Round Two baby!

The Spurs have made it to round two!
They eliminated the Mavs, the same rival who destroyed them last year in the same scenario, 1st round playoffs. This year, Coach Pop has built a team that is self sustainable. He probably got tired of losing 'key players' and the team going downhill after that. With the injuries that Parker took this season, George Hill was given the chance to shine. He took over the starting PG job, and has been nothing but short of amazing. He'll have games with 20+ points, and some no more than 5 pts, but its what he contributed to the team that matters. With Duncan, Ginobili and Parker on the court, people like Jefferson, Bonner, Mason, Hill and McDyess take advantage of their presence to go all out. This team has established chemistry, and the coach knows it. There is no lead player, there's no Kobe or LeBron, there is no I in SPURS.
With the Suns in round 2, I'm not afraid, I'm excited. Amare and Nash are two stupendous players, and I believe the Spurs have more depth to withstand a game of such caliber. Its round two of the 2010 NBA playoffs, and Duncan is on the hunt for another ring. Lets hope Manu goes big today with the 3's and shuts them down hard!

GO SPURS GO!

KAREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEMMMMMM

Jackson (RED) deflects a pass intended for a Tennessee receiver

MY BOYS JUST DRAFTED A CORNER!!!!!!!!

I'm seriously excited. We've been needing a physical corner for a while. Dunta Robinson played like a Pro Bowler, but wasn't fast enough or strong enough. This guys 5'10, and at 196 lbs, he's the perfect balance for a future starter on the right corner in Houston, Texas. He's just added what the Texans have been longing since 2006, when they drafted Dunta. Not to throw dirt on the guy, I mean he did play some amazing football in Houston, he just doesn't fulfill Kubiak's scheme, and nothing but luck is wished for him in Atlanta. Jackson could provide someone for Glover Quinn or Brice McCain to play alongside, creating a threat for quarterbacks as well as receivers. Depending on his preseason performance, he may need to sit a few days, or off the bat start picking off some passes.

The way I see things is, this is Gary Kubiak's last chance, he knows he has to impress Rick Smith to keep his job. He didn't draft Jackson for no reason, he has a plan. This plan will establish whether or not the Texans finally make the playoffs, which is a dream of many Houston fans.
All in all, good draft. I see big things, and I will not be surprised if we make the postseason.

Texans Draft Analysis

So here they are, the Houston Texans, my football team, stacking their roster with 7 fresh new feet. All in all, as far as I'm concerned, the Texans drafted exactly what they needed. Issues were addressed, and the Administration concluded the draft with a feeling of satisfaction.

Draft goes as follows:
1st- Kareem Jackson (CB) Alabama
2-Ben Tate (RB) Auburn
3-Earl Mitchell (DT) Arizona
4-Daryll Sharpton (ILB) UMiami
5-Garrett Graham (TE) Wisconsin
6-Sherrick McManis (CB) Northwestern
7-Shelley Smith (OG) Colorado State
8-Trindon Holliday (KR)
9-Dorin Dickerson (TE) Pittsburgh

I'd give them a B+
Reason being they missed to draft a position that is of much needed addressing, the safety position. I noticed a trend with last seasons draft compared to this years, Gary Kubiak drafted some blockers. Last season, the acquisition of Anthony Hill and James Casey brought about a feeling of doubt. Their limited involvement in this past seasons success, makes you wonder why he drafted the same positions. With the calling of Ben Tate, a solid runner, the Texans have realized that for every runner, there needs to be a paved road ahead. If the Texans plan to give Tate, Slaton, Foster or Henry a leading role any time soon, they have to establish a well planned and executable run scheme, so fumbles and other minor mistakes don't happen again.

Earl Mitchell, possibly a future starter on the DT position, is criticized for his size. His physicality is what the Texans are looking for, and I couldn't agree any more. Amobi Okoye may be throwing in the towel early if he cant satisfy the D-Line requirements.
A O-Guard and another Corner add much needed depth in places where injury is common. The Texans now have another guard to work with, in the event of an O-Lineman taking another hit. And at corner, McManis could take the left side and assist the defensive coaches in arranging starter roles.

NBA Playoffs

Its my favorite time of the year, its the NBA Playoffs time.
We got a few good match ups, one being Spurs-Mavs, a Texans Rivalry. Lakers-Thunder, where Kobe and Durant battle it out in an epic match of respect, and last but not least, Celtics-Heat, where Wade will attempt to put the Boston Three party down.

I'll attempt to predict the winner of each match up with a little explanation after.

WEST

Lakers-Thunder: Lakers 4-2
Why? Kobe, that's why!

Spurs-Mavs: Spurs 4-3
It'll be a hard fought match, and because the Spurs have the upper hand with a better coach and more depth on the bench, a playoff match up like these could go many ways. It's all about Duncan vs Nowitzki, and the role they play as team leaders.

Portland vs Phoenix: Phoenix 4-1
Portland just lost Brandon Roy for 2 weeks, and the Suns are not about to bend over to an incomplete team, simply put, the Suns are back

Utah vs Denver: Denver 4-2
Denver has a sick team, and so does Utah, but I think Denver's playoff performance always surpasses anything Utah has ever dreamed of attempting.

EAST

Cavs vs Bulls: Cavs 4-1
The bulls will pull off 1 win, and 1 win only. It'll be a three point difference in the final score, but a 'w' is a 'w'.

Charlotte vs Orlando: Orlando 4-0 SWEEP
this should be easy, O-Town is back for another finals appearance, and as far as D-Howard's concerned, they got this in the bag

Bucs-Hawks: Hawks 4-3
The Bucs will bounce back and pull of some wins, but in the long run, Atlanta is Atlanta.

Heat vs Celtics: Heat 4-2
Its Miami's time. They can pull it off, and I hope they do.

Brandon Marshall's Second Chance

SO....here's this guy, ok...he's a receiver, and he's said to be one peg below Andre 'the great' Johnson. I honestly can't see anybody ever being as good as AJ, but that's just me.
Brandon Marshall's long fight with the Denver Broncos Administration has come to an end. They traded him off to Miami, Florida, a few hours away from where he went to college.

Marshall, who went to UCF, and probably the biggest name to come out of there after Daunte Culpepper has not seen the light just yet. He went from playing alongside Jay Cuter, to Kyle Orton, and now to Chad Henne.....wait....what?

Little can be said about this future duo, but I see big things. Henne always pulls amazing plays off with Ginn Jr, who's now gone, and now he'll have to continue to blow up the endzone with Mr. Attitude himself.

My prediction: Marshall will do just fine. He probably wont put up Pro Bowl stats, he'll get 1,100 yards, 7 touchdowns and a solid season taking Miami to the postseason. Miami made a good pick, they've needed that threat on the receiving end, and maybe, just maybe, Marshall will behave for once.

Where will the KING build his next castle?

It's a unique name, for a unique player.....

He's LeBron James...a baller.
Considered to be the best NBA player in the league, even better than Kobe at times, James has done it all, but has no rings to prove it. He's the king without a ring, and unfortunately, the choice he makes in the next few months could change that. Free agency is am important time for teams to pick up some new elements to add to their team. The Cavs could either fork over a couple million dollars to re sign him, in this case it'd be more than Kobe's $90 million, 3 year deal. He's LeBron and he calls the shots, on top of him making them. There are about 4 possible destinations for him, and if my predictions call correctly, he'll be going to a different team.

-Cavs re sign him- Possibility: 60%
They may not want to spend that much money on him. Cavs could let him go and sign some new blood to run #23.

-Nets sign him: Possibility: 70%
The Nets need a winner, and he's their man. They suck, and they have the money. Also, Jay-Z is part owner of the nets, and he's close friend with James...so...who knows

-LA Lakers do the impossible: Possibility: 55%
LA crazy enough to do that. LeBron and Kobe on one team? I'd run away

-Phoenix Suns: Possibility: 30%
hey, they'll have some cap room after Amare's gone. maybe

McNabb to the Skins....WOW

I've been talking for a while about how Washington was in dire need of a quarterback. Then they signed Mike Shannahan as their coach, and I knew big things were coming. Then, today, I saw McNabb left the Eagles and packed his bags headed for Washington D.C. WHAT A TRADE!

Now the Skins have McNabb, who will most likely start, and Campbell on backup, who can potentially learn from McNabb. This is big for Washington since they've always been an average team, hurting from the lack of, if I may make a word up, quarterbackage. Now this isn't a burning issue for their roster, and they can draft a potential future starter who can learn from the current QB's, maybe a Tony Pike (cincy) or a SEC QB.

All they need to do now is establish a run game. Portis doesn't seem like he's coming back any time to the top charts. He'll probably share snaps with Ladell Betts.
As far as I'm concerned, McNabb just gave the Skins what they've been needing for a while, and if they draft correctly, just like any other team, they can make the playoffs, if not, a winning season is possible.