Thursday Things

Things I barely have the energy to type about:

1) Another mediocre Chan Ho Park start
2) Another Steroid Development
3) Another "Mark Cuban is mad at a media member" non-story

Things I have plenty of energy to type about but not enough time for today:

1) Which DE or LB should the Cowboys consider at #11?
2) Why is the Dampier injury not healing in the 2-3 weeks originally forcasted?
3) Why does ESPN have the broadcast rights to the Champions League and then not want to air any of the games? Why not give it to Fox Soccer or Gol if it is such a burden to the World Wide Leader in self promotion?

Links:

Chan Ho Park at it again …

Mavericks expect to have Dirk and Finley back tonight for the Lakers …

Revo on the steroid session in Washington …

Tyson speaks with wisdom …

"What I am, I am an alchemist," Tyson said.

"There are very talented individuals and they can take kaka and make money out of it ... And I'm just the opposite. I take money and turn it into kaka."

King defends his pro-Cowboys stance in Free Agency …

Dan McGraw back at it As he takes on Hicks (again) in the FT Worth Weekly …

Glenn Davis, 80 …

Mariano Rivera moved his family to avoid kidnappings …

Lakers arrive in town …

If the playoffs began today, they would commence without the Lakers for the first time since 1994.

"We just have to win ballgames," said Hamblen, whose team is half a game behind the Denver Nuggets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. "The big thing about it is, we want to stay together as a team and not get fragmented."

That could prove tricky heading into what Hamblen called a "monster" trip, a stretch of six games in nine days beginning tonight against the Dallas Mavericks. Four of the six games are against teams that would currently qualify for the playoffs, including the Southeast Division-leading Miami Heat.

"This trip can help extend our season or shorten it," forward Lamar Odom said. "Right now, we're in a great position. Everyone is counting us out, saying they think we're not going to do it. It's the perfect time right now for us to sneak back up on a couple of these teams to try and get our spot back."

Adande says the Lakers should send Kobe to the lottery if they miss the playoffs …

Here are some more things to ponder: Magic Johnson's Laker teams never missed the playoffs. Neither did Elgin Baylor's nor Jerry West's.

Bryant wanted responsibility for the franchise, he got it and he should accept everything that comes with it. Every year a representative from each team in the lottery sits on a stage in Secaucus and waits to learn his team's draft position. Bryant is the face of these laKers, so he should show his at the lottery, if necessary.

The mysterious voice mail gag …Is it a real call? I still doubt it…

Liverpool pounds Leverkusen on German Soil to advance …Just a few days after my boys frustrated me, they go and do this. They advance to the Quarterfinals of the European Cup (Champions League for the newbies) and shock the football world. Despite lack of talent, and injuries of the talent they do have, they found the ability to stay alive in a tournament where they are the “uninvited guests”. Anyone who follows World Football would have to admit that Liverpool would have received huge odds to survive longer than Arsenal, Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Barcelona. But, the Cinderella stays alive and awaits the draw for their next opponent. Let’s hope to avoid Chelsea.

And now, Email:

Bob,

Being that you are the soccer authority of record at the little sport Ticket, I thought you might want to see the new FC Dallas kits.

Link

Thanks for mentioning the beautiful game.

Nick,
The FC Dallas blowhard

Thanks, Nick. I did check it out, and below, please find what appear to be the new kits (jerseys) for FC Dallas. There has been no official confirmation that this is the real deal, but then I considered what the odds were of someone taking the time to design fake new jerseys for FC Dallas.

And, then the alternate:

I give them a very positive review. Now, if we could get that new stadium open on time we will be in business…

Hey Sports Sturm,

Here's an article regarding the downfall of the Indy 500 and rise of NASCAR...

NASCAR Beats Champ, IRL in the Ratings War, and it's Not Even Close
Written by: Robin Miller – 2/23/2005

The NASCAR juggernaut continued as last Sunday's Daytona 500 tied an all-time high with a 10.9 rating on FOX and Friday night's Craftsman Trucks drew an all-time best for SPEED of 2.1. And, if that's not impressive enough, there's talk next year's Daytona race won't start until 5 p.m. so it can finish in prime time and really put up a staggering number.

To put that Daytona rating in proper perspective, we need to realize that a 10.9 was larger than all 14 Champ Car races added together and multiplied by three on SPIKE last season and it almost topped the Indy Racing League's total for 16 races on ABC and ESPN. The IRL averaged a paltry 0.8 rating in 2004 and Champ Car's was so pathetic it barely registered as a test pattern.

That's how lopsided this deal has become during the past decade.

And, considering all the competition for viewers among the USA's 109.6 million TV homes, it makes NASCAR's number even more jaw dropping.

But there was a time when the Indianapolis 500 ruled and pulled in nothing but double digits.

From 1973 to 1984, Indianapolis never drew anything under a 12.3 and it topped out at 17.9 in 1976. Granted, these were the days of only three major networks and cable was in its infancy in the mid-80s but you also have to remember that Indy was shown TAPE DELAYED in prime time during that period.

It wasn't telecast live until 1986 and the rain-delayed Saturday show still managed an 8.8 rating. That was followed by the largest live audience ever of 11.1 in 1987. As ESPN shoved NASCAR towards the mainstream in the '80s and early '90s, it coincided with cable taking off so those 14s, 15s, 16s and 17s were never seen again for Indy.

Still, despite the misinformation spewed by some experts, Indy more than held its own against Daytona until the split in 1996.

The highest number in the '90s for Indy was a 10.9 in 1992, while Daytona's best during that decade was a 9.6 in 1999 on CBS. And, in the last real Indy 500 in 1995, Jacques Villeneuve's victory garnered an 8.4 compared to the 7.8 for Sterling Marlin's second straight win.

That first IRL 500 in '96 only dropped to 6.6, but it then bottomed out at 3.1 in 2002. Last May, the 500 pulled a 4.1 --lower than most Nextel Cup pre-race show's and two points behind the 2004 Brickyard 400.

After last year's disaster, Champ Car bought its way back on CBS, NBC and SPEED but you understand the reality of today's TV ratings when Champ Car issues a press release boasting of a 1.2.
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Also, if you want to see the highest level of auto racing, check out Formula 1 on speed. The racing is quite different from NASCAR since it isn't oval and there are no caution flags to artificially bunch up the cars. Once the cars sort out based on their speed, there's not much passing, so a lot of people call it a parade. But, watching the most technical, cutting edge engineering is incredible in its own right. Plus, there're few things in sport more exciting than the standing start.