Around the New York Sports World

So what’s new in the sports world?

The Knicks come immediately to mind, they’ve been trying to stay with the Lakers and Cavs of the world and now the Celtics…bad luck…and the Celtics just lost to the Lakers by a point in overtime…they won’t be thrilled with that. The Knicks are in trouble.

But just in the short term. Some of these new guys can really shoot, it seems. Gallinari and Harrington and Chandler and even Lee….I think they’re in 10th place in the East now…and I’m beginning to think they have a chance. If Harrington starts to pick up some assists in his game, things might be better….

It seems the good teams, the best teams, always have their share of assists. The bad teams never have good assists numbers. Fantasy players, take note.

Speaking of assists, Kevin Garnett was out of the Celtics lineup and Paul Pierce was trying to do everything….and made a pretty nice job of it…that Allen and Pierce and Garnett trio might be the best thing in pro hoops right now…I know most folks like Kobe and LeBron but geez…how much can you take of them? The NBA needs to realize there’s more to the league than just Kobe and LeBron. There are some great stories around the league besides just LeBron and Kobe.

Hey! The Pro Bowl’s coming up….heh-heh….

Yeah, football’s over…which is a good thing because I’m ready for baseball. Not just the Mets, my team, but the Yankees too. And I do hate them and always will….they buy everything…shotgun approach…throw enough brown stuff on the wall and sumthin’s gotta stick…..

I mean, really, they pick up Sabathia and Burnett and Teixeira, re-sign Pettite, and are now supposed to be shopping Nady because they have their new addition Swisher. Just like the Yankees to be so disorganized. Swisher was insurance at first base, I guess. And then they picked up Teixeira…..

So their lineup will be pretty awesome. I wouldn’t be thrilled with a couple of things myself though, if I were them. To me, there’s no real leadoff hitter on that roster. Damon’s getting a little long in the tooth, I think. And he does seem to be injured quite a bit. They’ve picked up guys with speed in the past and sat them on the bench.

So, let’s see, Damon, Jeter, Teixeira, Arod, Matsui (as a DH), Nady, Posada, Cano and Cabrera/Swisher, not a bad lineup at all and chock full of lefty-righty combinations. And it just struck me that Swisher could play center but Nady never could….of course, then there’s Andruw Jones…but he wasn’t interested in the Yankees….haha…gotta love an old National Leaguer.

Damon had 29 stolen bases in ’08 but was caught 8 times. He played in 143 games, more than I would have guessed. Maybe he is a real leadoff hitter….at least he’s easy to talk to….

And, speaking of talking, Joe Torre sure seems to have said more than was absolutely necessary…I love hearing from indignant Yankees fans that he broke the clubhouse code….

The Mets I have talked about enough…but have I mentioned that Wright and Reyes are both first-rounders in most fantasy leagues…that says something good…but Beltran will only be a second or third-rounder….fielding doesn’t count in 99% of fantasy leagues.

The U.S. Government is showing its stupidity once again in court, trying lamely to introduce into evidence things they knew never had a shot….but it did make all the newspapers, didn’t it……hmmmm.

I’m thinking now that Bonds will walk. He admitted to using “the clear” and “the cream” and the U.S. can’t prove differently. You have to admire Anderson, his druggie trainer, who decided jail was better than testifying against his friend, or client, whatever….could make a good TV movie……

I just heard the Jets might be showing interest in Ray Lewis! He’d have to be better than Favre, wouldn’t he? It’s hard to judge a Jets defense when a QB turns the ball over so much…and I hope Pennington lights it up again next year too….M-A-R-S-H-A-L-L ..

The Giants are quiet except for losing Spagnuolo and making some noises toward bringing Plaxico back…can’t say I’d be sorry to see it….(if I’m feeling some sympathy for a guy like Bonds, you know I feel sorry for a guy who catches the winning TD against the hated Patriots in the Super Bowl and then shoots himself in the leg…..too bad it wasn’t the foot…’cause he really “shot himself in the foot”, as it were….

And I won’t have Herman Edwards to kick around anymore….that’s sad in itself…I just heard that Larry Johnson wants to leave…..don’t think the Chiefs will be crying too much about that one…..but I will miss those ridiculous play calls from Herm…

The Nets are making the best of things….getting more than their share of injuries..now Najera and Yi out but Carter and Harris have been playing hurt…and why aren’t they playing at the Prudential Center? I have no idea but I wouldn’t miss the parking fees…

It should be interesting to see who’ll wind up higher in the standings, the Knicks or the Nets. The Knicks just took a hit with their losses to the Cavs and Lakers but are still just two games behind the Nets in the win column….

And Seton Hall beat St. John’s…their second win in the Big East…of course it’s probably too much to expect 60% shooting from 3-point land most nights…Jeremy Hazell sure is lighting it up though….

Rutgers hasn’t shown much at all but it’s really a tough conference….that’s as nice as I can put it…

And somebody besides the Dodgers has expressed interest in Manny, if you can believe the news reports (or that agent of his)….only when his lips are moving….

That’s it for me this Friday. I should just go skiing. Of course, there’s the 4-hour drive, the lift ticket(s), the hotel…the drinks…the tolls, the gas….maybe I’ll just take a nice long walk. Healthy stuff.