Bulls Need to Upgrade Coaching, Not Just Talent

No sooner had the final buzzer sounded in Sunday’s 121-98 Bulls’ loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, I could hear the clock ticking away, marking the end of the Vinny del Negro era in Chicago. Most fans will blame del Negro for the poor performance of the Bulls this season. That’s usually the case. But management also must take some of the blame. What did they expect when they hired Del Negro two years ago, a relative unknown with very little professional coaching experience to speak of? When you hire mediocre talent to coach your team, you will get mediocre results.

It was clear back in December that Del Negro’s days were numbered when rumors of an imminent firing flew around the Internet. But nothing happened, and it appeared that the beleaguered coach had a reprieve. Then a few weeks ago when stories surfaced of a heated exchange between Del Negro and team president John Paxson, you figured Del Negro’s days were numbered.

To his credit, Del Negro has kept the team together during these ups and downs and multiple injuries, and he has managed to lead them to two playoff appearances in two consecutive years. But that is not good enough for Bulls management or for Chicago fans, who hunger for another championship in any sport. If the Bulls are serious about bringing another championship to the Windy City, they not only have to upgrade the talent on the floor, they need a serious talent upgrade in the coaching ranks.

Did Rochette’s Mother Ignore Symptoms?

It seems that the mother of Olympic bronze medalist Joannie Rochette may have experienced some symptoms several days before suffering a fatal heart attack in Februrary, just days before Joannie was to compete at the Olympics. According to the Montreal Gazette, Joannie found a handwritten note in her mother’s purse that outlined some of the aches and pains she had been feeling. The elder Rochette did not tell anyone about the symptoms, including her doctor and daughter.

Was she keeping track of her symptoms with the idea that she’d talk to her doctor after the Olympics? Or did she simply ignore the signals? No one will ever know for sure. But one wonders if Rochette’s mother would be alive today had she gone to the doctor at the first signs of trouble.

This is our only life and it’s up to us to protect it. So if you experience any signs of a heart attack — chest discomfort, pain or discomfort in the arms, and shortness of breath — call a doctor and seek medical attention right away. Every minute counts.

Tennis Great Navratilova Being Treated for Breast Cancer

I was saddened when I heard the news that tennis legend Martina Navratilova has breast cancer. According to news reports, the cancer caught the 53-year-old Navratilova off guard. She readily admitted that she got too busy in her life and went for four years without getting a mammogram. Now she’s paying the consequences.

This only goes to show that cancer can hit anyone at anytime. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you’ve accomplished in your life, or how fit and healthy you feel you are. For women over 40, it’s important to get a mammogram every year.

Navratilova is a tough cookie, so I’m sure she’ll fight this disease with the same ferocity as she battled opponents on the court. She is expected to make a full recovery.

White Sox Blank Tribe in Season Opener

The White Sox looked to be in mid-season form as they shut out the Cleveland Indians 6-0 in their season home opener at U.S. Cellular Field this afternoon. Paul Konerko and Alex Rios both hit home runs, and Mark Buehrle pitched seven scoreless innings, giving up three hits and one walk. He also made a spectacular play, kicking a grounder into foul territory on the first base side, chasing after it and flipping the ball with his glove between his legs to Konerko at first base for the out. Rios also made a diving catch to end the game.

If this is a sign of things to come, then this should be a sparkling year for the White Sox. Based on the strength of their pitching alone, many baseball experts, including Fox’s Ken Rosenthal, are picking the Sox to clinch the AL Central crown. The key question mark is whether they can hit with any consistency and score runs to help out what is surely one of the best starting rotations in the American League.

One victory down, another 90 or so more to go, which should be plenty to clinch the AL Central.

Bulls' Pippen Enters Hall of Fame

Congrats to fomer Bull Scottie Pippen who was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame today. He joins teammate Michael Jordan who entered the Hall of Fame a year ago. Pippen and Jordan were part of the Bulls’ team that won six championships in the 1990s.

Pippen earns a double honor as the 1992 Olympic “Dream Team” was also named to the Hall of Fame. Former Jazz great Karl Malone and former Chicagoan and four-time WNBA champion Cynthia Cooper are also inductees.

The induction ceremony will take place Aug. 13 in Springfield, Mass.

Womans Eye in San Antonio

By the way, I just returned from a few days in San Antonio where I snagged a ticket for the Spurs-Lakers game at AT&T Center. Playoff atmosphere. Great crowd, with a fairly large percentage of Lakers fans in the stands. Spurs fans are very passionate about their team. My updated profile photo was taken at the Spurs game.

Post-Olympic Letdown Plagues Skaters

After I returned from vacation last week, I managed to catch some of the World Figure Skating Championships in Turin, Italy. Was it my imagination, or did this competition seem lackluster? Some of the medalists of the Vancouver Games opted not to participate at Worlds this year, including gold medalists Evan Lysacek, and Shen and Zhou in pairs, as well as Johnny Weir and Stephane Lambiel. Understandably, Joannie Rochette begged off after performing two emotionally charged programs in Vancouver after her mother died suddenly, and Evengi Plushenko bowed out due to injury.

According to the USA Today, many of the skaters who participated in the worlds this past week complained of fatigue, and others appeared to be sleepwalking through their performances. Yu-Na Kim, gold medalist from Vancouver and reigning world champion, was especially disappointing, missing three of the elements in her short program which put her in tenth place. She finished second overall, but even her free skate was less than dazzling. Kim admitted later that she lacked motivation.

Other skaters seemed unaffected by a post-Olympic letdown and provided outstanding performances -- Mao Asada’s free skate, Daisake Takahashi, Mirai Nagasu’s short program, to name a few. It begs the question whether there should be a world championships held so soon after the Olympics, or if there should be one at all?

The last time all four Olympic champions competed at the worlds was in 1992, and all four champions went on to collect world golds. Skier Lindsay Vonn and speedskater Shani Davis competed at their world championships within a few short weeks after the Vancouver Olympics, and performed well.

So why then is it so difficult for skaters to stay motivated to compete at worlds? Granted, there are more competitions for skaters today than there were in 1992, but the training and conditioning methods have improved so much over the years that skaters should be able to handle the added workload.

A lot of this has to do with having the right mindset. If athletes train only for the Olympics, they won’t have much left in the tank to compete for post-Olympic events. If they train for the entire season, they are able to pace themselves through the long grueling season. Asada and Takahashi proved that last week when both performed better and looked stronger than at any other time during the season. Ice dance medalists Virtue/Moir and Davis/White also performed as well in Turin as they did in Vancouver.

Abandoning the World championships altogether is not the answer. It’s a great platform for younger skaters to gain experience and show what they can do on the world stage. I think it’s important to keep the level of interest up for the sport.

One possibility is moving the world championships to January, which of course means, moving the U.S. and Canadian national championships to December. In the Olympic year, you could probably cancel the European and Four Continents since neither event has any bearing on which skaters go to the Olympics; that’s done at the respective national events. Having the worlds in January would provide a sneak preview of the Olympic Games and generate more interest from viewers and fans. And I think the top skaters would be more likely to participate in the event, although they may hold back somewhat in their performance. But as a skating fan, I'd much rather see that than a no-show.

It’ll be interesting to see if the International Skating Union addresses this issue when it convenes in June.