NBA 2016-17: Preseason Shootaround

Washington Wizards v/s Cleveland Cavaliers November 18, 2009 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is the most anticipated season in recent Minnesota Timberwolves history.  With a new coach in Tom Thibodeau, high-quality young players such as Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, and the apparent return to form of Ricky Rubio, the Wolves are set to contend for their first NBA playoff appearance in over a decade.  But you know they'll find a way to mess it up through injuries, infighting, inexperience, general incompetence and a tough Western Conference.  Just like the Wolves we've always known.

Thanks to the new TV contract with ESPN and Turner Sports (soon to be part of AT&T?), more NBA free agents are taking advantage of all the money that's coming their way by jumping to teams where they think they can win a championship.  Kevin Durant ditches Oklahoma City for Golden State.  Dwyane Wade moves north from Miami to Chicago.  Dwight Howard goes east from Houston to Atlanta.

As most of you know, Kobe Bryant has played his last game for the Los Angeles Lakers.  So did Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan, who also won championships during their long and rewarding NBA careers.  But Bryant's long goodbye happened to coincide with his team's worst season ever, impeding efforts for them to improve themselves.  Maybe now, the Lakers can move on without Kobe.

New Orleans, not Charlotte, will host the 2017 All Star Game.   The NBA moved the event because of North Carolina's new laws restricting the rights of transgenders.  The NCAA followed suit by taking most of its championships out of the Tar Heel State.  So did companies and entertainers who refused to do business there.  But, the NBA says, Charlotte can have the All Star Game back in a few years if the law is repealed.  Way to take a stand, guys.

Cleveland is the favorite to repeat as NBA champions, now that LeBron James taught the city how to be winners.  If not the Cavs, then Golden State if the chemistry between Durant and Stephen Curry works out.  Otherwise, here's our projected playoff picks.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:  Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Miami Heat.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:  Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Dallas Mavericks.

WNBA: Sparks Fly to Title

WNBA Finals logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When the WNBA remade its playoff format this season, it was hoped that the top two seeds would meet for the championship instead of one dominant team and one division winner.  And wouldn't it be great if it were decided in the final seconds of Game 5?  Done and done.

The Los Angeles Sparks and the Minnesota Lynx did play five games of mostly tense basketball bookended by last-second shots, both at Target Center in Minneapolis.  In Game 1, it was Alana Beard for the Sparks.  In Game 5, it was Nneke Ogwumike (the league's MVP) hitting one with three seconds left to give the Sparks their first title since 2002, winning 77-76.  Candace Parker, the Finals MVP, had 28 points and 12 rebounds in the final game.  She dedicated the victory to her college coach, Pat Summitt of Tennessee, who died a few months ago.

There was a moment in Game 5 that reminded everyone what a flawed league the WNBA is.  Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve ripped into the officials after the game for not disallowing an Ogwumike basket on video replay, which showed that the ball went in the hoop after the shot clock had run out with a minute left in the game.  The WNBA admitted the mistake, but this isn't the first time a Minnesota pro sports team and its fans complained about a botched call that cost them a playoff game.

The Sparks won this series through grit, determination and the ability to make shots when it counted.  The Lynx, who have already won three WNBA championships in this decade and were going for a fourth to tie the record set by the Houston Comets (1997-2000), were also a determined bunch during these finals.  But their offense sputtered at the worst times despite Maya Moore's best efforts.

Flaws aside, this series was a better advertisement for women's basketball than anything else the WNBA could have come up with in its 20th season.  If the league can match that with better marketing and stable franchises, there's no reason they shouldn't be around for another 20 seasons.

Wild 2016-17: Another Season of Anxiety?

English: Eric Staal Nederlands: Eric Staal (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Minnesota Wild's 2016-17 NHL season is about two things.  One is to prove that they're more than a mediocre team with high-priced talent in a tough division and conference, always getting into the Stanley Cup playoffs the hard way.  The other is to have your playoff run last longer than the first round, which is what they did not do against the Dallas Stars last spring.

To that end, the Wild made some changes--or as many changes as general manager Chuck Fletcher's budget would allow.  Mike Yeo was replaced as coach by Bruce Boudreau, who's had successful runs in the past with Washington and Anaheim.  The best free agent pickup Fletcher could get with the salary cap they've got was Eric Staal, who spent last season with Carolina and the New York Rangers.  The Wild also bid adieu to Thomas Vanek, whom all agreed was an expensive bust, and who has since landed in Detroit.

These changes don't mask the fact that the Wild still have many of the same players who were going to take the team to greater heights, but somehow never do.  Boudreau's challenge this season is, to put it kindly, motivate these highly-paid skaters to start playing better hockey consistently.  If he can do that, then fans can start breathing easier about a playoff spot come march and April.  If he can't, then you can expect another season of anxiety in the State of Hockey.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After a summer in which the NHL awarded an expansion franchise to Las Vegas, the Canadian team winning the World Cup of Hockey and Ron McLean getting his job back as host of "Hockey Night In Canada", it's time to start the season.  Pittsburgh is the defending Stanley Cup champion, but Sidney Crosby's just had another concussion.  There is still a question mark about NHL participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics, but the 2020 World Cup of Hockey sounds like it's a go.  Edmonton opens the third arena in Canada to be named for the Rogers communications empire, which also holds the country's TV rights to NHL games.  And with that, here's who we think will be around next April for the playoffs:

EASTERN CONFERENCE:  Washington Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Islanders, Florida Panthers, Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:  Dallas Stars, San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, Winnipeg Jets.

One Sunday in October

English: (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

October 2, 2016 was a day like any other day in the autumn.  The sun was shining, the leaves were either falling or turning colors.  Yet most of us chose to stay inside and watch sports on TV, with NFL football running on various channels for more than 12 hours (there was a game in London during the morning).  Here's what else happened that day.

U.S. Wins Ryder Cup

Having not won golf's most prestigious international event since 2008, there was plenty of skepticism about the Americans' ability to stay on the same course with Europe's superior golfers.  But at the Hazeltine course near Chaska, Minnesota over the weekend, great golf manifested itself in Rory McIlroy's passionate play and Phil Mickelson's and Sergio Garcia's epic final day match.  The United States defeated the European team 17-11 to take the Ryder Cup.

The event was marred by a few individuals who, fueled apparently by too much beer and paying too much for a ticket, felt it appropriate to yell obscene comments at McIlroy and his teammates.  Because this is not a normal tournament where silence and and polite applause are expected from spectators, cheering and flag-waving are encouraged as if this were the Olympics.  After what happened this weekend, Ryder Cup officials might want to cut back on the booze and the nationalism.

Minnesota Twins:  59-103

Thus endeth this misbegotten baseball season, marking the fifth time in the last six years that the Twins have lost at least 90 games.  The worst record in Major League Baseball is also the team's worst since the franchise moved from Washington in 1961 (and the Senators had some awful clubs too.).

Yes, the Twins need pitching in the worst way.  They also need better fielding and offense, Brian Dozier notwithstanding.  And maybe it's time to concede that all the young talent they've brought up in the past couple of years just isn't working out.  That said, the Twins do have the number one pick in next year's MLB draft.

After much criticism that the Twins Way is woefully out of date in the Moneyball era, the team finally joined the 21st century in hiring Derek Falvey as its Chief Baseball Officer.  Falvey, hired away from a similar position with Cleveland, might know analytics.  But now he has to deal with the whims of manager Paul Molitor and the Pohlad family for the 2017 season and possibly beyond, so office politics might be one thing he should bone up on.  No sense looking for quick fixes here, folks.

Vin Scully and Dick Enberg Retire.  Oh My.

There has been lots of fanfare for Vin Scully, who just did his final Los Angeles Dodgers broadcast after 67 seasons behind the microphone.  He has also been the voice of baseball for almost that long, having called many a World Series or an NBC Game of the Week whether the Dodgers were in in or not.

Dick Enberg, another broadcasting legend from Southern California, also chose to sign off after nearly six decades.  Most of us know him as the sportscaster who covered the big events like the Super Bowl, Final Fours in men's college basketball, tennis' Grand Slam tournaments and many others.  But Enberg began his career in the Los Angeles area, calling Angels baseball, Rams football and UCLA sports.  He's spent the past few years as the TV voice of the San Diego Padres.

It's nice that both Scully and Enberg left the broadcasting booth on their own terms, instead of having to be dragged off.  They were both the soundtrack of our lives, and it will be hard to replace them.  Now they can just enjoy the game like the rest of us.

Semi-Official World Series Matchup  

Boston Red Sox vs. San Francisco Giants