Fisher comes through again

The Lakers defeated the Clippers last night on a buzzer-beater from Derek Fisher.

This is not the first time Fisher has come through with a big shot late in a game, and it' s interesting that even at Fisher's age he is the point guard for the defending champions.

The reason I say this is interesting is because the culture of today's NBA is to have a dynamic point guard who can do anything. All-Star point guards include Rajon Rondo for the Celtics, Derrick Rose for the Bulls, Deron Williams for the Jazz, Chris Paul for the Hornets and Russell Westbrook for the Thunder.

Fisher is not included on the list of dynamic point guards in the NBA, but he manages to get the job done. Fisher fits the system for the Lakers, and he comes up with big shots when they need him to come up with one.

Sports Geek calls out Sports Guy

My favorite columnist on ESPN, Bill Simmons, has recently wrote a column dedicated to swaying his daughter from ever liking the Lakers. Although I understand he is a Clippers/Celtics fan I'm still upset he is brainwashing.

Don't get me wrong, the column is hilarious and his ideas of how to make his daughter hate the Lakers are genius, but let her make her own decision. If she likes the Lakers sobeit. My dad is a huge 49ers fan and I immediately betrayed him when I started liking sports. I went for the 49ers' rival for that season, the Carolina Panthers.

In fact, I never picked any one of my dad's favorite teams except for BYU. As a Lakers' fan my dad feels that I am a lost soul because he is a Jazz fan. It's been this way for years, and even though Simmons says parents have ultimate control of brainwashing their kids if they really wanted to, I believe kids should pick their own teams. That's what I will do for my kids.

I will pull out a magazine and go to a page with all the teams and say, "Son, it's time for you to pick your favorite team." Then I will let him pick his team, and I will buy him stuff relating to that team.

This is assuming I have a son. If I have a daughter I may end up brainwashing her like Simmons for all the exact reasons Simmons put in his column.

Briggs in support of Palin

I've never really voiced my political opinion in public, so I would like to take the time to say that if Sarah Palin ran for office in 2012, she has my vote.

Palin is charismatic, and whether or not her countenence will change while in office I can see her being the kind of positive change The White House needs. Barack Obama is charismatic and a rock star-type person. It's not necessary to completely change personalities when leaders change so the charisma currently in The White House will remain when Palin is voted in.

I don't know if she'll win, but she knows how to work the media like Obama, and she's not afraid of the spotlight like Obama. My vote is with Palin for 2012.

How to keep turkey from killing you

This one guy, Harold McGee, wrote five myths about Thanksgiving dinner for people to take note of this season. McGee obviously did his homework because my family follows these myths every year.

The myth that particularly hit home with me was cooking the turkey at a low temperature overnight. McGee said this is unnecessary. Thank goodness. Much time will be saved this holiday season.

The myth that disturbed me was people believing it's OK to leave the food out until you go to bed. Obviously you need to refrigerate that stuff before germs take over. McGee said so as well.

Bats catch fire in pitchers duel

A battle between Cliff Lee and Tim Lincecum was supposed to leave us with a final score of 1-0 in the World Series, right?

Game One of the World Series featured high amounts of offense in the Giants' 11-7 win. I love watching offense, but I was extremely surprised by this game. I wanted to see two of the best pitchers in baseball go deep into the game with every pitch causing the audience to hold its breath, but that's not what we got.

Baseball has struggled with its ratings in the playoffs due largely in part to football, but the high volume offense from last night could help the sport's championship series. I enjoyed watching the game, but hopefully Game Two is much closer. Texas needs to show up and actually give the Giants a challenge.

The NFL needs LA

I recently read on espn.com that former Lakers legend Magic Johnson wants the NFL to bring a franchise to Los Angeles. This is a great idea, and even though the NFL has succeeded in becoming America's most popular sport, to bring professional football to LA would make the sport that much better.

Once upon a time there were two NFL franchises in LA--the Rams and Raiders. Both teams bolted for other cities in 1995. The Rams moved to St. Louis, and the Raiders moved back to their former home in Oakland, Calif.

Since that time the closest LA has had to professional football are the USC Trojans. It's time for the NFL to return to Tinsel Town.

The Lakers have been amazing for LA since the NFL left as they have won five NBA championships since the Rams and Raiders left. This is the difficulty that arises: Immediate success is a must. People in LA have other things to do, so an unsuccessful professional franchise will not garner much support. The LA Dodgers are the prime example. I went to two games in LA during the summer, and the stands were only two-thirds of the way filled up in both games. The Dodgers are not a very good team. Flip it around to the Lakers. You can't buy seats to Laker games. You have to purchase the tickets through people who already have tickets.

If an NFL team makes the move to LA it is important to have immediate success. Having Magic Johnson as the owner will make that possible. He helped build the Laker teams who won championships during the last 10 years.

Cesar Martinez Photo Essay

Bieber fever hits toy shelves

This is unbelievable. The Biebs is getting his own line of toys.

It makes perfect sense. The latest teen idol is a heartthrob to tweens everywhere. Even Kim Kardashian said she would date Justin Bieber if he weren't a minor. "Hey Justin, how would you like to have Kim Kardashian as your babysitter."

As much as I try to make light of the Biebs all it goes to show is how his influence is being felt everywhere. I occasionally find myself singing these familiar lyrics, "Oh baby, baby, baby OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The toys, set to be released in December, further stretch the heartthrob's influence, and I don't see it dying soon. Eventually being a singer won't be enough for Bieber. He'll make the jump into acting like Bow Wow and others before him.

The legend of Justin Bieber continues.

Slow news week

Maybe it's the change of season to fall, which causes a massive inability to get out of bed in the morning, but this week in sports was rather slow. Perhaps most of the topics circling the airwaves and hitting television sets are topics I've already made comments about.

I did find an article about professional surfer Kelly Slater and how he might be the most underrated athlete in sports. I have a friend who lives in Hawaii, so I've heard of Slater. Instantly I thought, "He's not underrated. I've heard of him," but that doesn't mean the rest of the world knows who he is.

I wanted to get on here and talk about all of his accomplishments and multiple surfing video games he's made, but I'm starting to think he is underrated. He receives less publicity than mainstream professional athletes, but having spent a lot of time with my friend in Hawaii I can say it takes true athleticism and skill to surf. It's something that no professional athlete can successfully do as well as Slater.

Slater helped me realize being underrated doesn't necessarily mean to be underexposed.

NFL does right thing

It's refreshing to see the current NFL and its new stance on dealing with concussions. Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb and linebacker Stewart Bradley both suffered concussions against the Packers on Sunday, and both players have failed the concussion test this week. They have to pass the test in order to play this weekend.

This latest rule, which was instigated last season, gives doctors the final say in deciding if a player is fit to play after a concussion. The doctors with the final say are also independent of any NFL affiliation. This is the best way to protect NFL players and keep them healthy.

For the Eagles this could end being a blessing in disguise. Michael Vick took over as quarterback against the Packers after Kolb exited the game with a concussion. We all remember Vick for his amazing athletic ability and video game-like statistics. If you watched the game on Sunday you could tell Vick is back. He was away from football for two years because of his dog fighting conviction, but if every performance was like the one against the Packers then Vick should be the normal starter instead of Kolb.

"Psych" summer finale rivets my shorts

Season five of "Psych" has been so-so at best thus far, but the writers saved the good stuff for the summer finale (midseason for normal TV shows). Shawn finally used his supreme detective skills to make everyone believe he is once again psychic. He's struggled this season to get things right, but in a high-profile CIA case Shawn was back to championship form.

The fall-half of season five begins in November, so I will enjoy this two-month break with the knowledge that Juliet and Shawn finally kissed. It took four-and-a-half seasons but they kissed. Juliet is now left with a tough choice: her new millionaire boyfriend, Deckland, or the fake psych/real detective, Shawn.

The conclusion of season five looks to be exciting in November.

It is unwritten

The Washington Nationals were getting blasted by the Florida Marlins Wednesday night 14-3, but then the fireworks finally started. Nationals outfielder Nyjer Morgan stole first base and then stole second base after he was hit by a pitch. Apparently there's an unwritten rule in baseball that says once your team gets down by 11 runs in the fourth inning you're not allowed to make a comeback and put forth effort to win the game.

Morgan was criticized for stealing two bases being called "selfish" and accused of "padding his stats." When Marlins pitcher Chris Volstad attempted to throw the ball at Morgan's face the next time Morgan was at the plate the greatest fight in Major League Baseball history broke out. Both teams came out onto the field and punches were thrown. All of this was over an unwritten rule in baseball that says when you're down by a lot of runs you shouldn't attempt to steal a base. It's considered "unsportsmanlike."

This is absolutely ridiculous. I love baseball and to now think that professional baseball players actually think this way doesn't give me hope when my team falls behind. If my team gives up five runs in the first inning am I supposed to just go home? Baseball is proving its the least progressive sport in the United States, and something needs to be done about it. Commissioner Bud Selig is the worst commissioner in all of professional sports. He needs to be removed from his position so baseball doesn't go quietly into the night as the most hated sport in America.