NBA Hits and NFL Picks
WESTERN CONFERENCE ALL STARS
Starters: (G) Steve Nash, (G) Kobe Bryant, (F) Tracy McGrady, (F) Carmelo Anthony, (C) Yao Ming
Reserves: (G) Allen Iverson, (G) Baron Davis, (G) Tony Parker, (F) Dirk Nowitzki, (F) Tim Duncan, (F) Kevin Durant, (C) Amare Soudemire
Note: Boozer not on list because of injuries
EASTERN CONFERENCE ALL STARS
Starters: (G) Gilbert Arenas, (G) Dwyane Wade (voted ondespite injuries), (F) LeBron James, (F) Kevin Garnett, (C) Shaq
Reserves: (G) Michael Redd, (G) Joe Johnson, (G) Chauncey Billups, (F) Luol Deng, (F) Chris Bosh, (F) Paul Pierce, (C) Dwight Howard
Quick Hits:
During a four-minute span against the Suns last night, Jeff Green finished a half-court alley-oop, took a charge, stole two passes, and hit Durant for an open jumper, while Kevin Durant knocked down three jumpers, two of them threes, and grabbed two rebounds. The Sonics are in good hands for a looooooooong time.
Shawn Marion really looks like he doesn’t want to be on the Suns roster right now. He will probably get dealt before the trade deadline, and my guess is that it involves some type of convuluted deal with either Kobe Bryant or Andrei Kirilenko.
Dwight Howard should average 20 rebounds per game, because nobody on his team can rebound. Seriously.
The Spurs look just as good as they did at the end of last season, which means bad news for the rest of the NBA.
The Mavs roster without Josh Howard looks pretty thin. Did you know that Devin George was already hurt? Shocking (sarcasm).
The Cavs are so incredibly thin, some of their starters look like 12th men on good teams (read, Drew Gooden and Larry Hughes).
I do not like the Lakers chances of success at all this season.
NFL PICKS:
On to the thing all of you have been waiting for so patiently (unless of course you scrolled to the end, which means you did not read anythng above this). Since I missed so many of the first couple of weeks, we are at the halfway point of the season, and I can make up whatever rules I want for this thing, I thought I would go ahead and set my record at 0-0-0 for the season. Let’s see how many games above .500 I can get to in the second half of the season (or if you are relying on last year’s ineptitude, how many games below .500 I can reach).
As always, the home team is in Bold, and my pick is listed first.
Washington (-3.5) at New York Jets
The Jets stink and this is not a good week for Kellen Clemens to get his first start. He will get hit a lot, and if he forces anything deep or over the middle against Washington’s cover-2, either the ball will get picked or Santana Moss or Antwan Randle El will get decapitated. Ouch.
Green Bay (+2.0) at Kansas City
The Chiefs have been deceptively solid, almost like Herm Edwards was fooling us on “Hard Knocks.” However, I believe something special is going on with the Packers, and their young talent has played incredibly well. Jennings, Lee, Jones, Hawk, Barnett, and several other key players are playing tremendous football. Also, don’t think for a second that Damon Huard or Brodie Croyle’s hair can throw on uber-agressive Al Harris and Charles Woodson. The Packers front line should be dining on Huard all game, because Kampman and KGB are serious pass rushers.
Arizona (+3.5) at Tampa Bay (Teaser special)
So I’m a little biased because my man Jerheme Urban is on the Arizona Cardinals. (Speaking of Urban, did you know that he played at Trinity University who had the greatest play in all of college football this past weekend? Just checking.) I think that Tampa Bay will struggle to move the ball against Arizona, and the finally healthy receiving corps of Arizona will serve as a great complement to Edge James on the ground. If I were a gambling man, which I am where it is legal, I would be tempted to take the ‘Zona money line.
Tennessee (-4.0) v. Carolina
I chose a home team! What is that all about? David Carr on the road against a really good defense. Even the Titans bizarre offense can cover this one.
San Francisco (+3.5) at Atlanta
This has to be the worst game of the season thus far. Perhaps this will be the week that we get to see the All Pro Frank Gore bust loose for 130+ yards. He needs it. Plus, John Joseph Harrington is starting, and yes, that is his real name.
New Orleans (-3.5) v. Jacksonville
Quinn Gray on the road, even against a terrible defense is not a good thing. I think this will become a shootout, so consider taking the over. You know, if you live somewhere where gambling is legal.
Detroit (-3.0) v. Denver
Denver has trouble scoring, while Detroit lights it up at home. Denver can’t stop the run, while Kevin Jones has been absurdidly dominant since he came back from his injury. I like Detroit here.
Buffalo (even) v. Cincinnati
Much like the San Francisco/Atlanta game, I don’t want to be associated with this game. However, this would be a good week to reinsert Lee Evans into your fantasy lineup. He is J.P. Losman’s favorite and only receiver (at least I’m convinced J.P. does not know he has any other receivers), and the leaves have started to change, which is what causes Evans to wake from his slumber. Turn back the clocks and turn on Lee Evans 80-yard touchdown catches. It must be a tide thing. I have no idea.
San Diego (-7.5) at Minnesota (Teaser special)
Minnesota can’t cover anyone, which means Antonio Gates will run freely up the middle of the field while Chris Chambers patrols the deep sidelines and L.T catches 10 passes underneath. Not a good thing for the Vikes, especially with a third stringer starting when their first and second string quarterbacks already play like third string quarterbacks. That leads me to my next question, how bad do you have to be to be the third string quarterback for the Vikings? Do they just pick some random fan from the stands to dress as the emergency quarterback each week? They should make that a reality show in Minnesota, because it cannot turn out any worse than the current QB situation.
Cleveland (-1.0) v Seattle
Alexander can officially be called washed up at this point. I never thought I would back Derek Anderson and Jamal Lewis over Matt Hasselback and Shaun Alexander. Scary season
New England (-6.5) at Indianapolis
This is the game where you get to see how truly pissed off Bill Belicheck is. It should be a one touchdown game though, so you could potentially tease this game either way and feel safe.
Houston (+3.0) at Oakland
Oakland does not really do anything well, and if Andre Johnson comes back this week, he will have a huge game even with Sage Rosenfels at the QB spot.
Dallas (-3.5) at Philadelphia
I think Dallas takes the opportunity to take out some of the frustration of recent years’ past in this game. Philly should get beat up in this game. But then again, who knows with this Eagles team. One week McNabb is awesome, and the next their offense is completely inept. I do not get it.
Pittsburgh (-9.0) v. Baltimore (Teaser special)
I never in my life thought I would take a nine point line against Baltimore, but I really do not like what that team has going right now. They cannot run the ball, despite having a great running back, and they cannot throw the ball because Steve McNair continues to throw bounce passes all over the field.
Take note of the three teaser special’s on the board. If you could take a 6.5-point, three team teaser, you would have Arizona (+10) at Tampa, San Diego (-1.0) at Minnesota, and Pittsburgh (-2.5) versus Baltimore. I like those odds.
2nd Half Record: 0-0-0
Enjoy the weekend and I will be back on Monday or Tuesday with some more exciting stuff.
