Jeremy: The Tuesday Ramblings

*Great article by Ric Bucher today in The Daily Dime on MVP talk. The NBA MVP talk has been everywhere lately. It seems like more people are talking about the MVP than about the playoffs. I'd like to put in my two-cents... For my money (which like I said, is about two-cents) there's not a better MVP choice than Steve Nash. I understand why people are enamored with Labron, and I know why people think Kobe is the most valuable. I can also see the arguments for Dwayne Wade and Chauncy Billups. All great players and all of them have performed above expectations this season. But the trump-card for me is, if you look at the four players I just mentioned, the teams that they play on are doing exactly what they were expected to do. The Cavs were supposed to be better, make the playoffs, and Labron was supposed to be their best player. Kobe was supposed to be a ballhog on the Lakers and help them take one of the final 2 or 3 playoff spots. The Heat and the Pistons were supposed to be the two best teams in the East, and Wade and Billups were supposed to lead them as such. But the Suns are a different story. Without Amare Stoudamire, their best player, the Suns were supposed to struggle all season. It wasn't an uncommon belief that they might not even make the playoffs. But behind Nash, with 6 games left in a season where Stoudamire played in only 3 games, the Suns have clinched the third best record in the Western Conference. The Suns have exceeded everyone's expectations, including their own, and Nash has lead the charge by exceeding what was expected of him. Averaging a double/double with over 19 pts/gm and 10 assist/gm, he's also throwing in over 4 reb/gm. He's the leader and best player on a team that was supposed to do nothing. He does all of the little things that a point guard needs to do to win, he fills the stat sheet and he makes everyone around him much better than they should be. If that's not your MVP, I don't know who is. If the stats aren't enough for you, he's got a great head of hair, he's Canadian, and he used to date Elizabeth Hurley. What else do you need in an MVP?

*I know I commented on the Favre situation last week, but... honestly, has there ever been a more self-centered, over-the-hill, doesn't-have-much-left-in-the-tank player hanging on to a Hall of Fame career for dear life? COME ON BRETT!!! Retire already! Don't you see? These people want to love you, you are a god in their eyes. You have a chance to leave with a shred of dignity left... please do us all a favor and take it.

*It seems the Vikings weren't in as much of a hurry to make the Matt Shaub trade in exchange for the 17th pick as it looked like. The Vikes are bringing in plenty of players that they want to get a closer look at (30 or more prospects will be visiting Winter Park according to Childress)to possibly take with the 17th pick, or perhaps even move up. Laurence Maroney and Chad Greenway (didn't we pick him in our mock draft for the Vikings) are both possibilities at 17. The Vikes will also have visits from quarterbacks Vince Young, Jay Cutler and Charlie Whitehurst. Don't rule out the Shaub trade yet, however. The Vikes are in the driver's seat when it comes to that deal with the Falcons since Shaub will be a free agent after the '06-'07 season.

*I'm learning to love Vikings Don Zygi Wilf more and more everyday. Can we get him to run the Gopher athletic department? Zygi EXPECTS to lose money until a new stadium is built. And his response? "I bought this team with the intent of enjoying football... We're hoping that building a new stadium will allow us to become profitable. But right now, you really have to love your football. You have to love your football, because on the financial side it will become more and more difficult. We've felt we've needed to spend the money to be competitive, and we did that. We will continue to do that. We know it will continue to eat away at our profitability until we're able to get into a new stadium." On behalf of the people of Minnesota, Mr. Wilf, I would like to say... THANK YOU.