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Also, check out this piece by ESPN’s Jeff Bradley, brother of USA coach Bob Bradley and uncle to the crazy man in the picture above.

I love me some Chris Andersen. His energy off the bench for the Denver Nuggets has made him a fan favorite in the city, and his patented “birdman” celebrations and signature style, tattoos and hair all over the place, have endeared him to both the casual and die-hard NBA fan. His 2010 averages of 5.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game don’t do justice to the energy and attitude he brings to the floor every night.

And now, he gives us this. The most obvious tattoo for someone nicknamed The Birdman.

Check out the neck. That’s a “Free Bird” tattoo. So awesome.

A pretty uneventful weekend in the world of sports. Oh sure, there were two days filled with World Cup action, the final rounds of the 110th U.S. Open had both Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson teeing off, as well as blast from past (which is also what she said) Ernie Els, and interleague play in major league baseball, but there was a distinct lack of drama in the events that transpired. Some dude named Graeme McDowell won the U.S. Open (it’s O.K., we haven’t heard of him either), in one of the more boring final rounds in recent memory. A ho-hum weekend indeed. Unless you’re French. Or Jemele Hill. Or the Redskins. Or British.  Or Italian. Or Lady Gaga? Yeah, it was that kinda weekend. Let’s hope for better things this week.

Well, somebody had to win that one right? In a game with some god-awful offensive statistics (I mean…GREAT DEFENSE!), the Lakers beat the Celtics in game 7 on their home floor, winning 83-79, and collecting banner #16 for the franchise and for the city of Los Angeles (and Minneapolis). The funny thing about this game is that the Celtics executed their game plan to a T: force Kobe into difficult shots all night by playing straight up man-to-man defense (Kobe went 6-24, with many shots coming out of the flow of the offense), play Rasheed Wallace on Pau Gasol and use Sheed’s length to stymie the big Spaniard, and let Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher and the rest of the Lakers role players try to save their season and win the title.

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We usually like to start the day here with stories that are snarky, sarcastic, or humorous. There’s no need for that today, as there is enough actual sporting material to make any true sports fan happy.

• In World Cup action, Argentina faces South Korea, in what should be the match of the tournament so far. Actually, as I’m writing this, the score is 2-1 Argentina at halftime. The three total goals are the most scored by halftime of any game so far, and for a tournament in which games have mostly ended with scores of 1-0, 0-0, and 1-1, this game should act as shot of adrenaline. Later today, Greece faces Nigeria in sort of a clunker (neither side is that talented nor expected to advance very far), and France kicks off against Mexico, which should also be extremely entertaining. Mexio and France both reside in Group A and have earned a point a piece from their opening game draws, so each team should be putting forth quite the effort in order to secure a win to advance to the knockout stage of the tournament. Uruguay has most likely done enough to advance to the second round, drawing (0-0) against France, and winning yesterday (3-0) against South Africa.

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Of course the vuvuzela has a twitter page:

And in more moral malarkey, this sign appeared yesterday during the Brazil-North Korea match (Brazil surprisingly only won 2-1), which apparently was attended by a lot of Chinese volunteers.

The sound vuvuzelas make is annoying. Their constant, buzzing drone over the 90 minutes of World Cup games makes my ears bleed a little bit, and I’m just watching on television. I can’t imagine what it’s like in person. Anyway, the significant backlash against the noise-making instruments caused FIFA to issue a statement that the vuvuzela would in fact, not be banished because doing so would be un-African or something. Along those lines, someone of course created a t-shirt. I couldn’t be prouder.

This about sums it up.

Well, now even preachers have gotten into the mix. In Hilton Head, South Carolina, Reverend Christopher Benek of the Providence Presbyterian Church had a few choice quotes about God, and yes, LeBron.

“I think God wants LeBron James to be something of a modern day king. I think God wants the best for LeBron James. I think God even wants LeBron to win. And the way LeBron can do this is to simply do, at this most important time in his life and in sports history… LeBron James, at this time of immense importance, should humble himself publicly before the Lord, and put God first, and I can tell you how… LeBron James should agree to a three-year contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers to play for $1 for each season. Not $20 million a season, $1.”

I imagine the preacher is referencing Steve Jobs’ famous $1 salary as the CEO of Apple. I’m not really sure why Reverend Benek has chosen to speak out about LeBron, but Lord help us all if more choose to do so.

This one’s pretty self-explanatory.

Today’s weird NBA story is almost as strange as me leaving the bar before 1 a.m. last night. Maybe I’m getting old? That’s depressing. Anyway, Zach Randolph has been able to score from the low block effectively for years, and grab a decent number of boards. But, he’s never been known for dishing or his hustle. Until now. Apparently, Mr. Randolph has been implicated in a major drug investigation in Indianapolis, as a prime dealer of marijuana in the city.

A stake out on a suspected drug house 2 weeks ago led to 32 year old Arthur Boyd being pulled over in a Cadillac Escalade. The vehicle had marijuana and ammunition inside, and was registered to Randolph.

The Escalade led police to a storage facility where they say Randolph rents four lockers. According to the document, police dogs found controlled substances in two of the four lockers.

John Tompkins, Randolph’s attorney, was quoted by 6News saying that Randolph is not connected to any drug activity. He went on to say that the vehicle’s secret compartments were a safety precaution for concealing valuables. The Memphis Grizzlies will release a statement supporting Randolph on Thursday, according to Tompkins.

Is anyone really all that surprised?

A sad day for the NFL world, and also for the one ITS dude in my building with the big glasses, stammering voice, and awkward handshake, as Jared Allen has decided to discontinue the best haircut in the league, shaving his mullet for his upcoming wedding.

“The mullet isn’t just a hairdo. It’s definitely a lifestyle. You’re carrying on a legacy,” he said “If I approach you from the front, it’s like, wow, that dude is pretty serious. Then I walk away and you’re like, damn, he likes to party. With two Rs.”

However, Allen hinted on this Twitter page Wednesday that “The Mullet” might reappear at some point.

“The mullet was trimmed for the wedding but the Moolay is more than just some hair, its a lifestyle! You gotta keep a positive Mullitude…”

It’s hump day y’all. Don’t take a mulligan on your Mullitude.

Tim Tebow has taken exactly zero NFL snaps. But, that hasn’t stopped ESPN from creating it’s own Tebow bandwagon, as the newly released Tebow Watch page updates you daily on everything Tim Tebow. Yes, all the articles and coverage you could ever want of your favorite volunteering virgin are now conveniently in one place, on the worldwide leader. About halfway down the page, this insightful headline actually appears:

Much of Tim Tebow’s rookie season will consist of activities such as carrying his teammates’ helmets and buying them food.

Um, hooray?  ESPN also unveiled the Lebron Tracker last week, but that makes more sense, since the King’s summer decision will affect countless NBA franchises and individuals. But where does it end? Do we get a Favre Watch? A Tiger In Vegas Running Diary? A Big Ben In Therapy Blog?

Yeah, I’d read all of them.

This bundle of joy is Robert Strohmeyer, 42-year-old Columbus, Ohio native. Over the weekend, Robert, his 6-year-old daughter, his 8-year-old son, and his girlfriend went to a local Pittsburgh restaurant to grab a bite to eat. Over the course of the meal, Robert and his girlfriend got into a disagreement, which ended with the girlfriend leaving the table to go sit in the car, otherwise known as a Tuesday night at Applebees for my ex-girlfriend and I. Anyway, Robert decides at this point he should honor his tickets to the nearby Pittsburgh Pirates game with his son and he proceeds, leaving his 6-year-old daughter alone in the restaurant. Hey, at least he left her $6 to pay for the meal. Anyway, local authorities located Strohmeyer tailgating in the parking lot, where he was then taken to Allegheny County Jail.

The key to the story is this – he left for a Pirates game? Steelers – OK, Penguins – OK, but the Pirates? No wonder he got arrested.