by Nick Brower | Mar 2, 2018 | SPORTS
JR Smith sat out last night’s game against the Sixers as he served a one game suspension from the team. The reason for the suspension came out this morning. Apparently JR didn’t like the soup being served the other day at team dinner. Coach Tyron Lue told the media that JR threw a bowl of soup at assistant coach Damon Jones. Not much else was said regarding the incident, but Smith has a reputation of being a little bit of a hot head and a lot a bit of a bozo. If a story like this broke about just about any other player I would be shocked. JR Smith? Not so much. Love his game, but he is definitely a clown. Smith will be back in the starting lineup tonight against Denver but he probably won’t be served any soup anytime soon.
by Nick Brower | Mar 1, 2018 | SPORTS
HB 4341, also called the Dave Duerson Act, passed through primary committees and will be debated on the House floor in Illinois. The bill proposes a ban on tackle football for all children under the age of twelve state wide. New York, California, and Maryland have also began drafting legislation that restricts football for youths, but Illinois is the first to get a serious bill to the state’s House floor. The Dave Duerson Act gets its name from the former Bears safety who took his own life in 2011. He left a note instructing for his brain to be studied and he was diagnosed with CTE posthumously. Duerson’s family has been a major driving force behind the bill as it has matured. Other proponents of the bill, including Boston University CTE researcher Dr. Robert Stern, argue that limiting the years of tackle football will help in the fight against CTE and other brain diseases related to the wear and tear of football. These diseases are caused by repeated trauma to the head and brain and this bill looks to postpone the onset of these traumas. A former football player and concussion recipient myself, I believe this is a good first step towards making football a safer sport. I love the game and would never want it to disappear completely, but it does need tweaking. Some kids, like myself, start playing the game at such young ages and continue to play throughout their schooling. Those who play professionally could end up playing 20 years or more of the vicious sport. This is overkill. There are plenty of other ways to play and hone your skills without the contact at young ages. There will be pushback of course, but if and when it becomes the new normal I believe the game, and its players, will be in a much better, safer place.
by Nick Brower | Mar 1, 2018 | SPORTS
February is finally over and you know what that means… March Madness. Conference tournaments are starting all over the country this week and selection Sunday is on the horizon. It’s crunch time for teams on the bubble and teams fighting for higher seeds alike. Winning a conference tournament is an automatic bid to the big dance so many teams will have their eyes set on clinching this week. Overall, this season has shown a lot of parity. There is an overflow of good teams with not that many clear cut favorites. This makes the bubble watch even more intriguing. Depending on who you talk to, there are as many as 20 teams sitting on the bubble this year. I don’t see it being quite that wide open. Look for Arkansas and Creighton to sure up their spots with good showings in their tournaments. Syracuse is right on the verge and a few wins in the loaded ACC tournament would go a long way to pushing them in. Oklahoma and Trae Young are in the same boat, they need to get a few good wins to solidify a spot. Everyone, including myself, wants to keep watching Young ball out so I know I’ll be pulling for them. Kansas State has posted an impressive 20-8 record so far but their strength of schedule will keep them out of the tournament baring a couple of huge upsets in the Big 12 tournament. These are just a few of the teams to keep an eye on. Rejoice college hoops fans, March is finally upon us.
by Nick Brower | Mar 1, 2018 | SPORTS
Miguel Andujar is still set on proving he should be playing third base in the Bronx. The young talent continues to mash the ball this spring as he hit his third and fourth home runs today against Philadelphia. Andujar’s bat has been hot from the start as he’s 6-12 so far with four dingers. The late trade for Brandon Drury led many to believe that the third base question was answered for the Yankees but Andujar is not making it easy on rookie manager Aaron Boone. If he keeps hitting like this there is no way you can keep him off the major league roster for long especially because his defense is already major league ready. Drury, who also homered today, is capable of playing second base as well and that spot is still up for grabs. Right now I would go with Andujar at third and Drury at second, but there’s still plenty of baseball to be played this spring and I don’t expect a decision to be made publicly anytime soon.
by Nick Brower | Mar 1, 2018 | SPORTS
The Cleveland Browns are making news from the scouting combine in Indy this week. GM John Dorsey said today that he is open to hearing offers for the first overall pick. The Browns have plenty of flexibility as they also own the fourth overall this year. The quarterback issue is glaring and everybody and their mother thinks that the Browns are going to get a new QB with one of those picks. But with four legitimate first round worthy QBs coming out this year, trading down might just be the best move. Dorsey told the media, “My door is wide open. If somebody wants to come up and talk to me about a trade, I’m willing to trade. But also I’m going to do what’s best for this organization, and I will do that.” The Browns definitely have more than one hole in that roster and having more picks will help them address more issues. The best move might just be to slide down in the order. Odds are is that they will still be able to get a great QB at four then set their sights on filling holes on the defense and skill positions with more picks to play with later in the draft. The first overall pick has enormous value and will bring in a great return if the Browns choose to part with it. The Titans recently traded the first overall pick to the Rams which resulted in Jared Goff headed to LA. The Titans parted with the first overall pick along with a fourth and a sixth rounder and received the 15th overall, two second rounders, a third rounder, and the Rams first and third round picks the following year. That means 6 picks in exchange for two. The Browns are definitely more than one season away from success and stocking up on draft picks seems to be a smart move if a team comes up with the right package. Many teams looking for a quarterback could be interested in moving up and this year’s draft class only makes that first overall even more attractive. This will be an interesting story to follow as we get closer to draft day.
