http://www.yardbarker.com/users/gaucho Recent Yardbarker Articles: gaucho en-us I've had the opportunity to go to all the NBA Finals games thus far - in Boston and LA - and there is really no comparison between the two environments - Boston wins in a landslide. And I can't tell you how much I struggle to write that because I grew up in So Cal as a Laker fan despising the Celtics. Walk into the Garden and you know you're there for a game. It's loud, it's energized, it's green everywhere. Not in LA. People stroll at the Staples Center, they have to be prompted when to cheer - it seems they are mostly there to be seen or to tell friends "I was there." I saw Rondo wrote about feeling the energy of the crowd - you can feel it even when you're not in the game. With all the posers at Staples that same energy is absent. Don't get me wrong, there are some rabid Laker fans - they are stuck at the very top of the arena and their excitement is swallowed by all the corporate slapdicks hand-jobbing, er, glad-handing their "clients" or talking on their cell phones in the lower levels. When it takes the video board to tell you when to cheer and the only time the decibel level changes is when it starts flashing "LOUDER" you've got issues. Celtics fans need no prompting. They are fired up outside the building and when they get in they ratchet it up 10 notches. Their prompting takes place on the court because THEY'RE WATCHING THE GAME. I will give Staples Center credit for the greatest moment yet however. When they went to the Kiss Cam on the scoreboard Tuesday prompting couples to give their squeeze a kiss they caught up with Hugh Hefner, who leaned over to his right and kissed one tremendous blond on the lips and then leaned left and laid another one on an equally hot blond babe. Now that's energy. If the Staples Center could spread that kind of mojo throughout each section it might stand a chance, but at this point it's Boston in a landslide. And because of that home court energy, Boston will win the series. Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:51:51 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/277194 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/277194 Kevin Gogan - 14 years in the NFL, two Super Bowls, four Pro Bowls and even named Dirtiest Player in the NFL by Sports Illustrated. What he has not been named is one funny bastard. Check out his post about Kris Jenkins of the Panthers. This one line ought to intrigue you enough to check it out. "To take it a step further, what if one of your buddies, who thinks your fiancee's a bitch, posted video of you getting "full-contact" lap dances on youtube the same night you told her you were visiting your grandma." You'll have to check it out to see how all that ties back to Kris Jenkins and the Carolina Panthers. Thu, 04 Oct 2007 01:04:28 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/29601 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/29601 We have all heard about the SI Jinx and the EA Jinx, land on the cover and bad things happen. On the otherhand, join the Yardbarker team and things seem to work out just fine. First Chris Henry goes from unknown to second rounder, Greg Oden signs up, John Lackey makes his first All Star game and leads the majors in wins and now Rajon Rondo becomes the man. All of them have at least one thing in common - they blog right here with all of us! With all the exciting changes the Celtics have made, Danny Ainge has made it clear that Rondo is his man. As an active member of the Yardbarker family, we are certain they have the right guy for the gig. Sun, 02 Sep 2007 21:33:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/25708 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/25708 I read John Lackey's blog yesterday and learned a little bit about how valuable Orlando Cabrera has been to the first place Angels. Vladimir Guerrero is great but the Angels don't have the best record in baseball solely on his bat. Cabrera is fourth in the AL in batting average and leads the team in runs scored with 53. And then the way Lackey tells it, he's also a stud in the field. After hearing that our own Yardbarker Lackey made the team, I looked up to read the snubbed list and this is what I found by the Associated Press: "Some of the most notable snubs included NL MVP Ryan Howard of the Phillies, Atlanta shortstop Edgar Renteria and New York Mets pitcher John Maine. In the AL, Granderson and Gary Sheffield missed out despite excellent numbers." Cabrera even got snubbed from the snubbed list. Fouled up all the way around if you ask me. Sun, 01 Jul 2007 23:50:09 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/18127 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/18127 Browsing around the internet and found this on our favorite pitcher John Lackey. The guy's a stud, a workhorse, a grinder. I think we all appreciate guys like that. He should be starting in the All Star game. Sun, 24 Jun 2007 17:37:46 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/17204 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/17204 If someone can get wiped out by dairy, citrus or soy, it certainly stands to reason that there are people who are allergic to peanuts. That number, according to ABC News is on the rise. Going to baseball games, where peanuts are sold in every aisle, prominently displayed at every concession stand and even celebrated during the 7th Inning Stretch, must be troublesome for those allergic to the legume. If you love baseball but literally cannot stand peanuts the Minnesota Twins have just become your favorite team.The Twins have created a "peanut free zone" for their fans with peanut allergies. A nice gesture to be sure. Although I'm sure peanut allergies are serious, I can't imagine someone actually going toes up at the site of a man seated next to them chomping on a bag of salted nuts. We hope the Twins or any MLB team doesn't have to break out the body bags any time soon to deal with a peanut pandemic. The steriod issue is enough to deal with. Thu, 03 May 2007 21:16:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/13441 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/13441 Chris Henry, the good guy from Arizona not the Cincinnati insurgent, continues to climb up NFL draft boards. When ESPN put out its draft guide he was the 26th rated running back. Since the combine and pro day workouts he has skyrocketed. I heard Jim Sabo from Ourlads Scouting Service predict that Henry will go in the second round to Tennessee. Just reading his blog here on Yardbarker has given us a glimpse of a kid who seems to value what he's doing. The NFL needs more guys like OUR Chris Henry. Wed, 18 Apr 2007 15:20:30 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/12478 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/12478 The results are in and Shawn Kemp is not the father of Dannielynn, Anna Nicole Smith's baby. Instead, Larry Birkhead collects the bundle of cash, er, joy. Thank goodness for that news. At last report, Kemp had fathered at least 12 kids out of wedlock, but that last report came in 2002. With five years and plenty of leisure time soaked up there's no telling how many children from the Kemp gene pool are running or crawling around these days. When the list of prospective fathers of Anna Nicole's baby started to grow like Ted Washington's burgeoning waistline, it was somewhat surprising that Kemp's name never came up. Today, he officially dodged a bullet. Tue, 10 Apr 2007 21:45:20 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/12149 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/12149 Nice to hear that the Tennessee Titans are planning to get rid of Crapman, er, Pacman Jones, although it should have happened already. Send the message to the team and the rest of the league that you will not tolerate horrendous behavior. You already made an example of Albert Haynesworth for his on the field assault of Dallas o-lineman Andre Gurode (at least Haynesworth is a decent guy). You need to hammer Jones too. The Titans have all but guaranteed that it will happen at some point. You can't serve that one up, as Titans GM Mike Reinfeldt did over the weekend, unless you plan on delivering. The media will monitor this one every day until the guillotine is dropped. And we're not just talking the Nashville media. This is a national story. Trust me, when the media spotlight is on an NFL team in late February it can't be good. No one in the NFL is pleased with this story, save for maybe the Cincinnati Bengals who, for the first time in months, are not the ones dominating the sheriff's blotter. Douchebags like Jones have no business receiving the perks of a professional athlete, especially the salary that comes with it. He has abused his position. It was reported in the Tennessee papers that he has been questioned, named or arrested in connection with at least eight incidents involving police since being drafted by the Titans in 2005. I'm sure Dr. Phil would ask "is this working?" The answer is no, not by a long shot and he needs to be punished for his horrible actions. One time could be brushed off as a mistake. Two, really bad judgement by a young guy. Eight - it's time to go. This is when collusion should be allowed in professional sports. When the Titans finally do give Jones the big haircut the other 31 teams should agree to freeze him out of the League. Unfortunately it won't happen. When players gobble up negative headlines like Pacman does they need to suffer the consequences. No more turning the other cheek. Remember these guys are supposed to be PROFESSIONAL athletes. There is nothing professional about this clown. A majority of NFL players are good guys who do a lot in their communities. Then you get shitbags like Jones who, while "making it rain," provide severe black eyes for the rest of the league. The distractions these losers create for everyone associated with their organizations are simply not worth the limited contributions they make on the field. Imagine if the Titans do keep Jones what do his teammates think when they are continuously asked about the guy? Any transgression, on or off the field, will be scrutinized by the media which means players, coaches and PR guys will have to deal with the constant criticism. It's unfair to everyone involved. But many GMs and Head Coaches in the NFL have egos large enough to photograph from space and believe that they can "save" these bad apples. By creating a new structure or putting the player in a locker room filled with veteran leaders they figure the bad seed will suddenly turn good. It has no chance of working. If the guy can't figure it out under the guidance of Jeff Fisher then it won't happen anywhere else. How many chances did Lawrence Phillips get before he blew up? Now he's in jail. Jones is on the same path and it won't change. He was bad news in college and has only gotten worse. The Titans will do the right thing by eliminating Crapman, er, Pacman from their roster, although it should have been done by now. After the phenomenal Vince Young catapulted this franchise back into the role of contender their entire focus should be on making the team even better through the draft and free agency. Instead Crapman Jones strikes again and forces some of the Titans, namely their GM and Head Coach, to shift their attention away from bolstering their roster. Once they finish working through all angles with the League to try to lighten the financial hit, Tennessee will rid themselves of Crapman. Hopefully the rest of the league will flush him too. Not a moment too soon. Mon, 26 Feb 2007 20:15:09 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/10499 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/10499