205 Drop: Top 10 referee moments from the NBA Playoffs

The most telling thing about today's list is that I was able to fill it before the second round was over. Part of that is bad media, in that the powers that be enjoy going down the path of the ugly rather than actual game reporting (technicals and flagrants are to the NBA what fights are to the NFL, kill shot tackles are to the NFL, and charging the mound is to MLB)... but the bigger part is that the zebras really are bad, noticeable, and a constant source of attention when they shouldn't be.

Here's how you know it's a problem -- when you *haven't* heard of the ref when they are announced in pre-game, you feel better, because everyone else has a bad history. I'm not sure there's an answer to it, or if this is just a matter of where your eye goes when the games are tight, as many of the playoff games this year have been. But for a league that was supposed to make this Priority #1 in the wake of the Donaghy Fiasco, it's still way too big of an issue.

Anyway, go get All Face with the click. Unless you're a Celtics Fan, that's probably your lasting memory of that series anyway. (So very, very sad.)

Don't Hate The Pasta Dude

Dominos Pasta DUDE!


Thirty second of surreality from a bygone era. I especially like the whitest kid ever informing us that this is tight. (H/t, Deadspin/Leitch)

Galileo!

Lighters optional. (The players: an HP ScanJet 3C, a TI-99/4a, and Atari 800XL and an 8-inch floppy disk. The ScanJet is *so* gay, it's not funny.)

Is there any wonder...

that so many people of my generation are genuinely disturbed, when this was deemed as suitable children's entertainment?

Good luck getting that out of your dreams. I'm off to the medicine cabinet.

I Will Then Set Myself On Fire

BEHOLD, Dear Readers and my fellow Blogfricans, the long-lost music video from my '90s rock and roll band. (No, really.)



I know you have questions.

1) Is that really you?

Yes.

2) No, seriously?

Yup. Nearly 15 years ago, but yes, yes, yes.

3) WTF?

Agreed.

4) No, seriously, dude, WTF?

You really want to know what the song is about?

5) Um...

When I was a musician (yes, that's me singing), I held a McJob at Penn. One day, I had to copy old law books, and one of the books was about the history of animal law. Animal law is what happened in Europe in the time before television when a pig that ate garbage munched an infant, or you were plagued by locusts, etc. People would actually dress the animals up and put them on trial.

6) Uh...

Yes, and also had trials when they caught someone buggering a beast. That's why the dancer has a tail. (0:45.)

7) Dude, WTF?

The song is from the point of view of an offending farmer. He takes the Marion Berry route of claiming the she-ass set him up. The town sees it differently, because, hey, that's one nice donkey. The whole song is based on a true story. Hence, the France graphic (0:18).

8) Were you high?

Later, but not during. We flew in a dancer who worked with Prince; I met her at a music conference. The whole thing was shot in a day. It even got some UHF airplay back in the day. We figured, hey, chick with a tail and FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!, it was bound to make us famous. Or something.

9) OK, OK, I'm actually watching it. What a train wreck. How did you do that whole burning at the stake thing at the end of it?

I had myself burned at the stake.

10) Seriously?

Seriously. Second degree burns, melted the hair off me in some places. One of the townspeople -- and all of these folks were friends, fans and fellow musicians in the Philly music scene, it was like a Ren Faire party -- really got into her motivation and spit in my face. It was a cooling moment, and the highlight of the day, really.

11) Um... dude. Why are you putting this up in public?

For your amusement, clearly. Go ahead and laugh. I was young and stupid. Now, I'm old and stupid.

12) And if I like the music, and want to know if you could get the band back together...

Ah, shaddup.

Wow, Cardinals Fan Is Stepping It Up

According to Michael Silver at Yahoo Sports, Cardinal Fan decided to decorate Donovan McNabb's place in Chandler, AZ over the weekend by soaking his lawn in gasoline to burn out "Go Cards" and other similar bright concepts. Inside the house, of course, is the man's wife, four-year-old daughter, and six-week-old twins.

Just on the off chance that you were thinking of rooting for the Redbirds under some idea that one championship for them would be better than the umpteenth for the Steelers. Even Kurt Warner's Jebus and puppies routine can't wash that away.

Safeties Need Not Apply

This year, Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed had nine picks in the regular season, two of which he returned for touchdowns. He also recovered a fumble for another score, had a sack, and was the best player on a defense that allowed the second fewest running yards, passing yard, and points allowed.

He did that with a pass rush that only tied for 12th in sacks, so it's not like he was feasting on ducks from battered QBs. The Ravens went 11-5, with Reed playing a starring role in the stretch drive; it's (very) safe to say that they don't make the playoffs without him, and might not have gotten past the Dolphins in round one.

And your most valuable player of the year was... Peyton Manning, who threw for 4000 yards and 27 touchdowns, in a year where his quarterback rating was just the fifth highest in the league, and his lowest since 2002.

Well, OK, fine. That's what happens in the league where Most Valuable Player should just be renamed QB/RB With The Best Year. Or maybe Best Manning. It's all the same thing, which is to say, nothing that anyone really needs to get too upset over, since it's absurd on its face.

But then the AP names its defensive player of the year... and it's the Steelers' James Harrison. Now, I don't mean to demean Harrison here; he had 16 sacks and 7 forced fumbles, both career highs. He's a great player. But shouldn't the second place guy, Dallas's DeMarcus Ware (with 20 sacks and 6 forced fumbles) have split off his vote, since you could make the argument that Harrison wasn't even the best pass rusher? (For the record, I'd rather have Harrison. But you get the point.)

So, um, not to be too delicate about this, but who does Ed Reed need to service to get the recognition he deserves? I'm not a Ravens fan, but he hits like a truck. He shows up huge in big games. And, well, HE SCORED THE SAME OR MORE TOUCHDOWNS ON DEFENSE THAN EVERY OTHER *TEAM* IN THE LEAGUE THAT WASN'T GREEN BAY.

I've watched the entire career of Brian Dawkins. Ed Reed just had a better year than Dawk ever did. He might have just had the best season for a safety ever. And the best that anyone can give him is the third-best defensive player?

Well, look at it on the plus side, Raven Fan. Maybe he plays better when he's mad.

Japan Is A Confusing Country

(Just to make sure no one's taking this place too seriously after that Ground Zero thing.)

Japan Is A Confusing Country

Dice-K appears to give a Philadelphia Eagles monster the smack down. And to think, as Reggie White said, these people are so gifted at making things small. (Hat tip, Six Pack Sports Report.)