He was a 'Thriller'

I know we're generally a sports blog, but I wanted to take a second to pay tribute to maybe greatest musician of my generation.

All the legal issues aside, Michael Jackson, who tied Thursday at the age of 50, was an entertainer like no other. I know he hasn't given us anything musically in the past 15 years or so, but his catalog of music - from his younger days with the Jackson 5 through the late 1990s - still sounds as fresh today was it did when it was recorded.

Jackson was starting to explode as a solo artist around the same time I solved the cable remote and could change the channel to MTV. I grew up with his songs and, up until a few years ago, still had the "Thriller" tape in a box of old junk. Those were the days. Then again, maybe I'll go out and buy a copy of the "Thriller" CD just for old time's sake?

Rondo hitting the road?

The Celtics appear to be shopping around point guard Rajon Rondo, and more than a few fans aren’t happy about it. Sure, he was one of the key pieces on last year’s championship team, but he seems to have an attitude problem that grows old on people — namely Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers — in a short period of time.

This merely could be hearsay, but should it ring true, Rondo has no place in Boston. Talent-wise, few can hang with the speedy guard, but I don’t care who you are, insubordination or defiance of any kind is unacceptable. Ainge and Rivers have spoken publicly about their issues with Rondo, who's had problems with coaches dating back to his high school days.

"You've got to have some stubbornness in you, that's what makes you great," Rivers, a former all-star point guard with the Hawks, said in a story in Sports Illustrated. "But. ..."

Ainge spoke on WEEI on Thursday morning, saying that Rondo has “got to grow up” and that “his presence hurt us” in the team’s Eastern Conference playoff series against the Magic. Ainge added that Rondo was fined for being tardy to playoff games.
Rondo averaged 16.9 points, 9.7 rebounds and 9.8 assists during the 2009, meaning his agent, Bill Duffy, is going to command much more money than the $1.2 million he made last season when he his contract is up at the end of next season.

"Last year Rondo got mad, and he said, 'Why are you always on me?'" recalls Rivers. "And I said, ‘Because you’re not as good as you should be yet.' I told him, 'Until that day I’m not getting off you, and I’m not going anywhere.'"

Whether or not Rondo is still around remains to be seen.

Quiet ... hear that? It's a wide receiver talking about his contract

I was going to write today about a certain outfielder, who occasionally will be quirky, playing minor league ball in Albuquerque while he’s serving a 50-game suspension for violating baseball’s drug policy.

But instead of paying more attention to a guy who represents a lot of what is wrong with sports, I changed my mind to focus on a guy from whom athletes like Manny Ramirez could learn something.

Fantasy football nerds (guilty as charged) will know Greg Jennings as the stud wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers. Those who don’t play fantasy football might not know who he is at all.
Why? Because Jennings is the anti-T.O., the anti-Ochocinco, meaning he doesn’t draw a lot of attention to himself off the field. He doesn’t make headlines, except when he makes plays.

Case in point: Jennings currently is working out a new deal with the Packers. The first I heard of these negotiations was an article in my home-state newspaper, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

According to the story, Jennings — who few would argue is underpaid by his three-year, $2.85 million rookie contract — postponed contract talks until after last season, because he didn’t want to be a distraction during the season.

“When you’re looked upon as a leader on the team — not that I’m a main leader, but I’m looked upon as one of the leaders — your leader can’t be a main distraction,” he was quoted as saying in the Journal Sentinel.

I realize a lot of talented players reach deals without a lot of fanfare. But the fact that Jennings can do it while thriving at a position that seems to embrace and exalt attention-seeking clowns, I find refreshing.

Chad Ochocinco love to talk about his next touchdown celebration. Terrell Owens appears on reality TV shows. Jennings just quietly puts up big numbers — bigger numbers than Owens or Ochocinco.

When his deal with the Packers is done, he might not make as much as either of those two idiots. But you get the sense he’s not terribly concerned about that.

Snoozefest at Wimbledon

When top-seeded Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawl from Wimbledon late last week because of sore knees, he took with him any suspense from this year's tournament. Now, the people at the All England Lawn Tennis Club should just give Roger Federer, who lost to Nadal in an epic five-set match in 2008, the trophy.

I don't see Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic or anyone else beating Federer, who with a victory will surpass Pete Sampras for all-time major wins. He'll also notch his sixth Wimbledon win, which will bring him to within one of Sampras' seven titles.

When Federer does win a few Sundays from now, it'll be tougher to say Sampras is the greatest of all time.