Top 20 Comedies in the last 10 Years

In honor of the 10th anniversary of the release of There's Something About Mary, I will break out from my normal sports rants to give you my list of the Top 20 Comedies from the last 10 years. Please feel free to add comments or give your own lists. For those that don't care, read it anyway, stop being so stuck-up!

1. Old School
2. There's Something About Mary
3. Wedding Crashers
4. Meet the Parents
5. Superbad
6. American Pie
7. 40 Year Old Virgin
8. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
9. Knocked Up
10. Road Trip
11. Along Came Polly
12. Anchorman
13. Dodgeball
14. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
15. Austin Powers in Goldmember
16. American Pie 2
17. Meet the Fockers
18. Starsky and Hutch
19. Office Space
20. Made

Star with the most appearances in the list:
Ben Stiller - 7
Will Ferrell - 6
Vince Vaughn - 6
Sean William Scott - 5
Seth Rogen - 4
Owen Wilson - 4

Just missing the cut:
-Bad Santa
-Big Daddy
-Clerks II
-Dogma
-Elf
-Harold and Kumar-White Castle
-Just Friends
-Longest Yard
-Napoleon Dynamite
-National Lampoons Van Wilder
-Saving Silverman
-Talledaga Nights
-Waterboy
-Wedding Singer
-Zoolander

Sixers/Phils - opposite emotions

ok, the last 72 hrs has really left me speechless, which is hard to do. But I've decided to return to my post and offer up my opinions and insight, which I know you've been dying to hear (not).

Lets start with the positives.

10-9-8-76ERS!!!! Can u believe it? When I texted "Do you believe in Miracles" near the end of the Phils 10-9 almost comeback win vs the Mets, I was really talking about the Sixers stealing Elton Brand away from the Clippers. The press conference is at 5pm today and I still won't believe it until he's there sitting next to big Ed and Mo. I mean this unbelievable. The Sixers went 40-42 last year, 7th seed in the East, lost to the Pistons after they were up 2-1 in the series and up 13 right before the half of game 4. They are young and hungry and got a good draft pick in Mareese Speights. So they should improve next year right? OK, well now add Elton Brand to that mix and holy sh*t you've got a contender. I'm not talking NBA champs here, but you gotta think they get atleast a 4 seed next year, win a playoff series or even 2. Then in 2010, when Thad and Lou and Mareese are even more seasoned, you've really got something to talk about. Thinking about Elton Brand just makes me smile (yes, in that way). In his 9 NBA seasons (he was the #1 pick in the '99 draft) he has averaged over 20 pts per game and over 10 rebs per game. There are only 4 active NBA players who have averaged 20-10 from their career; Shaq, Duncan, Garnett and Elton Brand. Oh and guess what, Brand is only 29, younger than Garnett (32), Duncan (32), and Shaq (36). Heck Brand is even younger than Kobe (30), so locking this guy up for the next 5 years is just awesome. And don't even think about raining on my parade with his achilles injury. He took his time coming back last year from it. Waited til he was healthy and played the last 8 games of the season and still averaged 17 and 8. This guy is the real deal and finally gives us the low post presence we needed.

So we got Brand, now what? Well, not to get greedy, but I really don't think Stefanski is done. Here's where we are at. Our starting 5 would probably be Miller and Iguodala in the backcourt, with Thad at the 3, Brand at 4 and Sammy D at the 5. Iggy is not a true SG, just doesn't shoot well enough, but you got to start him. The other option is that you could start Willie Green at the 2, Iggy at the 3 and put Thad on the bench. Anyway, so their bench, besides Green, includes Reggie Evans, Jason Smith, Speights, and Sweet Lou Williams. With Brand in the line-up you have a guy who will definitely draw a double team so you gotta get a sniper to set-up for wide open shots. I like Lou and Willie and even Thad's shooting, but none are considered snipers. The problem is that with the signing of Brand the Sixers are at the cap. Their only move is a trade. Iguodala is the best option. He's a restricted free agent which means if any team out there makes a big offer, the Sixers will be forced to match or just lose him outright. I envision the Sixers waiting to see if he gets an offer and then perhaps working out a sign and trade with that team to acquire a shooting guard. Names that have been tossed around are Ben Gordan, Michael Redd and Leandro Barbosa. I have mixed emotions on Iguodala. I think the guy is a legit talent. His performance in the playoffs left a sour taste in our mouths, but he was being guarded by Tayshaun Prince and it was his first playoff experience. I'm thinking he's been working hard in the offseason and is ready to shut everyone up in the coming season. On the other hand, if he doesn't improve his outside shot, I'm ok with trading him for a legit 2-guard scorer.

Deep sigh....ok, now the negatives. WTF has happened to the Phillies? 9-17 in their last 26 games. Just a 1.5 lead over the Marlins AND Mets. Myers in the minors, Gordon the DL, Howard can't hit lefties (was that really a bunt attempt last night?), Utley has been in a two month long slump, Rollins looks lethargic (did he really win MVP last year?), Eaton has imploded the last few starts, Jenkins stinks, Victorino and Werth and Feliz are ok, Ruiz is a bum, anything else? Oh right, The Brewers got Sabathia and the Cubs got Harden. SO....what now. Well, fortunately for you, I have answers. And no, they don't involve moving the team to Oklahoma City. As it stands now, the Phillies can still hit their way into the playoffs, but their going to probably pitch their way right out of them. Cole Hamels can only pitch once every 5 days. Kyle Kendrick is just not good enough to pitch in the playoffs, Jamie Moyer has actually been decent this year, but you still can't rely on him for a shut-down game in the playoffs. We have no idea how Myers will be when he comes back up here in a few weeks and I think we'll see JA Haap take Eaton's spot in the rotation. I don't see Kris Benson helping out this year in any sort of major way. Therefore, obviously, the Phils need to make a move to acquire a pitcher. And not just any pitcher. I don't wanna see Greg Maddux or Randy Wolf come in here or the second coming of Kyle Lohse (circa 2007).

So here's the solution and its not only the solution, its going to be reality. The Phillies WILL acquire Erik Bedard. Maybe not this week, maybe not next, but he will be a Phillie before July 31st, book it. As of yesterday, I would have been annoyed by this, but I've come to grips with it. Bedard's name has evoked some weird things in recent days as some have referred to him as "a weird guy" while others have suggested he tells his manager that's done pitching for the day (recently after 98 pitches thru 5). However, the numbers don't lie. Despite an early trip to the DL and pitching for the worst team in baseball, Bedard is 6-4 with a 3.67 ERA, and has allowed 70 hits while striking out 72, in 81 innings. In his last five starts, he is 2-0 with a 1.82 ERA. Last year he was 13-5 with a 3.17 ERA and was 3rd in the AL in strikeouts with 221. He's 29 and is only arbitration eligible next year (he's making 7.7 million this year). So making a deal for him would include next year too, which is nice. The hard part is getting the Mariners to agree on who we need to give up. When the M's acquired Bedard in the off-season from the Orioles they gave up 5 prospects including current Oriole Adam Jones, the prize of the deal. You would think the Mariners would want atleast something close in return, although its not our fault their team completely underachieved this year and only got 13 starts out of Bedard. The other issue is that Bedard is not going to pitch til after the All-star break due to stiffness in his back, so I don't see a deal getting done til he pitches one more time. The Phillies will almost certainly part with Carlos Carasco, their best SP prospect who is in Double-A, in the deal along with other good prospects such as Adrian Cardenas and Jason Donald. Cardenas is a good guy to trade since he's a middle infielder and will never get a chance with Jimmy and Chase on the big league roster. Same with Donald who is a SS.

Ok, that's all for now.....

Life Before Iverson Much Worse than Life After

As the Sixers head into a key offseason in their quest back to NBA elite status, lets take a look back at the 1995-96 roster just for nice laugh.

One of the worst teams I can ever remember, the pitiful 1995-96 Sixers (18-64)...look at these names (sorted by total pts scored that year). Classic roster!

Coach AND GM: John Lucas - obviously on crack that year. Fired after the season from both jobs and replaced with the classic 1 year duo of Johnny Davis and Brad Greenberg.

Jerry Stackhouse - Sixers 3rd pick in the draft that year (passing on Rasheed Wallace and Kevin Garnett), leading scorer by default. Was a complete spaz trying to dribble. Traded away in '97 to Pistons after clashing with AI's posse. Currently on Mavs, but never amounted to what he was supposed to.
Clarence Weatherspoon - Sixers 9th pick in '92 draft. Poor man's Barkley, decent career, but nothing special. Traded to Knicks in '98, retired in '05.
Vernon Maxwell - John Lucas' sponsor, or was it vice-versa? After winning back-to-back titles with Rockets he brought his Mad Max routine to us for 1 year. Returned to us in 2000 and retired later that year.
Trevor Ruffin - 4th leading scorer? Is he still living? He played 2 seasons in the NBA, '94-'95 with the Suns and then this one. Goes from 4th leading scorer on this team to retired? Shocker.
Sharone Wright - Sixers 6th pick in the draft in '94 draft, traded during this season to the Raptors, out of the NBA in '98. Total bust. He looked like Shirley from What's Happening, but she had a better low post game. MyMyMyMyMySharona.....
Derrick Alston - Who? Sixers 2nd round pick in 1994 (great draft of Wright and Alston). Followed up this season with a 2 game stint (yes 2 games) the following year in Atlanta and then never played again.
Sean Higgins - 2nd round pick of Spurs in 1990, Sixers were his 5th team in 6 years. Came to use from Nets as part of the Shawn Bradley trade. Played one season for us, skipped the '96-97 season and went to Portland for 2 games (must be a trend) in 1997 and retired?
Tony Massenburg - Also 2nd round pick of Spurs in 1990, but he ups Higgins as the Sixers were his 8th team in 6 years. Lone season here, acquired in Sharone Wright deal from Raptors. Finished his career in 2005 amassing 14 different jerseys. Classic journeyman who was a half decent player. I give him special props cause he went to Maryland (and didn't die).
Richard Dumas - I think this guy had crack issues too. Played 2 seasons for the Suns (banned from the NBA in 1994), then one for us and never heard from again. Good chance he's dead.
Greg Sutton - Where do we find these guys? '91 draft pick of Spurs, played a year, missed 2 seasons (probably overseas), half season with Hornets in '95-'96 and the other half with us (yeah!), never played again.
Jeff Malone - Longtime shooting guard with Bullets (10th pick in '83 draft), later to went to Jazz. We acquired him from Utah in 1994 for Horny (Jeff Hornacek). He played 2 years and didn't do much for us. Went to Heat late in the season and then retired. Great trade.
Rex Walters - LOL. 16th pick by Nets in '93 draft. Came to us as part of the Bradley trade. 2 seasons with us, he stunk. He took Tim Perry's 23 jersey when Perry was shipped to the Nets in that trade. He finished up his career with 3 more season in Miami, never amounted to anything. I'm sure Roy Williams was proud. He's now the head coach for the U of San Francisco (wow).
Ed Pinckney - 10th pick in '85 draft by Suns. Came to Sixers with Massenburg for Sharone Wright. Solid NBA career, went to Heat the following year then retired. Assistant to Jay Wright at Nova since '03.
Derrick Coleman - #1 pick in 1990 draft. Came here during the season along with Walters and Higgins in Bradley trade. Played just 11 games that year because of irregular heartbeat (yeah he had none). Played 2 more seasons with us, putting up solid numbers, but didn't coexist with Iverson's game. Returned to Sixers for 3 more lovely seasons from 2001-'04. Underachiever who often dogged it. Retired in 2005.
Shawn Bradley - #2 pick of Sixers in '93 draft. Highlight of the season was shipping his butt out of town (for Coleman and others). He invented "The Shawn", meaning a box score of less pts than fouls. Only contributed 12 games to the cause this season so he's fodder for another time.
LaSalle Thompson - Played 15 seasons in the NBA, just a half season with the Sixers at the end of his career....retired in 1997.
Scott Skiles - After 9 seasons in the NBA, a few really good ones in Orlando dishing to Shaq, Skiles signs with the Sixers that year. Plays 10 games and then retires. How smart was he????
Greg Graham - Drafted 17th overall by the Pacers in the '93 draft and traded to the Sixers that year along with Dana Barros and for Hersey Hawkins. Played 2.5 yrs for us and then shipped to the Nets as part of the Shawn Bradley trade. Was a 12th man at best.
Greg Grant - Little 5-7 guy from Trenton played with 6 teams over 8 seasons, this was his last in the NBA, for good reason.
Scott Williams - LOL...one of our worst free agent signings ever...He wins 3 titles with the Bulls (as a reserve) and we give him like an 8 year deal. He actually missed all but 13 games this year with a knee injury, so if he had played I'd have to think this team would have been worse. Eventually traded in 1998-99 to the Bucks (with Tim Thomas) for Tyronne Hill.
Mike Brown - who? Different Mike brown from current Cavs coach. Career backup, played just 9 games, Played 6 the following year for the Suns and then retired.
Trevor Wilson - 5 year journeyman who signed to a 10 day contract with Sixers, played 6 games, never played another NBA game after that.
Tim Perry - Ah, one of John Chaney's finest. 7th overall pick in the '88 draft by the Suns, traded to Sixers in '92 in the Barkely deal. Played just 8 games this season with the Sixers before being sent to the Nets in the Bradley deal, played 22 games for the Nets then retired. He wore 23 and tried to play like MJ but he was horrible, HORRIBLE.
Elmer Bennett - ???? Played 8 games for the Sixers that year, 4 for the Cavs the year before, 5 for the Nuggets and 4 for the Rockets the year after and then never played again. Who cares.

2008 NBA Draft - Sixers get their man!

When you have the 16th pick in the NBA draft, especially in today's NBA, you're definitely looking for the best available player. You can't expect to find an instant impact guy, but you certainly can hope to get someone with a lot of up-side. Last night the Sixers used their lone pick of the night on 20 year old Marreese Speights from the University of Florida. The 6'10" PF/C already has an NBA body, weighing in at nearly 250 lbs. Not only did the Sixers get themselves the best available player, they got exactly what they needed, a low-post presence who can run the floor.

Speights avegarged 14 and 8 last year in his Sophomore season at Florida in just over 24 minutes per game. He also shot over 62% from the field which was 9th best in the nation. He sat behind current NBAers Al Horford and Joakim Noah his Freshman year, seeing limited minutes on the 2007 National Championship team. He has a lot of room to grow, with the critics saying he has "work-ethic" issues. Sixers GM Ed Stafanski says Speights will see limited minutes for the Sixers in the '08-'09 season, but after that he should be ready to contribute significantly.

The drafting of Speights raises some interesting questions for the Sixers as we head into the July 1st free agent period. With Andre Iguodala and Lou Williams as restricted free agents, Andre Miller sitting at 9 million heading into his final year of his deal and 11 million dollars of cap room to play with, it could get very interesting around here soon. Stay tuned!

Welcome.......

My first official blog entry will give you an overview on who I am, where I'm coming from and where I hope to go. After reading it you should be able to figure out pretty quickly as to whether or not you enjoy my material.

First off, I'm a 32 year old die hard Philadelphia sports fan who has grown sick and tired of his hometown teams not being good enough. As you all know, its been almost 25 years since this town has won a major sports champhionship and frankly, that's embarassing considering we're the 6th largest city in the United States (we were 4th for most of this futility). What makes it even sadder is that we have a team in all 4 major sports while cities like St. Louis (Rams/Cardinals), Baltimore (Orioles/Ravens) Tampa Bay (Bucs/Lightning, and Anaheim (Angles/Ducks) have not only won championships in that time frame, they did it in Multiple sports! But ontop of all that, we have city rivals such as NY and Boston winning championships like its second nature. I mean it wasn't that long ago that I actually felt sorry for the city of Boston and now look at them....why can't that be Philly? WHY!!!!!!!!!!!! Actually there many reasons why it hasn't been us and a lot of it starts with the ownership, especially for the Phillies and their unwillingness to spend money. But lets focus in on something that has been bugging me for years....bad timing.

The Fly Guys
Since the Sixers won the NBA Championship in 1983, the Flyers have appeared in the Stanley Cup Finals 3 teams. In both '85 and '87 they lost to one of the greatest Dynasties in hockey history, the Edmonton Oilers. Edmonton advanced to the finals and won every year between '84 and '88, with '86 being the exception. Of course that year the Canadians represented the Eastern Confernce instead of the Flyers who did the year before and after. Then in '97 the Flyers made it back to the finals only to be swept by the mighty Detroit Red Wings who went on to win again '98, they were definitely a dynasty at the time. It's now been a painful 10 years since the Flyers have even appeared in the finals and a dreadful 33 years since they have actually won a championship.

Bird Seed
Talk about championship futility and you have to look no further than our beloved Eagles. While they have managed to win 3 championships in their storied history, none have come since 1960 and they have never won a Super Bowl. Since '83 they have made just one appearance in the Super Bowl and once again a Philly team was matched up against a dynasty. The Eagles faced the now hated Patriots in Super Bowl XXXIX (39 for you non Romans) and narrowly lost 24-21. Of course there are many areas to discuss here, but why the lost the game is not the point right now. Its once again the timing. By defeating the Eagles the Patriots won back-to-back Super Bowls and their 3rd in 4 years.

Phillies Phodder
With the distinction of losing more games than any other team in the history of baseball, atleast this team has won a championship in my lifetime which is more than I can say for the Eagles and Flyers (I was born 3 weeks after their '75 finals series ended). But that's not saying much since I was merely 5 yrs old in October of 1980 when Tug McGraw struck out Willie Wilson giving the Phillies their ONLY championship in their 124 year history. Yeah you read that right, 1 in 124 years. Anyway, the Phils have made one appearance in the World Series since '83 and that was in 1993 against the Toronot Blue Jays. While the Phils sported a very likeable team they too were going up against a dynasty. The Blue Jays won the World Series in '92 and took back to back titles in beating the Phillies. The best team the Phillies had fielded in years (and probably since til maybe '07) and they happen to run into a team like the Blue Jays.

Six Shots
The franchise started off in 1939 as the Syracuse Nationals and did win one title in 1955. In 1963 they officially became the Philadelphia 76ers and since then have won just 2 titles, '67n and '83. Since winning that NBA Championship in 1983 (which by the way recognized as one of the greatest teams in NBA history) the Sixers have fallen on hard times. They finally got their act together in the 2000-01 season under Allen Iverson and Larry Brown. On a personal level that was a great season for me as I had season tickets and attended every home playoff game. With exciting victories over the Paces, Raptors and Bucks the Sixers reached the NBA Finals, only to face a Laker team with Shaq and Kobe (coached by Phil Jackson) who were in the middle of winning 3 straight NBA titles....yes, ANOTHER dynasty. While the Sixers did manage to win game 1 of the finals, the Lakers won the next 4 and set a winning percentage record for a playoff season going 15-1.

So there you have it.....every team a Philly Sports franchise has lost to in a final since 1983 has been to a team in the middle of winning atleast back to back titles. Unfortunate, bad timing, bad luck, sour grapes...whatever you want to call it, those are the facts and no matter how you twist them around, we're still winless since '83.