Mailbag - June Edition
That's right people; it's time for your emails to guide a column. I think it's pretty self-explanatory, so let's jump into it. My answers are in bold.
Q: Do you think Tiger's injury will dramatically affect his career? How many years do you see this chopping off? (Frank from Los Angeles)
A: First, I'm not an M.D., but I did have a debate with my father on this one (my Dad is an M.D. so you might wonder why I bothered arguing without any expertise to back up my opinion, but I do it all the time anyway so why not). I don't see this torn ACL keeping Tiger out past January. My Dad insists that this injury will shorten Tiger's career by 10 years taking into account the previous knee problems he's had. But as I told him, if Baron Davis can come back from an ACL to dunk all over AK-47, then Tiger Woods, the most competitive guy on earth can come back to play some golf, which requires no running or jumping.
Q: What did you think of Don Imus' latest remarks on Pacman, I mean Adam, Jones? Do you believe him that he was sympathizing with Pacman, I mean Adam? I don't believe anyone who looks like a wolfman, but that's just me. (Ernie from Pasadena, CA)
A: First off, is it ok if I call you Big Ern? Easily one of my favorite movie characters. For those who have never seen Kingpin, go watch it. As for Don Imus, we've already given him too much print on this issue. Why doesn't he just go to rehab like every other racist? Of course he meant that Jones is a menace to society because he's black and therefore it's not surprising that he's always in trouble with the law. Imus is a racist and uttered a racist comment. Why is anybody surprised? Next question.
Q: Who are the most overrated/underrated guys going into this year's NBA Draft? (Derek from Lancaster, CA)
A: I hate to say this, but the most overrated guy in this year's draft from what I'm reading is Russell Westbrook. I remember watching him play at Leuzinger High down in Lawndale, CA and then of course I monitored every minute of his UCLA career. He was my favorite player on the UCLA squad and I always wanted him in the game. However, there is no way the guy's a top-4 caliber pick. Would you take Rajon Rondo with the fourth pick in the draft? Teams will leave Westbrook wide open once they figure out that his range maxes out at 12 feet. He's a superior defender and teammate. He has world class speed and drive. He's fearless. But you don't have to take a step out of the paint to guard him. He's going to go at least five picks too soon.
As far as the most underrated guy in the draft, I'm going to go with O.J. Mayo. I know he may only go one spot too late, but I think Beasley may be the answer to the "who was chosen instead of Mayo" question in 10 years. Mayo was a lock for the #1 spot before going to 'SC where he was expected to do everything. Every team keyed on him but he still put up great numbers. He can guard pretty much any point guard or swingman and his first step is sick. I watched him take the aforementioned Westbrook to the hole more than everyone else in college basketball was able to combined. Mayo is the real deal and I'm not worried one bit about his taking money while in college. Everybody does it. It's not an O.J. Mayo problem. It's an NCAA problem (please note that I still hate USC despite the last two paragraphs).
Q: What do you think of Joe Calzaghe ducking Kelly Pavlik and choosing instead to fight Roy Jones, Jr.? Is this the same as your boy Floyd Mayweather ducking Miguel Cotto? (Dan from Carson, CA)
A: If I was Joe Calzaghe, I wouldn't want to lose my first fight by getting knocked out by Kelly Pavlik either. Pavlik would torch him. That's why this is different from Floyd not fighting Cotto. Sure, Floyd would get hit, which he wants to avoid, but Floyd would still outpoint Cotto in the end. Floyd's just too fast and skilled defensively. Going back to Calzaghe, I am beyond unimpressed by a guy who throws a ton of punches that do no damage. Bernard Hopkins knocked him down in the first round with a short counter punch. Imagine what Pavlik would do to him if Pavlik caught him just once with his double jab, overhand right combo. Lights out would be my prediction. It would be a great fight to watch too. But Calzaghe will get just as much money to fight another past his prime fighter who likes to counter and pick his spots in the form of Roy Jones, Jr. This will go pretty much the same way that Calzaghe-Hopkins did. I'm not saying that I would bet the fight and take Calzaghe, but I will not be shelling out PPV money for this fight either. Calzaghe-Pavlik, on the other hand, would be must see boxing.
Q: I know you did your MLB previews, but you didn't clarify who you'd pick between the Cubs and D-Backs. Who's the final pick? (Steve from Los Angeles, CA)
A: Cubs, barely. That Webb/Haren combo will be a force come playoff time.
Q: What do you think of all of the Lamar Odom rumors? If you were Mitch Kupchak what would your move be? (Adam from Santa Monica, CA)
A: My favorite rumor is the Odom for Marion one. What's in this for Miami? Can they buy stock in the Lakers after the trade goes through? Their contracts differ by only $3 million, which is not enough to get a serious player to justify the drop in talent. I know Marion shoots a chest pass but Odom is only awake about 25% of the day. If I was Kupchak, well, I wouldn't be short anymore, but aside from that, I'd go get a shooter. I'd see if I could steal Mike Miller from Chris Wallace. He's already proven himself willing to bend over and take it in the rear, so why not try it again. Maybe send him Luke Walton's bloated deal to boot. In all seriousness though, the Lakers need a primetime shooter. A guy like Mike Miller would be ideal but it would of course mean absorbing Brian Cardinal's gawdawful deal as well. Sending Odom to Jersey for Richard Jefferson would be a nice consolation if the Marion deal doesn't go down, which it won't. Even getting Wally Szczerbiak wouldn't be that bad. The Lakers clearly need a guy who can knock down a wide open jumper. It's painful watching guys get left open and then throwing up bricks.
Q: How do you fix the Dodgers? It seems like every year they're mediocre with an outside shot at the playoffs and then if they're lucky enough to make the playoffs they get nothing done. (Charles from Los Angeles, CA)
A: Yeah, that pretty much describes every season. I'm going to the game tonight against the White Sox. I'm pretty much to the point where if the Dodgers give up three runs early that I lose all hope of winning the game because that's more than our allotment of runs scored per game. The Dodgers need to stop acquiring big name guys who can't play anymore. That's Step 1. Step 2: If you're going to acquire said big name guys, don't give them contracts that are 50% too high, forcing you to play them and giving you no chance of trading them. Step 3: No more fat guys. Step 4: Figure out a better parking system so that it doesn't take two hours to exit the stadium. People think that L.A. fans leave early because they have better things to do. No, L.A. fans leave early because they don't want to get home at 2 a.m. It's not like other cities with reliable transportation systems. And even if you lived a mile from Dodger Stadium, you're getting shot if you try to walk home. If you park outside of the stadium you can start planning the 911 call to report your stolen vehicle. Step 5: No more fat guys. Sorry, that one needed to be said twice.
Q: Who do you like to win the BCS in 2009? (Ed from Woodland Hills, CA)
A: I put myself down a couple of months ago with Georgia to win it all. Any team that organizes a blackout day where the entire stadium dresses in black has something going. Then, to top it off, they play the Soulja Boy song, get the whole team, including the kicker into it, leading to Verne Lundquist dancing in the press box (Don't believe me? Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qLkHr61Z2M). This is a team that had a serious case for making the title game last year and they're not losing much. They play in the SEC, which hopefully counts for something now that everyone realizes that no other conference comes close to matching talent with the SEC. I swear, if another Big Ten team makes it to the title game this season I'm organizing a boycott with all ten of you who are reading this. Therefore, even though Georgia will probably have the number one ranked schedule, they should get into the title game even if they lose two games. And they have Uga. It's always good when your mascot is willing to bite the opponent. I'll pass on the obvious Mike Tyson joke here. I like Tyson.
Q: Who do you like to win the Euro Cup? (Alex from Los Angeles, Ca)
A: Well, I'm glad this question wasn't asked last week when I would have picked Portugal. What a great game that was against Germany. I hate to say this, but I have to think Germany is going to pull this out. Solid goalkeeping out of Jens Lehman. Ballack holding things down in the midfield and then an awesome tandem up top with Miroslav Klose and the guy who gets his butt whooped by Ed Norton in Fight Club who now goes by the name Bastian Schweinsteiger. Speaking of guys who look alike. Why does nobody agree with me that Shelden Williams and Rafer Alston look exactly alike? Here, look:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=4133
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=0011
They look exactly the same. Anyhow, I'll be rooting hard against Germany, but they figure to be a lock against an undermanned, injured, outclassed Turkish squad. Russia-Spain should be fun to watch, but the winner will almost certainly be an underdog against the Germans. Spain does have an X-factor though in Real Madrid goalkeeper, Iker Casillas. Never underestimate a team with the best goalie in the world.
Q: Did you see Candace Parker's dunk? What are your thoughts? (Kelly from Torrance, CA)
A: No, I didn't see it. I have no further thoughts.
Q: Who do I get with the sixth pick in a fantasy football draft? (Teddy from Malibu, CA)
A: Assuming that the first five go LaDainian, Peterson, Steven Jackson, Joseph Addai, and Brian Westbrook in some order, then yes, you have a dilema. If any of the aforementioned are left on the board, take them. If you're in a league where QB's get 6 points for a TD instead of 4, then I'd take Tom Brady. There's no reason to think that he'll throw under 38 TD's next year with a lot of yardage. If it's a 4 points per TD league, then I'd go with Randy Moss. Both would break my rule of always drafting a RB first, but both are worth it because of the advantage they give you at their respective positions and the relative lack of difference between the RB you'd take here and with your second round pick. How much of a difference is there between Larry Johnson or Frank Gore and Ryan Grant or Willis McGahee. Not enough for me to forego pulling the trigger on either Moss or Brady, both of whom will be hungry for a Super Bowl after last year's fiasco.
That's all I have for today. Thanks for writing in. Look for me in Chavez Ravine tonight. I'll be the one eating all of the healthy food. As always, feel free to email me at Eric.Rudin@gmail.com.
Q: Do you think Tiger's injury will dramatically affect his career? How many years do you see this chopping off? (Frank from Los Angeles)
A: First, I'm not an M.D., but I did have a debate with my father on this one (my Dad is an M.D. so you might wonder why I bothered arguing without any expertise to back up my opinion, but I do it all the time anyway so why not). I don't see this torn ACL keeping Tiger out past January. My Dad insists that this injury will shorten Tiger's career by 10 years taking into account the previous knee problems he's had. But as I told him, if Baron Davis can come back from an ACL to dunk all over AK-47, then Tiger Woods, the most competitive guy on earth can come back to play some golf, which requires no running or jumping.
Q: What did you think of Don Imus' latest remarks on Pacman, I mean Adam, Jones? Do you believe him that he was sympathizing with Pacman, I mean Adam? I don't believe anyone who looks like a wolfman, but that's just me. (Ernie from Pasadena, CA)
A: First off, is it ok if I call you Big Ern? Easily one of my favorite movie characters. For those who have never seen Kingpin, go watch it. As for Don Imus, we've already given him too much print on this issue. Why doesn't he just go to rehab like every other racist? Of course he meant that Jones is a menace to society because he's black and therefore it's not surprising that he's always in trouble with the law. Imus is a racist and uttered a racist comment. Why is anybody surprised? Next question.
Q: Who are the most overrated/underrated guys going into this year's NBA Draft? (Derek from Lancaster, CA)
A: I hate to say this, but the most overrated guy in this year's draft from what I'm reading is Russell Westbrook. I remember watching him play at Leuzinger High down in Lawndale, CA and then of course I monitored every minute of his UCLA career. He was my favorite player on the UCLA squad and I always wanted him in the game. However, there is no way the guy's a top-4 caliber pick. Would you take Rajon Rondo with the fourth pick in the draft? Teams will leave Westbrook wide open once they figure out that his range maxes out at 12 feet. He's a superior defender and teammate. He has world class speed and drive. He's fearless. But you don't have to take a step out of the paint to guard him. He's going to go at least five picks too soon.
As far as the most underrated guy in the draft, I'm going to go with O.J. Mayo. I know he may only go one spot too late, but I think Beasley may be the answer to the "who was chosen instead of Mayo" question in 10 years. Mayo was a lock for the #1 spot before going to 'SC where he was expected to do everything. Every team keyed on him but he still put up great numbers. He can guard pretty much any point guard or swingman and his first step is sick. I watched him take the aforementioned Westbrook to the hole more than everyone else in college basketball was able to combined. Mayo is the real deal and I'm not worried one bit about his taking money while in college. Everybody does it. It's not an O.J. Mayo problem. It's an NCAA problem (please note that I still hate USC despite the last two paragraphs).
Q: What do you think of Joe Calzaghe ducking Kelly Pavlik and choosing instead to fight Roy Jones, Jr.? Is this the same as your boy Floyd Mayweather ducking Miguel Cotto? (Dan from Carson, CA)
A: If I was Joe Calzaghe, I wouldn't want to lose my first fight by getting knocked out by Kelly Pavlik either. Pavlik would torch him. That's why this is different from Floyd not fighting Cotto. Sure, Floyd would get hit, which he wants to avoid, but Floyd would still outpoint Cotto in the end. Floyd's just too fast and skilled defensively. Going back to Calzaghe, I am beyond unimpressed by a guy who throws a ton of punches that do no damage. Bernard Hopkins knocked him down in the first round with a short counter punch. Imagine what Pavlik would do to him if Pavlik caught him just once with his double jab, overhand right combo. Lights out would be my prediction. It would be a great fight to watch too. But Calzaghe will get just as much money to fight another past his prime fighter who likes to counter and pick his spots in the form of Roy Jones, Jr. This will go pretty much the same way that Calzaghe-Hopkins did. I'm not saying that I would bet the fight and take Calzaghe, but I will not be shelling out PPV money for this fight either. Calzaghe-Pavlik, on the other hand, would be must see boxing.
Q: I know you did your MLB previews, but you didn't clarify who you'd pick between the Cubs and D-Backs. Who's the final pick? (Steve from Los Angeles, CA)
A: Cubs, barely. That Webb/Haren combo will be a force come playoff time.
Q: What do you think of all of the Lamar Odom rumors? If you were Mitch Kupchak what would your move be? (Adam from Santa Monica, CA)
A: My favorite rumor is the Odom for Marion one. What's in this for Miami? Can they buy stock in the Lakers after the trade goes through? Their contracts differ by only $3 million, which is not enough to get a serious player to justify the drop in talent. I know Marion shoots a chest pass but Odom is only awake about 25% of the day. If I was Kupchak, well, I wouldn't be short anymore, but aside from that, I'd go get a shooter. I'd see if I could steal Mike Miller from Chris Wallace. He's already proven himself willing to bend over and take it in the rear, so why not try it again. Maybe send him Luke Walton's bloated deal to boot. In all seriousness though, the Lakers need a primetime shooter. A guy like Mike Miller would be ideal but it would of course mean absorbing Brian Cardinal's gawdawful deal as well. Sending Odom to Jersey for Richard Jefferson would be a nice consolation if the Marion deal doesn't go down, which it won't. Even getting Wally Szczerbiak wouldn't be that bad. The Lakers clearly need a guy who can knock down a wide open jumper. It's painful watching guys get left open and then throwing up bricks.
Q: How do you fix the Dodgers? It seems like every year they're mediocre with an outside shot at the playoffs and then if they're lucky enough to make the playoffs they get nothing done. (Charles from Los Angeles, CA)
A: Yeah, that pretty much describes every season. I'm going to the game tonight against the White Sox. I'm pretty much to the point where if the Dodgers give up three runs early that I lose all hope of winning the game because that's more than our allotment of runs scored per game. The Dodgers need to stop acquiring big name guys who can't play anymore. That's Step 1. Step 2: If you're going to acquire said big name guys, don't give them contracts that are 50% too high, forcing you to play them and giving you no chance of trading them. Step 3: No more fat guys. Step 4: Figure out a better parking system so that it doesn't take two hours to exit the stadium. People think that L.A. fans leave early because they have better things to do. No, L.A. fans leave early because they don't want to get home at 2 a.m. It's not like other cities with reliable transportation systems. And even if you lived a mile from Dodger Stadium, you're getting shot if you try to walk home. If you park outside of the stadium you can start planning the 911 call to report your stolen vehicle. Step 5: No more fat guys. Sorry, that one needed to be said twice.
Q: Who do you like to win the BCS in 2009? (Ed from Woodland Hills, CA)
A: I put myself down a couple of months ago with Georgia to win it all. Any team that organizes a blackout day where the entire stadium dresses in black has something going. Then, to top it off, they play the Soulja Boy song, get the whole team, including the kicker into it, leading to Verne Lundquist dancing in the press box (Don't believe me? Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qLkHr61Z2M). This is a team that had a serious case for making the title game last year and they're not losing much. They play in the SEC, which hopefully counts for something now that everyone realizes that no other conference comes close to matching talent with the SEC. I swear, if another Big Ten team makes it to the title game this season I'm organizing a boycott with all ten of you who are reading this. Therefore, even though Georgia will probably have the number one ranked schedule, they should get into the title game even if they lose two games. And they have Uga. It's always good when your mascot is willing to bite the opponent. I'll pass on the obvious Mike Tyson joke here. I like Tyson.
Q: Who do you like to win the Euro Cup? (Alex from Los Angeles, Ca)
A: Well, I'm glad this question wasn't asked last week when I would have picked Portugal. What a great game that was against Germany. I hate to say this, but I have to think Germany is going to pull this out. Solid goalkeeping out of Jens Lehman. Ballack holding things down in the midfield and then an awesome tandem up top with Miroslav Klose and the guy who gets his butt whooped by Ed Norton in Fight Club who now goes by the name Bastian Schweinsteiger. Speaking of guys who look alike. Why does nobody agree with me that Shelden Williams and Rafer Alston look exactly alike? Here, look:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=4133
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=0011
They look exactly the same. Anyhow, I'll be rooting hard against Germany, but they figure to be a lock against an undermanned, injured, outclassed Turkish squad. Russia-Spain should be fun to watch, but the winner will almost certainly be an underdog against the Germans. Spain does have an X-factor though in Real Madrid goalkeeper, Iker Casillas. Never underestimate a team with the best goalie in the world.
Q: Did you see Candace Parker's dunk? What are your thoughts? (Kelly from Torrance, CA)
A: No, I didn't see it. I have no further thoughts.
Q: Who do I get with the sixth pick in a fantasy football draft? (Teddy from Malibu, CA)
A: Assuming that the first five go LaDainian, Peterson, Steven Jackson, Joseph Addai, and Brian Westbrook in some order, then yes, you have a dilema. If any of the aforementioned are left on the board, take them. If you're in a league where QB's get 6 points for a TD instead of 4, then I'd take Tom Brady. There's no reason to think that he'll throw under 38 TD's next year with a lot of yardage. If it's a 4 points per TD league, then I'd go with Randy Moss. Both would break my rule of always drafting a RB first, but both are worth it because of the advantage they give you at their respective positions and the relative lack of difference between the RB you'd take here and with your second round pick. How much of a difference is there between Larry Johnson or Frank Gore and Ryan Grant or Willis McGahee. Not enough for me to forego pulling the trigger on either Moss or Brady, both of whom will be hungry for a Super Bowl after last year's fiasco.
That's all I have for today. Thanks for writing in. Look for me in Chavez Ravine tonight. I'll be the one eating all of the healthy food. As always, feel free to email me at Eric.Rudin@gmail.com.
What's wrong with Ohio State?
Ohio State and the other programs in the Big Ten will never do well in their intersectional games so long as they only recruit in Ohio, PA and Michigan. These players play well in the bad weather of the Midwest. By not recruiting in CA, AZ, TX and FL they will never be able to compete with the USCs etc. Jim Tressel is a fine coach but unless he changes his recruiting his program will never be on par with the SEC, Pac-10 or even the ACC and Big East.
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