Carmelo Anthony: The Decision

Well sports fans, unless you've been living under a rock for the last year, you know that the New York knickerbockers suck. I mean they reaaaally stink. So, I decided to write this blog post to Carmelo Anthony, their star (and virtually only) player. I present, Carmelo Anthony: The Decision.

Chicago Bulls - It's a big city and a good team. He wants a team to himself and hell get it; Derrick Rose hasn't played in 13 years. Check!

LA Lakers - The lights don't shine any brighter than in Los Angeles! Carmelo loves the LA lights but he and Kobe would literally be fighting on the court for the ball. Ok, maybe this is not a good idea after all.

Miami Heat - If LeBron leaves (which is highly doubtful), Melo would try to take his place....but he'd fail miserably! He's no LeBron!! And I feel like D-Wade and Chris Bosh would be like Mean Girls...you can't sit here!

Washington Wizards - He spent his childhood in Maryland so maybe he wants to come back home.  Add him with John Wall and Bradley Beal...this actually sounds like a pretty good team. All that being said, can LaLa and little Kiyan really fulfill their showbiz careers there? Prolly not.

Well ladies and gentleman, the time has come for Carmelo Anthony: The Decision. Carmelo will be taking his talents to............

John F. Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Hey, even they gotta better record than the Knicks. 

Farewell, My Beloved

Before Hedu Turkoglu. Before LeBron James, there was Grant Hill, the ORIGINAL point forward. Last week, Grant quietly retired from the NBA after 18 seasons. And officially broke my heart. 

Grant was the first basketball player I ever loved. He was a great player and a great man. While other girls had pictures of Paul McCartney or Elvis in their locker, I had a picture of Grant. After his first six seasons of his career in Detroit, Grant averaged 6.2 assists, 7.7 rebounds and 21.5 points.  His Detroit numbers are comparable to LeBron's career stats (6.9 assists, 7.3 rebounds, 27.6 points).  I'm tryna tell you, that boy was good!

He woulda been one of the greats if he hadn't been plagued with injuries. First ankle injuries, then a near deadly staph infection, then a hernia. But he still lasted 18 years in the league. To me, he'll always be Number One in my heart. 

Farewell, My Beloved Grant.

I took this picture while I was supposed to be watching my BFF graduate from Business School

LeBronathan James

I believe it's time to put all the speculation to rest.  I know you were waiting on me to weigh in on the LeBron/Kobe/Jordan comparisons and I'm finally ready.  LeBron James is arguably the greatest basketball player we've ever seen.  Here's why:

• Kobe and Jordan both had Hall of Famers in their supporting cast.  Shaq was the most dominant player in his prime and Scottie Pippen was easily the #2 player in basketball, after Jordan of course.  The only reason LeBron didn't win earlier in his career was because of his supporting cast.  His teammates were Boobie Gibson and DeLonte West -_-
• LeBron is a team player and usually looks to pass first, unlike the other two.  This guy gets triple doubles as often as a teenagers get pimples.  The last time Kobe got a triple double, it was a SportsCenter headline.
• He's the size of a power forward (think Karl Malone - look it up), but with the quickness of a point guard (think Rajon Rondo)
• LeBron is the youngest player to do EVERYTHING.  Youngest #1 overall pick, youngest at every thousand point milestone, youngest triple double, youngest to average 30 points...I could be here all day.  And remember, when Kobe came out of high school, he was trash his first year.
• And, just look at his stats: Career Assits ~ LeBron (6.9) Jordan (5.3) Kobe (4.7)  Triple Doubles ~ LeBron (35) Jordan (28) Kobe (18)

So do yall agree with me?

The problem with the WNBA

Do you know when the WNBA season began?  Prolly not.

Do you know the name of your local WNBA team?  Prolly not.

I'm a fan of basketball.  Period.  I am also the sister of a former high school basketball star, so ladies' sports was big in our family.  We've been ride or die with the WNBA since the very first season, 16 years ago.  However, in the last few years the WNBA has been on an amazing descent into oblivion and bankruptcy.  Lemme tell you a few problems with the WNBA:

1. The play: Now, while the WNBA doesn't have much dunking, it's strong on fundamentals.  But if you're a basketball fan, that shouldn't matter right?  I'll be the first to say it: people like dunking.  That's what makes Blake Griffin & Amare Stoudemire so popular; not their fundamentals but the flash.  But if basketball was just about the flash, we'd all be lining up to see the Harlem Globetrotters.  
2. Marketing: The WNBA season begins around Memorial Day.  Just as the NBA is entering into playoff season and professional basketball is winding down, there is more basketball on the horizon!  But does the WNBA market to avid basketball watchers? Nope.  They put their commercials on Lifetime in between a tampon commercial and another Rachel McAdams movie.  And the league doesn't know how to market them: are they NBA counterparts or sex symbols? They've tried both, both have failed.
3. The season: Well, the season is only 30 games, which amounts to like 3 months.  AND during Olympic years, the league shuts down for like 3 weeks since most of their stars are playing for an Olympic team.  What league you know that does that?  AND not to mention they play WNBA games on ESPN: The Ocho and not ABC or TNT like NBA games.
4. Lesbians: I don't mean this as disrespect to lesbians.  The problem with the WNBA is the lay-person believes the league and the games are only for lesbians.  Now, I applaud the WNBA for being LGBT-friendly; I think they're one of the only sports leagues that openly welcomes everyone.  But that doesn't mean that the WNBA isn't family-friendly as well.  

Well, I say all this to say 2 things: 1) More people, especially MEN, should start watching the WNBA.  If you're a fan of basketball, it shouldn't matter if the players have 2 X chromosomes or one. 2) WNBA, hire me!  I'll make everything better.  I promise! 

Top of the Summitt

We're huge basketball fans in my family.  One team we always root for is the University of Tennessee Women's Basketball Team.  Until about a week ago, the team was led by legendary Coach Pat Summitt.  She recently stepped down because of her battle with early-onset dementia.  Pat is a legend in our family not just because she is an amazing coach, but because she is an extraordinary woman.

Most people know Pat's coaching stats:

1,908 wins
8 NCAA championships
14 Olympians
1st women's basketball coach to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated
Made an appearance in the NCAA tournament every single year she's coached.
More Tennessee players have been drafted into the WNBA than from any other school.

Her players have a 100% graduation rate, which in the college sports world is unheard of.  (Take that Coach K.)  She's run a clean program with no major coaching violations.  She didn't buy any players a house to get them to come play for her, *cough* Pete Carroll.  She was intense on the court, but kept it classy and never threw a chair.  

Pat was not just a coach to her players, she was a surrogate mother.  When players came to Tennessee, they didn't just go to college, they joined a family.  She's single-handedly put women's basketball on the map so it's hard to describe in a few sentences what Pat Summitt has meant to her players and to college sports.  In this day and age, when coaches are in the news for fiscal impropriety, adultery, and cheating, it's refreshing to know that there are still people like Pat out there.  To Pat, I wish you a long, healthy, prosperous life.  Thank you for the impact you made on basketball and on young women everywhere.

I heart Jeremy Lin

As I'm sure you've all heard by now, there is a player for the New York Knicks who is taking the basketball world by storm. No not Carmelo Anthony, Jeremy Lin!  (I actually think Mike D'Antoni stepped on Carmelo's groin to keep him out longer...the Knicks are phenomenal without their $80 million star.)  But back to Lin...I <3 him!  Let me tell y'all why I love this guy:

He Loves the Lord: My #1 requirement for any man I date is that they love the Lord. And Jeremy surely does! From his Twitter picture to his recent declaration he wants to be a minister...he's automatically marriage material in my book!

He's Humble: Every time Jer is interviewed, he's always incredibly humble. Any praise he gets he immediately defers to his team yet in defeat, he takes it all on his shoulders.

He went to Harvard: So y'all know he's smart. Good. Nothin more I can't stand than a stupid man.

He's obviously good at sports: I LOVE basketball. So does Jeremy. Nuff said.

He already lives in NYC: I have a rule about dating people outside of the city, actually my borough. Well, J is based right here in the city on the isle of Manhattan!  Win.  Win.


So Jeremy Lin, there's one thing I wanna know: Will You Marry Me?

Black Mamba Millionaires

I'm sure yall have heard by now that Vanessa Bryant walked away with $75 million in her divorce settlement from Kobe Bean Bryant.  I'm sure yall have also heard the lyric "b*tch, you wasn't with me shooting in the gym" from Drake, America's saddest R&B rapper.  A lot of people, mostly dudes, have been riding with this lyric as though Vanessa is not entitled to any of the fortune that was amassed during their marriage.  But you know what, I'm not mad at Vanessa.  Lemme tell you why:

1. They shoulda signed a pre-nup.  Maybe if they hadn't gotten married when they were 14 & 12, Bean would have been smart enough to protect his money. Even Kim K and her sham of a 72 day marriage was smart enough to sign a pre-nup.
2. Vanessa stood by her husband is his darkest days.  She sat there (albeit looking foolish), holding his hand during his press conference regarding rape accusations.  It's a scientific fact (aight, maybe not) that when wives stand by their husbands, their careers bounce back quicker.  Look at Hillary & Bill vs. Tiger & Elin.  See?
3. Just because someone marries an athlete/entertainer does not mean they've signed an agreement to be cheated on.  Point blank, period.

So, was she out there shooting free throws, winning championships & getting endorsements? Nah.  But did she stand by him, have his children, and set up a cozy life for him? Yeah.  What's that worth?  I can't really say, but the state of California says $75 million!