Stephanie K’s Online Diary
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
The Pistons have reportedly agreed to a 5 year, $55 million contract with shooting guard Ben Gordon. I have been a huge fan of his since his UConn Huskie days, however, this seems like a very hefty contract, agreed to on the first day of free agent negotiations, for a team that already has a quality shooting-guard in Richard Hamilton.
Do the Pistons plan to try the 3 guard starting line-up again (Rodney Stuckey at point, Gordon at the 2 spot and Hamilton playing small-forward)? It didn’t work with Iverson. It’s been established that Rip isn’t going to come off the bench…again….as he did during the Iverson fiasco. And $11 million per year is a huge salary to pay a bench player…if they expect Ben Gordon to reprise his role as 6th man, a role he once dominated for the Bulls. Another option: start BG as point and have Stuckey, who’s still learning how to be a leader, come off the bench as a back-up. Bottomline, the Pistons definitely expect Ben Gordon to be a main component of the team…Rip back on the trading block? Ooooh the suspense!
The Pistons didn’t waste anytime today after hearing Carlos Boozer, a targeted free-agent, has decided to remain with the Utah Jazz. It appears that they don’t want any other available players to slip through their fingertips. They have plenty of cap space to sign some big dogs. Supposedly, talks continue with Charlie Villanueva, a former teammate of Ben Gordon’s during their time at the University of Connecticut. Don’t forget, Rip is a former Huskie as well. Now if the Pistons signed Jim Calhoun to their vacant coaching position, that would just be FREAKY.
Posted on July 1st, 2009 • 1 Comment
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
Check out this fun article written about me…it’s a “Chicks That Love Hoops” feature. :-*
p.s. Still can’t get over the passing of Michael Jackson. He will forever be a legend.
Posted on June 30th, 2009 • 2 Comments
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
I am currently in hardcore basketball blogger mode over on Twitter…
And on AIM, I’m tearing apart Joe Dumars’ latest pick with a fellow Pistons fanatic and longtime season ticket holder (who, I might add, just gave up his 2nd row tickets of 25 years after this horrendous season and seemingly downward decline of the franchise).
The Pistons just selected Austin Daye of Louisville with the 15th Pick in the NBA Draft. Undersized and mostly unproven, he’s basically a Tayshaun Prince look-a-like.
I feel like I’m taking crazy pills. In my mind, even if you don’t think you NEED a player at a certain position, as a GM, you should select the best available player…even if you plan to package them in some type of deal. Sure, the Pistons seem happy with their current starting backcourt (Rodney Stuckey and Rip Hamilton), but why not select Jrue Holiday or Ty Lawson?! Those two could definitely be used as bait in talks with other teams. Just look at the Minnestota Timberwolves…they have had 3 picks in the first round so far…and chose all point guards. You can bet your bottom dollar that they won’t be keeping all of those (supposedly Ty Lawson, one of those picks, is headed to Nuggets…to be mentored under Chauncey Billups).
Joe Dumars, a one-time recipient of the Executive of the Year award for putting together the phenomenal 2004 Championship team (signing free agent Chauncey Billups, trading Stackhouse for Rip Hamilton, concocting the sign & trade of Grant Hill for Ben Wallace, trading for Rasheed, etc.) his draft selections have been quite disappointing as a whole for the Pistons. He had some great selections (Tayshaun Prince, Mehmet Okur, Rodney Stuckey), and the 2004 championship granted him a pardon for the whole Darko debacle. Still…over the past 10 years…we have seen more busts than scores.
I’m not happy. And I miss Chauncey. I just want to put on “Yesterday”, cry, and watch clips of Chauncey as a Piston.
Posted on June 25th, 2009 • 4 Comments
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
Just eleven days after Kobe Bryant proved he has the talent, drive and leadership skills to win an NBA Championship without his former partner in crime Shaquille O’Neal, LeBron James and the Cavaliers have just done the opposite. As of Wednesday night, the Cavs traded F Ben Wallace, G Sasha Pavolovic, the 46th pick in tonight’s NBA draft and cash to acquire what they hope will be the missing piece of their championship puzzle…aging All-Star Shaq.
This trade, a move to clear cap-space for the Phoenix Suns, makes it obvious that the Suns realize they made a mistake when they traded Shawn Marion to the Miami Heat in exchange for O’Neal a short time ago. Shaq was not the answer for the Suns (who did not even make the playoffs this postseason). Why, at 37 years-old, do the Cavs feel he can still be the man to help LeBron hoist the Larry O’Brien Championship trophy (as he did with Kobe and Dwyane Wade)? You can only ride your reputation and past accomplishments for so long. Shaq is far from the player he used to be. And despite his mammoth size, his skills, motivation, mobility and stamina have been diminishing for quite some time now.
Moreover, years ago, would you have ever guessed a future hall-of-famer such as Shaq would be on a jersey for his 5th different team? I surely didn’t.
Draft tonight…! Get your popcorn ready…
Posted on June 25th, 2009 • Leave the first comment!
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
A week has passed since the Los Angeles Lakers earned the right to call themselves the NBA Champions. And that’s that. They deserved it. Kobe was phenomenal throughout the entire post season. I don’t think there is anything else to say? I’ve been racking my brain…but the NBA Finals were not very exciting. And we all knew that the Magic weren’t ready or able to handle KB24 and the Lakers.
Still, it was refreshing that the league and NBA endorsers didn’t get exactly what they wanted (Lebron vs. Kobe).
Draft night is coming up…that’s always fun. But one night will not tide me over. 4 Months till preseason begins…UGHHHHHHHH. It’s going to be a longgggggg summer.
Posted on June 22nd, 2009 • Leave the first comment!
Stephanie K is Ms. Diva
Since everyone will be blogging about the newly-crowned NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers today…I will wait a day or two.
In the meantime, a friend sent me this funny little quiz from the Tyra Show website (already knowing what answer I would receive). Can you guess? LOL…
Don’t hate 
Posted on June 15th, 2009 • 2 Comments
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
Always one to embrace hometown pride, I do follow the Red Wings and keep up with their happenings throughout the regular and post-seasons. However, because of the Pistons’ depressingly short (virtually nonexistent) postseason run, I have become a bigger and more dedicated hockey fan this spring than in years past. I’ve watched, analyzed and cheered the boys in red & white every game these playoffs. And as a true lover of drama, suspense and competition, I am psyched for Friday’s Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Red Wings and Penguins. The entire season…everything these players and coaches have worked to achieve in the past year, boils down to one 60-minute battle on the ice. Now that’s drama! For a league that has been struggling to gain fans, I hope this epic showdown will usher in a new wave of sports lovers. You surely don’t have to love hockey to thoroughly enjoy a do-or-die game such as this.
I will be rocking my Darren McCarty jersey…I’ve had it since ‘96. I’m old school like that.
p.s. Nice to see some more competitiveness in the NBA Finals, as well! Unlike the snoozefest that was Game 1, Games 2 and 3 have been quite entertaining! It’s anybody’s series right now…
Posted on June 10th, 2009 • 1 Comment
Stephanie K is Ms. Diva
My friend Julie and I just had a serious revelation: there is a huge/gigantic/mammoth/monstrous/colossal difference between being confused and delusional when it comes to a relationship.
Confusion is often a result of receiving mixed signals from someone with whom you have become intimate, close, and /or attached.
Delusions are a direct result of false hope, unrealistic expectations and a twisted sense of reality.
This has just inspired a song I am writing entitled “Love/Hate”
Delusional people…check yourselves! Come back to reality!
And that’s all I have to say about that.
Posted on June 8th, 2009 • 1 Comment
Stephanie K is Ms. Analyst
After what has been a very exciting playoff season thus far, last night’s Game 1 of the NBA Finals was very disappointing. Although things stayed relatively close in the first half, the Magic were embarrassed throughout the last 24 minutes of the game, with #24 himself, Kobe Bryant, leading the way for the Lakers and playing the part of the bully who makes it a point to show the new kids in school who runs the show. He was phenomenal…and on any occasion when The Black Mamba goes for 40 points and 8 assists in less than 38 minutes, it is safe to bet against the opponent. But while Kobe and the Lakers were firing on all cylindars, the Magic were firing duds. All-Star Center Dwight Howard connected on only ONE of his six field goal attempts. The Magic as a whole shot a pitiful 29.9% from the field. Blame nerves…blame stagefright…blame inexperience…blame fatigue…but this is a time when players step up their game. Dwight Howard sighting his team’s “lack of effort” as a reason for the loss is absolutely unacceptable. This is not the preseason…anything less than 110% effort is a disgrace and a slap in the face to all of the other players in the league who wish they were in the same position. This is the NBA Finals…win or go home. And with another appearance like that, the Magic could be going fishing in about a week.
I hope Sunday’s game packs more excitement. Last night, I found myself extremely bored, wishing I had done something else with my evening. The Finals are supposed to showcase the best two teams in the league going at each other in an all out war. If I enjoyed watching a team get massacred, I would have watched Clippers’ basketball all year on League Pass.
Posted on June 5th, 2009 • Leave the first comment!
Stephanie K is Ms. Diva
Well, I didn’t get my birthday present [Nuggets win against the Lakers]. Still, I had a fun weekend in my favorite city with my family. It was very low-key and chill…mostly just hung by the pool and got my tan on. This weekend, however, my crew is throwing me a birthday party. It should be all sorts of insanity. And FYI, I’m still accepting late birthday presents…Louis Vuitton and Dior are preferred but not demanded. LOL…just kidding….
I can’t believe June is already here. It seems like just yesterday it was Christmas! I am getting ready to shoot the video for “Story Of A Broken Heart” soon. And I will be uploading some random fun videos from the studio and such to my website and youtube in the next few days. Usually I am happy when to see summer arrive, but I am looking forward to fall this year…it should be a very exciting time for me and my career.
OK…back to writing (working on a song called “Code Names” right now) and doing vocal exercises. Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do!
Posted on June 3rd, 2009 • Leave the first comment!
