Streak Watch!

Look out Washington/Baltimore Fans, big things seem to be in store.  The Washington Wizards just capped off their first 3 game win streak since 2008 (...I'm not kidding), by beating the Pistons 107-105 on Wednesday night.  From the looks of it, the late season trade of Kirk Hinirch to Atlanta for Maurice Evans and rookie Jordan Crawford has been paying off in spades.  It looks like Crawford's "showtime" dunk over Lebron James when he was still a young'n at Xavier isn't the only legacy he will leave (I mean...what dunk?  Please! Nike, I won't say another word, I swear!!). Since playing in the starting lineup in place of the injured Nick Young, Crawford has become a scoring machine, but hes filling up the stat sheet elsewhere too collecting rebounds, assists, steals and blocks.  He even recorded a triple double (21pts, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds) this season, joining John Wall to become the first rookie tandem to record trip-doubs in the same season in NBA history.  He is a do it all shooting guard and a diamond-in-the-rough pick-up for a young, rebuilding Wizards team.


Also, as I blogged yesterday, the Orioles are 4-0 and off to their best start since 1997.  The Fightin' Showalters have been doing it with a stern defense, outstanding pitching, and a re-emergence of some of the "O-riginals."  Nick Markakis and Brian Roberts (two of the longest tenured Orioles) have been on a hitting tear and Roberts looks like hes back in his 2007 form.  If he stays healthy, this lineup could really thrive this season.  Meanwhile, the O's are getting the most media attention in over a decade, great time to be an O's fan, even if it's still early.

Finally, with two games to go in the regular season, the Washington Capitals have finally captured the #1 overall seed in the East after Tuesday's shootout win over Toronto.  If they can hold this two point lead of the Flyers, the Caps will most likely face the New York Rangers of Buffalo Sabers in the first round of the playoffs.  Meanwhile, Alex Ovechkin became the youngest player in NHL history to score 300 goals, quite impressive.

That's right Washington Fans...Keep your heads up! I know we usually suck at everything, but at least right now we can relish the moment and support our teams (Orioles OR Nationals, please don't discriminate), the future looks bright across the board...well, unless you're a Redskins fan.

#8

O's fans, this could finally be our year, by which I mean this could finally be a good year.  The birds have come charging out of the gate with a 4-0 record (and still on pace for 162-0), sweeping division rival Tampa Bay in their opening series and taking down the Detroit Tigers in their home opener today.  Off to their best start since 1997, the Orioles have not  trailed, haven't given up more than one run in a game (for the first time in franchise history) and have outscored their opponents 17-4. The starting pitching has been fantastic, Jeremy Guthrie, Chris Tillman, rookie call up Zach Britton, 2nd year pitcher Jake Arietta and Brag Bergesen have transformed into a formadale rotation early in the season (and perhaps a look into the future).  These young guns have stepped into serious roles as a result of some unexpected injuries.  When the injured Brian Matusz (intercostal strain) and Justin Durscherer return, the O's should have a deep rotation that will be able to withstand injuries through the course of the season. Also, the bullpen looks deep.  Kevin Gregg should become the team's everyday closer leaving Koji Uehara as the setup man and Jim Johnson and Jason Berken to round out the pen.  It looks like there are finally enough hitters where we can allow for certain guys to go into slumps while still producing on offense.  I know it's early still, but the is it crazy to think the Fightin' Showalters have an honest chance to be competitive all season?

Streak Watch!

Since the trade deadline in their respective sports, two teams have continued to make noise as the playoffs approach with very impressive streaks. They also happen to be two teams in which I frequently blog about...what a coincidence:


NHL: Washington Capitals 9-1 in the past 10 games, 41-21-10
Key acquisitions: Jason Arnott, Dennis Wideman, Marco Strum

 The Caps have been winning with a stern defense and amazing goaltending during this streak.  A pair of goalies have been on fire.  Second year goalie Michael  Neuvirth and late season AHL call-up rookie Braden Holtby have been nothing short of fantastic.  With Semyon Varlamov set to return for the playoffs, this is a problem any team would want to have.




 NBA: Denver Nuggets 9-2 since dealing Melo, 41-27 overall
Key Acquisitions: Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilio Gallanari

The Nuggets have been winning without one of those acquisitions and a key piece of the Melo trade.  I'm talking about Danilio Gallanari, power forward.  People were expecting him to be one of the Nugs biggest sources of incoming offense, but it looks like this team is deep enough to make a run with or without him.






Opposite Streak Watch!
Don't look now, but there are two more equally impressive streaks going on in both Washington, DC and Denver, that no one seems to be talking about:


In the NHL the Colorado Avalanche have lost 19 of their last 20 games and may be the worst team in the league.  Meanwhile, the Washington Wizards have lost 11 of their last 12 games, often times playing themselves out of the game before crunch time is even in the picture.

Its like the two cities have bizarre and polarizing teams flip flopped in each sport, spooky.

Funny Photo of the Day

Sorry Virginia Tech, I know it was tough to be ousted from March Madness for the fourth straight year, talk about getting the raw end of a deal.  But just because you are upset doesn't mean we can't all laugh at your expense, right? And hey, at least you were better than Maryland this season.  That brings me to today's photo, titled "Better Luck Next Year." Enjoy.

The Buffs Stop Here

I feel for you Boulder, I really do. You were my home for the last five months, and one of the most laid-back towns in the US no doubt. Sure, most of you Boulderites (or is it Boulderans...?) have better, more outdoorsy things to do like hike or ski or go see live music a Connor Oneill's, than to spend time following a perennially disappointing basketball team like the CU Buffaloes.  However, I know there were plenty (20 or so people could be considered "plenty" right?) of CU faithful that were left speechless following the announcement of the 68 team NCAA tournament field on Sunday night, where the Buffaloes were nowhere to be found.  The stars seemed to be aligned for Colorado to make its first tournament appearance in years. Anchored by the strong offensive play of standout sophomore guard Alec Burks (who's averaging a gaudy 20ppg and 6.5rpg) and a slew of wins over the RPI top 50, including 4 big wins down the final stretch (Nebraska, Texas and two vs Kansas St) this looked like a team that would assuredly be Dancin' in March, apparently the selection committee thought differently.  In what was in my opinion the biggest snub of this year's tournament and one of the biggest snubs in recent tournament memory,  Colorado will have to shake off the stench of defeat and hope for a better outcome next season.  Hey, if it's any consolation, at least they were awarded the #1 overall seed in the NIT...yea...

I can definitely see the reasons this team was left out of the tournament, and any other year I think the reasons would hold true.  The Buffs had a terrible non-conference schedule and dropped early season games to the likes of Harvard and San Francisco, but hey, who doesn't have a couple of throwaway losses on their schedule?  Even the 2nd seeded Florida Gators dropped games early against the likes of Jacksonlille(at home) and UCF and they're still sittin' pretty so where does one draw the line?  Just as things appeared to be getting better for the Buffs (They managed to rattle off 13 wins in 14 games between Nov 30 and Jan 13 including wins over then #8 Missouri and then #20 Kansas State), they could not keep the momentum going, losing their next four games, and six of seven overall.  The only win came against a bad Iowa State team.  At this point, nobody expected them to make any noise come March, but something special seemed to happen inside that locker room.  Even when nobody believed in them, the Buffs held strong, determined to state their case for inclusion in this year's big dance.

Unfortunately, it just wasn't enough...UAB had a prettier record on paper, as did VCU, although in an expanded field, I just don't understand how one includes these kinds of teams. VCU didn't even finish in the top 3 in their own conference, the not-exactly-mighty Colonial Athletic Association (Go Mason, though). Their "best" wins came against George Mason late and a struggling UCLA team.  Same goes for UAB.  The Blazers didn't beat a single ranked team this season and lost in their Conference tournament to a lowly ECU team.  I don't know if the selection committee was trying to be fair by including teams from mid-major conferences or what, but it just doesn't make sense to leave out a couple of quality teams from major conferences.

The second biggest tournament snub this year would have to go to Virginia Tech and the beloved Hokies.  Poor Seth Greenberg.  For the past four seasons, Tech has made the bubble their permanent residence, keeping fans sweating till the very end and this year was no different.  After beating then No. 1 ranked Duke at the end of February, everyone was calling for VT to be a lock come March, and why not?  Seth Greenberg deserved it.  He's had a competitive team in a competitive conference every year for the last four years.  The Hokies even had the most ACC wins last season and were STILL snubbed from the tourney.   Seth Greenberg thinks it a conspiracy and I don't blame him. How is this possible?  Maybe its because they dropped their final two regular season games to fellow bubble teams Clemson(who got in) and Boston College, but come on, they did enough in the ACC tournament, with wins over Georgia Tech and Florida State to solidify a tournament berth.  There was no shame in losing to Duke in the semis, i don't think anyone expected them to win that game.

Unfortunately there is nothing that can be done for the few teams left on the outside looking in.  These teams (sorry, but that includes you, Boston College and Alabama) are just going to have to hold their heads high and look to the only achievable goal of winning the NIT, carry the momentum and hope for a tournament berth next season.  The bubble was soft this year and these teams had their chances, and can you really be that mad for getting snubbed when your team had double digit losses?  I guess you can, but maybe the goal for next season should be winning the games that you are supposed to win.  A couple less ugly losses on that resume and both Colorado and VT would be Dancin'.  It's a shame that isn't the case, you know I would have penciled both teams in for a couple of early round victories but hey, maybe these other teams that everybody is writing off will make some noise...probably not though.

Funny Photos of the Day

Guess what folks, today is your lucky day as you get a double dose of funny photo action.  The two subjects were chosen as a tribute to the top two NBA West teams, the Lakers and the Spurs.  Since 2000 these teams have combined to win a stunning 7 NBA titles!  I thought it would only be fair to share the photo's of the forefathers of these teams.  Today, I give you retro team poster pics.  Both hilarious in there own way.  I'd like to call for a vote...which pic is the funniest, its up to my readers.  The comment section is calling your name.  Without further adieu, I give you "Titletowns USA," Enjoy.

This one?...

or this one?...

Let the voting begin.

Capital Gains

Hello Washington Capitals, great to see you again, its been a while.  Is it just me or have the Caps returned to a form not seen since the 2009 season?  The very season where we looked primed for a long awaited Stanley Cup appearance until everything unraveled in a heated game seven in the Phone Booth against the rival Pittsburgh Penguins.  Final Score: 6-2 Pens.

That 2009 season was probably the most memorable for Caps fans this decade.  Behind the core four of the Alex's (Semin and Ovechkin), Nick Backstrom and Mike Green, the Capitals went on a tear at the end of the season and looked like the team to beat heading into the playoffs.  The Caps delivered a fantastic first round comeback against the New York Rangers in seven games, partly due to the inspired net-minding of then rookie sensation Semyon Varlamov.  After that, the stage was set for the Leagues biggest rivalry to take place.

Caps vs. Pens is the equivalent of the Yankees-Red Sox in the NHL and the series more than lived up to the hype, well...the first six games anyway.  In the highly anticipated game seven the Caps laid an egg so big (ostrich sized), I don't think anyone saw it coming.  To get humiliated, at home, in a series clinching game was so unlike this Caps team that had faced so much adversity throughout the season.  This was a team with so much fight, that had just rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to come back and beat the hated Rangers, that it seemed like it was fate that we should have beat the Pens, but alas.

I know, I know, I'm living in the past, 2011 is a new season, but until recently, it seemed like the Capitals were unable to shake off that heartbreaking defeat at the hands of the Pens.  Don't get me wrong, the 2010 season had its share of bright spots, including a near record 14 game winning streak and a #1 seed in the playoffs, but despite all of the good, it never seemed like this was a team that had the confidence to win it all.  Unfortunately, we all remember what happened last year in the playoffs.  For a second straight year, the Caps were stunned.  This time they were upset by the eighth seeded Montreal Canadiens who came out of nowhere to advance to the next round. Once, again the Caps were back to square one in their search for that elusive Stanley Cup.

This season was more of the same.  In fact, you could argue that until recently, this season had been our most disappointing since 2008.  The offense was sputtering, the defense was poor and the goalkeeping was inconsistent.  The Caps, desperate to shake things up made significant trades two times during the season.  The first coming in December when they shipped out up-and-coming center Thomas Feicshmann to Colorado's (titular?) very own Avalanche in exchange for veteran defender Scott Hannan.

(In a non-Caps related story, Flieschmann went on perhaps the best tear of his career after joining the Avalanche, helping them win six consecutive games and cementing his spot on the first line alongside All-Stars Matt Duchene and Paul Stasny. Unfortunately, Fliesch suffered a blood clot in his lung shortly thereafter and had to hang it up for the season, the Avs have never been able to recover and are now in second to last place in the West, sigh).

Anyway...where was I?  Oh yea, so the Caps were trying to beef up their defense, something that had always been an issue for them.  The reason they had been so successful in the past was because of their stellar offense, but once the goals stopped flowing, so did the wins, but things were about to change.

The addition of Hannan was just the start.  With the NHL trade deadline fast approaching, the Caps struck two deals that landed them Center Jason Arnott from the New Jersey Devils (at the expense of fan favorite David "The Nation" Steckel, which has clearly paid dividends) and defender Dennis Wideman from the Florida Panthers.  Since the trade deadline, the Caps haven't lost.  After netting their sixth straight win by beating the Edmonton Oilers 5-0 on Wednesday night, the Caps are right back where they need to be, atop the Eastern Conference and within two points of taking the top overall seed in the East.

How have they been so successful?  A big reason is because head coach Bruce Boudreau has switched his coaching philosophy from an offensive to a defensive minded one.  Sure, they aren't blowing out teams as much (with the exception of the Edmonton game), but hey, at least they are winning.. The Capitals (38-20-10) are 8-2 in their past ten games, and all but one of those wins came by one goal. It’s a sign the Capitals know how to win the close game, and aside from a throwaway loss to the New York Rangers, Washington hasn’t allowed more than two goals since Feb. 17th.

The importance of these defensive acquisitions cannot be understated.  Before this season our defense was swiss cheese.  Mike Green is great, but everyone knows he's an offensive minded defender who's real value is felt during power plays.  John Erskine is a bruiser, sure, but how many times has he made a bonehead play during crunch time?  These guys weren't getting the job done in this new defensive scheme, so this much needed support came a just the right time.  Also, the goal play has been extraordinary as of late and it is coming from the most unlikely of places.  Although the reign of dominance by goalie Semyon Varlamov was short lived (he has had numerous stints on AHL Hershey over the past two seasons) a pair of two other young goalies are beginning to make names for themselves these days.

Michal Neuvirth, who was inserted into the starting lineup last season seemed to have a firm grip at the position until he was unexpectedly injured in Monday's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning and replaced by 21 year old recent AHL call-up Braden Holtby.  In much the same way Varly dominated in his first few NHL games (which happened to come in the playoffs), Holtby has been nothing short of a brick wall.  In his five periods of action over the past two games, Holtby has a perfect 1.000 save percentage, netting 43 saves in all.  The kid (titular?) has yet to give up a goal!  I'm sure this wont last, but its pretty impressive nevertheless.

It seems to me that this team is gelling at the perfect time.  With only 14 games remaining in the regular season, the Caps appear to be in the driver's seat once again.  If they can continue to figure each other out and keep up this inspired play, where the defense is stifling and the offense is clicking,  don't be surprised to see them clinch their second straight 1st place season.  The core of this team has not forgotten what's transpired over the past few seasons and the string of heartbreaking playoff series defeats (game seven losses in 2008, 2009 and 2010) will not stand...this aggression WIll NOT stand, man.  It's their time.  The experience is there, the talent is there, and now the game plan seems to be there.  The only question is, will the be able to execute when it matters?  I would like to think yes.

Funny Photo of the Day

Major League Baseball season is right around the corner and college baseball is already up and running.  In honor of both baseball seasons, and the Florida Gators coming out of the gate ranked number 1 overall (and sweeping a highly touted Miami squad this weekend), I thought this photo would be more than appropriate.  Staged at a spring training game between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Atlanta Braves, this one fearless fan (who happens to also be a Gator fan) saved a group of innocent bystanders by catching a rouge bat out of thin air.  What's more impressive is that he was able to catch the bat without dropping his beer.  Please take a moment to appreciate the sheer terror in the eyes of all the surrounding fans, except for one.  Big ups to Kyle Smeallie for getting his hands on this tasty pic.  I call it "Last American Hero" Enjoy:

#7

Welcome to today's installment of Reasons for Optimism.  It's the preseason baby, and guess who's undefeated?....The O's!! Vlad already hit a bomb, and Nick "The Cake-Walk" or "The Greek" Markakis (what is it with Greeks named Nick on my favorite sports teams??) hit two more as the O's opened preseason play with a drubbing of the Tampa Bay Rays.  Then yesterday, they outdid themselves, winning a close game against the Philadelphia Phillies.  Keep your fingers crossed O's fans....lets see if this is a sign of things to come.

Funny Photo of the Day

As a tribute to the now SEC Regular Season Champion Florida Gators Basketball team, the original Gator superfan himself, Ted Gibson has offered up today's photo.  Nothing like a hilariously photogenic Chandler Parsons to get you through a long day, what could possibly make this photo any better?  Why not throw in high school teammate and Winter Park legend, Nick "The Greek" Calathes.  Add some hotties and some shaving cream and it looks like we have a winner(WTF is Jai Lucas doing in there, none for you Jai....you've had yours.).  I shall call today's photo "Teen Dream." Enjoy.

Funny Photo of the Day

Carmelo? Who needs that guy? Ladies and gentlemen, the Denver Nuggets are now 2-0 since trading away their two best players, taking down the Memphis Grizzlies and Eastern Conference Leading Boston Celtics in back to back games.  Who knows, maybe these new guys are the real deal.  Fortunately for everyone, there's a funny photo thats surfaced since the trade deadline featuring new Nugget Wilson Chandler and here it is.  I call it "Hungry Eyes"  Enjoy.

Florida Basketball....Fantastic! (Once Again)

Its been a long, hard road for Gator fans these past few seasons...well sort of.  Ever since the 2009 SEC Title game where we were embarrassed by Alabama, who not only cut short our undefeated season as well a a shot at back to back titles, but also sent Urban Meyer to a hospital because he stressed so hard, we have yet to taste even remote glory.  I know what all you non-Gator fans are thinking: Shut up! You won four national titles in four years (2 basketball, 2 football in case you didn't know...), stop your whining, and to an extent, you might be right. The fact of the matter is, Gator fans had become accustomed to winning, maybe a little too much (Some people didn't even bother to watch the 2007 NCAA Basketball Championship because they assumed the outcome would be favorable).   As a result, the sting of defeat was extra hard to take as the red carpet was so quickly pulled out from underneath the feet of our entitled fan base.

Since that fateful football game in 2009 against Bama, I think it's safe to say that we have not had a significant win in football OR basketball.  We won (most) of the games we should have won, but whenever the Gators were faced with a marquee game, they always seemed to come up a little short.  This was evidenced ten-fold in basketball over the last few seasons. After the departure of the "Oh Fours" (Noah, Horford, Green and Brewer for those of you who care) UF Basketball found itself back at square one with a complete rebuilding job in store for Billy Donovan.  You have to give this guy credit, he turned down a lucrative NBA deal with a contending team to come back and start over at Florida (I'd like to overlook the fact that he flip-flopped on the Orlando Magic, leaving them high and dry).  Gator fans hardly even blinked.  We had the #1 recruiting class coming in and the swag of winning back to back titles, who really cared if we were starting four true freshman? We were the Gators and winning was in our blood.  Think again...

After beginning the 2007-08 season with a cupcake non-conference schedule, the Gators began conference play with an inflated record and the inflated egos of its' young players.  These guys expected to walk out of the season unscathed, with at least an NCAA tournament bid, but all that changed once the competition got a little more real.  The young Gators (recruiting class that included NBA draft pick Nick Calathes, Chanlder Parsons, Alex Tyus and eventual transfer Jai Lucas) finished with a losing conference record (7-9) including losses the final four conference games, punching their ticket to the NIT for the first time since the mid 1990s and ending Donovan's impressive streak of consecutive tournament appearances.  Things didn't get any better the next two seasons (a second NIT appearance in 2009 and a first round NCAA exit in 2010 at the hands of BYU and Jimmer Fredette in a double-OT thriller), but finally, this 2010-11 Gator team, full of experienced players that have felt the ache of defeat for the last couple of seasons, has started to give Gator fans something to be excited about again.

This year's Gator basketball team has been impressive all season, winning big games at home (Kentucky, Tennessee, Vandy), on the road (Tennessee, Georgia, Florida State), and on a neutral court (Kansas State) and rarely losing when they are supposed to win...we can let that overtime loss in January to Jacksonville slide, I suppose.  Not only has Florida(22-5, 11-2 SEC) locked up its first SEC regular season division title since the "Oh Four's" era (and one win shy of clinching the SEC regular season title outright), but they are poised to be a top seed in this year's tournament. Yes, the Gators have been winning games again, and they have been doing so in exciting fashion.  Six of the team's wins have come by five points or less and four games have gone into overtime this season, including a double overtime barn-burner at Georgia where Erving Walker sent the game into a 2nd overtime by hitting a half-court shot as time expired. They are also winning games because of solid defensive play.  Florida is among the top teams in the conference defensively, allowing a paltry 61.1ppg.  No longer are they living and dying on the three-point line (although that's still a big part of their game).  Battle-tested would be an understatement, these guys are battle-proof, and the experience that comes with winning close games is what deep tournament runs are made of.

Head coach Billy Donovan deserves a ton of credit for the transformation of this team.  You look at his recruiting approach and he never goes for the flashy one-and-done types like Derrick Rose and John Wall.  Instead, Donovan wants recruits who buy into his coaching philosophy and are willing to stay multiple seasons for a chance to really develop and fit into his system.  It doesn't always pay off initially (as we saw in the first 2-3 seasons of his rebuilding process) but now Billy D's Gators are one of the most experienced units heading into March Madness.

 When you look at the starting lineup this year, you begin to see the synergy and camaraderie  that had been lacking since our 2006-07 Championship team.  Chandler Parsons, Alex Tyus, and Vernon Macklin, all seniors, have really matured and Parsons is shoring up his NBA draft stock every game.  This kid is a triple-double threat every night, like a larger, more athletic Evan Turner.  He stretches out defenses like Corey Brewer once did with his outside shooting and hustles to the rim after every shot, often times flying from beyond the arc to grab an important game-changing rebound.  He is the heart of this team (and front-runner for SEC conference player of the year), and the guy whose hands you want with the ball in a big game moment (as evidenced by his two game winning shots last season, one of which was a 3/4-court buzzer beater against NC State).  Then you look at the two underclassmen in the lineup, the sharp shooting duo of junior Erving Walker, and sophomore Kenny Boynton, who can score in flurries at any given time.  These guys have been together for two years now and are finally starting to gel, to understand each others' strengths and weaknesses and to trust each other in close games.

I know it isn't even March yet, but I see big things in store for this Gator team.  They have the experience and a great coach to guide them through the rest of the regular season. The next stop may prove to be the most difficult. This Saturday the team is off to Rupp Arena to take on a struggling Kentucky team that's hungry for a signature win.  The Wildcats has won 32 straight at Rupp and have no intentions of losing on Saturday. This would be yet another huge statement game for the Gators.  A win would effectively say to the rest of the Nation, "We are here, and we aren't going anywhere."  If healthy,  expect those Gator boys' to do some serious damage both in the SEC and NCAA tournaments, and don't be surprised if they are the one's holding up the crystal basketball in April.

Funny Photo of the Day

March Madness is upon us folks and its shaping up to be one of the toughest- to-predict tournaments in recent history (and some random chick will probably end up winning your office pool because she picked the teams based on the color of their jerseys).  In honor of this wonderful time of year, today's photo features a pair of players off of an up and coming team.  I'm talking, of course, about the Florida Gators (who else?).   I like their chances this year, well...as much as a like anyone else's chances anyway.  Who better to represent Billy-D's squad in today's photo other than Winter Park's own Chandler Parsons.  I call today's photo "Dancin' The Night Away."  Enjoy.

Mel-Content.

I think we can all Finally breathe a sigh of relief now that the media-dubbed(and cleverly, might I add) "Melo-Drama" has come to a close. At around 10:00PM last night, after months and months of trials and tribulations, a deal was finally made between the Nuggets, the Knicks, and sort of the Timberwolves.  This blockbuster deal involved 12 players and 3 draft picks...maybe more to come if the Nets get involved.  I don't think this trade could possibly me any more confusing.  I'll just make it easier for you, here's a look at exactly who get's who:
  
Denver Nuggets: G-Raymond Felton, F-Danilio "The Situation" Gallinari, F-Wilson Chandler,C-Timofey Mozgov, 2014 1st Rd Pick, 2013 2nd Rd Pick(From Warriors), 2012 2nd Rd Pick(From Warriors), $3 Million Cash

New York Knicks: G-Chauncey Billups, G-Anthony Carter, F-Carmelo Anthony, F-Corey Brewer, F/C-Shelden Williams, F/C-Renaldo Balkman

Minnesota Timberwolves: C-Anthony Randolph, C-Eddy Curry

 ...and exhale.  There it is, in writing, so we can all see exactly how this deal is going to shake up the league.  Who are the winners?  Who are the losers?  Those are questions for another day.  Since everyone else has decided to focus solely on the Knicks' side of the deal, I am going to do all you Denver fans out there a solid and break down exactly what this trade means to you.  Denver fans; come on, we all knew this outcome was inevitable. Sure, it would have been nice if Melo had stayed in those UCLA-ean blue and yellow colors, but I think that if that were a possibility, Denver would have been all over it.

As disappointing as his departure is, I think we need to look at the silver lining in all of this.  I mean, if the Nugs had decided not to trade the guy, they would essentially have let him walk at the end of the season while receiving nothing in return.  By trading him before the deadline, they ensured that they would at least be getting some useful pieces that could either be used to rebuild the team, or in trades to get other desired players.  Personally, I think the Nuggets' front office deserves a kudos for getting this deal done and here's why.

Raymond Felton has all-star potential.  Is he as good as Melo? Heavens No! He's far from it, but look at what he has done since being traded from the Bobcats (one of the lowest scoring teams in the league) to the Knicks (one of the highest scoring teams).  Since the beginning of this season, Felton has averaged 17pts, 9 assists and nearly 2 steals per game.  Pretty impressive numbers, and if it weren't for a loaded Eastern Conference, he very well could have made the All-Star team this season.  You know who else is a high scoring team? The Nuggets.  In fact, the Nugs lead the NBA in points per game with 107.  Not only should Felton assimilate well to Denver's fast-pace offense, but he is also significantly younger than former point guard Chauncey Billups.  Don't get me wrong, it's a shame to lose Billups, the guy played high school, college and professional ball in Colorado.  He will be missed not only for his clutch shooting and skills on the court, but for his leadership ability off the court. Regardless, I feel that Felton should be able to more than compensate for the loss of Chauncey and is someone who can help anchor our team for many years to come.

As for the rest of the newcomers,  Danilio Gallinari and Wilson Chandler should be able to provide instant offense for this now-rebuilding squad.  Gallinari is a guy who is capable of going off for 30 points on any given night.  His game is similar to Wizard's PF Rashard Lewis.  Gallinari measures in at 6-10 but he has the outside shooting skills of a small forward. The result is a player who keeps defenses honest and creates some space in the low post.  When playing along side a dominant center like Nene, it creates plenty of opportunities to score high percentage shots.  Speaking of dominant low post guys, how about the final acquisition in this trade, 7-1 center Timofey Mozgof.  This guy has played professional basketball in Europe for the past six seasons and has shown signs of dominance in limited minutes off the Knicks bench. No matter which way you cut it, every team could use more big men and Mozgov not only adds height to the Nuggets lineup (if he plays with Nene down low), but also can be used off the bench to give Nene rest, something we really haven't been able to do this season.

So where does this trade leave us?  I think that it will still be a rough road to recovery for the Nuggets.  The scoring will still be there, but this is a young team that will often be over-matched by teams vying for playoff position.  Unfortunately, it looks like the Nuggets will be missing the postseason this year, but with all of the draft picks they've received, along with middle-of-the road picks of their own, I think it is only a matter of time before they are competitive once again...and drafting another Carmelo wouldn't hurt either...

On a final note, now that this saga is over with, let's look at whose "decision" was ultimately worse.  The way Melo handled this situation heading int free agency was the polar opposite of the way Lebron James decided to bolt Cleveland and head to Miami.  Each decision has their pro's and cons, but in the end, both made unnecessary spectacles of themselves.  I think in the end I'd rather be on the Melo side of things.  I mean, at least he was honest with Denver fans for the most part.  He made it very clear from Day 1 that he wanted to play for the Knicks over anyone else, so can you really blame him for the media frenzy that it created.  Lebron, on the other hand, straight blindsided Cleveland.  He refused to let the organization or the fans know his intentions until the absolute last minute.  As a result, Cleveland was left high and dry and out of the race for any of the other highly touted  free agents in a loaded 2010 class.  What happened next? Cleveland went on to lose a record 26 games in a row and has the worst record in the NBA this season.  Fortunately, this wasn't the case for the Nuggets as they were able to land some key pieces that should help them in the long run.

#6

Happy President's Day O's fans,  and welcome to another installment of Reasons for Optimism.  If we end up having a strong season, we may have a shot at one of next year's top free agents.  Specifically, I'm looking at Mets Shortstop Jose Reyes.  This guy is just a beast.  His defense is solid, he can hit and hes speedy like his name was Gonzales...but its actually Reyes.  Don't be too surprised if he bails on a New York Mets Organization that just got caught up in this whole Madoff ponzi scheme (and may not even have enough money to field a team next season...) for an up-and-coming Orioles squad.  We need a shortstop...I mean, J. J. Hardy is alright, but a guy like Reyes could give consistency to the top of the order and steal a ton of bags.  Keep your fingers crossed O's fans, Reyes could be on the horizon.

Funny Photo of the Day, Partner

Alright people, in honor of Sergio Leone's renowned 'The Man With No Name" films, which are  an awesome Western trilogy starring the utterly badass Clint Eastwood, I thought I'd give you a Gun-Slingin' Hoot of a laugh with today's photo. For those of you who've never seen a western movie, get yourself started off right and check out these movies immediately. You can catch them this month on AMC...yea, shameless promotion is making a comeback on this blog! Seriously,  for your manhood's sake, give these bad-boys a fair chance.  Don't be surprised if you get the sudden urge to sip whiskey out of a shot glass while smoking hand-rolled cigarillos.

Today's photo is titled: "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,"  it's up to you to figure out who's who.  If this is how the Mavericks planned on expanding their market, they must have had to go back to the drawing board a couple of times.  Fortunately, they haven't been a laughing stock on the basketball court...only in this pic, and I reckon they wouldn't last long in the wild west.  Again, captions are encouraged:

Un-Blake-Able

It's back Baby, the dunk contest is back! Finally, I think its safe to say that the NBA Slam Dunk Contest has re-established itself as the All-Star Weekend's premiere event.  Blake Griffin lived up to the hype in what was the most surprising and exciting dunk contest, maybe of all time (that's right I said it.). Fans of the game saw some memorable jams, and that's an understatement. Believe it or not, it wasn't just because of Blake Griffin either.  With some of the great past contest winner's from Clyde "The Glide" Drexler to Dominique Wilkins to the original Slam-master himself Dr. J looking on, all four of this year's events competitors brought their A-game, and each one delivered their own special brand of dunk that we wont soon be forgetting. My biggest complaint of the contest, besides JaVale McGee getting hosed (I'll get into this later) was that all four contestants didn't make it into the final round.  With the way they each performed, believe me, they all could have been winners in their own right.

In the first round,  up-and-coming second year player Demar Derozan kicked off the contest with his best Vince Carter impression (Carter had perhaps the best 3-dunk sequence of all time in his 2000 slam dunk winning performance) splitting the ball between his legs and around his back for the one-handed slam.  The only difference was that this time, the ball was lobbed off the side of the base of the basket.  Not to be out-done, the next contestant, Congo native Serge Ibaka one-upped Dr. J and slammed the ball from behind the foul line (needless too say, Irving, who was in attendance, wasn't too happy).  Ibaka was robbed by the judges, as this slam should have yielded a perfect score but was given a mediocre one.  The 3rd contestant, Washington's own JaVale "Up-phreys" McGee performed what many are calling the dunk of the night.  Although it took a few attempts, McGee brought out a second basket and proceeded to dunk two balls simultaneously, one off of a self alley-oop. Similar to a dunk pulled off long ago by Larry Nance, the jam received a perfect score and a finals appearance for the 7 footer was a near certainty.  Finally, not to be outdone by the unknowns, Contest favorite Blake Griffin delivered a 360 degree one-handed tomahawk jam that was just incredible.

The second round was more of the same.  DeRozan received a perfect score for his second dunk, which was a self-lobbed one-handed up and under the basket jam, an incredibly difficult move to pull off.  And oh yeah, he got it done on his first try too.  Ibaka's second dunk was one of the weaker of the contest, which is saying a lot.  After a strange skit to set up his dunk where a child wanders on to the court crying that he "lost" his stuffed animal above the rim. Ibaka comes to the rescue by snagging the animal off the rim using only his teeth while simultaneously slamming the ball.  I guess the point was to show how high he could get (mouth level with the rim).  Blake Griffin's wasn't much better.  His original attempt,  if he'd been able to get it off, would have been something to write home about, but after 7 failed attempts (he was trying to lob the ball to himself off the side of the backboard, and 360 while reverse jamming to the other side of the rim), he decided to go with a more traditional side-of-the-rim tomahawk of a lob.  It was enough to get him into the finals, but just barely.  McGee decided to stick with the theme of multiple balls, this time simultaneously dunking 3-balls (a first for the dunk contest) at once, one off of an alley-oop from teammate (and Rookie/Sophomore game MVP...dude had 22 assists, a record!), John Wall.  This set up a Griffin vs McGee final in what was sure to be an instant classic.

Blake Griffin decide to take yet another page out of Vince Carter's book for his first dunk of the final round.  Again paying homage to the 2000 slam dunk champion and the original innovator, Griffin slammed the ball along with his entire forearm into the basket off of a self-lob, hanging on the rim for a good 5-7 seconds before lettering go.  The kid bruised the hell out of his arm to boot.  JaVale McGee fired back by running the length of the baseline and cradling the ball one-handed underneath the rim, and into the basket.  It was neck in neck as the two finalists prepared for their final dunks,  that's when things really started to get crazy.  What you've probably noticed about this yeas dunk contest, was that presentation was everything.  The showman's aspect of the contest really didn't take shape until 2009, when eventual Champion Dwight Howard entered a phone booth (a la Superman) before Dunking on a 13 Ft rim (a normal rim is 12 feet) in what was his final dunk.  Well, Blake Griffin's final dunk was just a flashy.  The rookie not only brought out a choir to sing "I Believe I Can Fly" during his final slam, but he wowed everyone has he dunked over the hood of a car off of a lob through the sun roof by teammate Baron Davis.  It was showy, and enough to give Griffin the 2011 Slam Dunk crown.

Even though Griffin gave a phenomenal performance and was definitely deserved of the title, I still think McGee was robbed.  He had some of the most innovative dunks ever performed in the history of the contest. Two balls! Three balls!  Dunking like a guard even though he's a 7-footer?!  He was certainly a showstopper but his last dunked lacked the luster that it needed to put him over the top.  I think that if he saved his multiple ball dunks until the end, the outcome may have been different.  Or maybe not...Griffin is infinitely more popular than McGee and the winner was decided by the fans.  Griffin received 68% of the votes (Really?!) so maybe it was a forgone conclusion to think Up-phrey's could have pulled off the upset.  What I do know is this:  Regardless of the outcome, these guys all made their mark in dunk contest history and brought this of late unheralded event back to prominence as it once was in late 90's/early 2000's.  Sleep easy slam dunk fans, this event isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Funny Photo of the Day

Hope you all enjoy today's photo.  In honor of the NBA All-Star weekend, I thought it would be appropriate go the NBA route once again.  Although he isn't an all-star this year, my boy Joakim "Know-that" Noah could have easily been on the roster if he didn't get injured.  How he got away with this outfit on draft day, I'll never understand, but what a hilarious move on his part.  I call this one "Do You Love Peace?  I Couldn't Be With Anyone Who Doesn't Love Peace" ...As Always, captions are encouraged,. Enjoy.

The Golden Rule

So we've finally reached the All-Star break in the NBA in what has already been one of the most memorable season's I can remember. I don't think the league has ever been as deep talent-wise as it is now. A new flurry of starts have burst onto the scene, guys are becoming involved in their teams success much earlier on in their careers, even as rookies. This new batch of exciting players from Kevin Durant to Kevin Love to Derrick Rose (all one and done's, all all-stars this season) ensure that the game will be at its height for the next several years. You look at this young corps of guys, most under the age of 23, and as an NBA fan, you have to be happy with the direction the league is going, even if it is at the expense of the college game.

With this unparalleled rise going on in the NBA, we are witnessing NCAA basketball going in a very different direction.  As a result of the "one and done" rule (players now must attend a college before entering the NBA draft, but can leave after only one year), NCAA basketball has lost most of its star power.  Most of the coveted recruits head to the NBA after their freshman season, leaving coaches stuck in a perpetual state of rebuilding...just ask Kentucky's John Calipari, who lost all of his starters from last year, four of which were freshman.  As a result, you never really get an idea of who is going to be good in the NCAAs until halfway through the season.  Up until that point, most of the public opinion about who the best teams are going to be are based on the coaches of the individual programs.  I think there are pro's and con's to this system, but that ultimately change is needed, allow me to explain.

On the plus side,  the parity in college basketball is as high as its ever been.  With no established four-year guys to anchor teams anymore, every season potentially belongs to any team.  This allows for more upsets during the regular season (The #1 team has already lost 3 times this season) and a more exciting NCAA tournament.  Just last year you had a slew of historic upsets, capped off with 8-seed Northern Iowa taking down 1-seeded Kansas in the second round.  If the games are more exciting, viewership will inevitably rise and the NCAA potentially makes more money, so this new rule hasn't been all bad for the game.  It also allows for smaller programs to be more competitive since the power conference teams face rebuilding situations on a year-to-year basis.

However, true fans of the college game will agree that this new structure is not a good model for consistency.  The whole beauty of college sports, the goal of every coach at this level, is to eventually build a dynasty. Just ask Billy Donovan and the "O' Fours" who decided as a group to bypass the draft after their sophomore season to come back and win a second title, which they did successfully.  This becomes nearly impossible when all of your top recruits jump to the pros after just one year.  There is literally no chance to develop the young talent that these coaches have worked so hard to get.  Starting over year after year seems like an exercise in futility to me.  I think that the best solution to this problem would be to mandate a 2-year minimum at the college level.

With the two year rule, young players in college get a chance to develop and mature for an extra year and effectively improve their draft status upon entering the NBA.  At the same time,  college teams have a bit more consistency when trying to build a program.  I think that this is the best alternative to whats in place right now, a much better solution than allowing for high schoolers to enter the NBA draft.

The problem with allowing high school players to enter the draft is that is severely dilutes the talent pool in the NBA.  Look at the players in the league from 1995-2005 (the high school years).  Aside from a few exceptions (T-Mac, Kobe, Garnett, Howard)  the majority of the high school players that were drafted were clearly not ready to play at the professional level.  NBA teams are stupid enough to take a risk on these young guys with the hopes of finding the next Kobe, but the fact of the matter is, the risk totally outweighs the reward.  If we want to keep the NBA as deep and exciting as it is right now, then the best way to do that would be to keep high schoolers out.  If kids want to bypass college and go to Europe and play for a year, fine with me.  The two year college rule would benefit both the NCAA and the NBA equally and allow for both levels of basketball to excel. That's just my two cents anyway.

Funny Sports Photo of the Day

This is another new segment I'm going to try out on a regular basis. In an effort to get my readers involved, I call on all of you to come up with a funny caption for each picture that I post.  

What better way to kick this thing off than with a photo of the original blogging funny man himself (he was, at one point, an inspiration), Gilbert Arenas.  Washington misses you man...well not exactly Washington, but I miss you...well, I guess I don't really miss you either but I sure do miss reading your blog. Anyway...

Today's picture is titled: "Gun Shy", enjoy.

#5

I hope everyone likes the new "Reasons for O-ptimism graphic, I know I do.  Shoutouts to my boy Kyle "Cosine" Smeallie for putting that together.  Anyway, on to this much awaited post...

Carmelo Anthony may or may not be an O's fan as this picture might indicate.  A guy like Melo, you'd expect to be wearing a Yankees hat or maybe a Dodgers hat, maybe a Rockies hat (see what i did there?)  and yet here he is, rockin' the freshie O's fitted for the camera.  You know when basketball all-stars with no affiliation to that city are rockin the cap that big things are on the horizon...or maybe he just likes the design, i don't know, I'm not a fashion expert believe it or not.  Either way, we can assume this is a good omen.  Melo-please stay in Denver.

Also,  please take a minute to appreciate this other guy in the picture.  Is he a fan or a friend of melo? I couldn't say but his facial expression is priceless...even more reason for optimism this season!

#4

As a fan, there's always the chance you could get left alone in Camden Yards like these two guys, have the entire stadium as your own personal fun-land while taking in an endless supply of booze (seriously, click the link and read this Deadspin article). If this kind of thing happened to me I could probably die a happy man.  Just end it, right then and there and I'd have no complaints.  Have you ever heard of this happening at another ballpark, or any professional stadium for that matter??  I think not.  Gotta love Birdland, go O's.

#3

• Vladimir Guerrero playing in a hitter's ballpark. (Seriously, whats the over/under on home runs hit by Vlad this year?  35? 40?  Staying somewhat conservative, im gonna go with 35, but im taking the over, go Os.)

A Fare-Mel to Carms?

Is Carmelo Anthony an evil genius?  Has his low-browed-ness  really just been a cover-up all these years?  Is he currently planning one of the grandest schemes in recent NBA trade history?  I, for one, would like to think not, but why dont we take a look at this possible conspiracy, just for a second, just to see how it feels.

The grumblings started earlier this week when Melo was reportedly quoted saying that he would take a "Long, hard look" at signing the 3-year $65 million extension that Denver has had on the table since early 2010 if he wasn't traded by the February 24th deadline.  Initially, this sounded like great news!  I know I was pretty excited about it.  This was the first time in this whole trade saga that Melo hinted, on the record, that he might not leave Denver after all.

But lets look at this for a minute, is that just what he "wanted" the people of Denver, the team, and the ownership to think?  If it was, than his plan is rather genius.  By letting the Nuggets believe that they have a chance of retaining their star player, the pressure is now off of the Knicks, the team that Melo has made known that he wished to play for in the future, to make a trade.  In the height of the trade talks, there was a chance the Knicks would have had to give up emerging rookie Landry Fields along with All-star caliber swing-man Danilio "the Situation" Gallinari in order to get Melo this season.  Obviously the Nuggets want to get something in exchange for Melo in order to facilitate their rebuilding process.  However, if Melo pretends like he is going to stay, the Nuggets will stop shopping him, allowing for him to sign with New York as a free agent this offseason.  Furthermore, he would be joining a team that didn't have to give up any young assets in order to get him.  Thus, the Knicks keep their entire roster AND get Melo vs.  having to give up two really promising pieces in exchange for him.

But would the Mel-man (Karl Malone pun, eh?eh?) really do something this diabolical?  In my heart of hearts I cannot believe it.  I think the reality is the looming uncertainty with the future of the NBA.  With the chances of a lockout on the horizon,  it might be the smart move for Melo to take this guaranteed contract for some serious bucks.  Plus, hes already a legend in Denver.  He's got a good team around him and a hall of fame coach in a conference where defense is essentially an afterthought.  By remaining in Denver the man would not only get paid, but would have a legitimate chance a winning an NBA title.

I mean, if Melo stays the Nuggets become instant contenders for the next few years.  Its clear that they already have a nice corps of guys around Anthony:  Nene, who is having a career year, Billups, who at age 34 is still playing like a 24 year old, the youth movement in the back court of the always exciting Arron Afflalo (did you SEE his game winner against Dallas last night?!) and Ty Lawson, the starter-in-waiting behind Billups, and a nice veteran presence on the bench with Kenyon Martin and JR "Swish".  The only moves I could see the team making that would further their cause would be to get another big man who can play opposite Nene and a young shooting guard would could come off the bench for Afflalo and provide a spark.  Other than that, this team is solid.  The pieces are in place, so is it really that hard to envision Melo sticking around?  I don't think so.

So let the talking heads continue to discuss possible trade destinations for Melo ad naseum, but don't be surprised if he's wearing that Baby blue and Yellow uniform come October.

2011 Baltimore Orioles: Reasons for O-ptimism

To all my readers out there (what is it, like 2 people now?)  I would like to welcome you to a new feature, frequent updates on why O's fans should be optimistic this season.  Reason numbers 1 and 2:

• Only the Twins (35-21) had a better record in the AL than the Orioles' 34-23 after Showalter took over. His 34 wins in 57 games were more than previous managers Dave Trembley and Juan Samuel (32) compiled in 105 games. (Yes, its true folks, the Buck Showalter, Showalter has been more successful then our last 3 managers combined in terms of gathering wins early on.  Id say, with the depth in the AL, particularly in the AL East and with the new lineup additions, this trend should continue into the 2011 season, and it all starts with pitching, which leads me to reason number 2....)

• The pitching staff's ERA pre-Showalter was over 5.50, but fell to 3.54 in the last 57 games. Just the A's (3.23) and Angels (3.40) were better. In Showalter's 57 games, the Orioles got 36 quality starts from their pitchers.  (This is what we've been WAITING for people!, we've had a stable of young arms for the last few seasons that couldn't handle the strenuous 162-game big league season.  My sense is that this will change in 2011.  With the way Bucky has been coaching these young arms, expect a vast improvement this season.  Could we get to .500?  maybe compete for a wild card spot?  Who knows, but are chances are as good as they've ever been this decade)
Stay tuned for more reasons as we approach this new and exciting season in Baltimore.