Insight: Interesting look at the economics of Basketball

Update: Keeping up with Ricky Rubio

Closing Thoughts

Well we sure had our chances. Not to take anything away from the Saints but the Vikes were the better team, as evidenced by our time of possession lead and total yards domination. It was just those damn turnovers. Hell, we could barely hang on to the ball even when we didn't fumble. Favre threw a couple picks but I can't hate on Brett, he was the reason we made it this far in the first place. Packer fans probably feel a bit vindicated but then again, they barely qualify as people. It was a good year, dually successful in winning games on the field but also restoring this team's image. The Vikes have come a long way since The Sex Boat and this season furthered the improvement of their public image. Hopefully Brett comes back but if not, the future is still bright.

To lose an NFC Championship game is tough, Viking fans can attest to that, but I'm sure glad we lost to the Saints. Not in the sense that I'm glad the Vikings lost but that we didn't lose to the Cowboys or say...the Packers. The Saints have been vital to the rebirth of New Orleans after Katrina and in a building (Superdome) that housed thousands of Katrina victims, it only makes sense that the people of N'awlins' were able to enjoy their first ever Super Bowl appearance in the same building they experienced such tragedy.

Strong will Continue - Nas Feat. Damien Marley

Video: Gerald Wilkins dunking on Nenad Krstic.

Article: Battle in the Bayou: Sydney Rice's Emergence

Sydney Rice's Blog

Vikes over the Saints? Yes Sir!

Hi Jerry & Wade & Jason

Hi Gil...Don't Shoot!

A History of Gilbert Arenas Practical Jokes

NBA Jam

NBA Jam is making a comeback. I am excited. Do you think ARK is still a code for Bill Clinton? Or how about this one, DUM for George Bush.

List: Top 25 hip hop albums of past decade

Top Mixtapes

Francisco Liriano

Remember in 06' when Francisco Liriano was 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA? He was virtually unhittable and if these recent winter league reports hold any merit, he may be making a return to that form

Are you talkin' to me?

After making such classics as Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Casino, Mean Streets and Raging Bull, could Martin Scorcese and his alter ego Robert DeNiro be teaming up once again? It sure looks like it

The Hurt Locker

Outstanding movie and very deserving of these awards. Possibly a best director oscar? We'll see.

BoSox Baby

The Red Sox upgraded their defense today by signing Adrian Beltre to a one-year deal with a player option for a second. After signing Marco Scutaro to replace Alex Gonzalez at short and Mike Cameron to replace Jason Bay in left, the Red Sox improved what was statistically a bad defense last year. They also signed John Lackey to a 5-year deal worth 85 million which raised some eyebrows. I think it makes perfect sense. Spending the money they would have spent on Jason Bay by bringing in a consistent winner in Lackey now gives the Red Sox three number one starters. I never question what Theo Epstein does, his track record speaks for itself. He has brought two championships in the last decade to a team that hadn't won one since 1918. Expect the Red Sox to be in the playoffs once again this year and be near the top in run prevention. Now the Sox just need to find a suitor for current third baseman Mike Lowell.

Up In The Air

Went and saw Up In The Air last night and I highly recommend you do the same. I had high expectations after seeing the trailer countless times (Trailerama is the shit) and reading many a review on it. You know a movie is good when you expect it to be good and it ends up being good. I can't tell you how many times I have had high expectations for a movie and it fails to meet those expectations.

The movie itself is about a guy named Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) who travels around the country firing people for a living. He spends something like 300 days a year on the road and rarely is home (he is from Wilwaukee, I would stay on the road too). After years on the road alone, Bingham finally is ready to settle down and thinks he has found the perfect woman in Alex (Vera Farmiga of The Departed fame). They have common interests, like a love for the road, but when Binghadm surprises Alex at her house he finds out she is married. The movie ends with Bingham looking at a giant outgoing flights board at an airport signifying that once again, his life is up in the air.

The story is somewhat irrelevant however. At its heart, the movie is about the current economic situation our country faces. The countless firings that take place in the movie are heart-wrenching, especially if you know someone who has lost their job recently. When people work at certain jobs for years and then get let go for reasons out of their control they feel helpless. They ask themselves what they could have done different or what they did wrong, when in reality it isn't their fault at all. They were just victims of this horrible economy. But when one door closes another door opens or as Ryan Bingham would tell you when he is firing you, "Kings and Queens have sat in that same chair and it is because they have sat there that they became what they did."

Up In The Air is based on a novel by Walter Kim and is directed by Jason Reitman.

Deadspin

If you don't read Deadspin, I highly encourage it. It is a sports blog/website but lets just say they have their own spin on things. Sometimes that spin includes video of Cowboy fans having sex in the Dallas Stadium public bathroom.

Team Chemistry?

Apparently Gilbert Arenas was not just storing those guns in the Wizards locker room, he was drawing them on teammates after losing 60K to Javaris Crittendon