5 Fast Break Thoughts re: the NBA

I'm still on an MLB hangover, with most of my remaining energy left to the NFL, but here are a few quick thoughts regarding the Association.

1. I'm not sure if it's only this year, but I had no idea people were so excited about the NBA season starting.  So many random people were downright giddy like kids the night before Christmas.  Aside from my hopes with the Astros getting crushed, I just wasn't in the mood to go all gung-ho with the first tip-off, mainly cuz I don't think playoff seeding matters at all in the West.  Also, it's gotten to the point where I have very little interest in watching a random NBA game that doesn't involve my squad, with two exceptions -- the San Antonio Spurs and the Atlanta Hawks.  Man, those teams play some beautiful basketball.

2. I'm still pinching myself that Kevin McHale got fired.  Not simply the fact that he's now gone, but the fact that he's gone so soon.  Pushing the OKC Thunder to 6 games a few seasons ago had the unfortunate effect of McHale getting much of the credit for it, and I was afraid that the Rockets "surprisingly" making it to the WCF last season would bear the same disgusting fruit.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Rockets made it to 2 games from the NBA Finals IN SPITE of McHale, not because of him.  Some of you may hate Mark Cuban, but he is right more often than not, and him calling Houston "predictable" was nothing out of the ordinary.  We were as predictable as the Texans running a draw play on 3rd and long.  Our offense was entirely dependent on James Harden.  And our defense was entirely dependent on Dwight Howard.  Both had to play at respective MVP and DPOY levels for the team to compete, and that is obviously not a lasting combination in this league.

Also, for anyone saying that Harden is having an "off" year because of distractions like his girlfriend or because he's not practicing hard enough... please.  The dude has added drastically to his repertoire every single offseason, from becoming the best foul-drawer in the game to developing the best Euro-step in the game to harnessing the best step-back in the game, and now he's included the ability to post up effectively.  Just try to imagine carrying a team offensively for a whole year, with few teammates scoring or making any plays without your help.

3. Maybe it's his mere proximity to the most annoying guy in the league in Draymond Green and the most overrated guy in the league in Klay Thompson, but I can't stand Stephen Curry these days.  I loved him way back in Davidson when he was this small, David vs Goliath teen, but now?  Dude is a brat that somehow still gets tagged as a humble hero.  And for everyone hating on Harden getting questionable calls, most of the time, the Beard gets hacked, and he embellishes it.  Meanwhile, anytime Curry gets into the lane and there's even a hint of physical contact, he gets the whistle.  But I guess that's how the golden child face of the NBA is treated.  I'm still happy that he didn't get the players' vote for MVP nor the Finals MVP last season.  Cuz I know it eats at him, too.

4. I couldn't sleep last night, so I stayed up watching the Warriors-Clippers game.  I can't pinpoint exactly why I'd put myself through that duress, as I despise both squads, but it still brings me joy seeing the Clips falter.  Nepotism is the downfall of that organization.  You just can't have Austin Rivers play a significant role on your team and expect greatness.  It's like Doc felt obligated to watch all his son's games, but he also didn't want to spring for NBA League Pass.  The Clippers stay the Clippers.

5. For what it's worth, Blake Griffin is no longer on my hate list.  The starting 5 for that recognition are Chris Paul, Draymond Green, Kevin Garnett, Matt Barnes, and Terrence Jones.

Land of the Free, Home of the Not So Brave

I love America.  I love this country so much that my mind can't compute why anyone would choose to live elsewhere.  I love everything the stars and stripes stand for.

Which is why it is painful to see where we are headed.

I see racism thriving at the University of Missouri.  I see xenophobia highlighting Donald Trump's presidential campaign.  And now I see ignorance rejecting Syrian refugees.

How did we go from one nation under God to shutting out the people who need freedom most?

I realized a long time ago that the general public can be rather ignorant.  It's why the media has so much power to mold minds and warp opinions.  And obviously, under those circumstances, it's only a matter of time before fear takes over in light of the terrorist attacks in Paris.  Nobody wants another 9/11.

But this is the home of the brave, and bravery is not complete absence of fear, it is your character in spite of fear, no matter how unfounded those fears may be.

I thought we could rely on our leaders to be voices of reason, but instead of welcoming those without a place to call home, our governors are increasing the level of hatred and ignorance of their constituents.

I guess life is so much easier when you don't have to care about other people.

O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave.

What are you willing to DIE for?

The title's a bit melodramatic, I know, but it's been on my mind ever since September 25th, when I watched EVEREST.  (It's hard for me to type that word without capitalizing every letter.)

I was visiting my brother in Kansas City, and we decided to go catch EVEREST after a day of overeating.  I think we had both read Into Thin Air before, but it had been at least a decade and a half for me, so the movie was quite the refresher.  Then after the credits rolled, we went home and looked up the different characters on Wikipedia for the rest of the night.

I'll try to avoid any spoilers, but it has always boggled my mind what people are willing to die for.  Obviously, nobody goes to EVEREST with the intent of losing their life, but you know the risk is there.

But to many, myself not included, the accomplishment is worth the risk, not to mention the money.  Maybe I'm just wired differently, but anytime I need that many layers of clothing and an oxygen tank, count me out.

Pondering Retirement With Mr. Money Mustache

I probably think about retirement more than most other 30-year-olds.

I mean, I enjoy my job and the opportunities it affords me, but at the end of the day, I view it as a means to an end, with that end being money which hopefully leads to retirement.

And I don't view retirement as bumming around and doing nothing other than playing golf, but I see it as that point in time where I have the full financial freedom to work where I want to work and when I want to work, in addition, of course, to deciding whether or not I still want to work at all.

I would continue doing a lot of the things I already do outside of the office currently, but without 40+ hours each week allotted to commuting and working, it sure would open up a lot more time and energy in my life.

It's been on the forefront of my mind ever since my friend Simeon first mentioned "Mr. Money Mustache" to me.  I had no idea what/who he was talking about, and then he pointed me to this page and then to this chart:

Then we started discussing budgeting and other matters that are not pertinent to this discussion, but ever since that point, I've been reading through MMM's blog rather religiously for both the entertainment and the financial concepts.

I encourage everyone to check out this website.  I'm under the impression that most people I know fall into one of 2 categories:

1) they are in debt but don't treat it like an emergency

2) they have zero/little debt and are vaguely working towards retirement without really knowing what the end goal looks like or how to get there efficiently

Let's dial it back real quick.  Who the heck is Mr. Money Mustache, and why do I care?  Basically MMM and his wife worked for 9 years and then retired by the age of 30 before they had their first kid.  How?  They saved 65% of their after-tax income every year, and even to this day, their family of three lives off of less than $27K per year.  (According to MMM, you can retire once your collection of investments reaches 25x your annual spending.)

I'll be the first to admit that MMM's tactics are on the extreme side, and saving 65% without it feeling like a tremendous loss in lifestyle is probably impossible for most of us.  However, you'd be surprised at how many "successful" people are actually swimming in debt and/or living paycheck to paycheck.  We should all at least reconsider or rethink some of our saving strategies.

Now some of you may read this and be all like "man, life's not all about money, bro, relax."  But that's precisely the point.  Life isn't all about money, so I don't want to have to work until an arbitrary 65 to finally be "free" from that burden.  

I told my wife a long time ago before we got married that I don't ever want to stress about money because it's something that comes and goes, and oftentimes, the times we have the most are the times we don't really need it.  On the other hand, not worrying about money is not synonymous with YOLO and just spending without abandon.  There has to be some sort of middle ground where you can be a good steward (I really like that word) of the money you earn while still enjoying life AND saving for the future.

Anyway, this is really just a relatively long-winded way of reminding everyone, including myself, to be responsible with your finances.  If you are also interested in the topic of retirement or budgeting or any other related subject, feel free to hit me up.  I love talking about this stuff, and frankly, I don't think people do enough of it.

31 for 31: the 31 Greatest Players in the NBA since 1984

I remember watching the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History ceremony during the 1997 All-Star Game, and in addition to being in awe that they could gather all those legendary players at one time, I was so proud because my Houston Rockets had 3 of them on their current roster: Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, and Charles Barkley.  (We would get another one named Scottie Pippen the next year, but I'm sure the entire city of Houston is still trying to forget that ever actually happened.  Sorry for bringing Quitten back up.)

Anyway, I was watching this video the other day with some players talking about the list and who would be the next 10 added.  If you love the NBA, you'd probably enjoy the video, but it's definitely one of those "watch at work" videos and not something you need to be checking out at home when you got better things to do.


Anyway, I was talking it over with my friend Timmy, and there's so many names on here that we can't fully appreciate because they played so long ago, and since we were both born in 1984, we decided to come up with a revised list of "31 for 31," or the 31 greatest players since 1984.

Our criteria was that the players' credentials had to be worthy based on their contribution starting from 1984.  So even if their career started prior to that year, the preceding years essentially didn't count.  This list is in no particular order.

(* denotes an original top 50 member)

1	Kareem Abdul-Jabbar*
2	Charles Barkley*
3	Larry Bird*
4	Clyde Drexler*
5	Patrick Ewing*
6	Magic Johnson*
7	Michael Jordan*
8	Karl Malone*
9	Kevin McHale*
10	Hakeem Olajuwon*
11	Shaquille O'Neal*
12	Scottie Pippen*
13	David Robinson*
14	John Stockton*
15	Isaiah Thomas*
16	Lebron James
17	Tim Duncan
18	Kobe Bryant
19	Allen Iverson
20	Kevin Garnett
21	Dirk Nowitzki
22	Dwyane Wade
23	Jason Kidd
24	Steve Nash
25	Dominique Wilkins
26	Gary Payton
27	Kevin Durant
28	Dikembe Mutombo
29	Chris Paul
30	Dwight Howard
31	Paul Pierce

The tiebreaker for #31 was broken by our friend Albert, who conned Timmy into allowing Paul Pierce onto the list.  TMAC, if you're reading this, I'm sorry.

The Best NBA Players by Number

So this infographic came out...

...and since I'm not watching the NBA Finals and am currently stuck at work when I should be playing golf, I'll just make this the last NBA-related thing my brain processes for the 2014-15 season.

Here are my thoughts.  Read through them if you're bored.

00 – ROBERT PARISH

All I know is I was very disappointed whenever I pulled a Robert Parish card in a basketball card pack.

0 – RUSSELL WESTBROOK

Should've been Gilbert Arenas.  Westbrook had a magical regular season, but he will probably never come close to the number of buzzer-beating game-winners Agent Zero had in his 2006-07 season alone.  Also props for the best player-written blog of all time.

1 – OSCAR ROBERTSON

This should have been TMAC.  I know it, you know it, even Oscar knows it.  Especially since Oscar shows up again on this list at #14.  Ugh.

2 – MOSES MALONE

Fo', fo', fo'.

3 – ALLEN IVERSON

No matter what the question was, Allen Iverson was the Answer.  I'm not into jerseys anymore, but if I was, I'd be sniping for a 76ers throwback.

4 – DOLPH SCHAYES

This dude was apparently inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1972, but it should have been Charles Barkley on the Rockets, even though I'll never forgive Houston GM Carroll Dawson for trading away Sam Cassell and Robert Horry for the Round Mound of Rebound.

5 – KEVIN GARNETT

Transformed his position.  I've had many a sports argument involving the Big Ticket.

6 – BILL RUSSELL

Sorry not sorry, LeBron.

7 – PETE MARAVICH

I think I would have really enjoyed watching Pistol Pete play basketball.

8 – KOBE BRYANT

Fine, but if Latrell Sprewell didn't have so many mouths to feed...

9 – BOB PETTIT

First thought that came to my mind was Bostjan Nachbar.

10 – WALT FRAZIER

I'm less than thrilled that this isn't Sam Cassell's name.

11 – KARL MALONE

So happy that both Yao Ming and Isiah Thomas got overlooked for Laker Karl Malone.

12 – JOHN STOCKTON

NBA all-time assists AND steals leader is no joke.

13 – WILT CHAMBERLAIN

100.

14 – OSCAR ROBERTSON

#1 and #14?  So greedy.  And so little respect for the greatness that is Tracy McGrady.

15 – HAL GREER

Who?

16 – BOB LANIER

Okay.

17 – JOHN HAVLICEK

Fair enough.

18 – DAVE COWENS

2 Celtics in a row?

19 – WILLIS REED

You can't teach heart.

20 – GARY PAYTON

I loved watching the Glove play defense.

21 – TIM DUNCAN

Greatest power forward of all time.

22 – ELGIN BAYLOR

Sorry, Clyde.

23 – MICHAEL JORDAN

Duh.

24 – RICK BARRY

Happy Kobe is only on here once.

25 – VINCE CARTER

They clearly misspelled ROBERT HORRY.  Shot clock running down with the game on the line, do you want Vinsanity or Big Shot Bob?  'Nuff said.

26 – BUDDY JEANNETTE

Buddy?

27 – JACK TWYMAN

Would you know if they made the name up?

28 – SAM CASSELL

MY MAN!

29 – MARCUS CAMBY

So underrated.

30 – BERNARD KING

Respect.

31 – REGGIE MILLER

Every time I hear Reggie commentate a game, I regret ever cheering for him in any capacity.

32 – MAGIC JOHNSON

I wish I got to see Magic in his prime.

33 – KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR

I'm just glad this isn't Scottie Pippen.

34 – HAKEEM OLAJUWON

THE DREAM!

35 – KEVIN DURANT

Hook 'em!

36 – SHAQUILLE O'NEAL

I guaransheed that Rasheed Wallace is pissed that he can't even beat out Celtic Shaq.

37 – METTA WORLD PEACE

Every team needs a little crazy.

38 – KWAME BROWN

lol.

39 – GREG OSTERTAG

lol x2.

40 – SHAWN KEMP

Cocaine is a helluva drug.

41 – DIRK NOWITZKI

I've always admired Dirk ever since he was on Punk'd.  Such a nice dude.

42 – NATE THURMOND

Nate the Great.

43 – JACK SIKMA

Shouts out to former Rockets assistant coach.

44 – JERRY WEST

The logo.

45 – MICHAEL JORDAN

I wanted this #45 jersey so bad back in the day.

46 – BO OUTLAW

Bo knows.

47 – JERRY LUCAS

Jerry Lucas, not to be confused with John Lucas.

48 – NAZR MOHAMMED

This guy has played in the NBA for 22 years.  Years.

49 – SHANDON ANDERSON

Former Houston Rocket!

50 – DAVID ROBINSON

D-Rob is lucky he's still on this list after what Hakeem did to him.

51 – METTA WORLD PEACE

Obviously, there was a method behind the madness.  Second MWP sighting already.

52 – JAMAAL WILKES

Another Laker.

53 – ARTIS GILMORE

Happy Gilmore.

54 – HORACE GRANT

Remember the goggles they had on the Mickey Mouse tower in Orlando?

55 – DIKEMBE MUTOMBO

WHO WANTS TO SEX MUTOMBO?

56 – FRANCISCO ELSON

Great job picking your number, Francisco.

57 – HILTON ARMSTRONG

Is this guy still in the league?

58 – NO PLAYERS

Quick, someone take this number!

59 – NO PLAYERS

I can understand this.  59 is a pretty crappy number.

60 – WALT KIRK

The only other guy who ever wore #60 only played in 9 NBA games in his career... so...

61 – DAVE PIONTEK

I'm guessing this number was a lot more popular back in the 60's.

62 – SCOT POLLARD

Samurai Scot!

63 – NO PLAYERS

Meh.

64 – NO PLAYERS

This is a decent number.

65 – GEORGE KATKOVICZ

Only guy to ever wear this number.  Someone wanna take it from him?

66 – SCOT POLLARD

I love that Pollard is on here twice.

67 – MOE BECKER

Man, these numbers are really up for grabs.

68 – MILT SCHON

Seriously, it wouldn't take much to outduel Milt for this one.

69 – NO PLAYERS

Am I the only one surprised that there has never been a #69 in the NBA?

70 – DENNIS RODMAN

Dallas Worm.

71 – WILLIE NAULLS

This has taken over 10 minutes of my time.  I really thought I'd be finished by now.

72 – JASON KAPONO

The definition of a one trick pony.

73 – DENNIS RODMAN

Los Angeles Worm.

74 – NO PLAYERS

I'm getting sleepy.

75 – NO PLAYERS

Only 24 more to go.

76 – SHAWN BRADLEY

Retired by Tracy McGrady.

77 – VLADIMIR RADMANOVIC

Well done, Vlad.

78 – NO PLAYERS

I wish I didn't set a precedent of commenting on every number.

79 – NO PLAYERS

This should be blank.

80 – NO PLAYERS

But I can't just leave one blank.

81 – NO PLAYERS

Therefore I have to write this.

82 – NO PLAYERS

So many diminishing returns right now.

83 – CRAIG SMITH

I didn't know Craig Smith ever played for the Portland Trailblazers.  You learn something new every day.

84 – CHRIS WEBBER

Detroit C-Webb.  Yikes.

85 – BARON DAVIS

Baron played like he was 85 for the Knicks.

86 – CHRIS JOHNSON

Not the NFL player.  I'm assuming.

87 – NO PLAYERS

Some dude born in 1987 should rock this jersey.

88 – ANTOINE WALKER

Shimmy.

89 – CLYDE LOVELLETTE

Not Clyde the Glide.

90 – DREW GOODEN

Ridiculous that he's still in the league.

91 – DENNIS RODMAN

Chicago Worm.

92 – DESHAWN STEVENSON

Remember when this guy posted a picture of his black card online?

93 – METTA WORLD PEACE

I still can't believe the Rockets got Ron Artest for Donte Greene.  Thank you, not-so-meaningless NBA summer league.

94 – EVAN FOURNIER

I would totally take this number if I were in the league.

95 – NO PLAYERS

Or this one.  Clutch City!

96 – METTA WORLD PEACE

I loved Ron Artest on the Rockets.

97 – NO PLAYERS

Almost done here.

98 – JASON COLLINS

I wasted 20 minutes of a busy work week doing this.

99 – GEORGE MIKAN

The end.

A Racist Moment

I live in Chicago at the moment and I just experienced the most racist moment of my life. I grew up in the Houston area, which is a pretty diverse and integrated city. Chicago, although diverse, isn't as integrated. Maybe this fact contributed to this anecdote, or maybe I just happened to choose the wrong bus to hop on to today.

I'm writing this not to incite anything, or to have a debate about the current state of racism in our country, etc. -- I just want to share it because it was pretty appalling to witness: I get onto Bus 36 heading North. It's Memorial Day, so there's more people on the bus than usual at 3 p.m. on a Monday. The bus is about 80% full and 2 seats open up to my right just as I board. A middle-aged couple is sitting in front of me. One of the woman's leg is propped up onto the chair seat in front of her. The man has his arm around her. They're dressed like tourists, but they seem like they're from the area. I don't smell booze on either of them, but I really hope alcohol is involved.

"I really don't like the warmth," the man says. "I like feeling frostbite on my toes. My fingers. I don't mind the winter at all. I have had frostbite on my toes. My fingers. I'm okay without the warmth. Did you know? Frostbite on my toes and fingers." This statement isn't too random for a Chicago bus ride. I don't make much of it. Maybe he's a bit crazy? He's directing all these comments at his wife.

She begins murmuring something, and then I hear it -- "...THESE NIGGERS." Some curse words follow. The man tries to hush her. He tries talking about something else. Ah, now I know why he was talking about frostbite. He glances back at me just enough to gauge whether I'm black or not. I look around and most everyone is looking down at their phones or out the window. I realize that this woman has been causing a scene even before I got on the bus. The woman sounds drunk. She sits up a bit in her chair and tries to look behind her towards the back of the bus. She's searching for someone it seems. The man turns her back around and hugs her to contain her.

"Those fuckers. Shit. NIGGERS." An elderly woman next to me says in response, just loud enough, "There are children on this bus." The woman in front of me turns around to glare at the comment. The bus comes to stop and the doors open. A woman outside the bus pleads with the driver, "Sir -- I just need a ride. I've been trying to get change but I can't get any." The driver responds, "No sorry I can't do that." The woman in front of me exclaims "SHE'S A WHITE WOMAN. JUST LET HER ON. SHE'S WHITE." Everyone is shaking their heads now. Two stops later a black man gets onto the bus. Uh-oh. The man immediately holds his wife tight and begins to kiss her on the cheek to divert her attention. It doesn't work. "Where do they all come from? They're everywhere. They belong in South Chicago with the scum." The black man just walks past her.

The husband then says, "I live on the streets. I don't mind it. I live in the alleyways. Like a superhero. I'm like a superhero." Maybe this is his attempt to appease the situation. I don't think anyone knows what his comments mean. An elderly man with a cane gets onto the bus and sits in front of the couple. "Let me shake your hand grandpa" the woman says. The husband and his wife both reach out to shake his hand. They both fumble around like they're drunk. "You shake hands like this --" the husband says as he grabs the old man's wrist instead of his palm. This is all really weird. He then says, "You shake hands like a Jewish man. You know? Like a Jewish man." The old man just nods and minds his own business.

Then the woman in front raises her hands. She's flicking off people in the back of the bus. I don't turn around to see who's sitting back there. The man pushes her hand down. She raises her middle finger again and again. There's some cursing coming from her. We come to a stop and a black woman and her 3 kids walk to the front of the bus, ready to get off. So that's who all this hatred has been geared towards. "THERE'S RETRIBUTION FOR EVERYONE WHO ELECTED BARACK OBAMA" she yells at the family. The husband tags on, "All I know is that none of them are mine. That's all I can say. They're not mine." He means the kids. One of the daughters turns around slightly to take a look at the couple. She seems a bit confused. I think she knows the comments are directed at her family. The mom looks straight ahead, waiting for the bus doors to open.