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In the NBA, with the grouping of LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh, everybody thinks the Miami Heat are the team to beat.  Well, apparently everybody except one guy — Dwayne Wade himself.  In an interview, Wade said that the LA Lakers are still the team to beat.  They are the defending champions and still have Kobe, Gasol, and Phil Jackson.  Sure, the Heat are stacked now, but there’s no evidence yet that they will be able to play well together.  LeBron said you might even see them argue at times.  So, straight from Wade’s mouth, it’s the Lakers, not the Heat, sitting on the top of the mountain right now.

Elsewhere in some NBA news, a local Ohio woman recently bought a LeBron James pendant at a yard sale for $5.  Well, after having it appraised, she learned that these pendants were actually worth $10,000.  This shows you how much LeBron has fallen from grace in Cleveland.  His fans care more about discarding their memories of him than they do the value of his merchandise.  Now those are some intense fans.

In some free agent news, Kobe Bryant has been courting free agent Raja Bell to join the team.  This is interesting because in 2006, he and Bell had a feud which actually resulted in some major physical contact on the court (Bell clotheslined Bryant).  In a post-game interview Bryant called Bell “a kid” — completely condescending to him.  Well, 4 years later, Bryant wants Bell on the team.  They’ve even had a few meetings.  But, in the end, Bell is saying “No Thanks” to the Lakers and is headed to the Utah Jazz — a team that is seriously tooling up for next season.  Sorry, Kobe.

Meanwhile, back in Cleveland, the current Cavaliers look completely stripped.  They’re without their superstar and have landed none of the Top 15 free agents.  Essentially, they are empty handed.  They made a move for Rockets point guard Kyle Lowry, but the Rockets matched the offer and took that off the table.  They hoped to get Al Jefferson, but he went to the Jazz.  Truth is… they look really bad right now, and are almost certainly headed to the lottery.  Trouble for Cleveland is nobody wants to play there, and this means, most likely, that they will be rebuilding for, at least,  the next 4 seasons.  Before feeling sorry for them, keep in mind that they won LeBron in the lottery.  James easily could have gone to Detroit or Memphis in that draft.  Things just went Cleveland’s way, and they got a great 7 year run out of LeBron.

BASEBALL

It was a very special day for baseball for two reasons:  (1) The All-Star Game.  Yep, it was time for the best of the National and American to go head to head.  Some all-star games are all about offensive power and prowess, but this one… was a defensive struggle.  The American League finally got on the board in the 5th when the Yankees Robinson Cano hit a sacrifice fly to bring the Rays’ Evan Longoria home.  But, in the 7th, the Atlanta Braves Brian McCann hit a strong double to drive in 3 runs.  At the end, the Dodgers dominant closer Jonathan Broxton took the mound and secured the victory for the National League.  NL 3, AL 1.

And the second reason… Yankees long-time owner George Steinbrenner (known as the Boss) died yesterday at the age of 80 from a massive heart attack.  Steinbrenner had a reputation for the last 30 years of being a shrewd businessman who fired people on the spot.  However, he also changed the game of baseball.  He was the one who returned the New York Yankees to their dominant position in baseball.  Before him, nobody thought you could build such a powerhouse team.  And throughout the 90s, and 00’s, Steinbrenner was the guy bringing all-star after all-star to New York.   He didn’t exactly play fair at times… but you have to respect his overwhelming drive to win. His personality was bigger than the game and he will surely be missed.

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The Miami Heat are trying to surround their three superstars (Bosh, Wade, LeBron) with key role players.  Their latest addition, a former Cavalier — Zydrunas Ilgauskas.  Big ‘Z’ as LeBron dubbed him, was an important ingredient to the Cavs success.  He plays good defense, grabs rebounds, and will be able to dish the ball back out to Wade and LeBron for second chance opportunities.   We’ll see what else the Heat have up their sleeves this off-season.

Finally, while all the attention in the NBA is on Miami and Los Angeles, the Utah Jazz are quietly putting together a fantastic team.  They lost Carlos Boozer to the Chicago Bulls, but yesterday they added Al Jefferson from the Timberwolves.  Jefferson is a true star.  He’s young, grabs rebounds, and scores points.  Last year, he was injured.  This year, he’s expected to have a turn around season.  Putting him in Utah alongside one of the best point guards in Deron Williams should give the Jazz a shot of making some strong headway in the playoffs.

BASEBALL

It’s All-Star week in baseball, and you know what that means:  Home Run Derby.  Oddly, the player heading into the Derby with the most home runs in the current seasons has NEVER won the derby.  Quite strange.  This season hosted a ton of big bats:  Matt Holliday, Corey Hart, Hanley Ramirez, among many others.  But the victor was an unlikely candidate.  David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox took the prize with 11 homers in the final round.  This is wild because Ortiz started this season absolutely terrible.  Many rumors had him leaving Boston, so to win the Derby might just keep him in town.

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And in the NBA, after setting up a mega-powerhouse, the Miami Heat needed to make sure that Bosh/Wade/LeBron had someone to play with.  Well, they kept a stellar rebounder in Udonis Haslem, signing him to a multi-year contract AND brought in sharp-shooter Mike Miller from Washington Wizards.  Miller is the perfect role player.  He hits a 3 when he needs to, and can play decent defense when called upon.  If this juggernaut does in fact make a championship run, Miller and Haslem will be key components.

Finally, the Big 3 in Miami are now starting to respond to some of the backlash against them.  First of all, Chris Bosh said that they may be the Yankees of basketball right now (because of their star power), but he doesn’t care if nobody likes it.  He said, “We like it, and that’s all that matters.”  Then, Dwayne answered reports criticizing LeBron for not “doing it himself” (meaning win a championship).  Wade told reporters to check the reports, “Nobody has done it by themselves — not Jordan, Magic, or Bird.  They all had help”.  And technically he’s right.  Jordan had Pippen and Rodman, Magic had Kareem and James Worthy, and Bird had McHale and Parish.  This Miami experiment is going to be purely fascinating to watch.

SOCCER

After four weeks of riveting competition, the World Cup finally came down to just one last game.  It was a battle between the surging Netherlands (dubbed “The Orange” because of their all Orange uniforms) against mighty Spain (a Top three talent who, while in the championship, hasn’t been playing the best soccer throughout this tournament).  When it’s just one match, anything goes.  There is no “favored” team or “logical” choice, it’s simply a contest between two teams that have grinded it out against the world’s best and have earned the right to an “Anything Goes” soccer match.

Many expected this game to be a shootout, thinking that the aggregate score would be over 4.5 goals, but people couldn’t be more wrong.  This game was a defensive stand still.  Both teams brought their A-game, but nobody on either defense wanted to be responsible for losing an entire World Cup for their country.  We’ve already seen defensemen practically get exiled for letting a goal slip by, so you can imagine the kind of lashing one would receive for botching a play in the Final Game.  With that said, the defenses brought their game to another stratosphere.  The game was tied at half.

And, a second half didn’t produce any results either.  We would need two 15-minute overtime sessions to decide the World’s biggest game.  Even then, the teams remained tied at 0-0 after the first OT period.  In the second OT, Spain turned it on and were playing much more aggressive than the Netherlands.  They got a few great shots on goal… but nothing.  Then it was the Netherlands chance, as they capitalized on a few good looks, but strong goal keeping kept it out of the net.  It appeared we were headed to penalty kicks — the worst case scenario given the stakes involved.  But then… it happened.  In the 116th minute, Andres Iniesta had a beautiful breakaway and kicked a goal past the Netherland’s keeper.  The place was electric!!!!  The Netherlands had about 5 more minutes to equalize it, but the miracle goal just didn’t come.  Game… Over!  Spain wins their first World Cup ever, and solidifies its place at the top.   From this point forth, expect to hear “Spain” among the elite soccer nations.  Spain 1, Netherlands 0.

BASEBALL

With the All-Star game approaching, it was time for the “futures” all-star game.  This is where the best of the minor league systems split up into USA vs. The World.  The MLB is composed of myriad nationalities and this game is a chance to see if the future of baseball is more domestic or international.  Well, as of now, it’s domestic, as the USA minor leaguers routed the International Competition.  Hank Conger of the Los Angeles Angels farm system hit a three-run blast to give them a commanding lead, and that’s all they would need to hang on for the win.  USA 8, International 1.

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At 9:27 pm Thursday night, Lebron James made the decision heard round the world…he is going to play for the Miami Heat next year. Speculation was high all day. Would he remain loyal to his hometown and stay in Cleveland, would he join his pals Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade and set up an unstoppable season in Miami or would he decide to play in the big media capital of New York? The press conference was held in Greenwich, CT (just 15 minutes from the Knicks practice facility) so New Yorkers thought this meant he was going to pick the Knicks.

The wait was finally over, and with throngs of fans lining the street in front of the Boys and Girls club in Greenwich, King James “humbly” stated, “I”m going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat.”

Now, that the media show is over, we can all relax for the weekend and enjoy the World Cup featuring the Netherlands vs Spain on Sunday at 2;30 pm.

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The LeBron Watch:  “The Decision” (the hour long special Thursday night at 9;00 pm)  will finally put to rest the speculation as to where LeBron James will play next year. All indications so far point to him playing for the Miami Heat, but we’ll have to wait a few hours before knowing for sure. Although, DeWayne Wade and Chris Bosh both announced on Wednesday that they will commit to the Heat for next year.  If LeBron joins his buddies, the Heat should be unstoppable….and, can you imagine the crowds that will come out to watch these three amazing players?

SOCCER

Stephen Colbert (whom I think is one of the funniest comedians ever) reported  that now that the US was ousted from the World Cup, we don’t have to pay attention to soccer anymore. Well, I don’t know about you, but I think this World Cup has been a blast to watch and I can’t wait to see the Finals.

Wednesday’s semi-final match between Spain and Germany was another thrilling spectacle. After Spain’s Carles Puyol gracefully headed a corner kick in to the goal in the 73rd minute of the match, Germany’s fate was pretty much decided. The Team could not come back and Spain went on to win 1-0. Spain will now play the Netherlands in the finals on Sunday at 2:30 pm est. Ok, it’s not Super Bowl Sunday, but it will be an exciting afternoon!

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In the NBA, the free agency news is heating up.

First up, the New York Knicks have decided to make sure they got some goods in case they didn’t get LeBron.  Well, they went ahead and signed former Phoenix Suns star Amar’e Stoudemire to a 5-year deal.  Stoudemire is a very good player, but has been injury plagued over the years.  He just had a good season, but one must wonder how much of his success is due to the incredible play of two-time MVP Steve Nash.  The Knicks don’t have that kind of player or leadership, and this might not work out for New York.

However, Stoudemire is already campaigning to get some other stars to New York.  Reportedly, Stoudemire has put the word out to Tony Parker and Carmelo Anthony that they should join him in the big apple.  After all, Carmelo is a New Yorker, having played his college ball at Syracuse.  New Yorkers would love and embrace him.  We’ll see how the NY situation pans out.

And speaking of New York, they are still very much alive in the LeBron hunt.  And here’s why:  LeBron has told the media that he will make his decision on Thursday.  However, he doesn’t intend to make this announcement quietly.  He wants a special on ESPN to announce the “winning” team, and also wants to sell sponsorship against the special.  The sponsorship proceeds would go to the Boys and Girls Club, so you have to congratulate LeBron for trying to make something good with all this attention he’s receiving.

As for where he will choose, that’s anybody’s guess.  New York and Chicago are very much alive, as are the Miami Heat.  Sure, there’s always a chance he stays in Cleveland, a strong chance in fact, but Chris Bosh, whom LeBron wanted as a teammate, said he won’t play in Cleveland.  Therefore, if James does stay in his hometown, there is a strong possibility that he won’t grab a championship there.

SOCCER

And in World Cup soccer, the Netherlands were hoping to make it to the World Cup Final.  They just needed to beat the nagging, but surging Uruguay team, who has shocked everyone by making it to the semifinal.  After all, Uruguay was in the same group as #1 seed France and #2 seed Mexico.  They weren’t even supposed to get to the second round, so you can bet these guys have no fear.  Well, fearlessness isn’t enough in World Cup play — you have to be perfect.  The game was tied at 1-1 going into the half, but 2 fantastic goals from the Netherlands would be all they would need to reach the World Cup Finals.  Now they await the winner of Spain/Germany Wednesday.  Netherlands 3, Uruguay 2.