Full disclosure. In the past I haven’t paid much attention to the NBA until May when it gets down to the nitty-gritty of the playoffs.
The NBA is the Never-Ending Basketball Association. Normally it starts in October and ends in
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Full disclosure. In the past I haven’t paid much attention to the NBA until May when it gets down to the nitty-gritty of the playoffs.
The NBA is the Never-Ending Basketball Association. Normally it starts in October and ends in June, but with the pandemic the 2020-21 season started 2 months late and has been shortened to 72 games.
Which is fine by me. When teams play four games in five days in four different cities, by that fourth game they have little gas in the tank and generally put on a hapless performance.
But this year the NBA is like a soap opera. You have to tune in tomorrow to see what happens. There’s drama galore, most of it surrounding James Harden.
The Bearded One has been one of the elite NBA players for about a decade. He is an unquestioned offensive talent and can create his shot like nobody else in the league.
But Harden also seems to always be in the middle of controversy. His MO has been to score a gazillion points during the regular season, then turn to jelly in the postseason.
Harden is what I consider a “me-first” guy. He reportedly lobbied for Houston to deal for Russell Westbrook and that didn’t work out. So he stirred up trouble off the court and talked his way out of Houston as the Rockets dealt him to the Brooklyn Nets. He joins Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving (if the mood strikes him to show up) to form the latest Big 3. It worked in Boston (Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen) and in Miami (LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh) as the Celtics won a championship and the Heat took two.
Durant was part of a Big 3 in Golden State (Steph Curry and Klay Thompson) and they dominated. But Durant soured on Golden State and signed with Brooklyn.
But this new Big 3 could be combustible. Irving has missed the last half-dozen games for personal reasons (nobody knows), while Harden has to have the ball in his hands at least 50 percent of the time. While Durant may be surly, he plays as hard as anybody in the NBA and very seldom causes problems off the court.
ESPN’s loquacious talking head Stephen A. Smith came out and said Irving should just retire if he doesn’t want to play. Irving was at Cleveland with LaBron, but didn’t like playing second fiddle and forced his way out. He went to Boston and played well, but proved to be a headache and reportedly wasn’t a good teammate.
However, it’s been reported Durant lobbied for the trade for Harden to join himself and Irving. There’s simply not enough basketballs to go around and make this work. Durant is the guy who will try the most, but I don’t have much hope for Harden. Irving? Who knows if or when he’ll show up.
The Nets currently are a pedestrian 7-6 and barely in the NBA playoffs. If they ever get their full team assembled, their record will improve, but are they going to be an elite team?
If nothing else, they’ll make for good tabloid copy. I just wonder what the other nine players on the Nets think about all this hoopla. They have to wonder if they’re still part of the team with so much attention showered on the Big 3.
We’re down to the NFL’s version of the Elite Eight, which means we’ll have four playoff games this weekend.
I really like the matchups of the eight remaining teams, as a case probably can be made for seven of them
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We’re down to the NFL’s version of the Elite Eight, which means we’ll have four playoff games this weekend.
I really like the matchups of the eight remaining teams, as a case probably can be made for seven of them having a legitimate chance. The only flawed game appears to be the Los Angeles Rams at Green Bay.
Here’s a look at the four games:
SATURDAY
Los Angeles at Green Bay – The Packers have easily been the NFC’s best team the second half of the season as Aaron Rodgers has been playing at an MVP level and the defense has been solid.
Home field doesn’t mean what it used to since there have been no fans, but it does mean something in this game as the Rams leave the sunny climes of LA for the frozen tundra of Green Bay, with temperatures Saturday expected to be around freezing with a hint of snow flurries.
Quite frankly, the Rams’ road win at Seattle last week was a surprise, as their defense harassed Russell Wilson into a miserable game and Jared Goff came off the bench 12 days after hand surgery to produce just enough offense for the Rams to win.
Los Angeles has the NFL’s most fearsome defense, which should keep it in the game. But the Rams have running back issues due to injuries and Goff is not 100 percent.
Green Bay 27, Los Angeles 14
Buffalo at Baltimore – This is the game I’m anticipating the most, because I believe the winner will move on to the Super Bowl.
I’ve made it crystal clear where I stand, I’m on the Ravens’ bandwagon until somebody proves to me otherwise. They have won six in a row and Lamar Jackson has been playing lights-out football.
Josh Allen has been almost as lights-out for the Bills, but they’re going to be missing their top running back in Zach Moss. The Buffalo defense, so bad at the start of the year, has gotten better since being sheared by Patrick Mahomes.
It’s going to be around 30 at game time, which is balmy by Buffalo’s standards. The Ravens, though, have plenty of cold-game experience, so weather makes no difference.
Baltimore 28, Buffalo 24.
Cleveland at Kansas City – It seems like an eternity since the Chiefs have played. Hopefully they have used the time off to heal up, especially in the offensive line. Clyde Edwards-Helaire is back, which is a plus.
This is going to be all about the Chiefs stopping the run as Nick Chubb and an inspired Kareem Hunt could allow the Browns to control the clock. Also, the Chiefs must be able to protect Mahomes, who took a beating the second half of the season.
But who’s going to bet against Mahomes and the Chiefs at this point?
Kansas City 38, Cleveland 31.
Tampa Bay at New Orleans – A matchup of a pair of 40-plus quarterbacks is the game’s focal point, but it comes down to the supporting cast.
Right now, TB’s Tom Brady is playing like he’s 30, not 40. The Bucs have put up huge numbers in recent games.
New Orleans has the better defense and is now healthy on offense.
If there’s a game where the home team could lose, however, this is it. Call this taking a flyer.
Tampa Bay 30, New Orleans 27.
Wednesday’s ramblings…
INVITE PAIRINGS OUT – I posted the McPherson Invitational pairings earlier today and finally realized just how different the tournament is going to be this year.
The tournament, which begins next week, has two games each day, with
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Wednesday’s ramblings…
INVITE PAIRINGS OUT – I posted the McPherson Invitational pairings earlier today and finally realized just how different the tournament is going to be this year.
The tournament, which begins next week, has two games each day, with the dates Monday, Thursday and Saturday, unlike the usual Thursday-Friday-Saturday format of four games each day. This year there’s also a JV division.
The Invitational, as well as the Mid America Classic the following week, are big deals for McPherson. Both tournaments usually draw big crowds and normally bring a lot of economic stimulus to the city because many teams stay in hotels, eat at our restaurants and shop in our stores.
But five teams backed out of the Invite due to COVID and concessions had to be made. MHS plucked a team from the Valley Center tournament to get to its field of four.
For the Bullpup boys, this is going to be a meatgrinder. Currently 5-3, they play three much-bigger schools, though all the teams in the field appear to be similar in terms of talent level.
The JV tournament is a nice addition this year as it will be played in the auxiliary gym.
Let’s pray that the snail’s pace of the vaccine rollout speeds up and we’ll have our tournaments back up and running to full capacity next year.
STILLWATER NOT KIND TO JAYHAWKS – KU coach Bill Self just seems to have trouble winning at his alma mater.
The Jayhawks again stumbled in Stillwater on Tuesday, going down 17 points before using a 21-2 rip to get back into the game, only to fizzle at the end in a 75-70 loss to Oklahoma State.
I didn’t see the game, but the stats paint a pretty clear picture. The Jayhawks were just 28 of 62 from the field, a miserable 5 of 21 from 3. They were perfect at the foul line, but took only 9 attempts, an indication there wasn’t much of an inside game.
From all accounts, David McCormack was a monster with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Ochai Agbagi tallied 14 and Marcus Garrett added 12 points, but Jalen Wilson and Christian Braun were basically no-shows. The bench gave very little and I continue to wonder why Mitch Lightfoot doesn’t get more minutes. He played only 8 and always brings good energy. Maybe Self might try playing Lightfoot with McCormack, but he’s committed to just one playing one big on the floor.
KU is now 4-2 in the Big 12 and the way Baylor and Texas are playing, it looks like the Jayhawks most likely won’t repeat as Big 12 champion and it would be only the second time Self has not won the title while at KU.
HARDEN, HOUSTON AT IMPASSE – The marriage of James Harden to the Houston Rockets appears to be heading for a divorce.
The superstar Rocket guard went off after Houston’s loss on Tuesday and while he didn’t demand to be traded, make no mistake he wants out.
Harden is an enigma. He is the NBA’s best scorer, but he also has a me-first mentality. The rest of his team often spends games watching him dribble the clock until finally putting up a shot.
Harden said he wants to play for a winner, but I’m not sure too many teams will pony up what the Rockets would want in return. And Harden would probably disrupt any team’s chemistry given how much he has to have the ball in his hands.
He’s too much of a talent, though, for somebody not to back up the truck and pay for his services. From all reports, though, teams aren’t exactly overwhelming the Rockets with a big-ticket offer.
It was just a year ago that LSU was being hailed as the greatest college football team of all time.
The Bayou Bengals had roared through the season destroying everything in their path and clobbered Clemson in the national championship
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It was just a year ago that LSU was being hailed as the greatest college football team of all time.
The Bayou Bengals had roared through the season destroying everything in their path and clobbered Clemson in the national championship game. Joe Burrow threw for a gazillion yards and LSU seemingly had pros at every position.
But their claim to college football supreme commander was short-lived. The Tigers have been usurped by SEC rival Alabama, which now has won 7 of the last 12 championships.
Alabama made an emphatic case of being the best of all time on Monday with a 52-24 destruction of Ohio State, which in the first half looked like little more than a sacrificial lamb. The Crimson Tide shredded the proud Buckeye defense for five touchdowns and made it look easy.
Much is made of Alabama’s galaxy of skill players. Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith had 12 catches for 215 yards and 3 TDs in just the first half and missed the second half with an injury. Can you imagine the numbers he would have put up in another quarter or quarter-and-a-half of play?
Quarterback Mac Jones was 36 of 45 for 464 yards and 5 scores, including 25 of 30 in the first half. He’s big and strong, with an arm that can fire it 70 yards with no sweat. Running back Najee Harris was slippery and picked up some important first downs when the outcome was still in doubt. Alabama’s complementary weapons would be All-Americans for other teams.
But where Alabama is head and shoulders above everybody else is in the trenches. You look at their offensive and defensive linemen and you have to believe that nearly all of them will be in the NFL when their time comes to move on. They are massive, overpowering and, to be honest, almost at times look bored because they dominate so easily.
As long as Nick Saban is the coach at Alabama, it is going to be considered the favorite to win it all every year. This year’s team had three of the top five vote-getters for the Heisman Trophy. It’s a team that averaged 50 points a game and its defensive starters didn’t have to be on the field much due to the offense trampling the opposition.
Saban doesn’t keep many of his staff around for long because they’re leading candidates for every job opening there is. And you never hear of any NCAA violation talk because the program sells itself. The Tide has yet another star-spangled recruiting class coming in, including some of the highest-rated offensive linemen in the country. If there’s a player they really want, they find a way to get him.
Wait till this year’s NFL draft. Don’t be surprised if there are 8 to 10 Alabama players who go in the first round, its talent differential is just that impressive.
Remember all the talk that the college football playoffs need to be expanded? Why? It’s Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and then everybody else. Notre Dame can’t hang when it gets deep and Oklahoma never has the defense to really make a challenge for supremacy. There are some nice, other teams, but Alabama has graduated into its own stratosphere.
The Kansas City Chiefs, the AFC team to receive the lone bye this past weekend for having the best record in the conference, got an eyeful during the NFL’s “Wild-Card Weekend.”
The Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns put
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The Kansas City Chiefs, the AFC team to receive the lone bye this past weekend for having the best record in the conference, got an eyeful during the NFL’s “Wild-Card Weekend.”
The Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns put on performances that definitely have garnered the Chiefs’ attention. Buffalo was given a push by Indianapolis, but Josh Allen time and again delivered big time. In a physical slugfest, Baltimore spotted Tennessee 10 points before coming back for the victory, then Cleveland shocked Pittsburgh with an early onslaught and held off the Steelers’ comeback attempt in the second half.
With Cleveland’s upset, it’s the Browns – not the Ravens – who will be visiting Kansas City this weekend. No matter who advanced to play the Chiefs, all three challenges provide huge headaches.
Make no mistake, the Browns are the team KC most wants to play of the three. Given the rolls Buffalo and Baltimore are on and how much emotional energy Cleveland used up against arch-rival Pittsburgh, I like KC’s chances more against Cleveland than if it played Baltimore or Buffalo.
The Brown had one of those “perfect-storm” games, where Pittsburgh’s sleepwalking start buried it in a 35-7 hole and it simply could never stop the Baker Mayfield-led offense.
It’s hard to imagine the Browns causing so many turnovers by a Chiefs team that doesn’t turn it over very often. Patrick Mahomes has become much more disciplined, as he doesn’t try to squeeze in passes as much into tight windows as he used to.
I thought Kansas City wheezed to the finish line. The game with the LA Chargers was little more than an exhibition since the Chiefs played their backups. But the seven previous games they won by a touchdown or less. I don’t know if it was boredom or what, but Kansas City seemed to lack the put-away instinct.
My concern with Cleveland is how well it runs the ball. Nick Chubb and former Chief Kareem Hunt make up the best 1-2 tandem in the NFL and Hunt already has said this game is personal to him since he was cut from Kansas City due to his domestic violence incident. You have to worry about the Chiefs’ defense getting off the field as the Browns could very well control the ball and keep it out of the hands of Mahomes. Chubb is an All-Pro and Hunt once was and from what he showed Sunday, he is still one of the NFL’s best backs.
Buffalo and Baltimore should be a dandy. I’m sticking with the Ravens, because Lamar Jackson has finally gotten over the hump of winning a playoff game and he was electrifying against the Titans. I’ve been on the Baltimore bandwagon all year, even when it was struggling, and I’m not jumping off. The Ravens are playing with a lot of swag and have been the best team in the NFL the last 6 weeks
In the NFC, I like the Packers to emerge as they should beat the Rams handily this week. Tampa Bay and New Orleans should be fascinating, but the Bucs’ offense is on fire. There’s just something about the Saints that I can’t bank on.
Published | Title |
---|---|
January 08, 2020 | Bob Wise was a loyal supporter |
January 07, 2021 | Sub-state, KU and K-State |
January 06, 2021 | Remembering the legendary Tim Wesselowski |
January 05, 2021 | MHS players surprisingly snubbed for Shrine Bowl |
January 04, 2021 | Sticking with the Ravens to win it all |
December 30, 2020 | 2020 was a year unlike any other |
December 29, 2020 | Bills emerging as serious challenger to KC |
December 28, 2020 | Chiefs continue to walk tightrope |
December 23, 2020 | Feel-good night for MHS basketball teams |
December 22, 2020 | Bullpups looking to take good vibe into holidays |