U.S Holiday Edition Of DNB

It is Memorial Day in the U.S.A. That is not why this is going to be a short edition of the blog though. They are putting a new roof on the place I call home. So I have banging going on and it is hard to think to be honest. It did not take much thought for Jose Calderon to take a pass on playing for Spain in the European Championships. Bryan Colangelo did everything short of forbidding Jose to play which as he explained he could not do. However reading between the lines was easy. It is like when a wife tells her husband she does not want anything for her birthday. She never means it and if that man is dumb enough not to get a gift he is in trouble. This is a topic I have talked about more than a few times. David Stern needs to step up to the plate and come up with some kind of plan together that takes the choice of playing for national teams out of players hands. It will not be a major issue when they open up talks for a new CBA in a few years. However it is something that should be put on the table. We have seen the effects on the NBA from players getting injured to just not getting the rest they need. Even in the 12 month a year sports world we live in, Players do need down time.

Just look at Chris Bosh chilling in Miami and Vegas for proof. Normally I am a fan of Chris and his videos and having fun. However I am not so sure if advertising how great you life is when times are tough for most makes a ton of sense. Add in the fact his future is unclear and there already has been a backlash against him from some fans. I am not saying that Chris should not have fun and enjoy the money that he has earned. I am just saying that making videos that highlight that fact may not be a wise move in these tough economic times.

Aside from that how bout the Orlando Magic. I am pretty proud of the Magic. The Dino Blogger showed them a lot of love in the pre-season predictions and they are showing you why I did. Stan Van Gundy did not win the coach of the year as I predicted he would. Dwight Howard did not get his first M.V.P trophy. But the NBA finals vs the Lakers was my NBA Finals prediction and it is very much alive. I had tried to back away from the pick saying the the Cavs were likely going to get out of the East. I lost faith in Superman and fell in love with the idea of a King making it make to the finals. I am sorry Orlando Magic, it looks like my first impression way back in October may have been the right one.

Someone also pointed out to me the fact I nailed the Raptors Draft pick last year. Technically that is true as I thought the Raptors would take Roy Hibbert out of Georgetown. Well they did select him only to be part of the ill fated Jermanie O'Neal trade. So this person asked me who is my call for the pick this year. Well aside from the banging on the roof being distracting. The fact Bryan Colangelo is shopping for a second pick to me makes the choice a little more of a challenge this year. If I nail their pick 2 years in a row that would be pretty funny. It is not like Bryan Colangelo is doing Interviews in the Dino Nation Blog at this point. Not that he would not be welcome. I think he would be a great interview to do. In fact no on person suggested to be that Hibbert was going to be selected at all. They did have him up for a workout but that was public knowledge. Bottom line is the Raptors had no interest in my pick and if not for the Pacers I would have been wrong. Still no matter how you end up being right it still feels good to be right. So I am going to take a pass for now before I make my pick this year. I have a streak on the line after all.

What would a holiday be without some entertainment. So here is the latest Kobe and Lebron puppet show. It is an upgrade from #3 which was WEAK!!!