Scrapper Nation

Duke Cruises by UConn

2009-11-27T20:04:00.006-05:00

After a dominating 68-59 victory over UConn to win the NIT season tip-off in Madison Square Garden, Duke once again proved it’s going to be a formidable force this season.

The key to this Duke win was its early domination on the boards. Even though the Blue Deveils shot 29% from the field in the first half with Kyle Singler largely ineffective and in foul trouble, they still managed to have a 9 point lead going into the break thanks to a number of second chance points from its work on the offensive glass.

While many expected Duke to struggle in the backcourt after losing Gerald Henderson to the NBA and Elliot Williams to Memphis in the off-season, the hot shooting of Andre Dawkins has been a nice addition to the steady play of Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith in the backcourt.

For a complete breakdown of the game, listen to the podcast below:

Game balls

Jon Scheyer

Scheyer took care of the ball all night and lead the Blue Devels with 19 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. You can’t be any more solid with the ball than Scheyer has been since he took over point guard duties and with a sweet shot to boot, Scheyer is one of the most complete players in the country.

Lance Thomas

Lance was a menace on the boards and filled up the stat sheet with 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Lance is a guy that can guard all 5 positions on the defensive end and has been an energy guy that has set the tone on both ends of the court.

Looking into the Future

Kyrie Irving, Duke’s incoming 6-foot-2 point guard rated as the No. 9 overall player in the Class of 2010 by Rivals.com, has been compared to John Wall in the effect he will have next season. Considering Duke’s backcourt next year will feature Irving, Liberty transfer Seth Curry, Nolan Smith, and Andre Dawkins, the Blue Devils will certainly be loaded in the backcourt next season and finally have the athleticism in its backcourt that it has lacked for so many of the past few years. While this current Duke team will certainly be tough to beat, there’s a lot to look forward to with next year’s squad.

#4 Wake Forest 70, #1 Duke 68

2009-01-28T22:33:00.004-05:00

As predicted only a few hours earlier, Wake dominated Duke in the post outscoring the Blue Devlis 42-24 down low on the way to a huge ACC home victory. For a complete analysis of the game listen to the postgame podcast below. I'd also like to remind everyone that I will be available later tonight to chat live to discuss the game.

#1 Duke vs. #4 Wake Forest Preview

2009-01-28T17:30:00.002-05:00

There is a big game tonight as the #1 Duke Blue Devils travel to Winston-Salem for a top 5 showdown. After a long time thinking about this pick, I'm picking the Demon Deacons to pull off the upset. For my complete thoughts on the match-up listen to the pre-game podcast below. Post-game podcast will be up shortly after the game and I will be available to chat live later tonight:

Duke 83, Southern Illinois 58

2008-11-20T22:46:00.004-05:00

After committing double digit turnovers in the first half, Duke came out after the break and flat out dominated Southern Illinois. Gerald Henderson scored 20 points and appears to have snapped out of an early season funk, Brian Zoubek proved he can be a key contributor after putting the Blue Devils on his back in the first half, and Coach K proved once again why he is one of the best coaches ever. To hear my complete thoughts on Duke’ s 83-58 victory over Southern Illinois listen to the podcast below:

Since Duke has a big game tomorrow night, I will be online tomorrow chatting live in real time from 1-3 pm Eastern time. Just come to Scrapper Nation and use the Meebo chat application on the top right.

Tase Me Bro

2008-11-14T13:58:00.002-05:00

One of my friends volunteered to get tased last week and The Scrapper was there to catch it all on video and get a post-tasing interview. I'm going to The Swamp tomorrow to see the No.4 ranked Florida Gators (my preseason title pick) take on the no.25 ranked South Carolina Gamecocks. I'll podcast from the game but in the meantime, enjoy watching Scott get tased...

Here is it from another angle (thanks Jen):

Blue-White Scrimmage

2008-10-19T22:13:00.005-04:00

There’s nothing like sitting 3^rd row behind the bench for the Blue-White scrimmage. I had the pleasure of doing just that on Saturday and served as the eyes and ears for Scrapper Nation. Enjoy the videos, pictures, and interview with heralded Duke recruit Ryan Kelly (all courtesy of The Scrapper's blackberry).

Format of the Scrimmage

The scrimmage was organized into two “second halves.” Each team started out with 45 points and every player started with 3 fouls. It’s obvious the major goal of the scrimmage was to work on late-game situations, a problem for recent Duke teams.

Notes

First Half-The Teams

Blue Team- Lance Thomas, Greg Paulus, Olek Czyz, Marty Pocius, Brian Zoubek, Jordan Davidson, and Elliot Williams
White Team-Nolan Smith, Gerald Henderson, Dave Mcclure, Jon Scheyer, Miles Plumlee, Kyle Singler, and Steve Johnson

1) It quickly became obvious that the white team’s roster was stacked. The trio of Henderson, Scheyer, and Singler, proved to be unstoppable.

2) In his first exposure to a true Cameroon-like atmosphere, Elliot Williams looked passive (not necessarily a bad thing at this stage, especially so considering he was being hounded on defense by Gerald Henderson).

3) Miles Plumlee appears very skilled for a freshman big man. He has a good left hand and looked confident in taking the ball, spinning, and kissing a left hand hook off the glass and in.

4) Everyone looks a little stronger and seem to be bearing the fruits of an intense summer workout regimen.

5) The new 3 point line (moved back a full foot) doesn't look like its going to affect shooting percentages too much.

At halftime the coaches switched the teams. New teams:

White-Paulus, Scheyer, Gerald, Lance, Singler, Elliot Williams
Blue-Jordan davidson, Marty, Nolan, Mcclure, Plumlee

6) Suprisingly, the blue team pulled of a shocking victory. How?

Nolan Smith looked great handling the ball and scrapped on defense (including blocking a 3 point shot attempt by Gerald Henderson). It was also great to see a healthy Marty Pocius play. He really contributed to the Blue Team’s victory in the second game. The big question is whether or not a healthy Marty will be given the opportunity to contribute.

Interview with Ryan Kelly (interview conducted by my friend Sumesh)

Ryan Kelly is a 6-9'', 210 lb. forward from Ravenscroft high school who is rated as one of the top players in next year's recruiting class and will be enrolling at Duke next fall.

Q: Ryan, are you going to be turning out to a lot of Duke games this year?

A: I'm going to try to go to as many as I can. Obviously my first priority is to my own games.

Q: When you're here watching the game, how do you think you watch the game differently than the average fan?

A: Once you've been playing for several years you get a better understanding of it all. You see the whole game not just the guy with the ball, you see the whole thing. I'd say a better understanding.

Q: How do your friends react to finding out that you're coming to Duke, any North Carolina fans?

A: Some of them love me some of them hate me. You know I think most people, even if they're Carolina fans, are going to root for me.

The Scrapper’s starting lineup:

Greg Paulus, Jon Scheyer, Gerald Henderson, Lance Thomas, and Kyle Singler.

Singler, Thomas, Zoubek, Plumlee, and Mcclure will form the rotation up front. Also look for Nolan Smith and Elliot Williams to be major contributors to the backcourt (hopefully Marty will also be able to contribute here).

The football game

I ended up going to the football game and although we lost, I think Duke really showed something by having the lead deep into the 3rd quarter against an extremely talented Miami team. Check out the video of the football team being recognized as they walk through Cameroon before the game.

Continued Dominance

2008-10-08T23:59:00.008-04:00

“There have been a lot of natural and man-made disasters on the water. The Titanic for instance, Tom Hanks in Castaway, but the biggest disaster I’ve ever seen on the water is the second year team…we were the iceberg to their titanic. We sunk ‘em dead in the water…it was awesome.”

-Tyler after consecutive victories over the 2^nd and 4^th year water polo teams

What do you get if you mix football, swimming, soccer, rugby, and wrestling?

Water Polo.

Yeah that’s right, water polo (watch the video at the bottom of this post for a quick instructional video). The Scrapper doesn’t know much about water polo but he knows that the Wake Forest University School of Medicine’s 1^st year team might be the most dominant sports team in history (so dominant that the team managed to pull about 40 members of the 1^st year class to their latest beating).

The team pulled off two gargantuan wins in a row by thrashing the 2^nd years last Thursday and demolishing the 4^th years just last night. Listen to the podcast below and the recap of the beatings (Becca and Jessica provide the details).

Water Polo Podcast

Recap of victory over the 2^nd years

Before the previously undefeated 2^nd years knew what hit them, Becca Ur and Kip Byrum scored on back to back bombs. Obviously toying with the struggling 2^nd year team, the first years held off scoring again until the second quarter when John Vossler erupted for two Gretsky-like scores aided by the multitalented Trey Godwin (Trey also had a 60 yard run for the 1^st year flag football team tonight as they advanced in the playoffs). During the second quarter, Trey “the game changer” Godwin scored again. With the game already decided, the fourth quarter passed quickly with John Vossler completing a hat trick.

Recap of victory over the 4^th years

Following this victory over the second years, the MS1 class began playoff competition, playing the MS4 class for their first match. The notoriety of the first years had spread, resulting in a colossal crowd witnessing Tuesday night’s victory. Excellent goal keeping support was provided by Jason Paluzzi, with the final score as 8-3. While the 4^th year team was definitely larger, more experienced, and favoring a European form of beachwear, the 1^st years proved which class has the title of athletic superiority.

In the words of Tyler Pace, “We were the iceberg to their Titanic”.

Presidential Quote of the Day

“It solidifies our dominance over the medical school classes in pretty much every sport overall…it’s good to dominate everybody”

-Jimmy Turner, 1st year Class President

Happy Birthday Mr. President.

Water Polo Video

60,000 Hites

2008-10-05T21:59:00.010-04:00

Just a few days ago Scrapper Nation crossed the 60,000 hit plateau. It’s an important milestone that couldn’t have been possible without all of you, the loyal readers of Scrapper Nation that have stuck with The Scrapper and kept coming back for more.

In response to the many emails I’ve received from readers who could care less about The Scrapper’s flag football exploits (although many of you have commended my smack talking skills), I’m devoting today’s post to real football.

Panthers 34, Chiefs 0

Today turned out to be a big day for the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers pummeled the Chiefs on the back of Deangelo Williams’ 123 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns. The Panthers should be proud of an effort that was without a doubt the most dominating performance to date of the current NFL season.

What word comes to mind in describing this Panthers team?

Balance.

The running game features two first round picks in Deangelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. The Panthers have quickness, agility, and game breaking speed in Deangelo Williams while Jonathan Stewart has proven himself to be the rugged, strong back that Carolina has been searching for since the Stephen Davis era.

At wide receiver, the re-arrival of Muhsin Muhammad as well as the addition of D.J. Hackett have given the Panthers legitimate threats to complement Steve Smith.

Along with upgrading skill position players and a steadied offensive line, The Panthers defense has been nothing but exceptional all year. Last year’s Panthers squad had a big problem with their rush defense. With a rejuvenated Julius Peppers, the Panthers have yet to concede a 100 yard rushing game to an opposing running back. It’s quite an accomplishment when you consider the quality of running backs the Panthers have already gone up against this season: LaDainian Tomlinson, Matt Forte, Adrian Peterson, Michael Turner, and Larry Johnson.

But you know what jersey I’m wearing to school tomorrow?

That’s right, no. 17-Jake (the snake) Delhomme. Before the season began I was nervous about how well Jake would be able to perform after having off-season Tommy John’s surgey. Delhomme is the first starting quarterback to have undergone the surgery and his chances of a full recovery weren’t certain. Jake has put all of my fears to rest with a calmness and serenity in the pocket that I haven’t ever seen from him. He has made good decisions and been the key to the Panthers’ newfound offensive firepower.

At this point in the season I think it’s safe to say that the Panthers are one of the elite teams in the NFC (along with every team in the NFC East).

Power rankings coming soon...

Reaching the Mountaintop

2008-10-01T00:40:00.003-04:00

"Well I think no matter what it establishes us as the dominant force to be reckoned with in the med school. Obviously you can’t argue with a 3-0 record and when you’ve beaten two teams of older med school students... they got seniority on us but we sure as hell have the athleticism."

--Scott after having defeated both 2nd year med school flag football teams

It's rare to have a team that is completely dominant, undoubtedly superior, and utterly invincible. The Pats were almost that team last year, Duke Basketball does it every year, and the Wake Forest Medical School Class of 2012 Flag Football team did it tonight. And when you reach that mountain top, it’s time to talk some smack.

A week ago today, I talked about how the 1st year medical students pulled off an unbelievable upset victory over the highly hyped 2nd year medical school team (click here for a recap of that victory). Tonight, the 1st year medical students cemented their comprehensive dominance over the 2nd years by coming away with a hard fought, knock down, grind it out victory to bolster their record to 3-0 on the season.

Listen to the podcast below for post-game interviews with Ed (starting quarterback), Trey (middle linebacker/defensive coordinator) and Scott (after an LT-esque performance).

Play of the game

Before tonight I’d been going back and forth trying to decide whether the best single football play ever was the end of the Cal/Stanford game when the band started marched out on the field or the end of the Boise St./Oklahoma game a couple of years ago. After the trickery we put on tonight, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that the Wake Med 1st year students put together the single best football play in history. The breakdown:

Ed’s at QB, Scott is in the slot, and Carey’s split out wide. After the snap Carey immediately starts running a hitch and stops. As soon as Ed throws a backward pass to Scott (who runs across the line and back a few yards), Carey ditches his receiver and takes off and the two connect for a 60 yard bomb that will forever be remembered as the best play in history.

Key to the game

The 2nd years brought a lot of passion and intensity to the game tonight and made key adjustments to keep the game close. After being under intense pressure the first few series from the 1st year defensive ends (Trey, Carey, and The Scrapper), the 2nd years dropped back into the shotgun and took advantage of short dump down passes to pulling lineman. Eventually, the athleticism of the 1st year students was what sealed the victory.

College Football Recap

2008-09-28T01:34:00.009-04:00

What a wild weekend in college football.

Oregon State shocked no.1 USC, Ole Miss took down no.4 Florida, and Alabama routed Georgia 41-30

But the most shocking score of all:

Duke 31 Virginia 3

Listen to the podcast below for my complete thoughts on this crazy weekend in college football.

The Ultimate Win

2008-09-24T01:31:00.003-04:00

What do Hoosiers, Rudy, App St. beating Michigan, anytime Duke loses in basketball, and the Wake Forest Med School first year flag football team’s victory tonight all have in common?

The Underdog pulled off the shocker

Backlog

A few of us first year med students put together a flag football team for a league here at Wake. We didn’t really know what we were doing and barely squeaked out a win in our first game on Sunday. We knew we had the odds stacked against us for our second game against the big and bad second year med school team. This team had been ridiculously hyped up. They won their first game 19-0 on Sunday and had as their starting quarterback the president of the student government (who spent his college days as a backup quarterback at Davidson). We heard about how they had speed, strength, and 14 guys to shuffle in and out to keep their team fresh. And they had already played a whole year together.

Game Plan

We showed up with 8 guys (7 players on the field at one time) and immediately decided to install a new defense. We put 3 guys on the line and rushed 2 with the other guy on the line dropping back as a middle linebacker. We figured we’d have to bring some pressure on the quarterback and mix up our looks or he would just pick us apart. The defensive backs played a cover 2.

The plan for the offense was to take advantage of short dump down passes and to eat up clock.

The Shocker

We got the ball first and immediately drove the ball down the field and scored a touchdown (big time catch by Trey).

First play on defense The Scrapper (yours truly) drops back into coverage, picks off the QB, and takes it to the 2. We punch it in.

Defensive stand.

Touchdown us.

At the half we were up 20-0 but were fortunate that the other team’s qb hadn’t hit his stride yet. Second half came and they got to as close as 20-15 but with back to back sacks (including The Scrapper’s game-ending sack), we cruised to victory. And the first year med school class pulled off the ultimate shocker.

Players of the game

Ed (our qb-played quick and smart), Trey (defensive coordinator/stud), Carey (sack artist/sickest athlete ever), Jimmy (great coverage/spiritual leader), Brent(lockdown corner), Nick(reads QB’s eyes/cerebral), Scott (made the sickest no-look lateral pass in the history of flag football)…

It’s 1 in the morning and I’m still wired. I’m jacked up man. What a big time win.

Random Videos of the Day

“…I wanted to do hood rat stuff with my friends”

-7 year old Latarian Milton after driving away and getting into an accident in his grandmother’s car (see below).

That’s old news, Laterian is back in the news over some chicken wings…see below…

A Savage Beating

2008-09-22T05:44:00.005-04:00

Dolphins 38, Patriots 13.

Punctuated by Ronnie Brown's 2 yard touchdown run, Ronnie Brown's 15 yard touchdown scramble, Ronnie Brown's 5 yard touchdown run, Ronnie Brown's 19 yard touchdown pass, and Ronnie Brown's 62 yard touchdown burst, the Dolphins bent the Patriots over on Sunday in Foxborough.

Tom Brady didn't play. Laurence Maroney was out with a shoulder injury. That's all well and good, but the Patriots defense was healthy, and they got completely abused for 60 minutes.

After looking like a little league team against the Cardinals last week, the Dolphins went into Gilette Stadium as laughable underdogs and played a perfect game of football, flat-out embarrassing the Patriots and handing them their first regular season defeat in 22 games.

The way the Dolphins won was just as unexpected as the final score. Using the 'Wildcat' offense, developed by quarterbacks coach David Lee while at Arkansas, the Dolphins repeatedly flummoxed the Patriots defense by lining Chad Pennington up at receiver and direct snapping it to Ronnie Brown. After it worked the first time, resulting in Miami's first score, fans on Dolphins message boards were reluctant to celebrate, believing that New England would adjust and that the Dolphins would have to find a way to score without relying on gimmick plays.

The gimmick play worked, over and over and over, resulting in 3 touchdowns in the first half alone, and alleged football genius Bill Belichick, mastermind of the vaunted Patriots defense, could do nothing to stop it.

Players of the game: Ronnie Brown (5 touchdowns), Joey Porter (3 sacks, backed up his trash talk), and Jake Long (dominated the Patriots defensive line all day, pictured below at the combine)

Are we seeing the start of something legitimate?

After last week, everyone (myself included) gave the Dolphins up for dead, expecting another season similar to last year's 1-15 nightmare. Things are looking a little bit different now. If the Dolphins can produce anything close to the level of play they displayed yesterday, they will be in the mix for the AFC East crown.

I'm not going to be foolish enough to predict a playoff berth now, but at the very least, this team has serious potential, and with Bill Parcells continuing to tinker with the roster, and Tony Sparano seemingly coming into his own as an NFL head coach, the sky is the limit for the Dolphins in the years to come. We are finally on the right track.

Having suffered through the last half decade as a Dolphins fan, it brings me immense relief to be able to honestly make that statement.

Memo to The Nation: The Scrapper is Back

2008-09-14T12:36:00.007-04:00

I’d first like to apologize to the loyal members and followers of Scrapper Nation who have written me repeatedly over the last few months urging my return. Frankly, between applying to medical school, being involved in a bunch of extracurricular commitments, and trying to live up senior year, it was difficult for me to give Scrapper Nation everything it deserved.

What’s The Scrapper up to these days?

I’m actually a first year student at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and halfway through Anatomy- an introductory 12 week boot camp-like course where you dissect and learn everything in the human body. For me, it’s been without a doubt the most grueling, intense, and demanding period of my life.

Then why back to the Nation? Why now?

It’s a good question. I’ve never been busier, never been more exhausted; some days you wake up at 6 am and you don’t go to sleep till midnight and the only thing you’re doing is studying the whole day. Sometimes you lie in bed trying to go to sleep and the only thing you can think about is powerpoint slides or a group of nerves that won’t stop rushing through your mind (kind of like how Deangelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are going to rush all over the Bears today). It’s easy to let school take over, to become a robot, and to lose your sense and perspective on life and what makes you happy. And you know what makes me happy? What will never cease to bring a smile to my face?

Jake Delhomme looking like he’s the best quarterback in the NFL.

The Panthers marching the ball down the field to score a game winning touchdown with 0 seconds left on the clock to shock the Super Bowl-favorite San Diego Chargers.

Steve Smith, D.J. Hackett, Muhsin Mohammed, Dwayne Jarret, Rosario + Deangelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart creating one of the most dynamic offenses in the league.

My Fantasy team dropping 140 points (thank you Wille Parker).

Duke Football winning as many games this season (2-1 right now!) as they’ve won in the last 3 years combined.

12 gold medals around Coach K’s neck (how is that not an NCAA violation? Oh man…)

Sports. It’s the light of my life. And I’ve realized that no matter how difficult I think my life is, how low or down you might feeling, we all need to turn to something that we love to get us through. The Scrapper’s hopping back on board, ready to give the world his unfiltered thoughts. I’m not going to promise to write everyday, every other day, or even every week. There might be a tough period where I go away for a little while (read: med school is hard). But don’t worry, I’ll come back (and so should you).

I’ll be here live today from 1-4 pm if any of you want to chat about anything going on in The Sports World (see the Meebo application on the right).

UNC Wins ACC Regular Season Title

2008-03-08T23:29:00.002-05:00

UNC 76 Duke 68

With a chance to win the ACC Regular Season title Saturday night, Duke came out flat. The Blue Devils weren’t there mentally in the first half as UNC built an 11 point halftime lead. After leading a valiant second half come back, Duke went to sleep again at the end of the game to choke away yet another close contest; a familiar sight for Duke fans.

Did Duke really just blow another game?

My complete thoughts:

Duke loses again: #4 Duke vs. Miami Podcast

2008-02-21T08:34:00.003-05:00

Duke 95 Miami 96

Duke dropped its second straight game in conference play after putting on an ugly, turnover-prone performance. My thoughts on the game and the recent skid:

#2 Duke vs. Wake Forest Podcast

2008-02-18T00:03:00.002-05:00

Duke 73 Wake Forest 86

The Demon Deacons put on a tremendous performance. My thoughts on the game:

#2 Duke vs. #3 UNC Halftime Podcast

2008-02-06T22:02:00.001-05:00

Duke 42
UNC 39

It's been a frenetic first half. As predicted, Duke has done a good job of forcing turnovers, scoring in transition, and shooting the ball from outside. Carolina has been all over the boards and dominated down low.

In order to win, Duke needs to continue to shoot the ball well and do a better job of holding their own in the post.

More thoughts:

#3 Duke vs. N.C. State Postgame Podcast

2008-01-31T23:25:00.000-05:00

Duke 92
N.C. State 72

What else can you say about Greg Paulus? The guy put the whole team on his back and wouldn't let Duke lose. A few big-time 3 pointers, a big steal, a behind the back pass to Singler for a dunk, and exceptional defense. Paulus played out of his mind. More thoughts on the game below...

NFL Divisional Playoff Preview

2008-01-12T13:43:00.000-05:00

We're coming up on two great days of football. This week's divisional playoffs feature some incredible matchups. Here are my picks, for game analysis and commentary listen to the divisional playoff podcast.

Packers over Seahawks

Patriots over Jaguars

Colts over Chargers

Giants over Cowboys

Wild Card Weekend Picks

2008-01-05T13:48:00.000-05:00

Wild Card Weekend is upon us. I’m picking the lower seed in three of this week’s four playoff matchups. My picks and explanations below.

Fiesta Bowl Halftime Podcast

2008-01-02T22:14:00.000-05:00

You know what I love about the New Year? Big-time bowl games! #9 West Virginia is looking like they are in position to pull off the upset over #4 Oklahoma. Here are some halftime thoughts:

Panthers vs. Buccanears Recap

2007-12-30T16:33:00.000-05:00

The Scrapper here in Tampa, Florida reporting after the Bucs-Panthers NFC South showdown:

Memphis has the look of a champion

2007-12-22T15:15:00.000-05:00

Wow. Memphis just showed me that without a doubt they are the best team in America and the favorite to win the national title. Here are my thoughts about the thumping they just gave to #4 Georgetown and about their chances going forward.

As promised, here is the Derrick Rose freakshow youtube video. This might be the most impressive high school highlight I have ever seen.

A Great Day in Sports

2007-12-22T11:44:00.000-05:00

I'm finally starting to get over the Pitt loss. It exposed a lot of Duke's weaknesses, notably our inexperience and lack of an inside presence. What I'm interested in seeing now is the changes that Coach K makes in the next few games. He's the master of pushing the right buttons and it will be fun to see how he mixes up the starting lineup, rotation, playing time, etc. I'm confident the team will emerge stronger.

In the meantime, I'm excited about enjoying a great day on the couch watching some big time games. The college football bowl season is starting to get in gear but today is a big-time college basketball day.

Here's my television viewing schedule for the day:

12:00 pm- #2 Memphis vs. #4 Georgetown

Talk about a big-time college basketball game in December. I love Roy Hibbert and the Princeton offense. Watch for Georgetown's guards and zone defense to make the difference in this one.

2:00 pm- #12 Tennessee vs. #24 Xavier

I always enjoy watching Chris Lofton play and I've only read great things about Xavier's Drew Lavender. Expect this one to be a shootout.

4:00 pm- Florida at Ohio State

Although both teams are in rebuilding mode, I'll watch a rematch of last year's championship game anyday.

6:30 pm- #5 Texas vs. #10 Michigan State

How are the Longhorns better sans Mr. Durant? Anyone? I've been hearing a lot of good things about D.J. Augustine, it'll be fun to watch this kid.

8:15 pm- My Carolina Panthers vs. Dallas Cowboys

Tony Romo, T.O., and the Cowboys seem distracted. This has been a tough year to be a Panthers fan, but I'll be cheering for my boys (especially now that we've won enough games to guarantee we won't get a really high draft pick). Here's an idea, put Steve Smith at quarterback and run the option. Why not, we've given everyone else a shot.

Off to the couch!

#7 Duke vs. #9 Pitt Postgame Podcast

2007-12-20T21:57:00.000-05:00

I'm in utter disbelief right now.

#7 Duke vs. #9 Pitt Halftime Podcast

2007-12-20T20:02:00.000-05:00

Preview: #7 Duke vs. #9 Pitt

2007-12-19T13:24:00.000-05:00

Hey guys, I'm still on vacation in Miami with my main man Charlie. I'm pumped for the Duke vs. Pitt showdown tomorrow night. Here's a preview from Scrapper Nation guest columnist Vivek Upadhyay. This is a great read, enjoy.

--

In what has been something of a blessing and a curse at the same time, for the first time in probably a decade the media has not given Duke the insane attention it usually receives. In comparison to last year when Duke was “dethroned,” and the year before when J.J. Redick was on his quest for a national championship, this year’s Duke squad has not gotten close to that amount of media scrutiny. While it provides Duke with the whole “we’re not getting the respect we deserve” motivation, it also may hurt Duke if this lack of media attention continues in January and February. For some reason, I don’t think it will, and the media storm will begin Thursday night in Madison Square Garden.

For Pitt, this is their first true test. Their only semi-legitimate wins this year have been at Washington (6-4) and at home against Oklahoma State (5-4). While the Pitt offense is definitely healthy (82.1 ppg), and DeJuan Blair is almost looking like an upgrade over preseason All-American Aaron Gray, they’ll get their first true test against a quality defensive team in the Blue Devils.

For Duke, Pitt will definitely be the first time for a young Blue Devil squad to prove to the country that Duke is back in the elite few in college basketball. Furthermore, this will be the first chance for Kyle Singler and/or Gerald Henderson to become household names.

Having watched every team in the top ten play, I can honestly say this will be quite a matchup. Here’s how I think it’ll break down.

FRONTCOURT
Lance Thomas, Brian Zoubek, Kyle Singler, and Taylor King have been a surprisingly effective quartet so far this year. This is definitely the Blue Devil’s Achilles heel. While they effectively dealt with Wisconsin’s size, DeJuan Blair will be the first athletic, dominant post player they’ll face. I see this being a potential downfall for the Blue Devils.

Edge: PITT

BACKCOURT
Paulus, Nelson, and Henderson are already a deadly trio, but the play of Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith along with them give the Blue Devils the deepest backcourt in perhaps all of college basketball. What used to be the Blue Devils weakness is now their greatest strength. Ronald Ramon and Mike Cook of Pitt will have their hands full with Nelson and Henderson. Good luck on this one, Panthers.

Edge: DUKE

BENCH
The Blue Devils have abandoned their traditional 7-deep style of play, and it’s doing wonders for the team. Taylor King, Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith, and Brian Zoubek will push this 7-man deep Pitt squad.

Edge: DUKE

COACH
Jaime Dixon is one of the most underrated coaches in college basketball. Under the radar, he’s lead Pitt to 10-0 each of the past 5 seasons. However, Coach K is a legend, and by not being afraid to change things up and be creative this year, he will prove all of his critics wrong on Thursday night.

Edge: DUKE

INTANGIBLES
Pitt may be closer, but they call Duke the University of New Jersey at Durham for a reason. Add in the fact that MSG will be packed with tons of Duke alumni, this will be a hostile environment for the Panthers.

Edge: DUKE

FINAL CALL

Duke wins, 84-72

Dolphins-Ravens Halftime Podcast

2007-12-16T20:28:00.000-05:00

I'm on the road reporting live from halftime of the Dolphins-Ravens game.

Dolphins-Ravens preview

2007-12-16T10:05:00.000-05:00

Today we have a guest post from a lifelong Miami football fan, Jojo Remy. Jojo will break down the upcoming Miami-Baltimore game. Enjoy!

As we approach a seemingly certain fate, I encourage Miami football fans to look at the bright side of today's Dolphins versus Ravens matchup. The 'Fins head into the game ranked 32nd in stopping the run. Without Channing Crowder in the box, former UM star Willis McGahee should have no trouble setting a new career mark in season yardage.

On the other side of the ball, Baltimore is ranked 3rd in stopping the run against Miami's 30th best rushing offense. In a rainy game where field position will determine who comes out on top, you can expect to see solid performances from former Hurricanes Ray Lewis and Ed Reed.

Aside from impressive UM alumni, if Miami can get going behind Ted Ginn in the return game and Cleo Lemon on offense, we can rely on our impressive pass defense (ranked 3rd) to shut down Kyle Boller. I hope to see some decent QB pressure from youngsters Rod Wright and Quentin Moses as they will see increased playing time on defense.

Prediction: Ravens 16, Dolphins 17

Cutcliffe to Duke!

2007-12-14T19:24:00.000-05:00

ESPN is reporting that Tennessee assistant head coach and offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe has agreed to become Duke's next head coach.

Why do I love this hire?

1. Duke's last two head coaching hires (Carl Franks and Ted Roof) went a combined 13-90. Both of these coaches had never been a head coach before and obviously struggled tremendously as leaders. I've been adamant that Duke go after someone who has not only been a head coach before, but also been relatively successful at it. Considering that Cutcliffe compiled a 44-29 record as head coach at Ole Miss from 1999-2004 (including a 4-1 bowl record), he fits the bill.

2. The guy knows how to develop quaterbacks, having already coached a few Heisman trophy finalists and a number of good professional players at the position. Cutcliffe was instrumental in developing Peyton Manning, then went to Ole Miss to mentor Eli. When you're on the recruiting trail, these things matter.

If you can't tell by now, I'm pumped and all Duke fans should be excited about the future of this program. The administration has been making subtle hints that competing in football is a priority. First Duke hired a consulting firm to guide Duke in building its program. Plans for one of the group's recommendations, a costly renovation of Wallace Wade Stadium, have already been drawn up and approved by the Board of Trustees.

Second, Duke University President Richard Brodhead decided to write a new mission statement for athletics. Brodhead wrote that "Duke aims for a level of athletic performance that will frequently produce winnings seasons and the realistic opportunity to compete for team or individual championships." This decision tells me that the Duke administration is finally ready to allocate the necessary resources to building this program.

After another terrible year, I finally feel like Duke football is back on track.

Miami Sports Update

2007-12-14T17:31:00.000-05:00

I'm done with exams and on vacation in Miami with Charlie. Here are two podcasts on the Dolphins and Heat from the perspective of a few lifelong Miami sports fans. A true treat, enjoy.

Miami Dolphins

Miami Heat

#6 Duke vs. Michigan Halftime Podcast

2007-12-08T16:22:00.001-05:00

#7 Duke vs. #20 Wisconsin Halftime Podcast

2007-11-27T22:06:00.000-05:00

#10 Duke vs. Eastern Kentucky Halftime Podcast

2007-11-25T14:03:00.000-05:00

Duke's up 34-12 at the break. A few thoughts:

A Preliminary Statistical Analysis of the 2007-08 Duke Men’s Basketball Team

2007-11-24T21:00:00.000-05:00

A few months ago a super smart friend of mine named James put together a table analyzing the individual contributions from players on the 2006-07 Duke Men’s Basketball Team. The table, which is based on an accepted metric (created by The Wages of Wins), analyzes the “efficiency” of individuals on a team by assigning each player a Win Score. Five games into the 2007-08 season, I thought it was about time to see what the numbers say. Before we get into the analysis, let's go over a few terms:

Win Score = Points + Rebounds + Steals + ½Assists + ½Blocked Shots – Field Goal Attempts – Turnovers - ½Free Throw Attempts - ½Personal Fouls

Win Score per Minute (a more accurate tool to compare players who have a significant disparity in minutes played) = Win Score/Min (duh)

PAWS (Position Adjusted Win Score) is used to compare a player to an average player at the position.

Average Win Score/minute values for each position

Center: 0.225
Power Forward: 0.215
Small Forward: 0.152
Shooting Guard: 0.132
Point Guard: 0.128

PAWS (Position Adjusted Win Score) = Win Score – (Average Win Score at Position Played * Minutes Played)

PAWS/min = Win Score per minute –Average Win Score at Position Played

If you’d like to read more about last year’s team, you can follow this link to our analysis article. After watching Duke win the Maui Invitational, I was interested to see how the numbers would look on our newly constructed team. I got in touch with James, and he was able to put together a table from the first five games of the season:

2007-08 Duke Men's Basketball Preliminary Statistical Analysis

What do all these numbers mean? Thanks to James, we have some answers. Here we go :

1. Across the board, Win Score/min averages are way up. The numbers will probably fall back to earth when we begin ACC play, but they are very encouraging. Last year's top player was Josh McRoberts with a WS/min of .262. Zoubek, Pocius, Singler, King, and Scheyer are all besting that in the current campaign.

2. Kyle Singler is the star of the team so far. He's shooting 60% from the floor and 90% from the line, and he's also hitting the boards well. His turnovers are a bit high, but that's probably because he handles the ball so much. It looks like Duke’s found someone to replace Josh inside.

3. Brian Zoubek's numbers are particularly excellent, too. He's averaging 15 rebounds per 40 minutes, which is better than Shelden's old rate. He's shooting .611. Most importantly, he has cut his turnover rate in half, from an atrocious 6.30 per 40 minutes to a nice 2.94. He has decreased his fouls per 40 from 7.65 to 6.30, but that's still too high, considering he's only allowed 5 fouls per game (anyone remember the Blue-White Scrimmage?). Hopefully he can stay on the court more since he's Duke’s only player above 6'8.

4. Marty Pocius! Win Score has hated him ever since he set foot on campus because his defense, rebounding, passing...well, pretty much everything about him is bad. I'll chalk his current lofty position up to small sample size, but we'll see.

5. Jon Scheyer is shooting 50% this year (as opposed to 40% last year), and that makes a huge difference for him. He has also improved his rebounding-per-40 from 4 to 7, which makes him above average for a guard.

6. Gerald Henderson was promising last season, but he had room to improve across the board. So far, he's done that. FG%: +11%. 3FG%: +39%. REB: +19%.Fouls: -6%. Turnovers: -24%. Blocks: +225%. Are you as excited as I am about him?

7. Greg Paulus's AST/TO ratio has jumped from 1.2:1 to 2.3:1, and he has also doubled his steals rate. However, he isn't shooting any better, and he still rebounds poorly, so while he is now above average for a point guard, he's still only the 8th best player on the team.

8. Lance Thomas is also playing more efficiently than he did last year. It's remarkable that he's only committed 4 turnovers in 112 minutes. There's still a big hole in his game, however: besides Greg Paulus, he's the worst rebounder on the team, and he's standing under the basket all the time.

9. DeMarcus is his same old productive self. He gets a little better at everything each year. His team-leading 34 boards are particularly impressive: can he teach something to Lance?

10. Nolan Smith has started poorly. He's shooting .375, and he has only collected 2 rebounds in 72 minutes of play, giving him a handy average of 0.4 rpg. Taylor King, however, has done well for himself, particularly because he rebounds well and has a low turnover rate.

2007 Maui Invitational Postscript

2007-11-22T15:22:00.000-05:00

With less than thirteen seconds left to go in the championship game of the 2007 Maui Invitational, the resounding sound filling the Lahaina Civic Center was a chant coming from a pack of Duke fans standing behind the Duke bench. The chant? “Our house! Our house!” Indeed, Maui seems to be becoming Duke’s home away from home, as the Blue Devils captured their record setting 4th consecutive Maui Invitational Championship (1992, 1997, 2001, 2007).

However, the championship game didn’t end without a scare. Marquette is a fast, guard-oriented, hard-nosed team that kept fighting and was able to take advantage of a turnover-prone stretch by the Blue Devils early in the second half to get in the game. The end of the game was especially nerve-racking as Duke played with the same unfocused, nervous, and confused mindset that was one of the hallmarks of last year’s team.

Although Duke nearly threw this game away with back to back turnovers in the games final minutes, Gerald Henderson and Kyle Singler stepped up, put the team on their backs, and took this game over.

Big plays down the stretch

2:55 left
Gerald drives and puts it in off the glass to make the score 73-70

1:54 left
Kyle Singler takes a big charge in a close, two-point game.

45 seconds left
Demarcus Nelson makes a risky pass, yet Gerald is still (somehow) able to gather the ball and get fouled shooting. Then Gerald makes two pressure-filled free throws.

13 seconds left
Singler fouled after gathering a loose ball that fell out of Paulus’ hand and anyone could have picked up. Cool and confident at the line, Singler drains both free throws to seal the game.

One of the problems from last year’s team was that Duke didn’t know who to give the ball to in late game situations. It was obvious at the end of this game that the team still didn’t know where the ball should go (those two turnovers on errant passes illustrate that point). And with all the talent this team has, it is a legitimate question. In my mind, it’s become clear that Gerald should be our go to guy. He has reminded me of Kobe Bryant the last couple of games with his monstrous dunks, fade away jump shots, and overall athleticism.

I hope Coach K realizes that we should be giving the ball to Gerald at the end of games. Let him penetrate, he’ll either score, get fouled, or create an open shot for one of his teammates.

It’s also hard not to feel good about Kyle Singler right about now: 25 points and 8 rebounds and the 2007 Maui Invitational MVP. The kid has everything.

Watch out, this team is going to surprise people.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

#10 Duke vs. #13 Marquette Halftime Podcast

2007-11-21T23:05:00.000-05:00

What a great first half! I'll be online for the second half if any of you want to discuss the game in real time (meebo application to your right). A few thoughts from the first half:

Week 12 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-11-19T23:32:00.000-05:00

Here are my picks:

Green Bay (-3.5) over Detroit

Dallas (-14) over New York

Indianapolis (-10) over Atlanta

Denver over Chicago (-2)

Tennessee (-1) over Cincinnati

Buffalo over Jacksonville (-9)

Oakland over Kansas City (-6)

Cleveland (-4.5) over Houston

Seattle (-3) over St. Louis

New York Giants (-7.5) over Minnesota

New Orleans (-1) over Carolina

Washington over Tampa Bay (-3.5)

Arizona (-10) over San Francisco

Baltimore over San Diego (-9.5)

New England (-23) over Philadelphia

Pittsburgh (-15) over Pittsburgh

Duke vs. Notre Dame

2007-11-17T14:24:00.000-05:00

I’m so antsy. Ten minutes until the Duke Football team takes the field at Notre Dame Stadium. It doesn’t matter that the Fighting Irish are 1-9, have suffered identical 38-0 defeats to Michigan and USC this year, and have lost to two service academies (Navy and Air Force). IT’S NOTRE DAME.

I was excited when the schedule came out earlier this year just to be playing Notre Dame. But I had no idea we would actually have a legitimate chance at winning (only a 7 point underdog AT Notre Dame). Let’s take a closer look at a few stats for the matchup:

Team Records

Duke: 1-9
Notre Dame: 1-9

Sagarin Computer Rating

Duke: 95
Notre Dame: 103

Bowl Game victories in the last 10 years

Duke: 0
Notre Dame: 0

I’m really excited but I've gotten used to our football team letting me down. Are we up for a repeat of the 1966 Duke-Notre Dame game?

Probably. But I don’t care. I'm still picking Duke. Let’s go baby.

Official Pick:

Duke 21
Notre Dame 17

SPECIAL UPDATE: Halftime Podcast

A Deeper Look into the 2007 Miami Dolphins: An Insider's Perspective

2007-11-14T22:54:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who linked to this article, including Deadspin. However, due to privacy concerns and a request made by the original source who provided information for this article, we are being forced to temporarily take down the post. Apparently, the Dolphins front office has nothing better to do than trying to track down inside information found on Scrapper Nation. Maybe the Dolphins would be halfway decent if they placed as much energy on their personnel moves. Sorry for the inconvenience...I really didn't think this would blow up so fast...Please don't hesitate to pop me an email if you have any questions or concerns.

Can Dwyane Wade save the Heat?

2007-11-11T20:05:00.000-05:00

Hey guys. Since the last post, New Orleans has lost twice, and Chicago has finally chalked up a win. Is the NBA settling down after such an unpredictable opening week? Maybe. The Pacers and Clippers have also come down to earth, while the Blazers have rebounded from their 0-3 start to win 3 in a row and make .500.

The Wizards got a win today, so they are no longer among the ranks of the winless. They were a promising team last year before Gilbert Arenas went down with the knee injury, and behind the leadership of Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison they should rise back to respectability.

But what about the Heat? They're 0-5 and currently aggressively flirting with 0-6 against the Knicks. The offense has looked miserable against every team so far, with the exception of the Suns (go figure). Ricky Davis, brought in to carry the scoring load and fill the void left by Dwyane Wade, has been erratic and has drawn the ire of the Big Daddy on account of his refusal to throw the entry pass.

Will Wade be able to turn this team around? The answer is a resounding yes. It might not happen immediately, as he will need to get his rhythm and conditioning back, but he is still one of the best (if not the best) players in the league.

Right now its not difficult to defend the Heat. Teams have been successfully throwing the double team at Shaq, and the streaky shooting of Davis, Smush Parker, and Jason Williams has made the strategy highly effective.

When Wade comes back this will all change. Teams will have to scheme to contain him. Shaq will become much more effective. Dorell Wright's value will skyrocket, as he will be expected to focus on defense and rebounding, two of his strengths, rather than scoring.

Fellow Heat fans: I know this is tough. The good news is that...

BREAKING NEWS: Right now there are 19 seconds left in the game against the Knicks and the Heat have a 1 point lead.

Jason Williams stole the ball! Alright! He just knocked down both free throws after being fouled by David Lee. 3 point Heat lead with 10 seconds left.

Marbury misses the 3 as time expires! Yeah! The Heat get their first win of the season.

So, where was I? Right, the good news is that...well, now we've got that monkey off of our collective backs. And with Wade returning as early as Tuesday against Charlotte, the Heat will start charging up the rankings. Thanks to Chicago and Washington's woeful starts, the Heat aren't too far back.

A Tale of Two Teams

2007-11-07T06:16:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I posted some of the early surprises of the young NBA season, but I failed to mention the New Orleans Hornets. I received literally dozens of angry emails from Hornets fans. To those who emailed me, I say this: I was waiting until today to heap praise upon your oft-maligned yet suddenly successful squadron.

Today we will look at two teams, the New Orleans Hornets and the Chicago Bulls, which have started their seasons 4-0 and 0-4, respectively. But why, Charlie? Well, reader, you must not have followed the NBA last season. I'll tell you exactly why.

Coming into this season, the Hornets' roster was shrouded in question marks, while the Bulls seemed mortal locks to improve upon last year's success. Now? The Hornets are one of the best surprises of the season and the Bulls are floundering, keeping company with my pitifully Wade-less Miami Heat in the gutter of the NBA.

Will the Bulls continue to struggle? Maybe, but probably not. Will the Hornets come back down to Earth and start displaying the mediocrity we've come to expect of them? Again, maybe, but probably not. Tim Legler of ESPN has boldly declared these Hornets a "legit playoff team".

After following their game last night against the Lakers on Yahoo GameChannel (No, I don't have anything better to do), I have to draw the same conclusion as Legler. The Hornets are rolling on all cylinders, and their chemistry this early in the season bodes very well for their long term chances.

Chris Paul has matured into arguably the game's best young point guard (and I am a big Deron Williams fan, so that is saying a lot), and if last night is any indication, Peja has recovered some of that old Sacramento magic. David West will make an All-Star team at some point in his career, and the Hornets' investment in Tyson Chandler is paying off big time.

I'm trying to remember who Chandler used to play for...who was it? I remember they traded him for virtually nothing....oh, right! It was the Bulls!

Will the Bulls pull a 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks and recover from their rough start to post the best record in the league? No. Will they rediscover their identity and still manage to finish at or near the top of the Eastern Conference? Yes sir or madam.

The Bulls have been godawful thus far, but they have a lot going for them. Franchise savior Joakim Noah has recovered from his preseason injury and is ready to take some of the defensive load off of old Big Ben, and Tyrus Thomas has been taking advantage of his increased minutes to post solid numbers across the board.

They need their go-to trio of Deng, Hinrich, and Gordon to significantly up their percentages. Scott Skiles needs to take advantage of guys like Thomas and Sefolosha in the penetration game. When the Bulls can't get their jumpers to fall they are extremely vulnerable. Being able to consistently get to the line will help offset those rough nights.

While I would love to see them go 0-82 and suffer mightily for the pain they caused me and my Heat last year in the playoffs, I will readily admit that these Bulls will probably turn it around and steadily climb their way to the top of the standings. That should not surprise anyone.

The real surprise is the Hornets. Keep your eyes on that team.

NBA Week 1 Surprises

2007-11-06T11:04:00.000-05:00

Week 1 is in the books. I'm going to briefly run down some of the early season surprises.

Mike Dunleavy - Even though I predicted his success, I didn't expect it to be this convincing this early. Through the first week of play, Dunleavy is averaging 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists on 49% shooting.

LaMarcus Aldridge - The Scrapper's pick for Most Improved Player looks like it might turn out to be accurate. Aldridge dropped 27 on Tim Duncan in the season opener and almost singlehandedly rallied the Blazers back against the Rockets in the 4th quarter on Saturday night.

The Atlanta Hawks - Beating the regular season champion Dallas Mavericks on opening night was impressive, but carrying that through into a nailbiter against the Pistons showed that the Hawks are legit this year.

Kevin Durant - Look, I know he was amazing at Texas. But even you didn't expect him to light it up like he has in his first few games, right? After shaking off some rust in his opening half, Durant has been virtually unstoppable. Read some of the post-game quotes from Raja Bell and Shawn Marion after Durant put a scare into them Thursday night.

The Chicago Bulls - The up and coming Eastern Conference juggernaut, picked by many pundits to post the East's best record and make it at least to the Conference Finals, has struggled out of the gates, going 0-3 in its first week of play.

The LA Lakers - Will their surprising early success be enough to convince Kobe to stay? Probably not. Still, as a Lakers fan you have to be encouraged seeing the role players and the bench produce like this. There may be hope in post-Kobe LA.

Here are some highlights from the first week of play, courtesy of the NBA. If you're an NBA fan and a frequent YouTube user, subscribe to the NBA channel. It is great.

Preseason NBA Award Predictions

2007-10-30T17:44:00.000-04:00

The NBA season starts tonight with a doubleheader on TNT! After finishing our divisional previews, we're going to cap it all off with our award predictions.

Coach of the Year

Charlie’s pick: Rick Adelman, Houston Rockets.

Don’t be surprised to see the Rockets sitting near or at the top of the standings come April, with Adelman receiving a lot of the credit.

The Scrapper’s pick: Scott Skiles, Chicago Bulls

The Baby Bulls are growing up. After the Bulls put together the best regular season record in the East and come within a game of the NBA Finals, Skiles unanimously walks away with Coach of the Year Honors.

Most Valuable Player

Charlie’s pick: Yao Ming, Houston Rockets

Yao is going to take the NBA by storm this year. He was exceptional last year and he will be completely indefensible this season.

The Scrapper’s pick: Lebron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

Lebron has improved steadily in each of his first few seasons and I look for the trend to continue this year. If Lebron's jump shot is anywhere close to as good as it was this summer in international play, look out for him to average over 30 points a game and continue to fill up the rest of the stat sheet.

Rookie of the Year

Charlie’s pick: Al Thornton, Los Angeles Clippers

While he won’t get as many touches as Durant, he also has less growing to do. He’s NBA ready and his numbers will reflect that.

The Scrapper’s pick: Kevin Durant, Seattle Supersonics

Instantly the go to guy on a young Supersonics team, Durant will average over 20 a game and run away with Rookie of the Year Honors. Not that it will really matter for the voting, but I'm a little scared for him on defense having to match up against other shooting guards.

Defensive Player of the Year

Charlie’s pick: Shawn Marion, Phoenix Suns.

This is the year that Marion gets the credit he’s due on the defensive end. He has always been an underappreciated defender, and extra campaigning this year will help him garner attention.

The Scrapper’s pick: Emeka Okafor, Charlotte Bobcats

Okafor is a shot blocking machine. If he can stay healthy, he will put up some impressive defensive stats.

Sixth Man Award

Charlie’s pick: Leandro Barbosa, Phoenix Suns.

Barbosa is too good not to win this award again.

The Scrapper’s pick: Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs have found their niche with Ginobili as the first man off the bench. Ginobili provides a tremendous spark off the bench and after a full season as sixth man, people will be wondering if Ginobili is the best ever. Leandro Barbosa and David Lee could also win this.

Most Improved Player

Charlie’s pick: J.J. Redick.

With a more dynamic offense under Stan Van Gundy, and even more improvement from Dwight Howard, Redick will be getting a lot of open looks this year. He had a terrific summer league and seems to have adjusted to the NBA defensive pace.

The Scrapper’s pick: LaMarcus Aldridge

With Zach Randolph a Knick and Greg Oden out for the season, Aldridge will be getting a ton of touches in the post. Look out for him to build on a solid rookie campaign with a breakout sophmore season. Watch out for Ronnie Brewer to finish a close second.

Western Conference Champion

Charlie’s pick: Spurs over Rockets.

The Spurs have a few more years of Duncan in his prime, and they will take advantage. Their balanced attack and team defense will be too much for the Rockets to overcome.

The Scrapper’s pick: Spurs over Suns

Charlie's take on the Spurs was dead on. They are just too good right now. The Suns will regret not resigning Kurt Thomas when Amare Stoudemire gets in foul trouble trying to guard Duncan.

Eastern Conference Champion

Charlie’s pick: Heat over Celtics.

I’m sorry Scrapper Nation, I refuse to jinx my own team by not picking them here. I don’t think it’s too wild a stretch of the imagination either. Fully healthy, the Heat are loaded enough with playoff veterans to come out of the East.

The Scrapper’s pick: Celtics over Bulls

The Bulls build on last year's first round sweep of the Heat with an appearance in the NBA's final four. But the Celtics prove to have just enough firepower in Garnett, Pierce, and Allen to eke out a seven game Eastern Conference Finals victory.

NBA Champion

Charlie’s pick: Spurs over Heat.

The Spurs are an absolute juggernaut and the only thing that could change this outcome would be injury.

The Scrapper’s pick: Spurs over Celtics

Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan play to a draw while Bruce Bowen shuts down Paul Pierce. In the end, Parker and Ginobili's penetration ability is too much for the Celtics to overcome.

Duke University’s Blue & White Game: A preview of what may be the ACC’s surprise team

2007-10-30T14:36:00.000-04:00

By Vivek Upadhyay
Special to Scrapper Nation
Note – this article will also appear at http://sportsstation.blogspot.com

In his halftime speech to the crowd, Coach K explained to the Cameron Crazies, many of whom were freshmen experiencing their first game ever in Cameron, who he wants this Duke team to be. Coach K said "there are a lot of expectations for a Duke Basketball team. And the reason why, are well—those,” as he pointed to the 10 final four banners lining the ceiling above him. In the past 27 seasons while he’s been head coach, Duke has been to 10 final fours, won 3 national titles, and finished the season #1 seven different times, more than any other conference (yes, conference) in all of Division I. “I don’t want us to be anyone else but ourselves. I want us to be Duke.”

That excellence over the past 27 years is the main reason why Duke is in an unfamiliar role this year—sleeper. I went to the Blue and White game to get an idea of how talented this Duke team is going to end up, and found what may be the best team in the ACC this year (that’s right, better than North Carolina).

First of all, to all of you who don’t know, what is the Blue & White game? The Blue & White is an exhibition game held every year (usually during Parents’ Weekend) which features Duke Blue v. Duke White, with half the team on each side. This year's teams were:

Duke Blue

G – Greg Paulus – Jr.
G – Demarcus Nelson – Sr.
F – Gerald Henderson – Soph.
F – Taylor King – Fresh.
C – Brian Zoubek – Soph.

Duke White

G – Nolan Smith – Fresh.
G – Jon Scheyer – Soph.
F – Kyle Singler – Fresh.
F – Lance Thomas – Soph.
F – Steve Johnson – Soph. (walk-on in place of injured David McClure)
Reserve – Jordan Davidson – Jr. (walk-on in place of injured Marty Pocius)

The Game

Blue & White started as a complete massacre on the part of Duke Blue, as they went up 27-9 at one point in the first half. Paulus did a good job running the offense as Taylor King, freshman from Mater Dei HS in California, lit up Duke White, scoring 17 points in the first half (5-7 from three). King was afraid of nothing, as he threw up a three anytime he thought he could. Also looking good for Duke was Gerald (or G, as we affectionately call him), who did an outstanding job playing defense and covering Scheyer.

White trailed blue going into the second half. However, when they came back, Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler showed exactly why they were recruited. Smith took control of the offense, while Singler quietly scored a game-high 23 points, as they tied it up 57-57 with 6 minutes left. Blue struck back, building a 5 point cushion and riding it to the end, 69-64.

Highlights

- Brian Zoubek’s new defense: scream
- Taylor King making his 3rd three in a row and screaming out “yeah boi.”
- Nolan Smith throwing a 25-foot alley-oop to Singler, finishing it one-handed
- Smith and Singler connecting again from 30 feet, only to have G block Singler’s shot mid-air
- An offense. Enough said.

Grades for Blue and White

Coaching – A – Coach K learned his lesson from last year and decided to run an up-tempo, full-court offense this year based around three point shooting. Thank you to the big guy upstairs. Coach K finally realized that JJ and Sheldon aren’t on the team anymore.

Nolan Smith – A - defensively, one of the best players on the team. It’s obvious that this kid spent 3 years in high school covering Ty Lawson and Brandon Jennings. He came out looking scared, but after the first half, he dominated the 2nd half, already setting up the inevitable “Paulus or Smith” dilemma.

Taylor King – A – Taylor King plays with the same, if not greater, talent and energy than Lee Melchioni his senior year. For a freshman, that is outstanding. People often forget that most freshmen don’t come in and contribute day one. King showed his place in the Duke offense today. When he’s hot, no one can stop him.

Kyle Singler – A+ - the silent leader of the white team, he lead all scorers with 23, doing it quietly. However, I will warn you all, the past 4 leading scorers of the blue/white game have been Brian Zoubek, Lee Melchioni, and Shavlik Randolph twice. Maybe he shouldn’t have done so well…

Jon Scheyer – C – Scheyer was forced into being more of a “glue-guy” in this game, disabling him from being the pure shooter he is. With that said, G just shut him down. Come on, 8 points?

Gerald Henderson – A+ - Gerald dramatically improved his jump shot, is by far the best athlete on the team, and arguably the most popular one too. One big play from Gerald makes the Crazies go, well, crazy, and he is undoubtedly going to be a star someday. I will say right now, the fate of this year’s team lies in whether Gerald can step up and be the big playmaker he’s meant to be.

Lance Thomas – C+ - Lance put on some visible muscle during the off-season, and improved his jumper. However, Zoubek forced him to play a style of game that isn’t right for him. I’d compare his style of game to Channing Frye. Unfortunately, lack of post defenders might prevent him from showing it off.

Brian Zoubek – C+ -Duke recruited Zoubek knowing that he, by the earliest, would be a major contributor his junior year. Nonetheless, it’s just a little disappointing to see that many traveling calls, missed lay-ups, and fouls (6 for the evening). The ridiculous screaming during defense might be it though…

Greg Paulus – B- - Paulus finished with 8 points, and would have gotten a C if he didn’t make a critical lay-up to seal Blue the victory with 14 seconds left. He was good running the floor, but could have looked much better on defense.

Dave McClure (Inj) – Incomplete – McClure could be the X-factor for this Duke frontcourt. If he can effectively cover opposing big men, much like a Malik Rose or Dennis Rodman, the Blue Devils’ biggest worry will be eliminated.

Marty Pocius (Inj) – Incomplete – Marty didn’t play, but he better during the year. He’s one of the team’s better offensive players, and hasn’t gotten the minutes he deserves.

DeMarcus Nelson – B+ - DeMarc is, along with Gerald, one of the most liked players on the team. He lost some weight during the off-season and looks much quicker, but still is a great rebounder. I’d like to see more production from that jump shot though.

The Cameron Crazies – A+ - for the Blue & White game, the Crazies came in numbers, as the entire camera-side of the Crazies was filled with students decked out in Blue & White. This year’s freshmen really seem to have taken to the Duke Basketball Tradition, and opposing teams should know Duke is once again, as it always was, the hardest place to play in college basketball.

NBA Southwest Division Preview Part 2

2007-10-30T02:58:00.000-04:00

Hey everybody. This is the final installment of our divisional previews. We're going to follow up where we left off in the Southwest Division, starting with the Mavs.

Dallas

After the Mavs choked big time against the Heat in the 2006 Finals, they were ready to go the following season, amassing 67 wins and entering the playoffs as the favorites to win. We all know how that went. After their epic collapse against Golden State, Mark Cuban’s Mavs are looking to forget the past and make another run at it.

After a soul-searching journey to the Australian outback, Dirk Nowitzki is ready to follow up his MVP campaign with another stellar season. All-Star Josh Howard, former ACC Player of the Year at Wake Forest, will improve on his numbers from last year and truly enter the upper echelon of small forwards.

I think that Devin Harris will finally be consistent. Word is that he’s got the starting job this year, with Jason Terry coming off the bench. I’d imagine they’ll be getting pretty even minutes and wouldn’t be surprised to see them on the floor together, especially given Terry’s penchant for hitting the timely three.

It should be another terrific regular season down in Dallas. The question is whether or not they can carry that success into the postseason.

Here’s Avery Johnson taking out his frustration on a helpless reporter in the postgame conference after a loss to the Heat in the Finals. It’s great. My favorite part is when he says, “We got people from Israel, and…uh…Minnesota.”

Memphis

I found that picture of Pau Gasol and Hubie Brown lounging by the banks of a stream a few years ago and couldn't resist posting it. Anyway...

After watching Mike Miller fill it up for Team USA in Las Vegas this summer, I’m excited about the Grizzlies. Word is that Pau Gasol has had a really strong summer as well, playing for Spain, and working on expanding his range out to 15 feet.

The Grizzlies bring in dynamic point guard Mike Conley Jr. and lights out Spanish pro Juan Carlos Navarro to bolster their backcourt. After battling injuries, former one-and-done Villanova star Kyle Lowry should be ready to contribute more meaningful minutes. He’s going to be an excellent player.

Marc Iavaroni, for years considered the best assistant coach in the business, steps into the head coaching role in Memphis. I caught some of Memphis’ preseason game against Malaga in Spain, and they looked good. I think that this Memphis team has the pieces in place to be competitive in the West again. They should be in the mix for the bottom playoff seeds.

This has been posted around the web, but it’s worth reposting. It’s Mike Conley Jr. doing his dribbling workout. Truly incredible. Children and young persons everywhere, emulate this man and you may go far.

New Orleans

This is another team, like the Grizzlies, that is a year removed from playoff contention and itching to get back. Last year’s season was derailed due to injuries to Peja Stojakovic and Chris Paul, but they both return healthy this season and the Hornets’ expectations are sky high as a result.

Though ACC fans may never forgive Paul for the sucker punch he delivered to the groin of N.C. State’s Julius Hodge in the ACC tournament a few years back, the rest of the basketball world has absolutely fallen in love with him. As a Duke fan, having witnessed Paul throwing cheap shots at a few of our players during the Wake-Duke game in Cameron in 2006, I’m still not sold on Chris Paul the humanitarian all-around good guy, though articles like this make a strong case.

Regardless, he is a phenomenal basketball player and the key to the Hornets’ success this season and in seasons to come. He is a game changer and is a mismatch against almost every point guard in the league. He has developed his outside shot to the point that you can’t leave him open, and if you play him too tight he has the quickness and the handles to blow by you and finish strong. The Hornets’ hopes rest on his shoulders.

To illustrate my point, here is an outrageous clip of Chris Paul driving hard and dunking on Dwight Howard. (This is only because I couldn’t find a clip of the Paul-Hodge ‘incident’)

Houston

Houston is another trendy pick to come out of the West this year. I think that fans in Houston have good reason to be excited. The Scrapper and I are going to put out our preseason projections as far as standings and major awards, but I’ll give a spoiler here.

I think Yao Ming is taking down the MVP this year. He was dominant last year and there is nothing to say that he won’t continue to improve. This offseason he got married, so hopefully his life off the court will settle down and he won’t be caught in his hotel room with 30 empty beer cans anymore.

Tracy McGrady will be stellar as always. By this point we know what to expect from T-Mac, and I don’t expect his production to decline at least for a few years. His offensive contributions will be supplemented by the across the board production of Shane Battier, the NBA’s best glue guy.

Battier is good but not great at just about everything, and he plays his heart out every night. He is a terrific defender and is willing to sacrifice his body on every play if necessary to help out his team.

The Rockets brought alumnus Stevie Francis back to Houston this summer, though it remains to be seen if he can wrest the starting job from Rafer Alston. Either way, the Rockets should be steady at the point. Trading for the rights to Luis Scola will probably prove to have been their best offseason move since the McGrady trade. After starring in Europe for years, Scola is ready to come in and complement Yao down low.

The Rockets are a legitimate threat to win every night, even against the league’s upper tier. It is not inconceivable that they will best the Spurs and Mavs and win this division.

They have the talent to hang with anybody, and once the game hits crunch time, they have a player capable of scoring 13 points in 35 seconds. I’m not joking. This clip is required viewing for any basketball fan. If you haven’t watched it, do so immediately.

Why the Spurs are boring, and why they will win

2007-10-29T15:02:00.000-04:00

Hey Scrapper Nation. Due to a garish and tragic ankle injury which set me back a bit, I have been slow to finish my Southwest Division preview. I've been working on the Spurs section, and it has become very long. For that reason I am going to post it in its entirety now, and follow up later today or tomorrow with the rest of the Southwest Division (Houston, Dallas, New Orleans, Memphis).

San Antonio Spurs

The consensus among casual basketball fans is that the Spurs are the most boring team in the NBA. If I had to guess, I’d say that this is also the consensus among network executives at ABC who saw their ratings drop precipitously during last year’s Spurs-Cavs Finals. What makes them so boring? Let’s break it down.

Reason #1: Their superstar might actually be a robot.

We’ve been waiting for years to see some evidence of emotion from Tim Duncan other than the shocked “Me?!?! You called a foul on me?!?!” face he makes after every whistle.

Here at Scrapper Nation we hypothesize that when he was designed in the engineering laboratory in the Virgin Islands, Duncan was pre-programmed with only two facial expressions: stoic and bewildered. If you see smiles, laughter, or anger at any point in the coming season, attribute it to technological advances which have allowed Duncan to be rewired and made to appear more authentically human.

Reason #2: The Spurs play solid, conservative, textbook basketball.

They run a methodical offense. On the other end, they don’t overplay passing lanes because they know that they can rely on the five guys on the floor to play as a stifling defensive unit.

Despite the fact that they have All-Star guards Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, their offense typically runs through Duncan and their points come from playing smart, efficient basketball and taking advantage of what the defense gives them. This is not exciting for the casual fan.

Reason #3: They play in a small market and they never have any drama.

No one on the Spurs issues trade demands. No Spur gripes about playing time. The Spurs rarely if ever get involved with any on-court altercations (see “Horry, Robert” for the exception).

The closest thing they have to an exciting storyline is the Tony Parker-Eva Longoria relationship, which has so saturated the sports world in the past year that I’m not going to bother summarizing it, except to say that my favorite part was when Eva implied that Tony was a bit of an amateur in the bedroom.

So, Charlie, we get it, they’re boring. Isn’t the point of your preview to highlight reasons to get excited about these teams?

Yes, friend, you are correct. And there are a lot of reasons to get excited about this Spurs team, but there is one reason that trumps all others: this team is the model of perfect basketball. As a basketball fan, how can you not appreciate watching this Spurs offense systematically dismantle every defense it faces?

If you think they lack flair, just wait until Duncan hits the bench and Manu becomes the facilitator. He's among the best in the game at finishing acrobatically, and he is no stranger to clutch performances.

You hate Manu because he’s a huge flopper? Fair enough. Turn your eyes to Parker as he inconceivably fills it up in the paint as a 6 foot nothing point guard.

Complain all you want about how boring the Spurs are, or how tired you are of watching them, but don’t lose sight of the reality. You are witnessing perfect basketball. Don’t believe me? Check back in June.

NBA Pacific Division Preview

2007-10-28T03:23:00.000-04:00

Alright. Today we're looking at the Pacific Division. The poll might be a bit lopsided for this one.

Golden State Warriors

The Warriors broke their epic playoff drought last year and shocked the sports world by knocking off Dirk and the Mavs. They went from relatively unknown to ubiquitous, and their challenge this year will be to carry over some of that momentum to make another playoff push.

This offseason, they traded Jason Richardson for Brandan Wright and drafted Italian sharpshooter Marco Belinelli. I’m not sure the additions of Belinelli and Wright will be enough to offset the loss of Richardson this year, and the competition for the lower half of the playoff seeds in the West will be just as tough if not tougher than last season.

Don Nelson raved about Belinelli during the summer league, but he seems to have cooled off and it remains to be seen whether Belinelli can come in and be an effective starter in this league his first year. He has the advantage of having played at the highest level in Europe for several years, including numerous stints with the Italian national team. I think he’s going to get the job done.

Wright is something of an enigma. He has the raw talent to be a dominant force, and he should have absolutely destroyed the competition in the ACC last year. While he was tremendous, he disappeared at times and seemed to lack the fire necessary to take over a game. He deferred too often to alpha dog Tyler Hansbrough. His offensive game is unpolished, but he will contribute on the glass and on the defensive end. I’m not sold on the Warriors this year though. There’s too much hype and pressure and they’ve lost the element of surprise.

Get excited about: The first Warriors-Jazz matchup and the many times the Baron Davis over Andrei Kirilenko dunk will be replayed, Steven Jackson hitting big 3s and leading by example as a captain, listening to Marv and Reggie talk about “the length of Brandan Wright.”

Close your eyes so you don’t have to see: Belinelli and Wright hitting the rookie wall, Jason Richardson tearing it up in Charlotte, Jessica Alba sitting courtside at Kings games when they make the playoffs and the Warriors don’t.

Check out these Belinelli highlights from Italy vs. Slovenia. He can really shoot it. I’m amazed at how he really doesn’t set his feet when he makes these deep threes. He’s either fading back or falling forward.

Phoenix Suns

The Suns are the trendy pick to win the championship, and a lot of people feel that they were just a suspension away from winning it last year. While I still think the Spurs are going to get the job done, the Suns have the personnel in place to prove me wrong. The only question mark now will be the Kurt Thomas for cap space trade.

If the Suns should face the Spurs in the playoffs, they will be without their best interior defender, and the burden will fall on Amare Stoudemire to competently guard the best power forward of all time. They rely on Amare so heavily on the offensive end that the idea of him picking up cheap fouls on Duncan is probably keeping new GM Steve Kerr up at nights.

Still, Kerr did what he had to do, saving owner Robert Sarver’s luxury tax money and making it possible to retain his core of Nash, Marion, and Stoudemire.

You can probably guess how I feel about the Grant Hill pickup. Hill was one of the best players in the league in the mid-90s (think Dwyane Wade now), and it will be great to see him back under the spotlight. He’s such a cerebral player, and he really doesn’t have too many miles on his body. If his surgically reconstructed ankles hold up, he will have a great year and remind people of why he was first team All-NBA a decade ago.

Get excited about: Nash threading the needle, Marion’s quirky yet effective release, Amare perfecting his jumper and becoming unstoppable.

Close your eyes so you don’t have to see: Raja Bell getting his clock cleaned by somebody this season (it’s bound to happen). If the Lakers don’t trade Kobe, maybe he’ll do it just to get suspended and stick it to Jerry Buss a bit more.

Here’s a funny SportsCenter commercial from 1995 with Grant Hill and Dan Patrick.

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers were ready to rebound from last season’s disappointing finish when the news of Elton Brand’s knee injury hit and seemingly killed the team’s chances to make it back to the postseason. I think it’s too early to write this team off. They still have an abundance of young talent, and I think people are underestimating how much of an impact rookie Al Thornton will have at the small forward position.

After years of deferring to Brand, Corey Maggette should thrive as the top option in this offense (provided he can stay out of Mike Dunleavy’s doghouse). I think this is the year that Chris Kaman finally puts it all together. They are going to be leaning on him for offensive production in the post, and an offseason of work can only help in his development. He has shown flashes of brilliance in his career, and they need him to be consistent if they’re going to overcome the loss of Brand.

I watched Thornton stick daggers into Duke for the past few years, and as a Heat fan I am relieved that he was drafted into the Western Conference. He has a tremendous amount of talent and passion for the game that will separate him from many of the players from his draft class. He’s going to play his heart out every night and do everything he can to get the W. Clippers fans should be very excited about him.

Here’s Thornton hitting some nice shots in summer league play.

Los Angeles Lakers

Welcome to the Andrew Bynum era. If Kobe hits the road, and it looks like he will, Bynum is going to grow into the top offensive option. What makes me say this? I caught a couple of Lakers preseason games and was blown away by the progress he’s made in the offseason. I kid you not, folks: he’s looking like Dwight Howard out there.

The ESPN.com report says that the Lakers are looking for a package of Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas, and Joakim Noah for Kobe . If this trade goes through, (and the article lists many obstacles to its completion), the Lakers will actually be a better team this year. Walton, Odom, Bynum, Fisher, Noah, Thomas, Deng, and Gordon. That would be an exceptional 8-man rotation.

Unfortunately for the Lakers, this deal probably won’t go through, and they will end up with a lesser package for Kobe . Barring a surprise trade for another star (Jermaine O’Neal?) to pacify Kobe , this will probably be a long season for Lakers fans.

Get excited about: Bynum’s upside, Derek Fisher’s leadership, the lovely Jeannie Buss.

Cover your eyes so you don’t have to see: The Buss/Buss/Jackson disputes, the ups and the downs of the point guard competition, the Kobe apocalypse.

Most people have probably seen this, but for those who haven’t its worth watching. It’s the epic Andrew Bynum/Shaq confrontation. I remember being stunned watching it at the time. I couldn’t believe Bynum had the balls to pull something like that with Shaq.

Sacramento Kings

Kevin Martin quietly became one of the NBA's best scorers last year. The Kings' struggles kept him under the radar, but this year they will improve (thanks largely to his continued development) and Martin will get the credit he is due. The Kings themselves have already rewarded him, giving him a big time contract and ensuring that he will be a King for the next several years.

With Brad Miller returning at full strength and Ron Artest settling down a bit, these Kings will be competitive. New coach Reggie Theus has risen some eyebrows around the league with his unconventional and antiquated discipline, but the players are responding to him and this team will have better chemistry than last season’s.

Unfortunately, the Kings were dealt a bad hand in the preseason and lost Mike Bibby for six to ten weeks with a thumb injury. With a healthy Bibby, I was looking for this team to start strong out of the gate and keep the momentum running into the playoffs. I think the core of Martin, Artest, and Miller will be good enough to keep them afloat, but they need Bibby to come back and stay healthy down the stretch for this season to be a success. Despite the setback, I like their chances.

Do you ever wonder who is the slowest man in the NBA? If you do, this clip is for you. It’s Brad Miller with a big head start getting outrun by Chris Kaman for a loose ball.

How do you guys think the Pacific will shake out?

NBA Northwest Division Preview

2007-10-27T00:13:00.000-04:00

Welcome back Scrapper Nation. Today we’re looking at the Northwest Division.

Portland Trailblazers

All the naysayers and forecasters of doom came out of the woodwork when it was announced that Greg Oden would undergo microfracture surgery. I think that even without Oden these Blazers have a bright future. They have righted the ship and erased the jailblazer image problems which haunted them this past decade. They have terrific young players who will grow together and promise to be formidable for years to come.

My favorite of their young players is Brandon Roy. What impresses me most about him is the intelligence with which he plays. He delivers in the clutch, gets to the rim, and makes the right play in almost every situation.

People are expecting LaMarcus Aldridge to have a big year, and he has lived up to his potential thus far in the preseason. The loss of Zach Randolph will hurt them this year with Oden out, but Blazers fans can take comfort in the knowledge that in the years to come they will be regularly fielding championship-caliber squads.

Get excited about: Brandon Roy becoming a star, Aldridge taking advantage of all the available frontcourt minutes, Steve Blake making his triumphant return.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: The future of the franchise inactive on the end of the bench.

Blazers fans, here is an Oden video to tide you over until the start of the 2008 season. This is his monster block to seal the game against Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament.

Denver Nuggets

I was watching the Nuggets-Suns preseason game on TNT Thursday night, and I was surprised to see the New Jersey era Kenyon Martin flying around on the court. Make no mistake: K-Mart is back. He was bouncing around out there and seems to have finally recovered from his microfracture surgery.

People think of the Nuggets and think Carmelo and AI, but this year we might start calling them the Big Three (although at this point, there are so many Big Threes that it’s getting out of hand…Garnett/Pierce/Allen, Duncan/Parker/Ginobili, Kidd/Carter/Jefferson, Bryant/Vujacic/Walton, etc.)

If Marcus Camby can stay healthy, I’m going on record to say that they will be right up there among the West’s elite teams. Camby is the anchor of their defense. If you look at this starting lineup, you will not be wowed by this team’s defensive prospects, but Camby is such a stout defender of the paint that he and Yakhouba Diawara more than make up for the defensive deficiencies of their offensive juggernauts.

Get excited about: Carmelo’s extended range, K-Mart returning to form, Iverson somehow maintaining his frenetic pace of play.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Would-be Tar Heel J.R. Smith getting repeatedly fined and suspended by proud Tar Heel George Karl.

Here’s a clip of Carmelo destroying two unfortunate Argentinean defenders in Las Vegas this summer.

Utah Jazz

The Jazz are probably my favorite team not based out of Miami. Why? I’ll tell you why. After drawing heaps of criticism for his mismanagement of the Cleveland contract offer situation, and spending most of his first years in Utah dressed down due to injury, Carlos Boozer exploded last season and showcased his All-NBA talent night in and night out.

Boozer is repairing the tarnished image of Duke players in the NBA. After such colossal lottery busts as Trajan Langdon and Will Avery, Duke needed someone to dominate in the NBA and put all talk of a Duke curse to rest. Boozer delivered. He was nothing short of spectacular in last year’s playoffs, outplaying Yao in the first round, almost single-handedly beating Golden State in the second, and giving Tim Duncan a run for his money in the Western Conference Finals.

This year the Jazz have the potential to improve on last year’s surprisingly deep playoff run. Though the defection of Derek Fisher will hurt, Deron Williams is coming into his own, and the buzz around Salt Lake City is that this is the year that the team’s investment in swingman Ronnie Brewer starts paying huge dividends.

Get excited about: Williams and Boozer channeling Stockton and Malone, the icy veins of Mehmet Okur, Andrei Kirilenko breaking out of his funk and playing to his potential.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Kirilenko hoisting three pointers in the event that Jerry Sloan eventually decides to duplicate last year’s system and play him at the small forward position.

I’ve been waiting for the opportunity to share this video with the world. This is one of my favorite videos on YouTube. It’s Boozer posterizing a helpless Gilbert Arenas.

Minnesota Timberwolves

I’m going to make a bold prediction: the 2007 Minnesota Timberwolves will not make the playoffs. They are short on proven star power and they will likely experience significant growing pains as their shockingly young roster hits more than a few bumps in the road.

But wait, don’t change the channel just because you see the Wolves are playing. Despite the fact that they will lose many games, the discerning NBA fan will be able to watch their games and see tremendous potential for future success.

I was talking earlier about the current Big Threes in the NBA. Here is another one to monitor in the future: Jefferson/Foye/Brewer. Jefferson is already a star, Foye is on his way, and Brewer is exhibiting all the early symptoms.

This team is currently being built in the mold of the Chicago Bulls, with several quality young players in their rookie contracts being given the opportunity to play heavy minutes and develop chemistry. Unlike the Bulls, however, they have a dominant low post scorer in Jefferson who will get 23/12 every night.

This is a team built for the future, and while Minnesota fans are probably understandably upset about Garnett’s departure, they honestly have a lot to look forward to.

Get excited about: Randy Foye getting the national attention he deserves, Jefferson dominating the opposition, Brewer setting the rookie record for most steals-into-dunks, the striking good looks of Michael Jacob Doleac, Gerald Green above the rim.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Kevin McHale finding a way to screw it up, the newly acquired Antoine Walker, the newly acquired Antoine Walker with the ball in his hands.

For those of you basketball fans who admire the big men who do the dirty work down low, this is your mixtape. It showcases the talents of Al Jefferson.

Seattle SuperSonics

The Sonics, Blazers, and Wolves all made similar moves this summer. They cut ties with their marquee players in order to free up room for the development of their young guns. The Blazers dropped Randolph to usher in Oden, the Wolves shopped Garnett to build around Jefferson, Foye, and Brewer, and the Sonics let Rashard Lewis bolt to Orlando and traded Ray Allen to the Celtics for the draft rights to Georgetown ’s Jeff Green.

The Sonics are another team that, like the Wolves, is at least a year away from playoff contention. Sonics management has put together a nice young roster which should be able to showcase the talents of Kevin Durant.

The two-headed point guard combo of Luke Ridnour and Earl Watson will have a stabilizing effect on an offense that might otherwise get out of hand due to the relative inexperience of much of this roster. Both Ridnour and Watson are dependable floor generals.

I caught some of the Sonics preseason game against the Lakers, and I was impressed by Jeff Green’s NBA readiness. He impressed me while at Georgetown (I watched him carve up Duke with his passing), but I wasn’t sure his game would immediately translate well to the NBA. I was wrong. He looks great, and I no longer question the Sonics’ decision to take him at #5.

Nick Collison and Chris Wilcox continue to go underappreciated and should both turn in typically consistent years. The success of this team hinges on whether or not Durant can handle the rigors of the long NBA season in his first year. At this point, your guess is as good as mine. We already know from watching him at Texas that you want to keep your eyes glued to the screen whenever he is on TV.

Get excited about: The ups and downs of the first year of the Durant era, the overhyped showdowns (Durant vs. Kobe ! Durant vs. T-Mac! Durant vs. Lebron!), the quiet efficiency of Jeff Green, Luke Ridnour and Earl Watson both notching over ten assists in the same game.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: The Sonics packing up shop and moving to Oklahoma City . Cmon, Seattle, get your act together! This is going to be a great team in a few years and you don’t want to have to buy NBA League Pass to watch all the games!

This is a great example of court vision. Check out Luke Ridnour making the heads up play after evading his defender with some fancy dribbling.

NBA Southeast Division Preview

2007-10-26T09:46:00.000-04:00

Today: the Southeast Division. This division has been dominated by the Heat the past few years, but this season promises to see a much more competitive race for the top spot.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks have been stockpiling young talent and have a chance to take the next step and start really making some noise in the East. I'm a huge Josh Smith fan (his game, not so much his attitude) and I think the Hawks had the best draft of any team by picking up two quality players (Acie Law and Al Horford) who can immediately contribute.

A lot of people criticize the Hawks roster and dismiss them as being overloaded with swingmen and undermanned at point guard and center. While Horford doesn't exactly address the center issue, he should provide dependable scoring on the block, and the addition of Law should help erase bad memories of the Marvin Williams pick. If the Law/Sam Cassell comparisons turn out to be even close to accurate, the Hawks will have their playmaker for the next decade.

Get excited about: Winning considerably more games than usual, Josh Smith getting way, way up, Horford's post moves.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Marvin Williams struggling to live up to his draft position.

Here is an awesome YouTube clip of Josh Smith's top ten plays from last season. He flies under the radar because the Hawks have been pretty mediocre the past few years, but he is one of the most electrifying players in the entire league. In my opinion he is the most vicious dunker in the NBA. Look at how hard he throws it down!

Orlando Magic

The Magic added two critical pieces this summer which have the team and the city excited about their postseason chances this year. Rashard Lewis will come in and give them a dependable wing option, while the great and highly underrated Stan Van Gundy will give them an advantage on the sidelines.

The evolution of Dwight Howard from hesitant teenager into dominating low-post monster will be just as significant for this team. I think that by mid-season he will supplant Shaq as the East's best center.

It remains to be seen whether or not J.J. Redick can deliver for this team, but if he can reclaim any of the old Duke magic, he will be a very valuable contributor. The interior threat of Howard should open up the perimeter and Redick figures to be one of the principle beneficiaries if he can stay injury-free and contribute on the defensive end.

Get excited about: Howard getting double teamed and dunking anyway, the smooth game of Rashard Lewis, Jameer Nelson having a career year, the great Stan Van Gundy.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: A healthy Grant Hill thriving in Phoenix and prompting many a "What might have been..." musing in Orlando.

Check out this Dwight Howard dunk.

Washington Wizards

Along with the New Jersey Nets, this Wizards team is one that I think most fans sleep on a little bit. The general perception is that they are good, but not elite. The fact that the Wizards didn't make any key offseason improvements while much of the East did seems to indicate that this team will once again finish in the middle of the pack and suffer a early to mid-round playoff exit.

Much like the Nets, I think this Wizards team's performance and perception has been lowered due to injury. Remember, two years ago these were the guys who went the distance with the Cavs (and probably should have knocked them off). If these Wizards can stay healthy, they can be extremely dangerous and should probably be considered the favorite to win the division. Gilbert Arenas seems to have recovered from his knee injury and should be ready to go.

Get excited about: Gilbert's theatrics on and off the court, Caron Butler's second consecutive All-Star selection, Andray Blatche emerging from the dark recesses of the bench.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Brendan Haywood botching things in the middle. While the Etan Thomas situation is tragic on multiple levels, it will also really hurt the Wizards in the middle as they will have to depend much more on Haywood to be consistent night in and night out.

Here's a YouTube clip of Gilbert dropping 60 on the Lakers. I had the great pleasure of watching this game live.

Charlotte Bobcats
The Bobcats added Jason Richardson to an already athletic backcourt. The trio of Raymond Felton, Jason Richardson, and Gerald Wallace will be very fun to watch. If Richardson can gel with his new teammates, the Bobcats' playoff aspirations may well pan out.

The loss of Sean May to injury is going to hurt them down low, but they should be able to get by with Emeka Okafor and Walter Herrmann. Though its still too early to tell, things aren't looking good for Adam Morrison's career. After a very rocky rookie campaign, he's out for the year due to a torn ACL.

Despite these setbacks, the Bobcats do appear poised for a significant increase in the wins column. They've built well through the draft and the addition of a proven scorer in Richardson could be enough to get them over the hump.

Get excited about: Having the two-time NBA Dunk Champion on your team, the maturation of Raymond Felton's game, playing relevant games in March and April.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Adam Morrison rocking the stache and the retro suits on the bench.

Here is yet another YouTube dunk video. This one is Jason Richardson showing what he can do on both ends of the court. I love the fact that he is bold enough to throw down a 360 with a defender trailing him.

Miami Heat
Ah, at last, the moment we've all been waiting for. It is with gladness in my heart that I now turn to my hometown team: your 2006 NBA Champion Miami Heat. Regarding Wednesday's Antoine Walker for Ricky Davis/Mark Blount swap, there is only one thing to say: Pat Riley strikes again!!

I cannot tell you how happy I am with this trade. Just a few days before I had been reading online that some NBA scout thought that Antoine Walker was virtually untradable due to his contract size and his recent performance. I was resigned to the idea of watching Antoine bobble, fumble, stumble, and chuck his way to retirement in a Miami Heat uniform. Then Pat Riley pulled off this terrific coup and an offseason's worth of missed opportunities and inactivity was suddenly and miraculously fixed.

Ricky Davis will be a fine addition, especially in the early season while Dwyane Wade is still recovering from surgeries. While I will certainly miss Michael Doleac and even Walker (a little), I think this was an incredible deal for the Heat. I think that this team, if healthy, will definitely be better than projected.

Get excited about: Keith Askins' bowties, Ricky Davis being kept in line by Deputy O'Neal, Wade's triumphant return.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Brick after brick after brick being hoisted by this team's three point shooters as they suffer from the departure of Jason Kapono, Eddie Jones, and James Posey.

I'm going to leave you guys with this quintessential Miami Heat play. Maybe the greatest single play in Heat history. Enjoy.

This division has no clear-cut favorite in my opinion, and it will be very interesting to see how it all shakes out. What do you guys think?

Tomorrow: The Northwest Division (Portland, Denver, Utah, Minnesota, Seattle)

NBA Central Division Preview

2007-10-24T23:42:00.000-04:00

The preview marches on. As promised, here are some thoughts/things worth getting excited about for the Central Division.

Indiana Pacers

The pre seas on word in Indiana is that Mike Dunleavy is thriving under new head coach Jim O'Brien and the system (particularly the offensive philosophy) that he has brought to the team. O'Brien's offense features a lot more motion and emphasizes liberal three point shooting. Dunleavy should see an increased role in this offense, especially as a facilitator. Really, the only thing that can derail him this season is another Ira Newble kick to the face.

Ideally, the Pacers will be able to significantly integrate Ike Diogu and Shawne Williams into the rotation. The continued development of the underrated Danny Granger will be critical to the team's postseason chances.

The Pacers are one of many teams in the East that are quietly stockpiling quality young players and setting themselves up for long-term contention.

Get excited about: A refreshingly up-tempo offense, ESPN talking heads potentially re-evaluating the Jackson/Harrington for Dunleavy/Murphy/Diogu swap.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Yourself...in the mirror...living in Indiana.

Also, the inevitable early struggles of a team working out the kinks of a brand new offense.

Chicago Bulls

Scrapper Nation is probably unaware that the Scrapper is a passionate Bulls fan and that I am a very dedicated Miami Heat fan. Consequently, we have a vast difference of opinion when it comes to the current Chicago Bulls roster. I'll swallow my pride (and revulsion) and admit that this Bulls team is looking very good.

The franchise has built a squad which prides itself on work ethic and playing with passion. Nowhere do these admirable traits find better expression than in the persona of their fiendish imp of a head coach, Scott Skiles, who was once punched by Shaq. The addition of Joakim Noah should immediately pay dividends for the Bulls.

Of course, what the Bulls really need to do is grow a pair and do whatever is necessary to bring Kobe to Chicago.

Get excited about: Deng continuing his meteoric ascent, Tyrus Thomas frequenting the SportsCenter Top Ten, Joakim Noah's seersucker suits.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Ben Wallace's slow transformation from Pistons era tough guy to this decade's Vlade Divac - after having witnessed his stellar performance against the Heat in last year's playoffs, he is hands-down my preseason pick for flopper of the year.

Milwaukee Bucks

Ah, Milwaukee. The city forever immortalized by Wayne Campbell, Garth Algar, and Alice Cooper in the epic film Wayne's World. It was once thought that at the moment of that film's release, Milwaukee as a city had reached its ultimate peak. For those of you wallowing in the glorious memories of the past, I bring good tidings: Milwaukee is on the rise again! Swig your beers and eat your cheeses!

This summer, Bucks GM Larry Harris somehow ($$$) convinced Mo Williams to stay in Milwaukee despite an aggressive courtship by Pat Riley and the Heat. As a consolation prize, the Heat offered disgruntled Bucks guard Charlie Bell an offer sheet. To the shock of all involved, Bell himself foremost, Harris matched the offer sheet, keeping Bell in Milwaukee for years to come.

On top of this, the Bucks drafted the biggest enigma in the draft, Yi Jianlian, despite his insistence that he did not want to play in Milwaukee. With Bogut and Villanueva both benefiting from a summer's worth of training, and complementary pieces falling in around Michael Redd, this is another serious playoff contender on the right track.

Get excited about: Mo Williams making more plays like the one shown in the YouTube clip below, Michael Redd lighting it up, Bogut's passing game, having your own 'Coach K' on the sidelines.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Bloggers and members of the sports media making frequent jokes and allusions to the fact that Yi Jianlian probably faked his birth certificiate and is in fact in his early to mid-20s.

Detroit Pistons

As a Heat fan, this is another tough situation for me. As much as I don't want to admit it, this Pistons team has made terrific decisions (in the interest of brevity I'm giving them a temporary mulligan for Darko) in recent years, and Joe Dumars has done a terrific job of keeping this team competitive while being fiscally responsible.

Letting Ben Wallace walk turned out to be a great call, and I really like the draft the Pistons had this year, adding Rodney Stuckey (to some, a young Dwyane Wade) and Arron Afflalo to their backcourt. Pistons fans should look forward to yet another year of consistency. They'll be near the top of the pack in the East when all is said and done.

UPDATE: Just read on ESPN that Stuckey broke his hand in Wednesday night's preseason game against the Wizards. What a shame. Here's hoping it will only be a minor setback.

Get excited about: Stuckey infusing the backcourt rotation with some youth and athleticism, Rasheed hopefully performing an encore of the YouTube Jingle Bells remix featured below.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Rasheed sitting on the bench in a suit during the playoffs after being suspended due to exceeding the league's soft cap for technical fouls.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Can Cleveland repeat as Eastern Conference champions? Most people don't think so. I agree with most people. I thought that everything went right for the Cavs in last year's playoffs, from the match-ups (Washington instead of Chicago in the first round) to Lebron's inability to miss during the fourth quarter and OT period of Game 5 against Detroit.

The Cavs haven't made any noise in an offseason which has been highly eventful for most of their Eastern competition. With that being said, they will enter each game they play with a clear advantage: the fact that they have Lebron and the other team doesn't. Even if he doesn't improve they will always be a force to be reckoned with.

Odds are, however, that Lebron will continue to mature as a player and work on the few flaws in his game to become, sooner rather than later, the best player in the NBA.

Get excited about: getting to watch Lebron night in and night out, Varejao's hustle, Larry Hughes' tattoos.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Drew Gooden's back of the head soulpatch, Damon Jones struggling to contribute in limited minutes.

Note: the caption for this image last year might've been: "We did it!!"
This year it will probably read: "Damnit!!! Why couldn't we trade you?!?! I should've bought you out myself!"

On Friday: The Southeast Division (Atlanta, Orlando, Washington, Charlotte, Miami)

NBA Atlantic Division Preview

2007-10-24T13:38:00.000-04:00

Scrapper Nation, it is my distinct honor and privilege to once again share some of my NBA thoughts with you. The Scrapper has been very busy lately, and with the NBA season quickly approaching, I thought I would offer some of my early thoughts about the season to come.

Instead of breaking down roster changes and win/loss projections, I’m going to propose reasons why you as an NBA fan should be excited about each team in the league. We’ll go day by day with each division leading up to opening night on Tuesday.

The Atlantic Division

New Jersey Nets

Nets fans have a lot to be excited about this season. While the rest of the East has been improving through trades and free agent signings, the Nets hope to improve on last year’s performance simply by staying healthy. With Nenad Krstic and Richard Jefferson ready to go, the Nets will take advantage of a very dynamic offense and should be very interesting to watch.

If Jason Kidd and Vince Carter running the break isn’t enough to keep your attention, the addition of Jefferson on the wing and Krstic on the block should make this team very fun to watch (and very competitive).

Get excited about: Jason Kidd running the break with a healthy Vince and RJ on either side, Krstic stroking midrange jumpers and creating match up problems down low.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Marcus Williams stealing another laptop and disappearing into a cloud of Sean Williams' marijuana smoke!

(In all seriousness, if Kidd and Frank can keep these guys in order, they will be very valuable contributors both now and in the future.)

New York Knicks

Here at Scrapper Nation we like to look at the positives. Yes, Isiah Thomas lost his sexual harassment case. Yes, this Knicks roster is laden with question marks and career underachievers. Yes….Eddy Curry. Despite all this, the Knicks have a chance to compete and look good while doing it. Renaldo Balkman, last year’s first round pick (remember the chorus of boos in MSG?), looked very good last season and should continue to improve.

The 300 pound gorilla is the combination of Eddy Curry and Zach Randolph in the paint. Can they coexist? If they somehow work it out, and I have my doubts, this team will be able to compete.

Get excited about: Balkman throwing down ridiculous dunks (see YouTube) and the steady low-post contributions of Zach Randolph.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Eddy Curry. Doing anything.

Toronto Raptors

Bosh. Bargnani. Ford. Calderon. Garbajosa. That’s not enough?!?! How about this: Kapono!!

The Raptors added the reigning NBA 3-point king, and while he probably won't be as good this season as he was last season as a member of your heroes, the Miami Heat, he should have another solid campaign, though he will have stiff competition for minutes with Carlos Delfino and Anthony Parker.

Raptors fans, rejoice! You will enjoy watching Kapono’s quick release and sweet stroke. His emergence as a serious perimeter threat was one of the few highlights of last season for my Heat.

Get excited about: Bargnani taking the next step, Kapono shooting textbook threes, the healthy point guard competition between Ford and Calderon.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Chris Bosh gingerly walking off the court with some sort of injury. Let's hope he can stay healthy and cement his status as one of the NBA's elite forwards.

Raptors fans, enjoy this clip of Kapono winning the 3-point shootout.

Boston Celtics

If the Celtics’ offseason moves didn’t pump you up as a basketball
fan, it might be time to consider another sport. The Big Three by themselves provide reason enough to get excited, but it’s worth looking at how Danny Ainge filled out the roster after depleting it to get Garnett.

Everyone knows that the addition of Garnett and Allen makes them immediate contenders in the East, but Ainge’s shrewd and cost-efficient additions of Scot Pollard, James Posey, and Eddie House turned this team from a three-trick pony into what seems, on paper, to be a well-balanced and reasonably deep squad with a chance to make the Finals and hang with the West. Posey was a very underrated member of the Heat’s 2006 championship team, and he has the grit and the stones to be a major factor in the postseason. If you need some Big Three refreshment, check out the Scrapper’s post with their mixtapes.

Get excited about: Seeing the Celtics on TV in May and June, watching Garnett operate in the post, Scot Pollard's ever-evolving hairdo.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Doc Rivers mismanaging games down the stretch.

Philadelphia 76ers

Andre Iguodala ('AI2', 'Iggy') took his game to the next level after the mid-season Iverson trade. Unfortunately for the rest of the league, it appears that he's only going to get better. While he has been excellent thus far, I really believe this is the year he breaks out and becomes a star. He will be the go-to guy, and with the underrated distributor Andre Miller having a Sixers training camp under his belt, this team should be able to outperform expectations.

Don't sleep on Shavlik Randolph returning from his freak ankle injury and making some noise. Ok... maybe sleep a little. I couldn't find the clip of his injury on YouTube, but if you have the occasion to view it, go ahead. Its not quite Shaun Livingston, but it's quite unpleasant. Hopefully he'll be able to come back and contribute again.

Get excited about: Miller lobbing to Iguodala, newcomer Thaddeus Young potentially mixing it up, Korver doing his best Jason Kapono impression.

Cover your eyes so you don't have to see: Larry Brown looming.

Tomorrow: The Central Division (Indiana, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland)

Week 7 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-10-21T09:45:00.000-04:00

Washington (-7.5) over Arizona

Atlanta over New Orleans (-8)

Baltimore (-3) over Buffalo

Dallas (-9.5) over Minnesota

New England (-16) over Miami

New York Gaints (-9) over San Francisco

Tampa Bay over Detroit (-2.5)

Houston over Tennessee (-1)

Kansas City over Oakland (-3)

Cincinnati over New York Jets (-6.5)

Chicago over Philadelphia (-6)

Seattle (-8.5) over St. Louis

Pittsburgh (-3.5) over Denver

Indianapolis (-3) over Jacksonville

Last week: 6-6-1
Season: 45-40-4

Crank Dat Soulja Boy

2007-10-19T16:15:00.000-04:00

I received a lot of emails from some of our older (in age) Scrapper Nation readers asking about what “crankin’ dat soulja boy” is and why “kids are so nuts about that crazy looking dance.” For all of you in the dark, it’s just a weird looking dance some rappers made up, but you better get familiar with it because it’s pervasive in youth culture. I was fooling around on YouTube when I stumbled upon about a million videos of everyone and their mom “crankin’ dat soulja boy.”

I had to choose from some pretty good videos, but I’ve narrowed the field down to the top 4 sports-related spontaneous Soulja Boy outbursts.

Wisconsin Men’s head basketball coach Bo Ryan crankin’ it in a video made for the school's Midnight Madness

Texas Longhorns football team cranks dat soulja boy against UCF

Canes Mascot crankin’ dat Soulja boy

Even the 5-year olds are crankin’ it. Sarasota Sundevils Pee Wee football team

Scrapper Nation, it’s time for you to crown the best sports-related Soulja Boy outburst:

Why Greg Monroe Chose Georgetown

2007-10-15T19:46:00.000-04:00

Greg Monroe, a 6-foot-10, 230-pound big man from Louisiana and the no.1 recruit in the Class of 2008, just verbally committed to Georgetown. Monroe had narrowed his list down to five schools-LSU, Georgetown, Duke, Texas, and UConn-and it appeared he was going to take official visits at all five schools before making his decision. But before making his official recruiting trip to Duke, Monroe verbally committed to Georgetown. How/why did this happen? How did Georgetown snag him?

He made his decision after attending Georgetown’s Midnight Madness.

What happened there?

Coach Thompson III got Patrick Ewing Jr. to teach Jerry Rice how to “crank dat soulja boy” in front of a packed stadium full of Georgetown students. Check it out for yourself:

Jerry Rice doing soulja boy? Are you kidding me? That was awesome. If I’m Greg Monroe I’d commit right then too.

And then the current Coach Thompson stood at center court, danced, and called his players out to center court to come get down with him:

That is why Greg Monroe committed, because Coach Thompson III knows hot to recruit today’s high school student. Can you imagine Coach K breaking it down at Center Court and getting Paulus and Scheyer to do some “Soulja boy?” If he did, and Duke had Midnight Madness, Greg Monroe just might be a Blue Devil right now.

Week 6 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-10-14T12:37:00.000-04:00

I'm swamped with work right now so here's a very brief version of my picks.

Cincinnati (-2.5) over Kansas City

Jacksonville (-6.5) over Houston

Cleveland (-5.5) over Miami

Chicago (-5.0) over Minnesota

Philadelphia (-4.0) over New York Jets

St. Louis over Baltimore (-9.0)

Tennessee over Tampa Bay (-2.5)

Green Bay (-3) over Washington

Arizona (-6.0) over Carolina

New England (-5.5) over Dallas

San Diego (-9.0) over Oakland

Seattle (-6.0) over New Orleans

New York Giants (-3.5) over Atlanta

Last Week: 6-7-1
Season: 39-34-3

Whatever Happened to Sportsmanship?

2007-10-10T23:27:00.000-04:00

If you take a quick look at the major stories pervading the sports world today, it quickly becomes apparent that winning at all costs has never been more on athletes’ minds. Only a few days ago, Marion Jones admitted to having gained an unfair advantage by using banned designer steroids during her record-breaking five track and field medals she won at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Weeks ago, the New England Patriots, winners of three of the last six Super Bowls and this decade’s flagship professional football team, were caught illegally videotaping an opponent’s defensive play calls. Last year’s Tour de France champion, Floyd Landis, was stripped of the Tour de France title after being found guilty of taking illicit synthetic testosterone supplements. Adding to this, major league baseball is being ravaged by reports of widespread usage of steroids, human growth hormone, and other illicit drugs which have called into question (among other marks) the legitimacy of Barry Bonds’ claim to the all-time home run record. Along with these high-profile cheating scandals, with both trash talking and coach or parent centered outbursts nearing an all-time high, it is clear that a lack of sportsmanship and ethics is pervasive in sports today.

The root of this “do anything to win” mentality that today’s athletes display is a product of the culture these athletes have grown up being accustomed with. The “culture of sports” that is cultivated for a young athlete is directly determined by the actions of parents, guardians, and coaches. Only last year, a father confronted a coach of a peewee football team for 5- and 6- year olds about his son’s playing time. A fist fight rapidly ensued and the episode culminated with the father pulling a handgun, which he pointed at the team’s coach while only being a few feet away from youngsters on the team. Another example of unsportsmanlike behavior in youth sports came a few years ago when two parents got into a fight at a middle school hockey practice in Massachusetts. The fight, which occurred in front of middle school children on the team, resulted in one of the parents dying. Although these two incidents may be glorified hyperboles of the type of parental outbursts that normally occur in youth sports, the fact is that parents are misbehaving at children’s athletic events at an alarming rate.

Indeed, the National Alliance for Youth Sports reported that “fifteen percent of organized kids’ games now include some form of verbal or physical abuse from parents, guardians, and coaches.” The group also reports that this percentage is “three times the rate from just five years ago.” Whether coaches or parents would like to acknowledge it, the example they set for today’s youngsters has the strongest impact on what kind of sportsmen they become and ethics they exhibit on and off the court later in life. Not surprisingly, as the frequency of verbal or physical abuse from parents, guardians, and coaches increases, the resulting level of ethics and sportsmanship displayed by athletes on the field conversely decreases.

From the preceding, it is clear that there is a lack of sportsmanship and ethics in the modern athlete. Although many people (including coaches, parents, guardians, and athletes) may try to justify their behavior by pointing to the desire to win and the cutthroat, competitive nature of modern day sports, this thought process should be refocused. Of all the athletes in youth sports today, only a miniscule, almost negligible percentage will gain an athletic scholarship, and an even less number will have the opportunity to become professionals.

So although winning should always be a tangible goal for any athletic team, the coach must understand that the main goal of sports is to teach kids life skills. An example of this is the inner and outer response from athletes after being on the winning or losing side of an athletic contest. In life, everyone is bound to have their fair share of successes and failures. Through sports, one can learn how to be a graceful winner and act respectfully to opponents. But perhaps more importantly, sports can help kids learn how to deal with failure. You won’t always finish first and when you don’t do so, you should know how to handle yourself. Thus, if accompanied by the right role models, kids will learn how to deal with adversity, take responsibility for their actions, and (win or lose) act in a respectful and gracious manner.

Amy Van Dyken, six-time gold medalist in swimming, shared a similar sentiment:

The most important lesson I've learned from sports is how to be not only a gracious winner, but a good loser as well. Not everyone wins all the time, as a matter of fact, no one wins all the time. Winning is the easy part, losing is really tough. But, you learn more from one loss than you do from a million wins. You learn a lot about sportsmanship. I mean, it's really tough to shake the hand of someone who just beat you, and it's even harder to do it with a smile. If you can learn to do this and push through that pain, you will remember what that moment is like the next time you win and have a better sense of how those competitors around you feel. This experience will teach you a lot on and off the field!

It’s obvious that the current level of sportsmanship and ethics can be greatly improved. Hopefully, parents and coaches will take the lead in becoming positive role models for children. As Grantland Rice once said, "For when the One Great Scorer comes to mark against your name, He writes not that you won or lost - but how you played the game."

Q&A with Patrick Johnson

2007-10-07T18:30:00.000-04:00

Patrick Johnson walked on to the Duke Men's Basketball team his sophmore year and earned a scholarship for his play prior to the 2004-05 season. Although Patrick didn't always play the most minutes, he was an important contributor to many Duke teams and exhibited nothing but class on and off the court. I had a chance to ask Patrick a few questions about his playing days and what he has been up to since leaving Duke. Here is the transcript of our Q&A session:

Can you give us a glimpse of your life since leaving Duke? Where are you at on a personal and professional level?

I moved to Southern California in August of 2006 with my fiancé whom I met at Duke. We got married this summer and are now living in Rancho Cucamonga. Professionally, I am no longer playing basketball, but this will be my first year as the head varsity boys coach at Claremont High School in Claremont, California. I am also in my first year teaching World History and American Government there.

Congratulations on getting married. How was the wedding? Did Coach or any past teammates make it to the wedding?

The wedding was great. We got married at a resort in La Quinta, CA, so it was great to spend a few days with friends and family before the wedding. Unfortunately, not many Duke guys could make the trip. Coach K actually had a surprise birthday party in Durham on the same day! Joe Pagliuca made it out to Cali for the wedding, though, which was cool.

What is the married life like?

Aside from having a "wife" and a joint checking account, married life isn't too different for me. My wife and I lived together for almost two years before we got married, so it hasn't been too much of a change.

I read that you didn't play a minute of high school basketball and played intramural ball when you first came to Duke. How did you become a member of the Varsity team? Did the coaches hear about you dominating the IM league?

That's true. Our high school's basketball coach begged me to play every time he saw me, but baseball was my big sport growing up. I pitched and played first base basically year round and was scouted by about a dozen pro teams, so I concentrated on that. I came to Duke originally planning to play baseball but that didn't work out. Toward the end of my freshmen year I emailed everyone I could in the Duke Basketball office, told them who I was, and how tall I was, and asked if I could try out for the team. I worked out all summer and started playing pickup with the guys on the team once school started back in the fall. They invited me to the first few practices and after a while told me I had made the team.

Any advice you can give intramural basketball players (like myself) who constantly dream of being on the team but might not be blessed with 6'9” size?

I think being 6'9" helped me catch the attention of the staff over email, but after that, making the team is all about hard work and sacrifice. Especially as a walk-on, you have to be willing to do whatever, whenever at a hundred percent effort and never say anything about it. That's something that anyone can bring to the table.

What do you think was your best game at Duke? Why?

Personally, my best game at Duke was against Virginia Tech during my junior year. We blew them out, so I played ten minutes and finished with 2 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. I mean, if Coach had just played me 40 minutes I could have had a chance at a triple-double!

What would you say is your fondest memory from being in a Duke uniform?

My fondest memory of being in a Duke uniform is the UNC game at Carolina during my sophomore year. Chris Duhon won the game on a full-court buzzer beating layup and we all rushed the court. There is nothing like beating North Carolina.

What about the most disappointing moment?

The most dissapointing moment of my career was either the Final Four loss to UConn in my sophomore year or the Sweet 16 loss to LSU in my senior year because I thought we had a great chance to win a championship in both years. Uconn was tough because we were so close, but LSU was tough because it was the last time I would get to put on a uniform.

What do you think about last year's team?

I think last year's team didn't meet their own expectations, but knowing most of the guys on that team I'm sure it wasn't for lack of heart or effort. It was interesting to watch from the outside how quickly everybody was ready to jump on Duke and even personally attack some of the players. It's important to realize how good a season they still had, though. 22 wins and an NCAA berth is nothing to be ashamed of.

How do you think the team will do this season?

If this team listens to Coach K, works hard, and commits to a common goal then I am sure they will have a successful season. There is always going to be a lot of talent at Duke, and I am excited to see how it all comes together this year.

Are you still close with any past teammates or follow any of them in the NBA?

I talk to some past teammates from time to time, but I definitely try to keep track of what the guys are up to, either basketball or otherwise. I'll always stop to watch an NBA game if a Dukie's playing.

Did Duke Basketball help prepare you for life? How?

Duke Basketball has been the biggest influence on preparing me for life other than my family. It taught me so much about so many different things like hard work, setting goals, commitment, etc. I definitely use the lessons I learned from Duke Basketball every day.

Looking back, would you have made the same decision to join the team?

Without a doubt. I had my ups and downs, but I would make the exact same decision if I had the choice.

Any other good stories you could share from your playing days with the team?

One of my things was the day during my sophomore year when we played dodgeball during practice-with rubber balls and everything. Don't listen to the lies Lee Melchionni has been spreading- I dominated all three games. I took Andy Borman off his feet on one throw, all Lee could manage was a cheap shot on Luol Deng when he wasn't looking.

Why I Love College Football

2007-10-06T16:30:00.000-04:00

Fall break has commenced, meaning that I finally have a chance to sit back and watch a great day of college football. With a lot of negative stories floating around in the NFL at the moment (the whole Mike Vick mess, Pats’ cheating scandal, Travis Henry drug use, etc…) it’s refreshing to see the enthusiasm, school pride, and sportsmanship that make college football what it is. Here are a few moments from today’s first round of games (games starting at 12 and 1 pm) that highlight why I love college football:

1. After Carolina pulled off a 33-27 shocker over Miami, Tar Heel head coach Butch Davis consoled current Miami head coach Randy Shannon. Compared to the bitter Coach/protégé relationships so common in the NFL (i.e. Bill Belichick and Eric Mangini), it was great to see Butch Davis be classy enough to embrace his former linebackers coach. I have nothing but respect for Coach Davis, and I know he has Carolina on the right track.

2. Watching Illinois pull off a shocking 31-26 victory over a #5 ranked Wisconsin team. What I liked seeing:

a. A teary-eyed Ron Zook hug his quarterback (Juice Williams) after the win.

b. Illinois standout running back Rashard Mendenhall humbly express how much it meant to him to have been named captain last week and come through for his teammates in a 160 yard, 2 touchdown performance

c. Illini players rush the stands to celebrate with students and the band after the win.

3. Northwestern’s 48-41 overtime win over Michigan State in East Lansing. Do you know who beat Northwestern earlier this season? Go Duke.

4. Lou Holtz. Everything about the guy, he’s one of the greatest college football coaches of all time and is the epitome of sportsmanship and class. His “pep talk” segments on ESPN always get me fired up. And he also has a pretty nifty magic trick:

And we still have a whole lot of big time games left today. That's why I love college football.

Week 5 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-10-05T12:24:00.000-04:00

I did pretty well last week picking 9 of the 14 games correctly to place myself firmly over .500. Let’s see if I can keep the momentum going.

New Orleans (-3) over Carolina

The Saints will have had two weeks to prepare for the Panthers in what is a must-win game if the Saints intend to make an attempt to salvage their season. Adding to the Saints’ extra preparation and motivation for the game, the Panthers have looked completely inept on offense since losing Jake Delhomme to elbow injury. Delhomme’s backup, David Carr, looked horrendous last week. He wasn’t accurate with a lot of his throws and the Panthers didn’t get the ball enough to Steve Smith. I think I could have done a better job quarterbacking the team than Carr last week, I’d have just handed the ball off to Steve Smith every play and let him make some plays. I think the offense will sort itself out, but a bigger problem right now is Julius Peppers’ ineffectiveness. Peppers used to command double teams but now he’s being dominated in one-on-one matchups. The reason the Panthers’ secondary has been weak this season is because Peppers has been unable to get to the quarterback, resulting in the Panthers only having two sacks on the season, four less than the Giants’ Osi Umenyiora recorded by himself last week against the Eagles. I see Colston and Henderson having big receiving days and Drew Brees getting back on track. The Saints win this game (and if they don't, it means that they have a legitimate shot at going winless this season).

Kansas City over Jacksonville (-2.5)

Kansas City surprised me last week against the Chargers. Damon Huard is coming into his own, Larry Johnson has had a few weeks to get back into the groove of things, Tony Gonzales is having another great year, and rookie wide receiver Dwayne Bowe is emerging as the go to receiver. I’m taking the Chiefs, and I’m also liking their chances of contending in the suddenly average AFC West.

Detroit over Washington (-4)

The Lions can flat out score. They have a number of talented receivers in Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson, Shaun McDonald, Mike Furrey, and tight end Marcus Pollard. The Redskins will put a lot of points on the board against a week Lions secondary, but I like the Lions chances of covering the spread in a high scoring shootout.

Atlanta over Tennessee (-7.5)

Joey Harrington has really, really impressed me with his play thus far and the Falcons have shown they are a solid football team without number 7. I like the Falcons’ chances of winning this game.

Houston (-4.5) over Miami

Miami has been terrible all season long. I think the Houston defense steps up to score at least one defensive touchdown and the offense contributes a few more off the arm of Matt Schaub. I can’t pick the Dolphins to win again until they show me something.

Pittsburgh (-4.5) over Seattle

The only reason I’m going with the Steelers is this game is in Pittsburgh.

New England (-16) over Cleveland

New England has been absolutely destroying the league this season. New England romps the Browns and Tom Brady connects with Randy Moss for a few more touchdowns.

Arizona (-3) over St. Louis

The Rams have way too many injuries to be competitive right now. The Cardinals keep the momentum going and blow out the Rams.

New York Giants (-3.5) over New York Jets

I am going to go with my gut feeling that the Jets are always overrated and take the Giants. It worked last week with the Bills and I’m very confident the Giants (and their suddenly stellar defense) will take care of things again this weekend.

Indianapolis (-9.5) over Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay is a good NFC team, Indianapolis is a great AFC team. What does this mean? Blowout alert!

San Diego over Denver (-1)

The Broncos have looked just as bad as the Chargers this season. I’m going with the Chargers because I don’t want to think about the repercussions if they lose another game. I’d probably fire A.J. Smith, Norv Turner, AND the whole staff if I were the Chargers’ owner if the Broncos win this one.

Baltimore (-3) over San Francisco

Trent Dilfer is starting for the 49ers. I’m going to roll the dice here and say the Ravens win big.

Green Bay (-3) over Chicago

Chicago has lost too many starters on defense. Green Bay can’t run the ball, and it doesn’t even matter. Favre has another great game and the Packers defense stifles Cedric Benson and the Bears passing game.

Dallas (-10) over Buffalo

Tony Romo and the Cowboys have been electrifying thus far. I look for them to keep the momentum going in another big time blowout over Buffalo.

Last Week: 9-5
Season: 33-27-2

The New "Big Three" Mixtape Battle

2007-10-02T18:32:00.000-04:00

I’m not a Boston fan but like most NBA fans, I am straight up pumped about seeing Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce play together next season. I sorted through a lot of videos of these guys to come up with what I think are each player’s best individual mixtape.

We’ve had mixtape battles before here at the Scrapper Nation when Michigan recruit, Sam McGuffie, was chosen over Kobe Bryant, Reggie Bush, and Lebron Jameas as having the best high school mixtape. Now it’s time for you to determine which member of the new big three has the best mixtape. The videos are below and to help you decide I’ve listed a few plays that really stuck out.

Kevin Garnett

0:13- A high school version of KG blocks a player's shot, sprints down court, and catches an off the backboard pass to dunk it home.

0:48- One of the most ridiculous blocks I’ve ever seen

1:04- Put back dunk from what seems like the free throw line

1:42- All-Star Special: Kobe throws it off the backboard for KG to dunk it home

1:55- Crazy alley oop over Robert Horry

Paul Pierce

0:03- Pierce in a Kansas Uniform putting in an alley oop over UCLA

0:18- Goes baseline, nice looking finish

0:35- Behind the back on Richard Jefferson

0:41- Blowing by Caron Butler

1:03- Eric Snow gets shook

Ray Allen Mixtape

0:28- Ray can throw it down too

1:37- Laying it in falling down

1:56- 3 Point Shootout domination

2:30- Getting up for the jam

3:38- Pretty up and under

Time to cast your vote:

Week 4 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-09-28T14:07:00.000-04:00

I'm on the road right now in New York City so here's a brief version of my Week 4 Picks.

Oakland over Miami (-4)

The Dolphins should pack it in and try to get a high pick in the draft. Daunte Culpepper has a chip on his shoulder and Lamont Jordan goes nuts. Joey Porter guarantees Miami will win so I'll guarantee Miami loses.

Houston (-3) over Atlanta

Although Joey Harrington and the Atlanta offense looked pretty good last weekend, I really like this rebuilt Texans team. Let's see if the defense can keep up their stellar play (the offense might have a little tougher time with Ahman Green and Andre Johnson out)

Baltimore (-4) over Cleveland

The whole McNair/Boller quarterback controversy has me somewhat nervous about the Ravens offense but I'm not sold on the Browns just yet (let's see how they perform against a solid defense).

Chicago (-3) over Detroit

I have a bad feeling about the Bears defense with all those injuries but I really think Griese puts some points on the board.

Green Bay (-3) over Minnesota

Why is the spread only 3 points on this game? Green Bay has looked amazing.

Dallas (-13.5) over St. Louis

St. Louis and Dallas are going in completely opposite directions. It's a lot of points but I really think this game is going to be a blowout.

Buffalo over New York Jets (-3.5)

The Jets are always overrated.

Tampa Bay over Carolina (-3)

The Bucs have looked a lot better than the Panthers this season and for some reason the Panthers are terrible at home (3-game home losing streak).

Seattle (-2.5) over San Francisco

I just think the Seahawks are better.

Pittsburgh (-6.5) over Arizona

Pittsburgh has looked great so far. I think they blowout the Cards.

Kansas City over San Diego (-12)

San Diego wins this game but by less than 12.

Indianapolis (-10) over Denver

Denver could easily be 0-3 right now. The Colts win in a rout.

Philadelphia (-3) over New York Giants

The Eagles' offense has hit full stride.

New England (-7.5) over Cincinnati

If the Browns put up 51 on the Bengals, how many will the Patriots score? I'm feeling thankful I have Randy Moss on two of my fantasy teams.

Last week: 8-6-2
Season: 24-22-2

Duke Football Searches for Kicker

2007-09-26T16:37:00.000-04:00

Duke has lost a significant number of games in recent memory due to poor kicking (the Wake Forest and North Carolina games from last season especially stick out). It turns out this weekend’s heartbreaking 46-43 loss to Navy, which featured a missed PAT and another missed chip shot field goal, was the last straw.

The Duke Football program turned to The Chronicle, Duke’s student-run newspaper, for help. In the Tuesday and Wednesday editions of The Chronicle, the Duke Football program placed ads searching for a placekicker (a scanned version of the ad is below, I apologize for that crease in the middle).

Isn't this ridiculous? Can you imagine any other Division 1, BCS school placing an ad in the student newspaper looking for a kicker? Probably not, but remember this is Duke. Although this is kind of embarrasing, kudos to head coach Ted Roof for trying to search for a solution to our terrible kicking game.

A few players have already tried out and the early frontrunner seems to be Will Synderwine, a Duke club rugby player, who has experience kicking for his high school team. Synderwine will most likely travel with the team to Miami, Florida.

Can you imagine what it would be like if he kicks in the game? A regular student one week, kicking field goals in the Orange Bowl the next?

I'm off to practice some kicks. You never know...

Oklahoma State Football Coach Goes Wild

2007-09-24T23:16:00.000-04:00

"Come after ME. I'm a MAN, I'm 40!"

The best coaching outburst of the year? Oh man, this one's good. This is what I live for:

And he's totally right.

Week 3 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-09-23T12:15:00.000-04:00

Indianapolis (-7) over Houston

No Ahman Green, no Andre Johnson. I'll be surprised if the Texans can stay close in this one.

San Diego (-6.5) over Green Bay

I'm still not completely sold on the Packers. Consecutive wins over the Eagles and Giants is impressive, but a win over the Chargers with all those injuries? THAT would be impressive.

Minnesota over Kansas City (-3)

Both teams will have forgetable years. Total toss up.

Philadelphia (-5) over Detroit

After two weeks who would have predicted the Eagles would be 0-2 and the Lions would be 2-0? I have faith in the Eagles.

Buffalo over New England (-16)

I am a 100% sure New England wins this game. But I have a hard time giving anyone 16 points. Hopefully the Bills can cover.

Miami over New York Jets (-3)

I don't like the Jets. I'll pick against them every week.

Pittsburgh (-10) over San Francisco

Pittsburgh steamrolls the 49ers. The defense is playing lights out.

Arizona over Baltimore (-7)

The Ravens bounce back with a win over the Cardinals. But 7 points is too many points for the Ravens' inept offense.

Tampa Bay (-3) over St. Louis

The Rams are falling apart without big, bad Orlando Pace.

Denver (-4) over Jacksonville

I'm not a David Garrard fan at all. The Broncos bounce back after two shaky wins.

Cincinnati over Seattle (-3)

Beat the Ravens, lose to the Browns? I'm saying that last week was a fluke. But we'll see if I'm wrong.

Oakland (-3) over Cleveland

Cleveland returns to reality. No way they put up 51 again.

Carolina (-4) over Atlanta

Panthers blow out the Falcons.

Washington (-4) over New York Giants

The Giants are sinking.

Dallas over Chicago (-3)

I say Rex is benched within the next few weeks.

Tennessee over New Orleans (-6)

The Saints get blown out by the Colts while the Titans lose to Peyton and company by only 2 and the Saints are favored to win this game? By 6 points? Am I missing something?

Last week: 7-9
Season: 16-16

The Carolina Panthers: Super Bowl XXXVIII Champions?

2007-09-20T18:11:00.000-04:00

It’s become increasingly clear that the New England Patriots have been gaining an unfair advantage by videotaping their opponents’ defensive signals. There are rumors that the Patriots have been doing this for a long time and were only caught because one of their own, Eric Mangini, snitched on his former head coach, Bill Belichick.

Another knock against the Patriots includes a report published yesterday which found that Rodney Harrison received a shipment of Human Growth Hormone (HGH) two weeks before competing in Super Bowl XXXVIII against the Carolina Panthers.

Harrison said “my purpose was never to gain a competitive edge” but among other things, the Mayo Clinic says HGH helps athletes recover quicker, bolsters the heart’s ability to contract, and increases exercise capacity. I don't know about you, but in my book, all of these things qualify as gaining a "competitive edge."

Harrison has been taking HGH for three years now yet only received a four game suspension from the league. This is inappropriate. Preserving the integrity of the game should be more important than disciplining NFL stars for their off-field conduct. Roger Goodell needs to take serious action, and quickly.

What Goodell should do is strip the Patriots of all their championships in the Bill Belichick era. The Eagles and the Rams will be awarded Super Bowls. And do you know what else this means? Yeah Panther fans, that end of the game drive Tom Brady engineered in Super Bowl XXXVIII was all the result of knowing the Panthers defensive alignments and game calls. Look at the tape below and you'll see how Brady knew exactly where the holes were in the Panthers defense.

The conclusion that Roger Goodell must reach to preserve the integrity of the game? Award the 2003-2004 Lombardi Trophy to the Carolina Panthers. Even if he doesn't officially award the Panthers the victory, we'll all know that the Carolina Panthers really are Super Bowl Champs!

Duke Football Beats Northwestern

2007-09-17T11:40:00.000-04:00

This past Saturday night the Duke Football team halted the nation’s longest losing streak at 22 games by taking down Northwestern 20-14. Did you read that? We actually WON A GAME!

But it almost didn’t happen at all.

As is becoming habit for this Duke football team (as well as for the basketball team and their four corner/stall/hold the ball until the shot clock expires offense they always seem to play with 5 minutes left in close games), Duke took a sizeable lead early on only to nearly throw the game away in the closing moments. Northwestern had four chances to score from deep inside Duke territory, but the defense brought the blitz all four downs and four incomplete passes later, Duke eked out its first victory over a Division 1-A football team since my freshman year (and I’m a senior now).

What happened next was entirely unpredicted. You’d think when a college football team goes on the road to win a game against an unranked, mediocre opponent the winning team’s fans would be calmly satisfied about winning the game. After notching a win after 22 games of pent up anticipation, I guess you could have expected Duke fans to be just a bit more excited.

But what happened at Duke on Saturday night was sheer madness. Hundreds of students marched over to Wallace Wade Stadium, tore down a goal post, and carried it all the way back to the Chapel on West Campus. Students then tried to re-erect the statue in front of the Chapel (I’m still trying to figure out why we wanted to do that) but the goal post fell and struck a Duke student (who’s doing ok now). Check out the video clip below to see the goal post being erected and the loud thumping sound of it hitting the student.

The win has pumped up the Duke Football fan base (or what’s remaining of it) and sparked dreams about bowl games. But let’s be realistic about the team’s chances and take a quick look at the remaining schedule:

9/22- @ Navy
9/29- @ Miami
10/6- Wake Forest
10/13- Virginia Tech
10/27- @ Florida State
11/3- Clemson
11/10- Georgia Tech
11/17- @ Notre Dame
11/24- @ UNC

I’d say the Navy, Wake Forest, and UNC games are all winnable games. I can’t believe I’m actually saying this (and this might sound kind of out there), but I think we actually have a chance to go into Notre Dame and steal a win from the Fighting Irish. Yeah, you read correctly, Duke has a chance to beat Notre Dame in football.

If you watched any part of Michigan’s 38-0 drubbing over Notre Dame, you know that Duke really could compete against a young, uninspired, and error-prone Notre Dame team. Only if we could find a field goal kicker now and we’d be set to go.

What a great weekend for Duke Football. You know what pumps me up the most? Comparing these records:

Notre Dame: 0-3
Michigan: 1-2
Duke: 1-2

Week 2 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-09-15T18:00:00.000-04:00

My Week 2 Picks based on the current spread:

Pittsburgh (-10) at Buffalo

A risky call but the Steelers looked absolutely dominant last week. The clincher is they're at home.

Cincinnati (-7) at Cleveland

The line's only at 7? I think Vegas is giving the Browns way too much credit.

Indianapolis (-7) at Tennessee

Peyton, Marvin, Reggie, defense looks great, the Colts will dominate.

Houston at Carolina (-6.5)

The Panthers cover at home.

San Francisco at St. Louis (-3)

San Francisco bounces back from a shaky week 1 victory to dominate the Rams.

Green Bay at New York Giants (-2.5)

Eli probably won't play and Green Bay looked great last week.

Atlanta at Jacksonville (-10)

Jacksonville will win this game, but by 10 points? I'm not sold after last week's anemic running performance. If the Jags get on track running the ball then they will cover (but I don't think that's going to happen).

New Orleans (-3.5) at Tampa Bay

The Saints will bounce back strong.

Minnesota at Detroit (-3)

The Vikings run the ball well and play solid defense. They'll cover.

Dallas (-3.5) at Miami

Tony Romo will pick apart another weak secondary.

Seattle (-3) at Arizona

Matt Leinhart looked terrible last week.

New York Jets at Baltimore (-9.5)

9.5? That's too much considering all those turnovers last week.

Oakland at Denver (-9.5)

The Broncos bounce back strong and run all over the Raiders. Travis Henry runs for 200 yards?

Kansas City at Chicago (-12)

The Chiefs stink. The Bears defense scores enough points to cover.

San Diego at New England (-3.5)

Belichick shows the world he doesn't need to cheat to win.

Washington at Philadelphia (-6.5)

This is a tough pick but I see the Eagles bouncing back strong.

Last week: 9-7
Season: 9-7

Let's All Cheer Up

2007-09-14T23:46:00.000-04:00

Greg Oden is having microfacture surgery and his professional playing career could be in danger.

Bill Belichick was caught red-handed videotaping the Jets' defensive play calls and got smacked with a weak suspension (is doing HGH really worse than blatant cheating?)

Could this little trick have been the difference in New England's 3 point victory over my Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII?

Tim Donaghy, Barry Bonds, Mike Vick...anything positive happening in sports?

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of hearing about all these negative stories. Let's all cheer up by watching this video, which has pretty much nothing to do with sports. Monkeys, tigers, we have it all at Scrapper Nation.

That was pretty sweet, wasn't it?

NFL Week 2 Picks coming tomorrow.

Week 1 Fantasy Football Analysis

2007-09-12T14:34:00.000-04:00

The first step to winning a fantasy league is having a good draft. But after the draft is over, there’s still a tremendous amount of work that needs to be done. If you want to win your league, you have to stay active on the waiver wire and know who’s hot and who's cold. There were a lot of games this weekend and it’s often a lot to process, so I’ve made a list below of Week 1 stars, solid performers, and bust candidates. This should be another resource in helping you make proper sit/start and add/drop/trade decisions. If you have any questions, feel free to drop me a line and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Here’s a position by position break down of the first week in fantasy:

QB

Stars

Tony Romo (Dal)- 345 yards, 4 touchdown passes, 1 rushing touchdown, 1 interception
Eli Manning (NYG)- 312 yards, 4 touchdown passes, 1 interception
Ben Roethlisberger (Pit)- 161 yards, 4 touchdown passes
Tom Brady (NE)- 297 yards, 3 touchdown passers
Peyton Manning (Ind)- 288 yards, 3 touchdown passes
Jon Kitna (Det)- 289 yards, 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions
Jake Delhomme (Car)- 201 yards, 3 touchdowns

Solid Performers

Josh McCown (Oak)- 313 yards, 2 TD, 2 Int
Carson Palmer (Cin)- 194 yards, 2 TD
Chad Pennington (NYJ)- 167 yards, 2 TD
Jay Cutler (Den)- 304 yards, 1 TD, 1 Int

Bust Candidates

Drew Brees (NO)- 192 yards, 0 TD, 2 Int
Phillip Rivers (SD)- 190 yards, 0 TD, 1 Int
J.P. Losman (Buf)- 97 yards, 0 TD, 1 Int
Damon Huard (KC)- 168 yards, 0 TD, 2 Int
Brett Favre (GB)- 206 yards, 0 TD, 1 Int
Rex Grossman (Chi)- 145 yards, 0 TD, 1 Int
Steve McNair (Bal)- 203 yards, 0 TD 1 Int, 3 fumbles
Alex Smith (SF)- 126 yards, TD
Matt Leinart (Ari)- 102 yards, 1 TD, 2 Int
Donovan McNabb (Phi)- 184 yards, 1 TD, 1 Int

Thoughts

Week 1 is always a little wacky so don’t panic and sell low if you have Brees, McNabb, or Rivers. They will all be just fine in the long run. Also avoid buying high on either Josh McCown (who will inevitably be benched in the near future and won’t have the luxury of facing the Lions secondary every week) or Chad Pennington (he had a few touchdowns but didn’t throw for many yards). I’d suggest picking up a Matt Schaub or Trent Green if you’re in a deep league as both looked comfortable passing with their new offenses.

WR

Stars

Plaxico Burress (NYG)- 144 yards, 3 TD
Randy Moss (NE)- 183 yards, 1 TD
Reggie Wayne (Ind)- 115 yards, 2 TD
Terrell Owens (Dal )- 87 yards, 2 TD
Ronald Curry (Oak)- 133 yards, 1 TD
Andre Johnson (Hou)- 142 yards, 1 TD
Steve Smith (Car)- 118 yards, 1 TD
Laveranues Coles (NYJ)- 59 yards, 2 TD

Solid Performers

Antwaan Randle El (Was)- 162 yards
Chad Johnson (Cin)- 95 yards, 1 TD
Shaun McDonald (Det)- 90 yards, 1 TD
Marvin Harrison (Ind)- 83 yards, 1 TD
Drew Carter (Car)- 19 yards, 2 TD
Torry Holt (StL)- 73 yards, 1 TD
Calvin Johnson (Det)- 70 yards, 1 TD
Santonio Holmes (Pit)- 55 yards, 1 TD
Arnaz Battle (SF)- 60 yards, 1 TD
Wes Welker (NE)- 61 yards, 1 TD
Javon Walker (Den)- 119 yards
John Broussard (Jac)- 55 yards, 1 TD
Jason Avant (Phi)- 54 yards, 1 TD
Brandon Marshall (Den)- 52 yards, 1 TD
Hines Ward (Pit)- 51 yards, 1 TD
Sam Hurd (Dal)- 51 yards, 1 TD

Bust Candidates

Larry Fitzgerald (Ari)- 20 yards
Marques Colston (NO)- 47 yards
Darrell Jackson (SF)- 36 yards
Braylon Edwards (Cle)- 49 yards, 1 fumble
Vincent Jackson (SD)- 28 yards
Santana Moss (Was)- 28 yards
Donte Stallworth (NE)- 19 yards
Reggie Brown (Phi)- 14 yards
Muhsin Muhammad- 8 yards
Lee Evans (Buf)- 5 yards

Thoughts

Again, don’t hastily pull the trigger on the likes of a Larry Fitzgerald or Lee Evans after a sub-par week 1. Both players will be just fine in the long run. Players you should consider taking a flyer on include Wes Welker, Antwaan Randle El, Ronald Curry, Brandon Marshall, and Patrick Crayton.

RB

Stars

Adrian Peterson (Min)- 103 rushing yards, 60 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown
Lamont Jordan (Oak)- 70 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 89 receiving yards
Joseph Addai (Ind)- 118 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 25 receiving yards
LaDainian Tomlinson (SD)- 25 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 51 receiving yards, 17 passing yards, 1 touchdown pass
Travis Henry (Den)- 139 rushing yards, 44 receiving yards
Chris Brown (Ten)- 175 rushing yards, 3 receiving yards
Shaun Alexander (Ten)- 105 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 12 receiving yards
Derrick Ward (NYG)- 89 rushing yards, 27 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown

Solid Performers

Edgerrin James (Ari)- 92 rushing yards, 1 TD, 20 receiving yards
Marshawn Lynch (Buf)- 90 rushing yards, 1 TD, 9 receiving yards
Clinton Ports (Was)- 98 yards, 1 TD
Marion Barber III (Dal)- 65 rushing yards, 1 TD, 29 receiving yards
Tatum Bell (Det)- 87 rushing yards, 1 TD, 6 receiving yards

Bust Candidates

Steven Jackson (StL)- 58 rushing yards, 3 receiving yards, 2 fumbles
Brandon Jacobs (NYG)- 26 rushing yards
Cedric Benson (Chi)- 42 rushing yards, 11 receiving yards, 1 fumble
Reggie Bush (NO)- 38 rushing yards, 7 receiving yards
Maurice Jones-Drew (Jac)- 32 rushing yards, 28 receiving yards, 1 fumble
Larry Johnson (KC)- 43 rushing yards, 44 yards receiving
Laurence Maroney (NE)- 72 rushing yards
Thomas Jones (NYJ)- 42 rushing yards, 6 receiving yards
Ronnie Brown (Mia)- 32 rushing yards, 40 receiving yards
Chester Taylor (Min)- 18 rushing yards, 3 receiving yards
Deuce McAllister (NO)- 38 rushing yards, 7 receiving yards
Jamal Lewis (Cle)- 35 rushing yards, 11 receiving yards
Fred Taylor (Jac)- 16 rushing yards

Thoughts

This was overall a pretty mediocre rushing fantasy week. But the worst thing you can do is get rid of one of your high-round picks like LJ or Stephen Jackson for 50 cents on the dollar. In one league I saw a trade swapping Clinton Portis and a solid wide receiver for LJ. The Chiefs will be bad this year, but I really think LJ is going to tear it up the second half, which is when you'll need him most. Be patient. The one player I strongly urge you to pick is Chris Brown. He ran for 175 yards on the Jaguars and is a starting RB. I don’t care what type of league you’re in, you should nab him immediately. Other players who you should consider taking a look at or trading for include Derrick Ward, Lamont Jordan, and Chicago’s Adrian Peterson.

TE

Stars

Jason Witten (Dal)- 116 yard, 1 TD
Antonio Gates (SD)- 107 yards, 1 TD

Solid performers

Heath Miller (Pit)- 35 yards, 1 TD
Kellen Winslow (Cle)- 83 yards
Dallas Clark (Ind)- 48 receiving yards, 14 rushing yards

Bust Candidates

Todd Heap (Bal)- 29 yards
Tony Gonzales (KC)- 28 yards
Chris Cooley (Was)- 10 yards
Vernon Davis (SF)- 4 yards

Defense

Stars

Minnesota- 3 points allowed, 6 sacks, 2 TD, 2 Int
Houston- 3 points allowed, 3 sacks, 1 TD, 2 Int, 2 fumble recoveries

Solid Performers

Cincinnati- 20 points allowed, 2 sacks, 1 TD, 2 Int, 4 fumble recoveries
Pittsburgh- 7 points allowed, 6 sacks, 2 Int, 3 fumble recoveries
Indianapolis- 4 points allowed, 1 sack, 1 TD, 2 Int, 1 fumble recovery
San Diego- 3 points allowed, 3 sacks, 1 Int, 3 fumble recoveries

Bust Candidates

Dallas- 35 points allowed, 1 sack, 1 Int
New York Giants- 45 points allowed, 1 sack, 1 Int, 1 fumble recovery
Oakland- 36 points allowed, 2 sacks, 2 Int
Denver- 14 points allowed, 2 sacks, 1 Int

Kickers

Who cares? But if you must…here are a few guys that did pretty well this week:

Jason Hanson (Det)
Lawrence Tynes (NYG)
Mason Crosby (GB)
Adam Vinatieri (Ind)
Shaun Suisham (Was)
Jason Elam (Den)

Hope this helps, and as always, best of luck this week.

Djokovic or Choke-ovic?

2007-09-10T23:31:00.000-04:00

The following is a guest post written by a member of the UCSD Men's Varsity Tennis Team who doubles as one of my best friends. I've given him the nickname "The Grinder" because he is one of the toughest, hardest working guys I've ever met. The Grinder had to make a tough decision this weekend deciding between attending either the Bears-Chargers game or the U.S. Open Final (The Scrapper wishes he had that kind of a decision to make). He chose the Open, so make sure to enjoy this first hand account.

Yesterday I was privileged to get a personal glimpse of the Roger Federer "Experience," as journalist David Wallace so fittingly named Federer's quest to become the greatest player in tennis history. In this, his tenth consecutive major final, Federer faced Serbian newcomer Novak Djokovic, the twenty year old currently ranked number three in the world. On Sunday evening, Federer, as usual, prevailed in straight sets by a score of 7-6(4), 7-6(2), 6-4. Unusual, however, was the fashion in which his victory unfolded.

For both players the first set was a tight, error laden, wholly frustrated attempt to live up to the expectations of a grand slam final. Federer yielded first as Djokovic broke to go up 6-5 and serve for the set. When Novak quickly served his way to 40-0 it looked as if his amazing performance would carry over from the Roger's Masters in Montreal a few weeks prior to the Open, in which he consecutively beat Roddick, Nadal and Federer (at the time the world's #3, #2 and #1 players). Perhaps something happened in a fleeting second, some intangible, invisible thought caught in Djokovic's mind. It's happened to the best of us during that momentous occasion when we suddenly become aware that we are on the verge of doing something big, something special. Djokovic realized he was about to take the first set against Federer in his first grand slam final and in that split second the match was lost. Within minutes, five set points were squandered and Federer escaped unscathed.

Watching the second set was like watching "Dude Where's My Car" right after "War of the Worlds." Painful. Djokovic, or more aptly, Choke-ovic, got up another break, gave it back, spilled two set points and once again lost in a tiebreak. Federer then proceeded to roll through the third, breaking the Serb for the championship, his third major of the year and twelfth career grand slam.

Even on this day, a 42 winner, 34 unforced error performance, mediocre by normal Roger standards, Federer prevailed with incredible shot-making and remarkable quickness, which dropped my jaw more than once. He is now tied with Roy Emerson for second on the all-time list, trailing only Pete Sampras by two.

It seems that with at least two or three years left in his prime Federer will inevitably surpass Sampras' record, perhaps as soon as next year. But there is no doubt that in this upcoming year Federer will be challenged, as Djokovic has clearly joined Rafael Nadal in the Federer chase. I'll guarantee that Djokovic won't be choking away grand slams too much longer. For those of you rooting against Roger be aware that as we watch Sampras' record crumble under Federer's weight, we will also see the end of the Swiss' dominance; it is just a matter of time. So try to enjoy the experience.

U.S. Open Final Pick

2007-09-08T21:03:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago I made the bold prediction that Novak Djokovic would beat Roger Federer in the finals of the Rogers Cup. With a Djokovic-Federer rematch slated for tomorrow’s U.S. Open Final, it’s about time for me to make my pick. Before I unveil the pick, let’s break down exactly how Djokovic beat Federer a few weeks ago. If you need to refresh your memory, check out this highlight video of the match:

Djokovic has excellent movement and consistency and he was able to do something most other players can’t against Federer; get into points. Federer is so many levels above the competition that most of the time he just slaps around a few winners and is able to end points fairly quickly. Watch that clip again and you’ll see how much Djokovic scrapped and always made Federer hit the extra ball. He’s going to have to do that again tomorrow to have a shot at winning. Let’s look at a few statistics from their last matchup:

Aces
Djokovic- 6
Federer- 15

Obviously, Federer is the better server.

1st Serve %
Djokovic- 66%
Federer- 68%

1st Serve Points Won
Djokovic- 70%
Federer- 77%

2nd Serve Points Won
Djokovic- 58%
Federer- 42%

Federer wins 77% of points off his first serve and 42% of points off second serve. Federer's first serve percentage will go a long ways in determining who wins this match.

Unforced Errors
Djokovic- 23
Federer- 48

The only way Dojokovic has a prayer is if he keeps his errors to a minimum and Federer starts making a lot of mistakes.

What makes me nervous about picking Djokovic this time around is that tomorrow's encounter will be a best-of-five-set matchup. Djokovic looked like he wore down a little bit in their last matchup and I question if he will have enough in the tank to scrap against Federer in a five setter.

It’s tough for me to pick against Federer. He’s the greatest player in the game and might end up being the best ever. But The Scrapper is going with Djokovic because maybe he’ll give us some more of these impersonations (see below) if he wins. But even if he doesn’t pull it off, I am going on record guaranteeing that Novak Djokovic will be ranked no.1 in the world within the next three years.

Today was a great, great sports day (solid college football games and a great round from Tiger) and tomorrow’s looking to be even better. NFL all day, Tiger in the hunt at the BMW, and the U.S. Open Final. Looks like it’s going to be another beautiful day in front of the tube.

Week 1 NFL Picks Against the Spread

2007-09-06T11:22:00.000-04:00

Today is the day all football fans have been waiting so long for, the start of the 2007 NFL Season. Here are my Week 1 picks based on the current spread (my picks are in bold):

New Orleans at
Indianapolis (-6.5)

With both team’s defenses being weak, this game will be a shootout. Peyton lights up the Saints D and the Colts win by a couple touchdowns.

Kansas City at
Houston (-1.0)

Both Kansas City quarterbacks Damon Huard and Brodie Croyle looked terrible in the preseason and Herm Edwards says that L.J. will have an easy workload week 1. These two facts make me really want to take the Texans but I can’t get Houston’s pitiful offensive line out of my mind. In the end, I think the Schaub-Johnson-Green combo gets the job done at home.

Denver (-3.0) at
Buffalo

Why is the line so close on this game? I feel very safe picking the Broncos going into Buffalo and pounding the Bills by a couple touchdowns. Jay Cutler and Javon Walker will abuse the Bills cornerbacks and the Bills running game will suffer with the off-season departure of Willis McGahee.

Pittsburgh (-3.0) at
Cleveland

Do you believe the line on this game? Pittsburgh only favored by a field goal? Yeah, right. The Steelers will be the comeback team of the year. Big Ben, Willie Parker, Hines Ward, and company will put a pounding on the Steelers and The Pittsburgh D will be just as tough as they’ve been in years past. Charlie Frye is the Browns’ Week 1 starter, Charlie Frye? I see Brady Quinn getting a little bit of action in the second half after the Steelers blow the Browns out early on.

Tennessee at
Jacksonville (-5.5)

David Garrard will be starting at quarterback for the Jags. I’m really down on Jacksonville this year. But I think the Titans are going to be even worse since Vince Young has absolutely zero quality players surrounding him at the skill positions. Maurice Jones-Drew runs wild and the Jags win by a touchdown.

Carolina at
St. Louis (-1.0)

The Panthers offense has been extremely unimpressive this preseason. The Panthers are going to struggle mightily until Delhomme is benched in favor of David Carr. Bulger, Jackson, and Holt will result in a Rams blowout.

Philadelphia (-2.5) at
Green Bay

The line on this game is way to close. The Eagles have looked great in the preseason and Donovan has looked almost completely recovered from last year’s devastating ACL injury. The Eagles win this one in a blowout.

Atlanta at
Minnesota (-3.0)

This is a tough game for me to pick since I think both teams will have down years. But considering that this is a home game for the Vikings and that Joey Harrington will be making his first start with the Falcons, I’ll take the Vikings winning by atleast a touchdown. Watch for Adrian Peterson to have a great game.

Miami at
Washington (-3.5)

Trent struggles in his first start with the Dolphins and the Redskins come out with the win. Watch for Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts to have a great rushing day.

New England (-5.5) at
New York Jets

Rodney Harrison is out the first four weeks of the season, Richard Seymour is out the first six, Randy Moss is questionable for Week 1, and I don’t care. Everyone is hyping the Jets because of last year’s 10-6 campaign with the easiest schedule in the league but I am almost certain that this team will miss the playoffs and be below .500. Brady has a lot of receivers to throw to and the Pats will demolish the Jets.

Tampa Bay at
Seattle (-6.0)

The Bucs are going to be a lot better than people think they will be this year. The Bucs lose this game by a touchdown (only because the game is being played at Seattle).

Chicago at
San Diego (-5.5)

I’m a little surprised by the line on this game. I knew the Chargers were the favorites, but by 5.5 points? I still have to go with L.T. and company.

Detroit at
Oakland (-2.5)

Daunte Culpepper is going to start for the Raiders in week 1. I say Daunte loses about three fumbles and the new Lions offense gets enough points (all they need is a touchdown) to go on the road and pull out the win.

New York Giants at
Dallas (-4.0)

The Giants are set to implode with Coughlin still in charge. The defense is also going to be rather shaky without Strahan. The Cowboys had a great camp and a solid preseason and I think they’ll take this one by a touchdown.

Baltimore at
Cincinnati (-3.0)

I’m taking the Ravens. The Ravens defense will be devastating and Willis McGahee is going to help out Steve McNair and the Ravens passing game.

Arizona at
San Francisco (-3.5)

I think the Cardinals are still a year away because of that shaky defense. The 49ers put a lot of points on the board in this one with Alex Smith, Frank Gore, Darrell Jackson, and Vernon Davis leading the way. Look for the much-improved 49ers defense to have a great game and for my defensive rookie of the year pick, Patrick Willis, to have a solid game.

Safest Picks

Pittsburgh (-3) over Cleveland and Philadelphia (-2.5) over Green Bay

Shakiest Picks

Houston (-1) over Kansas City (picking the Texans to win should always be a shaky pick), Baltimore over Cincinnati (-3).

I’m so pumped, football is back!

Live Report from the Duke-UConn Football Game

2007-09-02T23:01:00.000-04:00

So I decided to go to the Duke-UConn football game yesterday (not exactly the feature college football game of the day) with a couple of my buddies to do a bit of investigative journalism. The game was close and Duke was actually winning going into the second half. Then the second half started and we got absolutely drilled to the tune of a 45-14 loss. If you want to relive the agony of defeat (or just laugh at a hardcore Duke football fan commenting on the game) then check out the following podcasts I recorded on my thoughts at various points of the game.

Game Preview

First Quarter Recap

Second Quarter Recap/Halftime Thoughts

Third Quarter Recap

Fourth Quarter Recap and Final Thoughts

It’s tough being a Duke football fan sometimes (or all the time), but this game was especially frustrating. Duke fans had a legitimate reason to be pumped for this season. We had all eleven starters returning on offense and a lot of talented players from Ted Roof’s first recruiting class were veterans of the program and finally had a chance to be key contributors on the field. But we lost, and lost bad, to UConn. The rest of the season isn’t looking so good. Whatever we do, we need to make a lot of changes in a hurry.

Atleast we can all be pumped about basketball season. I happened to catch a few Duke basketball players checking out the game (Gerald Henderson, Lance Thomas, Demarcus Nelson):

Here are some pictures of a few pumped up fans after Duke scores on its first drive of the game:

I don't know how many more live reports we'll have. Hopefully our guys will bounce back from this loss and have a good season (we have to win atleast 1 game, right?).

Q&A with Lee Melchionni

2007-08-29T22:29:00.000-04:00

Lee Melchionni, a former co-captain of the Duke Men's Basketball team, was kind enough to answer a few of my questions. Lee was known for his leadership, three point shot, and overall scrappiness while a member of the team. Here's the transcript of our Q&A session:

Can you give us a glimpse of your life since leaving Duke?

Since graduating from Duke in the spring of 2006, I played professionally in Italy. I played for a team just outside of Milan. You can't really have any complaints when you are getting paid to play a game you would play for free. It was a great experience to have my first year out of college and something I will never forget. However, it certainly was not Duke Basketball. I recently took a job with Wassserman Media Group in Los Angeles to begin working under Arn Tellem as a young sports agent.

Do you still play basketball?

I still try and play basketball several times a week just to keep my bodacious body looking pristine.

Who was your best friend at Duke? Are you still close with any past teammates?

My best friend at Duke was Shelden Williams and we still speak almost everyday. I still speak with almost all the guys on the current team. I check in with them from time to time and make sure they are staying in line and also just check in on the program because even after you graduate, you are still a part of what is happening there.

What was/is your relationship like with Coach K?

I had a great relationship with Coach K during my time at Duke. Coach K is the type of person and leader that you must learn from everyday you are in contact with him. I took countless lessons away from my time at Duke that I will keep with me as I enter the workplace and throughout my life. He is much more than a basketball coach.

What was the Sean Dockery buzzer beater against Virgina Tech like (you can watch it again below)?

I remember I was sitting on the bench thinking to myself that "we are about to lose this, our number ranking...." Then Josh threw the ball to Sean and I said to myself "why are you throwing it to Sean?" Then Sean caught the ball and he dribbled and I said to myself "why are you dribbling?" Then I remember looking at the trajectory of the ball and thinking it looked on line and after it went in it was complete madness. It was an amazing feeling to be a part of something like that.

What was your best game at Duke? Why?

I feel like my best game at Duke was during my junior year when we had just come off back to back losses in the ACC to Maryland and Virginia Tech. We had the week from hell in practice that truly tests your fortitude not only as a basketball player, but as a young man. We played Wake Forest and after we beat them, it brought me to tears because it felt like such an accomplishment because of what we had gone through to beat them. The game was so emotionally charged and competitive, I will never forget it.

What's your fondest memory from your four years at Duke? The most disappointing one?

My fondest and most disappointing memories are one and the same; when we went to the Final Four in San Antonio. It was such a great experience with all the media attention. I truly believe we were the best team there but no excuses, we did not win it. It was just disappointing the way we lost to UConn.

Even though you were a top 100 recruit and had tons of scholarship offers, you decided to come to Duke. You waited your turn to become a key contributor. Can you offer any advice to some of Duke's young players who might be in a similar position this season?

Since the day I was born, I wanted to go to Duke. I can still remember a meeting I had during my junior year of high school with Coach K in his office back in the locker room with my father, Wojo, Coach K, and myself. I did not play much my first two years at Duke and it was very difficult. It was some of the most frustrating times during my life. There were times when I thought I should transfer, but looking back, the best decision of my life was to stay at Duke. My message to some of the younger guys is that continue to work hard and stay ready. The only reason I got a change to truly play was because Reggie Love broke his foot and Shavlik Randolph got mono. I was given an opportunity and I took advantage of it. Duke also offers and unbelievable education and a huge alumni network for when the time comes to stop playing basketball.

Have you ever thought about getting into coaching?

I have thought about getting into coaching but I have a job that keeps me in sports. But who knows what the future holds.

Where do you see yourself ten, twenty, or thirty years from now?

Ten years from now I would love to be very successful doing something I have a passion for. I also want to be happily married with children. As far as further down the road, I want to be successful doing something I love and have a positive impact on the lives of others.

What do you think about last year's team?

Last year's team won twenty-two games and we made the NCAA tournament. For most programs, that is a banner year. However being Duke, there is always a target on our back and we are everyone's Super Bowl. What we went through last year will only make us stronger and better for this year.

How do you think the team will do this season? Any predictions?

I do not want to speculate on our team this year but with Coach K at the helm and the addition of the freshman to the team bodes well for our future.

What do you think about how some of your past teammates are doing in the NBA?

Watching my former teammates JJ, Shav, Shelden, Chris, Luol, Dahntay, and Daniel in the NBA is remarkable. I am proud to have played with those guys because I know as good of basketball players they are, they are all better people. Some of the younger guys took some bumps this past year but I know they are looking forward to this year.

From what I hear, you're a prankster. What was your best prank at Duke?

The best prank I ever played at Duke occurred before we left for the ACC tournament during my sophomore year in 2004. Before Shelden and I left our room I put up an away message on AOL Instant Messenger. My away message said "I lost my phone so if you need to reach me during the ACC tournament just call Shelden at 888-888-8888" and as the phone number I put one of my best friends from Lancaster. So we go to the tournament and before the final against Maryland I look up in the stands and a Maryland fan is holding a sign up that says "call Shelden at 888-888-8888 and tell him he stinks." I told Shelden to look up at the sign and we had quite a laugh. My friend also received hundreds and hundreds of phone calls. He ended having to change his number and he almost ended our friendship.

How did Duke basketball prepare you for life?

I feel like for me personally, my Duke experience was similar to that of Coach K's American Express commercial because I was prepared for so much more than basketball. Everything I learned from Coach on a daily basis will help me run a business one day and help me in my daily life. Duke Basketball instills tremendous amount of discipline, hard work, and unbelievable attention to detail. Skills that guarantee success in basketball translate amazingly well to the business world and no program prepares you so well for both.

Overall, how would you rate your Duke experience? If you had to do it over again, would you still have decided to come to Duke?

People ask me all the time if I had to make the choice all over again, would I go to Duke? I would go back in a second. Duke is a special place. Cameron Indoor Stadium is a magical place and Coach K puts all of it together.

Battle of the High School Mixtapes

2007-08-27T22:44:00.000-04:00

What's the best high school mixtape ever? After spending way too much time on YouTube, I've narrowed the list down to our four finalists. They are Lebron James, Reggie Bush, Kobe Bryant, and Sam McGuffie. Sam McWho? You'll have to watch and see. Alright Scrapper Nation, it's all up to you now. Watch the four mixtapes and vote for the one you think is the best. Let's get started.

Lebron James:

Reggie Bush:

Kobe Bryant:

Sam McGuffie. Sam who? A senior high school running back who just committed to Michigan over USC and Florida. The kid runs a 4.32 40 yard dash and has a 41' inch vertical. Enjoy this:

Alright, you've seen them all. It's time to cast your vote:

Q&A with UNC OL Morgan Randall

2007-08-24T16:23:00.000-04:00

The college football season is rapidly approaching and I was able to catch up with Morgan Randall, a 6-foot-6, 280 pound offensive lineman on the UNC football team. Morgan and I discussed his high school career, the recruiting process, changes under Coach Davis, and expectations for the upcoming season. For all you Duke fans out there, we even got a chance to talk about the Paulus brothers. Here’s the transcript of our Q&A session:

You attended Rose High School in Greenville, North Carolina. I read that you guys won a few state championships while you were there. How many did you win?

I was a part of two state championship teams. Actually, I moved from Indianapolis between my sophomore and junior years. And so I was only a part of two of the titles. They won one before I got there and now they’ve won another one after I left. That’s four state titles in a row for Rose.

That’s impressive. Did you start at Rose right when you got there? What position did you play?

I did. I started as a defensive end my junior year. There was a senior in front of me playing tight end that year but when I was a senior I went both ways the whole year. I played at defensive end, tight end, and also did the long snapping.

Let’s talk about recruiting. When did you start getting letters from schools? Which schools?

Junior year is when a lot of them started coming. I got letters from all over the place. Most ACC Schools, a few Ivy League schools, and I think I got one from Nebraska. There was a good variety of colleges.

The final three schools you narrowed your list down to were ECU, the Naval Academy, and UNC. Why those three?

I was living in Greenville so I was naturally interested in ECU because of the possibility of staying close to home. For Navy, I’m actually interested in going to medical school when I’m done with football and one stat that Navy has which is really impressive is that everybody from the Naval Academy who has ever applied to medical school has gotten in. They have a hundred percent acceptance so you look at that and it’s kind of hard to turn down. And then in regards to North Carolina, everybody in my family who has ever been to college has at some point come to Carolina. I have a brother and a cousin here right now and another cousin that just graduated. So there are a lot of family connections to Carolina. I’ve also been coming here pretty much my whole life. And when you break down the academics for the schools, Carolina just seemed to be the best fit for me.

So when you were going through the recruitment process, what was your relationship like with Coach Bunting?

The way recruiting works is you have a few different people who talk to you. First of all, you have a primary recruiter, an assistant coach that is assigned to you based on your region. My primary recruiter was a guy named Coach Lawing. He’s now at South Carolina, and he was the one who talked to me the most. After that, you have the position coach. My position coach was a guy named Hal Hunter, who was the offensive line coach. They were recruiting me to be an offensive lineman pretty much from the start so he would talk to me occasionally too. And then Coach Bunting would come by on his recruiting trips every once in a while and I would see him then and whenever I would come up here I always tried to talk with him as well.

Were you impressed by Coach Bunting?

I was. Coach Bunting is a great guy and a real good coach and I really felt that the University of North Carolina presented a great opportunity for me to make some noise in the football world.

After your season ended you played in the North Carolina/South Carolina Shrine Bowl Game. How was that experience?

It was a lot of fun, and North Carolina won the game. At the time, I believe it was my seventeenth straight week with a football game because there are twelve regular season and then four playoff games for just regular high school, assuming you make it all the way. So it was my seventeenth game and I was a little worn down by the end of it but it was a good time and I met a lot of great guys there. A lot of my teammates here at Carolina who came in with me were also on the team. It was just a great experience.

Scout.com describes you as “a 6-foot-6 jumbo athlete.” How did you feel about switching over to the offensive line from playing tight end and defensive end?

I was excited about it. I know that when you get to a conference like the Atlantic Coast Conference it’s difficult to play the skill positions unless you’re basically a freak. And my speed for high school was really pretty good and every combine time I had was right on for a solid offensive lineman. But tight ends are usually a lot faster. My 40 time is about 5 seconds, which for an offensive lineman is pretty good. But for a tight end that 40 time should have been a little faster. So it just wasn’t the position that I would play in a conference as powerful as the ACC.

You redshirted your freshman year. How did you make that decision?

At the time, I was only a solid 260 and most of the offensive lineman, and defensive lineman for that matter, are about 300 or so. I just wasn’t as strong as I needed to be. I wasn’t as mature, I didn’t know the offense and there wasn’t any reason for me to play. I know that I needed more time to develop and the coaches knew it too, so that’s the decision we made.

How was practice different as a redshirt?

We still had some meetings and we would be out there practicing every day. However, as a redshirt, and a freshman, one way they develop players is they put them on the scout team, which is just like the practice squad. If you’re an offensive player, you go against the defense and show them what your opponent is going to do each week. And when you get to go up against the first string guys week in and week out, you really improve a lot. I mean it’s kind of like a survival thing at that point. You have to learn quickly how to defend yourself and how to make blocks, so it was a great experience. I’m glad I redshirted.

Carolina had a disappointing season last year. Coach Bunting was fired during the season but agreed to stay on for the rest of the year. What was that like, knowing that you had a lame duck coach and the guy who recruited you was leaving?

Initially it was tough because you know the coaches and the coaching staff and when the head coach gets fired, everybody gets fired. And so at first it was a little tough. But I think it was a good thing for us as well because throughout the whole season there were so many questions about Coach Bunting’s future at Carolina. So when the decision finally came down, one way or the other, I think the team had a sense of relief that we knew what we were dealing with and we could move on.

Did Coach Bunting’s attitude towards the team or his coaching style change at all after the news came through? Did he talk with you guys about it?

He did talk to us about it briefly. He didn’t want to dwell on it because he was still focused with the rest of the season. Coach Bunting loves the University of North Carolina. He played here, he was the coach here, and he really does love the university. The way Coach Bunting looked at it, it seemed to me and I believe everybody else he wanted to win for the university. It wasn’t about his job at that point. He just wanted everybody to do well.

What did Coach Davis say to the team at your first meeting after he accepted the job?

He said that he wanted to win. He obviously had the chance to see us a little bit and he said he wanted to win and for us having just gone 3-9, it was still fresh in our minds and we wanted to win too. Coach Davis was talking about winning national championships down the road. Everybody in that room was just loving it because I don’t care what school you’re at, you want to win.

What was the big difference in coaching styles between Coach Bunting and Coach Davis? What are some of the major changes that are affecting the players?

There aren’t too many major changes. One thing is that the practice style is a little bit quicker. For example, this might have to do more with the assistant coaches, but our offensive coordinator, Coach Shoop, wants to run a lot of plays during practice so we have picked the tempo up more so than it was with Coach Bunting. That has led to a greater level of efficiency. Coach Bunting still wanted a full practice, everybody going hard, having fun, but it might be a little bit quicker now.

Can you walk me through one of your practices? What’s your routine?

Normally we’ll get out there a little early with the offensive line and we might go over some blitz pickups or put in a new play or something like that and then we’ll stretch.. Then we’ll have some individual time, and we’ll run plays against the defense for the rest of practice. There might be a section where we concentrate on just running the ball, one where we concentrate on throwing. We also do one-on-ones against the defense.

I’ve read that Butch Davis is trying to change the culture around here. I just picked up your student newspaper and it reads “the coming of a big name coach to a program in limbo usually results in a well documented culture change the newcomer tries to foster.” How would you say that Butch Davis has tried to change the culture around here?

He’s talked about winning a lot and really tried to give our players every opportunity to succeed. There’s lots of ways he has done that, either through focusing on the strength and conditioning aspect or focusing on some aspect of the offense or defense, bringing out something he thinks we can do well. But, football is football. There’s a lot of different ways to play the game but the same rules apply to everybody. So, I think the major change is the level of excitement that the fans have. There is a lot of anticipation for Coach Davis’ first season. And the players want to play and win and the fans are looking for that too.

I heard that Coach Davis decided on T.J. Yates as the starter, what do you think about the quarterback decision?

T.J. and I are in one of the same classes together, so we know each other fairly well. T.J. is a great guy and a good quarterback and if he’s the one that coach has named as the starter then he’s our starter and we’re going to stand behind him.

Do you guys give Mike Paulus any heat for being Greg Paulus’ little brother?

Not too much, really. Mike is at Carolina playing Carolina football so I don’t think he’s going to sabotage it or anything like that. He’s really a great guy so no, not too much. He was actually my roommate for one session during the summer and so I met Greg and a couple other basketball players.

Did they come over to Carolina?

Yeah, they came over to help Mike move in and a few times after that.

Who all came over to help Mike move in?

Marty, I don’t know his last name, he’s like Lithuanian or something like that, he’s real cool. Maybe two other people, can’t really remember. But they were nice guys too. Greg Paulus actually called me before Mike did because it was kind of like a last second thing. Greg brought Mike’s stuff down before Mike flew down because of Mike’s high school schedule.

He drove down?

Yeah. Because he was out of school and Mike was still finishing up high school so Greg drove Mike’s stuff down before Mike had a chance to get down here.

What did you think of Greg Paulus?

He was a great guy, great guy. I hope I would be considered one of his friends, I know I would consider him one of mine.

What do you think about Kendrick Williams, a walk-on, being awarded a scholarship?

I’m extremely happy for Kendrick. He’s been working hard ever since he got here. It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. I’m really excited for him and I wish him the best this season, I’m sure he’s going to keep on giving everything he has.

Do you think Coach Davis is sending a message emphasizing competition by awarding Williams a scholarship?

We always encourage competition, in practice for any position, or going up against whomever you have to block. It’s always competitive out there. I think competition motivates people to play that much harder for their spot, so I think it’s great.

I read somewhere that 51 of your 84 players have never played a down of college football. It seems as though you are missing the veteran presence that a lot of high achieving teams seem to have, like Wake Forest last year. How do you think this team is going to respond not having an established set of veterans to rely upon?

I don’t know how it’ll all work out, I know people talk about experience and I’m sure it is important but right now we’re focusing on us and if one guy can get the job done, and do it well, I don’t think his experience should be a major factor. There’s always something to experience but I think coach just wants to play the best players.

What are your expectations for the season?

I expect us to play hard every game. A lot of people want number estimates, but really, I expect us to go out there and have fun and play good football. And I think if we do that, wins and losses and all that will take care of itself.

I couldn’t help but look a little forward on the schedule. You have a November 24th showdown at home against Duke. And actually the last two years the games have been very competitive, going down to the wire both years. Any thoughts on the matchup?

We respect Duke as a football program. They’re really making some great strides. The quarterback you had last year really looked good against us. I believe you’re program is on the rise too. Duke’s not to be overlooked in any game.

What are your plans after football? You mentioned wanting to go to medical school.

I want to be a Sports Medicine doctor and do orthopedic surgery.

So you’re pre-med, that must be a pretty challenging curriculum. What’s your schedule like this semester?

This semester I will be taking Organic Chemistry, French III, Intro to Islamic Civilization, and Personal Health.

Wow. You’re going to take Orgo during football season. How do you manage your time?

Very, very closely. It’s not necessarily an easy thing to do with all of the practicing and meetings and sometimes you’re just so tired it’s difficult to do homework. But you just get through it and the weekends are key. Sunday’s are all day homework.

Who will win the Southwest Division?
	San Antonio
	Dallas
	Memphis
	New Orleans
	Houston

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Who will win the Pacific Division?
	Golden State
	Phoenix
	LA Clippers
	LA Lakers
	Sacramento

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Who will win the Northwest Division?
	Portland
	Denver
	Utah
	Minnesota
	Seattle

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Who will win the Southeast Division?
	Atlanta
	Orlando
	Washington
	Charlotte
	Miami

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Who will win the Central Division?
	Indiana
	Chicago
	Milwaukee
	Detroit
	Cleveland

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Who will win the Atlantic Division?
	New Jersey
	New York
	Toronto
	Boston
	Philadelphia

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Which one of the above videos is the best sports-related Soulja Boy outburst?
	Bo Ryan
	Texas Longhorns
	Canes Mascot
	Sarasota Sundevils

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Which member of the new Big Three has the best mixtape?
	Kevin Garnett
	Paul Pierce
	Ray Allen

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Who has the best high school mixtape?
	Lebron James
	Reggie Bush
	Kobe Bryant
	Sam McGuffie

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