Off the Wall

I went down to the Garden last night to see the Kentucky vs. UCONN matchup and I have to tell you, this kid John Wall is the real deal.

He was dominant on both sides of the ball, his athleticism was unmatched and he appeared to have all the makings of a good outside shooter.

Wall has hops and had one of the most outrageous blocks in transition I've ever seen by a guard. He took over the game late and showed superb upper body strength late in the game when he was hammered taking it to the hole, hit three times and still managed to convert the conventional 3-point play.

The one drawback for Wall was that he had 7 turnovers. He appeared sloppy at times, especially in the middle stages of the game, but he clamped down at the end that that's what mattered most. Keep in mind he also had 6 steals, plus the block.

As far as the game was concerned I did not like what I saw out of UCONN. They play solid defense, but the shooting was dreadful.

Calipari out coached Calhoun in my eyes. After Wall picked Dyson's pocket 33 seconds into the game, Calhoun had a coronary, called time out and removed his leading scorer from the game. You have to give him more than 33 seconds and what's worse is that a similar situation occurred shortly into the second half with Dyson again. You have to trust your stars.

Conversely, I thought Calipari did an outstanding job limiting Wall's minutes in the first half so that he was fresh for the stretch run and it paid off. Even as UCONN came back from Kentucky's 12-0 run to start the game, Calipari did not feel the need to force Wall into the game. Instead he wisely weathered the storm, kept his young phenom fresh and it paid off as Kentucky won BECAUSE of Wall.

This kid's the real deal, and mark my words, Kentucky will be a contender come March. I don't think that will be true of the Huskies.

--Notes

* I couldn't believe how many Blue jersey's there were at MSG last night. Certainly more than there were UCONN jerseys and more than triple (I'd guess) than St. John's jerseys (the Red Storm played in the first game against Georgia).

* Both Mike Francesa and Pat Riley were in attendance last night. This afternoon Francesa said on his radio show, Mike'd Up, that when he asked Riley about Wall, Riley's response was "he's like a 6'3" LeBron."

Granderson Trade Makes Sense

Picture yourself at a Hold Em' table in Vegas. You've been dealt pocket rockets and just hit the third ace on the flop, the whole table folds except for one man in an Armani suite, sitting directly across from you, he looks like he has the fourth, a gleam in his left eye, and a sinking feeling in his right. He clearly has the money to go on with the loss, but knows he could lose big.

You are the Yankees, and the man sitting across from you is Johnny Damon.

The Bombers acquisition of Curtis Granderson from the Tigers has given them all the cards and while he's not admitting it yet, has shoved Damon against a wall with only a shorter, but probably more lucrative escape route in place.

By nabbing Granderson at a relatively small price, he slides into center field with the likely non-Damon solution being Melky Cabrera in left field.

This means that the Yankees have tons of options regarding the rest of the club. Without Damon, the Yankees slide Cabrera to left and can feel comfortable resigning Hidecki Matsui for a 1-year deal because they won't have to spell Damon in that spot. Certainly A-Rod will see time at DH, but Matsui will need a break from time to time anyway.

Granderson will add power to the outfield that the Yankees (and myself) were afraid they would sorely miss if they lost either Damon or Matsui this offseason. The trade allows them the flexibility to sign either, but not both and helps them meet their goal of lowering the payroll this year.

If Damon does resign, he'll split time between left field and DH and the Yankees will have no need to resign Matsui because of the power surge in center.

And if neither if they don't resign Matsui or Damon? Watch out Red Sox, because that leaves a lot of money free to sign Matt Holliday.

Monday's Question of the Day

In light of a friend's text message to me yesterday declaring the Oakland Raiders "relevant again", I pose to you Monday's question of the day.

Have you seen enough out of the 4-12 Raiders to make you think they are on the climb back to contention?

Please comment with answers!

My answer to Friday's Question: Forget about slide or don't slide. The problem here is that the coaching staff has no trust in the franchise quarterback. The color coded situation system, the emphasis on when to slide, the idea that he must be protected for year's to come is terrifying. To be the face of the franchise, the kid has to accomplish something, which he hasn't done yet. The team has to be able to trust him and they clearly don't. I'm not saying that the coaching staff has done a bad job, I think there is clear concern about is ability to make decisions on his own. Rex Ryan calling him out won't help that, the kid just has to learn or else the Jets are in for a long standing bust.

Friday's Question of the Day

In light of Mark Sanchez injuring his knee and being called a "knucklehead" for diving after the Jets brought in Joe Girardi to teach Sanchez how to slide I ask you the Friday question of the day.

What's more concerning? The fact that Sanchez didn't follow the coaches orders. The fact that he's injured and the backup quarterback is shaky. Or the fact that Sanchez is incapable of making these types of decisions on his own.

Comment with the answer!

My answer to Thursday's question: Tiger Woods has been a disaster. He was one of a few athletes who could apparently do no wrong (Derek Jeter, LeBron James, Roger Federer) but now Tiger is as run of the mill in terms of character as anyone. That being said, the Nets are a joke. The idea that they are 0-18 an that the end might not be in sight is a complete failure, and to fire the coach shows how desperate they are. Lucky for them Tiger has the headlines.

Thursday's Question of the Day

Here's something new. Each day I will have a question of the day, please comment with responses.

Thursday's Question: Who is a bigger disappointment? The Nets who set an NBA record for longest losing streak to open the season at 18 (and counting), or Tiger Woods rapid fall from grace?

Comment!

-Alex

Maybe 2010 is Gallo

Watching the Knicks this year, I have learned one thing, and one thing only: Danilo Gallinari can flat out stroke it.

The rest of the team is about as inconsistent as the story surrounding Tiger Woods this week. The Knicks run up and down the court with no apparent plan, and despite being an awful 4-14 have looked good at times. The problem is not enough times.

The main problem aside from having no defense is that the orange and blue do not have a "go to" player, or someone who can draw a double team. What they do have is a couple of pieces who could really fit in nicely with an elite attack forward and a rock solid point guard.

Gallinari is far from developed, but give him an open look and it's money. Knicks' fans will point out that they have had a pure shooter before in Allan Houston and not only did he fail to bring a championship home (like so many 'stars' before him) he essentially sent the Knicks into a salary cap spiral for the last decade when the former all star failed to live up to his ridiculous contract, but this is different.

Consider that Houston was a pure shooter from the shooting guard spot, Gallinari has height and length and will extend the floor because he'll force big guys to guard him outside, opening up the middle for someone like LeBron James or Dwayne Wade to attack. Those guys would also command double teams and give open looks to Gallinari. Houston never had that ability because no one opposing him was ever out of position. Also factor in that the two best players to ever run alongside number 20 were Patrick Ewing, a shell of his hall of fame self at the time, and Latrell Sprewell who played the exact same position as Houston, and was by no means a franchise player and still those Knicks went to the 1999-2000 NBA finals.

The Knicks' plan for 2010 is to clear enough cap room to sign two big name free agents, and that's a great strategy if they can do it. However they may just be OK with one and Gallinari if they play their cards yet. While it's to early to tell if Gallinari is going to be a star, Allan Houston or perhaps Wally Szczerbiak, but from the looks of things he's closer to Houston and if he's better, put him with James or Wade, and maybe just maybe the glory days can return to MSG.

Turkey Day Picks

Happy Thanksgiving everybody! I know some are looking forward to a delicious and filling meal, spending time with family, and of course some football, even if the day games are as bad as ever. I'll give you my picks, but I have to wonder when the NFL is going to realize that giving Detroit a home game on every Turkey Day is a failed endeavor, with that being said, get your plates ready and here's some NFL Turkey Day picks!

Packers (+11) Lions- OK on paper this looks like a game that should easily go to the the Packers. JJ Stafford may not play, especially with the short week and it looks like Calvin Johnson is out as well. But the Packers don't protect the quarterback and it seems like a miracle that Green Bay is 6-4. The Lions have shown some life recently and I think they'll get up for their struggling city on Thanksgiving. The Packers need the game more and I think they'll win, but they won't cover the spread of 11 which is way to many points to give up, especially on the road.

Cowboys (+14) Raiders- The Raiders are awful. The Raiders are awful on the road. The Cowboys are going to win this one, they're also going to cover the spread meaning that everyone should plan their dinner for about 5:30, that way once you're fed up with the awful football that starts at 4:15, you can systematically miss the end of what figures to be a route.

Giants (+7) Broncos- Finally a game worth watching! Oh, what's that? You can't see it because its on NFL Network? Yeah, Mr. Goodell isn't listening. The Giants won last week, but it wasn't as pretty. Bradshaw is out and the fragile Brandon Jacobs is going to have to carry the load. The Broncos are in disarray after getting off to a surprising hot start and they are at home. The big questions is going to be can the Giants create turnovers and score off them? Or will Denver be able to move the ball on New York's defense at will. If it's the latter, chalk up a Broncos win. I think the Giants will come out firing, especially since the Cowboys will have already one and they will know they need to keep up the pressure with an imperative road win. I won't take the points especially with the Broncos playing in their building and on a short week but Denver is who we thought they were...before the season started.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!