'It Girl' of the week: Christine LeMaster

The 'It Girl' of the week is Christine Lemaster

Rodriguez says some players had a sense of entitlement during his time at Michigan

It's no secret that Rich Rodriguez still harbors some ill feelings about his time at Michigan. Who wouldn't after he was sabotaged as soon as he was named the coach. Granted, he should stop talking about his time in Ann Arbor and concentrate on the task he has in Tucson. It seems like every time he does an interview he talks about something that happened at Michigan.

During an interview with Matt Hayes of the Sporting News, Rodriguez told Hayes that he felt some of the players had at Michigan had a sense of entitlement. Once again another reason why he failed in his tenure at Michigan.

“We got total buy-in from the get-go here,” Rodriguez said. “From the players to the support staff to everybody that was touching the program. We had some guys committed at Michigan, but we had others that weren’t. Some guys felt a sense of entitlement. The name on the chest, and 'I’ve already arrived.'

“The Chad Hennes and the Jake Longs put the work in and succeeded before us, and guys behind them thought they were entitled to the same status but hadn’t proved anything.” 

Rodriguez just didn't fit what the old 'Michigan Men' wanted, therefore it was a bad marriage from the start. Only someone with a wealth of knowledge would know that. There are some that blame those horrible three years on Rodriguez. I refuse to do that. But Rodriguez needs to move on and let his Michigan experience stay in the past.

5 NBA players I feel sorry for

It's difficult to feel sorry for professional athletes given how much money they make. As a fan you do feel sorry for a few. Not because of something semi tragic that might've happened in their lives, but you know they'll never come close to winning a championship. I compiled a list of 5 NBA players that I actually feel sorry for. Even though you'll never know these players on a personal level these players seem like good guys who'll never win.

1. Steve Nash, Los Angeles Lakers- I made this list specifically for Nash. After being on good teams that seemed to get  stonewalled in the playoffs (Suns, Mavericks), it looked like Nash would finally get a chance to play for an NBA title when he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Right now it looks like that assessment was wrong. I know there's another half of basketball to be played, the Lakers are in danger of missing the playoffs. Nash has to be thinking "I didn't sign up for this". The Lakers are under .500 and have been filled with drama from the word go.

I feel sorry for Nash because he is a good team guy and it looks like he'll never get a chance to play for a championship. He doesn't have too many seasons left and I hate to see him go out like this.


2. Al Jefferson, Utah Jazz- Jefferson is a good player. Not a major star, but could be a solid number two on a contender. Problem is, Jefferson has never been on a team resembling a contender ( bad Celtics teams, Timberwolves, Jazz). And you can always look for him to get hurt.  

Jefferson seems like an everyman. He just goes and does his job in a workmanlike fashion. He's not spectacular but he finds a way to get his numbers, even though the team loses more than it wins. I have no problem with Jefferson, but if he gets traded again I'm afraid it'll be to another bad team that has no clue on how to build a team.


3. LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland Trail Blazers- See Al Jefferson. More athletic but just trapped on a Blazers team trying to build with young talent. At one point it looked like the Blazers had a team of the future until injuries ravaged them and they were forced to start over.

The rebuilding project in Portland seems to be off to good start with Nicolas Batum and Damian Lillard riding shotgun. The Blazers will need a few more weapons to get Aldridge off this list.


4. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls- Looks like his path to an NBA title will forever be blocked by the Big 3 in Miami.


5. Chris Bosh, Miami Heat- Not much to say here. It's hard to feel sorry for someone with a championship on their resume. But Bosh will always be known as the third wheel in Miami.