Brooklyn Nets save the Los Angeles Clippers from a trade with the Boston...

Predicting and Previewing the 2013 Money in the Bank Ladder Matches

Michigan Mad Man Congratulates Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr.

2013 NBA Draft Results

ROUND 1

1 Cleveland Anthony Bennett (PF) UNLV 

2 Orlando Victor Oladipo (SG) Indiana 

3 Washington Otto Porter (SF) G'town 

4 Charlotte Cody Zeller (PF) Indiana 

5 Phoenix Alex Len (C) Maryland 

6 New Orleans  Nerlens Noel (C) Kentucky 

7 Sacramento Ben McLemore (SG) Kansas 

8 Detroit Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (SG) Georgia 

9 Minnesota  Trey Burke (PG) Michigan 

10 Portland C.J. McCollum (PG) Lehigh 

11 Philadelphia Michael Carter-Williams (PG) Syracuse 

12 Oklahoma City Steven Adams (C) Pittsburgh 

13 Dallas  Kelly Olynyk (PF) Gonzaga 

14 Utah  Shabazz Muhammad (SF) UCLA 

15 Milwaukee Giannis Antetokounmpo (SF) Greece

16 Boston  Lucas Nogueira (C) Brazil

17 Atlanta Dennis Schroeder (PG) Germany

18 Atlanta  Shane Larkin (PG) Miami 

19 Cleveland Sergey Karasev (SG) Russia

20 Chicago Tony Snell (SF) New Mexico

21 Utah  Gorgui Dieng (C) Louisville 

22 Brooklyn Mason Plumlee (C) Duke 

23 Indiana Solomon Hill (SF) Arizona

24 New York Tim Hardaway Jr. (SG) Michigan 

25 LA Clippers Reggie Bullock (SG) UNC 

26 Minnesota  Andre Roberson (SF) Colorado

27 Denver  Rudy Gobert (C) France

28 San Antonio Livio Jean-Charles (PF) France

29 Oklahoma City  Archie Goodwin (SG) Kentucky

30 Phoenix  Nemanja Nedovic (SG) Serbia

ROUND 2

1 Cleveland  Allen Crabbe (SG) California 

2 Oklahoma City Alex Abrines (SG) Spain

3 Cleveland Carrick Felix (SG) Arizona St

4 Houston Isaiah Canaan (PG) Murray St

5 Philadelphia Glen Rice Jr. (SF) NBDL

6 Sacramento Ray McCallum (PG) Detroit

7 Detroit Tony Mitchell (PF) N Texas 

8 Washington Nate Wolters (PG) S Dakota St

9 Portland Jeff Withey (C) Kansas

10 Portland Grant Jerrett (PF) Arizona

11 Memphis Jamaal Franklin (SG) SDSU 

12 Philadelphia Pierre Jackson (PG) Baylor

13 Milwaukee Ricky Ledo (SG) Providence

14 Dallas Mike Muscala (PF) Bucknell

15 Portland Marko Todorovic (SF) Serbia

16 Utah Erick Green (PG) Va Tech

17 Atlanta Raul Neto (PG) Brazil

18 LA Lakers Ryan Kelly (PF) Duke

19 Chicago Erik Murphy (PF) Florida

20 Atlanta James Ennis (SF) L Beach St

21 Orlando Romero Osby (PF) Oklahoma

22 Minnesota Lorenzo Brown (PG) NC State

23 Indiana Colton Iverson (C) Colo St

24 Washington Arsalan Kazemi (PF) Oregon

25 Memphis  Joffrey Lauvergne (PF) France

26 Detroit Peyton Siva (PG) Louisville

27 Phoenix Alex Oriakhi (C) Missouri

28 San Antonio Deshaun Thomas (SF) Ohio St

29 Minnesota Bojan Dubljevic (PF) Serbia

30 Memphis Janis Timma (SF) Latvia

TRADES

Utah Jazz-Minnesota Timberwolves

Utah Jazz get: 

No. 9 pick Trey Burke 

Minnesota Timberwolves get: 

No. 14 pick Shabazz Muhammad 

No. 21 pick Gorgui Dieng 

Minnesota Timberwolves-Golden State Warriors

Minnesota Timberwolves get: 

2014 second-round pick 

Cash considerations 

Golden State Warriors get: 

No. 26 pick Nate Roberson (later traded to Oklahoma City) 

Guard Malcolm Lee

Oklahoma City Thunder-Golden State Warriors

Oklahoma City gets: 

No. 26 pick Nate Roberson 

Golden State gets: 

No. 29 pick Archie Goodwin 

Cash considerations

Portland Trail Blazers-Cleveland Cavaliers

Portland Trail Blazers get: 

No. 31 pick Allen Crabbe

Cleveland Cavaliers get: 

Two future second-round picks

Dallas Mavericks-Atlanta Hawks

Dallas Mavericks get: 

No. 18 pick Shane Larkin 

Cash considerations

Atlanta Hawks get: 

Jared Cunningham 

No. 16 pick Lucas Nogueira 

No. 44 pick Mike Muscala

Utah Jazz-Denver Nuggets

Utah Jazz get: 

No. 27 pick Rudy Gobert 

Denver Nuggets get: 

No. 46 pick Erick Green 

Cash considerations

Best of WCW War Games DVD Review

The "Perfect" Storyline for WWE

Before Curtis Axel became a Paul Heyman Guy, one man with his long blonde hair, agility in the ring and athleticism was getting a lot of comparisons to "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig. Dolph Ziggler started off being a caddie for Chavo Guerrero, and a cheerleader in the Spirit Squad. Once the cheerleaders broke up Nick Nemeth became Dolph Ziggler. He had a cheesy gimmick but eventually became the man with all the agility and athleticism in the world.

When Joe Hennig was stuck being Michael McGillicutty, Dolph Ziggler was a United States Champion, Intercontinental Champion and some nights wrestling two matches on a show. At one point, Ziggler's theme music was titled "I am Perfection." Over the last year Ziggler has become the show off while mimicking "Ravishing" Rick Rude and even using the Rude Awakening from time to time. How ironic is it that Rick Rude and Curt Hennig were best friends. Dolph made it to the top and became a WWE World Champion the night after Wrestlemania 29. It was an accomplishment that Curt Hennig never had a chance to accomplish.

Then on May 20, 2013, Paul Heyman introduced his newest client in the form of Curtis Axel. He was an FCW Champion under his real name Joe Hennig and a Tag Team Champion under the name Michael McGillicutty. Once the Nexus broke up he was barely showcased on TV. In his first match on pay-per-view he won the Intercontinental Championship, a title that his father made prestigious in the early 90's. Curtis Axel has the moves, the music and the title his father once had. With all these things in place the feud that many wrestling fans would like to see could and should happen.

I think a feud between Dolph Ziggler versus Curtis Axel would be perfect. It could be something that could be made personal with Axel calling out Ziggler for pretending to be his dad and thinking that he is better than Curt Hennig was. I think this is a feud that should happen once Ziggler regains the World Heavyweight Title and Axel drops the Intercontinental Title. This feud should go on until Axel does what his father couldn't do and that is win a World Championship.

Whether or not this feud ever takes place remains to be seen but it should happen down the road. Ziggler who has the looks and Axel who has the blood in him would have great chemistry and have a lot to prove. We will call this feud the perception of perfection versus the perfect prodigy. Dolph Ziggler vs. Curtis Axel...it would be absolutely perfect.

Michael Jordan Will Always Be Better Than Lebron James

The WWE Trucks at Van Andel Arena

Hollywood Joe Sings CM Punk to the Ring

Results, Recap, and Review of WWE Payback 2013

Tonight was the WWE Payback Pay-Per-View and I am not one talk about how good a WWE Pay-Per-View is but for not being one of the big four it was a great show to watch. The night kicked off with the triple threat match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship match between Wade Barrett, The Miz and Curtis Axel. This was a great way to kick off the night. The match itself was really solid with all three men getting their spots in. I really love the ending of Miz putting Barrett into the figure four allowing Axel to pin Barrett and capture the gold. I have been a huge fan and support of Joe Hennig since his first match when he teamed with Ted Dibiase in 2007. I always thought he had the skill and the attributes his father had. He may not be Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig, but Curtis Axel definitely deserves the spotlight.

The Divas title match was one of the best Divas matches I have seen in a very long time. AJ and Kaitlyn have this chemistry about them that makes them work so well in the ring. Their chemistry reminds a lot of what Trish Stratus and Lita had in the ring together. In the end, the chemistry and storyline paid because AJ Lee became Divas champion.

This show should have been Night of Champions Part 1 because all the titles were on the line. Dean Ambrose defended his United States title against Kane. This was a solid match, and probably the least exciting match of the night which is hard to say, because it wasn't a bad match at all. I am glad Dean won by countout to keep Kane's character strong and keep his momentum going.

Speaking of momentum and how it be gained or lost. Dolph Ziggler lost the World Heavyweight Title tonight from Alberto Del Rio. The question is, did Dolph Ziggler get hurt legitimately hurt or was it part of a storyline? I honestly believe that Ziggler did get hurt in the middle of the match and the referee called an audible to have Del Rio win. The only reason I say this is because of Ziggler's reaction after the match.  He was clearly upset and crying due to his frustrations about being injured again. If this was a storyline then it could be one of the best double turns in WWE history because the Chicago crowd booed the hell out of Del Rio after the match. Only time will tell to see how this plays out.

Speaking of the Chicago, did CM Punk blow the roof off of that building or what? I loved the fact that Punk wore Chicago Blackhawk trunks supporting his team that is in the NHL finals right now. CM Punk and Chris Jericho have always had classic matches and I think this one might rank right at the top of the list. There are many times that I didn't know who would win just because Chris Jericho is not someone to be put over lightly. In the end, Chicago Made CM Punk won the match and won the hearts of his hometown people.

When you talk about winning the hearts of the people, no one has done that more in recent weeks then Daniel Bryan. He and Randy Orton  took on The Shield for the tag team titles and as always The American Dragon lit it up. I had a feeling The Shield would retain the titles just because bigger things are coming for Daniel Bryan. I think he's wrestling like he wants to be WWE or World Champion once again. We will see how the summer plays out for the Worlds Toughest Vegan.

The summer looks looks crystal clear for John Cena because tonight he retained his title in a Three Stages of Hell match against Ryback. The match accomplished what it was intended for because there is no way that these two could have a one on one match and keep it interesting. These two need stipulations in their matches to keep it entertaining so my hats off to Vince for doing what he had to do.

WWE Payback was a really good show for not being one of the big four. Then again WWE couldn't afford having a horrible show in Chicago. That crowd will make you or break you in one night. Philadelphia is another crowd that will make or break you and thats where WWE will be for their next Pay-Per-View on July 14th. On that night one superstar will be making his return in an extreme way.....

Tonight we saw Payback in Chicago, but next month we see the future WWE and World Champions being made at Money in the Bank. Only time will tell to see who carries those briefcases and how Rob Van Dam will impact the WWE once again! 

The Impact of Jason Leffler's Death on NASCAR

This past week, Jason Leffler died after a horrible crash at Bridgeport Speedway in Logan Township, New Jersey. Jason Leffler was a well-rounded driver racing in the Indy Car Series, Truck Series, Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series. He was inducted into National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2003. Jason Leffler was a natural when it came to racing, but his death racing on a short track is going to have an impact on NASCAR and its drivers.

I don't want to sound insensitive or make light of Leffler's death, but because of his death, I could see NASCAR team owners being more hesitant to let their drivers race outside of the NASCAR circuit. There a lot of times a NASCAR driver like Tony Stewart or Kyle Busch will race at a local track in whatever state they are racing in on that given week. I could very easily see NASCAR owners putting something in a their driver's contract stating they are not allowed to race outside of NASCAR. I don't want to put a dollar amount on a human being, but here is an example of what I am talking about from a potential owner's point of view. Let's say that Kyle Busch goes to Berlin Raceway in Marne, Michigan, like he used to every June. How big would the ramifications be if Kyle Busch were seriously injured or killed in a crash at a non NASCAR race?

The ramifications would have an effect on Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle's crew, and the entire 18 team. I do not want this to sound like I am saying that Jason Leffler's death is going to be the reason that the stars of NASCAR won't race at local tracks anymore. Some owners like Rick Hendrick won't allow his drivers to race outside of the NASCAR circuit, but he does allow them to make appearances at local tracks. This is what it might come to, because owners are going to say that NASCAR may have their safety in order but the average local track might not.

None of this matters to a lot of people, because a five year old boy lost his father because of something he loved doing. However, you have to look at the reality of it. NASCAR drivers make a lot of money and their owners pay them a lot of money, so it's an investment that the owners have to look out for.

Jason Leffler was 37 years old. He was liked and respected by many in NASCAR and will be missed. He was a three time USAC National Midget champion (1997, 1998, 1999). My thoughts and prayers go out to Jason Leffler's family and friends.

2013 TNA Bound for Glory Series

This years annual TNA Bound for Glory Series is underway and it all started with the selection show on the June 13th edition of Impact Wrestling. This is the third year the Bound for Glory Series has taken place and the first two winners were Bobby Roode and Jeff Hardy. The winner of the Bound for Glory Series receives a TNA World Heavyweight Title Shot. Bobby Roode lost when he got his title shot against Kurt Angle in 2011 and Jeff Hardy defeated Austin Aries last year when he got his shot. 

The list of participants in this years Bound for Glory Series are:

Jeff Hardy

Bobby Roode
Austin Aries
Christopher Daniels
Kazarian
AJ Styles
Joseph Park
Hernandez
Mr. Anderson
Samoa Joe
Magnus
Jay Bradley
I see a few scenarios happening in this years Bound for Glory that could go down.

Scenario 1: Mr. Anderson win the Bound for Glory Series and takes on Bully Ray for the World Heavyweight Title and this will be what splits up Aces N Eights. I also could see AJ Styles being the one who takes down the gang as well. Maybe in the end it will be AJ Styles versus Mr. Anderson.

Scenario 2:  I could see the tag teams of Bad Influence and Bobby Roode and Austin Aries breaking up due to the fact they have to face each other.

Scenario 3: Jeff Hardy, Samoa Joe and Magnus are all rumored to be in Stings new Main Event Mafia. I could see one of these three with Stings help being the one to take back the TNA World Heavyweight Title from Bully Ray.

Those are three scenarios I could see playing out throughout the course of the next few months. The points system for Bound for Glory is still the same as it has been and it goes as follows:

Submission Victory - 10 points
Pinfall Victory - 7 points
Countout Victory - 5 points
Disqualification Victory - 3 points
Draw (Time Limit/Double Countout/Double Disqualification) - 2 points
Disqualification Loss - you LOSE 10 points

Let the road for glory begin. The Bound for Glory Series will conclude on Sunday October 20th in San Diego, California where the winner will face the TNA Heavyweight Champion. Who will capture the glory in the Bound for Glory Series? Stay tuned to find out!

Previewing and Predicting WWE Payback

Steroids are a Problem in ALL Sports

Thoughts on Grant Hill and Jason Kidd Retiring Together

State of TNA Impact Wrestling After Slammiversary XI

Tonight was the annual celebration of TNA Impact Wrestling as a company and tonight really set the pace for the rest of the year. The first match was an Ultimate X match which stole the show right away. Chris Sabin reclaim glory and gained redemption by winning the X-Division Title against Kenny King and Suicide. The X Division is still the heart and soul of this company and it needs to be showcased more. There are so many great X Division wrestlers out there they need to have a chance to shine.

It feels like the Aces N Eights storyline has taken away from some of the great talent TNA has. Aces N Eights highlighted three matches this evening. The 6-man tag featured Magnus, Samoa Joe and a returning Jeff Hardy. All three of these men are main event material and should be in the spotlight on their own. The other thing that has bothered me as a viewer is that Devon has not defended the TNA Television Title very often. When I think of a Television Championship, I think of the title being defended every single week on TV just like it was when WCW had their version of the title. Tonight Devon lost the title to Abyss and hopefully Abyss will defend it a little bit more than it has been.

There are three things that I believe TNA does better than WWE. I think TNA pushes and promotes younger talent a lot better. Tonight was a prime example when Jay Bradley took on Sam Shaw and advanced in the Bound for Glory Series. I really like that the Bound for Glory series is featuring all the TNA Gut Check winner this year. It gives a young guy thats normally not in the spotlight a chance to get noticed and be in the spotlight. Secondly, the Knockouts Division is superior to the WWE Diva's division. The girls in TNA are more aggressive and more athletic. That was proven in a Last Knockouts Standing match between Gail Kim and Taryn Terrell. Lastly, the tag team division seems more solid and more equal than the WWE tag team division. Gunner and James Storm were put together and won the tag titles against three other great teams.

Tonight, Kurt Angle was announced as the next member of the TNA Hall of Fame. I have a lot of respect for Kurt Angle but in my opinion the TNA Hall of Fame is irrelevant until one man is put in it. I don't mean any disrespect towards Sting or Kurt Angle but Jeff Jarrett belongs in the TNA Hall of Fame. He is the man who founded the company. He and his family put their heart, soul and finances into this company. The fact he has been excluded and pushed out of the company is a pretty crappy thing to do. You can't make everyone so congratulations to Kurt Angle on this honor. '

Angle had a classic with AJ Styles tonight. I love when these two are in the ring together. They always have memorable matches and tonight was no different. Angle won but I really enjoy the AJ Styles storyline right now. It really reminds me of the Sting versus n.W.o. storyline in 1997. I think you will se AJ come full circle within the next year. They needed to do something different with his character and I like it.

The Main Event was Bully Ray versus Sting. I have to give credit where credit is due. Sting at 54 years of age is still working harder than anyone else in the business. Even though Sting lost to Bully Ray and can never wrestle for the TNA World Title he has proven that he could possibly be the greatest of all time. At that age and to be able to perform at the level is amazing. Bully Ray as TNA World Heavyeight Champion is a great thing. He is one of the best heels the wrestling business has ever seen. I love how he is the same guy he use to be in ECW. He is so hated and so great as a champion that it's hard to say anything bad about him

Slammiversary showed that Aces N Eights can be beaten and still look dominant at the sametime. It also showed that TNA has a lot of great young talent who need to be put in the spotlight more often. Having only four major pay-per-views a year makes it that much more impactful when there is one. It will be one interesting road to Bound for Glory so tune in to see the aftermath of Slammiversary XI.