Weekend Follies

Before I get to any NFL stuff I have to address the fight at the Garden Saturday night. I did not see it live, but I received updates through out the night, and then watched many replays and read a few articles on the subject. First off, I want to make it clear that this fight was nothing close to the Pistons/Pacers brawl from 2004. This fight was more reminiscent of the old Knicks/Heat fights from the 1990's. While it spilled into the crowd briefly, the Garden security did a great job and there were many players/coaches trying to break it up as well. Fights like this happen in baseball a few times a year, it is always appears crazier in basketball though because the fans are so close to the action. Also, people perceive basketball players differently because of the "hip-hop" characteristic they bring to the sport. That is a much more difficult issue to dive into, so I will just examine this crazy scene individually.

The first culprit is George Karl. There is no way that he should still have his starters in the game at that point. His team is up by 20 points with 2:00 to play. At that point it was clear he was trying to prove something to Isiah/the Knicks and daring them to respond. At that point Isiah apparently told his team to foul them hard on any lay-ups. While I understand that feeling, you need to have more composure than to respond that way to Karls' lack of class.

Mardy Collins did basically what is coach told him to by fouling a guy hard on an open lay-up. Its tough to kill JR Smith since he was the one who got fouled. A natural reaction is to back up to the guy who fouled you. The main instigators are Carmelo Anthony and Mate Robinson. Robinson and Anthony went right into the scuffle with no intentions of breaking anything up. Robinson began jawing with and then wrestling with Smith. Anthony was being held back and then broke free to punch Collins in the face. At that point it seemed like half the Knicks team tried to get after Anthony while he back peddled. The officials did the right thing by ejecting all 10 guys on the court. The Nuggets did the right thing by not commenting on any of it after the game. The Knicks on the other hand showed another example of how low this organization has fallen. Instead of saying that it was an unfortunate event and they could have prevented it, guys like Isiah and Robinson are talking about how the Nuggets were trying to embarrass them and they felt they needed to respond. To me that is a joke. I understand that the Nuggets are not doing the right thing, but that does not give you carte blanche to attack them. All the Knicks had to do was swallow their pride and play hard. At the end of the game Isiah could have voiced his displeasure and everyone would have agreed with him. Now he and his team look just as bad as the Nuggets.

Predictions on suspensions (only main culprits):

Carmelo Anthony: 10 games
J.R. Smith: 5 games
Nate Robinson: 5 games
Mardy Collins: 3 games
Jared Jefferies: 2 games
Isiah Thomas: 2 games

Carmelo was an instigator and threw a punch, Robinson was a main instigator, Smith fought and instigated, Collins started it all with the foul and Jefferies tried chasing Carmelo down the court and could barely be restrained. Isiah did not fight at all, but there are reports that he ordered hard fouls and after the game his comments were inappropriate. In addition, the league should come down harder considering the players union will appeal and chances are the suspensions will be slightly reduced after that.

Giants

A very bad loss. I don't have much to say. The defense did not play well, especially on the go ahead drive at 23-21 Giants. At home, late in the season with the playoffs still within your control you can not lose that game. In the same respect though, the Eagles have played great in the last month after Donavan McNabb went down. As a Giant fan I feel that they had a ton of opportunities (as usual). I still feel that they will get into the playoffs, but I obviously would have been much more confident had they won this game. Not the Eagles and Cowboys are ahead of them within their own division. The only good news is that the Eagles go into Dallas next weekend. It is going to be tough, but Atlanta and Carolina both lost this week as well. It is very conceivable for the Eagles and Giants to be the two wild card teams, even if one is at 8-8.

Jets

Sorry Jet fans. Did not watch any of the game. I see that they won, while Jacksonville and Kansas City lost. Looking good at the moment, but next week is HUGE.

Other Stuff

• How else can I say that LDT is the best in the league. Not sure if he is the best ever as some are saying. The only one that I have seen play at this high of a level on such a dominant team is Marshall Faulk for about a four year period with the Rams. He did not run the ball as well though, but got more receptions.
• Do the Eagles have a chance in Dallas? Yes. I think their defense will cause fits for Romo, and they could easily come out of Dallas in control of the division.
• I really like what the Chargers are doing, but I do not think Rivers is able to the big plays and stay away from the turnover in the postseason, especially against the Pats. I honestly feel that the Patriots will go into San Diego and beat the Chargers with in the Divisional Round, or the Conference Chamionship. Bellichek will dissect Rivers like he did Big Ben two years ago.
• If Buster Olney is on target and the Mets are going after Alex Rios, I would definitely be in favor. He broke out last year, with the exception of an injury. The Mets have enough bullpen depth to deal Heilman. In addition, Green is definitely not an answer in right.

STKAFI