Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
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.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
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.
Reuters5. What about this season's movers and shakers?
Not every team put off its shopping until 2010.
Given the chance to sit on their cash for another season, the Pistons instead chose to invest in Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon. While it has been difficult to debate Joe Dumars to this point, do those two truly constitute an upgrade?
For now, Gordon is penciled in as a reserve behind Richard Hamilton. And Villanueva finds himself at power forward on a team left to choose between Kwame Brown, Chris Wilcox and Ben Wallace at center.
Then there are the Timberwolves, who only return Corey Brewer, Brian Cardinal, Ryan Gomes, Kevin Love and Al Jefferson from last season. The arrivals, beyond first-round pick Jonny Flynn, hardly are awe inspiring, unless you see the promise in Ramon Sessions or something in Sasha Pavlovic.
At this stage, you safely can rule out Dumars and David Kahn for Executive of the Year.
6. Will the 2008-09 injury list linger?
The Celtics keep telling us Kevin Garnett's knee is fine. So then what's up with that noticeable limp during training camp?
Over in Houston, while Tracy McGrady is back on the court, does enough confidence remain to again have McGrady as the focus of the offense?
And perhaps in the ultimate injury issue, will Elton Brand make it through the opening months in Philadelphia, let alone an entire season?
When July, August and September aren't enough to answer injury issues, you have to wonder.
7. What's with the new faces in already-successful places?
Rasheed Wallace a Celtic? Shaquille O'Neal a Cavalier? Richard Jefferson a Spur?
It used to be that success went hand in hand with stability.
Yet, stability hardly has been associated with Wallace and O'Neal.
Could those two make their teams better? Sure. But their uniqueness will take plenty of adjustment.
Similarly, adding someone like Jefferson figures to be a jolt to the core of Duncan, Ginobili and Parker.
8. What’s the officials story?
The NBA insists its replacement officials will do just fine, stressing that beyond the 60 it has locked out, it has found the next-best 60 because of its affiliation with the Development League and WNBA.
Of course, that's like saying the D-League offers the best pro basketball in North America outside of the NBA.
No, it will not be pretty. But it also won't endure. If not by the start of the season, expect the regular referees to be back within a month of opening night. Never will Joey Crawford's scowl or Steve Javie's arrogance be as appreciated (but not Dick Bavetta's clownish act).
9. Where are the depths of desperation?
Allen Iverson and Zach Randolph in Memphis?
Paul Westphal as coach of the Kings?
Don Nelson volunteering to guide the Warriors in future seasons for free?
And here we thought Lamar and Klhoe was as surreal as it was going to get.
Sometimes it's not that difficult to detect impending disaster.
10. And who will win it all?
Ah, for that you will have to wait another two weeks, when we return in this space with our 2009-10 predictions.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Paul Pierce has been around long enough to know what Rajon Rondo's performance can mean for the aging Boston Celtics.
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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.
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.