Interviews, Tests, St. Louis

Sorry guys I've been romped with life. Had a couple of interviews in StL last Friday. Got invited back to both basically, but one wanted to wait until I was done with summer school, so really only one. I turn 22 tomorrow, so kudos to that as well. A lot has happened since either of us have said anything, so I'll try to tackle as much as I can.

• Orlando-L.A. This is not the matchup everyone wanted to see, but I think it is the best possible matchup for the Finals. Cleveland just disappointed me completely, and I think LeBron-Kobe would have been a sweep, or close to it, advantage Kobe and Co. Howard (Shoulders) will at least be able to bang down low, and with Turkoglu and Lewis both being big guards/small forwards, they will also be able to handle Kobe, Ariza, Walton, Odom. Very interesting series. I honestly believe the Lakers time has come, but as I told Wilson today, don't be surprised if Orlando takes this thing all the way and even wins, especially with the 2-3-2 home court format. They are very good at home, and if they shoot well they pose a great threat to any team in the L, including the Lakers. Their 4 out 1 in format is very dominant when it works, and having the best young center in the world doesn't hurt either.
• Cleveland is in turmoil. The champ-less city has to be hurting. It's a shame to see that even after the great year they had they still have the same problems as before. I think they're still a good 2 pieces away from being a legit championship contender. Mo Williams is a good start, but add some big men and perhaps a more legit 2G and they're set. Take LeBron out of that lineup, you have Williams, Delonte West, Andersen Vareajao, Zydrunas Illgauskas, and Sasha Pavlovic? Or Wally Sczerbiak?!! Really?!! What is that? The Milwaukee Bucks all over again Mo, the Bucks ALL OVER AGAIN. Wilson gave a great point about their regular season--they did what a good team is supposed to do. They won on their home court and beat teams they were supposed to on the road. Wilson told me they were -14 on average against the Lakers, Magic, and Celtics, also not including a 19 point loss to Houston. That's a pretty shocking statistic. I feel bad for LeBron, I don't know what else the King could have done. Arguably the best series ever played by a losing player, perhaps the best series by an individual period. Just for the record, he did send an email to Dwight Howard congratulating him on winning and everything. That takes a bit of the sting off of him not shaking hands with Shoulders or any of his Magic teammates after their decisive 13 point victory.
• In NHL news, the Red Wings took a 2-0 series lead on the Pittsburgh Penguins, thus ruining my prediction of the Pens winning it all. Oh well, perhaps The Kid can make a comeback.
• Rafael Nadal lost his French Open streak to same guy who made fun of him last year. Funny how karma works out. Pretty staggering how untouchable he was, how unbeatable he was, and then along comes this 20-something seed and it's all over. Just a goodbye wave and laughing in the post-match interview and that's it. No more talk, no fallout, nothing. Weird.
• Josh Hamilton is going to have an MRI. Bad news for fantasy owners and Texas Rangers fan. The All-Star slugger has been injured basically all season and even with that the Rangers have the best record in the AL. Everything is seeming to come together for them. Haven't been able to catch many games, but everytime I check the scores on the Bottom Line, the Rangers are always in the yellow. Good stuff.

That's all folks. Time to start celebrating my birthday. Shout out to Holiday Inn Express in Fenton for the Honeymoon Suite this weekend. Two fingers like Mario.

--HEMAN--