Changes at ESPN 700

   So, this afternoon, I was working out and listening to the Bill Riley show on ESPN 700 here in Salt Lake.  I had been listening for quite some time, when an ad caught my attention.  It just mentioned that on April 25, ESPN 700 would be welcoming a "Utah radio legend" to its lineup.  No other details were given. 

    Being a sports radio junkie, I tweeted @espn700bill to confirm what I had heard.  He responded with "yes". 

    I then presented this to my twitter followers and asked for guesses as to who this might be.  Here are some of the their responses.

    The first response I got was from @jdartute, who (thankfully) admitted that it was not him and guessed Brad Rock.  I have listened to Brad Rock fill in from time to time on 1280 the Zone.  Brad is my favorite local columnist and I think he always does well on the Zone.  Could it be him? He isn't exactly a "radio legend", but its as good a guess as any. 

     My personal guess (first one at least, ha ha) was Tom Barberi.  Tom has been with KALL in the past and frankly on the radio forever.  (His daughter, if I am not mistaken, does "radio from hell on X96).  My good friend @nate5107 voiced his opinion that he would not be a fan of that move.  I am with you Nate!  Tom, though he could be considered a "legend" is past his prime and I can't imagine ESPN 700 bringing him back.  (Hey idiot, you just slammed your own guess!)

     @davidwilbur was next in with his hope that it would be Steve Klauke, aka @slbeesradio.  I have always enjoyed Steve.  He could be considered a legend.  But coming to ESPN 700 would mean he has to give up being the voice of the Bees (I think, they are competing stations).  I have no idea if Steve is thinking of hanging that up or not, but it very well could be him.

     One of my favorite byu fans, @bhein3 suggested that it might be the guy "who was on 1320 who has been on ESPN national radio for a while".  My first thought was that this was Ian Furness.  I googled him, and it looks like he is in Seattle.   Can anyone help me on this?  This sounds familiar, but I just can't think of the name. 

     @davidwilbur also suggested former 1280 the Zone personalities Jim Fuchuck and Kevin Graham.  Fuchuck was fired and Graham left for a gig in Arizona.  Graham now runs the website Sports Mashup.  Fuchuck is still hanging around the market, or so I have been told.  Both would be nice additions.  Fuchuck is the only one I have heard who can have a competent conversation about professional baseball here in town. 

     @UtahProgressive weighed in by saying he had a feeling it might be David Locke.  This thought had crossed my mind too.  He and Wilbur went on to have a back and forth about how Locke "blows".  (If there is a more accurate description, Id like to find it).  Locke is a Jazz homer, and ESPN 700 is the middle ground in Utah.  (1320 is far too nice to the Jazz, 1280 is too harsh, ESPN 700 gives you the middle ground.)   I fear Locke coming over would tip the scale too far in the Pro-jazz direction.  At the same time, maybe getting away from KFAN would let Locke tell us how he really feels.  The guy works hard, but he is a jerk at times to callers.  Would he be willing to give up being the "Voice of the Jazz"?

    Wilbur and @hatufan came in asking about the logistics of this move.  Is the new person joining Bill Riley as a co host?  Are they getting rid of a syndicated show "Mike and Mike", "The Herd", or "The Dan Patrick Show" to have another local one? Or, and this made me nervous, are they bringing someone in new to replace Bill Riley? 

     I had thought about the replacement thing recently.  In the past, these things usually work out such that if a host is leaving, he leaves before a replacement is named.  So, if Bill was to leave, @espn700jimmer would probably take over his show until a permanent replacement was found.  Additionally, Bill has it good here.  He is the voice of the Utes and RSL.  I think he is staying for the forseeable future. 

     @Ublender44 suggested that the voice of Weber State, Carl Arky would be the man.  Carl does a nice job when he is asked to fill in on the various stations.  I like this option.  

      Here is my opinion:  I think that ESPN is putting pressure on ESPN 700 to drop the Non-ESPN Dan Patrick.  Dan Patrick gets pretty good ratings, but he does come from a competitor (not to mention his FORMER role at ESPN).  Anyway, if Dan is dropped, ESPN 700 would be looking to fill that with a local show.  I think Bill stays.  What is my opinion based on? Nothing.  If I have to pick, I would guess that they are going to go with an out of towner returning.  Someone like Ryan Hatch or Furness perhaps. 

    Stay tuned on April 25 for that big announcement!

    Final Thought: I wouldn't go to the track and bet your lifesaving on Greg Wrubell.....just saying. 

Ranting and raving on the sports world.....

                                                           Look! Its Jared Sullinger, the man who
                                                           the Jazz will NOT draft this year!



    A lot on my mind today.....hope you enjoy it!

   First of all, as a Jazz fan, I enjoy reading what others are saying about my team.  I frequently check out nbadraft.net to see the latest projections of who they think the Jazz will take in this summer's draft.

    I had to laugh when I saw that they had projected the Jazz to take Jared Sullinger in their mock draft last week.  Really? Jared Sullinger?  Anyone who even remotely follows the Jazz knows that the Jazz have a real problem in their front court.  They have two established veterans who start and play big minutes.  They have two immensely talented young big men who are going to be very good someday.  They have more people who deserve minutes than they can find time for on the court. 

     So these draft "experts" think that the Jazz are going to use a top 10 pick on ANOTHER front court player?  Really?  With the long term uncertainty at point guard, and the log-jam up front, the Jazz are going to draft Jared Sullinger?  

     The only way the Jazz draft a big man in the lottery is if Lew Alcindor is there.  And he is not.  And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out.  And my teachers in school always told me that you can't start a sentence with "and" and I have now done it three sentences in a row!  IN YO FACE!

     These internet hacks ought to do some research before they make these projections.  They sure look awfully foolish. 

    Speaking of the NBA draft......there is some talk out there of changing the requirements to come into the league.  I want to propose my own way of changing things. 

    As it is now, players have to be one year removed from high school to enter the NBA.  You can play college ball or in Europe for a year, but you can't go "preps to pros" anymore. 

    If it was up to me, I would change it to be similar to the MLB model.  There are a few players in the NBA who have nothing to gain by playing college ball.  They are as ready as they can be for the league and they should be able to jump right in.  Currently playing in the leauge, I can think of only a few.  LeBron, Kevin Durrant, Derrick Rose, and Kobe Bryant.  Every single player in the NBA not in this group should have gone to college.  So basically, in my model, when that rare player comes along, they can be drafted right out of high school.

     I realize that a lot of kids out there think they are LeBron James, because everyone has told them so.  To prevent owners from taking every kid out of high school, I would propose that owners be required to pay a tax if they draft a high school player.  Maybe 5 million.  That way, only the truly elite get drafted.  Otherwise, you go play college ball.

    Now, once you are in college, you have to stay for at least three years.  For my examples of why, I refer you to Perry Jones, Harrison Barnes, and Jared Sullinger.   All were considered top five picks last year after their freshman year.  Feeling that the lockout might not end, they chose to come back to school. 

     In each case, their stock has fallen.  Which means less money for them.  BUT, there are advantages to being taken later.  Look, scouts have had an extra year to find their weaknesses and aren't as excited about them.  Being taken lower in the draft will decrease the pressure on them.  They go to a team that is more ready to compete. 
 
    And their stock dropping is artificial as well.  They haven't regressed in terms of playing, its just that the scouts see less upside than before.  In reality, they are more mature, and better skilled players who are more ready to compete in the NBA.

     Look at Perry Jones.  Last year, he probably gets taken top 3.  Top 5 minimum.  But he just wasn't ready.  He would have been barbecued.  Now, he will be a later lottery pick.  The spotlight won't be as bright, and he can develop at a more natural rate. 

   Forcing these guys to stay in college will help NBA owners make better decisions.  It will also help the quality of college basketball......which leads me to my next point.

    Can we please stop the "Kentucky could beat Team X in the NBA!"  No they couldn't.  They would lose to any NBA team by 30+ 10 out of 10 times. 

    I just love the argument that "Kentucky has four NBA players! They could compete!"  That is cute.  Each NBA team has 13 NBA players.  Good luck to Kentucky! 

    With the "one and done" rule, college basketball has become less competitive.  You don't see the elite teams anymore.  Kentucky is good, but they would have a hard time beating any champ from the 90's.  In fact, if this Kentucky team had played during the 90's, I don't see them even reaching the final four. 

     On to the gridiron now.....

    I have rambled on far longer than I intended, so let me simply say that Roger Goddell needs to bring the hammer down on this bounty scandal.  He needs to make a statement so that players and coaches understand that this is not acceptable.  Yes, football is a violent game.  People will get hurt.  But to give incentives to hurt someone permanently is deplorable.   Heads need to roll on this.  I would even consider lifetime bans.  This HAS to stop. 

   BOZO OF THE WEEK:

    Dwight Howard.  This guy has held his team hostage for a long time now.  Recently, the news broke that he has asked management to fire coach Stan Van Gundy.  The Magic should have shipped this loser off a long time ago.  This isn't your team Dwight.  You don't call the shots.  You are a spoiled brat with an ego the size of Disneyworld.  Why don't you shut up and play ball?  If you want to win so badly, why don't you cut your salary in half so the team can sign some other good players?  But nope.  Dwight is a beans for brains buffoon.