Lakers lose Bryant for the rest of the season

           The storyline of the Los Angeles Lakers 2012-2013 season entering last night was the injury bug that hit the team. Every Laker starter has missed at least five games except for Kobe Bryant. With the Lakers hanging out by a thread to the 8^th seed in the Western Conference, the Lakers worst fear became a reality when Bryant suffered a torn Achilles in the Lakers 118-116 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Friday.

            It was a routine play for Bryant as it appeared he slipped while driving to the basket. At age 34, it looks as if Bryant’s body finally gave out on him. In the month of April, Bryant has averaged 45.2 minutes per game as he has been single handling keeping the Lakers in the 8^th spot. Although he was in an extraordinary amount of pain, Bryant still had to shoot two free throws as he was fouled on the play. Bryant would make both free throws and in typical Kobe fashion, could have been the deciding factor as the Lakers won by 2.

            So what is next for the 34 year old? Will he retire or will he return for his 18^th year, also his final year of his contract? While fighting back tears in his news conference last night, Bryant told reporters that this wouldn’t be the last of the future Hall of Famer.

            Bryant’s injury adds to what already has been one of the worst seasons in recent memory for one of the greatest franchises in sports. Five games into this season, the Lakers fired Mike Brown after a 1-4 start and replaced him with Mike D’Antoni. On February 18th, longtime owner Jerry Buss died after a battle with cancer. A season that started off with expectations of tying the Boston Celtics for the most championships in NBA history, has now come down to two games where the Lakers hope to make the playoffs as the 8^th seed.

            Losing Bryant last night put the nail on the coffin this season for the Lakers even if they make the playoffs. Bryant is perhaps one of the top five greatest players in NBA history. Lakers longtime trainer Gary Vitti said that the expected recovery for a torn Achilles is 6-9 months. That could mean that Bryant will miss the season opener next year but does anybody think the “ Black Mamba” will miss the 2013-14 season opener?

            Kobe Bryant has a long road of recovery ahead of him and I guarantee he will be back to Kobe Bryant form next year. 

            image was used from sbnation.com

Just how good are the New York Knicks?

           The New York Knicks are playing right now as if they will be a legitimate threat to the Miami Heat’s quest for a second straight NBA title. Last night was the first time since 1994 that the Knicks won the Atlantic Division and they have also reached 50 wins for the first time since 1999. Fast-forward to the present day where the Knicks have won 13 straight games. Are the Knicks a legitimate threat to the Heat’s quest for a second title?

            It looks as if the Knicks will be facing the Boston Celtics in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs. The Knicks won the season series 3-1 and will look to get revenge on the Celtics, who swept them in the first round in 2011. Assuming the Knicks can get by the Celtics in what I think will be a tough six game series, I think their semifinal matchup will be easier than the Celtics.

            8 of the 13 Knick wins during their current streak have been by double digits. What is scary about this streak is that the Knicks haven’t even been at full strength. Tyson Chandler, last year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year, has played in only 4 of the last 13 games as he recovers from a neck injury. Amar’e Stoudemire who made his season debut on January 1^st after recovering from a knee injury, reinjured the same knee on March 7^th and is not expected back until the playoffs at the earliest. I actually think the Knicks are better without Stoudemire.

            It also helps that the Knicks have perhaps the NBA MVP on their team. I believe Carmelo Anthony should win over LeBron James and Kevin Durant. In his five games this month, Anthony is averaging 40.6 points per game including a 50-point game on the road against the Heat (The Heat were without LeBron and Wade for Anthony’s 50 point game). Anthony currently leads the league in scoring with 28.6 points per game and is also shooting 45% from the field. 11 players average at least 6.0 points per game and if you factor in the perhaps the NBA Sixth Man of the Year in J.R. Smith, than the Knicks have one of the best offenses in the league.

            The Knicks went 3-1 against the Heat this season with all of their wins being by double digits. They match up extremely well against the Heat especially with a James-Anthony matchup. I believe that the Knicks can take the Heat to seven games and even defeat them. The Knicks are looking to make it back to the finals for the first time since 99 and Anthony and company look to bring a title back to New York.

            

            images were used from nba.si.com and nba.com

Louisville Cardinals: 2012-2013 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Champions

           For the first time in 17 years, the Louisville Cardinals Men’s Basketball team can call themselves National Champions.

            In what was one of the greatest title games in recent memories, the Cardinals used a 45-point second half performance to defeat the Michigan Wolverines 82-76 last night in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

            On a morning that started out with coach Rick Pitino being named to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Pitino became the first Division I coach to win a championship with two different teams. Pitino also guided Kentucky to a title in 1996.

            The Cardinals came up just short in the 2012 NCAA Tournament as they lost to the eventual national champion and also their in-state rival, the Kentucky Wildcats 69-61 in the Final Four.

            Louisville entered the season as the #2 team in the Associated Press preseason poll. They returned one of the most experienced backcourt duos in the nation in G Russ Smith and G Peyton Silva.  Louisville was picked to win the Big East along with Silva being named the Big East Preseason Player of the Year.

            The Cardinals started off the season by winning 16 of their first 17 but then lost three straight to Syracuse, Villanova, and Georgetown. But the Cardinals finished the season hot by winning 9 straight and their second straight Big East Title.

            It was the first half of the Midwest Region Final. G Kevin Ware was coming off of a career high 11 points against Oregon in the Sweet Sixteen. Ware went up to close out after a Duke three-pointer and fell down awkwardly, thinking he had hurt his right ankle. The video says it all as Ware snapped his right leg in three places and suffered a compound fracture in his right leg. Players and coaches on both sides were distraught as Ware lay on the floor as trainers worked on him. I have never seen a coach give such emotion like I saw Pitino did during and after the Ware injury. From then on, the Cardinals decided to play the tournament for Ware. Perhaps the greatest part of winning the title last night for the Cardinals players was Ware being able to cut down a piece of the net in his hometown.

            The Cardinals played the whole season as one of the best teams in the nation and were rewarded last night with their third title in school history. Congrats to the whole team on the accomplishment and thus ends the 2012-2013 NCAA basketball season.

         

            image was used from usatoday.com

Can the 2012 quarterback class become the greatest of all-time?

The 1983 rookie quarterback class featured Dan Marino, John Elway, and Jim Kelly, all of whom would eventually be enshrined into the NFL Hall of Fame. The 1983 class is thought to be the greatest quarterback class of all-time. After watching the 2012 NFL Season, the 2012 rookie quarterback class will knock the 1983 class off their throne and become the greatest quarterback class ever.  These rookie quarterbacks include Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck, Russell Wilson, Brandon Weeden, and Ryan Tannehill.

            Indianapolis Colts QB Andrew Luck had a lot of pressure on him during the 2012 season as he had to replace Peyton Manning, who left Indianapolis for Denver. The #1 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft received comparisons to John Elway as he was called the greatest quarterback coming out of college since Elway. The Colts were 2-14 in 2011 but experienced an 11-5 season in Luck’s first season including a playoff appearance. Luck broke the NFL record for most passing yards in a single season by a rookie with 4,374 and also threw for 23 touchdowns. Luck showed all season why he was the #1 pick in the draft and looked like a season veteran at points including his seven fourth quarter comebacks. Although it is early in his career, I think Luck has the ability to be a Hall of Famer and already has Colts fans forgetting about Manning.

            There was a reason why the Washington Redskins traded up to the #2 spot. His name is Robert Griffin III. “RG3” became the leader of the Redskins team that made the playoffs for the first time since 2007. It was also their first division title since 1999. Griffin threw for 3,200 yards and 20 touchdowns and ran for 815 yards and 7 touchdowns en route to being named the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year. Although he had a successful year, Griffin suffered an LCL and ACL injury during the NFC Wild Card Game against the Seahawks that required offseason surgery. The big question on everyone’s mind is can Griffin come back from the injury and be as successful as he was in 2012? Griffin will have to change up his game a little and learn not to run as much even if he is a mobile quarterback, but has the arm strength and accuracy to be one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

            Taken with the 75^th pick in the 2012 Draft, Russell Wilson was drafted to the Seattle Seahawks to be the backup behind Matt Flynn. But Wilson had other ideas and won the starting job during training camp. At 5’11”, Wilson dropped in the draft because he didn’t have the typical “NFL quarterback size” but he showed that quarterbacks under 6 feet can be successful. Wilson threw for over 3,100 yards in the regular season and also tied the NFL record set by Peyton Manning for most passing touchdowns by a rookie in a single season with 26. In the playoffs, Wilson led his team to victory in the Wild Card round against Griffin’s Redskins before traveling to Atlanta to face the top seed Falcons. Down by 20 after three quarters, Wilson led his team back to take the 28-27 lead with 31 seconds left. The Seahawks would eventually lose on a Matt Bryant field goal but the game against the Falcons showed just how good Wilson is. He is a great decision maker and is loved around the organization making him the future of the team.

            Ryan Tanneihill and Brandon Weeden both helped to improve their teams’ records from the previous year but if they want to become elite, they will have to work on their decision making as they both had double-digit interceptions.

         Dan Marino was the only quarterback from the '83 class to make it to the playoffs as a rookie. Griffin, Luck, and Wilson all made it to the playoffs this past year.There was never a thought of a quarterback class being as good as the 1983 class but the 2012 class has already shown in one year that they have the tools to be the best class ever. 

            

            images was used from fantasyfootballcounselor.com and bleacherreport.com

USC hires Enfield as coach

         

  For the past couple of seasons, USC Men’s Basketball has been one of the worst teams in the PAC-12 Conference. Athletic Director Pat Haden wants to make basketball as relevant as football is on campus and his new coach might be exactly what he needs.

            USC hired former Florida Gulf Coast coach Andy Enfield last night and the deal is expected to be for six years according to sources. In just his second year at FGCU, Enfield led to the school to their first NCAA Tournament appearance. As if that wasn’t enough, FGCU became the first #15 seed to make it to the Sweet 16 after knocking off #2 Georgetown and #7 San Diego St. His team received the nickname “Dunk City” during the tournament for their flashy alley-oops.  

            USC had offensive struggles all year long and will hope that Enfield’s up-tempo offense will help the Trojans to succeed in the future. USC has not made the tournament since 2006-07 when they made the Sweet 16 under Tim Floyd.

             image was used from latimes.com