Author: Jay

Jay is a longtime Razzball everything who consumes an egregious amount of Makers Mark as a vehicle to gain wisdom and augment his natural glow. Living in the D.C. area, he also likes spending time visiting the local parks and feeding lettuce to any turtles he encounters, including Mitch McConnell.

Read some of Jay's 156 posts

As the Kyrie Turns

by: Jay

As the early part of the NBA 2022-23 season churns on, a lot of storylines and off-the-court drama permeates. Some of these were built off the back from previous seasons; the trending bewilderment of Ben Simmons, the Lakers continued struggles while inadvertently tanking for Wembanyama while the Pelicans have the rights to their first-round pick also remains a bold strategy. Kyrie Irving is still a hateful idiot. But there are also new and interesting storylines being created right now, like the Jazz competing with the Spurs and TrailbBlazers for the number one seed (early, but you can talk about it!), the Clippers being a mess, the resurgence of James Harden… and the Bucks continue their quest for 82-0, squeaking out a win last night. While there’s a lot to ridicule (mostly the Nets), there’s a lot of interesting items both on and off the court that have made this season already special. Here’s what else I saw last night:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The West Runs Through It

by: Jay

“A River Runs Through It” is a 1992 American drama film directed by Robert Redford and starring Craig Sheffer, Brad Pitt and Tom Skerritt that focuses on a coming of age story between two brothers; one studious, the other rebellious. “The West Runs Through It” is a 2022 National Basketball drama directed by Adam Silver and starring the Trail Blazers, Spurs and Jazz that focuses on a coming of age story between three teams who refuse the temptation of drafting Victor Wembanyama, rather focusing on reaching the playoffs. Just like we all expected… You have Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons going a combined 60/9/13 on 21-33 shooting and 11-19 from beyond the arc in a blowout against the Nuggets, yet another Spurs win fueled by Devin Vassell’s 23/9/7 and of course the powerhouse Jazz team where you can’t tell the starters from their bench, netting their first loss may have slowed them down, but still, at 3-1, who else was I going to put here in the lede? The Lakers? (ROFL.)

Here’s what else I saw during last night’s games…

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2022-23 Los Angeles Clippers Preview

October 15, 2022 | 2022-23 Fantasy Basketball, Los Angeles Clippers, Team Previews |

by: Jay

Ah yes, darkness my old friend. Well, not the usual darkness and despair, let’s be honest here, the Clippers are a very good team. And not just the roster, the entire franchise is pretty darn solid from top-to-bottom and, like the past four seasons, remains a threat to grab the chip. The obvious hurdle the past several years, of course, is the perpetual injuries and time missed by their two biggest stars in Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. While Kawhi takes the cake for the majority of time missed, no one is really unfamiliar with this race to the bottom with exploding body parts. But that’s the intrigue with this team, when those two aren’t on the court, there’s still a solid group that can grind out wins and hold their own, a narrative that’s remained entrenched as they prove it every season. But when, and of course we have to add the caveat of “if” those two ever make it on the court together in a sustainable amount of time (ahem, playoffs), well, the sky is pretty much the limit.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2022-23 Orlando Magic Preview

October 14, 2022 | 2022-23 Fantasy Basketball, Orlando Magic, Team Previews |

by: Jay

Do you believe in Magic? A quote engraved with time, from good ole’ Mickey D’s (the hamburger place!) to Magic Johnson, to the actual Magic. Perhaps even real magic? One can only hope. And what does this journey have to do with the aforementioned Magic? Nothing really, I just like leaving easy clues to how old I’m getting. It’s either providing catharsis or more depression, but at this point, who can tell? But speaking of which, when you think of the Magic, there’s literally just one or two “eras” that the team found success. The first was the one we all know of, the Shaq-attack in prime form, Penny, Nick Anderson, ah yes, the mid-90’s… No Diggity, No Doubt. The second age of Magic “prosperity” would probably be then the end of the 00’s, an underrated team in history that saw some dominant performances from Vince Carter and Hedo Turkoglu. But beyond that, darkness. A world without Magic, if you will. This might not be the case much longer though, the real question is, does the return of Magic begin this year? Let’s find out!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2022-23 Washington Wizards Preview

October 7, 2022 | 2022-23 Fantasy Basketball, Team Previews, Washington Wizards |

by: Jay

If you were ever wondering what the process was for how team previews get assigned, it’s essentially a modern day duel to the death, but digital with way less death and way more clicking. But for the most part, we do get some say on which teams we cover, which for me is a strange thing to admit as I’ve now covered the Bulls, Rockets and now the Wizards. I’ve begun to question my very core ethos… am I masochist? Do I love to suffer from watching lost causes and rebuilding projects? Granted, the Bulls are kinda breaking out of their shell, Ninja Turtles metaphor for all the senior citizens out there, but there’s no denying that being a fan of the Rockets and Wizards franchises has its challenges. And while the Rockets have committed to a full rebuild and have essentially forfeited the next few seasons in order to quickly regenerate their team, the Wizards have chosen the meandering method (Or how I make love). With the re-signing of Bradley Beal, the Wizards look to be competitive for some weeks before returning to their middle-of-the-ground wasteland. The real question is, how many weeks and how much meh-basketball will be generated in that span? Enticing, I know!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2022-23 Houston Rockets Preview

October 2, 2022 | 2022-23 Fantasy Basketball, Houston Rockets, Team Previews |

by: Jay

I figure y’all don’t need reminding that these aren’t your father’s Rockets. I don’t even think these are your brother’s Rockets either, especially if you don’t have a brother. That kinda eliminates you out of the metaphor. But the point stands, the Rockets are basically last year’s Rockets in that this is a team still in rebuild mode. But, as one of the dozen or so Padres fans from another ball sport (heehee balls), one can be accustomed to a bad team and still like the parts on it. In this, I guess “mechanic” type metaphor, parts are people and before I start getting too random, yes, the Rockets will be terrible, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be some non-terrible things on it. I guess I could have just said that and saved 250 words of bad metaphors. Hmm.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2022-23 Chicago Bulls Team Preview

September 22, 2022 | 2022-23 Fantasy Basketball, Chicago Bulls, Team Previews |

by: Jay

Growing up in the 90’s (don’t date me bro!), it would have been hard to imagine not just the mediocrity that would follow the next two decades (okay, I’ll add the qualifier “measured” mediocrity for all those Noah/Rose fanboys out there), but also feeling some sort of compassion for hanging out near the bottom-half of the league for longer than it takes to legally drink. Truth be told, it’s not like the Bulls have been, say, the Kings over the same span. (I’d feel sorry for making fun of the Kings if they had more than a dozen fans.) But there’s definitely been a markable difference between the Michael Jordan Bulls and everything that came afterwards. I also go by the name: Captain Obvious. And while it’s been a long wait for those in Chitown, there’s a lot to like with this team, especially building off a successful season that led to the first round of the playoffs, fruits of their previous active off-seasons. Sure, it’s not the chips we middle-aged men were used to seeing from this team a long time ago, but as someone great once said, time is flat circle… (Don’t worry, I prefer the McConaughey quote over Nietzsche too. Actually, after typing that sentence out, I prefer neither since it took me a few hours for spellcheck to agree.)

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Don’t Judge a Booker by its Cover

March 25, 2022 | 2021-22 Fantasy Basketball, Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes |

by: Jay

Crazy fourth quarters and Devin Booker, name a more iconic duo. While last night’s game against the Nuggets was on Chris Paul’s return after 15 games due to a thumb fracture, Booker continued to perform like he has most of the season putting up 49 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists, leading the Suns to their 60th win. And with that win, the Suns have now clinched first place overall (home court advantage through the playoffs) and are now on pace to become the 14th team ever in the history of the NBA to win more than 67 games. And if you didn’t believe me about Booker, the Suns, and the fourth quarter, they are now 44-0 when leading after three quarters. I’m not even sure how to live in a world where the Suns are this good.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Old Bey Seasoning

March 18, 2022 | 2021-22 Fantasy Basketball, Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 1 Comment

by: Jay

One has been helping seafood everywhere reach its full flavor potential (their words, not mine!) and one just had a 51-point performance. I’ll let greater minds figure out which one is worth more, but with a win last night, the Pistons find themselves within reach of .500 basketball by some time next season. Maybe. And what a coincidence, as something similar could be said of the team that lost, the Orland Magic. Sitting now at an 18-53 record, last night’s only scheduled game did at least provide us with the above-mentioned monster effort by Saddiq Bey and that’s. About. It.

Did I see anything else in this game last night? Maybe. Should I talk about it? Double-maybe.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Juke Box Herro

March 16, 2022 | 2021-22 Fantasy Basketball |

by: Jay

While the day’s headlines will surely focus on the Kyrie Irving’s score-la-palooza right after KAT’s err, score-stock, right after Lebron went on Fyre? I think I’m running out of festivals. Regardless, with there being only 16 50-point games this season, with half of them coming in the last 17 days, today’s content will not focus on any of that. Shunning the SEO gods, that always works… but Tyler Herro’s recent performance deserves at least some attention. And positive metrics! Coming off the bench against the Pistons, Herro managed 29 points on 8-15 field goals and 9-11 from the free throw line. Obviously it’s hard to apply the sixth man label here when Herro is averaging the same minutes played as Giannis Antetokounmpo, but not only is he a huge part of the Heat right now, the future remains bright for this young point guard.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Hali Keeping Up the Pace, Fox Still King

March 13, 2022 | 2021-22 Fantasy Basketball, Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 2 Comments

by: Jay

While the trade deadline is now a distant memory as we quickly head toward the play-ins, playoffs, and… play-ons? Yeah, why are there no play-ons or even play-outs? Maybe we just haven’t evolutionized (totally a word) enough yet? Regardless, for those of you who remember (where were you when the Kings were peak Kings?), Sacramento ended up trading their most cost-controlled asset in Tyrese Haliburton (along with Buddy Hield and Tristan Thompson) for Domantas Sabonis, Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. And it just so happens that right after the trade, I took a look at Sabonis and the Kings separate from any analysis of the trade itself. Basically, Sabonis is a big man with some big skills that would continue being that. And while the Kings haven’t really succeeded with their “win-now” strategy (2-8 in their last 10, 4 losses behind the 10 seed), there’s been nothing but confirmation that the Pacers made out like gangbusters (dated reference ftw) with Tyrese flourishing with his new team.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The Harden Long Road to Recovery

February 28, 2022 | 2021-22 Fantasy Basketball, Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 2 Comments

by: Jay

I’m no doctor (sorry mom!), but in my professional opinion (in which my profession is nothing besides maybe making a lot of parentheses), I believe (and feel!) that whatever injury Harden was coming back from, well, it seems to have miraculously solved itself and this is the most 100% I’ve seen James Harden in a long time, not counting the strip clubs, of course. And that’s not to act glib, anyone can smirk injury statuses, it’s pretty much tradition in all sports leagues in this day and age. But I guess it’s always nice to see the confirmation right before your eyes, so without incredulously referring to Harden’s previous injury, I think after last night’s performance scoring 29 points, grabbing 10 boards and providing an easy breezy smorgasbord (totally a phrase) of 16 assists, I think we can say that whatever ailed him does no longer. Probably his previous injury was playing with Kyrie Irving…
Here’s what else I saw during yesterday’s “truncated” basketball schedule:

Please, blog, may I have some more?