UFC Invades NYC

One of the most popular sports in America is about to hit one of America's biggest cities. Ultimate Fighting Championship is set to make its debut in the Worlds Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden, for tonight's loaded card for UFC 205! In what has already been a very impressive year for the UFC, this card tonight is projected to blow everything else out of the water. This card marks the UFC's first visit to New York City and comes just eight months after the state passed a bill lifting a ban on mixed martial arts that dated back to 1997. This also marks the second ever event in the state of New York, with the first one being UFC 7: The Brawl in Buffalo, which took place on September 8, 1995, at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo. This is the first time ever that the UFC and MMA will hold an event in NYC. Headlined this event is UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, as he has his first title defense against 145-pound champion Conor McGregor. According to UFC President Diana White, UFC 205 will break Madison Square Garden's record gate of $13.5 million, set in 1999 by a heavyweight boxing unification match between Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield. That would mean it would also break the UFC's all-time gate record at UFC 129 in 2011.

So lets get right down to it. Here's how the Card shapes up. We will break down and predict each of the fights on the card.

Middleweights: Rafael Natal (21-7-1) vs. Tim Boetsch (19-10)
Should be one of the good opening fights on the card tonight. Natal is 95-1 in the UFC, which means he's got a bit of experience under his belt with the company. He had won four straight fights before losing to Robert Whittaker back in April, so he'll be looking to rebound in this fight. Natal has 36 takedowns in UFC competition, most all-time in middleweight division. Meanwhile Boetsch comes in at 19-10 record (10-9 UFC). The guy knows what he's doing in the cage, as 14 of his 19 wins have come by stoppage. On average, Boetsch lands 53 percent of significant strikes in UFC middleweight fights, which is sixth-highest among active UFC middleweights. And Boetsch is coming off a big win in his last fight over Josh Samman back in July. Boetsch has a good deal of one-punch knockout power, which is going to keep Natal back on his heels during this fight. Natal is durable and will probably have an advantage with judges simply because he does more.

Winner: Rafael Natal!

Welterweights: Vicente Luque (10-5-1) vs. Belal Muhammad (10-1)
This is a bit of a homecoming of sorts for Vicente Luque, who stepped in for Lyman Good, who was removed from the event after being flagged for a potential doping violation. Luque was born in New Jersey and lived there until the age of six, but visited New York City on a regular basis. Luque is 3-1 in UFC fights, and riding a three-fight win streak. Michael Graves was the last guy to beat Luque, that coming back in 2015 during the Ultimate Fighter. Nine of the ten fights that Luque has won, he has done so by stoppage (four by knockout, five by submission), so he can beat you in many different ways. Meanwhile, Muhammad is 10-1 in his career and 1-1 in UFC fights. In fact, six of his ten wins come by way of a decision. Muhammad has also had five takedowns in two UFC fights. Muhammad is a busy boxer-wrestler who mixes in both attributes well enough. But he's going against Luque, who is a heavy hitter, with a fight-changing right hand and a solid repertoire of knees and elbows from his Muay Thai background. He's definitely more dangerous.

Winner: Vicente Luque!

Lightweights: Khabib Nurmagomedov (23-0) versus Michael Johnson (17-10)
If Nurmagomedov can defeat Johnson tonight, he will have won eight consecutive fights inside the Octagon. He has already vowed No. 9 will be for nothing less than a lightweight title. Nurmagomedov has a right to be a bit of a grouch going into this fight. According to reports, Nurmagomedov says the UFC sent him two bout agreements for a title fight against Eddie Alvarez, only to turn around and book Alvarez to a title defense against Conor McGregor. Nurmagomedov suggested, in a recent radio interview, that he would never fight in the UFC again if it were to deny him a title shot after this fight. For the time being, however, he is focused on the task at hand. Nurmagomedov has had 23 fights, including seven in the UFC, and he has never lost a fight yet. He's scored a takedown in 5 of 7 UFC fights, including UFC-record 21 against Abel Trujillo. Meanwhile Johnson, who is 9-6 lifetime in the UFC, has nine knockdowns landed, which is the most in UFC lightweight history. Johnson has lost six of his ten career losses come by submission. Johnson's hand speed rivals that of any opponent, and an 81 percent takedown defense in his UFC career jumps off the page, especially in this matchup. But he's going up against a guy who has let to lose a fight, and I don't see that changing tonight.

Winner: Khabib Nurmagomedov

Featherweights: Frankie Edgar (20-5-1) versus Jeremy Stephens (25-12)
Frankie Edgar was hoping, before the year was out, to get another shot at Conor, but he hasn't been able to get that chance. So now its on to facing Jeremy Stephens. I don't think Edgar minds, he's just looking for a good fight. Edgar is 14-5-1 in the UFC, and is 5-0 in non-title featherweight fights. He's also got a ton of striking ability. Edgar's 1,871 total strikes landed in UFC competition are the fifth most in UFC history. But lets not get the facts mixed up, Jeremy Stephens is no slouch. Sure he's 25-12 lifetime in MMA fights, but he's just 12-11 when he steps inside a UFC cage. He does have one thing going for him though, in that 17 of his 25 wins have come by knockout. Stephens has struggled a bit as of late, allowing six takedowns in past four UFC fights. Stephens' reputation is very much tied to his knockout power and although he has put in work to elevate the other areas of his game, it's no secret that power is his best attribute. But Edgar is much quicker, and his wrestling backround should give him an edge. Edgar has the footwork and timed shots advantage, which will be big in this fight.

Winner: Frankie Edgar

Women's bantamweights: Miesha Tate (18-6) versus Raquel Pennington (8-5)
This is going to be a fun one to watch, as both Tate and Pennington are pretty evenly matched. Tate has been on her game, for the most part, as of late. She's 18-6 record, and 5-3 in the UFC. Tate had a 5-fight win streak snapped in loss to Nunes back in July at UFC 200. So she's going to look to rebound in this fight. Oh and Tate has scored takedowns in 6 of 8 UFC fights (9 total takedowns). She's not afraid to take this fight to the ground, where she can excel. Raquel Pennington is 8-5 lifetime, including going 5-2 in the UFC. Pennington is riding a 3-fight win streak, her last loss coming to Holly Holm back in February 2015. Pennington has a +71 significant strike differential in UFC fights (356-285). Pennington has an all around game, without much a definitive style. Tate figures to have a grappling advantage, especially if she's able to create scrambles with regularity. Tate has always flourished when a fight falls under a little chaos.

Winner: Miesha Tate

Welterweights: Kelvin Gastelum (12-2) versus Donald Cerrone (31-7)
This fight has been removed from the card because Gastelum missed weight.

Middleweights: Chris Weidman (13-1) versus Yoel Romero (11-1)
Another hometown kid comes to his backyard for a fight. Chris Weidman, a native of Baldwin New York, gets a shot to fight on a very big stage in his backyard. Weidman put in hours and hours of work into the UFC's lobbying efforts to legalize MMA in New York. His dream finally came true tonight and he's on the card. Weidman almost missed the fight due to a herniated disk in his neck. But his health came to fix itself out, so here he is. Weidman is 9-1 lifetime in the UFC, this fight tonight being first non-title fight since July 2012. Weidman has a 56 percent takedown accuracy, which is the second highest among active UFC middleweights. he's going up against Yoel Romero, who is 11-1 in his career and a perfect 7-0 in UFC fights. in fact, nine of the eleven wins Romero has have come by knockout Romero has a 78 percent takedown defense, which is the fifth highest among active UFC middleweights. This one is a little tough to predict. Weidman will pressure and should have success doing so, but his guard needs to be up at all times. Romero is good but Weidman is better.

Winner: Chris Weidman

Strawweight championship: Joanna Jedrzejczyk (12-0) vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz (10-0)
Battle of unbeatens for the Strawweight title! A battle of wills to see who has the best in the business today. Jedrzejczyk is unbeaten at 12-0 and is 6-0 in the UFC. This is her fourth defense of UFC women's strawweight title and she has outlanded opponents 575-195 in significant strikes in her UFC title fights. Meanwhile her opponent, Karolina Kowalkiewicz is 10-0, and is 3-0 in UFC fights. She has won her past five fights by decision Kowalkiewicz has a +95 significant strike defense in UFC fights, which could make things very tough for Joanna. Kowalkiewicz can be very, very efficient with her knees in the clinch, which could zap the energy of a Jedrzejczyk (who cuts a good amount of weight to fight at 115), but Jedrzejczyk's offensive firepower still wins out.

Winner: Joanna Jedrzejczyk

Welterweight championship: Tyron Woodley (16-3) vs. Stephen Thompson (13-1)
A very solid fight between these two guys should be on the slate for the night. Woodley is 16-3 lifetime and 6-2 in UFC fights. Five of the ten previous champions have defended welterweight title at least once. Woodley has a 68 percent significant strike defense, which is best among active UFC welterweights. He's going up against Stephen Thompson, who's 13-1, while going 8-1 in UFC fights. Thompson has a seven-fight win streak. His last loss came at the hands of Matt Brown at UFC 145 back in April of 2012. Thompson has a 4.7 strikes landed per minute rate, which is sixth-highest among active UFC welterweights. Tyron Woodley has a background in wrestling, since he did it in college. Here though, I don't think it will be much help, because Thompson has not surrendered a takedown since 2012, which was also the last (and only) time he suffered a loss. Thompson's size and style creates so much real estate between himself and an opponent, which will be a big edge in this fight.

Winner: Stephen Thompson

Lightweight championship: Eddie Alvarez (28-4) vs. Conor McGregor (20-3)
This is the big one. its the fight that everybody has been talking about leading up to tonight, and for good reason. Its a battle of two of the very best in the business. With all his talk, its easy to see why Conor McGregor is the man in MMA right now. He can run his mouth, which makes for great TV, and he can back it up in the cage as well. Eddie Alvarez is coming to this fight to try and shut McGregor up for good. McGregor is 20-3 in his career and 8-1 in the UFC. he is seeking to become just the third man ever to win UFC titles in two divisions, with Randy Couture and BJ Penn being the other two. McGregor has earned 17 of 20 wins by knockout, six of which have come in the UFC, which is tied for most since 2013. Eddie Alvarez is no slouch. He's 28-4, with a 3-1 UFC record. oOf note, none of the previous seven lightweight champions lost in their first title defense. Oh and Alvarez has earned 15 of his 28 wins by knockout. So many have doubted McGregor's ability to handle a well-conditioned grappler. The inevitable matchup has been given its own name: "The wrestler question." This should get answered one way or another.

Winner:  Conor McGregor

(Stats and info provided by ESPN.com)

MLB Gold Glove Winners

Ah the Gold Glove award. Handed out every year at the end of baseball season. This prestigious awartd is given out every winter to the players. In order to win the award, players are judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National and American League, as voted by the managers and coaches in each league. Managers are not permitted to vote for their own players. Additionally, a sabermetric component provided by Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) accounts for approximately 25 percent of the vote.

So here are the winners of the Gold Glove Awards for the 2016 Major League Baseball season.

National League
Catcher: Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants (1st Gold Glove)
1st Base: Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs (1st Gold Glove)
2nd Base: Joe Panik, San Francisco Giants (1st Gold Glove)
3rd Base: Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies (4th Gold Glove)
Shortstop: Brandon Crawford, Giants (2nd Gold Glove)
Left Field: Starling Marte, Pittsburgh Pirates (2nd Gold Glove)
Center Field: Ender Inciarte, Atlanta Braves (1st Gold Glove)
Right Field: Jason Heyward, Chicago Cubs (4th Gold Glove)
Pitcher: Zack Greinke, Arizona Diamondbacks (3rd Gold Glove)


Anerican League 
Catcher: Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals (4th Gold Glove)
1st Base: Mitch Moreland, Texas Rangers (1st Gold Glove)
2nd Base: Ian Kinsler, Detroit Tigers (1st Gold Glove)
3rd Base: Adrian Beltre, Texas Rangers (5th Gold Glove)
Shortstop: Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Indians (1st Gold Glove)
Left Field: Brett Gardner, New York Yankees (1st Gold Glove)
Center Field: Kevin Kiermaier, Tampa Bay Rays (2nd Gold Glove)
Right Field: Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox (1st Gold Glove)
Pitcher: Dallas Keuchel, Houston Astros (3rd Gold Glove)

So there you have this years Gold Glove winners! Did they get it right?

Best & Worst Of NFL Week Nine

We've just cleared the halfway point of the National Football League season, and its already starting to help clear up the playoff picture around the league just a little bit. Some teams are starting to pick up steam after slow starts. Miami has won three straight games and are now back at the .500 mark. The New York Giants have also won three straight games, now sitting at two games over .500 and are only two back of first place in the division. On the other end of the spectrum, we’re seeing teams that started hot taking turns for the worst, like the Minnesota Vikings, who have now lost three in a row after starting the season unbeaten. Then there's the Philadelphia Eagles who have lost two straight and have fallen to .500. Week nine also meant a good week for some of the mediocre teams in the league, like the Panthers, Lions, Colts and Ravens all picking up some measure of respectability. Here's just some of the best and worst of week nine in the NFL.

Best:
Jason Witten, Tight End Dallas Cowboys
Well well well, look who finally decided to show up. Jason Witten has been known throughout his career as one of the best pass catching tight ends in the game. This year, he had been quite for the most part, except for a decent game against the Giants in week one. Well in week nine, a Cowboys 35-10 win over the Cleveland Browns, Witten had his best game of the year so far. He had eight catches (on just 10 targets) for 134 yards and a touchdown. That’s more yards than he’s had in any two games combined this season. Oh and also more catches than in all but one game this year. I know it was against the Cleveland Browns but still those are solid numbers no matter who was catching the passes. Witten can do a little bit of it all all and had himself a week and showed that he can still be a very effective pass catcher.

Worst:
Travis Kelce, Tight End Kansas City Chiefs
Under normal circumstances, you might not consider Kelce to make this list. But with what happened this week in the Chiefs win over the Jaguars. Kelce got so mad at a referee for failing to call what he thought was pass interference that he was flagged, causing him to yank a towel out of his back pocket and throw it at the referee. That earned him another flag (although the referee had already used his flag, forcing him to use his hat) and ejection from the game. Kelce had to leave the field, will probably get fined, and, worst of all, he got made fun of by the Jaguars as he left the field. You'd think that a guy with that kind of talent level, who had a pretty good week last week over in London, he'd be able to keep his cool and stay on the field to be able to help out his football team. Didn't happen this week, and Kelce was kicked out of the game because he wasn't able to use his head.

Best:
Mark Ingram, Running Back New Orleans Saints
It's been no secret around the league that Mark Ingram is a very solid running back. He's become one of the stars in this league at the running back spot and Sunday in the Saints 41-23 victory over the 49ers, you saw why. Ingram had 15 carries for 156 yards and a score in the victory. Sure, he's not as flashy as a guy like say for example Adrian Peterson, but Mark Ingram can produce in his own right. His stat line from Sunday is a very good indication of that. Ingram had the 2nd most rushing yards of any running back in the league in week nine, the only back who ran for more yards was Melvin Gordon of the Chargers (he ran for 198). Ingram is a good back and should not be taken for granted. Now lets see if he can keep this kind of play up next week against a very tough Denver defense.

Worst:
Carson Wentz, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
When the season started, Carson Wentz looked great through the first three weeks of the season. The second overall pick from this years draft came out like a house of fire at the start, looking like he might blow off the doors in Philly and make that team his outright. Well. since then, Carson has seemed to hit the wall. He's thrown five picks the last five games, including two in the Eagles 28-23 loss to the Giants. The worst aspect is that his two interceptions came on consecutive drives, and both led directly to touchdowns for the Giants. It was just an ugly game for the rookie, who appears to be overthinking things midway through the season instead of playing without a care in the world. He has the talent to make a great QB, he's got eight TD's on the year but he really has seemed to slow down the past few games.

Best:
Dallas Cowboys Offense
We already talked about a part of this offense before with Jason Witten. Let us not forget the other two bigtime players that had a major hand in the Boys big win over the Browns on Sunday. First, there's Ezekiel Elliott, who had a strong day against the Browns. Zek finished with 92 rushing yards and two touchdowns on just 18 carries. This kid continues to make the most out of every opportunity Dallas’ amazing offensive line gives him. Then there's the Cowboys other surprise strar rookie, Quarterback Dak Prescott (feels like I've been saying this a lot lately). Dak Prescott was nearly flawless Sunday, finishing with 247 yards, while going 21 of 27 to go along with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He rebounded nicely after struggling in Week 8. Dallas has been one of the top teams in the NFC and with the way the Boys have been playing as of late I see no reason to make any player changes unless somebody gets hurt.

Worst:
Jacksonville Jaguars Offense
Lets face facts, the Jaguars offense really has stunk up the Joint the last couple of weeks. Jacksonville came up short in a 19-14 loss to Kansas City. Blake Bortles threw an early interception that lead to quick points by Kansas City. He's not the only one to make mistakes on this day for the Jacksonville offense. Chris Ivory, Bryan Walters and T.J. Yeldon all coughed up the ball, resulting in three recovered fumbles for Kansas City’s defense. Jacksonville now sits at 2-6 on the season, and there is not a single reason to believe Bortles is going to turn his season around, and head coach Gus Bradley, who now has a career coaching record of 14-42, has never given us any reason to trust he knows how to help the franchise become a winner.

Best:
Odell Beckham Jr, Wide Receiver New York Giants
OK I know he's had people on his case because he's been more of a diva this year then a superstar wide receiver. Don't get me wrong, this guy has all the talent in the world to be the best in the game. He showed up this week in a big way against the Eagles. Beckham didn’t explode with a huge game yardage-wise, as he finished with four catches for 46 yards, but half of his catches were for touchdowns. In the process, he made some history by becoming the first player since 1967 with 30 receiving touchdowns in his first 35 games. It wasn't the biggest yardage day of his career, he had one of those earlier this year against Baltimore. But his two scores came at a big time and helped the Giants, who were without Victor Cruz, to their third straight win. New York’s offense has the potential to become one of the most dangerous in the NFL from week to week. We got a taste of what it can accomplish in Week 9 against a very good Philadelphia defense. Now they just need to keep it rolling against the Bengals on Monday night.

Worst:
Chris Boswell, Kicker Pittsburgh Steelers
Boswell is a decent kicker, but he's horrible when it comes to on-side kicks. On Sunday, Pittsburgh came up short against the Ravens, falling 21-14. Boswell had the worst onside kick attempt in history. No, really, in all of football history. I defy you to find a worse decision to one, try this soccer trick, then find worse execution of any athletic move in any sport. It went viral after the mishap and I really don't think he's going to be trying that silly move again anytime soon.

Memo To Andrew Ladd

This past off season was supposed to be a big one for the New York Islanders. They we're coming off a 2nd round playoff appearance for the first time since 1993. Once summertime rolled around, the Islanders were supposed to try and build on last season's success and take another giant step forward. New York lost Kyle Okposo, Franz Nielsen and Matt Martin all to free agency. The only player of note they signed to a deal was giving a seven year contract worth $38.5 million to Andrew Ladd. So far, Ladd's experience here on Long Island hasn't been a very good one.

So far, threw eleven games this season, Ladd has just one point. ONE POINT! You would like to hope and think, at least from an Islanders Fan perspective, that he is only going through a phase and he will snap out of it fast. Over the course of his career Andrew Ladd has been a pretty productive player. When he plays a full 82 game season, he can average 50-60 points in a given season, which are solid numbers. he's not going to set the world on fire like some of the other left wingers in the game today. Guys like Johnny Gaudreau, Alex Ovechkin, Jamie Benn. Daniel Sedin, and Taylor Hall, just to name a few, are all placed higher on a talent level list than Andrew Ladd. Facts are Ladd is no slouch, he has scored 466 points in 769 career games. He's won two Stanley Cups during his career with the Blackhawks. The guy can produce and he knows that winning feeling. Right now, at this exact moment, its not there for Andrew Ladd. He was a 25 goal scorer last season, so he has no problem putting the puck in the back of the net.

One of the reasons he was brought in to play with the Islanders was that scoring ability. For whatever reason it hasn't materalized. It maybe lack of chemistry with Isles captain John Tavares, who many people had Ladd pegged to be playing with all year. At this point, Ladd's play has been so subpar that he's slated to play on the 4th line. Head Coach jack Capuano (Who I'm not really of fan of personally but that's another argument for another day), has moved Cal Cluterbuck and Josh Bailey to the top line to play with Tavares for a little while. Memo to Andrew Ladd, you're getting paid quite a bit of money START EARNING YOUR PAYCHECK! I know its easier said then done, and yelling at Ladd on this blog may not help but you never know. I'm sure Ladd has been hearing a lot of talk like this over the last couple of weeks and he knows that he hasn't been playing very well. I know it takes players a little while to get adjusted to new surroundings and new teammates, but once they find their groove and get comfortable, the game comes back to them and they play to their full talent level.

Ladd hasn't found that level yet. Maybe the pressure of the contract is getting to him. Maybe he hasn't found that level of comfort playing in Brooklyn yet. Maybe he left his game in Chicago. Who knows. But whatever is getting to Andrew Ladd he needs to get it figured out and get it figured out fast otherwise, it could end very poorly for him. I usually give players the benifit of the doubt. After all they are playing in the National hockey league, the best hockey league in all of the planet. If your able to play in the NHL, you are the very best in the world. Even the worst player in the NHl is better than 97% of every other hockey player on earth. Andrew Ladd is one of those few special talents that's playing in the worlds best league right now. But he sure isn't playing like it through his first almost dozen games with the Islanders and he better get it together fast. The Islanders are in the middle of the pack in scoring right now, without Ladd really producing. If he doesn't get it going soon, things could get away from him quite quickly

Championship To Chicago! Cubs Win Series!

Is the Champagine cold? It has to be, its been on ice for 108 years! Cubs fans, and the franchise as well, have been waiting a long, long time to celebrate and now they have a chance. Think about this, the Cubs haven't won a world championship since 1908 and they haven't played for a wold title since 1945. Its been a struggle for the Cubs, but they finally got over the hump and claimed a championship, beating the Cleveland Indians (a franchise dealing with a drought in its own right) in a hard fought seven game series. Before we even get to break down game seven, here's a quick look back at what happened to get us to that point.

Game one was supposed to be a pitching duel between Corey Kluber and Jon Lester. But Lester had trouble holding runners on (which the Cubs couldn't really do) and the Indians ran with it. Roberto Pérez hit two home runs to power the Tribe offense in a 6-0 win in the opener. He became the first ever ninth-place hitter with two homers in a World Series game, the first Indians player to hit two homers in a World Series game, and the first Puerto Rican-born player to hit two homers in a World Series game. So yeah, Perez was in a hitters groove in the first game. Andrew Miller and Cody Allen finished the victory for the Indians despite Miller having to pitch out of a bases loaded jam in the seventh. But that's been something that has been a major strength of the Indians all playoffs long. If the offense gave the Tribe a lead, it was almost a lock that the pen would shut the door. They did just that in game one.

Game two saw Chicago bring their bats, as Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo got the party started, giving the Cubs an early lead. Ben Zobrist, Kyle Schwarber and Addison Russell helped add to the offense, powering the Cubs to a 5-1 win to even the series. Jake Arrieta went five and two thirds, striking out six. Aroldis Chapman entered in the eight to finish the game for the Cubs, mowing down Tribe hitters left and right. The win marked the Cubs' first World Series win since 1945 and tied up the series at one game all. The win marked Indians manager Terry Francona's first loss in ten World Series games. Game three, the first World Series game played at Wrigley Field since 1945, but for some reason, the Cubs bats failed to show up. They were held to just five hits in the 3rd game. The game's only run came off a Coco Crisp RBI single that scored Michael Martínez in the seventh inning. Josh Tomlin, Andrew Miller, Bryan Shaw, and Cody Allen combined to shut out the Cubs. Allen earned his sixth postseason save as Javier Báez struck out swinging to end the game, leaving the tying and winning runs in scoring position (the last two strikes Baez swong at pitches that were out of the strikezone and could have loaded the bases had he just held his swing). It was the fourth time in which the Cubs had lost in a shutout during the 2016 postseason.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Cubs got spanked by Kluber in game four. Cleveland walked away with a 7-2 win and a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. Chicago did score in the opening inning, but for the remainder of the game (which only went six innings for Kluber) Cory shut the door on the Cubs. Jason Kipnis put the Indians ahead 7–1 with a three-run home run in the seventh, although the Cubs got one run back in the eighth, on a Dexter Fowler home run off Andrew Miller, the first run he gave up in this post-season. With Cleveland up 3-1 in the series, it didn't really look good for the Cubs. It was a long shot, but there have been five other times in history where a team had come back from down three games to one in the World Series and won the series. It happened in 1925 (Pittsburgh Pirates over Washington Senators), 1958 (New York Yankees over Milwaukee Braves), 1968 (Detroit Tigers over St. Louis Cardinals), 1979 (Pittsburgh Pirates over Baltimore Orioles) and 1985 (Kansas City Royals over St. Louis Cardinals). It has been done before. So the Cubs had to do what hasn't been done since the 1979 Pirates and that is win the final two games of the series on the road.

Game five saw Chicago squeak out a 3-2 win to pull within 3-2 in the series. Chapman got another long save, this win being the first World Series win in Chicago for the Cubs since October 10th, 1945. Game six goes back to Cleveland and the Cubs brought their offense this time. Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, and Anthony Rizzo all homered in this game as the Cubs put a whooping on Tribe starter Josh Tomlin. Addison Russell drove in six of the nine runs for the Cubs in this game, which tied a World Series single-game record. Jake Arrieta became the first National League starting pitcher to notch two road wins in a single World Series since the St. Louis Cardinals' Bob Gibson in 1967. But for some reason, Joe Madden again wanted to use Aroldis Chapman in this baseball game, which was totally pointless in a blowout game. I know he wanted to leave a mark on this game but it showed me how little trust he had in the rest of the pen in the playoffs. That would loom large in game seven.

After Dexter Fowler gave the Cubs an early lead and David Ross added on to it (in his last ever game) with the long ball, it looked like it was a lock for the Cubs. Then, with a 5-1 lead late, it looked like it was a lock for Chicago. Cleveland wouldn't quite and were down 6-3 going into the 8th. The Indians tied the game in said inning, thanks to an RBI double by Brandon Guyer and a monster, line drive,  two-run home run by Rajai Davis off Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman. See what happened when you over use your closer. He gets burned. So as we get ready for extra innings, Cleveland gets hit with rain, causing a 17-minute rain delay. This would be huge for the Cubs and hurt the Tribe. Cleveland had the momentum going into the 10th, but they got cooled off, while Chicago was able to regroup themselves. Chicago scored two runs in the top of the tenth inning on a double by Zobrist and a single by Miguel Montero. The Indians scored a run on a single by Davis in the bottom of the tenth inning, but Mike Montgomery finished the game for Chicago, ending the series. Ben Zobrist won the World Series MVP award.

Game seven had all the high drama you could ask for. Drama of the highest order. Late game heroics, clutch hitting. it had everything. One thing that will I think stick with most fans in this series was Joe Madden and his mismanagement of the Pitching Staff. He showed a total lack of trust in his bullpen for guys other then Aroldis Chapman. Had the Tribe won the series, Joe Madden would have gone into the history books as a true goat instead of looking like a genius. It leaves one scratching ones head what exactly Madden was thinking at times during this series.

It doesn't really matter at the end of the day, the Chicago Cubs are the World Champions!

Best & Worst NFL Week Eight

We've hit the halfway point in the National Football League season. Week eight provided plenty of stuff for us to talk about. We got a tie game for the second week in a row in the league for the first time since 1997. There were shanked kicks in overtime, comeback victories, second-half collapses. These are just a few of the big events that unfolded this past week in the NFL. Tom Brady reminded Rex Ryan and the Bills who runs things in the AFC East. The Cleveland Browns reminded us all why they’re referred to as the Factory of Sadness. Green Bay spread the ball around a lot, but it couldn't help them out against Atlanta. Dallas established themselves as a big threat to come out of the NFC East, Jacksonville sucks and the Panthers are starting to look like themselves from a year ago. A lot went down in week eight. Here's some of the best and worst from the week that was.

Best:
Derek Carr, Quarterback Oakland Raiders
I think its now safe to be able to go on record and say that he's better then his brother David. There's little debate to at this point in their careers. Oakland put a beating on the Bucs, coming away with a 30-24 win. Carr had himself a fantastic day, going 40 of 59 for 513 yards and four touchdowns. Amari Cooper did have a fine day in his own right, with 12 catches for 173 yards and a score, but Carr has been the big leader for Oakland this year. Oh yeah, all of this coming with the Raiders having one of the worst days in league history by racking up 23 penalties for 200 yards. Oh and most of the numbers Carr put up came in the 2nd half, after he helped the Raiders erase a Bucs 10-3 halftime lead. Carr became the 3rd QB in NFL history with 500 pass yards, 4 TD passes and zero picks in a singe game, joining Ben Roethlisberger (2014) and Y.A. Tittle (1962) (ESPN Stats and Info).

Worst:
National Football League Officials
Its a rough life of an official in professional sports, and the National Football League officials are no exceptions. They are getting ripped on a lot around the sports world, by the players, the fans and the media. Well there was plenty of trashing of the officials that was going on around the league in week eight. A lot of players went off about the refs this week. Washington Redskins cornerback Josh Norman can expect a fine after ripping field judge Brad Freeman (Norman got hit with five flags, four for “hands to the face” of WRs, which tells me that Norman needs to change his style of play a little if he knows the flags are coming). Cam Newton got in on the act as well. After taking a low hit from Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Calais Campbell that didn’t result in a flag, Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton said he is sick of not being protected like other quarterbacks. Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman thought most of the calls went in the New Orleans Saints’ favor on Sunday, and let people know about it. It’s not uncommon for players to be upset with officials, but it is rare when they call officials out publicly. The NFL office won’t like that. Not a good look on the league.

Best:
Matt Forte, Running Back New York Jets
Well well well, what have we here. The Jets are actually really using their running backs. What a novel idea! The Jets are now riding a two game winning streak and they've been using Matt Forte pretty well the last two games. He caught two passes for sixteen yards and carried the ball 25 times for 82 yards and ran in two touchdowns. Think about the numbers here. In the three wins that the Jets have they've given the ball to Forte a lot. Sure he had a lot of carries in the loss to the Bengals week one, but the Jets should have won the ball game. In the Jets losses this year, the passing game has looked awful. A lot of it has to do with the fact that Forte never really touched the ball. In their three wins, Forte got plenty of touches of the football. So I hope the New York Jets take notes. Unless the Jets feed Forte like the beast he is the rest of the way, they can count on missing the playoffs.

Worst:
Cleveland Browns
They had the Jets right where they wanted them. Cleveland had a 20-7 halftime lead and they were dominating the football game like it was nobody's business. Josh McCown, playing in his first game back since his injury, and Terrelle Pryor were cooking early in this one. They connected on six passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. McCown showed no signs of rust and finished the first half with two touchdowns. Then the Browns took the field for the second half and the wheels fell off the wagon. McCown threw two second-half interceptions that led mercifully to just three points. Unfortunately for him, the Browns and their long-suffering fans, that was the difference in the 31-28 win for the Jets. While the Browns offense crapped the bed, the Jets offense woke up. Cleveland now sits at 0-8 on the year. No matter how bad things may look for your NFL franchise, you have no right to complain out loud anywhere near a Browns fan.

Best:
Jordan Reed, Tight End Washington Redskins
He's missed the last two weeks dealing with a concussion. First game back ended in a tie with the Cincinnati Bengals in London, but it was a statement game for both Reed and Tyler Eifert (who had nine catches for 102 yards and a score). Reed had nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown, showing that he has a flash for brilliant play still. Lets face facts, there's a good chance that behind Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots, Jordan Reed will probably be the best tight end in the game of football. Oh yeah, reed made nine catches out of thirteen targets from Kirk Cousins. Reed is good and looks like he may have found his game again.

Worst:
Jim Caldwell, Head Coach Detroit Lions
There's no promise made that this ruling could have turned the game around at all, but you never know. Detroit came up short against the Texans on Sunday, falling 20-13. With the Houston Texans leading 14-3 in the third quarter, it seemed like the Detroit Lions caught a break. DeAndre Hopkins caught a pass over the middle, seemed to gather himself with two short steps, then the Lions knocked the ball loose. Detroit clearly recovered. But it was called an incompletion. Caldwell never challenged. Instead of the Lions having the ball, the Texans kept possession and went on to kick a field goal. Even though it’s hard to get a play like that overturned on review, it could have been a turning point. According to the Detroit Free Press, Caldwell said his assistants told him “it did not look like it would be one that would be overturned because I think they applied the [catch] rule correctly.” Sometimes human error is made, so you did still have a chance to get the call overturned. If all else failed it gave your team a chance to rest and maybe come up with a plan to get back in the game

Best:
Dak Prescott, Quarterback Dallas Cowboys
Romo who? Yeah exactly. Dallas is without their star QB but they haven't really seemed to be missing him.  Dallas is 6-1 and are on top of the division. After dropping the opener against the Giants the first week, they have won six straight, including a come from behind 29-23 overtime win over the Eagles. Dak had a rough start to the game, but managed to settle down nicely and finished the game strong. Dez Bryant had 113 yards receiving, including a 22-yard TD catch with 3:04 left to tie the game and help the Boys overcome a 10-point deficit. Dak finished the day going 19 of 39 for 287 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Prescott's TD pass to tight end Jason Witten tied Troy Aikman's rookie franchise record of nine scoring passes. With the way he's played, Romo shouldn't be put under center the rest of the way, Dak has played that well.

Worst:
Seattle Seahawks Offensive Line
You'd like to think that the Seahawks would be contenders in the NFC. They have one of the best defenses in the league. You've got an offense that has talent with Russell Wilson, Doug Baldwin and Jimmy Graham. So why are the Seahawks struggling this year? Seattle let starting left tackle Russell Okung and starting right guard J.R. Sweezy walk this past offseason, and looked to fill the void with a collection of first-contract draft picks and veteran journeymen. Unsurprisingly, Seattle’s offensive line struggled to protect Wilson throughout Sunday’s 25–20 loss to New Orleans,  he was sacked once and hit three times by the Saints, but was under pressure on almost every snap , and the normally dominant Seahawks run game once again failed to launch. Seattle had one game last year where they didn't rush the ball over 100 yards. Now, against the Saints, they ran the ball only 74 times, the fourth straight game that the Seahawks couldn't run the ball for over a hundred yards.

2016-17 NBA Season Preview

Well another fall, another chance to take the hardwood. The chase for the Larry O'Brein Trophy starts now, with an 82 game schedule. That's right the National Basketball Association is back in business. Last time we saw the NBA in action, Lebron had just help lead the Cavs to their first ever NBA title. There's been quite a few changes that have been made in the league since we last saw an NBA game. Tim Duncan, Amar'e Stoudemire, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce all have called it a career and hung up their sneakers. Some of the teams around the league decided it was time for a change, thus leaving us with some new bench bosses. Brooklyn (Kenny Atkinson), Minnesota (Tom Thibodeau), Washington (Scott Brooks), Los Angeles Lakers (Luke Walton), Sacramento (Dave Joerger), Indiana (Nate McMillan), Orlando (Frank Vogel), Memphis (David Fizdale), Houston (Mike D'Antoni), and New York (Jeff Hornacek) all have new bench bosses.

As with any other sport, there are going to be some familiar faces playing in new cities this year. José Calderón, Jerian Grant and Robin Lopez were sent to the Chicago Bulls so that way Derrick Rose and Justin Holiday could land with the New York Knicks. Ersan İlyasova and Victor Oladipo got shipped from Orlando to Oklahoma City, so the Magic could land Serge Ibaka. Jeff Teague got traded to the Pacers as part of a three team deal that saw George Hill land with the Jazz. Then there was the player movement. A lot of money was spent in the offseason to try and either keep players or get the right players into the right system. Kevin Durant is now in Golden State, Matthew Dellavedova is a Buck (via sign and trade with Cleveland), Matt Barnes went to the Kings, Al Horford moved along to Boston, Joakim Noah came over to the Knicks, Al Jefferson went to Indiana, Dwight Howard moved on to Atlanta, Pau Gasol went to San Antonio, they are just some of the players who have changed uniforms for this year.

There's a lot of stories to be told between now and April. In total, there will be 1,230 games played in that time frame. The players will travel millions of miles, log thousands of minutes and hope they get the right bounce, basket or turnover that helps them win enough games to make the playoffs. Being able to correctly pick who's going to finish where during the regular season is a bit of a challenge, but its a fun one at that. So with that being said, here's how things go down in the NBA this season.

Western Conference
1. Golden State Warriors (62-20)*
They were the best team in the league last year, setting the single season record for wins with 73. Ultimately, they fell short of the end goal, falling to Lebron and the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals in seven games. So the best team in the West from a year ago did a little bit of retooling. Harrison Barnes and Leandro Barbosa both left town. The two biggest names to come to Golden State were Kevin Durant and David West. Durant joins a loaded starting five that already has Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Zaza Pachulia. The biggest thing with the Warriors is that Durant is now on board and all the media attention will be on the Warriors, no matter what they do.

2. San Antonio Spurs (59-23)*
Having the loss of Tim Duncan, due to retirement, could make things very interesting for the Spurs. its an upheaval of sorts when the face of the franchise for the last 19 seasons is no longer there. But, life moves on and so do the Spurs. So trying to replace Duncan in that lineup is Pau Gasol, who they signed away from the Bulls. He's not quite a perfect fit to replace Duncan, but he's going to do enough to get by in this offense. Manu Ginobili and Patty Mills will be expected to a lot coming off the bench, as will David Lee. Going Pau in the starting five will be Tony Parker (who isn't as quick as he once was), Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard (one of the best defenders in the game), and LaMarcus Aldridge. All that will help the Spurs keep pace with Golden State all season.

3. Los Angeles Clippers (58-24)*
Doc Rivers has to be doing something right in Los Angeles. As the Head of Basketball Operations and Head Coach of the team, Rivers knows better then anybody what to do to keep his team in contention in the tough Western Conference. The starting five of Chris Paul, J.J. Redick, Paul Pierce, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan are in tact and back together once again. They brought in Marreese Speights, Brandon Bass, and Raymond Felton to help out with the bench and maybe help out with one of the worst rebounding teams in all of basketball in the Clippers. What I think is going to stick in the craw of the Clippers was the way last season ended. They got hurt, had the injuries pile up and that allowed Portland to knock them out of the playoffs. If the health can hold up for the Clippers, they are going to make a run at it and give Paul Pierce a solid run at a title in his final year in the NBA.

4. Memphis Grizzlies (47-35)*
Memphis couldn't be any happier that the new season is getting underway. No team got beat up by injuries more then the Grizzlies, who used an NBA record 28 different players during the course of a season. David Fizdale takes over as the teams new head coach and has a lot of tools to be able to work with. Chandler Parsons was brought on board to help bolster a solid starting five, which also includes Mike Conley, Tony Allen, Marc Gasol, and Zach Randolph. So there's plenty of talent on this basketball team. Grit and grind philosophy got the Grizzlies to 56, 50 and 55 wins from 2013-15 and there’s no reason to think they can’t get back to that level as long as the bottom doesn’t fall out again in the health department. They’re going to be back in contention in the West again this season.

5. Utah Jazz (46-36)*
Sure, playing basketball in Utah isn't as attractive as it was a while back. But the Jazz decided to create a blueprint and stick with it. Signing free agents in Utah hasn't been easy, so drafting has been the best way for the Jazz to go. Boris Diaw was brought in via trade and Joe Johnson was given a nice sized contract. Oh yeah and they brought in George Hill as part of a three team deal, with the Pacers and Hawks. Utah has plenty of talent in the starting five to make some noise, pending that Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert, George Hill, and Rodney Hood can stay healthy and on the court. Coach Quin Snyder is known as a players coach and can make this work in Utah. They have a lot of talent on this basketball team that can make a lot of noise in the West. It's been four years since the Jazz last made the post season and they finally break that dry spell this year with a young, fast team that could hang with some of the other teams in the talent loaded Western Conference.

6. Portland Trail Blazers (45-37)*
This was a team who last year was expected to be sitting near the bottom of the Conference in the West. They didn't do that. They won 44 games and knocked off the Clippers in the first round, granted the Clippers were banged up, but still they won a playoff series a season ago. Now they have the itch to get back there. Damian Lillard has had a huge coming out party the last few years, so there's no denying that he's becoming a big superstar in this game. The same argument can be made for CJ McCollum, who is really start to come into his own in this sport. Evan Turner was brought on board to a big contract to get him away from the Celtics. Turner is a very versatile player, so he is going to be a big help to this Portland team. It's probably going to happen that Damian and CJ are going to be relied on a lot in Portland, so if they Blazers want to win, they need other guys on this team to step it up and help build off the momentum that the team had from a season ago.

7. Oklahoma City Thunder (44-38)*
This was supposed to be a good summer for the Thunder. They almost knocked out the Warriors in the West finals last year. They had the pieces in place. Or so you thought. Things kinda looked like the wheels were falling off for OKC this summer. First Kevin Durant decides he's going to take off for Golden State. Then Domantas Sabonis, Victor Oladipo, and Ersan İlyasova were brought in from Orlando in exchange for Serge Ibaka. Dion Waiters also took off, signing with the Miami Heat. Billy Donovan has a lot of work ahead of him this year, coming a year after beating the Spurs in the playoffs a season ago. Russell Westbrook is going to be relied on bigtime this season in OKC, a chance to really prove to the rest of the basketball world that he has what it takes to be a bigtime star in this game. Victor Oladipo is going to be counted on to help support Westbrook. There is enough talent here in Oklahoma City to get into the playoffs, but the Thunder won't be going very far.

8. Houston Rockets (41-39)*
Dwight Howard is no longer a factor in Houston. He got them to one playoff trip in Houston. Dwight and Pablo Prigioni are both gone. In steps new head coach Mike D'Antoni, who has some work ahead of him. James Harden has this team to himself, so lets see what he can do with it. Nenê will be a big factor for this Rockets team as well. This team could put the ball in the hoop, running a D'Antoni lead offense, which is a run and gun style of basketball. Patrick Beverley, Harden, Clint Capela, Trevor Ariza, and Ryan Anderson are expected to score big. The thing with Houston is that they were expected to be a title contending team last year. Now they might be lucky if they make it to the playoffs. Getting into the playoffs will take uncharacteristic defense from a Mike D’Antoni team. So we shall see how things go in Houston this season.

9. Minnesota Timeberwolves (41-41)
Things are going to turn around in Minnesota this season. New Coach Tom Thibodeau and General Manager Scott Layden have plenty of young talent to really be able to run with in the leauge this season. Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins won Rookie of the Year in back to back years, that has to mean something good for the Wolves don't it? Gorgui Dieng, Ricky Rubio, and Zach LaVine round out the starting five of what is going to be a solid contending team in Minnesota this year. I mean think about what's going on in Minnesota. Minnesota has a respected coach, two top-flight talents, a promising incoming rookie and a young, improving core. This will be a huge step up for the Wolves, who won only 29 games a season ago, but they still have some learning to do. Towns and Wiggins will carry the team, but they need the rest of the supporting cast to step up and make an impact. They're close but not quite there yet as being a challanging team out West.

10. Dallas Mavericks (40-42)
Give owner Mark Cuban a lot of credit he keeps trying to hit it big on the free agent market. He may not always get it right in hitting it out of the park, but at least he keeps trying. Chandler Parsons and Raymond Felton are both no longer in Texas. Quincy Acy and Harrison Barnes brought in to help take the pressure off Dirk, who is on his last few years in the league. Barnes can carry some of the load to take the pressure off the 38 year old Dirk. Rick Carlisle will have a hill to climb with his horses in Dallas, and will have them scrapping to make the bottom half of the West bracket. They're a ver a long-shot to make the playoffs.

11. Sacramento Kings (31-51)
Its not exactly going to be a fun season in Sacramento this year if your an NBA Fan. Rajon Rondo and Quincy Acy are both out of the city, while Matt Barnes and Arron Afflalo were brought into the mix. Sacramento's starting five of Darren Collison, Arron Afflalo, Rudy Gay, Willie Cauley-Stein, and DeMarcus Cousins are going to be a solid team, but they might be overmatched by most of the teams in the West.

12. Denver Nuggets (30-52)
Last season was a tough go for Denver, a fourth place finish isn't exactly what the Nuggets had in mind. Michael Malone has been brought on board to coach the team and hopefully help turn things around in Denver. Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried and Emmanuel Mudiay are expected to carry the offensive load and are expected to help bring along Nikola Jokic. Just by looking at this young roster, Denver has a solid team and a great upside to it. Denver has a good mix of young talent and veteran leadership to at least be somewhat contending. There's a lot of pressure on this young team, but they may not have enough yet to really contend in the West.

13. New Orleans Pelicans (30-52)
Again a lot of young talent to work with in New Orleans, with Anthony Davis leading the charge. He's the key guy on this Pelicans basketball team. Sad truth is there's nothing much around him. Drafting Buddy Hield was a good move for the Pelicans, young kid with good upside to his all around game. Lance Stephenson will be there coming off the bench to help the kid out. But outside of Jrue Holiday, Tyreke Evans, and Davis, tghere's nothing really to get excited about in New Orleans for the NBA season. Sorry Pelicans fans but its gonna be a long year.

14. Phoenix Suns (26-56)
The future does look a little bit bright in Phoenix. Coach Earl Watson has pieces to work with, in the form of two top-eight draft picks. Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss are expected to try and contribute. Devon Booker is coming off an encouraging rookie season, and they have a returning Eric Bledsoe to monitor the kids. It’s tough to find much fun in another losing season, barring a dramatic roster shift, but there will be a lot to see in Phoenix amid long-term implications for the Pacific Division and beyond. Even with several veterans in prominent roles, 2016-17 is about the future.

15. Los Angeles Lakers (24-58)
Now lets start the Post-Kobe era in Los Angeles. The future and rebuild is bright in LA. Kobe has hung up the sneakers. Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov were brought in to help lead the young kids on this basketball team. Julius Randle and D’Angelo Russell are experienced, Jordan Clarkson is more experienced, rookie Brandon Ingram has a bright future at small forward, rookie Luke Walton has a bright future as coach. That's about it. Expect a lot of losses and growing pains in LA this season.

Eastern Conference:
1. Cleveland Cavaliers (59-23)*
They are the defending NBA champions and are once again a tough team to beat. There wasn't a whole lot of roster movement by the Cavs this year. Matthew Dellavedova isn't an option in Cleveland (instead heading to Milwaukee). Bringing in Mike Dunleavy and Chris Andersen will be a nice help. The starting five of Kyrie Irving, J.R. Smith, Tristan Thompson, Kevin Love, and LeBron James are expected to rock and roll once again as the best team in the Eastern Conference. Unless a rash of injuries hits the Cavs, they should be back in the finals once again.

2 Toronto Raptors (54-28)*
Toronto made it all the way to the Eastern Conference finals last season. That's how good they were. Guess what? They're going to be that good again this year too. Luis Scola and Bismack Biyombo is a bit of a hit to the Raptors but GM Masai Ujiri and coach Dwane Casey are in it for the long haul and have helped mold the team to a talent loaded roster. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are back together and should be raising a lot of eyebrows this year as a dynamic duo. Jonas Valanciunas is going to be key this year with the loss of Biyombo in terms of defense. Toronto is good, they are balanced and will be competing with Cleveland for the top spot in the East this year.

3. Boston Celtics (53-27)*
Even thought they got tripped up by the Hawks last year in the first round of the playoffs, Boston took huge steps in the right direction. Head Coach Brad Stevens lead the Celtics to a 48 win season, something that hasn't happened since the Big Three ran things in Boston. Al Horford was brought on board to bolster this team and he shouldn't have a problem doing it. Horford creates even more space for All-Star Isaiah Thomas to exploit on offense. Amir Johnson, Jae Crowder, and Avery Bradley round out the starting five in beantown. They are a very good team and can beat anybody on any given night. They're not quite at the same level yet as Toronto or Cleveland, but they are close enough.

4. Atlanta Hawks (49-33)*
Sure its going to sting losing Al Horford to Boston in the offseason, but lets face the facts the Hawks are still a good basketball team. Jarrett Jack, Dennis Schroder, and most notably Dwight Howard were brought in Since it may take a little while for Howard and Schroder to get adjusted, so Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver and Kent Bazemore will be expected to help stabilize things in Atlanta till everybody gets adjusted to their roles correctly. Throw in Tim Hardaway Jr and Kris Humphries coming off the bench, so it makes for interesting thing. Still the Hawks are good enough to settle in as a playoff team.

5. Detroit Pistons (47-35)*
Stan Van Gundy has done a great job to really build up this Pistons team. Two years ago, they won 29 games. Last year they won 44 games and made the playoffs. Andre Drummond is the undoubted leader of this young basketball team. Average age of this Pistons team is 23 years old. Michael Gbinije and Henry Ellenson were brought in through the draft to bolster this Pistons lineup, which would be a good buildup. Tobias Harris will be counted on again to help move the offense along in Detroit. The Pistons are going to be a fun team to watch, because everybody is buying into Stan Van Gundy's system. They believe like he believes that the system will work. Detroit is going to be a very tough team.

6. Washington Wizards (44-38)*
This was one of the teams that was kind of interested in Kevin Durant, but it went nowhere quick. Instead, new coach Scott Brooks got to work on trying to re-work this Wizards roster. Brooks already had to do that with Durant and Westbrook in Oklahoma City, so now he has John Wall and Bradley Beal to try and mold the same way he did the boys in OKC. Since they couldn't land Durant, they gave Beal a MONSTER contract, but with the way money was thrown around the league this summer, it may be money well spent. Losing Nenê may hurt a tad but Markieff Morris could be a nice addition. Him with Wall and Beal could be a threat. Wall, Beal and Gortat will have to help carry the load, until more of the young talent can get up to speed and contribute. The Wizards will still make the post season.

7. Indiana Pacers (42-40)*
Paul George is back in the mix in Indiana. now you can add in Al Jefferson and Jeff Teague to the mix. So new coach Nate McMillan has some fun stuff to play with. Losing Jordan Hill to the Wolves is tough but by adding Jeff Teague will be seen as an upgrade, if Teague can stay healthy and produce. Paul George is back, this is his team, he runs the show. Thaddeus Young, Jeff Teague, Monta Ellis, and Myles Turner can all produce and having Jefferson come off the bench is going to be big for Indiana. They were the talk of the East a few seasons ago for being able to really challenge Cleveland. Now they're trying to get back to that team. They are a good team and will be able to hang around a while in the East.

8. New York Knicks (41-41)*
Talk about a big surprise in the East, it might be the Knicks. Derick Rose and Jokim Noah were the big additions to this ball club that was on an upswing. They gave up Robin Lopez, José Calderón, and Jerian Grant to get Rose, but it may be worth it IF Derick Rose can stay healthy. Same argument can be made for Noah as well, as he's delt with injury problems the last couple of seasons. Just four years ago they won 54 games, they haven't come close to that since. now they have the horses for new coach Jeff Hornacek. He's got Noah and Rose, both healthy and Kristaps Porziņģis entering his 2nd full year in the league, they will be a good basketball team. Sure Arron Afflalo, Derrick Williams, Langston Galloway, and Amar'e Stoudemire, who retiredd, are all gone, but this team may be better off. The biggest thing with this Knicks team is they need to show that they can stay on the court. Health and an ability to gel together will be huge for the Knicks. Back to the playoffs they go this year.

9. Chicago Bulls (38-44)
Things are sure changing in the Windy City. Native son Derick Rose left for New York. In his place is another Chicago native, Dwayne Wade, who ended his tenure with the Miami Heat to come home. So to did Rajon Rondo, while not a local boy, but he did come to a challenging team in Chicago. Coach Fred Hoiberg has new toys to play with in Chicago, because Wade and Rondo will be joined by Robin Lopez, Nikola Mirotic, and Jimmy Butler in the starting five. It also helps when you have Taj Gibson coming off the bench. What I want to know is how much really does Dwayne Wade have left in the tank to be effective at this level? The Bulls will be able to put up a fight and they'll be able to float around the .500 mark for much of the year.

10. Charlotte Hornets (38-44)
This could be a team in the fence in the NBA this year. Al Jefferson, Jeremy Lin, and Courtney Lee are all gone, buys playing in other cities. Roy Hibbert was brought into the mix, sure he is a shell of the player he was in at his best in Indiana, but under head coach Steve Clifford, he MIGHT be able to revive his career. Hibbert joins a core starting five of Kemba Walker, Nic Batum, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Marvin Williams. And lets not forget about Cody Zeller. He will be battling Roy Hibbert for the starting job at center, a battle that could last well into the regular season. That’s a good thing. Because the Hornets need more from Zeller at this stage of his career. I'll give the Hornets credit, they have a solid starting five and core, they could be something here. They'll challenge the Knicks all year for that final playoff spot.

11. Milwaukee Bucks (36-46)
This is going to be rough in Milwaukee this year. Khris Middleton is going to be of no use to the Bucks for anytime soon, (six months to perhaps for the entire season) due to a torn hamstring. That's not really a good way for things to start off. Without Middleton there to space Milwaukee’s offense, opponents will be able to load up on Giannis Antetokonmpo and Jabari Parker, which adds more pressure to those two guys, who are already going to be under enough as it is. Sure, the Bucks did add Matthew Dellavedova to the mix, Miles Plumlee is an option and Greg Monroe along with Mirza Teletovic coming off the bench maybe able to produce a little. But lets face facts. The East is too deep for the Bucks, the best thing for them to do is maneuver at the trade deadline and prep for 2017-18.

12. Orlando Magic (35-47)
Lets face facts, Orlando has been regretting letting Dwight Howards go, and the Magic are still digging their way out of the rubble the one-time face of the franchise left in his wake. Frank Vogel takes over as the coach in Orlando, and I wish him the best of luck he's going to need it this season. Getting Serge Ibaka was a HUGE pickup for the Magic. But it cost them Domantas Sabonis, Victor Oladipo, and Ersan İlyasova. Brandon Jennings left for the Knicks. Outside of Serge and Jeff Green, there's nobody in this Magic lineup, either starter or off the bench, that really strikes fear into your heart. Long season for the Magic this year.

13. Miami Heat (34-48)
The Dwayne Wade era is done in Miami. Its not going to be a good season for the Heat this year. Justise Winslow, Goran Dragic, and Hassan Whiteside are going to be asked to carry this team. The outlook for the Heat changed dramatically the day Dwyane Wade decided he was done with the Heat. There was no guarantee Bosh was going to return anyway, but that was another wicked blow for a team that would have been in the top four mix in the playoff chase. Now they’ll have to develop chemistry on the fly and hope they are healthy enough to stay in the playoff mix early. A more realistic expectation is that the youngsters overachieve and they battle for one of those final playoff spots.

14. Brooklyn Nets (21-61)
Its been a bad stretch for the Nets, and its not getting any better. Kenny Atkinson has a tall task ahead of him to get the Nets back on track. Brook Lopez, who's gonna be teaming with Jeremy Lin to try and carry this team. After years of promoting sky-high expectations, the Nets are done promising titles any time soon. These new Nets will look to win from within, which may happen later than sooner.

15. Philadelphia 76ers (20-62)
What a long, strange trip it’s been. After years testing the depths of the rebuilding process, it seems as though the process is finally paying dividends. Players are getting healthy, overseas prospects have arrived, and the Sixers are hoping new addition Ben Simmons is the real deal, eventually. Its gonna be a long road for Philly.

(All predictions made BEFORE the start of the NBA Season)