Thoughts about the NBA

Fact: I can’t stand basketball. In fact, the pleasure I feel watching a fast-paced, really important basketball  game ranks somewhere slightly below cleaning up baby vomit. And, as I’ve had to do that a few times recently, I can say with certainty I’m absolutely not using hyperbole with that statement.

It’s a mystery.

Which is why it might seem strange that I suggest you read an article – a fairly long article, I might add/warn – that is solely about the NBA, what’s happening now, and where it’s headed. Written by a cat named Bill Simmons, this article kept me reading, interested, and engaged. And, when all was said and done, it left me shaking my head in wonder.

I had no idea…

“Clearly, we wouldn’t put this budding debacle on par with the Gulf War, the collapse of American car companies, the real estate quagmire, the implosion of Wall Street, the decline of the American dollar, the shaky footing of previously untouchable media institutions (newspapers, magazines, TV networks, movie studios and publishing companies), or even Vegas and the porn industry caving financially.”

Photo by StuSeeger

2008 Tuesday wrap-up (final)

And so ends my fantasy football season in both leagues. As with most weeks this year, I lost by a point or two, did well enough to beat most of the teams playing, but played one of the few teams I couldn’t. Ugh. What a bummer of a season.

The upside is now I can watch and enjoy games as a whole rather than with a focused investment in individual players. It’s kind of weird watching a game where you’re rooting for team A because it’s your favorite team, but you’re hoping team B does well here, here, and here so you can make points.

Of course, my favorite team isn’t entirely dissimilar to both fantasy teams in regard to performance. Go Jags.   

Tuesday wrap-up

Today makes two weeks in a row I’ve lost both of my fantasy football leagues. I’m, remarkably, 4 wins and 7 losses in both leagues and I just can’t seem to get it together. To be fair, one league found me scrambling for a new quarterback when I lost Tom Brady and the other had a similar situation when Tony Romo broke his pinky. But the loss of both of those players shouldn’t have been my downfall.

And in fact, they weren’t. Nope, for me, each week (for the most part) I’ve done reasonably well. Side by side, I would have beaten about 70% of the teams in each league, just not the one I was playing. Take last night, for instance. One of my players, Buffalo’s rookie wide receiver Lee Evans, managed to catch not a single thing the entire game. Zip. That powerhouse performance clinched my seventh loss by 4 points.  The other game I lost by a whopping 2.5 points.

Color me ecstatic.

So, what is the universe trying to tell me? Is it saying I need to learn patience? A shift in priorities? Focus on the important stuff and let the small things slide?

I think it’s saying the Buffalo still stinks and not to get my hopes up. There’s always next season.

A weekend suggestion

Not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but I didn’t really get into football until well into my 20s. Closer to 30, really. It happened the summer I moved in with a good buddy of mine named Aaron. We were bachelors and both worked in the restaurant business, so our hours were such that most nights you could find us sitting on our patio, smoking and talking, only finally calling it a day as the sun was coming up. Good times.

Aaron was nuts for Madden football. And, since it’s much more fun playing and talking trash with a live person, it wasn’t long until he’d convinced me to pick up the Playstation controller and give it a whirl. Given I’d watched a total of two full football games in my entire life before that, it wasn’t really surprising I was awful. Game after game, he pummeled me for a solid three weeks until I slowly got better. I learned the formations, the calls, the penalties, and all the other things about the game that had, until that point, been an absolute mystery.

And then an odd thing happened: when football season rolled around and I sat down that first Sunday to watch a game I had a fantastic time. Thanks to Madden, I was now able to follow the game, the plays, even the commentary, and understand what the hell was going on. I was in bliss.

As “way leads on to way,” it wasn’t too long before I found myself muddling my way through my first fantasy football league. Each year since has been a blast (if you discount the heartache that is Donovan McNabb), but more on that later. For now, I leave you with this suggestion:

If ever you have the opportunity to join three leagues during a season, for the love of God, don’t. It’s only week two and I’m already losing my mind come Sundays. Not sure how I’m going to get through this season sane and without an eye twitch.  

photo by portorikan