Miami Heat v. Indiana Pacers
The matchup we all thought we would see at the start of the season finally happened. Barely. While the Heat breezed through the first two rounds (sweep of Charlotte, 4-1 over Brooklyn), the Pacers struggled mightily. The under-.500 and eighth seeded Hawks pushed the Pacers to the limit, amidst concerns about Indiana's team chemistry. Then the Pacers beat back the Wizards in six games, although the series could have gone either way as Indiana certainly did not look like a one seed. Despite all that noise, Indiana finally made it and now lead the Heat 1-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals.
What I find most interesting is if Indiana does advance and wins the NBA title. I can't remember, in any sport, a more surprising number one seed to win a title. This team was hanging by a thread against Atlanta. There was zero team chemistry as talks of where Frank Vogel would go once he got fired were already swirling around before that series was over. Unfortunately for the Pacers, the Heat will probably have something to say about that. I still think Miami will win the series, but I think the ease with which they got through the first two rounds hurt them in this game. I know they've been here before and probably wanted to guard against that, but they did look a bit rusty. I doubt they'll shoot 26% from three, and only have 15 free throw attempts in game two.
NHL Game 1s In The Books
The Rangers opened up the NHL Conference Finals with a bang by trouncing Montreal and quieting the usually raucous Bell Centre. Henrik Lundqvist did his part as he stopped 20 of 22 shots he faced as the Rangers grabbed a 1-0 series lead. I was pretty surprised by this result as I thought that the winner of the Boston-Montreal series was not only the favorite to come out of the East, but the favorite to win the Cup. I'll chalk this up as a minor hiccup, though when Lundqvist is on his game, the Rangers can be unbeatable.
In a more tightly contested game, the Hawks were able to keep the Kings at bay with a 3-1 win, although the game was closer than that. Similar to the Heat, the Hawks had some extra rest and came out a bit rusty in the first few minutes. Getting on the board first certainly helped wake some of the guys up. The Kings answered early in the second, but the Hawks responded to take the 2-1, adding on a late Toews goal in the third. With the way these Kings have been playing though, Game 1 means not that much. The Kings bounced back from 3-0 in the first round, and were in deep trouble last round after being down 3-2 after Game 5 against the Ducks. The Hawks can't feel safe until that 4th game is won.
California Chrome and the Triple Crown
California Chrome is now in line to break the long drought of Triple Crown winners after winning both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. The last horse to capture the Triple Crown was Affirmed back in 1978. It's great for the sport when the Derby and Preakness are won because more people to tune into the Belmont Stakes just to see if history will happen. I'm not going to pretend to be a horse racing expert, I'm not, but I think California Chrome can pull it off. I watched both races, and you could just see how easy he made it look. Normally I pick winners by whoever has the most awesome sounding name, but for a chance at history, you have to take California Chrome in the Belmont.
World Cup Protests
Brazil, the host country of the World Cup this summer, is in the midst of strikes and riots, some of which revolve around the country's decision to have a World Cup. People are protesting the government's use of money on expensive stadiums over helping workers and the poor. Some businesses and residents were even relocated in order to prepare for the upcoming World Cup. The protesters are using the exposure the World Cup will bring as a means of pressuring the government into taking action. If their demands are not resolved, they are threatening protests during the event itself. It will be interesting to see how Brazil handles this situation as they prepare for this Cup, as well as the 2016 Olympic Games to be held in Rio.
Is It Time For Policy Change?
Browns fans excited by the prospect of Johnny Manziel, were soon taken down a notch when they found out their leading receiver from a year ago, Josh Gordon, was facing a year long ban for failing another drug test for marijuana. Personally, I wouldn't argue with the ban because it is a rule and Gordon is a repeat offender, but I would argue with the fact that it's even a rule in the first place. My case for it would be that it doesn't enhance performance (if anything it negatively effects performance), it's being legalized in some states that have NFL teams, and it's still the player's choice whether or not he wants to smoke it. Similar to drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes, or even just playing football on a weekly basis (all legal activities), these players know the risks and must accept the consequences. As long as it's in a state that has it legalized, I would be fine if players in the league were allowed to smoke. I know I'm not going to see eye to eye with everyone on this, but I think more time and money should be going towards things on the field, particularly player safety, rather than on an issue such as this.
Fantasy Football in May? Sure
For those wondering, ESPN does have mock drafts up and running for the upcoming 2014 season. There are probably a few other sites doing it too, but you can usually find a good number of people on ESPN and they have all the players ranked reasonably (except rookies whom they have failed to rank yet, but they can be drafted). Only a few months away until the start of the season! How do you feel about that Bart Scott?
Matty O
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