The clichéd phrase “must-win game” is usually best saved for, say, a Game 4 situation when you’re down 2-1 and must avoid falling behind 3-1. Or a Game 6, where you’re up 3-2 but Game 7 is in their building. Very rarely are we, the media (the professional couriers of cliché), inclined to bust out […]
My favorite part of the movie ‘A Christmas Story’ was when poor little Ralphie Parker got fed up with being picked on by the bully Scut and decided to kick his ass. Yes, the little boy who finally got fed up with being picked on by the big bully decided to punch the bully right […]
“If you prick us do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? If you poison us do we not die? And if you wrong us shall we not revenge?” -William Shakespeare Once again, the bully and his rival head towards the big hill in the park outside the school. There’s going […]
On Tuesday, I podcasted about the difference between the biggest and the best. Avatar was the biggest movie last year; it grossed three-quarters of a billion dollars domestically, 2.7 billion worldwide. But it wasn’t the best movie last year. That distinction belonged to The Hurt Locker. The story of Iraq war bomb diffusers/adrenaline junkies only […]
The “what” is all that matters but the “who” and the “how” is the story of the night. The “what” in this case is the final score, Suns 107-88 over Portland to take a three games to two lead over Portland in this playoff series. But it’s the “who” and the “how” that will catch […]
Evaulating an NFL draft is a lot like handicapping a marriage as you’re driving home from the reception (a twisted concept for sure, but admit it…you’ve done it too). Is it love? Will it last? Will she get on his nerves, will he stay faithful? Shoot, they haven’t even opened their presents yet and already […]
After watching the Arizona Cardinals defense get torched by Green Bay and New Orleans in the playoffs there was no doubt in my mind that the Redbirds were going defense with their first pick. The Cards brass could have talked all they wanted about best available player, but they weren’t going offense unless Sam Bradford […]
Sometimes things just fall your way. Luck. Karma. Good fortune. Whatever you want to call it. For me it’s when an extra candy bar falls out of the vending machine at work. For the Arizona Cardinals it’s when the perfect nose tackle for their 3-4 defense falls right into their lap. Dan Williams and the […]
I’ve got this big-time incredulous vibe working right now. Did the Suns really just squander the thing they worked so hard to attain – home court advantage – in one night? Did they really just become the only team in the NBA to lose their 2010 playoff opener at home? Did Andre Miller just beat […]
Conventional wisdom comes exactly as advertised. It is both conventional and wise. Want to get a job? Network and make sure your resume is brief and to the point. Want to be fashionable? If you’re a woman, don’t wear white after Labor Day. Want to lose weight? Eat smaller portions and exercise more. But once […]
One of my favorite lines from one of my favorite movies goes something like this: “Trust. It seems to me that if there were any logic to our language, trust would be a four letter word.” It’s from the Tom Cruise classic (and it’s not often I get to use those three words in the […]
Watched Tiger Woods “interview” this morning and it reminded me of when my nine-year-old declares matter-of-factly that she brushed her teeth. You know…….with her finger. Toothpaste was involved. Your mouth feels cleaner. Your breath smells better. But did you really brush your teeth? No. You, in fact, did not. Tiger Woods was interviewed by ESPN […]
College hoops analyst Bill Raftery – who is far, far and away the most entertaining analyst in any of the big time sports – has a word he likes to use when describing courage, moxie and guts. The word is “onions.” And when it comes to Tiger Woods, I ain’t got any. I can say […]
I don’t get it. On Friday I utterly and completely believed that Larry Foote was going to be a Cardinal. They were like two people flirting with each other big time at the bar. The mutual attraction was undeniable. At the very least phone numbers would be exchanged. Foote wanted to play for a winner. […]
Did I ever tell you I was a terrific test-taker? SAT’s, ACT’s, final exams; you name it. My gift was cramming. I could cram with the best of them. Load up on the Mountain Dew in the early evening and cap it off with a 2 a.m. trip to Denny’s….order up a Moon’s over My […]
It was a full on, wish-I-thought-of-that moment. I didn’t, so I have to give full credit to the Republic’s Cardinals beat writer, Kent Somers. If you scroll down in this report, you’ll find a suggestion that the Cardinals should put Anquan Boldin in their ring of honor one day. It’s more than a moderate suggestion. […]
For many, the annual Bible of baseball prognostications is a 652 page ditty known as the Baseball Prospectus 2010. The thing is bigger than Mike D’Antoni’s ego. If this book had to fly commercially it would get charged for two seats (but unlike film director Kevin Smith, it wouldn’t complain on its Twitter account because […]
Nothing like a tweet from Chad Ochocinco to set my mind at ease. Alright, I’m mostly kidding. Mostly. I’ve got confidence (not a lot but enough) that the Cardinals are going to bring back their soon-to-be-free-agent safety Antrel Rolle. A feeling that was validated (not a full-on validation but enough of one) by the Bengals […]
The greens are perfectly manicured, the golfers tuned up, the kegs on ice. The PGA Tour is back and golf has our full attention. So now is a perfect time to address the elephant in the room. No, not Tiger. He’s the snake in the room. I’m talking about the name. The Waste Management Phoenix […]
The trade deadline passed without the Phoenix Suns making a deal. The Suns did not get, nor were they making calls, so Amare Stoudemire remains a Sun. The Suns had two teams vying for Stoudemire’s services, Miami and Cleveland, and were willing to deal their All-Star center if they could have received a “home run” […]
I remember the day like it was yesterday. June 2, 2005. The 620 Sportsline was live, on-location from some high-end pizza place in North Scottsdale. It was the night after the Spurs eliminated the Phoenix Suns from the NBA’s Western Conference Finals and I couldn’t have been in a better mood. Whatever disappointment I had […]
To deal or to deal. That is the question the Phoenix Suns are contemplating as the NBA trade deadline approaches on Thursday. To deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers or to deal with the Miami Heat. It is a foregone conclusion that the Suns have made the determination that trading Amare Stoudemire is in their best […]
As far as finales go, I’m pretty sure where Tuesday night’s last ever 620 Sportsline ranks. It wasn’t sad and sappy like MASH. This wasn’t Hawkeye Pierce flying away in a helicopter while BJ Honnicutt drives away on the motorcycle with the words GOODBYE spelled out with rocks. It wasn’t confusing like The Soprano’s. I […]
Take all the success the Cardinals have had over the last couple of years. The Super Bowl, the division titles, the newfound national respect. Now imagine it as a giant pie (apple of course). How big is Kurt Warner’s slice? How much of it was he directly and personally responsible for? The knee jerk reaction […]
Another game, another loss for the Phoenix Suns. A season that started with so much promise after an improbable 14-3 start is crashing down upon us and you get the feeling the Suns have fallen and the can’t get up. Just how a team could get off to such a great start and then forget […]
Do you believe in body language? In the idea that it’s not what you say, but how you say it? In the subtle hints and clues that you can pluck from tone, posture, pauses, inflection and the like? I do. Big time. Maybe I’m an old fashioned radio geek, but, part of my job is […]
It’s only four games so we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves. But it’s hard not to notice the impact that Robin Lopez has had on the Phoenix Suns since he has been getting extended minutes. In the last four games Lopez has shot 27-for-38 from the field for 64 points, grabbed […]
The only battle left to win is the one inside the heart, mind and soul of #13. The Cardinals glorious (more on that in a moment) 2009 season came to a splintering halt Saturday in New Orleans. You can ruminate on the injuries and the collective empty gas tank to your heart’s desire; when you […]
This is not another attempt to bash the credibility of Cris Collinsworth. Cardinals fans took the belt to the NBC announcer so many times last year that the poor guy can barely go on talk radio in Phoenix without a mandatory upfront apology. With his the-Cardinals-are-the-worst-team-to-make-the-playoffs speech, Collinsworth (who is actually one of my favorite […]
Of all the moves the Arizona Diamondbacks have made this offseason, none have made as much sense as the one that came down today with the announcement of the signing of Adam LaRoche to a one-year contract with a mutual option for a second season. The Diamondbacks have been desperate for a real first baseman […]
