The Top Boston Sports Stories of 2009 – No. 1-5

So we’re here…sitting on the doorstep of another year sure to bring plenty to talk about, both on the field and off. With four teams now fully competitive and New England athletes competing in individual sports like MMA and all of the Olympic events, it’s great to be a New England sports fan, even with the sub-zero temperatures this time of year.

The past 12 months have brought us another slew of games, decisions, play-calling, personalities and rivals to argue about at bars, barbershops and board rooms. Things like 4th and 2, whether to re-sign Jason Bay, the Evil Empire buying a title, the NHL Winter Classic and more were on our minds, lips and keyboards and thanks to the glut of sports media here, we have no shortage of outlets of which to get opinions from (including this one!).

We’ve looked at the Honorable Mentions and No’s. 6-10 on our list of the top Boston sports stories of 2009. Now as we prepare to welcome 2010, let’s say good bye to 2009 and the top five stories in Boston sports of the last 12 months.

5 – Harrison and Bruschi retirements, Seymour trade signal end of a defensive era for Patriots

Hey, look at it this way: the New England Patriots’ losses have been the networks’ gain as Rodney Harrison (NBC) and Tedy Bruschi (ESPN) both effortlessly slid into the role of “football analyst” to begin the season, flashing those million dollar smiles on faces that look like they’ve barely seen a combined 28 seasons of NFL action.

Once upon a time, the two were damn good football players too.

After patrolling and policing the Patriots defense together for six years (Harrison joined the team in 2003) and celebrating two championships together, Harrison and Bruschi both hung up their shoulder pads this summer and the Patriots have suffered for it. While their stats near the end of their careers may have not got headlines on the Monday recaps, there is no doubt that Bill Belichick’s defense has been in search of consistent leadership during this 2009 campaign. Combined with the surprising preseason trade of defensive mainstay Richard Seymour, this is a defense in serious transition.

There are positives. Even in a season where he’ll likely miss three games, Pro Bowl nose tackle Vince Wilfork has been a presence on the line and is making a case for a Albert Haynesworth-style payday when it comes time to ink a new deal this offseason. Young buck Jerod Mayo is evolving into the linebacker we are dying to have become a mega-star in New England.

But the secondary never has been fully addressed since Asante Samuel left town and once highly-touted free agent signing Adalius Thomas has evolved into more of a team issue than a team player. This group has their moments – like this past Sunday against Jacksonville – but in games against Indianapolis and New Orleans, they got handled badly. To lose all three of those guys at once was a huge deal as their presence alone was essentially an extension of Belichick on a player level.

Leaders take time to develop and personnel like Wilfork, Mayo and even Brandon Meriweather have shown they have the stuff to evolve into Double-B’s go-to guys. It just might be a while until they become the three-headed monster that Harrison, Bruschi and Seymour were for so many seasons, a monster that inspired the rest of the group to jump on for the ride. They get to start their own playoff journey and try in just a few weeks.

4 – Kevin Garnett hurts knee, misses 2009 NBA Playoffs

One of the toughest things in sports is to repeat as champions, but with the nucleus still intact and another year of maturity for one of the best young point guards in the league, the Boston Celtics had as good a chance as any to go back-to-back and win their 18th title. Even with the loss of the versatile James Posey, the C’s began the year at 27-2 – the best start in NBA history.

Then in February, things changed when spiritual leader Kevin Garnett injured his right knee in a game against the Utah Jazz. After missing 14 games, there was still reason to be optimistic as it looked like Garnett would be back for the playoffs. However, fans woke up from their dream abruptly when Garnett was shut down for the season after coming back for just four games. He would eventually have major knee surgery, but returned on time and has been as good as ever in ’09-’10.

Even without him, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo and the rest of the Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals and arguably were a KG away from defeating the Orlando Magic in Game 7 and getting a rematch with the Cleveland LeBrons. Offseason rumors were that Garnett would have played if the Celtics had advanced, but this was never proven and finds its place in Celtics lore.

The injury was a hard reminder that seasons are long and that health is always the great equalizer for any team rolling along to the promise land. Just months removed from another Boston icon’s knee blowing up, New England fans felt the pain again with Garnett.

3 – The 2009 MLB Playoffs (aka Hell for Red Sox fans)

If prior to the 2009 playoffs, you had mapped out the worst possible scenario for Red Sox Nation, it’s hard to imagine it could have been any more brutal than what we experienced this fall. Not only did a perennial postseason punching bag finally defeat the Sox in the ALDS, but their blood rival that hadn’t won a title since 2000 (despite spending about $2 billion) actually took home the shiny brass ring and revived one of the more obnoxious fanbases in sports in doing so.

Let’s start with the direct pain. The Los Angeles Angels not only beat the Red Sox in a playoff series for the first time in five chances, but swept them in doing so – culminating in a sad Sunday game that was in Boston’s back pocket until a meltdown by closer Jonathan Papelbon snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. It was ugly, just plain ugly. The bats never did going and there was a general malaise over the team in general.

This team earned their playoff berth, but certainly didn’t battle like one. Something just felt off, didn’t it?

If that wasn’t bad enough, the Yankees won the World Series, earning rings for offseason acquisitions Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett. After spending and spending and spending and spending, they finally did it. Congratulations! That’s what spending that much cash and playing in a Little League-sized ballpark will do for you. (Bitter much? Yes, I am.)

If there’s any positive out of this mess, it’s that it feels like Boston vs. New York might actually mean something again in 2010. Since 2004 and then 2007, the Yankees haven’t really felt like a factor as we’ve been too euphoric in our own championship victories to even notice them making the postseason. But with the sweeping spending last year and the equally aggressive offseason moves this winter, New York isn’t going away and hopefully, Boston isn’t either.

No more joking around with Jeter or A-Rod, Big Papi. It’s time to get serious again…like Varitek/A-Rod serious.

2 – David Ortiz and the great steroids scandal of 2009

We all pointed, laughed and said, “I told you so” when reports broke in February that Alex Rodriguez had tested positive for steroids back in 2003. We then had to slouch, grimace and eat a bit of crow when two familiar names – David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez – were linked to the infamous steroids test of that year and leaked from “the list” this summer.

Not our guys! That’s impossible…improbable…and likely accurate.

Amidst one of the most worst offensive seasons he had suffered in years, Ortiz was faced with one of the worst nightmares a professional athlete can face: a drug scandal. Ortiz denied the reports and in a memorable press conference during a series with the rival Yankees, said he took a variety of supplements and vitamins but never steroids. The story eventually died down to a degree, but the coincidence with his offensive outage was remarkable.

Believe him or not, we now had our own national steroid scourge to deal with. I remember going to San Francisco in 2003 and being amazed as just how much the Barry Bonds bubble was in effect. People simply didn’t care about anything the rest of the world thought about their offensive hero. While there were a smattering of boos at the Fens and on sports radio, the opinion really was quite non-chalant. We finally got our own bubble to live in.

2010 will be an interesting one for Ortiz as it’s his final contracted year in Boston. The man that meant so much for so long could be taking his final swings in a Boston uniform. What kind of bat will we see? Will Ortiz answer Theo Epstein’s offseason call or will he regress? Where is he going to bat in this order? As #34 goes, so goes the Red Sox offense especially if Mike Cameron and Casey Kotchman end up getting the majority of starts in this offense.

We need ya, big guy.

(By the way, notice how Manny just kinda slid on by in this whole mess? Mannywood!)

1 – No championships for first year since 2006

Gawd, we’re spoiled.

Since the Celtics earned their 17th World Championship in June 2008, we’ve experienced a dry spell here in Boston. The past 12 months marked the first calendar year since 2006 and the fifth year this decade that a Boston team hasn’t celebrated a championship.

Say what? The city of Cleveland would love to have just one of the six combined championships the Celtics, Red Sox and Patriots have won this decade and we’re complaining about a calendar year? Yep, that’s right.

Admit it – holiday shopping did feel a bit different with no championship apparel to buy for friends and family. (Well, that and that damn 27th World Series that Yankees team just earned. Too much Yankees merch available around here these days.)

But the Celtics are healthy again and still the beasts of the Eastern Conference despite a horrible West Coat trip. The Patriots’ Brady-to-Welker road show is playoff-bound once again and if Theo’s plan holds up, the Red Sox will see the postseason yet again. So yeah, you gotta feel a bit of hope that championship joy will return to our corner of Mudville (Snowville?) by this time next year….or else it will be two years in a row. Ouch!

Josh Nason is the main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog. Reach him via Twitter or josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

The Top 10 Boston Sports Stories of 2009 – No. 6-10

A Red Sox icon finally inducted into the Hall Of Fame, Fenway Park installs a sheet of ice for a bazillion people and a young Celtics star makes sure he’s sticking around for a while…we have the bottom half of the Top 10 Boston Sports Stories of 2009 right here!

If you missed the honorable mentions, here you go. We’ll reveal the Top 5 on Wednesday. Enjoy!

10 – Rajon Rondo signs extension with Boston Celtics

It was a bizarre negotiation that came down to the wire, but in the end, the Celtics didn’t let budding young star Rajon Rondo get away, signing the point guard to a 5-year, $55 million extension in November.

What’s so bizarre about that? How about Rondo being called out by team personnel several times over the summer (GM Danny Ainge revealed he was fined for being late to a playoff game, while coach Doc Rivers made some well-publicized comments)?

Was it just a case of tough love? Maybe, but in this era of the modern athlete, it was a huge risk to potentially not just alienate their point guard from signing a deal but perhaps for the impending season. These days, that seems more like the norm than the exception.

But in a weird way, maybe it worked. The 23-year-old will be sticking around Boston for an important fraction of his career and can continue his evolution in a winning environment. The next few years will be intriguing when it comes times for NBA player movement but at one of the most important positions in the league, the C’s have their man…even if he still needs to work on his free throws.

9 – Boston secures the Winter Classic

Maybe it was the Bruins return to relevance last season OR the success at playing outdoor hockey at Wrigley Field OR the Red Sox ownership knowing the right people OR perhaps it was a combination of all that and then some that earned Boston the right to host the next NHL Winter Classic. Whatever it was, we’re glad it happened as Fenway Park will see some freaking freezing cold hockey action this Friday as they host the league’s annual major single-game event between the B’s and the Flyers.

Since the announcement, there has been a buzz about the game and everyone has been using up their favors in order to get tickets. People are getting together for New Year’s Day parties to watch and for one day, hockey will matter to the mainstream fan here in New England. We’ve known for a while that Boston is a major sports hotbed and getting one-off events like this that bring major exposure and additional revenue to the Hub prove it, even if tickets were near-impossible to come by. I have a feeling, however, that everyone is going to know someone that went, kinda like Ali/Liston in Lewiston, Maine.

Got any extra tickets kicking around?

8 – 4th and 2

Who knew that one call in one game would garner so much discussion? (Well, actually…we knew it would, didn’t we?)

The decision by Patriots head coach Bill Belichick to go for it on 4th and 2 in a 34-28 game against the rival Indianapolis Colts earlier this season had not only Boston buzzing, but the national sports media as well. As you well know, the decision didn’t work out, the Colts scored in like two seconds and went on to win 35-34.

Always happy to rip into Belichick, there were plenty of the usual pundits that took their shots but surprisingly, some also defended him as well, noting his history of brass-balls play-calling that usually worked. Alas, this time it didn’t and the pain stuck around for a while.

But while ‘4th and 2’ was the main driver of the story, it was the questioning of Belichick here by some of the fanbase in New England that was most shocking. The guy that could previously get away with nearly anything because of his track record suddenly had doubters. Perhaps the season itself to that point had helped this sentiment evolve but suddenly, Belichick’s decision making wasn’t bulletproof – the first real chink in an otherwise stellar armor. Like it or not, things changed on that Sunday night.

Even former players like Tedy Bruschi and Rodney Harrison didn’t like the call and said that it sent a message to the defense that it couldn’t be trusted with the game on the line. In a million years, I would have never guessed either guy to speak out against Double-B like that. Belichick was his normal self and the team smartly didn’t question the decision publicly. However, I still wonder if behind closed doors, the defense really did feel slighted.

How the Patriots finish off this season will tell a lot. We know they’re in the playoffs, but how would a one-and-done go over here? Will the questioning increase or go away? What about the next ‘4th and 2’ situation? For better or worse, no one is immune from fan and media scrutiny in Boston and now, Bill Belichick truly understands that. Welcome to the party, pal.

7 – WEEI vs. Sports Hub vs. NESN vs. CSNE: The Sports Media War Heats Up

And here you thought intense competition in sports was only on the field of play.

The fact that major sports media entities in Boston have intensified their efforts isn’t new, but the efforts at which they will go to continue their one-upmanship still is. Fortifying web content was huge as radio giant WEEI redesigned and bolstered their site, while Comcast Sports Net not only relaunched their site but made like the Red Sox and acquired various print beat writers like Sean McAdam, Tom E. Curran and Kevin Paul Dupont to come on board.

It’s like every outlet is attempting to fill out their pitching rotation, signing people that they hope will put butts in front of the TV/computer seats.

ESPN continued their trend of leveraging regional content by launching ESPNBoston.com and signing Mike Reiss away from the Boston Globe to lead their Patriots coverage. Their radio presence also continued to grow with an agreement with WEEI to provide some radio content, clearing the way for some of their insiders to appear on the ‘EEI airwaves. There has been some talk about them fully moving over the 850 AM spot, while WEEI moves to FM full-time but nothing has been announced.

Initially, Peter Gammons was to be part of this package but he decided to leave ESPN to focus on a reduced workload with MLB Network and NESN – a huge coup for the network known for Red Sox coverage. Gammons will contribute both on-air for 50 of the team’s pre-game telecasts and also be an online contributor as well.  The effect on NESN is equitable to what Albert Pujols would bring to the Boston lineup – just awesome.

But the most interesting twist of 2009 has to be the launch of 98.5 FM – The Sports Hub. Meant to be a direct competitor to WEEI, the CBS-owned sports station brought on their own hired guns in Mike Felger, Tony Massarotti, Gary Tanguay, Scott Zolak and the popular morning team of Toucher and Rich from the former WBCN. So far, so good as the Felger/Mazz afternoon drive-time show has been great listening and a nice change of pace from the yelling and screaming of Glenn Ordway’s The Big Show.

With media continually changing, it’s all about polarizing personalities, leveraging online content and overall creating a brand experience. Just using the traditional approaches simply isn’t good enough. Whether it’s airing a game, a newscast or even a special report, everything matters in a sports media saturated market like Boston. Who knows? If 2009 was any indication, 2010 may feel like it focuses more on who brings us the news rather than who they’re reporting on.

6 – Jim Rice inducted into the Hall Of Fame

A generation of Red Sox fans were finally able to breathe as Jim Rice was inducted into the Hall of Fame after a 15-year wait.

If you’re into Sox history, I don’t need to explain to you what a moment this was. The yearly push to include Rice practically became telethon-esque around here with a slew of team personnel, former players and media peeps pleading their cases as to why he belonged, while Rice – a NESN analyst for the past few years- calmly tried to explain his case while staying north of begging the BBWAA to let him in. That was never his style and like Eddie Murray years before him, probably was part of the reason things took so long.

Along the way, many newer fans got brought into the story and pushed for Rice’s inclusion even if they didn’t fully understand why.

The argument for Rice was that while his numbers were not collectively eye-popping, he was a dominant player during a stretch which years later, would be seen as the pre-steroids era. He led the AL in home runs three times and RBI twice, was an eight-time All-Star and won the AL MVP in 1978, finishing in the MVP race five other times. In 16 seasons, he finished with a .298 average, 382 homers, 1451 RBI, over 1200 runs scored and over 2400 hits.

The arguments against? Great player, but not Hall-worthy. Of course, this brought up the valid debate of the criteria to get into the Hall of Fame and one’s perspective of greatness. Comparisons to other players in and not in were brought up and Rice’s numbers were sliced, diced and reheated too many times to recount here. With this being his last chance, there was an impending feeling of closure for everyone involved.

A no-doubt HOF’er? No, but Rice’s inclusion is an interesting and deserved one, given the timeframe, the campaign to get him in and the ultimate result. It worked and Rice’s number is now retired at Fenway Park in addition to a nice bust in Cooperstown. A legion of fans that followed Rice for almost two decades is now vindicated, as is he.

1-5 this Wednesday..

Josh Nason is the main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog. Reach him via Twitter or josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

Green 18? – Looking At The Potential 2009-10 Boston Celtics

With the signing of Rasheed Wallace expected to be made iron-clad official on Wednesday, it’s hard for us not to look ahead at what the 12-man roster could look like for the 2009-10 season. If you’re a Boston Celtics fan, you gotta like what could be playing at the Gahhhhhhhhhden this winter.

• Kevin Garnett
• Paul Pierce
• Ray Allen
• Rajon Rondo
• Kendrick Perkins
• Rasheed Wallace
• Grant Hill*
• Eddie House
• Brian Scalabrine
• Tony Allen
• Gabe Pruitt
• Bill Walker
• JR Giddens – NBDL
• Lester Hudson – NBDL

*Rumored

At first glance, that top 8 is veteran-laden and tantalizing in so many ways; a great mix of defensive intensity and scoring in the right places. The major issue of course is health and age, especially considering Garnett is coming off an knee injury and the majority of the players are in the second half of their careers. If the Hill signing doesn’t happen, the goal with that roster spot seems pretty obvious: a ball-moving scorer off the bench.

I personally would love to see Nuggets F/C and unrestricted free agent Chris “Birdman” Andersen on this club, but my assumption is that he may be looking for more money than the Celtics can offer. My understanding of the NBA salary cap is admittedly not great, so I could be completely wrong here.

An element of concern is still the bench that while vastly improved by Wallace (and possibly Hill), it still has question marks. Allen can be a baffling player to watch, showing flashes of greatness while other times displaying head-scratching decision making. Scals is, well, Scals and this is Pruitt’s last chance at showing he can be a legit NBA point guard.

And this all assumes that Rondo is still with the Celtics at the beginning of the season. C’s GM Danny Ainge didn’t handle that situation well at all, but we’ll cover that later this week. Sitting here in the first week of July with the season tip-off about four months away, there is reason to believe that an 18th championship is a realistic goal for the 2009-10 season.

Then again, championships aren’t won in the middle of summer.

Josh Nason is the publisher and main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog – part of the MVN Network. You can reach Josh at josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

CSN Rumor: Kevin Garnett would have played if the Celtics advanced

This story was updated at 12:30 pm Wednesday.

Yeah, Comcast Sports Net New England’s Gary Tanguay isn’t exactly known for being one of the most original or ground-breaking media members in Beantown, but he did drop an interesting note Tuesday night regarding injured Kevin Garnett and his availability if the Boston Celtics had advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals vs. Cleveland.

During the late edition of their Sports Tonight broadcast, Tanguay told co-host Michael Felger that he heard from sources that Garnett would have played against the Cavaliers if the Celtics had defeated the Magic in Sunday’s Game 7.

Obviously, Tanguay’s got some inside connections (CSN is the official broadcast partner of the team and he is the studio host for the broadcasts) and by leading off with this, he puts himself out there in case it’s not true.

But it does raise some questions if it is true:

– Just how bad is this knee anyway? KG is due to have surgery next week, but there sure is a Tom Brady-esque feeling of silence around the situation, eh?

– Assuming the above is true, if he could have played in Game 1, why didn’t he play in Game 7 against Orlando?

– Was GM Danny Ainge simply smoke-screening all this time? I guess the answer to this is obvious, but if Garnett had returned, it would have interesting to hear what he would have to say after he so vehemently denied Garnett would play in the postseason.

– What’s the benefit of breaking this info now? I don’t see much of a benefit to be gained for everyone and actually, I see more negatives that could come out of it.

– How much could we have expected out of him? 5 minutes? 10 minutes? Celtics fans would probably say a 60% Garnett is better than no Garnett, but would he have been able to make any sizable impact?

There isn’t anything buzzing much yet on the interwebs about this, but I suspect we will hear more in the week ahead. It does twist the knife a bit to realize we could have been that close to an emotional Garnett comeback, but in the end, the Celtics got throttled in Game 7 and the Magic moved on.

Damn it.

Update: Tanguay uploaded the video of this announcement on the CSN site. I’m still surprised this isn’t more of a story yet.

Josh Nason – josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com] – is the publisher/main writer for New England sports and media blog Small White Ball.

The Run For Green 18: Joakim, Gordon and the incredibly annoying Chicago Bulls

Maybe it’s just because its the first round of the NBA Playoffs and that the Chicago Bulls are giving up more of a fight than I expected, but I am more than annoyed with the bunch from the Windy City, now down 3-2 in their series with the Boston Celtics.

Much like the Atlanta Hawks of a year ago that were in this same spot, the Bulls are brash, arrogant and irritating, but for all the wrong reasons. While it’s fun to watch a young team come together after years of being horrendous, this is not one of those cases thanks to four guys in particular.

Joakim Noah: Quite possibly the most visually enraging player in the NBA today, I’ve run out of tolerance for the fluffy-haired center/forward. Before this series, I was content with Noah being a dorky-looking player that was always attempting to translate his college success to the pros.

But during Game 2 in Boston, he kept putting his finger to his
mouth in the ‘shhh’ motion every time he or
his teammates made a big shot. Really? This is where we’re at in today’s NBA…especially when a game isn’t over yet? It’s not college anymore, Joakim. This is a man’s league with guys that will put you out if you try that in their house.

If I was to compare Noah to a Hawk of ’08, it would be Zaza Pachulia, who decided to keep pushing the buttons of Kevin Garnett for the majority of the series the C’s won in seven games. But after this classic hit in that Game 7, Zaza learned that is never, ever a good idea. Boy, do I wish #5 was in this series to show Noah where he could put that finger.

Ben Gordon: I really, really want to like Ben Gordon but there’s part of me that just can’t because of his act in Game 4. Gordon – a stud in this series who is
battling Rajon Rondo for biggest breakout star of the playoffs so far –
hit a game-tying 3-pointer to send the game into a 2nd OT.

Yes, it was a
great shot but Gordon turned around and decided to grab his crotch
several times in a show of…uhh…manliness? Bravado? A reminder for men to check for testicular cancer? Not surprisingly, ESPN/ABC decided to cut that part
out when showing the replays.

For a guy that had come so far in such a short period of time, it took this one action for him to just evaporate into the abyss of classless jerk rather than a money player in my eyes. I don’t need choir boys, but c’mon man. What’s the point? In all, this was very Mike Bibby-esque of Gordon, who decided to go the media to complain about Celtics fans being ‘bandwagon jumpers’ during last season’s Celtics/Hawks series. How did that work out for you, Mike?

Brad Miller: The newest entry into this playoff feud got his comeuppance Tuesday night in a classic case of cosmic karma. In the fourth quarter of a close Game 5, Miller got tangled up with Ray Allen, helping Allen get a 6th foul, disabling the Celtics even further. But it was Miller’s laughing afterward that raised the ire of C’s color man Tommy Heinsohn, a somewhat unsportsmanlike reaction in what has turned out to be an awesome series.

Miller then amazingly had his chance to tie the game at the end of OT when he got a clear path to the basket with seconds left and was fouled by Rondo. I said to my roommate that karma is a b*tch and Miller then proceeded to miss the first shot, grimacing and acting like he had been smacked in the dome with a steeeeeeeeeeeeel chair. The Celtics won and Miller went from villain to sad sack in minutes.

Aaron Gray: Who is Gray? He is a very tall white bench fixture for the Bulls, a rookie who joined Noah in the afore-mentioned ‘shh’ bit but has yet to field a second of play in this series. Guys like this annoy me, talking smack from the outer ring when the fight doesn’t directly involve them. Clap, cheer and pump up your teammates but it’s a bit ridiculous when a bench guy thinks he has the license to taunt. Play some minutes and then do something, Aaron.

So why does this team suddenly irritate me so much? I think mostly it’s because they seem to think they are entitled to the same treatment and respect as the defending World Champs. This is a team that has been subpar for a long time, yet are acting like they are the favorites – incredibly ballsy considering they are a No. 7 seed that self-imploded a season ago and are only in this series because of a missed free throw by Paul Pierce in Game 1 and the absence of Garnett.

Bravado and confidence is one thing. Unwarranted attitude, gestures and entitlement are another. On Thursday, the Celtics go back into enemy territory for Game in what should be a wild and emotional affair between two clubs who find themselves evenly matched and the focus of NBA fans right now.

Let’s hope the final taunt on the Celtics’ behalf is the final score.

Josh Nason is the publisher and main writer for New England sports and media blog Small White Ball.com. You can reach him at josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

End The Drought: Why Boston Deserves To Host The NBA All-Star Game

1964 was quite a year, wasn’t it? The Beatles began the British Invasion of music, Cassius Clay won the World Heavyweight title from Sonny Liston and the average American’s income was $6000.

1964 was also the last year Boston hosted an NBA All-Star Game.

When I first began researching this, I thought there had to be a mistake, Certainly there was no shortage of All-Stars from the Celtics through the years (19 players totaling 86 elections since ’64). There have been no shortage of championships (10 since the ’64 season, which doesn’t include the one they won in that year).

And while there were some lean years in the Shawmut Center turned FleetCenter turned TD Banknorth Garden, everyone loves an All-Star game and the stands would have been filled.

Need more evidence?

The list of cities that have hosted an All-Star game since Boston did is long: Los Angeles, NYC, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Richfield, OH (yes, Richfield hosted an All-Star Game). There are even cities on the list that don’t have NBA teams anymore (St. Louis, Cincinnati, San Diego) or never had one (Las Vegas).

However, the biggest slap in the face has to be the number of the cities that have hosted it multiple times. Some of the notables: LA hosting three times, Phoenix three times, NYC twice, Chicago twice and Philly four times if you include the lockout year game that never happened.

This is getting to be a bit ridiculous. What’s the justification here – the desire to have the game only in warm-climate cities? If so, that is ridiculous and unfair to a majority of the league. Basketball is played in the winter time across the U.S. and Canada. If the high-level execs and sponsors can’t cut it for three days, that’s tough. Do what the rest of us do – deal with it.

With revived interest in the Celtics, an ownership group hell-bent on quality and a championship team that will be competitive for years to come, it is time for the city of Boston to once again welcome the league’s best in a three-day orgy of dunks, mascots and zero defense.

It’s been 45 years. End the drought and bring the All-Star Game back to Boston in 2011…or else we’ll sick Kevin Garnett and Tommy Heinsohn on you.

Josh Nason is the founder of Small White Ball, a New England-based
sports and media blog. He can be reached at josh [at] smallwhiteball
[dot-com].

Boston Sports Wrap: Varitek deadline looming, Pierce named All-Star, Celtics fire mascot

Anyone else sick of this Jason Varitek story yet? I know I am.
The latest has the Red Sox captain and agent Scott Boras shackled with an 8:30 am Friday deadline to accept the team’s latest offer, reportedly a two-year deal.
Then again, the deadline could be at the end of the business day…or perhaps by lunch depending on where you read your news. My gut instinct is that this won’t be resolved Friday, keeping those that still care about the Red Sox catching situation going slowly insane.
Boston hasn’t publicly said this is a take it or leave it deadline, which means they could come back to the negotiating table next week or even a month from now. You see, that is the problem with this whole process. Both sides obviously want to do business with each other, but won’t compromise enough to just end this already. Because of that, the situation goes on…and on…and on. There is no market for Varitek that is worth him uprooting his life further. Boston has a chance to go back to the postseason again and could use the studious Varitek – low offensive output be damned.
I could go on about stats or what he means to the ballclub or any myriad of additional information about Varitek and why he should/shouldn’t be a member of the Red Sox in ’09 and beyond. But I won’t as that would just be adding more words to a situation that needs just one more phrase attached: sign him or don’t. Just make some sort of definitive action already…please.
*****
In one of the more well-balanced All-Star rosters in quite a while in terms of representation, the Boston Celtics’ Paul Pierce was announced as a reserve Thursday.
Pierce leads the defending NBA Champions with 18.8 ppg to go with 3.8 assists per game and 5.7 rebounds per game. As of this writing, the green have the most wins in the NBA with 38 and the second-best record in the league by percentage points behind Cleveland.
Pierce joins All-Star starter Kevin Garnett as one of only two Eastern Conference teams with multiple selections with other being Orlando (Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson).
By comparison, the Western Conference has four teams with two players each (Lakers, Hornets, Suns, Spurs).
The All-Star game will be played in Phoenix on Sunday, February 15th.
*****
Even champions have to make tough decisions and the Celtics apparently made one today, deciding to fire their long-time mascot Lucky (aka Damon Lee Blust). Why would they get rid of a short Irish-looking fellow who could 360 dunk off a trampoline? From the Boston Herald:

“Sources claim that Damon, a fixture in the stands as well as the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Southie and many charitable events, had “issues” with management. But other Garden snitches say the mascot missed many scheduled benefit appearances and was “unreliable.” D’oh!”
There’s nothing else to say.
Josh Nason – josh [at] smallwhiteball [com] – is the publisher and main writer of Small White Ball, an all-encompassing New England-based sports blog that began in 2007. You can also read on mixed martial arts, boxing and pro wrestling at brother site RopesRingandCage.com. If you’re using any part of this post, please link back to http://www.smallwhiteball.com. Thank you!

Labels: 2009 Boston Red Sox; Jason Varitek; Boston Celtics: Paul Pierce; Lucky the mascot; NBA All-Star Game

Worst Week: A Bad Seven Days in Boston Sports

Listen, we get it. New England fans are hated due to our success and seem to be thought of as a group of dense fools that drink too much, talk funny and relentlessly torment other fan bases due to multiple championships and winning teams.
(Actually, parts of those stereotypes might be right. Keep reading anyway.)
Whether it’s karma or not, there is no denying that the average Boston sports fan had a terrible week. Even with Christmas a few days ago and New Year’s coming up (both great excuses to get together and throw down 12-14 Sam Adams or a fifth of Allen’s Coffee Brandy), the past seven days was a big ol’ glob of bird crap on our shining championship trophy of a region.
> Tuesday: It began with the news in the late-afternoon that the New York Yankees had swooped in and signed first baseman Mark Teixeira to an eight-year, $180 million deal. Why this had specific significance to Red Sox fans was that we fully expected big Tex to be swatting home runs out of the Fens while wearing the home whites. Now, he’ll be in pinstripes and helping the Evil Empire open up a new stadium.
The swiftness and ninja-style signing was what caught us off guard the most, making us upset at what we never had to begin with rather than focus on what we did have. In our minds, incumbent third baseman Mike Lowell was out, Kevin Youkilis was moving to third and Teixeira would be a cornerstone player at first. It was like the day we heard that Alex Rodriguez was traded to the Yankees, another superstar we wanted. New York came in (again) and simply provided a better offer, leaving the front office to have egg on their face and for Red Sox Nation to have a little more red in theirs.
> Wednesday: As fans attempted to deal with the Teixeira news, the Boston Globe reported that Youkilis and the team were far apart on a long-term contract and that they would go to either arbitration or sign a one-year deal for ’09. Normally, this wouldn’t be huge news but when you take Sox owner John Henry’s post-Teixeira ‘monumental challenge’ comments into consideration, the team suddenly began looking cheap. Call me crazy, but I have a bad feeling about where this is going. If Teixeira was worth $20+ million, how much is Youk worth? $15 million? Will that be too much money?
> Thursday: Christmas is supposed to be a day for relaxing and celebrating the holidays with friends and family. The NBA has added a triple-header of games to the tradition and their marquee match-up this year was the Celtics vs. the Lakers, a rematch of last year’s Finals.
With both teams having great years and with Boston riding an 19-game win streak, it was destined to be a great game. Of course, the Lakers won fairly convincingly, breaking the streak and causing national media to essentially proclaim that L.A. was the Finals favorite. So much for celebrating.

> Friday: You’d figure that a day removed from dropping that Lakers game, the Celtics would be ripped and raring to go against an injury-plagued Golden State team that entered the game at 8-22. Well, that didn’t happen as Boston lost its second straight, 99-89.
> Sunday: Two things needed to happen for the Patriots to make it to the playoffs: they had to win at Buffalo and either Miami or Baltimore had to lose. The Dolphins were playing against the NY Jets in the Meadowlands, a game New York had to win to keep their hopes alive. Baltimore got a home game against a surprisingly hapless Jacksonville squad, so it was really up to Brett Favre and company to make it happen. As expected, the Patriots took care of business in Buffalo, winning a game that was played in Hurricane Jack Wilson.
But the Jets just plain sucked, doing just enough to tantalize New England fans but ultimately coming up short. This rivalry is so good for so many reasons and their inability to take care of their business just escalated it. Buffalo also deserves some blame here as their play-calling against said Jets a few weeks ago likely cost the 11-5 Pats a postseason berth. Meh, bleh and poppycock to it all.
Also reported by somewhat irrelevant NBC Sports.com Sunday was that Tom Brady is ‘well behind schedule’ in rehabbing his surgically-repaired knee due to scar tissue that might have to be surgically removed and – the kicker – the ACL and MCL are ‘loose’. I’m not a doctor, but if true, that doesn’t sound good. Of course, this info is coming from a ‘league source’ and reported by Tom Curran. Who knows how accurate it is?
But if true, this might force the Patriots to make an unexpected decision on free agent-to-be Matt Cassel and perhaps put a franchise tag on him if Brady’s not ready. That obviously raises more issues, but I’ll leave those for another day of discussion.
However, things are starting to look up as the Boston Bruins have extended their win streak to nine, their longest since 1993 and that team is green is still playing ok despite their Tuesday loss to Portland. And all in all, given the success that the local teams have enjoyed, we were due to have some low points along the way, so maybe things aren’t that bad after all.
Pass that coffee brandy, will ya?
Josh Nason – josh [at] smallwhiteball [com] – is the publisher and main writer of Small White Ball, an all-encompassing sports blog that began in 2007. You can also read on mixed martial arts, boxing and pro wrestling at brother site RopesRingandCage.com. If you’re using any part of this post, please link back to http://www.smallwhiteball.com. Thank you!

Labels: boston bruins; new england patriots; boston red sox; Boston Celtics, Boston sports;

Top Boston Sports Stories of 2008: #1-10

A star quarterback out for the season. A return to glory. A season full of injuries. A beloved player exiting amidst national controversy. A club previously belittled and mocked making their stand.
And that was just in the last 12 months.
In Wednesday’s review of the 11th-20th ranked Boston sports stories of 2008, we took a look at Bill Buckner’s emotional return to Boston, the Red Sox almost pulling off another magical comeback, a quarterback transforming a shaken fanbase and more. As we look at the Top 10 stories that dominated the region this past year, it’s a smattering among the three major entities in the city and for the first time in a long time, a certain club in black and gold entered the conversation.
Compiled with the help of some trusted advisers and by requesting feedback on sites like Yardbarker, Bleacher Report and Ballhype, here are the top 10 Boston sports stories of 2008, courtesy of Small White Ball.
10) The emergence of Matt Cassel – If you would have predicted in August that some Patriots fans would broach the subject of trading Tom Brady and keeping backup Matt Cassel during this season, you probably would have been tossed in the Charles River. But Cassel’s jump into the line of fire in the wake of Brady’s injury has been much better than expected, causing many to look at a similar time when a young Brady came in for Drew Bledsoe. The Pats likely need to win out in order to make the playoffs, but at 9-5, they’re a lot better than most expected thanks to Cassel.
While the concept of dealing Brady has thankfully subsided, the story of a guy that hadn’t started a game since high school has been an interesting one for a fanbase that is used to dominance – especially coming off Brady’s MVP season just a season ago. The USC product came into this situation at a perfect time as he’ll be a free agent at the end of the season and is likely looking at a Matt Schaub-style payday. Who expected that of out of Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart and Cassel, it would be the career clipboard holder making all the noise?
9) Tex, Tek and what the Sox should do with both – It’s very possible by the time you read this that Mark Teixeira will be a member of the Red Sox and manning first base for the better part of the next decade. It’s also very possible he won’t if you believe owner John Henry. Regardless of what happens, everyone has an opinion. The amount of Teixeira chatter is equal to how GM Theo Epstein should proceed with catcher Jason Varitek. For Red Sox fans, what to do with two guys named Tex and Tek has become a daily discussion point ’round here.
The other threads attached to this unraveling Sox sweater are what to do with Mike Lowell if Teixiera comes on board, who the Sox would have at catcher if Varitek doesn’t re-sign and what the long-term solutions are if Varitek comes back. The amount of chess moves that some with less brain power have come up with (moving Kevin Youkilis to shortstop or left field, trading David Ortiz, having Varitek apprentice a young catcher as if he’s a blacksmith, etc.) are staggering. All signs point to Teixeria coming in, Lowell heading out and Varitek returning due to a weak market and a need on both ends. Regardless what happens, the opinions of armchair GM’s everywhere will be heard.
8) The Boston Bruins play hockey again – Oh wait…they were here all along? Every bright light needs a shadow and the Bruins have been dancing in the dark for a long time. Partially because of owner Jeremy Jacobs, partially because of long-time GM Harry Sinden and partially because of the collapse of interest in the NHL here in the States, the Bruins fell so far off the Boston sports map that the Revolution threatened to take them over. Then, this season happened and things have taken a turn for the better…extremely better.
As of this writing, the Bruins are leading the Eastern Conference with a 22-5-4 record. They’ve won 12 of their last 14 games and are 17-2-1 in their last 20 games. They are dominant at home and posted an 11-1-1 record overall in November. Their goaltending combo of Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez has been lights out, while Milan Lucic, Phil Kessel, Marc Savard and a host of others have helped knock the opposition’s lights out. The big bad Bruins are back and I’ll be damned if the fans aren’t responding to them in kind. Can the duck boats swim on frozen ice?
7) Jon Lester throws a no-hitter, becomes ace of 2008 season – In September 2006, 22-year-old Jon Lester was diagnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Three months later, doctors pronounced him cancer-free and he became an unlikely face to associate with The Jimmy Fund, the long-time children’s cancer charity that has become synonymous with the Red Sox. Lester went 4-0 in 12 starts the following year, winning the final game of Boston’s World Series sweep of Colorado. But his starts were excrutiating to watch, routinely lasting five innings and 100 pitches.
Fast forward to 2008 and #31 was a different person, posting a 16-6 record with a 3.21 era. He showed two important ‘ity’s: velocity (consistently mid-to-high 90s) and durability (210 innings). But if there was one start that stood out, it was his May 19th no-hitter against Kansas City, the 18th no-no in Boston history. The emotion shared between coach Terry Francona and Lester post-game was as raw and real as you get in this day and age. In a season where Josh Beckett struggled with control and Daisuke Matsuzaka struggled with respect, Lester became the ace Boston needed and brought his heroic story full-circle.
6) Tom Brady out for entire 2008 season – The second Tom Brady didn’t pop right back up from Bernard Pollard’s tackle, we knew something was wrong. Our miracle man, our Joe Montana, our quarterback was hurt and the season of the Patriots went into the hands of some other guy we barely knew. We hoped that Brady would come back, that he’d be wearing that damn boot for a few weeks and then be ready to throw some bombs to Randy Moss just like old times. But that never happened thanks to a torn MCL and ACL and Brady faded away to some address in California to get surgery and rehab.
Can Brady can come back as good as he was before? Will he be a Daunte Culpepper or Carson Palmer? Will he be in the position to throw 50 TD’s again? Can Tom Brady be Tom Brady? On that September day, the cocoon of success Patriots fans have enveloped themselves in was ripped open and we were all treated to a glimpse of the way things used to be. In less than eight months, we’ll see how things will be. Your guess is as good as mine on how that’ll turn out.
5) The MVP season of Dustin Pedroia – Out of all the positions in baseball, second base is the one that is starting to emerge as a place to look for offensive output. Chase Utley, Dan Uggla, Brandon Phillps and Ian Kinsler are showing that it’s not only shortstops that can be regarded for their ability to swing the bat. Last season, Boston got in on that mix with a prospect that wasn’t highly regarded by anyone else but themselves. He hit .317, scored 86 runs and drove in 50 on his way to earning AL Rookie of the Year honors. No one expected what would happen in his sophomore season.
The 5’7″ West Coast kid finished second in the AL with a .326 average, slugging 17 homers and driving in 83. He ranked 1st in the league with 118 runs, 213 hits and 54 doubles. He started the All-Star game for the first time and won his first Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards. He became only the third player to win Rookie of the Year and MVP in consecutive seasons (Cal Ripken, Ryan Howard) and became the first second baseman to win the award in almost 50 years.
To top it all off, the team bought out some arbitration years and signed Pedroia to a six-year, $40.5 million contract. In a year where David Ortiz was not David Ortiz and despite the Manny Ramirez circus, Pedroia went out day after day and did his job, even batting cleanup on occasion. Now, that’s an MVP.
4) Spygate comes to a close – By the end of the ordeal that involved football, Bill Belichick and videotapes, ‘Spygate’ became a dirty word around these parts and was uttered approximately 2 million times in a span of six months. The story that began in ’07 really got its media wings in 2008 when a former lowly assistant named Matt Walsh decided to get off the golf course in Hawaii and dig out some old tapes he had kept. Claiming he had evidence that wouldn’t make the team look good, the fires raged over what was on those tapes he had. As we know now, apparently nothing of consequence. The push to get Walsh to talk with NFL Commish Roger Goodell was its own story altogether, dragging out over months because of Walsh wanting immunity. Ultimately, it didn’t matter.
Along the way, we got too familiar with Senator Arlen Specter and writer John Tomase, one that was hell-bent on finding some further wrong-doing and the other apologizing for claiming he had a source that said the Patriots taped the St. Louis Rams’ walkthrough practice prior to Super Bowl 36. We got too familiar with analysts opining on how the Patriots cheated and what you could summise from tapes. We got a smug Belichick claiming he misinterpreted the rules. Finally, we got closure. Until compiling this list, I hadn’t thought about Spygate in months. I can’t wait to forget about it all over again.
3) The Manny Affair – Back in August of 2007, I wrote a column called Manny: The Final 14 Months. I speculated on what things would like as we rounded the bend of his final contracted season with the Red Sox, but I didn’t seen anything of this coming.
Perhaps I should have, starting with the signing of Scott Boras as his agent and Ramirez’ erratic and eccentric past. It made too much sense for everything to go awry given the particular variables involved. A massive contract, questions about desire and health and a super-agent eager to get his man out on the market and paid with a new contract all were combustible elements and boy, did they explode.
Apparently not wanting Boston to pick up the two $20 million options, Ramirez either did or didn’t do yeomans work in attempting to sabotage that decision. Among the highlights: shoving traveling secretary Jack McCormick after the denial of his game-day request for 16 tickets in Houston, a televised dugout scuffle with Kevin Youkilis, his two-game sit-out due to knee ‘injuries’ (which knee was it again?) and the subsequent MRIs that showed nothing, the public comments on ownership and everything else that encompassed the final few months of the Manny being Manny era.
And just when we thought he’d be here to stay, the announcement was made that ManRam was dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-way trade involving the Pirates. He made nice with the L.A. media, said he loved it there and hoped he would stay, much like we thought he would. He tore up the National League’s pitching and helped the Dodgers make the postseason, much like we thought he would. And last week, the free agent Ramirez began to whine about retirement because he’s not getting the offers he expected…much like we thought he would.
2) New England carries undefeated season into Super Bowl, get upset by NY Giants – The stage was set for the coronation of the king, but somebody forgot to tell the New York Giants. The improbable became reality and as Michael Strahan, Plaxico Burress and Tom Coughlin celebrated amidst the confetti and adulation, the Patriots and their legion was left wondering exactly what the hell happened on that Arizona field.
It was a season that seemed too good to be true: an offense led by Brady, Randy Moss, Wes Welker and others that sits among the greatest of all time, a defense led by last-chance veterans mixed in with emerging talent and a coach that had gone 3-for-3 in previous Super Bowls and seemed hell-bent on revenge for Spygate. But in the week leading up to the game, everything began to disintegrate. It started with the questions about Tom Brady’s ankle and escalated with all of the questions that had to be answered about supposedly filming a walkthrough practice prior to Super Bowl 36.
After the game began, it was a lot tighter and tougher than people expected. The Giants defense swallowed the Patriots’ offensive line whole and the storied offense sputtered. But Brady connected with Moss like he did all season and with 2:42 left, the Patriots had the lead and trusted their defense to shut the Giants down. Alas, it was not to be and fans will always wonder what might have been if Asante Samuel and Brandon Meriweather had made those interceptions, if Rodney Harrison could have swatted down that pass to David Tyree and if Eli Manning had fallen down after having his jersey nearly ripped off while scrambling. As New England fans found out, coronations aren’t guaranteed and neither are perfect seasons.
1) Celtics renew rivalry with Lakers, defeat LA in six games to win 17th World Championship – There was a time when the Boston Celtics were among the most respected franchises not just in basketball, but in sports. The team had won a record 16 World Championships, taking home a record eight straight from 1959-1966. After establishing a big three of Hall-of-Famers Larry Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale in the 1980s, glory returned to the hallowed Boston Garden, earning titles in 1981, 1984 and 1986. Since that last title, the luck of the Irish began to fade away with the deaths of Len Bias and Reggie Lewis, failed draft picks and a general malaise that befit a once-proud franchise.
Things couldn’t have got any lower following a 24-58 record in ’06-’07 when expectations of drafting Greg Oden or Kevin Durant evaporated with the pull of a lottery ball that said #5 on it. Who knew that would be the catalyst for what would happen next? First, the team made a trade for shooter Ray Allen that was grumbled about because of his ankle surgeries, followed up by not taking ‘no’ for an answer and pulling off a huge deal for power forward Kevin Garnett. For the first time in a long time, Paul Pierce had playmakers around him and there was cautious optimism over what this new Big Three could do.
What they did was spectacular. Garnett’s intensity was off the charts and the TD Banknorth Garden went from a hospital atmosphere to a raucous atmosphere. The Celtics started the year 26-3 and were the beast of the Eastern Conference with a 66-16 mark, their best since the ’85-’86 title year. After hard-fought series with new rivals Atlanta and Cleveland and a six-game victory over Detroit, it was time to renew their long-time rivalry with the Los Angeles Lakers. It was David Stern’s dream come true.
Closing it out at home in six games, the final 131-92 blowout gave us time to reflect on what we had seen the entire season. A team went from horrendous to top of the world in a year’s time, fueled by three players who set their egos aside and just went out to win. Danny Ainge’s drafting brilliance came through as homegrown talent like Leon Powe, Rajon Rondo and even Glen Davis played big roles.
A region that wanted to believe was suddenly revived and the Celtics joined the Red Sox and Patriots as contenders in the market. Most importantly, they established an expectation level that fans should come to expect the Celtics to be competitive from here on out. In other words, no more 24-58 seasons.
The Celtics made basketball matter in Boston again and that’s why they’re the top Boston sports story for 2008.
>Top Boston sports stories: #11-20
Josh Nason – josh [at] smallwhiteball [com] – is the publisher and main writer of Small White Ball, an all-encompassing sports blog that began in 2007. You can also read on mixed martial arts, boxing and pro wrestling at brother site RopesRingandCage.com. If you’re using any part of this post, please link back to http://www.smallwhiteball.com. Thank you!

Labels: boston bruins; top 10 boston sports stories of 2008, boston celtics, Boston Red Sox; New England Patriots, Kevin Garnett; David Ortiz, Paul Pierce; Tom Brady