The Redeem Team

The United States Olympic Basketball team has been given the name "The Redeem Team" for the simple fact that it is their job to reclaim what we American's believe is ours the Gold Medal for basketball.

I have been watching them, pretty much all summer in preparation for these Olympic Games and at first I was a little unsure if they were going to put all individual differences side and play as a unit. Ever since the games have started I have to say they been pretty impressive, playing as a unit and playing with a real since of purpose and pride out there. As with any such team you always have people that are label the best on the team or talked about as if they will be the brightest start on the roster. However I have been surprised by a couple that I would have thought would be good but have turned out to be outstanding. So right now before the game against Spain my 3 candidates for MVP would have to be Wade, Bosh, James. I know everyone was hoping Kobe would be the center piece and who knows maybe in the grand scheme he is, but right now I just see these 3 guys as really turning it on and playing at a much higher level than we are use to seeing. I would like to add Kidd is disappointing right now, but I think his leadership off the court and in practice is critical to the back court success.

Going into tomorrow's game against Spain I would like to see this team continue to play angry ball as they did against Greece. It is important that Spain is sent a clear message since they are touted as being in gold medal contention.

Best NBA game dunk of all time!

So it seems this topic is brought up every month or so. And it always has the usual suspects listed, Jordan, Carter, Bryant etc etc. Well let me bottom line this for you.

The criteria for judgment here has to be more than just the dunk itself. You have to factor in the game, the impact of the dunk and a few other things. So typically I see this dunk as being ranked #1 on most message boards and I have to disagree with it for a few reasons which will following the video.



Okay so the dunk was no doubt breath taking and monstrous! It was in the Olympics and over a dude that is clearly a no body. The guy just stood there as Vince jumped over him and flushed it! Yes very fresh but really best of all time?

Moving on I have to list a few here as honorable mentions...






















Okay now it's starting to serious Jordan over Ewing when MJ tip toes the baseline...



This one really makes me think and some days of the week I could call that the best dunk ever, it was in the playoffs and the man was trapped by 2 Knicks only to escape and have to face the top Knick and mountain of Patrick Ewing. It was awesome and to this day makes Knick Fans cringe at the image! Today I have to rank it #2.

And now for the best dunk in NBA history I give the distinct honor to Scottie Pippen!



This dunk was just OUTRAGEOUS! I mean not only did he flush it on Patrick Ewing, he came down on top of him and had a few choice words for him. As if that wasn't enough he then walked over to Spike Lee sitting court side and basically told him to have a seat! I mean the whole swagger behind the play and the moment NBA Playoffs just forces me to give my vote to Scottie Pippen!

Chicago Bears QB Situation...

Let s touch on the Chicago Bears for a moment. Now of all my friends and family I may be the only person that does not HATE Rex Grossman. Every conversation I have about the Bears starts or inevitably has a person saying "They need a new QB." I have to disagree and stick up for Rex. Yes I have seen Rex make mistakes this past season and the Super Bowl season as will. But is he the only Bear that is making mistakes throughout the season?

How many times was the pass from Rex right on the numbers and the receiver (caugh caugh Berrian, Muhsin) drop the ball? Can you place that blame on Rex? Not to mention the simple fact that if you have an offensive line that does not offer anything more than 2 - 3 seconds of protection the Qb is going to look bad. You can rarely blame a sack on a QB and that's just being real. I could understand if the QB is having difficulties in making a decision and taking a long time in the pocket... but Rex barely has time to get the ball and take a peek at any options.



Now of course Benson is no longer a Bear but when he was the kid was terrible. He averaged 3.4 yards per carry and only produced 4 TDs all season. This yet again points back to the offensive line. If they offer no protection then you get no production. Benson's confidence was way down all season, until the day he brought out for 1 long carry against the SeaHawks which was the only time I saw a spark in his eye!

So to bottom line this for you... the Bears don't need everyone worrying about their QB situation, what a REAL Bears fan should recognize and voice their concerns about is out Offensive line and now our lack of a every down running back, not that Benson was ever that for us to begin with. So for the up-coming season lets focus on the positives and see if the Bears have made the right adjustments to give Grossman or Orton an opportunity to shine.

My Opinion...

Hello everyone I thought I would take the time to express my opinion on a variety of sports topics. This blog is simply that my opinion. I hope you enjoy it and please feel free to send me your feedback, I find sports debates to be fun. But please note if you don't do your research before you jab back then I'm just going to laugh at you.