Condolences to Big Z

I talk a lot of shit about trading the big man, but don't get it twisted; the Swagglers have nothing but love for Zydrunas Ilgauskas. What he's had to face recently, the stillbirth of his twins, is something nobody should have to deal with. The fact that it was his first children only compounds this indescribable tragedy. Our thoughts are with Z and his family as they attempt to move past this. Big props to Ilgauskas on returning to the team so quickly. It shows his level of commitment and love for the city of Cleveland. The man is a warrior, and I think I speak for all Clevelanders when I say the city wouldn't be the same without him.

Dennis Johnson, R.I.P.

Rare moment of seriousness:
A great player and, by all accounts, great guy, Dennis "DJ" Johnson collapsed today and died on the court with his team, the Austin Toros of the NBADL, that he coached. He was only 52.
He had career averages of 14 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists, over the course of an stellar 14 year career. He won 3 NBA titles, 1 with the Sonics and 2 as an instrumental force on the powerhouse Celtics teams of the '80s. He went to 5 all star games and was MVP of the '79 finals he won with Seattle. Larry Bird called him "...the best I've ever played with..." Amongst his greatest moments was the famous winning layup off Bird's now legendary steal of Isiah Thomas' inbound pass to beat the Pistons in game 5 of the 1987 the Eastern Conference Finals.




This is a huge loss for both the Celtics and the NBA. Our condolences go out to his family in this difficult time.