Daps or No Daps

This is a new column that will hopefully be continued in the future. Similar to Sports Illustrated's "Who's Hot, Who's Not" section, but in a style that makes it entirely our own. The "Daps" section will acknowledge people/events/whatever that are worthy of daps and the "No Daps" section will talk about things that are not worthy of daps. Lastly, the "Questionable" section will address controversial issues that some may believe earn daps and some believe are not worthy. So here goes.

Daps:


Kyrie Irving:

Irving is a freshman guard who plays for the Duke basketball team. Highly recruited out of college, Irving has wasted no time making a name for himself. In Wednesday night's game versus the #6 ranked Michigan State Spartans Irving dropped 31 points. He did a little bit of everything to help the defending champion Blue Devils to victory and also added 6 rebounds, 4 assists, two steals and two blocks.

Waka blocka! Irving had a huge pack on this fast break. 

Bill Clinton:

You may be surprised to see the ex-President's name up here, but Clinton is serving as the Honorary Chairman of the USA Bid Committee to bring the World Cup back to America in 2022. He is definitely deserving of daps because the World Cup in America would be great for soccer here and would "assist those less fortunate and promote environmental sustainability," according to Clinton. Not to mention, the World Cup would be tight from a spectator's point of view. When the World Cup came to the US in 1994 a game was played at Stanford stadium. I'm getting my chest paint and vuvuzelas ready.

Brian Westbrook:

Westbrook filled in nicely as Frank Gore's injury replacement Monday night against the Cardinals, rushing 23 times for 136 yards and a TD. He should be getting the rock a fair amount this week against the Green Bay Packers if he's healthy.


No Daps:


The Miami Heat:

Cmon, you guys have the Big 3 and everyone expected you to be the best team in the NBA. After off season acquisitions of LeBron James and Chris Bosh the Heat were supposed to be the team. Instead Miami has stumbled out of the gate to an 11-8 start. D Wade has been pretty garb so far, only shooting 25% for 3 point land.

The Heat have looked like the worst possible scenario when you have a bunch of superstars on one team; there's no offense and everyone stands around waiting for James, Wade or Bosh to go 1 on 1. Hmm, sounds like a lot of NBA teams. But that's another for another time.

Boise State's kicker:

I feel bad for the guy. Kyle Brotzman, who is the Broncos all-time leading scorer, missed the game winning field goal against Nevada from 26 yards out late in the 4th quarter and then missed a 29-yarder in OT to secure Boise State's 34-31 loss. Any chances Boise State had of playing in the national championship are now gone. And Brotzman's apparently been receiving rude voice messages and there have been anti-Brotzman facebook groups created, too.

It's ok, at least you're the 8th best WR in fantasy football this year.

Steve Johnson:

WR Steve Johnson of the Buffalo Bills dropped what would have been the game winning TD pass in overtime against the Pittsburgh Steelers last week. Johnson's actually been having a breakout season, but it will be marred for some after his bout with butterfingers allowed the Steelers to prevail 19-16.

Questionable:

The fines on James Harrison:

James Harrison, a linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers was fined $25,000 for his helmet to chest hit on Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick last Sunday. Harrison has been fined four times this year for a total of $125,000.

There has been a lot in the news recently about concussions and head injuries in football and their crippling effects on ex-NFL players. Rick Reilly for one abhors Harrison's reckless playing style and seeming indifference towards injuring opposing players. Read his article about it here. 

Some think that Harrison is being criticized unfairly. "I'm sure if you asked 10 guys in the league, nine of them would say he's not a dirty player. He's a hard player." Harrison said. 

Steelers WR Hines Ward defended Harrison while also issuing biting remarks about the hypocrisy of the NFL's player safety policy. "They don't care about the safety of the game. If the league was so concerned about the safety, why are you adding two more games on?" 

Time to forgive?

Michael Vick:

Like him or hate him, Michael Vick of the Philadelphia Eagles has been one of the most valuable players in the league this year. He took over the starting job after a combination of injury and ineffectiveness from Kevin Kolb and hasn't looked back since. Vick leads the NFL with a 106.0 passer rating and has only thrown 1 INT. A few weeks ago Vick had 6 total TDs versus the Washington Redskins. 

Some have forgiven Vick for his dog fighting and are impressed that the man has come so far. Jason Avant, a WR on the eagles said this of Vick. "We look up to him. As someone who's been to hell and back - and conquered it." 

Others think that Vick's crimes were too heinous for him to be forgiven. They think that he is benefitting from the sports world's short memory because of his exploits on the field and that he is not truly sorry for his actions. 

Great articles by S.L. Price of Sports Illustrated and Rick Reilly of ESPN about Michael Vick. 

Yankees' hard stance towards Jeter:

This is the problem that both the Derek Jeter and the Yankees organization face. Derek Jeter is a very solid shortstop, a leader in the clubhouse, a Yankee icon and one of the most respected athletes in America. The Yankees are treading on unsteady ground here because they would look terrible if they pushed out the door the most famous Yankee since Mickey Mantle. 

Some believe the Yankees were smart though for telling Jeter to "test the market" to see if other teams offer him a better contract than what's waiting for him in NY. Jeter met with Yankee execs Tuesday night and supposedly Jeter and his agent, Casey Close, are asking for a 4-6 year deal at around $23 million/year. Honestly, does Jeter really have 5 more good years left in him? Certainly not good enough to be worth $23 million each year in my opinion. And in the end, the Yankees have less to lose than Jeter, their ultimate priority is winning championships, not loyalty.