January 15th, 2009
I guess we should have expected it.
Detroit Pistons coach Michael Curry took the easy way out. There was a lot of speculation about what Curry would do when Richard Hamiliton returned from his injury.
Rodney Stuckey established himself as a rising star during Hamilton’s absence. There was no way to take him out of the starting lineup.
So, what would Curry do? Bring Hamillton off the bench? Or what about Allen Iverson?
In the end, Curry opted not to bruise any egos. He put all three guards in the starting lineup.
It may just be a coincidence, but the Pistons have lost both games since he did that.
If Hamilton and Iverson are true to their word and care about winning more than anything else, one of them will soon go to Curry and volunteer to come off the bench.
Personally, I still think Iverson would be the better choice as a sixth man. He would bring explosive energy to the second team. What back-up guard could stay with Iverson?
And on top of that, Hamilton’s game meshes better with Stuckey’s. Iverson and Stuckey both need the ball in their hands a lot to be effective. Hamilton is better simply coming off screens and shooting the ball.
Posted in Basketball, Pistons | No Comments »
January 5th, 2009
The NHL can’t seem to get it right.
Coming off the triumph of the outdoor game on New Year’s Day, the league announces its All-Star Game starters a few days later. And it was a joke.
Montreal fans proved to be the best ballot-box stuffers, electing four Canadiens to the starting lineup. I guess that’s not as bad as it could have been. At one point in the voting, Montreal players led at all six positions. At least Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin of Pittsburgh snuck in at the end. But Alex Ovechkin the reigning MVP and arguably the best player in the game was snubbed.
It wasn’t any better in the Western Conference where three Anaheim players and three from Chicago will start. I could understand having a few San Jose Sharks in there. They have the best record in hockey. And Calgary is having a fine year as well. Instead we get three players each from a pair of second-place teams.
And no one from the Stanley Cup champion Red Wings made it.
No Nicklas Lidstrom. No Pavel Datsyuk. No Henrik Zetterberg. No Marian Hossa.
That’s a farce.
The NHL needs to do something about the selection process. Perhaps take some of the power away from the fans and have the starters selected by a combination of fan, player and coach voting.
Posted in Hockey, Red Wings | No Comments »
January 3rd, 2009
The Detroit Pistons have become Rodney Stuckey’s team.
The second-year guard quickly is blossoming into a star. He is fearless driving to the basket and is shooting the ball much better than last season.
He scored 40 points a few games ago and nearly reached that level again Friday night with 38 in a victory over Sacramento.
The Pistons are putting things together with a six-game winning streak. Allen Iverson seems to be getting more comfortable with his role.
It will be interesting to see how they are able to work Richard Hamilton back into the mix when he returns from his injury.
Posted in Basketball, Pistons | No Comments »
January 2nd, 2009
The National Hockey League has stumbled into something great with its annual outdoor game on New Year’s Day.
I surprised myself with how much of the Pittsburgh-Buffalo game I watched last year in the midst of my college football feast.
And hockey had the clear advantage over football on my television Thursday with the Red Wings playing Chicago at Wrigley Field.
I’m not sure if I’d actually like to attend one of the games. The fans seem like they are miles from the action and sitting outside in freezing temperatures with winds whipping up to 35 mph couldn’t be too much fun. But it makes for an incredible television event.
And on top of that, the Wings showed once again what a great team they are. They showed no signs of panic after falling behind 3-1 in the first period. They just kept constant pressure on Chicago until the Blackhawks finally cracked.
Posted in Hockey, Red Wings | No Comments »
November 26th, 2008
I got my first chance to see Michigan’s basketball team tonight and I was very impressed. This looks like an entirely new team from what we saw last year.
Granted, it was only Norfolk State, but the Wolverines looked crisp, ran the floor well, created turnovers on defense and played with a lot of intensity.
At the center of it all was sophomore Manny Harris. He was a good player last year, but has taken his game up several notches this season.
We won’t know about this team for sure until the Big Ten season begins, but it appears that coach John Beinlein has something going here.
Posted in Basketball, Michigan | No Comments »
November 22nd, 2008
The All-Region volleyball team will be announced on Monday.
Make sure to pick up a copy of The Evening News and honor these talented young ladies on a fantastic season.
Posted in Local sports | No Comments »
