Hurray for the Knicks

The New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs to win the NBA Championship this past month. I said to my youngest brother that this was my new favorite non-Boston championship. The Knicks were unstoppable in their incredible run. I was swept up in New York City's immaculate vibes, Sidetalk, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani repealing bedtimes for children.

What are those other non-Boston championships that thrilled me?

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2021). When Tom Brady left the New England Patriots and signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, I knew I'd be watching him from afar. When he got to yet another Super Bowl in 2021, he and his team were the easy choice to root for.

3. Chicago Cubs (2016). Like the Red Sox in 2004, this baseball team had a long gap since their last World Series win (1908). And this Cubs team was assembled by former Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein, and captained by former Red Sox ace Jon Lester.

2. Colorado Avalanche (2001). When Ray Bourque, the long-time stalwart defenseman for the Boston Bruins was traded to the Colorado Avalanche in 2000, everyone knew his chances to lift the Stanley Cup got better. The Avalanche were a powerhouse. One year later, they got him to his mountain top.

1. NY Knicks (2026). Hurray you Knicks! For all my family and friends who rooted for the Knicks this year, I salute you.

Remembering World Cup 1994

As I write this, we're about two weeks away from the first game of the 2026 World Cup. I'm slowly getting excited. It's like the Olympics, except they're playing my favorite sport all the time. The other appeal: seeing the world's largest sporting stage in North America. It will be epic, if we can all get to the arenas!

My wife Jenn and I saw a World Cup match in 1994, the last time it was held in the United States. Maybe we were ahead of the times. We watched a quarter-final: Italy versus Spain. It was the most I ever paid for a live event. Jenn remembers I paid $450 for each ticket.

Soccer's passion announced itself on the narrow roads leading to Foxboro Stadium. Many cars had large Spanish and Italian flags billowing behind them. We heard lots of horns, and saw many arms waving. People leaned outside their cars bellowing. We hadn't even parked!

Inside the packed stadium, the buzz from the crowd was a cacophony of multiple languages. The match was scintillating. Italy scored in the first 25 minutes. Spain equalized. Then Italy's sleek forward, Roberto Baggio, scored in the 88th minute. In celebration he blew a kiss, seemingly towards the area we were sitting. Electricity though the air.

I don't have tickets for this year's matches. Instead, I hope to see pictures from friends and acquaintances on social media. Let's go USA. Let's go North America. Let's go soccer!

A Return to Golf

I played a real round of golf last week, after a long hiatus. It was just nine holes, but it counts! The last time I played any real golf was 2009. Somehow, since then, I drifted away from this sport. People have asked over the past years if I played, and I joked that I had retired from golf. But had I?

A few years ago, maybe even pre-COVID, the office landlord installed a golf simulator. This is where you hit a golf ball on a mat into a screen. A machine detects your club head speed and angle, and then projects the ball's flight path on the screen. It can simulate good shots as well as bad shots. After a few good hits I began to think I could still play this game.

Last year I went to a corporate event at a golf simulator last year. I had more fun than I expected. I had a few decent hits, and despite my horrible score, it really whet my appetite for playing again. Nothing beats seeing a well-struck golf ball in flight. The organizer said he'd try to do an outing at a real course and encouraged me to sign up. I said I'd think about it.

Last month that same person reminded me about the upcoming golf outing. We'd be outside, playing on a real course, using the low-pressure scramble format. I asked him if I could rent clubs at the course, and he said he had some random clubs I could borrow. I then jumped on Facebook Marketplace to find some golf shoes. For good measure, I went to a driving range to see if I could still hit.

My round last week was about what you'd expect after not playing several years. I lost probably four balls (three into the water), duffed several, and had precious few decent hits. But I wasn't discouraged. I relished being on a course again, playing this fine game. On the last hole, a par three, I hit a gorgeous tee-shot with a pitching wedge that landed just off the green. I think I'm back!

Dwayne Wade's Statue

Like so much of the Internet, I reacted with some glee at the pictures from Dwayne Wade's statue ceremony in front of the Kaseya Center in Miami, FL this past week. Dwayne Wade is a well-decorated former basketball superstar, a three-time NBA champion. He played thirteen seasons for the Miami Heat, and the organization decided to make a bronze statue in his likeness to honor him.

Unfortunately, the face on the statue did not resemble Dwayne Wade. The Internet was abuzz in mockery, and I was laughing at all of it. How could the artists of this statue, Omri Amrany and Oscar León, get his facial features so wrong? The face is mildly contorted and you have to work really hard to see the resemblance. 

The next day I read a piece on The Athletic following up with Wade on the reaction. He was not defensive about the statue's initial impression. "I don't know know a lot of people with a statue. Do you?" I admired the defiance in this statement. In an interview on the Miami Heat's YouTube channel, he seemed completely humbled. He recognized he was being immortalized.

I am on an email list from artist Danny Gregory. In one of his essays ("The art spirit"), he reminds us that artistry exists in everyone, and that every artist sees the world differently. It took Omri and Oscar ten months to create this statue, and even though everyone can like or tweet a criticism, none of it can diminish the meaning of this statue to its creators and its subject.

It's pretty fun to joke, to mock, to pile on. But after reading and listening to how much the statue means for Dwayne, after learning about its many personal details, I think I'll stop laughing as hard. Years from now, people will look at this in wonder. They will look up his records, watch his plays, and learn what he meant to his team. They'll look at this statue in awe.

 

My Favorite Boston Championships

Since moving to Boston in 1991, I've experienced championships in the four major professional sports leagues. Boston is a modern Title Town, a Championship City.  In the middle of this month, the Boston Celtics won the top trophy and I attended their parade. It was a bright sunny day. The crowd was lively and the members of the team (in individual Boston Duck Tour boats) looked happy and delirious.

On social media, Boston was beating its chest: 13 Titles Since 2001! 6 Super Bowls. 4 World Series. 2 NBA Championships. 1 Stanley Cup. It's a remarkable run. Here are my favorite four championships ranked from these 13 titles:

#4: 2014 New England Patriots - The Patriots have played in ten Super Bowls, and won it six times since I've moved here. Going into Super Bowl XLIX, the Pats had lost their two prior Super Bowls, both against the NY Giants. I'm not sure I'm really past the loss from 2008, so when I saw that circus catch by Jermaine Kearse, I was ready to turn off the TV. Instead, very shortly after the Kearse catch was the greatest interception I've ever watched. Chills!

#3: 2024 Boston Celtics - I was dazzled by the 2008 Big Three: Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. But the last few years of watching Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum develop and grow in front of my eyes since Brown's draft (2016) and Tatum's draft (2017) has been amazing. They are an incredible pairing! With their latest team the Celtics have become elite again!

#2: 2011 Boston Bruins - When Patrice Bergeron scored the third goal short-handed in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, it looked like he pushed the puck into the goal with his hand. I remember going into my kitchen to lie face down on the tile, hoping for a favorable non-call. After a moment, Boston got their call and it was 3-0 Bruins. I fully embraced hockey when I moved to Boston. It's my favorite sport to watch, live or on TV. This was the only other championship parade I attended! 

#1: 2004 Boston Red Sox - The most pure moment I ever felt as a sports fan. I cried. "Don't let us win today," said Kevin Millar in the epic Game 4 of their ALCS against the great New York Yankees. That comeback wiped away the terrible memories from that Aaron Boone homerun in 2003. The Red Sox sweep of the St Louis Cardinals was almost just icing! The Red Sox have won the World Series three more times since then, but their championship in 2004 is my favorite Boston championship!

Boston Celtics 2024 Duck Boat Parade

 

Push-Ups

When I was in high school, one professional athlete that caught my attention was Herschel Walker. He was a marquee football player for the New Jersey Generals (of the now-defunct USFL). What I remember most was that his physique didn't come from weight-lifting, but rather from a regimen of push-ups and sit-ups. He would do 750 to 1500 push-ups daily! This greatly appealed to me. You didn't need to lift weights or use specialized equipment: just do push-ups!

I quickly followed suit. I remember being able to do 100 push-ups at a time. (OK, maybe it was closer to 80.) I did these in one arduous set. Over time I varied my push-ups: clapping between each push; doing them with one arm (my hand planted near the middle of my chest); propping my feet on a chair, to affect an inclined push-up; balling my hands into fists. I never got close to 1000 push-ups a day, but I felt athletic all the same.

A few years ago I resumed the habit of daily push-ups, after decades of not doing this. I started with just 10. Now, on good days, I'll do 50 in two sets of 25. On other days, I'll do 20 or 25. I makes me feel good to do this. Doing this imparts a feeling of strength. I wish I did more exercise, but at least I do this. The habit of this simple daily push-ups started with Herschel Walker.

Catch

One time while dropping off my daughter at elementary school, I stood and watched an impromptu game of kick ball that some of the kids had started. I was standing in the outfield, along with a bunch of parents and teachers. The kids were taking their kicks quickly so they could beat the morning bell.

One of them kicked the ball flush and it shot into the air. The players instinctively looked up to watch the ball. Parents were chattering among themselves and smaller kids were yelling in the playground but for these older kids, the game was their sole focus.

The ball began its descent and I was directly under it. In a flash, I recalled my own outfield heroics and miscues. I remembered catching a monster fly ball off of one of the better athletes in grade school, but I also recalled botched and misjudged fly balls during my college years playing softball.

I measured the ball in the sky, and shifted a few steps. I raised both my hands and watched the ball come in. When it arrived, I drew it into my chest to secure the catch. The sound returned to the playground. "Here! Here!" I saw a kid waving his hands for ball, and I tossed it to him.

"Out!" he yelled.

I turned around and went to work with a smile on my face.

My Mind on Sports

I've been venting my sports thoughts over at a BLOG I started on Sporting News earlier this year. And thank goodness too, since the Red Sox are in the World Series, the Patriots look great this season, the Celtics picked up Kevin Garnett, and the Bruins look pretty lively. But you can't also forget the New England Revolution, the local college teams (Boston College, Boston University, and sometimes Harvard can break into the national sports consciousness), golf, tennis, the Olympics (summer and winter), and everything in between. And if you scroll down a little bit, there on the left is a nifty ticker so you can see what's in my sporting mind. Go Boston!

Your Super Bowl Pick

Rick the Flip says take the Colts!

The line on the game shows the Indianapolis Colts favored by 6.5 over the Chicago Bears. But it's hard to pick against the team with the better quarterback (and that would be Peyton Manning). Sorry, Chicago! You all should know that my wife (Happy Birthday, Jenn) is rooting for Chicago, which means I'm on my own for Super Bowl dinner.

Big Game Predictions

Rick the Flip here. Sorry if your bookie got to you already!

NFC Championship, New Orleans at Chicago, Chicago by 2.5 - Take ChiTown. Yes, the entire world seems to be betting on a New Orleans win. But I'm different.

AFC Championship, New England at Indianapolis, Indy by 3 - Rick the Flip spent a the past seven days glued to Boston sports radio. This means I've got all my shouting points for the AFC championship game. I've listened to and read and seen all the analysis. I spent time deconstructing the Peyton Manning press conference. I spent time watching the grainy digitally enlarged video of Rodney Harrison practicing (or not practicing) with the Patriots. Mostly, I thought about the game, and whether or not it'll be a good one. Here's the deal: it's NOT going to be as great as the game last week between the Pats and the Chargers. But it'll feature the same result. Take the Pats.

NFL Divisional Playoffs

Rick the Flip here. Yes, I was one for three last week, but that won't stop me from making your picks this important NFL weekend. Again, the lines are from Pinnaclesports.com.

Indianapolis at Baltimore, Baltimore by 4 - You're kidding right? I just finished reading Next Man Up, in which John Feinstein follows the Baltimore Ravens. It's a great book, and it made me appreciate Brian Billick (coach of the Ravens) and the sport of football in general. Go ahead and read it. And then take the Colts. Sorry Baltimore!

Philadelphia at New Orleans, New Orleans by 5.5 - Take Philly. I have no basis for this. It's your money, OK?

Seattle at Chicago, Chicago by 9.5 - Jeez, take Seattle. Maybe Seattle will finally break down, but Chicago could revert to some bad habits too. That's too big a spread.

New England at San Diego, San Diego by 5.5 - The brain over the heart? Or the heart over the brain? I take the heart this time. Last week I picked against the Patriots using my so-called brain. This week, I'm picking the Pats using my Patriots heart. Sunday can't get here soon enough.

Wild Card Weekend

The NFL begins post-season play with Wild Card Weekend. Eight teams. Four games.

Here are Rick the Flip's thoroughly uninformed picks "against the spread" (lines from Pinnaclesports.com):

Kansas City at Indianapolis, Indy by 7 - Take Indy. Home game. Manning. Team with something to prove. C'mon. This is a no-brainer. Yes, Indy's run defense is weak, but Manning's going to have the ball a few times, right?

Dallas at Seattle, Seattle by 3 - Take Dallas. I'm predicting that the Tuna will turn on that magic thing he turns on for the playoffs.

NY Jets at New England, New England by 9.5 - Tough one. Take the Jets. The Pats will win, but by 9 points? I think this game will be more of a grinder than the line suggests.

NY Giants at Philadelphia, Philadelphia by 7 - Take Philly. The Giants have stumbled into the playoffs, and the Eagles will have to escort them out. Sorry, New York!

The Toll of Being a Fan

I woke up this morning after a fitful night of sleep. I dreamt that the New England Revolution had lost the MLS Cup final, and their coach, Steve Nicol, was asking me what happened. Apparently, I had somehow made my way to the pitch, and (mis)guided the team to a terrible loss. I woke up agitated, and upset.

The game didn't start until 3:30PM, and throughout the day (a rainy day here in New England), the Sunday sports focus was on the Jets/Patriots game (which I didn't watch). The MLS Cup, the championship of American soccer, was a footnote. It felt like I was the only one who had access to some important secret.

The game started lopsided. The Houston Dynamo took shot after shot on the New England Revolution goal. New England looked ineffective. But somehow, after the twentieth minute, the Revs began to pass better. They started to look good. The Revs began to carry the play. I started to get hopeful. At the half, the game scoreless, I was feeling somewhat confident about us scoring. But alas, the second half was scoreless too. Both teams had chances; both teams began to falter to fatigue.

The MLS has a thirty minute "non-golden goal" overtime. By now it's supper time, and I had a fitful dinner while watching the match. I had to break away to clear the table, and help Mia get ready for bed. When I got back to the game, both teams had scored (Taylor Twellman for the Revs, Brian Ching for the Dynamo), but the match was headed into the penalty kick phase. If I had ulcers, they would have started acting up then.

Ultimately, the Revolution lost. Our goalie, Matt Reis, made a save, but we missed twice. The announcers said to give New England credit, but I was a flustered sore loser. I wanted to cry. I didn't want credit. I wanted an MLS Cup victory.

It takes a toll when your team is almost good enough. Climbing the mountain is hard every year, especially when you don't make it all the way to top. I know I'll be able to get past this game, but right now my heart is still heavy; I'm still filled with a mild despair. But I know that each of these championship losses is going to make that first championship taste that much sweeter.

Congratulations, Dynamo! Go Revs!

The Big Games

Tomorrow, the New England Revolution will be playing the D.C. United (at D.C.) in the Eastern Conference final of the MLS. The New England team has been a regular presence in the playoffs, but the team has not broken through to a championship. A win tomorrow will put New England in the final for the second time in as many seasons. The game will be broadcast at 4PM on ESPN2. Go Revs!

The other big game tomorrow is probably more familiar to the rest of the nation. The New England Patriots will be facing the undefeated Indianapolis Colts at Foxboro, in Week 9 of the NFL. The Colts have always found ways to lose against the Patriots, and I relish the thought of another New England victory. This game will be broadcast at 8PM on NBC. Go Pats!

Baseball Predictions

I'm still reeling from the Yankees early exit! In the ALCS, I like the Detroit Tigers over the Oakland A's, but in truth, I could root for either team.

In the NLCS, I like the New York Mets over the St. Louis Cardinals. As I write this, Detroit is up 3 to 0 in Game 1.

The Final Four

In the 2006 FIBA World Championships, the final four teams have been determined.

The United States versus Greece. Argentina versus Spain.

The US must play well just to even get into the final. And whoever wins Argentina versus Spain could very well be win the final gold. We'll see. The US game is in the middle of the night. I won't be up watching. But it'll be the first score I look for in the morning. See the comments for the update.

Quest for Gold

The United States basketball team is in the 2006 FIBA World Championship. And yes, we're gunning for gold.

The last FIBA championship was 2002, held in Indianapolis. Yugoslavia beat Argentina for the gold medal, with the US finishing sixth in the tournament. Sixth!

This year, the US coach is Mike Krzyzewski, the highly successful coach for the Duke University men's basketball team. Our players include LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Carmelo Anthony. The US beat Puerto Rico yesterday, and will face China tomorrow. The championships are being held in Japan, so you'll have to get up early to watch them.

Tour de Farce

I held my breath waiting for the results of Floyd Landis' second blood test this weekend. On Saturday, I exhaled a disgusted breath. The second tests came to the same conclusion. Floyd Landis was 'doped up' during the Tour de France.

In sports, unlike the movies, or novels, letting yourself believe is a truly vulnerable act. If you let yourself believe in some sporting event, in some sporting hero, in some sporting result, and then you find out that what you've opened your heart to was actually tainted in some way, it's like a sucker punch.

Landis took away all the positive feelings from his 2006 Tour de France "victory". Yes, he'll appeal. Perhaps he may be redeemed. But two lab results are in, and it's devasting news for those of us who wanted to believe in a great event, in a new great hero, in a wildly spectacular result.

Floyd Landis and Le Tour

I'm sure it's a fantasy for most boys with cycling dreams, the big cycling dreams that encompass the biggest bicycle race there is, the Tour de France. As a kid, you'll put yourself in the toughest situation: You're down by a big margin with one last mountain stage to go. You and your team decide to go for broke, to ride with audacity. You decide to attack from the start, to try to cut that deficit by winning the stage, and perhaps win the yellow jersey. And in your dreams, you'll come out on top. In your dreams.

It's a child's dream because in the modern Tour such comebacks are unheard of. When a yellow jersey leader is ahead by seven minutes, as Oscar Pereiro (Spain) was at the start of Stage 17, teamwork and convention suggest that he would hold that lead to the finish. An attacker hoping to indulge in this child's dream couldn't possibly expect to maintain the pace needed to stay ahead of the peloton.

But somehow, Floyd Landis (United States) was able to fulfill this childhood fantasy. He rode the race of his life, winning Stage 17 (his first stage win ever), and seating himself in third place, a mere thirty seconds behind the leader, the presumably startled Oscar Pereiro. When I watched the recaps of Stage 16, the announcers had written off Landis. Landis was done. It was finished. He might gain time in the time trial (Stage 19), but it would be too much to expect him back in contention.

Except Landis expected more. He dominated the stage, setting an unmatchable pace in the high heat. He attacked early. He chased a breakaway, then became the breakaway leader himself. In the broadcast, the announcers kept expecting a response from the chasing peloton, but the response would come too late.

Experts were stumbling over the superlatives, trying to describe this stage win. "Best stage that I have ever followed." "...I am wracking my brain thinking what I can compare it to." "...the greatest single day ride in the history of the Tour..." When a childhood fantasy comes true, when it happens right before our eyes, it's hard to come up with the words.

In the end, the unassuming Floyd Landis was quoted: "I was going to make whoever wins this Tour deserve it." That person might be him.

Forza Italia!

I'll be rooting for the Italian side in this Sunday's World Cup final.

I love listening to the play call on Fabio Grasso's goal (for the Italians against Germany in the semi-final). The Italians have won the World Cup in 1934, 1938, and 1982. I remember the 1982 win, and the goal getter for the Azzurri that year: Paolo Rossi.

Their opponents are the esteemed French, who won the World Cup for the first time in 1998. They are led by the nimble Zinedine Zidane. When his game is on, he's the picture of perfect ball control.

Forza Italia!