All-Star Reserves Leaked

Now I am not sure of the exact date the NBA was to release the remaining All-Stars, but it was leaked by Yahoo. According to them, here are the reserves:

East
Rajon Rondo (Celtics)
Derrick Rose (Bulls)
Paul Pierce (Celtics
Chris Bosh (Raptors)
Gerald Wallace (Bobcats)
Joe Johnson (Hawks)
Al Horford (Hawks)

West
Deron Williams (Jazz)
Chris Paul (Hornets)
Pau Gasol (Lakers)
Kevin Durant (Thunder)
Dirk Nowitzki (Mavs)
Zach Randolph (Grizzlies)
Brandon Roy (Blazers)


Now where is David Lee? Al Horford really? I am going to have to strongly disagree, I understand the Hawks have a better record and may deserve two All-Stars, but how many times is the league going to snub David Lee. In my blog a week ago, I had all the East reserves correct except for David Lee. And it is also upsetting because a player like Lee deserves to be an All-Star over Allen Iverson. The league has to do something about the voting system, it is getting ridiculous. Now for the West, congratulations to Zach Randolph, well deserved. Honestly, I thought Randolph was going to receive the David Lee treatment. Also I do think Tyreke Evans has All-Star numbers, I am not sure if he deserved it over any of the West guys. Shout out to Tracy McGrady for sitting this one out!!

Who's #1?

It seems the #1 ranking in college is cursed, teams no longer want to hold that title because soon will come defeat. Kentucky, the second #1 in a row to lose, will now just enjoy their ranking until next Monday when the polls will have to be reordered again this season. Now the logical #1 team next week is probably Kansas, but I am going to argue that. Yes, Kansas has only one loss and to a highly ranked team at that, but my #1 team for next week should be the Syracuse Orange. From bottom to top, the Big East is undoubtedly the best conference in the country. Syracuse is 6-0 vs. ranked opponents this season, and has only slipped up against Jamie Dixon's Pittsburgh squad. The Orangemen's zone is better than ever, and they have been dominating the Big East. I do like Kansas, and believe they too deserve a #1 ranking, but they had it already and lost it. Give Cuse the crown..

Rookie/Sophomore Challenge Rosters

Sophomores:
Michael Beasley-Heat
Marc Gasol-Grizzlies
Danilo Gallinari-Knicks
Eric Gordon-Clippers
Brook Lopez-Nets
Kevin Love-Timberwolves
OJ Mayo-Grizzlies
Derrick Rose-Bulls
Russell Westbrook-Thunder

Rookie:
DeJuan Blair-Spurs
Omri Casspi-Kings
Stephen Curry-Warriors
Tyreke Evans-Kings
Jonny Flynn-Timberwolves
Taj Gibson-Bulls
James Harden-Thunder
Brandon Jennings-Bucks
Jonas Jerebko-Pistons


There are some very interesting match-ups in this game. The two I hope they let happen are: Tyreke Evans vs. OJ Mayo and Brandon Jennings vs. Derrick Rose, four of the rising stars in the league today. The sophomore team seems to have a little more fire power than the rookies so I am going to give them the win, but look for rookies, Evans and Jennings, to try to break records in this game. I would not be surprised if Brandon Jennings broke the assist record in this game. And where is DeMar Derozan on the rookie roster? Don't miss out Friday night of All-Star weekend.

Video of the Day: Lebron James

If you didn't see it already...

Monta Ellis/Ray Allen Deal

This just in according to SLAMonline.com,
The latest out of Beantown is that the Golden State Warriors want to trade Monta Ellis, and are looking at Ray Allen (and his expiring deal) as a possible option. For now, however, it sounds like a far-fetched dream on both sides of the equation. The Warriors see rookie Stephen Curry as the face of the franchise moving forward. One league source said the Warriors believe that Curry won’t develop at the rate they would like as long as Ellis is around.

In my opinion, this may be a good trade for Boston. Boston would receive a young, talented player, which they no longer have in Bean-town. In all reality, if Boston doesn't come win the championship this year, their core players are only getting older. Ellis, a possible All-Star selection for the West, would give the Celtics something to build around in the future. How much more gas do Allen and Garnett have in the tank? And it would give the Warriors a clean slate next season, and the chance for Ray Allen to sign somewhere else or back with the Celtics for less money.

Crittenton sentenced

Wizards guard, Javaris Crittenton, was sentenced today to one year probation for the incident involving him and Gilbert Arenas in the Washington locker room. Crittenton also agreed to begin a mentoring program to District children and work with the NBA on relief for Haiti earthquake victims, starting on the right path..

Video of the Day: Derrick Rose

DRose adding a poster to his collection..

One And Done Wall

Kentucky Wildcat freshman phenom, John Wall, has basically confirmed that he will not be returning to Lexington next season. Wall explained to the press that he had "no choice" but to enter into the 2010 draft. Calipari was on Dan Patrick's radio show earlier this week, talking about his undefeated squad and the future of his prized point guard. Calipari told Patrick "he would wrestle with Wall before letting him return to school." Wall later explained, "he (Calipari) might pull my eye out." It comes to no surprise that Wall will be leaving after this season. Now the NBA awaits, but Wall has his eyes set on perfection.

Giants Fall

Three weeks ago, I would have told you there were three power teams in college basketball this season. Three weeks later, with the Jayhawks upset and the Longhorns with two straight losses, there is no favorite in college basketball and only one undefeated team left. The Jayhawks annd Longhorns are tough but no longer superior. Kansas lost to a ranked team, but it was a Tennessee team with only four scholarship players active and three walk-ons. I give the Vols credit and they are a good team, but to beat Kansas was not expected. The Longhorns are still my pick to win it all this season in college basketball, but Rick Barnes squad is scaring me. Although both games were lost away from Texas, the two teams (Kansas State and UConn) completely outplayed the Longhorns. In my mind, Texas is still the deepest team in the country, but are without a shooter. The only perfect team left is Calipari's crew down in Lexington. The reason I say there is still no favorite is because Kentucky is led by freshman. Now I have nothing against freshman, sorry Carmelo, but it is a very rare situation. That does not mean Kentucky will not win the championship, but that they should not be considered the out right favorite. Although Kentucky may just go undefeated during the regular season. I am still sticking with the depth of the Longhorns to take home the championship.

All-Star Game Controversy

With the All-Star starters announced for 2010, I wanted to discuss the should be starting fives for each team and the people who may now get snubbed from the game with the selection of Allen Iverson. And that leads me to my first point, Allen Iverson should not be in the All-Star game, no way. I am not going to totally disagree with the rest of the starters because they should all be All-Stars. KG and Duncan may not have the best stats at their positions, but they are the best players on their respective power teams. Now there are seven other spots on both team open for discussion. My seven from the West are: Kevin Durant (Thunder), Brandon Roy (Blazers), Carlos Boozer (Jazz), Chris Paul (Hornets), Deron Williams (Jazz), Pau Gasol (Lakers), and Tyreke Evans (Kings). My seven from the East are: Chris Bosh (Raptors), Joe Johnson (Hawks), Gerald Wallace (Bobcats), David Lee (Knicks), Rajon Rondo (Celtics), Derrick Rose (Bulls), and Paul Pierce (Celtics). Agree or Disagree??

Video of the Day: Robin Lopez

Brotherly Love, and their mother, Mrs. Lopez was present..

Dalembert's Haiti Trip

Samuel Dalembert, a native of Haiti, returned from his brief trip to his homeland. Dalembert was at a lost of words when describing the conditions that his homeland was being faced with. Here are some of his comments after the Philadelphia and Portland game last night, "I had surgeries performed in front of me on folding kitchen tables, the situation is so terrible. Kids are running around with no sandals. Doctors take shifts and work like 20 hours straight. You can see they’re so tired in their eyes, then they hop a plane, sleep and come back two days later." I encourage all to help out with the efforts in restoring the land of Haiti.

After Dirk, Comes Elias

Dirk Nowitzki is a household name for most basketball fans. When most people think Dirk, they think seven foot shooter from Germany. There is another basketball player from Germany whose name you need to know, Elias Harris. Many basketball fans are unfamiliar with this German player. Harris is a 6'8 freshman forward from the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Going into this season, the Gonzaga squad was unranked and graduated four starters. They are now ranked #10 in the country with Harris leading the team in points (15.5) and rebounds (7.9). Harris has also managed to climb his way into the first round of the NBA draft predictions. He is 20 years old, therefore, leaving after his freshman year would not be a big surprise. Harris is a versatile forward, and arguably the best college basketball player on the west coast. It is time to recognize..

Shaq on Dunk Contest

Shaq has never been a shy guy towards the media. He is back at it again. It seems that O'Neal is not very impressed with the dunk contest contestants this year. Shaq ran to Lebron's defense claiming there was no competition for him in this year's contest. “As his manager, I will only allow LeBron to do the dunk contest if Vince Carter comes back out, if Kobe [Bryant] comes back out and if another big name comes back out,” O’Neal said. “And if we can get a big prize and half of the money go to the people of Haiti and the other half to the winner." “The guys that are in it, no disrespect to them, but they wouldn’t really be any competition for LeBron,” O’Neal said. On Tuesday, James said he enjoys watching All-Star Saturday night but that he doesn’t feel like taking part. He said he has no regrets for going back on his statement from a year ago. “I’m not a regretful guy,” James said. “I don’t know, I’m just not high on [the contest].” If Shaq could somehow make this dream field come true at the dunk contest, it could change the face on the contest forever. We will just have to see how much influence Shaq really has..

Mid-Season Awards

Coach of the Year: Scott Brooks-Thunder
Defensive POY: Gerald Wallace-Bobcats
Most Improved POY: Zach Randolph-Grizzlies
Sixth Man: Jamal Crawford-Hawks
Rookie of the Year: Tyreke Evans-Kings
MVP: Kobe Bryant-Lakers

Video of the Day: Jeff Green

Smith on the wrong end of this poster..

No Lebron In Dunk Contest

The 2010 dunk contest contestants were announced today, and Lebron James was not on the list after promising to join during last year's All-Star break. DeMar Derozan and Eric Gordon will dunk it out after the Rookie/Sophomore game on Friday night to decide the fourth guy. The three announced today were defending champion Nate Robinson, most improved player candidate Gerald Wallace, and the spark plug from Hollywood Shannon Brown. The current field isn't going to be a bust, but Lebron James in the dunk contest had such a good ring to it. My pick to win: Shannon Brown. The dunk contest is Saturday, February 13.

Marbury to China

According to SLAMonline.com, “The 32-year-old, a free agent since leaving the Boston Celtics last season, had agreed a deal with the northern club and would arrive in Shanxi next week, the team announced on their official website (www.sxcba.com). ‘The aim of signing Marbury is to pay back our fans and try to win more games in the rest of the season,’ said Shanxi boss Wang Xingjiang. The 2001 and 2003 NBA All Star was expected to help boost Shanxi’s ticket sales as well as their chances of making the playoffs. Shanxi is currently 15th in the 17-team league.”

All-Decade Teams

I have been slacking tremendously with my blogs over this winter break. I have done a little research, and I am prepared to bring you the All-Decade teams for college basketball:

First Team:
Kenyon Martin-Cincinnati
Carmelo Anthony-Syracuse
JJ Redick-Duke
Kevin Durant-Texas
Tyler Hansbrough-North Carolina

Second Team:
Shane Battier-Duke
Jay Williams-Duke
Jameer Nelson-St. Joe's
Adam Morrison-Gonzaga
Michael Beasley-Kansas State

Third Team:
Dwayne Wade-Marquette
TJ Ford-Texas
Emeka Okafor-UConn
Blake Griffin-Oklahoma
Ben Gordon-UConn

Honorable Mention:
Stephen Curry-Davidson
Andrew Bogut-Utah
Derrick Rose-Memphis
Juan Dixon-Maryland
Chris Paul-Wake Forest