Phoenix is finally built to win a title

The Phoenix Suns have suddenly turned themselves into serious contenders with impressive showings in the first two games with the San Antonio Spurs.

They have always had the fast-paced, run the floor and score quickly and often mindset, but the Suns never had the true depth or the toughness needed to beat a slow, smack you in the mouth team like the Spurs.

However, the 2009-10 Suns are different. They have the depth and the toughness. They have the talent and the experienced. In the previous three years, Steve Nash averaged 35 minutes per game. He only had to play 32 minutes per game this season.

The few minutes of extra rest gives his older legs a chance to be fresh deep into the postseason, which has been a problem in year’s past.

The Suns are loaded with four starters who can reach double-digit points every game, including Amare Stoudemire, Jason Richardson, Grant Hill and Nash. They also have a bench who can step in and give the starters key rest before the final stretch of games.

Channing Frye and Jared Dudley can score when Nash and Stoudemire are out of the game, and Leandro Barbosa does a great job with the little things not calculated in the stat-line, grabbing lose balls, forcing tough shots, etc.

These are the reasons why the Spurs aren’t pushing them this time. These are the reasons why the Suns have a chance to give the Los Angeles Lakers a tough series.

And, if the Suns can be fresh for a long series against the Lakers, they have a slightly better depth than the Lakers, who have older players starting and Lamar Odom off the bench.

What a statement the Suns could make if they erase the bad memories from previous postseasons and make the Finals. I am sure they would have ‘Los Suns’ on the minds of every NBA fan.

Bucks have momentum; Game five a must for Atlanta

The Milwaukee Bucks will be looking to keep the momentum going tonight in Atlanta and take a 3-2 series lead. The past two games have been perfect for an injury-depleted bunch, missing Andrew Bogut a ton.

The reason: the bench has come up big in his absence. They have outscored Atlanta 119-70 off the bench in the series, and they are getting contributions on defense from several different players. For the Hawks, Jamal Crawford has been the only spark off the bench, and they lost both games he scored big.

So, are the Bucks primed to take over the series in Atlanta? The road has been a huge flaw for the team during the season, only going 18-23. However, the bench came through the first few games,and the Hawks must be getting tired with only a few players contributing.

The signs are all pointing to a Bucks first round upset, and the stats are backing up the bold statement. Usually, a team’s bench struggles on the road, but the Bucks have dominated.

Despite the great opportunity, Milwaukee still needs to win on the road, and they still need rookie Brandon Jennings to excel with little to no playoff experience. Remember, this is a better Hawks team that took the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics to seven games two years ago.

Although some say this game is the most important, they need to realize the close out game is just as, if not more important. If the Hawks win tonight, they do not want to have to go to seven games. The Bucks really have nothing to lose right now, because Atlanta also doesn’t want to back to Milwaukee down 3-2.

The edge is with the Bucks right now, but like any game, one shot can change everything. The game is bigger for the Hawks, but the Bucks don’t want to get blown out either. It should be fun to watch the rest of the series, and regardless of the outcome, the Bucks will get valuable experience for next year, when Andrew Bogut returns.

Best sports video games of all time

I flipped on the TV looking for a sports fix. Neither the Winter Olympic opening ceremonies, the NBA All-Star Celebrity game nor the Sienna-Niagara college basketball team could keep my attention. So looking to alleviate boredom, I turned to video games.

I turned on my Wii and started playing Punch Out, and I thought to myself this is one of the greatest sports video games of all time. Whether you had the Mike Tyson version of the game growing up or the generic “Mr. Dream” version, after Tyson’s legal troubles, Punch Out offered hours of entertainment. It has always been a game I could go back to also, playing it over and over again.

As I was enjoying it and thinking the above paragraph to myself, I started making a list of the best sports video games of all time. So let’s take a look at my favorites by platform.

Nintendo – NES

Punch Out – Working your way up through the boxing ranks as Little Mac is a blast. Sparring with caricature fighters and spotting their weaknesses. My personal favorite is the fighter whose turban would blink before he’d throw a punch, giving you time to dodge and counter punch. Then he would spin around and your only defense is to duck and cover until he wears himself out, and then knock him to the canvas.

Techmo Bowl – I’ve gotten into a debate about which is better Techmo Bowl or Super Techmo Bowl. I stand by my choice of Techmo Bowl. I have a little bias because I’m a Bears fan and Chicago’s team features Walter Payton, Jim McMahon, Mike Singletary, Richard Dent and Kevin Butler. Though the game is simple, allowing just four plays to choose fun, I can play it over and over again.

Track and Field – The key to Nintendo Track and Field was how quickly you could alternate between the A button and the B button. Anyone who scratches the controller is bush-league. It’s OK if you’re a beginner, but you can’t claim any records if you put a sock over your hand and run it back and forth over the buttons. I on the other hand alternate fingers. However, I learned my left index and middle fingers are quicker than my right, so I have to hold the controller upside down, but I dominate. If you plug in the mat and we use our feet, you’re toast.

Excitebike – Again, like most NES games it was simple. Race your dirt bike and avoid obstacles. You could even build your track. Just awesome.

Honorable mention – RBI Baseball, Blades of Steel, Lee Trevino’s Fighting Golf

Sega Gamegear

NBA Jam – I never had a Gamegear, but my friend Andrew did and we both loved NBA Jam. It was terrific two-on-two basketball action with awesome dunks. My favorite combination was the Bulls’ Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant.

Super Nintendo

FIFA ’96 – At the time, I was playing soccer a lot throughout the spring, summer and fall. When I wasn’t physically on a soccer field, I was fine tuning my Super Nintendo soccer skills. FIFA ’96 had world and USA play – my favorite team was Atlanta and I had a fierce rivalry with Seattle. I didn’t know anything about either team, but the made up competition made the video game more intense. Another great feature was shoot-out play – you didn’t have to wait for a tie game in tournament play. I would compete in shoot-outs over and over again.

Super Mario Kart – The original Mario Kart was so much fun, working your way through the Mushroom, Flower and Star cups. Once you did that in 50 cc mode you’d advance to 100 cc. When you beat the three cups you unlocked the Special Cup. I had a blast beating it; ending with the Rainbow Road track, only to find out it opened a 150 cc class. This was much tougher to beat, but my senior year of college I finally claimed the gold in the 150 cc Special Cup … I almost cried.

Honorable mention – Atlanta ’96 (Olympics)

Playstation

Gran Turismo – A more realistic game than Mario Kart, Gran Turismo supplied me and my dad many hours of competition and entertainment. The game took a lot of work, but my Game Shark gave me the code to get unlimited money so I could by the fastest cars – then it didn’t take so much work.

NHL Faceoff ’97 – I had two hockey games NHL ’99 and NHL Faceoff ’97. Both were fun, but the fighting in NHL Faceoff was just a little more intriguing.

NFL Blitz 2000 – Just as violent has the NHL Faceoff fights; NFL Blitz encouraged late hits in a fast-paced seven-on-seven format. There was a lot of passing, big hits and taunting after the plays. It was a lot of fun.

Honorable mention – NBA Live 2000, NFL Gameday ’99, Triple Play ’99, Cool Boarders 2

Playstation II

Madden – It’s difficult to pick a specific year, because I played a lot of Madden while I was in college. I bought the game beginning in 2004 and every year after until 2009. The invention of the ‘hit stick’ was great, but I loved the ‘truck stick’ and ‘highlight stick’ – the Madden series really understood sticks. Superstar mode, where you played the game in a first person style sealed Madden as the best football game ever.

Athens 2004 – The Summer Olympic game for the 2004 event was my favorite Olympic game ever. Me and my friend James played this a lot. It was better than the Sydney game that came out four years before and was the first Olympic game I bought since Atlanta ’96 for the Super Nintendo. The rubber covering on my controller’s joysticks was ripped off because of the intense discus battles we had.

Honorable Mention – MLB the Show, NCAA Basketball, Strike Force Bowling

Wii

Wii Sports – Even though you can download classic games like Punch Out and Techmo Bowl onto the Wii, I’m only going to count games made for the system in this category. Having said that, the Wii Sports game that comes with the system is great. Bowling, boxing, tennis, golf and (the best) baseball offer players plenty of choices. The game is cool because it completely changed video games. People have to make the appropriate motions to play the game. Despite that it is still simple and nursing homes began using the bowling game as physical activity for their residents. I love the baseball and golf games on Wii Sports.

Honorable Mention – Wii Fit, Wii Play (these are listed as honorable mention because I’ve played them, but don’t know them well enough to expand on the games)

NBA competition committee voting on a way to get the Losing to stop

In the past few years, the NBA has had trouble dealing with late-season controversy involving teams' pursuit of a better percentage to gain the number one draft pick. The tanking theory has come into play numerous times. In 2006, the Los Angeles Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies played a game to determine who would be the fifth or sixth seed in the Western Conference playoffs. The sixth seeded team, or the loser, would get home-field advantage against the Denver Nuggets, and would have a better chance at avoiding the best teams in the conference. The fifth seed would have to face the second best team on the road. The result: The Clippers lost the game and defeated the Nuggets in the first-round. The Grizzlies were swept in their series.

Although it seemed like the Clippers were fighting for the win, they pulled their starters and the reserves were the ones that cut an 18-point deficit to three. Why play reserves if you're trying to win? This is only one example of instances when a team seemed like another agenda, not including winning, was on their minds

During the 2002-2003 season, the Cavaliers traded Lamond Murray, Andre Miller and Wesley Person. The result was a team with a better chance of losing. Although there is no evidence of the team losing on purpose, the trades probably cost them 10 to 12 wins during the season. The worse record gave them a better chance in the lottery, and they ended up drafting LeBron James.

"They trade all our guys away and we go real young, and the goal was to get LeBron and also to sell the team," ex-Cavalier head coach John Lucas said in an interview with FanHouse. "I didn't have a chance. ... You can't fault them for wanting to get LeBron. It was hard to get free agents to come there."

Lucas may be bitter for getting fired in the middle of the season, but he Cavaliers started 8-34 and would never recover before he was let go. What could Lucas possibly do without any players?

The NBA knows the realities, and they are pondering ways to fix the system. On Oct. 29, Mark Warkentien, the general manager of the Denver Nuggets, devised a plan to help eradicate the practice of losing on purpose. In his new system, the one through seven seeds would be seeded accordingly. However, the last seed would be awarded to the winner of a single elimination tournament between the eight through 15 seeds. Therefore, everyone has a chance at the playoffs, and teams would try and win to get the extra playoff home games.

The proposal isn’t so far-fetched it seems. According to CBSsports.com, the competition committee has added it to their agenda for their Friday meeting. They will vote on whether to recommend the plan for the Board of Governors to adopt, or they may alter the plan and send the revisions. Regardless, the idea is being discussed and has apparently tickled the minds of the committee members.

Personally, I think the plan is interesting. It would have to be a three-day tournament before the playoffs, either pushing the playoffs back or shortening the regular season. The games couldn’t be spaced too far a part, which may mean a team has to play three games in four days or even back-to-back-to-back games. Plus, teams may rest starters before the season ends since they know they get a shot anyway. Suddenly, tanking is a topic again (and what is keeping the 15 seed from losing and getting the better lottery draw).

The idea seems more like a money making scheme than anything else. The fans will love a tournament. A team will likely get more fan support during the tournament, instead of trying to give tickets away. Plus, the NBA would be able to market the event and make television and merchandising contracts. However, teams will still be trying to rebuild. A franchise ultimately wants to be a world champion, not an eighth seed ready to get pounced by a one seed.

No room for firearms in pro sports

Former New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress stated he plans to play in the NFL again. He has to say ‘again’ because he’s currently serving a two-year prison sentence for carrying an unlicensed, concealed weapon, with which he accidently shot himself in a nightclub.

Burress was also suspended by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. The punishment kept the commissioner’s reputation for enforcing strict conduct standards intact.

In the wake of Burress’ nonsense, Washington Wizard all-star Gilbert Arenas was recently suspended indefinitely by NBA commissioner David Stern for keeping guns in his locker and brandishing one at a teammate during a dispute. Arenas has since said he was joking when he pulled the gun on Javaris Crittenton, but Stern didn't buy it. It was also rumored Crittenton had a gun of his own in the locker room.

The most recent gun related incident in sports reported was Dallas Cowboy fullback Deon Anderson allegedly threatened a restaurant employee with a gun during a dispute.

Sadly, this type of thing is becoming the same old story. Example like the ones above, Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones' trouble with the law, Tank Johnson’s gun issues and many other misconduct stories have surfaced time and again.

It is commendable the way Goodell has taken a moral stance against illegal activity, but maybe it’s time for owners and general managers to do the same. Why not make conduct clauses in contracts?

There are many, many examples of incentive clauses in contracts – hit 20 home runs this year, make an extra $5,000. How about to deter criminal behavior, players earn a bonus if they go home immediately after a competition?

“Hey Plaxico. You can have an extra $500,000 this year if you don’t go to nightclubs.” Sounds like a sweet deal for everyone involved. With that extra half-a-million, Burress could turn his home into a nightclub, inviting people he trusts and eliminating the need to arm himself.

If teams don’t want behavior incentives, they should find some other deterrent before another unnecessary, tragic story engulfs the world of sports.