Why Warriors Will Miss Baron Davis & Monta Ellis Displays Immaturity

If you look at the Warriors’ roster it is easy to see that they have plenty of players who can score with the basketball, but who will score with the team???

Obviously the biggest news from the Warriors’ camp this off-season was the loss of star guard and team captain Baron Davis. Baron Davis can do everything on the court: he can shoot, he can dribble, he can pass, and he can LEAD!!!

To veiw the rest of this article visit silverbulletsports.com or click here

-Shawn

Shawn’s Week Two Fantasy WR Pick-ups!!!

Hey gang!!!

Alright, so the first week of football has come and gone and now it is time to reassess you roster! Since the WR position always has the biggest crop of free agent talent, it is usually the position you will have the best chance at bettering your team. Hear are five guys out there you should take a look at.

1. Eddie Royal- This guy is probably all the buzz this week in your fantasy league and for good reason. Not only did he make what experts called a “above average secondary” look silly on Monday night, but he also showed has excellent route running skills which should lead to awsome fantasy production. Even with Brandon Marshall coming off his suspension this week, don’t fear too much of a loss of production from Royal. Monday night Royal showed his versatility buy running short and sharp routes, as well as being a deep post threat. Quarterback Jay Cutler has also shown a tenancy to develop what I call “Favre Fever” where he will focus in on one receiver. Although Marshall was that man last year, taking the reigns from future hall-of-famer Rod Smith, he did so primarily as a deep threat and not so much as an all-around target. Bottom line is that if the “royal rookie” is available in your league snatch him up quick.

2. Mushin Muhammad- Talk about a blast from the past! Now many of you might be questioning this pick-up considering the Carolina WR is 35-years-old and is only owned in about 43% of yahoo leagues, but hear me out. Muhammad had the best year of his career with the Panthers(‘o4- 93 rec., 1405 yards, 16 td’s)  before bailing for three uneventful years in Chicago. But what about Steve Smith?  Smith was on the team in Muhammad’s two best years with the Panthers, although he was injured in all but one game in ‘04. But with Smith’s return in week 3 Muhammad will lose one important thing, the double-team. Muhammad manged 6 rec. and 56 yards in week one as the #1 receiver. When Smith gets back on the field, expect those numbers for Muhammad to rise and you can even expect some red zone touches for the big wide-receiver.

3. Devery Henderson-Remarkably this big play receiver is still available in about 65% of yahoo leagues. Although QB Drew Brees throws the ball a lot to his big three play-makers in Colston, Bush and Shockey, he also is very good at spreading the ball to the rest of his offense. In week one Bush was the only one of the big three to record a touchdown while 2nd and 3rd WR’s Henderson and Patton each had a touchdown catch.

4. Matt Jones- This former first round draft pick of the Jaguars has been nothing but a disappointment in previous years. A bad NFL showing compounded with an off-season drug arrest, has had fantasy owners turning their backs on the former Arkansas standout. Jones had 6 catches for 80 yards in week one against a stingy Tennessee defense. With Jerry Porter battling injury and Reggie Williams inconsistent play, Jones is worth a look. The biggest knock on Jones has been his “soft” play. But on Sunday he made catches in traffic and going over the middle which might be a sign that the 6 foot 6 inch receiver might be maturing into an NFL receiver.

5. Greg Lewis- With Donovan McNabb missing his top two receivers in week one he did what any great QB would do, spread the wealth. The Eagles had three receivers with more then 100 receiving yards and Lewis will be in the mix even when Brown and Curtis return from injury. Lewis is currently owned in only about 19% of yahoo leagues.

-Shawn

USA Softball ‘08: Wins Silver or Loses Gold?

Your eyes are not playing tricks on you, the US softball team lost the gold medal this morning in Beijing to Japan.

After being tested by Japan yesterday and just squeaking out a 4 to 1 extra-inning win, the American girls lost the gold medal game to the same Japanese team 3 to 1.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not taking anything away from team Japan and what they and their star pitcher Yukiko Ueno have accomplished. After losing in 9 innings(international softball games go 7 innings) yesterday to USA, they beat Australia in another marathon match 4 to 3 in twelve innings to earn their spot in the gold medal game. Ueno not only pitched in each of the three games, but pitched every inning in Japan’s three game gold medal run.

yahoo images

But if you watched the championship game you know that the US women had every opportunity to win this game and squandered each one. In the first inning the ladies from the United States had the bases loaded and failed to score a single run. After that first inning the United States offense looked flat and completely unconfident at the plate.

Japan was able to score two runs in the forth inning but Crytal Bustos did what she does and hit a opposite field home run to narrow the Japanese to one run in the button of the inning. After Bustos’ solo shot (Bustos has been dubbed the “Babe Ruth of Softball”) the US seemed to regain their confidence and in the sixth inning had the bases loaded again with only one out. But the US ladies again let a “golden” opportunity slip away with two infield pop-ups to end the sixth inning still trailing by one.

In the top of the seventh the Americans committed two errors and Japan was able to push their lead to 3 to 1. After that the US women had lost all momentum and eventually the game. The US women’s softball team had won 22 straight games before losing what might be the very last softball game played in Olympic competition.

Softball was voted out of the 2012 games by the International Olympic Committee stating that the world was not competitive enough in the sport with a select few countries, namely Australia and the United States who have won medals every year the soprt has been held in the Olympics. Australia won the bronze in Beijing and this is the first time the United States has not won the gold.

-Shawn.

Shawn’s Pre-Draft Tips: 2008 Fantasy RB’s

If you are anything like me you are gearing up for your fantasy football (FF) draft. If you are just like me then you are also gearing up for your fantasy baseball playoffs, sorry, I had to throw that in there! 

Now depending on the league you are in you have to put more of an emphasis on certain positions, and of course I am talking about the RB position. So here are 5 tips on RB’s to take into your draft.

1. Draft Tomlinson!!! Okay, this is a given but there is no doubt that LT is the most consistent RB in football and in FF consistency in that position equals wins! And even though LT has not been the top point-getter in a season ever, he is always in the top five and almost always the top RB. Plus the running back position is the hardest to find a spot start for in any given week so they draw such huge importance. Basically this tip boils down to, if LT is available then you draft him. Last season I saw a draft result where Tomlinson went 5th!?!?!? 

2. Be weary of Steven Jackson. Not only is the Las Vegas born running back in the middle of a very public hold-out which has led him to miss all of the pre-season, but the Rams offense is also suspect if you ask me. Issac Bruce is gone and now no one is going to take that double-team of Torry Holt. Holt himself is entering his 10th season and reports of a stiff back for Holt is coming out of the Rams’ camp. Quarterback Marc Bulger has a banged up knee and shoulder and is coming off the worst statistical year of his career where he threw more interceptions(15) the touchdowns(11) in 2007. The Rams ineffectiveness to spread the field will cause them to run Jackson more, but defenses won’t have to cheat on the pass and running lanes might be harder for Jackson to find.

3. In deeper leagues (20 teams or more) don’t be afraid of the “two-headed monster” when it comes to your RB’s. And in smaller leagues don’t be afraid to hand-cuff your RB’s. I have been playing FF for 6 years now and started off with a mentality that if I had the number one guy I was all good right…WRONG!!! Running back is one of those position where injuries happen all the time (except for LT)! In leagues of twelve teams or less it is not a bad idea to draft your top RB’s back up in the later rounds. Just ask Priest Holmes owners in 2004 & 2005(Larry Johnson, 2,431 yds and 29 TD’s in two years as a back-up/split-back), Fred Taylor owners in 2006 (Maurice Jones-Drew, 941 yds and 13 TD’s while technically starting only one game), and Lamont Jordan in 2007 (Justin Fargas, 1,009 yds and 4 TD’s with 7 starts). For you deep leaguers, if you have one of those dreaded late first-round picks where you feel you have to pick up a second tier RB instead of a Carson Palmer or Plaxico Burress, DON”T!!! With all the coaches going with a two running back system now-a-days, there will be plenty of backs to pick up in the second round especially if you have a snake-style draft format. Here are a few teams that could fit the bill: San Fransisco (Gore & Foster), Miami (Brown & Williams), Seattle(Jones, Duckett & Morris), Jacksonville (Taylor & Jones-Drew), Chicago (Jones & Peterson) NY Giants (Jacobs, Ward & Bradshaw) , and even Minnesota(don’t sleep on Chester Taylor, not with A. Peterson’s injury history).

4. Best late round RB sleeper.Michael Turner has always been one of those guys where you would think “if he just gets his chance.” Backing up LT those chances were slim to none, but not anymore. Turner has the reputation of being a big play back and is now the starter in Atlanta. Against the Colts, in their 2nd pre-season game, Turner was the Falcons’ offense. In the two series that he played, Turner had 4 carriers and 115 YARDS!!! Even though defences will focus in on Turner and the running game, first year head Coach Mike Smith’s smash-mouth style of football will still guaranteeTurner plenty of carries. Combine that with the fact that the Falcons took Matt Ryan with their first-round pick (third overall) shows that Coach Smith will be committed to the passing game and stretching out the field to create more running lanes for Turner. I know Turner comes with risk but that is why I call him the best sleeper, not the best player.

5. Remember when you draft the RB position you are drafting that player’s offense more so then any other position. Running backs rely on a good offense for everything. Even if the game is a blowout, quarterbacks still air-out the ball, maybe even more so, while the runnig back will often become an extra blocker more than a extra reciever.And if your running back is on a good offense then expect a lot more garbage yards late in the game as a team runs the ball to kill the clock.

 

If you have any fantasy questions just leave a comment or e-mail me at shawn@silverbulletsports.com and I will address it in a future post.

-Shawn.

YOU’RE OUT!!!

Were you crushed by the poor overall performance of the USA baseball team in the Olympics this year? Well don’t worry, because I garuntee there will not be a repeat performance by the team in the 2012 London Olympics, I’m 100% sure of it!!!

In 2005 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted on weather baseball should be admitted in the 2012 Games. The news has only become highly publicized because of the Beiging Games, but by a vote of 46 to 42 the IOC decided to exclude baseball from the London Games. Also excluded from the London Games, by a vote of 47 to 43, was softball. Despite the similarity of the two sports, and the fact they are both out in 2012, the reasons for the two sports dismissal are quite different.

The main reason for baseball’s ousted,the IOC says, there is not proper representation of the worlds finest athletes in the Olympics. The main culprit for this…drum-roll…Major League Baseball (MLB)! The IOC claims that because the MLB has such a diverse group of of the sports talent, that the league should suspend play so the world can be better represented during the Olympics. The Japanese baseball league, also known as Nippon Professional Baseball, is already suspending its play for the Olympics so why not MLB??? I will tell you why…$$$, and who can blame them.

Remember the 2006 World Baseball Classic? Major League Baseball finally let its players participate in a international baseball tournament because the tourney took place just prior to its pre-season (the Baseball World Cup has been going on since 1938 and MLB players have never been permitted to play) . Do you remember what happen afterthat tourney? Major league players started the season on the disabled list. Pitchers came into camp with thrown-out arms and bum-shoulders, and some field players were already complaining of bumps and bruises. If I am a baseball owner and am spending $20 million dollars for a player like Alex Rodriguez, I want him playing FOR ME! And if he does get hurt it better be while busting his hide in winning my team win a championship!

Don’t get me wrong, I am all for representing your country and all, but if I have that much money invested in anything, I am going to protect my investment. You might be saying; “Well what about the NBA, they let their players play in the Olympics?” Well, their season is just concluding, the players bodies are already battle ready and if injured they have a lot of time to heal before the start of next season. An injured baseball player would have to go back to potential playoff race!!!

Softball was dismissed for a totally different reason then baseball. The IOC deemed that the rest of the world was not competitive enough with a select few countries, the USA being one of them. Softball has been a sport in the Olympics since the 1996 Atlanta Games and the United States and Australia have won a medal in every game since (USA has always won gold).

Even though the reasons for the veto of these sports seem legitimate, many reports suggest a European influence within the IOC might also be to blame. The two sport are primarilyplayed in the Americas and Asia and the two sports were invented in the USA.

Baseball was introduced in the 1984 Los Angeles Games and became a medaling event in 1992. The Beijing Games hosted 28 events and the London Games intended to do the same. Some of the events listed to fill-in are golf, karate, rugby, squash and roller sports (whatever those are).

Baseball and softball can be reinstated into the 2016 games and will be voted on by the IOC in 2009.

-Shawn.

Dan’s take:

The NHL always allows for an Olympic Break and I think it’s a nice change of pace every four years. I will say that Hockey has a different talent pool than Baseball or Softball, but the players genuinely WANT to play for their countries.  I like the idea of the league itself giving the players the time to take part in some national pride.

While there’s no doubt the big business of baseball in the States controls this decision, I don’t think it’s that big a risk. The players could just as easily injure themselves in the ten games they’re playing on their respective MLB club.

Equally as frustrating is the lack of exposure baseball is getting at the games. I find it very hard to find a game to watch, and many times not at the time or place that NBC lists them. Softball is getting better props and getting live coverage everyday. San Francisco Giant Nate Schierholtz deserves more.

-Dan.

Spiking the Competition!!!

yahoo images

With Micheal Phelps dominating the Olympics and headlines since the start of the Beijing games, many other great story lines are being lost in his wash.

Take the U.S. Men’s Volleyball team. Undoubtedly the saddest story to come out of this years games was the attack on the in-laws of Men’s Volleyball Coach Hugh McCutcheon, Todd and Barbara Bachman. Todd Bachman was killed during the attack and Barbara was stabbed but is now in a Minnesota hospital in fair condition after undergoing eight hours of surgery in Beijing.

Coach McCutcheon missed the first three games of these Olympics to be by his family’s side during this time, something even the biggest sport fan can appreciate. During the three-game span his team had gone undefeated winning each match in dominating fashion. McCutcheon was back on the sideline Saturday morning to see his boys take on host team China in a sold out Beijing Institute of Technology Gymnasium.

When introduced, the pockets of American fans spread out throughout the crowd gave McCutcheon a standing ovation. Despite the sentimental reunion, many volleyball experts wondered if the reunification of coach and team would hurt the play of the U.S. team. Not even picked to be a serious medal contender, many believed the spectacular play of the American team to be rooted from a “win one for the gipper” mentality the team had picked up since the tragedy of their coach (the incident happened the first day of the games).

The Americans showed no signs of a reunion hangover as they easily dispatched their opponents in a convincing sweep 25-22, 25-12, 25-18. During the match the U.S. team wrote “TB” and “BB” on their sneakers in honor of there coach’s family.

After the match, and many hugs and high-fives, Coach Mccutcheon said it was his mother-in-law who was the biggest proponent that he stay in Beijing saying “She was extremely encouraging. She was adamant that I stay. She assured me she’s going to be good.”

The U.S. team has clinched their way into the Quarterfinals of the Olympic games but still have one more preliminary game against Japan on Monday, August 18th.

-Shawn.

Wounded Warrior

The Warriors are no stranger to the injury bug, but this last one is leaving me a little sore.

Monta Ellis laid on the court floor at BYU-Hawaii’s gymnasium Friday night, reportedly motionless and for over a half-hour after hitting his head on teammate Brandan Wright’s hip while playing a scrimmage game. The first report I saw had a headline with the phrase “serious injury” included in it. A recent report revealed that the injury was only a neck sprain and Ellis walked out of the hospital on his own accord. But I have to admit that one of my reactions to this news was “who would the Warriors pick up if Ellis is out?”

Now I can’t tell you who would be available for acquisition or even how interested the organization would be in any individual player, so I won’t. But I can tell you this, the Warriors might as well have lost Baron Davis. Now don’t get all riled up, Baron would be a bigger loss but hear me out.

If you loss Ellis who is going to give Davis a break on the floor, Marco Belinelli? Head Coach Don Nelson has already said that he wants to cut back the amount of minutes he plays Baron this season to about 28 min. a game, to keep the super-star as healthy as possible over the course of the season and hopefully into the playoffs (Davis averaged 35 min. per game last season and 40 in the playoffs). Ellis not only proved he could aid in that relief, but he could excel at it.

Last season, due to leg injury caused form wear and tear, “BD” was out for a span of games in the later part of the year. Although Ellis came straight from high school to the NBA, the 21-year-old showed a poise and maturity not shown from many players his age while filling in for Davis.. The ‘06-’07 NBA’s Most Improved Player showed he could score in bunches, had the ability to lead a team (at least on the court), and even scored some game clinching shots. Some Bay Area sport personalities even questioned if the organization should look into the value of trading Davis because they thought that Monta could be the next star-guard for the Warriors.

Now I’m very high on Ellis, but trading Davis after Monta has a few good games in his absence, give me a break! One or two more season’s backing-up Davis could be a monumental opportunity for the youngster’s progression.

 Now imagine that Davis gets hurt or sidelined for any reason (“knock on wood”) in the upcoming season. If you are high on Ellis like I am then you get some satisfaction that their is a good young player waiting in the wings. Of course he is no Davis, but he showed already he can win with the Warriors. But now who gives Monta a break if Davis is out, Marco Belinelli?

For all the interchangeable players the Warriors have as far as playing different positions, running the point is one area the Warriors are a bit thin. We need Ellis almost as much as we need Davis.

-Shawn

Baron Davis: PG or PR?

Baron Davis is the best in every NBA point guard rolled up in one. He is quick and graceful like Steve Nash, gets the most out of his teammates like Jason Kidd, and can take over a game during crunch-time like A.I. Davis’ size and speed make him a mismatch for teams on both offense and defense. But there is still one thing Davis is missing, his multi-year/multi-million dollar contract extension.

 

But has Davis earned that extension???

 

He helped end the organization’s 12-year playoff drought and has been the catalyst for many of the Warriors’ recent trade acquisitions including problematic Steven Jackson. He is one reason the Warriors traded away star-guard and fan favorite Jason Richardson to Charlotte during the off-season and was the center-piece to one of the biggest upsets in NBA history as he guided Golden State over the #1 ranked Dallas Mavericks last post-season.

 

So why hasn’t he gotten his contract???

 

Due to injury, Davis has missed nearly a third of the games scheduled since becoming a Warrior. If injured under contact, the Warriors will still be obligated to pay Davis under current NBA contract rules. Despite having an apparently good relationship with Head Coach Don Nelson, Davis was rumored to be one of the keys in the firing of Former Head Coach Mike Montgomery two seasons ago. After giving more money to Nelson over the off-season, the Warriors still have Matt Barnes and Mickael “Air French” Pietrus to re-sign in the upcoming year. (Barnes is a fan and Nelly favorite, and when drafted, Pietrus was dubbed the next Jason Richardson!) Plus, waiting in the wings is a very skilled and very young point guard on the Warrior bench named Monte Ellis. If you haven’t heard of him yet…you will!  

Last week in an interview with the Boston Globe, Davis said he would test the free-agent market after this season if a new contract wasn’t agreed apon by October 1st. That date has come and gone. When asked about whether he would still test free-agency after the ’07 season Davis did a “180” saying he was happy with the two years left on his current contract and the overall direction the organization was taking.

 

As a fan I’m screaming YES! YES! YES! But part of me is still scratching my head. Why change your mind so quickly?

 

Is this for the fans?

Is it because he menas it?

Is it because he doesn’t want to hurt his chances of getting that big contract with the Warriors?

 

I hope it is all of the above. It would show a maturity I know fans and the organization want to see out of their super-star, and a side of Baron that his teammates can follow onto the hard-wood. But is it just a Public Relations Move? The upcoming season will tell.