I decided to check out Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco’s new Versus show last night and while it’s true that T.O. and Ocho have good chemistry (in spurts) and seem to genuinely like each other, I’m not sure there’s a show here.
Here’s the format: Former “SportsCenter” anchor and “Entertainment Tonight” host Kevin Frazier is in a Versus studio while T.O. and Ocho sit side-by-side at a studio somewhere in Cincinnati. Frazier asks the guys questions and they take turns responding. Of course, there’s the typical satellite delay awkwardness and at times one guy talks over the other, but for the most part it goes pretty smoothly.
Topics ranged from the Brett Favre rumors — Owens says that if it were one of them, they’d already be presumed “guilty” by the media…boo-hoo…everybody thinks Favre is guilty, guys — to Ochocinco calling himself out for his poor play this season. The low point of the show was a segment where the duo don doctor’s jackets and discuss the love lives of Jennifer Aniston, Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan. The prescription for each was to start dating T.O. (who mentioned twice that he will be in Los Angeles this week) or Ochocinco, or both. Ugh.
They also struggled reading the prompter when they had to highlights for a few of the show’s segments, but they’ll probably improve in that area as time goes on.
In the end, “The T.Ocho Show” is probably only for the duo’s fans, though there’s plenty of room for improvement.
One thing’s for sure – Larry Brown will have his team competing. But with the loss of Raymond Felton to free agency, Charlotte turns to D.J. Augustin as its starting point guard, while Shaun Livingston is expected to back him up. Unless the light suddenly goes on for one of these guys, the Bobcats are going to struggle to make the playoffs in the much-improved Eastern Conference. I think their main competition for the #8 spot is the Knicks, which should be interesting because the two teams play such different styles. Cap-wise, the Bobcats won’t have any financial flexibility until 2012 when Boris Diaw, Eduardo Najera, and (probably) Gerald Wallace come off the books. The Bobcats are in no man’s land. They’re not good enough to compete for a title, but just good enough to miss landing a sure-fire star in the lottery.
I feel bad for Steve Nash, who will likely go down as one of the greatest players never to play in a Finals. The former back-to-back MVP lost Amare Stoudemire to the Knicks, and the Suns replaced him with Hedo Turkoglu, Josh Childress and Hakim Warrick. I do like the addition of Childress, but if they’re asked to play power forward, Turkoglu and Warrick are going to have a lot of trouble on the defensive end. If Phoenix can keep the incredible chemistry that it developed last season, the Suns could finish a few spots higher and compete for a playoff spot, but without Stoudemire’s finishing ability, the team is going to be overmatched most nights. Payroll-wise, the Suns will have the flexibility to add a good player next summer, but it will mean the loss of Jason Richardson, who is in the final year of his deal. Sadly, I think the days of Nash playing for a legit contender are over. It was fun while it lasted.
