Davies' Confession at BYU Shows Courage

(Originally published 3/9/11 in "The Montclarion")

A few grown men cry and it’s plastered all over ESPN, sports websites and sports radio. Why is it that when Miami Heat players cry after a loss to the Chicago Bulls it’s such a big deal? Why is this a headline?

Brigham Young basketball player Brandon Davies was kicked off the team last week after he admitted to having consensual sex with his girlfriend, a violation of the school’s honor code.

Then I scrolled down ESPN’s site even more to find that Rachel Alexandra was pregnant. She is not a famous LPGA golfer or woman’s tennis player. No, this article was about 2009 Horse of the Year winner Rachel Alexandra, the famous “Filly” (girl) horse who won the Preakness that year. She is pregnant by two-time Horse of the Year winner Curlin’ in an attempt to create the fastest horse ever. Their foals are due February 1, 2012 (I also learned horses are pregnant for 11 months rather than a human’s cycle of nine months).


I then tried to revert to any TV or radio station that doesn’t have Chris Bosh crying or the never-ending financial downfall of the New York Mets. I came across people’s reaction to BYU basketball star Brandon Davies and, needless to say, their reactions were quite surprising. About half the people were mentioning how honorable and mature he was for informing the school he had sex with his girlfriend, thus getting him indefinitely suspended from the basketball team and, more importantly, suspended for the March Madness tournament in which BYU was likely to enter as a Number 1 seeded team.

The other half was asking “Why would he tell?” “Why didn’t he keep it a secret” “Why would he do such a thing?” Is this what our ethics and morals have come to? I’m sure we were all taught better than to lie, but it seems only half the people received this message.

This player should be commended for what he did, not ridiculed.

Certainly most of us can agree that BYU’s chastity rule may be a little harsh, if it should even be implemented at all, but they’re allowed to have whatever rules they’d like. Davies signed a wavier to follow their rules and to avoid having sex with his girlfriend (unless they’re married), and if he didn’t know that was a rule then he should have read the fine print. His suspension is his own fault.

He did the one thing our parents would have wanted us to do in his situation: tell the truth. BYU fouled up the game after Davie’s suspension terribly, losing 82-64 to New Mexico. BYU stuck by their decision and kept him off the team, and rightfully so. They would have faced tremendous criticism from their religious powers, alumni and donors alike. It would have been a story about a basketball player getting the star treatment and being exempt from punishment all over again. I’m glad we’re debating a story about someone doing the right thing rather than how long Donte Stallworth should get for killing a pedestrian while driving drunk.

From our college perspective this move is outrageous, hilarious and puzzling but it’s a strict Mormon school for a reason.

Drama Surrounding Carmelo Anthony Continues

(Originally published 1/26/11 in "The Montclarion")

When will all this Carmelo Anthony drama (or Melo’drama for short) end? Anthony has made it more than obvious that he wishes to play in his hometown, New York City. The Knicks have made it more than obvious that they want Carmelo on their team. So why hasn’t the deal been made already?

Carmelo Anthony has been waiting for a trade to the New York Knicks or New Jersey Nets, but high trade demands from the Nuggets have delayed the process.

The only thing preventing this trade from being accomplished is the Denver Nuggets’ asking price. They’re looking to take the entire Knicks roster, other than Amare Stoudemire and possibly even a draft pick, a pick that the Knicks don’t have. The Knicks are doing the smart thing for themselves by waiting it out. Anthony is going to be a free agent at the end of the season and can sign wherever he chooses. New York would be offering him the money anyway, but by waiting they’re saving all the players they would be giving up in the trade.


Understandably, they’re taking the more reasonable, approach and waiting for the Nuggets’ asking price to go down, or until the end of the season. But sometimes waiting doesn’t always pay off. There have been a few times this year in which Anthony was “almost” sent to the Knicks, then “almost” went to the Nets, resulting in chaos and confusion surrounding the entire situation.

The New York Knicks, with the team they currently have, aren’t going to be near an NBA Championship. Stoudemire is a huge plus, and Raymond Felton has been a nice surprise, but they’re still one large chip away from being able to overtake the Miami Heat, Orlando Magic, and/or the Boston Celtics. Sure the Knicks may have a few lucky bounces and reach the finals, but the odds are against them.

If they don’t want to make 2010-2011 a lost season they need to add a star-caliber player, similar to the Stoudemire signing this past offseason. They’re almost laying down this year, anticipating Carmelo will end up with them, but once he becomes a free agent any team can sway him to go their way. He might go to the Chicago Bulls and instantly make them a top team alongside Derrick Rose, or even worse for the Knicks, he may end up in New Jersey.

Anthony wants the spotlight, and his hometown, but he knows the New Jersey Nets share the same media as the Knicks and they’re moving their home stadium into the city shortly. They may not have the world famous “Madison Square Garden,” but they do have Jay-Z; then again Jay-Z couldn’t lure Lebron to the financial capital of the world. The only thing helping the Knicks keep Anthony away from the Nets is the chance to compete for a title. Even with Carmelo, the Nets wouldn’t be too much of a playoff threat and are still a few pieces away from getting there. The Knicks, on the other hand, are there already, and if they can add a solid supporting player (remember the Chris Paul rumors) they can be as dangerous as the upper tier teams.

If the Knicks want to lay down and wait until next season they may come to the unfortunate realization that Carmelo has decided to go elsewhere. And if he decides to do just that, Knick fans may want to point the finger at the Denver Nuggets. Reasonably they want something in return for a player who doesn’t want to be there anymore, nor do they care where Anthony goes. The only way to confidently obtain him is to be aggressive and trade for him, and if the Knicks were really serious this season about making a push, they would leave all but Stoudemire expendable. This may only be a one-year mirage we’re seeing from Felton, and Danilo Gallinari hasn’t blossomed into the player the Knicks thought he could be. Besides, would you rather have Carmelo Anthony or Eddy Curry and Wilson Chandler?

Spoelstra Under Fire In Miami

(Originally published 12/1/10 in "The Montclarion")

The Miami Heat are showing everyone the perfect way to reflect negative attention; just blame your coach. A grand entrance, fireworks show, an hour-long primetime free agency signing and millions of dollars result in a pathetic record and an angry city.

Lebron James (left), Dwayne Wade (middle), and Chris Bosh (right) are finding that things aren’t so sunny in Miami with the Heat off to a 10-8 start under head coach Erik Spoelstra.

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is facing heavy scrutiny from the players within the organization and is about to experience a mutiny if things don’t improve rapidly. Oh, how quickly things can change from an offseason fiesta to an opening season riot.


Certainly injuries have played a factor, and “the big three” are being hurt by the lack of production from the center and point guard positions, but these are just excuses. 328 million dollars should not result in a near-even record, and especially when that money belongs to the kind of talent that Miami has. How quickly the king has become the court jester.

A dynasty was already in place before anything meaningful occurred. The team came together from their 2008 gold medal Olympic squad and promised to show the prominence everyone thought they had. It wasn’t a question if the Heat would win a championship with this team, but how many championships this team would win.

Before they can come close to matching the Boston Celtic’s eight straight championships, or make a run similar to Jimmie Johnson’s current streak of five straight NASCAR championships, they’re going to need to win one. And before they can win a championship they’re going to need to improve right now.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see Spoelstra out as the head coach by the time you’re reading this. LeBron James can get coaches kicked off the team, but he can’t win championships, something he gets paid to do. Spoelstra has unfortunately become the scapegoat in this situation. Because his players don’t know how to execute, he has to face the penalty. On any other team that would be the case, but James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh don’t need a lesson in execution, they’re beyond being coached. So how could this be the coaches fault?

Removing the head coach will only turn the attention away for a short amount of time. If their record doesn’t improve fans are going to start blaming the real culprits. Everyone expected greatness, even perfection. The Heat were supposed to make a run at the most wins in the regular season, now they’re just trying to maintain a decent playoff spot. It’s still early in the season, and letting the coach go could ignite the Heat and their stars to play better, but that shouldn’t be the case. After Spoelstra and James’ chest bump and “good talk,” everything from a public relations standpoint appears fine, but the truth is far from that.

The Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic still sit atop the Eastern Conference, something that neither team was worried about losing when they learned Bosh and James signed with the Heat. Boston defeated them opening night to spoil their opening act, then traveled to Miami and beat them again. The Heat are 1-6 against teams with better records than them at the moment, their lone win against the Orlando Magic.

The Heat need a spark to light their fire and letting Spoelstra go may be it. They can’t continue at this rate for much longer before the better teams start pulling away, but a mediocre record isn’t his fault. Let’s see some of these star athletes step up for their lackluster performance; isn’t a king supposed to be noble?

No Lebron, No Problem for Knicks and Nets

(Originally published 11/10/10 in "The Montclarion")

Amare Stoudemire may not be LeBron James, but his addition to the New York Knicks has certainly boosted the team to playoff contender status.

As Spring began, many New Jersey Nets and New York Knick fans were hopeful their team could lure LeBron James into the New York area and usher in a new era of basketball for either team. The hope turned to anger and disappointment when James choose Miami over the metropolitan area. The Knicks made the only big splash, landing Amare Stoudemire, soon after they learned that “The King” wasn’t heading to their court. The Nets’ most exciting move was the first round pick of power-forward Derrick Favors. An embarrassing season last year couldn’t land them either of the first two picks, forcing them to miss out on big-time players John Wall and Evan Turner.


The season started off well for both teams; the Nets beat the Pistons to start the year, and the Knicks won up in Toronto with the help of a Stoudemire double-double. Though neither team will catch up to the Boston Celtics in the Atlantic Division, positive strides have been made. The Knicks have a legitimate shot at making the playoffs as the seventh or eighth seed. The Eastern Conference is dominated by Boston, Orlando, Atlanta and the ruckus that is Miami, but the bottom half of the playoff spots are open to anyone, the Knicks can pull off an even .500 record or maybe a little less and still make the playoffs.

It took 18 less games than last season for the Nets to win their first game, so there is definitely immediate improvement. They even stood atop the Eastern Conference with 2-0 mark before slipping and falling below the Knicks to (currently) third, though third shouldn’t get fans thinking playoffs just yet. They have twice as many losses as wins and can fall into fourth at any point. If they want any shot at making the playoffs the Nets are going to need a lot of stellar performances and better luck than they had in the draft lottery.
Stoudemire automatically makes the Knicks better. Not only with his own athleticism, but by taking the concentration off his teammates. He allows them more space and draws more defenders than David Lee did before he was traded, then overpaid, by the Golden State Warriors.

Though the Knicks and Nets couldn’t land James, there was plenty of talk and rumors that Carmelo Anthony would land on either of the teams. The chances of this happening were similar to the chances the teams had to sign James; that may be why neither team got him. The reason the trade wasn’t made was because, allegedly, the Denver Nuggets were asking too much in return for Anthony. Frankly, both these teams need a makeover, and if that meant dumping the entire team and their contracts then it should have been done in the blink of an eye.

The Knicks could have had Stoudemire and Anthony on the court at the same time, assuming both stay healthy or aren’t suspended. Instantly that makes them a playoff lock. The Nets would probably have had to give up Favors, but if I were given the third pick in the draft to select either Carmelo Anthony in his prime or an unproven Derrick Favors, I would have made the most financially, commercially and overall best choice in Anthony.

If the Nets owner, trillionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, continues to provide the endless cash flow he’s willing to give up for free agents, and if the Knicks don’t bring back Isiah Thomas, these teams should be close to being strong contenders, the Knicks closer than the Nets by a year. With only a few pieces missing from the Knicks puzzle, in another year they could pose as a threat, the Nets may need more time to develop and will most likely take an extra year to do so, but at least there’s a sense that things are going in the right direction.