Bleacher Report - Articles by Reid Mueller

Iverson Looking at Options in Memphis

Reid Mueller — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:26:54 -0400

News came out yesterday that Allen Iverson has shown great interest in signing with the Memphis Grizzles. This is a very risky signing for Memphis. On one hand, Iverson is a very good point guard/shooting guard, but on the other hand, whereever AI seems to go the team gets worse.

The Iverson signing has more upsides than it has downsides. Iverson can really teach Mike Conley and OJ Mayo how to play at the NBA level. A great veteran player always helps a very young team like the Grizzles

Iverson would have to make some serious sacrifices to make this deal go through. According to the Memphis Grizzles, "Iverson would certainly have to take a major pay cut from the $21 million he earned last season with Detroit. It is believed that the Griz would only entertain Iverson at what they'd deem a reasonable price, and if the 13-year veteran agreed to play off the bench."

Who knows if Iverson will be interested in taking all these hits to his legacy. He was already benched last season.

If Iverson decides Memphis isn't the place for him, there are a couple of teams that make sense for him to sign with. One of these teams would be the Miami Heat. They have already shown some interest in Iverson, and they are in dire need of a solid PG/SG.

Another team that could make sense is the Charlotte Bobcats. The Bobcats need that one solid player that could take them over the hump and into the postseason, and once again he would be a great mentor for D.J. Augustin.

--Reid Mueller

Source:

(http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/rumors/post/Iverson-tells-Grizzlies-he-d-like-to-play-in-Mem?urn=nba,174594)

Milwaukee Bucks Decide Amir Johnson Over Charlie Villanueva

Reid Mueller — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:25:20 -0400

The Milwaukee Bucks announced today that they would not attempt to resign the five-year Charlie Villanueva. Charlie Villanueva is a young promising player who averaged 16.2 PPG last season.

The Richard Jefferson trade was suppose to clear up cap room to sign Villanueva back to a long term deal but when the Bucks traded for the Piston's Amir Johnson this changed. They feel he has great talent and could become a solid Power Forward.

Amir Johnson is only 22 years old, but he hasn't played an important role in an NBA franchise yet. He only averaged 3.5 points per game and 3.7 rebounds a game last year.

He was originally drafted out of Westchester High School in Los Angeles, but because of the strong depth he never got a chance to play significant minutes for the Pistons.

Not having a productive spot for Amir the Piston's sent him to play for the D-League where he played very well.

In the end this move for Amir over Villanueva should free even more Cap Room. Although I have yet to see the Bucks make any attempts to use this freed Cap Room, and from past experiences they probably won't do anything significant this year.

They do however have some options in free agency this year. They could sign Hedo Turkoglu to a high paying contract, but they would have to offer three to five million more than a playoff team for him to consider playing in Wisconsin.

Another option might be a Mike Bibby or a Allen Iverson, but once again they would have to play a very large sum of money for one of these players to come in and be a mentor towards Brandon Jennings. Who obviously needs someone to help him grow up before he can run a NBA team. Even though it seems he is calling the shots already.

I'd be very impressed if the Bucks would deal Michael Redd to free even more Cap Room and sign Ben Gordon who will not likely sign with the Bulls for next season.

In the end I believe that the Milwaukee Bucks need to trade Michael Redd this off-season. He seems like the only player that we aren't afraid to deal away, but honestly he is one of the few players that we should be looking to deal away.

The Buck's management needs to show some guts and make a move that actually makes sense. They either need to learn how to run a NBA team or call it quits and once again try to find a good fit at the GM position.

Why the American League Continues To Dominate the NL

Reid Mueller — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 22:50:24 -0400

Haven't we all wondered why the American League annually has the better record in Interleague play and have won 12 straight All-Star games?

There have been 102 World Series played since the very first World Series in 1903. In this time period the American League has had 61 World Series wins while the National League only has 41. Also, all the top-five teams with the highest winning percentage in interleague play are all American League teams.

Now it's quite obvious that the American League has complete domination over the National League. Now the only question is how we can even up the caliber of the two leagues.

In my opinion there are only two possible options that could change the domination of the AL over the NL. One is that the American League dumps the Designated Hitter, which obviously is not a likely choice being as it's their clear advantage over the NL. National League teams just can't support a roster where they have a player that can act as a DH.

The other option is that the National League would pick up the DH role. Personally, I don't think that the DH is the way that baseball was supposed to be played. Anyone that is out in the field is supposed to bat; it's just how the game was invented.

I think it's quite obvious that Bud Selig needs to start a movement to get rid of the Designated Hitter. You have to make the game of baseball fair, just like all the other sports. No matter what sport you look at: football, basketball, or even hockey, both leagues of their sports have the same exact rules and that's why you see a more even winning percentage head to head in those sports.

It's just not fair to give a more talented hitter to the American League no matter what. It's a lose-lose situation for the National League. If they play on the road they have to figure out some way to find a capable hitter to compete with their DH, and if they are home they don't get an advantage from the rule differences.

Who Will Be The Top Five Coaches at the End of This Era

Reid Mueller — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 07:37:46 -0400

My list of the top 5 coaches in the recent era:

5. Jim Calhoun

With a career record of 703-310, he is one of the most impressive coaches in history. Lately, he hasn't been the winning machine that we are all used to. Although his Huskies lost in the first round of the Big Dance last year, he has still managed to lead his team to be respectable.

4. Rick Pitino

Pitino has shown great leadership and unbelievable stats in his career as of late. He has a career record of 521-191, and has taken four different teams to the Final Four in his 5 career appearances. His Louisville Cardinals should be one of the top 10 teams this year, and Pitino will have a great chance of making his sixth Final Four appearance.

3. Mike Krzyzewski

The Great Coach K makes my list at No. 3. He has shown the ability to win and recruit like almost no other coach in today's game. He has an outstanding career record at 721-246. He has won 3, but I'll reward him with his 4th after this summers' Olympic Gold Medal run. His Duke Blue Devils will be on top of the ACC when the 2008-2009 season is over.

2. Roy Williams

With his career record of 560-134, two national championships, and a winning percentage of .805 in his career, he is a household name. He obviously has not won as much as Coack K, but with that winning percentage you really can't argue him being my No. 2.

1. Bo Ryan

Finally, as my No. 1 coach in recent history, I have Wisconsin's own Bo Ryan. He has done so much in his career. He has accomplished great things with teams that lack athleticism. He has a career record of 173-60 in Division I and has the most wins in Division III with 353. He continues to lead the Wisconsin Badgers with his swing offense and making up their lack of athleticism with effort.

My honorable mentions are Florida's Billy Donovan. He would have been my No. 1 coach at the end of this era if he didn't almost leave the Florida Gators.

My other honorable mention is Tom Izzo. His teams are dirty, they are cheap, and that is why he will end up being one of the top coaches. They can be physical with anyone, there practices are competitive, and that just leads to great teams

Top Ten Biggest Upsets In BCS History

Reid Mueller — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 07:22:41 -0400

Here is my List of The Top Ten Upsets In BCS History

10. Colorado VS Oklahoma

This was just a huge upset. We have the Oklahoma powerhouse against a team in Colorado that we had heard nothing about all year. A game on FSN so most people didn't even know that this game was on, and Oklahoma loses? I mean no disrespect towards Colorado, but they're no Oklahoma.

9. Wisconsin VS Ohio State

The defending champions travel to No. 23 Wisconsin in 2003. The Badgers led by Jim Sorgi came out running. The Badgers took a 7-3 lead going into half time because of a Stanley TD run.

The Badgers padded their lead in the second half with an early field goal. Ohio State became desperate which led to Ryan Reynolds choking Jim Sorgi. Taking him out of the game, I mean Sorgi couldn't even talk. You just can't play a game like that.

Ohio State's next possession they tied the game up with a Krenzel to Jenkins pass. The Badgers would not stay down! Late in the 4th quarter the Badgers scored the game winning touchdown on a 79-yard stop and go route by Lee Evens from long time back-up quarter back Matt Schabert. Badgers Upset National Champion Ohio State 17-10

8. Oregon State Knocks Off the 2nd Ranked Bears

This is a game that you just can't lose. Losing this game on the road would of been horrible, but at home? To describe a loss this bad I'd have to create a whole new word!

Nothing against the (9-3) Beavers last year, but how can u lose this game? Your ranked 2nd, and your on the national stage and you lose? Now lets understand that they did lose this game because of back-up quarterback Kevin Reilly.

There was about 30 seconds left they had no timeouts left and he runs the ball up the middle instead of throwing the ball away. They could not spike the ball because it was now 4th down. The kicking team sprinted out on the field, and ran out of time, lost and ruined there chance to take over the No. 1 spot.

7. Syracuse upsets Louisville?

Louisville went into this game with a 20 game home win streak, and they were favored by 36 1/2 points. Now with Brian Brohmat quarterback throwing for over 500 yards. Now this is a great upset because i still don't understand how Syracuse won this game!

6. Cincinnati VS Wisconsin

The Wisconsin Badgers were coming off an 11-1 win season and a Rose Bowl Victory over UCLA. The Badgers were a Top Five ranked team, and had national championship hopes. Cincinnati was coming off a two win season the year before, and back in 2000 they were still in Conference USA.

This game was suppose to have been won by the Badgers by so much that this game wasn't even televised locally. I honestly believe that Cincinnati didn't beat the Badgers.... The Badgers would have lost this game to a pee wee team from Montana. That is how bad the Badgers played in this game.

5. Pittsburgh defeats West Virginia

West Virginia had one thing to do to play in the national championship game, and that was beat a mediocre Pittsburgh team at home. I don't think West Virginia was mentally prepared for this game by Rich Rodriquez, and isn't it ironic that two weeks later Rich Rodriquez took the Michigan Job?

I think that Rich Rodriguez no longer cared about this West Virgina team. He knew he wasn't going to be there for the National Championship game so why have them go?

4. California Knocks of the Titan

The No. 1 ranked USC travels to California only to hit a brick wall. One of the greatest games in past memory. The game went into triple overtime Cal stopped USC on 3rd down and forced them to kick the field goal....he missed.

All the Cal Bears had to do is kneel the ball and kick the 37-yard field goal to knock off their No. 1 ranked rivals. Sounds pretty easy but Cal's kicker Tyler Fredrickson had been blocked by USC in his last two field goal attempts, but not this time. Tyler hit the biggest field goal attempt of his life. Fans rushed onto the field and Cal picked up Tyler and held him in the air.

3. Appalachian State At Michigan

Division 1-A Powerhouse App St. goes into the big house to face the 5th ranked Michigan Wolverines. A small town college trapped in the mountains goes up against the team with the most wins in NCAA history.

Appalachian State was faster than Michigan and played with much more heart, and that is why one of the biggest upsets of all time happened. Well that and a block field goal as time expired.

2. Stanford At USC

As a 41 point underdog the Stanford Cardinals marched into USC and shocked the college football world. Who would of guessed that Stanford was going to be ready to play this game after their Head Coach Jim Harbaugh said "USC might be the best team ever." After Stanford's game winning lob touchdown, it made us believe that anything can happen.

For my No. 1 biggest upset of the BCS Era

The Biggest Upset of all time is....... Boise State VS Oklahoma.

The small school Boise State Broncos go into the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl as a underdog against a great Oklahoma Sooners team. They battled with the much faster Sooners and Adrain Peterson for a full four quarters. At the end of regulation the score was tied at 35.

In the first overtime Oklahoma got the ball first and scored. Boise State needed a score or their perfect season would be over. Boise State scored on a five yard pass from Vinny Perretta to Derek Schouman. They need an extra point to win and upset the powerhouse Oklahoma.

Boise State Head Coach Chris Peterson decided to go for the win. Boise States hopes for the undefeated season came down to this one play. They ran the Statue of Liberty play the Oklahoma defence had never seen this play before and were so confused Ian Johnson was able to walk into the end zone to win the game for the undefeated season beating one of the best college dynasties ever.