Rubio would take Pau Gasol on his team

Minnesota Timberwolves guard, Ricky Rubio is standing up for Los Angeles Lakers forward Pau Gasol. Rubio doesn't think it's right that Gasol is being brought off the bench and playing limited fourth quarter minutes in some games. Rubio or Gasol don't think it's right that Earl Clark has been starting in his place.

Gasol has also been the subject of trade rumors the past two years and Rubio would gladly take him on his  Timberwolves squad if the Lakers don't want him.

 "He proved to the league he is one of the best," Rubio said. "He can pass. He can shoot. He can rebound. He can do a lot of things. I think if you use him in the right way he is a top player in this league. If they don't want him, we are more than welcome to get him."

"It's been the last two years that it seems like they don't want him, but actually they need him," Rubio said. "He's a great player. He can do a lot of things and he had some issues with the knees, too. It's been a lot of years without resting for him. But he's a veteran. He knows how to play."

Even though Gasol is having a tough year, the Timberwolves would have to give up something of significant value (Kevin Love) to get Gasol. Minnesota has been mentioned as a possible trade partner, but I don't see it happening. No matter how much Rubio wants his fellow countryman on his team.

Gasol has said that he wants to remain a Laker, but he must swallow his pride and just play ball. Maybe if he focused on that and blocked out his distractions, he and the Lakers can turn their season around.

Herman Edwards says Titans should cut Kenny Britt

The Tennessee Titans must really be desperate for receivers. The team currently employs Nate Washington and Kendall Wright and the troubled Kenny Britt. A corps to build on, but Britt shouldn't be there.

Britt has had nine brushes with the law since being drafted by the Titans in the first round in 2009. That would include his latest where he took a friend, who had been stabbed to the hospital in the wee hours of the morning. Britt refused to cooperate with the police after the incident.

Former NFL head coach and current ESPN analyst, Herman Edwards told 102.5 The Game's Darren McFarland that Britt has become a distraction for the Titans and needs to be cut.


“What players don't realize is this: It's not so much your problem, it becomes the locker room's problem. Because the media come in and say, 'what do you think about Kenny Britt?' You don't even want to talk about Kenny Britt. You've got your own issues as a player. I'm trying to get ready for the Saints, and you want to talk about Kenny Britt?” Edward said. “So now you become the guy. And I always tell players, don't be that guy where all of a sudden what you're doing off the field is more important than our preparation for the week.

“So the Titans, in my opinion are gonna have to make a decision of what's best for the organization and that might even help Kenny Britt. Kenny Britt needs to be cut. When you get cut, and you can't play anymore, it's amazing because you go, 'They cut me?' Yeah, they cut you. And sometimes you have to do that not only for the sake of the team, but also for the sake of the player.”

I agree with Edwards on his take. Britt and the Titans need to part ways. But if the Titans are willing to put up with Britt's immaturity off the field, so be it. Somehow the team will pay the price for keeping him around. I guess when a team is devoid of playmakers, they'll keep you around, even if you're constantly in trouble.

'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.

     

Matt Damon: Ravens only won because of injuries

Every team in sports has injuries. You'll never hear a coach say injuries was a reason for a loss no matter how true the statement might be. Think about it, you never heard former Cincinnati Bearcats coach, Bob Huggins, say that Kenyon Martin's blown knee cost him a national championship. The excuse is made for fans of a certain team and actor Matt Damon proves it.

Damon is a New England Patriots fan, who happened to blow the AFC championship game to the Baltimore  Ravens. To me the Ravens picked them off a year late, but no one on the Ravens blamed Lee Evans for dropping a surefire touchdown pass. But Damon has a reason why the Ravens went to the Super Bowl and not the Patriots. Injuries.

Damon says that if the Patriots were completely healthy, the Patriots and not the Ravens would be going to the Super Bowl.


"Lotta injuries," Damon said ... "They couldn't beat us full strength."

Sounds like he's using the Dan Gronkowski injury as a crutch for the loss. While it's true that cornerback Aqib Talib and Stevan Ridley were hurt, their injuries happened during game action. So that won't fly with Ravens fans.

When asked for his rooting interest in the Super Bowl, Damon replied, “I’m going for a healthy New England team, that’s the best team in the country, [Baltimore and San Francisco] are both pretty good. They’re like the same team, real similar.”

Spoken like a true fan.

Paul Pierce says Celtics lack mental toughness

The Boston Celtics are clearly a team in transition. Once a team dominated by the Big Three (Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett), the Celtics are now a mix of veterans and youngsters with point guard Rajon Rondo being the bridge. The result so far hasn't been pretty. The Celtics currently stand at 20-21 with losses to the lowly Detroit Pistons and Cleveland Cavaliers the last two games. Not the kind of results Celtic fans have been accustomed to the past five years.

Pierce, who has seen both the good and the bad, has spoken out about the team's current four game skid. Pierce told Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe that the Celtics are lacking the mental toughness of teams past.  Not exactly a ringing endorsement of your teammates.


“I think we got pieces here,” the Celtics captain said before Tuesday night’s 95-90 loss to the Cavaliers. “We just got to come together. We got to figure this thing out. Can’t get discouraged.

“I think that’s the one thing this team lacks, that mental toughness, man. When we lose our confidence, I’ve never been on teams like that. We got to stay together, we got to play with confidence.

“Yeah, definitely, it hurts me to say that. It’s like I really sometimes don’t believe it.

“We get down on ourselves. We got to go out there and believe we can win every game. It’s tough sometimes.”

Now Pierce has been on some bad Celtic teams prior to the arrival of Allen (now with the Miami Heat) and Garnett, and this one isn't quite as bad, but it's probably wearing thin on Pierce's patience for the young pups to grow up.

There's still another half of basketball to play and it'll be interesting to see if GM Danny Ainge will make a deal to keep the team competitive, let things play out, or blow it up altogehter.