Thursday, April 30, 2009

Goliath v. Goliath

I like my sports Goliath v. Goliath, no David's, no one year wonder team, just top dog v. top dog. I want to see Phil v. Tiger on Sundays, sorry Kenny Perry. I want to see Patriots v. Giants, not the Cardinals. That's how it should be folks, if your running these sports, in this economy, your about the bottom line. Tampa Bay in the World Series is cute, if your from St. Petersburg. When your in charge you want Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, Dodgers, and Phillies on your biggest stage, not the Marlins and Rays.

What am I getting at? I'm glad your still reading. However, what I'm getting at is how we're destined to have some fantastic Goliath v. Goliath showdowns in the coming months, keep in mind you already saw Phil and Tiger tee it up at Augusta, we're getting lucky.

The NBA Finals: I love the two-month foreplay the NBA is rolling out to its' fans. The reality is, who cares if the Spurs are dead? Does the winner of Celts v. Bulls really matter? Dwight Howard can be suspended for the rest of the playoffs or he can play, either way the only parade in Orlando will feature Minnie, Mickey, and Goofy, bank on it. Shut the television off, crack open a cold one and enjoy the gorgeous weather we're having, you won't miss anything. The Lakers and Cavaliers, or should I say, Kobe and LeBron are leading us down this road to Goliath v. Goliath and I couldn't be more excited. The Utah Jazz got lucky with one home win against a very good Lakers team, aside from that hiccup L.A. beat them by ten or more every game, 4-1 series over. As for LeBron & Co. in Cleveland, did they have a first round bye? I mean I know that Detroit got off a plane in Cleveland but did they actually play a game or two? I'm going to stop with Detroit, I get it the city is having some problems. Seriously though, Cleveland smashed Detroit 4-0 in the series winning every game by nearly 16 points, even holding the Pistons to under 70 in game 3. If we think for one minute that a Celtic team without KG, or a Magic team that is bound to go seven against Philly is taking Cleveland to the brink, we've got another thing coming. The Nuggets, Mavericks, and Rockets are that little field mouse the cat plays with to the Lakers that's about all they are. I'm OKAY with all of this though, just to make my point. I want nothing more than to see Kobe v. LeBron, as a die hard Celtics fan if KG isn't there I don't want them playing either of these teams. Kobe will rise to Goliath like status when he sees LeBron and vice versa. This is Magic v. Bird 2.0, believe that. In the NBA there could be no other Goliath than Kobe and LeBron, take stage fellas.

Round 2; Stanley Cup Playoffs Before we get to Crosby/Malkin v. Ovechkin/Semin hold your horses. The Detroit Red Wings v. Anaheim Ducks features the last two winners of Lord Stanley's Cup, two teams which were somewhat dismissed heading into the playoffs. The Ducks dropped the top seeded Sharks in six games lead by goalie Jonas Hiller whose at the top of his game. The Red Wings offense scored 4 goals or more in each of their four games during their first round sweep of the Bluejackets. Littered with veterans from Red Wing goalie Chris Osgood to Ducks defenseman Scott Niedermayer, these two teams are a Goliath v. Goliath match up that I can't wait to watch. Back to what you want to discuss, Penguins v. Capitals or more specifically, Crosby v. Ovechkin. However, you know what your getting with The Kid and Ove, they'll score some goals, they'll be dominant, but Penguin center Evgeni Malkin and Capital winger Alexander Semin may be the guys your really watching for. It was Semin who scored two goals in the Capitals must win game 3 in Madison Square Garden and the game winner in the decisive game 7. It is Evgeni Malkin not Crosby who leads all postseason pucksters in total points. Five goals in the Penguins first round series against the Flyers helped Pittsburgh advance. Malkin & Semin are in the top two in points, the top three in goals and both are the catalyst for their repsective teams. No sweeps, no NHL darlings, just another set of Goliaths v. Goliaths.

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