WAY Back Sports Presents: Your 2008-2009 NBA Preview

This is the beauty of sports. Just when one league is ending its season, another one is just to begin. As we wave good-bye to baseball for the winter, basketball is getting ready to tip off. The Boston Celtics look to defend their 17th championship and the Lakers will try to preserve their Western Conference title. Who has a chance to reach the promise land? Here is the breakdown: The WAY Back Sports NBA Preview.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

1) Boston Celtics. James Poesy may be gone, but does it really matter if the Big Three are still there? Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins both have another year under them, making the C's the team to beat in the east.

2) Detroit Pistons. Yes, they are getting older, but the talent level is still high with Chauncy Billups and Rip Hamilton. Youngsters Jason Maxielle and Rodney Stuckey both grew up a lot in the playoffs too.

3) Philadelphia 76ers. There is reason for Philly fans to get excited over the basketball team again. This is the best they've been since the departure of A.I., bringing in Elton Brand in the off-season. Andre Miller is an underrated PG, and the other A.I., Andre Iguodala is a threat.

4) Orlando Magic. As long as Dwight Howard keeps playing like Superman (and he will), the Magic will be in the mix. Rashard Lewis needs to be more consistent, and Jameer Nelson will need to prove that he can run the point.

5) Cleavland Cavilers. Two Words....LeBron James.

6) Atlanta Hawks. They almost shocked the Celtics. Almost. Though Josh Childress is gone, Josh Smith is an awesome scorer and Joe Johnson provides leadership along side Mike Bibby.

7) Toronto Raptors. The Raptors are revamped after bringing in Jermaine O'Neal this offseason. Jose Calderon will surprise people with his play, and an O'Neal-Chris Bosh frontcourt is scary.

8) Miami Heat. Dwayne Wade+Shawn Marion+Michale Beasley=a solid three-headed monster on South Beach

The Rest

9) Chicago Bulls. Home-town hero Derek Rose will revive basketball in Chicago.

10) Washington Wizards. They could jump up to top 8, depending on when Gilbert Arenas gets back.

11) Milwaukee Bucks. There's talent, but all on offense.

12) Charlotte Bobcats. How much longer will the excuse of "they're young" last? Lets see what Larry Brown can do with them.

13) Indiana Pacers. What did Larry Bird do to this team?

14) New York Knicks. Mike D'Antoni has his work cut out for him cleaning up after Isaiah.

15) New Jersey Nets. How long 'till LeBron comes? They cleared out the cap space for him.


WESTERN CONFERENCE

1) Los Angeles Lakers. Andrew Bynum is healthy again, so it will be fun to see what he can do with Pau. Oh yeah, they have Kobe too.

2) New Orleans Hornets. Chris Paul might be the best PG in the league. Add Posey in off the bench, combined with a very hungry team and you've got yourself a contender.

3) Houston Rockets. Ah, the double edge sword of Ron Artest. If he keeps his cool on the court, he, Tracy McGrady, and Yao will be blasting off.

4) Utah Jazz. Know why Chris Paul MIGHT be the best PG in the league? Deron Williams of the Jazz. Carlos Boozer will bang down low and Andrei Kirilenko will be an inside/outside threat.

5) San Antonio Spurs. The old stand byes are still here, and with Tony Parker and Tim Duncan healthy, they will be. They will need to wait a while to get Manu back after surgery in the offseason.

6) Phoenix Suns. Steve Nash is still Steve Nash, and Shaq is there to teach Amare' Stoudemire how to play in the post. The question will be if they can still run and gun.

7) Dallas Mavericks. Will this just be a team that looks good on paper, or will they produce on the court? But it's hard to count out a team with Dirk and Jason Kidd.

8) Portland Trail Blazers. A LeMarcus Aldridge-Greg Oden frontcourt along with Brandon Roy in the backcourt will get this team a playoff birth.

The Rest

9) Denver Nuggets. The best paper team money can buy. They'll produce on the court, but A.I. and Carmello Anthony will just miss the promise land this year.

10) Los Angeles Clippers. WWBD=What Will Baron Do? This may be one of those 50 win teams that doesn't get in the playoffs.

11) Golden State Warriors. Monta Ellis is the the goat in Golden State after an offseason mo-ped crash. Free agent Corey Maggette will need to provide the scoring for the Warriors this season.

12) Minnesota Timberwolves. Al Jefferson will need to put this team on his back for them not to slip further down in the west. He'll shoulder some of the load, but not much more.

13) Memphis Grizzlies. O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay are bright spots on a dark team. When Darko is starting, you need bright spots.

14) Sacramento Kings. Name one player on the Kings. It's not that easy.

15) Oklahoma City Thunder. Good luck, Kevin Durant.


Welcome back NBA!

All But Over?

For the first time in twenty-eight seasons the Philadelphia Phillies will become World Champions tonight. After beating the Tampa Bay Rays in game four for the 2008 World Series last night, it seems like an almost certainty that the streets of Philadelphia will be filled with maniac fans who have had nothing to celebrate of this magnitude in 20+ years.

Wait, they have another game to play, right? So why are we handing the Championship over to the Phillies with games left to play? Its not over it its over, right? Wrong. Anyone who saw last night's game will agree, this series is over.

The Philly bats overwhelmed Tampa pitching to the tune of 10-2 in game four. Even starting pitcher Joe Blanton got in on the offense last night chipping in with a solo homer to go along with his 6 solid innings of work on the mound. You know things are going bad then the opposing pitcher it taking you yard. More bad news for the Rays: Phillies' slugger Ryan Howard looks as locked in at the plate as he has all season, as he demonstrated by hitting two homeruns in the game, one to each side of the park. Any baseball "expert" would tell you that when a powerhitter like Howard is locked in they will hit with power to all fields. A locked in Ryan Howard spells doom for the Ray.

Game five brings us a rematch of game one starters as Cole Hamels will try to close out the Phillies' second Series title on Monday night against Scott Kazmir. Hamels (4-0) is trying to become the first pitcher to win five postseason starts in one year. Josh Beckett won four last year with the Boston Red Sox.

Even more good news is that Hamels loves the spot light. He has been known as a big game pitcher in his short time in the big leagues. They certainly get no bigger than game 5 of the World Series at home with a chance to bring a championship to a city that has not seen one is twenty years.

"Cole looks for these moments. I call him Hollywood, because when the lights are on, that's when he's at his best, and tomorrow night the lights will definitely be on," said Phillies short-stop Jimmy Rollins.

The World has been counting out the Rays all season, and all season they have somehow stepped it up to another level and proved us all wrong. 42 times in World Series history a team has held a 3-1 advantage. Of those 42 instances, 6 times a team has come back to win the series, prove that it is not impossible, however is unlikely.

This series is over. The Phillies will not lose at home; Cole Hamels will not let that happen. Tampa has had a story book season, unfortunately for them, this story does not have a happy ending.

Tampa Strikes Back in Game Two

The Tampa Bay Rays did on Thursday what few have been able to do against the Phillies all season: shut down a high powered offense and play a little small ball en route to victory.

James Shields struck out four in six shutout innings giving the Rays the solid pitching outing they were missing in game one as Tampa even the series to one game a piece. Rare for both teams was the lack of the long ball as both teams were held homer-less in this game. Instead it was the small ball, moving runners along and sacrificing to score runs, that got the job done in game two.

One major problem for Philadelphia has been their lack of timely hitting thus far in the World Series. After Thursday's performance the Phillies are batting 1 for 28 with runners in scoring position over the first two games. Proof that they are not struggling to get runners on base, they simply cannot get them home.

"That might be one of our sloppiest games all year," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "I'm concerned about us hitting with guys on base, because it looks like at times we might be trying a little too hard. But we can fix that."

Heading back to Philly it will be interesting to see which teams show up; the high scoring offenses or the the low scoring games that we have seen so far. Either way it is bound to be an exciting finish to the 2008 World Series.

Coaching Legand Calls It Quits

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- Arizona had won one conference title in the 29 seasons before Lute Olson arrived from Iowa in 1983.

It didn't take long for Olson to build a powerhouse in the desert. The 74-year-old Olson, who announced his retirement on Thursday, went 589-187 in 24 seasons at Arizona and led the Wildcats to the 1997 national championship and four Final Fours, most recently in 2001.

His program turned into an assembly line of NBA talent, producing 13 first-round draft picks, including Sean Elliott, Mike Bibby and Richard Jefferson.

"Lute Olson transformed the UA and Tucson into premier basketball country," university president Robert N. Shelton said in a statement. "Arizona now stands in the company of great college basketball programs, and we have Lute to thank for that. We will sorely miss his brilliance as our head coach, but we will benefit from the legacy he leaves for decades to come."

It is rare in sports to see one individual transform an organization from a league doormat to a perennial championship contender. Arizona is one of a handful of schools that can call themselves a NCAA basketball powerhouse; all that credit belongs to Lute Olson. His 589 wins speak for them self. Arizona now has some huge shoes to fill. College basketball will miss a coaching talent like Olson.

Phillies Take Game 1

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Tampa Bay Rays certainly is not a match-up that you would expect to see in a World Series, but the two team have impressed thus far in postseason and met last night in Tampa for game one of the World Series.

The appearance for Tampa is the first in franchise history. A first in a year of first for the organization. This season marked the first with a winning record, the first division title, the first playoff appearance, and first playoff series win in both the ALCS and ALCS.

The Phillies last made a World Series appearance in 1993 losing to the Toronto Blue Jays on Joe Carter's memorable walk off homerun to win the series. The last time Philadelphia won the World Series was back in 1980.

As for the game...

Cole Hamels went seven innings allowing just two runs en route to picking up his fourth win of the playoffs. Hamels playoff line now stands at 4-0 with a 1.55 ERA this postseason. It was not his strongest outing of the playoffs, but he was effective cooling off the hot bats of BJ Upton and Evan Longoria, both of whom have been tearing the cover off the ball as of late. The heart of the Rays' lineup (Upton, Longoria, and Carlos Pena) went a combine 0 for 12 in the game.

Hamels counterpart, Scott Kazmir, who was selected two spots ahead of Hamels in the 2002 draft, struggled with his control for much of the game. Kazmir gave up a Chase Utley homer in the first inning putting Tampa in a 0-2 hole.

The first game of a series is a big one. It sets the tone for things to come and can get momentum swinging in your direction if you come away victorious. The Phillies were able to do that in game one. We will see how it plays out going forward.

''It's huge,'' Phillies closer Brad Lidge said. ''You try and downplay it, but obviously you're coming into a place like this, you want to make sure you get the first game, especially because you got your ace on the mound. It's really important to do that.''

2008 AL Champions: The Tampa Bay Rays

There was a lot of doubt about Tampa Bay going in to the playoffs.

"They're too young".
"They're going to fade".
"They don't have any experience".

Tampa Bay knows how to change minds.

The Rays knocked off the defending World Champion Boston Red Sox Sunday night to capture the title of AL Champions. Matt Garza was lights out for Tampa, going 7 strong, only giving up two hits, one being a home run by Boston's Dustin Pedroia in the first inning. Tampa struck back in the 4th, when rookie 3B Evan Longoria hit a double that scored Carlos Pena. They followed it up in the 5th when Rocco Baldelli singled to left, which scored Willy Aybar. Aybar also put the final nail in the Sox coffin with a solo shot in the 7th.

Rookie David Price, Tampa's first overall pick in the 2008 draft came on with two outs in the 8th and came back in for the 9th, holding the Red Sox hitless.

Congratulations to Tampa Bay, they played a great series. They didn't get scared when Boston took games 5 and 6; rather they were calm in the pressure. They take on the Phillies in game 1 of the World Series on Wednesday night.

Saturday Spotlight

It's very easy to forget about college football while the NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA preseason are all going on. But with the Red Sox and Rays not playing until 8:37, you need something to watch, and these college football games are there to fill the void. Here are the big matchups on campus this weekend.

#10 Georgia vs #22 Vanderbilt
Georgia has gone through a rough patch lately, but they can't afford to keep their heads down against an extremely surprising Vanderbilt team. As we've seen before, anything can happen in the SEC, but because Georgia is at home, I see them getting the win.

#12 Ohio State at #20 Michigan State
Terrelle Pryor gets a giant road test against a very good Michigan State team this weekend. The match-up to watch will be MSU 1,000 yard running back Javon Ringer against LB James Laurnitis. Whoever wins that battle will win this game, and I'm taking Michigan State at home.

#4 Oklahoma vs #16 Kansas
OU will try to rebound after their first loss of the season against Kansas. Both teams have great passing attacks, lead by Sam Bradford of the Sooners and Todd Reesing of the Jayhawks. This looks to game that will be decided by the defensive backs, so I'll take the Boomer Sooners.

#2 Alabama vs Ole Miss
As said before, anything can happen in the SEC. Ole Miss knocked off Flordia a few weeks ago, and look to do the same thing to the Tide. History is on 'Bama's side, as they've won the past four games against Ole Miss. It will turn in to 5 straight wins this weekend.

#17 Virgina Tech at Boston College
The ACC is still up in the air as BC and VT replay last years conference championship game. BC has been solid at home against ranked teams recently, winning their last 3 in a row. Don't expect many points in this game, it's going to be a defensive battle. I would not be supurised if it came down to the kicking game, and Tech has great special teams. I'll take VT on the road, but not by much.

#1 Texas vs #11 Missouri
This game features two amazing quarterbacks, Colt McCoy of Texas and Chase Daniel of Mizzou. Texas is the new #1 after beating Oklahoma in the red river shootout, and Missouri is looking to rebound after a loss to Oklahoma State last weekend. Both teams can put up a massive amount of points, so it will be up to each defense to try to get the win. I think Texas has a better D, and with home field advantge, they get the victory.

Enjoy the games!

Sox Stun Rays

Game five started just as the previous three had; a Boston starter got roughed up early and the Rays appeared to be cursing to their first World Series birth in franchise history. But just when things looked over the Rad Sox said not so fast...

Down seven runs going to the bottom of the seventh the Sox roared back led by a three run homer by playoff legend David Ortiz and some timely hitting from JD Drew. The Rays bullpen, which had been so strong throughout the playoff thus far, just could not get the job done tonight.

Going to the bottom of the ninth tied an error by probable rookie of the year Evan Longoria allowed Kevin Youkilis to advance to second base. Jason Bay was then intentionally walked setting up a lefty-lefty match up between Rays reliever J.P Howell and Sox batter JD Drew. After falling behind 3-0 Howell was able to battle back but Drew lined a 3-2 pitch down the right field line scoring Youkilis from second for the walk off win.

Once again this just goes to show you that you can ever count out the Boston Red Sox. A year ago they came back from a 3-1 deficit to the Cleveland Indians to win the series. The win tonight gives them a chance to duplicate that feat. It certainly will be no easy task, but Boston does have favorable pitching match ups heading back to Tampa. It is expected that Josh Beckett will get a chance to redeem himself in game six facing off against James Shields. Should it get to a game seven it will be Jon Lester for Boston likely against Matt Garza.

Chiefs Suspend Johnson

The Kansas City Chiefs have suspended starting running back Larry Johnson for this Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. Chiefs coach Herm Edwards refused to go into detail, but did say that the suspension is due to a violation of team rules.

The loss of Johnson against the NFL's lone undefeated team does not bode well for Kansas City. Their offense has struggled to put points on the board thus far this season getting off to a 1-4 start.

Philly World Series Bound

The Philadelphia Phillies are the first to punch their tickets to the world series as they defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers Wednesday night 5-1 to take the series four games to one. The win marks the first time since 1993 that the Phillies have advanced to the World Series; they have not won it since 1980.

Led by another dominating performance on the mound from Cole Hamels, the Phillies had the win locked up early. Hamels pitched seven strong innings giving up just a Manny Ramirez homer in the sixth while striking out five. Jimmy Rollins also homered in a winning effort for the Phillies.

Following the game Hamels was named NLCS MVP. He finished the series 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA while striking out 13 batters in 14 innings of work.

Philadelphia awaits the winner of the Tampa Bay-Boston series, a series led by the Rays 3-1 going into tonight's game.