Real Deal

I jinxed him.

Sanchez is so underrated. Let Folk try another kick, or just score?

I can't believe that.

This is going to be my worst week, by far, unless I win out on the rest of my picks. Buffalo screwed me over when they didn't win by one more point, Minnesota pisses me off to no end, Indy won by six instead of seven, and Houston choked.

Wow man, TO and Chad are pathetic. Owens casually jogs back to the line while time is running out, then Chad basically bats down a pass right in his chest, nobody within 5 yards of him, to end the game.

It seems like every time I pick the Vikings to lose, they have a miraculous 4th and get the win. Then, I'll pick them to win, and they CHOKE. I think I'm just going to pick them to win all of their games the rest of the way, so I can get some revenge by watching them lose.

Okay, that last pick was on Owens. He didn't even try to catch that, and it was an arm's length away from him where he could've at the very LEAST batted the ball down. Almost feels like he wanted Palmer to throw that third pick to make him look even worse, and to have all the blame put on him.

I've actually tried something similar to that before, but it really slows down the scrolling speed and loading times because of the images used. If you think about it, 20 posts per page asks for a max of 20 avatars and signatures, plus post images in each corner, plus the banner and the post button images. Then you have the 30 team logos at the very top, and the repeating images for the title bar. Even more than that (like the group icons, team reps). I had to shrink the banners down to 70-80KB to help decrease loading times for those on lackluster connections OR just browsing with their phone or the PS3/360. Lots of things I have to consider, which is why skinning really sucks. Glad you like it, though...and glad to see you sticking around.

I see it that way, but I don't agree with exactly how you apply it to the rotation. Murphy is an experienced starter. That means he shouldn't lose confidence coming off the bench. The same was assumed of Manu Ginobili and Jason Terry over the last few seasons. Because Murphy is a versatile player (he can really play three positions), you bring him off the bench and maximize his talents. You don't want to put a brick on Favors' head right now. He has to grow. Part of that growing is developing, and there's no better way to develop than to play with the best players, in the best five. Bringing him off the bench will sometimes give him a role he shouldn't have, push him to be a bit more selfish, and it could really hurt his game down the road. Could anger him. It could even turn him more aggressive in an attempt to impress, picking up even more fouls and getting less minutes. Murphy can handle the demotion and still play to his abilities, still produce. Favors is way too young for anyone to know that yet, so you have to adjust for him before expecting him to adjust for the team.

See, LeBron may have done the Cavs dirty, but this is the same guy that put Cleveland back on the basketball map (maybe even on the sports map). He was, without a doubt, their franchise player for seven years. When asking if a player is a franchise player, it shouldn't be about previous exits unless he proves to be a cancer. While I absolutely hate him now, I can't say that LeBron is a cancer to his team, or any other team in the NBA if he was suiting up for someone else. Look at it this way: the Knicks get offered LeBron for Amare and Gallo. Do they pull the trigger? Most definitely, because James is a player you build around...a franchise player.

And the Bulls forum is finished. http://www.otrbasketball.com/forums/forum/15-chicago-bulls-team-forum Boozer probably gets the nod for the banner once he comes back.

You learn from failing. You don't learn anything from fearing.

First team skin finished...Boston Celtics: http://www.otrbasketball.com/forums/forum/13-boston-celtics-team-forum Boston will be one of the few teams with two banners, due to the all-stars and superstars they have.

With it, or for blood, Edward?

Maaan, you guys are going to love the team forums. I'm adding a logo to the background, makes it unique to each team...and the colors look perfect in the skin. Haha.

Did Evan Turner get hurt, or was he just pulled from the game? I'm not able to watch, so I'm just looking at the box.

One superstar shoots well, the other doesn't. Story of the Heat.

Green is tearing it up, as expected.

Is there really a better option than Cam Newton on a short yardage third down play?

They beat Orlando last night, probably tired. Miami is pissed because they have lost two straight home games, and I doubt Wade plays that bad again. No major point guard advantage, even though Jack and Calderon are both better PGs than Arroyo and Chalmers. Bargnani isn't a traditional back-to-the-basket post scoring threat. The Heat should win by 20+ tonight. Hope I'm wrong.

Isn't this similar to what Blair is going through? I'm pretty sure there was talk that Blair doesn't have any knees (ha), and it was amazing that he was even able to get off the ground high enough to grab boards with the weight he has.

They wouldn't be interested because they wouldn't trade their big pieces for him. It's basically the same reason why the Heat wouldn't call. Sacramento would brush off any trade that doesn't involve Pierce, Allen, Garnett, or Rondo, and the Celtics aren't desperate enough to get that done. They are the best team in the East. I'm sure the Hawks would consider it, and maybe even the Thunder. Both teams can afford to get bigger up front. Denver would probably consider trading Melo for him. With that said, I don't think the Kings are actually considering a trade. As mentioned already by a few others in here, there's no reason to trade him just yet...and they won't get what they want from many teams right now, especially top-tier teams.

Uh oh!

Probably not the Heat. They don't have anything to offer. They've spent all of their draft picks (and don't have the cap room to begin with), and they would have to give the Kings four players at the minimum salaries they are signed to, or deal Mike Miller...but Sacramento wouldn't hand over Cousins for that crap. I don't see Boston being that interested. Orlando? They definitely need him, although Brandon Bass is showing signs of better play. The Magic would immediately stick Cousins at the four, and they would finally have a legitimate power forward that can start for them.