The Stankoniforous Files

I won't delve too deep into the Vick's reinstatement prospects. I will say this whole "the NFL's a privilege" business kinda irks me. Instead of me explaining why, I will tell you to read this.

A snippet to whet your appetite. Stank-0 I think we have a candidate for the blogroll.

This is the stupidest saying in all of sports, that the chance to make millions playing a game is a privilege. Really? Nothing is earned here? You mean to tell me the time from when these guys are in grade school, working almost year round on their respective sport’s skills and training their bodies, that they haven’t EARNED their spot in pro sports? Really?

Not sure how to title this, here goes. In the library, Stank-0 overheard some undergrad white girls dissecting a Gatorade commercial featuring MJ. It was part of a report they were doing. From the snippets Stank-0 heard they are comparing and contrasting the media portrayals of women and men in sports. Men are shown as rugged and actively participating while women are sensualized for their commercials. What caught Stank-0's attention was they took offense that MJ was dark and primal black man because they had him sweating Gatorade in those series of commercials.

First of all, black men are "other" anyway so to highlight just the sports aspect is kinda belittling. Stank-0 as, a black male, did not see the primal otherness of the commercial. MJ is dark for starters (Stank-0 saw him at a senior players basketball tryout back in 2000 and he could have doubled for my shadow) so that kinda takes away from that. Secondly, it was a juxtaposition between his skin tone so that the Gatorade would be highlighted. Nothing to see here move along, right?

Where the 2520s correct? Was Stank-0 minimizing the other-ization of MJ?

All I hear in the streets (read: blogosphere and ESPN) is talk of the "steriods era." That is highly dubious as Orson Welles would say. I found this article over at Only Baseball Matters that gives some context. The crux of the article is this: the "steriod era" goes back more than 40 years.


Go read OBM and the SI article, they are good reads. Fellow Stankoniforous Files writers and readers, what are your thoughts?

Let's call a spade and spade and look at the Conference Finals.

In the West, it will be the Nuggets and...the Lakers. That will be quite a conference series. I will leave it to others to either handicap the finals or give different projections.

In the East, it will be Cleveland and Boston. Lock it up. This series won't last long. Cleveland in 4 or 5. MVP James is a meast. The KG-less Celtics are just a bump in the round for the Cavs on their way to the Finals.

Thoughts? Am I right, wrong, delusional?

I wsa just sent this article and it included the caption.

"Man I was at the computer like a little kid, with my hands up under my chin just reading. "

I cannot explain this story any better than that.

Take some time, read and enjoy.

Smooth AKA Mr. Big Shot

S.

Well Mr. King James has won the MVP award, and his Cavs are 8-0 in the playoffs..... Will they get to the finals? All signs point to yes, but honestly they really haven't been tested.

In my heart of hearts I hope the Cavs make it. Now as for who they play, I am a Nuggests fan, so I hope Denver gets there. Now who will I want to win, I dont know. It was sorta like the Superbowl match up. If Pittsburgh won, I was happy. If Arizona won I was happy Fitzgerald and The EDGE got rings. In this matchup I absolutely want Melo to get a Ring. I am a Melo fan, back to his days as a prep at Towson Catholic and then at Oak Hill. Now if LeBron wins I wont be heartbroken, I will be happy for his team.

Now with all that said, we know Nike and the rest of the NBA (WORLD) wants a Lakers v Cavs finals.

Peep the video...



Now tell me who wins if there is a Lakers v Cavs finals? Nike!!!!! When else has there been a matchup in the finals with arguably the two biggest names in a sport facing off, AND they wear the same brand of shoes???? Jordan v Magic = Nope, Nike v Converse / Magic. Bird v Magic, Well yes they both wore converse weapons, but back then Converse was the only player.

Thoughts???


S.

SPS, its funny you should mention BBD shoving the kid after nailing the game winner, because the kid's father is demanding an apology. No really. I think it's really really stoopid to come after him after he hit the biggest shot of his career, but it's happening anyway.

According to Shannon Owens of the Orlando Sentinel, Provetti says Davis shoved his 12-year-old son Nicholas with such force, that Nicholas' baseball cap catapulted into the air and his son went tumbling into his courtside seat.

While I may not calling another man Baby (just sorta a personal thing) Glen "Big Baby" Davis made me a fan when he was a LSU eating all the Chicken and the HogMAWLS (Thanks Friday!!!!) He also was a huge deal in the SEC and helped to make the LSU team matter when Florida routinely killed all the competition in conference.

Well yesterday he made the shot, and the push heard round the internet....... world. I must say that Big Baby has grown on me more as a Celtic than I thought he would. As a role player last year he hugged the bench pretty tight. This year with the loss of KG and Leon Powe he has really stepped up.

So save for his hair experiments this year (GROWN MEN DONT WEAR MOWHAWKS.... well maybe Ron Artest does, but the only 2 guys that I can remember in the NBA with numbers that high 96 for Artest and 99 for Dennis Rodman; Nuff Said) I am glad he has gotten better and can contribute. I guess its because I myself am a big guy and have a love for basketball, football and lacrosse. So looking at BBD, reminds me of Oliver Miller, Natrone Means, and Christian Okoe.....

So here is to you BIG BABY!!!! and I hope you dont get fined or suspended for the push on the kid...

During the Lakers-Rockets game, they showed the bench, and who did I see but....James "Flight" White among the bench mob. For those in the know, White got hoops and was runner up in a college dunk contest.

Some of his memorable dunks can be found, here.

In case you haven't heard a true legend passed away. Chuck Daly, Pistons coach for 2 NBA titles and the original Dream Team, died at the age of 78 from pancreatic cancer.

It wasn't really surprising, his condition was mentioned towards the end of the regular season. Daly was the quintessential old school 80s NBA coach and perfectly suited for the Pistons.

I remember him during the 92 Olympics, absolutely refusing to call a timeout. Honestly, why should he? Magic, Bird, MJ, Ewing, the Admiral, Sir Charles, Stockton-and-Malone, Scottie, Clyde the Glide,Mullin, and Laettner. There's not need to call any, let them play it out.

I also remember Daly's stint with the Magic. It did not go well, b/c Penny was a lil cake @ss simp. You have to admire Daly's grit. He will be missed. The NBA fraternity lost a good one.

Glenn James/Getty Images

You all can pencil in the Nuggets for the WCF. No one has ever come back from a 0-3 deficit. The only question is do you bring brooms or close out in the Mile High. What can be said about Melo?! Holla at ya people! Though that was a foul, real talk.

How did the Mavericks come to such a sorry state. If Manu Ginobili hadn't been injured, they wouldn't even be here. Don't lie to yourselves. The Spurs would have advanced instead.

I can understand the Mav's players being upset. I would be too but not in the officials' grills. You have another game to play in a few days.

This is interesting allow me to get there. Manny Ramirez has been suspended 50 games for failing a drug test....for a fertility drug, hCG. That is odd, until you realize that steroid users take the fertility drug to restart the body's natural testosterone production. This is normal because a steroid cycle tends to shut down natural testosterone production.

So this now casts some doubts about Ramirez's use. I want to believe that it wasn't steroids. We shall see.

Manny, say it ain't so?

Obviously, Jay's jack move to Chi warrants top billing...for now. A failed trade attempt leads to not speakin which leads to a QB on the cusp of stardom being dealt. Congratulations are in order to Pat Bowlen, neophyte head coach Josh McDaniels, and of course Jay Cutler. Hope you all got what you wanted.

Matthew Stafford for getting HOF money for the 1st pick in the draft.

Jason Campbell for convincing the Skins not to draft yet another QB.

Tony Gonzalez for finally gettin his wish and gettin traded out of KC.

Chauncey Billups for giving Nuggets' fans hopes of gettin out of the 1st round for the 1st time in 5 years.

The Denver Nuggets for doing what they haven't been able to do for quite some time. Get into the 2nd round!

Torry Holt for finding a new team to catch passes for.

Paul Williams for punching the stuffing out of Winky Wright.

Roy Williams for finally winning a title with his own players.'

The Bulls-Celtics epic series is an instant classic. INSTANT CLASSIC!