Courtney Lee is not a bum... Rafer Alston waxes "beautiful"

By Brendan Hall
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Here's why I don't watch television news.

Moments after game two of the NBA Finals, the airwaves frenzied up a storm of hot air quicker than the Red Spot of Jupiter. Courtney Lee this, Courtney Lee that. If you listened to some of the "experts" on radio and television (ESPN and KCAL in particular) and took what they say at face value, right now you'd be wondering just how the heck Lee wakes up in the morning knowing that he just sealed the fate of humankind.

For those of you fortunate enough to have followed Anthony Kiedis' advice and throw away your television, here's what you missed: the Magic, with nine seconds left and the chance to win, drew up an alley oop-like play to Lee. Lee never got a grip on the ball, gave it a tap, and the ball clanked off the back iron.

Apparently, because he didn't put the game away, and the Magic had no answer for Pau Gasol in the extra frame, it's now Lee's fault that the Magic are “doomed”. Keep in mind this is game two. He is now a goat, a loser and the Antichrist, all wrapped into one.

One question: have any of you knuckleheads ever played basketball?

Look, Vin Baker sucks, and he might be one of the 10 worst basketball players to ever put on a Celtics uniform. But if he misses a finger roll, I'm not going to hound the dude and tell him his career is a complete waste. Why? Because that's an incredibly hard thing to do. I'm 5-foot-10, 215 pounds, with absolutely no handle, no post moves and no stamina; when I make four turnarounds in a row, I feel like I’m on cloud nine. But I’d never go up to the 6-foot-4 ex-Charlestown High baller guarding me and grunt, "you’re mine, punk."

Stan Van Gundy has been above-average in this series. Every other team so far has played the Lakers conventionally, straight no chaser, and failed. He knows he has to give them something unorthodox, something they haven’t seen before, which is why he called for such a unique inbound play.

But we forget how hard it is for these guys to make those kind of shots. We set the bar high, and when people hit it on their way down we want to scold them like the Class Derelict.

Let’s set the record straight, please. What he did Sunday night is not a "career-defining moment".

Courtney Lee is a late first-round rookie out of Western Kentucky. He is a 6-foot-5 combo guard who was drafted on the pretense that he could supplement Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson with some great off-the-ball activity (i.e., defense, setting screens, creating space). He averages eight points; wasn’t supposed to set anybody’s world on fire; wasn’t meant to be a three-point specialist. He was meant to be a nice role player.

In other words, he does all the little things that go unnoticed.

So with all that said, how happy were you to see Courtney Lee have an OK game last night, a 108-104 win that cut the Lakers lead to 2-1? He did exactly what he was told, and the Magic grinded out a gutsy win.

Courtney Lee’s career will be defined by his old-school mentality. Not by missing some freaking alley oop.

For those of you who missed Dan Wetzel’s column on Rafer Alston yesterday, you missed some great scene-setting. The meat and potatoes:

He doesn't question the route he took to get to the present, he just focuses on finding one that will take him to the future. In a sports world filled with guys consumed with intensity, especially after losses, his attitude can drive people crazy.

After this victory, Alston sat in front of a locker filled with And1 sneakers and tried to get teammate Marcin Gortat to teach him some Polish.

Gortat is a bald 7-footer from an old textile town in central Poland. These two couldn't be less alike, an only-in-the-NBA pairing. Naturally, they are great friends. So Gortat complied, teaching him "how are you" in Polish.

The NBA public relations people were waiting to whisk Alston off for a waiting pack in the interview room, but this seemed important to him.

"See, I don’t want to talk to you," Alston laughed to Gortat. "I want to talk to Polish women."

This is what runs through Rafer Alston’s head minutes after the biggest game of his life.

If you don't find beauty in that passage, you have no soul, and you should leave.

Now.

Ish.

In a world gone mad, it's just absolutely beautiful to see that, at the end of the day, at least one man still sees the game of basketball as just a game. Nothing more.

Objects, not subjects.

Now THAT is cool.

And beautiful.

Pens deserve a Game 7...

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

The best two-way player in hockey may play for Detroit, but it was the Penguins who put on a clinic on two-way hockey tonight.

Facing elimination, Pittsburgh did the one thing it failed to do in the 5-0 flogging they took in Game 5. They got back, played defense and limited opportunities for the defending champs.

Sid the Kid and Evgeni Malkin led the forwards by example, but everyone got involved in a spectacular defensive effort. Detroit was held to a mere nine shots on net in the first two periods, unheard of for the team that dominated the league in shots on goal during the regular season.

Detroit got things together in the third, but that's when the Penguins clamped down the most. Two penalties in the last 11 minutes of play against players on Pittsburgh's top two lines (Malkin and Guerrin) could have been devastating, but the Penguins remained steadfast and turned the Red Wings away.

But the biggest effort defensively of the night goes to Rob Scuderi, who twice in the third period made heads up plays with the puck in the crease to protect the fragile one-goal advantage. First, after the puck slipped behind Marc-Andre Fleury, who thought he had it covered up, Scuderi came in and poked the loose puck out of the blue paint. The late in third with Fleury out of position, he became the goalkeeper and with a phenomenal effort, including a leg save, kept the puck out until Fleury could gather himself and cover it up, thus preserving the win.

The series now shifts back to the Joe Louis Arena with each team having won all three of their home games. Does this give the Red Wings the edge? Perhaps. But maybe more telling than that little tidbit is the fact that Fleury has never played well at the Joe. In eight appearances (two regular-season, six playoff), he's given up 30 goals - almost four per game, including 11 in three games in this series alone. He's going to need help from his friends like he got tonight if Pittsburgh wants to hoist the cup.

On the March: Strasburg has golden arm

(Editor's note: Scott Marchand is the pitching coach at the Air Force Academy. His journal about life in baseball will appear at Fan Fanatic Sports on a weekly basis)

SLIDERS AND…

To steal a line from former NFL coach Dennis Green, “They were who we thought they were.” Or, in this case, “He is who you thought he was.” HE is Stephen Strasburg, junior right-handed pitcher from San Diego State University, and the prohibitive favorite for the No. 1 draft pick in tonight’s Major League Baseball’s 2009 First-Year Player Draft. Strasburg is who everyone thinks he is, or at least he was, on that night.

On a beautiful California evening this past May, my Air Force Falcons visited the friendly confines of Tony Gwynn Stadium to take on the San Diego State Aztecs before a sold out crowd of nearly 4,000 Southern Californians, sprinkled with a loyal contingent of Falcon faithful.
We were greeted with our traditional scheduled round of dusky batting practice, performed on a flawlessly manicured field amidst the sounds of baseball fans lazily walking to their general admission seats. Instead of spreading throughout the stadium, it seemed that most fans chose to fill the left field stands first; the seats closest to the Aztecs bullpen.

Strasburg emerged from the third base dugout, to the wonder of the fans, and jogged briskly to the angled corner in left field. There, he began his warm-up routine in the same fashion he had for every other start of his storied junior season. Pitchers are creatures of habit, and Stras was no exception.
A lengthy stretching routine and arm care regimen completed, he began his series of long toss throwing drills with an Aztec catcher. However, his game of catch had the unique quality of angularity. Strasburg didn’t play long toss in a straight line away from the foul line. He would run out of room. Stras played long toss BETWEEN the foul poles, to afford him enough space to fully air out his whippy right arm.

The lineups exchanged and the Anthem performed, the first pitch of the series whizzed through the night air and off the backstop; a 101 mph fastball, and a foul tip. I thought, while crouching in the first base coaches’ box, “We are gonna hit this guy.” And we nearly did, until he showed us the slider.

After we batted once through our lineup, Strasburg unleashed breaking ball torment on our Falcon hitters. Sliders in 0-0 counts, sliders in 1-0 counts -- slider, slider, slider for strikes one, two, and three, until his final number totaled 17 free trips back to the dugout for our hitters. Our guys had a great approach on his fastball, but the introduction of and the willingness to throw the slider in any count was baffling enough to make the San Diego State defense work for only 10 of the game’s 27 outs. We posted no hits.

The next day, our bus arrived at the stadium, and we emerged to get ready for a late morning BP session. We sat and watched the Aztecs finish their rounds, and there was Stephen Strasburg, one night off of his first no-hitter and a few weeks away from getting paid to play a child’s game, manning the outfield bucket filled with shagged flies and grounders ready to sprint into the mound to fill his BP pitcher’s ball cart. Stras took time to approach our players and ask them questions about their lives as Air Force Academy cadets, and to thank them for what they were doing for our country.

On Friday, Strasburg showed why some have called him the best college pitcher of all time. On Saturday, Strasburg was just another kid, playing the game of baseball.

WEEI Is Losing A Loyal Listener

By Jim Ingram

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

I have been a very loyal listener of WEEI Sports Talk Radio since the early 90's. Ever since they were broadcast on AM 590 instead of 850. I am a sports nut, and have always loved being kept up to date and listening to the slew of talk show hosts, writers and professional athletes voice their opinions. Until recently I've pretty much listened to WEEI from the time I start my commute to work until I pull back into my driveway.

So what's happened that makes me change the channel to the likes of the Toucher & Rich show on WBCN, or Mike & Mike on ESPN Radio? WEEI has become so bloated with power and arrogance they've made the morning and afternoon drive shows virtually unlistenable. Yes, I still do listen to the station at various times throughout the week, but just not nearly as much as I used to. Gerry Callahan has turned me off with his right wing, Republican diatribes that I can barely listen to the The Dennis & Callahan show in the morning. Nothing gets my blood boiling faster than his ripping of Barack Obama or how he thinks Gay Marriage will lead to someone marrying a goat.

In the afternoon, it's just even worse. Glenn Ordway loves the sound of his voice so much that the co-hosts have to yell over each other to be heard. Both shows rarely allow the listeners to voice their own opinions. Granted, most people who actually call these shows don't know much about the actually sport they called in to talk about, but the last time I checked it was a call in sports talk show. Without callers, you'd have no show. Don't get me started on Pete Shepherd. I knew more about sports at the age of 5 then Shepherd knows now. It doesn't help that he's an inarticulate, classless blowhard. I honestly don't know he got the job in the first place, and certainly don't know how he keeps it.

This might sound pathetic, but it pains me to write this article about a station that I've loved for so many years. Thanks to my MP3 player and my extensive iTunes library on my laptop, I finally have something else to listen to in the car and at work. Now, not everything at WEEI has gone down the toilet. I am still a fan of The Dale & Holly midday show. In my opinion, Michael Holly is the best co-host on the air. He's very logical in his decision making and fairly unbiased. He's also very knowledgeable of the four major sports. He's actually too qualified for the station.

I know there will be some readers out there that will point out that Gerry Callahan's antics are done just to get people riled up to call and listen and increase ratings. I totally understand that, but does not account for the abuse that is doled out to listeners throughout the day. If it was up to me I'd put Michael Felger on full time. He has some outrageous ideas, but at least isn't afraid to open his mouth in dissent and actually explain himself. I would love to think they'll make some changes and bring me back in full time. If not, then at least I'll tune in around 5:45 for the Whiner Line.

Fantasy Baseball: Chin Music

By Chad Garner

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

OK, I get it. Closers are important, there I said it.

It's always hard for me to admit that closers should be valued more than I value a penny, but perhaps closers are more like a nickel or a dime?

There's not way they're like a quarter, however. That investment is strictly for front-line position players and starters.

But the closer class, as a whole this season, has been nothing short of exceptional.

Where else would you find the 5th ranked player in standard Yahoo! 5 x 5 leagues.

Who is this guy you ask?

If you guessed Jonathan Broxton from the Dodgers, you're right. He's been as good as gold with six wins, 13 saves and 47 strikeouts in 29 inning. He also sports a 1.24 ERA and 0.66 WHIP.

Yes, he's even better than players like Evan Longoria or Mark Teixeira, at least he's ranked higher.

Would I draft Broxton, who can really pump that fastball at 96-plus, over Longoria or Teixeira. No way. Even today with all their stats up for the taking? No way.

But it does go to show you that closers can be a valuable commodity.

Some owners "punt" saves every year and I think it's the wrong approach to take. You'll be last in that category all year in roto leagues and you just might be able to tie a few times during the season in head-to-head with zero saves versus your opponent on that given week. It's hard to win titles without being competitive in every fantasy category.

HE'S NOT WASHED UP YET

Boy, the Padres sure know how to get rid of talent. But Trevor Hoffman is probably glad to be out of San Diego after the way he was treated anyway. And Hoffman, every time he notches a save, is probably laughing at the San Diego organization for not keeping him. Hoffman has laughed 15 times already this season since that's how many saves he has with the Brewers. Yes, he's still getting it done -- as a closer mind you -- with that marshmallow fastball and devastating changeup.

LIGHTS OUT

Francisco Rodriguez of the Mets is so money he might not even know it. Yes, he does know it and so do the New York Mets fans, who have watched K-Rod nail down 15 saves with a 0.70 ERA. K-Rod has only given up two earned runs all season and that was in the same game on April 24 against the Nationals, and he still got the win. He hasn't blown a save yet, either, but now I jinxed him ... sorry Mets fans and K-Rod owners.

HAPPY SO FAR

This goes out to the guys you didn't expect to close this year, but have been more than just serviceable in the 9th-inning role: Houston's LaTroy Hawkins (7 saves), Chicago Cubs' Kevin Gregg (10 saves), Seattle's David Aardsma (9 saves) and Toronto's Scott Downs (7 saves). 

Van Gundy is gutsier than we thought

By Brendan Hall
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Three nights after Stan Van Gundy took some criticism for playing his star point guard Jameer Nelson too many minutes -- in his first action since February -- the Orlando Magic head coach comes back with an even bigger twist.

Thursday night, I suggested that Nelson got too many minutes, and just enough time to make the enigmatic Rafer "Skip 2 My Lou" Alston unnerved. Team leader, model citizen or not, you can't just throw a guy into the fire on his first game back, especially if it's the NBA Finals. That's how you screw up chemistry (and it's also classic "Ewing Theory" in action). I was talking about this with St. Mark's coach David Lubick over coffee Friday afternoon, and he suggested something different: you need Nelson in the lineup to some extent, because a flashy player like Alston is not a guy you want making decisions down the stretch.

Van Gundy apparently agrees with the both of us. Alston got about 10 more minutes than Nelson; but for the last six or seven minutes of the fourth quarter, and all of overtime, both sat on the bench. Van Gundy went with a bold, unorthodox move of putting Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Mickael Pietrus and J.J. Redick on the floor. Redick played the one, while Turkoglu manned the three spot in a "point forward" role (Phil Pressey, anyone?).

When Pietrus fouled out, Van Gundy replaced him with rookie Courtney Lee.

Literally, Van Gundy put the ball in the hands of his most consistent playmaker. If you're a fan of Malcolm Gladwell, you probably think this lineup gave them the best chance. It almost pulled through for them, too, until Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol took over in the extra frame to take a 101-96 win and 2-0 series lead.

As for the Lakers starting five...the more and more I watch this lineup of Bryant, Gasol, Derek Fisher, Trevor Ariza and Andrew Bynum, the more I love it. Lamar Odom played 45 minutes off the bench tonight, and was 8 of 9 from the floor, as Bynum (five fouls) and Ariza (3 for 13 fg) struggled. Gasol (7 of 14, 24 points, 10 rebounds) was crucial in the overtime period, scoring seven points. When you have a guy as foul-prone as Bynum, having Odom as your first guy off the bench -- playing alongside Ariza and Gasol in the frontcourt -- allows you to play big like few other teams in the league can.

Call me stupid, but I still think this series is going to go at least six games. This is turning into a great chess match between two of the game's top basketball minds, and this is hardly the last trick in Van Gundy's sleeve. Phil Jackson is, of course, Phil Jackson. I don't think a whole lot of rhetoric needs to be said at this point.

Dice-K is far from OK

By Jorge Bannister
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Is Daisuke Matsuzaka breaking down?

Don’t look at your monitor like that, it’s a legitimate question.

The phenom, who once threw an 18-inning complete game in his high school title game, can barely make it out of the fifth inning in his starts now.

In 2006 — after pitching Japan to the World Baseball Classic title over Cuba — Matsuzaka went 17-5 with an 2.13 ERA for the Seibu Lions. He threw 186-1/3 innings, striking out 200 and walking 34. Dice-K started 25 games and threw 13 complete games.

Matsuzaka threw 215 innings in 2005 for the Lions, and was 14-13 in 28 starts with an ERA of 2.30.

This year, Dice-K has been, well, less than stellar. He’s 1-4 with a 7.33 ERA in six starts. He’s only averaging four-plus innings a start, but finally got past the five-inning barrier Sunday against the Rangers.

Last year Matsuzaka was a sparkling 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA last year. Remember, though, he only threw 167-2/3 innings compared to 204-2/3 in his rookie campaign. Somehow, that gets lost in translation with some. In fact, if he had similar winning numbers and a solid ERA with more innings, he probably would’ve won the Cy Young Award.

Through 66 career MLB starts, Dice-K has only one complete game. It’s not his fault, he’s a nibbler. Oh. Wait.

In Sunday’s game against the Rangers, he showed something else, though. There was life on his fastball and he seemed to pound the strike zone early in the game. Matsuzaka finally threw more than five innings this season (5-2/3 to be exact), but was pounded for 10 hits and five earned runs. He struck out eight and didn’t walk a batter.

Maybe that’s why he nibbles?

In his MLB rookie season (2007), Dice-K threw fewer than six innings only 7 times in 32 starts. In fact, in his final five starts he only went six or more innings twice. His worst start of the year was 2-2/3 innings on Sept. 8 at Baltimore — he was shelled for eight runs on six hits and three walks.

Though he had a successful season last year, Matsuzaka failed to throw six innings in 14 of his 29 starts.

And there’s the problem. His pitch counts are near- to over-100 pitches by the fifth inning and Red Sox manager Terry Francona is forced to call his bullpen earlier when Dice-K is on the mound.

If you think I am crazy by asking that question in my lead, then ponder this little Jeopardy portion of the column. 

Answer: He was a Japanese pitcher who had successful outings for the Red Sox but ultimately turned out to be worthless and unable to pitch in the majors anymore. 

Question: Who is Hideo Nomo?

That’s right. I am comparing Matsuzaka to Nomo.