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"Sports Quote of the Day"
“The discipline you learn and character you build from setting and achieving a goal can be more valuable than the achievement of the goal itself.” ~ Bo Bennett, Businessman
Trending: Marian Hossa could play Wednesday vs. Blues. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates).
Trending: NBA Buzz: Summer of change for Bulls? (See the basketball section for Bulls updates).
Trending: Packers interested in former Bears running back Matt Forte. (See the football section for Bears updates).
Trending: 9 days until the 2016 NCAA March Madness Tournament starts and 5 days before you can pick your brackets, Are you in? (See the college basketball section for NCAA Tournament updates).
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Chicago Blackhawks-St. Louis Blues Preview.
AP - Sports
The Chicago Blackhawks' league-best power play has been especially dangerous of late.
The St. Louis Blues are one of the NHL's top penalty killing teams, though they have yet to shut down Chicago this season.
How those units match up will be a focal point of Wednesday night's meeting in St. Louis between clubs vying for the Central Division title.
Chicago (41-21-5), St. Louis and Dallas are in contention for the Central crown. The Blues (38-20-9) won it last season, although it meant little after a first-round loss to Minnesota.
Still, the division title and top seed in the Western Conference are targets for these teams separated by two points. The Blackhawks can take a major step toward reaching those goals in this two-game trip that includes Friday's game against the Stars.
''We've got a lot of division games coming up,'' captain Jonathan Toews said. ''Those aren't going to be easy ones. It'll be good preparation for the end of the year. We don't want to look too far ahead.''
Chicago's power play is clicking at 24.1 percent on the season, and the club has gone 6 for 12 in the last four games and 14 for 28 in nine.
"It comes with confidence," Toews said. "If you have a stretch where pucks are going in, it just adds to the rest of your power play, what you do with the puck, your break-outs, your entries, retrieving pucks off of initial shots that maybe don't go in in their zone."
Patrick Kane has seven power-play points and Brent Seabrook, Artemi Panarin and Duncan Keith each have six within the last nine contests. Keith and Artem Anisimov scored with the man advantage in Sunday's 4-1 home win over Detroit.
Kane added his eighth goal in 13 games to increase his NHL-best point total to a career-high 89. He has 13 points in a nine-game overall run against St. Louis, including three postseason games.
Blackhawks: Marian Hossa could play Wednesday vs. Blues.
By Tracey Myers
Even if he hasn’t put up the offensive numbers anticipated this season, Marian Hossa is always a missing piece when he’s out of the Blackhawks’ lineup.
Now he’s feeling better, and his return will bring even more balance and stability to the Blackhawks’ forward lines.
The Blackhawks will check with him in the morning but it looks like Hossa will play on Wednesday night when the team takes on the St. Louis Blues. Hossa, who was injured against the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 13, was back on the Blackhawks’ top line with Andrew Ladd and Jonathan Toews at Tuesday’s practice. For Hossa, the recovery time for his lower-body injury could prove beneficial, in terms of rest heading into the stretch run.
“There’s always something bad for something good happening. You don’t want to get hurt but if you do you try to take advantage of it and hopefully that’s going to be the advantage,” said Hossa, who sounded like he’s ready to go in this week’s games vs. the Blues and Dallas Stars. “Obviously it’s going to be a great test for our team, a two big games on the road [and] Mom’s trip. So couldn’t have timed it better.”
Ladd said he didn’t play with Hossa much during his first stint with the Blackhawks – Ladd teamed with Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane at times, but mostly played with Dave Bolland. But Ladd figures the three will connect quickly.
“I think first and foremost, playing the right way defensively for the three of us is the best way to create offense. So, I think if we do that, then things will take care of itself,” Ladd said. “I think anytime you get a player like that back, it’s a big boost to the group. So hopefully me, him and Jonny can find some chemistry and get things going pretty quick.”
With Hossa’s return, Andrew Shaw was centering the fourth line with Brandon Mashinter and Dale Weise at Tuesday’s practice. The Blackhawks’ second and third lines remained the same.
Coach Joel Quenneville has seen his second line of Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov and Patrick Kane bring consistency throughout this season. He’s hoping the top line’s reconfiguration gives the Blackhawks, “a good 1-2 punch.”
“We feel there’s balance deeper than we’ve seen at any point this year,” Quenneville said. “We’re better when everybody’s contributing as four lines, and that’s what we’re looking for.”
Hossa was injured when Hampus Lindholm hip checked him in that Feb. 13. Looking at replays, it’s hard to tell whether Hossa was hurt more on the hit or on the subsequent awkward fall into the boards. Hossa had no issues with the hit.
“I think it was an OK hit,” Hossa said. “I’m not saying there was anything dirty; not at all. I tried to go around him and he tried to hip check me and he hit me above the knee and tried to finish me and it was just an accident and it happens. Not worried about it anymore.”
When Hossa first went down Quenneville figured it would take at least two weeks for Hossa to return. It took a little more than three but, as Hossa noted, if he was better sooner, he would’ve returned sooner. He’s just about ready to go now, which can only benefit the Blackhawks, be it that top line or the entire group.
“Those two guys are great leaders. They lift our team even more; make it stronger,” Hossa said of Toews and Ladd. “I’m looking forward to playing with those two. Hopefully we click, hopefully we find the chemistry and we can be the dominant line we want to be.”
UPDATES
- Duncan Keith did not practice on Tuesday but coach Joel Quenneville said Keith is fine and will play Wednesday vs. the Blues.
- Richard Panik and Dennis Rasmussen appear to be the healthy forward scratches tomorrow night. Quenneville said the forwards will likely rotate with Brandon Mashinter through games down the stretch.
Blackhawks agree to three-year deal with Marcus Kruger.
By Tracey Myers
Marcus Kruger was patient with the process last summer.
He knew the Blackhawks had little cash over the summer, despite all the moves they made and the personnel they lost. So he agreed a shorter deal with a smaller raise in the good faith that he would be signed to a more long-term deal during this season or over the summer.
That deal came this afternoon.
Kruger agreed to a three-year deal worth $9.25 million on Tuesday. The deal gives the center the security he really hasn’t had these past few seasons. It also gives him a very nice raise. Kruger’s current deal, which didn’t get done until September of last year, was for one year, $1.5 million. General manager Stan Bowman talked earlier this season of Kruger doing what worked for him and the team this offseason.
“I think we both wanted to do a longer-term deal, just weren’t able to fit it in. Luckily he understood that and he wanted to be here. That says a lot for what Marcus is like as a person,” said Bowman, who added at that time that he hoped to sign Kruger at some point this season. “Our goal is to keep him here. We were hoping to make it a longer deal.”
Kruger, who has now won two Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks, said he was willing to be patient.
“I know the deal from the beginning. I know the situation here and everything, it might be hard,” he said after signing that one-year deal. “I’m happy to sign here again and be a part of this team and this organization again.”
Kruger, who has been sidelined since December with a fractured wrist, has been skating for a few weeks now. Once thought out until the postseason began, Kruger could now come back for a few late regular-season games.
The Blackhawks will see two raises kick in next season: Kruger’s and Brent Seabrook’s. Andrew Shaw becomes a restricted free agent this summer — he’s in the final season of his current deal, which carries a $2 million cap hit. It’s probably going to be another offseason salary-cap juggling act for the Blackhawks, but they’ve done that for several years now.
Kruger was due a raise and more term. He got them both on Tuesday.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session... NBA Buzz: Summer of change for Bulls?
The St. Louis Blues are one of the NHL's top penalty killing teams, though they have yet to shut down Chicago this season.
How those units match up will be a focal point of Wednesday night's meeting in St. Louis between clubs vying for the Central Division title.
Chicago (41-21-5), St. Louis and Dallas are in contention for the Central crown. The Blues (38-20-9) won it last season, although it meant little after a first-round loss to Minnesota.
Still, the division title and top seed in the Western Conference are targets for these teams separated by two points. The Blackhawks can take a major step toward reaching those goals in this two-game trip that includes Friday's game against the Stars.
''We've got a lot of division games coming up,'' captain Jonathan Toews said. ''Those aren't going to be easy ones. It'll be good preparation for the end of the year. We don't want to look too far ahead.''
Chicago's power play is clicking at 24.1 percent on the season, and the club has gone 6 for 12 in the last four games and 14 for 28 in nine.
"It comes with confidence," Toews said. "If you have a stretch where pucks are going in, it just adds to the rest of your power play, what you do with the puck, your break-outs, your entries, retrieving pucks off of initial shots that maybe don't go in in their zone."
Patrick Kane has seven power-play points and Brent Seabrook, Artemi Panarin and Duncan Keith each have six within the last nine contests. Keith and Artem Anisimov scored with the man advantage in Sunday's 4-1 home win over Detroit.
Kane added his eighth goal in 13 games to increase his NHL-best point total to a career-high 89. He has 13 points in a nine-game overall run against St. Louis, including three postseason games.
The Blues are killing off 86.6 percent of penalties, though the Blackhawks have gone 3 for 11 on the power play against them in 2015-16 with Kane scoring twice and Andrew Shaw once. Chicago went 2-0-1 in those games.
St. Louis returns home on a three-game win streak, capping a 3-1-0 trip with Sunday's 4-2 victory over the Wild. Jori Lehtera and Ryan Reaves scored first-period goals as the Blues never looked back after a strong start.
''This is the playoff stretch right now,'' Reaves said. ''We're playing a lot of teams that we're in the mix with and tied with and chasing, so these are points we've really got to steal and start getting some separation.''
While the Blackhawks have the West's top goal scorer in Kane with 38, the Blues' Vladimir Tarasenko is not far behind with 30. He has three goals and an assist against Chicago this season.
''This is the playoff stretch right now,'' Reaves said. ''We're playing a lot of teams that we're in the mix with and tied with and chasing, so these are points we've really got to steal and start getting some separation.''
While the Blackhawks have the West's top goal scorer in Kane with 38, the Blues' Vladimir Tarasenko is not far behind with 30. He has three goals and an assist against Chicago this season.
Each team will likely start a goalie who has won three straight outings, with the Blues expected to go with Jake Allen and the Blackhawks Corey Crawford.
Chicago winger Marian Hossa practiced Tuesday and might return after missing the last eight games with a lower-body injury.
Chicago winger Marian Hossa practiced Tuesday and might return after missing the last eight games with a lower-body injury.
Blackhawks: Marian Hossa could play Wednesday vs. Blues.
By Tracey Myers
Even if he hasn’t put up the offensive numbers anticipated this season, Marian Hossa is always a missing piece when he’s out of the Blackhawks’ lineup.
Now he’s feeling better, and his return will bring even more balance and stability to the Blackhawks’ forward lines.
The Blackhawks will check with him in the morning but it looks like Hossa will play on Wednesday night when the team takes on the St. Louis Blues. Hossa, who was injured against the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 13, was back on the Blackhawks’ top line with Andrew Ladd and Jonathan Toews at Tuesday’s practice. For Hossa, the recovery time for his lower-body injury could prove beneficial, in terms of rest heading into the stretch run.
“There’s always something bad for something good happening. You don’t want to get hurt but if you do you try to take advantage of it and hopefully that’s going to be the advantage,” said Hossa, who sounded like he’s ready to go in this week’s games vs. the Blues and Dallas Stars. “Obviously it’s going to be a great test for our team, a two big games on the road [and] Mom’s trip. So couldn’t have timed it better.”
Ladd said he didn’t play with Hossa much during his first stint with the Blackhawks – Ladd teamed with Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane at times, but mostly played with Dave Bolland. But Ladd figures the three will connect quickly.
“I think first and foremost, playing the right way defensively for the three of us is the best way to create offense. So, I think if we do that, then things will take care of itself,” Ladd said. “I think anytime you get a player like that back, it’s a big boost to the group. So hopefully me, him and Jonny can find some chemistry and get things going pretty quick.”
With Hossa’s return, Andrew Shaw was centering the fourth line with Brandon Mashinter and Dale Weise at Tuesday’s practice. The Blackhawks’ second and third lines remained the same.
Coach Joel Quenneville has seen his second line of Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov and Patrick Kane bring consistency throughout this season. He’s hoping the top line’s reconfiguration gives the Blackhawks, “a good 1-2 punch.”
“We feel there’s balance deeper than we’ve seen at any point this year,” Quenneville said. “We’re better when everybody’s contributing as four lines, and that’s what we’re looking for.”
Hossa was injured when Hampus Lindholm hip checked him in that Feb. 13. Looking at replays, it’s hard to tell whether Hossa was hurt more on the hit or on the subsequent awkward fall into the boards. Hossa had no issues with the hit.
“I think it was an OK hit,” Hossa said. “I’m not saying there was anything dirty; not at all. I tried to go around him and he tried to hip check me and he hit me above the knee and tried to finish me and it was just an accident and it happens. Not worried about it anymore.”
When Hossa first went down Quenneville figured it would take at least two weeks for Hossa to return. It took a little more than three but, as Hossa noted, if he was better sooner, he would’ve returned sooner. He’s just about ready to go now, which can only benefit the Blackhawks, be it that top line or the entire group.
“Those two guys are great leaders. They lift our team even more; make it stronger,” Hossa said of Toews and Ladd. “I’m looking forward to playing with those two. Hopefully we click, hopefully we find the chemistry and we can be the dominant line we want to be.”
UPDATES
- Duncan Keith did not practice on Tuesday but coach Joel Quenneville said Keith is fine and will play Wednesday vs. the Blues.
- Richard Panik and Dennis Rasmussen appear to be the healthy forward scratches tomorrow night. Quenneville said the forwards will likely rotate with Brandon Mashinter through games down the stretch.
Blackhawks agree to three-year deal with Marcus Kruger.
By Tracey Myers
Marcus Kruger was patient with the process last summer.
He knew the Blackhawks had little cash over the summer, despite all the moves they made and the personnel they lost. So he agreed a shorter deal with a smaller raise in the good faith that he would be signed to a more long-term deal during this season or over the summer.
That deal came this afternoon.
Kruger agreed to a three-year deal worth $9.25 million on Tuesday. The deal gives the center the security he really hasn’t had these past few seasons. It also gives him a very nice raise. Kruger’s current deal, which didn’t get done until September of last year, was for one year, $1.5 million. General manager Stan Bowman talked earlier this season of Kruger doing what worked for him and the team this offseason.
“I think we both wanted to do a longer-term deal, just weren’t able to fit it in. Luckily he understood that and he wanted to be here. That says a lot for what Marcus is like as a person,” said Bowman, who added at that time that he hoped to sign Kruger at some point this season. “Our goal is to keep him here. We were hoping to make it a longer deal.”
Kruger, who has now won two Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks, said he was willing to be patient.
“I know the deal from the beginning. I know the situation here and everything, it might be hard,” he said after signing that one-year deal. “I’m happy to sign here again and be a part of this team and this organization again.”
Kruger, who has been sidelined since December with a fractured wrist, has been skating for a few weeks now. Once thought out until the postseason began, Kruger could now come back for a few late regular-season games.
The Blackhawks will see two raises kick in next season: Kruger’s and Brent Seabrook’s. Andrew Shaw becomes a restricted free agent this summer — he’s in the final season of his current deal, which carries a $2 million cap hit. It’s probably going to be another offseason salary-cap juggling act for the Blackhawks, but they’ve done that for several years now.
Kruger was due a raise and more term. He got them both on Tuesday.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session... NBA Buzz: Summer of change for Bulls?
By Mark Schanowski
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
With the return of Jimmy Butler and Niko Mirotic, the Bulls are as healthy as they've been since early January. Question is, will this team at almost full strength be good enough to crack the top eight in the Eastern Conference and qualify for the playoffs?
The first game provided some encouraging signs. The ball movement and cutting on offense and the intensity on the defensive end was outstanding for the first eight minutes against Houston on Saturday. But as soon as Butler went to the bench because of foul trouble, the offensive flow disappeared and the Bulls again proved vulnerable to penetrating guards on the other end.
The Bulls were able to hang on to beat the dysfunctional Rockets, 108-100. Butler was sensational in his first game back with 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Pau Gasol also put up big numbers with 28 points, 17 rebounds and six assists. But the home team almost blew an 18-point fourth-quarter lead, thanks to sloppy ball-handling that resulted in 25 turnovers. That number will have to drop if the Bulls are going to make the playoffs.
The next five games should tell us a lot about whether the return of Butler and Mirotic will be a turning point in the season. After a home game against Milwaukee, the Bulls face tough tests against San Antonio, Miami, Toronto and Washington.
Still, barring an unexpected run to the Conference Finals, you'd have to expect an offseason of change at the Advocate Center. All options should be on the table for a team that's been maddeningly inconsistent to this point.
We learned last week in a Boston Herald report that Celtics' general manager Danny Ainge reportedly called the Bulls before the trade deadline about Butler, offering Brooklyn's unprotected first round pick (expected to be in the top five) and a first rounder Boston acquired in the Rajon Rondo trade with Dallas last season.
According to the report, the talks never really gained any traction, but that type of trade could be revisited this summer if the Bulls are ready to hit the reset button on a roster that has maxed out.
Former NBA front office executive and current ESPN analyst Amin Elhassan made a guest appearance on David Kaplan's radio show last week, offering his opinion that the Bulls should have already started the rebuilding process. Elhassan said he went on the air on Christmas Day, advocating it was time for the Bulls to "blow up the roster" and start over.
Of course, that was followed by a nationally televised win over the Thunder and later a six-game winning streak in early January. But since that time, the Bulls have lost 18 of their last 27 games. The front office passed on a chance to get something for free agent to be Gasol at the deadline, reportedly turning down a Sacramento offer that included young wing player Ben McLemore, veteran back-up center Kosta Koufos and reduction of the top 10 protection on the first-round pick the Kings owe the Bulls from a previous trade.
Elhassan said on Kap and Co. the Bulls' front office overvalued the talent on the current roster, mistakenly believing they could make a run to the Finals with a coaching change alone. Now, they're left with a roster that's ill-suited to the type of system Fred Hoiberg wants to run.
In looking ahead to the offseason, Elhassan said he would be willing to trade anyone on the roster "not named Jimmy Butler" and thinks a split with Derrick Rose would be best for everyone involved. Elhassan said the Bulls can't really start the rebuilding process until they say goodbye to Rose, whose injury history and max contract have been an impediment to making the roster changes necessary to become a contending team again.
With the explosion of the salary cap from $69 million to somewhere around $90 million, we can expect to see one of the most active summer trade seasons in NBA history. Plus, the Bulls could have somewhere between $20 million and $23 million to spend in free agency, assuming they renounce their rights to Gasol and Joakim Noah. If the front office wants to do a roster makeover for their hand-picked head coach, this summer should offer them the perfect opportunity.
Around the Association
Even though the Cavaliers have been at the top of the Eastern Conference almost all season, the situation is far from harmonious in Cleveland. General manager David Griffin fired head coach David Blatt in late January and reportedly discussed trade options involving former All-Star Kevin Love.
Then we learn of an ESPN report claiming point guard Kyrie Irving is unhappy playing in the shadow of LeBron James, and would welcome the chance to go elsewhere. Irving quickly denied the report, but it's apparent he won't reach his full potential with James dominating the ball.
For his part, James has been going with the "tough love" approach in regard to his teammates, saying the Cavs have to be mentally stronger if they want to accomplish their championship goal. James was especially agitated after the Cavs blew a lead against the Toronto Raptors recently, saying again it's the mental approach that's holding the team back.
So, how did James show his leadership with this mentally fragile group? He decided to fly to Miami on the team's off days last week and was seen in a video working out with his good friend and former Heat teammate Dwyane Wade. James also sent out a cryptic tweet, "It's OK to know you've made a mistake. Cause we all do at times. Just be ready to live with whatever that comes with it and be with those who will protect you at all cost!"
Was James saying he regretted leaving Miami? Was he taking a shot at his current teammates? LeBron refused to elaborate when he returned to Cavs' practice last Thursday, telling Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, "I don't care," if people are upset. "I would love to go to L.A., but I'll take two and a half (hour flight) over four and a half. I've got a house in L.A., but it makes more sense for me to go south than go west. But I go because I want to."
James is right. If he feels like enjoying some warm weather during an unexpected two-day break in the middle of the season, more power to him. But given his past history of jumping teams, and his ability to enter the free agent market this summer, Cavs' fans and management have to be more than a little nervous if Cleveland fails to make a return trip to the Finals this June.
***Speaking of uneasy alliances, Carmelo Anthony's love affair with the Knicks organization seems to have hit another rough patch. Last week Anthony responded to a heckling fan at Madison Square Garden by pointing to Knicks' owner James Dolan and saying that's the owner sitting over there, ask him for your money back.
The next day, Anthony issued a statement apologizing for his actions, but he told reporters it was Dolan's idea, not his. With the Knicks again heading for the lottery, you have to wonder if Anthony regrets committing to Phil Jackson for five years. Melo received a no-trade clause as part of the negotiations, but don't be surprised if he and his agent try to come up with an exit strategy this summer.
***In case you missed it, Michael Beasley is back in the NBA, signing a free agent deal with the Houston Rockets after an MVP season in the Chinese Basketball Association. Beasley, of course, is the player selected right after Derrick Rose in the 2008 draft. He's bounced around the league because of character issues, but no one's ever denied his talent. Still, you have to wonder about his fit on the dysfunctional Rockets, who fired head coach Kevin McHale after just 11 games, and are fighting to make the playoffs in the West despite a roster that features star players James Harden and Dwight Howard. Should be interesting to see Harden's reaction the first time Beasley throws up a crazy shot.
***At 36 years old, Baron Davis hasn't given up on his dream of making an NBA comeback. Davis signed with the Developmental League's Delaware 87'ers with the hope of showing NBA teams he still has something to offer. Davis averaged 16.1 points and 7.2 assists in 835 career games, but he hasn't played in the league since suffering a serious knee injury during the 2012 playoffs.
***And, congratulations to our friend Nazr Mohammed on returning to the NBA, signing on with Oklahoma City for the rest of the season and the playoffs. Mohammad had been out of the league since leaving the Bulls at the end of last season, but he stayed in shape, hoping for another chance at extending his career. The former Kenwood Academy star says this last comeback is all about leaving the NBA on his own terms, and he hopes to do whatever he can to help the Thunder, either on the court, or by sharing the benefits of his 18 years of experience. When the season ends, Mohammed is ready to move on with his life, grateful to have this final opportunity to say goodbye.
Warriors pursuit of 72 wins
Just when it looked like the Warriors were a lock to break the 1995-'96 Bulls record of 72 wins, they inexplicably failed to show up for an afternoon game against the tanking Lakers and got run out of Staples Center, losing 112-95. Even harder to believe, two of the best shooters in the game, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, combined to shoot 1-18 from 3-point range. Maybe the Warriors just had a bad day, or maybe the players stayed out too late in L.A. Saturday night, figuring they could mail it in for a 12:30 afternoon start against one of the worst teams in the league.
Golden State needs to go 18-3 the rest of the way to break the Bulls' record, and 15 of those games will be played at Oracle Arena in Oakland where they haven't lost all season. But they also have to play San Antonio three times, with two of those match-ups coming on the Spurs' home court. All of a sudden, the challenge is looking a little tougher for Steve Kerr's crew, but I'm still putting the odds of Golden State breaking the record at 60 percent.
Stats of the Week
Here's some numbers to show how much the Bulls defensive efficiency has fallen off this season, courtesy of CSN's Chris Kamka.
The .675 FG% the Bulls allowed vs. Miami on March 1 is the highest in the NBA by any team since Feb. 27, 2010 (includes playoffs).
On that day, the Jazz shot 52-77 (.675) vs. the Rockets (same as Heat vs. Bulls).
The previous high in the NBA this season was back on Dec. 7, when the Spurs shot .618 (47-76) vs. 76ers.
Bulls allowing 60+ points in the first half:
The first game provided some encouraging signs. The ball movement and cutting on offense and the intensity on the defensive end was outstanding for the first eight minutes against Houston on Saturday. But as soon as Butler went to the bench because of foul trouble, the offensive flow disappeared and the Bulls again proved vulnerable to penetrating guards on the other end.
The Bulls were able to hang on to beat the dysfunctional Rockets, 108-100. Butler was sensational in his first game back with 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Pau Gasol also put up big numbers with 28 points, 17 rebounds and six assists. But the home team almost blew an 18-point fourth-quarter lead, thanks to sloppy ball-handling that resulted in 25 turnovers. That number will have to drop if the Bulls are going to make the playoffs.
The next five games should tell us a lot about whether the return of Butler and Mirotic will be a turning point in the season. After a home game against Milwaukee, the Bulls face tough tests against San Antonio, Miami, Toronto and Washington.
Still, barring an unexpected run to the Conference Finals, you'd have to expect an offseason of change at the Advocate Center. All options should be on the table for a team that's been maddeningly inconsistent to this point.
We learned last week in a Boston Herald report that Celtics' general manager Danny Ainge reportedly called the Bulls before the trade deadline about Butler, offering Brooklyn's unprotected first round pick (expected to be in the top five) and a first rounder Boston acquired in the Rajon Rondo trade with Dallas last season.
According to the report, the talks never really gained any traction, but that type of trade could be revisited this summer if the Bulls are ready to hit the reset button on a roster that has maxed out.
Former NBA front office executive and current ESPN analyst Amin Elhassan made a guest appearance on David Kaplan's radio show last week, offering his opinion that the Bulls should have already started the rebuilding process. Elhassan said he went on the air on Christmas Day, advocating it was time for the Bulls to "blow up the roster" and start over.
Of course, that was followed by a nationally televised win over the Thunder and later a six-game winning streak in early January. But since that time, the Bulls have lost 18 of their last 27 games. The front office passed on a chance to get something for free agent to be Gasol at the deadline, reportedly turning down a Sacramento offer that included young wing player Ben McLemore, veteran back-up center Kosta Koufos and reduction of the top 10 protection on the first-round pick the Kings owe the Bulls from a previous trade.
Elhassan said on Kap and Co. the Bulls' front office overvalued the talent on the current roster, mistakenly believing they could make a run to the Finals with a coaching change alone. Now, they're left with a roster that's ill-suited to the type of system Fred Hoiberg wants to run.
In looking ahead to the offseason, Elhassan said he would be willing to trade anyone on the roster "not named Jimmy Butler" and thinks a split with Derrick Rose would be best for everyone involved. Elhassan said the Bulls can't really start the rebuilding process until they say goodbye to Rose, whose injury history and max contract have been an impediment to making the roster changes necessary to become a contending team again.
With the explosion of the salary cap from $69 million to somewhere around $90 million, we can expect to see one of the most active summer trade seasons in NBA history. Plus, the Bulls could have somewhere between $20 million and $23 million to spend in free agency, assuming they renounce their rights to Gasol and Joakim Noah. If the front office wants to do a roster makeover for their hand-picked head coach, this summer should offer them the perfect opportunity.
Around the Association
Even though the Cavaliers have been at the top of the Eastern Conference almost all season, the situation is far from harmonious in Cleveland. General manager David Griffin fired head coach David Blatt in late January and reportedly discussed trade options involving former All-Star Kevin Love.
Then we learn of an ESPN report claiming point guard Kyrie Irving is unhappy playing in the shadow of LeBron James, and would welcome the chance to go elsewhere. Irving quickly denied the report, but it's apparent he won't reach his full potential with James dominating the ball.
For his part, James has been going with the "tough love" approach in regard to his teammates, saying the Cavs have to be mentally stronger if they want to accomplish their championship goal. James was especially agitated after the Cavs blew a lead against the Toronto Raptors recently, saying again it's the mental approach that's holding the team back.
So, how did James show his leadership with this mentally fragile group? He decided to fly to Miami on the team's off days last week and was seen in a video working out with his good friend and former Heat teammate Dwyane Wade. James also sent out a cryptic tweet, "It's OK to know you've made a mistake. Cause we all do at times. Just be ready to live with whatever that comes with it and be with those who will protect you at all cost!"
Was James saying he regretted leaving Miami? Was he taking a shot at his current teammates? LeBron refused to elaborate when he returned to Cavs' practice last Thursday, telling Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, "I don't care," if people are upset. "I would love to go to L.A., but I'll take two and a half (hour flight) over four and a half. I've got a house in L.A., but it makes more sense for me to go south than go west. But I go because I want to."
James is right. If he feels like enjoying some warm weather during an unexpected two-day break in the middle of the season, more power to him. But given his past history of jumping teams, and his ability to enter the free agent market this summer, Cavs' fans and management have to be more than a little nervous if Cleveland fails to make a return trip to the Finals this June.
***Speaking of uneasy alliances, Carmelo Anthony's love affair with the Knicks organization seems to have hit another rough patch. Last week Anthony responded to a heckling fan at Madison Square Garden by pointing to Knicks' owner James Dolan and saying that's the owner sitting over there, ask him for your money back.
The next day, Anthony issued a statement apologizing for his actions, but he told reporters it was Dolan's idea, not his. With the Knicks again heading for the lottery, you have to wonder if Anthony regrets committing to Phil Jackson for five years. Melo received a no-trade clause as part of the negotiations, but don't be surprised if he and his agent try to come up with an exit strategy this summer.
***In case you missed it, Michael Beasley is back in the NBA, signing a free agent deal with the Houston Rockets after an MVP season in the Chinese Basketball Association. Beasley, of course, is the player selected right after Derrick Rose in the 2008 draft. He's bounced around the league because of character issues, but no one's ever denied his talent. Still, you have to wonder about his fit on the dysfunctional Rockets, who fired head coach Kevin McHale after just 11 games, and are fighting to make the playoffs in the West despite a roster that features star players James Harden and Dwight Howard. Should be interesting to see Harden's reaction the first time Beasley throws up a crazy shot.
***At 36 years old, Baron Davis hasn't given up on his dream of making an NBA comeback. Davis signed with the Developmental League's Delaware 87'ers with the hope of showing NBA teams he still has something to offer. Davis averaged 16.1 points and 7.2 assists in 835 career games, but he hasn't played in the league since suffering a serious knee injury during the 2012 playoffs.
***And, congratulations to our friend Nazr Mohammed on returning to the NBA, signing on with Oklahoma City for the rest of the season and the playoffs. Mohammad had been out of the league since leaving the Bulls at the end of last season, but he stayed in shape, hoping for another chance at extending his career. The former Kenwood Academy star says this last comeback is all about leaving the NBA on his own terms, and he hopes to do whatever he can to help the Thunder, either on the court, or by sharing the benefits of his 18 years of experience. When the season ends, Mohammed is ready to move on with his life, grateful to have this final opportunity to say goodbye.
Warriors pursuit of 72 wins
Just when it looked like the Warriors were a lock to break the 1995-'96 Bulls record of 72 wins, they inexplicably failed to show up for an afternoon game against the tanking Lakers and got run out of Staples Center, losing 112-95. Even harder to believe, two of the best shooters in the game, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, combined to shoot 1-18 from 3-point range. Maybe the Warriors just had a bad day, or maybe the players stayed out too late in L.A. Saturday night, figuring they could mail it in for a 12:30 afternoon start against one of the worst teams in the league.
Golden State needs to go 18-3 the rest of the way to break the Bulls' record, and 15 of those games will be played at Oracle Arena in Oakland where they haven't lost all season. But they also have to play San Antonio three times, with two of those match-ups coming on the Spurs' home court. All of a sudden, the challenge is looking a little tougher for Steve Kerr's crew, but I'm still putting the odds of Golden State breaking the record at 60 percent.
Stats of the Week
Here's some numbers to show how much the Bulls defensive efficiency has fallen off this season, courtesy of CSN's Chris Kamka.
The .675 FG% the Bulls allowed vs. Miami on March 1 is the highest in the NBA by any team since Feb. 27, 2010 (includes playoffs).
On that day, the Jazz shot 52-77 (.675) vs. the Rockets (same as Heat vs. Bulls).
The previous high in the NBA this season was back on Dec. 7, when the Spurs shot .618 (47-76) vs. 76ers.
Bulls allowing 60+ points in the first half:
| Regular season |
Times
| Games |
| 2015-16 | 10 | 60 |
| 2014-15 | 7 | 82 |
| 2013-14 | 4 | 82 |
| 2012-13 | 3 | 82 |
| 2011-12 | 1 | 66 |
| 2010-11 | 7 | 82 |
| 2010-16 totals | 22 |
394
|
Quotes of the Week
This from Pau Gasol on the Bulls' current plight:
"Teams come in and see us struggling, they know we're struggling, and they see opportunity. They're smelling blood and they're going for it. It doesn't make things any easier, but at the same time we've got to step it up.''
And finally, this from Steve Kerr on his Warriors losing to the Lakers: "We got what we deserved. When the ball doesn't go in, you have to win with energy and defense and toughness, and we didn't have any of that."
"I joke with Steph all the time that this team is full of millennials, and millennials can't focus," Kerr said, "so we looked like millennials today. We weren't locked in at all. We weren't focused. But every team is going to have a tough time being locked in for 82 games. It's hard."
Maybe now Steve can understand some of the frustration that every other NBA coach has to experience. Kerr probably has the best perspective of anyone on the Warriors' record chase after playing for the '95-96 Bulls and coaching this Golden State team. He's in the enviable position of knowing he'll come out on top either way.
Hoiberg encouraged by Bulls' ending 100-points-allowed streak.
By Vincent Goodwill
Lost under the glut of injured bodies and duct tape used to hold the Chicago Bulls together was a little bit of light in their 100-90 win over the Milwaukee Bucks Monday night.
Besides the win, just the score probably made some Bulls fans smile for a half-second, considering they held an opponent under 100 points for the first time since Jan. 28, a 114-91 win over the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center.
Since then, one could argue the Bulls won in spite of their defense, on the occasion they did. Going 16 straight games can lead to a belief about defense leaving the building when a grumpy but effective coach was fired last May.
If not for Jimmy Butler’s absence, Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg could almost breathe a sigh of relief by the return of defense to the United Center, especially considering who was doing the defending.
Pau Gasol blocked five shots, leading to a throwaway comment from Gasol about his reputation, saying, “For a poor defender, that’s not bad.”
Forward Nikola Mirotic was in his second game back after missing nearly a month, was praised by Hoiberg after reviewing the game film.
“We played a really smart game on the defensive end,” Hoiberg said. “I thought Niko really for us was the player of the game on the defensive end. He did a great job all night long of being in the right spot and plugging. “
Mirotic is still under a minutes restriction but played a few more than expected (20), hitting two triples on the way to 14 points and six rebounds. But helping shut off driving lanes for the wiry Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker and Khris Middleton was crucial in the Bulls being able to overcome another high turnover game to win their second straight.
E’Twaun Moore was a standout defensively, guarding Middleton physically and without fouling—an assignment that would’ve belonged to Butler had he played.
“We played personnel really well,” Hoiberg said. “Mike (Dunleavy) played Giannis about as well as you can play him by getting off him and making him take jump shots.
We guarded Parker well. We didn’t allow a lot of slashing, which they get a lot of points off of. They average 50 in the paint and we held them 10 below that.”
Before anybody gets too giddy, the Bulls have two teams capable of putting up 110 in their sleep—including the Miami Heat, who gave the Bulls a healthy dose of medicine with 129 points last week.
The San Antonio Spurs welcome the Bulls into Texas with a 30-0 home record, so the Bulls could go right back to .500 just off the caliber of their competition. Still, though, Hoiberg is encouraged by the last two games.
“If we would’ve taken care of the ball and not given them some run-outs and rebounded, it could’ve been a really, really good defensive game,” he said. “We’ve taken steps in the right direction. I thought we guarded Houston. They went on a run late to score 100 on the nose on us.”
Pau Gasol's triple-double helps Bulls grind out win over Bucks. (Monday night's game, 03/07/2016).
This from Pau Gasol on the Bulls' current plight:
"Teams come in and see us struggling, they know we're struggling, and they see opportunity. They're smelling blood and they're going for it. It doesn't make things any easier, but at the same time we've got to step it up.''
And finally, this from Steve Kerr on his Warriors losing to the Lakers: "We got what we deserved. When the ball doesn't go in, you have to win with energy and defense and toughness, and we didn't have any of that."
"I joke with Steph all the time that this team is full of millennials, and millennials can't focus," Kerr said, "so we looked like millennials today. We weren't locked in at all. We weren't focused. But every team is going to have a tough time being locked in for 82 games. It's hard."
Maybe now Steve can understand some of the frustration that every other NBA coach has to experience. Kerr probably has the best perspective of anyone on the Warriors' record chase after playing for the '95-96 Bulls and coaching this Golden State team. He's in the enviable position of knowing he'll come out on top either way.
Hoiberg encouraged by Bulls' ending 100-points-allowed streak.
By Vincent Goodwill
Lost under the glut of injured bodies and duct tape used to hold the Chicago Bulls together was a little bit of light in their 100-90 win over the Milwaukee Bucks Monday night.
Besides the win, just the score probably made some Bulls fans smile for a half-second, considering they held an opponent under 100 points for the first time since Jan. 28, a 114-91 win over the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center.
Since then, one could argue the Bulls won in spite of their defense, on the occasion they did. Going 16 straight games can lead to a belief about defense leaving the building when a grumpy but effective coach was fired last May.
If not for Jimmy Butler’s absence, Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg could almost breathe a sigh of relief by the return of defense to the United Center, especially considering who was doing the defending.
Pau Gasol blocked five shots, leading to a throwaway comment from Gasol about his reputation, saying, “For a poor defender, that’s not bad.”
Forward Nikola Mirotic was in his second game back after missing nearly a month, was praised by Hoiberg after reviewing the game film.
“We played a really smart game on the defensive end,” Hoiberg said. “I thought Niko really for us was the player of the game on the defensive end. He did a great job all night long of being in the right spot and plugging. “
Mirotic is still under a minutes restriction but played a few more than expected (20), hitting two triples on the way to 14 points and six rebounds. But helping shut off driving lanes for the wiry Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker and Khris Middleton was crucial in the Bulls being able to overcome another high turnover game to win their second straight.
E’Twaun Moore was a standout defensively, guarding Middleton physically and without fouling—an assignment that would’ve belonged to Butler had he played.
“We played personnel really well,” Hoiberg said. “Mike (Dunleavy) played Giannis about as well as you can play him by getting off him and making him take jump shots.
We guarded Parker well. We didn’t allow a lot of slashing, which they get a lot of points off of. They average 50 in the paint and we held them 10 below that.”
Before anybody gets too giddy, the Bulls have two teams capable of putting up 110 in their sleep—including the Miami Heat, who gave the Bulls a healthy dose of medicine with 129 points last week.
The San Antonio Spurs welcome the Bulls into Texas with a 30-0 home record, so the Bulls could go right back to .500 just off the caliber of their competition. Still, though, Hoiberg is encouraged by the last two games.
“If we would’ve taken care of the ball and not given them some run-outs and rebounded, it could’ve been a really, really good defensive game,” he said. “We’ve taken steps in the right direction. I thought we guarded Houston. They went on a run late to score 100 on the nose on us.”
Pau Gasol's triple-double helps Bulls grind out win over Bucks. (Monday night's game, 03/07/2016).
By Vincent Goodwill
The excitement was gone in the United Center, replaced by nervous energy and waning emotion.
The bodies kept falling and the young Milwaukee Bucks kept charging throughout the fourth quarter, coming back from a 13-point deficit and giving the Bulls more of a scare than they would’ve liked to admit.
But with no choice to do anything but, the Bulls used duct tape and know-how to pull out a 100-90 win, in what could be described as a must-win considering they’re facing a road-home combo of San Antonio and Miami later in the week.
With Jimmy Butler being a scratch due to knee soreness following his first game back, the Bulls also lost Aaron Brooks and Bobby Portis to injury, leaving Fred Hoiberg with very few options to turn to, and his team didn’t look to have the necessary effectiveness throughout as the athletic Bucks stalked them for the better part of three quarters.
Pau Gasol’s block of a Greg Monroe hook shot with a little over two minutes left prevented the Bucks from cutting the Bulls’ lead to three, and displayed what he was able to do all night, as he finished with his second triple-double with 12 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists. His scoring was the last thing to come aboard.
He only hit four of 14 shots, but the Bulls shot 50 percent from the field — it just didn’t look like it as they turned it over 18 times for 23 points.
“We made some key plays down the stretch, hit some big shots,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. “I thought we came in with the right mentality. This is the second game where we jumped out to a big early lead.”
Whenever the Bucks seemed ready to take things over, the Bulls would apply a little duct tape to the boat that seemed ready to capsize, keeping it afloat just a little while longer.
A Nikola Mirotic triple when the Bucks pulled to within two at 6:57.
A Taj Gibson block and saved rebound from out of bounds, which led to an E’Twaun Moore triple to give the Bulls an 88-83 lead with 3:34 left.
“It’s just about having the will to win,” Gibson said. “It’s tough, games like this we have to push through. I understand guys are down, but these are the games you look forward to, to build confidence.”
Three times the Bucks came within a basket in the fourth and every time, the Bulls pulled something from their behinds to give themselves breathing room.
“Nobody wants to be in this position, right at the end of the cliff,” Gibson said. “But like coach said, you have to get up and take a couple punches to the face and keep swinging.”
The jabs came fast and furious, if not outright wild from a Bucks team still believing they can play a part in the playoff picture.
Jabari Parker continued his torrid stretch following the All-Star break, and versatile do-everything forward Giannis Antetokounmpo played nearly every position on the floor, including point guard to give the Bulls fits.
Parker blew by Nikola Mirotic and Doug McDermott for dunks and slashing drives on the way to 16 points and 10 boards. Jerryd Bayliss continued being a nuisance to the Bulls with five triples off the bench on the way to 20 points.
“We were pretty thin with Jimmy out, and we lost Aaron and Bobby got poked in the eye, so we had to get some big minutes from some of our guys,” Hoiberg said.
After getting hit in the eye on a screen and looking every bit of dazed and confused, Rose hit the Bucks right back where it hurts most — the scoreboard.
He hit a triple, a pull-up jumper and a step-back jumper, giving the Bulls a temporary reprieve from their ineffectiveness.
Rose finished with a game-high 22 points and seven assists, as he was the only point guard on the floor for either team, and played 38 minutes.
Too many times, the Bucks disrupted the Bulls offense with aggressiveness, overplaying the strong side of the defense and forcing cross-court passes, many of which weren’t caught cleanly if at all.
It was nearly a replay of the Rockets’ strategy from Saturday night, only they didn’t have Butler on the floor as a productive player, scorer or safety valve.
But without their best player, they relied on some old-fashioned guile to pull out a crucial win.
The bodies kept falling and the young Milwaukee Bucks kept charging throughout the fourth quarter, coming back from a 13-point deficit and giving the Bulls more of a scare than they would’ve liked to admit.
But with no choice to do anything but, the Bulls used duct tape and know-how to pull out a 100-90 win, in what could be described as a must-win considering they’re facing a road-home combo of San Antonio and Miami later in the week.
With Jimmy Butler being a scratch due to knee soreness following his first game back, the Bulls also lost Aaron Brooks and Bobby Portis to injury, leaving Fred Hoiberg with very few options to turn to, and his team didn’t look to have the necessary effectiveness throughout as the athletic Bucks stalked them for the better part of three quarters.
Pau Gasol’s block of a Greg Monroe hook shot with a little over two minutes left prevented the Bucks from cutting the Bulls’ lead to three, and displayed what he was able to do all night, as he finished with his second triple-double with 12 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists. His scoring was the last thing to come aboard.
He only hit four of 14 shots, but the Bulls shot 50 percent from the field — it just didn’t look like it as they turned it over 18 times for 23 points.
“We made some key plays down the stretch, hit some big shots,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. “I thought we came in with the right mentality. This is the second game where we jumped out to a big early lead.”
Whenever the Bucks seemed ready to take things over, the Bulls would apply a little duct tape to the boat that seemed ready to capsize, keeping it afloat just a little while longer.
A Nikola Mirotic triple when the Bucks pulled to within two at 6:57.
A Taj Gibson block and saved rebound from out of bounds, which led to an E’Twaun Moore triple to give the Bulls an 88-83 lead with 3:34 left.
“It’s just about having the will to win,” Gibson said. “It’s tough, games like this we have to push through. I understand guys are down, but these are the games you look forward to, to build confidence.”
Three times the Bucks came within a basket in the fourth and every time, the Bulls pulled something from their behinds to give themselves breathing room.
“Nobody wants to be in this position, right at the end of the cliff,” Gibson said. “But like coach said, you have to get up and take a couple punches to the face and keep swinging.”
The jabs came fast and furious, if not outright wild from a Bucks team still believing they can play a part in the playoff picture.
Jabari Parker continued his torrid stretch following the All-Star break, and versatile do-everything forward Giannis Antetokounmpo played nearly every position on the floor, including point guard to give the Bulls fits.
Parker blew by Nikola Mirotic and Doug McDermott for dunks and slashing drives on the way to 16 points and 10 boards. Jerryd Bayliss continued being a nuisance to the Bulls with five triples off the bench on the way to 20 points.
“We were pretty thin with Jimmy out, and we lost Aaron and Bobby got poked in the eye, so we had to get some big minutes from some of our guys,” Hoiberg said.
After getting hit in the eye on a screen and looking every bit of dazed and confused, Rose hit the Bucks right back where it hurts most — the scoreboard.
He hit a triple, a pull-up jumper and a step-back jumper, giving the Bulls a temporary reprieve from their ineffectiveness.
Rose finished with a game-high 22 points and seven assists, as he was the only point guard on the floor for either team, and played 38 minutes.
Too many times, the Bucks disrupted the Bulls offense with aggressiveness, overplaying the strong side of the defense and forcing cross-court passes, many of which weren’t caught cleanly if at all.
It was nearly a replay of the Rockets’ strategy from Saturday night, only they didn’t have Butler on the floor as a productive player, scorer or safety valve.
But without their best player, they relied on some old-fashioned guile to pull out a crucial win.
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery signs franchise tag tender.
By Scott Krinch
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The franchise tag comes with a $14.599 million price tag — the average salary of the NFL's five highest-paid receivers — for Jeffery's services during the 2016 season. Last Monday the Bears used the "non-exclusive" tag on Jeffery to keep him off the open market.
Jeffery and the Bears have until July 15 to negotiate a long-term deal. The two sides met at last month's NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, but weren't able to dot the i's and cross the t's at the time. If a long-term deal isn't finalized by the deadline, Jeffery will be eligible for free agency again next winter.
The 26-year-old Jeffery battled through various soft-tissue injuries last season and appeared in just nine games. Jeffery still led the Bears with 54 receptions for 807 yards and four touchdowns.
“The thing about it is the previous two years, he remained healthy,” Bears general manager Ryan Pace said at the Combine. “Last year he had a series of injuries. I think we’ve got a great sports [medicine] team around him with Jen [Gibson] and Nate [Breske] and Jason George.
“I’ve said this before: I think being in Year 2 with a player helps a lot just understanding his body and his body mechanics. I know him and his agent are doing some things, too, to improve on that. When he gets back, we’ll have a plan in place. It’s important.”
Jeffery, the Bears' second-round selection in the 2012 NFL Draft out of South Carolina, has appeared in 51 games across four seasons with Chicago. He's amassed 252 receptions for 3,728 yards and 24 touchdowns. Jeffery garnered Pro Bowl honors in 2013 after recording 89 receptions for 1,421 yards and seven scores.
Report: Packers interested in former Bears running back Matt Forte.
CSN Staff
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
According to a tweet from ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Green Bay Packers are showing interest in former Bears running back Matt Forte.
Forte and the Bears agreed to part ways after eight seasons, with the Bears looking to get younger at the position.
The Packers already have Eddie Lacy, but James Starks is an unrestricted free agent and the Packers have long been in the market for a pass-catching running back.
It wouldn't be the first time the Bears' rivals grabbed a former player. After the Bears released defensive end Julius Peppers, he signed with the Packers and has tallied 17.5 sacks in two seasons.
NFL free agency buzz: Bears GM Ryan Pace should be at home this time of year.
By John Mullin
One major component in Ryan Pace’s background makes the Bears’ efforts in free agency particularly worth noting. Pace comes from the pro-personnel side of the game, meaning for most of his career in New Orleans his chief task was scouting and scouring other NFL rosters, which he should know almost as well as his own.
Pace made a play for rush-linebacker Pernell McPhee, a Baltimore Ravens backup because of the talent (Elvis Dumervil, Terrell Suggs) ahead of him. Finding a starter-grade addition a little ways down someone’s depth chart is a knack, and Pace’s experience prior to taking over as Bears general manager was heavily on the Saints’ pro side.
In other words, he’s had files on NFL free agents long before they became free agents.
Shifting DL targets
With Denver Broncos defensive lineman Malik Jackson going to the Jacksonville Jaguars after flirtations with the Bears, Broncos and Oakland Raiders, the Bears and others begin tightening focuses elsewhere.
The Saints drafted massive defensive lineman Akiem Hicks in 2012 when Pace was a member of the Saints’ personnel department. Now that Pace is Bears general manager and Hicks is a free agent, few would be totally surprised if the two got together again this offseason.
The Bears have been linked to Hicks, rated No. 2 among free-agent interior defensive linemen by CSNChicago.com, and the prospect of pairing Hicks (6-5, 324) with nose tackle Eddie Goldman (6-4, 335) conjures up thoughts of a run-proof defense.
And be in no doubt as to the importance of immovable objects to a pass rush, even someone like Hicks, who has 9.5 total sacks in four NFL seasons. Richard Dent once told me that no one fully appreciated what William Perry meant to him: “With Fridge inside next to me,” The Colonel said, “I never had to worry about anything to my left.”
Nightmare-come-true
When the Bears opted to commit toward Ka’Deem Carey and Jeremy Langford and away from Matt Forte, one worst-case scenario for the Bears was the prospect of Forte going to the Green Bay Packers, as Steve McMichael, Jim McMahon, Jim Morrissey and a handful of others have done.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Packers are sniffing.
Safety searches
It wouldn’t be an NFL offseason without the Bears scouring the league for help at safety, and 2016 is another safety quest. David Bruton, who played 77 plays on a broken leg in a late-season game with Denver last season, has been with the Broncos since being drafted out of Notre Dame in 2009 and played for John Fox during Fox’s four Denver seasons. Bruton reportedly has seen interest from the Bears, Broncos, Giants and Dolphins (where ex-Broncos assistant Adam Gase is now head coach).
What makes Bruton intriguing is his leadership of Broncos special teams (three-year captain) , his age (28) and his potential. Normally “potential” is no longer in the discussion after seven NFL seasons, but Bruton has started just nine games, meaning low mileage, but partly because the Broncos have had some safety play from the likes of T.J. Ward, Rahim Moore and Brian Dawkins in recent seasons.
On guard: J.R. Sweezy a three-year Seahawks starter
Not that this means anything about how 2016 offseason will play out for the Bears’ offense, but efforts to upgrade the offensive line didn’t go all that well last offseason, meaning that Bears have to do some of the same work again.
The Bears used one-year contracts to bring in guards Vladimir Ducasse and Patrick Omameh (via waiver claim). Neither settled the right-guard spot and the latest effort is reportedly in the direction of J.R. Sweezy, who’s started the past three seasons at right guard for the Seattle Seahawks.
The guard/tackle market did get a little weird on Tuesday when the Oakland Raiders threw $60 million over five years toward former Raven lineman Kelechi Osemele. The Bears weren’t seriously in that discussion, though.
NFL free agency buzz: All that glitters is definitely not gold .
By John Mullin
Longtime Bears and Indianapolis Colts personnel guru Bill Tobin once told me, back when free agency was first starting in 1993 and contract amounts were starting to spike up dramatically, that “just because you pay some guy $2 million doesn’t make him a $2 million player.”
The dollar parameters seem almost quaint more than 20 years later. But the perspective is as timely now as it always has been.
Indeed, depending on the individual and the situation, paying “some guy” $2 million (adjusted for inflation to 2014 dollars) can have precisely the opposite effect, making that some-guy a very overpaid second-rate player.
The Minnesota Vikings provided an object lesson on Tuesday when they released wide receiver Mike Wallace – the same Mike Wallace that the Miami Dolphins had enticed out of Pittsburgh with a contract calling for $60 million over five years. The deal worked out so well that the Dolphins were fine with getting all of a fifth-round draft pick from the Vikings for Wallace and a seventh-rounder – the same return the Bears got when they packed wide receiver Brandon Marshall off to the New York Jets last offseason, less than 10 months after the Bears lavished $22.3 million guaranteed on Marshall as part of a $39.3 million, four-year extension.
Underscoring the point: The Philadelphia Eagles agreed on Tuesday to trade running back DeMarco Murray to the Tennessee Titans – the same DeMarco Murray on whom the Eagles heaped $21 guaranteed million as part of a five-year, $42 million contract signed just last March.
The message: Just because you pay a guy $40 million...
Cubs: Jake Arrieta won’t let contract talks be a distraction.
By J.J. Stankevitz
The Cubs and Jake Arrieta are nearing a deadline of sorts on contract extension negotiations, with the reigning National League Cy Young winner saying Tuesday he and the club don’t want to discuss anything during the regular season.
The Cubs have two more seasons of control of the 30-year-old right-hander. 2017 is Arrieta’s final year of arbitration, when he can expect a pay raise off the one-year, $10.7 million deal he signed to avoid arbitration in February. Arrieta, who’s represented by agent Scott Boras, said for now he’s more concerned with avoiding a clubhouse distraction than focusing on what likely will be a super-rich megadeal.
The Cubs have two more seasons of control of the 30-year-old right-hander. 2017 is Arrieta’s final year of arbitration, when he can expect a pay raise off the one-year, $10.7 million deal he signed to avoid arbitration in February. Arrieta, who’s represented by agent Scott Boras, said for now he’s more concerned with avoiding a clubhouse distraction than focusing on what likely will be a super-rich megadeal.
“The 24 guys in here are more important than my contract, and that’s kind of the mindset, really,” Arrieta said. “Financially, my family and I will be fine regardless of signing a long-term deal. The money’s not on my mind at all. If it comes up, if Jed (Hoyer) and Theo (Epstein) and the front office want to talk, I’m here, we can sit down again and try and work something out.
“It’s got to be something worth signing. I think Theo knows that. I think that’s why we haven’t had a ton of conversations about it because they kind of know the ballpark where it needs to be. Whether it happens or not, we’ll see. I think both sides don’t want to deal with much of this during the season.”
Arrieta, without a long-term contract, will hit free agency after his age-31 season in the winter of 2017. If he continues to pitch as well as he has since joining the Cubs in 2013 — a 2.26 ERA in 67 starts — perhaps the benchmark for his next deal will be what 32-year-old Zack Greinke received from the Arizona Diamondbacks this offseason (six years, $206.5 million).
Even if that deal doesn't wind up being the comparison, Arrieta on his current trajectory is due for a massive payday. But he has a clear-eyed view of a baseball landscape that drops truckloads of money at the feet of successful starting pitchers.
“There’s a small window that you have as a professional athlete, and obviously you want to try to capitalize on that,” Arrieta said. “But again, where I am in my career financially, whether I signed an extension or not, we’re still going to be able to live a good life. Money can only make you so happy. We’re extremely happy where we’re at. I love my teammates, I love Chicago. Those are more important than the contract extension for me.”
Arrieta said he’ll be directly involved in any concrete contract talks with the Cubs, and vaguely said there have been discussions between the two camps, though didn’t specify when those took place.
But with Arrieta’s focus shifting toward repeating last season’s success — he'll make his Cactus League debut Wednesday against the Cleveland Indians — he’d prefer to table any of those talks until after the season.
“I would prefer to not have a lot open dialogue about it during the season because I think it adds distractions to some teammates or the city of Chicago in general,” Arrieta said. “Once April’s here, we just need to worry about winning games. The financial stuff, I just feel like it takes away from what we’re trying to do as a team, and I don’t necessarily like that.”
Cubs’ Miguel Montero aims to combat slumps before they happen.
By J.J. Stankevitz
Just about every major league player is susceptible to falling into a stretch where nothing seems to be working at the plate. Those series, weeks or months are familiar part of a 162-game season.
Cubs catcher Miguel Montero doesn’t expect to develop an immunity to slumps — his 10 seasons in the majors leagues have taught him that won't happen. But what he does hope is the work he’s putting in at the Cubs’ sprawling spring training complex will help shorten and lessen those inevitable lulls during the regular season.
Montero is focusing his offensive efforts on letting pitches get deeper into the zone and cutting down on excess movement in his batting stance and swing to help set a foundation for the upcoming season. Last year, from June 14 through July 11 — when he suffered a thumb injury that sidelined him for about a month — Montero hit .186 with a .493 OPS and one home run; he also struck out in just over one in every three plate appearances in that stretch.
“I’m trying to catch the ball a little farther back to give myself a chance,” Montero said. “I don’t want to cheat, I don’t want to hit the ball out in front, because if I do that, I’m not doing anything. I just want to track the ball as much as possible.
“… In the season, that’s what you get your timing from, seeing the ball, tracking the ball. That’s been my goal.”
It’s one thing to identify why a slump is happening, Montero said, and another to fix it. That’s where having that base for a plate approach is important.
“You can notice right away, but it’s hard to get rid of it because you want to see results immediately,” Montero said. “When you want to see results immediately, you try a little harder. That’s why you have to be smart about it, try less and simplify things.”
Part of Montero’s difficulty last year, perhaps, was that Montero wasn’t playing as regularly as he did during his time with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He played 23 fewer games in 2015 than he did in 2014, and with Kyle Schwarber and David Ross earning starts, only played 825 innings — his lowest total since 2010.
Cubs manager Joe Maddon only gave Montero 56 plate appearances against left-handers, less than half the total he had in 2014. He did well in those limited chances (.786 OPS, three home runs) but another upshot of his simpler approach could be convincing Maddon to play him against a larger swath of left-handers.
“I want all of our players to want to play 162 games,” Maddon said. “At the end of the day as a catcher, it's difficult to do that. A big part of my job is to make sure that he is healthy and playing well in August and September.
"I want him to want to play every game, every night, against whomever's pitching. It's not gonna happen, but I want him to think that way."
Montero’s approach has already paid off this spring, albeit in an extremely small number of at-bats. He’s six-for-eight with three doubles and a home run, with five of those hits coming to the opposite field.
The slumps will come, but Montero’s goal is to have that ability to go back to what he did in February and March to help shorten and lessen whatever downturns occur from April through October.
“You’re not going to feel great every day, you’re not going to feel great the whole year — unless you’re Miguel Cabrera or Paul Goldschmidt,” Montero said, referring to the Detroit Tigers and Arizona Diamondbacks’ All-Star sluggers. “But other than that, you’re going to struggle a little bit. But at least you got the base. You know what you need to do to try to get back as soon as possible. Don’t let that carry over so long. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s not.”
Cubs hoping Jason Hammel can find his groove in 2016.
By J.J. Stankevitz
Jason Hammel on Monday made his first start since his disastrous second half last year, debuting a minor windup tweak he and the Cubs hope will help him remain consistently effective throughout the 2016 season.
The 33-year-old right-hander, who’s in the final year of a two-year, $20 million deal, incorporated a shoulder and hip turn into his motion this offseason with the goal of fostering more consistency with his fastball, which was at the root of his second half struggles last summer. As the Cubs stormed their way into the playoffs with 97 wins, Hammel posted a 5.10 ERA in 14 starts, and then was torched in two postseason starts (4.1 IP, 7 ER).
Hammel threw his fastball for a strike 70 percent of the time before 2015’s All-Star break — which also coincided with him suffering a left hamstring injury — but saw that percentage drop five points in the second half. While that drop may seem minor, Hammel had a 2.86 ERA in 17 starts before that injury hit in a July 8 start against the St. Louis Cardinals.
“That’s where it all starts and is what I talked about my whole career,” Hammel said. “… Fastball command is one thing, fastballs down in the zone is another. I think I did a lot better with that today, so far, so good.”
Hammel fired two innings against the Kansas City Royals on Monday — a game the Cubs lost, 3-2 — allowing one hit and one walk with a strikeout. He estimated he successfully timed his delivery about 50 to 60 percent of the time, and was better from the windup than the stretch. It’s still early in spring training, though, and Hammel said the motion is natural to him.
“When I do click it, it feels much better, and the delivery is effortless,” Hammel said.
Cubs manager Joe Maddon said he “(loves) the delivery” and noted how different it is from the one Hammel used during the pair’s first stint together with the Tampa Bay Rays from 2006-2008.
“If he's able to nail down early on where that fastball is going, he will take off,” Maddon said. “He will take off quickly and then the thing would be to maintain that delivery all season and get into the latter part of the year and still be highly successful."
The Cubs went 50-25 after the All-Star break last year despite Hammel’s issues, and clinched the National League Division Series against the Cardinals with Hammel starting Game 4. But, as was the case for most of the second half, Maddon exercised extreme caution with Hammel, yanking him after three shaky innings.
Madden hopes Hammel will use spring training to set a foundation with his delivery that’ll allow the second-year Cubs skipper to trust him throughout the season and then, if everything goes according to plan, in the playoffs. Hammel’s start Monday was another step toward sustaining the kind of level of success he's proven he can reach in the past.
"He came to terms with what happened at the end of last season,” Maddon said. “I think he's been accountable to that moment. He knows he has to get better. I like that. Right now, when I talk to him, he's in a pretty calm, good spot right now. And I think he's eager to see himself play because he knows the adjustments he's made are good and he feels good about them.
“I'm not even worried about (spring training results). I want to see repetition of this delivery. A major league pitcher should be able to throw a strike with his fastball when he wants to. If he gets in those moments and he is throwing his fastball where he wants to, even if he gets hit a little bit, I don't care. Seeing that part of it, that component of it is really important."
Avisail Garcia's big day highlights White Sox win over Brewers.
By Dan Hayes
This is the kind of day the White Sox hoped for this spring, one with an Avisail Garcia homer that John Danks said is the farthest he’s ever seen hit here.
The White Sox outfielder got positive reinforcement in the form of loud contact on Tuesday as he continues to experiment with a new approach in exhibition games. Garcia blasted a massive two-run home run to left field and also tripled in two more runs. He also singled as part of a 16-hit attack as the White Sox topped the Milwaukee Brewers 10-6. Jimmy Rollins also homered as the White Sox improved to 4-1-1.
“Mechanically, he’s working on some things and sometimes it’ll look a little funky,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “I think with the way he’s swinging it today, putting the bat on the ball hard to right field and with the homer, some time that stuff clicks in with the more at-bats you have. Good approach from him today.”
Garcia has worked on the new mechanics for a little more than six weeks. In January, he and hitting coach Todd Steverson worked out for three days in Miami to establish a new approach. By standing more upright, the White Sox hope Garcia sees pitches better than he has in the past. They’ve seen some evidence of that in the first. They also had him lower his hands to chest level for a more direct line to the ball.
That resulted in a moonshot Tuesday off Chase Anderson that cleared the berm in left field and may have bounced up against the Los Angeles Dodgers’ clubhouse.
The White Sox are not so naïve to think the alterations will kick in overnight. They know it’s a process and it can be a lengthy one. But they figure it’s better for Garcia to experiment now as all statistics are reset in early April.
And the hope is these changes help Garcia tap into a tremendous wealth of potential power by getting the ball in the air more often.
“Difference to me is the finish,” said one American League scout. “Definitely more intent to lift the ball.”
Garcia has six hits and a walk in his first 13 plate appearances this spring. He likes how he has begun, but knows the switch is a work in progress.
“I’m working really hard in the mornings on my routine,” Garcia said. “Trying to take good pitches and learn about the situations in the game.
“I’ve put my hands closer to the strike zone because last year it was up top. Now I moved it a little bit down so it’ll be closer to the strike zone. When I was up, it was too far away.”
The amount of times the 2015 White Sox offense looked as potent as it has this week were few and far between. Rollins and Garcia became the 11th and 12th players to homer this spring with nobody hitting more than one. Rollins and Adam Eaton each finished with three hits while Melky Cabrera and Carlos Sanchez had two apiece.
Garcia said the team has a sense of urgency to start strong this season.
“We’re on our way,” Garcia said. “We have to do it right now. We have to start now and for me it’s important to win right now. Once you start winning, you have the feeling, you can trust the other guys. We have to work and have fun. We have to be ready for the season.”
John Danks works on 'laundry list' in White Sox victory.
By Dan Hayes
John Danks has begun to chip away at the items he and pitching coach Don Cooper want to accomplish this spring.
The White Sox pitcher said he felt good Tuesday after he allowed two earned runs and three hits in 3 1/3 innings. Danks also struck out four and walked two as the White Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers 10-6 at Camelback Ranch as Avisail Garcia and Jimmy Rollins homered.
“Coop had a laundry list for me,” Danks said. “No, it’s really a lot of the same stuff, trying to simplify things and put myself in position to be able to throw four pitches where I want to.
“I feel good about where we are at.”
Danks got off to a good start in his second Cactus League outing as he struck out the side.
The left-hander -- who went 7-15 with a 4.71 ERA in 30 starts last season -- said he also felt good when he allowed two runs in two innings the last time out against the Los Angeles Dodgers last Thursday.
Danks and Cooper both said they don’t concern themselves with spring training numbers. They’re more consumed with knocking items off that laundry list.
“We’ve worked on some mechanical things and I feel real good about that after getting out there in a game for the first time,” Danks said. “I’m happy with where I’m at right now. There’s plenty of work to be done. Definitely today was a step in the right direction.”
The White Sox outfielder got positive reinforcement in the form of loud contact on Tuesday as he continues to experiment with a new approach in exhibition games. Garcia blasted a massive two-run home run to left field and also tripled in two more runs. He also singled as part of a 16-hit attack as the White Sox topped the Milwaukee Brewers 10-6. Jimmy Rollins also homered as the White Sox improved to 4-1-1.
“Mechanically, he’s working on some things and sometimes it’ll look a little funky,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “I think with the way he’s swinging it today, putting the bat on the ball hard to right field and with the homer, some time that stuff clicks in with the more at-bats you have. Good approach from him today.”
Garcia has worked on the new mechanics for a little more than six weeks. In January, he and hitting coach Todd Steverson worked out for three days in Miami to establish a new approach. By standing more upright, the White Sox hope Garcia sees pitches better than he has in the past. They’ve seen some evidence of that in the first. They also had him lower his hands to chest level for a more direct line to the ball.
That resulted in a moonshot Tuesday off Chase Anderson that cleared the berm in left field and may have bounced up against the Los Angeles Dodgers’ clubhouse.
The White Sox are not so naïve to think the alterations will kick in overnight. They know it’s a process and it can be a lengthy one. But they figure it’s better for Garcia to experiment now as all statistics are reset in early April.
And the hope is these changes help Garcia tap into a tremendous wealth of potential power by getting the ball in the air more often.
“Difference to me is the finish,” said one American League scout. “Definitely more intent to lift the ball.”
Garcia has six hits and a walk in his first 13 plate appearances this spring. He likes how he has begun, but knows the switch is a work in progress.
“I’m working really hard in the mornings on my routine,” Garcia said. “Trying to take good pitches and learn about the situations in the game.
“I’ve put my hands closer to the strike zone because last year it was up top. Now I moved it a little bit down so it’ll be closer to the strike zone. When I was up, it was too far away.”
The amount of times the 2015 White Sox offense looked as potent as it has this week were few and far between. Rollins and Garcia became the 11th and 12th players to homer this spring with nobody hitting more than one. Rollins and Adam Eaton each finished with three hits while Melky Cabrera and Carlos Sanchez had two apiece.
Garcia said the team has a sense of urgency to start strong this season.
“We’re on our way,” Garcia said. “We have to do it right now. We have to start now and for me it’s important to win right now. Once you start winning, you have the feeling, you can trust the other guys. We have to work and have fun. We have to be ready for the season.”
John Danks works on 'laundry list' in White Sox victory.
By Dan Hayes
John Danks has begun to chip away at the items he and pitching coach Don Cooper want to accomplish this spring.
The White Sox pitcher said he felt good Tuesday after he allowed two earned runs and three hits in 3 1/3 innings. Danks also struck out four and walked two as the White Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers 10-6 at Camelback Ranch as Avisail Garcia and Jimmy Rollins homered.
“Coop had a laundry list for me,” Danks said. “No, it’s really a lot of the same stuff, trying to simplify things and put myself in position to be able to throw four pitches where I want to.
“I feel good about where we are at.”
Danks got off to a good start in his second Cactus League outing as he struck out the side.
The left-hander -- who went 7-15 with a 4.71 ERA in 30 starts last season -- said he also felt good when he allowed two runs in two innings the last time out against the Los Angeles Dodgers last Thursday.
Danks and Cooper both said they don’t concern themselves with spring training numbers. They’re more consumed with knocking items off that laundry list.
“We’ve worked on some mechanical things and I feel real good about that after getting out there in a game for the first time,” Danks said. “I’m happy with where I’m at right now. There’s plenty of work to be done. Definitely today was a step in the right direction.”
Golf: I got a club for that..... Power rankings: Valspar Championship.
By Ryan Ballengee
Jordan Spieth makes the first of five title defenses in 2016 this week at the Valspar Championship on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort near Tampa. Spieth won the title with a 28-foot putt in a sudden-death playoff against Patrick Reed and Sean O'Hair.
While the field has a number of top-tier players, many of the highest-ranked players on the PGA Tour are taking the week off after last week at a difficult Blue Monster at Doral.
Here are our top five players for this week:
While the field has a number of top-tier players, many of the highest-ranked players on the PGA Tour are taking the week off after last week at a difficult Blue Monster at Doral.
Here are our top five players for this week:
1. Jordan Spieth -- The defending champion is in a minor slump, but he showed some signs of progress at Doral, which isn't really a course built for his strengths. Never finished outside the top 20 here.
2. Henrik Stenson -- Among the best ballstrikers on the planet, so he should be able to score well on par 5s. He was fourth here in his debut last year.
3. Danny Willett -- Willett is overpriced in daily fantasy this week, primarily because he's on the radar of so few people. He should be on your radar. He's a top-10 player in the world right now.
4. Harris English -- English is playing sneaky well of late, one of only three players in the field with multiple top 15s in the last five weeks. He's also the only player with those creds AND multiple top-15s here in the last five years.
5. Jason Dufner -- We could have put Dufner as high as third this week. He likes this course, with multiple top-15s in the last five years, and he's playing really well.
Why a Strong Start Bodes Well for Adam Scott, Phil Mickelson at the Masters.
By Jake Nichols
Why a Strong Start Bodes Well for Adam Scott, Phil Mickelson at the Masters. (Photo/Wong Maye-E)
With the WGC-Cadillac Championship in the books, the season finally feels like it’s getting serious. Adam Scott won the first meeting of the best golfers in the world, holding off Bubba Watson to win his second event in a row. Only four more events remain on the PGA Tour schedule before the Masters. Now is the time to lay the groundwork for a successful run at a green jacket.
So, how important is playing well in March in identifying the eventual Masters winner? Do guys like Jason Day have to worry about their slow starts to the season and will Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott remain buoyed by their strong opening months?
So, how important is playing well in March in identifying the eventual Masters winner? Do guys like Jason Day have to worry about their slow starts to the season and will Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott remain buoyed by their strong opening months?
Looking back 12 seasons, the data is mixed. The better golfers who have won the Masters typically showed promise in the weeks before their wins. For instance:
Leading up to his 2004 breakthrough major title, Phil Mickelson earned two straight top 10s.
Tiger won at Doral before winning in 2005.
In 2006, Phil won by 13 strokes at the now defunct BellSouth Classic one week before his second Masters victory.
Bubba Watson typically plays a lighter schedule pre-Masters, but he dominated in 2012 with a second-place finish at Doral and a T4 at Bay Hill. He again finished second at Doral before his 2014 win, but also had a bizarre (allegedly allergy-induced) WD at Bay Hill weeks later.
In 2006, Phil won by 13 strokes at the now defunct BellSouth Classic one week before his second Masters victory.
Bubba Watson typically plays a lighter schedule pre-Masters, but he dominated in 2012 with a second-place finish at Doral and a T4 at Bay Hill. He again finished second at Doral before his 2014 win, but also had a bizarre (allegedly allergy-induced) WD at Bay Hill weeks later.
Of course, Jordan Spieth gave everyone a preview of what was to come in Augusta with his 1-2-2 leading up to last year’s record-setting win.
On the other side of the coin, some Masters winners have come out of nowhere – in terms of both recent form and career pedigree. Angel Cabrera missed two cuts leading into his 2009 victory. In 2008, Trevor Immelman played four of five weeks before winning his green jacket, with his best finish a T40 in the no-cut event at Doral.
One would have expected the surprise winners to at least flash a signal going into Augusta, but in these cases it didn’t happen. The lesson: don’t count out someone who enters the Masters with an empty form sheet.On the other side of the coin, some Masters winners have come out of nowhere – in terms of both recent form and career pedigree. Angel Cabrera missed two cuts leading into his 2009 victory. In 2008, Trevor Immelman played four of five weeks before winning his green jacket, with his best finish a T40 in the no-cut event at Doral.
Others, like Phil Mickelson in 2010, Zach Johnson in 2007, and Charl Schwartzel in 2011 did not distinguish themselves from their normal level of play. Adam Scott in 2013 didn’t even play a warm-up event before his win, taking three weeks off as a lead-in. These were good players, but you may not have picked them based on their pre-tournament form.
Confounding things here is that the warm-up events played in the month before the Masters are played at courses that don’t share much in common with Augusta National. Houston the week before is set-up to mimic Augusta’s green speeds and forgiving rough, but otherwise the Florida swing features the wind and water that’s mostly absent from Augusta National. In fact, the only Florida course where results show even a slight correlation to Masters performance is the renovated Blue Monster – a welcome signal for Adam Scott, even if those Doral renovations are only three years old.
I explored the correlation between playing well before the Masters and success in Augusta by comparing each golfer’s scoring average in both the five weeks before the Masters and one year before the Masters to their eventual performance at the event. As we would expect, a full year of play proved more predictive, but results indicated that there was a clear line between players who over-performed in March also over-performing in April. In total, the predictive value of play over the next month was about 20% as strong as the full year of results.
This means that we shouldn’t discount anyone – like Jason Day – who might be struggling going into Augusta. His play in the last year still stacks up with anyone on Tour, even if it takes him three months to kick into gear. More importantly, playing well at this point doesn’t guarantee anything for guys like Bubba and Phil Mickelson, even though it’s a positive indicator for their chances. Remember that Phil also won at the Houston Open in 2011 and entered Augusta coming off a win at the 2010 Masters before finishing outside of the top 10 for only the second time in his last thirteen Masters. One thing is clear however, Phil’s golf game – with a hot March or not – is finally looking strong to capture another green jacket.
Spieth: Tiger 'doesn't get the credit he deserves'.
By NBC Sports
Jordan Spieth’s eight-stroke victory months ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions was his seventh on the PGA Tour and sixth triumph in less than a year, accolades that immediately sparked comparisons to Tiger Woods.
Although Spieth quickly dismissed the comparisons calling them “premature,” Butch Harmon, who was Woods’ swing coach from 1996 to August 2002, sees plenty of similarities.
“It’s not unfair to compare Jordan with Tiger because Jordan is doing exactly what Tiger did at the same age,” Harmon told GolfChannel.com on Sunday.
Harmon explained the key difference between Spieth and Woods was the latter’s length advantage off the tee. Woods ranked third in driving distance his third year on Tour, compared to Spieth last year who was 78th in driving distance.
“Tiger could physically take over a golf course with his driver better than Jordan can,” Harmon said. “Tiger putted great like Jordan does, he is smart mentally like Jordan, he had all the shots like Jordan, he has the same work ethic.”
Despite Spieth’s comparative weaknesses, Harmon said the current world No. 1’s decision not to change his swing in search of more power is a sign of maturity.
“What I really admire about Jordan and his instructor Cameron McCormick is they really haven’t tried to gain more distance,” Harmon said. “Everybody has their own swing that is personal to them and the secret to teaching is you don’t want to take away what someone does naturally and I think Cameron and Jordan have done that beautifully.”
NASCAR: Power Rankings: Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch are 1-2.
By Nick Bromberg
Power Rankings: Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch are 1-2. (Photo/yahoosports.com)
1. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 1): When you finish third a week after getting a win you're not going to get dislodged from the top spot. Johnson's 76 laps led meant he led the most laps of anyone during Sunday's race, though he didn't lead at the end of the race. While Johnson used pit strategy to get out front late at Atlanta, a pit stop when others didn't head to pit road kept Johnson away from the win this time.
2. Kyle Busch (LW: 3): Busch said his car had a vibration in the late laps of Sunday's race. After he checked out from Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano, it was reasonable to think Busch was going to head to a win. After all, he had two fresh tires to Keselowski and Logano's none. But after Keselowski got past Logano, he got past Busch with ease. Busch ended up fading to fourth.
3. Brad Keselowski (LW: NR): Is Brad Keselowski the new "closer?" Many have liked to bestow the nickname on Kevin Harvick, but it may be more appropriate for the driver of the No. 2. During his last three wins he's led a combined total of 37 laps. He led 24 on Sunday, including the last six, one at California in 2015 and 12 at Talladega (including a last lap pass) in 2014.
4. Kevin Harvick (LW: 4): Harvick's pit crew didn't have the best of days. He lost time on pit road during the final pit stops of the race. He and the car were good enough to make those spots up, but the positions he was gaining on the track were simply making up lost ground rather than making any gains. He's seven points off the points lead.
5. Denny Hamlin (LW: 2): Hamlin's only here because of his Daytona 500 win. As the sample size continues to grow, Hamlin's going to keep dropping assuming his performance doesn't tick back up. DH finished 19th on Sunday, his second-straight finish outside the top 15. But it's not even close to time to fret about Hamlin. Given that he's essentially locked in to the Chase, the No. 11 team just has to be in fighting shape when September rolls around.
6. Joey Logano (LW: 9): Logano helped give Team Penske its first 1-2 finish since the Bristol night race in 2014. Not too shabby. Logano is also now five points behind Kevin Harvick in the points standings, which makes it feel an awful lot like we've picked up where we left off in 2015.
7. Kurt Busch (LW: 7): Busch's race looked like it was toast after he was involved in the four-car two-incident crash that started when Matt Kenseth's car snapped loose on him. But Busch's car wasn't too damaged -- at least not as much as Carl Edwards' was -- and he battled back to finish ninth. Busch currently has 102 points, so he'll officially have a 102-point head start on his 2015 point totals.
8. Austin Dillon (LW: NR): Dillon was mad at us for neglecting him in last week's power rankings and went out and finished fifth. That fifth-place finish might have also been possible because of his mid-race speeding penalty. Because of the penalty, Dillon and team stayed out with approximately 50 laps to go. Had the No. 3 not been looking for track position, it's possible the team pits. And thus finishes about 10th or so.
9. Martin Truex Jr. (LW: 6): Another solid run for Truex, who finished 11th. We're getting to the point where it's going to be uncommon to see the No. 78 outside the top 15. That's the mark of a very good team. And there's now been enough of a sample size to start reliably calling Furniture Row a good team.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 8): Junior finished eighth on Sunday for two-straight top-10 finishes after he crashed out of the Daytona 500. Not that Junior wasn't expected to do well at Atlanta and Las Vegas, but you probably could have gotten pretty good odds on a bet of "Junior will finish worse than 35th at Daytona and follow it with two top 10s."
11. Carl Edwards (LW: 5): Edwards is now seventh in the points standings after he finished 18th at Las Vegas. Had he not gotten caught in that accident with Busch, it's reasonable to think he finishes somewhere in the top 10. And is in the top five in the standings.
12. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (LW: NR): Did you know Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was in the top 12 in points? Unsurprisingly (to us, anyway), Stenhouse looks to be the biggest gainer from the lower downforce package in the Sprint Cup Series. After finishing 22nd at Daytona, he's finished 10th and 12th at the 1.5-mile tracks. Can he keep it up? Well, finishing in the 10th-15th range every week has proven to be a reliable Chase-making strategy.
Lucky Dog: Kasey Kahne's 10th-place finish was his first since he was ninth at Martinsville last fall.
The DNF: Chase Elliott has two DNFs in three races.
Dropped out: Matt Kenseth, Elliott, Aric Almirola
AP Source: Organizers to announce US Grand Prix will race.
By JIM VERTUNO
Organizers of the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix are set to announce the race will run in 2016 after months of speculation that financial troubles could force it off the calendar, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
The Circuit of the Americas, which hosts the race near Austin, scheduled a Wednesday news conference. Track representatives have told local officials it will include announcing the U.S. Grand Prix will race, according to a government employee with direct of knowledge of the conversation.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly ahead of the official announcement.
The U.S. Grand Prix had been scheduled for Oct. 23 on Formula One's calendar with an asterisk ''subject to confirmation'' of an agreement between F1 and race promoters. The first race of the Formula One season is the Australian Grand Prix on March 20.
Financial terms between the track and F1 were not immediately known. Messages were left seeking comment from Track President Bobby Epstein.
In previous years, track officials said they were promised $25 million per year for 10 years from the state's portion of the Major Events Trust Fund, public money spent largely to pay Formula One's commercial management for the right to hold the race.
But control of the fund was transferred to Gov. Greg Abbott's office last year, and the future of the race was thrown into doubt when the state slashed nearly $6 million from going to the race. Race officials also said low attendance because of bad weather had been financially devastating.
Despite those setbacks, Circuit of the Americas officials had said they were hopeful the race could still run in 2016 and Formula One's commercial boss, Bernie Ecclestone, had predicted the race would continue.
The track also got a financial boost in February when it reached a settlement with local officials to drastically reduce its property tax appraisals, saving more than $10 million by some estimates.
Losing the race would have been a blow to Formula One's efforts to expand in the American market. Formula One didn't race in the U.S. from 2008-2011 and its return to a specialized facility was seen as a major move to gain a long-term foothold in a country where NASCAR is the most popular motor series by far. And the 2016 season will include Haas F1, the first American-led team on the grid in 30 years.
The race has enjoyed a prominent late-season place on the Formula One calendar, which has made it an important stop in the season championship.
The races in 2012, 2014 and 2015 all played key roles in the title chase. Lewis Hamilton's victory last year wrapped up his third Formula One season championship.
SOCCER; Chicago Fire: Paunovic defends Matt Lampson after rocky opener.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
One of the major storylines from Sunday's Fire opener was goalkeeper Matt Lampson.
That may have been the case regardless of how the game turned out because he was starting instead of the longest tenured Fire player and national teamer Sean Johnson. After a 4-3 loss, though, Lampson's performance was amplified.
That may have been the case regardless of how the game turned out because he was starting instead of the longest tenured Fire player and national teamer Sean Johnson. After a 4-3 loss, though, Lampson's performance was amplified.
With a couple days to rewatch the season-opening defeat, Chicago Fire coach Veljko Paunovic was able to give a clearer view on what worked and what went wrong. Paunovic spoke to media during his weekly conference on Tuesday and had more to say about the defensive lapses and Lampson's performance.
As he did in the postgame press conference, Paunovic defended Lampson because he executed the game plan, which was to play out of the back. Paunovic admitted some blame for an ill-fated strategy while playing into the wind and also said his teammates put Lampson in tough spots.
“I watched the game several times because I wanted to be sure of everything," Paunovic said. "Regarding Matt I think the team didn’t help him. He could do better. Everyone could do better than we performed in building out of the back, but he tried and tried and tried to develop and to play our plan.
"When that wasn’t possible he tried to play those long balls to our fullbacks, which didn’t work. He tried to do that so this is what we have to understand. He was trying to do that, and that is obviously my responsibility. He tried to do the plan that we wanted to play against New York. At some point we also have to understand that sometimes anyone else on the field, sometimes it was a midfielder, sometimes it was a center back, sometimes fullback, they played the ball back to him when it wasn’t necessary, when we didn’t need that. Having the weather conditions like we had, the wind against us, it wasn’t the best decision."
Those words in defense of Lampson might hint that he is still in line to start Friday at Orlando, but Paunovic said the staff is still deciding on who will get the start. He also quashed any notion that Sean Johnson was hurt by joining the team later in the preseason following a stint with the national team.
“Playing for the national team is always important and we are happy that our players are called for the national team and we will always support that," Paunovic said. "I think for sure it was beneficial for him and beneficial for the national team and for us, too. I wouldn’t relate the current situation with Sean with being with the national team the first part of the preseason."
As for other lineup question marks heading into Friday, Gilberto's availability is unknown. The forward picked up a calf strain in the second minute of the loss to New York City FC and was subbed out at halftime.
Meanwhile, John Goossens has his visa and is flying back from the Netherlands on Tuesday. Goossens wasn't available for the opener.
“He had a very short period to fly a long flight and changing time zones so we will see how he feels," Paunovic said. "We will try to prepare him to be available for the game. We will decide obviously on Friday if he is ready or not.”
It's worth noting the story that Fire general manager Nelson Rodriguez previously told about Goossens' arrival for his trial. The team offered Goossens some time to settle in before playing, but he wanted to play right away and did. If that's anything to go by, Goossens is probably more likely to play Friday than Paunovic led on.
The only other injury in the team remains Eric Gehrig. Gehrig, who is still recovering from surgery late last season, is still expected to be unavailable for a week or two, according to Paunovic, but has been a full participant in practice.
Premier League Playback: Analyzing the title race with nine games to go.
By Joe Prince-Wright
LEICESTER SURGE AHEAD IN TITLE RACE
With nine games of the Premier League season to go, Leicester has opened up a five-point lead on the chasing pack.
The Foxes are threatening to run away with this.
Claudio Ranieri’s side typically ground out a 1-0 win at Watford on Saturday after Tottenham and Arsenal had drawn 2-2 earlier on and Manchester City (who aren’t out of this) thumped Aston Villa.
Analyzing the four title contenders, Leicester has the easiest remaining schedule, followed by Tottenham, with both Arsenal and Man City facing some tricky tests to end the season. You’d think the latter two have more experienced players to deal with the run-in than Leicester and Tottenham. Big mistake. When it comes to this season, don’t think or assume. Just guess. Logic went out the window a long time ago.
It’s been that kind of year. Just when you think one team will run away with it and begin to mount a serious title challenge, things change.
I was at White Hart Lane on Saturday to see Tottenham and Arsenal play out a pulsating, breathless draw in the North London Derby. It was ferocious, had unexpected drama, turning points and was hugely unpredictable as the game unfolded.
The seven-minute spell from when Francis Coquelin was sent off in the 55th minute with Arsenal leading 1-0, to Harry Kane curling in a sublime goal to put Spurs 2-1 up in 62nd minute was among the most passionate and intense I’ve ever witnessed. Spurs smelt blood. Their fans were foaming at the mouth with Arsenal 1-0 up against the run of play but down to 10-men and then Toby Alderweireld equalized before Kane’s curler. Then, just when Spurs continued to pour forward as they looked to be going level on points with Leicester and heading above them on goal difference, Arsenal equalized through Alexis Sanchez.
In a game, Saturday’s NLD summed up this season so far. Especially when it comes to the title race. Does anybody else remember when Manchester City were basically handed the title in September after winning their opening five games of the season to lead the way?
Before the last week, Tottenham had been on a six-game wining streak but lost at West Ham and then let a massive opportunity slip on Saturday against their bitter rivals.
Premier League Schedule – Week 29
Result Recap & Highlights
| Chelsea 1-1 Stoke | Recap, watch here |
| C. Palace 1-2 Liverpool | Recap, watch here |
| Everton 2-3 West Ham | Recap, watch here |
| Man City 4-0 A. Villa | Recap, watch here |
| N’castle 1-3 B’mouth | Recap, watch here |
| Saints 1-1 S’land | Recap, watch here |
| Swansea 1-0 Norwich | Recap, watch here |
| Tottenham 2-2 Arsenal | Recap, watch here |
| Watford 0-1 Leicester | Recap, watch here |
| WBA 1-0 Man United | Recap, watch here |
Speaking to the media after the game, Mauricio Pochetino failed to blame his young players for not managing the game better and seeing out the 2-1 win against 10-men rather than go for the jugular like they did. He did, however, admit it was a huge opportunity missed to not only end Arsenal’s faint title hopes but also boost their own.
“It is true, we missed a big opportunity,” Pochettino said. “It was a good game and I think we deserved more. It was a good game to improve. Our team is young, this type of game when you play at the top of the table in the position that we are. It is important to feel that and improve. We are young and I’m very pleased with the players and how we managed the game. I think 11-v-11 we deserved more and were unlucky how we conceded the goal.”Below is a look at the run-in for each PL title contender, with Man City having a game in hand over their rivals and if they win that, they go above Arsenal in the race for the title and will be seven points behind Leicester as things stand. Arsene Wenger has insisted that “the title race is not over” and his side “will not give up until the end” as the Gunners slipped up to Swansea City last week but did bounce back admirably at Spurs in the midst of severe adversity. Can they really rally and seal their first title in 10 years?
As Ranieri said last week, “little Leicester City” will fight for the title. From what you can see below, they have to be the clear favorites… right? Of course, Spurs, Arsenal and Man City all have European commitments in the coming weeks too, so bear that in mind. And even though we’ve left West Ham out, they’re only one point behind Man City in the table.
Leicester City, fixtures remaining
Mar. 14 vs. Newcastle
Mar. 19 at Crystal Palace
Apr. 3 vs. Southampton
Apr. 10 at Sunderland
Apr. 17 vs. West Ham
Apr. 24 vs. Swansea City
May 1 at Man United
May 7 at Everton
May 15 at Chelsea
Tottenham, fixtures remaining
Mar. 13 at Aston Villa
Mar. 20 vs. Bournemouth
Apr. 2 at Liverpool
Apr. 10 vs. Man United
Apr. 18 at Stoke City
Apr. 25 vs. West Brom
May 2 at Chelsea
May 7 vs. Southampton
May 15 at Newcastle
Arsenal, fixtures remaining
Mar. 12 vs. West Brom
Mar. 19 at Everton
Apr. 2 vs. Watford
Apr. 9 at West Ham
Apr. 17 vs. Crystal Palace
Apr. 24 at Sunderland
Apr. 30 vs. Norwich City
May 7 at Man City
May 15 vs. Aston Villa
Manchester City, fixtures remaining
Mar. 12 at Norwich City
Mar. 20 vs. Man United
Apr. 2 at Bournemouth
Apr. 9 vs. West Brom
Apr. 16 at Chelsea
Apr. 24 vs. Stoke City
May 1 at Southampton
May 7 vs. Arsenal
May 15 at Swansea City
TBD at Newcastle United
END FOR MCCLAREN AT NEWCASTLE?
In truth, this always seemed like a strange hire.
Steve McClaren was fired by Championship side Derby County last season after failing to gain promotion to the Premier League despite spending plenty in two-straight seasons. McClaren, 54, has spent $115 million during his first two transfer windows at Newcastle and they sit second from bottom in the PL with 10 games of the season to go. Nightmare scenario for a man so many people say is a great coach but aren’t sure if he’s a manager.
Despite having a game in hand against their relegation rivals, these are desperate times at St James’ Park. Following the 3-1 defeat to AFC Bournemouth at home last weekend, McClaren seems to be hanging onto his job by a thread. He looked distressed, resembling a rabbit caught in the headlights when trying to explain yet another defeat to the TV cameras.
The fact that his players released a statement before the crucial relegation six-pointer supporting their manager said it all, and talks behind-the-scenes about McClaren’s future are reportedly continuing.
“Newcastle United players would like to make clear that reports in some areas of the media suggesting we are surprised that our head coach has not been dismissed are untrue. As a group, we aware of the situation we are in and it is our responsibility to change that. The coach and his staff prepare us well for each game, but once on the pitch it is not they who can stop the goals we concede or the chances we don’t take, that responsibility is ours the players.
“On the occasions we have given poor performances this season, the coach has in the privacy of the dressing room rightly demonstrated his disappointment in us. In his press conferences though, we have seen that he defends his group, continues to show faith in us and shares the responsibility with us. For this, he has the full respect of the players. The players are also aware from articles in yesterday’s newspapers that a person or persons connected with the club are giving information to the press of a negative nature.
“As players, we are very disappointed by this. It’s a betrayal of trust for the coach, us and the club. As a group we know we have it within us to keep this club in the Premier League. We now must fight every game at a time to earn our place in the Premier League for next season.”
Those words are nice enough, but they should concentrate on making McClaren proud on the pitch and let their boots do the talking.
The sheer underachievement of international caliber players at Newcastle is appalling. They hung on by the skin of their teeth last season and fought off relegation on the final day. But was has happened to Moussa Sissoko, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Fabricio Coloccini? Despite a clear out, of sorts, over the summer and McClaren arriving as manager — plus bizarrely also being appointed to the board of directors — the same nightmare scenario is playing out for the Magpies faithful.
Newcastle is among the best supported teams in the PL. They pack out St James’ every week and have the fourth-biggest crowds in the PL. Simply put, the fans who travel up and down the land deserve better.
McClaren knows it. He looks to have aged 15 years this season already and the pressure of delivering in one of English soccer’s most hostile environments is intense. Alan Pardew left as soon as he had the chance. Local man John Carver struggled on an interim basis to keep the ship afloat and was replaced by McClaren, and if you look at the long list of managers Newcastle has had before Pardew it’s clear to see that this sleeping giant is not only difficult to wake from its monumental slumber but its incredibly tricky to even keep them alive and kicking in the top-flight.
The fact of the matter is that even if McClaren is fired — David Moyes, Rafael Benitez and Brendan Rodgers are being mentioned as potential replacements — the owner has to take plenty of criticism. Mike Ashley’s long-term policy of selling Newcastle’s best players and trying to bring others in on the cheap has put them in this situation and the discord between him and the fans has made that worse. Sure, he spent big over the last 8-10 months but apart from Georginio Wijnaldum and Jonjo Shelvey, have any of the new additions been a success? Chief scout Graham Carr has way too much power and should take his share of the blame alongside McClaren and Ashley.
The situation at Newcastle is septic and they have 10 games to save themselves. For a club of their size to crash out of the PL this season, of all seasons, would be hugely damaging financially as the new TV deal kicks in next season. And, of course, McClaren or whoever the Newcastle manager is on March 20, will face bitter North East rivals Sunderland at St James’ Park. Only one of Norwich City, Newcastle and Sunderland will survive as Aston Villa seem doomed and an eight-point gap has opened up over 16th-placed Swansea.
With just a point separating the two North East clubs, that game is pivotal in the battle against relegation. Both shouldn’t be where they are and have been mismanaged poorly in recent years. But it’s time for the excuses, the statements and the bickering to stop. If McClaren is to keep his job, he simply must win the Tyne-Wear derby coming up in two weeks time. If he doesn’t it’s surely curtains for not only his future at Newcastle, but also the Magpies as a PL club.
WHAT I’M HEARING: PRESSURE ON MARTINEZ AT EVERTON
It’s something I’ve been hearing whispers about for a while now and the groans of discontent are now growing among fans about Roberto Martinez at Everton. Big time.
A source recently told ProSoccerTalk that senior players among the Everton dressing room have lost faith in Martinez’s tactics and deem the Spaniard as naïve, while another source claims he is not the flavor of the month with the top young talents at the club either. All of that, coupled with recent poor results on the pitch and the promise of significant investment from British-Iranian businessman Farhad Moshiri — who became the new majority shareholder at Everton last week which could see him pump millions into the club — make Martinez’s future an increasingly uncertain one. Locals at Goodison claim that current fan unrest towards a manager is the highest its been in decades.
True, Everton is fun to watch and has a raft of talented players like John Stones, Ross Barkley, Romelu Lukaku, Seamus Coleman and Kevin Mirallas, but with a deep Europa League run hurting their PL form and leading to an 11th place finish last season, the Toffees currently stagnant in midtable this term. Will Martinez be let go this summer ahead of what will be his fourth season in charge at Goodison?
This season players such as Leighton Baines, Tim Howard and Gerard Deulofeu have been used sparingly since January, while Steven Naismith left after appearing to be frozen out.
After a sensational start to life on Merseyside which saw the former Swansea and Wigan coach lead the Toffees to a fifth-place finish, Martinez seems to be walking a tightrope. If Everton lose their FA Cup quarterfinal clash at home against Chelsea this weekend then expect the fan unrest, and pressure on Martinez, to grow.
NCAABKB: NCAA Top 25 Basketball Poll, March 07, 2016.
AP
RANK
|
SCHOOL
|
POINTS
|
RECORD
|
PREVIOUS
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas (63) | 1623 | 27-4 | 1 |
| 2 | Michigan State (2) | 1520 | 26-5 | 2 |
| 3 | Villanova | 1480 | 27-4 | 3 |
| 4 | Virginia | 1424 | 24-6 | 4 |
| 5 | Xavier | 1351 | 26-4 | 5 |
| 6 | Oklahoma | 1309 | 24-6 | 6 |
| 7 | North Carolina | 1252 | 25-6 | 8 |
| 8 | Oregon | 1127 | 25-6 | 9 |
| 9 | West Virginia | 1113 | 24-7 | 10 |
| 10 | Indiana | 1038 | 25-6 | 12 |
| 11 | Miami (Fla.) | 935 | 24-6 | 7 |
| 12 | Utah | 898 | 24-7 | 13 |
| 13 | Purdue | 798 | 24-7 | 15 |
| 14 | Louisville | 647 | 23-8 | 11 |
| 15 | Arizona | 626 | 24-7 | 18 |
| 16 | Kentucky | 608 | 23-8 | 22 |
| 17 | Texas A&M | 574 | 24-7 | 20 |
| 18 | Maryland | 544 | 24-7 | 14 |
| 19 | Duke | 512 | 22-9 | 17 |
| 20 | Iowa | 407 | 21-9 | 16 |
| 21 | Iowa State | 374 | 21-10 | 21 |
| 22 | Baylor | 262 | 21-10 | 19 |
| 23 | Texas | 191 | 20-11 | 23 |
| 24 | California | 189 | 22-9 | 25 |
| 25 | SMU | 88 | 25-5 | 24 |
Other receiving votes: Wisconsin 62, Dayton 35, St. Mary's 35, Seton Hall 27, Stephen F. Austin 9, Providence 8, Butler 8, Yale 7, Valpariaso 8, Cincinnati 6, St. Bonaventure 6, Gonzaga 5, Akron 4, Temple 4, Notre Dame 3, San Diego State 3, UAB 2, South Dakota St. 1, Texas Tech 1, South Carolina 1, Northern Iowa 1, Wichita St. 1
Ranking the contenders to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
By Jeff Eisenberg
The race for a No. 1 seed has seldom been more wide-open than it is this year.
Kansas likely has the NCAA tournament's No. 1 overall seed secured entering the start of the Big 12 tournament, but as many as nine other teams are still in contention for the other three spots on the top line less than less than a week before Selection Sunday.
Kansas likely has the NCAA tournament's No. 1 overall seed secured entering the start of the Big 12 tournament, but as many as nine other teams are still in contention for the other three spots on the top line less than less than a week before Selection Sunday.
Virginia has the most quality wins of anyone besides the Jayhawks, but the Cavaliers have lost to four teams outside the RPI top 50. Xavier and Villanova both have gaudy records, but their best wins are against one-another. Michigan State, North Carolina, Oregon and Oklahoma are among the handful of other teams also in the mix.
1. KANSAS (26-4, 15-3, RPI 1, KenPom 2)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 18-3
Vs. RPI Top 50: 14-3
Vs. RPI Top 25: 9-3
Sub 100 losses: 1 (at Oklahoma State)
Best wins: Oklahoma (2), Texas (2), Kentucky, West Virginia, Iowa State
Losses: Michigan State, at West Virginia, at Iowa State, at Oklahoma State
Are they a No. 1 seed? Not only is Kansas a No. 1 seed, Jayhawks are also a virtual lock to be the NCAA tournament's No. 1 overall seed. They won the nation's toughest conference by two games, they have the most RPI top 25 victories in the country and they've only suffered one loss to a team outside the top 20. Even if Kansas were to somehow lose early in the Big 12 tournament, it would be difficult for anyone else to eclipse the Jayhawks' resume. Oklahoma and Virginia are the only teams who could match Kansas in RPI top 25 wins in that scenario by winning their respective conference tournaments, but the Cavaliers still would have four losses outside the RPI top 50 and the Sooners still would be 0-2 against the Jayhawks head-to-head.
2. VIRGINIA (24-6, 13-5, RPI 2, KenPom 1)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 14-6
Vs. RPI Top 50: 9-2
Vs. RPI Top 25: 7-2
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: Villanova, North Carolina, West Virginia, Cal, Miami, Louisville (2)
Losses: at Duke, at Miami, at George Washington, at Virginia Tech, at Florida State, at Georgia Tech
Are they a No. 1 seed? Virginia is the only No. 1 seed contender with a set of marquee victories that approaches Kansas' collection. The Cavaliers have defeated seven current AP Top 25 teams including fellow top seed contenders Villanova, North Carolina, West Virginia and Miami. Where Virginia's profile weakens is with some of the losses it has taken. Four of the Cavaliers' six losses have come against teams outside the RPI top 50. Virginia currently has a stronger resume and a head-to-head win over North Carolina, but the Tar Heels won the outright league title. It's tough to imagine two ACC teams getting No. 1 seeds, so this may come down to which team advances farther in this week's conference tournament.
3. VILLANOVA (27-4, 16-2, RPI 3, KenPom 4)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 14-4
Vs. RPI Top 50: 8-4
Vs. RPI Top 25: 1-3
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: Xavier, Seton Hall (2), at Providence, at St. Joseph's, Butler (2)
Losses: Oklahoma, at Xavier, at Virginia, Providence
Are they a No. 1 seed? No team in the country has fewer losses than Villanova, which won a third straight Big East title by two games this season. The Wildcats will likely be a No. 1 seed if they follow that up by winning the Big East tournament, but things could get dicey for them if they fall early or even if they're beaten by Xavier in the title game. One issue for Villanova is that Xavier is the only RPI top 25 team the Wildcats have beaten this season. The other is that they have one-sided losses to fellow No. 1 seed contenders Oklahoma and Virginia. That could be held against Villanova if it can't win three games in three days this week.
4. OKLAHOMA (24-6, 12-6, RPI 5, KenPom 7)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 13-6
Vs. RPI Top 50: 9-5
Vs. RPI Top 25: 6-5
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: Villanova, West Virginia (2), Texas, Iowa State, Baylor (2)
Losses: Kansas (2), at Iowa State, at Texas, at Texas Tech, at Kansas State
Are they a No. 1 seed? Oklahoma did not close the season as well as it had hoped, but the Sooners still have a shot at No. 1 seed despite dropping four of their past nine games. They have nine victories over RPI top 50 opponents, six against RPI top 25 opponents and head-to-head wins over West Virginia and Villanova. The road to the Big 12 tournament title is a daunting one for Oklahoma, which opens against Iowa State and then could face West Virginia and Kansas were it to continue to advance. If Oklahoma endures that gauntlet and wins the Big 12 tournament, it will be a No. 1 seed. If it falls short, it could slip to a No. 2 depending on results in the other conference tournaments.
5. MICHIGAN STATE (26-5, 13-5, RPI 13, KenPom 3)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 11-4
Vs. RPI Top 50: 6-4
Vs. RPI Top 25: 4-3
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: Kansas, Maryland, Louisville, Indiana, Wisconsin, at Michigan
Losses: Iowa (2), at Wisconsin, at Purdue, at Nebraska
Are they a No. 1 seed? Ask college coaches which team they would want to avoid in the NCAA tournament, and Michigan State might be the most popular answer. The Spartans may be this season's most complete team and they're playing their best basketball entering March, having reeled off 10 wins in their past 11 games. The problem for Michigan State is that it doesn't necessarily have the resume of a No. 1 seed yet even if it's playing well enough to earn one. The Spartans didn't win their league outright, they have fewer RPI top 50 wins than other fellow No. 1 seed contenders and they have a bad loss to Nebraska. Therefore they may need to win the Big Ten tournament to bolster their argument.
6. OREGON (24-6, 14-4, RPI 4, KenPom 14)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 19-5
Vs. RPI Top 50: 10-3
Vs. RPI Top 25: 3-1
Sub 100 losses: 1 (at UNLV)
Best wins: Utah (2), Cal, at Arizona, Baylor, at Colorado, USC (2)
Losses: at Cal, at Colorado, at Oregon State, at Stanford, at Boise State, at UNLV
Are they a No. 1 seed? An outright Pac-12 championship and 10 RPI top 50 victories gives Oregon a realistic chance of ascending to the top line of the bracket if it were to also capture its conference tournament title. In that scenario, the Ducks would most likely beat Arizona or Colorado in the semifinals and Utah or Cal in the championship game, giving them two more quality wins over NCAA tournament-bound teams. If the Ducks achieve that and other contenders fall in their conference tournaments, a No. 1 seed is a real possibility. If the Ducks fall in the Pac-12 tournament, a No. 2 or 3 seed is more likely.
7. XAVIER (26-4, 14-4, RPI 6, KenPom 15)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 12-3
Vs. RPI Top 50: 8-2
Vs. RPI Top 25: 2-1
Sub 100 losses: 1 (Georgetown)
Best wins: Villanova, Dayton, Seton Hall, Providence (2), USC, Butler (2)
Losses: at Villanova, at Seton Hall, at Creighton, Georgetown
Are they a No. 1 seed? Xavier's 8-2 record against the RPI top 50 is impressive, but the Musketeers are hurt by the fact that Villanova is the only marquee team they beat. Their best win besides that came against Dayton, Seton Hall or USC, NCAA tournament-bound teams to be sure but not Final Four contenders most likely. For Xavier to have a realistic shot at the first No. 1 seed in school history, the Musketeers probably have to not only win the Big East tournament but also beat Villanova in the title game to do it. If the Musketeers do that, you can make a strong case for them to ascend to the No. 1 line.
8. NORTH CAROLINA (25-6, 14-4, RPI 8, KenPom 5)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 13-6
Vs. RPI Top 50: 3-5
Vs. RPI Top 25: 3-4
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: at Duke, Miami, Maryland, Pittsburgh, at Syracuse
Losses: at Virginia, at Louisville, at Texas, Duke, at Notre Dame, at Northern Iowa
Are they a No. 1 seed? For a team that won the ACC title outright, North Carolina doesn't have nearly as good a resume as one might expect. The only RPI top 50 teams the Tar Heels have beaten this season are Miami, Maryland and Duke. It's difficult to envision North Carolina not receiving a No. 1 seed if it follows up its ACC regular season title by winning the tournament as well, but the Tar Heels' case isn't nearly as strong if they fail to do that. At most, they would have four RPI top 50 wins in that scenario, which could open the door for Virginia or even Miami to earn a No. 1 seed from the ACC or for the league to get left off the top line altogether.
9. WEST VIRGINIA (24-7, 13-5, RPI 10, KenPom 6)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 11-7
Vs. RPI Top 50: 8-6
Vs. RPI Top 25: 5-6
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: Kansas, Iowa State (2), Texas Tech (2), Baylor (2)
Losses: Virginia, at Kansas, Oklahoma (2), Texas (2), at Florida
Are they a No. 1 seed? West Virginia is in a similar position to fellow Big 12 power Oklahoma entering conference tournament play. The Mountaineers have a strong enough collection of quality wins that they could potentially play their way into the No. 1 seed hunt if they were to win the Big 12 tournament. If West Virginia went through three of the Big 12's other six-NCAA tournament bound teams to win the conference tournament, the Mountaineers would have a legitimate case to join Kansas on the No. 1 seed line. Anything short of that, however, and Bob Huggins' team is probably looking at a No. 2 or 3 seed.
10. Utah (23-7, 13-5, RPI 9, KenPom 25)
Vs. RPI Top 100: 17-7
Vs. RPI Top 50: 9-6
Vs. RPI Top 25: 3-4
Sub 100 losses: 0
Best wins: Duke, Cal, Arizona, Texas Tech, Colorado (2), at USC
Losses: Oregon (2), Miami, at Cal, at Wichita State, at Oregon State, at Stanford
Are they a No. 1 seed? Looking for a dark horse No. 1 seed contender? Look no further than the Utes, who have quietly cobbled together a surprisingly strong resume. They have no bad losses and more top 100 and top 50 victories than many of the teams above them here. If Utah doesn't win the Pac-12 tournament, this is a non-issue and it's a No. 2 or 3 seed at best. But if the Utes win out and a couple of other No. 1 seed contenders fall? Stranger things have happened.
9 days until the 2016 NCAA March Madness Tournament starts and 5 days before you can pick your brackets, Are you in?
The 2016 NCAA March Madness Tournament is just around the corner, you ready?
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica is having it's annual office pool again. You've played in our pool before, you're a terrific competitor and that what makes our pool a success. The entry fee is low ($12.00), the risk is minimal and the rewards are equitable, what more can you ask for? Here are few particulars about our pool:
It's going to be a great tournament this year because there is so much parity in college basketball today. Anyone can win. The small and intermediate size colleges have just as much talent as the big guys. Their teams have played together longer as the big schools recruit with the policy of one and done, off to the NBA. There seems to be a new #1 every week and then they get beat. Usually the winner of our pool needs 75% skill and 25% luck. This year it's going to be the other way around, 25% skill and 75% luck. Four weeks until the tournament starts; now is the time to get serious and start following the college teams and preparing for the conference tournaments. The precursor to the big dance. It's really going be a great tournament with plenty of upsets. For those of you that have played before, you know how much fun it is. For those of you that haven't, play for the first time and enjoy the "thrill of victory or the agony of defeat."
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NCAAFB: Illinois officially hires Lovie Smith as its next coach.
By Graham Watson
Illinois officially hires Lovie Smith as its next coach. (Photo/yahoosports.com)
Illinois has officially hired Lovie Smith as head coach.
Smith replaces Bill Cubit, who was fired Saturday in athletic director Josh Whitman’s first day on the job.
“I am extremely excited to be named head coach of the Fighting Illini,” Smith said in a statement. “Josh approached me about this possibility, and I immediately seized on the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the young men who are part of the program today and in the future. I take this responsibility very seriously and can’t wait to get a staff in place to start our move to make Illinois a contender for Big Ten titles. We will play an exciting brand of football that will make our fans, alumni, student body and members of the University community extremely proud.”
Smith, who was recently fired after going 8-24 in two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has not coached at the collegiate level since 1996. His last collegiate job was as the defensive backs coach at Ohio State.
However, Smith is no stranger to the state of Illinois. He led the Chicago Bears to three NFC North titles and a Super Bowl appearance in 2006. He’s 89-87 overall as an NFL head coach.
However, Smith is no stranger to the state of Illinois. He led the Chicago Bears to three NFC North titles and a Super Bowl appearance in 2006. He’s 89-87 overall as an NFL head coach.
Smith’s contract is for six years and $21 million, but it’s tiered as an incentive to stay with the program. Smith will make $2 million in 2016 and 2017, $3 million in 2018, $4 million in 2019 and $5 million annually in 2020 and 2021.
“Naming Lovie Smith as the Illinois head football coach is the first step in taking this program to a place of national prominence,” Whitman said in a statement. “We will build a program that contends annually for Big Ten and national championships. The timing for this move was extremely tight, and we needed to move quickly. A coach of Lovie’s caliber would not have been available to us if we had waited until after the 2016 season. Lovie’s reputation as a coach, and even more so as a person, made it clear it was an awesome opportunity for the University of Illinois.”
NCAA introduces rule changes for targeting, electronic devices.
By Sam Cooper
(AP Photo/Journal & Courier, Michael Heinz)
The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel unveiled a handful of new rules Tuesday, including one involving targeting.
Moving forward, if an instant replay official believes an on-field official erred in his or her targeting ruling, the instant replay official – who watches the game from the press box – can intervene. The replay official can assess a targeting foul or overturn one.
From an NCAA release:
In conjunction with this new privilege, the home team is “responsible for ensuring identical television capacity and identical video and Internet connectivity in the coaches’ booths of both teams.”
The following rules adjustments were also approved by the Panel, all with player safety in mind:
Douglas, Raisman face age-old question in pursuit of Rio Olympics comeback.
Moving forward, if an instant replay official believes an on-field official erred in his or her targeting ruling, the instant replay official – who watches the game from the press box – can intervene. The replay official can assess a targeting foul or overturn one.
From an NCAA release:
The panel, which met Tuesday via conference call, agreed to allow the instant replay official to stop the game and create a targeting foul in situations where an egregious action occurred and was missed by on-field officials. Instant replay officials also are required to review all aspects of targeting fouls called by an on-field official.
The NCAA Football Rules Committee believes players were incorrectly disqualified from games in a small number of cases last season. The elements of targeting that replay officials will watch for include launching and forcible contact to the head, among other factors.
Aside from targeting, the use of “electronic devices for coaching purposes” is now allowed, but only in the press box or locker room during the game. The use of electronic devices is “prohibited on the sidelines, in the team areas and on the field.”
In conjunction with this new privilege, the home team is “responsible for ensuring identical television capacity and identical video and Internet connectivity in the coaches’ booths of both teams.”
The following rules adjustments were also approved by the Panel, all with player safety in mind:
• The rules dealing with low blocks were adjusted to prohibit a player who leaves the tackle box from blocking below the waist toward the initial position of the ball.
• The rules pertaining to a defenseless player will include a ball carrier who has clearly given himself up by sliding feet first.
• The deliberate tripping of the ball carrier (with the leg) was approved as a foul.
The rules committee also indicated it will instruct officials to “stringently enforce the 3-yard limit regarding ineligible receivers downfield.”
Douglas, Raisman face age-old question in pursuit of Rio Olympics comeback.
By Dan Wetzel
Douglas and Raisman were members of USA's gold-medal winning team in London. (Photo/Getty Images)
You can go back four or five Games ago and find some older female gymnasts who succeeded, but in this sport, those are the olden days. There hasn't been a repeat winner since the 1964 and 1968 Games when Vera Caslavska of the then-Czechoslovakia did it. Caslavska was 26 the second time around.
"Well, I don't feel that old," Douglas said with a laugh here Monday at the Team USA Media Summit at the Beverly Hilton.
She isn't, except for the standards of competitive gymnastic standards. It's a cruel sport. If Douglas can pull this off, it will be the greatest accomplishment in a career filled with them. It's the ultimate challenge, the repeat.
"It's coming from my heart," Douglas said. "I really believe I can achieve more. I really do."
The focus required is so intense that maintaining it into adulthood has proven nearly impossible, even for those who displayed it before. Avoiding injuries is nearly a forever challenge. Bodies naturally change and they never seem to grow more flexible or lithe.
Then there is just general maturity, which causes a sane person to question why they might attempt some ever-more complicated move on, say, a 4-inch wide balance beam – a broken neck seemingly on the line.
"You don't have that much of an innocent mind," said Aly Raisman, 21, and Douglas' teammate at the 2012 London Games who also is trying to qualify for August's Rio Olympics. "There are days I am tired and you look at that beam and you just don't feel like it's going to happen. It's scary.
Gymnastics is one of those sports where if you're a little bit off, you wipe out and can hurt yourself."
Meanwhile, there is Simone Biles, who at 18 is on the older side of things. The three-time all-around world champion will be 19 by Rio, but she is the new next big thing in a sport that always seeks such a thing.
Then there is just general maturity, which causes a sane person to question why they might attempt some ever-more complicated move on, say, a 4-inch wide balance beam – a broken neck seemingly on the line.
"You don't have that much of an innocent mind," said Aly Raisman, 21, and Douglas' teammate at the 2012 London Games who also is trying to qualify for August's Rio Olympics. "There are days I am tired and you look at that beam and you just don't feel like it's going to happen. It's scary.
Gymnastics is one of those sports where if you're a little bit off, you wipe out and can hurt yourself."
Meanwhile, there is Simone Biles, who at 18 is on the older side of things. The three-time all-around world champion will be 19 by Rio, but she is the new next big thing in a sport that always seeks such a thing.
Often it isn't just age, but hunger. The sport is so precise that even the slightest mental distraction can finish you. Elite gymnasts are often home-schooled high schoolers with limited life outside the gymnastics hall. To maximize her potential before the 2012 Games, Douglas moved away from her friends and family in Virginia to train in the same intense Iowa gym that four-time medalist Shawn Johnson did prior to 2008.
"A comeback is very tough," Douglas said. "When you have taken a lot of time off after the Olympics and you don't want to come back, actually the break feels nice, the freedom feels amazing and then you struggle with the discipline of training."
Douglas enjoyed a whirlwind after winning gold in London. She became a massive celebrity. There was a book and a movie and commercials and appearances and general celebrity. She made a lot of money. It would have been easy to call it a day and move on with life.
The thought never crossed her mind.
"I said, 'I don't want to retire,' " Douglas said. "I felt too young and too fresh to give up gymnastics."
So now she's back. She says she's seeking consistency in her training, but other than that she thinks she can compete. Maybe she isn't Biles, but who knows?
Douglas says not much else has changed, except she realizes the gymnasts she trains with and competes against tend to be a bit in awe of her. Her poster was likely on their wall. Biles, for her part, recalls watching the 2012 Games from a projector on a wall at her old gym.
"It was awesome," Biles said.
Other than that, Douglas said it's all the same.
"I've grown a little taller," said Douglas, now pushing 5-foot. "I kind of like it."
You have to marvel at the focus and dedication. Douglas realizes she's in a unique and challenging position. Nastia Liukin, the all-around champ of the 2008 Games, tried to make the 2012 team only to fail. Now Douglas wants to take it a step further, so everything is about gymnastics, everything is about regaining the all-encompassing focus of being a teenager.
Raisman, for her part, says the drive to make a second Olympics is worth putting a traditional life on hold. That means even as an adult living a life of a high school kid – or the elderly.
"The girls always make fun of me and say I'm like a grandma, but I require a lot of sleep," Raisman said. "I'm probably the only 21-year-old who is in bed at 7:30 on a Saturday night. I nap all the time and I go to bed early. I really don't have a social life right now but that's fine."
That's the challenge. All sports are hard. All sports are challenging. None may compare to gymnastics though. It's why everyone retires. Or almost everyone.
Raisman is philosophical. She sees both sides.
"When a football player wins a Super Bowl, no one asks them why they come back," Raisman said. "When the swimmers win, they don't ask them. With gymnastics they always say it can't be done but Gabby and I are trying to disprove that."
Then again …
"I think you have to be a little crazy," Raisman said laughing. "Me and Gabby are a little bit nuts."
Just don't tell the kids.
Serena Williams lauds Maria Sharapova for owning up to failed drug test.
Associated Press
Serena Williams lauds Maria Sharapova for owning up to failed drug test.
Associated Press
(Photo/Getty Images)
Serena Williams says Maria Sharapova “showed a lot of courage” in taking responsibility for her failed drug test.
The 21-time Grand Slam champion said that like the rest of the sports world, she was “surprised and shocked” to hear the news about Sharapova.
“I think most people were happy she was upfront and very honest and showed a lot of courage to admit to what she had done and what she had neglected to look at in terms of the list at the end of the year,” Williams said.
Sharapova announced she tested positive for meldonium, a blood flow-promoting drug she said she had been taking for 10 years for various health issues. Meldonium was banned because it aids oxygen uptake and endurance, and players were notified of the changes in the WADA banned substances list in December. Sharapova claimed she simply neglected to click on the link.
She could face a long ban from the International Tennis Federation, possibly ending her season and preventing her from competing at the Olympics.
“It’s just taking responsibility, which she admitted that she was willing to do and ready to do,” Williams said. “Just hope for the best for everybody in that situation.”
Sharapova and Williams have had some barbed words for each other in the past off the court, but on Tuesday, Williams was fully supportive. While Sharapova is one of her biggest rivals based on the Russian’s results and five major titles, Williams has dominated the head-to-head series, winning the last 18 meetings over more than a decade.
“As Maria said, she’s ready to take full responsibility,” Williams said. “She showed a lot of courage and a lot of heart. I think she’s always shown courage and heart in everything she’s done, and this is no different.”
A fellow Nike endorser, Williams declined to comment on the shoe company’s decision to suspend its relationship with Sharapova.
Two-time Grand Slam finalist Caroline Wozniacki, who faces Williams in the exhibition Tuesday night, agreed with her good friend’s assessment of Sharapova’s announcement. Wozniacki acknowledged, though, the lengths elite athletes typically go through to ensure they don’t accidentally ingest banned substances.
“Any time we take any medication, we double, triple and quadruple check, because sometimes even things like cough drops or nasal sprays can be on the list,” Wozniacki said. “I think as athletes we always make sure to really make sure there’s nothing in it.”
Seven-time Grand Slam champion Justine Henin, who was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame on Tuesday, said many questions needed to be answered before she could judge Sharapova’s case.
“I think we’re all a little bit sad and disappointed about the situation,” she said on a conference call. “It’s never good for the game.”
Marat Safin, who on Tuesday became the first Russian elected to the Tennis Hall, agreed, noting that it’s not uncommon for players to miss that a substance has been added to the banned list. He said he believed that Sharapova did not intend to cheat, but then quickly added: “I want to believe so.”
On
Memoriesofhistory.com
1929 - Eric Krenz became the first athlete to toss the discus over 160 feet.
1958 - George Yardley (Detroit Pistons) became the first NBA player to score 2,000 points in a season. He did it in 72 games.
1980 - Gordie Howe and his two sons skated on a line together for the Hartford Whalers. National Hockey League history was made when the event occurred about midway through a game against the Boston Bruins.
1984 - Tim Witherspoon won a 12-round decision over Greg Pane to claim the World Boxing Council heavyweight championship.
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