A Mouth-Drying Argument

I spent all last weekend arguing with my friend Barry about all sorts of topics. Rondo at the point, Kendrick Perkins, Zydrunas Ilgauskas…yes, you read that correctly. We did legitamatly bat back and forth the quality of Z at center. In retrospect, I’m thinking a new friendly argument rule should be put in place: If at any point voices are being raised over Zydrunas Ilgauskas (and you’re not from Cleveland or Lithuania) – end it right there. In fact, even if you’re from Cleveland, you should probably stop. If not, things can get out of hand fast. There must have been something in the air because we found hot spots about everything. I think at one point if he had said he liked fluff more than jelly – I probably would have vehemently disagreed and began to push my case for jam.

Late that night, (and by that, I mean early that morning) the two of us stood together with cotton mouths begging for water because we had just verbally run around in circles for two hours arguing between Wilt and Michael. I’ve figured out after that night that if you meet someone who’s a Michael Man and you’re a Wilt Man, or vise versa, the argument will have no end. So for future reference, if you find yourself in that situation simply lay out your thoughts right away, acknowledge the counterpoints, respectfully disagree, then grab a fresh beer and enjoy the rest of the night. Because I can guarantee you if you don’t you’re in for a long one. Not worth it…unless there’s nothing else to do and it’s 2:30 in the morning.

Anyways – proving to Barry that The Big Dipper sits atop the NBA hierarchy is not what I’m here for. Nor is it to fight for Rondo, Perk, or Z. Today is for LeBron and the disrespect he's faced from bums like Barry (and by Bum I mean person with a different opinion than I do...that's the definition right?)

There’s no better time to chew this one over than right now. Feb. 2, Kobe goes off at MSG for 61. Two nights later, same place, LeBron hits 52 with 10 rebounds and 11 assists. Both pretty damn impressive in their own right – but which is the water and which is the oil? Of course hitting 61 is much less likely than a triple double – but a fat 52 sitting on top of those numbers? That’s pretty freakin' good. I think of it this way: Kobe’s team scored 126 points – meaning he picked up nearly half of them. The Cavs scored 107…which puts LeBron in the same boat. The edge, you’d think, goes to Kobe. However…LeBron also had a direct connection to another 11 of those points with assists, meaning he was the mastermind of nearly 60% of his teams points. On top of all that, the man picked up 10 rebounds. There’s no point equivelant to this stat, but it’s a big team help on defense. Kobe on the other hand, contributed with only 3 rebounds all game…along with 0 assists.

Fight over it all you want – the fact is it’s one common game. It’s a fun one to place back to back and measure, but I’ve got bigger fish to fry. This fish is named Barry…and he (like a lot of people…maybe even the majority) believes that Kobe’s the best player in the game. I, if you haven’t already figured out, disagree. So here it is: the stat break down and analysis done by one competitve, unathletic sports fan to try and prove his buddy wrong. Press the basement button for me Barry…cause you’re goin’ down!

First off – why don’t we look at the numbers? I think the best way to measure them up next to each other would be to take the first six years of Kobe’s career and put the stats up next to LeBron's; obviously because LeBron hasn’t been around as long. Now all of you Kobe lovers who are about to crap their pants because you know Kobe didn’t even start his first two seasons – just relax. I’ve taken that into account. I think the only fair way of doing this would be to start in the 98-99 season when Kobe started 100% of his games. Fair enough? I’ll even add a bonus in: I’ll count any of his stats that go up in his favor if we had added in the previous season (when he played an average of 26 minutes – just didn’t start). At the end of it all, we’ll compare current stats just for fun so that all those LeBron haters out there can see just where he stacks up today.
Lets set the foundation:

Kobe Bryant: Drafted in 1996, first round at the age of 17
LeBron James: Drafted in 2003, first round at the age of 18

(A push – they were both coming out of high school and were virtually the same age)

Now, let’s just take a quick look at the general stats to get an idea of what happened here. Mind you – I can’t make the argument that points, rebounds and assists make a player great. There is no doubt a lot more goes into it that that. However – they can help give you an idea.

LeBron James from 03-04 to the present: 27 pts, 6.6 asts, 7 rbs
Kobe Bryant from 98-99 to 03-04: 25 pts, 5.0 asts, 6 rbs

Similar no doubt – but LeBron has the edge.

“Yeah well, LeBron can’t shoot!”

Saw that coming. Check this out.

LeBron James from 03-04 to the present: 73% ft, 32% 3pt, 47% fg
Kobe Bryant from 98-99 to 03-04: 84% ft, *33% 3pt, 46% fg
*The 3-point percentage was from 97-98 to 02-03 because it was higher.

Sure, there are some discrepancies in there. Kobe has a higher free-throw percentage and one percentage point more on three pointers – but does that make LeBron a bad shooter? Oh common – there’s no way. In fact – LeBron made more threes in his first six years than Kobe, and it wasn’t even close! 571-366. “Well, that just means he missed more!” Obviously…but the percentage is still there.

The fact is, even if you check out his career stats, Kobe really doesn’t beat out LeBron by much as far as three pointers go. Kobe has a 34% lifetime, and as we saw, LeBron sits at 32%. Pretty damn close if you ask me – and LeBron probably hasn’t even reached his prime yet. So calling him a bad shooter is just silly, unless you want to call Kobe an “OK shooter”.

Didn’t think so.

“Championships baby! Kobe’s got em!” Sure he does – on the back of Shaq, one of the top five centers to ever play the game. Now I’ve been known to pull for big Z…but common. He’s no Shaq – because there has never been another Shaq. I think Kevin Garrnett summed it up best after the Celtics destroyed the Suns a couple weeks ago by describing gaurding Diesel as going to your house, knocking out the foundation, and holding up the cement wall for 48 minutes.

That sounds absolutely miserable to me – and that’s Shaq a few years out of his prime. So sure, Kobe was on a back-to-back-to-back championships team – but so were Derek Fisher and Rick Fox. Better than LeBron?

The point is that everyone was riding the Shaq train. There’s a reason why every time he won finals MVP, and in 03-04 when they lost to the Pistons, his playoff scoring average was down from 29 during the champ years to 21. And what about the 2006 championship Shaq won with Dwayne Wade? His playoff points were down even lower than in 2004. So what made the difference? Wade of course. So why didn’t the Lakers win that last year with Shaq and Kobe? Wade better than Kobe? I couldn’t/wouldn’t make that argument – but it poses some questions eh?

“So…if Kobe wasn’t on the team they wouldn’t have won at all”. I don’t know about that. There’s no doubt he played the perfect compliment to Shaq, and the two of them will go down together as one of the best “little man big man” (as Shaq puts it) combos to ever play…but you split them up, and I’d have put my money on Shaq’s team winning more than Kobe’s…mostly because in the years since Shaq has done it…and Kobe hasn’t. All I’m saying is if you had substituted nearly a quarter of Kobe’s fellow shooting gaurds at that time, (guys like Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, or even Jerry Stackhouse) I’m thinking they may have won at least one…if not two or three in the same time period.

“So…what has LeBron won?!” You’re right. He’s won nothing….yet. But when you look around to see who’s on the floor at tip-off, and you see Larry Hughes, Sasha Pavlovic, Anderson Varejao and Drew Gooden…you know you’re in for a tough one. Even so – he brought them to the NBA finals. And in the process, he put together the most incredible individual performance I’ve ever witnessed. NOT of all time – for crying out loud, don’t get all riled up. I just remember turning on Game 5 of the 2007 Eastern Conference finals just as the fourth quarter started, and for the next hour sitting on my couch speechless. Cavs at Detroit - one of the best defensive teams the league has seen in a long time. If you don’t remember, never saw it, or just need a refresher…check this out. That’s when I became a believer. That’s when I knew that this guy lived up to the hype. He probably won’t be the next Jordan, but who knows? Put him on a good team like Kobe and Michael and we might have an argument. He’s never had a Shaq. He’s never had a Pippen. Give him something to work with and I guarantee he’ll blow you away.

And if at that point, Kobe has won a championship without Shaq, maybe we can have this conversation again. Until then, all I know is that the stats speak for themselves. The first six years are damn near identical – and this year, check it out:

Kobe Bryant: 27.5 pts, 5.1 asts, 5.5 rbs
LeBron James: 28.5 pts, 7.0 asts, 7.5 rbs

Remember - those stats are from this year where LeBron is playing with the best team he ever has. Kobe is without Shaq and no real good point gaurd. So that, "LeBron gets the numbers because he's on a worse team and has to" argument...yeah...that really doesn't fly anymore.

“Yeah…well Kobe plays in the far superior Western Conference”. Yup – he does. They’ve got some good teams over there. Only thing is…they don’t play defense. The top eight East teams let up an average of 94.5 points per game. The West? 97.5. If that sounds too close to call, than check out all those division games each team plays. The Cav’s East Central average: 98.2. The West Pacific: 105.4.

On top of that, LeBron heads the best defensive team in the NBA letting up only 90 points per game. The Lakers are 17th…and let up 100.

I guess there’s no real answer to the question of who’s the best – but there are opinions. Personally, I’d take the higher scoring, better rebouding, more assists and superior defense of LeBron James anyday. And as far as championships go? Just get him the team and we’ll see how he does.

Until then, I guess I’ve got a litany of long, mouth-drying arguments in my future.

Bring it Barry.

Enough with the Bandwagon

Apparently I’m not allowed to be a Bruin’s fan. Last night I found myself weeding through some of the comments Dan Shaughnessy’s readers left him after his hockey article, “Welcome Signs were Everywhere”. To basically sum up the general consensus, check out what bruins0809 wrote:

“So, let me get this straight... Shaughnessy needs an 11-game winning streak at the Garden and number one Eastern Conference play in order to get himself to a Bruins game? Disgusting. The Globe's coverage of the best hockey team in the East is disgraceful. And this column is just Shaughnessy bandwagon-jumping. Miserable.”

Oh come on. Really? Maybe you don’t like the guy as a writer or you wish the globe would focus a little more oh the Bruins, (which by the way, he acknowledges in the beginning of the piece that he hadn’t been to a game all season) but a little press from one of the most read sports writers in all of New England (whether you like it or not) should be looked at as a glimmer of hope, not the sign of a bandwagon-jumper.

In my mind, the only way you can call someone that is if they literally hopped off the coat tails of one team and climbed aboard the decks of another - simply because one isn’t winning any more and the other is. My buddy Adam did this literally in the middle of Super Bowl XXXI. After Desmond Howard’s 99-yard kick-off return, he went to the bathroom and washed off his red and blue face paint and replaced it with green and yellow. Now that, my friends, is a bandwagon jumper.

It’s not like those of us (including myself) who are just sitting up and starting to turn on NESN right now are hiding our Montreal jerseys and sneaking on a Bruins sweater. We just haven’t been paying attention. And do you blame us?

People who say Boston has just recently become cocky and developed a, “Win or Don’t Talk to me” mentality about our sports teams are wrong. Hate to break it to ya, but we’ve always been like that. Before the Pats made themselves useful by winning a few championships, they hardly saw the light of day. In the mid sixties, before the “Impossible Dream”, Fenway often resembled a 2003 Tropicana field. Even the Celtics during the early seventies were snubbed by the fans, who ironically cared more about Orr and Esposito.

Chucking the team who isn’t winning onto the back burner and enjoying the success of the others has been the Boston way forever. Don’t get me wrong – it’s not like we’re washing our face paint off and replacing it. We’re just focusing on the team that brings us the most wins and excitement, and not following the others as intently. Sometimes, as has been in the past, that team we follow doesn’t necessarily win championships, and it’s at that time you can separate the fans from the die-hards.

Die-hards stick with the team through thick and thin. The 2006 Celtics fans, the 1992 Red Sox fans, the pre-2001 Patriot fans, and 2005 Bruins fans. If you followed any of these teams and made an honest effort to catch all of their games, you’re a die-hard.

If not – you can still be a fan. I didn’t follow the Bruins in 2005, and I know I’m not the only one (in fact, I only know two of my friends who did). So according to some of Shaughnessy’s commentators, I shouldn’t even bother following them this year? That’s just ridiculous. I’ll be the first to admit I don’t know everything there is to know about hockey - but I know enough. And for those seasons I wasn’t watching the Bruins, it wasn’t because I was following Detroit. I was just putting the sport on the back burner.

I’m a die-hard Sox fan, and a fan of all other Boston teams (minus BC...but we can talk about that later). I’d never think about rooting against them, and if they’re winning and fun to watch I’ll follow them with all my heart. I missed only a handful of Celtics games last season, and I’m realizing right now that for the five years before that, I probably hadn’t even watched as many as I just missed. Does that make me a bandwagon jumper? I should hope not.

Look - I can understand some of Boston’s sensitivity towards posers. I was just as sick as everyone else after 2004 when the Sox became the “hip” team to follow. It burnt me right up when people looked at me like a follower rather than one of the original fans when I wore a Sox hat out of town. It became hard to sort through the die-hards from newbies. But that’s OK – because as cheesy as it sounds, I know I was there through thick and thin.

But for those who weren’t, it’s unfair to disqualify them as a potential fan. Everyone needs to start somewhere, and not all of us are brought up in a family of big fans. So what if I’ve only been watching the Bruins intently since I saw them nearly rock the Canadiens out of the playoffs last year? They played with such intensity and were so much fun to watch, that I began falling in love for the first time with watching hockey. I give props to those who sat and watched through the tough times, and I could never feel the same enjoyment they do about this team’s success. Winning is always sweeter when you’ve lost for so freakin’ long. I know. Like I said, I’m a die-hard Sox fan.

One of my best buddies Bear has been following hockey for years, and the guy bleeds black and gold. He’s a great guy to watch the game with because he knows I don’t know as much as he does, but he could care less. He knows I wasn’t there sitting next to him three years ago, but that doesn’seem to matter to him. I think he’s happy we’re all on board and that there’s a Bruin’s buzz humming through the city. Now that’s the right mentality.

So what’s so wrong with letting everyone else enjoy it too? Do these die-hards want it all to themselves? Because if they do they can have it…but good luck giving the home-town boys an advantage at the Garden with more Canadien fans in attendance than locals. Talk about embarrassing.

Like I said earlier, everyone needs to start somewhere. These nuts like the ones commenting on Shaughnessy’s column need to shut their trap and let the rest of us in to enjoy the ride. Isn’t the goal of the team to excite and bring up ticket sales? Well they’re doing it, and if bruins0809 wants there to be a professional hockey team in Boston, he better shut up and let the fan-base grow. Taunting Shaughnessy won’t do that, but showing support will get him to write about the B’s even more. And I don’t care whether you like what he has to say or not, you can respectfully disagree, but any press is good press – especially in the NHL.

A Bizarre Week in Boston

In recent memory, can you think of a more bizarre week in Boston sports than the one that just blew by us? At 7:00 Sunday night, I sat with my hands over my ears, shaking my head in disgust after Brett Favre completed another interception to Miami’s Andre’ Goodman, putting the finishing touch on one of the worst games I’ve ever seen him play. I was rooting my heart out for the Jets…and he was the quarterback. Weird enough to make you sick, isn’t it?


The irony of course is thicker than a Chile’s Bacon Big Mouth Burger. Almost twelve years ago, I sat and watched a younger, more accurate Brett Favre mercilessly beat down our beloved Patriots in the Super Bowl. The images are still burnt in my memory, and like most New Englanders, I’ve been fed up with his Wrangler wearing, “plays like a kid” image for far too long.

As terrible as it was, this old man throwing the Patriots playoff hopes into the arms of Miami was the most appropriate ending to a week from the Boston Bizarre. Pats out of the playoffs, C’s lose to LA than give a cupcake to Golden State, and the Red Sox handing the Yankees one of the best hitters in the major leagues. Not something we’re used to in the new Boston sports utopia. But calm down, relax, and let me tell you exactly why you can chuck that panic button deep into your closet and not lose another wink of sleep.

Under the Wrong Bridge Downtown

The Celtics are 28-4, and you can put together more than a handful of excuses for those woeful west coast loses. The Lakers…on Christmas…in LA? Come on. What were the schedule makers thinking? As NBA champs, don’t you think we’d at least get the right to play the biggest game of the year in on our own floor? Apparently not. On top of that, what’s with the back-to –back? I can understand why they wanted to keep them out there for a mini west coast trip, and considering they already took the plane ride, I understand. But couldn’t they just give them a day off after what was destine to be a challenging Christmas contest, then follow it up with a back-to-back with Golden State and Sacramento? I mean, throw em a freakin’ bone.

Regardless, it is what it is. We played the games, we lost the games, and the water has passed under the bridge. But considering that bridge was the Golden Gate and not the Tobin, you can give them a pass and consider it an aberration. Overall, it may even help. These guys hate losing, and you know they’ll do anything and everything to avoid another “L” anytime soon.

Need proof?

Boston: 108 Sacramento: 63

Not so Irreplaceable

Over the last five or so years, the anticipation of the NFL playoffs have usually included the potential for a Pats vs. Colts, Manning vs Brady showdown. It’s been a staple. However, going into the season with Manning’s pending injury; there were whispers of this year missing that chance completely. Little did we know we were half right, only in the end the opposite team would be flying home come January.

Finding a silver lining in the Patriots season ending before the playoffs has actually been the easiest pill to choke down this week – given the circumstances. On September 7, we lost arguably the most irreplaceable figure in current Boston sports. The only other players rivalling Tom Brady as far as team dependency might be Kevin Garnett or Paul Pierce. The Red Sox and Bruins are so deep and levelled out with talent that losing one wouldn’t really send a title wave through the season…more like a ripple. Late that September night, the Partriots (who ironically pride themselves in team depth) were knocked down hard by a title wave. Not only did we lose Golden Tom, but we were left with Green Matt. Unproven, unplayed, and unacceptable in the shoes of a legend, most Pats fans looked away in disgust as Belichick continued to give Cassell the nod, reassuring us that he could hold his own.

Whether you initially believed him or not, (and I’ll be the first to admit, I was a skeptic) you can’t argue with results. Eleven wins, over 3,500 yards in the air and 270 on the ground, plus back-to-back 400 yard games…all while getting sacked almost 50 times. And when it was all said and done, Cassell put the Patriots alongside the 1985 Broncos as the only two teams to win 11 games and not make the playoffs. Just think about September 8, the day you found out Brady wasn’t coming back. Kind of like the day after a bad break-up, where you spend all night waiting by the phone hoping she’d call. By morning, you knew it was over. Think about what you’d say if the football Gods came to you at work that afternoon and told you not to worry, Cassell would win you 11 games that season. Wouldn’t you have been relieved? Hell, even ecstatic? Sure, it’s not 16, but how far did that get us anyways? Like it or not, this season needs to be marked down as a success in the archives; regardless of the team never taking the gridiron for any postseason play.

Hey Mikey, He Doesn't Like It

Of all the loses this week, you could argue the Red Sox gave fans the most devastating blow. We were initially stabbed in the heart by missing out on Mark Teixeira, but seeing him take that all familiar one way Fung Wah trip to New York was like smearing a bucket of rock salt in the fresh open wound. But as we’ve done with the Celtics and Pats, lets take a deep breathe and readjust our rational here.

Going into the off season, there were only a few noticeable holes in the roster. We lacked that pop in our offense down the stretch, which no doubt could have been filled by Teixeira, but in order to do so we would have lost a Boston favorite. Despite his nagging injury last year, Mikey Lowell worked as hard as he could to stay on the diamond and be productive. With a bum hip making him look like an old man limping around the field, I actually felt more comfortable with him at bat than I did Varitek. There’s no doubt he lost a step with that injury, but who knows what he’ll be next year. Even with a 15-85-.275 season, his gold glove in the hot corner and his demeanor in the dugout make him worth every penny. Let’s just hope we didn’t offend him too bad by essentially packing his bags and showing him the door before getting a go-ahead from Tex. Sorry Mikey, this was business, not personal.

So there – not all that bad right? I know, I know – it still feels a little raw. We’ve basically kissed goodbye a possible run at 70 wins, we’ve missed out on another Super Bowl opportunity while our window is slowly closing, and seeing Tex in pinstripes for the first time will probably require some of us to restrain ourselves from shoving pens in our eyes, but that’s only because we live in a time and place were we can sweat the small stuff. After weeks like this, it’s best to just sit back, relax, and accept the occasional bizarre.

Unless it happens again next week, at which time you can frantically dig up that panic button.