May 16, 2022

I almost forgot how horrible game 7’s are until the Kings played on Saturday night against the Oilers, and we’re eliminated. If you’re invested, it’s miserable. You’ve been spoiled by the fact that they’ve dominated game 7’s for the last decade. That was not the case with a different and younger Kings team over the weekend. The fact the Kings made it this far is impressive. Nobody expected them to make the playoffs, and they took the Oilers to 7, while missing two of their best players. Still, it doesn’t make it any less disappointing knowing the series was winnable, and that they could have closed it out in 6. However, the Kings have some huge opportunities in front of them. They have plenty of young talent, draft capital, and cap space to go improve their team. They badly need more scoring. They also need a better power play. Jonathan Quick is still amazing, but he can’t play forever, and at some point they will need another elite goalie. Cal Peterson isn’t that guy. They probably also need a #1 center, because Anze Kopitar is still great, but getting a little long in the tooth. Big salute to Dustin Brown, who played his last game, but had an amazing career. Now that Florida is playing Tampa, and Edmonton is playing Calgary, you have the battle of Florida, and the battle of Canadian Florida going on simultaneously.

To the NBA, where most Laker fans are breathing a sigh of relief. The Sixers want Doc Rivers back as their coach. You can keep him Philly, as well as that lazy lard butt James Harden. I’m still a little nervous, because Doc hasn’t committed to coming back knowing that Harden is still there, and clearly doesn’t like him. It’s not out of the question Doc backs out, especially if he knows he has another job lined up. For now, it may have been accidental, but the Lakers dodged a bullet if Doc is staying. Now they will likely go with Darwin Ham, Terry Stotts, or Quinn Snyder. Ham is the obvious choice here, and not a complete re-tread, unlike the other two choices. As for Lebron, if you’re watching the NBA playoffs, you have to ask yourself whether or not it’s a good idea to extend a 37-year-old player more than one year at a time. Chris Paul’s ability seemed to deteriorate in a matter of a week. He’s got about $90 million left on his contract and he’s 37. Lebron is already missing games, which has been a problem in 3 of the past 4 seasons. With that being said, I still have a feeling that both the Lakers and Lebron will talk themselves into doing this deal come August. It’s how both sides tend to do business. Apparently Laker coaching candidates have been asked how they would use Russell Westbrook if they were to get the job. Hopefully their answers are “as trade bait”.

I think it’s pretty obvious at this point that the Rams want to bring OBJ back and OBJ wants to be back with the Rams. This feels like all it really takes is carving out just a little bit of cap space, and a nice sit down at Nobu between OBJ, Les Snead, and Sean McVay. McVay just came out and said that he wants OBJ back. OBJ said that he wants to be back with the Rams. That should be enough motivation for both sides to get something done.

I’m not sure what in the hell happened to the Dodger pitching over the weekend. The Dodgers made the Phillies look like the ’27 Yankees with the way they were giving up runs. Apparently the Dodgers only lose to crummy teams like the Pirates and Phillies, otherwise they have been pretty solid. I’d say they should feel good about Arizona coming in next, but Arizona stinks too, which means they could give the Boys in Blue more problems! I still can’t believe we have to hear more criticism about these Dave Roberts in-game decisions. After all these years you people really still think it’s Dave Roberts who is pulling the strings here with the pitching and lineup decisions? You guys must think it’s still 1995, and have never heard of artificial intelligence or analytics. Roberts is just reading the next move off of line 54 of the spreadsheet, for all intents and purposes. Losing Clayton Kershaw to the IL hurts as well, however, at least it’s not an arm injury. I also think Kershaw could probably use the rest anyway. I’m sure this makes some of you even more annoyed that he was pulled from the perfect game to protect him, yet he still got hurt. However, think of it this way: he might have suffered an even more serious injury if he wasn’t taken out of that game.

The Angels might not be the best baseball team in LA, or the most popular by any stretch of the imagination. However, they appear to be the most fun team to watch right now. Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, and some decent pitching this year has put them in 1st place in the AL West. They’ve won 7 of their past 10 games, and have a +57 run differential, which is 2nd best in the AL. Were it not for those pesky Houston Astros who have caught fire, they would be in sole possession of 1st place in the West right now. Instead they are sharing it, which is still pretty good for the Halos. As sad as this is to say, this is probably what Arte Moreno wants. He wants to win and all, but probably cares more about having an entertaining product that will sell tickets and merchandise. For the time being he has that, so in his mind, being stingy is perfectly justified.

Finally, if you think the NIL model is shaking up College Sports you haven’t seen anything yet. There’s a new bill in the CA legislature that will be discussed this week, which would potentially force Universities to revenue share with athletes. If that happens, you can completely kiss the NCAA goodbye, and they can start posting their resume on LinkedIn. This is going to take collegiate sports to the next level, and at this point, it’s probably the most sensible and just thing to do for those that are actually making the money. It might even make collegiate sports better, because kids could stay in school longer since they are making money, and develop longer. That means by the time they get to be pros, the quality of their game will be that much better, and they’ll be more mature as well. That benefits the professional leagues too. What a concept!

May 9, 2021

I could not be more impressed with the LA Kings. I definitely wrote these guys off after getting dismantled by the Oilers in games 2 and 3 of their playoff series. Then they find a way to pull it together, missing two of their best players, and shut down Edmonton last night to tie their best-of-seven series at 2-2. Jonathan Quick is still a gamer, who has been the difference in both LA wins, but the Kings are also a tough, prideful, and gritty group. They’ve got guys like Carl Grundstrom who are pushing pucks across the goal line with their faces, and dudes like Trevor Moore that belong on the third line, yet are holding their own against elite players like Connor McDavid. NHL teams have been getting dunked on balls in the face style, giving up 5-7 goals a game, but the Kings are still playing steady defense when it matters, no matter how much criticism they have received over the last few weeks. I’m honestly shocked the Kings have made it this far, couldn’t be prouder of the team, but have zero expectations that that they could actually win this series. Have crazier things happened? Well sure. It’s skill vs will, and last night will was king. They’ll need more of that to happen if they are planning on winning two of the next three games, with no home-ice advantage.

I’d like to issue an apology to every NBA team out there that is still in the playoffs.  The Lakers had a zoom meeting with a couple of coaching candidates and suddenly that’s all anybody wants to talk about, rather than the teams in the playoffs.  A freaking Zoom meeting!  I also realize that everybody wants to play fantasy basketball and trade Lebron, trade AD, and trade Russ, but everybody needs to back away from the trade machine.  Lebron and AD aren’t going anywhere.  Try as they might, even moving Russ won’t be easy.  The bigger story though is how terrifying it is that Phil Jackson is still advising the Lakers on coaching decisions, and that they still have their eyes on Doc Rivers, if he were to become available.  What a disaster if both of those things are true.  Doc is certainly making a good case to be the Laker coach though with his insistence on playing DeAndre Jordan, who would probably be picked last in a YMCA pick up game right now. The Lakers shouldn’t overthink this. Hire Darvin Ham and let’s move on. He’s a bright young NBA mind, who deserves a shot, and is the kind of “out-of-the-box” thinking they should have when hiring a coach.

Meanwhile, the Clippers quietly made a nice move by re-signing Robert Covington to a two-year deal.  Covington proved to be a useful role player for the Clips, and fortunately for the Clip Show, Covington didn’t have many options out there where teams had cap space to pay him.  The moral of this story is that it doesn’t matter if you’ve been passed around the NBA like a Kardashian, players like Covington can still be important on the right squad like the Clippers.  Every team needs wing depth these days, and the Clips just added more of it.

As for the NBA Playoffs, James Harden “turned the clock back” yesterday with a big performance. Dude is only 32 years old, so by “turn the clock back” we mean to whatever week he wasn’t at the strip club and then showed up to work. This dude was being compared to Kobe a few months ago. Now he’s more comparable to Marlon Brando. Amazingly enough, the Sixers still have a great chance to win the series, despite having Harden and Doc Rivers in their organization. Meanwhile, Chris Paul was hit with 4 fouls yesterday once he got to the parking lot for the game. I still have a hard time seeing the Mavs winning this series. The Warriors and Grizzlies series is cool until we have to obnoxiously hear about each player that “broke the code” and supposedly tried to injury another. That’s just a dumb story line. The Warriors look more experienced and poised though. I’m beginning to think the winner of the Celtics and Bucks will end up winning the NBA Championship though, and since Giannis now looks like the best player in the world, it looks like Milwaukee’s to lose.

On to baseball, where the Dodgers have dominated the last week by sweeping the Giants and Cubs. The Boys in Blue have the best record in baseball, and have been dominant on the mound, sporting the best starting era in baseball. It’s hard to complain about much, but believe it or not, they aren’t even clicking on all cylinders yet on offense. Max Muncy and Justin Turner have been doing some weird mechanical adjustments to their swings, and they look like little leaguers. They should get it together, but the rumors of Trea Turner’s departure in the off-season are more concerning. Turner has a home in Florida and reportedly has a strong desire to play closer to that home of his. Who wants to live in Florida though? 1,000% humidity and gators going for a swim in your pool every now and again? In any case, those same sources said he isn’t ruling out re-signing with the Dodgers, so that may be his way of telling Andrew Friedman that if you overpay him, he’ll stay.

Meanwhile, the Angels are playing their best baseball in 7 years, and yet their fans are still finding a way to complain about them. The Halos have won 4 of their last 6 and are in 1st place in the AL West. Their pitching has looked sturdy, and their run differential is among the best in the AL. They also had a wild walk off- rally yesterday afternoon against the Nationals, capped by Anthony Rendon’s RBI single. Shohei Ohtani and Anthony Rendon have had the batting averages or Mickey and Mini Mouse so far, yet the Halos are still looking like one of the best teams in the AL. Things are really looking up so far in Anaheim.

Finally, Rich Strike won the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. Dude was an 80-1 longshot. The owner actually found out he wasn’t going to be in the race until the night before. Of course when he was asked if he expected to win, he said of course he did. That was completely believable until you actually saw what dude was wearing on TV, like he was going for a Saturday at the park instead of the winners circle at the Derby.

May 2, 2022

It’s been weeks since the Laker season ended and we’re still getting nasty leaks from the front office. Those leaks are directing blame at Lebron James, Anthony Davis, and Rich Paul for pushing the Lakers to trade for Russell Westbrook. This has to be coming from a member of the Lakers staff that knows they are getting fired, and taking their shots on the way out the door. It might even be coming from Judy Seto, who was their Director of Sports Performance, who was recently let go. In any case, the Lakers have people that work for them that have been perpetuating the same rumors for weeks, and basically acting like a bitter ex-wife. However, I am impressed that the Lakers are actually thinking slightly outside the box with a potential coaching hire, requesting permission to speak to Darwin Ham. We haven’t heard much in the way of coaching rumors since the season ended, which makes me think the Lakers have had their eye on coaches that are still in the playoffs.

Elsewhere around the NBA, we’re on to the 2nd round and the Bucks look like they are ready to successfully defend their NBA title, after Giannis dismantled the Celtics in the Garden in game 1. Meanwhile, if you don’t think Chris Paul is amazing, there is something wrong with you. He’s getting older, and feels like he’s only getting better. 14-14 from the field in an elimination game? When I look at the Suns, Grizzlies, Pelicans, Mavs, and T-Wolves, I see five really good young teams that I think the Lakers are going to have problems surpassing in the next year.

To the ice, where the LA Kings are back in the playoffs for the first time in four years. This is going to be quite a retro 1st round playoff series too, facing the Edmonton Oilers for the first time in the playoffs since 1992. This isn’t exactly the same Kings team that last won the Cup in 2014, as they have a whole lot of young players, and a lot less depth. They still have Anze Kopitar, but Drew Doughty is out injured for the playoffs. However, they seem to be playing for both Jonathan Quick and Dustin Brown, who announced that he will be retiring when the season ends. Dustin Brown is the LA Kings equivalent of Kobe Bryant. He’s been an incredible leader for 18 years with the Kings, the captain of a two-time Cup Champion, Olympic Champion, and scored over 300 goals in his career. He’s a borderline hall of famer, but should instantly have his jersey retired. The Kings can find inspiration in trying to win in the playoffs for Brown, and they are already finding it with Jonathan Quick’s stellar play the last couple of weeks. This team probably doesn’t have enough defensive depth to beat the Oilers, but making the playoffs with this many injuries is a nice accomplishment and good progress for a rebuilding franchise.

In baseball, the Dodger finally got some closure to the Trevor Bauer situation. Bauer is suspended for the next two seasons for his involvement in an alleged sexual assault incident last season. That means the Dodgers are off the hook for the remaining $64 million they owe him. I’m happy that the Dodgers are off the hook and all and can move on, but this is incredibly unfair to Trevor Bauer. There were no criminal charges filed. There are text messages from this woman telling her friends that they can go to Europe in style after a few more rough sexual encounters. So now Bauer’s career is effectively over. Bauer gets suspended for two years, meanwhile, the Houston Astros actually cheated on the field, got to keep their World Series trophy, and not a single player was suspended. Good to see where Commissioner Rob Manfred has his priorities.

Meanwhile, the Angels are looking pretty good, winning 8 of their last 11 games. They are sitting in 1st place in the AL West in the early going. It’s strange seeing the Halos with some nice pitching too between Syndergaard, Ohtani, and now suddenly Michael Lorenzen has emerged as a force. Taylor Ward has also been doing his best Ted Williams impersonation, and cannot be taken out the lineup anytime soon either. Considering that Shohei Ohtani and Anthony Rendon haven’t really gotten going yet, there is much to be excited about right now for the Halos.

The NFL Draft went down over the weekend, and I’m going to say something super unpopular: it’s extremely overrated and overhyped. Most of these dudes are going to be out of the league in 3 years, yet teams are falling all over themselves to get more draft picks. I have no idea what the hell the Titans were thinking when they traded AJ Brown to the Eagles. The Rams didn’t have a pick until the 3rd round, but they have managed to find some useful players, and even starters over the last few years. You can also never have enough offensive and defensive lineman, so the Rams were wise to take Logan Bruss in the 3rd round, who can compete for the starting right guard spot. The Chargers did the same by taking Zion Johnson, the best lineman in the draft, with a 1st round pick. I feel like we’ve said they had a great draft the past few years, but the talent just hasn’t led to wins on the field. Can’t say I’m going to be surprised if that happens again.

April 25, 2022

We’re halfway through the 1st round of the NBA playoffs, but the only thing people can talk about is the Lakers. I guess they must be pretty important to the ratings or something. Fans have kind of lost their mind though. I just saw a petition to get Russell Westbrook off the team. I want him gone and all, but how childish though. I signed it from two different devices. It’s funny how a few weeks ago everybody loved the idea of Quinn Snyder or Nick Nurse, but now after watching the 1st round, nobody wants to touch them. It’s also funny how each and every moment that goes by, you might actually realize how good of a coach Frank Vogel was. There’s a lot of work to do to clean up this mess, and I’m curious to see if the Lakers still ask stupid things of their coaching candidates: to pick their staff, and to take less than a 5 year deal. This mess is fixable, but it’s simply a matter of whether or not the Lakers will learn from their mistakes of the past.

I’ve seen about 3 episodes of the series “Winning Time” on HBO. It’s really good, and I plan to continue watching it. However, I can understand why Jerry West is upset. He’s portrayed like a complete lunatic that hates his job, and hates people. Magic is probably also pissed too because Cookie has to be raising an eyebrow knowing that they are portraying him having sex with every woman in LA in the 80’s. That’s not hard to believe though, and neither is how they portrayed Kareem, since he shunned the media in the 80’s. Unfortunately, as upset as West is, he, nor anybody else can do anything about it. It’s a TV series that is based on some true events, but obviously over-dramatized. West hasn’t been this embarrassed since he started telling people he works for the Clippers. Sorry Jerry, I know you want an apology and a retraction, but this is showbiz, and that’s not how it works in this case.

As for the NBA Playoffs, the Nets are on the verge of getting swept by the Celtics. It’s all fun and games to root for KD and Kyrie to lose because they are annoying, but then Laker fans realize the Celtics are in the finals, and they might have to jump off their roof. Kevin Durant must have given up shooting for Lent. He only had 11 shot attempts in game 3 against Boston. You know, KD left a championship dynasty with the Warriors where he was the best player, just because some 10-year olds on Twitter think his legacy isn’t worth crap and he had too much help. Now that he has less help, he’s not elevating his game in the playoffs. This is what he wanted, yet he’s not answering the bell. Yes, it’s completely unfair how we judge these NBA stars, but if KD is going to feed into the narrative, then he needs to step it up. Don’t ever try to tell me that KD is the best player in the world right now, because as great as he is, he’s not that. Also, I’m not saying the 76ers are going to blow a 3-0 lead in their 1st round series against the Raptors, but eventually someone will come back from a 3-0 deficit and win a series in the NBA. Any team coached by Doc Rivers stands a good chance of being the team to lose that series.

To baseball, where the Dodgers are rolling, taking 2 of 3 from the Padres over the weekend, and maintaining 1st place in the NL West. Cody Bellinger turns into Barry Bonds every time Clayton Kershaw pitches. Kershaw continues to look great, and Belly is looking a lot closer to the MVP we saw a few years ago. I’m not terribly worried about Mookie Betts and Max Muncy, who have been off to slow stars. Of course everybody wants to kill Mookie because of his monstrous contract, but the baseball season is 162 games, and we’re only 3 weeks in. If those two guys are hitting less than .200 at the all-star break it’s a conversation, but they certainly looked pretty good over the weekend, and they haven’t looked bad in their at bats. This is also what a “road game” looks like for the Dodgers in San Diego.

As for the Angeles, they had a rather disappointing weekend against the Orioles. They lost 2 of 3 games in a series they really needed to dominate. Ironically, it isn’t the starting pitching that has been the problem. It’s the bullpen and the bizarre managing decisions by Joe Maddon. Maddon is pulling his pitchers after 5 innings of domination, and 70 pitches. Then his $93 million bullpen is giving away games like they are some 501C3 charity. The best news for the Angels is really that nobody in their division, or even the entire AL looks that great so far. With four games coming up against the Guardians at home, the Halos really need to bank some wins in this part of the soft schedule.

Finally, a whole week went by and it was weird, the Rams didn’t actually acquire another superstar player. However, the got great news that 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel has requested a trade. That means every team in the division on paper is getting much worse, while the Rams have only gotten better. You can guarantee that Les Snead is calling the 49ers and at least trying to find out what it will take to get Samuel in a Rams uniform. However, John Lynch would rather get in the octagon with Aaron Donald before trading Samuel to his division rival.

April 18, 2022

The NBA Playoffs are underway but sure enough, all people are talking about is the Lakers. That’s how amazing this franchise is. What’s not amazing though is the complete lack of self-awareness from Russell Westbrook. After his exit interview last week, Westbrook told the media that he wasn’t given a fair chance and wasn’t allowed to be himself. He also didn’t understand why he felt like he always had to prove himself to Frank Vogel. Somebody needs to show Russ footage of him blowing layups, dunks, and hitting the side of the backboard all season long. Philip Seymour Hoffman had a better jumper in Along Came Polly than Russ does now. I thought there was a small chance Russ could return next season, but now I think there’s no chance. The Lakers should be willing to take back long term contracts just to get rid of Russ, and find veterans that are better fits in the process.

Meanwhile, the Clippers season ended on Friday night against the Pelicans, during the play-in game. I really thought the Clips were going to take down Minnesota, and for sure the Pelicans. However, that Paul George Covid protocol did them no favors. You’ve gotta hand it to the Clips for playing their asses off all season without their stars. Still, I find it interesting that everyone thinks the Lakers can’t win anymore because Lebron and AD are always injured, when Kawhi and Paul George have missed even more games than those two in their time with the Clippers. Things look promising now for the Clips, but the last time we said they just needed to add a couple of stars to their team of nice role players, they ended up with lousy chemistry and getting bounced in the bubble. Mixing Kawhi and PG back into the fold sounds good on paper, but we’ll see if it is finally their year as we keep hearing.

I’m always amused about the prisoner of the moment story lines that emerge from the NBA playoffs this time of year. Some of my personal favorite from this year include the idea that Brandon Ingram is suddenly a better player than Anthony Davis. Or that the Lakers were foolish for giving up their entire young core for Anthony Davis, and that the Pelicans won the trade. I guess most of these delusional people forgot that the objective of an NBA team is to win a championship. The Lakers won one with Anthony Davis as a key piece of that 17 months ago. The Lakers young core is really nice because they draft well, but they were right to give them up for a guy that gave them a championship. It’s also adorable that everybody loves the Lakers young core now, when prior to the Anthony Davis trade, everyone was saying how much they stink. I guess the Lakers really do know what they are doing when it comes to drafting and developing players. Some of these people need their Twitter accounts revoked immediately if we’re going to start fact-checking these sites and all.

UCLA Basketball lost another key player last week. This time, Peyton Watson declared for the NBA draft, and hired an agent, assuring everyone that he isn’t coming back to school. I’m not sure who is giving Watson advice, but it sounds like the equivalent of taking financial advice from Bernie Madoff. A kid who is averaging 3 points and 2 rebounds as a freshman, and is projected to be a 2nd round pick, isn’t ready for the NBA. Especially with NLI opportunities to make money in college, Watson could have made money while staying in school. I told you last week that UCLA couldn’t keep all the talent on their roster, but Watson isn’t somebody I expected to depart. UCLA should still be great next year, but this one will hurt the program, and I fear it will hurt Watson too.

To baseball, where the Dodgers are off to a strong start after handling business against the Twins and Reds. They’ve won 6 in a row, and I was pleased to see Julio Urias and Walker Buehler turn things around in their last starts, and it’s also nice to see Cody Bellinger remember how to hit a baseball. He’s probably not smoking as much weed over the past week. All of you want to talk about Clayton Kershaw though. I get that we were all deprived of watching a perfect game, but removing him after 7 innings was the right decision. I’m more upset that the Dodgers didn’t use Blake Treinen to preserve the perfect game, rather than the fact they pulled Kershaw. He looks phenomenal, he’s coming off injury and a short spring training, and even he admitted he should have been pulled from the game. It was also super cold that day in Minnesota, which increases in the injury risk. Baseball has too many “get off my lawn” fans, and unfortunately, none of you will see it this way. However, this is the way the game is played and managed in the modern era whether you like it or not, so you might as well get used to it.

That was a big series win by the Angels over the Rangers this weekend with the Astros looming tonight. Unfortunately, it looks like they might be without Mike Trout after he took a pitch off the hand. At least nothing was broken, and he’s day-to-day. Coming into Sunday, the Halos were slugging their way to wins, leading the league in home runs. They are also getting some fantastic pitching from Noah Syndergaard, which is nice to see. If Shohei Ohtani can look like the ace we think he is, the Halos are a much different team than we think. There’s a lot of promising things when looking at the roster and the performance, but whether they can actually come through against the likes of the Astros and Mariners and the tough division games is what really matters. What’s not so great though is the Angels remote broadcast team. I haven’t seen anything this embarrassing since the Halos played ball last season. Matt Vasgersian called a home run a foul ball, and called a foul ball a double. They lost audio at one point, and then Vasgersian confused the broadcast freezing with the pitcher holding the ball for a long time. Now the Angels made a last second call to send a broadcast team to Houston for the next series. Arte Moreno must have gotten a 2 -for-1 deal on Spirit Airlines to make this happen.

The LA Kings are hanging on for dear life in the final 5 games of the season to try and make the playoffs. The Kings are 3 points ahead of Las Vegas with 5 games left. Vegas has one extra game to play, but a much tougher schedule. LA is also limping toward the finish line with Drew Doughty out for the season with a wrist injury, and their #2 defenseman Mikey Anderson out of the lineup with the always mysterious “upper-body injury” as well. Still, the Kings are back to being fun to watch again. That is when they aren’t giving up 6 unanswered goals to Minnesota and 9 goals to Colorado. You have to really hate your goalies to let them endure that kind of punishment.

Finally, I’m ecstatic that Better Call Saul is back on AMC tonight with the season premiere of the shows final season. This show isn’t Breaking Bad, but it’s still a masterpiece, and if you saw Breaking Bad, you’ll have a much greater appreciation for it. I’m still trying to figure out how 42-year old Aaron Paul is going to be playing 17-18 year old Jesse Pinkman on the show this year. Ultimately, there’s two things we are all dying to know: what happens to Kim? And do we get to see Walter White and Jesse Pinkman? We already know the answer to the 2nd question, but I guess the better question is how we see them. We have no idea on the first question, but I’m almost terrified to know the answer. Can’t wait!

April 11, 2022

The most shameful Laker season ended yesterday in Denver. Thank God for that, but the shamefulness continued with the front office leaks. This time it was somebody leaking to Adrian Wojnarowki that Frank Vogel will be fired. If Woj said it, it’s gotta be true, and I can’t blame him for doing his job. However, I do blame the classless idiots in the front office who couldn’t just wait 12 hours until the man was respectfully relieved of his duties. Since Vogel is holding onto the job in five minute increments at this point, he’s likely to be fired by the time you read this. The one thing I can’t understand is that for a franchise that does things so differently than others, why not do something different and keep Vogel? Only an idiot would think that this season’s outcome was his fault. He’s only getting fired because optically they have to make it look like they are trying something different. He led you to a championship 18 months ago, now suddenly he’s a scrub coach? This is a roster issue that will be difficult, but not impossible to fix. Heck if the Lakers are just willing to take back contracts beyond next season, they might actually be able to find a decent deal for Russell Westbrook. The real question people should be asking themselves is if it’s Rob Pelinka who should be making those deals anymore.

As for the Clippers, they are very quietly going to be matching up with the Minnesota Timberwolves tomorrow night in the NBA’s Play-In Tournament. The Wolves have been solid this year, however, the Clippers suddenly have a lot of confidence with Paul George coming back as well as Norman Powell. I think everybody forgot that Normal Powell actually plays on this team, and that the Clips performed the equivalent of armed robbery at the trade deadline on the Blazers to get Powell and Robert Covington. I’m sure Pat Beverley will be looking for his revenge here, but I like the Clips chances of taking this one. I also have to wonder if they win, whether or not we will see Kawhi.

To baseball, where the Dodgers dropped 2 of 3 in their opening series against the Rockies over the weekend. You probably shouldn’t panic 3-games into a 162-game season, but there are a few things to raise your eyebrows at here. Apparently nobody told the Dodgers that spring training was over, because they are approaching these games with the urgency of the Lakers. The “historic offense” is also being carried by Gavin Lux and Austin Barnes through three games. I expect a lot more production when your lineup has Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, and Trea Turner (among many others). More concerning though is the performance of Julio Urias, who’s velocity was down, and was rocked for the second straight outing, if you’re including spring training. With that being said, all three of those games were winnable, and the Dodgers still probably win the last two if they just make a play or two more.

As for the Angels, it was a rough opening weekend, dropping 3 of 4 to the Astros. I know Halo fans don’t want to panic either, but the slow starts, especially against divisional foes the last couple of years don’t exactly make you feel all that great about this weekend. Joe Maddon insisted that the Angels are very close to the Astros right now, but I’m not so sure about that from what I saw. I’m also not sure why Anthony Rendon was resting on Sunday, three games into the season. I guess he needs an extra day of rest to spend that $36 million he is making this year. The Ohtani-Trout-Rendon combination didn’t yield much against the Astros, but much of that was due to some stellar defense played by the ‘Stros. On the bright side, the Angels have to feel pretty good about the starting pitching they got in all three games, since the bullpen and the offense was to be blamed for the three losses. The Angels better plan on taking care of business this week against the Marlins and Rangers, two teams that should have no business winning a series against the Halos.

In College Hoops, it’s bitter sweet news, but Jake Kyman is transferring from UCLA to Wyoming. Kyman is a sharp shooter that could not find consistent minutes on a very deep and talented UCLA team for the last couple of seasons. He also approached Mick Cronin about what he could do to get more minutes, but unfortunately, there wasn’t much. Kyman is also a Bruin through and through, with both of his parents being alumni athletes as well. With that being said, UCLA is not going to be able to keep everybody, and find minutes for all the talented players that they have. Kyman is an unfortunate reminder of that, and you can be sure he won’t be the only one that has to make this kind of decision because it’s best for his college career.

The Masters went down over the weekend, but the story wasn’t Scottie Scheffler winning. Nor was it the azaleas. It was Tiger Woods, who was back on the course after suffering a catastrophic leg injury a year ago. There are some athletes you have to enjoy while they are still around because they are so special, and Tiger is just that. He didn’t come close to winning, but he put together a fantastic first round, and still gave us some tremendous shots over the weekend. His drive and will to win is still there, and he’s what actually makes watching golf interesting for the average fan. I’m very happy to hear that Woods is committing to The Open in a couple of months, and we can only hope that he is not only healthy, but even healthier than he was coming into The Masters.

Finally, the mid-season finale of The Walking Dead went down on AMC last night. Spoiler alert for those of you who have yet to see it. This episode was a fight to the death with Maggie and Leah. You didn’t really think TWD was going to take Maggie from us too did you? That was one hell of a fight and I admit I was a little stressed, but thank god Daryl saved the day by killing Leah. I can’t imagine how Glenn would feel about all this right now though, knowing that Maggie is somehow trusting the guy that murdered him. Or even the fact that Negan is babysitting his kid. It’s crazy to think that happened 6 years ago. I have a bad feeling though that we will end up losing Rosita sometime in the final season. We lost her in the comic, so I’m sure they have some ridiculously tragic death planned for her in the fall. It was a solid mid-season finale, and I’ve gotta give the writers credit for how they re-invented the show. I’m over 10 years invested, so I need to see it to the end, and looking forward to it come the fall.

April 4, 2022

Hey Lakers, lose my number! I don’t want to hear anything from your sorry asses for the next 6 months. I’ve never been so embarrassed to be a Laker fan. This is by far the most disappointing season in Laker history, and this weekend was the final dagger, with losses to the Pelicans and Nuggets at home. I don’t care if Lebron and AD have missed as many games as they have. This team should at least be able to make the play-in tournament. I don’t see the Clippers in the lottery without Kawhi and Paul George. I also don’t see the Nuggets falling apart without Michael Porter and Jamaal Murray. The lack of effort and lack of professionalism on this squad all year has been simply disrespectful to the fans that support this team. They don’t even deserve to be in the play-in, let alone the playoffs. Will even half of this team even be on any NBA roster next year? I have my doubts. That’s how sorry the roster construction has been, and not sure how much better it’s going to get moving forward. Lebron is also up for a contract extension in August. I’m not so sure he doesn’t sign it, but I’m also not so sure that would be a good thing for the Lakers.

As for the Clippers, things are actually getting a bit interesting for them. Paul George made his return to the floor last week, and looked really good in the process. They took down the Jazz, and then blew out the Bucks, albeit with both teams missing a lot of players. Nevertheless, if the Clippers can survive the play-in, they may even get Kawhi Leonard back. That would make the Clips an extremely dangerous #7 or #8 seed in the Western Conference. The role players on this team are suddenly finding themselves, including the likes of Luke Kennard and Robert Covington. Suddenly all those Clipper jokes aren’t so funny to the Suns or Grizzlies, who might have to face this monster in the 1st round.

To baseball, where the Dodgers made a massive trade last week, sending AJ Pollock to the White Sox for closer Craig Kimbrel. I actually thought this was an April Fools joke at first, but it’s true. It also made a lot of sense. The Dodgers needed a closer with the departure of Kenley Jansen. Considering Kimbrel has just one year left on his contract, it’s a reasonable gamble. He has been pretty up and down though. When Kimbrel is on, he’s great. When he’s not, he’s downright awful. In his first spring training outing with the Dodgers, he was awful. Nevertheless, it’s spring training. AJ Pollock was really one of the best hitters in the NL last year, even though he stunk in the playoffs. He was a great Dodger though and he will be missed, but there are enough guys that need at-bats that can more than effectively replace his bat. That Kimbrel arm thing before every pitch though is kind of annoying.

As for the Angels, MLB Network ranked Shohei Ohtani #1 and Mike Trout #2 in their player rankings. First of all, no disrespect to how great Shohei is, but just because Mike Trout strained his calf last year, the media got amnesia and forgot that he’s still the best player? Makes no sense. Then there’s the Halos releasing Justin Upton, and just eating $28 million. I know the Angels are trying to go young in the outfield with guys like Brandon marsh and Jo Adell, but if the Halos are going to to keep making $28 million mistakes, they are going to keep spinning their wheels at .500. Upton was actually having a decent spring. I know a few people have suggested he ends up with the Dodgers, but the Boys in Blue just traded away AJ Pollock to create some more playing time in the outfield. They don’t need another outfielder.

In the NFL, the Rams have done it again. They’ve acquired another star player by signing linebacker Bobby Wagner to a 5-year $50 million deal. I’m sure everyone is wondering how the Rams can afford another star. The Rams just have smarter people upstairs, including Les Snead, and many others that draft well and get a lot of quality starters on the cheap. They also understand the importance of stars and chasing championships when you’re playing in the LA market. That you have to appreciate. Now the Rams have replaced Von Miller with another defensive star who has just as good of a resume, and they once again have three elite defenders: Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey, and Wagner.

Finally, I thoroughly enjoyed The Grammy’s last night and it is by far my favorite award show. Amazingly, we had an award show where nobody got slapped, and the topic of conversation afterward was not that slap. Doesn’t that feel like it happened 10 years ago, given all the commentary that’s happened since? As for the show itself, this clip will give you a nice summary.

March 28, 2022

UCLA’s March run came to a brutal end on Friday night in the Sweet 16 against North Carolina. I realize you all want to talk about Mick Cronin’s rotations, and how he should have given his guys more rest, while also playing more of a defensive lineup. However, the Bruins still played well enough to win. Sometimes the other team just makes some crazy shots and there’s not much you can do about it. Nobody knew that Caleb Love was going to turn into the 2nd coming of Steph Curry in the final few minutes of that game. That’s March Madness and that’s sports. Now if only Jessica Alba were in Philly on Friday and at the game, we might be having a different conversation today. At least the Bruins got to fly back to Westwood, while when Arizona lost, they had to fly back to dumpy Tucson. UCLA will be pretty damn good next year as well, and Mick Cronin will hopefully be coaching this team for the next 20 years. Still, the frustrating part is that it felt like if the Bruins had pulled out that win, they had a very favorable path to winning a National Championship.

Some of you Laker folks are hilarious, including Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq says that if the Lakers get out of the play-in tournament they will beat the Suns in the 1st round of the playoffs. Meanwhile, I’m wondering if there will be a play-in tournament opportunity for the play-in tournament. That’s how unsure I am that the Lakers will actually be playing in that tournament, especially after last night’s loss to New Orleans. It’s been 74 games people, and they have all been disastrous. Do you suddenly think that Lebron and AD won’t be taking opportunities away from Stanley Johnson and the Lakers are going to fulfill their true potential? They aren’t suddenly going to play like a championship team, even if you saw them play halfway decent for the past week.

To baseball where we are in the midst of spring training, and the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger is struggling again. Bellinger has been striking out more than Urkel did on Family Matters this spring. Coming into Sunday, he had struck out 14 of 19 times at the plate. That means you can expect him to change his batting stance about 64 more times this season, since his new stance doesn’t seem to be working already. The Dodgers have plenty of good players in their lineup, but having the “MVP level Bellinger” or at least 70% of him would go a long way to their World Series chances. Also, I wish the MLB would just make a decision on Trevor Bauer already. Either suspend him and give the Dodgers closure on the situation, or declare he can play and let’s move on. As for Dave Roberts and his “guarantee” that the Dodgers would win the 2022 World Series on the Dan Patrick Show, what else was he supposed to say? “We aren’t really that good and I don’t believe in this team?”

As for the Angels, Shohei Ohtani looked amazing in his spring debut last week. If Ohtani can be the Angels true #1 ace and win 15 games, and if Noah Syndergaard can be an elite #2, the Angels might actually be really good. That’s a lot of “ifs” and “mights” but not out of the question. What is in question though is where David Fletcher is going to play. Joe Maddon says that Fletcher could start at shortstop. What a great idea. Take your elite defending second basemen who can’t hit, and whose only value comes from defense, and put him a position where he isn’t an elite defender. Who needs analytics when you can just make these kind of idiotic decisions instead?

In the NFL, the Rams are still trying to lock up Aaron Donald to a contract extension. The reason why it’s taking so long isn’t because they don’t want to pay the man, but rather because they are trying to do some major salary cap gymnastics. Les Snead is clearly trying to bring back OBJ while also figuring out ways to improve the pass rush. Sounds like LA is out of the Bobby Wagner sweepstakes though, which would have helped a great deal. Hopefully when Aaron Donald gets paid, Urban Meyer will finally know who he is. Urban is probably also wondering why the Rams aren’t still playing in St. Louis as well.

W are down to the final 15 games of the regular season in the NHL, and the LA Kings are sitting in a solid playoff spot in the West. Despite the super slow pace of this rebuild, this is much better than many of us expected this season. However, these last 15 games will be tough with injuries to the Kings’ top 2 defenseman, Drew Doughty and Mikey Anderson, as well as two other veteran forwards. Jim Fox said it will take 93 points to get into the playoffs, which means the Kings would just need to go 6-9 the rest of the way, but that doesn’t seem like enough in a brutally competitive conference. I’m thinking 97 points gets them in the playoffs, which would mean they would need to go 8-7. I hate the fact they didn’t make a big trade at the deadline last week, but neither did their division rivals, who they will see a lot of in the next couple of weeks. Also, if Jim Fox says 93 points will get them in the playoffs, you have to think he knows what he’s talking about. I mean he’s even up to date on Fortnight!

Finally, I’ve been a huge fan of Will Smith’s for a long time, and was very happy to see that he won his first Oscar last night for his role in “King Richard”. However, slapping Chris Rock on stage was totally inexcusable, and it’s really a shame that it took away from his moment winning the award for best actor. Funny how the audience really seemed to think that Will slapping Chris was part of the show, but once he started yelling and cussing at Chris, things got awkward. You can also tell this incident wasn’t just about one joke that was made. In 2016, when both Jada and Will boycotted the Oscars, Chris Rock also took aim at them during his stand up routine at the Oscars.

March 21, 2022

UCLA is going back to the Sweet 16 for the 2nd year in a row! Nice first weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the Bruins. The opening round against Akron was a game of survival, but Saturday night against St Marys was pure Bruin basketball.  Tough defense, efficient 2-point offense, and limiting the turnovers.  They will need to do exactly that when they play North Carolina on Friday night in Philadelphia.  The Tar Heels are suddenly playing like Michael Jordan and James Worthy still play for them, after eliminating defending champion Baylor.  UCLA will also badly need Jaime Jaquez healthy enough to be effective, after he rolled his ankle again on Saturday.  I have no doubt he’s tough enough to try to play, it’s just a matter of how good can he be.  If he’s anywhere near what he did on Saturday in the 1st half, the Bruins are a good bet to get to the Elite 8.  As I said last week, these aren’t easy games by any means,  but the road to the Final Four provides better matchups for the Bruins than if they were in any of the 3 other regions.

As for the Trojans, they lost a tough one to Miami in the 1st round of the tournament.  It came down to the final possession, but USC dug themselves a 13-point hole, turning it over 18 times in total.  There were 11 lead changes over the final 15 minutes, but missing six free throws didn’t help the Trojan cause.  Miami was just an older, more experienced team and it benefitted them, despite the Trojans having more talent.  It took USC a while to get over their nerves and the fact they were actually playing in the NCAA Tournament.  Their first half looked like they just finished a night of drinking at the Nine-O.  That’s a sign of a young team that at times, still needs to figure it out in the big moments.  Andy Enfield is a great recruiter, so I expect him to continue to follow the same blue print of young elite freshman talent.  However, fundamentals and emotional maturity for moments like these is something his coaching staff needs to instill, if USC is to make more runs in the NCAA Tournament.

I really thought there was a way to just avoid talking about the Lakers entirely in this column.  I can’t though because it’s the Lakers.  However, we’ve reached the point where this team is putting a disgraceful effort forward every time they play.  It’s embarrassing, and there is almost no professional pride.  The only thing left at this point is to enjoy Lebron getting 30 or more a night for the next dozen games.  Congrats to Lebron for getting to #2 on the all-time scoring list.  After Saturday’s loss to the Wizards, Frank Vogel said they didn’t play well with Lebron out of the game.  He should have specified which games he was talking about.  When I hear Stu Lantz and James Worthy talk about this team on TV, I feel like I’m a kid who just let his parents down in dramatic fashion.  Just get to the off-season already, let’s find out if heads will roll, and get rid of nearly all these players who don’t want to put the effort in every night.  Or in the case of Russ, who fit like a square peg in a round hole.

Spring training is underway for the Dodgers, and they finished up a big week by signing 1st baseman Freddie Freeman! Somehow, the Dodgers lost Corey Seager and Max Scherzer this off-season, yet on paper they are going to be better. Although six years is a bit much for a guy that’s 32 years old, credit to Andrew Friedman for spending the money when the time is right, and when there is an opportunity.   Look at me complimenting Andrew Friedman after all these years of me telling you he was some video game nerd that didn’t know what he was doing.  He commands my respect now.  I also like the fact they have about 10 starters, 5 of them are cagey veterans like Danny Duffy, Andrew Heaney, and David Price, who may be lottery tickets for success, but worst case they can eat some innings.  I was disappointed that Kenley Jansen took a one year deal in Atlanta.  The Dodgers still need a closer, until Blake Treinen proves to me that he can do the job. The only guy available who could fit the bill is Craig Kimbrel, who has been wildly inconsistent throughout his career, despite his big time pockets of success in Boston, and in Chicago.

As for the Angels, I’m not so sure the team is any better than last year.  They managed to get Noah Sydergaard, who they hope will be healthy and elite.  They did manage to beef up their bullpen too but that’s it.  Much of the potential success is if Trout, Rendon, and Upton stay healthy, and are playing at an elite level alongside Shohei Ohtani.  That’s a lot of “ifs” and things that need to go right to have a successful season.  Plus Arte Moreno just seems like the crotchety old man now, that just won’t spend money on fixing his leaky sink.  Instead he tells his wife that they are just going to end up buying an expensive Ferrari instead.

On to the NFL, where it’s been a busy week for the Rams.  They signed Allen Robinson, lost Von Miller to the Bills, traded Robert Woods to the Titans, and signed Matt Stafford to an extension.  Let me start with this, Allen Robinson has shown he can be a solid receiver in this league, but last year he was pretty terrible.  With an excellent QB like Matt Stafford does that change? I sure hope so, but I’m a little surprised.  Losing Von Miller hurts, but you can’t keep everyone.  I feel terrible for Robert Woods that he tore his ACL, never got to play in the Super Bowl, and then got dumped to Tennessee.  He’s a good football player, and a great guy to have in your locker.  He isn’t necessary though, and as much as I’d love to have OBJ back, they have other needs.  Re-upping Stafford was the right thing to do.  Hopefully he’s sobered up in time from the parade to sign the new contract.  This team has been in two of the past four Super Bowls.   For that reason, I think both Les Snead and Sean McVay have earned the benefit of the doubt.

Elsewhere around the NFL, the off-season is just wild.  DeShaun Watson committed to the Browns, which makes me wonder if he committed to them while being held up at gunpoint.  That seems like the only way somebody would live in Cleveland.  Then there’s Devante Adams signing with the Raiders.  I’m sure after that Aaron Rodgers is looking for a clause to escape his contract, which doesn’t even have the ink dried yet.  I’m looking forward to seeing Baker Mayfield traded next week for a tank of gas.  This whole moment between Trevor Bauer and DeShaun Watson got really awkward as well.

You may have noticed I’ve been a little bit light on my coverage of The Bachelor this season.  Why? Well ratings are sinking faster than the Lakers, and the story lines are getting tired and not believable.  This time, the Bachelor, Clayton, told three women he loved them on Fantasy Suite night.  He claims he even convinced himself he really was in love with them.  That’s adorable…..thinking you’re in love with three women, when you’re actually in love with private jets and basically getting laid whenever you want on National TV.  This dude probably believed Vladimir Putin when he said he wasn’t going to invade the Ukraine.  I’m not sure where the show can go from here.  They’ve gotta be running out of ideas to make things more dramatic and interesting, even while trying to go back to its roots of typical “white people drama”.  I’m also even wondering if someone can still command influencer power by being a contestant in the show.  It’s also totally not the same brand without Chris Harrison, no matter how hard they try.

March 14, 2022

It’s time for March Madness! That means the UCLA Bruins are going dancing, but there wasn’t much dancing on Saturday night in their loss to Arizona in the Pac 12 title game. The good news is the Bruins have a nice path in the East to try and make a run to the Final Four again. They’ll take on Akron on Thursday, and if they continue to advance they would likely face St Mary’s and Baylor, two games that are very winnable. Judging from Saturday, I’m not saying the Bruins would have beat Arizona if their two big men did not get into foul trouble, but that’s actually what I’m saying. UCLA had some suspect pick and roll defense in the 2nd half without them, and that is something they can clean up. You have to be pleased with Johnny Juzang though and how much better he looked on Saturday. Arizona is great and they are a real contender to win it all, but their fans are worse than Vladimir Putin. Totally classless based on their treatment of UCLA fans, including the players parents.

Some of you USC alums probably forgot you had a basketball team as well, and it just so happens they are in the tournament. USC is the #7 seed in the Midwest and will face #10 Miami on Thursday in Greenville, South Carolina. Not only did the Trojans get totally disrespected with the #7 seed, but they got a region that is full of landmines and difficult to get through. Auburn and Wisconsin loom later on, and that’s about as much fun as playing with scorpions.

To the NBA, where the Lakers got dismantled by the Suns last night. Question for all of you….why the hell do we continue to watch these games? I know the Lakers are our team, but this is just damaging to our mental health. That game escalated faster than gas prices. Even Malik Monk said the team isn’t trying hard enough. They don’t care, so why should you? The blueprint is pretty simple at this point: if Lebron gets 50, the Lakers have a chance to win. That sounds reasonable doesn’t it? Despite the train wreck the Lakers are, the fact Lebron is in year 19 and leading the league in scoring is insanity. That is just a reminder of how great he still is, and how on any given night he’s still the best player in the NBA. What isn’t cool though is the fact that people are making this Russell Westbrook thing personal with him and his family. It’s basketball people. Don’t be idiots. Russ isn’t meeting expectations, but if you’re demeaning him as a person and his family, you are probably a senseless keyboard bully, that lives in your mom’s basement, asking when the hot pockets will be ready.

In baseball the lockout is over and both spring training and free agency have started for the Dodgers and Angels. It’s so good to see Clayton Kershaw returning to the Dodgers. He’s a legend, a class act, and deserves to finish his career with the Boys in Blue. The Dodgers also need his arm to be healthy to add to their rotation. With the luxury tax going up and Corey Seager and Max Scherzer leaving, Andrew Friedman has money to spend like Kim Kardashian at South Coast Plaza. Freddie Freeman would be amazing, but I have a feeling he’s going back to the ATL since it’s taking so long for him to decide. I know it’s controversial…..but if that happens the Dodgers should try to sign Carlos Correa. That puts less pressure on them to sign Trea Turner next year, and gives them the ability to to DH Justin Turner. Yes I know he cheated, but baseball is filled with the cheaters historically. He’s still an excellent right-handed bat that is in his prime. He can probably also be had on a one-year deal with a high salary, and that’s an Andrew Freidman special. They also need a closer too, so if they can get Kenley Jansen back on a two-year deal at reasonable money, they should do it. I love spending other people’s money. Isn’t it fun?

As for the Angels, they kicked off the re-opening of free agency by signing Kurt Suzuki. This is Arte Moreno’s idea of trying to make the team better. Most Angels fans want this deal voided under the accusation of uhhh…..tampering prior to the CBA being agreed! I don’t blame them! I almost forgot the Angels signed Noah Syndergaard, which is nice if he’s healthy but they need more arms. It doesn’t look like Arte is going to pay for them though. The Halos really couldn’t have made a move like the Giants did for Carlos Rodon? I guess the new CBA didn’t make Arte any less foolish when it comes to paying for pitching.

The NFL Off-season is getting wild. Gotta start with the Chargers, who acquired Khalil Mack last week. The Chargers defense couldn’t stop anything when it mattered most last year, and Mack is still great when he’s healthy. The combo of Mack with Joey Bosa could give quarterbacks fits, which is huge considering how competitive the AFC West is looking. The Broncos made headlines this week by trading for Russell Wilson, so the QB’s in the West are loaded. Re-signing Mike Williams was also a solid move too. However, I’m sure for the next year we’re going to have to hear how the Chargers have the most complete roster in the NFL, until we wonder why they can’t win more games. It’s the NFL’s biggest conundrum.

Then there’s Tom Brady, who is coming back to football and not retiring. I guess gas prices are so high, even Tom Brady has to keep working. His retirement last 39 days. The MLB lockout lasted 99. You can be sure that Gisele is going to be making him sleep on the couch for a while after reversing his decision. How about the dude that paid $500k in an auction for the ball that was supposedly Tom Brady’s last TD pass? That guy is definitely punching air now. Now the Bucs become another team that is a real contender in the NFC.