Say this much for Phil Jackson’s Hollywood sensibilities: he knows, in the end, you have to get the girl.
How unlikely did it seem, in the wreckage of the Lakers’ stunning Finals loss to the Pistons in June 2004, that Jackson would ever deign to return to L.A. (or be invited back by owner Jerry Buss), dealing with “that kid” (Kobe Bryant) again and a depleted supporting cast?
Why, this was Phil Jackson, Coach To The Stars, a guy about as interested in reclamation projects as George Steinbrenner. Who would pass on tidying up a spacious Montana ranch for the sake of making Devean George - or, worse yet, Chris Mihm - a viable NBA entity?
Yet, the Zenmaster did just that, ending his year-long sabbatical from the NBA to resume control of a Laker team that was no threat to anyone in particular (not even anyone in their own building, as it turned out).
There were a number of reasons, of course. Jeanie Buss, the boss’s daughter and Jackson’s longtime girlfriend, is the most obvious (well, $10 million a year couldn’t have hurt, either), but there were also several less obvious motivations he himself mentioned.
The glamour of Hollywood had clearly grown on Jackson, and a year away from it was probably just about the right break. Besides, as a competitor, one who carved out a decent career as a player in the league, he had to wonder what he could accomplish with one superstar and mostly spare parts.
The ultimate answer, of course wasn’t spectacular: after a crushing overtime loss to Phoenix in Game 6 of their first-round playoff series, the Lakers scarcely showed up in the decisive battle. The intra-arena second-round series with the Clippers that many considered a fait accompli after the Lakers were ahead 3 games to 1 over the Suns never happened.
This is hardly Jackson’s fault, of course. He obviously did more with an odd assemblage of talent than most anyone else could have managed. He made Lamar Odom look focused, George reliable and Kwame Brown conscious - no small feats, by any stretch.
But probably the most impressive thing Jackson did this year was prove those of us who figured he’d never take on a hopeless cause voluntarily wrong. True, he had other reasons to do it, but there’s no question he’s keenly aware of his championship-laden legacy.
At least now he can watch the Clippers up close.
Q: You guys are my number on source for straight news on the bhind the scenes action, thanks! That said, is there any word on getting Dwight Smith back from NO? I don’t know why, but I felt more comfortable with back there in the lineup. This guy can really lay out some punishment. - Martin Ballard, Orlando
A: I don’t think the Dwight Smith deal is dead yet. I know the Bucs would like to have him back and that the Saints want to unload him. It may never happen but it’s one of those deals that will never truly die. It could be that it’s something the Bucs do out of necessity at some point.
Q: What’s your take on the Ross Verba coming to Tampa rumors? Is there any reason to believe the Bucs are done adding players to the O-Line? - Stephen Lee, Flower Mound, TX
A: I heard the rumors and threw a note in the paper acknowledging them, but I don’t see it happening. I think the Bucs learned their lesson about aging O-linemen when Todd Steussie and Derrick Deese proved to be busts.
Q: You guys always seem to have an ear to the ground on what’s happening behind the scenes. What have you heard of Kyle Turley’s attempt to convert to tight end, and do you think Gruden might consider giving him a tryout? Gruden was high on Turley as a tackle, and covets tight ends. If the guy can catch at all (we already know he can block) he’d probably be thrilled to get on the roster as a third option. What do you think? — Martin, Orlando
A: I love the idea of giving Turley a shot at TE. And it sounds like just the kind of thing Gruden would do. That’s one to keep an eye on.
Although no USF players were selected in the NFL draft, six Bulls are in NFL mini-camps hoping to land an NFL roster spot. In Saturday’s Tampa Tribune, we had a couple of nice stories on the hopes of USF’s Andre Hall and Tim Jones from Tribune columnist Martin Fennelly and Tribune Bucs beat writer Roy Cummings from the first day of Bucs mini-camp. Here is Fennelly’s column on Hall and Cummings’ story on Jones. Enjoy the weekend.
Tampa Tribune staff writer Eddie Daniels recently wrote about former USF WR Johnny Peyton in the Tribune’s Pasco section and Peyton’s future destination. Here are some excerpts from Daniels’ story:
Peyton said the only place USF coach Jim Leavitt will release him to is Akron and Peyton doesn’t seem to mind playing for Zips coach J.D. Brookhart, a former collegiate wide receiver who likes the passing game. Brookhart has established a passing offense since coming in 2004 from Pittsburgh, where he was wide receivers coach and recruited Peyton out of Pasco. “Of course, you know, it’s J.D.,” Peyton said when asked about Akron’s appeal. “I just want to be in a passing offense. I just want to catch the ball. I just want to play football. I just want to play.”
Nothing is set in stone with Akron and Peyton may not have a school until this summer, but he said he has talked to Zips director of football operations Reno Ferri in hopes of establishing a future. Peyton played in 11 games last season. He wasn’t allowed to travel to the Meineke Car Care Bowl because he was tardy or missed various team functions throughout the year. The dismissal has given Peyton plenty to think about.
“I can’t sit here and tell you I was a perfect angel,” Peyton said. “I ain’t going to sit here and tell you that everything that was done was justified. We had a misunderstanding, but hey, we’re OK now. We’re both going on. I’m gone. I’m going on about my life now. And whatever happened is in the past. I learned a lot from that situation. I learned a lot. It made me hungrier.”
The only options he has now point out of state. Peyton said Leavitt told him he would not be released from his scholarship to play in Florida. Instead, his alternative may be to play in northeast Ohio.
“I need to get away. I just need to get far away from home,” Peyton said. “I think it will help. I think I’ll be a little more focused, less distractions.”
So far the recruiting process is crazy. It gets crazier by the day. I’m getting anywhere from 20 to 30 letters a day and about 15 at school. A total of about 50 a day. I get calls from recruiting websites all hours of the day. Rivals, Scout.com, Gamecocks Central. It’s ridiculous. They want to know how the process is going, the offer situation, what camps am I attending and what unofficial visits I have taken. I am going to the NIKE camp in Gainesville and how the visits have went.
So far I have taken unofficial visits to the University of South Florida, University of Florida, University of South Carolina, Ole Miss and Alabama. USF was the hometown school and I want to make sure I wasn’t missing out on anything. It was pretty good, I enjoyed it and they are in need of a quarterback. I’ve been to Florida about seven or eight times and every time I’ve been there it’s been great. The coaches are a little crazy, but I like them. They know how to recruit. USC was one of the better trips I’ve taken. The only negative thing was it wasn’t a direct flight. Go up to Charlotte and down to Columbia. Other than that, they are an up and coming program and I like them. Actually, two of their recruits (Quinton Richardson – offensive lineman and Gary Gray - cornerback) are going to be coming down in a few weeks and staying with me. Ole Miss was awesome, too. Alabama was awesome. The tradition they have is great. They are renovating their stadium. The tradition just blew me away. Coach Shula is cool and a smart guy. Laid back, but real serious.
Florida, South Carolina, Ole Miss and Alabama are my favorites right now. Anything can happen. I’m still up in the air right now. My main focus is our spring jamboree on May 18. We play Plant. I can’t wait to play to them, I’ve been wanting revenge since last year’s game.
I don’t know what camps I’m going to this summer. I’m hoping to get invited to the Elite 11 Camp, but first will be the Nike Camp.
Right now, I’m looking forward to this season, and help get attention to some of the other players we got on our team that have the opportunity to play D-1 football. We have a very good team this year, and I like our chances at running the table.
ORLANDO – When Urban Meyer surfaced as a candidate for the football coaching vacancy at Florida, Jack Youngblood’s phone began ringing.
Youngblood, a former Florida great and an NFL hall-of-fame defensive end best known for playing a game in the 1979 playoffs with a broken leg, said the callers had the same request.
“I had some folks call me and ask me to make some phone calls and get my opinion of [Meyer],†Youngblood said Wednesday after Meyer spoke to the Central Florida Gator Club. “And I did.â€
So who called? Was it athletic director Jeremy Foley? University president Bernie Machen?
“No,†Youngblood said. “The Bull Gators.â€
University of South Florida coach Jim Leavitt and sophomore quarterback Carlton Hill both told me that Hill has met the necessary academic requirements for the spring semester and Hill will be eligible in the fall. Hill’s eligibility had been in question because he had missed part of spring drills to take care of academic commitments.
“It’s a big relief,” Hill said. “I passed everything. I’ll be eligible. I’ll be ready in the fall.” Hill was named the starter before spring drills, but fell behind senior Pat Julmiste and freshman Matt Grothe - or behind freshman Matt Grothe and senior Pat Julmiste, if you prefer - after a disappointing spring. Now with Hill set for fall drills, it should make for an interesting battle between (in alphabetical order) Grothe, Hill and Julmiste for the starting position. Leavitt has told me on numerous occassions how important the summer workouts are for his players, so it will be interesting to see what kind of shape they report in for fall drills.
So with Hill set for this fall, there is only 122 days remaining until the season opener against McNeese State to debate who will be the starter. Well, what are you waiting for?
In case you missed it, the Devil Rays’ attendance sank to a new low the other night when a bit more than 7,000 fans showed up at the Trop to watch a game against the Rangers. It’s always been my position that attending professional sporting events is a voluntary thing and fans are under no obligation to “support’’ - translation: spend their hard-earned money on tickets - their local franchises. You’re either into it or you’re not.
Having said that, it’s always interesting when Mama Trib sends me to a place like Boston or New York, or even Baltimore. These are true sports towns, across the board. Tampa is like a lot of other places where support goes up when the team wins and collapses when it doesn’t. Even the area’s renowned allegiance to the Bucs was fraying until the Bucs won 11 games last year. Until then, you had begun to see large patches of empty seats at Raymond James Stadium.
Same thing with the Lighting. They sold out every home game this year, but that with the afterglow of a Stanley Cup as the draw. If times get tough again, we’ll see how they do.
It’s not just butts in the seats, though, that makes a great sports market. It was major news recently in Boston when the Red Sox traded for catcher Doug Mirabelli. Turns out, he’s the only one in New England capable of catching knuckleballer Tim Wakefield - which means Mirabelli will play once every five days on average. That didn’t stop Red Sox Nation from turning this trade for a backup catcher into a cause celebre. If you’re looking for the defination of passion, you just found it.
Fans here border on that kind of obsessive behavior with the Bucs - just ask Todd Steussie. That kind of juice lights up a marketplace and transforms it, but unless the passion runs truly deep it’s hard to sustain. The Bucs have been around long enough to have developed multiple generations of fans, and that’s a start. The Bolts are just getting there, while the Rays are still learning to get out of their own way.
I’ve often wondered what it would be like around here if Sept. 1 arrived and the Rays were in a playoff race, but since we’re a few years away at least from finding out, we’ll just have to guess. Until then, I guess many folks will focus on what really matters to them - the start of Bucs training camp.
Q: Hey guys, once again great coverage. I was a little interested to know if there’s been any rumblings about the Bucs showing any interest in Marcus Vick right now. I know they don’t need anymore QBs, but it’s not like they would be risking much by bringing him in for camp in the preseason. — John Humphries, Tampa
A: The Bucs really focused on adding character players and avoiding player with checkered histories. His skill and ability aside, I think Marcus failed the character test. I can’t see him becoming a Buc.
BRADENTON – Urban Meyer only met Bill Belichick last year, but Belichick apparently liked Meyer enough that he designated Meyer’s Florida team as the unofficial Triple-A affiliate of the New England Patriots.
The day after the final game of the season - unless it’s when the team wins a championship - is the longest day of the year for a hockey writer. Sitting around waiting for players to arrive, meet with the coach and the GM, go to the locker room, pack their bags, say some goodbyes, talk with team members, etc. We arrived at the Forum around 9:30 with the final meeting scheduled for 2:30 p.m. A news conference with Feaster and Tortorella began at 3 p.m. Then I could finally start writing my final hockey package of the season. Here is a quick run down of some of the things that went on Monday.
There appear to be only two players heading to the World Championships this weekend - Martin Cibak for Slovakia and Timo Helbling for Switzerland. Vinny Prospal is nursing a sore shoulder that required cortisone shots before each playoff game. His Czech Republic teammate Pavel Kubina is suffering from a sore groin and hamstring that hampered for much of the last month of the season. Dan Boyle wants to get his ankle feeling better and will take a month to rest. Brad Richards and Vinny Lecavalier have also apparently declined Team Canada’s request while Marty St. Louis is going to take time to spend with his family. Fredrik Modin also declined, wanting to rest up after a long season.
John Grahame, who in all liklihood will not return next season, slipped out the backdoor after his meeting with Feaster. Though he spoke to television cameras before he went in for his meeting, I was hoping he would come back and speak before bolting the building. Guess that makes it obvious what his future with the franchise is.
The chances of Sean Burke returning are 50/50. He apparently made some comments during the playoffs that didn’t sit well with some in the organization meaning Tampa Bay’s goaltending tandem could be totally overhauled when training camp opens in September.
And speaking of the the goaltending, other than re-signing Brad Richards, that will be Jay Feaster’s No. 1 target this summer. Word is he started looking for a goaltender in December and was very close to acquiring Mika Noronen from Buffalo at the trade deadline. And he apparently was able to lay some groundwork for a deal that could come to fruition. And because he didn’t give up his No. 1 draft pick at the trade deadline, that is now something Feaster could look to use to pry a goaltender away from somebody.
The name Evgeni Nabokov keeps coming up. Rumors were swirling in January when Tampa Bay played at San Jose that Nabokov was nearly traded to the Lightning, and the fact he was a surprise scratch against Tampa Bay that night heeds some creedence to that. Other possible trade partners are Vancouver, who has three NHL goalies with Noronen, Dan Cloutier and Alex Auld; Boston, which has Tim Thomas, Andrew Raycroft and Hanu Toivonen; Columbus, which might be willing to part with Marc Denis; Philly can’t live with Robert Esche and Antero Nittimakki forever; Anaheim, which might be willing to deal JS Giguere after Ilya Bryzgalov started Game 6 agaisnt Calgary and potentially Dallas’ Marty Turco, who may have fallen out of favor after another playoff let down, although he has a no-trade clause which might cloud things up.
It’s going to be an interesting and busy summer for Feaster, especially with a sense of urgency to sign Richards before he can become eligible to sign an offer sheet on July 1.
That’s all I’ve got for now.
Q: Just curious on how you feel about the drafting of Mo Stovall out of ND. Very productive under Weis and his offense, but was non factor three years previous. I think he’ll bring a lot to the receiving corps and could easily make the team. What are your thoughts? — Joseph C. White, Port Charlotte
A: He’s the one guy who can probably step right in and contribute right away.
Q: Guys, I like our draft this year. I’m not so sure Joseph would have been there if we’d traded down. I also read we signed Andre Hall from USF as a free agent. Is he also a kickoff/punt returner? I read where the CB from Oregon we signed in round 7 [Justin Phinisee] was a good returner, which we need. Do you think Jamie Winborn and Barrett Ruud are starter material? If so, I think we’re OK at LB. — Raymon House, Clearwater
A: There’s no question that Winborn and Ruud are starting caliber players. But if Brooks and Quarles keep playing the way they have been, the Bucs won’t have any need to start them.
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