Positive. To be honest, I think the reception for all the players was very good (of course, there weren't any Mavericks there). But particularly for McGrady, Lebron James, and Robert Horry. Stromile was having a blast because he was on a team that had a mini-team of professional softball players on it (The Painkillers). These guys were great softball players- they were hitting balls over the fence, including the field that they designed to resemble Fenway Park (with the Green Monster in left). It was like, they were the star players in this game and Swift was just part of the mix. Laughing, high-fiving players at the plate as they came in after the home run trot- he was just having a lot of fun- so it appears. P.S. Someone needs to explain to Sura the concept of the cut-off man in baseball. He made a couple of throws from the outfield that had Barry and McGrady shaking their heads (all 3 and Wesley were on the same team at one point). I know Sura makes his living from basketball- but jeez, you think he'd understand that concepts of baseball/softball.
pics ok so ive never posted pictures before......maybe this will work [/URL][/IMG] yup that worked...ok illl post more later, i have a ton. i gotta go to church and then see the astros pound the mets!!!!
heh...must be...I'm 6'2" and grewup in Pasadena. edit: holy cow zoork...them some bigass pics...could you edit your post and do it like your other one?
Could you enlarge those pics a bit ~ I wasn't quite able to see all of Tracy's pores. ______ Starbury looks thrilled to be out there doesn't he...
Damn! Nice stuff guys. Interesting to hear all this stuff about NVE wanting to play here, Sura not able to do jack on a baseball field Great stuff, keep em coming. BTW, it would be better if you guys just give links to your pictures, because when you post them they are far too big for our screens. Thanks in advance!
No problem. I was there from 4 to 10 so, after a while, you just notice things as you're observing your surroundings, such as: 1. Even though Stoudamire says he hasn't talked to the Grizzlies, why did he and Mike Miller exchange enthusiastic high-fives and hugs? Even more so than the usual long-time-no-see, as if to say, "Hey, future teammate!" I could be totally wrong, but that's how it seemed. 2. Barry, Wesley, and Sura were in the VIP lounge before the games. Sura was drinking a Gatorade and Barry/Wesley had beers (well, at least one each). Only noticed that because my son asked me, "Why is he drinking beer before a game?" Had to explain that it's probably something you wouldn't do before a real game (unless you're the Red Sox). 3. I think LeBron James was pissed because the team he was on (in the game I watched) was getting killed by the other team (something like 15 to 1). Even though it was technically all in fun, I think it's the competitor in him that doesn't like to lose. 4. Damon Jones has a good sense of humor. When Warren Moon was pitching, he kept yelling at the ump, "Hey, he's pitching too fast for softball, too fast!" And he was talking to the crowd a lot, joking around. 5. Not that you can really suck at pitching in a softball game, but Cassell gave up a ton of hits in the first game I watched. 6. When John Lucas Jr. was autographing our softball, my son asked, "Who's that? " I whispered, "That's John Lucas." He replied, "Isn't he retired?" The rule applies: don't forget the details, as in JR! 7. I asked J.R. Smith if he was going to be in the dunk contest this year, especially considering that it's in Houston. He had forgotten it was in Houston and said, "Oh, most definitely, most definitely." 8. Everyone was very generous, I thought, in giving autographs. Some were complaining because Lebron and Tracy didn't sign much. Look, when McGrady was walking through the walkway to go from one field to the other, I stood next to the chain and there was just a mob, a mob of people trying to get his autograph. Not to mention that his bodyguards were pushing him through, basically encouraging him not to stop. When you have 100+ basketballs being waved in your face, and I mean literally in your face (one actually hit him in the side of the head, just barely), and you still manage to sign 15-20 of them, you're doing good. Lebron was mobbed even more, and security basically wouldn't let them stop to sign anything. So it's not like it was their fault or anything. 9. The most important observation: the camaraderie among the players, particularly among the Rockets, was very obvious. It was also cool to see Van Gundy talking to a lot of players- matter of fact, he spoke more with the players on opposing teams than the Rockets' 4 players that were there (Sura, Barry, Wesley, T-Mac- Swift and Head don't count yet). I thought at the time that it almost seemed like a present/future recruiting opportunity. That's dedication!
LOL! Thanks dandarotik, that was great stuff, very funny too! As for JVG, man, that guy is underpaid when you consider he takes no vacation, and even while on vacation, he is still recruiting and thinking about his job, the upcoming season, and all that stuff! The man will die young if he keeps going like that. JVG is an addict, but in a good way! I bet you that he just recruited some future Rockets yesterday. The man is relentless!
Damn zoork I walked in right behind you. My friends and I weren't sure where to get tickets and someone said they were sold out, and you told me you already had tickets, remember? ... Reading over that, I think I'm getting a little too excited. But hey, I was pretty damn excited the entire day yesterday.
Oh, yeah, something else I remember that was funny. Robert Horry hit one on the ground right to the shortstop, so he didn't run at first, but then the guy bobbled it, then he starts running. And he got out. So, there was this heavy-set guy with a mustache playing on his team, maybe someone from the Rockets organization cause he obviously knew him, yell out something like, "See why you got out? You only hustle when there's a ring on the line!" Then, after that, Robert was playing first base- McGrady was at shortstop, and he fielded a ground ball, throwing it hard to get this guy out. Robert made a good catch at first but the runner barely beat it. The umpire yelled "Safe!", and as he turned away, Robert took off his glove like he was angry and cocked his arm back and motioned like he was going to throw his glove at the ump's head. I yelled out "Where's Danny Ainge and a towel when you need it?" The people around me laughed but I don't think he heard.
LOL! zoork! I must've been standing right next to you because that's my basketball in the bottom left corner of your Jeff Van Gundy picture... So here's my pictures, I put them in a Yahoo album, looks like Yahoo shrinked them down so if for some reason anyone wants a higher res version of any of them, except for the ones featuring my girlfriend p) lemme know, my AIM is DanzelKun. I had a great seat to take pictures, but unfortunately, the battery on my sister's camera was dead all day, so I had to hope I could keep the camera on for the few seconds it took to snap a picture before it shut down on me, I missed alot of great pictures, like my girlfriend shaking while she asked T-Mac in her most timid voice if he could sign my ball after the last game... Here ya go! http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/danze...://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/danzelkun/my_photos
