Bill and Jalen

When it comes to first impression's, like most, I don't make them the be all-end all when it comes to meeting new people.  But when it comes to TV personalities, that's a different story.  Usually when I look at them, I can instantly tell whether I like or hate them.  And because of my stubbornness, my views rarely change.  That was the case with Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose in the past.  Years ago, I told my friend I couldn't stand anything about Bill Simmons from the way he looked, his voice, to his commentary and work on ESPN and on podcasts.  While for Jalen Rose, I didn't like him because of his attitude, such as with the Grant Hill "Uncle Tom" incident.

After a few years though, my feelings changed.  Bill Simmons wasn't the guy I disliked anymore.  I thought he was funny, well-spoken, and not to mention passionate about his work, which you can tell from his fan perspective.  The same goes for Jalen Rose.  Like many, that Duke comment was taken out of context at the time, and I recognize Jalen Rose for who he is.  He was part of the Fab 5 and NBA for years, and now he's giving his perspective, which is very interesting.  Not to mention that he's just as funny as Bill Simmons, so when you get them together, you have comic gold.  That's why I had to post about these two.  I've been watching their NBA preview videos for the past couple of weeks and they're so entertaining.  They have hilarious clips to describe team mindsets, "Clairvoyant Bill", and "Champagning and Campaigning", all while talking about the NBA seriously, which I need as I wait for the season to start.

If anyone is interested, 3 videos I recommend watching from the NBA preview countdown are the Boston Celtics (#24), Denver Nuggets (#13), and the Detroit Pistons (#12).  The Nuggets one has the funniest moment I've seen when Bill Simmons attempts a Javale McGee and eats... Well, you'll have to see and find out.  You won't be disappointed though.  All I can say after this is, how did I ever not like these guys?  They're the best, and now part of my daily routine.

Source of Picture: http://www.sportsgrid.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bill-simmons-jalen-rose.jpg

Making News Out Of Nothing

I go to a lot of sites daily, but I don't know if there's any site I check more than ESPN.  Even when I still had Facebook, talking to friends was nice, but I couldn't check on them all the time, like I could with sports.  Unfortunately, and frighteningly, now you can do that with Facebook, but ESPN is less creepy than that.  Their sole purpose is to bring everyone in the world all the important relevant sports news in as many different ways possible.  And for the most part, I think it does that, with good articles, videos, chats, and interesting personalities.  It's not perfect, but I couldn't go a day without it, unless I was stranded in the middle of nowhere with no technology.  Despite how I feel, there is one thing I can't stand about ESPN.

The thing I can't stand is their choice of stories sometimes.  I understand like any news outlet that you have bad/slow days, but some of the stuff is so irrelevant and pointless, that I'm amazed anyone (including myself) even cares.  Case in point, the recent interview with Michael Jordan saying he could beat Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, or any player one-on-one.  It's interesting, but I don't think it's newsworthy enough to be one of your top news stories.  This is a hypothetical match-up that will never happen.  And for those who take what MJ said really seriously, it's just his opinion.  He is the greatest NBA player ever!  Plus, what's he supposed to say, "I can't beat them"?  C'mon, MJ taught everyone everything.  This is good conversation with your friends, or in barbershops if you talk sports, but this is not news, so I don't understand why it matters, along with so many other stories like top jersey sales or personal lives of athletes.  We can find that stuff anywhere online, but when we want plain old sports, that's when we want ESPN.  One of the best brands in the world!

The Man They Call "Cutch"

Andre McCutchen's play has bought excitement and hope back to the Steel City

At the end of every original Lone Ranger episode from the 40s and 50s, they have a person not know who their masked savior was, only to have someone say, "Why that's The Lone Ranger!", with Clayton Moore saying "High Ho Silver".  Now, Andrew McCutchen isn't The Lone Ranger, but he is one of the reasons why the Pittsburgh Pirates are relevant again to baseball, which is great for the sport because they're a proud franchise that has struggled for 20 years.  Years ago, people didn't know who he was because he didn't play for Boston, New York, or Los Angeles, but because of the season he's having, no one will ever not know who he is.  Why, he's Andrew McCutchen, or as many people call him, "Cutch".

Andrew McCutchen is a five-tool baseball player, which for those of you who don't know, means he can hit for average, hit for power, run, throw, and field.  There are very few players like that, which makes McCutchen special already, but along with that he carries himself well on and off the field.  Athletes like Johnny "Football" Manziel and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. are praised by so many people, but they don't carry themselves the way McCutchen does.  He's a quiet, humble person, and leads his team by example and his play.  Along with that, he remembers where he came from, and chose to stay with the original team that drafted him (a rarity in any sport, let alone baseball).  Sports analysts think he'll never be a star in Pittsburgh, but he already is!

It's tough for me to pick my favorite baseball player because I have so many from "King" Felix Hernandez, Dustin Pedroia, to Clayton Kershaw, but Andrew McCutchen is something different.  And he's been that way ever since he got drafted.  With that in mind, I thought I'd show you all an ESPN clip that ran a few days ago, talking about McCutchen's family and life as a Pittsburgh Pirate, which was inspiring to see.  I love Andrew McCutchen, but if you don't, you will after watching this video.  Enjoy!

ESPYS Opening Monologues

When you ask most people what the ESPYS are, most of them are probably confused by the question, which is understandable considering unless you follow sports or watch ESPN, you won't have a clue what the ESPYS are.  For those of you who don't know, the ESPYS are an award show hosted annually by ESPN to honor sports accomplishments from the past year.  Usually, they're such a drag since they're just an excuse to see celebrities, but occasionally, the opening monologues are hilarious.  That all depends on who the host of the event is though.  This past year, it was Jon Hamm from Mad Men, who did an admirable job following previous hosts who were failures, but the best host of all time has to be Justin Timberlake back  in 2008.  The ESPYS are not an important event compared to real life events, but the opening monologues with those guys was hilarious, which is why I wanted to post the videos to end the night.  Like I said before, they may not be that important, but laughter is necessary to live a healthy life.  With that in mind, here are the ESPYS opening monologues from 2008 and from this past year.

The 2008 ESPYS opening monologue with Justin Timberlake.  Everything he says is GOLD!

Jon Hamm's opening monologue from this past year.  I love his jokes about Dwight Howard and the Miami Heat

Jason Collins And Chris Broussard

I know I'm late commenting on the Jason Collins "coming out" story, but I was on hiatus for a few days, so here are some of my thoughts.

• I think it's wonderful that Jason Collins was able to to be honest with himself and the world by revealing his homosexuality.  I know it couldn't have been easy for him to do, but I know it was even harder for him to keep bottled in (based on his article and people I know personally).  So I am sincerely happy for him. 
• With him doing what he did, he has now become a role model for closeted homosexual athletes, and possibly young kids who are struggling with that issue now.  Jason Collins may not be a Michael Jordan or Lebron James, but he is the right person to have done this.
• Jason Collins is a good person, but I don't know if he will find an NBA team next season like he wants.  I'm not saying that based on his decision, but if you watched any Boston Celtics games this season like I did, you'd agree he sucks.  He commits stupid plays and fouls out in record time.  Of course, many teams could use his size, so anything is possible.  
• I want to comment on Chris Broussard, the writer for ESPN who was/is under a lot of heat for his comments on Jason Collins.  For those of you who don't know, Chris Broussard is a writer and analyst for ESPN that I admire a lot for his work and articulation.  When the Jason Collins news broke out, he was on ESPN, and gave his opinion, which disagreed with Jason Collins lifestyle.  I don't have time to get into the details of it, but basically, Chris Broussard was calling Jason Collins a sinner because of his homosexual lifestyle (from what it says in the Bible).  Everyone basically attacked him, but I say that's not fair.  Chris Broussard was giving his opinion and using his right of free speech.  Yes, he doesn't agree with Jason Collins lifestyle religiously, but he didn't say he wasn't happy for him, or that he wanted genocide or something.  That would have been wrong.  Also, he said the same thing about heterosexuals who have premarital sex as well, so he wasn't just focusing on homosexuals either.  Nobody ever seems to listen or read the whole quote, but when you get down to it, Chris Broussard wasn't saying anything wrong.  He was just voicing his opinion based off what the Bible says.  Most of us disagree with it, so let's just leave it at that.  The world has too many issues to be focusing on one person from ESPN.  There are rumors he may lose his job, but I hope he doesn't because I would hate to see a good writer and analyst suffer for being honest.  Like I said, I disagree with Chris Broussard, but I think he's entitled to what he believes, like we all are.  We shouldn't attack him, otherwise, we're being hypocrites for not letting someone express themselves.
• What the hell was ESPN thinking when they put Chris Broussard on if they knew how he felt prior?  Were they setting him up or something, or just plain stupid?

Chris Broussard's opinion for those of you who are interested

• Lastly, somehow this story has become political and religious, which was bound to happen, but let's not forget the focus, which is on Jason Collins, and homosexuals everywhere, who just want to be accepted in the world like everyone else.