With another entertaining March Madness in the books, let’s take a look back at the best college hoops players of the last 30 seasons.
To be eligible, you must have spent at least two seasons in Div I, beginning with the 1986-87 season. NCAA tournament success is factored, but is not a necessity.
1. Danny Manning, Kansas 1984 – 1988
If you were creating a forward in a lab, this is your guy. (more…)
Every two years at the FIBA World Championships or Summer Olympics, we are treated to plenty of talented (non – NBA) international basketball players that otherwise are off our radar. Back in the ’80s, one such Brazilian player dominated like nobody before him or since.
With NFL training camps in full gear, we continue to take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Reggie Wayne, WR, Miami. 1st round, #30 overall in 2001. (more…)
Traditionally, the Copa America is held every four years among 12 South American countries. The 2016 special edition will feature ten South American teams and an additional six from North America/Caribbean. This 45th rendition will be hosted by the good ol’ U.S. and A. (ten venues), and will run three weeks beginning June 3rd.
Lets take a look at the competing nations and groups, and take a stab at how the oldest international tournament may unfold, with some additional insight*
*making his Sports Cult debut, hardened 50-year football pundit Dick Crovitz will be giving his two cents (more…)
With NFL training camps back in full swing, we continue to take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
Editor’s note: between 1983 and 1988 the Bills drafted Jim Kelly, Darryl Talley, Bruce Smith, Andre Reed, Will Wolford, Howard Ballard, Martin Mayhew, and Thurman Thomas; they parlayed that core of great picks into a 70-26 record over a six-year postseason stretch in which they won four AFC titles. However, in the last 15 years they have not made the playoffs due in part to terrible drafting and are now on their eighth head coach since Hall of Famer Marv Levy retired in 1997. (more…)
Warrior fans may be seeing these three together again…but only in an ugly All-Star game uni
Draymond Green is a unique basketball player. He does everything well. He can score in the post, facing up, off the dribble, and from the perimeter. He runs the floor well, can lead the break, and is a good passer. On the other end, he guards wings and bigs as well as anyone in the league. He gets his hands in passing lanes and protects the rim. Green also is a vocal leader beloved by teammates and looks irreplaceable based on everything he does for the Warriors.
Green’s contract situation is also unique. (more…)
With the NFL Draft in the rearview mirror and training camps a few weeks away, we continue to take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
The Texans have only been in the league 13 years, so they don’t have a significant database to pull from. Let’s check them out anyway.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. J.J. Watt, DL, Wisconsin. 1st round, #11 overall in 2011.
You could make an argument that Watt’s first four seasons in the league have been as good as the first four of the best DL ever: Reggie White, Deacon Jones, Joe Greene, and Alan Page. He has been that dominant. The numbers are staggering: 57 sacks in 64 starts (another five sacks in four playoff games) and 37 passes knocked down. He is a destructive force and has the work ethic to get even better. (more…)
With the NFL Draft in the rearview mirror and training camps a month away, we continue to take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Shannon Sharpe, TE, Savannah St. 7th round, #192 overall in 1990.
Sharpe ranks as one of the best late-round picks of all time. (more…)
The United States Men’s National Team made some progress last summer at the World Cup. They made it out of a tough group, captured the nation’s attention, and gained some international respect. Individually, Tim Howard stood out as a world-class goalkeeper. But the question remains: what will it take for the U.S. to develop a formidable roster whose results demand respect as a legitimate footballing country?
The answer is as simple as it is complex. (more…)
Group A
Brazil, of course, is the strong favorite to top this group. They have two things going for them: a ton of skilled players as usual, and they’re playing at home. Only South Africa four years ago failed, as a host nation, to get out of their group. Cameroon has had considerably better WC teams in the past. Unless ageless Captain Samuel Eto’o pulls a Roger Milla, they are three games and out.
With the NFL draft recently completed, we continue to take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Geno Atkins, DT, Georgia. 4th round, #120 overall in 2010.
An astounding 13 DTs were drafted ahead of Atkins, and only Ndirtykong Suh has matched his production. He was a starter and Pro-Bowler by his second year, and an All-Pro in year three. Atkins gets to the QB at an alarming rate, notching 26 sacks in his first 40 starts as a pro. He was on his way to another great season in 2013, before tearing an ACL in October. (more…)
With the NFL draft dominating the sports landscape, let’s take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Aaron Rodgers, QB, Cal. 1st round, #24 overall in 2005.
Rodgers was draft day fodder in 2005, but has since had the last laugh. One has to wonder his fate, had Cowboy CB Nate Jones not knocked Brett Favre out of the game on a Thursday night late in the 2007 season;
With the NFL draft dominating the sports landscape, let’s take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Barry Sanders, RB, Oklahoma St. 1st round, #3 overall in 1989.
There was plenty of talent on the board when the Lions were on the clock at #3 (future Hall of Famers Deion Sanders and Derrick Thomas); fellow RBs Tim Worley and Sammie Smith were also tapped as top-10 picks.
With the NFL draft rapidly approaching, let’s take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Ray Lewis, LB, Miami. 1st round, #26 overall in 1996.
I’m not a fan of his antics (or that he may have helped butcher someone the weekend of Super Bowl XXXV in Atlanta…allegedly), but Ray Ray has undeniably been the best MLB of this generation.
With the NFL draft rapidly approaching, let’s take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Devin Hester, CB, Miami. 2nd round, #57 overall in 2006.
With the NFL draft rapidly approaching, let’s take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Steve Smith, WR, Utah. 3rd round, #74 overall in 2001.
Ten WR went ahead of the feisty Smith in the 2001 draft, but only Reggie Wayne has been better. He missed a yr with injury, but has otherwise averaged about 70 catches, 1,000 yds, and 7 TD. As you will see later, the Panthers were otherwise dreadful finding competent WR in the draft from 1997 to 2007. (more…)
A month ago it looked like Miami and Indiana were neck and neck to come out of the East. Unless this is just some big set-up, this is the Heat’s to lose without much trouble. If there is a dark horse, it’s Brooklyn…although the Bulls can never be completely overlooked.
Miami – 10/13 odds to win the East
Not a lot has changed from a year ago; Lebron is still the most complete player in the league, D Wade is rested and relatively healthy, and Bosh is good enough when they need him to be.
With the NFL draft rapidly approaching, let’s take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
I went back and forth on whether to include future Hall of Famer Brett Favre on this list. Ultimately I didn’t, for two reasons: Jerry Glanville was against drafting Favre in the 2nd round in 1991 and once stated it would take a plane crash for him to put Favre into the game; although the Falcons did acquire a 1st round pick (#19 overall) from Green Bay for Favre, they wasted it (more on that later).
1. Deion Sanders, CB, Florida St. 1st round, # 5 overall in 1989.
Every year around this time, baseball does a great job of highlighting the impact Jackie Robinson had on baseball and sports in America (if you have a teen, do them a favor and show them the movie 42). Recently, another talking point has evolved: the steady decline of African-Americans on MLB rosters.
With the NFL draft rapidly approaching, lets take a look back at each team’s hits and misses over the past 25 years.
FIVE BEST PICKS
1. Aeneas Williams, CB, Southern. 3rd round, #59 overall in 1991.
A recent Hall of Fame inductee, Williams was a class act on and off the field. Despite playing just one year in college, he had an immediate impact and tied for the league lead with six interceptions his rookie year. 8 Pro Bowls, 4 times an All-Pro, and a member of the 1990s All-Decade team. 1991 was a historically bad draft class; I could go on for a while listing bums that went ahead of Williams. Suffice to say there were a bunch of teams that regret passing on him.
2. Anquan Boldin, WR, Florida St. 2nd round, #54 overall in 2003.
Four unique teams are in Dallas on college basketball’s biggest stage. Florida arrives unbeaten in four months driven by a core of seniors and a deep bench. UConn rides in on the strength of a dominant guard and stone-cold execution down the stretch. Wisconsin has paid their dues after plenty of failed tourneys, make teams play their game, and are led by a hard-nosed coach; and Kentucky storms in with teenagers playing at a level as high as their pre-season expectations.
Let’s take a close look at each team and explore what got them to within two wins of a National Championship. (more…)
We’ve gotten 68 down to four, so lets take a look back at some of the things that stood out the last two weeks.
The play-in games (I refuse to refer to it as the “first round”) continue to be a potential springboard for an unlikely tournament run.
For the fourth straight year since its inception, a (non – 16 seed) team has buoyed a win in Dayton into an upset a few days later. In 2011, VCU famously stormed their way to the Final Four as an 11 seed after dispatching Southern Cal in a play-in game; South Florida beat 5 seed Temple before being knocked off by Ohio in 2012; last year, La Salle beat Kansas St and Ole Miss before losing to Wichita St in the Sweet 16. This year, Tennessee scraped by Iowa in OT in Dayton and then took care of UMass and Mercer. Only a dodgy officiating decision kept them from the Elite Eight. NC St easily could have made it two teams from Dayton advancing even further; the Wolfpack couldn’t close out St Louis, despite being up 11 with a little over three minutes to play.
(more…)
By now everyone is familiar with the NFL story of Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin; Martin skips OTAs, coaches (allegedly) instruct Incognito to “toughen him up”, the harassment continues to a point where Martin walks away from the team (and files a formal complaint), and Incognito is indefinitely suspended by the Dolphins.
We have heard everything spanning from “he is a racist, bully, and a bigot” to “that’s how we police our locker rooms“. Consequently, (more…)
I can’t resist a controversy surrounding Frankenstein.
During the week, Colts owner and twitter whore Jim Irsay was quoted in an earlier interview with less than flattering words about Peyton Manning’s time in Indy. You know the specifics, so I will summarize; WE GOT TIRED OF GREAT REGULAR SEASONS FOLLOWED BY SHITTY POSTSEASONS.
Predictably, the media was all over it (as if NBC needed any more pub for the SNF matchup – you would have thought the DAL – WAS game was the week before the Super Bowl). (more…)
NFL Concussion Documentary Omitting the Obvious???
I’m the first person to hammer the NFL, the Walmart of the American Sports Industry ; but PFT points out what League of Denial overlooked…
JM
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Jay Bakes
Mojah Fukweh
Jeff Gehring
timmybaker
Trev
The Sports Cult 