I was accused of something very serious last night.  Yes, on my own birthday.  I love my brother in law, but I could have dropped him for questioning my fanhood!  Except, he didn't stand alone on the issue; the room questioned it as well!  So I, as a student of the game, am here to defend my good name and my fanhood.

Now, what does it mean to be a student of the game?  It, at least in part, means that I follow more than one team (and at various levels of the sport) and have a distinct appreciation for the game itself.  This will lead me to be inclined to dislike some teams less than others.  And again, since I am a student to the game, there will be teams that temporarily fall into this category, and there will be others that are instiutuional members I'll always have respect for (doesn't mean I like them).

Chris, what f**king game are you talking about!?!

Well a few, actually.  Naturally, since Los Angeles does not have a pro football team, I am much more of a student to the NFL game, year in and out.  But, I am always interested to know how the Niners and the Chargers are doing.  Defintiely my prefered teams in each conference.  I respect Green Bay, dislike Denver, feel sorry for Oakland, and have never been able to figure out how I feel about the Pats.  That said, I like the college game 100x more.  Since I'm such a huge fan of Pete Carroll and his methods of coaching, of course I'm a USC fan.  However, if I were to preferentiate my teams into a top 5 to establish my fanhood, it'd have to be...

1- USC
2- UCLA
3- Notre Dame
4- whichever other Pac-10 team is doing well that year (NOT STANFORD)
5- this will be a placeholder for teams I feel neutral about across the NCAA

and my top 5 'hated' (had to Dr. Evil it, because hate is such a harsh term)

1- LSU
2- The rest of the SEC
3- the current team of the week's jock that ESPN is on that is placed somewhere on the East Coast.
...that is all; see, I love more than I hate! ;)

But I was born with basketball in my blood, and I'll always be a true student to that game.  I will wear my purple and gold through times without playoffs, and I will most certainly be wearing when those June occasions come around.  And I will especially wear it in hostile territory; I'm just that damn proud to live in the land of the Lakers! BTW, I'll be the one laughing at Portland right behind their bench tomorrow night.  Watch the game; you won't miss me, I promise!  HOWEVER, since I am a student of the game, but Angelino first, my order of affections are as follows....

1- LOS ANGELES LAKERS
2- Los Angeles Clippers
3- Golden State Warriors
4- Phoenix Suns (and it's too bad they went and got Shaq)
5- Boston Celtics (I love KG and Ray Allen, and I'm an 80's baby)
**honorable? mention... Detroit Pistons, the new Cleveland Cavaliers, New Orleans (big ups to Byron Scott!) Hornets

But again, I'm a huge fan of the college game.  So, as I'm sure you can assume where my allegiances may lie, my college top 5....

1- Santa Clara (duh!)
2- UCLA
3- USC
4- LMU (I told you, I'm an Angelino, dammit!)
5-whichever Pac-10, WCC, Big West, WAC teams are doing well that year (NOT STANFORD and NOT GONZAGA)

And the statistics pain me as to how many of our own kids we lose to East Coast schools with more exposure and prowess.  If they stayed home, NBA recruiters might never leave California.  Hmm....getting ideas.... ;)

Wow, that was long!  But, I hope I have sucessfully defended my fanhood and cleared any confusion.  Whew!