FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Summertime, and the livin' is easy... right? At least that's the way its supposed to go.  Me, I've been completely slammed at work. Stuck holding down the fort at work while my comrades enjoy their vacation time. One guy is in Hawaii - that lucky b*stard. The other one is in Iowa - which doesn't strike me as a vacation spot right about now, but can't be much worse than where I'm at here in Still Smoldering Northern California. Interesting about that - there are no firefighters to supervise the fireworks shows here, so 4^th of July will be postponed until August 30^th. I'm not kidding, that's real. Even without fireworks, beer is on sale everywhere. Just remember, the fuzz will be everywhere as well, so no driving while buzzing out there, ya hear? But without further ado, its time to look into the world of sports for this, our country's 232^nd birthday. 

A move close to my heart has been the Baron Davis jumping ship to the franchise formerly known as the Buffalo Braves. Before you run out and reserve your Clipper playoff tickets yet, there is something you may want to consider. Baron played on the Warriors last season, And we were a Lottery Team. Really, that part I didn't make up. Baron Davis' team didn't make the playoffs last year, Ok? He is an exciting player, no doubt. But is he an elite player who can lead his team Kobe-like into the Finals? No. See, if that were true, Kobe's Lakers would have had to battle the W's in the playoffs last year, and look at the SI archives - the Warriors weren't invited to the party. As a Warrior fan, I'm not truly broken up about Baron's departure. All year long last year we felt we were just one Baron knee twist from disaster. He managed to hold it together for 82 games, but if he were 100%, why were the W's not offering to extend his deal? This explains very well to me why Mullin didn't do anything after the draft and let his $9.9 million trade exception expire - I bet he knew he had $17.8 million coming off the books July 1.

In other sports news, Wimbledon is happening. I'm not really sure who is playing. Men or women, I really have a hard time giving a crap about this sport. Oh sure, it was fun back in the day, when that crybaby McEnroe would argue with the Umps over in or out, then go up and have to play against Bjorn Borg, who would smoke him. Those were the days. Then there was the big women's tennis movement, and all the stars they produced. But really now, with the internet, if I want to see women in short skirts grunting, I can easily find something to fulfill that need, and the short skirts are even optional. So I'll take a pass on this event, drink some beer and try to play Badminton in the backyard while the Q is going, thanks.

So lets talk about a sport we actually care about. Lets talk some Football. Rodger Goodell has come out saying that rookie contracts are "ridiculous", and that's generated a lot of talk. As a veteran of union/management negotiations though, I'm telling you this is nothing to get excited about. Typical management PR ploy, to get that chip on the table and the issue out in the press. Now, the union can look like the bad guy fighting against it. But truth be known, management probably likes things just fine the way they are. True, the top rookies are getting larger and larger contracts. But the lower echelon draft pick and his non-guaranteed contract? Oh, they like that just fine. So I wouldn't get all too excited that the NFL will go the NBA's way with a rookie contract scale. It's a just a negotiation ploy, and should be taken with a grain of salt. Rodger Goodell thinks you're stupid, folks.

There is nothing like returning to the United States after being out of the country. I've been fortunate enough to do some traveling in my life, and I've seen some incredible places and met some fascinating people. Every time, though, it always feels so good to be back on US soil. I don't want to exclude my Canadian friends though. Last summer at this time, I was in Canada during Canada Day and obviously, missed the 4^th of July in the US. Good times, great beer (but too expensive!), and plenty of beautiful scenery. It was also cool in Canada how everyone seemed to like to eat ice cream. Perhaps because I was there in the summer, and y'all were trying to cool down to your normal temps. I dunno. I live in a place where it reaches 115 F at least once in the summer, and to see a week of 100+ temps is no big deal. Yet, we still don't eat as much ice cream as a Canadian will when its 75 (or whatever the Celsius equivalent is) out.

So please everyone, have a safe and sane 4^th of July out there. Remember why this country is so great and how fortunate we are to live here. Sometimes it seems like the bad news is overwhelming us. There are wildfires in California, floods in the Heartland, and before you know it hurricane season will be upon us. Gas is going to $5 gallon and our houses are worth less than what we paid for them. One thing about our country I know, though, we will get through it. There will be good days ahead, although who can say if it will be sooner rather than later. Whenever I'm feeling down about living in the USA, I always look to the things that I can believe in, the things that make our country great. Have a great weekend everyone.