FOR THE LOVE OF SPORTS: David Stern

Showing posts with label David Stern. Show all posts

Monday, July 23, 2007

Good Quotes

"Growing up means giving up everything that makes you happy"
- Marge Simpson

"When I met David Beckham I didn't know whether to shake his hand or lick his face”
-Robin Williams

"I've always believed that paradise will have my favorite beer on tap”
-Rudyard Wheatley quotes

"With or without Vick, Atlanta's Atlanta, ... It's not Michael Vick that we have to beat. It's the Atlanta Falcons.”
-Fred Thomas

"Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer.”
-Dave Barry quotes

"My message to (commissioner) David Stern is get some people in there that understand the game and don't try to take over the ... game because people pay good money to see good athletes play.”
-Shaq

"I think that David Stern is probably the greatest commissioner that any sport has ever had in the history of this country.”
-Bill Russell

"No matter if you like Barry Bonds or not, he has a lot of guts to be going through what he's going through right now."
-Donald Trump

Thursday, July 12, 2007

NBA Referee Joey Crawford Reinstated

According to Basketball News and Hoops World, NBA Ref Joey Crawford has been reinstated into the NBA by David Stern. This comes as a surprise because Crawford said that even if he was reinstated by Stern he would never referee another NBA game.

A flurry of publicity surrounded the suspension of NBA referee following a showdown with San Antonio Spurs star Tim Duncan. It was with much less fanfare that Crawford was reinstated. Basketball News has learned that NBA Commissioner David Stern, satisfied that Crawford has learned his lesson, has reinstated one of the NBA's most respected referees. Crawford was suspended for the season after he had words with Duncan and then ejected him during an emotionally-charged game in Dallas against the Mavericks. Duncan was fined $25,000 for his part in the incident. "Especially in light of similar prior acts by this official, a significant suspension is warranted," Stern said at the time. "Although Joey is consistently rated as one of our top referees, he must be held accountable for his actions on the floor, and we will have further discussions with him following the season to be sure he understands his responsibilities."Now an agreement has been reached, and Crawford will once again patrol the NBA hardwoods.

Here is a good quote by Joey C. about this situation given when he got suspended for the rest of the season, "I told him (Stern) I would throw Duncan out again if he did what he did,” Crawford wrote. “So if my employer does not think that was acceptable, then I have a problem.” And remember this one about Dick Bavetta from ESPN's insider:

"Crawford also blasted fellow referee Dick Bavetta in the e-mail obtained by ESPN.com, hinting at divisions among referees between those who do and don’t support Bavetta and writing that maybe Bavetta will wind up as the crew chief in Game 7 of the NBA “which is a travesty in itself you even being in the finals.”

What a great man, I can't wait for him to be back in the NBA throwing players out of games, especially throwing superstars out for laughing. Joey Crawford to Tim Duncan... "you wanna fight about it..."

Thursday, June 7, 2007

The Dreaded 2-3-2

I just want to take a second to talk a little crap about the format of the NBA Finals, which is 2-3-2. Meaning that the home court advantage team gets the first two games at home and the last two, if the series goes to seven games. So, is this really home court advantage? Personally I wouldn't want to be the home team because if home court stays true, the home team will be facing an elimination game during game six.

Every other series in the NBA playoffs is in a 2-2-1-1-1 format. In this case, if home court stays true, the only elimination game the home team will face is game seven. So, why does the NBA do this. There are several theories, but the only one that is valid is the reason of the sports media. When the format is 2-3-2 they only have to make two trips from city to city.

I think this is total crap. For example, I believe one of the main reasons why the Dallas Mavericks lost the NBA Finals last year to the Miami Heat is because of the format of the series. Everyone won their respective home games... (games one-five) and then the Mavs faced an elimination game in game six. We all know that game five of an NBA playoff series is the most crucial when the series is close and especially when is is tied 2-2 and in the NBA Finals this (game 5) is not on the home team's court like every other series. But I guess we have to cater to the worthless media. I know it's tough for them to travel... Another one of David Stern's brilliant ideas.

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

The NBA Lottery

The NBA Lottery was held tonight and neither the Memphis Grizzlies or the Boston Celtics were granted the top one or two picks. This meaning that neither would get the prizes of NCAA stars Greg Oden or Kevin Durant. The first pick went to Portland followed by Seattle then Atlanta, then... oh who cares. I believe this is deserved by Memphis and Boston because both of them definitely dropped games towards the end of the season to increase their odds of getting the top draft pick... well didn't quite work out.

David Stern gave his input, as well, this evening on a number of issues including the NBA Lottery and the suspension handed out during the Western Conference semifinals. Stern said about the lottery,

"I haven't spoken to a lot of owners," Stern said. "On the end of the season and what teams do competitively, I think we should look at the lottery system and see whether it can be improved. I believe that."

Others were also passionite about the lottery,

"It's a system that favors teams to not win games," Philadelphia 76ers president and general manager Billy King said. "I think any time you have a system like that, it's not good for the league. It's something I'm sure that will be brought up and discussed and debated."

Then Stern spoke about the suspensions,

"I've been commissioner for 25 years almost," Stern said. "...You enforce the rules as you see them. And one of reasons the rule is in effect is that we guard zealously the court. We want our fans to be able to have the best seat in sports and we want them to feel safe."

I don't really know where to end this, obviously it's not going to be on a high note, but go NBA... I guess.

Oh yeah... and first pick is definitely Greg Oden and the west is just going to keep getting stronger, being that Portland and Seattle have the first two picks. Spurs still dominate though.

AP Source: [David Stern defends suspension rules, but wants to examine lottery]

Karma and what the Celtics definitely deserve [Take A Dive. You Get Five.] & [Boston Is Blazin' Mad (NBA Lottery Blog)]