Closing the Books on Round 1

Things learned during a Game 7 laugher:

· Darrell Armstrong (above, right) does serve a purpose. Potentially a big one. He was flat-out money on Saturday.
· Tracy McGrady, even when having a bad game is still the best player on the floor by a mile.
· Dirk is either really sick or really off. Most likely, both.
· Yao Ming can still have huge numbers and look like he could be 100% better.
· Jon Barry, Scott Padgett, and Ryan Bowen would be sweet CBA players.
· This one is amazing: Dirk and Stackhouse could combine for 3-13 in the first half, and the Mavericks could still be ahead 15.
· Jason Terry may not be the best PG in the league, but how do you get him off the floor when he can do THAT? (there can be no “open competition” for his job in the fall with Devin.
· Michael Finley is still quite useful. Without his shots early and his defense on McGrady, the game isn’t blown open when it was.
· Marquis Daniels still scares me. But he needs to shake out of it for Phoenix. And while this may seem crazy, I think KVH better heal quickly, too.
· Jeff Van Gundy is a stand up guy. Houston is in fine hands.
· Mavericks fans can be really loud when they put their minds to it.
· Sitting between Ben and Skin makes for an amusing evening.
· If Dirk’s game comes back, and he maintains his current level of rebounding and defense, he will be unstoppable.
· Erick Dampier looks worth more than Shawn Bradley when he actually plays with a brain.
· As soon as Mike James gets ejected, the Mavericks feel comfortable putting Devin Harris in the game.


So, it is on to Phoenix. More on that soon enough…



Links:

The incredible Kenny Rogers rolls on …Now, 6 quality starts in 7 trips to the hill…

"His sinker is so good that sometimes they will get themselves out," catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. said. "Even when he fights with command and gets in a jam, he makes a pitch when he needs one, gets a ground ball and gets out of the inning."

Rogers has the longest scoreless streak by a Rangers starter since he set the club record with 39 innings in 1995. He lowered his ERA to 1.79 to take over the AL lead. He extended his streak of innings without a home run to 30. He's allowed just one homer in 45 innings this year; the 0.20 ratio per nine innings is the best in the AL.

Zaun gets knocked silly …


More marketing genius from the Texas Rangers …

Napoleon Dynamite Mavericks ad …

Comedy Alert: The story of Kellen Winslow’s stupidity …What a 4-year old…

Stay at Home Mom’s get a raise …

The confounding Kwame Brown …

Dukes of Hazzard movie trailer …

From a good P1:

This is a tidbit from TV Guide.com’s daily Entertainment News column on Star Wars Ep III:

THE SITH ELEMENT: The first reviews for Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith are in, and as Yoda might say, "Awful, this one isn't." Variety says the final chapter in George Lucas' space saga "irons out most of the problems [from Episodes I and II], and emerges as the best in the overall series since The Empire Strikes Back." The Hollywood Reporter, meanwhile, calls the film "genuinely thrilling," adding that Lucas "ends the six-movie series on such a high note that one feels like yelling out, "Rewind!" And yours truly, who caught a preview screening last night just hours after returning from a weeklong vacation, raves, "This almost makes up for that Jar-Jar debacle... I said almost.

For those who enjoy comedy, Tom Gribble from 2001 …

Tom Gribble, assistant program director at Xtra Sports went right for the jugular vein. Xtra Sports is billing itself as Dallas-Fort Worth's only all-sports station.

"We want to take on The Ticket," said Gribble, who previously was executive producer for Kidd Kraddick's top-rated morning program on KISS-FM. "They do a great job at what they do, but I think sports fans here are tired of that general guy talk. I don't think they want to hear Dunham and Miller talk about Hogan's Hero's or listen to Gordo (The Ticket's Gordon Keith) discuss the merits of above ground or below ground burial plots. Until now they haven't had much choice."

Later in the interview, Gribble turned his guns on ESPN.

"I don't think they ESPN delivers the national perspective they claim," says Gribble,. "They have an East Coast perspective. If it's not something that happens in New York, Boston or Washington they don't really care about it. They're problem is that they're a button-down broadcaster. They are the CNN of sports, which is OK, but opinionated sports talk has never been their forte."

That is why we hired him.