Tag: Basketball

One Liner Friday’s

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

Welcome back to another Friday edition of One Liners. Here you will find the past week in sports wrapped up in one line and one line only. Enjoy!

I hope the Nets won’t mind that Jason Kidd has to take a leave of absence from coaching to serve jail time for his pending DWI case.

Just because Tim Tebow plays for the New England Patriots doesn’t mean he’s all of a sudden going to be good at football.

Tom Brady doesn’t have any magic dust to sprinkle on Tebow’s arm that’s going to make him accurate.

What I’m trying to say is my mother throws a football better than Tim Tebow.

You might be laughing but that’s no joke; mom dukes has a cannon.

So Serena Williams is decent at tennis huh?

Rafael Nadal should only play tournaments on clay, and any other tournament he is asked to play in he should kindly reply, no gracias.

When one of your finals games goes to triple overtime and it’s not even the lead story on ESPN, you know your sports in trouble (sorry hockey).

Hey Roger Goodell you know what you should do, you should make a public statement that offends an entire race of people, yeah yeah do that, that’s smart.

Breaking News: Mark McGwire eats entire Diamondbacks pitching staff in one bite during benches clearing brawl.

So much for players policing themselves huh?

Yasiel Puig!!

Yes, Jaromir freaking Jagr is still in the NHL, and no he’s not just riding the bench to say he made a comeback, he played 33 minutes Wednesday night.

And yes, Jagr was that player known as that other guy who played on the Penguins with Lemieux back when you were a kid.

Does Thiago Splitter know how tall he is??

In the words of Bill Walton, “Throw it down big man, throw it down!”

Hey Dwyane Wade: are you hurt or are you not hurt, are you finished or are you not finished?

By the way, that kid Sebastian De La Cruz who sings the National Anthem at Spurs games is awesome.

(Read this one in that Spongebob narrator voice) 18 innings later……

The Yankees and Athletics love baseball so much they decided to play 2 games in 1.

Can I get a little golf here?

For those of you who don’t know (and I’m pretty sure that’s most of you), golf’s U.S. Open started on Thursday, sort of.

If it ever stops raining we might get to watch some golf.

I want to take a second to wish a very Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there.

Sleep in, watch TV on the couch, go play golf, eat and drink whatever you want.

Whatever you do just make sure you enjoy your day.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Jason Kidd Named New Head Coach Of The Brooklyn Nets

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

Who said retirement was all fun and games? There will be some games involved but I think there might be some work happening as well. Fresh off of his 19-year playing career, 40 year old Jason Kidd wasted no time finding work. Jason Kidd is now the new head coach of the Brooklyn Nets. It will be made official today at a press conference at 2:00 p.m. EST. The move, while not unprecedented, is still coming as a quite a shock to most people. With experienced former coaches out there waiting by their phones, it is somewhat of a surprise that Kidd got the nod in Brooklyn. Kidd, a former player for the Nets organization, will now coach some of the players he played with during his tenure with the then New Jersey Nets. Attached to this move are some questions that are very difficult to answer. What are the expectations for a coach with 0 experience? How long of a leash will Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov have with Kidd? Isn’t it nice that in this country you can get a
DUI, keep your contract to make millions as an NBA player, and become a head coach in the same NBA all in the same year? And most importantly, how will Kidd do as a head coach?

I have always thought that Jason Kidd would make a fine head coach some day. Little did I know that day would come just NINE DAYS after retiring as a player. What Kidd needs to realize is the time, effort, and dedication required to be a successful head coach in the NBA. Do you know what it’s like to have a new born child and you get about 12 minutes of sleep per night? Yeah, it’s something like that. The amount of preparation needed to be a successful coach is pretty astronomical, and for Jason’s sake I hope he fully understands that. The other thing to consider here is that Prokhorov didn’t take over the Nets to get bounced out of the playoffs in the 1st round. He is here to win a
Championship. How much time Kidd will be given to take the Nets to the promised land is yet to be seen, but the modern day NBA is a win now league. Just ask George Karl, Vinny Del Negro, and Lionel Hollins.

This move is a great PR move, and it is obviously something that will be talked about for some time. It is a compelling story because Kidd is coming straight off the floor to the bench. He is coming from the New York Knicks to the Brooklyn Nets. He is going to be coaching guys he played with in the past and against this year. And, he is a former Nets player (possibly the most famous in the New Jersey Nets franchise). For all of those reasons, this hire is a good idea. It is also nice to see someone think outside the box, and hiring Kidd definitely fits in that unconventional category. Now, I think given the right amount of time Kidd could become a great head coach (I’ve written that before), however in the win now world I don’t believe he’ll be afforded the time necessary to succeed in the future. He’ll probably get let go in 3 years after having not reached the NBA Finals, and then he’ll go on to succeed somewhere else down the road. That’s just the way it works now a days. Well Jason, as a Knicks fan, I wish you no luck whatsoever, and I hope the players revolt against you and turn the Nets into a circus (New York Jets style).

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Complete And Utter Domination

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

Have you ever seen a game where the score didn’t fully reflect how the game went? Well, that was what happened last night. The crazy thing about that is the 36-point whooping (113-77) the Spurs laid on the Heat didn’t do the Spurs performance justice. The only reason the Spurs didn’t win by 50 was because of Mike Miller and his 5 3-pointers. Miller is now 8-8 in the last 2 games and hasn’t missed a 3-point attempt since Game 1. There wasn’t one aspect of this game that the Spurs didn’t dominate. Their swarming defense created 16 turnovers while holding the almighty Lebron James to a measly 16 points on 7-21 shooting. The most amazing statistic from this game was that Lebron did not make 1 trip to the free throw line the entire game. The Spurs dared James as well as his buddies Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade to shoot the ball. They backed off the ball and crowded the paint. This forced James to shoot outside shots all night. So much for an improved jump shot, huh?

While the Spurs obviously benefited from Danny Green and Gary Neal’s performances, Gregg Popovich should receive most of the credit for this victory. He implemented a game plan that he knew would work. He figured the Heat can not beat them if they keep their entire roster at least 15 feet from the basket at all times. It was almost like their was an invisible barricade keeping the Heat from getting to the basket. This is a recipe for success against the Heat. Kawhi Leonard also deserves a lot of credit for the job he has done defensively against James. James has been bad in this series, and a lot of it has to do with Leonard’s defense. Side note: don’t sleep on Kawhi Leonard. He is going to be one of the best two way players in the NBA in 2 years if he continues to improve his offensive repertoire. Anyway, everyone else can feel bad for the over analyzation of Lebron James, but not me. When you are supposed to be the second coming of Michael Jordan and you are now being mentioned in the same breath as MJ, you deserve all the scrutiny that is thrown your way. Fans, analysts, and people alike can talk about James’ supporting cast and their struggles, but at the end of the day it comes down to Lebron James and what he needs to do to win. If you want to be the best ever, you better show up and get it done when the lights are at their brightest. Everyone else can also stay on that Lebron James is clutch bandwagon, but not me. What, because he hit a layup in the regular season against the Orlando Magic to extend their winning streak and a wide open layup against the Pacers in the playoffs he’s all of a sudden clutch? Nope. What Lebron needs to do is physically impose his will and takeover these games. I just don’t think the combination of Duncan, Parker, Ginobli, and Popovich are going to allow that to happen.

What most people are forgetting is that Tony Parker only contributed 6 points in this contest. Parker got banged up during the game and actually had to go back to the locker room for treatment on his hamstring at one point. He would return to the game but was a
non-factor for the rest of the contest. With Parker virtually non existent, Danny Green and Gary Neal more than picked up the slack. Green finished with 27 points on 9-15 shooting from the field including 7-9 from 3-point range!! Neal also added 24 points on 9-17 shooting from the field including 6-10 from 3-point range!! If 2 players from any team are going to combine for 13-19 from downtown, I don’t care who you are playing, you are going to win that game. And that’s what happened. The Spurs won in more than convincing fashion, and they will without a doubt try to carry this momentum into Game 4 on Thursday night. I believe the Spurs will play an efficient Game 4, but the 3’s wont drop at the rate they did in Game 3. The Heat will bounce back and Lebron will play much better as well, which should lead to an epic Game 4. This game becomes incredibly important for the Miami Heat, for if they lose they will find themselves on the brink of elimination and still on the road. At the same time, if Parker can’t play to at least 75% of his potential than the Spurs will lose Game 4. You can catch all the action in Game 4 on ABC @ 9:00 p.m. Enjoy!

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

One Liner Friday’s

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

If winning Coach of the Year doesn’t guarantee your employment, what the hell does??

Sorry George Karl, but if you never raise people’s expectations too high they’ll never be too disappointed.

A-Rod, A-Rod, A-Rod how I loathe thee.

A-Rod has to be the dumbest guy in the world to think he was going to get away with cheating.

Didn’t you learn anything the first time?

What does Phil Hughes think he’s good now or something?

How bout dem Spurs!!

I didn’t know Tony Parker was an acrobat, man those French are sneaky.

Serena Williams is so good at tennis it’s offensive.

She beat her semifinal opponent in 6 minutes (it was actually 46 minutes but who’s counting?).

Hey Chris Bosh, you know there’s a basketball game going on that you’re supposed to be a part of right???

Tiger Woods say: See what had happened was, I was going to win, but I decided to be +8 and finish 20 shots back instead.

Watch him turn around and win the U.S. Open next week.

The Miami Marlins are 16-44, they should be removed the the Major’s; permanently.

Whoever put together the brackets for the French Open should be fired.

Novak Djokivic and Rafael Nadal is a great matchup today in the semifinals, but that should clearly be the finals matchup.

And yes, the NHL Playoffs are still going on.

I actually had to look that last one up to verify first.

Wait, people will put their bodies at risk and cheat in order to gain a competitive advantage and in turn make millions of dollars?

NO WAY!

Mmmmmm Donut.

For those of you were not aware, it is National Donut Day.

Yeah that’s right, enjoy!

Aww what happened wittle Webron, were your wittle wegs tired last night?

You better win game 2 Lebron, because if you don’t you will lose this series.

This has been another installment of One Liner Friday’s. I hope you enjoyed reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

One Liner Friday’s

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

This is my 2nd post of the day, so make sure you scroll down to read about Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Enjoy!

I just came up with the best headline ever: Arvind Mahankali channels Inner Jew to win 2013 Spelling Bee.

Lebron James is really good at basketball.

The New York Mets have won the World Series!

No, no they didn’t.

They did win 4 games in a row for the first time since World War II though, so that’s certainly something to celebrate.

Really Rutgers, REALLY?

You are more inept than George W Bush trying to spell his own name.

Seriously, how do you hire Julie Hermann?

She cursed your president out and beat up a small child during her interview, but apparently that wasn’t enough to stop you from hiring her.

Astonishing!

Who is watching the 14 straight hours of Women’s College Softball coverage on EVERY ESPN CHANNEL?!?!

Seriously?

So apparently Broadway Joe put the bottle down long enough to talk about the Jets.

Too bad the Jets don’t want to hear him speak.

I said it last week, but let me repeat myself: Floyd Mayweather Jr. will suffer his first professional loss of his career in September against Canelo Alvarez.

Too big, too strong, too young.

Yes, the NHL Playoffs are still going on.

I know, I almost forgot too.

Where oh where has Rory Mcilroy gone?

Chris Anderson (aka Birdman, aka turtleneck tattoo, aka you look like a moron) should have been ejected from Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

It’s a good thing referees have integrity and don’t favor the home team though.

Gordon Gee, oh Gordon Gee, what is wrong with you?

Since when is it okay to run your mouth and say whatever you want no matter how offensive to large groups of people?

Ohhhh, it’s all about the all mighty dollar, how silly of me to think otherwise.

This has been another installment of One Liner Friday’s. If you have any One Liners of your own please leave them below. Thanks.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Lebron James Is Really Good

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

The biggest stages usually bring out the best in people. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Lebron James. Thursday night’s pivotal game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals showcased Lebron James’ talents. We saw his scoring ability, we saw his passing ability, but most of all we saw his will to win. You know those movies that start somewhere in the middle and then rewind to the beginning? Yea, I’m going to do that now. The outcome of this game was decided by Lebron James’ performance in the 3rd quarter. Lebron James out scored the Indiana Pacers 16-13 by himself in the 3rd quarter (yes you heard that right). Yes, he did receive some help from his friends (no not Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh), however this victory rests on the shoulders of Lebron and Lebron only. Think about it this way: if I told you that Wade and Bosh would combine for 17 points, you would have told me that the Pacers would win this game. But then again, the Heat do have the best player on the planet. If you didn’t watch the game, his friends who did show up last night were Mario Chalmers and Udonis Haslem. Chalmers and Haslem scored a combined 28 points on 13 of 21 shooting from the field including 6 consecutive jump shots made by Haslem in the all important 3rd quarter. But, like I said earlier, this game was won by 1 man.

Nope, you don’t need to get up and check your TV, the movie just cut to black and rewound itself to the beginning. This game was the most important game of the year for both sides. From the opening tip, we clearly saw an intensity and urgency from both teams that you’d expect from a game of this magnitude. The Pacers came out playing their style of basketball. We saw hard nosed defense, solid rebounding, and offensive efficiency around the basket. On the other hand, while the Heat’s energy was up, their play was not in the 1st quarter. Offensively, Lebron and the Heat came out flat, scoring just 19 points in the entire 1st quarter. Lebron started the game with 2 straight turnovers, and the Heat were lucky they weren’t run off the court in the 1st quarter. If it wasn’t for 3 missed layups in the quarter by the Pacers, they could have carried a 10 point lead into the 2nd quarter.

As for the 2nd quarter, the game became slightly more entertaining. With 3 minutes gone in the quarter, Chris Anderson decided he didn’t like the way Tyler Hansbrough was standing, so he gave him an intentional shoulder from behind that sent Hansbrough to the floor. Hansbrough (a man of better self control than I) got up and simply stood his ground without retaliating. Anderson walked back toward Hansbrough and after bumping chests angrily shoved Hansbrough with two hands. Now in no way am I blaming this loss on the referees, but I am simply pointing out that it is LUDICROUS for Anderson not to have been ejected from this game. Don’t agree or haven’t seen the incident? Click here:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MeBNEQE4RT0&feature=relmfu

In most cases I would say that Chris Anderson being ejected wouldn’t effect the outcome of the game (because he’s a bum), but in this series he actually serves a purpose. He is basically the Heat’s only physical presence down low, and he plays that gritty style of basketball that no one else on this team can. Against the Pacers he is a plus, unlike his usual role as a drain on society. After the skirmish was sorted out, Anderson was hit with a Flagrant-1 Foul while Hansbrough received a Technical Foul. In all seriousness, what in the f’in world did Hansbrough do to deserve a technical???? He didn’t open his mouth, he didn’t instigate any further action, and he didn’t even retaliate. So, after watching numerous replays, how is it that the referees still get the call 100% wrong? And how is Anderson not ejected from the game? I can’t come up with one valid reason for him not being tossed from this game, so if you can come up with something please let me know. Anyway, I digress.

Lebron James must have spent his halftime in the locker room staring at a blank wall just thinking to himself or something. He must have been mentally preparing himself for what was about to happen. He most likely had one of those moments where the intense workout music comes on and Rocky goes through some crazy training to prepare himself for the fight of his life because he came out of that locker room like a changed man. He looked his teammates in their eyes and screamed at them. Then he grabbed hold of the reigns and said hold on for the ride. Good for you Lebron. Way to man up and take charge when your teammates are playing like crap. Lebron literally did it all. Defense, offense, intangibles, and the list goes on and on. I think he even flew the plane to Indiana and cooked dinner for the team last night too.

Now, it is on to Game 6 in Indiana. The heat lead the series 3 games to 2, and will find themselves in the NBA Finals for the 3rd consecutive year with a victory Saturday night. However, a gritty Pacers team still stands in their way of that. The Pacers are a much better team at home than they are on the road, and I’m going to assume they will get more than 5 points from their entire starting back court. I think they punch back with a solid win in Game 6 and force a decisive Game 7 in Miami. What do you think? Do the Pacers have one last push in them or will they fold and go down in 6 to the Heat? Leave me your thoughts and comments below. Thanks.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

I Think I Left My Clutch Gene At Home Today

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

When your team wins you get all the accolades, and when your team loses you get all the blame. Thats how it works in superstar land. Today, Lebron James is shouldering 100% of the blame for Friday night’s loss. It was an enormous loss for James and the Heat as the Indiana Pacers secured home court advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pacers will travel back home with their confidence at an all time high after coming within inches of stealing both games in Miami. The biggest question after their heartbreaking Game 1 loss was how would they respond? Well I think we all found the answer to that question. The Pacers stayed true to themselves and they continued to highlight their strengths on the floor. They stayed physical with Miami, they used their length and size on the defensive end, and most importantly they utilized Roy Hibbert early and often. In turn he responded with another career game in these playoffs. He put in 29 huge points while grabbing 10 rebounds. While Hibbert was a big part of their victory, the Pacers showed that you don’t need to rely on one superstar to win. The Pacers starters all scored in double figures and their bench only contributed 5 points. This shows you how balanced they are, and that they all subscribe to the “team” concept. At the same time I must not overlook Paul George’s effort last night. He is truly solidifying his ranking as one of the best all around players in the NBA. He has the daunting task of guarding Lebron James, and at the same time is being asked to contribute 20+ points every night. Yes, Lebron’s stat line was godly (as it always is), but when it mattered most what did “king” James do? To find out you gotta keep reading…

With the game on the line, Lebron committed two consecutive turnovers!! Ouch!! This was not one of his brighter moments. The first turnover was really bad. Let me set the scene for you: George Hill had just knocked down two clutch free throws to put the Pacers up 95-93 with 48 seconds left. As Lebron brought the ball up he attempted to lob a pass over David West across the top of the key. Instead West stuck his arms up as if he were a cornerback who didn’t turn back to play the ball and stole the ball. The Pacers went on to turn the ball right back over on a shot clock violation. So despite the Pacers trying their darnedest to give another game away, Lebron just wanted to not win it even more. He got the ball just inside half court with the clock running down. Everyone was holding their collective breaths wondering if Lebron could pull some more heroics out of his you know where, but NOPE. He drove the lane and attempted to swing the ball outside, but the pass was intercepted by George Hill. Hill calmly walked down the floor and knocked in two more clutch free throws. This put the game nearly out of reach with the Pacers going up by four with 8 seconds to play. Chris Bosh threw up a last effort 3-pointer but it missed and the Pacers held on to win 97-93. Now in just 48 short minutes the momentum has completely shifted and there is a new question to ask today. How will the defending champion Miami Heat respond to losing on their own floor in the playoffs? I, like most, think that the Heat will still win this series, but Indiana is a difficult place to win basketball games. The road to the finals has been slightly tilted uphill for the Miami Heat, and now it is their turn to stare adversity in the face. To see what happens in the next chapter of this story, tune in to TNT on Sunday @ 8:30 p.m.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Not Your Everyday Buzzer Beater

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

When you think of buzzer beaters, you usually see someone hitting a three pointer or someone hitting a jump shot with a hand in their face. Well, how does making an uncontested shot in a layup line sound to you to win a playoff game? Yeah, that sounds ideal to me too. Well, for those of you who couldn’t stay awake to watch the closing minutes of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals last night, that’s what happened. Lebron James drove down the lane for an uncontested layup to beat the Indiana Pacers 103-102. Now, the majority of the blame is being placed on Pacers head coach Frank Vogel for not having 7 foot 2 inch Roy Hibbert on floor for the final possession of the game. Yes, some of the blame rests on Vogel, (and I’ll get into why in a minute) but the majority of the blame should land on Paul George and his “defense” on the final play.

For those of you who haven’t seen it yet, click below to watch Lebron’s game winner:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GqSXLCuANiY

There are 2.2 seconds left on the clock and everyone and their mother knows who’s getting the ball. The problem you normally have in attempting to guard Lebron James is that you never know if he’s going to shoot, drive, or pass the ball. However, with 2.2 seconds left, whoever gets the inbounds pass is going to either shoot it right away, take one dribble into a jump shot, or if he magically gets an opening he’ll take it to the hoop. So the excuse that Paul George hesitated to get out to Lebron James because Ray Allen happened to run through the lane is ludicrous. George needs to chase the best player in the world around and let Allen’s defender worry about Allen. The biggest problem with George’s defense though is that he overplays James, so when he gets the ball he already has a step on George. This horrid defense allows an unprecedented wide open layup for the game winner. Now the other hot topic is why in the world Roy Hibbert was not on the floor for the final possession?!?! To that question I have no rational response. Coach Vogel had a response, but his didn’t make much sense either. He said he left Hibbert on the bench because Chris Bosh was in at center for the Heat. Since bosh can shoot from the outside he stretches the floor and in turn pulls Hibbert outside (where he is mostly useless). This is why Roy Hibbert, the Pacers best interior defender was watching Lebron drive down the lane from the bench. Yeah, good idea Frank. His explanation is all well and good during the 1st quarter, but with 2.2 seconds on the clock it’s almost physically impossible for Lebron to get the inbound pass, drive the lane, draw a double team from Hibbert, and then hit Bosh for a wide open 12-footer. No one thought Lebron could get to the basket that fast by himself let alone pass off to someone else. Now, if Bosh somehow got the inbound pass and was to take the game winning shot, I think Vogel would have lived with a somewhat contested shot from 15-18 feet. Hibbert might by 7’2″ and not very mobile, but I’m sure he could have gotten a hand in Bosh’s face if that was the case. But that was not the case. James scored, the Heat won, and it’s only a matter of time to see how the Pacers respond.

Will they be demoralized after losing a heartbreaker on Miami’s home court? Will they bounce back and play Miami to another close game? I always thought this series was going to go 6 hard fought games, so I don’t believe this loss is the beginning of the end for the Pacers. Look for Hibbert to stay out of foul trouble early in game 2 and play the Heat tougher down low. He’ll need to play well for the Pacers to have a chance, but more importantly the Pacers, (a solid defensive team) need to play tighter defense, especially down the stretch of games in order to win. You can catch Game 2 on TNT, Friday night @ 8:30 p.m. Enjoy!

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

One Liner Fridays

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

This is my 2nd post of the day, so make sure to scroll down to check out my post on the New York Knicks.

Hey Bryce Harper, there’s a wall there, uh somebody should uh move it.

Nick Saban is the devil?

What did somebody hear Saban’s name in a Judas Priest song playing backwards?

Heyyyyyyyy the Knicks won a basketball game.

Gronkowski with a pile driver!

What an idiot!

Don’t be sad Kevin Durant, maybe Lebron James won’t be good next year.

The Yankees are in a familiar place (1st) with unfamiliar faces.

Phil Hughes sucks though.

Joba Chamberlain is lucky that Mariano Rivera is the nicest most classy guy in sports.

If he wasn’t I’m pretty sure Joba would be trying to put his face back together right now.

Tiger Woods never left, he just checked out for a little while, and then he checked in and out and in and out of motels all over the country.

But seriously though, Tiger woods is and always has been the best golfer on the planet.

Nice shot(s) Sergio.

Way to not choke.

Best Free Agent Signing in the NFL in 2013 goes to: Drum Roll Please………….

David Garrard to the New York Jets.

Only the Jets can sign someone and have them retire before they ever play a single snap.

They should resign Tim Tebow to take his roster spot.

Titus Young should write two books.

His first book should be entitled: How to get arrested twice in one day.

Then his follow-up book should be called: Twice wasn’t enough? I can teach you how to get arrested a third time in one week.

Let me be the first to say that if Floyd Mayweather fights Canelo Alvarez, he will suffer his first professional loss.

Hey Beckham, NOBODY CARES!!

I hope you enjoyed this weeks one liners. Let me know what you thought in the comment section below. Thank you for reading.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Who Is This Team And Where Did The Knicks Go??

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

Where do I begin? I guess I’ll start from the very beginning and try to work my way through this tragedy without feeling sick to my stomach. Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals was played Tuesday evening. The New York Knicks played the Indiana Pacers in Indiana with the Pacers leading the series 2 games to 1. The Knicks being the higher seed in the playoffs started the series with home court advantage. However, with the beat down they took from the Pacers in Game 1 in New York, the home court advantage shifted to Indiana. The Knicks could have stolen back their home court advantage with a win last night and evened up the series at 2 games apiece. Instead, as I’m sure you all know by now, the Knicks put forth a lackluster performance (again) and lost by the score of 93-82. That final score, if you ask me, did not accurately depict the way this game was played. The Knicks were outplayed in every aspect of the game, and very easily could have been run right off the court. The series is now lopsided at 3 games to 1 in favor of the Indiana Pacers. While game 5 will be played in New York, that fact is completely insignificant to the outcome of this series. The New York Knicks do not look like the 2nd best team in the Eastern Conference. Right now they don’t look like they deserve to even be in the playoffs. We all know that the regular season determines who makes the playoffs. However, we also know that the regular season means absolutely nothing compared to the postseason. The focus and the mentality of every team in the playoffs should shift to one centralized goal: Win The Championship! This is the part that I am having a hard time understanding. Doesn’t every player in professional sports work their butts off for a chance to win a Championship? And wouldn’t you think that you would see every last ounce of energy poured out and left on the floor night in and night out? So why is it that the New York Knicks look like they’re simply going through the motions right now? Last night’s game in Indiana was hands down the BIGGEST game of the year for the Knicks. And, I didn’t see the urgency that such a situation should have warranted. Everyone can talk about J.R. Smith’s struggles, the elderly members of this roster, and how Carmelo Anthony is too selfish, but I don’t see any of these issues as the biggest problem for the Knicks. What I see is a team that lacks the heart, and the desire, and the balls to the wall effort that is necessary to win. What I see is a team that is being outhustled, outworked, and outeverythinged right now. Yes, I made up a word, live with it.

As I mentioned last week and every week of the regular season, the Knicks blueprint for success starts with their defense. I have seen their defensive efficiency and energy in spurts this postseason, but I haven’t seen sustained effort for an entire game or series. The Knicks don’t seem like a team that wants to win a game 79-76, and that needs to change. A W is a W no matter the score. It doesn’t matter what the games look like as long as you come away with a win. Sure, it’s more appealing for fans to watch Melo and J.R. Smith jack up outside shots all day, but that is not how you are going to win this series, or a Championship for that matter. And if, and that is a big IF, they can get their defense to the place it needs to be, then they can figure out their offense (and that is very easy if you ask me). Everyone and their mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and cousin know that Carmelo Anthony is going to shoot the ball once it lands in his hands. All he has to do is make a move toward the basket, draw some form of a double team and pass the ball (if they don’t double we all know he is capable of putting the ball in the basket). Yes, I know it’s a lot to ask the Knicks roster to hit open shots from a Carmelo Anthony pass (ahem, Jason Kidd), but if it happened more often maybe they would start knocking down open shots (ahem, Jason Kidd). Side note: Jason Kidd should retire. He can talk all he wants about his intangibles, but I don’t care one iota about that. He Sucks with a capital s. Anyway, J.R. Smith’s offensive struggles are the easiest to figure out. I know I sound like a broken record, but if Smith takes the ball to the basket he scores. If he shoots it from the outside, he makes 1 out of every 7 shots. Next question. Oh, and Smith is a moron. Last but not least, is the mental state of the New York Knicks. I love the Knicks, and I always have, but have you ever seen a bigger bunch of crybabies in your life?? Yes, the referees are not perfect, in fact they are pretty bad, but after every single foul call Raymond Felton, Tyson Chandler, or whoever it is throws their hands in the air and cries to the heavens about the horrible call. To that I say, “GROW UP!!” You need to recognize that there are always going to be bad calls throughout every game, but the quicker you move on to the next play the better off you’ll be. If the Knicks could stop complaining and keep their composure, maybe they would be up 3 games to 1 instead of down 3 games to 1. And that’s all I have to say about that!

Do the Knicks bounce back and win game 5 on their home court? Even if they lose do they go down swinging? My heart certainly hopes so, but my brain is telling me something different. The Knicks will go down in 5 games on Thursday night on their own court. This season will become an enormous disappointment, and we can all enjoy a long and arduous offseason. It’s that simple. Enjoy golf season J.R. Smith!