The Politics of Baseball Fandom

Source: New York Times

What if the USA drew our state lines with America’s pastime in mind? One of my favorite maps, from the New York Times, shows allegiances to baseball teams at the county and zip code level across the United States, based on aggregated Facebook “likes.” I used this map, as well as 2012 Presidential Election results from the NYT, to investigate the cultural politics of baseball.

When determining which team took which county, I tended to use a plurality criterion- whichever team had the highest percentage took the county. Contiguous borders were an important consideration. In order to control for the possibility of incredibly small states, if a number of sparsely populated counties bucked the regional trend, they tended to be lumped in with the dominant nearby team anyway. Some areas of the country show no allegiance to geographically close teams, and defaulted to rooting for powerhouse national teams like the Yankees and Red Sox. When these contiguous areas carried enough population, they were treated as their own states.

[One huge point of contention up-front: I could not find election results at the zip code level, which occasionally caused problems in very populous counties. The most notable example of this is Cook County, Illinois, home of Chicago and its two teams, the Cubs on the Northside and the White Sox on the Southside. According to the NYT map, the slight plurality of Cook County roots for the Cubs, 40% to 38%. The Cubs and White Sox fans have relatively defined borders within the city of Chicago, America’s 3^rd largest metropolis, and with over 5 million residents, assigning Cook County is a major task. Were zip code level statistics available, I would have split the county in half between the teams. Alas, I could not. I decided to override the plurality and assign Cook County to the White Sox. I did this for several reasons. Firstly, the White Sox, though they control a significant area, would not have a populous enough fan base to warrant their own state without some percentage of Cook County. On the contrary, the Cubs are the preferred team of the general Midwest, and thus have more than enough fans to warrant statehood without Cook County. Secondly, the White Sox control more territory within the city of Chicago than the Cubs. The White Sox control the southern and western portions of the city, with the Cubs controlling the northern portion as well as the northern suburbs of the city that happen to fall within Cook County. This distribution poses the issue that Wrigley Field now falls within the boundaries of White Sox territory, an abomination to a baseball fan, but there is one positive to this whole debacle: both of Chicago’s teams are relevant. Excluding the LA Angels, who play in Anaheim, nearly as far from Dodger Stadium as Oriole Park is from Nationals Park, the other urban areas with multiple baseball teams are fully dominated by the bigger dog. The Mets and Athletics control no counties in the United States, including the county their own stadiums are based in, due to the dominance of the Yankees and Giants, respectively. So, I apologize to Chicagoland for this mess, but you can at least take solace in knowing that the Windy City stands alone when it comes to baseball fans.]

Major League Baseball consists of 30 teams, with the Toronto Blue Jays obviously lying outside of the United States. Since the Mets and A’s control no counties, there are 27 states based on baseball teams, as well as 9 states made from leftover areas of the country that did not show allegiances based on geography, for a total of 36. Given that each state needs at least one Representative, and each Representative is supposed to represent a similar number of constituents, the House of Representatives in this scenario would increase to 526 members from our current 435. The Senate would decrease from 100 members to 72 members, reflecting the decrease in the number of states. Finally, since the Nationals would now get their own state, Washington, DC would have proper Congressional representation instead of the 3 delegates to the Electoral College that they have now. In sum, the Electoral College would consist of 598 votes. In this scenario, President Obama still would have won the 2012 election, but by the much smaller margin of 313-285, compared to the actual result of 332-206.

Obviously, this exercise is flawed. Only a certain number of cities have teams, and these allegiances would change drastically if teams were created within the current territory of other clubs. What I do find interesting, however, is which areas are willing to align themselves with regional powers, and which areas instead default to rooting for national teams. These differences may indicate deeper cultural rifts. I may do this exercise with NFL and NBA teams as well, as similar maps exist for those sports, and then cross-reference against this exercise to see where these regional allegiances change.

Let’s examine the 36 redrawn states more closely, starting with the least populous and working our way up.

36. Nebraska

Population: 603,058                Electoral Votes: 3

Obama: 36.71%                      Romney: 61.53%

As currently constructed, the state of Nebraska is torn between allegiances to the Twins to the North, the Rockies to the West, the Royals to the South, and the Cubs to the East. With most of its borders now eaten away by outside teams, and with no club to call their own, the interior of Nebraska is left as America’s smallest state. Unsurprisingly, this new rural state is the 2^nd reddest in the country, with Romney crushing Obama by nearly 25% of the vote. Luckily for Nebraska, the state capital and 2^nd largest city of Lincoln remains within the territory.

Capital Suggestion: Lincoln

35. Alaska

Population: 736,732                Electoral Votes: 3

Obama: 41.27%                      Romney: 55.30%

Alaska maintains its present shape and construction. While the southeastern portion of Alaska maintains allegiance to the regional power of the Seattle Mariners, the bulk of Alaska’s territory is unorganized by county, which makes it difficult to acquire county-level election results, and thus I decided to leave Alaska unaltered.

Capital Suggestion: Juneau

34. Charlotte

Population: 1,231,107             Electoral Votes: 4

Obama: 56.22%                      Romney: 42.89%

In this scenario, Charlotte gets to breakaway from its surrounding environs. Largely due to the city’s status as a banking industry town, the Yankees dominate Mecklenburg and Union Counties in present North Carolina. Entrapped by a circular ring of Braves territory, Charlotte is nonetheless larger than 8 of our current states, and is notably liberal, with Obama besting Romney by double digits.

Capital Suggestion: Charlotte

33. Hawaii

Population: 1,419,561             Electoral Votes: 4

Obama: 70.57%                      Romney: 27.82%

Like Alaska, Hawaii remains as presently constructed, and is the bluest state in this scenario.

Capital Suggestion: Honolulu

32. New Mexico

Population: 2,634,483             Electoral Votes: 6

Obama: 57.64%                      Romney: 38.64%

New Mexico loses Colfax County to the Rockies, and several eastern counties to the Rangers, but picks up 3 counties in western Texas, most notably the populous city of El Paso, while keeping hold of Albuquerque and Santa Fe. In this scenario, New Mexico is a Democratic stronghold.

Capital Suggestion: Santa Fe

31. Marlin

Population: 3,334,622             Electoral Votes: 8

Obama: 63.87%                      Romney: 35.63%

Finally, a state with a baseball team! Consisting of Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties, this state is dominated by the hub of Miami, and is staunchly blue. With 2 international airports, glorious beaches, and a cultural beacon of Latin America, the state of Marlin would undoubtedly be a great place to visit. But, this is the least populous baseball state and the Marlins notoriously suffer from low fan commitment. Not shockingly, the people of Miami have lots of other entertainment options.

Capital Suggestion: Miami

30. Padre

Population: 3,442,522             Electoral Votes: 8

Obama: 51.86%                      Romney: 46.11%

Like Marlin, Padre has 8 electoral votes and great weather. Padre consists of the greatly populated San Diego County as well as the desert county of Imperial, which is nominally Dodger territory, but separated from the rest of that fan base by the Angels-leaning Riverside County. Padre leans blue, and is the site of the important international border with Tijuana in Mexico.

Capital Suggestion: San Diego

29. Louisiana

Population: 3,976,387             Electoral Votes: 9

Obama: 41.55%                      Romney: 56.77%

Consisting of the bulk of current Louisiana and southwestern Arkansas, this version of Louisiana rejects influences from the Cardinals, Rangers, Astros and Braves, reflecting the insular nature of the old French state. Louisiana remains deeply red.

Capital Suggestion: Baton Rouge

28. Royal

Population: 4,396,976             Electoral Votes: 9

Obama: 41.60%                      Romney: 56.34%

Royal stretches into portions of present Nebraska and Iowa, but most of the state consists of northwestern Missouri and the eastern majority of Kansas. While mostly rural and deeply red, Royal contains recognizable urban centers like Kansas City and Wichita.

Capital Suggestion: Topeka

27. Pirate

Population: 4,536,888             Electoral Votes: 10

Obama: 45.04%                      Romney: 53.53%

Based in Pittsburgh, Paris of the Appalachians, Pirate consists of the bulk of western Pennsylvania, northern West Virginia, and portions of Ohio and Maryland. Pittsburgh, the whitest metropolitan region in the country, serves as the beating heart of this solid red state.

Capital Suggestion: Pittsburgh

26. Ray

Population: 4,599,022             Electoral Votes: 10

Obama: 48.48%                      Romney: 50.46%

Ray consists of the Tampa Bay area and its exurbs. The state leans red, but could swing in other elections.

Capital Suggestion: Tampa

25. Great Basin

Population: 4,658,821             Electoral Votes: 10

Obama: 28.80%                      Romney: 68.64%

Great Basin covers a lot of territory in the western United States. Constructed from portions of Utah, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana, this is the reddest state in the country, and contains a high proportion of Mormon residents. Great Basin is the third most populous state in this scenario made from leftover territory.

Capital Suggestion: Idaho Falls

24. Indian

Population: 4,886,034             Electoral Votes: 10

Obama: 54.75%                      Romney: 43.66%

Note to Cleveland: please change your racist team name. Native peoples aren’t mascots. The state of Indian (until the name change) consists of Northeast Ohio, including Cleveland, Akron, Canton and Youngstown. The state is solidly blue.

Capital Suggestion: Cleveland

23. Oriole

Population: 5,101,028             Electoral Votes: 10

Obama: 49.70%                      Romney: 48.42%

Although present Maryland would remain solidly blue even if it were to lose the staunchly liberal DC suburb counties of Montgomery, Prince George’s and Charles, the addition of conservative portions of Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Virginia make the state of Oriole a tight swing state with a slight blue lean. Were the voter turnout to increase in Baltimore, the slight lean would likely strengthen.

Capital Suggestion: Annapolis

22. National

Population: 5,456,570             Electoral Votes: 11

Obama: 69.21%                      Romney: 29.65%

Ding ding, another dumb team name alert! (In case you couldn’t guess, I’m from Baltimore). The state of National finally provides DC with proper representation, and the DMV (DC-MD-VA for those not in the know) serves as the third most liberal state in this scenario, with Obama destroying Romney.

Capital Suggestion: Washington, DC (obviously)

21. Angel

Population: 5,474,786             Electoral Votes: 11

Obama: 46.23%                      Romney: 51.63%

The state of Angel consists of Orange and Riverside counties in present California. Containing many of the LA area’s conservatives, Angel is fairly solidly red.

Capital Suggestion: Irvine

20. Brewer

Population: 5,514,809             Electoral Votes: 11

Obama: 52.97%                      Romney: 45.93%

Present Wisconsin steals some counties in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, as well as one county in northwestern Iowa, while swapping counties with the Twins along the Minnesota border. With not much changed, Brewer is a fairly blue state.

Capital Suggestion: Madison

19. Rocky

Population: 6,514,504             Electoral Votes: 13

Obama: 47.67%                      Romney: 49.97%

While present Colorado trends blue, the addition of portions of Utah, Nebraska, Montana, Kansas, South Dakota and New Mexico turns Rocky into a red-leaning swing state. At least the liberals of Colorado can comfort themselves with skiing and for-now legal recreational pot.

Capital Suggestion: Denver

18. White Sock

Population: 6,714,710             Electoral Votes: 13

Obama: 69.79%                      Romney: 28.84%

Another team name that sounds stupid as a state. White Sock consists of Chicago (see note at the start about this point) and its southern and western suburbs like Joliet. White Sock is the 2^nd most liberal state in the country in this scenario, unsurprising given that the bulk of the population lives in a major metropolis.

Capital Suggestion: Chicago

17. Diamondback

Population: 6,731,484             Electoral Votes: 13

Obama: 44.12%                      Romney: 54.19%

Arizona remains unchanged. Way to be boring, Arizona.

Capital Suggestion: Phoenix

16. Twin

Population: 7,615,240             Electoral Votes: 15

Obama: 49.91%                      Romney: 48.06%

With portions of Nebraska, Montana, Iowa and Wisconsin, the vast majority of Minnesota and South Dakota, and all of North Dakota, Twin is an expansive swing state with a liberal lean.

Capital Suggestion: Fargo

15. Astro

Population:  7,620,426            Electoral Votes: 15

Obama: 41.57%                      Romney: 57.20%

Consisting of Houston and its surrounding environs, Astro is a Republican stronghold that definitely resents its neighboring state of Ranger.

Capital Suggestion: Houston

14. Florida

Population: 9,028,429             Electoral Votes: 19

Obama: 47.64%                      Romney: 51.50%

Made from the portions of present Florida not stripped away by Ray, Marlin and Brave, Florida in this scenario remains in the upper half of populous states. With settlements like Cape Coral, Orlando, Jacksonville and Gainesville, and most of present Florida’s beaches, this Florida leans red.

Capital Suggestion: Orlando

13. Philly

Population: 10,234,109           Electoral Votes: 19

Obama: 57.33%                      Romney: 41.47%

A name that makes perfect sense! With South Jersey, northern Delaware and southeastern Pennsylvania within its borders, Philly has glorious beaches, great farmland and strong urban centers. Dominated by the staunch liberalism of the heavily populated Philadelphia, Philly is a Democratic stronghold.

Capital Suggestion: Philadelphia (more central than Harrisburg)

12. Tiger

Population: 10,361,576           Electoral Votes: 19

Obama: 54.76%                      Romney: 44.26%

Retaining most of present Michigan and picking up northeastern Indiana and northwestern Ohio, Tiger is safely blue with the addition of Toledo.

Capital Suggestion: Lansing

11. Red

Population: 11,016,845           Electoral Votes: 20

Obama: 42.26%                      Romney: 56.03%

Fitting name. With the bottom half of Ohio, eastern Indiana, western West Virginia and the bulk of Kentucky, Red is highly populous and very Republican. Louisville, Lexington, Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus, Springfield and Charleston all fall within the state, giving Red an interesting mix of Southern, Appalachian and Midwestern culture.

Capital Suggestion: Cincinnati

10. Virginialina

Population: 11,330,699           Electoral Votes: 21

Obama: 50.28%                      Romney: 48.53%

The largest state made from leftover parts, Virginialina consists of Eastern NC, most of the NC Piedmont, Georgetown and Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, southeastern West Virginia, and the vast majority of Virginia. With much of the conservative Appalachian region ceded to the Braves, the mainly piedmont and coastal state of Virginialina would be a left-leaning swing state. With Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Durham, Raleigh, Fayetteville, Wilmington, Norfolk, Roanoke and Richmond, the state would have numerous urban areas to choose from. The state would also contain the great academic institutions of Wake Forest, Duke, UNC, NC State, Virginia Tech and UVA, making it a research powerhouse.

Capital Suggestion: The current state capitals of Richmond and Raleigh are both located fairly close to borders. Norfolk is too far from the western portions of the state. Not really any great choices. Leave it to a popular vote.

9. Mariner

Population: 11,342,679           Electoral Votes: 21

Obama: 54.88%                      Romney: 42.50%

Largely contemporaneous with the Pacific Northwest region, Mariner includes all of Washington, most of Oregon, and portions of Idaho and Montana. With the stereotypically liberal centers of Seattle and Portland, Mariner is a safely blue state.

Capital Suggestion: Could put it in Spokane for centrality purposes, but it should probably be halfway between Seattle and Portland.

8. Red Sock

Population: 11,424,971           Electoral Votes: 21

Obama: 59.37%                      Romney: 38.83%

The Munson-Nixon line is in full effect. The Red Sox and Yankees battle over Connecticut, and wage minor conflicts to steal territory from each other in Vermont and Upstate New York. This state is contemporaneous with New England, minus Hartford and southwest Connecticut (which is just north New York City anyway). Red Sock, as expected, is staunchly liberal.

Capital Suggestion: Boston

7. Cardinal

Population: 12,576,376           Electoral Votes: 23

Obama: 42.23%                      Romney: 55.86%

As Deadspin frequently points out, Cardinals fans are the worst- the NL version of the Yankees, but with even more self-seriousness about the “sanctity of the game.” This coming from a franchise known for having Mark McGwire. Anyway, it turns out that Arkansas, Oklahoma, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi are pretty conservative places, and Cardinal is a Republican stronghold accordingly.

Capital Suggestion: St. Louis

6. Cub

Population: 13,519,577           Electoral Votes: 24

Obama: 48.43%                      Romney: 49.90%

The Cardinals’ arch rival, the Cubs, control more populous territory. However, without Chicago (again, see the beginning for this explanation), Cubs nation is a right-leaning swing state comprised of parts of Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Iowa, and Nebraska.

Capital Suggestion: Davenport

5. Giant

Population: 16,308,081           Electoral Votes: 29

Obama: 61.01%                      Romney: 36.39%

Southern Oregon, Northern California and Western Nevada make up Giant, a largely populated state anchored by San Francisco and the Bay region. Given this area’s notoriety for liberalism, it should come as no surprise that Giant is staunchly Democratic.

Capital Suggestion: Sacramento

4. Dodger

Population: 16,800,215           Electoral Votes: 30

Obama: 61.42%                      Romney: 36.32%

Dodger controls the most populous portions of southern California, and is slightly bigger and more liberal than its northern neighbor, Giant. It might come as a surprise that this LA-centric state is more liberal than San Francisco’s state, but with Giant taking on the conservative Central Valley, and the red regions of western Nevada and southern Oregon, and with Dodger ceding the conservative area of Orange County while picking up the liberal Las Vegas, Dodger comes out the liberal victor.

Capital Suggestion: Los Angeles

3. Ranger

Population: 22,383,906           Electoral Votes: 39

Obama: 39.35%                      Romney: 59.33%

I haven’t run the land area numbers, but Ranger likely has the most expansive territory aside from Alaska. With the vast majority of Texas, most of Oklahoma, and portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Kansas, Ranger is the reimagined version of Texas. Despite the efforts of Austin, this state is predictably a Republican stronghold. Note: I gave Yankee-supporting portions of Oklahoma to Ranger for geographical simplicity.

Capital Suggestion: Dallas

2. Yankee

Population: 30,617,019           Electoral Votes: 53

Obama: 61.11%                      Romney: 37.65%

Shocker! America’s most popular and most hated team doesn’t come out on top in this scenario, entirely due to the need for contiguous borders. Nearly all of New York, northern New Jersey, northern Pennsylvania, southwestern Connecticut and one county in Vermont make up the state of Yankee. Despite the conservatism of the rural areas of this state, New York City still dominates the political landscape, and Yankee is staunchly Democratic.

Capital Suggestion: Albany

1. Brave

Population: 32,326,697           Electoral Votes: 56

Obama: 40.81%                      Romney: 57.98%

Note: another racist name. Please change. Atlanta’s team seems to serve as a lightning rod for shared southern identity. The Braves are truly a regional powerhouse, and the state of Brave contains all of Georgia and Alabama, most of Mississippi and South Carolina, large chunks of Tennessee and North Carolina, small parts of Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Louisiana, as well as the Florida panhandle. Roughly halfway between the populations of present California and Texas, Brave is strong Republican territory, unsurprising for the Bible Belt.

Capital Suggestion: Atlanta

 

Which NBA Players Own Their Uniform Numbers?

Mitchell And Ness recently put out a graphic of the best players by uniform number in NBA history. I take issue with many choices.

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/heres-70-years-of-basketball-history-in-one-graphic/

These selections are kind of junky. I think naming the best player to ever wear a number is far less interesting than naming the players who most own these numbers. In some instances, they yield the same result. In others, they are very different. To truly own a number, I think you have to wear it for at least 3 seasons. In cases where nobody held the number for more than 3 years, I chose the player who excelled the most.

Number           Their Choice                My Choice

00                    Robert Parish              Robert Parish

0                      Russell Westbrook      Gilbert Arenas

Russ will undeniably take over this jersey position within the next 2 seasons, and has played better than Arenas did and for longer, but Gilbert’s nickname was Agent Zero, which buys him a few extra seasons of ownership (and my heart as a Wizards homer).

1                      Oscar Robertson         Tracy McGrady

Oscar only wore #1 after coming to the Bucks, for whom he played very well, but not his best. Tiny Archibald wore several different numbers, but would be the 3^rd choice. T-Mac wore #1 for 14 years and should walk right into the Hall of Fame in a few years.

2                      Moses Malone             Alex English

Moses wore 8 different numbers during his playing career, so I feel that he can’t own #2. Mitch Richmond could give English a run for his money due to his time wearing #2 on the Kings, but his Twitter handle includes the other number he wore (23), so The Blade holds this one.

3                      Allen Iverson              Allen Iverson

Look, I admit, DWade is the better player; he’s one of the 5 best shooting guards ever and has 3 rings. However, Iverson was an 11-time All Star, and his early 2000s black Sixers jersey is FAR more iconic than Wade’s Heat jersey.

4                      Dolph Schayes            Dolph Schayes

Props to Adrian Dantley and Joe Dumars.

5                      Kevin Garnett             Jason Kidd

KG played for the Celtics for 5 years, but Kidd wore #5 for over a decade, and his Nets jersey is iconic.

6                      Bill Russell                  Bill Russell

Sixers era Dr. J needs a salute here, but Bill Russell is either the 2^nd or 3^rd greatest player ever.

7                      Pete Maravich             Kevin Johnson

Nobody thinks #7 when they hear “Pistol Pete,” they rightfully think #44. Tiny and Melo have worn #7 proudly, but KJ owns it.

8                      Kobe Bryant               Kobe Bryant

Legend needing runner-up recognition: Walt Bellamy.

9                      Bob Pettit                    Bob Pettit

10                    Walt Frazier                Walt Frazier

Others: Jo Jo White; Louie Dampier.

11                    Karl Malone                Isiah Thomas

Choosing Lakers Malone here is absurdly terrible. There is a plethora of better options for this number- Elvin Hayes, Paul Arizin and Bob McAdoo to name a few. But let’s be real, Zeke is the leader of this club.

12                    John Stockton             John Stockton

Others: George Yardley; Dwight Howard.

13                    Wilt Chamberlain        Wilt Chamberlain

Shouts to Steve Nash.

14                    Oscar Robertson         ?

This is a cop out, but I just can’t choose between Oscar and Houdini. Bob Cousy wore #14 for 13 years, leading the league in assists for 8 of those consecutively, while averaging 19-8-5 and guiding his teams to 6 titles. Oscar wore the number for 10 years, leading the league in assists in 7 and scoring in one, while averaging a superhuman 29-10-9 stat line. I feel influenced to give the nod to Cooz because he wore the number longer and his teams were far more successful, but how do you argue with those Big O numbers?

15                    Hal Greer                    Hal Greer

This number has a long list of qualified entrants: Carmelo Anthony, Dirk McGuire, Earl Monroe, Tommy Heinsohn, Vince Carter. Greer, a somewhat forgotten Hall of Famer, wore #15 for his whole (auspiciously 15 year-long) career, making 10 straight All-Star appearances in the process.

16                    Bob Lanier                  Bob Lanier

Jerry Lucas wore #16 for the first 6 seasons of his career, making the All-Star team every year while averaging a gaudy 20 and 19. Pau Gasol has worn #16 for the entirety of his 14 year career, making 5 All-Star rosters, while averaging 18-9 and winning 2 titles. Bob Lanier, a forgotten superstar of the 70s, averaged a career 20-10 double-double with 8 All-Star seasons.

17                    John Havlicek             John Havlicek

Chris Mullin deserves recognition, but this number belongs to Hondo.

18                    Dave Cowens              Dave Cowens

Runner-up: Bailey Howell.

19                    Willis Reed                 Willis Reed

The Captain beats outs 6 time All-Star Vern Mikkelson.

20                    Gary Payton                Gary Payton

21                    Tim Duncan                Tim Duncan

Long list of other legends: Kevin Garnett; Dominique Wilkins; Bill Sharman; Dave Bing.

22                    Elgin Baylor                Elgin Baylor

Tough draw for Clyde the Glide Drexler, who would own most other numbers, as well as Dave DeBusschere.

23                    Michael Jordan            Michael Jordan

Lebron will NEVER own 23.

24                    Rick Barry                   Rick Barry

Others: 2^nd half Kobe; Sam Jones.

25                    Vince Carter                Chet Walker

VC is much better known for wearing #15. Chet Walker had 7 All-Star seasons and won a ring as the starting SF for the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers, considered by some to be the greatest team in NBA history. Legends Gus Johnson and Gail Goodrich deserve recognition as well.

26                    Unknown                    Kyle Korver

I honestly can’t decipher whose jersey that is supposed to be, but it should be Korver’s. While not an NBA legend by any stretch, he is easily the most notable player who has worn it for the appropriate length of time.

27                    Jack Twyman              Jack Twyman

Runner-up: Joe Caldwell.

28                    Sam Cassell                 Andrew Lang

I love Sam Cassell. Baltimore ride or die. But Andrew Lang wore this number for the length of his (admittedly mediocre) career.

29                    Marcus Camby            Paul Silas

Marcus Camby? Are we talking about college??

30                    Bernard King              Bernard King

George McGinnis is a very strong runner-up, and half of Sheed’s career should be mentioned, but Bernard was a freak.

31                    Reggie Miller              Reggie Miller

Runner-up: Matrix.

32                    Magic Johnson            Magic Johnson

Oh boy. *cracks knuckles in preparation to type out the list of runner-ups*: Billy Cunningham, Shaq, Karl Malone, Jerry Lucas, Kevin McHale, Bill Walton. This team would kill everybody.

33                    Kareem                        Kareem

BIRD PEOPLE HOLD YOUR TONGUE. Kareem has 6 rings, 3 college titles, 6 MVPs, 3 college player of the year awards, 19 All-Star selections, the NBA scoring record and the only signature move that matters. Others: Bird, Ewing, Mourning, Pippen and Thompson.

34                    Hakeem Olajuwon      Hakeem Olajuwon

Notable runners-up: Shaq, Ray Allen, Charles Barkley, Paul Pierce, Mel Daniels.

35                    Kevin Durant              Kevin Durant

36                    Rasheed Wallace         Rasheed Wallace

Carolina, priceless gem, receive all praises thine.

37                    Ron Artest                  Ron Artest

Criteria not met.

38                    Kwame Brown            Vitor Khryapa

Kwame Brown must never be mentioned again in my Wizards-loving presence.

39                    Greg Ostertag             Zeljko Rebraca

40                    Shawn Kemp              Shawn Kemp

Runner-up: Bill Laimbeer.

41                    Dirk Nowitzki             Dirk Nowitzki

I feel like a traitor to my state for not choosing Wes Unseld, who is criminally underappreciated, but Dirk wins.

42                    Nate Thurmond           James Worthy

Nate Thurmond is an undeniable legend. Worthy and Thurmond tie for AS selections with 7, and Thurmond’s numbers are gaudy (15-15), but Big Game James has 3 titles plus a college championship, and his #42 Lakers jersey is far more iconic. Connie Hawkins also needs to be mentioned.

43                    Jack Sikma                  Jack Sikma

Runner-up: Brad Daugherty.

44                    Jerry West                   Jerry West

He’s the Logo for a reason. The Iceman George Gervin, like the Glide at #22, is getting shafted here. Pistol Pete and Dan Issel are also in the conversation.

45                    Michael Jordan            Rudy Tomjanovich

The only time Rudy Tomjanovich (17-8 with 5 AS) will ever beat Michael Jordan.

46                    Bo Outlaw                  Dennis Bell

47                    Jerry Lucas                  Andrei Kirilenko

Lucas only wore the number for 1 year. Shout out to the early 2000s “Will Kirilenko be a star?” debate.

48                    Nazr Mohammed        Nazr Mohammed

49                    Shandon Anderson     Shandon Anderson

50                    David Robinson          David Robinson

Runner-ups: Ralph Sampson, Zach Randolph.

51                    Meta World Peace      Reggie King

52                    Jamaal Wilkes             Jamaal Wilkes

Runner-up: Buck Williams (go Terps).

53                    Artis Gilmore              Artis Gilmore

54                    Horace Grant              Horace Grant

55                    Dikembe Mutombo     Dikembe Mutombo

Runner-up: Kiki Vandeweghe.

56                    Francisco Elson           Francisco Elson

57                    Hilton Armstrong        Hilton Armstrong

Criteria not met.

60                    ?                                  Walt Kirk

61                    ?                                  Bevo Nordmann

62                    Scot Pollard                Scot Pollard

65                    George Ratkovicz       George Ratkovicz

66                    Scot Pollard                Price Brookfield

67                    ?                                  Moe Becker

Criteria not met.

68                    ?                                  Milt Schoon

Criteria not met.

70                    Dennis Rodman          Chuck Share

Criteria not met.

71                    Willie Naulls               Willie Naulls

Criteria not met.

72                    Jason Kapono              Jason Kapono

Criteria not met.

73                    Dennis Rodman          Dennis Rodman

Criteria not met.

76                    Shawn Bradley           Shawn Bradley

77                    Vlad Radmanovich     Gheorghe Muresan

83                    Craig Smith                 Craig Smith

Criteria not met.

84                    Chris Webber              Chris Webber

Criteria not met.

85                    Baron Davis                Baron Davis

Criteria not met.

86                    Chris Johnson              Semih Erden

Criteria not met.

88                    Nic Batum                   Nic Batum

89                    ?                                  Clyde Lovellette

90                    Drew Gooden             Drew Gooden

91                    Dennis Rodman          Dennis Rodman

92                    DeShawn Stevenson   DeShawn Stevenson

93                    Ron Artest                  Ron Artest

94                    Evan Fournier             Evan Fournier

Criteria not met.

96                    Ron Artest                  Ron Artest

Criteria not met.

98                    Jason Collins               Jason Collins

Criteria not met.

99                    George Mikan             George Mikan

The Best Team Names in the NBA

It’s the NBA off-season and college basketball hasn’t started yet, so I need to get my fix. Last year, Zach Lowe from Grantland posted an article detailing his personal list of the best team names in the NBA. Needless to say, our choices vary greatly. Here’s mine, in descending order:

30. Miami Heat

I get it… because it’s hot in Miami…

29. New Orleans Pelicans

Pelicans look like cartoon birds drawn by artists tripping on acid. I’m not afraid of “The Pelicans,” the name sounds like a very poor joke.

28. Phoenix Suns

I get it again… because it’s hot in Phoenix…

27. Orlando Magic

Boooooooo corporate advertising. We all know Disney World is in Orlando, but this team name is incredibly lame. In fairness to the Magic, I tried to come up with an alternate name, but the only feature of Orlando culture I could think of was Disney World. Perhaps Orlando shouldn’t have a team…

26. Brooklyn Nets

The net is literally the object that hangs beneath the rim. This name is synonymous with calling a baseball team “The Birmingham Base Chalk.” Brooklyn is one of the coolest places on Earth, which makes the terribleness of this name even worse.

25. Philadelphia 76ers

Look, I think it’s great that Philadelphia is proud of its history regarding the founding of the United States, but 1776 isn’t the proper subject for a team name. Philadelphia has terrible sports names in general (I’m looking at you, Philadelphia Phillies), but this one is particularly lazy. Just rename the team “The Philadelphia Freedom,” the colors could even remain the same.

24. Cleveland Cavaliers

The last time I checked, the city of Cleveland had absolutely nothing to do with the English Civil War, Charles I or lavish dress. Ironically, Cleveland was cavalier about this naming decision. I have no idea what to choose as an alternative, because I know next-to-nothing about Cleveland, Ohio, other than what I learned from years of watching The Drew Carey Show. I will say, however, that Cleveland has awful sports team names in general, including the horribly offensive “Indians” and the confusing “Browns.”

23. Indiana Pacers

Full disclosure: my impressions of Indiana may or may not be completely based on the television show Parks and Recreation. Also, as a native of Maryland, I find it offensive that Indianapolis claims the nickname “Naptown,” which should only be applied to our state’s beautiful capital, Annapolis. That being said, I suppose I will give Indiana an A for effort and a D for results. “Pacers” is an obvious allusion to the Indianapolis 500, and the notion of speed crafted by the name is appealing for basketball purposes, but “pacer” makes me think of “pacemaker,” a bad omen for the 11^th most obese state in America.

22. Portland Trail Blazers

“Trail Blazers” fits with the city of Portland, but it just doesn’t sound pleasant. “Portland Trail Blazers” has a clunky rhythm. I have no idea for a replacement name, because Portland is too strange of a place to pencil down in one word.

21. Denver Nuggets

This is an obvious Gold Rush allusion, but I don’t find it compelling. A “nugget” is a nondescript item. Denver has great team names apart from this slug, particularly the Colorado Avalanche of the NHL. I think the team should take advantage of the huge presence of the nearby US Air Force and change the name to the Colorado Reapers.

20. Golden State Warriors

This is as generic as a sports team name can be. I wholeheartedly urge Steve Kerr to lobby to change the name of this team to the San Francisco Fog, which is relevant, menacing, and supremely cool. The team could even have fog emanating from the stands during warm-ups! What a missed opportunity.

19. Los Angeles Clippers

This team name made a lot of sense when the team was based in San Diego, a city actually built on the water that houses clipper boats. Los Angeles, on the other hand, is landlocked. You do the math.

18. Los Angeles Lakers

This team name made a lot of sense when the team was based in Minneapolis, a city actually built near a ton of lakes. Los Angeles, on the other hand, doesn’t even have its own water supply. Womp womp.

17. Oklahoma City Thunder

If the team is to keep “Thunder” as the name, they should drop “City” and simply be “The Oklahoma Thunder,” which sounds immensely better than the current state. I, however, think the team should be “The Oklahoma Outlaws” instead, which is much more relevant to my conception of Oklahoma.

16. Utah Jazz

This is another misnomer only because of relocation. This team used to be based in New Orleans, and is easily the best of the one word non-pluralized names. The New Orleans Jazz is a badass name, but Utah is probably the least “jazzy” place in America, and so the Jazz must stay in the bottom half of NBA team names.

15. Toronto Raptors

I actually enjoy this name, but the focus is on the wrong animal. The name appears to be an allusion to velociraptors, but I prefer to think of it as a reference to raptors, a family of birds that includes falcons, hawks, eagles and buzzards. “Raptor” quite literally means “seizer,” which is fantastic. Keep the name, change the mascot.

14. Sacramento Kings

This name is generic, boring and does not relate to northern California in any way to my knowledge, but it is also inoffensive. Middle-of-the-pack to the extreme.

13. Washington Wizards

As a Baltimore homer, I have to say that I think the Baltimore Bullets is probably the best team name in NBA history. That name lost most of its luster when the team moved to neighboring (and worse) Washington, D.C. “The Washington Bullets” lacks the wonderful alliteration that made the original name ideal. Picking up on the alliteration, the team changed the name to “The Washington Wizards” in the late 90s. As a fan of the Wizards, I have a soft spot for the name, but it has nothing to do with the regional identity of Mid-Atlantic residents or the city of Washington. I think the team should be called “The Washington Monuments,” and the logo could be an anthropomorphic Washington Monument with arms palming a basketball in each hand. Tell me that wouldn’t be amazing.

12. Atlanta Hawks

Hawks are fantastic animals, but to my knowledge, hawks have no specific relevance to the city of Atlanta.

11. Memphis Grizzlies

“Grizzlies” is actually my favorite name in the NBA, but the team is kept out of the top 10 due to relocation. At origin, the team was based in Vancouver, British Columbia, a territory known for the presence of grizzly bears. Memphis, predictably, has no grizzly bears.

10. Milwaukee Bucks

There is something about “Milwaukee Bucks” that makes the phrase very fun to say. Bucks are also great animals, and the giant, lifeless deer head that the team uses for a logo is scary.

9.  Minnesota Timberwolves

“Minnesota Timberwolves” rolls off the tongue. With a 4-syllable locale, the team was somewhat limited in the names it could choose, and this one is perfect. The timber wolf is a majestic creature that has specific ties to Minnesota, and Crunch the Wolf is probably the best mascot in the NBA.

8.  Dallas Mavericks

The first word that comes to mind when I think of Dallas is “Maverick.” “Maverick” is a byword for a stubborn pioneer and it was the title of a classic television show set in Texas. The color scheme also works perfectly with the horse mascot, and the name perfectly suits owner Mark Cuban.

7.  San Antonio Spurs

Quick, picture San Antonio. Did you think of tumbleweeds and cowboy boots? Me too. That’s why “The Spurs” is a perfect name for San Antonio.

6.  Charlotte Hornets

Charlotte is nicknamed both “The Queen City” and “The Hornets’ Nest,” which makes “Hornets” the perfect name for this team. The honeycomb pattern on the hardwood floor of the arena is interminably awesome.

5.  Boston Celtics

It’s hard to argue with the classics. “Boston Celtics” has a perfect cadence and the name matches perfectly with the Irish heritage of the city. The color scheme is probably the most appealing in the entire league, and Lucky the Leprechaun is one of the best mascots in all of professional sports.

4.  Houston Rockets

A reference to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, “Rockets” is a perfect name for an NBA team and lends itself to numerous “lift off” based puns.

3.  Chicago Bulls

Easily the best logo in the NBA, the bull is a menacing creature that strikes fear into the hearts of many. Chicago has a long history of meatpacking, so the name has regional cache. Everything works.

2.  New York Knicks

A shortening of “knickerbocker,” a type of pant commonly worn by the Dutch settlers of 17^th century New York, the name has little actual meaning or relevance today, but it sounds lively and fun. “New York Knicks” has the best rhythm of any NBA team name and it suits the city of New York immensely well.

1.  Detroit Pistons

The best name in the NBA. Basketball is a team sport that requires all of its parts to work together like a car engine, so it makes great sense that the Motor City would call its team “The Pistons.” The rhythm works, the color scheme is fantastic and the imagery works wonders. Kudos, Detroit, you’ve done something right for once.

Check back soon for a list of the best and worst team logos in the NBA. I get bored a lot.

Michael Jordan Gave Me Hope

When I was 8 years old, the Washington Wizards were a joke.

The year was 2001 and the Wizards were coming off a 19-63 season, the second worst in the Eastern Conference beating only the disheveled post-glory Chicago Bulls. The franchise had recently orchestrated a series of catastrophically awful roster maneuvers, highlighted by the 1998 trade that sent deserving future Hall-of-Famer Chris Webber to the Kings in exchange for recent inductee Mitch “The Rock” Ritchmond (who suddenly forgot how to shoot) and Otis Thorpe, a 36 year old one-time All-Star for the Rockets whose respectable career will forever be overshadowed by being one of the ten men selected between Charles Barkley and John Stockton in the 1984 NBA Draft.

As a virtue of the failure the trade had brought, the Wizards acquired the number one overall pick in the 2001 Draft, having the prime selection from among an unusually talented field. The draft pool included perennial All-Stars like Tyson Chandler, Pau Gasol, Joe Johnson, Zach Randolph, Tony Parker and future Wizards legend Gilbert Arenas, as well as a long list of successful starters and role players such as Jason Richardson, Shane Battier, Richard Jefferson, Gerald Wallace and Jamaal Tinsley.

Abandoning all foresight, the Wizards gambled on a 6’11” High School Senior out of Georgia named Kwame Brown. Now considered by all to be among the worst number one overall picks of all-time, Brown showed great potential up to which he would never live, averaging only 10.9 points a game in his best season.

But none of these management disasters mattered to me when I was 8. I loved the Wizards unconditionally, with the kind of passion only childhood innocence could facilitate. And when I was 8, Michael Jordan came out of retirement.

Jordan was an enigma for me; I was too young to remember watching him play on television with the Bulls. I knew of his greatness only second-hand, through SportsCenter highlights, Nike commercials and suburban legends. Jordan may as well have been Odysseus for all I knew.

Growing up in the immediate suburbs of Baltimore just 40 minutes north of Washington, I had no dearth of sports heroes. As every young child in Baltimore during the 90s, I idolized Cal Ripken. I was in the stands as a 2 year old the weekend the Iron Man broke the unbreakable record and as an 8 year old the weekend he hung up his cleats for good. I remember crying when he hit a home run in the 2001 All-Star game and being unable to even speak when I met him unexpectedly in a burger joint in high school.  Countering the Orioles’ awful play during my youth, the Baltimore Ravens had just won the Super Bowl in February of 2001, led by the fearsome linebacker combination of Ray Lewis and Peter Boulware, two players I also admired.

However, while baseball and football were the territory of Baltimore, basketball was relegated to Washington, with the Wizards (then the Bullets) having left our city for the District in 1973. The Wizards were awful, but I knew the team inside and out and I loved every player, being too young to realize that Tyronn Lue and Christian Laettner were anything less than heroes. As much as I loved the Wizards, I found it hard to root for a team that had no transcendent star and never made the playoffs. All of that changed when His Airness, malcontent with playing golf 7 days a week, decided to sell his ownership stake in the Wizards and string up his laces once again.

At the time, Jordan was inexplicably ridiculed by members of the mainstream media, who were terrified that MJ would ruin his seemingly untouchable legacy by playing for the losing Wizards. One of his few defenders at the time, Bill Simmons, has even now changed his opinion on the matter, lamenting Jordan’s injury-plagued return as a fall from grace on his podcast and in his (highly recommended) epic The Book of Basketball. People reacted as if Jordan’s second return was like Brando following his Oscar nom for A Dry White Season with Christopher Columbus: The Discovery. I didn’t care about the talking heads; I wanted to see Air for myself. Imagine if John Lennon and George Harrison simultaneously rose from the dead and announced that they were reforming the Beatles for a final concert at your birthday party; that’s how big of a deal this was to me- and not just because I loved the Wizards.

Just weeks before Jordan announced his decision, I awoke on what seemed to be a normal school day. At my elementary school, we had a fixed schedule of daily classes and one rotational class; we had gym twice a week and split the remaining three days between art, chorus and library studies. During third grade, I had my rotation class first thing in the morning. It was Tuesday and Tuesday meant chorus.

At the end of our singing lesson, we were walked back to our home classroom. When we walked through the door, we found our teacher crying hysterically at her desk. She wouldn’t tell us what was wrong.

Slowly but steadily, the office began calling names over the intercom for early dismissal. After four or five names were called intermittently, we all began to perk up; even in third grade we knew that five early dismissals couldn’t be a fluke and that all of our names would eventually be called. We were positively giddy, as all children are when they get to go home early. We didn’t piece together that our dismissals and our teacher’s tears were connected.

When my name was finally called, I packed my things and walked to the lobby, where I found my father and grandfather waiting for me with my little brother (a first grader). As we walked out of the school doors under a long metal awning, I asked my dad why everybody was getting out early. In turn, he asked me if I knew what the World Trade Center buildings in New York were. I was a very nerdy child obsessed with trivial statistics, so I was thrilled to show off my knowledge that they were the second and third tallest buildings in the country. Instead of rewarding my knowledge, my father coldly informed me that planes had struck the towers and that nobody was really sure what was happening.

I was terrified. Children lack all semblance of emotional nuance, ranging from joyous to petrified with not much in between. News stories began developing that the crashes were no accidents- we were informed that we were under attack and that we were unsure if the bombardment would continue. The northeast corridor from Washington to Boston was placed on virtual lockdown; an errant plane had struck the Pentagon and another, presumably headed for the White House, had crash landed in Pennsylvania. Having already struck New York and Washington, officials feared that the invisible enemy would target the World Trade Center in Baltimore, a towering beacon of our skyline that sits directly in front of the Inner Harbor as the world’s largest regular pentagonal building.

Everybody stayed at home for the rest of the week: confused, scared, grieving. Eventually my mother, who to this day works only 2 blocks north of the Harbor, had to return to her job. We had an old cushion chair in the living room of our brick row house in Dundalk, a border suburb of the city. I remember sitting in that chair the morning my mother left for work, staring out the window. I stayed there until she came home safely that evening.

Jordan’s announcement came shortly thereafter in my mind. In his return, MJ promised to donate the entirety of his modest $1 Million salary to the victims of the attacks. I don’t know what caused Michael to return. He could have simply missed playing competitive basketball, or he could have felt that it was his duty to distract the rest of us from our fears, or he could have been so scared himself that he needed to return to his security blanket on the court. Frankly, the reasoning did not and does not particularly matter to me. All I cared about was that he came back.

Later in the fall, after I returned to school and tried to regain some sense of normalcy, my father pulled me aside midweek and told me that a family friend had scored tickets to see the Wizards play in Washington. Friday night came and I could hardly contain my excitement. The 45 minute car ride seemed an eternity to the 8 year old in the backseat. We parked and began walking toward Chinatown. The lines to get into the MCI Center seemed to fuse into one enormous blob of patrons; as with every home game Jordan played with the Wizards, this night’s event was sold out. We had nosebleed seats just far enough toward midcourt that we had a perfect line of sight to the free throw line. The players looked like ants from this height, but Michael Jordan would be visible on the Isle of Man from the pier at Blackpool.

I don’t remember who we played. I don’t remember how many points Jordan scored. I only remember that the Wizards lost the game and I was devastated. I left the stadium feeling completely defeated, but I eventually realized that the only way to be crippled by a loss is to first expect a win, a feeling I had never experienced with the Wizards before.

One day, my grandchildren will ask me what life was like in the aftermath of 9/11, the same way that I asked my grandfather about the Great Depression. I look forward to telling them that for just a few hours during the most terrifying period of my life, I witnessed the greatest basketball player to ever live give me hope for something better. Thanks, MJ.

 

Roger Goodell Must Resign As NFL Commissioner

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has plagued the league for far too long. Seemingly at every turn, Goodell has made bumbling mistake after bumbling mistake. This statement is less controversial than you may think; take for instance this 2012 Op-Ed published by the New York Times that calls for Goodell to resign over something as retrospectively silly as the league’s mishandling of contract negotiations with referees. Let’s recap:

Goodell publicly defends the viscerally racist nickname of the Washington professional football team, absurdly claiming that 90% of Native Americans support the name “Redskins.” Goodell holds this opinion despite only 0.6% of Washington, D.C. residents identifying as Native American and despite ducking the question of whether he would call a Native American a “redskin” to their face.

Goodell failed to punish wide receiver Riley Cooper for his violent use of the worst racial slur in our country’s history while in the audience of a Kenny Chesney concert. To quote Mr. Cooper, “I will jump that fence and fight every nigger here.”

Goodell has inadequately responded to serious medical claims regarding the prevalence and long-term health effects of concussions suffered by NFL players. With the recent suicide of Junior Seau and murder-suicide of Javon Belcher, both believed to be caused by chronic traumatic encephalopathy, as well as the $765 Million lawsuit from former players for concussion damages, the league has been caught with its pants down and has failed to make any meaningful change to the violent culture of football.

Goodell has continually delayed his submission of a still unseen punishment in the case of Colts owner Jim Irsay, who was arrested in March for driving under the influence of an unknown substance. Police recovered $29,029 and laundry bags filled with prescription pill bottles from his car at the scene.

Goodell has shown remarkable insensitivity to the moral agency of his players, suspending wide receiver Josh Gordon a full 16 game season for smoking marijuana. Even with Gordon being a drug recidivist, Goodell needs to explain how exactly NFL players can be suspended 16 games for smoking marijuana, 6 games for allegedly raping a woman in a bathroom stall and only 2 games for battering his fiancé in a hotel elevator. Mr. Goodell’s shocking disregard for the safety of his league’s female fans, essentially claiming a victimless crime to be an equal or greater offence than physical molestation, is emblematic of the patriarchy that still stains both the sports world and society as a whole.

In a society rapidly becoming more demographically balanced, Roger Goodell represents stagnant rich white male privilege. Goodell has routinely shown a tendency toward racial ignorance and wanton, callous disrespect for the welfare of his fans and players. This behavior is not only unbefitting of the commissioner of America’s most popular sports league, but of any member of our civilization. For the sake of the National Football League and the general public, Roger Goodell must resign his post as commissioner before he allows another preventable tragedy to befall us.

 

The Hypocrisy of the Baseball Hall of Fame

Over the weekend, the Baseball Writers Association of America officially inducted the Class of 2014 into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The BBWA selected three players for induction, all in their first year of eligibility: Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas. Maddux and Glavine, long-time tag team starters for the highly successful 1990’s Atlanta Braves, both surpassed 300 career wins, a metric that for decades has signified instant enshrinement. Thomas, the power-hitting first basemen for the Chicago White Sox, fulfilled a similar checklist required by surpassing 500 career home runs. Well… that is… these numbers used to mean automatic bids.

You see, 26 players in Major League history have hit more than 500 home runs, while only 16 of those 26 have been inducted into the Hall. In fairness, 3 of these players are technically active (Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and Albert Pujols) and thus will not be eligible for induction for years to come. Additionally, 3 of the 26 are retired, but have yet to wait the 5 years required for eligibility: Gary Sheffield (2015), Ken Griffey Jr. (2016) and Jim Thome (2018). In sum, this means that only 4 of the 20 eligible candidates with more than 500 home runs have not been inducted. It is no surprise, then, that these 4 players have been confirmed to have used or have at one point been highly suspected of using performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs henceforth), a polite term for the dreaded scourge of “steroids.” In order to be inducted, a player must receive 75% of the vote from the ballots cast by the BBWA. This year, 571 ballots were cast, meaning that 429 votes were needed at minimum to be enshrined. The breakdown of votes received by the 4 infamous batters of whom I speak:

Barry Bonds                198                  34.7%              2^nd year on ballot

Mark McGwire              63                   11%                 8^th year on ballot

Sammy Sosa               41                   7.2%                2^nd year on ballot

Rafael Palmeiro           25                   4.4%                4^th year on ballot

In addition to these four batters, legendary starting pitcher Roger Clemens, a probable unanimous pick were it not for steroids, received 202 votes (35.4%) in his 2^nd year on the ballot.

Due to the great number of other sources and regurgitated argument, I will spend little time delineating the various reasons why it is a travesty that these players will likely never be inducted. Rafael Palmeiro, one of only 4 players in MLB history with over 500 home runs and 3000 hits (another former lock metric), will not be included on the ballot ever again after receiving less than 5% of the vote this year. Major League Baseball has now instituted a system wherein the all-time leaders in home runs (Barry Bonds) AND hits (Pete Rose) are not considered Hall of Famers. Players have been cheating since inception: spitballs, scuffing, corked bats, drug use. Tim Raines, who ranks 5^th all-time in stolen bases, had a coke habit that could kill a small village. Does Major League Baseball seriously think that snorting cocaine between innings DIDN’T give Tim Raines a speed boost on the base paths? Give me a break. No one is seriously considering putting an asterisk next his 808 thefts.

What interests me more is the hypocrisy of the voting process. In addition to the 3 players inducted this past weekend, the Veterans Committee inducted 3 top-notch managers into the Hall of Fame: Joe Torre, Tony La Russa and Bobby Cox. All 3 of these managers were wildly successful during the steroid era. All 3 of these managers put confirmed or heavily suspected steroid users in their starting lineups. When Tony La Russa won 3 pennants with the Oakland Athletics between 1988 and 1990, his 2 star batters, Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco, admitted to being juiced out of their minds. In his two decade-long second stint as Braves manager, Bobby Cox won 1883 games, 5 pennants and a World Series title. His rosters also included heavily suspected steroid users Javy Lopez, Ryan Klesko, David Justice, Gary Sheffield, Mike Stanton and Kent Mercker. Joe Torre won 4 titles and 6 pennants in a 12 year stretch with the New York Yankees. He also fielded Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Ruben Sierra, Gary Sheffield, Jose Contreras and Jason Giambi.

Isn’t one of the arguments against enshrining “roiders” that we just can’t tell how great they would have been without the juice? This is the case against Sosa and McGwire and Manny Ramirez and numerous other legends. Why, then, doesn’t the same criticism extend to the men who managed these players and capitalized on their indiscretions? This problem seems emblematic of a greater cultural issue in the United States: the excessive willingness to demonize the transgressions of lower-level employees while rewarding the executives that either turn a blind eye or actively attempt to cover up violations. Baseball should either wipe the slate clean between 1985 and 2005 (a stupid idea) or properly allow the best personnel into the Hall of Fame, but whatever the powers that be decide to do needs to be done with consistency.

What if NBA Players Were Beholden to Regional Teams?

With LeBron James leaving the Miami Heat for his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers, I began to think about the concept of true hometown teams. The premise of this exercise is to extend the fantasy draft concept to regional allegiances. Each NBA team is only given players whom have an affiliation with the region the teams play in. This concept usually only includes players tied to the state, but in cases where metropolitan regions cross borders, as with Charlotte, Atlanta and Memphis, players are taken from outside the home state of the team. Allegiance has to be substantial. For instance, Oak Hill Academy would wildly inflate the talent base of the Wizards. Therefore, only home high schools and childhood hometowns are considered. In this exercise, the Lakers receive players from the traditional Los Angeles proper, while the Clippers receive the remaining players from Southern California. The Nets receive all players from Brooklyn as well as New Jersey, while the Knicks receive players from the remaining boroughs, Upstate New York and southern Connecticut.

 

Atlanta Hawks

PG       Eric Bledsoe

PG       Norm Nixon

PG      Walt Frazier

SF        Mike Mitchell

SF       Dale Ellis

SF        Gerald Wallace

F          Shareef Abdur-Rahim

PF       Josh Smith

PF        Horace Grant

PF        Larry Kenon

PF       Charles Barkley

C         Dwight Howard

C         Elmore Smith

C         Dale Davis

C         Ben Wallace

 

Starting Five: Walt Frazier, Dale Ellis, Josh Smith, Charles Barkley, Dwight Howard

Rotation: Norm Nixon, Gerald Wallace, Horace Grant, Ben Wallace, Dale Davis

 

This team would have to play big. Josh Smith is terrible taking elbow jumpers, so maybe he should play on the block. Ben Wallace subbing in for Dwight Howard is a defensive guru’s dream come true. This team could make a lot of noise.

  

Boston Celtics

PG      Michael Carter Williams

G         Vinny Del Negro

F          Jeff Adrien

PF       Marvin Barnes  

PF        Noah Vonleh

C         Matt Bonner

C         Patrick Ewing

C         Marcus Camby

C         Nerlens Noel

 

Starting Five: Michael Carter Williams, Vinny Del Negro, Marvin Barnes, Patrick Ewing, Marcus Camby

Rotation: Jeff Adrien, Matt Bonner

 

This team is awful. I’m frankly disappointed that Boston has not produced more talent. Throw the ball to Ewing every time down the court and hope to hell Vinny Del Negro doesn’t mismanage timeouts.

  

Brooklyn Nets

PG       World B Free

PG      Lenny Wilkens

PG       Stephon Marbury

PG       Mark Jackson

PG       Kyrie Irving

SG       JR Smith

SF       Rick Barry

SF        Roger Brown

SF        Bernard King

PF        Tom Heinsohn

PF        David West

PF        Rudy LaRusso

PF       Connie Hawkins

C         Shaq

C         Al Harrington

 

Starting Five: Lenny Wilkins, JR Smith, Rick Barry, Connie Hawkins, Shaq

Rotation: Bernard King, World B Free, Tom Heinsohn, Mark Jackson

 

This team is full of egos. I think it would self-destruct into a brawl within 20 games. If they could hold it together, though, the talent runs deep enough for a serious challenge to the all-time title.

  

Charlotte Hornets

PG      Chris Paul

PG       John Wall

PG       Steph Curry

SG       Michael Jordan

SG       Lou Hudson

SG       Ray Allen

SG       Walter Davis

SG       Sam Jones

SF       David Thompson

SF        James Worthy

F          Bobby Jones

PF       Kevin Garnett

PF        Bob McAdoo

C         Walt Bellamy

C         Brad Daugherty

 

Starting Five: Chris Paul, Michael Jordan, David Thompson, Kevin Garnett, Walt Bellamy

Rotation: Sam Jones, James Worthy, Bob McAdoo, John Wall, Ray Allen

 

Ding ding, this might be our winner, folks. You wanna talk about Lob City? CP3 throwing oops to MJ AND David Thompson? Shut it down, we’re going home.

  

Chicago Bulls

PG       Tim Hardaway

PG       Derrick Rose

PG      Isiah Thomas

SG       Dwyane Wade

SG       Doug Collins

SG       Hersey Hawkins

SF        Andre Iguodola

SF        Corey Maggette

SF       Mark Aguirre

PF        Antoine Walker

PF        Dan Issel

PF       Terry Cummings

C         Jack Sikma

C         George Mikan

C         Anthony Davis

 

Starting Five: Isiah Thomas, Dwyane Wade, Mark Aguirre, Terry Cummings, George Mikan

Rotation: Tim Hardaway, Derrick Rose, Hersey Hawkins, Dan Issel, Doug Collins

 

I have absolutely no idea how this team would function. I have the feeling that Isiah and DWade would be at each other’s throats in no time and Derrick Rose would probably break his knees trying to referee the fight. This team looks good on paper, but the Second City is finishing well below their moniker.

 

Cleveland Cavaliers

PG      Antonio Daniels

SG       Larry Jones

SG       Michael Redd

SG       Kevin Martin

SG       Ron Harper

SF       Lebron James

SF       John Havlicek

SF        Clark Kellogg

PF        Gus Johnson

PF        Charles Oakley

PF       Jerry Lucas

C         Nate Thurmond

 

Starting Five: Antonio Daniels, John Havlicek, Lebron James, Jerry Lucas, Nate Thurmond

Rotation: Michael Redd, Kevin Martin, Clark Kellogg, Charles Oakley

 

This team is dangerous. Putting aside Daniels, there are 4 bona fide legends in the starting line-up, with sharpshooting Michael Redd and the enforcer Charles Oakley coming off the bench. Lebron could run the point on this team and make room for Redd in the line-up. Watch out, Midwest.

  

Dallas Mavericks

PG       Spud Webb

PG       Mookie Blaylock

PG      Deron Williams

PG       Kevin Ollie

SF        Ricky Pierce

SF       Larry Johnson

PF        Willie Naulls

PF       Chris Bosh

PF        Tony Battie

PF        Darrell Arthur

PF       LaMarcus Aldridge

PF       Dennis Rodman

PF        Kenyon Martin

PF        Kurt Thomas

C         Greg Ostertag

 

Starting Five: Deron Williams, Larry Johnson, Dennis Rodman, Chris Bosh, LaMarcus Aldridge

Rotation: Spud Webb, Kenyon Martin, Kurt Thomas, Greg Ostertag, Darrell Arthur

 

This team is all sorts of discombobulated. This is the NBA equivalent of Frankenstein’s monster. Rodman would be useless playing Small Forward and Deron Williams would launch 10 threes a game. The bench is a hodgepodge of journeymen- I’m going 38 wins.

  

Denver Nuggets

PG      Chauncey Billups

PG       Charlie Williams

PG       Reggie Jackson

G         Michael Ray Richardson

SF       Scott Wedman

PF       Pat Garrity

C         Joe Barry Carroll

C         Dale Schlueter

 

Starting Five: Chauncey Billups, Michael Ray Richardson, Scott Wedman, Pat Garrity, Joe Barry Carroll

Rotation: Reggie Jackson, Dale Schlueter, Charlie Williams

 

Stretched thin. Somehow I doubt that Chauncey has enough in him to carry this team ’04 Pistons style. The Nuggets are destined for the lottery.

  

Detroit Pistons

PG      Magic Johnson

SG       George Gervin

SG       Jalen Rose

SG       Jason Richardson

SF        Glen Rice

SF        John Brisker

SF        Shane Battier

SF        Wilson Chandler

F          Dave DeBusschere

PF        Dan Roundfield

PF       Chris Webber

PF        Derrick Coleman

C         Al Horford

C         Mel Daniels

C         Chris Kaman

Coach  Rudy Tomjanovich

 

Starting Five: Magic Johnson, George Gervin, Dave DeBusschere, Chris Webber, Al Horford

Rotation: Shane Battier, Glen Rice, Jalen Rose, Jason Richardson, John Brisker, Derrick Coleman

 This is a very talented team; I’m having daydreams about the run-and-gun fastbreak potential. Nicknames also run deep; I can hear Marv Albert now: “Magic to Ice for the oop!” With Battier playing lock down D off the bench and two incredibly solid big men down low, this is definitely a playoff team.

 

 

Golden State Warriors

PG      Jason Kidd

PG       Phil Chenier

PG       Damian Lillard

PG      Gary Payton

G         Brian Shaw

SG       Phil Smith

SG       Isaiah Rider

SG       Jon Barry

SF        Keith Erickson

SF        Willie Wise

SF        Cliff Robinson

PF        Antonio Davis

PF        Drew Gooden

PF       Kurt Rambis

C         Bill Russell

Coach  KC Jones

 

Starting Five: Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Isaiah Rider, Kurt Rambis, Bill Russell

Rotation: Damian Lillard, Phil Chenier, Keith Erickson, Antonio Davis, Drew Gooden

 This team would be a defensive nightmare for the opposition, but much like today’s Chicago Bulls, I’m not quite sure who is going to score the points. My best guess: throw it to Russell on the block every play and hope Kidd and Payton make backdoor cuts.  

 

Houston Rockets

PG       TJ Ford

PG       Damon Jones

PG      DJ Augustin

SG       Clyde Drexler

SG       Gerald Green

SG       Jimmy Butler

SG       Terry Teagle

PF        Cadillac Anderson

PF        Brian Skinner

PF        Kendrick Perkins

PF       Rashard Lewis

C         DeAndre Jordan

C         Zelmo Beatty

C         Emeka Okafor

 

Starting Five: DJ Augustin, Clyde Drexler, Rashard Lewis, DeAndre Jordan, Zelmo Beatty

Rotation: Jimmy Butler, Damon Jones, Emeka Okafor, Kendric Perkins

 The Glide really deserves better. With Jordan and Perkins, this team is destined to shoot 60% at the line.

 

 Indiana Pacers

PG      Oscar Robertson

PG       Scott Skiles

PG       Mike Conley

G         Slick Leonard

SG       Dick Van Arsdale

SG       Eric Gordon

SG       Bonzi Wells

SG       Gordon Hayward

SF       Larry Bird

SF        Glenn Robinson

PF        George McGinnis

PF       Zach Randolph

PF        Shawn Kemp

C         Brad Miller

C         Clyde Lovellette

Coach  Mike Woodson

 

Starting Five: Oscar Robertson, Eric Gordon, Larry Bird, Zach Randolph, Brad Miller

Rotation: Shawn Kemp, George McGinnis, Glenn Robinson, Gordon Hayward

Sleeper team! Talk about a thug roster. Larry Legend, The Big O, Zeke AND Shawn Kemp? We’d need ESPN to mic every player just for the trash talk. This team is a better center away from being unstoppable.

 

LA Clippers

PG       Darren Collison

PG      Russell Westbrook

G         Steve Kerr

SG       Reggie Miller

SG       Bill Sharman

SG       James Harden

SG       Paul George

SG       Klay Thompson

SF        Kawhi Leonard

SF        George Yardley

PF        Bob Rule

PF       Taj Gibson

C         Brook Lopez

C         Bill Walton

C         Mark Eaton

Coach  Paul Westphal

 

Starting Five: Russell Westbrook, Reggie Miller, Paul George, Taj Gibson, Bill Walton

Rotation: Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Bill Sharman, Darren Collison, Steve Kerr, Mark Eaton, Klay Thompson

 I really like this team. Bill Walton, maybe the best passing big man of all-time, dishing to a collection of sharp shooting wings. Steve Kerr, Klay Thompson and Reggie Miller would light up the scoreboard with threes and Westbrook, Harden and Leonard would terrorize opponents with the slash and kick. Biggest concern? Just like their real life counterparts, defense.

 

LA Lakers

PG       Andre Miller

PG       Baron Davis

PG       Gilbert Arenas

G         Dennis Johnson

SG       Michael Cooper

SG       Gail Goodrich

SG       Freeman Williams

SG       DeMar DeRozan

SG       Reggie Theus

SF        Tayshaun Prince

SF        Jamaal Wilkes

SF       Paul Pierce

PF       Sidney Wicks

C         Tyson Chandler

C         Darrell Imhoff

Coach  Byron Scott

 

Starting Five: Dennis Johnson, Gail Goodrich, Paul Pierce, Sidney Wicks, Tyson Chandler

Rotation: Gilbert Arenas, Jamaal Wilkes, Baron Davis, DeMar DeRozan, Reggie Theus, Tayshaun Prince

 

 The Clippers are better than the Lakers, just like in real life! I love Paul Pierce with all my heart; he’s my favorite NBA player and now he’s coming to my Wizards, but he can’t carry this team. DJ and Goodrich can score with the best of them, but this team is simply ill-assembled.

 

Memphis Grizzlies

PG      Penny Hardaway

G         Tony Delk

SF        Campy Russell

SF        Ron Mercer

SF        Bingo Smith

SF        Bailey Howell

SF        Corey Brewer

PF       Lorenzen Wright

PF       Thaddeus Young

PF       Shawn Marion

PF        Popeye Jones

PF        Rich Jones

C         David Vaughn

 

Starting Five: Penny Hardaway, Tony Delk, Shawn Marion, Thaddeus Young, Lorenzen Wright

Rotation: Ron Mercer, Popeye Jones, Corey Brewer, Campy Russell, Rich Jones

This team is George Costanza: small, loud and not very talented.

 

Miami Heat

PG       Steve Blake

PG       Tim Hardaway Jr

G         Brandon Knight

SG       Mitch Richmond

SG       Eddie Jones

SG       Raja Bell

SF       Trevor Ariza

F          Anthony Mason

PF       Udonis Haslem

PF        Otis Thorpe

PF       Mychal Thompson

 

Starting Five: Brandon Knight, Mitch Richmond, Trevor Ariza, Mychal Thompson, Udonis Haslem

Rotation: Otis Thorpe, Raja Bell, Steve Blake, Anthony Mason, Eddie Jones

 

Here comes the ill-advised three!

  

Milwaukee Bucks

PG      Devin Harris

PG       Nick Van Exel

PG       Terry Porter

SG       Latrell Sprewell

SG       Bill Hanzlik

SF       Caron Butler

SF        Don Kojis

SF        John Johnson

PF       Carl Landry

PF        Joe Wolf

PF        Steve Novak

C         Jim Chones

 

Starting Five: Devin Harris, Latrell Sprewell, Caron Butler, Carl Landry, Jim Chones

Rotation: Nick Van Exel, Steve Novak, Terry Porter, Bill Hanzlik

 

Over/under 2 days before Caron punches Spree square in the jaw?

  

Minnesota Timberwolves

G         Whitey Skoog

SG       Dick Garmaker

SG       Devean George

SG       Alan Anderson

F          Mark Olberding

F          Vern Mikkelsen

PF        Arnie Johnson

PF        Kris Humphries

PF       Kevin McHale

C         Joel Pryzbilla

C         Randy Breuer

 

Starting Five: Whitey Skoog, Dick Garmaker, Vern Mikkelsen, Kevin McHale, Joel Prybilla

Rotation: Oh who cares, this team blows.

  

New Orleans Pelicans

PG      Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf

SG       Marcus Thornton

SG       Joe Dumars

SF        Danny Granger

SF        Orlando Woolridge

PF       Karl Malone

PF        Paul Milsap

PF        Greg Monroe

PF       Willis Reed

PF        Glen Davis

PF        Elvin Hayes

C         DeMarcus Cousins

C         Al Jefferson

C         Robert Parrish

C         Bob Petit

 

Starting Five: Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Joe Dumars, Karl Malone, Willis Reed, Robert Parrish

Rotation: Bob Petit, Elvin Hayes, Orlando Woolridge, DeMarcus Cousins, Al Jefferson, Danny Granger, Paul Milsap

 

Holy depth, Batman. If you get past the awkwardness of playing Malone as a wing 3, this team has the bench talent to go all the way. Sleeper team.

  

New York Knicks

PG      Bob Cousy

PG       Tiny Archibald

PG       Gus Williams

G         Calvin Murphy

G         Richie Guerin

SG       Charlie Scott

SF        Ron Artest

SF       Julius Erving

SF        Chris Mullin

PF        Lamar Odom

PF        Elton Brand

PF        Dolph Schayes

C         Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

C         Joakim Noah

C         Bob Lanier

 

Starting Five: Bob Cousy, Calvin Murphy, Julius Erving, Bob Lanier, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Rotation: Tiny Archibald, Joakim Noah, Elton Brand, Lamar Odom, Chris Mullin, Ron Artest, Charlie Scott

 

The Kareem-Joakim love affair has finally come to life! Having Hall of Famer Tiny Archibald replacing Houdini at point off the bench is a problem I’d like to have. Deep playoff push ahead.

  

Oklahoma City Thunder

PG      Mark Price

SG       John Starks

SG       Charles Beasley

SF        Willie Murrell

SF        Richard Dumas

SF        Mike Farmer

SF       Ron Boone

PF       Blake Griffin

PF        Wayman Tisdale

PF        Antoine Carr

PF        Shelden Williams

C         Ekpe Udoh

 

Starting Five: Mark Price, John Starks, Ron Boone, Blake Griffin, Ekpe Udoh

Rotation: No one of note. Good luck, Blake.

 

Blake’s got a new face and damn is it ugly.

  

Orlando Magic

PG      Dee Brown

G         Vernon Maxwell

SG       Vince Carter

SG       Tracy McGrady

SG       Otis Birdsong

SG       Eddie Johnson

SF        Chandler Parsons

PF       Amare Stoudemire

PF        Truck Robinson

C         Darryl Dawkins

 

Starting Five: Dee Brown, Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, Amare Stoudemire, Darryl Dawkins

Rotation: Chandler Parsons, Otis Birdsong, Vernon Maxwell, Truck Robinson, Eddie Johnson

 

“You had to be a biiiiig shot, didn’t you? You had to open up your mouth.”

  

Philadelphia Sixers

PG       Bob Davies

PG       Kyle Lowry

PG       Guy Rodgers

SG       Earl Monroe

SG       Rip Hamilton

SG       Tom Gola

SG       Larry Cannon

SG       Cuttino Mobley

SG       Dion Waiters

SG       Kobe Bryant

SF       Paul Arizin

SF        Michael Kidd-Gilchrest

PF       Rasheed Wallace

C         Sam Bowie

C         Wilt Chamberlain

 

Starting Five: Earl Monroe, Kobe Bryant, Paul Arizin, Rasheed Wallace, Wilt Chamberlain

Rotation: Sam Bowie, Rip Hamilton, Cuttino Mobley, Kyle Lowry, Bob Davies, Dion Waiters, Michael Kidd-Gilchrest

 

Playing the Pearl at the point seems to make sense with this line-up. I fear the relationship between Sheed and Wilt; the first time Wilt tried to pad his stats at the cost of the team, Sheed would strangle him. Having the two biggest ball hogs in history as your first and second options can’t bode well, but talent alone probably pushes this team into the second round of the playoffs.

 

Phoenix Suns

PG      Fat Lever

PG       Steve Colter

PG      Mike Bibby

PG       Jerryd Bayless

SF        Sean Elliot

SF       Richard Jefferson

PF       Paul Silas

PF        Mark Alarie

PF       Channing Frye

PF        Brad Lohaus

 

Starting Five: Fat Lever, Mike Bibby, Richard Jefferson, Paul Silas, Channing Frye

Rotation: Let’s move on.

 

This team represents Phoenix perfectly: ill-planned and shoddily executed. There’s no water in this desert.

  

Portland Trail Blazers

PG       Terrell Brandon

PG      Damon Stoudamire

SG       Chico Vaughn

SG       Danny Ainge

SG       Terrence Ross

SG       Ronnie Brewer

SF        Dave Gambee

SF        Kyle Singler

SF        Mike Dunleavy

PF        Terrence Jones

PF        Richard Washington

PF       AC Green

PF       Kevin Love

C         Mel Counts

 

Starting Five: Damon Stoudamire, Danny Ainge, AC Green, Kevin Love, Mel Counts

Rotation: Terrence Ross, Terrence Jones, Mike Dunleavy, Kyle Singler, Ronnie Brewer

 

Another Kevin Love team that won’t make the playoffs!

 

Sacramento Kings

PG      Kevin Johnson

SG       DeShawn Stevenson

SF       Matt Barnes

SF        Bruce Bowen

PF        Mel Hutchins

PF       Darnell Hillman

C         Jim Eakins

C         Bill Cartwright

 

Starting Five: Kevin Johnson, DeShawn Stevenson, Matt Barnes, Darnell Hillman, Bill Cartwright

Rotation: Bruce Bowen, Mel Hutchins, Jim Eakins

 

I really want this team to be good- KJ and Dr. Dunk would be so much fun to watch, but the Kings suck.

  

San Antonio Spurs

SG       Devin Brown

SG       David Wesley

SF        Robert Reid

PF        Bo Outlaw

 

I have a headache.

 

Toronto Raptors

PG       Tyler Ennis

PG       Cory Joseph

PG      Steve Nash

SG       Andrew Wiggins

SG       Nik Stauskas

PF       Anthony Bennett

PF       Tristan Thompson

PF        Andrew Nicholson

C         Robert Sacre

C         Jamaal Magloire

C         Kelly Olynyk

C         Joel Anthony

C         Samuel Dalembert

 

Starting Five: Steve Nash, Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, Tristan Thompson, Jamaal Magloire

Rotation: Samuel Dalembert, Joel Anthony, Nik Stauskas

 

This is the “upside” team. Hopefully Wiggins turns into Jordan 2.0 and Anthony Bennett loses some weight. Still only a 35 win team at best.

 

Utah Jazz

G         Ariel Maughan

SG       Steven Kramer

PF       Fred Roberts

PF        Danny Vranes

PF       Tom Chambers

C         Scot Pollard

C         Travis Knight

C         Shawn Bradley

 

Starting Five: Ariel Maughan, Steven Kramer, Fred Robert, Tom Chambers, Shawn Bradley

Rotation: White guys.

 

Can we condense this league already?

 

Washington Wizards

PG       Steve Francis

PG       Ty Lawson

PG      Allen Iverson

G         Dave Bing

SG       JJ Redick

SF        Dominique Wilkins

SF        Adrian Dantley

SF       Kevin Durant

SF        Grant Hill

SF        Carmelo Anthony

SF       Elgin Baylor

C         Ralph Sampson

C         David Robinson

C         Alonzo Mourning

C         Moses Malone

 

Starting Five: Allen Iverson, Elgin Baylor, Kevin Durant, David Robinson, Moses Malone

Rotation: Dave Bing, Dominique Wilkins, Carmelo Anthony, Adrian Dantley, Alonzo Mouning, Ty Lawson, Ralph Sampson, Grant Hill, JJ Redick, Steve Francis

 

The Eastern Conference Finals every year would be the Wizards v. the Hornets and I’ll take this team to win the title. There are simply way too many scoring threats and too much depth on the bench- the Small Forward position on this team runs 5 Hall of Famers deep-  the line-up possibilities are endless. Four Hall of Fame Centers playing in various low-post combinations would be a nightmare for any opposition, and if they double team the bigs, just kick it out to KD and Redick for open threes. This team is scary.