Tale of Two Sports Heroes (?)

Long time no entry for me. Di naman busy pero occupied sa maraming bagay like si Greggy. Yes, 3 months na ang aking baby boy pero mukha na syang 6 months.

PS3 mode na din kasi na jailbreak na at 100 php na lang ang isang game for me. Laking tipid.

May work na din ako at SMC under Special Projects. No more elaboration here. Hehehe.

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Sports update muna...

Missed giving predictions on the NBA playoffs and some great boxing matches. And these are the things that made buzz in my basketball and boxing worlds.

* Out ang Boston Celtics ko... Ok lang din kasi out din ang LA Lakers. No "Beat LA!" chant anymore.

* Victor Ortiz winning via UD over ex-champ Andre Berto. Early fight of the year candidate with round 6 as Round of the Year candidate as well. Great, great fight.

* Marcos Maidana (the guy who KO'd Victor Ortiz) winning a 12-round UD over "old" eric Morales. Not impressed with Maidana's win considering he almost KO Amir Khan in their last fight.

* Orlando Salido's upset of previously unbeaten Juanma Lopez via 8th round TKO. Too bad for Juanma.

* Pacman's UD over Shane Mosley. The most boring fight of Pacquiao in the America.

* Bernard Hopkins being the oldest boxing champion at age 46 via UD over Jean Pascal. Not much excitement but the fact that you're witnessing B-Hop stealing the belt and becoming the oldest champ was worth it.

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The tale of Lebron and Floyd Jr. is quite similar. Both are highly criticize in their respective jobs basically because of their decisions.

Exhibit Lebron - Teaming up with Wade and Bosh is like a highway robbery already, considering 3 "franchise-player-caliber" ballers being on a same team doesn't make sense at all. Leaving his own hometown team in a "fashionable" way (The Decision, right?) to get the elusive ring he desire since his entry in 2003.

He getting his coronation with his decision. After an outstanding series against the Bulls for the East finals, Lebron James is befit to be called King until yesterday's game 4. Game 3 is a so-so performance but they get the W so who cares? But Game 4, stat line of 8-8-7 doesn't make sense for a guy who declared in Game 2 that "no one guy can defend me one-on-one!"

Very passive Lebron James, shrinking in the moment where he should take charge of the game. Only 1 attempt in the 4th? Come on Lebron, don't quit right now! Reminding me of his Cavs days against the fave Celtics team. Finish your coronation and deliver. Don't be "Queen!"

Are they worth to watch?

Exhibit Floyd - The guy's is self-proclaimed the best pound-per-pound. Big talker right? It you have a 42-0 record, you can demand and say anything but doubters, like me, will continue to clamor a fight against Pacquiao.

Here are the orders: First send off, wants a Olympic-style drug testing procedure. Pacquiao doesn't want it. Second send off, Pacquiao agrees to have the drug testing in his favor but calls for a $100M guaranteed purse. Who in the world will give him that money? Third send off, after Pacquiao's win over Shane Mosley, he was offered again but said that stated that he will handle first his off-the-ring issues. Arum (Pacquio's promoter) conceeded and go for the trilogy with Juan Manuel Marquez in November. Fourth send off, Singaporeans offered him $65M to fight Pac but to no avail. Fifth send off, only after a month (after Pacquiao and Marquez was sealed), he declared that he will fight Victor Ortiz. What the f*#k!!!

Victor Ortiz? The guy have no style and relies mainly on his punching power and aggressiveness. Perfect fit for him. Easy win, easy money. Then he can boast around again and again.

Are these two athletes really worth it?

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Walang Nagbago

This March, I've met with two groups of friends, yun sa Suncell at sa ERES (grade school). Ang saya ng feeling na makakwentuhan at makakulitan mo ulit yun mga taong nakasama mo ng matagal tagal ding panahon few years back.

Suncell Dabarkads

ERES Pre-Reunion

Kahit na matagal nang walang communication, nakakatuwa na parang alang nagbago at ganun pa din ang saya. Magpapasalamat na din ako sa mga kaibigang laging nakakaalala at nakikisama sa saya ng aking nagsisimulang pamilya. Sa mga kaibigan from ERES, Maksci, Mapua, Suncell at Afghan, maraming salamat sa pagbati nung naipanganak ang aming first baby, si Baby Gregory at nung birthday ko yesterday.

Nakakataba po ng puso! Maraming salamat!

Reasons to Celebrate

March 6, 2011 at 2PM, our family welcome Gabrelle Gregory to the family. After 30 hours of labor in the delivery room, came 19-inch, 7.6-lb baby boy.

Wish come true!

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After three days, it's my Papa's 60th birthday! Happy birthday Papa, we love you!

Stay healthy as ever and thank you for all the love, care, understanding and support.

Discounted senior na!

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Thank you Lord for all these things. These are the best of times, all glory to God!

Crazy Deadline

As I've written my observations for the Melo-to-NY and Deron-to-Nets trade drama before, here are the rest of the trades and my little analysis.

The most that surprise me, of course as a Boston fanatic, is the trade that sent starting center Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson to Oklahoma for Jeff Green and Nenad Kristic. GM Danny Ainge worst move as I may say, thinking about the future when you have a championship team on hand. First thing, how can they match up with the Magics' and the Lakers' bigs? Second, why take off their frontline advantage and toughness with other playoff teams especially the Heat?

How valuable Kendrick Perkins to the C's defense? First, he can play Howard one-on-one and by that the C's can stay in front of the Magic's perimeter shooters. Second, along with Garnett, they can neutralize the Laker's bigs unlike any other team in the league. Plus the every game toughness and defensive presence with a big body in the middle what makes other teams intimidated. Now, all of these are gone away to Oklahoma.

As for the Thunder, they are very happy. This is what they coveted for a long time, a true defensive-minded and tough enforcer in the middle. OKC ain't soft anymore and they have a chance to compete against the elite of the West especially the Lakers. They are currently riding on a 3-game slide. Those losses against the Magic, Spurs and Lakers just shows that they are thin inside and Perkins' arrival will provide answer to that. The trade value of Perkins can be seen come playoff time.

Ain't happy in OKC?

Well Boston fans, let's just hope that Shaq will regain his health as soon as possible and Troy Murphy will be waived and then sign with the C's.

Suddenly, the title hopes are in a question mark. Tsk Tsk...

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Other trades during the deadline as follows:

1. Baron Davis-Mo Williams swap. Remove the negative aura in the Clippers locker room. Clearly, this will be Blake Griffin's team now. Good move Clip's management.

2. Kirk Hinrich-Mike Bibby trade. Atlanta got this one right. Definitely an upgrade in the point position. What can Bibby do, Hinrich can do better.

3. Gerald Wallace to Portland. A former All-Star who is still averaging 15 and 8 during the season, Gerald Wallace will definitely adds toughness and tenacity to the wing position. It's like winning a lottery considering they just gave up Przybilla, Cunnigham and two first rounders which are definitely not lottery picks.

4. Shane Battier-Hasheem Thabeet trade. Clearly, Rockets is in a rebuilding mode and is not expecting Yao Ming anymore. Thabeet is raw and a lot of good years ahead of him. As for Battier, he can provide experience and defensive presence for the 8th seeded Grizzlies.

5. Goran Dragic-Aaron Brooks swap. A scorer in exchange for a tradional point. A win-win for both teams especially for Phoenix who is in running for the 8th spot in the West since they will have a spark plug off the bench as a backup of Steve Nash.

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Didn't See That Coming

So, Melo drama already ended in NY. No surprise to that. I definitely knew that he will not sign with the Nets or even if he got traded to Nets, he won't sign the extension and will leave after the season to sign with the Knicks. New York is where it got to be.

It you watch that video during Melo's wedding, Lebron joked that if he (Melo) wants to beat them in Miami, he should join Amare in New York. Everybody laughed and then Chris Paul tossed up and said they will form their own Big 3. So only one left now.

My analysis for the deal, Nuggets is the big winner in the trade. Considering four Knicks starters plus draft picks, they are getting much more than what they expected from the Nets offer. Felton will be backing up and teaching Ty Lawson at the point. Wilson Chandler is one of the exciting young small forwards and can be a solid 15-20 point scorer. Danilo Gallinari is showing signs of brillance and he has confidence now unlike last year. He can spread the floor and at 6'10" can shoot the 3. Mozgov, the deal-sealer, is a tradional center who can defend. And all of them are 26 years or younger.

As for the Knicks, wait till next season. The trade won't give immediate impact. And for those saying that the Knicks are now contenders, well they are wrong. They are exciting now but now in the same breed of the Celtics, Heat, Magic or even the Bulls.

Can they co-exist?

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What surprised me this morning is the Deron Williams trade to New Jersey Nets. Didn't see that happening since Jerry Sloan resigned as coach after in-game arguments happened last month with their franchise player.

Jazz owner did the right since Deron is not playing with a swagger anymore. Maybe he felt that Deron will leave Utah like Lebron, Bosh and Amare after the season. Rather than losing him for nothing, he dealt for Devin Harris, #3 pick Derrick Favors (I don't know why they are considering this guy as an asset, he can't play with the big guys) and two first-round picks.

Jazz is a solid winner here. Aside from trading a star who doesn't have a plan to stay, they got a nice trading asset in Devin Harris and a young and very raw Derrick Favors with two first-round picks, one is a sure lottery pick for this June's draft.

For the Nets, they are crossing fingers that Deron will sign an extension come July and not to join forces with Melo and Amare in New York.

Go East young man!

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Sidetrip to boxing.

Nonito Donaire was simply spectacular with that 2nd round demolition of Fernando Montiel. What good about that is he knocked a guy out who is never been KO'd before and is a pound-per-pound fighter.

Early KO of the year candidate

One thing about the fight. Referee should have stopped it immediately. Tsk tsk.

As for the remainder of the year, here are the top boxing events to watch and my predicted winner in bold letters. Arguments and questions about my predictions? Go bet with me!

Mar12 - Sergio Martinez (46-2 25KO) vs Serhiy Dzinziruk (37-0 23KO)

Mar12 - Miguel Cotto (35-2 28KO) vs Ricardo Mayorga (29-7 23KO)

Apr9 - Erik Morales (51-6 35KO) vs Marcos Maidana (29-2 27KO)

Apr16 - Andre Berto (27-0 21KO) vs Victor Ortiz (28-2 22KO)

Apr16 - Amir Khan (24-1 17KO) vs Peter McCloskey (22-0 12KO)

Apr16 - Juan Manuel Lopez (30-0 27KO) vs Orlando Salido (34-11 20KO)

May7 - Manny Pacquiao (52-3 38KO) vs Shane Mosley (46-5 39KO)

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Marcos in Libingan Ng Mga Bayani?

Dating AFP Chief of Staff at DND secretary Angelo Reyes inilibing na sa Libingan ng mga Bayani? Ok, isa pala syang bayani.

With respect sa mga naulila ni Gen. Reyes, masasabi ko naman na talagang magaling at maganda ang track record nya since graduating from PMA in '66 especially during the all-out war imposed during Pres Erap's regime against the MILF. Nasira lang naman sya nang naging malapit na sya kay GMA. Hehehe.

All of these allegations of corruption should be taken into account bago sana sya binigyan ng full military honors at isang magandang pwesto sa Libingan ng mga Bayani. After all, isang respected na tao din naman ang nagbunyag ng mga ito at hindi gawa gawa lang na witness para manira.

And suicide? Sino ba ang taong nasa tamang pag iisip para magpakamatay? If the accusations were not true, then bakit ako matatakot, di ba? Kung si Gen. Carlos Garcia na huli na sa akto at andyan na lahat ng ebidensya ay kukuya kuyakoy lang tuwing Senate hearing, si Gen. Angie Reyes pa kaya?

As dating AFP Chief, lahat na ata ng pressure ay naranasan na nya. Plus the fact na naging secretary sya ng apat na departments under GMA's fake administration. Hindi ko alam pero bakit sa ngayong corruption issue eh bumigay sya? Rewind Oakwood Mituny led by Sen. Trillanes. Di ba isa rin sya sa mga pinaratangan during that time?

Bakit ka nag suicide Sir General? Sana isiniwalat mo din ang nalalaman mo at managot sa taungbayan ang mga nagkasala at nagnakaw sa Pilipinas kong mahal.

Sayang ka Gen. Reyes, rest in peace.

***

About time na din siguro na ilibing ang ating greatest president Ferdinand Marcos sa Libingan ng mga Bayani. As a former WWII veteran at syempre former Congressman, Senate President and President, I think deserve din sya ng isang state burial.

About time na siguro?

It has been 25 years mula ng napataksik sya sa pwesto pero up to now wala pa naman napapatunayan sa mga nakaw na yaman ng mga Marcoses during his regime. Binuo pa ang PCGG during Cory's administration pero ala din naman nahanap o nabawi. Human rights violation siguro but paano mo ba icoconsider ang isang human rights violations during that time?

Sabi ni P-Noy pagkakaisa? Ilibing muna si Marcos sa Libingan ng mga bayani, ipamahagi ang Hacienda Luisita as promised during the campaign at buklatin ang lahat ng maling pinasok ng nagdaang administrasyon.

Tama tama, ilibing na si Marcos! Papayag ka ba?

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Don't blame it on Lebron

Cavs lost their 24th straight making a new record for consecutive losses. What can I say about this? Karma! Hahaha.

Welcome to the records book Cavs!

When will this stop? Definitely it won't happen this Tuesday against Dallas. But the three next games is showing promise against Pistons, Clippers (am I considering this?) and Wizards (probably!).

Give Lebron the MVP. This futility of the Cavs just shows how valuable Lebron is. No questions about it.

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Now, we are feeling a lot of love! Yes, Kevin Love was selected to replace the injured Yao Ming for the All-Star game this coming Feb 20. Well deserved as I may say.

Heads up now, you are selected!

Great choice commish, since the guy is averaging around 21 ppg and league-leading 15 rpg even if the Wolves have the West's worst record. Considering the numbers, he's better than Tim Duncan (13ppg and 9 rpg - both career-lows) at this point.

Anyway, it's not the All-Star game that matters to me. Blake Griffin's slam dunk participation is getting my attention for that weekend.

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Super Bowl XLV this coming Monday morning (of course Philippine time) between Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers. Both are defensive-minded teams and headlining great QB's in Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger.

All eyes tomorrow for the biggest sporting event in USA

Who am I picking? Go for the Packers. I strongly believed they will win their first Super Bowl in the post-Favre era.

Just some fun bits, Black Eyed Peas will be doing the halftime show and Cristina Aguilera is singing the National Anthem. And the cost for a 30-sec commercial? Take this, $3 million dollars!

Can't wait tomorrow for this!

The Blake Griffin Show

Lebron James is now a villain, Melo-trade-drama is out of control, Kobe and the Lakers look vulnerable and the league's #1 team looks boring as ever (nope, not my favorite C's of course).

Sorry Dwight Howard, this guy is the most exciting dunker now.

Came Blake Griffin, the #1 pick of the 2009 draft doing highlight dunks every night. Remember back in 2008 when I wrote (http://garysuguitan.blogspot.com/2008/12/great-sporting-week.html) about this guy? An athletic Carlos Boozer is not enough to describe this guy's game now. He is like Shawn Kemp (during his Sonics days) who throws it down very hard and knows how to entertain.

College basketball was frequently televised than NBA in Afghanistan and his college team, Oklahoma Sooners, was always the one being shown. I love watching the guy dunking every opportunities he have. I just can't imagine a white guy doing those ridiculous throwdowns.

Bring back the memories of 2009 draft. I think now there is no contest who the #1 pick should be. Forget Ricky Rubio, Blake is the new guy in town and in 5 years, if he stays healthy, will be the face of the NBA along with King James, Kevin Durant, D-Wade and Melo.

If you don't believe it, catch a Clipper's game to experience. LA is not for Lakers anymore, hahaha.

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Carmelo Anthony's trade rumors to New Jersey Nets already put to complete rest. So who will catch up to make the most enticing offer to Denver for this guy?

We won't see a #15 in Nets in the near future.

Can't wait to have my Melo's Nugget jersey to antique. Hahaha.

***

NBA 2010-11 season is already half way and here are my early favorites to win.

NBA Champions - My C's still a team to beat. Even without Perkins, they still manage to be a key defensive team. As long as they stay healthy, they can win it all. The hated Lakers is catching up in form lately as expected. Can't wait for another Celtics-Lakers Finals. Sorry Miami an San Antonio, not yet fully realise your potentials.

MVP - King James is still putting up impressive numbers (25-7-7) as of Toronto's game. Still MVP-worthy numbers considering playing alongside MVP candidates as well D-Wade and Chris Bosh. Derrick Rose is making a strong case and his #3 rank Bulls is a big surprise to me.

The best point in the NBA now?

ROY - Blake Griffin is the man. It's his award to lose.

Coach - Bull's Tom Thibodeau will be a favorite to win it. The architect of the C's perennial defense is a coaching guru.

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Unang Paramdam sa 2011

Long time no update. Bakit nga ba? Well, nung nasa Jakarta pa kami eh sobrang bagal ng internet dun at syempre kasama ko si misis. Ngayon lang ulit ako mag uupdate para naman kahit papaano eh may bago.

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Nakauwi na kami from Jakarta last Jan 4 pa. Yes, thank you Lord dahil naayos namin lahat ng problema namin. God is good talaga kasi sinurrender lang namin lahat sa Kanya at nalaman na lang namin na isa isa nang naaayos. Thank you Lord!

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Sorry din Lord kasi nagresign ako sa work. Back in early November, lagi ko pinagpray na makuha ko yun work sa Indonesia kasi malapit lang. Binigay nyo naman pero ako naman yun umayaw.

Sana by the time na ready na ulit ako magwork eh, wag naman work ang tumanggi sa kin.

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Thank you Jakarta kasi first time namin ni Belle na lumabas ng bansa together. Enjoy ang shopping sa Bandung at ang saya ng Safari. Thanks din kay Mitch and sa family sa all-out support mula ng dumating ako sa Jakarta. Malaking utang na loob talaga yun. Thank you!

Souvenir from Taman Safari

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Buti pa sa Huawei, nakuha ko na agad ang sweldo ko ng December pero sa GTL hindi pa din. Biruin mo eh October salary ko pa ang hinihintay ko. Almost 3 weeks na nung naisoli ko yun ID pero up to now, ala pa din ang aking sweldo. Sayang din yun at dagdag budget sa pang uwi ng Ilocos. Sana ibigay na.

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Dun kami nagspend ng Christmas at New Year sa Jakarta. Thank you ulit kay Mitch kasi naging masaya din ang celebration kahit maikli lang. Ang mahalaga eh nasalubong namin ito.

New Year 2011

Thank you Lord for a great 2010. Sobrang daming blessings like natapos ko contract ko sa Afghan, nakabili ako ng bahay, nagkawork ako sa Ayala (dream ko kasi dati na magwork dito hehehe), nakawork din ako sa Jakarta with Belle at ang aming little Gary coming up. Madami pa ibang like good health sa family at everyday na magkakasama kami. Thank you Lord sa lahat ng blessings!

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Tambay mode muna ako mula ng bumalik from Jakarta. Ala ako plans to work hanggang di pa nanganganak si Belle. Relax mode muna. Syempre PS3, kain, pasyal ang mode ng utak ko ngayon. Kelangan din mag aral para di mangamote. Hahaha.

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