Welcome Back, DeJuan Blair

It's time for the annual Cleveland Cavaliers Pittsburgh exhibition game, and without LeBron James in tow, the box office was going to need a jump-start. Who will save the day, you ask? Try Pittsburgh's own DeJuan Blair.

The Hot Button

Paris is bringing us five new topics for this week's edition of The Hot Button, but the video below, which plays a key role in Question 5, will probably generate most of the discussion. To JoePa or not to JoePa, that is Penn State's question...or in this case, your question.

I also have some stuff on Neal Huntington, Brett Favre, televised sports vs. in-person viewing, and the Steelers' first month, but we all know what topic drives the bus in these parts. I'm sure you won't let me down in bringing some opinion to the table.

The Hot Button [93.7 The Fan]

The Hot Button

I've been holed up in my nerdery thinking up some new questions for this week's edition of The Hot Button, and here's what I've come up with: questions regarding the legacy of George Steinbrenner, the LeBron James-Dan Gilbert mess, the futures of LaMarr Woodley and Mike Tomlin, and the MLB Home Run Derby.

I've also posted the results of last week's polls, including which Pittsburgh athlete most of you would want to meet, the Penguins' team-building philosophy, and a few other topics spread across the sports world. I know many of you have been on pins and needles waiting for the results, but please try to contain your enthusiasm.

Now do as the Hiltons do and vote...or die.

The Hot Button [93.7 The Fan] 

The Hot Button

After a relaxing holiday, it’s time to stir up some passion with another edition of The Hot Button, the new feature that marries interactive polls and opinions, with some national topics mixed in.

Among the subjects up for debate and voting: Pittsburgh athlete popularity, how the Pens should be built, Amar’e Stoudemire's $100 million contract, the Summer of LeBron, and baseball’s Midsummer Classic. The message, as always, it delivered on the t-shirt of the trust-fund-powered female depicted below: Vote or die!

The Hot Button [93.7 The Fan]

Introducing "The Hot Button"

I'm pleased to announce that effective immediately, I'm writing a second weekly feature for 93.7 The Fan, and the debut installment is available right here. It's called "The Hot Button", and it's basically a pumped-up version of our weekly Paris Hilton-hosted polls, but with more of my opinions and takes on topics beyond Pittsburgh sports.

In our first run, I take a look at several controversial topics in the sports world, including an extended look at the courtship of LeBron James, Carlos Zambrano's well-publicized  and controversial dinner with Ozzie Guillen, the NFL going to an 18-game schedule, Stephen Strasburg's All-Star credentials, and how the loss of Willie Colon might affect the Steelers in 2010. 

Much like in the MH version, you can vote in online polls, and as always, you can also tell me how wrong I am in the comments section.

The Hot Button [93.7 The Fan]

NEWS AND NOTES

--While I've been busy gushing about the statistical greatness of the Steelers and Panthers, the Penguins have run their record to 8-1, with Marc-Andre Fleury sporting a league-best 8-0 mark.

The boys of winter won another one last night in a solid performance, topping the St. Louis Blues 5-1 at Mellon Arena. Penguin goals came from Tyler Kennedy (his fifth), Evgeni Malkin (4, PP), Ruslan Fedotenko (2, PP), Matt Cooke (2) and Alex Goligoski (2). You've gotta love the games where the team scores five goals and only one is from the Malkin/Crosby camp. That defines a team effort.

The bad news, however, is that it might have been a costly victory - Sergei Gonchar could have a broken hand (or wrist). There's no official word yet from the team, but I'm not overly optimistic. Stay tuned on that one. It could be Martin Skoula time. [PG]

--At the Pete, Cleveland rolled to a 96-66 win against Dallas last night, Shaq was wearing a Big Ben throwback jersey after the game, and Mark Cuban made the case for steroids in sports. In other words, no surprises. [PG]

--Dejuan Blair had 17 and 10 in 15 minutes off the bench for the Spurs last night in their 119-102 win over Oklahoma City. To remind everyone, he was a second-round pick. Gotta love NBA GMs. [ESPN]

--Is Pittsburgh the most haunted city in the US? Outside of baseball, I mean? [PB&G]

--Speaking of baseball, the Pirates dumped Chris Bootcheck, Denny Bautista, and Craig Hansen (he of the Jason Bay trade) from the 40-man roster. They will be greatly missed. By opposing hitters. [PBC Blog]

--A Pittsburgher will be appearing on Jeopardy! tonight. Get your TiVos ready. [WPXI]

--Bob Smizik says the Steelers made the right call on Jeff Reed. That's gotta be crushing news for those of you looking for a Piotr Czech endorsement. [Bob Smizik Blog]

--Meanwhile, Joe Starkey takes the opposite stance and calls out the Tomlin "timing" excuse. [Trib]

--And Mark Madden says the Skipster needs to stop drinking. That's gotta be crushing news for Pittsburgh-area drinking establishments. [Mark Madden/WXDX]

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LEBRON BRINGS SWINE FLU, SHAQ TO PITTSBURGH

If you're a germophobe, you'll probably be skipping tonight's Cleveland-Dallas exhibition game at the Pete, which features a swine-flu-infected Lebron James, Steeler fan Shaquille O'Neal, and attention fan Mark Cuban, among others. In addition to appearing at tonight's game, Cuban will also be speaking at Pitt at 3:30 today; maybe someone will bring up the topic of his recent Twitter war with Peter King, which delighted many.

As for tonight's game, it's the next-to-last tuneup in the preseason for the Cavs, who wrap things up tomorrow night against Boston at Columbus, Ohio's Schottenstein Center. 3-3 Cleveland just lost to the 4-1 Mavs on Saturday night, while resting James, O'Neal, and Mo Williams. Which means tonight's games qualifies as a preseason grudge match, if such a thing exists (this just in: it doesn't). Nonetheless, I'm sure there will be a playoff-like atmosphere in the air.

James, who took a whole two days to recover from the epidemic that is sweeping the nation, played 19 minutes against Dejuan Blair and San Antonio on Friday night, scoring 22 points. It sounds to me like he read the tremendous article on the myth of swine flu from Maddox and has no fear for it. Maybe he's just the man to sneeze in Maddox's face. Or he can sneeze in your face if you get the right seat. Tipoff is at 7:30.

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SHAQ + BIG BEN + PITTSBURGH COLTS = AWESOME

Basketball vagabond/amateur police offer/attempted media mogul Shaquille O'Neal is at it again, and this time, he's hitting close to home.

As part of his new reality TV show, The Shaq Show, O’Neal will be at Ambridge Area High School’s Moe Rubenstein Stadium from July 22 to 24, as he works out with the Pittsburgh Colts semi-pro team and learns the ropes of quarterbacking.

That's cool, but the real fireworks will come Friday at 6 PM, when Shaq will go up against Ben Roethlisberger in a challenge to see which athlete can run the Colts' offense better. The event is open to the public, and if the offer of two of the world's iconic athletes in your backyard isn't enticing enough to get you out of your Man-caves on a Friday night, I'm officially out of ideas.

Donations taken at the gate will benefit the Ambridge Quarterback Club and a campaign to buy rings for the state champion Ambridge Area High School boys volleyball team, which makes this event an even better cause to get behind. And if Big Ben loses, I doubt that any shoe company will be able to confiscate this video tape.

Shaq, Big Ben to go mano-a-mano in Ambridge [Beaver County Times]

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"TRUE KILLERS, CRIMINALS, MURDERERS, AND PITTSBURGH STEELERS"

Perhaps you remember one Joe Smith. The talented big man from the University of Maryland parlayed his 1995 Naismith Player of the Year award into the #1 overall pick in that year's NBA draft by the Golden State Warriors. He was chosen ahead of players such as Kevin Garnett, Rasheed Wallace, Antonio McDyess, and Jerry Stackhouse, and was the only one of the five to not play in the NBA All-Star Game. His career basically peaked in 1996-97, but that didn't stop Timberwolves GM Kevin McHale from signing Smith to an illegal cap deal that would cost the team three future first-round picks, basically paving the way for the sub-mediocrity they've endured since the deal was struck.

After bouncing around the league, Smith now finds himself in position for a possible ring alongside Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. And since his days as a starter basically ended in 2005, he's found the extra time to put out a CD under the pseudonym "Joe Beast". There's a good chance I might pass out from the excitement, but I'll try to continue on.

The concept of basketball players releasing CDs is nothing new. We've heard lousy rhymes from wanna-be rappers like Kobe, AI, Shaq, Ron Artest, etc., for years now. But it's this line that truly sets Smith's raps apart from the rest:

"I never been a drug dealer/But I know true killers, criminals and murderers and Pittsburgh Steelers."

As the Cleveland.com columnist profiling Smith adds, "He never reveals which are worse. (He doesn't have to; we know it's the Steelers.)"

HA, HA, HA! Nothing like a cheap shot from respected wordsmith/pine-rider Joe Smith and a disgruntled Clevelandite at the expense of the WORLD CHAMPION Pittsburgh Steelers to get our goats.

As the Cavaliers try to end the city's Epic Fail of a championship sports scene, the Browns are sure giving their fans a lot to get excited about: the trade of Kellen Winslow, the pending trade of Braylon Edwards, the bellyaching of Shaun Rogers, the disastrous offseason of Donte Stallworth, their miserable new coach who never won anything in New York, and the fact that they have now have not one, but two highly-compensated quarterbacks that they don't want. But other than that, Smith and Browns fans have every right to take jabs at the Steelers.

*By the way, Cleveland, I've seen your new tourism video, and I'm not impressed:

Actually, I take that back. That was one of the funniest things I've seen in quite some time.

CD review: "Joe Beast" can't hide the good-guy side of Cavaliers' Joe Smith [Cleveland.com]

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