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Post originally appears on SportsTsar.com:

Jordan Farmar, Luke Walton, and Richard Jefferson were spotted in Vegas last weekend partying it up.

Nothing wrong with that, except perhaps what Farmar wore into the club:

Los Angeles Lakers Jordan Farmar Las Vegas nightclub

Seriously?

I mean, I get that you’re an NBA star that makes millions of dollars and can do whatever you want, but wearing a white tee for Vegas nightlife? There are things called dress codes. Even the NBA requires you to look better than this. Let’s class it up a little next time, shall we?

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Article originally appears on SportsTsar.com

Upon his immediate departure, as a Los Angeles Lakers fan, it was tough to dislike Shaquille O’Neal. The dude changed the franchise, brought home some championships, and was downright enjoyable. I had no qualms rocking my replica jersey from the summer we picked him up.

But that was then and this is now.

Whether or not it was just an attempt to distance himself and assimilate away from Los Angeles, Shaq decided it was a good idea to blast the L.A. fans, Kobe Bryant, and Phil Jackson. The fans? Fine - there are many a bandwagoner. Kobe? Also warranted at the time. Phil? This was a roundabout one, but saying Pat Riley was the best coach you ever had when Phil was the one to mold you into who you are now and who you looked up to, well, that’s a bit excessive.

Now, tack on something new to the resume.

O’Neal, ever the epitome of maturity, unleashed an unnecessary, downright outlandish “freestyle” aimed at Kobe just recently:

Classy.

Really Shaq? I mean I understand the beef and all, but you can’t turn around and shit on a guy like this after feigning acceptance as of late.

Furthermore, can you really say anything at this point of your career? You were supposed to come to the Phoenix Suns to take them to the promised land. Instead, you’re likely to rot away on the sidelines at a much more expedited pace from here on in.

Hey Shaq, tell me how the bench tastes.

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Greetings, LABallTalkers. I, the Sports Tsar has found it in his heart to extend his benevolence to this site, hereby posting all relevant Laker content from my empire onto this site.

Without further ado, we take some shots at Los Angeles Lakers athletic trainer Gary Vitti:

(Original article appears on SportsTsar.com)

Los Angeles Lakers Gary Vitti athletic trainer

It’s reassuring knowing that our team’s athletic trainer specializes in action figure and doll medicine. Unfortunately, basketball players are a different breed - one that actually requires some sort of knowledge of sports medicine and human physiology.

For far too long, Los Angeles Lakers athletic trainer Gary Vitti has been phoning it in.

Yes, he’s been around since the Showtime days, which automatically gives him tenure and a job for life, a la Stu Lantz. He even won a Trainer of the Year award back in 1991 (and devoted an entire page on his site to it).

But since the late 90’s and into present day, Vitti has been slacking off. It seems like L.A. has finally gotten to him, as he looks more primed for a day at the beach than for duty as athletic trainer for one of the biggest sports franchises in the world.

Let’s look at the what he’s been dealing with:

  • An oft-injured Shaquille O’Neal (who has seemingly re-emerged healthy in Phoenix now)
  • A misdiagnosis of Karl Malone, effectively ending his playing career
  • The (non)-walking injury that is Chris Mihm
  • The seeming misdiagnosis of Andrew Bynum (8 weeks was about a month ago!)

Somehow, Pau Gasol was able to avoid the Vitti treatment and came back promptly from injury. While both Laker big men were down, Phil Jackson offered up some choice words:

Gary Vitti is the guy that really bothers me the most because he’s our trainer who can’t get everybody healthy.

Every day he says, ‘I wish I could get this guy ready for you, but. . . . ‘

I won’t go through the litany of the rest of it.

No, PLEASE go through the litany of the rest of it, Phil. We desperately need a reason to run this guy out of town.

How does a team like the Phoenix Suns manage to stay in such great shape? They were able to bring back Amare Stoudamire from a potentially serious microfracture surgery with relative ease, and its not like the Suns play a physically lax game. Dudes are running non-stop for an entire season!

Oh, what the Lakers could be given a semblance of competence on the training staff.

Fandom aside, you have to feel for the players subjected to such inhumane treatment. Careers being wasted away by the Vitti vex.

Maybe PETA should double up the A in the acronym to include Athletes. Douse that offender in some of that red paint to smear his cocoa butter-applied fake tan.

This has clearly become a humanitarian cause.

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