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      Line of the Night (11/3): Dirk Nowitzki

      November 4, 2009 /

      Dirk Nowitzki scored 29 points in the fourth quarter — you read that right — to give the Mavs a 96-85 win over the Utah Jazz. He posted 40 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, five blocks and two steals. He shot 12 of 22 from the field and 15 of 16 from the charity stripe. The Mavs trailed by 16 with 8:17 to play before they made their charge.

      After a somewhat surprising loss to the Washington Wizards on opening night, the Mavs beat the Lakers soundly on the road and derailed the Jazz at home, all without Josh Howard. They look like a fringe contender in the West. If they can stay healthy and get a few lucky bounces, they could challenge.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA

      Five reasons the Phillies could still win

      November 4, 2009 /

      SI.com’s Jon Heyman compiles five reasons why the Phillies can still pull off an upset and rally to beat the Yankees in the World Series.

      Here are his top 3:

      1. The Phillies aren’t called the Fightin’ Phils for no reason. And they aren’t the defending champs for no reason, either. As Yankees GM Brian Cashman said, “We’re playing the world champions, and it’s going to take a world-championship effort to beat them.” Being down 3-2 isn’t going to faze the Phils. They create comebacks without the fanfare and cream pies that have marked the Yankees’ wonderful season, but the Phillies did post a National League-high 43 come-from-behind wins. Manager Charlie Manuel considered talking to them as a team before Game 5, but Jimmy Rollins said Manuel merely threw up his hands when it became clear the Phillies were as focused as ever. According to Rollins, the only major change they made going into Game 5 was to remove Jay-Z’s Empire State of Mind from their pregame clubhouse soundtrack. (Not sure if Elton John’s Philadelphia Freedom is a worthy replacement, but New York-based songs are definitely not the way to go.)

      2. They are road warriors. The Phillies were a baseball-best 48-33 on the road this year.

      3. Chase Utley is currently unstoppable. Reggie Jackson couldn’t be found for the first time this Series on Monday, but it would have been interesting to see what he would have had to say about Utley tying Jackson’s World Series record with five home runs. Utley’s five have come in one less game (five to six) and mostly against left-handers (four of five were vs. lefties, three vs. CC Sabathia). “He’s not missing pitches. He’s tough,” Sabathia said. “He’s not missing, so you have to make (all) quality pitches.”

      Not to be a downer, but it’s tough to beat any team three times in a row, especially the Yankees. I realize the Phillies are a quarter of the way there, but winning two in a row at Yankee Stadium will be tough, especially with CC Sabathia on the bump in Game 7.

      We’ll see though – I know a lot of casual baseball fans will be rooting for them to knock off the “Evil Empire.”

      MLB

      Is Edgerrin James’ career finished?

      November 4, 2009 /

      When Edgerrin James requested his release from Arizona this past offseason, he was hoping that he could resurrect his career elsewhere and have one last shot at being a team’s primary back.

      James thought that team would be the Seahawks, whom he signed a one-year, $2 million contract with in late August. But less than three months later, Seattle released the struggling James, who carried the ball just 46 times for the Seahawks in 2009.

      The former Colt and Cardinal was averaging a paltry 2.7 yards per carry this season and was highly ineffective. Comparatively, Justin Forsett was averaging 5.7 YPC and Julius Jones was averaging 3.9, so it just didn’t make sense for the Hawks to keep James on the roster.

      It didn’t seem that long ago that James was the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and was making yearly trips to Honolulu as Pro Bowler. But considering it’s unlikely that he’ll garner much interest on the free agent market, it appears that James’ career is over.

      If 2009 does mark his final season, James would finish with 12,246 career rushing yards, a 4.0 yard per carry average and 80 rushing touchdowns. He is currently first in career rushing yards among active players and his 9,226 total yards makes him Indianapolis’ record holder for most career total yards rushing.

      James fell off the map as soon as he signed a lucrative deal with Arizona in March of 2006, but he’s definitely a potential Hall of Fame candidate.

      NFL

      Were Mangini and Kokinis at odds?

      November 3, 2009 /

      According to a report by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, head coach Eric Mangini and former GM George Kokinis were apparently at odds with each other “early on.” The Browns fired Kokinis yesterday despite hiring him in the 2009 offseason.

      Less than 24 hours after Browns owner Randy Lerner pledged to add a new “credible, serious leader” to reorganize his football operations, the team parted ways with General Manager George Kokinis. According to league sources, both men became disenchanted with the other early on. In training camp, Mangini and Kokinis were seldom seen talking on the field. Rumors intensified over the past month that Kokinis could be fired.

      It’s interesting to hear that Mangini and Kokinis were at odds early on, because the pair obviously had to work closely together at the draft considering the Browns made so many draft-day deals. Unless one of them was calling all the shots while the other sat idle to the side, in which case I could see why issues would occur later on.

      This is one of the more dysfunctional organizations in football, right up there with the Raiders and Rams. Chances are that if the Browns finish with only one or two wins (which is a major possibility), then Mangini could be fired in the offseason and the organization has to start all over again.

      NFL

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