Joe: No doubt that LeBron is one of the most entertaining players in the NBA. If LeBron retired today his career would have to be considered a disappointment even though he is a 2 time MVP, right?
Mike: Considering his unearned ego, the pussy ass move of leaving a city that would do anything for him to go play with 2 other superstars, and his near refusal to work on his game in the offseason, I would say that his career is about as meaningful as Allen Iverson's.
Joe: Good comparison, but what is funny about that is while it is disappointing for LeBron, I would never say that AI's career was disappointing. You would have to say that his career was much better than expected, right?
Mike: Exactly. But AI will be a hall of famer, no doubt. LeBron will be too, but the difference is that AI cared too much to the point of nearly crippling himself, and LeBron just cares too little. Give LeBron AI's mentality and drive and I have no doubt in my mind that he would be the greatest of all time.
Joe: I wouldn't say that LeBron doesn't care enough. He could care more, or sometimes he cares about the wrong thing, but its not like he doesn't care at all. Iverson had that killer instinct like Jordan and Kobe, and we haven't seen that from LeBron and it looks like we never will.
Mike: LeBron only cares about the things that do not matter. Money, contracts, big markets. Like Playboy X in Grand Theft Auto IV. He doesn't give a rats ass until there's a media backlash. AI is basically Dwayne. A hard worker who got a bad rap for a lot of stupid crap he did in the past.
PS: I think Derrick Rose gets to be Niko.
Two brothers, Joe (25) and Mike (18). Not many people love the Bulls like we love the Bulls, might as well write about them. Enjoy
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Friday, January 20, 2012
Mike is bored as hell
My game has been canceled tonight, and the Bulls game will not be televised in my area, which I find odd. I live in the Chicago area. Either way, I have decided to write an article that has absolutely nothing to do with basketball tonight, because honestly, I am getting pretty sick of everything I do involving basketball. So I will focus on a new medium tonight: video games. My top 10 favorite video games of all time, in fact. So, in an attempt to enjoy the pre-SOPA/PIPA internet, I will review and discuss several games that I consider to be among the best of all time. (My opinion may piss you off, and I have not played a lot of games that are considered great. So this is really a list of "Greatest games of all time that I have actually played.")
10. Pokemon (Series)
An 18 year old kid (man in some places, although I can admit I am not very mature) should not be writing about Pokemon. But as someone who grew up with the game, how can I not include this game on my list? I'm not exactly a fan of RPG's, in fact, I have spent a large amount of my life hating on them. I mean, Final Fantasy and many other games that are loved by millions on the internet are, in my opinion, are some of the most overrated and boring games I have ever attempted to play. So what makes Pokemon different? Maybe I was young when I started playing. But maybe, just maybe, there was finally an RPG made that got me hooked. My favorite game of the series would have to be the 2nd generation, Gold/Silver/Crystal. I was able to get my hands on a copy of Crystal the day it came out, and every once in awhile, when I have to spend a large amount of time on the toilet, I put it in the ol' Gameboy Color and pass the time away.
What made Crystal so great was the very large map, the numerous choices in Pokemon that a person had, and the (at the time) gripping storyline. It was marketed towards 8 year olds. And I was an 8 year old. Mission accomplished, Nintendo. Also, to be completely honest, Heracross is still the most badass-yet-weird-looking game character ever.
9. Guitar Hero/Rock Band (Series)
Yeah, as you can already tell from my first two games, I am a nerd. And of course, you have 2 questions. Yes, I can play on expert, easily. And no, I have never learned how to play a real guitar. But when I was younger, around junior high age, I was invited to a kid's birthday party. That's where I first played Guitar Hero 2, and after that, I begged my parents for it for Christmas. Suffice to say, this was a great Christmas present. I have gotten many uses out of the game, and it has also introduced me to 2 of the worst-yet-amazing songs I have ever heard.
8. Call of Duty: Black Ops/Modern Warfare
Same game, essentially. I normally hate Call of Duty, but 4 (Modern Warfare) was great, and Black Ops was 4 with zombies. Sounds like a winning formula to me.
7. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Nostalgia is blinding me. I first played this game when I was 4 and too young to realize what was going on. I went back and beat it over the summer and realized a lot of the racist and sexual undertones in this game. Go ahead and play it, you will wonder what the hell you are doing. At one point, one of the bad guys refers to "only wanting the Princess's cake," followed by *stunned silence* and him saying "Wait, that came out wrong." It did have one of the greatest games songs ever.
I get a lot of strange looks walking around school while whistling this.
6. WWF No Mercy
I was a wrestling fan for awhile. This was probably the only wrestling game that I liked. Sadly, I didn't get much time to play it, but I can tell from my short time with it that it is head and shoulders above any other game on this list.
More on the way later, this is a 2 part series.
10. Pokemon (Series)
An 18 year old kid (man in some places, although I can admit I am not very mature) should not be writing about Pokemon. But as someone who grew up with the game, how can I not include this game on my list? I'm not exactly a fan of RPG's, in fact, I have spent a large amount of my life hating on them. I mean, Final Fantasy and many other games that are loved by millions on the internet are, in my opinion, are some of the most overrated and boring games I have ever attempted to play. So what makes Pokemon different? Maybe I was young when I started playing. But maybe, just maybe, there was finally an RPG made that got me hooked. My favorite game of the series would have to be the 2nd generation, Gold/Silver/Crystal. I was able to get my hands on a copy of Crystal the day it came out, and every once in awhile, when I have to spend a large amount of time on the toilet, I put it in the ol' Gameboy Color and pass the time away.
What made Crystal so great was the very large map, the numerous choices in Pokemon that a person had, and the (at the time) gripping storyline. It was marketed towards 8 year olds. And I was an 8 year old. Mission accomplished, Nintendo. Also, to be completely honest, Heracross is still the most badass-yet-weird-looking game character ever.
9. Guitar Hero/Rock Band (Series)
Yeah, as you can already tell from my first two games, I am a nerd. And of course, you have 2 questions. Yes, I can play on expert, easily. And no, I have never learned how to play a real guitar. But when I was younger, around junior high age, I was invited to a kid's birthday party. That's where I first played Guitar Hero 2, and after that, I begged my parents for it for Christmas. Suffice to say, this was a great Christmas present. I have gotten many uses out of the game, and it has also introduced me to 2 of the worst-yet-amazing songs I have ever heard.
8. Call of Duty: Black Ops/Modern Warfare
Same game, essentially. I normally hate Call of Duty, but 4 (Modern Warfare) was great, and Black Ops was 4 with zombies. Sounds like a winning formula to me.
7. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Nostalgia is blinding me. I first played this game when I was 4 and too young to realize what was going on. I went back and beat it over the summer and realized a lot of the racist and sexual undertones in this game. Go ahead and play it, you will wonder what the hell you are doing. At one point, one of the bad guys refers to "only wanting the Princess's cake," followed by *stunned silence* and him saying "Wait, that came out wrong." It did have one of the greatest games songs ever.
I get a lot of strange looks walking around school while whistling this.
6. WWF No Mercy
I was a wrestling fan for awhile. This was probably the only wrestling game that I liked. Sadly, I didn't get much time to play it, but I can tell from my short time with it that it is head and shoulders above any other game on this list.
More on the way later, this is a 2 part series.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
All I Can Say is WOW! -Mike
Derrick Rose has pulled yet another win out of his ass. I have never in my lifetime see a player who does so much for his team. I know a lot of people were upset at Stacey King's "most dominant player in the game" comment, but honestly, try and make an argument for anyone else so far this season. You will not be able to. The fact of the matter is, when things have mattered the most to his team, Derrick Rose has come through consistently, and although it is early in the season, I would love to believe that he can do this on a regular basis. The emergence of Luol Deng as his second option and Carlos Boozer getting resurrected from the dead sure helps a lot, but Rose deserves a lot of credit. I am going out on a limb right now and just outright saying it: Derrick Rose is the best point guard in the league right now.
There's that dirty word: point guard. Ever since he came into the league, purists have been arguing on what position he really plays. He was a scorer, a prolific scorer even, but he never seemed to be able to set his teammates up well enough. Until now. I have never seen a player so intent on creating shots and setting up his teammates in late game situations. Last year, the Bulls late game offense consisted of "get out of Derrick's way." Now, it consists of much more than that. Late in the game tonight, I watched an inbound pass go right by Rose and into the hands of Joakim Noah, who then made a beautiful pass to a cutting Luol Deng. I can only imagine what I would have had to say about that last year. But after watching the Bulls this year, I think the Bulls can trust their supporting cast more now. Derrick seems to have a way of keeping everyone motivated and working hard. Maybe Thibs deserves more credit for this, but it is hard to say that Rose has not been a leader on the court this year, because he sure looks like one.
This is where I get really out of my mind. Watching Derrick Rose this season has reminded me of two players, a hall of famer and a future hall of famer, barring any scandal. (This is very possible with this man.) The two legends I see him fitting the description of? None other than Isaiah Thomas and Allen Iverson.
Damn. Watch that passing ability. Watch him create shots. Watch him support his team. Watch everything he does. If the league isn't so intent on keeping its fans and players safe, the Bulls basically are the Bad Boy Pistons reincarnated. I mean, everyone already hates Joakim as much as they hated Lambeer, why not embrace it? Explain to me how the Bulls aren't like that Pistons team. They play hard-nosed defense, and a few players (Joakim and Boozer) are great at getting underneath other guy's skins when the game matters. Rose just needs to sit back and be himself, and let the rest of the team do what they need to do.
Wait... look at this though. 30 points in games. Consistently. While not exactly being the biggest player, and often being guarded by guys who are much bigger. Who am I describing? 11 years ago, there wasn't a basketball fan that wouldn't give you the answer "Allen Iverson" to those questions. Now? There isn't a fan who would argue that that is anyone other than Derrick Rose. Rose may not average 30 a game like AI did, but he doesn't have to. He's not putting up with Eric Snow as his 3rd best player. Unlike AI's 76er's, Rose has a team around him, and a team that seems to be more of a family than a team. Look at the way all these men defended Boozer constantly last year. They knew something the fans didn't. And thank GOD they didn't listen to fans like me and get rid of Boozer, because he looks really damn good this year.
This Bulls team has me so excited, and I just can't hide it. I cannot wait for the rest of the season. Goodbye, any sleep I'll get tonight.
There's that dirty word: point guard. Ever since he came into the league, purists have been arguing on what position he really plays. He was a scorer, a prolific scorer even, but he never seemed to be able to set his teammates up well enough. Until now. I have never seen a player so intent on creating shots and setting up his teammates in late game situations. Last year, the Bulls late game offense consisted of "get out of Derrick's way." Now, it consists of much more than that. Late in the game tonight, I watched an inbound pass go right by Rose and into the hands of Joakim Noah, who then made a beautiful pass to a cutting Luol Deng. I can only imagine what I would have had to say about that last year. But after watching the Bulls this year, I think the Bulls can trust their supporting cast more now. Derrick seems to have a way of keeping everyone motivated and working hard. Maybe Thibs deserves more credit for this, but it is hard to say that Rose has not been a leader on the court this year, because he sure looks like one.
This is where I get really out of my mind. Watching Derrick Rose this season has reminded me of two players, a hall of famer and a future hall of famer, barring any scandal. (This is very possible with this man.) The two legends I see him fitting the description of? None other than Isaiah Thomas and Allen Iverson.
Damn. Watch that passing ability. Watch him create shots. Watch him support his team. Watch everything he does. If the league isn't so intent on keeping its fans and players safe, the Bulls basically are the Bad Boy Pistons reincarnated. I mean, everyone already hates Joakim as much as they hated Lambeer, why not embrace it? Explain to me how the Bulls aren't like that Pistons team. They play hard-nosed defense, and a few players (Joakim and Boozer) are great at getting underneath other guy's skins when the game matters. Rose just needs to sit back and be himself, and let the rest of the team do what they need to do.
Wait... look at this though. 30 points in games. Consistently. While not exactly being the biggest player, and often being guarded by guys who are much bigger. Who am I describing? 11 years ago, there wasn't a basketball fan that wouldn't give you the answer "Allen Iverson" to those questions. Now? There isn't a fan who would argue that that is anyone other than Derrick Rose. Rose may not average 30 a game like AI did, but he doesn't have to. He's not putting up with Eric Snow as his 3rd best player. Unlike AI's 76er's, Rose has a team around him, and a team that seems to be more of a family than a team. Look at the way all these men defended Boozer constantly last year. They knew something the fans didn't. And thank GOD they didn't listen to fans like me and get rid of Boozer, because he looks really damn good this year.
This Bulls team has me so excited, and I just can't hide it. I cannot wait for the rest of the season. Goodbye, any sleep I'll get tonight.
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