Archive for January 11th, 2008
01/11 Afternoon Minute: G’Bye Grantham
While many fans like the firey personality of Todd Grantham, the Associated Press is reporting that his services as Defensive Coordinator will “not be retained” for the 2008 season.
This isn’t a surprise given the fact that the Browns were one of the worst defensive units in the league this past season, finishing 30th overall – mostly thanks to cold weather near the end.
01/11 Second Minute: More On Shannon Brown
Just a heads up as this one may take more than a minute to digest.
As I mentioned below, the Cavaliers’ Shannon Brown being sent to the Developmental League will likely be overlooked by many. To a lot of the casual fans, he is just some guy who looks a bit like Ira Newble, but he can finish on offense. To others, he is just that – offense.
Many of times, Brown looks for the highlight dunk instead of the smart basketball play. But you’ll have this with a player who has failed to crack the 17 minutes per game mark in this, his second season with the team. You are looking at a kid who just turned 22 years of age that was once thought to have the upside of Gilbert Arenas.
Obviously, this will never be the case as Arenas has produced more thus far in his career than any pundit – aside from Gilbert, himself – had ever expected. But what he is is a very athletic swingman with good speed and a physical presence on defense. But what he also is is a guy that plays the same position as Larry Hughes, a guy who makes considerably more money, but also a guy that was added to the team a year earlier.
Which poses the question: Why was he drafted? Just add it to the list called “Danny Ferry’s First Rounders.”
01/11 Morning Minute: Dust Off The Suits…
…The Cleveland Indians have gone corporate.
In an era where almost every major sports facility is backed by a corporate sponsor, it is not surprising to see the Cleveland Indians do more of the same. What was known to many as Jacobs Field (or “The Jake”) will now be called Progressive Field - named after the publicly traded insurance company, headquartered just outside of Cleveland.
While I tend to be more of a traditionalist in this regard, I would be naive to think that this was not going to happen. I was hoping for something to maintain the Jacobs Field name within, who am I kidding? Progressive Field, it is.
