Press Play Or Rewind ..........

Press Play Or Rewind ……….

Well the NBA ___ season though not yet in full swing has given us a great deal to contend with and to discuss. Washington Wizards’ rookie point guard John Wall has already set himself apart from the rest of this season’s rookies with a grand entrance by posting a triple double in the team’s first win of the season. And if the player’s exhilirating displays are anything to go by then fans attending the Verizon Center in Washington DC will be in for a treat for much of the season.

Wizards’ coach Flip Saunders has got to be encouraged with the effort put forth by the young rookie who seems to be showing a growth and maturity far beyond his young years. And indeed the front office of the organization led by team President Ernie Grunfeld, VP of Basketball Operations Tommy Sheppard and VP of Player Personnel Milt Newton must feel a sense of justification in making Wall the number one overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft . And while there can be no denying that the team will undergo some growing pains as the team tries to acclimatize itself with the offseason changes made within the organization it has to be said that this start may well augur well for the Wizards and the faith shown in John Wall .

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Slide show for your perusal .

Now as we all know with the recent moves that took place within the Eastern Conference of the NBA wherein everything seemed to have revolved around the acquisitions of Chris Bosh and LeBron James by the Miami Heat made everything else pale into insignificance. So much so, that even with the New York Knicks acquiring Amar’e Stoudemire with Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal now finding a home with the Boston Celtics. All the fervor and furore seems to be about what happens within the conference and whether or not the Heat can seemingly led what many NBA analysts will be a ceremonial romp and anointing of the team as NBA champions .

With Gilbert Arenas due to make an imminent return it will be interesting to see how the seasoned veteran deals with his new teammate and who takes the reins of the team. And given what we know about Arenas as a player and the fact that he’s still under close scrutiny of not only the NBA hierarchy led by NBA Commissioner David Stern but also the entire front office of the Wizards’ organization. He’s now on something of a tight leash and any major transgression could see his career with the Wizards come to an abrupt end. The player has already fallen afoul with his coach this preseason having lied to him having faked an injury in a preseason game to facilitate the entry of rookie Nick Young into the game played against the Atlanta Hawks. Even with a public apology to the organization and the fans it has to be said that Arenas just doesn’t seem to have that instinct as knowing what’s right from wrong. Being armoral would appear to be the norm for the player and his mindset would appear to be if …. I screw up a less than contrite apology will suffice .

I’m under no illusion about the expectations of this team and although I can foresee them making the NBA playoffs I don’t fully expect them to challenge the likes of the Atlanta Hawks , Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls or Miami Heat for overall supremacy and dominance within the Eastern Conference. At best should they qualify from within their conference I can’t see them being any higher than a fifth or sixth seed at best . Much of the team’s fortunes this season will be dependent on how much cohesion is shown by the team and obviously upon the coaching prowess shown by Flip Saunders and his coaching staff . If they can play with any type of consistency and maintain that level throughout the season then the bye product by way of an above .500 record and the garnering of a playoff berth would be viewed as tremendous bonus by the organization.

If you thought that the bloodbath of the midterm elections were bad wherein the Tea Party essentially corralled in not only what appears to be an intransigent Republican Party that gave the Democrats an ass kicking which its leadership will long remember well into the future. It has to be said that President Barack Obama , Senator Harry Reid and House Representative and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi have to be licking their wounds and perhaps now see the error of their ways ? You simply cannot expect to always govern from a position of strength without showing civility and at the same time be willing to listen to an opposing view no matter how idiotic you might think it to be. Well that’s now what seems to have happened as the President has come out and accepted the blame for his party’s disastrous showing in these elections. Consider however , what now seems to be going on within the organizations of the Dallas Cowboys , Minnesota Vikings and Washington Redskins ? Comedic farces simply don’t get any better than this and it would take an extremely creative writer to script something far more riveting and funnier than what we’re all now witnessing . I’d dare say that should this ever hit the big screen there’d be a plethora of Hollwood A-listers willing to take on and play the lead roles of the main characters in question ?

Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones has offered his profound apologies to the team’s fans and the fact that he hadn’t envisaged things getting so out of hand . I beg to differ as this team simply wasn’t as good as advertized ! And in coach Wade Phillips , Jones possesses a coach who seems to be way out of his depth , never mind the fact that the coach himself and his coaching staff have been about as efficient as the use of a sponge would have proven to be on the Titanic . Suffice to say that Phillips couldn’t coach or find his way out of a wet paper bag ! To suggest that Phillips ought to be viewed as a lame duck coach would be something of an understatement but the longer this charade goes on the worse it becomes for the entire organization never mind the team itself. Not one of these players on the team has a sense of pride or purpose as they systematically seem to be “mailing it in” each successive week while the team’s owner continues to look like the proverbial buffoon ! I can only assume that the Cowboys’ fans will continue to attend in droves at Cowboys Stadium to witness the diatribe now being served up by team right through to the end of the season . In retrospect the Cowboys’ season is already over but I’d like to think that the Green Bay Packers can simply add another in that coffin when the two teams meet at Lambeau Field Green Bay , Wisconsin this upcoming Sunday !

I’d like to think that the farce also on display with the Minnesota Vikings will soon come to an abrupt end . But unfortunately anything that seems to involve Brett Favre seems to be prolonged and can be as painful to endure as a bad tooth ache. Suffice to say that with the fallout over the Randy Moss affair and Brad Childress’ rather innocuous explanation that the trade for the player was a mistake gives one the impression that the club has now become a legitimate asylum for the legally insane. Could this been what team owner Zygi Wilf envisaged for his team at the start of the season ? I certainly don’t think so ! But then again this is the Vikings we’re talking about and whose every move has been placed under the microscope this season as if we were all witnessing some kind of lab experiment taking place . God this petri dish just seems to be going rancid and personally I don’t think that I can stomach much more of this crap !

Well it appears that Redskins’ owner Dan Snyder for all of business prowess simply can’t hire a coach who seemingly possesses and ounce of intellect. With the recent hiring of Mike Shanahan and an entirely new coaching staff which also includes Shanahan’s son , Kyle Shanahan . It would appear that no sooner had things seem to have calmed down within the organization a full blown maelstrom seems to be back within the team’s midst. Now at the midpoint of the team’s season Mike Shanahan seems to be questioning not only the fitness of his starting quarterback Donovan McNabb but aslo the player’s skillset as it surround McNabb’s comprehension of the “two minute drill”. Not only that but Shanahan would then proffer up the comment that McNabb’s backup Rex Grossman would be better suited to lead the team in such moment’s during a game. Given Grossman’s lack of dexterity having replaced McNabb in the waning moments of team’s game against the Detroit Lions and their subsequent loss 37-25 .I’ve got to ask myself what the hell was it that Shanahan and his son were watching ?

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Wall #2 of the Washington Wizards celebrates the overtime ensuring 3-point basket against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Verizon Center on November 2, 2010 in Washington, DC. Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images

Washington Wizards’ John Wall, left, is fouled by Philadelphia 76ers’ Elton Brand, right, during overtime of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2010, in Washington. The Wizards won 116-115. AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez ……

Washington Wizards first draft pick John Wall, center, from the University of Kentucky, smiles as he holds up a jersey with coach Flip Saunders, right, and Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld during a news conference in Washington . courtesy of Associated Press ……

Former House Speaker Rep Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca,.) who plans to seek her party’s nomination as Minority Whip within the House of Representatives . The Democrats’ humbling defeat in the midterm elections has left the party’s heirarchy in complete shock as to their resounding defeat at the hands of the Republicans within the House. Luckily however they were still able to remain in control of the Senate ___ but for how long one might now ask ? courtesy of Wall St Journal / Reuters

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada speaks during a post-election news conference in Las Vegas. Ethan Miller/Getty Images ….

Speaker of the House Designate Rep John Boehner (R-Oh,.) seen here triumphant after his party’s victories in the midterm elections. Getty Images /Tom Williams ….

Barack Obama talks to the media during a cabinet meeting at the White House today. Yuri Gripas/ EPA ……..

President Barack Obama at a news conference the day after Republicans gained control of the House of Representatives A somewhat somber President takes blame for his party’s defeat in the midterm elections and if anything it might be a reminder to him of the strong repudiation of many of his and his party’s policies . Getty Images/ Alex Wong ………

(L-R) Head coach Wade Phillips and assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Jason Garrett of the Dallas Cowboys looks on against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Cowboys Stadium on October 31, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images …….

Quarterback Tony Romo (9) talks with Miles Austin (19) of the Dallas Cowboys on the sidelines during a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Cowboys Stadium on October 31, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images ….

Wide receiver Mike Sims-Walker (11) of the Jacksonville Jaguars makes a touchdown reception against Alan Ball (20) of the Dallas Cowboys in the first quarter at Cowboys Stadium on October 31, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress addresses the media during a news conference at the team’s NFl football training facility in Eden Prairie, Minn., Wednesday, Nov 3, 2010. AP Photo/Andy King

Caterer Gus Tinucci talks about his encounter with NFL football Randy Moss while catering a function for the Minnesota Vikings last week, at Tinucci’s store in Newport, Minn., Nov. 4, 2010. Tinucci’s plans to offer free lunches Friday to the first 50 people who come to turn in their Moss jerseys, after the Vikings waived Moss after 26 days with the team. AP Photo/Craig Lassig ….

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Randy Moss (84) walks across the field before an NFL football game against the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass. The Vikings released Moss on Monday, Nov. 1 and that has sparked a debate in Chicago on whether or not the Chicago Bears should go after the troubled receiver. The player having been released by the Vikings was claimed off waivers by the Tennessee Titans who this week have a bye . AP Photo/Stephan Savoia …..

Washington Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan watches the action during the game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on October 31, 2010 in Detroit, Michigan. The Lions defeated the Redskins 37-25. Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images …..

Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb (5) looks on from the sidelines after being benched during the fourth quarter of their NFL football game against the Detroit Lions in Detroit, Sunday, Oct. 31, 2010. Detroit won 37-25. AP Photo/Paul Sancya

Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb (5) is sacked by Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (90) during the first quarter of an NFL football game at Ford Field in Detroit, Sunday, Oct. 31, 2010. AP Photo/Carlos Osorio ……

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre steps off the dais after addressing the media during a news conference at the team’s NFL football training facility in Eden Prairie, Minn., Wednesday, Nov 3, 2010. AP Photo/Andy King ….

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Picture gallery for your perusal . By clicking on each frame you can view an individual picture in its original formatted size.

There’s the suggestion that parity within the NFL makes the game a great spectacle but given the display of the teams within the NFC I’m not so sure that’s exactly what we’re now seeing at present. If things get much worse I think that the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) ought to intervene and fine the NFL in order to protect the consumer (fans) from fraud. Because to my mind that’s what is now being perpetrated by the NFL at present !

What thoughts if any do you have concerning the fate of the Washington Wizards this season ? Also how do you see the turmoil now unfolding for the Cowboys , Redskins and Vikings ending up ? Simply chime on in with a comment . From my own perspective I’d rather see this all play out rather than there being a complete rewind of the whole charade we’ve all witnessed so far !

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Alan aka tophatal ….

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Eye candy ……. Bria Myles

More of Bria is what I’d personally like to see and feel !