AOW: LeBron James (NBA)

Why play four quarters, when you could win it in one?

That seemed to be the Cavaliers’ strategy Sunday against the Clippers, when they scored 46 points against LA’s 20 in the first quarter. LeBron James scored half the Cavs’ points in that quarter. Three of those points were off a shot from the “C” in “Cavaliers” 30 feet toward center court. Moments later another trey came from the “a” a few feet deeper.

James kept contributing to accumulate 32 points including five three-point shots and 11 assists. Four of those threes were in the first quarter.

LeBron is almost too easy a pick for the Athlete of the Week (AOW). Of all the teams in all the sports in the world, he might be the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of all. His career average is 27.7 PPG! He has improved all of his major stats in this, his seventh season in the NBA, scoring 29.4 PPG with 8.0 assists. He is one of the best athletes to ever play the game of basketball, but he continues to work to improve his game. He focused in the off-season on his shooting, and improved both his FG% and 3P% by 2% each over his career average.

As he has improved, so has his team. The Cavs now have the best record in the NBA at 38-11, are on an 8 game win streak, and are 2-0 against the Lakers, who are a half game behind them at 37-11.

Athlete of the Week is such an understatement for LeBron James it is almost insulting. James is simply “King.”

AOW: Austin Collie (NFL)

While the spotlight in today’s AFC Championship was Pierre Garçon (11 rec, 151 yds, 13.7 avg, 1 TD), rookie receiver Austin Collie was also a choice target for MVP quarterback Peyton Manning. Collie caught 7 passes for 123 yards, averaging 17.6 yards per carry and scoring a touchdown. Collie has been reliable for Manning and the Colts all season as opponents focused coverage on #1 receiver Reggie Wayne and Pro Bowl tight end Dallas Clark.

Watching Collie play this season, you would never guess that he was a rookie fresh out of BYU. He made 60 receptions for 676 yards, averaging 11.3 yards per reception. He scored 7 touchdowns for the Colts. He gets open frequently, rarely drops a pass, picks up yards after catches, and has never fumbled the football. He plays smart football and looks amazingly comfortable in his first year in the Colts system.

Collie’s accomplishments are a credit to his work ethic, but also an example of the leadership of Peyton Manning and the effectiveness of the Colts system. Collie told Sports Illustrated in 2009 about Manning’s work ethic and his interaction with receivers, especially the young guys like Collie and Garçon. Manning devotes a lot of time beyond team practices to meet with his receivers and teach them to succeed in the Colts’ offense. Manning and his receivers spend extra time watching tape to study themselves and their opponents.  They also communicate regularly during games and throughout the week to fix their own weakness and exploit their oppoents’.

The Colts are a team of smart, hard-working players. They continue to recruit players with that work ethic that will make them successful in their first season, not after years more of development. Collie, Garçon, Lacie, McAfee. Is there any other team in the NFL getting such great results out of so many young players like this?

Live Blogging Colt-Jets

inDsports will live-blog the AFC Championship game between the Colts and Jets this afternoon at twitter.com/indsports. We’ll start with pre-game action, share stats and commentary throughout the game, and keep an eye on other sports action happening today.

Sims’ Triumphant Return

On December 29, inDsports reported, “Courtney Sims officially in CSKA Moscow.” We can now change that to “Courtney Sims officially [lasted 12 minutes] in CSKA Moscow.” USBasket reports:

The reigning NBA D-League Most Valuable Player, Courtney Sims (6’11”-C-83, college: Michigan), has returned to the Iowa Energy. The 6-11 Sims returns to the D-league after an unsuccessful stint with Russian powerhouse CSKA Moscow. The former Michigan big man appeared in only one Euroleague game with CSKA, scoring six points in 12 minutes and was in fact replaced earlier this month with former D-League star Pops Mensah-Bonsu (6’9”-F-83, college: George Washington). Last year with the Energy, Sims appeared in 32 games and was fifth in the league in scoring (22.8ppg), third in rebounding (11.0rpg) to go along with 1.5 assists and 2.0 blocks all while leading the league in field goal percentage (60.5%). In addition to being named MVP, Sims was also Co-MVP of the D-League All-Star Game along with Blake Ahearn (6’2”-G-84, college: Missouri St.). Sims is in his third professional season and will make his 2009-10 D-league season debut on Saturday night as the Energy take on the Ft. Wayne Mad Ants at 11pm EST on a nationally broadcast game on Versus.

It’s a shame that Mad Ants star Ron Howard will be missing as he is still recovering from an injury. The Mad Ants certainly miss his 22.4 PPG. This could still be a fun game to watch anyway. Sims should be playing with a chip on his shoulder after all those wasted frequent flier miles. If you are one of the few people who actually have access to Versus, watch it!

Update 1/25/10:

Sims was 7-9 with 17 points and 9 rebounds in only 23 minutes in his return game with the Iowa Energy in their 120-97  win over the Fort Wayne Mad Ants on Saturday. (Recap/Box)

AOW: Jamal Crawford (NBA)

This week’s Athlete of the Week (AOW) is Jamal Crawford of the Atlanta Hawks, much due to his stellar performance last night against the Pheonix Suns. Crawford was drafted out of the University of Michigan by the Cavs in 2000 and played for the Bulls, Knicks, and Warriors before joining the Hawks this season. So far this year, he has been a reliable sixth man, playing 30.7 minutes per game off the bench to score 17.2 points a game.

Crawford has become a prolific shooter, and that is his primary role on the team. This year, he has improved his FG% from 40.7% to 45.6%, his 3PT% from 34.7% to 35.3%, and his FT% from 84.4% to 85.6%. The Hawks can count on Crawford to hit a big shot when they need it. Last night against the Suns they needed it, and he delivered.

Amare Stoudemire hit a FT to take a 101-99 Suns lead with 3 seconds left. After a timeout, the Hawks’ Mike Bibby inbounded the ball to Crawford, who fired a 28-foot 3-point shot over Jared Dudley that went in at the buzzer, earning Atlanta a 102-101 victory. In a game with horrible 3PT percentages of .154 for Atlanta and .217 for Pheonix, it was a perfect long ball from Jamal Crawford that made the difference.

Crawford finished the game with 21 points, 4 assists, a rebound, and a steal. He made 7 of 7 FT attempts, and of course the game winning 3 to bring the Hawks’ record to 26-13 and give the struggling NBA East a victory over a 24-16 West opponent. (Recap, Box Score)

Grizzlies sign “Done Ruthless”

Inside Hoops reports,

The Memphis Grizzlies claimed Memphis native Lester Hudson off waivers, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced Friday (January 8). Hudson was available after being waived by the Boston Celtics on Jan. 6.

“We are excited to acquire Lester Hudson off waivers,” Wallace said. “Lester is a player we thought of highly in the pre-draft process. He earned favorable reviews for his performance during his brief time with the Celtics. He is an athletic, tough combo guard who was one of the most prolific scorers in college basketball over his two years at the University of Tennessee at Martin. It is a wonderful day for the Grizzlies to be able to bring this Memphian back home to continue his NBA career.”

The 6-3, 190-pound rookie guard averaged 1.4 points and 0.5 assists in 4.4 minutes in 16 appearances this season with the Celtics, who selected him in the second round (58th overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft. Boston also assigned Hudson to two different stints with their NBA Development League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws, where the 25-year-old posted 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 28.0 minutes in five games.

One of the most explosive scorers in the NCAA in recent years, Hudson ranked second in the nation in scoring in 2008-09 behind current Golden State Warriors rookie Stephen Curry, averaging 27.5 points as well as 7.9 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.34 steals in his senior season with the University of Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks. In his junior year, Hudson became the first men’s player in Division I history to record a quadruple-double with 25 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals on Nov. 13, 2007 vs. Central Baptist College.

The native Memphian transferred to UT-Martin after playing his first two seasons at Southwest Tennessee Community College in Memphis.

The Grizzlies’ roster now stands at 14 players.

inDsports has been tracking the progress of Hudson’s progress in the NBA and D-League after his impressive college career at UT-Martin earned him the nickname “Done Ruthless.”

Manning wins 4th AP MVP, credits others

The Associated Press announced today that they have awarded their MVP award for the NFL to Colts Quarterback Peyton Manning. It is his 4th time receiving the AP award. Discussing his award, Manning took none of the credit:

I’m very grateful to all the players and the coaches and our fans, who were a big part of it. There were a number of other extremely deserving candidates.

…

I have received some calls and texts from some teammates, and I appreciate that. I’ve responded to them how thankful and grateful I am to them for all of their help and for doing their jobs the way that they do. Football is the ultimate team game, I’ve always said that, and I think at times like this, it makes you feel good to be part of a really good team and a bunch of great guys and great members of the organization.

Manning scored 33 touchdowns and threw for 4,500 yards this season, leading the Colts to a 14-0 start, taking an NFL record 23 game regular season win streak. He played less than half of the two remaining games of the season due to a team decision to rest players for the playoffs. The team struggled tremendously on offense without him and lost those games against the Jets and Bills.

Manning is truly one of the most valuable players of all time, not only in the NFL but any sport. He makes every player around him play better, teaching young receivers to succeed in the Colts system and motivating them to put in the work. He is also one of the smartest and hardest-working players in the game, devoting every possible minute to studying his own team and his opponents to discover every weakness and solve every problem.

AOW: Ryan Wittman (NCAAM)

As a new weekly feature on the inDsports blog, we will feature a “Athlete of the Week” (AOW) from any sport or league in the world who is doing something special. Our first AOW is Ryan Wittman, who plays basketball at Cornell University.

Wittman has received a lot of attention this week as his Cornell Big Red nearly beat #1 Kansas in Lawrence, KS, where the Jayhawks have a 50-game home winning streak. Wittman led the Big Red with 24 points in their 66-71 loss to KU (recap, boxscore). He shot 7-17, made 5 3-pointers and 5 of 6 FT attempts, and added 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.

The Indianapolis Star did a feature on him yesterday, discussing similarities between him and his father, Randy Wittman, who graduated from Ben Davis High School, played on Indiana University’s 1981 NCAA Championship team, played for the Pacers and other NBA teams, and coached the Cavs and Timberwolves. The Star’s Curt Cavin writes that both Wittmans play with a “high basketball IQ, toughness and talent to support both.”

Wittman is the go-to guy for the Cornell Big Red, averaging 19.1 PPG and leading them to a 13-3 record including victories over Alabama, Massachusetts, Drexel, St. Joseph’s, Davidson, St. John’s, La Salle, and more. His best performance was at La Salle, where he scored a career high 34 points to help his team win a 78-75 game on the road (recap, boxscore).

Cornell is getting a lot of national attention with their 13-3 record, victories over reputable programs, and competitive losses to Seton Hall, #9 Syracuse, and #1 Kansas. They have established an impressive non-conference resume that has fans and analysts wondering if a competitive Ivy League could leave Cornell in 2nd place and earn the conference two NCAA Tournament bids. It is a long-shot for a league that usually earns one bid around 14-seed territory, but it is certainly a possibility with two teams (Harvard and Cornell) at only 3 losses going into conference play.

In his 3.5 years at Cornell, Wittman has averaged over 15 PPG every season. He’s averaged around 3.5 rebounds and 2 assists over his four years, and made more than 81% of his free throws and more than 41% of his 3-point shots every year. He is the top scorer in Cornell history, and still has half a season to build on those numbers before he graduates.

We will keep a close eye on Wittman and the Cornell team as the season progresses, preparing to watch them play in March and then see if Wittman becomes one of the few Ivy League graduates in recent history to play professional basketball.

Update (01/09/2010):

At Basketball State, you can view the team sheet for Cornell as it stands at this point in the season. This is the same exact sheet that the Selection Committee looks at when evaluating teams for placement in the tournament. Read discussion of this topic in The Mid-Majority’s interview with David Worlock, Associate Director for the Division I Men’s Basketball Championship.

Live-blogging the Rose Bowl

We are halfway through live-blogging the Rose Bowl at http://twitter.com/indsports

(We even covered the marching bands. We got it all.)

Tune in now. The Ohio State Buckeyes lead the Oregon Ducks 16-10 at the half.

What about an NCAAF Div. 1A 16-team playoff?

Here is my proposal for a playoff alternative to the BCS:

16 teams play for the national championship, including the winner of every Div. 1-A (FBS) conferences (11) and five at-large bids. The first round would be played at the higher seeded team, and the remaining rounds would be played at the former of the BCS series and other major bowls.

I used this year’s BCS standings to determine the seedings. I had to switch Penn St. and LSU between the 12 and 13 seeds to avoid a first round match-up between conference rivals Florida and LSU. Seeds 14-16 are conference champions from the MAC, Sun Belt, and C-USA. These were the only conference champions not in the BCS top 16. That leaves BYU, Miami (FL), and WVU as the last three teams out.

Take a look at those first round matchups. Ohio St.-Georgia Tech, Florida-Penn St., TCU-LSU, Boise St.-VTech, Oregon-Iowa. And in the quarterfinals you might see Alabama-OSU, Florida-TCU, Boise-Cinci, and Oregon-Texas. This would make for some fantastic football games, and everybody who deserves a shot at the national championship would get to play for it.

In the current system, Cincinnati, TCU, and Boise St. all went undefeated and don’t get to play for a championship. Cinci and TCU would be especially exciting to watch in a playoff. The current system is not fair, and I personally don’t know a single fan who doesn’t want to replace it with a playoff. My 16-team playoff system allows every conference champion and in most years every top 10 team a shot at the national championship. It also allows for three weeks of very exciting football match-ups leading up to the big game. Every fan, school, and conference has something to gain from this system.

Get your FAN GEAR at Footlocker.com