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Update: Round 6

Round six is over and we’re getting closer to the end of the draft where more and more players are being selected from lesser known schools. Right about now, ESPN has analyzed the first five picks of round one for the 4,000 time.

Best Value: Babatunde Oshinowo, Cleveland. Oshinowo was projected to go in the latter part of Day 1. The Browns nab Oshinowo in the sixth round and might have gotten a potential steal. He doesn’t play with the mean streak that you’d normally like in a DT, but he is extremely intelligent and has tons of power. Oshinowo may lack agility, but he fits well as a big body in the middle of Cleveland’s 3-4 defense.

Need Filler: Tyrone Culver, Green Bay. The Packers struggled last year in the interception department and current safeties Mark Roman and Nick Collins need someone to come in and push them for playing time. Culver should provide that for Green Bay with his sound tackling and play making ability.

Head Scratchier: Adam Jennings, Atlanta. Mel Kiper and Mike Golic project Jennings to be a solid return man for the Falcons. Fantastic, he can step in line with Allen Rossum, DeAngelo Hall and Michael Jenkins. Why not go after Jeff Webb who was selected almost directly after Jennings and whom would have provided a WIDE RECIEVER for Michael Vick, not the third best return man on the team? Its clear that the Falcons are drafting purely on speed with some of these picks and not overall football ability.

Sleeper Selection: Bruce Gradkowski, Tampa Bay. I’ll go back to back MAC quarterbacks for my sleeper pick and go with Toledo gun slinger Bruce Gradkowski. Gradkowski is a great rhythm quarterback and once he gets into the flow of the game, he can pick opposing defenses apart. He’s also has some mobility and could be a good backup to Chris Simms.

Update: Round 5

Here is the link to all of Round 5’s selections. Safeties, tight ends and wide recievers continue to come off the board, but some deep sleepers are still out there. Will Marcus Vick get selected?

Best Value: Greg Blue, Minnesota. Greg Blue is a pure hitter and if anyone saw the highlights that ESPN had on this guy, I think they’d have the same opinion. Blue should come in and be a special teams wizard first and foremost, but might blossom into a solid safety for the Vikings in the near future.

Need Filler: Jeff King, Carolina. The Panthers have very quietly put together a nice draft. The selection of King is a move that not only fills a need, but might also produce an immediate starter. Kris Mangum, the current starter, is a solid blocker but doesn’t give Carolina a real receiving threat in the middle of the field. King isn’t fast, but is tough in the middle of the field and has decent hands.

Head Scratchier: Mark Anderson, Chicago. I understand that you build depth on Day 2 of the draft. But why, oh why, are the Bears focusing on defense, which was their strong suit last year? Nothing against Anderson, but I thought the Bears major need coming into the draft was tight end? Or what about getting another receiver opposite of Muhsin Muhammad? Five picks in for Chi-town, and they’ve all been on the defensive side of the ball.

Sleeper Selection: Omar Jacobs, Pittsburgh. Another MAC quarterback taken in the draft; Jacobs racked up all kinds of numbers for the Falcons at BGSU, but is extremely raw. As Mel Kiper noted, Jacobs has an unorthodox throwing style, but he’s got good size and has great touch on the mid-range pass.

Bill Walton is an idiot

I realize that, for most, this is not news, but Bill Walton said something especially contradictory during the Heat/Bulls game. After labeling the game as a “must-win” for the Heat early in the first quarter, he later said, “Miami does not have to win today to win this series.”

Make up your mind, Bill.

Update: Round 4

Day 2 has started and as ESPN has been advertising, these are the rounds you build solid depth for your franchise. Round 4 has seen nine wide recievers taken and two highly rated safeties chosen.

Best Value: Darnell Bing, Oakland. Bing was once projected to go in the first round behind Michael Huff. The Raiders grab him in the fourth and will immediately feel his presence on special teams. Bing has an outstanding combination of size, speed and he flies to ball. Some feel he might have trouble grasping the complexity of an NFL playbook, but at No. 101 overall, he’s definitely worth a shot.

Need Filler: Ko Simpson, Buffalo. At first glance I was ready to put this pick in my head scratchier section because of the Whitner selection in the first round. But on second thought, Ko Simpson makes a lot of sense for the Bills. Lawyer Milloy went to Atlanta in free agency and Troy Vincent is on the downside of his career. So, what the Bills did was pair Whitner and Simpson – two highly rated safeties of the 2006 class.

Head Scratchier: Michael Robinson, San Francisco. Excellent athlete, but what position will he play? He played quarterback at Penn State, and ESPN has him slated as a running back on TV and a wide receiver on their website. The Niners have had an excellent draft, but they’re going to have to figure out where Robinson will play.

Sleeper Selection: Alan Zemaitis, Tampa Bay. Some boards had Zemaitis rated below fellow Penn State teammate Anwar Phillips, but I think Zemaitis has a bigger upside. Zemaitis seemed to always be around the ball for Nittany Lions and is a playmaker. He has good size and plays well against the run, but his speed is a big question mark.

Playoff Update 4/30

There were some thrillers and some snoozers on Friday and Saturday – here’s what happened:

Cavaliers 97, Wizards 96 (Cleveland leads series, 2-1)
Maybe LeBron James is developing that killer instinct after all. The King scored 41 on 16 of 28 shooting, including the final bucket with 0:05 remaining, which gave Cleveland the lead for good. He clearly traveled on the play and then whined about not getting a foul call as he ran down court. But he scored the winning bucket, and that’s all that matters.

Sacramento 94, San Antonio 93 (San Antonio, 2-1)
I thought the Kings had a shot in this series and the last two games proved why. After losing a heartbreaker in Game 2, Sacramento kept fighting in Game 3, holding a lead for much of the game before finding themselves down, 93-92, with 0:27 remaining in the fourth quarter. Mike Bibby stole the ball from Manu Ginobili with just four seconds to play and pushed the ball up to Kevin Martin, who made a circus layup to win the game at the buzzer.

LA Lakers 99, Phoenix 92 (Lakers, 2-1)
Which team is the #2 seed? The Lakers balanced attack proved to be too much (yet again) for the Suns, who haven’t looked particularly good in this series. Five Lakers scored in double figures, led by Smush Parker’s 18 points. Parker somehow managed to play almost 40 minutes without tallying a single rebound or assist. Lamar Odom has stepped up his game in the postseason, going for 15 points and 17 rebounds in Game 3. And you have to hand it to Luke Walton, who parlayed limited ability (and a NBA father) into a scholarship at Arizona, a starting assignment for the Lakers and 17 points and 10 rebounds on Friday night. Somehow, Walton attempted more shots than any other Laker, even Kobe. If this keeps up, Phoenix is in serious trouble.

New Jersey 97, Indiana 88 (series tied, 2-2)
New Jersey snatched back home court advantage with a win in Game 4. Vince Carter once again led the Nets with 28 points, six boards and seven assists. The Pacers were their own worst enemy, turning the ball over a brutal 22 times.

Dallas 94, Memphis 89 (OT) (Dallas, 3-0)
Poor Memphis. Had they lost a couple more games during the regular season, they would have been the #6 seed with home court advantage over the Denver Nuggets in the first round. Instead, they’re the #5 seed and get to face the Mavericks, one of the league’s elite teams. Dirk Nowitzki was the star again, dropping 36 points, including a difficult, overtime-forcing three at the end of regulation. He also tallied nine boards and five dimes. This series is all but over.

Milwaukee 124, Detroit 104 (Detroit, 2-1)
As a longtime Bucks fan, it feels so good to type this: Bucks rout the Pistons. Michael Redd filleted the Pistons defense for 40 points on a stellar 14 for 21 shooting. Redd scored in every manner imaginable, hitting long jumpers, driving to the hole and at the free throw line. Six Bucks scored in double figures, while T.J. Ford had a game-high 15 assists. Milwaukee’s 124 points was the most that the Pistons gave up all season. Expect Detroit to come out angry in Game 4.

LA Clippers 100, Denver 86 (Clippers, 3-1)
The Nuggets had no bounce in Game 4, and looked like a team that is about to go home for the summer. Seven Clippers scored in double figures, led by Corey Maggette’s 19 points off the bench. If you remember, Maggette was almost traded to the Pacers for Ron Artest, but Indiana backed out of the deal over worries about Maggette’s foot. Maggette has since resigned himself to the notion that he won’t be with the team next season, but I think he’s jumping the gun. Just because the Clippers tried to trade him for Artest doesn’t mean that they don’t think he’s a valuable asset. Anyway, expect this series to be over on Monday, with a possible “Hallway Series” in round two (as the Lakers and Clippers square off).

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