Management needs more to do

The Pittsburgh Pirates fired one of the pierogi mascot racers for criticizing the the contract extensions given to GM Neal Huntington and manager John Russell on his Facebook page. Andrew Kurtz,the perpetrator of said crime, was already under suspicion because of a violation of team rules. I wonder what those rules were. The 24 year old Kurtz was back on his feet though,given a job by the Washington(Pa.) Wild Things,an independent minor league team, as one of the racing hot dogs.Management,especially in the Pirates organization need to do better things with their time, like scouting better players for example, instead of worrying about what the racing pierogis are doing in their off time.

R.I.P. Manute Bol

The Sudanese gentle giant Manute Bol has passed away ath age 47. Bol,who starred collegiately at the University of Bridgeport,played 10 years in the NBA. The 7 foot 7 giant started his career with the Washington Bullets and went on to play for the Philadelphia 76ers,Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat.More humanitarian than player,most of his earnings went to help his native Sudan. Bol passed from acute kidney failure and Stevens-Johnson syndrome,a skin disease. Bol was a rare athlete,not from his size,but because of his efforts in his native homeland. R.I.P. to a true giant in every sense of the word.  

Call me crazy but Artest may have been Lakers' MVP

I know there will be millions calling me crazy,but Ron Artest may have been the true Finals MVP for the Lakers.It may not show in the offensive statistics, but you can't deny the job he did on Boston's Paul Pierce.Pierce who was the Finals MVP two years ago against these same Lakers, was locked up by Artest.Pierce,the self proclaimed best player in the world, really never got it going offensively in this years finals.Lacking a scorer and one on one option in the halfcourt,kinda doomed the Celtics.Kevin Garnett was a shell of himself and Ray Allen was hot for only one game.They needed Pierce to step up and Artest didn't allow him to do so,save for game 5.Besides the defensive job he did on Pierce, he also stepped up with a timely shot or two. "Crazy" Ron will never be known as an offensive force, or even a dependable option,but he showed that he can step up in the face of pressure and is a teammate that can be counted on, on both ends of the court. Kobe Bryant will always be number one in Lakerland while he's there,but at least Kobe knows Ron has his back.

Iverson wants back in

According to reports and his manager, Allen Iverson is eyeing a comeback. I say good for him. He also needs to get a clue. He clearly isn't the player he once was and doesn't have the star power he once had. I've always said that ther is a role for him in the league. That would be as a gunner off the bench,that can also finish off a game, or spell an injured starter. He's no longer a 30-40 minutes per game player. He can still play and I think he should have a better swan song than being a borderline quitter.He'll never be an all star player again,but I've been wrong before.I never bought the "retirement" talk he gave last season.Fans and opposing players as well as Iverson himself knows he still has more game than a lot of the players in the league today. 

Some Lakers need to stop playing scared

Kobe Bryant is right.His teammates need to man up and play ball. Despite being the defending champions, some Lakers aren't getting rid of the notion that they're soft. Going into a possible season ending Game 6, Bryant seemed to questions some of his teammates' toughness. I really don't like to see a player calling out his teammates,but in this case Bryant may be right. No one besides him seemed to show up for Game 5. Andrew Bynum gets a pass because he's basically playing on one leg. I'll also give "crazy" Ron Artest a pass since for the first four games, he had Paul Pierce shackled. But the rest of the gang needs to step up if the Lakers stand a chance to make it to Game 7 and attempt to sweep the next two games. Pau Gasol seemed to shed the soft label after last season's finals, but he hasn't done anything to change my opinion of him. A good player, but a traditional European softy. Lamar Odom has regressed to floating, the story of his whole career. The rest just haven't made the most of their opportunities. Bottom line, if the Lakers want to live to see another day, tonight is the night to lay it all on the line, because tomorrow may be too late. 

File this under things I think I think

The demise of the Boston Celtics was greatly exaggerated.The Celtics hammered the Orlando Magic in game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals,making their second trip in three years to the NBA finals.I was one of the non-believers who figured the Celtics were done and went as far as saying this was thier last stand and with hardly any help on the horizon.I couldn't have been more wrong.Rajon Rondo has played like he's one of the all time greats,they've ramped up the defense,and have been fairly efficient on offense.Add to that,that the bench has been pretty good to.Right now I have to give them the nod over the Los Angeles Lakers or Phoenix Suns,because of the way they've defended throughout the postseason.Phoenix plays no defense and they Lakers have been somewhat exposed and have a hobbled Andrew Bynum.Its too early to crown a champion,but if I were a betting man,I'd put my money on Boston.   

Mayweather was Money Saturday night.

Going into Saturday night's Shane Mosley vs. Floyd Mayweather fight, i thought that Mosley had a chance of winning.I didn't say he would win,I just thought that he had power and skill that Mayweather never went up against.I felt that if Mosley could get a few good shots in early,it would force Mayweather into a brawl and that's not his style.I was partially right,as Mosley got to Mayweather early,but it was straight up "Money" the rest of the way.
    Floyd Mayweather thorouhgly dominated last night's fight with a display of speed,flair and occasional power that wore down Mosley and left him visibly tired.The first round was a feeling out process and Mosley clearly dominated the action in the second round.He rocked Mayweather with a couple of rights that left the Money Man staggering and holding on.But,Mosley was unable to finish him off.A testament to what a great fighter Mayweather is.After that Mayweather,who is known as a defensive fighter,steadily walked down Mosley and wore him out.At times it looked like Mayweather was hitting a speed bag,as he connected on numerous straight right hands that snapped Mosley's head.Mayweather also proved that he has a helluva boxing IQ that is matched by any of the fighters of today.Skeptics will say he beat an old fighter.I say that's a big bunch of bull,because no one was saying that after he Mosley stopped Antonio Margarito.For most of the night Mayweather made Mosley look amateurish and outclassed.From the eighth round on it looked like Mosley was breathing hard and looking to just finish on his feet.
  Mayweather is the class of the welterweight division and the face of boxing.He's the only man that really sells fights.The next hurdle for him should be Manny Pacquiao. But due to Mayweather's insistence on the olympic style blood and urine testing,that fight may never happen.Mayweather says he just wants to fight on a level playing field and I can understand that.And if Manny has nothing to hide,why doesn't he comply.This fight has to be made,as its the only big money megafight that could draw any interest to boxing.