Chillin' with the missus, rippin' LeBron The Loser and diggin' Dwight

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The Bald Truth

Hopefully, a few readers noticed that I hadn't posted for a few days.

For those who are worried sick about me, no need. I didn't accidentally watch 5 seconds of Around the Horn, lose my mind and get hauled away to the funny farm.

No, it's just that my wife is taking a little vacation time and we've been chillin' together.

Really, though ... instead of taking time off from the one job she has, shouldn't she be working a second job so she can support my golf habit?

Jeesh, some people are so selfish.

Anyway, after I'm done with this post, I will be back in a day or three, so keep checking. As always, I appreciate everyone's loyalty.

The Quote

"It’s not being a poor sport or anything like that." - LeBron James, a day after refusing to shake hands with Dwight Howard and the rest of the Orlando Magic.

Well yes, Bron-Bron, it is being a poor sport.

And a jerk.

And a clown.

And a sore loser.

And a self-serving douchebag.

And I could go on ... but do I really need to?

I just wonder what LeBron would have said had Howard done the same to him.

The Balder Truth

Loved that the NHL played Games 1 and 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals on consecutive nights in Detroit. It's a reminder of the good old days when every league didn't feel compelled to drag out every postseason series for weeks on end.

Not sure the Penguins were as happy about it, though I'm guessing the Red Wings would be up 2-0 even if the league had waited until September for Game 2.

The Question

Is it just me or has David Ortiz gone from age 33 to age 48 in the span of two months?

THE BALDEST TRUTH

Some media mopes actually are criticizing Dwight Howard for only being able to dunk on the offensive end.

These are probably the same idiots who said as much about Shaq 15 years and four NBA championships ago.

Look, if Howard is "only" able to dunk 10, 15, 20 times in a game, that's a good thing. Besides, he does help the Magic on offense even if he's not dunking. To name three ways: He's a great offensive rebounder; he helps Orlando's many fine outside shooters by drawing the defense to him; and he gets the opposing center in foul trouble.

It would be cool to see Howard win the NBA title because he has the right attitude: Play as hard as he can and as well as he can every minute he's on the court but otherwise realize that it is just a game. I can't remember any recent pro basketball player enjoying the game more. Such perspective is sorely lacking (see: James, LeBron).

Even though Howard and a few of other Magicals will create matchup problems for the Lakers, however, I can't pick Orlando to win this series.

The Lakers have too much experience, too much good coaching, too much talent, too much skill coming off the bench and, especially, too much Kobe Bryant.

Way, way, way too much Jack Nicholson, as well, but I won't hold that against them.

Lakers in 6.

Oh, does Peavy pitch, too?

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The Bald Truth

The obvious story line from Friday's Cubs-Padres game was that Jake Peavy showed the Cubs just what they were missing.

Yeah ... he got a hit and scored a run.

The Question

OK, who stole the Cardinals' starting pitchers and replaced them with the 1970 Orioles' rotation?

The Baldest Truth

If you're like me, you're shocked - shocked! - to see Rich Harden go on the DL.

He's batting .200, so the Cubs desperately will miss him. 

The Quote

"That's just a great shot, man." - LeBron James, on TNT, describing his buzzer-beating Game 2 winner.

That's just great humility, too.

THE BALDEST TRUTH

The Cavs blew a 23-point lead but won anyway to save themselves from almost certain doom.

The Blackhawks blew a three-goal lead but won anyway to save themselves from almost certain doom.

The Nationals, as usual, simply blew. They faced certain doom before pitchers and catchers reported.

And now we send it to Stormy Mist for the weather ...

Bulls get what they deserve: date with Celtics

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The Bald Truth

Because I have so many better things to do than watch Bulls games on television - spend time with my family, send e-mails to friends, clip my toenails, pretty much anything qualifies - I only watched snippets of the Bulls' ridiculous and costly Wednesday night loss to the Raptors.

And in practically every snippet I watched, the Raptors were scoring on dunks and layups and wide-open 15-footers. 

The Bulls' loss (to a team that has been out of the playoff picture since November), combined with the 76ers' victory over a Cavs club that was resting everybody (including LeBron), means the Bulls will have to face Boston instead of Orlando in the first round of the playoffs.

Not that the Bulls were going to beat the Magic - I mean, if Patrick O'Bryant had his way with them, how badly would Dwight Howard have folded, spindled and mutilated them? - but they have no chance against the defending champion Celtics.

Yeah, but what if Kevin Garnett can't play or is limited in what he can do? Hello! Was KG on the court for Toronto? Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo and the rest of Boston's finest will be far more than the Bulls can handle. 

For the zillionth time, it's fair to wonder about Vinny Del Negro. 

The coach can't motivate his team to get up for an important home game against the Raptors? He can't do something - anything - to keep the Bulls from falling behind big in almost every game, a trend that will bury them in the playoffs? He can't get his lads to play even a lick of defense?

I'm not pinning this all on Vinny. It's not as if John Paxson has given Del Negro a great team. But an outstanding coach might be able to steal a playoff series with the Bulls' roster, and nobody will will mistake Del Negro for that. 

The Quote

"From the jump ball, we got outworked. They had better energy, moved the ball better. We couldn't get stops and didn't move the ball. They outhustled us on the glass. We were lackadaisical. I'm disappointed with our effort and our urgency ... " - Vinny Del Negro

As I was saying ...

The Prediction

Celtics in 5. Only because KG isn't 100 percent. And because I'm feeling generous.

The Balder Truth

It was Jason Marquis vs. Rich Harden - the pitcher the Cubs had to get because they couldn't trust Jason Marquis.

What a mismatch!

For the Rockies.

They got seven strong innings - and a two-run single - from Marquis in smacking Harden and the Cubbies all over Wrigley Field.

Those baseball gods have one heck of a sense of humor. 

On a different note, good stuff from Colorado manager Clint Hurdle. After Huston Street opened the ninth inning by allowing a homer, a walk and a single, Hurdle yanked his closer and went with Jason Grilli, who promptly earned the save.

Too often, managers let their closers go down in flames. Why? "Because he's my closer." Well, unless your closer is Mariano Rivera or a select few others, get somebody ready in the bullpen just in case. 

If your closer is too sensitive to handle that, he's not tough enough to be your closer anyway.

THE BALDEST TRUTH

So Chris Carpenter works like crazy to return from arm problems that would have ended a lot of pitchers' careers. He comes back, pitches great and gets Redbird rooters all excited about their heroes' chances. And then he strains the left side of his rib cage while swinging a bat?

I know I shouldn't feel sorry for the guy because he's got more money than the rest of us combined, but jeesh!

Oh, and speaking of the Cardinals, I'll be at Thursday's Cubs-Cards game making my glorious return as an AP scribe (although this time only as a freelancer). After all I've covered these last 27 years this probably sounds silly, but I actually am a little nervous.

Here's hoping it's the "good nerves" athletes are always talking about.

Bulls don't need no stinkin' Dwyane Wade

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The Bald Truth

Thank goodness John Paxson held onto Donyell Marshall instead of including that all-time superstar in a 2003 draft-day trade that would have brought Dwyane Wade to the Bulls.

I mean, if Pax had made that deal, the Bulls never would have drafted Kirk Hinrich ... and then where would they be?

The Quote

"When I got the steal, what was going through my head is coach said, 'We got a time-out left.' So I was about to call it ... but then I said, 'Nah.'" - Wade

The Balder Truth

Wade's most recent amazing performance came in the Heat's double-overtime win over the Bulls on Monday night, when he capped a 48-point, 12-assist game by stealing the ball from John Salmons and then hitting a running 3-pointer at the buzzer.

He had sent the game into OT with a trey but had missed a difficult reverse layup at the first-overtime buzzer.

Two out of three? Not bad for a Chicago kid whom Illinois and DePaul barely recruited.

As a fellow Marquette Golden Warrior Eagle, all I can say is: Thanks, Illini and Demons!

THE BALDEST TRUTH

It's pretty tough to make a case for anybody other than LeBron James as NBA MVP, but one could make a pretty good argument that Wade should be co-MVP.

Would the Heat win even 15 games without the league's leading scorer?

OK, the Cavs would be in pretty serious trouble without James, too. 

Kobe Bryant? Hardly. Great, great player. And I'd probably choose him over either Dwyane or LeBron to take the final shot of a game. But the Lakers would be playoff contenders even if Kobe got charged with rape again and had to spend a mess of time in a Denver courtroom.

One thing for sure: Of the three, only Dwyane has an NBA title since he entered the league.

Another thing for sure: Only the Bulls have Captain Kirk.

Of Oscar errors, stupid rules and Joe the Twin

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The List

Ten random observations from the weekend that was:

1. Not rooting for the Twins to beat the White Sox (or for the White Sox to beat the Twins, for that matter), but I hope good guy Joe Crede has a healthy, productive season for his new ballclub. 

2. To the press-conference inquisitor who got Jim Calhoun all hot and bothered: Successful major-sport college coaches deserve every penny they are paid. Nobody at any university - and that includes the school president - works harder or faces more scrutiny than the head basketball or football coach.

3.  Interviewing is easy if one can do it in the setting in which Baba Wawa always gets to ask questions - one-on-one with the subject, with the camera rolling and with millions of viewers watching (or about to watch). She'd impress me a lot more if she got anything substantive out of an angry jock in the corner of a crowded locker room.

4. Late in Sunday's Bulls-Pacers game, Stacey King identified 17 games the Bulls "should" win before season's end (including Sunday's contest). His team promptly lost. Hey Stacey: The Lakers or Celtics are good enough to say they should win a game; the Bulls aren't. Fact is, opposing teams - including the Pacers - think they should beat the Bulls every time.

5. As outstanding as Sean Penn was in Milk, even he gave a shout-out to deserving Best Actor winner Mickey Rourke. I'd like to thank the Academy ... for missing the obvious.

6. Rutgers receiver Kevin Britt told reporters at the NFL Combine that he wants to be drafted by the Bears so Devin Hester can be his "mentor." That's a good one. Were Britt at receiver for the Bears, he'd have to tell Hester where to line up on half the plays.

7. Wow ... 70 points for the Illini. Just like a big-boy team!

8. Not a single day will go by in 2009 without one of the New York papers coming up with some dirt on A-Roid.

9. Smart of Phil Mickelson to squeeze in a victory before Tiger returns to the tour.

10. The Bulls have told all recent acquisitions that they're still enforcing their no-headband mandate. Brilliant rule! Very important to a team's success! Thank goodness they won't let a headband-wearing loser like LeBron join the team when he becomes a free agent next year.

The B's have it

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BARRY!

Miscreant. Juicer. Liar.

And, sources say, not a very good Scrabble player.

BECKHAM!

Isn't it nice that Mr. Spice saved American pro soccer before bending it back to Europe for good?

Here's hoping he at least paid his taxes during his brief time here. Otherwise, he runs the risk of being named to Obama's Cabinet.

BLOOMINGTON BEDLAM!

The Fighting Creaners win one Big Ten game and the town is up for grabs.

Why, folks there haven't been this thrilled since the last time Bobby Knight cursed out a 19-year-old student newspaper reporter.

BALLERS BRON-BRON & BRYANT!

Hey, Kobe ... I'll see your 61 points and raise you a 52-point, 11-assist, 10-rebound triple-double.

See, the Knicks can be defensive laughingstocks even without Eddy Curry.

BULLISH!

Four wins in five road games for Vinny Del Excuse's crew.

A few more streaks like this, and they'll be a .500 team by the time he's fired.