Greetings from the Hoodwood, where the locals are praying for our peeps in Oklahoma, stay Okie strong Hoodwood sends its love and prayers.

NBA: Another Knick flameout

I think its funny that there were so many that thought that the New York Knicks were really going to beat the Pacers. After they had nearly choked away their firsr round series with the Celtics. They got smoked in the 1^st game with the Pacers. But the Knick fans shrugged it off as so much that their squad was tired from the battle royal with the Celtics. It seemed validated when they routed the Pacers in game 2. “See!” Knick apologists like Colin Cowherd said. The Knicks will roll and win it in 5. Problem was the Pacers weren’t having any of it. They bounced the Knicks in games 3 and 4 in Indy and the Knicks were pushed to the brink. Winning a game 5 handily, the so called experts said that all the pressure was on the Pacers. Win in Bankers Life Fieldhouse Saturday night in game 6 or face a winner take all showdown game 7 in MSG, after racing to a big lead the Pacers had to weather a barrage of 3 pointers by the Knicks by Iman Shumpert (that’s where Nerlens Noel gets the hightop fade look from) JR Smith (where had he been) and fought back into the game. Unheraled Chris Copeland made a couple threes to start the 4^th, and the Pacers were on the ropes. When Smith drilled a 3 to give the Knicks a 92-90 lead and the Pacers Paul George missed a mid ranger jumper it look like the Knicks could deliver the knockout blow and Carmelo Anthony who was having a monster game and would finish with 39 points would head to the bucket when this happened…

The Pacers were busting out the Kool-Aid and I was ready to bust out some Funkadelic on the 8 track...It was a funky block party in Nap-town and the Knicks were just not hip to the beat. After the block they just seemed to wilt. The Pacers got back to back buckets from former Bearcat Lance Stephenson including a critical 3 point play on a driving layup and getting fouled by JR Smith who was having a miserable series and just was not the same player after getting that one game suspension in the Celtics series. The Knicks would never get close to the lead again and the Pacers rolled home to a 106-99 win it was ironic that Smith took the last shot for the Knicks a 25 footer that missed of course Smith scored only 15 points on 4-15 shooting. Melo had 39 points but he and Smith were two of only three players on the Knicks scoring in double figures, Shumpert had 19 points on an efficient 6-10 shooting. But the other geriatric Knicks, Jason Kidd, Amare Stoudamire, and Kenyon Martin scored under 5 points. Raymond Felton was 0-7 and was shutout. The Knicks won 54 games and Im trying to figure how. 11 of the 16 so-called experts polled on ESPN picked the Knicks and of course look like fools. The Pacers now face the Heat whom they’ve beaten twice in 3 tries. I think the Heat will in 6 but the Pacers will be a tough out.

What happened to LA Sports

I remember a piece a couple decades ago that was written about the New York rap scene it literally asked “Has New York fallen the fuck off or what?” Now the death of the New York rap scene has of course been greatly exaggerated and the Big Apple rap scene continues to thrive. But the same question could now be asked about the LA sports scene. Of course with no pro football there is no movement in that front in the city of Angels. Speaking of Angels, they and the Dodgers looked to make big splashes with high priced acquisitions. The Angels already bolstered with the signings of Albert Pujols last year and then the Halos then acquired Josh Hamilton. With those feared sluggers the Angels looked to be the real bully of not only the AL West but the AL as well. But the Angels have struggled mightly at 17-27 are 11 games behind the rolling Texas Rangers only the neophyte Houston Astros are further back. Across town in Chavez Ravine the Dodgers are just as bad at 18-25 are only 7 games behind the Giants but are just not playing well. Dodger management has publicly stated that they are nowhere close to firing manager Don Mattingly but the lineup that is packed with stars like Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Kemp, Andre Eithier and Carl Crawford  is just not producing runs. The Bums are -36 in run scoring differential. If it wasn’t for Clayton Kershaw the Dodgers pitching would be lifeless. With the slow return of Zach Greinke the Dodgers are 5-12 this month after starting at exactly .500 The Dodgers and Angels are the bull teams for interleague next week and face each other but the excitement of the first round of the Freeway series just elicits yawns and wonder of which Angelino baseball team will stink it up more. The mediocrity isn’t limited to the baseball teams, both basketball teams were bounced out of the NBA playoffs in the 1^st round. Though the Clippers won their first ever division title, and roared out to a 2-0 first round lead they then dropped the next four against the Grizzles and were sent home. The Lakers (stop laughing) were pretty much destroyed when Kobe Bryant went down and Dwight Howard just wasn’t able to pick up the slack. They were swept by the Spurs. Wow, who is facing off in the Western conference finals??? The Grizzlies and Spurs. Hmmmm. I know dvt, I know the Kings are repping strong as the defending Stanley Cup champs and are thumped the Blues in their first round Stanley Cup playoff series. They also have won their first two games at Staples against the Sharks. But they lost game 3 and may be in some serious trouble.

Phat Dap Head Slap

Phat Dap

I don’t think Ive ever given someone Phat Dap two weeks in a row but given the situation, I think this merits it. Dap to Dodgers CF Matt Kemp who immediately pledged $1000 donation for every homer that he hits from now until the All-Star break for the victims of the OKC tornadoes. Kemp got off to a good start on his pledge homering Monday in a Dodger win. Matt Kemp is fast becoming one of my favorite players and one fo the good guys in the sporting world

Head Slap

A pair to Sergio Garcia and Tiger Woods who just cant let their little spat go. Woods bluntly said “No” when asked had he ever thought of picking up the phone and calling Garcia to mend their tiff. And while the response garnered some chuckled from the assembled media at the AT&T invitational, Garcia was not one laughing, he stated at a London Press junket that he thinks that Woods “called him a whiner which may be true but it’s the first honest thing that he has said in 15 years. This war of words is getting silly and it makes both golfers look petty and like a pair of whiny bitchy schoolgirls. The media is eating it up but I would have expected more from both. Let the rivalry be on the golf course with good play not catty he said, he said shit.

That the view from the Hoodwood for this week, Until Next Post Fellow Sports Fans!

Just a day dreamin’ the other day...

Wonderin’ what it would be like for the rest of my life...

Don’t think I could take it...

So I decided to reduce it to the next five years...

Then I had to make the big decision...

Who do I pick???

And who can I stand to live without...

Amongst my many favorite teams...

Clippers, Lakers, Chargers, Kings, Aztec football...

Once I pick I can’t go back...

For five looooooong year...

You are cordially invited to join me...

And select only one team...

Just one team you can watch and follow for the next five years...

And you have no access to the other ones...

No access whatsoever...

Read the paper, it ain’t in there...

Watch TV...

Just a snowy picture...

Same for that radio station...

It ain’t there either...

Who do you love the most???

Who can’t you live without...

And the others just don’t exist...

For five years...

You won’t even know when they’re playing...

Or not playing...

So...

Imagine the off-season...

The loooooooong off-season...

If you pick a basketball team

You can’t watch the other sports...

Not just your team...

But the entire sport...

Well...

Maybe we could let you watch the other sports...

Or maybe not...

But not your team in that sport...

Is your absolute favorite team in your absolute favorite sport???

Tough choice???

Will it be based on how well that team is playing at the time???

Or will you pick a crummy team in your favorite sport???

I must say...

This is a tough one for me...

Baseball is my favorite sport...

That’s my generation...

But there’s nothing like going to a hockey game...

Or sitting in the stands with my season tickets...

Watching SDSU...

My college football alma mater...

If I don’t pick a college basketball team...

I miss March Madness...

Do I mind missing the Super Bowl???

Or the World Series???

The Stanley Cup...

Could I bear not getting to watch???

The dreaded Pro Bowl???

And...

As with any challenge like this...

There must be an *asterisk...

A disclaimer...

*Your actual mileage may vary...

*Member FDIC...

*If it lasts for more than four hours, call a doctor...

Okay...

One more thing...

Soccer doesn’t count...

You can’t pick a soccer team...

Because most soccer fans are one-sporters...

The wouldn’t miss the other sports any ways...

And that’s not fair to the rest of us...

Does that hurt you soccer fans???

Then fall down and fake an injury...

So...

Who’s your pick???

Are you going for quantity???

162 baseball games???

Or quality???

A four month college football season...

As for me...

I will pass on the Clippers and the Chargers...

I will miss the Clips...

But I can definitely live without the Bolts...

Especially after being Norved to death the last few years...

It’s between the Angels and the Kings...

And if I don’t take the Halos...

What do I do during the summer months???

Hmmm...

I could go to a minor league park???

Does that count???

I’ll count it...

I’m the boss here...

I’ll pass on the Angels...

So the only one left is...

GO! KINGS! GO!

dvt

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My Princess...looking so much like one for her junior prom.

Greetings from the Hoodwood, where the locals wish that Tiger and Sergio would just get into a brawl and be done with it. But we all know it would just be a catty slap fight if they did.

NBA: Are the Grizzlies the team that could take the Heat down?

I still want to know what the fuss is about. I still think that the Heat is still the team to beat in spite of the rabble rousing series that they are in with the Bulls but it seems that all of a sudden that the Memphis Grizzlies have become the sudden “it” team in the NBA, with the Warriors rollicking series with Spurs going at least 6. The Grizzlies could actually be the team that awaits the winner of that series. The Grizzlies after spotting the Thunder the first game in OKC, the Grizzlies have won 3 straight including a thrilling 103-97 OT game 4 win.  The Thunder have suddenly discovered for all his bad shooting foibles and reckless charges to the hoop. Russell Westbrook was a lot more valuable to the Thunder than a lot of people thought. He forced defenses to play straight up and Kevin Durant got a lot more clean looks than he does with Westbrook out. The Grizzlies seem to come at you in waves, Zach Randolph is one of the most underrated big men in the league who seems to roll off yeoman like performances every game. Randolph and Marc Gasol are two of the potent weapons in the Grizzlies game. The Grizzlies are in some ways the Anti-Heat. They play a grimy, gritty game and focus on defense much like the Bulls but instead of the yapping Joakim Noah or the ebullient Little Nate Robinson, they have a number of under the radar players and a bunch of a “Hey didn’t he used to be…” types. Gasol is quietly shedding his previous image of Pau’s dumpy baby brother and has been a real force in the blocks averaging better than 21 points,  8 boards, 4 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals( take a deep breath)  in the 3 games against the Thunder so far. How underrated is Gasol? He was named defensive player of the year, but left off of the All-NBA defensive 1^st team. Huh? How does that work?

The Fed Ex Forum is becoming a house of horrors for opposing teams as the building gets and stays loud. The Thunder, who are used to having teams be intimidated by their own raucous fans in the OKC are getting the business themselves on Beale Street. The Thunder need to reclaim the home court advantage or they will be going home a lot earlier than anyone expected. But there are many that are liking the Grizzlies as the team that has the defensive power to slow the Heat down and the star power and scoring to stand tall with the defending champs

NHL: Wings keep on flying while the Caps and Leafs gaffle it…again

There was a point where many people wrote of the Detroit Red Wings. Being a long time fan, I was geninuely concerned late in the season when the Red Wings were on the outside of the playoff line. I heard some taunts from folks that hate the Wings that they were done for, but a late season burst got them into the playoffs on the final day.  But playing against the Ducks many people figured that the Wings would be easy pickings for the Pacific Division champs, but the Wings kept coming back, losing the first game but won the second to steal home ice advantage, promptly lost it in game three, tied the series again in game four, faced elimination after losing game 5, and after blowing a 2 goal lead in game 6 was on the brink of going out in OT but won that game and stunned the Ducks in Anaheim a 2^nd time to win the series and send #2 seed home. They now face the Blackhawks who swept aside the 8th seeded Wild in five. Aside from a late March blowout all the games were close. Many pundits figure the Wings will be easy picking for the rampaging Hawks, but playoff hockey is a funny bird in itself.

Meanwhile in the East, the Capitals were supposed to roll over the Rangers who were just happy to be in the postseason and avoiding the Pens, and after winning both home games looked like that they would roll over the Rangers but the Blue Shirts won the next two at MSG and evened the series but the Caps seemed to be in control with a thrilling OT win in game 5 but the dramatic goal by Mike Riberio was stunningly the Caps last…of the series. The Caps got shut out in game 6, and despite the Rangers horrid record in road game 7’s came apart like a weak bill in the Senate. The Rangers thrashed the Caps in game 7 by a stunning 5-0 tally. It was an ill coda to a tight series and yet another playoff flameout by the Caps.  My friend John Walton is the play by play voice of the Caps and I just feel for him after another heartbreaking playoff loss.  Finally up in Beantown, I was getting set to have to talk both Sully and Mo down from the ledges after Leafs roared out to a 4-1 3^rd period lead in game 7 Monday. My buddy Guido, a big Leafs fan was already celebrating. He was saying that he knew that the Leafs could beat the Rangers. There was one problem, the Bruins got off the mat and scored, and scored and scored. Patrice Beregon scored in OT to complete the stunning comeback and while the Bruins celebrated being the first team to comeback from a 3 goal deficit to win a 7^th game, the Leafs had to face yet another playoff disappointment. Oh Canada! The Senators are now Canada’s last hope to bring the Stanley Cup back north of the Border where it hasn’t been since 1993…

MLB: What is up with the umps these days?

For reasons I cant explain, I have problems with umpires when I play softball. I get annoyed real easily by them, invariably I will end up trading insults with them and get the gate.  I couldn’t be a MLB player or manager because I would get run from way too many games by the way the umps will make the most bizarre of calls sometimes and then sit back with the mentality of unquestioned authority.

Item:  Oakland loses a home run when an apparent blast in the 9^th by Adam Rosales is reviewed and ruled to be a double off the wall. When replays clearly show that it hit a railing in the stands above the left field wall in Progressive Field. The A’s Bob Melvin is just about beside himself at the ruling and gets run by ump Angel Hernandez. Rosales doesn’t score though the A’s load the bases in the 9^th and the Indians get the win.

Item: The Astros make a pitching change during the 7^th inning in their game last Thursday against the Angels. Wesley Wright was brought into the game and was in the middle of his warm up throws when rookie manager Bo Porter ran on to the field to pull Wright before he faced a batter and replaced him with Hector Ambriz. Porter made the change because Angels skipper Mike Scioscia pinch hit Scott Cousins for Luis Jiminez. Scioscia argued that Porter could not make the pitching change until Wright had faced at least one batter. The umps led by crew chief Fieldin Culbreth disagreed and allowed the change to stand. Scioscia lodged a protest (why do they do these things when they are never upheld) which was made moot when the Angels won the game. It turns out that Scioscia was correct, Wright had to face a batter.  Culbreth ended up getting a 2 game suspension. Umps blew another call that they should know the rules on.

Item:  Ump Tom Hallion gets into it with Rays pitcher David Price telling him to “throw the damn ball over the plate” during a game on the 2^nd, Price later recounted that Hallion cursed at him repeatedly. Hallion called Price “a liar” when asked about the sequence of events as recalled by Price by a reporter. Hallion and Price were both fined for their actions

For their part, the umps continue to have that mentality that they are

Now the umps scream that they are only human. We’re not talking about the Don Denkinger blown call in the ’85 World Series or Jim Joyce’s egregious missed call on the grounder that should have been the 27^th out in Armando Galarraga’s perfect game. Those calls have been acknowledged as missed and in the latter case, Joyce cuts a sympathetic figure as someone who acknowledged that the missed the call and felt truly bad” NBA refs are getting that way as well. Joey Crawford being the most notorious of egotistical refs I know that umping and refing are tough, thankless jobs but in the case of more than a few umps, they let their ego get in the way of the “Im the ump and Im right.

PHAT DAP/HEAD SLAP

Phat Dap

Ive always liked Matt Kemp, he has a cerebral game and is one of the more dangerous hitters in MLB. But I became a big fan of his after his act of kindness to a dying fan last week in San Francisco. Now keep in mind that the Dodgers are in the middle of a horrible start to the season, and were in the process of getting swept by their hated rivals. At the conclusion of a game, Kemp went over to the fan, Josh Jones and started out by giving him an autograph. Then proceeded to give him his uniform jersey, hat and spikes. Jones, who cant speak and is wheelchair bound due to his illness had a bright smile.  Watch the video and if you get something in your eye,  Im not one to clown on you for it, I had the same problem.

Classy act by Kemp who put aside his slow start to make a fan’s day. And Hoodwood hopes that Jones keeps fighting strong against cancer.

Head Slap

To former Lions wide receiver Titus Young. I was at first going to give him the head slap for getting arrested twice in a 24 hour period. Young was arrested on the 5^th for suspicion of DUI in Moreno Valley California and then again 14 hours later for trying to break into the impound lot to try to get his car back. But it gets better. Young was arrested again  just this past Friday in San Clemente for felony burglary and misdeamenor resisting arrest. Young was released by the Lions right before the Super Bowl might have a hard time finding gainful employment after these brushes with the law. What special kind of stupid does a person have to be to get arrested three times in a week?

That’s the view from the Hoodwood, until next post fellow sports fans!

Does Anyone know where I can put this one in my house?

Greetings from the Hoodwood, where the locals are celebrating the 25^th anniversary of the “Have another donut” rant by Devils coach Jim Schonefeld to ref Don Koharski. Make mine cinnamon…what will you have?

NBA:  Lebron not unanimous?

To absolutely no ones surprise Heat F LeBron James won his 4^th MVP award garnering 120 of the 121 votes. Making him only the 2^nd player to win a near unanimous MVP,  Shaq was near his apex with the Lakers in 1999-2000 he was also one vote shy.  But the problem I have isn’t the fact that LeBron wasn’t unanimous though he should have been. Right now at 28, LBJ is the best player on the planet and being a big Kevin Durant fan I can say that without reservation. My problem is what the one voter,  Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe voted. Not that he voted against James, but that he voted for…wait for it. Carmelo Anthony. Carmelo fuckin’ Anthony! Now please don’t take my increudity at Washburn’s vote as a dis toward the prolific Knicks scorer whom Ive always had a bit of a soft spot for. I just don’t think that beyond being the reason the Knicks were a 54 win team was a reason that he would be in the serious running for MVP. If there would have been a holdout case, make it for Kevin Durant but Carmelo Anthony? I see that and think of one of my favorite quotes from the 2000 version of Shaft when Christian Bale replied to the query posed to him bad guy drug dealer played by Jeffery Wright when asked if he could land him some upscale clients. “Entre Nous? No Fucking Way.” I disagree with Washburn’s assertion that Melo being on a 54 win Knicks team is more important than the iconoclastic James making the Heat a near legendary team with their 27 game win streak being the closest a team has gotten to the iconic 33 game win streak the Lakers set a generation ago.  Im sure that without James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh would be hard pressed to keep the Heat at elite status.  I know that there is a tendency to get tired of voting for the same guy every year. Which explains why Barkley won in 93 and Malone in 97 when Jordan should have been getting an assembly line of the trophies from 90-98.  I wonder if Washburn was the dissenting vote for the Shaq MVP vote?

NBA: Conference Semis start off tense...

The conference semifinals in the NBA have started with high drama but not the usual suspects. Both LA teams are gone. The Lake Show having been closed out, and the Clippers joining them on the sidelines after the Grizzlies spotted them two wins in LA then storming back to win four straight. The Warriors won a contentious series with the Nuggets in 6 as Steph Curry absolutely sparkled. The Bulls raced out to a 3-1 lead let the Nets back in the series to a game 7 in Brooklyn but rolled to an easy win. The Thunder dawdled in dispatching the Rockets in first losing at the buzzer in game 4 looking disinterested in a game 5 rout loss in OKC before realizing that they were playing an 8 seed and dispatching the Rockets in game 6. Meanwhile the Spurs and Heat sat back and watched the other teams fight it out while they rested after dispatching the Lakers and Bucks in effortless sweeps but now the question is rest vs rust. The Heat struggled to find their rhythm early as they have a tendency but seemed to pull ahead in the 4^th. But shockingly came apart late in the game and the Bulls ran a 10-0 blitz late to stun the defending champs and steal game 1. The Spurs were down early and often but clawed back from 18 down late in the 3rd to force OT then made shot after big shot capped by a stunning 3  by Manu Ginobili. Damn, I hate the Spurs they always seem to fuckin win. They win a 2OT thriller 129-127 to survive game 1.

NHL: Working OT

The first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs have epic written all over them, many a solid storyline. The Caps won a 1-0 OT thriller on Saturday only to the Rangers bounce back strong to win game 3. The Maple Leafs back in the playoffs for the first time in 9 years won the split the first two games in Boston to snag home ice advantage. With a party atmosphere in Toronto, the Bruins ruined the party by spanking the Leafs and snatching home ice back. An all-Canada series between Ottawa and Montreal has gotten downright nasty as the Sens and Habs are just proving that they just don’t like one another.  The Sens routed the Habs 6-1 in Ottawa to the Canadian Capitals delight who love to pound their haughty French Canadian neighbors. My beloved Red Wings got smacked around in games 1 and 3 by a talented Ducks squad but stole games 2 and 4 in overtime thrillers. This series is going to be a frequent flyer series as the series heads to Anaheim and will come back to Hockeytown for game 6. Do you think that the Wings are glad to be moving to the Eastern conference? The Wild looked to be down and out as they got spanked by the Hawks in Chi-town the first two games. But the Wild pulled a game 3 OT stunner and wont go quiet.  The only real walkover is the Canucks-Sharks series as the Canucks once again are playing way below expectations. Despite winning the Northwest division the Canucks  dropped a pair of fairly tight contests in GM place in Vancouver then got straight housed Sunday Night as the Sharks steamrolled them 5-2 smoking Canucks Cory Schneider with 3 goals in the 3^rd in a 3 ½ minute span breaking open a 2-1 game. This series may just as well be over and yet another disappointing spring run for the Canucks will be added.

NFL: Is Chris Kluwe getting the shaft for his stance?

Punter Chris Kluwe has been one that has been on the forefront of his support of gay marriage and has been quite vocal about it. Whether you agree with his support of it is on your conscience and thinking. But some head are being scratched that Kluwe who averaged 45 yards a punt (gross) last year was cut by the Vikings after they drafted Jeff Locke of UCLA (the same school Kluwe came from ironically) but his 39 yards net on his punts ranked him in the bottom third of the league and many think that his best kicking days are behind him. There are some though that think that the reason that he was cut was because there were those that were not in favor of his stance on gay marriage and that the Vikings were under growing pressure to release Kluwe as an example to keep others mum on the subject. I hope that it was the numbers and politics that led to Kluwe’s release. I also hope that he will catch on somewhere. Someone of his talent on and off the field is needed.

PHAT DAP/HEAD SLAP

Phat Dap

To my buddy Jason Wilson. Wilson, who is the president and CEO of his own construction company in the greater Cincinnati area ran a 3:14 in the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati over this past weekend. Wilson qualified for the vaunted Boston Marathon next year and I just have to give him dap for being a better runner on his worst day than I could ever be on my best. The furthest I run is on the softball diamond.

Head Slap

To former NBA player Chris Gatling. Gatling who played with a number of teams in an 12 year NBA career was accused of squatting, breaking into a lock box for a house in a Phoenix suburb  then living there for better than a year. The actual owners lived in California but had kept the power on. Gatling then tried to rent out the house on Craigslist for $800 a month.  You have to think that a person that gives someone dap after they posterized cant be all that bright...see below.

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Thats The View From The Hoodwood...Until Next Post Fellow Sports Fans!

What are you watching more of?

The NBA Playoffs or the NHL Playoffs?