More New Posts

I want to ask all my long-time readers to read this piece I wrote: I finally came clean with why I write the way I do. Read Why I Write, and maybe now you'll understand why I was willing to give so much time to obscure athletes and sports, or why I quietly spent so much time responding to the writings of others and pushing the bloggosphere in various directions.

To see a full list of my NBA posts, please follow along with my category on Sports on My Mind: http://sportsonmymind.com/category/writers/mcbias/ will let you see all my past writings. There's a special video treat there as well that long-time readers may enjoy (or be horrified by, ha). Please let me know if you have any questions.

Notification of New Blog Posts

Until the end of the month, I will be posting links I write from sportsonmymind.com here so that my readers know where I have gone. After that, there will be no new posts on this blog. I would ask that you keep your subscription to this blog, because if the new blog doesn't work out, we'll be returning to our separate blogs. However, you can feel free to take down any Moderately Cerebral Bias links and replace them with my new home.

I posted the following articles this week at SOMM, and will be covering the Cavs-Wizards and Spurs-Suns series there:
BlogTalk: Let On-line Bygones be Bygones
NBA Play-off Preview: Spurs (3) vs Suns (6)
NBA Play-off Preview: Cleveland (4) vs. Washington (5)

In conclusion, I would like to thank all of you who have read, commented, or e-mailed about the site. I don't blog for my ego or reputation. I'm not here to get famous or get a job in journalism; in fact, I want to avoid either fate. I blog because I want to connect with intelligent, funny sports fans and share different perspectives with them. For the most part, I have found such fans in my comment section. Thank you so much, and I hope that you can also support my on-line move.

MCBias Site Update

Ok, enough fake drama, because the real news is dramatic enough. I have moved to Sports on My Mind. For the last four months, I've been quietly exploring blog partnerships with many of my favorite sports bloggers. I believe that the time when a solo blogger could make a difference is passing, if it isn't already gone. Although my traffic in the last two months has been higher than ever before, I also realized that the blogger environment was changing. Smaller bloggers were being snapped up by the big sites, or quitting the game altogether. What blog sites need are several writers, united around a common theme and keeping a site updated with content. And after weeks of searching, I suddenly was offered a great opportunity to partner with some of the most intelligent and unique sports bloggers I know.

I'm excited to be joining D-Wil (formerly of dwil.wordpress.com), Modi (formerly of cosellout.com), and StopMikeLupica (formerly of stopmikelupica.com) on the new site. We are different in racial heritage, in beliefs, in sports preferences, and in writing style. But we are united by the value we place on finding the hidden stories and getting the big story right, even (or should I say especially?) if it doesn't fit mainstream biases.

I'm trying not to make this announcement sound as if I am insulting other media or bragging; that's just disrespectful. Let me just say that if you want a different perspective on the big sports stories of the day, a perspective that is willing to challenge ordinary thinking and so-called common sense, you will find it on this site. Come with an open mind and read us all at Sports on My Mind. I'll be posting temporary links to my material there for the next few weeks before making my move there permanent. I hope you will join me there!

MCBias is on the Move

Some of you may remember my announcement in March that I would have some site news soon about moving to another blog. That time is now. I know my readership is low this time of the week, so I'll make the big announcement and tell you all the details on Thursday. Until then, feel free to scour the Internet and see if you can find my next blogging home! No, I won't tell you, go find it, it's more fun that way.

NBA Mondays: Ron Artest the Businessman...and Singer?

I think Ron Artest is doing his best to learn how to make a better man of himself. And even though he's had some hard times due to ignorance when Ron first came in the league, I think that 5 years down the road we'll be talking about Artest with a lot more respect than he gets now.
For example, read this article in the Wall Street Journal about how Ron Artest is managing his entourage. I credit The Big Lead for bringing this to my attention. Here are some excerpts:

"There are so many people that have figured out how to get money from athletes legally that when you have friends that you think might be capable of doing something, your first instinct is to give them a shot," says Mr. Artest, 28, who taught himself to do his own taxes and accounting several years ago using Quicken, after a series of bad experiences with professionals. (His business-management agency now handles his accounting.)

Ron is teaching himself computer software, which shows some motivation. This may explain why he wanted to work at Circuit City--he just likes technology a lot, I think. And later...

Mr. Artest says he doesn't regret the opportunities he was able to give his friends. However, he adds, he did learn one lesson: "I wasn't running it as a business, as it should have been run."

Ron is trying to make himself into a businessman in the right way. I commend him for it, and hope that fans won't forever hold that incident in Detroit against him. But on the other hand, I like the slightly crazy side of Ron too. Here is a video that I don't believe any major sports blog has linked to yet, from Ron's time with the Pacers. Ron pulls down Paul Pierce's shorts...and then sings an apology to Paul afterward!

Your (Not-so?) Lovable Los Angeles Lakers

I have a confession to make. I was (deep breath) a Laker hater. While others ooo'ed and ahh'ed over the three-peat a few years ago, I was busily hoping for someone to grab Rick Fox's oiled mane and slam him to the ground, or irritatingly quoting Robert Horry's shockingly low regular season averages and complaining that the Lakers got all the breaks. However, I have decided to reform and love this current edition of (bad cultural reference alert!) the Jackson Five. Haha! But seriously folks, are they not...

MR CAPS MUST ACT NOW TO PREVENT THIS MOMENT OF INSANITY.

Again?! Look, there's nothing insane about me giving this batch of Lakers a chance! The only time I am insane is when I write you into my posts. Please see yourself out.

MC BIAS IS NOT INSANE? MR CAPS TOOK NOTE OF YOUR ATTEMPT TO FIND SPORTS BLOGGER LOVE ON THE BIG LEAD's MYSPACE PAGE. MR CAPS RANKS YOUR CHANCES WITH JENNA FISCHER HIGHER THAN THAT MISGUIDED ATTEMPT AT INTERNET MATING.

It wasn't for Internet mating! Besides, there's nothing wrong with what two consenting Ethernet cables do in the privacy of their packaging.

SIGH. AND WITH JOKES LIKE THAT, YOU WONDER WHY YOU NEED ME?

Ok, ok, that was pretty corny. Let me leave you speechless with my brilliant reasons why the Lakers roster is worth loving. First, you can't talk about the Lakers without mentioning Kobe Bryant. The man has overcome personal adversity and the criticism of an unusually vocal cast of haters to be an MVP candidate and lead the Lakers to compete for the Western Conference. I find his story to be uniquely American as he has recovered from his fall from grace. It's almost like the Prodigal Son or something.

FALL FROM GRACE? PERSONAL ADVERSITY? KOBE BRYANT HAS HAD TWO SOURCES OF PERSONAL ADVERSITY IN HIS CAREER. ONE IS ABOVE HIS SHOULDERS. THE OTHER IS BETWEEN HIS LEGS. NEITHER IS THE FAULT OF ANYONE BUT KOBE.

Oh come on, Kobe rape jokes are so tired! I admit that what happened in that Colorado hotel room was possibly a crime. But I also think his crime was more the result of her aggression in tracking him down and wanting to spend time with him rather than some sort of cold-blooded rape plans on his part. And are we going to bring that case up for the rest of his life?

MR CAPS RECOGNIZES KOBE'S TALENT AND THE PART THAT PHIL AND SHAQ PLAYED IN SAVAGING KOBE'S REPUTATION. BUT MR CAPS IS ADAMANT ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THAT CASE. BEING A MEMBER OF KOBE'S "UNUSUALLY VOCAL CAST OF HATERS" SHOULD NOT INVOLVE SCREAMING "NO! NO!"

Thanks for making me nauseous. Let's move on, ok? I know you won't have anything bad to say about Pau Gasol. The kind bearded giant is a class act whose arrival has fueled the Lakers surge to the top of the conference.

THAT THING ON PAU'S FACE IS NOT A BEARD. IT IS A RESCUE MISSION FOR HOMELESS DWARVES. PAU IS A CHARTER MEMBER IN THE WHINY EUROS CLUB, ALONG WITH KIRILENKO. "WAAH! I AM NOT BIG STAR ON WINNING AMERICAN TEAM! WAAH!"

The Grizzlies are a mess. Sometimes divorce is necessary for the sake of the kids, you know?

YOU ARE COMPARING THE TRADE TO A DIVORCE?! THE GRIZZLIES ARE STILL IN THERAPY AFTER THAT ASSAULT!

We're over our alloted quota of rape jokes for the day, which is ZERO. Moving on, what about Lamar Odom? He's a nice guy whose daughter died, and I love the quirkiness of his left-handed offensive game.

WHAT ABOUT LAMAR ODOM? MR CAPS BELIEVES THAT LAMAR ODOM'S SUSPENSIONS FOR MARIJUANA ARE NO COINCIDENCE, BECAUSE LAMAR FITS THE STONER REPUTATION. HE DOES NOT HURT ANYONE, BUT HE IS OUT OF IT MOST OF THE TIME. QUICK, CAN YOU REMEMBER ONE PIVOTAL MOMENT IN LAMAR'S CAREER? ANYTHING AT ALL?

I cannot. But your argument is that Lamar is bad because Lamar is boring? If that's the best you can do, I'm going to win this case that the Lakers are lovable yet. I still haven't mentioned Derek Fisher yet, otherwise known as my hole card. How can you not love this hard-working Christian veteran player?

ASK THE UTAH JAZZ. YOU ARE GOING TO TELL MR CAPS THAT THERE ARE NO FLIGHTS BETWEEN SALT LAKE CITY AND THE TREATMENT CENTER IN LA FOR HIS DAUGHTER? THE JAZZ ONLY LET HIM GO BECAUSE HE WAS EATING UP CAP ROOM AND THEY NEEDED GOOD PR. MR CAPS EXPECTS MR. "POINT 4" TO BE HUMILIATED BY CHRIS PAUL AND DERON WILLIAMS IN THE PLAY-OFFS.

Unfounded paranoia coupled with irrational hatred is no way to go through life. I grant you that it's surprising how little people are talking about the point guard match-ups in the play-offs. In the last games the Lakers played against each team, Paul had 27 pts and 17 assists, and Deron went 26 and 12.

But let's talk about that Laker bench. Quite a few decent guys on that bench with heartwarming stories. You have NBA tradition with Luke Walton and Cody Karl, European sharp-shooters in Sasha and Vladimir, and the heart-warming story of Ronny Turiaf's struggles with heart problems. What's not to love?

THE LAKERS BENCH IS LIKE A WHO'S WHO OF PREPPY NBA PLAYERS WHO CAN NOT ACTUALLY PLAY. IF MR CAPS HAD LADY PARTS, HE WOULD CARE ABOUT THE LAKERS BENCH. BUT BEING A MAN, HE FINDS COCKY OVERRATED PAC-10 ALUMS AND ANONYMOUS EURO-TRASH TO BE BORING AT BEST AND PUNCH-INDUCING AT WORST. RONNY'S HEART PROBLEMS ARE CANCELED OUT BY HIS DANCING PROBLEMS AND CLUBBING PROBLEMS, AS SEEN BELOW:



SPEAKING OF CLUBS, ARE NOT ALL THE LAKER BENCH PLAYERS GUYS YOU WOULD WANT TO FIGHT IF YOU MET THEM IN THE CLUB?

I don't have lady parts either, so I could care less about the looks of the bench. All right, enough about the players. Let's talk about Phil Jackson. He has overcome hip surgery and...wait, what's happening? I feel a warm feeling in the pit of my stomach! My palms are getting sweaty! I can't feel my face! What is it? I have had this feeling before, but I can't remember why it happens.

REJECTION BY A GIRL? ALTHOUGH YOU SHOULD RECOGNIZE THAT FEELING BY NOW.

No, it's...it's my Lakers hatred! It's back! Phil Jackson is an aging hippie who discarded his parents' Christianity for some vague Zen Buddhist teachings that justified his drug use! Despite fawning specials on his coolness during half-time, the only thing "hip" about Phil Jackson was recently replaced via surgery! Rather than take time off and re-unite with his second wife, he rushed to take the Laker job and hook up with the owner's daughter! He intentionally manipulated Kobe and the public perception of Kobe just so he could stay on Shaq's good side! He plays mind games with everyone, even beating up on the hard-working Horace Grant just so that the team would rally around Horace! Being some sort of psycho-babble guru in the NBA is like being the smartest student in a special ed class--who is his competition anyway? If it were not for having so many Hall-of-Famers on his team, he would not have won all those rings! WOO!!!

YES! FEED THE HATE! FEED THE HATE! WELCOME BACK TO THE LAKER HATERADE WAGON! DOWN WITH THE PURPLE AND GOLD! DOWN WITH THE AGING COURTSIDE CELEBRITIES HOOKED ON CENTRUM AND BOTOX! DOWN WIH THE FAIR-WEATHER FAITHFUL AND THEIR SENSE OF SPORTING ENTITLEMENT! IT IS GOOD TO HAVE YOU BACK ON THE WAGON!

Phew, that was close. I almost made it through the entire Lakers roster, too. It's hard to hate the Laker players, but Phil Jackson is my Anti-Love. Ready for the NBA play-offs, MR CAPS?

YES, RIGHT AFTER MR CAPS FINISHES CREATING HIS MYSPACE PROFILE AS A FAKE FEMALE FAN OF THE BIG LEAD. WHAT'S THE OVER/UNDER ON HOW MANY COMMENTERS WILL BEFRIEND ME AND SEND ME DESPERATE MESSAGES?

Zero, just like real life, and it'll be you sending the desperate messages. Good luck with that.

Bloggolalia: Vote for me in Lozo's Tournament!

I need your vote in Lozo's "The Suckiest Sports Blog that Ever Sucked" tournament, going on all day today. I am matched up against a blog that covers minor league baseball. Can you believe it--a blog with a focus? A blog that is NOT a sloppily put-together casserole of NBA coverage, female athletes, Christian bias, and Youtube videos that are neither funny nor sexy? It's as if I'm intentionally covering all the subjects that do NOT result in a sports blog. (Hmm...am I? Don't think that a few of my topic choices are not deliberate rebellions against mainstream bias...)Don't allow me to continue in this irrational behavior! Vote for me here! I expect to get at least into the round of 16, people!

I dislike being an apologist for Lozo, because I certainly disagree with him on other matters. But people who are criticizing him for holding this tournament or claiming this is a publicity stunt--get a life. Sure, several of Lozo's posts have been publicity stunts in the past (cough lamefakeWillFarrellinterview cough). But this post does performs a service of sorts. Some blogs have gotten fat and lazy, and refuse to be creative anymore. This tournament helps call some of those blogs out for cheating their readers. How can you be against blog accountability to their readers? You can talk all you want about how blogs are not accountable to the media, to athletes, etc., and I'll respect that to some extent. But if you try to convince me that blogs have no responsibility to their readers, I will fight you on that. So go enjoy the tournament, and vote for those lazy blogs!

Ok, that's my last post on the tournament until maybe the Sweet 16, promise. I think. Is it obvious by now that I don't care that much about college basketball, the Masters, or baseball?

NBA Mondays: NCAA Version

I was prepared to take Tyler Hansbrough and Kevin Love seriously as NBA prospects if they took their teams to the Final Four. Remember, neither Gonzaga's Adam nor Duke's JJ was able to do so during their POY seasons. But I think the NBA will still have to wait for its Blue Collar Hero. Who is the Blue Collar Hero? He is usually a white American, looks human enough that the average fan can identify with him, but still has a certain amount of expertise on the basketball court. Let's face it; many fans buy tickets not only to enjoy the artistry of the game, but to see someone succeed who looks and seems a lot like them. #1 on the Blue Collar Hero list is, of course, Larry Bird, but other Blue Collar Heroes have included John Stockton and Tom Chambers.

So what candidates does the NBA have for this vital position? Kirk Hinrich? Steve Nash, if everyone will forget he's Canadian? Chris Kaman, if one looks past the haircut? White Americans have never had fewer reasons to identify with the league. I'd like to pretend this doesn't matter to anyone, but I am sure it does.

Your Random NBA photos are of Eddy Curry.


Secondly, Craig Holcomb, a white former recruiter for Iona, was allegedly fired for having a black wife. I am usually suspicious about the veracity of such stories. However, this old NY Post article seems to indicate that Craig performed well at his position:

It started after the 2004 season when the administration, in a power struggle with Ruland, forced out three assistant coaches, including Craig Holcomb, an established recruiter. Iona already had Burtt and Soliver, so an upheaval of the coaching staff was like a spot of rust on the base of a support beam - easy to overlook.

"Craig was really plugged into the AAU programs," said one source. "Losing him set them back at least one season, probably two."

Unfortunately, it does seem as if Craig was unjustly fired after all. I hope Iona has the decency to settle this now and give him the money he deserves, instead of going to trial and further embarrassing themselves. We shall see...

Oh, and finally, go to this ESPN.com interview with George Clooney, in which he breaks down the baller skills of Jim from the Office and Tom Cruise. George Clooney was a former high school basketball center on a very bad team. On a talk show, George admitted that they were terrible and played many homecoming basketball games.

Bloggolalia: Blog Burnout

I can't help but notice how many of my fellow bloggers (myself included) are starting to feel a little burned-out. Blogging by its very nature can be a solitary, lonely enterprise. One writes stories for people to read, but does not actually communicate with those people except through comments or maybe e-mail.

For example, look at how AJ Daulerio's arrival at Deadspin has re-invigorated Will and Rick. Deadspin defintely was seeming burned out to me for the last three months. Part of it was Will's book tour, but Will and Rick seemed genuinely tired. They wouldn't say so themselves, but I think now that AJ is on board, they realize just how thin they were stretched before he arrived. However, with AJ around, Will's writing had extra bite to it all week long. He even said in the last post on Friday "It's nice having Daulerio around, isn't it?" Since Will can be a little understated, I'm pretty sure what he really meant was "AJ, IF I HAD TO SPEND ANOTHER MOMENT TALKING TO MYSELF ON THIS BLOG, BLOOD WOULD BE SHED" haha.

Or, take the writings of Lozo. In-between body part jokes and odes to Sarah Chalke, he pointed out that anger fuels blogging, and that he's running a little low. See the following:

What was I saying? Oh yeah. What's up with me? I think I might be too happy to blog on a consistent basis these days. Let's face it -- my power comes from my anger. I've said it once and I'll say it a million times -- it's always more interesting to read a blog by someone who is complaining about not getting laid than it is about a guy who is getting laid, whether he's constantly talking about or not...
But the point of that analogy is the happier you get in real life (apparently being in a relationship makes people happy) the less fun your blog gets. This problem affects approximately .5 percent of the population. I am in that sliver. So what's a boy to do?

Lozo tried to fix his anger shortage by starting a "Suckiest Sports Blog that ever Sucked" tournament. I'm a 12-seed (upon request), and to say I'm excited is an understatement. Let the hating, err, healing begin! I definitely have a love-hate relationship with the best blogs out there. Please, go vote on Lozo's blog all week long. I expect to at least pull the 5-12 upset, people! Don't you realize that this blog is about nothing but the NBA, female athletes, Christian stuff, and Youtube videos? It's as if I have deliberately picked the least popular options to blog about. I'm a shoo-in for the Sweet 16! haha.

So what's the point of this post? I think that as bloggers, we need to be aware of burnout. Slow down your posting when you feel burn-out coming on, or post about something fun and/or new. (Expect fewer posts from me in the next month, along those lines). Talk to more people/more bloggers when you feel burn-out coming on, so you don't feel quite so isolated and solitary. That's not much, but it's a start. Do you all have other ideas?

Oh, and Final Four picks: North Carolia vs. Memphis in the last game, Memphis wins it all. I know Memphis plays in a weak conference--but they have one loss and have received little respect all year long. I think that might be enough, especially since Roy Williams will be exhausted after beating Kansas. Don't think that won't affect his coaching performance in the next game.

Artist of the Week: Emma Russack

There are a lot of talented singers and instrumentalists (if that's the right word) on Youtube. This month I will try to feature them as much as possible. First up is the Australian, Emma Russack. Subscribe to her YouTube channel here. I like that she plays the guitar and sings at the same time, and she has a smoky? Bluesy? whatever you want to call it voice.

Here she is singing "Swimming", a song she wrote herself; the song has nearly 1,000,000 views.


Here she sings "Party at the Lonestar", a song she wrote herself.


In this video, she wears blue while covering Neil Young's "My, my, hey, hey (Out of the Blue"


Finally, here's a live performance that is poorly filmed, but it fits with the song, which is titled "Sweet Smog Children"