The TIme Has Come

After spending the past two plus years at W-UCF, the New York Knights Radio Show will take its act on the road to a new home, Knightcast!  The NY Knights are very excited about this upcoming opportunity and have taken it upon ourselves to add some new content to the show.  The addition of playing music will allow us to help promote local talent and artists and help break the show up so that it isn't just an hour of us rambling.  We also have the new ability to interact with our listeners during the taping of the show since we'll be live from here on out.  We're working on new segments that for the time being will stay under raps since we still have to figure out how to best apply them into this new format but just as we did with W-UCF we plan to bring an exciting and knowledgeable perspective.  Another plan of ours is to get more involved with the UCF community so if you run a club or sports team on campus we'd love to have you on and help promote what you're trying to do so that we can help make the campus student body just a little more tighter knit.  If you have ever listened to the show we hope that you'll join us on our switch to Knightcast and are as excited as we are for the new chance.  We want to thank W-UCF for allowing us to tape there for the past few seasons and won't forget our roots but as they say, all good things must come to an end.  In its place starts the birth of an even greater thing and so without further ado we hope to see you at 8 over on Knightcast.org. 

The Return of the Slam Dunk Contest

After thrilling us for about a third of a season, the clear cut choice for rookie of the year, Blake Griffin, will be participating in this year's slam dunk contest.  The past few years have not been kind to the once prestigious event as lackluster talent and poor performances have doomed the contest (when you get over 10 chances in the final round to finish a dunk the excitement and wow factor diminishes - I'm lookin' at you, Nasty Nate).  But finally, after years of fans, analysts, and fellow players alike salivating over the possibility of LeBron James' majestic athleticism and superhuman behemoth slams being able to add new twists to classic dunks, the next best thing, or perhaps even something better has arrived as the savior to the modern dunk contest.  In a mere 34 games Griffin has showered us with highlight after highlight. Just ask the New York Knicks, namely Timofey Mozgov, as he's been posterized several times already this season. 
Yet again, the rest of the field is weak with JaVale McGee (pronounced Smgee), Serge Ibaka, and Brandon Jennings, who will be just removed from an ankle injury (he isn't expected back until mid-January) and doesn't even dunk in games or warmups.  Overall, you got a 7-footer, a very raw and sometimes awkward big man, and a 169 lb point guard who is not known for his athleticism and will be coming off surgery.  This field is worse than the recent smack talk being exchanged between Mark Cuban (why does ESPN continue to antagonize this asshole) and Phil Jackson.  I'm not sure anyone else could have been added to make this an easier competition, besides maybe Earl Boykins and Tim Duncan.  And with the All-Star festivities being held in Staples this year Griffin will have the homecourt advantage, not that he wouldn't be the favorite regardless of where it was held.  
As a die-hard NBA fan, I am excited to see the dunk contest moving back in the right direction because if I have to see the crappy cliche of Nate Robinson and Dwight Howard (Nate being Howard's "kryptonite" because he's small and Howard's big and Robinson wore green and Howard proclaimed himself to be "Superman" despite that being Shaq's original persona) I'd truly proclaim the event dead.  Obviously, if LeBron had participated against Griffin, you could have made it a one-on-one event which would easily be must see-TV and revive this storied tradition.  Besides, LeBron owes us after making us sit through "The Decision" (Steve Carell and Paul Rudd's parody at the ESPYs was hilarious) and wait all summer for his ultimate move to Miami - it would only be fair for him to take his talents to LA, on Griffin's homecourt, and prove he's the best dunker in the league.  Considering this is an individual dunk, and we've seen how little LeBron cares about anyone but himself, I'm surprised he hasn't jumped at the chance to prove that he's better than everyone else yet again.  Oh well, this contest proves to be the most exciting in years and offers yet another chance for Magic Johnson to proclaim "The dunk contest is back!!!!!"  All in all, I expect to be mesmerized by Blake Griffin's aggressive style of dunks and fully anticipate this year's dunk contest to be "Friggin' sweet!"

Orlando Shakeup

Excuse the lack of posts the past few days; work has started up and I haven't had enough free time to post what I've wanted to.  Yesterday was a pretty interesting sports day as Bowl season started. Josh Selby made his much heralded debut, and, the biggest story of them all, Orlando made two trades sending Rashard Lewis to the Wizards for Gilbert Arenas and Vince Carter, Marcin Gortat, Mickael Pietrus, and a 2011 first round pick for Jason Richardson, Earl Clark, and old friend Hedo Turkoglu. For me, this trade is reminiscent of the LeBron James era in Cleveland where Danny Ferry would work out elaborate multi-team trades but would retain the same amount of talent.  Unfortunately, that never worked out as Cleveland failed to win a championship, and, sadly, I don't see Orlando winning one either.  Let's see how this trade influences this team's schematics and the big picture in the East.
Rashard Lewis for Gilbert Arenas - Are Florida's gun laws as strict as they are in Washington?  If so, Arenas could be in trouble.  After Arenas signed that ludicrous $100 million dollar deal a few years ago, he ended up with a knee injury sidelining him for most of the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons.  Things were finally starting to look up until last December, after a disagreement with then teammate Javaris Crittenton lead to Arenas bringing guns into the Verizon Center violating both NBA and D.C. laws leading to his 50 game suspension.  Overall, this trade seems like a win for the Wizards.  They get rid of the awkward presence that Arenas provided, kind of like having an ex-girlfriend in class with you or living in the same dorm... it's just a messy situation.  Besides, Washington had three point guards who were probably their best players anyway, and getting Lewis will provide more offense for a team that is 19th in the league in scoring and trying to build for the future.  Lewis saves Washington money, and, although they have Andray Blatche and Josh Howard at both forward positions, Lewis can't hurt a young team trying to find an identity.  With Arenas, Orlando gets a proven scorer who has had a history of shenanigans but can potentially help turn around there recent funk losers of six of seven.  The problem is Arenas needs the ball and with Nelson as their point guard I'm not sure how that will play out in the end.  JJ Redick again gets hosed and will have to sit behind J-Rich, Q-Rich, and Arenas even though he is the only player who understands how to share the ball.
Jason Richardson, Hedo Turkoglu, and Earl Clark for Vince Carter, Marcin Gortat, Mickael Pietrus, and 2011 1st round pick- The plus side is Orlando gets rid of what's left of Vince Carter and whatever it was he was doing out there on the court for the catalyst to their 2009 Finals run in Hedo Turkoglu.  Jason Richardson brings yet another guard and the Magic's second Richardson.  Turkoglu provides a point forward who was clutch in the fourth quarter averaging the most amount of points in the fourth quarter only behind who else but LeBron and Kobe.  This is an upgrade for Orlando but they lose a big and a defensive player and now have become smaller and not addressed their lack of D an inability to stop penetration.  Denver carved them up the other night and after losing to Philly last night I'm not sure any of the four players Orlando added can really help their frontcourt as Howard is now their only legitimate big. 
Orlando is currently trailing Miami, Boston, and Chicago in the East, and, with this new trade, they hope to rejuvenate a team that has looked slow of late and has not shot the three well this season (ranking 17th overall).  As Miami showed against the Knicks they are very capable defensively of shutting down your one big and forcing your shooters to beat them. And with Boston's size and depth, Orlando can't compete with their strength upfront.  Even Chicago with a healthy Boozer and Noah will give Orlando trouble and are a shooter away from being a serious contender in the East.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out, but, in my opinion, Orlando is no better today than they were yesterday.

The Nightmare Before Cliffmas

So my first post ends up being about baseball and my second least favorite team, the Philadelphia Phillies. Excellent.  Late last night it was reported Cliff Lee had signed a five-year, 120 million dollar deal with an option for a sixth year with the Philadelphia Phillies.  After what seemed to be a two team race between the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers for weeks turned into a last minute snag by the Phillies.  Lee gives up $34 million dollars to once again be apart of a Phillies franchise which was two games away from repeating as World Series champs last year. During the off-season - actually a year this Thursday - Lee was traded in what was a complete shock to him to the Mariners for several prospects in the overall deal that brought Roy Halladay to Philadelphia.  After being upset in the NLCS to the eventual champion Giants and losing star slugger Jayson Werth who signed a seven-year contract worth $126 million with the Nationals, the Phils bring in another stud to bring into possibly the best rotation in baseball.
So, with all that being said, what does this all actually mean?  Well, for one, the Yankees dollars have not attracted a single free agent this off-season.  With three $100 million plus signings and not one coming from New York, does this say something about how free agents view the Yankees?  All of a sudden is the "evil empire" really the only team spending big money, and with a lot of uncertainty do the Yankees have what it takes to compete with the likes of Boston and Philly for a title?  The answers, ladies and gentlemen, are all quite simple.  First off, teams constantly whine and complain about the Yankees paying for talent and always buying the best players.  Be that as it may, they have won one world series ring in the past nine years!  If we have learned anything is that money does not buy championships.  All this talk about Boston and Philly now being presumable favorites and how great the Phils staff has become, I say prove it on the diamond.  Philly currently has no position players in its lineup under the age of 30 and only one starter, Cole Hamels (who I still think is a complete headcase with a Jay Leno-like chin), at 26, who isn't in his prime or nearly passed it.  Boston comes into the season with questions at catcher even with new starter and former Ranger Jarrod Saltalamacchia who appeared in 12 games for Boston last year after coming over in a deadline deal hitting .167 with two RBI's and no Home Runs.  (Fun fact: He has the longest last name in MLB history)  Their bullpen was also atrocious last year and won't be feeling any better after Boston's failed attempt at luring Mariano Rivera from the Yanks.  It's probably safe to say Jonathan Papelbon is feeling a little hurt after an attempted move that seems to show Boston's growing distrust in the closer who had eight blown saves last year and was 5-7 on the year with a 3.90 era. 
As the old adage says "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," and that's what Boston and Philly did this off-season.  When it's all said and done, Boston will have spent over $300 million dollars and Philly will have shelled out $245 million including the Ryan Howard extension earlier in the year.  Overpaying for players getting up there in age is something the Yankees have done notoriously well (See Carl Pavano, Kevin Brown, A.J. Burnett, the list goes on) in the past but recently have been able to rely on their farm system similarly to how they won so many championships back in the 90s.  In fact, the Yanks had more homegrown players on their '09 championship team (56%) than the Phillies (32%).
As I conclude my first post I want to also take the time to congratulate Brett Favre on the greatest streak in football history which came to an end Monday night.  297 straight starts is something that will never be broken.  Eli Manning currently holds the longest active streak with 100 and has played now almost seven seasons.  At this pace he'll have to play another 12 years and he's already 29 years old meaning he would be 41, the same age as Favre, to break the record.  Obviously it's a long ways away and far from everyone's mind.  Regardless of his off the field drama he has done something incredible and played most of his career in an age where you got hit and there was not nearly as much protection as there is now.  My hat is off to you Mr. Favre.  I didn't want to waste my first post on you but an honorable mention is in order.  Shouts out to Andrew "The Panth" Inman for the heads up to include a small piece of this in this post.  'Til next time.    

Introductions

Allow me to reintroduce myself, or in this case, introduce myself.  I am Anthony Scalco, a junior at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida, a journalism major, and the host of the New York Knights Radio Show with my brother Chris aka Ballz where we discuss sports and hip hop happenings.  We currently air on Mondays at 9 on WUCF (I will provide a link to how to listen at the bottom of the page) and will be taking our talents to Knightcast radio as well this upcoming semester.  When we figure out that schedule that will be posted as well along with dates, times, etc.  The purpose of creating this blog is to get in touch with fans more without my brother or our other guests getting in the way and is a great way to express my feelings on a daily basis instead of just weekly since there is so much going on in the world of sports and music.  The Knights like to focus on campus happenings so of course UCF sports are a chief concern but national sports and music stories also take top priority depending on the magnitude of it.  A quick overview of myself, I am from Queens, New York, and are a Yankees and Duke basketball fan first and foremost, and secondly Oregon football and the soon-to-be-dismantled Denver Nuggets.  My favorite athletes include Michael Jordan (number 1 all time no question), Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Derek Jeter, and Tim Lincecum.  My genre of music is hip hop and I was obsessed with Lil' Wayne though its cooled down since hes cooled down but I still enjoy his throwback Drought 3, Dedication 2, 2005-2007 stuff along with Tha Carters 1 and 2.  At the moment I really like Wale, The Cool Kids, Drake, Juelz Santana, and of course classics such as NWA, Big, Jay, etc.  I look forward to doing my best to entertain and inform my readers and also keep you up with the Knights show while we have this month break for Christmas.  I'm excited for this new development and hope to interact with everyone more.  So as I would say as we sign off each week, grab your green hat and lets go!