Category: NBA Basketball

Bulls Get Freakish Athletes With Tons of Upside

On By Frank the TankIn Big Ten, Chicago Bulls, Illinois Fighting Illini, NBA Basketball, Sports1 Comment

The best answer any fan ought to give when asked how his or her team performed on draft day is, “Ask me in a couple of years.” I was excited about the drafting of Cade McNown by the Bears and thought the Bulls’ draft day trade of Elton Brand for Tyson Chandler would be great in the long run. Meanwhile, I thought Brian Urlacher was a decent yet unsexy pick and Kirk Hinrich would be a permanent NBA sixth man at best when they were drafted. It goes to show you that (1) draft day conventional wisdom turns into regular season and postseason bunk pretty quickly and (2) I’m an idiot. With that, here’s my knee-jerk reaction to last night’s NBA Draft that will be worthless by the end of this Fourth of July weekend.

A couple of days ago, I made the argument for the Bulls to take Brandon Roy (who I still believe will be the Rookie of the Year even while being stuck with the dysfunctional Trailblazers) while acknowledging that I’d be fine with either LaMarcus Aldridge or Tyrus Thomas. The Bulls ended up picking Aldridge with the #2 pick and then going through a convoluted trade with Portland where the Bulls gave him plus a future second rounder up for Thomas and Viktor Khryapa, who I had never heard of before last night. Considering that most teams had both Aldridge and Thomas rated pretty equally, John Paxson made a slick move since he was able to get the guy he obviously wanted along with another asset off of the bench. That trade made absolutely no sense from Portland’s standpoint – Aldridge would have fallen to them at #4 since Adam Morrison was practically guaranteed to go to Michael Jordan’s new regime in Charlotte, yet the Blazers ended up giving away their first round draft pick from 2004. Great fleece job here by Paxson.

Even though I pushed for Roy, the Thomas pick makes a lot more sense when coupled with the trade with the Sixers for their pick at #13, Thabo Sefolosha. Granted, the only footage I have ever seen of this guy was the reel ESPN put up last night after his name was called up and I don’t know any more about his game than what Stephen A. Smith had screamed into his microphone. Still, Sefolosha’s physical attributes certainly fit into what the Bulls need at shooting guard (assuming that this guy can play at 2), so if he’s as good as the international scouts say he is, particularly as a perimeter defender, he’s going to part of a great guard rotation with Hinrich and Ben Gordon. The only thing I’m frightened of is that he is supposedly the best basketball player ever to come out of Switzerland, which means we’re guaranteed Chris “YWML” Berman will be cracking jokes about Sefolosha’s neutrality for years. At the very least, the Bulls are now going to be an extremely deep team from the 1 through 4 spots.

That leaves Bulls to address the opening at center through either free agency or a trade. Joel Przybilla, Nene, and Nazr Mohammed are the reasonable free agent prospects with a small hope for Ben Wallace (although as great of a defensive player as he is, watching brick 3 out of every 4 free throws in the playoffs this year was disheartening). With such an important hole to fill, the offseason is nowhere near over for the Bulls front office.

The one thing that is for certain after last night’s NBA Draft is that John Paxson will no longer receive the backhanded compliment that he always makes the smart pick that’s a sure thing (translation: he didn’t have the cajones to select a “risky” player that might turn into a huge star). Thomas was unquestionably the riskiest of the consensus top six players heading into last night and Sefolosha is someone few people have seen in person, so it’s clear that Paxson made his picks based on the high ceiling as opposed to the floor. Ask me in a couple years about how the Bulls did in the 2006 draft.

Other NBA Draft Thoughts:

1) Where’s My TNT? – Add my name to the list of the multitudes of NBA fans that really want to see the NBA Draft telecast head back to TNT from ESPN. Jay Bilas and Greg Anthony are fine commentators (and I did enjoy Dan Patrick and David Stern exchanging good-natured insults with each in other in the middle of the first round, culminating with Patrick announcing to viewers and the crowd at Madison Square Garden that he always liked NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue better), but all of the dogs in my neighborhood starting barking simultaneously when ESPN went to a split-screen with Stephen A. Smith and Dick Vitale. I need my Charles Barkley analysis of the Knicks draft picks (we’ll just have to settle for the New York Post view, where Isiah Thomas’ level of ineptitude continues to amaze the masses by picking a projected second round pick at #20). I’ve said it before that the TNT NBA studio crew is the best in all of sports and with the ridiculous suits, entourages, and trades that occur on draft night, they are the perfect match for this event.

2) Illini Pride – I know I’m completely biased here, but James Augustine and Dee Brown should have both been drafted a bit higher than #41 and #46, respectively. This year certainly didn’t match the school pride Illini Nation had last summer when Deron Williams went at #3 and Luther Head jumped into the first round. The consolation here is that both James and Dee went to teams that they’ll fit in with well (what I mean is that neither of them ended up with the Knicks). Augustine will be playing along side emerging superstar Dwight Howard to provide an imposing frontline. At the same time, Brown is going to be paired up with Williams again in Utah, which means Illinois fans can party like it’s 2005 everytime the Jazz step on the floor. James and Dee are the two winningest players in the history of the University of Illinois, yet it was Patrick O’Bryant (about as Irish as Shaquille O’Neal), a Bradley center no one had heard of before the Braves’ Sweet Sixteen run, that ended up being a lottery pick. Such is life in the NBA Draft.

(UPDATE: Deadspin, which is edited by Illinois alum Will Leitch, has a nice take on the reunion of Dee and Deron.)

R-O-Y Spells Rookie of the Year for the Bulls

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Bulls, NBA Basketball, Sports4 Comments

When the Bulls were ousted from the NBA Playoffs this year, I pointed out that this would be a pivotal summer for the franchise, starting off with who they chose with the #2 pick of the NBA Draft tomorrow night. My general thoughts haven’t changed much since then, although what I’d like to see the Bulls do has become more clear in my mind. Here’s how I would react regarding the most likely picks for the Bulls:

1) Good: Tyrus Thomas – Best athlete in the draft and should be a terrific shot blocker. Of course, he isn’t very polished on the offensive side, which makes me wonder if he’s just another version of Tyson Chandler (which we don’t need). Thomas is the very definition of “upside”, so he wouldn’t be a bad pick for the Bulls, but he’s not going to contribute very much next season for a team that needs someone to step in right away to help them in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

2) Better: LaMarcus Aldridge – He has got both offensive and defensive skills in the post and is a true big man, which the Bulls have a dire need for. The question is whether he’s going to be able to bulk up where he can withstand an 82-game regular season plus the postseason. As with Thomas, Aldridge is more of a project as opposed to providing immediate help.

3) Best: Brandon Roy – The conventional wisdom is that the Bulls need to draft for size first and foremost because that’s their biggest need. That’s also the same logic the Portland Trailblazers used for their own #2 pick in 1984 in choosing Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan. Look, I’m not saying that Roy will become anything close to MJ, but in my opinion, he’s the best basketball player in this draft. When you’ve got the #2 draft pick, you need to take the best player available regardless of position. If you don’t and fall into the trap of being obsessed with filling a need at a particular position, you can get burned and, in basketball more than any other sport, the franchise will be set back for years.

The Bulls also have more of a need at shooting guard than most people think. Ben Gordon has great offensive skills but is a few inches too short for the 2-guard position and is weak on defense. A number of people have suggested that Luol Deng can move over from small forward to shooting guard, yet it’s not the best course of action to have him switch to an unnatural position. Since the Bulls first won the NBA Championship in 1991, having a gamebreaker at shooting guard is essential to winning it all (look at Dwyane Wade this season). Brandon Roy is the complete package on offense and defense while having the potential to be that 2-guard star. I’d rather take him at #2 and then look for a big man with the #16 pick or through free agency.

4) Even Better Than the Best: Trade for Kevin Garnett – I know that this is highly unlikely, but if the Bulls can parlay the #2 pick plus their pick at #16 and, say, Deng or Gordon to Minnesota for Kevin Garnett, they need to pull the trigger. As much as the average fan might harbor fantasies of the upside of this youthful Bulls team, the fact remains that old teams with veteran stars win championships. While champions might have a couple of key players or even leaders that are relatively young (i.e. Wade’s Heat and the Lakers three-peat under Kobe Bryant), it’s impossible to win it all without veteran stars. Look at every NBA champ going back to the Celtics, Lakers, and Pistons in the ’80s, the Bulls and Rockets in the ’90s, and everyone who has won in this decade – they were all veteran-laden teams with at least two bona fide superstars.

At the same time, as much as I enjoyed the Bulls run this season, I still believe that they are farther away than a lot of people believe around here. Remember, they went from being a #4 seed with homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs in 2005 to barely making it into the playoffs as a #7 seed in 2006. Yet, for some reason, a lot of Chicagoans seem to be under the mistaken impression that the Bulls somehow improved last season. Garnett would give the Bulls the ability to make a huge leap to the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference.

5) Very, Very Bad and Radioactive: Adam Morrison – The popular favorite of those that fail to realize that college basketball is an entirely different animal than pro basketball. I have no doubt that he can be a fine jumpshooter at the pro level, but he’s an atrocious defensive player, which does not fit into the Bulls system at all. Plus, just because Morrison is white doesn’t mean that he’s Larry Bird.

All in all, if the Bulls end up with Thomas or Aldridge, I will completely understand and just thank Isiah Thomas again for his assistance. John Paxson picking Brandon Roy or a trading for Kevin Garnett, however, would make me an extremely happy man. If the Bulls end up with someone outside of those listed above, such as Andrea Bargnani (the supposed Italian Dirk Nowitzki) or Rudy Gay, I’m not exactly sure what I’ll do. Paxson has proven to be a solid drafter in the past with Kirk Hinrich (I hated that pick when it was made with my anti-Kansas bias, but it goes to show you that what you thought of a guy as a college player should have no bearing on who you want for your pro team… as long as it’s not J.J. Redick), Ben Gordon, and Luol Deng, so I’ve got a pretty positive feeling that the Bulls will be better off no matter which direction the franchise takes. In any case, I should be back after draft night with a recap.

Other NBA Draft articles of note:

Paxson Sweet on No. 16 Pick (Chicago Tribune) – With a weak draft, the Bulls could end up with as much value at #16 as they can get at #2 (although the Chronicles of Redick are lurking dangerously in this territory).

This Draft Has Officially Driven Me Insane (Blog-a-Bull) – The confusion of this dedicated Bulls blogger is a pretty good reflection of fans in the know.

The Death of That Nasty Word, ‘Potential’ (Sporting News) – With the NBA instituting a new minimum age requirement for entering into draft, Tyrus Thomas might be the last of the “upside” guys.

(Update: Every “expert” I’ve seen out there seems to think that it would be crazy for the Bulls to take Roy over a big man with the exception of the one guy – Bill Simmons.  Once again, the Sports Guy is the voice of reason.)

Land-o-Links – 6/23/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago White Sox, Land-o-Links, Major League Baseball, NBA Basketball, Random Thoughts, SportsLeave a comment

It's been an amazing week all around.  Here are some links for the weekend:

1) Ozzie Apologizes to Every Homosexual (Jay the Joke) – Ozzie Guillen correctly apologizes for using the f-bomb and then proceeds with a 4-minute long diatribe on how Jay Mariotti is still a "piece of shit."  This is absolutely well worth listening to in its entirety.

2) Guillen, Duncan Feud Over Plunking (Chicago Tribune) – During any other week with any other manager, an order to bean the son of the pitching coach of the opposing team would be the topic #1 around here.

3) A League of Their Own (Boston Globe) – Indy Transplant and I went to the White Sox-Cardinals game last night (Sox won 1-0 with their only hit being a Jim Thome homer, which was simply magnificent) and had a discussion on how much better the American League has been compared to the National League.  Sure enough, the Red Sox came out today with simulated stats showing that the record of an American League team playing a National League schedule would improve by 10 games over the entire regular season.

What's interesting to me is that the reputations of leagues and conferences in all of the major sports have completely switched around from when I was growing up.  The National League seemed to have all of the best players in the game back in the 1980s but it now seems to be the place where, as Bill Simmons claims, old pitchers from the AL such as Pedro Martinez and Roger Clemens go to spend their twilight years since the competition is so much easier.  Meanwhile, the days where the NBA Championship was really won during the grudge matches between the Bulls, Pistons, Knicks, Cavs, and Pacers in the Eastern Conference are now gone with the Western Conference now boasting teams which don't make the playoffs that could probably be top seeds if they were in the East (notwithstanding Miami's victory this past week).  Finally, in the NFL, I grew up wondering if I would ever see the AFC win a Super Bowl (the NFC was victorious in 13 straight Super Bowls, a streak that was broken by the Broncos beating the Packers in glorious fashion in Super Bowl XXXII), which seems laughable now.  To this day, I have a knee-jerk negative reaction whenever I hear someone say how bad the NFC is, but I then pull back and have to remind myself how that person is right.

4) Knicks End Year of Disharmony (New York Times) – If he hasn't already, Greg Oden needs to hire a real estate agent in Chicago pronto.  I love you, Isiah.

And finally… 

5) Limited Action Figures of B.I.G., Public Enemy Coming This Fall (AllHipHop.com) – I can fulfill my dreams of Biggie Smalls putting the smack down on C-3PO.

Land-o-Links – 6/21/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Big Ten, Chicago White Sox, College Basketball, College Football, Land-o-Links, Major League Baseball, NBA Basketball, Random Thoughts, Sports2 Comments

What an evening! Mark Cuban got fined $250,000, Dwyane Wade lived up to the Michael Corleone analogy Shaq dropped a few months ago (where Kobe Bryant is Sonny and Penny Hardaway is Fredo), the White Sox hammered in 20 runs on the Cardinals, and Ozzie Guillen turned a new rookie into a sacrificial lamb in yet another beanball war. On top of that, there was such a plethora of fantastic news that I just had to post some more links for today:

1) Guillen Has Choice Words for Mariotti (Chicago Tribune) – How those in professional sports feel about Jay Mariotti.

2) Jay the Joke – How all of the rest of us feel about Jay Mariotti (actually, Ozzie summed it up pretty well above, but the detail on this blog is a public service to society as a whole).

3) YWML Suddenly Huge With 13-Year-Olds (Deadspin) – Frequent Deadspin readers will understand why this is such a ridiculously hilarious development. For those that need a refresher course, just consult your friendly Wikipedia.

4) Nine Lives, Still Intact (Hartford Courant) – The life of Lewis the Cat was spared by a Connecticut judge yesterday, although he'll be on house arrest for the rest of eternity. We in the legal field call this "The Martha Stewart Treatment" (celebrities get all of the breaks).

5) Big Ten Creates Another Revenue Channel (The Wizard of Odds) – All Big Ten, all the time. You had me at hello.

And finally…

6) Career Suicide (Siberia, Minnesota) – There are some things that you see and you can't unsee them.

Land-o-Links – 6/20/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Cubs, Land-o-Links, Major League Baseball, NBA Basketball, Random Thoughts, SportsLeave a comment

Huge sports night is on tap with Game 6 of the NBA Finals and White Sox vs. Cardinals. Until then, here are today's links:

1) Cursing (Blog Maverick) – I vacillate between sincerely respecting Mark Cuban's passion for life on the one hand and wondering how someone who still can't properly use "your" versus "you're" can become one of the richest people in the world on the other hand.

By the way, Chicago quite possibly has the most boring set of sports team owners anywhere. Jerry Reinsdorf is a noted recluse, the Tribune Company is a faceless corporation, the McCaskey family hasn't appeared anywhere since hiring Jerry Angelo to run the Bears, and Bill Wirtz is too busy peddling bottles of booze to realize that he also owns a hockey team. In contrast, take a look at Dallas. If Tom Hicks, who as owner of the Texas Rangers signed A-Rod to a contract worth a quarter of a billion dollars, lived in any other city, he would be considered that nutty, crazy, and wacky guy that is always trying to get his name into the paper. However, he's only a distant third on the insanity scale in Dallas behind Cuban and Jerry Jones. Just a random observation.

(Update: Cuban actually sounds somewhat rational in his latest post regarding whether the NBA is rigged. The lack of proper punctuation, however, is still there.)

(2nd Update: Bill Simmons reiterates his theory on NBA referee assignments.)

2) Let Us Now Read From the Book of Dwyane (Deadspin) – I'm really just linking to this because of the picture. Although I picked the Mavericks to win the NBA Finals and I still believe that they will pull out the last two games in Dallas, I have to admit that I have a man crush on Dwyane Wade. He's real and he's spectacular.

3) Capitalist Rap (Forbes) – 50 Cent is obviously selling a whole lot of that purple stuff. He also performed a Don King-style fleecing of Mike Tyson.

4) No Hugs for Piven at Wrigley (Chicago Tribune) – A nice treat for all of those fathers that spent the day with their kids at the Cubs game on Sunday.

And finally…

5) Business Dreams Turn Sour (Chicagoist) – Forget about the increase in gang activity. There's now been an uptick in illicit lemonade stand trafficking. It looks like the South Side has followed me to Naperville.

Land-o-Links – 6/16/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Bulls, Land-o-Links, NBA Basketball, Random ThoughtsLeave a comment

My extra time to kill this afternoon means that all of you get an extra Land-o-Links before the weekend. In anticipation of the cornucopia of sports riches with the U.S. Open (although it looks like Tiger Woods won't make cut), NBA Finals (this series has gone from appearing to be dead at 10 pm on Tuesday to becoming something closer to the classic matchup that I had originally predicted), and interleague baseball (I actually have to cheer for the Cubs this weekend since they are playing the Tigers) over the next couple of days, here is some reading material to give your Friday a boost:

1) The FKS Guide to Dating Other Heterosexual Men (F.K.S.) – Brilliantly funny stuff from a highly recommended blog written by a frequent Deadspin commenter.

2) Missy Elliot Bio-Pic Being Produced by Actor Robert De Niro (AllHipHop.com) – Young Don Corleone, Jake LaMotta, Jack Byrnes… and Missy Elliot.

3) Dan Rather Considering Offer From Mark Cuban (New York Times) – Looks like the Mavericks are getting desperate for some more help to contain Dwyane Wade.

4) Fans to Manage Minor League Team for Second Half (ESPN.com) – Somehow, this seems completely appropriate for the land of Woodfield.

And finally but unfortunately…

5) Jordan an NBA Owner – Again (Chicago Tribune) – Nooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On that note, I'm off to recall better times by watching my Michael Jordan DVD collection, which includes Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals that ended with his last and most famous shot ever. That's right, that was the final shot of his career. MJ did not play another game in anything other than a Bulls uniform after that moment. I'm serious, folks.

Basking in My Otioseness

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago White Sox, Major League Baseball, NBA Basketball, Random Thoughts, SportsLeave a comment

May sweeps might be over, but that didn't stop me from some hardcore vegetating on the couch last night:

1) Samir Goes Down – I doomed Samir Patel with my “MJ in 1991” comment yesterday. He wilted like a flower suffering from eremacausis and didn't even make it to the prime time final of the National Spelling Bee. Patel is already looking toward a recrudesce next year after he takes some time off to play in the White Sox farm system. The winner Katharine Close, however, was a machine last night. While every other contestant had to stoop to the standard stalling techniques of repeating the same questions about the definition and country of origin over and over again at one point or another, she just proceeded to pound out every word without a hint of hesitation. It was like those days in the late-1980s when you would pay fifty bucks to watch a Mike Tyson fight on pay-per-view and then he would pummel his opponent in 45 seconds. She knocked those words back to Bolivia.

2) WTF Sox Bullpen?! – I'm extremely disappointed in the White Sox on this 3-game losing streak since they (a) couldn't take advantage of the Tigers finally having to play someone other than the Royals (much less the Yankees) and (b) completely let the Indians back into the AL Central race as opposed to killing them off. What's even more worrisome is the status of our bullpen, which is a glaring weakness that has been covered up so far this season by the hot Sox offense. I'd seriously rather have the Cubs bullpen out there over what we have on the South Side for the stretch run. I'm hoping Kenny Williams is burning up the phone lines to address this situation ASAP.

3) Dirk Rolls Over the Suns – How spectacular has Dirk Nowitzki been for the Mavs during the playoffs? Not only is he a 7-footer that can drop 50 points in a game both inside and outside of the arc, but his Governor of Cal-i-for-ni-a postgame interviews have been classic. You know he's stepped up to another level when every tall white European draft prospect with a halfway decent jumpshot from now until the end of time will be described as possibly becoming the “next Dirk Nowitzki”. Shaq vs. Dirk in the NBA Finals is exactly the matchup that I long to see.

4) They Wouldn't Do This to Catherine Zeta-Jones – Why does the T-Mobile commercial centering around an arena full of fans (presumably all Pistons backers) cheering and waiting for Ben Wallace to come out during his pregame introduction show the Miami Heat home floor at the beginning? And why does Vince Carter have a bulimic dog? These are the things in life that really bother me.

Happy Friday and enjoy your weekend!

Land-o-Links – 6/1/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Land-o-Links, NBA Basketball, Random Thoughts, Sports1 Comment

Damn Pistons.  After Ben Wallace packed Shaq in last night's game, I now have a really awful feeling that we're going to be denied a Dwyane Wade and Shaq NBA Finals for the second year in a row even though the Heat only need one more win.  Anyway, here are today's links:

1) Who Will Win?  We Handicap the Spellers – Samir Patel is going to finally bring it home tonight.  He's on the cusp of cementing his greatness like MJ in 1991.

2) Suburban School Board Rejects Book Ban – Freakonomics, Slaughterhouse-Five, Beloved… all books that a District 214 board member attempted to ban. Of course, she never actually read any of these books in their entirety (a common theme among book burners). Thankfully, northwest suburban Chicago isn't located in Kansas and cooler heads prevailed.

3) Not Heard 'Round The World – Instant karma's gonna get you.

4) Pimp My Grill – My eyes are popping out of my head like a Looney Tunes character right now.

And finally…

5) He Believed He Could Build – R. Kelly to Olympia Fields: I want to piss on you. 

Land-o-Links – 5/24/2006

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Bulls, Chicago Cubs, Land-o-Links, Major League Baseball, NBA Basketball, Random Thoughts, SportsLeave a comment

Soul Patrol! Taylor Hicks is taking it home tonight. Until then, here are the links for the day:

1) Report Says High Gas Prices Not Caused by Gouging – Really? Gas prices fluctuate according to the normal rules of supply and demand as opposed to being controlled by the Pentaverate consisting of the oil companies, Karl Rove, the Queen, the Vatican, and Col. Sanders? I still don't believe it.

2) Three 6 Mafia to Peform During WWE's 'Smackdown' – Let's take a look at that Oscar scoreboard again: Three 6 Mafia 1, Martin Scorsese 0.

3) Thomas, Aldridge – or Maybe a Trade? – Isiah Thomas is the gift that keeps on giving. With the Bulls securing the #2 pick in this year's NBA Draft, we're guaranteed either Tyrus Thomas or LaMarcus Aldridge to fill our need for size or there's still the possibility of parlaying this pick into a trade for Kevin Garnett. Now, if we can only get Isiah to taking over the coaching reigns in New York, we can send Greg Oden a non-refundable plane ticket from Columbus to Chicago for June 2007.

And finally…

4) Another Win Bites the Dust – How many more blown saves will it take for Ryan Dempster to achieve LaTroy Hawkins status? I say another 2 and he's there.

Feeling Punchy Today?

On By Frank the TankIn Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Major League Baseball, NBA Basketball, Sports4 Comments

A few thoughts on the world of sports from the past few days:

1) Punchless Cubs – I'll spare everyone an excessively long diatribe on Michael Barrett's cheap shot on A.J. Pierzynski. However, I will point out that I enjoy the North Side spin that this will somehow fire up the Cubs, as if having their starting catcher and best hitter since Derrek Lee's injury getting slammed with a suspension that could run a week or more is going to do a lot to "fire up" an already putrid offense. Just what the Cubs needed – Henry Blanco and his .051 batting average while the Cubs play Atlanta this weekend and then 16 straight NL Central games after that! Plus, regardless of team allegiances, the sight of Neifi Perez as a cleanup hitter should be mortifying to any baseball fan. Look, I know A.J. is an asshole, but Cubs fans need to take a step back and look at how Barrett's groundless punch has the potential to sink that lineup into an even greater abyss at the worst possible time.

2) Sox and Hound – The thing I love about this White Sox team is that I expect them to make a comeback every time that they fall behind. Regardless of how large of a deficit, they always keep applying pressure to the opposition. Even after Frank Thomas returned to the Cell with revenge on his mind with two homers (for a guy hitting under .200) that would have sucked the life out of a lesser team, the Sox pressed back and won on a suicide squeeze play executed perfectly by Pablo Ozuna in the 10th inning. Great teams make those types of great plays.

3) Great NBA Playoffs, But No More Bron-Bron – I haven't enjoyed watching the NBA Playoffs this much since the Jordan Era. The Mavericks pulling it out in overtime over the Spurs in game 7 last night was a fitting end to a classic series. This sets up a Mavs/Suns Western Conference Finals matchup, where the over/under on total points per game is going to be 300. However, I was disappointed in LeBron James and the Cavs failing to get a defensive rebound for the last minute of Game 6 against the Pistons on Friday night. That guaranteed that Cleveland's Curse of MJ Making Craig Ehlo His Bitch would continue for another year – everyone who watched that meltdown on Friday instantly foresaw the Pistons' throttling of the Cavs in Sunday's Game 7. I have no personal love for the Cavaliers, but as a basketball fan I relished the prospect of LeBron facing up Dwyane Wade and Shaq in a best-of-7 series. I'll just have to take comfort in the fact that we're not going to see a snore-inducing repeat of a Pistons/Spurs NBA Finals. Regardless, this postseason proves that the NBA is back this year.