Well that was heck of a PPV wasn't it. No matter what side of the fence you were on about it, it definitely proved not to be boring thanks in part to a crowd that just wasn't going to have it.
So a couple of thoughts coming out of one of the more interesting cards in a while.
-- No problem with the NAO holding the tag straps for a transitional period but get it off of them before Wrestlemania please. Probably was the right time for the Brothers Rhodes to lose the belts but probably not the right team. I don't think anyone wants to see them fight either and I don't think there's room for Cody to be a heel again and gain any traction.
-- Bray Wyatt has game and I'm actually excited to see him work with Cena now. I think they can have a hell of a match and I believe Cena will work his ass off to get the best of out Bray.
-- I'm worried about CM Punk. He was really off his game last night from what I've come to expect. hHe was holding his knee and grimacing Monday. He might be injured, he seems pretty disenchanted and I don't see running a program with Kane as something that will bring out the best in him. A month ago it seemed like it was Punk-HHH or maybe Punk-HBK at Wrestlemania. That still might be the case but it seems farther away now.
-- On the positive end I was impressed with Seth Rollins more than anyone else in the match. He went over 45 minutes and never seemed to run out of energy. He's pretty much the third wheel in the Shield but I hope they don't completely forget about him once the breakup happens.
-- I'm hoping someone saw Cesaro get extended minutes and remembered that this guy has talent, charisma and can get a basic move like the giant swing over because he does something special with it. Maybe they might also see they are wasting the hell out Dutch too. Just dump Swagger and there might be something there.
-- Mainly there were spots where I saw a lot of solid workers, young guys, in the ring and most of them have nothing to do right now other than wait for creative to find something or wait to get repackaged or future endeavored. As much as people bitched about the brand extension, it was good for the guys that could work and needed the time and platform to gain a following. If HHH was serious about trying to raise the prestige of the secondary singles belts he should consider the extension again and try to build it around the I-C and U.S. titles (or just the I-C title if they are merged). Punk, Bryan, Ziggler...even guys that are gone like Jeff Hardy and John Morrison...really connected with the audiences on Smackdown because they were given the space to be creative and get themselves over.
Anyway that's all I got. RAW is on my DVR since I won't be able to watch. Enjoy the show and come out swinging but try to keep it clean.
So a couple of thoughts coming out of one of the more interesting cards in a while.
-- No problem with the NAO holding the tag straps for a transitional period but get it off of them before Wrestlemania please. Probably was the right time for the Brothers Rhodes to lose the belts but probably not the right team. I don't think anyone wants to see them fight either and I don't think there's room for Cody to be a heel again and gain any traction.
-- Bray Wyatt has game and I'm actually excited to see him work with Cena now. I think they can have a hell of a match and I believe Cena will work his ass off to get the best of out Bray.
-- I'm worried about CM Punk. He was really off his game last night from what I've come to expect. hHe was holding his knee and grimacing Monday. He might be injured, he seems pretty disenchanted and I don't see running a program with Kane as something that will bring out the best in him. A month ago it seemed like it was Punk-HHH or maybe Punk-HBK at Wrestlemania. That still might be the case but it seems farther away now.
-- On the positive end I was impressed with Seth Rollins more than anyone else in the match. He went over 45 minutes and never seemed to run out of energy. He's pretty much the third wheel in the Shield but I hope they don't completely forget about him once the breakup happens.
-- I'm hoping someone saw Cesaro get extended minutes and remembered that this guy has talent, charisma and can get a basic move like the giant swing over because he does something special with it. Maybe they might also see they are wasting the hell out Dutch too. Just dump Swagger and there might be something there.
-- Mainly there were spots where I saw a lot of solid workers, young guys, in the ring and most of them have nothing to do right now other than wait for creative to find something or wait to get repackaged or future endeavored. As much as people bitched about the brand extension, it was good for the guys that could work and needed the time and platform to gain a following. If HHH was serious about trying to raise the prestige of the secondary singles belts he should consider the extension again and try to build it around the I-C and U.S. titles (or just the I-C title if they are merged). Punk, Bryan, Ziggler...even guys that are gone like Jeff Hardy and John Morrison...really connected with the audiences on Smackdown because they were given the space to be creative and get themselves over.
Anyway that's all I got. RAW is on my DVR since I won't be able to watch. Enjoy the show and come out swinging but try to keep it clean.
Is Raw starting at 4?(7 for you east coasters). This pretty early for an Open Thread.
ReplyDeleteGoing to be watching this as a family and see how bad the crowd shits over everything. First time my daughter will be sitting down and watching too; as she doesn't have school tomorrow due to winter weather (God bless Houston lol) she'll get to stay up a bit later
ReplyDeleteNo,don't make her a wrestling fan,she'll suffer like us smarks.
ReplyDeleteI think its telling that Punk and Rollins were 1 and 2 and in for a long period of time. Clearly the WWE knew he could handle the match and trust him enough to hold things together (he is the architect of the shield after all).
ReplyDeletePST is the B E S T
ReplyDeleteLol...well she's six going on seven and she's interrupted some of my live viewings enough times wanting me to watch Uncle Grandpa or Adventure Time enough times for me to pull rank. She's shown interest so what the hell lol. Tried it before but kept getting asked 'what are the rules' and ' why that man look like he need to make doody' and it got annoying.
ReplyDeleteRaw use to be tape-delayed on the west cost many years ago. Its not anymore I take it?
ReplyDeletePunk spends months feuding with The Shield, HHH's enforcers.
ReplyDeletePunk gets hung out to dry by NAO, Triple H's buddies.
Punk then gets put at No. 1 in the Rumble by Kane, HHH's deputee, and then screwed in the Rumble by Kane.
How again does it seem like we're getting farther away from Punk/HHH?
I thought he was the administrative assistant for Sector 7G of the Shield?
ReplyDeleteThis lifelong east coast girl agrees. No time like pacific time.
ReplyDeleteWho would you put in a Chamber match?
ReplyDeleteRandy Orton, Brock Lesnar, John Cena, Bray Wyatt, Daniel Bryan, and...drawing a blank on #6.
I remarked to my wife about halfway through the rumble that I kept forgetting that Punk was out there. I hope he's okay.
ReplyDeleteWell,i'm just kidding,I started watching when I was 8 or 9 years old because of John Cena,I share his first name so I thought that was cool.
ReplyDeleteWe're trying for 5000 posts tonight.
ReplyDeleteSantino!
ReplyDeleteIt starts at eight. Not sure why it got posted so early
ReplyDeleteAll 5 + Reigns.
ReplyDeleteIt still is, depending on your cable provider. I usually avoid live thread just for that reason.
ReplyDeleteI feel old lol
ReplyDeleteAnd I feel young!
ReplyDeleteCamera avoided him but he did some little things. Like the drop kick after the Cesaro swing. He had some interesting verbal moments also. Someone tried to throw him out, then Cody tried to throw him out right after and he said "oh no, not again!" I think he and Kofi got into something and he said "wait I thought we were friends". Kind of cute but the announcers didn't play it up and they were hard to notice.
ReplyDeleteHe spent the middle part of the rumble flat on his face after the Shield cleared the ring and didn't do much from that point on though.
I just saw some NBA rumor that melo might go to Chicago next year. I can't see him helping any team with a ball dominant guard, which includes both LA and Chicago. He needs to play with a dominant 5 like a hibbert or Howard or Chandler or gasol etc. Honestly melos best spot might be on Memphis with that front court and conely
ReplyDeleteI take it you're another 93 baby?
ReplyDeleteYou're steppin' on my turf, son.
setember 96
ReplyDeleteBorn in 1978...started watching in 1986
ReplyDeleteYeah, it was definitely after the shield cleared out the rest of the competitors that I stopped noticing Punk as much. I really was excited to see what they did with Punk against the Shield (though I guess it's been done before, hasn't it?) but Sheamus pretty much came out immediately after that.
ReplyDeleteBecause Princess is going to be gone and, I'm assuming, decided to start it early rather than to miss having a thread and having to start a thread right before Raw starts. I mean its right there in her post.
ReplyDeleteChicago is the only big league team that will take him.
ReplyDeleteLA doesn't have the cap, I think.
That's not a bad thing...thats a good thing
ReplyDeleteNah. Born in '79 and been watching since the mid 80's here.
ReplyDeleteA fellow '78er right here, brother!
ReplyDeleteI think I'm the youngest here?
ReplyDeleteI have AT&T u verse cable and (like most other carries I assume) they have a low def and high def channel for every network (more or less). The HD one plays raw live at 5 o'clock and the SD one plays it at 8. So I have both options but obviously the HD one wins out. I'm usually not home from work by then so often I'm catching up on DVr in the live thread.
ReplyDeleteDude just had neck surgery.
ReplyDeleteSpoiler: Melo's never winning a ring as the best player on a team. Guy doesn't play hard often enough, hasn't figured out how to be a leader, and is a two time (soon to be three) coach killer. It doesn't matter where he goes, they're not winning anything.
ReplyDeleteShit, you stole my thunder as youngest here.
ReplyDeleteBah, that's fine. We'll just let his Cobra do all the work.
ReplyDeleteAnd by "cobra," I mean his penis.
And by "his penis," I mean Santino should do porn.
....
I think I need help.
Old fart.
ReplyDeleteHas someone watched Harley Race's bounty promo?After that one I totally became a fan of his work.He brings so much energy in that promo.
ReplyDeleteHe's not going to Memphis but I agree it would make sense based solely on team fit.
ReplyDeleteI hope he stays in New York and keeps playing for mediocre teams
You are what? 22
ReplyDeleteYou can't put Brock in there with Bryan. Their first meeting should be a solo match. Brock's a big enough draw that he should probably be in a solo match generally. I think you go Orton, Cena, Punk, Bray, Harper, and Rowan, or possibly Orton, Cena, Punk, Reigns, Langston, and either Kofi/Ziggler for highspots and a minor rub for Reigns or Langston killing them.
ReplyDeleteGive Bryan a singles match against Batista if you want nuclear heat, or let him have a run at Brock if you'd rather save the Batista match for downy he road.
The elephant in the room with Carmelo is that as more teams become "smarter" with advanced metrics, his value diminishes. The big story in some parts of the media is "will Melo pick the Lakers" when the real story is "would the Lakers pick Melo and not try to wait for a swing at Love/Durant/Westbrook knowing that those 3 all have much better win-based metrics than Melo".
ReplyDeleteIf Chicago is willing to give him the money that's the best fit. It's the closest to a ready built team that he's going to find in free agency.
Second elephant in the room. He'll by 30 by the time the year ends. Perimeter players hit their peak at 28 or so and generally start their final decline at 32 or so. Any team that pays for Carmelo has to be prepared to win NOW because there literally isn't time to build something to fit him.
LA has the cap space to do a max deal but (and I say this as a melo fan)I cant imagine why they would want him. He and Kobe do the same thing and Kobe does it better. Also a d rose type that always needs the ball won't work. I think he could be the best player on a NBA title team but he couldn't just go on any team and make an impact. Having said they I have no clue what happened to the Knicks this year and I've only seen them play twice
ReplyDeleteLA has space. The only players on their cap after this year are Kobe, Nash, Sacre and Nick Young and Nick Young will opt out. Nash also probably retires which makes his number evaporate. LA can afford anyone they want, just a question of if they want him.
ReplyDeleteYeah Time Warner used to have that setup here. HD would play at 5 and SD at 8 but they "fixed" that some time last year so I have to wait like everyone else.
ReplyDeleteWhen it was just Shield + Punk, they beat him up and set him up for the triple bomb. Then Sheamus came in and saved. I thought Punk was just selling the beating for awhile but he didn't do anything for almost 10 minutes. Don't know if he was tired or just mailing it in but it seemed odd. He picked it up by the time Cesaro got his spots in but nothing much in the interim.
ReplyDeletePost-injury it's hard to say Kobe does it better. LA is probably best for Melo if they can set it up so they get Kevin Love (the two have on-and-off been reported as wanting to play together) to dominate the glass and give them a second option that simultaneously spaces the floor for Melo. From there they'd really just need a couple elite defenders (one perimeter one interior) and they'd be a contender.
ReplyDeleteIf Kevin Love keeps improving, that team could actually win big, despite my previous comments about Melo (who probably wouldn't be the best player on the team by the time they won anyways, but still).
I think melo has a game that will age reasonably well. I'm not saying he'll be getting 29 a game in his 17th season like Kobe but I think melo has 4 or 5 years of 2,000 point seasons left.
ReplyDeleteChicago's not taking him unless Thibs is leaving. Thibs wants no part of Melo, who is the opposite of everything Thibs loves.
ReplyDeleteAgree. He's going to remain relevant as a scorer, if nothing else, until his body turns on him. And he's a relatively tough/sturdy guy, so he's got some time there.
ReplyDeleteIf they pay for Melo they can't afford another free agent because Kobe's contract is too big. They'd have to make a trade to get Love and they won't have picks or really anything to trade since in a Melo scenario the rest of their team would be cheap guys on minimum deals. Any scenario that picks Melo for the Lakers means that the Lakers are done as FA/trade players until 2016 or so.
ReplyDeleteYeah I'm just saying that seems like the team where he could have the biggest impact. I agree he's never going there and for the sake of argument if he did somehow I'm sure memphis would have to drop Conley or one of the bigs
ReplyDeleteHey, I just got it Bad News Barrett, like as in 'I've got some bad news for you, guess there's nothing you can do but bear it (or Barrett). Also, it sounds kind of like Bad News Bears. Brilliant on so many levels!
ReplyDeleteWeed~
ReplyDeleteShit, I forgot all about Sting!
ReplyDeleteBatista vs Sting for the WWE World Heavyweight Title at Wrestlemania!
If Love opts in with the T-Wolves, I'm pretty sure his deal ends at the same time as Kobe's… meaning LA will have loads of space that off season.
ReplyDeleteGranted, that's far from a foregone conclusion, but it's a relevant what-if.
Additionally, if Melo's willing to take a minor, Lebron/Wade style pay cut and they structure the rest of their roster properly, they could conceivably get Love as an FA in 2015 anyways.
Isn't it a contract year for Z-Bo?
ReplyDeleteHe seems not very happy in Memphis.
He won't opt in under any scenario. He's as good as gone in 2015
ReplyDeleteYeah, but Randolph's on his way out in the next year or two anyways. I wouldn't totally rule it out, and Marc Gasol/Conley are exactly the sort of teammates Melo needs; unselfish, and awesome on D.
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing they never made it past the alliteration with the name. I think you're digging too deep.
ReplyDeleteI made the exact same observation during last week's live thread
ReplyDeleteI basically agree (and am hoping against hope he goes to Phoenix in a trade this off-season during the brief window where they have cap space in exchange for all their picks), but he is from LA, so there's always the chance he'd suffer another season in Minny in order to set himself up to go home and play alongside Melo or Westbrook (also a very real possibility for the Lakers).
ReplyDeletesame here!
ReplyDeleteEven if his decline is slow, he's such an inefficient "star" player that any decline turns him into a high usage version of "just another guy". Assuming he declines into a guy who is producing at the 0.1500 at 32 into 0.1333 at the end of his deal (34), committing max money to that person is simply not a smart play in 2014.
ReplyDeleteTheoretically he's not even worth a max deal NOW at peak given what you have to get out of that kind of deal to win a championship.
If I'm LA I wouldn't do it. For starters, you'd have to look for another coach(no way D'Antoni goes through this shit again). Secondly, ball movement would cease to exist and thirdly, K-Love is pretty much a given for you, why fuck it up with that ballhog?
ReplyDelete20.
ReplyDeleteLook dude, those are 100% fair points but I think you're being a little harsh. He played on a lot of really good Denver teams but they were over there head in the west with san antonio and la and Dallas etc. They had to win 50 a few times to make the playoffs and they made it his rookie year with melo as the best player. If melo played in the east like lebron he could have beaten the pistons and made the finals too. Obviously lebron is on anothrr level but Carmelo would have been more highly regarded than he is now.
ReplyDeleteUltimately in the playoffs, you need a go to guy that can carry the offense. Time and time again. He could make the difference on team with a heavy front line that needs a knock out punch on the perimeter
100% agree, but there have always been and will always be dumb GMs with money to burn who believe in stars over stats.
ReplyDeleteAnd, that said, they're not necessarily wrong. Even when his teams stink, Melo puts butts in seats and sells jerseys. Some teams care about that as much as they care about contending.
Also, there's a chance he'll become a bit more efficient as age robs him of his explosiveness and forces him to rely on his (very good) post game. Happened to Kobe, and to a lesser extent, Jordan.
Up vote
ReplyDeleteFeeling under the weather tonight, so I won't be watching the show, but I'll look forward to reading the recap.
ReplyDeleteDOWNVOTE!
ReplyDeleteI take it Parallax is the downvote?
ReplyDeleteWatching Flair's promos in the 80's=Gold
ReplyDeleteRace was great. Unfortunately so much of his stuff is lost because they taped over the shows to save money
ReplyDeleteme.
ReplyDeleteOh, you were serious.
ReplyDeleteI think the really damning thing for him, though, is when he left that Denver team they got better and the Knicks team he went to got worse.
ReplyDeleteAnd the "You need a guy to carry the offense" narrative has always been a little overblown. There are a handful of title teams that have won by committee, including the 2004 Pistons, 79 Sonics, and 78 Bullets. It's not common, but it's more common that teams with a me-first scorer who doesn't pull his weight on D as their best player winning. Although you could claim Kobe was that in 09-10, but those teams were so loaded in the front court it hardly mattered.
So, what's happening in the clean world?
ReplyDeleteThe Bulls desperately need someone other than Rose who can make his own offense. But I'm not sure how well he'd fit in with Thibs. And if Rose can't make comeback, then it's pointless to get him.
ReplyDeleteJust kidding
ReplyDeleteWhy the downvote?
ReplyDelete"Flair,you pushed me in way no one has ever pushed.With that said I'm giving 25k to the man who finishes Flair" Classic delivery.
ReplyDeleteBecause weed is EVIL!
ReplyDeleteHe was worth it last year though IMO. I have no idea what happened to the Knicks this year. I watch lots of NBA but have only seen the knicks twice and they were fucking awful. Honestly it looked like they quit on the coach or something. I think woodson is a top 10 coach but maybe they need to fire him? I don't get why they suck so bad. Even without Chandler they shouldnt have been that bad.
ReplyDeleteIf being evil is wrong, then I stand corrected
ReplyDeleteDamn someone call john hollinger we just fixed his team.
ReplyDeleteMy wife and I are considering a move to the west coast (central time zone now) and I always forget about things like tv being on a tape delay, or watching NFL games at 10 in the morning.
ReplyDelete"Nick Young will opt out" with the Lakers asking him to not let the door hit his ass on the way out. Young a black-hole. Once the ball goes to him it never leaves. He's awful.
ReplyDeleteOne other team I just thought of.
ReplyDeleteDallas will have money at the end of the year and Dirk has said publicly he'll take a pay cut if it'll help Cuban get another star in. I don't know why Dallas hasn't been thrown around by the media, that would make a LOT of sense. Dirk is one of the few other star players that Melo could theoretically merge with. And that team will also have a PG signed as well (Calderon).
they should get rid of D'Antoni regardless. He's a horrible coach.
ReplyDeleteA Melo/Marc Gasol PnR game would be terrifying. As would a Conley/Gasol PnR with Melo lurking on the weak side.
ReplyDeleteOh god that would be oil and water, but in thibs credit he turned pierce into a D first player (I know pierce was solid on D at times pre this but he did take it to another level)
ReplyDeleteSeems like you were reading my mind. I brought up Dallas down below.
ReplyDeleteDallas seems to be the only "big market" team with the cap space willing to bring him on.
I don't think their FO gives a shit what Thibs wants. If that was the case, Deng would still be in Chicago.
ReplyDeleteLMFAO
ReplyDeleteI predict we get a re-hash of the infamous Worcester moment where Mick Foley put Shane into a submission hold and demanded a title shot. Who can Daniel Bryan harrass? Baby H? Stephanie? Vince? Maybe Shane again?
ReplyDeletei.cubeupload.com/GCvVul.gif <--- best find on the internetz BAR NONE!
ReplyDeleteAfter three months not smoking just because I had a drug test I recently got back on that bandwagon.
ReplyDeleteAhem.
Wheeeeeeeeeeeeee
This year it was a combination of things. Terrible chemistry at the top of the list, and Woodson was as guilty of that as anyone (JR. Smith, Melo, and Shumpert all made a bad situation worse, too). It doesn't help that Stat's their most efficient scorer this year, but doesn't get touches, can't stay healthy, doesn't play D anymore, and is a disappointing rebounder for his contract.
ReplyDeleteAlso, JR Smith is having basically his worst season ever, and the front court's been totally injury riddled all season.
Last year they thrived early with Melo and JR playing smarter than usual, and trying on D, before reverting to who we thought they were at the worst possible time. But ultimately, they were never built to contend with the juggernaut that is/was Miami, so even the promising early season returns were basically fools gold.
I think they also started the season with a chip on their shoulder, trying to prove that they didn't need Jeremy Lin to be awesome.
Last year was his career peak in terms of advanced stats. WS/48 of 0.185. What happened to the Knicks this year absolutely isn't his fault. They took what worked last year (shooting 3s, playing small) and changed it up to a formula that doesn't work (slowing it down, not playing defense, bad guard play) and they had injury trouble. Not his fault at all.
ReplyDeleteBut by comparison LeBron has only had 1 year below that level, his rookie year. All other LeBron years are above 0.200.
And yeah, comparing him to LeBron isn't fair, LeBron is like the new Wilt in that he breaks all relevant stat benchmarks. But still it should be noted that not only is he not LeBron, he's not Durant, Love, Westbrook, Chris Paul, etc. He's just not that guy.
Yeah Parallax seems to hate drugs, cable and husbands.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to this one just to see if the crowd continues its collective shit.
ReplyDeleteYou're a Lakers fan right? You think they'll give swaggy p an mle type deal? I watch a lot of their games in bars etc as they are the most popular local team here other than the chargers and nick young has shown me a lot this season. I always thought he was garbage but he's won me over big time
ReplyDeleteA couple of HHH/Stephs kids? Its about time they put them to work
ReplyDelete6th year in the league and he's still not going to make the playoffs! Yikes
ReplyDeleteHe's getting paid near league minimum and he's the most capable player they have. If he agreed to come back next year for 3 million/year Mitch and Jimmy Buss would trip over each other to get him a pen to sign that contract.
ReplyDeleteI figure I'd be needing some for RAW tonight
ReplyDeleteI miss those sort of promos. Straight to the point, no-nonsense delivery.
ReplyDeleteAlright, road to my first ppv since WM18. Hoping for a Brock or DBry title match at EC.
ReplyDeleteYou know, D'Antoni gets a little too much hate. He's basically bizarro Thibs; he's a genius offensively who gets the most out of almost anyone, but can't figure out the other end, and more importantly, just cannot manage a rotation without running his guys into the ground (Thibs has the same problem).
ReplyDeleteGive D'Antoni a great defensive co-ordinator, and the personnel to pull it off, and he's a top 10 coach. Give Thibs this Laker team and he's not doing much better, if at all, than D'Antoni.
I take it you didn't watch the 7 seconds or less Suns?
ReplyDeleteI'm not opposed to it I just don't smoke anymore. I think I grew out of it, the last time I bought some weed, I had a bowl then it sat in a box for like 4 months and then I ended up giving it to a friend. Guess I'm just getting too old for dat shit.
ReplyDeleteYep, Lakers fan. I'd say he's earned the mini-MLE for sure. He's giving that team energy and passion which is exactly what they need. He can't be the best, 2nd best, 3rd best, 4th best guy on a contending team but he can be a serviceable microwave guy to eat minutes when he's hot and sit down when he's not.
ReplyDeleteHe's made himself some money with his play and attitude this year though. I'm sure the Lakers would love to have him back but some dumb GM is likely to pay him 5m/year or more and the Lakers probably aren't interested in matching that.
Although after the JR Smith deal this year there might be a league wide moratorium on giving knuckleheads too much money so maybe Jimmy and Mitch get lucky.
I'm a Suns fan, and goddamn, I loved those teams. Got robbed in '07. To be fair, though, the Gentry 2010 Suns were arguably even better.
ReplyDeleteThat said, the D"Antoni Knicks were great right up until Melo got there. They were killing teams, and Amare was having a career year.
Football on a Sunday at 10am is really kind of awesome
ReplyDeleteOnly thing I don't like if the Punk/HHH match comes true, it's a feud that won't do anyone any good. Have Punk win? So what, it won't do him any good as it won't move him up the main event picture anytime soon, plus Punk will probably be taking some time off when his contract expires. Have HHH win then? So what, HHH has already beaten Punk before, plus there will be a lot of backlash if he foes win.
ReplyDeleteThe real question with Young is whether or not he can exist as a 20-minutes-a-game bench guy going forward. That's his destiny, but if he feels like he deserves to be a starter now, he's no good to anyone. If he embraces the bench, though, he could be the next Barbosa/Jamal Crawford/Vinnie Johnson.
ReplyDelete"straight edge means I'm better than you!"
ReplyDelete100% agree. His attitude has been pretty decent this year with only a couple of minor blips so I think he's coming around to his role in the NBA. Time will tell though.
ReplyDeleteTrue, but isn't Thibs' deal about up? If they re-sign him, you have to imagine they're gonna try and build for him; he's probably the second most respected coach in the league right now behind Pop. If they don't, then yeah, Melo can lead them to 45 wins a season or whatever.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that the company that booked last night's show is naming guys on that deep a level.
ReplyDeleteYeah there is definitely a reason he was the guy for so long. He's definitely a lot easier to back and watch them backlund
ReplyDeleteI like that idea. I absolutely think that they could work together very well. That's a good fit too.
ReplyDeleteI miss this Lone wolf type of heel,he can break you with shenanigan,what made the angle so special is that it was something that even Harley knew he was at his limit.
ReplyDeleteThose of you who care about the NBA, can we all just take a second to be sad about Eric Bledsoe being injured, celebrate Dragic killing himself to keep the Suns afloat without him, and whine about guys like Parker (who stinks on D and is surrounded by way more talent than Goran) making the All-Star team ahead of Dragic?
ReplyDeleteYou know, not that I'm a giant Suns fan or anything.
Watching an old RAW match (Kane vs Show, WWF Title) and I gotta say, Steph has some great legs.
ReplyDeletehaha I have found now that if I smoke too much or smoke at the wrong time I just end up in a cycle of "Why did I smoke this I hate myself good god I have so much to do tomorrow please make it stop,"
ReplyDeleteI am alternately stoked and terrified for RAW to start in 15 minutes...can honestly say I haven't been this emotional about any wrestling in at least a decade, period.
ReplyDeleteThey'd need a lot of help on D, but I do think Dirk and Melo could mostly co-exist; Dirk's efficient enough he doesn't need a ton of shots, and both guys can space the floor for each other. Calderon's the right (offensive) PG for that combo, too, as he totally doesn't care about his own shots.
ReplyDeleteOnce I get a better job (second interview on Wed) I'm going to partake in yon plant life once again.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. But he does have that one elite skill that could make all the difference on the right team. Maybe he could have been/could even still be more but I think he pretty much "is what he is" to use an old sports cliche.
ReplyDeleteI'm the same way. I didn't even watch from about '08 until May last year. The Daniel Bryan thing has me more emotionally invested in this than when I was a kid in the 80's and believed it was real. Why can't I just shrug my shoulders and say "eh, it's just a tv show"?
ReplyDeleteAll my hopes were gone last night.
ReplyDeleteEmotional? Easy, calm down brah, just watch the show and be entertained man. Vince isn't going to pull the trigger on Bryan because of last night.
ReplyDeleteGreat points.
ReplyDeletePunk's a made man; he doesn't need a match or storyline to "elevate" him.
ReplyDeleteYup. I kinda suspect he's gonna end up being a HUGE 6th man for a contender in his twilight years. Think Walton on the Celtics or McAdoo on the Lakers.
ReplyDeleteI think the best way to go with the New Age Outlaws is to have them beat the Rhodes Bros. in a free-TV rematch (maybe even tonight) and then go right into a feud with the Usos. At Elimination Chamber, have the Outlaws lose the belts to the Usos in a match that exposes (in a real and kayfabe way) how the Usos are simply faster and more athletic, and despite their veteran savvy, the Outlaws just can't keep up. So the next night, the Outlaws formally announce their retirement, and at WrestleMania 30 they're inducted into the Hall of Fame since they'll still be riding the popularity high.
ReplyDeleteSign pointing started last night!
ReplyDeleteI love it. It makes too much sense, so it will never happen.
ReplyDeleteOr, you know, they're HHH's friends so they could just squash the Usos and hold the belts for six months or so.
ReplyDeleteUsos: "But we're young and over! Who the Hell are these guys?"
Outlaws: "Oh, you didn't know? Well your ass better jooooooooob somebody!"
Not waiting for angle development, just to see how THIS crowd reacts!
ReplyDeleteTNA did this with the MCMG beating Team 3D to end their tag team for good.
ReplyDeleteWell I just mean melo would have won a few more playoff series here and there and probably would have been on higher seeded teams than he was in the west.
ReplyDeleteThe Rhodes were done wrong. They carried all those shitty fall PPV's with great matches. They get rewarded with 50/50 booking and a job to the Old Age Outlaws.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree. He's in that Iverson mold of a guy who can win you games, but not championships. When he's feeling it, he's basically unstoppable, but the odds of him feeling it four times in seven games against elite teams are just too low. And he can't guard his biggest rivals (Lebron/Durant/George).
ReplyDeleteI LOVE me some good sign pointing. I see somebody point to a sign and I get hard as a fucking rock! Makes the Road to WrestleMania RAWs interesting.
ReplyDeleteBest way to go with them is getting them the fuck off my TV. Well, Road Dogg can stay, but Gunn needs to hit the bricks.
ReplyDeleteWait have you seen him play this year. Because I 100% agreed until I saw him play this season. He's a leader, he's a two way player, he's passing the ball. Its crazy. I absolutely thought he was a joke before this year too.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I'm being too optimistic, but I think Cena vs. The Wyatts is how we get to Cena vs. Undertaker at WM30. All the "devil made us do it" and "we are the reapers" stuff from the Wyatts is a natural set-up for Undertaker to be their behind-the-scenes leader -- not to mention the fact that they've previously gone after old Undertaker rivals like Kane and CM Punk. Cena deals with the Wyatts for the next month, beats Bray at Elimination Chamber, then we find out Taker wants Cena himself so he can finish the job.
ReplyDeleteLOL. Undertaker is not turning heel.
ReplyDeleteI think he might command an mle
ReplyDeleteIt's sign pointing season, the most wonderful season of all!
ReplyDeleteI think they should be replaced by younger, talented guys, and never have it acknowledge on air. All of a sudden, you just have Sandow or somebody playing Road Dogg and Ziggler as Billy Gunn.
ReplyDeleteI'm only half joking.
The New New Age Outlaws
ReplyDeleteIt's the most wonderful time of the yeeeeeeeeeeear.
ReplyDeleteKeep it clean? I was hoping for a special unsanctioned evening here at the blog.
ReplyDeleteNor should he at this stage of his career
ReplyDeletePlus he's been murdered by injuries. Nash, Blake and farmar and kobe all out for months at the same time? You've got to give that guy an NBA caliber back court. That team is cursed or something
ReplyDeleteBefore RAW starts. I heard the WWE.com feed for the Rumble had some issues for some people. Does that worry anybody about how smooth the Network will run? I've been saying, the only way the screw this up is if they fuck up the technical aspect of it.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I wasn't the only one who noticed how tired Punk seemed last night, some moves botched, a lot of lethargy etc. Either he's lost the fire or he's hurting bad, the HHH program seems to be set in stone so here's hoping that brings him back to life, if not...well the man has a couple months left on his contract and he's pretty much done everything he's wanted to do in the biz. The man deserves a huge rest.
ReplyDeleteI bet he leaves in the summer when his contract is up.
ReplyDeleteSo Batista. They're elevating him.
ReplyDeleteMy bet,goes to ROH or NJPW
ReplyDeleteKarma for all the "way above the salary cap and also the refs/commish kinda sorta maybe helped us" title years.
ReplyDeleteNo, I've thought about it. I paid for the last WM stream, and wound up crapping out at the start and came back about halfway through or so. They wound up giving me (and many others) a full refund.
ReplyDeleteI loved that he was ready to fight that one guy and I love how he's always in the media talking about bringing it hard every game and not quitting, and I believe him. I didn't think he had it in him.
ReplyDeleteMethinks they need to roll out a beta or something, to phase out any kinks before they start making people pay for a service that doesn't work.
ReplyDeleteI could see Punk taking some time off after Mania, a solid six months to a year.
ReplyDeleteHe won't go to ROH. They won't pay enough. NJPW is definitely possible or TNA.
ReplyDeleteVic Maccay made the Shield.
ReplyDeleteReports they "heavily tweaked" the script for tonight's Raw, however the changes were made "in spite of the reaction last night, not because of it."
ReplyDeleteLofriggin'l.
Well, there is a precedent for it.
ReplyDeleteTNA is too risky for him.
ReplyDeleteI loved how none of his teammates had his back. And that he hit the one guy who was trying to get his other teammates to back off.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking that as well.
ReplyDeletePunk laid in the corner like a slug. It was his only defense.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure Dixie would throw huge bucks at him. Not much traveling with TNA and I'm sure there's WAYY less of a backstage headache that WWE has. It'd be like a vacation for him.
ReplyDeleteOh no.
ReplyDeletePunishment night.
ReplyDelete"in spite"? So Bryan loses to Batista in 15 seconds then?
ReplyDeleteThat's the Rey Misteryo offense.
ReplyDeleteThis show will either be really good, or really bad.
ReplyDeleteIf he's not staying in WWE, I don't he'll do any other place full time. At this point if he leaves WWE it would likely be because he's fed up of wrestling, not fed up of the company, not at the cushy position he's in.
ReplyDeletePersonally Id have him take a year or two off, then alternate between commentary and a couple of big ppv matches here and there (like brock lesnar)
8. Going halvesies.
ReplyDeleteYup, which is why I'm tuning in. I'm personally hoping for a trainwreck and a crowd like last night.
ReplyDeleteBut i dunno if he's accept the crazy booking they have,NJPW seems the proper choice,he can be top heel in there.
ReplyDeleteMr.Bill?
ReplyDeleteIf he's smart, he takes off about...oh four years, then can come back, win his first Rumble, and finally get to main event a 'Mania.
ReplyDeleteDestroy these fuckers Cleveland
ReplyDeleteThe BoD Rumble does not have this sort of controversy. Everyone knows their roles.
ReplyDeleteDoes that mean I have to leave now? ;-)
ReplyDeleteProve me wrong Cleveland.
ReplyDeleteTrips. Of course we start with Trips.
ReplyDeleteBOD rumble>royal 2014
ReplyDeleteIt was pretty bad, I get that he was there the whole time...but there were long stretches where he just lay down and did nothing, not even rested in the corner and pretended to get stomped.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about you but I'm glad at my warm house and not The Q.
ReplyDelete"Unpredictability ruled at the Rumble." LOL
ReplyDeleteI have a feeling the spin doctoring tonight is gonna make me sick.
ReplyDelete