I’ve taken my bows and my curtain calls.  You brought me fame and fortuen and everything that goes with it.  I thank you all.  -Queen

Public Service Announcement:  Ok, here we go!  You know what the man says.  The man says all the world the loves a winner.  If that’s true, you’re gonna love these four guys.  If that’s true, you’re gonna love the only four guys in history to have won an NCAA title and immediately following, won themselves a NBA title.  Four times the action.  Four times the adventure.  Four times the fantastic.         

Bill Russell

Bill Russell was ignored by college scouts and did not receive a single letter of interest until Hal DeJulio from the local University of San Francisco watched him in a high school game.  The rest, as they say is history.  At USF, Rusell led the Dons to back-to-back- championships in 1955 and 1956.  Get the papers get the papers.    At USF, Russell led the Dons to 55 straight victories.  Yowza!  He was so good,  UCLA coach John Wooden called Russell the greatest defensive player he had ever seen.  Russell took that greatness with him to the NBA.  You know what he did in the NBA.  He won championships in the NBA.  A bevy of championships.  A gaggle of championships.  A plethora of champioships.  More championships than you can shake a stick at.  Bill Russell was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won eleven NBA Championships in thirteen-years.   Bill Russell:  “I have the first championship team photo from 1957 and the last one from ‘69.  I am the only guy in both pictures.”  Put that in your cigar and smoke it.

Henry Bibby

You may know him as Mike Bibby’s dad.  You may know him as Jim Bibby’s brother.  That’s you.  UCLA fans know him as Henry Bibby, point guard.  But now I want y’all to move it.  Put your point on the floor and just prove it.  From 1970-1972, Henry Bibby was the point on the floor for the Bruins and he proved it.  And how! He proved it and led the Bruins to three NCAA championships.  Sure he had Sidney Wicks and then Bill Walton beside him, but in his three years at UCLA, Bibby started every game.  When the New York Knickerbockers drafted him in 1973, he wasn’t so lucky.  When the New York Knickerbockers drafted him in 1973, he found himself playing behind Walt Frazier and Earl Monroe.  No starting there.  But there was a ring there and you know what Duke Ellington says.  Duke Ellington says, “It don’t mean a thing, if you ain’t got that ring. Do bop, do bop, do bop, do wah!

Magic Johnson

Like Savoir Faire, this guy is everywhere.  He’s got a book out.  He’s in an HBO special.  You can’t shake him.  You know the story by now.  You’ve seen the game that put college basketball on the map.  Magic v. Bird.  Bird v. Magic.  The highest-rated basketball game ever, college, pro, or AAU.  You’ve seen the game where Magic Johnson and the Michigan State Spartans smacked Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores up and down the court.  That was just the beginning.  His encore, the following year, was even more amazing.  Ahhh,  I remember this like it was yesterday.  Magic had just learned that he had lost out to Bird in the Rookie of the Year voting.  He took it out on the Philadelphia 76ers.  He took it out on the Philadelphia 76ers in game six.  The Lakers held a 3-2 lead in the series.  Kareem sprained his ankle and would not play.  There’s no need to fear.  Magic Johnson is here!  Magic went out and did what Magic did best.  Magic went out and took over the basketball game.  He played every position on the floor. He scored every which way but loose. He grabbed every rebound and dished out evry assist and won the Lakers a championship.

Billy Thompson

You should know this about Billy Thompson:  Billy Thompason is a winner.  A wiiner winner chicker dinner. In high school, he led Camden High School to a state championship in 1982.  In college he was the leading scorer for the 1986 national champion Louisville Cardinals.  In the pros, playing alongside Johnson and Kareem Abdul Jabbar on the Showtine Lakers he won two more championships in ‘87 and ‘88.  Like my main Vince Lombardi always says, “Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all time thing.  You don’t win once in a while, you don’t do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time.  Winning is habit.”  Winning was Billy Thompson’s habit. 

Peace out homies.  Six two and Even!

Today’s top links from the wide wonderful world of sports and beyond:

• Ron Washington Channels His Inner Tony Montana  (Midwest Sports Fans)
• The Best College Backcourts:  2010 Edition  (NQTC)
• Hung Like A Japanese First Baseman  (YepYep)
• Now That’s A Hit!  (Goon’s World)
• Mmmmm Cheerleaders  (Guyism)

Thanks (7th Inning Stache)

• Reggie Bush To The Seahawks?  (Rumors & Rants)
• A Look At The Lovely St. Patrick’s Day Sports Merchandise  (Simon On Sports)
• Obama Picks Kansas, Mispells Syracuse  (Buster Sports)
• 5 Reasons The Nets Are Not The Worst Team Ever  (NJ Star Ledger)
• It’s the Bricks That Make Butler Basketball Special  (NY Times)

Peace out homies.  Six Two and Even!

Will you recognize me?  Call my name or walk on by?  Don’t you forget about me.  Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t you forget about me.  -Simple Minds

Public Service Announcement:  Ok, here we go!  There was a time Bobby Crosby was one of baseball’s chosen ones.  In 2004, he was chosen as the American League’s Rookie of the Year.  In 2006, he was chosen by Peter Gammons to win the American League MVP.  Unfortunately for Bobby, he never lived up to the hype.  Injuries and overall lack of production derailed his career.  His home runs virtually vanished.  In his ROY season, Crosby hit 22 home runs and played in 151 games.  Since then, he has hasn’t hit more than nine home runs in a season and has only played in over 100 games just once.  But don’t look now, Bobby Crosby is mashing again.  Graveyard smashing again.  He’s caught on in a flashing again.       

Despite all of his woes, the Pittsburgh Pirates took a $1 million, one-year, flier on the struggling infielder.  So far, so good.  So far you can’t disrespect it.  He’s the resurrected.  Back from the dead just to mess with your head. 

Yes sports fans, Bobby Crosby is back from the dead and finding his home run stroke.  Back from the dead and leading the NL this spring in home runs.  Back from the dead and finding himself fourth in RBIs.  In the Pirates’ 15-5 rout of the Minnesota Twins, Crosby went 2 for 3 with four RBI including a three-run homer into a gusty wind.  Against the mighty mighty Yankees, he went 3-for-3 with two home runs, three runs scored and three RBI.  Welcome back Bobby!

Bobby Crosby may never live up to the expectations set upon him in his early years but I, for one, am rooting for him.

Public Spectacle:

Peace out homies.  Six two and Even!

Now it’s a mighty long way down the dusty trail and the sun beats down on the cold steel rails.  And I look like a bum but I crawl like a snail, all the way from Memphis.  -Mott The Hoople

Public Service Announcement:  Ok, here we go!  The Memphis Grizzlies get no respect.  No respect at all.  All they know is rejection.  Their yo-yo, it never comes back!  Sports Illustrated recently conducted a poll in which it asked 173 NBA players which team is least likely to win an NBA title in the next five years.   The Grizzlies came in third, receiving 15 percent of the votes.  No respect I tell ya.  I don’t get it.  This is a team having one of the most dramatic turnarounds of the season with the league’s third-youngest roster.  This is a team that stood up.  A team who would not take it anymore.  A team that stood up against the scum, the dogs, the filth, the shit.  Yes, sports fans, here is a team that stood up.      

They stood up last night all right.  Sood up with five players on the floor functioning as one single unit.  Tam, team, team!  No one more important that the other.  O.J. Mayo, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, Rudy Gay and Hasheem Thabeet stood up.  They stood up and all scored at least ten points in the Grizzlies’ 104-97 win over the Bulls.  How about that?  How about this?  It was the 29th time this season that all five of Memphis’ starters scored double-digit points.  Just so you know, that’s the highest total for any NBA team.  Any team.

The Grizzlies just won their seventh game out of their last 10.  They reamin in playoff hunt just 5 1/2 back behind Portland for that ever elusive 8th spot.  Sure they still have a ways to go.  Sure they still struggle against the good teams.  But this young Memphis team got a job.  They got prospects.  They’re bona fide.  What are you? 

Peace out homies.  Six two and Even!

Thanks (Sporting Blog)

Peace out homies.  Six two and even!

Hey young world, the world is yours.  Hey young world, the world is yours.  Young world, young world, the world is yours.  -Slick Rick

Public Service Announcement:  Ok, here we go!  You know what the man says.  The man says pitching wins championships.  The man says you’re only as good as your next starter.  Sparky Anderson says, “If I ever find a pitcher who has heat, a good curve, and a slider, I might seriously consider marrying him, or at least proposing.”  Well, I found some guys.  Sparky better go buy a ring.  Heck, he should go all Big Love and buy five of them.            

Rick Porcello – Detroit Tigers

21 year-old Rick Porcello was pretty good last year.  Pretty, pretty, pretty good.  As a rookie, he won 14 games for the Tigers last year.  You may think of Porcello as a power pitcher.  A tower of power pitcher.  A man of the hour pitcher.  You wouldn’t be wrong.  The kid throws both a two-seam and four-seam fastball, both of which can reach the mid-90s with regularity.  But know this, Porcello is no one trick pony.  He also throws sinker.  A stinker of sinker.  He has a very, very nasty sinker that gets him out of trouble.  Been getting him out of trouble all spring.  He has yet to allow a run in nine exhibition innings over three appearances this spring.  Ace, All-Star, Cy Young candidate, you name it, this kid’s got it.

Tommy Hanson – Atlanta Braves

Last year, Tommy Hanson was the young phenom.  After a miserable debut last season, Hanson won his next four starts.  Starts that included the Yankees and Red Sox back to back.  Get the papers, get the papers. In a stretch of five starts, he allowed three earned runs in 30 innings.  Yowza!  He had 116 strikeouts in 127 2/3 innings and posted the lowest ERA for a Braves’ rookie starter in 66 years.  This year, he is the ace of the Braves’ staff.  Ace is the place with the helpful hardware.  Before all is said and done, Tommy Hanson will have some helpful hardware of his own. 

Stephen Strasburg – Washington Nationals

You me and just about everybody else like this guy.  What’s not to like?  Stephen Strasburg is the guy to like if you like six-four, 220-pound, fireballing righties with a laser rocket arm.  I do.  I like-four, 220-pound, fireballing righties with a laser rocket arm.  Mesmerizing, tantalizing.  Captivating, he’s devastating.  Sharp cheddar his heat is better.  Sharp cheddar that’s led to five scoreless innings this spring.  Unfortunately, word has it, he will be sent down to the farm as soon as Saturday.  He won’t be there for long.  

J.A. Happ – Philadelphia Phillies

Why the Phillies didn’t trot this guy out to the mound to start in the World Series is beyond me.  This guy was the ace of the ballclub before Cliff Lee arrived in Philadelphia.  Last season, when fifth starter Chan Ho Park struggled in his starts, J.A. Happ came along riding in on his white horse to perform many great signs and wonders.  This spring, he’s picked right up where he left off.  This spring, he has thrown 6 1/3 scoreless innings in two Grapefruit League starts.  This postseason, I bet dollar to donuts he gets trotted out to the mound to start in the World Series.

Brian Matusz – Baltimore Orioles

In Baltimore, everybody’s jibbering about Matt Wieters.  Everybody’s jabbering about the young stud catcher.  Jibbering and jabbering.  Blibbering and blabbering.  Who they should be jibber jabbering about is the young stud pitcher.  Who they should be blibber blabbering about is Brian Matusz.  The young stud southpaw dominated of Double-A hitters last year.  When necessity brought him to the Show, he did not disappoint.  When necessity brought him to the Show, he pitched eight games and went 5-2 with a 4.63 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 44 2-3 innings.  How about that?  How about this?  On Sunday, Matusz gave up three hits and a run in his five innings against the Phillies.  It might not sound like much, but it was the longest and most effective outing by an Orioles starter this spring.  Matusz may just end up the most effective Orioles pitcher of the regular season.

Public Spectacle:

Peace out homies. Six two and Even!

Today’s top links from the wide wonderful world of sports and beyond:

• Hey, Wanna Coach DePaul?  Apply Here  (Tremendous Upside Potential)
• March Madness :  Morale Booster or Drain on Productivity?  (Fox News)
• John Wall Is No Jon Wallenstein  (Global Sports Fraternity)
• I Can’t Wait For This Show  (The Hollywood Reporter)
• Buster Olney = Sports Talk Radio Caller?  (Joe Sports Fan)

Thanks (Chicago Sports Mob)

• Deep Sleeper Alert  (St. Louis Dispatch)
• Jets Need To Learn Their Rightful Place  (Sparty & Friends)
• Fernando Perez Is The Man  (D-Rays Bay)
• Dear Baseball:  You’re Confusing Topps  (SB Nation)
• Cold Cases: The NHL’s Other Missing Items  (Down Goes Brown)

Peace out homies.   Six Two and Even!

Public Spectacle:

Peace out homies.  Six two and Even!

It takes two to make a thing go right.  It takes two to make it outta sight.  Hit it!  -Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock

Public Service Announcement:  Ok, here we go!  Everbody’s jibbering about their brackets.  Everbody’s jabbering about their brackets.  Jibbering and Jabbering.  Blibbering and blabbering.  I got one for you.  A tisket a tasket , a green and yellow bracket.  Baylor Bear green and yellow that is.  Swimming pools and movie stars.  Tweety Carter and LaceDarius Dunn.       

You know what the man says.  The man says guard play wins championships.  You better listen what the man says.  The Baylor Bears have guard play.  They’ve got prospects.  They’re bona fide.  What are you?  The Baylor Bears have a backcourt.  A backcourt on the attackcourt.  And that’s a fact a jackcourt! 

I’ll give you another fact, Jack.  Tweety Carter and LaceDarius Dunn are a backcourt that can compete with any backcourt in the country.  Any backcourt.  You listening Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith?  You should be.  With Carter and Dunn, not to be confused with Brooks and Dunn, these Baylor Bears are poised to make a run at this thing.  They’re poised to make a run at this thing because they get quality guard play from LaceDarius Dunn and Tweety Carter.  They get quality guard play from LaceDarius Dunn and Tweety Carter night in and night out.  Fight in and fight out. 

Carter and Dunn create.  They score.  They make sure their team keeps its cool even when things get hot.  They are difficult to guard.  Tweety Carter is an experienced playmaker.   LaceDarius Dunn is an accurate long-range bomber.  Together they make a dynamic duo.  Holy Final Four Batman!  Throw in formidable big man Ekpe Udoh and you know what you get?  You get a team nobody wants to play.  Nobody.

Public Spectacle:

Peace out homies. Six two and Even!