Update on American Telecom Rebate, Why I Love and Hate the Pau Gasol Trade, And More Spygate Fun
I would have blogged last night, but my head hurt.
Quick-hitter:
- I scored an Antec Earthwatts 380W Power Supply from Newegg a couple of days ago ($34.99 - $30 MIR), and coupled that with the $20 Antec Solo case I bought a few weeks ago, I can finally hook up the CPU/mobo combo Krunk gave me back in December.
(Well, technically, I traded a 6′ HDMI to DVI cable for the combo.)
Whether or not I actually do it is a different story :P.
- I have an update regarding my $25 American Telecom Systems rebate. As with my ZoneAlarm rebate fiasco, I decided to email Fry’s directly to see if they would help me obtain my money. I faxed in my supporting documents on Thursday, and got a reply from Fry’s yesterday:
Thank you for contacting Frys.com.
Hello Peter, in regards to your Pay N Talk rebate in the amount of
$25.00. We have since gotten in contact with the rebate manufacturer in
regards to your denial. Unfortunately after talking with them it seems
as though they are unwilling to help there customers. What we are going
to do for you in this matter is go ahead and give all of your rebate
submission to our home office. They will be issuing you a check shortly.
Please note that this may take up to 2 months. Please feel free to get
back with us in regards to this status. Thank you.
If that doesn’t spell “SCAM,” I don’t know what does.
Props again to Fry’s for bailing me out!
(Then again, I better not count my chickens before they hatch.)
- When I first went to Yahoo! Sports, I saw a little blurb mentioning that former Memphis Grizzlies’ F/C Pau Gasol had been traded. The first thing that came to my head was “So soon? The trading deadline is weeks away!” So you could imagine my immediate shock when I heard that Gasol was traded to the Lakers.
(For those of you hiding under a rock the size of an Egyptian Pyramid, the Lakers traded BS (that’s Big Stiff) Kwame Brown, G Javaris Crittenton, formerly retired G Aaron McKie, first-round picks in 2008 and 2010, and the rights to Marc Gasol (yes, relation; they are brothers). The Lakers got back Gasol and the Grizzlies’ second-round pick in 2010.)
Did the Lakers just trade Kwame Brown for Pau Gasol? Talk about highway robbery! Former Lakers’ GM Jerry West had a hand in the deal, right? What the hell were the Grizzlies thinking? Those were just some of the thoughts that came to me in the five minutes after I heard about the deal. But before my rational self decides to chime in, here is what I love about the deal:
1) The Lakers got a near 20-10 player (20 points + 10 rebounds/game) for the cost of Kwame Brown and essentially first round picks, if you count Crittendon. How often do 20-10 guys get dealt, much less midseason?
(Don’t answer that, Minnesota fans.)
Gotta love it.
2) A year ago, Kobe blasted the Lakers for not being willing to include Andrew Bynum in a deal for Jason Kidd. Some Laker fans blasted the organization for not trading Lamar Odom and Bynum for Jermaine O’Neal. Now we were able to score Pau Gasol without losing either one?
Gotta [expletive] love it!
3) You’d have to assume that those two picks the Lakers will be giving away are going to be in the early-to-mid 20s, at best. More often than not, you get glue guys—solid bench players, marginal starters, etc.—in the mid-20s, not potential superstars. The Lakers’ are already rife with such players: Farmer, Ariza (injured ATM), Vujacic, and Turiaf. Even if Crittenton turns out to be a star, and Marc Gasol becomes a solid role player, you have to like the risk the Lakers are taking.
By the way, where is Crittenton going to play? Don’t the Griz already enough PGs?
I’m definitely loving it.
4) Odom at SF, Gasol at PF, Bynum at C. That’s six very long arms.
Love it!
5) The Lakers have ONE rotation player over the age of 30 (Fisher). ONE!!!
Love it!
Now, please allow my rational side to chime in.
6) Gasol’s owed $50 million through 2010-11. Kobe’s owed $21 million next year. Odom’s owed $14.5 million next year. Andrew Bynum is due for a huge extension after next year. Welcome to salary cap (and luxury tax) hell! And the Lakers could easily compound the problem by dealing Odom in a package for Jason Kidd.
Gotta hate that.
7) Gasol’s not exactly a defensive stalwart, and for all the talk that Lamar Odom is a “natural 3,” I have to cringe at the thought of him guarding quicker, smaller 3s.
Hurry back, Bynum!
Does adding Gasol really push the Lakers past San Antonio, Dallas, and Phoenix? Fans have to be cautiously optimistic.
One other note: what did the Bulls offer Memphis last year that caused Memphis to say no to a Gasol deal? Are you telling me that the Bulls offered less than Kwame, Crittenton, a prospect, and two #1s? Tyrus Thomas, the Bulls’ #9 last year (Joakim Noah), PJ Brown, and a future pick was a less attractive package than what the Lakers offered? Seriously?
- First, there was the original Spygate. A few days ago, we had Sen. Arlen Specter openly question why the NFL was so quick to destroy all Spygate-related tapes (and for the record, why did the NFL do this?). Then we had former Patriots employee Matt Walsh saying that he has tapes that could be “damaging” to the Patriots. Now, there are reports that someone videotaped the St. Louis Rams before Super Bowl in 2002.
The timing for all of this couldn’t be any better…for the Patriots, that is. As if Brady*, Belicheck*, et al.*******, need any more motivation to wax the floor with the New York Giants. Heck, maybe the Pats* paid Walsh to speak out now for the extra motivation. For all we know, maybe they paid off Sen. Specter to do the same!
Do I expect the league to fully investigate the latest accusations against the Pats? Yeah, about as “fully” as they investigated the original Spygate.
By the way, Pats 31, Giants 17. My original prediction was Pats 24, Giants 17, but these latest spying allegations have to be worth, at the very least, an extra touchdown.
