Crawford Picks the Blazers

Free agent shooting guard Jamal Crawford has decided to sign a two-year, $10 million deal with the Portland Trail Blazers, sources said. Crawford will have a player option for his second year.

Crawford decided to chose Portland over Sacramento and New York. Sacramento was offering a two-year deal worth $6.5 million per season, and New York, which offered $5 million over two years, sources said.

Crawford fills a big void in the Blazers roster since Brandon Roy decided to retire due to chronic knee problems. Crawford has been a 6th man for the majority of his career and has been one of the best. He brings a scoring punch that will really help take pressure off of Lamarcus Aldridge. With this signing I think Portland can be the fourth best team in the Western Conference after the Mavs, Lakers, and Thunder.

Underdogs That Can Make a Postseason Run

Last season will ultimately be remembered as the year the Heat lured LeBron and Bosh to join up with Wade in South Beach. However, it was the Dallas Mavericks who stole their glory winning the NBA championship. So who are some teams that most will discount but still have a legitimate shot at a title run?

The Mavericks put together an impressive regular season finishing 3rd in the West, but almost nobody picked them to reach the Finals, let alone win. Most analysts went with the sexy picks, the Lakers and Heat; some even felt the MVP-lead Bulls had a chance, all while the Mavs were sailing under the radar. Looking back it was pretty naïve to not count the Mavs as contenders, but their perennial playoff failures had become their MO and scared most away from picking them. Let’s take a look at some teams that could make a deep run and possibly win a title with a few roster tweaks.  Continue reading

Mike Woodson Joins Knicks Staff

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Former Atlanta Hawks coach, Mike Woodson, has accepted an offer to join Mike D’Antoni’s staff in New York. Some have reported that he would be the “defensive coordinator” but both Woodson and D’Antoni have been quick to dismiss that notion.  Continue reading