EL BARRIO, EL BRONX – I really don’t have a nice intro paragraph in mind this week, for it is a mix of interesting tidbits in the sports world. So ler’s skip the bullspit and get right to the topics that kept me awake… at least while typing this: the NBA Playoffs, AFC Wimbledon, the Gonzo Twins and The mascot for the NFL’s Washington DC franchise.
NBA Playoffs: I am writing this piece on Thursday so I have no idea who is gonna win between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Angry Ward’s Golden State Warriors. I hate Oklahoma City because as a guy that loved the Seattle Supersonics and will never forgive the NBA for orchestrating that move. On top of that, I am rooting for the Warriors because they deserve to be in the finals at the very least after having the best regular season in league history.
AFC Wimbledon: AFC Wimbledon will hopefully be promoted to League 1, if they beat Plymouth Albion at Wembley this weekend. If they win promotion, they will be in the same division as the MK (Milton Keynes) Dons. If you are wondering what in the Sam Hill is he on about! Checkout the video above.
Essentially, I stumbled across this story and was drawn in as a soccer fan. The Wimbledon Dons were a soccer club in England that were once at the top of the English league. But bad investments left the club broke and they went through a series of owners until they got to one guy that really sucked. The owner decided the club wasn’t making money, so he’d move them and to Milton Keynes. In English football, where teams are tied to very specific parts of their city and/or town, this was unheard of. The fans rebelled and decided they would form their own club. To do so, however, meant the club would start in the 9th division, while the new club stayed in the 3rd. The newbies had a rough start but with the fans owning 75 percent, they persevered and slowly made it up the ladder to the 6th division, with the 5th being fully professional. Then the club got discovered by “Don’t Forget To Be Awesome” founder, writer of “The Fault in Our Stars” and YouTube sensation, John Green. Green discovers the club while YouTubing his FIFA soccer video game matches, for which he gets sponsorships. Green falls in love with the club’s story and move from being a small sponsor to fully sponsoring them – and buying section of seats in their stadium. All of this is done through money from sponsors he gets for having people watch him play the video game on YouTube. Cut to present and the club has made it to League 2 (England’s 4th division) promotion final. If they win they will be promoted to League 1… the same level as the Milton Keynes – who are being demoted from England’s 2nd division, the Championship. It will be crazy when the two sides meet in Wimbledon.
Gonzo Twins: Dakota & Dylan Gonzalez are 6-foot twin sisters that play for the UNLV Rebels Women’s basketball team. They have a huge following on Twitter and Instagram, but because the NCAA is evil, the girls can’t make any money off their name or do any modelling yet. I know this because I stumbled across an interview with them after watching the soccer video. They may make it to the WNBA but no one is sure if they have enough game. The goils aint sure if they want to go to the WNBA, since they feel they can make more money, modelling, trying to act and sing… allegedly they can sing. Either way they aren’t fools and they will get plenty of good advice from their 6 siblings (a second sister and 5 brothers) and their parents; former basketball players at an okay level. All I know is they pass the eye test for modelling, that much is for sure.
Redskins: Apparently some study interviewed 500 Native Americans, 54% of which couldn’t tell you what tribe they were from. But 450 out of the 500 said they didn’t find the Redskins name offensive. I find that to be ridiculous. I’d believe them saying they were not concerned by it, because the reservations have far more pressing matters than a sports team’s name. However, the thing that gets me is the NFL and Dan Synder feel justified. The problem was stated that really the people offended couldn’t get the sponsors – aka the people with money – to join their fight. They just believed that common decency and respect should be enough. Ha! Suckers! It is sad but not surprising, considering the world that we live in. After all, we are six months from having a President Trump.
That’s it for now. Come back tomorrow for none other than my Citi Field field-trip buddy, Cheesy Bruin.
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