Cavs v Wizards ~ Andray Blatche had a career night, Wizards get the "W"

Yesterday, I was flipped a last minute ticket to the Cleveland Cavaliers v Washington Wizards game at the Verizon Center.  I wasn't overly excited about going to the game, but I thought it'd be a good chance to see an old friend and watch two under-performing squads battle.  I didn't expect much from last night's match-up, especially since John Wall was serving a suspension (i.e. he had scuffled with the Miami Heat's Zydrunas Ilgauskas on Wednesday night).

*****  I'd be lying if the chance to eat Dippin' Dots again didn't factor into the equation also.  I have new found love for those treats.  You'd think they were new, but I've re-discovered my love for the ice cream.  Incidentally, at the Verizon Center, the serving size is smaller than the larger size at the Quicken Loans Arena, but the Verizon Center charges more (i.e. $5).  Beggers can't be choosers, though so I spent the money.  Oh, it's cash only at the Verizon Center so be prepared.

The story of the game was Andray Blatche's performance to lead the Washington Wizards to victory.  That's right, boys and girls, the Wizards won the game.  Blatche had 36 points and 19 rebounds. 16 of Blatche's rebounds were offensive.  JaVale McGee added 25 points, and Jordan Crawford notched a triple-double (i.e. 21 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds).

In the losing effort for the Cavaliers Ramon Sessions led the team by dropping 26 points.  ****  I remember when he "played" for the Minnesota Timberwolves...

Another thing that was interesting was seeing Baron Davis is a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform.  I actually wonder if he's gotten used to seeing himself in the uniform as well.



The Cavs look very different this season



The Wizards, without Wall, take the court



I may not be familiar with the roster of Byron Scott's Cleveland Cavaliers, but since Ohio will always be "home" I do feel connected to them.  It was great to see Max Benton, the trainer, on the bench still.  Veteran, Strength and Conditioning coach, Stan Kellers, was there also, sitting behind the bench.  It must be strange for them to be a part of and remember the Cavs' glory days and now be a part of the organization...

At least things can only get better for the Cavs franchise...  Right?!?!

Wizards won: 115-107.

THE WIRK

John Wall caught Ilgauskas' elbow and he didn't like it ~ Heat v Wizards

I had spent the past couple of days (i.e. with my mom visiting), running all over creation.  Last night mom and I went to the Verizon Center to check out the Miami Heat v Washington Wizards game.  ****  If you follow the blog, you know why this game is interesting and if you don't follow the blog you are a VERY BAD person.  Just kidding.  Kind of.  Sort of.  Not really.

Early in the game, with 8:48 left on the clock in the 1st quarter, Zydrunas had the ball and John Wall wanted it.  Zydrunas is 7'3" and rookie, John Wall, is 6'4".  It doesn't take a genius to know that when Zydrunas holds the ball up, that Wall had better back up and watch his face (i.e unless he wants to eat elbow).  Sure enough, emotions ran high and after catching Zydrunas' elbow, Wall decided to use his right arm to throw a body punch.  Here's a clip of the scuffle:  http://www.nba.com/video/games/wizards/2011/03/30/0021001110_mia_was_play2.nba/

Here are two words that describe John Wall's actions: ROOKIE MISTAKE.



To put the elbow and height in perspective,
and in honor of opening day this was on the
 way to a Cleveland Indians' baseball game.

****  I'm not advocating fighting in the NBA, BUT if I was Zydrunas (i.e. after receiving that weird body punch from John Wall) I would've gone after Wall, like he was Greg Ostertag... John Wall should've swept Zydrunas' leg(s) because tall trees can't land elbows when they're on the ground... THAT's how you fight a seven footer...  You don't try to "BOX".  Wait, speaking of boxing, I don't remember the venue, but there was a guy heckling Zydrunas one day.  He was saying things like, "I'll be Rocky and you'll be Drago."  Too funny...

I am listening to ESPN and the commentary from the lady "talking through the video".  She is heavily biased towards the Miami Heat, and obviously doesn't know her NBA history.  Zydrunas has a temper.  He isn't one to start fights on the court, but he won't back down from one.  I watched the events from section 121 and I've seen many a "tussle/fight" with him.  I know that if he wanted to treat the events like a game of WHACK-A-MOLE, Zydrunas could've pounded John Wall.  The fact that Zydrunas grabbed Wall by both arms and drove him back, shows that Zydrunas exercised restraint.

Elbows in the NBA aren't uncommon.  Zydrunas used to complain about Dikembe Mutombo's elbows, and Mutombo's methods of clearing out his opponents have been well-documented.  Here's a link to a Sports Illustrated (SI) article if you want some light reading from 1999 by Marty Burns:  Don't Bogart That Joint: Opponents are tired of blocking Dikembe Mutombo's elbows with their noses. 

For the record, and it goes without saying, but I will anyway ~ Zydrunas isn't Mutombo.  ****  I do think Zydrunas gave Wall a cheap, left forearm to get Wall to back away.  Further, at the 15 second mark, if you see the red coat at the top of the section, that coat belongs to my mom and I'm sitting next to her.  Yes, if it's interesting ~ chances are I'm there.

As a result of the altercation, for the Miami Heat,  both Juwan Howard and Zydrunas were ejected.  Washington Wizards lost the services of John Wall for the game too, since he was also ejected.

Ultimately, the ejections and the long referee deliberation and review seemed to take the energy out of the building for some time.  Surprisingly the energy picked up and the game wasn't a run away Heat victory.  Jordan Crawford scored 39 points in the losing effort.  Dwyane Wade scored 33 points and some dude named, LeBron, led the Heat with 35 points. 

****  This picture pretty much sums up the past couple of days since I went to New York to see The Lion King with my mom on Tuesday, and we just saw the Miami Heat and LeBron yesterday.

Final score, 123-107.  Wizards lost. 

Update: Wizards rookie, John Wall, has been suspended one game without pay and two Miami Heat players were fined for their actions.  Heat forward Juwan Howard received aa $35,000 fine, and teammate Zydrunas Ilgauskas was fined $25,000.

THE WIRK

Wizards beat the Timberwolves ~ Kevin Love scored his 50th double-double

Saturday night the Wizards had the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves in town at the Verizon Center.  Kevin Love was in town and brought his 49 game double-double streak to town.  It's no secret that I've seen plenty of Timberwolves' games this season.  I'm actually a fan of the young team and enjoy watching Michael Beasley and Kevin Love play, so when I was offered a free ticket to the game you better believe I took it!

Kevin Love didn't disappoint.   He notched his 50th double-double game, even though the Wizards ended up victorious.  The Wizards went into the game losing 7 games in a row.  Both of the squads are young, but Minnesota hasn't learned to pull out close games YET.  ****  This is a skill the Miami Heat are trying to master also, so I'm not really going to slam Kurt Rambis' team that hard for being young.

Another reason I was interested in the game was because I had yet to see John Wall play a real game "live".  I watched Wall play during the NBA All-Star Rookie Challenge, but that didn't count.  Wall finished the game with a double-double (i.e. 18 points and 11 boards), but Andray Blatche was the Wizards' high scorer (i.e. 20 points).  In a losing effort, Michael Beasley dropped 18 points, but Kevin Love contributed 20 points and 21 boards.  WOW.  50 double-double games, in a row...  ****  Moses Malone's record of 51 consecutive double-doubles looks like it's going down!

This game was winnnable for the Timberwolves, but when asked by the guy next to me if I thought the T'wolves would pull it out, I said, "No."  It was what it was, and the Timberwolves just don't have that killer instinct YET...  Tough loss. 

Final score:  Timberwolves 96, Wizards 103.


THE WIRK

NBA All-Star Friday: Picked up Nike tickets, Missed Celebrity game, Caught Rookie Challenge

I flew to Los Angeles on Friday on my first Virgin America flight. **** If you haven’t flown Virgin America, do it. The airline is HOT. Virgin America is like a W Hotel in the sky. The airline is sexy. Wifi, individual TV’s, power outlet to charge electronic devices, and the ability to order food whenever you like through your TV screen.

Upon arrival at LAX I had to hustle to the W Hollywood to pick up tickets to the Nike party. **** The tickets were courtesy of my friend the Insideplaya and Q-Tip. Thank you, guys! As I raced to Hollywood, I realized that since my flight was delayed 2 hours, I was going to miss the NBA All-Star Celebrity game. So much for seeing Magic Johnson and my Bieber-fever… **** At NBA Jam Session, one of the ESPN radio guys described Justin Bieber as the Ricky Rubio of the Celebrity game. Great line! Yes, I missed the game. That’s just the way it goes sometimes.

I needed to pick up the tickets at the hotel, for the party later that night and LA traffic wasn’t cooperating. With 10 minutes to spare, I picked up the tickets. Good thing I checked my ticket envelope! Originally they forgot my +1, but the problem was solved easily once I pointed out the problem and showed my email history. Thank you, Nike!

As I was leaving the hotel, people started to arrive. I’m not a car person, but I do know a Rolls Royce when I see it. Nice!

With tickets in hand I raced back downtown to check-in to my hotel. After checking in, I hopped in a cab to make it to the Rookie Challenge. I wanted to watch the NBA All-Star Rookie v Sophomore game. **** Zydrunas won MVP of the game many years ago. Did you know that the trophy is actually 2 pieces? Pay attention, next time. The player who raises the prize holds onto both the base and the top part.

I made it to the Staples Center for the Rookie v Sophomore game and decided rather than watch the rest of the 1st half, I needed to get in line for food. I WAS STARVING. I hadn’t eaten since 8AM EST and it was probably 7PM PST. With each Rookie Challenge ticket, came a $15 food voucher. I had 2 tickets, and bought $15 of food and $15 of candy. I like candy.  **** I bought Red Vines for the first time. Are they supposed to be less sweet, compared to Twizzlers? I prefer to Twizzlers. Preference for Red Vines must be a West coast thing.

For the Rookie challenge I decided to climb to the top of the Staples Center. I did it in 4-inch heeled boots. This was a HUGE mistake. My feet still haven’t forgiven me, but I wanted to get a picture of the entire court.

Seeing as that the All-Star festivities were held in Los Angeles and Blake Griffin has garnered so much positive attention, the crowd at the Staples Center yelled, "We want Blake," towards the end of the game.  He stood up to tease them, but didn't re-enter down the stretch.

The Rookies won the game, and DeMarcus Cousins led the squad with 33 points. John Wall had 12, points and 22 assists in 29 minutes of action. The Washington Wizards’ own was the MVP of the Rookie v Sophomore game!

THE WIRK

Thought about going to watch Amare's Knicks v the Wizards, but might pass

Earlier today I thought about going to the New York Knicks v Washington Wizards game at the Verizon Center.  I have yet to see the new-look, Amare Stoudemire Knicks and thought tonight would be a good night to check out the action.  However, when I checked the Wizards' pregame notes it appears that John Wall isn't going to start (i.e. or maybe even play) tonight.

Ummm, yeah.  No.  Unless my friend scores free tickets for us, I will not be at the Verizon Center tonight.  I could easily scalp a ticket, but it's cold outside and spending money on a Wall-less Wizards' team against a streaking Knicks' team with Amare putting up All-Star stats (i.e. he's going for his 7th consecutive 30-point game) ~ sounds like a waste.

If I decide I care enough to watch, I'll be watching on TV.  No Wall = No Wirk.

Amare leaving the locker room, NBA All-Star Game 2010.

A braided, Chris Bosh, sits on the golf cart..

Wait, that's my friend on my phone...  I might have to get moving after all.

THE WIRK

Magic defeat the Wizards thanks to Dwight Howard's last shot

I came back to the DC area after hanging out with my family for Thanksgiving.  It was an early morning.  I was up at 4AM and slept most of the afternoon away, once I made it back.  I had a feeling my friend, Mandy would call about the Orlando Magic v Washington Wizards game tonight, so I decided to stay in town.  Sure enough a little before 6PM, my phone rang and I hauled my lifeless body to the Verizon Center for the game.

Tip off was at 7PM and I arrived at the arena 10 minutes before the hour.  Mandy had a ticket for me, but I wasn't sure where it'd be.  ****  I'm a bit of a ticket snob.  I expect a good seat when I go to a game, and I'm willing to make sure I have one.  Since I had a few minutes, I decided to scalp a ticket.  The first guy I talked to refused $50 for a ticket in section 120.  That's fine.  The next guy showed me a ticket in section 119, row E.  Face value was $125.  I offered him $50, and next thing you knew, we had a deal.

I texted Mandy that I was good and into the building I went.  Turns out that she and her friends were in section 118.  Perfect.  As I watched the 1st half, it finally hit me late in the 1st quarter that John Wall wasn't playing.  Um, yeah.  Like I said, it's been a long day.  Guess I'll have to go to another game.  ****  Oh, I know ~ I'll go and catch the new look New York Knicks (i.e. with Amare Stoudemire) when they come to town. 

Another thing I noticed was that Gilbert Arenas was playing tonight.  I can't honestly remember the last time I've seen Gilbert in uniform and playing.  He had a great game tonight.  He tallied 31 points.  On one possession Gilbert took a shot and the man on my left told his daughter, "4 years ago, he would have made that shot."  Wow.  What can I say though?  The man spoke the truth.

The game was much closer in the 2nd half, but Mandy et al and I watched the 3rd quarter from The Greene Turtle.  It was our chance to catch up, since I hadn't seen her since I was in Phoenix for the NBA Playoffs.

We went to watch the 4th quarter and the game was definitely tighter.  Incidentally, the line was Washington +7.  I told my friend, I'd take the points if I was him.  Without John Wall, and after the victory over Miami, I figured that the Magic would win, but that the game would be competitive.  Needless to say, I was correct.

After the game, we took our visitor passes and headed to the tunnel to greet the Orlando Magic.  Patrick Ewing walked by, but I've met him numerous times before so I wasn't going to bother him.  He signed a basketball for someone and whoever that person is better realize just how lucky he/she is to have a Ewing autograph.  ****  When I was in college I tried a number of times to get him to sign my Knicks pennant and was always unsuccessful.  However, since I've run into him and talked to him a number of times, I don't feel pressed to make contact again.

I saw J.J. Redick and Chris Duhon and contemplated taking a picture with them, but the more I thought about it ~ I'm "Duke'd" out after all the games I've seen.  I'm actually going to see the Duke v Butler match-up on Saturday (i.e. next week).  My brother is a Duke alumnus...  I'm good.

Alex Ovechkin was at the game sitting courtside. Coincidentally, Vince Carter was also sitting courtside on the Magic's bench, since he's injured (i.e. knee).

The rest of the Orlando Magic eventually trickled out of the locker room, and last but not least, Dwight Howard came out to the tunnel.  Finally, I took a good picture with him and that was all she wrote.

Great night out.  Magic defeated the Wizards with a score of 100-99.  Dwight Howard's put back was the difference, since the Wizards couldn't convert on their final possession.  Dwight Howard finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds.

Not a bad night at all...

THE WIRK

Cavaliers v Wizards tonight ~ It's just not the same this season...

I was looking at the schedules earlier today and noticed that the Cleveland Cavaliers are visiting the Washington Wizards tonight at the Verizon Center.  For a minute I thought about checking it out.  A minute...

This year is different.  Even though I'm an Ohio girl and I'm still a Cavs fan, I don't think I can bring myself to go to the game.  I took a look at the roster and can't get myself to get excited and sit in my "usual" seat behind the Cavs bench. 

Never going to have this view of LeBron in a Cavs jersey again

Actually, for this game, I'd almost be willing to reconnect with some folks that I knew from my days in Cleveland and are affiliated with the Wizards now...  BUT, I'm not going to do that either.  Not tonight.

As I look through all my albums with so many pictures of the Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers, it's amazing how many of the people have moved on.  Most athletes are journey man.  They can be nomadic because of free agency.  They get traded, and/or eventually retire.  Look at the picture below from Game 6 of the Playoffs in 2008.  None of the guys in the picture play for the same organization now, that they did 2 years ago.

Oh, and if you think I'm going to get all dolled up and head to the Verizon Center to see Anderson Varejao, well...  You don't know me at all.  Sorry...  I have to be honest.  Ugh, that reminds me.  I need to find my "Got Boobie?" shirt.  I like Daniel "Boobie" Gibson and that T-shirt still makes me chuckle...

In a world with so much player mobility, it's no surprise to me that some teams have adopted a "generic" approach to promotion.  In Cleveland, where LeBron James' image was ubiquitous, I'm not surprised that there isn't a face associated with the organization anymore.

Here are some of the latest Cleveland Cavaliers banners adorning Quicken Loans Arena (i.e. photos courtesy of Dave Soulsby, President of Central Graphics Group):

The #10 on the jersey is generic

****I just checked to see if long-time radio announcer, Joe Tait, is traveling with the team after his cardiac surgery.  He's not.  If you haven't heard Joe Tait call a game, you're missing out.  He's truly a special talent.  Best wishes, Joe.  Get better soon. 

I will make it to the Quicken Loans Arena before the end of the year.  Save me a seat.  Wait...  Let me clarify.  Save me a good seat  :-P

The more I think about it, I might just scalp a quick ticket just to watch John Wall "Dougie" during the player introductions...  Who do I think  I am kidding?  I'm not going to go...  LOL.  Here's a clip if you have no idea what I'm talking about.

THE WIRK

Isiah Thomas dreaming of a return to the Knicks is my nightmare

So I eased into the day today and eventually checked the headlines on ESPN.com and noticed that there is a story about Isiah Thomas posted.  I haven't been a fan of Isiah Thomas for many, many years now for a multitude of reasons (e.g. allocation of minutes for a particular center in the Atlanta NBA All-Star game, destruction of the once highly respected New York Knicks, foolish bravado).  However, since my morning started off good, I thought I'd read the article.

Evidently, Isiah is "itching" for a return to the Knicks.  Fan-tas-tic...  ****  For those of you that don't know me that well, or can't hear my voice when you read my words, that's SARCASM.  Are you even kidding me?  He might be itching, but if he actually returns to the Knicks I might vomit or go into a rage like no other. 

Honestly, how self-unaware can an individual be?  How can he not realize what he did to that team?  Does he not recall all the "Fire Isiah" posters and the rallies, petitions from New York Knicks season ticket holders requesting refunds?  I will tell you right now, that I used to love the New York Knicks.  I was a huge Patrick Ewing fan.  In fact, the Georgetown Hoyas losing to Villanova Wildcats in 1985 still devastates me til this day.  I rooted for Ewing, Oakley, Starks, Mason, and yes even Charles Smith (i.e. until he missed those bunny shots) for YEARS.  Despite my dad telling me that the New York Knicks would never win me an NBA Championship, I stood by that team when Reggie Miller made the choking signs Jordan went "Jordan" on them.

Isiah's reign at Madison Square Garden is something I'd like to forget.  In my quest to make it to every professional sporting venue for basketball, baseball, and football ~ would you believe I have yet to make it to a New York Knicks home game?  I've seen the Big East semifinals and a New York Rangers game, but I have yet to watch my once beloved Knicks.  I can't bring myself to do it, and New York is close enough where I can make a day trip out of it. 

I really should check the Knicks' schedule now that Amare Stoudemire is on the squad and the season looks to have more promise....  ****  OK, I just checked the schedule and it looks like the Washington Wizards are visiting the Knicks tonight ~ but there's no way that I can make it to the game in time, with the travel that would need to occur.  Yeah, that's just how my life works sometimes ~ but I'm fine with it, since I'm not really a Wizards fan.  I just need to check out John Wall eventually this year...  It's a long season.   I need to pace myself.

Back to Isiah and his delusions.  Am I really supposed to believe that if Isiah was the president of the Knicks that LeBron James and maybe Dwyane Wade would be wearing New York Knicks jerseys?!?!  Seriously?!?!  Really?!?!  Come on, now.  It's no secret how I feel about LeBron taking his talents to South Beach, and I don't want to start fighting a bunch of New Yorkers who believe that the New York is the greatest place on Earth to play sports ~ but of all things that factored in free agency this year, I doubt that the lack of Isiah Thomas' leadership played a factor.  I'd bet on it.

I don't know what kind of power Isiah Thomas has over James Dolan, but it's sickening.  The fact that Dolan appears to have a short-term memory with regard to Isiah's performance and still tried to bring him on as a consultant is bewildering to say THE LEAST.  It's almost like a co-dependent, abusive boyfriend-girlfriend relationship where both parties kick the crap out of each other, but never officially end things because they're too connected.  It's CRAZY. 

Even if Isiah has basketball merit, the man already cost the organization millions of dollars in a sexual harassment case.  I mean, come on....  What else is left for him to do?  Oh, that's right ~ he's the missing link in the Knicks recruitment of top NBA talent and the reason why the LeBron is LeGone...

Give me a break.


THE WIRK

Flight delayed? Just Tweet and watch the 2010 NBA Draft

****  I know I'm late, with this post.  I was on vacation.  That doesn't mean I don't have something to say.

My travel nightmares over the past few days started on Thursday night...

I was at the gate ready to board my flight, when the gate agent got on the intercom to announce that my flight would be delayed.  It just so happens I was talking on the phone when the announcement was going on.  I heard it just fine (i.e. along with the other 100 people at the gate), but some strange lady in orange pants started waving her hands in front of me to try to shush me.  If you read this blog, you also know that I don't like people who wave their hands at me to get me to do or NOT do something.  Regardless, the lady spazzed out again while sitting down an hour later and some other strangers had to help her get some airport personnel to attend to her.  Who knows what the lady's issue was, but at least she had a team of 5 people to handle her.

On Thursday, my flight was supposed to leave Minneapolis around 5:30 PM, but left around 11:15PM instead.  Awesome.  Does anyone even know that Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport had a G Terminal?!?!  I had no idea.  It's faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar.  Regardless,  There's nothing anyone can do about a flight delay and this blow wasn't as devastating for me, since it gave me a chance to watch the NBA Draft.  I love the NBA Draft when the draft pool is loaded with talent.  I'm not going to sugar coat it.  In comparison to the 1996 NBA Draft, I think this year's draft pool was relatively shallow. 

1996 was stacked with talent.  As a recap from Wikipedia:

Round one

1. Allen Iverson* (SG) United States Philadelphia 76ers Georgetown-So.
2. Marcus Cambyx (C) United States Toronto Raptors UMass-Jr.
3. Shareef Abdur-Rahim+ (PF) United States Vancouver Grizzlies California-Fr.
4. Stephon Marbury* (PG) United States Milwaukee Bucks (traded to Minnesota) Georgia Tech-Fr.
5. Ray Allen* (SG) United States Minnesota Timberwolves (traded to Milwaukee Bucks) UConn-Jr.
6. Antoine Walker+ (PF) United States Boston Celtics (from Dallas) Kentucky-So.
7. Lorenzen Wright (C) United States Los Angeles Clippers Memphis-So.
8. Kerry Kittles (SG) United States New Jersey Nets Villanova-Sr.
9. Samaki Walker (PF) United States Dallas Mavericks (from Boston) Louisville-So.
10. Erick Dampier (C) United States Indiana Pacers (from Denver) Mississippi State-Jr.
11. Todd Fuller (C) United States Golden State Warriors (from Golden State via Orlando and Washington) NC State-Sr.
12. Vitaly Potapenko (C) Ukraine Cleveland Cavaliers (from Washington) Wright State-Jr.
13. Kobe Bryant* (SG) United States Charlotte Hornets (traded to L.A. Lakers) Lower Merion HS (Lower Merion, PA)
14. Peja Stojaković* (SF) Yugoslavia Sacramento Kings PAOK (Greece)
15. Steve Nash* (PG) Canada Phoenix Suns Santa Clara-Sr.
16. Tony Delk (SG) United States Charlotte Hornets (from Miami) Kentucky-Sr.
17. Jermaine O'Neal* (F/C) United States Portland Trail Blazers Eau Claire HS (Columbia, SC)
18. John Wallace (PF) United States New York Knicks (from Detroit via San Antonio) Syracuse-Sr.
19. Walter McCarty (PF) United States New York Knicks (from Atlanta via Miami) Kentucky-Sr.
20. Zydrunas Ilgauskas+ (C) Lithuania Cleveland Cavaliers Atletas (Lithuania)

I told you that the 1996 NBA Draft talent was deep!

This year was different.  If you didn't know ahead of time who the #1 (i.e. John Wall) and #2 (i.e. Evan Turner) picks were, then you either don't like basketball or you're stupid.  Like I said, I'm not going to sugar coat it.

Stuck at the airport, I had no choice but to pony up in front of a TV and watch the NBA draft and READ the closed captioning.  After a while that is no fun.  So, with my trust iPhone in hand I logged into my Twitter account to see what people had to say.  I follow some really intelligent people in sports who are in the know, and I also follow some clowns that make me laugh with their 140 character posts.  I sat there and almost accidentally spit out my drink reading the tweets, when the Utah took Gordon Hayward 9th.  I laughed out loud after reading some of the comments when the New Orleans Hornets drafted Kansas' Cole Aldrich at #11. 

As soon as Aldrich was selected one of my friends who I follow wrote that "Chris Paul was as good as gone."  I laughed.  Then the Hornets agreed to trade Aldrich and guard Morris Peterson to the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Thunder's 21st and 26th picks in the first round.  I couldn't wait to see Kevin Durant's face to decipher his reaction to the trade.  Actually, now that I think about it, I follow KDThunderup on Twitter and I can't remember if he reacted or not.  Read into that, what you will.

Interestingly, with the 23rd pick, Trevor Booker was the first senior to be drafted by the Timberwolves.  Read into that, what you will.

During the draft I noticed a post that David Aldridge wrote saying that Rasheed Wallace was going to retire. That was my chance to Tweet that on a day when everyone welcomes rookies to the league, it's always important to remember the veterans!

I haven't read Bill Simmons' NBA Draft Diary post yet.  Like a kid on Christmas, I anxiously look forward to it every year,  Simmons' basketball knowledge is so deep that I use it as a litmus test to see if I still "have it".  If I get lost and don't understand his references, it's a sign that I need to study-up some more.  My brother isn't a formidable opponent, even though he like to think he knows his basketball history ~ he doesn't.  Usually he hits me with some highlights from Simmons' piece and a couple of questions, but since he's in Cape Town this year (i.e. World Cup), I'll forgive him for slacking this year.

John Wall is a Washington Wizard,  Stephen Strasburg is a Washington National.  Donovan McNabb is a Washington Redskin.  Alex Ovechkin is a Washington Capital.  In the course of a few years, Washington DC has become a "sexier" town for athletes.  Now, all Washington needs to do is show the rest of the teams that it can WIN.

THE WIRK