Bob Wolfley | SportsDay
NBA analysts see Bucks as wounded without Bogut
Like many National Basketball Association observers, TNT analysts Charles Barkley and Doug Collins were looking forward to seeing the Milwaukee Bucks at full strength competing in the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
But when center Andrew Bogut suffered his horrific fall April 3 against Phoenix at the Bradley Center, which ended his season, a good deal of anticipation about the Bucks' playoff chances fell with him.
"I feel so sorry for Bogut," Barkley said Tuesday during a conference call with reporters. "Bogut was having a terrific season before he got hurt.
"He was putting on a show the night that he was hurt. I sat there watching him play against the Suns, and he was fantastic. It was really an unfortunate accident the way he got hurt. But man, he has been playing fantastic this season. You just hate to see that."
Barkley does not think Milwaukee can mount a playoff threat without its center.
"They cannot overcome the injury to Bogut," Barkley said. "They are going to play hard. But I don't think you can lose your best player. I mean, that guy was ballin' this year."
The emergence of Bogut this season helped Barkley make up his mind about his choice for NBA coach of the year.
"I had Scott Brooks (Oklahoma City) as coach of the year all year," Barkley said. "Then I kind of leaned toward Alvin Gentry (Phoenix). Then I finally settled on Scott Skiles."
Collins was asked what Skiles could possibly say to his troops to rally them after such a crushing loss.
"It's tough. It's tough," Collins said. "Just listening to the quotes from the guys when Andrew went down, how important this guy was to the team. (We) talked about the importance of the ability to throw the ball into the post. He was doing such a better job of reading double teams. His shot-blocking (was better), his rebounding, his defending the paint.
"But just knowing Scott Skiles . . . he's a no-nonsense guy. There are not going to be any excuses. He is not going to go in there and say, 'Woe is me. We have been dealt a bad hand. What are we going to do?' They are going to continue to come out and compete, play good defense. Their margin for error now is so slim."
Collins said he was anticipating a Bucks unit at full strength in the postseason.
"I thought of all the (seeded) teams - five, six, seven, eight - in the East, at five Milwaukee healthy was one team I would not want to play," Collins said.
Going into play Tuesday night, the Bucks were holding down the sixth-seeded slot in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Welcome to circuit city
In the 2009 season, Brewers pitchers gave up 207 home runs, the most of any staff in the National League and second only to Kansas City (218) in the major leagues.
Through Monday's games, Brewers pitchers had given up 13 homers, the most of any team in baseball this season. The Los Angeles Angels were next with 12, followed by San Diego and Kansas City with 11 each.
King Albert's reign
If you're a team in the NL Central other than St. Louis, there have to be days when you wish Albert Pujols played in some other division, in some other league, on some other planet.
He continues to produce in a manner that leads you to shake your head in wonder. Again.
Through seven games, Pujols had five homers and 14 runs batted in and was averaging .407.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the only two players in the post-World War II era to hit at least five homers, drive in 14 and bat over .400 in their first seven games were Willie Mays of the Giants in 1964 and Dale Murphy of the Braves in 1985.
Considering the egos
Gary Horton of Scouts Inc. provides an analysis of the front offices for ESPN Insider of all 32 teams in the National Football League as they prepare for another draft.
"This is a very steady front office with a lot of titles and fairly big egos, but it seems to work and the individual roles seem to be clearly defined," Horton writes about the Green Bay Packers. "It starts with Ted Thompson . . . who has all the power, but he lacks a big ego.
"He is a football guy who still watches a lot of tape, and that makes his opinion more informed. The coaches, including head coach MikeMcCarthy, have input, but they are not decision-makers. That leaves a duo of veteran front-office guys with considerable input into personnel decisions: John Dorsey (director of college scouting) and Reggie McKenzie (director football operations). The scouts are veterans with keen scouting eyes, and Thompson listens to them. This is a surprisingly young roster, and the Packers have a front office that is not afraid to make draft moves."
In Horton's view, the Packers' needs are at tackle, cornerback and running back.
Call SportsDay at (414) 223-5531 or send e-mail to bwolfley@journalsentinel.com
8 Comments
UnblindedWISportsFan - Apr 14, 2010 12:57 AM
Ozpackerfan - Apr 14, 2010 4:22 AM
Meanwhile, the rest of us just continue enjoying a rising young team. Nice work, Ted.
PHOF - Apr 14, 2010 6:16 AM
Scottage Cheese - Apr 14, 2010 8:12 AM
BaseballJunkie - Apr 14, 2010 8:36 AM
Once again proving the point... we need to invent a sarcasm font!
PackFan1968 - Apr 14, 2010 10:07 AM
Waterdog - Apr 14, 2010 5:51 PM
Carry on.
MKEmike - Apr 14, 2010 6:37 PM