Author Archives: Kent Sterling

Lighthouse Academy basketball coach Nick Moore fired for throwing a chair and ball

High school basketball coaches need to be educators in word and deed.  When they fail to behave in a way that demonstrates an understanding of that critical role in the development of young men and women, they should be immediately replaced.

That happened yesterday at Lighthouse Academy in Gary, where basketball coach Nick Moore was fired for throwing a chair and a basketball onto the court as he protested what he felt was ongoing unjust officiating.

That ugliness was preceded by Lighthouse’s athletic director Lawrence Sandlin being ejected for an angry outburst directed at officials.  There is no word on how the school plans to handle his loss of self-control.

Students at Lighthouse and every school deserve leaders who understand how to deal with adversity without resorting to angry tirades and furniture rearrangement.  These men fell far short from serving as shining examples for their students, and so Moore no longer enjoys that position of leadership.

Winning is the immediate goal for players and coaches, but the lifelong developmental good basketball provides young men and women is far more important than a loss, even if it is caused by less than righteous officiating – maybe especially so.

Basketball is all about balance – balance between individual talent and collective execution, athleticism and intellect, and intensity and calm.  High school students learn that through the relentless instruction and consistent examples set by coaches, and those lessons serve students well throughout their adulthood.

There is momentary beauty in a jump shot slicing through the net, a perfectly executed pick and roll, a sturdy blockout, and a thunderous or graceful dunk.  But the glory of basketball is in the development of those who learned how to live a balanced life through wisdom inspired during their years playing the game.

Coach Moore lost himself in an angry moment, responded poorly, and is now bearing the pain of a reasonable consequence.  That’s a powerful lesson for his team too.

With Matthew Stafford dealt to Rams, what can Colts fans expect in QB search from Chris Ballard?

With Matthew Stafford gone to the Rams, it’s up to Chris Ballard to find the right guy for the right price.

This morning, we moved closer to knowing who the starting quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts will be because we found out who it won’t be.

Matthew Stafford will be dealt by the Lions to the Rams for the putrid contract of Jared Goff, first round picks in 2022 and 2023, and a third rounder this year.  Oddly, it seems neither the Lions nor the Rams got the better of the deal.  The Rams overpaid with draft equity and the Lions won’t reap any benefit for a year or more.

This leaves the Colts without their best option as starting quarterback.  Stafford always seemed to be the guy who would be an upgrade, but not elite enough to cause Ballard to strip mine future draft capital to bring him to Indy.  One thing we know about Ballard is that he is a smart shopper.

Ballard is the equivalent of the guy who invests weeks scouring online car dealers across the country for the best price on the specific vehicle he covets.  Others trust the local salesperson they met at the clubhouse after a round of golf and pick a pretty color.

It’s not that Ballard won’t pay retail for the right player.  We saw that he will do exactly that for DeForest Buckner.  The Colts needed a three-technique defensive tackle, and Buckner is the NFL’s best not named Aaron Donald.  Ballard didn’t hesitate to ship the #13 pick in last year’s draft to the 49ers for Buckner.

Without Stafford as a target, Ballard has a myriad of less attractive options and is competing with a wide berth of buyers looking for exactly the same thing.  You don’t need to be Milton Friedman to understand  how the laws of supply and demand will work against the Colts as they try to either move up in the draft to get a young guy they can build around, or find a stop-gap veteran like Matt Ryan.

During his four years with the Colts, Ballard has shown himself to be a coy operator among NFL GMs, but this will be his biggest test.  At some point, playing it safe is not going to work.  Trading down to acquire more picks, a hallmark of Ballard’s early strategy, is a great tactic to build the bottom and middle of the roster.  Getting the right leader to steer the offense without a season of cratering is very expensive.

Make the wrong move (like Washington’s trade with the Rams to move up four spots for the opportunity to draft Robert Griffin III at #2) – you’re fired.  Make no move – you’re fired.  Re-sign Jacoby Brissett as the starter, and fans will roll their eyes like movie buffs did when a sequel to Weekend at Bernie’s was announced.  Anoint Jacob Eason as your starter, owner Jim Irsay will have Ballard committed.

The path was clear for Ballard last year.  Kick the can down the road for a year or two with Philip Rivers and hope the path forward shows itself.  Rivers was expensive in terms of cash, but required no return for the Chargers.  Rivers retirement accelerates the need for a longterm solution, or requires another delay tactic.  Which path Ballard chooses will determine his legacy with the Colts.

Will he be the next Bill Polian or the next Ryan Grigson?  All we know for sure is that Ballard and his staff will game play a variety of options and will try to maximize their chance to land the right quarterback.  Do the right thing, and the Colts might contend for a Super Bowl.  Make the wrong play, the penance for Andrew Luck’s retirement and the trust the Colts placed in him while last will run at least one more year.

Mighty Sterling Art Players presents – “It’s a Ricketts Family Christmas!”

Christmas has come and gone, but as the Cubs continue to lance payroll at every turn, it’s time for a peek at Chicago’s least favorite family – the Ricketts.

(This teleplay was written in the voice of the Ricketts Family but is not meant to represent an actual conversation they may or may not have had at any dining room table during any holiday meal.  Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.)

Cast

  • Joe Ricketts – patriarch, founder of Ameritrade and High Plains Bison
  • Tom Ricketts – chairman of the Chicago Cubs
  • Pete Ricketts – governor of Nebraska
  • Todd Ricketts – finance chairman of the Republican National Party
  • Laura Ricketts – JD from Michigan
  • Crane Kenney – server
  • Various wives

Tom: Only room for six at the table.  The leafs are being sanded and re-finished, so sorry wives, it’s to the card table in the living room for you again this year!

Joe: (Laughs) Every Christmas you get the extension dealies for the table refinished!

Tom: They’re called leafs, Dad.  Pete, how was the flight from Lincoln?

Pete:  I want the real plane next time, Tom.  Let’s leave it at that.  By the way, when are you finally going to move to Lake Forest from this Wilmette outhouse?  That’s where the real money is.  W. Clement Stone would be caught dead in this joint.

Laura: Did you know W. Clement Stone died in 2002.  Made it to 100 years old.  Isn’t that something?

Tom: Pete, why don’t you focus on running the state high school kids had the toughest time pointing to on a map.  And those kids were from Nebraska!

(All but Pete laugh.)

Joe: Let’s get down to brass tacks, Tommy!  When are you going to replace those hotdogs at Wrigley Field with my delicious High Plains Bison burgers, sausages, and snacks?

Todd: I win the pool.  Dad tried to sell more bison to the Cubs 90-seconds into dinner.

Laura: Did you know bison are the same animals we used to refer to as buffalo?  Isn’t that something?

Joe: And why are you paying those ballplayers millions of dollars anyway?  People come to the ballpark whether or not your team is any good.

Crane, can I get another dollop of cranberry sauce?

Tom: People want the Cubs to win, dad.

Joe: Bull roar, boy! Thanks, Crane.  Is that what they taught you at the University of Chicago?  Why you wasted your time and my money at that hyper-intellectual institution of impracticality is beyond me.  Fans want to re-live memories, convene with family, or drink beer with friends.  Whether the Cubs win or lose, 32,000 or more show up 81 times each year!  There’s your MBA!

Todd:  Enough baseball.  Dad, you you write another check.  2022 is going to be huge.  Need to re-take the house and senate.

Joe: Crane, the cranberry sauce and gravy touched.  I’ll need a new plate toot-sweet.

We’ll stop talking about the Cubs when I say we will and not a minute before, Todd!

Get rid of the big contracts for a couple of years, just as a test.  See what happens at the gate.  People watch garbage and championship level baseball with equal enthusiasm at Wrigley.  Your mistake was in building a winner.  What did I tell you would happen?

Tom: Raises expectations?

Joe: Damn right.  Raises expectations!

Laura: Did you know Great Expectations was first published as a serial by Charles Dickens?  Isn’t that something?

Pete: It sure is, Pip!

Laura: Why do you always call me Pip?

Joe:  There are two keys to making a lot of money – controlling expenses and exploiting customers.  Also, owning the real estate is a good idea.  Okay, there are three keys to making a lot of money – control expenses, exploit rabble, and own the property where your endeavor is housed.  Jeez, poor Crane here tried to turn Wrigley Field during road trips into a drive-in movie joint, and people still came.

Tom: So we should do more off-day events?

Joe: God no.  That was insane.  You gave Crane too much slack, and he went off the rails. (Crane sulks as he refills Laura’s stock of mashed potatoes.)   Sorry, Crane, but a man has to learn his limitations and your lot in life is making sure this family has all the butter, potatoes, and cranberries it can stuff into its gullet on Christmas Day! (everyone but Crane laughs.) Tom, cutting expenses without the potential for meaningful consequences is the soundest business principle there is.

Tom: So you’re saying that if I gut the roster, people will still come to Wrigley Field?

Joe: Look who’s been listening to his father!  What do you know about this team we’ve owned and you have run for 12 years?  In 2012, the Cubs averaged 35,590 as they lost 101 games.  In 2015, they won 97 and averaged 36,039.  Your average ticket price is just shy of $60.  Jon Lester‘s deal paid him $27-million.  You needed 458,000 total fans to offset his salary.  He pitched every fifth day, which mean 16 starts at home.  That means he would need to draw 28,646 for each of Lester’s starts that were specifically attributable to him for the math of that deal to make any sense at al.

Tom: So, wait a second…

Joe: Am I going too fast for you?  It doesn’t matter if you have Lester John or Jon Lester on the mound on May 14th.  If you draw more than 13,000 with some rag armed sot, you are cash ahead over your ROI on Lester at 27.5-million.  What kind of idiocy was Epstein peddling you?

Laura: Did you know Theo Epsein’s grandfather and great uncle penned the script for the film classic Casablanca?  Isn’t that something? (everyone groans)

Tom: Let me get this straight – if we cut the big contracts, field a team of castoffs and young talent, and keep ticket prices static, we’ll make as much money as if we win another World Series?

Todd: How is any of this going to win back the Senate and House?

All: Shut up, Todd!

Joe: What I’m saying is if you cut the payroll to where the A’s and Rays have it, you will make much more money than if you win a World Series every year, and that’s the name of the game boys!

Pete: But don’t we have a responsibility to Cubs fans who love the team?

(Everyone laughs)

Curtain!

Cubs to sign Schwarber replicant former Dodger Joc Pederson, pending physical.

Kyle Schwarber was allowed to leave the Cubs via free agency, and now the Cubs will replace him with a guy so statistically similar in virtually every way, it’s eerie.

Look at the stats:

Here is Schwarber from Baseball-reference.com:

 

 

 

Here is Pederson:

Even without looking at baseball-reference.com this morning when I saw the tweet about the signing, I thought, “Hey, Schwarber and Pederson are the same guy!”  After looking, I asked myself if anyone in the history of baseball has been more similar to Joc Pederson that Kyle Schwarber.  The answer, as you see in the graphic to the left is a loud NO!

It was fun for a while when the Cubs threatened to command a chair at Major League Baseball’s table for grown-ups.  They briefly became one of the franchises that made sensible moves, drafted to a strategy, and built success that appeared sustainable.

This offseason, it’s clear winning is no longer the priority.  The Ricketts Family has finally decided to pursue the economic model that the Tribune Company and Phil Wrigley before them endorsed – fill the stands and your pockets without investing in the product.

Go ahead, try to keep 33,000 people from coming to Wrigley Field and watching on television!  There is no level of baseball bad enough to stop boneheads like me from making a pilgrimage twice each year to revisit the place my dad used to take me.  As teens, my friend Nick Anson and I used to hop the train from Lake Bluff to go to games.  In my 20s, I spent a couple hundred afternoons with my son – or  friends Paulie Balst and Len Totlan.  I loved every minute and enjoy that same feeling now.  That place is a touchstone for me, and millions more.

Because Wrigley Field is still Wrigley Field despite cash-grab upgrades like the video boards, millions of fans flock to Clark & Addison for a main course of memories and a side dish of baseball.

Hence the meaningless swap of Pederson for Schwarber.  Maybe Pederson will be slightly cheaper, but I doubt it.  This is a deck chair on the Titanic swap.  The NL Central might be so putrid, the Cubs can contend without a legit top of the rotation starter, fourth or fifth starter, second baseman, and backup outfielders.

In the end, it doesn’t matter.  We’re Cubs fans.  We buy tickets anyway.

Andrew Luck comments by Colts owner Jim Irsay were generous, foolish, or both!

Andrew Luck retired and is not coming back. Jim Irsay answered a question about his yesterday, so we are required to discuss the idiocy of his possible return today.

Rock and roll icon Ian Hunter sang, “I said my, my, my, I’m once bitten twice, shy babe.”

Colts owner Jim Irsay loves music, so I’m trying to hit him where he lives because he said something about Andrew Luck yesterday in his media availability which was both generous and silly, “He knows how much we’d love to have him be our quarterback. There is just no question about that.”

That’s straight up crackers.  No way the Colts would welcome the chaos that Andrew Luck would bring with him into the franchise.  If you can get the talent and intellect without the reluctance to risk his health, of course Luck would be a great choice to lead the Colts back to Super Bowl contention.  Hell, without much around him, Luck went 11-5 three times and played in an AFC Championship.  He’s a top 10 quarterback if not for retirement.

But you can’t get Luck’s excellence without the risk that accompanies it.  If Luck decided – again – to bolt into retirement 15 days prior to the season opener, it would crush the franchise.  That call before the 2019 season cost the Colts dearly and forced general manager Chris Ballard to re-plate his plans to build a champion.  This offseason is as intriguing as it is because of that decision Luck made 18 months ago.  Those retirement ripples will continue to be felt for several more years.

To be fair, Irsay also said, “…I really think it kind of stands where it stands. Like I said before, Andrew (Luck) is retired and he knows we would love to have him back but only he could ever answer that question deep in his heart and his soul.”

Luck is retired, and he is going to stay retired because he has all the money he’s ever going to be able to spend, and the reasons he walked away are still 100% valid.  Embracing the constant torment and darkness of injury and rehab is not worth the return.  Raising his daughter and being a loving and present husband demanded that he walk away.  it still demands it.

The timing of Luck’s decision was horrifyingly bad, but forgoing the risk posed by 300 pound men launching into his torso is utterly sane.  We can debate the appropriateness of Luck accepting $25-million to not go to work, but the call to walk away while he could makes plenty of sense.

Irsay’s kindness in saying the door is always open is only excused by the knowledge that Luck will never walk through it.

If Luck ever took Irsay up on that invitation, it would be managerial malpractice to allow it.  Opening the franchise up to the same level of chaos he caused by walking away the first time would be irresponsible in the extreme.

We wish Luck peace and joy as he enjoys retirement during a phase of life where most are just giving birth to a career.

Luck’s life will go on without the Colts, and the Colts have already gone on without Luck.  That’s the way it will – and should – stay.

Once bitten, twice shy, the Colts should remain.