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.
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But as far as the Detroit Pistons are concerned, it’s probably the most positive move they can make.
On Monday, the Pistons pulled off a trade that is guaranteed not to help them win the NBA championship this season. They shipped point guard Chauncey Billups and power forward Antonio McDyess to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for almost-washed-up superstar Allen Iverson.
In doing so, the Pistons signaled that they are giving up on the 2008-09 season. But in their case, that’s fine, because they desperately needed to take steps to remake their roster, and this is a significant and positive one.
Iverson is in the final year of his contract. He will earn $21 million this season. The Pistons will welcome him to the team, then kick him out the door next spring. His expiring contract will give them some salary cap maneuverability.
In the meantime, they can give promising backup point guard Rodney Stuckey more playing time and groom him to become the team’s new floor leader. It won’t be the same as having an experienced hand with cutthroat tendencies such as Billups in charge, but the Pistons had to change the dynamic or else they would forever be the Utah Jazz of the Eastern Conference: a hard-working and respected team that can’t get past the superpowers.
The difference between the Pistons and Jazz, of course, is that Detroit still has the faint taste of an NBA title in its mouth, having won in 2004. But since then, the club has stubbornly insisted on keeping its core intact even as other teams, such as the Celtics, Cavaliers, Magic, Raptors, Hawks and Sixers, are gaining and passing it.
By trading cornerstone Billups and the versatile, valuable but unspectacular McDyess, general manager Joe Dumars has indicated that he isn’t Matt Millen.
Having Iverson in the transaction is that rare instance in sports where a marquee name has little relevance to the actual reason for the deal. Iverson is a 33-year-old guard whose legs have logged lots of mileage over the course of 12 NBA seasons. Older players who play his position, and at his frenetic pace, tend to go quickly. It might even happen this season. Iverson might eventually rival Stephon Marbury, his evil twin (or is it the other way around?) from the 1996 draft, as the highest-paid self-absorbed player to ride the pine.
Where Iverson fits in immediately in Detroit is anyone’s guess. He could take over point guard duties from Billups, and thus the club would leave Richard Hamilton at shooting guard. But Iverson always has been a natural two guard; his inclination is to set the table only for himself. And starting Iverson at the point would keep Stuckey on the bench anyway.
These things evolve as the season progresses. First-year head coach Michael Curry probably will start Iverson at point guard but limit his minutes, then gradually hand more responsibility to Stuckey.
But whatever arrangement they work out, the Pistons — who have lost in the Eastern Conference finals the past three years — are still not in a position to win the NBA championship. As a team, you measure yourself against the best. The Pistons are no better qualified to defend the Celtics’ three-headed monster of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen than they were before this deal. And the Cavaliers added firepower in Mo Williams, which will cause additional problems for the Pistons.
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
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