L.A. Pride is a true sports enthusiast.  A former youth, and division II assistant basketball coach, who studied the martial arts, he enjoys and follows all sports, even hockey.  His quick wit and insight brings a fresh view to the world of sports. You may not always agree with him, but you will enjoy his highly opinionated thoughts.

 Is it me…

 Or did Bernard Hopkins miss a Math class or two?  Hopkins, age 46, became the oldest man to win a Boxing championship, this weekend in Montreal, by defeating light heavyweight champ Jean Pascal.  Hopkins said in a post fight interview that he plans to hold the title five or six years, until he is 50.  Luckily for us, Hopkins is a fighter and not an educator.  Hopkins, a native of Philadelphia, had threatened to wear a Philadelphia Flyers (Hockey) jersey into the ring.  (Montreal is Canadians’ territory in the National Hockey League.) Apparently he thought better of that, although one member of his corner did wear a Flyers’ jersey.   In the old days he would have had to fight his way into the ring wearing another team’s jersey.

 Roy Jones, Jr. was knocked out in the tenth and final round of his cruiser weight fight in Moscow.  Jones who was the underdog, had managed to survive by showboating and counterpunching throughout the fight.  Roy claims he is not sure about his future and wants to think about things.  What is there to think about Roy?   You have gotten old and slow, it happens to everyone.   What you need to think about is what you are going to do in retirement.  Please don’t continue boxing and risk serious injury!!!!!

Is it me…

Or do we need to wish “The Golden Boy” all the best?  Oscar De La Hoya, “The Golden Boy”, has checked himself into a California rehabilitation center for substance abuse.  Oscar, one of boxing’s all time greats, won 10 titles in six weight classes, and owns a career record of 39-6.  We wish you a healthy and speedy Oscar.  Get well soon.

Is it me…

Or did the Miami Heat step up their game?  Last week, I predicted the Chicago Bulls would win the eastern conference playoffs in six, and I trashed Miami’s bench.  I guess I ticked off the Heat, who are up 2-1 in the series. (We went to press before last night’s results.)  The Heat have won two straight, going into last night’s game,  and are on “fire”.  Game two in Chicago was noted for excellent bench production from Haslem and Miller of the Heat, while game 3 in Miami , was the Chris Bosh show.  Also note that in both games won by Miami, they played suffocating defense and frustrated the Bulls.  We still like the Bulls, but it may take seven.

The Dallas Mavericks lead the OKC Thunder 3-1 after a thrilling fourth quarter comeback Monday night.  Down 15 points late in the fourth, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd led a furious charge to force the game in to overtime, where they put it away and crushed the Thunder.  The Mavericks, who never led in regulation time, now seem destine to win the Western Conference finals.  Much was made of Jason Kidd’s age and ability to keep up with the younger Thunder players, Durant and Westbrook; however Jason has more than held his own with Durant and has outplayed Westbrook.   Youth is wasted on the young!

Is it me…

Or does the British Premier Soccer League take winning seriously?  The Premier Soccer dropped three teams to the minor league for their poor performance this season.  The league will allow the top three minor league teams to join the Premier League.  Aside from the damage this does to a club’s reputation, it will also cost the demoted clubs $65 million dollars in lost television revenue.

Just imagine if this was the policy in the United States.  The NBA could drop Minnesota, Cleveland, and Toronto and bring up Reno, Rio Grande Valley, and Iowa from the D-league.  The NFL could boot out Carolina, Denver, and Cincinnati, and bring up Auburn, Oregon, and TCU from the college ranks.  This has potential; you would have two playoff races going on at the same time; one for the championship and one to stay in the majors.  We could call the fight to stay in the league, “The Race to Save Face”.

 Is it me…

Or is it with a heavy heart we note the passing of the “Macho Man”?   Randy Savage, “Macho Man”, was killed in a car crash Friday near his Florida home.  “Macho Man” a professional wrestler to the max was famous for his abuse of Miss Elizabeth, his real-life wife and manager, and his Slim Jim commercials.  “Macho Man” was 58.  Savage who played minor league baseball had several disagreements with the WWE, which has resulted in their refusal to induct him in the WWE Hall of Fame.  We can only hope that his passing will result in a softening of their position and allow this great wrestler into the Hall.

Edited by D. Pride