Predictions for the NBA 2011-2012 season

Posted on by georgefattell

Just a couple of months ago I thought there was a real possibility that the NBA season for 2011-2012 might be cancelled and although I’m a huge basketball fan I wasn’t all that upset about the prospect of that happening. Why? Because I found it hard to care very much about the Billionaires vs Millionaires battle that the Owners and Players were waging. If they wanted to blow away a season away I figured I’ll just watch more college hoops, which I also enjoy quite a bit.

However, I can now admit that I’m glad that the Owners and Players settled their differences and I’m looking forward to the start of the 66 game regular season on Christmas Day. Basketball is my favorite team sport and the NBA, for all its flaws, showcases the best players of the sport, by far.

I took a look at ESPN.com’s NBA page earlier today and noticed that 30 of their Basketball writers and analysts made predictions for this season’s MVP, Most Improved Player, Sixth Man, Defense POY, Coach and Rookie of the Year. Here my picks for those awards:

MVP: 12 members of the ESPN staff picked Kevin Durant, 11 picked LeBron James. I think there are a good half dozen players capable of winning the MVP, including Derek Rose, Chris Paul and even Blake Griffin. This is a very tough call, but I think Kevin Durant wins it this season.

Most Improved Player: I’m going with Tyler Hansbrough. I think the Pacers PF showed a lot improvement toward the end of last season and he will continue to get better.

Sixth Man: James Harden of the OKC Thunder. Harden received the most votes from the ESPN staff, with 11, but several others players were in the mix. I can’t disagree with the Harden pick. He’s tough on both ends of the court and is a key contributor to a team which should contend for the crown this season.

Defense POY: Dwight Howard. I also like Chicago’s Joakim Noah too, for his shot blocking ability, but Howard is still the best all around player on D in the league imo.

Coach: I have to select the coach of a team that I think will make it to the NBA Championship round and that would include the OKC Thunder. I’m going with Scott Brooks.

Rookie of the Year: The ESPN guys favor Kyrie Irving and Derrick Williams, giving them 11 votes and 8 votes, respectively. 5 other rook’s received votes, including Kemba Walker, Ricky Rubio and Jimmer Fredette. This pick is a toss-up for me. I don’t think there is one stand out favorite. I will go with Irvin, but I won’t be shocked at all if another rookie wins. I don’t think Jimmer Fredette will be the best rookie this season, but I think he will be very good and the most fun to watch. In the preseason he has already demonstrated that he has no problem hitting the NBA 3 pt shot and we will see a lot of scoring from him.

Eastern Conference Champion: The Miami Heat. Chicago and New York will push the Heat to the brink, but the Heat still maintain a slight edge with Wade, James and Bosh.

Western Conference Champion: The Oklahoma City Thunder. I probably would have picked the Dallas Mav’s if they had retained the services of center Tyson Chandler, but he was a big loss, especially on the defensive end of the court. Picking up Lamar Odom certainly helps the Mav’s, but not enough to surpass the young and talented Thunder squad in my view.

Champion: The Miami Heat. I hate making this pick, but I have to if I’m going to be honest. I don’t think this will be the beginning of a dynasty, but this “Dream Team” should be good for at least one ring. If they fail to win a championship this season then they should trade at least one member of their vaunted big three.

*If Dwight Howard is traded to a contender I may have to revise some of my picks.

A cold grey day in Ocean Beach

Posted on by georgefattell

The view of Ocean Beach from the OB Pier 16 DEC 2011
I took a trip out to San Diego’s Ocean Beach neighborhood this afternoon (16 Dec 2011). Sometimes I just like to hangout in parts of San Diego other than the neighborhood that I live in, which is Cortez Hill. My neighborhood is one of several that comprise downtown San Diego, which includes everything in the 92101 zip code. I like downtown SD because it is the most urban part of San Diego and it is very walkable. As a former New Yorker I appreciate that characteristic of downtown. However, I also find several other sections of San Diego intriguing because of their own unique character. Sometimes I go to the neighborhoods around Balboa Park, such as North Park or nearby Banker’s Hill. Other days I might go to one of the beachside parts of the city, such as La Jolla Village or Pacific Beach. I also enjoy going across San Diego bay to visit Coronado and Imperial Beach.

Ocean Beach is located on the western side of Point Loma and is, of course, situated next to the beach. The locals refer to Ocean Beach as OB and it is definitely the most bohemian of all of San Diego’s neighborhoods. OB is a very laid back place that has a variety of good little restaurants, bars and coffeehouses, which is always a draw for me. Today I went to a coffeehouse called the Newbreak Coffee & Cafe, which is right across the street from the beach and a few blocks from the Ocean Beach Pier. The pier was built in 1966 and is the longest concrete pier on the West Coast, at 1,971 feet in length.

I went to the Newbreak to do a little work on my iPad (free wifi) over a few cups of tea and a bagel. Afterwards, I took a walk on the beach and along the pier. The weather today was far from ideal, it was cold, grey and windy. Yet, the vistas up and down the coast were beautiful and striking. The sky was filled with clouds of varying hues, with streaks of sunlight punching through the clouds. See below.

Sunset at Ocean Beach 16 December 2011

The view south toward Sunset Cliffs

The year in Film: 2011

Posted on by georgefattell

I’ve seen a fair amount of new films this year and as we approach year end I am putting together my top 5 films of the year list. I would characterize the overall quality of films in 2011 as good, but not great. Although, it looks like the year will finish strong, with several potentially excellent films being released between now and December 31st.

I’ve seen three films so far that I’m pretty sure will make my top 5 list and those would be the following:

The Descendants Directed by Alexander Payne

The Tree of Life Directed by Terrence Malick

Midnight in Paris Directed by Woody Allen

I think all three of these films will be in the hunt for Best Picture come Oscar Time.

UFC 140: Jon Jones Pre-Fight Interview

Posted on by georgefattell

UFC 140: Jon Jones Pre-Fight Interview.

Light Heavy Weight Champ Jon “Bones” Jones vs. Lyoto Machida

I’m really looking forward to this fight. It has the potential to be a classic. Lyoto Machida should be a formidable opponent for Jon Jones. It will be an interesting clash of styles. Each fighter is multi-dimensional, but Machida’s base is karate, while Jones’s base is wrestling. I predict that Jones will win because I think his 6’4″ frame, overall athletic ability and quickness gives him a distinct advantage over every other LHW in the UFC. I also think Jones is always extremely well prepared by Greg Jackson and Mike Winklejohn for all fights. I don’t think this fight will be an exception.

Jones by TKO in the 3rd Rd.

My new blog: gmf Market Perspective.

Posted on by georgefattell

I have a new blog, called gmf Market Perpective. This blog reflects my current thoughts on the financial markets. I constructed this blog over one year ago, but I put it on the back burner for a while. It is still a work in progress, but I am now posting items on that blog on a regular basis. I hope to put up at least three or four posts a week on that blog. Many of the posts will be relatively short and easy to read quickly.

Here is the link for my new blog:

gmf Market Perspective

Please take look at it and bookmark it if you have an interest in the financial markets.

Santa Fe Depot at night

Posted on by georgefattell

Here are a couple of pictures I took at Santa Fe Depot in downtown San Diego last night. The Depot is the main train station for San Diego and services the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner, the Coaster train (San Diego commuter train) and the San Diego Trolly. The Spanish Colonial Revival building was opened in 1915 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

A few pictures from Christo’s last project, The Gates in Central Park

Posted on by georgefattell

Back in 2005 I was living in San Diego, but I made a trip back to New York in February of that year to see Christo’s last project, which was located in Central Park. The project, called The Gates, was comprised of 7,503 gates, which were installed over the entire length of the park. The gates were 16 ft tall and varied in width, from 5 feet 6 inches to 18 feet. Each gate had a saffron-colored panel of nylon fabric hanging from it. The Gates Project had a life span of two weeks (12 Feb to 25 Feb) and that was it, it was gone after that, never to return. Seeing the Gates was a once in a life time opportunity.

Here are a few of the pictures I took of The Gates….

Asia Times Online :: The economics of polarization

Posted on by georgefattell

Asia Times Online :: The economics of polarization.

Great article by Spengler. Hat tip to Michael Savage for bringing this to my attention today. I’ve read Spengler before in the AT, but it has been a while.

Has America become irrational? Not since the 1930s have politics been so polarized, from the Tea Party movement on one side of the spectrum to the Occupy Wall Street protesters on the other. Why does the right object so vehemently to government spending? And why does the left attack private capital with parallel passion? The answer lies not in the American psyche, but in the statistics.

The Tea Party is a middle-class movement, older, better educated and wealthier than average, but it is not a party of the very wealthy, who are conspicuously absent among its activists. They know from personal or family experience that taxation is destroying the American middle class. They are approaching retirement, and most of their wealth is in the family home, as it is for the great majority of Americans:

The safest train in the USA

Posted on by georgefattell

I was in Oceanside, CA a couple of days ago and happened to see a new Metrolink Hyundai Rotem CEM cab car for the first time. I’m a bit of a train buff so I had to snap a picture. CEM stands for Crash Energy Management. Metrolink is the commuter train line that serves the greater Los Angeles area. Oceanside is the last stop at the southern end of the Metrolink Orange County line. These train cars went into service in 2010 and are claimed to be the safest train cars in the USA by the manufacturer. A total of 117 cars were ordered in the aftermath of two deadly Metrolink train crashes that took place in 2005 and 2008, killing a total of 38 people. The CEM cars have crumple zones that are designed to absorb much of the energy of a crash. The CEM cars also have other new safety features that are designed to make the cars safer for passengers if a crash does occur, including stronger couplers, high backed seats and tables that collapse upon impact. The trains are also equipped with a GPS system designed track the trains and prevent collisions.