UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley successfully defended his belt against submission specialist Demian Maia at UFC 214; however, it was a very boring fight to watch. Woodley chose to just defend Maia's takedowns rather than press the offense. He threw about 63 strikes. When UFC promoter Dana White went to the podium, he blasted Woodley for not utilizing his physical gifts and forgetting booed in the fight. Afterwards, Woodley expressed his displeasure and said on the MMA Hour, "When your job is 'promoter', promote your f--ng fighters. Promote your f--ing champions."
The welterweight title fight wasn't as exciting as it should be, but in the end White has to stand up for his fighters. He should have the decency to apologize to Woodley for throwing him under the bus in public. The proper way to express displeasure is to have a private conversation with Woodley rather than blast him in public for his performance. No one wants to work for an employer who doesn't show professionalism and integrity. More fighters will walk away from UFC if the company doesn't change how it handles fights.
Tuesday, August 1, 2017
Friday, July 28, 2017
Officials Cannot Call Technical Fouls on LaVar Ball
Since LaVar Ball has a tendency to take his team, Big Baller, out of competition if things don't go his way, Adidas, who runs the Summer Championships, have told basketball officials to not call technical fouls on him because of his drawing power. Ball's drawing power was clearly evident last Wednesday when the gym where his youngest son's team played against SC Supreme was overcrowded.
Ball was about to leave when he was called a tech with 1:15 remaining; however, he eventually did return to the game. That official who called a tech on him was removed in Friday's morning game of the championship when she called another tech on the outspoken social media figure. The official gave him a tech for telling officials they don't know how to do their job. Ball claims the official had a vendetta against him. Ed Rush, a former NBA official, denies that accusation, since she normally officiates Division 1 women's basketball games.
Ball should not receive favorable treatment just because of his ability to generate publicity. He is disrespecting the game and the officials. He's a bad role model. He shouldn't be allowed to go on a tirade about a bad call or cuss an official out. The Adidas championship can still thrive without his team and without him. Plus, he and his eldest son Lonzo Ball, walked away from the major shoe companies' pitches and formed his own shoe line, Big Baller Brand. The elder Ball just wants attention good or bad. If the media and companies ignore him, he loses his charismatic power.
Ball was about to leave when he was called a tech with 1:15 remaining; however, he eventually did return to the game. That official who called a tech on him was removed in Friday's morning game of the championship when she called another tech on the outspoken social media figure. The official gave him a tech for telling officials they don't know how to do their job. Ball claims the official had a vendetta against him. Ed Rush, a former NBA official, denies that accusation, since she normally officiates Division 1 women's basketball games.
Ball should not receive favorable treatment just because of his ability to generate publicity. He is disrespecting the game and the officials. He's a bad role model. He shouldn't be allowed to go on a tirade about a bad call or cuss an official out. The Adidas championship can still thrive without his team and without him. Plus, he and his eldest son Lonzo Ball, walked away from the major shoe companies' pitches and formed his own shoe line, Big Baller Brand. The elder Ball just wants attention good or bad. If the media and companies ignore him, he loses his charismatic power.
Saturday, July 1, 2017
The Los Angeles Clipper Should Have Gone Full Rebuild
After losing point guard Chris Paul to free agency to the Houston Rockets and shooting guard JJ Redick to the Philadelphia 76ers, the Los Angeles Clippers have re-signed power forward Blake Griffin to a five-year $173 million deal. I really wanted the team to trade Griffin and get some picks back in return. Griffin was got injured during the playoffs during 3 years of the 6 years he played alongside Paul. He also missed most of the 2015-16 season from a knee injury and having a fight with a Clippers employee. It was time to part ways with him. Unfortunately, owner Steve Ballmer and coach Doc Rivers view Griffin as the face of the franchise.
We really needed a fresh look to the team. Trade Griffin and Deandre Jordan away. Release Rivers from his double duty of head coach and President of Basketball Operations. The team has yet to advance past the second round. That is sad. Rivers never added anybody to help our Big Three. How do you expect the team to compete with the likes of Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, and now Minnesota Timberwolves if you don't acquire more star power?
We really needed a fresh look to the team. Trade Griffin and Deandre Jordan away. Release Rivers from his double duty of head coach and President of Basketball Operations. The team has yet to advance past the second round. That is sad. Rivers never added anybody to help our Big Three. How do you expect the team to compete with the likes of Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, and now Minnesota Timberwolves if you don't acquire more star power?
Nike's Logo Infringement Complaint is Bogus
The two logos look nothing alike. It's another case where a larger company wants to knock down a smaller company over something as stupid as logo likeness when there clearly is none.
From 2011-2012, Zenimax, the parent company of Bethesda, who makes Elder Scrolls RPG game, sued Mojang, makers of Minecraft, for its upcoming card battler game that had the name Scrolls. Zenimax claimed Scrolls infringed on its trademark of the Elder Scrolls series. In the end, the two sides reached an agreement where Mojang does not file a trademark for Scrolls and cannot make a sequel with Scrolls in the title; however, it is allowed to publish the card game with the name Scrolls. This means Mojang can't turn its card game into a franchise. If it did, the sequel would require a different name. The two games were nothing alike. Plus, Zenimax only had rights to Elder Scrolls combined, not Elder nor Scrolls.
In both scenarios, there's a large company who felt like overreaching on trademark enforcement upon a smaller business.
Friday, March 3, 2017
DeMarcus Cousins Does Not Fit in Uptempo Offense
The New Orleans Pelicans might have gotten a steal in the DeMarcus Cousins transaction with the Sacramento Kings; however, they now have the wrong pieces to run an uptempo offense that coach Alvin Gentry is familiar with during his stints with the Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors. The Pelicans lost most of their three-point shooters, a key ingredient for the modern NBA. The top 4 teams in the league have a plethora of 3-point shooters. Last year, the average amount of 3-point attempts per team was about 30 per game. During the early 1990s, teams only averaged about 10 from downtown. The fact that players are more proficient from behind the arc than ever before and the less physical nature of the game has sped up the game and encouraged 3-point shooting. The Pelicans will need more outside shooters to open up the inside for Cousins and Anthony Davis.
An uptempo offense requires a lot of running up and down the court. Cousins won't do that consistently. The Kings have run one of the fastest offenses in the league during the last two seasons, but Cousins has shown lack of interest to hustle back on defense, particularly when he feels he deserves a call but did not receive one. That's going to be a huge problem.
Cousins hearkens back to old school greats like Shaq and Wilt Chamberlain, an unstoppable big man. He's also a great passer and can shoot 3s. However, defense and hustle are huge liabilities. Maybe a full training camp session with the Pelicans will fans know whether or not Cousins is a good fit with the team.
An uptempo offense requires a lot of running up and down the court. Cousins won't do that consistently. The Kings have run one of the fastest offenses in the league during the last two seasons, but Cousins has shown lack of interest to hustle back on defense, particularly when he feels he deserves a call but did not receive one. That's going to be a huge problem.
Cousins hearkens back to old school greats like Shaq and Wilt Chamberlain, an unstoppable big man. He's also a great passer and can shoot 3s. However, defense and hustle are huge liabilities. Maybe a full training camp session with the Pelicans will fans know whether or not Cousins is a good fit with the team.
Georges St. Pierre is Underserving of Middleweight Title Shot
It has been recently announced that Georges St. Pierre (GSP)'s first UFC fight after about a two-year layoff will be against Michael Bisping for the middleweight title. GSP will step over more deserving fighters like Yoel Romero and Ronaldo Souza because the UFC lately runs like the WWE: mainstream popularity matters. Even though earlier Dana White says the UFC will have to promote GSP all over again because of the fighter's long layoff. Romero and Souza are not getting the title shot because they are not household names. It's similar to how John Cena, the Undertaker, and Randy Orton are always vying for the WWE belt when there are other wrestlers just as deserving but not as popular or well known.
The UFC matchmaking used to be better when mixed martial arts was not as mainstream as it is today. Now, if fighters know how to talk, they'll have a better chance of earning bigger fights. Everyone has to be good on the microphone like Conor McGregor. McGregor got the lightweight title fight against Eddie Alvarez last year over someone like Tony Ferguson, who was on a 9-fight winning streak. Nine wins in a row and still no title shot? There's a good chance Khabib Nurmagomedov would have been the #1 lightweight contender against McGregor if McGregor didn't decide to take first half of 2017 off. That's because Khabib threatened to quit the UFC, yet he has not been as active as Ferguson.
Pierre getting the next middleweight title shot is even more perplexing when he has 0 fights in that weight class. He was afraid to challenge then champion Anderson Silva when there was all this talk of a super fight between the welterweight and middleweight champions. Majority of fighters want a crack at the middleweight title because they all believe Bisping is an easy matchup. But regardless of their lack of respect for him, there are more deserving fighters than one who has never fought at that weight class and has been inactive for two years.
The UFC matchmaking used to be better when mixed martial arts was not as mainstream as it is today. Now, if fighters know how to talk, they'll have a better chance of earning bigger fights. Everyone has to be good on the microphone like Conor McGregor. McGregor got the lightweight title fight against Eddie Alvarez last year over someone like Tony Ferguson, who was on a 9-fight winning streak. Nine wins in a row and still no title shot? There's a good chance Khabib Nurmagomedov would have been the #1 lightweight contender against McGregor if McGregor didn't decide to take first half of 2017 off. That's because Khabib threatened to quit the UFC, yet he has not been as active as Ferguson.
Pierre getting the next middleweight title shot is even more perplexing when he has 0 fights in that weight class. He was afraid to challenge then champion Anderson Silva when there was all this talk of a super fight between the welterweight and middleweight champions. Majority of fighters want a crack at the middleweight title because they all believe Bisping is an easy matchup. But regardless of their lack of respect for him, there are more deserving fighters than one who has never fought at that weight class and has been inactive for two years.
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