Why USA Should Feel Good vs Belgium

Will Selva’s latest post about Hispanic Athletes.

The U.S. Men’s National Team is playing with house money right now. This is not too say that they should feel content to just make the knockout stage of the World Cup. No, they’ve proven to be rugged, gritty and determined enough to get through the Group of Death, a reality nobody expected to come to fruition in Brazil. That’s why if the Americans fail to get past Belgium on Tuesday, it shouldn’t be seen as a failure, but rather a positive step forward to where it wants to be: an upper echelon soccer power. Now to the actual game versus the Belgians. This was a side considered to be a darkhorse to win the World Cup. A young, talented yet inexperienced bunch. They’ve started off slow in games only to crank things up later. Belgium has relied heavily on Chelsea star Eden Hazard, who has not disappointed, but he is just one player.

Romelu Lukaku has struggled, failing to score in this World Cup. If you’re the U.S., you hope this pattern continues. The defense has been solid, but could be missing Vincent Kompany, who’s doubtful with a groin issue. Kompany is considered a world-class defender. As for the Red, White and Blue, forward Jozy Altidore could be back on the pitch for the first time since sustaining a hamstring injury early on in the win over Ghana. Boy, is his scoring punch sorely needed. Clint Dempsey is up front as the lone striker and needs the midfield to do something. So far, Michael Dempsey has not gotten the job done despite his tireless energy thus far. Even he admits that he must step up for the U.S. to have a chance to advance. Still, the outlook is bright for the USA, no matter the result on Tuesday. That’s what happens when you play with house money.

(CBS News)

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Why Kevin Love Must Be A Warrior

Will Selva’s latest blog post.

The Warriors have now reportedly added guard Klay Thompson to a package including forward David Lee for 3-time All-Star forward Kevin Love. My initial reaction? Hell yes! Hurry up and do it before the Timberwolves change their minds.

Love is a double-double machine with a deft passing touch, a sweet stroke from the outside and a nose for rebounds. He was in the top 10 for scoring this past season. Love would be the perfect compliment for Steph Curry as the faces of the franchise. The Warriors don’t lose anything with Lee, who is being grossly overpaid for his production. He’s due $30 million over the next 2 years, so Love would take his spot. He would play next to a defensive-minded center in Andrew Bogut, who when healthy, can be productive guarding the paint.

Draymond Green is the kind of player that hustles and manages to get under the skin of opposing players. Andre Iguodala is a terrific scorer, not to mention an effective perimeter defender. In other words, the Warriors have the pieces to get Love to the postseason for the first time in his career.

This is not too say that it will be easy to unload a young player like Thompson who has the potential to be a consistent. He was in charge of defending Clippers guard Chris Paul and did a fairly good job of it in the playoffs. His 3-point range seemingly has no limit as evidenced by his 41% shooting percentage. Knowing the luck of the Warriors from past trades, Thompson will likely be a first ballot Hall of Famer with a street named after him. Still, the Warriors need to make this happen. Will it get them past the first round of the Western Conference? That’s tough to do, especially with the Thunder, Clippers, Blazers, Rockets and Spurs standing in the way, but this is at least a viable step toward making a deep run a possibility.

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Will Selva: Videos

Will Selva’s latest post about Hispanic Athletes.

Below you will find videos of influential Hispanic athletes as well as the top college football stadiums to visit!

Famous Hispanic Athletes from Will Selva on Vimeo.

Best College Stadiums from Will Selva on Vimeo.

College Stadiums Part 2 from Will Selva on Vimeo.

Top College Stadiums To Visit from Will Selva on Vimeo.

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Machado Deserves MLB Wrath

Will Selva’s latest blog post.

Bat-tossing may become an obscure Olympic sport sometime, but it’s frowned upon in baseball, especially if there’s intent to do harm, which brings us to Orioles third baseman Manny Machado and what he did Sunday versus the A’s. One gander at the video and you can clearly see the bat didn’t just slip out of his hands. He flung the piece of lumber in the hopes that it landed on a player’s dome.

Immediately after the game, Machado, who was ejected said the “bat slipped out of my hands. I was trying to make contact.” Yeah, riiiight. I don’t think so and you can bet Major League Baseball will agree with me. He deserves a hefty fine and a long unpaid vacation for pulling that off. There’s no place in baseball for it. He’s 21 going on 12. It appears Machado took severe umbradge with getting pitched inside by Fernando Abad because, ya know, that never happens in the sport.

He also didn’t like the routine tag A’s third baseman Josh Donaldson placed on him Friday night. That’s right, FRIDAY NIGHT. With the latter point, Machado never really said why the tag was a problem: “Donaldson made the right play, but I just didn’t agree on the tag that he made on me, and I just had to get up and confront him.” Uh, so explain to me why you are angry again? Manager Buck Showalter wasn’t sure what set off Machado but added, “Until you’ve walked a mile in a man’s shoes, you really don’t know what goes on, but it’s a pretty easy call for me what side of the fence I’m going to sit on.” C’mon, really? It was dangerous. It was dumb. There must be something about the name Manny that brings out this kind of kooky, head-scratching behavior because I don’t know how else you can explain away what Machado did on Sunday.

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Brain Cramping On LeBron

Will Selva’s latest post about Hispanic Athletes.

As soon as LeBron James went to the bench for good toward the end of Game 1 of the NBA Finals, it was on. The Twitter haters were springing up like fast-growing weeds in the backyard. You couldn’t pull them out fast enough as the Crampapocalypse was officially upon us, creating such gems as the Twitter handle @KingJamesCramp, which at last check, had over 100 followers.

 

While some of the images and messages admittedly provided a hearty chuckle for their sheer absurdity, what I found astonishing is this snap judgement about LeBron’s desire and motivation. He had a cramp. A really bad one that obviously precluded him from continuing to play. Any athlete will tell you that it is extremely difficult to play through it. I can’t explain why he was the ONLY player to develop a cramp when all the players had to deal with the AC being off.

The Celtics and Lakers, by the way, would always play in sweltering conditions like that at the Garden. What’s lost in all this talk about LeBron’s cramp is that as soon as he went out of the game, Dwyane Wade was invisible. A measly 7 points in the 2nd half on 3 of 10 shooting. That can’t happen. Neither can a relatively silent bench. If this is what happens when LeBron goes out or suffers a major injury, then the Heat are doomed. The Spurs, on the other hand, hold a vibrant bench that is much deeper than Miami’s, helping to end the game on a 16-3 run. Manu Ginobili continues to show that no matter the situation, he’s clutch whether he’s starting or coming off the bench. An true energizer bunny that keeps going. Now we must suffer through countless nauseatingly, gut-wrenchingly long debates on LeBron’s psyche heading into Game 2. No thanks. I’ll just chew on a giant shard of glass until then.

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