NBA, Where Amazing Flagrant Fouls Happen

I don't quite understand the logic of "well it's the playoffs" when it comes to flagrant fouls. Either something is a flagrant foul or it isn't. Just because it's the playoffs doesn't mean blows to the head should now become legal. But that's the NBA, Where amazingly poor officiating happens.

Tuesday Morning Thoughts: Let’s Play Who Did They Draft?

A lot of NFL Draft, some Bulls, and one Pulp Fiction.

1. You’re a team with credibility issues and a vast history of retaining players with “off-the-field” problems. In fact, the stripes on your uniform make the perfect analogy to the stripes on prison inmate’s uniforms. Current players include a head case (Chad Ocho Cinco), a wide receiver with a rap sheet longer than the SEC’s GAAP accounting rules (Chris Henry) and a player arrested for gun charges (Tank Johnson). So who do you draft? Of course, Andre Smith (OT Alabama) the biggest head case in the entire draft. Ladies and Gentleman your Cincinnati Bengals.

2. Like Paris Hilton in a Scorsese movie, you’re team is inept and lost. You have a history of paying veteran players tons of cash, only to see them underperform (Randy Moss/Joe Horn/Javon Walker). What do you do in the draft? Of course, select Darrius Heyward Bey instead of the proven and better Michael Crabtree. Well done. Oh wait, how can the Raiders mess up their draft even more? Taking what most people consider an undrafted free agent in the 2nd round (Michael Mitchell (sounds like the guy from Arrested Development). Ladies and Gentleman your Oakland Raiders.

3. Like the Bungles, your team has a history of players with “off-the-field” issues (think Randy Moss and the classic Vikings boating scandal). Who do you pick in the draft? Percey Harvin a player who smoked weed knowing that he would be tested for it at the Combine. Percey Harvin literally blazed up thousands of dollars my smoking up. Ladies and Gentleman your Minnesota Vikings.

4. You’re a team with a tragic history of drafting offensive players, especially wide receivers, only to see said players flame out or bust. Your team just went 0-16 and likely fielded the worst defensive unit in the history of the NFL. Who do you draft with your first round draft picks? Mat Stafford (QB) and Brandon Pettrigrew (TE). Again two offensive players. Ladies and Gentleman your Detroit Lions.

5. You’re a team with a history of having no balls, trading down, only to get players from Division 3 college or “Combine” stat players. Who do you draft/trade back for? Johhny Knox, from you guessed it, Abilene Christian. Ladies and Gentleman your Chicago Bears. (PS. I could actually care less, we have CUTLER!!!).

More random thoughts.

6. Do you realize that Marvin Lewis is still the coach of the Cincinnati Bungals? In six years, his team has gone 46 and 49. Six glorious seasons of mediocre to terrible performances. I guess the Bengals just need a little more time to see if Lewis is their man. There GM must be thinking, “Hmmm, well he’s only been here 6 years, but I am still not sure what to make of the guy. We need more time. Yeah, let’s see what he can do in year 7”.

7. 10 years from now we will look at this draft and likely conclude that it was not that great. The only star players are likely Crabtree and maybe Stafford (read huge bust potential), plus a couple of random guys we are overlooking at this point.

8. Del Negro saved his timeouts. Del Negro must be learning and growing as a coach. Great, Del Negro’s gone from JV high school coach to WAC college coach.

9. Ben Gordon.

10. If Phil Jackson was the Chicago Bulls’ head coach, I have no doubt in my mind that Rajon Rondo would be having a mediocre series. I could see Jackson putting a tall athletic player on Rando and force him to shot over him (think Pippen). Although, that player may not exist on the Bulls’ roster (Maybe Salmons, possibly Tyrus? Who is that guy we picked up the draft a few years ago. The Sudanese/Egyptian/British dude? Deng! yeah that's it. Whatever happened to him?)

11. DeeeeTROIT BASKETBAAALL…. Stinks.

12. I couldn’t stand the ABC commentators on Sunday. Van Gundy is almost as annoying as Bill Walton. I missed Stacey King.

13. I want to punch Perkins, Glen (I am a fat baby) Davis and Kevin Garnett in the face. Of yeah, and Doc Rivers annoys me too.

14. Oh yeah, Paul Pierce thinks he got fouled… on every play.

15. Why does Mel Kipper give that smug, weird nodding, squinty eyed facial expression every time he’s finished talking about an NFL prospect?

16. The Swine flu. Want some bacon? No man, I don't eat pork. Are you Jewish? Nah, I ain't Jewish, I just don't dig on swine, that's all. Why not? Pigs are filthy animals. I don't eat filthy animals. Bacon tastes gooood. Pork chops taste gooood. Hey, sewer rat may taste like pumpkin pie, but I'd never know 'cause I wouldn't eat the filthy motherfucker. Pigs sleep and root in shit. That's a filthy animal. I ain't eat nothin' that ain't got enough sense enough to disregard its own feces. How about a dog? Dogs eats its own feces. I don't eat dog either. Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn't go so far as to call a dog filthy but they're definitely dirty. But, a dog's got personality. Personality goes a long way. Ah, so by that rationale, if a pig had a better personality, he would cease to be a filthy animal. Is that true? Well we'd have to be talkin' about one charming motherfuckin' pig. I mean he'd have to be ten times more charmin' than that Arnold on Green Acres, you know what I'm sayin'?

Chicago Bears' Jarron Gilbert Jumps out of Pools

I don't know if the Bears' first pick in the '09 draft is any good, but he can do this.

Chicago Bulls vs. Celtics: Are the Celtics over their KG Depression?

What’s it like to watch the Bulls get beaten like a high school nerd after accidentally bumping into the school bully? Well, I imagine it’s like getting stabbed in heart with a dull plastic knife. The Bulls managed to allow an old, mentally abused (still getting over the fact that their messiah KG won’t play) pierce them in the heart like one of those guys from the Last of the Mohicans. Not in my craziest nightmares did I ever see the Bulls losing Game 3. Worse than losing, they got abused and embarrassed. The drunk, naked, and dirty, (yet sexy girl) from Eastbound and Down even probably looked at the Bulls’ with disgust last night.

What happened? I don’t know. How can you explain a team playing like a bunch of guys from a Swedish health club pick-up game? Let’s forget about analyzing the Bulls. The Celtics on the other hand? Well, what if the Bulls only came close to going 2-0 in Boston because Boston was still hung-over from the loss of KG? They sure looked like it in Game 1. Ray Allen couldn't put a ball through a hula hoop, Perkins looked like Perkins and Glen Davis played like a baby in that first match. Paul Pierce didn’t start playing in the series until Game 3.

Unfortunately for us Bulls’ fans, the Celtics are getting over their KG depression and the Bulls are reverting back to every horrible habit they had prior to the Salmons/Miller era. The Celtics played like champions last night and the Bulls? Well the Bulls played like the Bulls: immature, selfish, no-defense, poor coaching and soft. When the going got tough, the simple fact is that the Bulls' packed it in.

I am done making my predictions on this Bulls’ team. They either wake up and realize that they are playing against Perkins and Glen "baby" Davis (players who actually suck), an old Pierce and past-his-prime Ray Allen or put their heads’ down, dribble, dribble and pretend they’re still playing KG, a young Pierce, and Jesus Shuttlesworth.

Chicago Sport's Center

I am too angry to write anything about the Bulls' performance in Game 3. So here is ESPN Chicago's SportsCenter highlights.

Chicago Bulls: Keys to Victory over Celtics.

I am not an NBA coach and never will be. I understand (and mostly hope) that Vinny Del Negro knows a whole lot more about basketball than I do. But I love basketball and especially my Bulls. And while purely from a fan’s perspective, I think the Bulls need to do the following (in classic Fanion bullet point style) to win the Celtics’ series.

1. I have always loved the triangle offense because it’s really a motion offense that forces players to think and react. There are really no set plays. Players move, cut and play off of each other without the need to look back at their coach for instructions on how to use their brain. The Bulls offense on the other hand, mainly consists of two plays: the high pick and roll with Derrick Rose and sideline screens to free up Gordon and Salmons. I’ve always been against the pick and roll or Stockton and Malone offense because it only allows two players to be involved in the offense, while the other three players sit around and watch. The pick and roll worked well during game 1 of the Celtics’ series, but Boston adapted and essentially stopped it from being effective in game 2. Namely, Brad Miller would set a high pick, Rose would feed him the ball, and Miller would start stumbling and eventual turn the ball over. The pick and roll should be used in some instances, but it shouldn’t be your offense 90% of the game. I submit that the Bulls need to diversify their offense to keep Boston on its back. A motion offense with guys cutting and screening would be beneficial, especially against a slower and older Boston team.

2. In addition, Derrick Rose doesn’t really need a pick to get passed his man. He’s faster and stronger than almost any NBA guard, including the now ankle-injured Rando. He doesn’t need a screen. Let him beat his man, one on one, forcing the defense to collapse and allowing for easy shots by the rest of the Bulls’ players.

3. To beat a dead horse in the ground, I suggest the Bulls’ stop using Brad Miller so much during games, and especially down the stretch. This isn’t the Brad Miller of 5 years ago. He is now slow, can’t jump and seems to lack confidence in his outside shot. I would only use Miller, at most, 20 minutes during the game. This would provide him enough time to make an impact and also keep his old-man legs fresh. Noah, Tyrus, and Tim Thomas (who for some reason hasn’t played in this series) should be more than enough to stop Glen Davis and Perkins.

4. Even I admit that this is not such a great idea. However, Salmons (who clearly looks like he is playing hurt), needs some help. Currently, we really have no other player that can play the 3-spot because Luol Deng is made of tin foil. I would suggest going big for brief periods of the game by either placing Tyrus Thomas or Tim Thomas on Paul Pierce. This would also solve our defensive rebounding problems as Tyrus or Tim could crash the boards. Placing foul-o-matic Kirk Hinrich on Pierce hasn’t been a viable option.

5. Lastly, even as a Tyrus Thomas fan, Del Negro needs to get on his ass for not snagging more defensive rebounds. Rebounding and defense are all about effort. Del Negro needs to sit Tyrus down and remind him of his main job to grab rebounds on both ends of the floor. Tyrus should be reminded that there is no reason why Glen Davis (the other LSU tiger) should be outplaying him. I realize that this recommendation appears overly simplistic. But sometimes a “keep it simple stupid” approach does work. Offering Tyrus the bargain that he’ll play 40 minutes a game only if he grabs 12 or more rebounds, would be encouragement enough. Plus, I am of the opinion (albeit a minority opinion) that Tyrus does care about winning (ever notice how he is always yelling, clapping, and pumping his fists while on the bench in support of his teammates). In the past, the media has oversimplified Tyrus and Noah as lazy and spoiled players. I am of the belief that they are neither, but are simply young, inexperienced and un-coached players. A great coach would get Tyrus to commit to rebounding. The guy blocked 6 shots in game 2, effort isn’t his problem.

Based on the way the series has gone so far, I think the Bulls win Game 3. The energy in the stadium and hopefully some reciprocal home court refereeing should give the Bulls the edge. Let’s just hope Del Negro knows what he is doing.

Chicago Bears Draft Preview: Forget it, We have Cutler

Tuesday Morning Thoughts: NBA Basketball Pet Peeves.

If you have a timeout, you don't have to complete a baseline in-bound pass.

A little bit about what bugs me about the NBA, thoughts on the Bulls and Celtics, and what angers me about Vinny Del Negro.

1. Why is it that when an NBA team calls a timeout after a made basket, the ball gets inbounded at the ¾ court line at the end of games? I have never understood this. You take a timeout after your opponent hits a shot, but instead of having to inbound the ball from your baseline, you get to inbound at the opponent’s hoop near their 3-point line. I guess the NBA wants there to be more last second drama by allowing teams to avoid having to move the ball ¾ of the way up the court (something Vinny Del Negro apparently doesn’t know is allowed). But, it’s cheap and has no foundation whatsoever. Could you imagine the NFL allowing a team to have the ball at its own 40 yard line, instead of fielding a kick-off merely because it called a timeout? The NBA might as well let the team calling a timeout shoot free throws, it’s almost as irrational.

2. Why is it that NBA referees are as capable as Jessica Simpson during a SNL show? Namely, why do they suck? During the Bulls/Celtics game 1, I guaranteed that the referees would call a foul on the Bulls when the Celtics had the last second shot. And of course, the refs call a foul on Noah after he blocked Paul Pierce’s shot. NBA refereeing is so poor that even casual fans can predict bad calls. We know the following are 100% true: (1) Stars, especially Wade, Kobe and Lebron, will get calls even when they drive through the lane uncontrollably, simply looking for a foul; (2) the home playoff team will get 20% more attempts on the free throw line; (3) stars cannot foul out of a game; (4) if you are an average big man or rookie big man, you will get called for at least 5 fouls on the road; (5) During last second possessions, only star players will get calls. If you are a rookie or non-all-star, you better hit your shot because you will never get a call; and (6) 30% of calls made by referees are make-up calls.

3. Why is there such a thing as a make-up call? If a referee makes a bad call, he feels justified in “making-up” said call by, you guessed it, making another bad call. So the NBA allows for a system of refereeing where a ref is allowed to make two bad calls in a row. NBA, it’s fantastic!

4. Why are there only two players in the NBA? If you were from Albania and came to the US for a week, you would walk away thinking that the NBA consisted of two players, Lebron and Kobe. Basically, the NBA and its networks (ESPN And TNT) have made basketball into tennis.

5. Why does ESPN suck so much at televising basketball games? They have the individual talent (Wilbon comes to mind), but somehow come across as d-league basketball broadcasters. Bob Costas must listen to ESPN commentators and want to shoot himself.

6. So when do the Lakers/Cavs finals games start? The NBA is fantastic in that almost always the best teams get to the finals. It’s not like college basketball, the NFL, baseball, or even futbol, where luck can get a team to the championship game. In the NBA, the best team will win the 7 game series. Which is great, I like seeing the best teams compete. But, that also means that the NBA playoffs are predictable. We all know that the Lakers and Cavs will meet in the Finals, yet we have to go through a 76ers/Orlando series.

7. I do love the NBA commercials though. The music and the “where amazing happens” tagline is brilliant.

Playoffs Notes…

8. Why has Paul Pierce aged 35 years? Pierce only has one move left now, the ass move. Basically, he’s Charles Barkley (the old years) using his ass to post up a player, only to shoot a terrible fade away. Pierce went from being the best player last year (he outplayed Kobe in the finals) to an old, beaten poor man’s Charles Barkley. I guess this is what happens when you lose a guy like KG.

9. Why does Brad Miller look like a 90 year old Paul Pierce? Brad Miller makes Bill Cartwright look fast and athletic. I can’t tell you how much I was yelling at the screen on Saturday (Game 1) as I watched Miller plod along. For some reason, he also can’t shoot anymore. Even worse, it took Del Negro the entire 4th quarter of game 1 to realize Miller was having the worst game of his career to yank him out in favor of Tyrus.

10. How long can Derrick Rose be this good? Rose carried the Bulls on Saturday. It was almost impossible for him to keep playing that way for game 2. It didn’t help when (a) refs called silly fouls on Rose keeping him out of the game and (b) your coach can’t adjust to the other team’s handling of the Bulls’ pick and roll. Rose didn’t have a good game last night. Unfortunately, we need him to play great if we have any chance of winning. I just don’t think it’s possible for a point guard to carry a team that much, without another all-star caliber player helping to share the load (however, BG did that last night).

Notes to Vinny Del Negro..

11. Brad Miller is best used in limited doses. Like vicodin and alcohol, he’s best kept in moderation. So Del Negro, please, pretty please, with sugar on top, stop using Miller so much during games when Tyrus Thomas is at your disposal. Heck, I would even take Tim Thomas over Miller.

12. Further, you should use Tyrus Thomas more and not yank him just when he starts to get hot. If I recall correctly Thomas nailed to mid-range jumpers and also blocked his 6th shot of the game in the 3rd quarter. Del Negro then yanked him in favor of Miller (Who reminds me of an animal that has just been run over. What’s with all the flailing arms and legs?). I submit that Thomas is just as good a shooter now as Brad Miller (since Brad refuses to shoot open shots and likes to drive through the lane flailing his arms in hopes of getting a foul that won’t get called because he’s an idiot). Thomas is also 100 times more athletic. When Boston was out rebounding us in the 4th quarter, guess who you could have used to get some of those rebounds? Yes, the freakish athlete sitting next to you on the bench who has 6 blocks in about 20 minutes of playing time.

13. Save your f’in time-outs. Fool you once, shame on you, fool you twice, you’re a f’in idiot!. Del Negro please look at point 1 at the start of this entry, you will note that at the end of games having a timeout is crucial. During game 1, if we had a timeout we would have had 2 seconds to hit a game winner at Boston’s end after Pierce missed his second free throw shot. During game 2, we would have had 2 seconds to tie the game, if we had a timeout left. It’s not that hard, always keep a timeout in a back and forth game.

14. With that being said From Black, great job feeding the ball to Ben Gordon last night. You could see it in his eyes that he was on FIRE!

Lastly, notes to Kirk Hinrich…

15. Stop fouling.

Bulls/Celtics: Enter Derrick "the Bermuda" Rose

Chicago Bulls vs. Celtics Playoff Preview

WE could sure use this guy on the left.


Something turns on in the playoffs, maybe it's a switch or some internal time clock that goes off. Teams that normally play good defense start playing great defense. The run and gun teams get trapped in a half-court game. The game becomes physical, slow, but intense. The great players start playing defense like it's march madness not game five of the regular season. No layups, no gimmies somehow become the motto. The cliche that defense wins championships is only a cliche because it's a fact that defense wins championships.

Unfortunately for the Chicago Bulls, they don't play good defense and utilize a run and gun offense. Two attributes that make you a perfect candidate for a first round sweep. Even worse, they play the defending champions, a team that (1) plays great defense and (2) likes the half-court game. The Bulls, a poor man's Phoenix Suns, play the rich man's Boston Celtics, if that makes any sense.

The Bulls do have some hope to win this series. Everything is possible right? KG is injured and no one outside of KG knows whether he'll be ready to contribute. The Celtics are old, while the Bulls are young. One could see parallels of the 7 game series between Atlanta and Boston from last year. Maybe the Bulls, with their athleticism and young legs can make this interesting. Maybe they could make the Celtics look as old as the Detroit Pistons. Maybe I am dreaming.

The Bulls actually have an okay matchup with the Celtics. Rondo vs. Rose will be a great battle. Ray Allen and BG basically cancel each other out. Salmons, whose play has been sub-par these past few games can handle Pierce. Salmons has been having trouble guarding bigger and quicker small forwards. Pierce is bigger, but not as quick. Pierce of course get's the edge, but Salmons can hold his own. As far as down-low? The Bulls may actually have a small advantage if KG is not 100%. Noah, Thomas, Tim Thomas and Brad Miller pose a threat to KG's ailing knees.

But with all that being said, the Bulls are too inconsistent to win this series. I don't know if they are the team that beat the Pistons 3 nights ago, or the team that got their behinds handed to them by Toronto at home last night.

Finally, the Bulls have never figured out this whole defense thing. Del Negro is still only a mediocre coach. His deficiencies have been masked by better players since the trade. The Bulls still don't play great defense (even during the latest winning stretch). Lastly, Del Negro is often slow to adjust and is inconsistent with his substitutions. The Celtics meanwhile are seasoned veterans who are as consistent as a German car.

In the end, the Bulls hope is for KG to sit out the series. But let's hope the Bulls defensive switch turns on, if they even have one. Or, that Derrick Rose can fill someone (you know who) else's shoes.

Tuesday Morning Thoughts: Masters

Thoughts on the Masters, Manny Ramirez and the Chicago Bulls.

1. It is still cold outside and watching a game at Wrigley or that place on the south side won’t be fun. The big weekend event was the Masters. Which to say the least, is about as entertaining as watching fat women bowl (see picture). But, I guess we still have a Bulls playoff loss to look forward to. It’s almost the boring season.

2. Where does Manny Ramirez get that extra-large baseball cap with no bill from? Why is he so set on keeping his dreads in the cap? It looks like he’s storing a chicken on his head. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had two heads.

3. Someone not named Tiger Woods won the Masters. I think some baseball player named Angel Cabrera won it.

4. Listening to the radio, it was suggested that the Master’s runner up, Kenny Perry, who at 48 years old, had a lot left in him. The commentator suggested that while Perry wasn’t in great shape and wasn’t as an imposing figure, he still could compete. The radio man also felt sympathy for Perry for coming up short. The question I have is, why isn’t Perry in great shape or working out? Assuming that golfers are better when they are in shape (think Tiger Woods), would it hurt them to stop eating $50 steaks? It’s not like they work 90 hour weeks and don’t have time for good healthy meals. They are golfers for goodness sake. They’re job is leisure. You would think Perry or any other out of shape golfers would have time to work out. I’m not arguing that Perry become an NFL safety or take roids to get better, just that it probably wouldn’t hurt to lay off the ham and cheese breakfast sandwich and lift a few weights. So if the assumption is correct that being in better shape will help your golf game (even if just a little), why should I feel sympathy for Perry? Maybe he should take his job seriously and work out. Tiger does it. Of course, maybe you don’t have to in good shape, athletic or a work out warrior to be a great golfer. Fine. But if that’s the case, why would someone watch golf?

5. When does Bears’ training camp start? I can’t wait to see Cutler in a Bears’ uniform.

6. The Cubs are 5-2 and the Sox are 4-3. I don’t know what this means because both teams have 150ish games remaining to be played.

7. I really, really like this Salmons kid. My father, an avid Bulls’ fan was out of the country for about 3months without connection to the Bulls’ happenings. You can imagine his surprise when coming back to watch a revamped Bulls’ lead by Salmons, a guy that (a) wasn’t on the Bulls when he left and (b) someone my father has never heard of (and I suggest 90% of basketball fans have never heard of). It’s quite rare that a team trades for a player that has been playing in the NBA for a good 5-6 years, is a relative unknown, and that player becomes an essential part of your team on its run towards the playoffs. Sure we knew Brad Miller could help or that Tim Thomas would be a nice role player. But, who would have guessed 3 months ago that Salmons would be one of the Bulls’ better players? Not me and certainly not my dad.

8. Kirk Hinrich’s not bad off the bench. He has his legs underneath him because he isn’t guarding the other team’s best guard for most of the game. He can come in and start shooting with his great looking shot. Unfortunately, for some reason, Hinrich can’t hit an open 3-pointer to save his life. I can’t understand this.

9. I am convinced that Ben Gordon is a robot. Like a tennis ball machine or a baseball pitch machine, BG’s a basketball shooting machine. BG possesses an automatic, consistent shot that always aims perfectly at its target. Sure he’ll miss, but it’s just a calibration error. He probably pushes a button and he’s right back on target again.

10. I really hope the Bulls play the Magic in the 1^st round. They will probably lose, but I think we could give them a run. I know Boston is down right now, but with a healthy KG, they’ll be great in no time.

11. I am starting to understand why Tim Thomas never quite made it as a great player in the NBA. You can’t be great when you are consistently MIA. Thomas either suffers a soft injury or goes missing due to “personal” reasons. I would bet some money that Thomas manages to miss at least one of the Bulls’ playoffs games. I can see the groin strain from here.

12. Derrick Rose is a baller. He will never be an MJ or even a Magic Johnson. But he’ll be great. In fact, he is already really, really good. It’s impressive to see a point guard score, pass and lead an average team to the playoffs as a rookie. I can't wait to watch his career progress in that Bulls' uniform.

13. TV and radio owners needs to prohibit any advertising communicating the Subway “5 dollar foot-long” commercials. In fact, by just reading the preceding sentence and "5 dollar foot-long", I probably ruined your day.

ESPN Chicago: Re-formated or Re-done?

ESPN rolled out it's first ever local ESPN.com website with ESPN Chicago. Typically, these national gone local websites are just a re-formatting of the national's web-page. For instance, we see Scoop Jackson and Gene Wojo on ESPN.com and we see them again on ESPN Chicago. Somehow I suspect that we will also see their same articles both on the national and local websites.

I hope this isn't just a reformatting site but an effort to redo or create a new local Chicago Sport's website. I certainly think there is a demand for a Chicago only sport's website with premier writing talent. I wouldn't mind an alternative to Tribune and Sun-Times Sports. The new ESPN Chicago seems to offer some new talent with new baseball blog reporters in Wayne Drehs and Jon Greenberg. That's a nice start. Full time Bears' and Bulls' blog reporters would also be nice.

It's too early to give a seal of approval on ESPN Chicago, but I hope they offer something new and original rather than a reworked Scoop Jackson article. Take a look yourself... here.

Chicago, Sinatra, What more could you ask for?

Tuesday Morning Thoughts: April Sadness

Thoughts on the end of the tourney, baseball, Michigan, MJ and the HOF and 2016.

1. March Madness is officially over. With the start of April, comes April Sadness. Yes, as a non-baseball loving fan living in Chicago, it’s almost officially the boring season. Once the Bulls are bounced in Round 1, this Chicity fan will only have the NFL Draft, NBA Draft, Champions League and the thoughts of the Cutler era to get him through spring and summer. Luckily, for you baseball loving fans, SagiNasty will be providing weekly reports on baseball.

2. Explain to me again how Michigan State was supposed to save the Michigan economy? Filling up Ford Field for a weekend will not save the auto industry. It is a nice side note and possibly some source of psychological relief for some Detroit workers, but let’s not get too far. Now if people started buying the Ford Fusion or the Chevy Volt, we might have something to talk about.

3. Whose idea was it to receive the Olympic Organizing Committee Members to Chicago in early April? For future considerations, when planning to receive, host and persuade global leaders in Chicago, may I suggest holding such a meeting in June. I realize that the Chicago 2016 members probably had no choice in this matter, nevertheless it is unfortunate.

4. Speaking of 2016, I speculate that 80% of the decision making process of members depends on (a) politics and (b) bribes. In my mind, people (whether from Chicago, Madrid, Tokyo, etc.) must be paying of these members to vote in their favor. Why you ask?

5. If college boosters pay a high-school prodigy upwards of $20K to attend the UConn’s or USC’s of the world, it’s logical to infer that local politicians or their rich friends are willing to pay much more to Olympic Committee Members for their vote. The Uconn’s of the world bring in 8 million a year due to their college basketball programs. How much would you need to pay Olympic Committee members to bring the billion dollar plus Olympics to your city?

6. This isn’t to automatically conclude that Chicago or other cities involve themselves in such black market bribery deals, but that it wouldn’t be entirely surprising that some members have been paid off for their vote. For example, if you are Pat Ryan or Mayor Daly and believe that some rich guy from Spain is willing to spend a million or two to buy the votes of some members for Madrid’s campaign, wouldn’t the same thought cross your mind? In addition, the risks of getting caught must be lower. Unlike the NCAA where boosters are located locally, the Olympic Committee members are located globally. The mere dispersion of voting members and the lack of power to enforce international laws and IOC regulations, would make it even more likely that these things occur.

7. Anyway, the Hall of Fame confirmed MJ as part of its upcoming HOF class. This is of course a no brainer. But I don’t think this is enough. If you are overwhelmingly considered the best player EVER to play basketball then a special something should be created to honor your playing history. I would suggest something bigger, like renaming the Hall of Fame to the Michael Jordan Hall of Fame or building an entire wing dedicated to his Airness. Or maybe creating another HOF called the “Greatest Hall” that only included MJ and Muhammed Ali with special consideration to players like Montana, Magic, Bird, Babe Ruth, Walter Payton, Jim Brown, Etc.

8. Tom Izzo has got to be one the best, if not the best, college basketball coach. I look at that team and always wonder how in the world they reached the championship game. I don’t see one great player and often question how they will score points. Yet, year after year and especially this year, they manage to get it done. Well done.

9. On the other hand, I have no idea what Izzo’s Spartans were doing yesterday. A simple, SLOW IT DOWN motto should have been in order. Michigan State played like they were a retarded energizer bunny and North Carolina played like a fully tuned lithium Ion battery. Michigan State had no business trying to out-run UNC. They would have lost even if they played a half-court game, but Izzo is partly to blame for their fast paced turnover game.

10. Maybe the best team should win. Congrats UNC.

11. DaChifan triumphed over SagiNasty in the Fogo De Chao challenge. Thanks again Tarheels.

12. For the first time ever, I won an NCAA Tourney pool. Albeit that it only consisted of 8 other players.