A few weeks ago I blogged that I was pleased that Lute Olson announced his return to coach his Arizona Wildcats. I still am. He's a hall of fame coach who's credentials should never be questioned.

Since he originally announced in November that he was taking a leave of absence, questions and rumors have been running rampant. Things died down while assistant Kevin O'Neill led to team to their 24th consecutive NCAA appearance, albeit a short ride that lasted one game as they were ousted by West Virginia in the opening round. Then Lute announced, through U of A spokesmen, that he was reclaiming his throne and in time would explain his absence.

That brings us to April 1st, 2008 and this is no April Fools Day joke, I think. The 73 year old made it clear he took the leave for medical reasons related to stress and anxiety. He didn't elaborate. He was asked if he went into rehab for a problem. That irritated the ole coach and he snapped back that he drinks 2 glasses of wine each night on doctors orders. As an affection ado of fine wines (and even the cheap stuff on occasion) I don't see anything wrong with Olson sipping the high octane grapes. I have a problem with the flippant way he answered the rehab question. I still don't know if he went into rehab. His health and impending divorce should be personal but in this sarcastic world we live in, it seems everyone, me, you, Matt Leinart and even the great Lute Olson aren't immune to scrutiny.

I'll end by the insensitive way Lute got rid of assistant Kevin O'Neill. Earlier this week he simply said that he wouldn't step in the way if O'Neill found another job, stating that he knew Kevin wanted to be a head coach. Today he threw O'Neill under the bus and said he wouldn't be back, period, despite assurances in November that he would eventually replace Olson when he retired. Lute hasn't lost his fire, I'll give him that and he'll put another great team on the court next year by the apparent return of Jerryd Bayless and another great recruiting class.

This great coach, who seems to have put his personal life back in order, acted like an angry old man at a news conference that was designed to answer some questions and celebrate his return. I'll drink to the Lute, but don't feed me the cheap stuff. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

As long as I can remember, I've been told that baseball is America's pastime. I may have to change my thinking as the powers that be in major league baseball are trying to make the sport I have always loved, a world wide pastime. I'm not sure I like that.

As many of you know, the 2008 regular season opened in the Tokyo Dome. Boston played Oakland in a game that began at 3:00am Oakland time, 6:00am in Boston. The start time is a big turn off or turn on (as in turn on your TV at 3:00am). I can honestly say I know of no one who watched this year's opener live.

Baseball is all about tradition. When I think of opening day, the Reds are playing the Cubs or the Cardinals in Cincinnati, not the A's and Red Sox in Japan. Major league baseball, in it's effort to make their sport global, told their greatest and most loyal fans in the United States that they cold care less about them on opening day. What makes this even more laughable, is after Boston and Oakland play their first 2 regular season games in Tokyo, they're headed home for more spring training games that don't count. That's ridiculous.

Greed is an ugly thing. MLB is now trying to squeeze out every dollar they can from a growing worldwide audience and the games in Japan could be a tip of the iceberg. It's not too far fetched to envision opening day in Beijing, Sydney, London, Moscow or some other foreign market.

America's pastime may now be past it's time and that's a shame. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

Arizona State took the high road when they learned they were not invited to that big dance known as the NCAA tournament. Coach Herb Sendek said instead of acting like victims, he hopes his players and coaches will learn from the disappointment and remember all of the missed opportunities during the season that could have gotten them into the tournament.

Are you kidding me? Coach, you should be livid with the selection committee. You have every right to question their reasons for omitting your Devils. You should be angry, hurt, disappointed and disgusted with the process. Your fans are livid and rightly so. I don't know about you but I found it insulting that you beat Arizona twice and finished ahead of them in the conference standings yet they're going. I also found it insulting that you split with Oregon, tied them in the Pac 10 and they're in too. I don't blame the U of A or Oregon for their good fortune, more power to them.

When someone reads this I'm sure they'll say that I'm biased towards Arizona State. I only hope those who read this blog listened to national broadcasters Billy Packer, Dick Vitale, Jay Bilas, Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenburg and many other college basketball analysts who were vocal in their disbelief the Devils were left out. It didn't make sense when I first heard it and it doesn't make sense right now.

Nothing will change the selection committee's choices. Coach Sendek will take the high road and I'll take the low road and hopefully we'll both get over this injustice. In the meantime, I will watch as much of this year's tournament as I physically can. It would have been much sweeter with the Devils but there are few sporting events as great as the two and a half week run known as March Madness. I'm starting to feel better already. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

If push came to shove, who deserves an NCAA tournament bid, the U of A or ASU? I write this blog a couple of days before Wildcats take the court against Oregon State in the Pac 10 tournament. It's a no brainer that the Cats have no right to the Big Dance if they lose to the lowly Beavers but that will not happen. So that brings us to who is more deserving.

U OF A: They played the toughest schedule in the country. They had quality losses, if there is
such a thing, against highly ranked Memphis and Kansas. Their reputation will help
them with the selection committee. Under Lute Olson they've been to the post season
23 years in a row and a nice Pac 10 tournament run would get them in. The Cats play
in the best conference in the country where they finished 7th.

ASU: The Devils finished 5th in the Pac 10 regular season. They had quality victories over
Xavier and Stanford, both top 20 ranked teams. They swept Arizona for the
first time in over a decade. They split with Oregon and beat USC by 14 points.
A victory over the Trojans would make them a lock for March Madness. ASU
is also one of those feel good stories of a program turning around in one short year.

Arizona State is the most deserving today. I can't imagine beating a storied program like Arizona's, not once, but twice and beating then 7th ranked Stanford and 11th ranked Xavier along with a 5th place finish in America's toughest conference, where just one team had a losing record, gets them back to the Big Dance for the first time in 5 years. The UofA, with 2 Pac 10 tournament wins, should also be a lock.

Let me end by saying, it is possible that neither team will get selected but that doesn't mean the state won't be represented at the NCAA party. Remember that little school in Flagstaff. The NAU Lumberjacks have a chance to qualify with a Big Sky Conference tournament win over Portland State. I know why it's called MARCH MADNESS! gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

Lute Olson is one of the most recognizable sports figures in Arizona sports and in college basketball nationally. Last November, as has been well documented, he took a leave of absence to tend to a personal issue. The rumors of his leave took off and I heard everything from his own illness, to an impending divorce to a drug related problem involving a member of his family. Today, through a spokesperson, Lute didn't add much to the reasons he took time off, only saying he would return next season after dealing with a medical issue. As a matter of fact the Wildcats coaching great says he wants to coach the Cats until the end of his current contract in 2011, which would make him 76 years old.

Lute Olson owes no one an explanation why he left his beloved program for a full season. He's earned the right to not be second guessed. He's earned that trust from one and all, even a sports anchor who has a special feeling for Arizona State because he paid thousands in tuition for his son to attend ASU and has grown to love that program. The hall of famer gives his school and our state instant credibility. 23 straight trips to March Madness gets you that kind of respect. This is a great day for the University of Arizona and the state of Arizona. Welcome back Lute, you were missed. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

We live in a cynical world of "what have you done for me lately". In sports and in the valley, Suns head coach Mike D'Antoni is taking a lot of heat for not being able to integrate Shaquille O'Neal into his system. I've actually heard whispers that he should be fired. That he had no control in his teams locker room. If you believe what you hear and read, you would think that Shawn Marion was some kind of a monster who didn't get along with anyone because he asked to be traded before the start of the regular season. That could not be farther from the truth. D'Antoni has not lost his team. He still has their ear yet some impatient people are actually calling for his ouster. This is the same Mike D'Antoni who has coached his teams to 62, 54 and 61 win seasons the last 3 years. He didn't become an idiot overnight. Another knock on Mike is his run, gun and fun system isn't good enough to win in the playoffs. Last year that system took them to the Western Conference finals and if not for untimely suspensions to Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw, I believe they could have gone to the NBA championship series. We'll never know that one but his innovative coaching style is incredibly entertaining.

I will be the first to admit in a previous blog that I thought the Shaquille O'Neal trade was a bad move. I still feel it's a bad move and the teams record and porous defense in some disturbing losses emphasizes my point. Mike D'Antoni said on the day of the trade that it would take some time for the big man to acclimate to his new teammates and his new system. Even Shaq asked fans to give him 10 or so games which is where we're at now. He has rounded, no pun intended, into better shape and his play has improved, unfortunately the team's record hasn't.

What the Suns faithful are faced with is showing patience during this work in progress. Steve Nash still has to figure out how to run his team with that massive body in the middle. So in this "what have you done for me lately" world, take a chill pill but you may want to keep I TOLD YOU SO, in your vocabulary to break out in a couple of months. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

I, like millions of sports fans and fans of Brett Favre, watched his emotional news conference today. I was touched by his genuine comments. Before the news conference I wasn't convinced that the sure first ballot hall of famer was actually serious about retirement. Everyone in the world of sports talk and sports writing acted as if there was some type of conspiracy. Did the Packers not do everything in their power to convince their star to comeback for at least one more season? Did Favre's long time agent hint that was the case? The 17 year NFL veteran answered all of those questions and then some at his farewell news conference. He was adamant that his decision was his after spending the last two months weighing his options. He asked the media to not read into anything other than he was mentally tired and not committed to putting in the enormous amount of time it takes to be a successful NFL quarterback. When a man says he can still play but his heart isn't in it, you have to take him at his word.

Retirement is inevitable for all of us. For an athlete, getting 17 amazing years out of a sport as physically and mentally demanding as pro football is incredible. Brett Favre, as recently as this past season, broke my heart when he beat my beloved Denver Broncos in overtime on national television. I'm not sure it's possible but I HATED and LOVED what I had just seen on his game winning bomb. I will always respect the way he played the game. At age 38, he still showed signs of a much younger man playing a kids game. It was refreshing and I'll miss that, much like I felt when John Elway called it quits. Like Favre, Elway still could play the game and retired on his terms. The Packers living legend has no problem ending his brilliant career with an interception in overtime against the Giants in the NFC championship game and he shouldn't.

My hope is he'll continue to stay involved in football in some way. While football fans everywhere wish him well, please don't make this a final BYE, BYE BRETT. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

Often in my line of work we are asked to appear at various charitable functions. I will do just about anything to help children so when I was asked by fellow sportscaster Bruce Cooper to join him at Bethune Elementary School in South Phoenix to videotape a message of encouragement for the 3rd through 8th grade classes, who will soon take the AIMS test. That test is required in the state and greatly affects each school's funding and support. It is vital that every child be given every opportunity to pass this important test.

My message was simple at a school with over 60 per cent Hispanic students in a lower income area. You are entitled to a successful life and it starts with education. As a sportscaster and former athlete, I urged the kids to put as much effort into studying for the AIM's test as they do in athletics. If one parent reads this blog, pass the word along that your children and their friends who are going to be tested, need your help too. Your kids deserve it.

If Bruce and I influenced only one child who will put forth the effort to pass the AIM's test, then we all win. I'm greedy and I hope that we influenced many more than one.

My best wishes go out to the amazing staff and students of the Bethune school family who are educating over 600 students. I witnessed genuine caring and a desire to show their kids that there are some great things in life that will be accessible to them if they only try. gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

I've taken a couple of days to digest the more than four hours of listening to testimony by Roger Clemens, Brian McNamee and a lawyer representing former Senator George Mitchell, whose report prompted the congressional get together on Capitol Hill. Eveyone who was interested in baseball's latest performance enhancing drug scandal and subsequent hearing, will come away with an opinion on who is really telling the truth.

Here, in my opinion is why you should believe Clemens.

1. Proactive in his denials that he ever used steroids or human growth hormone.

(EXAMPLES) After several days of silence after his name was leaked by the Mitchell report, the Rocket took the offensive. He filed a defamation lawsuit against his former trainer Brian McNamee. He recorded a conversation with McNamee asking him why he implicated him. Clemens forced the Los Angeles Times newspaper to retrack a report that he used steroids, which they did. He, on many occasions, warned young people about the dangers of using performance enhancing drugs.

2. Family is devastated.

(EXAMPLE) Clemens, while continuing his denials, pointed out the emotional damage done to every member of his immedate family. No man would bring that kind of harm to his family.

3. Because he says so.

(EXAMPLE) Roger was adamant in the congressional hearings and in every public forum that he became one of the greatest pitchers of all time by hard work and hard work alone.

4. Picture evidence.

(EXAMPLE) A congress woman, who was obvious in her suppport for Clemens, produced four pictures of the Rocket at various times during his career. She, and Clemens agreed, pointed out he looked the same physically in all four pictures.

5. Teammate support.

(EXAMPLE) Longtime Yankees catcher Jorge Posada, who admitted he didn't listen to the hearings, said he believed Clemens was telling the truth because he quote: sounded real truthful to me".

6. Teammate misread.

(EXAMPLE) Whatever that means but what Clemens meant to say when confronted that good friend and teammate Andy Pettite said they talked about steroid use, Roger said he misunderstood him and was talking about HGH for his wife, who admitted getting a shot of HGH from trainer McNamee without Rogers knowledge.

7. Trainer lied.

(EXAMPLE) Brian McNamee was asked on several occasions if he lied. He said the truth is he did lie in 2000 about supplying steroids and HGH to baseball players, including Clemens.

8. Nannygate.

(EXAMPLE) Clemens nanny at the time, told investigators that she didn't see him at a party at Jose Canseco's Miami area home but did say Rogers family (wife and kids) spent the weekend at Jose's house. Clemens said he had a golf receipt showing he didn't have time to barbeque with Canseco.

Here, in my opinion, is why you should believe Brian McNamee.

1. Physical evidence.

(EXAMPLE) McNamee kept syringes, bloody gauze, steroid and HGH containers because of not totally trusting Clemens. To use them in a court case may not be admissable.

2. Trainer lied.

(EXAMPLE) McNamee said he lied in 2000 to protect the men he was alleged to have shot up with steroids and HGH including Clemens and Andy Pettite.

3. Andy Pettite's sworn testimony.

(EXAMPLE) Longtime friend and teammate Andy Pettite, in a sword deposition, said he and Clemens discussed the use of steroids and HGH, implicating the pitching great. Pettite also admitted to using HGH, provided by McNamee and he used it again in 2004, saying his Dad provided it.

4. Picture evidence.

(EXAMPLE) Those four pictures displayed by the congresswoman at the hearings showed an obviously much bigger man from the first picture to the last. Certainly not Barry Bonds type growth, but the change was obvious.

5. Nannygate.

(EXAMPLE) Why would Roger Clemens ask his former Nanny to come to his home before federal investigators talked to her? Why would Clemens entire family stay at Jose Canseco's house without him? Clemens never had a clear response to those questions only saying he thought he was doing the government a favor by locating the former nanny.

6. Taped phone call.

(EXAMPLE) Without his knowledge, a telephone conversation between McNamee and Clemens was taped. In the 17 minute version Clemens aired on national television, McNamee never admitted that he lied to federal authorities in this case. Clemens never said, why did you say I used steroids and HGH.

7. Perjury possibility.

(EXAMPLE) McNamee cut a deal with the Feds for his testimony. By lying, he faces prison for perjury. Clemens does too for that matter. Trading the truth for a prison sentence seems like a no brainer.

There are still so many questions that remain unanswered but I'll let you make up your own mind and I just wanted to give you a few things that may help you figure out, SOMEONE'S LYING and no less than two lives have been ruined.
gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor

I can't lie. Boy, was I shocked when I first heard whispers of the Shaquille O'Neal trade to the Suns. My initial reaction, like many of you was, are you kidding me? What would the Suns want with an almost 36 year old injured center who's best years are clearly in the rear view mirror. As this story developed, I was even more amazed that head coach Mike D'Antoni and his entire roster (except for the stunned Shawn Marion, who found out watching TV) were 100 per cent behind the trade. I was also suprised that General Manager Steve Kerr wasn't thrilled with the idea when it was first presented to him. His head coach and his team convinced him it was the right move. I'm still not convinced 5 days later.

Shaq comes to the valley at 312 pounds with 11 or 12 per cent body fat. Still, that somewhat lean body has taken an unbelievable pounding over his 16 year career. I saw video of his first Suns practice and Shaq Daddy has a long ways to go with his conditioning. He was huffing and puffing long after the realitvely short one hour session. His cardio will definitely improve but his running and gunning days are all but over even though he promised to make people like me quote: "eat their words". I hope he proves me and thousands of others wrong. Unfortunately we won't get to see O'Neal anytime soon. It would be a miracle if he plays before the all star break.

If the "Diesel" eventually plays as well as he conducts news conferences, we could be in for a big treat. I'm just not sure he can walk the walk after talking the talk. Let's not even get into the potential salary cap implications (40 million over the next 2 years). It's a huge gamble for that elusive ring but in the words of Coach D'Antoni, you (fans and media) said we can't win without a big man and now we can't win with a big man. SHAQ ME! gcruz@kpho.com

Gary Cruz
CBS 5 Sports Anchor