The Whole 9… week of Nov. 30, 2009….

1. A.I.’s coming back to Philly
This story headlines this super-long T-Day weekend. Iverson retired, was led to believe the Knicks would sign him, and is now seeming to be ready to return to the Sixers, where he should’ve started the season. I’ve told everyone who’d listen to me since he was still a Nugget that there were only two places A.I. could go that made sense: Charlotte (with Larry Brown, which by the way is not applicable anymore since the team traded for Stephen Jackson), and Philly (which will always love Iverson more than any athlete in the city’s history, except…maybe…Jimmy Rollins). Both those teams also needed a SG who can score. And oh yeah, A.I. certainly can still do that. After the Jack trade last week, the Sixers were the only team that made sense. I almost was able to talk myself into the Knicks, but luckily that came and went before I could fully embrace that idea. But let’s face some facts; the Sixers are 5-11. They suck. AI2 is a second or third banana at best. Elton Brand is probably a second banana in his prime, which we suspect may be over. Lou Williams is hurt, but even before he got hurt this team couldn’t score.  A.I. just might be that spark to take them back into the playoffs.  It certainly would be a wonderful scene if that happened.

We all know Iverson as a Sixer, that’s how it should have always stayed.  Some guys just belong to a city. Bird belonged to Boston. Jeter belongs to N.Y. Probably a better comparison is Ricky Henderson, my favorite baseball player of all-time. Ricky started his career with the A’s, and had his most memorable seasons after returning. He played for many other organizations, but he belonged to Oakland, always. That’s how Iverson belongs to Philly. It always bugged me that he left.

2. Steelers lose to Ravens in OT, Hines calls out Ben, blah blah blah
Under the subject of “nothing to see here,” Hines called out Ben on TV supposedly. Only he really didn’t. He didn’t actually say anything to call out Ben. He did say that he’s played with concussions before and that he wished Ben was playing. Both of those are facts. Neither directly emplies him calling out Ben. On the other hand, the Steelers’ debut of Dennis Dixon was a mixed bag. He was great in the first half, but the Ravens adjusted well to him in the fourth quarter, and were able to shut him down. Well, on we go to next week hoping to cling to a playoff spot. Coach Tomlin says that the Steelers are going to “Unleash hell here in December,” so at least we got that goin for us.

2. Melo drops 50 on the Knicks
And we come to our second 50 point game of the year, this one a little less surprising. It was by the league’s leading scorer, Mr. Melo. However it wasn’t quite as impressive being that the Nuggets almost tripped over a terrible Knicks team, and did lose to an even worse T-Wolves team a couple nights later. They get Golden State tomorrow night which should be a great scorer’s duel because…

3. Monta Ellis scores 42 on Wed, 45 on Mon
Monta had to go and drop 45 tonight on the Pacers, and then fouls out with six minutes to go. The rate he was goin, he definitely would’ve topped 50 had he stayed in, and it was a pretty crappy call that he fouled out on. Actually Monta picked up a couple of terrible foul calls. But nothing could stop him. The best part of Monta’s development is that he’s starting everything on the defensive end. He guarded Danny Granger for most of the night and held him to 7-17 on the night. I think we are seeing the rise of another young superstar out west.

4. The Kings sweep all 3 Games, finally get some attention
While it’s true that the Kings beat the Knicks, Nets, and CP3-less Hornets, it’s also true that everyone else plays those 3 teams as well (at least until Chris Paul comes back). It’s also true that the Kings now sit at 8-8, and currently stand as the biggest surprise of the young season. J.T. and Tyreke are really the consistents, everyone else has sort of pitched in when needed. Donte Greene had a monster game against the Knicks, Beno Udrih was the MAN against the Nets, and Sergio Rodriguez destroyed the hot Darren Collinson and the Hornets.

5. Saints destroy Pats, ’74 Dolphins’ champagne ice begins to melt
The Saints and the Colts are both undefeated in one of the strangest football seasons I can remember. In other football news, Alex Smith looks to finally be on the right track, both Vince Young’s Titans and T.O.’s Bills are suddenly in the playoff races, and Desean Jackson and Matt Ryan both got hurt.

6. Brandon Jennings and Derrick Rose square off
In what was billed as this year’s eventual Rookie of the Year vs. Last year’s rookie of the year, Young Money and the Bucks beat Rose’s Bulls. Let me explain this a little more. The Bucks are fairly consistent, but not quite as good on their best nights as the Bulls. The Bulls are the opposite. They can play with anyone, and lose to anyone. Very strange team. And while Young Money has been very good, Andrew Bogut and Ersan Ilyasova deserver a lot of the credit for the Bucks’ turnaround as well. Still, this is definitely Young Money’s ship.

7. Rihanna Flops…sorta
In what seemed like the perfect set-up, Rihanna is not living up to expectations and looks to move slightly less than 200K in her first week. Oh well. None of her singles really took off before the release date, so it didn’t end up mattering that she released her album on the biggest retail weekend of the year. And that thing I wrote about her having the biggest album of the year? Let’s just forget I ever said that. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Chris Breeze sells better when his album drops a week from today.

8. Clipse, Kellz, Timbo all spring a leak
As we get into the holiday rush, all of the albums that are actually going to be released should be leaking soon. Clipse I’m excited about, Kellz….ehhhh, Timbo….ehhhh. But all the leaked Clipse songs are dope, especially “Popular Demand,” and the “I’m Good” Remix with Rawwwsssee.

9. North Carolina’s Big Week
Having already lost to Syracuse, NC gets both Michigan State and Kentucky this week. We’ll see what the defending champs are made of, as we rarely see so many tough games scheduled so close to each other, so early in the season. Deon Thompson and Ed Davis are both studs, but what else do they have in the cabinet?

 

The Whole 9….

This, by the way, will be a re-occurring Monday feature. Anyway, the 9 biggest stories of the weekend, through my eyes:

1. Steelers big Loss (es?)
My Steelers lost again, this time to the Chiefs in OT.   But even more important than an embarrassing loss to the worst team in the league: Ben might have suffered a concussion.  If he did, we’re screwed.  Charlie Batch somehow broke his wrist.  And Dennis Dixon would be our starting QB for next week against the Lions.

The game was lost because of shitty special teams, a defense that just never could corral Matt Cassel’s receivers, and a running game that could never quite get started.  Ike Taylor had a chance for a pick that would’ve stopped the eventual game-winning drive, but whiffed at it.  This is what separates Ike from being in that elite crew of CB’s.  Nnamdi Asomugha or Champ Bailey would’ve not only intercepted that, but probably taken it to the house for a pick-6. Even watching Charles Tillman and his ability to knock out fumbles. If we’re strictly talking about coverage, then there’s no one better than Ike. But if you’re talking about a guy who QB’s are scared to throw that direction, Ike isn’t that guy. The worst that happens is an incompletion.

2.The Kings lost a back-to-back.

The Kings lost a back-to-back over the weekend at Dallas on Friday and at Houston on Saturday. As I mentioned earlier, the Kings were Tyreke-less against the Rockets but probably still should have won.  So without their two best players, the Kings barely lost to a (in my estimation) playoff-bound team.  Not bad, but the Kings record is still pretty ugly at 5-7.  Luckily (perhaps?), they get Memphis tonight.  A team with two overrated wingmen, a numbers & ball hog in the post, and a bunch of crap.  So ideally they can get back on the right track, and if Tyreke is back: even better.

3. The Incredibly Strange Saga of Tracy McGrady Continues
Now T-Mac wants to be re-activated and the team doesn’t want him to. It’s clear why they wouldn’t want him: they could get an injury exception if he doesn’t play. But what they are ignoring is that when he’s on, he’s a superstar. One of the 7 or 8 players in the NBA when he’s on. This team is current probably the sixth or seventh best team in the West as currently constructed, without Yao. With T-Mac, they could easily challenge the top. The problem is, what would they do with him? Do they want to discourage Trevor Ariza from playing as well as he is? He’s been the team’s best player thus far. The other wing is manned by Shane Battier, who I’m sure would sit if needed. But the team isn’t going to bench the best defender in the league. This is going to get ugly real quick. Not a good situation.

4. Fiddy Flops
50’s latest album Before I Self Destruct has been targeted for 150k in sales for the first week. A week after taunting Rick Ross by faux-crying over Triple C’s first week numbers, 50 is ironically now changing his stance on sales. What a shocker. 50’s done. Let’s move on. Why do we keep giving podiums to this guy?

5. Lions Win Thriller
It was the “Bad Bowl,” a game we had mocked for weeks. But strangely enough, it was the best game of the day. The Lions beat the Browns, 38-37 on a last second touchdown pass by Matthew Stafford, and the ensuing extra point by Jason Hanson. Stafford threw 5 touchdowns total, and put together 422 yards in the air. His counter part, Brady Quinn, threw for 304 yards and 4 TDs. Calvin Johnson caught 7 passes for 161 yards and a TD. No defense whatsoever, but great television.

6. Wale Flop Fallout
This is really a story from last week, but internet heads take notice: Your two over-hyped artists this year (Wale and Slaughterhouse) both flopped. It is well known that you do not buy albums, but if you do not start giving some sort of support to your artists, no one is going to care about catering to you.

7. The Dubs are A Mess
More on this story later, but now Nellie’s sick too!

8. The Niners are a Passing Team?
Mike Singletary should have been paying attention last week. The Niners tried to run the ball, and fell behind 23-3. Then the team let Alex Smith air it out and almost pulled off a stunning comeback, before running out of time and losing 30-24. This would lead me to the conclusion that with Michael Crabtree, Vernon Davis, and Alex Smith, perhaps the team should be throwing the ball. Don’t forget Josh Morgan, everyone’s pick as a breakout player for this season, and Isaac Bruce, one of the best WR’s in history. Frank Gore is one of the better receiving RBs in football, and they have Joe Staley, one of the best LTs in football, to protect Smith’s blind side.

9. KG’s Shot
In perhaps the only basketball game worth talking about, the Knicks almost pulled the upset of the mighty Celtics at MSG. Unfortunately, KG hit the game winning shot as time expired to back the Truth’s 33 an pull out the win. Too bad for the Knicks, they really suck.

 

Tryin not to Jinx

when it comes down to it, Ben is an elite qb in the NFL

I’m doing my best not to jinx my team. If there’s any sports team I’m most passionate about, its the Pittsburgh Steelers.  DJ Gallo at ESPN claims we have the third best defense ever.  (On a side-note, how typical Steeler-fan am I, when the only thing i really checked on that list is how we ranked against the 2000 Ravens?).  And yes, it’s tough to argue that point.  When everyone is healthy we have 6 or 7 guys who should be Pro Bowlers every year in NT Casey Hampton, DE Aaron Smith, ILB James Farrior, OLB James Harrison, OLB Lamar Woodley, SS Troy Polamalu and maybe CB Ike Taylor.  But what really sets this team apart from the recent teams is Ben’s maturity.

Our QB is an elite QB in the NFL.  I don’t care what anyone says.  There’s only three QB’s are better: Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees.  And I can give you an argument that he’s better than Brees.  Romo?  Puh-leeze, win a game in the snow before we even think about it.  Warner?  He’s had a nice ride this year, but he also stinks in the winter.  Phillip Rivers?  He’s good, but I’d say he’s a year or two behind Ben.  His season this year reminds me of Ben’s 2006 when we were 8-8.  Same thing with Jay Cutler, although he’s more talented.  Carson Palmer? Don’t make me laugh.

While he had a much better stats year last season, (his numbers were very close to Daunte Culpepper’s then-historic 2004 season.  Of course it happened during Brady’s even-more-spectacular season, so it was lost in the translation).  But I still didn’t know if he’d make the key play at the key moment.  Even more questionable was Offensive Coordinator Bruce Arians’ play-calling.  But with the weapons we have this season, I almost get the feeling that the Silver and Gold can make any play work at this point.  Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes give us one of the best WR duos inthe game.  Santonio, who was drafted to essentially replace Plaxico Burress, has actually fit in better than Plax ever did.  Plax was well-liked in the locker room, but had a habit of dropping passes and complaining about not getting the ball enough.  Now mind you, all of this is warranted for someone of his ability and talent.  Especially considering that we were only throwing 15 passes a game then, as he only played one season with Ben.  But Santonio doesn’t drop as many passes, proves perfectly willing to go over the middle, and is willing to defer to Hines when needed.  Santonio seemed questionable when he got a DUI right after being drafted, but he’s been a perfect fit in Pittsburgh.  He’s the perfect speed receiver to compliment Hines’ tough-as-nails, perfect route running.  He’s fit in developing a solid protege role to Hines, and a partner-in-crime role with star RB Willie Parker.  And while he didn’t have the breakout fantasy season that owners were hoping for, he has developed into an elite-level WR.

The Steelers have found a player in Santonio

The offense as a whole is much younger than the veteran D.  Ben, Santonio, Fast Willie, stud TE Heath Miller, and this year’s picks WR Linas Sweed and RB Rashard Mendenhall are all fairly young.  In their run since 2002, the Steelers have done a very good job of upgrading their talent through the draft and making the most of their early draft picks.  In fact their last first round brick was 1999’s selection of WR Troy Edwards.  But even in that draft they made up for it by grabbing Colorado State LB Joey Porter in the third and North Colorado DE Smith in the fifth.  Since then the team’s first round picks: Plax in 2000, Hampton in 2001, G Kendall Simmons in 2002, Polamalu in 2003, Ben in 2004, Miller in 2005, Santonio in 2006, LB Lawrence Timmons in 2007, and Mendenhall this year.  The book is still out on Timmons, who is currently splitting time with ILB Larry Foote, and Mendenhall whose season ended early with an injury, but the rest of that lineup features five pro bowlers and Holmes, who should be one soon, and Simmons, who started all but 4 games in his first 5 seasons.

Something that separates the recent Steelers from those in the past is the spectacular plays of SS Troy Polamalu.  He’s so good it almost helps you forget how well Joey Porter is playing in the M.I.A.  Polamalu is living up to his reputation of the best safety in the league this season.  Perhaps the most exciting defensive player in the game, Polamalu is the Steelers’ unquestioned leader on defense with Porter gone.  He’s got 7 picks this year and a number of bone-crunching hits.  He’s easily looking at a fifth straight Pro Bowl, and should get an easy second first team all pro nod.  In fact, he’s among the 4 or 5 best defensive players in football this season, and his main competition for Defensive Player of the Year is coming from familiar faces: old friend Porter and teammate Woodley.

We have a big game with Tennessee next week that will decide home field for the playoffs.  I’ve stopped trying not to jinx the Steelers, and have begun just enjoying it.  Whether we get another ring or not is almost frivolous at this point.  When we won it all in 2005, I couldn’t watch the Colts playoff game because it made me so nervous.  I won’t make that mistake again.  I’m going to enjoy the ride, win or lose.  And I’m fairly confident that this team, as it stands now, is the best team in the NFL.