NBA 2013-2014 Third of the Season Report

LeBron James

MVP- In a shocker, it is LeBron James.  He is still the best player in the game today.  He is also the most valuable in the sense that he means the most to his team.  He will win this award until somebody gives the voters a reason not to select him and this season, nobody has done that, not even close.  Kevin Durant is the second best player in the league but second in the MVP voting should go to Lamarcus Aldridge.  He has vastly improved.  He shoots more efficiently and rebounds a lot more.  He is maxing out his talent right now for the first time in his career.  Chris Paul takes third.  He has been the constant in a year of change for the Los Angeles Clippers. 

Most Improved Player- Jordan Crawford gets the nod here.  He has put up decent numbers scoring the ball in previous years but he is really putting it together this year.  He scores with efficiency and dishes out assists at a surprising rate for somebody once labeled as a senseless gunner.  He has become a complete player.  Aaron Aflalo has an argument due to a serious uptick in his scoring. 

Michael Carter-Williams

Rookie of the Year- If he can stay healthy all season long it will be Michael Carter-Williams by a landslide.  He is stuffing the stat sheet like a seasoned vet with 17 points, seven assists, 5 rebounds, and three steals per game.  His shooting percentage could use a little work, but lets not be too picky, this guy is having a tremendous season.  Alphonso Burke (though you may know him by his nickname, Trey) takes second for how much he has meant to the Jazz.  Before he returned from injury, the Jazz were a mess, with him there is hope and fluidity on offense.  Victor Oladipo is just a smidge behind Burke.  He, like Carter-Williams, has contributed to the game in many different ways.  All three look to be great players in this league for years to come. 

Coach of the Year- Brad Stevens, Boston Celtics.  Did you think the Celtics would be this good?  If you answer yes then you are a liar.  They are just under .500 in the standings in a year where they were expected to be right in range for the number one overall pick.  Oh by the way, Rajon Rondo is not even back yet.  Stevens has inspired this rag-tag group to come together and play good basketball.  He has gotten the best out of his roster.  Refer back to Crawford and the most improved player section for proof.  Terry Stotts of the Blazers will also garner serious consideration and could even win it.

Defensive Player of the Year- Deandre Jordan.  This big, athletic center may not wow you with his on-ball defense but his help-defense has allowed the rest of the roster to spend most of their energy on the offensive end.  He provides a great security blanket for his perimeter defenders with his shot blocking ability.  He uses his athleticism to grab a lot of rebounds.  Dwight Howard looks to be in old form in Houston and could also contend for this award.  As could LeBron James who continues to dominate at both ends of the floor. 

Sixth Man of the Year- Jamal Crawford of the Clippers has provided a great scoring punch for his squad.  They would not have won nearly as many games without his contributions.  Crawford knows his role and executes it well.  Reggie Jackson has been great off the bench for the Thunder and will garner attention here as well.  You can also expect Harrison Barnes of the Warriors to contend here as well. 

Most Surprising Team- The Portland Trailblazers get this award and there should be no arguments here.  Aldridge and Damian Lillard have been fantastic for this team.  Terry Stotts has this team firing all cylinders but the biggest reason for their success is depth.  The Blazers had talent last year but got nothing from the bench.  Mo Williams and Thomas Robinson have provided much-needed depth.  Robin Lopez does not wow you with his ability but is a solid center.  Starters Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Batum have really stepped up their games and have contributed exactly where they are needed.  This team is for real, there is serious talent there.  The Phoenix Suns and Boston Celtics are the next closest.  Both teams were expected to fight for the number one pick and now find themselves firmly in the playoff picture. 

Most Disappointing Team- This one is a tie between the Knicks and Nets.  What has gone wrong for these two teams?  Everything!  Injuries, coaching drama, aging stars, selfish stars, etc.  The Nets have just lost their best player, Brooke Lopez, for what looks like the remainder of the season so there is no fixing their situation.  The Knicks have a roster that just does not mesh together.  I do not see their situation improving either.  The Golden State Warriors have also been a bit of a letdown.  If the playoffs started today, the Warriors would not be participating.  If you are a Warriors fan, keep reading, it gets better. 

Finals Prediction- The Pacers over the Thunder.  Both teams have playoff experience.  You can expect the Pacers to overtake the Heat, they seem to want it more and have to talent to matchup.  The Thunder are more athletic than the Spurs, more experienced than the Blazers, and better than anybody else the West has to offer.  The Thunder are a much deeper team this year.  The Kevin Durant, Paul George matchup is going to be a great one.  A tag-team of George Hill and Lance Stephenson can at least slow down Russell Westbrook.  The difference in the series is Roy Hibbert.  Serge Ibaka can check David West, but both fake tough-guy (insert link) Kendrick Perkins and Steven Adams will be no match for the former Hoya. 

Who will Rise- The Warriors’ struggles will not continue and you can fully expect them to be in the playoffs.  Denver is currently in the eighth seed and there is just no way they will hold on.  There is too much firepower on Golden State’s roster for them to stay home after the regular season.  Once they are there, do not be surprised if they upset a team or two like they did last year.  The Cleveland Cavs and the Minnesota Timberwolves are two teams who are currently outside the playoff picture but have the talent to be one of the top eight teams in their respective conferences. 

Who will Fall- Look for Dallas and Denver to potentially fall out of playoff contention in the Western Conference.  There are a couple of teams below them in Minnesota and Golden State that have more talent.  In the East, it does not really matter if you are not the Heat or Pacers, but there is no reason to believe the Raptors will hold onto the eighth playoff spot. 

Mike Woodson 

First Coach to Get Fired- This is a rather cynical category but it has to be Mike Woodson of the Knicks.  He has made questionable coaching decisions and seems to be a little fed up with the performance of his selfish team, though who could blame him?  The situation in New York is a terrible one and something needs to be done.  

LeBron vs. KG and Pierce is Good For Basketball

I first started watching basketball in 1999.  The season after Michael Jordan retired from the Bulls for the second time.

I fell in love with the game right away.  My favorite things to watch in the beginning were the Reggie Miller-led Pacers teams verses the Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell-led Knicks teams.  That was a rivalry.  It was interesting.  It was compelling.  It grabbed your attention.  It made you passionate about what you were watching.  These feelings are stirred up in any rivalry.

Outside of the Yankees verses the Red Sox, football is home to the greatest rivalries.  In college there are great ones like USC vs. UCLA, Auburn vs. Alabama and Ohio State vs. Michigan.  In the NFL you have the Cowboys vs. the Redskins, the Packers vs. the Bears and the Ravens vs. the Steelers.  I believe that this is the reason why football is so popular, there are big-time rivalries.  Rivalries that are deep-rooted, sure the names have changed over time, but the new faces in these organizations always seem to adopt the same hatred for their rivals.

The NBA is sorely lacking in rivalries.  The days of Bird and Magic are gone.  The days of the Pistons adopting the "Jordan Rules" are gone.  There is too much brotherhood in today's NBA.  Rivalries do not necessarily have to come from teams.  They can stem from players.  That is what has taken shape with LeBron James, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.  KG and Pierce have been teammates on two teams now (The Celtics and now the Nets).  They have won a championship together and have bonded.  One foe that has stood in their way of multiple championships for this duo while with the Celtics is James.  KG and Pierce have carried this hatred over to the Nets.  The Nets and the Heat are both viewed as contenders in the Eastern Conference.

James has recently mocked KG and Pierce for leaving Boston after they got so angry with Ray Allen for heading south to Miami a year ago.  Garnett responded by telling James to worry about his own team.  He also reminded James that he and Pierce were traded away from the Celtics and that leaving was not their wish.  This is great for basketball.  In a meaningless preseason game on October 17, 2013, we saw Pierce commit a hard foul on James that was clearly meant to send a message.  Imagine how great the competition between these two teams will be in the regular season and how much more intense it would be if they met in the playoffs.

When you are about to face a rival, you seem to dig a little deeper and give it all you have.  The games become more intense.  It is better competition and in turn becomes better viewing for the fans.  This is what made players like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant so great, they found reasons to have disdain for their opponents.  A rivalry must be kept appropriate.  Leave everything on the court or field and maybe say a few things in the media.

Part of the reason the NBA does not boast the rivalries is that players change teams so often.  This is why we need player-driven rivalries like we are seeing with LeBron and KG and Pierce.  The NBA would benefit from a few more rivalries like this.

Jim Irsay Strikes Again

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay is an idiot. 

Irsay is getting to the point where is mostly known as a loudmouth.  When he is not tweeting way more than an owner of a professional sports team should, he is verbalizing his opinions through different channels of media.  I used to be believe that he just wanted attention.  I believed that he wanted as much celebrity status as the world-class athletes that he employs, or his buddy Rob Lowe.  After looking over his recent comments about Peyton Manning, in the week leading up to Manning’s return to Indy no less, we can all see that he is just a moron. 

Irsay’s exact comment was,

"(Tom) Brady never had consistent numbers, but he has three of these (championship rings," Irsay told USA Today. "Pittsburgh had two, the Giants had two, Baltimore had two and we had one. That leaves you frustrated.

"You make the playoffs 11 times, and you're out in the first round seven out of 11 times. You love to have the Star Wars numbers from Peyton and Marvin (Harrison) and Reggie (Wayne). Mostly, you love this (referring to his Super Bowl ring)."

In breaking down what Irsay said sentence by sentence, let’s start with him saying that Tom Brady never had consistent numbers.  For the last decade or so, Brady has been one of the top two quarterbacks in the league, along with Manning.  His numbers are fairly consistent with Peyton’s.  Irsay then goes on to imply that with a quarterback other than Manning, he would have advanced beyond the first round of the playoffs more often and won more Super Bowls. 

This is the most ridiculous statement Irsay has ever made, the main reason being that the Colts would have never been to the playoffs those 11 times without Peyton Manning.  Irsay could believe that with a different quarterback, a few breaks could have gone a different way.  I suppose that they could have, but the more likely scenario is that they find a significantly less amount of success. 

Manning is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL.  In my amateur opinion, he is the greatest of all time.  He put fans in the seats and made his owner in Indianapolis a lot of money.  That nice new stadium the Colts play in and even hosted a Super Bowl in, was able to be built because of the success orchestrated by Manning.  Peyton meant so much to the Colts organization.  He handled his release with the utmost class and always had his former team’s best interest at heart. 

Fortunately Manning’s new coach, John Fox, had his back. 

Fox is absolutely correct.  These comments by Irsay are stupid.  When speaking of Manning he should be nothing but grateful of the time he employed his former quarterback.  Before Manning got there, the Colts were a terrible team, the year Manning was injured before his eventual release, the Colts were also a terrible team.  The reason that the Colts are now finding success is that they have a quarterback who will one day be at Peyton’s level and is already very close.  A quarterback that Manning himself spoke highly of to the organization. 

Both the Colts and Peyton Manning are in good situations right now.  Manning is running the NFL’s best offense and could possibly lead them to a Super Bowl victory this year.  Irsay’s Colts are a team on the rise and one day, Andrew Luck may get his owner another ring.  For now, both the Colts and the Broncos have benefitted from Mannings talents and let’s leave it at that.  

Who Will Finish On Top- Broncos or Seahawks?

Peyton Manning gets the offense ready.

Right now the talk of the NFL seams to be all about the Denver Broncos and the Seattle Seahawks.  Four weeks into the young season these two teams are on top the league and it would not surprise anybody if this was the matchup that we saw in the Super Bowl at the end of the year, but which of these two teams will be on top at season's end?

The answer is the Denver Broncos.  They seem to be on a mission after a disappointing playoff loss last year to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens.  That game was more than winnable for the Broncos and they have started this season appearing highly motivated after that loss.  The Denver offense, through four games, is averaging an astounding 44.8 points per game.  Including a seven touchdown performance by Peyton Manning in the opener against the Ravens.  That game was not a fluke, and the Broncos have shown us that.  They continue to put up great numbers on offense behind the smartest, craftiest quarterback in the league, a stable of weapons for him to throw the ball too and a better than advertised running game.

Wide receivers Wes Welker, Eric Decker, Demaryius Thomas and tight end Julius Thomas give Manning plenty of places to throw to.  Some have worried about how he will keep so many hungry targets happy but as long as they are winning games there should not be a problem.  Everyone seems to be getting their fair share as well.  Each wideout is averaging at least six catches a game and everyone with the exception of Decker, who has a total of one, is averaging at least a touchdown per game.  Julius Thomas is hitting his touchdown per game average but has only 18 catches to start the year.  The running game is led by Knowshon Moreno.  Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman have been good as well, and as soon as Ball can cut down his fumbles he may be the best of those three.  The offense does not have a real weakness.

The Seahawks secondary is something to be feared.

The Broncos will have a better regular season record than the Seattle Seahawks and should win in a head to head battle.  Seahawk fans will point to their daunting defense and especially their secondary as to why they would beat the Broncos and while that secondary is the best that we have seen in a while, the Broncos just have too many weapons on offense.

That being said, the Seahawks have been great. They can win in many different ways.  That defense is so tough to play against, so tough to complete passes against (they can even score) .  Marshawn Lynch is better than anybody thought he could be when he was in Buffalo and Russell Wilson continues to grow and mature as a leader and as a quarterback.  This is a team that is built to be good for many years to come and they will be.

The Broncos are a team with a star quarterback who is in on the back end of his career.  Both Manning and the team know they need to win now and I believe this mentality will carry the team to a Super Bowl victory this season.  Sure Lynch and the mobile Wilson could run wild on the Broncos 16th ranked defense in points allowed per game but this has all been without Von Miller and Champ Bailey. Once those two return the Broncos will become an even more complete team and while their defense won't be nearly as good as Seattle's, their offense is more than capable of picking up the slack and put up a higher number on the scoreboard than any other opposing offense they face.

Broncos for Super Bowl champs in a much too early prediction.

The Most Unfairly Treated Man in College Football

     Johnny Manziel is to college football what J.R. Ewing was to the television show Dallas- the man
you love to hate.

     It is very rare that somebody will defend Manziel, but I will.  This past off-season Manziel faced an
incredible amount of scrutiny, some of it was his fault and some of it was blown out of proportion by

the media.  The only NCAA rule that Manziel
was accused of violating was accepting money for
signing autographs.  The NCAA investigated this
allegation and could not prove any wrong doing
on Manziel's part.  He was suspended for the first
half of Texas A&M's season opener against Rice.

     Another situation he was criticized for was being sent home from the Manning Passing Camp.  This was bad.  It was a great opportunity for Manziel to network and learn from other great quarterbacks as well as spread good will by teaching high school kids about the nuances of playing quarterback.  Also, he should have been there to respect some of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, he could have really helped his reputation with a good showing at the camp.  It was said that he missed meetings at the camp because he was "dehydrated".  Dehydration is often code for being hung over.  As a 20-year-old, he shouldn't be drinking.  It is against the law to consume alcohol, but lets be honest, he is only doing what almost every college kid his age is doing.

     Among other things that people had problems with Manziel over were playing in a golf tournament
and sitting court side at a Miami Heat game.  This is extremely blown out of proportion.  Manziel
comes from a wealthy family and who would turn down opportunities like those?  The answer is
nobody in their right mind.

  
     Right now everybody needs to back off of Manziel.  The media and fans
need to stop criticizing him and appreciate him.  We are witnessing greatness.
After almost beating Alabama for the second time in as many meetings, he has 
gained a fan in Nick Saban at least.  Last year Manziel became the first
freshman to win the Heisman trophy when he passed for 3,706 yards while
completed 68 percent of his passes and throwing 26 touchdowns to only nine
interceptions.  That is not even going into his rushing statistics which were unbelievable for a quarterback.  This year he has improved as a passer while still showing all of the elusiveness that makes him a special quarterback.

     A lot has been made of his off-the-field struggles but nobody can argue that no matter what is going on in Manziel's life, he shows up ready to perform on Saturdays.  Lately people have also been analyzing what type of quarterback Manziel will be in the NFL.  The style of play that NFL coaches are employing today gives him a better chance to succeed than he could have had in the past.  We all need to stop criticizing Manziel and over analyzing him, it is about time that we just enjoy the show.

Time to give up on Brandon Weeden

           I hate when we as sports fans overreact to situations but I believe its already time for the Cleveland Browns to give up on quarterback Brandon Weeden. 

            Weeden will turn 30 years old on October 14^th and is two games into his second season as an NFL starting quarterback.  He underwhelmed enough in his rookie season to find himself in an offseason quarterback competition with the painfully average Jason Campbell.  Through the first two weeks of his second year in the league, he has led the Browns to two losses, 16 measly points and what looks like yet another season in the AFC North cellar.  Oh yeah, he is also injured now. 

            The Weeden injury is a minor one, a sprained thumb that should only keep him out a week or so, but it just goes to show that it is always something.  More importantly is the opportunity cost.  In the college ranks you currently have Aaron Murray at Georgia, Tajh Boyd at Clemson, Teddy Bridgewater at Louisville, Brett Hundley at UCLA and even Johnny Manziel at Texas A&M who are all much more tantalizing options to be a franchise quarterback than Brandon Weeden.  The same could also be said Christian Ponder and Blaine Gabbert, but that is for another discussion. 

            We have seen what a good quarterback can do for a bad team.  Look no further than RG3 and Andrew Luck.  We have even seen that an exciting, yet not-so-talented quarterback can make an unwatchable team suddenly watchable (We’re talking about you Terrelle Pryor). 

           Weeden supporters will point to the fact that his top three pass-catchers are guys you 

probably haven’t heard of in Jordan Cameron, Davone Bess and Greg Little.  Not a good enough 

excuse.  Pryor has found a way to be exciting and win nearly two games with an even lesser 

receiving corpse.  In Cleveland, things are bad.  They might even want to gut the team, but 

there are a few bright spots like Josh Gordon, Barkevious Mingo and Trent Richardson.  The 

most important thing for a bad football team to do is to either get a quarterback who adds 

excitement or a quarterback who adds offensive production.  Weeden does neither and, as has 

already been written in this article, there are many quarterbacks in the college ranks who 

appear very likely to add at one or both of those things to an offense.