General

Shanoff’s W.U.C.: ‘I Think We Have a Series’

Jun 10, 2009, 12:11 PM UTC

Today’s Calls: Kobe vs. the Magic, the Lakers vs. the Road, Tim Floyd vs. USC, NHL vs. Game 7, Stephen Strasburg vs. the Nationals, Red Sox vs. Yankees, Brett Favre vs. the Vikings, Tyler Hansbrough vs. David Lee and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: “By george I think we have a series.”â†µ

â†µâ†µLeave it to Shaq to tweet the perfect coda to Game 3 of the NBA Finals.â†µ

â†µâ†µSure, it took a Finals-record shooting performance from the Magic to hold off the Lakers and stave off an 0-3 hole. (But let’s not play that game: If Courtney Lee’s Game 2 buzzer-beater goes down, the Magic would be up 2-1).â†µ

â†µâ†µThe point is the Magic looked energized — the frenzied home crowd undoubtedly helped — and entirely comfortable shooting on their old familiar baskets. Meanwhile, after letting Kobe get off to a hot start (7-for-10 FG in a uh-oh-here-it-comes 1st quarter), they locked him down, holding him to 4-for-15 FG shooting the rest of the way, 10 points in the 2nd half and — perhaps frazzled — five entirely uncharacteristic FT misses.â†µ

â†µâ†µFor all the talk about the Magic’s inability to win in L.A., it is the Lakers riding the epic road losing streak, tying an NBA record for consecutive Finals road losses. Maybe that actually gives Orlando the advantage — at least over the next two games. Until proven otherwise, presume the Lakers can’t beat the Magic in Orlando. And with the 2-3-2 Finals format, we could see the suddenly confident Magic emerge out of the weekend with a 3-2 lead.â†µ

â†µâ†µI think we have a series.â†µ

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â†µâ†µTim Floyd resigns: It looked like Floyd was going to try to weather the storm of alleged violations that happened under his watch — in hindsight, his resignation seems so obvious. “No longer has enthusiasm for the job” sounds like the understatement — not to mention the euphemism — of the year.â†µ

â†µâ†µYou could see this coming the minute that now-mythic story came out about how O.J. Mayo’s “representative” walked into Floyd’s office and told Floyd that Mayo was picking USC — this without a single recruiting call to Mayo by Floyd, who figured a top star like Mayo would never want to play at USC.â†µ

â†µâ†µMajor college coaching gigs don’t come along every day — yet USC feels so tarnished from the Floyd Era that I have a hard time recognizing what kind of (good) coach would want to come into a situation that seems destined to be saddled with NCAA punishment. (Then again, it IS Teflon USC.)â†µ

â†µâ†µStanley Cup: We’re going to Game 7! The NHL couldn’t ask for a better scenario than its championship round going to a winner-take-all final game — even if it feels like the Red Wings will go back to Detroit and smoke the pesky Pens.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe point is that in a Game 7, you never know. And that makes the game a must-see even for the most casual (or even non-) hockey fan. â†µ

â†µâ†µMeanwhile: If the Penguins can win without a single point from either Crosby or Malkin, maybe they can pull off a miracle in Detroit.â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Draft: Stephen Strasburg went No. 1. The Nationals did their best to showcase why their franchise so desperately needs a high-profile cornerstone — the announcement was lost in a thunderstorm; the awkward GM just HAD to diminish Strasburg’s “best-ever” status; and, of course, they lost to the Reds. Start the bandwagon now: Bryce Harper 2010!â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Talking Pointsâ†µ

â†µâ†µ— Red Sox smack Yanks: Beckett ace? Papi HR? Is this 2006?â†µ

â†µâ†µ— Johan ticked off: Even though he beat the Phils.â†µ

â†µâ†µ— Manny inspiring? Visit leads to 4-HR win?â†µ

â†µâ†µ— NYY wind tunnel a myth: It’s the park dimensions, obviouslyâ†µ

â†µâ†µ— Fantasy Stud: Brad Bergesen (8 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 6 K)â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Draft: Tyler Hansbrough thinks he is the next David Lee. The “hustling your way to a double-double” part, I get. But Lee is one of the top athletes in the NBA — in high school, Lee beat skywalking James White in a dunk contest — and Hansbrough is ... well, let’s just say he’s not.â†µ

â†µâ†µMore Draft: Is Memphis really shopping the No. 2 pick? Well, they don’t really need Ricky Rubio, with all that investment in Mike Conley. (And it sounds like Rubio doesn’t want to play in Memphis anyway.) If the Grizz can, say, trade down to No. 8 (Knicks), they can still get a talented player — and perhaps even more talent (say, the above-mentioned Lee in a sign-and-trade?)â†µ

â†µâ†µCBB: Villanova will be a Final Four team next season. Consider how well they did in 2009 — a Final Four. Then consider that they will be even better in 2010, led by now-returning senior guard Scottie Reynolds (Remember him? He hit the game-winning shot in ‘Nova’s epic tournament win over Pitt), plus the second-best recruiting class behind Kentucky. OK, so that’s two 2010 Final Four spots accounted for in June 2009. â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Coaching Carousel: Paul Westphal gets the Kings job, even though he hasn’t been a head coach in the NBA since 2000. This is one of those moments where “experience” means “re-tread” — and reminds us why the NBA, as a league, has the weakest coaching development system in all of sports.â†µ

â†µâ†µFavre Watch: Don’t be fooled by the Vikings’ news that the team is moving on without Favre. Sure they are: This week. If Favre calls them in four weeks and says, “I’d like to play for you,” they will contort themselves to make it happen.â†µ

â†µâ†µNASCAR Drug Scandal: Jeremy Mayfield tested positive for METH? Yeesh.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: “We weren’t going to pass on the best player in the draft.” â†µ
â†µ— Nationals GM Mike Rizzo, on Stephen Strasburg.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. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/danshanoff. â†µ

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