Last week, I ran the first ever NBA Draft Contest and it went fairly well. Congratulations to NLee aka TheGuyThatJackedUpMyKnee for his win. The entries had eight correct picks, but he won with his tiebreaker answer. What I want to do now is a little different. I want to have the readers participate a little more. I want this to be a bit more interactive than most sites. Here is what I want you to do: I want you, the reader, to send me an article on your favorite athlete or athletes. I will then post those entries on the site. This is not a contest, but more of a "getting to know you" session. The length does not matter. All I ask is that you leave out as much profanity as possible, kids read my site apparently! There you have it, I'm giving everyone out there an opportunity to voice their opinion and to show off their literary skills. You can send your entries to me at ardthomp@iupui.edu There is no deadline to this, so send them in at your own pace. Thanks
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Just a game past the halfway mark and Oakland has definitely exceeded all of the preseason expectations. Before the season started, I said that if Oakland wins 70 games this season, then Bob Geren should win the Manager of the Year award. Well, after 81 games, Oakland stood at 44-37 and only 4.5 games out of first place going into a series with the first place Angels. There have been some major surprises so far this season. Some have been good, like Justin Duchscherer and his 1.91 ERA. Some have not been so good, like the struggles of Travis Buck and Daric Barton at the plate. Through it all, the A's have managed to keep on moving forward. Whether it is the offense carrying the team to victory, or the pitching shutting down the opposition, the team somehow manages to put together wins. The All-Star break is coming up soon and teams will start jockeying for playoff position. I can't imagine my surprise if Oakland snuck into the playoffs. I just hope that Billy Beane doesn't start shipping out players if they lose some ground. I really like this team and I think they could be great within the next few years.
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That is what Larry Bird keeps on saying. Regarding the Jermaine O'Neal for TJ for trade, "It's all speculation." What did Bird think of trading Jerryd Bayless and Ike Diogu to Portland for Brandon Rush, Jarret Jack, and Josh McRoberts? "It's all speculation right now." I think he has set a world record for the amount of times a person has said the world "speculation" in a 7 day span. Well, if all the speculation is indeed true, then the Pacers' roster will take on a very different look. Here is a look at the players coming to Indiana: TJ Ford Rasho Nesterovic Jarret Jack Brandon Rush (13th pick) Roy Hibbert (17th pick) Josh McRoberts Maceo Baston While adding seven players, the Pacers traded away: Jermaine O'Neal Ike Diogu Jerryd Bayless (11th pick) Nathan Jawai (41st pick) Larry Bird said that he would like to have two point guards by the end of the week and he went out and got two point guards. Although, Indiana drafted Bayless, I assumed that he had his two point guards. But, Bird also said that he wanted to draft players that would come in and play right away and not have to worry about developing them as much. In other words, he didn't want "project" players. With the new additions, several players on the Pacers' roster could be on their way out of town. The list includes Marquis Daniels, Jamal Tinsley, Shawne Williams, and Troy Murphy. I would try and give you an updated starting lineup, but at this point, "It's all speculation."
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On Monday I told you that a trade rumor had surfaced involving the Toronto Raptors and the Indiana Pacers. Yesterday, Larry Bird denied the rumor and even said they were not talking to Toronto, but said that they could pull the trigger on a certain trade any time this week. Well, this afternoon, the trigger was pulled and the Pacers sent Jermaine O'Neal to the Toronto Raptors for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, and the 17th pick in this year's draft. Here is how I think the trade breaks down for the Pacers: TJ Ford - provides a point guard that can run the up-tempo style of offense that Jim O'Brien wants. He distributes the ball, but can penetrate when needed. If Ford gets into the lane, he can then kick the ball out to Mike Dunleavy and Danny Granger, two players who are more than capable of knocking down the three ball. Rasho Nesterovic - serviceable big man that has an expiring contract. He isn't going to create match up problems for the opposition, nor will he average 20 and 10, but he is a big man that can average a nice 8 (points), 8 (boards), and 6 (fouls). 17th pick - This pick gives Indiana plenty of flexibility in the draft. Armed with the 11th pick already, Indiana can add two players that can step in and play right away. Larry Bird said that he wants players that aren't "project" players and he will target players that can contribute while playing major minutes. I think now, the Pacers are in position to draft the best player available with each pick. I think they might target Brandon Rush and Roy Hibbert with the two first round picks. Then possibly, they could take George Hill out of IUPUI with the 41st pick. This trade definitely tells the fans that they are serious about turning the team around sooner rather than later.
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 I've been laying here for the last half an hour thinking about the career of Ken Griffey Jr. Why? I don't really know. Maybe it is because I just got done playing MLB 08 The Show on my PS3, in which I have a franchise going with the Reds. I'm sure that has something to do with it, but I think it is mostly because he is one of the last athletes still playing from when I was a kid and it was easy to get attached to your sports "heroes." I know he is still a few years away from retiring from the great game of baseball, but I can't help but to think that the day he does retire, I will lose more than another hero. With each day passing us by, growing older, I slip further and further away from my past, from my childhood. Is there really anything more innocent than youth? How many of us out there "adopted" an athlete as our hero when we were growing up? Exactly how many of those heroes did I have? Well, there was Darryl Strawberry, Rickey Henderson, Reggie Miller, Barry Sanders, Ozzie Smith, Andre Dawson, and then there was "The Kid." I can remember my friends and I buzzing over Jr's 1989 Upper Deck rookie card. Which one of us would get it first? Would we strike it rich in a pack, or would we have to save up for it and buy it from the card shop? I honestly couldn't tell you which one of us wound up getting it first, but I can remember trying to contain my excitement when my dad brought home a box of Upper Deck baseball cards for my birthday. I just KNEW that I would find it in the box. IT WAS MY BIRTHDAY FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! I HAD TO STRIKE GOLD ON THAT DAY! But, at the end of all my shredding open pack after pack looking for the elusive card, I walked away hurt, disappointed, and about as pissed as a 9 year old can really be in this world. I didn't cry and I didn't complain, because I still loved the fact that my dad bought me baseball cards. As a matter of fact, I was only 10 or so cards away from the set after that day. Eventually I got the card (begged Mom to buy it for me for Christmas) and I was official. I had THE CARD for my collection. To this day, I'm not sure if I even cared if Ken Griffey Jr turned out to be any good, I just wanted the card. Then, I saw him play.  As a 9 or 10 year old, watching him play was one of the most amazing things to me. Was there anyone more exciting on defense? Flying through the air, crashing into walls, robbing home runs, this was the kind of stuff kids wanted to do when they played little league. My brother and I would throw fly balls to each other just out of our reach so we could try and dive or slide for them. We would try and replay his swing when he hit home runs. Ken Griffey Jr gave us someone close to our age to root for. We watched Sportscenter constantly (that still hasn't changed) to see if he made a highlight catch the night before. Did he hit one of those towering Kingdome homers while we were asleep? Today, Griffey sits at 601 home runs for his career. A number that says so much about his ability, but that same number fails to indicate what could have been. If not for the time lost, there is no doubt in my mind that The Kid would be breaking the all time home run record very soon. Heck, he may have already had it by now and would just be adding to it. 601 times he has graced baseball fans with one of the most powerful, graceful, and sweetest swings in the history of the game. 601 times he has rounded the bases with fans applauding him, living vicariously through him. We can't get back the days that have passed us by, but we can try to remember them as much as possible. I'll never forget trying to find that card, because without that, I would have missed out on one of my childhood heroes, and that in itself, would have been a shame. So, for the next few years, I am going to enjoy watching Griffey play out the remainder of his career and hope that that game of baseball treats him as well as he treated it. I just don't know if I'll be ready to say goodbye to The Kid with the infectious smile, the highlight reel defense, the sweet swing....and my childhood.
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Some entries are starting to come in now, so I am going to go ahead and start posting them. Remember, you have until Midnight tonight to get the entries in. Let's take a look at who has who going where: draftcontest08v2.xlsx
Let me know if you can't read it and I will save it as an older version of Excel. Good luck!
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Here are the rules again. Have fun and good luck! The rules are simple: 1. Make your picks in a Word document or on ESPN's Draft Machine
and email them to me at ardthomp@iupui.edu. If you create your picks
on the Draft Machine, be sure to create a "permalink" so I can see your
picks. 2. Label your email in the subject line as "Draft Contest." 3.
For each correct pick, the contestant will receive 1 point. The
contestant with the most correct picks wins...simple enough. 4.
Credit will be given for a correct pick if a team trades out of its
position, but the player is still taken in that slot. Example: Miami
trades pick #2 to Minnesota for pick #3. Minnesota takes Michael
Beasley with pick 2. If the contestant had Beasley at #2, then they
get credit for that correct pick. 5. The tiebreaker will be: How many trades during the draft will there be? Label your answer at the bottom of your entry.6. I will contact the winner after the contest via email for their contact information in order to get their money to them. I
will collect all entries and create a collective excel sheet and start
posting them on Monday, June 23rd. The draft takes place on June 26th,
which is a Thursday. Entries can be sent from now until Tuesday, June 24th. That way, I have plenty of time to gather all entries and post them.
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According to the Indianapolis Star, the Toronto Star, and ESPN.com, the Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors are talking about a trade that would send Jermaine O'Neal to the Raptors for T.J. Ford (nice), Rasho Nesterovic (serviceable), and the Raptors first round pick (YES!!). This would be huge for Indiana. They get rid of Jermaine's HUGE contract, they gain a center than can contribute, a starting point guard, and another first round pick. The negatives to this would be that Ford's contract is longer and he is also a health risk. However, I think this trade is worth it just for the 17th pick in the first round. This would give Indiana the 11th and 17th picks, which could be used to grab the best available player with both picks. Since a point guard wouldn't really be needed at 11, a player like Brandon Rush could be had. Then at 17, a player like Robin Lopez or Marreese Speights could be grabbed up. Then again, Indiana could package both of those picks to move up in the draft and pick a player that can give them more of an impact. Maybe Indiana could swap both of those picks for the number 3 and then take who is left out of Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, or OJ Mayo. Of course, that is just a fantasy scenario, but still, if this trade goes through, the impact could be enormous for Indiana.
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