NBA Draft Just Got Less Interesting

In the offseason, fans look forward to the two main ways NBA teams can improve themselves (besides trades): Free Agency and the Draft. Well, the NBA Draft just got less exciting for Hornets fans. The Hornets have traded their only pick in the draft, #27 overall, to Portland for cash considerations.

While the move is a good one for salary cap and the future possibilities of signing free agents and securing long-term deals with guys like Chris Paul, fans aren't going to be happy with trading a pick for cash. Cash can't shoot the 3 or grab 10 rebounds a game. Fans want to see an up-and-coming rookie selected on Thursday night.

This move may be the best in the long run for the team, especially with Coach Byron Scott's less than enthusiastic methods of playing rookies, but fans still get excited about the draft and the possibilities of finding the next gem for the team. Its going to be a little disappointing to see the entire draft go by without the Hornets being mentioned.

There is still a chance that the team trades back into the draft. They worked out about 40 players, many of which were 2nd round or free agent types. So if in the later portions of the draft they see someone who they worked out still sitting there, they may jump back in to secure his services. If not, I hope that they have an aggressive free agency plan with those cash considerations.

One Pitch

One pitch. That's all it took to end LSU's baseball season. The Tigers loss Friday night 7-3 to North Carolina at the College World Series. The game was one of the most exciting ones of the entire CWS...and that's saying a lot after the LSU-Rice 9th inning.

With a couple of rain delays, the anticipation for this game was great. After the first rain delay, the game restarted Friday with the bases loaded and one out for UNC. LSU's Jared Bradford force UNC into an inning ending double play to get out of the mess that Blake Martin had created the night before. Bradford shut down the Tar Heels for most of the game, allowing only one run until giving way to Louis Coleman in the 7th inning.

LSU struggled to hit the UNC pitchers, but Matt Clark hit a bomb in the bottom of the 6th inning that may have just landed to extend his national HR lead and tie the game at 3-3. Coleman was electrifying for LSU. He showed lots of emotion and seemed to cross up a number of UNC batters until the top of the 9th. With the bases loaded, Coleman threw one that he'd definately like to have back. LSU had chosen to walk Tim Fedroff, who had gone 4-4 in the game, and pitch to Tim Federowicz. Coleman threw one up and Federowicz deposited it in the left field bleachers. LSU was down 7-3 with only three outs left.

No more miracles for the LSU "Rally Cats." LSU wouldn't score again and would be sent home. While Coleman gave up the game-winning grand slam, LSU really loss the game in the bottom of the 8th. LSU had bases loaded with one out and failed to score a run. DJ LeMahieu popped out and Leon Landry grounded out to end the Tigers rally. If LSU had scored there, the 9th inning would have been a different story. LSU would have had the momentum and Coleman could have pitched that inning with a chance to win rather than trying not to give up the lead.

All-in-all it was a great season for the Tigers. This young team came from nowhere to make the CWS and the future looks bright for Paul Mainieri's group.

The CWS final series now features the Georgia Bulldogs vs. the Fresno State Bulldogs. Fresno State has been the Cinderella team all tournament, being the only 4-seed to ever make the CWS. What happened to them this year and how'd they get so hot in the NCAA Tournament? Georgia has yet to lose in the CWS, and I look for that to continue with a two-game sweep of Fresno, who had to play an extra game over the weekend to put away UNC.

Big Baby Enjoys the Spotlight

This picture of former LSU Tiger Glen "Big Baby" Davis is causing a little conversation message boards and on local sports talk radio. Anyone who has seen Big Baby off the court in the past few years, knows he's one of the biggest kidders around. Looks like nothing has changed since he's gone to the NBA.

New Title Town USA?

I just want to take this opportunity to thank the NY Giants once again for defeating the then undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl. Oh yeah, congratulations to the Boston Celtics on winning their 17th championship too.

If the Giants hadn't defeated the Patriots, the Red Sox, Patriots and Celtics would hold championships in the three major sports at the same time. Give me a break Boston. We never want to hear another complaint from a Boston sports fan.

For years we heard about the Red Sox and the curse of Babe Ruth. For years, all the Pats had to hang their hat on was the 1985 Super Bowl where they were blasted by the Chicago Bears. For years, the Celtics had been trying to recapture the glory days of Bird, Parish and McHale. Well, you know what Boston, you're on top of the sports world now. No more complaints, no more here we go agains, no more tortured sports town. You are the new Title Town USA.

Enjoy it, everyone else around the country now despises you for all this winning.

Congrats to the Celtics. They were a bad team for years, but made a couple of bold moves (actually not too bold, I mean, who wouldn't want KG on their team?) and got themselves a championship. To take nothing away from them winning, I really enjoyed seeing Paul Pierce get the trophy along with Louisiana natives P.J. Brown and Glen "Big Baby" Davis, but I don't enjoy watching a team that's been together for one year win as much as I do a group of guys who have been playing together for years, climbing the mountain together and finally getting over that hump. Its almost like seeing the Florida Marlins put together their World Series teams. Yay, you did it, but you were supposed to.

Not winning the championship would have been more of a story, but at least we didn't have to watch Kobe Bryant raise the trophy. One good thing to come out of this NBA Finals (of which I made have watched a total of 30 minutes, mostly during Game 6), is that the Kobe/Michael Jordan comparisons will be put to bed. Anyone who brings that comparison up again will be ridiculed instead of opening up a series discussion about Kobe's merits. Jordan always won on the biggest stage. Kobe's team's have now lost the last two NBA Finals that he's been in. Case closed.

Live to play another day

Once again the LSU Tigers rallied in the 9th inning to pull off an improbable victory. This has been the M.O. for the past few weeks.

In the SEC tournament, they did it to South Carolina. In the Super Regionals, they snatched a victory from UC-Irvine. Now Rice has felt the taste of having a victory taken away from you in the final innings.

LSU could get nothing going against Rice. They were down 5-0 late in the game and finally got the game within three runs in the 9th. With one out, the Tigers got a little help from the baseball gods as the Rice shortstop booted a ball that was possibly a double-play (depending on who you ask, many believe Jarrod Mitchell would have beat the throw to first. Regardless, it still would have been two men on and two outs when Blake Dean came up).

With the bases loaded and only one out, Dean hit a laser shot to left field that went off the wall. There wasn't even a need for the Rice outfielder to throw the ball in, as Mitchell could have passed up the other LSU baserunners as he was running from first (good thing he didn't because that's an out). LSU pulled out another victory and LSU Coach Paul Mainieri was able to provide his wife with the victory birthday present she asked him for.

Now LSU gets a rematch with #2 seed North Carolina. The Tar Heels defeated LSU in their first game of the College World Series, so it will be interesting to see if LSU learned anything from that defeat.

Mike the Tiger Top Choice

The Sporting News has ranked the top mascots you'd want on your side in a bar fight. Guess who's the top choice...Mike the Tiger. No, not the costumed mascot, the 300+ pound live Bengal tiger.

It would be tough to get him out of his habitat, but Mike is definitely someone you want on your side if trouble starts.

For the other side, here are the top 10 mascots you wouldn't want on your side in a bar fight.