Bleacher Report - Articles by Trenton Woodley

Why Allen Iverson Is The "Answer" To The Woes of The City Of Memphis

Trenton Woodley — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 03:30:25 -0400

Christmas has come early for many NBA franchises this off season, acquiring needs or substantial wants to help them get better than they were before. But what about the teams that are not expected to get better, huh. What do they just go through the motions and let it be. Or do they go out and try to coerce guys that may be perceived "out of their league" to become part of their team. That seems to be the case with the talks that link perennial All-Star and future Hall of Famer Allen Iverson with the Memphis Grizzlies. While many people see this as a stupid move on both ends, I will tell you why this is beneficial for not only Allen Iverson or the Grizzlies, but for the city of Memphis.

First off, the Grizzlies need a sure fire superstar to get people actually excited about seeing the team. In the early days of their move to the Bluff City, they were able to sustain a fan base based on the excitement of a pro team in the Mid-South as well as the young players on the roster. Over the years, they have tried to just get by with acquiring mid tier guys who were role players where they were who could start for the Grizzlies. That is not going to cut it now. There should be noted that a real problem will incur when a college team is more popular than a pro team in an area. That is the case with the Memphis Tigers, who are the heartbeat of the city and the region. The Tigers have tasted success, and now the Grizzlies need to do so as well. This coming year will be a down year, so it is the perfect time to cut into the loyalties of the U of M fan base.

For Allen Iverson, it is a chance to rewrite himself in the twilight of his career. No one has doubted that he is not one of the fifty greatest players in NBA history. What people have questioned is can he lead a team and make them good around him. He has put up points and dished out assists, but has he done them for the good of the team or for the good of his stat sheet? If he comes to Memphis, he will get a chance to either start (he's still better than Mike Conley), or come of the bench to provide a solid scoring threat, helping the franchise's chances against the rest of its tough division, the Southwest. He will only get paid 5 million, but if he can show that he can still lead a team effectively or contribute to the success of a club, he could get offers from anyone he wants next summer.

This last one is to emphasize the importance of an economic boost in the city of Memphis, TN, and how desperately it needs one. The city has not necessarily been hit hard by the latest economic bust in the country, but that is because it has been mired in financial woes for at least the past eight years. The unemployment rate is among the largest in the South, despite having one of the largest job markets for a city of its size in country. Bad investments, misuse of government funds, and incompetence at City Hall has led to the city's horrendous troubles, which has affected the Grizzlies directly. If people are not getting paid, they can't buy game tickets, which means merchandise doesn't get bought and money can't be spent on big name players, which forces them to get involved in trades to help other teams so that those teams can send money back in return. A name like Allen Iverson would get the attention of national media, ensuring the Grizzlies more than just one nationally televised game, and give instant credibility to a hungry franchise. It would also get people to fill the FedEx Forum, something that hasn't happened since their last playoff appearance three years ago.

Having an established NBA superstar who has his own fan base would certainly bring a boost to the Memphis Grizzlies, who would certainly be in need of a name of that caliber, which may attract other big names to the city. The franchise with more money than most others cannot get people here because their is no incentive to go there. Here's hoping that a deal of this magnitude turns around the fortunes of all involved.

How the NBA's Southwest Division Will Stand

Trenton Woodley — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 21:17:52 -0400

Were you wondering how the Southwest would be won? Look no futher than this list here in which I will explain why each of the five teams in this division will finish where they do. Tim Duncan and his Spurs have taken this offseason to reload their roster and make them more primetime with the addition of Richard Jefferson. He alongside Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili should make them a formidable match against any opponent. The Dallas Mavericks are poised to make a deep run in the playoffs next year and are getting their guns ready for the fight. The Memphis Grizzlies look to improve in any way from last season by ramping up their roster with good names. CP3 and his Hornets look to continue to contend, and the Houston Rockets are looking for an identity after taking a heavy blow in the offseason. Now its time to check out who is at number 5 in a division that sent four teams to the playoffs in the West last season.

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Michigan State Spartans Gassed Up and Ready to Roll in Final Four

Trenton Woodley — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 04:15:43 -0400

The Final Four is set. Finally.

And if your brackets are still intact right now, either you are a genius or a liar.

Either way, the surprises that came down the stretch for many college basketball fans were a bit late by tournament standards, seeing as the Sweet Sixteen was so predictable, Dionne Warwick kept her Psychic Friends at the house.

Beyond that, the surprises came.

Duke and Memphis' trouncing by Villanova and Missouri, respectively, all led up to the biggest surprise of them all, Michigan State's destruction of top-overall seed Louisville in the Elite Eight.

MSU earned a spot in the Final Four in Detroit, less than 90 miles from the Michigan State campus in East Lansing, MI. This will undoubtedly be the biggest "home field" advantage of any Final Four Team since Duke in 1994 when the weekend was hosted in Charlotte, NC.

Now I know that MSU is probably not as beloved as Michigan, but I do know that Spartan fans will come out of the woodwork to try to get to Ford Field and be among the throngs of college hoops enthusiasts to see if the old Green and White can pull of what would be a momentous upset over UConn in their semifinal game.

If they can, the may be riding a great wave of momentum up to the championship game and could give Coach Izzo his second banner to hang form the rafters of Breslin.

The Izzone will be in the house, Magic and Heathcoate will be there—and by golly, if you love Sparty, you should be there.

Detroit will become Sparta. A-Rooh, A-Rooh, A-Rooh!

What Brett Favre and Michael Jordan Just Could Not Do—Sit Down!

Trenton Woodley — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:41:25 -0400

He won three NBA titles, and just had to come back for three more. He has broken every possible record, and came back. It's something that the average everyday fan just can't seem to understand—why won't the greats just sit the hell down?

Could it be the love of the game? Maybe the thrill of victory? Or, maybe it's just that there is nothing to do at home? I think the latter is the case. They are like other men who retire and need something to do that in order not to become house husbands.

Michael Jordan just couldn't retire once. He couldn't even do it twice! No, he had to do it in a way that only Mike could do—three times! He had played for nine solid seasons, winning MVPs and Defensive POY! And, oh, that's right, he won three NBA championships in a row.

But, he decided that, after winning the championship and losing to Charles Barkley for the MVP that season, he wanted to quit and go home. I guess playing for the Birmingham Barons in the Chicago White Sox farm system made him get the itch again, especially since he hit .202 with only three home runs and 11 errors in the field. The next thing anyone knows, he's at a press conference in 1995 saying, "I'm Back!" He decided that blasting line drives wasn't as good as blasting through driving lanes on the court.

Three seasons and three more rings later, he says it's over for good again and it looks like it's going to stay that way. Wrong! I guess when your first major choice as the President of Basketball Operations is drafting Kwame Brown, you have to atone by coming out of retirement and helping the kid out. Finally, he says he's done once more, although no one knows just how long that will last.

Now comes Brett Favre, who has made a career of sticking it out and making it through. After all, he holds the record for the most consecutive starts by a QB in NFL history!

Then again, what record doesn't Brett Favre hold? If you can think of a record for a quarterback, he has it. From yards to touchdowns to wins as well as one he would rather not have, interceptions, he did it. He even won three straight MVPs in the 1990s, two Super Bowl appearances, and one Super Bowl ring.

He played against the best and with some of the greatest of all-time. But, that doesn't seem to be enough for him, because even after he said, "I know that I can play, but I don't think I want to", he wants. And, I would tell Brett to just sit down, and relax for the first time in his life. That's what Warren Sapp is doing. That's what Michael Strahan is doing. And that's what he needs to be doing!

Brett is messing up Hall of Fame week for 2013. But, you can't blame him for wanting to play, because every man in America wants to do what he had been doing for seventeen years. My suggestion to Brett Favre is, and I hope he gets to read this—GO BUY MADDEN 09 LIKE THE REST OF US!!!

Draft Day: The Beginning or the End of a Franchise

Trenton Woodley — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 22:59:31 -0400

By now you all should know the woes and missteps of the Grizzlies franchise. You know, the team that was the first NBA franchise outside of the U.S when they were in Vancouver. The team that picked in the first ten picks in the draft for eight straight years.

Oh, and how can I forget about them being the team that holds the dubious distinction of not winning a single playoff game in fourteen tries! Hopefully, that brought you back up to speed with them.

The Memphis Grizzlies have been hit and miss in recent drafts. Their most successful year draft-wise was in 2001, their first in Memphis, when they got Pau Gasol and Shane Battier, who ended up finishing one and two in Rookie of the Year ballots, with Pau Gasol taking the award.

Now, the franchise's all-time leader in steals (Battier) and the all-time franchise scorer, rebounder, and blocker (Gasol) are winning games with other franchises—Houston and the Lakers, respectively.

Now it is yet to be seen if Rudy Gay and Mike Conley, Jr. can be a powerful duo, but what the Grizzlies do in this year's draft will decide where the team is going—whether it be down the toilet, like it has been looking, or whether they will be able to rise above their struggles and make it after all.

As far as team needs go, well, let's face it—they need a team! But since that is a long shot to happen, necessity lies at shooting guard and center. Depending on how Minnesota picks, they will have a tough choice of picking between O.J. Mayo and Brook Lopez.

Mayo is a terrific scorer with skills being compared to that of Kobe Bryant's. Brook Lopez, on the other hand, is a terrific post presence whose playing reminds many of Tim Duncan.

While one can have an immediate impact, I believe that to go with the impact player would not be the best choice for the Grizzlies. One player can be an integral part of the franchise, and I believe that the choice should be Brook Lopez.

To add a dominant scorer to the equation would possibly bring dissension to the locker room, as Rudy Gay is already the big time guy for the team. Lopez' contribution could help the team build upon itself and eventually become a powerhouse. Taking the scorer would not be the right move.

These men are not the only possible pickups—they are the best available at the time. So Grizzlies fans, heed my words: Pray for the Cardinal, not the Trojan. Because the Cardinal will stand true, but the Trojan will break on you.