Feb 15, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats mascot reacts with the student section in the second half against the Georgetown Hoyas at FifthThird Arena. Georgetown defeated Cincinnati 62-55. Mandatory Credit: Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports

The Cincinnati Bearcats baseball team may not be the most impressive on the baseball diamond as their 24-32 indicates and it didn’t get much better in Big East play with their record of 6-18. While the Bearcats may not be bringing in the wins that fans hope for from their team, it is what they do after the game is over that makes them one of the most exciting teams in college baseball.

They are unpredictable. They are humorous. They are photobombing masters.

There is a gallery on tumblr that features a number of the Bearcats quality post-game celebrations and you won’t believe just how great they are until you see them.

So without further introduction, check out the Cincinnati photobombing greatness. You will instantly become a Bearcat baseball fan.

May 19, 2012; Munich, GERMANY; Bayern Munich midfielder Thomas Muller (25) celebrates after scoring a goal against Chelsea during the UEFA Champions League final at Allianz Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mitchell Gunn-USA TODAY Sports

The 2013 Champions League final will be played this Saturday, May 25th (2:45 EST),  at Wembley Stadium in London, England, but it will feature two German juggernauts. Borussia Dortmund (BVB) is the 2012 Bundesliga Champion and they’ll be playing the 2013 Bundesliga Champions Bayern Munich (FCB).

This is the 4th time in 14 years that teams have played in the finals from the same country, and the first time two German teams have made the finals. The fist time it happened was in 1999-00 when Real Madrid defeated Valencia.

First place Bayern Munich finished so far ahead of second place Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga that they’re just a blip on the horizon. Bayern Munich finished the season with 91 points, a record of 29-4-1. That means throughout their 34 game season Munich lost just once…. ALL season.

Borussia Dortmund finished with a record of 19-9-6 and 66 points, meaning Munich finished 25 points ahead of Dortmund in the Bundesliga.

White both were offensively dominant in the recent Bundesliga season  (FCB scored 98 goals, BVB scored 81), one team was more dominant in the defensive third. While Dortmund allowed 42 goals, Munich only conceded 18 goals all season. That gives Munich a goal differential of +80, more than double Dortmund’s goal differential.

It doesn’t hurt that Bayern Munich was able to bench a goal scoring machine in Mario Gómez in favor of the equally and arguably more dominant Mario Mandžukić.

These teams have squared off 92 times and Bayern Munich holds the edge 41 wins to 23 and there have been 28 draws. This favors Munich greatly. But in all their meetings going back to the 11-12 season the record favors Dortmund. Dortmund has won 3 out of 7 contests. Munich has won 2 contests and 2 were draws.

More importantly, one of those Dortmund wins came in Munich.

But in what makes the one team favored over the other it really comes down to defense. Dortmund and Munich both have capable goal scorers in Robert Lewandoski and Mandžukić. Munich has a great midfield in Ribéry and Robben on the wings and Schweinsteiger (FYI, great German name) and Kroos in the middle. Dortmund’s midfield isn’t quite as strong, yet still quality. Their most promising midfielder Mario Götze has already agreed to transfer to Munich this summer.

And back to the defensive third. Dortmund’s strongest defender, Mats Hummels, is battling an injury. Munich has a strong defensive rotation of Dante, Lahm, Badstuber, Van Buyten, and Boateng.

This game comes down to defense, and Bayern Munich stops Dortmund more often and controls possession. Munich also has lost 2 of the last 3 Champions League finals. That experience helps them finally win this year.

Bayern Munich wins in my opinion.

Podcasts are the new talk radio and, like talk radio, it can often feel like a small selection of shows receive all the attention. As much as I love “This American Life,” “Fresh Air,” and the 200 other NPR shows that top the iTunes charts, the world of podcasts is filled with lesser-known gems waiting to fill your ears with aural nuggets of entertainment. Here are some of my favorites:

How Did This Get Made? – Subscribe on iTunes
Andre from The League, his real-life wife and star of Yahoo’s hilarious web series Burning Love, and Rafi from The League (also known as Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, and Jason Mantzoukas) rip apart terrible movies in an endearingly loving way. Much of the hilarity comes from the hosts, which often include a guest star, genuinely trying to figure out the gaping plot holes and deleterious acting choices. What’s nice is that the hosts never hate on a movie just to be funny; these brave warriors muddle through piles of celluloid shit to bring us an answer–how the hell did these movies ever get made?

If I Were You – Subscribe on iTunes
This podcast, featuring two CollegeHumor stars (that might be an oxymoron), is so funny, it will undoubtedly become much more popular. But get in touch with your hipster and get on this shiz from the beginning. Hosts Jake and Amir, most known for their ongoing, unbelievably epic prank war, answer reader’s quandaries with gut-busting anecdotes and mostly horrible advice. The first episode is one of the funniest half-hours I’ve heard in a long time. Get on it before your younger brother is telling you about it.

By The Way, In Conversation with Jeff Garlin - Subscribe on iTunes
I’ll just leave these names here: Larry David, Lena Dunham, Jeff Tweedy, J.J. Abrams, Mitch Hurwitz, Will Ferrell, Zach Galifanakis, Michael Moore, Matthew Weiner. Those are the first ten guests that took the stage at L.A.’s Largo for a live conversation with that guy from Curb Your Enthusiasm. It’s funny, enlightening, and candid, usually all at the same time. Just go ahead and subscribe to this one.

Comic Dorks! – Subscribe on iTunes
In my quest to be as uncool as possible in high school, I started reading comic books– first the mainstream heroes (Marvel, yo), then the more indie stuff. Real life got in the way of my habit, but I’ve drifted back to a medium that really does contains some wonderful, exciting stories. “Comic Dorks!” manages what few nerdy podcasts do–not make you feel like an idiot. Because it features a mix of old-school comic nerds and first-time readers (one dude is a professional woodworker), there’s something for everyone. They talk about the industry, recommend books, and discuss pop culture comic happenings. Despite being about comic books, it never feels esoteric. If you want an entry point into the world of comics, this is a good place to start.

Mascot Wedding – Subscribe on iTunes
My friend made me download this podcast, a recording of a local Austin radio show, despite my reluctance stemming from the nonsensical name (It’s Adam and Eve, not Adam and Mr. Met!). “Mascot Wedding” feels like having a beer with your funniest friends. They play some music, talk to some guests, but mostly just chat about movies, comedy, hobos, and whatever else is on their mind. Sadly, “Mascot Wedding” is going away, but there are nearly 300 episodes for you to sink your teeth into. Do it; it’s delicious.

Photo Credit: USA Today Sports

Despite the protests of Public Enemy, sometimes it is okay to believe the hype. Our pop culture universe would crumble without the cycle of anticipation, projection, hyperbole, and prediction. We need hype to sustain ourselves, to create debate, to give meaning and purpose to those horrible months of the year when there’s no football on TV. Hype is addictive; it requires more passion than analysis, meaning that anyone with two cents and a blog that earns three cents can jump into the fray, immediately becoming an important contributor to the hype machine (and everyone likes to feel important, right?). Hype is a bit nonsensical, sure, but it is undeniably fun.

The autumn of 2013 will present us with two great (and coincidentally named) case studies in hype: Andrew Wiggins and Ender Wiggin. The former is a basketball player heading to Kansas in the fall, a guy who is already being called the Canadian Jordan even though few people in the United States have seen him play. The latter is the titular hero of Ender’s Game, a movie by Gavin Hood based on the Hugo- and Nebula-winning novel by Orson Scott Card. Right now both the Wiggins are the recipients of astronomical hype from message boards across the Internet, with basketball nerds salivating over Andrew’s skill-set and book geeks eagerly anticipating the film adaptation of one of the most revered novels in science fiction.

While it is impossible at this juncture to say which of two will end up “earning” their hype, it is entirely possible to throw your proverbial hat into one ring instead to the other. Me? While I’m pretty sold on Andrew Wiggins’ game, I feel resolute in saying the hype surrounding Ender’s Game is completely misinformed and foolish, something akin to what happened before the 1998 NFL Draft with Ryan Leaf (or, if it is more fitting, something similar to all the hoopla that preceded the unbearably disappointing Watchmen movie).

(Quick tangent: The Ender’s Game novel was published in 1985. It is therefore ancient enough to dispense with the whole “spoiler alert” handwringing normally found across the Internet. I won’t go out of my way to reveal anything super critical, but keep in mind that you’ve had decades to read the book. While the twists haven’t reached the Bruce-Willis-in-The-Sixth-Sense level of general knowledge, the story isn’t exactly a mystery at this point. If you’re unnecessarily concerned that I’m going to somehow ruin the movie for you, go out and buy the book. Seriously, you can read it in a day or two.)

We’ll begin with basketball. What’s fascinating about the Andrew Wiggins hype is how little evidence it is based off of, yet how compelling and convincing that evidence is. This isn’t a situation like when LeBron James was a senior and his school played Oak Hill Academy on national television; most people outside of recruiters haven’t seen a complete game that Wiggins has played. The most popular highlight video showcasing his talents seems like something cobbled together from And-1 scrimmages, both in terms of the electrifying movies displayed by Wiggins and the utter lack of quality and competency displayed by his competition. Wiggins appears dominant, sure, but it is fair to say that he isn’t exactly taking on the crème de la crème of prep talent. Seriously, some of those guys he’s crossing up and dunking on look so geeky and white and un-athletic that I had to ask my parents if I had any long-lost siblings. I’m sure I could pull off moves like Wiggins if I was playing in a similarly diminished talent pool, which in my case would consist of me backing down seventh graders in the post like a lankier version of Z-Bo with less of a vertical.

That said, the video evidence is undeniably exciting. Wiggins appears to be a prototype for the future of the NBA; he’s a 6’8” wing player that can handle the ball like a guard and jump like House of Pain. Some of the things he can do with the ball fall into the fabled “you just can’t teach that” category. He has the type of “length”, “motor”, and “athleticism” that makes Jay Bilas weep with pure joy. He’s projected to dominate at Kansas next season, and I don’t see any reason why he won’t (although I am beyond excited to see him go up against Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart). His first major test as a player will be on November 12^th versus Duke (thankfully not on an aircraft carrier), and frankly I’m already pretty pumped.

However, it isn’t like Wiggins is the first prep prospect to be showered in hype. Anybody remember Jonathan Bender, the guy who set the record for most points scored in the McDonald’s All-American Game, surpassing some guy named Michael Jordan? Yeah, he was a bust. I recall being thrilled as a Blazers fan when the team drafted NYC phenom Sebastian Telfair in 2004, and he’s so irrelevant by now I had to look up the spelling of his name (I’m also a terrible speller). There’s Dejuan Wagner and his remarkable 100-point game, and he disappeared faster than Tom Cruise’s A-list credibility. High school accomplishments and accolades don’t directly translate to next-level success, which is why college freshmen freak out when they realize they can’t simply skim the reading and still receive good grades anymore (unless they’re really good at skimming)

In the case of Wiggins, though, I think the hype is appropriate. All reports indicate he has a good head on his shoulders, which is inaccurate because heads are attached to necks but that’s beside the point. Supernatural athletic gifts don’t really mean squat if you can’t focus or work hard, and so far there’s been nothing but praise for Wiggins’ attitude. Will he be the next Michael Jordan as some people are claiming? No, because Jordan was a once-in-a-lifetime psychopath talent. The highlights are spectacular enough to raise the comparison, though, and it is certainly justified that folks in Kansas are excited to have him next year. I’m not a betting man, but I’d wager to say the hype around Wiggins well end up being accurate.

On the other hand you have Ender’s Game, a film that I have zero confidence will live up to all its expectations or even be better than Bender’s Game. Like with Andrew Wiggins and his highlight mix, Ender Wiggin has little more to his name than a short trailer. What it shows, however, is not nearly as promising. The trailer is all excitement and explosions, CGI and gloss. The movie appears to be screaming, “Hey, isn’t space cool! Look, kids are blowing things up! I bet they’re having fun!” This would be an acceptable tone save for the fact that the book is about as far removed from glorifying the thrill of space combat as you can imagine. There are few “kid” novels as dark, evil, and psychologically horrifying as Ender’s Game. It is a book about emotional manipulation. It is a story where adults use lies and deceit to force children into committing acts of unspeakable violence. There is absolutely no sense of that psychological torment in the trailer; it looks like someone threw together discarded fight scenes from The Phantom Menace and made a fun little action film.

Of course, trailers aren’t always indicative of a film’s actual quality, but it is hard to give Ender’s Game the benefit of the doubt here. It’s a little disconcerting how the trailer makes sure you know EVERYONE has Academy Awards clout. It comes across as an insecure and ham-fisted attempt at establishing ethos, as if somehow the fact Abigail Breslin was nominated for an Oscar for the terrible Little Miss Sunshine inherently means Ender’s Game will be spectacular. I don’t buy it. As the Los Angeles Lakers hilariously proved this past basketball season, you can’t just throw together “star power” and create a quality product. When the studio focuses more on securing big names than remaining true to the spirit of the source material, it is hard to have faith that the finished product will be anything besides disappointing.

Orson Scott Card always pledged that he wouldn’t approve of an Ender’s Game adaptation unless he felt the filmmakers would capture the essence of his novel, which would be reassuring if Orson Scott Card wasn’t a crazy person. This is purely conjecture, but it seems a little suspicious to me that an Ender’s Game movie is finally coming out (it’s been rumored and discussed for over a decade) on the heels of Card’s plummet in popularity. Sci-fi fans used to revere Card despite his flaws as an author, mainly his inability to write series that don’t tale-spin into ridiculous messes of convoluted plot-threads and pointless new characters. His recent experiments with inexcusable bigotry, however, have alienated a contingent of his supporters, which certainly can’t be a boon for his bank account. It is perhaps cynical (and perhaps entirely incorrect) to see this movie as a “cash grab” on Card’s part, but there’s enough semi-evidence for me to want to fasten on my tinfoil hat.

This brings me to my biggest misgiving about the Ender’s Game movie: the decision to axe some of the most critical parts of the book in favor of telling a more action-packed story, while at the same time avoiding sincere depictions of said action and its consequences. Even with Card’s approval, I know the movie will drop the ball here. Though it involves aliens and spaceships and bombs and death, the Ender’s Game book isn’t wall-to-wall action. Almost half the book consists of Valentine and Peter, Ender’s respectively caring and sadistic siblings, machinating about ways to influence global politics via what are essentially blog entries. It doesn’t sound fascinating when described like that, but it is a critical component of the story. It appears the Peter and Valentine plot has been cut almost completely, ergo eliminating a huge emotional facet of the narrative.

While the decision to axe that arc makes some amount of sense on a purely entertainment-value level (people would rather watch crap blow up than teens wheedle their way into politics), the choice to focus on the “action” elements of the novel is guaranteed to be disingenuous to the original violence of the book. Simply put, the lack of an R rating is a travesty. Yes, R-rated movies don’t earn nearly as much as their PG-13 brethren, but that’s not the point. Kids are brutally killed in long, detailed, horrific ways in the Ender’s Game novel. The deaths are an essential part of the story. If the movie studio wants to showcase an action-packed movie, it is irresponsible to do so without demonstrating the unbearable psychological trauma that inflicting violence on others causes. Without the scenes of appalling child-on-child violence, or with sanitized versions of those scenes, the movie loses all credibility as a story about the dark underside to the lauded concepts of “heroes” and “war” and “sacrifice.” It’s okay if the movie doesn’t want to go to those uncomfortable places, but then it shouldn’t be called Ender’s Game.

In the end, though, only time and results will determine if my opinions regarding the respective Wiggins’ hype are correct. Perhaps Andrew Wiggins will be a bust, becoming another player more remembered for his highlight reels than his actual performance. I doubt it, though. And perhaps I’ll leave the theater on November 1^st without wanting to bemoan how Hollywood has mauled my childhood, but I doubt that, too. Yet my doubts are nothing more than pieces of the hype machine, ways for me to engage with pop culture events that haven’t occurred yet. Without hype we’d be stuck discussing only current events from the sports and film worlds, which isn’t exactly desirable; it is still too early in the baseball season for things to matter and nobody cares about After Earth. Sorry, hype is just more enjoyable.

Graphic via ZekeFilm.org

By day, I’m a mild mannered nurse at a local nursing home just off of I-80.

At night, I protect the city of Omaha from violence as Fantastico, Nebraska’s only Luchador Real-Life Superhero.

And today, I’m here to answer your questions about survival.

In order for you to feel confident in my advice, I’ll give you some of my credentials. I’ll try to keep it brief, but it’s difficult to sum up a man’s worth in a few words. I’ll try though.

First off, I make all my own armor, so you can guaran-fuckin-tee I’m legit. I find that most store bought armor isn’t as flexible as I need it to be. My superhuman reflexes cannot be slowed if I need to climb a small fence or hide in a dumpster. Crime doesn’t fit into a nice little box and I need to be able to adapt with the crime I chase. Flexibility is paramount. Home-made armor can be customized to fit my heavier build as well.

I also make my own weapons too, so you can double down on the guarantee of legit-ness. Weapons are very expensive if you go the store-bought route. Plus certain items just aren’t for sale. Grappling hook guns, for one. I made my own at home and got a pretty severe burn around the genital area when it discharged on my belt in beta phase. Too bad for crime, I healed within a week and was back on the streets keeping our fair metropolis safe from dirtbaggery. Special shout out to Dr. George at the nursing home for that prescription salve he hooked me up with.

Even with my large armory and weapon catalog, I find the best way to fight crime is with my brain and my fists. I’ve been training at a martial arts studio, but I find that my dojo can’t keep up with my voracious appetite for new moves. So I supplement my training by watching the moves of the masters. I even have this sweet set-up in my basement with cardboard obstacles and a makeshift film room to tape my progress for later review. Before you even ask, yes, it is MY basement. I moved out of my parent’s house a few years ago. Come on guys, I’m in my mid thirties. I need a true lair and sharing a house wasn’t cutting it. To your letters:

Dear Fantastico,

I had a dream the other night that my neighbor was chasing me with a chainsaw. In the dream, I had trouble keeping my footing and eventually tired out and my neighbor caught me. As he was about to lower the blade on to me, I woke up in a cold sweat.

If this was to happen in real life, how do I avoid a guy wielding a chainsaw?

Thanks,
Blake H.

Oh boy. So glad you asked. So Glad.

I get this question asked in the field a lot. I’d say of the hundreds of thousands of people who’ve stopped me on the street this has to be one of the top 75 or so questions I get.

I myself have never had to run from a chainsaw, but as noted before, I have watched a million old movies and have a pretty good feel on how to avoid death by chainsaw.

1. AVOID TEXAS AT ALL COSTS – In my research, I’ve found that most of the chainsaw deaths in the USA happen in this region of the country. I would also avoid the Pacific Northwest and hardware stores. A hardware store in Texas? No way–get your lumber delivered.
2. IF YOU ARE GOOD LOOKING DON’T WANDER OFF – Be honest on this one guys. If you’re a 6 out of 10 or below, you should be pretty safe to wander off alone. I, myself, am a 7 on a bad day, so I have to stay with a group. Honesty is key here, though. No need to stay with the group if you’re a fatty. You can wander to the 7-11 and get Slurpees and whatever.
3. DON’T PICK UP HITCHIKERS – This is good tip for all situations unless it’s a sibling or a friend. Hitchhikers directly increase your odds of running into a guy with a chainsaw. Most hitchhikers are down on their luck, and human nature is to act out when hard pressed. Be prepared for odd behaviors and bartering items if you’re dealing with hitchhikers.
4. ALWAYS CARRY EXTRA GAS IN THE CAR WHILE DRIVING – This one makes me laugh a bit. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a car run out of gas and then, sure enough, bad things happen. It happens with such frequency you would think people would know by now. I always carry a few extra gas cans in the car when I borrow one. Always.
5. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A WORKING CELL PHONE – In my research, I’ve found that some people don’t even carry a cell phone on them. Bad Idea. I encourage everyone to practice dialing 911 on their phones with their eyes closed or even with their hands tied behind their back. Every time I leave the house, I tape a fully charged cell phone to the small of my back. Uncomfortable? Yes. Totally prepared? Like a Webelos.
6. BE PREPARED TO RUN LONG, I MEAN, LONG DISTANCES – Sometimes your best bet is to start running. A tank of gas on a chainsaw usually lasts anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour if it isn’t engaged. I usually run a mile in little over three minutes. I have to be prepared to run 20+ miles if I run for an hour. Most of you won’t be able to do that, but I suggest working on your stamina and agility. I usually stretch for approximately 90 to 120 minutes before I leave the house every day.
7. CARRY A CHAINSAW WITH YOU – I’ve never heard of a man with a chainsaw attacking another man with a chainsaw. I’ve done a ton of research on this one and I’ve never come across it. I also recommend carrying extra gas with you, so if for whatever reason, it does happen, your chainsaw will be able to outlast the other guys.
8. TRAVEL VIA PLANE TO YOUR DESTINATION – The TSA doesn’t catch everything, but they have approximately a 28% chance of not allowing someone on a plane with a chainsaw.

There you go. Fantastico’s survival tips to avoid death by chainsaw. This is a guideline, not a manual, people. You’ll also have to use some of your innate cunning and guile in order to stop a chainsaw attack before it happens.

If, God forbid, you’re alone and you’ve forgotten your chainsaw, forgot your cell phone, got tired of running and can no longer can fend off a chainsaw attack, just let it happen. You can do twice the damage by trying to fight back. You’d actually be helping the sawing process. Just lay there and hope for help, maybe a lightning strike or something.

Until next time–stay safe out there, dammit.

“They see a black man with a white woman/At the top floor they gone come to kill King Kong” – Kanye West in “Black Skinhead”

Even by his standards, Kanye West had a crazy past week.

First, he played at a super secret Adult Swim party, where he went on an epic rant about SNL. Then he did a really awkward Saturday Night Live promo with host Ben Affleck and departing cast member Fred Armison. Next, he debuted a track called “New Slaves”off his upcoming album by simultaneously projecting it on 66 buildings worldwide in cities like Berlin, Chicago and Paris. After that, he rocked the SNL finale with performances of “New Slaves” and another new track entitled “Black Skinheads.” He even got some Twitter love from Michael Moore for taking a shot at the CCA. If all that wasn’t controversial enough, yesterday a Kanye-Kim-iTunes ménage à trois let it slip that his next album would be called Yeezus — as in Yeezy + Jesus — and will drop June 18.

Eddie Strait and Ramon Ramirez, our two resident Ye experts from FanSided partner Bro Jackson, join me, FanSided Co-Founder/Yeezy apologist Adam Best, as we try to make some sense out of Kanye’s latest takeover.

His rant at the Adult Swim shindig was similar to Charles Barkley once famously saying, “I’m not a role model.” Except it was way more ranty and, well, Kanye-ish. He stated that he’s not a celebrity, or running for office, or kissing babies, and that he’s only going to make music — don’t ask anything else of him. And don’t under any circumstance try to humanize him. With a lot of MFs tossed in there. When has being an asshole ever been this good for business? Was this a calculated move or more of Kanye just being Kanye?

Eddie: I think this is just Kanye being Kanye. The more famous he gets, the more brash and unrelenting his personality becomes. In a world where the majority of people in the spotlight micromanage their image and do whatever they can to not offend people, I still find Ye’s bluntness refreshing. I always wonder when I’ll reach my breaking point and stop defending him, but honestly, as long as the music is great and interesting, I don’t really care. Everyone wants to judge him, and he makes it really easy to do so, but that’s a fruitless exercise. Unless I ever come to meet him or know him personally, all I really care about is the music.

I saw a really funny tweet recently that addressed the question of whether Kanye was always this way or if fame changed him. The tweeter said that Kanye was basically like Walter White. There were seeds on College Dropout that hinted at what he would become and we’ve witnessed the transformation over his discography. Kanye, like Walt, has become the villain in his own story. But he’s such a compelling and divisive figure that people can’t look away. One thing people agree on with Ye is the quality of his music. That will always keep him relevant and the ridiculous behavior will keep people talking about him.

Adam: Are we sure that all people agree on the quality of Kanye’s musical catalog? His discography is as flawless as perhaps any discography ever (through five albums), but during my time as an unabashed Yeezy supporter I’ve encountered some less favorable opinions. Half this country still doesn’t take rap seriously. And with rappers like French Montana and Kanye cohort 2 Chainz running around, who can blame them. That said, from PE to ATCQ to Dre to Wu to Kast to Jigga to Shady to Ye to Weezy to K.Dot, rap/hip-hop has been the dominant musical genre of the past 25 years. Hands down. Yet it’s still treated like its a second-class citizen.

The Taylor Swift interruption thingy is still a big problem. It’s the Jennifer Aniston Effect. In America, we act like we know celebrities. We try to know their personal lives. We takes sides. Eff that. They are entertainers not friends or family. Besides, how much do we really know? Sure, in the case of someone like, say, O.J. Simpson, you have to get off the fence and say this is a bad person. Otherwise, they are entertainers and should be respected or not based on the quality of the entertainment they produce. Taylor Swift is a joke of an artist; Kanye West is perhaps our most artistic star. That’s why I think Kanye is frustrated. He’s likely the artist of the new millennium so far, yet to half of the country he’s “Kim Kardashian’s black boyfriend” or that guy Obama called a “jackass.” Many people aren’t even aware that he was a prolific producer before blowing up as a rapper.

At this point, I’m frustrated.

Perhaps Kanye should be most frustrated with himself. On one hand, you always have to be bigger, bolder and, yes, sometimes ridiculous to keep trending in a world full of tweets, status updates and short attention spans. On the other hand, he’s a very serious artist, but it’s hard to take a guy serious when he’s throwing tantrums on live TV and romantically involved with a Kardashian. Overall, I think this is both him being frustrated and a calculated move to stay relevant. He knows speaking his mind, and doing so in somewhat dramatic fashion, is part of his brand. So now it’s become part of his ritual.

Ramon: I think it’s important to remember the context of where Kanye is today. A buddy of mine wrote this post about 2010′s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy on our defunct hip-hop blog (#RIP, #MomentOfSilence) that strikes a nerve:

“All Falls Down,” “Heard ‘Em Say,” “Touch the Sky,” “Stronger,” “Good Life” — You wouldn’t think it to look at his public image, but time and time again Kanye has been known for these good-hearted, Annie-esque, motivational pop songs. It’s really been his M.O.: Up until the psychic catharsis of 808s and Heartbreak, his albums are largely filled with these anthemic neo-spirituals… But what has all that got him? The ugly truth is that large swaths of the public hate his guts. He’s been seen alternately as a laughing stock, a vapid egotist, and a bigot.

And yeah, that hasn’t changed. If you read Pitchfork’s analysis of the Adult Swim rant — I won’t front and act like I came across the post organically–they write it like he’s threatening to drop your baby. In reality, he’s making a clear point that doesn’t want to hold your baby, make a mistake, and then get sued for millions.

His goodwill is completely exhausted and there’s no point in trying to please anyone else. In another concert rant from years ago about his Taylor Swift moment, he very clearly made the point that he was (1) sorry about it; (2) apologized publicly to Swift; (3) she had every opportunity to publicly accept his apology and did not; and that (4) he really felt in his heart it was the right thing to do (“Am I the only one here that’s not crazy?”) And yeah, it was the right thing to do and I’m grateful he made a scene over art–no matter how pointless and arbitrary a Moon Man statue was by 2009.

West seems rejuvenated. His last summer solo release–2007′s Graduation–basically made everything fun and was a defining soundtrack to cookouts and beach volleyball. The two new tracks are darker and abrasive, but I’m fairly certain Yeezus will run most of 2013 because that’s what his albums do.

What I don’t understand is folks that dislike Kanye and then appreciate his music: very few artists pour more of themselves into their music than ‘Ye.

Canada’s Andrew Wiggins (8) soars high to the basket for a slam dunk at the 2012 Hoop Summit in Portland, Ore., last April 7. (Sam Forencich/Getty Images) [H/T: CBC]

His parents, friends and classmates were left in the dark, wondering where he would go. Wondering where this kid, in the lone spotlight with the biggest smile on his face, would go.

Wiggins didn’t want the attention. The quiet, teenager from Thornville, Ontario didn’t want the limelight. He just wanted to be left alone, to enjoy his life and make his decision on his own. And that’s what Wiggins did as he announced his decision at the gym at his high school, Huntington Prep (W.Va), where there were no live cameras. Just his parents, friends, family members and a local reporter, Grant Taylor, there to tweet it out to the rest of the world. And with that, the suspense was over. Wiggins is going to Kansas.

If you followed me on Twitter, you would know how excited I am about Wiggins going to the NBA. As a Torontonian, the city hasn’t had much success in the basketball market. Sure we’re fortunate enough to have an NBA team, the Toronto Raptors, but the team hasn’t had much success. Our biggest accomplishment was obtaining the Atlantic Division title in 2007, but with all that’s said and done, we haven’t been in the playoffs since five years.

When people think of Toronto, or Canada for the matter, they don’t think about famous Canadian NBA-ers because quite frankly, we never had any great basketball players. Sure we had Joel Anthony and three-time NBA champions, Rick Fox and Bill Wennington, but if you went down your neighborhood or city and asked the casual NBA fan who those players were, they most likely wouldn’t have a single clue. They would probably know about Steve Nash, the eight time NBA All-Star. Still, he was born in South Africa (Nash moved to Saskatchewan and British Columbia at 18 months old, making him a Canadian citizen. Theoretically, his hometown was British Columbia) so he’s not a Canadian born native. I still respect him for his love of the country.

To further exemplify my proof, go ask people who Kris Joseph, Andrew Nicholson, or even Corey Joseph are and they won’t have the slightest clue. That however would change thanks to the emergence of the No. 1 high school prospect and consensus top pick in the 2014 NBA draft, Andrew Wiggins.

Ever since the founder of the game, a Canadian by the name of James Naismith (yes, basketball was invented by a Canadian. No I am not lying) created basketball, we seen the rise of many American players. Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, James Worthy, Wilt Chamberlin, Bill Russell the list goes on and on. American players have dominated the league for decades, all of them creating a name for themselves as one of the best to ever touch a basketball.

How many of you can name a Canadian born athlete who would right now go down in the history books as one of the best? Neither one of you can because it never happened. I don’t want to put too much pressure on Wiggins but when he does enter the NBA next year, he’ll have an enormous impact on the game itself.

What makes Wiggins so dominate is that he’s able to practically do everything on the floor. At 6’8” and approximately 200 pounds, Wiggins can create his own shots, has amazing body control and is a dynamite in transition. Offensively, he can shot the 3 balls, the mid-range jumpers, and has strong post presence. He doesn’t hesitate at all and his ball-handling skills are off the charts. To top it all off, he’s unselfish. He doesn’t need the ball to contribute. He’s humble and would gladly share the ball.

He’s also a beast on the defensive end. His wingspan of 7’0” aids him in locking down defenders, and stopping them before they come close to the painted area. In short, Wiggins is a terrific athletic with immense athleticism. He’s a one of a kind athlete and perhaps the best athlete in the game right now since Lebron James.

Heck, even ESPN NBA insider, Chad Ford, says Wiggins would go number one overall, if he could.

“(Nerlens) Noel is a really good NBA prospect. He’s just not a franchise-changing player,” said one GM whose team will be in the draft lottery. “[However,] Wiggins is one of the three or four best prospects in the last decade. He has the ability to completely turn around a franchise. All 30 teams would take him with the No. 1 pick if they could.”

Case in point, Wiggins is a rare athlete and could be the heir to James’ throne. I say could because I want to give Wiggins time to develop and showcase his capabilities at Kansas.

Because of the ridiculous NBA eligibility rules which states a player must take a year off after graduating high school or attend a college for one year, Wiggins won’t go number one this draft year, however he will go number one overall next year and he should rightfully so. Wiggins needs to be drafted first overall. Aside from the fact that he’s in a different class of his own, he would create history as the first Canadian born athlete to go number one overall in the NBA draft.

He’ll essentially open the doors for Canadian basketball basically stating that Canada isn’t just filled with hockey-crazed citizens who live in igloos and have polar bears as next-door neighbors. No, Canada has some spectacular athletes and maybe, just maybe, Canadian children will witness his dominance on the court, stare in awe and aspire to make it to the NBA.

Aside from Wiggins, other prominent up and coming Canadians who are trying to make a name for themselves in the league are Anthony Bennett and Myck Kabongo, both from Toronto. Both those guys will be entering this year’s NBA draft. Tristan Thompson, another Toronto native, was the 4^th pick in the 2011 NBA draft.

The Canadian takeover of the NBA is happening. We need to embrace it and these guys, along with Wiggins may help open the door into the golden age of Canadian basketball.

If you’re like me, a proud Canadian who loves the game of basketball more than any other sport, then you’re sick and tired of players not wanting to play for Canada either on the national team in the Olympics or in the NBA. The Raptors have breed many star athletes. Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady and Chris Bosh. Those guys developed their skills, flourished and took their talents somewhere else as soon as they had the opportunity. Athletes seem to not want to play for Toronto and it drives me nuts.

In an article by National Post author, Bruce Arthur, where he writes about Nash’s influence in trying to build the Canadian national basketball program, Nash puts it perfectly saying,

“Look back 10 years or so, when players didn’t feel a need or a want to play for Canada,” Nash says. “I don’t think there’s that tangible tradition for our program. We have to be a program that really benefits the players. We used to say, ‘You have to play for Canada.’ Why? Because it’s your country. We have to do better than that.”

I understand the money may not be there to cover the expenses it cost to cover a national team, but that needs to change. We need athletes wanting to represent Canada and maybe their efforts will receive recognition. Maybe funders will see this as a groundbreaking moment and start to throw money at Canadian basketball so these players can compete internationally and represent the country proudly.

In regards to the NBA, there needs to be another NBA team. The Raptors, which consist of 15 players at the most is already makes it hard enough to land a spot on the roster. Another Vancouver Grizzlies is in order or a new franchise in a different province so athletes, who wouldn’t mind playing for Canada, won’t have to fight for a spot on the only current Canadian team.

A win-win situation would be Canada having another franchise and the the return of Seattle Supersonicsback in the NBA but of course that takes years and years to create and investors to become interested.

Wayne Parrish, the CEO of Canada basketball, who is working with Nash to further the national program, says because the demand isn’t there, they have to cut players from the team.

“We’re heading to a place when we will have to cut NBA players for the national team,” Parrish says. “And hopefully the bond is so strong that they’ll get it.”

Canada needs basketball back. We need it to be recognized internationally and  be known for our love of the game. Investors need to realize the opportunity and potential there is in the Canadian basketball program.

As one commenter put it,

“Basketball was invented by a Canadian. Time to bring it back to the north.

I couldn’t agree more.

May 18, 2013; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos (61) hits during the game against the Detroit Tigers at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Texas won 7-2. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

This week showcases a few “sleeper” teams in the top 5. Teams you don’t hear about, teams that never get media coverage. But it’s these teams that despite being hidden, are showing their talents in a loud way: being a leader in their division.

1. Texas Rangers

The Texas Rangers move to the top spot after an impressive week against pretty powerful teams. The Rangers went 5-2 this past week, including series’ wins over the Athletics and Tigers. The Tigers were able to hold off the Tigers last Sunday, despite Miguel Cabrera going 4-4 with three homeruns. A key player to contribute has been LF David Murphy, who has finally raised his BA above .200 since opening day. Murphy hit a three run homer that was crucial to swinging the momentum back to the Rangers.

2. New York Yankees

The Yankees may have fallen from the top spot, but they didn’t go far. Their week just did not compare to the Rangers, going 4-2 (with one game PPD) which included wins over struggling Mariners and Blue Jays. Their current series in Baltimore may not be as crucial as we thought; the Orioles went 0-6 this past week and are slipping in the rankings. If the rest of the season shapes up to how it is now, the race for the AL East will be between the Yankees and Red Sox, not the Orioles.

3. Arizona Diamondbacks

I don’t think anyone expected to see the Arizona Diamondbacks this high. I know I was surprised, and I was even more surprised when I realized it was the Diamondbacks leading the NL West, not the Giants. This past week they won their series against the Braves and Marlins, and now enter Colorado for a little divisional rivalry series. Paul Goldschmidt has been very successful recently, including in Arizona’s 9-2 win over Miami. Goldschmidt had four hits, four RBIs and was a triple shy of hitting the cycle.

4. Cleveland Indians

This is another team that is surprising to see this high. They lead over the AL Central over the Detroit Tigers. After sweeping the Mariners in a four game series and splitting a two game series with the Phillies, the Indians are sitting on a 26-17 record. In their 10-4 win over the Phillies, the Indians were able to quickly expose left-hander Cole Hamels, as Hamels gave up six hits five runs, two homers in five innings and quickly made his pitch count rise. Being patient while at bat against Hamels and not chasing anything, was crucial for the Indians in their win.

5. Pittsburgh Pirates

While the Pirates had a great week going 5-1, they are still stuck in third of the NL Central. The Pirates week included a 3-1 series win over the Brewers and a 2-1 series win over the Astros. Many of these games have been close, in which the bullpen gets to show off its dominance and record the win. And thanks to a powerful performance last Sunday, pitcher Jeff Locke has seen his ERA drop to 2.73 and recorded the shutout. He is now the third pitcher on the Pirate’s starting rotation to have ERAs under 3.00.

6. Cincinnati Reds

While the Reds are still a dominant team at 27-18 and second in the NL Central, this week started a nine game road trip. They started out with a 3-0 sweep over struggling Marlins, then dropped their series to the Phillies, and now enter New York to face the also-struggling Mets.

7. St Louis Cardinals

While a similarly dominant team to the Reds, the Cardinals were average this past week. They went 4-3, bringing their overall record to 28-16. They went 3-1 against the Mets, 2-1 against the Brewers and dropped the first game of their series against the Padres. The week ahead will be a test, visiting the Dodgers on the road and starting a four game series on the road against the Royals for two games, and then two games at home. Their pitching needs to stay strong, Miller has an ERA of 1.74 and behind him Wainwright is at 2.51.

8. Atlanta Braves

With all the attention on the Yankee’s success despite millions of dollars sitting the bench on the DL, the Braves are quietly still leading the NL East. Atlanta’s week went from going 1-2 in their series against the Diamondbacks to sweeping the Dodgers at home. Justin Upton was huge in the series against the Dodgers, hitting a grand slam in Friday’s game that ultimately won it for the Braves. Upton is leading the Braves in batting average at .280, runs at 33, home runs at 14 and RBIs at 28. The week ahead should be easy for the Braves, with the Mets and Blue Jays on the calendar.

9. Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox have now fallen to one game back in the AL East to the Yankees. Not because they haven’t been dominant, they went 5-2 this past week including a three game sweep of the Twins. In fact, during Saturday’s 12-5 win against the twins David Ortiz could not be stopped. Ortiz hit a three run homer in the first, brought in another run in the third thanks to an line drive single to right, and homered again in the seventh on a two run shot to right center. Ortiz is a crucial asset on offense who will be key to stop if opposing teams want success against the Red Sox. Especially when the AL East race heats up.

10. San Francisco Giants

While it might surprise you the Giants are not the leader in the NL West, the way they performed this past week confirms this. The Giants were swept by the Blue Jays in a two game series, and then went 1-3 in their series against divisional rival Rockies. The week ahead seems to be equally as difficult, as the Nationals come to AT&T Park followed by the Rockies.

11. Colorado Rockies

The Colorado Rockies may be only 24-21, but this past week did not reflect that. The Rockies lost their series to the Cubs, but then turned to go 3-1 in a four game series against the Giants. Jordan Pacheco, a hitter who doesn’t have a homerun on the season, hit his first Friday against the Giants in a flashy way. Two outs in the fifth, Pacheco hits a grand slam into left field off Madison Bumgarner, his first of his career.  This pushed the Rockies ahead of the Giants and was the hit that ultimately brought the Rockies the win.

12. Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics are currently in the second of the AL West, but they are 5.5 games behind the Texas Rangers. If they want to start moving up in the rankings, any series against the Rangers is crucial. The A’s dropped their last series to the Rangers but turned the week around by sweeping the Royals. A week later they are playing the Rangers again, this time in Arlington. The A’s almost rallied in the tenth to beat the Rangers, but came up short. The A’s had the bases loaded with one out and could not bring a run across, and they lost. This is something they will need to work on in order to avoid the loss in close games.

13. Washington Nationals

The Nationals are almost to the end of their ten-game West Coast road trip. This trip included a series loss to the Dodgers, a split with the Padres, and then a three game series against the Giants.  After a day of rest on Thursday the Nationals will welcome the Phillies into D.C. and then play half a four-game series against the Orioles at home and then finish up in Baltimore. Pitcher Andrew Cashner was again dominant for the Padres, and the Nationals couldn’t stop their offense in their 13-4 loss last Sunday.

14. Detroit Tigers

The Detroit Tigers have made a slight fall, mainly thanks to their poor performance against the Rangers, going 1-3 in the four game series. Sunday’s game was an offensive powerhouse, Miguel Cabrera hit three home runs and Prince Fielder delivered a bases-clearing double. Yet the Tigers still fell to the Rangers. Doug Fister only went 4.2 innings, allowed nine hits and five earned runs, had three strikeouts and a 3.62 ERA. The bullpen was not able to stop the runs and the Tigers fell to the Rangers, 11-8.

15. Tampa Bay Rays

The Rays are now tied for third in the AL East with the Baltimore Orioles. Both teams are four games back and the rest of the season for both these teams could go either way. A crucial factor in the AL East race was the sweep of the Orioles this past week by the Rays. However, the Rays could only go 1-2 against the Red Sox the series before. The Rays have currently split their series against the Blue Jays, with the last game being played this afternoon. And then on Friday they head to New York to face the Yankees in a three game weekend series. It has certainly been an AL East filled past two weeks for the Rays.

16. Baltimore Orioles

This was a surprising fall that I definitely did not see coming. Before yesterday’s walk off win in the tenth inning against the Yankees the Orioles were riding a six game losing streak. A huge factor that contributed to this was closer Jim Johnson, who had just broken the Orioles record for most consecutive saves, proceeds to blow three consecutive saves. His win yesterday brings his record to 2-4, which is not normal in Jim Johnson fashion. Pitching needs work if the Orioles want to compete for the AL East title.

17. San Diego Padres

This week has been impressive for the Padres, going 5-2 with a sweep over the Orioles, a split with the Nationals and then winning the first game of their series with the Cardinals. Their weekend included a 13-4 win over the Nationals, in which Andrew Cashner was again dominant. Cashner allowed three runs in six and two thirds innings, one walk and six strikeouts. Cashner has proven he can excel in the starting rotation, and since moving into the rotation he is 3-2 with a 2.80 ERA in six starts.

18. Chicago White Sox

The White Sox are proving themselves as contenders in the NL Central. They won their series against the Twins this past week, split their series with the Angels, and have won the first two games of their current series with the Red Sox. The Marlins and Cubs come into town next, which should help move them forward in their division.

19. Philadelphia Phillies

With a 21-24 record, the Phillies have been performing just “average.” This past week also helps prove this fact. The Phillies split their two games series with the Indians, won their series 2-1 against the Reds, and have gone 1-1 in the current series against the Marlins. I think a good word to describe this team is inconsistent. You never know what you’re going to get with the Phillies.  This will be put to the test with their upcoming road series against the Nationals and Red Sox.

20. Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners (20-25) showed the baseball world that the New York Yankees are beatable. They won their series 2-1, including beating the Yankees 12-2 last Wednesday. This momentum was crushed after being swept in four games to the Indians. The Mariners now start their two game series with a similar Angels’ team, and then hit the road to face the Rangers. Let’s see if they can do to the Rangers what they did to the Yankees.

21. Kansas City Royals

While the Kansas City Royals may be struggling, they are still in third of the AL Central only 4.5 games back. The Royals beat the Angels 2-1 and outscored them 22-15. The Royals turned around to be swept by the Athletics and then drop the first game of their series to the Astros. Pitcher Guthrie has been strong with five wins, 32 strikeouts and a 3.49 ERA. With the Angels back on the schedule this week, the four game series should be a real confidence booster for the Royals. Or we hope.

22. Toronto Blue Jays

The Blue Jays last week went from sweeping the Giants and outscoring them 21-9, to being swept by the Yankees on the road. They are currently 1-1 in the series with the Rays, with the Orioles in town starting Thursday. Toronto is currently ten games in the AL East, and a week filled with divisional rivals will help them move up if they make it happen.

23. Los Angeles Dodgers

It is an understatement to say this season so far has been disappointing for Dodgers fans. They are 18-25 and last in the NL West seven games back. This week has been equally disappointing for the Dodgers, going 2-1 against the Nationals and then being swept by the Braves. They now begin a series with an equally struggling Brewers team, in which the Dodgers won game one. The Cardinals in town will be a struggle, but behind them come their neighbor Angels who are equal competition.

24. Chicago Cubs

The Cubs only played six games this past week, and they won two of them. One came from the Mets and one from the Rockies, to avoid the sweep. They are ten games back in the Central, tied with Milwaukee. The start of the series with the Pirates resulted in a loss, thanks to a grand slam by the Pirates in the fifth.

25. Minnesota Twins

Like the Orioles, the Twins went 0-6 this past week. This included a series loss to the White Sox and a sweep by the Red Sox. A road trip to Atlanta and Detroit will not help that streak get much better. The Twins were outscored by the Red Sox 20-8, including a 12-5 loss on Saturday. Pitching has been a problem for the Twins, their second best pitcher has an ERA of 6.20.

26. Los Angeles Angels

There just does not seem to be any good news for the Angels this season. They are fourth in the AL West with a 17-27 record. They managed three wins this past week, two coming against the White Sox, one from the Royals. Pitching hasn’t been great, their leader Vargas has an ERA of 3.55 which certainly isn’t terrible, but could have room for improvement. Trout is still consistent, .278 batting average with eight homeruns and 29 RBIs.

27. New York Mets

Playing the Reds at home is certainly not the best way to start your week. And this shows for the Mets, for they’ve already dropped the series with one game left to play tonight. And then the Braves and Yankees come into town, all top ten teams. It’s going to be a tough week for the Mets.

28. Milwaukee Brewers

The 17-26 Brewers could only manage one win this past week, and it happened to come against the Cardinals to avoid the sweep. The Dodgers come into town for the Brewers’ current series, in which they already dropped game one. While the Pirates coming to town later this week will not be easy, the series against the Twins should be more comfortable and gives the Brewers and opportunity to bring their momentum up.

29. Houston Astros

With the same record as the Miami Marlins, performance this last week determined who ended up in the last spot. The Astros managed a 3-3 week, going 1-2 against the Pirates and Tigers. They now welcome the Royals into town, in which they won game one. But this week will only get tougher with the Athletics and Rockies on the schedule starting Friday.

30. Miami Marlins

It is Miami that ends up in the bottom spot this week. Like I said before, this had to do with this past week’s performance, in which the Marlins went 2-5. They were swept by the Reds and went 1-2 against the Diamondbacks, now at home against the Phillies in which they’ve currently split 1-1. With the White Sox on the road, they have a chance to move out of this bottom spot.

With all speculation in the rear-view mirror, all 30 NBA teams now know where they will be picking on draft day. The Cleveland Cavaliers won the lottery once again, for the second time in three years. In 2011, the Cavs took Kyrie Irving with the first overall pick. For anyone that has been living under a rock for the past two seasons, Irving is good, really good.

The NBA draft combine took place in Chicago this past week, and undoubtedly, stocks have risen and fallen since. Some of the biggest names in college and international basketball were measured, worked out, and went through drills in front of coaches, scouts, and executives of every NBA team. Potentially, some may have made themselves a little extra money, some may have lost a little money, and some may have lost an opportunity to play on the world’s biggest stage.

With all that said, it has been an eventful week when it comes to the NBA offseason, particularly the draft process. Here is a pick-by-pick prediction and analysis of the first-round.

1. Cleveland Cavaliers: Nerlens Noel, Center, Kentucky

Once again, the team with the worst record in the NBA failed to win the league’s draft lottery. Orlando has been the only team to do so since 1990. In 2004, they did win the lottery and it worked out well for them when they selected Dwight Howard. Cleveland hopes that they may have similar luck with the first overall pick in the 2013 draft.

However, not long after the lottery concluded, Brian Windhorst of ESPN reported that the Cavaliers will investigate trade options. The Cavs currently have the 1st and 19th picks of the first-round, along with salary cap space to spare.

If Cleveland can not get a team to offer anything enticing enough to spark their interest, they will likely go with the top prospect in the entire draft class, Kentucky’s Nerlens Noel.

Noel is an elite shot-blocker and athlete. He has the explosiveness to get off the floor as quick as anyone and possesses the rare ability to block shots with either hand. Unfortunately, Noel is still not a “can’t miss” prospect. There are concerns about his small frame and ailing knee. After just 24 games at Kentucky, the freshman superstar tore his ACL in a game against Miami.

All signs point to Noel being able to return at full-strength. However, knee injuries tend to always linger with big men. Take Andrew Bynum for instance. Noel still possesses the most upside of anyone in the 2013 draft class and would essentially be a perfect fit in Cleveland. Tristan Thompson has proven himself as one of the up-and-coming power forwards in the NBA, and Anderson Varajeo will return after missing much of the 2012-2013 season due to injury. Noel would not be pressured to rush the rehabilitation process and with All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving improving daily along with the return of Varajeo, Cleveland could potentially find themselves in the thick of the playoff race come April.

2. Orlando Magic: Trey Burke, Point Guard, Michigan

Orlando failed to land the number one pick in the draft despite finishing with the worst record in the NBA a season ago. While it is always a disappointment to be picking second when expected to go first, it may make their decision easier come June 27th.

In my past mock drafts, I have had Orlando taking Trey Burke with the first overall pick. Now with the draft order set and the Magic picking second, it means they will likely not have to contemplate taking Nerlens Noel despite already having a budding superstar at center in Nikola Vucevic.

Although Burke may go second overall if the Magic stay where they are, he is not viewed as the second best prospect in the draft. With that taken into consideration, the Magic may decide to trade down in hopes that Burke will still be on the board. After the Magic, there isn’t a team that really needs a point guard until the Sacramento Kings, who pick seventh.

Michael Jordan and Charlotte are reportedly very interested in Ben McLemore. They may want to trade up into the second slot to secure the two-guard. Any team that thinks very highly of McLemore or Georgetown’s Otto Porter may consider trying to move up to get one or the other.

However, if the Magic can not trade the second overall pick or are content with where they are at, I expect them to take Burke. In just his sophomore season, Burke was the consensus National Player of the Year and the point guard of the best offense in college basketball. More than likely, he is one player in the incoming rookie class that could come in and contribute right away. With Jameer Nelson aging ever so quickly along with his injury concerns, Trey Burke may be finding a new home in Orlando.

3. Washington Wizards: Otto Porter Jr., Small Forward, Georgetown

Washington were the big winners in the 2013 draft lottery, landing the 3rd overall pick despite having just the 7th best chances at winning the lottery at just 2.8%.

Washington can go a lot of different ways here. They could go with a big man such as Alex Len, but with him now having injury issues, the Wizards may go for safety here by selecting Otto Porter.

Porter is considered by most scouts the most advanced prospect intelligence-wise. He possesses the basketball IQ of a seasoned-vet and has all of the intangibles that any team could hope for. Somewhat of a jack-of-all-trades, the Georgetown product has the length to be an impact player at the defensive end while he has proven to be a good team player, solid passer, and improving shooter.

With John Wall and Bradley Beal in the back court, Porter could be just the next piece of the puzzle. The three youngsters could be lethally dangerous in transition together. With the blinding quickness of Wall, the sweet three-point stroke of Beal, and the crafty finishing of Porter around the rim could be an exciting combination.

Porter would not have to be rushed into performing at a Rookie of the Year type rate either. Trevor Ariza is a serviceable wing at the NBA level. Porter could begin his career giving Ariza a breather here and there if need be. However, with his IQ and willingness to succeed, I don’t see there being much of a learning curb.

4. Charlotte Bobcats: Ben McLemore, Shooting Guard, Kansas

If Ben McLemore is still on the board when Charlotte is on the clock, this is a no-brainer for Michael Jordan. McLemore is a picture-perfect fit in a struggling Bobcats franchise.

However, despite entering the draft after just his freshman season at Kansas, McLemore is considered to be the second best prospect by most scouts. Some believe he will pan out even better than Nerlens Noel.

With Cleveland and Orlando potentially shopping the first two picks in the draft, Charlotte may have to pull the trigger and move up in the draft. If McLemore is their guy, they will likely have to strike a deal with the Magic for the second pick. Noel will almost certainly go first overall to whoever winds up with that pick.

McLemore is a world-class athlete with explosive leaping ability and a smooth shooting stroke. With nearly flawless form, he is best in catch-and-shoot situations. He still needs to perfect his craft when it comes to running off screens the way the greats such as Ray Allen and Reggie Miller did, but the potential is there.

The shooting ability and range isn’t all that is impressive about McLemore’s game. He also has the size and leaping ability to finish above the rim at any time.

Despite his solid length and frame, Kansas’ superstar struggles to stay focused at the defensive ends at times. There were times when McLemore showed glimpses of a lock-down perimeter defender, and there were times when he looked completely lost off the ball.

He also struggles to create offense off the bounce. Regardless of what he lacks, the sky is the limit when it comes to Ben McLemore. His rare skill set that possesses the ability to finish above the rim at any time and knock down a three-pointer  given the smallest window could be potentially dangerous for opposing defenses.

5. Phoenix Suns: Victor Oladipo, Shooting Guard, Indiana

The Phoenix Suns struggled in their first year of the post-Nash era. However, the once perennial playoff contender will look to get back on track after landing the fifth overall pick in the 2013 draft.

Phoenix has multiple question marks heading into this offseason. There are rumors that Marcin Gortat may not be back next year, and if he is, he struggled to stay healthy in 2012-2013. Jared Dudley was involved in trade rumors at this past June’s trade deadline as well.

With all of the question marks, Phoenix needs to draft a player that can contribute right away and potentially be a leader. Victor Oladipo may be that guy. With a work ethic unmatched in this draft class, Oladipo will be able to contribute with his effort alone.

Oladipo is a two-way player that is effective at both ends of the court. He can defend multiple positions, from bigger point guards to small forwards. Despite the critics of his jump shot, he did improve drastically in his junior season. Oladipo proved to be deadly in transition, imposing his will on teams.

Phoenix may also consider the second-coming of Michael Beasley in Anthony Bennett, but would it be worth the potential risk on and off the court? Bennett has not had the types of problems Beasley has had thus far in his career, but their playing styles are very similar. Both are labeled “tweeners”, which in recent history, has not been successful, despite all the interest NBA teams have in their rare skill sets.

In my opinion, Suns go with Oladipo here.

6. New Orleans Pelicans: Anthony Bennett, Power Forward, UNLV

Despite taking Anthony Davis a year ago with the first overall pick, he is known for his presence at the defensive end. There is a player of the same position that goes by the same first name that will certainly intrigue the newly named Pelicans.

Anthony Bennett is an explosive scorer from inside and out. Bennett can fill it up in a variety of ways but is coming off of surgery. If Davis can fill out his lanky frame, he may be able to step in and play the center position consistently. Bennett could supply some much needed scoring in New Orleans.

7. Sacramento Kings: Rody Gobert, Center/Power Forward, France

Sacramento is happy just to still have an NBA team after the team had been rumored to be on its way to Seattle.

Tyreke Evans is a restricted free agent as of July 1st, and there are also rumors that he may not be back with the team four years removed from his Rookie of the Year campaign.

Isaiah Thomas has proven to the NBA that he was overlooked after being taken 60th overall. Thomas was the Kings starting point guard down the stretch and was a pleasant surprise for the franchise.

Another good piece if your a Kings fan is DeMarcus Cousins. Cousins has the potentially to be one of the best three centers in the league, if not the best. His skill set is unmatched by centers, but looks uninterested in playing basketball at times. Regardless, if Sacramento can get some more pieces around him, most believe Cousins will take the next step as well.

Gobert can play the center position or power forward. His defense is what scouts love so much about his game, along with his athleticism. The 7-footer can get up and down the court extremely well for a guy his size. Offensively, he is still a work-in-progress, but he has made strides as the years have gone by. Gobert’s size and athleticism translate seamlessly to the NBA.

8. Detroit Pistons: Alex Len, Center, Maryland

Detroit isn’t one to draft according to need. They are still in the process of overhauling their roster by simply acquiring assets. Despite his recent ankle injury, if Alex Len is available, expect the Pistons to use their pick on him.

Andre Drummond impressed many in his rookie season. We all know that one good season doesn’t mean sustained success. Regardless, Detroit has a front court in place for the future including Drummond and Greg Monroe.

While all of that is true, Alex Len could potentially be one of the best players in the draft. His ankle may be a concern, but it could be a blessing in disguise for the Pistons as well. If Len is on the board when the eighth pick rolls around, expect his draft day fall to stop in Detroit.

9. Minnesota Timberwolves: C.J. McCollum, Guard, Lehigh

Wolves general manager and president of basketball operations Flip Saunders recently said that they would stress shooting this offseason. This statement seems logical given the front court presence of Kevin Love and Nikola Pekovic coupled with the natural play-making ability of Ricky Rubio.

If shooting and scoring is what Minnesota is searching for, look no further than C.J. McCollum. The Lehigh guard shot the three at an insane rate during his senior season, finishing up with a percentage above 50%. He has the ability not just to catch-and-shoot though, but to create off the bounce. McCollum can create his own shot at any time and fill it up in a hurry.

Given Rubio’s passing ability and the Wolves established post presence, McCollum seems to be a great fit.

10. Portland Trailblazers: Shabazz Muhammad, Small Forward, UCLA

Portland is not all that far from being a playoff team on a yearly basis. With one of the best power forwards in the league in LaMarcus Aldridge, Rookie of the Year Damian Lillard, and guys such as Nicolas Batum, the Blazers may just need to add one more piece.

Another explosive scorer certainly wouldn’t hurt. Shabazz Muhammad is exactly that. With his lightning-quick first step and strong NBA-ready frame, Muhammad has the ability to impose his will on defenses.

The potential is also there for him to become an elite two-way player. With length and athleticism both above-average for the NBA, if Muhammad puts the work in, he could develop into a lock-down defender at the next level.

For him to reach his full potential, he will need to work on his shooting range. His three-point shooting touch is virtually non-existant, and his pull-up game from mid-range could use some work as well. Regardless, Muhammad would be in a good situation in Portland, especially after the reports that Lillard and Muhammad have spoken about playing together before.

11. Philadelphia 76ers: Cody Zeller, Center, Indiana

At one point, Cody Zeller was the unquestioned first pick of the 2013 draft. Now it looks as though he will slip into the mid-to-late lottery range.

With depth in the front court being the biggest concern for the Sixers heading into next season, Zeller would be a solid fit. The two sides spoke on Thursday at the NBA draft combine, and Zeller said the interview went well.

Let’s face it, Philly. Nobody is afraid of a front court consisting of Spencer Hawes, Kwame Brown, Arnett Moultrie, and Lavoy Allen. While Moultrie impressed late in the season, there is no reason to believe that teams will be in any way, shape, or form afraid of the second-year man.

While the Andrew Bynum situation remains unsettled, Zeller would be a good pick here regardless. Yes, Zeller needs to add upper body strength. Yes, Zeller needs to toughen up a bit. Still, there is a reason that he was the pre-season favorite to win the Wooden Award for college basketball’s best player.

What is there to lose for the Sixers?

12. Oklahoma City Thunder (from Toronto): Kelly Olynyk, Center, Gonzaga

Rumors have been leaked that the Thunder are considering using the amnesty clause to get current center Kendrick Perkins off their books. While Perkins is a reliable defensive presence, he adds next to nothing offensively.

Oklahoma City predicates their game on speed and transition. Perkins is neither fast or effective in transition. However, there is a center that will likely still be on the board when the Thunder take their turn on draft day.

Kelly Olynyk runs the floor well, can score with his back to the basket, and knock down a shot out to 20 feet. Offensively, Olynyk is the most polished center in the draft. His footwork is impressive, along with his post moves.

Oklahoma City seems to be a yearly contender in the Western Conference and one of the only threats to the Miami Heat so they can afford to gamble on a high-risk, high-reward player such as Olynyk.

13. Dallas Mavericks: Michael Carter-Williams, Point Guard, Syracuse

Mark Cuban is well-known for his highly questionable antics. One thing that is not questionable though, is that he is one of the best owners that the NBA has to offer. Cuban is always willing to do whatever it takes to win, no matter how far he has to dig into his check book.

As of July 1, nearly everyone on the Mavs for the 2012-2013 season will be a free agent. Cuban signed a ton of players to one-year contracts last summer and is hoping it pays dividends. Dallas is rumored to be in the running for Dwight Howard again after failing to land the superstar big man a summer ago.

Regardless of whether or not Howard comes to Dallas, the Mavericks need to address the point guard position. Darren Collison is not the player that they had once thought, and Mike James is certainly not the point guard of the future.

Carter-Williams has the natural ability to run an offense. His size at 6’6″ is well above-average for the point guard position, and it allows him to typically see over his opponent and make the best pass available.

While his perimeter shooting is still improving, Carter-Williams’ length and athleticism allows him to disrupt opposing point guards at the defensive end. His size also allows him to guard players up to the small forward position.

One thing remains to be unseen; how will his role in Syracuse’s zone defense translate into a tradition man-to-man defense in the NBA?

14. Utah Jazz: Mason Plumlee, Center, Duke

Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap will both be free agents as of July 1st. Utah will likely let them both walk in favor of younger and cheaper solutions. Enes Kanter and Derrick Favors have proven to be worthy candidates to replace the two veteran front court teammates.

Although Kanter and Favors are the unquestioned starters entering next season if neither free agent returns, they will still need to add depth. Mason Plumlee could contribute high-energy minutes on a consistent basis. Plumlee is one of the best rebounding prospects in the class. His athleticism along with his frame allow him to be effective on the glass. While far from a go-to guy on the block or elite shot-blocker, Plumlee was praised for his work ethic at Duke.

15. Milwaukee Bucks: Dennis Schroeder, Point Guard, Germany

Milwaukee has a lot of questions to answer. Brandon Jennings is a restricted free agent this summer and is likely to get some hefty offers from other interested teams. While the Bucks have the right to match any offer that another team makes and retain the services of Jennings, how much do they value their current point guard’s production?

Regardless, Monta Ellis has been involved in trade talk after the failed experiment at a dynamic offensive back court. At times this season, it was evident that Ellis and Jennings had conflicting playing types. Jennings is the younger of the two and has been with the team for the entirety of his career thus far, so I expect them to show him favor.

Schroeder is a pure point guard; Jennings is more of a scorer. The combination of the two could potentially work. Schroeder doesn’t need to have the high number of shot attempts that Jennings does to be effective. He can contribute in other ways, such as his ability to run an offense. If one or the other guard is expected to be out, expect the Bucks to go guard here.

June 16, 2012; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians mascot Slider stands on a logo on the field prior to a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Indians are 26-17 and hold a 2 1/2 game lead over the defending American League Champion Detroit Tigers in the A.L. Central entering play on Tuesday. A surprise, to be sure, but a number of pundits suspected that the revamped Indians would at least give the Tigers a fight for the division in 2013 after a flurry of off-season moves.

Additions such as Nick Swisher, Drew Stubbs, and Michael Bourn to the lineup and Ubaldo Jimenez and Brett Myers to the rotation were expected to bolster an otherwise young roster. So, as the Indians sit in first place as we near the end of May, can they thank their new additions for their rapid rise in the standings? Not quite.

Bourn has only played in about half of the Indians games thus far due to injury, while Stubbs is hitting just .248/.301/.376. Myers started the season with an 8.02 ERA and 1.59 WHIP over 21.1 innings before heading to the disabled list with elbow inflammation, and Jimenez has been decidedly up-and-down, resulting in a 5.31 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP 40.2 innings in 8 starts thus far. On the plus side, Swisher has been very good, hitting .274/.382/.493 and holding down first base for Cleveland.

So how are the Indians nine games above .500? Good question. Let’s start by taking a look at the rest of the regulars in the Cleveland lineup. The biggest bright spot is certainly catcher Carlos Santana, just entering his prime at 27-years old and hitting an impressive .296/.403/.548. Journeyman power-hitter Mark Reynolds has slugged his way to 12 home runs and a .253/.341/.548 line this season, but his career-long struggle has been consistently making contact, so we’ll see if he can maintain this acceptable pace. Other than a solid showing by Michael Brantley so far this season, that’s about it for the Indians’ offensive attack.

Justin Masterson (2.83 ERA,  and 1.13 WHIP, 9.1 K/9 innings) and Zach McAllister (2.65 ERA, and 1.18 WHIP) have keyed the Indians’ rotation to this point, as the rest of the crew has been nothing short of horrendous. The other five pitchers that have started a game for the Indians in 2013 are a combined 9-11 with an unsightly 5.67 ERA. Hardly the stuff of a first-place team, to be sure.

The bullpen has been incredible, with Chris Perez, Bryan Shaw, and Cody Allen all appearing in at least 16 games with ERAs of 2.33 or lower. With a ‘pen full of virtual no-names, the Indians have navigated their way to a major league-best 11-3 record in one-run games to this point.

Okay, elephant in the room: will this hot start last? Ending the season ahead of the mighty Tigers is likely a pipe dream, but will the Indians at least stay in the hunt and give Detroit a run for their money down the stretch? Short answer: no.

The rotation has been worse than poor beyond Masterson and McAllister, and it’s tough to say if their success is even sustainable, especially McAllister’s. His low strikeout rate of just 6 per 9 innings and poor strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2.43 will likely catch up to him. His minor league track record doesn’t strike much confidence, and unless the rest of the rotation magically becomes respectable, the rotation could very quickly devolve into an Astros, Mets, or Twins-esque debacle.

It’s very tough to say if the bullpen can sustain it’s success due to the small sample size of innings that we have thus far, but Cleveland’s success in one-run games is absolutely unsustainable, and has thus far been buoyed by their impressive bullpen performance.

As far as the lineup goes….it isn’t enough to keep the Indians in the hunt, and especially not if the rotation continues to struggle. Swisher and Santana will continue to carry the dead weight, but Reynolds’ track record suggests that he should not be counted on moving forward, and the rest of the lineup has been largely disappointing.

Ultimately, the Cleveland Indians will remain respectable in 2013, and will likely hover near a .500-record as the season rolls forward. They will not, however, challenge the Tigers for the division crown. They simply do not have enough pitching, and outside of a solid 1-2 punch with Santana and Swisher (and hopefully a healthy Bourn), enough offense, either. The 26-17 start has been a nice story, but regression to the mean is a cruel thing, and is lurking in the very near future for the Tribe.

This week’s new release Fast and Furious 6: The Sequel to the Last One features the butt-kicking action movie duo of Vin Diesel and Duane Johnson. That got me thinking about other great action movie duos. Actually it got me thinking HOLY CRAP THEY MADE ANOTHER FAST AND FURIOUS, WHY DOES GOD HATE US SO MUCH??? But when the headache wore off I started thinking about the other thing. And that thinking resulted in the following slideshow:

(H/T: NBA.com)

The NBA Draft Lottery is one of the most looked forward to events for fans of really bad basketball teams. While other fan bases in larger markets rejoice in playoff basketball, others are left only wishing they could be a part of the fun. For 14 teams every season, the fun is had in building for the future and for most that starts with good positioning in the NBA Draft.

Whether you agree with how it works or not, the NBA Draft Lottery is the kick off to the NBA offseason and it fully sets draft talk into motion. In years past, there has usually been a clearcut No. 1 prospect that teams are literally trying to hit the jackpot with and win the chance to select him. But this year the field is more even keel and as many three or four players are seriously in the running to be the top pick. But the question entering the night was who would that team be.

That team ended up being Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Washington Wizards weren’t projected to pick inside the top 3 but because they drew the right combination, the order got skewed slightly. The Toronto Raptors needed to pick inside of the top-3 to hold onto their first-round pick but because they drew the 12th overall pick, it will now be transferred to the Oklahoma City Thunder as part of the James Harden trade.

Cleveland winning the lottery for the second time in three years could be potentially huge for the future of the team. Due to there not being a clearcut No. 1 prospect this year, __ could go a number of different directions. The first of which is to trade the pick to a team like Orlando or Charlotte who are are looking for missing pieces and need one real standout to lead their young team to greatness.

Obviously the best option is to stay put and draft a massive piece for the future. Nerlens Noel is a popular choice, as the center out of Kentucky is coming off of a torn ACL but is still regarded as one of the best players in his class.

Ben McLemore from Kansas is another prospect garnering significant buzz as is Otto Porter out of Georgetown.

All of these names are possibilities at No. 1 overall and that’s a problem __ is happy to have. They’re picking first overall and they’ll set the tone for how the rest of the draft plays out underneath them.

Here’s a look at the final NBA Draft Lottery order:

1. Cleveland Cavaliers
2. Orlando Magic
3. Washington Wizards
4. Charlotte Bobcats
5. Phoenix Suns
6. New Orleans Pelicans
7. Sacramento Kings
8. Detroit Pistons
9.  Minnesota Timberwolves
10. Portland Trailblazers
11. Philadelphia 76ers
12. Toronto Raptors (Belongs to Oklahoma City Thunder)
13. Dallas Mavericks
14. Utah Jazz

The NBA Draft is scheduled for Thursday, June 27th.

This Friday Fast 6 hits theaters, continuing the most unlikely franchise since Spy Kids. With such a landmark day approaching, what should you do to get ready? Watch the other five in the series so that you’re caught up with the plot? Pffft. The plot is only the stuff that happens between explosions. No, what you need to do is get yourself in the right mindset. After all, movies are that much more enjoyable when we’re able to relate to the characters. Here are some steps to take to put yourself in the shoes of the Fast 6 crew.

First, you’re gonna need lots and lots of Red Bull. This should go without saying, because you know you’ll need to be plenty amped before you walk into the theater, and you’ll never be able to reach the proper level naturally – the human body simply isn’t equipped. It would probably be more effective to ingest the energy drink via a direct IV, but I’m not a doctor and have no idea if that is medically safe. Either way, this unnervingly large intake of Red Bull will serve two purposes. First, it will ensure that you experience every explosion and race on a visceral level, without something like “rational thought” getting in the way. Second, it will put you firmly in the shoes of the generically-named former FBI agent played by Paul Walker, as it is a documented fact that Walker needs at least three cans before he even has enough energy to blink (seriously, that guy is like Keanu Reeves without all the emotion).

This obscene amount of newfound energy will be of use for the next part of the process: the workout. You see, everyone involved in Fast 6, from The Rock to the guy mopping sweat off the floor between takes, is in unbelievable shape. Normals like you and me find it hard to identify with these superior physical specimens, but with a little bit of determination we can at least try. Now you’re never going to get your entire body as jacked as Dwayne Johnson before Friday, so focus on one area, namely the forearm. Bulky forearms are the most versatile muscles in the entire franchise. They allow Vin Diesel’s crew to pull off some sick moves behind the wheel and to rescue their frienemies from danger with a sweet bro forearm grab (those who have seen Fast 5 know exactly what I’m talking about).

While you’re doing your forearm curls, you should probably also throw on some old professional wrestling videos. In the three-minute Fast 6 trailer alone we’re treated to a Rock clothesline and the girl who isn’t Michelle Rodriguez taking down the girl who is Michelle Rodriguez with a double leg flip thing. You’ll want to familiarize yourself accordingly.

Finally, no Fast 6 preparations are complete without a suped-up ride. I mean, there’s no way Tyrese would be caught dead in that Nitrous-less Toyota Corolla sitting all boring-like in your driveway. See if your local Enterprise has any Dodge Chargers or Mazda RX-7s to loan you, and make sure to get the bulletproof windshield option (that’s a thing, right?) and, of course, crash insurance. You should also be prepared to race the car next to you at every stoplight on the way to the theater, as it is the only way to stake your claim as both the fastest and the furiousest driver on the road. And if you can do any sort of front or back flip or 720 degree turn into the parking space, consider it a bonus.

There you have it. Do all of the above in the next three days and I guarantee you’ll get the most out of your Fast 6 experience. Now, where’d I put that case of Red Bull?

June 28, 2012; Newark, NJ, USA; A general view of the stage before the 2012 NBA Draft at the Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA draft lottery is an exciting time for the franchises that didn’t accomplish anything worthwhile during the NBA regular season. Although the teams that have the highest chances possible usually win it, there have been instances that have fans and NBA executives wondering if the lottery is actually rigged.

In no way are we implying the NBA actually rigs the lottery but if I were to bet on the ones that were, these would be the 10 NBA lotteries that were likely fixed….

10. 1993- The Orlando Magic win the lottery for the second year in a row.

One year after the Magic selected Shaquille O’Neal with the No. 1 overall pick, Orlando struck gold again and won the lottery for the second year in a row. Coming off a 41-41 season, Orlando had only a 1.52% chance to attain the No. 1 pick. Orlando selected Michigan forward Chris Webber, before trading him to Golden State for Penny Hardaway and three future first round picks. 

9. 1997- San Antonio wins the lottery, pairs David Robinson with Tim Duncan.

After a season that saw David Robinson go down with an injury that sidelined him for most of the year, the Spurs finished with an abysmal 20-62 record. Things turned around quickly when the Spurs selected Wake Forest star Tim Duncan with the first overall selection. They were deemed the “Twin Towers” and won their first championship together in Duncan’s second season with the franchise.

8. 1999- Chicago Bulls win the lottery after Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Phil Jackson depart.

One year after the Chicago Bulls dynasty officially ended, they were rewarded with the No. 1 pick to help ease the pain. The front office selected Duke forward Elton Brand. Brand had an amazing rookie year, averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds in his first year. His stint in Chicago would last only two seasons, before being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.

7. 2004- Orlando Magic wins the lottery for the third time, selects Dwight Howard.

Dwight Howard was the best center to come out of the draft in years. After losing Shaquille O’neal to the Lakers in 1996, it was fitting the Magic would receive the pick and rebuild around another young stud in the paint.

6. 2010-Washington Wizards select John Wall.

The Wizards won the rights to John Wall after winning the lottery with a 10.30% chance. Irene Pollin–the wife of Wizard’s owner Abe Pollin who passed away in November of 2009- - was representing the franchise and received the special news. She was quoted as saying per ESPN.com:

“This is very, very special. I have been in this my entire adult life and to be here, representing my husband, this is very special to me tonight. I think it’s the culmination of my husband’s dream because he wanted another ring and maybe this will get us another ring.” 

5. 2003- Cleveland Cavaliers win the lottery , selects phenom LeBron James.

LeBron James was the best player to come out of the draft in years. He was considered to be a “can’t miss” prospect and was called “The Chosen One”. The Cleveland Cavaliers did everything possible to make sure they were in the sweepstakes to land the No. 1 pick. James was born and raised in Akron, Ohio and was seen attending Cavs games prior to his NBA debut  The Cavaliers indeed won the lottery and selected LeBron James with the No. 1 pick in the  star-studded class. 

4.  2011- One year after LeBron James leaves Cleveland, the Cavaliers win the lottery with a 2.8% chance.

In the 2010-2011 NBA season, the Cleveland Cavaliers traded Baron Davis to the Los Angeles Clippers for their first round draft pick. It turned out to be a wise decision. With only a 2.8% chance, the Cavaliers won the lottery and began to move on from the LeBron James era and selected Duke guard Kyrie Irving with the first overall pick.

3. 2012- The then New Orleans “Hornets” win the lottery after the NBA gave up ownership of the team.

There were whispers that a few NBA executives believed the 2012 NBA lottery was fixed. Some speculated if the Hornets were bought, they would receive the No. 1 pick in return. The Hornets were technically owned by the NBA for the 2011-2012 campaign. New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson bought the franchise and selected Kentucky forward Anthony Davis with the No.1 pick. Benson has since changed the name to the “Pelicans”. 

2. 2008- Chicago Bulls win the lottery with a 1.7% chance, selects home-town star Derrick Rose.

The Chicago Bulls pulled off one of the biggest upsets in draft lottery history. Many were expecting the Miami Heat (who had the NBA’s worst regular season record and the highest chance to land the No. 1 pick) to land Derrick Rose and pair him up with superstar Dwyane Wade. The tide turned when Chicago won the lottery with only a 1.7% chance. The Bulls selected Derrick Rose, who was born and raised in Chicago with the No.1 pick.

1. 1985-Patrick Ewing and the Frozen Envelope.

The  1985 was the first year the NBA installed the draft lottery. Many believe it was the biggest draft fix in history. Conspiracy theorists claim that the 1985 draft lottery was rigged and NBA commissioner David Stern wanted Patrick Ewing in the NBA’s biggest market: New York. Before the days of ping-pong balls, the picks were chosen via envelopes. Those who believe in the conspiracy say New York’s envelope was frozen so that Stern would know to select that one, which would give the Knicks the first overall pick. Whether it is true or not, David Stern did indeed grab the Knicks envelope and they selected Georgetown star Patrick Ewing with the No. 1 pick.

Jeff Gibson is a writer for FanSided partner BroJackson.com. For more great content, head on over to Bro Jackson and check out Jeff’s work.

Where would fashion be without sports? The better question might be: Where would sports be without fashion? Especially today, where most teams that aren’t the New York Yankees tolerate strangely placed piercings, dreadlocks that barely fit under helmets, and other fashion statements as long as an athlete produces.

Here I’ve tried to find some of the strangest mixes between the two worlds, while looking back at some trendsetting athletes we shouldn’t forget. Some of the eccentric fashionistas in sports past and present. Fashion statements that made us think, “How can anyone compete with that?” or better yet, “How does anyone compete against that?”

Eyeglasses (not goggles)

No offense to Amare Stoudemire or Reggie Miller, among many others, but goggles are made to withstand impact. I don’t even wear glasses playing slow-pitch softball. But, according to these guys, contact lenses are for sissies.

Champion: Chuck Muncie. Muncie passed away just a few days ago, leaving behind a legacy of being the all-time greatest glasses wearer in professional sports history. The former Saints and Chargers running back blended speed and power in a way no eyeglass wearer may ever come close to matching.

Runner Up: Reggie Jackson. Mr. October had the unfortunate circumstances of playing in a sport where eyeglasses can be pulled off without much hassle, otherwise he’d have topped my list.

Honorable Mention: Rick ‘Wild Thing” Vaughn. If only he was real, and not played by Charlie Sheen. Maybe then he’d have made the cut.

Neck tattoos

In college my mom was so mad when she spotted me on Skype with a lip ring that she told me she’d rather I’d have gotten a tattoo. It only lasted a year, but she should be grateful I’m not rocking what these three got inked around their Adam’s apples.

Champion: DeShawn Stevenson. Sun’s out, Abraham Lincoln’s out. Hmmm. Unless you can’t recognize the 16th President of the United States. In which case, the 5′s on each side clear up all confusion.

Runner Up: Wilson Chandler. Not sure what’s less annoying, posting pics of your kid daughter every three seconds on Facebook, or getting them tattooed below your chin so we get to see her 24/7. I wonder how many turtlenecks this dude gets each year for Christmas.

Honorable Mention: The Birdman. It’s not Abe Lincoln, it’s not a baby girl, it’s a… Free… Bird? The dude tries hard enough to at least get some recognition. Like every team getting a trophy in Little League. Maybe if his tats were glow-in-the-dark he’d have cracked the top two.

Kinesio Tape

Last year’s London Olympics served as an advertising gold mine for Kinesio tape manufacturers and promoters. It seemed every athlete was getting the tape slapped on their skin, even though it’s been around for a decade.

Champion: David Beckham. Men and women everywhere are thanking me for this. Whether for purposes of eye candy or inspiration to get some exercise. Plus this is about as much pink as I can handle in any given competition.

Runner Up: German Olympic Beach Volleyballer Katrin Holtwick. Talk about a happy trail. This girl is boasting nine of them.

Honorable Mention: Serena Williams. Are those gold? If so, how many carets are those things?

Necklaces

You’re not a five-tool player anymore if you’re not rocking some chains around your neck. Some hide it better than others. And let’s hope this Phiten craze ends soon so we get to start seeing some more creativity with this accessory.

Champion: Mr. T. Does anyone else come close? T would have been a hall of famer in any sport, what with his high IQ and athletic ability, but he chooses instead to pity fools and rock gold chains. Kinda like this guy, but with actual talent.

Runner Up: Jerome Williams. Sorry, boo. Gold chains trump puka shells. But you’ve got to give Williams some street cred for trying. Plus, the backstory may have forced his teammates to stash some tissues in their pockets.

Honorable Mention: David Ortiz. I don’t know what says athlete more than a man who’s too slow, too fat, and too weighed down by his jewelry to play a position in the field. Here’s to the DH.

Face masks (non-required)

Anyone can rock league-mandated gear. But it takes a fashion pioneer to even attempt such brazen disregard for league norms. Or extenuating circumstances. Some call them injuries–I call them swag makers.

Champion: Dave Parker. Straight out of a matinee horror film that stops until the theatre can re-spool the film. Parker may have only lasted one at-bat wearing this face mask, but he’s a mask half-on kind of guy.

Runner Up: Otto Graham. Busted mouths and broken teeth were the norm back in the early days of football. Until a stroke of genius sprang from the mind of a sideline trainer. And thus, Graham became the first NFL player to don the single bar, the first “face mask” in the NFL. Sadly, a few years ago, punters everywhere urged the league to ban the single bar, in favor of the more badass-looking Ray Lewis mask.

Honorable Mention: Calvin Murphy. This dude beat Trey Parker and Matt Stone to the punch line. Albeit, he probably should have chosen a baseball helmet over a hockey helmet.

Arm Sleeves

Even less research has been done on the benefits of these things than has been done for Kinesio Tape, unless you’re talking about the boost in confidence you get from having two different colored arms.

Champion: Allen Iverson. No, Mr. Iverson. Now we’re talking about arm sleeves. And your skinny wings fit inside the those things perfectly. Maybe you should have wrapped your whole scrawny little body in these sleeves.

Runner Up: Carmelo Anthony. I’m no Boston sportswriter, but I’ll vote for anyone sporting yellow or orange panty hose in public. No matter where you wear them.

Honorable Mention: Kobe Bryant, for trying, and then realizing he couldn’t pull them off.

High Socks

All baseball players used to rock the look. But now it seems relegated to those trying too hard, those goofing off, or those trying to distract the other team. Say what you want about stirrups, the Show is poised for a high sock renaissance.

Champion: Eric Byrnes. The former Oakland Athletic, now professional drinking league softball player, paid homage to the old school baseball style the few years he played in the Show. Let’s just say the look added distracted from his overall demeanor. One of the strangest and most unique players the MLB has ever seen.

Runner Up: Hunter Pence. Speaking of unique. Do all modern players rocking the high sock look seem a little off? This guy’s as normal as a 10-pack of beer. But see, the high socks give you special powers, like hitting a baseball three times on one pitch.

Honorable Mention: Andy Petite. He may not always wear high socks, but when he does the dude defies the quirky norm. He wears high socks like the Fonz wore leather jackets. Like Miguel Cabrera wears alcoholism. Want a role model for your kids? Have them look at Petite’s socks. Admire that thread count.

Microsoft will be revealing the next generation Xbox gaming system at 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT today and there could be a lot of information coming in. Whether it be the new name, specs, applications or games that will be featured in the new system that you are looking for, we will have you updated with the latest information in the live blog that is featured above.

Join us for some gaming discussion and share your excitement with a number of fellow gamers and technology geeks. We are all eagerly awaiting the reveal.

How can you keep up with Xbox’s live announcement? We have all of the information you will need to catch every second of Microsoft’s big event:

Date: Tuesday, May 21
Location: Microsoft HQ in Redmond, Washington
Start Time: 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT
Potential Console Names: Xbox 720, Xbox Fusion, Xbox Durango, Xbox 8, Xbox Infinity and Xbox Infinite
Live Stream:  Xbox.com and Xbox Live

Check in with FanSided.com throughout the day as we keep you updated on the latest news and information.

What are you most looking forward to during today’s official reveal? Sound off in the comments section and share your thoughts and excitement with the rest of the gaming fans in the FanSided community.

David Kallison is a writer for FanSided partner BroJackson.com. For more great content, head on over to Bro Jackson and check out David’s work.

Quietly, Google has realized the dreams of hundreds of men, Magellan, Vespucci, Lewis and Clark–men who mapped the world. Google, over the past several years, have become the world’s foremost cartographers, taking photos of millions of miles of landscape for its ubiquitous Street View product. GeoGuessr an incredibly addictive web game, uses the billions of images captured by Google’s cameras to, ostensibly, test your knowledge of geography. Yet, behind the guise of the simple game is a myriad of insights into both the expansive diversity and surprising sameness found across the globe.

GeoGuessr throws up a Google Street View image and asks you to identify where you are on the map. The closer you are, the more points you get. At first, I tried to use the geographical features of the landscape to identify where I was. Huge mountain ranges might mean the Andes. Beautiful beaches with white sand smack of the Caribbean. Quickly, though, these tricks proved inadequate. The white sands of the Bahamas look an awful lot like the white sands of Tahiti. Language clues came next. Sign posts and billboards gave valuable information. So recognizable were the curves and shapes of the letters, I stuck a South Korean market to within 200 kilometers based on the recognizable script of the stall signage. I blessed the fruit vendor hero and the 2,000 points he afforded me.

Most striking after playing a number of rounds is how it feels each location could easily double as somewhere else. Evidently, all across the world, there are thousands of country roads, complete with blue skies and dead grass, being driven by hundreds of thousands of people. An Alabama road, with cars full of young Americans, has its doppelgänger in central Africa. I know those American kids on the Alabaman roads, I was one of them once, but foreign countries, especially those in developing countries, illicit specific, stereotypical images. But long stretches of paved concrete run like arteries through dozens of disparate countries. Playing GeoGuessr, I realized how similar the world looks. Shell stations and McDonald’s are red herrings; they appear everywhere. A gathering of mopeds along the coast turned out to be South Africa, not South America. And roads that look eerily similar to the roads I drive everyday, roads I swear I can smell, are found thousands of miles away. The Texas wind in my hair on the drive to the Gulf of Mexico…how much different could it feel than the wind in Chad?

Sometimes, the stereotypes hold on to their truth. Ancient Chinese temples, French chalets, and dazzling Tokyo lights belong right where they should. The wondrous diversity of the world’s architecture makes itself abundantly clear when it wants to. At times, it’s like traveling through a history textbook. Often, the globe feels impossibly far apart, especially when I was elated for guessing within the correct continent. Sometimes it places you underwater and, after cursing the game for its cheap shot, I marveled at how incomprehensibly vast the ocean is. Bouncing around the globe on my laptop feels remarkably surreal, especially when I catch glimpses of people on lawns or a couple on a motorcycle, caught in a specific pose, in a specific time, a digital time capsule they probably aren’t even aware of. “Hello,” I say. “Where are we?” I ask. In a click, they are gone.

GeoGuessr, despite its simplicity, or maybe because of it, is a beautiful, novel way to look at the world. Sometimes I find myself following the little white arrows further and further down a road or path, wanting to discover more of the terrain, straining to see what lies in the village ahead. A digital Marco Polo, succumbing to the timeless, inexplicable urge to discover what’s just beyond reach, I click and click and click.

Dec 8, 2012; San Diego, CA, USA; Sean McGorty (61) , Jacob Thomson (64) and Nicholas Raymond (73) lead the boys race in the 2012 Foot Locker cross country championships at Morley Field. Ed Cheserek (61) won in 14:59. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

Considering I used to run cross country in high school, I think it is fitting that I now fancy myself an aspiring artist; sometimes 5k is all you can shoot for. Running competitively in high school was one of the most memorable elements of my teenage years, right up with buying the seventh Harry Potter book at midnight and then binge reading it in what was a blur of cliché climaxes and disappointing dénouement (yes, I’m still bitter). Cross country is a misunderstood sport perfect for misunderstood youth. Despite its reputation as being geared towards skinny, awkward kids unable to handle the rigors of “real” sports like football or quilting, I’d say there isn’t a single athletic activity that is a challenging, demanding, painful, and rewarding as cross country. Only the toughest of competitors need apply; pansies can go grab a helmet and some shoulder pads.

See, mentally stable people don’t run cross country. It’s a sport for loners and weirdoes who don’t mind being trapped inside their own heads, for those that can endure both the physical stress of running and the mental stress of constantly thinking, “Wait, why the hell am I doing this? This is horrible.” There’s no glory in cross country: no bubbly cheerleaders shaking pom-poms, no rabid fans tailgating at the starting line, no way of using tales of your semi-athletic prowess to land a hot prom date (turns out the ability to finish really fast doesn’t impress the ladies). Cross country is a sport for kids that thirst for unrecognized, anonymous, unappreciated accomplishment, the type of kids who will either become software engineers or psychopaths with rambling, incoherent manifestos. In short, cross country is the best damn sport there is (and that there ever will be, unless a national interest in naumachia can be reinvigorated).

This probably will come as a shock to no one, but being on the cross country team was not “cool” at my high school. Sure, certain participants had some measurable amount of social clout, but that respect tended to be derived from happenstance handsomeness or involvement in other, more popular sports that didn’t require unsightly short shorts. For multiple years my team won state…not the actual championship, mind you, but the award for highest team GPA. We were given hideous sweatshirts to commemorate the accomplishment, which we all wore with dorky pride. The sweatshirts might as well have come with twenty-sided dice, pocket protectors, a hidden compartment to store acne medicine in, and a lifetime pass for romantic rejection. We didn’t care, though; we earned those celebratory signifiers of geekery.

The collection of nerds at my high school didn’t just “happen” to run cross country. It is a sport the actively attracts smart-yet-strange kids because geeks love challenges and cross country is the most difficult sport in the high school landscape. Yes, laugh all you want former football jerks players, but it’s true. People who denigrate cross country are people that have never actually tried it. Running is something kids in other sports dread, the punishment dished out by the coach at the conclusion of a subpar practice. In cross country, that’s all practice is. There’s no variation, no drill rotation, no water breaks, no focus on refining “skills.” You just run until it hurts, then you run some more. Trust me, it isn’t as easy as Forrest Gump made it look.

Yes, there isn’t any physical contact in cross country, but that doesn’t mean it is any less taxing. Sure, there are no bloodthirsty linebackers looking to decapitate you or beluga-sized centers throwing elbows in the post, but in a way absorbing that kind of pain is easier. That type of discomfort is external, inflicted by the opposition; it is something you expect, something you use as an inspiring or galvanizing force. In cross country, the only person that hurts you is you, which sounds like something a hack counselor would say regard to teenage depression, but it’s true. The only way to do better, to accomplish more, is to choose to put yourself through more agony, to actively decide, “Hey, it feels the lactic acid is eating away at my muscles like some sort of aggressive necrotic disease, but I’m going to push myself harder because I’m a complete lunatic.” It isn’t exactly an easy decision to make.

Another reason why cross country is the toughest sport is that even though there is a team component when it comes to scoring meets, cross country is an individual endeavor. You can’t rely on one star guard to start draining three-pointers or one dominant bowler to shatter wickets. You are isolated as a runner; you’re success is yours but so is your failure.

It’s very Ayn Rand-ian. You can’t blame refs or teammates or any of those other go-to targets for displaced responsibility; it’s all on you. Nerds like cross country because of this aspect; it’s the flip-side of why they loathe group projects. There’s a certain thrill in knowing you’ll either sink and swim based on only your own merits and effort, which I’m sure is even scarier if you’re a beginning swimmer but that’s beside the point.

There’s no safety net of teammates to pick up the slack when you start slowing down at the two-mile mark. Your success is all on your skinny, pimple-ridden, bony shoulders. Geeks thrive on that type of challenge.

That isn’t to say, however, that there isn’t a wonderful communal component to cross country. While the pain of the race is individual, the bonding over that shared experience links the whole team together. Since it was considered such a lame sport at my high school, my cross country team never had the ego issues the plagued the teams in the “popular” sports.

Everyone knew where we stood on the social scale; we were the kids with the dorky short-shorts, with jerseys so low budget the freaking name of our school was misspelled, with the non-matching warm-up attire and the ugly shoes that reeked of sweat. On the school day of one particular race we dressed up as pumpkins is a humorous display of team solidarity, wearing those jack-o-lantern trash bags over our clothes in what was an act that surely set the world record for being the utmost antithesis of an aphrodisiac. It’s sort of hard to get bigheaded in that situation. It’s like oozing hubris over your Settlers of Catan skills.

Looking back, I’m certain not a single member of my cross country team could have taken any other athlete in a fight. We maybe could’ve stood a chance going up against the thespians in the theater program, since they were only armed with their abilities to clumsily emote and to give creepy hugs, but that’s about it. Winning physical confrontations isn’t the ultimate sign of toughness, though.

Isn’t that the underlying message of the scene where Obi-Wan gets struck down by Vader? (Uhhh, SPOILER ALERT if you’re one of the five people in the world unfamiliar with A New Hope.) Yes, there is an undeniable physical component to toughness, but the mental element is just as critical.

Running cross country strengthens your resolve like no other sport, and you don’t have to unnecessarily risk shattered bones or a lifetime of concussion repercussions to experience it, which sorta supports the whole idea that smart kids gravitate towards the sport. Sure, running endless miles in shorts that would make a 1980’s NBA player blush didn’t earn me any social glory, but it is a formative and gratifying experience I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world (well, except maybe a better Deathly Hallows epilogue).

Image via The Gourmand Mom (thegourmandmom.com)

We used to sing a song called “Pizza Love” in my childhood choir. For those curious, you can watch a creepy video of random children singing it here; it’s a spectacular and moving tune. Like any normal kid and/or mutant turtle, I loved pizza (and much to the disappointment of my waistline, I still do). Of course, loving something isn’t worthwhile unless you form strong, quantifiable opinions regarding it and then force those opinions onto others. With that in mind, I proudly present to you my power rankings of pizza toppings. Feel free to disagree in the comments.

12) Pineapple: Gross and stringy. These words describe not only Taylor Momsen but pineapple as well. I don’t think pineapples are sentient, but they seem to know exactly how to get stuck between your teeth every single time. It’s awful. It’s like they’re evolutionarily designed to be a nuisance. I blame Darwin.

11) Anchovies: Unless you’re engaged in some sort of Futurama reenactment game (in which case you’re probably super cool and we should be friends), there’s no excuse for ever having anchovies anywhere near your person, let alone on your pizza. I’m instantly suspicious of the motives of anyone who orders anchovies. You could say they seem “fishy,” but then I’d have to cudgel you to death.

10) Olives: Olives belong in martinis and that’s about it. I’ve never understood why they are they so ubiquitous as a pizza topping. Why does nobody order a purely olive pizza if they are such a “classic” ingredient? Oh, that’s right, because they’re foul and disgusting. Olives have the taste and texture of a diseased salamander; they add nothing desirable to a pizza. Unless you’re a masochist or are trying to poison someone, I see no logical reason to actively make your pizza worse. I even dislike them more than I dislike Oliver North, and he was pretty evil.

9) Sausage: Sorry, it’s been ruined by porn jokes. If you can actually order a giant sausage pizza without cracking up like a pre-pubescent boy, you are, well, probably a lot more mature than I am. Kudos.

8) Mushrooms: Do you like fungus on your pizza? Boy, I sure do! Mushrooms belong in omelettes, Mario games, and Carlos Castaneda novels. They taste better than olives, sure, but the texture is similarly repulsive. While they aren’t utterly terrible, they aren’t something I seek out to experience (sort of like Infected Mushroom’s music).

7) Pepperoni: Saying pepperoni is your favorite topping is like saying Pulp Fiction is your favorite movie or Tupac is your favorite rapper. It is hard to argue with quality, but it is easy to dismiss unoriginality. I can’t fault you for loving pepperoni, but I can refuse to gain respect for you both as a pizza connoisseur and as a human being. Pepperoni is a crutch for the unimaginative. It is a tasty crutch, sure, but a crutch nonetheless.

6) Garlic: Are vampires are still “a thing” culturally? Can anyone shed any light on that? That phase was unbearable. So many tweens will now grow up to tell their children about how sparkly and sexy vampires are. Those are not the values I want passed down to future generations! Zombies are a tad better than vampires, but not by much. Ghosts are still the scariest and most underrated creatures, since there’s no realistic way to combat them (there’s no magical trump card, like garlic). So, overall, garlic is okay, I guess. Wait, what?

5) Onions: Onions are incredibly versatile; they are the Percy Harvin of toppings. Interestingly, they have been actually proven in scientific homeopathy circles to cure headaches. I’m pretty sure Harvin is excited about the state of Washington’s legalized access to cheap, medicinal, dank onions. I recommend Walla Walla, but, hey, there are numerous quality strains.

4) Pesto: Okay, so pesto isn’t technically a topping. Whatever. I’m the one making the list. I hated pesto when I was a kid; I always imagined my pizza was leaking gangrenous pus. Now, as a pseudo-adult, I still imagine my pizza is leaking gangrenous pus, but I’m kinda weird so I like it. The only bad version of pesto is Jimmy Pesto from Bob’s Burgers, and even he gets a pass for spawning the awesome Jimmy Junior.

3) Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Far, far superior to those moon-dried tomatoes the hippies are always raving about.

2) Green/Red Peppers: Maybe the only thing in the world that is rendered actually worse by the addition of some sort of pepper is the Iron Man series. Peppers of all colors are delicious, and they add a slight bit of crunch to pizza that other vegetables are incapable of providing. They also have numerous health benefits, which can transform your pizza from a one-way ticket to a greasy, sodium-infused grave to a method of prolonging your lifespan (thereby allowing you to eat more pizza. It’s an awesome cycle).

1) Bacon: If you think I’m referring to the disgrace to taste that is Canadian bacon, you deserve to have your citizenship revoked. I don’t even care if you don’t live in America; whichever country you reside in should banish you simply because your lack of intelligence is too big of a risk to potentially allow into the gene pool. There’s a reason why only children like Canadian bacon on pizza; kids are morons. Adults order real bacon on their pizza, because adults have enough money to pay for surgery when their hearts explode from eating too much fat. I don’t need to tell you bacon is delicious. It is a simple, basic truth of life. HOWEVER, woe be the pizza place the uses those crumbled up bits of bacon that look like vole droppings; I want actual hunks, thanks.

Apr 25, 2013; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the stage before the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

ESPN’s Adam Schefter says that the league and the NFL Players Association is close to a deal that will move the NFL Draft from the end of April to May. The changes to the league calendar will also include moving free agency before the NFL Scouting Combine. Here is Schefter’s report:

NFL and NFLPA are on verge of pushing back draft to May and moving up start of league year to before combine, per sources.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 20, 2013

NFL and NFLPA are close to enacting these calendar changes for the next three years.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 20, 2013

This is great news for NFL fans because it means there will be relevant NFL news coming out earlier than before, but it is bad for NFL Draft prospects because they will end up having more time under the microscope and facing criticism.

What do you think of the league’s decision to move up the start of the new league year and push back the draft? Sound off in the comments section and share your thoughts.

With only two episodes left before the Season finale, the best laid plans of Tywin Lannister are coming to a head. Of his three eligible children, he’s set to marry off two of them to secure the Lannisters’ power across all of Westeros.

Sansa, at only 14 years old, has been through more drama at King’s Landing than most people experience in a lifetime. During her months of gilded captivity, she’s developed a deft sense of deference and complicity, a Stepford mask that has kept her alive – a mask that always comically infuriated Cersei.

Only with Margaery Tyrell does Sansa dare to let down her guard. She found a glimmer of hope in the prospect of marrying a Tyrell or possibly escaping aboard Littlefinger’s ship. But Tywin dashed these hopes, sentencing the young girl to life as a Lannister wife. Now that her wedding day has arrived, the skills she’s developed will become her only protection. No one is to be trusted, whether Sansa knows it or not – even those that purport to be her friends hide ulterior motives. Her loyal handmaiden, Shay, embroiled in a love affair with Sansa’s soon-to-be-husband, has made no secret of the fact that she would escape King’s Landing with Tyrion forever if he just said the word. Sticky-sweet Margaery Tyrell is most assuredly the second most cunning woman to walk the halls of the Red Keep, following closely in the footsteps of Cersei – her future mother-and-sister-in-law.

Perhaps the only person more miserable than Sansa is Tyrion, whose heart breaks both for Shay and Sansa. He cannot help but feel some affection for Sansa, and makes a moderate effort to assure her that, as far as Lannister husbands go, he is likely the best option. He promises never to hurt her – a moving wedding gift, especially in comparison to what Joffrey bestows on the newlywed girl: the threat of violent rape.

Tyrion drowns his wretchedness in wine and refuses to take what Sansa submits to him. They will not consummate until Sansa wishes to do so freely.

The fate of Tyrion and Sansa is one soon to be met by Cersei and Loras, the next two lordly residents to play their part in Tywin’s mad power grab. With Cersei married to Loras and Joffrey married to Margaery, the Lannisters and Tyrells become so deeply intertwined that they may never been separated. With Cersei implanted as Lady of Highgarden and Tyrion running the show at Winterfell, the Lannisters control will be assured from north to south.

As Sansa’s luck takes a nosedive, it seems that Arya’s may improve. Held captive by one of her many arch-enemies, the Hound, she sees an opportunity to exit him permanently while he sleeps. But, like all good assassins, the Hound sleeps with one eye open. The Hound has a sense of gamesmanship: he offers Arya one chance to cave his head in with a rock. She’ll win her freedom if she succeeds but if she fails, he will break both her hands. Arya rightly decides to wait for a better opening to kill him. It’s the best decision she could have made, as it turns out – the Hound has every intention of selling the girl back to her brother, and the two ride toward the Twins where Robb and Catelyn will soon celebrate yet another marriage of convenience.

Meanwhile, Gendry finds himself face to face with his newly-discovered relative, Stannis. Melisandre has led the erstwhile smith to Dragonstone, requiring the royal blood that runs in his veins in order to appease the Red God and ensure Stannis’ continued success. She seduces the young man, tying him to a bed and extracting his blood with leeches. Stannis, cold as the stone lair that he resides in, shows just the smallest chink in his armor and agrees to free his former confidante Davos. Imprisoned for his strong and physical disagreements with the priestess, Davos swears never to raise a hand to her again but cannot promise to stand quietly by when he disagrees with Stannis’ (and Melisandre’s) tactics.

Danaerys finds herself outside the walls of Yunkai as a large army of mercenaries file into the city. Having threatened the Yunkai with obliteration, their bolstering of defenses is only natural. But Danaerys knows that even an army of thousands stands no chance against her dragons, and she sees an opportunity to expand her army with the battle-tested legion of sell swords. She calls the three leaders of the army of the Second Sons for a private meeting, offering them more money to fight for her and something else that cannot be bought: the chance to save face.

Later, in private conversation, the three leaders select Daario by lottery to assassinate Dany. He comes upon her as she is bathing, but instead of killing her, he offers the severed heads of the other two lieutenants and pledges the Seconds Sons to her. Why he does it is a bit unclear – in his debateswith his comrades, he claimed to be a fighter for beauty. In Danaerys’ chamber, he promises her not only his life, but his heart. He is doing all this… for love? Danaerys eats it up with a spoon, but we all know this world too well to be taken in by such platitudes. The endgame is still to be revealed.

Beyond the wall, as Gilly grows even more bored of Sam’s ineptitude, Sam is able to prove himself beyond all shadow of doubt. Taking shelter in an abandoned shack, they are suddenly surrounded by calling crows. They have been tracked by the White Walkers, and now one of the blue-eyed zombies has arrived to claim the baby son Craster promised him.

Sam bravely faces off against the giant, glowing corpse with his Knight’s Watch steel, but the Walker reaches out an icy hand and grips the blade, turning it to dust in mere seconds and throwing Sam idly across the frozen ground. But Sam has one final trick up his sleeve – the dragonglass he discovered with Jon Snow weeks before, previously considered to be nothing more than a pretty artifact. But a sharp edge is a sharp edge, and Sam drives the pointy end into the White Walker’s backside before he has a chance to grab the baby.

No sooner does the obsidian knife touch his skin than the White Walker falls to his knees and, with an unearthly cry, disintegrates into thin air. With no time to consider what they’ve accomplished, Sam grabs Gilly by the hand and they take off into the darkness, cawing crows pursuing their every step.

** Disclaimer

These recaps are for the GoT TV Series only. I haven’t read the books, so please don’t spoil any forthcoming plot points in the comments. If you have read the books, please enjoy the dramatic irony and that feeling you get from being just a bit more knowledgable than the rest of us, but keep it to yourself. Thanks!

Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Meanwhile, Calvin Johnson is in the news for playing through broken fingers last season, and he confirmed this to Lions beat guy Chris McCosky. The number of broken fingers that Johnson suffered from is rumored to be three, but he did not confirm that total. Johnson won’t undergo offseason surgery, but McCosky tweets that he is “trying to straighten them out”. This isn’t the only injury that Johnson played through last season, and yet he still managed to break the single-season record for receiving yards with a whopping 1,964 yards on 122 receptions.

We’ve seen Johnson bail out Matthew Stafford on plenty of occasions, and it is clear to me that he makes an average quarterback look good with his ability. There is no doubting that Johnson is a monster who can do it all, and “Megatron” is really the only fitting nickname for him. Everyone has taken notice of Johnson’s immense talent, and he has been rolling in various accolades, including being the Madden Cover guy.

However, what goes somewhat unnoticed and overshadowed by his on-field play is his mentality. Johnson is truly a team-first player based on how he has soldiered through injuries, the loyalty he has shown to the Detroit Lions, and the comments he has made, including ones today.

Johnson told MLive.com that the accolades mean nothing to him if the Lions aren’t winning,

“That’s exactly where we’re at,” Johnson said. “It’s funny because I talked to (former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver) Hines (Ward) in the offseason, over the last few offseasons, because we share the same trainer (Tom Bender). He ‘s like, ‘You can have all the accolades in the world, but it doesn’t really mean nothing’. He told me, and he could attest to this, (it does not mean anything) if you’re not winning. I could have three touchdowns and 200 yards, but if we lose the game, what’s it all for?”

Hines Ward is exactly the right person to talk to in this case, and I feel like Johnson has the same mentality as Ward did. Both are/were tough players who put the team first, and thus became fan favorites. Johnson looks at things with the perfect perspective and the winning mentality that we all want to see in a superstar player. He later said that he is going to everything in his power to help the Lions win and bring a winning culture to the Lions organization.

I always believe that players who do what they can to put the team in the best position end up with the most accolades, team success (the most important thing), and are generally viewed in a much more favorable light. It’s safe to say that Johnson is headed in that direction, but there are 52 other men on the Detroit Lions roster. Johnson is doing his part, and now it’s up to those other players and the organization as a whole to do theirs as well. The Lions have been criticized for bush league tactics and such, but they are headed in the right track and those sorts of tags tend to stick more than they should. But it’s not all about Johnson either, and he knows it; he’s just trying to make his team better.

Eddie Strait is a writer for FanSided partner BroJackson.com. For more great content, head on over to Bro Jackson and check out Eddie’s work.

The recently wrapped 38th season of “Saturday Night Live” was a transitional one.

I guess every year is a transitional year in some way or another, and every year has its own obstacles to overcome. But with the departure of Kristen Wiig the show was without a clear lead female presence. So how did the women of the show acquit themselves this year? Pretty well for the most part. The group is full of strong performers, but the rotation worked out so evenly that no one really broke out. Kate McKinnon and Cecily Strong seem the most likely to take the next step, while Vanessa Bayer’s underrated versatility makes her a dark horse.

As for the guys, well, the biggest changes were the departure of Andy Samberg (and Lonely Island/Digital Short co-horts Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer) and Fred Armisen passing Barack Obama duties to Jay Pharoah. Even though Pharoah’s impression talents are obvious, the writing wasn’t strong enough to make it as memorable as, say, Will Ferrell’s W., Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin, or even Armisen’s Obama.

One of the season’s most pleasant surprises was the strong quality of the shorts. Samberg’s place in “SNL” history was cemented with the Digital Shorts, a recurring bit that was show’s calling card ever since “Lazy Sunday” made YouTube in 2005. This season the show retired the Digital Short brand (except for a Lonely Island return) and presented new shorts that were conceptually akin to what Samberg pioneered, and surprisingly, they remained a creative and comedic high-point throughout the year.

How did the show fair overall this year? As usual, there will be people that will naysay and defer to the show’s past, speaking fondly of an idealized time where everything was hilarious, because that’s what nostalgia does to people. In reality the show was solid enough. Given the changes that the show will have to make going into next season with the departures of mainstays Bill Hader, Armisen, and the impending Seth Meyers move to “Late Night,” there’s plenty of reason to be optimistic for next year. But for now, let’s take a look at our favorite bits from the season that was.

Nov 24, 2012; Columbus, OH, USA; A general view of Ohio State Buckeyes fans on the field after the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State Buckeyes defeated Michigan Wolverines 26-21. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Josh Klein is a writer for FanSided partner BroJackson.com. For more great content, head on over to Bro Jackson and check out Josh’s work.

My friends and I took an impromptu trip last year to attend the Kansas City Chiefs-Carolina Panthers game, finding a last minute cheap hotel room in the nearby suburb of Overland Park, Kansas. After gorging on enough ribs and brisket to make Fred Flintstone’s cholesterol rise, and getting drunk in the Arrowhead parking lot, we returned to our hotel room thinking one thing: Where’s the next bar? A quick search revealed that we were less than a mile from a bar with a yelp review boasting the “worst bar in Overland Park” in the middle of a business center called Fred P. Ott’s Bar & Grill. Not surprisingly, it was not busy on a Sunday night in December, but we had a ridiculously good time, bonding with some of the locals who regaled us with stories of what a fun town Overland Park was, and how we should stay for another night. Needless to say, we didn’t. Maybe Overland Park is a hell of a town (Editor’s Note: It is not.) and we’ll never know it; but this list showcases some actual gems for you to explore. Everyone expects to have the time of your life in Vegas, New York City, or New Orleans, but you might have an even better time in one of these towns a little off the beaten path:

June 11, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Kings players and coaches pose for a team photo after defeating the New Jersey Devils 6-1 in game six of the 2012 Stanley Cup Finals at the Staples Center. The Kings won the series four games to two. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The fate of the Kings in the playoffs will ultimately rest on the shoulders of one player, Jonathan Quick.

While Quick may not be the next Henrik Lundqvist in terms of his regular season accolades, during the playoffs there isn’t a more proficient or clutch goalie.  Compared to his regular season SV% of 90.2% (Compared to Lundqvist’s 92.6%), Quick has maximized his reflexive capabilities in the playoffs by stopping 94.7% of the shots which are fired against him (.2% more than Lundqvist).

However, unlike the New York Rangers, the Kings have the benefit of having one of the most balanced teams in the NHL that allows them not only to be effective on defense but also in a variety of offensive situations as well.  They rank 10^th in goals per game, power play percentage and penalty kill percentage making them a dynamic force to be reckoned with.  This multifaceted style of play prevents teams from pin pointing a specific player or area of the ice where the Kings are supposedly weak.

Initially, it seemed the St. Louis Blues had a simplistic blue print for disrupting the Kings synchronized schemes; use your physical presence and the boards to prevent them from getting into any type of offensive rhythm.  Of course squelching the Kings offense is only half the battle as their defense is equally capable of shutting down any type of high octane offense, especially when Quick becomes the reliant crux of the defense.  As a result, the Kings usually find a way of reworking their game plan to divert any team from using their same methods from game to game (Kings would go on to win four games in a row and win the series 4-2).

The Kings are also capable of bringing their own unique form of offense to the table especially with Jeff Carter as their leading man who has proven to be both an avid shooter as well as a dynamic offensive tool who can just as quickly divvy out the puck to any open comrade with relative ease.  It seems that the Kings biggest strength offensively is having a deep core of centers with essential standouts such as Anze Kopitar (32 assists during the regular season) and Mike Richards (7 assists in the post season).  These three players not only have unique styles of play which lend themselves effectively to any situation but also are surprisingly consistent when it comes to their execution. This unique trio makes it hard for opponents to lock down one player before another jumps in to swiftly take over where the other left off.

Unsurprisingly, this makes the Kings extremely thin at both the left and right wing positions.  However, rather than this being a point of weakness, this allows the Kings to focus on training the majority of their squad to penetrate an opposing defense in a variety of ways rather than having an overly physical line up that shoots first and asks questions later.  The Kings are more concerned with finesse rather than power which allows them to be more accurate with their shots on goal as well as to wear down teams who simply try to exert all their energy to physically impose themselves upon this team.  While this strategy may work initially at disrupting the Kings primary form of attack, eventually the simplicity of this strategy will succumb to its inevitable downfall of allowing another player to be open for an easy assist, which is where the Kings are at their strongest offensively.

The only way the Kings can be demoralized and intimidated is by a combination of not only out shooting them but also by playing them loose defensively.  Rather than trying to bum rush every player that has the puck, playing a loose man coverage scheme will give opposing teams both a better view of how the Kings are moving around the ice while creating an instinctual awareness that will allow for better chances at interceptions and ultimately more fast breaks which the Kings will be unable to anticipate.

Beyond that, this team can’t be beaten with the old school hockey mentality of beating an opponent into submission until they hopelessly relinquish the puck.  The Kings intelligence on the ice and  their awareness is far more innovative than that once “go to” philosophy.  If the Kings lose in the post season it will come at the hands of an opponent who has studied them through and through while finding the soft spots on Quick.