So You Think You Can Dance
Posted: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 by Travis Cody inMy Lakers needed my full attention last night, so I didn't make my normal rounds. I'll catch up with y'all when I can.
We've got our Top 20 dancers for season 4. We've got 10 boys and 10 girls. As usual, the dancers come from all over the spectrum of dance styles. They will be performing for votes beginning tonight on FOX, with the first two eliminated tomorrow night.
Here they are in the order in which the judges put them through, with their ages and primary styles.
Courtney Galiano - 19, contemporary & hip hop
Chelsie Hightower - 18, Latin
Susie Garcia - 25, Latin/salsa
Chelsea Traille - 23, jazz funk & contemporary
Kourtni Lind - 18, jazz & contemporary
Joshua Allen - 19, hip hop
Stephen Boss (Twitch) - 25, freestyle hip hop & breaker
Kherington Payne - 18, jazz & contemporary
Rayven Armijo - 28, ballet & contemporary
Matt Dorame - 22, contemporary
Thayne Jasperson - 27, contemporary
Marquis Cunningham - 18 lyrical & contemporary
Mark Kanemura - 24, contemporary
Comfort Fedoke - 20, hip hop
Jamie Bayard - 22, west coast swing
Chris Jarosz - 21, lyrical & contemporary
Jessica King - 23, contemporary
William Wingfield - 21, contemporary
Gev Manoukian - 21, hip hop & breaker
Katee Shean - 20, contemporary
I'll say right now that my favorite going in is Twitch. He was the last guy eliminated during auditions in season 3 when the judges picked Hok to continue. Twitch came back this season stronger than ever.
That's a combination of innate talent and personality, which has to be why I like him because I'm generally not drawn to hip hop style. But the guy also impressed the judges doing different choreography too, which means he spent the year going to class to improve. That's dedication, and I respect that.
That's the Larry O'Brien trophy, and it goes to the winner of the NBA Finals. And I don't like the trend over the last few years of the NBA having players pose with it during the playoffs. You don't get your hands on that unless you win it. And if you haven't won it, you shouldn't be posing with it.
The Lakers played with the right amount of desperation in game 3 last night. This time, LA was the aggressor early, establishing a rhythm and controlling tempo. The bench players had lots of energy and contributed effectively. Kobe had a great night as a scorer and facilitator.
Boston struggled early, but managed to keep the game close with another solid defensive effort. Once the shots started to fall, the Celtics tried to take control and led at the end of the 3rd quarter, mainly on the strength of an outstanding game from Ray Allen.
It wasn't easy, but the Lakers ultimately got the win.
Even so, they must get consistent contributions from Gasol and Odom, both of whom played better in the final minutes of the game, in order to win out in LA and have a chance at one out of two in Boston. The Celtics will adjust their defense to more effectively double team Kobe. The rest of the Lakers have to make them pay for that, otherwise the parade will be in Boston and not Los Angeles.
But for today, I'm happy and confident that my boys will tie up the series tomorrow night and look to take a 3 games to 2 lead over the weekend. 
I should make up my own dance called the "Jannabug", and create a reality show where people compete to perform it the best.
They could compete for a million dollars, but then at the final episode when the winner came forth, I'd have to say "Sorry, guys. Actually I'm broke."
Then they'd hunt me down and kill me in my sleep three weeks later, and I'd end up on the front page of the Enquirer next to the love child of Elvis and Batgirl.
Now THAT'S good TV.