BETCATS PRODUCTIONS PRESENT: Hibachi Mock Draft

I've been workin' on the railroad,
All the live long day.
I've been workin' on the railroad,
Just to pass the time away.
Don't you hear the whistle blowing?
Rise up so early in the morn.
Don't you hear the captain shouting
"Dinah, blow your horn?"
Dinah, won't you blow,
Dinah, won't you blow,
Dinah, won't you blow your horn?
Dinah, won't you blow,
Dinah, won't you blow,
Dinah, won't you blow your horn?
Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah.
Someone's in the kitchen, I know.
Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah
Strumming on the old banjo.
Fee, fie, fiddle-e-i-o.
Fee, fie, fiddle-e-i-o-o-o-o.
Fee, fie, fiddle-e-i-o.
Strumming on the old banjo.

1st Round
#1 Los Angeles Clippers - Blake Griffin
Reason why - I cant believe i even am giving a reason for this. Its safe to say that not even the Clippers could mess this one up. Who knows what Blake will turn out to be in the NBA. Count on one thing though, he will be a Clipper.

Picks 2 - 30 shall be skipped due to the fact that it could very well be anybody.

2nd Round (i am only doing the picks that i find intresting)

#31 The Sacremento Kings - Austin Daye
Reason why- Austin may very well slip out of the 1st round, but has all the tools to be a good NBA player. Being the most talented left on the board, the Kings will take him.

#32 The Washington Wizards -Jermanie Taylor
Reason Why- Taylor was a beast in College. Just because you havent heard of him doesnt mean he isnt the best guard in the 2nd round. Give him 1 year to adjust to NBA play.

#33 The Portland Trail Blazers- Victor Claver
Reason Why- The Portland Trail Blazers want to look like the Spainish National Team. Other than that, no reason, beside the fact that Claver is gonna be a legit NBA player.

#34 The Denver Nuggets- Josh Heytvelt
Reason Why- Fits all of Denvers' needs. 2nd round pick with 1st round talent.

#35 The Detroit Pistons- I dont care
Reason Why- Detroit is such a mess, their 2nd round picks wouldnt be having a impact on this team, look for them to be out of the leauge in a few years.

#36 The Memphis Grizzlies- DeMarre Carrol
Reason why- He is good, the Grizzlies dont really need anything, just a random pick

#37 The San Antonio Spurs - Nick Calathes
Reason why- The Spurs need a 3rd point guard, who can double as being their 2nd. Parker gets injured so much, do you really trust Roger Mason to lone wolf the PG postion?

#38 The Portland Trail Blazers - Sergii Gladyr
Reason why- Joins the rest of Portlands' European talent. Marinates overseas for a couple years then comes to the states and makes a impact. Watch for this guy to show up in 2-3 years (if picked here) and turn some heads.

#39 The Detroit Pistons - see pick #35.

#40 The Charlotte Bobcats - Dionte Christmas
Reason why- honestly, i doubt Chritsmas will be here, but i want him on the Bobcats. We need a scorer, Terrence Williams is someone who can do everything, but is not a pure scorer. Christmas is.

#41 The Milwaukee Bucks - Jodie Meeks
Reason why - With Micheal Redd wearing a suit more during a typical NBA season then a Bucks jersey, Milwaukee must act. So they will take Meeks.

#42 The Los Angles Lakers - Danny Green
Reason why- insurance if Ariza doesnt come back. Give Danny 4 years, he will be just as good.

#43 The Miami Heat - Patty Mills
Reason why- Ricky Rubio aint walking through that door.

#44 The Detroit Pistons - reference pick #39

#45 The Minnesota Timberwolves - Darren Collison
Reason why- Already pronounced 'winners of the draft' by the mainstream media, the Wolves get another Point Guard who was well seasoned in the College game.

#46 The Cleveland Cavilers - Jeff Pendergraph
Reason why- They got Shaq, so i am guessing they will be drafting a guard with their first round pick, then getting Pendergraph here. I have no idea why Jeff isnt a top 30 pick, he is actually better then most Power Forwards i have seen in mock drafts that are going in the top 20.

#47 The Minnesota Timberwolves- Jeff Adrien
Reason why- The Wolves can always use another front court player, as injuries are always a problem in Minny. Adrien did well in the NCAA tournment this year, and that could be a clear indication he is ready for the NBA.

#48 The Phoneix Suns- Some random guy
Reason why- trying to predict what Steve Kerr is going to do is impossible. His brain is a form of absract art nobody can replicate. Why should i even bother?

#49 The Atlanta Hawks - Tyrese Rice
Reason why- The point guard slot is always a problem for the Hawks. Maybe Rice, a established college player, can be part of the solution.

#50 The Utah Jazz- Jon Brockman
Reason why- when Paul Milsap and Carlos Boozer walk out this off season, Utah will already be somewhat equipt to fill in the holes.

#51 The San Antonio Spurs- Robert Dozier
Reason why- they need a front court player, so i gave it to them. Dozier is above solid, but cannot play offense worth shit.

#52 The Indiana Pacers- Nando De Colo
Reason why- GREATEST. NAME. EVER.

#53 The San Antonio Spurs- Marcus Thorton
Reason why- Really good scorer. The Spurs get a steal, at #53 .

#54 The Charlotte Bobcats- Dante Cunningham
Reason why- Good college career, a Larry Brown player. I would be happy...

#55 The Portland Trail Blazers- Courtney Fells
Reason why- I cant let NCSUs' semi-finest not get drafted!

#56 - #60 are just wastes of time, if it is really a big deal: Chris Johnson, Leo Lyons, Sergio Llull, Welsey Matthews and Terrel Harris are yours to choose from.

Now, About Those Ray Allen Rumors...

A Moose Track

I have a lot of thoughts on our beloved league from the last three to four weeks. I know that I haven't posted in a while; I'm not doing my part to keep this site alive and kicking as it can be at it's full potential. I take full responsibility for lack of posting without a good excuse. But, now, school's out for the summer (while it rains in Beantown...) and I'll have a lot more opportunity to do this kind of thing. Big ups to DJ Pretty Kitty and D. Preezy for keeping the blog in business.

First of all, there has been a lot of talk around the Hub about trading Ray Allen. Yes, trading him after two years of great service. This rumor comes with insanely mixed feelings from me, as it does to other Celtics fans. A part of me wants to say, "Why the hell would we trade Ray Allen? We love Ray, everyone loves Ray. How do you not like Ray Allen?"

But I'm not a blindly loyal fan that only looks at the fact that we love Allen and his game. I'm not a crazy Celtics fan, but a realist when it comes to hoops who knows that when you gotta do something, you gotta do something. And I think that is the case with Allen at the moment. Remember, I love having Allen on the team, his shooting is undoubtedly spectacular, and he does miracles for our court spacing.

But, Ray Allen turns 34 in less than a month. Thirty. Four. As a shooting guard that is called upon to guard Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade on a nightly basis, that is borderline prehistoric. Yes, Allen is a special case if you're talking about things like this, but we have seen Allen's play slow down noticeably over this last year. And, with the Big Three all on their way to being, well, old. If they aren't there already. We're going to have to start building around Rajon Rondo in a couple years, and this would be a big cash burden.

So I'm going to accept it if Allen's traded. But, if he has to be traded, I want it to go down like this: We trade Allen for a low lottery pick and use all the extra cash to get a big free agent. Preferably Trevor Ariza. Now, whether this will happen is obviously in question, and I'm starting to doubt it now, too. We'll see then. Whether or not Ray does get traded this summer, I'll be wishing him luck wherever he goes...or stays.

So, I thought I was due for a substantial post, so there it is. And, just because...



Be easy.

--Moose

In honor of the 2009 NBA Champions......

Someone needs to keep this site flowing in the offseason! "It shall be I" said the Cat.
























Do you Kobe! Funny how everyone claims Kobe wants to be 'Micheal Jordan part 2'. This is clearly shades of vintage Dennis Rodman. (Picture from Game 5 of 2004 NBA Finals)

The player with the biggest impact on the finals isnt even playing in it

I still havent watched 1 mintue of LIVE NBA Finals basketball this year, and it is just well enough suiting that i will be writting about a guy who has not played 1 minute of LIVE NBA Finals basketball this year.

BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
BRIAN COOK IS THE ONLY REASON THIS SERIES IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW

I present: Brian Cook, international man of mystery. Without this man, neither team would be where they are today.

Proof?

November 20, 2007- Brian Cook and Maurice Evans to Orlando in exchange for Trevor Ariza to the Lakers

February 19, 2009- Brian Cook traded to Houston from Orlando as part of a 3 team that got Orlando Rafer Alston.

So lets review:
Without Brian, the Lakers would not have gotten Trevor Ariza.
Without Brian, the Magic would not have gotten Rafer Alston.
Without Trevor Ariza, the Lakers would not be in the finals.
Without Rafer Alston, the Magic would not be in the finals.


Suprising? I noticed this when the finals first started, here is my take on this:

Ain't a blog post....I just feel the pain Courntey is feeling...

Courtney, I know how it is to miss a game winning shot. It sucks. It crashes your confidence and essentially you don't want to touch the ball at all during overtime. Your team is now down 2-0 when it could have been 1-1. Man, even twitter had you at number 1 on the trending topics...and that's a big thing my dude. Half the people in Orlando want to ring your neck out but I would ring Dwight's if I was them. Rashard...ballin. Hedo...ballin. You....ballin. Dwight...can't really say much about him. Don't hold your head down courtney. you guys have the next 3 at your magical kingdom. Redeem yourself. I guarantee a victory for you guys tomorrow and you will bounce back Lee. Just don't wake up on the wrong side of the bed tomorrow......play wit it.

And the winner is...

...Kob. 40 points 8 rebounds 8 assists. And let's be real. Kobe didn't look like he wanted to win. Kobe honestly had a look on his face that just plainly stated "I have come for blood." Dude was like Ivan Drago from Rocky IV when he killed Apollo (If he dies, he dies). I know there's a lot of Bron love on 'Bachi, but DP and I agree- this was epic.

Roundup of Reaction:

Stephen A Smith (during the 3rd): Game 1 is over. Look at Van Gundy's face when Kobe scored. He's demoralized already. Even JACK is giving Kobe a bow!!!
Do ya'll see the look in Kobe's eyes??? We all need to watch this.....this sense of urgency you just don't teach. This is why he's so great

Russ Bengtson (after the game): Kobe's a winner. You can tell because he won.

Kevin Durant: See you in game 2 Superman.

That's all you gotta say. Brandon Jennings was hype. I was hype. My boy Tony Williams, a Knicks Beat Writer was hype. There were some Kobe haters that were hype. I'm knowingly a biased Kobe guy, but let's be real. That was vicious. Even Eboy can't realistically shit talk this game.

Dont call it a comeback

So yeah, lots of stuff to catch up on. Too much. I will just sum it up like this: Kobeloversandlebronloversfeudingpissedmeoffandiwantednopartofit.
But now that one of them is gone and the other one will be gone soon enough, its safe for me to return and be cooler than anything you have ever witnessed, so cool you will need protective custody afterwards. BETCATS protects his witnesses, unlike Lebron, you are all witnessess to REAL greatness.

Anyway, this summer i plan on doing some 'stuff' so i most likely will not be here, as 'stuff' will be time consuming and tiring. What is this 'stuff'? Let me just put it like this: its 'stuff'.

The world is still a crazy place, and that is not gonna change. I would waste time writting/linking about it, but nobody really reads my shit anyway, they skim it and giggle, so why put in effort? But the desired result is skimming and giggling, or 'skiggling', and that is why i love my readers. Who/what else do i love:

Orange Soda (Kel does too!)
Gerald Wallace (no homo/ho nomo)
Having a 'home gym' (i financed a $50 energy bike from a thrift store and 2 20 pound weights, but it keeps me fit!)

As for the NBA finals, i am sure you all want my thoughts on them. Well i am not going to watch them. Their are no 'limitless possiblities' here. It will be 1 of 2 things:

1. Kobe will have a unreal series, LA wins in 4-5
2. the Lakers defense does not adjust from its usual zone, Orlando murks LA in 4-6 games.

For the record though, i am going with option 2.
And i wanted to make this 'brief' so its over.

Fin.

Ps- have yall seen this:


leads me to this conclusion

Pipedream - A thought revisted

This is an open letter/statement to all those interested, most specifically the writers of this blog.
I recognise that you may (or may have not) liked to recieve an email about this but I think it is time to regurgitate something, since positions have changed (a little anyways).

By Hursty:

Dear brohams, and sheilas,
Today I had my careers convention at school. It was mostly boring shit. It looks like I'm going to do exercise science, then do physiotherapy and sports management etc, anyways, what I want to talk about is what happened next...
... I went to speak to a guy at Sydney University who is doing his PhD in media marketing.
This got me to think 'maybe he can help our blog out'. Turns out he can. He gave me a lot of advice regarding advertising the site etc.
Here is a large chunk of it.
1) Stop using blogger as a site.
2) Use a '.com' url, this is because it is much easier for someone searching the web (e.g. google) to find a site, than it is with a blogger account (seriously have you guys TRIED to find this site on the interwebs?)
3) This will cost money - all of $8. I would be perfectly happy to pay this domain name fee because:
4) We would be using wordpress - I know, I know, it sucks on slamonline, but that is a different form of wordpress apparently, and we would have no issues with it.
5) I don't know how much you guys know about computers (BET knowing the most I imagine), but the impression that he was giving was that, because blogger acts as our search engine/finder, it is hard for us to generate hits, because we reach such a small market.
6) He strongly suggested some search engines/affiliates which would maintainn our site (not edit work, but make it legit, so it's always running). I have them with me, so if you want to know what they are, hit the comment section up.
7) We would have to change the site name, because apparently numbers and letters are really awkward for a search engine to process (unless someone has deliberately placed them in the search box). It could just be 'Hibachi' or something, but anything 12 characters or less is the best.

I understand that there will be some very mixed responses to this, but it is worth a mention, and the PhD student said that the site (in total fees) would cost less than $30 Australian (about 17-20$ US) per year. I'd pay all of this. HOWEVA:
I need to get feedback, not just from the writers, but those who frequent the blog/site, to guage interest.

So, if this were all to go ahead, I assume the questions of $ would arise. We would NOT be forced to finance the site, however, this could be an option through paypal if we CHOSE to. I personally have no issue with paypal, as it has been very consistent and reliable when I've used it. I understand others may however, because of age, location, creditcard details and so on. This is why it is purely up for discussion. Just email me if you have anything that you don't want said on a public forum.

When I first came up with the idea of asking the PhD student about the site, I was NOT thinking of financing - don't get it twisted. It was purely to increase the flow of people who check out the site, and to generate more of an audience - honestly thats it.

Peace, Hursty

PS- We would just use our site name instead of hibachi when leaving slam comments. Duh! - If this ever actually happens :)
PPS- Read BET's video links below, they are pretty funny, if a bit um, rude