Hustled in New Orleans

I'm sure there are other places in the world where this type of thing takes place, but after my recent return visit to New Orleans, I am now convinced that I may have been to two of the worst. I was there once in 1998, but it was only for a day, and I don't recall feeling the way

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I felt this time during that visit. I do, however recall feeling this way in Jamaica in 2007, when a Caribbean cruise we took stopped there as one of the three stops.

The locals ruin it for the tourists! For Jamaica the number one way the country makes money is probably due to tourism, but instead of making the people who visit feel comfortable, I wouldn't be surprised if there are many people who've visited Jamaica who feel the way I do. I remember being asked if I wanted to "smoke some of da good stuff, mon" within about 2 minutes of getting off the ship! I remember not even really feeling safe walking the streets. There were men standing around in the streets armed with AK-47s. Like holy crap, there's a guy with an AK-47! Oh wait, that's a cop. Wait a minute.. why do they have to have cops standing around in the streets armed with AK-47s? I remember feeling really uncomfortable being consistently pulled here and lured there by locals, who simply wanted to try to sell me some of their products: art, clothing, food, and other keepsakes.

The thing about Jamaica, though, is these people are trying to make an honest living selling stuff to tourists - they are just a little too aggressive in their manor of going about it.

Then there's New Orleans. In 48 hours in New Orleans I was approached probably 25-30 times for one reason or another. And not just in the French Quarter.

"Hey sir, can I bum a smoke?"

"I bet I can tell you where you got your shoes!"

"If you tell me your first name, I'll bet I can spell your last name."

One guy asked me about the Longhorns (I was wearing a Texas Longhorns t-shirt), and proceeded to make conversation for a good 5-minutes before he, too, asked to bum a smoke.

A guy in a devil costume hustled us for a dollar to take a picture with him, and another guy in a party patrol costume (I actually thought he was a cop before looking closely) hustled us for $10 for a "free" baseball cap. I wear a lot of caps, and loved the thought of a free cap, so this was cool at first. Then he handed my wife a pink cap, and asked in so many words to "show some love" for a couple of caps. He wanted $15 for both, so we handed the pink one back, and gave him $10 for mine. Hustled again!

The people who work at the bars in the French Quarter literally try to get in your way as you're walking by, and lead you into their establishment. They all have the best drink deals, the biggest, cheapest beers, and are the only ones who make their Hurricanes from scratch.

Several times it was just a homeless person asking for a couple bucks for a burger. "I have no job, and am starving.. will you buy me a burger & fries?" Some of them probably are homeless, jobless, and hungry, but I doubt they all are. Most of them are grifters.

In 48 hours, we witnessed two drug deals. One of the groups of guys actually had the nerve to ask us if we were looking to buy some weed as we were on a voodoo/ cemetery tour. They then proceeded to go make a deal with some dude a few minutes later less than 50 feet from us. The other one took place in a restaurant - with a female officer waiting in line to buy food!

The difference between Jamaica and New Orleans is that most of these people in New Orleans - outside of the very talented street performers - aren't trying to make an honest living with their product or service. They're hustlers looking to take advantage of nice, normal tourists.. like me.

New Orleans, if you want people to come visit your city, you might try cracking down on this type of thing. I don't know.. you could call it Felony Tourist Harassment, or something.

Spurs Update

Friday night at the AT&T Center the Spurs welcomed the New Orleans Hornets for the 4th time this season. All three of the previous ones were pretty close (2 were very close). This time, however, I expected something a little more impressive, the way we've been playing (9 straight wins).

Once again we were active inside early, as Tony had a several lay-ups, and Blair and Duncan both were pretty much scoring at will. The three combined for our first 16 points. It wasn't long before the game would take its shape. Manu would 7 of his own and the Spurs had a 34-24 1st-Q lead. Neal, Jack, and Diaw would chip in as well, while Carl Landry was carrying the Hornets. Ever since the score was 29-23 late in the 1st-Q, we would go on a 16-5 run (45-28), followed by another non-stop run that began with the score 48-36. Only 5½ minutes later the halftime score was 72-45 - so yeah,
Image Source (AP Photo/Darren Abate) - Pop proving his worth for CoY tonight

that's a 24-9 run, and our highest half of the season. By this point the Spurs were shooting a CRAZY 70+%.

Eric Gordon came out strong, and within 3 minutes our 27-pt. lead had shrunk to 20. We would again respond inside for possession after possession, but Gordon, Chris Kaman, and Greivis Vasquez would have a different plan. Our lead was now just 16 (85-69). Our second group was doing the most damage this game, so Pop put in Patty Mills with them, and things took off again. A 16-4 run later the 3rd-Q would end with the score 99-73 in our favor. Again - our largest 3Q output of the season.

Whatever lineup Pop put out there continued to dominate, so the rest of the game was pretty much a formality, as I would've bet the farm they wouldn't come back. They didn't. Tiago Splitter, Neal, and James Anderson carried us the rest of the way - with a little help from our new diamond in the rough, Patty Mills. The dominating 128-103 WIN was our highest point total of the season.

Not only that, but the Thunder lost in Indiana. And Miami lost at home to Memphis, snapping their 17-game home winning streak. And Houston beat the Lakers in LA. And Portland beat the Mavs in Dallas. So good things are upon us this night! The Spurs are now in first place, and the standings will follow. Here is the incredible boxscore.. Do notice how the points, rebounds, assists, and minutes are ALL spread-out. Yeah - that's how deep we are. We are now 27-5 since Jan. 30!

Here are the current NBA standings:

Click to enlarge!!                                                                                           Source

Spurs Update

Saturday and Sunday nights finished off the Spurs' 1st back-to-back-to-back of the season. Saturday was a quick trip to New Orleans for a bout with the shorthanded Hornets. Spurs were also very shorthanded, as Manu didn't make the trip in order to rest an aching body. Splitter is still dealing with back spasms, and Gary Neal would also sit due to a sore foot from Friday night's game. Hornets were down Okafor (knee), Kaman (illness), Ariza (ankle), and Jason Smith due to his suspension related to the cheap shot against Blake Griffin.

The good news is Tony Parker is back. I expected this to be the game somewhat like the game @ Portland a few weeks back (a 40-pt. loss), when Pop sat Tony & Tim while Manu & Splitter were hurt. But to my surprise, Duncan would also play. The contest began OK for the Spurs, as DeJuan Blair came out like a monster possessed, but then again, he tends to have good games vs. NO. He would total 23 & 7 for this one. It remained close throughout the first half, but we trailed by a handful for most of the late 2nd-Q. Up by 1 after 1-Q, but down by 1 at half.. 23-22, and 48-47 respectively.

Image Source (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images)

Neither team were shot very well throughout, in fact Spurs finished with a lowly 2 of 19 from three range (ouch!), and totaled 40% overall. Hornets did better at 46%, but was 1 of 5 from three. And if it weren't for 16 NO TO's (compared with our 7), this one would've probably been much worse.

Defenses tightened up for the 4th-Q, and only 30 total points were scored. We would take a 5-pt. lead with 5 min.s to go, but Belinelli would give the Hornets the 84-83 lead with 2:06 left. Duncan would hit two clutch FTs before Belinelli put them ahead once again 86-85. But after Duncan made a tip-in (87-86), followed by a great defensive stop on Jarrett Jack (who led all scorers with 27), it was Danny Green's clutch baseline jumper that put us ahead 87-84. Green would then miss the only two FTs the Spurs would miss all night in an attempt to seal it, giving the Hornets the last shot with :02 left. It was defended well, and Belinelli came up short - we snuck out of the hive with the 89-86 WIN. Whew!

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Sunday night back at home vs. the Philadelphia 76ers, Manu would return to the lineup, but Timmy would sit. With Tiago & Neal both still out, we would obviously have to "go small" for most of this one. Here is the way NBA.com described Timmy's absence in their boxscore:

So, I guess as long as they don't play Hawes & Vucevic together, we should be OK. Holiday and Meeks came out hot, combining for 12 of the first 16 Sixers' points. Kawhi and Bonner were, however, making their presence known as well, as we jumped out to a 29-22 1st-Q lead.
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Heck, newly acquired PG Justin Dentmon even scored his first Spurs' points for the home crowd early on.

After falling behind 29-18 late in the 1st-Q, the Sixers would then go on an 18-1 run to take the lead 36-30. Sam Young and Lou Williams were key contributors. This sparked a 10-0 run of our own, led by 6 from Blair, and a three from Danny Green. The score at the half was 52-49, San Antonio.

In comparison with the previous game in New Orleans, this contest saw 26 steals and 39 turnovers! So obviously play looked a little sloppy, but both these teams are super on defense. Nevertheless, it was mid-3rd-Q when we turned on the gas. Tony & Manu came to life, while rarely playing together. We started sharing the basketball better, and ran out to an 11-pt. lead after 3-Qs (76-65). We didn't stop, though. A lot of the scoring "wave" was tempered, but we kept the pressure on defensively to the tone of a 21-pt. lead with just under 6 min. left (88-67). SO yeah, that's another 20-4 run since late third-Q.

They would close to within 14, but didn't have enough, as we held on for the impressive 93-76 WIN against the team who allows the fewest points per game in the NBA. Six guys in double-figures.. Responded to the terrible 3-pt. shooting the night
Image Source (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

before by hitting 7 (of 28, so more work to do), and we hung with them on the boards. Kawhi Leonard had a super game with 11 points and 10 boards. Tony had 21 & 7 assists, and Blair had 19 & 6 boards..

Yeah we just went W-W-W in 3 nights, like only 4 teams have done during this compacted season! Spurs have now won 7 of 8, improving to a 33-14 record, still 2nd in the West, 2 losses behind the Thunder. Now we have to go on the road again to Phoenix & Sacramento back-to-back Tues. & Wed. to complete our 5 games in 6 days (and 6 in 8), before coming home for some rest and a meeting with a good Indiana team (and George Hill) Saturday.

The World Record for Human Mattress Dominoes

850 people in New Orleans took part in this World Record attempt, in which they were knocked back onto mattresses as human dominoes.


Source / Via - (NSFW)

Spurs Update

Thursday night the Spurs hosted the 4-18 New Orleans Hornets. No doubt memories of the finish against the Hornets 10 days ago existed, when Tim Duncan had to nail a hook shot at the buzzer in their gym.

This one was mostly defensive, as neither team seemed to get on an offensive roll. Spurs led 23-22 after 1 Q. We live and die by the three, and they weren't falling.. so yeah. But our defense was making stop after stop, and like many games this season, it was anyone's game at the half.. 44-45. Tony & Tim began their usual thing, since

Image Source (Photo by D. Clarke Evans/NBAE via Getty Images)

outside shots weren't falling. Neal, Green, Tiago, and even Cory Joseph made a few key shots in a contest in which we as a team only had 16 assists on 34 made shots. No, that's not good.

But it's not Tony's fault, as he led the scoring with 18, and had 7 assists. By the end of the 3rd Q, we led 71-68. This was turning into another common scenario, where we would have to either take control, or LOSE for lack of shot accuracy. Finally realizing the ball must go into Tiago, he scores on 3 of 6 straight offensive trips, and the other three were two TP layups & a Bonner three. Just like that we were up 12, 84-72. Spurs defense took over, and within a few minutes we were up 16. Suddenly, the Hornets only had about a minute left, and we finished-off the WIN 93-81.

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Spurs went nuts on Oklahoma City tonight in SA. In the wake of finalized all-star voting, Tony Parker made a HUGE statement to the coaches: "I'm not worthy, you say?" The Spurs made just as big a statement to the rest of the league with a serious pounding of the Thunder, the "favorite" to win the West.

Parker put together a 42-point, 9-assist performance (with NO turnovers) in a 107-96 WIN against the team with the NBA's best record. Kawhi Leonard had the super task of chasing Kevin Durant around most of the night. More on that later, but

Image Source (Photo by D. Clarke Evans/NBAE via Getty Images)

Kawhi also made a big impact right off the bat draining 3 early threes.. 13 1st Q points, and once the Spurs took the lead on Kawhi's 1st three (14-13), we would never relinquish it.

25-21 after one Q, Durant certainly made his presence known, compiling 17 first-half points. Parker (16 1st-half pts.) was constantly slashing and dishing, and the Spurs racked-up 8 threes by half-time. The lead was 10 halfway through: 57-47. An explosion of 3 threes in the final 2 minutes of the half reminded me of the Jan. 17th game @Miami, where we had 63 at the half, and a nice comfy lead.

In the last game vs. OKC (Jan. 8) it was the early 3rd when they took control. Same thing @Miami on Jan. 17th. After a couple quick OKC buckets, Tony Parker decided it was time to take over. Halfway through the quarter our lead was back to 15, as Russell Westbrook & Tony Parker took this duel to another level. While this became blatantly obvious, it soon became clear that Tony was playing at a level a notch or two above every one else on the court. Energy.. aggression.. defense.. steals.. a scuffle on the floor. Nearing 30 points, and a nice Spurs' lead, he changed mentality and decided it was time to get the San Antonio franchise assist record over-with. Timmy jumper, Kawhi layup, Green three.. Another quick 8 points, and one more Parker-assisted Bonner three, and we're up 24.

Thunder would actually make it a little interesting, such that Timmy & Tony had to come back in to seal the deal early in the 4th Q. That they did. And Tony would still score yet another 8 for his 42. Sweet, sweet win guys! 13-7 now without Manu. How's that?

Duncan had 13 & 15 boards. Kawhi, RJ, & Green held Durant to 22 points on 9-19 shooting, 11 reb. and 5 fouls. Westbrook had 18 on 8-15 shooting, 6 asst. 6 reb. and 4 fouls.

Tony's complete stat-line: 42 points on 16 of 29 shooting, 10-12 FTs, 9 assists 3 rebounds 2 steals 1 block, and 0 turnovers in 39 minutes.

Here's the standings. We've won 4-straight now, Dallas has lost 3 straight.. Things are starting to take shape as we head out for our nicely forgving 9-game rodeo road-trip.

On The Way

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No! Just No!

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No what?? New Orleans? New Order? Nothing ordinary? FFO?

Are You Ready For Some Football?

Super Bowl Interruptus

The NFL made a huge, monumental mistake scheduling the Pro Bowl the week between the league championship games, and the Super Bowl. Every player in this league wants to be in the position that players who play for Indy & New Orleans are in. Probably 95% of them would give up ANY trip to a Pro Bowl, for a trip to the big game.

Guess who the voted-in starting QBs are? Right, Drew Brees, and Peyton Manning.

These two NFL teams had 14 players voted into the Pro-Bowl (7 each) - a super honor for any team, given that only 2 other teams had more of their players voted in (Dallas & Philly, both 9).

Now, back to the Super Bowl. Wait.. We can't because the NFL is mandating those 14 players to make a Pro Bowl appearance - whether or not they choose to play in the game. At this point I have no idea what that number is. I would guess it's close to zero. And it should be.

And that's a shame for everyone involved - except certain guys who may have otherwise been snubbed. All 14 of these guys would much rather not disrupt their team preparation for the BIG GAME (hello?), and have to make that commitment this weekend. So they lose out on an otherwise fun, career-rewarding trip to Hawaii, and the honor of playing in a star-studded game ...if they want. Most of them do, you know.

The game itself suffers because 14 of it's 120 players can't be forced to participate! While the Pro Bowl might attract a significantly larger number of commitments due to the earlier date, it's also guaranteeing itself that those who are on Super Bowl teams won't be there.

And shame on you for doing that to them!

Gladiator Brees

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