SB Nation User Blog: dt3

Cooley's acting debut

dt3 — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:55:23 -0000

Cooley's acting debut

The long awaited...
The much anticipated...
acting debut of...

TANNER cooley

Pleased to present a shaky knee joint, the Undead World Order versus the Main Event Mafia.

"Not Good" Rod Hood + Edge get Cut

dt3 — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 23:18:05 -0000

"Not Good" Rod Hood + Edge get Cut

Dont get me wrong... I was a Rod Hood fan when he was with the team but my buddy coined the nickname a while ago and it has just stuck. Either way I am surprised to see the move, thought he was playing well for them out there. I guess DRC's emergence changed alot of things for them.

Am I the only one that would like to see both of them in Philly (especially if Sheldon forces his way out and MachoMan is moved to safety)??

dt3 mock draft

dt3 — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:57:49 -0000

This is an older mock I did (before the cutler trade and drug test fiasco aka pissgate) in the first week of March. I know there are some players who (surprisingly) didnt appear (Wells, Oher) I just got on a roll and afterwards couldnt find a spot where they made more sense then the original pick. Definetely was going for more of a fun read then something I would consider super realistic.

Should be finishing up my next one later this week so keep an eye out for that.

1) Detroit - Aaron Curry - LB/Wake Forest -- Detroit starts negotiations solely to try and push the hand of Stafford. After seeing how much less the #1 player on their board wants then a QB who hasnt proven much they shock the league and in my opinion make the right move.

2) StLouis - Jason Smith - OT/Baylor -- Rams FO is caught off-guard by the Lions move and take a hard look at Matt but by this point they have already fallen in love with Smith (and burned bridges with Oralndo Pace).

3) KC - Eugene Monroe - OT/Virginia -- Monroe/Albert become fixtures in KC like Thomas/Runyan were here

4) Seattle - BJ Raji - DT/BostonCollege --

5) Cleveland - Brian Orakpo - OLB/Texas -- Cleveland goes with Orakpo over Brown/Maybin hoping they found the next terrell suggs to play in their 3/4 system.

6) Cincinnati - Andre Smith - OT/Bama --

7) Oakland - Jeremy Maclin - WR/Missouri -- Me Al Davis. Me like player run fast.

8) Jacksonville - Michael Crabtree - WR/TexTech -- In near record time a shocked (and enthusiastic) jacksonville FO makes the pick that ends their bad luck streak with WRs

9) Green Bay - Malcolm Jenkins - CB/OSU -- For some reason the Packers are supposedly not sold on Atarti Bigby. The Packers draft Jenkins hoping to play him at FS, trade Bigby later in the day for a 3rd round pick, and fall asleep crying, trying to figure out what to do with thousands of Raji jerseys they jumped the gun on.

10) SanFran - Mark Sanchez - QB/USC -- The story of the draft is not Sanchez going first, its the phone cam footage of Stafford and his agent going to blows over the agent not taking Detroits final offer.

11) Buffalo - Brandon Pettigrew - TE/OSU -- Who was it that Pettigrew kept getting compared to?? Oh S....

12) Denver - Vontae Davis - CB/Illinois -- Who cares about Vontae? The real story is his brother being traded to the Eagles for a midround draft pick.

13) Washington - Michael Johnson - DE/GeorgiaTech -- Mike Mamula and Vernon Gholston's **** kid finds a home in Washington. Washington fans miss the good ol days of Jason Taylor for years.

14) NewOrleans - Everette Brown - DE/FSU -- Beanie Wells is left trying to back out of a deposit for a new house in the Garden District when the Saints back out of there guarantee and make a move acquiring LT in the days leading up to the draft. Is Brown big enough to play DE in the 4-3?? The saints are so desperate for a pass rush they are forced to find out.

15) Houston - Tyson Jackson - DE/LSU -- Free Safety? Strong Safety?? Has anyone seen a Fing safety?? No... give us Jackson.

16) SanDiego - Knowshon Moreno - RB/Georgia -- Moreno/Sproles... Batman and Robin leads the team further than LT ever has.

17) NYJ - Matt Stafford - QB/Georgia -- 16 teams know they made the right decision 5 years later.

18) Chicago - Hakeem Nicks -- WR/UNC --

19) Tampa - Josh Freeman - QB/KansasState --- Tampa has been burning up the phone lines since the 8th pick but unfortunately you cant trade cap space and end up stuck at 19. They get the man they wanted but still are left wondering what could have been.

20) Detroit - James Lauranitis - LB/OSU -- Steal of the draft so far or another name on the long list of failure?

21) Philly TRADE NEW ENGLAND - rey maualuga - LB/USC -- cornerstone.

22) Minnesota - Darius Butler - CB/Connecticut --

23) NewEngland - Brian Cushing - LB/USC -- New England reunites college teammates Rey + Brian and puts together the scariest bunch of LBs in NFL. If Calvin Johnson is megatron these 4 (thomas, mayo, rey, cushing) combine to form devastator.

24) Atlanta - Connor Barwin - LB/Cinn -- Can this athletic freak pick up where Keith Brooking left off??

25) Miami - Aaron Maybin - OLB/PSU -- Maybin costs himself 20 spots (and a couple bucks) by under performing at the combine.

26) Baltimore - Clay Matthews Jr -- OLB/USC -- Clay wanted to play for the same team as his dad and gets his wish... kinda. Newsome thinks long and hard about alphonso smith but instead goes with Ravens LB superstar #127. Baltimore ends up trading Terrell Suggs later in the day.

27) Indy - Peria Jerry - DT/Ole Miss -- After lots of arguing over going with a young WR (Gonzo is great but he is a 3) the colts end up with the predictable choice.

28) Philly - Percy Harvin - WR/Florida -- Houshmandwho??

29) NYG - Derrius Heyward Bey - WR/Maryland - track star in a football players body... I want to believe I just cant do it.

30) Tenn - Alphonso Smith - CB/Wake Forest -- Smith and Finnegan make an undersized combo but they quickly form one of the top combos in the league.

31) Arizona - LeSean McCoy - RB/Pitt -- Arizona thinks Wells is the better back but think McCoy is the better compliment to Hightower

32) Pitt - Max Unger - C/Oregon - Alex Mack? Max Unger?? Alex Mack??? Max Unger!!
------------------------------

34) Philadelphia - Alex Mack - C/Cal -- Herremans, Jackson/MJG, Mack, Andrews, Andrews... (Pace, Herremans, Mack, Andrews, Andrews???)

47) Philadelphia - Rashad Jennings - RB/Liberty -- or a TightEnd
53) Philadelphia - William Moore - S/Mizzou -- Still cant decide between Delmas and Moore. Ask me in a week and this pick may change.

The one player who could make help the Wiz turn the corner is...

dt3 — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:23:51 -0000

The one player who could make help the Wiz turn the corner is...

What do you guys think?? We have to keep it realistic (no lebrons, dwight howards, etc etc) so who is the one role player that the wiz could realistically add that you think would put the wizards over the top. Whether you think its Tyson Chandler/Udonis Haslem type and their ability to get those tough rebounds or a Bruce Bowen type we can use to man up on the EC's elite swingmen (lebron, PP, wade) there has to be that one guy out there you have always wished to see at the phone booth.

I havent seen alot of him in Minnesota this year (and I apparently havent missed much) but I have always thought that Mike Miller could do wonders for this team. When Gil has the ball his outside shooting could be night/day difference over anyone else we have had on the roster. When Gil doesnt have the ball his ball handling/passing/creativity could help equalize some of what we lack with Gilbert at PG. Either way I think this team needs to bring someone in that can get others involved either when we are missing Gil or when he inevitably goes cold. (Could we already have that player in Javaris Crittenton)

The worst off season in NBA History

dt3 — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 21:11:00 -0000

Some are going to say this topic is worded too strongly, others are going to say the whole idea is just ludicrous. 3 years from now when this team has missed the playoffs for a third straight year fans will finally be able to look back and see how quickly Ernie Grunfeld went from Front Office genius to the man who ran a once promising young team into the ground.

The problem is its not 100% Grunfeld's fault. The problems run much deeper than just him. These problems run all the way back to Jordan/Kwame, to big Wes, to the curse of les bullez. All of the people who let this team become the perrenial loser the Washington Wizards/Bullets were throughout the 80s/90s need to share in the blame for this disaster.

Grunfeld put together a team that was young, exciting, and had the potential to grow into a real contender. Grunfeld's #1 priority should have been taking this team to the next level, instead his goal was to keep it medium, keep going after that low seed playoff bid and take as few risks as possible. If Grunfeld had swung for the fences would we be better off now? Could we possibly be any worse?? Either way, if we would have went down we would have at least went down swinging.

As soon as the trading deadline passed and Jamison was still on the roster we all should have foreseen this coming. How could a GM that is known for wheeling and dealing let an asset like a 16 mill expiring contract slip by without capitalizing?? Pau Gasol was traded for Kwame Brown's expiring and 2x 1st round picks... you dont think Memphis would have rather taken Jamison?? Imagine a move that not only got us the big man we needed to pair up with Gil but also the point forward to play scottie (mike miller) to Gil's MJ. Rather than making the type of moves that got EG to where he was today he was handcuffed. Handcuffed by the failures of past regimes and the fear of returning to the cellar.

How can you justify giving a solely offensive player that could barely be considered a top 10 guard, never the less a top 10 player, a maximum deal (it WAS a max deal, we will get more into that later). We gave Gil a king's ransom and you think that would be enough. But no if we want to have the honor of overpaying him we also have to overpay his buddy. Another defensive liability that would be LUCKY to get 50% of his contract if he hit the open market again this year. On top of overpaying for Gil, overpaying for AJ, Ernie got strong armed into keeping a lame duck coach, Eddie Jordan, around for another ~~year~~ 16 games.

Unfortunately they dont seem to have learned anything from these past mistakes either. We have already thrown away one season and we plan on throwing away the first half of next season trying to reacclimate Gil into the rotation and (hopefully) learning the system of a new head coach. If this team was truly dedicated to winning they would have brought Avery Johnson in the second EJ was shown the door. Give him 3/4 of a season to whip this team into shape and install a whole new defensive philosophy. By the time Gil is ready to return next year he would have no choice but to fall in line. Even if we do bring in a defensive minded coach in the off season he is going to have a much tougher challenge getting this team to buy in. When our younger players (ie nick young, javaris) are getting their ass beat in training camp and they look over and see the 100 million dollar man (gil) not buying in do you think they are going to?? No chance.

So what do we do now?? Do we dare stand up against Gilbert and tell him he isnt playing this Saturday (or any other point for the rest of the year)?? Do we (once again) give into his demands and risk going from 25% in the lottery to 8% (3 wins brings us from first to fifth)? Even if we do keep him on the bench and then beat the odds and win the lottery our "prize" is going to be a power forward who I expect to measure in at 6'8" or below. All these people who think Blake Griffin is some cant miss prospect are kidding themselves. Dont get me wrong I think he is a quality player but he is no Tim Duncan or Dwight Howard. Does anyone think a stronger David Lee is the difference right now between us and the Celtics, Cavs, or Magic?? How do we justify paying Jamison 12-13.5-15 million a year and being our 2nd/3rd man off the bench.

My hope (and if I havent lost you yet this is where I probably do) is that we dont win the lottery. We get the 2nd, maybe 3rd, pick and some major progress is made in regards to the contract buyout of a certain spanish heart-throb. With Gil running the point of this team we will never get any further than his hot/cold streaks brings us. With Rubio at the 1 we can quickly turn the core of the team around from Gil, Caron, AJ to Gil, Rubio, McGee. I honestly believe (with the right system) McGee/Rubio could turn into the next Amare/Nash. Rubio is such a perfect fit because not just any PG could fit into this puzzle. We need a PG with Rubio's size/length so he can match up on the 2 and let Gil stick with guarding the 1. Until we bring in a player that can get other players involved this team is going to live and die on Gil's jumpshot. As wet as it may be we all know it can only get us so far.

-----------------------------------------

Did you know??

Going on the assumption that Gilbert will play in 4 games this year he will earn 1.6 million dollars per game over the 07/08 and 08/09 seasons. What we will pay Gilbert for 2 games would be nearly enough to pay Roger Mason's salary for the entire year.

EliteXC Announcing team... gotsta go

dt3 — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 19:07:55 -0000

I mean really... can we please have someone do something about this? It was nice to have Ken Shamrock be able to throw that little jab towards Ken in the opening moments but the rest of the show was painful. I rewound the DVR 3x time that night; once for kimbo's KO, once for arlovski's KO, and then once more to make sure i heard that idiot Ranallo correctly when he proclaimed that "Arlovski was dominating fighters like CSI was dominating the ratings".

We will ignore the factual discrepancies with that statement and solely concentrate on the cheeziness factor. I think every true MMA fan was quickly brought back to earth after hearing that statement. I know I held my head low as "Christmas time is here" softly started playing in the background (arrested development; come on, anybody?). That was the point I knew mma and national network television coverage just was not for me. When I later saw the show was beaten by America's Most Wanted I knew the same could be said for John+Jane Sixpak and the rest of the mouthbreathers out there that own the mythical creation known as a neilsen box.

But back to the topic at hand... the nightmare that is cbs/eliteXC's announcing crew. They desperately need someone with a little edge (say Bill Goldberg or any other WCW personality, i dare you), the entire crew just comes off as being too prim and polished for an MMA event, especially the type of MMA they are trying to promote. You have a polo match, maybe the world croquet championships this is the team that would be perfect for it. Got an MMA match? I want somebody that feels like one of the guys. Somebody I feel like I can sit down and drink a beer after the program finishes up. Why do I have a feeling an appletini is the beverage of choice for this crew once the cameras turn off??

I think one thing that really helped the UFC take off (like him or not) was Joe Rogan. A famaliar face/voice that not only your average joe could relate to but also an announcer (who more times than not) knew what the hell he was talking about. I understand no one wanted to rain on Seth's parade but did you hear anyone mention the blow to the back of the head that put the nail in kimbo's coffin?? Maybe they didnt think they could bring that up and ignore the spectacle $kala was making of himself in the background (blocking hulk hogan's view of the action none the less). Either way I think it was way too big of a point to get no mention at all.

So in closing I would like to present my dream team for announcing eliteXC's next rating disaster Kimbo vs Gina... Luke Thomas (replacing Mauro), Jay Glazer (replacing johnson), with Dave Attell doing the ring side reporting, and Steven Wright thrown in there just for the freakshow factor (eliteXC's specialty).

===========================

Thats the guy who is supposed to be introducing MMA to America's non-ppv television audiences?? Are you sure?? I thought that was the guy who was running for comptroller for the city of Agrestic.

We get the point... ESPN no likey MMA

dt3 — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:39:36 -0000

"When is Carson Daly going to get a clue?? TRL sucks!! No one wants to see this Brittney Spears, Christina Aguilera garbage. The streets want to see that new Dead Pres joint. Where's the new MosDef/Talib Kweli video??"

- That annoying underground hiphop dude who lived down the hall from you in college that would never shut up about how/why underground hiphop should be the next big thing

Is there really any difference here between the 2 situations?? A large network that has a proven formula for success is not going to bend over backwards to bring in a new subset that while it may bring in a small community of fans, it very well could ostracize just as many (if not more). So short of some major marketing miracle the next sportscenter you see will not have an update on the ShoXC event and can anyone really blame them?

MMA is a sport that has always lived by the words "If you dont like it, change the channel". Its a sport, organized or not, that is based on violence and no matter how much you or I love it, MMA is not cut out for everyone. As big as this sport has gotten I would say its still a 50/50 split between people who would look forward to seeing MMA highlights and people who are going to change the channel out of fear for what they are going to see. As boring as royals/orioles highlights are from a 2-0, 3 hit snoozer its not going to make someone actively get up and search for new (less bloody) programming.

ESPN has, in my opinion rightfully, been slow to accept a sport that at this point still hasnt even proven it can succeed on network TV. If I was an executive at ESPN I would not be in a huge rush to relocate a team of new analysts from their current homes to Bristol, Conneticut. Does anyone think it is a coincidence the one legit commentator they have, Kenny Florian, is based out of nearby Boston, Massachutes? Face it, MMA Live is a perfect show for the internet. I dont know any MMA fan that isnt internet saavy and has a problem/issue with watching a news program on their laptop. It also is much more accessible there then being buried in ESPNs schedule playing thursdays at 330PM and Tuesdays at 2AM.

The newest program to come under attack (and the basis of my writing this article) is everyones after work favorite, PTI. Admonishing them that they should be ashamed of the poor, remedial interview job they did with Kimbo Slice. Remember... it is Tony who should be ashamed, not Kimbo, the ambassadorof the sport, who could not get through a 5 minute interview without having to be censored 3 times. Tony came at Kimbo like any neophite to the sport would; asking about his image, his name, his newfound celebrity. If you expected Tony (or Mike, or Dan) to come at Kimbo with questions about how he was planning on defending shamrocks heel hook that is your fault, not theirs.

PTI, a program that is undoubtedly based on sports, is an entertainment program just as much as anything else. Its amusing to watch two older sports reporters bicker back and forth about the days topics (normally limited to 30 second exchanges). Saying that Kornheiser and the rest of the crew should be well versed on Slice already is foolish. How/where should they have gotten this info? Can you picture Tony going online to try and find a street fight of kimbo versus someone known as "afro puff" (anyone who is a fan of tony and knows about his fear of technology will find that extra amusing). (Dont want to get off topic about tony and PTI but...) Can you picture the late, great Dick Schaap seeing any relevance to what he does in a replay of the kimbo/tank abbott fiasco??

ESPN does not/will not give us the up to date MMA news that many of us want. Attacking them each and every time they miss a story some of us view as newsworthy isnt going to do any of us any good. If half the energy that is used towards attacking ESPN could be redirected into new projects (blogs, our own video podcasts) we would all be that much better off. I leave you with a (condensed) list of questions for those who missed the video and a very interesting quote showing that some of us should probably worry more about educating those in their own house rather than trying to belittle the worldwide leader in sports.

how important is it for you to beat shamrock - Tony Kornheiser

did your aura take a hit for having problems with thompson - Dan Lebetard (BAM!)

you have rose to stardom quickly, do you think of yourself as a celebrity - tk

how much does your look/image have to do with your rise to stardom - dl

jokes about beard, how did you get the name kimbo - tk

is there anything kimbo is afraid of - dl

did you hit blaine as hard as you could - dl

did you think baout hitting blaine in the face - tk

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Who is the smelliest fighter you have ever faced"

-JP Flaim of the (Sports) Junkies questioning quiton "rampage" jackson

106.7wjfk (the same station where chad and luke broadcast)

Now thats something to be fucking embarassed over