The 2012 Olympic games in London are over. And boy am I tired.
I announced 53 beach volleyball matches in 13 days—sometimes doing as many as 6 a day.
The stories at the volleyball venue, Horse Guards Parade, were memorable.
Misty May Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings won their 3rd consecutive Gold Medal and established themselves as the greatest beach team of all time.
During their journey, in a quarterfinal, Misty and Kerri met Italy. One of the Italians, 21-year-old Marta Menegatti, had said that Misty May had always been her idol. Before the match, our reporter Heather Cox got one of the best quotes of the Olympics from Kerri Walsh. Kerri told Heather with a gleam in her eyes “We are going to remind Marta why her idol is Misty!”
The Golden Girls then went out and crushed Italy. They won the first set 21-12 and were leading 7-3 in the second when Marta called time out, went to the bench and started sobbing. Game over.
The German men stunned # 1 Brazil and won gold for the first time.
Auf Wiedersehen! After the match NBC went back to the studio to host Al Michaels who proclaimed that my description of the upset “ was one of the best calls of the Olympics!” How do you say “wow” in German”!
But perhaps the best beach story was the country of Latvia winning the men’s bronze medal. It was the FIRST medal for that county in the London games!
By the way, the Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis, who watched the match, was staying in my hotel on my floor under heavy security. Thankfully their biggest worry was the Marlowe family coming home late from Olympic events.
I went on “The Today Show” twice and got to say hello to Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, Danny Da Vito, Jimmy Fallon, Jenna Bush, and Al Roker. Fallon is just like he is on TV—hyper, fun, and very affable.
It was a roller coaster ride for sure and I enjoyed every minute of it.
This past Friday afternoon, while sitting in London’s Heathrow Airport waiting to fly home, I learned of the Nuggets trade for Andre Iguodala.
At first glance I like the trade a lot.
The Denver Nuggets now have upgraded their roster to include not only a bonafide All-Star but an Olympian as well.
Iguodala has mad physical skills—he can run fast, jump very high, and should be great in Coach George Karl’s style of play.
He’s not just a one trick pony—Andre is a skilled basketball player. Last season he shot 39% from downtown.
Best of all, this AI is one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA!
The Nuggets will now have someone who can legitimately guard, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, and others of that ilk.
Yes, I am sorry to see Aaron Afflalo and Al Harrington leave. Both are outstanding players and tremendous guys. I hope that next season they both have big years.
But, I am excited to see a Denver starting lineup that features Gallo, Kenneth Faried, JaVale McGee, Iguodala, and Ty Lawson. Coming off the bench will be Andre Miller, Wilson Chandler, Corey Brewer, Timofey Mozgov (who had a solid Olympics for Russia), KK, Jordan Hamilton, Anthony Randolph, and perhaps even Evan Fournier.
Yes, the LA Lakers got better with the acquisition of Dwight Howard. The Thunder, Spurs, Clippers and Grizzlies are all serious contenders.
Dallas and Utah are still good—and the Warriors, T-Wolves, and Kings are on the rise.
But don’t sleep on your Denver Nuggets—the youngest, deepest, most athletic team in the Western Conference.
