It’s been a long time friends, enemies and obsessed stalkers alike but guess what gang? Uncle Puma is back and he is ready to give you the truth you so desperately crave and dare I say it the truth that you need.
· The NBA playoffs have been quite revealing to me. The Thunder lose Russell Westbrook and struggle to beat the Rockets, on the verge of losing to the Grizzlies and exposing the less than great coaching of Scott Brooks at times. I know Mike Conley was excited to see the duo of Reggie Jackson and Derek Fisher across from him.
· Also who saw the Spurs-Warriors being the most exciting series of the playoffs so far? First off, the duo of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson has been amazing against the more experienced Spurs. Mark Jackson has a team on his hands that could be making noise in the playoffs for a long time to come. This series has also shown what happens when you get guys who fit your system and give them time to build a rapport. Who saw Danny Green as being a contributor on playoff team? Only Greg Popovich.
· I admire the heart of the Bulls but let’s be honest this just is not the year of the Bulls. Injuries have completely wrecked us but a positive that can be taken from this season playoff run has been the emergence of Tom Thibodeau as the best coach not named Greg Popovich.
What I tell ya'll about doubting me?
What other guy could take a team that had to start Nate Robinson, Marco Bellinelli, Nazr Muhammed and other scraps and rejects from other teams and take them to at least the second round of the playoffs?
· Is there a bigger fool on this earth than Mario Williams? Damn sir, what kind of simp gives a woman a ring worth $785,000?
Now see what had happened was....
And then you give up a credit card, on which she allegedly incurred $108,000 in charges. And to top this off, he spent $230,000 on "luxurious items" on his former fiancé. Wow. The simping life is real folks.
· Another life that is real is this getting arrested. I’m looking at you Titus Young. Holy hell getting arrested 3 times in one week. I certainly hope he gets the help he sorely needs because there has to be a mental reason for this downward spiral.
Well gang that’s all I got for now but when this round of the NBA playoffs are over I will give you the preview and predictions that my people need and deserve!
Hot diggity damn folks, its NFL draft time and with that comes yet another mock draft from yours truly here at Chocolate Puma Enterprises. You see I did so well in my brackets (dead last), fantasy football (5th place) and basketball (4th place) that I pretty much know what the people want, nay what the people need and that friends is the opinion of this humble scribe. These are the picks I think will be best suited for these teams so they’ll mostly be wrong of this I am sure.
Now without further ado, the number one pick of the 2013 NFL draft…
1. Kansas City Chiefs- OT Luke Joeckel: Texas A&M
Kansas City was poor in all aspects last season but they aren’t as bad as they would appear. They have a few pieces on defense, a new quarterback (Alex Smith), and two damn near elite skill players (Jamal Charles and Dwayne Bowe). All they need is someone to protect the QB and Joeckel is the best of the bunch.
Blaine Gabbert isn’t bad enough to warrant drafting Geno Smith here. I like the kid but not that much of an upgrade. Floyd is probably the one DT who has benefited the most from Star Lotulelei having a heart scare. And really never hurts to have an athletic defensive tackle on your squad.
3. Oakland Raiders- WR Tayvon Austin: West Virginia
In the first over-reach of the draft Oakland will grab the speedy receiver from West Virginia because they love fast guys who with explosive potential.
4. Philadelphia Eagles- QB Geno Smith: West Virginia
Very smart guy who works hard and is athletic enough to do some read option but with weapons like Lesean McCoy, Justin Maclin and Desean Jackson you really just need a strong armed and smart qb with enough mobility to avoid the sack.
5. Detroit Lions- LT Eric Fisher: Central Michigan
Second best tackle prospect in the draft according to most “experts” and I gotta agree. Given that Matthew Stafford’s health is of the utmost importance, getting this bookend to Riley Reiff to give Stafford, Megatron, and newly acquired Reggie Bush room to do work.
6. Cleveland Browns- CB Dee Milliner- Alabama
The best corner in the draft by far and really the worst kept secret in the draft that the Browns covet him. Team him with Joe Haden and they have the best young corner duo in the league.
7. Arizona Cardinals- LT Lane Johnson: Oklahoma
Another trainwreck of a squad, Johnson can protect the newly acquired Carson Palmer and try and get Larry Fitzgerald in the game.
8. Buffalo Bills- QB Ryan Nassib: Syracuse
Athletic kid, good arm but frankly nothing too special in my opinion and believe me I’m wrong all the time. But his college coach is the new coach of the Bills, knows the system and Kevin Kolb is not about to become Jim Kelly anytime soon.
9. New York Jets- OLB Barkevious Mingo: LSU
The Jets love drafting busts and in the tradition of Vernon Gholston I present to you Barkevious Mingo, a combine warrior who frankly is a bit raw. If I had more faith in the Jets coaches I’d give him a chance but their history of coaching guys is up is quite abysmal.
10. Tennessee Titans- OT Chance Warmack: Alabama
They appear to be committed to Jake Locker who seems to be made of porcelain so why not get someone to protect him? At this spot he may be the best guy available. He’s large with good footwork and fundamentally sound and beast in run blocking.
11. San Diego Chargers- WR Cordalle Patterson: Tennessee
Possibly the biggest risk/reward pick of the entire draft, he is not what one would call a polished route runner but get the ball in his game and sweet sassy molassey this guy is electric. This could be the guy that helps revitalize the career of Phillip Rivers.
12. Miami Dolphins- S Kenny Vaccaro: Texas
The best safety prospect takes his considerable talents to South Beach. He is a safety in the mold of Ed Reed in that he is a ball hawk and amazing in coverage. Last year they worked on the offensive side of the ball and this year the Dolphins will try and shore up the defensive side.
13. New York Jets- QB Matt Barkley: USC
Hello? Sanchez?
Why not?
14. Carolina Panthers- CB Xavier Rhodes: FSU
Their secondary is so awful. A lot of blame was thrown towards Cam Newton and guess what he wasn’t the one giving up Hail Mary bombs to Matt Ryan and every other QB in the NFC South. This is a step in the right direction.
15. New Orleans Saints- OLB Dion Jordan: Oregon
The offense outside of needing to run the ball more is pretty set. There are no first round running backs really so you grab the best defensive player on the board.
16. St. Louis Rams- G/C Jonathan Cooper: North Carolina
They are attempting to get help for Sam Bradford and the offense with the signing of Jake Long and now they need a center, and Cooper is the best of the bunch.
With James Harrison gone, James Farrior old, the time to get some new blood in the defensive rotation is now. Moore was considered by many to be a top 5 pick but after a disastrous combine and pro day his stock has dropped much to the delight of many teams later in the draft.
18. Dallas Cowboys- OT D.J. Fluker: Alabama
They could not keep Tony Romo upright last year so this year the idea to draft a lineman has got to be a no brainer. At this point in the draft you should be able to grab this burly and aggressive fella from Tuscaloosa to keep the franchise healthy.
19. New York Giants- CB Jonathan Banks: Mississippi St.
Aaron Ross was very solid number one corner this past year; Corey Webster on the other hand was not. In Banks you get a corner big enough to deal with your Megatrons but also fast enough to keep up with the Desean Jacksons of the NFL.
20. Chicago Bears- OT Justin Pugh: Syracuse
Well if we keep drafting offensive lineman one has to be good. I mean the law of averages has to take over soon right?
21. Cincinnati Bengals- OLB Jarvis Jones: Georgia
The only picture of Jarvis Jones that matters.
After striking gold with the undrafted Vontaze Burfict this year they get his outside compliment in Jarvis Jones who in my opinion is the most explosive linebacker and can definitely be a game changer.
22. St. Louis Rams- WR Keenan Allen: Cal
They lost Danny Amendola to the Patriots in the offseason so the receiver from Cal could be the answer to fill that void. He has the size, is a polished route runner and definitely could be a security blanket for Sam Bradford.
23. Minnesota Vikings- MLB Manti Te’o: Notre Dame
"So where can I get a girl's email address here?"
This is only to anger my Minnesota friends.
24. Indianapolis Colts- DE Bjorn Woerner: Florida St.
With Dwight Freeney gone that defense will definitely need a pass rush and his strength also helps with run defense which makes him an every down lineman.
25. Minnesota Vikings- WR Deandre Hopkins:
The Vikings signed Greg Jennings but he never really stays healthy so drafting a backup who is an explosive athlete such as Hopkins who can excel on the turf of the great north.
26. Green Bay Packers- S Eric Reid: LSU
Charles Woodson is gone so again a pick of convenience. Reid is easily the second best safety in this class and should slide right in as a starter as he is solid in both the run and the pass.
27. Houston Texans- WR Justin Hunter: Tennessee
Andre Johnson is no spring chicken and has struggled with injuries in the last few seasons. While his upside is not that of his college teammate Patterson he is almost certain to be a solid contributor, which is just, what the Texans need.
28. Denver Broncos- S Matt Elam: Florida
There is no Ravens Super Bowl if not for the awful pass coverage by the Broncos. They attempt to shore this deficiency up with the ballhawk from Gainesville.
29. New England Patriots- DT Jonathan Hankins: Ohio St.
While they are set with people at defensive tackle this a very Patriot move, they get a guy from a proven program and appears to be a decent personality.
30. Atlanta Falcons- TE Tyler Eifert: Notre Dame
Tony Gonzalez is coming back for one more go round. May as well bring in his replacement to learn from the master. He is able to catch the ball in traffic; he can go up and get it and is an above average blocker.
31. San Francisco 49ers- TE Zach Ertz: Stanford
They lost Delanie Walker to the Titans and Vernon Davis needs a back up so hello Mr. Ertz a former player for coach Jim Harbaugh at Stanford.
32. Baltimore Ravens- CB Desmond Trufant: Washington
He is the top corner at this point in the draft and not a bad one. He can certainly be of help on an aging defense that has lost two of its icons in Ed Reed and Ray Lewis.
Well folks there you have it, the 2013 NFL Draft. So there is no need to even watch tomorrow I have it nailed.
Growing up I was an avid reader as well as an avid participant in many athletic adventures. I was an all star in one and just a mere participant in the other. Guess which one? In all seriousness, I had a ferocious appetite for reading as it took a few passes on the bench before I got a chance to actually play and one of those people who I always found myself reading was a fella by the name of Ralph Wiley.
Oddly enough I began reading Ralph probably around 1994 in a tattered issue of GQ which was about to be discarded unceremoniously from a salon owned by a friend of my mother. He wrote in a way that made words jump off the page and forced you to think, in a good way. That was the day I fell in love with journalism and the written word. I saw the potential of what it could be nay what is should be and 10 year old Brian was officially hooked.
I followed his career as he wrote for GQ, National Geographic and even a few books.
One of the books I remember reading at our local library was “Why Black People Tend to Shout,” big ups to our librarian Ms. Jane for helping me find it, and it just literally blew me away. He spoke so powerfully about the frustrations of racism without being bitter or jaded. It certainly helped a young Puma who was dealing with things that he clearly had no idea about that time in his young life.
Fast forward a few years and we are in the dial up internet age. 2001, I would spend forever trying to log onto AOL to go to ESPN.com and to read their new section “Page 2” where Ralph Wiley was king. During his time manning the Page 2 section he wrote over 200 articles, which I would estimate I have read about 95% of them. He always probed beyond the obvious and not afraid to ask hard questions. After 9/11 he wrote how sports were needed. He probed deep into the career of Jackie Robinson. In an article that is quite apropos for today about abusive tendencies of coaches. And an amazing piece on racism in the south, something that I really wished Brad Paisley and LL Cool J had read before their embarrassing excuse at a song last week.
I don’t claim to be the greatest writer, or even a good, but thanks to Ralph Wiley, a man I never met, a man who passed away in 2004, a man who was so ahead of his time he appeared in hindsight to have the gift of predicting the future, I certainly look at things differently. Without Wiley there is no JA Adande, Israel Gutierrez, Micheal Smith or Jemele Hill (at least on a national platform).
I know I say this a lot but in this case it is absolutely true, if I was as half as good at anything as Ralph Wiley was I would die a happy man.
This is not going to be some long drawn out condemnation of those who disagree with me. This is just my humble opinion because I have read some things over the past few days that really made my heart hurt reading them. And the idea that something like this is still being discussed in 2013 while encouraging that we are going in the right direction, but also it’s sad as well that it has taken this long. I think what confuses me the most are the people who are up in arms over gay marriage are the same ones whowant the government out of their daily lives, except for when they disagree with something. Then constitutional bans are needed.
What I hate the most is what message is this sending to the youth. That it’s ok to exclude people just because they are different from you. I have friends and family members, smart, kind, and frankly better people than I who are gay. Are you telling me that just because I am attracted to someone of the opposite sex that I am somehow more worthy of marriage than they are? Nah. I don’t buy it.
So I guess the point is I support gay marriage. And even if you disagree with it, hopefully you won’t deny the happiness of two people that have nothing to do with your daily life.
With the NCAA tourney the country is exposed to all sorts of characters and human interest pieces. Throughout all these I have noticed and I know I’m not the only one who has noticed this but there seems to be quite the let’s call it vexing portrayal of the polarizing guard from Ole Miss, one Marshall Henderson. Now allow me to say this, I find the kid entertaining, and this is by no means a condemnation of him, this is a condemnation of the narrative that most people choose to believe or the media chooses to report.
My problem with the Marshall Henderson paradox we’ll call it, is who we vilify. In 2010, a very talented player came along. Kid had no legal problems and really the only thing people could say was it looked like he had a bad attitude.
What a thug.
He was Demarcus Cousins.
In 2012, a very talented guard who was arrested in high school for trying to buy $800 worth of drugs with counterfeit money, he failed a subsequent drug test, failed to do community service and did jail time.
He is Marshall Henderson.
Now guess who is described as a problem child and who is described as playing with a reckless abandon and passion. And this isn’t anything new. The media and fans pick players that they love all the time and choose to ignore what the facts are. Typically the guy who gets the benefit of the doubt is of Caucasian descent. Or at least the skin tone is on the lighter side. Hell look at how Allen Iverson was forever labeled a thug because he got in a fight in high school. Wouldn’t the thug behavior be flipping off the crowd and trying to buy $800 worth of weed with fake cash?
It’s not just basketball. Look in the NFL. Tim Tebow is being put on every squad by armchair general managers and the kid couldn’t complete a pass regularly. Vince Young has had to apologize to every person he ever met in the NFL and have a pro day at the University of Texas just in the hopes of getting a shot at a backup quarterback spot. The perception of players is not based on their performance on the field. And there is where the problem lies.
This is all however just a part of a bigger picture that unfortunately won’t change anytime soon I fear. If you’re a white athlete who by all accounts is a decent person you’re everything that someone should want to be (See: Warner, Kurt; Manning, Peyton/Eli, etc) and if you’re a black athlete who is a decent person (See: Dawkins, Brian; Duncan, Tim etc) you’re boring or more insulting you're not really "black."
What a cornball!
Now on the other side of the coin, the white athlete that is a knucklehead is having fun (Patrick Kane) or he made a poor choice reflecting only on him (Ben Rothliesberger).
He's just having a blast and not publicly intoxicated!
The black athlete who has fun has his home life dissected and told he’ll never be a winner due to the lack of a father figure (John Wall) or if arrested it’s not a poor or reprehensible choice made by an individual, it’s something that basically was going to happen because all young black guys are criminals right?
The issue is bigger than Marshall Henderson, Johnny Manziel, or any other player out there right now. Those kids are allowed to be themselves. I can’t knock them. But I can knock the lazy people who cover them and expect other people to shoulder the burden of an entire race without learning the people they're covering.
