every Yes is preceded by a No

Before the deciding game of the NBA Finals, his Orlando Magic down three games to one, Dwight Howard pretty much spelled out his doom, right there in the tunnel. He was asked if he had faith in his team's ability to do the unprecedented.

"Impossible is Nothing," Howard said, quoting a sneaker ad. His tone didn't match adidas' words. There was no fire, no fury. I wanted to see D-How with his nostrils flaring, barely able to wait for the tip-off. I wanted him to be impatient with the whole idea of a pre-game interview, and telling us as much with body language.

We saw none of that. They're definitely done was the idea only one quarter into this game.

Howard's play reflected that chat. He was more Clark Kent than Superman. His tendency to bowl people over and call it a post move didn't work this time. That helped him into foul trouble.

After the loss, with the LA Lakers celebrating on the Magic home floor, Howard's words finally matched his body language.

"It hurts," he said, watching the ceremonies. "Sometimes you've got to lose to win."

Orlando may be a balanced team, but without Dwight Howard on the floor for stretches... forget it.

Yet there were flashes. Little glimpses of what could be.. footwork and shots we'd never seen him do. Makes me wonder what he could do, if his legs were as developed as his upper body.

At that point, forget "Superman". He'd be Baby Wilt.

No Speakee

The names are still falling from the sky like bird shit. Big names--only the big names. There will be a few more trickling out over the next year.
Predictable and kinda funny. Like Sammy Sosa preparing for another walk through a testimonial minefield. Sosa walked the legal line in 2005, almost as well as he lined sixty-plus homers in three straight seasons--something no other player has ever done. "To be clear, I've never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs," Sosa told the gub-mint. It was technically true. And it was the gub-mint in front of him. They don't care about honesty anyway, not until reporters come around. The gub-mint is all about technical truth. Find a hidey-hole in that law; they are the best at this game, because they write the books.
The major league players' union got their humps kicked back in February 09, when the A-Rod story broke. Maybe the union is negligent in letting this leak. They don't protect their players. Looks like that was true. The union has failed again. People like HOF pitcher Goose Gossage are saying, "Screw it--just tell us all of the names at once."
This is more evidence, if needed, that baseball isn't football. When Patriots coach Bill Belichick ran up against Spygate, remember how quickly Commissioner Goodell moved to bury the tapes. TOO quick, some might say. But you have to admire the NFL's efficiency. It was third-and-long, and Goodell converted.
Speaking about Sosa, ESPN's Sportsnation asks, "Unlike the A-Rod situation, could this be classified as 'well, duh' news?" This question puzzles me. Since when was Alex Rodriguez's name being linked to PEDs a 'well, duh?'
Some sports talking heads and journalists (not the same thing) keep saying "we were all fooled" when talking about Mark McGwire, Sosa, Barry Bonds, and so on. But the 'we' they mean is Them.
Once Rafael Palmiero got dragged in the wake of this, you knew no player was off-limits from suspicion. You knew that it wasn't just the top 1% of players using performance-enhancers--it was the very good players, too. And the just-makin'-it players, and the Triple A players with all likelihood, and maybe even those big sausages that race between innings.
We don't know who did what. Keep in mind that the idea of pitchers benefitting from PEDs is still fairly recent. At first, we all assumed it was mostly the sluggers. Turns out they were just the most visible.
Nearly every big-timer of the last two decades has been either suspiciously evasive, or a proven augmenter. So by the start of the 2008 season, there were about five players on the so-called innocent list. A-Rod. Derek Jeter. Albert Pujols. Manny Ramirez.
That list is now halved. Pujols isn't on the radar, but then, neither was Rodriguez a few years ago. And baseball's golden boy, Jeter?
People like Peter Gammons say of Jeter, "that's still the one name that would surprise me." This seems to be the prevailing theme, online and in casual convos with fans. I've got to wonder why they still feel this way. Why would they be surprised? How could any name shake you by this point?
Only the youngest stars are squeaky-clean. So far. They have the advantage of fresh starts. Evan Longoria. David Wright. Prince Fielder. Joba Chamberlain. Jacoby Ellsbury. Baseball's old guard, like the smarmy Bob Costas, will hang their derbies on this idea, this hope--that the newest and best will prove clean.
Be sure not to fall for this. Any real baseball fan or player knows that the game has quietly allowed cheating, in whatever form, since its inception.

Play Play, J.J.

JJ Redick is in the Finals. His Orlando Magic trail the series 3-1 after losing their second overtime game to the Lakers. The score was 99-91 this time. Derek Fisher saved LA's asses in Game 4 and everyone is "this thing is a wrap." Redick has scored in three of the four games (though his field goal % is down by his ankles). Hey, that's pretty good. That's three more than anyone reading these words... Redick has to feel the pressure. Not just because of the obvious--that his team is a few plays away from winning instead of losing. He's also repping Duke University.

People already think Blue Devils are cotton-soft when they go pro. Duke players never reach that next level. Or in common terms, they suck in the pros. Do they?

The school that Duke gets stacked against the most, when discussing the NCAA's best pro factories, is their long-time rival, UNC. The Tarheels have sent enough players to the NBA to make several excellent teams. The list starts with MJ and runs through Billy Cunningham, James Worthy, Bob McAdoo, Mitch Kupchak, Sam Perkins... well this is going to get boring.
But maybe things are shifting, if not completely changed. Who does Carolina have in the league today? Not just existing. Playing at All Star level.

Rasheed Wallace. Vince Carter. Jerry Stackhouse. Antwan Jamison. Except... the first three are old in NBA years. All Star-quality players, for sure, but not anymore. And as good as Jamison is, he's peaked, and no one but very knowledgable fans ever knew his best play is near-elite.
Duke had three of those in the 2008-09 season. Shane Battier. Luol Deng. Elton Brand. As these words are written, summer 09, I'd take any of them over any of the four Carolina players. Any of the Duke players is capable of making the All Star team without too many dissenters.

UNC has multiple Hall of Famers--men who moved to the pros and still excelled. Duke has zero. Its alumni are totally overmatched by Carolina's.

But in recent years, Duke has better pros. That's a first. And it probably won't change when Lawson and Hansbrough lace it up in five months.

And before Dookies think about gloating, keep in mind that Redick can't get a shot off when Kobe's guarding him. It's apparent by body language that Redick is shook by that fact. He's a very recent NCAA player of the year, and what used to be a wide-open trey for him is now a big armbanded elbow in his face. That's how big the gap is between All American and All Star. Excuse me: All World.

Apropos of nothing, if Orlando wins the series--they won't, but if they pulled a hat trick--Hedo should be Finals MVP. Like Jamison, some fans don't realize how good Turkoglu is. His ballhandling, passing, and fifteen-foot fade are sick, and opponents respect all of that. Plus he's blocked Kobe's shit at least twice in big moments so far this series.

So he fools people (especially Lamar "Now N Later" Odom) with that foul-baiting fake jumper so often, he shouldn't just get the trophy for best player in that instance. He should get a Golden Globe, too.