-The Chicago Blackhawks came out of free agent gates swinging hard. The Hawks and GM Dale Tallon inked D Brian Campbell and G Christobal Huet. Tallon, in one day went a long way to shoring up a defense that was not good enough to get the young Hawks into playoffs last year. They should make it in the strong Western Conference this coming season. Chicago might finally have a good hockey team again. The signing of Huet makes Nikolai Khabibulin expendable, though his massive 6.75 million dollar contract might be hard to move.
-Jaromir Jagr is balking at the Rangers one-year deal, entertaining offers from Pittsburgh (where he won two Stanley Cups), and Omsk in Russia, who are reportedly offering a massive 3 year deal. In the end, I say he stays in the NHL, and plays for Pittsburgh. I am not sure its a great fit for him. I don't know if there is a good fit for Jagr, he's such a selfish player. New York is making it very clear he is not as important to the club as either Scott Gomez or Chris Drury. So, he's probably out of the mix there.
-Marian Hossa. Does anyone really know? I read today that Edmonton might grossly overpay to bring him there, higher than the 8 million that seemingly every team under the sun is offering him. Even teams that don't really have 8 million a year to offer seem to be in the mix. Funny considering its a hard cap in the NHL.
-Baron Davis opted out of a 17 million dollar deal from Golden State. Clearly Davis and coach Don Nelson have reached a crossroads. Davis is able to walk, Nelson is trapped, forced to clean up his own mess. To add to the fun, Nelson was quoted on Monday saying that Davis told him "a couple of days ago" that he would be back with Golden State.
-The Warriors have moved quickly to try and fill Davis' spot, offering a maximum deal to Gilbert Arenas. Arenas also has a similar deal on the table from the Wizards, who recently inked Antwain Jamison for 5 years at 50 million. The Wizards have done nothing in the playoffs with this core, but they seem prepared to spend 150 million dollars to keep the core together. Doesn't make a ton of sense. Every team should make moves to win championships, not just playoff berths. So, after 150 million dollars spent, Washington can't play defense, and can't beat Cleveland in the post-season.
-The Knicks have made a two year offer to Chris Duhon, who has long been rumored to be a favorite of Mike D'Antoni. He's a nice backup, but he does nothing to shore up the point guard situation. Steve Nash still isn't walking through that door for the Knicks. Without an elite point guard, D'Antoni's offense ain't running.
-Everyone knew the Celtics would make a contract offer to James Posey. So, when that came down today, I wasn't surprised. But, apparently the Celtics also extended an offer, probably for the full mid-level exception, to Corey Maggette. A very surprising move. I do not see how the Celtics sign both players, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out. I would rather have Posey back, but Maggette is a great shooter, an intriguing add to the mix. Ray Allen could start to look old any game, and Maggette would be a big guy to have there. Remember: He finished the playoffs strong, but that stretch in the Cleveland series was ghastly, and since he's not getting any younger, it might be time to bring in reinforcements. Celtics GM Danny Ainge might just think getting a player like Maggette at the Mid-Level too good a deal to pass up.
-Remember, live blog for the Sox-Rays tomorrow night... The Sox still winless for the season at Tropicana... The home team has win every game in this series this season.
Miscellaneous Video of the Day:
Stephen A. Smith Heckled at the 2007 Draft
There is a whole series of these videos. The description says it all...
Old School Rap Video of the Day:
Mobb Deep- Survival of the Fittest
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