Telling It All Podcast - Kyrie Irving/Isaiah Thomas Trade, Fantasy Football, MLB and NFL Predictions

Topics Include: The Kyrie Irving Trade Saga (0:30). The Trade From The Cavaliers Perspective (2:45). The Trade From The Celtics Perspective (8:45). The Top Of The Eastern Conference (17:00). Players To Target In Earlier Rounds Of Fantasy Football (20:40). Players To Look For In Later Rounds (25:00). Fantasy Football Strategies (28:15). The LA Dodgers Playoff Outlook (32:40). AFC Divisional Predictions (36:20). NFC Divisional Predictions (40:25).

Soundcloud Podcast Homepage: https://soundcloud.com/ctellallsports

Telling It All Podcast - NBA Free Agency, Mike and the Mad Dog

Topics Include: Team Building Through The Lens Of The Boston Celtics And Houston Rockets (1:50). Gordon Hayward Signing With The Celtics (13:35). NBA Teams Dealing With The Salary Cap (19:45). Paul George Going To The Oklahoma City Thunder (25:45). Paul Millsap Signing With The Denver Nuggets (28:12). Mike and the Mad Dog Stories (29:50).

Mike Francesca's rant in 2012 after the New York Mets were swept by the Colorado Rockies in a 4-game series in August.

SoundCloud Podcast Homepage: https://soundcloud.com/ctellallsports

Telling It All Podcast With Tanner Crouch - 2016-2017 NBA Mid-Season Overview

Topics Include: What Has Gone Wrong For The Orlando Magic/Minnesota Timberwolves (1:20)? Cleveland Cavaliers Mid-Season Overview (7:50). Possible Toronto Raptors/Boston Celtics Playoff Series (9:40). Tough Decisions For The Atlanta Hawks/New York Knicks (16:10). The Growing Legend Of Joel Embiid (23:45). Golden State Warriors/San Antonio Spurs Mid-Season Overview (28:15). The Houston Rockets Offensive Efficiency (34:16). James Harden/Russell Westbrook MVP Race (39:42). NBA Speed Round (43:10).

SoundCloud Podcast Homepage: https://soundcloud.com/ctellallsports

Telling It All Podcast With Tanner Crouch - 2016-2017 NBA Season Preview

Topics Include: Cleveland Cavaliers Season Outlook (4:30). Boston Celtics As A Threat To The Cavs (8:45). Toronto Raptors/Detroit Pistons/Atlanta Hawks Season Preview (13:30). The Promise Of The Indiana Pacers (19:25). Tanner's Orlando Magic Homer Prediction (22:35). Golden State Warriors Season Outlook (31:40). Russell Westbrook's Revenge Tour (36:45). Utah Jazz/Houston Rockets/Portland Trail Blazers Season Preview (39:30). The Minnesota Timberwolves Taking A Leap (43:15). NBA Awards Predictions (47:30).

SoundCloud Podcast Homepage: https://soundcloud.com/ctellallsports

Telling It All Podcast - MLB Trade Deadline, Russell Westbrook, The Night Of, Mr. Robot, Jason Bourne, Nerve

Topics Include: Trades By The Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers/American League Pennant Favorites (1:20). Trades By The New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, Washington Nationals/National League Pennant Favorites (6:40). Russell Westbrook's Contract Extension (9:30). The Night Of/American Criminal Justice System (16:10). Mr. Robot's Second Season Struggles (24:15). "Oh my God... It's Jason Bourne" (28:35). Rory's Trip To Watch Nerve (31:45).

SoundCloud Podcast Homepage: https://soundcloud.com/ctellallsports

The Craziness Of Kansas Winning Its 10th Consecutive Big 12 Regular Season Championship

Immediately after watching Kansas beat Oklahoma for its 10th consecutive Big 12 regular season championship, I began to search the web for the most impressive streaks in sports history.

I will admit that there was a rather long period somewhere in there where I played ESPN's NBA draft machine so that I could fantasize about the Celtics landing Joel Embiid or Andrew Wiggins.

A quick thought I had during my adventures on the draft machine that has nothing to do with the C's: I really like the trade that the 76ers made with the Pelicans during last year's NBA draft. Despite giving away a 23-year old point guard coming off a career year averaging 17 points and 8 assists per game, Philly not only got Nerlens Noel, who could be one of the league's best rim protectors like a Larry Sanders type, but they also got the most important thing of all, a top five protected pick in the best draft since AI, Kobe, Ray Allen and Steve Nash in 1996, or at the very least, since the superstar draft of 2003 with LeBron, Carmelo, Bosh, and Wade (funny how 3 of them are on the same team now).

The Pelicans should remain in the lottery, especially with Jrue Holiday's leg injury, Anthony Davis's shoulder problems, Al-Farouq Aminu and Luke Babbitt combining to play nearly 45 minutes a night, and the team allowing opponents to shoot 46 percent from the field, not to mention the fact that they are named the Pelicans and play in the Smoothie King Center (a close contest with the Overstock.com Coliseum, KFC Yum! Center, Sleep Train Arena, and Jobing.com Arena for the worst name of a stadium in sports). The 76ers could conceivable wind up with something like Jabari Parker and Aaron Gordon, Julius Randle and Rodney Hood, or Andrew Wiggins and Gary Harris in the lottery. Philly fans could actually see their lineup change from a bunch of guys that make the 1997-1998 Denver Nuggets cringe - no offense to Hollis Thompson, Henry Sims, and Elliot Williams - to a respectable core group of young players with the likes of MCW, who has the best acronym in pro sports other than AK47 or Run DMC, Noel, Tony Wroten, and whoever they draft this year.

I just wasted way too much time on a team that is 3-21 over the last two months, let the Bucks score 130 points in an actual NBA game, and is tanking as hard as Tulane did in 1985.

Anyway, back on topic, so here is the list that I have come up with for the best streaks in sports.

1. Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak in 1941

You know a streak is just crazy when it allows you to win a MVP over a guy that is still the last hitter to bat over .400 in a season and the only batter since Rogers Hornsby in 1924 to do so (many people do not realize that the sacrifice fly rule was not instituted into the MLB on a permanent basis until 1954, and therefore Williams would have actually batted .411 had the rule been in place). Who cares if I wasn't born until 54 years later, I'm still bitter about the splendid splinter losing out to DiMaggio (and the fact that Grady Little left Pedro in the game in 2003, but that's besides the point).

There is no doubt that it takes a little bit of luck to go 56 consecutive games with a hit, no matter who you are in baseball (unless maybe you are Babe Ruth in 1921). In fact, in 34 of those games during the hit streak, Joltin' Joe had just one hit and was just that close to losing the historic mark (in DiMaggio's 35th game of the hit streak he was 0-3 going into his final at-bat of the seventh inning and was fortunate enough that St. Louis Browns pitcher Bob Muncrief disobeyed his manager Luke Sewell and didn't walk him, allowing the Yankee Clipper to get a base hit in his final at-bat. Two games later against the St. Louis Browns again, DiMaggio only got a hit in his final at-bat in the 8th inning because Red Rolfe walked and got on base for him). No player has ever gotten close to threatening DiMaggio's 56-game hit streak, as Pete Rose is the only batter since to ever surpass 40 games in a row with a hit, but his streak ended at 44 in 1978.

Taking into account the fact that DiMaggio batted .357 in 1941, advanced metrics tells us that his probability of getting a hit for 56 straight games was the slimmest of odds at 1 to 40,000 (nearly the chance of being killed by an asteroid or comet, dying in a bath tub, or getting struck by lightning. I'm not even making this stuff up or am I? To take a page out of How I Met Your Mother, 83 percent of my statistics are just incorrect). Despite my reference to a show that has lasted 3 seasons too long, DiMaggio's 56-game hit streak is the most legendary run in sports for a very good reason, and the chances of another batter going 57 straight games with a hit is as likely as the Bobcats making the playoffs (oh wait, how could I forget that the East is the biggest joke since the Johnny Depp's The Lone Ranger. Your 27-30 Bobcats, ladies and gentleman, meet the 7th seed in the East right now).

2. Bryon Nelson's 11 Consecutive PGA Tour Wins

This run is far too underrated, as it is rarely ever mentioned in the conversation for the best streaks of all-time. It may have something to do with the fact that Nelson went on his roll in 1945 when televisions weren't even around (checking the Internet now to see if I'm just dead wrong with that fact too). Going five months without losing a tournament in a time period with golfers like Jimmy Demaret, Lloyd Mangrum, Ben Hogan, and Sam Snead is just insane. Lord Nelson (I feel like this has to be his name, especially after Lord Bendtner started trolling the world with Arsenal this year) won the 1945 PGA Championship during the streak, in a match play format, over a guy that played 8 years in major league baseball (contemplating if this should really be the second best streak ever).

In 2011, the top five golfers on the PGA tour's wins list did not even accumulate 11 victories combined during the season, and in the last 60 years, only Tiger Woods in 2000 (9 wins) and Vijay Singh in 2004 (9 wins) have had more than 8 wins in a season. Nelson eclipsed that in less than half a golf calendar in consecutive starts. In fact, Ben Hogan is the only golfer to have more wins in an entire PGA Tour year than Nelson did over the course of his ridiculous streak in five months, as Hogan had 13 victories in 1946, which included a PGA Championship at Portland Golf Club. Tiger Woods got close to Nelson's record in the 2006-2007 season, winning seven straights PGA tour events from the British Open in July to the Buick Invitational in January, but he still feel well short of Nelson's incredible mark. This streak will leave an indelible mark on history for its longevity, especially with Tiger Woods hooking his driver like he is Jim Furyk on the 16th tee at Olympic in 2012.

3. Roger Federer Making 23 Straight Appearances In Grand Slam Semifinals

This one I really struggled with just because of some of the other absurd streaks I was leaving off of this list. There are some consecutive start streaks that are just Inception mind-blowing (ok, not that far) such as Cal Ripken playing 2,632 straight games in an Oriole uniform (the guy closest to Ripken and the iron horse Lou Gehrig is Everett Scott at just 1,307 games, nearly an entire 8 seasons less) and Brett Favre starting in 297 straight NFL games. Hockey's version of DiMaggio's 56-game hit streak is Wayne Gretzky's glamorous streak of going 51 consecutive NHL games recording a point in 1983-1984 with the Edmonton Oilers (other than the great Mario Lemieux, who had a goal or assist in 46 straight games for the Penguins in 1989-1990, no other hockey players has ever eclipsed a 30-game NHL point streak). Finally, this should not come as a surprise, but Wilt Chamberlain has a bevy of records that deserve to be touched upon in this category. He had 126 straight games scoring at least 20 points from 1961 to 1963, seven straight games scoring 50 points in 1961 (not even Terrence Ross can do that), and a streak of nine games in 1967-1968 with the Philadelphia 76ers where he had a triple-double in each contest.

However, by a very slim margin, I think that Federer's run to 23 consecutive semifinals in majors is just a little bit more impressive than some of the aforementioned streaks. Federer went on his outrageous streak from Wimbledon in 2004 to the Australian Open in 2010, during a time when tennis saw the likes of Lleyton Hewitt, Marat Safin, Andy Roddick, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic rise to prominence. To put in perspective just how impressive it is to go nearly six years (119 matches) without losing before the semifinals of a grand slam, the record before Federer went to 23 straight semifinals was just 10 (54 matches), set by the always exuberant and emotional Ivan Lendl from 1985 to 1988, showing that nobody is even in the same hemisphere with Federer for this record (it's like the Oscars was when 12 Years a Slave was nominated). Federer avoided upsets in grand slams for nearly six years, something that all-time great Rafael Nadal has struggled with, as he has gone down to low ranked players Lukas Rosol and Steve Darcis in consecutive Wimbledon opening rounds in 2012 and 2013. Federer was also able to remain amazingly consistent on all surfaces, unlike tennis legend Andre Agassi, who lost before the semifinals of the French Open 12 times in his career.

After going through these unfathomable streaks, I realized I had made one small error. (I promise a small misstep like Neil Armstrong forgetting to say one small step for "a" man or the crew of the Titanic not seeing the giant iceberg right in front of them, which was actually a pretty big blunder... but you know what I am saying) The streaks I had previously just discussed were all individual records and the subject of my article here is on Kansas's unbelievable team streak. Have no fear, though, because here is a list of the best team streaks in sports history.

1. 1971-1972 Los Angeles Lakers 33-Game Win Streak

Any evidence of just how how hard it is to rattle off win after win in the NBA was demonstated to us last year by the Miami Heat. Their 27-game win streak, which was the second longest run in NBA history, was just as difficult, if not more arduous, than capturing their second straight championship. The NBA is very different from the NFL from the standpoint that the season is so long, and filled with so many games, that it is impossible to bring the same spirit every night. Teams typically have a few games during the season where they just don't show up or don't play with the same energy as usual (unless it's the New York Knicks, who just decide to do this every night). While the Heat's win streak last year helped them stay motivated after coming off of an NBA title, their run took an inordinate demanding toll on the team. Towards the end of the streak, the Heat were so drained that they had to come back from double-digits almost every night just to somehow escape and keep the run alive (the Heat had four consecutive double-digit comebacks towards the end of the streak - a 17-point comeback against the Celtics, a 27-point comeback against the Cavs - tied for the 8th biggest comeback of all-time, a 11-point comeback against the Pistons, and a 11-point comeback against the Bobcats - and they had to come from behind 11 times in the fourth quarter during their run).

The Los Angeles Lakers went on this same exact run in the 1970s except they went on to win 6 more games than the Heat, bringing their total to 33 in a time when the league was not as watered down as it is today (there were only 17 teams in the league in 1971-1972, as opposed to the 30 that are in the NBA today, meaning the Lakers had to face Kareem's Bucks, Havlicek's Celtics, Frazier's Knicks, and Archibald's Royals almost every night, and even the other few teams in the league still were made up of the NBA's best since there weren't as many players in the game). Obviously, it becomes a lot easier to set a ridiculous NBA record with a team of Gail Goodrich, Jerry West, and Wilt Chamberlain, but it doesn't matter who is on the floor, because going 40 percent of a season without losing a single game is just crazy.

2. UCLA's 7 Consecutive NCAA Titles From 1967 to 1973:

UCLA was fortunate enough to hire John Wooden from Indiana St. in 1948, the greatest maverick basketball has ever seen (and to think that if there wasn't a snowstorm in the Midwest, Wooden would stayed in the region and gone to Minnesota. Imagine this story today: Wooden chooses Minnesota over UCLA because a snowstorm knocked out the Golphers phone-lines and he thought he had been passed over for their job). The Wizard of Westwood was not only a genius from a basketball scheming standpoint, implementing the high post into his offense like no one before him, but his "Pyramid of Success" and other motivational sayings have become a trademark for what coaches around the country use today.

However, a wizard is only as good as his tricks, and Wooden's magic was his players (I feel like I'm explaining the plot of Now You See Me). The amazing part about UCLA's 7 NCAA Championships in a row was that they did it with so many different stars leading the way.

When the Bruins won their titles in 1966-1967, 1967-1968, and 1968-1969, Lew Alcindor was the team's 3-time NCAA Player of the Year (it needs to be mentioned that he also got a lot of help from Lucius Allen during the first two titles). UCLA's next two championships in 1969-1970 and 1970-1971 were from a more balanced attack with All-Americans Sidney Wicks and Curtis Rowe leading the way. The Bruins final two NCAA titles of their unprecedented run were lead by arguably the greatest college basketball player of all-time, 3-time NCAA Player of the Year Bill Walton, and his sidekick, Keith Wilkes, in 1971-1972 and 1972-1973. UCLA won 28 straight NCAA tournament games over the stretch (the Bruins actually won 38 straight overall from 1964 to 1974 because they won the title in 1964 and 1965 and didn't make the tournament in 1966 before going on their streak from 1967 to 1973. Duke has the next most tournament wins in a row with just 13 from 1991 to 1993). While the Bruins won 7 titles in a row, no other college basketball team has been able to win more than two consecutive titles (Oklahoma A&M won in 1945 and 1946, Kentucky had a repeat in 1949 after winning in 1948, San Francisco won two in a row in 1955 and 1956, Cincinnati went back-to-back in 1961 and 1962, Duke won in 1991 and again in 1992, and Florida won two straight titles in 2006 and 2007). This record is definitely very safe (much like how Ukraine is safe from Russian intervention, just kidding on that one).

3. Boston Celtics 8 Straight NBA Championships From 1958-1959 to 1965-1966:

The two greatest dynasties in the history of sports (aside from the Mighty Ducks series) deserve to have their historic title runs next to each other for the final part of our greatest team streaks of all-time. Both UCLA during the 1960s and into the 1970s and the Celtics from the late 1950s and into the 1960s had an impeccable formula for success, an ingenious and shrewd head coach and a team littered with transcendent superstar players. The similarities between the clubs is apparent, as the teams have more in common than the plots of Skyline and Battle: Los Angeles or White House Down and Olympus Has Fallen. Much like how UCLA had John Wooden, the Celtics had the greatest coach in the history of the NBA with Red Auerbach (fun game to play: name all the players or coaches with a color in their name - Red Auerbach, Paul Brown, A.C. Green, Tim Brown, Vida Blue - this game is not as much fun I first thought). Auerbach was a coaching visionary, getting the Celtics to play together as a team at a level that no other coach had been able to do before him, and paraphrasing DJ Khaled "all he did was win" (Red had one of my favorite sports quotes: "Show me a good loser, and I'll show you a loser"). I just did an injustice to society by quoting DJ Khaled and then Red Auerbach, but at least I didn't quote Tom Cruise.

Much like how UCLA had a collection of different stars during their title runs, Auerbach also had to make sure his various superstars were able to coexist and thrive at a high level. This was made much easier with the "constant" he had in his lineup throughout the Celtics 8 straight NBA Championships, Bill Russell. The greatest center in NBA history was the defensive cornerstone of Boston's championship runs and he just cleared everything on the glass. In the Celtics early title years, Russell teamed up with Bob Cousy, Bill Sharman, Tom Heinsohn, and Frank Ramsey for basketball domination. However, towards the end of the run, it was stars like Sam Jones, John Havlicek, and Tom Sanders that helped Russell continue the Celtics streak, and round out their 8th straight NBA title. In the playoffs from 1958-1959 to 1965-1966, Boston had an incredible record of 64-31, and no other team has ever won more than three NBA titles in a row. Put it this way: the Celtics were so good that their 8 playoff victories in each of their NBA playoff runs is just as many postseason wins as the Washington Bullets/Wizards have had in the least 26 years, or since 1988.

After spending a significant amount of time looking at the best individual and team streaks in the history of sports (my lists were as long as Lawrence of Arabia, except I'm not Peter O'Toole), it is time to look at a run right now in college basketball that is already quite impressive, and could, if it continues, be one of the best team streaks of all-time. I'm referring to Kansas's 10 straight Big 12 regular season titles, which is quickly becoming one of college basketball's most amazing streaks (pales in comparison to Adam Sandler's streak of being in just atrocious movies though).

Before I begin with my main point, let me assert that I am not one of those people who think that the college basketball regular season is totally meaningless (anybody who watched either one of those Syracuse-Duke games this year can tell you that there are some really great games that happen during a college basketball season). While I believe the college basketball season still matters, many people would agree that it has been devalued a little bit by the expansion of the tournament field to 68 teams, as the difficulty of reaching the postseason has drastically decreased for big budget institutions. Meanwhile, for as much as people have condemned the BCS like it is the Arizona religious freedom bill, the value of the college football season cannot be argued, as it provides fans with the most exciting regular season in all of sports, and that's not even close! Each and every week teams are playing with National Championship implicatoins because one loss can take you out of the National Championship picture (just ask Michigan State).

However, people that solely judge a program's success in college basketball based on their performance in the Big Dance, and do not even care about the team's play in the regular season, are making a little bit of a negligent assessment. I know way too many fans that have been calling for Josh Pastner's job because some of Memphis's postseason failures over the past three years (the Tigers have only had one tournament win since Pastner took over, despite the fact that they are 106-34 over the span).

Much like Josh Pastner, John Thompson, Mark Few, and even Bo Ryan to a certain extent, Bill Self has had some bad postseason losses over the years at Kansas. In 2005, as a three seed, Kansas was stunned by Patriot League foe Bucknell in the first round of the tournament in a shocking loss, and the following year, this time as a 4 seed, the Jayhawks fell to Missouri Valley's Bradley University, once again in their opening game. Then came Kansas's loss to 9th seeded Northern Iowa in the second round in 2010 and finally their defeat to 11th seeded VCU in the Elite Eight the following year, both of which came in tournaments where Kansas was a number one seed and one of the major favorites for to win a National Championship. Obviously, sports are all about winning, and if a coach's team continues to struggle in the postseason, then there are going to be some real reasons for concern. However, Self won a National Title in 2008 and got to the NCAA Championship Game two years later in 2010 (Steve Fisher, Billy Donovan, Jim Boeheim, Rick Pitino, Roy Williams, and Coach K are the only active coaches with more title appearances than Self).

The debate over the job that Self has done with some of his very talented teams in the postseason can be deliberated until you are red in the face, like the kid from Insidious. However, much like how many people look at college basketball through the vacuum of how teams perform in the postseason, which I don't necessarily entirely agree with, lets look at Kansas's amazing Big 12 championship winning run through the prism of their accomplishments solely in the regular season. When viewing Kansas's streak from this standpoint, and not letting everything else cloud your mind, it is rather conspicuous to see just how impressive their run has been, as it shows an incredible amount of consistency (the last time Kansas didn't win a Big 12 title, our world had the privilege of not knowing Justin Bieber) .

Kansas's streak of 10 Big 12 regular season championships in a row is almost unprecedented in the great history of college hoops. It is tied for the third longest streak of consecutive conference titles, only behind UCLA's 13 straight conference titles from 1967 to 1979, Gonzaga's 11 West Coast Conference championships in a row from 2001 to 2011, and tied with Connecticut's 10 straight conference titles from 1951 to 1960 and UNLV's 10 consecutive Big West championships from 1983 to 1992.

However, I would say that Kansas's run is more impressive than the other schools that have had at least 10 conference titles in a row other than UCLA. While it is obviously very hard to finish at the top of any conference year after year, some of the other teams in this conversation did so in much easier leagues. Gonzaga only really had to compete with Saint Mary's out West and although the Gaels did have the beast that was Omar Samhan in 2010, the Zags have not really faced any real competition for the WCC crown. The same goes for UNLV, who played in the very weak Big West conference, a league that only had one team make the tournament four of the ten years UNLV won the conference. Similarly, not only did UConn have their conference dominance in a league called the Yankee Conference, (the only worse conference idea was naming the Big 10 divisions Leaders and Legends) but their biggest competition was also Rhode Island in a very weak six team league. However, Kansas has won 10 consecutive conference titles in the very competitive Big 12, one of the powerhouse leagues in college basketball with top tier programs like Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma St., and Kansas State (although playing Colorado each year was nice for Kansas before they left for the Pac-12).

In modern day college basketball, no team has come anywhere close to matching the prolific success that Self has had with the Jayhawks in the Big 12, as Kansas is 138-25 over the past ten years in conference games. Coming into this season, Harvard from the Ivy League, Bucknell in the Patriot League, Long Beach St. from the Big West, and Belmont, in the Atlantic Sun first and later moving to the Ohio Valley Conference, are the programs with the longest current conference championship streak at just three in a row, and none of them are in college basketball's major leagues.

Even some of college hoops most dominate teams have never had the same conference supremacy as Kansas has had over the past 10 years with Self. Coach K, who has the most Division I wins, has won 12 ACC Championships, but his longest run of conference titles is 5 in a row from 1997 to 2001. Tom Izzo, whose 6 Final Fours in 12 years have only been matched by John Wooden and Coach K, has won 7 Big Ten regular season titles at Michigan St., but his longest streak of conference championships is 4, which happened from 1998 to 2001. Jim Boehim, who has had the most wins at one school in Division I history, has won 9 Big East Championships, but he has never won more than 2 consecutive conference championships. Billy Donovan, who is one of just seven coaches to lead a team to back-to-back National Championships, has won 7 SEC regular season titles at Florida, but his longest streak of conference championships is 3, which occurred from 2000 to 2002. Finally, Rick Pitino, who is the only coach to take three different programs to the Final Four, has won 7 conference championships in 22 years at Providence, Kentucky, and Louisville, but has never had more than a back-to-back regular season crown.

One of the most impressive parts about Kansas's Big 12 regular season titles streak is that they have done it with so many different players, as the Jayhawks have had to sometimes face yearly changes in their personnel on the floor, and their assistant coaches on the sidelines. In the Jayhawks 10 consecutive conference championships, they have had a different player lead their team in overall scoring 8 times (Wayne Simien in 2005, Brandon Rush in 2006, Darrell Arthur in 2008, Sherron Collins in 2009, Marcus Morris in 2011, Thomas Robinson in 2012, Ben McLeMore in 2013, and Andrew Wiggins this year). While the early Jayhawk teams had role players like Mario Chalmers and Julian Wright, those players quickly morphed into glue guys like Cole Aldrich, Tyshawn Taylor, Markieff Morris, Jeff Withey, and Trevis Releford.

Another amazing feat that the Jayhawks have had over their title winning stretch in the Big 12 is that in the day of one-and-done players, the program has been able to retool each year, often times having a bench player step into the lineup after someone departed to the NBA, and playing just as well as the previous starter. Self has certainly had some prominent one year college stars like Xavier Henry in 2010 and Ben McLemore (red-shirt freshman) last year, but many of his main contributors have stayed in school and become star players after sitting on the bench and learning how to improve in the fast-paced nature of college hoops (you would think this would happen everywhere in college basketball, where a starter leaves, and a bench guy replaces him and steps up to fill the void, but it really doesn't. Often times, if you aren't a star your freshman or sophomore year, or don't show flashes of talent, the team forgets about you). Sherron Collins played fairly well behind Mario Chalmers in Kansas's 2007 and 2008 teams, and then was a second team All-American in 2009 and a first team All-American in 2010 when he was handed the keys to the offense. Jeff Withey played behind future first round pick Cole Aldrich and didn't see a lot of court time in 2010, but by the end of his career, his resume included a Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2012 and a Co-National Defensive Player of the Year in 2013. Despite averaging 20 points and 17 rebounds per 40 minutes, Thomas Robinson only played 15 minutes per game for Kansas in 2011 because the team was led by the Morris brothers (so many brother combinations in sports right now: Lopez brothers, Bryan brothers, Sedin brothers, Pouncy brothers, McCourty brothers). However, after improving his mid-range game and getting much stronger, Robinson was the Big 12 Player of the Year and a first team All-American in 2012.

The scary thing about Kansas is that their future looks as bright as Rihanna's forehead (my best analogy ever), as they could actually be better next year than they are this year. Andrew Wiggins is going to leave for the draft after this season although I think that Jabari Parker and Julius Randle are more ready to play in the NBA given their rookie seasons (hopefully he doesn't follow in the footsteps of fellow Canadian Anthony Bennett, whose 4 points per game and 21.6 three point percentage puts him dangerously close to being the worst #1 overall pick since Josh Smith, Michael Olowokandi, or Kwame Brown). While I think Joel Embiid could greatly improve by staying in school and working on his very raw offense game (remember that he has only been playing organized basketball for 3 years), my instincts tells me he will leave school, just because it is so hard to turn down being a lock for a top 3 pick in the NBA draft. Even in the worse case scenario, where both Wiggins and Embiid depart for the pros, the Jayhawks are likely going to return a back-court of Naadir Tharpe and Wayne Selden Jr., along with Perry Ellis down low. Self is also adding two top-11, five-star recruits, according to ESPN, with power forward Cliff Alexander and small forward Kelly Oubre, who should make Kansas a real National title threat. A starting lineup of Tharpe, Selden, Oubre, Ellis, and Alexander (and possibly Embiid if he pulls a Marcus Smart, minus the fan pushing) could make the Jayhawks the pre-season #1 in college basketball next year and begin their push towards challenging the longest streak of conference or divisional championships in sports: the Braves 14 straight NL divisional titles from 1991 to 2005. However, the Braves streak is not as impressive as Kansas's run since they won 11 of those championships in a five team NL East, which is actually four teams since the Mets were part of the division!

To wrap up this 5,535 word monster, I don't think that the impact of the Jayhawk faithful can be underestimated when it comes to looking at Kansas's unparalleled Big 12 dominance. Rock Chalk, Jayhawk, the KU fanbase, has been the fortress for Kansas's supremacy for years, and opponents that have enter Allen Fieldhouse have become more poised with clouded thoughts, uncertainty, and doubt than Othello in the Shakespearean tragedy. Since the Jayhawks streak began in 2005, their record on James Naismith Court is an astonishing 77-5 in Big 12 Conference games, and they have one game left to play at home this season against Texas Tech. Fanaticism is not only present in Cuba with the following of Castro, but it is also evident in college basketball gyms throughout the country, especially at Kansas.

This brings me to a story about my brother, Rory. One day in Florida he was getting out of an elevator when he saw somebody wearing an Alabama shirt (unfortunately for him, it wasn't Katherine Webb). As the man was getting into the elevator, Rory said to him, "roll tide," and he got a very emphatic "roll tide" right back. He told me it was one of the happiest moments of his life. It is the small things that make sports fans happy. Of course we would want a nice porsche or a big time job, but what we really want more than anything is for Dion Waiters and Kyrie Irving to get along, or for the Raiders to finally get a quarterback, or for Ricky Rubio to stop shooting like he is Victor Oladipo or even, gasp, Josh Smith. As ESPN so perfectly coined, "It's Not Crazy, It's Sports."

The NBA Mount Rushmore

If I were to survey one hundred Americans, I would venture to say that less than a third of them would know that Mount Rushmore is in South Dakota. For as much as people love to talk about who should be carved on Mount Rushmore from the sports world, how many people have actually gone to the metropolis that is South Dakota? I think the answer to that question is not too many, which is pretty much how the players on the Houston Astros and Cleveland Indians must feel like when they look around their ballparks on a nightly basis. I mean, seriously, if a tree were to fall inside of Jobing.com Arena in Phoenix, would it even make a sound? I have a sense that my hypothetical survey here would definitely draw some criticism, especially from some anonymous general managers and executives who don't have the courage, unlike Michael Sam, to come out and say what they believe without being kept shamefully nameless.

Before I digress to a point of no return, where two hours from now I'm wondering how I just had the biggest rant since Jim Mora in 2001 or Dennis Green in 2006, I'm going to reign myself in like the Dolphins so successfully did with Richie Incognito (oh wait). Don't worry though Dolphins fans, your head coach was vindicated in the Ted Wells' report, as he had no idea what was going on inside his own locker room and was unaware of any form of harassment from members of his own team. Joe Philbin can now finally ask Greg Schiano and Bobby Valentine what it's like to lose control of a team. Alright, I need to move on before I go full Michael Bay.

In a recent interview with NBA TV, Lebron James was asked by Steve Smith his Mount Rushmore of NBA players. He replied, "I would say the easy three, that we all talk about in our league. You got Michael Jordan, you got Larry Bird, and you got Magic Johnson. And I would say my fourth... this is so tough. The greatest players of all-time that I would like to see on Mount Rushmore... This is not fair... You know how many great players there is? Oscar Robertson... Those are my four."

Lebron's answer stirred a debate over who should be on Mount Rushmore for basketball greats. Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant said, "If I had a four it would be Michael, Larry, Magic, and Kareem, the all-time leader in points. How many championships does he [Kareem] got? Multiple championships. MVPs. He's got it all. As far as accolades and championships, he's got it all."

When asked about his Mount Rushmore, Lakers legend Kobe Bryant proclaimed, "I would say Magic, Bird, Michael, and Russell. That's impossible to do four, though, man. Come on. That's crazy. That's tough. Absolutely tough."

Former Heat and Magic coach Stan Van Gundy added, "Man, you're talking four guys on Mount Rushmore. So, for me, I got Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson for sure, Michael Jordan, and probably...yea, I'll put LeBron there. Look, you could probably throw a lot of other names at me and I'd say 'yea,' it's tough. Really it's tough... That's at last as good a four as anybody is going to put up there."

Obviously, there is no set way to define the world's greatest players, as there are just too many factors to consider (championships, statistics, intangibles, transcendence) and too many difficult barriers in comparing stars (time period, league rules, games, teams) in order to make a list that is universally accepted as definite.

For example, common names for the NBA's Mount Rushmore would be Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan. Nonetheless, some fans would say that George Mikan deserves to be on the Mount Rushmore of the NBA because he changed the way basketball is played. Others from the 1950's would argue until they are blue in the face that Bob Cousy is the greatest playmaker of all-time. People who value rebounding as the most important facet of basketball would assert that Moses Malone needs to be on the Mount Rushmore of NBA players.

Despite some of the difficulties in assessing who should metaphorically be chiseled onto the NBA Mount Rushmore, sports would not be sports without the great debate over who is the best of all-time and the legacy of certain players. Here is my look at the four-man Mount Rushmore of all-time NBA players.

NBA All-Time Mount Rushmore: Michael Jordan, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson

Let's start with the two centers, who both played the prime of their careers in the NBA during the 1960's. As I was looking through some of the greatest players of all-time, I was amazed at just how many of them were centers, especially as compared to nowadays were small ball is the prevailing way to play in the league (just look at the Miami Heat or the New York Knicks. Actually, do not get within 100 yards of a television that's showing the Knicks).

A rather loose argument could be made that Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain do not even belong on the Mount Rushmore of NBA centers with a plethora of big men like George Mikan, Bob Pettit, Nate Thurmond, Wes Unseld, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Willis Reed, Moses Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal to consider. It would certainly be quite a bit of a stretch, but nobody would consider you Amanda Bynes crazy for saying that Bill Russell is behind Hakeem Olajuwon in terms of greatest NBA centers. In fact, executives have made much worse decisions in the past (the Pistons picking Darko Milicic over Melo, Bosh, and D-Wade, the Supersonics trading Scottie Pippen for Olden Polynice in the 1987 draft, basically any move Joe Dumars, Billy King, or Ernie Grunfield have ever made, and Matt Millen drafting three straight abysmal wide receivers in the top ten from 2003 to 2005, which is not even basketball related but is just that bad that I feel obliged to mention it here).

However, Russell and Chamberlain undoubtedly deserve to be on this list.

Bill Russell is the definition of what it means to be a champion. When Russell was in the NBA from 1956 to 1969, everybody in the league felt like Jerry Sloan, Karl Malone, and John Stockton because Russell was about as good of a passer of the Larry O'Brien Trophy as Carmelo Anthony is in the Knicks offense. In 13 seasons in the league, Russell won 11 titles including 8 in a row from 1959 to 1966 (only the Minneapolis Lakers from 1952 to 1955, the Chicago Bulls from 1991 to 1993 and 1996 to 1998, and the Los Angeles Lakers from 2000 to 2002 have ever won at least than 3 championships in a row). You could be playing in a recreation league in Wyoming or in the SEC, but 11 titles is just incredible no matter how you look at it.

In a sport where people can sometimes get lost in points and field goals made, Russell's impact on a game was astounding for a player that never averaged 20 points per game in a season. He is far and away the greatest defensive player in NBA history with the six best single-season defensive win shares and the best career defensive win shares at 133.64 (no other player has a career defensive win share of at least 100). Russell is also one of the two most dominate players on the boards along with Wilt, going ten consecutive seasons averaging at least 21 rebounds per game and finishing his career with the second most rebounds ever with 21,620. Despite the fact that Russell averaged just around 13 shots per game, his ability to control the defensive end of the floor has never, and likely will never, be matched.

As great as Russell was during his career, his response to LeBron James after being left off his hypothetical Mount Rushmore was equally legendary. Russell said to James before the All-Star game in New Orleans,"Hey, thank you for leaving me off your Mount Rushmore. I'm glad you did. Basketball is a team game. It's not for individual honors. I won back-to-back state championships in high school [McClymonds High School in West Oakland], back-to-back NCAA championships in college [San Francisco], I won an NBA championship my first year in the league, an NBA championship my last year, and nine in between. And that, Mr. James, is etched in stone." Game, set, and match to Mr. Russell.

Meanwhile, Russell's arch rival, Wilt Chamberlain, essentially holds every record there is in points, field goals, and rebounding in the history of basketball (he also has some other unbreakable records but I won't expand on his 20,000 women claim in this article. I would rather not get Raheem Sterling or Antonie Cromatie too excited, especially after the Jets celebrated like they had just found the Fountain of Youth after finishing 8-8 this year and having their 36th season in franchise history without finish above .500 in 54 years. The only things more outrageous are Oliver Giroud apologizing to his wife for having an extramarital affair over, get this, twitter or Kolo Toure pretending to be a car salesman to have a relationship with a model.

Despite some of his off the court escapades and the fact that he was rarely ever able to overcome his rival Bill Russell, the Big Dipper is likely the most dominate player in the history of basketball. Anybody that averages 50 points and 25 rebounds in a season, needs to be considered amongst the best of all-time. In fact, Wilt was so good that when reporters brandished him as an egotistical and selfish player (he did lead the league in field goal attempts his first seven years in the NBA in their defense), he decided to prove them wrong by winning the assists title in the 1967-1968 season, the only center to ever do so, just because he could. While Wilt was a massive 7-foot center that was just way better than most of the other players in the league, as he did not face the same competition as the players do in the game today, some of his numbers are still just jaw-dropping. Aside from his very noticeable 100 point game in 1962 against the Knicks, Wilt also holds the 2nd best points per game average at 30.07, the best rebounds per game average at 22.89, and the 2nd best win shares at 247.26 in the history of the NBA.

Just a quick tangent. Many people think that Wilt's single-game points record is one of the hardest records to break in sports, but I would not totally agree with that assertion. Is it too behind the realm of possibility to think that Kevin Durant could get really hot one game, start knocking down threes left and right against the Sacramento Kings and their non-existent defense, and challenge Chamberlain's record. David Thompson did score 73 points on just 38 field goal attempts in 1978 (Wilt took 63 shots in his 100 point game), and Kobe scored 81 against the Raptors just 8 years ago in 2006, so I think it is possible as Vladimir Putin showing restraint if his Russians do not win the gold in hockey.

Tougher records to break in my view include winning more than 11 NBA championships, topping John Stockton's 15,806 career assists total (if you averaged 10 assists per game for 19 seasons without missing a game, you would still be short of the record), eclipsing Wilt's own single-season points per game record of 50.4 (Jordan's 37.09 points per game average in 1986-1987 is the most for anybody other than Chamberlain), or breaking George McGinnis's single-season turnovers record of 422 turnovers, which is more than 5 per game (only two players have ever had more than 321 turnovers in a season since 2000).

The next player on our Mount Rushmore is the greatest player in the history of basketball, Michael Jordan. MJ, who Larry Bird described as, "God disguised as Michael Jordan" after he scored a NBA record 63 points in a playoff game in 1986 against the Celtics, brought the NBA into unprecedented popularity during the 1980's and 1990's.

On the court, Jordan did things that nobody had ever done before him, but even off the court, his shoe deals and marketing campaigns were transcendent, as they transformed the way people look at the NBA and the entire advertisement business that surrounds professional sports. Michael's Air Jordans are so popular that he still makes 60 million dollars a year from his shoe line. And to think he wanted to sign with Converse and Adidas over Nike. Jordan also pulled off the biggest upset in the history of basketball, helping Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, and the Looney Tunes defeat the world's most dominate team, the monsters of Nerdlucks. I'm not sure if Jordan's 1987-1988 season, where he averaged 35 points and had a 31.7 player efficiency rating, can match up to his performance against the aliens in Space Jam. Those monsters had unparalleled size and length.

While many fair-weather followers (also known as many Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers fans) hold MJ in their heart for his play in Space Jam, his performance on the floor puts him at the top of the Mount Rushmore discussion. All joking aside, Jordan was a once in a generation player, somebody who nobody had ever seen the like of in not only the NBA, but in all of sports. His insane hyper-competitiveness may not have been the most inviting or joyous for his teammate if they made some mistakes (Jordan's intense nature include stories of him punching Steve Kerr in the face in training camp or telling Robert Parish he would kick his ass if he didn't play better in practice), but it gave him an edge never before seen on the court. Jordan had by far the most seasons leading the league in scoring with 11, the best points per game average at 30.12, the best player efficiency rating at 27.91, and the best win shares per 48 minutes at .2505.

With the game on the line, Jordan was the most clutch player in NBA history and the only inquiry that remains is whether his shot over Craig Ehlo in 1989 or his game 6 winner in the NBA finals in 1998 against the Jazz can match his dunk against the monsters in Space Jam (the only thing more unrealistic than that dunk is a game from Friday Night Lights. How did every one of the episodes come down to a last second touchdown? Syracuse must be trying to pull off their best Friday Night Lights season one impression with all their close victories this year, seven wins by 6 points or less to be specific. I would love to play that joke off as my own, but my brother actually blurted it out after watching Cuse escape against North Carolina State this weekend. I am happy he brought it up, though, because Syracuse will be testing out of one sports most fascinating questions: Does winning a lot of close games help a team in the postseason or does it just show that the club is beatable and not as good as people think.)

We end our discussion of the all-time NBA Mount Rushmore with Oscar Robertson. Despite winning just one NBA Championship (1971 with the Milwaukee Bucks) in his 14 seasons, and often being overlooked in the greatest to ever play the game conversation, the Big O was as good as anybody in the history of basketball. In fact, all-time points leader Kareem Abdul-Jabaar said, "LeBron is awesome, MJ was awesome, but I think Oscar Robertson would have kicked them both in the behind. Absolutely. Oscar was awesome. He had brains... He had all the skills... He could rebound and box out guys four and six inches taller than him. He was ruggedly built. He had fluid, quickness, and just understood the game. No flair, he just got the job done every night. Who's going to average double figures in points, assists, and rebounds?"

While Oscar benefited from playing in a time period where the pace of the game was much faster and points were scored at a much higher rate (in Oscar's triple double year in 1961-1962, the league averaged a NBA record 118.8 points per game and since 1995, the league average in points per game has never exceeded 100), he was as smooth as any player to ever play in the NBA. At 6-5, Oscar was the league's first really big point guard, and his large frame allowed him to do anything on the floor from being able to shot the ball (he had a .485 career field goal percentage) to rebounding on the glass (he is the only guard to ever average more than 10 rebounds per game in a season, which he did in each of his first three years in the league). Oscar will forever be remembered for his triple-double season in 1961-1962, where he averaged 30.8 points, 11.4 assists, and 12.5 rebounds in 41 games with a triple-double, but the even more staggering fact is that he essential had the same numbers each of his first five NBA seasons, averaging 30.3 points, 10.6 assists, and 10.4 rebounds over the span.

Oscar's ability to do it all even showed itself off the court, as he made the NBA into the league that it is today. His antitrust lawsuit against the NBA in the 1970's as the President of the NBA Players Association helped facilitate a new policy of free agency and some of the new draft regulations that he filed enabled players to receive higher salaries from teams (when Robertson filed the antitrust lawsuit in 1970, the average league salary was just around 35,000, but four years after the league reached a settlement on the suit in 1976, the average league salary had catapulted up to 180,000). Just to show how big the NBA is in the world nowadays, largely due to the role of Robertson in the NBPA during the 1970's, Emeka Okafor, who has not played in a game this season and has not even eclipsed 10 points per game the least two years, is getting paid nearly 15 million dollars annually (what owner would possibly in their right mind sign Okafor to a 6-year, 72 million dollar contract. Oh yes, the great Michael Jordan. In my defense, I put him on my Mount Rushmore for his performance during his playing career and not as an owner or president because I can't even say Kwame Brown without chuckling or crying after realizing that Pau Gasol went two picks later in that 2001 draft).

Come ten years from now, though, I could see my NBA Mount Rushmore having some alterations.

Before LeBron's legacy changing 45 point, 15 rebound display against the Celtics in the Heat's elimination game 6 in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2012 (the greatest single game I've seen from a player given the circumstances), there was a time when King James's place amongst the pantheon of NBA greats was deservedly questioned. However, one ridiculous game 6 performance in 2012 and a Ray Allen three in 2013 (we may be having a different conversation if Kawhi Leonard made both his free throws) and LeBron is well on his way to taking his place on the NBA Mount Rushmore. I think the only thing worth pondering about LeBron's career is whether he will be looked upon as the greatest player to ever step on a floor when it is all said and done. While I would put my life on Jordan making that final shot, no player has ever been able to do as much and affect a game in as many different ways as LeBron.

Meanwhile, I think Kevin Durant could go down as the best pure scorer in the history of the NBA, passing some of the game's other greatest scorers like Jordan and Kobe. KD is already one of seven members apart of the 50-40-90 club, which he did last year shooting 51 percent from the field, 41.6 percent from three, and 90.5 percent from the free throw line. He is also leading the league in scoring once again this year, which puts him in position for his 5th career scoring title, only behind Michael and Wilt in the all-time ranks. The league has never seen a player like Durant, as he is a guy that is listed at 6-9 (he's probably an inch and a half taller than that, which puts him around the height of big men like Zach Randolph and Blake Griffin), yet he is shooting from three at a clip well above 40 percent. Durant's offensive efficiency is just something else.

Balance Can Win In The Regular Season But Every Team Needs A Star To Win A NBA Title

With the NBA shortened 66 game season, every team has had to rely on their bench much heavier than in normal NBA years. The back-to-backs-to-backs and the 4 games in 5 night stretches have intensified the importance of having guys provide quality minutes off the bench, so that starters can get some rest after playing heavy minutes in previous games.

Kevin Love's league lead of 39.5 minutes per game is the least minutes per game by a league leader since Kelly Tripucka of the Detroit Pistons lead the league with 38.9 minutes per game during the 1982-1983 season, which was nearly 30 yeas ago. This shows that starters are playing much less than in usual years and that bench players are getting the opportunity to play much more often.

The compressed season has resulted in bench players like Jordan Crawford of the Washington Wizards, Nicolas Batum of the Portland Trail Blazers, and Courtney Lee of the Houston Rockets having the best seasons of their respective careers because of the extended playing time they are receiving.

With starters playing less minutes and bench guys having more of an impact than normal, scoring is much more balanced among teams. There are only 12 players in the entire league who are averaging at least 20 points per game and there are just 4 guys from the east scoring in the 20's. In comparison, during the 2007-2008 NBA season there were 27 guys that averaged at least 20 points per game for the year. The last time less than 12 players averaged at least 20 points per game was over 45 years ago during the 1965-1966 season when just 11 guys averaged at least 20 per game and that was during the age of Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, and John Havlicek.

Even more so than most other teams, the Philadelphia 76ers, the Indiana Pacers, and the Denver Nuggets are winning with balanced scoring and without a superstar.

The 76ers are 4th in the East and leading the Atlantic division over the Celtics and Knicks after they finished 7th in the conference last year. They are a very strong defense team and have great length with perimeter players like Evan Turner and Andre Iguodala. The 76ers lead the NBA in points against, as they are allowing a league low of 87.5 points per game as well as opponent field goal percentage, as they are holding the opposition to 41.8% shooting from the field. Philadelphia plays as a unit defensively and they have great help defense and team rebounding.

The Pacers, who finished 8th in the East last season, currently sit in 5th place in the conference. Indiana has been very effective at taking advantage of games that they should win by not looking over their opponents and getting the victory. The Pacers are 18-4 against teams from both conferences that are currently not sitting in one of the eight playoff spots (Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Toronto Raptors, New Jersey Nets, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Bobcats, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, Minnesota Timberwovles, Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Hornets).

The Nuggets are tied for 5th in the muddled middle of the pack of the Western Conference and sit just a half a game behind the fourth place Dallas Mavericks. They are just one of three teams in the Western Conference that has a winning record on the road along with the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs.

Aside from the Denver Nuggets, no team has their leading scoring averaging less than 15.7 points per game, which the 76ers leading scorer Lou Williams is averaging, yet Philly is leading their division. Williams, who comes off the bench for Philadelphia, is among a cast of characters who constantly contribute for the 76ers. Williams, Jrue Holiday, Thaddeus Young, Andre Iguodala, and Elton Brand are all averaging at least 10 points per game, while the Sixers have 8 guys scoring at least 8 points per game. In fact, Philly had 7 guys scoring in double figures during the month of January.

Of the 76ers, Pacers, and Nuggets, Indiana has the best scoring threat and go to guy when they need a bucket with small forward Danny Granger. Granger, who has averaged 23.5 points per game over the last three seasons, is taking less field goal attempts per game this year and is leading Indiana's balanced attack at 17.8 points per game. The Pacers have 8 players with Granger, Roy Hibbert, Paul George, David West, Leandro Barbosa (who the team acquired from the Toronto Raptors in a mid-season trade), Darren Collison, Tyler Hansbrough, and George Hill averaging more than 9 points per game.

The Denver Nuggets, who lead the NBA at 103.7 points per game, have their leading scorer Ty Lawson at just 15.4 points per game, which is the least for a teams leading scorer. However, the Denver Nuggets score by committee and have a host of guys who can put the ball in the bucket. The Nuggets have 9 guys with Lawson, Danilo Gallinari, JaVale McGee (who the team acquired from the Washington Wizards in a mid-season trade), Al Harrington, Arron Afflalo, Wilson Chandler (who recently returned to the team after playing in China), Andre Miller, Corey Brewer, and Kenneth Faried averaging at least 9 points per game.

Although the 76ers, Pacers, and Nuggets have shown that you can be a very successful team and make the postseason without a star player and a group of role players that play very well collectively, to win in the postseason you need at least one star player who can take over the game.

Since 1980, the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, and San Antonio Spurs have won 24 of the 32 NBA championships and all of them have been lead by at least one superstar player.

When the Lakers won their NBA titles in 1980 and 1982, they had 19-time All-Star and 6-time MVP Kareem Abdual-Jabbar in the post along with 12-time All-Star and 3-time MVP Magic Johnson at point guard. When they captured the NBA crown in 1985, 1987, and 1988, they had Jabbar and Johnson leading the way along with a young, new forward out of North Carolina, James Worthy, who like Jabbar and Johnson would be a future NBA Hall of Famer and would be named as one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history.

When the Lakers had their three-peat from 2000-2002, they were lead by two of the top 10 greatest players in NBA history with Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. Shaq, won won the NBA Finals MVP in all three series, was a dominate and unstoppable force in the post. In the 2000 playoffs, Shaq averaged 30.4 points and 15.4 rebounds per game. In the 2001 playoffs, Shaq averaged 30.7 points and 15.4 rebounds per game. When the Lakers repeated in 2009-2010, they were led by huge scoring outputs from Kobe Bryant, who proved that he could win a title without Shaq.

The Celtics titles in 1981, 1984, and 1986 were a large part due to the Celtics star three players Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale and most notably Bird, who was the finals MVP in two of those three series. Led by Bird, a 12-time All-Star and 3-time MVP, the Celtics were able to knock off the Rockets in 81' and 86' and the Lakers in that great 7 game series in 1984. In that series in 1984, Bird averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds and was the star that the Celtics needed to will them to the title.

The 2008 Celtics were led by their "Big Three" of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen and they were able to knock off the Lakers in 6 games in the NBA Finals. Although the Celtics weren't a deep team, they were led by three stars that all contributed to the title.

The Bulls 6 championships in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, and 1998 were obviously on the back of the greatest player to ever play the game Michael Jordan. Jordan, a 6-time NBA Finals MVP, has an unlimited amount of playoff moments that will be remembered forever including his flu game in game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals and his game winning shot win the series against the Utah Jazz in game 6 of the 1988 NBA Finals. Jordan also had help from star Scottie Pippen, who was a great defender, which shows with his 8 appearances on the NBA All-defensive first team.

The Spurs dynasty that won 4 NBA titles in 9 years from 1999 to 2007, were all led by the greatest power forward in NBA history, Tim Duncan. Duncan had the help of "The Admiral" and NBA MVP David Robinson for the Spurs first two titles. Duncan and Robinson formed "The Twin Towers" down low for the Spurs and resulted in one of the greatest tandems in the frontcourt in NBA history.

The 1983 Philadelphia 76ers, which swept the Los Angeles Lakers in 4 games, was full of superstars as well. Moses Malone, who was a 12-time All-Star and 3-time NBA MVP, averaged 25.8 points and 18 rebounds in the series against L.A. and was named the deservedly Finals MVP. Not to mention that the 76ers had the great Dr.J on that championship team as well.

The Detroit Pistons repeated as NBA champions in 1989-1990, and like all of these other clubs to have won an NBA title, they had at least one great superstar. Detroit was lead by one of the greatest backcourts in NBA history with Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars. In the two NBA finals combined, they lost 1 game and Dumars won the finals MVP in 1989, while Isiah won it the following year.

Like the Pistons, the Houston Rockets repeated in 1994-1995. After playing together in college at Houston as apart of "Phi Slama Jama", NBA legends Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon reunited to win two two straight titles in the NBA. "Akeem The Dream", a 12-time All-Star and 2-time Defensive Player of the Year, won the finals MVP in both series, but the Rockets also got a large contribution from 10-time All-Star Clyde "the Glide" Drexler.

The Heat won the NBA title in 2006 in 6 games over the Dallas Mavericks. The great Shaquille O'Neal was able to help push the Heat over the top and Dwayne Wade, 8-time All-Star, won the finals MVP after pulling the Heat back from 2 games down in the series. Wade averaged 34.7 points per game in the finals including a 42 and 43 point outburst in games 3 and 5 respectively.

Last year, 11-time All-Star and one of the greatest foreign players to ever play in the NBA, Dirk Nowitzki, led the Dallas Mavericks to their first NBA title in franchise history. Dirk, who took home Finals MVP honors, averaged 27.7 points for the entire playoffs.

The only team in the last 32 years since 1980 to win the NBA championship without a star but rather with a group of talented players that all contributed with very even and balanced scoring was the 2004 Detroit Pistons. Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince, and Ben Wallace were all solid players for the Pistons, but they didn't have a go-to-guy. The Pistons didn't have a player who averaged more than 18 points per game. Nonetheless, they managed to win the NBA title with great defense intensity in 5 games over the Lakers.

When thinking about what teams are going to make a run at the NBA title, look back at the past 32 years. Of the NBA champions since 1980, 31 of them have had at least one star and only one team has won a title without a star player but rather with balanced scoring. Although the 76ers, Pacers, and Nuggets are getting it done in the regular season without one main scoring threat, when the playoffs come around, a team will need at least one star player to walk away with the Larry O'Brien trophy.

Chris Bosh Was The Difference Maker For The Heat In Game 4

Chris Bosh was absolutely horrible in game 3. He had just 6 points on 1 of 6 shooting in the Heat's 16 point loss on the road to the Celtics. It was his lowest scoring game all season and he tied his season low for field goals made in a game. Not only did Bosh have a horrible offensive game, but he also had no answer for Kevin Garnett on the other end of the floor. Garnett had arguably his best ever playoff game with 28 points and 18 rebounds. He dominated Bosh down in the post. 

Bosh said after his extremely disappointing game 3, "Given all the elements that were out there last night... they [the fans] were so hyped. My emotions got the best of me early on and it kind of dictated what I was doing for the rest of the game. I was not trusting my game. The toughest thing to do in hostile environments is not just to trust your teammates but to trust yourself. Trust things you've been doing all your life... I wasn't relaxing and playing, I play better when I'm just relaxing. I have to take the emotions out and play basketball... There's a bunch of things I could've done better personally to affect the game more and get myself in rhythm. Mistakes teach you more than anything else. Last night's game was a huge teacher."

In the first half of game 4 against the Celtics, Bosh once again looked like he had some jitters. He was just 2 of 8 from the field and only had 5 points and 2 rebounds through the first 24 minutes. The Heat struggled to find a third option outside of Dwayne Wade and LeBron James in the first half because of the struggles of Bosh. Besides Wade and James, no other Heat player had more than 5 points and the three other Heat starters had just 9 points at halftime. Wade and James combined for 34 of the Heat's 50 points in the first half.

In the second half, Bosh finally showed up and began to gain a lot more confidence. He looked much more relaxed on the court in the second half and he wasn't rushing all of his shots. He was 6 of 9 from the floor and had 15 points and 12 rebounds in the final two periods. He also limited Kevin Garnett to 7 points on just 1 of 10 shooting from the field. Garnett's 1 field goal was the least he had in any game this season where he played more than 10 minutes. Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra commented on Bosh's great defense on Garnett by saying after the game, "There’s been so much discussion about Chris and usually it’s revolving around how many points he scores. I continue to remind him he doesn’t have to answer to anyone’s expectations or critics. When he rebounds well, we usually win and when he focuses in on his rebounding and defence and covering ground it works for him.”

With 46 seconds remaining in overtime, LeBron had the ball at the top of the key and  he was being defended by Kevin Garnett. Bosh was being guarded by Paul Pierce. When James Jones ran into the left corner, the smaller Ray Allen switched onto Bosh. Chris was able to make a tip-in for the Heat after James missed the jump shot. Bosh was able to position himself for the rebound, as the smaller Allen couldn't box out the much taller Bosh. The huge bucket gave the Heat a 95-90 lead with just 24 seconds remaining in the game. It was the biggest shot of Chris Bosh's career. When the Heat needed a play to seal the game, Bosh came up huge with a big tip-in under pressure.

 

Chris Bosh's tip-in secured a five point lead for the Heat with just 24 seconds left in overtime

Bosh, James, and Wade had 83 of their team's 98 points and no other Heat player aside from the Big Three had more than 4 points. The effectiveness of Bosh gave the Heat a viable third option to go to when Wade and James needed some help from their teammates. He was a great complement to Wade and James. Bosh came up clutch for the Heat with 5 points in the extra session and was huge in the Heat's victory to take a 3-1 series lead.

Boston Celtics-Miami Heat Game 4 First Half Reaction

Boston Celtics-Miami Heat Game 4 First Half Score: Boston Celtics 53 - Miami Heat 50 (The 103 combined points in the first half by the Celtics and Heat is 13 more points than they scored in the first half of any of the first three games of the series)

• In game 3 Chris Bosh had just 6 points and 5 rebounds on 1 of 6 shooting. After his extremely disappointing game, Bosh said, "Given all the elements that were out there last night ... they were so hyped. My emotions got the best of me early on and it kind of dictated what I was doing for the rest of the game. I was not trusting my game. The toughest thing to do in hostile environments is not just to trust your teammates but to trust yourself. Trust things you've been doing all your life. I wasn't relaxing and playing, I play better when I'm just relaxing. I have to take the emotions out and play basketball. There's a bunch of things I could've done better personally to affect the game more and get myself in rhythm. Mistakes teach you more than anything else. Last night's game was a huge teacher." However, Chris Bosh is once again struggling for the Heat in Game 4 and he looks like he still has some jitters. He is just 2 of 8 from the field and only has 5 points and 2 rebounds. 


• With Bosh struggling once again, the Heat have struggled to find a third option outside of Dwayne Wade and LeBron James. Besides Wade and James, no other Heat player has more than 5 points and the three other Heat starters have just 9 points. 


• The Heat will need to continue to be carried by James and Wade. They have combined for 34 of the Heat's 50 points. They have both been attacking the basket and getting to the free throw line, where they are a combined 11 for 11. Wade and James will be looking to get out on the fastbreak more in the second half, as the Celtics had more fastbreak points than them in the first half.


• The return of Udonis Haslem in his first game since November 20th, has not gone as plan for Erik Spoelstra. He played just 3 minutes and picked up a technical foul.


• While James and Wade had their way on one end of the floor, so did Paul Pierce on the offensive end of the floor for the Celtics. In the first half, he had 19 points on 6 of 10 from the floor and missed just 1 of 7 free throw attempts. Pierce has been attacking the rim at will and the Heat have had no answer for him so far.
• Before the game, an orthopedic surgeon said about Rondo's injury, “He’ll be pretty sore, especially when he tries to extend that elbow completely. That last 10 to 20 degrees [of extending] is going to be very sore, and that’s how you can re-dislocate. I was very impressed he came back [in game 3] in because this is not a little thing. This is a legit injury. I think if it is the routine 90 to 95 percent of normal plays in a game, I think he’s going to be fine, he’s going to be limited, but fine. But it’s that 5 percent of the time . . . if he gets clipped going to the hoop, gets his legs taken out from under him, goes down breaking a fall. If that left arm is the first arm out there, that’s where the danger is going to come. Rajon Rondo has looked pretty good despite a dislocated left elbow, which he suffered in game 3. Rondo refused to take any shot to help with the injury and is playing through the pain. He has been icing the elbow on the bench. In the first half, Rondo had 6 points and 2 assist and was all over the floor.

Flash: Heat Take Game 1 In Miami Over The Celtics As Paul Pierce Gets Ejected

NBA Playoffs Conference Semifinals Predictions

Eastern Conference Semifinals:
1. Chiacgo Bulls over 4. Atlanta Hawks in 6 games
2. Miami Heat over 3. Boston Celtics in 7 games

Western Conference Semifinals:
4. Oklahoma City Thunder over 8. Memphis Grizzlies in 6 games
2. Los Angeles Lakers over 3. Dallas Mavericks in 6 games

Celtics vs Knicks Game 2 Reaction

Injuries for the Knicks: Injuries really hurt the Knicks in game two. Chauncey Billups had a strained left knee and had to miss game two. Billup's replacement at point guard, Toney Douglas, struggled shooting during the game. He was just 5 for 16 from the floor and finished the game with 14 points. The Knicks also lost their star power forward Amar'e Stoudemire in the second quarter due to back spasms. Stoudemire said, "I could hardly move. I was trying to play through it. Once I felt that sharp pain, I couldn't take it... I felt it really get tight one me. I've never had back spasms before."

Doc Rivers does it again: Doc Rivers has pressed all the right buttons at the end of the Celtic's first two playoff games. In game 2, with his team down by 1 point with 19 seconds remaining in the game, Doc drew up a play to get KG the ball down in the post. Although Garnett had struggled up to that point in the game, only making 5 of his 15 shot attempts, Rivers thought that the 6'11 Garnett could shot over Jared Jeffries. Kevin hit a hook shot over his left shoulder to give the Celtics a one point lead with 13 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Jeffries said, "It was a tough shot. We wanted to send him middle and not give him his baseline shot, which is his bread-and-butter shot, and he made it. When he went middle, he made a tough, contested shot." Celtics coach Doc Rivers said, "KG struggled a little bit offensively, but like I said the other day with Ray, we trust all of our guys," coach Doc Rivers said. "We drew up the play and it was for Kevin or Paul. If they tried to deny the ball to Paul, I told Rondo that means that Kevin has to be open because there's only a certain amount of bodies on the floor.
"And they did try to deny Paul, which allowed us to get a deep post for Kevin. Rondo made a great cut so they couldn't double team; he was the only guy under the basket. They double-teamed and he was sitting there by himself. And we put Delonte [West] on the floor so we had more shooting. And it was a great shot for [Garnett]." Paul Pierce said about the decisive offensive play, "I think Kevin is the first option when he comes and down-screens for me. If he's open, Coach wants me to give it to him. And then, if not, that's where I get the ball up top for a pick-and-roll. The execution was key. Fortunately that was a play we drew up this morning. That's all about paying attention to the X's and O's and concentrating on executing down the stretch." 

Knicks final possession: In a possession where the Knicks needed to score, they left Jared Jeffries on the floor, who is not very skilled on the offensive side of the ball. Carmelo Anthony got the ball on the right wing with 9 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Big Baby Glen Davis once again left Jeffries, as he was constantly doing during the fourth quarter, to double team Melo. Melo gave the ball to Jeffries who was wide open under the hoop. However, instead of laying the ball up. Jeffries turned the other way to try and make a pass to Bill Walker but the ball was stolen. Jeffries said about the play, "Looking at the tape, I should have shot it. I felt like KG was coming down. I tried to dump the ball off to Bill [Walker], and KG had his hand down. So when I tried to pass the ball to Bill cutting to the rim, he got a hand on it."

Last few seconds of the game: After the madness with the Jeffries play, many people forget the let down on the other end of the floor by the Knicks. With 4.1 seconds remaining in the game, the Knicks let the Celtics kill the clock until there was only 0.6 seconds remaining in the game. Although Anthony had a spectacular game with 42 points, he had a mental lapse on the final play. Delonte West pushed off Anthony and then sprinted into the backcourt. However, Anthony didn't follow him and West was in the backcourt all alone and was able to burn nearly the entire clock. Melo said, “I couldn’t get out there, I couldn’t get out there. I don’t want to fall flat now. I think Doc Rivers drew up a hell of a play though, man. A lot of us thought that the ball was coming in the front court, he threw it in the back court, it took a lot of time off the clock. You’ve got to take your hat off to Doc for drawing up a hell of a play like that.” Mike D'Antoni said that, "He [Anthony] was tired," which is no excuse for not running after your men to foul him as quickly as possible, so you have more time for a final shot. Also, the Knicks couldn't bring their final shot up to half court because D'Antoni didn't save any timeouts. 

NBA Playoffs First Round Predictions

Eastern Conference First Round:
1. Chicago Bulls over 8. Indiana Pacers in 5 games
4. Orlando Magic over 5. Atlanta Hawks in 6 games
3. Boston Celtics over 6. New York Knicks in 6 games
2. Miami Heat over 7. Philadelphia 76ers in 5 games

Western Conference First Round:
1. San Antonio Spurs over 8. Memphis Grizzlies in 6 games
4. Oklahoma City Thunder over 5. Denver Nuggets in 7 games
6. Portland Trail Blazers over 3. Dallas Mavericks in 7 games
2. Los Angeles Lakers over 7. New Orleans Hornets in 5 games