by: Leigh Douglas
Heading into the combines, the biggest story will definitely be Maurice Clarett, and how he can rebound from last year’s disaster. (Regardless of how his combine goes, keep in mind that before Adrian Peterson this year, Clarett was the best freshman running back in decades.) If Clarett goes past the first day of the draft he will be a steal.
Speaking of the Draft; LB Derrick Johnson out of Texas is my favorite player coming out this year. He will have an immediate impact, especially if he goes to the right team. I also think that QB Jason Campbell maybe a sleeper, I don’t think he should go before Alex Smith or Aaron Rogers, but I think he could make a good down the road NFL quarterback.
A lot of people are saying that this year’s slam dunk contest rejuvenated the competition. Was it just me, or did Josh Smith not do anything we haven’t already seen. He did a Dr. J, he jumped ‘over’(it was actually more ‘by’ than over). The ‘Nique jersey was a nice touch, but really he just redid a bunch of old school dunks.
How awful is ABC’s coverage of the NBA? How is it that All Star weekend came and went and there was not a sniff of it on a major network?
Madness is right around the corner, and it is impressive that Illinois is still unbeaten, but that doesn’t change the fact that they will not make the Final Four. North Carolina is still the team to beat for the National Championship. Kansas & Kentucky are our next 2 favorites to be cutting down nets come April. While Boston College is a possibility, I think they are more likely in the same category as Illinois. (this year’s St. Joe’s?)
The Chicago Cubs needed to get rid of Sammy Sosa. But do they really think that Jeromy Burnitz is going to make up the production offensively?
Trivia Question:
Which was the only team in the majors whose shortstop led the team in slugging percentage?
-Would you believe the Tigers.
Carlos Guillen is the early favorite for most underrated player heading into this season.
Now that Ed Reed has won defensive player of the year honors, we can no longer consider him the most underrated player in the NFL. Early candidates for new underrated include Micheal Lewis in Philadelphia, Eugene Wilson in New England, and Andre Johnson in Houston.