I have assembled both of my All-Star teams for the NHL and NBA with both league's regular seasons having ended. There are three All-Star teams (or lines for hockey) and there is a goalie for each NHL line. This has nothing to do with team value, but rather how well the player played overall.

NHL

Line One

G Carey Price
D Lubomir Visnovsky
D Nicklad Lidstrom
W Daniel Sedin
W Corey Perry
C Henrik Sedin

Line Two

G Tim Thomas
D Zdeno Chara
D Keith Yandle
W Martin St. Louis
W Jarome Iginla
C Steve Stamkos

Line Three

G Pekka Rinne
D Dustin Byfuglien
D Christian Ehrhoff
W Alex Ovechkin
W Claude Giroux
C Ryan Kesler

NBA

Team One

PG Chris Paul
SG Dwayne Wade
SF LeBron James
PF Kevin Love
C Dwight Howard

Team Two

PG Derrick Rose
SG Kobe Bryant
SF Kevin Durant
PF Dirk Nowitzki
C Tim Duncan

Team Three

PG Russell Westbrook
SG Manu Ginobili
SF Carmelo Anthony
PF Pau Gasol
C Andrew Bynum

Still A Beast

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3/13 Hoop Talk: East Still Far Behind West

March 13th 2011 14:37

Take a look at your standings. A .415 team, whether it be the Pacers or Bobcats, could actually make the playoffs. Yes, a team with no defensive effort and a team in rebuilding mode might actually get there. The disparity between good and bad in the Eastern Conference is so great that the Bulls have already clinched their division- which has the Pacers in it. Three teams have clinched the playoffs in the East, compared to just one- San Antonio- in the West. The Memphis Grizzlies have the 8th seed in the West, and they are a pretty good basketball team. The East is definitely playing better basketball than it has in the past couple of years collectively, but I still think that they are far behind the West. Depth Matters.

I love how Matt Bonner has the highest 3 point percentage this season. Yes, a power forward is the best three point shooter in the NBA this year. Who knew? Well, Bonner is like Nowtizki in that he is great at spreading the floor- Channing Frye is another one of those guys. They are becoming a little more used in the NBA these days, and that's a good thing for offenses. Best free throw percentage? Yeah, that's Stephen Curry. He's going to be great one day. I love that guy. He should have been rookie of the year last year. All the box score idiots looked at the stats and didn't watch how great Curry was when he played. Curry is a natural shooter- his father is Del- and he plays D, passes, attacks the rim, and can lead already at this age.

Turnovers per game is the most overrated statistic ever, because the top 12 people with the most turnovers are the guys that play over 30 minutes per game and are the focal points of their offense. They are the ones handling the ball and passing it the most. I just hate that stat. It's like, Steve Nash isn't really the 6th most turnover prone player in the league. That's why I love advanced stats. They actually make sense.

I really wish Kevin Martin was recognized as a star. He is one of the best scorers in the game that is very efficient, he shoots impeccably, and he doesn't get much recognition from fans. People don't think of Martin as a star player, but they should. He's better than Tyreke Evans- who isn't a star, I would take him over Andrew Bynum, and I think he is at least as good as LaMarcus Aldridge.

Should've Been 09 ROY

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Posted By: Joe Soriano - Category: NBA, Celtics, Pacers, Bobcats, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Martin, Grizzlies, Spurs, Matt Bonner, LaMarcus Aldridge, Stephen Curry, Andrew Bynum, Channing Frye, Steve Nash, Tyreke Evans, NBA Analysis

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3/9 Hoop Talk: Coaching Extensions and The Big Games

March 9th 2011 16:05

Yeah, Hoop Talk is a new thing where I'll just start talking about basketball. I'll start with some topics and work my way through the news of the day- sort of. Anyway, George Karl got a three year extension, no surprise because Karl is an icon in Denver. Nate McMillan got a two year extension. He is a great coach that manages players well, he has great strategies, and he deserved like a five year extension. McMillan is one of the best coaches in basketball, and his team plays very efficient basketball.

Kobe Bryant just topped Moses Malone for sixth on the all-time scoring list with his 26 points against the Atlanta Hawks. I called the winner- easy- but I also called the MVP- Andrew Bynum. He of the 16 points and 16 boards with 3 blocks on 8-10 shooting had a boom-roasted kind of day against Atlanta. Bynum was easily the most efficient player on the court in that game. Only Zaza Pachuila could even think about challenging him on the boards. Bynum was easily the most dominating defensive player in the game. He was impressive- as usual- in the paint.

I want to talk about the Portland-Miami game, and that's it for game reviews for today. The Blazers took this one 105-96, and they were the better team heading into this game anyway. All the Heat drama aside, the Blazers have the better roster when you look at it bit by bit. Dwayne Wade and Gerald Wallace both played some impressive defense, and both of them were the MVPs of their teams. LeBron was also good, but the Blazers proved something that I have been saying all year long. You can't win without depth.

6 players on the Trail Blazers scored double digits compared to just 3 such players for the Heat. Brandon Roy was ruthlessly efficient in the 23 minutes he played. Roy shot 3-3 from beyond the arc too. He showed us again what we are missing as fans. Overall, it was a game won by depth even though LeBron James and Dwayne Wade were incredible. They need other people to step up. By the way, Mario Chalmers's ten points was the other double figure point total for Miami.

You can look at box scores to get game analysis, so it's time to just take a small part of this post to just rambling about basketball stuff. I love how the Celtics have secured a playoff spot already, even though the top team out west- San Antonio- has the better record. It sure goes to show you that the superstar flow to the Eastern Conference doesn't change the fact that the Western Conference is still far better and more competitive.

Did you know that Quinton Ross is the most inefficient player in the NBA? This one guy named LeBron is the most efficient. Marcus Camby is the best rebounder in the league this year- Love is second and Howard fourth. Jamal Crawford is the worst. Go figure. Joel Przybilla is the most turnover prone player, but James Jone is the least. Neither of them handles the ball much- Jones handles the ball the least of any player in the league that gets significant playing time- so the stats are a little bit skewed, but interesting all the same. Przybilla has also missed a chunk of the year with an injury.

Joe Called It

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Posted By: Joe Soriano - Category: NBA, Celtics, Quinton Ross, Hawks, Jamal Crawford, Zaza Pachuila, Joel Przybilla, Heat, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, James Jones NBA, Mario Chalmers, Dwight Howard, Spurs, George Karl, Blazers, Gerald Wallace, Nate McMillan, Brandon Roy, Marcus Camby, Lakers, Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, NBA Analysis

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3/8 Game Preview: Lakers and Hawks

March 8th 2011 14:19

The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off of a remarkable 99-82 shredding of the San Antonio Spurs, while the Hawks are coming off of a 92-79 loss against the Knicks. They were horrible offensively in that game, and they cannot afford to do that poorly against a far better Lakers team. The Lakers won the last meeting between these two teams, and they are the favorites heading into this game- for good reason. So let's kick back and preview the biggest matchup of tonight in the NBA.

Kirk Hinrich really gives this team a point guard that isn't a liability in defense. He is much quicker than Mike Bibby, and thus doesn't get burned by the quicker point guards out there. Derek Fisher isn't a quick PG at all, so I think Hinrich matches up pretty well against him. Hinrich is a great passer that is average in everything else. Defensively, I think Fisher doesn't really do much against him. He can hit some shots if he gets open, but that's the furthest impact I think he can have offensively in this one. Maybe Steve Blake is the man that shows up today at the point for LA. Hinrich is better than all the point guards that Los Angeles has.

Joe Johnson will either have a great game, or his shot will struggle. However, he is one of the best players in the game and is underrated because many people don't think of him of the superstar that he really is. Johnson is a solid defender, but his main asset is his offense. Backup shooting guard Jamal Crawford is arguably the best sixth man in the NBA, and he is a great scorer. I expect Kobe to get the best of him as Crawford is a poor defensive player.

Marvin Williams is a decent player that was supposed to be the next big thing, but he never ended up being that. I don't think he's bad, but Ron Artest will switch off of him and start guarding Joe Johnson and Crawford during the game and let the big guys take care of things in the interior. Josh Smith has become a good inside presence instead of just a walking highlight reel chase down blocker that got burned. Smith is solid offensively, but he will get killed on the boards by Pau.

Andrew Bynum will have a lot of fun against Al Horford. It's not that Horford isn't a good player, it's just that he isn't a true center, and he gets exposed by guys like Bynum. Bynum is a rugged defensive player that powers you down and rips you on the boards, especially when you're a soft center. Luke Walton and Zaza Pachuila won't make much of an impact on the game, but I think Jeff Teague's speed can stretch Fisher a little bit. I really don't think the bench is much of a factor in this game. Lamar Odom probably won't be better than average in this game. I think the Hawks lock him down.

The Lakers match up really well in this game. Their frontcourt is going to be too tough to stop. The Hawks might be able to frustrate Kobe, Odom, and easily handle Fisher; but I just don't see them being able to cope with Gasol and Bynum off the boards and in the paint. Ron Artest is also going to cause some problems for the Hawks offensively. I think the Lakers are able to take this game with a 99-90 score with Andrew Bynum as MVP.