FanHouse Jay Leno

There are some oddly interesting parallels between Kobe Bryant and Conan O'Brien; athleticism aside, of course. Both are seen as "rebels" -- to a degree -- and both are now champions (again, to a degree), with both having stepped out of the shadows of their former big men (Shaq/Leno). Or something. Either way, you could see a fantastic difference in Kobe's personality on the "Tonight Show" last night, owing mostly to his legacy being nearly complete. Hand-pounds to the Drs. of Hoop.

Barack Obama was on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno last Thursday, getting in hot water after making a remark comparing his bowling ability to the Special Olympics. Obama caught hell for it but apologized.

Of course, as a White Sox fan, Obama isn't alone when it comes to saying politically incorrect things in a public forum. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen has made an artform out of it, and Guillen wants people to lighten up and get off Obama's back.

Here's another hidden bonus of having the NHL on NBC: Getting a pair of Red Wings on Jay Leno with the Stanley Cup. It was nice to see that half of Rochester, Michigan was in the audience and that they got a chance to touch the Cup.

Stick Tap: Mirtle.

Terry Bradshaw appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Tuesday night, and he appears to be, as Seth Greenberg might say, certifiably insane:

Bradshaw always acts a little nutty on the Fox NFL pregame show, but on Leno he takes that to a whole new level, talking about, among other things, his nude scene in the movie Failure to Launch, which was recently named one of the 10 Worst Nude Scenes in film history.

After the jump, the second part of Bradshaw's appearance.

Former Texas Tech and Indiana basketball coach Bob Knight appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno Monday night:

Why is he dressed like a referee? I don't really know, although he tried to make a joke about how easy becoming a ref would be, saying, "There are fat guys that referee, there are slow guys that referee, there are some who don't see well, there are a lot of them who don't know what the hell the rules are."

Leno replied, "But it's dangerous, you could get hit by a chair."

The guest on the show before Knight was Larry the Cable Guy. Knight referred to him as, "Larry the Cable Car."

When Knight said he thought his son, new Texas Tech coach Pat Knight, will get along with the press better than he did, Leno said, "I think Hitler got along better with the press than you did."

Notes on a trip to the Super Bowl.

I've heard from a couple of people who have spotted Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens in Arizona this week and mentioned that he seems to be in good spirits, even though he owes the Eagles more money. And he appeared to be in a good mood on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno Friday night:

Is it possible that the 34-year-old Owens, last seen shedding tears for teammate Tony Romo, is mellowing in his own age? Although he has earned a reputation as a malcontent in his previous NFL stops, Owens said of playing in Dallas, "I don't think I could be in a better place at this time in my career."

Owens also demonstrated his ability to Moonwalk, and he offered this when Leno asked for his Super Bowl prediction: "Being a Cowboy fan and really wishing we were there I could care less about who's going to win, but I would like to see the Patriots pursue perfection."

The Anaheim Ducks began their celebrations and hangover recovery by taking the Stanley Cup on The Tonight Show, where they chilled with Jay Leno and let Mainstream America know what the Stanley Cup actually looks like.

"You've brought a lot of pride and honour to California," said Leno, before asking "Where are you guys from?"

May and Pronger replied "Canada" while Giguere said "Montreal," prompting laughter from the audience.

When asked how he celebrated the Ducks' Cup win, Giguere replied "We celebrated with our family and got really drunk."

Leno then asked if "Tonight Show" announcer John Melendez could drink from the Cup.

Pronger replied that only hockey players could drink from the Stanley Cup, then tossed Melendez a protective cup instead.

It's great when the NHL can get some free exposure on one of the highest rated late night shows on American broadcast television. Leno seems to enjoy having hockey players on his show ... a closet hockey fan, perhaps?

This isn't the first time that NHL players have brought the magnificent mug on late night TV.

Members of the Tampa Bay Lightning partied with Vin Diesel on Leno's show after their win in 2004.

Brendan Shanahan brought the cup on Leno's show after the Detroit Red Wings won in 1997.

Mark Messier and Brian Leetch brought the Cup on The Late Show with David Letterman and did "Stupid Cup Tricks"

For more fun facts about the Stanley Cup, visit this site at NHL.com

Not that it's huge news, and it's certainly not surprising news, but Jeff Garcia picked an odd place to declare to the world that he was definitely going to test the waters of free agency. It was Jay Leno who got the scoop last night on The Tonight Show.

I guess it makes some sense. Leno does remind me a lot of ESPN's John Clayton. They're equally funny, it's just that John Clayton seems to know a little more about football.

It's nothing against Jeff Garcia, as I've always kind of liked the guy, but ... could Leno really not find anyone else? What, was Charlie Batch not available? Did Andrew Walter cancel? Presumably, The Tonight Show is still some kind of a big deal in the entertainment industry. Shouldn't Leno have a guest on the show that's a little bit more relevant to what's happening in the NFL right now? Maybe a Colt, perhaps a Bear... at least a Patriot or a Saint.

But Jeff Garcia? Here's what's going to happen with him: some bad team is going to give him a decent-sized contract, and suddenly, Jeff Garcia will revert to the Lions version of Jeff Garcia, or the Browns version of Jeff Garcia, and that will be it for the heroic career of Jeff Garcia.