Tag Archives: michael bojda

Chi Side’s 2011 NBA Mock Draft

The 2011 NBA Draft takes place on on thursday, June 23 and we here at Chi Side love making predictions. Here are Blake and Bojda’s picks for the entire first round of the 2011 NBA Draft.

Number one overall, Cleveland Cavaliers:

They select: Kyrie Irving, G, Duke

The Cavs should select Williams at number one overall. In my opinion, he is a Blake Griffin-type of player: crazy athleticism with a wide range of skills. Williams can hit the three, he can play defense, and he can finish. Kyrie Irving seems extremely injury prone already. No team wants to deal with another Greg Oden situation. It’s also important to note that Cleveland also has rights to the fourth overall pick as well. So, if they can snag Williams here they can go for a guard later. However, I can see them going for Irving here to solidify their point guard position instead of possibly taking a riskier player like Brandon Knight or even Kemba Walker.

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2011 NBA Finals: Chi Side’s Predictions

Happy Playoffs! For over a month now we have been given the opportunity to watch one of the best playoffs in NBA history, and they all come to an end with this series. Here’s the schedule, and click after the jump to check out Blake and my series predictions.

Best of seven (2-3-2 format)

Game 1 — Tue May 31, Dallas at /Miami 9 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 2 — Thu June 2, Dallas at Miami 9 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 3 — Sun June 5, Miami at Dallas 8 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 4 — Tue June 7, Miami at Dallas 9 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 5* — Thu June 9, Miami at Dallas 9 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 6* — Sun June 12, Dallas at Miami 8 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 7* — Tue June 14, Dallas at Miami 9 p.m. ET, ABC
*If necessary

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Spotlight: Sir & Madame

Starting out as a sneaker consignment shop in 2007  on the north side of Chicago, Solemates was the place to go if you wanted a pair of Heiny’s or Lucky’s without venturing into the dangerous waters of Ebay. Granted, the prices were Flight Club high, but the store stayed alive thanks to sneakerheads and high school kids who liked the pretty colors of the shoes.

Flash forward 4 years, and we have Sir & Madame. The store moved (now at 938 N. Damen), the Nikes left, but a new brand emerged.

Spawned from the husband and wife team of Brian and Autumn Merritt, Sir & Madame has quickly became one of Chicago’s most talked about boutiques. Carrying an incredible selection of classic apparel, with an industrial, almost preppy feel, the store is the place to go if you are looking to look good, yet do it with an edge. In addition to brands such as The Brooklyn Circus (only account in the midwest), Cheap Monday, 3 Sixteen, and Tanner Goods, Sir & Madame offers outstanding customer service. Whether you go into the store knowing what you want, or simply looking around, Brian and Autumn, along with Najee Redd, are there to make the shopping experience as easy as possible. I’ve gone in countless times and gotten fashion advice from Najee, who each time gives me something new and different to look into purchasing.

The Sir & Madame brand is what sets this place apart from the others. At the old store, you got the feeling that the owners knew what they were doing, but if you weren’t especially close with them, you didn’t know what was going on behind the scenes. Quietly, Brian and Autumn were creating their own clothing line, and the result was fantastic. Previously focused just on vintage-inspired tees, the brand has become much more. Tailored shirts, letterman jackets, sweatshirts, scarves, candles, and even a lap top case have been made by the SMC brand to date, and expectations for the future are sky high.

So go online or go to the store, and get yourself some Sir & Madame gear. And if you can’t afford that, just swing by the shop and talk to whoever is there, they’ll be willing to talk.

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Welcoming…

We are proud to announce a new contributor to the CSC, Adam Cohen. Although he’s a freshman at Tulane, we (Blake and I) both felt that he would really help us reach that next level. Plus, check out that SWAG!

This means we will each post a SOTD every three days. Pretty easy concept, lemme know if you need help understanding.

 

-BOJ

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Song of the Day

Atmosphere-Puppets

I guarantee this won’t be the only time you see me posting these guys as the Song of the Day. One of my favorite rappers, Slug (Sean Daley), along with DJ/Producer Ant (Anthony Davis), make up the notoriously known (underground at least) duo called Atmosphere. Coming up in Minneapolis, they’ve stayed Independent since they’ve began recording music in 1993. That’s real. These guys could have easily sold out for million upon millions of dollars (I mean Mac Miller is a millionaire, imagine what these guys could make), but chose to instead give a big FU to the Sonys, Warners, and Universals of the business. This song is off “When Life Gives you Lemons, you Paint that Sh*t Gold.”

Download the song here.

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Song of the Day

Mos Dub-Mr. Universe

One of my favorite rappers of all time is Mos Def. Black on Both Sides was a classic, and when I first heard that, I was hooked on everything he put out (not all his movies though…). Forming Black Star with best friend Talib Kweli, the duo turned into one of the most popular rap group of all time, while staying true to themselves and not rapping about how thug they are and how many cool cars they have.

In comes Max Tannone, a New York producer. He decided to make a cd mixing Brooklyn Hip Hop and Jamaican reggae, and did so seamlessly. Check out Max’s website to download the album, or just go here to download the song. Great good weather music, so have this cd ready for driving around in the summer.

-BOJ

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There’s no crying in Basketball

Crying in the locker room? Is this the 4th grade Park League championship? What a joke. Although there have been no reports telling us exactly who threw a temper-tantrum, why would someone like Erick Dampier be crying? Does Juwan Howard, who’s averaging a staggering five minutes the last 10 games really care about this year’s Heat team that much? Of course not. It was the superstars, the big three. Dwyane Wade, Queen James, and that other one nobody really cares about. They’re the ones that made this whole off season a big show, and they’re the ones that get all the publicity, win or lose. 

But crying after a regular season loss to a team that is right there with you record wise? Why? After the game, Dwyane Wade said that “the world is getting what it wanted, the Heat is losing,” DUH Dwyane! You should have known that coming into the season. NOBODY LIKES PEOPLE THAT TAKE THE EASY WAY OUT. You cried over that? I thought Chicago kids are supposed to be a bit tougher. I used to think this was your team, but constantly deferring to Lebron when he is clearly struggling in late game situations is ridiculous. You’re the one with the ring and the NBA Finals MVP award. Don’t cry about losing, do something about it.

This whole story really irked me. Mostly due to Evanston-born coach Erik Spoelstra reporting this to the media. Do you want people to feel sympathy for these guys? You were at their celebration the day after they all signed, so you know that’s not happening. Do you want people to know they care about the game? They should care about the game…if I got paid $14,000,000 a year for anything, even it meant I clean bathrooms with my tongue, you best believe that bathroom would be absolutely spotless.

Back to the players though; Lebron, everyone knows you are the best player in this league. Maybe not the most clutch (1-8 when trailing in the final seconds of a game with a chance to win this year), but without a doubt, everyone that knows a little about basketball, knows that you are a freak of an athlete. When hot, you are probably the only one that has a chance to ever come close to Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 point total in a single game. When you’re that good, you don’t cry after a regular season loss. You don’t cry about any loss. You’re not Adam Morrison. I don’t know if this is a fact, but I’m pretty sure Michael Jordan never cried after losing a game. Larry Bird surely didn’t. Hell, Kobe probably never cried either. These players went out the next game and did something about it. These players called out their teammates, (just because these quotes are hilarious, here are some examples of Jordan’s…)

  • “You ever hear of a guy, six-eleven maybe and two hundred sixty pounds, a guy big and fat like that and he can’t get but two rebounds, if that many, running all over the damn court and he gets two rebounds? Big guy like that and he gets one rebound. Can’t even stick his ass into people and get more than that…Big, fat, fat guy. One rebound in three games. Power forward. Maybe they should call it powerless forward.” – Michael ripping Stacey King
  • “You’re an idiot. You’ve screwed up every play we ever ran. You’re too stupid to even remember the plays. We ought to get rid of you.” – Michael to Horace Grant
  • “Will Vanderbilt. He doesn’t deserve to be named after a Big Ten school.” – Michael on Will Perdue
  • “Headache tonight, Scottie?” – Michael asks Scottie, while showing him his 2-for-16 line

How about that Lebron? Tear into Chris Bosh (even though he played one of his best games of the season Sunday, scoring 23 on 9-14 shooting). Tear into Mario Chalmers (who maybe the Heat should look to in late game situations after yesterday). Yell at newly acquired Mike Bibby (even though it’s still not certain he is alive). Great players make their players better on and off the court. They don’t cry.

Stories like this one take away from the game. Instead of talking about the absolute clinic that Derrick Rose put on yesterday (the stats may not show this but if you watched the game, you know what I mean), we’re talking about a team with 3 basketball superstars crying over another lost close game. Instead of focusing on a team like the Bulls who just keep on truckin’ (now 2nd in the east), we’re talking about whether or not Pat Riley should come down and coach these guys. Shaquille O’Neal once said “I wasn’t with the 5 hour practices” when asked why his relationship with Riley was strained. Riley knows Lebron James and Chris Bosh wouldn’t be able to handle that kind of thing. Lebron may declare he wants to take his talents somewhere else after one of those.

These players asked for the scrutiny when they decided to create a super team. They expected getting everyones best shot, and now when things aren’t going their way, the players turn to crying. I wish the NBA was still tough, it would do wonders for the Heat.

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Song of the Day

J.Cole, or Jermaine Lamarr Cole, pictured above in his Jordan retro XII’s, performed at this past summers Lollapalooza. He brought about many casual fans, a few dedicated ones, and plenty of newcomers as is typical of Lolla. He left with a lot more of those dedicated ones. Recently signing onto Roc Nation, he is often considered the next to blow (yes, even more than he already has).

This is a song he recorded in 2006, with an old Biggie sample. Check it out, it’s called Can I Get Wit Ya f/ Notorious B.I.G.

Download the song here

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Song of the Day

Entourage rapper Saigon FINALLY released his debut LP “The Greatest Story Never Told.” The Brooklyn-born rapper, who long ago claimed he was here to take New York’s rap crown, does a great job of maneuvering through various topics and on the albums title track, “The Greatest Story Never Told,” he brings the “…true element” of hip hop back.

Take a listen.

Click here to download the song.

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