Hey folks, just wanted to drop a quick note that CS-Fullerton plays UCLA on ESPN starting at 11pm tonight, and Fullerton is where Bryce Webster finally ended up after transferring out of Minnesota (there was something about Utah State in there somewhere, but he is at Fullerton).
I don't have the time nor the inclination to rehash his time with the Gophers and what has happened since, but Bryce is starting for the Titans, and scored 8 points and grabbed 5 boards in the team's season opening win over Hope International, which apparently was a real game and not an exhibition. He played just 21 minutes, which likely had a bit to do with the lopsided 93-57 score.
The Bruins have most of the players back after a bunch of preseason injuries, but this is a young team without a lot of practice team as a complete unit. Can Bryce lead the Titans to the upset? Probably not, but you should watch anyway because basketball is awesome.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Beware the Southland
One day after seeing Southland Conference mate UT-San Antonio knock off Iowa, the mighty Lumberjacks of Stephen F. Austin roll into Williams Arena looking to snag a second win for their conference over a Big Ten team. Well, the Gophers aren't exactly Iowa, but SFA is superior to UT-San Antonio (and Tennessee Tech).
The Lumberjacks won the Southland last season, going 22-8 overall - including a win over every midwestern white dork's favorites NDSU, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament as a 15 seed, losing to Syracuse 55-49. Unfortunately for them, graduation ravaged their roster and they lost 3 starters, including the last two Southland Players of the Year, and some key reserves. They do have their starting back court back this season, and point man Eric Bell is an excellent, heady ball player, but I don't know where their scoring is going to come from. Outside of Bell and back court mates Eddie Williams and Walt Harris, there's nobody here with any experience and/or offense.
No, the danger in playing SFA doesn't come from their offensive prowess, it comes from their style of play and their defense. The Jacks played at an extremely slow tempo last season, ranking 301st in the country. They also played stifling defense, ranking 8th in overall defensive efficiency (better than Michigan State last year), due to allowing opponents to shoot just 43% from inside the arc (24th) and an incredible 28% from outside of it (2nd in the country). And when opponents missed, they didn't get second chances, with SFA allowing offensive rebounds just 29% of the time, good enough for 39th in the country. The Lumberjacks may have lost some key players, but the same coach remains and you can bet they are going to play slow, and they are going to play tough defense.
This match up would have been a nightmare game for Monson when he was here, because playing a slow team where just getting a shot is a chore can cause frustration, which leads to a mistakes when coupled with a lack of discipline. With Tubby running the show, however, and plenty of fresh bodies to cycle in and out when frustrations set in, the Gophers should be able to handle SFA without too much difficulty. That said, it's an excellent test for the team this early - not too difficult, but enough of a wrinkle that they'll have to do some work to get the win.
I expect the Gophers to try to kick up the tempo and look to run. With SFA a bit challenged on the offensive end, and the Gophers having the size and athleticism to grab most of the rebounds, the opportunities should be there. If you want to really notice how the team is, pay attention in the half court and watch how they handle a touch defensive team. I know that's what I'll be looking for. If the Gophers can get the open looks in this game they were getting on Friday, it will be a very positive sign. I think they do it.
Gophers 70, Stephen F. Austin 52.
Also I couldn't find any pictures of any SFA girls, but this girl's name is Austin so hopefully we're still bros.
The Lumberjacks won the Southland last season, going 22-8 overall - including a win over every midwestern white dork's favorites NDSU, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament as a 15 seed, losing to Syracuse 55-49. Unfortunately for them, graduation ravaged their roster and they lost 3 starters, including the last two Southland Players of the Year, and some key reserves. They do have their starting back court back this season, and point man Eric Bell is an excellent, heady ball player, but I don't know where their scoring is going to come from. Outside of Bell and back court mates Eddie Williams and Walt Harris, there's nobody here with any experience and/or offense.
No, the danger in playing SFA doesn't come from their offensive prowess, it comes from their style of play and their defense. The Jacks played at an extremely slow tempo last season, ranking 301st in the country. They also played stifling defense, ranking 8th in overall defensive efficiency (better than Michigan State last year), due to allowing opponents to shoot just 43% from inside the arc (24th) and an incredible 28% from outside of it (2nd in the country). And when opponents missed, they didn't get second chances, with SFA allowing offensive rebounds just 29% of the time, good enough for 39th in the country. The Lumberjacks may have lost some key players, but the same coach remains and you can bet they are going to play slow, and they are going to play tough defense.
This match up would have been a nightmare game for Monson when he was here, because playing a slow team where just getting a shot is a chore can cause frustration, which leads to a mistakes when coupled with a lack of discipline. With Tubby running the show, however, and plenty of fresh bodies to cycle in and out when frustrations set in, the Gophers should be able to handle SFA without too much difficulty. That said, it's an excellent test for the team this early - not too difficult, but enough of a wrinkle that they'll have to do some work to get the win.
I expect the Gophers to try to kick up the tempo and look to run. With SFA a bit challenged on the offensive end, and the Gophers having the size and athleticism to grab most of the rebounds, the opportunities should be there. If you want to really notice how the team is, pay attention in the half court and watch how they handle a touch defensive team. I know that's what I'll be looking for. If the Gophers can get the open looks in this game they were getting on Friday, it will be a very positive sign. I think they do it.
Gophers 70, Stephen F. Austin 52.
Also I couldn't find any pictures of any SFA girls, but this girl's name is Austin so hopefully we're still bros.
Week In Review - 11/16/09
Holy crap dude, how freaking crazy was Belicheck going for it on fourth and two with a six point lead and just two minutes left from his own 30 yard line? Was that anything other than, "We know damn well if we punt you're going to score and beat us, so we better keep the ball as long as possible?" Either that or Belicheck has finally lost it. Just bizarre, but what any entertaining game in general and a great comeback by Manning. College basketball is finally back as well, and my thoughts on the Gopher hoops game are right here. If you're looking for Gopher football thoughts, god save your soul.
WHO WAS AWESOME
1. Evan Turner. I mentioned this in my Big Ten Preview, but I'll say it again - Evan Turner is ridiculous. He certainly didn't disappoint in the opening week, putting up a triple-double in the opener against Alcorn State and following it up with 24-17-4 against James Madison. Sure, the competition wasn't the best, but Turner and the rest of the Buckeyes looked very, very good, winning the two games by an average of 34 points. I'm telling you, with Turner, David Lighty, and William Buford this team is going to be very tough and Memphis-y. If Jon Diebler keeps shooting like he did last year (or better so far), this is going to be a really good team. We'll know more after next week when they play Carolina, but watch out folks.
2. Rotnei Clarke. Corliss Williamson didn't do it. Scotty Thurman didn't do it. Patrick Beverley didn't do it. Clint McDaniel, Todd Day, and Ronnie Brewer couldn't do it. Hell, not even the great Oliver Miller could do it, but apparently Rotnei Clark can - break 50 points in a game, that is. Clarke became the first Arkansas player to ever score 50 points in a game, putting up 51 in Friday night's 130-66 win over Alcorn State. Clarke had 31 at halftime, and hit 13 three-pointers on 17 attempts for the game breaking the SEC record held by former Arkansas guard Alex Dillard. It's good timing, too. I had just read an article about how the Razorbacks had a bunch of players suspended (including superstud Courtney Fortson) and would need Clarke to step up in order to take some of the pressure off their star center Michael Washington. Step up indeed.
3. Dayton. There are a ton of really good games starting this week, but over the weekend it was mostly blow-outs or mid-level teams squaring off. There was, however, one game between two teams that both had NCAA Tournament aspirations: Creighton vs. Dayton. Seeing as how Dayton is listed at the beginning of this entry, you would probably guess that Dayton won, and you'd be correct. The Flyers trailed most of the game, but outscored Creighton by 15 in the second half behind a strong showing by Chris Wright, who scored 25 on 9-12 shooting. I'm still not entirely sure what to make of Dayton, other than that their fans are deluisonal, but even though they had more trouble with Creighton than they probalby should have, this is still a good win on a resume.
4. Brandon Jennings. I've been trying to avoid talking about Jennings' great start to his NBA career since he really pissed me off by skipping college to go play in Europe, but after Saturday night's 55-point explosion, I don't see any way to put it off any longer. First off, this is a really solid fifty-point game, with a high shooting percentage (21-34 from the floor, 7-8 from three) and some other contributions (5 rebs, 5 assists) - and they won. Second, something like this probably shouldn't be too surprising, especially since he burst into the league and almost had a triple-double in his first ever NBA game (17-9-9). Thirdly, everything I'm reading says that this kid is already the quickest guard in the league and is essentially unguardable one-on-one, and compares him to Allen Iverson. Finally, this really sucks because now I'm going to have to make an effort to watch a Milwaukee game. Thanks Brandon.
5. Ekpe Udoh. Other players may have put up gaudier numbers so far (like Isaiah Thomas's 24.7ppg in three games or Al-Farouq Aminu's 25 and 11 boards per in two games), but nobody surprised me more than Udoh, the former Michigan Wolverine and current Baylor Bear. Udoh put up 18 points and 11 boards (with 3 blocks) in the opener vs. Norfolk State, and followed that up with 21 and 7 with 5 blocks in game 2 vs. Hartford (Vin Baker U). I remember Udoh as a all-defense no offense type, like a young Dikembe Mutombo or any of the endless parade of seven-foot "project" from Senegal into the NCAA. His career average was just 5.5 ppg coming into this season, so either this is merely a case of playing inferior opponents, or Udoh learned some offensive skills. The Bears play two more cupcakes before taking on Alabama and then Arizona State, so we won't know much until then. If he has learned to play offense, it's going to torture Baylor fans because this was the exact piece they were missing last year.
[UPDATE: Found this on ESPN:
When he decided to transfer from Michigan, Baylor's Scott Drew thought he was going to get a super-defensive stud in Ekpe Udoh. He didn't know that Udoh would also be an offensive threat.
Udoh saved the Bears from falling to Hartford yesterday, hitting a 20-foot fadeaway game winner. In addition to his five blocks, Udoh scored 21 points and is now averaging 19.5 ppg through his first two games.
Udoh worked exclusively on his offense during his redshirt season and over the summer. Besides Kevin Rogers, Scott Drew has never really had an offensively-dominating big man. He normally runs the offense entirely through his guards. While this still shouldn't change, it should be nice to have a threat down low in Udoh.]
WHO SUCKED
1. Mississippi State. I read in a couple of places that Miss State was a "dark-horse" final four contender. I love Jarvis Varnado more than I love my wife, but I wasn't quite ready to buy that - at least not until they figured out who they were going to get their offense from. Still, I expected good things. Well, they are not off to a very good start, losing their opener at home to Rider 88-74. Two major issues: three-point defense and scoring. They allowed Rider to shoot 10-16 from three-point range, which is tough to overcome for anybody, particularly when nobody can throw the ball threw the hoop on your own team. Pimp-Daddy Varnado was 8-8 (complete line: 22pts, 14 rebs, 7 blocks - such a stud), but the rest of the team shot just 18-54. The three point defense could jsut be a fluke, but perimeter scoring will need to greatly improve. They run a three guard offense, and the three starters shot a combined 9-31. Varnado deserves better. Pick it up, jerkstores.
2. Utah. The Utes lost their top four scorings from last season, but still had three starters back as well as a bunch of talented new comers, so I don't know if anybody knew what to expect from them this season. I feel reasonably confident, however, in saying that nobody expected to see a team that would lose to Idaho in their season opener, the Vandals first win over Utah since 1938. Now, Idaho is actually a better team this year than most people think, but this game is a stinger for the U of U, and I have a feeling this is going to be a very frustrating year in Mormonville. Special shout out to the Utes two best players, Carlon Brown and Marshall Henderson for shooting a combined 9-27.
3. Jay Cutler. LOL. Nice job Cutty, five interceptions against the 49ers (17 for the season, , including two in the red zone, one of which was in the end zone at the end of the game. The game that the Bears lost 10-6, meaning if they manage even just two field goals or a TD out of those trips, they win. Oh, and also the niners scored all 10 of their points off two of his other picks, with both drives starting in Bears territory. Is it really fair to say he single-handedly lost that game for the Bears? Yes. Yes it is.
4. Timberwolves. Ok, I think we all knew it was going to be bad, but did we know it was going to be this bad? After winning the opener over a hapless New Jersey squad, they have now lost ten straight, including a brutal 0-4 this week that inluded a loss to Memphis who had lost seven straight of their own prior to beating the Wolves. Earlier in the season they were at least putting up a fight - the loss to Boston was a great game - but now they're just getting killed. Their four losses this week were by 41, 23, 12, and 10, with only the 12 point loss to Dallas being in the realm of respectability (the 10 point loss was the Memphis game, and might be more embarrassing than the 41 pointer against Golden State). I know Love is out and now Jefferson is out, but *newsflash* Jefferson was in the lineup for both the Golden State and Portland games, and trust me, it's not just him. Flynn, Love, and Jefferson are the only players who should ever see a starting lineup in their careers, everybody else is a role player at best. Still, better to be a Wolves fan than a fan of Iowa.
5. Iowa. Seriously, you guys are embarrassing the conference. You lost to Texas-San Antonio. AT HOME!! BY TWELVE!!! Good lord, they're a middle level Southland Conference team. They're called the Roadrunners for god's sake, and they had never beaten a Big Ten team. I know they lost a couple pretty good players to transfers after last season, but Anthony Tucker, Matt Gatens, and Jarryd Cole + filler should be enough to beat damn UTSA. I guess when Tucker and Gatens shoot 2-15 from three for the game, it's tough to win. Well, way to go Lickliter, your dismantling of the Iowa basketball program is nearly complete. Honestly, it's like the guy is a double agent. He's my new favorite coach.
As for me, there will be a preview of Stephen F. Austin up shortly, then I'm going to be in New Jersey the rest of the week. I'm sure they'll be a post or two, because what else am I going to do? Until then......
WHO WAS AWESOME
1. Evan Turner. I mentioned this in my Big Ten Preview, but I'll say it again - Evan Turner is ridiculous. He certainly didn't disappoint in the opening week, putting up a triple-double in the opener against Alcorn State and following it up with 24-17-4 against James Madison. Sure, the competition wasn't the best, but Turner and the rest of the Buckeyes looked very, very good, winning the two games by an average of 34 points. I'm telling you, with Turner, David Lighty, and William Buford this team is going to be very tough and Memphis-y. If Jon Diebler keeps shooting like he did last year (or better so far), this is going to be a really good team. We'll know more after next week when they play Carolina, but watch out folks.
2. Rotnei Clarke. Corliss Williamson didn't do it. Scotty Thurman didn't do it. Patrick Beverley didn't do it. Clint McDaniel, Todd Day, and Ronnie Brewer couldn't do it. Hell, not even the great Oliver Miller could do it, but apparently Rotnei Clark can - break 50 points in a game, that is. Clarke became the first Arkansas player to ever score 50 points in a game, putting up 51 in Friday night's 130-66 win over Alcorn State. Clarke had 31 at halftime, and hit 13 three-pointers on 17 attempts for the game breaking the SEC record held by former Arkansas guard Alex Dillard. It's good timing, too. I had just read an article about how the Razorbacks had a bunch of players suspended (including superstud Courtney Fortson) and would need Clarke to step up in order to take some of the pressure off their star center Michael Washington. Step up indeed.
3. Dayton. There are a ton of really good games starting this week, but over the weekend it was mostly blow-outs or mid-level teams squaring off. There was, however, one game between two teams that both had NCAA Tournament aspirations: Creighton vs. Dayton. Seeing as how Dayton is listed at the beginning of this entry, you would probably guess that Dayton won, and you'd be correct. The Flyers trailed most of the game, but outscored Creighton by 15 in the second half behind a strong showing by Chris Wright, who scored 25 on 9-12 shooting. I'm still not entirely sure what to make of Dayton, other than that their fans are deluisonal, but even though they had more trouble with Creighton than they probalby should have, this is still a good win on a resume.
4. Brandon Jennings. I've been trying to avoid talking about Jennings' great start to his NBA career since he really pissed me off by skipping college to go play in Europe, but after Saturday night's 55-point explosion, I don't see any way to put it off any longer. First off, this is a really solid fifty-point game, with a high shooting percentage (21-34 from the floor, 7-8 from three) and some other contributions (5 rebs, 5 assists) - and they won. Second, something like this probably shouldn't be too surprising, especially since he burst into the league and almost had a triple-double in his first ever NBA game (17-9-9). Thirdly, everything I'm reading says that this kid is already the quickest guard in the league and is essentially unguardable one-on-one, and compares him to Allen Iverson. Finally, this really sucks because now I'm going to have to make an effort to watch a Milwaukee game. Thanks Brandon.
5. Ekpe Udoh. Other players may have put up gaudier numbers so far (like Isaiah Thomas's 24.7ppg in three games or Al-Farouq Aminu's 25 and 11 boards per in two games), but nobody surprised me more than Udoh, the former Michigan Wolverine and current Baylor Bear. Udoh put up 18 points and 11 boards (with 3 blocks) in the opener vs. Norfolk State, and followed that up with 21 and 7 with 5 blocks in game 2 vs. Hartford (Vin Baker U). I remember Udoh as a all-defense no offense type, like a young Dikembe Mutombo or any of the endless parade of seven-foot "project" from Senegal into the NCAA. His career average was just 5.5 ppg coming into this season, so either this is merely a case of playing inferior opponents, or Udoh learned some offensive skills. The Bears play two more cupcakes before taking on Alabama and then Arizona State, so we won't know much until then. If he has learned to play offense, it's going to torture Baylor fans because this was the exact piece they were missing last year.
[UPDATE: Found this on ESPN:
When he decided to transfer from Michigan, Baylor's Scott Drew thought he was going to get a super-defensive stud in Ekpe Udoh. He didn't know that Udoh would also be an offensive threat.
Udoh saved the Bears from falling to Hartford yesterday, hitting a 20-foot fadeaway game winner. In addition to his five blocks, Udoh scored 21 points and is now averaging 19.5 ppg through his first two games.
Udoh worked exclusively on his offense during his redshirt season and over the summer. Besides Kevin Rogers, Scott Drew has never really had an offensively-dominating big man. He normally runs the offense entirely through his guards. While this still shouldn't change, it should be nice to have a threat down low in Udoh.]
WHO SUCKED
1. Mississippi State. I read in a couple of places that Miss State was a "dark-horse" final four contender. I love Jarvis Varnado more than I love my wife, but I wasn't quite ready to buy that - at least not until they figured out who they were going to get their offense from. Still, I expected good things. Well, they are not off to a very good start, losing their opener at home to Rider 88-74. Two major issues: three-point defense and scoring. They allowed Rider to shoot 10-16 from three-point range, which is tough to overcome for anybody, particularly when nobody can throw the ball threw the hoop on your own team. Pimp-Daddy Varnado was 8-8 (complete line: 22pts, 14 rebs, 7 blocks - such a stud), but the rest of the team shot just 18-54. The three point defense could jsut be a fluke, but perimeter scoring will need to greatly improve. They run a three guard offense, and the three starters shot a combined 9-31. Varnado deserves better. Pick it up, jerkstores.
2. Utah. The Utes lost their top four scorings from last season, but still had three starters back as well as a bunch of talented new comers, so I don't know if anybody knew what to expect from them this season. I feel reasonably confident, however, in saying that nobody expected to see a team that would lose to Idaho in their season opener, the Vandals first win over Utah since 1938. Now, Idaho is actually a better team this year than most people think, but this game is a stinger for the U of U, and I have a feeling this is going to be a very frustrating year in Mormonville. Special shout out to the Utes two best players, Carlon Brown and Marshall Henderson for shooting a combined 9-27.
3. Jay Cutler. LOL. Nice job Cutty, five interceptions against the 49ers (17 for the season, , including two in the red zone, one of which was in the end zone at the end of the game. The game that the Bears lost 10-6, meaning if they manage even just two field goals or a TD out of those trips, they win. Oh, and also the niners scored all 10 of their points off two of his other picks, with both drives starting in Bears territory. Is it really fair to say he single-handedly lost that game for the Bears? Yes. Yes it is.
4. Timberwolves. Ok, I think we all knew it was going to be bad, but did we know it was going to be this bad? After winning the opener over a hapless New Jersey squad, they have now lost ten straight, including a brutal 0-4 this week that inluded a loss to Memphis who had lost seven straight of their own prior to beating the Wolves. Earlier in the season they were at least putting up a fight - the loss to Boston was a great game - but now they're just getting killed. Their four losses this week were by 41, 23, 12, and 10, with only the 12 point loss to Dallas being in the realm of respectability (the 10 point loss was the Memphis game, and might be more embarrassing than the 41 pointer against Golden State). I know Love is out and now Jefferson is out, but *newsflash* Jefferson was in the lineup for both the Golden State and Portland games, and trust me, it's not just him. Flynn, Love, and Jefferson are the only players who should ever see a starting lineup in their careers, everybody else is a role player at best. Still, better to be a Wolves fan than a fan of Iowa.
5. Iowa. Seriously, you guys are embarrassing the conference. You lost to Texas-San Antonio. AT HOME!! BY TWELVE!!! Good lord, they're a middle level Southland Conference team. They're called the Roadrunners for god's sake, and they had never beaten a Big Ten team. I know they lost a couple pretty good players to transfers after last season, but Anthony Tucker, Matt Gatens, and Jarryd Cole + filler should be enough to beat damn UTSA. I guess when Tucker and Gatens shoot 2-15 from three for the game, it's tough to win. Well, way to go Lickliter, your dismantling of the Iowa basketball program is nearly complete. Honestly, it's like the guy is a double agent. He's my new favorite coach.
As for me, there will be a preview of Stephen F. Austin up shortly, then I'm going to be in New Jersey the rest of the week. I'm sure they'll be a post or two, because what else am I going to do? Until then......
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Gophers win, Royce White is still a mystery
Usually when a rare Saturday roles around where I have no plans and no major projects needing to be done, which today is one of such of that, I like to do nothing. Sit around, play with WonderbabyTM, watch some tv, and generally do nothing. However, with the Gopher basketball opener taking place last night and the whole Royce White deal, it seems I don't have much of a choice but to spend some time typing.
I'm just quickly going to touch on Royce White, since his status seems to be changing by the second. He wasn't on the bench for the game, rumors were flying that he was going to be expelled, and the news actually reported he was expelled. Seemed pretty clear, but now this morning both Tubby and Joel Maturi have said he is still on the team. I had expected he had gotten the boot, and despite my "wins come first" attitude and how vigorously I defended White previously, I thought it was probably the right decision. Now, who knows? I'm going to hold my thoughts on this matter until everything shakes out, but I'll just say if Royce is still on the team by the end of the week he is a very, very, very lucky young man. I just hope he will realize that, although I am not optimistic.
On to the fun part - the game. The team looked very good in their 87-50 win over Tennessee Tech, and the most impressive part was the defense. The numbers by themselves are impressive, holding the Eagles to 28% shooting, turning them over 27 times, and out rebounding them 35-26, and blocking 15 shots. Since the competition wasn't exactly top caliber, I was more interested in how they played rather than the results, and I'm happy to report that they looked good in their rotations and help side defense - absolute keys if they're going to do anything this year. That kind of defensive effort will keep them in a game against anyone. Needless to say, I was very impressed.
A few call-outs:
- Lawrence Westbrook led the team with 22 points on 9-13 shooting, including 4 three pointers, and he looked very good. He's slimmer and faster, and his shot right now is dead on and he knows it, showing supreme confidence once again in his jumper. I feel a little bit silly typing this, but I am getting a feeling that we might be in for a special senior season from Westy. Remember the leap in his game Travarus Bennett took from his junior year to his senior year? Or Eric Harris? I'm getting that feeling. I hope I'm right, because he'll be a big part of how far this team can go.
- Ralph Sampson started his run towards Big Ten POY with a nice night - 9 points and 9 boards on 4-5 shooting. He towered over everybody on Tenn Tech so the rebounds aren't really that impressive, but his offensive game looks far more polished than last season - that new turnaround J is a thing of beauty. With his added muscle as well, he should be able to have some very nice games this year.
- Al Nolen was unguardable last night. Seriously, there was nobody on TTU who could stay in front of him, and he was able to get to the lane at will and then usually find an open teammate for an easy basket, resulting in a team high 7 assists for Nolen last night. He still did his patented "get to the lane and then jump stop and pick up the dribble with no idea what I'm going to do with the ball move" a few times, which is still worrisome. It's one thing to slice up a bottom-tier OVC team, it's something different facing Big Ten defenders. Overall with Nole I was encouraged, but worried at the same time. I'm really looking forward to that Butler game. That's a touch defensive squad reminiscent of a Big Ten team, and will be a nice litmus test not only for the team, but for Nolen in general.
- Rodney Williams is the talk of the game, and for good reason. He was always said to be a ridiculous athlete who had some work to do on his offensive skills, and although that's not completely untrue he has looked far more polished than I and many others were expecting, and was the team's second leading scorer last night with 14 points on 5-8 shooting, including another three pointer. If his outside shooting is for real, a Gopher may still end up winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year, just not the one initially expected.
- If I have to pick one player who didn't play well, and it isn't easy when your team wins by 37, it would be Devoe Joseph. He struggled shooting the ball, made some really poor decisions with the ball, and lost his man on defense a few times. I still think he's going to be a major contributor and a big part of this team for the next three years and everthing, just last night he stuck out as having a poor game. Not a concern.
- Finally, Damian Johnson is ridiculous. Look at this line: 9 pts, 2 rebs, 3 assists, 6 steals, and 5 blocks. Just a great all around game, and I have a feeling we won't see another game with DJ grabbing so few boards. Even if his offense hasn't improved (although it looks like it has), he's still going to be the most valuable Gopher again this year.
Overall a very good win. A game like this can't really tell you how good your team is, but it can warn you if they are flawed in some way. The Gophers got through this one with no red flags - an excellent sign. With or without the currently inactive players, this is going to be an NCAA Tournament team. After the Thanksgiving Tournament, we should have a pretty good idea if they can be more.
I'm just quickly going to touch on Royce White, since his status seems to be changing by the second. He wasn't on the bench for the game, rumors were flying that he was going to be expelled, and the news actually reported he was expelled. Seemed pretty clear, but now this morning both Tubby and Joel Maturi have said he is still on the team. I had expected he had gotten the boot, and despite my "wins come first" attitude and how vigorously I defended White previously, I thought it was probably the right decision. Now, who knows? I'm going to hold my thoughts on this matter until everything shakes out, but I'll just say if Royce is still on the team by the end of the week he is a very, very, very lucky young man. I just hope he will realize that, although I am not optimistic.
On to the fun part - the game. The team looked very good in their 87-50 win over Tennessee Tech, and the most impressive part was the defense. The numbers by themselves are impressive, holding the Eagles to 28% shooting, turning them over 27 times, and out rebounding them 35-26, and blocking 15 shots. Since the competition wasn't exactly top caliber, I was more interested in how they played rather than the results, and I'm happy to report that they looked good in their rotations and help side defense - absolute keys if they're going to do anything this year. That kind of defensive effort will keep them in a game against anyone. Needless to say, I was very impressed.
A few call-outs:
- Lawrence Westbrook led the team with 22 points on 9-13 shooting, including 4 three pointers, and he looked very good. He's slimmer and faster, and his shot right now is dead on and he knows it, showing supreme confidence once again in his jumper. I feel a little bit silly typing this, but I am getting a feeling that we might be in for a special senior season from Westy. Remember the leap in his game Travarus Bennett took from his junior year to his senior year? Or Eric Harris? I'm getting that feeling. I hope I'm right, because he'll be a big part of how far this team can go.
- Ralph Sampson started his run towards Big Ten POY with a nice night - 9 points and 9 boards on 4-5 shooting. He towered over everybody on Tenn Tech so the rebounds aren't really that impressive, but his offensive game looks far more polished than last season - that new turnaround J is a thing of beauty. With his added muscle as well, he should be able to have some very nice games this year.
- Al Nolen was unguardable last night. Seriously, there was nobody on TTU who could stay in front of him, and he was able to get to the lane at will and then usually find an open teammate for an easy basket, resulting in a team high 7 assists for Nolen last night. He still did his patented "get to the lane and then jump stop and pick up the dribble with no idea what I'm going to do with the ball move" a few times, which is still worrisome. It's one thing to slice up a bottom-tier OVC team, it's something different facing Big Ten defenders. Overall with Nole I was encouraged, but worried at the same time. I'm really looking forward to that Butler game. That's a touch defensive squad reminiscent of a Big Ten team, and will be a nice litmus test not only for the team, but for Nolen in general.
- Rodney Williams is the talk of the game, and for good reason. He was always said to be a ridiculous athlete who had some work to do on his offensive skills, and although that's not completely untrue he has looked far more polished than I and many others were expecting, and was the team's second leading scorer last night with 14 points on 5-8 shooting, including another three pointer. If his outside shooting is for real, a Gopher may still end up winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year, just not the one initially expected.
- If I have to pick one player who didn't play well, and it isn't easy when your team wins by 37, it would be Devoe Joseph. He struggled shooting the ball, made some really poor decisions with the ball, and lost his man on defense a few times. I still think he's going to be a major contributor and a big part of this team for the next three years and everthing, just last night he stuck out as having a poor game. Not a concern.
- Finally, Damian Johnson is ridiculous. Look at this line: 9 pts, 2 rebs, 3 assists, 6 steals, and 5 blocks. Just a great all around game, and I have a feeling we won't see another game with DJ grabbing so few boards. Even if his offense hasn't improved (although it looks like it has), he's still going to be the most valuable Gopher again this year.
Overall a very good win. A game like this can't really tell you how good your team is, but it can warn you if they are flawed in some way. The Gophers got through this one with no red flags - an excellent sign. With or without the currently inactive players, this is going to be an NCAA Tournament team. After the Thanksgiving Tournament, we should have a pretty good idea if they can be more.
Friday, November 13, 2009
And So it Begins
Tonight begins the march to a championship. Or at least to an NCAA Tournament bid.
Your mighty Gophers take on the hated Golden Eagles from Tennessee Tech who, frankly, are going to get blown out of the water.
Tech is a small team, with only four players bigger than 6-6, two of which have never played D-I ball and two of which who played just twelve minutes per game each last season, which means a big game for Ralph Sampson. He's dominated the two smaller exhibition teams the Gophers have played, and this shouldn't be any different. Not only will he score at will on the block, expect him, Damian Johnson, and Paul Carter to all have big games on the offensive glass, and the Gophers' total second-chance points might equal the Golden Eagles' total for the game. Not only is TTU undersized, but last season they were 303rd in the country in allowing offensive rebounds - and that was with their best player and leading rebounder, now lost to graduation.
Of course, there's also a chance there won't be many second chance points because the Gophers might never be stopped. Not only do the Eagles rebound poorly, they defend poorly too. And they're equal opportunity - they can't defend the three pointer or the two point shot. Not to mention that there is absolutely nobody here who can block a shot, so Westbrook, Rodney, Cobbs, and Nolen should be able to get to the rim, either for there own lay-ins or kickouts to the shooters at the undefended three-point line.
Really, the only chance Tech has to keep this close is if the Gophers get sloppy. For all the bad things I've said, the Eagles do have a lot of guards and they do have some plusses, including playing at one of the fastest paces in basketball last year, which can make teams get sloppy if they aren't careful. They are good at both stealing the ball and turning their opponents over in general, so it is imperative that the Gopher guards stay in control. With better athletes, Minnesota doesn't need to avoid a fast-paced game - it would actually be to their advantage to run - but they do need to do it under control and make good decisions, a task which makes me a little nervous, actually.
If the game is tight at all towards the end, Tech is a good three-point shooting team, including Frank Davis, who hit 76 three-pointers last year while shooting it at a 43% clip. If they keep it close and get hot, it could get ugly.
But it won't. Seriously, there's no reason to worry, I just wrote that stuff as a worst case scenario kind of situation. It won't come to that. Gophers 88, Tenn Tech 60.
FUN FACT: In 1985, before a game against Tennessee the Golden Eagles' fans bombarded the home court with toilet paper for 15 minutes, causing a 45-minute delay which went down in school lore as "The Blizzard." Although fans of fierce rival Middle Tennessee State now refer to toilet paper as "Tennessee Tech Diplomas."
Your mighty Gophers take on the hated Golden Eagles from Tennessee Tech who, frankly, are going to get blown out of the water.
Tech is a small team, with only four players bigger than 6-6, two of which have never played D-I ball and two of which who played just twelve minutes per game each last season, which means a big game for Ralph Sampson. He's dominated the two smaller exhibition teams the Gophers have played, and this shouldn't be any different. Not only will he score at will on the block, expect him, Damian Johnson, and Paul Carter to all have big games on the offensive glass, and the Gophers' total second-chance points might equal the Golden Eagles' total for the game. Not only is TTU undersized, but last season they were 303rd in the country in allowing offensive rebounds - and that was with their best player and leading rebounder, now lost to graduation.
Of course, there's also a chance there won't be many second chance points because the Gophers might never be stopped. Not only do the Eagles rebound poorly, they defend poorly too. And they're equal opportunity - they can't defend the three pointer or the two point shot. Not to mention that there is absolutely nobody here who can block a shot, so Westbrook, Rodney, Cobbs, and Nolen should be able to get to the rim, either for there own lay-ins or kickouts to the shooters at the undefended three-point line.
Really, the only chance Tech has to keep this close is if the Gophers get sloppy. For all the bad things I've said, the Eagles do have a lot of guards and they do have some plusses, including playing at one of the fastest paces in basketball last year, which can make teams get sloppy if they aren't careful. They are good at both stealing the ball and turning their opponents over in general, so it is imperative that the Gopher guards stay in control. With better athletes, Minnesota doesn't need to avoid a fast-paced game - it would actually be to their advantage to run - but they do need to do it under control and make good decisions, a task which makes me a little nervous, actually.
If the game is tight at all towards the end, Tech is a good three-point shooting team, including Frank Davis, who hit 76 three-pointers last year while shooting it at a 43% clip. If they keep it close and get hot, it could get ugly.
But it won't. Seriously, there's no reason to worry, I just wrote that stuff as a worst case scenario kind of situation. It won't come to that. Gophers 88, Tenn Tech 60.
FUN FACT: In 1985, before a game against Tennessee the Golden Eagles' fans bombarded the home court with toilet paper for 15 minutes, causing a 45-minute delay which went down in school lore as "The Blizzard." Although fans of fierce rival Middle Tennessee State now refer to toilet paper as "Tennessee Tech Diplomas."
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Fantasy College Basketball Update
I laid the rules and some initial strategy out in this post.
Here is where the draft currently stands:
1.1 DWG - Luke Harangody, F, Notre Dame
1.2 TLEF - Craig Brackins, F/C, Iowa State
1.3 NotoriousTREJetBrit - Cole Aldrich, C, Kansas
1.4 Saintfool - Grievis Vasquez, G, Maryland
1.5 Aerial Assault - Kyle Singler, F, Duke
1.6 WuBanger - John Wall, G, Kentucky
1.7 Truck - Jarvis Varnado, F/C, Mississippi St.
1.8 Jeter23 - Patrick Patterson, F, Kentucky
1.9 Tar Heel Boy - Damion James, G/F, Texas
1.10 BasketballCoach - Michael Washington, F/C, Arkansas
1.11 Tobias Funke - Evan Turner, G/F, Ohio State
1.12 Balco - Greg Monroe, F/C, Georgetown
2.1 Balco - Lazar Hayward, F, Marquette
2.2 Tobias Funke - James Anderson, G, Oklahoma St.
2.3 Basketball Coach - Tasmin Mitchell, F, LSU
2.4 Tar Heel Boy - Trevor Booker. F. Clemson
2.5 Jeter23 - Devan Downey, G, South Carolina
2.6 Truck - Dominique Jones, G, South Florida
2.7 WuBanger - Jeremy Hazell, G, Seton Hall
2.8 Aerial Assault -
2.9 Saintfool -
2.10 NotoriousTREJetBrit -
2.11 TLEF -
2.12 DWG -
So I am five picks away, and wil have two in a row. I'm hoping to get Manny Harris from Michigan and JaJuan Johnson from Purdue right here. Harris I think would be a steal, and while it seems a little early for Johnson, it turns out there is actually quite a shortage of centers in college hoops, and since we have to start two of them, it feels like it's time.
If Harris is gone, an intriguing prospect would be Derrick Favors, the freshman from Georgia Tech who qualifies as both a forward and a center. He's called "the favorite to win ACC Rookie of the Year", but is that enough to draft him this early? Guards Cory Higgins of Colorado and Talor Battle of Penn State are also possibilities. Last year, Battle put up 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1.2 steals per game with just 2.4 turnovers. With less help around him, I could see him pushing those numbers to 20/7/5/2, which would be elite level production.
I may have to take him.
Here is where the draft currently stands:
1.1 DWG - Luke Harangody, F, Notre Dame
1.2 TLEF - Craig Brackins, F/C, Iowa State
1.3 NotoriousTREJetBrit - Cole Aldrich, C, Kansas
1.4 Saintfool - Grievis Vasquez, G, Maryland
1.5 Aerial Assault - Kyle Singler, F, Duke
1.6 WuBanger - John Wall, G, Kentucky
1.7 Truck - Jarvis Varnado, F/C, Mississippi St.
1.8 Jeter23 - Patrick Patterson, F, Kentucky
1.9 Tar Heel Boy - Damion James, G/F, Texas
1.10 BasketballCoach - Michael Washington, F/C, Arkansas
1.11 Tobias Funke - Evan Turner, G/F, Ohio State
1.12 Balco - Greg Monroe, F/C, Georgetown
2.1 Balco - Lazar Hayward, F, Marquette
2.2 Tobias Funke - James Anderson, G, Oklahoma St.
2.3 Basketball Coach - Tasmin Mitchell, F, LSU
2.4 Tar Heel Boy - Trevor Booker. F. Clemson
2.5 Jeter23 - Devan Downey, G, South Carolina
2.6 Truck - Dominique Jones, G, South Florida
2.7 WuBanger - Jeremy Hazell, G, Seton Hall
2.8 Aerial Assault -
2.9 Saintfool -
2.10 NotoriousTREJetBrit -
2.11 TLEF -
2.12 DWG -
So I am five picks away, and wil have two in a row. I'm hoping to get Manny Harris from Michigan and JaJuan Johnson from Purdue right here. Harris I think would be a steal, and while it seems a little early for Johnson, it turns out there is actually quite a shortage of centers in college hoops, and since we have to start two of them, it feels like it's time.
If Harris is gone, an intriguing prospect would be Derrick Favors, the freshman from Georgia Tech who qualifies as both a forward and a center. He's called "the favorite to win ACC Rookie of the Year", but is that enough to draft him this early? Guards Cory Higgins of Colorado and Talor Battle of Penn State are also possibilities. Last year, Battle put up 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1.2 steals per game with just 2.4 turnovers. With less help around him, I could see him pushing those numbers to 20/7/5/2, which would be elite level production.
I may have to take him.
DWG Book Review: When the Game was Ours
One of the first books I reviewed this year was "When March went Mad", a book about Magic Johnson and Larry Bird and their year's in college, so it's appropriate that one of the last books I review this year is "When the Game was Ours", this time by Magic Johnson and Larry Bird (and Jackie McMullen), this time with the two superstars giving telling their own stories. And why not? Growing up, Magic was my idol. I always wanted to make the extra pass rather than scoring, and it always had to be a no-looker. I had Magic's autobiography and read it several times, I had a bunch of videos that I could put in on a random weekend and watch his highlights, and I had enough Magic shirts that I could have worn one every day and not had to do laundry for a solid week. Needless to say, I was looking forward to this book.
And it really doesn't disappoint. The book gives you a little bit of everything. College recruiting is touched on, and there's a very interesting tidbit in here about Magic and the University of Minnesota I will elaborate on in a minute. The playoff battles (Magic's baby hook and filling in for Kareem, the Bird Steal and Memorial Day Massacre) are here, but rather than a huge play-by-play breakdown, you get more of what was going on within the team and on the sidelines. There's also some very cool stuff from the Dream Team in here. Perhaps most interesting however, at least to me as someone who knows so much about these guys' careers already, is everything that has happened from retirement until the present time.
Magic talks about his struggles with HIV, and how hurt he was by certain players reactions (I won't go into the Isiah stuff, that's been covered by everyone) and touched by others, as well as giving you a look at how emotionall hard this hit Bird and his teammates. It really hits you how rough this was, or at least it did me since I was a 15 year old who idolized him, and was suddenly expecting him to die soon - I wore every one of those Magic shirts for the next two weeks straight. Outside of that, it goes into his struggles to reach today's players when he took over as coach and in his ill-fated comeback attempt, and also goes into Bird's coaching plan - he would only coach three years because he said "players stop listening after three years." Bird's reaction to the Artest melee and his current activities within the organization are here as well.
If this review feels a bit disjointed and rambling, that's because it's tough to wrap my head around how much information is in this book and how to lay it out in a relatively short review. I mean, it's just 340 pages, and into those they pack the careers of two of the greatest players the NBA has ever scene, who started their rivalry in college and burned right through the 80s as the two best teams in the league and have continued to be relevant since their playing days were over. You could have tripled the page count and it would still be a compelling read. I can't recommend this highly enough.
The last thing I want to mention is the the recruiting tidbit I hinted at above. In the book, Magic mentions he took an officialy recruiting visit to the University of Minnesota when he was a high school senior (which I didn't know), hung out with Mychal Thompson and a bunch of students, and called it "the best recruiting visit I took" but that he "just couldn't go anywhere other than Michigan or Michigan State." Damn. I desperately wanted a chance to ask him about this on a teleconference interview with him and Bird that I was lucky enough to be a part of, but it turns out when someone like me is on the list with ESPN, The Sporting News, and a multitude of major newspaper writers, I don't exactly rank anywhere near the top of the "get to ask a question" list, and didn't get that chance.
Seriously, can you imagine Magic in maroon & gold?
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Twins Talk
Since we unfortunately have a night off from college buckets, and at least one reader is clamoring for Twins roster speculation as seen by the bordering on obsessive comment left earlier today, I'll go ahead and take a look at what some of the rumors out there surrounding the Twins this offseason.
In no particular order, other than the order their names jumped into my head.
- Akinori Iwamura, written about here previously, is no longer an option, seeing as he was traded to Pittsburgh. It's a bit perplexing, because the Pirates aren't going anywhere any time soon, and they had to trade a young semi-promising middle relief prospect in order to pay him $4 million for one year. It's also disappointing because that's cheap as hell for his production and I'd be willing to bet the Twins could have gotten him for like, Armando Gabino (who was plucked away by the Orioles off waivers, by the way). Anyway, it's not happening, so it's time to move on.
- Lovely reader Kate, who was the first one to turn me on to Iwamura, has indeed moved on, and is "literally drooling" over the thought of Adrian Beltre on the Twins (her words, not mine), and we've made no secret of our Beltre love here at DWG before. There is a lot that points to this being a possibility, including this article where mlbtraderumors.com predicts Beltre will end up a Twin, and the fact that he is a Type B free agent means the Twins won't have to give up a draft pick to sign him. The sort of large negative here is that Beltre actually had the Twins on his "no trade clause" list. Beltre had his worst hitting season as a pro and nearly lost a gonad (that's not a joke), but he's still intriguing and would look awfully nice on the hot corner if he is affordable. I'd love to see a 2 year/$5 million per, but I have no idea what the market will be.
- Speaking of the market for 3b, you can go ahead and forget about Chone Figgins, he's going to be the hottest property out there, and there's no chance you're going to see the Twins in a bidding war for him.
- Hell, as long as we're listing people for you to forget about, let's add John Lackey to the list as well. Not only is he a type A - meaning if the Twins were to sign him they would have to give up their first round pick next year, something they would never do, but because he's the top pitcher on the market. That means teams like the Yankees and Red Sox will be after him, and that means that contract will end up being more than the Twins' payroll. So, sorry PA who continually talks up Lackey to the Twins, get your head out of the clouds (and your ass) - it ain't happening. No way, no how.
- One free agent pitcher who does have a shot at winding up here is Rich Harden, an immensely talent yet injury prone pitcher who has only pitched more than 25 games in a season twice in his six years, although one of those was last year. There's no doubt he would be a huge risk, but there's also no doubt he has the talent to be a front of the rotation starter if he stays healthy. I wouldn't invest a lot of money or a lot of years, but if they can get him to sign an incentive-laden deal he could end up being a huge steal.
- As far as other middle infielders go, two names I had heard as possibilities, Marco Scutaro and Placido Polanco, both suddenly got a lot less likely with the announcement that they are both type-A guys. I'm actually glad that's how it shook out for Scutaro, because although I like his multi-positionalness and knowledge of the strike zone, I can't shake the feeling that he's a utility guy who had a career year. I am bummed, however, about Polanco, who I was really hoping the Twins would end up signing to a two or three year deal. This really reduces the odds he ends up here, since I can't see the Twins getting rid of a first round pick to sign a 34-year old for two years. The rule is meant to help smaller market teams, and it works in a lot of cases, but this time the team getting screwed is the small market.
- One guy who was helped by the classification was Mark DeRosa, who, it was thought, would be a type A but ended up a type B, greatley expanding the pool of teams who will be looking at him. The Twins showed some interest in him last season, and I would guess they take another look at him this winter. His numbers absolutely plummeted last year after his trade to the National League, and he's 34 years old with just two seasons better than league average in his career, so I'm inclined to pass.
- Common commenter and former contributor Dawger mentioned that the Twins should look into signing Miguel Tejada. If you ever wonder why we question his baseball (and all sports, really) acumen, this should be all you need to know. Actually, that's a bit harsh. If he can play second base (I don't know the answer to this) and they can get him for a similar deal to the one Crede signed, I guess that would be ok.
- Turning our attention to pitching, the one interesting thing I read is that the Texas Rangers feel they have a surplus of pitching (seriously, the Rangers) and could be looking to move Brandon McCarthy - yes, the same McCarthy who was a failed prospect with the White Sox, but is now starting to look pretty good for Texas. I have no idea what the price would be, and I actually need to do a lot more research on this before I decide if I'm excited or not. For now, color me intrigued with a chance of arousal - just like your mom last time I was at your house.
- As far as free agent pitchers go, outside of Harden the only name I've heard connected to the Twins at all is Jarrod Washburn (and Lackey, if you count jackasses who work for KFAN and are less well informed than my dad when it comes to his computer), and the only other name that has perked my interest a tad was J.J. Putz. Washburn feels like the town strumpet at this point, and has either been with every team or been rumored to be with every team at this point. I'm having a lot of trouble getting even remotely excited about him (unlike Dawger at wrestling practice) and would need to hear a solid argument from someone else. Putz, on the other hand, was bought out by the Mets and so would have no compensation issues, and is just two years removed from being a lights-out closer (and was a good set up guy last year). Again, the market will dictate whether or not the Twins should go after him, but he's worth a look. I like to compare the Twins' bullpen to God - I have no faith.
- Lastly, tell me freaking Melvin Mora doesn't feel like exactly like the kind of guy the Twins would sign to play third. Yuck.
- That's really all I have for free agents, but if you want to take a look at the guys the Twins have exclusive rights to - Pavano, Cabrera, Redmond, Crede, and Mahay - and really the only interesting guy here is Pavano. I'd right stuff, but instead just go here to Nick's Twins blog where he writes a whole lot more than I care or have the abililty to about this Pavano dealie. Under no circumstances should Redmond be resigned, and Mahay is meh. Cabrera has no place here, yet the papers continue to say he could be signed if he would play second solely because he had a nice 15-game stretch and people desperately want to believe in "clutch" - he's as good as gone. Crede is the only other possibility I'd entertain resigning. After yet another year torpedoed by injuries, the market for him is likely to be even lower than last season. Would he sign here for one year, $1 million? $2 million? Seriously, if he would sign for that kind of money he's a no-brainer. Hell, even 2 years at $2 million per year is probably worth it.
- The last thing is trades, and if you are seriously contemplating trading Nathan, Morneau, or Mauer (I'm talking to you anonymous poster) you are dumber than Audrina (although not nearly as hot). None of them should be traded (and I assume the Mauer part is shtick) unless somebody comes up to Billy Smith and seriously blows his skirt up with an offer. Although imagine the offer they could get for Mauer. What if the Rangers offered Neftali Feliz, Justin Smoak, Elvis Andrus, Taylor Teagarden, and Brandon McCarthy? Seriously. You would have to take that. But that's the kind of thing I'm talking about. Other than that, you shouldn't trade any of those three, unless you can somehow get Joakim Soria in some way.
- The very last thing I'll say, is that the Brewers tried to get either Adam Lind or Travis Snider from the Blue Jays or Clay Buchholz from the Red Sox for J.J. Hardy before settling for Carlos Gomez. Wow. That is like trying to get with Lindsay Lohan circa 2004 and ending with this recent trainwrecky and not in a good way version. Also, as I close this post, that reminds me that I mentioned Audrina somewhere up above and as such, this must now happen:
That was her when we left the bar the other night. You all have a nice day.
In no particular order, other than the order their names jumped into my head.
- Akinori Iwamura, written about here previously, is no longer an option, seeing as he was traded to Pittsburgh. It's a bit perplexing, because the Pirates aren't going anywhere any time soon, and they had to trade a young semi-promising middle relief prospect in order to pay him $4 million for one year. It's also disappointing because that's cheap as hell for his production and I'd be willing to bet the Twins could have gotten him for like, Armando Gabino (who was plucked away by the Orioles off waivers, by the way). Anyway, it's not happening, so it's time to move on.
- Lovely reader Kate, who was the first one to turn me on to Iwamura, has indeed moved on, and is "literally drooling" over the thought of Adrian Beltre on the Twins (her words, not mine), and we've made no secret of our Beltre love here at DWG before. There is a lot that points to this being a possibility, including this article where mlbtraderumors.com predicts Beltre will end up a Twin, and the fact that he is a Type B free agent means the Twins won't have to give up a draft pick to sign him. The sort of large negative here is that Beltre actually had the Twins on his "no trade clause" list. Beltre had his worst hitting season as a pro and nearly lost a gonad (that's not a joke), but he's still intriguing and would look awfully nice on the hot corner if he is affordable. I'd love to see a 2 year/$5 million per, but I have no idea what the market will be.
- Speaking of the market for 3b, you can go ahead and forget about Chone Figgins, he's going to be the hottest property out there, and there's no chance you're going to see the Twins in a bidding war for him.
- Hell, as long as we're listing people for you to forget about, let's add John Lackey to the list as well. Not only is he a type A - meaning if the Twins were to sign him they would have to give up their first round pick next year, something they would never do, but because he's the top pitcher on the market. That means teams like the Yankees and Red Sox will be after him, and that means that contract will end up being more than the Twins' payroll. So, sorry PA who continually talks up Lackey to the Twins, get your head out of the clouds (and your ass) - it ain't happening. No way, no how.
- One free agent pitcher who does have a shot at winding up here is Rich Harden, an immensely talent yet injury prone pitcher who has only pitched more than 25 games in a season twice in his six years, although one of those was last year. There's no doubt he would be a huge risk, but there's also no doubt he has the talent to be a front of the rotation starter if he stays healthy. I wouldn't invest a lot of money or a lot of years, but if they can get him to sign an incentive-laden deal he could end up being a huge steal.
- As far as other middle infielders go, two names I had heard as possibilities, Marco Scutaro and Placido Polanco, both suddenly got a lot less likely with the announcement that they are both type-A guys. I'm actually glad that's how it shook out for Scutaro, because although I like his multi-positionalness and knowledge of the strike zone, I can't shake the feeling that he's a utility guy who had a career year. I am bummed, however, about Polanco, who I was really hoping the Twins would end up signing to a two or three year deal. This really reduces the odds he ends up here, since I can't see the Twins getting rid of a first round pick to sign a 34-year old for two years. The rule is meant to help smaller market teams, and it works in a lot of cases, but this time the team getting screwed is the small market.
- One guy who was helped by the classification was Mark DeRosa, who, it was thought, would be a type A but ended up a type B, greatley expanding the pool of teams who will be looking at him. The Twins showed some interest in him last season, and I would guess they take another look at him this winter. His numbers absolutely plummeted last year after his trade to the National League, and he's 34 years old with just two seasons better than league average in his career, so I'm inclined to pass.
- Common commenter and former contributor Dawger mentioned that the Twins should look into signing Miguel Tejada. If you ever wonder why we question his baseball (and all sports, really) acumen, this should be all you need to know. Actually, that's a bit harsh. If he can play second base (I don't know the answer to this) and they can get him for a similar deal to the one Crede signed, I guess that would be ok.
- Turning our attention to pitching, the one interesting thing I read is that the Texas Rangers feel they have a surplus of pitching (seriously, the Rangers) and could be looking to move Brandon McCarthy - yes, the same McCarthy who was a failed prospect with the White Sox, but is now starting to look pretty good for Texas. I have no idea what the price would be, and I actually need to do a lot more research on this before I decide if I'm excited or not. For now, color me intrigued with a chance of arousal - just like your mom last time I was at your house.
- As far as free agent pitchers go, outside of Harden the only name I've heard connected to the Twins at all is Jarrod Washburn (and Lackey, if you count jackasses who work for KFAN and are less well informed than my dad when it comes to his computer), and the only other name that has perked my interest a tad was J.J. Putz. Washburn feels like the town strumpet at this point, and has either been with every team or been rumored to be with every team at this point. I'm having a lot of trouble getting even remotely excited about him (unlike Dawger at wrestling practice) and would need to hear a solid argument from someone else. Putz, on the other hand, was bought out by the Mets and so would have no compensation issues, and is just two years removed from being a lights-out closer (and was a good set up guy last year). Again, the market will dictate whether or not the Twins should go after him, but he's worth a look. I like to compare the Twins' bullpen to God - I have no faith.
- Lastly, tell me freaking Melvin Mora doesn't feel like exactly like the kind of guy the Twins would sign to play third. Yuck.
- That's really all I have for free agents, but if you want to take a look at the guys the Twins have exclusive rights to - Pavano, Cabrera, Redmond, Crede, and Mahay - and really the only interesting guy here is Pavano. I'd right stuff, but instead just go here to Nick's Twins blog where he writes a whole lot more than I care or have the abililty to about this Pavano dealie. Under no circumstances should Redmond be resigned, and Mahay is meh. Cabrera has no place here, yet the papers continue to say he could be signed if he would play second solely because he had a nice 15-game stretch and people desperately want to believe in "clutch" - he's as good as gone. Crede is the only other possibility I'd entertain resigning. After yet another year torpedoed by injuries, the market for him is likely to be even lower than last season. Would he sign here for one year, $1 million? $2 million? Seriously, if he would sign for that kind of money he's a no-brainer. Hell, even 2 years at $2 million per year is probably worth it.
- The last thing is trades, and if you are seriously contemplating trading Nathan, Morneau, or Mauer (I'm talking to you anonymous poster) you are dumber than Audrina (although not nearly as hot). None of them should be traded (and I assume the Mauer part is shtick) unless somebody comes up to Billy Smith and seriously blows his skirt up with an offer. Although imagine the offer they could get for Mauer. What if the Rangers offered Neftali Feliz, Justin Smoak, Elvis Andrus, Taylor Teagarden, and Brandon McCarthy? Seriously. You would have to take that. But that's the kind of thing I'm talking about. Other than that, you shouldn't trade any of those three, unless you can somehow get Joakim Soria in some way.
- The very last thing I'll say, is that the Brewers tried to get either Adam Lind or Travis Snider from the Blue Jays or Clay Buchholz from the Red Sox for J.J. Hardy before settling for Carlos Gomez. Wow. That is like trying to get with Lindsay Lohan circa 2004 and ending with this recent trainwrecky and not in a good way version. Also, as I close this post, that reminds me that I mentioned Audrina somewhere up above and as such, this must now happen:
That was her when we left the bar the other night. You all have a nice day.
NCAA Basketball Preview: The Big Ten
I didn't watch the game, since I couldn't attend and I wasn't going to pay three bucks for that streaming player on bigtennetwork.com (although I'm sure I will on Friday) so I don't have much to say about the shellacking of Moorhead by 2x. If you're looking for game impressions I'm sure From the Barn will have them up shortly (and no doubt there are plenty of threads at the Gopher Hole, although currently they seem to be arguing the pros and cons of Marijuana).
Instead it's time for the final DWG Basketball conference preview (insert sarcastic cheer), our beloved Big Ten. Funny thing is, I've probably spent less time researching this conference than any other, planning on using my remembering and my brain to do a good job. Although somehow that seems super unllkely. What I do know for sure is that this is the deepest and best the Big Ten has been in a while, and the losses of Royce and Mbakwe are not doing the Gophers' any favors. Tough and the top, and tough in the middle, every game is going to be tough, and this year has a good chance to be the first time the conference has been able to knock off the ACC in the Big 10/ACC challenge. Or at least I hope so. Combine that with Ohio State playing in the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament, the Gophers in the 76 classic, Purdue in the Paradise Jam, Illinois in the Vegas Invitational, Michigan in the Old Spice Classic, Wisconsin in the Maui, and Michigan State in the Legends Classic, and we should have a pretty good idea of where the Big 10 stands nationally before we get to December.
1. Michigan State. Pretty much a no-brainer, considering they were the national runner-up last season and are returning everybody of consequence other than Goran Suton, and they have plenty of options to replace his production including two top 100 recruits who are both centers - one of whom is who is even white, but not foreign. The paint is pretty much the only thing close to a weakness here, but with Raymar Morgan back at full strength and Draymond Green and Delvon Roe with a full year under their belts, I don't think it's going to be an issue. I especially expect Roe to explode this season and have a huge year. The backcourt is depressing to even think about, and it sucks for everyone else that Kalin Lucas is back. I still think Chris Allen is terrifying despite a rough year shooting the ball last season, and when he's hot the Spartans are pretty much unbeatable, which, actually, they are even if he's not.
2. Purdue. The "baby boilers" are now juniors, and are getting better. They will count on the same Big 3 (Moore, Hummel, and JaJuan Johnson) to pace them this year once again. Moore was their leading scorer, and Hummel seems to get the most press since everybody is so racist, but Johnson is the man to watch here. "The College KG" has improved each season, and now has a very nice touch on his mid-range jumper to go along with improved ball-handling and an excellent scoring ability in the paint, as well as being a solid rebounder and very good defender. In case you can't tell, I freaking love this guy. If Lewis Jackson can improve his point guard skills, this team will absolutely challenge the Spartans and be a final four contender. More certain than that, however, is Chris Kramer is back once again and he will annoy the crap out of you.
3. Ohio State. The Buckeyes lose just B.J. Mullens from last year (oh no!!), and get nobody new after no signings this offseason. Well, they kind of get somebody new, because David Lighty returns from an injury that kept him out almost all of last season. Ohio State made the tournament last year without him (and lost to Siena in one of the more entertaining games of the tourny), and is going to make some noise this year. Evan Turner is ridiculous as an all-around player (as shown by his triple-double last night), and this year will be playing a true point guard rather than the point swingman role he played last year, hopefully relegating super douche P.J. Hill to the bench. Lighty and even sophomore swingman William Buford have similar all-around games, and this team is going to look a lot like a Memphis team this season.
4. Michigan. The Wolverines also lose essentially nobody off a team that made the NCAA Tournament last year, and return maybe the best overall player in the conference in Manny Harris, who I really wish had gone pro. He and DeShawn Sims give Michigan a hell of a nice inside/outside combination, and Beilein finally has a few shooters around to help run his "chuck up every three you see" offense, including Zack Novak, who you probably remember destroying the Gophers in Ann Arbor last season. Stunningly, he won the Wolverines' dunk contest at their midnight madness thing, which is weird because I don't remember him being particularly athletic. The biggest key to their season might be at the point, where Beilein hands the keys over to freshman Darius Morris, a top 100 recruit who played well in the team's exhibition game.
5. Minnesota. I could see the Gophers any where from third to sixth, but with the unknown future of both Royce White and Trevor Mbakwe, I just can't see putting them above fifth right now. Al Nolen needs to become an offensive weapon (or at least a minor threat) for this team to go too far this year, unless Justin Cobbs can take his job. We rag on Nolen a lot, but you have to also remember that he is an absolute lock-down defender, and he really does take care of the ball very well. If he can learn to hit a jumper (see: Eric Harris), all the other pieces are there for a nice run. Or at least I like to believe so. It's weird being optimistic. I've never done this before. I feel like a homer. Am I being a homer?
6. Northwestern. An NCAA tournament berth for Northwestern? Yep, I'm calling it. Don't forget how close they were last year, blowing games against Illinois and Purdue, losing a ton of other winnable games, and beating Michigan State in Lansing. They lose just Craig Moore off last year's team, and how hard can it be to replace a guy who stands on the perimeter and just shoots threes? Coble is awkward, ugly, uncomfortable, and gangly, but it works and he is back again. If he ends up leading the Wildcats in scoring again he'll pull off the rare "lead your team in scoring all four years." Of course, Lavell Blanchard did the same thing at Michigan, so, well, there you go. I've been expecting big things out of Michael Thompson the last two years, maybe he finally puts it all together this year. And that combination Princeton offense/1-3-1 zone can catch anybody off guard at any time. They play Butler November 18th and Notre Dame November 27th, so we should know what to expect after that.
7. Illinois. I may be underrating Illinois, at least one preview I saw had them as high as fourth, but I just don't like this team. Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale ARE the front court - there's nothing behind them, and the guard situation is pretty unsettled. McCamey puts up ok numbers, but he's going to have to play the point with Chester Frazier gone to graduation, and Alex Legion was pretty underwhelming as a transfer from Kentucky. They have two very highly regarded guards coming in - D.J. Richardson (Rivals #38) and Brandon Paul (#42) but they are both scoring types, not point men. The Illini will have talent, there's no doubt, but I think the loss of Frazier and Trent Meachem puts them into a situation that could implode in a very bad way. That being said, if McCamey can run the point and Richardson is as good as some say he is, they very well could end up towards the top of the conference.
8. Wisconsin. Ha ha, you guys suck. I hate to ever count the Badgers out, since they have a knack for hanging around every time you dismiss them, but this year is going to be tough. Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon form a decent backcourt, but unless Hughes becomes Chris Paul and Jon Leuer becomes Keith Van Horn, I don't see the Badgers making the NCAA Tournament this year. That being said, that dingleberry Bo Ryan has his team once again loaded with the slow, big, white, unathletic, hustling nerds he likes, and he's made it work before, but this might be the toughest year yet.
9. Penn State. If the Nittany Lions had any plans on making it back to the NCAA Tournament, last season was the year, but I guess an NIT Championship will have to do. Talor Battle is back, and is absolutely one of the best guards in the league, but all his running mates are gone and I don't know who can step in. They had a couple of forwards, David Jackson and Andrew Jones, who really played well during the NIT last year. If one (or both) of those two plays like they did in March, or one of a handful of three-star freshmen can help Battle out, I suppose they could make some noise. I'm mostly looking forward to the game where Battle scores 40 and the Lions knock off a ranked team, because you know it will happen - I just hope it isn't Minnesota.
10. Indiana. It's still going to be a while for the Hoosiers to get back to the top of the conference, but this is a killer recruiting class and should get them moving in the right direction, as well as reducing the blowouts from last season. Five recruits ranked in Rivals top 112 are highlighted by SF Christian Watford (#41), who put up 19 and 11 in their exhibition opener. The Hoosiers are still going to be pretty weak in the front court, but the backcourt should be better, which means less of little nerd boy Matt Roth. Although midwestern folk love the scrappy, undersized, home town, walk-on types, so he'll probably sneak his way into the rotation one way or another.
11. Iowa. I am struggling for anything good to say about the Hawkeyes this year. Anthony Tucker, assuming his supsensions are behind him, and Matt Gatens are quality players, but everybody else is gone, and the rumor is at least some of it has to do with the extremely boring style of play coached by Lickliter. The Hawkeyes finished 341st in Division I in temp out of 344 teams, and if you watched any of their games you know how slow and boring they truly were. With that style and less talent, I'm sure they'll end up beating somebody at some point, but I know I won't be watching.
And there you have it. Season really gets going Friday. Can't wait.
Other Previews
Conference USA
Atlantic 10
Mountain West
Atlantic Coast
Big Twelve
Big East
SEC
Pac 10
Instead it's time for the final DWG Basketball conference preview (insert sarcastic cheer), our beloved Big Ten. Funny thing is, I've probably spent less time researching this conference than any other, planning on using my remembering and my brain to do a good job. Although somehow that seems super unllkely. What I do know for sure is that this is the deepest and best the Big Ten has been in a while, and the losses of Royce and Mbakwe are not doing the Gophers' any favors. Tough and the top, and tough in the middle, every game is going to be tough, and this year has a good chance to be the first time the conference has been able to knock off the ACC in the Big 10/ACC challenge. Or at least I hope so. Combine that with Ohio State playing in the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament, the Gophers in the 76 classic, Purdue in the Paradise Jam, Illinois in the Vegas Invitational, Michigan in the Old Spice Classic, Wisconsin in the Maui, and Michigan State in the Legends Classic, and we should have a pretty good idea of where the Big 10 stands nationally before we get to December.
1. Michigan State. Pretty much a no-brainer, considering they were the national runner-up last season and are returning everybody of consequence other than Goran Suton, and they have plenty of options to replace his production including two top 100 recruits who are both centers - one of whom is who is even white, but not foreign. The paint is pretty much the only thing close to a weakness here, but with Raymar Morgan back at full strength and Draymond Green and Delvon Roe with a full year under their belts, I don't think it's going to be an issue. I especially expect Roe to explode this season and have a huge year. The backcourt is depressing to even think about, and it sucks for everyone else that Kalin Lucas is back. I still think Chris Allen is terrifying despite a rough year shooting the ball last season, and when he's hot the Spartans are pretty much unbeatable, which, actually, they are even if he's not.
2. Purdue. The "baby boilers" are now juniors, and are getting better. They will count on the same Big 3 (Moore, Hummel, and JaJuan Johnson) to pace them this year once again. Moore was their leading scorer, and Hummel seems to get the most press since everybody is so racist, but Johnson is the man to watch here. "The College KG" has improved each season, and now has a very nice touch on his mid-range jumper to go along with improved ball-handling and an excellent scoring ability in the paint, as well as being a solid rebounder and very good defender. In case you can't tell, I freaking love this guy. If Lewis Jackson can improve his point guard skills, this team will absolutely challenge the Spartans and be a final four contender. More certain than that, however, is Chris Kramer is back once again and he will annoy the crap out of you.
4. Michigan. The Wolverines also lose essentially nobody off a team that made the NCAA Tournament last year, and return maybe the best overall player in the conference in Manny Harris, who I really wish had gone pro. He and DeShawn Sims give Michigan a hell of a nice inside/outside combination, and Beilein finally has a few shooters around to help run his "chuck up every three you see" offense, including Zack Novak, who you probably remember destroying the Gophers in Ann Arbor last season. Stunningly, he won the Wolverines' dunk contest at their midnight madness thing, which is weird because I don't remember him being particularly athletic. The biggest key to their season might be at the point, where Beilein hands the keys over to freshman Darius Morris, a top 100 recruit who played well in the team's exhibition game.
6. Northwestern. An NCAA tournament berth for Northwestern? Yep, I'm calling it. Don't forget how close they were last year, blowing games against Illinois and Purdue, losing a ton of other winnable games, and beating Michigan State in Lansing. They lose just Craig Moore off last year's team, and how hard can it be to replace a guy who stands on the perimeter and just shoots threes? Coble is awkward, ugly, uncomfortable, and gangly, but it works and he is back again. If he ends up leading the Wildcats in scoring again he'll pull off the rare "lead your team in scoring all four years." Of course, Lavell Blanchard did the same thing at Michigan, so, well, there you go. I've been expecting big things out of Michael Thompson the last two years, maybe he finally puts it all together this year. And that combination Princeton offense/1-3-1 zone can catch anybody off guard at any time. They play Butler November 18th and Notre Dame November 27th, so we should know what to expect after that.
7. Illinois. I may be underrating Illinois, at least one preview I saw had them as high as fourth, but I just don't like this team. Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale ARE the front court - there's nothing behind them, and the guard situation is pretty unsettled. McCamey puts up ok numbers, but he's going to have to play the point with Chester Frazier gone to graduation, and Alex Legion was pretty underwhelming as a transfer from Kentucky. They have two very highly regarded guards coming in - D.J. Richardson (Rivals #38) and Brandon Paul (#42) but they are both scoring types, not point men. The Illini will have talent, there's no doubt, but I think the loss of Frazier and Trent Meachem puts them into a situation that could implode in a very bad way. That being said, if McCamey can run the point and Richardson is as good as some say he is, they very well could end up towards the top of the conference.
10. Indiana. It's still going to be a while for the Hoosiers to get back to the top of the conference, but this is a killer recruiting class and should get them moving in the right direction, as well as reducing the blowouts from last season. Five recruits ranked in Rivals top 112 are highlighted by SF Christian Watford (#41), who put up 19 and 11 in their exhibition opener. The Hoosiers are still going to be pretty weak in the front court, but the backcourt should be better, which means less of little nerd boy Matt Roth. Although midwestern folk love the scrappy, undersized, home town, walk-on types, so he'll probably sneak his way into the rotation one way or another.
11. Iowa. I am struggling for anything good to say about the Hawkeyes this year. Anthony Tucker, assuming his supsensions are behind him, and Matt Gatens are quality players, but everybody else is gone, and the rumor is at least some of it has to do with the extremely boring style of play coached by Lickliter. The Hawkeyes finished 341st in Division I in temp out of 344 teams, and if you watched any of their games you know how slow and boring they truly were. With that style and less talent, I'm sure they'll end up beating somebody at some point, but I know I won't be watching.
And there you have it. Season really gets going Friday. Can't wait.
Other Previews
Conference USA
Atlantic 10
Mountain West
Atlantic Coast
Big Twelve
Big East
SEC
Pac 10
Monday, November 9, 2009
Week in Review - 11/9/09
I'm not going to write about Cuddyer here. If you missed it, the Twins picked up his option and are going to pay him $10.5 million in 2011. They had to make the decision by today, and I understand why they picked it up rather than paying a $1 million buy-out, but are you really confident he will be worth $11 million in two years? Last year was a career year, and according to fangraphs that season was only worth $8.8 million on the open market, so we're expecting him to get better? The smart move would have been to buy him out, then try to resign him for like 3 years/$18 million or so. If some fool team wants to pay him $10 million a season, shake his hand, congratulate him on finding someone willing to overpay him, wish him luck, and move on.
Well, I guess I lied. I did end up writing about Cuddyer, even though I said I didn't, but at least he didn't get one of the coveted ten spots below. Mainly because although I don't think it was the right move, I don't think it was awful, either. Although I have a feeling our very own I Hate Cuddy Guy might show up here pretty soon with some less than flattering words. On to the stuff......
WHO WAS AWESOME
1. Chris Paul. Is Paul the next Magic Johnson? Of course not, idiot. Magic was a once in history type player, but that doesn't mean Chris Paul isn't really damn good and the best point guard in the league right now. He's scoring (26.6 per game, 7th in the league), assisting (9.7 per game, 3rd), and shooting (62% from the floor and 68% from three, 7th and 2nd) and generally playing out of his mind right now. None of this should come as a huge surprise, since he was so good and showed so much potential in college, but these things don't always work out so it's good to take note of it when it does. Unfortunately for him and basketball fans, the rest of his team completely sucks.
2. Cincinnati Bengals. Before the year started, some genius wrote "This is the team that I think will surprise. Carson is back, and coming with him will be Ochocinco who is "revitalized" which really just means he's a bitchy little whiner who wouldn't try last year because they sucked and now everyone thinks they will be good again so he will be good again - and I agree. Plus the defense isn't half bad, actually, at least not as bad as you think. Playoffs, baby. Believe." Now, following a shellacking of the Ravens that doesn't look as dominant as it was because it was just 17-7, whoever that handsome fella who wrote that looks even smarter than usual, and that's tough to do.
3. Josh Freeman. I have a theory. My theory is that Steve McNair is alive and Josh Freeman is actually dead, but due to some kind of conspiracy and a Face/Off style surgery, McNair is living and playing as Freeman. Seriously, this kid throws like him, runs like him, carries himself like him, and, at least yesterday, was cool under pressure like him after leading the formerly hapless Buccaneers to a big 38-28 win over the Packers (which also essentially wrapped up the division for the Vikes). It was Freeman's first start, and he started kind of slow, and his numbers aren't particularly impressive (but better than that piece of crap Aaron Rodgers's), but he threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, made smart plays down the stretch while Rodgers was melting down, and led the Bucs to their first victory of the season. I don't know if he'll ever put up huge numbers and be a a big-time fantasy QB or anything, but if I'm a Tampa fan, I'm suddenly feeling a lot better about the future.
4. Russell Westbrook. When the Sonics picked Westbrook fourth overall a couple of years ago I was like "lol wut?" Westbrook wasn't a true point guard, and wasn't a great outside shooter, so I wasn't sure exactly what role he would play in the NBA. Luckily for him, I'm an idiot, and after a great rookie year in which he finished fourth in ROY voting, he is following it up this year by becoming one of the best all-around guards in the league, averaging 18 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds per game. Oh, and also yesterday he had 17-5-10 as the Thunder destroyed the Magic 102-74 (Orlando was without Vince, Rashard Lewis, and Ryan Anderson, but still, that's a good win).
5. College Basketball. It's back, baby. The Gophers might be playing an exhibition tonight, but there are four real, actual games tonight with the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament kicking off the season. North Carolina, Ohio State, Syracuse, and Cal all have what should be pretty easy matchups, but there's some intrigue anyway. UNC plays FIU in Isiah Thomas's coaching debut (more on him below), and Syracuse plays Albany in their first game action since their loss to LeMoyne (more on that below also). That's all just a prelude to Friday and the real start of the season, with 252 teams in action that night. Awesome, as it is every year.
WHO SUCKED
1. Iowa Football. Never has it been easier to pick someone for this spot, and never has it felt better. Not so much that I hate Iowa, I probably don't as much as most Gopher fans do, but I'm just glad the Hawkeyes aren't going to somehow back in to the BCS Championship game thanks to a Texas loss in the B12 championship game or something and get blown right off the field and once again set up a series of articles about how bad the Big 10 is at football. I mean, they are, but I get sick of reading about it. So thank you Iowa, and thank you Northwestern. There is now zero chance we have to watch another Big Ten team get killed in the championship, and instead we can watch them get killed in all the other bowls, and with Penn State losing to OSU, we can be assured whoever ends up in the Rose Bowl by default will lose by at least 30 toOregon. [Let's make this USC since I just found out Oregon lost to Stanford]
2. Syracuse Basketball. LeMoyne?? If you pay attention to sports, you are no doubt already completely aware of the fact that the Cuse lost to D-II LeMoyne thanks to a last second three pointer by some guy whose dream just came true Tuesday night. I'd love to join the pile one, but come on. For Syracuse it's a glorified scrimmage, for LeMoyne - just three miles down the road from the Carrier Dome - it's the Super Bowl/World Series/NCAA Championship all in one, not to mention a chance for these players to stick it to Boeheim and the Orange for not recruiting them. I mean, I'm pretty sure Syracuse will suck this year, but it has nothing to do with a loss to LeMoyne.
3. Corey Brewer. Ok, I'm sorry but this guy just can't shoot the ball. I got called out (and called "bro") for being worried about his 37% shooting in the preseason in the comments section of this post, but it looks like I was right - he's shooting 38% so far this year, including games of 6-21, 6-16, 4-10, and 4-9 this week. Now, sucks is kind of strong, because Brewer absolutely serves a valuable function on this team, and is a definite starter thanks to other things he can do like defense, rebounding, and just overall being around the ball, but he's not a prolific scorer, and shouldn't be a featured part of any offense. Of course, with Love out and Jefferson having a terrible season so far, maybe the Wolves don't have a choice, and that my friends, surely sucks.
4. New Jersey. Good god is this team awful. Actually losing to the Wolves should have been a pretty big tipoff, but now the Nets sit at 0-7 after a really stellar 0-4 week, their best player, Devin Harris, is injured, they're in the bottom two in the league in both scoring and shooting, Courtney Lee his shooting 31%, their suddenly promising young player, Chris Douglas-Roberts, now has the swine flu, and Trenton Hassell has become prominently involved. Things are not going well. I know the plan was basically to ignore this season and clear room to go after Lebron in the offseason, but I think they cleared the teamout a bit too well. Seriously, if Lebron signs here (or anybody else) he's pretty clearly effed in the head.
5. FIU/Isiah Thomas - Seemed like everything was going well for Isiah at FIU, right? First, he signed a pack of Juco guards, including three good scorers who immediately shore up an offense that is losing almost all of it's scoring. Then he uses his national stature to grab a couple of good recruits, including a shocker in getting Dominique Ferguson, Rivals #40 recruit who chose the Panthers despite offers from Arizona and Kentucky. All is well, right? Well, turns out you also have to coach, and instead of a triumphant debut, Isiah watched his team lose to Northwood in an exhibition, the same Northwood that is an NAIA school. Oops. And I realize nobody really cares, and neither do I, but this gives me a great excuse to post this video, which might be the greatest thing ever.
Is that not the greatest thing ever? No preview for the Gopher exhibition because yawn and also because real basketball starts tonight. Also file away in the "sucks" column the fact that I realized yesterday due to previous engagements and business travel/events, I won't be able to attend another Gopher game until December. Thanks a lot, life. You suck.
Well, I guess I lied. I did end up writing about Cuddyer, even though I said I didn't, but at least he didn't get one of the coveted ten spots below. Mainly because although I don't think it was the right move, I don't think it was awful, either. Although I have a feeling our very own I Hate Cuddy Guy might show up here pretty soon with some less than flattering words. On to the stuff......
WHO WAS AWESOME
1. Chris Paul. Is Paul the next Magic Johnson? Of course not, idiot. Magic was a once in history type player, but that doesn't mean Chris Paul isn't really damn good and the best point guard in the league right now. He's scoring (26.6 per game, 7th in the league), assisting (9.7 per game, 3rd), and shooting (62% from the floor and 68% from three, 7th and 2nd) and generally playing out of his mind right now. None of this should come as a huge surprise, since he was so good and showed so much potential in college, but these things don't always work out so it's good to take note of it when it does. Unfortunately for him and basketball fans, the rest of his team completely sucks.
2. Cincinnati Bengals. Before the year started, some genius wrote "This is the team that I think will surprise. Carson is back, and coming with him will be Ochocinco who is "revitalized" which really just means he's a bitchy little whiner who wouldn't try last year because they sucked and now everyone thinks they will be good again so he will be good again - and I agree. Plus the defense isn't half bad, actually, at least not as bad as you think. Playoffs, baby. Believe." Now, following a shellacking of the Ravens that doesn't look as dominant as it was because it was just 17-7, whoever that handsome fella who wrote that looks even smarter than usual, and that's tough to do.
3. Josh Freeman. I have a theory. My theory is that Steve McNair is alive and Josh Freeman is actually dead, but due to some kind of conspiracy and a Face/Off style surgery, McNair is living and playing as Freeman. Seriously, this kid throws like him, runs like him, carries himself like him, and, at least yesterday, was cool under pressure like him after leading the formerly hapless Buccaneers to a big 38-28 win over the Packers (which also essentially wrapped up the division for the Vikes). It was Freeman's first start, and he started kind of slow, and his numbers aren't particularly impressive (but better than that piece of crap Aaron Rodgers's), but he threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, made smart plays down the stretch while Rodgers was melting down, and led the Bucs to their first victory of the season. I don't know if he'll ever put up huge numbers and be a a big-time fantasy QB or anything, but if I'm a Tampa fan, I'm suddenly feeling a lot better about the future.
4. Russell Westbrook. When the Sonics picked Westbrook fourth overall a couple of years ago I was like "lol wut?" Westbrook wasn't a true point guard, and wasn't a great outside shooter, so I wasn't sure exactly what role he would play in the NBA. Luckily for him, I'm an idiot, and after a great rookie year in which he finished fourth in ROY voting, he is following it up this year by becoming one of the best all-around guards in the league, averaging 18 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds per game. Oh, and also yesterday he had 17-5-10 as the Thunder destroyed the Magic 102-74 (Orlando was without Vince, Rashard Lewis, and Ryan Anderson, but still, that's a good win).
5. College Basketball. It's back, baby. The Gophers might be playing an exhibition tonight, but there are four real, actual games tonight with the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament kicking off the season. North Carolina, Ohio State, Syracuse, and Cal all have what should be pretty easy matchups, but there's some intrigue anyway. UNC plays FIU in Isiah Thomas's coaching debut (more on him below), and Syracuse plays Albany in their first game action since their loss to LeMoyne (more on that below also). That's all just a prelude to Friday and the real start of the season, with 252 teams in action that night. Awesome, as it is every year.
WHO SUCKED
1. Iowa Football. Never has it been easier to pick someone for this spot, and never has it felt better. Not so much that I hate Iowa, I probably don't as much as most Gopher fans do, but I'm just glad the Hawkeyes aren't going to somehow back in to the BCS Championship game thanks to a Texas loss in the B12 championship game or something and get blown right off the field and once again set up a series of articles about how bad the Big 10 is at football. I mean, they are, but I get sick of reading about it. So thank you Iowa, and thank you Northwestern. There is now zero chance we have to watch another Big Ten team get killed in the championship, and instead we can watch them get killed in all the other bowls, and with Penn State losing to OSU, we can be assured whoever ends up in the Rose Bowl by default will lose by at least 30 to
2. Syracuse Basketball. LeMoyne?? If you pay attention to sports, you are no doubt already completely aware of the fact that the Cuse lost to D-II LeMoyne thanks to a last second three pointer by some guy whose dream just came true Tuesday night. I'd love to join the pile one, but come on. For Syracuse it's a glorified scrimmage, for LeMoyne - just three miles down the road from the Carrier Dome - it's the Super Bowl/World Series/NCAA Championship all in one, not to mention a chance for these players to stick it to Boeheim and the Orange for not recruiting them. I mean, I'm pretty sure Syracuse will suck this year, but it has nothing to do with a loss to LeMoyne.
3. Corey Brewer. Ok, I'm sorry but this guy just can't shoot the ball. I got called out (and called "bro") for being worried about his 37% shooting in the preseason in the comments section of this post, but it looks like I was right - he's shooting 38% so far this year, including games of 6-21, 6-16, 4-10, and 4-9 this week. Now, sucks is kind of strong, because Brewer absolutely serves a valuable function on this team, and is a definite starter thanks to other things he can do like defense, rebounding, and just overall being around the ball, but he's not a prolific scorer, and shouldn't be a featured part of any offense. Of course, with Love out and Jefferson having a terrible season so far, maybe the Wolves don't have a choice, and that my friends, surely sucks.
4. New Jersey. Good god is this team awful. Actually losing to the Wolves should have been a pretty big tipoff, but now the Nets sit at 0-7 after a really stellar 0-4 week, their best player, Devin Harris, is injured, they're in the bottom two in the league in both scoring and shooting, Courtney Lee his shooting 31%, their suddenly promising young player, Chris Douglas-Roberts, now has the swine flu, and Trenton Hassell has become prominently involved. Things are not going well. I know the plan was basically to ignore this season and clear room to go after Lebron in the offseason, but I think they cleared the teamout a bit too well. Seriously, if Lebron signs here (or anybody else) he's pretty clearly effed in the head.
5. FIU/Isiah Thomas - Seemed like everything was going well for Isiah at FIU, right? First, he signed a pack of Juco guards, including three good scorers who immediately shore up an offense that is losing almost all of it's scoring. Then he uses his national stature to grab a couple of good recruits, including a shocker in getting Dominique Ferguson, Rivals #40 recruit who chose the Panthers despite offers from Arizona and Kentucky. All is well, right? Well, turns out you also have to coach, and instead of a triumphant debut, Isiah watched his team lose to Northwood in an exhibition, the same Northwood that is an NAIA school. Oops. And I realize nobody really cares, and neither do I, but this gives me a great excuse to post this video, which might be the greatest thing ever.
Is that not the greatest thing ever? No preview for the Gopher exhibition because yawn and also because real basketball starts tonight. Also file away in the "sucks" column the fact that I realized yesterday due to previous engagements and business travel/events, I won't be able to attend another Gopher game until December. Thanks a lot, life. You suck.
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