The Closer and America's Overreactions

Being clutch isn't about beating scrubs in January; its about closing games in May and June... And anyone who still thinks that LeBron James is not clutch is foolish.

Mr. Clutch

After last night's performance in which he and Dwayne Wade combined for a 18-3 run to finish off the Bulls, even the Miami haters have to admit that LeBron has already established himself as one of the greatest to ever play.

He did it against Boston, draining multiple 3's in Paul Pierce's mouth, and last night he proved that no matter how "elite" the opposing defense is, homeboy is gonna come through in the clutch.  Say what you want about his poor last minute shooting in the regular season, but who cares about the regular season anyway?  The 82 game regular season is borderline unwatchable... noooobody except basketball purists can stand it.


One more point I wanna make after watching this series: Derrick Rose is not the Most Valuable Player in the NBA.  Skip Bayless said it best on ESPN2's 1st and 10: Rose is a shoot first point guard and you can't win titles with a shoot first point guard.  It's why the Bulls got bested, and it's why Russell Westbrook and the Thunder couldn't oust  Dallas.

Derrick Rose will someday be MVP caliber.  But not today.  America hugely overreacted when he started putting up stats against mediocre teams, but so far he has done nothing that transcend what LeBron has done.

I am feverishly rooting for King James against the Mavs, and hope that he once again proves why he is head and shoulders the best in the league.

NBA Playoffs

I have never been so excited about the NBA.  The playoffs are filled with young talent, and its finally not the same old Kobe and Phil love-fest in late May/early June. 

Hate on King James all you want, but when he plays, you watch.  Looks like taking his talents to South Beach wasn't such a bad idea, after all.  And no matter how much David Stern would hate to admit it, he is probably thrilled that the big 3 are playing well.

Both conference semifinals are crazy intriguing.  I'm hoping for a Heat v. Thunder finals.  Durantula (who is undoubtedly the most entertaining player to watch right now) and King James on the same court would be sweet.

Final Four: Who's Watching?

Come Saturday evening at 6:09 pm, two Cinderellas will take the court and battle for a spot in the National Championship game.  Shaka Smart and his Rams will  try to silence the critics once again, attempting to take down Butler and end the seemingly perpetual love-fest between the sports media and Butler head coach Brad Stevens. 

The media glorifies these types of match-ups- games that epitomize the blue collar work ethic of America and prove that the little guy can make it.  But quite frankly, this Final Four match-up  is possibly the worst game that the heralded 68 team bracket could have produced. 

Call me an elitist, but let's get over ourselves: No one wants to watch two average, small market teams play in college basketball's most sacred weekend. 

America feeds on the big game.  It's why this year's Super Bowl got a monster TV rating: America loves the Packers, and America loves the Steelers.  If the Seattle Seahawks would have continued their unpredictable run and made it to the Super Bowl, the rating wouldn't have been nearly as high; because if we're honest, then we'd realize that no one would rather watch Matt Hasselbeck than Aaron Rodgers.  Likewise, no one wants to watch Joey Rodriguez instead of the Morris twins....

Which leads me to Joey Rodriguez.  I've had the opportunity to see him play numerous times in person, (he's been at VCU for like 78 years) and he is nothing more than a mediocre point guard in a mediocre league.  His recent success should not be attributed to skill, but rather to the opposition's failure to sufficiently prepare.  I give him all the props in the world for playing his heart out in this tournament, but he (along with the rest of the VCU players) is getting way too much credit.

Come Saturday at 6:09 pm, I might just get a movie and hang out with the boys, because I guarantee you that (insert actor/actress of your choice) will be more entertaining than VCU v Butler.  America wants a big time game;  one that features two heavyweight programs battling it out.  America wants UCONN v Kentucky, Calhoun v Calipari,  and Kemba Walker v Brandon Knight.

A t the end of the day, a Final Four game that features a whopping 0 NBA players and two mediocre teams just dies not cut it.  And at the end of the day, even Cinderella's Prince Charming may not even show up with the glass slipper. 

More Playoff Picks

A little late, but here are my picks for this weekend's playoff matchups.

Baltimore vs Pittsburgh

Honestly, I think this is just a coin flip game.  However it is important to note that Ben Roethlisberger has won his last 6 against the Ravens.  The game is in Pittsburgh too, but it's not like home-field advantage has played any role in this series. 

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say this game may be slightly physical.

Bottom Line:  Pittsburgh wins by 3

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Green Bay vs Atlanta

I'm not in love with Aaron Rodgers, but I'm not totally sold on Matt Ryan either.  Both are extremely talented, but they need to majorly improve before people start comparing them to Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.

It's hard to go against Green Bay, especially after they proved that they could run the ball this past weekend.  Matt Ryan's nearly flawless home record is going to take another hit this weekend.

Bottom Line:  Green Bay wins by 6 

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Seattle vs Chicago

This game may be the lock of the weekend.  Chicago might win by 20.  It is almost impossible for the Seahawks to match the energy that they played with last weekend, and I can guarantee you that Marshawn Lynch will not be registering any minor earthquakes this week. 

Easy pick.

Bottom Line:  Chicago wins by 13

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NY Jets vs New England

I loathe Rex Ryan.....  Tom Brady is going to be keeping his haircut for at least one more week.  He is too good.

Bottom Line:  New England wins by 7

Random NFL Thoughts and Auburn in kind of Good

I was 2-2 last weekend in my picks.  Not solid.  Here are a few thoughts after a football-packed weekend

1.  The Ravens are sick.  Yes, Matt Cassel was ill-prepared to face a tough D, but Baltimore is a nasty team to only get a wild card spot.  They're gonna take it to Pittsburgh this weekend.
 

2.  People are giving Ed Reed too much sympathy.  His brother, who jumped in a river and went missing, was running away from the cops.  I don't know.  Maybe it's just me, but I find it hard to sympathize with this guy when after all, his brother was not running for a worthy cause.

3.  Why is everyone shocked that Seattle won?  Regardless of the mediocre competition in the NFC West, they still won the division, and they still deserved a playoff spot.  Big props to Pete Carroll and his boys for knocking people off of the New Orleans bandwagon.

4.  Michael Vick is overrated.  I've said it since Kolb got hurt and Vick got the starting job: the NFL is a league of adjustment, and good teams will always find a way to neutralize a potent offense.  It's why the Jets shut down Peyton Manning and Vick struggled for the last few weeks of the season- once enough film gets out, no one is invincible.

5.  I still hate Rex Ryan.  He is so insecure that he says ridiculous things to try and make himself feel better.  I'm not a huge Pats guy, but I hope New England's 45-3 victory over the Jets earlier this year is only a glimpse of what will happen on Sunday.  And by the way... why on earth would you call out Belichick?


Also - Auburn is filthy.  They'll probably suck next year but they were fun to watch. 

And Shout out to Cam Newton... I guarantee you that the allegations made earlier this year were true.  Shouldn't be long until the NCAA cracks down on them; maybe a couple years.  But then again, the NCAA has a horrendous disciplinary policy (Reggie Bush, anyone?) so who knows.

Let's get over it.  Dude is not an NFL QB

Wild Card Weekend

This weekend features some pretty good NFL football.  Here are my picks and explanations... tell me what you think.

Jets v Colts

Once again Rex Ryan could not keep his mouth shut, going out on a limb and proclaiming his Jets to be the best team in the league.  Cool, Rex.  Peyton Manning will continue to let his play do the talking.  Manning and the Colts have only lost once to Ryan, and I don't see them losing tomorrow.


Bottom Line: Colts win by 7

Ravens v Chiefs

Todd Haley is going to need  a flawless performance from Matt Cassel if the Chiefs want to keep this one close.  Baltimore is nasty, and arguably one of the best wild card teams that the NFL has seen in a while.

Bottom Line: Ravens win by 10

Saints v Seahawks

Everyone is handing this game to New Orleans.  I think Seattle is going to put up a fight.  They play in one the loudest stadiums in the NFL, and Matt Hasselback carved up the New Orleans D earlier this year.  My gut goes with the Saints, but don't be surprised if Seattle steals this game.

Bottom Line: Saints win by 3

Packers v Eagles

I gotta go with Aaron Rodgers.  Michael Vick says his thigh is 100%, but even a healthy Vick hasn't proved that he can perform well while being blitzed.  Look for the Packers defense to blitz the heck out of Philly, and Aaron Rodgers will have a huge game.

Bottom Line: Packers win by 6

Luck to Stay at Stanford

Andrew Luck is staying at Stanford.

The sophomore shocked the football world, with his decision coming just days after he torched Virginia Tech's defense in the Orange Bowl.

I'd like to think that he wants to stay because he honestly loves college football and his school, but lets get serious: Who wants to play for the Panthers heading into a potential lock-out season?  Homeboy at ESPN has got it nailed... check out his article below and tell me what you think.


http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/commentary/news/story?page=kreidler/110107