Teams are winning - including me (sometimes)

For the first time in a few months, both the teams I am following are winning!

The Boston Celtics recently beat the Chicago Bulls, and the Melbourne Victory beat the Central Coast Mariners. The former teams play in the NBA, and the later teams play in the A-League. What makes both teams interesting to watch at the moment is they are both quality teams on paper, but are not really producing winning results (until recently). And while the Celtics are currently above a 50% win-loss ratio, the Victory are struggling to have wins on the board, having more matches end in draws than anything else.

GO CELTICS!!
GO VICTORY!!

Other than that, I have been playing in the Magic: The Gathering (MTG) prerelease tournament for Dark Ascension and in the MTG League at Games Laboratory. While I am not ruling the game, I am starting to win a few matches here and there. It feel better than just loosing every single game, but then again, I do not put as much effort into this game as I would like.

With the introduction of the new set for Dark Ascension, I have already seen some new ideas for my to add to my infinite copies of tokens deck which is powered by the Splinter Twin / Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker combo. While it does not affect the main deck very much, the new mechanics from the latest set will definitely change what I believe should go into my sideboard. Cards that I believe will need to be considered in my sideboard are:

• Faithless Looting
• Grafdigger's Cage
• Ancient Grudge (from the Innistrad set - but any previous version is also fine)
• Dismember
• Flame Slash
• Sleight of Hand

The exact quantities of the ones mentioned here is something I need to work on, as well as possibly including some duplicate of the spells in my main deck into my sideboard - up to the maximum of 4 of any card.

This leads me to the psychology of how people feel things based on how much control we have over the aspects in front of us. When it comes to cheering about a sporting team, no matter how much I cheer or oppose a team, it does not affect their final outcome. It comes down to those sports people and how they play, as to what results are achieved. It also comes down to their opponents and how well their opponents play as well. In summary to this situation, I am not too upset when a team I support looses, just somewhat annoyed.

When it comes down to a card game that I have some (perceived) "control" over, it does get a little bit beyond annoying if I had a possible win, and did not make the correct decisions, or choose the right elements at hand to bring forth a winning result. If I play against a deck that my opponent has tuned, play tested a lot, and I loose to it - I do not feel very bad. I noticed in the MTG League that most of my opponents have at least one, if not two, mythic rare cards. While some of those cards are awful to use, some (in the correct circumstances) are game changers. Loosing to those decks do not upset me. Winning to those decks is always a pleasant surprise, as I do not have any mythic rare cards in any of my MTG League decks. The only time I am upset is if through a mistake of my own, I loose to a deck that is underpowered or is on the same level as mine. Luckily, it has not happened much.

Back into the grind for 2012

As 2012 starts up, I'm back at work, along with all my work colleagues and the interesting challenges still face me. Even though it is a new year, it still has not changed much to the type of work I am doing - which makes you think that the whole new year celebration, while fun, does not actually alter too much in the day to day lives of people.

In Australia, we do not end the financial (fiscal) year with end of the calendar year, but with the middle of the year. There is no "clean slate" feeling of coming into the new year. The only thing I do have to be concerned about is car registration, and the expectation of another mouth to feed soon. More news when that happens.

I hope you all have a happy, safe, and prosperous 2012. And hopefully my teams will start winning.

GO CELTICS!!
GO VICTORY!!

Victory and Celtics

With much happiness, I am pleased to have attended my first home game of this A-League season (2011-2012) where the Melbourne Victory have actually won the game. In what appeared to be a close game after Melbourne lost a 2-0 lead to the Gold Coast team, Carlos Hernández headed in the winning goal for the Melbourne Victory in the final 10 minutes to win the game 3-2. Hernández also scored the second goal, with the initial goal being scored by Harry Kewell.

GO VICTORY!!

On other news, it appears the NBA is coming back with a shortened season of only 66 games. The first games will be on Christmas day, and it includes the Boston Celtics against the New York Knicks.

GO CELTICS!!

My sports watching is back to normal!

Mavs win the 2011 NBA Championship

Congratulation today goes to the Dallas Mavericks, who in game 6, have beaten the Miami Heat to win the 2011 NBA Championship. They played like champions, they played hard, and now, they win like champions.

The Mavs played with a core group of people that played like a team. They had less superstars than the Heat, but they played the way the game should have been played. Much of the comments so far have fallen back onto LeBron James. LeBron made The Decision to go to Miami, turning his back on the Cleveland Cavaliers. I did not mind the type of player LeBron was when he was with the Cavs. It was personally disappointing the way he decided to turn his back on that team to go play with D-Wade and Chris Bosh. LeBron is one of the most complete players in the NBA today. He can score, handle the ball, penetrate the defense, as well as defend well. If he had been traded by the Cavs to the Heat, then this would not be a discussion, and I would still think that he is a fair person. The fact that it was his choice has not just upset people like me, but an entire city of fans. I may have his Superman VI shoes, and his Christmas VIII shoes, but I do not like him.

Congratulations, once again to the Mavs, but for 2011/2012...

GO CELTICS!!!

Heat beat Boston in 2011 Playoffs

News of the Miami Heat beating the Boston Celtics in game #5 of the 2011 NBA Playoffs is starting to trickle around the web. Well done to the Miami Heat - they played a good powerful type of basketball. Boston in the past have played like that, but obviously this time around, it did not.

As mentioned previously, Rondo was the key to success for 2011. With Rondo's dislocation of his left elbow in game #3, it was incredible that he came back on the floor later in that game to lead the Celtics to a win. His arm hung limply in game #4 and game #5. It was an incredible performance.

For 2012, the team may need to consider a few things:

• Coach Rivers may not be coming back. If this is the case, they should find someone over the summer to fill in a passing mindset with good defensive strategy.
• Shaq does not look like his body can handle anymore basketball. Jermaine O'Neal is not a good replacement for Kendrick Perkins. I have not felt any confidence in any of their other center positions. They should try to do some smart "shopping" over the summer to get a center with a defensive mindset with a hard-work mentality.
• Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett are approaching the sunsets of their careers. Garnett is only playing with bursts of brilliance every other game. Pierce and Allen should be OK for the next year. They need to find quality backups for all these roles in the next 2 years.

Other than that, I hope the Celtics team and family have a good rest, heal well (especially for Rondo), and come back strong next year. I do not want to wait another 22 years for the next championship.

GO CELTICS!!!

Rondo is the difference

As of right now, the Boston Celtics are getting ready to play the Miami Heat to see who will advance in the 2011 NBA Playoffs. When it comes down to it, the competition looks very close, and I have no doubt that the games will be interesting to watch. You have LeBron James of the Miami Heat, who is very hungry for his first championship win. On the other side, you have Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen - all veterans of the Celtics championship 2008 campaign - coming back to try and win another one. Overall, the comparison of the Big 3s of each team, you would have to tip Miami having the speed and strength, but Boston having the experience and the skills. So which side will win it?

For that, you'll need to make a deeper analysis into the teams. Comparing the starting Big 3s of each side, you get:

• Dwyane Wade on Ray Allen
• Chris Bosh on Kevin Garnett
• LeBron James on Paul Pierce

All those roles effectively cancel each other out. Each player can guard the other corresponding role, and vice versa. Looking at the center role:

• Žydrūnas Ilgauskas on Jermaine O'Neal

Neither starting center is absolutely fantastic, but they too will cancel each other out. It comes down to the last position - the point guard:

• Mike Bibby on Rajon Rondo

This is a huge mismatch. Bibby has a some scoring potential, but does not have the explosive drive or the on-court awareness that Rondo has. Bibby will also have problems containing Rondo defensively. This will most likely lead to mismatches of either Wade or James having to try to contain Rondo. Better yet is if Rondo is double-teamed by the Heat, leading to usually an open Pierce or Allen on the 3pt line, or Garnett cutting to the hoop.

Many announcers and analysts have mentioned it, and I will echo it - "If Rondo has a good night, then the Celtics will usually win!"

The additional unknown variables in the Celtics is how Delonte West and Glen Davis will perform in their roles. If they have explosive episodes off the bench, then the Celtics will surely cruise their way past the Heat. The rest of the Celtics line up are pretty much standard NBA players, with the exception of the injured Shaq O'Neal. When Shaq made the announcement the he was going to the Celtics at the end of last year, I just thought it was hype. I did not see what he could offer the team. He has had bursts of brilliance while playing for the Celtics, but it should also be noted that he has spent a large part of the 2010-2011 season sitting out of the game due to injury. I am happy to be pleasantly surprised if he comes out from injury and aids the Celtics to winning their 18th championship.

I, for one, am hoping that Celtics will sweep Miami. I may be too hopeful since Miami does have the home court advantage for this part of the playoffs, but I have optimism none the less.

GO CELTICS!!!

KG's Retro Flightposite IIs

Kevin Garnett did not always get sponsored by Anta, like he does these days with his KG1 shoe. Throught his professional basketball career, he endorsed Nike, And 1, and Adidas. I even have one of his last pairs of signature Adidas shoes - the Adidas TS Bounce Commander Garnett. This article is about a pair of sneakers recently retro'ed by Nike that was originally associated with Garnett - the Nike Air Flightposite II LE. Garnett would have worn them while he was at the Minnesota Timberwolves, not while he was a Boston Celtic.

The main differences I have seen with the original sneaker and this retro model (with the exception of the colour and the materials used) is that instead of the word "Flightposite" on the heel, it used to say "Garnett". The side of the upper no longer says "Garnett" either, but instead has 5 dots. I cannot make a direct comparison with the originals, as from my understanding, they were never released in Australia.

These shoes, in my opinion, are made for one thing - looks. I do not like the way they feel on my feet, as they are heavy and lack breathability - even though they have large mesh windows on both shoes. Once again I am making direct comparisons to the Nike Hyperfuse. Without taking too much time discussing the merits of the Hyperfuse, I still believe that is the benchmark shoe I will measure the shoes I review against. A lot has changed in the 10 or so years since the original Flightposites were made. Shoe technology has changed, as well as the mindset of the basketball player. Players want lighter and more responsive shoes - and anything with breathability is an additional benefit. This shoe does have some advantages going for it. It is very stable on feet. There is little to no ankle roll feelings made when changing direction quickly, and traction appears to be very good.

I would opt to wear these shoes casually, but with the amount of choice currently on the market, I would not wear them to play sports in. Try something like the Hyperfuse, or even the Air Jordan 2011.

This is (yet) another pair from the team at crazyforsneaker.com. Their site is still going through maintenance, but crazyforsneaker's ebay shop is up and running. Speaking with one of the guys from the crazyforsneaker team, their website and shop should be up and running shortly - and will feature new features for repeat customers. In the meanwhile, you could always try the crazyforsneaker facebook page. I do NOT recommend using facebook, as I think it privacy risk to even have an account on it, but some people, apparently, cannot figure out how to use the internet effectively without it. If you want to know more, have a read of wikipedia's list of criticisms of facebook.

Now, at the time of writing this article, the Boston Celtics are the only team that has swept their opponent, and made it into the second round of the playoffs. All the other teams have lost at least one game to their opponents. It has only been the 5th time in Celtics history that they have swept an opponent, and in the past two time they have swept their opponent, they have gone to win the championship. I, for one, am hoping history will repeat itself.

GO CELTICS!!!

Happy (Green) Easter to all!

Happy Easter to all, regardless what your beliefs are. Some people (mainly in Christian or Catholic based countries) will have a few days off work, and for the majority of you, I hope you have a safe and festive time.

The reason I made a mention for the "green" in the title, is that the Boston Celtics have swept the New York Knicks in the 2011 NBA Playoffs, 4 games to 0. I could not have a happier Easter. It even overshadows the fact that I am currently in Canberra for Easter.

Canberra is usually quite dull for most parts of the year, but it is especially quiet and dull when public holidays occur. The exodus mentality I have previously discussed is still well and alive here in Canberra this year. Saying that, the people here are still rude. Last night I was driving down the (still incomplete) Gungahlin Drive Extension, traveling at the posted 60 km/h speed limit (due to roadworks), and I had a car driving very close to the rear of my car (tailgating), and flashing their high beam lights at me for me to speed up. This is not the excitement I was hoping to experience. I can say I stuck to the speed limit for over 6 kilometers. It was obvious that the AFP took the Easter period off patrolling the streets of Canberra, allowing all the locals to ignore any speed limits. Why do people who reside in Australia's capital city, where laws are made, have a blatant disregard for the law? From my understanding, law was made to be fair for all. I guess being a Canberrian means you have carte blanche to pick and choose which laws you choose to obey.

Anyway, getting back to one of my original topics, I wish the best of luck for the Boston Celtics in the remainder of their campaign to win their 18th championship in 2011.

GO CELTICS!!

Christmas LeBron VIIIs

Christmas Day 2010 was the stage for a meeting of the Miami Heat vs the LA Lakers. In that game, LeBron James wore the Nike LeBron 8 V/2 Christmas shoe on court. I had mixed feelings about the game, being a fan of the Boston Celtics. I wanted both sides to loose. Eventually, the Miami Heat prevailed over the LA Lakers.

This shoe is designed for someone big and solid - much bigger and far more solid than someone like me. Being the V/2 edition of the shoe, it has had some changes to the materials from the V/1 while maintaining the overall look. Lighter materials have been utilized to reduce weight as well as assist breathability, in comparison to the V/1. The LeBron 8 has gone through another iteration after this shoe, in the PS model, with the addition of something which looks like the mesh used in the Nike Hyperfuse. Personally, the profile of this shoe reminds me of a Air Jordan VI.

Starting with the box, you have a picture of LeBron with the lion head. From images from the V/1 box, LeBron has now turned his head, instead of facing directly left, and is facing the camera. The box differs from many other boxes - adding to the total experience of a Nike Signature Shoe, as opposed to the Player Exclusive concept that Nike also does. The Player Exclusive concept is more like a generic shoe, that has some specific icon attached to it, but is still boxed in a generic box. From memory, only Nike Air Jordan shoes, and the recent Nike Zoom Kobe VI have custom boxes, whereas all the other shoes use generic boxes. The inner box images on the LeBron V/2 are also different from the V/1 - which apparently has a picture of LeBron doing the "chalk toss" ritual.

The shoe itself is bulky and solid, and offers good traction for the main part of it. I am not convinced that Nike did a good job on the traction of the outrigger - the extension of rubber on the outside of the small toe on the base of the shoe. It feels a little slippery when doing quick changes of direction, but not every time. You almost need to be running at full speed, and change direction drastically to notice it. For light running, or casual wear, you will not notice this effect.

I have not worn the V/1 very much, but in comparison to breathability, the V/2 still makes my feet feel warm. I do not know if this is an improvement to the V/1. Once again, this comparison is made against a Nike Hypefuse, so it's a very tough benchmark to meet. Possibly the LeBron 8 PS will be able to compare.

The fit of the shoe is good, and I do not feel my foot sliding around in it. I believe that the lace eyelets not being in a straight help contribute to that. The top of my foot feels like it was locked down nicely. I am not very confident with the total Air Max cell in the midsole, as this may have contributed to recent injuries to some basketball players. The example I am thinking of is Rajon Rondo being injured while wearing the Nike Air Max BB Low - a shoe which also has the total Air Max cell. While it may not apply to the LeBron 8, it does not inspire much confidence either.

Cosmetically, the shoe does a good job with maintaining the look of the LeBron 8s, while also displaying colours associated with Christmas. There are 2 lion logos per shoe, one on the tongue and one on the sole. The lion logo on the sole also acts like a window to the total Air Max cell. The shoe also has little references to LeBron, and his journey to win a championship. The shoes both have 41 groves in the while section of the sole. This makes a total of 82 groves, one for each regular season game. The inside of the tongue also has a reference to "828" - a reference to the 82 regular season games, as well as the 28 post-season / play off games to win the championship. Based on the images below, I am sure you will find more references:

My thanks for these sneakers goes to ABCKICKS on Ebay. Great prices, and being geographically close to Australia, the prices for shipping were low, meaning that the ebay overall deal was cheaper than buying these shoes in local stores, and paying the recommended retail price.

Rondo's Low shoe

In yet another variation of a player exclusive shoe, Nike have released the Nike Zoom Hyperfuse Low Rajon Rondo. If you have read my blog over the past several months, you already know I a few other variations of this shoe being:

• Nike Zoom Hyperfuse Rondo PE
• Nike Zoom Hyperfuse (from 2010 NBA Finals - most similar to the shoes worn by Rondo)

I am going to assume that this low collar shoe is going to be similar to the other ones I have. I have not worn them, as I already have another pair of Hyperfuses that I am wearing (being the 2010 NBA Finals ones).

I have spoken to a few other people on the internet who have commented on the general Hyperfuse line. I have not heard a bad comment about them yet, although many of them share the same view as I do - that the shoe is very light, responsive, and tight, but not too tight. On youtube, I found a video where Jefferrrson has said he does not like the shoes flex (it's around 5:20 on his video). He would suggest to Nike to insert a carbon fibre shank in the shoe (see the shoe terminology page for what a shank is), but I have no problem with the way the shoe feels, flexes, or handles. I am much in favour for a shoe that moves with the foot, as opposed to moving against the foot. The legs muscles can provide the stability required, and the angle of the foot can provide the cushioning. I do not use it much for basketball, but I do use it for other hard court sports.

The price of the shoe is one of its biggest advantages - especially if you are purchasing it at around the $100 mark. While not as cheap as some other shoes on the market (and I am thinking of the Dunlop Volleys in this instance - being around the $20 mark), I do believe they are an affordable midpoint in sneakers, especially when you compare it to the fact that new Nike Air Force 1s retail around the $160 mark, and new Air Jordans can go for around $260. From memory, these shoes (the Hyperfuse) retail for around the $150 mark - but as mentioned previously, you can always find them cheaper on-line.

In the following images below, I have tried to capture different angles of the shoe, as well as comparing them to the other models I also have:

The following images are the Hyperfuse Rondo Lows in comparison to the original shoe Rondo wore during the NBA 2010 Finals (without the "9" on the collar):

The following images are the Hyperfuse Rondo Lows in comparison to the first true player exclusive shoe to be branded with Rondo's "9":

The following images are the three Hyperfuses side by side:

In the past, the two high-top Hyperfuses were sent to me by the guys at crazyforsneaker, but the low-top Hyperfuses were purchased from Footlocker's unofficial House Of Hoops on Swanston Street, Melbourne City. They are in limited supply (being Australia, but it may not be the case in the US or other countries), and I was lucky enough to be visiting the day they had more.

Lastly, and in a separate mention from this article, I would like to mention the fact that Ray Allen of the Boston Celtics has surpassed the record of the most 3 point shots made, while during a game with the Lakers yesterday, he shot his 2561st 3 point basket. Well done to Ray (team mate of Rajon Rondo), and I hope he extends the record in the next few years to come.

GO CELTICS!!