Mike Dunleavy was FINALLY relieved of his duties as the Clippers General Manager.

Just a little over a month after stepping down as coach he was fired (6 years too late), to his surprise.
Clippers owner Donald Sterling made announced his decision through and email, and in Sterling fashion, hadn’t even spoken to Dunleavy Sr. about it. Mike found out about his firing from messages left on his phone while he was out playing golf. He didn’t know what to tell people since it was the first he had even heard of it. Pretty messed up but hey, it’s the Clipps, what do you expect??

As a coach Dunleavy has had an up and down career. He lead the Lakers to 2 straight playoff appearances (‘90-91, ‘91-92 seasons), while winning the Western Conference Championship (’90-91) and losing to the Bulls in the finals. He left the Lakers and went the Milwaukee Bucks where he has a .326 winning percentage. In ’97 he joined the Portland Trailblazers and lead them on a nice run that included one season where they finished 18 games over .500. After his stay with the Trailblazers he came to the Clippers with some hope of turning the cursed franchise around….. he had one winning season, and one playoff appearance and one win from the Western Conference Finals. He leaves the clips with a .397 winning average and the distinction of being the only coach in NBA history to have a sub .400 avg. with 2 teams that he coached 300+ games for. Congrats on that one Mike.

To his credit, he did a good job to secure cap space for the summer, and there were many injuries that went on through his time with L.A., but you can only use that excuse for so long. He wasn’t a terrible GM, but he was far from a great.
I don’t know mike, I’m sure he is a great guy, but after making so many bad calls during games (basketballs version of Andy Reid) and carrying a bad career mark along with the obvious lack of respect players tend to have for him (see: Clippers ’08-’09), I hope he doesn’t find his way onto another bench, but I’m sure he probably will. With any luck we won’t see him on t.v. either. The last thing we need is another Steve Phillips on the air.

So Mike, please, go fishing, take a vacation, travel. Do anything you want, just stay away from a basketball court or a t.v. or radio booth.

Best Team: Syracuse
The Orange really hurt themselves when they lost to Louisville on Saturday. But even that wasn’t enough to take them out of contention for the Team of the Year Oscar. Like “The Hurt Locker” the Orange haven’t been full of special effects and big name stars, but they’ve done a great job putting it together when it counts and winning when and where it matters.

Best Supporting Player: DeMarcus Cousins
Like Christoph Waltz, Cousins came into this category with a lot of hype and like Waltz he delivered. Cousins has been Cousins all season and even though he’s playing second fiddle to the enormously talented John Wall, rest assured he has been amazing this year.

Best Player: John Wall
Like Jeff Bridges, John Wall has been the favorite coming in. Also like Jeff Bridges, people can root for other guys, but when you see his performance there’s no denying who was the best this year.

Best Coach: Bruce Pearl
Kathryn Bigelow made waves as the first woman to ever win the Oscar for Best Director and Bruce Pearl is doing the same as the very first Jewish coach to win my Best Coach award. Never mind that this is the first year I’ve given the award and no one really cares what I think.

Best Small School Game: Penn over Cornell
This is sort of like Best Foreign Film because you probably didn’t see it when it happened and you probably don’t really care. But even so, this game was probably the biggest upset in Ivy League play in the past 10 years. Penn came into the game with a record of 3-15 against the perinial Ivy League title contenders. Cornell was even ranked at the time. Penn put together an amazing game and somehow came away with the victory. Penn went on to win two games after that game, but they’ll always have that fateful February 12.

Best Game Plan: Bruce Pearl – Tennessee
After having one of his best players kicked off the team and seeing some of his most talented players suspended for various legal indiscretions, Pearl laid out a great game plan that kept the Volunteers competitive this season. Even with all that Tennessee has been one of the best teams in the country this season, with victories over KU (Kansas) and UK (Kentucky).

Last year we saw the nasty nature of tennis player Serena Williams. In a semi final match of the US Open, she verbally abused a line judge for a foot fault that she felt was inappropriate. Williams later explained, “As a competitor and as someone who’s really passionate about their work, I got a little overexcited.” That outburst only cost her a fine and a slap on the wrist from the tennis federation who said that if it happens again, she “could” face a suspension.

In November of 2009, New Mexico college soccer player Elizabeth Lambert took her aggression to a new level. She was seen throughout the whole game making illegal tackles, and throwing elbows and punches to the back and face of various BYU players. But the defining moment came when she pulled her opponent’s ponytail whipping her neck around, and throwing her to the ground like a rag doll. She didn’t receive a penalty for that, but did receive a yellow card for tripping her opponent who was trying to score a goal. Where were the referees, and who was controlling this game? Lambert apologized for the incident saying, “This is in no way indicative of my character or the soccer player I am.”

Most recently, on March 3, 2010 we saw Baylor University basketball player Brittney Griner sucker punch her opponent from Texas Tech. Griner and her opponent were jockeying for position in the paint when the Texas Tech player took Griner and whipped her around, causing her to lose her balance. Griner retaliated with a knuckle sandwich, breaking the other player’s nose. The fisticuffs resulted in Griner’s ejection, and other consequences her coach may hand down. The Texas Tech player shot her free throws, left the game, but more importantly, could be out for the rest of the season.

As an athlete and soccer player myself, I have seen the various levels of both physical and verbal violence first hand. I know of what I speak. But wasn’t it bad enough when Tanya Harding took a hit out on Nancy Kerrigan? How far is it going to go? Will it eventually lead to someone getting a chunk of their ear bit off like poor Evander Holyfield? Aggression will always be a part of sport, but is it ok to passively sit on the sidelines waiting for a change? What would you stand for?

The investigation into Ben Roethlisbergers alleged sexual assault case in will likely continue throughout the week. And while we all anxiously await word from the Milledgeville Police, one thing is already painfully clear Big Ben is starting to look a big dummy and a total creep!

His current career average of hits per season is 195. Now, let’s say he plays well next season and gets his six year deal. At the end of those six years, at his pace, he would be within 144 hits of Pete Rose’s major league record of 4,256. Now, Jeter has never been the type of player to focus on his own numbers, but wouldn’t it be hard for anyone so close to such an amazing record to not go for it?

He is already a first ballot hall of famer. He already has the rings. In his storied career he truly has nothing to prove to anyone. But how could he not be tempted to go for it if he has the chance? He has to, right?

Now, I am not a Yankee fan by any means, but I can’t think of a single person that would deserve to hold that record more than Jeter. He is a great captain, plays on the biggest stage the game has to offer, and has been nothing short of brilliant. He is a great teammate and stand up person. Barring a major injury, he should definitely be able to accomplish this feat.

If he is within striking distance by the time his deal is done, I really hope he sticks around and goes for it. After all, there isn’t a better fit for the crown.

These are the five teams that, no matter where they’re seeded or who they’re playing, I wouldn’t put my money against.

5. Maryland
Two words: Greivis Vasquez. The Terps play pathetic defense, they lost to William & Mary (ALWAYS an indicator to lower expectations) and the ACC is the weakest it’s been in my lifetime. But despite all this, that fiery Venezuelan has a win-at-all-costs cockiness that makes great players into legends.

4. Syracuse
I personally believe the Orange are the best team in the tournament this year. They’re very well coached, they’re poised and they’ve got great size. Syracuse is dangerous because they’re hungry. Coach Boeheim hasn’t won a title in seven years and I think he’s the kind of coach that takes it personally. Also, the Big East so much better than every other conference in college basketball it’s almost pathetic.

3. Georgetown
The Hoyas are the best team in the country when they want to be. When they don’t want to be, they’re almost painful to watch. Watching them beat Villanova and then annihilate Duke, I really thought they were going to make a run at a number one seed. But when they fell to USF, Rutgers and Notre Dame, I let go of that thought real quick. Still, when they’re good, they’re very, very good.

2. Tennessee
The Vols have beaten everyone worth beating this year and they’ve done it every way you can possibly imagine. They’ve won short-handed, they’ve won as the favorite, they’ve won on the road, they’ve won by beating the other team inside and by killing teams with the three. This team is short on talent, but big on heart and they’re very well coached. Most importantly, they play with the confidence that they can beat anyone.

1. Kentucky
This is hands-down the most athletic team in the nation. If they didn’t all play together, I think the combination of Wall-Cousins-Patterson could legitimately go 1-2-3 in the NBA draft. They’re that good. The most dangerous thing about Kentucky is that they haven’t put together a full game yet. Every competitive game they’ve been in this year, they played down to the competition until crunch time, then turned it on. In terms of sheer athleticism, no one can touch this team. It’s just a matter of whether they’ll be able to turn it on when it counts.

This year, though, things are a little different. No, the drills are still all the same, as is the meat-market atmosphere. What’s different is the presence of a certain prospect that goes by the name of Tim Tebow. As you can imagine, the hype surrounding this combine is off the charts. Everywhere you look, it’s Tim Tebow. Sure, he may be saving his new and improved throwing mechanics for his pro day later in the month, but he’s doing just about everything else you could want…

Including the Three Cone Drill. What’s that, you may ask? Well, the Three Cone Drill is a simple event where the participant runs a quick slalom back and forth between and around three different cones, about five yards apart. And Tebow ran one with a very good time… though I doubt he would say it was good. That’s because his time for the Three Cone Drill was… get ready for it… 6.66 second!

Get it? The NFL’s future Captain of the God Squad ran a 666!

It just doesn’t get better that that!

The NFL is finally considering a change to their long outdated overtime rules. The news is music to many football fans ears except when you dig a little deeper.

The competition committee is suggesting overtime be changed only for playoff games okay, so far, so good and that both teams get at least one offensive possession all right, even better unless the first team scores a touchdown. Then its game over.

Ridiculous, right? Both teams need at least one offensive possession, regardless of what the first team does. Anything short of that is simply unfair. But the NFL is concerned about other things much more than they are fairness. Like $$$.

I guess we all knew how this one was going to end even before it began with Canada winning the Gold Medal in Hockey. But damn, it was a great game! And once the US tied it up with 24 seconds left in regulation, I honestly thought we were going to steal it away. But Sidney Crosby made sure that wasnt going to happen not on his watch, anyway.

Entering the last year of his current contract, New England Patriots star wide receiver Randy Moss said at a charity softball event that the upcoming season would be his last in New England. He said he would be playing elsewhere in 2011 due to the economics of the game and the track record of the Patriots with veteran players.

Now I dont know about you, but to me, thats one of the stupidest things Ive ever heard unless his intent was to ruffle managements feathers so he would get released and play elsewhere in 2010??? Then again, with Wes Welkers status after knee surgery still up in the air, I dont think the Pats are interested in letting Moss go anytime soon.