Tuesday, July 10, 2012

FREE TO TRAVEL

When you come to the NBA you sign a contract, and that contract you sign will eventually come to an end. And at the end of that contract, the team that you were on has a the option to try to resign you or let you go to another team; depending on how you contributed in the first 3 or 4 years of your career. With that said, the free agency games of 2012 have begun.

There has already been big names moving to a different team and some have resigned to remain with their current team. Here is a list of the top players and the teams they have committed to and other free agents that have yet to sign with a team:



  • Kevin Garnett- Boston Celtics (The Celtics made KG their main target this off season to give themselves another push at winning another title.)

  • Jason Terry- Boston Celtics (Terry who many thought would go to Miami, did the exact opposite and went to Boston.With the C's losing Allen to Miami, Jason will play the same role Ray Allen did, spot up and shoot.)


  • Ray Allen- Miami Heat- (The Heat made it clear during the season that Ray Allen would be their priority come this off season, and he has agreed to take his talents to South Beach.)

  • Deron Williams- Brooklyn Nets (This was one of those bitter sweet deals, D.Will had to choose to either go to his hometown of Dallas and play or stay with the Nets as they transitioned to Brooklyn.)

  • Steve Nash- LA Lakers (This was maybe the biggest surprise so far, seeing that the Lakers were not even a team on his list. Kobe now gets a true point guard)

  • Roy Hibbert- Indiana Pacers (The All Star free agent was a restricted free agent and was offered a max contract by the Portland Trailblazers of $58 million for 4 years. The Pacers will match that offer and Roy will remain a Pacer. That would've been a huge blow for them if he were to leave.)

  • Jamal Crawford- Los Angeles Clippers (Jamal Crawford is one the most exciting players in the league to watch. This is a great pick up for the Clips, especially with Nick Young headed to Philly)

  • Eric Gordon- Phoenix Suns (Eric Gordon likes the Suns, and after the Hornets drafted Austin Rivers in the draft he felt the Hornets were moving in a different direction.)

  • Gerald Wallace- Brooklyn Nets (The Nets traded their first round pick last year to Portland for Wallace. They have signed him to a 4 year $40 million deal.)

  • Nicolas Batum- Minnesota Timberwolves (The T'Wolves have agreed with Batum on a 4 year $45 million deal. He was a restricted free agent with Portland, and will be a great wing player for Minnesota.)

  • Brandon Roy- Minnesota Timberwolves (B.Roy has come out of his brief retirement. The T'Wolves will sign him to a 2 year $10 million deal. This could be a high risk for them. But, if Roy is healthy...this is a great signing.)
This is just the beginning. To keep track with all the free agent frenzy, you know where to stop at.

DETROIT'S PRINCE

Major League Baseball has reached the All Star break, which means the leagues best will be on display for the next few days. The most entertaining thing about the whole weekend took place last night. The State Farm Home Run Derby.


In this event, you will see a power display from the leagues best hitters. In this years home run derby the contestants were:

National League:
Carlos Beltran- St. Louis Cardinals
Carlos Gonzalez- Colorado Rockies
Andrew McCutchen- Pittsburgh Pirates
Matt Kemp- LA Dodgers

American League
Jose Bautista- Toronto Blue Jays
Mark Trumbo- Los Angeles Angels
Prince Fielder- Detroit Tigers
Robinson Cano- New York Yankees




Now, my pick coming into this was Prince Fielder. I had two reasons; 1. because he's won before and 2. he plays for the Tigers. I didn't think i needed any other reason. Sounds pretty legit to me. Although Robinson Cano put on show last year, I didn't think he would be able to do the same thing this year. In the first round, Jose Bautista hit 11 home runs, the most of any hitters in that round. Prince hit 5 and all i could do was simply hope Robinson hit 4 so he could sneak into the 2nd round. Prince didn't even have to sneak in. After the defending champion hit 0 home runs. YES, I said 0. The fans in Kansas City cheered every time Cano got an out. Ive never seen anything like that before in my life.



In the 2nd round, Prince caught fire. He hit 11 home runs and about 4 of those landed in the pool at the stadium. The farthest home run he hit traveled 476 feet. He did that twice. I was just sitting there watching, and all i could say was my goodness. The ball just jumped off the bat. The big fella has some serious bat speed. He would move on to the final round against Bautista where he just salivated at the plate. He hit 12 home runs in the final round to win his 2nd home run derby in the last 3 years.


The All Star game is tonight, where Prince Fielder and Justin Verlander will represent Detroit as starters in the American League.

Time Off

Like most athletes, when the season comes to an end the need a little "R &R." Well, im no different, after the shortened season and the intense playoffs, I took sometime to myself. In my time of relaxing, I starting blogging for prosportsblogging.com for the Chicago Bulls. So, if youre a Bulls fan you can check that out and let me know what you think.



Now, its time to get back to work. Ill get you up to date with all the free agent signings and trades going on in the league. And if thats not enough, ill be talking about the upcoming Olympics...off season injuries, and NBA Summer League. Keep it locked in right here to the best sports blog.