hitlesswonder

QUOTE (danman31 @ Dec 19, 2010 -> 03:56 AM) I hate saying this, but shooting less than 33% excuses most losses, especially close ones. Granted, getting easy shots it part of a good offense, but a bad shooting night happens and shouldn't be looked into too much. Same goes for 4-17 3s. It happens, whatever. If you get blown out by UIC, it's another story, but having an outlier of a shooting night and losing close isn't an indictment. At worst, it's a concern and if you weren't concerned about this team going in, I think you haven't been watching much of the team. That my be true, but at some point you need to look at the question of how a team with athletic talent like Brandon Paul and Jereme Richmond can play games like this. It vindicates the decision of every talented recruit that has chosen to play elsewhere.

QUOTE (fathom @ Dec 18, 2010 -> 03:15 PM) Congrats UIC! That was an awesome game. Beautiful that UIC, which hired Jimmy Collins after UIUC knifed him in the back, gets the win.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Dec 17, 2010 -> 10:38 PM) If all four teams are healthy, the Bulls, Magic, Heat and Celtics makes for a great final four. Of course, Atlanta could give someone trouble in the first round. Heat vs. Magic second round and Heat vs. Celtics conf. finals? Wow. I think that's overrating the Bulls, who are a lot loser to NYK and Atlanta than any of the 3 other teams you name. And even within those, I expect BOS-Magic would be a fun series to watch. But with Miller back, I think the Heat will destroy anyone they play in the playoffs. Reports of the Heat's demise were greatly exaggerated...they're still the most talented team in the NBA and maybe in NBA history. I think by the end of the season they will have proved that out barring injury.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Dec 15, 2010 -> 07:01 PM) Other than Soriano, and that's obviously not happening, I don't like or am at the very least skeptical about every reliever still on the market. I really wish our system was capable of producing a damn arm or two. Well, it produced Santos and Sale last year...and Hudson for that matter.

QUOTE (Paint it Black @ Dec 14, 2010 -> 12:27 AM) Wait. So slightly above average OF's are as valuable as established 3rd starters? I don't mean to be an ass, but in what baseball universe is this true? Again, I'm still waiting for someone to tell me who starts in Floyd's sport and gives HALF the value that Floyd is worth. A high-OBP guy with good D that plays everyday will generate more wins than a starter of Floyd's caliber. The question is simply whether you think Gardner will be as good or better than he was last season. For the Yankees, I guess the question also involves how desperate they are for pitching and if they think they could fill Gardner's spot through other means. In any case, I don't think the Yankees would do the deal. In any case I think the Sox will be looking to trade a starting pitcher or position player for middle relief...

QUOTE (3E8 @ Dec 13, 2010 -> 11:58 PM) Don't see the Yankees wanting to trade their 5-win OF with 2 years of service time for Gavin Floyd. It's potentially 3 years...there's a club option for 2013 in Floyd's deal. Floyd has been a 4 WAR pitcher the last couple of years and has a pretty friendly contract. I don't think the Yankees will trade gardner, but I don't think the deal is hugely lopsided given that Gardner has had 1 great year so far, pitching is scarce, and the Yankees have to be concerned (Floyd would be more valuable to them than lots of other teams). I could see the Sox trading Danks or Floyd for Joba and a catching prospect (Romine?). Not saying that I think that would be wise, just that it could happen....

QUOTE (bighurt574 @ Dec 7, 2010 -> 01:21 PM) There's nothing wrong with having a high starting point, doesn't mean he'll get it (the bidding on Dunn was supposed to start at $60M over 4 years). I get the impression that the Sox offer will be the top $$$ offer, unless someone unexpected jumps into the bidding. I'd like the Sox to move on. Even if the Sox get that number to drop, you would be looking at something like $13M a year for 3 years? There are better ways to use that money than on an aging 1B coming off a career year. You could get Lee or someone like him on a 1 or 2 year deal for half that money and be able to sign help for the pen as well. This is a time when putting together the best team should be more important than sentimental attachment to a player.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 4, 2010 -> 04:30 PM) Real simple; the government needs to be fighting them because the interest of the people; having BP pay for the cleanup, for all the losses, and a large enough fine so as to act as a deterrent to future spills, is diametrically opposed to BP's interest; paying as little as humanly possible for all of the above. This company deserves to be demonized. Feel free to be sick of that. I'm sick of companies that deserve to be demonized. OK, I deleted my post because I decided it was overly political. But I will say that BP is "the people" as well. The courts can settle the disputes between BP and plaintiffs. The executive branch of the government should not decide a priori that it needs to aid plaintiffs against BP. That's just anti-corporate bias in my opinion.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Nov 27, 2010 -> 10:19 PM) Yes, lets trade the best SS in the AL to overpay the worst defensive one. It's the CQ for Ibanez trade that's the most mind-boggling. Ibanez will be 38, gets $12M, can't play the field, and had an .800 OPS last season. I repeat: CQ+ $12M for an .800 OPS DH.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Nov 22, 2010 -> 02:04 PM) Danks certainly deserved to fall like a rock, don't really think Flower should have dropped out of the top 10 though. I think you underestimate how bad his year was and how old he is now. Deciding Flowers is no longer a legit prospect is a very defensible position. Few players with his K rate make it in the majors.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Nov 21, 2010 -> 08:20 PM) To be fair, he said AL. But even then it's questionable. Adding the elite NL starters and it's not even close. Danks is a #3 or maybe even #4 starter on a World Championship team...if anyone disagrees just look at where he would slot in on the Giants. People talk about the Sox rotation being strong, but they lack top tier starters.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 20, 2010 -> 12:00 AM) There's three teams that had super high rankings this season despite their poor seasons last year (UNC, Florida, and Illinois). IMO all of those teams are overrated, especially IL. Both UNC and IL have PG problems (IL has no backup PG at all). I think Minnesota will finish above IL in the Big Ten, they have a frontcourt that would crush IL and an excellent coach. Should be a fun team to watch.

QUOTE (SoxFan1 @ Nov 18, 2010 -> 11:57 PM) Man, Illinois is probably going to be frustrating to watch again this year if they play like they did tonight. So much talent but so many poor decisions. I didn't watch the entire game, but they are so soft down low on defense and on the boards. I think UI is very likely to underperform their talent level and have a disappointing year. Maybe even miss the tournament. But I don't think they played that poorly tonight. To me, Texas looked very athletic and played with effort on defense and hitting the boards. Rebounding was even for the game I believe, so I don't know that UI was soft on the boards. Really, if you want to look for one reason UI lost it's that they shot 38.4 percent...with Richardson and Paul especially needing to shoot better.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 18, 2010 -> 11:32 PM) I was under the impression that Davis is terrible on defense? This is just my opinion and someone that knows basketball may blow it out of the water, but I think it depends on the matchup. From what I've seen I think Davis does a good job staying in front of his man when they face him up, but he sometimes gives up position inside to heavier guys. Davis has the height and ups to alter shots, so he gives you some of that. I think Griffey is a worse defensive player right now.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 18, 2010 -> 11:25 PM) As a self-proclaimed Illini hater, I have to ask the good Illinois fans on this site a question: wouldn't the Illini be better off if Davis wasn't on the team? Seems like he just slows down the offensive flow due to his mechanical nature, and I've always thought Griffey was a better fit for Weber's style. I'm not a good IL fan, but I don't think they'd be better off without Davis. I think he's actually under-appreciated by most IL fans and the loss of his D and rebounding would offset any offensive gain. I think Griffey might be a better shooter and probably would take fewer bad shots, but I don't think he would board like Davis....

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Nov 18, 2010 -> 11:20 PM) Bill Cole says slow down, it aint over. UI should really regularly run more stuff to get Cole open for a 3. I know he's not a great player or anything but I think they waste his outside shooting ability...

QUOTE (whitesoxfan99 @ Nov 17, 2010 -> 05:37 PM) When has the Big 10 been overrated recently? I'm guessing that he's referring to the second tier Big Ten teams like Minn and IL being accorded more respect than mid-majors (and sometimes making the tournament) just because they are in a "power" conference. Maybe? Because I agree with you, I don't think the national media has said much good about the Big Ten recently until this year.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Nov 3, 2010 -> 09:24 AM) Rose is stronger, a more dynamic finisher at the rim, and actually has a consistent jumper. Wall doesn't have to finish at the rim because he can get foul calls and get to the line. Rose can't do that, it's a huge hole in his game.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Nov 3, 2010 -> 08:32 AM) Dude, he's ridiculously good now. He's 3 games into his NBA career. I played against him in fantasy this week, and those 9 steals are a game-changer. In real life, this guy is on another level and could be the #3 PG in the East this year. (behind Rose/Rondo) I think he's already better than Rose. Much better defender, faster with the ball, better passer. If I had to choose between the two, I know who I would take.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 2, 2010 -> 06:43 PM) You mean like Bruce Weber getting Rolan Roberts to play for him at SIU? Or like Weber keeping Jamar Smith around after his DUI (and leaving Brian Carlwell to die) so Illinois could sign DJ Richardson? Any program that has Weber at the helm has no moral high ground.

QUOTE (Rex Hudler @ Nov 2, 2010 -> 02:30 PM) I agree Jason. I'd love to hear how Alford was dirty, examples included. It would be particularly entertaining to hear a fan of the Illini lecture other people about ethics. Alford may be a jackass, but if you compare Iowa, currently and historically, to Illinois...well there's no comparison. Which school just fired its President and Chancellor because of an ethics scandal?

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ Oct 30, 2010 -> 04:16 PM) I enjoyed the comments in the MLBTraderumors site for this Rasmus/Quentin deal. Cardinals fan suggesting that any trade for Rasmus would have to start with Beckham and Sale. Neglecting the fact that Sale can't be traded yet, I think that's actually pretty realistic. Something like Beckham, Sale, and Morel might be realistic. Rasmus is a better player than Beckham -- his bat is better and he plays excellent defense at a premium position. Sale is an interesting talent, but he's a high injury risk and hasn't pitched many major league innings yet, so I think Beckham and Sale alone wouldn't be enough.

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Oct 26, 2010 -> 02:35 PM) I bet Flowers and Viciedo are both used as trade bait to fill in some of the holes. Flowers is a non-prospect at this point. No team would trade anything of value for him. As for Viciedo, he's probably the starting 1B next season given the payroll problems the team has.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Oct 26, 2010 -> 09:19 AM) I have chosen to ignore all things Heat and Lebron, unless they are playing the Bulls. This is going to be a tough year for you then because the Heat will be all over the media. The intensity of coverage when they break the single season win record is going to be insane, and by the end of the season you will hear people everywhere discussing whether or not Lebron is the greatest basketball player ever. It will not be pleasant....

I think Mark Jackson is still stinging from his teams getting beat by Jordan repeatedly...