BASKETBALL

In the NBA, even though the players are locked out, there are still some off-season developments taking place.  While Dirk Nowitzki was clearly the star of the Dallas Mavericks playoff run, you can’t deny that they heavily benefited from the defensive inside presence of Tyson Chandler, whom they acquired at the beginning of the season.  Plus, Chandler had the role of really rallying the team in the locker room and on the court.  He was only a positive force. For the first time in his career, he is an unrestricted free agent and can sign with any team.  You can bet that there are a number of “great teams”, as Chandler says, looking for a player like him to push them over the edge.  The Bulls, Lakers, and Celtics come to mind instantly.  They could all use that type of tough player underneath to give them an edge.  We’ll see where he winds up.

BASEBALL

A phenomenal comeback from the Cleveland Indians.  They fell behind to the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1 and were seemingly out for the count.  But then, in the bottom of the ninth, their hero slugger Travis Hafner stepped up to the plate with three runners on.   Hafner is batting a career best .338 this season, and is possibly the last person the Blue Jays wanted to face in this situation.  They were right, because Hafner smacked a grand slam to give the Indians the lead they needed to win the game!  Wow! Imagine all the fans who left the ballpark early.  That’s why you stick around to the very end.  Cleveland 5, Toronto 4.

FOOTBALL

It’s the end of a storied career.  After 16 productive NFL seasons, quarterback Kerry Collins is finally retiring.  Collins was highly touted coming out of Penn State when he joined the then expansion franchise Carolina Panthers.  In just 2 seasons in existence, he led the Panthers to the NFC Championship.  Then, they parted ways for reasons behind the scenes.  That’s when he joined the New York Giants and led them to a Super Bowl, although they lost to the Baltimore Ravens, who some feel had the best defense of all time.  After that, the veteran headed to Oakland, where things didn’t work out, and then found himself as a back-up in Tennessee to Vince Young.  Nobody would have seen a Vince Young meltdown coming, and Collins got the starting duties.  In that season, he led the Titans to the best record in the AFC.  He was truly a reliable quarterback, but saw that the writing was on the wall when the Titans selected QB Jake Locker with their first pick.  With Young still there as a back up, Collins knew he wouldn’t be seeing playing time and just decided to hang up the spikes.  A great career for a very tough athlete.