Stan Should Still Be the Man

Coaches are expendable. Players are not. That’s the traditional wisdom.

It’s hard to disagree with it. Someone try convincing the city of Cleveland that Mike Brown was worth more than Lebron James. Yeah, that would be impossible.

However, it’s time to do away with traditional wisdom in Orlando.

Sure, franchise players are incredibly hard to come by. These guys are your rare, one of a kind, Koh-i-Noor kind of diamonds only found in the British Crown Jewels collection. You don’t simply pick Dwight Howard’s up at the local corner store.  That’s why you have to do whatever you can to keep the gem, no matter what the cost may be. Well, supposedly.

“GameTime” Episode One

By Sam’s Sports Brief (http://sambrief.com)

Last night, my new radio show, “GameTime,” started off with a bang! In this episode, much was discussed, including the NBA Playoffs, the NFL Draft and the “Elbow Heard ‘Round the World” by Metta World Peace. Below is a partial recording of the first episode. Remember that we will be LIVE every Friday from 7-8 pm (Central Time) on http://novahpradio.net (to listen live you cannot use FireFox).

Link to “GameTime”

By Sam Brief

Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment, I would love to know what you think about these various topics!!

Follow me on Twitter!! (@SamsSportsBrief)

jsportsblogger

The NBA Playoffs begin, and to this fan, it’s about time. Even though the regular season was shortened to 66 games, thanks to the lockout, it felt like the season went on forever. But now the games really matter. Here are my picks for the first round.

Eastern Conference:

Philadelphia 76ers vs. Chicago Bulls

The Bulls come into the series as heavy favourites, but do have a big question mark in terms of the health of point guard Derrick Rose. Last year’s MVP was sidelined for 27 games due to an ankle injury and he’s not 100% coming into the series. That said, the Sixers don’t have the depth to match up with Chicago. Bulls in 5.

New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat

The most hyped series of the first round. The Heat are under immense pressure to win the title, as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are…

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86-ing The NFL Pro Bowl? “Lack of Intensity” May Squash It

http://thesouthernfriedsportsgirl.blogspot.com/2012/04/86-ing-nfl-pro-bowl-lack-of-intensity.html

Follow me on Twitter @southsportsgirl
and check out The Southern Fried Sports Girl
http://thesouthernfriedsportsgirl.blogspot.com
Posted from WordPress for Android

Coverage of the 2012 NFL Draft- First Round in Review

http://thesouthernfriedsportsgirl.blogspot.com/2012/04/live-coverage-of-2012-nfl-draft.html

Follow me on Twitter @southsportsgirl
and check out The Southern Fried Sports Girl
http://thesouthernfriedsportsgirl.blogspot.com
Posted from WordPress for Android

What's Left on The Floor

Again, this is supposed to be a hoops blog, but there are just some things that need to be discussed really. Some things that get under your skin, and that you can’t help but feel passionate about. A few days ago, I felt just this feeling. It took me a day to calm down about it just so I could write say my piece.

For those of you who aren’t keeping up with the NHL playoffs, and more specifically the Washington Capitals, the DC based hockey team defeated the world champion Boston Bruins a few days ago with a game winning goal in the waning moments of overtime. The game winning goal was scored by Capital right wing Joel Ward.

Ward, a Black man, was born in Toronto, Canada and is of Barbadian(Barbados) decent. He has had a journeyman’s career so far in the NHL playing for the Nashville Predators…

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Dubsism

1) Washington Nationals ↑ 13

What We Originally Said:

Upside: The Nationals have one of the best young rotations in baseball.  Strasburg appears ready to return to his pre- Tommy John surgery condition, and the acquisitions of Gio Gonzalez and Edwin Jackson were huge.  If Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, and Chien-Ming Wang can stay away from the injury problems that have bugged them, the Nationals should be able to stay in most games based on their pitching alone.  But the Nats should be stronger in the middle of the order since Ryan Zimmerman, Adam LaRoche, Michael Morse, and Danny Espinosa all could be 25 HR, 90 RBI guys.

Downside: The Nats have three question marks. The first is at first base; Adam LaRoche played only 43 games last year before season-ending surgery and hit just .172. Can he return to the form of his previous years? However, Michael Morse blossomed at first…

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jsportsblogger

The NFL draft is fast approaching and the Detroit Lions know what their needs are coming into the draft. Cornerback, O-Line and Running Back are the three positions the Lions need to fill holes in. I won’t talk about the O-Line as that is too difficult a position to judge and O-Line is based on chemistry more often than skill. So I will focus on Cornerback and Running Back.

The Lions should and most likely will draft a Cornerback with their first pick. And they do have options even with the 23rd pick. Granted, the best corner available, LSU’s Morris Claiborne, will be gone early, but the Lions still think either Alabama’s Dre Kirkpatrick or South Carolina’s Stephon Gilmore will be available. For my money, I want Kirkpatrick with the Lions. Why? He played on a winning program at Alabama. He’s a physical corner who can move up and stop…

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Defence First, Ratings Last

NBC’s ratings were up a whopping 50% mid-way through the first round of the NHL playoffs. Savour those ratings NBC.

While the first round has featured such gripping matchups as Penguins-Flyers and Washington-Boston, the Western Conference has seen, to put it nicely, its more defensively aware teams succeed. The St. Louis Blues, Phoenix Coyotes, Nashville Predators and L.A. Kings have all prevailed against offensively superior teams.

Thus, the problem associated with modern day hockey.

Defence is being rewarded and offence is being punished. While the NFL and NBA continue to make the game easier for high octane offences, the NHL is devolving. Teams heavily reliant on goaltending and sound defensive strategy are reaping the benefits of the NHL’s slow but steady return to the obstruction and hooking that made hockey almost unwatchable in its pre-lockout years.

The Everyday Man's Sports Blog

ESPN Radio has been revolutionary in bringing sports talk radio to the forefront. One of the voices that many have gotten familiar with is Freddie Coleman. Recently, I got to catch up with Freddie and here is what we talked about!

MP: So, what’s it like to work for ESPN?

FC: I have been at ESPN for eight years and I kept waiting on that one bad day until one day, I just stopped thinking about it. Because a bad day here is still better than doing something that I’m not happy at all the time. I’m living out my dreams and doing what I love and that’s truly a blessing.

MP: Being that you work at ESPN, how do you balance your home life and your job?

FC: First, I’m lucky that I have an understanding wife, but she understands that when I’m away from the job, it’s family…

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