NBA Finals Recap and Offseason Questions.

The Spurs Celebrating a 5th Championship

Man was I wrong. I picked the Heat to beat the Spurs in the Finals and couldn't have been more wrong. well I guess if I said the Heat would sweep then that would be worst but still wasn't a good look. 

To be honest with you, I don't know why I picked the Heat. All year I said on this blog and on Twitter, probably on Facebook and maybe on Myspace that the Heat were not as good as last years team. They seemed worse using the eye test and were worse according to the numbers in terms of offensive efficiency and defense. The biggest thing they got a lot worse at was 3 pt defense. I knew all of this and yet I still picked the Heat. 

The Spurs were probably a little better than they were last year if you think about how their young players were developing. That mainly includes guys like Kawhi Leonard, Patty Mills, and Danny Green. Remember that Kawhi missed the free throws to ice the championship last year and Green was shut down after a few historic shooting games in last years finals. 

Monday Spread Option 0-3-10-14

The Heat, Thunder, and Pacers have all struggled recently. Which of these contenders are you the most worried about?

Ty-

Although all of these teams have struggled I think I would rank my level of concern in this order
1. Pacers
2. Thunder
3. Heat.

The Heat have lost 3 straight but I think it has more to do with LeBron James getting tired after playing his hardest to try to win the MVP race. You have to also couple that with the fact that the heat played two teams that usually give the Heat and LeBron trouble with the Spurs and the Bulls. The Heat will be fine once LeBron gets through this stretch.

The Thunder have played great offensively since Westbrook has returned. Both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have had triple-doubles in the last 8 games and are threats to do so every night. But the Thunder have two problems they must shore up. They have to learn how to play better defense without Kendrick Perkins and Thabo Sefalosha for an extended period of time. They have been absolutely terrible defensively, giving up open layups and 3's regularly. Their opponents have averaged more than 10 three pointers made a game in the last 8. That said I think that they will get it together, it just might take a little time for them to get their feet defensively, but they have the youth and athleticism to cause problems defensively against anybody.

The Pacers worry me the most because they lost 4 straight and they have gotten worse offensively and defensively over that stretch. The eye test just tells you that they just seem a step slow at everything right now. It also doesn't help that Paul George has struggled. The Pacers need to get it together because I don't think they can beat the Heat in a series without home court advantage.

Spencer-

I'm most worried about the Pacers too because the thing with them is that they aren't the most prolific offense in the league. They are 20th in the league in points per game, so I worry about them keeping up with teams especially in the west with great offenses. The have prided themselves on defense all year but have dipped in that category even allowing the most points per game in the league. I think this team is similar to Golden State a few years back when they beat Dallas in the playoffs. They have the match-ups to beat the Heat but will struggle against other, better teams come playoff time. Luckily they may have an easy road to meeting the Heat in the Eastern Conference Championship with how weak the other teams in the East are.

The Thunder are next for me. Similarly to what Ty said they are a scoring machine but can't stop anyone n defense without guys like Perkins and Sefalosha. That worries me especially come playoff time when they play other western opponents that can put up big scores. I know they can maybe keep up with anyone offensively but to use football as an example the Broncos fanfare of an offense ran into a great defense in the playoffs and well we saw what happened. Different sport but bottom line is you gotta be able to play defense.

The Heat are obviously the least worrisome to me. Look I've said it all year, I'm not gonna worry about a team that isn't even full strength every night. I'm not gonna fall for this trap where the Heat aren't crazy good and then when they make the finals be all surprised. No way Dwayne Wade is going to miss games in the playoffs, they're saving him for that time of year, and no way Lebron isn't gonna push through fatigue in the postseason either. We know who the Heat are.

The Houston Rockets have the best record in the league since the beginning of 2014. Do you think that they have to be considered as a legitimate threat to win a championship?

Ty-

The Rockets are a legitimate threat to win the championship. I'm not saying they are a favorite though. They would need for everything to break their way in order to do that. But they have been playing outstanding because James Harden and the rest of the team have been playing a lot better defensively. It seems like Harden has finally figured out how to output on offense at an all-star level while still playing defense. Dwight Howard is obviously a big part of their defense and his offense has looked a lot better than he did last year. The reason why I don't think they will win the championship is because the top 3 teams, (Clippers, Spurs, and Thunder) all have a guy who can guard Dwight Howard one on one and The Rockets survive too much on their 3 point shot falling. Right now they are shooting well but that usually takes a hit in the playoffs. But if they continue to play like they are playing now then they will have more than a punchers chance.

Spencer-

I thought they were a contender from the beginning of the year honestly. Just like when the Heat first got together with their big three I thought it would take some time for the Rockets to build the chemistry and play as a team with Dwight, Harden and company. They have reached their peak I think and at the right time with the regular season winding down over the next month. They can score (hence the 3rd best points per game average with 106.6) and rebound (5th best in rebounds per game with 45.5) and are right in the thick of things in a competitive Western Conference. I don't know if they are my favorite to win it all necessarily but I think the deserve the respect of being in the running especially if they continue to win games against conference opponents. Wouldn't be surprised to see them there come June if they play like they are right now.

The Wichita State Shockers are now 34-0 and ranked #2 in the nation. Is it time to start recognizing them as a threat to make the Final Four again?

Ty-

I didn't know how else to phrase this question without seemingly admitting that people don't really believe in this team. Now people have their arguments when it comes to who they have played on their schedule. Although they have played an easy schedule, it still means something to win every game. Even their tougher out of conference schedule has to be looked at as a plus. The other reason we should take this team serious is because they made the Final Four last season! So it is not as if they can't do it. This team has to remind everyone of Butler when they went to the Championship game in back to back years. This team just knows how to win and we all have to start recognizing that. Now I also wouldn't be surprised if they lost early in the tournament, because nothing in the tournament surprises me anymore. But we should probably give these guys a little more respect. Mainly in a year like this when the tournament will probably be wide open.

Spencer-

They have been a threat in my mind for a while. Despite playing in the Missouri Valley Conference it's been evident that they are more than just a good team in a bad conference. They have been beating teams in their conference by nearly 20 or more points most games. Now that doesn't necessarily scream that they will do that against teams like Florida and Kansas and Duke but I think they can at least play with those teams. For that reason I don't doubt they could repeat to the Final Four. A handful of guys on their team were there last year and know what it takes to win in the tournament, and their coach, Gregg Marshall, is a phenomenal leader and keeps his team focused but confident that they can beat anyone. The biggest thing working against them in my opinion is they haven't played a ton of close games this year, and went to overtime just once so I wonder how they will do in a tight game with time winding down. Still lets not discredit going 34-0 no matter what conference you play in and lets not be surprised if they make a run again. This time around though I wouldn't consider them a Cinderella because they have earned my respect as a top team. 

Tiger Woods was bothered by a persistent back problem for the second straight tournament in a row yesterday. Do you think that people Tiger Woods will ever be able to get back to Majors winning form?

Ty-

It is crazy how much the world has changed for Tiger after his scandal. Tiger isn't losing because of that though, it is more just a landmark in time that people remember as a turning point to when Tiger became a less feared opponent to the rest of the golf field. Now this has happened because he has been injured over the last few years. First he had a knee problem and now he has a back problem and both of those body parts are extremely important in the sport of golf. He finally seemed to get over the knee problem but i'm not sure if he is having a back spasm problem, if he can return to majors winning form. Back problems are one of those things that are hard to shake but if he ever gets healthy for a stretch I think he can still win a major this year because he has been putting a lot better lately.

Spencer-

The older Tiger gets the tougher it gets for him to get back to major winning form. I know in golf you can win majors in your 40s but Tiger's body is already bothering him now with these issues I don't see that just getting better with age. That doesn't mean he won't win a major again. When Tiger was dominating the game it was almost like he had major winning form weekend after weekend. The thing is you don't need that every weekend you just need it one weekend. I find it hard to believe that Tiger won't find his form ever again for a major, especially cause we see glimpses of it now and then.

What we learned. 

Ty- Carmelo Anthony should go to the Chicago Bulls whether the Knicks get Phil or not.

Let me just say that I doubt that Phil Jackson will take the Knicks up on their offer to become the President of Basketball Operations. It also doesn't matter because it is a stupid idea for both parties. Phil Jackson usually only go to situations that are already promising. He is not a fixer, he is a coach who can put an already talented team over the top. I can't see him wanting to go to the Knicks, with that team and those players. On the Knicks side it's stupid because Phil Jackson has never had a front office position and nothing about Phil Jackson really screams somebody who is good at evaluating talent in that capacity. He also seems to laid back for the demands of an executive position. 

(Update: Sources tell ESPN that Phil Jackson is expected to take the job)

But none of that even matters because regardless of if they get Phil Jackson or not, Carmelo Anthony should leave New York if he wants to have a legitamate chance to win a championship. He should become a Chicago Bull! Why? Because for all of the flack that Melo takes, people can't dispute that he has been a winner in the NBA. This season could be the only season in Melo's career in which he didn't make the playoffs. So I don't think Melo would enjoy having to be bad in New York again next year because the Knicks have all their money tied up in Amar'e Stoudemire, Tyron Chandler, and Andrea Bargniani. 

This is why Carmelo needs to go the the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls and Tom Thibodeau with how well they play defense. There is no question that Thibs could get Melo to exert himself on defense. While Melo has the offense that the Bulls are surely lacking right now. I honestly think that if you added Carmelo to this Bulls team now, even without Derek Rose, that team would be better than the Knicks were last year. A team with the starting five of......

Pg- Derek Rose

Sg- Jimmy Butler

Sf-Carmelo Anthony

Pf- Taj Gibson

C- Joakim Noah

That is a great team with 3 All-Star starters. Carmelo and Derek Rose are 2 of the top 15 players in the NBA at least. While Noah is one of the 5 best Centers in the league. how could that not be enticing for Carmelo Anthony after the year he has had in New York.

 

Spencer- ESPN will find a way to make "Lebron Breathing" a new story. 

I want to start off saying I don't hate Lebron James and that I concede that he is hands down the best player in the league. That being said though I can't stand ESPN making everything Lebron does a story. 

When you see one story about Lebron broken into 8-10 different segments on the Sportscenter rundown, you know the network s bored. Here is a picture of said rundown the day after Lebron dropped 61 on the Bobcats last week...

I will be the first to admit that 61 points is impressive, it was against the Bobcats so I'm not necessarily surprised, but it is impressive. Does it really have to make up every topic on an hour long show consecutively though? We might as well change it to "Lebroncenter," honestly. They basically take one Lebron topic and rewrite it 10 different ways to continue talking about it. SMH! I remember last summer a topic on Lebron going to jury duty and taking a picture before he left the house. Why is that even news man? People go to jury duty everyday. You don't see any news station covering the guy who left work for a few weeks to go do what is required of him as a citizen. Its just too much. It's literally Lebron overload. Every night/day its the same thing too. There are 30 NBA teams in the league and ESPN spends the whole day talking about one guy on one of those teams. I know he is a marketing tool but is there nothing else to talk about? 

 All in all I don't mind talking about Lebron and his performance and the Heat in comparison to other teams, but when an an entire show is dedicated to one guy and we call it "sports news" I change the channel. There is a lot other stories out there that go unnoticed or untouched. Let's start talking about what your name says and start talking about sports, or change the name to Lebroncenter.  

Monday Spread Option 02-17-14

1) Now that the NBA All-Star break has come and gone, which team out of playoff contention right now has the best chance at a second half run into the postseason? 

Ty-

The All-star break is always a turning point in the season where teams start to ratchet up play and effort. To me the West is basically set even though the Memphis Grizzles are hot and is a good enough team to get into the playoffs. But If I’m going to pick a team that can make a playoff run than I think that it is easier in the East. The Pistons might not have played great up until this point but they are only a game behind Charlotte for the 8^th seed in the east. I think having 20 games to make up a 1 game difference should be easy. Also they happen to be the more talented team than Charlotte and what their record would indicate.

Spencer-
I think the New York Knicks have the best chance at a second half run for a playoff spot. Obviously they Knicks have a major disappointment this year and under performed from what people in the off-season thought they were capable of, but you know that team has enough talent in the pitiful eastern conference to at least make the playoffs. Carmelo is a fighter and if what he says about resigning with New York is true we all know he doesn't want to just coast the rest of the season, he wants to prove he likes playing there and that he can be a key to their future. It's going to be important for the Knicks to win the winnable games though, and by that I mean no losing to the Bobcats or the 76ers, and when they are in a game late with a team equal or better than them FINISH! I think if they can do those things they will at least be the eight seed and show their fans that the entire season wasn't a lost cause. Again they are helped by the fact that they play in east so if any team can make it in that conference, they can.

2) Johnny Manziel said last week that if the Texans pass on him with the number one pick, it would be the "worst decision they ever made." Do you agree with Manziel that passing on him would be a huge mistake, or do the Texans need to address other needs with the first pick in the draft? 

Spencer-
I'm one of the biggest Johnny Manziel supporters out there. I think his game will equate to a solid NFL career, I think he is obviously a phenomenal talent and I think he was unjustly victimized by the NCAA. That being said I don't think it would be the "biggest mistake" the Texans ever made if they don't take him with the first overall pick. If the Texans feel they have other needs to address you can't blame them for that entirely. We saw them do that the year Reggie Bush came out and they passed on him to take Mario Williams who had a solid career at Houston before going to the Bills this past season. I think there is a case to be made for the Texans taking Manziel (he makes your offense more dynamic, they had QB troubles last season, he is a Texas guy) but if the Texans decide they are going with Schaub one more year and want to address other areas then that is what has to happen. They know their personnel better than fans of the game do. I think a lot of Manziel's comments are him selling himself to NFL. He wants teams to see a confident guy willing to work hard to be the best. Also what player with Top 10 potential doesn't want to be the number one pick overall? Can't blame him for arguing his case to be the top pick. My bet is no matter what team had the first pick he'd be saying the same thing. Imagine if the Redskins had the first pick? They just drafted RGIII two years ago and have every desire to keep him as their franchise guy...you think they'd be taking Manziel number one? What if the Ravens had the first pick after they just linked a huge extension with Flacco last year....you think they would draft him? Probably not. So that's my point, Manziel would be saying anyone who passed on him is making the "worst decision." If I'm the Texans I stick to my guns and this doesn't play into who I'm taking number one overall. I take who I need.

Ty-

I absolutely loved what Manziel said! I am a big Johnny Football fan because he is so electric. To me now it has to happen that Johnny Football goes to the Jags and balls out against the Texans 2 games a year. But I like it more for the statement than the actual practice. I don’t think Manziel is the clear-cut best quarterback in the draft. I think the Texans would be fine taking Teddy Bridgewater mainly because their team is already good. I don’t think they have that many wholes. They were a season from winning a playoff game. Their main reason for being bad was injuries and quarterback play. So in reality Manziel could play well for the Jaguars and still lose, which would mean it wouldn’t be the worse mistake ever. I love the quote though because it is motivation, he might even be better served to not get drafted with the 1^st pick.

3) There has been a lot of talk about who the top freshman in college basketball is this year. Some were favorites from the preseason while others have performed better than expected. Given their resumes at this point in the season, who of the five is the best freshman in the NCAA this year: Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Julius Randle, Tyler Ennis or Joel Embiid?

Ty-

I feel like this is a tricky question because if I had to purely go with the “best” player than I would have to go with Jabari Parker. His numbers have been great and if you watch him play you can see that he can do everything on the court offensively. He can play down low and on the perimeter. He may not be as great on defense but he has showed himself to be the best player. I think that Tyler Ennis has been the freshman with the biggest impact though. Ennis’ numbers don’t really add up to the other freshmen but he has been a major reason for why Syracuse is undefeated. He has been especially great in late game situations, most notably his game winner against Pittsburgh. But I’m taking Jabari Parker because he has been the best player in terms of skill and talent. By the way Andrew Wiggins hasn't been as bad as people might think he has been. He has been such a great player defensively as well but his offensive game isn't as developed as Parker. Joel Embiid has been very impactful too and Kansas plays in a tough conference so Wiggins and Embiid deserve credit to but it's just hard to pick against Parker.

Spencer-

To answer this question I'm not looking at stats really. I think each player plays different positions and have different roles on their team. Some are dominant rebounders, some the focus of the offense and some dish out assists so their stats are just too different to base it all of stats alone. For me I'm looking at who has meant the most to their respective team and helped make the team better as a whole. With that as the focus I'm going with Tyler Ennis. People knew this kid was going to be good coming into college but I don't know if they expected him to be this good. Looking at Cuse at the beginning of the year you see a team that lost an NBA caliber point guard in Michael Carter-Williams. You had a forward returning in CJ Fair who was voted the ACC preseason player of the year and had great leadership and basketball experience, but he was never a guy who could run the offense himself. Fair always needed a guy to be the administrator for his game. Thus came along Ennis. He fits that 2-3 zone perfectly with a 6'5 wingspan and he has unbelievable floor vision offensively. He has stepped up to be the general of the offense averaging 5.6 assists per game but also knows when he needs to take the shot himself instead passing it off. His confidence has also been stellar particularly down the stretch in close game. When his team has needed him to make a play in crunch time he as risen to the occasion time and time again, and that goes beyond just the three point buzzer beater against Pittsburgh last week. The biggest thing that differentiates him from his predecessor MCW is that he doesn't give up costly turnovers, as he is only averaging 1.6 a game for the season. That is an important stat for a point guard to have. When you put all that together with a team of guys that buy into the system they play in, its no wonder why Syracuse is 25-0. I believe Ennis' play has been more important to the success of his team than any of the other guys on this list. Parker is obviously a force for Duke and the offense runs through him, the combination of Wiggins and Embiid is scary and those guys can ball and of course Randle is statistically the best averaging a double double, but I just don't see those guys as bigger individual impacts to their team especially in close games, as Ennis has been in guiding the Orange to a 25-0 start.

4) Team USA's eight shootout win over Russia on Saturday was one of the most talked about finishes in Olympic history and made Twitter feeds everywhere fill with American pride. How did that finish compare to the 1980 Miracle on Ice win over Russia? Also with the Olympic playoff picture set, are we more excited to see a potential meeting with Canada in the semi-final round or a potential rematch with Russia for the gold medal? 

Spencer-
Let me start by saying this game was awesome! That was exactly what the Olympics are supposed to be about and not only did that game live up to the hype but it united us around cheering for this team to get gold and hope for a rematch. Still though, I don't think it can quite trump the 1980 Olympics Miracle on Ice win over Russia. I obviously wasn't alive then but seeing the highlights and hearing people talk about it, you can just tell what a moment it was for Olympic Hockey and the U.S.A. Nowadays the two teams are more evenly matched then they were back then since it's not amateurs playing on team U.S.A. anymore but professionals. Also you don't have all the historic meaning to it with Cold War going on back then so the impact of the win wasn't as big. Either way I am more excited for a potential rematch of Saturdays game with Russia for gold then for a semi-final game with Canada. The stakes of winning gold against the host country, a "rival" if you will and a shot at redemption after losing the gold medal game in 2010 trumps a rematch with the defending champs (Canada) in the semis for me. All I know is this tournament is gonna be wild! This time next week I hope I'm posting a blog about my thoughts on winning that gold medal over Russia! U-S-A!

Ty-

I don’t think that this really compares to the 1980’s team because that 1980’s team beat the Russians in a more important game. Although it wasn’t tournament style like it is today it was an important round robin game with Medal importance. This year’s game was more about qualifying for the single elimination portion. Also that American team in the 80’s was way more of an underdog because Russia had won the gold medal in 6 of the 7 times prior to that Olympics. That game was great but it would be better if the U.S. team beat Canada in the semis and then beat Russia again. But I would much rather prefer to play Canada in the final but I still want to see them beat Canada more because of the revenge factor. 

5) What did we learn? 

Spencer- The Mount Rushmore metaphor for sports, sucks. 

Nothing bothered me more last week then Lebron James sending the sports world in a frenzy with his naming of who would be on the Mount Rushmore of NBA greats, because it did more than start debates on if his four player were right but then became the standard for comparing players in all sports. I heard people saying it was okay to have more than four people on their Mount Rushmore first of all, which is the first ridiculous part about this. Look Mount Rushmore has four heads on it. If you can't pick just four people for any Mount Rushmore metaphor you shouldn't be using that standard! That doesn't make any sense. Oh Mount Rushmore has four people on it but lets make an exception and add five other heads because I think they deserve it too. Come on man. Secondly four is such a stupid number to compare. What happened to top 10 lists? Even top five lists? Now we gotta do four!? Four? Really? That just doesn't add up to me and is another reason why it should never be used as a standard for measuring the greatest players in a respective sport.

In every professional sport there are more than four greats without a doubt in my mind, which brings me to my next point. Why are we so hung up on comparing greats to begin with!? Why can't one guy be great in his own right and another great on theirs. Its like the Lebron vs. Jordan thing. It's impossible to compare them in my opinion because they are different players, played different positions, played with different styles and who played in different eras. This is the time of year when sports networks get so bored that they feel the need to compare everyone. I heard people talking about if Derrek Jeter belongs on the Yankees Mount Rushmore after he announced his retirement. First of all the Yankees retire just about everyone who has worn a jersey so if all those guys were great they would need 20 Mount Rushmore's to fit them all. This whole idea of Mount Rushmore is ridiculous so lets just drop it. That is my challenge to all the sports networks out there. Move on from Mount Rusmore's and lets talk about some actual sports news. For how long these sports have been played, there are too many greats to pick just four to have their heads etched in stone. That's why we have Hall of Fames, because they fit everyone.

(Ty Butting in- LeBron only brought this up because everybody was talking about Kevin Durant. He basically was like, "Hey stop saying Durant is catching up because I'm going to be among greats!" I'm not mad at it but it seems like LeBron brought this up out of the blue.)

NBA All-Star Weekend the best.

I know there are a lot of NBA haters out there. There are the people who don't like basketball so their hate is understandable. The people that like College but not the NBA makes less sense to me. I understand if you went to a college and loved the school and basketball team that way. But if you are a basketball fan how can you like college more? The NBA play is obviously better, because the NBA gets it's players from the college game.But thats a debate for another day. The thing that people really can't deny is that the NBA All-Star game is the best of all the sports.

Let me just say that All-star games are flawed in general because it is hard to get people to play an exhibition game hard due to fear of injury. The Pro-bowl is a joke, only because lazy football just looks terrible. I don't blame the players because football is a game where it is rare for a team to come out of a game fully healthy. The Baseball all-star game has weight to it but it is usually boring for fans besides die hard fans. Also making it decide the home team of the World Series is stupid, half the players know by then that they probably wont play in the playoffs. It also makes a monotonous season of 162 games less meaningful. The Hockey All-star game is ok but it's hard to give the fans what they want all the time and it's the least watched of the 4.

The NBA All-Star weekend because there are better events because basketball allows you to play different kinds of events. The game in itself is better because people love seeing these guys dunk all over the place and shooting 3's. Yes they don't play defense in the first 3 quarters but who cares? I think people are just lying to themselves if they love seeing great defense and missed shots all over the place. In every single sport people love a shoot out. Defense is great for winning championships but not for entertainment. But they play defense when the game is on the line like it was yesterday.

 All-star games are still flawed but I would rater watch the NBA All-star game than any of the other options by a ridiculously wide margin and many people would probably agree

Monday Spread Option 01-27-14

1. Super Bowl week is upon us! Who's winning the Superbowl? Why? and what is the score going to be?

Spencer-

Crazy that its Super Bowl week, what a great season its been...As for my pick, it's obviously an intriguing match up with the number one offense going against the number one defense and I'm taking the defense. Seahawks are going to win it. I think if there is any defense that can stop the offensive machine the Broncos have with Manning at the controls, it's Seattle. Also the Broncos defense will focus on stopping Marshawn Lynch and the run game, basically begging second year quarterback Russell Wilson to beat them with his arm. That is where I see Wilson stepping up in the moment. He may only be in his second year but he plays with the poise and smarts of a 10 year vet. He's done it all playoffs, making the big throws when they need him to and I see him doing it again in the biggest game of his career. Should be a great match-up overall and a memorable Super Bowl...31-24 Seahawks.

Ty-

There is only one more football game left until August, which is terrible news and great news! Super Bowl week is a great to see how these two teams go here. I for one, am glad that the two best teams in most people's eyes will be facing off for the championship. This outdoor Super Bowl has set up everything to be in the Seahawks favor. A colder game should benefit a Seahawks offense, built on the run and slow down a pass offense that the Broncos rely on. Also usually when High Power offenses meet high power defenses the defense tends to win right? My head is telling me to pick the Seahawks but there is something else that is telling me I have to go with the Broncos! Yes it's an outdoor Super Bowl, but Peyton Manning won his one ring outdoors in a rain monsoon. Although the Broncos have an offense predicated on the pass, they still play in an outdoor stadium and have a very good running game with Knowshon Moreno and Monte Ball. I'm really not too worried about the weather as long as it isn't windy. I think sometimes in Super Bowl games you need a quarterback to put the team on his back like Aaron Rodgers or Eli Manning. The Denver defense is actually good against the run so I think it's going to come down to Peyton and Russell Wilson. So I'm going with 28-24 Broncos

2. What has been more impressing? Kevin Durants absurd month of January or Carmelo Anthony's epic 62 point game at MSG?

Spencer-
Got to be Durant's aka the Slim Reaper's month of January. Obviously dropping 62 in a game is great for Carmelo but Melo is a great player because that's what does best shoot, and score. It should be no surprise to anyone that he was able to get so hot against a dismal defense like Charlotte and score 62. Some guys just have those nights where they can't miss. For Durant that night has been every game in the month of January. That's why it's more impressive. That team is missing one of its top players and Durant has single-handedly stepped up into his role as a super star player and carried that team to an impressive 12-5 record since, beating some great teams from the West along the way. Since January 7th he hasn't had under 30 points in any game he has played in. He has crossed the 50 point margin once, and come within four points or less of it twice for all of January. Those kind of numbers take a different level of play every single night and he has done just that. The man is just on an MVP caliber tear right now and I don't see him slowing down until Westbrook comes back and he is forced to share the ball a little more.

Ty-

Kevin Durant by a mile! I'm not "poopooing" Carmelo's 62 points because regardless of who you play, it takes something special to score 62 points. The other team knows your hot and they usually don't want to be the team to give up a record. But the Durantula has been absolutely poisonous to the opposing defenses this month. In January Durant is averaging 36.5 points per game, not to mention his own 54 point game. He is also averaging 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Although the Thunder team has begun to learn how to play with out Westbrook, the only reason they lead the West is because Kevin Durant is playing out of his mind right now. Also in Carmelo's 62 point game, not only were they up most of the game but he also had 0 assists. In Kevin Durant's 54 point game he recorded 6 assist. So even though he had the hot hand, he still worked to get his team good looks.

3. Arizona is now 20-0! How long do you think they can go undefeated? or will they run the table?

 Spencer-
I know they have had some close calls here the last few weeks but honestly with the talent of that team and the conference they play in I wouldn't be surprised if they went into the  Pac-12 conference tournament with an unblemished record. As of now they have no ranked teams on their schedule and they have obviously shown separation from the their conference as the next closest team has four losses. You could see them maybe tripping up with a team like Cal or maybe Oregon who can score a lot of points and other than a recent losing slump has a great season, but its still not a for sure. Arizona is a solid team so I could definitely see them pulling out an undefeated season.

Ty-

The Arizona Wildcats  have been winning every which way possible. This probably bodes well for them because now they just know how to win under any circumstance. It could come in handy in the tournament game. That being said, if they keep having close calls in games, then they will eventually fall to a team. They don't play anymore ranked teams this year so there is a great possibility for them to run the table  and win all their games this season. Their biggest threat is Stanford, who have been playing fairly well.

4. After seeing the NBA All-Star game starting 5, who was the biggest snub?

Spencer-
Easy answer here, James Harden. With Dwight joining him this year he hasn't been forced into having these forty point games anymore like he had last year but that's not his fault. He is still in my opinion the center piece of that Houston Rockets team and he has proven in two years since being the sixth man in OKC that he is a talented player who can hold his own. He deserved to be there, particularly over Kobe who has played in just five games this year. I know he is Kobe, and one of the greatest to ever play the game, but for the 2013-14 season he isn't even an All-Star. Just shows why sometimes the fans voting keeps out worthy guys. Either way Harden definitely got snubbed, almost as bad as Kendrick Lamar did at the

Grammys.



Ty-

LeMarcus Aldridge. Although I think Kobe should not have gotten the nod on the west squad, I think that Kevin Love should have been replaced with LaMarcus Aldridge. Love's numbers are awesome but they are still very similar to Aldridge. The only difference between the 2 is that the Blazers have one of the top 5 records in the league and Aldridge is an MVP candidate. I think that Aldridge would have been a starter if people remembered who he was. If he had commercials or if the Blazers had more TV games then he would be a starter. Although it is worth noting that he will in all likelihood be a reserve but he has played at an all-star starter level. Kevin Love has also been great but his team is only 21 and 22 and his team has underachieved all year. Yes it isn't all Love's fault but being an All-Star isn't always about numbers.

What We Learned This Week:

Spencer- The PAT is BOOOOOOOOORING!

With all the talk of changes in the NFL the biggest news maker was the leagues move to potentially eliminate the PAT. While I think it is kind of a tradition of the game, I also have come to realize I understand the rational.

Think about it, we love football because its exciting, full of big hits, and most importantly....UNPREDICTABLE. Nothing about the PAT screams unpredictable anymore when you have kickers nailing field goals from  nearly half the length of the field. The fact that broadcasters call a 20 yard field goal a chip shot, must make a PAT child's play. Time for some change. Time to switch it up a bit. Time to add some intrigue into a team going for the conversion in the first quarter or not. I love the idea of generating some more strategy into the game. It is a genius idea for the NFL to keep all eyes on the game a little longer, instead of having the PAT like an invitation to take a bathroom break.

That being said I don't think they should get rid of it necessarily completely. I think the best solution I have heard so far is moving the extra point back so it's a 30 yarder or so, and if you go for the two you get the ball on the one. Just something to make a coach think twice about potentially kicking the extra point or not.

I think that would be the best solution but I want to hear your ideas for fixing or eliminating the PAT so please post them in the comments or tweet them at me (@Spencito6)

Regardless of what the NFL decides to do though, may the odds be ever in your teams favor!

Ty- Regardless of what happens the rest of the season, this might be the last year of the Miami Heat Era!

The Miami Heat have had less of a buzz this year, mainly because they are the known commodity. Now this isn't something that we learned last week but this passing week has made it clear that the Miami Heat future could be up in the air.

This past week we have seen LeBron talk a lot about how he is jealous of Kevin Durant's shot attempts. Then when Carmelo dropped 62, he chimed in again about wanting to have a 60-plus point game. It seems as if LeBron wants to be able to get some of these accolades because he feels like he is in his physical prime.

But he can't do this because he has too many Superstars on his team, or so that must be his mindset. I do feel like he could shoot as many shots as he wanted to but I think he knows that it would be at a cost of looking selfish.

On top of that, Dwayne Wade has been playing very scarcely this season. He has been sitting out games this season for maintenance of his many injuries. This is troublesome because his health has steadily declined over the last few seasons. The Heat might be doing this now so that they have him in May and June but it should still cause some concern. It's easy to question whether LeBron James or Chris Bosh will stay with the heat if they are unsure about D-Wade's future. Specially with LeBron apparently wanting to shoot more.

Although I doubt LeBron would give up the rings or is really that jealous, if he wanted to shoot a lot, why didn't he just stay in Cleveland?