The Repeat, The Reunion, and The Relocation

The Repeat-LeBron James and the Miami Heat did what they were basically supposed to do, repeat as NBA Champions and make most of the sports world continue to be annoyed by them.  Despite a valiant effort by the Spurs, who very nearly made me look like a genius by almost putting away the Heat in Game 6 of the Finals, the Heat wouldn't be denied another title.  Most of the Finals were hard to watch with all the blowouts we had.  We finally got a couple of good, intense games mixed in but for the most part it was not great for the average NBA fan.  I think the most annoying part of the Heat is their brutal habit of "flicking the switch" in the middle of a game after they get bored enough or down by 20+ and finally start playing.  Maybe they can work on that a little and make them slightly less annoying to watch as they go for a three-peat next season.  We also have to brace ourselves for another circus next summer if LeBron decides to leave Miami early and take his talents elsewhere.  There's a part of me that wants to be happy for LeBron and appreciate how talented a player he is, but he makes it so hard to when his ego gets in the way. 

The Reunion-Tim Tebow didn't leave the NFL world for long.  After everyone, but NOT his brother, told him his NFL career was likely over and that he would probably be best suited for the CFL, the New England Patriots came out of nowhere and picked up Tebow to give him another shot.  Tebow will be reunited with Josh McDaniels, the man who drafted him while in Denver, who is now the Patriots offensive coordinator.  While the Pats are currently insisting that Tebow was picked up as a backup QB, it's safe to say that he will not be seeing the field as the QB this season since Tom Brady is firmly in place there.  I'm guessing that Tebow likely has enough respect for the Patriots organization that he will be happy to play other positions there and be used in a utility role as a wildcat QB or TE.  Honestly, that's really what Tebow is best suited for and Belichick is just that smart of a coach to realize that and will likely get the best out of Tebow.  Good for Tebow for continuing to live his dream of playing in the NFL.  The truth is Tebow is not meant to be a natural NFL QB, but he is definitely a talented athlete and can bring a high quality of character and passion to a football team which is what many are lacking.  Tebow is a leader and the Patriots will get the best out of him.  It could be one of the better feel-good stories in the league this year. 

The Relocation-Well, Dwight Howard and the Lakers tried to make it work, but that didn't last long and now Howard has moved on to a more suitable situation in Houston.  This wasn't that surprising considering how awkward it was watching the Lakers last season.  In the limited number of games that Kobe, Nash, and Howard played in together, it just never looked right.  Those are three very talented guys, but they just didn't fit together at all.  Many say it was because of the offense that Mike D'Antoni ran as the coach, but really you can just tell when a team has the right group playing together or not.  This past Lakers season was a good example of how important team chemistry is.  It's very underrated at times, especially when these teams in the NBA like to sign big name players together and think they will just win a bunch of games and be championship contenders.  That only works if they actually play together as a team.  I also think Kobe and Dwight were never on the same page and their egos could not fit in the same arena.  

One final thought...August is here, and preseason football begins!  BRING IT ON!!!

Is Winning Boring?

No, of course winning isn't boring.  Winning is awesome, fun, and addictive.   We know that because of how much losing blows.  I will offer the idea though that winning teams can be Bo-RING!!  Let's look at the Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens.  That team is by no stretch of the imagination an exciting team.  Up and down their roster they don't have a superstar.  Joe Flacco is about as exciting as watching paint dry, but he's a good QB.  I said good, because in my opinion he's not great.  Yes, he's now a Super Bowl winner and MVP.  However, that's because he had one good playoff run where he made very few mistakes.  He's NOT a great regular season QB.  That's where my issue with Flacco is.  He's not consistent every Sunday.  He's not a Brady, Manning, Rodgers, or Brees.  You can't expect him to carry the Ravens on any given Sunday.  It's not gonna happen.  He WILL have a clunker every other week.  That's why I say the Ravens BADLY overpaid him after the Super Bowl win.  He's now one of the top 3 highest paid QBs in the league, and I don't think the Ravens will consistently get the return on investment they are expecting.  Now, back to winning though.  The Ravens have been in the playoffs 5 straight years because they are consistent and keep winning, but they don't have the excitement of the Patriots, Steelers, Packers, Broncos, Giants, or Saints.  They know how to win, but they aren't fun to watch.  So winning can be boring, in a sense.  I would also look at the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA.  Now, they do have superstar power on their roster with Tony Parker and Tim Duncan...but every time I watch a Spurs game, I'm bored!  I don't know what it is, but they are not exciting to watch as a basketball fan.   Yeah, they keep on winning too, but they don't bring any excitement to the game.  They just win, and then show's over.  Boring.   Speaking of the Spurs, they are now going to be taking on the polar opposite of boring in the NBA with the much polarized Miami Heat led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.  There's two very different styles of basketball on the biggest stage.   It should be a very good series with a lot of championship experience in the series, and I'm hoping that the Spurs bore all of us again with another championship because I'd much rather see the Spurs win than the Heat.  I will even go so far as to put in writing my official BOLD prediction...Spurs WIN the NBA Finals in 6 games!  The Heat just look like they have run out of gas after the series with the Pacers and the Spurs have looked like the best team in the playoffs.   Spurs in 6, let's do this.  Now that prediction is not boring.  

Running Out Of Football

Well...another season of football, the greatest game on the planet, is rapidly getting away.  I guess it's time I said a few things about it while I can.  I thought I would start off by wishing Ray Lewis the best in retirement.  I think he surprised a few people by saying he's done after this season because you can't tell that he's running out of gas at all.  He still plays with the same intensity and fire that he brought into the league.  I respect him a ton, I only wish that more guys would play with his heart and passion EVERY game and never make the game about anything other than the pure joy of playing football.  When I think of defense, and great linebackers, and playing with passion...I always think of Ray Lewis.  He has been the Baltimore Ravens for the last 15+ years and they will truly miss him. 

The college football bowl season has been somewhat disappointing for me, nothing really stands out as great football yet.  There were a few good ones on New Year's Day, but I think the one I'm looking forward to the most is the Fiesta Bowl.  Oregon and K-State should make for some very entertaining football.  For awhile it looked like they were on a crash course for the BCS title game, but they couldn't quite get there after they each stumbled in November.  Hey, it's hard to be perfect.  Just ask Notre Dame.  I think there were 4 or 5 games this year where they probably should have lost, but they still found a way to win and get to the national championship.  So we have two 11-1 teams in Oregon and Kansas State and it should be a good ol' shootout.  I have heard this interesting concept a number of times about these BCS games that aren't the BCS title game, which is questioning how "interested" the Ducks or Wildcats will be in the game because it's not the national championship.  So, just because they aren't playing for the national title, they are going to somehow not care anymore if they win or lose?  That's ridiculous.  As Herm Edwards once said, "You play to win the game! HELLO?. You PLAY TO WIN THE GAME!".  Just because these college kids aren't playing for a championship doesn't take away the great experience of playing in a major bowl game on national TV for their families and the world to see in a very exciting venue.  If they actually weren't intersted in being there, then give up your invitation to the game to another FBS school that would LOVE to take your place.  It's a long list of schools.  The bottom line is that it's a priveledge to be there, enjoy the life experience, enjoy the atmosphere, enjoy....playing football.

The NFL playoffs are upon us too.  The experts in Vegas have my Denver Broncos as the favorite to win the super bowl right now.  Needless to say, that sounds good to me.  They have been playing some really good football and deserve to be favored and it's going to be really tough for a team to go into Denver and ruin their super bowl plans.  Peyton Manning has them looking like a championship caliber team, and I'm hoping that they make it to the finish line.  I think Brady and the Pats will be a huge hurdle on the way. Manning also has many people looking at him as the NFL MVP for this season, and that's hard to argue unless you're Adrian Peterson.  Those are the two favorites to win the MVP and both guys have a great argument for the honor.  Obivously, I would lean toward Manning because of the Broncos 11 game winning streak to end the season, the AFC west champions, and the best record in the NFL, and all this coming off of 4 neck surgeries that kept him out of the 2011 season.  Meanwhile, Peterson became the next 2,000 yard rusher in the NFL while leading the Vikings to the playoffs which is also very impressive after coming off a torn ACL at the end of last season.  I think Manning should get the MVP simply because of the slightly more impressive overall season, both individually and as a memeber of the more successful team.  Then I think you look at Adrian Peterson as the comeback player of the year, playing at such a high level after recovering from an injury that can very easily end the career of many running backs.  These are two very talented football players playing at a tremendous level in the most intense sport there is, they have both earned recognition for their greatness.