What in The Wide World of Sports is Going On Here?

A few rather "embarrassing" things in the world of sports happened this week, and I thought I'd give my two cents about them:

The New York Knicks fire head coach Larry Brown. This is simply unbelievable. The Knicks canned Brown after one miserable season. They will eat $40 million, which is the last four years of his contract. It was well-known that Brown didn't get on with GM Isiah Thomas and star player Stephon Marbury. But would they really eat THAT much money to be rid of him? I heard this morning that the Knicks will try to recoup that money by claiming that Brown undermined Thomas by trying to swing deals with other clubs without his knowledge, so they can void his contract. Good luck finding any other NBA GM willing to admit they tried to swing deals with Brown under the table.

Thomas named himself head coach. The Knicks are a bloody mess, a franchise that has absolutely fallen off the rails. They are an embarassment to the NBA, and it will take a long time for them to be a quality team again. It's a shame, and I think of my late friend Joe, a diehard Knicks fan, and he must be saddened wherever he is to see his beloved team in such disrepair. Speaking of embarrassments....

The Miami Heat win their first NBA title. Congrats to the Heat for winning the title in 6 games. I was glad to see them win, for one reason. The Dallas Mavericks DIDN'T win. They have the worst owner in sports, Mark Cuban. He's an embarrassment not only to the NBA, but to professional sports owners. I know some people like him because he's like the ordinary fan, but yelling "Bleep You!" at the NBA commissioner not once, but twice, is way over the line. He went nuts over some calls that led to the Mavs losing Game 5, and he was heavily fined for it, and for the 13th time since he's owned the team. As much as I dislike George Steinbrenner and Jerry Jones, they never pulled crap like this. I hope Cuban never wins an NBA championship, and stews over this one for a long time to come. And more embarrassments........

Ozzie Guillen fined and suspended. Everyone knows that manager Ozzie Guillen is a loose cannon, and not one of your diplomatic types. He's had well-known blowups with players like Magglio Ordonez and Frank Thomas. But this week was something else. A rookie pitcher on the White Sox did not retaliate against the other team for a White Sox player getting plunked, so Guillen had him shipped to the minors. Then in the blowout win over the Cardinals on Monday, ex-Red Sox pitcher David Riske did just that, plunked a Cardinals hitter, and he and Guillen were tossed. And if that wasn't enough, Guillen went off on a rant about reporter Jay Mariotti, who he's feuded with in the past. He called Mariotti a "bleepin' fag," among other colorful things. It's not the first time Guillen has used such language, and he's been fined by Bud Selig and ordered to undergo sensitivity training for his remarks.

I have to believe that if the White Sox weren't the defending champions, and a team in the position of say, the Royals, Guillen would be on the unemployment line by now. They'll stay with Guillen because the White Sox are winning. But when and if it stops under him, his tired act will be done and he'll be looking for work elsewhere.