Every Rose has It's Thorns: Derrick Rose's reviving career

Location is the Madhouse on Madison, also known as the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Its game 1 of the Eastern Conference first round playoffs against the Philadelphia 76ers. With 23 points, 9 assists, 9rebounds and a minute and 22 seconds left on the clock, Derrick Rose, coming into the season as the reigning league MVP, jumped to score on a basket and came down horribly on his knee. The result was that he tore his ACL, missed the rest of the playoffs, the 2012 season, and only played 10 games in the 2013 season. 

And unfortunately, that has been the short-term narrative for the career for Derrick Rose: great player,injury prone. To say that Derrick Rose has had a bout with the injury bug is the understatement of the year, this player playing for his hometown has had a injury bug transfusion. But now Derrick Rose is poised to come back this season, and everyone is excited. So lets look at how his game has changed, what he needs to do to keep himself off the injury list for long periods, and what his return means.

First, lets look at his first game back, which just so happened to be with the United States National Team.

Now these highlights proved a couple of things. First and foremost, he is still his same old self in the sense that he is going 100 miles per hour every time he touches the ball. It also proves that his knee is as strong as it used to be, even though he had to sit out a few of the following FIBA World Cup friendlies after said game. But while he didnt score much points, you realize that looking at highlights like this and his game against Brazil is that he is making better decisions with his cuts and his scoring ways when he gets to the hole. It seems that his dunking over a defender days are over, and instead he is willing to use his athleticism to perform lay-ups and even pass it. He is becoming more of the point guard he needs to be for the Bulls, instead of being the attacking 2 guard he was when he became the league MVP.

Now there is a way for his game to expand and for him to avoid the injury bug: his jump-shooting. Now I understand he didn't come into the league as a killer from mid or long- range but he needs it. The reason MVP's like Lebron James and Kevin Durant have become so successful is because they added a second aspect to their game: Lebron added a strong post-up presence and passing, and Durant has increased his handles along with not jacking up 3-pointers and willing to go near the hole. If Derrick Rose becomes a better shooter especially from the mid-range (career percentage is 51%) his 3 point game will be even better than it already is, at 66%. Now why is this important? Because his speed can make a defender question whether they should guard him close when he shoots, or if they play a bit off to be ready to counter his incredible speed. This would make him dangerous to defend against, which is scary. 

What could his return mean? Ill put it in 2 words: Stop Lebron.  I don't care what you think of the man, Lebron as of right now has the most dangerous team in the league, and it just so happens to be in his hometown team of Cleveland. With the addition of Shawn Marion, Kevin Love(pending the August 23rd trade happening), Ray Allen on his way to the team, and Mike Miller, this team is poised to make it to the NBA Finals. And all of that can be prevented if Derrick Rose plays in the way we have discussed. If Rose does this, with the combination of Joakim Noah and Paul Gasol, along with the draft pickup of Doug McDermott, they have the necessary tools to beat Cleveland not just for a number one seed, but possibly for the right to go to the NBA Finals and win it. 

So Rose unfortunately gets multiple injuries to his legs, misses 2 seasons and you get to come back as not only a MVP candidate but could lead a team to the NBA Finals? You couldn't ask for a better career. Yes I know the injuries are the last thing any player wants, but sometimes they can be a blessing in disguise. I was once told that the true test of a man is found when they go through a crucible and survive. In the case of Derrick Rose, he has survived his and now gets to show how much better he can be because of it. And in the city of Chicago, where the city is going through the same thing, he can be the one shining thing that helps lead it through its own. 

Lombardi in Motown: Why the Detroit Lions should be the Dark Horse to Win the Super Bowl

Okay, stop! Don't grind your axes, grab your spears, or start GPS'ing my location, I can explain!! Yes I know that putting this kind of post up could be considered bad juju but this is just a thought. We all know that despite the talent the Detroit Lions have, they are one of the 5 worst franchises in NFL history when it comes to winning seasons. And yes I know that they haven't won a playoff game since forever, a conference championship since '57 and a divisional championship since 1993. But i believe this is the year they rewrite all the history books and make themselves known to the world that this isn't your daddy's Detroit Lions.

But first lets look at the schedule, because in order to be the dark horse, you have to make it to the second season. During this season, the Lions will play 5 playoff caliber teams from last year, which include Green Bay(twice due to divisional rival), Carolina, New Orleans, New England, and Arizona.That's a combined record is 53-26-1, which makes sense for it having 5 teams that were above 8-8 for the season. The five teams mentioned will be the favorites to be Lions losses this year, and you can place the Green Bay loss either in week 3 or week 17 in Green Bay. But that would mean that the Lions will have 11 wins this season. The Lions play Chicago twice, Minnesota Twice, Green Bay as mentioned, then both New York teams, Buffalo, Atlanta, Miami, and Tampa Bay. Now despite me saying that the Lions will have 11 wins and 5 losses this year, those 5 losses could come from either side. Lets look at the more than likely 5 losses this year:

Week 4: at New York Jets

Week 7: vs New Orleans Saints

Week 11: at Arizona Cardinals

Week 12: at New England Patriots

Week 17: at Green Bay Packers

By that calculation, that means the Lions go 11-5, sweeping Chicago and Minnesota, splitting with Green Bay and going 3-1 and 2-2 against the NFC South and AFC east respectively. More than enough to make the Playoffs as a Wild Card team or winning the division depending on what Green Bay does as I believe Chicago will fall to 3rd in the division with Minnesota bringing up the rear. Now there is no way the Lions will home field advantage unless the higher seeds which will more than likely be Seattle and New Orleans fall, which if the Lions put up a good show against the Saints in week 7 might make the road to California even easier. But this is only half of the reason the Lions should be the dark horse to win it all. The second reason is the last line of Coach Bo's infamous speech: The Team, The Team, The Team.

This Detroit Lions team was scary last year and for all intents and purposes, should have won the NFC North title last year. But of course, bad coaching, bad play and shooting themselves in the foot didn't help the situation. Enter in Jim Caldwell to be the head coach, Joe Lombardi (ironic ain't it) as the offensive coordinator and Teryl Austin as your defensive coordinator. Now of course this isn't the only thing they picked up in the off season they picked up in my estimation 4 of important pieces that will make this theory work: Golden Tate and Eric Ebron, James Idhegibo, and Kyle Van Noy. 

Lets focus first on the coaches as they are going to make this team a threat on both sides of the ball. First there is Caldwell, who has a track record of making good quarter backs into great quarter backs, just look at Peyton Manning and Joe Flacco, who both have rings to their names with Caldwell's coaching. Caldwell is locked in to how to make Matthew Stafford a better QB without changing his arm talent, which is dangerous for any defense to hear. Secondly, lets look at Lombardi, which despite the name, is a great coach. You know how the Saints got really good at being a spread team that NO defense could figure out the year they won the Super Bowl? Yeah thank this guy for that. Now with him implementing that type of offense with the level of talent into the men that wear Honolulu Blue, expect fireworks every game with the offense on the field. Now to my favorite pickup coach-wise in Teryl Austin. The former db coach of the Baltimore Ravens is going to bring over that kind of defensive mentality to a defensive that, despite the record, had the 7th best points against record in the NFC, with the teams ahead them all in playoff contention. Austin is going to bring the kind of attitude that when a big hit or stop happens on defense, its not special, its expected and commonplace, something the Lions are happy to accept,especially with the inclusion of James Idhedibo (one of Austin's former players) and Kyle Van Noy, the beast at Linebacker that made Ziggy Ansah into what he is today.

So you put that all together and the Detroit Lions should be a dark horse in winning it all this year. Think about it, a offense that could be considered the second coming of " The Greatest Show on Turf" being retooled by the quick fire playbook of New Orleans, a defense that was a juggernaut is now being led by a smash mouth coach, and a city ready to accept the Silver Rush into the pantheon of Detroit Champions. This is going to be a great season for Lions fans, old and new, and I have us going far. To close, I leave you with a line from a movie that has stuck with me as a Lions fan for a long time: "Never forget how menacing we are, we are Lions. You know what's there waiting beyond that beach? Immortality, take it, it's yours." Go Lions Go.

Are You Ready for Some Football: Predicting the NFL Season

Its that time again!! Time for you to put away those jerseys of all the other sports you like and watch a real American Pastime, the NFL!! Mostly every fan of football has that one team you root for,  no matter if it is your hometown or the team you grew up watching, football is the most popular sport. But in the same vein that every snowflake is not the same, neither is every NFL season. And since preseason is no full inclination as to how well a team is going to be, I figured I would give you my take on what teams are going to make noise and possibly have the distinct honor of hoisting a Lombardi Trophy.

First, lets get into the rules of this prediction web I am going to weave:

1. I will NOT be posting what I feel the final records of teams will be

2. I take into account any injuries that have happened before the season has started, which includes anything that happened in training camp or during the off season

3. I will be fair and unbiased in my prediction, meaning you are open to argue against my thoughts in the comments section below

4. Remember that this is all in fun so take it with a grain of salt

So with that all said, lets start with the NFC

NFC North: This division is a 2 horse race between Green Bay and Detroit. I don't care how much Chicago wants to say it has changed, the simple fact is that the team has only gotten worse over the years. I understand that they made some moves in the draft by focusing purely on defense but those are only small plugs in a large gaping hole that defense has. Replacing Julius Peppers with Jared Allen means nothing because the D-Line didn't go from bad to great, it went bad to okay. And in this division, You need a division to make something happen. Minnesota is also a non-factor due to the fact that they think that having Adrian Peterson will win them a division, but it won't without a true number one and two receiver on the team. Now back to Detroit and Green Bay, who will literally be in a fight for the division. Both of these teams have the necessary firepower to win the division or at least make a wild card. Aaron Rodgers and his ability to make the incredible seem ordinary will be in high demand this year, and Detroit's offense will be unstoppable with Reggie Bush, Joqiue Bell, Eric Ebron, Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate. The question that will decide who wins this division will come down to this: between Detroit's secondary and Green Bay's lack of trust in it's defense, who falters first and the most often?

Result: Green Bay or Detroit, loser get into wild card contention.

NFC East: Oh dear god, this division gives me headaches every time I see it on TV. I don't know what's worse: The owner of Washington refusing to change the team name, Eli Manning's deadpan face, The home of the Philly cheese steak has a team that has gone almost vegan, or the Dallas Cowboys. Let me just cut to the chase and say that Washington wins the division over Philadelphia due to Philly giving up Desean Jackson. Washington's new system is akin to the one that Robert Griffin played with at Baylor, and adding a motivated Jackson will be dangerous. The Giants will be the same as last year and the Cowboys will be the walking piece of mediocrity that they always are. And if you don't believe me, look at the amount of yards per game they gave up last year and look at how much they gave up in their first preseason game. 

Result: Washington wins, Philly might be a challenge.

NFC South: This is Saints territory no matter what way you slice it. I understand that Atlanta will be healthy this time around, but they took a major step back last year while New Orleans stayed the course if only to come up second to Carolina. And speaking of those Panthers, they might decline a lot this year. I'm not saying they will have a below .500 record, but with the major losses in the receiving corps, along with Greg Hardy possibly getting suspended, this team is on the brink of faltering sooner or later. Tampa Bay can make things interesting, but I don't see them making the jump from worst to first within one whole season.

Result: New Orleans marches away with this one, be surprised if anyone else does.

NFC West: Scary. That's exactly what this division is. Scary, terrifying. Just down right monstrous. From top to bottom this is a division that, if the playoffs had more teams allowed to play( hint hint) they would have 3-4 teams in the playoffs. Don't be surprised if all four of these teams have double digit winning seasons this year. By default, you have to pick Seattle to win the division but I don't doubt the threat the Arizona brings if it can work out its offense, and St. Louis defense is great but it needs Sam Bradford to be big time. While all four teams are good, the one team I have lost faith in is San Fran. I think with the way things ended last year for them, they might be out for more revenge against Seattle than trying to win, which can be their downfall. 

Result: Seattle, but any team in this division can win the title.

Now that we have our results for that conference, lets look at the AFC.

AFC East: New England. I have nothing else to add. Okay, since you want more coverage of the division that New England has only lost twice since, I don't know, 2001, I'll say more. When it comes to the Jets, they have a issue on there hands, actually two if you look at things. First, who is going to be there QB: Geno or Vick? You have a issue on your hands because their play styles are different so if one gets injured during the season, you have to either make him convert his style to the playbook or make the whole offense convert to his style. Your second issue is that while you defense is good, how good is that secondary? They made big claims a few weeks ago by saying they are better than the Legion of Boom in Seattle. They will be tested 3 weeks in a row with games against three fourths of the NFC with Green Bay, Chicago and Detroit. Miami might be good this year, they could challenge for the crown but it will be tough because they have to answer are they truly past the Jonathan Martin incident and can that O-line really protect Ryan Tannehill. Buffalo might be in the same boat as Miami, especially after the addition of Sammy Watkins to the team. They might not be a threat to the crown this year but expect them to be a dark horse waking up for the next couple of years

Result: New England. Could see Miami in contention for a wild card spot.

AFC West: This one is more difficult the more I look at it. On paper, it should be easy to say Denver will run away with this division. I mean look at them, great QB, a arsenal with weapons like the Thomas boys , Welker and others. And the defense actually got better. Also Oakland is still in the rebuilding mode and might need more than this year to get on track, and Kansas City will keep thing interesting with new additions and a can't quit attitude. But I'm going to go against the grain and say that San Diego wins the division this year. They are the only team other than Seattle, New England and Indianapolis to beat them, and the divisional loss they gave up. San Diego did nothing to regress from last year in fact they got better, especially after the pickup of Eddie Royal, Tevin Reese and Jason Verrett. Expect a dogfight for the West.

Result: San Diego vs Denver will make things interesting.

AFC North: Cincinnati has no, and I mean NO EXCUSE to mess this up. Baltimore and its new additions might give them issues, but short of that, there isn't anyone else. Cleveland won't play the one player that makes them relevant at QB, and Pittsburgh is a retirement home in terms of players because the roster is mostly filled with veterans. The big question for Cincinnati is can Marvin Lewis get them past the first round of the playoffs with a weak division and a solid offense and defense? Still there division to take.

Result: Cincinnati takes it this year, continuing a streak from last year.

AFC South: For this division, I will sum it up in 15 words: 

Clowney exciting. Colts are the best team in south. Jacksonville and Tennessee don't matter.

Don't expect much from any team other than Indy, as Houston will be competitive, but it the most competition they will receive in the whole division.

Result: Indy by a landslide.

To close, lets look at who we have making it to the second season:

NFC

Green Bay

Detroit

Washington

New Orleans

Seattle

Arizona

AFC

New England

Denver

San Diego

Indianapolis

Kansas City

Cincinnati

By my estimation let me tell you now that whoever wins the NFC will win the title. Despite my claims about Denver and New England, no team in the AFC can beat these NFC teams. And that's without having Seattle repeat this year, which I don't think they will. But hey, this is only a theory, and the season is still young. So now that we have gotten the boring stuff out the way, lets go find a big TV, a nice couch, grab some snacks and watch some football. 

Beaten to the Punch: UFC's dominance over boxing

I remember being younger and remembering two things when it came to fighting: You either did it or you watched. Now most kids my age did some form of martial arts, as it was a way to allow your child to learn something that involved learning patience, discipline and other things without having to play basketball or football. I also remember watching boxing with my dad, granddad or uncle when a big fight came on. I remember sitting down and watching Tyson, Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, De La Hoya, etc. But now it seems as though boxing is dying while the UFC( Ultimate Fighting Championship) is shoveling the dirt in. Why is this?

First, let me be clear: I haven't watched boxing in the last 8 years. I keep up with the fights, I watch highlights but that's about it. I also will admit myself to being someone who watches MMA(specifically the UFC,which will the basis of this post). Now what could make a person who grew up watching boxing change over to watching a sport that is a radical shift compared to boxing? There are 4 reasons in my opinion as to why boxing is falling and the UFC continues to rise.

1.) Fights we want to see, when we want to see them: I'm going to start with the elephant in the room of this argument: Floyd vs Manny Pacquiao. The big reason boxing is dying is because of this fight and this fight alone. This fight was "supposed" to happen in 2009 and 5 years later the fight fans have absolutely nothing to show for it. This fight was supposed to be the game-changer, the one that revitalized interest in the sport, now its the deathblow. Lets say this fight does happen, and seeing how majority opinion is that Floyd would win, lets say that doesn't happen. Boxing would take a major blow. So knowing this, they will keep floating this proposed fight along thinking it will keep interest and for the most part it will. But that is why the UFC is different and better that boxing because as fans, we get the fights we want in a timely fashion. With the UFC, you don't have 15 different promotions, you have one, meaning every fighter has a agent but one supervising manager in Dana White. Do you think if a fight like Cain Velasquez vs Junior Dos Santos was dragged out to the point of the Floyd/Manny that anyone would watch it? Heck no! The UFC should create the tagline for their company "for the people, by the people" because we as fans clamor about who we want to see fight, and the president of the company, Dana White makes it happen. As he said a while back during a interview with ESPN, "the best get to fight best", which makes sense and keeps things fresh and competitive. 

2.) Martial Arts at it's core: Something lost in the mix of both Boxing and the UFC is that both are Martial Arts. Most people reading this can attest to this: remember taking karate when you were a kid? Wanna know why? because back in those days, as a kid it didn't cost your parents much to get you into a class and have you learn it over the summer or year. Boxing was somewhat the same, but different in the fact that not everyone wanted to do boxing, it wasn't as fun as karate, or wrestling or even jiujitsu. Most young adults such as myself grew up taking martial arts not just to learn how to fight but as a way to learn a style from a different country or culture or to be more disciplined.

3.) Socially Open: Let me ask you, the reader, 3 questions:

1. Short of watching a video with Floyd showing you his cars, bags of money, and clubbing, do you know anything about him? 

2. Name a current fighter or champion other than these guys: Floyd, Pacquiao, Bradley, Canelo, Marquez, the Klitscheko brothers.

3. Name 4 current UFC fighters.

Now if you were able to answer the last question faster than the first two, it shows the problem. Boxers aren't as open or socially open to the public at least to my knowledge as other sports, specifically MMA and UFC fighters. I can pull up playlists of documentary just from the past 4 months where the fighters of the UFC share there story and talk to the fans. Hell last time I checked during a boxing event, which is always in Vegas( that's a issue that always confused me) the boxing promotion doesn't do what the UFC does which is have a live Q&A with fighters not scheduled to fight. That in turn lets you ask questions and learn from the fighter about who they are, their journey, everything.

4. Better Fight Cards: When Boxing has a big fight its normally once or twice a year, right? Not with the UFC. The events themselves are all 2 parters, one being a 2-3 hour free event and the main card being on PPV. But thats not why the fight cards are better. Lets look at the last year in UFC.

Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson

Rhonda Rousey vs Alex Davis

Rousey vs Tate

Chris Weidman vs Anderson Silva (the 1st fight and the rematch)

Carlos Condit vs Johnny Hendricks

Hendricks vs Robbie Lawler

Benson Henderson vs Anthony Pettis

These fights and the cards they were on were all big draws and if you look at the numbers for the last year and the first half of this year, no fight had an attendance under 5,000 people. And to make my argument even better, remember that most of these fight happen all throughout each month every month of the year, while Boxing might have 1 to 2 good fights a year. 

In closing, boxing was originally the pugilistic sport of the world but now the UFC, and more specifically mixed martial arts, has taken over. And a lot of people wonder why hasn't boxing been taken behind the barn and put out of its mystery. Maybe because people are waiting for boxing to have that one group of superstars. And hopefully they do, because the UFC has knocked down the sport of boxing onto the proverbial canvas. And the ref just reached the count of nine.

Blog Introduction

Hello everyone, welcome to my blog. I know a lot of you are more than likely close personal friends or family of mine that are reading this, so Ill make this as sweet and short as I can. My name is Gerrard Rayford and I am a Sports fan. Now words like that shouldn't make you follow my blog, hell in fact it should make you report it. But the reason I created this blog was so that I, a sports fan, could express to you my thoughts on any and every sports topic that is out there. But let me first explain my love of sports.

I grew up in Detroit, Michigan (where I still live) and since I was a kid, I have always watched sports. From watching  classic NBA playoff games with my grandmother, to watching college football every saturday like it was church sports has been something I love to watch. Short of maybe two sports, tennis and golf, there isn't a major sport I am not a fan of. I remember as a kid playing just about everything my mother and father could get me into, from baseball to PAL football( anybody from Detroit will remember this), to karate, swimming, basketball and even soccer. While I am much older now, I realize that I'm not going to be an athlete and I know that my game isn't as good as the people I idolize. But that didn't stop my love for sports. I love watching a basketball team hit a last second shot to win the game or to keep their season alive. I love hearing the crack behind a baseball bat knock a ball into right-center field and see a man transform into a superhero trying to catch it. I love the passion of seeing 17 thousand people cheering on a soccer team as they try to win it all in extra time. I love all that stuff. If you know me, you know that the only 2 sounds you will hear from my phone is the SportsCenter ringtone or a boxing bell going off for a Bleacher Report notification. I genuinely love this stuff.

So, I said I was going to keep this short and sweet, and I will keep to that promise. First, my favorite teams are the four sports teams of my hometown, Detroit (Lions, Tigers, Red Wings, and Pistons). I will not apologize for being home biased sometimes, but I also will be the bearer of bad news if something is afoul with ANY of the teams regarding anything that may or may not happen. I also root for many other teams in different leagues and sports and they will become apparent in the future with posts that are made here. With every blog post I create, I promise to be professional as possible, but still talk to you like you were surrounded by your friends at a barbershop, coworkers around the water cooler, or family at a barbecue. I promise that I will post something at least once a week, and I will begin to work on different avenues to bring you a weekly dose of sports opinion, but the core platform and the one thing that will stick around is the blog. I aptly named this blog the Sports Pantheon because in the same vein that people used this as a place to talk about things around Rome in that century, I feel as though I have a opinion that could be like yours. You know the one you have when your watching a sports debate and no one is saying the one thing you know needs to be said? This is what this is for. I challenge you to respond to everything I say, to open the conversation and make me better while I attempt to do the same.

So with that being said, I welcome you to The Sports Pantheon.