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      New Nets owner sets the bar high

      May 18, 2010 /

      Russian billionaire and new Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov has set some lofty goals for his new team, per the New York Post:

      “If everything goes as planned, I expect us to be in the playoffs next season and championship in one year minimum and maximum in five years,”

      “We will have the desire to win that will be unmatched anywhere in the league. This will be the first-class organization with all the support it needs in terms of resources and stability in the front office and state-of-the-art arena to play in,” Prokhorov said. “This will be the first truly global team in the NBA with exceptional international exposure no other team can [match].

      “There will be fans of the Nets from New Jersey to Brooklyn to Moscow, and I feel pretty sure I can convince the very best of the best that the Nets are the place they want to be.”

      I love phrases like “and championship in one year minimum and maximum in five years.” Prokhorov is certainly optimistic, but there’s another uber-rich owner who has thrown money at his team year in and year out and has nothing to show for it: Mark Cuban.

      In the last 11 years, only five teams have won at least one title, so it’s not as easy as it seems to build a winner. The Nets need to somehow land a superstar or two, via the draft and/or free agency, and need to have a lot more luck along the way.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Draft, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Colts face tough personnel decisions following 2010 season

      May 18, 2010 /

      Ever since Peyton Manning’s second year in the league, NFL fans have just grown accustomed to the Colts being in the playoffs every season. Manning is, and will be until he retires, the catalyst for the horseshoe helmet’s success.

      But as the Indianapolis Star points out, Jim Irsay and Bill Polian will be faced with several tough decisions after the 2010 season because the Colts will have 19 players seeking new contracts. There’s no doubt that the team will make sure Manning retires a Colt, but will his contract impede Irsay from signing other free agents?

      That might be a reference to the size of Manning’s signing bonus. It undoubtedly will surpass the $34.5 million bonus he received as part of his seven-year, $98 million contract in 2004.

      Funneling too much up-front money to Manning, though, could make retaining other critical players difficult.

      “We have to be wise in that we don’t corner ourselves and make sure we have room to keep some of the key guys,” Irsay said. “It’s a myth to say you can just have Peyton and you’re automatically 12-4.

      “Peyton gives you such an edge . . . but we need the supporting cast if we want to do what we really want to do, and that’s win another world championship.”

      As long as Manning remains under center, the Colts will always be competitive. But as Irsay points out, he needs to be able to field a competitive team around his quarterback if the franchise wants to win another Super Bowl before Manning hangs up his cleats. Aside from Peyton, several key starters including Joseph Addai, Antoine Bethea, Melvin Bullitt, Clint Session and Adam Vinatieri (among others) will need new deals. The Colts can’t bring everyone back, especially after they get done paying Manning.

      It’s only May, so this is obviously not a problem that the Colts need to concern themselves with right now. But it’s worth noting that after this season, the Colts will have a ton of internal decisions to make – ones that will certainly affect the future success of the franchise.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, NFL

      Cleveland’s musical pitch to LeBron [video]

      May 18, 2010 /

      So many adjectives for this one: inspired, funny, true…and a little pathetic.

      One thing that is often overlooked with regard to LeBron’s pending free agency is just how much of an economic impact he has on the city of Cleveland. One pundit suggested that the value of the Cavs’ franchise would drop $100 million if he signed elsewhere and obviously the tickets and merchandising would plummet as well. And this is a city that can ill-afford a loss in revenue like that.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, Humor, NBA, Video

      Are the Bulls atop LeBron’s list?

      May 18, 2010 /

      Yes, at least according to Chad Ford’s sources…

      I keep hearing that the Bulls are atop his list at the moment. That could change, but that’s the word around the league at the moment.

      I’m not sure exactly how the Derrick Rose/LeBron James dynamic would work, but there’s no doubt that the Bulls would become an immediate contender with the arrival of LeBron. With Joakim Noah and Luol Deng (a “stretch” four that can play some pick-and-pop with LeBron) rounding out the front line, the Bulls would be in a good spot for years to come. Deng really is more of a small forward, but he can play some power forward if need be.

      But would LeBron want to play for a franchise that has been all about Michael Jordan? MJ is LeBron’s hero, but it might be tough walking past that statue of His Airness every day on his way to work. Doesn’t LeBron want his own statue?

      Chicago might be a great situation for him, but if he wants a challenge, he should go to the Knicks or Nets, or stay put in Cleveland.

      Later, Ford listed his top three landing spots for LeBron…

      1. Bulls. 2. Knicks 3. Heat … I think the darkhorse is Dallas who’ll try to acquire him via sign-and-trade. As for the Cavs, it doesn’t look very good at the moment, but things can change. I think owner Dan Gilbert would essentially have to give him the GM job as well to keep him there.

      With all the John Calipari rumors flying around, if he gets hired by one of these teams it could be a leading indicator that LeBron is on his way. For what it’s worth, Calipari told blue chip recruit Brandon Knight that he’d be coaching at Kentucky this fall, but does anyone really believe that he’s not exploring his options right now?

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Piniella on his way out? Not according to GM Hendry.

      May 18, 2010 /

      For those Cubs fans that have been clamoring for Ryne Sandberg to replace Lou Piniella as the club’s skipper, you’re going to have to wait much longer, I’m afraid.

      General manager Jim Hendry told the media on Monday that Piniella isn’t to blame for the team’s lackluster start (17-22 heading into Tuesday’s action, good for third place in the NL Central) and that the manager’s job is safe for the 2010 season.

      “We’re certainly not here to play the blame game,” Hendry said Monday. “We’re not here to put all the blame on the players that haven’t done as well as we’d like either. It’s been a good, collective rough start, but there has not been one thought in my mind of Lou Piniella not managing the team this year.”

      While many of the adjustments he has made with personnel certainly haven’t panned out this season, it’s hardly fair to blame all of the Cubs’ failures this season on Piniella. Two of his best hitters (Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez) have crapped the bed all season in RBI situations (and all situations for that matter) and he can’t find a reliable setup man to get to Carlos Marmol in the ninth. (He tried Carlos Zambrano there but much like his effort in 2010, Big Z was brutal in the role.) The bottom line is that the Cubs haven’t produced and a change in manager won’t magically remedy the situation.

      The good news is that Lee has started showing signs that he’s ready to break out of his funk, Alfonso Soriano has actually thrived batting sixth in the lineup and young phenom Starlin Castro (who struggled defensively when he was first called up last week but appears to be settling down) is spanking the ball. If A-Ram (who hit a walk off homer to beat the Rockies Monday night) can shake out of his slump and start producing, then the Cubs can easily turn things around.

      Things haven’t been pretty for the Cubs so far, but it’s early yet and the club’s issues aren’t un-fixable. Making a switch in managers would be premature and Hendry knows that. He just has to trust that Piniella can right the ship, just as Lou has to trust his players will snap out of it and start producing.

      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, MLB

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