Michael Phelps Changes His Stroke

"To everything - turn, turn, turn

There is a season - turn, turn, turn

And a time for every purpose under heaven"

A famous song by The Byrds? Yes. An adaptation of a portion of the King James bible? Yes. A perfect metaphor to illustrate my point? Meh... kind of.

Michael Phelps has announced that he has totally changed his free-style stroke. That is a 5 gold medal winning stroke right there. This situation reminds me of a famous saying, namely "if it aint broke, dont fix it". You might be saying "But sir, Tiger Woods changed his swing and is still on the top of his game?" Tiger Woods can do whatever he wants. Michael Phelps is not Tiger Woods. Tiger Woods can do a rubix cube with his eyes closed. Phelps ALMOST got beat twice. He's going into the 2012 Olympics as a marked man. Changing up his strategy is not going to help. He needs to stop dating strippers and homophobic California pageant girls and get his mind on the games. What he really needs to change is his choice of smoking apparatus. Come on dude, bong? Joints are way more chill...

Dikembe Mutombo, you will never be forgotten by this fan

Dikembe Mutombo is done with the NBA. After he went down with a leg injury last night, Mutombo declared with tears in his eyes that he is officially retiring from the NBA.

"Nobody ever thought they'd be carrying the big guy out like a wounded soldier," he said in an article by the Associated Press.

Man, that really hits me hard. Here is a guy who has been in the league for 18 years. I'm a huge NBA fan, and this guy was one of the only bridges left from the old dream team to the new dream team. I don't know basketball without Dikembe being a part of it in some way. It is a sad day for basketball indeed. I hope Dikembe doesn't think less of himself for leaving the game because of an injury. The fact that someone that large had such an amazing and long career is a testiment to him. Greg Oden has twice as many injuries in 1/18th of the time.

It may not seem like a big deal to the average fan, but to real NBA fans, if this doesn't touch you in some way, maybe you should wonder if you are a real fan.

Nobody will ever forget the finger he wagged at players after blocking the hell out of them. To this day, that is one of the most degrading and awesome things the NBA has experienced. Kids for years to come will be wagging the finger at sullen and downtrot children who were just embarassed in front of everyone.

Here's to you, Dikembe.

Say it aint so Powe! Say it ain't so!

Today is a dark day for Celtics fans around the world. Leon the Great. Neon Leon. Leon Showtime Powe... Done. In the blink of an eye, Leon goes down- and so do the Celtics chances of repeating.

I thought that Leon and Big Baby Davis could carry the weight to an extent when KG went down. Now, it seems as though there are just too many injuries on our bigs to go on. Now, maybe if the Celtics signed Joe Smith or Drew Gooden instead of Mikki Moore, we'd still be ok... don't get me started.

It's tough that it has come down to this, but it just proves how everything has to go your way to win a championship. It's not easy to win one, and it's even harder to repeat.

You know what though? I'm not devastated. I'm definitely upset, but I mean, the goal was to win a championship when Ainge got The Big Three together. We did that. I'm not saying I want to be one and done for another 20 years, but I dont expect that to happen with this management team. I'm still high off our championship win last year. Bench help was an issue coming into the year. I think a few guys stepped up a lot, but in the end it was the injury bug that got us good.

I wouldn't be surprised if the Celts got out of the first round, but I just can't see us taking down Cleveland or L.A. unfortunately.

This does NOT mean that Pierce isn't a superstar. I'm sick of people saying that the Celts had no chance without KG. Sure, it's harder, but Pierce is the most unheralded player in the NBA, and gets no respect outside of Boston.

The big thing now is to get everyone healthy in time for next year. Big Baby and Powe are both free agents. I love Powe, and until recently he was much better than Baby. I think because Baby has mastered the elusive jump shot, he may get the edge over Powe. Also, Powe's injury could not have come at a worse time for his career. He was in line to get some big bucks, and his story is just so amazing.

Last nights game will not be the last you see of Leon Powe. He will be back in the league and stronger than ever. Unfortunately, I doubt it will be with the Celtics now. I'll hold out hope though.

Boston dominates America today

Today marks the day that Boston, Massachusetts moons the rest of America.

1.) Patriots' Day- If it wasn't for the battle of Lexington and Concord, who knows if I'd have the freedom to be blogging to you here today. Those were the first battles of the Revolutionary War and they are remembered on this day. Not to mention, the greatest team in the last decade is named the New England Patriots.

2.)Boston Marathon- The most important and biggest marathon in America, and arguably the world. This year an American came in third!

3.) The Red Sox played today during the Marathon like they do every year. They won their fifth straight game and I think it's safe to say, thanks to the Orioles, we are back on track.

4.)The Boston Bruins were unfortunately not able to spend this historic day in Boston. They were too busy running train all over Montreal. The Bruins took a 3-0 series lead, and look to put the Habs out of their misery later this week. Chuck Kobasew outskating the Habs lineup in the final minute to put away the empty netter represents this team to a tee. They just want it more. This team is going to the Stanley Cup, period.

5.) The Boston Celtics fought off the pesky Bulls once again in a dramatic UCONN showdown between Ray Allen and Ben Gordon. Gordon may have had the better stats, but it was Ray Allen who had the clutch three at the end of the game. Wow, that game was amazing. Oh and Vinny Del Negro, when one of your guys is on an absolute tear in the game, it may not be a good idea to accidently bench him coming out of the final timeout. Just a thought. Celts even the series 1-1, and that was definitely a must win game for them.

Bruins Post Game Quotes Round 1 Game 2

Coach Julien on Patrice Bergeron: "I guess I discovered he’s a lefty. I think he discovered he was a lefty. That was just one of those things that, obviously he got enticed. He got hit in the head to start with by [Josh] Gorges, and then was challenged, and he did what he had to do."

---Bergeron is obviously not known as a fighter seeing as this was the first fighting major he has gotten in his professional career. Gorges found out the hard way that just because he doesnt fight, doesnt mean he cant...

Coach Julien on the Power Play: "We just moved the puck around well. We moved it well, we moved it fast, we looked for seams, and great to, you know Recchi and others that did a great job of standing in front of the net, and obviously creating some havoc there. It’s just, a lot of it’s about confidence."

--- The PP Unit has been the story of this series so far. The Bruins are absolutely ripping apart the Habs on the PP. The Habs arent playing smart out there, and they are paying for it. Clearly they cant stop the Bruins when theyre a man down.

Tim Thomas on Shane Hnidy: "The whole locker room’s, our thoughts and prayers are with Matt Hunwick, but we thought the best thing we could do was to have a good showing tonight for him, and Sheriff [Shane Hnidy], that’s the way he’s been ever since he’s gotten here. Every time he has to step in, he comes up huge, and he’s been doing that the whole two years he’s been here. He definitely did that tonight. He was calm, cool and collected, and he got a huge goal, and that helped keep the momentum in our favor."

---Hnidy was great for the Bruins tonight. His goal was the dagger in the side of the Habs. It prevented them from gaining any momentum after their first goal, unlike in Game 1 when they eventually tied it up 2-2. The story all year with this team is that guys step up when called upon no matter who it is.

Marc Savard on difference between game 1 and 2: " I just think our first game we were so excited to play all day, and the days off we had I think when we came in the energy kind of ran out. So we were a bit flat in Game one. I thought Game two we had a nice short practice on Friday and came out here today, we didn’t have skate this morning and really put all our energy towards tonight’s game and the whole team did a great job."

---100% agree there. There was no let down in this game. It was constant attacking until the meaningless third period. Last game they got real slow in the 2nd but there wasnt any signs of that this game.

Michael Ryder on the pp goal by Savard: "Yeah it was huge. Z just stepped through and I just stepped behind him and he took I think a couple guys to the net and I was going to shoot first and then I looked and I’d seen Savvy wide open and I just threw it over to him and he just had to finish it off."

--- That was just a pretty goal all around... Chara really does attract so much attention out there. It's like in the NBA, doubling Kevin Garnett down low and leaving Ray Allen open for the three pointer...

Shane Hnidy on his goal: "Axy heard me. I was yelling for it. I saw a chance to join in on the rush. Obviously, I don’t get up (in the play) as often as I would like, especially in these games. It was a good chance. He (Axelsson) made a great drop pass and kind of went in for a screen and I was just trying to get the puck off with a quick release, and it fortunately went into the net."

---Another pretty goal. Axellson actually did all the work though. He dropped the pass to Hnidy then cleared out the way for him. Price probably could have saved it if he wasnt Price, but he is, and the puck went in.

You really cant find any complaints with this game. The Bruins did what they had to do, which was win both home games. If they take 1 of 2 in Montreal I will be happy, and I'm sticking with my Bruins in 5 prediction. I wouldn't be surprised if it ended in 4 though...

Bruins In-Game Blog Round 1 Game 2

Alright folks I'm here at the game, the internet is up, the crowd is loud, and according to them here in the garden, "you're gay, you're gay, you're gay, you're gay." That is, if you are a Canadiens fan or player. With that said, let us begin...

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8:23- the crowd is loving it so far. A lot of hits. Everyone is on Price right now, although he's only faced two shots... the Bruins just went on the PP after a Kostitsyn hook, lets see if Chara can blast another slap shot through like he did Thursday.

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8:25- The PP unit strikes again... it wasnt pretty, but we'll take it right? Montador and Kessel on the "assist".

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8:34 Price is defintely feeling the heat. The fans are all over him. The Bruins are just blasting shots at him left and right. Poor guy... I love the pressure put on by the Bruins. Relentless right now.

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8:37- Picking up the trash, Mighty Ducks style. Constant pressure by the B's just attacking the net, looking for rebounds. Kobasew was smart to crash the net there.

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8:38- Got to love this period so far, Bruins go on the PP again hoping for the same result as last time... Chara is waiting to unload I can feel it.

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8:41- near miss by Krejci on that PP. And did you see that save right there by Price? Tim Thomas-esque.

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8:44- And Kessel with the right hook! Oh baby, it's getting crazy in here. And only the first period too. Lets forget that he skated away after.

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8:47- little 4-4 hockey here for two minutes... not sure I saw the Bergeron dive, looked like he got tripped to me...

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8:49- and thats your first period. No complaints over here. That was some hard hitting Bruins hockey right there. Now the key is not to get off their game in the second period like they did on Thursday. Don't let Montreal back into it, keep the pressure on. Time for some popcorn...

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2nd Period

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9:08- De ja vu? Bruins get a 2-0 lead and let the Habs back in it... let's see how they respond.

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9:16- Thats the way to respond. PJ Axelsson with the great play there. Drew the defenders, dropped the pass, and cleared the way for Hnidy to unload. The Bruins are playing much better this period than last game so far.

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9:22- Textbook. The Canadiens are digging their own graves this series, they just can't seem to get out of the penalty box. Once again the Bruins capitalize with the nice pass from Ryder to Savard. That gives the B's three powerplay goals in two games. "Carreyyyy, Carreyyyyy...."

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9:34- Bruins are 3-7 this series on the PP. Pretty good percentage if you're the B's... not so much if you're the Habs.

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9:41- Make that 4-9 this series on the PP. I know it was a 5 on 4 there for the B's.. but it felt like a 5 on 2. Honestly, are the Habs even trying anymore? They aren't skating, they aren't even covering players in the crease, they're commiting dumb penalties. The B's go up 5-1 at the end of the 2nd, and this one is ovaaahhh folks. Ryder had himself a nice period. Bruins just dominated this period in general, 180 degree turn-around from last game's 2nd period.

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10:01- The third period begins, and Price takes a seat on the bench for the rest of the game... to nobody's surprise. That's probably the only smart decision by the Habs all night. Let's see if things start to get a bit chippy out there now that the game is basically out of reach for the Habs.

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10:04- "You're gay" chants rock the arena, as Habs fans sit with their tails in between their legs. Honestly, why are they still here? Cut your losses and beat the traffic guys.

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10:11- A lot of dumping the puck in the zone. It looks like its going to be one of those uneventful periods unless some fights break out... which wouldn't make anybody in this crowd upset.

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10:16- Patrice Bergeron! KO in the first round! I can only imagine what Jack Edwards is saying right now...

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10:24- Well I think I'm going head down a little early today... not expecting much to happen with 5 minutes left. I'll check in after I get done in the locker room and press conference with Julien. Check back later tonight with Post-game thoughts and reactions from the players and coaches.

Post-Game Quotes- Game 1

Tim Thomas: "Last year was my first NHL playoffs, and I thought I was ready. I was still able to play well, but as far as to handle the crowd, I thought I’d seen it all – you know, world championships, that kind of stuff. But last year, I think the energy of the crowd overwhelmed me a little bit, so this year I made a conscious decision to ignore that. I mentally prepared myself as well as I possibly could, not to get caught up in that. It kind of sounds silly, but I can’t really enjoy myself and let myself go with the crowd and play to the best of my ability, so I kind of had to shut it off. 13 seconds left, that was the first time I really got to enjoy myself with the crowd. The beginning of the game didn’t affect me. When we had a two-goal lead with 13 seconds left, I was celebrating along with the crowd."

---Experience is always key in success in the playoffs. The fact that most of these Bruins were in the playoffs against this same team last year is only beneficial to them. Like Thomas said, he was overwhelmed a bit last year, now he knows what to expect and how to handle it all. I think that goes for a lot of guys on this team.

Milan Lucic on responding to Laraque's trash talk: "A little bit back and forth, but nothing too… yeah nice words. ‘How you doing? How was dinner last night?’ You know, those type of things.

--- Got to love the fact that Laraque can't get in these guys heads. These young guys are well tempered out there and pretty mature for their age. There is no doubt that the maturity level is high on this team, regardless of age.

Marc Savard on the play of Kessell tonight: "Well he's our top scorer. Any time you can get him out there you want to get him out there and I think our first power play at the start of the game we were moving it around but we just weren’t getting any shots and obviously Phil’s the guy that shoots it. I think in the third there it was a good example he caved down on me and two guys went to him because he’s that dangerous from where he was going to be and Monster [Chara] was waiting back there with his stick touching the roof and I sent one back and it was a great shot by him.

---yep, mentioned this earlier I think. It just makes sense to put your top scorer on that line, right? The more shooters, the more the defense has to commit, opening up the ice for "Monster".

Georges Laraque: "For us it was definitely a good loss."

---Ah yes, the words of a loser...

Post Game Thoughts- Game 1

A few thoughts while waiting for Coach Julien in the press room.

-Savard walked into the locker room wearing a hat and shorts that had a picture of a steak and read "stay hungry". He said it Marco Sturn's idea. I think that definitely represents this team's attitude. They went through a small stretch towards the end of the season when they were trying to find reasons to stay hungry... no reasons needed now.

-Lucic really played well tonight as well. Knows that "discipline is key" and when Laroque talks out there it goes "in one ear and out the other". Played off the cheap shot on Kessell and said it was just a sign of frustration on their part, which it was.

Julien now takes the mic... gotta put the comp down...

Coach Julien was satisfied with the team's performance but knows there room for improvement definitely. He called Z the "heart and soul of the team" and also had praise for Lucic, saying he gets up for these games. Gave praise to the "young guys" on the team as well.

The player I was most impressed with tonight doesnt actually show up on the score sheet. Patrice Bergeron was out hustling and all over the place out there. I mentioned it earlier, but he looked like he was stealing second base seven different times based on how many times I saw him putting his body in front of the puck.

Coach Julien was also impressed, saying, "last six plus weeks hes been as good as we know he can be.... he continues to get better and better and makes big plays."

I think a lot of people forget how good Bergeron was supposed to be for this team before he went down. A lot of players get physically healthy, but emotionally they are not there. I think Bergeron is emotionally there now, which is huge for the Bruins in the playoffs. There were times in the regular season that it didn't seem like he knew what he was doing out there... but I don't see that happening anymore.

I'll have a lot more direct quotes later tonight or tomorrow morning on tonight's game. Overall it was a solid effort, minus the second period. Savard noted that a lot of times in these playoff games there is so much hype that is built up that players get a little tired during the game. That seemed like the case in the second period, but once they added Phil to the PP line in the third and Chara netted that slapper, it was easy to regain that momentum they had in the first.

Bruins in-game blog round 1 game 1

Note: The reason this blog started so late is because the Garden had a problem with their internet connection and it wasn't fixed until now.

9:11- currently a time out. its 2-2 in the third with 13+ to go and the fans are starting to get loud again. First period was crazy, second not so much. Bruins really took their foot off the gas there in the second. I think they got a little too comfortable. The hustle in the first period was great. Bergeron was on his stomache diving for pucks more than anyone I've seen.

9:18- Bruins get another power play chance. Currently 0-3 tonight, so they're due. With under 10 minutes left in the game... the time is now. It needs to be louder in here. Drop Kick Murphys are on over the speakers... where's Papelbon at?

9:21- Bruins get screwed by the crossbar.... no problem. Chara comes through with a monster slap shot that would have taken the head off of a Spartan. Thats Charas 7th point of the season against the Canadiens, his fourth goal. WOOOO!

9:24- nothing like a goal to wake up the crowd. Also, to whoever is sitting in the section under me... I can smell the weed.

9:32- Compared to last year, there are barely any canadiens fans here. This team has won over a lot of Bostonians, deservingly so. Habs fans can't get tix to these games like they could last year thats for sure.

9:35- theres one minutes left. I'm closing up shot and heading to the locker room. Check back later for player reaction and everything else that press passes let you have access to.

So it's been a while

Heerrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeessssss Jimmy!

Back by popular demand, theolecollegetry everybody! we took a while off... we werent really trying, which goes against everything we stand for. I say we, but who knows if my partner in blogging crime will join me back here.

Basically I have a Bruins press pass and since I only write for my college once a week, I may as well put the pass to good use until I undoubtedly get hired by a major media outlet of some sort.

You can expect the most current and up-to-date information on the Bruins as well as in-game running blogs.

Also, my love for the Celtics will continue to show on the blog as well. No press pass for the Celts, but none is needed.

The Sox and Pats talk will be put on hold, unless something major occurs (trades, brawls, etc.) because lets face it nobody really cares about the Sox until summer starts, and aside from the NFL draft, there isnt much to talk about the Pats right now (19-0).

With all that being said... check back here daily. I promise to update this thing at least once a day and obviously numerous times on game days and during games.

Feel free to comment on anything you read, and feel free to bring up your own points. It's an exciting time for sports fans in Boston so lets do this.

Griz get POWENED!

"...1001, 1002, 1003..."

If you don't think I'm coining the phrase "Powened" then you don't know me. I'm convinced I'm the only one clever enough to come up with this, and I expect it to catch fire quickly. This might put TOCT on the map, we'll see. Maybe get us more than 12 hits per day.

30 points, 11 rebounds, 5 blocks in 41 minutes. Love it.

Is there nobody out there infatuated with Powe's story? The guy came from literally nothing and now he's taking the NBA by storm. Why is there not a movie on him? How did Telfair get one and not Powe? Can we bring back the Behind the Glory series? His wikipedia page doesn't do him justice.

Scals getting seventeen concussions and big baby getting a stomache ache was probably the best thing that could happen to the Celtics. Don't get me wrong, I want KG back, but I don't want to see Powe going back to 12 minutes a game. I think he deserves 25, at least. Cut Perks minutes back if you have to. Never play Mikki Moore or Scals if you have to. I don't care how, but get Powe his minutes. Just saw that in the games Powe has started he is averaging 20+ points and 10+ rebounds per game, how can you cut those minutes back...

Other notes from the game: Marbury and Moore didn't look half bad out there. It was great to see Rondo though, Celts thrive off him. Marc Gasol is pretty damn good, he will be much better than his annoying birdlike brother Pau. That being said, Powe dominated the hell out of Gasol. Also, Bill Walker should be in the dunk contest next year.

Woman Buys Used Couch and Finds Cat Living Inside

SPOKANE, Wash. – The mysterious mewing in Vickie Mendenhall's home started about the time she bought a used couch for $27. After days of searching for the source of the noise, she found a very hungry calico cat living in her sofa. Her boyfriend, Chris Lund, was watching TV on Tuesday night and felt something move inside the couch. He pulled it away from the wall, lifted it up and there was the cat, which apparently crawled through a small hole on the underside. Mendenhall contacted Value Village, where she bought the couch, but the store had no information on who donated it. So she took the cat to SpokAnimal CARE, the animal shelter where she works, so it could recover, and contacted media outlets in hopes of finding the owner. Sure enough, Bob Killion of Spokane showed up to claim the cat on Thursday after an acquaintance alerted him to a TV story about it. Killion had donated a couch on Feb. 19, and his 9-year-old cat, Callie, disappeared at about the same time.


We all need to take advice from the animal world in these tough economic times. The cat most likely got laid off, and instead of begging for a stimulus or slitting his wrists he got resourceful. He turned a ratty, possibly bodily fluid encrusted couch into a home. My guess is the cat had about 60 grand invested in Tuna, which stock has plummeted. Kudos to the woman and her boyfriend for finding the cat, but it must've been an awkward few days with the boyfriends "Did you just grab my ass?" accusations (Night at the Roxbury style) at his couch. So the woman now takes the cat to an ANIMAL SHELTER! The cat is probably like "I just survived a god damn week in a couch, with no food mind you, and now you are bringing me to a shelter? I'll take the couch actually. KTHXBYE" Shelters are a death wish. And who the hell is Bob Killion of Spokane? I seriously would be afraid if I was his child. Didn't the fact that no one was meowing around his house for a few weeks register in his mind? He must have been walking around his house like "Didn't there use to be a... nahhh nevermind". That's Washington State for you though.

--MM--

Celts lose again, whats up Doc?

Well, well, well Mr. Rivers. You think you know somebody, then you think they change, but in actuality you knew them all along.

Listen, I'm not about to throw Doc under the boat here. He has come a long way in the past couple of years and the Celts players really like him, so I'm all about it.

That being said.... Marbury starting again? Clearly Doc isn't a TOCT reader. No hard feelings. I'm not going to sit here and disect the numbers, because it's pretty clear. Marbury, 24 minutes 0-6 fg, 0 points, 4 assists. Then Mikki Moore chipped in with a solid 0 points and 4 rebounds in 18 sloppy minutes. Like I always said, the guy's name is Mikki, what do you expect? Until he starts going by Mike we can't take him too seriously out there. Even I plan on making the transition to Jim sometime within the next five years.

For the House lovers out there, I'm with you. House droppped 12 points in the same amount of time that Marbury had, and also didn't have a tattoo on his head at any point.

Also like I said earlier, Leon Powe is a MAN. 23 points and 13 rebounds in 43 minutes. Woooo we! Keep him in Doc, that's what I'm saying.

Pierce only took 10 shots tonight? Whats up with that? It's not like JR Giddens played any minutes : (. Pierce still ended up playing 41 minutes while Allen played 40. Again, these are a lot of minutes for these two guys while Walker and Giddens look on...

Walker got 14 minutes of playing time which was nice. He ended up with 8 points, 2 ast, 2 stl, 1 reb, and a +12 on the night. Those are solid numbers considering. I think he will start to see more playing time down the stretch.
--JT--

UPDATE: Under the boat? It's late, goodnight.

Jay Cutler needs to shut up

Yo, listen BRO. Big deal, you were shopped around. You want to know why? Because you have a terrible attitude and Josh McDaniels is used to having a quarterback that has a right to be upset over something because he's shown he's worth it.

You, Jay, are worth nothing. What have you done for the Broncos? Give us one reason why they SHOULD NOT shop you around to teams dumb enough to take you? What have you done for Denver? People could argue that Cassel has performed better than you. Some quarterbacks would use this as fuel to perform better, but not you. Instead, you sit at home and cry to daddy that your team was trying to trade you. Grow up. This isn't Pop Warner anymore. If you suck, or have a bad attidude, teams are going to look to get rid of you.

McDaniels isn't messing around. He knows he can't get Tom Brady, so he wanted the closest thing to him, Matt Cassel. Can you blame him? Sack up and go out there and prove to the state of Colorado and everyone else that you're worth a starting job in Denver and that you never should have been in trade talks. I don't want to see you on the bottom line of my tv, I don't want to read about you online or in the newspaper. In fact, I don't want to hear about you until Week 1 when games start. Quite frankly, you're not newsworthy enough for me or anyone else in New England.

March Sadness : (

"Will somebody tie my sneakers tighter?"

Rajon Rondo (G), Tony Allen (G), Brian Scalabrine (F), Kevin Garnett (F), Glen Davis (C).
No folks, that's not Wednesday's starting lineup, although it could be if we were playing a number of poor teams in the NBA. It is the injury report. Those five players will not be playing Wednesday against the Heat.

Rondo is out with a bad attitude.

TA is out with a headache.

Scals is out with pink eye... and is being treated for a massive sunburn after two sunny days in a row here in Boston.

Garnett is "so hype right now".

Davis is chowing down on Filet O' Fish's at McDonalds.

I don't want to sound like a broken record here. Injuries, bench help, etc. etc. are all going to be important factors down the stretch obviously. The Celtics are in a tricky situation. They need to get their guys healthy, while not overtiring the guys that are already healthy like Pierce and Ray, and they need to stay in the hunt for first place in the East.

How does Doc do this?
1. He needs to not start Marbury and instead start House who is much more familiar with the offense. Let Marbury gradually get used to it. Don't throw him into the lineup against teams like the Magic (oops you already did that Doc...)

2. Start playing Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens. Listen Doc, you can't keep throwing Pierce out there for 45 minutes a game, sorry. Same with Ray Allen. I'm not saying reduce their minutes to 25, but get those young guys in the rotation a bit.

3. Leon Powe(sey)- I LOVE LEON. Finally, it takes three centers to get injured for Leon to get the playing time he deserved. Leon could be that fire off the bench that the Celtics had last year like Posey. I know Powe is nothing like Posey, but he can spark the bench like Posey did. Powe will take a charge from an 18 wheeler coming down I-93 if it means the Celtics will gain posession because of it.

The Suffolk Voice: Manny, Was it Worth it?

The homerun we will never forget...

Well Manny, I hope you're happy.You made such a big deal about this contract situation, for what? A lousy $5 million more?

All you had to do was continue to hit the ball and not hit old men. We put up with the showing up late to Spring Training, we put up with your flopping around the outfield, and we put up with the fact that you never wanted to speak to the media. We put up with it! Somewhere along the lines, that became "Manny being Manny", don't ask me how. I loved you, Manny. You're like the ex girlfriend that I want to hate, but deep down I'd probably take back in a second.

So why?

Read the rest of this amazing opinion piece here at THE SUFFOLK VOICE

Joe Smith to Cavs... Mikki Moore to barber shop

Say it ain't so, Joe, say it ain't so!

Celticsblog.com is reporting that Joe Smith is signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Put.... the gun.... down....

On second thought, don't. This is terrible news. I hope I'm making too big of a deal about this than it actually is, but I just can't get past the fact that the only team we really need to worry about the most got the guy that WE should have gotten. Here we are with a grown man named Mikki in the paint while the Cavs get Joe Smith, Celtic killer last year in the postseason. Smith was supposed to be our PJ Brown.

To make matters worse, Smith will be in action on Friday against our very own Celtics. I'm not saying Cavs are guaranteed to win now, just that it sucks that we have to see him so soon after we were screwed out of getting him. No time to heal. It will be interesting to see Moore and Smith go one on one.

To make matters EVEN worse, Scals is out until at least April. Damnit... I feel like Moore is out there playing with a constant concussion, but Scals needs to sit a month? Come on!

World's Strongest Man

Such a bad picture of me...

Nothing like a snow day to get you watching some obscure television. ESPN2 changed from hilarious sports journalist banter including unnecessary yelling to the world's strongest man competition in the blink of an eye. I actually like this stuff. Tossing boulders over walls, pulling buses with pure brawn, and carrying a car chassis as far as possible are some of the amazing feats of strength these brutes showcase. Here's an idea though, a Regular Guy Strong Man Competition, that any everyday schmuck can participate in. Some possible events are as follows:

The Notebook - competitors watch The Notebook, are given 100 points and a point is subtracted for every tear that falls from their eyes.

Mother-in-law - competitors must sit at a table with their mother-in-law and the one who sits there the longest wins.

Hot chick/Dumb Story - competitors listen to a hot chick tell a really dumb story, the one that doesn't slap her by the end wins points.

Sitting in Traffic - competitors are forced to sit in endless traffic on a road with little to no scenery and only political talk radio available on the radio. Whoever contains their road rage the longest wins.

Barbecue - the final round pits two competitors against each other in the greatest backyard manhood challenge of them all. Competitors are graded on speed, quality, and quantity of their barbecue prowess in a timed event. Ingredients include chicken, beef, vegetables, sausage, and fish.

What are some other possible event ideas for the Regular Guy Strong Man Competition ? Let me hear them.

--MM--

Drew Gooden and Joe Smith bought out, Mikki Moore sound asleep

Well, late last night around 12am, two players, both much better than Mikki Moore, were bought out. Joe Smith was bought out by the Thunder, and Drew Gooden bought out by the Kings.

As you are all well aware, I was begging for Smith to be bought out and come to the Celtics. One thing lead to another and it got delayed, forcing the Celtics to make another move. So now the Celtics are stuck with the second coming of Mark Blount while Joe Smith goes to the Cavs, great.
Anyone remember Joe Smith killing us last season in the playoffs? Well, now he's on the team that poses the biggest threat of stopping the Celtics' chance to go back to the Finals.

These last couple of weeks for the Celtics have been nothing short of disasterous. KG went down, Scals went down, TA went down, and to top it off we're stuck with Marbury and Moore now.
Joe Smith was the answer the Celtics were looking for. Last year the answer was Brown and Cassell. The fact that Smith goes to another contender while we throw small players out there to guard big ones scares the hell out of me.

I'm losing more and more confidence in this team by the day, but all hope is not lost yet. Obviously when KG comes back back things will change. I'm still pulling for that #1 seed. Every team goes through a rough patch. If we can get our guys healthy before the playoffs then I guess I can't ask for a whole lot more. As long as Glen Davis continues to nail 18 footers all night, we've still got a chance...

RAWRRR!!!! MARCH!!!!!!!

IN LIKE A LION!!!!

As I sit here on this miserable, snowy, Sunday night, I take a second to think about my weekend. Then, I cringe, and decide it's probably better to forget about my life and focus on sports. So, lets find out what professional athletes were doing while I was a.) dropping my phone in the toilet, b.) canceling my credit card only to find it minutes later, c.) eating pizza for breakfast... and dinner, d.) all of the above.

Cassel and VRABEL traded to Chiefs- I don't really know what to say about this trade just yet. I'm not sure if the Pats are done or what. We have like three second rounders now or something, so I'll wait to say if we got enough out of the deal. What kind of surprised the hell out of me was finding out that Vrabel was traded as well. "Bill, I know, I know... but it's Vrabel man. Vrabel! I know Bill, but still... it's Vrabel." I feel like we all feel this way. Nobody wants Vrabel traded. Nobody was at home last week looking over the roster saying. "TRADE VRABEL PLEASE!!!"

He was the ultimate Patriot. There are about 5 ultimate Patriots, he was one of them. Fill in the rest on your own time. Sure he wasn't the same Vrabel five years ago, but I mean, damn.. you're still Vrabel ya know... What can you do. It's business out there as usual. I'm not one to question Bill ever, EVER, and I won't start now, but still... it's Vrabel.

Marbury Joins Celtics- :sigh: He's here folks. I tried everything in my power to prevent him from coming, but to no avail. Listen, I'm willing to give the guy a chance, I want to be wrong about him, really, I do. His first game against Indiana he looked pretty good considering it was probably the first time he touched a basketball in a year. Today against Detroit though, eeeeee. Looked more like the Marbury I thought he would be. Way to make Will Bynum look like me in the sixth grade CYO tournament, my greatest sporting year to date. Like I said, I'll give him a chance. Not going to hate on him YET.

I just feel like he's what the french would call, le incompetent (what movie is that from). For instance, when he entered the game for the first time against Indiana and obviously got the standing ovation, he went out there smiling from ear to ear. Dude, you're in the NBA, it's not like 9 year olds rec league when you cant help but smile when you do something good out there. Not really an issue, but adds to my already bad feeling.

P.S. the Celtics played TERRIBLE today against Detroit. Unfortunately I went to the game and suffered through it all. Shots just were not falling today for Ray Allen. Real frustrating for him I'm sure.

Bruins do stuff- Bruins looked real nice on Thursday against the Ducks. Saturday, eh. I've seen a better effort out of some of those guys. On the other hand, some guys stepped up, like Matt Hunwick (look for an article by this guy coming out on Tuesday about it). It was a great game from a fan's standpoint. The Caps and Bruins are definitely evenly matched. Every game has been close, but the fact is the Caps have gotten at least one point from us in all four games. The Bruins will need to step it up in the playoffs if these two meet in the ECF. Obviously the ending was terrible, as Thomas let in a goal from wellllll beyond the blue line. Nothing you can do about it, it was a fluke goal. We did score with a few minutes left in the third to push it to OT so if you're an optimist, you're happy, if you're a pessimist, you're not.

--JT--

Todd McShay and Mel Kiper Jr. arguing for sake of it?

Listen, the NFL draft is fun to watch. At least it was until ESPN decided to ruin it by announcing the picks 30 seconds before the commissioner would do so. Anyways, I'm already getting sick of the MKJr vs. McShay bickering. I put up with it last year and now I'm being forced to listen to these two cry about where Matthew Stafford goes.

The bottom line is both of these guys are historically wrong in their predictions about where players go. Last year, Joe Sports Fan, compared the first 135 predictions of 2008 draft with the actual first 135 picks of 2008. The results? Todd McShay picked nine, count 'em, NINE, correct picks for accuracy percentage of 6.67%. Not to be outdone, MKJr followed that up by picking EIGHT correct for a percentage of 5.93%.

I don't claim to know a whole lot about college football, and I'm not questioning the knowledge of these two highly paid individuals. To be able to list where you think players might go and actually back it up is impressive enough. What I am saying is that it is clear that the NFL Draft is full of surprises. Nobody really knows what teams are going to do. It's a waste of time to take up ten minutes fighting about where Matthew Stafford should go when in reality, nobody really knows.

Detroit could take Stafford with the number 1 pick this year, unless they feel like a better quarterback will be around at the number 1 pick next season... it's their call.

--JT--

Red Sox Back In Action

Mmmm french fried pertaters...


Put away the Ray-Bans and 45 SPF sunblock because things get serious today down in the Sunshine State. That's right, cutoff drills and pitchers fielding practice is all but over as the Red Sox begin games on this lovely Wednesday. At 1:05PM the Sox took on and handily defeated a far inferior Boston College squad who were probably too worried about their Religious Studies midterm to even focus on the game. The highlights were some minor leaguers hit some doubles that scored some runs, Josh Beckett whipped two scoreless innings then chewed two tins of regular tobaccky (as opposed to wacky tobaccky) and called it a day. Clay Buchholz took a few minutes out of his busy day he had planned (bang playmate, rinse, repeat) to hurl a scoreless 3rd inning.

Tonight the ever-competitive Mayor's Cup begins as the Red Sox battle the Twins at 7:05PM. The Mayor's Cup is the annual spring break tournament between the two squads, with whoever wins the most games keeping the "trophy". Tim Wakefield starts for the Sox while some no-namer starts for the Twins (oh wait, he has a name, its Glen Perkins) Most of the regulars will suit up for this one so be sure to flip back and forth to NESN between American Idol songs (I mean... what...)

--MM--

Awesome new NBA commercial

Saw this first over at awfulannouncing.com, one of my favorite blogs. Real nice commercial on NBA greats past and present.


My only problem with it is Bird missing that shot- thats a bunny.

--JT--

Moore signed, Marbury next?

ESPN is reporting that the Knicks and Stephon Marbury have agreed to a buyout. This means that all signs point toward Marbury joining the Celtics, that is if they Celtics want him. Although I haven't heard Ainge say he wants Marbury, there have been indications of the sort.

I have been critical of Marbury in the past and feel that he doesn't add a whole lot of positives to a team. He has never been a winner, and has shown numerous signs of selfishness in the past.

This is what I want to know: By trading away Patrick O'Bryant and Sam Cassell for essentially Stephon Marbury and Mikki Moore, have we really gotten better? Granted, POB was nonexistent, but I can't see Moore doing a hell of a lot more. As far as Cassell goes, he didn't play this year, but Marbury hasen't either. Cassell has the leadership and the experience of playing with this current team, not to mention he is a proven winner. Having Cassell on the bench is worth more to me than having Marbury on the bench.

I just don't see why we need Marbury I guess. I feel like the cons heavily outweigh the pros. With Rondo, House, and Pruitt at the PG position, where does Marbury fit in? Does Marbury even deserve a ring if the Celtics are lucky enough to get that far? I was fine last year with PJ Brown and Sam Cassell joining late, because they filled clear voids on the team. Moore will not be PJ Brown, not a chance. Brown could actually rebound, and we saw him hit clutch shots. I can't even picture Moore being in the game in a situation where clutch was necessary.

There were times last year when I wanted to strangle Sam Cassell for hoisting terrible shots. If Marbury takes the same path, I'm not sure if I'll have the patience of keeping the game on TV.

Update: It appears I'm in the minority in not wanting Marbury, as over 75% of celtics fans over at celticsblog.com want the Celts to sign him. Hey, I hope I'm wrong about the guy.


--JT--

The Suffolk Voice: No Garnett, No Problem

The Boston Celtics have played two full games since the injury to Kevin Garnett, and as the legendary Ron Burgundy would say, "In no way is that depressing."

The Celtics, coming off a blowout win in Phoenix 128-108, were still on fire from Sunday when they took on the Denver Nuggets and won convincingly 114-76.

The reason the Celtics are blowing out semi-respectable teams in the West is because guys are stepping up in the absence of Kevin Garnett.

Read the rest of this amazing article HERE!

The Other Guy In Rudy

Showoff...

So I am daydreaming on the bus to work today and all of a sudden it hits me, what did the other guy in Rudy think? What guy am I talking about? Well the one player who had to sit in that final game because Rudy got to play. Think about it! Coach Devine knows there is a strict 60 player dress rule. All the players that went to his office in the climactic scene knew THEY wouldn't be the ones that would actually have to sit, no no of course not. Imagine if you were the 60th guy on that roster though, barely dressing for every game. Maybe he was a Senior. Maybe it was HIS last game too. Maybe his dog just died and he was REALLY looking forward to being on the sidelines for his final game vs. Georgia Tech. He is on a goddamn scholarship to Notre Dame! I bet his whole family was getting ready to make the trip to South Bend for his final game as a Fighting Irishman and now they had to cancel because he wasn't even going to be on the field. But NOOOOOO Rudy has to come along and screw it all up and now he is sitting in the stands drinking hot chocolate. To add insult to injury everyone starts chanting "Rudy... Rudy... Rudy!" I wonder if he did. I wonder if he played along like he wasnt wicked pissed that he had to sit so Rudy could play. Maybe he hated Rudy for being a suck-up and always trying so hard and making everyone else look like jerks. Now he has to sit and watch his team win the big game, but nobody ever worries about him. Well I do.

Celtics curb stomp Thuggets, Scalabrine's head hurts

"Brian Scalabrine- 4.6 pts, 3.4 reb, 1.5 ast, 0.3 concussions"

Did you see what I did with that title? I took Nuggets, and incorporated the fact that they played like thugs last night, and came up with the word "Thuggets." Thats the type of creativity you get here at The Ole' College Try (.blogspot.... still working on that). Gotta love it.

Anyways, how obvious was it that the Nuggets were out for us last night? First, they take down the man known simply as Veal. I'm no doctor, and I don't claim to know a whole lot about concussions, but I do know that when you're fresh off two concussion it's probably not a good idea to get another one. Hey, I'm just saying. Well thats what happened to Mr. Scals last night as he was visciously jumped on by some hooligan. Let's go through what happened:

Rondo gets under the basket and dishes it to Scals, who surprisingly was not parked out at the three point line. Scals goes up with ball when some punk named Petro decides he is going to sit on Scalabrine's head. Huh? Listen folks, it's red hair, not a target. What happened to wrapping your arms around the dude with the ball and calling it a day? Why the hate? Is it because he's a ginger? Honestly. Because if it is... I guess I can understand. Kidding, of course. So Scals gets creamed, and ever so graciously flops lifelessly to the ground. Based on the way he fell, I thought he was out cold. What happens next? The trooper turns over and looks around like it's Christmas morning and he can't believe all the presents he got. Just Scals being Scals.

Let's hope our token Irishman is back before St. Patrick's Day.

Also, Ray Allen got mauled by Kenyon Martin driving to the hoop, and then crushed by Billups while taking a three pointer. I don't know why anyone would be out to get Allen. The guy is the classiest player in the league hands down. Listen Denver, I realize that being down by 47 points puts you in a bad mood, but here's an idea that may work... play defense. Box out. Grab Rebounds. Show a little respect for the game. Oh well, we won't be seeing these bums in the NBA Finals anyways.

--JT--

Rondo beats career high of...26?

The Celtics cruised past the Suns today just like they did in the Garden when they played them. I don't know what it is with the Suns, Rondo just owns Nash completely. It's just that Nash cannot contain him. I wasn't surprised that the Celtics curb stomped the Suns today in Phoenix. The Suns are not a very good team. When you don't play defense you won't succeed. The Celtics, although giving up 108 points, generally play better defense than every team in the league. It will be interesting, however, to see how this team performs defensively without KG on their ass all game.

So Rajon Rondo scored a career high 32 points today... Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for the guy. But I keep thinking to myself, "This guy's previous career high is only 26 points?" I guess I was just surprised to hear that, being that Rajon Rondo is so important to this team's success. He has never really been asked to score, and not needed to. Maybe now with Garnett down for an extended period of time, he will have to step up his scoring. The points have to come from somewhere. Rondo is an interesting PG. He reminds me a lot of Jason Kidd except without beating his wife. He's a play maker. He hustles for the ball. He's not afraid of getting hit going up for a rebound or a loose ball.

The saying has always been that the Celtics go how Rondo goes. He will have to step up even more so now that KG is out. As tough as it is to make guys like Scal and Baby look like actual basketball players, Rondo will be asked to and expected to do so.

--JT--

Will Solomon traded to Kings

Well, that was fast.

10 minutes after we trade for Solomon, we trade him to the Kings for another heavily protected second round pick, essentially nothing. So all in all, we traded Patrick O'Bryant for nothing. Surprised? I'm not. We go back about exactly what O'Bryant was worth.

Now we have two roster spots open, and got rid of some salary. Joe Smith and Marbury perhaps? I hate Marbury, but I'll take the bad with the good if I have to.

--JT--

Patrick O'Bryant traded for Will Solomon

"There is Celtics speed, and then there is Patrick O'Bryant speed." -Doc Rivers

Looks like the Nocioni trade isn't happening, not surprised there.

Patrick O'Bryant was traded to the Sacramento Kings today for a mediocre PG, Will Solomon. This really isn't a big deal, but it probably means that Stephon Marbury isn't coming to the Celtics, which to me is a good thing.

Rumors are the Celts are still waiting to see if Joe Smith gets bought out. Other than that, I don't see any major moves for them. All we can do is pray the Cavs don't make any moves either.

--JT--

Nocioni to Celtics for garbage?

I read this on Celticsblog.com (by far the greatest Celtics website known to man).

Supposedly there is talks about the Celtics getting Andres Nocioni for (ready?) Brian Scalabrine, Tony Allen, Glen Davis, and Patrick O'Bryant.

I know what you're all saying to yourselves. "Wait a second, we can get rid of these four players and actually get something in return?"

You read that right folks. The only one I'd be hesitant to give up would be Glen Davis, but ONLY because I'm not sure if we could get Joe Smith. If Joe Smith becomes a Celtic, and Ainge will know his chances of getting him in advance, ship Davis out on the next plane. I'm just skeptical of trading guys in the middle when thats who we need.

Scalabrine has been a scrub all his career here except for the past like month, Tony Allen will never live up to the expectations, and Patrick O'Bryant is a complete and utter joke and won't touch the floor in the playoffs.

This trade seems too good to be true, so I'm not getting too attached to the idea... but it's fun to think about.

--JT--

Shaq to Cleveland?

It's NBA Trade Deadline day, and fans of contending teams all around are waiting to see what happens, if anything.

There is a lot of talk surrounding the Cavs. This scares me. There was some talk late last night about Shaq going to the Cavs for Wallace and Pavlovic. This would wreak havoc for the Celtics. Basically, the Cavs can't succeed in getting a big man or the Celtics are in trouble. Also, there was some talk about Camby to the Cavs as well. The Amar'e talks have died down so I doubt thats going to happen.

There was this encouraging news from ESPN though:

Chris Sheridan: A source who has been in the know for years tells me that Joe
Smith is keeping his fingers crossed that the Thunder do not find another trade for him now that he's back in Oklahoma City.
Smith, the source said, would like to do a buyout and then sign with the Boston Celtics as this season's version of P.J. Brown.

It seems more and more unlikely that the Celtics are going to make any trades. I have a feeling it is going to be Joe Smith or bust. But then again, who the hell am I?

--JT--

Chandler for Smith and Wilcox NOT HAPPENING

I guess Chandler didn't pass his physical for the Thunder so the trade is a no go... This is very interesting stuff. Will Smith be traded to another team? Will he be bought out? The Celtics might be back in this thing. Maybe the OCT jinx isn't true afterall. The trade deadline is in like 15 hours! Anything can happen. But will anything happen? The word right now is that the Celtics are silent on the trade front.
I'm wondering if Danny is picking up the phone right now and calling over to OK City...

Wish I could be a fly on the wall when Chandler walks back into the locker room... awkkkkwardddd.

Massive wedgie prevents burglary

SALT LAKE CITY – It took a wedgie and a headlock to pin down a man suspected
of breaking into a car. Yvonne Morris, a technician at the Brickyard Animal
Hospital, said she chased a man who broke into a co-worker's car, but he
kept squirming away from her. Morris eventually grabbed the man's boxer shorts and pulled. Salt Lake City police said she then she put a headlock on the man until help could arrive.
The man was booked into the Salt Lake County jail on suspicion of vehicle burglary, possession of stolen property and outstanding warrants.

Well, it's a sad day for buglers when one of your own gets taken down by a wedgie and a headlock. Talk about a one, two punch. Clearly this guy wasn't picked on enough in high school. Everyone knows as soon as you get new boxers, you rip them a little bit just in case you find yourself in a situation where you're about to get a wedgie. As soon as the bully pulls, the boxers rip, and you run away scotch free. It's science, really. A friend of mine used to get wedgies all the time back in school, you don't know him...

--JT--

Chris Brown goes Rocky IV on Rihanna

Moments later... he tried to drown her.


Listen, thus far on the blog we haven't even touched this issue. So here goes. Everyone knows couples fight. Some couples more than others. But everyone, even Hollywood starlets, get into altercations. That was no different before the Grammy's when Chris Brown laid the smack down on Rihanna, Triple H style. (No matter how many times I type Rihanna it still feels weird) You just know they were having a typical couple fight:

R: "Chris I told you to wipe the seat. I'm tired of sitting on your gross pee everytime I have to go!"
CB: "Maybe if you cooked me an edible dinner once in awhile I'd help you out with that..."
R: "Excuse me? What did you say? Don't make me bring up what your mother said at the barbecue the other day!"
CB: "Bitch if you say another word I will fucking murder you."

Annnnnnnnnnnnnd scene...

Just goes to show no matter how hot your girlfriend is, she is a pain in the ass. Even Giselle must fucking piss Tom Brady off 85% of the time. Its just the way of the world. Men are from Mars and women are from the most annoying fucking planet in the galaxy (Annoyon). With that said though, you should never, ever, EVER hit a girl and I am disappointed in Mr. Brown. You are supposed to just yell really loud 2 inches from her face to make your point. Seriously though apparently Chris Brown got a booty call text and it set Rihanna off (understandably). Yo Chris what in the hell were you thinking! You know if you're expecting a late night text from some biddy that you put your shit on silent! Thats an amateur player move. So Rihanna gets out of the Lambo and refuses to get in. And trust me ladies, nothing pisses guys off more than when a woman is making a scene in public. CB goes berserk and goes all Hulk on Rihanna's face and then chokes her out, running away while the unconscious Rihanna lays there. Bold move by Brown, assuming she wouldn't tell.

Apparently these two fight all the time, Rihanna playing the part of the jealous girlfriend, following Chris around to all his shoots so that he won't flirt with anyone. This isn't their first break up, but it probably will be their last. The worst part is, Brown changed his Facebook status to single. That is so official. Seriously... Facebook! Not even "Its Complicated" or the ever-classy nothing route, Brown changed it to Single! He changed his status to "Now what, bitch" and his interests still include "DoubleMint Gum" even though his sponsorship has been dropped.

--MM--

Tony Allen to have surgery, Joe Smith traded to Hornets

Well, call it the OCT jinx. Not even 12 hours after I propose Joe Smith could be a Celtic, he gets traded to the Hornets. It's unlikely he gets bought out now, as even though the Hornets did this to save money, they can still make a playoff run with Wilcox and Smith. This sucks for Celtics fans. In other sucky news, Tony Allen is having thumb surgery and will be out until at least the playoffs.

I'm not saying Tony Allen was worth a lot to us, in fact he was a huge disappointment this year to me, as I thought he would step up in Posey's absence- he didn't. But he was a body out there and gave guys like Pierce and Ray rest when needed, and he could defend at times. Now with Allen out, the Celtics are forced to move some bodies around. I'm not sure how this affects trading players too. We might not be able to afford to trade those young guys or rookies I talked about now. Will we see more playing time for Gabe Pruitt and maybe Bill Walker? Time will tell. The Celtics lost a PG and a SG today, and haven't gotten a big man yet. I wouldn't call this a good day by any means, but there is still time to fix our problems.

Cassell traded to Kings for 2nd round pick

Marc Spears says that Ainge confirmed the Cassell trade. The Celts are trading Cassell and cash to Sacramento for a heavily protected second round pick in the future.

So what does this mean? Well, basically all this did was free up a roster spot in hopes a player of the Celtics' interest will be dropped after the deadline, or a trade will be made. Obviously Joe Smith has been the intriguing guy over the past month or so, but even that seems unlikely. If anyone remembers, Joe Smith was huge against us last year in the playoffs. It would be great to have him on board as he is just what we need. The Kings might end up waiving Cassell, which means a team in need of a veteran PG might pick him up (Orlando?). Or, he could end up back on the Celtics... remember the Gary Payton issue a few years back. The Celts can wait 30 days until after Cassell is dropped before they can resign him.

These next few days will be verrrryyyy interesting

The Suffolk Voice: Celts can't let Cavs do the trading

It was reported last week that the Cleveland Cavaliers made an offer to acquire Amar'e Stoudemire from the Phoenix Suns. It did not happen, but the idea of it happening is scary enough. There is a very strong possibility that the Celtics and Cavaliers will end up playing each other in the Eastern Conference Finals. If Stoudemire were to go to the Cavs and team up with Lebron James, you can bet they will end up in the NBA Finals.

Read the rest of the article HERE!

Chinese Woman Goes Berserk After Missed Flight

Seriously, everyone knows how stressful the airport can be. This is how we all would like to act in the airport all the time. It is so confusing in there I feel like Dustin Hoffman in I Am Sam trying to complete a rubix cube. "So if I'm going to Florida but there's a layover in Atlanta to I get my bags in ATL or do they go straight to FL and how much is the fee?" On spring break I am going to visit my brother and if you think I wont flip out like this woman if I miss my flight you are dead wrong. I will probably even make a bigger scene because Logan is way more crowded than this airport. I love to see her just flip on the crazy switch whenever she needs it. She tries to rationalize to the guards why she missed her flight then when it becomes to much for her shes like AHHHHHHHWAHHHHHHHH WIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII etc. There is absolutely nothing worse or more embarrassing then missing your flight and this video just proves it. Plus, it confirms the age old stereotype that upset Asians are hilarious. I half expected a kung fu fight to break out in the middle of this.

--MM--

Kobe and Shaq Co-MVP's... How Cute!

This story makes me sick.

Can these two be any more fake? Listen, if you hate somebody, HATE THEM! Don't be a girl about it. Shaq, if you're going to diss Kobe in raps, do it in person too. Don't play paddy cakes with him out on the court. That's what girls do man. With guys, when you've got a problem with somebody, you've got a problem with them in person too. Listen Shaq, everybody hates Kobe- you just happen to be the most famous person to hate him. Why can't you use that power and speak up for the common fan? Damnit...

I guess I can see how they didn't want to give Kobe the MVP on Shaq's home court blah blah blah all that political stuff, but still, it's just not right. I wish I was around for the days when a player hated a player and both players knew it and showed it on the court. THATS what sports these days are missing. Where is the feud? Where is the fire and passion? I feed off that.


--JT--

Another football player caught with a gun, another baby cries after being born

Let me state the obvious and say this dude is scary. I mean, I made this picture big so everyone could try to get an idea about what happens when a human being mates with a gargoyle. I've wanted to post on this guy for a while, but needed a reason to. I guess this will do. The real question here is, "Does this guy really need a gun?" Look at him! He could walk into any store and say, "I'm taking this and I'm not paying for it and you're not going to do anything about it." He could walk up to anyone and punch them in the face, take all their stuff, and say, "You will not report this." These people would all listen, I know I would.

He got in trouble for running over a woman last year. His fault for two reasons. 1) Watch where you're going. 2) If you hit the person, let her know what you look like. I guarantee she won't press charges for fear of her life and the life of her family.

Anyways, the dude has a blog on yardbarker.com, good luck trying to read it. It's like hes texting or something. I dont know. A lot of it doesn't make sense, but you didn't hear that from me.

"Beast Mode"

--JT--

Defending JD Drew: So hard, nobody can do it

Check out Youkilis standing in the fourth row.

Matt, Matt, Matt...

Way to bring the children into this. In my post I say nowhere that I was fed up with JD Drew's production, I said I'm fed up with the fact he's always injured. That has absolutely ZERO to do with his son. Not to mention I believe you're exagerating his son's injury, as his son had surgery on his hip and had to wear a cast (which is still serious) but there really was no extended period of time where his son was going to die, based on my knowledge. I'm talking about how his play is affected by his injuries, not family life. He's not dependable at all. On any night, he could be out with a back spasm and it wouldn't surprise anybody. The Sox were willing to pay this bum $14 mil, but weren't willing to pick up Manny's options in advance? Thats only $6 more by my math, sounds like a bargain to me.

That being said...

Maybe I'd be a little easier on JD Drew if he wasn't currently at the top of the Red Sox's salary list making a whopping $14,000,000 this year. More than Youk, Ortiz, Pedroia, Lester, etc. It's a scam. If you're going to make that much money, earn it. If you're going to sit with injuries, fork the cash back over. It's simple. Drew has been about the money since he was drafted into the league, just ask anyone in Philadelphia. Drew is worth about half of what he is making, and until I see a season close to injury free with solid numbers, thats how I think of him.

Yeah he had a hot month and a half, but is that what we are paying him for? A month? And as far as white players go on the Sox, take a look around. Aside from Jacoby, our entire field is white. Nobody is whiter than Jed Lowrie.

P.S. JD Drew is doing a disservice to Trot Nixon's number 7.

Shocker: JT Poorly Evaluates Talent

MVP of my heart...

Jimmy, J.D. Drew has been burdened with being a 5-tool player and having one of the sweetest natural lefty swings (since a young Matt Moretti) for his entire life. Wouldn't your discs be a little herniated if you had to carry around that monkey for 30-odd years?

The man single handedly carried the Sox through the dog days of summer last year and in my mind is one of the greatest Red Sox heroes since Saint Douglas Mirabelli. How soon you forget that 2 run home run off K-Rod that destroyed the Angels hopes last October. The only reason he gets on peoples nerves is because he makes things look SO EASY that it appears as if hes not even trying. He glides around the outfield like a rabbit genetically modified and bred with a panther with turbines attached, on ice, shaved, driven by an over-caffeinated fighter pilot, going down a ski jump, under better than ideal conditions.

Plus, in his first season in Boston he had to deal with the distraction of his son almost dying. Yeah Jim, his son almost died. You try having a son and then have that son almost die and then proceed to play 162 games with your head in the game and not on your dying son. Not so easy, is it?

So please, lay off J.D. Drew for the time being, especially since he's white. And everyone knows Boston loves white athletes. J.D. is more than white, hes clear. He makes Kevin Youkilis seem like he could host the Source Awards.

(but yeah you're right... he does get injured all the time)

Shocker: J.D. Drew still injured

There are a few guarantees in life. You'll be taxed, you'll die, you'll probably go to the bathroom at least once a day, you'll crave pizza when you're wasted (and when you're not wasted), and J.D. Drew will have an injury during the season.

I almost didn't post on this, because like Martin Lawrence signing up to be in another terrible movie, it really isn't news.

ESPN reports that J.D. Drew is still hindered by a back injury that he sustained last season. Something about a herniated disk, I don't know I stopped reading because I'm so fed up with the guy. Supposedly he's still able to hit and run and play blah blah blah but lets be honest here, it's only a matter of time before this thing gets more serious and he is forced to miss games.

The solution? Rocco Baldelli.

Rhode Island's own is here to save the day. Boston needed a backup outfielder for obvious reasons, so they went ahead and signed the most injury ridden outfielder they could find. I'm kidding, but not really, but I do like Baldelli and I feel since they diagnosed the problem, hopefully he can stay healthy and be good for us.

--JT--

Dunk contest was decent, everything else sucked

Skills Challenge... Sucked. I think it was just the players involved this year. There was no competitiveness like there was in past years. Everybody just kind of slowed the pace down. Real let down.

3-Point shootout..... sucked. Way to go Kapono. Couldn't you have just won? What was the high score, like 16? Thats amateur. How the hell was Eddie House or Ray Allen not in this competition. How was Manute Bol not in this competition? Anyone in the NBA can get that many points in a competition. Come on... I will take credit for predicting Daequan Cook would do well in the competition. I love how Kenny Smith said he had no chance... nice call Kenny.

Dunk Contest... not too bad. First round was pretty rough. Rudy Fernandez's dunks were decent, but the fact it took him 3 minutes was the reason he got low scores. J.R. Smith, like I said he would, sucked. Dwight Howard is too tall for the dunk contest. His dunks were great, dont get me wrong, but because he's so tall he makes it look too easy and therefore the excitement isnt there. He should have raised the rim up another two feet, he easily dunked that. Nate Robinson, as I predicted no big deal, won the competiton. His dunk over Howard was amazing, I dont care what anyone says. Yeah he used his hand but barely. The fact he could even get up there is amazing. He deserved to win. I don't want to see him next year though.

Next years dunk contest should be:
Lebron James
Kevin Durant
Dwayne Wade
BILL WALKER

--JT--

Llamas attend owner's funeral in Ohio

"Dust in the windddd..."

PERRY, Ohio – A northeast Ohio farmer who died of cancer has been laid to rest with the help of some of the llamas he raised on his farm. Two of Terry McCrone's llamas made up an honor guard at his funeral Friday at Perry Christian Church. Four others from a statewide drill team joined them, wearing purple ribbons as they lined up outside the church. The llamas also escorted a hearse to Perry Cemetery. The 61-year-old McCrone died Feb. 7. The Rev. Bob Ladygo of Bible Baptist Church says McCrone's llamas would visit him at his window after he became sick. The ribbons the llamas wore were given to McCrone's wife and daughter.

This man obviously had a sharp sense of humor, considering llamas are fucking hilarious. Try looking at a llama and not laughing your ass off. Go ahead, I'll wait........... I know right! So funny.This story brings a tear to my eye. Nothing like llamas as part of your honor guard. They also called in 4 other llamas from a local drill team? Sounds like they are raising one hell of a llama army over there in Ohio. Unless we are at war and need soldiers with extremely long tongues I think they don't need to be worried about heading to Iraq. Anyway it must have been hard to give Mr. McCrone a 21 gun salute with no opposable thumbs but I suppose that's an issue for another day. They probably slept at the foot of his bed like dogs and stuff, he fed them scraps under the table, these are clearly domesticated llamas. And I like the part at the end where it says "the ribbons the llamas wore were given to Mcrone's wife and daughter" it makes it seem like they should be honored to get these ribbons! Like the fucking llamas were more important to the man then his own family! The llamas escorted the hearse to the cemetery? My God I hope the farm was like a mile away from the cemetery or that would be one long ass and slow funeral procession. If I was behind that line of cars I would be absolutely furious. Seriously you CAN NOT under any circumstances cut in between or in front of a funeral procession, in American culture that's almost as bad as ripping the tag off a mattress.

--MM--

NBA Saturday Predictions

Ah yes, All-Star Weekend in Phoenix.

Did anybody watch the rookie-sophomore game last night?
The game itself wasn't bad, but it was hard to watch the game in surround sound when it seemed like the entire arena was full of children ages 8-14... ugh. Every three seconds a pre-teen would screen bloody murder at essentially nothing. I thought it would die down and the kids would start napping around the third quarter, but nope. Anyways, it was obvious that the sophomores were going to win, they win every year. Kevin Durant is a beast, the scary thing is hes only a few years older than the kids sitting in the stands.

I actually enjoy NBA Saturday. I'm a big NBA fan, so I'd say that this all-star game is more enjoyable to me than the MLB All-star game. NHL game isn't bad, a lot of scoring anyways. Pro Bowl is a complete joke.

Now onto the events for the night.
Haier Shooting Stars:
Basically this event takes three players, past and present, from a given team. They are to take a combined six shots from various spots on the court, ranging from 10ft to half court.
Last year it was San Antonio that took it home. The contestants this year:
San Antonio: Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Becky Hammon
Detroit: Aaron Afflalo, Bill Lambeer, Katie Smith
L.A. Lakers: Derek Fisher, Michael Cooper, Lisa Leslie
Phoenix: Leandro Barbosa, Dan Majerle, Tangela Smith

Prediction: San Antonio Spurs. They won last year and I see no reason why they won't win again. Duncan is king of the 15ft banker, and we've seen him hit the three. Robinson will hit the 10ft, and that chick Hammon is a pure shooter and won't have a problem with the 3pt. Second place will go to Phoenix, followed by L.A., and finally Detroit. Of course, the key to this game is the halfcourt shot in the end, so anything can happen.

NBA Skills Challenge:
An obstacle course that involves layups, dribbling, bounce and chest passes, and shots.
The Contestants:
Devin Harris
Tony Parker
Derek Rose
Mo Williams

Prediction: This is tough because every player is stronger at certain things. I think I'm going to go with Devin Harris here. He's lightning fast and has a nice shot. Passing will be iffy but none of these guys are much better at passing than the other. Mo Williams is replacing Jameer Nelson who obviously can't play.

3-Point Shootout:
I will not explain what this is.
Contestants:
Mike Bibby
Daequan Cook
Danny Granger
Jason Kapono
Rashard Lewis
Roger Mason Jr.

Prediction: Jason Kapono. The dude is lights out from beyond the arc. He's going for his third consecutive championship and I see no reason why he won't get it. He is in my opinion and the opinion of many others, the best three point shooter in the game. I will say that if Ray Allen was in this competition he would put up a fight. I don't understand why he's not in it. Talk about a pretty shot. I think Cook and Mason Jr. are sleeper picks. They round out the top three. Mike Bibby will absolutely suck, I'm predicting him to finish last.

NBA Dunk Contest.
In this competition, players are selected to perform breathtaking dun... again, not explaining.
Contestants:
Dwight Howard
Nate Robinson
J.R. Smith
Rudy Fernandez
Prediction: Eeeeeeeee I want to go with Nate Robinson here. You've got the 7'5 Dwight Howard going against the 5'7 Nate Robinson. How can I not take Robinson here? Listen, Dwight Howard's Superman "dunk" would have been amazing, had he actually dunked it. I liked his creativity there though. The thing is, Robinson is tiny, and can get UP. If he can pull something nice off tonight he should get it. I mean it has to be ten times harder for him to dunk than it is for Howardm, right? J.R. Smith is a punk, I don't know him personally but I can tell. He won't win because honestly I dont think anyone likes him. Rudy Fernandez? Weird. Russel Westbrook should have been voted in over him.

P.S. I didn't forget the H.O.R.S.E. competition, I just think it is going to be an epic failure. Think about a game of horse for a second, the percentage of the shots you actually make that are cool are like 4%. Are we supposed to sit there and watch three bball players screw around and ultimately fail at the majority of their shots. Disaster. Prediction: We all lose.

--JT--