February 20, 2023

I’m usually a fan of the NBA All-Star game, but yesterday was an embarrassment. There was absolutely no effort and no defense played. I can understand that guys don’t want to get hurt, but even James Harden thinks the defense was pretty soft yesterday. In the last handful of years, we’ve at least seen the games get very competitive in the 4th quarter, and wildly entertaining in the first 3 quarters with lots of alley-oops and highlight plays. This was just a layup line and half court shots, that were nearly unwatchable. Maybe it was because Lebron and Giannis sat out the majority of the game, and other big stars like Kevin Durant and others were not participating. I don’t know what the answer is, but the league needs the players to understand that there is a level of pride and professionalism that needs to be on the display here. Otherwise, just kill the event. Although, somebody should have told Lebron that you aren’t supposed to play defense in an All-Star game because he injured his hand blocking a shot. Hopefully it’s not very serious, and it doesn’t appear that way. Props to Mac McClung for winning the dunk contest, which was the best part of the weekend. Of course a white guy won the dunk contest in Utah though!

As for the Lakers, Lebron says he’s going to try to play in every game the rest of the way. Nice to see that he finally realizes there is no margin for error left if they plan on even making the play-in game. Look, I like what this team has done for sure and on paper, I think the pieces fit together much better. However, they are going to need to win 16 or 17 of their final 22 games to assure themselves of being in the postseason, and I can’t say I’m totally confident that Lebron and especially AD will be available every night. The schedule is hell, but then again, there’s a lot of teams like the Warriors, Mavericks, and Clippers in front of them who are going to have to deal with their own set of chemistry building challenges. If Lebron James gets the team to the playoffs after all this, and somehow gets them to make a run, that may be one of the most impressive parts of his amazing legacy.

Then there’s the Clippers, who have agreed to sign Russell Westbrook this morning. I know there are a lot of Russ supporters out there, so let me address you all first. I get it…..Russ is a great guy, great teammate, great father, great husband, great parallel parker, and great tipper. That’s all true and he’s even had a great NBA career. That all has nothing to do with the fact that at this point in his career, he’s a massive liability for any team, including the Clippers. It doesn’t matter if the Clips have better spacing and shooting than Russ had with the Lakers. If you’re playing Russ, he’s taking away minutes from Norman Powell or Terrance Mann, who at this point, are more productive and better fitting players for the Clippers. Some people actually thought he was a 6th man of the year candidate, but 6th man of the year winners don’t shoot 41% from the field, 65% from the line, and under 30% from 3. He’s not only a poor shooter, but he has more turnovers than Betty Crocker, and his decision making at the end of games is often a detriment to his team. I know some of you are thinking it’s low risk and they can cut him if it doesn’t work out, but there’s 22 games left in the season. This is valuable time that could be wasted for a team that is already struggling to build chemistry. But hey, at least Paul George thinks it’s a good move, so what could go wrong?

In baseball, Spring Training is upon us which brings us to the Dodgers. The Boys in Blue come into the season with some doubts publicly about how good they are going to be. They are +750 to win the World Series behind the Astros and Yankees, and in front of the Braves and Padres, who are +1400, and who everyone seems to love. The Dodgers may not win the division (although I think they will), but they are still an excellent team. Just because their lineup doesn’t seem as stacked as last year, it actually is. Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and Max Muncy are a pretty good lineup, and for some reason many of you forgot that Chris Taylor, Gavin Lux, and Trayce Thompson are pretty good players as well. Their pitching staff is also excellent. This won’t be a regular season issue. As always with the Dodgers, it’s going to be how they approach the postseason. Maybe this year there will be less heat on them since they didn’t spend wildly in the offseason. Meanwhile, I can’t say I’m too upset Clayton Kershaw won’t pitch in the WBC. The guys arm and back could use the extra rest. I also don’t want to hear anything about this alleged cheating the Dodgers did in 2017 or maybe 2018. We all know the lengths their opponents went to in order to cheat were far more offensive than the tactics the Dodgers employed, which are far more common across baseball.

As for the Angels, you can’t help but feel disappointed coming into Spring Training. We would have thought there would be new ownership by now, but we know that’s not happening for a while. The distraction that is going to hang over this teams head all year is going to be Shohei Ohtani. I don’t think there’s a circumstance where the Halos will trade him, because Arte Moreno will convince himself he has a chance to keep him. In reality, Ohtani is already out the door. Unless the Angels make some crazy run to the playoffs, or even the World Series this year, Ohtani will be on another team in 2024. He’s made that as clear as possible, without actually saying it. With that being the case, it’s the same story with the Halos this year. On paper, they look like they could be good. In reality, they aren’t better than the Astros or Mariners, their offense has been wildly inconsistent for what it should be, and their pitching may only be marginally improved.

Finally, it was so good to see Tiger Woods back on the course at the Genesis Open this past weekend. Tiger is really what keeps the sport alive in a way that no other pro golfer can these days. His presence is huge, and hopefully he can stay healthy enough for four majors and another couple of tournaments this year. The only problem with this approach is we may not see Tiger win another tournament again, as his health will need to be managed for the rest of his career, which he admitted over the weekend. Still, when he’s out there, enjoy him while you can. Legends won’t always be around forever.