Friday's Fives

Top Five

1.Steve Nash: In his last five games the Suns point guard has averaged 15.4 assists and has been perfect from the free throw line. On Wednesday night against the Jazz he had 29 points, 11 assists, 6 rebounds, and 1 chipped tooth. This guy is good, not too mention pretty damn tough.

2. Joffrey Lupul: After scoring just two points in his last eight games, he had three goals and three assist on Tuesday night against the Penguins.

3. Detroit Red Wings: Detroit is very quietly having another great season. They lead the league with a 22-6 record and in their last 10 games they're 7-1-2. By the way, how good are Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk? These two guys embarrass goaltenders and defensemen on a regular basis.

4. New England Patriots: After a few close calls against the Eagles and Ravens, the Pats got back to normal by laying the smack down on the Steelers. They were clicking on all cylinders, and look well on their way to a perfect season. I feel bad for the Jets this weekend. Actually, I don't, it should be fun watching them get their asses handed to them.

5. Portland Trail Blazers: Yes, the Blazers have made the good part of this list. The team has now won five games in a row, including wins against Utah and Golden State. If they can keep this core group of young players together they have a very bright future, and Greg Oden is still waiting in the wings.

Bottom Five

5. Pittsburgh Penguins: How mediocre have they looked this season? They've looked pathetic their past few games, especially in an 8-2 loss to the Flyers. To make matters worse, their starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is injured and will be out for six to eight weeks. Ouch!

4. Detroit Lions: Speaking of bad teams, what the hell happend to the Lions? They started the season 6-2, but have now lost five games in a row. It looks like they'll have to wait another year to not make the playoffs. By the way, how many life's does Matt Millen have?

3. Penny Hardaway: Shaq's first sidekick was cut this week by the Miami Heat so they could make room for Luke Jackson. Who? Has any athlete in recent memory had a bigger fall then Penny? He was easily as big as Lebron before injuries derailed his career.

2. Bobby Petrino: What a chump this guy is. Petrino did his best Nick Saban impression and quit on his team to go back to college. What makes Petrino worse is that he quit on the Falcons with three games left in the season, only 13 games into a five year contract. Why would anyone want a coach with zero integrity?

1. Roger Clemens: Well, it looks like Barry Bonds won't be the only legend who might have trouble getting into the Hall of Fame. It appears Rocket Roger had his rocket fuel injected directly into his ass with a syringe. No big shock, it just gives people another reason to hate him.

Somewhere in the Middle: Is anyone really surprised that John Rocker was included on the list of steroid users? The guy would do a full sprint from the bullpen to the mound every time he was called in to pitch. Good for him though for being able to keep his name in the news.

Have a great weekend!

-Joe Osborne

The Mitchell Report Named Names - Here They Are!

The long awaited Mitchell Report was released today naming a lengthy list of former and current Major League Baseball players that have been linked to performance enhancing drugs such as steroids and HGH. The most prominent name on the list was Roger Clemens who reportedly began using steroids at the end of the 1998 season. The list also included current Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte, and All-Star second basemen Brian Roberts of the Baltimore Orioles.

Other players included on the list:Barry Bonds(obviously), Gary Sheffield, Troy Glaus, Gary Matthews Jr., Rick Ankiel, Jay Gibbons, Mo Vaughn, David Justice, Paul Lo Duca, Eric Gagne, Glenallen Hill, Gregg Zaun, Rondell White, Hal Morris, Todd Hundley, Larry Bigbie, Lenny Dykstra, David Segui, Kevin Brown, Mike Lansing, Wally Joyner, Jeremy Giambi, Benito Santiago, Denny Neagle, Ron Villone, Fernando Vina, Todd Pratt, Jack Cust, Matt Williams, John Rocker, Paul Byrd, F.P. Santangelo and Randy Velarde.

As you can see the list included some pretty big names. Whether you care or not about steroid use, the fallout from this is gonna be huge. Should Clemens not be voted into the Hall of Fame now? What about the records players have set and awards they have won? Let the debates begin. This is a big huge mess for Major League Baseball. My advice for commissioner Bug Selig - Retire! That probably won't happen, but whatever happens, Major League Baseball and these players will be in the headlines all winter long.

-Joe Osborne

Blackhawks and Panthers Combine Teams to Become 'The Black Panthers'

In a cost saving move, The Chicago Blackhawks and Florida Panthers of the NHL will merge their teams into one, and will now be known as 'The Black Panthers'. The newly formed team also announced that they have traded for Donald Brasher, Georges Laraque, Jerome Iginla, Jamal Mayers, Ray Emery, Anson Carter, and Kevin Weeks. The team also announced that former NHL goaltender Fred Braithwaite will come out of retirement to serve as a third goaltender. “This is a groundbreaking day for the NHL,” said newly appointed head coach Rev. Al Sharpton. “When Black Panthers are in town, questions will be answered and there will be a price to pay.” To fill the remainder of their roster, the team has invited players from the NBADL and members of the Wu-Tang Clan to an open tryout.

At The End Of The First Quarter

The 2007-08 NBA season is now a quarter done, and needless to say this season has provided plenty of intrigue and excitement. No one has broken any records, scored 81 points, or ran into the crowd to fight fans, but there has been plenty of competitive games, breakout player and teams, and breathtaking highlights. Here's a few observations from the season so far, and a look ahead to what we can look forward to.

-The Bulls should have traded for Kobe Bryant. The team is 7-12 and looks extremely disoriented. The team has been manhandled by their competition so far this season, and with the exception of beating the Pistons twice, they've only managed to beat lottery bound teams. They should have pulled the trigger when they had their chance, as the Lakers probably won't be trading Kobe anytime soon. If the Bulls miss the playoffs they should consider some major front office shake ups for letting Kobe slip through their fingers.

-Dwight Howard is the best center in the league and will be for a long time. In his fourth NBA season, Howard's tremendous potential has reached fruition as he's now one of the NBA's best players. Howard does exactly what a center is supposed to do, and he does it better than anyone else. He leads the league in rebounds, he blocks shots, and he shoot for a very high percentage. Howard is just as important to the Magic as Lebron is to the Cavs or Nash is to the Suns.

-The Celtics are the best team in the league. Before the season started a lot of people doubted the Celtics, and didn't consider them a serious contender. Well, a 17-2 record should erase any doubts anyone had. Skeptics will say that they've had an easy schedule so far, but so what, they're 17-2. The 'Big Three' have done an excellent job sharing the ball, and the team has put defense first. Baring any major injuries, the good times will continue to roll in beantown.

-The Knicks suck. No team in sports is a bigger waste of talent. The team has so much individual talent, but as a team they're horrible. The team is filled with selfish players who play one on one basketball, and has a head coach who's legacy is tarnished night after night. There's two things the Knicks don't understand- team work, and the concept of rebuilding. Instead of trading away draft picks for Eddy Curry and Zach Randolph and building the team around ball hogs like Stephon Marbury and Jamal Crawford the Knicks should have started from scratch. And oh yeah, they should fire Isiah Thomas.

Other observations in brief: The Warriors are very fun to watch, the Rockets are a very average team, the Heat won't make the playoffs unless they can swing a major deal, the Hornets and Magic look great, the Raptors have a very deep bench, and Chris Kaman is the most underrated player in the league.

Here's who should start in the All-Star Game based on their stats and contribution to their teams so far this season.

EAST WEST
C- Dwight Howard C- Marcus Camby
F- Lebron James F- Shawn Marion
F- Kevin Garnett F- Carlos Boozer
G- Jason Kidd G- Baron Davis
G- Paul Pierce G- Steve Nash

The season is still young, but unlike most other sports the NBA seems somewhat easy to predict. Even though some things are a given, I'm sure there's still a few surprises in store and plenty of on and off court excitement to come. Enjoy the second quarter of the season, and I'll be sure to take another in-depth look at the league at the All-Star Break.

-Joe Osborne

Tuesday's Top Ten: Wide Receivers

Going into the 2007 NFL season all the talk was about running backs. In the majority of fantasy drafts the top ten spots were reserved for running backs, but few have lived up to their hype. With only three weeks remaining in the regular season, wide receivers have stolen the spotlight and the highlights away from the majority of the leagues over rated running backs. Wide receiver is easily the flashiest position in any sport, so let's take a look at the Top Ten receivers in the NFL.

10.Andre Johnson: The Texans receiver might not be the most recognizable name in the NFL because of injuries, and because he plays for the Texans, but his production speaks for itself. Last season he led the league in receptions, and in six games this season he has 617 yards and six touchdowns. If he can stay healthy he'll be one of the league's top receivers for years to come.

9.T.J. Houshmandzadeh: He's probably the most underrated player in the league because he shares the field with the mouthiest showoff in the league. To the surprise of many, Houshmandzadeh leads the league in receptions and is fourth in touchdowns. Put him on most teams and he'd be their best receiver.

8.Torry Holt: One word - Consistency. Year after year, Holt is always among to top receivers in all the important categories. I think it's fair to say that his best years are behind him, but he still gets the job done by staying off the injured list, and with excellent speed and top notch route running.

7. Marvin Harrison: Just because he's been injured doesn't mean he should be excluded from this list. Last year he was second in both receiving yards and touchdowns. Harrison is also fourth all-time in receiving yards and third all-time in receiving touchdowns. He hasn't made much of an impact this season, but it looks like he'll be back just in time for the playoffs.

6. Larry Fitzgerald: The fourth year receiver gets better every season. This season he is fifth in both yards and receptions. Fitzgerald uses his size and jumping ability to out play secondaries, and would be higher on this list if he had a better quarterback to play with.

5. Braylon Edwards: After two so-so seasons, Edwards is tearing it up for the Browns. Edwards makes phenomenal catches week after week and is making opposing defenses look foolish. He's currently sixth in receiving yards and third in touchdowns.

4. Reggie Wayne: Batman, as he's known throughout the league is a machine. He's done an incredible job while Marvin Harrison has been out, and is now the top receiver on the Colts. He catches balls in traffic better than anyone in the league and is the ultimate team player, which is something you can't say about most guys on this list.

3. Chad Johnson: Ocho Cinco has a bigger mouth than anyone in sports, but he can back in up. Last season he led the league in yards, and he's fourth this year. He also sets crazy blocks and has a reputation as one of the toughest receivers in football. His touchdown celebrations aren't as good as they used to be, but no defense wants to play against him.

2.Terrell Owens: After a slightly above average season last year, T.O. Has regained the form that makes him one of the best of all-time. He's done less talking and more playing, and he's been next to unstoppable. He currently leads the league in receiving yards and is second in touchdowns. He's also fourth all-time in receiving touchdowns and it doesn't look like he's gonna slow down anytime soon.

1. Randy Moss: This man can do in all. He's the top deep threat in the NFL,he can catch balls in traffic, he runs short routes with excellent precision, and he's a great blocker too. Moss has unmatched athleticism as he can out jump anyone in the league, not to mention he can out run almost anyone in the league. Moss had three games left to beat Jerry Rice's record of 22 receiving touchdowns in a season. He leads the league with 19, and is second in yards. Moss also has the fifth most touchdowns ever for a receiver, and stands a chance of breaking some records if he stays healthy and has Tom Brady throwing him the ball.
-Joe Osborne

Video of the Day: Lil' Penny

Rumor has it Lil' Penny fell into a dark lifestyle and began hanging out with Gargamel from the Smurfs and Grumpy Bear from the Care Bears. Soon after he was murdered over drug debts.

Video of the Day: Can you smell what the Rock is cooking?