Tag / Heat

by admin

By The Numbers – 23 Bonus!

In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees. By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues. Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.

Sunday, we continued our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #23.  Today, we take a special bonus look at player who famously wore #23 for other Chicago teams, making it possibly the most successful jersey number in town.

Michael Jordan was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the third overall pick in the 1984 NBA draft.  He would go on to become the greatest player in the history of the NBA, leading the Bulls to six titles, nabbing six Finals MVP awards, five MVP awards, three All Star Game MVPs, one Defensive Player of the Year award, and the 1985 Rookie of the Year award.  He was a 14-time All Star, 10-time first team All NBA, 9-time first team All-Defensive, 10-time scoring champion, 3-time steals leader, and 2-time Slam Dunk Contest champion.  A member of the NBA’s 50th and 75th Anniversary teams, his #23 has been retired by both the Bulls and the Miami Heat, for whom he never played.

Selected by the Bears him in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft, Devin Hester quickly became one of, if not the, greatest return specialists in NFL history.  In his first 13 weeks as a professional, Hester recorded six return touchdowns, including three punt returns, two kickoff returns, and a then-record tying 108-yard touchdown from a missed field goal against the New York Giants.  As the Bears advanced to the Super Bowl, Hester became the first and only person to return the opening kick of the Super Bowl back for a touchdown.  2007 added an additional 6 touchdowns, followed by 2 quieter seasons.  In 2010, he added an additional 3 punt returns for touchdowns, followed by 2 punt returns and 1 kickoff return in 2011.  He added an additional punt return in 2013, his final season with the Bears.  This past September, in his first year of eligibility, Hester was nominated for the induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

by jim

Building It Back Up

2 weeks after trading Derrick Rose, the Bulls continued their makeover for the 2016-2017 season by agreeing to sign Chicago-native Dwyane Wade.  Wade, a 34 year old guard, had spent his entire career with the Heat, winning 3 NBA championships.  He joins a Bulls team in transition, Rose, Joakim Noah, and Pau Gasol all gone from last year’s starting lineup.  At his age, Wade will likely play second fiddle to Jimmy Butler as the Bulls try to head back to the playoffs without a major rebuild.

by jim

Tearing It Down

derrick-roseAfter 8 years of hopes, dreams, and frustrations, the Bulls bid farewell to former MVP Derrick Rose yesterday, trading the former superstar to the Knicks, along with Justin Holiday and a second round pick in 2017, for Robin Lopez, Jose Calderon, and Jerian Grant.  Rose, the overall number one draft pick in the 2008 draft, had trouble staying on the court in the last 4 seasons of his tenure, missing more games than he played.

Rose’s career with the Bulls started off with great promise, leading the team to their best showings since Michael Jordan retired the second time following the 1997-1998 NBA Championship.  They looked to be a team on the rise following the 2010-2011 season, which they finished with the best regular season record in the league and lost a hard-fought Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat.  The following December, Rose signed a 5-year contract extension and the Bulls looked to again challenge for the Eastern Conference title.  Sadly, in the first game of the first round against the Sixers, Rose tore his ACL and the favored Bulls were quickly eliminated.

Rose missed the entire 2012-2013 season, despite being cleared by doctors to play in March.  He finally returned for the start of the 2013-2014 season, but a torn meniscus in late November again put him out for the season.  The next two seasons were marred by inconsistent play, more knee injuries, coaching turnover, and a sexual assault lawsuit.  When the Bulls failed to make the playoffs this past season, changes were bound to be made, with this being the first.

by admin

Book 13 (of 52) – Heat

Heat - Nancy Holder

Heat – Nancy Holder

My second attempt to acquire and read this book was much more successful, though maybe fate was trying to keep me from something.  In this tale from author Nancy Holder, ancient demons from China plot to thaw out magical dragons and take over the world, attacking both in Sunnydale and Los Angeles.  Buffy and Angel are forced to reunite in order to stop the threat and save the world.

Unlike her other works in this franchise, Holder’s output this time was a bit of a slog to get through.  Perhaps if less time was spent on the demons and where they came from and why they are attacking and more time was spent with out heroes, it would have been a bit more enjoyable.  But, it is what it is and my latest foray into the Buffyverse comes to an end.

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Book 23 (of 52) – Girls In Pants: The Third Summer Of The Sisterhood

Girls In Pants - Anna Brashares

Girls In Pants – Ann Brashares

Last year, I noticed that my collection of unread Buffyverse books was dwindling down.  I found a used copy of a hardcover crossover between Buffy and Angel that I had missed, Heat,  on Amazon, so I decided to go ahead and pick it up to restock the unread book drawer.  Sadly, when the book arrived, it was the dust jacket for the advertised book, but inside was a copy of Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood.  After requesting a refund from Amazon, they let me go ahead and keep the book, which sat on my dresser for more than a year until I recently decided to pick it up and try something different.  And something different it was.

My only other experiences with the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants saga was watching the two films.  Because of this, I had some familiarity with the characters, which made getting through this a little easier.  It wasn’t a bad read, but certainly not in my usual genre.  Short of another used book mishap, I don’t envision myself going back and reading the previous entries in the series.

by admin

What To Do With Derrick Rose?

derrick-roseFollowing the 2010-2011 season, the Chicago Bulls looked to be at the top of the basketball world.  They had just finished with the best regular season record in the league, they lost a hard-fought Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat, and their young superstar, Derrick Rose, was just named league MVP.  However, things did not go as planned.  Multiple knee injuries kept Rose off the court for much of the next 3 seasons, and tensions grew between the hometown star and the team he grew up cheering for.  Things may have come to a head yesterday, when Rose was accused of drugging and gang-rapping an ex-girlfriend in a civil suit.

Rose, of course, released a statement, claiming that he will be proven innocent.  The Bulls released a much shorter statement, and you could feel that Rose’s time in Chicago may have just gotten shorter.  Only time will tell if the allegations against Rose prove to be true, and an initial reading of the lawsuit does show some problems in the accuser’s accounts, but this type of accusation causes damage regardless.