Wednesday Water Cooler – June 16th, 2010
Here we go with today’s sports water cooler talk. Here, you won’t just find the straight news; you’ll find the stuff everyone is talking about – the ice breakers, the Twitter Sports Picks and topics…well, basically all the stuff you discuss at the water cooler.
Enjoy!
I’m still shaking my head in shock after seeing Spain lose to Switzerland but I’ll see what other news I can cook up to measure up to that today.
NBA news: Tom Izzo rejects Cleveland to stay with Michigan State; Steve Kerr leaving Phoenix
I guess the LeBron drama was just too much for Tom Izzo. Clearly, Cleveland’s shaky relationship with LeBron James at the moment cost them their shot at signing Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo to a five-year, $30-million deal.
Izzo was unable to speak with James and he admitted that was a big factor in his deciding to stay with Michigan State. He’s been the Spartans; head coach since 1995.
Despite building a Suns team that reached the NBA’s Western Conference final this season, Steve Kerr has decided to leave his post as Phoenix general manager this summer.
He insists the move has nothing to do with a reported contract dispute and that the decision was simply a personal one.
NFL news: Daunte Culpepper to start – in a different league
Daunte Culpepper finally has a starting quarterback job again, but it isn’t with an NFL team. He’s agreed to join Sacramento’s new UFL franchise, the Mountain Lions, for the 2010 season. The 33-year-old Culpepper (yeah, seriously, he’s only 33) will reunite with coach Dennis Green, who teamed with him during his Minnesota glory days.
MLB news: Strasburg rookie card sells for over $16,000; Chipper Jones mulls retirement
It’s a throwback to the good old days when baseball cards were sought-after commodities. Accountant Robert J. Power read a Yahoo article detailing the projected value of Stephen Strasburg’s rookie card and he was inspired.
So inspired that he just dropped $16,043 on eBay to buy it.
Nope, not a car, not a luxury vacation….a little piece of cardboard. Cool.
Chipper Jones may be calling it a career in the very near future. The Braves’ longtime leader and slugger openly discussed the idea of retiring this week, as he’s frustrated by his own physical decline.
The ounce-proud Chipper won the MVP in 1999 when he hit .319 with 45 homers, 110 RBI and 25 steals. This year, he’s hitting just .233 with four homers.
Will Chipper reach Cooperstown? Tough to say, but he’s a .306 career hitter and his 430 career long flies put him behind only Eddie Murray and Mickey Mantle for homers by a switch hitter.
NHL news: Sharks will try to re-sign Evgeni Nabokov
Though he choked again along with his entire team in the 2009-10 playoffs, goaltender Evgeni Nabokov reportedly still has a job waiting for him in San Jose. The Sharks will try to re-sign him despite his 3.15 goals against average in the second and third rounds of the postseason this year.
Maybe the Sharks are simply in denial?
Either way, cap space could be a problem. They’ll likely have to choose between Nabby and Patrick Marleau; the report is that Marleau will be the one who walks.
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