Stormin Norman Rumack

In spite of the public panic in the city that never sleeps, pertaining to the Knicks blockbuster trade, that netted (pardon the pun) them Carmelo Anthony from the Nuggets, it really is a bit rediculous to hear and read how there is almost a game by game countdown, as to how long it will take for the new look Knickerbockers, to become a consistently good or very good team, that is able to prevail over opponents on a regular basis, with the nucleus of the team composed of Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, and Chauncey Billups.

There is no question that they have struggled as a team to incorporate coach Mike D’Antoni’s system so far, in terms of getting positive results. There have been a few memorable wins, including one over Miami, and recently, a victory over an injury decimated Orlando Magic squad. The Knicks are good enough to tease their fans into some guarded optimism, but the frequent losses seem to have convinced some fans and media, that this  acquisition of the New York born, and Baltimore raised Syracuse...

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Aside from looking to boost their sagging attendance, it’s not too hard to see why the Toronto Raptors are dramatically slashing their season ticket prices for next year, if there is no labor stoppage between the league and the players.

Without the substantial savings offer to season ticket holders, what would be the incentive for anyone to buy an entire season’s worth of tickets ? I’m not suggesting here what fans should do, in terms of purchasing tickets. I’m trying to imagine what the average sports fan who has limited discretionary dollars for entertainment, is going to be thinking, not only with the Raptors brutal record over the season, ( 20-52 after their awful outing in Oakland ) but with reminders, like the 138-100 blowout they suffered at Golden State, of how far removed they are from being a truly competitive team.

Maybe some Raptors enthusiasts will jump on the fan friendly ticket prices, and feel it is enough incentive, after all, it’s hard to beat $12.50 a seat, the price for upper...

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I wrote a few weeks ago about Chelsea’s John Terry being reinstated as the captain of England’s national team, having been stripped of it in February of 2010, after his alleged affair with former team-mate Wayne Bridge’s former girlfriend.  Manager Fabio Capello, recently decided with the injury sidelining Rio Ferdinand, the replacement captain of the Three Lions, that the squad would be better off, and that the other players would be in favor of Terry regaining his official role of team leader.

As detailed by ESPN.soccernet, Terry received the vocal support of several players who spoke publicly. He discussed his call from Ferdinand: “ Rio called me which was a very nice touch and goes to show what a great man Rio is……….We had a ten minute conversation and he wished me well. He cares about England and said the most important thing was to keep winning.” Terry also described how his re-elevation to the captaincy was announced to the team. “ The manager pulled everyone together to say I was captain and asked...

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A few weeks ago, I wrote in this website about the hypocrisy of tough talk pertaining to head shots in hockey, contrasted by the Canadian sporting public’s over the top clamoring for professional mixed martial arts, as delivered by the UFC,with elbows, knees, fists,and kicks to the head, all allowed,and wildly cheered by some of the same fans, who are outraged by deliberate hits to the head in Canada’s national game.

With that in mind, it was fascinating to read a fabulous article by the Toronto Star’s Morgan Campbell this past Monday, focused on former UFC fighter Jeff Joslin, and his struggles with concussion syndrome. The Star story also detailed research at John’s Hopkins University, revealing that participants in the hand to hand combat sports, show a much higher rate of concussion than hockey players. Published literature on hockey concussions indicate a rate of 6.5 per 1000 player games, as opposed to the fighters in mixed martial arts, who’s concussion rate is 15.4 per 1000 ‘exposures’.

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There are only three sports teams that I have any emotional attachment to, in terms of supporting and cheering. They are the football and men’s basketball teams representing Syracuse University, my alma mater, as well as the Chelsea Blues of the EPL.

There are individuals in sports who I root for, and like to see succeed, and that is because they have helped me in terms of my career, through interviews, and educating me on the finer points of their particular sports. I always want to see good people do well, in whatever field of work they are involved in.

When the NCAA men’s basketball tournament gets underway, and the Syracuse Orange are participants, I become like most other fans of any team you can think of in any sport, becoming absolutely hyper about every moment of the game they are involved in, getting very excited with every field goal, block, rebound, and steal, or very upset when the bounces don’t go their way. My language sometimes becomes less than what is acceptable in public, and where...

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It was so refreshing to read that England coach Fabio Capello was strongly considering reinstating John Terry, the former captain of England, back into that prestigious role, after having stripped him of it last February, pertaining to the Chelsea captain’s affair with the former partner of international team-mate Wayne Bridge.

The point of disapproving of his behaviour has sufficiently been made, and there is no need to drag it out. The fans don’t really care, as is made perfectly clear, by the over the top adulation that Manchester United fans once again have for their star and England national, Wayne Rooney, after the allegations of his extra-martial affairs, while his wife was pregnant last year. As long as Rooney is scoring goals for the Red Devils, the faithful at Old Trafford could care less what he does in his spare time, so why should John Terry be further punished beyond this point in time. It’s not as though England played well without Terry as the leader. In fact, they performed poorly in the...

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Its absolutely amazing to me, to hear the public and especially the corporate backlash, being directed at the National Hockey League, after Bruins blue liner,Zdeno Chara, escaped any punitive actions from the league, after his hit on the Habs Max Pacioretty into a stanchion, holding up the glass, between the team benches, left the Montreal forward with a severe concussion, and a fractured vertebra in his neck. It was very fortunate that he was not left paralyzed.

Maybe the league should have penalized Chara a few games, in the form of a suspension, because of the injury, but it certainly wasn’t the most vicious hit that I have ever seen. Some form of punishment, would have pre-empted the backlash that has erupted from league sponsors like Quebec based Air Canada, and Via Rail. ( Would both companies have spoken out, if they were headquartered elsewhere in Canada ? )

What I find remarkably hypocritical in all of this, is the fact that the province of Ontario, worked relatively quickly to sanction...

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We all wondered how things would work out for LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne Wade in Miami, after James devastated the Cleveland Cavalier fans, with his made-for-TV- hour long show on ESPN last summer, and that poorly planned method of informing them, of his decision to become a member of the Miami Heat.

To a lesser degree, Bosh stung the fans of Toronto, although that was not likely his intent, with his enjoyment of being courted, so to speak, by teams other than Toronto. It wasn’t exactly a big shock when he left for South Florida.

On Tuesday night, following the Heat’s fifth straight loss, 105-96 to Portland, the former Raptor let it be known that he wasn’t very happy with his role, and lack of involvement in Miami’s offense.

The Georgia Tech alumnus had a poor night against the Blazers, his worst showing this season, scoring only seven points, on 3 of 11 shooting. His Portland counterpart, LaMarcus Aldridge, had 26 points.

Bosh told ESPN.com: “ I just have to be more aggressive...

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The most intelligent response to the somewhat overblown, but laughable hype about the Miami Heat players supposedly crying in their locker room, after a tough loss to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, came from Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant.

According to ESPNLosAngeles.com, the L.A. guard said: “ They have their own issues over there. Every team has issues. At this point of the season, if you don’t have issues you’re not on a team. Everybody responds to adversity differently. Doesn’t make it right, doesn’t make it wrong. It’s how you come out of it. That’s the true mark of a team.”

Although some of the media thought that Bryant was trying to avoid his thoughts being used as “locker room” material for their upcoming game with the Heat on Thursday, he flatly denied it. “ I really don’t care too much about bulletin board stuff. That means nothing to me. I gave you an honest answer. Everybody responds differently. If guys are crying in the locker room, guys are crying in the locker room. That doesn’t mean...

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The Chicago Blackhawks easily disposed of the vastly improved Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night, and the final score of 5-3, only reflected the fact the the Hawks had the game wrapped up by the end of the second period. The Stanley Cup champions had won the night before at home, 5-2 over Carolina, so they may have been somewhat tired, and coasted through the third period, doing enough to seal the win. Chicago was also shorthanded through three successive power plays in the final period, so that also allowed the Leafs to seem closer in the game than they really were.

To their credit, Ron Wilson’s club was able to take advantage of the Pittsburgh Penguins horrific injury woes last Wednesday, gaining an overtime 3-2 win,and surprising the slumping Philadelphia Flyers, 3-2 in regulation the following night, on the road.

In spite of the overwhelming criticism of Wilson by the fans and media, the team has performed much better since the All-Star break, considering the modest level of skill on the...

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