The world’s best super heroes—Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man—have all achieved greatness, but there’s a new comic book star on the block who wants to make history unlike any other…and his name is LeBron James.

Marvel Entertainment and ESPN The Magazine are proud to officially unveil LeBron: King of The Rings, an all-new, full-color, ten-page comic which debuted exclusively in ESPN The Magazine’s NBA Preview on Friday, October 19. Two years ago, LeBron James predicted he would win not one, not two, not three … but seven NBA titles. What if he was right? In their second collaboration, The Mag and Marvel Custom Solutions have united to create LeBron: King of the Rings, an epic tale of zombies, clones, holograms, bionics and a star who will stop at nothing to fulfill his promise.

“Collaborating with a creative and innovative partner such as Marvel allows us the opportunity to provide fans a fun and unique way to experience sports,” said Editor in Chief of ESPN The Magazine, Chad Millman. “We are both proud and excited to bring   our first ever comic to the marketplace and hope both (NBA and comic book) fans will be too.”

LeBron: King of the Rings springs from the minds of ESPN’s Ty Wenger and Otto Strong, acclaimed writer Christos Gage and fan-favorite artists Mike Deodato, Scott Eaton, Greg Land and Terry Dodson. Featuring a cover by Adi Granov, this is the first comic book created in collaboration by Marvel Custom Solutions and ESPN The Magazine.

“The undeniable synergy between ESPN and Marvel Comics is on full display in ‘LeBron: King of the Rings‘,” said Axel Alonso, Editor in Chief of Marvel Comics. “Professional athletes, with their super-human abilities and character flaws, are the closest thing to real-life super heroes, and in the NBA none stands taller than LeBron James. Whether you root for — or against — the Miami Heat in its quest to achieve those rings, this story will make you laugh, wince and cheer.”

“Whether you come for the wit and commentary of ESPN’s basketball insiders, or the fantastic storytelling skills of Marvel’s all-stars, LeBron: King of the Rings has something for everyone,” said Bill Rosemann, Editor, Marvel Entertainment. “A true dream team has assembled to take you on a wild ‘What If?’ journey sure to have NBA and comic fans buzzing.”

This week, don’t miss your chance to get the most-anticipated, can’t-miss insight on the upcoming NBA season and an exclusive new comic book, LeBron: King of the Rings, in the latest issue of ESPN The Magazine. To learn more please visit ESPN.com.

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It is only two weeks into the NBA season, meaning that it’s definitely way too early to be discussing potential MVP candidates. Right?

Of course it isn’t. In fact, no one would blame you for pondering who has a chance at taking home the league’s most prestigious individual award in the upcoming season as soon as the winner of the current one is handed that unmatched piece of hardware.

That is just the nature of the ever – and sometimes overly – analytical fan; they have no problem moving onto the next one before the dust of what’s just occurred has even any resemblance of a chance to settle.

There are always the obvious choices, which include the likes of Kobe Bryant, who has one MVP to his name as he begins his 17th season; Kevin Durant, who is still seeking his first despite winning the last three regular season scoring titles; and LeBron James, who is the reigning MVP, has won three out of the last four, and even added a Finals MVP trophy to his collection in June when he silenced all his critics with one of the more dazzling championship performances ever witnessed.

Then there are also the likes of Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony - you get the point.

These are the types of players that everyone expects to be in that conversation towards the end of the season. They are the superstars that at times make the game look easier than opening a door.

But there is someone else out there who has a very solid chance of not only finding himself right in the middle of the discussion, but also of going home with the award if he does.

His name is James Harden.

Essentially a household name after last year, a year in which he won the Kia Sixth Man of the Year award, Harden was traded before the season opener to the Houston Rockets after three seasons complementing Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in Oklahoma City as both an early backup and deadly threat late in games with the Thunder.

Harden, only 23, has shown gradual improvement with each passing season, and proved during 2011-2012 while averaging 16.8 points per game that he could be flat-out unstoppable whenever he desires to be.

He did have monumental struggles in The Finals against James’ Miami Heat, but it’s easy to remember that that was the same exact case with James himself in the previous Finals. And as we can easily remember once again, James was just fine the next time around.

While Harden may not be James, A.K.A. the best basketball player on the face of the Earth, that doesn’t mean that he does not possess the skill necessary to be the league’s Most Valuable Player. In Houston he is finally part of a team where his experience, combined with an abundance of youth around him ill allow him to be the go-to guy every time out, as opposed to being a third option if Durant or Westbrook are being hugged like boxers that are pummeling their opponents.

The Rockets also expressed this same superstar faith in Harden, immediately locking him up and making him the franchise player with the max five year, $80 million contract that he was eligible coming out of his original rookie deal.

He did not give anyone a chance to question whether or not he was worth those kinds of figures, dropping 37 points in his Rockets debut and setting a new career high with a 45 point encore two nights later. Obviously he won’t average those types of numbers throughout the season, but anywhere between the 25 and 28 point per game mark, along with leading a young Rockets squad to their first postseason appearance since the 2008-2009 campaign, could be enough for Harden to be awarded the honor of MVP.

Having a point guard with the vision and keen passing ability of the also newly acquired Jeremy Lin will add some more edge to Harden’s game as well. Westbrook, as was a huge topic of discussion throughout last year’s Finals, was not and is not the prototypical point guard whose first option is to set up his teammates. Lin has made it clear that he’s the night to Westbrook’s day in that regard.

Keep an eye on James Harden. The sun may only still be rising on the 2012-2013 season, but the MVP discussion is just too fun to wait around for.

Image Courtesy : James Harden

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“My Life as an NBA Rookie,” a special that gives audiences an inside look at some of today’s biggest NBA stars in their first year in the league, premieres Monday, October 29 (7:00-7:30 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney XD as part of “Nothing But Net Marathon,” a sports-themed marathon featuring episodes of “Kickin’ It,” “Lab Rats” and “Crash & Bernstein” beginning at 5:00 p.m., ET/PT.

Hosted by Billy Unger, star of Disney XD’s “Lab Rats,” the special features exclusive footage of New Orleans Hornets’ power forward Anthony Davis practicing with the 2012 USA Basketball Men’s National Team; takes fans behind the scenes at the NBA Draft Combine and NBA Draft; looks at how players mentally and physically prepare for training camp and opening night; and reveals entertaining rookie duties.

“My Life as an NBA Rookie” includes Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard of the Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James of the Miami Heat, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers, Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler of the New York Knicks, Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Deron Williams of the Brooklyn Nets, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder, among others.

About Disney XD

Disney XD is a basic cable channel and multi-platform brand showcasing a compelling mix of live-action and animated programming for Kids 6-14, hyper-targeting boys and their quest for discovery, accomplishment, sports, adventure and humor. Disney XD branded content spans television, online, mobile and VOD platforms and includes series, movies and short-form, as well as sports-themed programming developed with ESPN. In the US, Disney XD is seen on a 24-hour, advertiser supported network that reaches over 78 million households via basic cable and satellite affiliates.

Image Courtesy of  Keith Allison

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The U.S. basketball team had fun playing on Tuesdays night against Tunisia, who was destroyed by the Americans mightiness. The U.S. tried to have fun with this game and did not give it their all. If this happened we would probably be talking about the biggest win difference in the Olympics Games.

Things did not start well for Krzyzewski’s men though. They started in a sleepy mood, so the coach decided to change the 5 initial players when the first quarter was about to end. Until that moment the Africans dreamed during the first eight minutes of the game, when they were winning 15-12. But with the five new players on the pitch (Deron Williams, Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, Andre Iguodala and Kevin Love,) the score moved to 15-26 in just three minutes. Tunisians were back to reality. Especially in the second half.

The second half started with a still close 33-46, and with the U.S. alternates at the pitch. They were the ones that killed Tunisia. Westbrook, Harden and Iguodala opened the scoring gap, ending any chance for Tunisia by the end of the third quarter (47-85).

Last quarter (63-110) was a mere formality for the enjoyment of the viewer and the United States, which keeps on making its way to gold.

It was a game to give the most important men of the team some rest and relaxation. Kobe Bryant just played 8 minutes, while Lebron James and Kevin Durant played 18 and 22 respectively.

Carmelo Anthony led the American scorers with 16 points, while Kevin Durant had 13 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. However, the man of the match was Tunisian Makram Ben Romdhane who scored 22 points and had 11 rebounds.

Nineteen year old Davis, who will debut in the NBA during next season after he was picked in the draft by the New Orleans Hornets, scored 12 points in 12 minutes, and showed his happiness in the after match declarations: “It was real fun just playing with these guys.”

Coach Krzyzewski was also appreciative with his men’s performances: “It’s not going to be a perfect thing, you know?” he said. “But, overall, tonight was good. I mean, come on, it was 110-63.”

Image Courtesy of  Oleksiy Naumov / Shutterstock.com

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There are rare occasions in sport when two or three world class players come together as a team and provide that side with the means to dominate its’ respective league. In basketball, you need look no further than the current NBA champions, the Miami Heat. The coming together of LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh delighted, frightened and intrigued NBA fans the world over, and could potentially become one of the best sides to have ever graced the NBA. Go back a few years and the trio of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman (or Horace Grant if you want to go a little further back) created a dynasty that the current Chicago Bulls side are desperately trying to escape the shadow of, let alone replicate just. Similar occurrences have happened in soccer, with the recent domination of Barcelona in world soccer, spearheaded by the breathtaking Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi. It would foolish to presume these players do it all by themselves, and highly disrespectful to the likes of Mario Chalmers, Steve Kerr and Carles Puyol, but the stars are the cornerstones of any dynasty, with supporting pieces coming and going over the years.

While the spotlight falls on James and the Heat at the moment, there is a significant question hovering over the young Oklahoma City Thunder side. Could they become one of these great teams who can win championships year after year and forge their own legend within the world of sport?

Well at a quick glance, it certainly looks as if they do. Do they have the talent? Check. Are they young enough to achieve their ambitions? Check. Do they have insightful leaders on and off the court? Check. Lastly, do they have a passionate fan base who will stick by their team? Check (If there is such a thing as a ‘double check,’ then it applies here).

In Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook you have two All-Stars, superstars of the game who will only continue to improve and could go on to dominate their respective positions for years to come. Behind them you have James Harden and Serge Ibaka. Both players certainly have the potential to become All-Stars, and with both players aged just 22, it would be foolhardy to bet against that possibility. Throw into the mix the physical presence of Kendrick Perkins, the perimeter defense of Thabo Sefolosha, and if the rumors are to be believed, the leadership of Derrick Fisher for at least one more season.

Ibaka and Harden’s youth has been mentioned, but Durant and Westbrook are also just 23, leaving Perkins and Sefolosha as the elderly statesmen amongst the starters at 27 and 28 respectively, but far from nearing the ends of their careers. This youth, whilst arguably playing against them in this months’ NBA finals, offers huge hope to Thunder fans, who will believe that they can go from strength to strength as they players develop as a group. Given how good Durant, Westbrook, Harden and Ibaka are at this young age, the ceiling for these players, particularly Durant and Westbrook, is colossal.

Pressure will be heaped upon young Head Coach Scott Brooks over the next few years to extract results from such a talented squad. To his credit though, Brooks has orchestrated improved performances in each of his four years at the Thunder. After failing to make the playoffs in his first season, he guided them to a first round exit in his second year, before falling at the conference finals last year. If he continues this trend of improvement, Oklahoma City will be on target for a much coveted NBA Championship next season. He should also be praised for his management of such a young team, a task often fraught with difficulties, which has, publicly at least, been free of controversy or major problems.

Whilst there seems to be no end of positives for the Thunder over the coming seasons, there are important questions which need to be answered if they are to achieve their goals of creating a ‘dynasty.’ Firstly, will they be able to keep hold of Harden once his contract runs out? Whilst Harden has made it known he is happy to come off the bench and contribute in that way, allowing the Thunder to start Sefolosha, who adds to their defense, will he be happy in that role in a year or twos time? Another issue is whether or not they can keep hold of Ibaka. The young power forward has made a name for himself as one of the best blockers in the league, an attribute which could well earn him some admiring glances from other franchises, franchises who may have the cap space to make him a very nice offer.

If Harden can be sufficed with a bench role for the long term, or Brooks can devise a way for him to start, and Ibaka can be secured to a long term contract in the same way Durant, Webstbrook and Perkins have, then there is no reason to suggest that this Thunder side will not be able to live up to their near limitless potential. The rise of this team from relative obscurity to genuine NBA contenders has been startling and makes their achievement of making the finals this year even more impressive. With this group of players having at least 10 years left at the highest level, we could be enjoying the Durant vs. James dual for some time now, a rivalry which has all the potential of Bird vs. Johnson.

Image Courtesy of  OKC Thunder

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Entering the 2012 NBA Finals, Heat forward LeBron James put it upon himself to make sure that the third time would in fact be a charm.

He would not leave anything to chance, shy away from the moment or give anyone another year’s worth of ammunition to continue calling him a crownless king. Averaging 28.6 points, 10.2 rebounds and 7.4 assists in five games against the ferociously athletic and ambitious Oklahoma City Thunder – led by the star-power of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden – the Finals MVP’s breakout performance was exactly what we had long been craving from the world’s best player on its biggest stage.

After last year’s colossal meltdown against the Dallas Mavericks in which he essentially disappeared in the games’ most critical moments – which undoubtedly played an enormous role in the Heat dropping the final three games after establishing a 2-1 series lead with a late win on the road in Game 3 – James refused to crush the fragile hearts of the Miami faithful for a second straight season.

But the seemingly infinite scrutiny that he would have endured might have been an even bigger motivating factor when all was said and done.

In this era of social media and endless reporting via internet, television and radio, many have made the case that James is not only the most criticized and hated professional athlete on the globe today, but that he in fact holds that title amongst all of those that came before him as well.

Reasons for that overload of negative attention differ depending on the skeptic. Reporters, analysts and writers comprehend that someone of his overwhelming size and talent level should surely still be able to shine when the lights are at their brightest, as opposed to crumble under the pressure as he did in his 2011 and 2007 Finals appearances. Although a number of fans share the same sentiment, many others instead enjoy watching him fail due to all of the factors that “The Decision” was composed of along with the understanding that he truly is the greatest player in the game.

A lot of fans appreciate having the opportunity to witness greatness and history as it is taking place, yet there are also those who can’t help but despise it when their beloved team isn’t the beneficiary of it.

With all that being said, it was additionally clear that James felt no desire in returning to that dark place he found himself in following last year’s Game 6 Finals defeat in Miami. He heard the chatter about how he didn’t have that killer instinct that it takes to win a championship. He heard the analysts chastise him for having an inadequate post-game despite being 6’9, 250 pounds – making him an incomplete player.

At that moment where it was essentially the world against James, he had two options. He could either uphold the villainous persona that he openly embraced after announcing his decision to take his “talents to South Beach,” or he could learn from his recent anguish and finally snatch that ring that he had been desperately pursuing for nearly the past decade of his life.

Thankfully for his sake, he chose the latter.

James spent the offseason working on developing an array of moves for the low-block with Hall of Famer and two-time champion, former Houston Rockets center Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon. He certainly put those moves to work this postseason, as they made him practically unstoppable for prolonged stretches.

They wouldn’t be enough, however. Something needed to click in James’s DNA in a way it had never done before. The only thing that virtually stood between him and the Larry O’Brien trophy was his inability to focus and play at his optimal level when his team absolutely needed him to.

He admittedly looked himself in the mirror and said “You need to be better.”

With the Heat staring elimination dead in the eye entering Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals in Boston, James appeared to have an epiphany about his true abilities. He put his teammates on his back and had a game for the ages, dropping 45 points and ripping down 15 rebounds in a rout of the Celtics.

A solid 31 points by James in Game 7 propelled Miami to its second consecutive NBA Finals appearance. This was apparently a new LeBron James.

Oklahoma City won Game 1, but a huge shot by James with a minute and a half remaining in Game 2 helped the Heat tie the series. He did not freeze up in any of the fourth quarters as we had grown accustomed to seeing. Before his leg cramps in Game 4 forced him to sit out the final few minutes, they did not prevent him from hitting big shots down the stretch.

When it came time to close the deal, James took Game 5 by the throat and recorded his first triple-double of the playoffs – 26 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists – en route to a blowout victory for the Heat and their second world championship since 2006.

After this excruciatingly long road, LeBron James is finally an NBA champion, and with all of the questions thoroughly answered, the best could be yet to come.

Image Courtesy of  Keith Allison

The article LeBron James and His Journey Towards a Title Over the Past 2 Seasons appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

News flash: LeBron James is undoubtedly the most vilified athlete on the face of the Earth. Alright, that isn’t exactly breaking news, but it still holds 100% true, regardless. And now that he and his Miami Heat are back in the NBA Finals for a second consecutive year, his army of haters will be in full force.

But what makes the NBA’s greatest player the most despicable sports superstar out there? Well, many people who loathe him in this manner will point at “The Decision” of Summer 2010 as the moment they decided to scrutinize essentially every single move that he makes.

To those fans, here’s the message: Re-evaluate it and realize that you need to let it go.

When James left the Cleveland Cavaliers and his home state of Ohio, he did it in what was perceived as such an egotistical and selfish fashion that it was simply unforgivable. He did not inform even a single soul within the Cavs organization of his final decision to leave and take his “talents to South Beach,” where he would form a super alliance with fellow All Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat.

He did not owe the city of Cleveland and its fans that had suffered for so long before his arrival in 2003 anything more than the classy farewell they deserved. An hour-long special aired live on ESPN certainly didn’t qualify as classy to them or anyone else watching.

However, other than that, he didn’t owe them a new contract, a championship, or to finish what he started straight out of St. Vincent-St. Mary High School.

He gave them everything he had in those seven years and exercised his free agent right to pursue a new opportunity elsewhere. How is it any different from a person who isn’t an entertainer, who decides to leave the job they’ve worked for years for an even better one?

Don’t kid yourself, you know it isn’t. Plus, when regular people announce leaving their jobs that usually doesn’t bring in a boatload of money in donations to the the local Boys and Girls Clubs.

So if you think about that twice, declaring your intentions to start a new job in front of your entire family at Thanksgiving dinner might seem a little more self-centered than what James did.

Of course there are people out there who don’t really care about any of that stuff. Instead, there are those who will claim, ‘I hate him because he went and joined two other great players. One is also a top five superstar player in this league (Wade), and the other has been one of the more underrated All Stars pretty much his entire career. Jordan wouldn’t have done that.’

Alright, all of that is true. Jordan wouldn’t have left the Bulls to assemble some crazy squad alongside guys with the caliber of a Wade and Bosh. But that was then and this is now. If you live in the past and fail noticed that the league has been heading in this direction since the “Big Three” of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett joined forces in 2007, you probably should pay a little more attention to players and teams other than your own and James.

James needed the help and the Cavs were incapable of surrounding him with enough of it because they play in Cleveland! The majority of people, especially young professional basketball players, don’t want to live in Cleveland during a long season! Jordan had Scottie Pippen, Steve Kerr and the rest of the crew to help him finish off the job; James just knew he had to make a drastic move in order to get his help, because Cleveland itself was repelling free agents like a great college in the middle of nowhere.

And for those who argue that he could’ve gone to a place like New York or New Jersey – where he could have been ‘the man’ and eventually gotten the aid he needed because that’s what Jordan would have done – you need to come to terms with the fact that there’s only one player remaining that still has that kind of old school mentality, and his name is Kobe Bryant.

Bryant’s admitted that he always wanted to be Jordan. That is why he has only one less ring than him. James just wants to be himself. That’s something that should be admired, not detested.

In the end, if this isn’t enough, the fact that it’s been two years should be. Unless you are that immature, you really don’t have an excuse to hold a grudge for this long.

LeBron James has moved on with his life, it would be best if the haters followed suit.

Image Courtesy of  Keith Allison

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Look at that! The playoffs are suddenly upon us. Seems like just yesterday, we were basically praying for an NBA season just to be played. Before we start worrying about all that postseason drama, how about taking a few moments to recognize the accomplishments of an exceptional few and explain why they will/should be honored with this season’s individual awards?

Let’s start with an obvious one, and go from there. Kyrie Irving, a.k.a. the number one overall pick of the Cavs, is clearly going to win Rookie of the Year, and deservedly so. Sure, there were some nice rookies out there like Iman Shumpert of the Knicks, the Pistons’ Greg Monroe, and Golden State’s Klay Thompson, but Irving displayed star power year round.

With an average of 18.5 points and 5.4 assists per game, there is only a 2.4 difference when comparing both of these numbers to the rookie stats of one of the league’s top-point guards, Chris Paul. Do not forget about his eight three-pointers, thirty-four points, nine assists, and MVP Award during the Rising Stars Challenge, either.

Next on the list is Most Improved Player of the Year. As much as you think that Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin is going to be the unanimous winner, you are unfortunately and sadly mistaken. Lin’s story may have been inspirational beyond belief, beautiful, and Hollywood-like, but he did not participate in enough games to contend for this award. His absence from the rotation before being given an opportunity, combined with a serious knee injury, caused him to miss 31 of the team’s 66 games.

Instead, the honor will go to Magic forward Ryan Anderson. Anderson, who completed his fourth season in the league, was able to up his scoring average from 10.6 points per game last year to a career high 16.1 in 2011-2012. In one year, he also increased his minutes per game by 10, jumped up to 7.7 rebounds a night after previously averaging 5.5, and made 32 more three-pointers while still shooting a respectable 39 percent from deep.

Sixth Man of the Year will undoubtedly be won by Oklahoma City forward James Harden. At 16.8 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game, he is exactly the kind of beast you would want to have, so he can take care of things while the starters are getting a blow. In fact, he actually averaged starter-like minutes, at 31.4 per game, and scored a career high 40 points in an April 18 game at Phoenix. Having a guy like that to come off the bench sort of seems like cheating.

No one is more deserving of Defensive Player of the Year than New York’s Tyson Chandler. He did exactly what the Knicks hoped he would when they brought him in this season–make playing defense cool. New York went from the third worst defensive team in 2010-2011, giving up 105.7 points per game, to the eleventh best in 2011-2012, allowing just 94.7. It was a group effort, but Chandler, his average of 1.4 blocks, and seven-foot-one-inch frame definitely got the ball rolling.

Usually, Coach of the Year goes to the man who takes a bad team and turns them around. That should not be the case this time. Tom Thibodeau should be the recipient for leading his Bulls to the league’s best record at 50-16, despite not having last year’s MVP, Derrick Rose, for 27 games. He coached a suffocating, lock-down defense that surrendered a league best: 88.2 points a game.

Neil Olshey equals Executive of the Year. Who is Neil Olshey, you ask? He is the L.A. Clippers’ General Manager, the one that brought in superstar Chris Paul, solid Caron Butler, clutch Chauncey Billups, scrappy Kenyon Martin, smooth Nick Young, and high-energy Reggie Evans all in the same year, even with the lockout.

He is also the man that took last year’s 32-50 Clippers squad and turned it into a team worthy of a 40-26 record, giving them the fifth best record in the West as they clinched only their third playoff berth since 1997.

Finally, the moment for which you have all been waiting: the Most Valuable Player award. If it truly did go to the “most valuable” player, it would go to Chris Paul for what he means to the Clippers, but instead, it will go to LeBron James for the third time since it was actually claimed by the league’s most outstanding performer.

The Heat forward put up averages of 27.1 points, 6.2 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game this season. Only Kevin Durant of the Thunder had relatively similar numbers, but his inability to play skin-tight defense like James will cost him the MVP in the end.

Now let’s wait and see!

Image Courtesy of   Domenic Gareri / Shutterstock.com

The article Who Should the NBA’s Individual Award Winners Be? appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The trade deadline has come and gone and not a single meaningful shot was fired. In fact, the shot not heard meant the most to the league and to those who followed every word anticipating big changes in Orlando.

Dwight Howard, the big fish in the small pond chose to stay and opt-in the early termination clause of his contract. The process says more about the perennial all-star than the eventual outcome but what matters more is the impact his decision will have on free agency after the 12-13 season.

The team that Howard had been linked to for the last two years had been the New Jersey Nets, soon to be the Brooklyn Nets. A lot was expected from the Nets but things have not gone according to plan since the Russian billionaire took over — Mikhail Prokhorov came in and raised expectations for the franchise but it was clear things wouldn’t be as easy as he might have expected.

From Carmelo to Lebron, the Nets have swung and missed and now with Dwight choosing to stay because of his loyalty (as he puts it), the Nets are wandering through the NBA without a great amount of options.

Derron Williams will not follow Howard and sign his early termination clause, instead opting to test free agency in the off season and most likely leave to another franchise. The biggest competition at this early stage in the process is the Dallas Mavericks.

The Mavericks will be without Jason Kidd who at this point is keeping the seat warm for a younger more dynamic guard in the mold of Williams. They will be in a great position given their cap situation to acquire the 26-year-old guard leaving the Nets without a marque star in Brooklyn.

The Nets will have the financial advantage in that they will be in the position to offer Williams twenty eight million more than any other team can offer. However; something tells me money won’t be the determining factor in his decision. The Nets can add pieces via free agency and the draft but it remains to be seen if it will match a potential Dirk Nowitzki/Williams combo. Not to mention the many other teams who will throw their hats in the ring for his services.

There was much excitement early on but that feeling has been replaced by disappointment and maybe even panic. The stadium is already making its presence felt in downtown Brooklyn and the people of Brooklyn are excited about having a team again but things are not looking good in terms of star power in the big city.

With the Knicks struggling at times, the opportunity is there or at least was there for the Nets to make an impact and at least become part of the conversation. The names are drying up and all that money won’t mean nothing if no one wants to come and play.

At this point it doesn’t really matter what Howard does two years from now in free agency — if it even gets to that point, chances are Williams will be gone and coming to Brooklyn to play by himself for Howard wouldn’t make much sense. Sure other big names will become available but given the track record of the Nets under Prokhorov, fans of the team should prepare for a lot more swings with many more misses.

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With just a 34 point output in the second half and a huge fourth quarter by Dwyane Wade, the Orlando Magic – who hold the third-best record in the Eastern Conference (29-17) – fell to the current second seed in the East, the Miami Heat (33-11), in south Florida on Sunday night, 91-81.

“We have to do a better job of not turning the ball over,” said Magic center Dwight Howard, who led the team with 18 points and 11 rebounds. “That’s what gave them a chance to get out early, get the lead and keep the lead. We’ve just got to do a better job. It’s the small things that are going to matter in a game like this.”

Orlando turned the ball over 20 times against a Heat team that has proven to be one of the best defensive units in the league over the past two seasons.

Along with being less than thrilled about the extraordinary amount of turnovers his team committed, Magic coach Stan Van Gundy also took the defensive intensity of his players at the outset of the game into question.

“Our effort defensively early in the game was not there,” said Van Gundy. “We did not come to play. That’s inexcusable particularly playing on the road against a team this good and then the 20 turnovers.”

Miami came out smoking in the first quarter with 31 points, and had totaled 50 before halftime. Forward Chris Bosh’s team high 18 points in the first half on 7/9 shooting was a key component in the Heat’s 53% first half shooting percentage.

Despite shooting only 41% over the first 24 minutes, Orlando found themselves only down by three entering the locker room after a difficult three point play down the right baseline by Wade untied the game with 48 seconds left in the second quarter.

Wade led all Miami scorers at the game’s conclusion with 31 points. He tallied six rebounds and four assists, as well.

Forward Quentin Richardson, guard Jason Richardson, and Nelson all finished in double-figured scoring for the Magic.

After playing from behind since losing an early 7-6 lead, Orlando finally found themselves in the driver’s seat, 57-54, with 8:26 remaining in the third when an interception of a ball Bosh saved from going out of bounds, turned into a fastbreak opportunity and a three point play on the other end for guard Jason Richardson.

Orlando scored just nine points on the break, but did a quality job of limiting Miami’s transition game, which they excel at with athletes like James and Wade. The Heat had only 13 points in the open court.

But Miami made sure to take away Orlando’s strength as well – the three pointer. The Magic, who attempt and make more three’s than any other team in basketball, shot just 9/25, 36% from behind the arc.

The teams were abysmal in the third quarter, shooting a combined 13/40 from the floor. A LeBron James bank shot, with .8 left in the period, gave the Heat a 67-63 lead entering the fourth.

With just 14 points overall, James had a relatively quiet night as far as scoring was concerned. However, he still had a major impact with 12 boards and seven assists.

The Heat went on an 11-2 run that ended around the four minute mark and outscored the Magic 24-18 in the final quarter to hold on rather comfortably for their 13th consecutive home win. Only the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 14 game home winning streak has bettered Miami’s current run this season.

Wade was unstoppable over the final minutes, dropping 12 in a row at one point, and 14 of his 31.

“I don’t think (Wade) ever had a bad game against us,” said Van Gundy. “Every game he’s played it’s been a great game. We never do a decent job on him.”

Miami and Orlando split the season series two games apiece.

The Heat will look to continue their winning ways at home when they host the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.

The Magic are right back at it on Monday night, as the team with the best record in the league, the 37-10 Chicago Bulls, pay a visit.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/keithallison/

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A potent offense is something that every team needs to be successful in the NBA. We saw last season that even though the Chicago Bulls had the stingiest defense in the league, the lack of help for Derrick Rose on the other end of the court essentially led to their downfall.

Crawford is, by far, one of the most explosive, electrifying scorers in the NBA. With his dazzling crossovers, his crafty shake-and-bake move, and his nearly unstoppable jump shot, Crawford is a threat anywhere on the court.

Now that his time with the Atlanta Hawks is up (the Hawks did not offer him a contract extension last season), Crawford has expressed interest, in one form or another, in joining quite a few teams around the NBA.

1. Portland Trail Blazers

Because of his unbreakable bond with superstar PF, LaMarcus Aldridge, Crawford has expressed interest in joining the Portland Trail Blazers. Aldridge, with a little bit of a sales pitch, has been trying his hardest to snag him while the lockout rages on.

On October 26th, Aldridge tweeted:

Rip City when @JCrossover come play in my game we need to make him feel at home so he will sign with us!

Crawford then responded:

@aldridge_12 —yall have GREAT fans too!! And love u and broy’s game!!!

Now, it would take a great deal of rotation work to fit him in—the Blazers are stacked at the Guard position with Raymond Felton, Brandon Roy and Wesley Matthews—but if they could find a way to work all four of them into the game plan, Portland would have the best four-guard combo in the NBA. Crawford is sort of a combo guard, possessing the ball handling ability to run the point and the scoring ability to run the two.

It would be an interesting acquisition that just might pay off in the long run.

2. Miami Heat

Could you imagine Crawford coming off the bench and dropping 15 points behind the already offensively savvy Dwyane Wade? It would be ridiculous!

LeBron James already put the thought out there in the twitter world:

Would love to see @JCrossover in a Heat uni! What u guys say?

And while Aldridge tried his best to protect his potential free agent jackpot, tweeting:

@KingJames how are you going to try and steal @JCrossover from us?! I already told Portland to make him feel at home on the 6th.

There’s absolutely no doubt that Crawford would take a contract from the Miami Heat as a potential championship contender for the next decade.

3. Chicago Bulls

Returning back to his true NBA home in Chicago isn’t a distant thought from the former Sixth Man of the Year, either. After being questioned about it from several of his followers on Twitter, Crawford finally budged with a response.

@Raffletickets17: “@JCrossover ever consider the bulls? With you at the 2 we would be amazing! Championship right there”–course I wud.!

With the already dominant scorer, Derrick Rose, leading the way for the Bulls, the only thing they need is a second option on offense. Their defense is already top tier, hanging high above all other teams in the NBA last season. If they could get their hands on Crawford when the free agency period opens up, Chicago could find themselves in the NBA Finals within the next two years.

4. New Jersey Nets

Jamal Crawford and Deron Williams are already good friends. What’s to say he doesn’t join forces whenever the lockout comes to a halt? Crawford’s also good friends with Marshon Brooks, the Nets acquisition on the day of the draft. While Williams and Crawford cut their conversation short on Twitter, moving into private messaging, but one can only speculate as to what they could be talking about.

Crawford to the Nets would only give Deron Williams another reason to stay with the franchise.

I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait until the lockout is over to see where all these free agents end up. With other big names like Tyson Chandler, J.R. Smith, David West and Caron Butler in the market, the NBA could see a complete shift in power. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/kellyozmer/

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A host of NBA stars converged upon Oklahoma City Sunday night for the US Tracking Fleet Basketball Invitational hosted by hometown hero Kevin Durant. They did not disappoint, putting on quite a show for the energetic crowd.

With a final score of 176-171, players like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and several others made sure the fans stayed entertained until the final whistle.a

Surprisingly, the high-scorer was Minnesota Timberwolves forward Michael Beasley, who finished with a Maravich-esque 56 points on 25-of-35 shooting from the field. Behind him, not-so-surprisingly, was Melo, who poured in a cool 43. King James finished with 40, and Westbrook added 34, but it would be the host himself, Kevin Durant, who put on the biggest show of all.

KD finished with a triple double, putting up 42 points, 27 rebounds and 10 assists, leaving the crowd enraptured throughout the scintillating performance. Other players invited to the affair included LaMarcus Aldridge, Johnny Flynn, Jamal Crawford, Jeff Green (once a Thunder player before his 2010-11 mid-season trade to Boston), Rudy Gay, Amar’e Stoudemire and John Wall.

Of course, Melo, Stoudemire, and Paul were all on the Blue Team, giving Big Apple fans a taste of what it could be like to have their own Big Three (Paul will be a free agent after the 2012-13 season). The exhibition match ran like a Golden State Warriors vs. New York Knicks game—strictly offense with a small smattering of defense sprinkled in.

Players joked and dilly-dallied around for the first three quarters, but buckled down in the closing minutes when victory and subsequent bragging rights were on the line. After being sent into overtime, it would be James and Durant that would pull the White team away for the win.

With the players exhibiting so much energy in what was a glorified All-Star game, it’s clear that they’re ready to get back to business and play NBA basketball. But if the lockout drags on, we’ll be sure to see more invitationals in the near future.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.facebook.com/nba

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The Philadelphia Eagles will win, not one, not two, not three, not four…

The Miami comparisons have already begun, the problem is however they are not very similar.  Vince Young, during a recent interview, has proclaimed this the “Dream Team,” a joke which has taken a life of its own.  We must remember that this is Philadelphia; Brotherly love doesn’t apply when it comes to its athletes.

The comparisons are few and far between and that might be a good thing, unless your goal is to reach the finals only to lose.  Philly has improved on paper but as we all know, the games are not played between the lines, they are played between the hash marks on Sundays thus they must prove themselves a yard at a time.  The team leader is Michael Vick who is in his 3^rd year after his stint behind bars; talk about full circle.

Michael Vick can be compared to Dwayne Wade, a popular athlete who convinced his friends to come play with him-a stretch by any sense of the word.  Vick has played a major role in acquiring the many free agents who now have taken their talents to the Eagles locker room.

It is well known that players in the NFL love, admire and respect the electrifying quarterback, not to mention the fact that they would rather play with him instead of against him.  The comparison ends there considering there is no Lebron or Bosh on this team.  All the Eagles have done is spread money around, not waste money because the players they have acquired are good solid players; nonetheless, aside from Nnamdi, none of the players are stars in this league.

Let’s focus on the Eagles and leave comparisons alone for now.

Looking at this team, the question still remains- what happens with number 1 corner of last season Asante Samuel.  He has stated that he doesn’t want to be traded and if he indeed stays put, the Eagles would have a trio of pro bowlers; but would the massive egos allow such a team to win?

It also becomes a question of what happens with Jackson who has yet to report, considering a hold out due to contract negotiations or lack thereof.  The situation with Maclin is also something people are not talking about as of right now.

With all these questions and unknowns, the most important factor in determining how far this team goes, is the health and effectiveness of Vick.  He showed us all what he was capable of last season but tailed off late, including an ill-advised throw in the playoffs which basically ended the season for the Eagles.  Will we get the same or better from the athletic quarterback or has the rest of the league figured out what to do against him?

The NFC East is stacked with good teams (minus the Redskins of course) but none have made as big a splash in free agency or via trades.  The cowboys were also in the Nnamdi sweepstakes but failed to nab the big free agent and they have been relatively quiet.

The giants are still battling with defensive end Osi Umenyiora who wants a resolution with the ongoing contract dilemma that may or may not result in a trade.  A sticky situation for the giants but one they will have to take care of soon because with the beginning of August, the season is right around the corner.

Walter G Arce / Shutterstock.com

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With the NBA lockout officially looming, owners and players are nowhere close to an agreement. If there is a lockout, the cause may be all the recent superstars who have left small market teams in order to join forces with other superstars on big market teams.

Charles Barkley, who is known for his big mouth and sometimes-offensive comments, recently spoke on the situation in regards to the NBA lockout. It is hard to agree with him usually, but this time Barkley is completely right in his assertion that the biggest problem leading to a lockout is the balance of power. Currently structured, the NBA’s talent is top-heavy.  You can count how many good NBA teams there are on your fingers; unsurprisingly, these good teams are in bigger markets.

While on Mike Lupica’s ESPN radio show on Monday June 27th, Barkley shared his belief that there will be an NBA lockout. His reasoning was the following:  currently, small market owners feel they are being neglected and feel the superstars are superseding their power. The fact is, this should surprise no one; the past three prominent superstars have left small market teams to team up with superstars on big market teams.

In reference to small-market owners during the interview, Barkley stated “I think there’s going to be a lockout, I think the owners are dug in, I think they want to send a message to these players. I think they’re really upset by this LeBron James/ Chris Bosh situation, because their teams don’t have to be really good, but I feel like if they have a star in their market they can make some money. And if all the stars want to play together…we’re almost becoming like baseball where you’ve got a few good teams and the rest of them stink.”

James and Bosh have not been the only prominent players in the past 11 months to flee a smaller market for the greener pasture of coexisting with other superstar talent in a bigger market.  Carmelo Anthony also did this.

Despite the fact that Anthony was not a free agent at the time, he was able to force his way out of Denver, in turn, joining Amar’e Stoudemire and the New York Knicks. Denver traded Anthony because of the way they saw the free agent scenario with James and Bosh materialize. Denver realized they didn’t want to watch Anthony leave on the free agent market and thus get no players in return.

There is no doubt a problem is created when players hold the power to take less money and collude to join forces like James and Bosh did when they decided to team up with Dwayne Wade in Miami.  Owners cannot prevent this unless there is more incentive or rules that prevent collusion from happening.

The NBA’s deputy commissioner, Adam Silver, says the goal is “to create a system in which all 30 teams can compete for a championship. And if well-managed, have the opportunity to make a profit.” Clearly there are current loopholes in the NBA with regards to competitiveness between small-market teams and big market teams. The discrepancy of competitiveness between both parties, which happens both on the court and in the front office, makes the leagues goal far from reality.

What are the disagreements between owners and players, and small market and big market owners?

Senior editor of theatlantic.com, Derek Thompson, sums up the   disagreements between NBA owners and players in crystal clear fashion. In reference to what the players want and the owners want, Thompson’s says, “The players want the NBA to be more like Major League Baseball. They want huge player salaries that are guaranteed to pay out, even if the player under-performs. The owners want the NBA to be more like the NFL. They want smaller player salaries, more “revenue sharing,” and the ability to let players go if they don’t perform.”

To understand Thompson’s summary of what may lead to the lockout, it is important to understand some background context. The league claims, “ 22 out of 30 teams lost money this past season”.  The league also claims to be losing $300 million this past season after losing $370 million and $340 million the past two season.  The owners who have been suffering these losses the most have been small market NBA owners.

Basically the owners, especially the ones in smaller markets, want to prevent these losses by limiting the amount they have to pay players who might turn out to be bad signing down the road; this sentiment is articulated by Mitch Lawrence of foxsports.com who writes,  “owners are demanding more cost certainty and the end to their practice of overpaying non-productive players with long, expensive deals.”

Under the current structure, one hindrance to profit is that owners have to split revenues with players. Currently, the players enjoy a 57-43 split of NBA revenues; however the owners want to see a split of at least 50-50 if not more towards the owners. Thompson elaborates on this split in which the players enjoy a bigger piece of the pie saying, “If they paid closer to 50 percent of the pie, they might be in the black. That’s what this fight is about: Designing a system that allows teams to offer players competitive salaries without bankrupting smaller teams.”

Guaranteed raises also fall disproportionately hard on small market teams. Players resigning get an automatic 10.5% raise, while a player going to a new team gets an 8% raise. Under the current system these raises are automatic and not based on performance.

The economics have to improve for small market teams as the current structure is unsustainable.  It is a cost problem but more importantly a revenue problem. A more generous revenue sharing formula is clearly needed.  However, if Players Union Chief Billy Hunter is right an agreement might not be so easy to come by.

Hunter, in reference to owners of big market teams, recently stated, “Some of the major markets are not interested in sharing revenues to the tune it’s being shared in the NFL. The NBA has the weakest revenue-sharing plan of any of the professional sports, and we’ve heard people like Jerry Buss and others on the Lakers indicate they’re not interested in having to share the revenue with some of these other teams.”

All in all, the center point of the looming NBA lockout is due to owners’ of small market teams sharing the sentiment that they are unable to keep their top talent. This feeling of powerlessness has been derived from the decision of Chris Bosh, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. As Mitch Lawrence writes, “The small-market teams want a bigger cut of the pie because they believe it will help them keep their top players and allow them to spend more money on their team, thus making them more competitive.”

If the NBA does not figure out how to give small market owners a fighting chance to survive then the avalanche of star players leaving small market teams to join big market teams will continue for the NBA. The next two teams, who have superstars on their rosters set to become free agents, are the Orlando Magic and New Orleans Hornets. The time to act is now. If the NBA does not act, there will be two more teams who might become irrelevant and not be able to compete. If this is the case they will probably loose money as well. The time to act is now before it is too late!

Domenic Gareri / Shutterstock.com

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If you follow the NBA, it is important to know what happens behind the scenes. The truth of the matter is, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), is a major piece of the puzzle in regards to what happens within the NBA.

Creative Artists Agency has a huge advantage in signing elite athletes, especially elite NBA athletes. The agency represents famous and credentialed players such as: Yankees shortstop and captain, Derek Jeter, Colts QB, Peyton Manning, and Pittsburgh Penguins centre and captain, Sidney Crosby.

Despite only delving into the sports market in 2006, as USA Today columnist Thomas K. Arnold writes, the agency, “has built CAA Sports from concept to colossus.” There is no doubt that the agency, despite entering the sports agency business a short five years ago, represents an extremely impressive list of clientele. The interesting question is: how did the agency get this impressive list of clientele?

It has been reported by insider sources and journalists alike that the agency’s pull in signing elite NBA stars is because of LeBron James.

After aligning with CAA—are Chris Paul and Deron Williams destined to pull a LeBron James?

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo sports, reported in a June 11th article, that James is very valuable to Creative Artists Agency. In the article, an anonymous league executive is quoted as saying, “LeBron has almost become a movement within the league…With Worldwide Wes [CAA agent William Wesley] and him, you’re making a decision as a player to be packaged the way they packaged him. They follow him.”

Elaborating on this, Wojnarowski specifically says, “James has been a part of recruiting everyone else over to his side…” In reference to the article by Wojnarowski, the players that have been recruited by LeBron to unite with Creative Artists agency include stars like Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul.

Now, with the recent announcement that New Jersey Nets point guard Deron Williams fired his “longtime agent” and is considering joining Leon Rose of Creative Artists Agency, a question has been swirling: Will Williams switch teams?

The fact is, after Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony became clients of Creative Artists agency they switched teams. With the announcement of leaving his agent and possibly joining CAA, Williams will be asked the same questions as, free-agent-to-be, Chris Paul.

Chris Paul who, like Williams, is slated to become a free agent after the upcoming season, became a client of CAA a year ago. Interestingly, both Paul and Williams have been the subject of speculation in regards to switching teams when they become free agents; but would both of them switching to CAA before they’re slated to become free agents, be a coincidence or not?

The puzzle is all too similar to Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony. Chris Paul, who is playing for the small-market New Orleans Hornets, has already aligned himself with CAA and Deron Williams, who plays for the New Jersey Nets, appears to be ready to align himself with CAA.

Although Williams does not play for a small market, both Paul and him appear to be on a similar path as Bosh, Anthony and even James; all three players left smaller market teams in order to team up with superstars on bigger market teams. All three left their teams after joining Creative Artists Agency.

A great question was posed by a blogger for cbssports.com’s eye on the basketball blog. The blogger asks the following question, “James and company paved the way for star players to realize how to maximize their leverage. If you’re Williams, watching the Heat compete for a title in Year One, what is there to convince you that following in those footsteps isn’t a good idea?” A similarly pertinent question is: Are NBA superstars who are following in LeBron’s footsteps by signing with CAA, realizing that they need to sign with bigger markets in order to maximize their leverage or is this just a coincidence?

Will the Knicks front office decision be further indication of CAA’s influence?

Another tidbit of information, which might shed somelight on CAA’s influence within the NBA, is the Knicks situation. The decision the Knicks make about who to hire as their next general manager, might be a decision based on who they think gives them the best rapport with Creative Artists Agency.

Sports writers Stefan Bondy and Frank Isola addressed this subject in the New York Daily earlier this month. The article explained, how both, Mark Warkentien, who is currently a Knicks consultant and Isaiah Thomas, the ex-general manager of the Knicks, have a good relationship with CAA.

More specifically, Bondy and Isola state the following, “Warkentien is represented by Creative Artists Agency, the most influential representation in the NBA. Thomas also has a cozy relationship with CAA and its power broker, William Wesley, which he used to convince Dolan to get involved in the chases for LeBron James and Anthony.” Bondy and Isola elaborate that because of their good relationship with CAA, Thomas and Warkentien could be candidates to replace Donnie Walsh.

The fact is that if the Knicks re-hired Thomas it would be a public relations nightmare for the team. However, if the Knicks feel Thomas is the person best suited to form a rapport with CAA they could keep interim general manager Glen Grunwald as the GM. Grunwald has a close relationship with Thomas since their days together with the Pacers, Raptors, and most previously the Knicks front office.

As Frank Isola notes in a recent article, Grunwald’s relationship with Thomas’s could result in him being hired. Isola states, “Grunwald’s association with Thomas, who serves as an unofficial consultant to Dolan, doesn’t hurt either.”

Isola’s quote leads one to believe that Grunwald could be used as a pawn by Dolan to kill two birds with one stone. Grunwald could be hired by Dolan as the next general manager in order to prevent a public relations disaster. Or, at the same time he could be used to keep Thomas as a close adviser to the Knicks. Ultimately, he could be used as a link to CAA that forms a good rapport between the team and the agency before Paul and Williams are to become free agents.

Note: citations are courtesy of, Thomas K. Arnold of USA Today, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo sports, cbssports.com’s blog—eye on the basketball, and writers Stefan Bondy and Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.

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The world will in fact be coming to an end if this fall is without football or basketball…what will happen if I wake up the first Sunday in September with no football or the first week of November without games being played in the NBA.

What will we have left? It brings tears just thinking about that sad day…yes tears, real manly tears of course.

Ray Lewis spoke of increased violence if football is not played, obviously an exaggeration- but speaking of myself, I might literally harm someone; I apologize in advance.  I mean really though, what will I do, what will I talk about with friends?

Maybe we will do some shopping and bond over our newly improved wardrobes. Or talk more about the same famous movie stars which we will never have…but how long will that last…our pop culture references will surely improve though.   On Sundays, maybe church will occupy those hours which were reserved for the nfl.  On second thought, that’s not likely to happen- service on Sundays will only remind me of where I should be and what team I should be praying for; I know I’m not the only one.

I know what I’ll do, this could serve as a perfect opportunity to catch up on some illegal movie downloads and exhaust my appreciation for Netflix.

Oh how depressing you may be saying to yourself, but what choice do I have. Do you expect me to spend my Sundays watching the last round of an irrelevant golf tournament without tiger woods? Do you see me or any self respecting fan to watch the Canadian league? No sir,I won’t do neither.

I’ll just watch some soccer hoping America develops a striker good enough to lead us somewhere down the line…while taking breaks between a DVD set of the wire from starting from season 1…please Don’t judge me fellow spots fans.

Oh yeah I forgot about our pastime, baseball…the problem is, that gets old real quick and sadly enough, won’t last forever; I know I just confused some of you, but that last line makes sense if you read it from the mind of a scared confused sports fan.

Most importantly, I won’t get a chance to redeem myself from last year’s beat down in my fantasy league.  I had great team by the way, injuries just did me in…but it doesn’t matter now does it.  I had a perfect name in mind for my team this year that I won’t get to unveil; it’s a shame if you ask me.

It’s sad to say but I’ll probably watch NFL network on Sundays, pretending I haven’t seen that particular game before.  Next I’ll flip to NBA TV, watch the replay of Lebron chocking in the finals while wondering as did Dwight Howard, where his hair line will be by next year.

What else can I do? What would you do in a world without that one thing that occupies a large portion of your thoughts and ideas? That one thing that causes arguments between brothers and sisters, sometimes resulting in blood lost; at the same time causes men to gamble away the rent.

This is my take on the importance of such sports in our society; of course in an exaggerated manner, but to some, football is their religion and basketball is a soap opera that we can’t turn away from.  So ask yourself what your Sundays will look like in the winter…can you feel the chill?

Cold isn’t it?

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Adrian Peterson is one of the top running backs in the NFL. His ability to run over defenders with electric speed has made the Minnesota Viking, a once in a lifetime talent.  Known mostly by his alter ego, “All Day”, Peterson is known for his constant work ethic and the ability to never take off a down. His relentless on the field effort must have been his excuse for skipping his own youth camp; he was probably too tired.

The Old Spice Adrian Peterson Football Camp is a held at Peterson’s alma mater, Oklahoma University. The camp, that ran “All Day” this past Thursday and Friday, was for 7-14 year olds looking to improve their game from the NFL’s best. Unfortunately, that never happened.

A few days prior to the camps start date, an announcement was made over its website that Adrian Peterson would be unable to make an appearance. An announcement on the camps website cited scheduling conflicts for the reason of Peterson’s absence and that he will be featured on the NFL’s top 100 players list. Peterson apologized to the camp goers and says he is very excited to be back in 2012 to host the camp.

Scheduling conflicts? Is this a joke? I have a man crush on Adrian Peterson as much as the next guy, but man what about the kids? If not for anything, do it for them. Or maybe do it for the parents. The parents that just dropped $200 (when most NFL players are holding free youth camps) for their children to have a chance to spend two days with their football idol; just to get their hearts broken when he doesn’t show up.

Kids, get your money back because an Adrian Peterson camp without well, Adrian Peterson, is a waste of time. The camp tried to save its reputation by getting some notable football names to take over Peterson’s duties as camp host.  Former Sooner Standouts, Mark Clayton of the St. Louis Rams, Rookie Dallas Cowboys running back, DeMarco Murray, and former Heisman Trophy winning quarterback, Jason White will be running the show in Peterson’s place. Sounds like a great bargain if you signed up for the Adrian Peterson camp ran by mediocre ex- Oklahoma Sooners. When I first read this I thought that those three were on the list of camp attendees. Wait; is it stretching it to praise Jason White as mediocre? Doesn’t he sell insurance now?

I want to personally apologize to all of the children who were looking forward to some football tutelage from the games best. I know I would be heartbroken and probably keep my #28 Peterson jersey in the back of the closet for awhile. Just the back of the closet though, lets not go doing anything heinous like  a Lebron James burning parade, part ll. All in all, the man did apologize and is missing the camp to be part of a very prestigious league event. Would the NFL have taken him off the Top 100 list if he missed the festivities? Probably not, but hey, the guy is in no contention for a Super Bowl ring anytime soon so let’s let him enjoy his moments of glory. Am I still disappointed? Yes, but It seems as if “All Day” just needed a few days off.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/vikingsfrenzy/

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Clutch is a word that gets thrown around in sports at every level and that word can make a player, or in some cases destroy that player.

That word is nothing new in sports and I’ve often wondered if that level or lack thereof for some players really explain their behavior in pressure situations or is it just a cop out for us fans who don’t exactly know the mind set of these athletes…then again, we always hear athletes describe themselves and other players in these terms as well.

I have never been the type to throw that word around because there are so many factors that contribute to the success rate of any athlete, but I’ve come to realize that there is a certain pattern that goes with being the definition of the word clutch itself instead of crumbling under the weight of the moment.

Before I get into my view on this word, it is important to explain why it took me to this point to fully appreciated its meaning and to notice when a player lacks the mental make up to be clutch. It happened during the NBA finals several weeks ago…no, this is not another article bashing Lebron James or any other athlete who is perceived to be weak mentally.  Instead it taught me that some players, aside from lacking a certain clutch gene do not possess the will to win…maybe they are one in the same but I don’t think so; especially in the case of Lebron James.

I describe Lebron who is still the most talented  and physically gifted player in the league as a front runner and one thing we know about front runners is that when it comes down to bitting down, fighting back and willing a victory, they disappear.

The great ones are both…they find a way to win by being clutch and willing their team to victory.

A player like Gilbert Arenas for example is clutch but in the form of a role player, not as a player you can build a team around… but being clutch is nothing more than taking the shot.  Yes Lebron has been clutch at times, we were witnesses to that during the Celtic series and the Bulls series… also back during his time in Cleveland facing the pistons where he scored 29 straight points; the man is talented, but as a great player you must be all things at all times.  We must see the clutch gene accompanied by the will to win.

No one hits every shot on the basketball court, Kobe doesn’t hit every shot and Jordan the definition of will and clutch never hit every shot, but he took those shots.

Basketball ball is a sport where you can hide behind teammates; you appear to be a great team player by making a great pass to an open shooter who hits the game winning shot, which we have seen Lebron do many times.

What is in the mental makeup of these players who seem to lose confidence in the same things which got them to the heights of their respected sports?

A player that has been compared to Lebron is Alex Rodriguez and the comparisons are pretty fair when you consider what the Yankee 3^rd basemen went through early in his Yankee career.  He was known as a regular season player who seemed to shrink on the big stage.  The difference with Arod and Lebron is the stage itself; in baseball, a player stands alone in front of thousands, there are no teammates in the batting cage with you.

What Arod went through is tougher only because baseball is tougher as a sport; there are no passes to be made to open teammates to pick you up…those flashing lights of stardom blind the weak ones and they never recover.  But he did.

Did his mind set change, becoming more comfortable in the big stage, maybe he did.  Or maybe he started out well and the confidence that goes with getting one hits snowballed forming a different man with less to prove.

Will the same happen for Lebron, no I don’t see it…not until he gets better as a player.

Sports Psychologist are becoming the new performance enhancers of the sports world and that becomes the next step for a player like Lebron, but as I just stated he needs to improve his game first before he improves himself mentally.  His game didn’t allow him to will his team to a victory in the process showcasing the “clutchness” which he is capable of.

Every team will need a sports psychologist at some point.  It was surprising to find out that the Mavericks had a sports psychologist on staff over the last couple years.  Is that the reason Dirk shed his soft not clutch label and has become the player we see today.  Will that be the fate of a player like Lebron on whom the pressure will increase until he wins a championship?

Tennis great Jimmy Connors once said that winning is 90% mental and we have seen examples of this in all sports from Skiing to boxing and most obvious sports like football and soccer.

Competitive Anxiety is what they call what I witnessed from the best athlete in basketball…let’s just hope he is not too proud to admit he needs help and decides to live in a gym this summer.

For the NBA’s sake and for the sake of this hopeful global icon.

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Despite LeBron James’s noted playoff collapses during his eight seasons in the NBA, this season seemed to be different. Most of the conversation in the past was about James’s collapses in crunch-time of playoff games.  The NBA Finals between the Heat and the Mavericks, which recently ended, was a step back in a lot of ways for James.  Thus far, James has been “UNLIKE MIKE” when it comes to his playoff résumé, especially this year.

Against the Mavericks, James put up points that would be considered spectacular for any average player. Still, James has displayed that he has the ability to play at a caliber way above most players in the League; therefore, we must hold him accountable for his performance against the Mavericks.

James, who has dominated his fair share of playoff games and countless regular season games, has the ability to take over the game single handedly. This is why there have been so many comparisons to him and Jordan throughout his eight-years in the league. People compare him to Jordan because they have seen bits and pieces of how dominant James can be.

The difference between James and Jordan is James is dominant sometimes and Jordan was dominant all the time, especially in crunch-time of the playoffs. It is said that great players produce in big moments, such as crunch-time of playoff games. This has not been James to date, but it was Jordan throughout his illustrious career.

Against the Mavericks, James’ highest point total was 24 points in game one; James didn’t match this point performance for the rest of the series. In fact, James points per game decreased from his high of 24 points to his low of 8 points for the series in game four.

Respectfully, in games two, three, five and six, James scored 20 points, 17 points, 17 points and 21 points. To say James under produced is truthful with the caliber of play he is capable of.  James is capable of scoring 30-40 plus points a night. In fact, James has done this many times throughout his career, even in the playoffs, but James has not done this when it has mattered most.

Unlike King James, HIS AIRNESS always took over playoff games. Jordan’s playoff stats are nearly impossible to argue against being that he is arguably the greatest of all time. For his career, Jordan had two playoff games in which he finished with a triple double. James has not had any triple doubles during the Playoffs

Jordan’s career average for field goal percentage during the playoffs is .487. In comparison, James career average for field goal percentage is .460. Jordan’s career average for 3-point percentage during the playoffs is .332. In comparison, for the playoffs, James has an average of 323 from behind the arc. Jordan’s career average for free throw percentage during the playoffs is .828, while James has a free throw percentage of .746 for his playoff career.

With his career average of 33.4 points per playoff games, Jordan is the all time leader. In comparison, James has a career average of 28 points per game during the playoffs.

Throughout his career, Jordan averaged at least 30 points in the playoffs for all but one year! The year that Jordan averaged less than 30 points was during his rookie season with the Bulls in 1984-85. Even then, Jordan scored a smidge under 30 points a game (29,3 PPG). Jordan’s highest career average for playoff points per game was a whopping 43.7 points in his sophomore season (1985-86)!

In the playoffs, Jordan scored 60-plus points only once, however his record (63 Points), stand as the NBA record for points during a playoff game. If the regular season is included, Jordan had a total of five 60-plus point games during his career! This puts him in rarefied company, joining only 3 other players who have had multiple 60 point games.

Jordan accomplished the feat of 50-plus points a game seven times during his playoff career. If the regular season is included, Jordan had 34 games during his career in which he scored 50 plus point!

At 40-plus points a game, 30-plus points a game and 20-plus points a game, Jordan’s attainment of these feats dramatically increases.

Jordan scored 40-plus points a game 30 times during his playoffs career. If the regular season is included, Jordan did this a total of 172 times during career!

During the playoffs, Jordan scored 30-plus points a whopping 71 times! Include the regular season and Jordan scored 30-plus points during a game a whopping 460 times!

Interestingly, Jordan accomplished the marginally easier feat of scoring 20-plus points, fewer times than he accomplished the feat of scoring 30-plus points. Jordan scored 20-plus points, 64 times during the playoffs. Include the regular season and Jordan scored 20-plus points a total of 428 times during his entire career. This is still impressive, despite the dip in comparison to the feat of scoring 30-plus points a game.

There is no doubt that LeBron’s career and playoff résumé is impressive, especially in its own right. But it is not at the stage where it can be compared to the résumé of Jordan. The numbers don’t lie. Jordan’s résumé is far and away better than LeBron’s. Despite the unquestionable distinction between both players’ career accomplishments, another distinction that is important to take into account is the era in which they played..

Truth be told, the era Jordan played in was just a lot more physical. The 1990’s were a time when players would get pummeled if they drove to the basket or were in the paint area. Jordan competed against guys like Charles Oakley and Anthony Mason, who, for all intensive purposes, would try to knock opposing players to the hardwood floor. It is quite different in today’s era of basketball there are many whistles and foul calls. The best players are usually protected by these whistles and foul call, especially in the circumstance of driving to the basket or being in the paint area.

Ultimately, until LeBron James Wins Six Championships, he cannot be compared to Michael Jordan. Even then it’s still a questionable call. The conversation of whether LeBron James or Michael Jordan is better is like comparing apples and oranges. One has six rings and the other has zero!  When KING JAMES has six rings it will be time to start the debate. But until then, LeBron James should be considered HIS HEIRNESS and HIS AIRNESS—Michael Jordan, should be considered KING JORDAN.

Note: stats are courtesy of ESPN.com and the website: www.michaeljordansworld.com

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Tyson Chandler, of the Dallas Mavericks, and LeBron James, of the Miami Heat, both of whom are competing against each other in the NBA finals this year, played AAU basketball growing up. As George Dohrmann says in his book, Play Their Hearts Out, “Nearly every great-American-born basketball player of the last ten year—from Kevin Garnett to Kobe Bryant to Tracy McGrady to LeBron James—has been a product of the AAU system, yet it remains a largely unexplored world.” But know, thanks to Dohrmann’s book, many surprising connections between AAU coaches, players and large sneaker companies have been brought to light.

Dohrmann’s book uncovers details about how the AAU basketball system works. For general reference, AAU is a basketball organization for pre-college aged players. Some of the coaches for AAU have been known to have affiliations with large sneaker companies such as Nike and Adidas, who wish to align promising young talent with their products. Therefore, these coaches will be paid significant sums of money by these companies and be given their products. Then, the coaches have been known to extravagantly shower their AAU players with these products, as well as other gifts. Tyson Chandler is one such player. Dohrmann discusses one of Chandlers AAU coaches, stating,”He had allegedly bought Chandler a Cadillac Escalade, moved Chandler’s family from San Bernardino…and taken him on shopping sprees for clothes and shoes that often exceeded $5,000.”Dohrmann also explains, how on one occasion, George Raveling, the head of grassroots basketball for Nike, contacted Chandler’s coach at the time, for both Chandlers “shoe size and his address”. Following the call “approximately 20 pairs of shoes” arrived at Chandlers house.

To understand when and how the recruitment system by sneaker companies dipped into to AAU basketball market, one needs to know the story of Sonny Vaccaro and Nike Founder Phil Knight. Vaccaro approached Phil Knight in 1978 with a business proposition. The proposition was that Vaccaro himself could help Knight and Nike compete with Converse, a sneaker company that had the monopoly on the basketball-shoe market at the time.  Vaccaro’s proposed plan was centered around the fact that he had connections to college coaches and believed that with these connections, he would be able to get the best collegiate players to wear Nike. Vaccaro believed that the best collegiate players wearing Nike shoes would create a domino effect to the fanbase.  Vaccaro believed if the best collegiate players were wearing Nike, fans would be enticed to buy the same sneakers their favorite players were wearing.

Vaccaro cemented his claims in 1984 when he signed Michael Jordan to Nike. Michael was then only a sophomore at North Carolina and had yet to grow into arguably the best basketball player of all time. A year later, in 1985, all four final-four teams would be wearing Nikes, which symbolized their control of the market. In 1992, six years after the 1985 tournament, and after being fired a year earlier by Nike, Vaccaro joined Adidas.  Vaccaro decided to bring Adidas to the AAU level in order to gain control of the youth market because thanks to his earlier work Nike already had the college basketball monopoly. Shortly after, Nike aligned itself with the AAU market as well.

All in all, George Dohrmann’s book Play Their Hearts Out is a fascinating account of the world of grassroots basketball.  For any basketball fan, Play Their Hearts Out is a must read and it will change the way that you look at the game.

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Throughout the NBA playoffs, most recently the finals, the spotlight has been put on the referees and the way that they have treated star players on the court.

Though fans are currently focused on basketball, namely players like LeBron James and Dwyane Wade (who can seemingly get to the free throw line any time they choose to flail their arms or legs), the truth is that this phenomenon seems to be consistent across all sports.

The fact is that many officials will give the benefit of the doubt to the best veteran players. Whether this is a conscious action is another story.

When it comes to the NBA, some people are beginning to think that the league is altogether “fixed” in order to give an edge to some of the superstars. So many times when Dwyane Wade makes a strong move toward the basket, it seems that the referees have made the decision to call the foul before the actual outcome of the play. It seems that the powers at be are doing whatever they can to make these players get their rings.

Another key example of this can be seen week after week in the NFL. Premier quarterbacks such as Peyton Manning or Tom Brady can barely be touched at all without a roughing the passer flag coming out. However, do we see those same flags come out when young players like Colt McCoy take a big hit? I don’t think so.

In baseball, a popular hitter like Derek Jeter might get an edge on a close pitch if he is facing a rookie pitcher. Why? Maybe it just so happens to work out that way, but all probability points to the fact that players like Jeter not only know many of the umpires personally, but have a solid reputation across the league.

Of course fans want to see their stars do well and obtain gargantuan statistics, it’s just good for the leagues. That being said, are they being babied so much so that they are beginning to pick-up on it themselves?

For example, in crunch time of a basketball game, what is to stop LeBron from driving right into the chest of the opposing team’s big man, knowing that all game he has gotten his way with the referees? If he can wave his arms around after he throws the ball up and get to the free throw line regardless of contact, why wouldn’t he do that if it will help his team win? This is the mentality that has been so unfortunately spread among some of the league’s elite.

In other generations, there was too much pride for any of this to go on. Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon did everything they could to make the ball go through the hoop every time they attacked the rim. Simply knowing that they could probably get to the free throw line wasn’t good enough when they believed they could score every time they shot the ball. If they missed and got the call, so be it, but that surely wasn’t the goal. Some players have lost that edge these days.

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy, who was fired from the league and faced criminal charges for fixing professional basketball games, has become somewhat of a whistle-blower as of late, claiming that the NBA is indeed fixed for superstar players to get their way. After some of the recent NBA Finals games he has posted YouTube videos with commentary regarding the unjust calls that are given to LeBron James, but not other players. Although he may not the the most honest person, he is an inside source, and that should send a meaningful message.

The “flopping” problem has gotten so bad that some fans and analysts have called for fines of players for intentionally trying to deceive referees to gain an edge (an idea that I most definitely can get on board with).

Is it the referees fault for being biased towards certain players? Is it the players fault for knowing they can work the referees to gain advantage? Is it the leagues fault for letting this all go too far?

I honestly believe it is a balance of all of these things. Some athletes need to get the mentality back that they can do anything, and not settle for being able to work the refs for a win. Nobody wants to see a pair of unwarranted free throws decide the NBA Finals. Nobody wants a bad roughing the passer penalty to give a free first down and change the course of an NFL playoff game.

I can only hope as a fan of the games, that the leagues and their respective officials will get together and right the wrongs that are plaguing our favorite sports. This is a problem that can and should be fixed very soon.

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This years NBA Final is giving fans not only incredibly entertaining play on the court, but countless underlying stories that have kept everyone talking, even on the off days.

Everybody knows that superstars run the NBA, and because of that, commissioner David Stern must have had a grin as wide as the Grand Canyon when the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks reached the finals.

I want to start by saying that Dwyane Wade deserves every bit as much recognition as LeBron James for bringing Miami this far. I most definitely do not wish to ignore his accomplishments because he has a solid argument to be just as talented as any other player in the world. The thing about Wade is that he has already been to the promised land. He has hardware on his side, and that can never be taken away from him no matter how many times he may lose from here on in.

Now that I’ve said that, we can move on to who we all know who the big story really revolves around here.

LeBron James has been criticized more than any other player in the league for not having a championship ring on his finger at this point in his career. He has upped his game to the point where he is unquestionably the best player in the NBA, and probably the world. At this point, the only thing he has to worry about, is his legacy moving forward. If LeBron really wants to go down as one of the absolute best, he’s going to need the hardware.

Dirk Nowitzki is at this moment considered by many to be the greatest international player ever to grace the NBA, not to mention the best shooting big man of all time. He has brought a style of play that nobody has ever seen in the history of this game, and as of late has proved to be impossible to guard at virtually any spot on the court. Unfortunately he, like LeBron, is missing the same thing that they have been chasing their entire careers.

These two probably could not be more different people if they tried, aside from the arc of their careers to this point. Although Dirk has been around the block a few more times than LeBron, they find themselves at a similar point in the eyes of the rest of the world. Both men have been to the finals one time, been unimpressive to say the least, and gone home with disappointment rather than future hall of fame votes. This is their second chance.

The term “on fire” does not even begin to describe the way each of them have been playing to this point in the playoffs, not to mention the impressive performances that have kept fans on the edge of their seats thus far in the finals.

Even their stats are similar. To this point Dirk has 28.1 points per game in the playoffs to LeBron’s 25.5 (but when we factor in how much more help LeBron has on the floor, the numbers seem to even themselves out). Rebounds? Dirk has 7.8 per game to LeBron’s 8.8. Even their shooting has been incredible with both men raining down countless outside shots and going on uncanny made free-throw streaks to lead their teams to victory.

This will surely prove to be a battle between these stars, and nothing should be taken away from either of them no matter the outcome of the series. Unfortunately the key word there is should, and the fans, or the media for that matter, doesn’t exactly abide by the same rules of respect that I do.

Nobody knows what will happen in the remaining games in the finals. In 2006 most everybody believed that Dirk and the Mavericks had the series wrapped up halfway through game 3, but some teams lay eggs and we just can’t see it coming. One thing is for absolute certain, the remaining games in the coming days just may decide a lot about how these two players are remembered.

Should Dallas lose, Dirk’s chance at a ring may be gone for good. He will be remembered as a great scorer and shooter who just could never get over the hump. In the spectrum of all-time players, he will be considered really good, but not great, somewhere many players would appreciate being, but somewhere a true champion never wants to end up.

Should Dallas win, in my opinion, Nowitzki will be knocking on the door of the hall of fame. A complete career, an MVP award, a ring, and the honor of being not only the best player ever from Germany, but probably ever as an international player in the NBA. Not matter what would happen after this year, he would go out the way he wanted to.

On the other hand, if the Heat were to lose, the media would have a field day. Worse than the Brett Favre retirement fiasco, worse than Tiger Woods’ scandal, we would hear about LeBron’s uncanny ability to lose the big game for an entire year before the next season started again.

That would make two times that it seemed “King James” would finally reach the promised land and come up short. His career is already complete aside from the championships, and since everybody knows he wants to the the absolute best, the rings are what he needs.

He is still incredibly young and has plenty more time, but this one would have a real toll on him and maybe the rest of his career. He is focused and ready now, and everyone is sensing that this is the time, no more excuses.

If they win, all the talk goes away. He would have it all. The rings, the MVP’s, the scoring titles, everything. He would already be considered one of the greatest, no matter how hated he may be around the country. The only thing left to do would be to build a trophy room and wait for more championships to roll in after having the confidence of the first. Comparisons to the great one’s would be everywhere. His dream would be achieved.

I for one, can not wait to see what happens. These last few games of the season is going to have an incredibly impact on how people view these two outstanding basketball players. Most people don’t realize it quite yet, but LeBron James and Dirk Nowitzki really are playing with their legacies on the line.

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Fourteen-year-old Nick Gilbert embodied it best Tuesday night after learning that the Cleveland Cavaliers had won the NBA lottery. He raised his hand and his face beamed with excitement. The tides may be beginning to turn for Clevelanders who have had notoriously bad luck with their sports teams. The ping pong balls fell their way twice, even better than in 2003, giving the Cavs the number four pick as well, and continuing a positive change in the Cleveland landscape since the departure of that lottery pick, LeBron James. While most of the country is experiencing Seattle-like weather, the sun is shining in Cleveland these days.

LeBron James left a black eye on the face of Cleveland sports fans, spurning his hometown for the glamour of south beach, but as always their hate has bred passion. The Bulls have proven they can stand toe to toe with the Heat, and the fans in Cleveland can bandwagon on to the team that decimated them many years ago. Michael Jordan and “The Shot” that has been played over and over again was 22 years ago. The loss in the Eastern Conference Finals once again to the Bulls was 19 years ago. Cavs fans will forget all about that for the time being if the Bulls can eliminate public enemy number one. With two picks that high in the draft, the Cavs should be back in the playoffs next year, where they could likely try to dethrone James themselves, a quick turnaround for a franchise that lost their king just a year ago.

Then there is baseball. A quarter way through the baseball season the Cleveland Indians are leading the American League Central and have the best record in baseball. This may come as a big surprise to most baseball fans, and although it’s early in the season the Indians could have the staying power to make a run at the playoffs.

If history says anything about how this team will perform, a glance at the minor leagues can give uneasy Clevelanders something to grab hold of. They have a lot of talent coming up, and their winning ways should continue on as they develop more talent at the minor league level. Two years ago the Indians AA team the Akron Aeros won the championship, and last year their AAA team the Columbus Clippers won the championship. Now that is no prediction for the big club to win it all this year, but the franchise is developing winners, and a winning attitude, something that has been absent from Cleveland, and perhaps an ingredient that will finally put them over the top.

The crystal ball and development of youth has not been the sheer reasons why the Indians have been so successful this year. Manny Acta’s team is doing it in every phase of the game. Their offense ranks in the top three in runs, batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. Their pitching staff ranks in the top seven in ERA, quality starts, WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched), and batting average against. Josh Tomlin and Justin Masterson are both 5-1 and boast ERA’s under three. With a five game lead over the Tigers, and the Twins and White Sox underachieving, the division is there for the taking keeping Clevelanders engaged and excited throughout the summer.

All seems well in Cleveland these days, and if the NFL gets its act together, maybe it will be a good year for even the Browns.

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Lebron James was once again King James in game 2 tonight against the stagnant Bulls whose defense kept them in the game but was no match at the end. His performance tonight was what Dwayne Wade envisioned when he recruited good friend James to join his depleted heat squad.

Dwayne Wade had a good night scoring 24 points on 16 shots, being very efficient against the best defensive team in the league this past regular season.  More importantly his 9 rebounds showed the effort that they lacked in game 1 where they were out hustled on the boards by more than 12.

The Bulls played their usual tough defense that they have come to be known for but the hustle along with the energy seemed to have disappeared along with Derick Rose’s ability to get to the paint at will.

Rose went 7 for 23 along with 8 assist but his energy and determination was not there thanks to the Miami defense which decided to sow up today.  Let’s not forget the Miami defense was statistically the 2^nd best defense in the league so this performance was nothing new for them.

Lebron James is slowly but surely quieting his critics in crunch time, delivering timely buckets with high level difficulty and not just driving blindly to the paint often resulting in block shots or even turning the ball over.  He poured in 29 points, 10 tough rebounds and 5 assist to Haslem and running mate Dwayne Wade.

Although Lebron was big in crunch time scoring 9 points to seal the victory, the true hero for Miami was Udonis Haslem.  He has played only 9 minutes this whole post season and his 23 minutes this game provided the spark needed to win the game.

Miami has two future hall of famers, what they lacked the first game was energy and rebounding which Haslem provided.

Chicago has Joakim Noah who was everywhere during game 1, whether it was loose ball or rebounding or a tip in, he did everything but tonight was different. He was relatively quiet during the second half and Haslem assumed the role left vacant by the absent Noah.

If this game showed us anything, it is that this series will come down to offense… yes, offense.  We all know that these two teams will play defense, that will not stop…with the exception being game one.  It came down to who can execute better offensively with the game on the line and Miami has two guys who can do this on regular basis and Chris Bosh, who can do this as well when needed to.

Derick Rose will have to find a way to run this offense and not get frustrated by not being able to drive at will like he has done in the past.  He will have to use his improved jump shot more often and maybe get his other teammates involved in the offense, mainly korver.

The Bulls bench is better and deeper than the Miami bench, so that is where they will have to win this series.   Miami’s starters, well Lebron and Wade will have to dominate and somewhere down the line Bosh will have to come up big once again.

The formula is there for both teams, now let’s see who will execute and meet Dallas in the NBA Finals.

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As NBA teams finish their final jockeying for seeding position, the ongoing race for league MVP has reached its crescendo. Several players have put forth worthy efforts this season, but only a handful will be legitimate contenders come voting time. Here is a breakdown of the likely candidates:

1. Derrick Rose: This point guard for the Bulls is averaging 25.1 points in just his third year as a pro. He has the Bulls in the East’s top spot, and the team has already clinched their conference. Rose has done it all this year, scoring, passing, and putting the Bulls on his back. He averages just under eight assists per game, and he has kept the Bulls on top even though big men Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah have missed a combined 57 games. The Bulls have really caught fire as of late. Rose won Player of the Month, after leading the Bulls to a 13-3 record. Some statisticians have been critical of Rose, citing his low shooting percentage, and measuring his stats against past MVP winners. According to their numbers, he would be the worst MVP winner of all time. But that hasn’t stopped big names like Michael Jordan to give Rose his endorsement.

2. Dwight Howard: Averaging 23.2 points, Howard has taken his game to another level this season. Howard has been the league’s Defensive Player of the Year twice, and leads the league in double-doubles. He is clearly the league’s best player down low, and with his improved scoring he has become even more dangerous. He is second in the league in rebounding, third in field goal percentage, and fifth in blocks. Howard has the Magic poised for the playoffs sitting as the four seed in the East. Howard has been the only constant on this suddenly revamped team, giving them a shot to go deeper into the playoffs. At the age of 25, Howard is soaring past all-time greats in all sorts of categories. This season he became the youngest player to reach 7,000 career rebounds, the fifth youngest player to reach 10,000 career points, and he had a season high eight blocks in a game against the Timberwolves. To add to these numbers he has recorded 64 double-doubles earning himself the endorsement and a legitimate shot at the MVP.

3. Dirk Nowitzki: After Rose and Howard there is some controversy as to who comes next. It seems a lock that one of the top two will win the MVP but there is not a huge disparity in numbers or significance between some of the other candidates. Nowitzki is seeking his second MVP and has had another solid year leading the Mavericks to the three seed in the West. He averages around 23 points, and seven boards, while shooting over 52 percent from the field. Nowitzki has also shot over 41 percent from behind the three-point line. Nowitzki is invaluable to his team, and without him the Mavericks would find it difficult to even make the playoffs in the competitive West.

4. Amare Stoudemire: Stoudemire has the Knicks back in the playoffs for the first time since 2004. For most of the season, Stoudemire did it himself, only surrounded by good role players to stay competitive in the East. The Knicks added Carmelo Anthony late in the year, cementing the team’s spot in the playoffs. Stoudemire is averaging more than 25 points, over eight boards, and is shooting just over 50 percent from the field. His numbers have vaulted him into the MVP race, but putting the Knicks, one of the most storied NBA franchises, back on the map makes him that much more of a candidate.

5. LeBron James: The reigning NBA MVP winner has continued to put up numbers even after being surrounded by two other stars. Averaging more than 26 points, 7.5 rebounds, and almost seven assists, he is still the favorite of many experts even if he has thrown his own support behind leading candidate Rose. James has also shot well, shooting just over 50 percent from the field and 33 percent from three-point land. With All-stars, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on his team, his numbers have not dipped significantly, but having this many stars on one team has taken a hit on his MVP candidacy.

6. Kobe Bryant: Kobe will always be in the discussion for MVP, and as the No. 2 seed in the West, the Lakers are poised to win another championship. This is one area where Bryant trails LeBron James, and he would love to even the score at two each, but it will be difficult for him to win this year. He averages just more than 25 points, more than 5 boards and just under 5 assists, but is shooting only 45 percent from the field for the season. The Lakers have a legitimate shot at a three-peat, but Kobe’s chances as the MVP winner leading them there are slim.

7. Kevin Durant: Leading the Thunder to the four seed in the West, Durant is averaging more than 27 points, and nearly seven boards. His teammate, Russell Westbrook is also having a fantastic year, detracting somewhat from Durant’s candidacy. Other knocks on Durant have been his struggles on defense, and against the top teams in the West. The Thunder are 0-2 vs. the Lakers, 0-3 vs. San Antonio, 1-2 vs. Dallas, 1-1 vs. Bulls, 1-1 vs. Boston, and 1-1 vs. Miami. To be the best in the NBA you have to beat the best, and Durant simply hasn’t proven he can do that yet.

League MVP voters are instructed to make their decision before the start of the postseason. The likelihood of this plan is doubtful, so the bottom line is that the team’s performance in the playoffs may ultimately determine the outcome. At this point, though, the MVP trophy looks headed to Chicago.

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