Week 13 Picks

Simon	Matchup	Mike
NO	Saints @ Falcons	ATL
CHI	Seahawks @ Bears	CHI
HOU	Texans @ Titans	HOU
NE	Patriots @ Dolphins	NE
BUF	Jaguars @ Bills	BUF
DET	Colts @ Lions	IND
CAR	Panthers @ Chiefs	CAR
GB	Vikings @ Packers	GB
SF	49ers @ Rams	SF
NYJ	Cardinals @ Jets	NYJ
DEN	Buccaneers @ Broncos	DEN
BAL	Steelers @ Ravens	BAL
CIN	Bengals @ Chargers	CIN
CLE	Browns @ Raiders	CLE
DAL	Eagles @ Cowboys	DAL
NYG	Giants @ Redskins	NYG

Raptors Reaction: Nov 28 @ Memphis Grizzlies

Another ugly game for the Raptors. Andrea Bargnani was out of the line-up, which intruiged me since his name is in the middle of all sorts of trade rumors. I viewed this as a chance to see what the Raptors offense would look like if Bargs gets shipped out of town. My optimism quickly eroded, though, as it was announced Linas Kleiza would be in the starting lineup. Essesntially, the Raptors replaced one offensive black-hole (Bargnani) with another (Kleiza). I hate Linas Kleiza, and last night was a shining example of why. But I'll touch on that a little more in the good and the bad from last night (last night was heavy on the bad).

Raptors Reaction: Nov. 27 @ Houston Rockets

This one got ugly early, and the Raptors were never really a threat to win. After a string of close losses, the Raps just never showed up in this one, proving that being blown out is always worse than losing a tight game late. Here's some reaction from the game:

The Good:

• Terrence Ross easily played his best game as a pro, logging 36 minutes while scoring 19 points, and shooting over 50% from the field. James Harden blew by him a couple times, but Ross held his own overall on the defensive end as well. Hopefully this will translate into more minutes for the rookie. Oh and he did this. And this... and this.
• Kyle Lowry has got to be one of the best rebounding point guards in the league. He struggled to score in this game, and forced things a little bit offensively, but he grabbed 8 boards in the game (note: this is good for Lowry personally, but the fact that the starting point guard led the team in rebounds is terrible).
• Ed Davis had another good game off the bench, scoring 12 points and nabbing 4 rebounds in only 21 minutes. He struggles on the defensive end, but usually provides a scoring threat off the bench. I'll take the good with the bad on this one, as I still think the Raptors bench stinks overall.
• Andrea Bargnani's first half was nice, as he scored 19 points.

NBA MVP Power Rankings: November 23

The NBA Season is approximately 8.2% over. Normally this point of the year isn't marked with anything significant, but that's not the case at rsfreshmen. Here, the 8.2 mark is a crucial part of the season, as it means we revisit the NBA MVP candidates.

There are some changes from the Pre-Season Power Rankings (spoiler alert: Andrew Bynum is not on the list this time around), but the man atop the list remains the same.

We could be seeing this image again soon...
LeBron's hairline would be pushed back a couple
inches, of course

1. LeBron James, SF, Miami Heat (24.8 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 6.6 apg, 52.4 FG%)

It seems like Dwyane Wade's role on the Heat gets smaller each game, and that's completely justifiable since LeBron is in full beast-mode. It's becoming increasingly evident that LBJ is a once-in-a-generation player, so my advice going forward is just sit back, and enjoy the show.

2. Kobe Bryant, SG, Los Angeles Lakers (27.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 5.2 apg, 53.1 FG%)

My favorite part of Mike D'Antoni's debut as head coach of the Lakers was how he used Kobe. The Black Mamba was continually used as the ball handler in pick-and-rolls (with Pau Gasol as the picker/ roller), and it definitely passed the eye test (even if the Lakers' second game under D'Antoni was a little lack-luster). Steve Nash is still a week—or more—away, and I'm thinking Kobe will continue to be the main ball-handler until Nash is back. That's a good thing for the Lakers, as he's not only shooting at a career-high level, he's got his highest per-game assist total since 2007-08.

NFL Pick'ems - Week 11 Results, Week 12 Picks

Cue the comeback! Dow, with an unprecedented 14-0 week, is now nipping at my heels for the top spot. Meanwhile, King had an impressive 13-1 week (although his week 11 picks at si.com didn't include the Thursday night game), while Prisco faltered. Prisco was the only one to pick Miami, Carolina and Pittsburgh... and all those teams lost. Here are the results from last week, and the overall standings:

NFL Pick'ems - Week 10 Results, Week 11 Picks

There were 11 consensus picks in Week 10, three of which were incorrect. Both the Giants and the Dolphins were M.I.A. last weekend while the league's first tie since 2008 conveniently adds another column to our overall records. Pete Prisco wins the week and moves into second place. He was also the only prognosticator to correctly pick Minnesota and Houston's victories. Simon remains in first place while Mike slips to third. Peter King is still in last place, 3 games behind Mike.

Mike D'Antoni will keep the Lakers Competitive

The Los Angeles Lakers have a new head coach, and it isn't their old one. As was first reported last night, the Lakers passed on former head coach Phil Jackson, and have agreed on a 3-year deal with Mike D'Antoni. So far, the move has been met with mixed reactions, although I'm hearing more negative reviews than positive. ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, Steve Kerr and Chris Broussard have all crushed the signing. Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke jumped in as well, saying only Phil Jackson could "salvage the season" for the Lakers.

My take on the whole thing isn't that harsh though. I'm not sure the season is really in jeopardy, as Mr. Plaschke suggests. After all, the Lakers are only 2 games back in their division, and D'Antoni has coached exactly zero games so far. Oh, and then there's the fact that THEY'VE ONLY PLAYED 7 GAMES! Mike D'Antoni should be able to keep this team in the mix throughout the rest of the year.

NFL Pick'em Week 9 Results, Week 10 Picks

After 10 weeks, Simon leads the pack after an impressive 12-2 week, and was the only "expert" to pick  his boys, the Saints. Mike is two behind Simon in second place after an 11-3 week. CBSSports' Pete Prisco slips down to third as he was the only one to miss on Denver and Baltimore's victories. SI.com's Peter King remains in last, just three games behind Prisco. The experts went 8-2 in their consensus picks, with Indy and Carolina providing the upsets.

Raptors Reaction: Nov 6 @ Oklahoma City Thunder

Some thoughts after the Raptors' embarrassing 108-88 loss to the Thunder:

• First, this was a horrible loss. Sure, the Raptors were going against one of the best teams in the league, but they just got out-classed the entire game. It's not even like Russell Westbrook or Kevin Durant had huge games. No, it was Serge Ibaka, Thabo Sefolosha and Hasheem Thabeet that combined to take the Thunder to a win...
• Of course, the biggest story from this game was the injury to Kyle Lowry. He rolled his ankle in the second quarter, has been ruled out for tonight's game in Dallas. This is huge for the Raps. If Lowry ends up missing a big chunk of time, Toronto loses any hope of reaching the playoffs.

Nets vs. Raptors Reaction: It's Lowry's Team

Early reaction following Toronto's 107-100 loss to the Brooklyn Nets:

After last night, the Raptors should
be Lowry's team
(Courtesy: Associated Press)

• My big question after the Raptors' season opener was who would take the ball in his hands at the end of games. Who was going to be the guy? After last night, it's got to be Kyle Lowry. He took a couple ill-advised deep jumpers, and turned the ball over a couple times in the Raptors' awful second quarter, but the numbers speak for themselves: 28 points, 8 boards, 8 assists, all while shooting just under 50% from the floor. It's your team now, Kyle.
• Just a couple days after I (and pretty much everyone else) crushed DeMar DeRozan's new contract, he came up big for the Raps, netting 25 points. In classic DeRozan fashion, he didn't do much else to fill the stat sheet, nabbing only 3 rebounds, to go with 1 assist and 1 steal. He got the the foul line 10-times which is a great sign going forward.
• I can not for the life of me understand the Raptors coaching staff's interest in Aaron Gray. He played 19 minutes last night, and scored 3 points while grabbing 4 boards. I think he was out there to try to defend Brook Lopez, but Gray got abused on D too (Lopez finished with 27 points). Just not a great game for Gray.
• What makes Gray's night worse, is that Jonas Valanciunas only played 12 minutes... don't get that one.

The DeMar DeRozan Contract: A(nother) Colangelo Mistake

Just over a week ago, I finished an article noting that I was pretty sure Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo "will do a couple more things to convince me he's an idiot". Well, only one day into the season, he did just that. That has to be some kind of record.

     

The move in question here is the re-signing of DeMar DeRozan (a 4-year, $38 million contract) on Wednesday night. Before we get too deep into this, I want to make it clear that I do not in fact dislike DeRozan. Everything you hear about him suggests that he is a great guy, and he plays a passable shooting-guard. No, this is all about how Colangelo handcuffed the entire franchise for the immediate future in one ill-timed move.

NFL Pick'ems - Week 8 Results, Week 9 Picks

Pete Prisco regained sole possession of 1^st place after going 11-3 in Week 8, despite being the only predictor to pick the Cowboys over the Giants. Simon moves into 2^nd after a solid 10-win week. While Mike was the only person to predict Cleveland's home win, he also was the only one to pick Seattle, Cleveland and the Jets in losing efforts. Peter King remains in last place but narrows the gap with an 11-3 week. There were 7 consensus picks in Week 8, with Minnesota's Thursday night loss to the Bucs being the only upset.

Nov 1 Quick Hits: Raptors Reaction

Instant reaction following the Raptors’ 90-88 loss to the Indiana Pacers:

Kyle Lowry looked great in his Raptors debut

• Taking a playoff-calibre team like the Pacers to the wire is an encouraging start for the Raps. But keep in mind Indiana was playing without their best scorer in Danny Granger. The game was still a nice showing, but it also suggests the Raptors won’t be able to compete with top talent in the NBA yet
• Kyle Lowry exceeded expectations. He looked fantastic all night, other than when he was blown by for the game-winning basket. No need to face-guard that far out, Kyle
• Rookie Jonas Valanciunas also had a good Raptors debut. His time was limited due to foul trouble, but he still managed 12 points and 10 rebounds. That’s a promising start
• The best thing about the Lowry acquisition is that Calderon is now the backup point guard. As a starter, Calderon was too slow to match up with top-tier point guards. Running the second unit (and being one of their main scoring options) seems like a perfect fit for Jose
• I thought Andrea Bargnani had improved his aggressiveness and rebounding last year. One game into this season, and it looks like he’s reverted back to his old ways. He was awful on the boards, and settled for too many jumpers
• The main thing I took away from the game was the Raptors’ need of a closer. They fell apart down the stretch, and completely blew a late 4^th quarter lead—all because they don’t have a guy who can put the team on his shoulders, and get some late buckets. Bargnani isn’t a closer (his attempted game-tying shot was horrible), and the Raptors need to find “the guy” quickly