Cool Post: World's Farthest Shot...

I saw this last week (courtesy of rivals.com and Yahoo!) Pretty amazing shot!

Recent transformation of a Team

I just want to touch on one of the recent highlights in sports...last week, the Boston Celtics NBA team announced the signing of forward Shaquille O'Neal. I think, if he can remain healthy, O'Neal is a great addition to the team.

After all, the person who was the team's tallest player last season, Kevin Garnett, is not even seven feet tall. This can be a vital addition for the team when it comes to increasing rebounds and scoring inside points against teams with players that are massive in height...weight as well.

Good luck, Boston.

NCAA violations punish more than the school

written by:stacia_doss.

So often, colleges are unveiled for their shady dealings like providing money, cars, plane tickets, etc. to their "star athletes" along with their families. The families accept these offers, and they

often blow up in the school's face somewhere down the line. I wonder if it will ever stop and if (and I'm sure) there are cases of these deals that have never been discovered.


The University of Southern California is the latest to hit the news. Former USC player and current Memphis Grizzly, O.J. Mayo, is still under investigation. But what's even bigger is the Trojan football scandal..And guess what? It's five years later.

As I think back to my Alma mater, The University of Memphis, I reminisce on the whole Derrick Rose fiasco. Because he was technically ineligible during the 2007-2008 school year, the entire record of wins (which was historical) had to be forfeited; basically wiped from history. So I guess we can say it never even happened, but at least it wasn't five years later. It was only one or two.

What I find a bit sad about this USC case is that current NFL player, Reggie Bush, led the Trojans to their victorious national championship in 2004.

For his athletic ability, Bush was awarded the Heisman trophy in 2005. Everything from 2004-2005 has to be erased, possibly including his Heisman trophy. He's had it for nearly five years. He probably placed on a mantle with pride, and now, he may soon have to seize it like it never existed.

The thing that makes this different is that in most cases, the player is long gone and gets nothing much more than a slap on the wrist. (Such as the Derrick Rose case.)Even in the huge University of Michigan scandal with Chris Webber, he was only fined and briefly suspended from the National Basketball Association. If you ask me, that's not much (to an NBA player).

The school is generally the one that suffers in these situations. In this situation, punishment has been heavily weighted against USC. While the player who caused all the wins walks away practically scotch-free, the present and former students who supported the team through it all are swept of the historical victories. Meanwhile, the player is enjoying his time in a professional league making a ludicrous amount of money.

I have sympathy for Reggie Bush, but for once, it's good to see that the school isn't the only one punished. After all, the offers that violated NCAA regulations could have been avoided with the refusal to accept them. These cases are a two-way street. They cannot be solely blamed on the school, because accepting that the offers were wrong and refusing to take them was always an option.

Memphis Grizzlies..Bright future?

written by: stacia_doss.

I must admit that I haven't been following the Summer league progression of the Memphis Grizzlies. At first, I didn't want to, honestly. But I feel like I finally understand their draft choices and recent acquirement of players. I definitely think this young team will be a better and stronger one than it was this past season.

For the 2009-2010 season, the team performed very well. Coach (Lionel) Hollins did a great job with them, but a large part of what hurt the team was the lack of points from the bench. Also, getting the flow of chemistry between players just right after the dramatic and short Iverson era. This explains why the team has recently signed a number of guards.

The newest signee is Tony Allen, former Boston Celtics guard. He joins other new players Greivis Vasquez and Xavier Henry with hopes to lead Memphis a step further this season. I hope that with the recent additions, the players will take the Grizzlies franchise into the playoffs.

I see all the potential and I have faith in them.=)

Check out what Pete Pranica had to say, so far, about the Summer league with Memphis here.

Obama Administration: Was firing Shirley Sherrod wrong?

written by:stacia_doss.

This week, Shirley Sherrod, former Georgia Director for Rural Development for the U.S. Department of Agriculture,was fired by Thomas J. Vilsak, the Secretary of Agriculture, for former comments made to the NAACP.

The Background: Conservative Blogger, Andrew Breitbart , published an edited video on Monday, showing Sherrod speaking during an NAACP function. The clip showed her saying that when a white farmer had once asked her for help in saving his farm,she did not “give him the full force of what I could do” to help him, because of his race."

With the recent revealing of honest and blantant racism within the Tea Party, USDA(United States Department of Agriculture) fired Sherrod, with a non-tolerance attitude and justification for eliminating any speculation of reverse racism within the administration.

What the tape did not show was the rest of the speech, where Sherrod says that she did indeed help the white farmer and his wife in saving their farm.

My Take: The termination of Sherrod was hasty and unnecessary. I believe she should be re-instated. Her words were taken in part, not in full spectrum, and blown out of proportion. Had the administration seen the WHOLE video , it would have seen the entire story. No one should be fired off of an incomplete statement. It's simply not right or fair.

As I was watching the news last night, I saw the Georgia farmer and his wife that asked Sherrod for help all those years ago. They were thankful for what she had done, and stated that racism towards them was completely absent. She did everything in her power to help them.(Watch from this post) So why do the critics refuse to believe the opposite? Ignorance. It was just an attack to counteract the overwhelming recent discussion of the racist Tea party and diverge attention away from it.

It's only Tuesday...

And this week's news has already been tragic and full of drama.

LeBron James

In his attendance of fellow NBA player, Carmello Anthony's wedding on Saturday in New York to television personality Lala Vasquez, he was booed by several Knicks fans. What a way to steal the shine from the bride and groom, huh? They[Knicks fans] will get over it!

Also, Dan Gilbert, owner of James' former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, was threatened by commissioner David Stern about a fine for his comments on James' departure. His threat was more like a promise, seeing as how Stern fined Gilbert shortly after by $100,000 dollars. That sounds pretty steep for most of us, but probably not much for him. I bet it was just enough to make him cease with his comments, though.

George Steinbrenner
A controversial owner of a different sports team, baseball, has passed away. The owner of the New York Yankees, George "The Boss" Steinbrenner died today, Tuesday, July 13, at age 80. Read more about him.

Bishop Walter Hawkins
A Gospel great, Bishop Walter Hawkins passed away on Sunday at age 61. He recorded so many touching and uplifting songs over the course of his short life, inspiring several of today's younger artists within the gospel genre. Read more about him.

We'll see what the rest of the week bears for us..hopefully good news!=)

LeBron James Update:The Verdict is...Miami

written by:stacia_doss.
LeBron James made the decision to leave his hometown of Cleveland Thursday morning, he said in his official announcement on ESPN later that night. Several Cavalier fans were upset with his decision. Ultimately, James chose playing on another team with other NBA stars for the hope of winning a championship over the money Cleveland had to offer him. He will join Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade with the Miami Heat in the upcoming NBA season. The only question at hand is whether or not these players,(who are used to being the "main men" on their home courts), can put their egos to rest and allow each other to take turns stepping up during games.

What I'm thinking the team is hoping to achieve is a group like the '07-08 Boston Celtics, or maybe even the '03-'04 Detroit Pistons team. Both teams had great players and there wasn't always the same,constant leading scorer. With each game, the teams worked together and different leaders stepped up to do their individual parts towards the goal of winning.

I'm excited for the '10-'11 NBA season. We'll see where the Miami Heat ends up and I'll be sure to keep a lookout for pre-season team performance.