Hey there guys,
Yesterday was actually a pretty eh, again, as I went 7-4 (4-7 ats) in the NBA as King James, and his 38 points, lead the Cavaliers past the Hornets in New Orleans, the Warriors upset the Grizzlies 128-110 behind Stephen Curry's double double (30 points 11 assists), and Stephen Jackson (37 points) helped boost the Bobcats by the Timberwolves 108-95, and it was a great night in the NHL, which saw 3 shoot outs, and I went 5-1 as Goalie Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers shut out their rival, the Islanders, 5-0 in the Battle of New York, Washington defeated Pittsburgh for the 3rd time this season, 4-3, the Red Wings defeated the Blues 4-2 behind Valterrie Filppula's 3 points (2 goals 1 assist), the Avalanche won 4-3 in a shoot out to avoid being upset at home, and Andrew Raycroft stopped 30 shots as the Canucks took out the Ducks 4-1. Well I today I am going to talk about my thoughts on this new overtime rule that the NFL approved recently as well as go over some NBA Free agent rumors. As far as games go the NCAA Tournament picks back up today with coverage of the East and West regions in the Sweet Sixteen. My bracket, which is still in good shape, could use some wins, though I have a hard time rooting for my bracket. Maybe it is just habit and I am so used to giving up on my bracket by now but I am already rooting for underdogs. Go Cornell, Washington, Butler and Xavier? Even though I have Kentucky, West Virginia, Syracuse, and Kansas State all advancing on my bracket? I am so confused. Anyway in the NBA there are only 3 games today but they are good ones as Dwayne Wade and the Heat take on the Bulls in Chicago, Miami could use some cushion as they are only 3 1/2 games ahead of the Bulls who are currently out of the playoffs, hmmm, the Rockets host the Clippers as Houston tries to save what little playoff hopes they have, and the Mavericks head to Portland in what might be a possible playoff preview. In the NHL Alex Ovechkin and the Hurricanes try to erase the Hangover from clinching the season series over Pittsburgh when they play at Carolina tonight, the fading NY Rangers hope to steal one from the Devils in New Jersey, Calgary tries to keep the fire going (ha ha) under their playoff hopes with a win in NY against the Islanders, and Phoenix heads to Nashville to take on the (my) Predators in a battle of good Western conference teams. Should be fun. Hope you enjoy.
My Thoughts.....
-NFL, Why I love the new OT Rules
For those of you that haven't heard yet the NFL has approved a new rule that states that in overtime if the on the very first possession the team that receives the kickoff is only able to kick a field goal, then the other team is allowed one offensive possession to score a touchdown or kick a field goal and turn the rest of the overtime into sudden death. Oh and it is only in affect for playoff games. Now this rule sounds kind of weird but I like it. In fact I like everything about it. I used to be completely in favor of the college football overtime system where everyone gets the ball on their opponents 25 and each team gets a possession, and that is great for college, but in the NFL, where you are getting paid to play professional football, it is your job, whether on offense or defense, to score, or keep the other team from scoring. I am going to focus on what seems to be the most controversial part of this new rule first: That it is only in affect for Playoff games. Now I heard this point on Colin Cowherd and I could not agree with him anymore, though I normally don't, but the longer a game is played, the more exhausted the players get, the more exhausted the players get the less aware they become, the less aware they become the worse technique they will use, and the less technique they use the HIGHER CHANCE THAT THAT PARTICULAR PLAYER WILL GET HURT. And in the regular season that is stupid. In the Postseason they are looking at an entire offseason to get everything fixed. But during the regular season they have to get up and do it again 7 days later, sometimes less, and they simply cannot afford to miss much during the week or it will hurt their value. Not to mention if you play this out during the regular season, on SUNDAYS, where the majority of this football watching country has work the next morning, how many of you, with an actual job are going to stay up and watch your team play? Let's say they are playing out west in a late game. The game itself has already gone past midnight but now you have an overtime? Let's say you stay up for that but both teams get a Field Goal? Are you going to stay up for the rest of the game? Probably not. People my age who are typically awake until 4 in the morning maybe. But your average everyday guy cannot use, "I was watching the game and it went into overtime" excuse and get away with it. Conference Championships? Yes. Super Bowl? Hell Yes. Week 3 at the Seahawks? Not a chance. So that part of the rule is fantastic.
And you know what? I like the part about both teams getting an offensive possession if the other teams offense can only muster a field goal. Now I know that an offense's job is to score points. But how cheap is it to lose a coin toss, have a bullshit pass interference called on you and the other team be in field goal position immediately? It will get teams out of the complacent mode that they seem to get in when they roll into their kickers Field Goal range. Not to mention as an offense your job is to score touchdowns. If you can't do it then we'll give you 3 effort points for getting it close but we're going to let the other team have a shot as well. This will challenge teams more, instead of "settling" for a 40 yard field goal I love the idea of making that offense ponder "well IF we make the field goal, then we'd have to play defense". I mean what do NFL fans love more? Touchdowns or Field Goals? Exactly. We love 7 points and to be completely honest I think this rule would have fit perfect for the NFC Championship game. Now don't get me wrong this was one of the highlights of my life, the Saints winning the NFC and going to the Super Bowl, which they would eventually win (WHO DAT) but all game long the Vikings were the better team. Brett Favre: 28/46 310 yards, Drew Brees: 17/31 197 yards. But Favre made the dumb mistake of throwing across his body over the middle and it cost them. Adrian Peterson: 25att 122 yards, Saints' Running Backs: 22att 68 yards. But Peterson continuously fumbled away opportunities that the Vikings could have had to win the game. I mean the Vikings held the Saints top 2 receivers, Marques Colston and Robert Meachem, to a combined 4 catches for 41 yards. The New Orleans Saints, the #1 Offense in the NFL, averaging 403.8 yards per game, were held to 257 yards. To give you an idea of just how awesome the Vikings defense played, the New York Jets were the #1 Defense all season long and they were holding teams to an average of 252 yards per game. Yeah. The Vikings Defense did their job. Take away the 5 turnovers and the Vikings gained almost 40 more yards in that game than they averaged all season. But the Saints got a field goal in overtime, on a drive where the Vikings had two penalties, both gave the Saints first downs, and one gave put them in Field Goal position. As big of a Saints fan that I am I feel that it would've been a lot better if the Saints had had more pressure to score a touchdown in that situation, or at least put their defense back out there and force them to stop the Vikings again. So I love this rule. Fantastic FANTASTIC job NFL. -high five-
-NBA, Free Agent rumors and why Bill Self is an idiot
So for those who haven't heard the latest NBA free agent rumor people have decided, without talking to Carmelo, his agent, or the Knicks, that Carmelo Anthony may be an option, not this year, but next. And now the discussion is who is more likely to be joining the Knicks? King James? or Melo? Now as much as I would like to wait to hear something from Carmelo I really think that Anthony is the best bet. I would be ridiculously surprised to see LeBron James wearing a Knicks uniform next season. I mean he is in his home town, with a team that has been beyond loyal to him, with teammates that he has been playing with for years. From all that I have seen King James isn't that I love the media type of guy, me me me me. Hell he finds ways to get his teammates open shots. He leads all Small Forwards in Assists with 8.5. The next closest? Hedo Turkoglu with 4.1. And while he is dishing out just under 9 assists a game he is leading the NBA in scoring. This guy is a team player. He cares about more then just himself. Not to mention if they are worried about winning a championship the Cavaliers are doing everything they can to bring in the necessary talent to keep him there. All you need is solid talent around him, you don't need a Shaq-Kobe type or Duncan-Robinson, or Wade-Shaq type of situation, just some solid players around him. That being said they brought in Shaquille O'Neal who is looking at another opportunity to win a Championship with another star player. I mean why would LeBron leave Shaq? O'Neal has never been apart of team with a losing season. In fact of the 4 other organizations he has been with, Magic, Lakers, Heat, and Suns, he has taken 3 of them to the NBA Finals, winning Championships with 2 of them, Lakers and Heat. I would be willing to bet if he could've stayed with the Suns a season or two longer they would've made the trip as well. It just happens when you are with him. So why would LeBron leave? It's not like they aren't winning. For the second season in a row the Cavaliers have the best record in the NBA. That doesn't = championships but as LeBron improves his shot and he becomes more of a clutch player he is going to be that guy that can take them to the finals and win a Title. I mean hell he is only 25 years old. He has no reason to be worried about his time with the Cavaliers yet. And it's not like he needs more money, or more marketing. He has a puppet on ESPN.
And Anthony isn't likely to be a Knick either, as he has stated that he does want to stay in Denver but remember back in 2008 when the Nuggets were shopping him around and the main guy behind that was his HEAD COACH? I mean I'm sure that George Karl would love to have Melo's talent around at all times but it makes you wonder, if they can have that kind of tiff then how many more will it take before he leaves the good market of Denver and heads to a great market like Los Angeles, Chicago, or New York? And New York would not be the only option for him. The Lakers, Bulls, Knicks AND CLIPPERS have the money and would be willing to spend it to get a player like Anthony. The Lakers are probably the least likely but imagine if Anthony went to the Clippers. Anthony knows he's a star. And everyday he has to see the LeBro and Kobe puppets. Join the Clippers and now all of the sudden you and an aging Kobe are the faces of LA. He signs a bigger contract, becomes the center of that offense, and gets his own puppet. And it's not like this team is devoid of talent. Baron Davis still has a few more years left in him. Blake Griffin and Chris Kaman manning the post? Anthony wouldn't even have to worry about rebounding. They could make a playoff push IMMEDIATELY. If I was watching for Anthony to move. I would not count out the Clippers.
Oh one more quick note I heard that Bill Self thinks that Xavier Henry is ready for the NBA? I really don't think so. For the season the guy averaged 13.4 points per game. Let's look at the games that he scored 20 or more: 27 against Hofstra (RPI 154), 31 vs. La Salle (RPI 172), 24 vs. Colorado (RPI 124), and 23 vs. Oklahoma (RPI 123). This is an NBA Prospect? I am not saying he doesn't have the talent or skills to eventually be a great player but he is just not ready. His turnover to assist ratio was -0.4. Among guys that played 20+ minutes per game for the Jayhawks his FG%, .458, was good enough for 3rd among those that qualified. I am sure that Bill Self see's him everyday in practice and thinks that he is a great player but if Henry cannot dominate the college game why would he want to leave now, get a low pick and wait to become a star, rather than play another season, improve your game, TAKE YOUR TEAM TO CHAMPIONSHIP, rocket up the draft board, and make tons of money right away? If he leaves early than I will laugh at him because it is plain and simply STUPID. Thanks for reading.
My Picks.....
NBA
*Game of the Day*
mavericks @ TRAIL BLAZERS (-2.5) by 3
This has the potential of being a post season matchup. And one that could de rail the Mavericks. Twice these teams have played. And twice the Trail Blazers have won. The Trail Blazers have done very well inside, exploiting a weakness in Dirk's defense, and winning the post battles. Dirk Nowitzki has had great offensive games against the Trail Blazers this year but on defense he has not done what is necessary. Oh yeah. I didn't mention that Portland's wins, both of them, came in Dallas. Now they head to Portland. Trail Blazers cover. Maybe Andre Miller will score another 50 on the Mavs.
The Rest:
HEAT by 4 @ bulls (-1.5) <----- UPSET
clippers @ ROCKETS (-6.5) by 12
NHL
lightning @ BRUINS
CAPITALS @ hurricanes
rangers @ DEVILS
FLAMES @ islanders
wild @ FLYERS
maple leafs @ THRASHERS
BLACKHAWKS @ blue jackets
panthers @ CANADIENS
This should be a very fun game as Florida tries to even the season series at 2 a piece. Montreal has won 5-4 and 2-0 while the Panthers won the last battle 2-1. The Panthers, who are not as good as the Canadiens, have kept these games close because of their physical defense and because they have been taking the majority of the face offs. The big key for the Panthers though is to play a more sound defense, like they did in their 2-1 win in Florida where they limited Montreal to just 17 shots on goal for the game (Florida 29 SOG). Where they have gotten trouble before is when the game gets into a wild shootout, in both of Montreal's wins they have won the sog battle, 42-36 and 39-38. If they can continue the physical play, slow down the game, and continue to win the face offs then I really like Florida in this one. Tomas Vokoun needs to have a solid game in Goal for Florida as Montreal LW Benoit Pouliot has already scored on him twice this season.
KINGS @ blues <----- UPSET
Despite the Kings being an overall better team than the Blues, St. Louis will be hosting the game in which they can take the season series from the Kings. And I am not entirely surprised. St. Louis is WEIRD. They are a fantastic road team, but an awful home team. LA's only win against the Blues this season? In St. Louis. Their 2 losses? In LA. What about that makes sense? I like Los Angeles to replicate the same fast and physical defense they showed in their last outing, in St. Louis and for Kings G Jonathan Quick to shut down Blue's Fan Favorite Paul Kariya.
COYOTES @ predators <----- UPSET
As much as I hate to write this I just really believe that the Coyotes are the much better team here. And the biggest reason why is that so far, in the two games that they have played the Predators have been very sloppy with the puck and the Coyotes have played really well with taking it away. Ilya Bryzlagov withstood an onslaught of 43 shots in the first meeting and stopped 41. And in the 2nd meeting he held a shutout. And didn't allow a single goal in a 10 round shootout. He'll dominate again.
stars @ SHARKS
Have the Sharks found their bite again? Ha ha. Sorry had to throw that in their. But seriously we are going to find out as they Sharks try to even the season series against the Dallas Stars, who for some reason seem to be able to sneak up the Sharks, having won the first two 3-2, both times, and in a shoot out, both times. The biggest thing for the Sharks to do is to play good defense. The reason that the Stars have been making these games close is because they have been attacking the net and while not always succeeding, try try and eventually you will succeed. Mike Modano is an aging Star (pun intended) and I still think he is a solid player but I don't think he will be enough as the Sharks are going to play much better this time around.
Alright guys, I lied yesterday when I said that my first baseball stuff would be up today. In all likelihood I am looking putting it up on Monday. I am going to enjoy the rest of my Spring Break before it ends. If you have any questions, comments, or ideas just let me know.
Thanks for Reading.
Batteman
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