that he has the talent and speed to be an impact player in the NFL? Hells yes, but that doesn’t mean that you can count on him to be your deep guy down the field. And until he proves himself capable of filling Moss’ shoes, the Patriots are in a whole heap of trouble.