NERDS AROUND TOWN
Nerds around town: Lakers dysfunction, NBA playoffs and home runs/unwritten rules
May 29, 2019, 6:42 am
NERDS AROUND TOWN
Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio, Sports and Wrestling. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!
Hey Nerds!
And just like that it's Wednesday! Stay with it and stay on it, don't let this week slip away!
Feeding America is one of the biggest and highest rated and well reviewed national charities in America. It sounds tacky to say but when it comes to Food Banks, more than your canned goods and non perishables, the thing they need more than anything else is cash. They negotiate great deals from food vendors and are able to use the tax laws and incorporated laws to their advantage and turn that money into as many meals as possible for the hungry. This is just one of the hard truths of charity, that while it's a great thing for people to give them canned goods they really need your donations more than anything, so please please please, donate to Feeding America! #NerdsUnite
The NBA Finals start this Thursday night and that is exciting. I am honestly excited about what might happen. I think the Raptors win, I've honestly been of the mindset that it's just too hard to win four out of five and be in five straight at all. The Warriors are in unknown territory already in modern NBA, when the Celtics won eleven in a row it was pre free agency, and really it was a prehistoric NBA, now everything is different and these guys have a lot to prove and a lot on the line. The five appearances I didn't believe would happen as it's just a lot to keep getting back but they are one of the most talented rosters in modern sports and with that comes this opportunity. I think the Raptors will win it, I've been doubting them the whole post season as well but this feels like a scenario where there's enough trouble in Golden State that Toronto can surprise people.
So this story about The Lakers becoming dysfunctional, I think it's unfair to say it's because of Magic Johnson and these other people. I honestly think this franchise went in the wrong direction with the last few years of Kobe's run with the team. The Dwight Howard, Steve Nash, Kobe era I think is really where the issues come up. If you recall, in the meeting to get Dwight Howard to stay Kobe sat in the meeting and then there were meetings with other great players and Kobe basically made an ass of himself and Lamarcus Aldridge doesn't sign with the Lakers and goes to San Antonio and Dwight Howard leaves and Steve Nash is just too old honestly. The team had leveraged tons of picks and cap space to try and get Kobe some temporary help to chase one more title and the end result is the team we have in front of us today. A team that needed all this time to rebuild anyway, and I do agree that Luke Walton isn't a great coach and Lebron isn't enough on his own to carry a team in the West, but the idea of a part-time president? That's a terrible idea, and the idea that a sport's agent can be a general manager? That's an even worse idea. This was a bad set up but it's all built on an even worse foundation and I think people are forgetting that.
So a weird stat appeared yesterday, there is an active streak of 36 seasons in a row that a player in the NBA finals has played with Shaquille O'Neal. That's a statement on a couple of things, first it's a statement that he and his team did a good job surrounding himself with talented players. It's also though an indication of how many rosters Shaq has been on. Orlando to LA to Miami to Phoenix to Cleveland to Boston, did you remember he played in Boston? I did, but I've looked it up before because I even doubted myself on that one once or twice. He's been out of the league since 2011 and still the streak is alive. Now Lebron helped there but Danny Green is on the Raptors and he's a former Shaq teammate so the streak is alive. It's an interesting facet of a massive basketball legacy that Shaq has built.
I hate "Baseball's Unwritten Rules." Seriously. They don't make any sense and one I hate the most is no showboating. There is no other sport where people say "no showboating;" there just isn't. The Reds and the Pirates have a series going on and a kid named Dietrich is jacking homeruns like nobody's business and likes to stand in the box and admire them. I don't mind that at all, I would admire homecruns too, especially if I struck out as much as this guy does. He's a classic power hitter, just as likely to strike out as he is to hit a home run and so yeah he showboats but he also strikes out. This is a professional league, if you don't want him to gloat, then strike him out. If he hits a home run he should gloat, he should take 12 minutes to round the bases, because I promise you, I would take 20.
I'm going to jump out and wish you guys a great Wednesday and remind everyone to be kind to each other and try a little harder to have a great day! I'm coming back Thursday and we'll be bringing more good times your way. Feel free to check out my digital short story The Wilson House or buy a shirt from Side Hustle Ts where some proceeds help fight cancer or listen to Nerd Thug Radio or support our Patreon Page. Thoughts, complaints, events and comments can be sent to corydlg@gmail.com.
The Houston Texans have a big challenge in store as they look to start the season with a win against the Colts this Sunday. When these two teams met in Week 2 last year, the Colts dominated the Texans, despite losing their QB Anthony Richardson to a concussion after the first quarter.
Keeping Richardson contained on Sunday will go a long way in increasing the Texans' chances of coming home with a win. The Texans defense will have their hands full containing the Colts backs and tight ends in the passing game.
Scoring touchdowns with their wide receivers could prove difficult, as the Texans allowed the second-fewest TDs (10) to the receiver position in 2023.
Limiting running back Jonathan Taylor will also be a top priority. While the Texans had an elite defense against the run last season, they struggled with Taylor in Week 18 as he almost rushed for 200 yards.
Houston's D allowed only four carries to running backs in 2023 that went for 20 or more yards. Two of which were to Taylor in the final game of the regular season.
Finally, DeMeco Ryans and company have to find a way to get pressure on the QB. They only had one QB hit and zero sacks on Richardson and Garner Minshew the first time they faced off last year.
On offense, the Texans have two big x-factors to watch for on Sunday. The offensive line that suited up to play the Colts in Week 2 last season is completely different from this year.
The o-line was ravaged with injuries to start the 2023 campaign, so we expect a big jump in productivity in the trenches this year.
Another big addition in 2024 is the presence of running back Joe Mixon. The running game only produced 2 yards per rush in Week 2 against Indy last year, so there's clearly room for improvement.
Be sure to watch the video above for our in-depth preview of Texans-Colts!
And catch Texans on Tap (a Texans podcast) live on our SportsMapTexans YouTube channel following every game this season!