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Shanoff’s Wake-Up Call: Rain, Oden, Celts

Oct 29, 2008, 12:19 PM UTC

Today’s Calls: Rays vs. Rain, Greg Oden vs. Injuries, Celtics vs. LeBron, Knicks vs. Isiah, Florida vs. Georgia, Matt Painter vs. Lute Olson and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: Now I’m torn, between my rooting interest in the Rays and my rooting interest in getting to bed early.â†µ

â†µâ†µGame 5 is supposed to resume tonight: Four glorious innings that could see either the game -- or even the Series -- wrapped by 10 p.m.â†µ

â†µâ†µWeather in Philly may actually postpone tonight’s game, too, which would be a shame, putting off such novelty:â†µ

â†µâ†µWho else is actually kind of thrilled at the thought of a major-sport championship being concluded at a reasonable hour. Is that selfish?â†µ

â†µâ†µIs there anything more debilitating for fans than midweek championship games that start late -- thanks, West Coast! -- and end even later?â†µ

â†µâ†µWouldn’t it be amazing if, just for once, you could stretch your kids’ bedtime so that they could see a championship being won?â†µ

â†µâ†µEven the most casual MLB fan -- if told all they have to invest is 4 innings’ time and they get to see a title -- might tune in.â†µ

â†µâ†µ(The Series needs the help: Game 5 was the least-watched World Series Game 5 of all time.)â†µ

â†µâ†µIf the ratings are high, just from the novelty, MLB might want consider changing the format of the playoffs to play games 4 innings at a time.â†µ

â†µâ†µSure, in my ideal world, the Rays win the and bring the mo’ -- and a decent night’s sleep for all of us -- back to Florida.â†µ

â†µâ†µBut in an even more ideal world, the game is over in an hour.â†µ

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â†µNBA Opening Night: Greg Oden injured. Who had "Game 1" in the office pool? (What? Most of you? OK, cynics: Come collect your prize.)â†µ

â†µâ†µOden now has a foot problem to go with his knee problem and his wrist problem; it remains to be seen how bad -- or recurring -- this one is.â†µ

â†µâ†µIn 13 minutes, Oden was scoreless (0-4 FG) with 5 rebounds and a block. We have no idea how his presence would have altered the blowout.â†µ

â†µâ†µPerhaps Oden would have helped keep the Lakers from racking up 96 points, but not sure if he could have helped Portland’s 35 percent FG.â†µ

â†µâ†µLet’s just say last night should have reminded everyone how far the gap remains between “up-and-coming” and “already there.”â†µ

â†µâ†µMeanwhile, the defending champs stuck with a proven formula: Slightly more than 50 percent of their scoring from the Big 3 -- and sending LeBron and the Cavs home a loser.â†µ

â†µâ†µAt the other end of the spectrum, in a battle of Lottery-bound losers, rookie Derrick Rose had 11 pts and 9 ast in his NBA debut, with Luol Deng and Ben Gordon leading the Bulls over ex-coach Scott Skiles’ Bucks.â†µ

â†µâ†µTonight’s NBA Openers: All eyes on the new-look Knicks, hosting Wade, Beasley and Miami. ... Best arena atmosphere: Oklahoma City, in the city’s first official game as a “big-league” town. ... Relocation Matchup: Elton Brand vs. Jermaine O’Neal.. ... Rookies to Track: Kevin Love (vs. Sacto) and OJ Mayo (vs. Houston).â†µ

â†µâ†µIsiah WAS the OD victim: Cops confirm it wasn’t a suicide attempt, which cruelly makes it that Thomas merely bungled his dosage. (Speaking of cruel, there is Charles Barkley.)â†µ

â†µâ†µCFB Lead-Up: Florida-Georgia. The teams won’t talk about it, but last year’s “Gator Stomp” is a far bigger motivator for Florida than for Georgia. (How, exactly, could it motivate Georgia?)â†µ

â†µâ†µPhil Fulmer might not be out of a job (yet), but he is going to spend the rest of the season defending himself -- unless the Vols keep losing and he’s ousted first.â†µ

â†µâ†µNFL: Weren’t the Chargers supposed to have a great D? They fired D.C. Ted Cottrell, and -- in a remarkably good week for the careers of former Bears linebackers -- Ron Rivera was promoted to D.C.â†µ

â†µâ†µIyer’s NFL Power Poll: Of the Top 5 (Titans, Giants, Panthers, Redskins, Steelers), who would you pick to actually beat the No. 6 Pats if they met in the playoffs? Maybe the Giants?â†µ

â†µâ†µPro Football Hall Nominees: Bruce Smith, Rod Woodson and Shannon Sharpe are all first-time nominees; all have a decent chance of being voted into the PFHOF. I’m sure Sharpe will be making his own case.â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Hot Stove: Anyone want Prince Fielder? You’ll get a ton of HR and a ton of RBIs -- but a ton of headaches in doing a deal with his agent, Scott Boras.â†µ

â†µâ†µSN CBB Preview: No. 13 Purdue. Matt Painter has quickly turned his program into a solid -- perhaps perennial -- Big Ten contender.â†µ

â†µâ†µThey aren’t flashy; they just win. Won’t do much for Big Ten hoops’ national rep, but it might be enough to get Purdue to the Sweet 16.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe sad case of Lute Olson: Instantly sympathetic for suffering a stroke that led to depression that led to his recent career crater.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: Has there ever been a more valuable ticket stub in recent memory? (Wouldn’t you feel like a jerk if, after you got into the game on Monday, you tossed your stub?)â†µ

â†µâ†µDan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com.â†µ

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