Speak Up... But it may cost ya 20 grand!!!

A few things I need to blurt out before I carry on with my regularly scheduled blog...

I am very upset that the pistons beat the heat!!

I added scoreboards on here to make my life easier to get to CBS sportsline and hopefully my other readers lives too. (tiefed the idea from the guys at

NBASource)

I signed on to a new job contract this week!! I get to work from home 3 days a week until July when the contract ends. (gotta love freelance)

I lost $60 bucks playin poker this weekend... I guess you can't win 'em all.

I got a nice tan just drivin top down in my baby thanks to the beautiful weather we have been getting for the last couple of days. (click thumbnail for a larger view of aforementioned baby )

My hands got quite the workout along with my calligraphy skills this past weekend, as I wrote out 400+ wedding cards for my brothers wedding going down in 2 months. (I shall be bloggin on this subject in the near future so stay tuned ... Imagine the bride standing over my head saying "No!!!! That is crooked... Redo that one!!!")

Now onto my regular top 5 sports stories for the past week...

#5: Tennis - Is it about the game at all anymore?
So the French Open just concluded this past weekend and I really got to thinking about the sport. The women and their looks are almost the sole feature keeping this game alive for television audiences. Tennis is not even close to attracting the type of audiences other professional sports have in the past 10 years. In the glory days of the sport, the skill and the elegance of this individual sport was making headlines daily. The Americans had their share of fame as they dominated the ranks for many years. Now, we see a new breed infiltrated into the game... The beautiful women. It began with the hype over Anna Kournikova and its become a phenomenon. Are people watching tennis for the sport anymore? There was a simplicity to the game back in the day where all the paticipants wore white and drank tea the morning before Wimbledon but now these athletes with their clothing lines and designer duds are parading the red carpets as if they were a Hollywood celebrity. The Williams sisters entered the stage when women's tennis was definitely on a rise and they brought power and grit to the game but since have also signed onto multi million dollar endorsements and become self proclaimed "fashion designers". The men in the game have taken a back seat.. What was once " wow! Its going to be an Pete Sampras v/s Andre Agassi final" has now come down to reports of what the latest Russian Beauty was wearing as she hit balls with her equally beautiful training partner. Even though this all sounds very negative I think it has done the game good.

#4: FIFA -Are you ready for some FOOTBALL!!
I have to admit I don't follow league play much when it comes to football but I am a big Italy fan and always get hyped up when the EuroCup is about to roll around and even more so now as we head into qualifying for the World Cup to be held in Germany next summer. The Euro Cup last year was some of the best soccer(yes I prefer to call it that) I seen in a while and I have a new team I am following... Portugal. Living in Toronto we have a great mix of cultures and it was evident last year as all the Greek flags went up as Greece won the final over Portugal and next summer will be even more intense. I love to see all the national pride and the old rivalries build up. Soccer is not as big in North America as it is in Europe, but when World Cup comes around everyone seems to become a die hard fan. It brings generations together, it creates some healthy competition and overall is one of the most successful sporting events. These athletes are playing not for millions of dollars for those 2 weeks they are playing for their country and in ways similar to the Olympics it has been successful in highlighting a lot of positive things about the less fortunate countries who do get the chance to show the world some of their greatness. (the pic is just eye candy for me.. LOL I think Christiano Ronaldo is HOT!)

#3: NFL - Locked Up or On the Run?
Its the offseason and the NFL Draft has come and gone but that doesn't mean they players of the league decide to stay out of the sports headlines. Last week in particular there was a ton of coverage on Jamal Lewis being released from his four month off season jail sentence. (story here & here) I understand that the media has to find the positive in this situation but wait till he gets on the field again before deciding to big up how happy he is to be out and how he is looking forward to playing again. A couple of days later Sean Taylor popped up in the news as he turned himself in on a charge of aggravated assault with a firearm. (story here) Not that this was enough Indianapolis Colts cornerback was charged with battery over the past weekend. (story here) That is the gist of what I'm getting at... In my last article I mentioned how I felt the sports media approaches reporting on professional sports similar to the way Hollywood is covered, but these atheletes are role models to many and more so they are ruining the face of the sports they play. In Hollywood you may hate the actor but they play someone else in the movie, these athletes don't have the luxury of switching into another role some game time. They are setting a terrible example and the offseason seems to be far from what it stands for as they seem busy posting bonds and making speeches about how they have cleaned up. I hope this past week isn't a common occurrence as these athletes make the news for all the wrong reasons.

#2: NBA - Whatever you say might cost ya!
This topic was the inspiration for the title of my post. Is it possible to speak up at all these days without getting a $20,000 fine slapped on your ass if not a couple games suspensions(a-la-George Karl) Last week Rasheed Wallace got fined $20 grand for his public criticism of game officiating. (Story here) I understand that the NBA does not want their officiating crew to take blame for what goes on with the games but what about freedom of speech. Sheed is an emotional guy and he has been one of the most penalized players in the history of the game in his 10 year career. I understand that he used some "inappropriate language" but really should saying the refs sucked cost him 20 grand?? I don't agree with that. Mark Cuban has been fined thousands and recently in this years playoffs Jeff Van Gundy got slapped with a hefty one for speaking against the officiating. I understand both sides as the refs are just trying to do their jobs the best they can but the players and coaches feel the refs control the outcome of a game too much at times. Its a tough situation but I don't feel such hefty fines are due as people who voice their feelings are using their freedom of speech. In other news George Karl, coach of the Denver Nuggets broke one of the infinite number of rules in the NBA by inadvertently (or so they say: read story) speaking to a player not yet eligible for the draft. This cost his 3 game suspension and the team $200,000. All this said as long as the ppl keep speaking up, the NBA will remain to be a highly profitable business.

#1: NBA - Offence wins games ... Defense wins championships
I am going to state again... I dislike both the teams that have advanced to the NBA finals. I am a fan of the sport, so, odds are I will sit down and watch parts of each game but I just can't sit through games that have more rebounds and blocks than points scored. I understand that they are the best of the best and that is why they have reached the finals, but at the same time I was hoping to see an offensive team face off versus a defensive team. The pistons and spurs don't try to score they try to stop the other teams from scoring and if they score thanks to a defensive play that's a bonus. I know a lot of people feel differently but I personally like the uptempo style of game where assists lead to dunks rather than when a block leads to a turnover! Highlight of the Detroit Pistons team is watchin what Ben Wallace will decide to do with his fro on game days and on the other end Ginobli is a pleasant surprise amongst a team of defensive specialist's. I am going to go out on a Limb and say if Tim Duncan is well rested and close to 100%, I give the series to the San Anotnio Spurs if not its gonna be a REEEPEEEAT by the Deeeeetroit Pistons! Expect the series to go into 6 games until we see a winner and don't expect the point totals to exceed 100 points this series for either team on any given night. I'll wait till next year to hope the raptors see a glimpse of the playoffs let alone reach the final dance, until then, ill get myself a good book and sit thru this snooze fest!