Archive for February, 2009

Thursday Dump

MILWAUKEE - MARCH 3: Lazar Hayward #32 of the ...
Image by Getty Images via Daylife

It’s Thursday afternoon and the annual NFL Free Agency bonanza starts at midnight. May your favorite team not overpay for too many mediocre players (not so fast, Redskins fans, you’re getting stuck with Haynesworth).

The NBA is borrowing money to loan to teams? That ain’t good…. Finally paying the piper for two decades of financial insanity. Time to have non-guaranteed contracts, Mr. Stern.

Ookie Vick update. Enjoy.

Bummer from last night’s UConn-Marquette throwdown; stud PG Dominic James broke his foot and is done for the season. Hopefully it won’t hurt his draft stock, Marquette has had a hell of a run this year an a loaded Big East.

With spring training under way, its time for the Dodgers to get Manny in camp.

Blog network SBN and Yahoo! have joined forces; a quality move for both sides.

LeBron James is clearly not intimidated by Dwight Howard’s trick shots.

Worth a click.

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Wednesday Dump

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09
Image via Wikipedia

Good hump day, fine Stumblers. It’s the middle of a long work week, so lets get right into today’s linkage:

Long time MLB pitcher caught up in financial scam, having a tough time paying bills.

Washington D.C. high school hoops player can jump out of the gym, but can’t attract attention from college recruiters. Here’s guessing this article will remedy that situation.

I’m glad I’m not the only one baffled as to why the Celtics would risk altering their team chemistry by bringing in Steph Marbury. Doesn’t seem worth it at all. KG will have some sway over him, and getting out of the dysfunctional mess known as the NY Knicks would be good for anyone’s psyche, but it still seems like a bad idea to me.

More dire economic news! I don’t buy for one second the NFL couldn’t come up with the cash to keep its staffers employed.

Tiger’s back! Tiger’s back! The PGA is relevant once again! Wake me up for The Masters.

Providence knocking off #1 Pitt is proof positive that anything can happen this year in college hoops. I think we are headed for an all time head scratcher of a Final Four. When we end up with a Marquette-Arizona State national title game, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Scary video for any Caps fan-Ovie and Mike Green tooling around on a cart, and almost getting decapitated by a closing door. Yikes.

A high school player in Indiana goes on a game-winning scoring binge that he’ll be able to live off for the rest of his life. In the Hoosier state, high school hoops glory is in many ways more valuable than a college education.

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Tuesday Dump

Charles Barkley
Image via Wikipedia

The Big Lead has your roundup of last night’s NBA action, including Devin Harris’ ridiculous game winning half court heave.

A Blazers blog offers an interesting analysis of Paul Allen’s potential money problems.

The Indianapolis Colts are about to part ways with longtime franchise stalwart Marvin Harrison, as he has apparently asked for his release. Colts blog Stampede Blue seems to think there is some hope that Harrison will be back with the Horse next year.

Female high school hoops player who can really throw it down.


Bill Simmons hangs with Baron Davis
, while another apparent dust-up between the Sports Guy and ESPN has the blogosphere talking again.

It’s 5 days in the clink for Sir Charles.

Yup. I could get used to this.

KSK brings you 25 things-Belicheck edition.

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Monday Dump

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 21:  Offensive lin...
Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Monday again already? Ugh. Here’s some linkage to get you through.

The 2009 NFL Combine has come and gone, with some interesting story lines resulting. Alabama LT Andre Smith, once thought of as a potential #1 overall pick is widely regarded as the biggest loser of the process, while some other players did quite well for themselves. Breakdowns of the combine here and here.

Click here to try your hand at the Wonderlich test NFL execs make prospects take.

Matt Kenseth makes it 2 for 2 on the young NASCAR season, which means he’ll probably end up missing the Chase.

Dwight Howard nails a ridiculous shot while screwing around before a game.

The Caps smoked the Pens 5-2 yesterday on national TV, and Sidney Crosby had a bit of a meltdown, getting into it with Ovechkin and the entire Caps bench.

Nationals’ GM Jim Bowden isn’t just disastrously incompetent-he might also be corrupt. Awesome! Go Nats!

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Marty McSorley vs Bob Probert Feb 4, 1994

Friday Night Dump

Utah Jazz logo from (1996-2004)
Image via Wikipedia

Larry H. Miller of the Utah Jazz dies at age 64.

You think A-Rod is in trouble? Check out his trainer.

Nate “Krypto Nate” Robinson on Letterman.

A spotlight on our friends at Sports2Debate.

Our boy John Hollinger evaluates the 11 most likely buy-out candidates.

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Sports Insights NBA Teams of Interest – Trade Deadline Edition

Editor’s Note: The below was written by Chris at SportsInsights. Every week SportsInsights speaks directly with the line managers at some of the sports betting industry’s largest sports books about which teams the Public is chasing and the Sharps are pounding giving sports fans unprecedented insight into the NBA point-spread market. Check out SportsInsights at http://SportsInsights.com.  

                        Rather than two or three longer features as we’ve been doing, this week we’re going to break down Thursday’s trades and give a gambling-focused outlook on the major players from Thursday.

Sacramento Kings

            Players Gained: Drew Gooden, Andres Nocioni, Rashad McCants, Calvin Booth, Ike Diogu and Sam Cassell (not likely to play)

            Players Lost: Brad Miller, John Salmons, Sheldon Williams, Bobby Brown

            Outlook: The Kings secured their spot as one of the worst teams in the NBA with their trade deadline moves. From a gambling outlook, I actually think the public may underestimate how much worse Sacramento has become as a result of this trade. Salmons was the best player involved in the deals and Brad Miller, who is a great all-around player when healthy, was probably the second best. Gooden will contribute when healthy (and who knows when that will be), while McCants and Nocioni are scorers but bring little else to the table. Sacramento is building for the future and will be giving a lot of minutes to their younger players, so don’t be afraid to lay the points against the Kings, even when the spread hits double digits. This team really is that bad.

Chicago Bulls   

            Players Gained: Brad Miller, John Salmons, Tim Thomas, Anthony Roberson, Jerome James

            Players Lost: Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Andres Nocioni, Thabo Sefolosha, Michael Ruffin

            Outlook: The Bulls are primed to make a serious run in the Eastern Conference. As mentioned above, Brad Miller and John Salmons are both high quality players who were stuck on a very low quality team. Miller shines in an offense that can take advantage of his passing, and Chicago is that kind of an offense. The Bulls won’t miss any of the players they parted with, as they either already had or have now acquired superior replacements. I think the Bulls will be valued accurately after this trade on a talent standpoint, but keep an eye on the over/under for Chicago as they now feature a seriously high-powered offense. They were already giving up a ton more point than most people realized, allowing 102 points per game, and boast a 30-23-1 record going over the total. Scott Skiles’ Bulls they ain’t, and since they’ve improved their offense with these trades while also giving up a little on defense, you can expect their games to consistently go over the total for the next few weeks.

Orlando Magic

            Players Gained: Rafer Alston

            Players Lost: Brian Cook

            Outlook: Orlando mortgages its future a bit by trading a first round pick for Rafer Alston, a mediocre point guard who turns 33 in July. On the bright side, he fills a huge void created by Jameer Nelson’s injury, and his salary is bad but not horrible – $5 million a year and it expires in 2010. In the real world, this is a move Orlando had to make in order to keep their championship hopes alive. In the sports betting world, this makes Orlando a team to fade, and here’s why: Rafer “Skip to my Lou” Alston has always been overrated and overexposed because of his background as a street ball legend, while in reality he is barely passable as a starting NBA point guard. Granted, all he will be asked to do in Orlando is lob alley-oops somewhere in the general direction of Dwight Howard, but believe me when I tell you Orlando is a much inferior team with Alston at the helm. He’s a terrible shooter and a below-average passer and decision maker, not qualities a team wants from the “quarterback” of their offense. While the public will look at Orlando and see a team identical to the one with Jameer Nelson, I see a team that has lost a lot of consistency and will probably be laying more points in the betting marketplace than they should.

New York Knicks

            Players Gained: Larry Hughes, Chris Wilcox

            Players Lost: Tim Thomas, Anthony Roberson, Jerome James, Malik Rose

            Outlook: In what is becoming an annual tradition, the Knickerbockers made some desperate trades on Thursday in a fruitless attempt to make the playoffs. The big difference this year is that they didn’t take on any massive contracts and made two very low-risk, high-reward type deals. The irony of the Knicks’ previously disastrous deadline deals is that it has put them so far over the salary cap that they can now actually pay other teams money in trades and STILL save money themselves on luxury tax savings! Maybe Isaiah Thomas had a plan after all… Anyway, let’s get to what matters, and figure out how the Knicks will be profitable. While many analysts are already smearing the Knicks for trading for yet another me-first ball hog (Hughes) and a forward with no jump shot in a tempo-oriented offense (Wilcox), I applaud New York for giving up next to nothing to take a chance on two talented players who were stuck in bad situations. I believe Hughes will be an excellent fit in Coach Mike D’Antoni’s offense as he can both drive to the basket and hit threes, and he has the potential to cause a ton of turnovers on the defensive end. I believe that public perception of the Knicks is so negative that even when they make positive changes, as I think they have done here, the public will react negatively. While I don’t think New York has any chance to make the playoffs, I do think the trades they made improved their team more than the general public believes. Wait a few days for Hughes and Wilcox to get some practice time in, then find some nice underdog lines (2/25 vs Orlando looks promising) and look for the Knicks to cover.

Houston Rockets

            Players Gained: Kyle Lowry, Brian Cook

            Players Lost: Rafer Alston

            Outlook: Houston made a great trade on Thursday, the rare kind of trade that helps them both in the present and in the future. As I stated above, Alston is not an asset to any NBA roster as a starting guard, and Houston did well to dump his salary and clear playing time for the young and promising Aaron Brooks. His numbers as a starter are very similar to Alston’s, with the difference being that Brook’s skills should only improve while Alston’s were already on the decline. Brooks’ 88% free throw shooting belies his 40% overall shooting percentage, and he should improve both his percentage and his points scored as he acclimates to the starting role and improves his shot selection. I think the Rockets’ play had grown stagnant under Alston and giving more playing time to talented, youthful guards like Brooks and Lowry may cause some immediate improvements in the overall effort given by Houston’s entire roster. Additionally, Tracy McGrady being shut down for the season is really a godsend for the Rockets; he is a shell of his former self and Shane Battier is a much better all-around player and, unlike McGrady, a proven winner.

            One of my favorite trends to take advantage of in the NBA betting marketplace is to look for teams that lose overrated, “big name” players and replace them with players with similar or better skills but zero name recognition. Houston fits the bill perfectly, and my advice remains the same: back the Rockets because the no-namers (Brooks and Battier) are actually better than the “stars” (McGrady and Alston) they’ve replaced, and the public won’t realize this for some time. 

Thursday Dump

Ovechkin and Capitals Celebrate
Image by clydeorama via Flickr

Was lucky enough to be at the Phone Booth (Verizon Center) to witness Alex Ovechkin’s latest masterpiece goal last night. Wow. In person it was unreal, as the crowd went nuts as soon as he broke on the puck and somehow did that spin move around the hapless Hab. Awesome game. Go Caps!

Homerism aside, here are today’s links:

A dissenting opinion on the greatness of Ovie’s goal. (Yahoo!)

Big Al Haynesworth is going to test the waters of free agency. Widely regarded as the most disruptive defensive force in the league, dude is about to get paid. (ESPN)

An interesting perspective on David Beckham’s abortive U.S. soccer experiement. I was among those tremendously excited about his arrival in the U.S., and hoped it would do much to jump start the MLS. Not so much…. (Sporting Blog)

Big Ten hoops….ugh. (The Big Picture)

The squeaky clean image of Dwayne Wade certainly seems to belie his somewhat sordid life. (Sun Times)

Good times in Ft. Collins! (Boosh)

In case you haven’t seen video of the giant high school basketball brawl down in Alabama, click here. (Deadspin)

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Wednesday Dump

Detective Chimp
Image via Wikipedia

Happy Hump Day, stumblers. Today’s links:

Wow. Deranged Chimpanzees, Xanax, women sleeping with primates…wtf?! (NY Post)


Lance Armstrong lost his bike, and needs the help of Twitter nation to get it back (
yahoo)

Weird dealings down at Texas Tech, where Coach Mike Leach’s contract situation is very much in limbo. There are rumblings that Tech might now fire Leach, rather than work out a contract, which would be devastating to the program. (Dallas News and CNNSI)


If you haven’t seen this yet, enjoy
. It’s NFL draft prospect Jarron Gilbert out of San Jose State, and dude is an beast. (You Tube)

This would be a solid, solid pickup for the Cavs, and could put them over the top in the East. Jamison is a class act all the way who wouldn’t cause any chemistry issues-he’d just produce and help them win. With the Wizards in complete shut down mode, I’d love to see this happen. (CNNSI)

T-Mac hurt? No way! It is a shame to hear the dreaded term “micro-fracture surgery” bandied about. (ESPN)

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Tuesday Dump

PHOENIX - FEBRUARY 15:  Shaquille O'Neal #32 o...
Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Hope everyone had a good President’s Day weekend. By all accounts it was a pretty boring day, was it not? Was watching ESPN and one of the legion of talking heads made a good point-why the hell did NASCAR call the Daytona 500 due to rain, when it could have finished the race on a national holiday in front of a huge (and bored) TV audience. NASCAR is in pretty dire financial straits, so any sort of positive buzz and excitement would have been useful. Instead, we got a boring, confusing, rain shortened debacle that included a meltdown from the sports’ biggest star.

More on Dale Jr. here, and here. Pretty clear that Junior was the biggest loser of that race.

NBA All-Star weekend has come and gone, and was largely forgettable. The dunk contest had some cool moments, and no one will be forgetting Shaq-a-wockee anytime soon, but the game itself lacked much of a competitive spirit. Chris Mannix from SI.com dishes out some All-Star grades. (Black Sports Online, CNNSI)

More NBA: are the Hornets really going to unload Tyson Chandler to save money? Even if they are struggling this season, why in the hell would you break up a team that won 56 games last year? WTF?! (ESPN)

Former dirty bird Jamaal Anderson has some serious issues. Deadspin has your fall from grace coverage here and here. (Deadspin)

DeJuan Blair (beast) and # 4 Pitt knocked off #1 UConn last night. Damn, the Big East is deep! Also, very, very interesting that no team has been able to cling to the #1 spot for very long. It’s good for college basketball, and should make for an entertaining tournament. There are going to be at least 2 #1 seeds knocked out early this year. (Sportsline)

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