Random Thoughts (January 20, 2009)

The experience of taking in a game at Cameron Inddor Stadium can not be fully described. The intensity and passion that fill the tiny on campus gym at Duke is electrifying. I had goose bumps almost the entire game. Sitting just four rows behind Coach K, I felt like I was apart of every Duke huddle. The Duke studenst filled the gym over an hour before tip-off and they never got quiet. It was an amazing atmosphere to say the least... There are trades every year at the NBA Draft that end up making no difference in what happens on the court. There are also trades that alter the history of the NBA. The 2006 draft night trade of Rajon Rondo from Phoenix to Boston certainly fits into the second category. Owner Robert Sarver has been extremly tight fisted with his cash when it comes to operating his basketball team. Instead of paying his draft picks, the Suns often trade away the rights to the picks for cash. In the 2006 draft, the Suns held the 21st overall pick in the first round and sold the rights to their pick, Rondo, to the Celtics for the rights to a future first round pick. This deal has played a major part in the revival of the Celtics into the champions of the NBA as well as the beginning of the downfall of the Suns. Rondo's contributions to the Celtics have made them champions again. He plays great defense, runs the C's potent transition game, and finds a way to keep Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett involved in the offense. Without Rondo, the Celtics would have been good last year but they would not have won the championship. Meanwhile, the window for winning the championship is closing in Phoenix. As Steve Nash gets older and the Suns have moved away from their up-tempo game into a half-court game, one has to wonder how good Phoenix would have continued to be if Rondo were there to support and one day supplant Nash as leader of the Phoenix offense. The difference between the two teams was on display last night as the Celtics blew out the Suns, 104-87, at the Garden. Rondo scored a game high 23 points, dished out 7 assists, and grabbed 5 rebounds while playing an integral role in holding Nash to 12 points. As the Celtics continue to challenge for championships and the demise of the Suns carries on, this trade will go down as one of the most important NBA deals of the 21st Century... I'm happy for Kurt Warner, returning to the Super Bowl seven years after losing to the Patriots as the quarterback of the Rams. Warner looked like he would be a footnote to history after the upset loss in Super Bowl XXXVI as injuries regulated him to a backup role, first with the Giants and then with the Cardinals. However, the ineffectiveness of Matt Leinart put him back in the starters position last season and now he has carried one of the biggest losers in American professional sports history to the cusp of its ultimate championship. Now that he has two NFL MVP awards (1999, 2001) and three NFC Championships ('99, '01, 2008), and at least one Super Bowl (SB XXXIV), the case for Warner's entry into the Hall of Fame is getting much stronger... Enjoy the Inauguration today...