Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Eleven shots separated Phil and Tiger Sunday at Pebble Beach as Lefty secured his 40th Tour win. Jason Sobel had hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
AP1995-96 CHICAGO BULLS
Backstory
After a self-imposed 17-month retirement, Michael Jordan returned to the Bulls for the latter stages of the 1994-95 season.
Wearing No. 45 instead of his famous 23, Jordan looked like an out-of-shape ex-baseball player as his Bulls got knocked out of the playoffs in the second round by Indiana.
The regular season
Jordan, being the competitive cuss he is, came back strong for his first full season in the NBA since the Bulls’ 1993 title, their third straight. And he made everyone strong with him. Jordan won his eighth scoring title (30.4) as the Bulls finished 72-10, becoming the first NBA team to win 70 games. New acquisition Dennis Rodman behaved himself long enough to win his fifth straight rebounding title (14.9). Scottie Pippen fit back into the Robin role and was an All-Star.
Toni Kukoc was Sixth Man of the Year, Phil Jackson was Coach of the Year, and Jerry Krause was Executive of the Year.
The Bulls led the league by scoring 105.2 points, and ranked third by giving up only 92.9 — a 12.3 points-per-game differential. They had one two-game losing streak. They won a record 33 road games. They won no less than five games in a row all season, topped by an 18-game streak, until the season’s final day. That’s because they had lost their final home game the day before, to Indiana, the only team to beat the Bulls twice.
The postseason
No fumbling, out-of-shape ex-baseball players this time around. The Bulls lost only one game en route to the finals, and beat Seattle 4-2 to regain their title.
Postscript
The 1995-96 season was the one that turned Jordan and the Bulls into true international sensations, with star-like worship unseen on the road since Led Zeppelin’s 1975 tour. The Bulls would win two more titles before ego battles putting Jackson and Jordan versus Krause and owner Jerry Reinsdorf blew the team apart in the most sudden end to an international sensation since Led Zeppelin’s 1980 tour.
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Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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