Best in the West: NBA Playoffs - Round 1 Analysis

#1 San Antonio Spurs v/s #8 Sacramento Kings (Series 2-2)
"Mike Bibby will not be able to keep up with Tony Parker." This was just one of the knocks put on this Sacramento Kings team who are on a mission to knock out the reigning NBA champions. The beautiful part about the NBA is that its not about one game, its a series where a team can make adjustments, they can play the matchup game and they can on any given night throw a blow to a team that might have looked poised and ready to bulldoze over them the previous night. The 05-06 Spurs are deeper and more experienced than the team that won the championship the previous season. With the additions of Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel, this group has a vastly improved Tony Parker leading their offence but injuries have plagued this team all season long. Tim Duncan has been dealing with plantar fascitis and Manu Ginobli has been in and out of the lineup with back problems. Everywhere I was reading that the Kings didn't have much of a chance against the Spurs but right from the get go we were treated to some vintage Ron Artest and as a repercussion to an elbow thrown out at Manu, Ron Artest was suspended by the league for game 2. Mike Bibby and Brad miller who are a big part of the Kings offence struggled through the first two games but if it wasn't for a Brent Barry buzzer beater this series would be 3-1 right now in favour of the Kings. They have had great support from their off-season acquisitions of Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Bonzi Wells and Ron Artest has managed to pretty much eliminate Manu from the game with his smothering defense. A pleasant surprise for the Kings has to be the play of second year player Kevin Martin who turned out to be the hero in game 3 as he hit the game winning shot at the buzzer. For a kid who was left of the active roster in the previous years playoffs he has shown a lot of confidence and stepped in when Artest was suspended and given the Kings a boost on both ends of the floor. As for the Spurs, they are not a team that is just going to concede anything but in order for them to get to the Finals they are going to need production from the likes of Ginobli, Finley and Horry and a little healthier Tim Duncan will really help their cause.

#2 Phoenix Suns v/s #7 Los Angeles Lakers (Series 3-1 Lakers)
Mr. I dropped 81 points on the Raptors going against the MVP Steve Nash. I got to admit I am a Kobe hater but this series is just to exciting not to watch. TV remotes have been thrown, foul language has been used at my TV and several creative names have been put on my MSN to express my displeasure over the Lakers. The Phoenix Suns led by Steve Nash were not even expected to make the playoffs this year. Amare Stodamire sidelined for the season after knee surgery, Joe Johnson was traded away for Boris Diaw and a draft pick, Quentin Richardson headed for the Big Apple to play for the Knicks but Raja Bell and James Jones were added and this new look team finished atop their division and looked as deadly as ever ready to make a run to the Finals this year. Kobe Bryant has been a man on a mission in his own right as he averaged over 35 points a game this season and after missing the playoffs last year he was determined to get his team there this year. He took his team on his back and willed them into the 7th spot in the west. With a mix of youth and experience the Lakers starting 5 for the playoffs would have people wondering how this team made it there in the tough west but its been the players surrounding Kobe Bryant that have put the Lakers in a position to eliminate the Phoenix Suns. Kwame Brown has matured tremendously over the course of the season and has made his presence felt in this series in the paint as he is defended by a much smaller Phoenix Suns lineup who use Boris Diaw at Center and the same goes for Lamar Odom who has had a solid playoff series. The Suns sported the highest scoring average in he NBA over the season but have had trouble making shots in this series and a big problem is the lack of production on the part of Shaun Marion. The Lakers have solved them in a way and have greatly slowed down the pace of the game more to their own liking rather than the run and gun Suns who put up on average 10 more shots their their opponents. Boris Diaw who is the leagues "Most Improved Player" struggled for the first few games but is slowly getting it together. Nash the leagues MVP possibly for a second straight year is doing his best but needs his teammates to start making shots in order for them to push this series to a game 7. I avoided talking about Kobe but you can't talk about the Lakers without mentioning him and he has changed his role quite a bit during this series. He has been a playmaker more than a scorer but it was his buzzer beater in game 4 that put a dagger through the hearts of the phoenix Suns players.

#3 Denver Nuggets v/s #6 Los Angeles Clippers (Series 4-1 Clippers)
In the words of Sir Charles Barkley... "This aint yo daddy's Clippers." Over 500 regular season games played, yet Elton Brand had never tasted the post season. This year was different with the addition of key players like Sam Cassell and Cuttino Mobley and the emergence of Chris Kaman the Clippers were poised to be a part of basketball in May. Carmello Anthony on the other hand has made it to the second season in the NBA in every year that he has been in the league (3) but each time his team was handed an early exit from the playoffs which has left him hungry. In a weaker division of the western conference the Nuggets secured their division but did not hold home court advantage even in the first round. Home court is not what came to bite them in the ass though, it was the lack of any kind of offensive production from anyone not named Carmello Anthony. Marcus Camby had an outstanding season but he is not a guy who contributes consistently on offence same goes for Reggie Evans who was a nice addition at the trade deadline but he never addressed the problem the Nuggets have had for 2 straight seasons. Earl Boykins is the only jump shooter on the team and he had a broken wrist at the end of the season but was not at 100% heading into the playoffs. The Clippers had the Nuggets figured out pretty quick and took away their fast breaks and lob passes which is what got Denver a lot of their wins as Andre Miller is one of the best passing point guards in the league. With the inability to spread the floor as the Nuggets have no 3 point threats, the Clippers had a solid gameplan just double team Melo and let the rest of the guys try to win the game and clearly they were unable to do that as the Clippers with the leadership of Sam Cassell and the talent of Elton Brand rolled over the Nuggets to make it to the next round potentially setting up and a Lakers v/s Clippers series with the clips having home court.

#4 Dallas Mavericks v/s #5 Memphis Grizzlies (Series 4-0 Dallas)
Note to Pau Gasol: I think the playoff beard thing only works in hockey. The Grizzlies have been swept every year that they have made the playoffs and right now this year was no different. The Grizzlies are known for the defence but seem to have gotten away from what got them into the playoffs and their lack of offence surely didn't help their situation. A healthy Damon Stodamire might have been a key here to provide some of that much needed offence but he has been sidelined for the 2nd half of the season after having surgery. From watching this series I kept getting the feeling like I was watching a team of really good role players playing against Dirk Nowitzki and the rest of the Dallas Mavericks. In the post season you need to have one or two guys really step up but the Grizzlies never got that on a consistent basis. I won't get into too much detail about this series as it was one and done but I do want to point out that the Mavs looked great in the first round and seemed to have figured out a way to play on both sides of the court. Their defense has been shored up and the elevated play of Josh Howard along with the shot blocking presence of Diop has set them up to go deep in the playoffs this year and I personally have them pegged as the team who will come out victorious in the west.

Random quotes and stats from the first round...
- Ron Artest was given a 1 game suspension following the incident where he threw an elbow at Manu Ginobli.
- Shareef Abdur-Rahim of the Sacramento Kings played in over 700 regular season games before getting a chance to play in the post-season. Only one other player in history has played more games without going to the playoffs.
- Just straight up funny: Steve Nash's new Trophy
- The LA Clippers won game 5 to eliminate the Denver Nuggets from the playoffs and move to the second round. For the first time in 30 years.
- Kenyon Martin was also suspended but not by the NBA. The team suspended him indefinitely for conduct detrimental to the team after he refused to play in the 2nd half of the first game against the Clippers.
- On the eve of game 5 in the Lakers series new was released the Kwame Brown is being charged for sexual assault.
-"I've never seen that in all my years in basketball, that someone (would) do that before. I don't think it has anything to do with basketball at all. It's totally ridiculous for someone to do that in a game. I don't care one way or another what happens to him." - Chris Kaman after being groped by Reggie Evans. (Denver Post)
- Saquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant became fathers of baby daughters six minutes apart last week.

Last time I checked this is what we call a "CHARGE!!!"

Beast in the East: NBA Playoffs - Round 1 Analysis

#1 Detroit Pistons v/s #8 Milwaukee Bucks (Series 2-1 Detroit)
I have a confession to make.... I despise the Pistons and the last thing I want to see is a Detroit v/s San Antonio matchup for the NBA finals. That said... I don't think the Bucks are going to be the team that eliminates the Pistons from the playoffs over a 7 game series. This is a case of experience v/s youth and in the playoffs where mental toughness is a big factor, I don't think the young Milwaukee Bucks team has enough power and depth to roll over the seasoned vets who are trying to make their third straight appearance in the NBA Finals. Looking purely in terms of matchups by positions Billups is far superior in all facets of the game over TJ Ford. Michael Redd is a pure shooter but having to run around screens on the defensive end to keep up with Richard Hamilton is tiring him out, but with RIP playing with a bum ankle, Redd was able to rest up on defense some and broke out with his offense and lights out shooting in Game 3. An ailing Bobby Simmons doesn't help when the guy you have to defend is Tayshaun Prince and the MIP from last year has had a rough transition to his new team. Andrew Bogut playing in his first NBA season has his hands full with Rasheed Wallace. Bogut's game is closer to the basket but he has to spend his time on the outside defending Sheed and the 3 point line, thus giving a major edge to Wallace. The battle on the boards between Magloire and Ben Wallace is a good matchup for both teams. Magloire is not as quick on his feet but he is a wide load to handle down low and if used properly he can be more of an offensive threat. Looking at the benches of both teams on paper, I think the Bucks win it but if you add in years played then the Pistons bench, even though they might lack the talent have the experience and mental make up to know their roles. The Pistons are like a well oiled machine and it may take a tank like Shaq to bulldoze over them in the later rounds.

#2 Miami Heat v/s #7 Chicago Bulls (Series 2-2)
Building though free agency v/s building through the draft. This is what this matchup brings forth in the first round and an intriguing one it is. The baby Bulls have little to no experience in the post season and at times during a game the oldest person on the floor in a Bulls jersey is 25 years of age and has played a grand total of 6 playoff games. In contrast the average age of the Miami Heat is close to 29 years and their roster has a cumulative total of 624 playoff games under their belt. Looking at the matchup's there is really no one the Bulls can throw out on the floor to stop the Shaquille O'Neal and coach Scott Skiles has tried playing multiple players at the C position to find the best matchup. Shaq has not been as effective as he has been in his past playoff series and a lot has to do with the abundance of offensive fouls being called against him. This takes him out of the flow of the game and foul trouble has become an issue when we talk about Shaq all season long. Question is though is Shaq getting to slow for the game? or, is it that the players defending him are not close to his strength and a little spin move by Shaq sends his defender flying? Either way this is just one story line of this series... Another being Udonis Haslem's suspension. The refs have kept the players on a short leash this post season and technical and flagrant fouls are being handed out atleast once a game on average in this series. Haslem was furious over a missed foul call and in reaction tossed his mouthguard over at the ref and the NBA will not tolerate that... Completely understandable. James Posey on the other hand shoves a shoulder and an elbow into a driving Kirk Hinrich in a game that the Heat were getting blown out in and he gets thrown out followed by a suspension. I understand a lot of frustration mounts up and a 7 game series builds a lot of animosity but the Heat players need to focus right now because if they keep letting their emotions control the outcome of games they will be on the outside looking in. Wade needs to step up his game come game 5 and in game 6 this whole "he chokes when he plays in Chicago" notions needs to be shed if the Heat want to make any kind of statement to the Pistons who I think will end their series with the Bucks tonight.

#3 New Jersey Nets v/s #6 Indiana Pacers (Series 2-2)
I am a raptor fan so seeing Vince Carter flourish with another team has not been an easy pill to swallow but I cant deny the man has talent. One problem... In the post season the mind has to be as strong as this becomes a mental game over the course of a series along with the physical game for the 48 minutes on the floor. If History is any indicator, then the post season is the last place Vince Carter will succeed. Lucky for him he is just one part of the three headed monster down in the swamp. Jason Kidd is playing like he went back in time 5-6 years and a healthy Richard Jefferson adds to that lethal trio. As a bonus they have gotten significant contributions from Nenad Kristic in his first playoff series. The Indiana Pacers have been a constant fixture in the eastern conference playoff picture over the last decade but this is the first time they had to head into it without Reggie Miller. During the season the Pacers made their biggest move by trading away Ron Artest to the Sacramento Kings in return for Peja Stojakovic. They were looking to remove a cancer from their team and at the same time they acquired a player with a deadly 3 point shot which would help spread the floor out in turn creating more space for Jermaine O'Neal down low. After stealing game 1 the Pacers did not have Peja for game 2 and foul trouble rendered Jermaine O'Neal ineffective for the most part. A $15,000 fine later Jermaine O'Neal was back on track dropping 37 points and 15 rebounds securing a victory for his team. This series is probably the most even in terms of matchups but the Nets have the advantage at PG and the Pacers have that advantage at PF but if the pacers want to take this one they are going to need a healthy Peja and a significant contributions from Danny Granger and Stephen Jackson. Looking at the Nets they have a good mix of youth and experience, Cliff Robinson (uncle Cliffy) has played in the NBA almost as many years as Nenad Kristic has been on the planet. In order to win the series they are going to need solid games from Robinson and Kristic to support the big three of Kidd, Carter and Jefferson and if it comes down to the final shot... Just make sure anyone but Vince Carter takes it.

#4 Cleveland Cavaliers v/s #5 Washington Wizards (Series 2-2)
He wears the #23 on his jersey now he has the opportunity to show us more of why he holds the title of King James. Lebron James' first post-season appearance did not disappoint as he ended the night with a Victory and a triple double that got them there. I am not ready to call him the next Michael Jordan of our time because until he has more rings than fingers on a hand ... All he will be is Lebron James. He was the youngest player to be the MVP of the all-star game, he averaged over 30 PPG during the regular season... but this is the playoffs and here he is a rookie. His supporting cast has been less than stellar in the 4 games that I have watched and aside from game 1 where Donyell Marshall stepped up and Game 3 where Drew Gooden took charge the other players have not fulfilled their roles very well. The Cavs have been unable to move the ball effectively and even with Gilbert Arenas and Jamison for the Wizards having bad nights they are now looking at a best of 3 situation. We all know what Lebron can do but this is a team sport and the team needs to play as a unit being led by him. Just watching the last game it was pretty obvious that those isolation plays are getting old and a lot easier to defend as that's all that is being run with no ball movement. Larry Hughes has been a non factor for the most part and even though Flip Murray was a good piece they added heading into the post season the guy who needs to step up his game is Big Z. He is a matchup nightmare on paper and if he was able to get into the flow of the game early his 7'3" frame would make more room for other things to happen besides Lebron trying to go through 3 levels of defence before getting to the rim. The Wizards have gotten great support from their role players and they have needed every bit of it as Gilbert Arenas has struggled into he early games but they are giving the Cavs fits right now and I think they have the right gameplan in order to win this series. In hindsight... If only the traveling call was made on the buzzer beater by Lberon in game 3, we might have been looking at a 3-1 series in favor of the wizards but I think the "STAR" factor worked to the advantage of Lebron and the NBA needs him to be playing well into may and June to keep raking in the "green".

Random quotes and stats and links from the first round...
- 2 Miami Heat players have received a 1 game suspension: Udonis Haslem & Antoine Walker.
- $40,000 in fines have been paid by players after they criticized the referee's following losses. Shaquille O'Neal ($25,000) and Jermaine O'Neal ($15,000)
- The Indiana Pacers have made the post season 15 out of the past 16 years yet this is the first time the roster does not have Reggie Miller on it.
- Lebron James became the third player in NBA history to register a triple-double in his playoff debut, joining Johnny McCarthy (1960) and Magic Johnson (1980).
- "If (they) want to come to South Beach and have some fun, they all have the money to do that in the summer. . . . Now is not the time for that." - Coach Scott Skiles (East Valley Tribune)
- "Back in the day, the guy would have just bounced up, got two free throws and went about his business. Nowadays, it's not like that. You breathe on somebody it's liable to be a foul." - James Posey in reaction to his flagrant foul.(ESPN)
- "(Carter) was out there trying to play tough, which we all know he's not," - Anthony Johnson (New York Daily News)
- Seeing Michael Jordan jump up and down like a crazed fan when the Bulls were about to win game 3 of their series = CLASSIC!!
- Gilbert Arenas changed his jersey, shorts, shoes and tights at the half after going 1-9 in Game 4, saying what he was wearing had brought bad luck. (Sports Illustrated)
- Dwayne Wade has played in 30 playoff games in his 3 year career in the league. In contrast the entire starting lineup of the bulls has played a total of 42 games.

Last time I checked this is what we call "TRAVELING!!!"

With their First pick in the 2006 NFL draft....

As promised here is my take on the 2006 NFL Draft. I am writing this post as I watch the draft in PIP at the same time as watching my Jays get smacked by the Yankees.

Thanks to my insomnia I watched several hours of the combine leading up to this years draft as the NFL network had the darn thing on loop for about a month. It was the first time I got to see what kind of drills the players were put through and to be honest the quarterback and wide receiver drills are the only ones that held my attention. Wide receivers in this draft may not be the most outstanding but we do have some real star potential at multiple positions in this years draft and 3 teams are going to be very happy with their new quarterback selections from everything I have heard and seen.
Let's backtrack a bit though and I think it would suffice to say these past few months leading up to today have been drama filled and bordering soap opera status. Going back to the rose bowl it was Matt Leinart who decided to return for his final year (we will later see that this has probably cost him about $12 million in guaranteed contracts) up against Vince Young who emerged victorious and instantly talks began of who would go first in the draft. In the weeks ahead, there was the release of the results from the Wonderlic test taken by prospective players that started raising questions of Vince Young's ability to succeed at the Pro level. The blogosphere was eating this up and there were several sites that jumped on this story which was later refuted and the proper scores were given to the teams eventually. This story dragged on long enough to set up as a lead in for the Reggie Bush saga. Matt Leinart must have been feeling left out with all the attention on Vince Young and Reggie Bush he decided to make some news of his own. Leinart stepped out with hotel heiress and socialite Paris Hilton and became gossip column fodder for a few weeks.

All this and none of the above mentioned players made it as the #1 overall pick in this year's draft. If you want a detailed rundown pick by pick you can check out Deadspin as The Mighty MJD breaks it down with some humor. As for me... Well I actually wanted to do this post pre-draft but the Houston Texans threw out a curve ball at me and most of us who have been following the days up to the draft. The Texans officially ended the speculation of who would be drafted first a day before the actual draft by signing Mario Williams, a defensive end out of North Carolina State. This move subsequently messed up all the mock drafts done up by the analysts and experts and little 'ole me. I shouldn't have been so surprised I guess... During the summer, I was sure the Texans were going to go out and draft Vince young but they effectively put an end to that idea by extending David Carr and effectively taking them out of the picture as one of the teams who be in the quarterback race. So they passed on Young, who would have definitely been a fan favourite as he played his college career in Texas, then they can't reach an agreement with the top running Back in ths draft and basically leave the New Orleans Saints a ton of options as they were next in line to draft.

In the NFL more than any other professional sport, teams take on the approach of drafting for need rather than the conventional Best Player Available (BPA) scenario. You could be drafting #2 and you have all the choices in the world but you are going to go with the guy who fills your team needs even though there may be players on the board who are better but play positions you already have. With this in mind the New Orleans saints were in a great position as they had a lot of holes to fill and by Houston picking Mario Williams I think the Saints won the draft as they got Reggie Bush. Tennessee was next up and unless there was some major trade going down they were in the perfect position to pick their replacement to Steve McNair. The Titans picked Vince Young and failed wonderlic or not he is going to be their quarterback of the future. (Incedentally, word is that Vince modeled a lot of his game around McNair and even trained with him on several occasions.) The Jets were up next and they took a safe route even though I personally feel they could have done some moving around as they were in a good position with two picks in the 1st round and considering their last season was a disaster, this was a good chance as any. The went with an Offensive tackle in Ferguson and with that I am going to assume they are comfortable with their quarterback situation and are expecting Chad Pennington to be back on course this season.

The Packers got the news earlier in the week that Bret Favre was going to return to the team for the following season and with the news that Lavar Arrington was going to the giants they went out and got a guy who was widely known to be one of the safer picks in the draft in A.J Hawk. Hawk will be used immediately in the starting lineup and should be a solid pick for the cheeseheads. The 49ers pick was known to most a long time ago and he was a very emotional one too ... Tight End Vernon Davis. His potential has been compared to Jeremy Shockey and Antonio gates and I expect him to fit in with a young quarterback who they selected 1st overall in last years draft.

The next few picks shocked me ... I was so sure Oakland was going to go for a Quarterback and with Leinart and Cutler still on the board they went with a safety Michael Huff. Even more shocking was the Buffalo Bills picking Dante Whittner who is also a safety and in this case it was obvious the Bills were drafting for a specific position and just drafted the #2 safety on the board since Huff was taken. Detroit went with a Linebacker and then the Cardinals were on the clock ready to get the steal of the draft. Picking 10th they still had Leinart on the board and went with him and I think this might be a good fit overall and he will be a very successful quarterback with the right coaching he might not make much of an impact in his rookie season though. Following this beauty was a trade by the Denver Broncos they traded up with the Rams which set them up to go for Jay Cutler. A bit of a shocker as Jake Plummer was their guy and even though he didn't have a great championship game last year he was in the upper echelon in QB's last season but this sends a message for sure. Plummer better get his A game ready because before you know it Jay Cutler may be the starting Quarterback of the Denver Bronco's.

The Ravens went with a Defensive tackle to help make some room for Ray Lewis to do his thing and for that Haloti Ngata was the perfect pick. Following him were a few more defensive linesmen and my team, The Philadelphia Eagles who had thought they might have to trade up to get their guy found him still on the board when they were on the clock and went with DT Broderick Bunkley. The Rams got a cornerback with their pick and the Vikings settled for a Solid Linebacker. Known as "America's Team", the Cowboys got themselves a linebacker of their own and to boot Parcels coached this kids dad so he should have an idea of what he is headed for. The Patriots went with a running back even though Dillon still has the legs but they clearly went for a guy who was a solid first rounder and didn't worry so much about position. To Replace LaVar the Redskins got themselves a solid Linebacker and I was surprised he was still on the board and should be able to fit in right away. A few picks later the Steelers who earlier this off-season traded away one of their best wide receiver selected the best WR in a weak receiver draft in Santonio Holmes. POINT?? The rest of the 1st round played out pretty much how I had expected.

For a full list of the draft picks you can always go here and follow around the links there to get more in depth analysis as well as reactions for the picks in the first round and more. I leave you with a Vince Lombardi quote and I will be back tomorrow with my analysis of the first round of the NBA playoffs.

"Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work" - Vince Lombardi

Ladies and Gentlemen.... "Just call it a comeback!"

Ok Justin you got me motivated enough to do this... Let me fill you in some.

I was travelling for most of January and February and during that time I wrote several incomplete posts but never got the time to do them right so I never posted. One of the blurbs was my prediction for the sports year that is already underway and a lot of the stories I was writing about have already taken place so I shall move on.

As March rolled around I finally began settling back into working life, and it was around this time the NHL and NBA seasons were heading for the stretch run with one of the most exciting playoff races in both leagues as there has ever been while I have been a fan. My routine quickly became work followed by endless hours of time spent on my couch trying to catch as many games as possible (Thank the lord for PVR and PIP.) Midway through march madness I had abandoned my bedroom on weekends and layed out a makeshift bed in my den so I can wake up to the weekend games... Just like that March was over the Gators won the NCAA Championship and I kept feeling the urge to write but it just didn't happen...

Now we are well into April and its probably my favourite month of the year as a sports fan. With the urging of some of my readers I think now is as good time as any to get back to this blogging biznass... The NBA and NHL Playoffs are well underway, 20 games into the MLB season we can start to see a glimpse of the contenders and lo and behold the NFL draft is this weekend so I shall not waste time... I am promising a solid week of writing for you guys for the upcoming weekend.

Tomorrow will be my predictions with the breakdown of the first round of the NFL draft followed by a 2 part blog about the first round of the NBA playoffs. Also coming up is a roundup of the first round of the NHL playoffs and to conclude the frantic week will be a contenders v/s pretenders piece on the MLB based on what I have seen in the first 20 games. Sounds like a lot eh? Well I have been working on this for a couple days so I will be able to roll them out one after another in the upcoming week I hope you look forward to it as much as I look forward to hearing all your comments .

Speechless?? Not for long...

Its been a while but there is just so much going on with me in the last couple months that I haven't had time to really sit down and write complete posts... I began some and never completed them and now they don't seem as relevant . Thanks to all of you who wrote me asking if all was well... Life is good, I just haven't had the motivation to write as of late or it was more that I didn't want to put whatever was in my head out there but that all has passed so let today be the end of my bloging hiatus. To kick of the new year and a new start I decided to change up the lookaround here, but I am still toggling with the colours and whatnot so bare with me on that one.

2005 has come and gone and I have decided to kick of the new year by looking back at the top 20 sports stories from my point of view. So much happened in sports in 2005 that i could write a different entry for each pro sport but that might get boring so i decided to mix it up and give u the top 20 that came to my mind. Following this, I will be back later this week with the top 10 things to look forward to for the upcoming year. (No pictures this time around going to keep it short, just easing my way back) In no particular order here goes...

Reflections: 2005

• The NHL made its way back onto the ice after missing a complete season due to a lockout. With this new NHL came a new face and a poster boy for the future of the league by the name of Sidney Crosby. He is no Wayne Gretzky just yet but hopes are high...


• Kobe Bryant single handedly outscores the entire Dallas Mavericks team by the end of the third quarter in a game late in the year reaching the 62 point mark.


• Danica Patrick goes against all odds and ranks 4th in the Indy 500 breaking down barriers for women in the world of auto racing.


• The new CBA for the NBA is completed which included a new minor league system and a new age restriction. To boot the NBA has now introduced a dress code for the players which requires sport coats if you at the end of the bench and no exposed chains, no hats, throwback's n sorts pre and post game at the arena.


• Larry Brown leaves a championship team to return home and coach his hometown team the New York Knicks. One of the greatest coach in the game has a huge task ahead of him as the underachieving and overpaid Knicks might make him question his decision to leave Detroit...


• Baseball took a big hit as the abuse of performance enhancing drugs came to the forefront and made its way to the supreme courts. Big names like Rafael Palmeiro and Jason Giambi were put in the spotlight which has now led to more severe penalties set for offenders of the drug policy.


• The Chicago White Sox were able to join the ranks of the Boston Red Sox as they brought to and end their drought of 80 + years with no championship as they came away victorious in this years World series


• Hurricane Katrina swept though the Gulf coast and devastated thousands. The New Orleans Saints and New Orleans hornets were moved to play in Oklahoma City and the question still remains when will they be able to return? The sports in this story are secondary to what happened to the people of New Orleans and even today people are trying to pick up the pieces. In efforts for relief a large number of professional athletes stepped forward to help out in any way they can which was a great thing to see.


• Pat Riley wiggled his way back to the court as he now strides along the sidelines as the head coach of the Miami Heat after the "voluntary departure" of Stan Van Gundy


• Phil Jackson aka the Zen Master returns to the coaching ranks with the Lakers and the countdown begins towards when we will see a blowup between him and his star Kobe Bryant who he called out in his book.


• Wayne Gretzky is back on the ice but this time barking out defensive assignments to his players as he gets behind the bench as the new head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes.


• The likes of Mark Messeir and Jerry Rice walk away from the game ending memorable and definite hall of fame careers.


• "Monday Night Football" shuts its lights off after almost 4 decades. ABC says farewell to one of its highest ranking TV shows of all time.


• Steven A Smith almost pops a blood vessel on draft day when the Toronto Raptors selected Charlie Villanueva from UCONN for their 7th pick. Sure a lot of people were surprised but that reaction to ruin a young mans dream day was totally uncalled for!!


• The New England Patriots successfully created a dynasty by winning their 3rd NFL championship in 4 years and in this era of salary caps and non guaranteed contracts that is a commendable feat.


• The Spurs can be help up there with the great dynasties ... It would help if their franchise player showed a little more emotion and the team didn't come across as utterly robotic. Congratulations either way for winning and becoming one of the most underappreciated dynasties in professional sports.


• Ron Artest returns to the court in a pacers uniform... only to a month later ask to be traded! this man needs to understand he plays a team sport and get with the program. In the world of the "tru warrier" the drama never ends.


• "Black Monday" it was a crazy Monday right after the last few regular season NFL games were played as we witnessed a flurry of firings around the league as 6 head coaches were fired and one retired.


• Steve Nash was awarded the NBA's highest honor as a player receiving the MVP award at the end of last season as he put up Stockton like numbers and led the suns to the biggest turnaround season in the history of the league. Barring anything out of the ordinary he should once again be in the running for this year as he leads the league in assists playing without their franchise player and losing 2 key role players.


• I saved the best for last ... The saga that became the Philadelphia Eagles. It began early last year with some screaming and pushing along the sidelines but Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens put it aside and along with the rest of the team strode into the Superbowl. It got ugly from there with off-season finger pointing, a one week suspension from training camp, locker room battles and it ended with the decision to sit the star wide receiver for the rest of the season. Following this drama the star quarterback and star running back go down to bring an end to one of the most drama filled seasons for a NFL in recent memory.

"Champions aren't made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them -- a desire, a dream, a vision" - Muhammad Ali.