JZSports Tuesday Live Broadcast

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Jordan's Epic Response to LeBron's Nike Commercial

If this was put on television, it would be the greatest commercial of all time. It is, however, a mash-up of Jordan's "Maybe It's My Fault" commercial and Nike's "Rise" commercial featuring LeBron. We were emphatically disappointed to discover that this was not a real response by Jordan, albeit perfectly fitting. Perhaps the message does reveal Jordan's true feelings. Watch and Enjoy.

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Requiem for a Heavyweight, Andre Johnson defeats Cortland Finnegan

This fight will never get old. The NFL needs to adapt the hockey mindset and allow the tossing of gloves. Let the players throw punches and blow the whistle. Sure it's a ludicrous thought, yet it does get fans riled up. Do the players deserve suspensions or can $25,000 fines suffice as Roger Goodell believes. If they didn't fine Richard Seymour for slugging Ben Roethlisberger, they have no choice but to follow the same method with these two. Either way... enjoy the video.

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Tay "Firefly" Fisher Profile

 This is a profile piece I wrote about Tay Firefly Fisher for Campus News, run by Darren Johnson. I will post the link to the issue when it is published. Read and enjoy. 

A True Love of The Game

written by Zack Pumerantz

     It was a game searching for excitement, yearning for something special. The pressure was palpable throughout the arena as the players fought to maintain composure. Tay Fisher knew better as he was ready to make a name for himself and his team. The Siena Saints, ranked 13th in the 2008 NCAA Basketball tournament, had to face the heavily favored Vanderbilt Commodores, ranked 4th. "It was a great feeling, it was definitely a great opportunity, not only for myself but for my team as well," said Fisher. But this story isn't about the upset victory that Siena eventually had over Vanderbilt, nor is it about the six consecutive three-pointers that Fisher hit to conserve Siena's lead in the game. This surrounds Tay "Firefly" Fisher and his quest to find the best in himself and the happiness in those around him.
     Known as a three-point specialist at Siena, the 5-9 guard was drafted by the Harlem Globetrotters in 2008 to compete for a roster spot. Starring during high school in Kingston, NY, Fisher never let his height limit or hinder his development. "I was short, shorter than most of the players on the court but I was able to hold my own, " Fisher said. "My goal was just to play professional basketball. Everybody says they want to play in the NBA, other people say they want to play in Europe; my goal was just to play professional basketball," said Fisher. He knew he was on track when he scored 61 points in a game during his Senior year at Kingston, which got him in the Faces of the Crowd section of Sports Illustrated Magazine. He was recruited by Siena College and finished as the second most prolific three-point shooter in the school's history. He believes the game against Vanderbilt got him noticed by the flashy professional club. After getting the call from the Globetrotters, he knew he was on the brink of his dream. "They actually contacted me, that's what made it even better."
     While his dream of playing professional is coming to fruition, he has other aspirations as well. He runs a youth basketball camp and says he would like to be an elementary school teacher when his basketball career is over. He says that with the Globetrotters schedule, he is rarely home and he misses seeing the kids at his camp having a good time. On the other hand, he gets a thrill from teaching youths about the history of the Globetrotters, as he says most of them think the team began in the 21st century. "For me to tell them that the Globetrotters have been around for 85 consecutive years, it's just the best thing ever," he says. "A lot of these young kids need to be able to be educated on not only basketball but the culture and history."
     A self-proclaimed New York fan, Fisher has always rooted for the Knicks, Giants and Yankees. He is excited to play at Madison Square Garden for the first time to showcase his skills to his family, friends and fans. "My parents are really happy, especially my Mom, she used to be a basketball player at Kingston as well," he says. "For her to see me play, because she doesn't get the opportunity to come as much, is really great." He has two brothers and two sisters that he says he would do anything for. "I have a great family that's just really proud of me... I know they'll be with me no matter what."
     Fisher has always worked hard for his goals and dreams and knows that there is no time for regrets. "I'm pretty sure there are things that, if I had a chance to do them over I would, but I can't say I have any regrets as of right now because they got me to where I wanted to be," he says. "My whole goal was to graduate from high school, graduate from college and play professional basketball." The first person in his family to graduate from a four-year college and play professional basketball, Fisher wants to continue to please his fans.
     More than playing professional basketball with the revered Harlem Globetrotters, Tay Fisher gets to travel the world and feels lucky to be able to be exposed to international customs. "You're able to learn new languages, you're able to see the types of things they eat, how they live," he says. He says that most people don't get that opportunity and he is very grateful for what he has. However, he says, nothing supplants playing in the United States. "Coming here, wearing the red, white and blue. Going on the military tour. These are the highlights of my life, he says."
     He is a person before an athlete, a leader and a teammate. Fisher has proven that he always plays hard and never looks back in defeat. He sustains his zeal every second and thrives off success, getting hungrier every day to change the lives of his fans. "I want to keep entertaining people, I want to keep them smiling." He will be revolutionizing basketball moves to the tune of Sweet Georgia Brown for years to come.


Download: Tay Fisher Interview w/ Zack Pumerantz


Full schedule of eight NYC area games:

>Thursday, Dec. 30 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. (doubleheader) - Prudential Center
> Friday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. - Madison Square Garden
>Saturday, Feb. 19 at 1 p.m. - IZOD Center
>Saturday, Feb. 19 at 7:30 p.m. - Madison Square Garden
>Sunday, Feb. 20 at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. (doubleheader) - Nassau Coliseum
>Monday, Feb. 21 at 1 p.m. - IZOD Center

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JZ Sports first LIVE BROADCAST!

Listen to internet radio with jzsports on Blog Talk Radio

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Injury Prone: Is it Real?

With the recent rash of injuries to oft-injured players such as Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford and Miami quarterback Chad Pennington, JZ Sports is asking, what does it mean to be injury prone? Is it all physical, or are there mental aspects as well? Jake and Zack debate.



Zack: I see it as a combination of many factors. Physically, one might be muscularly weaker or unable to fully heal from past injuries that might or might not have been serious.

Jake: What about somebody like Pennington, who has had multiple surgeries on the same shoulder? Would you say it is because he is unable to fully heal? Or is it his fault for something in his style of play?

Zack: Well it's interesting because coaches teach quarterbacks how to fall correctly when being tackled because they have been known to be more fragile. In terms of Stafford, he could be fighting for more yardage or falling down the wrong way, which can aggravate previous injuries or create new ones. Some players seem to fight harder for yards than others, do you think this is a positive or a negative?

Jake: Well I think it depends on the player. We have to look at a guy like Bob Sanders on the Colts or Ronnie Brown on the Dolphins and figure they are doing something wrong. Sanders always seems to be  injured, and it is usually something like a knee or elbow injury, which means he is not taking care of himself during hard plays. It also cannot be excused by his effort, because how often is Troy Polamalu injured? Aside from that, do you think there might  be a mental aspect to these injuries?

Zack: There is definitely a mental aspect to it. In Stafford's situation, it must be devastating for a quarterback to come into the league with such promise, separate his shoulder in his rookie year, then separate his other shoulder twice in his second season. Mentally, this must cripple him and almost force him to feel like he needs to pressure himself to get back quicker, even if he's not fully healed. Perhaps this brings some hesitation to his game and inhibits his development. We saw this happen to Chad Pennington when he looked like a rising star.

Jake: Agreed. Injuries can cripple the psyche of the players. Bad injuries can alter careers forever or even end them. Even worse, it can cripple them after their careers are over. One such type of injury is concussions, which I think are a matter of real concern. Concussions seem to be on the rise, as more players are getting concussed every week. In the past, one could attribute frequent concussions to the play style of the victims, such as Wayne Chrebet and Brian Westbrook. However, nowadays every player seems to be prone to concussions, and one has to wonder whether it's due to the players themselves or something else, like poor helmet technology.

Zack: The equipment technology is also on the rise and I don't see the helmets as the problem. James Harrison put it perfectly when he said that he looks to hurt players when hitting them. It has become a more violent game with players wanting to make Sportscenter highlights with big hits. It seems like being "injury prone" is less due to physical attributes and more due to mental state and style of play. Would you agree?

Jake: Yes. I think if we go back and look at most of the repeat-injury players, their later injuries usually result from a mistake on their part. Of course there are always injuries that are unavoidable accidents, but when we see the same players going down again and again, we have to assume that they are doing something wrong. After all, can we really think that Peyton Manning's bones are stronger than Ronnie Brown's?

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JZSports Midseason Awards

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Interview With a Harlem Globetrotter w/ podcast

Today I had the pleasure of hosting a special guest, former Siena guard and current Harlem Gloebtrotter Tay "Firefly" Fisher for a profile I am going to write on him in the coming weeks. He is most known for his crunch-time play to lead #13 Siena to victory over #4 ranked Vanderbilt to advance to the second round of the 2008 March Madness. He is a role model to all that know him and has a Basketball Camp for kids, adding that he wants to be a teacher after he is done with basketball. Once scoring 61 points in a high school game in his hometown Kingston, NY, Fisher describes his appreciation for the game and his drive to be the best he can, never letting up.   
Download Podcast: Tay Fisher Interview w/ Z.P.

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Wade Phillips Fired

"He gets to do whatever he wants to. Whatever he does, we have no choice but to live with it."                        - cornerback Terence Newman on owner Jerry Jones

According to sources on ESPN.com, Dallas Cowboys' head coach Wade Phillips has been fired by Jerry Jones and co. Less than a year ago he was given a 2-year extension after leading the Cowboys to their first playoff win in ten years. Jerry Jones claimed to be deterred from firing Phillips mid-season because of the low success rate of interim coaches, but after the 45-7 beating they took from the Green Bay Packers last night, the straw broke.

This seems like a move that should have been made a long time ago. Sure, their overrated quarterback is hurt and they are ridden with injuries, however they have too much talent to have gone 1-6 before Romo was knocked out of last week's game against the steaming Giants. Keep in mind that I am the Jets fan, as opposed to Jake (the Giant fan), so in no way am I biased. This is the right move for the 1-7 Cowboys. It's the only move at this point to make for a team that is falling apart and needs a spark. Phillips had lost control of this team and in my opinion hasn't had control in any of their loses during his reign as head coach for "America's team." Check the story about Wade Phillips out for yourself. 

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The Weekly Roast: Childress and Shanahan

JZSports' very first video! Matched with our Podcast for the roast of Week 8 coaching, watch, comment, and enjoy!

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Podcast: Week 9 NFL Predictions

Here are the predictions for week 9 in the NFL. Listen to the podcast and enjoy.
Download: Week 9 NFL Predictions

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Podcast #2: The Weekly NFL Roast

Enjoy our second podcast, when we unload on the two worst coaches of week 8. We have been fed up with the decision making of coaches this year. Enjoy listening and enlighten us with your responses.

Download: Weekly Roast

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