Muse, Money, Babies

Paul Pierce calls himself the "best player on the planet."

And when Kobe’s name is brought up?

Kobe? Who?

What up, blood? Paul Pierce, please. You’re from Lynwood.

And like the competitive person he is, figure-tively, LeBron welcomes another to his pool party.

Gilbert Arenas has built a million dollar pool and a mural that can compete with that of LeBron’s ostentatious rooftop proclamation.

And so LeBron retaliates by giving each USA teammate a pair of hi-def headphones.

Too bad Gilbert didn’t get one.

And too bad LeBron’s making much money and publicity by making his generous contribution.

Shame on me.

I don’t know, but I think a topless Tony Parker is particularly disturbing…

On the topic of disturbing, Shawn Kemp has gotten a new contract in Italy.

No, not to breed babies. Surprisingly.

He’s to play basketball. Professionally. Merda Santa!

The babies are calling. Not to mention the women.

They’ve gotten quite big yet they’ve retained his hops. Who know’s how many will sprout up from Italia?

So Darren McFadden’s idol is out to set the standard once again.

Stepbrothers: A Review

Perhaps a movie is produced where you were to watch 5-year-olds on screen cement their hatred only to find love entangled within their abyss of childishness.

Too cliche, no?

How about inserting Will Ferrell and John Reilly?

Sexy? Definitely not.

I'll be the first to admit I'm not too attracted to nutsack waving men. Or boys for that matter.

Funny? At times.

Crude? Yes.

Classless? Definitely.

These 40 -year-old boys act like 5-year-olds, and in true form, take a beating from playground dwelling inhabitants. Right on cue.

This movie, though it has some creative one-liners, which are more absurd than anything, borders the immaturity of low British humor.

Dale Doback (Reily) and Brennan Huff (Ferrell) fight for territory after their parents get married. Like. You guessed. Five-year-olds.

Their cluelessness, or witlessness, makes Stepbrothers a one-joke movie.

Are there laughs? Definitely.

But for a good reason? Perhaps you should examine yourself before anything.

Repetitively pelted with immaturity and sexual crassness, this Will Ferrell directed flop lands somewhere in the lower section of Talledega Nights and hell.

Perhaps something's a bit wrong with that.

Meanwhile, we can all continue to watch 5-year-olds duke it out on screen.

USA Basketball

Dwayne Wade for LeBron?

A fair replacement I suppose, considering the fact that the opponent was Canada.

Not much was expected of Wade, who just returned from injury.

Unlike the NBA, international rules allow for clawing and grabbing that most NBA refs would not hesitate to blow.

But the United States used the rule to the best of their capacities, forcing 24 Canadian turnovers.

That facilitated the team to fly down the court and leave discombobulated Canadians in their wake.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the game is the battle for the number two point guard position with the winner likely to get the starting opportunity in Beijing.

Chris Paul and Deron Williams each made spectacular plays that screamed for Mister Mike to sit down Jason Kidd and throw him in a suit instead. Perhaps that won't be so bad considering the fact that Paul and Williams made poor Jermaine Anderson look like a discombobulated college walk on.

Perhaps even more interesting was the fact that Carl English called out Kobe.

And of course Kobe and the rest slapped and toyed with the Canadians.

At the end of the game it became a matter of margin of victory.

I guess it's all interesting.

And well, I admit I'm happy at least he's healthy. For the moment.

The Dark Knight: A Review

A joker.

A businessman. Dressed in spandex.

A movie based on the frivolities of a comic book series.

Yet it isn't what it seems.

The Dark Knight transcends the played out comic book to big screen catastrophe.

Instead, it's an exploration into crime, psychology, history and social order.

An ageless Michael Cain plays a flawless Alfred Pennyworth, offering insight that goes beyond the battle between good and evil.

He tells him to know his limits.

He doesn’t listen.

“Batman has no limits.”

But Alfred persists.

“Some men aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.”

That man, played by the late Heath Ledger, believes “whatever doesn't kill you simply makes you stranger.”

He's a sadistic serial murderer, he who takes pleasure in questioning, “why so serious?” before carving a grin into his victims.

This isn’t any Clinique-wearing clown.

He’s the joker, who fittingly mocks social order and the subsequent absurdity of attempting to uphold it in spite of chaos.

Amidst the twisted metal, rappelled bodies, explosions, there is a sentimentality secreted in the frenetic.
Its rapid fire is complemented by a reverberating score from the brilliant Hans Zimmer.

Haunting and tragic, The Dark Knight soars on the wings of its clandestine hero, yet resounds with a triumphant declaration, rising into a deafening crescendo.

And so you question why so serious?

Perhaps directing the question to Batman would merit a sufficient response.

He is unlimited. Isn't he?

A new kind of Brand: Love?

Kevin Love's life has been seemingly served on a silver platter.

A father who had played collegiately and professionally.

A former coach who had two consecutive (now three) Final Four runs.

An uncle a member of the Beach Boys.

He's enjoyed his fair share of limelight, though he didn't get much recognition in Oregon, even when he was in high school. At times, the Oregeonian papers shuned him for his self-first mentality because of his gaudy stats.

But that's why he exudes a self-confidence and maybe that's why he carries just a small chip on his shoulder.

In this age, where athleticism is coveted above all else, even skill set, fundamentally sound basketball players are seemingly in the shadow of those players' shadows.

The media will tell you what he's not.

He's not the best athlete. But he's lost fifteen pounds. And improved his vertical leap. It's 35 inches, believe it or not, as high as Michael Beasley's.

He's not the best shooter. He has yet to make one in summer league play. Yet he still scored 26 points and grabbed 10 offensive rebounds (15 total) in an 88-78 victory over the Trailblazers Thursday.

He's not the strongest. But he's capable of doing this.

He's not the quickest. But he can make your offense all the more quicker.

He's been compared to a "poor man's" Elton Brand. All those comparisons are unjustified.

Just look at what he can do.

*Newsflash Lorenzo Mata commits 6 fouls in 21 minutes while committing 5 turnovers.

**Breaking News Davon Jefferson plays 11 minutes in first summer league game.

In response to a comment of a fellow blogger, I do inherently see the good in people, but it does get redundant to hear superfluous praise, doesn't it? No? Then call me a cynic.

From the cover into your covers

You’ve seen the commercials. The ones with lightning-paced action. Darren McFadden running past, around, over digitalized defenders.

McFadden has compiled enough. 4,590 rushing yards and 43 total touchdowns in his three year stint with the Razorbacks.

And rightly so, he’s been chosen to grace the cover of the latest EA Sports release. Given his performance.

The following season he will join the hapless Oakland Raiders.

It’s a good thing that he isn’t on the Bengals. But who knows? The Raiders might become the Bengals with this addition.

Over the past two years, more than twelve Bengals have been arrested, including arrests for improper exhibition of firearms, possession of a concealed firearm, aggravated assault with a firearm. Otherwise, these cats are vandalizing, burglarizing, grand theft-izing, stealing from teammates, resisting arrest, smoking weed in front of a cop, and UI-ing on anything that moves.

Chris Henry spreads arrests like Travis Henry with AIDs.

McFadden has been in the same quandary.

The Escalade magically conjuring on his driveway, a few barfights involving shoes and marijuana.

What’s missing is a child here or there.

McFadden has a children sprouting around the hemisphere. Before we mark him as the Shawn Kemp of football, I guess we’ll let his game speak for itself.

Until then, we’ll wait for the Raiders to become the Bengals.

And about the game, there aren’t many tweaks to the gameplay and it gets quite drab. I find it much more fun to play as myself. My 6’ 10” self.

*NEWSFLASH Lorenzo Mata scores 12 points in summer league victory over Minnesota Timberwolves. Did he score that many last season? I’ll get back to you… He did manage to pick up five fouls. But that’s nothing new. Oh, and the sea lion also managed to pull down 17 boards. It’s fun to watch Kevin Love waddle around the court.

The "Formidable" Clippers

Camby. Baron.

Knocking on the door of Donald Sterling’s penthouse suite.

Within a few months, he’ll be traveling with the rest of them through Holiday Inns as the notoriously thrifty and unimaginative Sterling scrutinizes at his cut.

“We will be a formidable team,” said Mike Dunleavy.

Oh, so they’re believing already.

A rugged, free-wheeling point guard and an aging shot blocker who logged a career high 34 minutes a game last year must be formidable.

Throw in Chris Kaman, Tim Thomas, and Cuttino Mobley. And what do you have? A discombobulated group of players, guided by a coach who is as egocentric as the eccentric and individualistic trio listed above.

Check his demise in Portland. New talent replacing familiar faces. (Bonzi Wells replacing Scottie Pippen, enter Rasheed).

Dunleavy has trouble maintaining an equilibrium, especially with fresh players.

Check young, talented Clippers that never developed. (Darius Miles, Quentin Richardson, Michael Olowakandi).

But they still do believe in this guy. Apparently Sterling does.

The clash of egos, and Dunleavy’s inability to control them will lead another Clipper team to the same junkyard once again, and like a tried piece of scrap metal, it will be recycled over and over again.

He’s no Don Nelson, and certainly no Mike D’Antoni.

He’s certainly not formidable.

But maybe as formidable as his son, a vagrant wandering the streets of Indianapolis.

Summer League Evals

1. Derrick Rose – Was pulled out after poor showings because of tendonitis, but showed flashes of brilliance. His athleticism is still unparalleled at the pro level. But it doesn’t help that within a month, he’s been fined a grand for speeding over 100 mph.

2. Michael Beasley – His game was unmatched at the college level, too refined and too smooth. His ego was too. Now standing at 6’ 7” instead of his 6’ 10” listed height, Beasley was able to get his shot off against the likes of Joakim Noah, but struggled against the longer, more athletic Sean Williams of the Nets and went 1-13, getting his shots batted around multiple times. But like he would say, just B-Easy.

3. OJ Mayo – Made his NBA splash, literally, by baptizing second-year UConn man Hilton Armstrong. Scored 15 points, but also had eight turnovers. His shooting form is still obvious – he’s shooting a stellar 59% from range, while converting 93% from the stripe. He's also averaging 5 turnovers after four games.

4. Russell Westbrook - Perhaps the most efficient summer league performance – averaged 16.5 points, 3.5 assists, 1.5 turnovers on 50% shooting in less than 25 minutes played per contest. Athleticism and defensive intensity has given PJ Carlesimo orgasms.

5. Kevin Love - Struggled to get in rhythm and looked like the sea lion that Jay Bilas had called him. He had four fouls and five turnovers in the first half, managing only four points. However, he still finished with a meaty, and sea-lionish 18 points and 13 boards. Perhaps playing alongside former Florida Gator Corey Brewer gave him motivation.

7. Eric Gordon – Showed flashes, but erratic handle and poor decision making marred debut. Pulled out due to “injury.” Averaged 19 points, but shot just 32%. Hey! Sounds like Baron Davis. Welcome to the Clippers.

8. Joe Alexander – 2-13. 7 points in debut. The West Virginia lumberjack touch has left him. Maybe he should grow a beard.

9. DJ Augustin – Larry Brown raved and drooled over this kid and persuaded Jordan on picking him over Bayless. Averaging a solid 14.5 points on 50% shooting, 40% from range. At least he’s not Kwame.

10. 15. Brook & Robin – Can the summer league rule where players can get 10 fouls and still play and still violate other men be banned? Please?

11. Jerryd Bayless – Stroked in 28 points in debut. Probably the most refined guard with the best shooting touch in this class.

14. Anthony Randolph – The shy kid had 30 points in his debut. Currently averaging 20.5 on 57% shooting. Often looks lackadaisical. I guess it’s good that he'll play alongside Corey Maggette then.

22. Courtney Lee –Held his own against Kevin Durant. Serious, hard-worker hit 47% on three point field goals, averaged 20.2 points a game in five games.

28. Donte Green – 40 points in Durant-esque fashion – pull up J’s and showing off his deep range, finishing 5-10 on threes and 12-20 on the game.

Mario Chalmers – Shined against Derrick Rose, performed solidly against Westbrook. Long arms a bother.

Arron Afflalo?? Arron Afflalo???? Averaging 20 points a contest on 58% shooting. How about that Zoo Crew?

So what can we tell from summer league?

Nothing.

It just creates more room for speculation.

iPhone 3G

I was semi-enthusiastic when Apple announced the arrival of the new iPhone 3G.

But being the impulsive person I am, that notion came and past just like my impulsiveness.

So I find myself in line at seven in the morning on Friday, along with the other 400 impulsive consumers that the US always seems to have.

Nonetheless, I wait for my fair share of time - 3 hours - until I meet the retailer. Who is fiddling with his own iPhone and smiling like the rest of the giddy retailers that enjoy waving their activated products in our faces.

So I make my payment. And it wasn't $299. It was $499. I wasn't "ready" for an upgrade, so the "upgrade" fee was $200. At this point, I was I hungry and was tired from dealing with smiling Mexican retailers, so I obliged. And yes, to my impulsiveness.

I'm happy.

I have my phone and I drag race the rest of the other impetuous customers home to activate the phone. Because, well, that's what the retailer told us to do.

Only it didn't.

The servers were down and they were too at the AT&T store.

So instead of activating our phones, they gave us a brick phone and told
us to get the hell out.

That explains the smiling.

I didn't know this, of course, and I spent the rest of the day throwing the brick around trying to get it to work.

Until Saturday.

I made another visit to the store. And the fiddlers activated it in two minutes.

And so, happily, I impulsively walked out the store, leaving my SIM card on the table.

the verdict: I've added about 20 applications from the new iTunes app store. Just don't think you're getting what was advertised.

The Businessman

LeBron James. LBJ. King James.

Even grandma knows his name.

Maybe even his tatoos.

He was dubbed “the chosen one” in high school; it’s now tatted on his back.

Nike commericials give him an etheral existence, ordering us to “witness.”

That’s also tatted. On his leg.

On the court, he is a force of nature, there’s no question.

Otherwise, he is a shrewd 23-year-old manipulator.

And people praise him for his charisma, his media charm, his willingness, his smile. His shrewdness.

LeBron James is shooting for more than on-court praise. He is trying to become the first billionaire athlete, aspiring to become the next Warren Buffet.

With Nike and other endorsements with Coke, Sprite, Powerade, and Microsoft, he is churning in annual earnings of $27 million.

In 2007, James's former teammate Ira Newble wrote a formal petition addressed to the Chinese government, condemning its role in the Darfur genocide. Bron Bron, who then had an endorsement contract with a Chinese shoe company that teammate Damon Jones was also signed to, refused to sign.

The Businessman.

He has unearthed enough ground to construct 35440 square foot mansion, with room for a casino, an arcade, a recording studio, a 1500 square foot bedroom with a two story walk in closet, a movie theater, a bowling alley, a six door car garage, a two-story aquarium, a barbershop, and of course, a 90-foot Witness billboard to proclaim to overpassing planes who resides in the “home built for a king.”

LeBron may very well be one of the few people so self-interested, so self-invested, that they overlook lives for what is in his case, pocket change.

LeBron finally commented on the Darfur situation, a year after his initial action.

And now Jay-Z extends his hand to The Businessman.

Even now, he is pulling the strings, puppeteering the Cavaliers’ front office, hinting.

About his team? “I’m waiting to make it harder for myself,” he says. “But I’m making it easier for my team.”

About the Knicks’ interest? “In their dreams.”

Now the front office believes that he's not eager to resign.

So about a max extention? “I felt like I need to grow and the situation I was in prior to this wasn’t gonna let me grow as a businessman.”

All the while, he’s suggesting a new NBA logo. And crossing into high-end apparel.

But for now, get used to it.

Or praise him for his shrewdness.

Hot, Hot Summer

How ‘bout those free agents?

It’s like a scene from Wife Swap.

Baron back to reclaim his LA turf.

Elton Brand bolting for more Philly Cheesesteak and about two million in pocket change.

Steroid-injecting Corey heads to the Bay. Too bad he won’t be shooting many free throws.

Chris Kaman wanting to play for the German national team. He doesn't speak a word of German.

And a man named Smush Parker is still on the roster.

Suddenly, Donald Sterling looks nothing like the racist, Holiday Inn staying, prostitute-hiring owner he is accused to be.

And the sad thing is I feel sorry for him. Maybe just a tinge.

In other news, former UCLA and youtube sensation Russell Westbrook made his debut for Oklahoma City Monday, tallying 18 points and 5 assists, showing spectator Kevin Durant his ability to run the point.

At one stretch OKC trailed 21-6 and Westbrook kept the only nameless team in the league by scoring eight consecutive points.

His debut performance was underlined by another solid outing Tuesday, contributing 19 points on 8-10 shooting with athletic finishes while using his quickness to assert himself over a hapless Kevin Krueger.

Think Kevin Durant is happy? He came to play in the second game.

From ESPN: "Westbrook has been the best all-around player in the Orlando summer league through two games.

The 6-3 point guard seemed able to get to the rim anytime he pleased and Durant admitted after the game that he's already dreaming of the possibilities of running the wing next season as Westbrook pushes the ball frantically up the court.

Durant studied game tapes of Westbrook's college days at UCLA before the draft, but already he's topped his expectations.

'I knew Westbrook was a good defensive player and really athletic, but I didn't know he was this good,' Durant said. 'He's shown me a lot and I'm already excited about playing with him.'"

Week 1

Moment of the week:

After a four hour, 48 minute match, Raphael Nadal finally fended off five-time defending Wimbledon champion Rodger Federer by holding on 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7. And Federer, perhaps one of the classiest athletes to play the game, was gracious in his praise and perhaps poignant in light of the weight of the match. But for now the stage and the crown belongs to the 22-year-old Spaniard. It will be a match that will be etched in the history books forever, just like the Borg and McEnroe match that proceeded nearly three decades ago.

Lyric of the week:

Go farther

Go further
Go harder
Is that not why we came?
And if not, then why bother?

-Jay Z, “Mr. Carter”

Addressed to Young Carter? Wayne’s come a long way to land in Jay’s front seat.

Song of the week:

Clap Again – Akon

Amphetamines are apparently a distant past 35-year-old Senegal-born product. Outstanding hook, with violin samples, keyboard entries, and handclaps. It's message? Enjoy life. One verse: So if your life is twisted and ain't going right/Just forget about it tonight I just wanna make you happy. Finally a club banger that can be understood.

Wanted: A Review

Stylized action. Wanted. But pretty much a given.

Angelina Jolie in a Viper. Angelina Jolie in a bathtub. Angelina Jolie out of the bathtub. Yes, wanted.

Merciless action, complete with meandering bullet trajectories, exploding rats, traintrack mayhem. At hyperspeed. And there you have Wanted.

As Wesley Gibson is shoved into the assassination, he is brutally exposed to a business that eventually encompasses his lifestyle.

Gibson is enticed into this business by Morgan Freeman, who maintains his ethereal appearance. After all it’s hard to rub off being God in Bruce Almighty.

So a secret club of weaving assassins? This borders the absurdity of the Matrix series.

Like the sensational action sequences, Gibson’s pulse of 400 beats per minute allows him to kill with a precision that only fellow fraternity members possess.

From there he is shoved into a Star Wars episode. “I am your father.” Obviously, there is a lot of shoving.

In Wanted, it’s about who waves the bigger gun. Or who can commit suicide by taking down everyone else in a circle. Or who can use rats as bombs.

It does pay a price – an incomprehensible message and even more absurd feasibility.

I guess I wait for fate to guide my destiny. Right.

It passes by as a blur and it’s mayhem isn’t complete until the final bullet travels…about a few city lengths.

Overstylized? Definitely. But as Gibson would say, “what have you [seen] lately” that has left so many dead bodies in its wake?

Wall-e: A Review

Few cartoons have captivated such a mass audience.

But Pixar has been able to produce golden movies one after the other from Toy Story to Finding Nemo and making them cultural phenomenons.

Nearly a decade in the making, Wall-e transcends the boundary of simplistic cartoons and Disney has the ingenious Pixar crew to shower its thanks on.

The popular misconception of cartoons is their childishness, or "shallowness." We then shun any significant meaning it may tender behind those animations.

But Wall-e, though it may seem generic with a likable and adorable protagonist, finds friendship and love, eradicates this and instead, creates a plausable crisis.

Sent to the Earth to detect if any life form still existed, Eve is a stronger robot, and the object of Wall-e's fascination. Wall-e presents her with numerous objects, attempting to win her friendship.

Andrew Stanton develops both characters excentionally well, without dialgoue nonetheless. Much of the movie is expressed through action. When Eve automatically shuts down after being presented with a plant, we see Wall-e's dedication as he braves lightning storms and the like to take care of his friend, and to perhaps get aboard the notorious spaceship the humans lounge on.

With humans lugging their sacks of fat on the spacecraft, Wall-e, with humorous blind luck and Eve's assistance, is able to restore appreciation of the Earth and their bodily shapes as well.

An Al Gore "green" ploy? Perhaps. But an unchartered and provoking message nonetheless.

Wall-e is a tale about loneliness. We are able to see Wall-e's personality and how he interacts with others (see M-0 the cleaning robot). His antics often makes him look ridiculous, but his sense of humor is charming regardless.

I can go on but the bottom line is that Wall-e adds to the expanding list of outstanding Pixar productions.

It's reputation? Midas like.

It's message? Brilliant.

It's effect? As strong as Wall-e's grasp was on Eve's.

Hancock: A Review

Let's just say Will Smith did not put his John Hancock on the final seal of his newest Hollywood feat.

Or for that matter, Mr. Berg failed to show up.

It did start off fair enough, Hancock using enough "up your butt" jokes (which he executes in brutal fashion) and swigs of liquor to entertain. His expensive extravaganzas - one that reaches $9 million - put him between the crosshairs of the media and general public - and this is all very good.

After surrendering to Mr. Jason Bateman, Juno's lover and adoptive father, he promises to transform into a "good job[ing]" black homo. Here Smith is almost apologetic. Almost.

And then Charlize Theorn (Bateman's wife) sneezes. Actually Will Smith does.

And there it should be cut.

Instead, after hours of cutting and last minute re-working, Berg re-shapes the movie into that of X-Men, another pathetic science-fiction melodrama.

Smith's effortless performance was less than commanding, and his character is never a distinct one - sometimes an emotional bum and sometimes a thoughtful peacekeeper. We never do seem to understand who he really is.

Adding Theorn's character makes the movie absurd. Her overimportance undermines what movie-goers want to see: Will Smith.

When Hancock finally attempts to identify himself, absurd detail one after another pile up, adding to a mess created by what should be a simple script. Instead, it steps over the fine line and reaches unchartered territory, territory even Will Smith cannot unravel.

IRS: I Recycle Sh*t

So you know how we Asians like to save money? Or like to think we do? And how we stockpile worthless crap in our closets and think that one day they'll be worth a fortune?

I guess I'm only typical.

So I save things thinking that one day they'll be useful. It makes sense. Just not in the financial sense. Obviously, we aren't very shrewd economists.

We save T-shirts that can one day be re-worn. Plastic forks from our baby showers, baby spoons from, well, when we ate Gerber, and re-used Dixie cups to hold those forks and spoons.

Generalizations aside, I have hoarded about thirty Playstation One and Two games, hoping one day they would appreciate in value.

So I kept them in the closet.

And then I took them to a local trade-in store. I thought these games would at least give me sixty dollars in return.

I thought wrong.

Instead, they did not take any games from the old console, and old classic games – remember when Medal of Honor was the rage? It’s worth $1.50. And all those sports games you know that I’d have – 3 nickels apiece.

The latest game I had, NBA 2K8, I thought would give me around $15, came out a whopping $6. Not to mention the FIFA 06 game I had bought for $50. It’s worth $3.

And so I’m thinking of majoring in economics. Meanwhile, I’ll think of what the hell IRS stands for, and for that matter, keep recycling my crap.

A Small Difference

Rising crescendoes. Brass bands. For a typical rule-abiding, class-going, Asian kid, its enthralling.

Clouds of Cush. Needles and the like. For MR HGH, it smells like money. Or many, many joints for that matter.

Universitys' appetites for green and ESPN cameos are as large as Eddy Curry's is for unlimited buffet.

Ohio State totaled $104.7 million in athletic revenues...including Buckeye grill covers, Buckeye comforters, Buckeye lunchboxes, Buckeye steak... while Long Beach State reaps in about $1.5 million selling beach towels.

And then you have these kids, or parents, who feel that they are entitled to a college education because of being abnormally tall or abnormally large.

"Kids feel like they're victim[s] of the NCAA and I don't think anyone is happy with it...you can't have someone buy a kid a hamburger, but you can sell their jerseys and fill the arenas and it's fine."

So colleges must steal from players like Renardo Sidney, to self-promote... Isn't that just what Saint Stern wanted?

So college really doesn't develop these kids.

How about shipping them to Lithuania? Introduce them to the European mafia? Or unrestricted freedom that would inhibit their egos to go to work?

There's a highly rated point guard contemplating whether to play overseas instead of playing next year under Lute Olson. I wonder if he makes it back alive.

It's not those athletic directors or money-driven politicians that irritate me. And it's not the mindset of these spoon-fed, egotistical athletes. But it's actually how accepted it is to court these balloon heads into a post-graduate education, award them with accolades, praise them and feed their buffet-capacity stomachs with little regard for the masses that sit in lecture halls. And think.

But to promote, and in some cases, preserve the intellectually hungry who are at the school for a purpose, Renardo Sidney may actually mean something. Right?