The 10 Best Players in the NBA Today

A few things before we get going....

-This is not based on potential. This is right now.
-This is not just an offensive list. Defensive ability, rebounding, assists, turnovers, etc are also considered.
-Feel free to throw in your own top 10, top 5, whatever when you read mine. This is totally subjective.

JUST MISSED THE CUT: Yao Ming, Allen Iverson, Pau Gasol, Amare Stoudemire, Paul Pierce, Shaquille O'Neal, Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Dwight Howard

So, without further adieu.....

ROB'S TOP 10 PLAYERS IN THE NBA

10. Tracy McGrady



An absolutely unstoppable scorer. If it weren't for injuries, he'd be much higher on my list. How are you supposed to guard this guy? Offensively, he has everything: he can drive to the basket with ease, he can pull up from 3, he can back you down, and he can create for others because of his size and vision of the court (despite his fucked up lazy eye). Did I mention he's only 27?

9. Shawn Marion



Probably the most underrated player in the NBA. He can do everything. Let's start with offensively....yeah, his shot looks Godawful, but he shoots a decent percentage (47%), has range out to 3 point land, is an above-80% free throw shooter, and only averages about a turnover and a half a game. Defensively, he's a monster. 6'7, and averages 10 boards a game? Add another 2 steals a game to that, and you have one of the most versatile players in the league.

8. Carmelo Anthony



I hated to do it, but Carmelo is that good. Offensively, he's pretty much unstoppable, and can do what he wants because of his size, strength, quickness, and a smooth jumper. He shoots a low percentage from 3, but as you can see from the video, he's not afraid to take big shots from out there...which leads us to his biggest asset: his ever growing clutchness. This is a guy who you want with the ball when the game is on the line. Oh yeah, he's about a year older than me.

7. Gilbert Arenas



Smooth is how I would describe Gilbert Arenas....smooth in everything he does. He can get to the basket whenever he wants, he can cross you over then pull up for the midrange jumper, or he can burn you from 3....and he's getting better. Add to that 5 dimes a game, 4 boards a game (solid for a guard), and 2 steals a game, and you've got a future superstar in this league.

6. Steve Nash



The two-time reigning MVP. Quite simply, he does the most, on any team, to make everyone around him better. He's easily the best passer in the game....look at the video. Can you imagine anyone else in the NBA making a 3/4 court alley oop pass look so easy? He is the most creative player in the NBA, with his crazy circus layups and sick assists. If I had to choose a point guard to play on my team, it'd be Steve Nash.

5. Dwayne Wade



Dwayne Wade can make you look silly. He's eclipsed Allen Iverson as having the best crossover in the league, and when he gets to the basket, he'll posterize you because of his athleticism and extension. He single-handedly won the championship for the Heat last year, and came up big on the biggest stage he'd ever been on in the Finals. Everyone always wants to tag "he's the next Jordan" onto up-and-coming players....and while D-Wade definitely needs to improve in some areas (too many turnovers, suspect on defense), he could very well be THE player in the NBA in the next 10 years.

4. LeBron James


LeBron James is probably the most hyped player in NBA history. Did anyone expect him to become this good? Upwards of 25 points a game, 6 or 7 boards a game, and an absolutely SCARY stat: 6 dishes a game. Comparisons of Magic Johnson come to mind. He can get to the basket at will, use his insane strength to back you down, or pull up from anywhere on the court. We saw his clutchness emerge in the playoffs last year, and the Cavs (who consisted of essentially LeBron, and a bunch of other role players) nearly took out the uber-awesome Pistons. Oh yeah, he's less than a year older than me.

3. Dirk Nowitzki



The video I put up isn't anything fancy, but it represents the greatness of Dirk Nowitzki. Look up the term "matchup nightmare" in the dictionary, and you'll find a picture of Dirk. 7 feet tall, with scary range, quickness, and ballhandling ability. Who do you get to guard this guy? Put a 2 or 3 on him, and Dirk will easily shoot over the top of you or back you down. Put a 4 or a 5 on him, and he'll drive around you and finish at the rim. Try to play a zone on him, and he'll find the weakness in it and find a way to put the ball in the basket. Think putting him on the line will work? Nah. 85+ percent from the free throw line. 10 rebounds a game. An ever growing toughness and clutchness. A leader on the court. Need I say more?

2. Kevin Garnett



Dirk might be the definitin of "matchup nightmare", but the text also says "also see Kevin Garnett". KG is the most versatile player in the NBA. He has the handle of a 1, post up like a 4 or 5, shoot jumpers like a 2 or 3, dish like a 1, and the intelligence of all positions. KG's defensive ability seems to get overlooked, but he's one of the best defenders in the league. Rebounding? He's the champ, averaging around 14 or so a game. A double-double machine. Da Kid. The Big Ticket. Kevin Garnett.

1. Kobe Bryant



Kobe Bryant is the best player in the NBA. Period. I hate to say it, but it's true. He is truly unstoppable in every aspect of the game. He's one of those guys who, when he shoots, you're surprised when it doesn't go in. Multiply that times 100 when the game is on the line. He's easily the most clutch player in the NBA, and giving MJ a run for his money in that department. He's got 3 rings. Say as much as you want about "without Shaq, he wouldn't have those rings", but without Kobe, Shaq wouldn't have any of those 3 rings either. The Lakers, essentially, are Kobe and a bunch of other players who expect Kobe to win the game for them. 81 points in a game. Think about that for a second. 20 points a game is a great average for an NBA player....Kobe averaged that per quarter for a game. Defensively, he's as solid as they come. He can rebound, create off the drible, dish to his teammates, get steals, etc etc....but his most valuable asset is his passion. Nobody questions that Kobe wants to be the best basketball player on earth....and that's why he is.

I LOVE THIS GAME!

Back...

Sorry for the layoff everyone, I'm just lazy. Here we go....

People who play professional or collegiate sports, by and large, are not intelligent. That's the reason they are so good at sports....their brains wouldn't have it any other way. With that being said, it's expected that these athletes might occasionally get in a scuffle. When they do, it's always entertaining and always makes the news. So, I give to you.....

ROB'S TOP 5 SPORTS FIGHTS

5. Florida International at Miami



This one is kinda week.....they're all wearing pads, so there's not that much damage done. I like the ridiculous comments of former Hurricane Lamar Thomas; comments that might have him lose his job. An enjoyable melee.

4. Tie Domi vs. Philadelpha Flyers' Fan



Maple Leaf's enforcer Tie Domi, sent to the penalty box for whatever reason, was being harassed by some Flyers' fans. Hilarity ensues. I like the idea of a fat guy trying to fight a huge hockey player who has skates and a helmet on. Very courageous.

3. Red Sox vs. Yankees, featuring Pedro Martinez vs. Don Zimmer



This is one of the funnier ones I've seen, just because of Manny Ramirez's overreaction, and especially because of Don Zimmer. Here's a guy who looks like the human version of Porky Pig, and he's going out to fight Pedro Martinez. Great stuff.

2. Zidane vs. Materazzi, World Cup 06



Yeah, not really a fight, but still enjoyable. The fact that Zidane was France's best player makes it all the more hilarious. A side note...there are TONS and TONS of Zidane Headbutt remixes on YouTube. Here's my favorite....



And finally....

1. "The Malice at the Palace" - Indiana Pacers vs. Detroit Pistons and Their Fans



The ultimate amongst sports fights. This fight set the standard for all sports fights since. I remember watching this as it happened and telling Neil about it. Unbelievable....I'll let it speak for itself.

FIN

I'm Lazy

Ok, there's a lot to get to, especially baseball-wise. I'm not up for that tonight, maybe tomorrow.

The NBA season is around 3 weeks away. With that (along with my laziness) in mind, here are some of my favorite non-mixtape videos of the best player on the planet Kevin Garnett.

Oh yeah, a PokerPages screenshot too.

Scattered....

Not too much today. I'll go through some things though....

-Tigers beat the Yanks today, splitting at Yankee Stadium. Excellent.

-Roger Federer is about to pass his own ATP points record this week. He's probably the greatest tennis player of all time. Check him out if you can, he's making history. He also has a blog on ATPTennis.com that is fairly entertaining, check it out.

-The A's can sweep the Twins tomorrow in Oakland. I think they will. I hope I'm wrong, but this is too much to ask, even for the miracle Twinkies. Sorry folks.

-The NHL season started this week. I barely even heard about it, even here in Minnesota. It's weird when people talk about the NHL dying.....I don't ever remember it ever being that popular in the first place.

-In my obligatory basketball note, Wolves' guard Marko Jaric is reportedly impressing in camp this week. He's a player I'm really excited about for this season. Can't wait to write my Wolves' preview post.

-On a more personal note.....this is the last weekend the Apple Valley Sports Arena will have its indoor tennis courts in before the city puts in the ice. Very, very saddening....



That's a guy named Igor Rakocevic. He actually rode the Wolves' bench for a year or two. Weird to see a guy be like, a superstar in Europe, and barely get any playing time in the NBA. Neil, I thought you'd like that.....that is, if you read this thing.

Mahalo.

Falling behind, thoughts on poker, few vids.....

Here we go again....

The Twins went down 0-2 in their best-of-five series with the A's. As much as I'm disappointed, I can't necessarily say I'm surprised. In what I've seen, the one area where the A's had an advantage over the Twins (starting pitching) has been a wash, with both teams delivering with solid starters who have gone 6 innings or more.

Ironically, where the Twins have failed (and where the A's have succeeded) where they were supposed to be at an advantage: offensively and defensively. If you look at the 4 Twins' runs that have been scored, none of them have been built on any sort of rally. There have been 3 solo home runs, and a "Dome Ball" (a fly ball that gets lost in the roof of the Metrodome) that was scored on a sacrifice. When I think of Twins' baseball, I think of agressive baserunning and timely hitting, neither of which has been evident in this series. Defensively, there's not much to say, other than that everyone looks a little shakey out there. As far as Torii's miscue that resulted in an inside-the-park home run.....that's Torii. You take the good with the bad. It's just a shame that it had to happen on such a big stage.

If you haven't noticed, poker has blown up in America, and across the globe, from the looks of it. ESPN plays reruns of the World Series of Poker constantly, even though it concluded several months ago. ESPN isn't the only network on the bandwagon either.....several other major networks (ones that are on most basic cable packages) have introduced lengthy (1 to 2 hour) shows broadcasting or even commentating on poker. A few thoughts on the poker boom.....

-First, these players, by and large, are losers. If you've ever watched a professional poker broadcast on TV, you know what I mean. Players like Phil Hellmuth, Mike "the Mouth" Matusow, and the 2006 WSOP Champion Jamie Gold enter our televisions and get national airtime, but make no mistake.....in any other situation, these men wouldn't be revered or admired.....they'd have their asses kicked. Only in the confines of a poker room are they allowed to be the losers that they are.

-Second, the poker boom, while intriguing and thoroughly entertaining, will be gone in the next few years, at least from a television point of view. Again, it's a problem of saturation. Pick up your remote and channel surf right now. Odds are you'll come across some kind of poker. I'm reminded of something like Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, which was huge for 1 or 2 years because it was so novel and new, but quickly became less popular as time went on.

-Finally, somewhat related to what I previously said, expect a poker channel to be created within the next year or so. Just a hunch.

To end things today, a few sports videos I like. I'm gonna go play PokerPages.

Starting thoughts

Hello everyone,

To begin, this blog is about sports: mostly the Timberwolves and the NBA, but other stuff (tennis, Twins, Vikings, college sports, etc.). I like to think I'm pretty good with sports, especially the Timberwolves, and thus, I also thought it'd be fun to share my thoughts. With that being said, let's get started.....

The Twins begin their AL Division Series against the A's today. Like most of Minnesota, I've been following the Twins pretty regularly in the last 2 months or so, with this incredible run they've been having. I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on baseball, but here are a few of my thoughts....

The A's don't impress me much, from what I've seen. They have deeper starting pitching than the Twins, but other than that.....not so much. Even with that being said, I'm a bit apprehensive about the Twins' chances. The last 5 or 6 games of the season, albeit dramatic, didn't make me as assured as their previous 20 games or so.

Still, I have to like the Twins, especially in a shorter series and with home field advantage. I'll take the Twins in 4.

The Timberwolves' Media Day was yesterday. It's exciting to see new Wolves, like Mike James and Randy Foye, in uniform with KG. Reading KG's interview about being excited about this season made ME excited. I think the Wolves will be a lot better this year than most people think.....but I'll get into that later.

Speaking of the Wolves, they signed Vin Baker a few days ago to a league minimum, non-guaranteed contract. I like this move.....low risk, possible reward. I like the idea that the Wolves have 3 big guys (KG, Mark Blount, and now Vin Baker) that can score. Now, as far as the Wolves' rebounding concerns.....

The tennis season is coming to a close. There's only three big tournaments left......TMS Madrid, TMS Paris, and the Tennis Masters Cup. Until the TMC, none of these tournaments will be televised, save for a "here's what happened" recap that'll aire on ESPN2 at 3 or 4 in the morning. Sad, but it's still fun to follow everything online.

That's all for now. Hopefully this will last.