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      Bill Simmons on Game 6 of the Celtics/Bulls series

      May 1, 2009 /

      Predictably, Bill Simmons was not happy about which team was on the losing end of the brilliant, triple-overtime Game 6 of the Boston/Chicago series, but that didn’t stop him from writing an eloquent column about how the series represents everything we look for as sports fans.

      We love sports for the simple reason that we never know when this will happen. It rarely does. We watch a lot of crummy games. We watch sporting events that had potential to be great and weren’t. We watch sporting events that almost made it, but one dumb thing happened to screw it up: A foul at the wrong time, a penalty, a two-base error, whatever. We keep watching. We keep hoping. And when everything clicks, it’s blissful. I am hearing from people who haven’t e-mailed me in years. Readers are sending me 700-word e-mails. The thing that keeps jumping out: Even fans without rooting interests have gotten swept up in this series. How can you not?

      Think of all the crap we deal with as fans. “Bulls-Celtics 2009” explains why we put up with every story about Clemens and Bonds and Michael Vick and Terrell Owens and everyone else who conspires to make sports less fun. On the same day of Game 6, a story broke that Alex Rodriguez was allegedly seen with human growth hormone. The story was digested and consumed in the same predictably brief cycle: Mainstream Web sites and blogs and message boards and sports radio first, then “PTI” and “Around the Horn,” then “SportsCenter,” then newspapers and magazines. You can either throw yourself into that cycle or look the other way. I am getting older. I just want to watch sports. I have trained myself to look the other way. This stuff clutters my brain, and not in a good way. I just want to watch sports. I just want to watch sports.

      This is the best first round series I’ve ever seen. As a Bucks fan, I’m supposed to hate all Chicago teams, but I can’t help but root for these young Bulls. My only worry is that there has been such an emotional buildup in this series that Game 7 can’t possibly live up to expectations. The worst thing that could happen would be for one team to come out and lay an egg.

      Humor, NBA, NBA Finals

      Peppers doesn’t show for Panthers’ minicamp

      May 1, 2009 /

      As expected, Panthers’ defensive end Julius Peppers didn’t show for the start of Carolina’s three-day minicamp.

      The stalemate continued Friday with the four-time Pro Bowl selection, who wants to play elsewhere. But the Panthers have placed the franchise tag on him, limiting his options in free agency.

      Because Peppers has not signed Carolina’s one-year, $16.7 million tender, he can’t be fined for missing the mandatory minicamp.

      General manager Marty Hurney says Friday he’s had several conversations with agent Carl Carey and they’ve been “all positive.”

      Second-round pick Everette Brown of Florida State got more reps in Peppers’ absence

      Peppers not showing up for minicamp is hardly a story, but it could be a telltale sign that he won’t show up for training camp, which would make headlines. Carolina hired Ron Meeks in January to replace Mike Trgovac as defensive coordinator, so one would think that Peppers would be in camp come July in order to learn the new scheme.

      But while head coach John Fox doesn’t seem concerned about his star defensive end not attending camps until July, at least one Carolina believes that he’ll show up until after the padded work is complete.

      It would be very Michael Strahan of Peppers if he did that.

      NFL

      Couch Potato Alert: 5/1

      May 1, 2009 /

      The NBA and NHL playoffs are heating up, as the Boston Celtics/Chicago Bulls series could go down as maybe the best first round series ever. The Detroit Red Wings will again battle the Anaheim Ducks, who have defeated them in consecutive playoff series. They defeated the Red Wings in the 2003 Western Conference quarterfinals, it marked the first time since 1952 that a defending Stanley Cup champion was knocked out in the first round of the playoffs.

      All times ET…

      NBA Playoffs
      Fri, 8 PM: Atlanta Hawks @ Miami Heat (ESPN)
      Sat, 8 PM: Chicago Bulls @ Boston Celtics (TNT)
      Sun, 1 PM: Miami Heat @ Atlanta Hawks* if necessary (ABC)
      Sun, 3:30 PM: Dallas Mavericks @ Denver Nuggets (ABC)

      NHL Playoffs
      Fri, 7 PM: Anaheim Ducks @ Detroit Red Wings (Versus)
      Sat, 1PM: Pittsburgh Penguins @ Washington Capitals (NBC)
      Sat, 9 PM: Chicago Blackhawks @ Vancouver Canucks (Versus)
      Sun, 2 PM: Anaheim Ducks @ Detroit Red Wings (NBC)
      Sun, 7:30 PM: Carolina Hurricanes @ Boston Bruins (Versus)

      MLB
      Sat, 3:40 PM: New York Mets @ Philadelphia Phillies (Fox)
      Sun., 1:30 PM: Boston Red Sox @ Tampa Bay Rays (TBS)
      Sun., 8 PM: Chicago White Sox @ Texas Rangers (ESPN)

      Boxing
      Sat, 9 PM: Ricky Hatton vs. Manny Pacquiao for the world junior welterweight title from Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena (HBO PPV)

      Horse Racing
      Sat, 4 PM: Kentucky Derby from Churchill Downs in Louisville, KY.(NBC)

      Boxing, Couch Potato Alert, MLB, NBA, NHL, Television

      Friday MMA Review 5/1

      May 1, 2009 /

      Here’s a weekly rundown of MMA content from Ben Goldstein of CagePotato.com:

      – Congenital amputee Kyle Maynard’s MMA debut went about as well as we thought it would.

      – Clearly bored with the garbage-ass challengers he’s been getting in the UFC’s middleweight division, 185-pound king Anderson Silva will go up to light-heavyweight again to face Forrest Griffin at UFC 101 in August. Meanwhile, Nate Marquardt and Demian Maia will be facing off to determine who really deserves the next middleweight title shot.

      – Gina Carano looked hot at Kevin Randleman’s wedding.

      – Despite some intense infighting, Team U.S. was able to put its first victory on the board on the last episode of The Ultimate Fighter, while coach Michael Bisping vanished into thin air.

      – Japanese promotion DREAM is putting together the greatest MMA freak show in history with their “World Superman Championship,” which will feature steroid-snitch Jose Canseco, pituitary case Hong Man Choi, Bob Sapp, and five more warriors, hopefully fighting to the death.

      – Speaking of freak shows, Fedor Emelianenko used his 70-pound weight advantage to toss around Shinya Aoki in a grappling exhibition at the last M-1 Challenge event.

      – Less than two months after Nick Diaz and Scott Smith scored victories at “Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz,” the two will be fighting each other at “Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields.”

      – Sign of the apocalypse #783: Kung Fu Football.

      – Kim Couture’s wife pulled out of her upcoming fight against Miesha Tate, and Tate responded by telling everyone that Kim and The Natural are getting a divorce. Real classy.

      – By forcibly retiring Chuck Liddell, is Dana White looking out for his friend’s health or his company’s wallet? Little from column A, little from column B?

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Boldin reports for physical, could be in minicamp

      May 1, 2009 /

      Despite being upset about his contract situation, Anquan Boldin was at the Cardinals’ facility on Wednesday to get a physical, which could indicate that he plans on attending the team’s minicamp.

      I’m not sure where Anquan Boldin’s head is in terms of his contract, but in terms of the mystery (if there ever really was one) of whether he would come to minicamp, he indeed was at the facility today to get his physical. Doesn’t make much sense to do that if he isn’t going to come to minicamp. We’ll have to double-check tomorrow, but with Boldin and Darnell Dockett both coming today, it looks like there won’t be any absences for the mandatory minicamp.

      Now, whether Boldin practices, we’ll have to see. He came down with a sore hamstring at last year’s minicamp — about the time his contract issues first reached a boil. There might be some maladies for those seeking new contracts. Again, we will see. At least the drama of a missing guy will be avoided, and I would assume Boldin — and to a lesser extent, Dockett — will be tops on the media’s interview list after practice.

      There were countless rumors heading into the draft that Boldin would be traded, but it appears that the Cardinals never really had any desire to deal their dynamic wideout in the first place. GM Rod Graves seems to be trying to wear Boldin and his agent out and the one weapon in Graves’ arsenal is that he knows Anquan loves playing football. It’s hard to envision Boldin holding out and while he may air his frustrations, he’s not going to allow a contract dispute interfere with him playing football.

      My guess is that Anquan Boldin is going to be an Arizona Cardinal until his contract runs out at the end of the 2010 season.

      NFL

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