I want to start off by warning people not get too used to these articles.  I’ve worked my way up the ladder so that I could be grossly overpaid for my contributions.  I’ve earned that!!! That said, now and again I will add to the recaps and observations made by our writing team with a suplimental article.  This week I was at Hebert and noticed a few things and wanted to put pen to paper in order to communicate them to our audience.

Additionally, I’ve been very proud of our writers in that theyve all taken a moment to address the untimely death of Kobe Bryant.  It has been a tough time for everyone and I’m glad they aknowledged it! I did so as well in my role as contributor to Hot Sauce Sports.  For those who’d like to check it out you can do so by clicking the following link: https://hotsaucesports.ca/2020/01/28/goodbye-mamba/

While we would obviously appreciate the clicks and visits I do realize that some people are skeptical in following new sports media because it’s a saturated field.  For this reason I will include the article here so that you can get a taste of what we do at Hot Sauce Sports and you can follow, like and subscribe if you are so inclined.

I’ve officially started writing this five or six times.  Each time, the piece takes shape and I’m not entirely happy with where it’s going so I start over.  I think the best approach is to be as honest about my feelings as possible.  Perhaps that is the most fitting approach.

Growing up, my brother and I didn’t really consider athletes or celebrities as heroes.  We were taught from a young age that these people were just people and they were as flawed as anyone else.  We learned to question people’s motivations, follow our own moral compasses and live with the consequences of our actions.  My dad was and always will be my hero.  My grandfather died when my father was only 13 years old.  That’s the age where he begun to take care of his entire family.  Since that day, he’s never stopped.

Celebrity death never really feels any different to me.  They are people, just like any other and one day we will all pass away.  However, this all felt a little different when I found out that Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash on Sunday.  Like any other basketball fan my age I loved watching Kobe play.  I remember sitting in my grandmother’s house cheering for the Orlando Magic against the LA Lakers.  Before halftime, my allegiances had changed completely.  I became enamored with the most gifted offensive player I had ever seen. In an era before the internet was readily available at our fingertips, I became entirely fascinated with Bryant.

Kobe Bryant had forever changed the way I watched and embraced basketball.  He opened my eyes and in a transcendent moment I realized my allegiance wasn’t to fandom of a particular team but rather to witnessing sheer greatness. For years people have argued about who is and isn’t the greatest of all time.  Yet, it was watching the man who most obsessed with chasing Jordan that I learned that the question was mindless.  If you are lucky enough to witness greatness you should always be looking forward to see what can come next rather than looking back with blinders.  Kobe Bryant would never know the impact he had on some random kid in Montreal but, he truly ignited a true love of the game for me.

Before my wife and I got married, my then girlfriend moved into my condo and turned to me one night and asked to see some clips of Michael Jordan so she could understand why people though he was great.  I happily obliged and we watched his greatest highlights on YouTube.  She next asked to see Lebron’s highlight reel.  We watched it and I explained that Lebron’s intelligence and decision making was such that watching his highlights was far less impressive than if one were to truly appreciate his commitment to his craft.  Finally, I put on Kobe’s highlight reel and my now wife was in complete awe.  The circus shots, the late game heroics, the sheer fearlessness that radiated from Mamba was palpable.  Watching each of these plays for the first time had the same impact on her that it had when I first watched the NBA great in his Laker gold and purple.  She asked “why doesn’t everyone think Kobe’s the greatest?”.  I laughed and said, Kobe’s a man who is not without his flaws.

This ladies and gents is where I get choked up every time.  If he were as perfectly curated as Derek Jeter or as properly presentable as Lebron James, it may not hurt the way it did when the news broke.  As I stared at the text in sheer disbelief, I thought of Kobe Bryant and realized that where we truly connect with the retired NBA superstar was that despite his greatness, we will always remember his redemption.  Kobe was tried for sexual assault in a case that was dismissed in 2004.  We may never know what happened in that hotel room in Edwards, Colorado but from his apology, it was clear that Bryant had let down his wife, his fans and his entire family.

For most 26 year olds in the prime of their careers, we would imagine them to be unchanged.  That their personalities by this point were formed and this is who they were.  This would not be the case for Kobe Bryant.  Given that he’s left us at 41 years old, the years that would be late in his life were truly dedicated to that which he loved the most.  He and his wife worked through the scandal and remained together, grew their family and with that grew the bond that Kobe had with his children.  Many young athletes talk about the mentorship this man had and the role he played in helping them develop their careers.  This isn’t a commitment Bryant needed to make.  He was known as an assassin on the court but his love for the game was so pure that he could not stay away.  He could not help but share his knowledge and passion.

I know that without Kobe I wouldn’t have spent years of my life practicing a post-up/back to the basket style of play that would irritate my dad because “you need to stay in a triple threat position”.  I wouldn’t have spent years practicing a turnaround fade-away that I would never perfect but would irritate all of my coaches because it wasn’t high percentage enough.  All the time I spent using my shoulder to push off a shadow defender in the driveway to pull up and attempt a jumper was all because in Kobe there was greatness.

The next thought that ran through my head were far less comforting.  I thought of a man who loved his daughter.  Who his final moments spent it completely powerless, unable to protect his daughter as the helicopter spun out of control.  The last thing he must have heard was his child’s voice in absolute terror.  His wife and the three daughters that are left behind who will never hear his voice again or the voice of Gianna Bryant.  Every day is a day they will have to live with two pieces of their family missing.  This was a truly horrifying thought.

There were 9 people who died in that helicopter crash. So many families were affected and will never be the same after this.  John, Keri, and Alyssa Altobelli, Christina Mause, Sarah and Payton Chester, Ara Zobayan, you will be forever missed.  May the loved one’s you’ve left behind eventually find peace.

I’ve been writing sports columns for 6 years now.  When I started, people didn’t get me; didn’t really understand what I was trying to do.   I persevered. When I started writing this column and hated it and restarted time and time again.  I persevered.  I’d like to think that that has something to do with the two men who made me passionate about the game of basketball.  We’ve lost one and I’m fortunate enough to still have the other.  I didn’t know why at the time but as soon as I heard the news I needed to talk to my father.  Cherish the ones you love, life is precious and there is never as much time as you think there is.

https://twitter.com/MambaLegend24/status/1222163904136171520

Thank you for taking a moment and allowing me to share during this trying time. Now on to some FPF thoughts…

The Gigantic Jared Gallant Has Some Growing to do

I had a chance to watch New Wave in person this week.  I’ve been a fan of Jared since he was a player on the FPF Jr team I coached.  His size and athleticism is immediately impressive. His release is quick and comes from such a high point it is difficult for rushers to have any impact.  This week a team named for their expected impact on the future of FPF faced a group of seasoned FPF veterans (Threat Level Midnight).

In this game I saw the development of an impossibly young FPF player.  However there were moments where Gallant was displeased with how the game was going.  On defense he broke an errant pass thrown over the middle by Joe Lemieux and dropped an interception that would have given New Wave an opportunity to close the game out.  To his credit, Jared Gallant was not looking for anyone to blame. 

On offense, Gallant had a few passes sail on him but also there were balls that were catchable where his receivers did not make a play on.  However, the one issue I saw in this game was in management.  Seemingly terrified by New Wave’s speed left a lot of room in the flats and specifically on the sidelines.  However, it seemed at times that the young quarterback seemed to be looking to stick the dagger the entire time.  There was plenty of opportunities so carefully move the ball downfield having been down by a single point.  Either way, I’m impressed with how the young quarterback has developed and I think he will take large strides in a short period of time.

Corey Walwaski and Etienne Cloutier Put on a Show

Corey Walwaski got really, really good.  It seemingly happened over night but a guy who just had a cannon of an arm has become a truly complete passer.  In the 42-38 win over Sphinx there were so many moments where his intelligence and decisiveness was on display.  His ability to perfectly replicate deep slants to the back of the end zone was truly a testament to Walwaski’s commitment to his craft.  On two early touchdowns to Mark Belvedere (who ran those slants) one would have appeared to be a replay had I not been there to witness the game in person.

Lining up opposite Walwaski was Sphinx’s Etienne Cloutier.  Sphinx were at a time, the first division 5 wrecking ball to experience the 10-0 curse.  Still Cloutier was known at the time as an up and comer that many of FPF may have forgotten over time.  This was an opportunity to remind us!  Cloutier’s impressive play design continuously moved the ball against a tough Bandit Bruthers defense.  We saw this offense work quickly at times and methodically in other moments.  Raymond Bariselle and Philippe Clouthier scored on long, aggressive strikes and on three occasions Francois Goulet would punch in scores from inside of 15 yards.  The game ended on a two point conversion attempt by Sphinx (which would have tied the game) that was intercepted by a leaping Jaylan Greaves who intercepted the ball with a single hand and ran it back to secure the two points for Bandit Bruthers instead.

Rakim Charles is the Truth

In three games played Rakim Charles has only 15 incompletions.  I witnessed a few things watching him for the first time that assured me that he is truly appointment watching by FPF standards.  Firstly, Charles threw an early interception to Zach Zwirn.  I often look at new quarterbacks to see how they react to adversity.  This is particularly true of pivots that haven’t experienced a lot of adversity. The “next play” energy was simply palpable.  You could see him describing what he saw but it did not look like a negative exchange with teammates in the slightest.  The second thing I noticed was Charles moving to his right, stopping turning his hips and hitting Sebastien Gomes on the left sideline.  The pass was thrown perfectly over a defender and into the arms of his receiver for a touchdown.  The next thing I observed was on a play where he attempted a pass was thrown over the middle to Alessandro Barazzoni and it landed incomplete.  There was an obviously annoyed receiver standing in the end zone, by the sideline.  Before I could even turn my head to catch a play from another game I saw Rakim Charles had sprinted to his receiver in the end zone to explain how he saw him wide open in the end zone too late in the progression.

His physical skill set is immense.  The dude has a great arm, is quick and can buy time.  He’s an intelligent play caller and has shown the ability to make complex reads.  Rakim Charles also seems to have great leadership and communication skills.  I’m very excited to see how he develops.

J’s Win; Players Need to Learn Hai Minh Luong’s Offense

The J’s won a 27-26 game this week against Rhinos.  The score was somewhat surprising when I looked up after a late incompletion by Mathias Cofsky on 4th down to see that the Js led the Rhinos late in the game.  The difference would be the two interceptions thrown by Cofsky because at times the Js offense did not look to be on the same page at all.

On last week’s podcast we discussed the Js troubles.  Now, having seen it first hand, I must commend Luong on being safe with the ball. There were times that he looked to be holding onto the ball too long or his receivers just weren’t where he needed them to be.  I’ve played against Hai Minh Luong many times in my past.  What I know about him is that he’s a very methodical passer and relies a lot on timing.  The solution this game was to get the ball to a veteran member of this offense often.  Adrien Dusautois caught 10 passes and 3 of Luong’s 4 touchdowns.  I think there could be a lot of valuable contributors on this offense but it is clear that they need to get on the same page.  Perhaps the solution would be to simplify the playbook and only expand it when everyone is working together.

FMS vs. Braves Was One of the Best Games in FPF History

Unfortunately I was playing at the same time so I only got to witness the ending of this game.  My god was it an ending! I believe Braves led 46-40 when I walked over and I did so just in time to see Alex Nadeau Puize striking on a short pass in the redzone to JP St-Pierre for a touchdown.  Jo Maheu would return the favor moments later by hitting snapper Mike Pierrecin with a short pass for a touchdown once the Braves got back into the end zone.  Braves completed a two point convert and seemingly had Flag Moi L’Sac on the ropes.  In typical ANP fashion the few remaining plays seemed to be just enough.  They would score after a long strike to Mikael Davidson and would go for two and the win.  Unfortunately for FMS they could not convert and they took the L but sign me up for any game that yields 107 points!