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Soccer

Why America Hates Soccer

The World Cup is set to finish soon which means it will be another four years before America starts slightly caring about soccer. Why is this so? I think the following breakdown outlines the reasons:

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NBA General

Small Ball Takes All

The Western Conference Finals have been different this year.

No Shaq. No Duncan. No Stoudemire. Something is wrong with this picture.

When the Western Conference Finals were determined last week, I was quite bewildered. The more offensive minded teams, the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns, were moving on to compete for a championship. The strategy of just “pounding it inside” to either Tim Duncan, Elton Brand, or Chris Kaman failed to thwart the surge of the victors. Tim Duncan had ridiculous numbers but was unable to score in regulation, resulting in the Spurs loss in the Game 7 overtime. Elton Brand had his way against Phoenix, shooting between 60-80% from the field but could not pull out needed victories. Finally, Chris Kaman was a monster on the offensive boards, but whether hampered by shoulder injuries or not, did not have any impact as the series went on.

The Eastern Conference picture was no different. The last two teams remaining were the Detroit Pistons and the Miami Heat. The Pistons do not rely on a dominant center; Ben Wallace is more like a moving wall and never scores while Rasheed is a poor man’s Kevin Garnett who can shoot and is more athletic than a center. The Miami Heat, on the other hand, have a dominant center…or at least he used to be. Shaq has had a roller coaster of a season. He really has not been himself and often finds himself in foul trouble. Shaq is no longer consistent, often having difficulty producing his typical numbers of 20 points, 10 rebounds. Yes, the Diesel is running out of gas, and Wade is carrying the team.

This ultimately leads me to one question: Is small ball the future of the NBA?

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NBA General

Adelman: Ready for Hire

Throughout the season, I wondered when the Maloof Brothers would fire Rick Adelman. The Sacramento Kings were last in the Pacific Division and were on pace to miss the playoffs since the 1997-1998 season. Their golden run appeared to be over.

Ron Artest did not think so. Artest arrived after the All-Star game and revived the Kings franchise, making them one of the hottest teams entering the playoffs. In doing so, he saved Adelman’s job or so I thought. The Maloof Brothers fired Rick Adelman last week.
His departure means Mike Bibby is the only person remaining from the 2002 team that almost dethroned the Lakers and won the championship.

Every player has moved on since then. Peja Stojakovich appears to be happy in Indiana, Chris Webber is back to his 20 points, 10 rebounds form in Philly, Doug Christie retired after numerous injuries, Vlade Divac earned a one year salary sitting on the Laker bench before finally retiring, Bobby Jackson provides instant offense off the bench in Memphis, and Jimmy Jackson continues the trend of hopping from team to team.

It’s Adelman’s turn to find his niche. Where will he coach next?

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NBA General

MVP: Most Valuable or Most Vague?

The crowning of the next championship team is nearing simultaneously with the crowning of the season Most Valuable Player. About eight players are in the running for the award, and I will not be the first to say that they all deserve it. The media clearly has a tough decision ahead of them, but what exactly is the criteria they will base their decision on? In years past, the award was the domain of dominant centers and power-forwards. It was not until last year that point guard Steve Nash surpassed Shaquille O’Neal to win the award.

Nash changed the MVP award, and with so many deserving candidates, it might change once again. My top four for the award are Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, Steve Nash, and Kobe Bryant. How does the award change based on the recipient?

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NBA General

2006 NBA Playoffs – First Round Picks and Analysis

The winner of the Eastern Conference has always been predetermined due to the lack of competition. This season has been no different as the 5th-8th seeds are separated by half a game to one game. And none of the teams offer much resistence to the Detroit Pistons.

Meanwhile, in the West, things look (a little) more competitive, even in the first round matchups. Here is your first round playoff preview.

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Philadelphia 76ers

Philly Cheese Stank

Sunday made it official. The Philadelphia 76ers were not going to make the playoffs. Throughout the season, they were being handed the 8th seed without any competition. This occurred because the team was just having a better losing record than the other teams. This is characteristic of the Atlantic Division, the worst division in today’s NBA. However, Iverson and Webber go down with a few injuries, and the Bulls realize that they are just within striking distance. To add insult to injury, the Bulls knock the 76ers out of the playoff picture because the Heat, who have the 2nd seed well intact, rest Wade and O’Neal for half the game. This ultimately leads me to one question:

What happened to that 76ers team that competed against the Lakers in 2001?

Just like Spike Lee’s opinions of the New York Knicks, it seems to be an eternity since we have heard Stephen A. Smith say anything positive about the 76ers. Is this the beginning of a doomed franchise like the Portland Trailblazers? Perhaps, it is time to rebuild, so let’s see what the future holds for the 76ers.

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Cleveland Cavaliers

Former Leader of Steals Might "Take" MVP Honors

With an 82-game season, it is pretty difficult to not know who the MVP of the season is. If one reviews past years and looks at Shaquille O’Neal’s, Kevin Garnett’s, and Tim Duncan’s dominance during their respective MVP seasons, the word destiny seems to be attributed to their receiving the honor. However, this season is not so clear cut. The winner is not going to be known until the end of the season.

Initially, no one would discredit Steve Nash’s efforts in leading the Amare Stoudemire-less Suns to practically a no contest Pacific Division Title.

Well, you’re looking at an author who thinks Lebron might be honored instead if Nash is not careful.

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NBA General

2006 Free Agency

A hectic schedule begins in three weeks for the NBA. Sixteen teams will work tirelessly in hopes of capturing the coveted NBA Championship while managements will begin to debate and alter the future of their respective franchises. The advent of the postseason foreshadows the offseason which is of utmost concern for managements who desperately need to make changes to their squads or merely just retain players. There’s gold in dem hills aka the free agent market this year. Who are the significant free agents? Who will stay with their current club, and who will offer their services in a different jersey?

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NBA General

NBA 2005-2006 Season Awards

With the playoffs in less than a month, it is time to honor those individuals for their performance during the season.

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NBA General

Fantasy Surprises: Flukes and Phenoms

With this week being the last week of fantasy basketball, I thought I would review this NBA season in terms of the fantasy world. What players turned out to be fantasy busts? What players had breakout seasons? What trades and/or other major events shook the fantasy world?

Notes to readers: For the purpose of this article, I played on the Yahoo! game under Head-to-Head scoring. In addition, listed next to all honorable mentions are the reasons why they did not make the cut.