What a Busy Wednesday It Was!

ROCKETS MAKE MOVE--FINALLY

The question concerning many fans on Thursday morning following the reported deal ending the Tracy McGrady career as a Rocket had nothing to do with the club's all time leading per game scorer, but the OTHER players lost--namely Carl Landry.

Fans are concerned the loss of Landry who really came into his own as a key player and one of the top scorers on the club will be a missing ingredient on the club that will hurt more than the aquisition of guard Kevin Martin will help. Only time will tell on that just as only time will reveal whether any of the other names in the deal, Joey Dorsey to Sacramento with McGrady and Landry or Kenny Thomas, Hilton Armstrong or Sergio Rodriguez will help the Rockets.

Early indications by many fans on the blogs and forums is the opinion is not overly positive.

DON'T DISCOUNT THOSE "AMATEUR" BLOGGERS

While it was often common for those who made their living writing and reporting on sports to discount entries on blogs by fans who had other jobs as their primary source of income or were far removed from the day to day scene that has become a passe thought. More and more bloggers take their "work" very seriously and do much--or even more-- "digging" than the guys who report for a living.

Chip Bailey who writes a daily blog on the Houston Chronicle web site is a very strong example. Chip is a long time Houston Astro fan who lives in Louisiana. But his blog is not just opinions from a fan. He spends hours doing research and following up. For example Chip has uncovered that pitcher Felipe Paulino would NOT be lost by the Astros if they felt he was not ready to earn a regular spot on the pitching staff this spring. Paulino has an option left after all. This was a fact that even the Astros only recently learned. For Chip's full story and the ramifications that have given the Astros a little roster freedom I refer you to the Chronicle web site and Chip's blog.

NO DEEP RESEARCH NEEDED FOR LONGHORNS

Nothing needs to be researched on the Texas Longhorn's men's basketball team. The cold facts show the team is still in a fall within the Big 12. With Wednesday night's loss at Missouri the Longhorns dropped to 6-5 in the Big12 and now rest in 6th place. That is a mighty drop for a team that at one point this season had been ranked #1 in the nation.

I didn't cover any Longhorn games this season, but from what I see on television coach Rick Barnes has a team with as many athletes as he has ever had. Sometimes though that doesn't transfer into team, court smart, basketball players. It has been a struggle for Barnes' preferred coaching style to be followed with so many athletically gifted players on the court. His team this year does not perform well when it deviates from a more "coached" style yet it deviates far too much on both offense and defense. There is still time to correct it.

ROCKETS ROLL

Lost in the talk about the long awaited Tracy McGrady deal was the Rockets dominating win at Milwaukee on Wednesday night. The three pointers were falling and the offense was clicking. It was the sort of game Rocket fans wished they could see all the time. One of the key players was Carl Landry who made his last appearance in a Houston uniform.

TRADE DETAILS TO BE CONFIRMED TODAY

One final note about the Rocket trade. Officially it has not yet occurred since as of early Thursday morning it had not been confirmed. Yet, sources as reliable as the Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen and several internet reports including The Sporting News Online were reporting the essense of the deal--the key names, McGrady, Martin and Landry, were all involved.