Tom Talks

Here comes Dale Earnhardt Jr. You best get out of the way.

    Go Dale Jr.

     I wrote a few weeks ago that I thought Dale Earnhardt Jr. would win two Sprint Cup races this season. As you know, there are college students who were in pre-school when Dale Jr. last won a race.

    I don't expect him to reel off four or five victories. But he has the talent, and the resolve, to win two races a season, and in 2012 he will.

      Earnhardt finished second in the Daytona 500, which could be renamed the 32 Hours of Daytona. The race was a tremendous challenge for drivers, and Dale Jr. met it.

     Alas, you know who an Earnhardt victory will mean. I heard from a fan who says NASCAR is fixed and the success of Danica Patrick will prove it.

    So you think NASCAR goes to Kyle Busch and says, "Go easy today," and Kyle says, "Fine, I hadn't planned to win anyway"?

    If NASCAR were fixed, Jimmie Johnson would not have dominated the way he did and Dale Jr., the most popular driver in the sport, would have won races and championships.

    There's no fix. There's just a driver and his crew chief and his team coming together much more slowly than expected.

    I like Junior. I don't care where I am, but I'll cheer when it happens, silently if I'm in the press box.

     Again, I see Dale Jr. winning two races, making the Chase and finishing fifth in the Cup Standings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cam, Camelo and Danica, Hornets, Homeland and certified morons

   Must have heard from 10 readers this weekend who want to reclaim the name Hornets from New Orleans. They're an odd group; they're courteous.

    In sports, as in politics, there are people who think that if you dare disagree with them you are a moron, and not even a regular moron but a certified moron. As passionate as the group is, they don't insist that I have no worth as a person simply because I don't find the issue iterribly important. Been an interesting exchange of email, and I salute them.

    WATCHED pieces of the NBA All-Star game. Love some of the virtuoso plays. Some players thrive in that context, and some are exposed. Carmelo Anthony was exposed. He's not good enough, or unselfish enough, to carry a team, as the New York Knicks will attest.

    FINALLY saw the TV show Homeland. I asked on Twitter which new shows I should be watching, and Homeland was the easy winner. I now know why. Watched the first two. Cool to see pieces of Charlotte -- Freedom Park, Dilworth -- as I did.

     SO Danica Patrick is racing in NASCAR this season? Wasn't sure. Had heard rumors. Think her name might have been mentioned a couple times.

     IF you're an NFL fan, pay attention to Pro Day workouts at various schools. I went to Auburn's last year and it markedly raised my opinion of Cam Newton. After Pro Day, I wrote that the Panthers should take him with the first pick, and I never wavered.

     About 60% of you disagreed, and about 30% of the 60% contended that I was a certified moron. "You always take defense," some of you wrote, as if it was a rule.

     Even though schools skew everything to make their players look good, players still have to run and pass and catch and talk. The Panthers sent two separate groups to Auburn, to meet with Newton and his family.

 

 

 

 

 

Throwback outfits, throwback music, but you can't throw back the game.

   Bobcats had moments. Biyombo with four blocks. But Hansbrough hammered them. 22 points, 9 rebounds. Third quarter it seemed as if disco was on the sound system and Biyombo was in the air.

    Throwback night. Bobcats wore Cougars uniforms, and PA announcer referred to home team as the Cougars. Will be as close to a name change as Bobcats get, Hornets' fans.

    Music was cool. Dancing was cool. Wigs and bellbottoms and thigh-high white vinyl boots were cool, if you like that sort of thing.

     But game was not a throwback. Only the result was old, as in same old story.

      Indiana Pacers 102, Charlotte 88.

 

A Tar Heel underrated? It's true.

   This is an odd to say about a heavily publicized Tar Heel. But North Carolina's Kendall Marshall is one of the least appreciated players in the ACC.

    Has nothing to do with his rare scoring outburst against N.C. State. It has to do with what he does best -- pass.

    We love scoring. We'll say that a guy scored 18 and don't consider that it took him 21 field goal attempts to get those 18 points. We like rebounding, especially if a player yells when he grabs a rebound. We like steals. We really like blocks. We kind of like defense.

    But passing is the least appreciated facet of basketball, which is why Marshall doesn't have to score to be effective. He is outstanding at getting his teammates the ball where they want it and when they want it.

    Marshall's 22 points against the Wolfpack Tuesday, on only eight field goal attempts, was a heck of a bonus. But a bonus is all it was. As long as he hits an occasional jumper, he's fine as a scorer. It's his ability to enable his teammates to score that distinguishes him.

     GREAT to see the Tar Heels and Wolfpack become rivals again. Healthy contempt was always there, but competititive match-ups were not. Tuesday was competitive. Welcome back Pack.

      IS there any doubt that if the Charlotte Bobcats get the No. 1 pick in the draft they'll invest it on Kentucky's 6-10 Anthony Davis?

      There is no doubt. None. 

      THE problem with Virginia Tech's swoon -- the Hokies are 4-9 in the ACC, 15-13 overall -- is that we'll miss one of the rites of spring. I love it when Tech's Seth Greenberg complains about his team's annual NCAA tournament snub. He's indignant and self-righteous and hurt, and hell hath no fury like a coach scorned, even one that plays a schedule as soft as his.

     Maybe he'll do it if the Hokies are snubbed by the NIT.

 

 

 

 

 

Michael Jordan? Who is that? Never heard of him.

    The Charlotte Bobcats fed about 6,000 people Monday at Time Warner Cable Arena. Players and coaches and executives helped distribute the food, as did owner Michael Jordan. Fans shrieked when they saw Michael, and when he smiled they shrieked some more.

     "I think Michael is a bigger draw than the food," said Charlotte rookie Kemba Walker.

      Is there anybody in Charlotte who doesn't know who Michael is?

      Yes, and here she is. After Jordan kids with two kids who are about eight-years-old, he extends his hand to the woman behind them.

       She shakes her head, says she doesn't speak English and keeps walking.

       So the charisma is not universal. So at least one woman is immune.

       Michael never loses his smile, however, and the afternoon never loses its allure.

      ALSO:

       Doesn't sound as if referee Karl Hess did the right thing in kicking former N.C. State stars Chris Corchiani and Tom Gugliotta out of the RBC Center.

       But every time I sit at courtside I can find at least one fan who ought to be kicked out. There are some bitter, angry and nasty fans who seem to derive no joy from their superior seats. They just complain for two halves or four quarters. If they don't go after evil officials or the evil opponent, they go after their own team.

    Maybe in real life these customers have to take a lot from their employer, or spouse, and they seek revenge by screaming at people who rarely scream back.

      Seems like a waste of a perfectly good afternoon or evening, however.

    

 

 

 

Duke's Seth Curry passes brother, dad, in Most Popular Curry rankings

   Seth Curry used to be Stephen Curry's brother. He used to be Dell Curry's son.

    That changed in Durham Thursday night. Stephen is now Seth's brother and Dell is now Seth's dad.

     It was all about Seth, who was sensational in Duke's 78-73 victory against N.C. State. The only way the Blue Devils rally from a 20-point deficit is if one Duke player volunteers to lead them. 

      Curry did. Known primarily for his outside shot, Curry went relentlessly to the basket and the Wolfpack couldn't stop him. He scored 26, often on one-against-the-world forays to the hoop.

     Curry started the comeback and teammates and fans joined him.

      Amazing victory for Duke. Devastating loss for the Wolfpack although, for the first time in what feels like decades, N.C. State is back is back in the game.

     

    

 

 

Lin would be famous even in Charlotte

    I like Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks. He's bombastic but he's candid, and the bombast and candor are good for the NBA. But he does get carried away.

    The Mavericks play the New York Knicks and Jeremy Lin Sunday. Asked about Lin's impact, Cuban told ESPN that Lin was good for the league because he's playing in the country's biggest media market.

     "If it was happening in Charlotte, one one would know," said Cuban.

     If Lin were playing in Charlotte, everybody would know.  We have Internet, Twitter, TV, radio, blogs and even a daily newspaper.

      Lin is the kind of story that we're tempted to make up. We like underdogs, especially when they're humble. One night the guy is sleeping in a teammate's apartment -- he didn't know if he'd last long enough to justify a place of his own. The next he is the most talked about player in the U.S.

     Lin would be a phenom if he were playing in Murphy or Manteo, our Dallas or Cuban's.

 

 

 

 

You'll have to pry the remote from my cold dead fingers

    A contractor was doing work on the house of an 80-year-old in Exeter, England, when a strange cylinder tube was found. The contractor suspected it was a bomb. He called authorities and authorities told the 80-year-old to vacate. He said no. He said he wouldn't go until he watched the bocce ball, or lawn bowling, final.

    I respect the guy. A man has to have priorities. If somebody had found a potential bomb in my house while I watched the Charlotte Bobcats-Minnesota Timberwolves game Wednesday night, I don't know what I would have done.

    OK, I would have left. But reluctantly. The old guy left, too. Turned out the cylinder was not a bomb.

     In the third quarter the Timberwolves began to hit three-pointers, bombs if you will, and took the game over. They sustained their good work throughout the fourth.

      But against Philadelphia and Minnesota Charlotte at least has shown spirit, and maybe even growith. Corey Maggette is back and last night D.J.Augustin joined him.  The first half was entertaining.  

     Even at full strength, which Charlotte will be when Gerald Henderson returns, the Bobcats will be among the worst teams in the NBA. But we knew that going in.

     The idea will be to develop their young talent, add a star in the next draft and perhaps supplement those pieces with a free agent. Last season Minnesota was the worst team in basketball. This season it is 14-16.

 

No sin to be enthralled with Jeremy Lin

   The TV was on and Peyton Manning's face took up most of it. I thought, you can't be on ESPN. You're not Jeremy Lin.

    Lin is the most hyped athlete since Tim Tebow, and it's beautiful. Has little to do with his Taiwanese ancestors, although that makes an interesting sidebar. Has to do with being the ultimate underdog.

    Here's an athlete that colleges ignored. He went to Harvard and became to it what Stephen Curry was to Davidson. Lin became an NBA temp, bouncing to Curry's Golden State Warriors, to Houston, to New York's bench and then, because of injuries to and ineptitude by the players in front of him, to the starting lineup.

    Now he's a star, and he proved it Tuesday with a 3-pointer at the buzzer against Toronto to lift the Knicks to a 3-point victory.

     My favorite part of the story is this: the NBA and college coaches know more about recruiting than they ever have. They have access to more equipment, more information and more video. They develop a prototype -- fall within these parameters and you have a chance to play in the NBA.

     Lin didn't, and not only has he made it, he has shaken up the league.

     There are qualities that even in 2012 experts are unable to measure, and Lin proves it every night. Hope he continues to.

 

Bad with benefits is the Charlotte Bobcats blueprint

   Fans would love to see the Charlotte Bobcats grow up to be a team such as the Los Angeles Clippers. But the Clippers have Chris Paul, who was about to become an elite free agent. The trend in the NBA is for elite free agents to sign with a glamour team or a team in a major market. When was the last time somebody else signed one? The Clippers probably are an unrealistic role model.

    Tonight's opponent is more realistic. Minneapolis is neither glamorous nor major. There's not an elite free agent on the roster. They did add free agent Jose Barea this season. He offers value, but doesn't start.

    Until this season the Wolves were consistenly terrible, which gave them an opportunity to collect high draft picks. Last season they were the NBA's worst team. They won 17 games, half as many as the Bobcats. They were the Bobcats.

     They're still in last place in the Northwest Division at 13-16. But they're up and coming and entertaining and are on the cusp of being good.

     They acquired their best player, Kevin Love, in a draft day exchange with Memphis. Love was taken with the fifth pick in the first round. Point guard Ricky Rubio was selected with the fifth pick. Rookie Derrick Williams was taken with the second pick. Wesley Johnson was taken with the fourth pick. Big man Nikola Pekovic was a second-round steal. Michael Beasley came in a trade. Veteran guard Luke Ridenour is a free agent.

     Being bad has benefits, if you take advantage of them. The Timberwolves have.

     The Bobcats will get another opportunity in the 2012 draft.