Ten Things I Think

1. I think that I applaud Baseball’s Hall of Fame voters for not voting in Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. I don’t care if you think that they would have made it to Cooperstown without PEDs, the fact of the matter is that they cheated and for that Bonds, Clemens, and every other steroid-user should be barred from baseball’s holy ground.

2. I think James Harden is playing at an MVP level, but I still cannot get over his collapse in the playoffs last season. Whether it was fatigue or something else, Harden shrunk when his team needed him most last season. The Bearded Bandit can rack up all of the counting numbers that he wants in the regular season, but for me I will not pay him much mind until he redeems himself on the biggest stage.

3. I think the Blazers need to choose either Damian Lillard or CJ McCollum to build around and trade the other. It’s a tough sell to an avid fan base to trade an All-Star caliber player, but in the same backcourt the two are a bit redundant. If Portland decided to trade CJ McCollum for Kevin Love, the Blazers would be in a more favorable position, as would the Cavaliers. Portland is just too talented to be this average. They need a major shake-up and trading one of their guards would do just that.

4. I think James White deserved to be Super Bowl MVP last year over Tom Brady. This is random, but I was reading about James White last week and thought back to his Super Bowl performance against the Falcons. White had 14 catches for 110 yards and scored three total touchdowns. Now I understand that Brady is a legend, but at the time I thought White deserved his due and I still feel that way.

5. I think that Devin Booker is a confounding player. He is putting up marvelous numbers, but his team is among the worst in the league. Now, I understand that one player cannot carry a franchise (unless his name is LeBron James), but the Suns, with Booker, should be much better than they have been. Over the course of basketball history there have been many players who have made a career of putting up impressive numbers on subpar teams. It looks like Booker might be the next in that lineage.

6. I think DeMarcus Cousins is more talented than Anthony Davis. (I feel terrible about his Achilles injury, but still feel this way.) Boogie’s attitude sucks; I know that, but his talent cannot be disputed. He is more physical than Davis, is a better playmaker, and is a far superior shooter. In a vacuum, Cousins is the better player, but the NBA is not played in a vacuum. His abrasive personality is the ultimate impediment to what should be a historic career.

7. I think Isaiah Thomas will never be the same. Coming off of major hip surgery, the Cavalier’s point guard has been a shell of himself this season. He is approaching 29 years of age so he is no longer a spring chicken. The Celtics sold high on IT and it appears as though they will have no regrets. He lacks the same explosion and efficiency that he had in Boston. It’s not impossible to envision him returning to a semblance of what he was just a season ago, but I just find it highly unlikely at this point.

8. I think Case Keenum cost himself tens of millions of dollars with his meager performance in the NFC Championship Game. It seems unreasonable, but it’s true. Had Keenum led the Vikings to the Super Bowl there would be absolutely no excuse for the Vikings not to pay him. By playing as inadequately as he did, it opened the door for the Vikings to move on from him. We shall see what his market looks like in free agency, but if I had to guess I would say that he went from signing a 3 year/$50 million contract to likely signing a mercenary one-year deal worth around $12 million. That is not a huge difference in terms of annual salary, but quite the discrepancy in terms of total value.

9. I think now is the time for John Calipari to bolt for the NBA. I cannot remember a Kentucky team under Cal’s watch that has shown as little promise as this group has. They don’t have any surefire NBA prospects and are struggling to compete with inferior SEC competition. It’s now or never for Calipari. He’s losing recruiting wars to Duke and Kansas. The Bucks job is open. Would he leave Lexington to coach the Greek Freak? He should certainly consider it.

10. I think Bradley Beal has so much room to grow. What do you mean “grow” he’s already an All-Star? I know, and he’s also just 24 years old and is averaging nearly 24 points per game this season. His is just coming into his own and with time his volume of three point attempts should sky-rocket. Given his near 40% clip from deep, if Scott Brooks can help create three or four more opportunities a game from distance for his sharpshooter it will just be a matter of time before Beal is averaging 30 and leading the NBA in scoring.