I try to not use this space completely for sports rants, but sometimes i think i need to.

(i'm not talking cubs. they're in second place, but completely depressiong.)

the nba draft happened yesterday. the good: in the brief espn clip i saw on sportscenter, tom tolbert applauded the sonics' decision to draft oregon's shoot first-pass second-defend never point guard luke ridnour. (note: i like ridnour, but i doubt he's an nba player.) his logic: "people say he doesn't play defense. well, you know what happens when everybody worries about defense? we get 85-80 games, and i'm tired of that crap." (loosely quoted)

secondly, the chicago bulls, with the seventh overall pick, selected not the athletic french black dude and not a high-scoring wing who can actually play like jarvis hayes, but a weak, pampered point guard, kansas' kirk hinrich. the only difference between hinrich and the uber-soft jay williams (who i hope gets healthy, because he's got a chance to be a player, and because i wish health on people)? hinrich is uglier, and thus less marketable, and hinrich freakin' chokes in big games. i mean, how do you lose to a team led by a freshman and nobody else? especially considering your go-to big man (collison) gets 20 and 20?! why, because your point guard (hinrich) goes 6-for-20 including 3-for-12 from the arc and, seeing that he can't hit a shot to save his life, he continues shooting. put that guy on my team. fuck.

(I'll say it now and i'll believe it: this is almost, almost as bad as the bears passing up byron leftwich, a guy with a tremendous arm and, more importantly, a guy who is a team-motivated leader for the ability to select a too-short, too-self-absorbed, too-system-oriented quarterback, simply out of fear to make a great selection. fuck.)

finally, explain to me a no-trade clause. i thought they were given so that a player could guarantee that he stays in a certain place, because the stability of having a permanent home is comfortable and because he's deserved that privilege of something like that. so why do teams give them out, and then go and try to trade a player? this juan gonzalez situation should never happen. it angers me. it's dumb.

on another note, there was a post-game christian concert at our place tonight, because other clubs have successfully done 'em. i got to watch a band yell: "who rose for us?" and the crowd responded: "JESUS" and the band said: "who's comin' back?" and the crowd yelled "JESUS" and the band said "who's the man?" and the crowd responded "JESUS." unlike anything i've seen.