RIP Tiger Stadium

By Rick Morris

One of America's finest ballparks -- nay, finest overall landmarks -- is biting the dust tonight, another shameful development in a world that only values the brand new. The demolition of Tiger Stadium is now underway and the people of the Detroit area are being sold a bill of goods about how the destruction of this proud, historic structure will benefit the greater good in terms of redevelopment.

A look at the history of the region and the deterioration of the Motor City into a Third World economy should tell us all that the tales spun to sell this great lie should never have been given any credence. Now, I fully admit to being a mark for classic ballparks, and for that matter, old-school stadiums and arenas of all types -- but my own biases aside, this is a sad day for anyone who was ever invested in this great park in any way. I never made it to a game at Tiger Stadium, but, notwithstanding the fact that I have also never been a Tigers fan, I listened to countless games broadcast from there via the dulcet tones of Ernie Harwell on AM 750 across the Great Lakes. I wish that the efforts of the local preservationists had been given a chance and that the park could have been refashioned somehow as a living piece of history. Instead, the corrupt local politicians have torn down one of the only institutions worth saving in that once-great American city.

RIP Tiger Stadium.

MLB power rankings for end of June

By Rick Morris

Here’s a current assessment of where the teams in Major League Baseball sit at the moment, along with a notation of how many spots they are up or down since our last installment on May 29:

TOP TIER (legitimate playoff contenders)

1. Boston (+2)

2. Chicago Cubs (+4)

3. L.A. Angels (-1)

4. Arizona (-3)

5. Tampa Bay (EVEN)

6. Chicago White Sox (+2)

7. Philadelphia (EVEN)

8. New York Yankees (+7)

9. Minnesota (+5)

10. St. Louis (EVEN)

11. Milwaukee (+9)

12. Oakland (-3)

SECOND TIER (teams on the fringe of contention at best)
13. Florida (-9)

14. Detroit (+5)

15. L.A. Dodgers (+2)

16. Atlanta (-3)

17. New York Mets (-1)

18. Texas (+4)

19. Cleveland (-1)

20. Kansas City (+6)

21. Baltimore (EVEN)

THIRD TIER (teams who are out of it)

22. Toronto (-11)

23. Cincinnati (EVEN)

24. Houston (-12)

25. Pittsburgh (-1)

FOURTH TIER (the worst of the worst)

26. Colorado (-1)

27. San Diego (+2)

28. San Francisco (+2)

29. Washington (-1)

30. Seattle (-3)

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part VII

By Rick Morris

It's main event time as John Cena and Triple Haitch (in the fine words of the man's man, Mr. Regal) square off for the WWE Title. Lots of power moves early and fairly little finesse, much as you'd expect. This isn't going to be Misterio-Guerrero Halloween Havoc '97, people.

As you'd expect, the majority of the crowd seems to be on the side of Paul errrr Hunter. Neither man is staying on offense for very long. Both times Cena went to hit You Can't See Me, he played to a largely booing crowd and Hunter ended up back on offense. HHH got flipped over the top rope and appeared to land awkwardly with his leg against the ring steps. Cena started working the leg relentlessly. Well, however belatedly, the match at least has some flow to it now. Cena kept working the leg, only to have HHH hit a Pedigree but not cover him swiftly. Cena hit the FU but could not get the three-count. Apparently they are using old-school All Japan booking where several finishers will be needed.

Dueling chants ensued as the two pummeled each other -- this is now a very hot crowd. Cena took the advantage on HHH and hit the Five-Knuckle Shuffle after You Can't See Me. HHH went for the Pedigree shortly thereafter only to be reversed into the STFU. After a long while, HHH got to the ropes only to be pulled back to mid-ring. HHH then put Cena into the, yes, the Crossface. Cena got to his feet to put HHH into the FU, only to get reversed into the Pedrigree. 1-2-3 and HHH retains the title and, presumably, takes it to Smackdown. HHH is still selling the knee, so Mike Ptak is speculating a held-up title that will be filled on Raw. What happens? Tune in tomorrow night. Well, I won't necessarily, I'll be watching the Cleveland Gladiators Arena Football playoff game, but I guess the idea is for all of you to tune in!

BELFI - Night of Champions - Cena vs. Triple H

By Paul Belfi

Obviously Cena HAS to win this match... we'll see what happens. It is 10:16 as I write this. I will update following the match. BTW, since I haven't blasted Ptak in a while, let me see he's a bald-headed bastard who was last seen at a Wal Mart getting $10 for an autograph.

Oh hay-ell NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

+++++++++++++++

10:33 -- I am digging the 'physicality' of this match so far... solid 'power work' by Cena and Trips. Both are selling well.

+++++++++++++++

10:41 -- A FANTASTIC match and I am STUNNED (well, not really) that Trips won... but it was a great match and - overall - a very fun PPV this evening.

Looking forward to RAW tomorrow night.

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part VI

By Rick Morris

The Edge vs. Batista match for the World Title was decent, but fairly stale in light of their past matches and the fact that these two don't have the best in-ring chemistry (not JBL-Batista bad or Booker-Batista bad, but not great). Each hit some high-impact moves before the predictable screwjob sequence at the end with Edge's entire posse getting involved -- including Vickie getting out of the wheelchair to break up a three-count only to be pitched from the ring onto all of her compatriots! The interference allows Edge to waffle Batista with the belt leading to the pinfall. Afterwards, the announcers resumed the "Owen voice" to talk about the tragedy of Batista leaving Smackdown in such a manner. It wasn't even "it was what it was."

BELFI - Night of Champions - Edge vs. Batista

By Paul Belfi

Sorry I missed the women's match -- I heard it was excellent. I had to take a phone call.

Anyway... as I write this, I am calling for a Batista loss. Edge HAS to keep his title on SMACKDOWN and Cena has to WIN so there is a major title on the top 2 brands.

So there it is... it is 9:47pm Eastern now and the world's longest ring entrance isn't over yet. Oy.

OK, the match ended and as I predicted, Batista had to lose. But the crowd got what they wanted-- seeing Vicki get thrown from the ring.

Props to Vicki for going through with that -- she is a LEGIT heat magnet -- good for her. Personally, I am glad she has established her own identity in the company of being a TRUE heel GM vs. Eddie's widow. Good for her.

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part V

By Rick Morris

Mickie James defends the Women's Title against Katie Lea. If it makes me a piggish male, so be it, but this is surely the finest clash of pulchritude ever seen in a women's title match.

I can't believe I'm saying this, because these are usually the bathroom break matches, but this was an excellent match with lots of good offense (probably because these women were actually trained as workers instead of being lingerie models who couldn't wrestle their way out of a paper bag). Both ladies worked hard to deliver what might have been the best WWE women's match of the year (damning with faint praise, I know). Mickie hits the Deep Implant Silicone DDT for the pinfall.

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part IV

By Rick Morris

JBL cuts a promo up in his luxury box getting cheap heat on the economic woes of Texas and the American people .... then Y2J cuts a lengthy promo in ring about how he is defying the people BLAH BLAH BLAH.

Finally, Kofi Kingston makes the surprise appearance to challenge Jericho. A very good match ensues, with plenty of good offense on both sides. Kingston got some very believable near-falls on Jericho before Jericho got the Walls of Jericho locked on. Shawn Michaels comes out of the crowd, Lance Cade is waiting for him, but eats Sweet Chin Music. Michaels jumps up on the apron, only to be knocked off by Jericho, only to have Kingston give Jericho his Jumping Kick to the Grill once he turns around. 1-2-3, new I-C champion, and now maybe the move of Kingston to Raw makes a bit more sense. Afterwards, Jericho punches Michaels in the eye, leading to much rolling around and writhing by HBK on the floor.

Edge then gives a pep talk to his crew backstage about how he is going to dominate Batista ... this should be called the Night of Endless Droning Promos.

BELFI - Night of Champions - Jericho vs. ???

By Paul Belfi

AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME JBL promo prior to this match - JBL is a great heel. VIVA MAMAJUANA!!!!

Jericho steps into the ring and starts to cut a promo - we all wait to hear who the 'surprise opponent' is going to be. I love Jericho as a heel. His promos are special - and are textbook.

KOFI KINGSTON is the mystery opponent - I like it!

So far... this is an excellent match and Jericho is making Kofi look good - as he should.

KOFI WINS THE STRAP!!!!

MATCH OF THE NIGHT so far!!!!!

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part III

By Rick Morris

Kane defends the ECW Title in a three-way "Monster Match" against Big Show and Mark Henry. For a superheavyweight slugfest, it was not a horrible match. Decent offense back and forth -- and it ended with Kane suplexing Big Show off the top rope only to end up getting splashed by Henry for the three-count and the title.

In the next match, Cody Rhodes and Hardcore Holly came out for their World Tag Team Title match against Ted Dibiase and his mystery partner. The mystery partner did not show and Dibiase started the match alone against Rhodes -- before Dibiase demanded that Holly tag in ... are you seeing where this was going? Good, because so was Helen Keller by this point. Rhodes ambushes his partner, Dibiase comes in and puts Holly in the Million Dollar Dream into a Russian legsweep (pretty cool sequence, actually) and gets the win. Rhodes and Dibiase are the new champions.

BELFI - Night of Champions - Holly/Rhodes vs. DiBiase/???

By Paul Belfi

DiBiase is selling that his partner is running late, so the match starts out as a 2-on-1 with an immediate swerve as Cody Rhodes turns heel and nails a sweet looking DDT on Hardcore Holly.

DiBiase drops two moves on Holly and he (along with Cody Rhodes) are your new world tag team champs.

This was fast, but effective. Stevie Wonder saw it coming a mile away but who cares? I liked it.

BTW - I hit the throne during the ECW championship match - Nessie has arrived.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

BELFI - Night of Champions - Mark Henry vs. Big Show vs. Kane

By Paul Belfi

So far I am having a splendid time at Harpo's 'reporting' on the PPV. *cough*

This live blogging thing is aiight. Now then, on to our next match...

This match hugs the root so far... but man, Big Show is in tremendous shape. Good for him. You can tell he's working at it.

BTW... is it bad that I am too lazy to get up during this match and take a dump? I am about to leave Nessie in some poor toilet.

Mark Henry (aka the 'self-proclaimed' Silver Back -- 'monkey want a nana?') is an ugly human being. Seriously. I am shocked Mae Young opened her legs for him all those years ago.

And... he just won the ECW heavyweight championship of the world. What a step up the ladder of success.

*cough*

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part II

By Rick Morris

Matt Hardy and Chavo Guerrero had a pretty good technical match for the U.S. Title. As he did during the first match when he was invoking old-time stuff just to show off, Jim Ross spit out a bunch of pablum about how Hardy's U.S. Title had the lineage of Bobo Brazil, Roddy Piper, etc.

It was a pretty good technical match, nothing too special. Chavo looked to be going for the Three Amigos suplexes when Hardy hit the Twist of Fate out of nowhere for the three-count.

Now they're running a video package highlighting the McMahon Money giveaway and it ends, of course, with the footage of "Mr. McMahon's accident." Now we get to see the announcers do the "Owen voice" when we come back for the next match. Isn't that lovely. And Belfi thinks my "Chavo text messages" blast was out of line!

BELFI - Night of Champions - Chavo vs. Matt Hardy

By Paul Belfi

Now THIS match could be f&%$&king excellent IF they get the time to deliver what they do best - wrestle.

Matt Hardy in ECW is a big fish in a little pond but frankly, I don't care. More Matt Hardy is a good thing - I never thought I'd see the day that I would push for Matt getting a world title run BEFORE his brother Jeff, but that is exactly what I want to see. Nobody deserves it more. Besides, his ring entrance music is awesome.

:-)

As Mike Ptak says to me repeatedly, 'I love, and will always love, Matt Hardy.' [Insert Price Is Right tuba here].

Just bumped into an old 'friend' - Sonny the DJ. Sonny has a speech impediment due to being partially deaf. Yes, I said he was a DJ. For the sake of comparison - picture BIG SHOW cutting a promo with a mouth of marbles - that's how Sonny talks. AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA - worst f&%&king DJ walking the planet Earth, but a nice guy.

A short match - but enjoyable. My main man MATT HARDY gets the clean victory!

Night of Champions Liveblogging Part I

By Rick Morris

I guess this is a measure of how few PPVs I watch these days -- I didn't know Martin Short hosted their pregame show!

The show opened with a video package focusing on Chavo Guerrero receiving some ominous text messages. Just kidding -- but you have to admit, they would stoop to that. Actually, it was a video package about what it means to be a champion and how elite being a champion is. I'm not quite sure how it could be so elite to be a champion when there's an entire show with title matches, but there you go.

As will be the case quite often tonight, Paul Belfi is writing at the same time I am, so our thoughts will be posted up there fairly intermittently.

The opening match had Miz and Morrison defending the WWE Tag Team Titles against Finlay and Hornswaggle in your standard exposing-the-business comedy match. Hornswaggle ended up playing the Ricky Morton role after getting in some fluke offense. After doing the obligatory dive-through-the-legs spot, Horney got the tag to Finlay, who then kicked major arse (as the Irish might say). The Tadpole Splash attempt ended with him getting pitched off the top rope and pinned. Miz and Morrison win and all is right with the world.

BELFI - Night Of Champions - Miz/Morrison vs. Finley & Hornswaggle

By Paul Belfi

Always good to hear ANY WWE PPV start off with the voice of wrestling - Jim Ross. I am looking forward to seeing how he and Mick Foley gel as an announce team - I have a hunch it will be great, given time.

I forget the name of the fay-get ring announcer, but I don't like him.

Now onto one of the matches that - believe it or not - I was actually looking forward to.

I can't believe at how over and improved Miz is - Morrison as well. A great tag team. Working with Finley in the ring and behind the scenes is only going to make them better. I am on the lookout for Miz' mom here at Harpo's. She is the definition of the acronym MILF.

Hornswaggle doing 'Stone Cold Stunners' is fantastic - AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Horny takes a bump like no other - that little bastard... I love him!

Morrison bitch-slapping Horny reminds me of what I do to Ptak during commercials on Pro Wrestling Insider (heard exclusively on sportstalkNETWORK.com every Tuesday night at 7p Eastern).

And after seeing Horny get his arse kicked, Miz and Morrison retain their championship.

WWE Night Of Champions - Pre PPV Report

by Paul Belfi

Rick Morris, Mike Ptak and I are live at Harpo's Sports Cafe in Brook Park, OH preparing for the WWE PPV. Personally I am looking forward to this show because (logically speaking, of course) there has to be at least one title change tonight based on the outcome of last Monday night's 'draft'.

The food is tasty, the beverages are cold, but watching Ptak eat a plate of wings is somewhat repulsive - but for the loyal readers of THE FDH LOUNGE Blog, I will suck it up for you.

Enjoy the PPV everyone.

Remember when Olbermann faked modesty?

By Rick Morris

Keith Olbermann has shown himself to be enough of an out-of-his-depth political lightweight that even those who share his fever-swamp hatreds like Glenn Greenwald are taking him apart on a regular basis. As he degenerates further and further into his irrelevant world of obsessive grudge-furthering and political lie-circulating, it occurred to me that KO had previously tried to rehabilitate his reputation with an allegedly heartfelt mea culpa for being an idiot. Given my mad Google-fu skills, I uncovered his sniveling Uriah Heep routine in no time. Compare and contrast the words you see here and here with the remorseless, deranged rantings chronicled on a daily basis at OlbermannWatch.

Here's some of the better passages:

"This isn't even about specific events or people, although nearly everybody at ESPN merits an apology from me, and I give it willingly and with great sadness, but with some hope that it will explain if not erase my actions, and might even be of some inspiration to any who might be afflicted in the same curious way I've come to learn I am.

This is about not knowing why you do things -- literally, not knowing for years and years -- and then suddenly beginning to scratch the surface of understanding. That earlier imagery about the gauzy haze is almost factually precise: It feels as if I've been coming out of a huge fog bank." QUESTION: When did you get re-immersed?

"But whatever any of them said about 'insecurity' or 'perfectionism,' I know I just took it as an attack and stiffened my extra-long spine." Wow, Keith, you seem so much better-adjusted these days. Of course, my sarcasm at the expense of "The Great One" probably just got me nominated for "Worst Person in the World."

"The oddest thing about all this, is that even when I left -- and in six weeks I will have been gone longer than I was there -- executives like Walsh and Howard Katz underscored that I was welcome to return at some distant future date, despite all the Sturm und Drang. And, man, I was usually producing both the Sturm and the Drang." Keith, do you forget what you've written previously, or do you just have no capacity for self-awareness?

"Referring to ESPN's executives, I told Freeman that 'other than Steve Anderson, I don't think any of them are any good.' Well, that was ridiculous then and it is ridiculous now. Without even judging how good they were, just to keep a monolith like ESPN on the air every day requires as many good executives as they have at NORAD." OK, who are you going to admit you were lying about a few years from now? Are O'Reilly and Murdoch really good guys who you're just perpetrating show-biz feuds with for the sake of ratings and dollars?

"I now read with horror of my ESPN2 co-host, Ms. Kolber, sequestering herself in the women's bathroom and weeping over how I treated her. She told Freeman that as things deteriorated, I wouldn't talk to her. She's wrong: I couldn't talk to her. I pumped up some small-scale complaints into a scenario in which she was at fault for everything ESPN2 hadn't become. I wasn't completely obtuse back then, and if anything would have cut through my neuroses, it would've been a colleague's tears. If I had known, I think I could've jumped over the fence I'd built around myself and said what the inner guy always knew: No TV show is worth crying over. Suzy: I'm sorry." And how many MSNBC employees cry in restrooms right now as a result of your bullying personality, Keith?

"So, I'm sorry. It should have been done differently. It wasn't. Then again, I'm only finding out now about that extra vertebra and the extra steps I have to take to learn how to be, well, flexible." If any MSNBC employee wants to leave any of Keith's old words for him on a note left on his desktop, there's a crisp shiny fin in it for you!

Get well soon Brian Windhorst

By Rick Morris

One of America's best basketball writers, Brian Windhorst (who writes for the Akron Beacon-Journal and ESPN.com) has been hospitalized and is recuperating from an illness at the present time. This matter kept him from reporting on the NBA Draft, which tells you everything you need to know about the serious nature of the illness given his tireless reporting. He is a great reporter and a classy gentleman who has always been good to the SportsTalkNetwork.com organization. From everyone associated with FDH, our thoughts and prayers are with Brian and his family and we hope for a speedy and full recovery as soon as possible.

More early 2008 NBA roster analysis

By Rick Morris

Here's more great analysis from our Senior Editor Jason Jones as he dissects all 30 NBA rosters in the aftermath of this past week's draft. Note that with his roster rankings, he lists a few of the key players on each team. Bear in mind also that the statistical rankings relate to Part I of his post-draft analysis in the column posted just below this one.

Gut Check Roster Rankings
1	BOS	KG, Pierce, Allen, Rondo
2	PHO	Nash, Amare, Shaq
3	DET	Billups, Rip, Prince, Sheed
4	DAL	Dirk, Kidd, Josh, Terry
5	POR	Oden, Roy, Bayless, Webster
6	LAL	Kobe, Gasol, Bynum, Odom
7	NJN	Carter, Yi, Lopez, Harris, Krstic
8	SA	TD, Parker, Bowen, Manu
9	LAC	Brand, Maggette, Egordon
10	ATL	Johnson, Smith, Bibby, Horford
11	DEN	AI, Melo, Camby, Nene, JR
12	UTA	Boozer, Deron, AK47, Koufos
13	MIA	Wade, Beasley, Marion, Mario
14	PHI	Iguodala, Miller, Carney, Speights
15	TOR	Bosh, O'Neal, Bargnani, Calderon
16	MEM	Conley, Gay, Mayo, Darco
17	CLE	Lebron, Boobie, Z, Ben, West
18	CHI	Rose, Hughes, Deng, Gooden
19	HOU	T-Mac, Yao, Battier
20	NO	Paul, Peja, West, Peterson
21	MIN	Love, Jefferson, Brewer, Foye
22	CHA	Felton, Richardson, Wallace
23	SEA	Durant, Green, Westbrook
24	MIL	Redd, Jefferson, Villanueva, Bogut
25	GS	Davis, Ellis, Jackson, Harrington
26	ORL	Howard, Lewis, Nelson
27	WAS	Arenas, Butler, Jamison
28	SAC	Martin, Artest, Miller
29	IND	Ford, Rush, Granger, Hibbert
30	NYK	Marbury, Crawford, Gallinari, Curry

Statistical Rankings by Roster
1	PHO	Nash, Amare, Shaq
2	DAL	Dirk, Kidd, Josh, Terry
3	DEN	AI, Melo, Camby, Nene, JR
4	MIA	Wade, Beasley, Marion, Mario
5	LAC	Brand, Maggette, Egordon
6	DET	Billups, Rip, Prince, Sheed
7	MEM	Conley, Gay, Mayo, Darco
8	BOS	KG, Pierce, Allen, Rondo
9	NJN	Carter, Yi, Lopez, Harris, Krstic
10	NO	Paul, Peja, West, Peterson
11	UTA	Boozer, Deron, AK47, Koufos
12	HOU	T-Mac, Yao, Battier
13	TOR	Bosh, O'Neal, Bargnani, Calderon
14	POR	Oden, Roy, Bayless, Webster
15	ATL	Johnson, Smith, Bibby, Horford
16	SAC	Martin, Artest, Miller
17	CLE	Lebron, Boobie, Z, Ben, West
18	LAL	Kobe, Gasol, Bynum, Odom
19	MIL	Redd, Jefferson, Villanueva, Bogut
20	SA	TD, Parker, Bowen, Manu
21	ORL	Howard, Lewis, Nelson
22	WAS	Arenas, Butler, Jamison
23	MIN	Love, Jefferson, Brewer, Foye
24	IND	Ford, Rush, Granger, Hibbert
25	CHI	Rose, Hughes, Deng, Gooden
26	PHI	Iguodala, Miller, Carney, Speights
27	SEA	Durant, Green, Westbrook
28	GS	Davis, Ellis, Jackson, Harrington
29	CHA	Felton, Richardson, Wallace
30	NYK	Marbury, Crawford, Gallinari, Curry

2007-08 Final Team Rankings
1	BOS	KG, Pierce, Allen, Rondo
2	LAL	Kobe, Gasol, Bynum, Odom
3	DET	Billups, Rip, Prince, Sheed
4	NO	Paul, Peja, West, Peterson
5	SA	TD, Parker, Bowen, Manu
6	ORL	Howard, Lewis, Nelson
7	UTA	Boozer, Deron, AK47, Koufos
8	CLE	Lebron, Boobie, Z, Ben, West
9	HOU	T-Mac, Yao, Battier
10	WAS	Arenas, Butler, Jamison
11	PHO	Nash, Amare, Shaq
12	TOR	Bosh, O'Neal, Bargnani, Calderon
13	DAL	Dirk, Kidd, Josh, Terry
14	PHI	Iguodala, Miller, Carney, Speights
15	DEN	AI, Melo, Camby, Nene, JR
16	ATL	Johnson, Smith, Bibby, Horford
17	GS	Davis, Ellis, Jackson, Harrington
18	IND	Ford, Rush, Granger, Hibbert
19	POR	Oden, Roy, Bayless, Webster
20	NJN	Carter, Yi, Lopez, Harris, Krstic
21	SAC	Martin, Artest, Miller
22	CHI	Rose, Hughes, Deng, Gooden
23	CHA	Felton, Richardson, Wallace
24	LAC	Brand, Maggette, Egordon
25	MIL	Redd, Jefferson, Villanueva, Bogut
26	MIN	Love, Jefferson, Brewer, Foye
27	NYK	Marbury, Crawford, Gallinari, Curry
28	MEM	Conley, Gay, Mayo, Darco
29	SEA	Durant, Green, Westbrook
30	MIA	Wade, Beasley, Marion, Mario

Assumed Team Movement
1	ATL	None
2	BOS	None
3	CHA	? About S. May and R. Felton
4	CHI	Hinrich and Thabo may be available
5	CLE	Exp Contracts, look for a big trade
6	DAL	Desperately need a real Big Man
7	DEN	Need Defense BADLY
8	DET	Could move any of the big 4
9	GS	Still need a real Center
10	HOU	Must stay healthy…that’s it
11	IND	Rebuilding might not be done
12	LAC	Health is an issue, otherwise nice
13	LAL	Need Andrew Bynum for a real shot
14	MEM	Building for the future, nicely
15	MIA	Need a big, but sexy 1-4
16	MIL	Rebuilding, Redd could be out (cle)
17	MIN	Nice little team, but far away
18	NJN	Deepest team, go 11 deep
19	NO	Much better than on paper
20	NYK	TRADE SOME PG's!!!!!!
21	ORL	Need one more significant player
22	PHI	Growing slowly, could surprise in 08
23	PHO	Dead after the starting 5+Barbosa
24	POR	If in the east, a sure playoff team
25	SA	May need to rebuild by 2010
26	SAC	Artest is gone, need 3 more players
27	SEA	A real big away from being serious
28	TOR	Very young, could be a sleeper
29	UTA	Very nice s5, just wait for Koufos
30	WAS	Arenas is gone, so are the Wiz

2008-09 Tier Groupings
	tier one	Elite, for now
1	BOS
2	PHO
3	SA
4	DET
5	DAL
	tier two	The Next Elite Group
6	LAL
7	NO
8	CLE
9	HOU
	tier three	Look Out, 'Cause They're Coming
10	POR
11	NJN
12	MIA
13	UTA
14	LAC
15	MEM
16	SEA
17	MIN
	tier four	Overrated
18	DEN
19	WAS
20	ORL
21	ATL
22	GS
	tier five	Still a Little Ways Away
23	PHI
24	CHI
25	TOR
26	IND
27	CHA
	tier six	Dude, It's Time to Start Over
28	NYK
29	MIL
30	SAC

2008-09 Preliminary League Projections
1	LAL	Bynum will be the difference
2	BOS	Still very very good
3	PHO	They will find a way to be relevent
4	NO	Chris Paul carries the team again
5	NJN	Depth pays off
6	CLE	Lebron, Lebron, Lebron
7	DAL	Still decent but not great
8	HOU	If healthy, they'll be in it
9	MIA	Huge turn around in the East
10	SA	Falling with each passing minute
11	UTA	Very solid nucleus
12	DET	With players moved, they will fall
13	POR	Growing into a West Conf playoff team
14	PHI	Exciting but not there yet
15	MEM	Growing into a West Conf playoff team
16	CHI	Growing pains, but still fun to watch
17	LAC	If healthy, they'll be in it
18	ATL	Team needs to gel with consistancy
19	ORL	Still a prime time player away
20	TOR	Getting better, but still very young
21	DEN	Melo+AI=No Defense
22	GS	Fast and fun, but not good enough
23	MIN	Growing nicely, but need time
24	SEA	Nice pieces but still not there yet
25	WAS	No Arenas, just decent
26	IND	Rebuilding, don't expect much
27	CHA	Jordan and Brown will need time
28	SAC	No Artest, no chance still need players
29	MIL	Rebuilding, don't expect much
30	NYK	A team of PG's can't win games

2008-09 Very Preliminary Playoff Rankings
	Eastern Conference
1	BOS	Still Very Very Good
2	NJN	Like BOS, will win…often
3	CLE	Top 4 team, without Redd
4	MIA	Huge improvement in a lesser Conf
5	DET	With changes, they will be just OK
6	PHI	Strong team tough to defend
7	CHI	Growing but still a second tier team
8	ATL	Will win games, but not a contender
	Western Conference
1	LAL	Bynum is the difference…period
2	PHO	Will find a way to win games
3	NO	How does Chris Paul do it?
4	DAL	Dirk and Kidd are good enough for 4
5	HOU	T-Mac/Yao healthy, they're in
6	SA	Getting older will hurt their chances
7	UTA	Coming into their own for the playoffs
8	POR	Will be a juggernaut in time
	Eastern Conference Finals
		BOS vs. CLE
	Western Conference Finals
		LAL vs. NO
	NBA Finals
		LAL vs. BOS
	NBA Champions
		Los Angeles Lakers

Roster analysis, post-NBA Draft

By Rick Morris

Our Senior Editor and Chief NBA Draft analyst Jason Jones has come up with a tremendous breakdown of team rosters, post-draft. He projects the depth charts and assigns scores to all players on the roster. Here is the scoring system:

10: Future Hall of Famer
9: Perennial All-Star
8: Occasional All-Star
7: Fringe All-Star
6: Legitimate Starter
5: Rotation Contributor
4: Role Player
3: Situational Player
2: Bum
1: NDBL Player

Now, this is only one way to evaluate the overall strengths and weaknesses of the teams in the league, but I find Jason's analysis fascinating.

Atlanta
PG	M. Bibby	A. Law
SG	J. Johnson	S. Stoudamire
SF	J. Smith	J. Childress
PF	M. Williams	S. Jones
C	A. Horford	Z. Pachulia

Three 7s, Two 6s, Three 5s, Two 3s: Average 5.4

Boston
PG	R.Rondo	T. Allen	G. Pruitt
SG	R. Allen	J.R. Giddens
SF	P. Pierce	J. Posey	Bill Walker
PF	K. Garnett	L. Powe	G. Davis
C	K. Perkins	P.J. Brown	S. Erden

Three 10s, Two 6s, Three 5s, Two 4s, Four 3s: Average 5.5

Charlotte
PG	R. Felton	D.J. Augustine	K. Weaver
SG	J. Richardson	M. Carroll
SF	G. Wallace	J. Dudley	A. Morrison
PF	E. Okafor	S. May
C	A. Ajinca	N. Muhammed	O. Harrington

One 7, Three 6s, Four 5s, Three 4s, One 3, One 2: Average 4.4

Chicago
PG	D. Rose	K. Hinrich	JamesOn Curry
SG	L. Hughes	B. Gordon	Thabo Sefolosha
SF	L. Deng	A. Nocioni	Demetrius Nicols
PF	D. Gooden	T. Thomas	Cedric Simmons
C	J. Noah	A. Gray	Omer Asik

One 8, Four 6s, Four 5s, Four 4s, One 3, One 2: Average 4.8

Cleveland
PG	D. West	D. Jones
SG	D. Gibson	S. Pavlovic
SF	Lebron	W. Szczerbiak
PF	B. Wallace	J. Smith	J.J. Hickson
C	Z. Ilgauskas	A. Varejao	D. Jones

One 10, One 8, One 7, One 6, Four 5s, One 4, Two 3s, One 2: Average 5.3

Dallas
PG	J. Kidd	J. J. Barea
SG	J. Stackhouse	J. Terry
SF	J. Howard	E. Jones
PF	D. Nowitzki	J. Howard
C	E. Dampier	B. Bass

Two 10s, One 7, One 6, Four 5s, One 4, One 2: Average 5.9

Denver
PG	A. Iverson	C. Atkins	T. Green
SG	J.R. Smith	Y. Diawara	S. Weems
SF	C. Anthony	L. Kleiza
PF	K. Martin	Nene
C	M. Camby	S. Hunter

One 10, One 9, One 8, Three 6s, Three 5s, Two 4s, One 3: Average 5.9

Detroit
PG	C. Billups	R. Stuckey	D. Washington
SG	R. Hamilton	A. Afflalo	W. Sharpe
SF	T. Prince	A. Johnson	W. Hermann
PF	R. Wallace	J. Maxiell	T. Plainsted
C	A. Mcdyess	C. Samb

Three 9s, One 7, One 6, Four 5s, Four 4s, One 3: Average 5.6

Golden State
PG	B. Davis	C. Watson
SG	M. Ellis	M. Belinelli	R. Hendrix
SF	S. Jackson	K. Azubuke
PF	A. Harrington	A. Randolph	B. Wright
C	A. Biedrins	M. Pietrus	K. Perovic

One 8, Four 6s, Three 5s, Two 4s, Two 3s, One 2: Average 4.5

Houston
PG	B. Jackson	R. Alston
SG	T. McGrady	L. Head	S. Francis
SF	S. Battier	D. Greene	C. Hayes
PF	L. Scola	J. Dorsey	M. Leunen
C	Y. Ming	L. Woods

Two 10s, Four 6s, Five 5s, Two 3s: Average 5.5

Indiana
PG	T.J. Ford	R. Murray	T. Diener
SG	B. Rush	S. Graham
SF	D. Granger	M. Daniels	S. Williams
PF	T. Murphy	D. Harrison
C	R. Hibbert	J. Foster

Seven 6s, Two 5s, Two 4s, One 2: Average 5.1

LA Clippers
PG	S. Livingston	B. Knight	S. Parker
SG	E. Gordon	C. Mobley
SF	C. Maggette	A. Thornton	Mike Taylor
PF	E. Brand	T. Thomas	N. Fazekas
C	C. Kaman	D. Jordan

One 10, One 7, Six 6s, Two 5s, Two 4s, One 2: Average 5.6

LA Lakers
PG	D. Fisher	J. Farmar
SG	K. Bryant	S. Vujacic	C. Karl
SF	L. Odom	L. Walton	T. Ariza
PF	P. Gasol	R. Turiaf	J. Crawford
C	A. Bynum	C. Mihm	D. Mbenga

One 10, One 9, Two 7s, One 6, Four 5s, Two 4s, Two 3s, One 1: Average 5.3

Memphis
PG	M. Conley	K. Lowry	J. Crittendon
SG	O.J. Mayo	J. Carlos Navarro	M. Jaric
SF	R. Gay	A. Walker	G. Buckner
PF	H. Warrick	D. Arthur	A. Brown
C	D. Milicic	J. Collins

One 9, One 8, One 7, Six 6s, One 5, Two 4s, Two 3s: Average 5.6

Miami
PG	M. Chalmers	M. Banks
SG	D. Wade	D. Cook	B. Ahearn
SF	M. Beasley	R. Davis	D. Wright
PF	S. Marion	M. Blount	D. Jackson
C	U. Haslem	E. Barron

One 10, One 9, Two 8s, Four 6s, Two 5s, Three 3s: Average 5.7

Milwaukee
PG	M. Williams	C. Bell
SG	M. Redd	D. Mason
SF	R. Jefferson	J. Alexander
PF	C. Villanueva	L. Mbah A Moute
C	A. Bogut	D. Gadzuric

Two 8s, One 7, Three 6s, One 5, Two 4s, Two 3s: Average 5.3

Minnesota
PG	R. Foye	S. Telfair
SG	R. McCants	K. Snyder	Nikola Pekovic
SF	C. Brewer	M. Miller	R. Gomes
PF	K. Love	C. Smith	C. Richard
C	A. Jefferson	M. Madson	J. Collins
			B. Cardinal

One 9, Two 7s, Three 6s, Two 5s, Five 4s, One 3, One 2: Average 5.1

New Jersey
PG	D. Harris	M. Williams	M. Ager
SG	V. Carter	C. Douglas-Roberts	T. Hassell
SF	Y. Jianlian	B. Simmons
PF	N. Krstic	J. Boone	R. Anderson
C	B. Lopez	S. Swift

Two 9s, One 8, Two 7s, Two 6s, Three 5s, Two 4s, One 3: Average 6.1

New Orleans
PG	C. Paul	J. Pargo
SG	M. Peterson	M. James
SF	P. Stoyakovic	J. Wright	R. Butler
PF	D. West	M. Ely	C. Anderson
C	T. Chandler	H. Armstrong

One 10, One 8, Two 7s, One 6, Four 5s, Two 4s: Average 5.5

New York
PG	S. Marbury	N. Robinson	M. Collins
SG	J. Crawford	J. Jeffries
SF	D. Gallinari	Q. Richardson	R. Balkman
PF	Z. Randolph	D. Lee	M. Rose
C	E. Curry	J. James	R. Morris

Two 7s, Three 6s, Three 5s, One 4, Two 3s, One 2, Two 1s: Average 4.3

Orlando
PG	J. Nelson
SG	C. Lee	K. Bogans
SF	R. Lewis	M. Evans
PF	H. Turkoglu	B. Cook	T. Battie
C	D. Howard	J. Augustine	A. Foyle

One 9, One 8, Two 6s, Three 5s, Two 4s, Two 3s: Average 5.2

Philadelphia
PG	A. Miller	L. Williams
SG	R. Carney	W. Green
SF	A. Iguodala	T. Young
PF	M. Speights	J. Smith	L. Amundson
C	S. Dalembert	S. Randolph	C. Booth

Four 7s, One 6, Two 5s, One 4, Two 3s, One 2, One 1: Average 4.7

Phoenix
PG	S. Nash	D. Strawberry
SG	R. Bell	A. Tucker
SF	B. Diaw	G. Hill
PF	A. Stoudemire	M. Hairston
C	S. O'Neal	R. Lopez

Two 10s, One 9, Two 7s, One 6, One 5, One 4, Two 3s: Average 6.4

Portland
PG	J. Bayless	S. Blake
SG	B. Roy	V. Wafer
SF	M. Webster	T. Outlaw	D. Miles
PF	L. Aldridge	C. Frye	J. McRoberts
C	G. Oden	J. Pryzbilla	R. LaFrentz

One 9, Four 8s, Two 5s, Three 4s, Two 3s, One 2: Average 5.4

Sacramento
PG	S. Singletary
SG	K. Martin	Q. Douby	J. Salmons
SF	R. Artest	F. Garcia
PF	S. Williams	M. Moore	S. Abdur-Rahim
C	B. Miller	S. Hawes	K. Thomas

One 8, Two 7s, Two 6s, Five 5s, Two 4s, One 3: Average 5.4

San Antonio
PG	T. Parker	D. Stoudamire	G. Hill
SG	M. Ginobli	G. Dragic
SF	B. Bowen	I. Udoka	B. Jones
PF	T. Duncan	M. Bonner	J. Gist
C	F. Oberto	I. Mahinimi

One 10, Two 9s, One 7, Three 5s, Two 4s, Two 3s, Two 2s: Average 5.2

Seattle
PG	R. Westbrook	E. Watson	L. Ridnour
SG	J. Green	D. Wilkin
SF	K. Durant	A. Griffin	R. Dupree
PF	N. Collison	D.J. White	C. Wilcox
C	J. Petro	D. Hardin	S. Kahn
			S. Ibaka

One 9, Three 6s, Five 5s, Three 4s, Two 3s, One 1: Average 4.7

Toronto
PG	J. Calderon
SG	J. Moon	C. Delfino	J. Graham
SF	A. Bargnani	J. Kapono	J. Garbojosa (FA)
PF	C. Bosh	K. Humphries	M. Baston
C	J. O'Neal

Two 9s, Three 6s, Three 5s, One 4, Two 3s: Average 5.5

Utah
PG	D. Williams	R. Price	J. Hart
SG	R. Brewer	K. Korver	M. Almond
SF	A. Kirilenko	M. Harpring	C.J. Miles
PF	C. Boozer	P. Milsap	T. Dragicevic
C	K. Koufos	M. Okur	J. Collins

Two 9s, One 8, One 7, Five 6s, Three 4s, Two 3s, One 2: Average 5.5

Washington
PG	G. Arenas	A. Daniels
SG	D. Stevenson	N. Young
SF	C. Butler	O. Pecherov	D. McGuire
PF	A. Blatche	D. Songalia
C	B. Haywood	J. McGee	E. Thomas

One 8, One 7, Three 6s, Five 5s, One 3, One 2: Average 5.2

Tribe overrated -- who knew? We did!

By Rick Morris

One of the biggest collapses of the 2008 Major League Baseball season has belonged to the defending American League Central champions, a team up 3-1 in the 2007 American League Championship Series. Yes, the Cleveland Indians are absolutely El Stinko this year, and although I as a lifelong fan am frustrated by the fact, I am equally amused by the "This is Absolutely Unthinkable" refrain from the team's slavish Enabler Caucus.

Dumbos like Diatribe are hilariously posing the question right now: who knew this could happen? Well, if they'd pull their nostrils from the tuckess of Mark Shapiro and turn their attention to this here FDH Lounge, they'd be aware of this: WE KNEW!

Actually, now's not the time for me to start being unduly modest. Not only did we know, but we called it way ahead of time and we chastised the ownership-enabling homers for taking their 30 pieces of silver from Larry Dolan and trying to brainwash the populace into thinking that this was a legitimate World Series team. And for any misguided souls looking to label me a basher, consider this: even I was way too optimistic! I put this team down for 88 wins and a second-place finish in the division this year!

When everyone else was caught up in the heat of the moment about the ALCS meltdown last year, I correctly pointed out that the team had not choked away a 3-1 lead; the law of averages had merely caught up to them in a harsh and decisive manner as an infinitely superior team blew past them (if you don't believe me, check the records for Boston and Cleveland this year). Even going into the playoffs last year, when even sober media figures were losing their heads in the rush to proclaim Mark Shapiro (by the way, the true pronunciation is Sha-PIR-o -- folks don't realize that Sha-PIE-ro is his kayfabe name) the greatest GM in sports history, I exposed the truth about the fact that the organization hadn't proven anything of note yet.

Oh, and because those who shilled for the front office and proclaimed them above public accountability aren't going to be accountable for their own complicity in this season's disaster, I'll provide this compendium of their heinous apple-polishing before their masters in the organization. The doofus who repeats the lies about how Jim Thome snubbed the Indians is particularly laughable.

Now, before any remaining Kool-Aid drinkers get their unmentionables in a wad, I'll concede that the team isn't as bad as they presently look. Injuries have played a part in the team's demise, although the brass can certainly be held accountable for wheeling out a half-dead Victor Martinez and Travis Hafner for months at a time, hoping that somehow playing would be therapeutic in the healing process! So no, the team is not really this bad. But I was right about the fact that they weren't really that good last year when they caught fire, won most of their games against a horrific division and fooled the world into thinking they were really a 96-win caliber team. And ultimately, if they're not really as great as they convinced people they were last year, who really cares if they're a 75-win team or an 85-win team? Since when are Indians fans supposed to be satisfied with willful mediocrity?

My FDH Lounge and SportsTalkNetwork.com colleague Tony Mazur and I stood up repeatedly to the disinformation campaign of Diatribe and the other Shapiro coddlers and pointed to the vast amount of work to be done if this organization was to change its approach and get serious instead of just talking that way. For that, we were labeled haters by our STN colleague James Bridges (who is actually a friend of mine and a great guy, although I'm going to give him a hard time here), who bought the spin every step of the way. Tony and I each love this team and both of us have so many fond memories of watching Tribe games with our families when we were growing up in the area. Nobody ever has the right to tell us that we shouldn't expect a team's front office to reward our fan loyalty with the utmost possible efforts to put a winning team on the field. The consequences of enabling a front office that will only do as much as the public pushes it to do are now painfully obvious.

Who knew? We freaking did!

How to deal with Iran

By Rick Morris

Rumors have run rampant for years now that the Bush administration plans an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities before it leaves office in January 2009. Certainly, the move by the mullahs to acquire nuclear weapons is a frightening one that should be focusing our energies on how best to protect our interests in the Persian Gulf.

But military intervention is not the only avenue open to us in the area. My longtime friend Scott Pullins has announced that his Pullins Report is part of a wide coalition dedicated to pursuing other means of addressing our very real issues with the regime in Tehran.

Ironically, while I'm a bit unsure as to the utility of free and unfettered talks with Iran right now, I support Scott's general efforts 100%. As with his stance on the treatment of detainees, I may differ with him here and there, but I think his general focus is exactly right.

He and I have traveled down parallel political paths, which helps me to understand and to support his present direction a bit better. We were both of college age at the end of the Cold War and we were both very hawkish given the realities of the day. Essentially, while shooting in that war was rare and generally confined to proxies (i.e. Vietnam, Afghanistan), it really WAS a war and we needed to be on a war footing when dealing with a grim enemy which hungered for nothing less than world domination. Ronald Reagan's method of confronting the Soviets directly, which was totally unprecedented, was appropriate and it worked -- and Scott and I supported him.

But we are now in a different time. The conservative movement long ago fractured into the (completely dominant) neoconservative wing and my paleocon wing. The neocons never moved from the "war footing" mentality and seemed well before 9/11 to be searching for any excuse to project American military might upon the world. For all the talk about how Eeee-Vil Republicans tried to destroy the Clintons with the impeachment saga, the neocons stood behind Bubba steadfastly as he wagged the dog with a completely unnecessary war in the Balkans in 1999.

George W. Bush, about whom I can honestly say I was skeptical from the very beginning given my aversion to Republican Establishment figures, came to office promising a humble, respectful foreign policy. But, as the cliche goes, "9/11 changed everything."

The foreign policy "realists" that Scott and I scorned in our youth were wrong then -- I will always believe that. But, given today's circumstances, they are right in this climate.

I have said on The FDH Lounge program that George W. Bush and Bill Clinton each accomplished the same dubious action -- by opposite means. Clinton destroyed American deterrence in the '90s by turning a blind eye to each successive attack by bin Laden and establishing us as a paper tiger. Bush destroyed American deterrence by getting us bogged down in Iraq from the end of the first phase of the war in April '03 until he FINALLY delivered the surge in 2007 -- thus reestablishing us as a paper tiger after restoring our global prestige by winning swiftly in Afghanistan in late 2001. Imperial overreach and pacifism both lead to disaster and to America's enemies licking their chops.

The neocons are right in the very narrow sense about staying on the offensive against Al Qaeda worldwide and this is a job that our special forces should continue to be pursuing in every nook and cranny of the globe regardless of who gets elected president in November (although I'm admittedly scared that Barack Obama will not agree with this basic common-sense point). But starting full-on conflagrations against other governments without fully thinking through the consequences -- haven't we been here before? Every Deskbound Rambo who proclaimed in 2002-2003 that Iraq would be a cakewalk should be permanently prohibited from being taken seriously.

George W. Bush and Karl Rove, who openly dreamed of creating another longstanding Republican dynasty in the mold of William McKinley, have seen their dreams die in the sands of the Middle East much in the same way that Jimmah Carter's aspirations did. To the extent that their militaristic brand of neoconservatism is left to define the Republican party and the broader American Right, then the party and the movement will never recover. That's why, in addition to personal friendship, I support Scott's efforts as strongly as I do. The school of thought about what's best for this country, as well as the country itself, is too important to be left to the rotting corpse known as GOP leadership. Whether you support every individual thread of anti-neocon policy, it's time to get with the program and work for the clear best interests of this country. If opposition to rampant militarism is ceded to the peaceniks and pinkos, we all lose.

Farewell Will Leitch Deadspin era

By Rick Morris

Anyone participating in New Media, especially any projects that are sports-oriented (or partially sports-oriented, as this one is) has to take notice of something that happened Friday. It was something that would inaccurately be called the end of an era -- because it was just the end of the beginning.

Will Leitch, who piloted the biggest sports blog of all time (by a wide margin, I might add), Deadspin.com, moved on this past week to pursue other opportunities at New York Magazine and The Sporting News. Over the past three years, Deadspin has been a revolutionary force in sports media and also in New Media as a whole. It operated from a very basic premise, one that was sadly a revolutionary one in this pre-packaged fake world we live in: that sports coverage should be packaged in a way that entertains the average fan.

Under Leitch's leadership, Deadspin hammered away at the pomposities that flow from blowhard institutions like "The Worldwide Leader" and delivered material on a daily basis that made you laugh and, at the same time, did enlighten about different parts of the sporting universe. And they also helped change the rules of engagement for athletes and sports-oriented celebrities once and for all -- get hammered in a bar and make a fool of yourself, and you WILL end up with your pictures on Deadspin, courtesy of a dude with a camera phone who then shoots the goods to Leitch's inbox. Jock enablers in the media are especially incensed about this development.

But Deadspin is about more than goofy pictures of this sort or salacious posts about hoops players and their baby mamas or anything like that -- it is about helping fans to be able to laugh at (and thus enjoy) the absurdities of the sports world in this crazy new millennium. It helps us be able to deal with the big-money circus that our sports have devolved into and for that we owe all the contributors to the site many thanks. I'm not ashamed to count Deadspin as an influence for what we do at FDH, much as I have previously cited Tony Bruno. Life is too short to look at sports without a healthy amount of laughter and for that reason, Deadspin will live on. As I stated above, Leitch's departure (as he himself noted) will not be the end of the site by any stretch of the imagination. Having said that, I hope that he is granted a "Tom Brokaw role" which would entitle him to pop back in as a contributor as circumstances warrant.

I should add on a personal note that, for one of the most accomplished writers anywhere on the Internet, Leitch is also one heck of a nice guy. I had the pleasure of interviewing him once on The SportsTalk Network and I found him to be such a nice and respectful guy. With everything that he has done already and everything that he has left in front of him, I would sure love the opportunity to interview him in The FDH Lounge. I wish him all the best in his future endeavors and I look forward to the opportunity to read him in other venues.

Pass The Bucks

By Tony Mazur

Good day to you, fellow FDH Lounge Blog readers. After a 2 1/2 month hiatus, I am back to posting my random thoughts here in this blog.

Anyways, today is Draft Day in the National Basketball Association. Just as we see every year in the NBA and NFL, the week leading up to the draft gets hectic for us sports talk show hosts because of trade rumors, mock drafts, etc.

Although I am supposed to be an unbiased sports talker, I will always be a Cleveland Cavaliers fan. I always have and always will support them, through thick and thin. I want what's best for them and the city of Cleveland.

While flipping through Cleveland area terrestrial radio stations, they're all proclaiming Ohio State's Kosta Koufos as the Cavaliers' first-round pick. Mind you, I am typing this at 4:00 p.m. EST on June 26th. Personally, I'm not bent of Koufos. If it were up to me, college basketball players must attend at least two years of school. That way, you can tell if a player is the real deal or just an aberration. Kosta Koufos did not impress me in his only year as a Buckeye. Now, maybe if he played a sophomore, we could see what he's really about. The same goes for the Lopez twins. Koufos joins a long list of freshman entering tonight's draft.

If I were Danny Ferry, I would go for a big. Specifically, Georgetown's Roy Hibbert. In his tenure with the Hoyas, Hibbert has shown great hustle and has grabbed some tough rebounds.

UPDATE 12:14 a.m.: The Cavs picked J.J. Hickson out of North Carolina State 19th overall. Let the insanity begin.

In related news, the Milwaukee Bucks will be sending Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Richard Jefferson.

How does this trade relate to the Cavaliers?

Two things.

With the Bucks acquiring Jefferson from New Jersey, will Michael Redd stay put in Milwaukee, or go elsewhere?

Conversely, with Jason Kidd long gone, Richard Jefferson in the Midwest, and the career of Vince Carter on the decline, does that mean the Nets are freeing up cap space for....LeBron James? Food for thought.

Looking At Tonight's NBA Draft

By Jason Jones

Happy NBA Draft Day to all of you reading this - yes, the rumor is true - I suddenly realized that this blog thing still works and has been waiting for me to get back into the groove.

So with that, I am going to give you a few quick/random thoughts on tonight's NBA draft - just the 1st three picks and a thought or two on the Cleveland Cavaliers. I think it is a classic 'no-brainer' that the Chicago Bulls will select Memphis PG Derrick Rose. This has all the makings of a great story - the hometown kid gets selected by the hometown pro-team and leads the franchise back to glory. The Bulls are coming off of what has to be regarded as a tremendously disappointing 2007-08 season. Lots of hopes and expectations went down the drain and in a hurry as far as the Bulls are concerned.

Give Rose some time - it takes AT LEAST 1-2 seasons for an NBA point guard to develop and become something extraordinary. This 19-year-old has all the tools, gifts and talents to give the Bulls something they desperately need - leadership and hope.

With the second pick of the NBA draft, the Miami Heat select... who? TONS of speculation regarding the selection (or non-selection) of Michael Beasley. Don't buy into what you are hearing - Pat Riley WILL draft Michael Beasley. Now, will he KEEP Beasley or trade him away? That's the question you should be asking.

As for the third pick in the draft, it doesn't get better than OJ Mayo. In my opinion, he is the best at what's left in the NBA draft. Athletic, great size and great ability, I think he may be the most NBA ready player in the draft lottery. The alleged USC violations aside, Mayo has the best chance to make the biggest impact in my opinion.

The Timberwolves would be wise to select Mayo and build a team with him as their cornerstone.

Looking down the draft to the Cavaliers... I think the two most immediate needs for the team are at shooting guard and at a big man. Ilgauskas is an NBA veteran and I am not too sure how many quality years he has left in the tank.

It is odd to make this statement after seeing 'Z' come off what I consider to be one of his finest seasons as a pro. Looking at the power forward spot - I like Joe Smith - but he is a veteran backup that can deliver a quality 15-20 minutes a night. Ben Wallace is a fraud. He has his big money contract and it is apparent (at least to me) why the Chicago Bulls fans hated him with a passion.

He 'got paid' and now is doing the least amount of work as possible to stay in the league. Anderson Varejao? I don't plan on seeing him too much longer in a Cavaliers uniform. How these two needs get addressed will be interesting to watch... GM Danny Ferry can go free agency or via the draft, but at #19, finding a player that can address one of the two needs immediately will be difficult. That leaves free agency... Michael Redd is on the fan's (and Cavaliers') radar but I don't see it happening.

Here's hoping I am wrong.

Don't forget the FDH/DRAFTOLOGY/STN NBA Draft Guide is available for immediate download via this link - http://www.fantasydrafthelp.com/2008HoopsDraftologyGuide.pdf - it's all you need to follow and understand tonight's draft.

Finally, sportstalkNETWORK.com will have complete LIVE coverage of tonight's NBA Draft starting at 7p Eastern featuring Ben Chew, Rick Morris, Jason Joes, Tony Mazur and Paul Belfi.

FDH Insider/Goon Squad June 25

By Rick Morris

We've got another really varied and thorough FDH Wednesday night lineup coming your way this week on SportsTalkNetwork.com.

On THE FANTASYDRAFTHELP.COM INSIDER (7-9 PM EDT), we go long-form with comprehensive themes by hour. In Hour One, we start to get into fantasy football big-time as we examine some of the conventional wisdom of 2008, comparing and contrasting to our UQB statistic that we will be unveiling for this season for the first time. Also, our Senior Editor Jason Jones has started drafting teams in various leagues already (he's one of the only guys I know who's a bigger draft degenerate than me!) and he'll share his early observations. In Hour Two, we preview the NBA Draft in detail, including a live mock draft between Jason and myself. [SIDE NOTE: FDH comes your way with live NBA Draft coverage Thursday night on SportsTalkNetwork.com! It's become and FDH and STN tradition. Catch Jason and myself and some of our special guests as we break down the proceedings for you live and in living color!]

On THE GOON SQUAD (9-10 PM EDT), we review the NHL Entry Draft. Click here on our friend Russ Cohen's Hockeyology site for the first round results. We'll also preview the beginning of free agency, which will be two days underway by the time of our show next week.

Don't forget also to download our our HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY and HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY guides, both completely free of charge!

FDH Lounge Show #31: June 22, 2008

By Rick Morris

Don't stop believin' that another great edition of THE FDH LOUNGE is coming your way Sunday night (8-11 PM EDT on SportsTalkNetwork.com) with longtime Journey drummer Steve Smith!

One of the greatest drummers of all time, and a man who effortlessly spans diverse genres such as jazz and rock, Smith has an incredible story to tell and he's touring the US this summer presenting outstanding educational drum clinics. We'll be breaking format to have him on at the top of the show to talk about his life in music.

From there, we hit The Opening Statements of The FDH Lounge Dignitaries before we get into our political roundtable towards the end of Hour One. Obama's now looking for the caysh just like Montel Vontavious Porter. Will he pay a price for his nine figures in campaign mo-nay (hey, if Michelle Obama is allowed to bring the fist-bump into parlance for the campaign, we're not being insensitive if we join in the spirit of things!)? Does John McCain need to swing for the fences with every decision the rest of the way? And does he have a winning issue with the Democrats' extreme resistance to tapping America's immediate energy needs by tapping our resources at home?

Later in Hour Two and for the first part of Hour Three, we bring you our second annual FDH Hot Dog Eating Fantasy Draft! When the world's greatest competitive gorgers in the world converge on Staten Island for the 4th of July festivities, we'll all have a rooting interest, and we'll show you how to do so as well!

In Hour Three, we welcome Fran Stuchbury from ArenaFan.com to discuss the upcoming AFL playoffs and what has been another interesting regular season in this unusual sport. We end the show with a look at the NHL Entry Draft with a man who was there, one of our favorite guests, John Kreiser from NHL.com.

As always, we're all over the map on tonight's show, from rock and jazz to presidential politics to competitive eating to indoor football to the world of hockey. Whatever your interest, we'll find a way to entertain and inform you on THE FDH LOUNGE, only on STN.

RIP Scott Kalitta

By Rick Morris

Two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Scott Kalitta passed away Saturday after suffering horrific injuries at an NHRA Funny Car event in New Jersey on Saturday.

We've only recently been covering NHRA in the FDH media family and I can't say that I know a tremendous amount offhand about Mr. Kalitta's career, but he was a supremely accomplished driver, the 1994 and 1995 Top Fuel Division Champion and someone beloved by friends and family from the accounts I'm seeing now. Any event of this nature is a tremendous tragedy to the entire sport, Scott's friends and family and frankly, those who were traumatized by seeing the deadly crash before their very eyes at the track.

Here's a video with many triumphant moments from Scott's career. It seems to be a fitting tribute to the memories he left behind.



Our FDH drag racing correspondent Jeff Weber will be attending the next NHRA event, next weekend in Norwalk, OH. I was going to be getting some thoughts from him for our FDH readers even before this happened and now I'll especially be interested to talk to him about the mood at the track one week after this unthinkable occurrence. Drag racing fans are a resilient bunch and they do have to deal with tragedies of this sort, so I'll bet it'll be a sad-but-resolved feeling in the air the rest of this weekend in New Jersey and next week at Norwalk.

RIP Scott Kalitta, God Bless you and your family and friends.

NBA draft guide is released

By Rick Morris

It's here! It's done! Rejoice all ye NBA hoops fans, for your ultimate guide to this year's proceedings is available and it is FREE! HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY, a joint presentation of FantasyDrafthelp.com and Sportsology, is now online! In addition to the FDH and Sportsology media families, the guide will also be available through SportsTalkNetwork.com.

Here's the Table of Contents:

Page 1: HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY Overview
Pages 2-3: Rating the tiers of talent in the first round
Pages 4-6: Top 75 players regardless of position
Page 6: Strength of draft by position
Page 7: Center rankings
Page 8: Power forward rankings
Page 9: Small forward rankings
Page 10: Shooting guard rankings
Page 11: Point guard rankings
Page 12: Team needs
Pages 13-17: Previously completed NBA Draft transactions
Pages 18-19: Jason Jones NBA Draft rumor notebook
Pages 20-21: A conversation with 2007 top pick Greg Oden
Pages 22-23: Flashback to 2006 rookie playing card shoot
Pages 24-25: 2K Sports event at Rucker Park
Page 26: Jason Jones mock draft
Page 27: Rick Morris mock draft
Page 28: Blank mock draft sheet

NBA draft guide: strength by positions

By Rick Morris

Click here for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, your ultimate guide to the 2008 pro hockey entry draft and offseason. Also, check out our friend Russ Cohen's podcasts live from the NHL Entry Draft at Card Corner Club and you can view the NHL Draft Tracker here. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, get ready for HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY, our guide to the 2008 NBA Draft, once again co-produced between FantasyDrafthelp.com and Sportsology. Targeted to be released by this Saturday, June 21, HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY will again serialized here and at Sportsology just like our hockey version was featured.

Today's installment? The FDH assessment of strength by draft position. Hint: hope your favorite team doesn't need a swingman in this draft! The overall depth is pretty sweet, though, as evidenced by the three positions above average to varying degrees.

Outstanding: Point Guard
Very Good: Power Forward
Good: Center
Average: Shooting Guard
Not So Good: none
Poor: Small Forward
Horrible: none

NBA draft guide: rankings by position

By Rick Morris

Click here for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, your ultimate guide to the 2008 pro hockey entry draft and offseason. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, get ready for HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY, our guide to the 2008 NBA Draft, once again co-produced between FantasyDrafthelp.com and Sportsology. Targeted to be released by this Saturday, June 21, HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY will again serialized here and at Sportsology just like our hockey version was featured.

Today's installment? FDH Senior Editor Jason Jones' rankings by position, based on our Top 75 players regardless of position that we posted yesterday.

	Power Forwards	Size	School
1	Michael Beasley	6'10, 235	Kansas St
2	Anthony Randolph	6'11, 220	LSU
3	Kevin Love	6'10, 275	UCLA
4	Kosta Koufos	7'0, 265	Ohio St
5	Darrell Arthur	6'10, 225	Kansas
6	D.J. White	6'9, 240	Indiana
7	J.J. Hickerson	6'9, 240	N.C. State
8	Serge Ibaka	6'10, 220	Congo
9	Jason Thompson	6'11, 250	Rider
10	Nathan Jawai	6'10, 270	Australia
11	Richard Hendrix	6'9, 260	Alabama
12	Alexis Ajinca	7'1, 240	France
13	Joey Dorsey	6'9, 260	Memphis
14	James Gist	6'9, 235	Maryland
15	Ryan Anderson	6'10, 225	Cal
16	Darnell Jackson	6'8, 250	Kansas
17	Kentrell Gransberry	6'9, 270	S. Florida
18	Mickell Gladness	6'11, 205	Alabama A&M
19	Shawn James	6'10, 225	Duquesne
20	Vladimir Golubovic	7'0, 260	Serbia
21	Charles Rhodes	6'8, 245	Mississippi St
	Small Forwards	Size	School
1	Danilo Gallinari	6'9, 212	Italy
2	Nicolas Batum	6'8, 210	France
3	Bill Walker	6'6, 235	Kansas St
4	Donte Greene	6'10, 225	Syracuse
5	Joe Alexander	6'8, 220	West Virginia
6	Davon Jefferson	6'8, 215	USC
7	Luc Richard Mbah a Moute	6'7, 215	UCLA
8	Keith Brumbaugh	6'10, 215	Hillsborough C.C.
9	Pat Calathes	6'10, 210	St. Joseph's
10	Josh Duncan	6'8, 225	Xavier
11	Will Daniels	6'8, 225	Rhode Island
12	Gary Forbes	6'7, 220	UMass
	Centers	Size	School
1	Brook Lopez	7'0, 260	Stanford
2	DeAndre Jordan	7'0, 255	Texas A&M
3	Kosta Koufos	7'0, 265	Ohio St
4	Marreese Speights	6'10, 245	Florida
5	Roy Hibbert	7'2, 275	Georgetown
6	JaVale McGee	7'0, 237	Nevada
7	Ante Tomic	7'2, 237	Croatia
8	Trent Plaisted	6'11, 245	BYU
9	Robin Lopez	7'0, 245	Stanford
10	DeVon Hardin	6'11, 250	Cal
11	Omer Asik	6'11, 230	Turkey
12	Nikola Pekovic	6'11, 245	Serbia
13	David Padgett	6'11, 230	Louisville
14	C.J. Giles	6'11, 235	Oregon St
15	Sasha Kaun	6'11, 250	Kansas
16	Semih Erden	7'1, 240	Turkey
17	Aleks Maric	6'11, 270	Nebraska
18	Peja Samardziski	7'1, 255	Macedonia
	Point Guards	Size	School
1	Derrick Rose	6'3, 205	Memphis
2	O.J. Mayo	6'4, 195	USC
3	Jerryd Bayless	6'3, 190	Arizona
4	D.J. Augustin	6'0, 180	Texas
5	Russell Westbrook	6'3, 189	UCLA
6	Mario Chalmers	6'2, 170	Kansas
7	Tyrone Brazelton	6'0, 180	W. Kentucky
8	Goran Dragic	6'4, 200	Slovenia
9	Mantas Kalnietis	6'5, 194	Lithuania
10	Anton Ponkrashov	6'8, 215	Russia
11	George Hill	6'2, 180	Indianapolis
	Shooting Guards	Size	School
1	O.J. Mayo	6'4, 195	USC
2	Eric Gordon	6'4, 215	Indiana
3	Brandon Rush	6'7, 205	Kansas
4	Chris Douglas-Roberts	6'6, 195	Memphis
5	Courtney Lee	6'5, 200	W. Kentucky
6	J.R. Giddens	6'5, 200	New Mexico
7	Chris Lofton	6'2, 197	Tennessee
8	Shan Foster	6'6, 205	Vanderbilt
9	Jamont Gordon	6'4, 225	Mississippi St
10	Malik Hairston	6'6, 200	Oregon
11	Richard Roby	6'5, 210	Colorado
12	Kyle Weaver	6'6, 185	Washington St
13	Bryce Taylor	6'5, 205	Oregon
14	Uros Tripkovic	6'5, 190	Serbia

Hockey Hall of Fame incoming class

By Rick Morris

Our good friend at Sportsology, Russ Cohen, passed along this article to us and allowed us to reprint it here. Like him, I share a tremendous respect for the Hockey Hall of Fame -- it's the only one of the "Big Four" that I haven't been to and I want to rectify that when I make it up to the fun town of Toronto some day -- and I am personally a huge fan of "The Professor" Igor Larionov. I even own a copy of the DVD that was released in honor of his retirement; it's pretty sweet -- it's got the all-star retirement game that was thrown in his honor and an accompanying documentary.

As such, I'm pleased to reprint Russ' article here.


Anderson heads interesting 2008 Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
By Russ Cohen

Glenn Anderson is a player who has been overshadowed by some of the greatest names to ever play the game. Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Jarri Kurri and that list of ex-Edmonton Oilers seems endless and now Anderson is the latest from that group to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame this November 10th.

“I’m really kind of humbled by it,” said Anderson, who is rarely a man of few words.

The other three inductees are Igor Larionov, Ed Chynoweth (in the builder category) and Ray Scapinello (in the referee/linesman category).

Back to Anderson: it seems this honor took him a bit by surprised, and even this veteran of six Stanley Cup Championship teams was at a loss.

“I did catch myself while walking on the streets of New York catching a second breath,” he said honestly. “It’s been a long time since I won a Cup. It’s up there with the greatest things I have had happen to me in my life.”

The New York experience from 1994 has obviously agreed with Anderson, but he hasn’t forgotten who helped him get inducted. You don’t get 94 playoff goals and 214 points (both good for fourth on the all-time list) all by yourself.

“You don’t realize how great the players are until you play with them,” he said, talking about his former teammates and his recent play with Larionov over in Russia.

“We were invited over by the President of Belarus,” Anderson explained. “We had a game over there and we opened a building. (Slava) Festisov had his 50th birthday in another game to open a building.”

Larionov and Anderson have stayed busy and the Russian player has his own reasons to be thrilled about being inducted.

“To be recognized is a huge part of Russian and international hockey,” he said. “It’s nice to see. For me to be inducted next to Slava and other Russian players like Valeri Kharmalov, who I got to play four game with before he died, and (Vladislav) Tretiak ...”

Scapinello never missed a game.

“I’m so humbled by this honor. Obviously the highlight of my 33-year career.”

Chynoweth had passed away in April, so his sons spoke on his behalf. He was one of the founders of the CHL.

If you haven’t made the trip to the Hockey Hall of Fame, check it out this November!

NBA draft guide: Top 75 players overall

By Rick Morris

Click here for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, your ultimate guide to the 2008 pro hockey entry draft and offseason. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, get ready for HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY, our guide to the 2008 NBA Draft, once again co-produced between FantasyDrafthelp.com and Sportsology. Targeted to be released by this Saturday, June 21, HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY will again serialized here and at Sportsology just like our hockey version was featured.

Today's installment? FDH Senior Editor Jason Jones' Top 75 players, regardless of position. We posted his rankings previously, but these updated rankings reflect the dropout of several players from draft consideration.

	Name	Pos	Size	School
1	Michael Beasley	PF	6'10, 235	Kansas St
2	Derrick Rose	PG	6'3, 205	Memphis
3	O.J. Mayo	PG/SG	6'4, 195	USC
4	Jerryd Bayless	PG	6'3, 190	Arizona
5	Eric Gordon	SG	6'4, 215	Indiana
6	Brook Lopez	C	7'0, 260	Stanford
7	Anthony Randolph	PF	6'11, 220	LSU
8	Kevin Love	PF	6'10, 275	UCLA
9	D.J. Augustin	PG	6'0, 180	Texas
10	Danilo Gallinari	SF	6'9, 212	Italy
11	DeAndre Jordan	C	7'0, 255	Texas A&M
12	Russell Westbrook	PG	6'3, 189	UCLA
13	Kosta Koufos	PF/C	7'0, 265	Ohio St
14	Nicolas Batum	SF	6'8, 210	France
15	Brandon Rush	SG	6'7, 205	Kansas
16	Chris Douglas-Roberts	SG	6'6, 195	Memphis
17	Darrell Arthur	PF	6'10, 225	Kansas
18	Marreese Speights	C	6'10, 245	Florida
19	Roy Hibbert	C	7'2, 275	Georgetown
20	Mario Chalmers	PG	6'2, 170	Kansas
21	JaVale McGee	C	7'0, 237	Nevada
22	Bill Walker	SF	6'6, 235	Kansas St
23	D.J. White	PF	6'9, 240	Indiana
24	Donte Greene	SF	6'10, 225	Syracuse
25	Joe Alexander	SF	6'8, 220	West Virginia
26	J.J. Hickerson	PF	6'9, 240	N.C. State
27	Serge Ibaka	PF	6'10, 220	Congo
28	Jason Thompson	PF	6'11, 250	Rider
29	Nathan Jawai	PF	6'10, 270	Australia
30	Courtney Lee	SG	6'5, 200	W. Kentucky
31	Ante Tomic	C	7'2, 237	Croatia
32	Trent Plaisted	C	6'11, 245	BYU
33	Richard Hendrix	PF	6'9, 260	Alabama
34	Alexis Ajinca	PF	7'1, 240	France
35	Robin Lopez	C	7'0, 245	Stanford
36	Davon Jefferson	SF	6'8, 215	USC
37	J.R. Giddens	SG	6'5, 200	New Mexico
38	Joey Dorsey	PF	6'9, 260	Memphis
39	Luc Richard Mbah a Moute	SF	6'7, 215	UCLA
40	Chris Lofton	SG	6'2, 197	Tennessee
41	Shan Foster	SG	6'6, 205	Vanderbilt
42	DeVon Hardin	C	6'11, 250	Cal
43	Tyrone Brazelton	PG	6'0, 180	W. Kentucky
44	Keith Brumbaugh	SF	6'10, 215	Hillsborough C.C.
45	Jamont Gordon	SG	6'4, 225	Mississippi St
46	Omer Asik	C	6'11, 230	Turkey
47	Malik Hairston	SG	6'6, 200	Oregon
48	Nikola Pekovic	C	6'11, 245	Serbia
49	James Gist	PF	6'9, 235	Maryland
50	David Padgett	C	6'11, 230	Louisville
51	Richard Roby	SG	6'5, 210	Colorado
52	Kyle Weaver	SG	6'6, 185	Washington St
53	Pat Calathes	SF	6'10, 210	St. Joseph's
54	C.J. Giles	C	6'11, 235	Oregon St
55	Goran Dragic	PG	6'4, 200	Slovenia
56	Ryan Anderson	PF	6'10, 225	Cal
57	Bryce Taylor	SG	6'5, 205	Oregon
58	Sasha Kaun	C	6'11, 250	Kansas
59	Semih Erden	C	7'1, 240	Turkey
60	Darnell Jackson	PF	6'8, 250	Kansas
61	Aleks Maric	C	6'11, 270	Nebraska
62	Mantas Kalnietis	PG	6'5, 194	Lithuania
63	Luc Louves	SF	6'9, 200	France
64	Anton Ponkrashov	PG	6'8, 215	Russia
65	George Hill	PG	6'2, 180	Indianapolis
66	Kentrell Gransberry	PF	6'9, 270	S. Florida
67	Peja Samardziski	C	7'1, 255	Macedonia
68	Josh Duncan	SF	6'8, 225	Xavier
69	Mickell Gladness	PF	6'11, 205	Alabama A&M
70	Will Daniels	SF	6'8, 225	Rhode Island
71	Shawn James	PF	6'10, 225	Duquesne
72	Vladimir Golubovic	PF	7'0, 260	Serbia
73	Charles Rhodes	PF	6'8, 245	Mississippi St
74	Gary Forbes	SF	6'7, 220	UMass
75	Uros Tripkovic	SG	6'5, 190	Serbia

FDH Insider/Goon Squad June 18

By Rick Morris

The FDH Wednesday night lineup is back with a bang this week, with THE FANTASYDRAFTHELP.COM INSIDER leading off right out of the box from 7-9 PM EDT on SportsTalkNetwork.com. In Hour One, we return with another "Buy Low, Sell High" segment for Major League Baseball, before segueing into more NBA Draft coverage toward the end of the hour. We'll be previewing our forthcoming free HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY guide to the 2008 NBA Draft, produced in conjunction with our friends at Sportsology, and currently being serialized daily on our FDH Lounge blog.

Later in Hour Two, we examine our new free HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY guide, also produced in conjunction with Sportsology and a publication that covers the NHL offseason as well as this week's Entry Draft!

Our segment will actually carry over into our next program, THE GOON SQUAD (9-10 PM EDT) -- yay synergy! After we break down the guide and the draft itself a bit more, we'll review the recently-concluded Stanley Cup Playoffs.

We'll be covering all this and much, much more, so tune in for all the fun Wednesday night on STN!

NBA draft guide: Rick Morris mock draft

By Rick Morris

Click here for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, your ultimate guide to the 2008 pro hockey entry draft and offseason. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, get ready for HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY, our guide to the 2008 NBA Draft, once again co-produced between FantasyDrafthelp.com and Sportsology. Targeted to be released by this Saturday, June 21, HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY will again serialized here and at Sportsology just like our hockey version was featured.

Today's installment? One of the two mock drafts we'll be running in the guide, namely the Rick Morris version (it's my favorite, but I'm biased!).

	Rick Morris Mock Draft	Player	Position	Size	School/Country
1	Chicago	Derrick Rose	PG	6'3, 205	Memphis
2	Miami	Michael Beasley	PF	6'10, 235	Kansas St
3	Minnesota	O.J. Mayo	PG/SG	6'4, 195	USC
4	Seattle	Jerryd Bayless	PG	6'3, 190	Arizona
5	Memphis	Kevin Love	PF	6'10, 275	UCLA
6	New York	Anthony Randolph	PF	6'11, 220	LSU
7	LA Clippers	Eric Gordon	SG	6'4, 215	Indiana
8	Milwaukee	Danilo Gallinari	SF	6'9, 212	Italy
9	Charlotte	Brook Lopez	C	7'0, 260	Stanford
10	New Jersey	DeAndre Jordan	C	7'0, 255	Texas A&M
11	Indiana	D.J. Augustin	PG	6'0, 180	Texas
12	Sacramento	Russell Westbrook	PG	6'3, 189	UCLA
13	Portland	Joe Alexander	SF	6'8, 220	West Virginia
14	Golden State	Darrell Arthur	PF	6'10, 225	Kansas
15	Phoenix	Brandon Rush	SG	6'7, 205	Kansas
16	Philadelphia	Marreese Speights	C	6'10, 245	Florida
17	Toronto	Donte Greene	SF	6'10, 225	Syracuse
18	Washington	Chris Douglas-Roberts	SG	6'6, 195	Memphis
19	Cleveland	Kosta Koufos	PF/C	7'0, 265	Ohio St
20	Denver	Robin Lopez	C	7'0, 245	Stanford
21	New Jersey	Nicolas Batum	SF	6'8, 210	France
22	Orlando	Courtney Lee	SG	6'5, 200	W. Kentucky
23	Utah	Roy Hibbert	C	7'2, 275	Georgetown
24	Seattle	Serge Ibaka	PF	6'10, 220	Congo
25	Houston	J.J. Hickerson	PF	6'9, 240	N.C. State
26	San Antonio	Alexis Ajinca	PF	7'1, 240	France
27	New Orleans	Jason Thompson	PF	6'11, 250	Rider
28	Memphis	JaVale McGee	C	7'0, 237	Nevada
29	Detroit	Bill Walker	SF	6'6, 235	Kansas St
30	Boston	Mario Chalmers	PG	6'2, 170	Kansas

NBA draft guide: team needs

By Rick Morris

Click here for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, your ultimate guide to the 2008 pro hockey entry draft and offseason. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, get ready for HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY, our guide to the 2008 NBA Draft, once again co-produced between FantasyDrafthelp.com and Sportsology. Targeted to be released by this Saturday, June 21, HOOPS DRAFTOLOGY will again serialized here and at Sportsology just like our hockey version was featured.

Today's installment? FantasyDrafthelp.com's assessment of team needs heading into next week's draft.

1	Chicago	PG, C
2	Miami	PG, SF, C
3	Minnesota	SF, C
4	Seattle	C, SF, PG, PF
5	Memphis	C, PF
6	New York	SF, C
7	LA Clippers	PF, SG, PG
8	Milwaukee	SF
9	Charlotte	PF
10	New Jersey	C, PF
11	Indiana	PG, C
12	Sacramento	PG, PF
13	Portland	PG, SF
14	Golden State	C
15	Atlanta	C, PF
16	Philadelphia	PF, SG, C
17	Toronto	SF, C, SG
18	Washington	C, SG
19	Cleveland	SG, PG
20	Denver	SG, PF
21	Dallas	C, SG
22	Orlando	SG
23	Utah	SG, SF
24	Phoenix	SF
25	Houston	SF, PG, PF
26	San Antonio	C, SF
27	New Orleans	SG
28	LA Lakers	PG, SF
29	Detroit	C
30	Boston	C, PG

Disrespecting the parking lot

By Samantha Jones
(posted by Rick Morris)

In any given day, there are a number of times that one is expected to abide by certain unwritten rules of etiquette. Whether it be participating in a conference call, a meeting with your superiors at work, pushing a grocery cart, or any number of things … when people abide by these unwritten rules, the world keeps moving along just fine. It only takes one @$$pipe to screw the whole thing up.

It seems that these violators of the natural order of things should be few and far between -- however, in actuality, they are there almost as often as the considerate part of the population. It all comes down to one concept: do you think that you are more important than the next person just because you are whoever you are?

You've seen this person, and you've probably seen him or her way too often. They are too important to follow these rules because they are above the rules. They are running late, and the rules don't apply. Or they have better things to do than to follow the rules.

The crux of this rant applies to parking lots. Let’s assume that you are looking for a spot in a Wal-Mart parking lot. The lanes serpentine towards and away from the storefront. The people I am referring to are the ones that are too important to drive to the end of the lane and turn into the next one. For them, it is much more convenient to cut across parking spaces, thus getting into the next lane without wasting the 7.3 seconds it would've taken to do it correctly. And the beauty of their pure arrogance is that they don't care if you have to slam on your breaks and give your significant other severe whiplash just so they didn't have to waste any of their precious time. And why? Because they are more important than you; their time is more valuable than yours.

Then there are the SuperPricks, the ones who not only do this, but are so arrogant and egocentric that they feel the need to add excessive speed to the equation. Just imagine: you are moving along looking right and left at a comfortable crawl while this jerk a mere eight feet from you crosses over spaces you might intend on turning into at a brisk 30 MPH. On the highway, 30 MPH is as slow as dirt; in a parking lot, it is redlining. I bet they'd act different if I took their sweet little Lexus fender and put in their back seat! And why? Because whether we want to believe it or not, people are jerks.

When you are familiar with an individual person, often they are nice and have redeeming value. When they are strangers in a stranger’s environment, then they are mindless inconsiderate jerks. Because they are more important than you...no matter what they do, who they are, or no matter who you are or what you do. When it’s not familiar, people are inconsiderate jerks.

FDH Lounge Show #30: June 15, 2008

By Rick Morris

Tonight's 30th edition of THE FDH LOUNGE (8-11 PM EDT on SportsTalkNetwork.com) features our trademark eclectic blend of content. In Hour One, after The Dignitaries of The Lounge make their traditional Opening Statements, we launch into a discussion about the three broadcasting giants who left this Earth since our last show: Jim McKay, Charlie Jones and Tim Russert. Our piece about it right here on the Lounge blog serves as the jumping-off point for our retrospective.

Next, we move to the subject Russert loved so much and covered so well: the 2008 presidential race. For the first time since we started our coverage on the show, the race is mathematically over on each side as Obama v McCain is now ON LIKE RADON. We'll check out the "veepstakes" on both sides, key considerations for the fall and all of the important angles.

After our political segment wraps up in Hour Two, we move into a discussion about attempts to "turn back the hands of time" as far as the Internet is concerned. Some big telecoms want to move back to the time before Internet access was paid for on a flat-rate basis, seeking to charge users who consume big downloads way more caysh. The NCAA already banned live-blogging at the College World Series and now the Dallas Cowboys (possibly in conjunction with the NFL, although that has not been substantiated yet) are trying to outlaw live-blogging from the press box. Whether it be attempts to victimize consumers by corporations nostalgic for the ability to charge for Web surfing by the minute or sports officials who think that stopping somebody from reporting on a game in progress will somehow cease the efforts of every dude in his boxers who's doing the same thing in front of the TV, the effect is the same. You can't reverse the progress of history and we'll break down the specifics for you.

In Hour Three, our old pal Russ Cohen from Sportsology comes on to discuss two topics of much coverage on his site: hockey and pro wrestling. Sportsology, of course, is the entity that partnered with FantasyDrafthelp.com to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, our free 68-page e-Book devoted to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason. We'll be discussing the guide and upcoming draft in detail (he'll be on the ground in Ottawa for the big event on June 20-21), as well as the Stanley Cup Finals that he just got done covering in person and the NHL Awards. In terms of wrestling, as hard as it is to imagine, we're almost one year out from the Chris Benoit family tragedy and we'll discuss some of the conclusions in the earthshaking new RING OF HELL expose, as well as Russ's forthcoming article on SLAM! Wrestling about the new WWE Topps cards set. McMahon Money Mania's going to be on the table also, as well as any other goofiness from the pro graps business.

Lastly, we'll provide post-game coverage of the U.S. Open as Tiger Woods looks for another historic victory tonight and the other action just down the road via Interstate 5, the NBA Finals. Boston looks to put away the Lakers in surprising and decisive fashion. Think Phil Jackson believes he needs Andrew Bynum back yet?

Tune in for all this and much, much more when The Great American Radio Show comes to Internet Television for the 30th time tonight on The FDH Lounge, only on The Sports Talk Network.

RIP journalistic giants

By Rick Morris

The world of journalism saw three disparate but outstanding professionals pass on this week, and each happened before we could get a chance to address the situations individually here. Given their respect for other great talents, I'm sure they would be honored to be written about collectively.

Jim McKay was one of the founding fathers of sports journalism on television. Years ago, I read a copy of his memoirs that my mother owned. She was a fan of his because of his grace and professionalism, and these qualities shined through. He worked extremely hard to provide some great entertainment over the years and I have many fond childhood memories of "Wide World of Sports." The opening sequence is regarded as iconic, and rightfully so. This is one of these passings that does probably date you when you write about it, because unless you're at least in your thirties like me, you probably don't have many first-hand memories of McKay because he's been in quasi-retirement for so long. But he was a giant in his field, and one who never looked down on any of the "minor sports" that "Wide World" covered -- and as an enthusiast of many niche sports, I appreciated that greatly. Here's the tribute that ABC/ESPN produced about their longtime colleague:

Jim McKay's passing was not a shock. He lived to age 86 and had faded from the public scene over time. On the other hand, the sudden end of Tim Russert's life on Earth was the very definition of a terrible surprise. I have racked my mind in vain over the last day to generate comparable examples in recent years of someone who was an absolute giant in American life struck down in his (professional, if not physical) prime. He's been an omnipresent figure on the American political scene for two decades, and he dramatically revived one of television's most prized properties, "Meet the Press."

A former Democratic operative, he left behind his advocacy in a way that few figures who followed him through the revolving door of politics-and-journalism would ever be able to do. He was a thoroughly-prepared, relentless-though-polite questioner of politicians across the spectrum. I have seen way more sour grapes about his work since his passing from the left than I have from the right, which probably says something about the priorities of people who hold different political views, but now would not be the time to elaborate on that. Additionally, one more quick note: NBC News has been the focus of much attention over these past few months as they allowed the MSNBC prime-time political programming to devolve into left-wing infotainment. Now, more than ever, Russert was going to be needed to stand up for the integrity of the entire enterprise, and I can only hope that his followers in the ranks can successfully band together to keep the "Russert brand" out front at NBC News. It is almost impossible to imagine NBC's election coverage without him.

Notwithstanding what I just noted about how political blogs are covering this story, I'm struck by how many message boards are filled with notes from average people who looked up to him and counted on him for the coverage he provided to them every Sunday morning. There's not a lot of destination programming on the tube anymore. But far more than I realized, average people everywhere were tuning in every week because they counted on this man to help them make sense of the process. People are cynical about institutions these days; politics, the media, the sports world, entertainment -- all are corrupted by greed and a severe lack of ethics. However, Tim Russert had become an institution that people trusted and respected.

I admire his commitment to his blue-collar roots, as he was in the first generation of his family to attend college. I'm in the second college-educated generation of my family and I see a lot of similarities between my grandfathers and the "Big Russ" figure lovingly chronicled in Russert's books. As a fellow Rust Belt native, I share the same passion for my area sports teams that he did, and I noted on the local news in Cleveland last night many local folks who had fond memories of him from his college days here.

Of all the things being said about him, his commitment to faith and family are the greatest qualities of note. This Associated Press tribute captures the essence of the man.

Charlie Jones was a voice from my youth, broadcasting AFC football games on NBC. With the NBC depth chart being what it was back in the day, he was generally the play-by-play announcer on the #3 or #4-rated game on the network -- which put him on a disproportionate amount of games for my Cleveland Browns back then! He was just a natural, with a great voice for broadcasting and wonderful knowledge of the sport. This video from a 1983 playoff game gives you a feel for what he could do.

RIP Jim McKay, Tim Russert and Charlie Jones. Godspeed to you and your families.

NHL draft guide: released!

By Rick Morris

It's here! It's really, really here!

Click here for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, your ultimate guide to the 2008 pro hockey entry draft and offseason. We'll talk about it in more detail tomorrow.

UPDATE: We've been serializing this guide (perhaps we should call it a book, at 68 pages!) for the last week-and-a-half and so now, in order to deliver the full picture of what we've got in there, we reproduce below the Table of Contents. We can honestly tell you this: if you really love hockey, if you're interested in where the NHL goes from here, you need this free download and we're happy to provide it for you.

Page 1: HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY Overview
Pages 2-3: Profile: North American D Patrick Wiercioch
Page 3: Interview: European G Harri Sateri
Page 4: Interview: North American F Danny Kristo
Page 5: Interview: North American F Colin Wilson
Page 6: Interview: North American D David Carle
Page 7: North American D Eric Mestery: No Mystery
Page 8: Interview: North American G Chet Pickard
Pages 9-11: Silly Q&A with past prospects
Pages 12-16: Memorable past draftees
Page 17: Assessment of draft priorities by organization
Pages 17-30: Assessment of talent levels by organization
Pages 31-32: Importance of top-level players
Pages 33-34: Atlantic Division draft records (1997-2003)
Pages 35-36: Northeast Division draft records (1997-2003)
Pages 37-38: Southeast Division draft records (1997-2003)
Pages 39-40: Central Division draft records (1997-2003)
Pages 41-42: Pacific Division draft records (1997-2003)
Pages 43-44: Northwest Division draft records (1997-2003)
Pages 45: NHL team draft rankings (1997-2003)
Pages 46-62: 2008 NHL HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY mock draft
Page 63: 2008 NHL Entry Draft Top 10 prospects
Page 65: 2008 NHL Entry Draft Top 10 sleepers
Page 66: NHL free agency overview
Pages 67-68: Preview of ultimate hockey stat for ‘08-’09

FDH Insider/Goon Squad June 11: cancelled

By Rick Morris

We apologize greatly for the fact that we will not be bringing you the FDH Wednesday night on SportsTalkNetwork.com with THE FANTASYDRAFTHELP.COM INSIDER from 7-9 PM EDT and THE GOON SQUAD from 9-10 PM EDT. If you've been following our serialized installments on The FDH Lounge blog over the past week, you'll see that we're preparing our largest free online magazine ever. In conjunction with our friends at Sportsology, we're releasing HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY this week, a preview of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason. Due to a last-minute acquisition of a tremendous amount of material from talented puck scribe Shane Malloy, we have literally tripled the size of our publication and it's "all hands on deck" right now to get this released by the end of the week. We apologize for our absence from your cyber-airwaves tonight and urge you to check out live FDH programming at your next opportunity: on Sunday night (8-11 PM EDT) for the 30th edition of THE FDH LOUNGE.

NHL draft guide: organizational draft priorities

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com this week (IMPORTANT NOTE: we had substantial bonus content come in at the last minute -- as such, the June 10 release date is null and void -- we apologize for that, but we assure you that the product will be more than worth the wait). Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today, we examine the FantasyDrafthelp.com assessment of draft priorities by organization. All things being equal, this is where we see each organization looking if they were able to find players at the positions of need.

Anaheim: LW

Atlanta: D, RW

Boston: RW, D

Buffalo: RW, LW, C

Calgary: RW, D

Carolina: RW, D

Chicago: LW, C

Colorado: G, LW

Columbus: D

Dallas: G, RW

Detroit: RW, LW, C

Edmonton: RW, LW

Florida: LW, G

Los Angeles: LW

Minnesota: G, D, LW

Montreal: RW, C

Nashville: RW, LW

New Jersey: D, C, G

New York Islanders: D, G

New York Rangers: LW

Ottawa: RW, D

Philadelphia: C, G

Phoenix: D, G

Pittsburgh: RW, G

St. Louis: LW, RW

San Jose: D

Tampa Bay: RW, C

Toronto: D, RW

Vancouver: C, D

Washington: D, C

(Note: no pun intended on the Caps' priorities!)

NHL draft guide: free agency overview

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com this week (IMPORTANT NOTE: we had substantial bonus content come in at the last minute -- as such, the June 10 release date is null and void -- we apologize for that, but we assure you that the product will be more than worth the wait). Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today, we examine the state of the free agent market that will open for business in a few short weeks.

Nothing sums up the never-ending nature of the NHL circle of life like the annual launch of the free agency period on July 1. “Rental” players who helped their team to make deep runs in the just-concluded playoffs hit the market, as well as others who could well be viewed as the “one missing piece” for organizations who perceive themselves to be on the verge of a title.

Two key rentals who will be on the market did indeed reach the Stanley Cup Finals, one for the winning team and one for the losing one. Defenseman Brad Stuart was acquired by Detroit at the 2007-08 trading deadline in the hopes that his physical defensive style would augment the Red Wings’ burgeoning blue line identity. It did. Marian Hossa commanded a steep price from Atlanta at the trading deadline, but Pittsburgh was willing to pay the price to advance within two wins of their first Cup in 16 years.

For teams seeking validation of the principle of signing a big-ticket acquisition in free agency, they again need look no further than Detroit. Brian Rafalski fit in perfectly with the team’s philosophy of having puck-moving defensemen and his winning pedigree earned in the swamps of New Jersey manifested itself once again in Hockeytown. With that in mind, we examine the potential impact players in this year’s class (unrestricted free agents only).

The center position in 2008 is headlined by three Hall of Fame names, but the significance of this is highly misleading. Joe Sakic and Mats Sundin are highly unlikely to leave their present names if they continue to play at all — and there is more of a significant question about Sakic’s intentions than Sundin’s — and Sergei Fedorov has clearly seen better days. Given the way that he seemed to fit in with the new Russo-centric ethos in D.C., he would be advised to seek any deal the Caps are willing to throw his way. Bobby Holik, Brendan Morrison, Craig Conroy, Mike Peca, Doug Weight and Martin Straka are other names in a class that is underwhelming in terms of the potential impact on the 2009 Stanley Cup chase. Peter Forsberg still probably has the highest ceiling of any of the free agents at the position, but his reliability due to injury is now in grave doubt.

The left wing position isn’t much better, as Markus Naslund and Ladislav Nagy tower over a weak field. Naslund’s production has deteriorated over the past few years and Nagy is a huge injury risk. Brendan Shanahan and Gary Roberts are both as likely to hang up the skates as they are to ink new deals in the twilight of their careers. Cory Stillman is a proven winner with some gas left in the tank, though, and Kristian Huselius is a perfect example of a young player who never should have hit the market in the first place, so there is some talent here.

At right wing, the explosive Hossa is clearly the crown jewel, perhaps of the entire free agency crop. Jaromir Jagr isn’t far behind and Pavol Demitra also brings a history of excellent production, as does Brian Rolston. Miro Satan, Michael Ryder, David Vyborny and Owen Nolan could all offer minor help of some sort to a new team.

Wade Redden is a top-level defenseman available in his prime and should, like Rafalski last year, cash in nicely. He’ll be joined at the top end of the signing spectrum by rental Brian Campbell, who wasn’t able to single-handedly overcome San Jose’s record of playoff underachievement. John-Michael Liles, Ron Hainsey and Stuart won’t be far behind.

In net, talented Cristobal Huet will probably work out an extension with Washington, but Olaf Kolzig will not — but might perhaps retire and in any instance doesn’t project as a starter for an elite team. Jose Theodore’s deal is up, but since he makes Oliver Perez look consistent, a team would be foolish to wager a potential title on him. Patrick Lalime is another dubious option.

In terms of teams with some cap room to spend, the New York Rangers are likely to revive a Canada Day pre-lockout tradition by making a big splash when the market opens. Assuming they don’t sign their own marquee free agents, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Ottawa and San Jose will be able to make a mark. Tampa Bay, Columbus, Phoenix, Nashville and Los Angeles will also have money to spend, albeit in a market with few real potential difference-makers.

NHL draft guide: How stars lead to titles

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com this week (IMPORTANT NOTE: we had substantial bonus content come in at the last minute -- as such, the June 10 release date is null and void -- we apologize for that, but we assure you that the product will be more than worth the wait). Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today, we examine the role that the players at the top of the NHL Entry Draft will be expected to play for their teams.

As a team sport by and large incapable of devolving into the often-selfish “Me Ball” of the NBA, the NHL is rightfully held up as exemplary of true team play. However, does this tendency devalue the effect that true mega-stars have on the ability to win championships? FantasyDrafthelp.com decided to find out, in an attempt to ascertain exactly how important it is for teams to hit on their picks in the NHL Entry Draft.

First, we ranked the top players in our opinion in the last quarter century into three tiers, the top five, the second five and the third five. Then, we took a look at which teams had captured the Stanley Cup during that period of time and looked for any correlations. The results were very revealing.

Here’s the designation of the best players on each tier, in no particular order on each tier:

A) Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Nicklas Lidstrom, Patrick Roy, Martin Brodeur

B) Steve Yzerman, Mark Messier, Ray Bourque, Dominik Hasek, Jaromir Jagr

C) Joe Sakic, Ed Belfour, Brett Hull, Paul Coffey, Al MacInnis

And here’s who’s won the Stanley Cup over the past 25 years:

1984: Edmonton A (Gretzky), B (Messier)*

1985: Edmonton A (Gretzky), B (Messier)

1986: Montreal A (Roy)

1987: Edmonton A (Gretzky), B (Messier)

1988: Edmonton A (Gretzky), B (Messier)

1989: Calgary C (MacInnis)

1990: Edmonton B (Messier)

1991: Pittsburgh A (Lemieux) B (Jagr)

1992: Pittsburgh A (Lemieux) B (Jagr)

1993: Montreal A (Roy)

1994: New York Rangers B (Messier)

1995: New Jersey A (Brodeur)**

1996: Colorado A (Roy) B (Sakic)

1997: Detroit A (Lidstrom) B (Yzerman)

1998: Detroit A (Lidstrom) B (Yzerman)

1999: Dallas C (Belfour) C (Hull)

2000: New Jersey A (Brodeur)

2001: Colorado A (Roy) B (Sakic) B (Bourque)

2002: Detroit A (Lidstrom) B (Yzerman) B (Hasek) C (Hull)***

2003: New Jersey A (Brodeur)

2004: Tampa Bay****

2006: Carolina****

2007: Anaheim**

2008: Detroit A (Lidstrom) B (Hasek)*****

* The ‘80s Edmonton teams had several other players who would have rated as “Honorable Mention.”

** Scott Niedermayer, who won Cups with New Jersey and Anaheim, would have rated as “Honorable Mention,” as would Chris Pronger with Anaheim and Scott Stevens with New Jersey.

*** To properly appreciate the greatness of the 2002 Red Wings, consider that Luc Robitaille and Chris Chelios would have rated as “Honorable Mention.”

**** If this feature was revisited in another decade, Vincent Lecavalier would probably make the cut, with Martin St. Louis and Brad Richards probably at least meriting “Honorable Mention.” Eric Staal would have a very good chance to make the list at that time also, so this “megastar principle” may yet prove to be the case for the 2004 and 2006 champions as well.

***** Neither Hasek nor Chelios skated for Detroit in the Finals.

So essentially, it’s every bit as important to have high-end impact players in the NHL as it is in the NBA. Only seven times since 1984 has a team won a title without an “A” caliber player on this list and also in a minority of cases (11), a team has captured the title without at least two players on this list. So after reading this feature, whether one quibbles a bit or not with the rating of certain players, this much is certain: teamwork matters, and so does coaching, but the high-octane engine of superstar power almost invariably is needed if a team is to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup in the end.

NHL draft guide interview: Chet Pickard

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on June 10. Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today, we provide an interview with Chet Pickard, the # 2 ranked North American goaltender in the upcoming draft according to Central Scouting. He has played the past four seasons for the Tri-City Americans of the WHL. His team the U.S. Division regular season championship for the first time this past season and he almost led his team to the Memorial Cup (they lost in Game Seven to Spokane, who won the tournament). He boasted a 1.78 GAA with a .937 save percentage and he won the ADT Goaltender of the Year Award. HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY had a chance to chat with him about his hockey career.

Q: What’s on your mask?

A: We had a contest with the fans on the website to design my mask. They came up with Captain America on top and the autism logo on the side since that is Ollie Kolzig’s charity and he is the owner.

Q: What’s it like to talk to Ollie?

A: He’s cool but he’s not normally around very much. It’s pretty special when you can talk to a player who has had that kind of career. I had a poster of him up in my room since I was 4 or 5.

Q: How tall are you and do you use your height to your advantage?

A: I am a hair under 6-3. I think I do, for sure. I always play deeper in my net and manage the crease and set up for my second save.

Q: Do you give up a lot of rebounds?

A: You can’t always control every rebound. I think I have good rebound control.

Q: Do you slash players in the crease?

A: No, I’m not big on hitting them with my blocker or in the ankles with my stick. You can’t do much about the player in front of you. You pretty much have to deal with it.

Q: Is your save percentage important to you?

A: Stats aren’t something that I put too much thought into. They were good. I liked looking at them. I consider them a reflection of the team.

Q: You had great playoff numbers. Do you like to play with the pressure on like that?

A: This year was a big year for me. I was probably the most complete guy on the team. I played 62 of 74 and I’d play all 72 if I could. Why not play every game? It’s only 60 minutes of hockey. It’s not a daily job of 8 or 9 hours in an office.

Q: How old were you when you started to play?

A: I was pretty young when I started. I think was a forward when I was 6 or 7.

Q: Do you want to score a goal in your career?

A: I think so. There were a couple of chances where I went for it. It would be a pretty cool accomplishment. (He made fun of himself for missing completely.)

Q: Do you play better in the playoffs?

A: I feel like our whole team did; it was a real team effort in the playoffs. We had a lot of pressure on us since we came in first. I think we had a good run.

Q: Do you care where you place in the draft?

A: I have no idea how high or when I’m gonna go. I’d be more worried about going where the best scenario is -- whoever has less young goalies. Every player wants to go to a team where they can make the jump.

Q: Do you mean the AHL when you are old enough?

A: Yeah the AHL or you never know these days, maybe to the big club. I’ll be in juniors one more year.

FDH Lounge Show #30: postponed

By Rick Morris

Due to phone repairs that are ongoing at SportsTalkNetwork.com, this week's edition of THE FDH LOUNGE is rescheduled for next Sunday, June 15 at the usual time of 8-11 PM EDT. We apologize to our viewers/listeners and look forward to joining you for what will now be back-to-back editions of the Lounge.

NHL draft guide: Mestery profile

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on June 10. Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today, we examine Canadian prospect Eric Mestery through the eyes of HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY correspondent Russ Cohen.

Mestery is no mystery
by Russ Cohen

Sometimes players can be aloof and hard to figure out and sometimes they can be very straightforward and honest. The latter is how I would characterize defenseman Eric Mestery.

The 6-5 blueliner weighs in at about 195 pounds so he has a chance to be a huge obstacle for offensive players around the league to try and get past in the future.

“I’m hoping to be 210 when the season rolls around,” the Winnipeg, Manitoba native said and then he talked about scrapping if need be. “If I feel that it’s a necessary thing, I’ll do it for a teammate or myself if I have to.”

Knowing that some players are guarded about what they eat, I asked him if he had a favorite donut.

“Boston Cream,” he answered quickly.

These days the new NHL has put so much emphasis in the offensive side of the game, even for defenseman, that the tougher, bigger blueliners are in demand these days because most teams don’t have one.

“I’m trying to develop into more of an offensive player. More of a two-way defenseman,” he said, knowing I would call him a stay-at-home defender.

If you have size and you aren’t afraid of using it you can be an intimating force in the league and right now Mestery isn’t willing to say if he will be that type of player.

“I don’t think many guys are intimidated by me I don’t know. I play my game but if it happens that’s good.”

You can’t teach size or hockey sense and this prospect has both of those areas covered. He is currently ranked 59^th by Central Scouting but that doesn’t mean he won’t move up the charts on draft day. For now, if this prospect gets drafted on Day Two he is totally prepared for that.

“I don’t know. I’m kind of expecting that more than anything,” he said.

This kid is steady as she goes and he couldn’t impress me more as a positive type of person and player. He was a teammate of Chet Pickard, the #2 ranked North American goaltending prospect. Both of them played for the Tri-City Americans of the WHL and even though their season didn’t end with a Memorial Cup berth, Mestery still managed to put a positive light on it.

“The season went really great. We went deep in the playoffs and could have gone even further except for a couple of mishaps in Game Seven. Overall it was a great season for us.”

Like most guys his age, he likes to play other sports

“Golfing. I’m not good but I’m not bad,” he said and then he talked about the frustrating part. “Losing balls.”

Why? Because he doesn’t like paying for them, but that will change when he gets signed. Until then, he has some ideas on what he will buy upon getting his first deal.

“Probably pay off my parents’ house and buy my dad a new car and buy my mom whatever she wants,” he said (maybe too soon!).

He started to play when he was three and yet, when asked when he realized he had a shot to be a drafted player, his answer was a bit of a shocker.

“I think just this year,” he said honestly.

He did play one other sport until hockey took over.

“I used to play volleyball just because of my height,” which made total sense. Then he added, “Oh yeah, it was competitive.”

So what will his workout regimen be this like this summer?

“Just working on getting heavier, stronger and faster. A lot of off-ice. I just go on the ice once every two weeks. I run here and do sprints outside. We just have this hill not too far from my house that we run to. It’s actually an old garbage dump.”

He said he wasn’t worried about running on a heap of trash, and he laughed a lot, showing me that he doesn’t take life too seriously -- but as you can read, he is serious about hockey.

NHL draft guide: Silly Q&A

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on June 10. Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today, we go back into the archives of the notebook of Sportsology's Russ Cohen. He's covered several past NHL Entry Draft events and he furnishes for HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY a look at the lighter side of prospect interaction with the media.

The Baseball Question

For the past 3-4 years, I have routinely asked the Cubs or Sox question to the Chicago Blackhawks’ pick to see which team they want to see. Most hockey players (North American ones, anyway) are baseball fans. Jonathan Toews was drafted third overall in 2006 by Chicago and after the interviews were over and the cameras were turned off, my colleague Shane Malloy and myself asked him the question. At first, he said he didn't know and that's when Shane jumped in and said, “You can't waffle like Cam Barker, we need an answer.” Two years before that when I asked Cam that question, he answered Cubs, but then soon became a "big" Chi Sox fan right around World Series time.

Getting back to Toews, he then turned to me and asked, "Who should I pick?" I thought I would help out the Winnipeg, Manitoba native and told him to pick the Cubs for the sake of fun and the better ballpark or pick the Sox if you are trendy. The Blackhawks PR representative turned to me and helped out the youngster by revealing he would be seeing the White Sox when he hits town because of scheduling. He saved him from being called a "bandwagon fan" as Malloy has told Barker in person.

The Anaheim Ducks picked Logan MacMillan in the 19^th slot, but there was something more pressing to ask him about.

Q: Will you go Angels or Dodgers?

MacMillan: I’m not sure. I was a Yankees fan, so I will have to get that switched off pretty quick.

The Golf Question

Nicklas Backstrom was the first victim of this question in 2006. The fourth overall pick handled it very well.

Q: Do you play golf?

Backstrom: Yes, I play golf.

Q: Are you very good or are you just learning?

Backstrom: I am learning.

Q: Are you better at putting or driving?

Backstrom: I think driving.

Q: Does it relieve some tension that hockey can bring on?

Backstrom: Yeah, absolutely [it relieves tension].

Phoenix draft pick Peter Mueller was the 8^th overall pick in 2006 and he was talking about golf once he overheard the conversation, and he immediately spilled the beans about fellow Team USA teammate and first overall pick Erik Johnson.

Mueller: I called Erik to go golfing the other day. He likes it, but he throws his clubs a little bit. He gets a little temper going on…but who doesn’t? I would say I’m better, but he is probably better.

Johnson: Oh no. He threw me under the bus.

Q: Why do you throw them?

Johnson: I get upset. I dump the ball and I just whip that thing. He throws the club, too. I don’t know what he is talking about!

Q: He didn’t say he did that.

Johnson: He throws the clubs.

The Style Question

Washington defenseman Karl Alzner was drafted fifth overall in 2007. He was sporting a perfect Windsor knot and something told me that he wasn’t the person that pulled that off.

Q: Did you tie that or did somebody in your family help you?

Alzner: I tied it about 15 or 16 times. My sister tied it once or twice. My dad tied it once, and then my agent tied it for the final time. I didn’t know how to do the double Windsor, and I wanted something that looked good, so I let him do it.

Next up was Logan Couture of the San Jose Sharks. He was the ninth overall pick in 2007.

Q: How many teeth are real at this point?

Couture: All of them. They are all real. I haven’t lost any yet. I got hit with the puck right here (as he pointed to his lip and lower teeth) for 13 stitches, but I was lucky enough I wear a mouth guard. I’m one of the smart few.

Colton Gillies was pretty loose after being picked by the Minnesota Wild 16^th overall in 2007.

Q: Are you trying to make a fashion statement with that tie? Who picked that out for you?

Gillies: The guy that gave me, the guy that picked up my suit kind of thing. He said, “Here this will look good with this,” and I said okay, I’ll wear it.

Star Struck?

Detroit’s defenseman Brendan Smith (27^th overall pick in 2007) was in awe of the next question (well, sort of!).

Q: Are you going to try to get Yzerman on the ice to see if you can stop him?

Smith: I’ll try. I don’t know, it’s Yzerman right (he said as a fan)! I grew up watching him. I am just in awe. Coming up there (on the draft podium with him), I couldn’t even get words out.

How Strong Are You?

Olivier Fortier was picked by the Canadiens with the 65^th overall pick in 2007 and wasn’t afraid to talk about his strength.

Q: Is it the physical battles you are talking about winning?

Fortier: I’m not big but I will get bigger and I will be big enough to be in that league (he’s currently around 5’11, 170 pounds)….I am stronger than my weight.

Q: Can you bench-press 180 pounds? That was an issue in the NBA draft.

Fortier: 180 pounds? I can bench more than that.

Q: See, you can bench more than Seattle’s Kevin Durant.

Fortier: LOL

Famous Families

I ran into Brandon Sutter of the Carolina Hurricanes (the 11^th overall pick in 2007) the day he was drafted and I asked him this:

Q: Brandon, if you played in a pickup game with the Sutters against the Staals, who would win?

Sutter: I think we outnumber them so it would probably be the Sutters. Those are two pretty good families.

The day after, he answered this question about playing for his dad like a pro.

Q: Let’s say you have a bad game. You guys lose 6-0, you’re not in a good mood, dad is not in a good mood, you get home, mom’s trying to keep everything happy and you are trying to get away from the game for a while. That can be different?

Sutter: Actually I live in a billet family. Which is obviously a very good idea because I can’t imagine being at home after a loss. Yeah, it’s nice to get away, but there are some times where he is gonna …you’ll hear it from him, but he’s pretty good about it.

Do You Fight?

Patrick O’Sullivan, who was drafted by the Minnesota Wild with the 56^th overall pick in 2003, is now with the Los Angeles Kings. He had a great sense of humor, and I noticed that he was sizing up Zach Parise, who was standing next to him for a few hours the day before the draft. Parise went #17 overall and O’Sullivan went much later but the sparks flew early!

Q to O’Sullivan: Do you think you can take Parise?

O’Sullivan: In a fight?

Q: Yes.

O’Sullivan: I think it would be a good tilt. That’s the funniest question I‘ve heard so far.

Q to Parise: O’Sullivan said you guys were pretty much the same size and it would be a pretty good fight between you too. Do you agree with that?

Parise: It would be a good scrap. He would probably beat me up.

The Donut Question

Eric Staal was the second overall selection by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2003 and he was giving all the right answers. He plays hard, plays chippy, will fight if he has to. When he mentioned that he didn’t hear enough weird questions I obliged and the inspiration came from my Sportsology partner Doug Cataldo (who thought it up).

Q to Staal: What’s your favorite donut?

Staal: A Bismarck (a chocolate and maple glazed donut with a custard filling).

Q: Is that Canadian (my American was showing)?

Staal: Yes, it’s from Tim Horton’s.

Ask Me Anything

Ryan Getzlaf was my last interview of the day in 2003 and he was giddy. Maybe it was the fact that he felt he would be the 19th overall pick by the Anaheim Mighty Ducks (at that time), or maybe his blood sugar dropped.

Q to Getzlaf: What can you tell me about you that nobody else knows about? Were you a bully in school, or did you not go to your senior prom?

Getzlaf: (chuckle)

Q: Do you have a secret move like slew footing a guy or holding the stick? What was your favorite tactic to get the edge?

Getzlaf: I never really thought about that all that much.

Q: You play a totally clean game?

Getzlaf: No, I play the same as everybody else, chippy…I had three fights last season.

Jokester

Keaton Ellerby was grilled about his joking around in the WHL.

Q: So do you think you are the funny guy on the team (meaning Kamloops)?

Ellerby: I can be.

Q: That’s what some of the guys are saying.

Ellerby: Who was that (the source was never disclosed)?

The Show Stopper

The Atlanta Thrashers drafted themselves a talented player and a new quote-master by snagging Bryan Little with the 12th overall pick in 2006. In Little's bio is a little blurb that claims he would like to go out to eat with two other famous people and sexy siren Jessica Simpson was the third. Maybe he threw that in there figuring the folks that put together the draft guide would forget to print it, or maybe he himself forgot about it.

Q: Will you ask out Jessica Simpson to dinner now?

Little: I don't know? Maybe?

Q from an unknown reporter: What's that a reference to?

Little: That was in that book I think, yeah...if I could.

NHL draft guide interview: Harri Sateri

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on June 10. Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Harri Sateri is the #1 ranked European goalie in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and we had a chance to find out more about this talented netminder.

Q: What style of goalie are you?

A: I'm a butterfly-style goalie.

Q: How old were you when you got a goalie coach?

A: I was about ten years old when I got a goalie coach.

Q: Will you be attending the draft in person?

A: Yes, I will come to the draft.

Q: Who was your favorite player growing up?

A: Ron Hextall.

Q: What's it like to play in the International tournaments like the World Junior Championships?

A: It's awesome. There are all the best players and everybody does their best.

Q: Is your strength going post-to-post -- or what would you say it is?

A: I think my strength is moving.

Q: What's your favorite thing to do when you aren't playing hockey?

A: Playing golf or just hanging out with my friends.

Q: Did you ever play another position in hockey?

A: When I started playing, I was a forward for a year, but then I went to the net.

Q: Have you played or do you still play other sports?

A: Nothing serious, but golf and tennis just for fun.

Q: Who's on your goalie mask?

A: There is our team sponsors, some painting, it's pretty boring.

Q: Your birthday is on the 29th of December, so close to New Year's Eve, is that a fun week for you?

A: Yeah, it’s awesome. First Christmas, then my birthday, and then New Year's Eve. Lot of gifts for me.

Q: Does your mom worry about you getting hurt when you are playing hockey?

A: Yeah, a little bit, but I think my grandmom worries about me the most.

NHL draft guide interview: David Carle

By Rick Morris

As announced previously in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on June 10. Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

David Carle is a very talented defenseman who will be attending the University of Denver this fall. This future NHL’er has been tabbed as the 60^{th -}ranked North American skater by Central Scouting and his brother Matt plays for the San Jose Sharks. HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY had a chance to talk to David and ask him about his life and the NHL draft.

Q: Shattuck-St. Mary’s – a lot of great hockey players have played there for the program, but how is the food?

A: Some days it’s pretty good and other days you have to scrounge around for a meal you like. It serves my nutritional needs.

Q: So what’s the reason you go there?

A: It’s not the food.

Q: Is it fun for you to be a part of the same school as Matt?

A: Yeah, I think so. I haven’t talked too much with him about it. It’s pretty much the same coaching staff (Denver), and I think I’ll enjoy it and we will have similar memories and that will be cool.

Q: Are you an offensive defenseman?

A: Yeah, I think I’m a good two-way defenseman. I’m not a super offensive player, but I jump up when I get the opportunity. I pick my spots. I’m trying to implement it into my game more and more.

Q: How tall are you and do you expect to put on some weight in the future?

A: I’m actually 5-11 ½ 190 pounds. I do expect to top out at 6-foot 195-200 pounds. I am definitely trying to do that before the season rolls around.

Q: Does it matter to you where you place in the draft?

A: No, it doesn’t matter, to be honest. I will be grateful for whoever takes me whenever they take me.

Q: What’s your favorite hobby?

A: I like to fish. We go out on 1 or 2 trips in the summer.

Q: What’s the least-known fact about Alaska?

A: Alaska has 3.5 million lakes over 20 acres or larger … I get mad about Minnesota bragging about their 10,000 lakes.

Q: What’s the first thing you will buy when you sign your first pro contract?

A: I haven’t even thought about it.

Q: Blackberry or Sidekick?

A: Voyager touch screen.

Q: What other sports do you play?

A: I have never played another sport competitively. I did play some summer soccer with the boys and girls club for fun.

Q: Did you go to your prom?

A: Yes, I will be going to the prom.

FDH Insider/Goon Squad June 4

By Rick Morris

This Wednesday's edition of THE FANTASYDRAFTHELP.COM INSIDER on SportsTalkNetwork.com (7-9 PM EDT) features a rich and aromatic blend of baseball, hockey and hoops content.

In Hour One, we'll examine some key MLB injury situations and we'll also take an early look at trading deadline buyers and sellers. From there, we preview our HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY online publication being published June 10 in conjunction with our friends at Sportsology. It will contain content for not only the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, but also the offseason as a whole.

Hour Two is devoted to discussion about the NBA Draft. In the past week, we posted Senior Editor Jason Jones' Top 99 Overall prospect list. We continue last week's discussion about lottery teams and look at attractive and unattractive options for various teams.

For the second consecutive week, our hockey show, THE GOON SQUAD, coincides with the Stanley Cup Finals. As such, our show will air in an abbreviated edition during the first intermission period only (starting approximately at 9 PM EDT). We'll look at the Detroit-Pittsburgh series in depth, including the "instant classic" Game Five. All in all, it promises to be another outstanding edition of THE GOON SQUAD and the FDH Wednesday night lineup on STN as a whole.

NHL draft guide interview: Danny Kristo

By Rick Morris

As announced yesterday in this space, Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com are joining up to produce HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, a comprehensive guide to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and offseason as a whole. The issue will be released online, for free, at these two websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on June 10. Until then, the features to be contained in the guide will be released here individually in serialized form.

Today's installment comes courtesy of Sportsology. Danny Kristo is a 5-11, 172-pound forward who plays for the U.S. National U-18 hockey team. He is one of the stars of that team, and this Eden Prarie, Minnesota native may end up being one of the best players to move through the system when it’s all said and done. HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY had a chance to talk to him and get the 411.

Q: How has it been playing in the US Developmental program?

A: It’s been great, a real challenge, it has taken some getting used to living away from home and your parents. It’s fun being with the guys, you are with them all the time. I really like it a lot.

Q: Are you looking forward to the draft?

A: Yeah, but I am mainly focusing on the season at this time. The world championships are a big deal here and that is our main goal at this time.

Q: What has been the highlight of your USA career?

A: Playing in big games and getting to go overseas and represent your country. Getting to play college teams is big, playing for the name on the front of your sweater and all that stuff.

Q: Do you feel your speed will help you out come draft day?

A: Yeah, I think that is one of my biggest assets.

NBA Finals preview

By Rick Morris

From the "frozen envelope" to the Tim Donaghy scandal, David Stern's marketing-obsessed reign over the NBA has led to a plethora of conspiracy theories over the past quarter-century. The sudden revival of the league's greatest rivalry in the form of this year's championship series will do nothing to quiet the "Oh, isn't THAT convenient" crowd.

Ultimately, though, the biggest reason that the Lakers and Celtics will renew their epic historical struggle in the NBA Finals is the fact that two players from the 1980s glory days in this rivalry got very, very lucky. Mitch Kupchak absolutely swindled the Memphis Grizzlies to pick up Pao Gasol in one of the most disgraceful deals in league history. Gasol became an absolutely vital part for the Lakers when their budding star center Andrew Bynum ended up on the sidelines for the rest of the season. On the other side of the country, Danny Ainge got out the credit card, completely mortgaged the Celtics' future, but ended up with exactly the short-term jolt that was necessary to save his job when Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joined Paul Pierce to form a "Big Three" for the ages.

[SIDE NOTE: This is the ultimate test of sincerity for fans of a downtrodden team who say, "Man, if they could just win it all ONCE, I'd never complain if they went back to being horrible again." Boston fans have suffered ever since the final remnants of their destiny evaporated in the early '90s when Larry Bird's retirement and Reggie Lewis' tragic passing combined with the earlier Len Bias tragedy ended the dream. The Celtics have an awesome short-term window in these Finals and probably even next year. If they get over the top, will fans cry when they end up back in the lottery when these aging stars can no longer live up to their Hall of Fame legacies? We shall see.]

The four best players in this series are, of course, Kobe Bryant, Garnett, Pierce and Allen, probably in that order although some might still rank Allen ahead of Pierce. The fifth-best player is undoubtedly Gasol; in the unlikely event he comes close to matching Pierce and/or Allen over the course of the series, the Lakers should win in five. In the much more unlikely event that Gasol and Lamar Odom come close to matching Allen and Pierce collectively, the Lakers should win in a sweep.

Given their progress over the course of the season, the Lakers have to be considered the favorites notwithstanding Boston's superior record and home-court designation. They broke less of a sweat against generally superior competition in the West bracket. They also have a huge edge in three critical areas: the best player, the best coach and the best depth.

However, ignored in the flush of LA's big win over San Antonio was the fact that the team offense really fell off in that series. With the league's best defense awaiting them in the finals, Kobe has to work to keep all of his teammates involved in the scoring and not fall into his bad and selfish habits that have held back his teams in the past. Paradoxically, he could end up falling into that trap because of how easy scoring may come to him in the Finals; Allen is coming off of a sub-par performance guarding Rip Hamilton in the East Finals.

For the Celtics, the key balance in the series will be resting their precious troika enough while not letting the bench squander the series. James Posey continues to be one of the best role players in the league, but he doesn't have much help, especially relative to LA's deep roster of matchup possibilities. Sam Cassell in particular has been an absolute disgrace down the stretch.

Ultimately, in one of those magic touches that make so many conspiracy nuts start foaming at the mouth, this series appears poised to end with one of hoops history's greatest ironies. Given the enmity that existed between Red Auerbach and Phil Jackson, how odd will it be for Big Chief Triangle to surpass the old master, in Boston no less, by being the first NBA coach to garner ten titles? We should get to find out. Lakers in six.

NHL draft guide announcement & Wiercioch profile

By Rick Morris

Two of the greatest names in sports journalism have come together to provide unparalleled coverage of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and the NHL offseason as a whole. Sportsology and FantasyDrafthelp.com have co-produced HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY, an electronic magazine available for free download via their websites and SportsTalkNetwork.com on Tuesday, June 10.

These two entities each bring different, but complementary backgrounds to their coverage of how this summer will shape the future of hockey. Sportsology has provided in-depth coverage of the NHL Entry Draft for years, while FantasyDrafthelp.com has previously produced free online magazines for the NFL and NBA drafts. Together, the breadth of their association will encompass all of the following:

^ Exclusive interviews with top North American prospects: forwards Danny Kristo and Colin Wilson, defenseman David Carle and Eric Mestery and goalie Chet Pickard

^ Exclusive interview with top European goalie prospect Harri Sateri

^ A profile of North American defense prospect Patrick Wiercioch, who has played with many of the top players in this year's draft

^ Assessment of talent levels in each NHL organization -- with an additional list of needs in terms of priority for each franchise

^ A compilation of quotes and stories from top NHL prospects, including many future legends, over the past few decades

^ A compilation of some of the silliest question-and-answer sessions with top prospects since 2001

^ For the hockey pool players, an exclusive first look at FantasyDrafthelp.com's Ultimate Quantitative Baseline statistic going into the 2008-09 season -- the absolute measure of value in terms of how the top players at each position are comparing to one another in terms of their rotisserie value

^ A preview of the free agency period that will begin July 1

Serialized installments of HOCKEY DRAFTOLOGY will be posted here leading up to the June 10 release of the entire guide. Today, we bring you the profile of Patrick Wiercioch, an outstanding young man with a Canadian and American hockey background whose path has crossed with many other top prospects.

Wiercioch is One To Watch

by Russ Cohen

Sportsology

Patrick Wiercioch is a kid out of Maple Grove, BC and he is one of the best young hockey prospects in the world. He is currently the 77^th ranked North American skater according to Central Scouting and someday he hopes to play in the NHL. For now, he is just your above average athlete and everyday teenager.

At the age of 18, he is gearing up for the NHL draft. He has been around the block playing in the BCHL and then the USHL and soon will skate for the University of Wisconsin. It’s not the normal route for a Canadian player to take.

“No it’s not,” he agreed. “It’s a decision I had to make based on the fact that I wanted to leave home. I felt that if I wanted to go to college next year, then the first step I had to take is to play away from home, kind of get that first step under my belt. When Omaha gave me an offer to play for the team, the opportunity presented itself at the right time.”

This past year he played for the Omaha Lancers of the USHL and he helped them win the Clark Cup. In the regular season, he was good for 21 points in 40 games with a plus 21. In the playoffs he was still a plus player and he stepped up his point production to 11 points in 14 games. His last assist helped set up the game and series-winning goal! He had three points in the final contest, showing he has a flair for the dramatic.

“It was an unbelievable experience to win. We had a group of guys that would have been disappointed had it ended any other way; second place was not really an option for the expectations and standards we had set for ourselves. It's a memory and a bond that we will share for as along as our names will be engraved on those trophies and that’s a special feeling -- to know that you are a part of history.”

The amazing part about his offensive production is the fact that he is a defenseman! Playing was easy but living away from home proved to be a challenge.

“It was different. It was an experience. Everything that I didn’t know would hit me did. The time change, not being able to talk to my family when I wanted to, the food, the culture. Just making all the decisions day in and day out.”

Now Omaha is known for its beef, so was that to his liking?

“No it’s just different because I have two very European parents,” he said proudly. “Eating a different lifestyle was good. It kind of opened me up to new things.”

Then he talked about his billet family.

“The people that I stayed with were phenomenal. They made the transition almost as easy as it could have been. Without them, I don’t know if I would have been able to do it. I stayed with Clint and Janet Shafer in Omaha. They took me in as one of their own kids. I know for a fact without them I wouldn’t have made it through the year.”

And like most teens, he’s still growing!

“I am 6-4, 6-4 ½ maybe and 180 is pretty accurate,” he laughed. “Still growing strong both ways now, which is good because I have only grown one way before….I stretched myself pretty good, now I am just trying to get wide.”

He gave me a scouting report about himself.

“I think after going to the USHL I went from being more of an offensive defenseman to a two-way,” Wiercioch said like a pro. “I know my strengths as an individual are definitely offensive but I think that’s where I am most gifted. That’s where I can use my talent the most, on the power play. I try to find open guys and make players around me better. The style of play that the USHL had to offer kind of forced me to work on my defensive game in my own zone. I think by making that move I kind of rounded myself more as an individual.”

After spending his days playing a fast-paced game like hockey, he likes to relax in the great outdoors.

“I like anything outdoors. I just got into fishing lately. Pretty much the slower the better. Even slower than fishing would be ice fishing when it’s freezing.”

Since he is of Polish descent, he notes that the jokes that we hear in the U.S. are prevalent in Canada as well.

“They are just as bad,” he added.

Kyle Turris was a top draft pick last year and he will be a teammate of Patrick’s at Wisconsin.

“It’s such a great program. The fans there -- you can’t help but get excited with the atmosphere that you are going to be placed in, where hockey really means a lot to them. Words can’t describe how excited I am to don a Badgers jersey,” he said like a true recruit.

Nicklas Lidstrom and Sergei Zubov are two of the defenseman he grew up watching but he is a fan of another famous Canadian.

“I am a huge fan of Sidney Crosby,” but when he realized he might have to face him in the future that changed. “I’ll be a fan up until I get the chance that I go on the other side of him. I still have a couple of more years of rooting then.”

When asked if it mattered what position he was drafted in, he gave a two-part answer.

“It’s just an honor to be considered and have your name tossed around with some of the names in this year’s crop of kids. I played against Steven Stamkos (the #1 ranked N.A. skater) when I was in Pee Wee’s (10 or 11 years of age).”

“Still the same dominant player. He’s been dominant ever since I can remember signing autographs at a Winnipeg banquet. Every kid is sitting at the table and you are supposed to exchange autographs at the table and everyone got up and walked over to that kid. Taveres (John, expected to be a top-five pick in next year’s draft), Hodgson (Cody, ranked as the 9^th N.A. skater), Livingston (James ranked 53^rd), it’s funny how kids you grow up with are eventually going to get the opportunity to turn pro. It would be an honor to be drafted and to go high. But either way I’m proud that I have a scholarship to Wisconsin and that’s something that no one can take from me.”

Now what if he was drafted by Phoenix, like Turris, and he would come face to face with his first hockey idol, Wayne Gretzky?

“If I got taken by Phoenix, I probably have a poster for him to sign,” he said like a true fan. “I don’t know if I’ll drop down to one knee. I’m not sure. It’s beyond belief to even thinking about playing for the guy as much as meeting him.”

This kid will get drafted for his talent and his character. Keep an eye out for him.

Best NBA Nicknames of All-Time

By Jason Jones



As I began to look into the upcoming NBA Finals, I was reminded of the players (and their nicknames) who dominated this series from the 1980's. Magic Johnson and Larry Legend helped to ascend the fan popularity to a new level. Too bad the nicknames of today's players are not as epic and creative as their predecessors.

	Player	Nickname
1	Dominique Wilkins	Human Highlight Reel
2	Larry Johnson	Grandmama
3	George Gervin	The Iceman
4	Ervin Johnson	Magic
5	Charles Barkley	Round Mound of Rebound
6	Larry Bird	Larry Legend
7	Vinny Johnson	The Microwave
8	Michael Jordan	Air Jordan
9	Earl Monroe	The Pearl/Black Jesus
10	Robert Parrish	The Chief
11	Karl Malone	The Mailman
12	Shawn Kemp	The Reignman
13	Stacey Augmon	Plastic Man
14	Sarunas Jasikevicius	Jazzy Cabbages
15	Lloyd Bernard Free	World B. Free
16	Antoine Walker	Employee #8
17	Darryl Dawkins	Chocolate Thunder
18	Kevin Garnett	The Big Ticket
19	David Robinson	The Admiral
20	Hakeem Olajuwon	The Dream
21	Pete Maravich	Pistol Pete
22	Julius Erving	Dr. J
23	David Thompson	The Skywalker
24	Lebron James	KingJames/TheChosenOne
25	Sam Cassell	E.T.
26	Oscar Robertson	The Big O
27	Joel Pryzbilla	The Vanilla Gorilla
28	Amare Stoudemire	The Man Child
29	Ron Artest	The Straight Jacket
30	Andrei Kirilenko	AK47
31	Gary Payton	The Glove
32	Tim Duncan	The Big Fundamental
33	Jerome Williams	The Junk Yard Dog
34	TJ Ford	The Little Engine
35	Lamar Odom	The Goods
36	Dennis Rodman	The Worm
37	Dwight Howard	The Daily Double
38	Tony Parker	Mr. Longoria
39	Tyronne Bogues	Mugsy
40	Ricky Davis	Grits 'N Gravy
41	Pau Gasol	The Meal Ticket
42	Adam Morrison	The Stache
43	Steve Nash	Hair Canada
44	Emeka Okafor	Blackula
45	Brian Scalabrine	The Ginger Ninja
46	Allen Iverson	The Answer
47	Kobe Bryant	Black Mamba
48	Paul Pierce	The Truth
49	Darrell Griffith	Dr. Dunkenstein
50	Olekskiy Pecherov	Stewie Griffin
51	Manu Ginolbi	Obi-Won Ginobli
52	Kevin Durant	TheSecondComing/Durantula
53	Wilt Chamberlain	Wilt the Stilt
54	Nate Archibald	Tiny
55	Jerry West	The Logo
56	Samuel Dalembert	The Haitian Sensation
57	Baron Davis	Boom Dizzle/Too Easy
58	Steve Francis	Stevie Franchise
59	Gilbert Arenas	Agent Zero/The Hibachi
60	Shaquille O'Neal	The Big Aristotle
61	Dwyane Wade	Flash
62	Leondro Barbosa	Brazilian Blur
63	Robert Horry	Cheap Shot Bob
64	Yi Jianlian	The Chairman
65	Kenyon Martin	K-Mart
66	Andre Miller	The Penguin
67	Andersen Varejao	Sideshow Bob
68	Bryant Reeves	Big Country
69	Clyde Drexler	Clyde the Glide
70	Scottie Pippen	The Condor
71	Chauncey Billups	Mr. Big Shot
72	Shawn Marion	The Matrix
73	Daniel Gibson	Boobie
74	Dan Majerle	Thunder Dan
75	Connie Hawkins	The Hawk
76	Corey Brewer	Drunken Dribbler
77	Caron Butler	Caronimo
78	Udonis Haslem	The Udominator
79	Linas Kleiza	The Menace
80	Charlie Villenueva	Skillanueva
81	Deron Williams	The Kingpin
82	Hakim Warrick	The Helicopter
83	Chris Paul	CP3
84	Vince Carter	Vincanity
85	Jason Williams	White Chocolate
86	Ray Allen	Jesus Shuttlesworth
87	JR Smith	The Prodigy
88	Martell Webster	The Definition
89	Kirk Hinrich	Captain Kirk
90	Channing Frye	Buffet of Goodness
91	James Worthy	Big Game James
92	Glen Davis	Big Baby
93	Brandon Roy	The Natural
94	Richard Hamilton	RIP
95	Chris Anderson	The Birdman
96	Anfernee Hardaway	Penny
97	Rafer Alston	Skip To My Lou
98	Tracy McGrady	T-Mac
99	Stephon Marbury	Starbury
100	Harold Minor	Baby Jordan

Points of Note:

#5- Sir Charles is probably more well known, but Round Mound of Rebound is just more funny.

#7- The Microwave may be one of the more genius results in a nickname

#14- My wife assures me that "Jazzy Cabbages" is the funniest name on this list

#16- Employee #8 is interesting seeing as opposes Antoine Walker's personality

#17- Chocolate Thunder is only one of great Darryl Dawkins names to pick from

#29- Ron Artest's "Straight Jacket" may be the most fitting name on the list

#42- The only thing Adam Morrison is know for these days...The Stache

#45- How great is "The Ginger Ninja"? South Park good

#52- Most young players get carried away, but I love "Durantula" for Kevin Durant

#59- Agent Zero was a great name, too bad it doesn't apply

#77- Caron Butler may not truly deserve a nickname, but Caronimo is creative

#99- Starbury is just stupid and lazy, and a far cry from the brilliance of Iceman and Chief

#100 Baby Jordan, the only nickname to end a career the second it was uttered

Book Review: Ring of Hell

By Rick Morris

When legendary pro wrestler Chris Benoit brutally massacred his family and then killed himself, many people, myself included, struggled to reconcile what we knew of this man, what we thought we knew and the horror that he ended up perpetrating. It all seemed so contradictory, the details of the different sides so disparate, that so many of us became reconciled to never knowing the full picture about what could have brought this family tragedy to reality. But author Matthew Randazzo V's shocking new book "Ring of Hell: The Story of Chris Benoit & The Fall of the Pro Wrestling Industry" does what I never thought possible: it takes the many seemingly disconnected threads of this man's life and weaves together a coherent whole that leads inexorably and sadly toward the blood-soaked weekend at the Benoit estate last summer.

[SIDE NOTE: I am very proud of my objectivity, and have displayed it here repeatedly by criticizing institutions that I love when justified, such as the Detroit Red Wings and the Cleveland Indians. But when I found out about this book in the last week, I knew that I would feel a need to read it and subsequently review it here and I feared that I could not be fully objective. Years ago, Mr. Randazzo and I used to visit some of the same industry forums, he largely as a poster, me largely as a lurker, but my memories of him were not fond ones. I'll not elaborate except to say that I found his forum persona overbearing and off-putting. In fairness, he was clearly a great and gifted writer and many talented creative types can come off that way. Additionally, as I've tried to familiarize myself with some of his other work this past week, I found some writing that puts his political views at great variance with my own -- and profound political differences have always been a threat to my potential for objectivity. Additionally, any writer who sees another get a book deal before him and does not feel at least a slight twinge probably doesn't have any professional pride. So, given my sometimes-overwrought potential for self-criticism, I was scared that if the book dissatisfied me that I'd be questioning myself about my real reasons for writing a bad review. Fortunately, as the next sentence will indicate, any qualms I had about anything I would write would prove to be badly misguided.]

This book is, quite simply, the best one in the genre of pro wrestling books that dates back almost a full decade.

Randazzo connects the dots in a manner that should perhaps have been more obvious to us, but was not at all. Chris Benoit's professional personality and private demons were not contradictory halves of a disconnected whole. His obsessive dedication to the business, his need to be perfect in his role as a pro grappler: these were SYMPTOMS of his overall crumbling psyche. In short, his madness was in plain sight the whole time, disguised as politeness with fans or hard work in the ring or any of the other aspects of his persona that made him appear to so many of us as the real (with apologies to Curt Hennig) "Mr. Perfect."

The link at the top of this review leads to a column from February in which I reviewed my thoughts at the time of the tragedy. Along with many others in the SportsTalkNetwork.com family, I posted repeatedly the night the murder-suicide was made public and in the days that followed. Chris Benoit was my favorite wrestler. In my column, I reprinted my posts in full even as I noted that they made me cringe by how naive I looked -- but I was grasping for a more full understanding as to how I and so many others were duped into thinking this man was personally as well as professionally great. On our FDH Lounge Internet TV show last summer, we reunited our friends Ryan Ward and Kyle Ross from the legendary smart mark show SUNDAY NIGHT SUBMISSION to help make sense of the matter. We couldn't. I admit that I saw Benoit as a professional role model, a symbol of persistence who proved that you could make it to the top of any industry with an unshakable work ethic. I came to the obvious conclusion that we never really knew him at all, but like everyone else I couldn't reconcile the pieces that didn't seem to fit.

Through his meticulous research, Randazzo managed to put them together. Benoit's entire life was a pathetic journey that led up to that infamous weekend in the Atlanta exurbs. A wiry and introverted Western Canadian boy, he took his first real meaning in life from watching his hero the Dynamite Kid compete in Stampede Wrestling. Kid, whose real name was Tom Billington, was perhaps the greatest technical pro wrestler of all time, and Benoit worshiped him. In ways that would seem funny if they didn't end up being so disturbing, Benoit was almost a precursor to "'Net smart marks" of today like myself with his strong appreciation for workrate. Benoit pumped himself full of steroids and other unhealthy growth substances and chased a pro career that began in the Stampede territory, led to a training stint with New Japan (more on that below) and then a triumphant return to Stampede (where he got to rub elbows with his ultimate hero professionally) before his early '90s tenure in Japan and Mexico led to the ECW/WCW/WWE sequence that defines him in the minds of most fans.

This book contains a plethora of amazing revelations about Benoit and so many of the surrounding characters on his road to infamy. Now, I have been queried by my friend, FDH Lounge Dignitary and SportsTalkNetwork.com President Paul Belfi whether I believe every last story I read in the book. The answer is of course no; this is an industry built on constantly working everyone else at all times, even when there is no apparent advantage to doing so. But I believe the vast majority of them and even the ones that are more questionable do add valuable color.

Case in point: an unnamed source, a WWE wrestler in the company in 1995, told Randazzo that HHH confided in him upon coming into the company, "I don't care what I have to do, but I'm going to run this place." Cue the "Mwhahahahahahaahaha" and twirling of villainous handlebar mustache. I don't blame Randazzo at all for putting this story in the book, but I'm dubious that he was told the truth. HHH was coming off a lower-middle-card stint in WCW and was in all likelihood just happy to have a better job at the time. The notion that he could have been Machiavellian and prescient enough to know then that he'd end up one day with the keys to the kingdom? Believe it if you want to.

But again, I do believe the vast majority of the stories in the book and there is an equal mix of on-the-record and off-the-record quotes in there. I've read some online reviews that objected to his use of materials such as shoot interview tapes for sourcing, but I have no problem with that as they are quotes on the public record.

I want to provide some flavor of what's in the book without giving away anything that might be deemed excessive by the lawyers over at Phoenix Books, so here's a list of generalities in terms of the most sensational materials:

^ Vince McMahon's 2004 mandate about the minimum size of new wrestlers being hired
^ The unparalleled con job Fidel Castro pulled on Antonio Inoki -- it's beyond anything you could imagine
^ What the Dynamite Kid did to his opponents while they were blading themselves
^ What the Dynamite Kid did right before his own wedding
^ How Stampede wrestlers might "rib" each other -- I'd call it committing felonies, personally
^ The hazing techniques of the New Japan dojo: banana rape, golden showers and drinking your own, uh, fluids, among others
^ The mob contract that drove the British Bulldogs out of the WWF
^ Horrible one-sided WWF contracts
^ The yakuza's methods of dealing with Big Van Vader
^ Ole Anderson's "scientific method" for proving Benoit was too small to make it in wrestling
^ Benoit's psychological pain about the incident that gave him the "Crippler" nickname
^ More legendary Paul Heyman con jobs
^ The never-told-before details on how Kevin Sullivan inadvertently sabotaged his own marriage with a storyline -- what's on the public record is only the tip of the iceberg
^ Sullivan's other behind-the-scenes shenanigans
^ Nancy Benoit's own oddities
^ Two incidents between Scott Hall and Benoit that were remarkable
^ Ric Flair and Arn Anderson road stories
^ The never-before-told story about the equipment that failed Owen Hart in Kansas City that tragic night -- and why it did
^ Vince Russo's aborted kid-toucher storyline
^ How Benoit would have mutilated himself on live television had WCW not released him in 2000
^ The extent to which the Radicalz screwed Shane Douglas
^ How the McMahons don't even let funerals get in the way of conducting business
^ The rib on Billy Jack Haynes that almost led to him murdering Vince McMahon
^ What led Scott Hall to think McMahon was the devil incarnate
^ Chyna and Eddy Guerrero -- why two drug abusers working together might have deepened both addictions
^ More behind-the-scenes anecdotes about Vince, Stephanie, HHH and their toadies than you can shake a stick at -- including stories of racism far beyond what got Michael Hayes recently suspended
^ Writer Dave Lagana's alleged sexual harassment of male and female wrestlers
^ How Benoit