SB Nation User Blog: Stop-n-Pop

Great Off-Season Performances: The Dylan Edition

Stop-n-Pop — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:56:52 -0000

I'm not that big of a fan of Dylan's early surrealism but I do have to say that the man has hit a late-career stride as a wandering Americana minstrel blues song-and-dance man and it's just about impossible not to enjoy. I dare you to look over the past decade of popular music and find a better album than Love and Theft or a more enjoyable one than Modern Times. Hell, even his collection of Mexican brothel tunes is worth a good listen.

This little ditty was recorded post Love and Theft and is included on his latest bootleg series collection. I hope you enjoy it.

Things will be slow here over the holiday weekend. I'll check in every now and then to see if there have been any major developments but we will return to our original programming on Monday with a post about the roster and possible rookie free agents (hint: Paul Harris and Lee Cummard) followed by a continuation of our Wayne Ellington post.

BTW: We kind of got behind with the pre-vacation madness today and were unable to put up a post about the Lynx's latest game, a loss to the lowly Sactown Monarchs. We'll make it up with a post about the future of the squad sometime next week. We hope to have much more Lynx content over the summer.

Enjoy the weekend and we'll be back full-time on Monday.

One more thing: With all of the interest readers of this site have had with Hedo-to-Portland and Rudy Fernandez, my over-the-weekend-fantasy-GM challenge to you is to figure out a deal that lands the Wolves this Portland small forward. When it comes to the Blazers, it's Batum or Bust.

UPDATE: Maybe not:

The Oregonian has learned that free agent forward Hedo Turkoglu has rejected an offer to sign with the Trail Blazers and has ended negotiations with the team.

He will leave town tomorrow morning.

Have the Blazers been Penn Slapped by Hedo? We shall see.

Ridiculous Upside runs down the Wolves' summer league roster

Stop-n-Pop — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:58:42 -0000

Ridiculous Upside runs down the Wolves' summer league roster

Good stuff from Ridiculous Upside. We're equally excited to see Ben Woodside as well as Paul Harris and Steven Hill. Short of landing on the Wolves' active roster, we hope all three guys at least get a shot with the Skyforce.

Don Seeholzer of the PiPress takes one on the chin

Stop-n-Pop — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:52:25 -0000

Don Seeholzer of the PiPress takes one on the chin

Someone better hold another blogger ethics panel. H/T to Poor Dick for the link.

Regarding Little Birdies

Stop-n-Pop — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:27:12 -0000

No doubt that you have seen the Charlie Walters report about Ricky Rubio and two more years in Spain:

The Minnesota Timberwolves' top draft pick, Ricky Rubio, 18, will remain in Spain to play for his DKV Joventut basketball team for the remaining two years of his contract rather than try to move to the NBA this season, El Periodico reported today.

The Barcelona newspaper also says Rubio, who was paid $97,000 last season, plans to withdraw his contract lawsuit against DKV Joventut.

Two things: First of all, Joventut has repeatedly said that they would not negotiate with Rubio when a law suit is hanging over their head. If anything, this news furthers the dialog between Rubio and his team. Second, nothing in this report has been said on record. I know that this is how little birdies operate but we really have nothing new to go on until paperwork is filed or until we receive an official statement from Rubio and/or his agent.

Folks, I will repeat what I have said numerous times in the comments section: This is a simple math problem. The buyout needs to be paid back and there are questions over the amount and the duration in which it can be paid out. That's the issue right now. How can the Rubios negotiate a lower price or a more favorable payment plan that would allow Ricky to play in the NBA? That's the issue. This has nothing to do with Ricky coming over in 2 years and everything to do with the Rubios dropping the suit that was standing in the way of them further negotiating with Joventut. It baffles me to no end that this simple issue cannot be grasped by local and national media. Ricky is dealing with his very own domestic situation in Spain. Imagine Joe Mauer leaving the Twins for the Yanks. That's part of what is happening in Barcelona with Rubio.

Relax. It's a fluid situation and there will be more twists and turns. Ultimately, the Wolves give Rubio a solid place to land and things will work out for the best. The Wolves hold the leverage here and they simply have to be resolute and patient.

Sincerely,

Pangloss

UPDATE: Mac of the MIAC makes an excellent point in the comments:

Given that DKV Joventut is deeply in debt, and given that you wanted to reduce your buyout, what do you think your best strategy is? Easy. Tell them that you are willing to play out the remainder of your contract, ensuring they get $0.

That’s really the only play, and I think it will work to at least reduce it to something palitable. Telling DKV Joventut that you are going to play for the TWolves or Real Madrid only strengthens DKV Joventut’s bargaining power.

Yes, yes and more yes. This works on two levels. First of all, Joventut said they wouldn't negotiate with Rubio when he was suing them. Second, it removes Joventut's ability to collect on their debt. If you combine the two, it really makes you wonder what Joventut must have thought about their chances in court if they were willing to ask Rubio to drop the suit. It also makes you wonder why folks like the Bird Whisperer can't seem to see the forest through the trees. Here is a comment we wrote in the same thread:

The speculation is a bit much and there’s no sense in trying to make sense of each step of the dance between Rubio, Joventut and the Wolves because individually, one step could contradict the next. It’s something that will need to be taken as a whole and that requires patience and a preference for seeing the forest instead of the trees. This thing will be judged on two main things: Will Rubio end up in a Wolves uniform and will he be good? That’s it.

Rubio returning to Joventut is the worst possible thing that could happen for a team that sold his buyout to cover for its debt. Tap us on the shoulder when Rubio is in the NBA, either with the Wolves or another team. This thing cannot possibly be judged or absorbed until Rubio is in the NBA.

Howlin' T-Wolf

Stop-n-Pop — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:42:40 -0000

Howlin' T-Wolf

The Wolves finally have a True Hoop Network blog. Head on over to Howlin' T-Wolf to check out Patrick's excellent site.

The forgotten team

Stop-n-Pop — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:34:56 -0000

Hey, remember the Lynx? Things didn't look so good after Seimone Augustus went down with a season-ending knee injury. In their first two games after Augustus was hurt, the Lynx were outscored by 52 points. Ouch. In their 3rd game after the injury (on June 24th, the day before the NBA draft), Candice Wiggins and Nicky Anoskie stood up, took charge and led the team to a victory over the lowly New York Liberty. Surprisingly, the New York media broke from the Rubio-madness and made no requests for the Lynx to trade either Wiggins or Anoskie to their awful hometown squad for a sack of practice balls.

The following game was against a real team, the Diana Taurisi led Phoenix Mercury...i.e. the team that destroyed the Lynx in their first post-Augustus match. This time around the Lynx displayed a tenacity that was lacking in the first two, even three, contests after the injury. Coach Jen Gillom has handled the injury perfectly and she has her players playing hard and professionally. Check out what she had to say after the Mercury game:

"We are not broken," Gillom said, "and we wanted to prove that to that team. We may have had a bad night [in Phoenix]; we lost our best player. But we weren't broken."

Hell yes. How refreshing is it to see a Minnesota ball club make no excuses while facing its challenges straight on?

The Lynx followed up their victory over Phoenix with a win over the Atlanta Dream. Once again, Wiggins and Anosike led the way on both sides of the ball. This win returned the Lynx to first place in the Western Conference. While still awful, the Augustus injury is forcing this team to learn how to play more as a unit (before, they still had a bit of the annoying Don Zierden-installed habit of watching Augustus run around doing her thing) as well as giving Wiggins and Anosike, the team's two other young building blocks, a chance to mature. Hopefully, it will also mean that 1st round pick Renee Montgomery can continue to develop off the bench and, by the end of the season, turn into an effective point guard. If Montgomery can turn it on, and if Augustus can return to form, the Lynx are looking at a fantastic four-woman core that could compete in the league for a long, long time.

The Lynx's next game is tonight against Sacramento. If you are in town, you should come on down to the Target Center and check out the action. If you can't make the game, remember that the WNBA broadcasts all of its games on-line...for free....unlike the NBA, which hates its on-line fans.

Until later.

Someone emailed us saying that they saw Rubio in a Gillette commercial during the Jimmy Kimmel...

Stop-n-Pop — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:43:07 -0000

Someone emailed us saying that they saw Rubio in a Gillette commercial during the Jimmy Kimmel Show. Is this his first US ad? Derek Jeter, Tiger Woods...Ricky Rubio? That's some pretty hefty company. Rubio apparently has a history with the company.

Minnesota GM David Kahn plans to interview multiple candidates over the next month for his coaching...

Stop-n-Pop — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:50:58 -0000

Minnesota GM David Kahn plans to interview multiple candidates over the next month for his coaching vacancy, including a rising star on Nate McMillan’s staff in Portland: Monty Williams.

From Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo Sports. You can read more about Williams here, here (good BE interview from Ben), here, and here. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything with his thoughts on running a two point guard offense. The last link features an interview with Williams after a Blazers practice and before a Wolves game.

Great Off-Season Performances: Mandragora Tango

Stop-n-Pop — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:28:42 -0000

Minneapolis' own Mandragora Tango performing Danzarin. Please take a minute or two to head on over to the group's website where you can find all sorts of goodies like tango sheet music, free live mp3s, and a blog. If you like what you hear, you can see the group perform live every Sunday night at the Loring Pasta Bar in Dinkytown. If you play your cards right, you can have a good meal, some live tango music, and a dance or two before heading on over to the Varsity Theater for a show.

Speaking of the Varsity, one of our very favorites is performing there next Thursday night: Josh Ritter. This time around Josh will be touring with Joe Pug instead of the gravely-voiced, laughter-inducing hipster-poet wannabe metaphor machine from (I think) Duluth he had up there the last time he played the room. Be there or be square.

Discussion Topic: Racial Paternalism and College Sports

Stop-n-Pop — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:54:13 -0000

Long-time readers of this site know that I am not a fan of Duke, Bloomington Jefferson, and the NCAA. Duke is an upper-class, floor-slapping mechanism for Coach Copyright to score millions in corporate speaking fees and advertisements, Jefferson is the worst high school in America, and the NCAA is a modern purveyor of indentured servitude. (Have I ever mentioned that Hoopus is your home for hyperbole?)

Along with taking another Rubio break, let's focus on the NCAA and the NBA's 1 year college requirement. More below the fold.

What other organization in America uses free labor to make millions upon millions of dollars while keeping portions of its workforce from entering the open market? Today's discussion topic is the possibility of a 2 year minimum NCAA requirement for NBA rookies. It is likely that David Stern (and the NCAA) will push for this rule with the next CBA. Before we begin, I ask that our readers take a moment to read this article by Clay Travis from Fanhouse. Here are a few highlights:

Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal published an investigation that found just 26 major league baseball players and managers have college degrees. Twenty-six! That's out of a pool of a potential 1,042 players and managers. You want that in percentage terms, that's 2.5 percent. A staggeringly low percentage, even if you pull out all Latin American players (who don't have the same collegiate opportunities) from the equation. Yet, I defy you to find an article that utilizes this fact to make an argument that baseball players need better educations.

...

As if that weren't enough, given that basketball requires players be at least one year removed from high school and football requires three, neither of those leagues drafts an 18-year-old straight from high school. Baseball drafts hundreds every year. And no one utters a word of criticism about these kids forgoing their college education.

Why?

I think all we need to do is look at the racial make-up of the players in each of the four major league sports. Based on 2007 stats, 79 percent of NBA players and 65 percent of NFL players are black. The most recent numbers show that only 8 percent of baseball players are black and just 2 percent of hockey players are. Guess which sports allow 18-year-olds to come straight into the league?

A few questions: Should the NBA institute a 2 year rule for the NCAA? Is there a racial component to this rule? Why can't high schoolers enter the NBA? Is Travis making a fair argument? After all, the NBA and NFL use the NCAA as a feeder system while baseball, for the most part, does not. If the MLB used the NCAA as a minor league system would we see similar demographic ratios? Is there an on-court/on-the-field component to wanting these players to stay in school? Is that a valid legal argument? Is it a valid moral one? Is this an NBA problem or an NCAA one? Is it both?

Remember, keep it clean and keep it civil.

What say you?

We will resume our regular programing in the next post about Wayne Ellington and his shooting guard peers in the draft. We will also keep you up to date if any new Rubio-related news becomes available.

Until later.