Ladies: More Reasons 2 Watch Football

I did a post on my personal blog last year letting all my Renaissance Black Woman that didn't share my love for football, a different perspective as to why they should be watching. To check out that post you can go HERE. This year, VIBE Magazine helped make getting women to watch the game that I love a little easier. Check out this sexy spread that paid joint homage to their demise aligned with the demise of CW's THE GAME by pairing R&B singers with sexy NFL stars in a HOT photo shoot.

Darren Sharper and Melanie Fiona



Kerry Rhodes, Adrienne Bailon, Devin Thomas


Osi Umenyiora and Chrisette Michele


Dwight Freeney and Teairra Mari



Will Demps and Letoya Luckett

Football & Twitter = A Problem

Trash talking has officially been taken to the next level. I rep my Dallas Cowboys extra hard on twitter and several of my followers insist on replying every time I mention them. Usually you have to wait until you get in the office to trash talk or be in a sports bar, but this season I am going to have to hear the wrath from everyone in twitterville that loves to hate on my beloved Cowboys. I'm ready for it though, and have been taking in all the tweets that my boys wont make the playoffs this year like a champ. I'm glad we don't have a lot of hype around our team this year because the hype never did us any good. I'm glad they are underestimating us.

See how hype twitter has gotten me and there are still a couple weeks until camp. I can't wait to twitter during games this football season. My roommate will probably be extremely happy because being able to tweet my frustrations to the world might lessen the octaves at which I yell at the TV by having an alternative outlet to vent.

Working for ESPN for 3 years I've had the opportunity to see athletes in a different light that the average fan doesn't get a chance to see. Thanks to twitter, that dynamic has changed for everyone.There are so many athletes on twitter that bring you right into their homes on a regular basis. From Stephon Marbury (@StarburyMarbury) announcing streaming himself live for 24hours, to Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) posting a twitpic of every meal he consumes to Chad Ocho Cinco (@OGOchoCinco) announcing he is going to tweet from the sidelines this season; the fun never ends with athletes on twitter.

A big shout out goes to all the athletes that have ever replied to me on twitter. I wish I could remember all of them but these are the only 2 crossing my mind right now.

Martellus Bennet @martybtv
Steven Jackson @sj39

Please forgive me if I forgot you...that probably means you need to reply to me more often...lol!

Besides those listed above here are a list of 5 other Football players that you have to follow on twitter this coming NFL season...oh and follow me too @Eb_the_Celeb

1. Tommie Harris @realdeal91
2. Shawne Merriman @shawnemerriman
3. Larry Fitzgerald @LFitzgerald11
4. Terrell Owens @terrellowens81
5. Kerry Rhodes @kerryrhodes

Football season, where for art thou?

This has been the longest off season in history! I swear, every since the Pro Bowl, which I don't normally watch, I have waiting for those gridiron warriors to take their various positions on their respective teams, but, it's not time.
On more Sundays than I care to count, I have turned to CBS, Fox and NBC to catch a game only to realize, it's not time. I find myself watching SportsCenter hoping to catch the highlights and scores but lately all I see is baseball, golf and tennis. Why? Because it's not time!
Well when is it time, dammit?! When will I be able to turn on SportsCenter and see highlights of my future ex-husband, Julius Peppers, knock the breaks off somebody's quarterback? When will I be able to see Steve Smith catch a short pass and run it in for a touchdown? How soon will I be able to see that dynamic duo of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart run all over the opponets' offensive line?
Can you tell I'm a Carolina fan?
Soon! It's coming soon! The Bills and the Titans will battle it out on Aug. 9 in this year's Hall of Fame game, but guess who has to work?! Fortunately, ESPN will air my boys' preseason game against the NY Giants on Aug. 17 and I can't wait!!!

Created by OnePlusYou

Of course these games mean nothing and they won't do anything to help my boys in our quest to win the NFC Championship and ultimately the Superbowl, but it's football! And at this point, I'll take what I can get! I need it, I don't think I'm gonna make it.
It's like football is crack, and I'm Pookie in "New Jack City." "It's just keeps calling me!"

Yes, I'm Still Bitter: How Team Dominican Republic Could Have Fared Better At The World Baseball Classic

My youngest spawn is a sports fanatic, and recently someone asked if she got it from me, if I was an athlete in school.

ME? Hell naw... I'm too much of a sore loser for all that. I mean full-on throwing equipment, cursing, ready to fight the other team 'cause I lost sore loser. It's not a pretty sight.

And the same sore-loser-ness extends to watching my favorite sports teams fail time and time again (METSSSSSS... I'm looking at youuuuuuuu). So it's no surprise that some four months after the 2009 World Baseball Classic I'm still calling BULLSHIT on Team Dominican Republic losing to...god, do I have to type it? Ugh... we lost to... to... THE NETHERLANDS! *hides face in shame*

I was so thoroughly distraught and perplexed and upset and just plain BITTER about the whole thing that I can still taste some of that residual bile in the back of my throat.

But what's even more frustrating is that it could have all been avoided in just a few easy steps.

For example, let's please acknowledge that The Netherlands CHEATED, because their players were not these Nordic blancs from Amsterdam or the West Frisian Islands. These dudes were from Curacao. As in the Caribbean's Curacao. As in they might as well have been from San Pedro de Macoris.

Everyone knows the first round in the WBC is a throwaway game of a mighty team vs. a not so mighty one, but Team DR vs. The Netherlands was like a North vs. South situation and I was NOT happy with that at all.

Second, I didn't care for the fact that the entire Team DR was made up of those pompous MLB Dominican ball players. Honestly, we would have done a much better job if our REAL players- from teams like los Tigeres de Licey and las Águilas Cibaeñas of the winter Caribbean league- had played instead. Those dudes are HAWNGRY, and would have worked their asses off to win it all.

And finally, I don't care WHERE dude was born, they should've never let Alex Rodriguez anywhere near Team DR because old boy is a Class A jinx. That's right, I said it. Oh, you don't believe me? Really? Well riddle me this, A-Rod stans... since he joined the Yankees, have they returned to their former championship glory? No? And wasn't their last AL pennant win in 2003, THE YEAR BEFORE HE JOINED THE TEAM? Really? How interesting... Listen, the mere mention of his playing for DR instead of Team USA brought unwanted publicity (and a dark cloud) our way, and I'll NEVER forgive him for it. NEVER!

Sure, you're probably going to come at me with stats n shit about how Team DR slacked off and didn't play hard enough and that The Netherlands won fair and square, but to that I say NO! YOU'RE WRONG AND I'M RIGHT! *throws baseball bat at your head and stomps away*

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MetsWatch '09: W46-L51-GB10.5
Next game: 7/27/09 VS. CLR @ Citifield, Oliver Perez (#46, 2-3 for the season) pitching

Where Have All The African-American Baseball Players Gone?

You know what occurred to me while watching the World Baseball Classic in March? Well, I was sitting there, mocking Team USA for getting a spanking because most if not all of their Latino players were playing for their native lands, and then I noticed… hey… Team USA is kinda almost all-white?

Really, MLB? What happened to all of your African American players? Where are your Willie Mays and Lou Brocks and Jackie Robinsons? Do little Black boys no longer dream of being baseball superstars? Or does the MLB front office have such a hard-on for the peloteros of South America and Japan that it doesn’t bother with any home-grown talent of color? Are Latinos and Asians filling the “minority” quota in major league baseball?

Not to say that there are no great African American players in the league. I hate to admit it but that puke-faced Jimmy Rollins of the Phillies is doing the damn thing, as is Grampa Jeter of the NY Yankees.

But in 1977, Blacks represented about 28 percent of the starting line-up in baseball. Today? Sheeeit, it’s barely at 10 percent! And at the college level? A whopping 6 percent.

In Compton, CA, the MLB is sponsoring a week-long Urban Youth Academy aimed at getting more young Black men into baseball, but the consensus is that the game is losing many talented players to football and basketball.

I asked a friend of mine who plays ball his opinion and his response?

“Blacks have less interest in playing baseball due to the fact that they see the potential in other sports such as football or basketball,” says Aaron Geddins, an alumni of the UC San Diego baseball team and currently plays in various wood bat leagues in and around NYC. “They see people who ‘look like them’ playing these sports. They see commercials, movies, music videos, and games that feature blacks in these sports. The way baseball is marketed, it does not target blacks and their communities the same way it does white communities.”

According to a recent article in the Virginian-Pilot, a high school coach was quoted as stating that baseball “just wasn’t cool enough” and that shows like “Friday Night Lights” have a draw that baseball just can’t compete with. So maybe Aaron is right... baseball just doesn't have the glitz and glam of the other sports.

But major leaguer Orlando Hudson, second baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, ain’t tryin’ to hear it.

Hudson launched the Around the Mound Tour on April 15th (celebrated as the day Jackie Robinson integrated baseball) to try and drum up more interest in baseball from Black youths.

“That’s something I always wanted to do: get more African Americans involved in baseball because we’re losing them,” said Hudson in an article for the L.A. Watts Times. “Mr. Robinson did a lot for this game of baseball and for the numbers to be declining every year, it’s sad; it’s a hurting feeling.”

And Seattle Mariner Ken Griffey, Jr. has signed on to help Houston, also agreeing with Geddins’ statement that marketing is an issue when trying to recruit African American ballplayers:

“With basketball and football, they show the excitement of the sport on and off the field,” Griffey said. “You come to baseball and you look at the … (All)-Star game commercial that just came out … and there’s no excitement, so kids see that. I have two boys and they want to play football because they see the excitement that they show on and off the field more than in baseball. The marketing has to show that this game is fun, and I think if they show its fun, kids will want to play it and get involved and … the numbers will slowly increase,” Griffey said.

Added Hudson, “In football, there (used) to be a lot of Michael Vick commercials, a lot of LaDainian Tomlinson commercials. LeBron (James) and Kobe (Bryant) have the series of commercials going on. Ken Griffey Jr. is the Michael Jordan of baseball and he doesn’t have a commercial at all. So we’re just losing them. Baseball is really not publicized the way it should be.”

Another MLB program seeking to attract Black ball players is Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI). So it would seem that I’m not the only one aware of the problem…if one would even say it is a problem.

What say you, sports fans?

*Please Note: direct quotes from Orlando Hudson & Ken Griffey, Jr. were pulled from this article by staff writer Chico C. Norwood of the L.A. Watts Times.

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MetsWatch '09: W44-L50-GB10
Next game: 7/24/09 VS. HOU @ Minute Maid Park, JOHAN SANTANA (#57, 11-7 for the season) pitching

Shaquille O'Neal "Beats it"

Get your nasty minds out of the gutter. The Michael Jackson tributes are still coming in. Check out Shaquille O'Neal's reenactment of MJ's "Beat it" video. Cameos by his wife Shaunie and Milwaukee Bucks Guard, Damon Jones.

Uuummm...why them chicks standing on a basketball court with bathing suits on and dudes with swim trunks when there is no pool in site?

Celebrate being Last?!

The famous individual to the left is Elijah "Pumpsie" Green. He's the first black man to ever play for the Boston Red Sox. As I was reading ESPN's front page looking for news, I happened upon Howard Bryant's article about this man who's name I didn't know and why he is wearing a Red Sox jersey. The reason he isn't well-known is because as Bryant says he's the last black man to integrate a professional baseball organization. Boston was honoring his 50th anniversary as the first black man to ever adorn the Red Sox uniform.
Are you kidding me? The stories of Boston's prejudice are well documented but to honor an anniversary such as this is a waste of time in my opinion.

As a southern female, I expect situations such as this to happen down here because we are still stuck in a time-warp, bubble, or any other form of medium that keeps us stuck in the pre-Civil Rights era. For a city as cultured and pioneering in the form of integration and progress, this sickens me. How could you even think this is worthy of celebration? Being the last team in Major League Baseball to integrate. Especially 12 years after Jackie Robinson made his impact.

Most of what I've said is pretty much covered in Howard Bryant's article but I do want to say no matter how embarrassing as it should be to Red Sox nation, it's still a great achievement for him regardless of how late it was. He's still saying they took a chance and they chose me to do it.

I salute you "Pumpsie" but I feel as a pioneer you should have more respect than that because it did not make mainstream news nor did I know of your accomplishment.

Fantasy Football is right around the corner

Hit me up if you want to be apart of the SistaSports League with your email. Only a limited amount of spots so it'll be on a first come, first served basis.

Why Golf is Severely loved?

Tom Watson opened the Open Championship by shooting a 65 at Turnberry in the First Round.

Right now, first-time American golfer Steve Marino has taken over the lead with a 2-under-par 68 for the second-round.

Scenarios like the ones above are just two of the many reasons people love golf. It's the story of the 59-year old Tom Watson out shooting the young bucks. It's the reality of someone you haven't ever heard of coming out of nowhere putting their name in contention. Anything can happen! Everything is possible. It isn't always about Phil Mickelson. Tiger isn't dominating but don't count him out. Names of people who are discussed on a daily basis go out in the field and stay in the fields for people like Watson who's been on the Senior tour for years to make a statement.

I love golf for one reason and one reason only. The edge-of-your-seat playoffs. When Tiger was playing on an injured knee and still managed to bring the house down to win his last major, the US Open. It's moments like those you don't ever want to miss.

A Part of the Game

I didn't ask for this shit.

I really didn't. I mean...I never thought it'd be like this.

When I was in college, I just had to worry about going to class and playing ball. Hell...I didn't NEED to go to class. Once the professor found out who I was and that I played ball, I knew I could pass that class. But I'm no...


I went to class. I'm no dumb jock. I didn't major in Basket Weaving 101 like some of my teammates. I majored in marine bology.

People looked at me and thought that I wasn't smart until I opened my mouth and blew them away.

I handled college well...I dealt with the chicks and autograph seekers. Never had a steady girlfriend. Why should I? I could have any woman...any color...on our campus. I was the big man on campus. Everybody knew me. As my game became better on the court...more attention came. Then came the calls, emails, and text msgs from the agents. That was annoying.

I hate doing interviews but my college coach told me that I had to "play the game" with the media. They can make or break you.

Things are different now. I'm in the pros now. This ain't what I thought it'd be. Don't get me wrong...it's fun but not lilke I thought it'd be. College was the time of my life when i was playing ball. This is just a business.

I have to deal with agents, marketing reps, lawyers. I also have to deal with groupies and hanger on dudes. The groupies are unreal. They are everywhere. They are in every city and at every party that I go to. Most of them are willing to "do whatever it takes" to snag a baller like me. I don't need that baby drama in my life. I want to have kids one day. But I also want to be married and committed to one woman.

I've slept with more women than I'd care to admit to. I always protect myself but I need to stop doing what I'm doing.

Sometimes I feel like I'm caught in the middle of some "social pyramid." I mean, I'd like to hang at clubs and listen to hip hop with people who are my age but I don't want to have to fear for my life in that type of scene. I have the income and the "status" to party with the "suits" but I don't feel comfortable around those people for long periods of time. Some of them respect me more for my athletic prowess than my intelligence. So, I feel like I'm in the middle sometimes.

Y'all just don't understand. You only see what I do athletically. You see the fame and the millions that I make. You don't see me for who I am. Some of you see me as a piece of meat. I'm here to entertain you. I'm not. I'm here to play a sport b/c that's what I love to do...well...what I used to love to do. It's just a business now.

What if your salary was published in a newspaper where everybody knew how much money you made?

What if your successes and failures at work were publicly scrutinized on a daily basis?

What if you didn't want the spotlight because you knew it'd burn the hell outta you?

My life is your entertainment.

Can it be that it was all so simple then?

I didn't ask for this shit.

thoughts from your favorite professional athlete

Manny Ties With Mickey And My World Implodes

Manny, how do I loathe thee, let me count the ways...

1- Your hair. Normally I love dreadlocks on a man. On you they are beyond annoying. I think it has something to do with your face. Your stupid, arrogant face.

2- That arrogance I just mentioned. You just walk around like your sh*t don't stink and it makes me want to punch you in your stupid face.

3- Your stupid face. It's stupid.

But I don't want to sound like a hater; I'm only a loather. Ramirez is, technically, a good ball player. A 17-year veteran of the game, he has amassed 536 home runs, 1,754 RBIs and has hit .315. One would think I'd be cheering on this fellow Dominicano. But I can't because of his stupid face.

Manuel "Manny" Aristides Ramírez Onelcida was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in 1972 and raised in the Washington Heights of New York City. He began his MLB career in 1993 with the Cleveland Indians, and in 2001 became one of the regular messy-haired Boston boys. That came to an end when, in 2008, Manny had a series of altercations with teammates and Red Sox staff members (Manny being Manny, right? ugh!).

When dude was traded last season to the Los Angeles Dodgers from the Boston Red Sox, Manny hit .396 with 17 home runs and 53 RBIs in 53 games, the Dodgers won the National League West championship and even the NL Championship Series. A lot of people thought that he'd flop without the Sox, myself included, but goddammit if he didn't prove us wrong. I should be in his corner, being the baseball enthusiast that I am. But I can't because of his stupid face.

And I hate to admit it, but when Ramirez was suspended for 50 games I smiled a little bit. Especially because it was for the use of "performance enhancing drugs" and because they found out about it due to his use of meds to improve his penis' performance. *giggle* I just knew when he came back he'd suck, he'd be out of practice, he'd be all full of platanos and itis. But NOPE. Fool went and tied Mantle for all time home runs (both are in 15th place).

But the season is barely at the halfway mark and Manny is back in full force. He's going to pass Mantle. He's about to be better that Mickey-freakin-Mantle and that bothers me so much I can't even stand it.

Because of his stupid face.
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MetsWatch '09: W41-L45-GB6.5
Next game: 7/12/09 VS. CIN @ Citifield, Mike Pelfry (#34, 6-4 for the season) pitching

Black Weblog Awards Nomination

Yes I know we're a new blog...I imported some posts from my old sports blog but Sista Sports has only only been in action for about a month. That doesn't mean we don't deserve to be recognized. The Black Weblog Awards says that we can. They have a category for best new blog and blog to watch and we need your vote! All you have to do is click on the link below... check what categories you feel fit Sista Sports best... and even my twitter microblog (@eb_the_celeb) if you feel compelled, and CLICK submit your vote. There are only 2 weeks left. The nominations voting end July 25th so go go go go go...lol

http://vote.blackweblogawards.com/vote/ptat6SiDppqLngAM

Thanks in advance for your support.

Dear Jason Whitlock ...

... please, I'm begging you, go somewhere, anywhere, and sitchoass down!
OK, OK, maybe I should explain myself a little bit here. Against my better judgment, I read your column on a semi-regular basis. Maybe it's just me, but it seems that everything I've read that you've written is something negative.
In your July 9 column, you talked about Women's Wimbledon champ, Serena Williams and how even though she, along with her sister Venus, have dominated the tennis grand slams for the past decade, she can still do better. According to you, she lacks focus, she's greedy (food wise), she's out of shape and she has too much ass to be the world's best.
You'll have to excuse me, and black women everywhere, when we tell you to fuck off! Yea, I said it!
You sit behind your computer, with your stats and Krispy Kremes, watching Sportscenter looking for top athletes to piss on because you lack even the basic skills to play any of the sports you write about.
In your column, you say that Serena's fans are "rationalizing her failure." You, or anyone else, can hardly call 11 grand slam singles titles and nine grand slam doubles titles a failure. Since her debut in 1995, she and her sister have done more to expose this country club sport to more people than your lil' column will ever reach.
And in what world is Serena Williams out of shape? While I'm sure you're an authority on the subject, with your sweating butter and all, her presence in such tourneys is indicative of just how in shape she is. I'm pretty sure you only train to run fast enough to catch up with the ice cream truck, but she puts in actual work to chase balls all over the court and to return serves of more than 100 mph.
If you spent more time at actual sporting events than you do fast food drive-thrus you might actually have a better grasp of what it is they do. So until you stop hating on active, FIT athletes, I will refrain from reading anymore of your hate columns and encourage my fellow sports lovers to do the same. Good day, sir.

Sincerely,

Smarty Jones

Athetes, stay out of the studio!

The recording studio that is. Every time I hear a track from an athlete I try to wrap my mind around the concept of them actually thinking that what they just recorded was actually good. Look at history, has there ever been a professional athlete that was successful at being a recording artist?

I'll wait!




Waiting!





Still Waiting...





OK, I'll let you off the hook because there have been none!


Many have tried, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal, Roy Jones Jr., Tony Parker. It saddens me that the list goes on but I'll stop there. Some of my Dallas Cowboys even have youtube videos of themselves freestyling in the studio, laughing and joking and I'm hoping that's what it was for... a good laugh, and that they weren't serious about persuing a career in music.


Question for Athletes thinking they have a chance???
God has blessed you with a talent, why must you tamper in talent that he has blessed others with??? That's just being selfish to me, not to mention a huge waste of time.

This post was brought to you by the recent record that made my ears bleed. Ron Artest "Michael Michael" Click on the pic at your own risk to listen.

Seriously Mr. Artest, we're all fans of the King of Pop, but you could have picked a better way to show your appreciation. We all know that you don't have it all anyway so I'm going to give you a pass...but from now on, let this be a personal tribute that you keep to yourself. The rest of the athlete rappers out there though, since you have some sense.. you get no love from Eb.

Air it Out : Steve McNair

I'm gonna offer a different perspective of Steve McNair. I want to tell you some things that you may or may not know about the man. I never had the opportunity to meet the man but I knew of him quite well. My former college teammate, Anthony Cook, was drafted in the same year as McNair by the Houston Oilers. They were teammates for several years. Another good friend, Eddie Robinson, Jr, played several years with McNair and was on the team that McNair led to the Super Bowl. McNair and I also graduated the same year. His school, Alcorn State, never played my school, South Carolina State but I followed his career. I felt like I knew him. In the game of football, there's a brotherhood. You don't have to be on the same team but we all share a bond. Nevertheless, I knew Steve McNair.

I knew Steve McNair as Air McNair

I knew Steve McNair was a helluva quarterback

I knew Steve McNair gained more than 6000 yds rushing and passing and threw for 53 touchdowns during his senior year.

I knew Steve McNair was the highest draft pick to come from a HBCU.

I knew Steve McNair led the way for the current crop of black quarterbacks in the NFL. When he entered the NFL, some media referred to him as a "black quarterback". When was the last time you've heard somebody refer to Donovan McNabb's skin color.

I knew that Steve McNair played the violent game of football in pain. He played hurt...a lot.

I knew that Steve McNair ALMOST won a Super Bowl on a great last drive.


I don't know Steve McNair.

I don't know about why Steve McNair was "dating" this 20 yr old woman.

I don't know what kinda marital problems Steve McNair was having.

I don't know what kinda husband or father Steve McNair was.

I don't know why Steve McNair was cheating.

One thing I do know...it ain't my none of my damn business! And it ain't yours, either! For the past few days, I've listened to this man's name be degraded, judged and dragged through the mud by many people who have done the same thing. Even if you've never cheated, no one should pass judgement on the man. Steve McNair didn't kill himself. He was murdered in cold blood. He was the VICTIM.

Infidelity does not normally lead to death. Over the past few days, I've listened to people say things that have really pissed me off. Steve didn't ask to be murdered. Steve's infidelity should not have taken him off this earth. You could say that the infidelity was a by-product that led to his death but McNair didn't deserve this. McNair's legacy will be what he did on the field and his charitable contributions off the field. His legacy will not be about some young, crazy woman who didn't think much about her life nor his. Keep this in mind, Steve McNair was MURDERED by somebody who he trusted. And there have been some to suggest that he "brought this on himself." That's bullshit. It does't matter what you think about his decisions to date a 20 year old waitress despite being a married man with 4 sons. He's dead and there ain't no coming back from that.

I don't think this will serve as a lesson to men (or women) who cheat. Magic Johnson got HIV in '91 and yet there are STILL people have babies by 3 or 4 different baby mammas. The lesson here is that you must be careful of the company that you keep...male or female.

Shame on those of you who are throwing stones. Steve McNair was somebody's father, son, brother, uncle, cousin, friend, teammate, frat brother, and yes...husband. They will mourn him forever when this story is no longer a headline.

I may have pissed some of you off with this post. If i did...good! Put the stone down. You don't know Steve McNair

I do.

Slanted Sports Ep. 3: Espy Noms

Check out our predictions with who we feel are going to take trophies at the 2009 Espy Awards.

She's baaaaaaaack ...

Reigning WNBA MVP Candace Parker made her return to the L.A. Sparks earlier this week after missing the months of May and June on maternity leave after giving birth to her daughter Lailaa.
In her rookie season, Parker nabbed the coveted MVP trophy after winning her second straight NCAA title and MVP of that tourney along with a gold medal in the 2008 Olympics. If that wasn't enough in her year, she married Sacramento Kings forward/center Shelden Williams. Simply put, the woman has been busy!
***side note*** I predict that in 13 years this baby is going to be recruited by University of Tennessee for a full basketball scholarship for the class of 2031.
While I am an Atlanta Dream fan, I have been a huge fan of the L.A. Sparks since the very first WNBA season. Since the ladies in the city of angels are off to a 3-5 start, I am glad to see her back in the purple and gold. I do wonder though if it is too soon.
When women are pregnant, their bodies go through so many changes just to carry the baby for nine months and be able to push them out. I've seen instances where women who do office work are out of work three or four months after they have kids. So I wonder, is Parker returning to the court too soon?
I can understand that she wants to get back in shape and everything, but should she be going through the intense work outs and game situations not even two months after giving birth?
In the league's inaugural season, one of the most recognizable names then was Sheryl Swoopes. She was the first player signed to the league but she didn't play a single minute until very late in the season because she was pregnant. She only played nine games that year.
She only took six weeks to recover from the birth of her son, and averaged only 7 points and 2 rebounds a game. The very next year, her point average per game doubled and she grabbed three times as many rebounds. Given those stats, I wonder what it would have been had Swoopes opted to sit out the entire first year.
With Parker, I worry that she's doing too much too fast. I know she's young and she's got that bounce back, but recovery from child birth is not something you want to rush. I'm sure she knows her body, but I just hope her numbers don't suffer. Last year, she averaged 18.5 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. I'm anxious to see how this year will turn out for her.
What do you think?

MLB Introduces Wanna Play? Program Aimed Towards African American Youth: Really?

Major League Baseball introduced a new initiative called Wanna Play? to bring baseball activities to African American communities. Now that's all well and good, and I appreciate the jesture, but if they are going to seriously make this a permanent venture within the MLB, I want it to show that they have invested some time in the project.

First off, there isn't any mentioning of the initiative on the front page of the MLB's official website. I even tried searching it, and nothing comes up. I eventually went to Google and found an article on it from baseballdeworld.com, an international baseball site covering the sport from all over the world. From there, I found it hiding within the part of the MLB site dedicated to the Civil Rights Game. Even then, it's was very vague about what they actually planned to do to get black youth interested in baseball.

To the MLB: Don't shortchange my people. If you are going to make a sincere effort to reach out, make sure you actually put in time and effort in making it a success.

50 Cent says Vick will be great

The first 1:30 he talks about the music business and what it means to be #1 but around the 1:35 mark he talks about Michael Vick and how he believes he will still be great. He also references how everyone has forgot Kobe's past and now believe him to be great. Check it out!