Bleacher Report - Articles by Detroit Sports Fan

Does the Michigan State Basketball Team Have Homecourt Advantage?

Detroit Sports Fan — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:36:52 -0400

We all know that Michigan State has been playing tremendously in this tournament and is in the final four. They blew away Robert Morris in the first round of the tourney, in the second round they defeated a hot, extremely talented USC team, in the Sweet 16, they played a tough game and beat the defending national champion Kansas Jayhawks. And after all that talk that Louisville was going to embarrass MSU in their elite eight game, State beat them by DOUBLE DIGITS. Ohh... and Louisville was the overall number one seed. Next will be their toughest challenge yet as they face the UCONN Huskies in their final four game with the dominant Hasheem Thabeet.

But my question was whether or not MSU will have home court advantage. I have heard both. Some talk that it is in Michigan, so it is obvious that State will have a huge home court advantage. Others think that since it is on the east side of the state, there will be more Michigan fans that WILL NOT root for state.

I think that with the way Suton and Lucas are playing, State could win it all.

Tell me what you think and...Go Sparties!!!!

2008-09 NBA Mt. Rushmore: Who Makes It?

Detroit Sports Fan — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 17:44:19 -0400

Seems everybody's recreating that famous monument in South Dakota these days, sticking any old faces in the places of some of our greatest presidents. Time for me to weigh in by naming the most deserving players in today's NBA.

The first player I'm gonna put on Rushmore has to be the amazing youngster. He's just 23...

Yep, you guessed it. Chris Paul.

This amazing budding star is leading the league in assists and steals and has nearly 1,500 points on the season. If he keeps these stats up for the rest of his career, he could very well be on the all-time NBA Mt. Rushmore.

Next is another easily-guessed phenom. It's the unbelievable LeBron James.

I cannot fathom this guy when I watch him play. I'm stunned by his ability to score and even more flabbergasted by his inhuman athleticism.

This superstar is second in the league in scoring, seventh in the league in assists, sixth in the league in steals, and in the top twenty in blocks. Many compare him to MJ himself, but I'd say he's shining so brightly this year that only God can see him clearly.

Third, I'll take the league's leading scorer and an extremely athletic player. Give it up for...

Dwayne Wade!

This man is doing great to turn around his Miami Heat. It's a comeback that's extremely suprising to some, but I say it's just a "D-Wade sort of thing."

Maybe he'll have some slow years in the future due to his play style and injury history, but looking at him in '08-'09, he's going on the monument.

This last player, as you all know, has been great throughout his career and will most likely will go down as one of the most talented players to ever play the game.

It's K-K-K-Kobe Bryant.

No surprise he makes the list; he's just having another fabulous year. I don't think he's gonna repeat as MVP, but he'll for sure be in the talk.

So that's all for this edition of "Sports of Mt. Rushmore." See you soon!

Detroit Lions' First and Second Round Picks for '09 Draft

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 01:29:48 -0500

Obviously, the Lions were an embarrassment to the NFL this year. I'm even a bit embarrassed to admit that I am a fan of them. To at least be half-decent, they will need to have a good draft. These are the early round picks that I think they should make:

Round One, Pick One: RAY MAUALUGA, MLB, USC

The other first-rounder they will have is the Dallas Cowboys pick. If JAMES LAURINAITIS from OSU is available, they need to get him, but if not, they need to get a top-notch defensive lineman.

In the second round, they need to beef up their offensive line. Detroit's O-line is terrible!

Manny Ramirez: Where Will the Unpredictable Slugger Go Next?

Detroit Sports Fan — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:55:33 -0400

Manny Ramirez is sure to test the free-agent market after saying in published reports he wants to see who the highest bidder is and that "Gas is up, and so am I." But where will he go?

He probably won't stay in Los Angeles because, even if they offer him "A-Rod" money, like $30 million for one year, somebody would still offer him something like $60 million to $65 million for three years, which would still make him the highest paid outfielder in baseball over Torii Hunter, who gets around $18 million a year.

So, I said he probably won't go to the Dodgers. He probably won't go to any teams that are major buyers at the free agent market, including the Red Sox (they just don't want him back from the terrible fiasco he caused this summer), the Yankees, or the Mets.

So where could Manny go? Here are just a few of my thoughts:

He could go to the Arizona Diamondbacks because they have great pitching, and if they got a bat like Manny Ramirez's they would definitely be a playoff contender. He could go to the Brewers, who have good pitching and batting...Wow, would they be good if they got Manny!

Give me your thoughts on where Manny could go!

MLB World Series Prediction: Who Will Be the Last Standing?

Detroit Sports Fan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:42:53 -0400

My World Series prediction: the Los Angeles Angels vs. the Chicago Cubs.

I say these two teams will play in the World Series because I can't see any other team stopping either of them. I predict the Angels will win the World Series, four games to two.

Will Kwame Brown Have a Breakout Year with the Detroit Pistons?

Detroit Sports Fan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:29:30 -0400

Kwame Brown was the first-overall pick in the draft several years ago, and he has not shown the skill of a first-overall pick yet. With a great team like the Pistons, I think Brown will have the confidence to give a great effort and be a dominant player on the Pistons.

I think it was a great move by the pistons to get Kwame Brown in the offseason, because if they can get him to be confident on offense and defense, he could be the player that the Pistons need to get to the NBA Finals.

What the Pistons have done the past several years is pick up players that are not the greatest performers, but that have a lot of potential. Then they just give these players some good minutes—and then before you know it, they are some of the better players on the team.

For example, years ago the Pistons picked up Chauncey Billups. Nobody wanted Billups, and he kept going to a new team every year and not perform well. The Pistons saw that Billups was a player who had not been performing well, but had so much potential.

So the Pistons decided to take a risk and pick up Billups. They didn't even have to pay him that much money, they just gave him good minutes to boost his confidence, and then before anybody knew it, he was playing in All-Star games and all these teams around the whole league had an interest in getting Chauncey.

This situation with Brown is very similar to Chauncey's. Brown has't played that great, but he has an amazing amount of potential. I think the Pistons will so the same thing with Brown that they do to lots of players that have a lot of potential—they'll give him good minutes to increase his skill, and soon he'll be one of the dominant players on Detroit's roster.

Chad Pennington to the Miami Dolphins?

Detroit Sports Fan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:06:41 -0400

Since the New York Jets traded for Brett Favre, they will probably drop Chad Pennington soon. The Miami Dolphins do not have any good QBs, so I think Chad would be a good addition for the Dolphins.

Pennington was a great QB several years ago, but he just hasn't been able to show his skills the last three or four years because he has constantly been injured.

I think it was not smart at all to put Clemens ahead of Pennington on the New York Jets depth chart. I mean Pennington has been injured lately, and he is great when he is healthy, so I wouldn't consider dropping him.

If the New York Jets drop Chad Pennington, I think it would be a great move for the dolphins to add Pennington to the team.

Greg Oden: Does He Have a Chance at Rookie of the Year?

Detroit Sports Fan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 06:18:41 -0400

Most of you are probably thinking, "Greg Oden can't be Rookie of the Year because he was drafted last year." But the rule is that a player can be Rookie of the Year if they have never played in a single NBA game, which Oden hasn't.

So we know by the rules Oden could be Rookie of the Year. But the question is does he have enough talent?

The were a lot of great players drafted this year that would be hard for Oden to play better than, i.e. Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, O.J Mayo, and the Lopez brothers.

But Oden was picked first the year before, so he definitely has a chance. If it is not Oden, I'd bet that it's either going to be Rose, Beasley, or Mayo.

Manny Ramirez for Jason Bay: Did the Red Sox Improve by Dumping Manny for Bay?

Detroit Sports Fan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 04:38:38 -0400

I think that Boston improved by trading Manny and getting Jason Bay.

Here are two reasons why:

Jason Bay won't cause problems like overreacting and trying to hurt teammates like Manny did, and my other reason is that Jason Bay is almost as good as Manny and he is younger, so the Sox will have Bay a lot longer than they would have had Manny for.

Pistons sign WALTER HERRMANN- HORRIBLE move!

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 11:22:03 -0400

The Pistons signed Walter Hermann to a one-year deal.

HORRIBLE MOVE!

The Pistons are tight on money and they're signing a guy that most likely won't get any minutes anywhere.

Dumars, don't make stupid moves! It'll cost you.

USA Men's Basketball Team Looks Impressive

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:38:08 -0400

USA Olympic men's basketball looks like they have a good chance of taking home the gold medal this year.

They have so much confidence that they will win this year, and that makes a huge difference. I see scores on TV and they are winning by double digits every single game.

The Olympic team has so many players playing well, Dwayne Wade is averaging almost a point per minute, LeBron is playing well, everybody is contributing—and that 360 dunk by Kobe, you don't see that every day. More like you never see that.

They're ready to bring home the gold!!!!!

2008-2009 NFL Season: Five Players That Could Surprise You

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:22:29 -0400

Darren McFadden

Great speed and toughness could make him an outstanding player.

JaMarcus Russell

The No. 1 pick in the 2007 draft has very strong throwing arm.

Michael Turner

Turner is a very talented running back, people just don't know much of him because he was backing up LT in San Diego.

Julius Jones

He will play more now that he is in Seattle.

Calvin Johnson

The No.2 pick in 2007 draft, is great wide out. He never did much last year because he never fully recovered from his injury last season

NFC North: 2008 Rankings

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:13:12 -0400

1. Minnesota Vikings

2. Green Bay Packers

3. Chicago Bears

4. Detroit Lions

I know it is very predictable, but I thought people might want to know.

Brett Favre: Will the Packers Trade Him?

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:01:23 -0400

If the Packers are not going to start Brett Favre, they should just trade him to a team outside of their division. Why should they keep him when they could get a decent player that still has several years of playing left in him?

I think they should keep Favre and just play him for one more year. I mean Aaron Rodgers isn't going to be that great, so let him stay benched for one more year.

Packers—trade Favre if you won't start him!

Marian Hossa Will Make a Difference for Detroit

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 08:49:23 -0400

I'm telling you right now: Marian Hossa will make a huge difference for the Red Wings.

I know the Wings just won the Stanley Cup, but they will be even more unstoppable now that they have Hossa.

Detroit will have a great chance for back-to-back Stanley Cups.

Joe Dumars, It's Time to Make a Move: Get Josh Smith

Detroit Sports Fan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 07:42:23 -0400

The Detroit Pistons have gotten far in the playoffs for the last several years, but there is one problem: they haven't gone all the way.

Since they've gone well into the playoffs the last few years, they're not doing badly, but they need to make a big move if they want to get to the NBA Finals and be able to win it. There is one great move Detroit could make to have a chance, and that move is to sign Josh Smith!

The Pistons really need another leader on the court and Josh Smith is the answer, so Dumars, it's time for you to make your move.