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Today is the day of the NBA All-Star game selection of rosters from those ten players elected as starters. Lebron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, James Harden, DeMarcus Cousins, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, DeMar DeRozan, and Kyrie Irving. Some of the best this game, and the world, have to offer. Due to this being such a widely anticipated event, Commisioner Adam Silver has decided not to televise the event in any fashion. Wait, what? Yes! Can you believe it! One of the more highly intriguing attention-grabbing events in recent sports memory and the league it falls under is not taking advantage of an opportunistic chance to make money. A peculiar decision, assuredly. But enough talk. Shh! The event is beginning! Commissioner Silver steps up to an invisible microphone, because this event does not actually exist. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen." This imaginary draft is being conducted over bacon and eggs. "Thank you for being here ...

In developing this sports blog, I wanted to come up with a sincere, unique, sports-centric name. To which, you might be now thinking to yourself: "he failed." But I'll have you know that "the hesi" is, in fact, a commonality among all sports. A Hall of Fame quarterback drops back, scans the field, pumps to his left, hesi tates, then throws back to the sideline to his right. The pass is incomplete. The quarterback is Lamar Jackson. A superstar NBA center (nevermind, that position is dying almost as fast as the good branding for Tide pods) A superstar NBA guard takes the ball at the top of the key, jab steps to his left, then right before the screen comes, hesi tates again before using the screen and draining a fall back, 28-footer. This NBA guard is, in fact, James Harden. Or maybe Jamal Crawford (but only if the fadeaway comes from 35+ feet). In baseball, the pitcher leans in to get the pitch from his catcher. If he's Craig Kimbrel, he's leaning...

10. Westbrook. Russell Westbrook, for the length of his career, has played each quarter of each game with the intensity of a thousand burning suns. Every time I hear his name, I close my eyes and picture him hurtling down the court at an unsettling speed and slamming down over some pour soul. Or, if there's not a rim-throttling dunk, there's a seemingly off-balance pull-up jumpers from 29 feet that effortlessly sinks through the net. Westbrook comes to my mind when I think of players that I have watched thinking to myself, " holy crap, this guy plays with an effort that's unreal*,"  probably not unlike how viewers in the late 80s and 90s watched Rodman. 9. Shaq.  I am a massive Shaquille O'Neal fan. The infatuation covers several different realms: he was drafted by the Orlando Magic the year I was born just outside Orlando, my dad wrote a book on him, he had so many goofy names (Big Diesel, Big Cactus, Big Artistotle, Big Shamrock, etc.), he inexplicably ...

Whereas July 1 was the central date for the time of year when I excessively scroll through and then refresh, and then scroll through and refresh Twitter constantly as if my soul depends on it, now comes the spot in the calendar when I keep track of MLB Trade Rumors like my soul demands that for its survival. With a week to go before the non-waiver trade deadline on July 31, here are the ten guys most likely to change addresses which I deem most valuable as this deadline approaches. (Editor's Note: If I get all or any of these predictions correct, I might just have to apply for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim GM position. They could use the help. YOU HAVE MIKE TROUT. DO SOMETHING WITH THAT INFORMATION.) 10. Khris Davis: $5 million salary this season, arbitration eligible through 2020, age 32 Davis, like a few others on this list, would inevitably service a team looking for some added pop to its lineup. However, the hold-up on Davis is that if he's not knocking it into ...

I'm here to talk to you about one of the greater institutions in this world of ours. No, not the US Constitution. Not Netflix. And we can chat another day about rolled ice cream. Yes, I'm here to talk to you today about bat flips. No, not bottle flips . Bat flips. I'm talking pimping a double , or a  triple . I'm talking sling that sucker . I'm talking CHUCK THAT BAD BOY WHERE THE SUN DON'T SHINE ! Bat flips are innately fun. No, scratch that--bat flips are flippin' glorious. Look, I'm all about not showing up the game, and not showing up opponents or teammates. But having uncorked (bad verb. Sorry, Sammy ) a few bombs at the beach with friends and whipping that bat into the horizon, bat flips are a tremendous experience for both the flippee and the observer. I think this discussion comes at a relevant time for Major League Baseball especially. Last week was the All-Star game. And while the game itself was boring and without ...

I'm back at it again on the Trade Machine. So here we go with today's fake trade: ​ ​ S M L XL  No picks changing hands in the swap. Straight up. In this deal, the Knicks finally purge themselves of Carmelo Anthony and the drama he carries with him, and end up with a terrific haul in the process. Melo can instantly vault the Mavericks into the playoffs at the very least, playing alongside Dirk, Wes Matthews, and impending star Dennis Smith Jr. at the point. The Mavs are able to immediately contend with two aging stars in Melo and Dirk, while they're also able to surround their young talent (most notably Smith and Dwight Powell) with veterans who know what it takes to win. Anthony gets to play in a tax-free state in Texas, and while it's not Houston, I don't necessarily know if Houston has the pieces to acquire Melo to begin with. At least Melo would (we hope) be pleased with an exit from NYC. The Mavs get Melo for the length of Dirk Nowtzki...

I feel like this concept--off-season winners and losers--is the most saturated idea that comes with the rise of the NBA off-season, a rise I discussed on my podcast earlier this week. Where there is activity in the League, there--apparently--is the need for talk and incessant debate and this topic creates just that. Having said that, I do think it's still important to affirm those teams that have done a terrific job this off-season, as it is equally important to patronize those franchises and individuals that are operating with the IQ of a toddler. Without further ado, my 2017 NBA off-season champs and chumps. WINNERZ 1. China-Klay-- When the NBA season ended and summer began, Klay Thompson was ready. The Splash Brother went to China and immediately got to channeling his inner Dirty Dancing having the time of his life. Whether dunking and falling flat on his back , eating quite hot Chinese food , arm wrestling ,  having a ball at late-night dance clubs , or do...

This morning on my way to Starbucks where I ordered a tall (see: small) drink I listened to the first episode of recently refurbished  "The Woj Pod"  where Adrian Wojnarowski sat down with Paul George, newly of the Oklahoma City Thunder. I had a couple quick thoughts after listening to the 30-minute episode from last Thursday. Early on in the pod there was a question asking PG what he's looking for in a team if he plays the free agency roulette next summer and decides to change unis. I had qualms with PG's answer in that he said he wanted a chance to win. Granted, everybody says that. But if that's the case than the Lakers may not be the best destination. Now the way to think about this might be that PG wants a chance to win...even if it's in 2020 and beyond, at which point in time he'll be on the downslide of his career at 30+ years old. Fortunately, if he were to go to the Lakers the team around him would be marginally younger. However, later in the...

My Minnesota Timberwolves fandom dates back to the summer of 2014. You might remember that summer being big in NBA lore, as Lebron decided he was "Coming Home" (with the help of Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins). What transpired after that was Kevin Love agreeing to stick around in Cleveland and howdy-doody 2014 first overall pick Andrew Wiggins was in Minny. I was a big fan of Kevin Love at the time--a round, rebounding machine for a decrepit team. I, too, at that time was a little chunkier and also had an affinity for collecting boards on the hardwood. Our games overlapped, then, to a degree. I enjoyed KLove's talents. But I was  NOT  going to transfer that fandom to the Cavs. This was pre-my great admiration for Lebron. I was still bitter over his Heatles affair. So I decided, somewhat ridiculously, " why not become a fan of the team that KLove just departed?" I adopted the Wolves as my own. I got on board with Gorgui "The Gorgyle" De...

2018 Playoff Standings EAST 1. BOS...I don't wholeheartedly believe in this new IT4, Hayward, Horford (do we have a nickname for this group yet? not even the Hayward-Horford combo? I'm going with Isayford. Yikes.) However, I do think that this team that already won the East last year only got better with Hayward. Trading Avery Bradley for Marcus Morris is an interesting twist to last year's squad, and I like the slotting of Aron Baynes to replace Boston legend Kelly Olynyk. Besides, if Lebron coasts for a two week stretch as he is prone to doing, the Celtics could take the one seed in this atrocious conference. 2. CLE ...Well, Lebron. And Lebron. Oh, and Lebron. So in conclusion, Lebron. 3. MIL...GIANNISSSSSS. I cannot WAIT to shout this young man's names to the heavens several times over the next few months. 4. TOR...The Raptors are that bad pickup team at the Y that insists on continually bringing the same 5 back onto the court eve...