Weekend Thoughts – 04/30/2012
I was bored and a lot of stuff happened this past week in the sports world, so I decided to come up with a weekly update… like a weekly column. Hopefully I will decide to keep up with this.
NBA
-I watched part of the Heat and Knicks game – boy, was I frustrated. The Knicks could not take care of the ball at all and Carmelo Anthony’s shots just weren’t falling. The Knicks were obviously outmatched, but to make matters worse, they’ve lost Iman Shumpert for the rest of the season. Getting Jeremy Lin back will not save them. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Knicks got swept again… actually, I’m expecting it.
-Andrew Bynum had a monster game against the Nuggets, blocking 10 shots. The Lakers were just dominant defensively. Looks like losing Metta World War won’t hurt them in the post-season. They should get him back in time for the second round.
-The Bulls lost Derrick Rose to a torn ACL. I still think the Bulls are good enough to advance to the Conference Finals because their team has been winning without Rose all season. They’re a deep and a team that’s fundamentally sound. Unfortunately, that won’t matter much in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat.
-The Bobcats were horrible this season. It just doesn’t seem like Michael Jordan really cares about this team. What’s going on? Oh, and the talk that Kentucky might be good enough to beat the Bobcats should really stop. NBA players are the cream of the crop of the NCAA players (and/or international). And also, I watched Kentucky play, and I wasn’t that impressed.
-Here are my predictions for the Playoffs.
East: Bulls over 76ers in 5. Heat over Knicks in 4. Pacers over Magic in 4. Hawks over Celtics in 6.
Bulls over Pacers in 5. Heat over Hawks in 4.
Heat over Bulls in 6.
West: Spurs over Jazz in 5. Thunder over Mavs in 6. Lakers over Nuggets in 4. Clippers over Grizzlies in 6.
Thunder over Spurs in 6. Lakers over Clippers in 6.
Thunder over Lakers in 6.
Finals: Heat over Thunder in 7.
NFL Draft
The Draft was full of surprises. Lots of trades – teams moving up and down and all around. Here are some of my thoughts:
-I’m undecided on the 49ers draft thus far. It’s way too early to assess their draft, but if I HAD to give them a grade, I’d probably give them a C+ or B-. They stockpiled picks for next year, but everything is for later in the draft. In the first round, they picked up a receiver they really liked, but was probably a 2nd round receiver. But who knows… someone else might have taken him if they didn’t grab him right away. They also reached for LaMichael James, at a position they were stacked at. But he’s an explosive player with promise and could make their team more dangerous. I liked that they got good value Joe Looney. I’m worried about the top of their draft, but the end of the draft ended pretty nicely.
-The Patriots flipped the script this year and traded up, rather than down. They really improved their defense.
-Packers too – most of the players picked were defensive players for them and the Patriots.
-Whoever played the joke on Mohamed Sanu is an absolute dick. I hope that person gets what’s coming to them. Karma’s a bitch. Props to Sanu for handling it like a professional. I think the Bengals got great value for him in the 3rd round. I thought the Jets or Eagles would have picked him up in the 2nd, but Stephen Hill was still available. Which brings me to my next point.
-Great pickup by the Jets in grabbing Stephen Hill. I think they made the right choice in the first round and they got pretty good value in Hill. If Hill can improve his route running, he can be Megatron-lite. Maybe we can call him Decepticon. Too bad they don’t have a QB that can hit him.
-Michael Floyd to the Cardinals will be dangerous. If he turns out to be a decent receiver, Kevin Kolb has some dangerous weapons. They just need an offensive line now.
-The Steelers probably had the best draft.
-Eagles, Redskins and Seahawks all made surprising backup QB pickups. They must be grooming back-ups so that they can trade them later on (a la Kevin Kolb, Matt Schaub, and Matt Flynn). Interesting to see if it works out for them.
-Jaguars picked up a punter in the 3rd round, which was a shocker. Normally, punters don’t go that high. He better have an Andy Lee or Shane Lechler-type season or else the Jags will be ridiculed more than they already are. They definitely could have used that pick for some more offensive line help.
MLB
It’s too early in the season for me to really care about wins and losses so far. Still, here are some thoughts:
-It is surprising to see how much Albert Pujols has struggled thus far.
-Roy Halladay, as usual, is a beast.
-The Yanks definitely didn’t get good value for Jesus Montero. Starting pitching was supposed to be a strength for them this season… pre-season projections really don’t mean anything.
-A lot of surprising teams so far… The Nationals top my list. The Orioles are also very good. The Mets are definitely a pleasant surprise. The Cardinals were good to begin with, but I didn’t think they’d be this good. Same can be said for the Dodgers… looks like new ownership provided some “magic”.
-The Marlins are surprisingly bad. As are the Angels. And it’s always fun to see Boston wallow in mediocrity. But I guess the Yankees aren’t that much better right now.
-Matt Kemp and Josh Hamilton are certainly Triple Crown threats.
-Derek Jeter has found the Fountain of Youth.
-If the Nationals continue this hot streak and they make the playoffs, will they shut down Stephen Strasburg even if he past his innings limit?
-Phil Humber – perfect game. It’s been a long journey, but he’s certainly one of the better pitchers this year.
NHL
-So happy the Devils advanced. But I think they shoulda took Game 1 in Philly. I don’t like the way Round 2 is going.
-So happy the Bruins were knocked off. Take that, Boston!
Okay, so this was longer that anticipated. But this was my first post and there was a lot to discuss!
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