Rick_Garcia's Blog

Went back to my old high school the other night. It was senior night at Quartz Hill High and I was there to hand out a couple of scholarships to some kids.
A couple of years ago a series of events inspired me to create the Unity Award.
The first event was the sad and untimely death of one of my daughter's classmates. When I used to pick her up at school she would point out the boy to me. Said he was strange. That he was always in trouble and that nobody liked him. So I guess I didn't like him. Eventually she got to know the kid and became one of his few friends. Turns out he came from a broken home. Sounds like he was abused in many ways. I never got to know him. As I said I had already judged him and didn't want my daughter hanging around him. I wish I would have gotten to know him. He eventually committed suicide. Maybe I could've done something to help him.
Around that same time I was anchoring the news one night on Channel 13 and I wound up having to read a story about the arrests of some students on the campus of my old high school. Apparently they were in the process of planning a Columbine style attack.
Geez, High School isn't what it was when I went in the late 70's. Or is it?
So often these kids who either take their own lives or the lives of others are the outcasts. My school was full of cliques back in the day. And there were kids when I went to school who I didn't feel I could be caught dead talking to. Why is that?
I wonder what would happen if we ever took the time to say to hello to someone who isn't like us. Just let a stranger know someone knows they're alive.
The Unity Award is presented to two students who write the best essay on what the words "tolerance" and "inclusive" mean to them. And how THEY can bring students from all walks of life together.
One conclusion I think I've come to about tolerance is. Outcasts don't isolate themselves from us as much as we try to keep them isolated. Now why on earth do we do that? Some people have a hellish existence. It's what makes them act out the way they do. And sometimes the rest of us perpetuate those actions by either ignoring them or bullying them.
I challenged the QHHS graduating class of 2008 to do one thing in the final days of their high school careers. Just say hello to one person who they went out of their way to avoid. The picked on kid. The outcast. Just tell them what a pleasure it was going to school with them. May not make much of a difference.
But at this point isn't it worth the shot? I mean would it kill any of us to be nice to someone who rarely has anything nice happen to them?

It's the best kept secret in sports. But why?
 I was at Staples Center not long ago doing an interview with Lakers center Andrew Bynum. During the interview I heard some noise coming from an adjacent room that sounded almost like motivational speaking. After I wrapped up with Andrew I went next door and met a man who now was alone in the room. His name is Rick Harville. And he is the Lakers' Chaplain. Heck I didn't know there was a team chaplain. I'd heard of prayers on the basketball court. I'd even heard of prayers from fans. But players actually praying?
Now I'm not naive. I was raised Catholic and I'm familiar with athletes who are religious. I guess I just didn't expect to hear it first hand less than an hour before a Lakers game. When I played sports in high school many years ago we often said a team prayer before a game. But that seemed more symbolic than anything else. They actually really do hard core praying before the game. With a team chaplain. With a bible. It's casual but it's a service.
It's strictly voluntary. Rick Harville sees anywhere from one to six players on a given night. And the Lakers opponents are invited.
Back in the day Harville went to Europe to play pro ball but suddenly turned down the offer and came back home even though he didn't know why. Then one night Harville saw a preacher on television and knew at that moment that he had a higher calling. He has been handling the services at Staples and before that at the Forum for the past 23 years.
Back to the players.
I decided to do a story on Lakers Chapel. I thought it would be a positive story that would show a different side of pro athletes. What I learned however is a lot of players aren't comfortable talking about their faith. Our camera wasn't allowed in dressing room three where they hold chapel.  And most of the players didn't want to talk about it.. Now that didn't make a lot of sense to me. But we did the story anyway and we were lucky to get Lakers guard Derek Fisher to talk. Derek regularly attends chapel. He'd better. His mom attended church, as Derek put it, "Sunday to Sunday". He leaned heavily on his faith when his daughter was diagnosed with cancer last year. She is now in remission. Derek explained that religion is a personal thing. Something players just aren't comfortable talking about. A.C. Green who played forward with the Showtime Lakers has a different take on things. He wore his faith proudly on his sleeve as a player during the 80's. He says he's disappointed with athletes who aren't afraid to go wild in public at a nightclub at all hours of the night  but when they are in church look around with embarassment to see if anyone notices them praising God. A.C. says going into that little room before every game gave him the strength to go out and do his job mightily.
I don't think athletes are any more prone to trouble than the rest of society. And the truth is nothing can start an argument faster than discussing politics or religion. But as I talked with those involved in the services, whether they be current or former players, all I could think of is boy I wish their fans could see them now. Nobody hitting them up for autographs. No courtroom scenes. No silly antics. There they were humble and vulnerable. And at that moment Real human beings.
Fancy that!
Lakers Chapel. Coming soon on your FOX 11 10PM and MY13 11PM News.

Will being named the NBA's most valuable player finally make Kobe Bryant happy?
I mean it's not enough that he's won three NBA championships. For Kobe Bryant to feel fulfilled does he need to win the sports most prestigious INDIVIDUAL honor? Sadly I think the answer is YES. If Kobe is the greatest player in the NBA then why did the Lakers need to pull off their biggest move since they signed Shaq to make them a winner again?
And look at the numbers starting with Kobe. He averaged 28 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. The surprising New Orleans Hornets would have never made the playoffs without Chris Paul. He averaged 21 points, 11 assists and 4 rebounds. A most valuable player in my eyes is one who a team can't do without.Or one who makes those around him better. Paul did that this season. How about the Cleveland Cavaliers? Lebron James averaged 30 points almost 8 rebounds and 7 assists. And you can hardly name anyone else on his team. That's an MVP. Now back to the Lakers big acquisition. No matter how well the Lakers were playing when Andrew Bynum was healthy they were not as good as they are with Paul Gasol. In fact I find it interesting that the guy who was the biggest disappointment on the team, Lamar Odom, has never played better. Where was Lamar all this time while side by side the best player in the league? Does that mean that Pau Makes everyone around him better? Perhaps? Or perhaps it's as simple as Kobe does not. Kobe may be the best athlete to dribble a basketball. But I've been told by people in the know that his basketball I.Q. leaves a lot to be desired. That may be due to his strong urge to not play within the teams system but rather his own. Pau on the other hand picked up the Lakers triangle offense like he invented it. Lebron and Chris Paul realize that in order to be succesful you get your teamates involved all the time not just when your'e in a slump.
Now if winning the MVP means Kobe no longer has to prove how great HE is. Then the Lakers will go back to being GREAT!

This post has been edited by an administrator


If you believe Dallas Mavericks player Josh Howard, there is an entire market for marijuana in the NBA.
Howard went on a radio show and talked about his fondness for pot. He also said it's use is prevalent in the league and everyone knows it. Here's a reminder...pot is still illegal and the use of it is against the NBA's drug policy.
Now, regardless of your opinion on whether pot should be legal. Or that it "may" not be "that bad" for people let's just consider one of the important reasons these guys get paid millions of dollars.
TO BE IN GREAT SHAPE!
I don't remember seeing the five leaf symbol on the nutrition pyramid next to fruits and grains. When was the last time someone who smoked weed felt like eating a salad afterward? Even if these players only smoke during the off season, if YOU owned the team and were paying a millions to a guy who would rather smoke a joint than go to the gym wouldn't you want some of your money back?
Let's think of it this way. If you like smoking pot or let's say you love eating junk food but you were offered ten, twenty or even thirty million dollars a year for ten years under the condition that you stay away from the stuff for your own health and the sake of your team....wouldn't you quit smoking or eating junk?

This post has been edited by an administrator


I am of the opinion that the Lakers will get close to winning their 14th NBA championship. Surviving the Western conference playoffs will be no easy task. They open the playoffs against the second highest scoring team in the NBA the Denver Nuggets. I don't expect this to be a tough series but the next one or two will be. The Lakers enter the playoffs as the #1 seed in the west but their big win over San Antonio recently is a little deceiving since the Spurs were missing one of their best players for that game Manu Ginobili. Still I think the Lakers will prevail if those two teams meet again. I think Phoenix is a tougher match-up because of Shaq. There isn't anybody on the Lakers who can cover him. Then again Shaq's conditioning is still an issue.
So if I'm correct the Lakers will win the Western Conference. But I don't expect them to beat the Boston Celtics should Boston win the east (and I think they will). The match-ups don't favor L.A. Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce are too much for the Lakers. But I will also say this. After seeing the Lakers in practice recently they seem to have a confidence about them that they haven't had in past playoff appearances (post Shaq). I especially see that in Kobe. Pao Gasol has made a huge difference for Kobe and Lamar Odom. But don't discount what the return of Derek Fisher has meant to this team. As Derek told me at practice the other day even after 11 years he feels like a kid. The only way he'll quit is if they drag him off the court.

Enjoy their run Lakers fans...but don't expect a ring this year unless something very strange happens in Bean Town!!

    The news of Charlton Heston's passing was sad. I always think of him as one of my favorite interviews. I didn't agree with him politically in a lot of ways, but why should that matter.
    The Dodgers were celebrating an anniversary in the late 80's and FOX/11, home of Dodger telecasts at the time, aired a 24 hour Dodgers' marathon. A cool idea and  I was lucky enough to host a good chunk of it from the stadium. The coverage culminated with the Dodgers season opener being broadcast on FOX/11. We interviewed tons of celebrities and Dodger greats over those 24 hours. Heston really stood out for me. The Dodgers put on a huge show before the game complete with music, dancers and a narrator. That voice belonged to the man who famously portrayed Moses in the Ten Commandments and won an academy award for Ben Hur. But our producers were running into brick walls trying to get him on our marathon. Heston's "people" wouldn't budge and the Dodgers P.R. folks were afraid to ask. I thought how ridiculous. I'm standing ten feet from the guy. So I approached him with the idea and he seemed thrilled to join us. The interview lasted about five minutes and was live on t.v. He was incredibly charming. Said he loved the Dodgers and when we finished he went right to work on  the pre-game show like the professional he was. His strong, recognizable tones gave me and I'm sure Dodger fans chills as he read his lines.
    I mention his politics because Heston was a proud conservative. And after his passing I'm reminded how in today's divisive world of politics the civilian population can't seem to stomach actors or entertainers just because of their political views. Doesn't seem to matter how talented they are. 
So, why can't we separate their on screen work from their off screen beliefs? How do political views figure in to make believe?
I know conservatives who won't watch anything Alec Baldwin stars in. He's a terrific actor. But an activist.  And I know liberals who think anything Heston did on the big screen is tarnished because of his work as president of the NRA.
I say who cares! Why is it so hard to just agree to disagree? I know the last thing I'm thinking when I'm watching a great movie is whether the actors are Democrats or Republicans. In fact I admire them even more for being active in politics. Tells me they love this country as much as I do even if we don't agree on how to run it.

Bottom line for me is I  want actors to entertain me. And I wish politicians would stop entertaining me!

David Beckham picked a good time to score his first MLS goal. It came in the L.A. Galaxy's home opener against San Jose. Remember the British Jewel arrived stateside with a few hundred millions dollars worth of fanfare yet injuries last season led to a disappointing year for American soccer fans.  Is Beckham's presence a novelty once again? Keep in mind the team opened the season by getting clubbed in Colorado 4-0.  And truth is Beck's passing not necessarily his scoring is what Galaxy fans might want to get used to seeing. Landon Donovan might be the beneficiary there. He's the teams biggest American star and the perfect guy for Beckham to set up although they took good care of each other Friday night.
Now that he's finally healthy this is as good a time as any to ask.
If you are not a soccer fan already is Beckham enough to make you care any more about Futbol. And I don't mean American Football.

Even if he leads the Galaxy to the a title. They've already been there done that.  What's different now?

I'm not quite sure where I stand on free trade. And I am okay with the leaders of American Baseball wanting to make the sport international. But it makes no sense to me to start the regular season on any soil other than American. It's a great idea having Major League baseball teams travel abroad like the Dodgers did when they met the San Diego Padres in China. But that was during the exhibition season. The league then made the Boston Red Sox and Oakland Athletics go to Japan last Tuesday to open the major league season. Then the teams traveled back to the U.S to resume the exhibition season. Does this seem fair when these players will have to play 162 games over the next several months? Maybe one day there truly will be a World Series. One where the best team in  America (and I mean really best...not a college or minor league team) meets the best from Asia or Latin America. But can we please allow the fans of this country to enjoy opening day with their teams in their parks while eating hot dogs and cracker jacks. After all it is still America's Pastime or is it??

March Madness is upon us! And don't you love those office pools. The friendly competition that breeds comraderie in the workplace. I guess I should mention that participating in an office pool can be a felony punishable to up to a year in jail. Isn't that nuts????? Fortunately there is a state assemblyman Kebin Jeffries of Lake Elsinore who wants to knock that down to a simple infraction with a maximum fine of five hundred bucks.  Look I'm totally comfortable with certain types of gambling being kept illegal. It makes going to Vegas that much more fun anyway. And it isn't really a victim less crime to the kids whose dad  spends his paycheck on blackjack instead of their school shoes. Then again alcohol and cigarettes are legal and at the end of the day that kills more people than gambling. But for goodness sake why on earth should the feds be stuck worrying about the $5 office pool? Fortunately I have yet to meet someone who has been tossed in the slammer for participating in one. Although I know a guy who used to put on an office pool  and won it every year. Maybe I should alert the FBI.

May your brackets be winning ones!

This post has been edited by an administrator


How cool was it for Billy Crystal to get an at bat for the New York Yankees the other day!?
The funny man signed a one day contract with his favorite team and made a plate appearance during a spring training game the day before his 60th birthday. He worked the count full against Pittsburgh's Paul Maholm before striking out. I had someone tell me Maholm should've let Crystal get a hit. I'm glad he didn't. Made it more realistic. Plus you don't want 60 year old celebrities making appearances in a Lakers or Kings Hockey game do you? Oh wait! That's got reality show written all over it.
I am jealous though. I would love to play just one series at quarterback for the Rams. Problem is it would've made more sense to do that at 26 and not 46. I did have a fantasy moment back in 1987. I had just arrived on the scene at FOX 11. Back then the Dodgers would play USC's baseball team before flying off to spring training. They had a home run hitting derby featuring ex-major leaguers before the game. After they were done slaughtering the baseball the media had it's chance to show what we could do. Only this time they put orange cones short of the warning track probably to taunt us. The pitcher? A wily left hander who goes by the name Tommy Lasorda. I've played baseball most of my life and prior to my at bat our other sportscaster at the time Rick Monday (the former Dodger) took me to the Dodger Stadium batting cage for a tip or two. Admittedly I was warmed up. First pitch from lefty and I smacked a one hopper over the cones in left center off the warning track dirt and into the left field seats. In other words a ground rule double. I could tell Tommy figured out I knew what I was doing so he really brought the next one. The extra speed worked to my advantage as I turned on the pitch and hit it into the left field bullpen for a REAL home run. The treat of my life as a Dodger fan. I'll admit I used an aluminum bat. But that swing was home run all the way. Funny but a couple of years later I was covering an NFL combine where a former USC quarterback was showing off for scouts. He approached me and said, "Hey Rick! Hit any balls out at Dodger Stadium lately?" I asked him how he knew about that. He said he was there on the field at the time playing first base for the USC Trojans. His name. Rodney Peete. And even though I had a believable witness I was still lucky to have this gem on tape. The guys in the sports office are sick of seeing it!
Talk about an amazing fantasy come true!
Even if for just one day ...Whats yours?

It was really something to see. One of the greatest quarterbacks of our time, a "man's man",  beginning to sob as he announced after 17 years he was hanging up the cleats. Kinda cool when you consider what an amazing athlete Brett Favre is. Not because he holds several of pro football's records for a signal caller. But because he left his guts on the field day in and day out. The ultimate team player. He took a lot of shots over the years. Felt the pain of lumbering defensive linemen who sometimes weighed over 300 pounds laying on him.
    I don't think I was as moved when Terrel Owens the Dallas Cowboys wide receiver cried while sticking up for his teammate Tony Romo earlier this season. Probably because he doesn't seem that sincere. Probably because  he doesn't seem to know a lot about being a team player. Some say he's learning as he matures. When he's finished playing then maybe he deserves to cry too.
    I'm not sure I felt anything either when Dick Vermiel cried when he announced he was retiring as a head coach. And he led my favorite team the Rams to a Super Bowl tile. Of course Dick was known to be a crier. The Rams make me want to cry a lot by the way.
    A buddy of mine played for the Kansas City Chiefs during their better years under then coach Marty Schottenheimer. He told me Marty would cry a lot after games. My buddy said that eventually got old.
    Generally when I think of a moment worthy of tears in sports I think of New York Yankees legend Lou Gherig's famous speech when he announced he was leaving baseball. Lou was dying from a disease nobody had ever heard of.. Yet the closest he came to a break down was a crackle in his voice. Boy if there was ever a time to cry like a baby that was it!
     I cried when Billy Dee Williams (playing Gale Sayers) made that "I love Brian Piccolo" speech in the true story "Brian's Song". The movie also starred James Caan as Brian. Part of the reason I cried was because Gayle cried after the death of his friend Brian. The racial overtones went over big with me. (Gayle is black-Brian was white)I think I was eight at the time this movie came out in the late 60's.
    I've cried since. Just not a lot. But not because I'm too tough. I just don't know what it's like to pour my heart and soul into something then be have to walk away from it LIke Favre.
I guess he deserves a good cry!
What Real man wouldn't?!

    People keep asking me why congress bothered to get involved in baseball's steroid scandal. As I mentioned in a previous blog parents began marching on capital hill when their kids started dying after taking steroids because they wanted to be like their heroes. Makes sense to me. Steroids and human growth hormone are illegal without a prescription even if baseball didn't have rules against the drugs until very recently.
    Then I heard it said the other day that there are lots of other drugs out there. Many of them prescription drugs for stress, depression, sleeping aids. you name it. Prescription drugs are a big business. How do we keep our kids away from the drugs in our own medicine cabinets let alone the guy on the street corner pushing the illegal stuff.. But we manage don't we? So should we care if the guys on the baseball diamond are shooting up so they can hit the ball farther and chuck it faster? Should our kids be their concern??? 
Should we really care if sports is more like a circus complete with the freaks and clowns rather than an American pastime?

You must admit Lakers fans if you have been disappointed by past Mitch Kupchak performances as general manager of your team he's more than made up for it.
The Lakers made a impressive trade that may catapult them into the NBA finals.
They gave up Kwame Brown a center who has been a big disappointment, Javaris Crittenton their top draft pick this year, two number one draft picks ('08,'10) for a terrific young center Pau Gasol. He's a 27 year old from Spain who is averaging almost 19 points and just under 9 rebounds a game.. And yet even at 7 feet tall he has pretty good shooting touch which will allow the Lakers to play him next to Andrew Bynum when he returns from a knee injury in about five or six weeks.
Perhaps just as important is how it affected the Lakers competition. The Phoenix Suns one of the best running teams in the NBA will now have Shaq trailing the offense. And they seem to have lost some outside shooting by giving up Shawn Marion. The Suns felt they needed to get bigger to match the Lakers size but they may have just made it easier for the Lakers to defend them (remember hack a Shaq).
Ultimately, the success of the Lakers still revolves around Kobe. If he can continue to participate in the offense they way people smarter than him have designed it, then Gasol and the team will flourish.  In fairness to Kobe he has been more of a team player this season.
But if Kobe goes back to his bad habits of seasons past and ad libs at the wrong times then it doesnt matter who the team trades for the Lakers will run out of GAS----ol!

This post has been edited by an administrator

I think I am an East coast sports fan trapped in a West coast body. It's not that I like east coast teams it's just that I think I am closer in personality with east coasters. I grew up adoring the L.A. teams. My favorite players began with Roman Gabriel (L.A. Rams), Wilt Chamberlain (L.A. Lakers), Rogie Vachon (L.A. Kings) and any Los Angeles Dodger.
I would cheer on my Rams against a buddy's Dallas Cowboys only to find out the following season that same buddy would be rooting on the Minnesota Vikings. It's true that West Coast fans are as fair as the weather. Not me! And to this day I'll bust a buddy for changing teams more than his underwear!
That's why as obnoxious as those New York and Boston fans will be for the next two weeks leading up to Super Bowl 42 (on FOX 11 3pm), I will let them have their day. Because those fans in the east are REAL fans. I love their trash talking. I love their passion and most of all I love and admire their loyalty. They have earned the right to curse and cry and rub it in when they win. They are fans through the good times and fans through the bad. So whether it's the New England Patriots winning their 4th Super Bowl...or the New York Giants grabbing their 3rd...I say...Go East Coast!

If only fans in L.A. were as passionate we might have an NFL team of our own!

I'm torn between seeing the New England Patriots finish with the best NFL record of all time (19-0) and quarterback Tom Brady claiming  the crown as the games greatest quarterback or watching one of sports greatest competitors Brett Favre take the Super Bowl title.
I was one of those who felt Favre's time had come and gone. I too thought he was being selfish when he came back for a 17th season. But after what he has done this season in leading the Green Bay Packers to the NFC Championship game I couldn't have been more wrong!  As for the Patriots and Brady...we could be watching the best team and quarterback in NFL history.

So...what shall it be?
Perfection or a sentimental Super Bowl?