Grading the Eagles' Draft

The NFL draft has come and gone, and now fans and "experts" get to sift through the picks and share their opinions and debate. It's part of what makes being a sports fan great. "Such and such a player was a stretch at that spot in the draft" or "Such and such a team got great value with this or that pick" are things you will commonly hear as fans now know what incoming crop of players will be joining their respective teams. And so now I'd like to take a few moments to share my humble opinions on how the Philadelphia Eagles did in their first draft of the Chip Kelly era.

I have seen and heard incredibly varying opinions on the Eagles' 2013 draft. One popular way of judging a team's draft is to issue grades, and I have seen the Eagles receive an A all the way to an F. It's pretty amazing that you would find that much variation in opinion, but again that is part of what makes being a sports fan fun.

While it's kind of silly to give a team a draft grade mere days after the draft is complete, as we won't really know how a team did until two or three years down the road, it's become commonplace. Personally, I think the Eagles did a pretty decent job in this draft and give them an early grade of B+. Let's work through the picks.

Round 1, 4th overall.
Lane Johnson, offensive tackle, Oklahoma



It's pretty hard to screw up a top-five pick, but teams in Philadelphia have shown it's not impossible. You have to like the pick here. The offensive line was one of the weakest units on an all-around weak Eagles team last year. Some of that was due to injury, but if you use that excuse then you have to admit concern when injuries become recurring, especially when you are talking about men as big as offensive linemen are.

I generally like his size at 6'6", 303 lbs. All indications are that the kid is athletic, which should work well with what is expected to be an up-tempo Chip Kelly offense. I also like the fact that he has played multiple positions. While that fact may leave him a little rough around the edges, it also gives him perspective and an ability to evaluate what defenses are trying to do. Assuming he jumps right in to the Eagles' starting line, he also allows Todd Herremans to move back to guard, his usual position. A sound, solid pick by the Eagles who can hopefully become the anchor of the line for years to come.

Round 2
Zach Ertz, TE, Stanford



Another pick I really like. Some have grumbled that the pick doesn't make sense with incumbent tight end Brent Celek still on the roster and the addition of James Casey from the Texans. I am of the school of thought that "drafting for need" is way overrated. You take the player that you feel is the best available, and if he ends up not being able to help your team, you trade him to a team that can use him and get as much value in return as possible.

Kelly has coached against Ertz, so he knows him well. All indications are that this kid can be a match-up nightmare, and again that should work well with the offense Kelly is trying to implement. I can't argue with you if you felt the Eagles should have gone with a defensive player here, but I still think they did well with the pick.

Round 3
Bennie Logan, DT, LSU



Honestly, I don't know much about this kid. The one thing that did stand out to me was his size. He is 6'2" and 310 lbs. For what seems like forever, the Eagles have had an undersized defensive line, so I like this pick if for no other reason than it adds some bulk to the trenches.

Round 4
Matt Barkley, QB, USC

This was the stunner. I don't think anyone saw this coming. The Eagles' quarterback stable was already pretty crowded, and many thought that if they were going to go the QB route, they would have went with Geno Smith. Personally, I'm glad they avoided Smith.

I think there was a bit of a message being delivered here by coach Kelly. All the talk is about how he needs a running quarterback to run his system. I think he is showing that he isn't a one-trick pony and that what we saw at Oregon won't necessarily be what we see with the Eagles.

It will be fun to see how the quarterback situation shakes out, and it will be fun to see what the offense looks like. While I was not the biggest Chip Kelly supporter when he was hired, he has been slowly winning me over, first with his press conferences and now with this draft. I think Kelly is a very bright guy, and I am confident that he will run a system to put his players in a position to succeed and highlights their strengths, something that the former Eagles coach struggled with. Seeing as Barkley was a year removed from being projected as the number 1 overall pick, you have to like the value here. Also another guy Chip Kelly is familiar with from his Oregon days. Low risk, high reward.


I really don't know anything about the rest of the players the Eagles drafted, so I won't go into to detail about them. They were safety Earl Wolff, DE Joe Kruger, CB Jordan Poyer and DT David King. I will say that I'm glad they addressed defense here. Kruger has some decent size, which I mentioned earlier that I liked for the D-line. I think Poyer has some potential too. Some people had him projected as a 2nd- or 3rd-round pick, but he struggled at the combine. Again, solid pick in a low-risk, high-reward situation.

All in all I think it was a very solid draft for the Eagles. They didn't get too hung up on drafting for need, and they didn't try to outsmart everybody, which was a recurring problem under the previous regime. Chip Kelly continues to impress, and I think the team is going in the right direction. Now we just have to wait until we can see these guys on the field playing some football.

It's Friday, Time to Dance

In case you missed it — actually I did because I had a softball game at 8 last night — the Philadelphia Eagles' first NFL draft pick of the Chip Kelly era was Oklahoma offensive tackle Lane Johnson, the fourth overall pick. Apparently, Johnson wrestles bears.

Seeing as I was a huge Davy Crockett fan as a kid, reading several Davy Crockett stories and writing essays for school on him, it makes me wondered if Johnson has ever killed a bear. Also I loved that Ballad of Davy Crockett song and Johnny Cash once sang that thing.



Man, Philadelphia sports really suck right now.

76ers Going Forward: Patience is the Key

Last week, the Sixers' season mercifully came to an end. A season that started with high excitement and great anticipation ended with far more questions than answers. Andrew Bynum, the team's prize acquisition, never played a game. Jason Richardson missed the majority of the season. Evan Turner was wildly inconsistent. And the team parted ways with its coach. Now we are left to wonder, "Where do we go from here?" and "How do we get there?"




Of the four major professional sports, the NBA is the one in which it's hardest to recover from mistakes. And the Sixers have made plenty of those over the years. They've done a poor job of evaluating players and an even poorer job of handing out contracts (Elton Brand, Samuel Dalembert, Spencer Hawes). Despite the terrible season and the disappointment of never getting to see what this team looked like with Bynum anchoring the middle, the Sixers finally have themselves in a position where they have a little flexibility, and they absolutely must avoid making the same mistakes of the past.

Despite the fact that Bynum never played and the season turned into a disaster, the Sixers were correct in making the move. You could argue that it was a mistake to trade away Nic Vucevic, as he had a solid season in Orlando where he was finally afforded the opportunity of steady minutes, but I'll get back to that later. Before the trade, the Sixers were mired in the pack of borderline playoff teams, and that is the absolute worst place you can be in the NBA. You make the playoffs as a 7 or 8 seed, are quickly dismissed by a far superior team, and then you receive a middle-of-the-pack draft pick where you get more of a project type player than the impact player you need. This cycle continues to repeat itself, and your team finds itself stuck in irrelevancy.

The Sixers recognized this and made a bold move in hopes of breaking this cycle. Obviously the hope was that Bynum would be healthy, the team would thrive and become a top-four seed, only a piece or two away from becoming a serious contender.

We all know it didn't work out like that, but the team is still better off than they were as a perennial 8 seed. Bynum's contract is off the books. I am of the opinion that you shouldn't re-sign him, but that isn't my job to decide, so we will see.

If you decide to not re-sign him, you have a decent amount of money available. And this is where make-or-break decisions lie for the Sixers, and where my argument for patience comes into play. The upcoming free agent class doesn't have the cornerstone, immediate turnaround type player you are looking for. A list of free agents is available here. The 2014 free agents are also listed there, and you may not find the player you need there either.

And so you may have to wait until 2015 or even 2016 to find that player. And if you are the Sixers, you cannot be afraid to exercise that patience. You cannot be afraid to stink, or at least struggle, over the next few seasons. Do not sign a player just for the sake of signing a player. Do not sign a player just because you felt pressure to make a move.

If you play your cards right, you may even have the ability to bring in two impact free agents from one of those later classes. You should have been able to add a few solid players from what should be pretty decent draft position over the next 3 or so drafts. And you should still have your franchise point guard in place, Jrue Holiday, the lone bright spot from this lost season. And at that point you could finally be in a position to become a legitimate contender again.




The other part of this equation is the hiring of a new coach, and what to do with the front office. I won't throw out any names for the coaching vacancy, but I would like to see a young, energetic, hungry guy get the job. Whoever gets the job should get a vote of confidence from management that he will be given the opportunity so see this process through. That way he can navigate the next few seasons without constantly looking over his shoulder, and can have the confidence to adequately look at his young players during game action. Doug Collins seemed to outright refuse to give his young players a look in game situations, and that may have come back to bite the Sixers in the Vucevic situation.

And to go along with my new young, energetic coach, I would like a few great, pure basketball minds added to the front office. Joshua Harris and Adam Aron seem to be pretty bright businessmen, so let them handle the business stuff. Get some guys in the front office that know basketball, know basketball players, and know how to evaluate talent. This would improve the Sixers' drafting abilities as well as help them avoid handing out the crippling contracts that have handcuffed them in the past.

I know this is a tall order. I know it will be tough to sell the fan base on a "take two steps back to take three forward" type plan. I know that people who make it to the NBA level, whether they be players, coaches or front office personnel, get there by being ultra-competitive, and that seemingly accepting mediocrity or losing for two or three years won't sit well. But there are no quick fixes in the NBA, and this may be the Sixers best opportunity to return to relevancy.

And it wouldn't hurt to nab a player the caliber of Allen Iverson, like they did way back in the '90s. (Still miss you, A.I.)

It's Friday, Time to Sing

Well, there's really only one thing I can possibly put in this space this Friday. The home of the brave.

It's Friday, Time to Dance

Tomorrow, I head to San Diego for work purposes, and it's the first time I'll be on the West Coast in my entire life. Only took me 29 years. So here are a few California songs to get a jumpstart on my trip.

How The Hell Is He Still In The NBA?

How The Hell Is He Still In The NBA?

The Shock The World Chronicles: The NCAA Tournament Almost Killed Me

The Shock The World Chronicles: The NCAA Tournament Almost Killed Me

It's Friday, Time to Dance

Self explanatory.

Survive and Advance: The Jim Valvano Story

Survive and Advance: The Jim Valvano Story

It's Friday, Time to Dance

Baseball season is right around the corner, and thank goodness for that since both the Flyers and the Sixers are absolutely horrible at playing hockey and basketball. With that in mind, here is Mickey Melchiondo, aka Dean Ween, providing the background music for this Wilson baseball gloves commercial, as well as some of my own horrid amateur footage of Mickey jamming at the Invitational.

The Philadelphia 76ers Were Right To Trade For Andrew Bynum

The Philadelphia 76ers Were Right To Trade For Andrew Bynum

Bernard Hopkins, The Ageless Wonder

Bernard Hopkins is at it again. Making history, that is. Two years ago, Hopkins became the oldest fighter in history to win a title by defeating Jean Pascal in the rematch of their first fight, which resulted in a controversial draw. He then lost his title in a 2012 rematch against Chad Dawson. On Saturday night, Hopkins broke his own record by beating Tavoris Cloud by unanimous decision for yet another belt. Hopkins is 48 years old.



Cloud came in to the fight with an unblemished 24-0 record and is 17 years Hopkins' junior. Many thought that age would finally catch up to Hopkins, but then again people have thought that for a long time and Hopkins continues to prove them wrong.

Hopkins has made a habit of proving people wrong. He was a clear underdog in his 2001 fight against the undefeated Felix Trinidad, a fight that he dominated before winning on a 12th-round TKO. He was a 3-1 underdog in his 2006 fight against Antonio Tarver, a fight Hopkins won decisively (scored 118-109 by all three judges). He was a 4-1 underdog when facing undefeated Kelly Pavlik in 2008. Many thought Pavlik would be the first boxer to knock Hopkins out. Bernard didn't get the memo and claimed a unanimous decision victory. And then he defeated Pascal in their rematch to become the oldest fighter to claim a title.

On Saturday night, the defying of odds continued. Hopkins produced a technical masterpiece, clearly dictating the pace of the fight and taking Cloud out of everything he wanted to do. He out-landed his much younger counterpart 169 to 139 and landed on 41% of his punches to Cloud's 21%. He opened a nasty cut on Cloud's eyelid that was incorrectly ruled an accidental head butt by referee Earl Brown, but it wouldn't matter. Hopkins became increasingly dominant as the fight continued.



While the fight lacked any devastating blows, it was entirely entertaining. There were several solid exchanges between the two, and Hopkins masterfully executed combinations. He used his knowledge and experience to pick apart his younger foe, and it was a joy to watch someone demonstrate such a mastery of his craft.

The fact that Bernard Hopkins, at age 48, can step into a boxing ring and not only be competitive, but decisively win, is absolutely incredible. It's a testament to his work ethic and to how well he has taken care of his body. Add to that the fact that he has 20 years of experience and knowledge fighting professionally, and you have a truly remarkable athlete.



Partly because boxing has struggled to remain relevant, and partly because of his style, I feel that Hopkins has been greatly under-appreciated by the mainstream sports world. But whether he is winning fights that nobody gave him a chance to win, defending his middleweight title for a record 20 times, or not once but twice becoming the oldest boxer to claim a belt, Bernard Hopkins is showing again and again that he is one of the all-time greats.

Inevitably, father time will catch up with Bernard Hopkins, and he will have to hang up the gloves. In the meantime, I urge you to pay attention to this man and watch and enjoy him while you can. He has truly mastered his craft, and he continues to defy the odds. Just as he continues to make Philadelphia proud.

Doug Collins Is An Insane Person

Doug Collins was the first overall pick and an all-star for the Philadelphia 76ers back in the heyday of the 1970s. He was always well-respected here for his intensity during his playing days, and he's always spoken kindly of Philadelphia, including when he returned to become head coach three years ago.



As such, Collins has been somewhat of a fan favorite over the years. Even when he frustrates the fans, they tend to offer the usual kind caveats about him, myself included.

Well guess what? Not anymore. Not here. Not from this guy. After the Sixers lost their fifth straight game last night after falling to the Orlando Magic, I cannot possibly say another kind word about Doug Collins until he is no longer employed as the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers. Now, I'm not mad at Doug for the Sixers losing the game and falling to 23-39 on this unmercifully long season. Hell, I'm completely on board the tanking train. This team should be more worried about securing a good draft position to stockpile young talent.

No, I'm completely and utterly done with Doug Collins thanks to his completely, ridiculously insane comments about Nikola Vucevic — who again dominated the Sixers inside with a 14-point, 17-rebound effort — whom Collins coached as a rookie last year. Here are his remarks:

Collins said the biggest change that he's seen in Vucevic's game since the Sixers dealt him to the Magic is as simple as him getting more playing time. "I saw him at draft camp and said, 'That's my guy," Collins said. "Skilled, big, strong, and got a good feel for the game. A great kid. I love Nik. When he got minutes for us last year he performed very well."

What? No, seriously, what? Is Doug Collins aware that he was solely responsible for Vucevic's minutes last year? Is he aware that he's the one who buried Nik on the bench in favor of the ridiculously soft and all-around terrible Spencer Hawes?


Sit your ass back down!

If Nik Vucevic was "his guy," why the fuck did he turn his back on him? If when Nik "got minutes for us last year he performed very well," why the hell didn't he get more minutes? The only logical response to any of these questions is that Doug Collins is an insane person. That's it. That's the only explanation. Doug Collins is certifiably insane. And he should no longer be allowed to coach any professional basketball team for as long as he lives.

Now, a lot of people like to point out that Doug can't be blamed for this abysmal season given that it's been hijacked by Andrew Bynum. Never mind that Doug had a very big hand in the Bynum deal, and never mind that the guy has a history of ignoring or stunting young players in favor playing aging veterans. The simple fact of the matter is Doug Collins has no idea how to coach a team with long-term intentions, probably because he's never coached anywhere long term in his life.

The fact that he buried the rookie Vucevic in favor of the likes of the mediocre Hawes and nearly washed-up Elton Brand is proof of that. Now freed from the insanity of Collins, Vucevic is a walking double-double machine and top five rebounder in the NBA, hauling in 11.4 boards per game. For reference, Spencer Hawes and Elton Brand each averaged just a shade over 7 rebounds per game last year, more than four less than Vucevic is averaging now that he actually plays. This year, Spencer Hawes is only averaging 6.6 boards a game, tied with guard Evan Turner, and Lavoy Allen a laughable 5.4 rebounds a game. Pathetic.

Furthermore, Vucevic has absolutely destroyed Hawes, Lavoy Allen and anyone the Sixers have thrown at him this year on the boards, averaging 11.7 points and 16.7 rebounds against his former team.

So yes, Doug, Vucevic is "skilled, big, strong, and got a good feel for the game." And now that he's getting real minutes, he's proving exactly that. Why wasn't he afforded that opportunity last season by the guy who proclaims to love him? Because Doug Collins is an insane person. That's the only way his remarks make any sense.

It's Friday, Time to Dance

JaVale McGee Dancing in a Predator Mask, just because.

Georgetown Forgot About Jay(Vaughn)

A couple weeks ago, I was sitting around with silver fox when he said we might as well go to the Georgetown-Villanova game to close out the Wildcats' regular season. Since the game was to be played at the Wells Fargo Center, securing tickets wouldn't be a problem, and shit, the game itself would most likely have huge NCAA Tournament implications for a Nova squad that has been on the bubble for more than a month.

So last night, the two of us headed down to the Wells Fargo Center and secured two tickets six rows off the court to the right of the Villanova band and student section.

After walking around a little bit deciding on food options, we finally nabbed a few overpriced sausages and headed to our seats. When we got there, an older woman had her coat and scarf draped over one of our two seats. Being the irrationally angry person I am at times, this infuriated me. Not the fact that the woman had her coat in a seat she didn't have a ticket for — if no one is next to you, by all means, put your coat there — but the fact that she was sitting a couple seats over, not directly next to her coat. The fuck was she doing?

Somehow showing some restraint, I was polite about it, handing her her coat and scarf and letting her know it was our seat, but I really wanted to choke her to death because I was in a bad mood and I had the feeling I was about to watch Villanova toss away its NCAA Tournament hopes the same way it had tossed away apparent victories over the likes of Seton Hall and Pittsburgh in previous games.

Add to that the fact that every time I got to a Villanova home game, I cannot help but notice the incredible lack of diversity of the crowd. Head to the travesty of a gym that is the Pavilion or take in a marquee game in South Philadelphia for the Wildcats, and you walk into seemingly some sort of J.Crew catalog ad. There are swarms of old to middle-aged couples wearing designer clothes and looking like people I would never even want to talk to, and then there's the student body you would associate with an expensive private university out on the Main Line. Translation — even as a middle-class white male who grew up mostly in suburbs before returning to the City of Brotherly Love as an adult, I feel much more comfortable at a Temple home game with its diverse crowd. I'm not entirely sure why, but there you have it.



Anyway, back to the game. Almost immediately, my fears were coming to fruition, as the Hoyas began the game with a three-pointer and jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead. I jokingly said the game was already over at that point, might as well beat the traffic.

But then a funny thing happened. Jay Wright made a quick substitution after his team started with two turnovers and a foul, and everything changed from there. Senior Mouphtaou Yarou was dominating the glass, and JayVaughn Pinkston was playing as aggressive as I've ever seen him play, attacking whichever Hoya was attempting to handle him inside nearly every possession he was on the court.

Further, Wright, sensing that he'd need his team fresh for an intense, crucial 40 minutes, began subbing his players in and out at nearly every dead ball, almost as if making line changes in hockey. It was quite a sight to behold, some real chess going on against John Thompson III, and it worked — perfectly. Before you could blink, the Wildcats went on a 10-2 run to take the lead, and suddenly it was a ballgame again. However, it was tough to tell from the crowd. The upper section was barren, and even the full lower bowl was subdued most of the first half. That is, until James Bell threw down a thunderous, improbable alley-oop from Ryan Arcidiacono. When Arcidiacono threw it, I honestly thought he had tossed it way too high and that it was destined to go out of bounds. Instead, Bell somehow caught it and threw it down emphatically, sparking the mostly dormant crowd.

By the time the first half was winding down, Nova had the ball up by four following an Arc three, and Mouphtaou Yarou hit a jumper as time was winding down to seemingly put the Cats up by six with 20 minutes to play. Alas, the ball was still in Mouph's hands as the buzzer sounded, so Nova had to settle for a four-point halftime lead. Not too shabby, particularly when you take into account the way Nova played that first half.



The aforementioned Pinkston was nearly unstoppable, embarrassing any Hoya who dared try to handle him, and he began to parade to the free throw line.



Mouph was a monster on the boards, cleaning up the glass any time the ball came near him, and Bell not only hit a couple of big three-pointers, but he also completely and utterly shut down the heralded Player of the Year candidate Otto Porter Jr. in the first 20 minutes, to the point that you could hardly notice Porter on the floor at all. It was the best defensive job I've ever seen Bell do, taking Georgetown's best player and making him a complete non-factor in the first half.

However, it was going to take another really strong half to come away with the victory. After all, the Hoyas kept it close despite sloppy play in large part because they were defending the three and giving Ryan Arcidiacono no space, and also because D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera kept hitting big shots every time it looked like Nova might pull away.

As expected, Georgetown did not go away quietly, but it really didn't matter. Wright continued his hockey-style substitutions, keeping all his guys fresh, and the defense continued to hound Georgetown into turnovers and bad shots. Porter did get on track a little when Bell wasn't guarding him, but with the game in the balance, Bell went back to his shutdown work on the top Hoya and took him off his game yet again.

From there, it was the JayVaughn Pinkston show. The man simply took over, playing arguably the best game of his career, if not then certainly the most aggressive.



Thanks to his aggressive nature, Nova was in the bonus and then double bonus in no time … but the Cats uncharacteristically were struggling from the line. Early anyway. But once it came to crunch time, Pinkston, Arcidiacono and Darrun Hilliard couldn't miss. Just like that, it was Nova's third victory of the season over a top 5 team, and it more than likely punched the Wildcats' ticket to the big dance.



It was a total team effort, no doubt. Defensively, James Bell was the star, keeping Porter in check and making him a complete non-factor at times. I can't say enough about the job Bell did last night. Further, his teammates were aggressive all over the court defensively, forcing 22 Georgetown turnovers and doing it without fouling.

Conversely, the team was just as aggressive on offense, getting to the line an insane 42 times, led by Pinkston — the star of the game — who managed a game-high 20 points on just 4-6 from the field … and 11-14 from the line. He added five steals and four boards for good measure.

On top of that, Nova didn't force things on the offensive end, particularly Arcidiacono. That's somewhat of a rarity for the freshman out of Neshaminy, a kid who's never passed up an open shot in his life. But last night, he was patient and smart with the ball. Arcidiacono went the first five minutes without even a shot attempt, and he only took five shots from the floor all game thanks to Georgetown's tremendous defense around the perimeter and defending the three-point line. So Arc just played within himself and the system and helped feed Pinkston and the rest of the squad.

It resulted in another great win for Nova, and now a team that many picked to finish at the bottom of the Big East standings is not only sitting at 10-8 in conference play, but at 19-12 overall with big victories over Louisville, Syracuse and now Georgetown. With last night's capper, Villanova should be securely in the field of 68 — a win or two (or three) in the Big East Tournament, and it's not even a question.

After the muted celebration, we headed out for celebratory cheesesteaks, watched some Workaholics and then saw us all get Nnamdi'd.

Maybe he was calling Ruxin while he was eating lunch in his car. It all makes sense now, unlike the Big 5 this year.

But hey, Villanova got a great victory last night, Temple destroyed Fordham and St. Joe's really destroyed Rhode Island, so things aren't nearly as bad as they were just a little while ago for Philadelphia college basketball. And now there's a very real chance Nova, Temple and La Salle will be dancing. For the Wildcats, they can thank Georgetown for forgetting about JayVaughn Pinkston last night.

The Chicago Blackhawks Are Going Streaking … Still

The Chicago Blackhawks Are Going Streaking … Still

It's Friday, Time to Dance

It's been a bit of a tumultuous basketball season for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. They started out hot and climbed in the rankings, only to stumble and drop out of the Top 25 and all the way to the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Heading into Tuesday night's game against top-ranked Indiana, the Gophers had lost two in a row, four of their last five and were 3-8 in their last 11 games. Then they went out and defeated the Hoosiers and are now more than likely in the field of 68 sitting at 19-9 overall and 7-8 in perhaps the toughest conference in America, barring any Michigan-like catastrophic collapse against Big Ten basement dweller Penn State tomorrow.



That victory by Minnesota was huge, so what more appropriate time to show coach Tubby Smith, who seems like a genuinely awesome guy, lead a post-game dance party after a victory over Wisconsin earlier this year?



Enjoy the weekend, everyone. It's March now, meaning the madness is about to begin.

Tales From The 1982-83 NBA Champion Philadelphia 76ers Locker Room

Tales From The 1982-83 NBA Champion Philadelphia 76ers Locker Room

Props for Jay Wright

On Saturday, Villanova got a huge win against 17th-ranked Marquette. It was 'Nova's third win against top-20 competition this season, adding to their wins against #3 Syracuse and #5 Louisville. Add in their win against UConn and the Wildcats have 4 top-30 RPI wins. The win on Saturday inched Villanova a little bit closer to securing an NCAA tournament bid. And I am here to argue that this season's campaign is the best that coach Jay Wright has had on the Main Line.

That statement says a lot. Since Jay Wright took over on the Main Line, the Wildcats have made 7 NCAA tournament appearances and 3 NIT appearances. They've made a Final 4, an Elite 8, and two Sweet 16's. In 2005, they were a phantom traveling call on Allen Ray from reaching another Elite 8, and in 2006 they lost in the Elite 8, and an injury to Curtis Sumpter will leave that 'Nova squad forever in the "what might have been" category.



Coach Wright took over a mediocre program from former coach Steve Lappas and returned it to national prominence. Solid recruiting classes, perennial top-25 rankings, and trips to the NCAA tournament have become the norm at Villanova under Wright's guidance.



Last season they stumbled to a putrid 13-19 record. It was only the second time Villanova failed to record a winning record under Wright, and the only time during his tenure where they failed to qualify for any postseason basketball.

The season was a tough one for 'Nova fans to stomach, as they had gotten used to 20+ win seasons and NCAA tournament bids. It also opened the door for some of Wright's critics. Even the proprietor of this here site has been critical of Wright, citing that the coach has struggled at developing his usually stellar recruiting classes, although I certainly wouldn't classify the Rev a critic of Wright overall.

The disaster that was Villanova's 2011-2012 season had led to much-diminished expectations heading into this year. The Wildcats were picked by the Big East coaches to finish 12th in the conference this season (they currently sit tied for 7th at 9-6). You would be hard-pressed to find even the staunchest of 'Nova supporters and optimists claiming they expected the team to be anywhere near an NCAA tournament bid. Personally, at the beginning of the season I would have been satisfied with a .500 record and an NIT berth.

And yet here we are, in late February, and the Wildcats trending toward an invite to the Big Dance. They are 18-10 with three regular-season games remaining. They play Seton Hall tonight, who they should (and need to) beat. Knock on wood. Then they finish with tough games against two nationally ranked teams in Pitt and rival Georgetown.

It's still too early to try to figure out what the résumé will look like in two weeks' time. It could look about the same, or it could look drastically better or worse. But the fact that the Wildcats are squarely in the discussion and ultimately hold their fate in their own hands is a testament to the players and to the job coach Wright has done this season.

He's gotten his guys to play tough night in and night out. They've gutted out several wins. The biggest difference is that this year they are finding ways to win games that last year they would find a way to lose. I am equally surprised/excited/impressed with the season they have put together and where they stand with Selection Sunday drawing ever closer.

Perhaps even more importantly, the team seems to be in good hands going forward. Mouphtaou Yarou and Maurice Sutton are the only seniors on the team. Next season they will return the leadership and clutch play of James Bell, the steady play of an increasingly confident and comfortable JayVaughn Pinkston, and the hopefully improving play of already promising and impressive freshman Ryan Arcidiacono. Sophomore Darrun Hilliard has also surprised, showing flashes of offensive brilliance.

Regardless of how the rest of the season goes and what their ultimate fate concerning the NCAA tournament becomes, they have shown great improvement and growth from last year. They were coming off an abysmal season and into a season with low expectations. And they've been working with arguably the least amount of talent that they've had under Wright. So I just needed to give some props to coach, who is doing perhaps his best job since arriving on the Main Line, despite all the success he has already had there.

LeBron James Is Too Good

I was going to write about the Big 5 teams with NCAA Tournament hopes — La Salle, Villanova and Temple — all winning over the weekend, but I only watched the Nova game and don't have too much to say other than the Wildcats almost blew it because they stopped feeding Darrun Hilliard even though he was on fire.

Then I was debating writing about the Flyers or Sixers, but there's not too much I have to say at the moment.

And finally, I was gonna write about how LeBron James is the best basketball player I have ever seen, at least as an adult, after his triple-double against the Sixers, but I've already sang the praises of LeBron James here and elsewhere that there's not much to add.

Basically, to start the third quarter, LeBron simply decided he'd had enough of the Sixers and took over completely, even without shooting much, as James' 16 points were well behind teammate Dwyane Wade's 33. So instead, I'm just gonna put up LeBron's highlights from Saturday and leave it at that, because LeBron James is too good.