khandor’s sports blog

If you have time to read but one on-line article today, then, this is the one it should be:

———————————–

Jeff Ma on the House Advantage

Henry Abbott: You sitting there with Jerry West and the salt shakers and the mustard containers … this is where this field will develop, right? The statistical mind meeting the basketball mind. The more you’re speaking the same language, the more useful your statistics are going to be, it seems.

Jeff Ma: I think that’s kind of the key.

When I first met Bill Walsh, we had developed this football system that was supposed to measure success on any NFL play. If you’re first-and-ten and you gain five yards, is that a success or is that a failure? We kind of graded out the plays and the people in the plays based on that. We came up with a statistical system based on four years of NFL data looking at every play, a team’s winning, and we could tell you how you did on this down and how that affected your team’s chances of scoring.

But we needed a way to validate that. We went to Coach Walsh so he could help validate us. So we asked him some very simple questions. So, on first-and-ten, what’s a success? He said well, four yards is probably not a success, five yards probably is. Somewhere in between.

Our numbers showed that four-and-a-half yards was the threshold.

Then on second down he says well, I think you need to gain at least half a yard. And that’s exactly what our numbers showed also.

What we learned from that, and I would never use this quote because it’s very self-promoting, but he once said to our CEO: “I have no idea how he gets it, but he’s in my brain.” And he was talking about me. That was kind of like the biggest compliment that he could ever give me, because that’s all I was trying to do.

There are people out there like Jerry West and Bill Walsh who can make really good decisions without a spreadsheet behind them. But there are only a few of them. And so the goal is to create a mathematical system or methodology to use data and information that can make as good a decision as Walsh and West made, in a more structured and regimented way, so anyone can make them.

So what you’re saying is absolutely true. What you’re saying is absolutely true. The goal is to take what’s between Bill Walsh’s ears and put it in a spreadsheet, so people can actually understand what it all means.

———————————–

Amen to all concerned!

The best speadsheets in the world are simple attempts to blue-print the mental machinations of the best coaches in the world who already have the capacity to think the game accurately with nothing else but the benefit of their own experience.

The ability to generate an average gain of 4.5 yards on 1st down is the real objective here … whether on the ground - in a cloud of dust - or, through the air - via a Sid Luckman or a Don Coryell-inspired piece of artistry.

It is both the accomplishment which counts and the method of the madness … because - depending on the time, and the score, and the other complicating circumstances - the one is intricately connected to the other.

59-59 … in the 5th and final set, at Wimbledon!

When two competitors absolutely refuse to quit …

there is nothing else to be said, but to echo the words and sentiments of an all-time great tennis champion watching in utter amazement:

————————

Longest match in history suspended

“I have almost no words anymore watching this,” defending champion Roger Federer said. “It’s beyond anything I’ve ever seen and could imagine. I don’t know how their bodies must feel the next day, the next week, the next month. This is incredible tennis. For them to serve the aces they served and stay there mentally is a heroic effort.

“As we know, we have no draws in tennis, so there will be a loser. But I guess in this match, both will be winners because this is just absolutely amazing,” he said.

————————

In fact …

The earthquake which registered 5.0 on the Richter Scale and just rumbled through Central Ontario and Quebec, for one of the few times in the last 100 years … without any major damage being done to speak of, at least, according to what’s been reported, so far … simply pales in comparison.

———-

PS. Although the sight of the walls shaking around me and the floor moving [physically] beneath my feet, for a span of about 10-15 seconds, was a most unusual event to be sure. 

If, before, there was but one …

today, there are now two such men … of tremendous, character, accomplishment and reknown.

A salute to the Poet Gladiator, from Barcelona …

for playing as ‘hard’ as he did in this series, with both his head and his heart, and without whom these LA Lakers would not have won back-to-back NBA Championships. 

The NBA is a league with 63 years of history, and any franchise which truly aspires to win the championship, one day in the future, but refuses to acknowledge the primacy of the 3 main aspects of basketball success …

#1 Team Defense,

#2 Rebounding,

and,

#3 Team [not individual] Offense

… is simply kidding itself, as well as its loyal fanbase.

As Pat Riley so aptly said, years ago, while winning back-to-back titles with the original ShowTime LA Lakers:

“No Rebounds; No Rings.”

and,

as KG & Co. have so eloquently and rhythmically espoused, en masse, for the last few years …

What it takes to win the NBA Championship really does involve making a total Team Commitment to playing the game the RIGHT WAY.

Congratulations to the LA Lakers organization for learning its lessons well, and being able to ‘walk the walk.’

Over the last 13 months, this is some of what’s been written in this space about the Lakers’ mercurial one: 

Ron Artest is a foxhole guy … [May 7, 2009]

Yet another reason to root-root for Ron-Ron this season [Jan 14, 2010]

In the wee hours of this morning, in the aftermath of Los Angeles’ victory in Game 7, this is what was said about him by the ZenMaster, himself, and Doc Rivers, and Glen Davis, and Sekou Smith:

Artest Sings Redemption’s Song

Kobe Bryant walked out of the Staples Center Thursday night with his fifth NBA title and his second straight Finals MVP. He praised the “Spaniard” [Pau Gasol] specifically for all his help in reaching this career milestone.

The MVP on this night, however, was none other than Ron Artest.

No one walked out of the building without seeing that, not after his 20 points, five rebounds, five steals and iron will helped drag the Lakers back from a 13-point deficit to beat back a Celtics team that controlled the action for much of the night.

“Ron Artest was the most valuable player tonight,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “He brought life to our team, he brought life to the crowd.”

————————————————-

June 17 2010, Part I

June 17 2010, Part II

————————————————-

Kudos to the man … from Queensbridge, NY … who always seeks to KEEP IT REAL!

Related:

Artest delivers crazy finish to title

… at one of the game’s most venerable locations, looking back on 4 of the all-time great shots in golf history is like taking an exhilerating stroll down memory lane.

#4 Nicklaus’ 1-iron at Pebble Beach, 1972

#3 Woods’ chip shot at Augusta National, 2005

#2 Mize’s chip shot at Augusta National, 1987

#1 Watson’s chip shot at Pebble Beach, 1982  

Even “Hollywood” cannot script dramatic happenings like the ones which can sometimes occur in real life, given the time, place and specific circumstances.

In the wonderful world of athletics there is only one event of true significance today …

The world’s largest single activity sporting event has finally come to

A … F … R … I … C … A.

Amandla!

———-

PS. Dankie, Nelson.

Derek Fisher adds to his fantastic post-season legacy

According to Kobe Bryant, IT was just another case of, “Derek being Derek.”

According to the storied lore of the NBA Finals, and the rich traditions of the Lakers and Celtics franchises, however, IT was so much more than that.

Q. What exactly was IT?

A. To be precise …

IT was simply one of the ALL-TIME great clutch performances in the anals of the game … 

by an aging 4-time champion who just refused to loose last night and, instead, made every single BIG PLAY necessary during the 4th quarter to successfully stave off a desperate rally by the home team to secure a huge Game 3 victory and establish a 2-1 series lead.

Game 3, Mini Movie

Fisher seizes Finals moment yet again

Fisher had stopped a Celtics rally with a jump shot and then a running one-hander and finally an odd-angle bank in the fourth quarter. Finally, he had that end-to-end three-point play, and a stunned silence swept over the Garden. It was over, and Fisher had delivered 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter. He had played an immense part in Allen missing every one of his 13 shots. He had delivered a speech in the huddle at the end of the third that the Lakers were still talking about late Tuesday.

“He’s our guy that pulls everyone together,” Bryant said.

He’s the Laker who pulls everything out. He came to Los Angeles as a rookie with Bryant, a four-year college player out of Arkansas-Little Rock. They bonded over full-court one-on-one games throughout that lonely first season, sometimes resorting to fist fights to settle matters. Bryant has never been closer to a teammate and maybe never understood how much Fisher balanced him until Fisher left for those three seasons after winning three straight titles. Bryant never once missed Shaquille O’Neal(notes), but he never got over the departure of Fisher to Golden State and Utah.

“I had point guards who were nowhere near his caliber in leadership and shot-making abilities and toughness,” Bryant said. “It changes things drastically for me.”

They play good cop, bad cop with the Lakers. Bryant is the tough taskmaster, the ominous authoritarian. Fisher is the self-help guru, the one plowing through books on successful CEOs and managerial styles. “He’s always giving positive reinforcement,” Bryant said. “I’m the opposite. We play off each other extremely well.”

For these Lakers, Fisher has been indispensible as Bryant’s consigliore. As young kids, they grew up together. As thirtysomethings, he’s the one Laker with the credibility of time, of championship pedigree and commitment, who can be an unapologetic truth-teller to Bryant.

“He’s really the only one I listen to,” Bryant said. “We’ve been through it, so he can come up to me and say, ‘Kobe, you’re effing up.’”

This is the reason they’ll walk arm-and-arm into history together, four-time NBA champions now pushing for a fist full of rings.

———————————–

Unlike sooo many others with considerable more “talent” … in all diffferent walks of life … D-Fish is a MAN who has ALWAYS gotten IT.

“Life is fast; and, things happen quickly.” - Derek Fisher

“Five or ten years from now, when I’m long gone, I would have hated to feel like I didn’t just do everything I could to help my team, and live with the consequences.” - Derek Fisher 

At this stage of his now illustrious career …

While D-Fish is, in fact, the weakest link on the 2009-2010 version of the LA Lakers; so, too, is he, in fact, made of Titanium fibre … when it comes to Leadership, Poise, and Execution Under Pressure. 

Kudos to the Lakers’ Captain, yet again!

———————————–

PS. If you clink on that last link, above, you might be surprised to hear who the colour commentator was … i.e. “My, goodness.” … for that memorable Western Conference playoff game back on May 13, 2004.

Far too many times, the only news which is broadcast about the off-court exploits of NBA players is material that fits into the negative category.

Well … not in this instance.

————————————————

NBA Star to help murder victim’s son

It was a tragic tale, far from the limelight of professional sports, but a story sad enough to stir an NBA star’s heart to quiet action.

When he heard of the murder last Monday of single mother Lucita Charles — who left behind a 7-year-old son with cerebral palsy — not only did Jamaal Magloire think he could help out, he did help out.

The 10-year NBA veteran paid for the funeral for Charles (the city’s 18th murder victim of this year) and plans to establish a trust fund for her orphaned son.

“When we see things like this in the news, we don’t know what to do. I wanted to show I could do something,” Magloire, a Toronto native, said by phone Saturday night.

“It just really touched me, the fact it was a single mother and she left behind a special-needs child,” he said.

————————————————

Kudos to Toronto’s Big Man for “stepping up” when the need arose in real life.

Francesca Schiavone gives one of the great interviews of all-time …

and, then …

The unlikeliest champion: 17th seed Schiavone wins French Open

Francesca Schiavone’s cheering section at Saturday’s French Open final wore matching black t-shirts with the phrase “Nothing Is Impossible.” The 29-year old Italian proved it today at Roland Garros.

In one of the most unexpected Grand Slam victories in recent tennis history, Schiavone won the French Open today with a rousing 6-4, 7-6 victory over No. 7 seed Sam Stosur. She became the first Italian to ever win a Grand Slam and the second-oldest ever first time Grand Slam champion.

Prior to this tournament, Schiavone had never made it to a Slam semifinal and had played her way into just three quarterfinals in her previous 39 majors. But with her wicked slice, new racquet strings and a varied strategy to combat Stosur’s big serve, Schiavone pulled the upset over the woman who had knocked off three former No. 1s (Serena Williams, Justine Henin, Jelena Jankovic) en route to the final.

wins the 2010 Fench Open!

The stuff of which childhood dreams are made.