NBA Picks and Trade Talk

By Dan Rodgers

I want to give a quick opinion on a few of the more notable trades that were pulled off in the NBA:

Wizards get: Nene, Brian Cook, future 2nd rounder
Clippers get: Nick Young
Nuggets get: JaVale McGee, Ronny Turiaf

This trade puzzled me because I'm not quite sure what the Wiz had in mind. They gave LA a young scorer to help replace Billups. They helped the Nuggets get younger and more athletic at the forward/center position. The Wizards got a quality veteran center, but they aren't in a win-now mode. Good move for LA/Denver, we will have to wait and see for Washington.

The Lakers situation is complicated because they pulled one trade to acquire Ramon Sessions and one to get rid of Derek Fisher. The Lakers didn't give up much in the trades talent-wise, but they did give up lottery protected first round picks. Still, Fisher is old and was a defensive liability. Sessions gives them more athleticism on both ends of the floor.

Warriors get: Andrew Bogut, Stephen Jackson
Bucks get: Monta Ellis, Kwame Brown, Ekpe Udoh

If Bogut can stay healthy, the Warriors will greatly benefit from this deal. They have a ton of scorers and could afford to deal Ellis. Bogut will solidify the defense in the paint and allow David Lee to play the four all the time. The Bucks dealt their injury-prone center for a scorer to complement Brandon Jennings. I think the deal is much safer for the Bucks but fairly even all-around.

Rockets get: Marcus Camby
Blazers get: Hasheem Thabeet, Johnny Flynn, 2012 second round pick

This deal presents incredible upside for the Blazers. They traded a 38-year-old center for a 25-year-old center and a 23-year-old guard, both of whom showed flashes of greatness in college. Thabeet hasn't been too much of an opportunity so he isn't a bust yet. Flynn averaged over 13 ppg and 4 apg as a rookie and hasn't been given a fair chance since then. Not to mention, who knows about the draft pick. Houston is clearly in a win-now mode, while Portland probably thinks they can win now and get younger at the same time. I think Houston might have been trade-raped... but only time will tell.

Picks:

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Philadelphia 76ers -9 = The 76ers get Andre Iguodala back tonight and Spencer Hawes is returning to form since returning from injury. The Cavs aren't a very good team and have lost three in a row. Starting center Anderson Varejao is still out with an injury and Jamison will be playing hurt. Philly hasn't been as good since their hot start, and needs to get these important home wins over bad teams as they are in a tight division race with the Celtics. I think Philly blows out the Cavs tonight as the Sixers have the youth to run with the Cavs and the experience to outlast them and pull away.

Minnesota Timber Wolves @ Memphis Grizzlies -5.5 = The Grizz have beaten the Wolves at home nine out of the last 10 times, including six in a row. Memphis lost the first three game of their road trip before posting an impressive win at the Lakers. They should carry that momentum back home as Minnesota will be without their starting center Pekovic and likely J.J. Barea as well. They will also obviously be without Ricky Rubio who is out for the season with a torn ACL. I think that Memphis found their stroke against LA and should go to work offensively against a Minnesota team that has allowed at least 100 points in four out of their last five games.

Enjoy the NIT games as well...

Rodgers That

Let's Hope for a Sweeter Night

By Dan Rodgers

Well, last night was unfortunate. Tonight, I'm not feeling the Sweet 16 match-ups so much as a few NBA games. I'm just going to enjoy March Madness and leave the games tonight alone.

Phoenix Suns @ Indiana Pacers -3.5 = This spread is WAY off. The Pacers were down over 20 points last night in Washington and fought back for the outright win. They come back home tonight and face a Suns team that isn't playing poorly but has lost two straight and struggles on the road. The Pacers should rebound from their off-night yesterday and put together a complete game that should lead to them scoring well over 100 points. Go big on Indiana tonight. INCORRECT - Apparently, Indiana didn't feel like playing defense last night. They should be embarrassed by that loss and giving up those points to a far inferior team.

Minnesota Timber Wolves @ Oklahoma City Thunder -10.5 = The T-wolves haven't been playing very good defense, and I fully expect the Thunder to take advantage of that. Oklahoma City has scored over 100 points in four of their last five games while Minnesota has given up over 110 in three of their last five. This is just a game between two teams where one team is clearly the better team. I don't see any way Minnesota has the offense to keep up with an Oklahoma City team that tries to play defense. INCORRECT - Basically the same thing as written above, but the Thunder were able to win. Minnesota scored 140 points (in double OT, 116 in regulation). Kevin Love scored 51 points, including seven threes. He is clearly their best player and the one player OKC should have keyed in on him.

The last is another 8-point sweetheart teaser:

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Orlando Magic -1 = Once again we have the Cavs on the road against a team that is better than them. This is the same scenario and I wouldn't be surprised if Orlando covered the original nine, but we will play it safe and take them to one. CORRECT

Miami Heat -.5 @ Detroit Pistons = I got the Pistons game wrong the other night and they threw everything they had at Denver. Now they come home, most likely completely deflated because they lost at the end to the Nuggets. Miami will probably win be 20, but once again we will play it safe and make it so they only have to win. CORRECT

New Jersey Nets @ Atlanta Hawks +1 = The Hawks came through the other night when we needed them to so we will go with them again. The Nets struggle on the road, and Atlanta can even lose this game by one. The Hawks need to get their act together and play consistently if they want to put up a fight in the playoffs. CORRECT

The Knicks go into Toronto tonight looking to go 6-0 under interim head coach Mike Woodson. I wouldn't be surprised if the Knicks took care of business again tonight because they are clearly a more talented team than the Raptors. Hopefully they can keep this good defensive play going and get some confidence going into the playoffs. INCORRECT - Of course, the one night I write about the Knicks they get destroyed...

Enjoy the Sweet 16 and the NBA action tonight. I've got Baylor, UNC, Kentucky and Kansas advancing in my bracket.

Rodgers That

Tonight's NBA Picks

By Dan Rodgers

There are a few NBA games going on tonight that I've taken an interest in. Hopefully, you stopped by yesterday and saw both of my winners.

Detroit Pistons @ Denver Nuggets -8.5 = One thing I've learned is that home teams tend to cover a lot more than road teams. In this case, we've got a good team playing at home against a bad team. Not to mention the Nuggets are getting Wilson Chandler back, and he should provide a spark for the team. You all should know how much I think the Pistons suck, and even though they aren't as bad as Washington, Charlotte and New Orleans, I don't see them keeping it close. INCORRECT - sorry I can't predict Ben Gordon dropping 45 points and shooting 9/9 from three.

I'm going to shoot for another sweetheart 8-point teaser:

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Atlanta Hawks +.5 = There is no reason for the Hawks to lose at home to the Cavs. They are clearly the better team and this game just fit perfectly in the sweetheart. CORRECT

Phoenix Suns @ Orlando Magic -.5 = This game fits in perfectly as well. The Suns just gave everything they had last night to beat the Heat and somehow blew the lead. The Magic should come out looking to have a good offensive game since they got embarrassed last night and they should take care of business tonight at home. CORRECT

Chicago Bulls +.5 @ Toronto Raptors = This is another game that just fit perfectly. The Bulls are the far superior team and there is no reason for them to not beat up on a weak Toronto team. CORRECT

Good luck tonight everyone.

Rodgers That

Wade, Bosh Heating up

By Dan Rodgers

ESPN reported that according to a source with knowledge of the situation, Dwayne Wade will resign with Miami and he will have a new playmate in former Toronto Raptor Chris Bosh.

This move isn't a surprise, or shouldn't be, to anyone. It was fairly anticipated that Wade wanted to resign in Miami with the assumption that the Heat would being in another big name to play along side him.

This will have a fairly large impact on LeBron James' decision because now we now he won't go to Miami and he may not stay in Cleveland. James was lobbying for the Cavs to sign Bosh which could have guaranteed him staying in Cleveland. Now, he may be inclined to head to Chicago or New York.

The Bulls already have a good supporting cast with Rose, Deng and Noah. The Knicks just signed Stoudemire and will give LeBron the Garden if that's what it takes to get him. Should be interesting; tune in tomorrow night to the LeBron James special on ESPN at 9 PM.

Rodgers That

Amar'e to the Big Apple

By Dan Rodgers

Today the Knicks agreed, in principle, with Amar'e Stoudemire to a five-year deal worth just under $100 million. The deal reunites the ex-Phoenix Sun with former coach, Mike D'Antoni. However, I'm not quite sure it puts the Knicks any further ahead of where they started before the free agency period.

PF/C David Lee is a free agent and they just signed a player older than him at the same position. If the Knicks can't resign Lee and also get LeBron/Wade, they might be scratching their head. New York did make sure that this would not impede their ability to go after Dwayne Wade or LeBron James in terms of . They are obviously looking for another big name player to fill-in the void.

Personally, I think Bosh is leaning towards teaming up with Wade in Miami. LeBron is probably going to want to go to Chicago if he doesn't resign with Cleveland.

I'm curious to see what the Knicks plan to do because they have a lot of old shooting guards and Gallinari/Chandler at SF...should be an interesting summer.

Rodgers That

The King of where?

By Dan Rodgers

This is just an introductory post to what is going to happen this summer. What many are saying is the most impressive free agent class in NBA history.

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost last night in the conference semi-finals to the Boston Celtics. That means that LeBron James, along with the rest of the Cavs player's, season is over. Which means that in a month and a half, LBJ will become a free agent along with players: Ray Allen, Joe Johnson, D-Wade, and Chris Bosh to name a few.

Now, since this is an intro post, all I'm going to say is that by rule the Cavaliers can only offer a maximum deal of six years worth around $125 million. Any other team is only allowed to go as high as five years worth around $95 million. So the Cavs to have the edge, or do they?

Other teams mentioned to be interested are the Knicks, Bulls, Nets, and Clippers. All of those teams have some reason that would be good for LBJ, but we are just going to leave it at that for now. Check back later in the summer for more on this historic free agent class.

Rodgers That

LeBron...the king once again

By Dan Rodgers

Cleveland Cavaliers SF LeBron James was named the NBA's Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive year.

2010 NBA Most Valuable Player Voting

LeBron James, Cle - 1205
Kevin Durant, OKC - 609
Kobe Bryant, LAL - 599
Dwight Howard, Orl - 478
Dwyane Wade, Mia - 119

Personally, I thought that Kevin Durant deserved the MVP award this year. Kevin Durant is the youngest player in NBA history to lead the league in scoring, barely ousting James.
KD - 30.1 ppg
LBJ - 29.7 ppg

However, LeBron does average more assists and rebounds per game and led his team to the number one seed in their conference. Durant also led the Thunder to the playoffs, but they were the eight seed. They did put up a fight against the Lakers, but were knocked out four games to two.

I think that if the Thunder had upset the Lakers, Durant would have put up a much bigger fight in the voting.

Maybe next year, good luck KD.

Rodgers That

Cavs win without LeBron, Durant for MVP

By Dan Rodgers

The Cleveland LeBron's were without, well, LeBron for the past two games due to a tweaked ankle in his 40-point performance four days ago against Detroit. These were the first two games James has missed all season, Cleveland went 1-1.

James isn't too accustomed to missing games as the seven-year pro has only missed 20 games in his entire career. However, this was a special occasion because the Cavaliers are also without, and will be without for the rest of the season Shaq O'Neal. O'Neal has been out since late Feb. and recently had surgery on his thumb. He was expected to miss the entire season, but doctors are now optimistic about an earlier return.

Oh, and about King James, don't worry because he is to return to the lineup for their next game at the Philadelphia 76ers.

On a side note: LBJ is averaging 30.0 points, 8.5 assists, and 7.2 rebounds per game. So you're probably thinking he is the clear favorite for MVP right? Well, duh. However, don't be surprised to see Kevin Durant's name mentioned during the discussion. The "Durantuala" is averaging 29.6 points, 2.8 assists, and 7.6 rebounds per game for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

While you might be thinking..."LBJ's stats are better in every category!" Take into consideration that Durant is on a Thunder team that has already won 15 games more than they did last season and is 14 games over .500. Not to mention they are sitting pretty to make the playoffs, currently holding the sixth seed in the Western Conference. Durant definitely has my vote.

Rodgers That

Cleveland Cavaliers (8-3) at Washington Wizards (2-6)

By Leatherworld

Hey everyone,

This is my first post, and it’s going to be an important one. Tonight the Cavs and Wizards face off at the Phone Booth on ESPN.

The Wiz have been off to a slow start, and most of this blame lies with their inability to stay healthy. It should be interesting to see how Antawn Jamison responds after being on the sideline for the last 5 weeks with a shoulder injury. Agent Zero seems to be fully healed from the knee injury that kept him out all last season, and the decision to trade away their first round draft pick to receive Randy Foye and Mike Miller has looked like a good one.

The Cavs have been on a hot streak since losing their first two. LeBron James has been playing well and Shaq looks like he can still be a force inside. The addition of Shaq and Anthony Parker really give the Cavs other offensive threats to complement LeBron. Unfortunately for the Cavs, they’ll be without Anderson Varejao and Shaq tonight, so the younger guys are going to have to step up.

If the Wizards want to get back in the win column, they’ve got to get Jamison involved in the offense, and they’ll have to play the strength of the guards. Defensively, they must contain LeBron and force him to make jumpers.

LINE: Cavs -4

Pick: Cavaliers: 90 Wizards: 93

Flashin' the Leather

Miami Heat (4-1) at Washington Wizards (2-3)

By Dan Rodgers

It is a Wednesday night in early November and the Washington Wizards are hoping for a better season than last (19-63). Gilbert Arenas is back and healthy; however, the Wizards can’t help but get bit by the injury bug as Antawn Jamison is out for the first 10 or so games of the season. Andray Blatche is one of the temporary replacements. While Jamison is clearly the better offensive player, Blatche brings a strong defensive presence to the floor that the Wizards lack with Jamison in the lineup. Blatche is receiving starter’s minutes with Jamison out and does have some potential on the offensive side of the ball. He averages 16.0 points-per-game, setting his career high on Halloween against New Jersey putting up 30 points in a 19 point Wizards victory.

Now that we have a bit of background on the Wizards we’ll talk about the Heat game. Upon Mike and mine’s arrival in D.C. we get to out seats about 15 minutes before game time. A girl and her camera man approach us and ask to put us on the JumboTron before the game. Obviously we agree and at the conclusion of the interview the girl offers us FLOOR SEATS! Unreal, yes I know. However, after we get down to the floor with a bunch of fans cheering for us, we are lead to our seats which are located in the 100-level section. Unfortunate, yes I am aware. Well, 100-level seats are good enough and we were damn close to the action.

The Wiz got off to an extremely slow start and the Heat most definitely capitalized. Miami was up 27-8 with 3:30 left in the first quarter, but the Wizards were able to cut the 19 Miami lead to 14 at the end of the first. The second quarter was all about Washington climbing back from the early deficit. Washington showed some signs of life as the cut the lead to nine and trail by single digits at the half. The Wizards owned the third quarter as they rallied behind Arenas’ 11 points in the quarter. Somehow, the Wizards started playing defense and outscored the Heat by nine in the quarter to tie the game going into the forth.

Even though Washington showed a lot of heart coming from a large first quarter deficit, the story of this game was Dwayne Wade and not capitalizing on Miami’s mistakes. The crucial momentum shift in this game was actually with :44 remaining in the game. It was tied at 89-89 and Stevenson steals the ball and drives to the hoop. He is unable to convert but does draw a foul. He missed both free throws and then Wade went right down the court to hit the go-ahead jumper with 24.9 seconds to go. Washington is unable to tie the game on their opportunity and has to foul. That was all she wrote as Miami stole one on the road, 93-89.

Washington Stat Line:

Arenas: 32 points, 3 assists

Haywood: 16 points, 11 rebounds

Butler: 13 points, 10 rebounds

Miami Stat Line:

Wade: 40 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds

Richardson: 19 points, 9 rebounds

Haslem: 13 points, 7 rebounds

The Wizards have no chance at the playoffs this season, especially considering Mike Miller went down with a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter, if they can’t consistently produce points. Arenas can’t be the whole offense and the team is lacking in the assist department (15). This team better get their act together if they want to fight in an Eastern Conference that lacks in quality depth once you get past the big three (Orlando, Boston, Cleveland). Best of luck to them. Who knows, maybe the Wiz can get through this season without a devastating injury, oh wait, Jamison and Miller. My bad.

Rodgers That