BASKETBALL

In the NBA, with the draft approaching things are starting to get hot.  Teams want to move up, use picks to trade for players, get more picks later in the draft, etc… Tuesday we saw our first trade prior to the draft, as the Houston Rockets have traded shooting guard Chase Budinger to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for the Wolves’ #18 pick.  Now, what’s happening here?  The Wolves get a much-needed shooter/scorer in their back-court and the Rockets get yet another draft pick in the first round.  The major not-so-secret rumor here is that the Rockets want to trade into the Top 10 and use that pick and a few other players to get Dwight Howard from the Magic.  This is risky for the Rockets, however, because if they DID acquire Howard, they would essentially be renting him for 1 year, because he becomes a free agent after that.  The Rockets are betting they can convince Howard to stay in Houston, but almost nobody believes they can.  But, if you’re the Rockets, you have to take a risk like this, because Houston has been pretty irrelevant for the last 10 years.  It’s time for them to take steps toward the title.

And, in another pre-draft trade, the Detroit Pistons are sending shooting guard Ben Gordon and a 2013 pick to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for swing-man Corey Maggette.  This move is more of a financial play for the Pistons, who unload Gordon’s huge contract.  But for the Bobcats, Gordon is actually a nice piece of their rebuilding as it’ll give them a trusted shooter in the back-court going forward.  But many believe there’s a chance that the Bobcats trade their #2 overall pick for a few picks and some much needed players. Then again, teams like ‘upside’ and there is no better ‘upside’ player than the guy they take with the #2 pick.  Right now, most believe that will be Kansas’ Thomas Robinson.  We shall see.

And finally in the NBA, 2003 was one of the biggest drafts in NBA History.  It boasted LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh — all of whom now have a championship.  Except… there is one superstar from that draft who isn’t on their team and still doesn’t have the title.  That would be the #3 overall pick Carmelo Anthony (who fell in Denver’s lap after the Pistons selected the all-time draft bust in Darko Milicic).  Carmelo thought that going from Denver to New York to play with Amare Stoudemire would get him closer to the title, but clearly, finishing in the 78 spot this year and getting swept by the Heat (former 2003 draft alum) — they’re not exactly close.  So Tuesday, when asked about LeBron, Carmelo said, “My time is coming”.  Maybe… but it’s hard to imagine the Knicks beating the Heat anytime soon.  Then again, if they can get healthy and cohesive, they have a solid team behind Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, and emerging players Landry Fields, Iman Shumpert, and of course Jeremy Lin.  Plus, they had a solid record when head coach Mike Woodson took the reigns after D’Antoni was fired.  All in all… good luck Carmelo.

HOCKEY

In the NHL, the Washington Capitals were hoping to stay alive in the playoffs in a Game 6 match against the #1 NY Rangers.  The Capitals are having somewhat of a magical post-season, driving many of their games to overtime (although they have lost every OT game), but also winning in miraculous fashion.  So, in Washington, it was a must-win for the Caps.  Their superstar Alex Ovechkin got things started right away with a goal in the first period.  Then, in the second period, Jason Chimera put in another goal to give the Caps a 2-0 lead.  But, the real hero for Washington has been their 3rd string goalie Braden Holtby.  He’s had a remarkable post-season, and they’ll definitely need a strong game from him as they head back to New York for a thrilling Game 7.  Washington 2, NY Rangers 1.

BASKETBALL

And in the NBA, the Miami Heat were looking to close out the Knicks in Miami.  The Knicks anticipated making a run in the playoffs, but the Heat have been just too mighty.  Plus, the Knicks have been plagued with injuries to Jeremy Lin, Amare Stoudemire, and up-and-coming rookie Iman Shumpert.  And no team in NBA History has come out of a 3-0 hole in a 7-game playoff series.  They did eek out a win in Game 4, but Game 5 in South Beach would be another story.  Carmelo Anthony did his best to keep the Knicks in the game, putting up 35 points on the night, but Wade and LeBron were just too much for the undermanned Knicks.  LeBron had 29 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists as the Heat cruised into the second round to play the pesky Indiana Pacers.  Miami 106, NY Knicks 94.

Finally, in the evening game, it was the Memphis Grizzlies looking to stay in the playoffs in a Memphis home game against the Clippers.  The Clips find themselves in a beneficial 3-1 series lead.  Everybody expected Memphis to take this game, and that’s why it was no surprise that they came out with a force.  Marc Gasol had 23 points and 7 rebounds in a night where the Grizzlies held their own.  However, the Clippers tried to make a comeback in the second half.  Chris Paul had 19 points, but it wasn’t enough, as the Clips handed the Grizzlies the win.  The Clippers didn’t have their whole heart in the game, and would also suffer minor injuries to their two stars Blake Griffin and Chris Paul.  They’re headed back to LA on Friday night, where the Clippers will get a chance to close-out the series on their home court.  But, if they mess up, the series heads back to Memphis.  Memphis 92, LA Clippers 80.

BASKETBALL

In the  NBA, the New York Knicks were hoping to turn their luck around when they took on LeBron and the Miami Heat in Madison Square Garden.  The Knicks would need a big night from star Carmelo Anthony, as they were without their other star Amare Stoudemire (who was out because he decided to punch the glass encasing of a fire extinguisher — hmmm).  The Knicks did get a 22 point, 8 rebound night from Carmelo, but the Heat are absolutely surging right now and can’t be stopped.  LeBron went off with 32 points, as the Heat simply manhandled the Knicks.  They had no problem with them.  Prior to the playoffs, a lot of people were picking the Knicks to possibly upset the Heat in the first round, but now the Knicks are just 1 game away from being swept, and ousted from the playoffs.  There are rumors that the Knicks are ready to pay coach Phil Jackson a fortune to take over, and next year might be their year… not this year.  Miami 87, NY Knicks 70.

Elsewhere in the NBA, it was Dallas’ first home playoff game since they won the NBA Championship last year.  They were trailing the Oklahoma City Thunder 2-0 in the series, but a veteran team like the Mavs playing in front of their home crowd are a very difficult bunch to defeat.  Dirk Nowitzki had a decent 17 point night for the Mavs, and were trailing by only a modest margin at halftime. They were expecting to really heat up in the second half in front of an enthusiastic crowd.  But, the Thunder came out with a vengeance in the second half and absolutely destroyed the Mavs in the 3rd quarter.  Kevin Durant had 31 points on the evening, as the Thunder sent Mavs fans home early.  The place was lifeless, and the Thunder take a 3-0 lead in the series, priming themselves for a likely second round battle against the Lakers.  OKC 95, Dallas 79.

BASEBALL

Finally, in baseball, some potentially very scary news for Yankees fans.  In a road game against the Royals, the Yankees were practicing their standard pop fly drill.  Very simple:  a batting coach hits pop flys, and the players chase them to warm up.  Sometimes pitchers participate in these drills, pitchers such as Yankees Hall Of Fame closer Mariano Rivera — who’s been doing this for years.  Yesterday, Rivera was chasing a ball when he collided with the wall and his leg buckled, causing him to tear his ACL.  Yes, that hurts.  But more importantly, that’s a very serious injury for an athlete, and it’s likely that Rivera will not only be out for the season, but this injury might end his career.  It would be one thing if Rivera was 25 and needed to just recover.  But for a 42-year old pitcher just looking to hang on to his closing spot and prolong his career, this could be the end.  We’ll see what the medical reports say, but certainly a huge disappointment for all.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, the Knicks have been red hot lately, as they’re trying to hold on to the #8 seed in the playoffs.  Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden they were faced with the equally scorching Boston Celtics.  The Celtics got one heck of a night from Paul Pierce — he posted a whopping 43 POINTS!!!  But who would have thought that would be the second best performance of the game, as Carmelo Anthony just exploded for an insane triple double.  35 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists.  The Knicks even got great bench support from J.R. Smith and Steve Novak, each of them scoring 25 points.  With the win, the Knicks stay in the 8-spot, which actually oddly gives them a favorable match-up against the Bulls in round 1.  NY Knicks 118, Boston 110.

Elsewhere in the NBA, Derrick Rose is one of the hottest young stars in the league.  A future Hall-Of-Famer for sure.  But Derrick Rose came out lately saying he was very uneasy with fame.  He’s easily the biggest celebrity in Chicago, but Derrick Rose has a very subdued personality and very uncomfortable with the limelight.  He says the better he plays, the more attention he gets, and that’s very tough to deal with.   Rose added that he’s never alone, that he always has to have someone with him for a semblance of protection, and that he cherishes his days alone.  But Rose also says that he doesn’t really go out at night — that it seems like every place he wants to go is marked as unsafe.  Fame can definitely be a curse.

FOOTBALL

The Denver Broncos have a new look, and a new attitude with Peyton at the helm.  When reporters asked wide receiver Demaryius Thomas if he was bummed about Tim Tebow’s departure, he said not really.  Thomas added that all people remember is that amazing pass Tebow threw to beat the Steelers in overtime, but nobody remembers the rest of the quarters and games where Tebow could barely connect on a pass.  Having Peyton running the ship is going to be a lot more fun for Thomas.  So which team did the NFL give the Broncos on opening day?  None other than a rematch against the Steelers.  This will be a fantastic first test for Manning.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, the New York Knicks had won 10 straight games at Madison Square Garden going into the weekend, but that was until the Miami Heat showed up. The Miami Heat only visit New York one time during the regular season, so the big three only had one chance to come up big in the world’s most famous arena. And that is exactly what they did. Lebron James ended up with a double-double with 29 points and 10 rebounds. Dwayne Wade finished with 28 points and nine rebounds, all while Chris Bosh added 16 points and 14 rebounds. The big three finished with nearly 80% of the team’s 93 points. The Knicks came into the night hot, and Carmelo Anthony tried to keep them that way. He led all scorers with 42 points and added nine rebounds. Both teams are looking to hit the playoffs in full stride, so it was a solid win for the Miami Heat. Miami 93, New York 85.

From the east coast to the west coast, big players came up big on Sunday. With Kobe Bryant out with a leg injury, Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol needed to prove they were great players to finish a season sweep of the NBA defending champion Dallas Mavericks. Bynum came up with 23 points and 16 rebounds, while Gasol had 20 points and 10 rebounds. For the Mavericks, Dirk Nowitzki had a very inefficient 24 points by going 9 for 28 from the field. Coach Mike Brown, got his Lakers up to play even without the NBA’s leading scorer, and the overtime win should be a good confidence boost heading into the season’s final stretch. Los Angeles 112, Dallas 108.

 BASEBALL

In Major League Baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been in the news quite a bit for on and off field stories. After an ownership group led by Magic Johnson purchased the team for more than two billion dollars, it did not seem headlines for the Dodgers could get any bigger. But, everyone surely underestimated their best players, Matt Kemp. Almost unarguably, since the beginning of last year, Matt Kemp has proven that he is the best player in all of baseball. And last night just helped his case. Kemp went three-for-four with a home run. The homer was Kemps 4^th in the past three days and leads all of the MLB in home runs and RBIs. Between Kemp and his teammate Andre Ethier, at one point Sunday night combined had more RBIs than 14 teams across the league. The Dodgers took care of business against the Padres even with defending CY Young award winner Clayton Kershaw having an off night only pitching 5.1 innings allowing 3 ER and striking out only three. And now the Dodgers begin the second full week of play with a MLB best 9-1 record. Los Angeles 5, San Diego 4

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, it was Jeremy Lin and the Knicks back in action against a slipping Atlanta Hawks team.  The Hawks are now without Joe Johnson, who will be replaced at the all-star game by the Celtics Rajon Rondo.  Thing is, the Hawks really need Johnson to win, as he’s responsible for about 20 points per game.  Without him, where do those points come from?  Jeremy Lin, with teammates Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire didn’t flinch at the Hawks, and routed them at Madison Square Garden.  Lin had 17 points and 9 assists, as the Knicks are starting to really come together as a unit.  If these guys continue to have fun and gel, they could be a tour de force in the second half of the season.  NY Knicks 99, Atlanta 82.

Next up for the Knicks, a true test, as they head to Miami to take on LeBron, Wade, and the Heat.  This is a pivotal game going into the all-star break for the Knicks.  If they can get past the Heat… IN Miami, that means that they can potentially match up well against them and could pose a threat to Miami’s championship run in the post-season.  Jeremy Lin said he wouldn’t change his game against LeBron.  LeBron is one of the great defenders, and will be matching up against Lin at different points in the game, but Lin said he just needs to be aggressive and not change anything on his end.  This one is a much watch Thursday night!

BASEBALL

The Los Angeles Angels have launched a HUGE billboard campaign around their new $100 Million Dollar investment Albert Pujols.  They put up 20 billboards around Los Angeles with a picture of Albert Pujols and a tagline “El Hombre”.  But Pujols came out publicly and said he doesn’t want to be called “El Hombre” (The Man).  Why?  Because back in St. Louis, Pujols had a relationship with 90-year old Stan “The Man” Musial.  “The Man” was singular to Musial in St. Louis — so much so that Pujols asked the Cardinals fans NOT to call him “El Hombre”.  He has clearly extended that displeasure to Los Angeles, so they will most likely oblige.

In the NBA, former superstar Allen Iverson just isn’t ready to call it quits on his NBA career.  He was a one of the best players in the league while on the Philadelphia 76ers, and continued playing fantastic when he went to the Denver Nuggets.  But, his career hit the downslide when he went to Detroit.  Last year, Iverson went to play overseas in Turkey, but didn’t do much there.  Now, wanting one last shot in the NBA (and needing money), Allen Iverson said he is prepared to play in the Minor Leagues.  That could be in the Caribbean, South American, or even the D-League.  Now it looks like the Los Angeles Lakers minor league team is looking to give him a shot.  But Iverson said he ONLY is willing to play in the D-League if it will legitimately lead him back to the NBA.  There’s no guarantee there, but it’s interesting to see a guy who is regarded as one of the greatest 50 players to ever play not wanting to call it quits.  This guy wants to play bad!

Elsewhere in the NBA, amid all the hoopla that the Knicks emerging star (Jeremy Lin) won’t be able to gel with superstar Carmelo Anthony, an interesting quote comes out.  The Knicks are riding an 8-game winning streak with Lin, and some are reticent to break up the magic putting Anthony back into the line-up.  But yesterday, Lin came out publicly and said that he actually got his chance BECAUSE of Carmelo Anthony.  Apparently, when the Knicks were dealing with some serious injury problems, it was Carmelo’s idea for Lin, the young prospect playing well in practice, to start.  The coaches agreed, and the last 8 games are history.  So it’s hard to believe that, given this chemistry, they would have any setbacks once Anthony returns to the line-up.

BASEBALL

Finally, some sad news from the baseball world.  After a long battle with brain cancer, former New York Mets all-star catcher Gary Carter has died.  Carter was a household name in the 1980s in New York.  A good-looking guy who also had a great reputation as a very nice man.  Carter was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 2003, and it was something he was extremely proud of.  Fellow Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt said of Gary Carter’s induction, “No player ever appreciated that call to the extent he did. The joy it brought him, his family, and friends, especially me, was so real and pleasantly genuine, I ate it up and still do”.  The sport will forever miss Carter.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, Jeremy “Lin”sanity continues.  The Knicks are on a 4-game winning streak since Jeremy Lin joined the starting line-up.  They finally took that show on the road to Toronto against a pesky Raptors team.  Jose Calderon has been playing great for the Raptors, and his 25 points gave them a healthy second half lead.  But, in the end, it all came down to Jeremy Lin… again.  Lin had 27 points on the night, with none more important than his shot with less than a second left. He nailed a 3-pointer to break the tie and give the Knicks the lead they needed to ice the victory.  That puts them on a 5-game win streak, with Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire about to rejoin the starting line-up.  This could get really interesting, really quickly.  NY Knicks 90, Toronto 87.

FOOTBALL

Elsewhere, in the NFL, the Peyton Manning drama continues.  Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay said that, ideally, he’d like to leave Peyton Manning’s career in Peyton Manning’s hands.  He said the door is open if Peyton wants to stay, that the Colts owe that much to Manning.  The Colts have to decide by March 8th if they will pay Manning a $28 million bonus to stay on the Colts the next 4 years or decline, at which point Manning becomes an unrestricted free agent.  In other words, they’d be letting him walk.  Most likely, Manning is on his way out, especially since Stanford’s Andrew Luck is likely on his way in.  But the Colts owner doesn’t want to be RESPONSIBLE for getting rid of Manning.  He would be lambasted.

BASEBALL

There was speculation that Manny Ramirez would have a new home next year:  The Baltimore Orioles.  The Orioles have a bunch of up-and-coming talent, but could use a slugger like Ramirez to occasionally clear the bases.  But now, the Orioles are publicly saying that they are no longer interested in bringing Manny to town.  They’re saying that they don’t think the 39-year old former all-star fits the culture of the clubhouse right now.  Plus, the Orioles have 4 players on their roster who hit more than 20 home runs last year, and that’s a rarity in the league.  In other words, they don’t really need Manny’s primary skill:  Blasting the ‘every-now-and-then’ home run.  Either way, look for the Orioles to be a team on the rise next season.

WATCH BETSY ON THE TODAY SHOW TALKING SUPER BOWL

FOOTBALL

In the NFL, some great news for Peyton Manning.  After suffering a neck injury, resulting in a serious surgery.  That ruled him out for this season, and many wondered if he would ever play again.  Thursday, it appears that team doctors (as well as external doctors) have approved Peyton Manning to continue his NFL career.  Now, if Peyton actually is fully healthy, he’s still a Top 4 quarterback in the NFL.  Nobody sees the field like Peyton Manning.  After all, he pretty much operates as the offensive coordinator on the Colts — reading plays at the line, and has full authority to audible without checking with the staff.  He’ll definitely be playing next year, but the question is where.

There is some other news that could answer that question.  Andrew Luck, the likely overall #1 pick in the NFL Draft, went on record yesterday saying that he wanted to play right away in the NFL.  If the Colts do pick him, it’s most likely that they will want to appease him, which means that Manning shouldn’t be around.  And benching Manning in favor of Luck just doesn’t feel right.  Imagine if Luck comes out and throws 2 picks in the first half, do they bring in Manning?  And if Manning, throws 3 touchdowns in the second half, do they start Andrew Luck in Week 2.  That QB battle would certainly raise a lot of issues.  Anyway, Luck’s statement suggests that Manning is most likely headed out of town.

In some Super Bowl news, Patriots genius coach Bill Belichick did something unprecedented in practice the other day — something that had the media raving.  What did he do?  In order to simulate the flow of the game as best he could, Belichick simulated… the halftime show.  Yep, after the guys were all charged, Belichick had them head into the locker room and sit there for the full 30 minutes.  Obviously, there was no halftime, but he wants his team as prepared as possible for the game-time situations on Sunday.  The players loved it, saying they needed to know how it felt to stop and start again.  When you’re raging in the first half out there, it’s easy to lose your momentum during a 30 minute break.  Belichick wants his team just as ready and hot in the second half as they are in the first.  Never before in the history of practice has a coach simulated a halftime break.  But this may be the reason that Belichick gets his 4th Super Bowl ring with the Patriots.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, the Chicago Bulls edged out the New York Knicks, at Madison Square Garden, Thursday night. Carmelo Anthony had the chance to even up the score at 105 to end the game, but was unable to hit a deep and covered 3 to send the game to overtime. He ended up with 26 points and six rebounds on the night. After not playing well in his last game, reigning MVP Derrick Rose came up big in the bright lights of New York with 32 points, four rebounds and 13 assists. And the biggest part of Rose’s game was when he came up with 15 points in the fourth quarter. The Knicks came up a little short even with Amare Stoudemire’s season high 34 points and 11 rebounds.