Flea Red Hot Chili Peppers For someone who originally wanted to learn the intricacies of jazz, Michael Balzary sure made an about face. Growing up in California by way of Australia, Balzary traded in his trumpet for the bass after being introduced to the world of rock by high school friend Hillel Slovak, a guitarist himself. Balzary, rechristened Flea, would go on to form the Red Hot Chili Peppers, one of the most popular and critically acclaimed rock bands for the last 20-plus years. Along with band members Anthony Kiedis, John Frusciante and Chad Smith the Red Hot Chilli Peppers have sold more than 40 million albums around the world. Today, Flea can be spotted all over the entertainment spectrum having played roles in several feature films as well as appearing on albums with the likes of musical legends Mick Jagger and the late Johnny Cash.

Joaquin Henson :  Nov 26 Martin comes of age Congrats to the Suns I almost saved my brave face i congratulate the phoenix suns on their victory they are a unique and dynamic team except for raja bell who is a nincompoop i know i put up a brave face during my pre game blog yesterday but i knew it was nearly impossible to win game 7 in phoenix unless the lakers played the greatest game they were capable of and i knew that the momentum had shifted radically in the suns favor sent into hyperdrive by tim thomas's 3 pointer at the end of game 6 and it sent me into a bummer tailspin but honestly i didnt expect the lakes to tank like that they were just too young too inexperienced and they choked on the bright side that youth will serve them next year hopefully the younger players will learn to keep their poise and to not get down on themselves when they make a couple of mistakes as was so often the case this season and it showed glaringly in the playoffs when it came pressure time they choked kobe tried to stick to the game plan but his teamates were incapable of holding their own lamar only had one bad game and it was last night's game 7 and he was great for the other 6 he will be even better next year and next year andrew bynum will begin to play more and i, like every year, will be rooting for the lakers with all my heart well at least i got to experience the elation of the wild end of game four and that was a lot of fun its like going golfing and being terrible but remembering the one beautiful shot or the 3 hour surf session being all out of rythm and the one beautiful wave when you were right in the pocket well, no more nba for me now i have no interest in who wins now it is over for me til november ahh maybe i'll try to enjoy a few games as the playoffs progress i do appreciate high quality basketball but, it is unlikely too painful the nba is dead to me now it was fun writing the blog all year and i'm sure anyone who doesn't love the lakers thinks i'm an idiot and that's fine with me, i understand even probably lakers fans think i am an unbridled fool too and that's ok too i have no interest in being mature and intelligent about basketball i just want the lakers to rule the world signing off go lakers Posted by Flea - May 8 2006 4:13PM The Lakers Will Rock On Band Together, Stick Together smush parker will come alive he will let go of his style of performance lately forgive himself completely and rock into a new day with complete confidence and flow smush parker is a dynamo he is an exciting and flexible and strong and flying guard he will come alive tonight in phoenix i believe completely in him what he did at the end of game four? he will be like that the entire game at phoenix tonight the lakers will play like a team tonight kwame will dominate the paint and get a double double lamar will get a triple double and shut down shawn marion kobe will facilitate greatness throughout the whole team and will rise to whatever level he needs to to win and he will create whatever path he needs so he can live on like water the lakers will win tonight in phoenix and it will be amazing and i will be sitting backstage at saturday night live staring at a little television and doing a victory dance and i will rock on the television show with all of my energy that i give to the music flowing from the cosmos and the earth and it will be in conjunction with a shockingly happy laker victory tonight the lakers will win the lakers will play the greatest game of their career and i will not hate the suns i will love the lakers go lakers band together stick together and fly Posted by Flea - May 8 2006 4:11PM

Abundant Heroes From Kobe to Smush, lotsa love to pass around before i get started let me say one thing i totally respect the phoenix suns they are a unique and exciting team and we all know they are missing amare stoudemire and kurt thomas before really i get started let me say one thing boy, was i wrong boy was i foolish when i questioned whether the lakers could win without chris mihm i could go into the reason why but i was short sighted and wrong go kwame long live the triangle okay now it is the following day after suns laker 4 and i am a little calmer and prepared to think about it this was such a stunning experience i really jumped out of my skin at this irish bar and only now am i getting back to normal firstly kobe bryant is joining the greatest players of all time club i have always known that he was one of the most talented and hard working that i have ever seen and anyone who has read my meandering pedestrian blog know how much i believe in him but his spiritual growth has allowed him to understand that being a giving person is the thing by which all great men are measured he has always given himself completely to the game and reaped remarkable rewards from his focus and intense work ethic but he is now giving himself to his teamates thinking only of lifting them all together to victory making them better at seeing what is great in themselves and doing his all to bring it out taking as much joy or more in their accomplishments as his own he is feeling the power of togetherness and has realized that without it, victory is a lot less fulfilling he can now be mentioned in the same breath as magic johnson and bill russell without anyone batting an eyelid his growth as a player during his nba career is beautiful and we basketball fans are lucky to be alive in his era lamar odom is a great basketball player for the last month of the season and throughout these first four playoff games he is a hero he is everything lakers fans hoped for doing it all every night and he seems to be getting better it is such a joy to see a guy so centered in himself with such great talent, and the ability to do everything he does at both ends inside outside handle the ball get the boards dish the assists great! and smush's amazing steal at the end of regulation that set up kobe's beautiful shot the steal that made it all happen in the midst of that we should not forget 3 he hit moments before that made it all possible the guy is a hero always a hero in laker lore forever Posted by Flea - May 1 2006 12:12PM

Delirious! And you thought I was overjoyed in my last post... i am too deliriously happy to even type the lakers suns game 4 was one of the great moments of my life i got off the airplane from italy after having no sleep and completely exhausted ran by my friends art opening and ran into an irish bar on 33rd and 3rd in new york city and bellied up to watch the game i was the only one watching the game in the place i just cant believe what happened i just cant believe it smush stealing it from steve nash picking his pocket like the artful dodger and tapping to devean who feeds kobe for the most beautiful teardrop floater nothing but net to send it to ot my god lord jesus allah it was incredible then it seems like the lakes are too down in ot again and luke ties up nash in the same spot on the court! and kobe gets the tip and goes with complete confidence a 20 foot j to win it unreal unbelievable i am so happy i am a laker fan for life i jumped up in the irish bar i was in and started screaming and doing the craziest irish jig the irish regulars were looking at me very strangely but no one not a one even though they had no idea what i was on about could deny the love flying through the room GOOOOOOO LLAAAAAKKERS i am so proud of my guys and happy for them gotta stay focused gotta stay focused gotta stay focused Posted by Flea - May 1 2006 12:07PM

Overjoyed! The Lakers are coming together right in front of my eyes so i am in italy and i get up in the middle of the night to check the score and i get back in bed with a beautiful feeling well i didn't get the blog in time but certainly it can be confirmed by my nba cohorts that i sent in a blog hours before the lakers -suns game 2 guaranteeing a laker victory and saying that if they lost i would never write a nba blog again well, here i am writing another blog the lakers lead the series 2 to 1 kobe bryant is now escalating to one of the greatest players to ever play the game we all know he is the best one on one player in the nba but he is now demonstrating that like the greatest basketball player to ever step on the hardwood, magic johnson he clearly knows hows to help and inspire his teamates to a higher level and can do it at the very highest level when it counts i am so proud of him he is the greatest and phil jackson is the second greatest basketball coach of all time just under the great john wooden his game plan that the players believe in is confusing and stymying the suns his flexibility and adaptability of basketball plan is ready for the suns when it matters most the triangle offense has taken all season for the lakers as a team to truly feel comfortable in but they are really getting there and it is only gonna get better after some rough times the lakers are growing into a real team i am so proud of them lamar has been playing at the highest level for more than a month now consistently stellar every night kwame is becoming what i knew he could be smush is feeling it luke walton emerged from a long season of fractured confidence to find himself sometimes ya gotta go through the bad times because as george clinton has said "if there weren't any humps there wouldn't be any getting over" i know the series is not over yet but the lakers have found themselves and i am overjoyed Posted by Flea - Apr 29 2006 10:02AM

How Deep is Your Love? I still have faith in the Purple and Gold the nba season is winding down it is interesting to see how it has played out i think it has been a great season with a lot of dynamics to it of course my passion is the lakers and the day to day ins and outs of the franchise it has made me so happy to see this team this year there were times where i have been enormously frustrated and disappointed but i never lost faith and i see them learning to be a team it means a lot to me when i see kwame brown get 15 points and 15 boards the other night it means a lot to me when i see kobe bryant regain his rightful unarguable place as the best player in the nba it means a lot to me when i see him get his teamates involved more as they learn the offense it means a lot to me when i see lamar really start to find his place lately and score back to back triple doubles (i actually am only reading about it because i am on tour in europe rocking people's worlds) it means a lot to me it is gonna be a (some would say insurmountable) challenge for them to beat the suns in the first round but it is possible and not by getting tonya hardings boys on steve nash i know that this team can dig deep enough to do it if they can focus on defense harder than they ever have in their lives and be willing to die for each other in the way that elvin jones was willing to die for john coltrane then they can do it but that is the only way it is simply this question which i put to each and every laker how deep is your love? other thoughts the memphis grizzlies having jerry west at the helm who is the second greatest laker of all time after magic johnson have really come up and i knew it was only a question of time when they acquired the great jerry west it seemed crazy to some when they got rid of stromile swift, bonzi wells, and jason williams, and earl watson but look at 'em now they are a legitimate contender jerry west is one of the greatest basketball minds of all time the detroit pistons are one of the best teams i have ever seen in my life phenomenonly good and i have always hated the pistons with a wicked vengeance when they battled the lakers at the end of the eighties i could have stared a hole in the television with my hate but i can only remove my hat and bow at this remarkable display of basketball playing and even though they do it as a team like no other in this day and age they are all unique characters who contribute something completely unique unbelievable and also what about flip saunders that is a great story first of all he is a cool guy ........ then on one side he was fired by the twolves after his team imploded on him then the twolves go on to have another terrible season (come to l.a. kevin!!! and we will love you with our hearts!!! and you will win a championship) and flip goes and is part of the best record of the season with the pistons and on the other side this detroit piston team proves they dont need no kind of larry brown though in fairness they probably learned some stuff from him along the way but it is a win win subplot of a great story the heat i dont like them at all the golden state warriors i was one of those fools who really thought they would have a great season best backcourt in the league i thought what a dope i am the portland trailblazers seeing them crumble like an old piece of bread was kind of shocking i mean i knew they were not so good but.......jeez i guess paul allen is gonna sell 'em the suns man last year i was so enthralled with amare stoudemire he is one of the most exciting players i have ever seen what power they lost him and then got rid of joe johnson and quentin richardson and hasnt kurt thomas been injured alot? man that guy is an important player a strong defender just goes to show how great steve nash is i know shawn marion is outstanding i mean really outstanding but this nash kid blows my mind one of the best athletes in any sport ever and on top of that i like him i like his anti war shirt at the all star game last year david robinson's taking him to task for it was very narrow minded and david robinson was very wrong and steve nash was very right the knicks are probably the shockingly worst team i have ever seen in my years of nba fandom and i think their payroll is way up there and they have some great basketball players and a proven winner of a coach it's just crazy to me it is crazy i'm telling you it's crazy i heard on one radio station that two of the players i think malik rose and nate robinson got in a fight and i'm sure i can't mention what i heard were the particulars of this fight because it would never be allowed to appear on this little blog i dont even know if its true or radio media insanity i just dont know what to make of this knick team i have never heard of anything like it there is a weird energy going on it is even making larry brown unhealthy and i have seen some terrible basketball teams in my day like the sacramento kings before the maloof brothers (poor mitch richmond he was a great player on the losingest teams) but mitch richmond was great in his early years with run tmc with chris mullin and tim hardaway that was an exciting group but they always had to face magic and the lakers and never had a chance and the clippers for years and years remember benoit benjamin? was he on the warriors? i think he was the lakers traded for him but it was a money moving thing to end up with shak i think when the lakers got shak chick hearn said he was a mona lisa, the best of the best those were exciting days for laker fans and when they got phil that was the most exciting thing for me since the magic kareem worthy a.c. scott cooper mike mcgee wes mathews championships because i knew they would win one again but anyways the knicks are the worst the orlando magic i just really dig dwight howard he's great and has a nice vibe the clippers well a lot of my friends like the clippers i'm fine with'em elton brand is great and i will forgive him for talking smack about the lakers but why dont they just move up to seattle after the sonics go somewhere else l.a. is laker town we dont need no stinkin clippers the bulls i am just not a scott skiles fan never have been seems so inflexible of a guy boring jock stuff hornets i love chris paul he should be a laker and also my best friend when i was a little kid had a little brother named chris paul sixers allen iverson is a genius that they did not ask him to be on national team or whatever it's called and put on luke ridenour is disrespectful to one of the greatest players ever maybe philly will trade him after this season i have heard that scuttlebutted around by gayle fine i love allen iverson they should put his head up at mount rushmore he has given so much to our culture in america twolves i wish better for the great kevin garnett i know he is a nice man Posted by Flea - Apr 19 2006 6:04PM

About Last Night Just a bump in the road... the lakers fell apart like a cheap suit in the 3rd last night against the spurs they played with no gumption they got down on them selves when they made mistakes it was clear to see smush hang his head after being burned by tony parker a few times and kwame bum out after he missed a couple of shots these guys gotta not lose their focus and get depressed when they make a few mistakes they can do it! well, it was a small stumbling block on the way to the championship an extra little squiggle in the learning curve Posted by Flea - Apr 1 2006 2:05PM

The Many Faces of Flea, the Fan Root unto others as they would root for you well as the basketball season rolls along and the lakers basketball play waxes and wanes i go through a variety of emotional states as anyone who reads my blog can clearly see there is the mature flea (rarely) who sees it all as a growing experience and appreciates the struggle and the great talent around the nba there is the angry frustrated flea who needlessly takes players to task for having bad games and who is impatient and a finger pointer that same angry flea who gets mad at lamar or devean or smush or kwame for having a bad game who couldn't do a darn thing on the court himself except in his recurring dream where they call him in from the stands and he dons the purple and gold and comes in to save the day that same frustrated guy who thinks he knows what he is talking about from the safety of his living room couch or comfy season ticket seat that he is so proud of the guy who complains about substitution patterns but like most basketball fans only sees the obvious things like a big rebound or who is scoring points or making flashy assists and yet questions the decision making of someone who has dedicated their life to understanding the minute of details and biggest picture of what makes a basketball team play well and spends day after day with the players in practice.... the optimistic flea (my favorite) who is positive the lakers are about to go on a ten game winning streak and have a good chance of winning it all this year who can feel the momentum building and see the team making a profound breakthrough into greatness who knows they can match up against anyone in the nba when they are on and they are on baby! the regular flea who just loves the lakers, knows they have been a touchstone for sanity in his life for many years and appreciates his long relationship with them the guy who really loves the players and wants the best for all of them then there is the crazy neurotic flea (my least favorite of all) who thinks that the lakers play actually affects his life when superstition takes over and if the lakers are winning his life is going swimmingly but if they are losing he is certain of impending doom at every turn and the slightly crazy inoffensive type of crazy flea who listens to the tv with the sound off or on depending on which might be good luck and who puts his magic johnson shoe in front of the tv and his chick hearn bobblehead for good luck who has his current lakers bobbleheads up front but makes derek fisher and rick fox stay way in the back and put his shaquille o'neal bobblehead in the corner facing the wall like the kids at the end of the blair witch project basically i have been pretty wrapped up in this lakers thing for some time and they are a shoe in to win the championship this year if smush could just make his freethrows Posted by Flea - Mar 24 2006 1:52PM

Are You There God? It's Me, Flea That, and other NBA observations dear god why do the lakers lose at home to the seattle sonics after beating both detroit and san antonio within a week or so? oh lord, why lord? your friend, flea the lakers cannot win without chris mihm when he is injured they lose repeatedly i would like to see what the win lose percentage is with him in or out because when he is out they always go on a losing streak please start doing yoga or something chris so you dont get injured so much lamar odom looks like tom morello isaiah thomas wants to have a bunch of isaiah thomas's running around in knick suits i really hope kevin garnett is in the purple and gold next year please come kevin you will be loved by the true heart of california and it is a big and beautiful heart you can surf at point dume on a longboard and see sea lions i know for sure you would love surfing tracy mcgrady is a nice man the heat are trying so hard and they have no chance on earth of getting past the pistons i hate the seattle supersonics chris paul is great so is steve nash san antonio has fans that were at the staples center when i went to the laker game and they were rude and classless made me hate the spurs even worse except for michael finley even though he beat us but he seems like a good guy the pistons are so good because detroit needs them god's gift to detroit is the pistons and aretha franklin and george clinton and united sound and motown i thought milwaukee was gonna be way better this year i was wrong maybe next year what's the deal with the atlanta hawks? this has been going on for years and why is dallas so good why are they better than the lakers? i dont like it it makes me sad i deserve to be happy i am a kind man Posted by Flea - Mar 20 2006 2:51PM

Happy Birthday Kwame The Lakers energy is mounting at the right time alert alert red alert lakers beat spurs and pistons in the same week or so beat them both soundly the wizards gave up on kwame brown but phil jackson and the lakers had the faith and kwame is turning it around he now the lakers premier defender of big men he can shut down duncan he can contain elton brand he can out rebound ben wallace the lakers are beginning to become comfortable and know their roles in the offense kobe is getting everyone in to it smush is being aggressive at both ends lamar is pysching out the defenders confusing the defenders and making it easier for all the other lakers chris mihm consistently is getting the job done luke walton finally had a good game it seems like he is more likely to play better the more he feels that kobe has faith in him the lakers energy is mounting at the right time they are feeling their confidence and gathering energy and momentum at the right time go lakers happy birthday kwame Posted by Flea - Mar 13 2006 1:04AM

Dear Phil Jackson Oh, and one word of advice dear phil jackson just a little memo you are my favorite coach in professional sports you are my favorite basketball coach of all time with the possible exception of john wooden when you first came to the lakers from chi town i was besides myself with joy i am very pleased you are back in town with my team i love the triangle offense when it is played well it is spontaneous and adaptable to all situations it is fun and freeflowing and great to watch and it encourages the best kind of team work with the players thinking for themselves and hopefully refining their basketball intelligence constantly i trust in the way you let things work themselves out and the way you see the energy of the game moving and give it the best possible route to flow in the laker's favor i believe in it and i believe in you but please, i ask you, if lamar is guarded by ginobili again on friday please encourage the other fellas with the ball..kobe, smush, devean, sasha, luke, etc to give the ball to lamar in the post he can sautee ginobili all night long in there lamar has a distinct size advantage as ginobili's nose just about reaches lamar's armpit lamar came out with a lot of energy last night against the spurs and was shooting well but it seemed he was getting his baskets on offensive boards or garbage plays or having to go one on one from the perimeter it made me concerned, to see him working so hard and not getting rewarded by getting the ball inside it is so important for lamar to be encouraged to play at the high level he is so capable of he seems so self effacing but he really is a star i am very against thuggish play i really hated it when brian cook decked whoever he did in the preseason this year and felt that rick fox cursed the lakers season a few years ago when he had that absurd fight with doug christie in the pre season however, i thought it was great when lamar blocked tony parker with a little extra last night i did not think it was a flagrant, it was a bad call but something had to be done about that little scoundrel prancing into the lane all night long i really care for the lakers i get more attached to this team the more i get to know them through their play, which is so symbolic of their character they are really a bunch of unique dynamic guys and though i occasionally get frustrated when they lose because i am an over the top fan i really love these guys i hope you are getting them meditating together, like i heard you used to do with the bulls a group meditation could really get them on the same page they can unite! they can do it! they are starting to find their places in the system! keep the faith! and kwame is going nowhere but up and andrew bynum will be a great center in the league one day your supporter flea p.s. i recommend 'energy anatomy' by carolyn myss Posted by Flea - Mar 10 2006 10:13AM

OK, I Take It All Back Fairweather Flea? Hardly ... Just a crazed fan the lakers beat the pistons i take it all back about that last blog they are the greatest team on earth i love lamar odom he is the greatest i love brian cook i love devean george i love kwame brown i love smush i love chris mihm i love them all because they have turned the corner they have left their sloppy inatttentive ways behind them they are have grown in to anew era of greatness of team play kobe got everyone involved lamar had a lot of assissts they moved the ball they rocked kwame crashed the boards with fire the pistons looked tired but it was back to back for the lakes too go lakers on another note adonal foyle is a cool guy he plays on golden state warriors even though i am happy the lakers destroyed the warrriors the other night he has formed an organization called democracy matters which is aimed at bringing awareness to the problem of big money putting politicians in office in this country and the problem of these politicians being beholden to their wealthy donors.... this is a serious issue that results in massive injustice in the u.s.a. i am happy a basketball player is stepping up to the plate and speaking his mind and not only speaking his mind but doing something about it i often feel sad that basketball players dont speak their true mind enough and they are so conservative for crying out loud dave robinson raked steve nash over the coals for wearing a pro peace shirt at the all star game last year peace is good politicians making decisions that affect all of our lives should be based on all of our lives not pleasing the big shots who give them $$$$ adonal foyle is my kind of guy Posted by Flea - Mar 7 2006 1:12AM

Being a Laker fan is a painful thing This is no time to be rational! going to see them play at the staples center can rip your heart out watching them on t.v. can bring a grey storm cloud into your living room looking on the computer to see the score if you miss the game is liable to give you some bizarre incurable neurosis when they lost to atlanta before the all star break i thought they could not sink any lower that they had bottomed out then they finally played a decent game against the lowly trail blazers at staples then they crushed sacramento and i thought, wow, they are getting it together, lamar and devean are showing a little spunk then of course the next game, lamar and devean did their usual disappearing act against the clippers and they were crushed then they get beat by the celtics, ok it was a close game, but an important one for the lakers and the celtics are a sub 500 team on the road, come on fellas then they beat orlando like they should then last night they get killed by one of the lousiest teams in the nba, the blazers, and i, on my snowboarding trip, am forced to listen to some arrogant shallow portland broadcasters put down my beloved city and team all night long and through it all kobe plays well, except for giving up 16 to steve blake who he should have had sewn up, but he did not take him seriously enough the other day, after the lakes beat the beat sacramento i was brimming with optomism lamar and devean really had spirited games, taking to to the hoop with gusto playing hard focused defense i was saying man, they are finally bringing it together for this post allstar last third of the season they are getting it on! devean and lamar are feeling it, they know what they have to do! it is contagious to the rest of the team! momentum is on our side! and anthony said to me, "if devean and lamar could play half as well as they did last night all the time, the lakers would be a good team, but they can't, they have to get beaten down for a while, then they make a big stand and get excited, but then they will just get back to playing sub par basketball and the lakers will suffer" and i said, no way! they know what they have to do, this is the post all star time when they bring it together and make the big playoff run! boy was anthony right and this is what that means devean and lamar and most of the other lakers (excluding kobe of course) and chris mihm who is consistent in his workhorse kind of way play well when they really want to and then constantly sink into some kind of doldrums that happens when you have no disciplined work ethic, no disciplined mental approach to doing your job, and your motivation is based on something weak, resulting in lack of heart and desire i don't know if this is because of team chemistry or because they dont like each other or resent kobe or what but i know that is an emotional roller coaster for the true fan and i am bumming on their performance big time i am thinking irrational crazy thoughts like, trade everybody except kobe and andrew bynum and rony turiaf i miss jerry west and don't get me wrong, i know devean has been playing well off the bench coming in and scoring well and playing good d and i like it and appreciate it but i refuse to be rational at a time like this i refuse to be mature i am bummed Posted by Flea - Mar 3 2006 1:59PM

(An Open Letter to Kwame Brown) You could be a hero in this town dear kwame, please forgive this fanatical letter but i am a laker fanatic it's an insanity i allow myself i am writing you this open letter as a fan and a fellow human being. i know that you are a man of reasonable intelligence and a man of considerable emotional depth so i write this letter, leaving none of my thoughts dormant hoping that i can be of some inspiration to you being a devoutly loyal laker fan i watch nearly every laker game all season long and have done so for several years when i heard word of you coming to the lakers in exchange for caron butler and chucky atkins i was excited and pleased i was gonna miss caron, but understood that the lakers had a stockload of players at his position, his size and needed to correct that imbalance i really saw this move as a great opportunity for you to get a fresh start and show what you were really capable of and bring the lakers up it must have been weird going from high school straight to the wizards and being yelled at by michael jordan after all, you were just a youngster and learning the professional game and it must have been a whirlwind of strangeness, just making that transition from being a boy to being a man, and having to deal with all that pressure, and having it play out in the public eye i can only try to imagine what it was like god knows it probably would have driven me crazy i would probably have said and done crazy things or even withdrawn and shut down and stopped myself from growing the way i was capable of so anyways, i thought that it would be great for you to get away from d.c. and get a fresh start especially with phil jackson around, whom i perceive as a thoughtful and kind man i compared your situation to jermaine oneal's, who didn't do so great in portland and was there for 4 years just like you in d.c. but then got a fresh start with the pacers and really blossomed so here we are nearly half way through your first season in los angeles my hometown, on my beloved lakers and you still are not playing close to the way you are capable of playing there are those people in l.a. and around the country who just don't think you are capable of playing at a higher level that this is all you've got and if there are a percentage of people who think that i bet you even think it sometime or even worse, maybe you have fallen into a rut maybe it is depressing to have bad games and you have given up on reaching for that highest part of yourself that part that you get in touch with sometimes when you show flashes of the greatness within you those people who think that you are not better than you are playing now are wrong if you think it you are wrong you are as great as you want to be you could be one of the great power forwards to play in the nba you can turn it around you are young there is plenty of time you only live this life once and you cannot leave the greatness within you unexpressed it would be a disservice to the universe unless of course you know in your heart that you would rather be doing something else and you are only in the nba for the cash in which case you should go do that other thing because you do only get to live this life once and it is a crying shame when people leave their song unsung but to the pedestrian fan like myself it sure seems like you were born to tear it up on the hoop court i know that for myself there have been many times in my life when i was so down anxiety ridden and confused that i was not nearly as great at being who i am or feeling the joy and love and opportunity of each day not even reaching in the right direction to get on the righteous path not even capable of trying because i was lost barking up the wrong tree hurting inside it took me a while to get to it but i found ways to get back to feeling great and doing my best i developed a spiritual practice i went to a therapist and worked on emotional issues that had been messing with me all my life sometimes i would feel so lousy i didn't even know what was bothering me i tried hard to figure it out and i got help from god and from smart people and i let go of years of stuff that was slowing me down i'm far from perfect but i am a lot better and still working on it i am a happy man now i ask you please not to take offense at this kwame i do not pass judgement but it seems to me that something is troubling you and keeping you from your own greatness and you need to work it out i see you not try sometimes i see you not go for the rebound sometimes i see you not get back on defense sometimes i see you not help out on defense sometimes and once in a while i see you block a shot get an awesome rebound and explode to the hoop like a genius and put the ball in the hole with great gusto i know that you could be great all the time do what it takes to make your mind clear and your heart free therapy meditation whatever you can do to help yourself so you can give your all do it start now i know you want the respect that comes with being great at what you do kwame brown could be a hero in this town the x factor that brings the lakers a championship dont leave your sung unsung your friend, flea Posted by Flea - Feb 10 2006 9:52PM

The Basketball Freak Kobe: That is what he was born to do listened to the 2nd quarter in a hotel in sydney was waiting for the laker's d to kick in but had to go out then, my god, heavens to betsy, heavens to murgatroid i get a page from anthony saying kobe scored 81 this is stunning ya just gotta enjoy it ya just gotta bask in the glory of it take a bath in it after pondering this unbelievable achievement for a couple of days... it really does take a little time for something like this to settle in kobe bryant has transcended what human beings are normally capable of doing i don't care if another good player in the nba jacked up 44 shots they still couldn't do it not when the other teams entire defense is geared towards stopping him what he has done is extra ordinary even by the very high standards we judge him by i believe that this has happened because of a very unique life led by kobe the reason that kobe has so many detractors, haters if you will is not because he is arrogant not because of the criminal charges against him not because of his selfish play on the court not because he won so much and people are jealous, sour grapes not because he young, rich, good looking, pompous, etc.......... the reason people judge kobe so harshly and are put off by him is the reason he scored 81 points the other night and is the greatest basketball player in the world kobe bryant is a basketball freak i use the word freak without judgement and, truthfully, as a compliment to him for his dedication and commitment to fullfilling his destiny like the greatest artists and athletes and writers and scientists of all time kobe has worked so diligently in his life to perfect his game and bring it to the highest level that he has neglected other parts of his life kobe is not good at being a warm public figure and he comes off as aloof, arrogant, calculated...... it is not because he is not a caring good person he is a great person it is because he just did not learn those skills of expression he was too busy becoming a basketball genius this is a sacrifice that kobe made it is harder for him to have a different balance in his life than it is for all his detractors this is the same for any great artist or philosopher that has ever lived most of whom were judged harshly this is a position that god put him in he has a gift and he has not wasted it his gift to the world is not to be a feel good public personality his gift to the world is to express himself on the basketball court and this is a beautiful thing and he should be applauded for it not just for his accomplishments but for the the enormous sacrifices he has made to make this major contribution to our culture that is why he is so great part of the reason kobe has turned in the 2nd (1st? 3rd?) greatest offensive display in basketball history (dont forget cheryl miller either not just wilt) is because of the his fall from grace in the public eye kobe, like every human being on earth has one number one desire in his life........ to give and receive love it undoubtedly hurt kobe to be talked about negatively so incessantly he wanted and wants to explain himself, to let everyone know that everyone makes mistakes but that he is a loving person and that he has learned from his mistakes and he loves humanity, loves god, wants to live for the purpose of putting good energy in the world his way to do that is not to come on tv with some perfectly composed feel good tearjerker speech or even a great speech as if he would write as good as the likes of bob dylan or martin luther king junior his way to do that is to work even harder, to reach an even higher level at his craft that is his way to let us know he loves us that is his gift to us that is his way of humbling himself to us that is what he was born to do Posted by Flea - Jan 26 2006 12:05PM

Something About Purple and Gold It's great being a Laker Fan man o shevitz kobe goes for at least 45 points in 4 consecutive games noone has done that since the 60's when wilt chamberlain, another laker did it and noone had done that before wilt except elgin baylor, another laker i love being a laker fan something about the purple and gold...... i remember once being in new york and going to see a knicks/heat game at the garden it was during their intense rivalry of the late nineties man it was a boring game, they must have scored about 65 points a piece and after the game in the car on the way home i was with a couple of knick fans and one of them said about my being a laker fan "aren't you embarrassed?" and i realized how great it was to be a laker fan and how transparently sour grapes everybody else was such great tradition i love the lakers i really hope they don't trade andrew bynum in any deal for ron artest i respect artest he is a serious ball player and i believe in second third fourth fifth and sixth chances people can always turn it around but i love andrew bynum my flea intuition tells me he will be making incredible contributions to the lakers in the future i really miss watching nba basketball on television i am down in australia til the end of the month it sure would be great if the nba league pass thing was happening down here on tv Posted by Flea - Jan 11 2006 6:47PM

Outback TV Blackout But thank goodness, THANK GOODNESS, for Audio League Pass i am here in the pristine and beautiful rural australian coastline waves are crashing kangaroos are hopping babies are laughing and golf balls are rolling in for par but, alas, there is no hoops except for the cracked old court in my back yard there is no hoops except for my running around with a to' up old ball in the australian sun there is no hoops all i can do is see the box scores on the computer, and i couldn't even do that for a week til a couple of days ago imagine my dismay, when i first look and what do i find? lakers lose 5 in arow kobe suspended for 2 games lamar has a sprained ankle cookie has the flu jesus i wonder if kobe clocked mike miller on purpose i guess he did if he threatened him and all man i don't like that i know kobe really takes a beating but i have always been proud of him for just taking it and playing excellent basketball i'm sure i would crack and wack somebody if they smacked me like kobe gets it all the time but it still doesn't make it right i don't approve but i understand even though i didn't see it i wanted dwyane wade to break an ankle after he elbowed kobe in the throat on christmas day i am not yet an enlightened soul i am no monk working on it though ahh, just got nba audio league pass the clouds have parted the sun shines again lakers up by ten in the second over the sixers! had to leave middle of the third didn't really get to listen but kobe 48 points! 10 rebounds! 19 for 29! 7 for 7 threes! he is an intense man smush rocked 5 for 5 threes lamar with 12 assists and good boards too yes yes yes lakers will rise cream always rises to the top Posted by Flea - Jan 9 2006 10:26AM

Christmas Day NBA Reflections Lakers came close in Miami it was a tough loss for the lakers today but they shot poorly from the free throw line and from the 3 point line and they lost i am still proud of them, if kobe sank his free throws they would have won the game it is rare for him to miss those the lakers as a team were not as great as they can be i am not going to take players to task what do i know nothing but still i know that they can play better than that especially on offense they just cold not put the ball in the hole and just kept missing 3's i thought they played d ok and kept shaq out of the paint pretty well out of his comfortable shooting zone which is very close to the basket i was dismayed by dwyane wade elbowing kobe in the neck like that on purpose and alonzo mourning pushing smush out of bounds, he could have been hurt it was thuggish play meant to intimidate and it is poor sportsmanship i am glad the lakers do not play like that i am proud that they have not sunk to that type of classless play in any event the lakers showed that they can compete at the highest level it is very hard to win in miami when they have all their guys playing and the lakers almost did it go lakers i had to listen to the wutang clan after the game really loud to cheer myself back up i must confess that the detroit pistons are the best team in the nba i must make a further confession one that is hard for me to make i have love in my heart for the pistons i can't help it i have never felt like this before i appreciate other good teams for being great but i never have a place for them in my heart i have a little corner of my heart for the pistons they are just so incredible to watch the team play and the camaraderie not phony it is incredible don't get me wrong i bleed purple and gold and when the lakers play the pistons there is no conflictedness in my soul i want the pistons to lose and have their will broken but in the meantime i just can't help really digging them one of the best starting 5's i have ever heard of in basketball history incredible merry christmas to all a great christmas gift is being a true basketball fan it is america's greatest genius Posted by Flea - Dec 26 2005 4:46PM

People are Just Too Down on Kobe Flea enjoys Kobe's nine assists lakers win again tonight over the magic this is getting really great the lakers are really whupping some buttocks all 5 starters in double figures tonight kobe had nine assists number 9 number 9 number 9 that makes me so happy and proud that gives me ammo against all the kobe haters people are just too down on kobe i have gotten frustrated with him sometimes too i mean i actually really lost there about ten games ago but he is so great nine assists! he's gotta inspire his guys make them feel good about themselves they deserve it i hope he doesn't get too mad at them when they make mistakes i hope he has faith in them because they deserve it so they can have faith in him he is the leader of the players kobe i tell you love is the answer if you make someone feel that they are great if you believe that they can be great if you tell them they are great then they will be great i believe in the lakers i believe in kobe phoenix lost tonight if my calculations are correct that puts the lakers a half a game out of first place in their division a half a game a wee little half a game last christmas when the lakers played the heat i got a little crazy around the tv set i kind of caused a scene at my family christmas screaming at the tv and telling people to leave me alone during the 4th quarter it wasn't very warm and loving and cozy christmasy of me my wife and i had not been together too long and she was really starting to question whether or not i was actually psycho i get kinda riled up about a lakers/heat game..... christmas day i gotta try to control myself Posted by Flea - Dec 24 2005 4:56PM

Stampeding Herd of Elephant Power Flea on Kobe's 62, the Christmas Day game and more i am still wading my way through the pain of the lakers loss last night to the rockets how could kwame and lamar not collapse into the lane and stop tmac from an easy layup like that? how could they? they should have at least hacked him and made him earn the pressure free throws... man..... lamar had a terrible game, it must be that something was on his mind something must have been bothering him for him to have such a drop off in his focus and production it will pass, lamar will rock well after watching tonight's game against the mavs i happy for the laker's resounding whupping of those dallas knuckleheads and what kobe did was phenomenal and i am very pleased about our move up into the standings kobe turned in a performance that ranked with his most spectacular ever it was stunning to see a man in the zone with a will packing the power of a stampeding herd of elephants though i must confess, there were times during his 3rd quarter burst where i wish he would have gotten his teamates more involved also i know i can't have it all but i also know that for the lakes to win it all the stampeding herd of elephant power must spread through the will of all who wear the purple and gold i know that kobe has the power to inspire his teamates i am grateful for kobe's immense talent and for the commitment and sacrifice i know he has been willing to adhere to but when they really click as a team nothing could make me more happy than that however, kobe humbly sat out the 4th quarter when he could have more than likely gone in and scored in the high seventies or eighties or god knows how high, considering the roll he was on and phil even asked him if he wanted to go run up the score some more but he did not glom onto individual accolades which merit's respect from the little flea the lakers also shut down the mavericks in that game mav's couldn't score jack dookie aah, so the warrriors and the clippers lost tonight eh? ahh so the lakers are one game out of first place eh? ah so they are coming up quick and powerful like eh? so, charles barkley says they will not make the playoffs eh? that is some short sighted commentating for such a smart guy so about this xmas day game between the amazingly beautiful lakers and the terrible awful heat.......... on one hand we've got the lakers phil jackson, the greatest basketball coach of all time besides john wooden kobe bryant, the best player in basketball who gets better all the time a beacon of basketball greatness who's shining light beams down upon all mere mortals and if they are not on his team they quake in fear and hide behind their overweight over the hill center lamar odom, mr. triple double, who like his counterpart kobe gets better all the time and who is quietly and humbly having a the best season of his career smush the push parker, the exciting and bodacious guard who can drive, dish, dunk, or bust threes in your face and shut down any guard in the nba kwame brown, who is on the rise, learning to contribute in a solid way to the legendary great laker franchise and also, getting better all the time chris mihm, getting double doubles all the time, underrated, and solid player who rocks within the phil jackson system andrew baby face bynum, my favorite player in the nba and a crew of laker geniuses who can spark the energy of the lakers to unprecedented levels of team play which will baffle and fluster the will of any other team the slovenian sensation wonder boy sasha vujacic luke the dish walton biz markie's cosmic cousin devean george lucky devin green laron cartoon kobe profit shotgun brian cook professor aaron mckie long strong von wafer and mr. triangle himself, the wise man of hoopatronics tex winter on the other hand, we have the miami heat dwyane wade, i will give them that..... second only to kobe in current basketball greatness and a true genius shaq and riley, a couple of old laker castoffs and a bunch of guys who wish they were on the lakers........................ so i ask you who ya gonna root for america? Posted by Flea - Dec 23 2005 11:25AM

Great Moments in the History of Man Peace, Love, Understanding and the Lakers are a few of Flea's "Favorite Things" memorable moments in the history of man: 1. man invents the wheel 2. thomas edison invents the light bulb 3. mahatma ghandi spreads true love around the world 4. martin luther king spreads more amazing true love around the world 5. LAKERS GO 5 0F 6 ON ROAD TRIP IN DECEMBER OF 2005, BEATING MILWAUKEE, DALLAS, AND THE GRIZZLEHOUNDS!!!!!! i have lived to the fullest during these victorys i have been to the mountain top i have hit a hole in one during the masters in a playoff against tiger and jack nicklaus i have dueted free jazz with john coltrane in a holy temple of joy and the lakers are going nowhere but up! i am only gonna get happier and happier when the lakers win the championship this year look out detroit look out san antonio look out out miami riley or no riley god bless jerry buss 'god bless the executive qualities of his daughter' the lakers have the best chemistry they have had since the magic johnson kareem worthy cooper years i am not saying that this team is better than the shaq kobe team but the chemistry is better and it is a heck of a lot more fun to watch i knew that they would come together as they learned the triangle and stuck to phil's plan and they are doing it and it is happening in the substantial way that i knew it would all laker fans gather your faith and energy put it all towards this amazing team with this amazing coach and the true rocking andrew bynum honorable mention: the detroit pistons one the greatest teams i have ever seen in my life the thrilling warrior backcourt of jason richardson and baron davis the transcendant dwyane wade Posted by Flea - Dec 16 2005 5:54PM

Bears, Boards and Beards Oh, and I still have 96 Tears for Kwame i am happy for the memphis grizzlies i am happy for jerry west i am happy for eddie jones i like to see those guys win they are good men i always loved eddie jones the last time i played a show in l.a. (a benefit for snoops's footballleague) i wore a full laker suit with eddie jones jersey i like his gliding style shaquille o'neal traded him twice but he still is great jerry west is the greatest gm to ever walk and the most passionate basketball man with the fullest heart a lot of people thought he was wacky when he traded stromile swift and bonzi wells and jason williams and earl watson but he knows what makes a good team he understands the intangibles when he is at the helm all coaches and players can relax and know that they are being overseen by a great basketball mind one that compares with the greatest basketball mind of all time john wooden's mind and bobby jackson is a winner (sacto misses him dearly) i will never forget when that king fan kissed bobby jackson on his sweaty bald head and i like mike miller and pau gasol and jake slakadakalakalikalas too i know damon stoudamire is great but he was a dreaded laker enemy for too long for me to give him my heart speaking of stromile swift the other night when the rockets were playing the kings my wife and i were laying in bed watching the game with the sound off because our little baby was sleeping between us whispering our comments about the game when stromile did a dunk off a rebound that he caught in mid air and slammed down with a vengeance my wife said 'that's the greatest put back i have ever seen' i am so lucky to have a wife that loves basketball as much as me it is also true that stromile should go the 'great basketball names' list i hate all teams except the lakers but i like gregg popovich lakers win four in a row back to backs on the road they are starting to get it together they are only gonna get better and better watch out for laron profit he is a smart basketball player with a great feel for the game kobe is really learning to be a great player this year he is learning that all the skill in the world doesn't mean you are a great player unless you make your teamates better if he does that everytime he steps on the court then he can rank in history as an all time great outerspace is the limit the only thing limiting him is his own psyche? smush has heart lamar is starting to feel it and they are learning the triangle! go phil! go tex! kwame brown still belongs to question mark and the mysterians lordy knows what will manifest with that man he certainly is a cool looking guy speaking of looks there seems to be an abundance of facial hair in the nba these days pau gasol tyson chandler have beards i noticed that the clean cut luke walton seems to be sprouting some strange looking substance in his chin area too personally, in the aesthetics department i am waiting for some bold player to muster the gumption to just quit fooling with the dated over size shorts look and bust out the wee little shorts of yesteryear Posted by Flea - Dec 12 2005 2:02PM

Spirit of the Season The Lakers are sharing ... and winning the lakers are playing like a team i relax with substantial comfort in my couch when i see those assists flowing so bountifully when they played the bulls on friday night i was out getting a xmas tree and missed the quarter and a half but upon my return and bee line to the television i was pleased 5 guys in double figures for the 2nd game in a row good team defense a telling play occured at the end of the 2nd quarter kobe, gearing up for the last shot of the half drove the lane instead of shooting he dished to smush in the corner now, smush missed that three but i was happy to see him shoot kobe is really opening up and using his unmatched skill to make the team better he is setting up his bros go lakers 4 in a row get those twolves today i hope they all sleep well tonight it was nice to scottie pippen get his number retired he had an awesome career i saw him do a million incredible things on the court i will never forget though when he benched himself at the crucial point of a game because phil called the play for kukoc to shoot the shot and pippen to be a decoy it was hard for me to to look at him in the same light after that plus kukoc made the shot but, you know what? if i was any kind of a man i would forgive him completely right now and concentrate on all the amazing things that he did if he was a laker i would have already forgiven him it is important to forgive there might not be anything else more important actually there was one problem with the pippen retirement celebration they kept referring to michael jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time it is not true magic johnson is the greatest basketball player of all time that is what the truth is Posted by Flea - Dec 11 2005 12:46AM

That's More Like It Embrace the team and victories come kobe is not a fool kobe is a smart man kobe has been playing for the greater good doing what it takes to help bring the whole team to life 5 guys in double figures on wednesday night against the lowly raptors yes but still he is not trying to do it all on his own i hope with my heart that he sees that a team functioning as a whole is a mighty thing kobe bean bryant will not disappoint me or us in this forlorn city of angels there were a couple of wacky shots against milwaukee the other night but all in all a team game i love the lakers so much and when they play like a team they are symbolic of the togetherness that we all need andrew bynum for president smush parker for secretary of state kareem abdul jabbar knows about duke ellington pete weiss knows about duke smellington i know about them both Posted by Flea - Dec 8 2005 2:17PM

Fools' (Purple and) Gold I've thrown my hands in the air ... and he still won't pass it to me i've had enough something happened to me Sunday night while watching the charlotte bobcats play the los angeles lakers something happened something occurred something penetrated into my thick dunderheaded skull something i was incapable of seeing before something i refused to believe something that became crystal clear to me something causing me to humble myself and admit right at this very moment kobe bryant is a selfish ego driven player to the detriment of the lakers i have wildly and doggedly defended him for years i have stood by him argued with people incessantly supporting kobe the hardest working disciplined player the player who deserves to do all he does because he works so hard and is a cut above the rest i was wrong Sunday night i watched the lakers play like a team moving the ball around, making passes and ball movement and setting screens until someone had a good shot it looked so nice, and was effective too then kobe would get the ball decide he was gonna shoot no matter what dribble around and go up against 3 guys and miss missed or made the shot it doesn't matter the point is the magic of basketball is teamwork when he decides to play team ball the lakers look much better when he is double and triple teamed and he does not pass the ball he is playing foolishly he does that thing where he shoots 35 shots one night people talk about it then he shoots 12 the next as if he is sulking like he'll show us a thing or two i know that michael jordan would get his teamates involved in the first half then take over in the second if need be kobe tries to take over in the second half no matter what necessary or no he takes the other guys out of their groove and kills the team momentum if he does not humble himself soon and play as part of a team and concern himself with being trusting and supportive of his teamates first and foremost then he is a fool if he cannot see that it is great team play that makes a great basketball season then he is a fool if he does not see the beauty of a team all working together that 5 heads are better than one then he is a fool yes he is one of the best and most skilled players to ever step on the floor but unless he uses his skills wisely to make the team better then he is nothing but a fool he should be thinking about making the other guys on his team better about drawing the double or triple team for the purpose of setting up his teamates for easy looks or he is a fool Posted by Flea - Dec 6 2005 11:51AM

Thankful for Patience Phil knows that before you get to the mountaintop, you must go through the valley charles barkley says the lakers will not make the playoffs he is wrong he fails to understand that the lakers will learn the offense and improve drastically after the all star break there could be a quick fix and they could be better now, but phil is smart, gets the big picture and knows it is better to tough it through these hard times and stay true to his system, that it is worth it to suffer now to reap the rewards later charles is also wrong about michael jordan being the greatest player of all time magic johnson is the greatest player of all time i still think charles and kenny are the best televised nba commentating ever kobe exploded in the face of seattle on thursday lakes win smush parker shows bob hill who is ready for the nba go bynum jeez, what's the deal with seattle this year they are terrible last year they were pretty good the year before that they were terrible seems like the guys say pretty much the same i guess they beefed up inside with danny fortson and another guy last year, but still seems pretty wacky i like mateen cleaves, he is a spartan like magic he could probably go on the list of great player names too i liked shawn kemp when he was young he could fly through the roof and really was a dynamic character it is my understanding that he had offcourt problems and it derailed him from his righteous path it would make my thanksgiving great if i could know that he was healthy and clear headed and had a heart full of love god bless shawn kemp i remember reading a quote from larry bird where he said "the only word michael cooper ever said to me was 'face', after he drained a 3 pointer on me" michael cooper is my favorite laker of all time i am thankful for my bellyfull of turkey and a laker victory i hope manute bol is doing ok i always loved him he is a nice man love and sky hooks to all Posted by Flea - Nov 26 2005 12:43PM

They Need Five Heads Oh, and I love Bynum firstly, i am wracked with guilt for putting down sasha and slava in my last entr they wear the purple and gold they are my guys i support them whole heartedly and sasha played ok tonight so the lakers lose again tonight, giving the bulls their first road victory in 5 tries this season it was a pathetic display of poor basketball playing the thing to me that is so striking is their utter inability to have any offensive cohesiveness yes kobe shot about 3 million times and the scoring attack is unbalanced and predictable but i don't know what else he is supposed to do noone else on the team is willing to be aggressive in putting the ball in the hole it would be great if kobe had a magic johnson like gift, the ability to make the other players around him better, but he doesn't... he does in the sense that he will draw so much of the opposing defense's attention that the others will have opportunities but they...lamar, smush, devean, laron, kwame, sasha,cookie etc.....are not taking advantage of or creating opportunities kobe does not uplift the other players on his team, make them feel that they are better than they have ever been before that's what magic did kobe is a great basketball player, at both ends of the court though and is shooting a lot out of neccessity right now i don't think he is being a ball hog noone else is getting it done yes, it would be great if the lakers had better players but that is not the only question here the question is when will they learn the triangle offense well enough to have the proper spacing so they can be a 5 headed monster not one head and the 4 tails they make trips down to the offensive end of the court where it is total confusion until that stops, until they learn the offense, it is impossible even to see who is a good player and who is not there is one great thing though ANDREW BYNUM i dont want to hear any more mitch kupchak bashing it is short sighted and disloyal andrew bynum seems great i know he is doing very little but i'm telling you he has the magic that the lakers need it is an intangible presence on the court it is an attitude, an earnestness. a humility that creates good basketball drafting him was smart he will pay off big time i wish he would play much more but i have faith in phil when bynum steps on the court my heart leaps with joy he is my favorite laker he's gotta learn to pump fake though he handed a block to tyson chandler tonight at a crucial time and it was a bad time for that but, he will learn he should start at center and mihm should move over to power forward i don't know whats up with lamar he seemed distracted tonight Posted by Flea - Nov 21 2005 11:42AM

There's No I in Flea Meanwhile, in Europe ... in all my nearly 23 years of touring the world with the red hot chili peppers i have always thought that it was something like being in the nba playing night in and night out putting out and intense quantity of physical and emotional and intellectual energy night in and night out being part of a team giving my all having to show up and do the gig and be professional and rock with all my might whether i felt like it or not the one thing i learned over the years that kept me from collapsing from exhaustion and staying on top of my game was to realize the truth it is not about me it is about the team it is about the fans when someone stay in the spirit of giving their energy is much greater and they function at a higher level that is my flea wisdom for the nba it took me a lot of years of pain and exhaustion and frustration to figure that out bobcats put the hurt on indiana what is up with that? i guess kareem rush still has a little bit of that laker magic phil used to like him and play him, i bet he woulda kept him rudy t just wasn't feelin 'em and gave him the boot i did not understand giving kareem rush away for so little, he seemed like a solid player to me so o.k.....the lakers beat the knicks in a sucking contest to see who was worse geez....this being a true and loyal laker fan is getting tough if i don't kill myself by the end of the season it will be a great accomplishment then the big intra city game against the clippers and it is clear that the lakers don't have a chance they are outmatched at every position except shootingguard/small forward kobe position this is hard for me to take the lakers being tarred and feathered by a donald sterling led organization i need to see my shrink i need self help books i need to go on a meditation retreat or fast or something i have to accept this part of the journey of being a basketball fan i am really hoping that they can gel as a team, and then individual talent won't matter so much they will be a highly functioning unit led by mastermind phineas phil jackson this my hope it would seem that this is possible as long as they are willing to be selfless and disciplined at the most committed level here's a question what is the deal with the laker's european scouting adventures i think vlade has that job now, hopefully he can be more productive than the lakers have been they did well by getting vlade 15 years ago and since then we have seen other teams get parker and ginobli potapenko and radmanovic ilgauskas nowitzki etc etc etc etc etc etc........ and we get sasha and slava the laker scouts are probably over in europe drinking absinthe and chasing girls in bohemian bars in prague come on guys!!!! as much as i have hated the heat, for being the new shak team as much as i have been sour grapes over the whole thing i must confess dwyane wade is absolutely amazing phenomenal buy the hype there is no question Posted by Flea - Nov 21 2005 11:38AM

Gettin' Serious in L.A. An across-the-hall rivalry well there is a legitimate crosstown basketball rivalry in los angeles now the only problem is they are only really cross a hallway to each other's locker room i've always liked the clippers despite their 'fish stinks from the head' malaise that has kept them down for so long now that they are playing like a real basketball team, they better not go and get uppity on me i've only liked them because they are from my beloved los angeles, and they were never any threat to the lakers and i am sure that they cannot stay good for too long because donald sterling will certainly do something to ruin a good thing before too long but in the meanwhile, i have erased any lingering affection for them and this is war yes, elton brand is an A number one basketball player and good guy and yes, shaun livingston has shown signs of greatness i don't know about chris caveman and cassell really bummed me out with his whining on the twolves last year, not to mention he complained about coming to the clippers until the last second i really liked bobby simmons who they had last year but, in any event, my blood runs purple and gold and, though its a painful time to be a true laker fan i know the lakers need to get worse right now before they get better, and they will give the clips their sound whupping shortly their 'come uppance' if you will and to all the benedict arnold laker fans who jump ship to the clipper ship, good riddance i hope kwame brown is taking great care of himself i hope he doesn't drink alcohol at night when he should be meditating clearing his mind preparing for geatness kobe would never cop to it, but i think it hurts his feelings when they boo him in philly so relentlessly how about the wee-zards scoring 137 points the other night? remarkable there are those who say they are very happy to be rid of kwame brown even though the pistons have caused me great grief in my life, i am happy for them to be doing so well and i am happy for flip saunders, unceremoniously dumped by minny last year....like it was his fault that cassell and sprewell nutted up, they all seem like good people to me, the pistons here's a good question... what in sam hill is happening with sprewell? will no one pay him what he wants, so he won't play at all? another season sat out in the career of a high level nba basketball player like sprewell? what a wild career his is the lakers will win the championship this year even if they don't make the playoffs, i will celebrate their winning of the championship just to stay in celebration shape Posted by Flea - Nov 15 2005 4:55PM

Basketball Passion i didn't watch any other games only lakers lately because i have been changing lots of dirty diapers some of the absurd things i have done out of my basketball/laker passion: 1. gone on vacation to costa rica and sat on the phone all night while my friend on the other end in l.a put the phone by the t.v while i listened to chick for the whole game 2. did the same thing while on tour in europe til 6 or 7 in the morning when i had to travel and do a gig for thousands of people the next day 3. since i have been able to listen to the game on the internet, i stay up til the wee hours of the morning when on tour in europe, even for regular season games 4. during the 2004 finals was in europe on tour and found a bar to watch the game every night in the wee hours in the morning in the middle of a big stadium tour and walked home at 7 am each morning a little more heart broken 5. have repeatedly thrown all my maturity and rational thought process out the window and resorted to rude and hysterical offensive behavior at the forum and staples center, i even yelled at a little kid once the lakers had a tough loss on the road tonight to the t wolves once again they fail to keep their focus on back to back road games their fatigue causes mental breakdowns they did not hustle back on defense they did not get the ball inside and therefore shot nary a foul shot in the second half they started off playing aggressive basketball, but once they got behind the 8 ball and the twolves went on a run they could never regather their momentum this is a bad thing and it causes me to sink deep into my couch in despair it causes weltschmerz basketball, beyond x's and o's and triangles is a game of energy and chemistry and faith and diligence and togetherness for these things to function at their best the players must do whatever it takes in their daily lives to keep the minds clear and their focus intent on the the big picture as well as the workmanlike details i hope the lakers are spending their days always gearing themselves to be at their optimum when they step on the court fatigue should not be an excuse they should sleep at night with tex winter's triangle book under their pillows laker fans need to have faith in kwame brown if we have faith that he can be a great laker then he will be a great laker another miserable loss tonight in philly all i can do is pray......... dear god, please give the lakers the physical strength to not fatigued in the 4th quarter please give them the mental fortitude to retain their focus for 48 minutes of play please give them the emotional depth to give the best to each other to create an enviroment that is mutually supportive and so that they may all think team first please give lamar the courage to be more aggressive offensively please give kwame the wherewithal to learn the triangle and to get the big picture on the court please let him fulfill his potential as a great basketball player please god, when the lakers win it brings our overcrowded dirty city together and helps us all to get along and you know we need it please let them all have the chemistry that kobe and smush have begun to show between them please let chris mihm stay out of foul trouble please let andrew bynum be a great center like kareem please show them the way to greatness thank you for listening to me god yours in total faith, flea Posted by Flea - Nov 12 2005 3:09PM

Basketball, Jazz, Democracy Role players are hoops' rhythm section i am surprised that kenny smith and charles barkley even give that dallas owner businessman the time or energy they are giving him what he wants their tnt show is the best in professional basketball funny and insightful and honest i hate to give credit to a non laker let's call it a kobe imitation but that spinning 540 degree back to the basket shot that dwyane wade made against the nets on monday night was a piece of monumental art kids all over america were trying to do it on tuesday morning ya know, sometimes when the rhythm section (role players) are laying down the deep groove and structure the soloists (kobe, d wade) need to get far out into the cosmos for a victorious walk on higher ground as is with jazz music basketball, being america's greatest export is the finest example of what is great about a democracy people working together within a structure to accomplish something but free to express their individual character as they like to improvise on a theme another beautiful laker victory tonight in atlanta it was one of those absurd nights where my schedule forbid me from watching the game i heard kobe sprained his wrist enroute to 37 points... hope that wrist is o.k. go lakers go lakers go lakers Posted by Flea - Nov 9 2005 1:15PM

Lakers Got Soul Don't ever forget MC the artist, philosopher, and basketball sage john lurie once posed the question... "who put reggie miller's ears on michael doleac?" the lakers just administered a righteous butt whupping to the nuggets. that makes me feel so good it makes my gray hair turn a deep luscious brown it makes my liver smile and shake hands with my kidneys it gives my life extra longevity it makes me sleep well phil is gonna get these guys to fulfill their potential within a sophisticated flowing team concept thought will become an extraneous thing it will be like breathing and the lakers will rise again to their rightful position as keepers of all that is good in the nba i don't particularly like the nuggets i only really like early boykins (how can you not?) and voshon lenard the rest of the guys don't do it for me doesn't mean they are not good players k mart, carmelo, etc..... they just don't make the basketball gods weep and laugh in my heart i found an old letter that i wrote in response to an anti-laker rant that someone sent me once it is from 2001 i think here it is The Lakers must win. The Lakers must win it all. They must beat everyone, in particular the Spurs (second only to the Jazz in must be defeated status) and candyass David Robinson who's window of opportunity will soon close because Tim Duncan will leave first chance he gets. For every kid in Inglewood in a Kobe Bryant Jersey. For every person with tall poppy syndrome who thinks you have to be a loser to be cool. For every person so damaged by the terrible Hollywood movies (the flipside of the soulful city they all focus on) where some stereotypically romantic male has to be a miserable, silent, day saving martyr to be a real man. As a youngster I remember going out and buying the exact gold chain that Norm Nixon wore and spending my days trying to imitate his fade away jump shot. I know that Magic Johnson is the greatest basketball player ever to step on the court and his giving style of playing one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. When the Lakers were in their low years between Magic's retirement and the glorious signing of Shaq, Jerry West was being interviewed and he sat there crying his eyes out in front of Bob Costas as he expressed his love for the players on the team. The Lakers (still family owned)consistently win because they are the most soulful team in basketball and because I am the most pigheaded, tunnel vision having Laker fan that ever lived. Rick Fox's hair on all your houses i know it is not nice to write something like that about david robinson i know he is a stand up guy and a good player but, you see, the spur fan i was writing to, was simply begging for a little abuse never forget michael cooper, flea Posted by Flea - Nov 7 2005 11:12AM

Playin' Naked The dress code and the best NBA names ever flea, close minded laker fan here so, about this dress code...............................who cares? i don't care if they wear suits and ties, go naked or wear clown suits, i wanna see 'em on the court hoopin it up like the geniuses they are why should i be worried about david stern's power trip? i love basketball, not fashion david stern could never rob the league of it's black culture and i don't care whether a bunch of right wing red staters love the nba or not allen iverson is already a great role model no matter what her wears he is a great artist nobody ever held picasso's personal life up for judgment when it came to his art they just studied it and appreciated it now about some serious matters i remember once in the '80s when mike smrek was on the lakers and detlef schrempf was on the supersonics and smrek was guarding schrempf chickie was going crazy calling the game "its schrempf on smrek! i mean shcrmrek on smrempf! smrek blocks smrek's shot! SCHMREKALMPF! and so on greatest basketball names of all time: world b free sedale threatt tayshaun prince latrell sprewell downtown freddie brown moochie norris mookie blaylock spud webb cazzie russell ira newble manute bol muggsy bogues cherokee parks shandon anderson (it's the shand and that gets me) god shammgod and the incomparable smush parker greatest basketball player of all time: magic johnson this is the truth god's truth there is no question here greatest general manager of all time: jerry west for a guy that had the presence of mind to get bill russell on his team red auerbach sure is making a moron of himself first he complains that phil jackson isn't a great coach because he inherited teams that someone else had put together to win championships, first jordan, and then shaq and kobe now he is complaining that phil is a cop out because he took the lakers job and if he doesn't win he can use the excuse of 'rebuilding'... why doesn't he make up his mind which hair brained insult he is gonna use? michael didn't win anything for 6 years before phil came on and shaq and kobe were 2nd round failures til phil came along the guy is the best basketball coach of all time red is just bummed and insecure because the lakers trounced the celtics in the eighties and won 5 championships then went and rocked again in the new millenium while the celtics languished with their only bright hope being l.a. native paul peirce, i don't care how many guys named green they get ok so last night i tuned into the lakers with great hope waiting for the mystery to unravel, for the drama to unfold in all it's glory i sat on my bed, 'sweet georgia brown' playing in my head, my week old daughter ready to watch her second game the anticipation was great, and then my heart which was bursting with laker delight was slowly deflated over 48 minutes of torture while steve nash decimated the lazy disorganized laker defense while i suffered in true laker fan agony those fools gotta get back on d d............ my friend gage says kwame is lost and mihm is soft and they should put andrew bynum in 'til he learns mihm needs to stop playing angry and play smart i keep hoping that they will learn the triangle and the tide will turn it does bad things to my insides when they lose i still don't understand why i am so emotionally involved with a bunch of guys i don't know and who could care less whether or not i exist i guess that's the mystery of it love is a mystery the lakers should sign tractor traylor and crazy man latrell boy i thought the heat was unbeatable but i forgot that indiana is gonna win the east this year but indiana is a weird team maybe it is just the vibe left over from the battle royale in detroit last year but artest and stephen jackson have a pretty scary vibe i know they are great players but they seems pretty mean artest is unreal though, so powerful of a player, so strong they play so well as a team though, they move the ball around with vicious precision controlled violence is good all of us have it to harness it for the greater good is what great people do i like nice players who rock like crazy, like james worthy i do get a nice feeling from jermaine o'neal not only does the heat's perimeter game appear to be weak but i will be surprised if their team chemistry can build into a year long harmonious song their coach, ron jeremy, has a lot or work on his hands i like sleek fast finesse players like eddie jones and tayshaun prince i love kareem abdul-jabbar, the greatest center of all time with the possible exception of bill russell smush parker is my kind of guy the bucks are gonna be the sleeper team this year that t.j. ford can play the point like nobody's business and my country mate australian bogut is gonna be solid everyone knows michael redd is the real deal upwards and onwards, play bynum, always, flea Posted by Flea - Nov 5 2005 9:08PM

World Be Flea The bassist on basketball hi basketball lovers i am flea i love basketball with my heart. i love the sound of it the poetry of it the ballet of it the fluidity of it the aggression of it and the breathtaking quiet of it i love driving to the game and getting on the pregame talk radio and seeing how long i can stay on by keeping the guy (chick hearn, how i miss the greatest sportscaster of all time) interested listening to the callers and yelling at the ones i disagree with eating terribly unhealthy food screaming at the top of my lungs cheering with the greatest elation seeing a perfectly arching fade away jumpshot rainbow through the sky and watching the new swish i could blather on all day about what i love about basketball i grew up on it it was my social world it gave me a family got to school early to play stayed after late to play the feeling of it aaah basket ball and music were my life as a kid though i ended up with a career as a musician which i love basketball has always been a constant in my life i don't play much anymore, i live in malibu where there are no pubic courts the call of the fresh ocean air and the surfboard is a mighty call......... i get great pleasure from watching it i am a hoops junkie junkie is not a good word for it it is too healthy and beautiful for that throughout my life no matter what insanity has been going on the nba is always there for me a triple header on sunday is the cure for anything that ails me when all the thousands of people are together in the arena watching it is a giant group mediation to me basketball is america's great gift to the world basketball and jazz magic johnson and art blakey elgin baylor and charlie parker billie holiday and jamaal wilkes i might as well let you know now i am a laker fan i am a crazed maniacal laker fan i bleed purple and gold the greatest sports franchise ever the traditon when it comes to the lakers i am pig headed arrogant and i make no sense whatsoever basketball, nba, in general? i think i am a fairly good judge of what is going on the lakers? i love them too much to make sense i am warning you... i am gonna write this blog all season long i am bound to say something ridiculous like "slava medvedenko is a better basketball player than amare stoudemire" or "the lakers will go undefeated all season this year" count on my insanity it is reliably absurd and my wife thinks i am an idiot but to me there are the lakers and there are the rest of the enemies but when i do not think of the lakers, i do love lots of guys in the nba and do appreciate the greatness of other teams especially ones with great lakers (like the grizzlies, with jerry west) Anyways Last night was opening night for the lakers. they won in o.t. KOBEEEEEE!!!!! drained a jumper in the face of some stooge on denver in o.t. with a second left and whoooooo hooo i was dancing in my living room. smush parker looked great, devean george looked good and even though lamar did not have a great game they still won, and believe me lamar is gonna start having good games. I have faith in kwame, he knows this is a great second chance, once he learns the triangle and is comfortable i think he is gonna have a great career as a laker. i love andrew bynum. he is earnest, humble, and has skills. he seems like a super intelligent, really nice kid. i am very happy to have him on the lakers, i think he is gonna be a great nba basketball player. so great to have phil back, the d looked way better, they kept their cool when the going got tricky. I must say that the heat seemed unbeatable last night. how in tarnation did they get gary payton, white chocolate and antoine walker? jesus, it doesn't seem fair in the second half they were just laughing, running up and down the court whooping the tar out of the grizzlies the spurs look unbeatable too this amnesty thing, man they got michael finley.. he is a great player . a solid guy what was dallas thinking??? and nick the quick that doesn't seem fair either they are just too good i am sad that amare stoudemire is out for so long he is the most exciting player in the nba black jesus i do love him i love black jesus it is a drag for the nuggets to lose nene on opening night, what bad luck especially after losing voshon like that last year i am so excited and happy the season is underway the kings are done, stick a fork in 'em the sonics luck has run out even though rashard lewis is awesome watch out for baron davis he gonna have an incredible year and remember world be free!!! always, flea Posted by Flea - Nov 3 2005 2:14PM