LouisEly

Redick is instantly our best overall guard That's why they made the trade. how much does it really matter when you still have Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings most likely taking the bulk of the minutes and shots? That's the problem - they have to play 40+ minutes a night every night because they don't have a good backup SG. Look at last night - both went cold and played sloppy the last 5 minutes, likely because they were tired. Ellis played 89 minutes total in consecutive nights and Jennings played 90. Over the last five games both have averaged over 41 minutes a game. This is because the only backup guard they had was Udrih. And left guys like Dalembert, Dunleavy, and Ellis on the roster who will now walk for nothing in the offseason. Udrih was going to walk for nothing in the offseason. No way he's back at $7.8M. If Ellis leaves they will have a ton of cap room, allowing them to sign Redick, Dalembert, and/or Dunleavy, sign other free agents, or get talented players in trades from teams that need to dump salary (see: OKC dumping Harden, Memphis dumping Roy, etc.). And other teams know that Ellis, Dalembert, and Dunleavy can walk from them after the season too, and thus aren't going to give up much in a trade for them. And no one is likely going to trade for Ellis and give up guards in return; if they traded Ellis they would be back to where they were - no guard depth. I'm not a big fan of Reddick, but they really didn't give up much to get him. Exactly. Tobias Harris and Doron Lamb? Harris has played a total of 3 minutes in the month of February, and Lamb hasn't seen game action since January 5th. Lamb has played a total of 4 minutes this calendar year, and was recently sent to the D-league. I will agree that Harris is still young enough where he could become something - and it is puzzling how a guy goes from 33 minutes, 18 points, 8-11 shooting on opening night to seeing action in only 10 of the last 33 games. Some people are acting like it's 1981 and they just traded Marques Johnson and Sidney Moncrief. They traded guys who have played a total of 45 minutes since January 1st. And they got a 24-year-old backup PG in the deal too, Ish Smith, who has played more minutes this year than either of Harris or Lamb.

That's why they are at DSW - they are clearancing out the ones that aren't selling. You're in Phoenix, right? Have you tried the outlet mall halfway between Phoenix and Tucson? Maybe an Adidas/Nike/New Balance outlet store has what you are looking for?

Geno Selig Prieb, Dave (xisxisxis), and foamboy all in the same thread. Made my day. Just need Edgar Diaz Rocks, Joel (SeriesFinale), and Bring Back the Stein to chime in and my thesis is complete. Welcome home, Geno.

No, but the Mavericks can take something from the Bucks that would provide value - Drew Gooden and his contract. And there could always be a 3rd team involved. Jennings + Gooden to Mavericks for Mavericks 2013 1st round pick (right now #11) plus a good young guard and/or 1st round pick from a 3rd team (Mavericks send veteran player/s like Carter/Kaman/Marion/Brand to 3rd team). With three first round picks and lots of salary cap room, the Bucks could try to get a potential lottery pick from a team that needs to dump salary (like Toronto) or wants to get out from a bad contract (like New Orleans and Eric Gordon or Charlotte and Tyrus Thomas or Sacramento and take your pick of Salmons/Thornton). You have to give up a lot (like Dwight Howard) to get a future unprotected pick, but if the Bucks can take some salary and provide first round picks they might be able to trade up to a high lottery pick and get quality or just trade for a good young guard under contract (just to be specific, Eric Gordon falls under the former not the latter).

Craigslist, because Stubhub charges a whole bunch of fees on top of the ticket price. And you may or may not get a hard ticket via Stubhub in case you want to keep it as a souvenir. Craigslist is a bit more of a risk as the ticket could be counterfeit, but that is unlikely at this point with Bucks tickets and if you pay with cash through PayPal then PayPal will insure your purchase. If you are looking to sit in a specific part of the arena, especially premium seats, Stubhub is easier to find those seats. Craigslist also lets you select "tickets by owner" so you can filter out all of the spamming and repeated posts by ticket brokers.

That threshold is higher than you think because they're accounting for biological outliers — some athletes might naturally have twice as much testosterone as the average person. Actually, one person can have almost four times the testosterone levels of another person and both be considered within "normal" range. This does not include the percentage of the population that falls outside the normal range. Think bell curve. How would Braun have gotten the PEDs? They would have to have been shipped to Braun somehow. I find it unlikely that some quack brought $20K of PEDs on an airplane. Anything liquid (like "the cream" and "the clear") would have to be checked in baggage, and that's a big risk. Did he drive a trunk full of them up to Braun? I don't think Braun would have been able to travel there on a regular basis without getting noticed. If the attorney traveled to Miami there would be some type of evidence of that. For that amount, there would have to be some evidence of the logistics.

Would you mind if I asked how much is owed in taxes? PM me if you don't feel comfortable disclosing that publicly. I was able to get my rental property re-appraised for much lower than the government said, but you have to call the city. The reviews were conducted in January, so there may be time to get the tax bill lowered. You're doing a great job so far. Remember, "this too shall pass". Might not be today, tomorrow, or the day after, but someday it will.

You're right, and I made the same point earlier in the thread. And I probably should have said "better" than "stud", and was referring as much to acquiring one via trade as FA. OKC just dumped Harden for a good player but expiring contract in Kevin Martin plus two first round draft picks because OKC couldn't afford to keep him, Durant, Westbrook, and Ibaka. Houston got him because they had the ability to pick up salary. To answer your question, if they can't trade for a top-tier SG then I'd look at O.J. Mayo who is likely to opt out of the last year of his contract. He's significantly improved his shooting and 3-pt % this year and will only be 26; he might be the type of guy who won't command a max contract and might prefer to play with Jennings/Sanders/Henson instead of Nowitzke/Marion/Carter and a rebuilding Mavs team no matter how much money Cuban throws at him. If he takes the money, then I bring back Dunleavy and add a top defensive 2-guard who can keep other top shooting guards in check. Two things will bring good players to Milwaukee - having the ability to pick up salary via a trade, and having young, exciting, up-tempo players in Jennings, Sanders, Henson, etc., that other players want to play with. Jennings may not be one of the 5 best PGs in the league, but he's the type of player that other younger players will want to play with because of his style of play.

Indiana is in first place in the Central and had the 3rd best record in the East last year and doesn't have a top-5 or even top-8 pick on their roster - D.J. Augustin is the highest drafted player at #9 overall but was let go by Charlotte and signed as a free agent. Paul George was the #10 overall pick, David West was the #18 overall pick, Roy Hibbert the #17 overall pick, and George Hill the #26 overall pick. Next year the Bucks can clear $17M of backups off their roster (Dalembert, Udrih, Prz, Daniels) without touching their starting lineup. If Ellis leaves, it's $28M that they can use to go after a stud SG and still have plenty left over to decide if they want to extend Jennings (who is only 23), and still have Sanders, Illyasova, Henson.

Chauncey Billups was the #3 overall pick in 1997, and was second in scoring on that team and led them in assists. Technically Darko Milicic was a lottery pick, arguably the worst pick in NBA history considering the talent picked after him, but had no impact on the team. I don't think this is the year to blow it up. Too many other bad teams, not enough talent in the upcoming draft. Jennings is only 23, Ilyasova is 25, Sanders is 24, Henson is 22, LRMAM is 26, and Ellis is 27. Udoh is 25, Harris is 20, and Lamb is 21 so even the bench guys are still developing.

You beat me to it. It makes a lot of sense - he's the star athlete on the team on the verge of making millions, so he has to have lots of women throwing themselves at him regardless of race/ethnicity/religion. Some of his teammates have to be egging him on to take advantage of these women. To keep saying "no" he has to have a good reason. So he makes up this "girlfriend", who is "real" but not really his "girlfriend" but is a "friend" who will help him with this cover. Now he's becoming a potential Heisman candidate so the media starts asking him about his personal life. His teammates keep asking about her, so he makes up this "death" to keep them off of him and make her go away, hoping it will be swept under the carpet. If it was also revealed that he was gay, there's a good chance it would hurt his draft stock and possibly cost him millions. Even if this is the case, my original statement still stands - not a big deal. His personal life, not any of the public's business. It is also possible that for cultural and religious reasons he only wants a Polynesian woman who is Mormon, and chances are there aren't many of them in South Bend. There are dating sites specific to just about every religion, and it is possible he met her through one of those. When he found out she was playing him he made up her death so as not to look like a buffoon and admit he got played.

I just don't see what the big deal is. The lead story on SportsCenter? Really? If you found out you had been duped, would you admit right away that you had been duped or would you continue to tell little white lies trying not to look like a buffoon in the hopes that it would eventually go away? Plenty of things I did at that age that, looking back, were really dumb and wish I had done differently. Raise your hand if that's not the case for you.

Iowa is having a special ceremony to honor the memory of Chris Street, who died exactly 20 years ago Saturday in that car accident. Seems like whenever things like that are going on the affected team plays their game of the season. Going to be really tough for Bucky to pull one out under those circumstances. Funny that Crean is 0-9 against UW. That's what he gets for leaving Marquette - a curse cast on him that he will forever lose to Marquette's in-state rival.

Of course, we need a .GIF of you opening the box and holding up that suit...

1) No one is saying that steroids will make any random player a HoF-er. However, players have said that there were players who took PEDs hoping to gain the edge that would get them a major-league roster spot instead of a AAA roster spot. The difference in salary between the majors and minors was worth the risk to them. The point is whether steroids make you a better player - if they can turn an All-Star into a HoF-er, a random bench player into a starter (and a $30M contract), or AA-AAA fodder into a major league roster spot (making $500K/year instead of $50K/year). B) There will be a handful of players in every generation who are going to be among the greatest of all time. The spike with KGJ though corresponded with his peak physical years (age 26 to 29), not his mid-late 30's. Looking at pure HR numbers it would appear to be a spike, however he was injured almost every year after age 30 and missed a lot of games; his SLG in 1999 when he hit 48 HRs was the same as 2005 when he hit 35 HRs and similar to 2003 when he hit 13 HRs but was hurt most of the year. He had a bit of a spike 2003-2005 in SLG, but that also corresponded with the opening of the "band box" stadium known as Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati in 2003 where he was playing at the time. Otherwise he had a fairly gradual decline in SLG after age 30.

It has been reported that certain types of steroids such as HGH and THG, one of the designer steroids supplied by BALCO, improve eyesight, reflexes, and strength. Supposedly in "Game of Shadows", Bonds said steroids improved his vision. There are many different types of steroids, each with different effects (designed and side). Established ethics of scientific testing though have prohibited clinical testing on healthy athletes, so there are no official scientific studies that prove or disprove it.

The big difference is that Pujols actually played at CC (.461 for the year, with 22 home runs and 80 RBIs) so scouts had something to go off of. Piazza didn't play most of his one season at CC because of the hand injury, so scouts had little if anything to go off of as a reason to draft him. And in 1988 you didn't have the internet or other technology advances to expand scouting reach; everything had to be done with the human eye. In 1998 you had more advances in technology and media to expand scouting and have reports on more players. Piazza was an active player when the Mitchell report commenced in March of 2006 and played both seasons during the investigation; he wasn't named in the report. His career was so consistent (unlike Gonzalez, Anderson, and Green) that he would have to have been using for so long that it would be highly unlikely that there is no tangible evidence of him using or being named in the Mitchell report. And as for testing, MLB still does not test for HGH. So it's possible that Pujols (and Piazza) used.

You don't have your facts right on Piazza. He DID go to a major college - the University of Miami, aka "The U" - but left after his freshman year and transferred to Miami Dade CC. He was unable to play most of his one season at MDCC due to a hand injury: "He did not do well in the single season he played with the Hurricanes and decided to transfer to Miami-Dade Community College. He was unable to play most of the season with the school due to a hand injury, so Lasorda once again stepped in to help Piazza out by influencing the Dodgers to draft the young Piazza, who was picked last in the 62nd round. When Piazza consistently blew the balls out of the ballpark for the Dodgers scouting director, Ben Wade, he knew they would find a place for him. Lasorda worked with Wade to come up with a way for Piazza to make it with the Dodgers. Wade finally agreed when Lasorda suggested that Piazza play the position of catcher. Wade was hooked, and offered Piazza a $15,000 signing bonus. http://sports.jrank.org/pages/3727/Piazza-Mike-Batter-Up.html He was drafted as a 20-year-old and slugged .444 as a 20-year-old in low-A ball; the .390 SLG was in the Florida State League, known for being a tough hitters league. He slugged .540 in the California league, not an unheard of accomplishment for someone who slugged .444 as a 20-year-old in low-A. To say that he never had power is not correct. He wouldn't be the only player from a community college to fit this profile - some guy named Pujols went to a community college, wasn't drafted until the 13th round, and slugged .610 in the majors two years after being drafted.

I'm not even sure if high draft picks will do it. Given how Chris Paul basically demanded his way out of New Orleans, how Wade/Bosh/LeBron orchestrated their collaboration, and how others have whined their way in and out of trades I don't know that anyone will want to stay in Milwaukee long enough to build a championship caliber team. OKC couldn't afford all four of Durant, Westbrook, Ibaka, and Harden so they dumped Harden for draft picks and Kevin Martin, whose contract expires at the end of the season and is unlikely to be retained since OKC already has $54M tied up in those other three plus Perkins next year. How long before Durant and Westbrook get sick of Oklahoma City and long for the glitz and glamor of living and playing in LA, Miami, or NYC? Yes, the Clippers were a bad franchise for a long time, but they're still in LA. And they are $14M over the cap, with Griffin only making $7M this year (jumps to $13.5 next year). Memphis is $26M over the cap. San Antonio is $21M over the cap, and has the rare player in Tim Duncan that is willing to give a hometown discount.

Mike Piazza is arguably the greatest offense catcher to ever play the game. The fact that he spent his entire career in ballparks that were not known for being hitters parks (Dodger Stadium, Shea Stadium, one year in San Diego and one year in Oakland) definitely makes him one of the best offensive catchers in history. Makes you wonder what he would have done in more hitter-friendly parks. Twice led the league in OPS+ as a catcher. No spikes in power/HRs and a slow regression of power after age 31 suggest no PED usage. He should be in very soon. Kenny Lofton, with 3.2% of the vote, will no longer be on the ballot. I don't understand the hate for Andre Dawson. Yes, a certain amount of his career numbers were based on longevity, but he was a true 5-tool player. People greatly undervalue how good of a defensive OF he was. And he put up those numbers - and trashed his knees - playing in the dome on turf in Montreal, and the voters recognized that. But very few players had the combination of power, speed, and defense that Dawson had. I think only four players in history have >400 HRs and 300 SBs; the other three are Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, and Alex Rodriguez. Plus he is in the top 30 all-time in total bases - more than Chipper Jones, Robin Yount, Craig Biggio, and Jim Thome among others.

Adam, My sincere condolences. Just a quick financial suggestion - if very little is owed on the house one option in which you might be able to get money but not give up the house is a reverse mortgage. Technically the bank owns the house but they make payments to you. This way you might be able to get some money but not have to deal with selling the house & moving. This could buy you some time to figure out if you really need to sell the house or can find another option. If you know where your father did his banking please go there ASAP and inquire about it. With a home equity loan you may not qualify because like any loan you have to pay it back and if you don't have income from a job they may not give it to you; you can't just take out money. The other option I recommend is selling anything that is replaceable (TV, furniture, car, etc., anything that doesn't have sentimental value). You can always replace it down the road. CarMax is an option for a quick vehicle sale. You are going to be under a lot of pressure to make a lot of quick decisions. Like someone else said, try not to make quick emotional decisions. Always take a day or two if you can, write down the pluses and minuses on a sheet of paper like a ledger and then try to make the best choice. It will be tough, but you can do it.

Post All-Star in 30 IP Veras gave up 20 hits, 15 BB (1.17 WHIP), 38 K, a .189 BA-A, and a 2.40 ERA. For the season he had a .344 OBP-A but only a .349 SLG-A. He walks guys, but doesn't give up many extra base hits or even hits for that matter that lead to big innings and that has been his career MO. Over the last three years in 186 IP he has only given up 147 hits. For one year and $2M I would have taken that in a heartbeat. You have to know what you are getting with him. He is going to walk guys, but you have to have the confidence that he is going to strike guys out and not give up hits.

I think what Logan is saying is that we need to see what we have with the young pitching before deciding which of those two ways to go. The upside of Peralta/Rogers/Fiers/Estrada is definite contenders with the Brewers offense behind them. But if Rogers fails to stay healthy, Fiers looks more like September than July, and Peralta has trouble finding the strike zone then they need to choose the rebuild path. We won't know those answers until at least June.

Did the last CBA do away with signing players to 10-day contracts? The Bucks could really use another PG right now. With Udrih out Ellis and Jennings have been playing a lot of minutes lately, and I'm wondering if that is impacting their shooting %. Unfortunately it is too early in the season for trades, as there are only 7 teams that really have no shot at the playoffs at this point and five of them are in the East. In a perfect world, one of them would have a veteran backup PG making around $7M that they could swap Gooden or Dalembert plus a 2nd round pick for, but I looked at the rosters and don't see one. With Przybilla having a relatively modest salary, I don't know why he hasn't been dropped to add another guard. At the least, a handshake agreement with him to bring him back once Udrih is ready to go. Like what I'm seeing from Sanders. I said last year his upside was a Marcus Camby type - not a scorer, but a guy who can give you 10 points, 10 boards, and 2/3 blocks a game and he's almost there. People criticized drafting him but you could argue that Gervais Vasquez was the only guy picked after him that year that is as good of a player.

Can't speak for other parts of the state, but the weight of the snow along with the wind is bringing down trees/branches here in Madison which is taking down power lines and making it difficult to plow. Snow is water, and water and broken power lines don't mix well. I'm guessing that is the reason for the cancellations - can't get around if the streets are blocked by trees and downed power lines. Plus I'm sure lots of parents will "exaggerate" a bit about being blocked in and not able to get their kids to school, so attendance would be light anyway. And if bus drivers can't get to work there is no one to take the kids to school.