COVERITLIVE.COM

11:52

Chad Finn - Hi chatters -- Just a head's up that Chad's chat has been bumped back to 12:15. But he will stay a little longer to make up for it, and feel free to get in your questions now.

12:20

Chad Finn - Hey gang -- Sorry for the hold up. I just had to whip up a piece on how Michael Jackson -- you may know him as Jacko -- helped save the Patriots. Not kidding. Anyway, let's get to the questions . . .

12:20

[Comment From Tim Wakefield]
Can I get some potato salad?

12:20

Chad Finn - No, you can't. (Sorry -- picked that one by accident.)

12:20

[Comment From Guest]
Thoughts on the NBA draft, the East getting tougher and the Celtics standing pat.

12:23

Chad Finn - I'm not sure the east got tougher, if you're talking about the deals Orlando and Cleveland made. Shaq will help Cleveland a little offensively, but he's really had no inclination to play D for a while now, he can't run, and I doubt he can stay healthy. They made that deal primarily to tell LeBron, "Hey, we did something! We got Shaq!" As for Orlando, I can't see Vince Carter being that much of an upgrade on Turkoglu (should he leave). And he shrivels in big moments. They made name deals, sure, but I don't think either team is necessarily better today than they were yesterday.

12:23

Chad Finn - Besides, the Lester Hudson era has begun.

12:24

[Comment From steve]
due to the never ending revolving door at shortsop (Lowrie, Lugo, Green...Gil Velasquez?), do you think they're going to look for ANOTHER free agen shortstop in the offseason or do you think they're going to stick with Lowrie (assuming healthwise he's ok and assuming Lugo is out of town)?

12:25

Chad Finn - I think it's Lowrie's job until he proves he can't handle it (or gets slapped with the injury-prone label). Adequate fielder, and a lot of people (scouts and statheads) think he'll be an above-average bat. So I doubt they go after someone else in the offseason, unless his wrist continues to be a problem.

12:25

[Comment From Ryan]
All joking aside, Were you surprised the Celts didn't trade up? I heard Simmons talk with an analyst on his podcast about potentially trading up for Rubio for some sort of package involving Rondo...I liked that idea...thoughts?

12:27

Chad Finn - I wouldn't trade Rondo for three Rubios. He sounds like the second coming of White Chocolate to me, and he's going to be so defensively overmatched in the NBA right away that Tom Thibodeau would probably strangle him before the preseason was over.

12:28

Chad Finn - As for Rondo, can we please remember that he's 23 and keeps improving. Yes, he's stubborn, yes he drives everyone crazy from time to time, but he is a remarkable talent who made a huge leap from his second season to his third. Another leap is possible, and I'd just as soon that happens with him in a Celtics uniform.

12:28

[Comment From Guest]
Patriots sweeping the team, coach and MVP of the decade awards from ESPN. Any significance to that? Sticking it to the Colts and Manning??

12:29

Chad Finn - I'm guessing Merril Hoge will file a formal protest soon enough. Glad to see the Pats getting their due from ESPN, as trivial as that stuff is, because that hasn't always been the case. (Do they still hate their coach, TJ?)

12:29

[Comment From Guest]
Favorite Michael Jackson song, album, and how you took the news?

12:33

Chad Finn - I'd just as soon never have heard his name after, oh, 1991. But he was the dominant force in pop culture when I was in junior high, and his talent and presence were absolutely ridiculous. "Off The Wall" was one of the first albums I ever bought (at Reny's in Bath, Maine), so sentimentally, that's my favorite. But "Thriller" was a cultural phenomenon, and if you're foot doesn't start tapping when you hear the first few notes of "Billy Jean" or "Beat It," then you don't have a musical soul. The man (or manchild) was a weirdo, but the music endures.

12:33

[Comment From DCSoxfan]
Chad, after couple of performances this year where he doesn't get out of pressure situations, do you still see Daniel Bard as our closer of the future? Should we just stick with Papelbon?

12:35

Chad Finn - This is a copout answer, but it depends how he progresses, DC. The Sox have been cautious with him for a couple of good reasons. 1) They don't want another Cla Meredith situation. 2) He's really rocketed through the system after having severe control issues in Single A, and so they are going to do everything in their power to make sure he really is ready for this. He's got the arm to close. We'll find out soon enough whether he has the makeup, but it's too soon to be judging.

12:36

[Comment From Paul]
Chad, what is more bile-inducing: smerlas and deossie hocking diet chocolates in a bizarre pyramid scheme, Larry Johnson's tracings, or pictures of the mouth breathers at the Whiney Awards?

12:38

Chad Finn - How about a three-way tie? Actually, I don't mind the Whiney Award types. As I wrote in a column once, they provide the best content on "The Big Show." I do get a kick out of the Smerlas-DeOssie business ventures, though. Which one of them is the brains of the operation again?

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