kingfish

Pierce is the 1st option, not KG. Parker is the 1st option, not Duncan. That simple.

You see what youve done! Sometimes we take Pau for granted but if he were to get a big injury or stop being so consistent then we would be in big trouble. Must appreciate what Pau brings to the table.

I cringed when I read the title. He should be ok before training camp, why do we always have finger injurys

Well your wrong then

You have guys like Duncan and KG that have won a championship but not really sure if their a 1st option. Duncan was very impressive in the Spurs playoff runs but you also had Parker/Ginobli who did much of the scoring and playmaking for them. Sure you could give the ball to Duncan in the post quite often but it wasnt something you would do every time down the floor, especially when going up against other great big men. Parker was the one that created offense for everyone and tormented teams off the dribble. Ginobli also did the same but had a lot more clutch shots. This makes me believe Duncan was a 2nd option to either of them or both of them combined. KG might alse be considered a 2nd option. He was a key ingredient to the Celtics winning a title, but he didnt perform great in the playoffs and Pierce actually had the best finals performance. Pierce made most of the clutch shots and created for everyone else. Shaq might be the only exception, he was very dominant in his prime. Neither Duncan or KG have the same impact Shaq had on the Lakers. Kobe still created for everyone else and had all the clutch shots, but for the sake of avoiding a huge different argument ill say Shaq was the 1st option for now. My point is you would probably take Duncan or KG before taking Pierce or Tony Parker, because of what they can do on defense and rebounding. But on offense you would probably consider Parker/Pierce the 1st option right?

Billups (5) Kobe (7) Battier (3) Millsap (4) Pryzbilla (2) Bench : DJ Augustine (2), Mike Miller (2),Brandon Wright (2) Coach = Poppovich Great team offense and defense. Billups shuts down all star point guards (look at how he tormented CP3 in the playoffs last year), Kobe shuts down everyone, Battier shuts down anyone. Millsap is a double doubles machine at such a young age, a great rebounder and capable of scoring outbursts at any time. Pryzbilla is a pretty good defensive center used for that sole purpose. Point guards will have trouble against Billups, star perimeter players will have nightmares going up against Kobe/Battier. Millsap and Pryzbilla can control the paint quite nicely and are physical players. And if a clutch shot/performance is needed Billups and Kobe are the two best in the NBA at doing that. On the bench Augustine can fill in for 1 or the 2, and hes a good young scorer/shooter and can play adequate defense. Miller can fill 2 or the 3, great shooter, good defender and all around player. Brandon Wright has a lot of potential but already a great option off the bench and can play 4 or 5. All within 27 points. Ok does my team win now

Yeah they are besides the Dodgers there arent really anyone in the NLW that is good offensively. And if your comparing it to the Offenses in the AL east its no contest.

Haren was the best pitcher at the time of the all star game, he isnt anymore though. Hes sucked ever since then. And I agree with the postseason part with Beckett, I think its very important. He still has to do it in the regular season though. It seems like when he wants to he just turns it on, like the other night in New York.

He might be a more NBA ready, I was just using Oden and Bynum as an example. He might have a season similar to Brook Lopez' last year. I think a guard will win ROY though.

Actually now that I think about it he might be a little overrated. Forgot that he pitches in the NL West. And just the national league in general. And the park he plays in. Halladay might be better. Haren is definitely not better though.

I dont think Griffin will have a good year or be rookie of the year. Im not saying he wont be a good/great player in future but this year I think he wont be that good. Its harder for PF/C's starting out because of the competition they have to face. Griffin will be going up against Duncan, Gasol, Bynum, Amare, Oden, Aldridge, Boozer, Okafor in the west. Look at Oden who was the 1st pick and still developing, and Bynum who took so long to develop. He wont be that good this year.

I know its really good. Win/Loss totals arent the best way of determining how good someone is. Dice-K was 18-3 last year with a 2 something ERA, does that mean hes on Lincecums level? Not even close. Lincecum gets a ridiculous amount of strikeouts, and has unhittable stuff. Nobody is as good as him.

Woah slow down there. Hes underrated, but nobody is even close to as good as Lincecum.

Why the heck was Victorino ejected for no reason

Josh Johnson. Throw Ricky Nolasco into that mix as well.

hahahah thats a sick magazine cover though.

He then proceeded to jack up 30 shots.

Well overall it might seem like the Blazers have more talent. The difference is Cavs have Lebron though, Roy is nowhere near Lebrons level so that makes the Cavs an elite team. Outside of Lebron though the Cavs arent good, you shut down Lebron and you will beat them. Thats how the Lakers did it and were the only team to beat them in Cleveland (with Lebron playing).

You can get it for 49 if you buy it from SI, you also get a bunch of issues free.

1) Do you realize how good Artest is. You make it sound like hes nothing. How many guys can score 15-20 PPG, and shut down the opposing teams best player. You do realize Lebron will be miserable going up against Kobe and Artest, his numbers were already bad enough going up against just Kobe last year. Not to mention Artest shutting him down pretty bad as well last year. Ariza was our weakness at times, inconsistent jumper + getting abused by SF's scoring on him. Wont happen this year. 2) Shaq probably wont even play that much. Cold weather and doesnt have the Suns staff anymore. If he does, a healthy Bynum can take him anyday of the week. 3) Lol at LAs big men being frail. Ask Dwight Howard about that, who dominated the Cavs but not the Lakers. Parker is a 6-6 shooting guard, Moon is a 6-8 SF, how exactly does that help you match up wise? Shaq will still have his hands full with Bynum running laps around him, and Pau will dominate any scrub PF you guys have. 4) Lol are you serious with the starting lineup bull crap. Tell me which lineup is the best out of these 3 Fisher Kobe Artest Pau Bynum Mo Delonte Lebron Varajow? Shaq Rondo Allen Pierce KG Perkins you must be joking if you dont think the Lakers lineup is the best of that group. 5) "And you're telling me 3 guys not even in their prime yet whohad huge numbers last season (Delonte, Mo, and Andy)", LOL HUGE NUMBERS? . 11 PPG from Delonte, 17 from Mo, 8 PPG from Varajow. Yeah huge numbers alright. 6) Kobe just turned 30 years old, sure is aging alright. Hes in his prime. If you want to talk about age talk about Shaq who is 37. 7) Lakers have the two guys Lebron struggles most against, Artest and Kobe. You shut down Lebron, you beat the Cavs. Shaq not gonna make a difference, sorry to break it to you. They might have created even more match up problems with Shaq, the Magic are gonna abuse them even more with the pick n roll against Shaq and wear him out where he becomes a non factor. Celtics wont have to double Shaq, they have Perkins against him. You act like Shaq is gonna make a huge difference to the Cavs he wont change anything. The Cavs will just have another great regular season finishing in the top 3 then just be exposed again in the playoffs. You are in denial. 8) If Cavs somehow get past their matchup problems in the east. Lebron getting shut down vs Artest/Kobe, Shaq vs Pau/Bynum. Not to mention Odom, who dominated you guys last year. Nobody on the Cavs bench has an answer for him. Look out!

Wainright is 13-7 with a 2.73 ERA. Pineiro is 9-9 with a 3.18 ERA. They have those 2 to go along with Carpenter. Top 3 SP means top 3 starters and their top 3 starters are one of the best in the National League.

Plays against the Lakers first game of the season in his NBA debut. Going up against Pau/Drew/Lamar. Predict his stats for the night. I predict 5 points 6 rebounds 1/5 FG

Dodgers, already a lock to win division. Cardinals, very good top 3 starting pitching and great middle of the lineup. Phillies, no competition in the NL East. Rockies, the Giants have great pitching but they are very bad offensively. I dont think they will hit enough to win the division. The Rockies are a pretty good team overall. Angels, best offense in the American League and no competition in the AL West. White Sox, decent starting pitching great bullpen and good lineup. Yankees, starting to run away with the division Red Sox, still have good pitching and will get better once they start hitting again.

1) They made one trade for Shaq, whos at the end of his career and in the final year of his contract. Shaq wont be in Cleveland when Lebron becomes a FA. 2) "We've built a top 5 team for years to come with Mo, Andy, and Delonte". 3) He wont win any rings with the Cavs. They most likely wont get through a healthy Boston or Orlando, and their definitely not getting through the Lakers. 4)New york wont sign Lebron. New Jersey just might however. Harris was already an all star last year, Lee and Lopez were great in their rookie season. And the Nets can sign 2 superstar free agents, Amare or Bosh could be the PF for the Nets and they will have Harris/Lee/Lebron/Bosh/Lopez. Thats way better then anything the Cavs will ever get.

Looks sick. Gonna get it again then dominate online play.