Dexter: What The Hell?

(The following contains spoilers about Dexter)

I started watching Dexter about four years ago. Early enough where I can catch up to it, but late enough where I can binge watch to a point where I’d get a good feel of what I thought of the series. After just two episodes, I immediately remember thinking “Wow, this show is pretty entertaining.”

The show was very easy to watch. I was hooked on the characters and really thought it was unique. It had the mood of a drama but was more a dark comedy.

It had some fantastic moments early on, culminating with the death of Dexter’s wife in the infamous John Lithgow season (the fourth). It easily moved into my top-five shows (Lost is far and away at the top, although now-a-days, Breaking Bad could challenge depending on the conclusion).

And then things started to turn. The show got a bit more outlandish. I found myself bored at times, looking at the clock midway through episodes. Each season after season four was worse. Yes, it had its moments, but the show certainly was not what it was at its peak.

Dexter finally announced it was concluding after eight seasons, maybe two seasons too late, but still, I thought it could go out with a bang.

Then I watched the series finale. It was the worst episode of any show I had ever seen.

It absolutely boggles my mind that someone would write such garbage. Yes, the final season of Dexter was pretty bad to begin with. They introduced a random daughter to one of the minor characters Masuka, a story that went nowhere. They brought in a woman who was extremely important to Dexter’s past and makeup, and besides her being killed off, was just an annoyance throughout the entire season. It felt as if they were forcing things on the audience with no real satisfaction in the end.

It is extremely ironic, because that is exactly how the finale went. The whole episode snowballed to the point where I was laughing out loud during the final 15 minutes. Let me explain:

-Dexter’s sister Deb was shot and brought to a hospital where she seemed to be doing okay. The doctor’s said no major arteries were hit; there was no real lead up to anything potentially bad. Then completely out of nowhere, her conditioned turned for the worse and she went brain dead. It just felt like another thing that was just force on the audience.

-Dexter – who was leaving the country to be with his girlfriend Hannah and young son Harrison – comes back to be by Deb’s side. Hannah was a convicted serial killer herself who had just poisoned Dexter and his sister earlier in the season. And now Dexter is not only going away with her, but letting his son go with Hannah alone. “I’ll meet you there,” Dexter said to Hannah and Harrison. Who in their right mind would EVER let their son just fly to another country with a serial killer?

-At the hospital, Dexter confronts the killer (Oliver Saxton) he has been trying to capture. He was re-captured in the hospital, which is something I actually bought. But while Saxton was sitting in jail at Miami Metro (Where Dexter used to work before resigning to run away with Hannah and Harrison), Dexter somehow was able to freely visit his jail cell using a lame excuse. Who decided that letting a former employee walk into the prison cell of the man who shot his sister was a good idea? Dexter provokes Saxton to attack him, Dexter then kills Saxton, the two cops he is friends with reviewed the security tape and determined…it was self-defense. Yeah okay, sure.

-Dexter goes back to visit Deb (on life support), and decides to cut the cord so she wouldn't suffer. Now for my favorite part. While all this is happening, the hospital is moving patients due to a hurricane that is coming. Dexter takes Deb from her hospital bed and just wheels her out of the hospital to his boat which is docked. There were probably 40-50 people he walked by without anyone even glancing at him. He continues to wheel out dead Deb and carries her onto his boat. He takes the boat and drives out (with impending Hurricane conditions) and drops her into the water.

-And now for favorite part No. 2: It hits Dexter that he causes everyone he cares about to suffer. So with a son with a serial killer in another country, Dexter decides to seal his fate and drive his boat into the heart of the impending Hurricane (which really looked like something out of the movie The Perfect Storm). The next day, they find parts of his boat destroyed. This into sequence felt like a part out of the movie The Room, which is considered the worst movie of all time. But The Room is so bad, it’s good. This was just so bad though.

-They focus in on Hannah and Harrison sitting. Hannah sees on her iPad an article about Dexter’s presumed death. She barely reacts to the death, wiping one tear away, and then asks Harrison if she wants ice cream. That’s your first reaction? One tear and some Ben and Jerrys?????

-And finally, we pan in on the final scene of some workers cutting down trees. For about ten seconds, I thought it was a preview to some new show on Showtime. Then we see a man walking, and guess what, it’s Dexter! Somehow, he survives driving into the heart of a hurricane. They show him getting into his new home (a lifeless log cabin), and he sits down, he stares into the camera, and end series.

All of this in the final 15 minutes.

Just typing all of this gives me anxiety. People devote hours upon hours of to these shows. I went online afterwards and read that this ending was planned for years. Someone actually had this idea and no one said “Ya know…you might want to change it.”

I learned a lot from watching Dexter. Shows seem to have a shelf life of about 4-5 seasons before things turn. Usually there’s one or two defining moments that turn out to be the peak of the show. Dexter’s moment was his wife’s shocking death.

I also learned that it is never a good sign when a showrunner is replaced midway through a series. The showrunner for the first four seasons left and was replaced by two people. Coincidentally, season five is when the show took a turn for the worse. I actually read an interview with the old showrunner where he stated his thoughts on how he wanted the show to end. And it was far and away better than how it did.

Dexter will always have a soft spot for me. In one breath, it was simple, entertaining, and had some great characters. But it’s a tale of two shows, and unfortunately, the second half put a very dark cloud over what was supposed to be a strong series.

How to Dominate the Fantasy Football Season

Everyone's favorite sport is here. I've been playing in fantasy football leagues since I was 13-years old. Do I think I am any better than anyone else? Well, yes, I do. So feel free to use this as a little cheat sheet to dominate the 2013 fantasy football season (With season predictions at the bottom).

NOTE: Based off of standard 12-team PPR leagues.

Quarterbacks

My Top 5
Aaron Rodgers
Drew Brees
Peyton Manning
Cam Newton
Tom Brady

Sleepers
-Michael Vick: Vick is probably the biggest "what if" in fantasy football. What if he stays healthy? What if he recaptures his form from a few years ago? What if everything clicks in Chip Kelly's new offense? Quarterback is such a deep position this year, but after the top five, you have to look for home runs. Vick is that home run. Even if he doesn't play a full season, if you spot start him, he's going to produce some stud weeks.
When to draft: 9th Round or later.

-E.J. Manuel: RG3 and Andrew Luck showed that rookie QBs can make an impact. While Manuel isn't at their level, he still holds a lot of value. The key is in his legs. In college, he rushed for over 300 yards and four TDs in his final season at Florida St. His offense is going to be sneaky good too. The Bills drafted Robert Woods who is an immediate upgrade over (fill in the blank) Bills No.2 WR. They also have a speed guy in Marquise Goodwin who is going to catch a few deep balls. Oh yeah, and don't forget about C.J. Spiller. I think if Manuel is a full-time starter (at some point this year, Manuel is going to start), he's worth the chance. And his latest injury might scare a few more owners off.
When to draft: Final few rounds or pickup as a free agent.

-Carson Palmer: Doesn't it seem like each season, Palmer is rostered by about half your league's teams? I don't think people realize that Palmer has been pretty solid as a fantasy QB in the last three years (Real life? Not so much). Palmer threw for over 3900 yards in two of the last three years, and in 2011, if he played 16 games (he only played 10), he would've been right around that mark. When the conditions are right -- think at home, versus a subpar defense -- Palmer is a perfect fill in.
When to draft: 11th Round or later.

Busts
-Russell Wilson: I'm not buying the Wilson hype just yet. Yes, he's gaining a year of experience, but the hype is just wayyyyy too much on him. Forgetting the fact that I think a regression is in order, he's also still without a true No. 1 WR (assuming Percy Harvin doesn't play this year) and still competes in the same division as the 49ers. I don't like paying for guys in a career year, and I think Wilson absolutely overachieved in 2012
When to draft: I wouldn't touch him until the 10th round or until you are in backup fantasy QB rounds.

-Ben Roethlisberger: You probably won't find Big Ben on any of my fantasy teams. Everything has been trending towards the downside. He's had four seasons in a row where his yards-per-attempt have dropped. He's missed multiple games in two of the last three years. Roethlisberger also lost his best WR in Mike Wallace and might lose his tight end to a few games in Heath Miller. And he's not so young anymore (31). If I'm drafting a fringe starter/backup QB, I want upside. Roethlisberger just does not provide that.
When to draft: At best, the last three rounds.

Running Backs

My Top 5
Adrian Peterson
Doug Martin
C.J. Spiller
Jamaal Charles
Ray Rice

Sleepers
-Daryl Richardson: I'll throw some numbers at you on Richardson. He didn't even amass 100 carries last year yet had 475 yards rushing. He quietly caught 24 balls as a full-time backup. Everything is just screaming undervalued. And it's stunning to be that he's being drafted as a 7th-to-9th rounder, behind guys like Rashard Mendenhall, Andre Brown, and BenJarvus Green-Ellis. I'll take the guaranteed starter over the question marks.
When to draft: 6th round

-Bilal Powell: Listen, Powell is never going to be a top-five back. I don't think the talent is there. But Powell will make for a nice bye-week stop gap or a fringe starter for a few weeks. Powell will start some games this year (Chris Ivory has played in 12 total games in two seasons). He's also looked a bit quicker this preseason. You could do a lot worse towards the end of your draft.
When to draft: 13th round

-Ryan Mathews: Mathews has burned pretty much everyone in the past. But this is the first year you can count me on board. I think you have to sometimes go against the trend, and this is the perfect case. Two years ago, he rushed for close to 1100 yards and also caught 50 balls. Is it that crazy to think he can do that again? The hate on Mathews has gone waaaay to far. I wouldn't reach for him, but if he's sitting there at the right spot, he could provide some value.
When to draft: 5th-6th round

Names to Stash
Lance Dunbar, Knile Davis, Daniel Thomas

Busts
-Frank Gore: I thought Gore would be a complete bust last year, and I am doubling down. Gore's wound up having quite the career, but father time has to catch up to him at some point. There's very little upside to Gore. Plus, the Niners have a boatload of solid RBs. I just don't want to be on the boat when it starts to sink.
When to draft: At best, 5th round

-Rashard Mendenhall: This is another guy who will not be on any of my teams this season. I don't know why you'd even consider making him your RB2. The Cardinals are going to be throwing A LOT this year (why else would you get Carson Palmer) so there will be quite a few games where Mendenhall puts up low single-digits. I have absolutely no faith.
When to draft: 10th round or later as a backup

Wide Receivers

My Top 5
Calvin Johnson
Dez Bryant
A.J. Green
Demariyus Thomas
Julio Jones

Sleepers
-T.Y. Hilton: Love Hilton this year. In his final eight games, he had 26 catches for 506 yards and five TDs.  He also had eight catches in the Colts' lone playoff game. I just feel like he's going to step that next step forward and be a 1,000-yard WR, especially considering I expect Reggie Wayne to take a small-step backwards.
When to draft: 6th round seems like a solid spot, although you may be able to sneak him into the 7th.

-DeSean Jackson: Injuries are obviously the biggest concern for Jackson, who seems to miss at least one game every year. With Jeremy Maclin out for the year, someone is going to have to catch passes for the Eagles. I think Jackson takes the step up. And let's hypothetically say he played 16 games last year and performed at the pace he was playing at. His stats would've been 70 catches for 1017 yards and 3 or 4 TDs. Not too shabby of a season. Feel like he's similar to Hilton in how he's being drafted
When to draft: 6th round.

-Brian Hartline: He's a boring name who had one amazing game last year. But I think Hartline is going to be a perfect FLEX/bench player for your team. Hartline took the leap last year with 74 catches and 1083 yards with an astounding 131 targets. People think that Hartline is going to underproduce with the addition of Mike Wallace, but remember, Reggie Bush and Davone Bess are out of the picture and Dustin Keller is hurt. Hartline's going to be a poor man's Wes Welker.
When to draft: 11 round or when you are up to your backup WRs.

Names to Stash
Cordarrelle Patterson, Chris Givens, Jeremy Kerley

Busts
-Mike Wallace: Everything here screams bust. Even when Wallace is at his absolute best, he'll have one great game followed by one clunker. Looking at his situation, he moves from Ben Roethlisberger to Ryan Tannehill. That has to already downgrade him by at least 100 to 150 yards. But looking closer at the stats, Wallace's total receiving yards have dropped each of the last three seasons despite an increase in targets. Wallace will have a few big games, but I'd be stunned if he was anywhere near a Top 20 WR.
When to draft: 8th or 9th round (Torrey Smith area).

-Stevie Johnson: Johnson has been a solid, consistent WR since he became a starter in 2010. He's never really made any kind of leap, but you know exactly what you are going to get. I think he's hit his peak though. But I think a lot of that success was due to Ryan Fitzpatrick. Listen, Fitzpatrick was not the greatest QB, but he moved the ball down the field. The Bills offense is drastically changing though. Enter E.J. Manuel, a running QB with not a great arm. Enter an offense focused on getting the ball to C.J. Spiller. I'm going to go out on a big limb and say Johnson becomes unstartable by midseason.
When to draft: Completely avoid at all costs.

-Eric Decker: I'm scratching my head over why Decker is drafted as a 4th-5th rounder. It's no knock on Decker's talent, but West Welker was signed to take on most of the targets that went Decker's way. They also added Monte Ball, which should continue to make the running game an underrated focal point (Denver runs the ball a lot more than people think). I think we average Decker's 2011 and 2012 stats and you end up with his 2013 stats.
When to draft: Avoid

Tight Ends

My Top 5
Jimmy Graham
Rob Gronkowski
Jason Witten
Tony Gonzalez
Jermichael Finley

Sleepers
-Delanie Walker: I'm really picking a flier here in Walker. I've always been a fan of him. Feel like his talents were never used properly in San Francisco. Solely as a backup the last three years, he combined for six total TDs. He also had his highest yardage total in 2012 at 344. Moving to Tennessee, he is now THE tight end. That offense isn't exactly packed with stars, so I expect Walker to have a sneaky solid year. He's a perfect matchups guy as well as a bye week fill in at the cost of a late pick.
When to draft: Last round

-Brandon Pettigrew: After improving in year's two and three, Pettigrew took a big step back in his fourth season. He had some nagging injuries that cost in two games and the Lions offense seemed like a complete mess at times. I think Pettigrew is primed for a bounce-back season. Detroit is going to throw the ball and with Calvin Johnson continuing to draw attention on the outside, Pettigrew should continue to get opportunities in the middle of the field. The only drawback with him is touchdowns, as his highest season total is five. But if he can approach the 83 catches he had in 2011, you have yourself a nice starting tight end.
When to draft: 12th round

Names to Stash
Julius Thomas, Tyler Eifert, Fred Davis

Busts
-Greg Olsen: It's not that I don't think Olsen is talented, but explain to be the difference between Olsen (drafted in the 7th round) and Pettigrew (drafted five rounds later)? Olsen also had eight games with single-digit fantasy points and just four games where he scored a touchdown. There's just no difference between Olsen and the rest of the field.
When to draft: 10th round

Season Predictions

AFC East: Patriots
AFC North: Ravens
AFC South: Texans
AFC West: Broncos
Wild Cards: Colts and Bengals

NFC East: Redskins
NFC North: Packers
NFC South: Saints
NFC West: 49ers
Wild Cards: Seahawks and Falcons

MVP: Peyton Manning
Offensive ROY: Cordarrelle Patterson
Defensive ROY: Jarvis Jones
Surprise Team: Cardinals
Bust Team: Steelers

AFC Divisional: Broncos over Texans
NFC Divisional: 49ers over Packers
Super Bowl: Broncos over 49ers

How To Dominate A Wedding

I recently got married (woooo, crowd goes crazy!) It's the happiest time period of my life and one of the best days I've ever experienced. The whole wedding day just warps on by and before you know it, you are off on your honeymoon.

I didn't realize how much fun weddings could be until I went to my first one a few years ago. I've been to a few and have started to see what separates the "haves" from the "have nots". You can know zero people at a wedding and become the MVP by the end of the night. If you aren't having fun, you aren't following these little tips.

1) Drink...Drink...And Drink

-Alcohol can solve many things. And luckily, weddings have lots of alcohol. I cannot stress enough, but make sure you drink a lot. Drinking just brings people and positive things together. BUT, don't be THAT GUY that throws up at the end of the night.

2) Cocktail Hour Is Your Meal Ticket

-You can make Tip No. 1 go a lot smoother if you follow this. Cocktail hour is usually where the best food is. It's a buffet of your absolute favorite appetizers. There's shrimp, mini hot dogs, pastas, sliders, salads, you name it. And it all just surrounds you in one giant room. Take advantage of this. Not only will it fill you up early (meaning your chances of getting sick from drinking go down), it'll give you more time to do some of the other tips I suggest.

3) Mingle Early and Often

-Whether it is your wedding or you are attending one, talking to a lot of people early on will set you up for success. If you are the one getting married, you can get through a lot of people before the music starts. If you are just attending as a guest, you can gain a lot of allies (and future drinking buddies) by putting yourself out there before the party starts.

4) Just Dance

-I'm probably the worst dancer you'll ever see. Luckily, about 75% of guests at a wedding are just as bad. But effort goes a long way. Take a few notes of some of the people who actually know how to dance, and then just dumb it down a bit. People respect the ones who are smack in the middle of the dance floor. We're all in this (badly) together.

5) Take A Shot...At A Shot

-Most bars at weddings will pour all of the shots you want. And for some reason, weddings and shots go hand in hand. Be the one to gather a bunch of people and lead a group shot. If you see the groom/bride or their parents, involve them in a shot as well. My friend made my Dad (who isn't a big drinker) take a few shots at the wedding and he's still talking about it. You'll be an instant star just by rallying the troops together.

6) Put A Ring On It

-For the single people, weddings could also be a time where the opposite sex is most vulnerable. The girls start to think "When am I going to be married?" That internal clock speeds up to about 40 mph. Guys, take note. Be on a close lookout for those girls who don't have a boyfriend. Many people have found their future spouses this way.

7) After Party Madness

-By the time a wedding is over, everyone is drunk and still looking to party. Usually there's an after party either in the wedding suite, another room, or a hotel bar. After parties are usually where the real fun begins. Make sure you save some energy (and your voice) for the post-wedding festivities. If you have an iPod with some old 80s or 90s tunes, pop it on and host a few sing-a-longs.

8) It's Not About You

-Don't be too much the center of attention. Ultimately, the day is about the bride and groom. Make the focus on them.

9) Have A Great Freakin' Time

-The most important thing is to just have fun. Don't sit in a corner half the night looking at your watch. Just get out there and dominate the wedding!

In Defense of Lebron James...

Can EVERYONE just stop for a second and admit that Lebron James is the greatest NBA player since Michael Jordan?

And when it is all said and done....he might even be better than Jordan.

I know this is a sore subject to people. How can anybody be better than Michael Jordan? He never lost an NBA championship (6-for-6). He won the scoring championship ten times and MVP five times. You can list accomplishment after accomplishment. But that doesn't mean James won't go down as being better.

We have to remember how James started out. As a junior, his High School games were being broadcasted on ESPN. the amount of hype as he entered the NBA was absolutely astonishing. Sports-media outlets engrained into everybody's heads that this guy was going to be THE guy. How many times have we seen athletes live up to the high bar placed on them? I can't think of too many. And we've certainly seen player after player in all sports completely fail. James not only met the expectations, but has far exceeded them.

He does everything. And has only gotten better. People said James needed a low-post game, and he developed one. Naysayers claimed James will never have a good outside shot, and he developed one. List any blemish on his resume, and James has come out and erased any doubt.

Let me just throw some numbers that stood out to me.

-It took Jordan seven years to make the NBA finals.
-In the ten seasons James has been a pro, he's already made four finals and won two. Jordan won three in the same time span.
-If we're looking at postseason numbers, James has put up a career per-game line of 28.1 pts/8.6 rbs/6.7 assists while averaging 43.1 minutes per game. Read that game. 43.1 minutes per game! While Jordan has scored more, he's 2.2 rbs and 1 assist short of James.
-And then there's the triple-doubles. Just type in Lebron's name next to that term. And just be astonished.

If you are pro James, you can continue to rattle off stat after stat. And if you are pro Jordan, you can do the same. And quite frankly, we haven't even put a major dent into James's career.

But he needs to be in the conversation.

Do I think the hate on James will ever go away? No, I really don't. "The Decision" left such a sour taste in everyone's mouths that people want nothing more than to see him fail.

But we're living in a time period where we can witness one of the greatest athletes in sports history and certainly the best current athlete.

Let's appreciate it.

Tim Tebow Deserves an NFL Job

Tim Tebow is jobless.

He's a Heisman trophy winner. He had over 12,000 total yards in college. He won a National Championship. And yet EVERYONE looks for a reason to knock him.

Why can't we just finally admit to ourselves that Tebow should have an NFL job?

Let's look at the superstars that are currently starting in the NFL. Brandon Weeden is going to be 30-years old and threw 17 INTs in 2012, leading the Cleveland Browns to another miserable season. For a halfway decent team, Weeden would be a backup at best, but the Browns have no one, and they drafted Weeden relatively early, so he's their QB by default.

Then there's Mark Sanchez, whose career has been in an absolute freefall since his back-to-back conference championships a couple of years ago. Why the Jets wouldn't start Tebow over Sanchez last year STILL boggles my mind.

You have Blaine Gabbert, who is just plain atrocious. Carson Palmer has been a band-aid for the last five years.

Yet teams would rather put these QBs out there than Tebow. It makes no sense.

I have absolutely no idea if Tebow is a good NFL QB. I really don't. I do know in a limited sample size, he led the Broncos to numerous comeback wins and a playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. If Denver had (insert QB), would (insert QB) have done what Tebow did?

I know that Tebow wills his team to a different level when it matters most. We saw that in Denver's six comeback victories with Tebow at the helm. I know that despite having a completion percentage under 50%, he only threw nine INTs. Not 18 INTs (ahem Mark Sanchez ahem), but nine.

For the upper half of the league, I completely get it. He brings a media circus that's completely unnecessary. Even if Tony Romo or Philip Rivers were starting ahead of Tebow, a fan base will put pressure on an organization as soon as that starter struggles. And having an unknown at QB is not what a playoff contender wants to have.

But if you are bad, please tell me what you have to lose? Afraid to lose 12 games? Because the Browns and Jaguars are most likely going to do that for the 23892389th season. If you throw Tebow in there and he is equally as bad, well, you have a top-five pick next season. Which is no different of situation than if Tebow weren't in.

And in the case of Jacksonville, it's not like it is the talk of Florida. It's been a dead team since the Mark Brunell days. Imagine Tebow coming in? It'd inject life into a sorry franchise.

I'm not going to sit here and preach to everyone that Tim Tebow is some fantastic QB. Because he's probably not. But he's got something a statistic can't explain.

And he should be given a shot. Because what does a team have to lose?

Can The New York Knicks Be Fixed?

The New York Knicks have problems.

It is very easy to pounce on a team that underachieved in the playoffs, bowing out in the second round to the Indiana Pacers. But it runs a lot deeper than just a poor showing in the postseason.

The Problems

Tyson Chandler and Amar'e Stoudemire are set to make $35 million combined over the next two years. Marcus Camby is set to make $8 million over the next two seasons. That is a ton of money for three players who were non-existant over the last thirty days of the Knicks season.

Surprisingly, Chandler had one of his better rebounding season, averaging over ten rebounds per game for just the second time in his career. But injury/flu/fatigue led to a laughably poor showing against Indiana as Roy Hibbert completely dominated him. Chandler will be entering his 13th NBA season and I expect some decline. But ultimately, he's going to be their center and should bounce back.

Camby's contract -- albeit not crushing -- is a gigantic waste unless he retires. It wouldn't shock me if that happens, but I'm sure he'd love to be paid to sit at the end of the bench.

Then there's Stoudemire. What the hell do you do with this guy? Sure, he could come back and be a key piece next season, but how can you trust that? Even when he was healthy (let's use February as his peak), he averaged just under 15 pts/gm and 5.6 rbs/gm. $44+ million for that kind of production is not going to get it done.

The Asset

Iman Shumpert is the Knicks most valuable player. He's young, he's due very little money, and he's coming off a great playoff run. Don't let the points fool you (a shade over 9/gm); Shumpert was the second-best player on the Knicks' roster. He's ferocious defensively and has continued to show signs of getting better.

The worry with Shumpert is the ACL he tore last postseason. It took him a few weeks to play in an NBA game, and arguably a half of a season to get back to how he played last year.

The Leader

I'm going to just come right out and say it. Carmelo Anthony is not an elite NBA player.

Melo is one of the most prolific scorers in the league. He is outstanding in isolation and can get off any shot at any time. But I'm starting to worry if he can single handedly carry a team on his own.

Melo's wanted to be a Lebron James for years, but at some point, the NBA world has to accept that he is not that. He's only made it out of the first round twice. And while his numbers have either equaled or improved, the continuous seasons of underachieving has finally made me believe that he needs better talent around him rather than just being "the guy".

The Solution

There aren't many moved the Knicks can make. I highly doubt any team is going to take Stoudemire straight up. Obviously they aren't trading Melo, so how can this team be fixed? I think the answer is trading the Knicks one true asset in Shumpert.

Listen, I love Shumpert and absolutely think he'll be a very good NBA player. But you have to win now and this team is setup for that.

The Knicks can kill two stones by packaging Shumpert with Amare or Chandler. Trading Chandler might not be the most popular opinion, but the possibility exists that with the amount of games he has played, he could be heading towards the downside of his career. One thing history suggests is that NBA centers fall very quickly.

But let's say they can get by with keeping Chandler. That leads Amar'e. I really believe a team will take Amar'e and the two years left on his deal to also acquire Shumpert. It's about finding the right trade partner.

The Possibilities

Paul Pierce: Pierce has one year left on his deal. He can still score and would be a perfect compliment to Melo. But age is a BIG factor and Pierce had plenty of moments this year where he looked worn down. If Pierce were a year or two younger, I think it would make sense, but I think it's a bit too late to explore this option.

Rajon Rondo: This one is a bit more interesting. There's been rumors that the Celtics might be intrigued with trading Rondo. This type of deal would have drawbacks from both sides. Do the Celtics want to be saddled with Kevin Garnett/Pierce/Stoudemire with no point guard? Do the Knicks want to take a risk on Rondo coming back healthy? Would the Knicks also take on Brandon Bass's contract (The Celtics would also need to throw in a middle-tier contract and Bass makes the most sense)? The idea of having Rondo is nice, I just don't think both sides could make this work.

Joe Johnson: The Knicks could probably do a Johnson/Stoudemire deal straight up, but I really don't think they want to be saddled with Johnson until 2016. I'd consider this a very last resort.

Dirk Nowitzki: See Paul Pierce (plus Nowitzki has a no-trade clause AND the Knicks would probably have to take on Vince Carter as well). Just don't see this happening.

Pau Gasol/Steve Nash: Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. This would be quite the shake up. It's due-able if the Knicks give up Stoudemire/Shumpert/Raymond Felton. We've heard Gasol's name in potential deals for years. And I really think the Lakers are fully ready to give up Nash, who has one-year left on his deal. But this means the Lakers would have to take a small step back. And I think the Lakers focus is going to be on how to deal with the Kobe Bryant issue. This trade feels more like fantasy land than real life.

Chris Paul: And here's one of the more interesting "what ifs". Knicks give up Stoudemire/Shumpert/Felton for Paul/Caron Butler. There's a lot of things that need to go right with this trade but it absolutely is a consideration. Paul would have to decide he doesn't want to be a Clipper. The Clippers would have to be sold on Stoudemire (and probably find a suitor for DeAndre Jordan). Imagine a Knicks lineup with Anthony and Paul? The naysayers from the Knicks end are doing to say that Paul has fizzled in the playoffs early and will wonder if his legs can hold up through the length of his new deal. But stars win in the NBA. And this could be the game changer.

The Result

Ultimately, I think the Knicks stand pat. Stoudemire's health is just too much of an uncertainty and I really don't know if another team would want to take on the risk. Both the Knicks as well as (insert trading partner) have to ask themselves "What will Amar'e Stoudemire be giving me in the next few years?"

I didn't even touch on the coach, but I'd give it a 50/50 chance Mike Woodson is fired.  If he is let go, it might be even more of a realistic opportunity that the Knicks explore trades so that whoever the new coach is can almost start new.

But the future of the Knicks is going to fall on their star and how the team can build around him.

As a fan......I am definitely worried.

When a Video Game is More Than A Video Game

I wrote this blog post a long time ago for another site, but since I love it so much, I figured I'd re-post it here (Cop out, right? I've just had nothing noteworthy to write about in a few days). But to be fair, I added a few additional notes in this one. Enjoy!

We all played them growing up. Sports games were a part of our lives. The thrill of rushing home to start up the new release of a game was a feeling like no other. All of us didn't just play the game. We lived the game. There were two in particular that set the video game bar in my life.


The NHL Series (The Sega Genesis): If you watched the movie Swingers, you have an even better understand of why these games were great (Especially NHL '94 and '96). What was better than playing on ice that was too small and with players that were too quick?

The best features of this game were the little ones. I loved the Spin-O-Rama move that they instituted later on (I think in 1995, don't quote me). I found it hilarious that you can do a little ballerina twirl and get by three players. Best of all, the Spin-O-Rama was the Start button. How stupid is that? Somehow, it worked.

What also worked was the wrap-around goal. You can have a player go behind the net, come around and score. The goalies were always too slow to react to this. They did make it a little harder in NHL '96 to pull the move off, but if you were down 4-3 with 5 minutes left, it was your best bet.

Now I don't know if this was just a glitch or it was just my game, but anytime I popped in my game after a long period of not playing and tried to load up my season as the Rangers, it would always vanish. It was like the game was punishing me for not playing. It was telling me "You ignored me for so long? You will pay for this!"

The older NHL games didn't really have a franchise mode. You could play a whole season but once it ended, it ended.

One of the more underrated features is the moment after the Stanley Cup is won. A random player will come out holding the actual cup with the team surrounding them. I thought that was beyond cool.

I just loved getting a quick game with my buddies and just playing to see who allowed the most goals. I can go three years without playing it, pop in my Sega Genesis, and my night is fulfilled.

The NHL series was simple and to the point. It was money and everyone knew it.

The Madden Series (Any system): I could spend about 25 posts just on the Madden series by itself. I mainly went the Sega to Playstation route, with a little Dreamcast and XBox thrown in there. I don't know one male under the age of 25 who did not have a Franchise mode that lasted less than three seasons. Not only could you play a season, but you could draft and scout players, building them up into future superstars. My teams became grouped into my favorite teams. If I lost a game, I'd be miserable the rest of my night.

One of my favorite all-time athletes (Right below Derek Jeter and Patrick Ewing) was my RB in Madden '02: Doug Hamilton. He was an absolute beast and was about 90% of my offense. With Ogden Traylor manning the QB position, my team would dominate any level (Yes, his name was Ogden. A hilarious feature of Madden is the made-up player names, which would just shuffle first and last names of existing players). When Madden '03 came out, I felt just a little sad getting the new game, because that meant I had to start a new franchise (I haven't played Madden in about six or seven years, but I think they allow transferring of rosters from one game to the next. If they don't, then that is just stupid).

I was also one of those losers who played online when if first came out (PS2 in 2004 or 2005, forgot the year). I could pop in your game and play against someone from another country. My ultimate goal was to beat the top players. My claim to fame was beating the 9th player in the world. I felt proud than getting into college.

I also loved the players that were great in Madden but awful in real life. I could make a list of guys who had 98 Speed or 95 Throwing Accuracy but were fourth stringers rotting on the bench of a real team. Trung Candidate had the skills of Barry Sanders. Michael Bishop had a cannon of an arm. Jerome Mathis had about a 99 in everything (Coincidentally, it's probably the amount of receiving yards he amassed as a pro).

Were there plenty of bugs? Of course there were. You could run the same curl route with a big WR and he'll catch it 9 out of 10 times. Ten years ago when Michael Vick was on the cover, he could run around all day and find a way to get 20 yards. I was able to routinely kick 59-yard FGs as if my kicker had the leg of Pele. My biggest issue with the whole online thing was people would cheat. There was some weird bug where if someone toggled their Internet connection and if it was done just right, the player could disconnect from their game and not suffer a loss. It was absurd and happened against me a ton of times (I'm STILL getting fired up over this).

But even the flaws is what made the game unique. Madden became its own sport.

This was part of my life growing up. Unfortunately, when you grow up, you are too busy to play video games. But there's always that one rainy Sunday afternoon when you can pop in that old video game and remember the days of your childhood.

Everyone had a franchise that lost the Super Bowl two years in a row or a Jari Curri who scored 65 goals in your season. If you could go back in time to play one more season as the St. Louis Rams, you'd do it in a heartbeat.

Everyone has a story.

But now the most pressing question. Do I draft Pete Welker or Hardy Barnes with my first-round pick?