Timing is everything

Just before NFL Commish Roger Goodell announced the 32nd and final first round pick of the 2007 NFL draft, he said that his league had just set a record for the longest first round ever (six hour and eight minutes). A few fans cheered until Goodell reeled them in, saying: that's not a record we're looking to break.

I accomplished a lot during those six hours back in April. I remember because a bunch of us went to the ATVN newsroom to watch the first round. Then we looked at the clock and realized the NFL needed to shorten the time limits for picks, or we'd be forced to get a life.

Don't get me wrong, I love football. I'm on record saying that not only is football king, but everything else from the NHL to the NBA to NASCAR to MLB is merely a court jester. I could watch football 24/7. Sadly, that's the amount of time now required to broadcast the entire draft. I - along with really anyone else in this county who isn't busy watching Queer Eye - can be found every sunday glued to a television to track my Cowboys. The problem with the draft: it's not a game. It's exciting to me for 15 minutes out of the entire first round when Dallas is on the clock.

That's the biggest problem with the NFL draft. A fan can't just sit there for six hours and eight minutes waiting for the few moments where their team actually doesn't anything that will affect the upcoming season (sorry, Eagles fans, yall didn't even do that until Day 2).

So when it was reported that the second-year commissioner is considering shortening the time-limits for first- and second-round picks (each team now gets 15 minutes), I would have jumped for joy -- but I was still sleepy from staying up til all hours of the night to watch the first day of the draft.

Certain things about the draft just boggle my mind:

• Why does the team with the first overall pick always seem to use all 15 minutes? Didn't they have 15 weeks to make their decision before the clock began ticking?
• What's the point of Mel Kiper's mock draft board? He gets maybe 5-8 picks exactly right each year. That's great that he can tell me about the newest members of my favorite team, but I don't want to hear who he thinks we're going to take anymore. He hasn't predicted a correct Cowboys first round pick since Troy Aikman.
• Why do Eagles fans show up to the draft each year? They're only going to lower the self esteem of whoever Philly picks by booing the crap out of him. Examples: Donovan McNabb and Kevin Kolb.

So while there may never be a solution to the second and third problems with the NFL draft, Goodell is on the right track to fixing this mockery of tic-tockery. 10 minutes for a first round pick is plenty. I know that cuts down a third of the time a team has to try to make a deal, but the fact is most teams know who they want, and there aren't all that many trades that take place. So teams can select their player and move on.

And perhaps I can delay getting on of those life-thingys and continue watching the draft. I know it's not a football game, but the sport is a year-round party. Next year, let's just make sure not to celebrate too late into the night. After all, we do have to get up and do it all again the next day.

Mr. Cheap Shot

Big Shot Bob became Cheap Shot Bob with that shoulder into Nash, but the thing I don't get is the NBA's logic in the suspension. I do agree that Stoudemire and Diaw should be suspended for leaving the bench area. Hey, the rule is the rule. You know it. Don't break it. Tough.

(By the way, as a lying SOB myself, I loved the Suns quick explanation that Stoudemire was "going to check in." Great quick thinking. Obviously he wasn't, but in the pantheon of good BS excuses, this deserves an honorable mention.)

But the NBA decided that there was an altercation, and because Stoudemire and Diaw went toward the altercation, they are suspended. Here's the problem though:

WHAT ALTERCATION??

Horry knocked over Nash.

Nash got up angry, and Horry and Raja Bell has a stand off. But if that was an altercation, shouldn't Bell be punished for being in the altercation?? And if Bell is NOT going to be punished for being in an altercation, I don't know if Horry was having a one-man altercation (like masterbation, but when you're angry at yourself). So then that begs the question, WHAT altercation were Stoudemire and Diaw going to join in?

Nothing happened after the hard foul. There was no fight to get in. It never happened.

And THEN you must look at the fact that the NBA is punishing the lesser offense of leaving the bench instead of the actual confrontation between Bell and Horry.

Horry deserves to be suspended one game for the cheap shot. Two? Eh, I suppose, but only because he's not a KEY cog in this series. Sure, those clutch shots will be missed, but like you said, 3.9 ppg aren't much (not in this series).

If the Association wanted to get this right, they should have suspended Bell (NOT Stoudemire or Diaw) for him getting Horry's face. They should fine the bench-leavers and give them a technical foul. Then if they do it again, suspend 'em.

Hard fouls are part of basketball. Cheap shots - sadly - are as well. Horry doesn't deserve to be a part of the rest of this series. But according to the rules and a spineless league, neither do Stoudemire and Diaw.

David Stern needs to have the courage to bend his own rules and adapt to some gray area. Otherwise, he's just Bud Selig.

What a scary thought that would be.

Things get Nashty

Flagrant 2? A Flagrant 2?

Robert Horry got ejected at the end of Monday's Game 4 between the Suns and Spurs for a hard foul on Steve Nash. He ran him over and leaned his shoulder into him, but I don't know about flagrant 2. Flagrant 1, sure.

Take a look at this foul:


As my friend Andrew pointed out, Nash does deserve an Oscar for the performance he gave after being hit. There's no doubt it was a foul. It was a hard fould. But there's nothing wrong with a good physical game of basketball.

These two teams are not exactly best friends - the Suns continue to accuse the Spurs of dirty play. But the Suns are a team still trying to break through. The Spurs are a team of veterans. Veteran champions, that is. And so no one this series is heating up the way it is. The Suns want what the Spurs have: a ring.

So Amare Stoudemire calls Bruce Bowen a dirty player. The Spurs get angry and Nash gets a hard foul courtesy of Big Shot Bob.

Game 5 is going to be an aggressive contest, to say the least. When Horry gets in the game, look for Marion or Stoudemire or Diaw to throw a few arrant elbows under the basket. And look for more flagrant and technical fouls called.

Throw the rock, Mitch!

Prediction:
When the 2007 NFL season gets underway, be on the lookout for the following Peyton Manning highlight call. When he's under pressure in a collapsing pocket, I can already picture sportscasters screaming, "Throw the rock, Mitch!" This is definitely one of the funnier sketches I've seen on SNL in a while, just because of the absurdity and because it's Peyton Manning.

Waiting to wake up

Every Internet surfer has their websites. You know, the ones they check every single time they open their browsers. Email accounts. Facebook. The No Joshin' blog. You've got your favorites.

One of my go-to websites is dallasmavericks.com, the official homepage of the Dallas Mavericks. And each time the site loads, an awkward inition thought enters my mind. I feel frustration and anger toward the webmaster. How dare he not update the site to include the playoffs! Why isn't he telling us about how great our Mavericks are doing?! The main story is nothing more than Dirk Nowitzki making the All-NBA 1st Team. What about postseason basketball?!

Then I flash back to what I still am unable to block out of my mind. A sea of yellow t-shirts comprising the largest basketball crowd ever in California cheering on their team without the assistance of the jumbotron to lead them. I flash back to Baron Davis jumping head-first into Nowitzki, beginning to fall and throwing a prayer of a 3-pointer toward the basket. Swish.

I flash back to hearing ESPN spending every moment discussing the collapse of the Mighty Mavericks to their former coach and a bunch of players no one else wanted. I flash back to standing in my friend Jeff's apartment watching the game, my hands on my head, thinking that I was powerless to help the Mavs. I couldn't cheer them on in person. I wouldn't be seeing any playoff basketball this year.

I turned on TNT last night, and there were the Golden State Warriors in front of that monster crowd playing the Utah Jazz for a chance to go to the conference finals. The playoffs continue, even without the Mavericks. Dallas was eliminated and still the postseason exists. It doesn't seem right. It doesn't seem possible.

The dream season ended in nightmare fashion for Dallas. And every time I log onto the team website I must relive the nightmare. The lack of Mavericks playoff updates is all the reminder I need. I curse the webmaster, wishing he could put some good news up for me, for all Mavs fans everywhere.

But he can't. He can't tell us about playoff games that aren't happening. He can't keep us posted on the results of a team no longer playing.

But still I check my websites every day. Email. Facebook. Dallasmavericks.com. Every day the others offer me something new. And every day I hope that after reading new email and adding new friends, I can get a glimpse of Dirk's dominance. But there's nothing new to say. Only the pain of the Mavs meltdown remains.

I can't wake up from this nightmare. I guess I should just block the Mavs website until next October. Perhaps that's the only way to protect myself from painful flashbacks.

Unsportsmanlike swan song

The emotions in Oracle Arena in Oakland are fueled by the racous fans that pack the place. It's loud as all heck in there. But the when the Warriors began to fade toward the end of Game 4, those emotions let loose on the court when Jason Richardson committed a hard foul on Memet Okur with 37 seconds left in the game.

As the announcers said on TV, the foul was unnecessary but so was Okur's drive to the basket. The Jazz clearly had the game wrapped up. He didn't need to throw down a big-time dunk. Especially on the road.

So when Richardson fouled him, part of me said, "Good. Protect the home court."

That's when I realized that may not be the healthiest reaction. Richardson received a Flagrant 2 and went straight to the locker room. Okur went to the free throw line. He's lucky he didn't go to the hospital.

Okur's head could have easily snapped back and hit the floor, knocking him out or giving him a concussion. You never want to see a player get hurt; not at this point in the season. Richardson could have committed a foul on him without sending him to the ground. Okur could have stopped and thrown up a meaningless jumper. So who's in the wrong?

Both of 'em.

In sports there are so many unwritten rules that are under the code of not embarrassing your opponent. You don't go for the punt block when you're up by 28 in the fourth quarter. And you don't drive hard to the basket when you've got the win already locked up, even if the shot clock is ticking down.

Sometimes those rules need to be broken, but this was NOT one of those times. There's no bad blood between these two teams. Ideally there won't be after that hard foul. I'm sure when Game 5 tips off in Salt Lake City, the crowd will be all over Richardson.

For Golden State, it's a sour note on which they'll likely end their postseason. They are now down 1-3 to the Jazz with Game 5 in Utah, where the Jazz are undefeated this postseason. The Warriors were a horrible road team this season. They have been the story of these 2007 playoffs, but now the story ends in a very unsportsmanlike fashion.

Fans gone wild

Just now while watching the Yankees/Rangers game, in the top of the 9th inning, apparently a nutty fan decided to run around on the field. ESPN is broadcasting tonight's game, I really liked how they just handled this situation.

Simply put, they ignored him.

They showed close ups of Yankees and Rangers players and the dugouts. They did as much as they could to deliberately avoid showing the fan who was apparently running around on the field.

Good for ESPN.

By not putting him on TV, he don't glorify this disruptive behavior that not only detracts from the game, but could also endanger players on the field. No one watching at home got to see anyone not in uniform on the field. Sure fans at Yankee Stadium cheered as their fellow New Yorker ran wild in the House that Ruth built, but other than that there was no incident.

And just now, another Yankee fan jumped down from the crowd and onto the field. Once again, ESPN didn't show this guy who was apparently put in handcuffs.

I really appreciate ESPN going out of their way to not encourage this sort of behavior and completely ignoring these idiot fans.

Rocket's Thrust Fund

The following was written in reponse to a blog I read that called Roger Clemens dumb for signing with the Yankees because he won't win a championship with them. To quote that post: "...how dumb is this guy, really? You wanted to play for a World Series contender Roger? The Yankees are going nowhere fast. If he really wanted to win he would have gone to Boston."

If you think Roger Clemens signed with the New York Yankees to win a World Series, you need to wake up and see what's really going on here.

I can't think of any better way to put this, so I'll say what my 17-year-old sister told me when I asked her if she saw Spiderman 3 already.

DUH!

If you truly think Clemens went to the Yankees for a chance to win a third ring, you're dumber than Andy Reid in a championship two-minute drill. He signed with them for the money. He signed with them because the richest franchise is baseball can afford to pay him more than anyone else.

The Yankees are desperate enough to have to pay so much for him and agree to his prima donna no-travel terms.

The only reason he said during the press conference that he signed with them to win another World Series is because - DUH! - he has to say that!!! He can't come out any say, "Hello, did you not hear how much this deal is worth? That's what I'm wearing pin-stripes, you morons!" It's understood he's there for the cash. If he can deliver a division title or more, hey, even better for Yankees' fans.

But don't think for a second Roger Clemens is really that stupid. If anything, his media savvy shows that he is completely the opposite.

Kolb to Nabb Donovan's job?

After reading a story about Donovan McNabb's reaction to the Eagles drafting a quarterback with their first pick on espn.com, I got to thinking about why this may not have been a horrible move by the organization. Oh sure, if they want to win now, it' s not great. But then again, can they win now?

Why did the Philadelphia Eagles take Kevin Kolb with their first pick in this April's NFL draft? It does seem strange considering they do have Donovan McNabb - a Pro Bowl caliber QB who when healthy is leading his team deep into the post season.

Oh wait, I just gave away the answer.

"when healthy"

The sad reality in Philly is that McNabb hasn't been able to finish three of his last five regular seasons. He keeps getting hurt. And if he's not getting hurt, he's getting tired (*cough* Super Bowl XXXIX *cough*). Now the face of the franchise is 30, and the franchise faces the grim reality that he won't be around forever.

Sure John Elway ended his career at 38 with back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Let me clarify something really quickly: Elway, McNabb is not.

So McNabb's starting job will be secure this season, especially after backup Jeff Garcia signed with Tampa Bay, look for the new kid on the block to become the new QB in the huddle in the injury-prone McNabb continues his ailing ways.

I still think it was stupid for the Eagles to let Garcia move on. What NFL team wouldn't want a proven starter who just came off the bench to lead a struggling team to a division title and a playoff win? Apparently the team that plays in the Linc. I guess they think McNabb's health isn't an issue.

Or maybe, just maybe, they know because his health is an issue, it's time to start looking down the road to find the guy to take the torch from Donovan.

On a homer-note, as a Dallas Cowboys fan, I loved seeing Philly trade picks with Dallas and then use that 3rd pick in the second round on a QB. Dallas shouldn't have anything to fear from Kolb for at least a couple of seasons.

See the similar reactions that McNabb and Kolb got when the Eagles drafted the two QBs.

Playoff layoff

Maybe you can't always see it on the court. You certainly can't see it in his postseason results. But it was obvious in his postgame press conference: Tracy McGrady has a lot of heart. He cares. Losing phycially pains him.

Once again, T-Mac failed to make it out of the first round, as his Houston Rockets lost the final two games of their seven game series with the Utah Jazz. As far as the series goes, I'll just say the Jazz played great, but I don't know if I can say "they wanted it more." Not only is that very cliche, but could anyone really "want it more" than McGrady?

At his postgame presser, he kept repeating the words, "I tried. I tried." Finally, after a long pause, he mumbled under his breath something to the effect of "I can't do this," and he got up and left. He couldn't face the fact that he once again will not be moving on to the second round.

And that's what makes me mad about the Mavericks. Where is that emotion? Where is that frustration? Where is that pain of being left out of the second round and becoming the first 1-seed to lose to an 8-seed in a seven-game series?

That may be the reason Dallas is in fact at home while the Golden State Warriors will face the Jazz in round two.

Now I don't mean to say the Mavericks and their players don't care. They do. And I think their long offseason and harsh scrutiny from every basketball expert and blogger will be punishment enough.

Here's what espn.com quoted Dirk Nowitzki about this offseason...

"I think I did a decent job in the regular season of taking over when I had to," he said. "For whatever reason, this playoff series I couldn't do it. I couldn't put my stamp on it the way I wanted to. It was definitely very disappointing. I still think I have pretty good leadership skills. I just didn't show it this playoff series."

Although Nowitzki said "you go down as a team," he knows it's not that simple, not for a perennial All-Star who is the face of the franchise. Thing is, his own expectations are just as high, which is why the six-game ousting by Golden State, and how little he did to stop it, will eat at him all summer -- just like Dallas' collapse against Miami in the finals bothered him all last summer.

"That's the kind of person I am. I always take things very, very hard on myself," he said. "I don't need media people to tell me that I did bad. I know I didn't play my best in the playoffs. ...

"I understand the business by now. If you play well and you win, you're the greatest. And if you lose, you're the worst player in the league. It's obviously not the position I want to be in, but it's nothing I can change now. I believe that everything happens for a reason. Hopefully I can learn from this experience."

Two straight offseasons left to wonder "how did we lose that series?"

Last year, they dropped four straight to the Heat in the finals. This year, they became the laughing stock of the league after winning 67 games in the regular season before their playoff meltdown.

So while a dynamic player like Tracy McGrady thinks about how he can't get out of the first round, Dirk and company must sadly think about the same thing. They must also consider the fact that they faced the wrong team at the wrong time. No one in these playoffs is hotter than Golden State. Check their regular season 3-point shooting percentages versus the playoffs. It's obvious. And good for Golden State. They got hot when they needed to.

But for Dallas, they already felt the Heat last year in the finals. Now they need to find the heart of a Warrior if they're ever going to win it all.

2nd round predictions

Really quickly, here are my picks for the NBA 2nd round playoff series...

Western Conference
(2) Phoenix Suns vs. (3) San Antonio Spurs

The Suns can run, but the Spurs are faster than people think. More importantly, they're deeper than the Suns, who don't use more than seven or eight guys any given night. San Antonio can rotate in enough fresh legs to keep them in the game. I know Nash runs a fast-paced offense, but Tony Parker is no slouch. Also San Antonio has that Tim Duncan guy who, last I checked, is pretty good at basketball. Especially in the playoffs. Especially in the playoffs.

San Antonio will steal one game in Phoenix and hold serve at home to win in front of their fans. If this does end up going seven and going back to the desert, the Spurs will be in a tough spot. After all, look no further than the Golden State/Dallas series to see what a good home crowd can do for a team.

No Joshin' pick: Spurs in 6

(4) Utah Jazz vs. (8) Golden State Warriors
Utah and Carlos Boozer just won a game seven in Houston. But Houston fans can't hold a candle to that melee they've got going on in Oakland. Hey, who can? I don't know if anyone short of the Spurs can win in Golden State in the postseason, and I think the dream has a good chance to continue for the Warriors.

The Jazz are solid, no question, but the Warriors are hot. So hot, actually, that it makes me wonder when they'll cool off. Is this going to be like a hockey goalie getting hot for an entire postseason or just one series? They've gotta cool off. No one can stay as hot as the Warriors have been the last two weeks.

But I don't think this is when the sun sets into the Pacific Ocean for the Warriors. I'd like to think this will be an entertaining series. After all, the Jazz just won a tough game seven against a determined T-Mac and Yao, but the Warriors - well - we all know.

The Warriors will steal a game in Salt Lake City - just as they did in Dallas - and continue this improbable run.

No Joshin' pick: Warriors in 6

Eastern Conference
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (5) Chicago Bulls

Both teams are coming off first round sweeps. The Pistons faced a young, inexperienced Magic team. The Bulls faced the defending champs. So naturally the Bulls are the tougher team here, right?

No.

No way, actually. The Pistons didn't keep Ben Wallace around why? Not because they didn't want to pay, but because they didn't need to pay. Sure, Wallace was a huge part of the Pistons' championship run a few years ago. They played team basketball, and he was big cog in that Detroit machine.

Only problem for Ben's Bulls is that the Pistons are still playing that team game, and they're doing it just fine without him. Rasheed Wallace, Rip Hamilton, Teshawn Prince and company know what it takes to win. Throw in Chris Weber, and you've got a scary combination in Motown.

A lot of people think this will be a good series (personally, I think Suns-Spurs will be more entertaining and more competitive).

The Bulls don't have as many scoring options as the Pistons, and with both teams playing good defense, the key will be which offense can break through. That makes this an easy pick for me.

No Joshin' pick: Pistons in 5

(2) Cleveland Cavs vs. (6) New Jersey Nets

The Cavs haven't played in four months or so. Okay, not that long, but they've had some time off while the Nets dealt with those pesky Raptors. I thought the Nets would be too old to advance this post season, but instead they appeared too experienced to fail.

Jason Kidd and VC are the Eastern Conference version of the Phoenix Suns. They were able to dominate the young guns (Chris Bosh and TJ Ford) of Toronto, and they should be able to keep the pressure on LeBron. James hasn't shown an ability to lift a team in the clutch like Kobe Bryant does. That's great that they beat a depleated Wizards team, but this will be much tougher.

New Jersey should Net themselves another playoff series win. Experience will help the Nets advance to the conference finals versus the Pistons.

No Joshin' pick: Nets in 7

Mavericks meltdown

There's only one word to describe what happened during the second half: embarrassment.

No Joshin' pick: Mavericks in 5
Series result: Warriors in 6

I'm embarrassed for the Mavericks, and I'm embarrassed as a fan. This loss may be the most humiliating in the history of all Dallas-area sports. This hurts, and I don't know what else to say about it. I don't know if anything short of a championship next year will stop the hurt.

If they fall short, then everyone will look at this now-ended season as "their best chance to win" and remember how they couldn't get out of the first round. If the Mavs never win a title during the Dirk years, everyone will remember this series. This series, when Nellie destroyed and humiliated and crumbled the marble statue of a superstar he built. This could very well have been the end of the Mavericks. I don't know, and I hope it wasn't.

I hope it wasn't.

How do you top a 67-win season? I guess the answer is: add AT LEAST four wins. Ideally 16. But the Mavs couldn't do either. And now they are going to be looked at as the benchmark for professional sports collapses.

MVP for Dirk?

Only if it stands for Most Vanished Player.

1st round wrap up: DEN is done

If I ran an NBA organization, I'd try like hell to avoid the Spurs in the playoffs. They just don't get beat. The Mavericks may not have gone to the finals last year had Manu Ginobili committed a stupid foul at the end of a tight Game 7. Denver could not keep this series as close. As a matter of fact, after winning Game 1 in San Antonio, things went downhill. Fast.

No Joshin' pick: Spurs in 6
Series result: Spurs in 5

San Antonio has a lot of talent, not just in their starting five, but on their bench. Think the vets like Robert Horry or Michael Finley are too old to contribute? Just ask Nuggets coach George Karl. Horry nailed the clincher in Game 4, and Fin went off from beyond the arc in Game 5 (8-for-9 on 3-pointers). That won't be a regular occurance, but Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Ginobili should have no trouble carrying the load the rest of the way.

If you think Dallas-Golden State has been a good series, just get ready for Spurs-Suns in round 2. Those are two hot teams who are playing great basketball right now.

1st round wrap up: Suns too hot

The Suns are too fast, too high-scoring and too explosive for one man to combat - even if that one man is Kobe Bryant.

No Joshin' pick: Suns in 5
Series result: Suns in 5

Steve Nash and Co. were able to out-run the Lakers in the desert last night to close out this series. Bryant got help from Lamar Odom (33 points, 10 rebounds) in Game 5, but no other Lakers really stepped up throughout the series. ESPN is now reporting Kobe is asking the front office to make some moves "now" to help this team get better.

One Lakers fan friend of mine threw out the idea: Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom for Kevin Garnett. You know, that doesn't sound half bad. KG and Kobe on the same court. Holy crap! I like that two-some better than AI and Melo.

For the Suns, they'll have to face off against the team that eliminated them in the 2005 Western Conference finals: the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs are a tough team to beat come playoff time. Then again, perhaps the Suns are setting in on the aging veterans in San Antone.

A MUST-READ about Don Imus

I just came across this column, and I had to post a link to it. I encourage everyone who heard about the Don Imus incident (so all of you) to read this column by Jason Whitlock. It's really great to see someone put things in racial perspective.

Red Raiders & Cowboys Dallas-bound?

Just a few weeks after the Cotton Bowl locked up the Red River Shootout, the historic Dallas stadium is about to nab another Big 12 bout.


Texas Tech and Oklahoma State are reportedly nearing a deal to play their annual game in the Cotton Bowl. This big time Big 12 match up would be another huge win for the aging stadium that seemed to be on the verge of ambiguity with the new Cowboys Stadium going up.

If this deal gets done and puts another football game in the middle of the Texas State Fair, football fans across the Big 12 will continue to flock to Dallas in October, providing major revenue to the city.

This game would also help as a recruiting tool for coaches in Lubbock and Stillwater. Dallas-area recruits are some of the best in the Big 12 (*cough* Southlake Carroll *cough*), and a game between these two programs would allow local kids to see these programs in action. Dallasites get an annual taste of the Longhorns and Sooners at the Red River Shootout every second Saturday in October. Why are Texas and OU always at the top of the conference? Because they are getting the exposure in front of the biggest, more talented recruiting base.

Win the recruiting game in DFW, and you win the Big 12. It's that simple. If Texas Tech and Oklahoma State want to get in on the action, then coming to the Cotton Bowl is the perfect solution.

Long live the Cotton Bowl. Here's to the historic stadium avoiding extinction at the expense of Jerry World for as long as possible!

Philly loves their Eagles

I saw this online and thought it was pretty funny. Granted, Eagles fans don't know who or what the hell they want when it comes to draft day. Yes, these are the same fans who booed Donovan McNabb because they wanted the Eagles to draft Ricky (currently out of football and struggling to come back) Williams.

Now, I don't know just how much Philly truly needs a new quarterback like Kevin Kolb, but whether he turns out to be the next great Eagle QB or if he's the next Akili Smith, this is his first impression of what it'll be like to be a Philadelphia Eagle.

KEVIN KOLB


DONOVAN McNABB

1st round report: Back to the Bay

After blowing a 21-point first-half lead to Golden State, the Mavericks' season began slipping away. With each Warriors three pointer (16 of them, to be exact), the sad realization that Dallas' 67-win season would end in record fashion - just not the record they want.

Instead of becoming the only 1-seed to lose to an 8-seed since the NBA went to a seven-game first-round format, Dirk Nowitzki became a Superman-like figure, showing up when all seemed lost. Surely there wasn't enough time left for him to save the day? Turns out there was plenty of time; and don't call me Shirley. All of the sudden, fans in the Double-A C pointed toward the rafters as someone disguised as an MVP flew down and crushed the enemy Warriors with a mighty blow while rescuing the damsel in distress.

Dirk's performance in the closing minutes of Game 5 can only be described as heroic. He scored 12 points during the Mavericks 15-0 run over the final 3:07 to lead the Mavericks back into this series. Now the NBA's best team this season will head back to Oakland for Game 6.

The fans at Oracle Arena will be loud and obnoxious, doing all they can to affect the Mavs' attempt to force a Game 7 back in Dallas. If Golden State puts on another 3-point shotting clinic, Dallas will be in trouble. There's not a lot you can do when the other team hits three after three after three. But if Dirk can find a phonebooth, the only thing that will save the Warriors is kryptonite.

1st round wrap up: Wiz washed out

Much like the Cavs' attitude in their series with the Washington Wizards, let me get this post done with a quickly as possible.

No Joshin' pick: Cavs in 4
Series result: Cavs in 4

This one is simple. For the Wizards, no Gilbert Arenas. No Caron Butler. No problem for LeBron. And no surprise Cleveland swept.

With a healthy roster, this may have been an entertaining series. Instead it turned into a nightmare for D.C. residents. All they can is wait for 2007-2008 and hope their stars are healthy when April rolls around. As for the Cavs, they'll get some well-deserved rest before taking on the winner of the lengthy Nets-Raptors series.

1st round report: Mr. Big Shot

There's just three little words that put a big grin on the faces of fans in Houston, Los Angeles and most recently San Antonio.

Big

Shot

Bob.

Robert Horry sat atop his sniper's perch as Tony Parker penetrated the Denver defense and dished to the far corner where Horry did his best cheese impression. He stood alone. No Nugget defender was close enough to attempt to put a hand in his face. Not like it would have done any good. Horry has made a career out of hitting big playoff shots late in the game. The Game 3 clincher is simply another in his Anthology of Clutch.

The Nuggets, who got off to a great start in this series by winning Game 1 in San Antonio, now find themselves losers of three straight and on the brink of elimination as they head back to the Lone Star State.

I'm surprised the Nugs couldn't win at least one game in the Rockies, but now they will have a heck of a time getting back there - at least getting back there for another game. San Antonio should put this game away Wednesday night in Game 5.

Denver will be a great team next season. AI and Melo together for a full year; I can't see too many Western Conference teams excited at the idea of playing that duo. But that offensive duo has two of the league premiere defenders standing in their way in Tim Duncan and Bruce Bowen. The Spurs are a championship-caliber team, and they have the experience and now the momentum in what has turned into a one-sided series.

Plus if they get in trouble, they can always look down the bench for those three little words that always seem to make the biggest impact.