Witnesses to Weakness

It's true we were all witnesses. We were witnesses to greatness all year long. We were also witnesses to weakness on Saturday night.

Lebron said he was too competitive and upset after the loss to shake hands with the opposition. Well that is kind of a poor excuse, but in the heat of the moment it is understandable and forgivable. What I don't like however, is that he also used the same reasoning for not addressing the media after the game. He was too upset and competitive so he left his teammates out to dry? Left them to face the music all alone? Left them to try to explain how the best team in the NBA was not going to the Finals? C'mon Lebron!

We all know that you aren't going to be in Cleveland very much longer at all. But you still have to do your part as a teammate and teamleader! I am a very firm believer that Lebron James is the best player in the NBA--hands down. However, his behavior after last night's loss to the Magic proved that best player does not equal best teammate. Lebron has got some growing to do as a teammate, most of which he will almost surely do in New York or New Jersey. I also believe he will continue to grow on the court as well. As good as he is, something just tells me he hasn't reached his potential yet.

Well, we all would have loved to be witnesses to Kobe vs. Lebron but it will have to wait. Instead we'll all be witnesses to a Lakers vs. Magic finals, and that includes King James from his couch at home. And what about those commercials? Was that Nike's way of assuming Kobe and Lebron would be squaring off in the finals? Maybe they should run some Kobe and Dwight Howard puppet commercials for the finals!

Why the Lakers Won't Beat the Nuggets

When this series started I really viewed the Nuggets as the underdog. With the series now 2-2 I have realized that it is the other way around. The Lakers will not beat the Nuggets because they lack the killer-instinct needed to win a championship (or get there for that matter).

We all know what Kobe can do. I myself consider him the best closer in the game. I do believe that Lebron James as surpassed him as being the best player in the league. However, Kobe is the best closer in the league. But when you get deep enough into the playoffs you need more than just a superstar player. The Nuggets have all the pieces and the Lakers don't. The Lakers have good pieces but they haven't been playing well on a consistant basis this playoffs. Whereas it seems to me that the Nuggets have great pieces that are really playing well together. Don't get me wrong the Lakers are a good team but they lack that killer-instinct playoff intensity. We've seen this show multiple times in the playoffs. The Lakers come out and win a big game and then respond by getting blown out the next. They are just way too inconsistent right now and you can't play like that when you get deep in to the playoffs.

The Nuggets are playing much better as a team than the Lakers are. The Nuggets are playing great and are getting tons of much needed help from their bench. If they continue to play like that they will beat the Lakers and advance to the NBA finals. It very well may take 7 games but they will do it. Their team chemistry and bench play will be the difference. Even the best closer in the game can't close out a Western Conference finals all on his own.

Olympic Men's Basketball Predictions

With the Olympics officially starting today I thought it would be proper to do a post on something about it.

Predicted Order of Finish
Group A
1. Argentina
2. Lithuania
3. Australia
4. Russia
5. Croatia
6. Iran

Argentina is just too much to handle with 4 NBA stars in Manu Ginobli, Luis Scola, Fabricio Oberto, and Andres Nocionoi. The Argentines have the size and shooting ability to beat anybody. I think they have too much firepower to be beaten in group play. Lithuania and Australia could both give them a run for their money though, but both should be vying for second place.

Group B
1, United States
2. Spain
3. Greece
4. Germany
5. China
6. Angola

The USA will come out of Group B undefeated. This is their year, they finally have the chemistry, better overall talent, and shooting to get it done. Spain could give them fits with their zone defense and size but I think USA will come out on top with their athleticism and skill. Greece could also pull off some upsets after stunning the USA in 2004.

Quarterfinals:
Spain over Australia
Argentina over Germany
Lithuania over Greece
United States over Russia

Semifinals:
Spain over Argentina
United States over Lithuania

Finals:
Gold: United States over Spain
Bronze: Argentina over Lithuania


In the end I really do think the United States will get it done. This is their year to bring gold back to the states. The tandem of Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwight Howard will not be stopped. U.S. Basketball is starting to look like its old self again. Mike Krzyzewski has put together a team that knows how to play true fundamental basketball. They finally have the talent, firepower, team play, defense, and shooting to get it done. The talent is there and now they finally have all the keys. The USA team will bring gold back to America for the first time since 2000.

USA Olympic Team Thoughts

Since the roster for the USA Olympic Basketball team came out on Monday, I would like to give a few thoughts.

Overall, it looks like a very talented and great squad. We all saw how they blew out the competition at the America's Tournament so things are looking great for the Olympics later this summer.

I think they can and definitely will win the gold. I don't see why not. They should be the favorites and I have a feeling they will get U.S. basketball back to the top.

It's good to see Kobe Bryant on the team. We've needed him the last several years, a star player who can get it done and score some points, plus he is a true leader. He can keep the younger guys together and if they are struggling on the offensive end he is talented enough to get them over the hump.

It's good and all to see a veteran PG on the team. Jason Kidd may be out of his prime but this team needs his experience at the PG position. He is a tremendous passer and they need a veteran like him, especially at the PG position. Chris Paul and Deron Williams will be excellent backups at PG with their youth and overall talent. I don't think any opposing team can match up with the PG depth of the United States'.

I find it kind of puzzling that they took Tayshaun Prince over Tyson Chandler. They are lacking in size and at the international level you need depth and defense down low. I can see if they had plenty of big men but that's not the case. Prince won't be able to match up with strong PF's. They only have Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh, and Carlos Boozer. They need another big man for down low; the international big men play pretty physical and Prince isn't going to solve that problem.

But overall, I like the talent and make up of this team. They should be the favorite and I think they will pull off their first gold medal since 2000.

Shaq Rap on Kobe

This may be a few days late but I just wanted to post Shaq's rap about Kobe.

NBA Finals game 5 Reaction

I had coed softball sunday night so I missed a lot of the first half of the game but i caught the entire second half and would like to offer some thoughts.

-The Lakers really dodged a bullet here Sunday night. The series easily could have been over if a foul had been called on the Kobe breakaway dunk and had KG made some freethrows late.

-If the Lakers can't hold a lead at home at all I foresee this series not lasting long in Boston

-The Lakers are incredibly susceptible to the pick and roll and it really is a good thing that they didn't wind up playing the Hornets in the Western Conference Finals otherwise they might not even be here right now.

-It kind of looked like that the Lakers were the more physical team tonight for the first time in the series. I'm thinking this has to do with the Kendrick Perkins injury.

-Paul Pierce just about sealed the championship for the Celtics tonight by himself. With much help at all this series would be over already.

-Kobe needs to be more commanding down the stretch. He needs to earn all those Jordan comparisons and show everyone why he's MVP by wanting the ball in his hands down the stretch and knocking down shots.

-Lamar Odom chipping in 20 and 11 was absolutely HUGE for the Lakers tonight.

-I'm going to stand by my Celtics in 7 prediction although don't be surprised if this one ends in Boston in game 6

So what'd you think of Sunday night's game? Predictions for game 6?

Thoughts and Headlines

Here's some brief thoughts and headlines on different sports.

NBA Finals:
The Lakers are in trouble. While Kobe said there is nothing to worry about, he definitely should be worrying. Kobe has struggled shooting in this series and the Celtics defense has given the Lakers fits. Boston has not only shut down LA's 2nd and 3rd scoring option, but their number one as well. The Lakes have to win both games at home, because I don't see them winning any in Boston.

MLB:
I would like to say congrats to Ken Griffey Jr. for hitting his 600th HR last night. Griffey is the greatest HR hitter of this era and although I am a Barry Bonds fan, I have to pay Griffey his dues. Griffey did it the right way, he went through the agonizing injuries. He felt the pain and bled his own blood without taking any illegal substances to endure any of it. If it weren't for his injuries he would easily have 700 HR right now.

College Baseball:
I just wanted to say I love watching College Baseball, especially when it's time for the Super Regionals and the World Series. Watching them hit with an aluminum bat is quite refreshing; although I love watching pitchers duals and great defensive play, I love watching slugfests and hard hit balls, it makes for an interesting and fun game.

Soccer
The US Soccer team tied Argentina on Sunday, the number one ranked team in the world currently. It was great to see a good defensive effort but it was great to see the aggressive play in the midfield, which took a lot of pressure off of the defense; which is something they've been lacking for several years.

Also, it's been interesting to watch the Euro Cup that is currently taking place. I am not a big fan of soccer but when it comes to World Cup Soccer and qualifiers I love to watch. I would love to see a Portugal-Germany final, but I wouldn't mind watching Spain or France either.

NBA Finals Game 1 React

I'm sure most of you sports fans out there were watching the game tonight. I know I was. In case you missed it the Celtics beat the Lakers 98-88. Here are a few brief thoughts I had after game 1.

-Kobe was just not on tonight and facing the top Defense in the NBA didn't help either. Kobe managed to put up 24 points. However, he only shot 9-26 which is real bad.

-I'll admit I definitely thought the worst when Pierce went down like that. Then I was incredibly confused when he came out of the tunnel 4 minutes later ready to play. The whole things seems a little weird (I smell a fresh NBA Conspiracy Theory Post?)

-The big 3 looked good all putting up 20+. I'm very interested to see how Pierce's knee is feeling come game 2 though.

-The Perkins injury is going to be interesting to me because if he can't play anymore I think Pau Gasol could be a real problem for the Celtics to handle. Perkins didn't match up well against Gasol as it is and with him out I think Gasol could have a chance to really dominate. Unless if P.J. Brown is going to shut him down (which I highly doubt).

-KG's slam home on that rebound was straight ballin'.

-If the Lakers are going to win this series it needs to be in 5 or 6. I do not see the Lakers being able to come into the Garden and win a game 7.

-Game 1 was a little blah but I'm still convinced that this might be the best NBA finals in the last 10 years and I'm excited for Game 2 already!

2008 NBA Finals Preview

On Thursday night the Lakers and Celtics will face off in a historical rematch of the NBA's two most storied franchises in the 2008 NBA finals.

Both teams entered the playoffs as the number one seed in their conference. The Lakers came out of the Western Conference by leaning on Kobe Bryant’s MVP skills and Paul Gasol down low. The Celtics are led by the trio of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.

Here comes some position breakdowns and analysis.

Homecourt Advantage
Both teams are good at home but I can't go against the Garden. Their rowdy fans will have the team fired up and ready to win.

Advantage: Celtics

Point Guard

Rajon Rondo vs. Derek Fisher
Obviously Derek Fisher has the clear advantage when it comes to experience, he has won 3 NBA Championships and played in 148 career playoff games and Rajon Rondo has won 0 championships and played in only 20 career playoff games. This is an interesting match up because neither player is one of the best players on their respective teams but both players can be very important to their team’s success. Both Rondo and Fisher are very good defensive players and both have already faced fantastic point guards in their run to the finals. Fisher has faced Allen Iverson, Deron Williams, and Tony Parker, three perennial all-stars, while Rajon Rondo has faced Mike Bibby, Delonte West, and Chauncey Billups. I believe that playoff experience is an over hyped statistic in this match up because although Rondo is very young and is in his first career playoff year he has played exceptionally well and has played much better than Fisher has statistically, out performing Fisher in every category but steals and turnovers, and has been more involved in the teams offense than Fisher.

Advantage: Rajon Rondo

Shooting Guard
Ray Allen vs. Kobe Bryant

Ray Allen is a great player. He experienced some struggles throughout the playoffs but has started to find his shot as of late. A shot that is the quickest, smoothest, and pretties in the league. But Kobe is the best player in the world and has been showing it as of late. This one isn't really that close.

Advantage: Kobe Bryant

Small Forward

Paul Pierce vs. Vladimir Radmanovic

I believe that this is the biggest mismatch of them all. Paul Pierce has routinely owned his opponent throughout these entire playoffs and this series and this matchup should be no different. Radmanovic is just too slow and simply not good enough to guard a player that is as good and hot as Paul Pierce is. Radmanovic only averaged 8.3 points per game in the series vs. the San Antonio Spurs even though he played over 24 minutes per outing. Radmanovic is not what you would call a shut down defender either, he is very slow on his feet and even though he has a height advantage most of the time he is not a very good shot blocker or rebounder.
Advantage: Paul Pierce

Power Forward

Kevin Garnett vs. Lamar Odom

Although Lamar Odom is playing very well in the post season I do not believe he is ready to deal with a player of Garnett’s ability. Garnett is the premiere power forward in the game today and might be in the top 3 all-time at the position. Garnett is not just a dead-eye shooter from 17 feet, an unstoppable turn around jumpshooter, or a fantastic leader, he is also the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in the NBA and has played his best defensive basketball of his postseason career. Garnett can control the entire paint for minutes at a time and that is a huge luxury. Lamar Odom is used to having a large height advantage or a big advantage in the quickness department but neither will be there in this matchup.

Advantage: Kevin Garnett

Center
Kendrick Perkins vs. Paul Gasol

Kendrick Perkins has been playing great in the postseason up to this point but now he is dealing with a different animal than in his previous playoff matchups. Pau Gasol did not play great on the offensive end against the San Antonio Spurs but he sure did rebound great. Gasol is one of the best passing bigmen in the game and he plays good defense. Perkins is playing great but he still doesn't stack up.

Advantage: Paul Gasol

Overall I think this is going to be an amazing NBA Finals. My Prediction is Celtics in 7. I just think that KG, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen will not be denied after coming this far. Pierce will have a HUGE series, KG plays great D, and James Posey will be big off the bench as well.

What do you think? How would you break down the positional battles? Predictions?

Counting Down 2007: Year End Awards

Here's TSF's Year End Awards for 2007.

Team of the Year: San Antonio Spurs
4 titles in 9 years, 3 in 5... can you say dynasty?

Player of the Year: Kobe Bryant
Completely dominated in his 2007 NBA season

Play of the Year: Boise St. lateral vs. Oklahoma



Play Call of the Year: Appalachian St.'s upset over Michigan



Quote of the Year: Mike Gundy explodes



Bonehead of the Year: Chris Jessie
Mack Brown's step son, Chris Jessie, for some reason when on the field when the ball was fumbled last night vs. Arizona St. and it looked like he was gonna pick up the ball, but jumped away at the last second. First of all, I don't know what the hell this guy was thinking? The play was still live and it appeared he was going to pick it up, he may have touched it, it was a close call. Texas ended up recovering the fumble, but because of Mr. Jessie it gave the ball back to ASU and they scored a TD on the next play.

USA Basketball on a roll

The U.S. Mens Basketball team finally looks like a program once again, instead of a team just put together.

After three impressive wins, U.S. Basketball is starting to look like its old self again. Mike Krzyzewski has put together a team that knows how to play true fundamental basketball, which is the main reason why the U.S. has lost it's dominance in recent years, other than selfish, fancy basketball along with dunks and individual moves.

With a starting lineup composed of Jason Kidd, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwight Howard there's no reason to believe the U.S. can't return to power like it did back in the 80's and 90's. Everybody on this team, at least during the FIBA America's Tournament at least, has shown they can share the ball, make the extra pass, and play hard-nosed defense. The team has held it's first three opponents to 30.9% shooting and have averaged 116 points per game thus far.

Over the past few seasons the American squad has not had its best players play. I would have loved to see Kevin Garnett, Tracy McGrady, Gilbert Arenas, or Tim Duncan play. Maybe we could have won with a few more of our best of the best in the NBA. But now Coach K has put together a team that will win the Tournament of Americas and no doubt in my mind should win the Olympics.

As a basketball fan, especially an American one, it has been frustrating how the U.S. has lost its prestige over the world. With a team composed of NBA players such as Kobe, Lebron, Carmelo, Howard, Kidd, Michael Redd, and Amare Stoudemire, there's no way this team should come up short of an Olympic Gold Medal next summer; it's now or never, because if the U.S. doesn't win this time around, they may never regain their power ever again.

My World in Sports: Go Get Your Bulls Jersey

The Kobe Video
I'm sure you've all heard about this video by now. I can't find on on the Internet otherwise I'd have it up on here but I've heard alot about it and Stefan found a sports talk show that features the audio. The video hasn't been released yet but click here to hear the audio. - You can fast forward through some of the banter to get to it- Kobe is pretty explicit in trashing teammate Andrew Bynum. Also he grabs quite a few headlines in saying "Go out and buy you Bulls jerseys". This is pretty interesting obviously there is just no way anymore that Kobe Returns to the Lakers. By now all his teammates hate him (most probably did before anyways). Kobe's no trade clause basically gives him complete and total power. Obviously getting Kobe would be absolutely huge for the Bulls. Honestly is there anyway that LA could possibly win on a trade like that? Bulls maybe they could get Butler, Wallace and Deng with a draftpick or some combination of that for Kobe. That would be some good talent to build on but its no Kobe. Believe me LA will miss Bryant's star power both on the court and off the court with ticket sales, jersey sales, etc. I'm excited to see how it plays out but I'm calling it now: Kobe wont play another game in a Lakers uniform.

Pac Man is Retarded

If this is really true Pac Man Jones is completely and utterly retarded. Just the fact that he is being looked into for something like this is pathetic. If he was really sorry and understood how stupid his actions were then you would think he would do a little better job to keep his name away from words like shooting and stripclub. Looks like he really meant it when he said he'd take his boys over ball anyday. If anything becomes of this it will be interesting to see what Goodell has to do or say about it.

O's Want Girardi but Does Girardi Want the O's?
I'm a little curious/excited to see what becomes of this. The O's are not terrible. They're bad now but they have good starting pitching and when you have that you have the basis for a turnaround. However, if I was Girardi I don't think I would take the job. Even if you can turn things around extremely well you have 2 baseball giants with $200 Mil payrolls sitting above you in the standings. If I was Girardi I would hold tight and wait to see what other jobs become available. I see him as a better fit and wanting to manage more for the Yankees, White Sox, and Cubs. However, we'll just have to see waht happens with Torre and Guillen and if Lou comes back for next season. The Yankees job would be better for obvious reasons (he played there and it's the Yankees) and he lives in Chitown so either of those jobs would seem ideal. Like I said, if I was Girardi I wouldn't take the job. He just doesn't seem like the right fit. As for the O's if they miss on Girardi the rest of their optins look kind of bleak.

Go Anteaters
Man am I rooting for UC Irvine hard. With a name like the anteaters it's hard not to. They've avoided elimination in extra innings two days in a row now. The Anteaters play their 3rd straight elimination game against the well-rested Oregon St. Beavers on Wed. night. I don't know enough to make a good prediction so I won't. All I'll do is tune in for the game and root for UC Irvine to keep on winning.

Prince Fielder Update
I try not to obsess over him too much on the blog but it gets hard for me. I just wanted everybody to know that he is now leading the all-star voting and his statline is as follows:

.291 AVG, 26 HR, 59 RBI, 50 R, .377 OBP, and .646 SLG

Allow me to interpred... Prince is sexy. Prince is all that is man. Prince is way better than Cecil's gambling ass. When proclaiming to a friend that Prince was all that is man he (a Twins fan mind you) replied: "No. Prince is above man. Prince is XYYY." I like that and couldn't agree more. The Brewers better make the playoffs just so that they can gross enough revenue to pay off Prince when his contract expires.

Thoughts on Kobe and Trade Machine Fun

Ok, let me quickly tell you what I think about the whole Kobe "get me out of LA plea". I don't blame him for feeling this way because the Lakers' organization just isn't putting any talent around him. However, the way he went about handling things was obviously all wrong.

However, I think the harsh reality in this for the Lakers is that they may need to start seriously looking at trading Kobe Bryant. Sure, he is widely considered the best player in the NBA but they aren't winning with him and he's become an off-court parasite. The Lakers need to do what is best for the Lakers and that means either surrounding Kobe with a lot more talent or trading him if the trade is right. Something tells me that if you surrounded Kobe with some more talent, probably a good, young post player that he would be content to stay in LA and continue to basically run the team(Kwame Brown is a joke, Lamar Odom isn't the answer, and Andrew Bynum showed some potential but didn't really improve last season). He said he wanted to go but I don't believe he does. He wants to stay and bluff his way to some help on the court. However, whether or not he was serious a trade may be in the best interest of the Lakers. While it might be in their best interest however, look for Lakers' GM Mitch Kupchak to try his best to avoid being the guy who traded away Kobe and Shaq.

So in recent light of Kobe's shenanigans I was recently inspired by WBRS Sports Blog to head on over to ESPN.com and play around with the Trade Machine. Now keeping in mind Kobe, my lowly Bucks, the Cavs need for someone to compliment LeBron, and the TWolves and KG this is what I have created. Now, I'm going to lay it out for you but it is much simpler to just CLICK HERE to view it in the trade machine.



lose: Michael Redd (to TWolves) and Charlie Villanueva (to Cavs)
get: Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum (from Lakers)





lose: Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum (to Bucks)
get: Kevin Garnett and Randy Foye (from TWolves)





lose: Randy Foye and KG (to Lakers)
get: Michael Redd (from Bucks) and Donyell Marshall (from Cavs)




lose: Donyell Marshall (to TWolves)
get: Charlie Villanueva (from Bucks)


Ok, keep in mind first of all that I like the Bucks a little, and that I took this trade machine thing about as serious as I take the NBA: only a little bit during the playoffs. Anyways, Kobe gets outa LA and gets to completely and totally run the show in Beertown along with the raw Andrew Bynum. The Lakers get KG and Randy Foye to replace Kobe and take Smush Parker's spot giving them a better chance to win now. The Cavs get Villanueva which gives them somebody other than King James who can perform and makes them an even more serious contender next year and the TWolves get the silently disgruntled KG out and get good star power from Redd and another pretty decent player in Donyell Marshall.

This trade would never really work because Kobe has a no-trade clause and I somehow doubt him choosing to come to Old Milwaukee, but who knows. I was just messing around and trying to incorporate some disgruntled players, my favorite team, and some needs I see in the Cavs right now. It was fun.

So what do you think about the Kobe situation and my trade that I created? Also play around with the trade machine a little and lemme know what some of your trades look like.