Bay Area Sports Blogging

Baron Davis, the face of the Warriors' resurgence, opted out of his contract yesterday night.  The choice was a bold move on his part as he leaves $17.2 million behind.

Rumors have Davis going to the Los Angeles Clippers were he will play in front of his hometown fans.  Elton Brand, who also opted out of his contract, is expected to resign with the Clippers at a lower rate thus giving them their own version of the Big-3 in Davis, Brand, and Kaman.

There have also been rumors with Davis heading to the New York Knicks to play under D'Antoni's wide-open offense.  Although Davis is a West-coast guy, there would be no complaints if the Knicks offer a max contract.

That familiar sizzle of meat hitting a smoking hot grill.  The weather starting to warm up.  A bunch of damn kids running around the streets.  That means summer time!  And what is summer time without the annual Nathan's Hot Dog eating contest at Coney Island in New York.

This will be the 93rd Nathan's Hot Dog eating contest.  Joey Chestnut will be there defending his mustard belt while former six time winner Takeru Kobayashi will be gunning for the championship.  Also competing at the event is Pat Bertoletti and Sonya Thomas.

Although it hasn't been officially announced, there has been reports stating that former NFL champion Warren Sapp will be in Dancing With the Stars.  The first thing that came to mind is Whoa, really?  Sapp, a former Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers linemen, is not exactly what you would call, graceful.  He's a big lug, plain and simple.

On the football field, he has shown some decent footwork and agility to rush the quarterback.  But on the grass, technique was not important as long as you got pressure on the opposing quarterback.  In ballroom dancing, the journey is the only thing, which can stiffle Sapp's learning curve.

The Giants were able to experience a sweep on both ends.  Sweeping the Nationals brought ultimate joys while getting swept by the A's brought only misery and disappointment. 

Tuesday, June 3, 2008 :: Giants 6 - Mets 9

The Mets bounced back from the shalacking they received the night before on Pedro Martinez's comeback start.  Martinez even had a few RBIs to help his cause as the Giants' Cy Young winner loses yet another game. 

Wednesday, June 4, 2008 :: Giants 3 - Mets 5

After an epic fail by the Los Angeles Lakers, the Boston Celtics are up 3-1 in the NBA Finals. With such a deficit, it is almost certain that the Celtics will win the series. The only question remaining is who on the Celtics team should get MVP honors.

The candidates are the Boston Three Party, otherwise known as Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen. All three players have been vital to the success of the Celtics, but there can only be one.

The NBA Finals will start Thursday night with the LA Lakers visiting the Boston Celtics for game 1. There has been a lot of comparisons to the historical match-ups between these two teams in the 80s and even earlier. But all that talk is just filler to sell newspapers. These two teams have their own identities, and they will need to build their own legacies.

Legends are born in the playoffs, but they are immortalized in the Finals. So far this year, the Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant has proved to the league just how clutch he is, making shot after shot in the fourth quarter to send the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs home in five games. It is a great run, for sure, but without the championship, Kobe's great run may well be forgotten.

A marquee matchup between two former Cy-Young winners tonight will most likely draw millions of fans from both coasts.  The story lines feel as if they were taken straight from a textbook drama.  Pedro Martinez returns from the disabled list holding the hopes of an entire organization and its fans to turn the Mets season around.  Barry Zito hopes to continue his rise from the pits of an 0-8 start to reclaim his former glory.  Who will come out on top?! Tune in to find out.

GO GIANTS!  

Sunday, May 25, 2008 :: Giants 6 - Marlins 8

The NBA has announced that it will start issuing fines for players that flop fouls. Various NBA personnel attending the games and watching video reviews will mark cases of potential flopping. Then the league will review the play(s) after the game to determine if indeed a flop took place. The keyword in the statement issued is that only clear cases of flopping would be fined.

This new rule change can help clean up the game. Floppers exist on both sides of the court, offense and defense. The players should be out there playing real defense, not just flailing their arms around hoping for a call. Some offensive players dribbling in the paint would sprawl over the floor, hoping for a call. That's not basketball.