Mister Antonio

So its time to introduce everyone to the new addition to the Martin family. He goes by the name of Antonio. I have to say it's nice to have a nephew for the simple fact that I have never had one. I have three nieces which is also nice but I feel I like having a nephew is cool because I can teach him to play different sports and to make Diesel aware of his place in society.

I haven't spent too much time with Antonio yet but I did go to the beach with him and my sister in law for Memorial Day weekend. All he did was smile the whole time there. He seems to really be enjoying life and having a good time. It's going to be fun watching him grow and experience life. I kind of hope he learns to like basketball so I can teach him the ins and outs :)

Cheating??

Welcome to Tim Donaghy's world... Granted he did have a great job. Being a referee in the NBA and interacting with superstars on a daily basis during the season is a once in a lifetime job for most people. A key saying that I was told when I was younger is "To whom much is given, much is expected" Well Timmy was given a great job and a lot was expected of him as an NBA referee. First and foremost he was expected to call games fairly without any type of bias. That's the root of his job...But recently in the news its been stated that he is being investigated by the FBI for allegations that he bet on games that he officiated over the past two seasons and that he made calls affecting the point spread in games. There is nothing worse in sport than someone cheating the system. Whether as a track and field athlete who takes performance enhancers to run faster, or a baseball player who tries to get an edge over the competition with the use of steroids. Any records that are broken in competition now are scrutinized to the fullest extent as you just don't know who is using performance enhancers and who is not.

Deep down I hope Tim Donaghy isn't guilty of cheating the system. But in reality I believe he is because why would the FBI go through all of this and have it hit the newswire if there wasn't credible evidence. It's sad that people will do such things for greed. Personally I feel if you have a decent life and can live comfortably and enjoy what life is all about then why do you have to be soo greedy? It's not like you can take that extra money to your grave. And is it worth public embarassment as well as the ridicule and hurt your family will receive as a result of your actions? I don't think so...Anyways it should be interesting to see how this story unfolds over time. It definitely is reality TV drama.

Changes in the East

Well as you all know by now there have been a few trades this past summer that have reshaped basketball in the Eastern Conference. The Western Conference has been the powerhouse of the two conferences pretty much since Michael Jordan retired for the second time in 1998. My co-worker Dave made a good point the other day about how it seems like aging stars from the Western Conference seem to move to the Eastern Conference to finish out their respective careers. Two stars that fit this bill are Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. Yes both are still great players but they are past their prime or right at the peak of their playing ability. However both of these players will help the Boston Celtics out of the basement in the Atlantic Conference. They will bring excitement and will help the "Truth" Paul Pierce win some games this year. This is great for Boston considering they did not win the NBA lottery this past year.

The Knicks also made a few good moves. First off they got rid of Steve Francis and his huge contract and were able to get Zach Randolph who will help with rebounding (Eddy Curry does not rebound) and will provide a consistent low post scorer. Also the Knicks drafted Wilson Chandler and Demetrius Nichols who looked good in the summer league along with Nate "The Great" Robinson, Vegas summer league MVP. So I think the Knicks will be fun to watch this year and should have a decent season as long as they avoid the injury bug. The Magic also signed Rashard Lewis. I still think they paid him too much money so you have to give his agent a lot of credit... He will give the Magic a more consistent scorer though.

Overall this summer has been filled with changes around the league. This upcoming season should be great and I look forward to seeing all the exciting action!

NYC Steam Pipe Explosion

Yesterday was a normal afternoon/evening. I was finishing up work and decided to take the subway home to make sure I would be able to pick up my laundry before closing. As I entered the subway station on 32nd and Park the 6 looked really packed and my first instinct was to squeeze in and get home. Then I was like there's probably another train right behind it so I'll wait to have more space. Once the train departed someone came over the loudspeaker and said all 4,5 and 6 trains were stopped in both directions as there was an explosion at Grand Central. I thought I heard wrong but they said it again. So I exited the subway station looked up Lexington Avenue and could not believe what I saw. A huge geyser of steam and brown-like substance was spouting out of the ground with incredible force. There were a ton of people standing, staring, wondering if this was an act of terror. Bystanders had there camera phones out taking pictures, others were walking towards the explosion to get a better look...It wound up being a steam pipe explosion...Thoughts just went through my head the whole time. What if I had taken that subway train...Was that 6 train stuck at Grand Central as a result? What if I had decided to walk home and the steam pipe had exploded near me? I usually walk in that area on my way home. I just hope everyone who was in the area at that time ends up being ok. I know one woman died from a heart attack and others were injured. All you can do is hope and pray those injured turn out ok. Situations like this just make you think about life and how precious it is and how it can all be taken away from you or loved ones in an instant. I always try to let the people who are an important part of my life know how much they mean to me in one way or another on a consistent basis.

The Associates

So I guess its time to formally introduce everyone to a group known by most as "The Associates." We are a multi-dimensional group of young men who enjoy the finer things in life, work hard and just like to have a good time no matter what we do. I'm sure most of you reading this already know me...I do have a few nicknames that have been given to me by my co-workers including biz, bron bron, darkness and 50-50. Well that's all you will be learning about me. Time to introduce my co-workers who complete the Associates

Kevin Werner-known as K Dub, Dubster, Mister W. Attended Boston College where Craig "CheeseBurger" Smith, as Kevin calls him and Troy Bell (a great college basketball player who dominated Big East play) attended. He's a very funny guy who loves the Mets and sports in general. Likes to work with numbers (you should know he was doing calculus since elementary school...genuis). Kevin is also very knowledgeable on an array of topics so he is a great perosn to listen to and learn from. A cool thing about Kevin is that he is pretty much willing to try anything even if he's never done it before or in awhile. Last week we had an intramural basketball game and we needed extra players so he offered to play with us and played very well I might add. Its things like that which make him a great person. I picked up this blogging thing from Kevin as well. Make sure to check out his site at www.kevinwerner.com

David Axelrod-known as Wise (from the LeBrons), Daxelrod, Dax, D. Attended Duke University. I love Duke basketball so we get along great as a result :) Dave enjoys all sports and is very knowledgeable on the topic so he is great to talk to about all the happenings from Michael Vick being indicted for dog fighting to Rashard Lewis getting overpaid by the Magic. One of the cool things is that we both played basketball in high school so its always cool hearing the people he's played against that are now in the nba or playing overseas and vice versa. He also was the original founder of garbage can basketball which has taken the world by storm!

Victor Chiang-known as Vic,V-ster, Vickster, Slumlord. Attended Duke University so we get along as well because of the love for Duke basketball :) The main thing about Vic is that he just loves to compete at random things. For example we challenged him to eat everything on the Wendy's dollar menu within an hour and he did it in 45 minutes. Go figure... It would take a lot of money for me to do that. He did win $100 by the way for it. However I have told V that we are going to have a competition of different games between all of the Associates. Including pool, darts, ping pong, bowling, etc. That should be interesting.

Richard Kubanik-doesn't have a nickname yet and unfortunately is not in the picture above as he just recently joined the Associates. However please be certain that I will find a great nickname for him! Attended Vanderbilt University. So far it's been great getting to know and work with him. One thing I do have to say is that he is the best dressed Associate everyday. Hands down.

That '98 Hurricane Bball Team

So I decided to bring it back a bit.. Back about 10 years as a tribute to those special teammates I played with on "that 98 team." Jermain Hollman, Dale Menendez, Jason Ritchie, Mike Ford, Jeremy Liggon and Dwayne Sanders. What an interesting journey it was. It basically began when I was a ninth grader in the winter of 1997. We were undefeated (20-0) and were playing the top team in Class B Amityville at Stony Brook for the Class B Championship. We were not expected to win as Amityville was a known powerhouse and was the favorite all year. However all game we hung close and even had the lead by 2 points with a minute to go in the game. We wound up losing the game and we were all heartbroken and in tears afterwards but it was the beginning of a year long dedication.

That summer we all played a ton of basketball together. Most of us played AAU that summer and went to respective basketball camps to hone our games but the most important thing is that we played together a ton..whether it was with summer league games playing other east end teams or just playing on a random day down at the elementary school at the outdoor courts. Our goal was simple: Never to feel the way we did when we lost to Amityville the prior year thus ending our then undefeated season.

When the 1997-1998 season began we were on a mission. We scrimmaged the best teams on the island and practices were very intense. I was now in my third season on the varsity and the great thing about practice was that everyone knew they had to bring that intensity day in and day out. We all did and as a result practice was never longer than an hour and a half. It was great! Throughout the season we bonded even more as a team, as a school and as a community. I will never forget when we were 24-0 and had just won the Long Island Class B championship over South Side at Hofstra University. The fans were standing and cheering for us for what seemed like an eternity and we were finally going upstate to play for the Public School Class B State Championship. First time that the Westhampton Beach boys basketball team was heading upstate!

The day we headed upstate I remember the big coach bus with TV's parked in front of the school. We were all amped up and excited. As we all got on the bus I remember all of the studends, faculty looking out of windows of the middle school and high school bidding us farewell. Then as we passed the elementary school the entire school was outside waving at the bus as it drove by...very touching moment I must say.

When we got upstate we blew out Penn Yan Academy. They were a decent team but could not handle our tenacious defense. The next day we were finally playing for the state public championship. I had never been more nervous before a game in my life. Because I couldn't fathom losing that last game for the state title. We were playing Westhill, the team that won the state title the year before. Long story short we won by 20 points! Our defense was amazing and all of us played like our lives were on the line(well they were, we had a Bobby Knight as a coach). We felt like we were on cloud nine. When our bus arrived back in Westhampton we were escorted by the fire/police department to the high school where there was a mass of people. There was a celebration in the gym and that week of school was soo hectic. From being congratulated non stop to having basketball practice (for the state federation championship the following week) life seemed surreal. We wound up winning the state federation championship as well, capping a perfect 28-0 season.

I will have to say that has been the most amazing time in my life to date. I finally realized that you can reach goals (no matter how lofty they may seem) if you work really hard. I remember when we were 11 or so and Jeremy and I would talk about winning a state title and how great it would be. To see that dream come true was priceless.

Fast forward to today and I still think of all those guys I play with. Getting to see Jermain and Jeremy on a pretty consistent basis brings back memories and makes me smile. And when I get to see Jason, Mike, Dale and Dwayne I sometimes think of how much we went through to achieve that common goal which will forever keep us all linked. And on a last note playing a rec summer bball game with Jermain the other day for the first time since high school was really nice even though neither of us are the players we used to be. :)

To view information on this historical season please go to the link below:
http://members.tripod.com/~jermain/

Dee Booner

I am back! I know it's been awhile but I have finally gotten around to giving everyone historical insight on the infamous Dee Booner. Dee Booner was named by his parents after the legendary Daniel Boone. Daniel Boone was an explorer and hunter whose exploits made him one of the most famous frontiersman in American history. As Dee Booner went through life he began learning about the person he was named after and he wanted to follow in his footsteps and live up to the great legend of Daniel Boone. In grade school he would show up with toy rifles and continously tell his classmates how he was going to be a great hunter one day. Someone with the ability to kill all types of animals to provide for his family on the frontier. His classmates would make fun of him constantly as a result of him being "different" but Dee Booner didn't care. He stuck to his word and over time became one of the greatest hunters to ever live on the planet. Mister Booner is now 97 years old and lives in Montana. He still owns "Dee Booner's Hunting Shop" which is now run by two of his kids. There are still days when Dee will go outside, look around and think of all the great hunting expeditions he had. His dream now is to groom his grandson to be a great hunter and to continue the family tradition that he started. The moral of this history lesson is that you can do whatever you want in life if you put your mind to it. However if you enjoy hunting and living on the frontier you might be referred to as "Dee Booner" and now you know why...