Only the Warriors...

This happened in the Warriors/Blazers game last night. The Warriors ran out of guys and ended up having to put injured guys in the game so that they'd have enough players. Stefen Curry and Monta Ellis played all 48 minutes. So did 2 D-League guys. Chris Hunter (another D-League guy) started, but then got hurt early. So Devean George (remember him?) played the rest of the game.

The worst part about it is that the ended up winning! Now, instead of being tied for the 3rd worst record, they're tied for the 4th. This reduces their chances of winning the draft lottery by about 4% I think. They can't even lose properly!

Kobe

I haven't been able to watch many of the NBA playoff games this year because we don't get ESPN or TNT. But I was able to 'see' the game on the computer last night (and by 'see', I mean taking a break from cleaning the bathroom, going to the computer, and clicking refresh on the Yahoo Sports page).

After the game, I went to tell Mrs. BigKat that the Nuggets beat the Lakers. Her response?

'That's good, right?'

I wasn't sure what to say. It was a bit startling. I immediately tried to think of some other situations where something similar might have happened...

Luke: Hey C3PO! It worked! We blew up the Death Star!

C3PO: That's good, right?

or maybe...

Penny: Uncle Gadget! We finally captured Dr. Claw!

Inspector Gadget: That's good, right?

or possibly...

Aquaman: Superman! It worked! We got him to say kltpzyxm!

Superman: That's good, right?

Well, the only thing I could come up with was...

Ummm...it's KOBE!

Which apparently was good enough for her.

Cheaters

I like the Portland Trailblazers. They're now my 2nd favorite NBA team behind the Warriors.

But it turns out, they're a bunch of cheaters...

Monday Basketball

We play basketball at our church on Mondays. In the bulletin, it used to say 'Men's Basketball'. But I've heard that a couple of women were interested in playing, so I had them change it. It now says 'Co-ed Basketball' or something like that.

Anyhow, yesterday, a woman came to play with us. My-Friend-Who-Lies (MFWL) got to guard her. It didn't go so well for him. She was taller than him and scored on him repeatedly in the low post. He ended up having to ask the other guy on his team to switch with him on defense so that he could guard someone else.

He told me that he did this to save him some embarrassment. But what fun is that? I thought I'd give him his embarrassment back by letting everyone on the internet know that MFWL got beat up in basketball by a girl.

Sports Update

Since the Olympics started, I have made a conscious effort not to look at any sports news. No ESPN.com, none of my favorite basketball weblogs, no Bay Area or Oregon sports columnists...nothing. I love the Olympics and I hate knowing who wins events before I get to watch them. Because of our crazy schedule, I was Tivo-ing all of the Olympics and would often watch events 2 or 3 days after they happened. I haven't been looking at any sports news to avoid accidentally find out who won something.

Last night, 4 days after the closing ceremonies, I finally watched the last of the Olympics. So this morning, I was looking forward to catching up on my Warriors!

Know what the first thing I saw was?

"Warriors' Ellis out at least three months"

If you don't know who Monta Ellis is, he's the Warriors best player right now. Since Baron Davis left for the Clippers, Monta's the new face of the Warriors.

I think my stomach hurts a little bit...

How to Shoot a Basketball

The other day, I saw this video clip about how to shoot a basketball. The coach says that when you're shooting, you pretty much just use your thumb, index finger, and middle finger of your shooting hand. That's it. You leave out your ring finger and pinkie.



I've been playing basketball for something like 20 years now. I even own a couple of instructional movies that teach you how to shoot a basketball.

So here's my question...

How come no one has told me this until now?!?!?!?!?


I went out and tried out this technique and it's way better than what I've been doing. It makes a lot of sense because those are the fingers that you use when you throw a football too. I've always had to fight with my shot to keep it from veering off to the right. My thumb, index finger, and middle finger naturally want to be in charge of the shot, so they push the ball that way when I try to get my other fingers involved. When I shoot like the guy says, it makes it 500% easier to get the ball to go straight.

I'm actually very mad that I didn't find this out until now...

Ok, not really mad. I just wish I knew this 10 years ago before I got old and slow.

KG

Did you catch Kevin Garnett's interview after the Celtics won the NBA Championship last night? It went something like this...

Man I'm so hyped right now...

anything's possible...


ANYTHING'S POSSIBLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEE!!!


Whu-muh-muh-Whum-muh-muh-muh-muh...


(crying)

This for everybody in 'sota...

This for everybody in Chicago...

V-V

This for EVERYBODYYYYYY!!!

SOUF-CAPE!!! BASHWOOD!!!

MY MAMA PEANUT!!! SEE EVERYBODY WALL YALL!!!

ONMA MAMA...ONMA MAMA MAY-NIN-MA...

TOP OF THE WORLD!!!

TOP OF THE WORLD!!!

So kind of like Pentecost...but the opposite. He was saying something, but I don't know if anyone understood him. Although if his head had caught on fire, I would not have been surprised. He was just that excited.

See for yourself here...

Back to the Future

Did you see the Lakers-Spurs game where Brent Barry got fouled at the end by Derek Fisher, but the ref didn't call it?

Well, the NBA reviewed the tape and made a statement that there should've been a foul called and Barry should've been awarded 2 free throws.

Here's what a quote from ESPN.com with Brent Barry's response:

"That's awesome," Barry said, "because Doc Brown is waiting for me outside, and we're going to get in the DeLorean and fire up the flux capacitor and we're going to go back and shoot a couple of free throws."

Champions

Last night Mrs. BigKat and I came back from our date to an empty house. My mom was supposed to be watching the boys, but there was no one home. I took a look outside and saw my mom by herself. She told me that the boys were down the street playing basketball with the big kids (some of the nice kids from this post) and they were having so much fun that they didn't want to come home. I walked down the street to go get the boys. Those nice big kids had lowered one of the hoops so that the LilKats could play on one side while they played on the other. I started to tell the boys that it was time to go home for bath time, but the 2 big kids said that they wanted to challenge me to a game of 1-on-2.

I was faced with a little dilemma. It was already late and the LilKats needed to get home. But at the same time, these neighborhood boys had just asked me to give them a beating. How could I refuse? I told the LilKats that they could play while I beat up on the other boys.

Oh it was fun! I think I ended up winning something like 16 to 8. I probably outweigh the biggest one by about 70 pounds, so I basically just backed them down and put up little hook shots right by the basket. And I provided colorful commentary.

When the boys and I got home, I got them ready for their shower while teaching them to sing 'We are the Champions' (which we sang several times to celebrate my victory).

The only bad part was, when I got downstairs, I heard my mom telling Mrs. BigKat that she had sent me out to bring the boys home, but when she looked to see what was taking so long, I was playing in the street instead of doing my job. Oh well, no matter how much people make fun of me, it doesn't take away the fact that I Am The Champiooooooooon...Of the WORRRLLLLLLLD!

New Beginnings

Well, the Warriors are officially out of the playoffs. Which is a little sad because I've been looking forward to the Western Conference playoffs for a few months now. I was planning on watching all of the games. It was going to be like March Madness except much longer and way better...

Now with the Warriors out, I'm just not that interested. I'll probably watch a few games, but not that many.

But things are not that bad. As they say, when God closes a door, he opens...a boardgame!

That's right! Today, the FedEx guy will be delivering a 23 pound box to my door filled with all sorts of cardboard and plastic-y fun. Here's what I'm getting:

1) Formula De Mini - My boys have been enjoying playing the regular version of Formula De (with simplified rules). It's a car racing game and they loooooove race cars! Formula De Mini has some smaller tracks (which is good because sometimes it's hard for them to reach across the big boards) and streamlined rules.

2) 1960 - The Making of a President - I've been trying to get this game for a while. It sold out a few months ago and was just reprinted. It's a 2 player election game where one person is Kennedy and the other is Nixon. Sounds boring so far right? Well it did to me when I first heard about it. I'm not very into history and following elections and things like that. But I read some reviews on it, and it just sounds like a very fun, interesting card based game. I like playing high quality games no matter what the theme is (especially 2 player games, since it's usually just me and Mrs. BigKat), so I'm excited to try this one out.

3) Last Night on Earth -The Zombie Game - I've also been looking forward to this one. Again, it sold out before I could buy a copy and was just reprinted. This is a 2-6 player game where one player (sometimes 2) are the zombies and the rest are the people. The zombies try to get the people and turn them into zombies. The people try to get away from the zombies or find things to blow them up. Pretty simple, huh? It's basically a board game version of an old zombie movie. And they used actual actors to pose for the artwork which should add to the game experience.

4) Galaxy Trucker - Yet a third game that sold out before I could buy a copy and was recently reprinted! This game is kind of a puzzle game. All the players construct spaceships from a pool of various pieces. There are restrictions on what pieces can connect to what other pieces, so you have to think a little bit about how they're going to fit together. When everyone is done building, the ships are launched into outer space where they're blown apart by asteroids, space pirates, and other things. If you've built a good ship, hopefully you'll survive the trip and earn a few points. So basically a Star Wars/Tetris/Meat Grinder game. Fun!

So now, instead of my evenings being filled up with Baron, Captain Jack and Monta, they'll be filled with Zombies, Nixon, and little tiny plastic astronauts. And you know what? I'm OK with this!


Edit - You know, after I wrote this, I realized that I really need to thank God for my wonderful wife. She really is a great sport. She is always willing to try out any game I buy, no matter how goofy it is. Even if it doesn't sound remotely interesting to her, she always humors me and gives it a good honest try. Lately, I've been trying to get games that I think she would enjoy (because honestly, if she doesn't like it, it will probably not see very much play time). But I have a feeling that zombie games and games like Command and Colors: Ancients would not be her first choice of things to play. I love my wife. She's the best!

High Five

I saw this in a Bill Simmons article. Andrew Bogut creating imaginary teammates to high five after a free throw...

Sad

The Warriors lost...

Kevin Durant

I love Kevin Durant. Why? Because he may have just SAVED my WARRIORS!

Watch this...



The Warriors lost badly yesterday. I assumed that the Nuggets would beat the Sonics, putting my Warriors out of the playoffs effectively by 2 games (since they lose the tiebreaker to the Nuggets). But thanks to my new best friend, Kevin Durant, the Warriors are still in the playoff hunt. They just need to beat Denver on Thursday...

GO WARRIORS!

What's It To Ya Video #3

Mike Petty has a new What's It To Ya video to check out. It explains a bit more about how to play the game and why it's fun.

So in honor of the new video, I thought I would do another of my own What's It to Ya posts. I've just got out my What's It To Ya game and pulled out 5 cards. Go get a piece of paper and guess how I'd rank the following...

Email
Trees
Respect
Soap
Breakfast

When you're done, scroll down to see the answers...Go!





















Here are my answers:
1) Respect - One of the most important values that we're trying to teach our kids. And it's also rule number 3 on my soccer team and in Sunday School (in case you were wondering what the rest are, they are 1) Listen 2) Follow Directions 3) Be Respectful and 4) Be a part of the Group. Later on in soccer, we added 2 more rules: 5) No Pushing 6) No Complaining).

2) Breakfast - I eat the same breakfast every day. I blend up 2 bananas, some frozen fruit, milk, honey, and juice. It is known in my house as Dad's 'Breakfast Drink'. If I don't eat this, my body doesn't like it so much.

3) Soap - I was going to put Email here. But I think it's just because we take soap for granted. You know, I'm thinking that maybe I should've put it at number 2. Because not being clean...well...it stinks!

4) Email - It seems like it should be higher. But there are just too many other good cards above it. Kind of like the NBA Western Conference.

5) Trees - Trees are good. I like trees a lot. They just can't compete with Respect, Breakfast, Soap, and Email. If this group of cards is the Western Conference, Trees are definitely the Blazers.

My Neighbor

I got to meet my neighbor at the park yesterday. He was their with his little boy (who is very cute!). LilKat1 impressed him by leaping off of the big dinosaur bones structure in the sandpit.

I told My-Friend-Who-Lies, and now he is jealous.

Basketball skills

Test your court awareness! Think you got what it takes?

Greg Oden

Some video clips

Just a few clips that I wanted to share...

 

This first one is Zach Randolph of the NY Knicks. He used to play for the Blazers, so I got to see him a bunch. Guys that wrote about him always seemed to refer to him as a 20 and 10 guy (20 points, 10 rebounds), which is normally pretty good. But he is a really bad team player and brought the Blazers play as a whole way down. Now he's gone and the Blazers are doing good (well, except for the recent losing streak, but you know what I mean). Anyhow, here's a clip of him trying to dribble like his coach, Isaiah and failing miserably. I must've watched this clip 10 times this week and each time it makes me laugh:

 

This next clip is about Monta Ellis. Over the past month, he's shot over 60% from the field. And that's not just dunks and layups, it includes a lot of midrange jumpers. Want to know his secret? Watch this:

 

This is a clip of a guy who likes bacon. Makes sense because bacon is really good:

 

And finally, here's a 3 year old giving a summary of Star Wars. We haven't let our kids watch Star Wars, but after seeing this, I'm thinking about it just to see what they say:

Bump

Yesterday, LilKat1 had a birthday party to go to at a friend's house down the street. It was a great party. There were several craft stations plus games like air hockey, so there were lots of things for the kids to do. I asked LilKat1 if he wanted me to stick around or leave. He said 'Leave', so I left.

On the way home, I noticed that a group of high school kids were lining up single file in the street in front of a portable basketball hoop. I knew exactly what this meant. I shouted at them 'Are you guys playing Bump?' They said yes. I asked if I could play, and they said yes again. I tossed my keys and wallet on the curb and hopped in line.

Bump is a game that I was first introduced to in college. We would gather a bunch of people from our dorm and play in our dorm courtyard. It was great fun. Basically, you have to make a shot before the person behind you in line makes a shot. If they make a shot before you, you're out. The winner is the last person left.

It was not easy getting used to the portable hoop. The rim was not at the right height and when you went to rebound your ball, you had to run downhill slightly towards the curb (which made my easily sprainable ankles a little nervous). But I got used to it fairly quickly.

One thing surprised me though. At one point, there were only a few of us left in the game. I was able to bump out one of the kids. And then all of a sudden, a whole group of them got back in the front of the line. I wasn't sure what was going on. The game wasn't over yet, but all these kids that were eliminated were back in the game.

Apparently, we were playing 'Ultimate Bump'. So when someone gets eliminated, all the people that they bumped out get to get back in the game. The only way you can win is if you bump out all each one of the other players. You know what? Ultimate Bump takes a looooooooong time.

At first it seemed a little ridiculous. The games were taking forever. We'd be down to 2 or 3 guys, and then all of a sudden, it would be back up to 6. But then I realized, what else am I going to do? I thought I would be hanging out at a birthday party. But instead, I get to play basketball in the street. So I learned to enjoy the marathon that is Ultimate Bump.

We played a total of about 5 games or so. I think I won 2 of them. You know what? Those kids play dirty! They will not hesitate to bump your ball 5 houses down the street and make you run after it. I had to do this several times. One time, I tried to get even with them. I bumped the other kid's ball as hard as I could...right at an SUV that was heading towards us. Fortunately, it didn't run over the ball, but it was close. I also got to yell at a girl. She was pretty good, obviously played for a team somewhere. But I was in line and needed her to make her shot so that I could bump out the kid in front of me. So I screamed 'MAKE YOUR SHOT AND GIVE ME THE BALL!' And another time, she couldn't bump out the kid that knocked me out so I yelled at her for letting me down once again. She knew I was just kidding though...I hope.

Playing with the kids brought back a lot of memories for me. Chasing the ball before it rolled down the hill. Pausing the game when a car drove by. Sitting on the curb waiting for your turn. Heckling the people that were still in the game. If there was an ice cream truck to run after for a few blocks before it stopped, it would've been perfect.

Where Amazing Happens

Watch this video. This is a video of me last night at basketball.

 

 

Did you see that? Pretty good shot, huh? Ok, that wasn't actually a video of basketball last night, but it was close. Instead of Jason Richardson making the shot, that was me. Except I spun to my left, not to the right. And there was only 1 guy guarding me at the end, not 2 guys. And my shot was from about 18 feet out and not 30. And it wasn't off of a missed free throw, it was after My-Friend-Who-Lies rolled the ball inbounds (there were only 3 seconds left, so he did the roll it up the floor thing so that I could get an extra second). And we weren't losing the game when I shot it, the score was tied. And it wasn't against the Mavericks, just some guys from church. And there wasn't a big crowd, just a guy keeping score and another guy.

 

But other than that, it was EXACTLY the same! I was even wearing my Warriors jersey (okay fine, it was a Baron Davis jersey and not a Richardson jersey, and it's blue and not orange. But still...)