There’s a lot going on in the world of sports these days, so let’s get right to it:
The News: The #2 Boston Celtics defeated the #7 Milwaukee Bucks 113-107 in an overtime thriller. With the win, the C’s take an early 1-0 series lead and prepare to play Game 2 on Tuesday night.
My Take: It looked like the Celtics were going to roll early on, but the Bucks came storming back in the second quarter, outscoring the C’s 30-15. We all knew going in that the Celtics needed their young guys to step up big, as they have the entire season, and boy did they deliver--Tatum, Brown, and Rozier combined for 62 points. While it’s incredibly unfortunate that the likes of Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward are not present to compete with this Celtics squad, it’s undeniable that these young guys are getting priceless playoff experience while they’re forced to play leadership roles in crunch time. The Bucks are pretty much exactly what we thought they were: a fairly average team that can stay in it if The Greek Freak is rolling. The ending to this game was absolutely unreal; Terry Rozier’s triple with .5 seconds left silenced any of the remaining doubters of his talent. Big-time players make big-time plays, and I think it’s fair to say that Rozier is a confirmed big-time player. My original pick was Celtics in 5, and while I could see the Bucks pushing it to 6, I think the C’s still take it in 5.
The News: Pacers absolutely demolish Cavs in Cleveland by a score of 98-80.
My Take: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Oh my, this is fantastic. Sad LeBron James running off the court early like a little baby as the Cavs get embarrassed at home by the Pacers is one of the greatest things I have ever seen. It doesn’t get much better than that. I still don’t think the Cavs are gonna get bounced in the first round (read Tucker’s take on this issue), but this could be a more exciting series than what was anticipated, especially if Victor Oladipo continues to blossom into a dominant player.
The News: Adam Schefter reported today that Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski “will not attend the start of New England’s off-season program Monday” and that he is still considering whether or not he will return to play again in 2018.
My Take: This is getting to be absolutely exhausting. I’m just so tired of talking about this Gronk saga; one wonders how much time Mr. Gronkowski is planning to take before he makes a decision. He really is holding the team hostage--how are the Patriots supposed to plan for this offseason, specifically the draft, if they don’t even know whether or not their star tight end is coming back? As I’ve said many a time, I think Gronk is coming back for this season, and if that’s true, the Patriots should deal him at the first possible opportunity. This instability and lack of commitment from Gronk is completely ridiculous.
The News: Dez Bryant has followed a bunch of Texans players on Instagram.
My Take: Well, this could simply be nothing, but it also could be something, and the latter is more fun to talk about, so we’ll go with that. The Texans would be an interesting fit. Alongside Hopkins with DeShaun Watson back healthy and the great Lamar Miller still there, the Texans would be an offensive powerhouse. Personally, I think the best fit for Dez is in WR-needy San Francisco, where he’ll be able to play with Jimmy Garoppolo.
The News: Saquon Barkley on the Giants radar at #2 overall.
My Take: Taking Barkley would certainly be an interesting move on the Giants’ part. I’ve advocated for the Browns taking him #1 overall, though that is because the Browns can just draft their potential franchise QB at #4, while the Giants obviously can’t. I strongly endorse Barkley as a prospect, but I’m not sure he’s the right guy for a New York team that seems to be focused on building for the long term. It seems like they should be drafting Eli’s successor at #2, but with that said, it’s definitely possible that the trio of Eli, Barkley, and Odell could make the Giants a playoff team. The question for New York is this: Do you want to rebuild for the future or put together a potential playoff team now?
(Stats via ESPN)
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