Bad Weekend
Eddie Argos, I’ve one upped you. As I’m watching Eric Mangina’s New York Jets systematically dismantle the Vikings on both sides of the ball and the game literally passing right by old man Brad Johnson’s eyes (and by the game, I mean Tavaris Jackson who just passed right by our starting QB while entering the game), it’s becoming more and more evident by the second—it’s been a baaaaaaadddd weekend. Last time I bothered to check in, I made a predictably ridiculous and overzealous prediction (ironic that a prediction can be predictable, no?). Well 40 or so hours have elapsed since my 24-hour prediction, and in that time the Timberwolves lost their second game of the week and Allen Iverson appears to be no closer to wearing a Timberwolves jersey, let alone a Nuggets jersey (the other hot team in the AI chase), or anyone else’s for that matter. The even-more troubling development of the weekend is it appears that Carmelo Anthony won’t be wearing a Nuggets jersey for a while either.
Why is this troubling, you ask? Doesn’t Carmelo Anthony play for the Timberwolves’ main rivals? Aren’t his Nuggets ahead of the Wolves in the Northwest Division standings? Isn’t ‘Melo a whiny, selfish punk, who never lets his patriotic leanings and higher callings stand in the way of a good ole playing time bitch-session? Well yes, and no. Despite my own homeristic tendencies, I’ve got to hand it to young ‘Melo—he’s done more to completely remake his game and his image this season than any other player in the NBA. Under the tutelage of George Karl, a total hardass of a coach who demands the most from his players, demands that his players put their egos aside (if only because his ego trumps all others), demands that the team concept always comes first (this is, of course, a tea concept that revolves around Melo), ‘Melo has become the most well-rounded and unstoppable offensive force in the NBA this season, leading all players with a 31.something PPG average. That, coupled with Melo’s new Nike commercial, which I’ve been saying for weeks is the best NBA commercial of the year so far, perfectly capturing the many faces of the new NBA culture that David Stern would like to show, have contributed to an 180-degree Melo turnabout in his third professional season. Not to pat myself on the back (ok, I will), but I such a turnaround coming before the NBA season started, drafting Melo in the 4th round of my fantasy NBA draft to cries of “Reach! Reach!” echoing throughout the room. I laughed in the face of those non-believers, those heretics, and have been rewarded with Melo’s steady scoring ever since. And then last night happened.
I won’t bother going through every minute detail of last night’s NBA brawl (although I have to say, is it a surprise to anyone that NBA’s biggest fight since the cataclysmic Auburn Hills cagematch involved Isiah Thomas, who allegedly ordered a flagrant foul on any Nuggets player looking to further rub in their double-digit blowout? What a complete idiot). But if one were to make a horriblly misguided analogy between last night’s skirmish and, say, the tsunami in southeast Asia in 2004, Carmelo could have a whole wave of aid organizations devoted to just his actions. See, the main disaster had struck, the brawl’s epicenter had already landed and done its damage (once again, thank you very much Isiah Thomas). Then, Melo decides to flail a nasty haymaker to the side Mardy Collins’ face, and causes a whole series of aftershocks nearly as devestating as the initial disaster itself. And just like that, a whole season of work down the drain (and I’m no longer referring to the tsunami, to be clear). And to think, I almost called Melo my new favorite NBA player? Five years ago, Melo would’ve received maybe a 3-game suspension. But with the Malice at the Palace still far from distant-memory status, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Melo’s suspension reach 10 games, meaning my fantasy NBA team has got a tough two weeks ahead for itself. Well thanks for nothing you punk Carmelo Anthony, looks like winter break is starting a week early for you this year.
December 18th, 2006 at 11:12 am
Joel, my sweet Joel. After writing my own blog entry in response to the weekend melee at MSG I can see why great minds think alike…in their hatred of Melo. But seriously he was having a stellar season and that sucks he is on your fantasy team. Furthermore, I don’t know anything about that children’s show host Juan Mallua here but I am sure he is cool. I’ll check him out. See you in a week broseph!
December 20th, 2006 at 5:19 pm
[...] As most of the living, breathing American populace knows, a fight broke out last Saturday night between the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets in the last two minutes of the game at New York’s famed Madison Square Gardens. I commented on the fight in a post last Sunday, but didn’t see much point in discussing the fight itself. Instead, I spent most of my time lamenting the inevitable hit Carmelo Anthony, a rising star in the NBA and a prominent member of my fanasty NBA team, would take to his fantasy value and his public image as a result of his actions in said fight. Why didn’t I discuss the actual fight itself? It seems obvious to me, the fight wasn’t anything particularly newsworthy, physically no larger than your average bench-clearing brawl in MLB (a large handful of which seem to occur every season), and certainly no more violent than your average tooth-popping fistfight in the NHL (a large handful of which seem to occur every game). Unfortunately, much of the sports media, indeed much of the broader American mainstream, doesn’t seem to see it that way. [...]