SB Nation User Blog: Cynema the Band

Thank You David Stern

Cynema the Band — Wed, 20 May 2009 22:42:35 -0000

Ok, I realize I am writing this out of pure emotion, but there is thought underneath all of that emotion. I am pissed after yesterday's "Lottery". I use the quotations for a reason. But more on that later. First I would like to tackle David Stern. Both figuratively and literally.

David Stern has been great for corporate sponsors, individual team owners, NBA investors and the players themselves. He took over the NBA and did a Vince McMahon. He turned a struggling, boring, organization that was televised late at night when hardly anyone was watching, and turned it into the Mega-Gazillion dollar giant it is today. He saw the marketing potential of Michael Jordan and rode those coat tails for as long as he could. By that time, the NBA had enough momentum that he could really tighten the screws.

Once Nike jumped on board and the marketing dollars came flying in, he horns and pitchfork soon appeared. We are now basking in the "franken-Stern" he has created. Now, the NBA is not only showed in primetime T.V. spots, but it is a world-wide organization and he, the owners, big business, and the players are raking it in. Our beloved game, is now officially a business. I realize this isn't any new revelation, but my last hope of it being a game again, is gone.

When the Kings lost to the Lakers in the ugly game 6, I was sitting in my one bedroom apartment. I barely had enough money for food, let alone cable and the internet, but I had both of those as well. (You all know how it is right? I mean you have to sacrifice a mayonaise sandwich or two for you cable and internet, i.e. porn). But I will never forget seeing Kobe elbow Mike Bibby with Bob Delaney not more than 10ft away and his eyes are fixed squarely on the play and he swallowed his whistle. As soon as the final buzzer sounded, I went online and sent an email to the NBA, addressed to David Stern, and told him I would never spend $1 on his product ever again.

Well, like all of promises and resolutions, that quickly faded when the next season came. But to this day, I have not bought a ticket to a Kings game. Yes, I have gone when invited but I have not bought one ticket. I have watched a lot of games since then (Kings and other teams) and I shake my head every time I watch. It is extremely bad when you can tell how a game will be officiated (and generally what the outcome is) when you know who the officials are. It is bad when Shaq leaves the Lakers and wins a title, but the most "exciting" player and one of the top selling jerseys in the league can't get out of the first round for a couple of years, so the NBA allows a trade like Pau Gasol for a roll of toilet paper and a Kit-Kat bar. It is bad, when now you have an aging star in Kobe Bryant, and the Lakers are probably about 2-3 years away from being average, and "Tah-Dah!!!" the other L.A. franchise gets the first pick in this year's "Lottery" (this is their second 1st overall pick, in 1998 the drafted Michael Olowokandi).

Meanwhile you have a struggling franchise in Sacramento, a team only a few years removed from being the most exciting team in the league and challenging for a championship year-in and year-out, an organization who is struggling to build an arena in its current city, speculation that the owner's want to move the team, for years have had the most loyal fans in the league, and last seaon the team looked like it should be in the developmental league and not the NBA, and won a total of 17 games (2 less than the next crappy team) and they get the 4th pick in this year's draft.

David Stern, how could you let this happen? Here is the main problem I have with the Lottery. Everything is so damned secretive. Now I guess there are representatives from every team in the room when the ping-pong balls go through the wheel, but why does it have to be done behind closed doors? Why can't the ping-pong balls be pulled on live T.V.? I mean, its already on prime time, you might as well do it then. Again, everything in the league is so secretive it drives me crazy.

Also, it is only recently (like this year) that you actually hear officials getting called out by the NBA for poor officiating. Why do you think that is? Why weren't they called out like this 10 years ago? Because the NBA knows fans (like me) are refusing to go to the games because the officiating is so poor (especially when you are playing an opposing team with a superstar, a la Kobe, Dwayne Wade, Lebron, etc). Why would I spend my money on a game when I know Dick Bevetta is going to officiate the Kings Vs. Lakers? I can tell you what the outcome is. Why do I want to go to a game and watch an official from the opposite side of the floor make a call for an official who is standing right in front of the play?

This is all David Stern's monster. The game caters to the superstars because the superstars make David Stern and the owners money. Can anyone honestly tell me that the Kings are on the same playing field as the Lakers or the Celtics or the Knicks? Can you tell me that Jason Thompson will get the same calls that Tim Duncan will get? Why is it that an L.A. team got the first pick this year? Why is it that the worst team by record in the NBA this past season doesn't have a top three pick (forget that the Kings should have the first overall pick)?

Does anyone here really think that the Nuggets have a chance against the Lakers or the Magic have a chance against the Cavs? This "Star Treatmen" bullshit has got to go. I will not attend a game next year, I will continue to not purchase a ticket to a Kings game and frankly I am not even sure I want to watch basketball anymore. Now I am sure that last part will change come October, but I will bet right now that the Lakers will win this year and Lebron will win it next year.

And to hear the names of coaches the Kings were interviewing: Eddie Jordan and Paul Westphal. Are you kidding me? Eddie Jordan had a very talented team with the Wizards (Arenas, Jameson, Butler) and couldn't win. Paul Westphal hasn't coached in the league for 10 years. And Rick Petino's name was also mentioned? You mean the guy who wouldn't play Chauncey Billups, that Rick Petino? This is all great timing for the Kings. They can't get an arena built, they have the worst record in the NBA, the name's for head coaching candidates suck ass, they get the 4th pick, geeez David Stern, I wonder if you want the franchise to move to another city?

I think it is easier to move a franchise than it is to create a new one. To move, all you would need is an excuse to get out. Well the Kings are losing money in Sacramento, so we better move them to a city who will sell out an arena, and probably build a new one within a couple of years of its tenure there. But to start a new one, you need investors and an arena already in existence? The city council here has pretty much given the middle finger to the maloofs and the NBA, so that doesn't help either (don't get me started on their inadequacies).

David Stern is already making plans to move this franchise. Of course he won't say it publicly. He will continue to say things like "our priority is to keep the Kings in Sacramento" or "this City has such loyal fans, they deserve to keep the Kings" or whatever spin he can throw out there, but its a line of bull. This Kings don't have the corporate sponsorship like other teams do, the fans don't go to the games (and for good reason) and the City Council doesn't want to build an arena. Sounds like it is easy to move the franchise.

And just because they keep pushing back the date for the unveiling of the arena and all of the cal-expo garbage and that drawing they were showing a few months back for the "new" cal-exp, is crock of shit. Right now there isn't a city for the Kings to move to, that is right now there isn't. So pretend to do everything you can, but in the meantime set it up for the quick escape out the backdoor.

Thank you David Stern you pathetic loser. Thanks for taking this once great game and turning it into a business. Thank you David Stern for taking our franchise from us. Thank you David Stern for giving us a predetermined play to watch for an extraordinarily large sum of money, only the find out the hero was never going to win and the evil empire continues to grow. In fact, tell you what.....

F-U DAVID STERN!!!!!!!!

To all of the Royalty fans out there, I can't say this is my best work. In fact I am sure there are some inaccuracies, for that I apologize. To hear Gavin Maloof say we should be positive about this, shows what kind of spineless owners they are. They should be pissed and should call for an investigation. For lack of a better term, we "earned" that #1 draft pick. Not necessarily the right to Blake Griffin, we earned the pick. The Kings got screwed, this City got screwed, and us the fans who suffered through 2008-2009 of god awful basketball got screwed. F-the positive crap.

I hope you share these emotions with me, but i understand if you don't. I look forward to reading Ziller's and Pookey's and Section's great research and options the Kings have for the next year. They are much more level-headed than I, so I will now bow to them.

Oh, and Mike Lamb (I know you are on here) you better get on the air, if not today, then tomorrow and I want you to blast the NBA and David Stern. Damn it, go crazy!!!!!!

2009 Schedule

Cynema the Band — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 22:34:03 -0000

according to SI (link provide below) here are the opponents.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/football/nfl/12/29/09-opponents.ap/

AFC WEST

San Diego

Home: Denver, Kansas City, Oakland, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Miami, Philadelphia, Washington

Away: Denver, Kansas City, Oakland, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Dallas, N.Y. Giants

Denver

Home: Kansas City, Oakland, San Diego, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, New England, Dallas, N.Y. Giants

Away: Kansas City, Oakland, San Diego, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Washington

Oakland

Home: Denver, Kansas City, San Diego, Baltimore, Cincinnati, N.Y. Jets, Philadelphia, Washington

Away: Denver, Kansas City, San Diego, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Houston, Dallas, N.Y. Giants

Kansas City

Home: Denver, Oakland, San Diego, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Dallas, N.Y. Giants

Away: Denver, Oakland, San Diego, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Philadelphia, Washington

Looking at the teams that the AFC West is playing this coming year, I like how the Chiefs' schedule stacks up. Granted all of the teams play pretty much the same opponents (yes, i know there are a few exceptions, but for the most part the "big" games are the same).

I certainly would rather play Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Dallas and the Giants at home. Baltimore will be a tough game on the road, because they are a completely different team at home. But the Bengals, J-Ville has lost key personnel. Phily and Washington will be tough.

The Chiefs' have a tough schedule, but so does the rest of the west. One last Patriots conspiracy theory. Notice how the Broncos are playing the Pats and the Chiefs aren't. Do you think Coach Bill heard something about that and didn't want Cassel opening up the Pats playbook to whichever team he was on?

Bottom line is, like everyone, I want to see improvement from this team. I could see 8 wins out of this team in 09/10. But then again I could see 4 wins as well. For the first time, in a long time, who knows what to expect. We had a great draft last year, so I want to see those players improve in their sophmore attempt. I want an impact player from the 3rd pick. But, all goes for not if Cassel flames. No pressure Matt, but you better bring your Brady impersonation with you to KC, or I am going to be pissed.

Crystal Ball

Cynema the Band — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 18:58:11 -0000

These days the Kings resemble those teams of the early to mid 90s when Petrie first showed up. When you look at last year into this year, this team had ugly contracts for players who's skills were on the decline or had left the building long ago. And to further the similarity between the two eras of horrific Kings basketball, Petrie has to play a lot of the waiting game. Either wait for the contracts to expire (simply because nobody wants the player eventhough the contract is expiring) or wait for the players contract to expire which will allow them to be tradeable.

Now that I have stated the obvious, I have some concerns about the direction of this team right now (shocking I know that any of us would have concerns). Here are my concerns:

1. The leader of this team (he is by default simply because he makes the most) is Kevin Martin. Is he "The Guy"? Looking at Championship calibur teams, they all have "The Guy". So IF (big stress here) GP can get players in here to compliment a coaching style that will make this team a contender again, will Kevin be the guy down the stretch of games, or take this team on his back, or get in someone's face and tell him to step it up? Personally I don't see it. He is a nice player, but I don't see him leading this team, and now I think his contract is not tradeable anytime soon.

2. Are the young players going to develop like we hope they can? I know, I know, they need time and it is early in the two recent draft picks careers. But this has to be a concern simply because there aren't going to be a lot of players on this team after this year. So are the Kings going to build in the draft or get role players in free agency. The last part scares the hell out of me, simply because we may have to overpay to get an average player.

3. A Chris Webber trade and Vlade Divac signing simply aren't out there. The only player that we would be able to trade to get something of a "stud" or player with potential back is Kevin Martin. But, his salary increases every year and reaches close to $13million by the end. Also, he has been injury prone the last couple of years, would a team really want to trade their valued players for an injury prone, $13million a year player?

4. The free agent crop after this year and next year, to put it bluntly, is crap. First of all, Lebron, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade aren't coming here. So what does that leave? Either star players who will be over 30, but will still command the big bucks and average players. If we sign the over 30 crowd, then we will be right back where we are now. If we sign the average players, who on this team is going to be the leader?

So here is what is known:

Kevin Martin, signed thru 12/13, SG (nice player, in the second tier of "stars" in the league, but may be overpaid)
Nocioni, signed thru 11/12 (team option in 12/13), SF (nice role player, could serve a purpose for this team
Beno, signed thru 11/12 (player option 12/13), PG (probably wouldn't have signed him this year, if he played like this last year, but we have him and I am holding out hope that he gets it together, I think better off of the bench to give a spark)
Spencer, signed thru 9/10 (team option 10/11), C (I think we are all high on Spencer. He may not be Vlade or Brad, but I see a nice future for him and want him to stick around and at the minumum be an energy guy and continue to grow)
Francisco, signed thru 12/13 (team option 13/14) SF (I think we all understand that with Cisco, you get inconsistency. His contract I think is very tradeable and there are teams who could use him. I don't see him being a piece to championship puzzle, but you never know. At the very least he could complete a trade at a later date).
Jason Thompson, signed thru 09/10 (with team options in 10/11 and 11/12 with qualifying offer in 12/13) PF (Jason is going to be around for a while. This could be "The Guy" in the future, which is why I think Kevin is expendable. This is going to be your low-post creator who is going to fill the stat sheet. His contract is structured nicely and I don't see him going anywhere soon.)
Cedric "The Entertainer" Simmons, Free Agent after this year , PF(could be a nice bench guy, wouldn't be too disappointed if he got a little raise in pay and stuck around to fill a role).
Donte "The Enigma" Greene, signed thru 09/10 (with team options for 10/11 and 11/12) SF (the good news is he is cheap for the years to come and he has got potential up the ass. I could see him being a late bloomer towards the end of his contract, so luckily the decision with him won't be until later)

Well there you have it. According the HoopsHype, these are the salaries that are committed for the next couple of years. I think most of the players that were traded for recently will be gone after this year, except of course for Nocioni who is signed. Simmons is a flip of the coin. So who do we get to fill in the missing championship pieces?

Well, we have two first rounders this year (at worst we should get a top three pick this year and then in another post somone mentioned we get Houston's first round pick as well, so that will be somewhere between 15 and 20 probably). The Houston pick may be used as trade bait, but don't be suprised if GP keeps that one and trades the lottery pick position. This is for two reasons, 1) money (the Kings are pretty much broke) and 2) GP never drafts anyone who the "experts" think he will draft. He probably has his eye on a lesser-know player that he knows he can get later in the draft and this lottery pick could be worth a lot to another team. Also, chances are very good the Kings will be in the position after next year, minus the extra first rounder.

So now to free agents. The class of 09/10 and 10/11 is pretty much crap. The superstars aren't coming here. Now, depending on who is drafted this and next year, the two players that I have my eye on are Randy Foye and Andrea Bargnani.

Randy is having a nice year. He has size for a PG. And he will be right at his prime in 2010 when he is a free agent. It looks like he is restricted.

Bargnani is a young 7 footer that is also restricted in 2010. He is having a real nice year and will also be in his prime in 2010. If the Kings let either Thompson or Hawes go, he would be a nice replacement.

Again, these are the two that I see will be worth any substantial money that would be thrown out there.

So, to wrap up this little post, the Kings are in a very precarious position. The next year or two is going to set this team up for the 10 years following. I think this period will also tell us if GP has lost his effectiveness as a GM and whether the organization needs to go in a different direction.

So after you have read my War and Peace novel above, I have to admit that this year I haven't been able to watch a ton of basketball and some of my findings and comments are based on a combination of the little bit of basketball I have seen, my fandom running wild, my edu-ma-cation process of basketball (thanks to pookey, section, ziller and the crew) and a lot of reaching.

Now for my latest conspiracy theory. Today the NBA is releasing its findings for a new Arena in the Cal-Expo area. Here is my latest conspiracy: If the Kings get the first pick, the the NBA, the City Council and State of Californi have reached an agreement and an arena is built and the Kings stay in Sacramento. If they don't get the #1 pick, then Ziller may have to start a River Cats blog. A stretch maybe, but not totally out of the realm of possibility.

jersey retirements

Cynema the Band — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 15:07:22 -0000

so i was toiling around on sacbee.com today and saw the article of c-webb and vlade's jersey retirement and it got me thinking. as much as we loved what they did for this team, what did they really do to warrant a jersey retirement?

here is my thinking. other cities retire jerseys of players who led their team to championships and/or are hall of famers. their players also spent the majority of their careers with their team and provided consistent winning seasons and every year competed for a championship, whether they won or not, they were competing.

chris webber: remember he didn't want to come here. also, he was in the league for 15 years and only spent 5 1/2 years with the kings. yes, he led us to the western conference finals, but just once. not only that, but he wasn't the leader of those teams. everyone who really knew the team, would say that vlade was the leader. also, when the game was on the line, especially in the playoffs, he very rarely got the ball when it counted. now some would argue that the team was so balanced that the kings had many options to go to. but that furthers my point. he was just another player on a good team. remember the playoff series against the jazz, game 5, in utah. who got the ball on the last trip down? vlade. also, game 5 against the lakers? bibby. now don't think i don't appreciate webber. when he was in the league, he was a top 5 PF. but he was very predictable, his low-post move was the right hand jump hook. if his free-throw line jumper wasn't falling, he was very one-dimensional. and, he didn't have to be "the man" on those teams. j-will would take the last shot, vlade did, and later bibby. c-webb was a good player on a good team. we should honor him, but not with a jersey retirement.

vlade divac: everybody loves vlade. this one is more difficult to argue just because he was the heart and soul of those kings teams. but, he was a role player. yes, like i said before, he took the last shot in game 5 against the jazz, but he wasn't the consistent go-to guy. he set great screens for peja, and peja probably wouldn't have received the attention he did without vlade setting those screens, or feeding him those backdoor passes. but vlade never filled up the stat sheet. he was a 12-15 pt a game, 7-10 rebound guy. sometimes more (very seldom) and sometimes less. he was an average defender, the fact that he was 7ft and close to 300lbs allowed him to be an "immovable object". but, like webber, he never got us to the finals, let alone a championship. he won't get into the hall of fame. and like webber, he spent 5 of his 16 years in the league on the kings.

the bottom line is, and i think deep down all of us would agree, neither one really deserve their jersey's retired. yes they were good players, but not hall of famers. when other teams played the kings they didn't scheme around either one (i would give maybe webber, but again the kings were so deep that when webber had off games, somebody else was there to pick up the slack). so why retire their jerseys?

frankly, i think it is a PR thing. we certainly don't want to forget those years, but those years were a blip on the map. and frankly, those kings teams really only had 1-2, if you really stretch 3, years that they had a legitimate shot at the title. and if they would have won it all, maybe i feel different, but they didn't win and they weren't close. they never made the finals. yes they should have, but they didn't. also, the kings have now been down for several years, attendance is down, and excitement is down, that the PR department has to find a way to get people thinking about the kings again and the best way to do that was to re-live the "glory" days, which weren't that long ago.

they were good players, on a good team, in a good time for the kings. i am sorry to say, that is all.

The most over-used call in the league

Cynema the Band — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 15:19:24 -0000

The fact that the carry is seldom called, but frequently done, i can live with. The fact that the travel violation is seldom called, but frequently done, i can live with. Hell even the crappy charge call when a player has an open line, only to have another player run from the other side of the floor, get to a spot a split second before the driving player gets to the half-circle, and a charge is called and this is a good defensive play, i can stomach this (but this is a close second to what i am about to discuss). but the technical foul is the worst case of authority given to the officials.

watching the game last night to see bobby jackson get tossed, and quickly for that matter, because an official has an ego drives me insane. the fact that you need to know which officials you can talk to and which ones you can't talk to (cough, steve javie) drives home my point. i look at the NFL. this is a brutal sport where for the life of the player they have been taught to hurt the other player, and there is just as much arguing and posturing at the officials in that sport as their is in the NBA and they don't get called for a "technical foul". i mean really, what the hell is a technical foul anyway?

the NBA has let the players run this league for so long that this is their way to keep them in line. really? why is it you rarely see kobe get a technical, and he talks to the officials every trip down the court. the only comparison i can think of for a technical foul is the police officers who need to fill their ticket quota. oh no the city needs more money, go out and write more tickets for parking violations or someone rolling through a stop sign, eventhough there is nobody around a 10mile radius of this stop sign and he/she is making a right hand turn. the NBA seems to use the technical foul to supplement their income.

david stern: ok, attendence is down, tv viewership is down, we need to find a way to bring in more money. any suggestions?

"yes" man: well sir, we could take some authority out of the hands of the officials, actually play basketball the way it is suppose to be played by letting the players decide the outcome of the game. this will allow smaller markets to actually compete and bring the fan base back to places like sacramento, memphis, minnesota and charlotte.

david stern: ok, your fired. no, what i want to do to bring in more money is have the officials call more technical fouls to "troublesome" players like rasheed wallace and smaller, lesser-known players so we can pay for the pension plans of duane causewell, lionel simmons, steve kerr, tom tolbert and other guys who have probably found other careers, but we are contractually obligated to give them some money for being average players who stayed in the league the minimum amount of time to get a pension for the rest of their lives. yes, that is what i want to do. someone get me javie on the phone.

the fact that the clippers were able to get marcus camby out of denver for the option to switch second round picks and a bag of doritos simply because the NBA would profit from two LA teams being successful is pitiful.

back to my original point, sorry for the tangent. the technical foul is the most useless authority given to officials. has it actually stopped them from arguing? has it given me the opportunity to actually know more officials names than i normally should? has it been used evenly? when was the last time you saw kobe, shaq, lebron, dwayne wade or any other "superstar" been tossed because they received a 2nd technical?

my solution, get rid of the technical foul. put a fourth official on the floor so you can cover the corners of the halfcourt. make the game more like the college game and let the players actually be able to play defense and be agressive. if you want to curb the arguing, then really penalize the player or the team, like you have just cost your team 10 pts for your actions. or suspend the player for 1 or 2 games.

as much as david stern has been a decent commissioner (basically he is the vince mcmahon of the NBA because he took a once laughed at sport and made it into a very profitable business by piggy-backing on one player, MJ, much like vince did hulk hogan) he has let the players association get way too powerful. their guaranteed contracts, like baseball, have destroyed the sport. the star players get the star treatment and everyone else is treated differently. hence the technical foul.

"how dare you mr. average player argue my call your outta here. ok kobe, yes i understand, i missed that call. yes i will call it next time. yes sir i understand you make more than i do. yes, i know my mom is a whore. mr. bryant, could you hold for one second, sheldon williams you are out of here. ok, sorry mr. bryant. yes i will make sure it doesn't happen again' - Steve Javie

what a business...er, i mean sport.

Our Rookies

Cynema the Band — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 23:04:26 -0000

So I am all of the way out here in Sacramento, CA and have only been able to watch a hand full of games, due to various reasons. First they aren't on over here very much (not like the Montana years where we got all 16 games or the early 2000s when we scored 150 points a game and they were fun to watch). All I remember hearing after the draft was KC had a great draft. I think most "experts" gave them an "A" for their picks.

So based on the fact that I haven't been able to watch much, I am relying on the Pride to give me your opinions. We had a couple of high profile first round picks in Dorsey and Albert. How have they turned out? Also, there was a lot of excitement over Charles, what do you think now?

Granted we have two games left, but really, I won't expect them to turn into pro bowlers in the last two games. Have they grown in their first year? The book is essentially still out, but is Dorsey the new Ryan Sims?

We are suppose to be young and inexperienced, but have any of you seen anything in our young guys to be excited about?

Lincecum has a roommate?

Cynema the Band — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 23:30:11 -0000

"Lincecum said he was on his couch watching NFL highlights with his roommate when he got the news."

the above is from MSN's sports link.

ok, what the hell is the NL Cy Young Award winner doing with a roommate? can we get this guy a fat contract now so he can stop eating Top Ramen, Triskets and drinking orange juice out of the little packages with the bendy straws? does he have the beat up couch, lava lamp and milk crates too? i mean i got the hole superbad scene in my head when the Unibomber opens the door and there is a layer of pot smoke and Timmy eating holding a bag of Doritos while his roommate is on the couch playing Grand Theft Auto or Guitar Hero.

i mean i love Timmy as much as anyone, but unless he's got the Three's Company thing working, i am a little concerned. maybe Zito can let one of his hottie girlfriends move in with Timmy and kick McLovin to the curb.

The Case for Fred Lewis

Cynema the Band — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 22:04:28 -0000

I personally believe the Giants should keep Fred Lewis and here is why. True he may not be the best outfielder in the game, but he should get better with some work. For years we have all screamed that this team has never had any speed, and Fred is fast. He has some pop in his bat (9hrs, which on this team is like 30 right now). Now most people want 30+ from the corner outfielders, but I give you Adam Dunn as an example, low .200s for average and high strikeouts per AB. Fred makes contact. He steals bags at a high rate (20 for 27). He has 6 errors with 9 outfield assists, leads the team in that category. One know I will give is that he is 27. A lot older for a first time full-time player, but that is how the Giants have always done it, see Aurilia and Feliz. I think he will be a Randy Winn-type player (another underappreciated Giant right now, that may be a post for later). Look every team needs guys like these. You aren't going to have all-stars at every position and you need guys who will steal a base, track down a ball in the gap, bunt for a single and even take you out of the yard if you make a mistake. Fred is that guy. Randy Winn is that guy too. These guys get overlooked because there isn't that one superstar on this team to carry the Giants through the tough stretches.

I am writing this because I have seen a few posts and/or comments wanting to trade him and I always ask myself "trade him for what?" generally you are going to get like for like, so let's say we get prospects. They will probably be Fred's equivalent, except no major league experience. Fred now has a year under his belt. The other thing that frustrates me is I see and hear a lot of fans saying we don't have any homegrown talent. But as soon as one gets to the Bigs we want to trade him. Looking at the non-pitching talent that has been brought up in the last few years, there is a reason Fred has been the only one to stick. Ortmeir has flamed, Schierholtz isn't ready and may never be, Velez has been surpassed a few times since he has been up, etc., etc., etc.

The other case is, in all probability Randy Winn isn't coming back next year, if he makes it through August of this year. Fred could move over to right-field and you can put your big bat in left. I would rather have speed to cover triples alley in right than a big guy over there. Plus the Phone Booth's right field is one of the toughest in baseball and I wouldn't want a big-bat type of guy, who probably wouldn't be good in the field, that combo is rare and the Giants ain't getting one anytime soon. So you move Fred to right, he will make his mistakes, but will learn, you sign a big-bat for left and you have somewhat solved your power problems.

So McCoven I ask you, is my logic right? Would you do something differently? If you would trade Lewis, to who and for what (in this case prospects don't count because they are unproven)? Names in the trade would be good and you reasoning.

I would like this to be a semi-serious discussion please.

The Best Trade is the One Not Done

Cynema the Band — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 22:49:19 -0000

there were rumors that the kings and mavs were talking about and artest deal. i was pretty much indifferent with that trade. then i saw this:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3515172

now i am happy that GP didn't pull the trigger. whether the mavs would do the deal of not doesn't matter. basically we would be trading artesf for...well uh, artest. he headcase for a basketcase. pick your poison.

"In Petrie I Trust"

Glenn Dorsey

Cynema the Band — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:46:11 -0000

I apologize if this has already been discussed, but has he signed yet? If not, what is the status? I haven't heard anything. I have searched a few sites and can't find anything.

Also, what about the rest of the picks, what is their status?

And just for fun, any predictions on Dorsey's output this year.

I say he has a Mario Williams-type first year. He will get a few sacks early, then the league will throw some things at him to see if he adjusts. He'll struggle for a few weeks, but will finish with 8.5 sacks.