Category: just thoughts

NBA All-Star game intro

There are a few things I’ll be interested in looking to see tonight. Are the NBA ads going to promote N’O the whole night? Will this look like a UNICEF ad at some point. Is this about keeping the Hornets there? Will there be similar ‘Save Seattle’s team’ efforts?

Trade possibilities

Dunk contest revitalization?

Will the East attempt to indicate that the players there are as good as the West players?

Who uses this game to break out?
Paul, Kobe, LeBron, Bosh are my top candidates

I would not be shocked to see either Nugget make an extra attempt to shine tonight. They’re my super darkhorse pick to win the West. More on that starting tomorrow. Actually, probably Tuesday.

TP

WAAAY OVERtime

The clippers/Grizzlies game tonight reached 3:00 left in the fourth quarter at 10:18. (I didn’t notice at the time but DVRd the game so I was able to check.) Because there was an overtime period the game ended at 10:59. The coaches used their time outs smartly and in the flow of the game. Fouls were generally good, smart fouls and nothing problematic happened. But it was 41 minutes!

Please understand this was a well played, fun, exciting game. The teams played hard, individuals excelled, the tremendous range and diversity of NBA talent was wonderfully displayed. But the denouement lasted 41 minutes. Including one that included a Clipper foul and final mad dash to the bucket after Memphis had a 6 point lead and the ball with 03.2 seconds left.

It should be on the horizon of concerns that an NBA game can not unreasonably take 41 minutes to play the last 8 minutes of action. An alteration to the rules regarding the frequency of timeouts needs to be on the table. Other rules change during the last two minutes of the game. Perhaps timeouts should be less available as well.

TP

out of the mouths of babes 2

I was working this morning while my son watched Fairy Oddparents next to me on the couch. In an episode about bad luck, a stupid president inadvertently almost starts a nuclear war. My son interrupted me so he could rewind it because, ‘Hey look, they’re making fun of President Bush!’

I love being a parent.

TP

Land of Confusion

At lunch today I heard a 50 something talking to his family about the problem of high school students no longer being able to find jobs because of all the immigrants in the area. The comment was particularly galling to me because we were in an Indian restaurant! And unless this restaurant has a totally different personnel structure than it did two years ago, nearly everyone who works there is an immigrant. He did not seem to notice the peculiarity in his comments. My goodness.

TP

Cable vs. Networks

Yet another recognition that I’m older than I should be: I still think cable and network TV are different. Not like HBO or Showtime, that stuff still seems like, whoa, you’re really spending money on TV.

Okay, but I do still feel sometimes like, hey, why are you deciding to show that commercial, you’re a network? Other times it’s why did you bleep that word, isn’t this a cable show?

How long ago did I establish my TV parameters? Wow.

TP