Best Buy Summer Classic Tournament

Best Buy Summer Classic Tournament (Bloomington, MN) Players That I Watched:

*Rivals provided all rankings

**Schools and Rankings updated on Nov. 14, 2010

Marcus Alipate – Wear Out the Nets: Unranked. Offers from South Dakota and Wofford.
Analysis: Big time player in regular high school basketball, but he didn’t get the playing time that I expected he would during the tournament. The problem for Alipate in summer ball is that he is a strong passer but it is hard to tell the great passers from the average ones in AAU ball because everything is in transition and defense is limited. Alipate is a sharpshooter from deep but didn’t pull the trigger often enough.

“If Marcus can grow a few inches, it could cause his stock to rise. Alipate works hard on the defensive end, but needs to add more strength to matchup against more physical point guards. He needs to continue to improve his left hand and ability to get past defenders. Alipate has a big heart and a high basketball I.Q.” (ESPN).

Kyle Caudill – California Pump N Run: Unranked. BOSTON COLLEGE COMMIT.
Analysis: This is one extremely big kid that also is thick enough for the next level. Recently, Caudill de-committed from Arizona State, but he should draw some interest due his huge size. I saw him face-up against Hunter Mickelson and Caudill had his way on the offensive end as he bodied him up all game long, but the problem for Caudill was that he picked up some quick fouls on the defensive side that forced him to sit on the bench for most of the second half. Caudill has potential but he won’t be a star on the next level.

Quinn Cook – DC Assault: #7 PG, #28 national. DUKE COMMIT.
Analysis: By far the most polished and skilled point guard at the tournament. The first game that I watched Cook, he had my head spinning by his tremendous passing ability and way he took over the game. Cook has the ability to pass that is second to none compared to the rest of the point guards, however in DC Assault’s loss to Arkansas, Cook displayed that when he is down, he will stay down. Cook has the potential to be a top college basketball player, but he still needs to mature on the court, especially when the going gets tough and the team depends on Cook to comeback. Arkansas displayed a 3-2 zone against Cook, which stifled his slashing ability and forced him to run around Aaron Ross and Ky Madden, which Cook wasn’t able to do effectively. Cook has an average jumper, but that is expected with top passers (ex. John Wall and Derrick Rose in recent years).

Jeremiah Davis – Indiana Elite: #39 SG, #123 national. CINCINNATI COMMIT.
Analysis: Davis was one of the most consistent players on the Indiana team besides Zeller, as Davis showed strong shooting, passing, and slashing skills. Davis possesses good length and height and should be able to have his way against most guards that he faces. Also, Davis is as good of a three-point shooter that you are going to find coming out of high school. Davis is sought after by tons of teams, and I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see him as a lottery pick in the NBA.

Austin Etherington – Indiana Elite: Unranked. INDIANA COMMIT
Analysis: This kid can flat out shoot, and although he didn’t drain every shot he made, you can tell he’s a shooter by his form. Etherington has a strong ability to shoot from the outside, and by watching some of his games, it is easy to tell that he is working on his slashing abilities, which were successful a lot of the time as the tournament progressed. Etherington isn’t the most athletic player on the court, but he showed good hustle and was in a lot of plays on offense. He should have a big impact in the Big Ten after his freshman year.

Seantrel Henderson – Minneapolis Gamblers: Unranked. MIAMI COMMIT (Football)
Analysis: I played against him in high school, and he isn’t the factor in basketball that he is in football. My biggest question is that Henderson had transferred from USC to Miami in the week before the tournament but why is he playing AAU basketball when he needs to be getting in shape and not risking himself injury before the football season. Henderson is one of the top college football prospects, and someone needs to hold Henderson out of meaningless basketball games.

Amir Garrett – California Pump N Run: #15 SF, #51 national. Offers from Arizona, Boston College and Virginia Tech
Analysis: I expected more out of Garrett in the championship game but he didn’t show the potential that he has showed to the Rivals talent evaluators. Garrett took a lot of outside shots and had some good drives to the basket but lacked the fire to put his team back into the game. Garrett had moments where he called for isolations to take advantage of his matchups, but Garrett was much more effective at the free-throw line than he was at taking corner three’s. I’m not saying Garrett is a bad player, but I’m not surprised that he only has two offers.

Nigel Williams-Goss – California Pump N Run: Unranked (Class of 2013). Offers from Hawaii, Oregon, Oregon St., UNLV, and Washington.
Analysis: This kid is the real deal, and for being two years behind most of the people that he was playing, he should be a star in college. Goss controlled the emotions and tempo for the Cali Pump N Run team in the championship. Goss is an extremely strong slasher and I expect that he is a strong shooter although his shots weren’t falling in the game that I watched. Goss was the player that had the ball in his hands when California needed plays to be made. This is a kid that everyone needs to keep his or her eye on for years to come.

Ky Madden – Arkansas Wings: #6 PG, #27 national. ARKANSAS COMMIT.
Analysis: Madden has the ability to take over the game at any point. He is an extremely good player in transition, as he destroyed Quinn Cook on the offensive end in the semi-final game. Madden’s height and length help him extremely on finishing plays as he fits the slasher mold to perfection in basketball, but he isn’t the greatest outside shooter. My only question is in the half-court offense, Madden seems to be trapped by the extra defenders in the smaller space, and therefore will he be able to adjust to it in college?

Hunter Mickelson – Arkansas Wings: #19 PF, #98 national. ARKANSAS COMMIT
Analysis: Mickelson is a great shot blocker and a great defender on centers that aren’t extremely athletic, but on the offensive end it seems that he is trapped because of his lack of strength. Mickelson has a skinny wire, and will need to bulk up to play at the college level. He is not a good enough shooter to stay on the outside and not strong enough to play on the inside. It will be interesting to watch his college career play out, but he will definitely need a year to redshirt and add weight.

Marshall Plumlee – Indiana Elite: #9 C, #82 national. DUKE COMMIT
Analysis: I went to the tournament expecting to see the recent Duke-commit dominate on the offensive end as his brothers have at Durham, however Marshall will be the most overrated Duke player in the program. Plumlee scored three points in his first three games that I saw, with all points coming from the free-throw line. Plumlee has a knack for forcing shots and tends to fade-away on all of his shots. Plumlee is a decent shot blocker, but doesn’t have the athleticism that his brother Mason has. Coach K will have his hands full with this Plumlee brother and I’m going to predict that he will be a major bust at Duke.

Aaron Ross – Arkansas Wings: #26 PF, #147 national. ARKANSAS COMMIT
Analysis: Ross has good size for a forward, but isn’t going to be a player that is really going to standout in college. I see Ross as more of a glue guy in college as a player that can drive, hit the outside shot, defend well, and has great size to play multiple positions, but I don’t see him as the star that some people predict him to be. On a human note, Ross was playing with little kids before the championship game and you could see on the kids’ faces that they were having a blast. Although it may have just been a couple minutes for Ross, it was a time that the kids will remember for a long time by having all their shots blocked or passes stolen by Ross.

Jerome Seagears – DC Assault: #21 PG, #99 national. RUTGERS COMMIT.
Analysis: Seagears provides a different tempo than Quinn Cook, as he is a better shooter, but isn’t the passer that Cook is. Although he will be stuck behind Cook’s shadow in AAU, I expect that Seagears will make a college team extremely happy in his years there.

Dominique Walls – Old Gold: Unranked. An offer from Eastern Michigan.
Analysis: I only watched about five minutes of Walls but he showed a way to takeover a game. Walls had three consecutive dunks in the consolation championship game that I watched, as well as two steals before being pulled. Walls was head and shoulders above everyone else during the time frame that I watched and he could be an interesting prospect. Walls is an athletic leaper, but judging from his high school statistics, he will need to improve his jumper. As a college student in Illinois, this is a player that I will keep my eye on.

Cody Zeller – Indiana Elite: #4 PF, #20 national. INDIANA COMMIT.
Analysis: Zeller is the real deal and is going to be a star in college. He has the tenacity to finish hard on the inside with strong dunks and good post moves. Also, Zeller is a strong defender that doesn’t foul that much, which is hard to find in big men. Zeller is a great athlete that can run the floor well, and if he gains some strength, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him as a huge factor at the next level.

Vinny Zollo – Indiana Elite: Unranked. WESTERN KENTUCKY COMMIT.
Analysis: Zollo has a knack for being in the middle of plays, but isn’t going to be a superstar in college. Zollo hit some good runners and displayed good hustle, but on a team that has several top players in the country, it must be hard for Zollo to stand out. Zollo didn’t take many outside shots instead opting to put the ball on the floor when he received the ball.

Other players that I didn’t get to watch but are noteworthy:

Octavious Ellis – Memphis Select: Unranked. CINCINNATI COMMIT.
Analysis: “At 6'8 he can score from the perimeter and carries himself much like a European player with his emphasis on the wing shot. He can be effective inside but lacks the physical strength to make this a regular stop on his way down the court” (ESPN).

Jarion Henry – Dallas Showtyme: #22 SF, #84 national. Offers from Arkansas, Fresno State, Marquette, and UTEP.
Analysis: “Offensively, he spends a lot of his time away from the basket due to his skill level and lack of girth. At 6-7 he can step out to 3 and drive the ball past defenders to the basket. Once he puts the ball on the floor everything is to the rim. He lacks a great stroke from 3, which makes him inconsistent from the arc. However, his game is in transition and on the offensive glass” (ESPN).

Jalen Jones – Dallas Showtyme: Unranked. SOUTHERN METHODIST COMMIT.
Analysis: Jones has good height and is an athletic wing that should be able to show his athleticism in college. A similar player would be current Minnesota Golden Gopher Rodney Williams.

Myck Kabongo – Grassroots Canada: #5 PG, #24 national. TEXAS COMMIT.
Analysis: “He uses his superb quickness and speed to create opportunities in the open floor. When forced to play half court basketball Kabongo is deadly using the pick and roll. He can find open teammates off penetration or score on pull-up jump shots or drives to the basket. He possesses great pace to his game, and never seems to get himself in trouble with the dribble” (ESPN).

Cedrick McAfee – Memphis Select: #19 SG, #74 national. AUBURN COMMIT.
Analysis: “McAfee is a great athlete at the combo guard position who has tremendous acceleration by his defender. When you combine his speed and power with the ball it makes for a tough night for opponents; he was deadly from behind the 3-point arc, as he has improved his jump shot off the dribble. The one aspect that sets him apart is his explosiveness off the floor in the lane” (ESPN).

Shelby Moats – MN Pump N Run: Unranked. VANDERBILT COMMIT.
Analysis: “Moats is a strong physical player with an excellent outside touch. He has the ability to play inside and outside and can create matchup problems against smaller players with a soft inside touch around the basket and by stretching the court against bigger players with a textbook perfect left-handed shot. Moats is a 4.0 student and is very cerebral on the court. He is a hard worker on and off the court” (ESPN).

Adonis Thomas – Memphis Magic: #6 SF, #15 national. MEMPHIS COMMIT.
Analysis: “#18 in the country is for real. When Magic got the lead late, he had enough ball skills to be trusted handling to close the game out. He can finish and shoot the 3” (TC HOOPS CZAR).

“His game is very versatile in that he has the skill level to step out on the floor while the physique to bang on the block. I really think his true position is a face-up 4-man who can go inside and out. He shoots the 3 well enough you have to respect him, but his game really lights up when he drives the ball to the basket or posts his man from 12' and in. That's when his strength and athleticism take over” (ESPN).

Jaleel Williams – Texas D1 Ambassadors: Unranked. Offers from Washington, Gonzaga, Portland, and Washington State.
Analysis: “This big athletic wing is going to make somebody very happy at the D1 level and he had a bunch of coaches watching tonight” (TC HOOPS CZAR)

“Williams is an athletic, long-armed wing player. Jaleel excels when he has the ball in his hands and is making aggressive plays to the basket. He only needs a little bit of room to knife his way to the basket, and he can finish with highlight reel dunks on or over his opponents” (ESPN).

BJ Young – St. Louis GameFace: #4 PG, #18 national. ARKANSAS COMMIT.
Analysis: Strong slasher whose interest has risen this summer, but is unknown if he will qualify academically for college. (TC HOOPS CZAR)

“Young is a long, wiry and athletic guard that plays with a motor. BJ scores the majority of his points by breaking his defenders down with his tight ball handling skills and quick, explosive first step. When in triple threat position, BJ will use a jab and go or a jab and crossover step to get by his defender and get into the lane to make a play. BJ has good body control when in the air trying to finish lay-ups or shooting his floater” (ESPN).

*TC HOOPS CZAR can be read at www.tchoops.blogspot.com (great read on MN HS basketball)

*ESPN is ESPN’s basketball’s recruiting page


Recognizable coaches seen (tons of assistants for major universities were there):
Tom Crean – University of Indiana
Fred Hoiberg – Iowa State
Nate James – Duke University
Bruce Pearl – University of Tennessee
Jim Platt – Bradley University
Tubby Smith – University of Minnesota



Games that I attended:
Indiana Elite vs. Arkansas Wings
Wear Out the Nets vs. Team Saskatchewan
Wear Out the Nets vs. Minnesota Fury Gold
DC Assault vs. Memphis Select
Indiana Elite vs. Utah Pump-N-Run
California Pump-N-Run vs. Utah Pump-N-Run (electricity went out during game)
Indiana Elite vs. MN Pump-N-Run
California Pump-N-Run vs. MN Pump-N-Run
DC Assault vs. Arkansas Wings
Arkansas Wings vs. California Pump-N-Run

Interesting Notes:

*During the championship game, I sat next to Hunter Mickelson’s father, who is definitely not going to help his career go along. Mickelson’s father was yelling at refs, and warned several times, as well as screaming at Ky Madden because he didn’t pass it to Mickelson on the fast break, even if Madden passed to somebody else. I understand that it’s his father but he took things way too far by screaming at Madden.
*I have never entered a gym and seen so many people that are over the height of 6’5’’. I felt like a midget at my 6’0’’ height.
*I expected Indiana Elite to have a much better team than how they played during the tournament.
*Jim Platt of Bradley seems like a great guy and I’m glad that Bradley has brought in a strong set of assistants to the Bradley basketball program.
*Fred Hoiberg has one of the biggest hands of all the hands that I shook at the tournament but I guess that’s what made him a great shooter in the NBA.
*Tom Crean seemed to have a ton of connections to everyone inside the gymnasium, coaches or not.
*Bruce Pearl was there for one day but he made his presence felt by attending as many games on as many courts as possible.
*Local teams Wear Out the Nets and MN Pump-N-Run drew huge crowds.
*I wanted to watch BJ Young in his last game but the St. Louis Game Face decided to leave the tournament early and forfeited.
*Weirdest moment of the tournament was when the electricity went out at around 7 p.m., forcing games to be rescheduled to the following morning at around 8 a.m.

All-Tournament Team
G- Quinn Cook, DC Assault
G- Jeremiah Davis, Indiana Elite
G- Ky Madden, Arkansas Wings
G- Nigel Williams Goss, California Pump-N-Run
F- Cody Zeller, Indiana Elite

Inception - Movie Review

Mind Blowing. Thrilling. Ride of a lifetime. All of the action verbs and adjectives in the dictionary can barely describe the incredible essence of the movie Inception. Director Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight, Prestige, Memento, and Batman Begins) has established himself as one of the most innovative and smart filmmakers in today’s movie industry. Inception has already grossed $234 million, which is an amazing mark for a movie, in which most filmgoers had no background of the movie. Nolan showed his brilliance during the trailer when he left viewers wondering what they had just seen, which may have even captured more viewers. The mystery of Inception was half of the battle when watching the movie because it is such a concept idea. Another genius move by Nolan was casting Leonardo DiCaprio as the main character, an extremely popular and great actor. Rotten Tomatoes, a website that shows how popular movies are with film critics gave Inception an 87% mark, which is one of the highest marks in the last several years. The general consensus for Inception on Rotten Tomatoes is, “

Smart, innovative, and thrilling; Inception is that rare summer blockbuster that succeeds viscerally as well as intellectually".

I’m confident that Inception will be up for some top Oscar nominations. Nolan took over eight years to write this masterpiece (right after Memento), but it is one of the most well written movies I’ve ever seen. To anyone that hasn’t seen the movie so far, I recommend this movie to anyone that is willing to sit through long movie but it is definitely worth every single minute. Inception is a thrilling ride and it goes down as one of my favorite movies in the past five years.

*Spoilers begin here*

Nolan starts off the movie by confusing the viewers by placing them right in the middle of one of their dreams. Once you first see Cobb (DiCaprio) in the dream, and then you see him in real life sleeping, it confuses the audience because they want to discover what is going on right away. Nolan continues to test the audience’s patience as they attempt to discover Cobb’s past as well as their current mission. Nolan finally rewards the audience when they introduce Ariadne (Ellen Page) and as Cobb introduces Ariadne to the inception and dream process, he is also guiding the audience to how it all works. The introduction of ideas to Ariadne also reveals the inner problems that Cobb has been facing his entire life and the reason that he needs a team of dreamers instead of just himself to complete missions. The final mission provides many different plots as Cobb and Ariadne attempt to escape the dream and Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) attempts to make a maze and help everyone receive the kick to jump out of the dream. Most of the movie’s analysis is going to come down to the final scene whether Cobb’s totem is going to fall or stay up.

My take on Inception is that Cobb is dreaming at the end of the movie, thus the totem stayed spinning, and it is unknown whether Mal is correct on her jump to death to escape the dream. Cobb’s inception of the idea that Mal must die to hit reality stays within her brain after they escape the first dream, but in Cobb’s real life she continues that they must die to hit her reality. Cobb’s guiltiness is what drives his inner feelings throughout the movie. After dying, Saito had fallen into the limbo, where he has been stuck for hundreds of years but at the end of the movie, I believe Cobb is imagining that he meets Saito because I don’t believe that Cobb can jump into another person’s limbo. The big catch for me, is that because the main level of the movie ended up being a dream for Cobb (my take on the movie), the entire movie was Cobb’s imagination and that none of the movie was particularly real life. What makes this movie excellent is the amazing acting by all the actors, and the ability of Nolan to make people think in ways that they have never before.

Future projects for Christopher Nolan include the third and final installment of the Batman series that he started and made one of the most popular movie series. Nolan has already commented that the Joker will not be present in the final Batman film. After Batman, he will shift his focus to a Superman movie that he says will have a different perspective than any other Superman movie before.

Mayweather is hiding

Two of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world, Floyd Mayweather (41-0-0, 25 knockouts) and Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 knockouts) have failed to agree on a deal to fight November 13 at the Dallas Cowboys stadium. It is widely agreed that if these two fighters agree on a fight, it will be the biggest fight in boxing history according to pay-per-view numbers and the amount of money that each fighter would receive from the fight.

In December of 2009, the Mayweather and Pacquiao camps were in talks to have their superfight on March 13, 2010. However, Floyd Mayweather’s uncle Roger Mayweather has openly accused Pacquiao of taking steroids, and the Mayweather camp said they would only agree to a deal if both fighters agreed to ‘Olympic-style’ drug testing up to ten days before the fight. Pacquiao agreed to take random urine and blood tests but only up to thirty days before the fight because he claimed that the loss of blood would make him feel weak that close to the fight. The random urine and blood tests that Pacquiao attempted for were much more strict than the current testing of the Nevada State Athletics Commission. However, Mayweather didn’t consider the testing a negotiable matter and both fighters decided to fight different fighters (Pacquiao fought Joshua Clottey and Mayweather fought Shane Mosley). Bob Arum, Pacquiao’s promoter, disagreed with Mayweather’s camp to cancel the fight,

“It's terrible. Mayweather and his people have never cared about the good of boxing and it is Manny that has brought boxing back. Is this a loss for boxing? Is this a missed opportunity? Of course it is."

Mayweather’s camp wanted to show the public that it was Manny Pacquiao as the person that didn’t want to agree to terms that Mayweather would have also done for the fight,

"Let the record be clear: Manny Pacquiao and his promoter, Bob Arum, are threatening to walk away from the largest fight in history. It is disappointing for us to see that the benefits of blood testing, and the fact that many different substances and procedures can only be detected by blood testing, are still not fully understood by all."

Both camps left the table with possibility that the ‘superfight’ was still possible in the future.

Fast forward to the current day, and Floyd Mayweather has just backed out of the fight against Pacquiao after Pacquiao changed his mind on blood testing and was willing to do blood tests up to ten days before the fight and a 50-50 split on the money proceeds. Bob Arum placed a Friday deadline on the fight, and it passed without word from the Mayweather camp (Pacquiao will now fight Antonio Margarito in November). The Mayweather denied that the Pacquiao camp ever contacted them and that they would only agree to a deal on their terms, Oscar De La Hoya, former boxer and now working with Golden Boy Promotions (Floyd Mayweather’s promotions) said there were talks between the two camps and that they were very close to a deal in June. Nobody wants to accept the responsibility for being the camp that backed out of the deal so it’s both sides pointing fingers at each other, but who really is telling the truth?

In my opinion, it’s Floyd Mayweather who is ducking the fight. Imagine if you’re Manny Pacquiao. You haven’t lost since 2005, and you have beaten some of the top fighters in boxing: Marco Antonio Barrera, Oscar De la Hoya, and Miguel Cotto. All of sudden you become of the top two boxers in the sport, and the other top boxer first accuses you of taking steroids. Next he wants you to submit to a rigorous blood testing before the fight. Most people are going to think that if you have nothing to hide, why wouldn’t you submit to the testing, but if you are clean your entire life why should you let someone who is falsely accusing you to run the way you have done things. Now in the current day, you are a busy politician that upset one of the top incumbents and now to continue your fighting career, you agree to everything the top boxer wants you to, yet he still refuses! Floyd Mayweather hides behind his undefeated record, as it’s the only way he can be considered one of the top fighters. This isn’t to take away from Mayweather as he is one of the quickest, agile and greatest defensive fighters that ever lived, but he hasn’t faced a quality opponent in years. He fought Oscar De la Hoya after he was falling off of his peak, and won in a split decision. Mayweather won that fight by backing off of De la Hoya the entire fight, and using his quickness to win each round, but was never looking for the knockout or the affirmative attacks. Next, Mayweather fought Ricky Hatton, who was vastly undersized and in the wrong weight class when he fought Mayweather before being knocked out. Hatton was also undefeated but he went up a weight class to challenge Mayweather. Next, Mayweather fought Juan Manuel Marquez, who also went up a weight class and Mayweather to maintain his edge showed up to the weigh-in two pounds overweight, and although it doesn’t seem like a lot, it can be a huge difference in Mayweather keeping on some muscle. Finally, after Mayweather couldn’t agree with Pacquiao, he fought Shane Mosley, who hasn’t been very successful in this decade and almost knocked out Mayweather in the early rounds before succumbing to Mayweather’s speed. Mayweather is ducking the fighters that he has a chance to lose to because he is hiding behind his undefeated record. Mayweather refused to fight Miguel Cotto at one point (after his fight versus Hatton, the public wanted to see him fight Cotto but Mayweather went into a one-year retirement), but Cotto eventually lost to Antonio Margarito and later on Manny Pacquiao. Mayweather refuses to fight anyone that can push his loss record to one, and I’m not saying that Mayweather would lose to Pacquiao but I think it would be his toughest fight in years and that he is scared of the possibility that he could lose. Mayweather can’t go down as one of the top fighters if he is going to keep ducking other fighters.

Cliff Lee/Roy Oswalt

Seattle received: 1B Justin Smoak, SP Blake Beavan, RP Josh Lueke, and 2B Matthew Lawson
Texas received: SP Cliff Lee, RP Mike Lowe, and $2.5 million

Other Offers:
Minnesota: Wilson Ramos and Aaron Hicks
Yankees: Jesus Montero, David Adams, and Zach McAllister
Rays: Wade Davis and Desmond Jennings
Phillies: Domonic Brown
White Sox: Gordon Beckham


March 5, 2010, Texas Rangers legend Nolan Ryan made a bold prediction. Ryan predicted that the Texas Rangers, who haven’t been a factor since Alex Rodriguez left town, would win the division and at least 92 games.

"I just feel like that's a number that this ballclub should be able to reach. It's hard to sit here before we play a spring game and predict, but I feel like we have the depth and talent and we're capable of doing that.”

As of July 20, 2010, the Texas Rangers are on pace to win about 95 games and lead the division over the Los Angeles Angles by five games. Rewind time to July 9th, and you can notice the change that the Ranger management feels about this team, as they add superstar pitcher Cliff Lee. The Rangers pushed this season ‘all-in‘ as they parted ways with top prospect Justin Smoak. The Rangers once considered Smoak an untouchable prospect, but this move shows that they are going in a different direction than the past and hoping to make a strong playoff run. Surprising move by the Mariners turning down one of the best hitting catcher prospects in baseball in Jesus Montero, but I predict the main concern was that Montero is unable to be a Major League catcher for the next couple of years as he works on his defense. The Minnesota Twins made an interesting offer, as they usually don’t trade their prospects for middle of the season deals. Ramos hasn’t been the same hitter since his first two games in the Majors, and Aaron Hicks is still developing but isn’t ready for the Majors right away, as the Mariners were asking for. The Rays made an intriguing offer but Jennings is only a couple of years removed from an injury and the Mariners didn’t see that one stack up against the Yankees and Rangers very well. The Phillies quickly took their offer off the table as they now search for a trade partner to take Jayson Werth off their hands to promote Domonic Brown to the Majors. Brown has a lot of potential and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him as the next Jason Heyward as he shows tremendous power and speed. Overall, the Mariners made a smart decision by trading Lee to the Ranges, as they lost all their bargaining chips as the season progressed. The Mariners were in last place and have a zero percent chance of signing him in the offseason anyways. Props to the Mariners GM for making the most out of a horrible situation, and the Rangers GM did a great job-hunting the main prize on the trading block.

Now the big question is whether Cliff Lee provides a significant enough upgrade to help the Rangers jump from division title contenders to World Series contenders. The answer has to be no, because Cliff Lee can’t pitch every single game in the postseason. Count me as one of the skeptics of the Rangers pitching staff that includes: Tommy Hunter, CJ Wilson, Colby Lewis, and Scott Feldman. None of those pitchers scare another team so much that they go into the game thinking that they better get a couple of hits to win. Although the Rangers have a dangerous lineup, when the weather becomes cold in October, the bats always seem to die down, and that’s where pitching becomes one of the most important factors in the playoffs. This becomes even more important because their first round matchup will most likely be against the AL wild-card winner which looks to be the Tampa Bay Rays or Boston Red Sox at this point, two teams with strong pitching staffs and lineups that I would put over the Rangers with Cliff Lee. It was a good move by the Rangers to put them in the playoffs but no way I see this team advancing to the World Series.

All the prospects:
Justin Smoak
Smoak was drafted eleventh in the 2008 draft, and could have been drafted higher if not for high salary demands. One of baseball’s top magazines wrote that Smoak had “Gold Glove-caliber actions and soft hands", as well as "advanced footwork and instincts at first base.” Smoak’s high potential enabled him to receive a $3.5 million signing bonus. Also, Smoak was a Texas Mid-season All-Star in 2009, as well as showing strong power at the plate in the Majors this season, ten home runs with 38 RBIs, but he is struggling with plate discipline 38 walks to 71 strikeouts, but that is expected with many young power hitters.
Blake Beavan
Beavan was drafted in the first round in the 2007 draft out of high school. Beavan finished his senior year with a 9-2 record, 0.19 ERA and 139 strikeouts. Beavan’s first minor league campaign went fairly successful going 10-6 with a 2.37 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 121.2 innings. He only did decent in 2009 but was dominating this season going 10-5 with a 2.78 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 110 innings before the trade.
Josh Lueke
Lueke has been a player that hasn’t found much success in the minor leagues until this season. Lueke had three career wins in his 69 appearances entering the season but already has accumulated four this year. Also, Lueke suffered an injury last season that limited him to only four appearances. Leuke is a hard-throwing pitcher that relies on a lot of strikeouts but he may find it tougher to find success as he moves up the rank to the eventual goal of the Major Leagues.
Matthew Lawson
Lawson is never going to put up the power numbers of the top second basemen in the Majors right now, but Lawson has the potential to be a strong serviceable second baseman in a couple of years. Lawson made a minor league All-Star team last year, but hasn’t had the same success at the plate this year, mostly due to a strong focus on plate discipline as he struck out 127 times in 478 at-bats in 2009.

Houston Astros SP Roy Oswalt is now the most coveted player on the trading block before the deadline on July 31. Adrian Gonzalez was suppose to be the top player before the Padres decided to become a great ballclub this year due to fantastic pitching. Looking at Oswalt’s statistics, you don’t see a number one pitcher: 6-11 and a 3.12 ERA. The key for Oswalt’s new team is to keep him in the NL because he probably won’t have the same success in the AL, but Oswalt is a dominating pitcher, but doesn’t have the run support to show it. Take away three of his 19 starts, and you have a pitcher who hasn’t given up more than three runs in a game, earned or unearned. Also, Oswalt has thrown 117 strikeouts in 124 innings, so he has taken it in his own hands to get outs that have to be something in the minds of teams trying to acquire him. The top two teams in the Oswalt race are the Philadelphia Phillies, who traded Cliff Lee in the offseason, and the St. Louis Cardinals. Oswalt prefers the Cardinals but the big twist is that he demands any team that acquires him to pick up his $16 million option for next season. Both the Cardinals and the Phillies already have high payrolls and don’t want to put on another $16 million, especially if Oswalt falters at the end of this season. Oswalt is worth then number one rotation money, but the Cardinals and Phillies have already used their top pitching money on their own aces. Especially the Phillies who traded Cliff Lee away so they wouldn’t lose him or have to pay his expected enormous contract next season. Also, the Phillies talks are based on the fact that they can trade away OF Jayson Werth to another team to open up some more money for Oswalt. Oswalt’s demands are going to force the Astros to throw in some money for a team to take Oswalt off their hands, but that takes away the leverage that Oswalt wanted to force his way to St. Louis. If I had a prediction for what is going to happen by July 31, I would have to say that Oswalt will remain an Astro, and that the Cardinals and Phillies will fight over Dan Haren, who will garner more interest thanks to Roy Oswalt wanting more money. However, according to mlbtraderumors.com (great website), the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers are exchanging prospect names for a possible trade, but with the pending divorce case of the McCourts, I can’t foresee the Dodgers making any big splashes before the deadline. Also from mlbtraderumors.com, the Minnesota Twins are out of the running on Oswalt, and Dan Haren has Minnesota on his no-trade list, so don’t expect the Twins to attempt for any big name pitchers at the break after losing out on Cliff Lee.

LeBron James and much more

LeBron James. This name has become more than a basketball player, blooming to an enterprise/marketing dream. Everyone around the NBA knew this was going to be a special offseason, with the daily talks about where each player was going to go (more on this degrading sense of journalism later), the free-agents becoming more popular than the teams with the ‘summit’ talks, and how two of the top five players in the NBA were eligible to join any team that they pleased. On June 4th, approximately twenty-six days before teams were allowed to talk with LeBron, LeBron went on CNN’s Larry King Live to talk about his upcoming free-agency. I watched this interview again after his decision to join the forces in Miami, and you can tell during that interview that Miami was easily the route that he wanted to go, but I think he just didn’t believe that a team could afford all three of the top free agents and still have money left over for anyone else on the team. LeBron claimed that he wasn’t joining a team to win a championship, but he wanted to win multiple championships. I don’t believe LeBron cares about all of the legacy talks, but would rather win the elusive ring, that has evaded him in his first seven years. Although he knew that he was going to be criticized for leaving Cleveland after he has been there his entire life, and how the Cleveland organization has tried everything to get LeBron back into Cleveland, the opportunity of a ‘super team’ was one that he couldn’t pass up.

The Change in Journalism
I feel a need to comment on the way journalism has changed in the past five years, even though the new media has dramatically changed sports coverage in the past twenty years. However, with the role of twitter, and the greed of journalists these days hoping that they will be right, it has changed the anonymous sources credibility from trustworthy to just barely more credible than the old grandpa that lives across the street. The most horrible example, besides LeBron, was when Chris Henry fell off of his girlfriend’s pickup truck and hit his head. It was unknown that night of the severity of his fall but most outlets were reporting that he was in critical condition. On Twitter, a Cincinnati Enquirer reporter (I don’t remember his name) reported that Henry had died from the fall, while ESPN’s Adam Schefter (the NFL’s top reporter, follow him on Twitter if you want all the NFL news, because it usually goes through him) refuted the Cincinnati Enquirer’s report that he was dead. After midnight, most outlets had to make a choice of which side of the story that they would share with their viewers, and all of them took the critical condition route, because journalists are never suppose to report that people are dead without strong confirmation (example: Michael Jackson was reported in a coma for two hours before being reported dead by most outlets, however Jackson stopped breathing before paramedics arrived at the scene), and nearly every outlet is going to take Schefter’s take on the rumors compared to any other NFL source out there. Back to Twitter, the Cincinnati Enquirer reporter took a jab at Schefter saying that he wanted a written apology from Schefter by noon for refuting his story. Later on, Schefter refused, saying that the reporter was blatantly wrong. By the next morning, Chris Henry was now confirmed to be dead, and what does the Cincinnati Enquirer reporter tweet? He reported that everyone should be thanking him for being right, that Schefter is a moron, and that he deserves a raise for sticking by his story. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? This reporter is celebrating the fact that he guessed someone would die, and wants recognition for it? This is exactly what I mean by journalism is a lost art these days.

A credible source
Back to LeBron, how tiresome can “unnamed sources”, “a source close to the situation”, or anyone else that is not close to LeBron get when people are only guessing where he will go. Stephen A. Smith reported the Heat right before July 1st for Wade, Bosh, and LeBron. However, if you read Smith’s reports closely, you will see that he wasn’t fully behind “his source that has never been wrong” with quotes such as: “I got a call last night from a source and I double-checked it with another and they told me essentially that LeBron James and Chris Bosh are going to tag team and go together and join Dwyane Wade in Miami,” and “I believe it’s highly likely, I wouldn’t say anything is a done deal with LeBron James until it’s signed.” With words such as ‘essentially’ and ‘highly likely’, Smith leaves himself an out in case that he is wrong. Why would he leave himself outs if his source has never been wrong? My point is that true journalism is declining rapidly, because Smith use to be one of the best NBA reporters. However, during the LeBron saga, I heard reports that he would be going to Miami, Cleveland, Chicago, New York, and New Jersey all respectively. My wish is that reporters would be held up to what they said and that all of these so-called journalists would take responsibility for putting up fake rumors. Also, I’m sick of unnamed sources, if you want to take credit for being right on LeBron, stick your name out there and let the world see if you truly are a good source.

Worst Interview Ever
Another point that needs to be made was that “The Decision” on ESPN became one of the worst PR-stunts for a high-profile athlete due to the fact that the viewers had to wait 25 long and boring minutes for LeBron to announce his decision to go to South Beach, as well as the horrible interview by Jim Gray. Check out some of these Q and A’s:
(First question) Q: Are you ready to go LeBron? Where is the powder?
A: Left it at home.
-- Is he ready? He decided to make this the most highly publicized free agency of all-time, as well as deciding to announce his decision on a one-hour ESPN special, and you ask if he is ready?

Q: What’s new? What’s been going on with you this summer?
A: Man, this whole free agent experience, looking forward to it.
-- Has Jim Gray been hiding under a rock? LeBron had his own ESPN and SI page to update the current rumors of him. Everybody else heard what LeBron ate for breakfast everyday, and Jim Gray asks what’s been going on this summer?

Q: One hand or two hands [describing how many people know of his decision]?
A: Let’s say one.
-- He is waiting for you to ask where he is going next fall so he can announce his decision to the world, why do I care how many people he told before the press conference. Does it really matter who has the inside information when he is about to say it in two minutes?

(Last question before announcing his decision) Q: Are you still a nail biter?
A: I have a little bit. Not of late.
-- When during the LeBron saga did people ever question if he still bit his fingernails? Does biting fingernails mean Cleveland and not mean Miami?
I remember sitting on my couch, watching the interview and asking around the room, if Jim Gray was really seriously asking if he still bites his nails. I want to know the details that I haven’t learned in the past month of all-LeBron coverage. I understand that Jim Gray was hired by the LeBron James camp, and doesn’t work for ESPN anymore, but for a person that was once criticized for ripping on Pete Rose (Check out a story of it the next day); he has certainly changed with the times and threw out bigger softballs than the beer leagues on Friday nights. Only a couple of weeks later, the British media grills Tiger Woods on Doctor Anthony Galea and his possible HGH usage, his divorce, and his sex addiction. Those are the answers that I want to learn form an interview. Its increasingly frustrating that everyone was anticipating the end of the LeBron saga, and Jim Gray decides it would be a perfect time to kill more brain cells than I lost trying to figure out if LeBron was going to Cleveland or Miami. Interviews in the past were used to figure out essential information in learning the brains behind the idea, but Jim Gray’s interview of LeBron has to go down as the worst interview of all-time considering the time and place of it.

Traitor
When I first heard that LeBron was going to announce his decision on ESPN, I immediately believed that there was no way that he could leave Cleveland by announcing his decision on national television. This move has to put LeBron equal to or above the decision of Art Modell to move the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore. Cleveland basketball fans understand that the Cavaliers had a chance every single year to win a title, and they were about one or two small pieces from having a chance to be there, but losing your homegrown talent on a national televised interview, where LeBron started talking about what he has done for Cleveland and not the other way around has to be a huge stab in the heart. This same fear was spoken by Minnesota Twins fans, after Joe Mauer’s pending free agency next season started rumors that the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees would offer around $200-$250 million. The Twins have lost perennial All-Stars in Johan Santana and Torii Hunter but they didn’t have the magnitude of the possibility of homegrown Joe Mauer would have had, had Mauer signed elsewhere in the offseason. LeBron James takes a huge risk as he loses his personal legacy as being considered the greatest basketball player of all-time for the opportunity to form the greatest dynasty in NBA history (Bosh, Wade, and LeBron will be together for the next six years). Cavalier owner Dan Gilbert ripped LeBron to shreds in his letter that I have never seen before, but it was a letter that reassured Cavaliers fans that Gilbert wasn’t an owner that was going to sit back and watch LeBron leave right in front of his face. Although he has a hefty $100,000 fine to pay, it was one that needed to be made to assure Cavalier fans that they will pursue winning next season and not enter rebuilding mode.

Future
When the LeBron saga ended, I don’t know if anyone else felt this way but I have less respect for LeBron as a person for the way he handled his free agency. The typical way would have been the Kevin Durant way, as he signed an extension and it was quietly announced on Twitter. A simple press release was all that was needed to announce that Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade were headed to Miami. However, LeBron made his announcement bigger than the game itself, which made me lose respect for him as a person. With LeBron trading his personal legacy in for a chance to win rings, but proving that he needed two more All-Stars to have the chance puts Kobe Bryant on a much bigger pedestal in my book for sticking with the Lakers after Shaquille O’Neal left, and has started his own dynasty. Also, I will be bold and say that the Lakers are still the heavy favorites over the Miami Heat, until the Heat get better bench help.

Michael Jordan
In recent news, Michael Jordan made headlines for saying, “There's no way, with hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry [Bird], called up Magic [Johnson] and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team.” I don’t understand how this made headlines though, as Jordan is known for being one of the fiercest competitors who ever lived. Look at his Hall of Fame speech where he dissed Jeff Van Gundy and Bryon Russell among other people. It shouldn’t be surprising that Jordan doesn’t approve of the game’s top players having a free agent summit and then teaming up for the same team. Although Jordan had Scottie Pippen, there was no doubt that the Chicago Bulls were always going to be associated with Michael Jordan’s legacy compared to Michael Jordan plus any other player. I understand that anything Jordan says is going to catch people’s attention but the media needs to learn how to filter vital information against regular information.

Final Thoughts
Although I don’t agree with the way that LeBron handled his decision to go to Miami by putting Cleveland fans through this entire process ending it with a national television special without saying goodbye, it definitely gives him a better chance to win a championship. Do I think he will win a championship next season? As of right now, not a chance. The Los Angeles Lakers are still head and shoulders above everyone else, especially if they are healthy by the playoffs next season. In the Eastern Conference, I think it is a three-team race, starting with the Orlando Magic then the Miami Heat and followed by the Boston Celtics. The Heat really struggled when they attempted to sway Derek Fisher to leave the Lakers for the Heat, but without a strong point guard (Wade and LeBron are slashers, not point guards) and without a center to help Bosh in the frontcourt, I can’t picture this team winning a championship. Also, the bench isn’t strong enough to help the Heat if a star were to be injured or help win games by themselves. It should be an exciting NBA season next year, and I’m sure the Miami fans are counting down the days. However, it has to be said that the first time LeBron returns to Cleveland, it should be one of the nastiest sport star returns to former team appearances in the history of sports.

Thank you for reading this super long post, and I promise that not all posts will be this long. The LeBron summer had a sour taste in my mouth and I had a lot of thoughts that I wanted to put on paper. Thanks again.

My Vision

Hello to everyone reading Bobby’s Beats. I’m Bobby Nightengale and as of this first post, I’m a nineteen-year-old sophomore at Bradley University, majoring in Sports Communications. Everyone I have spoken with about gaining experience in the sports field has mentioned writing and getting your ideas onto the Internet through twitter, blogs and the numerous resources available these days. This blog will be my official opinion website on the current sports world and anything else that is happening across the world that may not be related to sports (I also have a minor in Political Science). Through this blog, I hope to provide insight that you won’t be able to find on other blogs and websites, while I’ll try to keep most of this professional to use as a writing sample in the future. My goal is to update this blog about three times a week during the summer and school breaks, while updating it about five times a week during the school year when I have more time to write. My goals after graduating with a Sports Communications degree is to become a broadcaster for one specific team or a high-profile television channel. My passion for sports lies in the four main sports (baseball, football, basketball, and hockey), however college basketball and baseball have to be my two top of the line favorites. I don’t favor any baseball team much more than another, as long as they are enjoyable to watch, however, I’m a die-hard Duke Blue Devil fan (2010 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!). Also, I want to be able to realize a passion of coaching that I have for basketball, baseball and possibly football. I want to be able to become a college coach (big or small school), and add to my X and O’s knowledge of each of the sports. Hopefully you will have as much fun reading my writing as I will expressing my opinions, whether they will be in the majority or extremely controversial. Also, feel free to leave comments on any of my posts and I will do my best to respond to all of them. Thanks for reading, and I hope you will find yourself checking back everyday for more posts.