HardeninthePaint

Hip Hop, your daily dose

Thu, 16 May 2013 06:56:44 -0400

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7VwailUOpU&w=560&h=315]

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Sun, 07 Apr 2013 21:13:58 -0400

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Wed, 03 Apr 2013 00:53:54 -0400

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Sat, 30 Mar 2013 11:52:53 -0400

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Introduction to Rhyme Theory / Now We're Here

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 17:55:19 -0500

Playing a late round of a Kings Friday night, I turned over nine and said a sentence that ended in the word “past”. The rhyme went around the circle – “…vast”, “…pass”, “…blast” – until it eventually got to the southern Virginian on my right, one…

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A Strange History of Super Bowl Betting Trends and my SB Pick

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 19:55:00 -0500

Before I make my Super Bowl pick, I’d like throw some facts at you. This summer I read in the Richmond Times-Dispatch of all places, Washington Redskins General Manager, Bruce Allen note the fact that only three teams have won a Super Bowl in season where the team did NOT go away from their regular-season practice facility for training camp. (Full-disclosure: The Redskins will train in Richmond this summer, the first time they will hold camp away from Redskins Park since 1994).

If that were true, I wondered, wouldn’t all the teams just take a bus down the street for training camp, out of vain superstition if nothing else? I looked it up. Turns out he was almost right. It was only three teams, until the New York Giants made it 4 last February winning in a year where they forced to train in East Rutherford while their usually training facility in Albany, New York was under construction. (They’ve since decided to summer in NJ on a permanent basis). Outside of the Giants, only the Patriots, the Raiders, and Saints have won SB’s during years where they did not go away for training camp - those teams winning a total of 8 championships during those years. Despite this fact, still about have the franchise in the NFL hold training camp in their regular season practice facilities.

If I were an owner I would not. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that after this Sunday’s SB there will be 39 SB-winning teams that have gone away for camp. I think being away from families and natural environments may help build team moral and chemistry - and I don’t think it could hurt.

Anyway, doing the mindless work of looking up SB winning team’s summer training camp facilities on pro-football-reference, helped me run across a bunch of other useless SB facts, many of which I felt obliged to write down for such a week as this one. Here are some betting trends, I found tasty for one reason or another. Enjoy!

In 46 SB’s there has been only one push in SPREAD (1996 Green Bay (-14) over New England) and no pushes in the TOTAL.
All-time the favored team has won straight-up 69.6% of the time and has covered 53.3% of the time.
In the past 10 SB’s the favored team has only covered 3 times, but has won 6 of those games.
All-time the OVER has won 52.17% of the time.
In the past 10 SB’s the UNDER has won 7 times, making the 02-11 seasons represent the the only set of 10 consecutive years since the NFL/AFL merger where the UNDER has outperformed the OVER on the final game of the year.

And now without further ado, my SB pick…

@San Francisco (-3.5) over Baltimore

My 2013 NFL Playoff record: 5-5-1

BONUS (for all you compulsive types): Go with the OVER (47.5)!

Enjoy yourself NOS! Wish I were there!

Thanks to Tony K.

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 13:40:00 -0500

Farewell to Tony Kornheiser at the end of a dream internship.

Dear Mr. Tony,

Thank you so much for inviting me into your studio back in October and enduring my stay ever since. These past few months have been a tremendous experience for me. When I think about all the shows you guys have done, I can hardly ever remember which conversations were actually on-air and which were just between us. Goes to show you why your show is great - it’s natural.

With all that I’ve gained from being able to watch you work, it might be somewhat uncouth for me to ask for a parting favor, but here I go anyway: even though I know you’re not exactly the biggest soccer guy in the world, the next time you talk about soccer on PTI or (God forbid) the Tony Kornheiser Show, for whatever reason it is - a spectacular goal, the conclusion of a major international tournament - please, please, please find a way to drop the name Andres Iniesta into the conversation.

Heres how it could go down. The next time Wilbon calls Lionel Messi ‘ the best players in the world’, you say: ‘Well, him and Ronaldo are great forwards, but I’ve been hearing a lot about this Iniesta kid.’

First off, Reali will go nuts. Secondly, the man is in fact more than arguably the best player of his generation, he could very well end up being the best soccer player in the history of the sport. His teams have won everything, and time after time he has proven to be the critical factor. (Neither Spain or Barcelona have won anything big without him.) Yet despite his ludicrous talent and impeccable track record, he is largely anonymous in the USA. A man of your status just mentioning the name, ‘Iniesta’, aka ‘El Ilusionista’, aka ‘El Celebro’, on a show like PTI could propel the awareness of soccer in this country forward ten years

As a teen, Iniesta lead Spain to back-to-back major international youth tournaments in 2001 and 2002. Since he joined his nation’s senior squad in 2006, Spain has won every tournament in which Iniesta has featured. The only trophies Spain didn’t secure in that time were the 2006 World Cup, where a young Iniesta was left out of the starting lineup by a manager soon to be fired, and he 2009 Confederations Cup, which he missed due to injury. Most people remember his name from the time he scored the only goal in the 2010 World Cup Final - the most watched event in TV history - but that sells short the fact that he also scored or set-up 4 more of the 7 goals Spain scored in that tournament.

Iniesta is arguably the most important player for his club team, the illustrious Barcelona, as well. Although he is far less a prolific scorer than his teammate Lionel Messi, and hence far less internationally known, it’s not a coincidence that Barca has won everything there is to win in the past half dozen years and yet has not won a single major trophy without Iniesta playing a major part.. (The same cannot be said of any other Barca player.) When Iniesta missed the springs of 2008 and 2010, Barca, a team chock full of superstars, did not as much as reach a final in any major tournament. He is the only Barca out-field player to feature in all 3 of their successful Champions League Finals (the Euro equivalent of the Super Bowl), and he assisted the go-ahead goal in all three of those games.

Iniesta touch and mastery of the soccer ball is indescribable. Sir Alex Ferguson, the most accomplished manager in British history, famously said before the Champions League Final in 2009: “I don’t think [Iniesta] has ever lost the ball in his life.” In that same press-conference, Ferguson said: “I’m not obsessed with Messi. Iniesta is the worry.” And after Iniesta sure enough beat Fergusons’s Manchester United in that final - (toward the end of which Messi scored a meaningless goal) - several United players, including their talisman, Wayne Rooney hailed him as “the best player in the world.” I’m not asking you to make that argument - because you don’t know that to be true (and probably don’t care either way). But I implore you, please, please mention his name on air and enlighten an American public that mostly understands greatness in that sport by looking up Messi’s slight statistical superiority over his rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

The sooner you say his name the better. Because if Iniesta leads Spain to victory in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil - making it a once inconceivable four straight international championships for Spain - there will no longer be any doubt whether Iniesta stands alongside the other legends in football - the question instead will become whether or not the little Spaniard is the most accomplished athlete in the history of any sport.

NFL Conference Championship Picks

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 12:22:00 -0500

San Francisco (-4) over @Atlanta
~~@New England (-8) over Baltimore~~

Overall Playoffs: 5-4-1

NFL Divisional Round Picks

Fri, 11 Jan 2013 18:09:00 -0500

Baltimore (+9.5) over @Denver
~~Green Bay (+3) over @San Francisco~~
Seattle (+2.5) over @Atlanta
@New England (-9.5) over Houston

Overall Playoffs: 5-3-0

NFL Wild-Card Picks

Wed, 02 Jan 2013 16:46:00 -0500

~~Cincinnati (+4.5) over @Houston~~
@Green Bay (-7.5) over Minnesota
@Baltimore (-6.5) over Indianapolis
~~@Washington (+3) over Seattle~~

Overall Playoffs: 2-2-0

I Hate (Love) Russell Wilson

Wed, 02 Jan 2013 16:42:56 -0500

I Hate (Love) Russell Wilson:

embarrison:

My experience playing against Russell Wilson. My bitter hatred and deep man crush. I even work in a mention of Brandon Caleb and Jamal Schulters.

FUMA bros should approve:

“I can tell you this: the word “wuss” has never been used by a Fork Union cadet since 1897. Also, we don’t have “fans”. We have 500 semi-trained teenage delinquents dressed in uniform with the verbal abuse ingenuity of a Marine Corps drill sergeant. Russell Wilson endured some of the most heinous taunting I’ve ever heard in my life - and this wasn’t even basketball season.”

Week 17 Picks

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 20:10:00 -0500

@Buffalo (-3.5) over NY Jets
@New England (-10.5) over Miami
~~Baltimore (+2) over @Cincinnati~~
~~Houston (-6.5) over @Indianapolis (5-star)~~
@Tennessee (-4) over Jacksonville (lock)
~~Philadelphia (+7.5) over @NY Giants (shoe-in)~~
@Washington (-3) over Dallas
@Detroit (+3) over Chicago
~~Green Bay (-3.5) over @Minnesota~~
~~@New Orleans (-5) over Carolina~~
@Denver (-16) over Kansas City
Arizona (+16.5) over San Francisco
~~@Seattle (-10.5) over St. Louis~~

This week: 7-6-0
Last week: 9-7-0
Lock-o-da-week: 7-2-3
Shoe-in-o-da-week: 8-3-1
5-star-silver-dollar-special: 3-4-0
Overall: 109-105-5

Week 16 Picks

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 12:46:00 -0500

Atlanta (-4) over @Detroit (lock)
~~Tennessee (+13) over @Green Bay~~
~~Oakland (+8.5) over @Carolina~~
@Miami (-4.5) over Buffalo
Cincinnati (+4) over @Pittsburgh
@Jacksonville (+14.5) over New England
Indianapolis (-6.5) over @Kansas City
~~@Dallas (-3) over New Orleans~~
Washington (-5.5) over @Philadelphia (shoe-in)
~~@Tampa Bay (-3) over St. Louis~~
Minnesota (+7.5) over @Houston
San Diego (+1.5) over @ NY Jets
@Baltimore (+2.5) over NY Giants
~~Cleveland (+13) over @Denver~~
~~@Arizona (+5.5) over Chicago~~
~~San Francisco (-1) @Seattle~~

This week: 9-7-0
Last week: 8-8-0
Lock-o-da-week: 6-2-3
Shoe-in-o-da-week: 8-2-1
5-star-silver-dollar-special: 3-3-0
Overall: 102-99-5

Week 15 Picks

Wed, 12 Dec 2012 22:58:00 -0500

Cincinnati (-4.5) over @Philadelphia
Green Bay (-3) over @Chicago (lock)
@Atlanta (-1.5) over NY Giants
~~Tampa Bay (+3.5) over @New Orleans~~
~~@St. Louis (-3) over Minnesota~~
Washington (-1) over @Cleveland (shoe-in)
~~Jacksonville (+7) over @Miami~~
~~@Baltimore (+2.5) over Denver~~
@Houston (-8) over Indianapolis
~~@San Diego (-3) over Carolina~~
~~@Buffalo (+5.5) over Seattle~~
~~Detroit (-6) over @Arizona~~
~~Pittsburgh (-1.5) over @Dallas (5-star)~~
@Oakland (-3) over Kansas City
San Francisco (+5.5) over @New England
@Tennessee (+1.5) over NY Jets

This week: 8-8-0
Last week: 7-9-0
Lock-o-da-week: 5-2-3
Shoe-in-o-da-week: 7-2-1
5-star-silver-dollar-special: 3-3-0
Overall: 93-92-5

Multi-Dimensional Player with Robert Griffin III

Sat, 08 Dec 2012 12:11:05 -0500

Multi-Dimensional Player with Robert Griffin III

Week 14 Picks

Wed, 05 Dec 2012 17:24:00 -0500

Denver (-10) over @Oakland (5-star)
St. Louis (+3) over @Buffalo
@Washington (-2.5) over Baltimore
~~Kansas City (+6.5) over @Cleveland~~
San Diego (+7) over @Pittsburgh
~~@Indianapolis (-5) over Tennessee~~
~~@Jacksonville (+2.5) over NY Jets~~
~~Chicago (-3) over @Minnesota~~
@Carolina (+3.5) over Atlanta
~~@Tampa Bay (-7.5) over Philadelphia~~
~~@Cincinnati (-3) over Dallas~~
~~Miami (+10) over @San Francisco~~
~~New Orleans (+5) over @NY Giants~~
~~Arizona (+10) over @Seattle~~
@Green Bay (-6.5) over Detroit (lock)
@New England (-3.5) over Houston

This week: 7-9-0
Last week: 8-6-2
Lock-o-da-week: 4-2-3
Shoe-in-o-da-week: 6-2-1
5-star-silver-dollar-special: 3-2-0
Overall: 85-84-5

15 Reasons Why Amare for Pau is a Sweet Deal for Both Sides.

Wed, 28 Nov 2012 20:26:25 -0500

1. The New York Knickerbockers need a second scorer that can get his own. – fact.

2. The Los Angeles Lakers need an athletic forward who can run with Steve Nash and take advantage of space when Kobe Bryant draws help. – fact.

_3.The Knicks don’t need another wing slasher (outside of Melo). – fact.

4. The Lakers don’t need another back-to-the-basket player (outside of Dwight Howard.) – fact.

5. The Knicks need to pair Tyson Chandler up with a quality shooter and passer to let him focus solely on attacking the rim. – fact.

6. The Lakers need to pair Steve Nash with a pick and roll partner in the half court. – fact.

7. The Knicks need a battle-tested veteran not named Jason Kidd (i.e. one that deserves to play most of most games on merit and production rather because of his reputation as a leader.) – fact.

8. The Lakers need the personnel to go small and bust games open without Howard on the floor. – fact.

9. The Knicks need the personnel to go big, slow games down and let Carmelo shine late. – fact.

10. Financially, the Lakers would do well to reinvigorate Show Time. – fact.

11. Financially, the Knicks would do well to appeal to the international crowd. – fact.

12. In the playoffs, the Lakers will need to get more than 2-9 shooting with 9 rebounds and 3 assists from their power forward slot. – fact.

13. In the playoffs, the Knicks will need a low post threat not named Carmelo Anthony. – fact.

14. In the conference finals, the Lakers will need the speed and scoring options to keep up with the high-tempo, jump-shooting Oklahoma City Thunder. – fact.

15. In the conference finals, the Knicks will need the brawn to wear-down and wear-out the paint-dwelling, hard-charging Miami Heat. – fact.

Mitch Kupchak and Glen Grunwald need to find a way to switch star power forwards – fact. Will they? Far less certain. Regardless of whether or not the rumored potential trade of the Knicks’ Amare Stoudamire for the Lakers’ Pau Gasol came from a real report – both teams should do more than consider it. They should make it happen - right now. Before the dust settles on Dan Antoni’s hiring. Before Amare Stoudamire returns from injury. Do it now.

This is one of those rare circumstances where two teams’ surpluses and needs correspond with another’s perfectly. The Lakers have an abundance of size but no fluidity in the half-court and even less in transition. The Knicks have an abundance of athletes, slashers and rim-rockers, but lack a legitimate second scorer and post play-maker.

We’ve seen the Amare and Melo front-court experiment, Glen. It failed. No need for tears – just move on, move forward.

You’ve been trying to off-load Pau for the past 18 months, Mitch. Here’s your chance! Don’t let it slip!

Not to mention the numbers work out: both players make way too much money over the next two years. Not mention the fact that the two teams are on opposite coasts – so you got your symmetry there.

Both Pau and Amare are known for showing up soft in big games, so that’s a wash. In an era of super-teams, why not swap queens for a more competitive board? For the good of your teams and for the good of the league, push the button, Glen and Mitch. Make it happen.

Week 13 Picks

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 23:55:00 -0500

@Atlanta (-3.5) over New Orleans
~~@Chicago (-4) over Seattle (shoe-in)~~
Minnesota (+9) over @Green Bay
@St. Louis (+7) over San Francisco
Arizona (+4.5) over @NY Jets
~~Carolina (-3) over @Kansas City~~
~~@Detroit (-4.5) over Indianapolis~~
~~Jacksonville (+6) over @Buffalo~~
New England (-7) over @Miami (lock)
~~Baltimore (-4) over @Pittsburgh~~
Houston (-5.5) over @Tennessee
~~Tampa Bay (+7) over @Denver~~
Cleveland (+1.5) over @Oakland
Cincinnati (+2) over @San Diego
Philadelphia (+10) over @Dallas
@Washington (+2.5) over NY Giants

This week: 8-6-2
Last week: 7-6-2

Lock-o-da-week: 3-2-3

Shoe-in-o-da-week: 6-2-1

5-star-silver-dollar-special: 2-2-0

Overall: 78-75-5

Week 12 Picks

Wed, 21 Nov 2012 22:34:00 -0500

Houston (-3) over @Detroit (shoe-in)
Washington (+3) over @Dallas
~~@NY Jets (+7) over New England~~
@Cincinnati (-8) over Oakland
~~Pittsburgh (-1.5) over @Cleveland~~
~~Buffalo (+3) over Indianapolis~~
@Kansas City (+11) over Denver
~~Tennessee (-3) over @Jacksonville~~
@Chicago (-5.5) over Minnesota
@Tampa Bay (+1) over Atlanta (lock)
~~Seahawks (-2.5) over @Miami~~
St. Louis (+2.5) over @Arizona
Baltimore (pk) over @San Diego
~~Green Bay (+3) over @NY Giants (5-star)~~
Carolina (+2.5) over @Philadelphia

This week: 7-6-2
Last week: 9-5-0

Lock-o-da-week: 3-2-2

Shoe-in-o-da-week: 6-1-1

5-star-silver-dollar-special: 2-2-0

Overall: 70-69-3

Lakers Win in D’Antoni’s Debut: Bench, Point Guard Still Problems

Wed, 21 Nov 2012 09:17:00 -0500

Mike D’Antoni emerged victorious in his debut with the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night, as his star-studded team grinded out a victory at home against the Brooklyn Nets.

With D’Antoni at the helm for the first time, the Lakers looked a lot the like same old Lakers.

As has become a theme in Hollywood so far this season, the Lakers came out of the gates playing stout defense, and quickly built a 10-0 lead within the first four moments of the game.

Once the Lakers bench entered the fray, however, the lead quickly evaporated. The Laker reserves found themselves with a six point deficit midway through the second quarter, before L.A.’s starting unit, complete with 3 of their 4 probable Hall-of-Famers, stabilized the game in the lead up to halftime.

In the second half, the script repeated itself. The Lakers built a small lead by the end of the third quarter, only to see themselves dive into a four point deficit midway through the fourth.

Once both starting units were back on the floor, Kobe took over. Bryant dished out a few assists and hit several critical shots and free-throws down the stretch to usher the Lakers out of Staples with a win.

Winning by five on the night, the Lakes outscored the Nets by 20 in the 39 minutes Bryant and Pau Gasol were on the floor.

On the other side of the coin, the Lakers were outscored by four points in the 41 minutes Dwight Howard was on the floor, likely a result of the extended minutes Howard played in the early parts of the 2^nd and 4^th quarter, alongside the likes of Antwan Jamison (1-3) Jodie Meeks (0-2) and Jordan Hill (2-7).

The Lakers bench combined for 10 points in 50 minutes.

Free throw shooting remains a problem for a Dwight Howard lead team. The four-time defensive player of the year shot 7 for 19 from the stripe. Even as Bryant hit two clutch free-throws in the final seconds of the game, the team as a whole shot an abysmal 19 for 37 on the night.

Outside of bench play, however, the most immediate concern for the Lakers – and no doubt for D’Antoni – is a continued lack of productivity from the point guard position.

With both Steve’s (Nash and Blake) out with injury, second-year California native Darius Morris and eight-year NBA veteran Chris Duhon manned the 1-spot for about half the game each. In 48 combined minutes, the pair accounted for seven points (on 3-7 shooting), two rebounds and six assists – a modest stat-line that has been in no way unusual for the point-guard position for the Lakers this season.

With Paul Gasol and Kobe Bryant well-versed with the equal-opportunity triangle offense installed by Phil Jackson, it remains to be seen whether any point guard in the Purple and Gold will assert himself as the lead facilitator of the offense.

Conventional wisdom dictates that as Nash returns from injury and joins forces with the point-guard friendly D’Antoni – with whom he thrived to the tune of consecutive MVP seasons in Phoenix – the point guard spot will become more and more significant a factor for the team in the coming weeks and months.

So far in 2012, the four Laker point guards (Morris, Duhon, Blake and Nash) are averaging a combined 6.5 assists and, a league worst, 9.9 points per contest.

The team with the second lowest point guard output in the league is the defending champion, Miami Heat. The primary difference, however, is that the Lakers almost always keep at least one point guard on the floor, while the Heat have the luxury of playing stretches with one or both of their perimeter superstars taking turns bringing up the ball.

Despite not having had productive play from the lead guard position, the Lakers still rank middle of the pack (15^th) in the league with 21.5 assists per contest. During both of their most recent championship runs, the Laker averaged fewer than 20 assists per game in the playoffs, a testament to both the talent of the Lakers individual scorers, and to their collective ability to thrive in the slower, more methodical style that NBA spring basketball brings.

Kobe plus 2 elite Bigs is a system that has been shown to be a force to be reckoned with, regardless of the often meager offensive output from the other forward and guard positions.

Having a position on the floor that is only giving you 10 points in 48 minutes would be a liability for most teams, but the Lakers will continue to boast enough scoring options in their starting five to mollify those concerns. With more consistent point guard play expected with the imminent return of Steve Nash and the continued introduction of D’Antoni’s offensive system, the starting unit should start to build bigger, earlier leads against inferior squads like the Brooklyn Nets. And L.A.’s substandard bench should able to sustain those leads most nights.