Football Withdrawal

Subnormal activity in the nucleus accumbens, often characterized by depression, anxiety and craving.

This is a portion of the definition of the word "withdrawal." Usually it refers to drugs, but in this case, it refers to football.

The end of football season sucks. It just sucks. The Lions are done for six months, my fantasy team no longer matters, writing the weekly picks is a distant memory ... it's just depressing. But THIS year, with the mother-freaking CBA negotiations, it's just morbidly painful. The only way I can describe it is subnormal activity in my nucleus accumbens.

I don't have a clue what's going to happen this offseason, or next summer. Truthfully, I don't think anybody knows. I am pretty sure there will be a season, but it wouldn't shock me if it was 14 games or less. I'm not playing close attention to all the CBA talk because to be honest, I truly don't care. I'm impartial. Owners, players, union ... whatever. Just figure it out. I'm a fan, not a stockholder.

This stupid thing is looming over the NFL draft right now and really sucking the wind out of its sails. Usually one of my favorite sports events of the year, this year the draft is a sobering reminder that there might not be a season in 2011. It's like that scene from Lord of the Rings 2, when the accident-prone hobbit says something about going home to the Shire, and Charlie from LOST says, "Don't you understand!? There won't BE a Shire."

Depressing.

Speaking of LOST, does anybody watch the show Parenthood on NBC? First off, it's really good, and well worth watching. However season 1 is not available on NBC.com so you have to find one of those sketchy sites with Chinese subtitles and irritating pop-ups, but it's worth it. A very good show. Anyway, Michael Emerson (also known as Benjamin Linus) made a guest appearance on this week's episode, and it was just awesome to see him again. He played a bug-obsessed man with Asbergers, and did a phenomenal job, of course. But I kept waiting for him to suddenly stab one of the main characters and look down on the bloody body and say blankly "I'm so sorry, Christina, but he broke the rules."

So anyway, the moral of the story is you should watch Parenthood, and I miss football. Moving on ...

-The two-time defending champion Lakers lost to the Cavaliers last night. That's the same Cavs who had lost a record 26 in a row last month. Is this worrisome for Los Angeles? Or just a weird bump before the All Star game? I think it's the latter. I'm not worried about LA, simply because nobody else in the West can contend with them come playoff time. Attribute this loss to a lack of focus, Kobe's illness, and the fact that Cleveland is much better than anybody realizes now that they have Mo Williams back.

-Carmelo Anthony is still a Nugget, and the trade deadline is less than a week away. It's kind of a foregone conclusion that he'll join the Knicks, but New York's GM Donnie Walsh turned down a trade offer yesterday, calling it 'horrendous,' or some word like that. Denver asked for Raymond Felton (B+ point guard), Landry Fields (hustle rookie), Wislon Chandler (decent scorer) and Danilo Gallinari (poor-man's Nowitzki) in exchange for Melo and Chauncey. In my opinion, this is a win for both teams. However, it makes sense for New York to say no - they'll get Carmelo this summer in free agency, and they can keep their support players. It's not like they are winning the 2011 Championship, so they might as well wait. Denver needs to make a trade soon though, or they will get nothing in return for their franchise player. I expect LA and New Jersey to throw out a couple of half-assed bids, but Denver won't take 30 cents on the dollar, and Carmelo will veto those trades anyway. He wants to be a Knick, and he'll be a Knick. But not until this summer.

-Speaking of highly coveted players, have you heard about Albert Pujols? If you listen to ESPN radio, than you certainly have. It seems nobody is excited about baseball season, people are only excited about Pujols season. If you don't follow baseball (Andy), Albert Pujols is the MLB's version of LeBron James. Physically dominant, statistically dominant, the best player in the league by a mile, and now a free agent who is ready to win a championship. I'm not sure where I think he'll end up in 2012 when his contract actually expires, but I know he'll play this season for St. Louis, and put up his usual MVP stats. Next fall the circus will start up again, and it'll be centered on the Yankees and Red Sox, of course. However, if I'm throwing a dart in the dark, my guess is Albert plays the rest of his career in a Chicago Cubs jersey. Here are 3 reasons why:

A) He probably wants to stay in the NL. It's easier to hit, easier to win individual accolades, and easier to get to the World Series.

B) Chicago is desperate to win. Possibly more than any franchise in any sport. They haven't won a title in 337 years.

C) St. Louis and Chicago are HUGE rivals. Probably the second biggest rivarly in baseball. It would just make for a great story if he went there.


-I go to Mexico in 3 days. I will try to write more stuff after that.
Buenos dias. No bebes el agua. Los cocodrilos son feos.