The Starting Five: Week of July 2, 2007
Posted by Jason Goodman on 07.02.2007
Big trades in the NBA Draft, a special MLB anniversary, and something a bit different, all in WEEK THREE!
The Starting 5: Week of July 2, 2007
Last week was somewhat strange for many of us at 411, and I found myself looking for ways to escape a very confusing situation. But it was impossible, be it at work, in Central Park, or even with family, the name of the times has been "Benoit." I'm going to spend some time talking about this further down the column, but due to some time constraints, I am giving you an abbreviated Starting 5: The Tennis Doubles Edition! (with the irony being my sheer lack of mentioning the ever-dominant Williams Sisters)
Big Draft-Day Trades Cause Bigger Questions:
When it was announced that two All-Star players were being traded from the Western Conference to the East, some of you may have had visions of Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant wreaking havoc on the Knicks' and Celtics' basketball courts. Nuh-uh. Instead, GM/Coach Isiah Thomas has brought the oft-troubled Zach Randolph to the Big Apple for Channing Frye and Steve Francis, and his Bostonian counterpart Danny Ainge has traded Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, and NUMBER FIVE OVERALL PICK JEFF GREEN for Ray Allen and the #35 pick Glen Davis.
Now, believe it or not, the Knicks actually don't come out the worst in this scenario, as they also receive guards Dan Dickau and Fred Jones, which is good because of Nate Robinson's ever-annoying inconsistency on the court. I don't know how in the world Randolph and Eddy Curry will coexist in the post position, or how the Knicks will ever manage to move below the salary cap, however. Meanwhile, the Celtics must be feeling that Allen and Pierce will be able to make some noise in the East, and provide some sort stable influence over young guns Ryan Gomes, Al Jefferson, and Gerald Green. I really can't tell how these trades will play out until at least seeing some preseason games, but I sense more growing pains for both franchises. Oh, did I mention that Portland and Seattle only managed to make themselves even BETTER with these trades? And for the #1 and #2 Draft selectors this year, that's saying something.
Though Considered #2, He Was Second to None:
60 years ago this month, a mere 11 weeks after Jackie Robinson officially broke the color barrier in baseball, Lawrence Eugene Doby became the first black player in the American League. He played 12 years in the Majors, amassing a career .283 batting average, 1515 hits, 253 HR and 970 RBI. A rookie and mainstay for the Cleveland Indians, the outfielder helped take the team to their last World Series championship, even hitting a game-winning home run in Game Four.
Doby accomplished a lot of firsts in the integration of the sport, being the first black player to lead his league in homers(led the A.L. twice), to play in a World Series, and the first to homer in one. He is one of four players ever to appear in both the Negro League World Series AND the MLB World Series, in the company of Monte Irvin, Willie Mays, and Satchel Paige. He passed on in 2003, after a long battle with cancer, but will always be remembered for his professionalism, skill, and unassuming demeanor. Hopefully Baseball will honor him properly this year, at least in the American League.
Parting Shot
Since much of the 411 community has had thoughts and feelings regarding one of the most bizarre tragedies in ages, I thought I would throw in my own two cents. As a long-time wrestling fan, this week has been quite trying. I have been trying to reconcile my utter adoration for such a unique form of sport/theater, against the myriad of emotions I experienced last week. Chris Benoit was one of my favorite wrestlers ever, bar none. If I were asked to show a person who had never seen a single match in his/her life, one of my top choices would be a Benoit match from any era. As I sit here, however, I can't help looking at his picture and thinking "a wife and a seven year-old." A wife, and a seven year-old. That's actually why I couldn't place one here.
For one entire week today, facts and suppositions alike have been pouring in from everywhere, and none of it makes any sense. Chris Benoit killed his wife and child in a brutal fashion, and then took his own life, and that's that? I have said this multiple times, so I'll say it again: By the time ALL of the facts about this case have been revealed, ALL of our minds will be blown. Too many things don't make sense, but then again I suppose if I could make sense of it too easily, one might see the need lock me up in a padded room. I just can't help but feeling there is something none of us knows still waiting to come to the surface, and when it does Vince McMahon will be forced to take back his "monster" remarks on the Today show, the people simply looking for a way to make the "steroid issue" bigger and brighter, might all be eating their words. In a situation where things get more complicated with every discovery, there is this one simple truth: A man, a woman, and a 7 year-old boy are all gone, and we have no real idea why. It is tragic for their extended families, and their friends. And frightening.
This brings me to the question of "am I done with wrestling, and done with the WWE?" I don't know. My respect from wrestling came from seeing one of those smaller companies in action, and it just seems ridiculous to stop appreciating other people's work because of the actions of one. I am not going to blame Vince McMahon for this one, although he needs to get off his damn laurels and start providing some counseling for these men and women he has spending 90% of the year on the road. He also needs to stop publicly denying the impact of steroids on the business and simultaneously pressuring his workers to be bigger and badder. But this is a problem that does not begin and end with the WWE, and I can only hope the entire wrestling community will take a step back, and really see what they can do to help better the lives of these extremely hard workers. But, no, I don't suppose I'm ready to renounce them all just yet.
Walkin' Off
I know, I know… no Manager's Rant of the Week. I'll make it up to you guys soon. I'd like to say how nice it is to see Barry Bonds selected to this year's All-Star Team, in front of his home crowd. Even he displayed a bit of humility over the voting, which made me even happier. It'll most likely be his last season, and it's the ideal way to go out. Setting a new home run mark doesn't hurt, either. Oh, and the same goes for Craig Biggio's 3000th hit, which actually ended up winning the game.
Join me next week, as My Yankees' slide threatens to push me closer and closer toward the bottle. Say it with me, people: "Abreu for Dye," "Abreu for Dye." Keep repeating until it happens.
