John Frascella's New York Mets fan blog

Tied with the hapless Los Angeles Clippers for the worst record in the NBA at 10-38, the Washington Wizards are quickly becoming a laughingstock of a franchise. The funny part is, the 10-38 record isn't their biggest problem in my eyes -- it's their decision makers in the front office.

Hiring Eddie Jordan way back when (he's since been canned) was the first indicator of Washington's organizational stupidity. I've been a New Jersey Nets fan all my life, and I was very familiar with Eddie Jordan during his tenure as an assistant coach of said Nets. Jordan always garnered a reasonable amount of media attention, despite the fact that he was merely an assistant, and I never understood that. I probably saw him interviewed over 50 times, and he always managed to sound generic, limited, and just plain dumb.

Continue reading "The Washington Wizards are a joke."

We're not even at the All-Star Break, and yet this is a crucial game for the Nets tonight against the Thunder. The Nets sit just 0.5 games behind the Milwaukee Bucks for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and this evening presents a winnable game for New Jersey.

The Thunder have drastically improved, specifically of late, thanks to the play of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and Jeff Green. That trio represents a promising core for the enthusiastic fans of Oklahoma City to boast about. They should save the boasting for the future, however, because their team isn't quite ready to win consistently. The Nets need to utilize their experience (Vince Carter, Devin Harris, Keyon Dooling, Bobby Simmons, and Jarvis Hayes) and poise in order to thrive in tonight's match-up.

Continue reading "The New Jersey Nets: Critical game in Oklahoma City tonight"

(Note: I've published this post on another blog of mine, here.)

Did you see these two teams yesterday? I don't think I've ever been more impressed by a pair of NBA teams on the same day. The Celtics absolutely dismantled a respectable Dallas Mavericks' team, and the Lakers shamed the once-mighty San Antonio Spurs. Everything was clicking for both the Celtics and Lakers, and yet it's not as if this was a one-time deal.

I just don't see any way around this prediction:

The Celtics and Lakers will meet again in the NBA Finals this season. 

I know that's not exactly going out on a limb, but it's rare for the same two teams to reach the championship in back-to-back years. The Celtics have formidable competition in the face of the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Orlando Magic, and the Lakers have to worry about the aforementioned Spurs, the Houston Rockets, New Orleans Hornets, and wild card Phoenix Suns.

Continue reading "We're headed for a Lakers/Celtics championship (again)"

Despite a tough 116-110 loss in Philadelphia tonight, the New York Knicks are playing surprisingly well under their new head coach, Mike D'Antoni. The Knicks had won three in a row prior to this evening's contest, including an impressive victory over D'Antoni's old team, the immensely-talented Phoenix Suns.

D'Antoni deserves to be in the discussion for NBA Coach of the Year because he's had to deal with a franchise in transition, and a general manager that traded away his best two players -- Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford -- in an effort to clear space for a shopping spree in 2010. Of course the fact that the Knicks were one of the worst, if not the worst team in the entire league last season, also works to D'Antoni's advantage in any Coach of the Year discussions.

Continue reading "Mike D'Antoni for Coach of the Year? Hey, it could happen"

Honestly, I can't figure this front office out. I still can't decide if Omar Minaya is a crafty, savvy baseball mind, or a complete and utter idiot. I just can't tell. The decisions being made by this franchise are all over the map. This offseason is driving me insane -- not because it's neither good nor bad, but because I cannot comprehend our financial difficulties or the intended direction of the club.

Why have we taken such measures to steer clear of Manny Ramirez? What, it's not worth investing in one of the top five players in the world, a player who, offensively, is either or second or third best? We're talking about one of the greatest run producers in the history of the game, and a guy who showed absolutely no signs of slowing down after being traded to the Dodgers last season. 

Continue reading "Does anyone know what the Mets are thinking?"

I've posted lists of this length and magnitude elsewhere in the past. Before I get to the rankings, I like to explain my general rationale and some of the specifics of the decision-making process. Here are some essential rules, so you can better understand my thinking:

(1) The most emphasis will be placed on the current NFL season, but the rankings are not entirely based upon the '08-09 NFL campaign. The previous two years will be taken into account, and weighed accordingly.

(2) Proven players get the nod over upstarts if they have maintained an all-pro caliber level of play. For example, Edgerrin James is a proven player, but his performance was shaky to the point where he was benched this season, which means a guy like Pierre Thomas or Le'Ron McClain would certainly be ranked ahead of him.

Continue reading "The NFL's Top 100 Players"

Omar Minaya is the Jekyll and Hyde of Major League general managers. It's incredible how he can look like an Einstein-esque genius with some moves, and an executive that knows very little about baseball with others.

This time, he's allowed the best free agent pitcher remaining on the market, Derek Lowe, to go elsewhere. Lowe would have been a perfect fit behind Johan Santana in the Mets' starting rotation, and not only did Minaya let him slip away, he allowed Lowe to sign with a division rival: the Braves. 

However, I shouldn't place all of the blame on Minaya in this situation, because it's obvious that the Wilpons (owners) are looking to save money this offseason. What happened? I thought we were a major-market team.

Apparently things have changed in lieu of the national financial crisis. Perhaps it's hitting the Mets harder than the media has speculated.

Continue reading "Major Mets Blunder: Lowe Signs with Braves"

We're about 35 games into the NBA season right now -- nearly to the midway point -- and the New Jersey Nets and Milwaukee Bucks are holding on to the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. I doubt that's the way it will end, however, because the list of teams that are on the outside looking in is quite an interesting one: Philadelphia 76ers, Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors, and Indiana Pacers (to name the true contenders).

I think we can assume that the 1-5 seeds are locks, and they are the Cavaliers, Magic, Celtics, Pistons, and Hawks. The Miami Heat should be pretty comfortable in that 6-spot as well, as long as Dwyane Wade remains healthy and continues playing at his customary all-world level. So it's those final two spots that will be up in the air.

The Nets should be able to retain one of the spots,

Continue reading "Eastern Conference Playoff Race Will Get Dicey"

Many of my closest friends refer to me by the nickname, "Fro." When we're sitting around watching a game or chit-chatting about nothing (kinda like "Seinfeld") they like to slip "Fro" into everything.

For example, player names:

Frobe Bryant, Stephon Frobury, Jared Frofries, Nate Frobinson -- you get the idea.

Often "Fro" finds its way into general conversation, this time as a variation on "prediction." As one of my lifelong friends likes to say, this one here is "another awesome Frodiction." Painful, I know. Might as well call me Frostradamus..OK, I'll stop it there, even I can't take it anymore.

I'm not exactly going out a limb with this prediction, but in terms of sheer odds, I have a mere 25 percent chance to get it right. We have four NFL teams remaining, and of course the Steelers

Continue reading "A comfortable "Fro"diction: the Steelers WILL win the Super Bowl"

Sure, Omar Minaya may have cleaned up the pigsty in the Mets' pen with the acquisitions of Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez and J.J. Putz, but that doesn't mean that this team is going to leapfrog the Phillies at the top of the National League East. There are still a number of rather deep holes to fill, and they need to be filled with quality players, not stopgaps.

In the starting rotation, Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, and now apparently Tim Redding are locked into spots. If Spring Training were currently underway, Jon Niese, Bobby Parnell, and Brandon Knight would be competing for that fifth and final opening. In my eyes, Maine, Redding, and mystery man No. 5 fail to represent the makings of a potential World Series caliber back of the rotation. There's undoubtedly room for improvement.

Continue reading "The New York Mets: Plenty of Question Marks Remain"