Author: David Shama

Most observers would give the Lakers the coaching edge, too.  Laker coach Phil Jackson, a North Dakota native, has won nine world titles while Boston’s Doc Rivers is in his first finals as a coach.  Jackson can break the league record for most titles by winning a 10th this spring.  Who is he currently tied with? Celtics legend Red Auerbach, of course.  With this Laker dream script it couldn’t be anyone other than a guy who bled Celtics green and white.

In the unpredictable world of the NBA, the Celtics could win the series and put a few tears on the script.  Locally that might please some fans who root for former Timberwolves Garnett and Sam Cassell, now 38 and perhaps in his last playoff series. Interestingly, though, everyone I talk to is rooting against Garnett.

If Bryant or Gasol get hurt, the script looks like it will have an unhappy ending.  If the Lakers play poorly and the Celtics play like they’re inspired by the ghost of Auerbach, look for a 17^th banner in Boston.

And then, too, there are the game officials.  Just last week Brent Barry of San Antonio drew collision contact from Laker Derek Fisher on a last second desperation shot. Barry could have gone to the free throw line, made three free throws and won the game for the Spurs while tying the Western Conference finals at 2-2.  No foul was called but late in the week the league office admitted that Barry should have shot those free throws.

In the 2006 NBA finals the officials sent Miami guard Dwayne Wade to the free line adnausem.  Wade was seemingly off-limits to contact from defensive players. The result was a steady parade of Wade to the free throw line.  The officiating turned around a series where Miami trailed 2-0 in games against Dallas and then “free throwed” back to win in six.

The Minneapolis-Los Angeles Lakers aren’t looking for any surprises in their script.

In the parity-happy world of major league baseball, local fans should rejoice that Ronald Clyde Gardenhire is the Twins’ leader.

The 2008 big league season has so far showcased surprise bottom feeders Tampa Bay and Florida rising to the top of their divisions, and a whole lot of mediocre teams camping out at winning percentages near .500. The talent load on most rosters isn’t overwhelming enough to run away from rivals.

In the American League Central, Detroit and its high priced talent has been a flop while the budget conscious Twins have been flirting with the lead despite playing .500 baseball.  With the talent wealth distributed almost like socialism, the Twins have an edge because of Gardenhire who is among the game’s best managers.

Since taking over here in 2002, Gardenhire has managed teams that have won four division titles and finished third twice.  Admittedly, the division opposition often wasn’t the American League’s best but then again the Twins didn’t set the gold standard for talent either.

Yes, Gardenhire had some highly skilled players on his teams but he usually managed the best out of that talent, too.  Same this year with a team that has a completely rebuilt starting pitching staff and minimal power, but does have a solid bullpen led by perhaps baseball’s best closer in Joe Nathan, plus extraordinary hitting from Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer, and new found speed on the bases with center fielder Carlos Gomez and second baseman Alexi Casilla.

This team has been error prone in the field even though Gardenhire reveres dominant defense.  Already the 2008 Twins have made 43 errors in 56 games, the second most in the American League.  Two years ago the Twins had only 84 errors all season.

Gardenhire is a teacher who values fundamentals, so this team has frustrated him at times in the field and at-bat.  Yet he shows patience such as last week when 22-year-old left fielder Delmon Young misplayed a fly ball into an inside the park home run.  The easy move would have been to bench Young the next night, but instead he was back in the lineup.  Only after Young committed two errors in that game did he go to the bench.

Put simply, Gardenhire knows baseball and how to handle players.  In the often “even-Steven” world of major league baseball that’s an edge for the Twins.

Vikings placekicker Ryan Longwell saw the greatness of Brett Favre for nine seasons in Green Bay when the two were Packer teammates.  What does Favre’s retirement mean to the Vikings’ fate in the NFC North?

“Well, obviously when you take a hall of famer out of the division, everybody moves up a notch,” Longwell told Sports Headliners recently.  “I am very good friends with Aaron Rogers (Favre’s successor) and I know he will do a very great job over there.  So it’s not like you don’t have to show up and play them.

“They’ll still have a great team and they’ll still have a good guy playing quarterback, but you know the logical equation, anytime you take a hall of famer away…there’s a void there for sure.”

Rogers, who is a California alum like Longwell, has been in the NFL three seasons.  He has no career starts and played in a total of seven games.  He was impressive last season replacing an injured Favre in a Packer loss to Dallas and threw his first touchdown pass.

Longwell has high expectations of Rogers.  “He has very high standards for himself,” Longwell said.  “He will play well. There’s no doubt.”

Was Longwell surprised that Favre, 38, retired?  “You know, not really,” Longwell said.  “I know he had been toying with it the last couple years on whether to step away or not.  It gets to a point in this game where you’ve got nothing else to prove on the field. You feel like you’ve given it everything you possibly can, and he wants normalcy, some time with your children and your wife and your house. …I wasn’t shocked.  He had a good year last year and he went out that way.”