Ben Present's Hw 2

Mark Cuban does not take chances

How's this for diversifying your bonds?

Mark Cuban just invested a bunch of money in the fledgling United Football League. Yes, that Mark Cuban -- the same Mark Cuban who owns a perennial playoff player in the Dallas Mavericks and is at no shortage for money.

So why, oh why, would he throw some cash at a second-rate football league?

Cuban said one reason he joined the ownership group now was because of the timing of a potential NFL lockout of the 2011 season, which would focus more attention on the UFL.

"It will make things really interesting, potentially," Cuban said. "Now if there's not a lockout, it's a valid league. But, that just made it more interesting."

In other words, Mark Cuban probably doesn't think there will be an NFL in the season after next.

If he's right, he could make a killing on what is probably just a drop in his ocean of money.

If he's not, he probably won't even notice the difference in his bank account.

It's a win-win situation for Cuban.

Now if only the NFL could say the same thing about its own labor dilemma...

Draft day arrives; rampant unease in DC

The NFL draft is tonight; the first round will be broadcast in prime time for the first time ever.

Most Washington Redskins fans are understandably nervous as can be about the draft. There are rumors abounding that the Redskins will do a number of things:

1. Acquire OU's Sam Bradford. AOL Fanhouse reported that the Redskins are the only team in discussion with the Rams for the first overall pick and generally speaking, Bradford's rights. This would be a monumental and shocking move for the Redskins, who are generally quiet in terms of blockbuster trades on draft day. Bradford would likely sit behind Donovan McNabb for a year, learning the ropes, then take over once McNabb's time is up in DC. The consequence of this scenario is the Redskins miss out on a left tackle prospect which they desperately need.

2. Draft Tennessee safety Eric Berry at No. 4. The Washington Post's Rick Maese speculates that Berry could be the pick because he is close to the very top of the Skins draft board and is a game-changing player in the mold of Ed Reed. A lot of people are decrying this possibility because the Skins have more pressing needs than safety, namely O-line. But consider Reed. The Ravens picked him 24th; do you think they'd pick him 4th and pay him 4th pick money, after all he's done? Yes. But the unknown value of Berry may prevent the Skins from pulling a move that would be shocking as well.

3. Draft an offensive tackle. This option has the fewest detracting elements. The Skins are in dire need of o-line help. There is a great left tackle prospect, Oklahoma State's Russell Okung, staring at them. There is little chance a team before the Skins picks him, though the Lions just may.

My brain tells me Russell Okung is the pick. The Redskins have huge holes on the offensive line, without other substantive picks to help address that issue.

But my heart, still heavy from the tragic loss of Sean Taylor, thinks Berry could be the most talented player in the draft. The comparisons to Ed Reed also don't mention Berry was a hitter at Tennessee; he is almost a perfect cross of Taylor's hitting (though not quite as outlandish) and Reed's ball skills. He could be the NFL's next dominating safety and does not have the kinds of concerns that LaRon Landry had coming out of college. In fact, drafting Berry to play free safety could allow the Redskins to shift Landry to his natural strong safety position. The move could work and may yet happen.

Draft week arrives; Redskins offer not a single clue

Draft week has arrived. The NFL Draft will be moving to primetime this year, with the first round being broadcast Thursday evening, rounds 2-3 coming on Friday, and rounds 4-7 on Saturday. Commentary on that change will come a bit later..for now the focus is the Redskins and their complete and utter lack of giving fans a clue on what they'll do on Thursday night.

A refresher: the Skins have only one pick in the top 100 (No. 4 overall). They have a pick in the 4th round (No. 5, 103 overall), in the 5th round (No. 4, 135 overall), and in the 7th round (No. 7, 211 overall). The Skins' four picks are the lowest of any team in the NFL; some teams have 3 times that number of picks. And some teams have more picks than that in the first 100 picks.

So the million dollar question is what will the Redskins do?

The smart money is that they draft Oklahoma State's Russell Okung at No. 4 overall. Any rumors of the Skins moving up in the draft to secure Okung or take someone else seem to be just that, rumors. From there, the picture is very murky.

Mike Shanahan and Bruce Allen seem unwilling to wait for things to fall into their lap, and Denver was always active in the draft trade market. Look for the Redskins to find a trading partner in the Buffalo Bills. The Bills are in need of a QB, but don't want to stick a rookie QB behind a decimated offensive line. The Redskins are trying to unload a QB with above average arm strength, one Jason Campbell. Hello 3rd round pick (The Bills own a pick in every round, and have two in both the sixth and seventh rounds).

Then there is the little (no, huge) matter of Albert Haynesworth. The Redskins recently paid Haynesworth a $21 million roster bonus, believed to be among the largest checks ever written by an NFL team to one player. He is reportedly unhappy with the new regime's decision to move him into the nose tackle position in a 3-4 defense and to show his displeasure, did not attend voluntary minicamp this weekend. There is almost no doubt the Skins tried to trade Haynesworth in the McNabb deal, foolish as that would've been. But there is a decent chance they'll move him soon. Shanahan recently said:

"...No, we're not going to trade him at all, unless someone gives us something we would have to consider -- that's pretty standard with any player on your roster. He's a pretty smart guy. He's really talented. I think I can get that out of him.''

As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk points out, the key to unlocking Shanahan's comment is to notice he said "...unless someone gives us something we would have to consider..." This surely means the Redskins are all ears if the Tennessee Titans (who may not want to deal with the Redskins after submitting evidence they believed proved the Redskins tampered with Haynesworth) come calling on draft day. The Titans have 9 picks in this year's draft, including a 1st rounder (No. 16 overall), and two 3rd-rounders (Nos. 13 & 33, 77 and 97 overall). A possible, but unlikely deal: the Titans send the No. 16 pick (and probably another pick or two) to the Redskins in exchange for Haynesworth, with the Skins then looking at taking Tennessee's Dan Williams, regarded as the best nose tackle prospect in this year's draft.

It seems unlikely the Redskins would trade Haynesworth to Detroit. Detroit has the second overall pick in the draft and with that pick (with Sam Bradford likely off the board) looking to take a highly-regarded defensive tackle, either Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh or Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy. But, if the Redskins were to trade Haynesworth to Detroit and allow Haynesworth to reunite with his former position coach, Detroit head coach Jim Schwartz, that would fill their defensive tackle void and then allow the Lions to take Okung at No. 2. Surely that's an outcome the Skins don't want.

But overall, there are not a lot of firm rumors about the Redskins draft plans. They've brought in the usual number of high-profile prospects to work out, but it appears Redskins fans will have to exercise some patience in finding out what the Burgundy and Gold do this weekend.

The NBA Lockout: Numbers behind the numbers

The Cleveland Cavaliers have the NBA's best record, the world's most valuable player and a perfect attendance capacity.

Yet they're set to lose $10-15 million this season, according to a report from the New York Daily News.

It's a stunning case study that shows just one reason why The Association might be headed to a lockout in 2011.

It may be the economic climate, it may be the league's organization, it may be the product, but no matter how you slice it, not many teams are making money these days.

It's one reason why deliberations over the collective bargaining agreement will inevitably reach an impasse. As per the last CBA, players take home 57 percent of all basketball related income.

Commish David Stern wants to drop it to around 45 percent.

That's a drop-off of 12 percent -- a whole lot of moolah.

To make up for the staggering losses their teams are seeing these days, franchises are finding ways to cut costs. They're laying off employees at every level of management. They're cutting halftime performers. They're settling for lesser players and coaches at lesser salaries.

But ultimately, it's the players who see the most money. And those in possession of money rarely forfeit it willingly.

It's all setting up for an ugly showdown. Players believe it's the system that need tweaking. Owners believe it's the players that deserve less.

Will the NBA bounce back? If Lebron James' franchise can't stay in the black under the current setup, I don't see why the league will, either.

NBA First-Round Playoff Matchups

Eastern Conference

(1) Cleveland vs. (8) Chicago
This series is one of the easiest ones to predict in the whole lot. The Cavs have this year's MVP and one of the greatest big men of all time (although he isn't half of what he used to be). While I think this one is going to be a sweep, there is a chance that Derrick Rose's sheer athleticism, Joakim Noah's heart, and the great fans of Chicago can allow the Bulls to steal one. However, this series is all Cleveland.

(2) Orlando vs. (7) Charlotte
The Bobcats reaching the post-season is one of the best stories of the whole year. Larry Brown has done a great job this year leading this deep team to the playoffs. Only problem is they are playing the best defensive team in the league with the best defensive player and big man in the league, Dwight Howard. This combined with the newly acquired Vince Carter and a bench full of very good roll players are going to make trouble for the Bobcats.

(3) Atlanta vs. (6) Milwaukee
This is one of the most intriguing series in the East. If Milwaukee continues into the playoffs playing how they did since acquiring John Salmons from the Bulls at the trade deadline, they have a legit shot at knocking off the Hawks. Jerry Stackhouse and Kurt Thomas will give this team the veteran leadership they need if they want to pull the upset. The Bucks will have to find an answer for Josh Smith, Joe Johnson, and leading candidate for sixth man of the year, Jamal Crawford. This will be one of the most fun series to watch.

(4) Boston vs. (5) Miami
The Celtics have had a disappointing year for the most part, despite reaching 50 wins. The additions of Rasheed Wallace at the beginning of the season and Nate Robinson at the trade deadline have not helped the aging big three very much. Even though they will be considered favorites, the Heat have a chance to creep up on them and cause trouble, led by their star Dwayne Wade, one of the five best players in the league.


Western Conference

(1) Los Angeles vs. (8) Oklahoma City
The Lakers have the 1 seed in the West, which isn't that great of a surprise to anyone, considering they are the defending world champions. What is a surprise, however, is who they are playing. The Thunder have had one of the great turnarounds in recent years, improving to a 50-32 record from 23-59 last year. Kevin Durant is the scoring champion of the league, averaging just over 30 ppg, and a legitimate MVP candidate. The rest of the young players like Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook are having breakout seasons. It might be crazy to pick the Thunder to upset the Lakers, a team with Kobe Bryant, but this series is going to be better than many people probably think.

(2) Dallas vs. (7) San Antonio
This is going to be yet another good series. Dallas have been talked about all year as one of the teams who could beat the Lakers. Some think that they have a good chance to win the championship. And why not? The team has Dirk Nowitzki, a 7-foot power forward with as sweet a shot as anybody in the league. There is Jason Kidd, a veteran who will go down as one of the greatest point guards of all time by the time he retires. Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood, and Deshawn Stevenson came to Dallas from Washington in the middle of the season and have only helped. Contributions from Shawn Marion and Jason Terry will likely help them get past the Spurs. But anyone who has watched the NBA over the past decade knows to never sleep on the Spurs. This team has been there many times and even though they won't be the favorite in this series, they know how to win playoff games and series. And they have Tim Duncan.

(3) Phoenix vs. (6) Portland

Good thing the Suns didn't get rid of Amare Stoudemire before the trade deadline, as many thought they would. I don't know if all the trade talks fueled his fire, but Amare has been playing inspired basketball since then and has been arguably the most valuable player for the past two or so months. He has been getting plenty of help from his Canadian point guard, who led the league in assists this year, and a strong supporting cast consisting of Jason Richardson, Leandro Barbosa, and rookie Robin Lopez. The devastating news that Brandon Roy will be missing the series is bad news for the Trail Blazers and makes their chances of competing in this series not great. Marcus Camby, acquired at the trade deadline, and Andre Miller, who has been a solid point guard for his whole career, will not be enough for the Blazers to pull an upset. The only way that they have a chance to take a game or two from the red hot Suns is if Nate McMillan, who has been one of the best coaches in the league all year, can out coach Alvin Gentry.

(4) Denver vs. (5) Utah

Ever since coach George Karl left the team to receive treatment for cancer, the team has been on a seemingly downward spiral. The team have had problems meshing since his departure and it just doesn't seem like they are capable of winning a seven game series at this point. If they are going to win, they are going to need Chauncey Billups to take the leadership roll and psych up his teammates. As great of a story it would be if they Nuggets could advance without Karl, it doesn't seem likely. The Jazz present a strong team, led by Deron Williams, one of the three best point guards in the league. If Mehmet Okur and Carlos Boozer can be outstanding, Utah have a very good chance to win this series and advance.

Zen Master Takes Low Blow at Durant

The comments that Lakers' coach Phil Jackson recently made about the Oklahoma City Thunder's Kevin Durant were completely out of line.

He recently said that Durant getting to the line too much, saying that the refs are calling too many fouls on him. This is most likely Jackson trying to get into the head of the 21-year-old who has never been in a playoff series before in the NBA.

While it might be a good strategy to throw Durant off his game, I think that it is in poor taste to provoke somebody this young and inexperienced.

Instead of taking shots back at the NBA legend, Durant responded in a very calm and casual fashion.

According to The Oklahoman, Durant said "That's a part of my game, getting to the free-throw line and being aggressive. If you say that I get superstar calls or I get babied by the refs, that's just taking away from how I play. That's disrespectful to me."

What Phil might not know is that he made 756 free throws this past season shooting 90%. That is an unbelievable statistic and, for my money, the most underrated stat of the season. The fact that he is trying to take away from that amazing accomplishment is not the right thing to do for somebody who hasn't been in the league this long.

Durant is on his way to his first playoff appearance and has had a breakout season, emerged as a legitimate superstar. Unfortunately for him, his first round opponent are the last year's champions, full of veteran players who have been to the playoffs multiple times.

The Thunder and Lakers will meet in the first round of the playoffs as the 8th and 1st seeds, respectively. Some think that the Thunder will be able to give the Lakers a run for its money because of their health issues. Others think the Thunder are too young and don't stand a chance in this match up.

Regardless of the outcome, it will surely be entertaining and interesting to see if the young Thunder can hold their own against a team full of veterans and arguably the greatest coach in the history of the game.