Random Thoughts, courtesy of Wheeler …

- Great episode of E-60 (ESPN’s behind the scenes look at stories through the eyes of the reporter) last night. Particularly their look at street fighter turned mixed martial artist Kimbo Slice. I’m not condoning watching it, but Kimbo’s got some crazy clips on YouTube of him during his street fighting days. The man’s the scariest dude I think I’ve ever seen.

- Damon Stoudamire to the Raptors: I’m going to give it a big NO THANK YOU. He may be a short-term solution to fill some playing time, but there’s no way he makes this team anymore of a contender. No disrespect to Damon, but at this point in his career, he’s just not what the Raptors need.

- Anyone else think the Patriots will win by 20?

- Peter Bjorn and John was a pretty decent show. Started off slow but the second half of their set was really good.

- I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m one of those guys who wasn’t completely turned off by the NHL All-Star game and festivities this past weekend. I like Alyssa Milano. I like the Hives. I like the potential that’s in the NHL Skills Competition. Seriously, I really do like some of the ideas put out there, and loved seeing some of the old time Hockey guys in the crowd and actually looking like they were enjoying themselves. The same can’t be said for most of the players. While guys like Alexander Ovechkin and Rick DiPietro were a breath of fresh air, too many guys clearly would have rather been elsewhere, and were reportedly “bored” by the events Saturday. To me, this is unacceptable. The event isn’t about competition; it’s about entertainment. If the players can’t “fake it”, show some personality, and come up with a creative edge (ya, I’m talking to you Martin St. Louis), this league’s in more trouble then we all thought.

- Would anyone else like to see someone, ANYBODY, close the gap between Tiger and the field? Winning by 1 or 2 strokes is one thing, but 8! Come on … the guy’s good, but he’s human. Give him some competition to keep me watching.

- The new replay that showed the trajectory and flight path of the ball on the Buick Open broadcast was incredible. Kudos to the PGA for upping their anti in terms of coverage.

- Lebron or Kobe? … for me, it’s easy – Long Live the King!

- Is there a better soccer player in the world today than Cristiano Ronaldo?

gw