How can a team that is as physically gifted as the Portland Trailblazers implode as greatly as they have? Well, if you didn't believe that chemistry means something to a team, you better believe it now.
The Blazers are a team that has a tremendous amount of talent, but along with this talent they have an inordinate number of the NBA bad boys. At the top of the list is the Blazers' best player, Rasheed Wallace. Now, I don't know what is going on in Wallace's life, but the way he carries himself on the basketball court is utterly ridiculous. He has all the talent in the world-he was a top-five pick out of college and an All-Star this year-but he squanders it with his temper. For the second straight year Wallace set an NBA record for technical fouls, and racked up a number of ejections and suspensions to go along with it. When he is on the court, he can be one of the best players in the league, but unfortunately he takes himself out of too many games with his childish antics.
While the Blazers' main problems stem from Wallace's temper, they do not end there. Even though the Blazers have a cast of former All-Stars at every position, they have been unable to win it all. Players squabble over playing time, moan about the disrespect they receive from the coaching staff and don't put in a consistent amount of effort every day. Compounding these problems is the bad boy nature of two of their recent acquisitions. Shawn Kemp and Rod Strickland are both tremendously talented players-Kemp jumped straight to the NBA from high school and was an instant star, and Strickland is one of the best pure point guards in the game-but they both have substance abuse problems. Kemp has been on a downward spiral since he was traded away from the Seattle Supersonics. All signs indicated that he had a problem: he gained weight, missed team practices, and his level of play dropped off. But it was only late this season that it was determined that he has an addiction to cocaine. Kemp was one of the most promising players of the early '90s, but he has now snorted his career away.
Strickland's problems are similar to Wallace's-his fiery temper has always gotten him in trouble-but he also has had trouble with the bottle. Earlier this season, while he was a member of the Washington Wizards, Strickland was convicted of driving under the influence for the third or fourth time. He pleaded guilty, and will serve time after the season ends, which for the Blazers appears to be fast approaching.
The only Blazers' player that has risen above the fray is Bonzi Wells. Wells emerged this year when veteran small forward Steve Smith was injured, and he has thrived in his new role on the team. Unfortunately for the team and himself, Wells tore his anterior cruciate ligament in a game late in the regular season. With the injury to Wells the Blazers season was effectively over, because he was the only player on the floor that could be relied on for consistent effort and performance.
The Blazers could have been one of the best teams in NBA history, but the results that their talented squad has garnered are unimpressive. They are one of the few teams in the NBA that has the depth and veteran presence to win the title, but they will not do so until they achieve some modicum of positive team chemistry. In most cases, chemistry is an overrated aspect of the team game, but in this instance it is all the Blazers need.
The early report
After making my predictions for Major League Baseball two weeks ago, it is getting increasingly clearer to me that anything can happen in a baseball season. Granted, the season is still young, but so far there have been many surprises.
The first surprise to many is the teams that currently lead each division. If you looked at the standings on Monday morning, you would have seen four teams that did not make the postseason last year on top of their division. The Red Sox lead the AL East, but that is not extremely surprising. Most people picked them to make the playoffs as either the division champ or the wild card winner, but it is the Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies that are the most surprising. It still remains to be seen if these three teams can keep up their torrid pace, and I don't think that they will, but it is possible. All three teams have good young talent, average to very good pitching and the surprise element working for them. They have been able to catch many teams with their guard down-like the Chicago White Sox were able to in their playoff run last year-and teams will not be able to overlook them on their schedule any longer.
The flip side of the coin is that some teams have underachieved greatly at the beginning of the season. The Oakland Athletics, Atlanta Braves, New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals are all at or near the bottom of their divisions after having high expectations in the preseason. The most surprising start probably belongs to the A's. In the preseason they were one of the most hyped teams, and nearly all baseball experts picked them to win their division and fare well in the playoffs (they were the only unanimously selected division winner by the staff at ESPN.com). They have disappointed so far this spring. Other than Jason Giambi their offense has struggled, and their young pitching has been erratic. The other three underachievers have shown promise, but right now they aren't complete teams. The Braves have an anemic offense, the Mets are only average on offense and pitching, and the Cardinals have been hurt by injuries and poor offensive play. Expect all of these teams to turn around their seasons, but if they continue to flounder for much longer, they will hamper their chances of reaching the postseason.
As for players that have excelled, there is a much better crop of rookies than expected. In the AL Ichiro Suzuki is fulfilling all of the preseason hype. He has been an excellent leadoff hitter, gold glove caliber rightfielder and consistent force in the Seattle lineup. Shea Hillenbrand of the Red Sox has filled in at third base by batting .338 over the first 19 games. In the NL two rookies have risen to the top, and they battled on Sunday night. Albert Pujols of the Cardinals has been on fire. He leads the NL with a .375 batting average and has smashed six home runs. Wade Miller of the Astros had time in the majors last year, but in his true rookie season he has posted a 3-1 record with a 2.35 ERA to this point. He lost the individual battle with Pujols, who hit two home runs off of him on Sunday, but he led the Astros to a tight 4-3 victory.
Tyson gets title shot
After dominating the heavyweight division for the last half-dozen years, Lennox Lewis finally lost his title last Saturday night. So who is the new champion? Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield or maybe David Tua? No, it is Hasim Rahman.
Now, heavyweight boxing has always been a volatile division. The nature of the sport makes it possible for any fighter to win on any given day. One good punch can end a fight, so it shouldn't be a surprise that a virtual unknown like Rahman could win the title.
What is surprising, however, is that Rahman completely and utterly dominated Lewis in their battle. Lewis was clearly underprepared for the fight, and Rahman made the most of his opportunity for the titles that Lewis held. He beat up on Lewis all night long, before finally sitting him down for good in the fifth round. Lewis will get another shot at the title-it was stipulated in the contract that there would be a rematch if Lewis lost-but who he fights for the title will be up in the air.
The man who might get the first shot at the title is none other than Tyson. After losing much of his boxing skill over the last decade, Tyson will be given a shot at the title because of two factors. One, Tyson is still the most popular (read marketable) fighter in the world. He is the only boxer in the heavyweight class who can guarantee good returns on pay-per-view sales, and as long as he can do this, he will continue to get title shots. Second, Tyson is unpredictable. Ever since he lost to Buster Douglas, Tyson has followed a highly erratic path. Included in his last decade of work are a rape conviction, biting off part of Holyfield's ear and ranting and raving about eating Lewis' children.
The heavyweight division has lost most of its flair in the last decade, and hopefully Lewis' loss will shake up the division.