Author Archives: Kent Sterling

Epstein finally moves on – Cubs non-tender Addison Russell

I hope Addison Russell has learned not to beat women, but I’m glad he’s no longer a Cub.

The Chicago Cubs announced tonight they are not tendering middle infielder Addison Russell a contract for the 2020 season. That’s good news for Cubs fans who didn’t want to be conflicted about cheering for a player who beat and terrorized his wife.

Russell was terrible offensively in 2019 (.237/.308/.391) and continued his defensive regression, so even if he wasn’t a domestic abuse perp he likely would have been spiked.

Cubs president Theo Epstein was tone deaf at this time last year when he agreed to sign Russell to a one-year deal after an interview with his ex-wife which detailed his brutality was published. As a part of the deal, Russell agreed to enroll in long term psychological care to deal with his propensity for violence against women.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

What Epstein grew to understand was that monitoring Russell’s treatment and growth sucked bandwidth from the front office, according to an interview with Epstein on 670 The Score.

And what did the Cubs get for their generosity? Poor play, terrible PR, and an internal mess. They forgot the first rule of management by continuing to employ Russell – treat an employee like an employee and a human as a human being. Managers can’t be friends.

If Epstein wanted to be a friend who shepherded Russell toward enlightenment – that wonderful. But do it as a friend, not a boss.

Now he can continue to help as a friend unencumbered by being the boss. Russell forced Theo’s hand by doing the thing former manager Joe Maddon always implored his players to avoid – sucking.

The Cubs have moved on. Fans can now move on. Russell will get a minor league deal somewhere. Better a year late than never.

Ballard stuck with Vinatieri – it hasn’t worked, but that doesn’t mean he was wrong

Chris Ballard had a difficult choice between Adam Vinatieri and an out of work kicker.

Colts general manager Chris Ballard had a choice earlier this season – replace the best kicker in NFL history with someone off the street, or hope that Adam Vinatieri’s struggles straightened themselves out.

Whether Vinatieri’s suddenly erratic field goal tries were caused by a bad left knee, laces out or some other odd confluence of circumstances was irrelevant. The NFL is the ultimate meritocracy, and misses are misses regardless of the cause. Ballard chose Vinatieri perhaps a bit out of loyalty, but mostly because he wasn’t comfortable with replacing him with a guy 32 teams chose not to employ before the season.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

For 23 seasons, Vinatieri won a lot of games for the New England Patriots and Colts. This season was different. This year he missed kicks that led directly to losses against the Chargers, Broncos, Steelers and Dolphins.

Expecting perfection is ridiculous, but for a team that lost its franchise quarterback to retirement 15 days prior to the regular season opener, the margin between success and failure is razor thin. Vinatieri missing 14 kicks and leaving 30 points unscored leaves an unpleasant mark on a season that could have been special.

After two of Vinatieri’s kicks were blocked and a third missed during yesterday’s Colts 31-17 loss, the question of whether he should remain the Colts kicker is being asked again. The Titans block on the 46-yard attempt that was returned for a TD turned a potential three-point lead with five minutes left into a seven-point deficit. The block had nothing to do with Vinatieri, but that’s slight consolation.

With a perfect Vinatieri, that Colts could very well be 11-1 and in command of the AFC – let alone the AFC South. It’s important to remember that potential success as we evaluate Jacoby Brissett as the Colts longterm answer at quarterback, but that’s a topic for another post.

If Ballard fired Vinatieri after any of the weeks where he missed important kicks and replaced him with Cody Parkey, and Parkey delivered as many formerly unemployed kickers do, he would be excoriated for not trusting the G.O.A.T. He chose the G.O.A.T. and he continues to miss, so Ballard is a loyal fool.

That’s why NFL GMs make the big bucks.

The choice was clear as mud. The 46-year-old with four Super Bowl championships but a balky plant leg, or a guy sitting on his couch. This wasn’t Let’s Make a Deal with a car behind the curtain and a zonk in the box. In the NFL, sometimes zonks are everywhere. That’s why consistent success is so rare. The Patriots are the only team in NFL history to post double digit wins in 17 consecutive seasons for a reason.

With four games left in the season, the Colts are two games behind the Houston Texans and have only an 11% chance to return to the playoffs. There is a lot of blame to go around for that. Some blame belongs to Vinatieri. Some to Ballard. Some belongs to Frank Reich and every member of the Colts roster. That’s the NFL – where it’s guilt or glory for all, depending upon the result of a field goal try.

Vinatieri spent 23 years making GMs and coaches look smart. 2019 will be remembered for Vinatieri making a GM look too loyal for his own good.

Roncalli High School finally communicates about attack against student with Down syndrome

Here is what has been reported (click here for a summary from WTHR.com) about a total mess within the Roncalli football program and student body:

A student with Down syndrome dreamed of attending Roncalli High School and being a part of the football program.
His dream came true when he became a manager – and then it became a nightmare.
On one occasion, he was videoed while going to the bathroom. On another, he was forced to lick the nipples of football players.
The victim and his family were threatened if the student told on the football players.
The victim has withdrawn from school because he no longer felt safe.

This a terrible story of indifference to the welfare of a student by a group of fellow students who failed to grasp the importance of treating human beings with respect. Those who participated failed to measure up to a base level standard of humanity, and others who stood witness are equally culpable as unconcerned about a person in need.

Roncalli responded to calls for comment with this letter from Roncalli president Joe Hollowell:

It seems one student was expelled, others were suspended, and more might be subject to future punishments. The police are investigating, and we can hope charges will be filed so a clear message is sent that this kind about callous victimization of those in need will not be tolerated.

It’s a shame that some high school students need to be taught that all human beings deserve respect, and that tolerance, patience and being nice make life better for everyone. But they do, and it’s up to schools like Roncalli to teach them.

Indiana’s win against La. Tech shows what the Hoosiers might be – both good and bad

Trayce Jackson-Davis had a very nice night, scoring 21 points and 13 rebounds. He appears to be Indiana’s most indispensable puzzle piece.

Basketball is a vexing game. It attracts those who seek the spotlight but rewards those who reject it.

Indiana’s 88-75 win over Louisiana Tech last night was a perfect example of what basketball can be when played by a team – and also what happens when players selfishly pursues glory. Indiana showed fans both one half at a time.

The first half was a beautiful exhibition of connected defense and selfless offense. The defense limited Louisiana Tech to difficult shots and allowed few second chances. Offensively, Indiana worked the ball quickly to open space and created good shots. The result was a 43-21 lead.

Devonte Green scorned 15 points off the bench in that beautiful first half. The ball moved through him and to him, and Green hit open shots.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

The second half was not beautiful. Green was not beautiful either – missing all three field goal attempts and committing a couple of turnovers. Green wasn’t the only offender, just the most obvious. Right or wrong, Green is the poster boy for the fortunes of these Hoosiers.

Green’s talent makes him capable of winning games, but his desire to show it can also cause the Hoosiers to lose their balance and become very ordinary.

Indiana allowed Louisiana Tech to close to within 10 points with 9:34 left before the extreme effort the shave the deficit finally took its toll on the Bulldogs. Between fatigue and foul trouble, Louisiana Tech did not have enough left in the tank to get closer, and the Hoosiers won its sixth game without a loss.

The top item in the postgame notes released by IU’s media relations folks trumpeted this 6-0 record as the first time the Hoosiers have started a season with six straight wins since 2013. The truth behind the record is that there is no way Indiana should lose to any of those opponents if they played each 100 times.

There is not a single player on those six rosters of the teams that Indiana recruited, and none of those teams could have been in the game to recruit any of the scholarship players on Indiana’s roster.

When the real games begin a week from today against Florida State at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Indiana will win or lose based upon its collective toughness. Talent will be relatively equal in most games, so the most important differential will be behavioral.

And so we come back to how players work together and deny their strong impulse to use their individual talent to help the team win. That’s the magic of basketball – finding the sweet spot where all players on the court commit to one another as teammates rather than to themselves as individuals.

Indiana showed the magic of embracing that collective vibe in last night’s first half, and discarded it entirely in the second.

This season can be a step in the right direction for an Indiana program that desperately needs one. Or, it can wobble through another uneven campaign defined by in-fighting and the craving for individual accolades.

Last night was an opportunity for Indiana to witness all it is capable of. Which path it will choose will be fascinating to watch.

Tom Crean invents positionless basketball, and his Georgia Bulldogs get blasted by Dayton #iubb

Every player on Georgia’s roster is listed as a “B.” I assume that stands for basketball player. (Photo by Aaron Torres)

Tom Crean is a curious individual.

And he is hard to write about.

I always feel cruel when I point out some of his foibles. Crean wants so badly to be liked and respected that any effort to point to something that runs contrary to that narrative seems mean spirited.

During the beatdown Crean’s Georgia Bulldogs suffered today in the Maui Classic, ESPN put up the screenshot you see to the right. All players are listed as being a B. That, according to broadcasters, emphasizes Crean’s belief that basketball is becoming positionless.

Okay. We get it. Guards can post up and centers can handle.

As with so many widely held basketball axioms, Crean always tries to convince people he had the thought before anyone else. Or at least that he’s more clever in advancing it.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

Crean’s need to impress annoys people – at least it annoyed people when he coached at Indiana. At Georgia, maybe fans are so transfixed by the football program’s effort to earn a berth in the College Football Playoff that they don’t notice.

The thing that bugs me about Crean is that he provokes me to mockery. He reduces me to the 16-year-old prick who made people laugh by finding a peculiarity in others that would come to define them.

His quirks combined with a unique combination of arrogance and insecurity are irresistible. Coaching today’s game, Crean wore a shortsleeved shirt. I’ve never seen him where a shortsleeved shirt. I always thought there must have been a vulgar tattoo on his forearm – or he had weird skinny arms or some other shameful reason for hiding them. Nope. Arms were totally normal. I was both happy for Crean but disappointed to see that none of my bizarre assumptions were true.

That’s the dichotomy with Crean. I want him to feel good about himself while celebrating reasons he doesn’t.

People think I dislike Crean and that I root against Georgia because of what I write and tweet about him. In truth, I like Crean – kind of – but dislike myself for how I respond to him. My instincts demand that I poke holes in his way-too-inflated ego.

There is the clapping, pacing, too-complicated offense, wacky “B” nonsense, tan, manipulative texts to media, inability to face AD Fred Glass when Fred asked for the meeting where he planned to fire Crean, his treatment of his first SID at Marquette, and another dozen idiosyncrasies or unpleasant behaviors that make him an easy target.

But why do I feel the need to mock? It’s like fishing with dynamite. It cheapens me, and makes Tom feel bad. What’s the point?

I would like to see Georgia succeed with Tom as coach. It might be the perfect place for him. The Bulldogs have enough money to pay him what he demands, but the interest level is so low that fans may not pay enough attention to demand value.

One of these days, I’ll grow up a little bit and stop picking at this insufferable scab that just won’t go away. Or maybe I won’t. Maybe I’ll just embrace my inner jerk.

Tom Allen chooses prudence over fighting against Michigan

It was cold and miserable in Bloomington for the game against Michigan, but that doesn’t mean IU needed to bleed the clock in its 25-point loss.

Indiana ran out the clock on a brilliant 13-play drive that ate the final eight minutes of the game against Michigan. Of the 13 plays, IU ran the ball 12 times.

If Indiana had been ahead by 25 instead of behind by that many at the time, fans would be thrilled. To sit in the rain and cold hoping for a miracle comeback only to see the Hoosiers limp home moving the chains and the clock was disheartening.

Equally disturbing was the decision on the previous drive to go for the touchdown on fourth down rather than kick a field goal. At that point, Indiana was down by 25, and a field goal would have cut Michigan’s lead to 22. The difference between a 25-point deficit and a 22-point deficit is that it takes four scores to overcome 25 and three to overcome 22. That’s a big deal for most coaches.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

I didn’t take calculus as an IU student, but I understand that scoring four times is more difficult than scoring three times. I also understand that Indiana was not going to catch Michigan, but watching Tom Allen’s Hoosiers serve as gracious hosts at Memorial Stadium was deflating for a fanbase that embraced a little optimism entering the game.

It was cold and miserable in Bloomington, and getting out of the stadium ASAP was probably top of mind for the few fans who remained, but rewarding them with acquiescence to the Wolverines was insulting.

Indiana fans didn’t needed Allen to expedite the end of the game because they were miserable. Hoosier partisans have always had perfect timing in ending their own afternoons inside Memorial Stadium. They’ve never needed Lee Corso, Sam Wyche, Cam Cameron, Gerry DiNardo, Terry Hoeppner, Bill Lynch, Kevin Wilson, or Tom Allen to run the clock to release them from their seats.

Was Allen pulling the plug prudent in a game that had long since been decided? Sure it was. If starting quarterback Peyton Ramsey had been hurt trying to fight back from an insurmountable deficit, the Hoosiers chances to win the Bucket Game at Purdue this weekend would have crashed and burned. Sometimes, it makes sense to pull the plug and allow a terminal patient to slip away into that good night.

From a logical perspective Allen made a reasonable decision to call off the dogs, but it’s still galling. Allen chose to refuse to continue to compete. If the chance to win was one tenth of one percent, which is what ESPN calculated it to be, a coach needs to continue to fight – and inspire his players to do the same.

Winning seven games is a big deal for Indiana. That’s a threshold the Hoosiers have reached only once since finishing 8-4 in 1993. Mucking the Michigan game after it was virtually out of reach to give his team its best chance to beat Purdue this Saturday both makes perfect sense and is unforgivable.

That’s Indiana Football.

Third MLB team in Florida makes no sense, but don’t bet against Pat Williams’ Orlando dream

Pat Williams is the only man on Earth who could get anyone to take seriously the idea of a third MLB franchise coming to Florida.

Pat Williams is a dreamer, and his latest dream is well named.

The Orlando Dreamers.

Over his more than half century as a fearless sports executive, Williams has achieved great success with both good and bad ideas – because his boundless energy turns all ideas into winners.

His latest idea might be his nuttiest, but bet against Williams at your own risk.

Williams was the founding manager of the NBA’s Orlando Magic, has adopted 14 kids, and written more than 100 books. In Williams life, no minute is wasted and no opportunity unexplored. At the age of 79, his energy is still boundless. He’s going to need every bit of that life force as he tries to bring Major League Baseball to his adopted hometown of Orlando, Florida.

You’re thinking – “Hey, doesn’t Florida already have two teams that can’t draw flies to a picnic?” That’s right. The Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays were the two franchises at the very bottom in MLB attendance in 2019. In fact, if the Marlins and Rays attendance was combined, it would still be under two-million and rank 19th among the 30 teams.

Given those numbers, how does it make any sense for Florida to be awarded a third team? It doesn’t. But that has never stopped Williams, who has spent a career applying Bill Veeck’s unique life philosophies to achieve massive success. Williams speaks the nearly impossible into reality every day.

If it was anyone other than Williams trying to bring a major league team to Orlando, I would rate the probability of it actually happening at zero – and I sure wouldn’t spend any time writing about it.

The Orlando Dreamers is illogical on all levels. All the factors that help baseball teams develop a generational fanbase are absent in Orlando – except for Williams as the guy saying it should happen.

If you have ever spent time with Williams, you get it. He’s a force of nature who never passes up an opportunity to make a connection or tell an inspiring story. During every conversation I’ve had with Williams, I’ve thought he was capable of anything and wanted to be a part of even a small part of his journey. This crusade to bring an MLB franchise to Orlando will test his ability to do the impossible.

Don’t underestimate the possibility of the Orlando Dreamers joining the Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Miami Marlins and the other 27 teams.

If it happens, there will be only one reason, and that is Pat Williams doing what he’s always done – use his energy and creativity to sell a dream to a group charmed by his overwhelming spirit.

Devonte Green grows up – looks like a different player and leader for the Hoosiers #iubb

Has Devonte Green’s understanding of basketball matured, or is it too early to tell?

For three years, Indiana Hoosiers guard Devonte Green played mistake-filled basketball sprinkled with occasional flashes of excellence. It appeared Green believed himself NBA ready, and that more toiling in Bloomington was an insult to his talent.

Through two games this season, it appears Green has turned a corner. In each game, Green has dropped four dimes and committed only one turnover. Granted, the two games were against Troy and Princeton, but to see Green operate inside the game rather than try to prove he’s capable of greatness shows a switch may have flipped for the mercurial senior.

There has never been any doubt of Green’s basketball pedigree (he’s the brother of 10-year NBA vet Danny Green) or raw ability as a shooter, but he has been prone to costing the Hoosiers as much as he provided.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

College exists as an institution that promotes the evolution of absentminded and egomaniacal children into productive and selfless adults, and Green has become the most recent poster child for that process.

The collegiate dynamic was described in the 1973 film The Paper Chase. Professor Kingsfield, played by John Houseman, says, “You come in here with a skull full of mush… and you leave thinking like a lawyer.” Or in Green’s case, like a basketball player.

The change in Green’s play can be expressed in the assists and turnovers cited above, but it really needs to be observed subjectively.

There has always been a sense as we watched Indiana play the last three years that Green viewed himself as the sun and teammates as planets who orbited him. Basketball was a solitary pursuit to prove superiority over teammates and opponents.

During our limited sample size of 46 minutes this season, it appears Green embraces the notion that he needs to operate as a cog – no more or less important than the four others with whom he shares the court.

His shots have come within the flow of the offense, and his passes have delivered the ball to teammates on time and on target. Green could have earned two additional assists last night if teammates had converted relatively easy attempts within three feet of the basket.

As we look at the first five games of Archie Miller’s all-important third season at IU, the most relevant reason to believe the Hoosiers might be ready to take a step up in class and earn an NCAA Tournament berth is Green’s newly minted maturity.

When Green was named a captain prior to this season, I assumed this was Miller hoping Green would embrace the role as leader instead of having already earned it. But it seems Miller simply made the obvious choice.

Basketball is my favorite sport because consistent devotion to the team as a unit is so difficult to understand and embrace for those with the athleticism and skill level to dominate a game through isolationist excellence. Over these two games and the latter portion of last season, Green appears to have migrated toward an understanding that basketball is a team activity rather than a lonely pursuit of statistical brilliance.

Another strong incentive for talented players to operate in their own best interest is that the NBA rewards those seen as remarkable with millions of dollars while those who fall just short of worthy of an NBA contract get thousands. If Green coveted what a teammate like Romeo Langford received after just one year in Bloomington, who can blame him?

That Green appears to embrace the notion of team success over personal glory is a sign for hope that Indiana is on the right road in its cultural rebuild.

It’s way too early for Indiana fans to get excited about this team and Green’s role in driving it toward being a successful Big 10 season, but in his 46 minutes it seems the kid whose assist to turnover ratio was approximately one-to-one in his first three seasons has grown into something quite different – a we-first leader.

Over the next four months we’ll see if Green’s play in these 46 minutes is a prelude to a successful senior year.

James Wiseman sits after doing nothing wrong while coach who paid is still on sidelines?

James Wiseman’s mom got her cash. Penny got his player. James got suspended for 11 games.

Soon to be NBA millionaire James Wiseman has been suspended by the NCAA for an additional 11 games as a player at the University of Memphis while he counts the days until his college career ends.

Wiseman’s mom accepted a loan of $11,500 from current Memphis coach (he was an AAU and high school coach at the time of the loan) Penny Hardaway. The loan, which is an impermissible benefit because Hardaway was a Memphis booster prior to becoming a coach, covered moving expenses as the family moved to Memphis from Nashville.

As has become the norm, the kid who got nothing and did nothing is the target of the NCAA’s wrath. Hardaway wrote the check, mom cashed it, and James will sit for what amounts to roughly one-third of his college career.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

I get that Hardaway took part in the exchange of cash for services prior to being hired as Memphis’s basketball coach, so maybe that act does not prompt a response by the NCAA. But if penalizing Wiseman is right and just, certainly some measure of crime and punishment should be assessed against Hardaway.

The strange and unpleasant truth about organizations administered by adults that oversee powerless young adults or children is the punishments will always impact the young adults and children before an adult is disciplined.

When I was a camp counselor, I spent the first couple of weeks working to make the campers’ experience more enjoyable. One afternoon another counselor grabbed me and said, “You’re getting this backwards – we’re not here for the kids; they are here for us.”

I laughed. He did not.

He was only wrong in principle. In practice, that’s the way the world works. The rules are made by the adults for the good of the adults. The players? They get to play as long as no one tries to use them for $11,500 or buy their services.

And so it goes. Kids pay while adults get paid.

Wiseman will be in the NBA making millions soon enough, as long as he doesn’t get hurt and burn his ticket, but that doesn’t excuse the behavior of his mom, coach, or the NCAA.

Good luck to Dawson Garcia decides to play and study at Marquette instead of Indiana

I hope Dawson Garcia gets all he wants at Marquette – except the two times each year he goes up against Butler.

Dawson Garcia is tall and talented, and he’s pledged Marquette as his college choice.

Marquette was chosen by Garcia over Indiana, Memphis, and his native Minnesota.

That’s life.

Indiana fans want to know how this will impact the Hoosiers. There are several ways:

Garcia would have taken IU’s final scholarship for the class of 2020, and this decision allows Archie Miller the flexibility that comes with an extra ride. The Hoosiers can be aggressive with a recruit that remains unsigned or wait for a grad transfer who might come to Bloomington ready to help next year.
No doubt Garcia would have been a good get ready to pay dividends for at least a couple of years. Despite being a top 25 recruit in his class, he is not projected as a one-and-done candidate. Given IU’s experience with Romeo Langford, Miller might decide to avoid players who project as short-timers.
If it turns out Garcia is an all conference player, at least it won’t be in the Big 10.
As much as Miller might have hoped for Garcia to sign with Indiana, his thirst for the talented big pales in comparison to that of Richard Pitino, the coach at Minnesota. Miller wants to lock down Indiana’s best recruits, but there are 10 Division One basketball programs he competes with. It’s understandable that he swings and misses now and then. Minnesota has one lonely D-1 program, so tt’s an imperative that Pitino keeps the best the state produces if he wants to keep his job.
Garcia showed prudence in drawing a line through Memphis, a program that has already drawn the ire of the NCAA under coach Penny Hardaway. I know potential NCAA issues don’t mean a hell of a lot to most recruits, but why walk into a mess – especially if you aren’t a one-and-done who can demand can payments for which the program can be penalized. That doesn’t have squat to do with the Hoosiers, but it might show kids are wary of Penny’s perceived penchant for throwing cash around.

Indiana is going to be just fine without Garcia, and his choice of Marquette might even benefit them in the end.

Click here for a $1 comprehensive dental exam done by the best dentist in Indiana – Dr. Mike O’Neil at Today’s Dentistry

That’s life in college hoops – what makes fans feel like crap one day can cause joy the next.