Predicting the draft (NBA that is)

Some draft experts have said that tonights NBA draft is impossible to predict. Therefor I am going to make an honest attempt to defy the odds and forsee the first 10 picks for the 2008 NBA draft. My guesses are based on facts pulled from various draft and sports sites (draftexpress, hoopshype, nbadraft.net, si.com) combined with my terrible sports intuiton. Let's see how I do.

1. Chicago Bulls- Derrick Rose
2. Miami Heat- O.J. Mayo
3. Minnesota Timberwolves- Michael Beasley
4. Seattle Supersonics- Jerryd Bayless
5. Charlotte Bobcats (trade with Memphis)- Kevin Love
6. New York Knicks- Russell Westbrook
7. L.A. Clippers- Eric Gordon
8. Milwaukee Bucks- Brook Lopez
9. Memphis Grizzlies- Joe Alexander
10. New Jersey Nets - Danilo Gallinari

The big shocker here is that Miami will go with Mayo. Pat Riley isn't crazy about Beasely, and Mayo and D. Wade already have great chemistry together. There is a good chance the Heat will try to get some value for the number 2 pick, so wouldn't be shocked to see them trade out of the spot and try to land Mayo by other means (trade). If no deal goes down I see them taking Mayo at the 2 spot regardless. This would leave Minnesota free to take the player they really want in Beasley. The only other trade I'm predicting will go down is Charlotte moving up to take Kevin Love. Larry Brown has a man crush on this kid and MJ seems willing to ablidge (the #9, #20, and maybe Adam Morrison). After that I'm taking a shot in the dark. I'll check in tonight during the draft and see how well I fare.

UPDATE

I got two picks right. I suck at predicting the NBA draft.

Shaq can't rap. ESPN lacks street cred.

One of the more entertaining news that came around this week was the now infamous "Shaq Kobe Rap". If you haven't seen it, then I suggest you hop on over to youtube and check it out if only to see an example of terrible freestyling.

An example

"I'm a horse, Kobe ratted me out, and now I'm divorced. Kobe, tell me how my ass tastes"

Classic.

Don't get me wrong, that isn't the worst freestyle I've ever heard. That mantle belongs to some white kid somewhere (and It happened in my backyard). The best part about this ordeal is that it was the lead story on Sportscenter the other night. Watching Jon Buchigross's face as he reacted with disbelief to this freestyle is what dreams are made of. ESPN tried so desperately to act like this was something serious. No lie they ran the clip 3 times, and had video packages of the Shaq v. Kobe "feud" rolling throughout the hour. It wasn't until Screamin A. Smith made an appearance that some sense was brought back to the show (saying Stephen A. Smith, and "makes sense" in the same sentence makes me feel dirty). Despite Screamin A. pointing out ESPN's lack of street credibility, sports writers and commentators continued to tout the re-ignition of the Kobe, Shaq feud. Completely ignoring one of the fundamentals of the freestyle rap, that being the "hate" factor. When people freestyle they say mean, and sometimes evil things about people they care about. So when Shaq says "Kobe, tell me how my ass tastes" he really means "Kobe, lets get married. You know it's legal now", or maybe something else. The fact is, it's not a big deal, and because of the fuss ESPN made over the video, we now have one less cop on our streets. What will the cats in Bedford county do now ESPN?

Ahhh. I've finally caught my breath....

It's been a crazy month in the land of Climax. I recently graduated college, got married to my high school sweet heart, and went on a sweet honeymoon all in the same month. With all that business and excitement I've been left with zero time to write (yes I know, Indiana Jones came out a month ago). I've missed some great writing opportunities in the last month, sorry Lost finale (9.9/10), but there has also been some very serious events that occurred. There are the Midwest floods, the continued situations in Myanmar, China, Iraq, and Afghanistan, our economy, the Presidential race, and the passing of Tim Russert. These are events that everyone should keep tabs on daily. Just because the news media doesn't cover them 24/7 like CNN does Hulk Hogan, doesn't mean that they aren't happening. So with that said, it's great to be back and keep an eye out for regular updates