TheSportsPACK

(nba.com) 1. Russell Westbrook Oklahoma City Thunder (30.9 ppg 9.0 rpg 9.4 apg) Best all around player in the NBA. Leads NBA in double-doubles. 2. Stephen Curry Golden State Warriors (26.9 ppg 5.9 apg 1.1 spg) Broke record for most 3 pointers made in a game this week. Has taken a step back for Durant but still an explosive scorer. 3. James Harden Houston Rockets (30.6 ppg 13.0 apg 7.8 rpg) Smooth transition from SG to PG. Leads League in assist. 4. Damian Lillard Portland Trail Blazers (30.6 ppg 4.7 rpg 4.5 apg) Scored 30+ points in 6 of his team's first 10 games. 5. Kyrie Irving Cleveland Cavaliers (24.5 ppg 4.3 apg 3.5 rpg) Lead Cavs in scoring 5 out of the team's 8 games. (raptorsrepublic.com) 6. Kemba Walker Charlotte Hornets (25.9 ppg 5.6 apg 4.0 rpg) Leading the Hornets to their best start since the '01-'02 season 7. Chris Paul Los Angeles Clippers (19.0 ppg 8.6 apg 5.8 rpg) Has 3 double-digit rebounding games this

(vibe.com) Stephen A. Smith is completely wrong for his comments towards San Fransisco quarterback Colin  Kaepernick. My goodness. This man does not like any of the candidates; so you criticize him for not contributing to people he doesn't believe in? You say you don't want to hear his voice? You hope he goes away? He doesn't deserve to be in the NFL? He's not a hypocrite Stephen A., you're a damn coon that's trying to play the fence. In America, we realize the challenges African-Americans face come from years of being oppressed. In which most African Americans still are. These two candidates in Kaepernick eyes wasn't fit to be voted for so he withheld it, which he has the RIGHT TO DO!! So let me ask you this Stephen A Smith,who's really in the wrong. Kaepernick for withholding his vote or you  for coming on National TV in front of millions of viewers and bashing this brother like this. This brother has been put in every position to fail

Kevin Durant leads the Warriors in points, steals and blocks (bleacherreport.com) Kevin Durant leaving OKC was a huge disappoint to me. As a fan of small market teams, seeing Durand and Russell Westbrook having success in the NBA was refreshing to watch. With LeBron "allegedly" creating superteams, OKC has primarily built their team off of draft picks. In 3 consecutive years the Thunder drafted Durant, Westbrook and Houston Rockets point guard James Harden and in 2012 lost to the Miami Heat in 5 games. Questionable roster moves followed including trading James Harden to the Rockets for Kevin Martin and others; to clear cap space to keep rim protector Serge Ibaka. With season-lingering injuries to Kevin and Russell, the Thunder's window to win a championship were steadily declining The Oklahoma City front office received mostly negative criticism after the firing of coach Scott Brooks. Brooks who lead the Thunder to the playoffs each of his first 5 season was let

 Demitry Johnson Curry scores 23 points in the 3rd quarter Tuesday night (youtube.com) Somewhere between Game 7 of last year's NBA Finals and last night's game between Portland and Golden State it seemed the league forget about "The Assassin" also known as Steph Curry. Early season MVP candidates include Lebron, Westbrook, Lillard, Anthony Davis, even Kawhi Leonard but no Steph. With Kevin Durant joining the Warriors it will make it almost impossible for him to win the award but not mentioning him has to be a slap in the face to the only unanimous MVP in league history. In the 1st half of last night game Curry scored a total of 5 points while Damian Lillard filled it up with 22. Not going lie; I was one quick to judge that Lillard may have surpassed Steph but in a blink of an eye this assassin came out and killed all doubt. 23 points in the 3rd and we seen Steph get into one of those zones where he can shoot from the parking lot and we are surprised i

Demitry Johnson Nick Saban coached LSU from 2000-2004 No folks I'm not talking about none of his ex-girlfriends. I'm talking about his ex team the LSU Tigers. A lot of fans and boosters still to this day hold a grudge against Nick Saban; not only because he left them but how well he's doing without them. It's like that ex-girlfriend who says "that should be me" or who hate to see you doing better without them. Nick Saban success at Alabama is making LSU very salty and I believe secretly wishing he would come back. LSU is so focused on what their ex is doing that they never fully appreciated just how good of a coach they had in Les Miles. And until they turn their attention off Nick Saban and really appreciate the coach whoever it may be in the future, that relationship will never last. The Tigers and Tide square off this Saturday in Death Valley with both teams coming off a bye week. LSU seem to have found new life since the firing of Les M

25.Houston   24.Washington state   23.W.Michigan 22.Boise State   21.North Carolina   20.Utah   19.Va Tech   18. Colorado   17.Florida State   16.Penn State   15.West Virginia   14.Baylor 13.LSU 12.Oklahoma 11.Auburn 10.Nebraska 9.Wisconsin 8.Ohio State 7.Florida   6.Louisville- Lamar Jackson has been absolutely sensational this year and definitely the favorite for the Heisman Trophy at this point. Louisville has look very suspect at times this year, especially against Duke and Virginia. In order to be among the elite teams you have to take care of lesser competition, in fashion. 5.Texas A&M- I believe they are good really good. Unfortunately they had to play Alabama and to their credit led 14-13 in the second half. Alabama scored the next 20 to bury them, but if Kevin Sumlin wants a shot at the National title all he has to do is win out in my opinion. 4.Clemson- Yes they are undefeated but I think this tea

Cleveland Cavaliers 94 vs Toronto Raptors 91 - Kyrie Irving led the way for the Cavaliers with 26 points 6 assist and 6 rebounds. Kevin Love records is 2nd double-double in as many game with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Kyrie as earned more offensive responsibility after his performance in the 2016 NBA Finals. Irving is an elite scorer so LeBron doesn't have to work as hard on offense as he has had to in previous seasons. Cleveland had great floor spacing which created a lot of open shot opportunities and easy dunks. The Cavs bench only scored 10 points and looks to be the only weakness this team possesses. If Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love can be this efficient consistently, LeBron will be well rested come playoff time. The Raptors didn't play a bad game despite their largest lead of the game being 1 point. DeMar DeRozan is a scoring machine. 32 points on the Cavs in no small task but I want DeRozan to RT his teammates involved more. Toronto is the 2nd best team in the east.

By: Demitry Johnson Last night the Philadelphia proved the ultra talented rising R&B singer Sevyn Streeter to be absolutely correct by wearing the shirt "We matter" in a silent protest of the social injustice towards minorities. Before last nights season opener between the Philadelphia 76ers and Oklahoma City Thunder it was some extreme controversy as to why R&B singer Sevyn Streeter was getting ready to perform the national anthem before being notified that she had being pulled because of a shirt she chose to wear that said "We matter"... That's right not "black lives matter" it simply stated "We Matter" and the Philadelphia 76ers failed their fans, the city, the players, coaches and this young woman. The statement from the organization was total contradiction of their actions of pulling her from singing the national anthem.  1."The Philadelphia 76ers encourage meaningful action to drive social change.&

Washington Wizards 99 vs Atlanta Hawks 114 - The new look Hawks win their opening night match up against the Wizards in dominating fashion. Dwight Howard finished with 19 rebounds while All-Star Paul Millsap leads the way with 28 points 7 rebounds and 6 assist. Dwight Howard and Paul Millsap  combined for 39 points and 26 rebounds (ajc.com) Great win for the Hawks. People questioned rather Dwight Howard would fit into the "lunch pale" mentality Atlanta play with but with 15 1st half rebounds he will work out fine. Moving Dennis Schroder to the starting point guard spot was another concern for Hawks fans. Jeff Teague is a scorer but what you lose of the offensive end you gain back with tough on ball defense with Schroder. Tim Hardaway Jr. was impressive tonight finishing with 23 points on 8-13 shooting. It's been a rocky start to Hardaway Jr career but he look comfortable coming off the bench for the Hawks. The Hawks will be a playoff team but no higher than a

bleacherreport.com By: Demitry Johnson   Last night the Los Angeles Lakers were very impressive leaving a lot of people leaving Staples Center and watching around the league very optimistic about this team. Last night the Lakers open their season against a Houston Rocket team who, lets just face it, are suppose to be superior to this young Laker team with a 120-114 victory. If you look at the box score for the Houston Rockets you might ask how do you lose to the Lakers when James Harden has 34 points 17 assist and 8 rebounds, Eric Gordon seems to be back to his college days scoring 19 points and Clint Capella, who is an upgrade over Dwight Howard getting 16 points and 9 rebounds. There were 3 keys to last night and the Lakers off-season that contributed to that win.  1. Effort was consistent all night, through the runs Houston made, some questionable calls, this young team still for 4 quarters played with the right effort and energy. nba.com 2. Bench depth..

Miami Heat 108 vs Orlando Magic 96 - After leading by 3 at halftime, the Magic were outscored 30-16 in the 3rd quarter. Hassan Whiteside lead the Heat in scoring with 18 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Miami bench outscored the Magic 42-17. Miami looked shaky during the first half, in particular their perimeter defense allowing too many open jump shots and easy penetration. During the third quarter the defense stepped up which allowed easy fast break points. Liked how much Justice Winslow was bringing the ball down the court. Not the best handles but his passing ability is underrated. Plus he was active on both ends of the floor. Biggest question mark going forward for Miami will be its bench. They scored 42 points tonight but I doubt these performances will be the norm. In the first half Orlando was knocking down the open shots, moving the ball well and rebounding outside their zones. The second half was a totally different story. The Heat are a well coached team but not good en

By: Demitry Johnson espn.com Why getting blown out was the best thing that could happen to these Golden State Warriors.. nba.com During the 2015-2016 campaign the Golden State Warriors went the whole season without being humbled, now yes they lost games even had a few close calls but it always seemed as if they still weren't humble. They always believed last year that they could flip it on whenever they were in trouble and I believe coming back from being 3-1 down against the Thunder still didn't humble them, if anything boosted their ego even more. It wasn't until Game 7 when the clock sounded and Lebron James and the rest of the Cleveland Cavaliers begin celebrating winning the NBA title at that moment Golden State was humbled but it was too late. This offseason, signing of Kevin Durant, one could see the arrogance all over the Warriors organization, press conference, the coaching staff etc. So coming into the 2015-2016 season the confidence lev

New York Knicks 88 vs Cleveland Cavaliers 117 - On banner night for the Cavs, LeBron James records his first opening night triple double with a 19 point 14 assist and 11 rebound performance. After leading 48-45 at halftime, the defending champs started the 3rd quarter off on a 20-4 run. Kyrie Irving scored 19 of his game-high 29 points in that frame. Cleveland looked like they haven't missed a step. LeBron's passing ability still impresses me even after seeing it for so many years. Tyrone Lue kept the Knicks off balanced with a plethora of lineups. The Cavs role players were efficient of both ends of the floor, creating turnovers that led to 16 fast break points. The Knicks were competitive in the first half, running set plays for Carmelo Anthony to get him open shots and saw flashes of aggressiveness from Derrick Rose. There are two huge question marks going forward for the Knicks. First is lack of depth. New York's bench is way below average. Between Brandon Jennings