Tuesday 03/17 A.M. Quickie:Brackets, Play-In, Bryce Brown, More

Today's SN column leads with the annual Tuesday-of-NCAA-Tournament-week lamentation: Second-guessing your biggest bracket reaches.

I am fairly unrepentant (for now) about picking UNC not to win the South -- instead picking Syracuse.

I am fairly unrepentant (for now) about picking Duke to lose in the opening weekend -- they are a better team this year than the past two, but still: Unproven as anything but March chokers.

I am also fairly unrepentant (for now) about picking Villanova to lose in the opening weekend, despite the Wildcats playing the game in Philadelphia.

Where I am stuck is over which team will be the one to beat Nova: UCLA or VCU? For now, I have UCLA beating VCU -- and even advancing to the Elite Eight.

(Click here for a full rundown of my picks from my Wall Street Journal column yesterday.)

I have no problem picking the winner of that game to the Elite Eight. If they weren't playing each other, I would probably pick both teams to the Elite Eight.

Where I am stuck is picking UCLA over VCU. The Bruins were my favorite to win it all last year, and I obviously remain awestruck at their three-years-running Final Four streak.

(I'm not trying to crawl inside my head too much here -- although, again, that's the annual tradition today -- but I wonder whether I keep picking UCLA as some sort of fading reflection of the Florida title teams in 2006 and 2007, who faced UCLA in those Final Fours.)

But, as I wrote a two weeks ago, I'm in the tank for Anthony Grant, who I think is the best young coach in America. I think Eric Maynor is awesome, and they have this young center who could dominate -- don't forget the way they dispatched Duke two years ago and nearly beat Pitt.

Against virtually any other team (outside the No. 1 seeds), I would pick VCU and not look back. But against UCLA -- Ben Howland is the best Tournament coach in the country -- it's the one match-up where I pick against VCU. I don't buy this UCLA-travels-2700-miles thing.

So it's UCLA over VCU for now, although I may kick myself about it on Thursday -- when the team I don't pick in that game streaks to the Elite Eight, I will try to find a way to enjoy it anyway.

More in today's column: Jay Cutler soap opera... Thunder rising... Vols recruiting coup... WBC gets even more ludicrous... and More.

-- D.S.

Tournament Challenge: Sign Up NowFor The "Daily Quickie Readers" Group

Go over to the Tournament Challenge page. Search for the "Daily Quickie Readers" group. Join the group. Submit your bracket. Show us all how smart you are. Revel in my failure.

My Tournament Picks In Wall Street Journal

In what has become an annual ritual for me, the Wall Street Journal has published my NCAA Tournament picks, complete with the usual levels of self-doubt, self-deception and self-loathing. You can find them here, and you will see why I already feel like my bracket is busted.

NCAA Selection Committee Screws Cinderella

The Selection Committee really screwed the Cinderellas this year.

VCU -- a strong contender for a Sweet 16 run -- got three-time defending Final Four participant UCLA, then Villanova... in Philadelphia.

Siena -- which won a Tournament game last year -- was "rewarded" with a 9-seed, putting it up against Louisville in Round 2. (BYU got similar treatment, stuck in an 8/9 game, then UConn.)

Western Kentucky? Gonzaga? If they win their first-round games, they play... each other, ensuring that one mid-major won't advance.

When you look at the bracket -- from the seeding and placement to who they DIDN'T include (lowest-ever 4 non-power-conf at-large bids) -- you see a Committee favoring power leagues.

If this is truly the "Year of the Big East" -- and I confess my bracket goes long that it is -- the Committee did what it could to help push that along.

Last year's "all 1-seed" Final Four was, in my opinion, terrible for the sport and terrible for the Tournament. (The only thing that saved it was the novelty that it had never happened before.)

I am stunned at how few upsets I have predicted, particularly in the first round. (I don't think I have any beyond the non-upset 9-over-8, 10-over-7 and 12-over-5.)

Let's hope that at least a few non-power-conference teams defy the bracket and create some unexpected drama. "Chalk" is not what anyone wants from the NCAA Tournament.

-- D.S.

Monday 03/16 A.M. Quickie, Posted Early!Bracket Analysis, Final Four Picks, More

Filed Monday's SN column on Sunday night, shortly after the Brackets were announced. Here is a link to it. You will get some clues as to where my picks are going. At a minimum, you will get my Final Four picks and my pick for national champ (won't be a surprise).

My NCAA Bracket Is Already Busted

I have just finished writing up an analysis of my bracket picks that is going up tomorrow, and there is one section of it that is such a stretch that I feel like I have already lost the pool.

I'll reiterate what I said below:

That UCLA-VCU first-round match-up single-handedly nearly ruined the entire bracket for me -- put VCU as the 11-seed in the Midwest or West, and I would have both the Rams and the Bruins marching deep into the Tournament.

That one of those two necessarily has to exit on Day 1 seems ridiculously unfair. That I have to choose which one that will be is nearly as bad.

-- D.S.

NCAA Tournament Bracket Absurdity

First of all, go join the Daily Quickie Readers group over at the Tournament Challenge.

The National Bracket already has some statistically significant results: America picks UNC to beat Louisville for the national title, with the Final Four a repeat of last year -- all No. 1 seeds advance.

(The Elite Eight is all 1 and 2 seeds, which you KNOW ain't gonna happen.)

Most contentious N.B. picks: UConn-Memphis, which was predictable... Syracuse-Oklahoma... one other notable result so far: Florida State over Xavier by a 60-40 margin. Surprising, given Xavier's recent proven excellence in the NCAA Tournament -- and FSU's lack of it.

So here's my dilemma: Back in November, I picked Louisville to win the national title. Do I try to maintain epic integrity and pick them to win it all this year?

(I did that last year with UCLA, and fell short -- it wasn't the reason my bracket sucked last year; that was all the OTHER wrong picks.)

Here's the thing: I'm naturally disinclined to pick the No. 1 overall team to win the national title -- certainly not this season.

That said: I like the idea of maintaining my pick from November til now. I just had figured that Louisville would finish the season as a 2- or 3-seed and I'd be making a novel bracket pick, not picking the damn No. 1 overall team in the field.

I'm also nervous about Louisville winning too many close games -- scoring margin should be a big factor in picking winners to go 6 straight. Close games means too much is left up to random chance. (And, as Pitt fans reminded me, L'ville played a much easier schedule than Pitt.)

So: Do I get ANY credit for picking Louisville in the preseason to win the national title if they do go on to win the national title -- but I have picked another team (say, Pitt) to win it all on my actual bracket?

My suspicion is that you all would say: Umm...no. No credit at all. You can't have it both ways. (And you'd be right, as much as I hate to say it.)

And so I'm torn: I actually do think that Louisville COULD win the national title -- I give them as much of a shot as Pitt (and an even better shot than UNC, who I think will fold early this season...again. Of course, Pitt has its own tradition of choking in March.)

But I really do hate taking the paper favorite. It seems so uninspired.

And, more importantly, feels like it will be inevitably wrong.

(Also: I'm absolutely sick to my stomach about UCLA-VCU in the first round -- I very well might have picked both to the Elite Eight... if not further. I still think UCLA has all the ingredients to be a Final Four team...yet again. And I think VCU is good enough to make a 2- or 3-game run. Of course, either will have to play Villanova in Philly -- again, WHY SELECTION COMMITTEE WHY?)

Just filed my column to Sporting News. Hope to have a URL for you shortly.

-- D.S.

NCAA Tournament Bracket Analysis

Putting my instant reactions on Twitter (found here or to the right). Then jumping right into filing my Sporting News column to (hopefully) get published in the early-evening.

Tournament Challenge Reminder:Join "Daily Quickie Readers" Group

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I'm Done With the Conference-Tournament System

I'm not sure what the final straw was: I guess it was USC beating Arizona State.

USC had little chance of making the NCAA Tournament without winning the Pac-10 tournament. Arizona State was already an NCAA Tournament lock.

In the end, the Sun Devils had little or no incentive to actually win the Pac-10 Tournament. Pride, maybe. But pride isn't enough to counter desperation -- that's what USC brought.

If Arizona State was playing for its Tournament life, I suspect the result would have been different. Same thing with UNC vs. Florida State. Same thing with Wake vs. Maryland. Same thing with Oklahoma or Kansas or Texas or Xavier or Dayton... the list goes on.

More than anything else these past few days, what has been exposed is what a sham the "power conference" tournament structure is: NCAA "locks" have little reason to play to win -- NCAA Tournament seeding? Feh: Pitt will probably be a 1-seed anyway; same with UNC.

The point is: There is no way that the "lock" teams are playing their hardest -- or, at least, playing as hard as teams with a lot more to gain from the system. Plus: The experts seem to reward Bubble teams for wins over "name" teams in the conference tournament, even though these name teams aren't playing nearly as hard as they were in the regular season.

Look, I'm sure the top teams protest that they are trying their hardest -- but it simply doesn't hold water: You're telling me they care as much in an ultimately meaningless now as they will next week, when each game mean literally everything? No way.

-- D.S.

Does the Bubble Even Exist This Year?

I have isolated something that is bothering me about Championship Week this year: The major-conference conference-tournament system is totally flawed.

The teams that are already NCAA Tournament locks have little incentive to win, to want to play 3 or 4 games in 3 or 4 days or to truly play with any sense of urgency at all. (Obviously, there are exceptions, but far more are following this rule this year than are exceptions to it.)

Teams that are on the Bubble do care. Teams that are out of the Tournament entirely do care. That's why you see Baylor beating Kansas. Or Maryland beating Wake. Or Mississippi State beating LSU. Or Ohio State thumping Michigan State.

And, yet, the system gives away NCAA Tournament bids to the conference-tourney champs -- and seems to overvalue conference-tourney wins -- even though those wins may be iffy.

If Wake or Kansas or LSU or Xavier or Michigan State don't really seem to give a shit, does Maryland or Baylor or Mississippi State or Temple or Ohio State beating them really prove those winners are Tournament-worthy? Maybe it does, but maybe we shouldn't overrate the wins.

I'm just saying: We place this out-sized value on conference tournaments (and even individual wins in conference tournaments), when many of the leading participants -- at least the ones that care more about the national title than a provincial one -- have no reason to care.

We'll see if UNC joins the group, in a battle with Florida State.

By the way, if every Bubble spot is accounted for by these shady conference-tournament results -- does the Bubble even exist this year? I would argue it doesn't.

-- D.S.

Saturday 03/14 (Very CBB) Quickie

I mean: How can you NOT be rooting for Baylor?

Sure, it seems a little weird that you can overrule an entire season's body of work by simply winning 4 straight games in mid-March. But that's part of the Tournament's charm.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are the teams that simply don't get it done when they need to. I'm talking about Florida -- who will miss the Tournament after losing to Auburn last night, and (even as a Florida fan) I have no sympathy. Too many opportunities (throughout the season) to control their own destiny that they weren't able to take advantage of. The Gators don't deserve it -- for a 2nd straight year.

(Speaking of taking advantage of opportunities, there is Maryland, which should have punched its ticket by beating Wake Forest -- sure seems like a lot of Tournament locks are simply "taking off" the conference tournament season: Wake, Pitt, UConn, Kansas, Oklahoma. They didn't need to do anything in these tournaments, and thus played with zero sense of urgency.)

But, hey, how about Duquesne!

(Here's a weird one: St. Mary's got shellacked by Gonzaga in the West Coast final. That should have been the final word on their Tournament resume for the Selection Committee -- but then they scheduled a random non-conference game against Eastern Washington, who they clocked. Will the Committee pay attention to that? Is it the tiny nudge they need to make the field? Imagine if, after losing last week, Davidson had quickly scheduled power-conference Bubble team in the Top 50, giving both the chance to add one more impressive W.)

Wow, Syracuse is on some kind of roll. Hope for their sake they don't peak this week, rather than next week (or the week after).

Today's Games to Watch:
Big 12: Baylor-Mizzou (Go Baylor.)
America East final: Binghamton vs. UMBC (15-16 record!)
ACC Semi: Maryland-Duke (Amazing hatred)
P-10: USC-Ariz St (USC win would bump a Bubble team)
C-USA: Memphis-Tulsa (Go Tulsa.)
SEC: Miss St-LSU (MSU playing for bid?)
A-10: Duquesne-Temple (some Bubble team is screwed)
Big West: SD St-Utah (SD St in, even if they lose? Hmm)
Big East: Syracuse-L'ville (Cuse all the way?)

Enjoy a great day of hoops. A whole bunch of Bubble teams are screwed already, with more holding their breath today. But, as I said: No sympathy. They had their chances. Plenty of 'em. (Not that I'm bitter about Florida. Oh no, not at all.)

-- D.S.

Friday 03/13 A.M. Quickie:6OT, Baylor, Pitt, Oklahoma, More

Here's the question of the day/week/month: How much stock do you put in a team's performance in the conference tournament?

Because if you put any, then you best be avoiding Pitt, Oklahoma, Kansas and UConn going particularly far on your bracket, come Sunday night.

I appreciate the "won't tire themselves out" thing (Pitt), along with the "they played a much more motivated team" thing (Oklahoma), but isn't that mitigated by the idea that it's not like they lost in the conference finals to another heavyweight -- they lost in the quarters. In Kansas' case, they lost to a team that isn't even very good.

Now, West Virginia was probably underrated (no longer a problem), and Syracuse is a very good team that matches up well with UConn.

But you can't help wondering if you should factor these losses in when you're filling out your bracket. It's a huge mind-frak, that's for sure. And it leads today's SN column.

That said, the best thing that could happen to Pitt or to Oklahoma or to Kansas is this:

SIX OVERTIMES.

It's all anyone will, can or should be talking about this morning -- instantly, the most memorable game of the season so far, arguably the greatest Big East Tournament game ever and arguably the most thrilling conference-tournament game in a generation (AI vs. Ray Allen in Big East '96 comes to mind, but you really can't beat the endless amazing of six -- SIX -- overtimes.)

Whether we're talking about Pitt or Oklahoma or Kansas or UConn or Syracuse, there is a lesson to be gleaned from yesterday's games -- a reminder that we'd all be well to consider heading into Selection Sunday:

In the end, no one knows anything. Not you. Not me. Not "experts." Not anyone. It's why the NCAA Tournament is the best event in sports, and it's why the biggest fan can have the worst bracket picks.

Over the season -- even starting before it -- I come up with a couple of bracket biases that I know are going to come into play. My preseason pick of Louisville to win it all. Watching Pitt play so dominantly down the stretch. My unease with picking UNC to win it all after the past three seasons' failures. Even a carry-over from last year's UCLA bias.

I mean, cripes: I was all set to pencil Pitt into the Final Four (obviously depending on their actual path, but I was having a hard time seeing a team that could stop them before the Final Four) -- yesterday's loss rocked my confidence:

Do I take the early exit as a motivator that they will carry through the first 4 games of the NCAA Tournament? Do I take it as foreshadowing that they're going to, once again, fall short of expectations? Do I need to worry when they are bracketed to meet, specifically, a "WVU-like" team? Confidence yields to doubt yields to insanity. It's an annual rite.

In recent years, I have tried not to over-think: To go with my first instinct as much as possible. But maybe this year -- after last year's debacle -- I should go with the "Opposite George" strategy.

Complete SN column here. More later.

-- D.S.

ZOMG: NCAA Tourney Live on My iPhone

This is a game-changer: CBS Sports is going to let me watch streaming video of the NCAA Tournament LIVE on my iPhone for $4.99. Done. (Don't screw this up, CBS!)

-- D.S.

Thursday 03/12 A.M. Quickie:Big East, Big 12, Big Ten, Big Day

The success of the Big East this season won't be defined by its epic regular season -- it will be defined by how many of the 8 teams playing in today's quarterfinals make the Sweet 16... or even the Final Four. The gold standard is 1985: 3 teams in the Final Four, including the champ.

So: How may of the Big East quarterfinalists will make the Sweet 16: 2? 4? 6? In the meantime, you can marvel that there probably hasn't been a quarterfinal round of any conference tournament ever that has been as loaded as this one is today. That leads today's SN column.

Meanwhile: Of course all the other Big Ten first round games are on TV... except Northwestern-Minnesota at noon. Not like NU isn't the best story of the Big Ten this season or anything.

Sporting News forced my hand: By naming Blake Griffin as SN's national Player of the Year now, that forces me to name my own Player of the Year now: Pitt's DeJuan Blair. (Now, now: I'm not saying Griffin isn't a great player -- just like no one is saying Hansbrough isn't a great player by naming Griffin as POY. I just think Blair has been better. Would love to see them match up.)

Enjoy the sprint to Sunday. Complete column here.

-- D.S.

Thursday 03/11 A.M. Quickie:Bubble, NoDak, Netherlands, LT, More

Lots of things I'm loving in today's SN column:

Butler crashing the Bubble after losing to Cleveland State: Not only does this force out an undeserving Bubble team, but it exposes Butler as entirely overrated.

North Dakota State: First year of NCAA Tournament eligibility, they get a bid. Amazing. And the way they did it? Oakland ties the score late -- does ND St take a TO to set up a play? No. NO! They come back down and score the winning basket.

Who else loathes the micro-managing way coaches call a time-out late to set up a game-winning shot, only to give the defense plenty of time to stop it?

I'm sure there is plenty of analytics out there -- Gasaway, I mean you! -- that quickly running your play (presuming you've actually spent practice time preparing for the moment) gives you a better shot than taking a T.O. and setting up a play, but giving the opposing team its own chance to set up. It's college hoops coaching micro-management at its worst.

Georgetown losing, DePaul winning: Yes, I was sort of hoping that the Hoyas would make a 5-game run to make the NCAA Tournament -- I'm a sucker on them this season to the end -- but having them lose in the first round is just so symbolic of the season, the final affirmation that all those other losses weren't aberrations at all...this team just underachieved.

Meanwhile, how amazing that DePaul could go 0-18 in the Big East regular season, then waltz into MSG and win. Hypothesize with me for a second: If DePaul ran the table in the Big East Tournament, what kind of seed would they get? On the one hand, they would have the worst record in the Tournament; on the other, they would have beaten, like, 4 Top 20 teams in a row. Would that make them a 14 or a 15? Would the NCAA put them in the Tuesday play-in game?

Western Kentucky: Any chance they repeat last season's run to the Sweet 16? If you had to pick between WKU and Siena -- which pulled a 1st-round upset last year and returns all 5 starters to this year's Tournament -- which team will go further next week?

The Netherlands: Greatest. Baseball Upset. Ever. And while I am sort of taking advantage of the best kind of Instant History, please post to the Comments what upsets would be bigger... Dodgers over A's in '89? Reds over A's in '90? Not really.

Maybe Marlins over Yankees in '03? Hmm... MAYBE Marlins over Yankees in '03. But Josh Beckett was the best player on the field for either team that series, and has the MVP ring to prove it -- there wasn't a position on the field where Netherlands had an advantage over the D.R. Also, when you win a best-of-7 series, it can hardly be called an "upset" -- not in the same way an "elimination" tournament can present.

Complete SN column here. More later.

-- D.S.

Tuesday 03/10 A.M. Quickie:VCU, Zags, Siena, Big East, A-Rod, Vick

I make a startling confession in today's SN column. Do you know who my favorite coach in college basketball is?

(Hint: It's NOT Billy Donovan.)

It is Anthony Grant at VCU -- who almost replaced Donovan at Florida (during Billy D's NBA flip-flop) and whose Rams are back in the NCAA Tournament after being the mid-major upstart of 2007's tournament. (Who WASN'T cheering on VCU when they took out Duke in Round 1?)

Obviously, it depends on their path, but I could see taking VCU to the Elite Eight -- they will undoubtedly also be one of the most "sexy" picks of the mid-majors to break through.

(If it's any consolation, Donovan is my 2nd-favorite coach in college basketball. But, yes, as I lead in the column, I was more than happy to replace Donovan with Grant after the 2007 Tournament and Donovan seemed to be off to the NBA. What is NOT a consolation is that I can't see any reasonable scenario where Georgia doesn't hire Grant away next month. At least, if they had any idea about what they were doing.)

Meanwhile: Speaking of sexy picks, there's Siena, back in the Dance... Chattanooga takes Davidson's spot in the field from the Southern auto-bid... And is it too much to ask Georgetown to win 5 games in 5 days, including what would have to be wins over two likely NCAA 1-seeds?

Plus:
*Dwyane Wade for NBA MVP! (What a shot!)
*George Steinbrenner may have financed the hit on Nancy Kerrigan!
*Michael Vick could be playing in the UFL!
*A-Rod's surgery will have him back by May!
*And more!

Complete column here. Don't forget to sign up for the Tournament Challenge -- group name: Daily Quickie Readers.

-- D.S.

Tournament Challenge: Sign Up NowFor The "Daily Quickie Readers" Group

The original is back: The Daily Quickie Readers group in the Tournament Challenge.

Not quite sure it'll ever get back to the 2006 level, when it was the 3rd-largest group on ESPN.com (and my unborn son -- picks via his mom -- came in 10th out of more than 1,000 entrants).

Join in now! Just search for the "Daily Quickie Readers" group -- open to all, no password necessary. Winner gets the glory of a post in their honor, among other things.

-- D.S.

Monday 03/09 A.M. Quickie:UNC, Davidson, N'western, TO, More

...And the dream is over for Northwestern. Dammit. Came very very close.

The dream may be over for Davidson, too. In today's SN column, I presume that they would get an at-large bid on the strength of last year's Tournament performance and the star power of Stephen Curry. But apparently the numbers say that their inclusion (as an at-large) would be laughable. It's going to be very very interesting to see how this develops.

Meanwhile, the C-Week game of the week could be tonight's Gonzaga-St. Mary's West Coast final: The Zags are in, whether they win or not. I think St. Mary's MIGHT be in, even if they lose, by putting up a tough fight that shows they would be competitive in the NCAA Tournament; obviously, if they win, they get the league's auto-bid -- and will be everyone's 1st-round Cindy.

I actually led the column with UNC and Tyler Hansbrough, reminding everyone that unless he wins the national title, he is this generation's Ralph Sampson -- super-talented, super-dominant...but ultimately not a champion. (No: The ACC regular-season and Tournament championships don't count as much -- not when you consider yourself a "national" power.)

More in the column: Yankees without A-Rod (pitching is more important), Bills with T.O. (instant relevancy, if not likeability, for the franchise), Magic > Cavs as it relates to being able to take down the Celtics in the playoffs (neither will anyway, so it's moot) and More.

Complete column here. More later.

-- D.S.

Sunday 03/08 (Very) Quickie

Loved that Morehead State-Austin Peay game: That the 4-seed toppled the 1-seed made it all the more amazing.

Louisville deserves a 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament for winning the Big East regular-season title outright and for being the No. 1 team in the country right now, capped with that win at West Virginia. As long as Pitt, Louisville and UConn all make the Big East semis, they should all be considered top contenders for a 1-seed, with UNC.

(My preseason pick for Louisville to win the national title looks really good right now, although the bandwagon is going to get super-crowded this week.)

Um, so what was that about Missouri being a team to watch? (Honestly, that really just speaks to the underrated depth at the top in the Big 12.)

Blake Griffin: 33 and 14 and the new single-season rebounding record in the Big 12. I think Oklahoma has a tougher path to a 1-seed than UNC or the Big Three from the Big East. But if they win the Big 12 Tournament, I could see the Committee wanting a little geographic parity among the 1-seeds, with one to OU, one to UNC and two to the top 2 out of L'ville, Pitt and UConn in the Big East Tournament.

Props to Washington for coming out of nowhere (compared to preseason expectations) and winning their first outright Pac-10 regular-season title since the mid-1950s. I'll admit to being totally baffled as to how to evaluate the Huskies' chances in the NCAA Tournament. (But I probably give them a better shot of going further than any other team from the Pac-10, except UCLA, for whom I remain in the tank for, bracket-wise.)

I said this last week and meant it: The SEC deserves one team in the NCAA Tournament -- the conference tournament winner. LSU losing at Auburn says less about Auburn (although Auburn IS underrated) than it does about LSU being absurdly overrated. I'd could see Auburn, hotter than any team in the conference, win the conference tournament.

(Tennessee? Meh: If they can win the SEC Tournament, they earned it -- otherwise...really? South Carolina? Feh. And Florida? You saw what I had to say about the Gators yesterday; as I project them to lose in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, regardless of opponent, they'll be stealing an NCAA bid from a team that deserves it more, and I say that as a huge fan.)

T.O. to the Bills: There's not a lot of glitz or cachet to his new home city -- not like Dallas or Philly or San Francisco.

But the fans are arguably the best in the NFL, and they deserve the attention/circus that will come from having T.O. on the team. Not sure if they'll end up liking it...

WBC: Netherlands over the D.R. -- the D.R. is the A-Rod of the WBC. (Meanwhile: Does Adam Dunn's start in the WBC bode well for his new stint with the Nats?)

Counting down to Northwestern's play-in-to-play-in today at 5 at Ohio State. Biggest regular-season game for the program in its history...

-- D.S.

Weekend In College Hoops, Part 1:Radford, Pitt, Florida, Louisville, More

A little bummed to not see run-and-gun VMI advance to the NCAA Tournament out of the Big South...

You all know how I feel about Pitt-UConn -- it won't impact No. 1 seeding, because even though UConn lost today, if they win the Big East Tournament, they'll be a No. 1 seed. (Pitt may have locked in a No. 1 seed, regardless of finish in the Big East Tournament.)

However, I view everything through the lens of: Hmm, but what does this mean when I'm filling out my NCAA bracket?

In that context, Pitt looks very very strong as a team to win six and go all the way. Obviously, if they struggle next week in NY at the B.E.T., momentum can shift dramatically, but -- wow -- they look good.

Speaking of which: Florida did NOT look good while beating Kentucky. They haven't looked good all season. They haven't looked good in two seasons.

They don't deserve an at-large bid, to be honest, although they'll probably get one now. Here's the reality: I just can't see myself picking them to win their 1st-round game, no matter who the opponent is -- even if the Gators are a 12-seed.

(Is that wrong to not pick your team to win in the NCAA Tournament? To not even win their 1st-round game, aspirationally? Or is it being more honest than a fan who knee-jerks their team through the bracket, just because of their fandom?)

Looking ahead to tonight: Please keep in mind that in the preseason, my pick to win the national title was Louisville. If they beat West Virginia at WVU to win the Big East regular-season title, there will be a TON of folks jumping on the Louisville bandwagon next Sunday night.

(If they lose to WVU? Probably not enough to keep me from remaining bullish on the Cards -- WVU is a strong team, particularly in Morgantown.)

I hope to get into this more tomorrow morning, but I have not been as excited about a Northwestern basketball game (tomorrow's "play-in-to-play-in" the NCAA Tournament vs. Ohio State) since the team advanced to the 2nd-round of the NIT in 1994. There are a lot of reasons that the team faded away from me, but I feel a sincere sense of anticipation and excitement about the ramifications of tomorrow's game, if they can win.

-- D.S.

Saturday 03/07 (Sorta) Quickie

A surprisingly loaded news cycle:

Celtics beat Cavs -- without KG: Was it a "statement game?" I think, if nothing else, it proved that the Cavs aren't going to dethrone the Celtics in the East without playoff home-court adv.

Florida State NCAA sanctions: Bowden to lose 14 wins? Normally, taking away wins in hindsight is pretty ineffective -- yeah, Michigan hoops fans really "forget" those wins.

(Although, and this applies mostly to college football: The difference in either bowl-eligibility or what bowl you go to when you get that win back from FSU could be worth millions of dollars. Who makes up for that? The sanctions cover the team that cheated; what about the teams that were the victim of the cheating? Could an opponent sue FSU over lost bowl revenue?)

But in this story, those lost wins are much bigger, because we're talking about the difference between Bobby Bowden potentially being the winningest coach -- and being way too far behind Joe Paterno to ever catch up, given Bowden's age (and JoePa's endless career prospects).

Naturally, FSU is outraged -- outraged! -- that the NCAA would take away those wins. Nevermind that they are embroiled in what might be the most systemically broken academics-athletics situation since the heyday of the mid-90s, where EVERYONE was doing it.

Instead of worrying about Bobby's win total, maybe FSU should be more concerned that his football program (along with the other sports programs) dragged the university into this mess. Four years' probation? If it wasn't for the fact that I think the NCAA is too scared to sanction FSU more severely -- even if they violate probation -- I'd put my money on another violation.

Should A-Rod have surgery now, rather than later? Short answer: Yes. If it's going to happen one way or another -- and if his productivity will be sketchy while he waits.

CBB: I'm bummed Wichita St didn't upend Creighton in the Mo Valley quarters -- the Shockers deserved the W, coming back from being 22 down. The Jays are the best the MVC has to offer?

T.O.: Deal next week? Um, which team would actually sign him?

NFL Draft: Is Mark Sanchez the Jets' QB of the future? (I can understand NYJ bringing him in; Rex Ryan knows that a decent rookie QB can get a team to the playoffs in the AFC -- why would the Colts want to look at Sanchez? They don't have other pressing needs, given that they're trying to win a Super Bowl NOW?)

Prep Hoops: Oak Hill beats Montrose Christian. (I like that Keith Gallon for Oak Hill -- headed to Oklahoma and a load (but shifty!) at 6-9, 315.) That said: Let's not confuse these teams with high school teams. They are quasi-professional basketball factories that have about as much to do with "high school" as the schools where teenaged Hollywood actors go.

They exist to support the basketball team, and they develop great players -- but it's apples and oranges to try to compare teams like Oak Hill and Montrose with your run-of-the-mill, local high school team. (That came across like I'm some kind of purist crank; I'm fine with their existence -- I simply reject that they represent "high school basketball.")

Tiger will play at Doral next week: The golf industry breathes a big sigh of relief -- if Tiger wasn't participating, no one would bother to pay attention to the event (or the sport). As with the Match Play, as long as Tiger is playing (meaning: he makes the cut into the weekend), folks will keep the event in mind... if only to see how Tiger is doing. Not because they care about Doral or the rest of the sport, of course. But it's better than nothing.

New Media: Very nice job by both Henry Abbott (via Twitter) and Jonah Keri (via WSJ Sports live-blogging) on the Celtics-Cavs game last night. Fun way to supplement watching on TV.

-- D.S.

WSJ Hops On Northwestern Bandwagon

Northwestern's never-been-Dancing surge for an NCAA Tournament bid made the lead -- the lead -- of today's Daily Fix at WSJ.com. (Now, that's the way to re-launch a sports section!)

Friday 03/06 A.M. Quickie:Conf Tourneys, Bubble, A-Rod, T.O., More

C-Week is a great week. Unlike this weekend's ultimately meaningless UConn-Pitt, UNC-Duke or Michigan St-Purdue "big" games (really: all of them will make the tournament as high seeds), conference tournament title games (at least in the mid-major and low-major leagues) truly win or bust. Especially if you won the regular-season title and can't deliver in the league tourney.

Today's SN column leads with a breakdown of the three kinds of games this weekend: Conference tournaments, Bubble battles (Northwestern!) and -- yawn -- the "big" games featuring the teams listed above.

(Even if you buy into the value of being a No. 1 seed -- versus a 2-seed -- in the NCAA Tournament, these games aren't as meaningful as some folks would have you believe -- like Pitt "loses" a No. 1 seed if they lose to UConn? Not if they win the Big East Tournament. Same with UNC. And Michigan St could beat Purdue, but without a Big Ten Tourney title? No 1-seed shot.)

For the teams at the very top -- the ones who consider themselves legit contenders for the national title this season -- do regular-season conference championships matter? Hell, do conference tournament championships matter? Do rivalry games matter? They shouldn't. All that matters is winning the national title. (For some, making the Final Four would be enough. For Duke, maybe just escaping the first weekend.

But for teams like UNC, UConn, Pitt, Oklahoma -- any team that fancies itself worthy of a 1-seed -- it's national title or bust. Regardless of what happens this weekend in the regular-season finales or even next week in the conference tournament. Win 6 straight in late March. Period.

Complete column here.

-- D.S.

Tomasson Post: Follow-Up, Featuring the New Blog InsideTheRockies.com

See this post from the other day about what ex-Rocky sports reporters -- or any laid-off newspaper sports journalists -- can do. Here is what the baseball crew did: They started a blog.

OK: Points for taking the at-bat. (Extra credit for your 5-blog blogroll -- you'll quickly learn to be more generous, both in the roll and your posts.)

But the effort begs this key question: How will you pay your bills? (AdSense? Hmm.)

And how are you going to finance your reporting, or... hmm... do you plan to "blog from your couch?" That's sort of what it looks like. Reporting ain't cheap or easy.

-- D.S.

NBA Non-Competitiveness, Cont'd

"Almost every team in the NBA is playing for something": I appreciate Henry's optimism here.

But regardless of who makes the playoffs, only a handful of teams are actually -- y'know -- sincerely competing for a championship. Maybe, for some, "making the playoffs alone" or "developing young talent" is the competitive goal. Maybe.

But those can also be called euphemisms for "If we try too hard to win, it might cost too much. And we can't have THAT."

I'm sorry: My cynicism about the NBA owners' essential cynicism is kind of insurmountable right now. I would like nothing more than to have a little of Henry's optimism rub off on me.

There are obvious exceptions to this: How can you not like what Sam Presti is trying to build -- from scratch -- in OKC. Even if it's now obvious the Thunder is actually better without Kevin Durant. (Kidding!*)

-- D.S.

*- Sort of.

Northwestern As NCAA Bubble Team

No, really: If you don't believe me, take it from Andy Katz.

No, wait: Check out this post from Lindsey Willhite from the Arlington Heights Daily Herald. It really lays out the resume impressively. (h/t: Lake the Posts)

I said it on Twitter last night: "Never-been-Dancing Northwestern is one win away from being one win away from the NCAA Tournament." Never been closer.

-- D.S.

Thursday 03/05 A.M. Quickie:TO, WBC, CFB Playoff, Northwestern Hoops

Totally loaded SN column this morning. I could have led with the start of the World Baseball Classic (that was my plan). Of course, does anyone even CARE about the WBC at this point?

...or the Mountain West's lame playoff proposal (you know I'm obsessed with THAT topic -- hint: the MWC's plan isn't even really a playoff. Forget the Big Ten and Pac-10 never going for it. You can even forget that they keep the 6 BCS-league "auto-bid" cabal intact...they just want to be included. If there is a scenario where consensus unbeaten No. 1 USC plays consensus unbeaten No. 2 Ohio State in a "quarterfinal" game in the Rose Bowl, IT'S NOT A PLAYOFF SYSTEM.

... or even Northwestern's sudden "if they win the next one then win the next one they should be in the NCAA Tournament" status -- don't give me your RPI bunk... not when the Cats have never -- ever -- been to the NCAA Tournament before. Give 'em a 15 seed, I don't care; this is as close as NU has ever been this late in the season -- or perhaps will ever get.

Instead, I was compelled to lead with the Cowboys cutting T.O. I hope that's the last that we speak of the subject.

Really: Check out the whole thing. Tons to discuss in there. More later.

-- D.S.

Wednesday 03/04 A.M. Quickie:CBB, G'town, Manny, Shaq, A-Rod, More

Back to the SN column this morning, and even though I'm for having every team in the NCAA Tournament and eliminating Championship Week, that doesn't mean I don't appreciate C-Week.

Plus: Georgetown burns us for the last time... Manny to the Dodgers -- done-deal?... Jay Cutler is in Denver THIS season (but not next, you can be sure)... Dwight > Shaq... and More.

-- D.S.

My Memoir Will Be Fakey From The Start

Yikes. I'm not saying my memoir will be full of fakery -- but I will certainly use phrases right up-front like, "Now, I'm not sure I remember this right, but let me embellish thusly..."

-- D.S.

NBA: Tanking As Strategy, League-Wide

Wall Street Journal follows my lead: I believe I wrote a few weeks ago both here and in the SN column about this. Now, please stop insisting that your NBA teams aren't tanking.

And, as I pointed out then: (1) It will get even worse next season, and (2) Plenty of teams will use "2010!" as a diversion to cut costs -- and stay non-competitive -- well beyond 2010.

-- D.S.

Tuesday 03/03 (Rehab) Quickie

Hopefully back to the SN column tomorrow morning. Just stretching my legs today...

LeBron 42, D-Wade 41. (But more impressive was the Cavs' 11-point 4th-quarter comeback, which makes up for last week's tank vs. Houston.)

If the Seahawks weren't going to spend on a premier WR free agent like TJ Houshmandzadeh, how else were they going to spend their money? At least he knows he'll be The Man there.

Kurt Warner to the 49ers? He could be leading his 2nd straight NFC West turnaround job.

Where will Jason Taylor end up? I'll say: Not Miami. Do they really need that drama queen?

Said it last year, will say it again this year: What contender in their right mind couldn't use Barry Bonds? (In the NFL, this would never happen.)

Enjoy the NIT, Notre Dame fans.

Wait: The Nuggets expect their players to listen to George Karl? Why start now?

WBC: If I was a team exec, I wouldn't let my pitcher come close to the WBC roster. The USA infield has got star power, though: Jeter, Rollins, Pedroia, Wright, Youk.

Eh: Still feeling sore. And watch out for the rust raining down on you as you read this. Hopefully, SN column returns tomorrow.

-- D.S.

Chris Tomasson: Future of NBA News?

I feel for Chris Tomasson, Nuggets beat reporter for the Rocky Mountain News -- as I feel for everyone at the shuttered paper. (I work with a ton of ex-Rocky folk, and they are awesome.)

So what should Chris do? The 2008-ish thing to do would be to immediately launch a Nuggets blog and use all of his unique resources and insights (previously funded by the Rocky) to establish himself as the pre-eminent Nuggets blog. He has the reporting skills and the credibility among mainstream NBA reporters to make it work.

But how to pay for it?

Maybe he can cut a deal with SB Nation. Actually, they already have good one: Pickaxe and Roll. Or maybe hook up with Henry Abbott's TrueHoop Network on ESPN.com. They already have a fine Nuggets blog, too: Roundball Mining Company.

And here's the thing about those very good team blogs: The great work they do? It's on the side -- neither blog pays for doing the job full-time, so consider the quality work they do is on top of their "day job."

So here's the problem: Chris can't get paid full-time by a newspaper (or its online-media proxy) to cover the Nuggets. (God bless him if he can find that work, btw.) He could start a blog, but he'd have to (a) find a rent-paying job first, and (b) cut a distribution deal, with the two leading players off the table.

Oh, and on top of that, tirelessly (but not too shamelessly) attempt to market his own work to generate the audience -- the links on higher-traffic blogs, maybe a link-back, maybe a blog-roll, ideally reaching his absolute core audience of Nuggets fans -- enough to make it worth it for a partner to give him more exposure and perhaps the chance at a few bucks in ad revenue -- provided he take all that work to create an audience and assign it to the network.

And he still needs that day-job, which -- as any blogger with a day-job will tell you -- saps time and energy like nothing else. It's what makes most team blogger output -- most blogger output, period -- so amazing. This all, of course, presupposes that he can wrap his mind around blogging -- because it's not like reporting and great info, alone, doesn't win.

I can think of one other option (and I believe Mark Cuban wrote about this a few weeks ago): Cut a deal directly with the team to create and write a blog on behalf of the team.

The team gets the credibility of an established journalist covering the team; the reporter gets access and just enough funding to continue his work. Can he write the expose about the two players violating the NBA substance-abuse policy? No. Can he write about a Jason Hart signing? Or analyze the team's performance on the floor? Or preview the next opponent? Or write feature-y puff pieces about how great LeBron is? All day.

(Then again, it's not like NBA teams are flush with cash to carry full-time bloggers. I will say that the teams doing this best -- the Hawks and Suns and Rockets come to mind, though I don't mean to dis others -- are getting a terrific ROI.)

Here's the reality: NBA fans -- particularly at the local level -- have a tremendous appetite for content. NBA team blogs are arguably the best of any pro-league blogging ecosystem. It is getting more crowded by the week; it is getting harder and harder to "break through" without a legacy of audience or an existing mass-distribution system. And it is certainly harder than ever to make money doing it.

So there are two choices for him: Get very very innovative (and lose the reporter's notebook for a little while and practice up on running some Excel spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations to convince someone to pay you to do what you love)... or get a day job and cover the Nuggets for fun.

You will be welcome either way.

-- D.S.

PS: This was totally inspired by a post by Rob Neyer (itself inspired by a post by FanGraphs' Dave Cameron, himself in the "gold standard" tier among team-specific bloggers.)

Johah Lehrer on March Madness

Having been offline (and mostly out of it) for nearly a week now, I'm only now finally catching up -- particularly with some of my favorite posts of the past week (or more) that I'm late on.

Jonah Lehrer is amazing, as is his new book (his old one, too). I come to find out he's also a sports fan (like all great writer/researchers are -- let's not attribute yet another thing as Gladwellian...).

Here is his neuroscientifically marked take on March Madness.

-- D.S.

Sports Media Development of the Year:ESPN.com Goes Hyper-Local In Chicago

I'm waaay late on this, but I've been a little pre-occupied. Anyway, I think that this is the sports media development of the year.

Not only does it make a ton of sense, but it's infinitely scalable -- local sports (and maybe local crime coverage) were the only thing keeping local papers going. Yoink.

Here's how ESPN should fill out the site strategy:

They already have a deal with By The Horns (a leading Bulls blog) -- cut more deals with leading bloggers of the Bears, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Notre Dame and Northwestern (think True Hoop Network, but by city vertical, rather than by sport vertical). The citizen-journalism/user-generated opportunities are endless (and inexpensive). They already own audio content. They already have a vast trove of recruiting content.

As always, success will come down to ad revenue. But the consumer value proposition -- and execution -- is a layup. Very very smart move.

-- D.S.

Sunday 03/01 (Very) Quickie

The Chiefs get a face for their franchise and it's Matt Cassel: The interesting twist is it sounds like the Pats could have gotten more than a 2nd-rounder if they had traded Cassel to Josh McDaniels Broncos (with Jay Cutler going to the Bucs), but instead dealt with Pioli -- and perhaps the team they ID'ed as being far less of a short-term threat in the conference?

The most interesting thing that happened in college hoops yesterday was... Georgetown beating Villanova in Philadelphia. What a reminder of how good this G'town team can be. They have a rough NCAA Tournament resume right now, but if they got in, they would be a bracket-busting decision to make on your pool sheet.

(By the way, Blake Griffin seems to be back: 20 and 19... one more double-double... OU obvioulsy needs him to be healthy for the Sooners to make any noise in the Tournament.)

MLB: And that's the end of Jim Bowden as the Nats GM, after this signing-bonus scandal investigation overwhelmed him.

Sorry it's light today (and non-existent yesterday). Back to the prone position.

-- D.S.

Friday 02/27 (Very) Quickie

The problem with golf's addiction to Tiger is that in the cases of, say, him losing in the 2nd round of a Match Play Tournament, consumer interest is instantly gone.

Redskins sign Albert Haynesworth for $100M: Nah, no way THAT ends badly. (And that was on top of DeAngelo Hall -- beyond the "WHAT recession?" insta-analysis, how do they afford both of these huge deals under the cap? I'm sure the numbers work out, but it's odd.)

Wow, what happened to the Cavs last night? (Daryl Morey's Moneyball-ish wizardry strikes again? Actually, if anything, it should re-raise expectations that the Rockets could make noise in the playoffs. Well, except for the fact that no one is stopping the Lakers.)

I keep doubting Washington, and they keep winning big Pac-10 games. Obviously, it's all meaningless unless they convert it into a run against the rest of the country in March; how do you evaluate UW's chances of making the Sweet 16? They'll bust some brackets, I'm sure.

(CBB Weekend: Been wavering on the March legitimacy of Marquette all season long? Here's the acid test: At Louisville without Dominic James. It's not if they win -- they won't -- but if they even make it competitive, maybe there's March hope for them yet. I don't think so, though.)

Manny turns down Dodgers...again: At some point, you'd think L.A. would have the self-respect to say, "Go cram it with walnuts, ugly." (Obviously, they know that with Manny, they win the division, but without him, they don't.)

Why is A-Rod still hanging out with his cousin Yuri Sucart? For a guy who is so obsessive about his public image, this is about as tone-deaf of a mistake as he can make. (Sounds like Yuri has been banned from the Yankees clubhouse anyway.)

Tough day for Chicago sports fans: RIP Norm Van Lier AND Johnny "Red" Kerr.

Tom marries Gisele: Didn't that happen, like, months ago? News only if you rank TMZ ahead of KSK. I just can't get enthusiastic about this as "news."

-- D.S.

Thursday 02/26 (Very) Quickie

Anyone still disagree with my theory that the sport of golf relies entirely on Tiger Woods, and that as great as he is, it is fundamentally terrible for the sport?

A-Rod homers in spring debut: Of course he did.

Celtics-Marbury only ends one of two ways: Either Marbury gets a ring, which feels wrong, or Marbury keeps the Celtics from repeating, which would serve Boston right for signing him.

(Meanwhile, the Celtics lost to the Clippers, which should give them an indication of the karmic issues related to signing Marbury.)

I wasn't sold on Marquette (at all), and I'm not sold on UConn. Then again, I thought that Pitt was the clear No. 1 team in the country...right up until they lost at Providence (PC underrated?)

This is what it has come to for Indiana hoops fans: You lost to Northwestern at home. For the first time in 30-some games. (By 22 points.)

How many more offers will the Dodgers give Manny before they simply stop trying? (Or before he just sucks it up and accepts?)

It's the end of the Rex Grossman Era in Chicago. But where will he end up?

Back to recouperating on the couch for me...

-- D.S.

Tuesday 02/24 (Very Very) Quickie

Taking a few days off. Will try to drop a Twitter comment from time to time.

*Beating Oklahoma without Griffin is meaningless, as it relates to projecting March success.

*Pitt as No. 1? Sounds about right.

*Aaron Curry for No. 1 overall NFL pick in 2009? He ran a 4.56 40, fastest of any LB. (Maybe not No. 1, but certainly Top 3 or 5.)

*Devin Harris FTW!

*Charles Barkley in jail for 5 days demands all-access cameras and a reality-TV special.

-- D.S.

Monday 02/23 A.M. Quickie:Combine, Duke, KG, Ovie, Kenseth

I'm pretty sure that by the time the NFL Draft rolls around, Andre Smith will have gotten his act together. But I'm also pretty sure he has lunked himself out of being the No. 1 overall pick.

Who says the NFL Combine has no value? If nothing else, it exposes who is prepared (Sanchez) and who isn't (Smith) and may even break some news (Crabtree foot injury + height adjustment).

And so the Combine led today's SN column, despite the fact that I think this weekend marked the start of the 5-week stretch that college hoops dominates: Final 2 weeks of the regular season (plus small-conference tournaments); major-conference tournaments; and, of course, the Big Dance.

Here's what we know from this weekend: Without Blake Griffin, Oklahoma isn't a top contender... I'm not sure I'm buying Davidson this year... Greivis Vasquez may have had the single-best individual performance of the season on Saturday...

...And I'm actually torn about Duke. (I know.) I cannot possibly believe in them after their recent March chokery, but putting up 101 on Wake -- a great defensive team -- and letting Gerald Henderson be the star (35 pts) and making Jon Scheyer the main PG (you all know how conflicted I feel about him) seems to have turned the team around. Ultimately, they will choke -- maybe this time, they will even make it out of the first weekend of the Tournament.

More you'll find in the column today:
*KG's knee is a big deal.
*Delonte West: Cavs 2nd-most MVP?
*Is Jim Bowden about to be fired?
*Ovechkin-Crosby mutual hate is GREAT for the NHL.

That, and a lot more, in today's column. Check it out here. More later.

-- D.S.

Sunday 02/22 (Very) Quickie

Great day in college hoops yesterday, wasn't it?

Maryland stunned UNC (Greivis Vasquez with the triple-double and one of the great performances in MD history -- made me think of Len Bias vs. UNC back in '84.)

Texas beat Oklahoma -- poised to hit No. 1 -- after Blake Griffin's concussion led to 2 points and 3 rebounds in 11 minutes. Needless to say: Without Griffin, Oklahoma isn't a top team.

So who's No. 1? Has to be Pitt, which KO'ed UConn to start the week and hasn't looked back.

I've been a Marquette doubter all season long, but I've also thought that Georgetown would eventually turn it around -- a win vs. Marquette would have helped a lot. Then, Marquette beats G'town; I still don't buy Marquette, but G'town has basically sealed its NIT fate.

It'll help the "UCLA is overrated" bandwagon that they couldn't beat Wazzu in L.A.

Bracket Buster: What we learned? Davidson isn't ready for prime-time, but Butler shook off whatever was bothering them the past week or so to get the biggest win of B-B Saturday... Even without Patrick Mills, St. Mary's handled Utah St.... They might not be a Tournament sleeper pick after winning their 1st-round game last year, but Siena looks very tough.

(Oh, and Jim Calhoun's post-game press conference is a must-see: Is he overpaid in a time when the state budget is in shambles? Or does he create so much new revenue for the school system (and the state) that the ROI is more than worth the cost? My favorite part was when the journalist in question said, referring to the beat reporters, "If you guys did your jobs..." and the reporters all scoffed. Tough room. I suspect they're all under the thumb of Calhoun anyway.)

NFL Combine: Andre Smith...is out? So much for him being the No. 1 overall pick. I prefer my massive investments in massive players to be accompanied by massive commitment from said player. Give me the OTs from UVA or Baylor at the top.

Oh, and Michael Crabtree not only has a stress fracture in his foot, but he is 2 inches shorter than he was listed at all season -- why do colleges DO that? Don't they realize that the truth comes out eventually? Who do they think they're fooling?

KG out 2-3 weeks with a knee strain? Hmm...keep an eye on that this spring, too.

I didn't post yesterday, but I think with Amare's injury, we've seen the last of the 140-point splurges from Phoenix, unfortunately.

Last night: I know the Warriors ran over the Thunder, but how can you not love the Thunder's Young Three of Durant (36 pts, 6 reb), Jeff Green (27 pts, 15 reb, 6 ast) and Russell Westbrook (31 pts, 11 ast)... and that's with another Lottery pick coming in June. How sick would Blake Griffin look with this group?

So about this trainer from the D.R. who seems to be in the middle of both steroids and A-Rod? He also worked with David Ortiz, who always seems to avoid PED scrutiny, yet seemed to find his power at precisely the apex of the PED problem in MLB.

(One more knock against MLB in all this: If they were so "concerned" about the trainer, going back years, why didn't they do anything about it? Think the NFL wouldn't have done something about it? At least the NFL is smart about keeping their rampant PED use on the down low.)

You won't have Emmitt Smith to kick around as an NFL analyst anymore. ESPN isn't renewing his contract -- two years was more than enough to figure out that he's a good guy, but a lousy, malaprop-laden analyst.

-- D.S.

Friday 02/20 A.M. QuickieTiger, Trades, Combine, Oscars

Tiger's back -- golf is saved. And it's a pleasant change of pace from A-Rod.

Plus: NBA Trade Dud-line, why Kyle Lowry is the new Shane Battier, why the Lions will draft Andre Smith (not Matt Stafford) and more. Complete column here.

-- D.S.

Thursday 02/19 A.M. Quickie:NBA Trades, A-Rod's Cousin, Combine, CBB

After toying around with it throughout the week (and foreshadowing here yesterday), I finally up and lost it in the lead of today's SN column: The NBA is broken.

Why? Because there are about 4 teams actually playing to win (a title) -- the rest are businesses merely trying to manage costs.

I'm not offended by that, per se; I'm offended that they cynically expect fans not to recognize it. Trading Tyson Chandler? Motivated by money. VC? Jamison? All about money.

And, as I said yesterday: "2010" is, for a handful of teams, a worthwhile thing to plan for -- even if it means, by extension, that they're basically giving up on both this season and next season.

But then there's something you can see on the horizon: There will only be a handful of "winners" in 2010 -- LeBron and Wade and Bosh can only play for one team each. And that's if they don't stay with their current teams.

For all of the other teams hording cap space and sacrificing competitiveness, what do you think they'll do with all that money they have saved up. Spend it? I wouldn't bank on that.

I think that the dire economic times plus the dire state of player movement in the NBA -- literally, where we are waiting 2 years for something important to happen -- suggests that the NBA should adopt a model similar to the NFL: No guaranteed contracts.

Oh, the NBA union will never go for that, but it would dramatically change the NBA for the better.

More you'll find in the column today:

*A-Rod's cousin: His life is going to suck this week.
*Guess what: Looks like fans increasingly don't care about PEDs.
*Jeter dares me to ask: Hey, Jetes, you ever take a stimulant?
*The Suns are kind of awesome now.
*I have low expectations for the trade deadline.
*Is this the best class of OTs in NFL Draft history?
*Ken Griffey is a Mariner again. And that's amazing.
*Yikes: What happened to Illinois? Notre Dame? Butler?
*I can't wait for the Fab Five reunion.

Complete column here.

-- D.S.

Wednesday 02/18 A.M. Quickie:A-Rod, NBA Trade Rumors, NFL Combine

It's not that I don't care that A-Rod cheated. It's just that -- in the grand scheme of the era -- I simply can't get outraged about it. And I certainly can't get sanctimonious about it, like so many mainstream sports pundits.

There has got to be some data out there confirming that the outrage is as artificial as A-Rod's inflated stats; I haven't seen it, although there are folks out there (like Neyer) who do a damn good job articulating just how value-less the sanctimonious outrage from some corners can be.

Here's a great quote from another sage sports pundit, King Kaufman:

That's the bottom line in this whole steroid business. It was the culture. That shouldn't absolve anybody of blame or deprive you of the right to get on your high horse if you want to -- nothing should deprive you of that --- but if you're looking to honestly figure out what happened in baseball in the late 1900s and early 2000s, you can't ignore the context. There weren't as many question asked. Not by players, not by management, fans, the union, reporters or anybody else.

It's easy to click and cluck about moral relativism, but if a few years from now our culture decides that jaywalking -- which is against the law now -- is a heinous crime, we're all going to have to look contrite at our own press conferences.

And so today's SN column leads with the A-Rod spectacle from yesterday, but I hope it's the last time that happens -- beyond things that happen on the field. Did he try to self-flagellate? Yes. Did he leave a bunch of reasonable questions unanswered? Yes. That's all to be expected.

Far more interesting, at least to me, is that the Hornets gave up on contending for a title yesterday. And, approaching the NBA Trade Deadline, will the Rockets join them?

There are only a handful of teams actually competing for the NBA title this season -- Lakers, Spurs, Celtics, Cavs, Rockets...maybe the Magic (although losing Nelson hurts). That's it.

As I said in yesterday's column: Everyone else appears to be either preparing for the 2010 free agent class -- which, by inference, means that they are basically punting (even tanking, depending on how you define "tanking") on both this season AND next season -- or by SAYING they are preparing for the 2010 free agent class, but are really just trying to cut costs in the face of a terrible economy. The NBA: Where...cost-cutting happens.

(I loved that Michael Lewis article on Battier this past weekend, although Battier came across as weirdly defensive -- and not in reference to his on-court talents.)

Here is what I would like to see -- REAL "Moneyball" in the NBA. Given, say, a $20 million budget, could a savvy GM put together a playoff team made out of bargain and/or cast-off parts? You can't field a team of 5 Battiers and hope to win -- you could definitely find the underappreciated values at each position, though, and win. But who would be on that team?

Meanwhile, today starts the NFL Draft Combine, which has gotten very big -- it is the NFL, after all. I'm looking forward to finding out who runs the eye-popping 40 times; who is the next Chris Johnson?

Get the complete column here. More later.

-- D.S.

Tuesday 02/17 A.M. Quickie:A-Rod, Pitt, MJD, NBA 2nd Half

The Monday after the NBA All-Star Game is typically one of the slowest days of the sports year.

Sure, there was a very illuminating Pitt-UConn game (revealed: Pitt rules the Big East now), but otherwise, it feels like we're waiting on today's A-Rod press conference -- you hate it, but it's unavoidable. It leads today's SN column, even though I did that with no small measure of self-loathing.

Meanwhile: Am I wrong that Maurice Jones-Drew suddenly becomes the most interesting contender to be the No. 1 overall player drafted in fantasy football?

Complete column here. More later. Still rocking the Carvel ice-cream cake hangover.

-- D.S.

Monday 02/16 (Very Birthday) Quickie

Last night's performance by Shaq in the All-Star Game -- from his pre-game dance routine (with those freaky Jabbawockeez) to his MVP performance (in 11 minutes!) -- was surreal because it felt like his Last Hurrah. That leads today's SN column.

What makes it even stranger for me is that as of today -- at least for another two weeks -- he and I are the same age. (My previous gold standard for life-comparisons was Chris Webber, who was born two weeks apart from me. Yeah: Our freshman years of college were EXACTLY the same.)

As both Shaq and C-Webb might agree, 36 is a cachet-less age -- as I posted on my Facebook update today, "too young to be a phenom, too old for gravitas."

I guess in sports, where athlete careers wind down at (or are over by) age 36, that doesn't apply. ("Phenom," however, still applies for coaching jobs -- see Mike Tomlin or Josh McDaniels or Dan Mullen -- or front-office jobs -- see Theo Epstein or Andrew Friedman.)

Don't quite think it applies to folks who fancy themselves as sports pundits. Where Shaq is near the end (and C-Webb is past the end and into his new life as a TV analyst), I'd qualify myself as firmly in "mid-life." (No, not "mid-life crisis," but thanks.)

Last year, I celebrated the end of my relevance as part of the coveted "male 18-to-34-year-old" demographic. This year, I'm thrilled -- as always! -- to be around to celebrate... but for the first time, I spy that "40" hanging out there in the not-so-distant future.

What's the chance I can start a new "36 is the new 26" trend?

Enjoy your day off, if you're taking one. If you're working -- well, enjoy that, too.

More you'll find in today's column:

*A NASCAR non-fan's take on yesterday's debacle.
*NBA ASW round-up
*BC rules! So does Blake Griffin!
*Will Jeter support A-Rod tomorrow?
*Oil Can Boyd, the Wii Fit at Spring Training and More

-- D.S.

Sunday 02/15 (Very) Quickie: HORSE, Dunks

I love AI's new hairstyle -- not that was averse to the cornrows; the short cut just reminds me of how he looked when he was at Georgetown.

Normally, I'm all for the populist vote, but America got it wrong voting Nate Robinson as Slam Dunk Champ over Dwight Howard.

Yes, for theater, I give Robinson huge credit for going "Lex Luthor" to Howard's "Superman," but I give Howard even more credit for letting Robinson dunk over him.

Robinson's signature dunk -- dunking on Howard -- was impressive only because of Howard, because Howard was willing to be a good sport about it.

Between Dwight's dunk on the 12-foot rim (how easy it looked!) and the off-the-side-of-the-backboard dunk (plus his role as Robinson's prop), Howard was the best. (It didn't help Howard that after last season, he didn't have much room to go up. Speaking of which, the judges' scores are ludicrous. You get an 8 for showing up; what's the point?)

But it certainly builds drama for next year (especially if LeBron participates -- btw, whether it's up to judges or fans, there's no way LeBron doesn't win next year. Sorry, Superman.)

(By the way: Technically, Robinson's dunk where he jumped off of Wilson Chandler was illegal, and he should have been penalized for it.)

As for HORSE, if you saw my Twittering about it, you know how I feel. Here's a recap: It was a bust. The shots were mostly mundane, they missed way too many of them (any idiot fan can MISS trick shots) and felt like it dragged on.

Couple of suggestions for next year:
(1) If you make the first shot and the next two guys make it, too, you get a letter (or you at least have to "prove it.")
(2) Players should have celebrity caddies to help them devise more interesting shots.
(3) At least one fan should be invited to participate -- again, there were moments where I feel like I could have beaten any of them. (And I'm not saying I'm any good.)

But let no one say that Kevin Durant doesn't have a flair for the dramatic -- he came back from last place to win it. But his shot selection at the end was lame: Ooh! You can make 3s! That's not a HORSE shot; that's a shootaround shot.

More:
*Blake Griffin: 40 and 23...absurd numbers in OU's win over Texas Tech. Any doubt he's the best player in the country?
*Arizona was impressive in dismantling UCLA, but pick the Cats in March at your own risk.
*Ken Griffy Jr. to the...Braves?
*Daytona 500 is today: Who's watching?

-- D.S.

Yes: Michael Lewis on NBA Stat Revolution

Some surprises are the best. I had no idea that Michael Lewis was writing the cover story of this week's New York Times Magazine, on the "Moneyball effect" in the NBA -- a new emphasis on serious stats, recognizing inefficiencies and more. But I opened my paper, and there it was. Best treat ever. I don't know whether to rush into it now or savor it for later this long weekend. On Valentine's Day, my man-crush on Lewis knows no bounds.

-- D.S.

Saturday 02/14 (Very Valentine) Quickie

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone.

I love that Kevin Durant had his break-out NBA moment last night in the Rookie-Soph game. (46! 46 points! Even in a no-D all-star-ish event, that's amazing. 17/25 FG, 4/8 3-pt, 8/8 FT and a team-high 7 rebounds)

I don't love that there is another "witness for the prosecution" against Barry Bonds. (Where was she before? Was this meant to be a surprise? Although it's pretty damning: The witness said she actually saw Bonds injecting himself. I think Bonds' defense could beat that back -- beyond the "how do we know you're not lying," does she know what was in the syringe?)

I love that Charlie Weis will be Notre Dame's offensive coordinator -- one more area where he can stumble (Oh, save it, ND fans: I'm just playing. I'm sure he'll do GREAT.)

I don't love the Shawn Marion-Jermaine O'Neal trade. (Well, I love trades involving big names, but doesn't this repudiate both teams acquiring the guys in the first place?)

I love that the Falcons are trying to trade Mike Vick -- WHILE HE'S STILL IN PRISON.

I don't love that I have absolutely no idea what to make of the Big East -- just when Villanova looks like it is hitting its stride, they lose to West Virginia (themselves a Tourney-worthy team -- Da'Sean Butler...43? Wow, that was Durant-ish.).

I love that Lane Kiffin has YET ANOTHER recruiting violation. (Sure, it's another ticky-tack one, but at some point they aggregate into a chronic condition.)

I love that the U. unveiled "Alex Rodriguez Park" yesterday.

Hmm: You think that Michael Jordan will make the Basketball Hall of Fame? (He and Stockton and the Admiral are locks, of course. I think Mullin should be considered a lock, too -- and he won't make it, but I'd vote for Bernard King -- plus, Dennis Johnson and Cynthia Cooper, too. And, for coaches, I think Don Nelson and Jerry Sloan should both be in.)

What I'm watching today/tonight:
*NBA All-Star HORSE (DVR)
*Florida-Georgia
*NBA Dunk Contest

-- D.S.

UPDATE: Wow, Arizona sure looked good today while dismantling UCLA. You all know I'm a sucker for UCLA the past few seasons, and I'm no fan of Arizona -- it's hard to know whether to file away this win for my bracket picks in March... or work harder to disregard it, knowing how chokey Zona is in March. That team will be a bracket-buster, one way or the other.

Friday 02/13 A.M. Quickie:NBA All-Star, ND, NU, Long Weekend

I do enjoy the NBA All-Star Weekend -- although I will say that it is best-viewed through DVR, not live. Mostly, I think it is the best-executed All-Star event of any league... by far. (My tribute to the NBA ASW execution leads today's SN column.)

Normally, I'd be most excited about the Dunk Contest, but I join the rest of the folks who are eagerly anticipating the HORSE contest (GEICO, HORSE, whatever).

I also just downloaded the All-Star live-video iPhone app; I'm curious to see how it works out if I try to watch the events from my phone and not on the couch.

If you're not planning on checking in this weekend, have a nice weekend -- particularly if it's a long one for you. If you are, I'll be updating all three days this weekend.

If not for the All-Star stuff, then certainly for college hoops -- I think Pitt-UConn is as big of a game as there will be in the Big East this season, maybe in all of college hoops.

And here's why: This is as tough of a game as UConn will have without Dyson; if UConn wins or even plays well, they will be in good shape in March -- if they get beat, watch out.

(I also think that Pitt is a legitimately great team -- probably the best team in the country this season. A win at UConn would affirm that -- no top contender would have a better road win.)

Speaking of the Big East, I thought Notre Dame was reeling and Louisville a tough draw...right up until ND upended UL. Again: No one knows anything.

And for the second time this week, I watched one of my teams get beat in the final seconds. Florida's loss at Kentucky was frustrating, but OK; Northwestern's loss at home to Illinois was just brutal. NU out-played UI for 35 minutes, then collapsed at the end. Worse still, a win would have put NU back on the Bubble -- now, they are off for sure. One more year, no NCAAs.

More:
*I'm not a NASCAR fan, but I'm intrigued by Joey Logano.
*Why wouldn't Ken Griffey return to Seattle?
*Pitchers and catchers, folks (and I just got my copy of Baseball Prospectus 2009, which will be a fun way to spend this long weekend)

Complete column here. More later.

-- D.S.

Thursday 02/12 A.M. Quickie:Twitter, Favre, UNC, Pitchers, Catchers

It's very possible that today I became the first person to publish a full-blown sports column made up entirely of Twitter tweets. (It's certainly got to be the first time that has happened within mainstream sports media.)

(And it's not like I simply copied over Twitter posts -- but I made sure to run every item through Twitter to ensure it conformed to the 140-characters-or-less format.)

What a fortuitous moment to try the experiment: Did I really want to spend more than 140 characters talking about Brett Favre's latest retirement? No. Did UNC's dominant win over Duke demand more than two lines? No.

In fact, it felt like classic Daily Quickie -- especially the old "Odds and Ends" area that really was a super-quick-hit take on a random sports topic.

Anyway, check it out here, if only for the novelty.

Things I'm loving today: Dunn, Dayton, Pitchers and Catchers

Things I'm not loving today: Favre, Wake, Duke, Alomar situation.

Appropriately for today's column theme, I'll end it there. More later.

-- D.S.

Lil Wayne Has a Better Career Record On Around The Horn Than Dan Shanoff

Wayne: 1-0
Shanoff: 0-4

-- D.S.

Wednesday 02/11 A.M. Quickie:UNC-Duke, A-Rod, NBA All-Stars, Dog Show

Let me clarify the lead of today's SN column: I am not saying that UNC-Duke isn't a great rivalry. It is, for sure, the best rivalry in college basketball.

It is also, however, entirely overrated. Because there is no downside for the game's loser. Ever. Not in the regular season. Not in the ACC Tournament. (If they met in the NCAA Tournament? Absolutely. Doesn't happen.) Both teams stroll into the NCAA Tournament field. (The ACC championship, either regular-season or tournament? Honestly: Who remembers those?)

Michigan-Ohio State. Lakers-Celtics. Yankees-Red Sox. These "best" rivalries are enhanced by actual, live-or-die stakes between the two teams: A conference (or national) championship. NBA title. AL pennant.

Again: UNC-Duke is great pageantry and great fun. As far as regular-season rivalries go in sports, it's entirely entertaining. If they ever met in the Final Four, it would be epic. But they don't do that. And so it's hard to call Duke-UNC the "best" rivalry when it's all sizzle, no steak.

Or no stakes.

UPDATE: I'm nothing if not flexible in the face of an interesting counter-argument. The idea that the Duke-UNC winner *could* get the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, triggering a couple of rounds of games that don't take the team too far from home? That counts. But it's not like UNC or Duke -- if they lost this game (as opposed to the other reg-season game as opposed to their inevitable meeting in the ACC Tourney) -- would have that much of a more difficult time in the NCAA Tournament. I think both coaches might even be offended at the idea that home-region advantage is so big that if they didn't get home-region advantage, their team would have a tough time with it. (Based on the last few years, both will choke anyway.)

More you'll find in the column:

*Derek Jeter isn't acting like a captain.
*The BBWAA needs...Jose Canseco.
*Damn you, Jodie Meeks.
*Marquette exposed, as expected.
*JR Smith? What happened to Joe Alexander?
*Mo Williams, All-Star: Stop griping now, Cavs fans.
*UFL: Letting fans vote on Vick is genius.

And, finally...

*Best. Westminster Dog Show Winner. Ever.

Complete column here. More later.

Oh, and I guess Brett Favre is retiring. Whatever.

-- D.S.

Baseball Prospectus 2009 Projections

Red Sox: 98 wins.
Yankees: AL Wild Card.
Rays: NOT in playoffs with 92 wins.
Indians win the AL Central; A's win AL West.
Mets, Cubs, D'backs and a WC tie in NL.
See the sage analysis here.

(Remember: It was in these projections a year ago that Nate Silver correctly predicted the rise o the Rays and kicked off what would become the Year of Silver, across sports and politics.)

-- D.S.

Tuesday 02/10 A.M. Quickie:A-Rod, Apologies, Mizzou, LT, Tiger, More

The headline of today's SN column -- "A-Rod's 'Sorry' Enough" -- was meant to have a double-meaning: (1) He sounded appropriately pathetic, and (2) "I'm sorry" is all fans need to hear.

Fans are infinitely more forgiving than the media, more ready to move on than the media -- which nurses its grudges for maximum sensationalism.

In a decade of Bonds, Clemens, Palmeiro and -- especially -- McGwire, all fans really want to hear is that you're sorry and that you're nominally contrite. There is too much else going on not to move forward from that.

A-Rod provided that apology -- and (for a guy who is pretty much a robot) even some semblance of contrition. Given who he is, it was certainly as contrite as Andy Pettitte -- who, remember, was let off from his cheating by fans and media alike with virtually no backlash after his apology.

(It's important to remember that in the absence of being busted, none of these players would have copped to anything. I'm still waiting for the first player to come forward on his own to admit to cheating. Doubt it will happen.)

I'm pretty sure fans are going to move on. Sure, they'll jeer A-Rod, because it'll seem like fun. But it's not like folks want to see him run out of baseball. And it's not like anyone would dispute that he remains one of the best -- if not THE best -- player in the game.

So A-Rod followed the critical Step 1 of sports crisis management: Apologize.

What could he do next? For starters: Take some of his massive wealth and establish some kind of large fund to educate kids on the dangers of taking steroids. Whether it is effective or not isn't the point; it's the symbolism. He could also volunteer to take monthly steroid tests, making the results publicly known -- even learning the results when the public learns them. That kind of transparency and good-faith effort would go a long way toward helping his image.

I don't expect him to do either, even though they are simple and would be quite effective. A-Rod may very well recognize that "I'm sorry" is enough. It is.

More from today's column:

*Mizzou hoops is for real.
*Big Ben's ribs: Who cares?
*Big Al's knee: A shame.
*Tiger Woods: Westminster champ?
*The First Fan on A-Rod

Lots to cover. Check out the entire thing here. More later.

-- D.S.

A-Rod: "I'm Very Sorry"

A-Rod was never very popular to begin with, but I think he'll find that fans (if not the media) are a lot more forgiving of a player who (a) 'fesses up and (b) apologizes. Smart move.

(Longtime readers know that crisis management is one of my favorite topics. HOW someone is reacting to crisis, not simply what that crisis may be. A-Rod will pull this off. Now, he only needs the contrition tour: He can start with Gammons, but he's gotta hit Costas on MLB Network, PTI, Baseball Prospectus, the whole gamut.)

For those who like punitive justice, might I suggest subtracting (or asterisking) 156 HR from his career total, covering the years from 2001-2003 that he was in Texas and admitted to using PEDs?

-- D.S.

United Football League Launches

I have posted about pro-football start-ups -- and the United Football League -- a lot, and off of today's UFL launch its success all comes down to one thing:

Are they willing to go where the NFL won't -- or can't?

That means one thing: Actively pursue draft-ineligible rising college freshmen, sophomores and juniors and play them in your league. (Hell, they can start with Bryce Brown.) Read more here.

-- D.S.

Jon Gruden Joins Tim Tebow Bandwagon

When I say that Tim Tebow will be a good NFL QB -- maybe even revolutionary, at least via the Wildcat -- I'm a schmoe. Jon Gruden says it and it's credible. Sigh.

Lewis Writing a Sequel to Moneyball?

As a way to kill time on the subway this morning, I was trying to rank America's Top 10 sportswriters. I won't bore you with my list -- or, at least, today's iteration -- but I will say that Michael Lewis was at the top. (I actually read a recent interview between Darren Rovell and Malcolm Gladwell, where Gladwell calls Lewis' "Blind Side" the best book he has read in years. High praise.)

This profile in The Big Money also ranks him at the top of the country's financial journalists, which seems almost unfair.

But a most interesting detail was found at the end of the column, almost as a throwaway -- Lewis is writing a sequel to "Moneyball?" Wow. (If folks already knew that, sorry to repeat; I didn't.) "Moneyball" was, arguably, the greatest (and perhaps most influential) sports book ever written. How the hell do you write a sequel to THAT? If anyone is equipped to do it, Lewis is.

-- D.S.

Great Take on A-Rod from King Kaufman

In typical fashion, King Kaufman presents a clear-eyed and sane take on an issue that seems to drive others insane. Worth your time to read.

Update: Joe Sheehan joins the "Best A-Rod takes" list with this sensible analysis.

Monday 02/09 A.M. Quickie:A-Rod, Lakers, Pro Bowl, Dog Show, More

Wouldn't you rather throw around "Best In Show" quotes all day, rather than talk about A-Rod?

And, yet, this is where we are -- A-Rod (yes: "A-Roid") overload. Leads today's SN column, as you'd expect.

After thinking it over all weekend, I simply can't get outraged. Partially, that's because I'm not surprised he was cheating. Partially, because the whole thing happened in 2003, which is eras ago in baseball terms. Partially, because there's more than enough faux-outrage to go around.

I think most fans are past it all: This notion that there was "cheating" in baseball. Or is. Whatever. With the mainstream media cheerleading all the way, we were happy to turn a willfully blind eye to cheating by McGwire and Sosa during the "Season That Saved Baseball." (Ha.) We were happy to turn a willfully blind eye to Bonds. Clemens, too. Now, A-Rod.

It won't help A-Rod that he isn't particularly well-liked as a player by fans. He is well-respected, but not well-liked. The jeers will be intense, particularly for a guy who seems to hear them quite clearly.

He can be defiant and probably do fine -- it really is hard to get too worked-up over something that happened in 2003. He can 'fess up and do better -- when will athletes learn that contrition helps (see Pettitte) even if it doesn't necessarily save everything (Marion Jones). I suspect he will pursue the former, and 200 home runs from now, only stodgy sportswriters will care.

It continues to amaze me: Everyone -- everyone -- knows that PED cheating is rampant in the NFL; check that, because that makes it sound like it's still outside the norm, rather than THE norm. But no one cares. Like: At all. But there's all this outrage over A-Rod.

I'm no apologist -- I'm just very quick to stipulate that he cheated (I'll presume they all cheated, probably with the exception of Manny, who seems to dumb to cheat) and move on, rather than linger on the contrived outrage.

But given that PEDs weren't technically against the rules back in 2003 -- something you should blame on MLB and the union, rather than the players -- shouldn't we cast a more critical eye on players who took greenies and other amphetamines?

Amphetamines were also a performance enhancer -- enough to be banned by MLB. And they were used and abused by a far wider proportion of MLB players than your traditional steroids. And this is going back, like, decades. If we had test results for amphetamines from 1955-2005, how many players would test positive? (How many wouldn't?)

I'm not saying that's analogous -- it's just something I think about when evaluating how much outrage to assign to this story.

I'm hoping that's all I will want or need to say about it -- as you can see, my thoughts are disjointed at best -- but I suspect this will linger for months, if not longer. I'll pass.

I'd even rather talk about the Pro Bowl... and that's saying something.

Or the Lakers being the team that finally beats the Cavs in Cleveland.

Or the weekend's reveal of the college hoops teams not ready for March yet.

Or, yes, "Best In Show" -- Westminster is today and tomorrow, and nothing says "dog show" like talking about your favorite parts of "Best In Show," which is arguably the funniest sports movie of all time. (Dog shows aren't sports? Then why is coverage found in your sports section?)

Comment about A-Rod if you want to, of course, but I'd rather have your favorite quotes/moments from "Best In Show" -- I'll try to publish comments frequently throughout the day.

In that spirit, I'll leave you with a link to today's SN column and this:

"I'd hate to go on a date with Judge Edie Franklin and have her judge me. That'd be no fun."

-- D.S.

Sunday 02/08 (Very A-Rod) Quickie: A-Roid

Aaand.... welcome to the story that will dominate the next month or two or ever:

A-Rod is a cheater. Or was a cheater. Or whatever. Positive PED test a half-decade ago...yada yada yada...cheater.

I find myself unmoved by this news, for a couple of reasons: Who DIDN'T think he was using PEDs... The entire ERA is assumed to be tarnished by cheaters (why didn't we hear about the other 103 players to test positive?)... The 2003 test seems like forever ago... Oh, god: the media coverage of this is going to make you even more sick than the coverage of Barry Bonds.

So the greatest hitter ever (Bonds) cheated. The 2nd-greatest hitter ever (A-Rod) cheated. "Meh" has become a cliche, but that sums up how I feel about this story. And, yet, it will be unavoidable.

More:

*Gonzaga ain't ready for prime-time: I didn't think Memphis was all that good, and the Tigers just beat down on the Zags.

*Is Duke just not that good or is Miami better than we thought?

*(Clemson is NOT as good as anyone thought, as usual.)

*Just when you thought Xavier was a cool pick to get to the Final Four...

*Given the way Michigan plays against top teams, should their decent-but-not-great record keep them out of the NCAAs?

*Texas loses again (3rd straight L): This qualifies as a tailspin.

*For those of you tracking Northwestern's bubble NCAA Tournaments status, it took a huge hit with a loss at Big Ten bottom-feeding Iowa. Typical NU hoops...

*It seems so strange that Georgetown isn't going to be in the NCAA Tournament. This seemed like such a talented, well-coached team. Biggest disappointment of the year, nationally.

*Adam Morrison traded to the Lakers: He can't play D (which the Lakers do very well), but I see him having a career renaissance on the NBA's top contender.

*Best NBA performance in a win: Dirk (44 pts); best performance in a loss (Ramon Sessions: 44); best fantasy performance: Al Jefferson (36 pts, 22 reb... and he's NOT an All-Star?)

-- D.S.