Real Deal

Everyone in my family loved the Chiefs or the Cowboys, and I grew up having them throw it in my face. Got sick of hearing about Aikman, Smith, Irvin and Deion. Got a bit older, and my best friend was the biggest Cowboys fan, so it continued. Had a girlfriend who loved the Cowboys, maybe two months after my friend moved away. We broke up, and there was peace and serenity for a while...and, then, I get a message from my friend, and he's coming back to town. It's like a curse I can't shake...but don't feel too bad, because I would rather see the Broncos lose every game they ever play than to see Dallas struggle.

I ALMOST got to go to this game, and I swear I was going to buy a Giants jersey just to wear to it. Monday night, I'll be one of the biggest NYG fans on the Earth. If Dallas loses this one, they will need to sign Jesus Christ to propel them into the playoffs.

Be sure to bold your vote, then follow it up with an argument as to why you believe that rivalry is deserving of the vote.

Be sure to bold your vote, then follow it up with an argument as to why you believe he is deserving of the vote.

Be sure to bold your vote, then follow it up with an argument as to why you believe he is deserving of the vote.

Be sure to bold your vote, then follow it up with an argument as to why you believe he is deserving of the vote.

LeBron 9 Jordan 5 Carter 2 Richardson 1

LOL... Ron Harper 2 Joakim Noah Josh Childress Al Jefferson Lamar Odom Purvis Short Andrew Bogut Eddie Johnson Ben Gordon Tayshaun Prince Andre Miller Byron Scott Stephen Jackson Arvydas Sabonis Derek Harper

Kobe 7 LeBron 2 Iverson 2 Bill Laimbeer 1

Ahhh...gotta get these done, damn! Magic takes it!

I don't think Tyreke will hit that level of play LeBron has, at least not reaching potential triple-double status as frequently. He's obviously not as big as James (in height or weight, or muscle mass...LeBron probably has 25 pounds on him, at least), so the rebounding will almost always be in James' favor. Possibly driving to the rim. Assists really depends on how Evans plays with Cousins. Eventually, he could average double-digit assists, but I'm leaning towards him being more of a scorer than a Steve Nash. Statistically, I don't think he'll catch up. Overall playing abilities, it's possible, but LeBron is pretty far ahead right now. Evans does a lot of things good. James does a few things GREAT, and a lot of things really good. Hard to compare. It's definitely interesting, though.

Not going to answer for him, but I would rank the Thunder as possibly the second or third best team in the conference, if all teams were fully healthy. However, we already know Yao's status (limiting him to one half a game). Denver will more than likely send Melo off to the east coast before February. Utah? After losing Boozer, Korver, Matthews and Brewer, I don't see them being better than OKC, even if they did bring in Jefferson. I can argue why the Thunder would be better than Portland, but I won't go too deep into it. Miller and Camby are aging, Oden is (once again) a big question mark and will already miss games, and Fernandez is being a [expletive]. Dallas will win more games and will most likely grab the second seed, but I wouldn't bet any money on them beating a Thunder team in the playoffs. How did the Thunder improve? Durant's defense is much better, especially his on-ball defense. They brought in Morris Peterson, who is EASILY playing the best he has ever played in a preseason (and shooting 57%, which is much, much better than anything else in his career)...not saying he'll be a starter and amazing, but he'll provide a lift for them off the bench, which they desperately needed. They also drafted Cole Aldrich, who is a true defensive center (Ibaka is a power forward). Also, the young (which is most of the team) has more experience under their belt. The Thunder was possibly the healthiest team last season, also. Four of their starters (Durant, Westbrook, Green and Thabo) played in all 82 games, and Krstic played in 76. Six combined missed games for the five starters, in one season? That's pretty impressive. Many forget that the Thunder started off rocky, trying to develop chemistry. They were 13-14 in their first 27 games. In February, they completed a nine-game winning streak with five of those games on the road, and beating Denver, Atlanta, Portland and Dallas. They also raked in wins against the Lakers, Rockets, Jazz, Celtics, Spurs, Suns and Magic (beat Utah three times, actually). After the 13-14 start, they finished the season 37-18. Oklahoma City was going to beat every other team they faced in the West. Had they not faced us in the first round, they were on their way to the WCF, and if they stay healthy, I can't expect anything less from them this season.

Cleveland and Baltimore knocked the Mariners out of the playoffs in the 90s...I remember both of those series. Sadly, those two years were the only times the Mariners were in the playoffs in that decade (not sure how that was even possible with the team they had, but oh well). Griffey was playing for the Reds in...2000? That was the year the Mariners lost to New York, and then they had that crazy 115 wins or so the following season, and lost to the Yankees AGAIN. I stopped watching baseball after that, though...just couldn't stick with it, had no interest after Griffey and A-Rod were history (even though Seattle had never won that many games before, ever). But, anyway...enough of me derailing the topic. Sorry guys.

It really reminds me of the situation with Danny Fortson. Excellent rebounder (I'm talking one of the best while he was playing, actually), did a lot of dirty work, but he just wasn't much of a contributor elsewhere. Fortson's biggest issue was his foul trouble. It seemed like Fortson was at five fouls within 10 minutes, he would rack them up so quickly, and it really ruined his career. In fact, the two seasons he played 28-29 minutes per game (under 30), he averaged 12 boards and 11 points. In his third season in the league, he was racking up OVER 15 rebounds per 36 minutes of play (actual number was a hair under 7 boards in 16 minutes). Reggie Evans reached similar rebounding numbers a few years back (well, per 36)...not as good, but pretty close to it. However, he does NOT foul as often as Fortson did (I mean, hell, Fortson was averaging over four fouls in just 16 minutes back in 2005). Evans is not as efficient scoring the ball, but his effort on the glass is what seems to be keeping him in the NBA.

Haha, I'm part of it. I just don't have a favorite team, really never rooting for anyone. When I did enjoy baseball, I was pretty young, and I loved the Mariners and Griffey. Ken, A-Rod, Buhner, Sorrento, Martinez, Davis, Cora, Cruz, Wilson...it's funny how I can recall most of the team, lol. Can't forget Johnson's wicked fastballs, Moyer, Ayala, Fassero...haha. I'm going to cry. I can't even do that with any team in the league nowadays. Maybe the Yankees, lol.

You know, you're supposed to enjoy the upcoming season with us. Either way, no big deal. Work and school is more important, and there are other things as well. Hope you re-consider.

There's nothing wrong with recruiting. Let me and the staff take care of the reckless members that arrive. I've been doing it for six years, guys. We need to rake in all the activity we can get, then eliminate the trouble-makers. Consider it a training camp.

I thought about this last month, and I got a laugh out of it because, funny enough, another Crawford may take his place. If Jordan Crawford pans out to be a good player off the bench, he's much cheaper and younger than Jamal, and it makes sense to go with him. Of course, you can't expect the rookie to turn out to be a better player than Jamal, but he was an excellent scorer in college, and it's not too far-fetched to believe that those scoring skills will translate to the NBA. While Morrison's didn't, Durant's did...and for all of the examples you can give leaning one way, you can give just as many in the other direction. Will Crawford stay? I don't know...probably not, if the money isn't there. Typically, when a player states he wants an extension, he means what he says, and he could be more focused on his future than helping his current team (especially when the team isn't a contender). His contract is dead after this season, though, and he's making around $10-11 million a year, so he'll be looking to cash it. I wouldn't be surprised to see Atlanta shopping him before the deadline.

WTF, Cano homers...5-0 Yankees.

Swisher with the HR, 4-0 Yankees.

It gets more active during the season, trust me, haha. We have slow summers and preseasons, but those gameday topics will start to see attention opening night, and beyond that. I started to realize that activity wasn't the most important thing when it started to sacrifice our integrity as an intelligent basketball community.

Bryant will defend Wade. Blake or Fisher will need to start in the triangle offense (or Sasha, but that's laughable). Phil won't start Kobe, Ron or Barnes at the one, for any reason unless all of our point guards, Brown and Vujacic are injured.

WHOA NELLY. 3-0 NY on two terrible throws.

Sorry guys, I forgot to add that you should PM your applications to me. LOL. For all I know, you were Kobe 2.0 and using a proxy. :o

ONE multi-run inning in the entire series against the Rangers? Wow, that's hard to believe for the Yanks.