Will Wade Phillips hoist a second-place banner at the Pro Bowl?

Second place is just the first loser

Probably.

Why the Dallas Mavericks won't win the NBA Championship

J-Ho with decent game, but absent for the second half

The Dallas Mavericks will not make it past the second round of the NBA playoffs and here's why.

They can not defend if their ever-loving lives depended on it particularly on the perimeter.

The five on the floor with a minute left of the game tonioght against Portland: J.J. Barea, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Dirk Nowitzki and Drew Gooden.

Good fucking grief. That, friends, is called the lay-up drill defense because for all intents and purposes that's what the Blazers did all night in their 112-109 overtime win at the American Airlines Center.

Andre Miller was the biggest culprit. He lived at the rim getting 31 attempts, making 22 and scoring 52 points to completely pull down the pants of Barea, Terry and Kidd as all three toro'd Miller on his trip-by-trip journey to the basket.

I can not believe that Rick Carlisle looks at the court at Barea, Terry and Kidd with Steve Blake, Jerryd Bayless and Miller just ripping the Mavs a new asshole. Then he looks at his bench and sees Quinton Ross and Roddy Beaubois and thinks, "I realize I'm about to give up a home game to a conference rival because J.J. Barea couldn't guard a Special Olympics player, but that's OK. He's cute."

Miller played 42 minutes, shot the ball 31 times and went to the free-throw line just eight freakin' times. If Barea and Co. are going to do nothing else, couldn't they put a forearm into his back and put him on the floor.

What a waste. The Blazers shot 53 percent -- the billionth team in a row to do this to the Mavericks as of late. Over the season, their defensive numbers are fine. But as of late you can almost guarantee that the opponent will shot at least 50 percent.

Notes:
1. I guess Nate Batum is the new Dirk-killer. Maybe not.

2. Bayless has been on the Mavericks trade rumor list for the last year and a half. Always have loved the guy and the was great tonight.

3. Is Josh Howard so bad defensively now that we're putting Shawn Marion on Andre Miller?

4. The thing about Miller is that he's a notoriously bad jump shooter. I would've given him the space and let him take the jumper but not get around me.

5. Three-point shooting contest: Erick Dampier vs. Eddie Najera.

6. Jason Kidd out-assisted the Blazers on his own, 10-9.

Just like Auld times

We're going all Mo all the time until he quits scoring goals

For the foreseeable future, Alex Auld is the starting goalie for the Dallas Stars.

If the franchise has any aspirations for the playoffs, it'll be on Auld's back barring injury. He's won three of four starts while the Stars have run off five wins in their last seven games and two straight.

Auld, nor the Stars, have been particularly bright the last two weeks, but wins are wins are wins.

A particularly promising stat for the Stars is a nice 15-5-5 record at the American Airlines Center. They've won five straight at home and they've won all but one in the friendly confines of downtown Dallas.

Notes:
1. Mikey Mo with six goals in last eight games.

2. Nobody had Jamie Benn penned in for 10 goals and 13 assists.

3. Forty-five games and a +14 for Mark Fistric.

4. Fabian Brunnstrom sighting! It's like spying Bigfoot. Or Roddy Beaubois.

Bacsik vs. Redding

Duncanville's own Mike Bacsik is suddenly in the headlines again.

The other day, he -- Norm Hitzges' producer at The Ticket -- and former teammate Tim Redding got into a Twitter pissing match where the latter accused the former of grooving a pitch to Barry Bonds to hit the single-season record-breaking home run three years ago.

Suddenly, the blogs are lit up and he's calling into Baseball Tonight discussing the issue.

Bacsik seems like a funny guy. He's hilariously self-deprecating and admits that he wasn't very good and Bonds hitting that home run off him wasn't due to his purposeful pitch but his lack of talent.

Furthermore, he called Redding a bad teammate. He'd already intimated that if there was one guy to accuse him of the deed, it'd be Redding. On Baseball Tonight, he said that most consider Redding a bad teammate who's likely to call out guys on the bench or in the media. And if you look at Redding's career, you wonder how many pitches he's grooved over the years.

You've got to give Bacsik the benefit of the doubt. He's not making any more money off that infamous deed or else he wouldn't be putting up with Hitzges five days a week.

Do not mess with Mark Fistric

The young defensemen becoming a personal fav.

Not keepin' it realz

Keepin' it realz, with edge: When Josh Howard made jump shots

Today, you probably opened up your daily Dallas Morning News and watched Tim Cowlishaw pick up a paycheck for penning a column about the Pro Bowl being stupid.

Thanks, Tim. Without the watchdog media out there keeping sporting leagues and teams in check, there'd be mayhem. For years, we'd all operated under the assumption that the Pro Bowl was, in fact, not stupid. Again, thanks.

However, there was a bit of gold in today's edition. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban gave us all an explanation as to why Josh Howard has sucked ass this season.

No, not injuries or finding a role.

Apparently, the Mavericks have asked Howard to quit being a total fuck up off the court. As in, no drag racing, no public acknowledgement of pot use and no goofball videos with opinions of the national anthem.

This sea change for Howard has severely affected his game.

According to Cuban:

"Josh has worked so hard to be a good teammate and fit in that it's taken a little of the edge off of him. We've asked him to kind of change who he is a little bit, be – for lack of a better word – invisible. People were talking about him off the court. And he's done everything perfectly. He's been the ultimate professional and that sometimes takes an edge off of what happens on the court."

Ok. Surely Cuban doesn't think we're this stupid. Surely. Frankly, I've always considered Cuban the one executive in sports that will tell the fans how it is and not bullshit us with pseudo-psychological crap.

Alas, he's disappointed us all. Cuban is essentially telling us that because Howard has not been able to tell everyone about smoking out or drag racing, he's lost his edge and, thus, his ability to hit open jump shots and battle for lose balls.

What a bunch of assholes. It's a wonder we even care about these people, their teams and their games.

What would you take for the 2010 Texas Rangers?

If I told you right now that the Texas Rangers would finish third in the AL West with a solid 85-77 record and, yet, finish just two games out of the division, would you take it right now?

Considering the state of the team and long-term goal of turning around the attitude of losing, it's almost tempting. Almost. No, we're playoffs or bust.

Well, the friends at PECOTA have projected the Rangers at just that: 85 wins, third in division, two games out of the playoffs.

That projection I have little to argue with. I do have a problem with the Oakland Athletics winning the division, the Seattle Mariners finishing second and the California Angels suddenly falling off completely and finishing last.

They also have the Nationals at 82 wins, the Rays at 96 wins and the division and the world-champion New York Yankees out of the playoffs altogether (no matter how wonderful that would be, I find it unlikely).

The Big Lead took time to show just how inaccurate PECOTA was last season. It's a tough one.

So what are the expectations for the Rangers? It's an ownership change, but that shouldn't matter. This team has got to be better right? I expect 90 wins and no less. At least within four games of the division if they don't take it altogether.

Jackson Jeffcoat has a home

One of the best defensive linemen in recent Dallas-Fort Worth high school football history is going to the University of Texas.

Jackson Jeffcoat, son of the Dallas Cowboy great, announced his intentions this morning at a press conference (!) this morning. These kids don't need press conferences. Just announce it.

He passed up Oklahoma and Houston (where his daddy coaches. His sister will play basketball for Oklahoma. Put some pads on her and she can probably play receiver for the Sooners.

Jeffcoat is the 12th highest ranked high school prospect in the nation and the third-best defensive end.

The kid is 6-5 and 230 pounds.

Some things just got to change

After the Dallas Mavericks were kicked in the nuts by the Phoenix Suns last night 112-106, I decided to finally have a breakdown and shoot everyone straight.

Some things have got to change. Or else. Or else the No. 2 seed, all these wins, Dirk Nowitzki's prime, Jason Kidd's death rattle does not matter in the least.

Josh Howard Needs To Leave From Here
When he's not hurt, he's sucked. He's been benched. That has not lit a fire underneath him. He's never shot well in the fourth quarter. Now he shoots like shit in the first quarter. I believe -- judging from his play, body language -- that he is simply miserable and could possibly be dealing with some heavy personal stuff that has little to do with basketball or his ankles and knees. He looks like a mess. I agree that no one would trade for him to be a rotation guy right now. But he does have a $10 million expiring contract.

J.J. Barea Needs To Leave Or Have His Minutes Cut In Half
Not in my NBA -- the game of Jordan, Bird, Chamberlain, Russell, Magic, Mikan, Cousy, Walton and West -- should J.J. Barea be getting any more than five minutes per game. In fact, if you wanted to cut him right now and let him latch onto the Clippers or Bobcats, so be it. I'm sorry that Barea is 5-4. I really am. But he is no different from the other four trillion people on this Earth that can not and do not play in the NBA. He is a liability on the floor any time he rips off those warm-up pants. He is atrocious defensively and if he's not shooting well (which he hasn't) he has zero, zero, zero value as an NBA player. He's a joke.

Dirk Nowitzki Needs More Than One Shot In The Fourth Quarter If The Game Is In Doubt
Doesn't take a coaching genius to figure that one out.

The Mavs Need To Nut Up And Play Some Defense
For about the 20th game in a row, the Mavs allowed a team to shoot more than 50 percent from the field (55 percent for the Suns). They also went nine for 15 from the three-point arc. INSANE! What happened to all these great perimeter defenders that we went out and got? Shawn Marion?? Quinton Ross?? James Singleton??

Why Go Out And Get Guys To Sit On The Bench?
Are you trying to convince me that Ross, Singleton, Tim Thomas, Eddie Najera, Roddy Beaubois and Matt Carroll are all that useless? If so, why trade for them? Why sign them to free agent contracts? Are all those guys worse than J.J. Barea? There is no way in hell! The personnel on this team (and the talent evaluators) are piss poor. Trade for a giant German a decade ago on draft day and suddenly your Red Auerbach.

I'm pissed, obviously. Maybe I'm overreacting to a decent road loss to a good team. Maybe not. Maybe all of this was apparent to me two months ago (most of it was, but how many times can you rail against Barea?).

I'm sick of it. I'm sick of this team wasting Nowitzki's career because we have zero trade chips and we give bit players massive five- or six-year contracts. I'm tired of getting decent, workable guys in free agency or trade just to see their usefulness wasted on the bench for a midget Puerto Rican who epitomizes the lack of toughness that has plagued this franchise for 20 years.

And I'm not going to take it anymore.

RIP J.D. Salinger

Pour one out for ol' J.D. Salinger. A brilliant writer, whose bulb was a little too bright to shine for long.

If you haven't, dig deep into just about anything he wrote. My favorite all-time writer and someone that I read over and over again without getting tired and seeing something new with each stroll through his works.

Ranger prospects rank and rank hard

When Smoak gets in our eyes

ESPN's Keith Law and MLB.com's Jon Mayo released their list of the top 50 MLB prospects.

Law is an Insider deal. However, Mayo is free to the public. And it includes video vignettes with every player.

The future Rangers that ranked withe Mayo:

39. Tanner Scheppers
Fans may not know (I don't think I fully realize) what a potential steal they got getting Scheppers at No. 44 in last year's draft.

18. Martin Perez
Maybe a little low. Perez gets the Johan Santana comparisons again. So sweet to see him in Frisco this season.

9. Justin Smoak
Will see see him in Arlington in July? I would not doubt it. If you want to vomit, watch the videos because John Hart is on there blowing and blowing hard. Smoak is described as having the "best plate discipline in the minors." He gets Lance Berkman, Justin Morneau and Mark Teixeira comparisons.

7. Neftali Feliz
Still a prospects despite his games last season and his probability of starting the season as a Ranger. The debate rages as to whether he'll start or relieve.

Nothing is easy

Isn't it good to be able to laugh a little bit?

There's something to be said for winning easy in professional sports. I look at the Los Angeles Lakers and if they win the game (which they do quite a bit) they win easy. Hardly are they ever in a nail biter with Milwaukee or Indiana.

The Dallas Stars do nothing easy. They haven't in years. Inherently, hockey isn't easy although it always appears the Washington Capitals or Detroit Red Wings make it look easy.

The Stars aren't the worst team, but they're definitely not the best, which is kind of the point of playing the games. They beat Calgary last night, 4-3, in overtime.

Yes, they've won four of six and are two points out of a playoff spot. But this is the same team that just two weeks ago lost six of seven and look awful every other night. It has zero goaltending, a so-so to bad defense. Should they eke into the playoffs, it simply wouldn't matter.

Don't think the Stars think any other way. That's why names like Marty Turco and Mike Modano are showing up in trade rumors. Seemingly inconcionable ideas a mere year ago. Not these days. And you wonder if other guys aren't on the block for the right price.

As was the case last season, it's a team that puts too much into playing every night to keep it up over the long haul and I wholly suspect them to fall somewhere in the 11th seed by the year's end.

Notes:
1. Modano has four games in last seven games. Scoring his 10th last night, he has double-digit goals in every season ... for 21 years.

2. Brad Richards is putting together a sweet season. About this time last season, he was already out for the years. He's sitting at 59 points in just 51 games.

3. Where is this team without Alex Auld. Weird saying that considering he hasn't been that good and they're currently the 10th seed. Still, three straight shoot-out saves for the two points.

4. Matt Niskanen's struggles stem from his eyes being too close together. I'm convinced.

5. Love the play of Karlis Skrastins. Unfortunately, he's not a player that puts you over the edge defensively. He's a gritty player that blocks shots and works out the elbow grease. Great for the 1998 Stars. Not the 2010 Stars.

Wednesday Rangers tidbits

Toby Hall of Montezuma

Texas Rangers president Nolan Ryan revealed yesterday that Major League Baseball took over operations with the franchise around June or July of last season.

Humiliating. Essentially, Ryan had to get an OK on all deals or ideas from the league and not necessary from owner Tom Hicks. If you wondered why the team didn't sign first-round draft pick Matt Purke, this is why. He wanted about $7 million and the league wouldn't allow them to spend it.

Just humiliating.

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The Milwaukee Brewers claimed infielder Joe Inglett off the waiver wire.

****
The Rangers signed veteran catcher Toby Hall. He's insurance in case Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Taylor Teagarden are either hurt or unable to really perform. Hall's solid. An OK hitter paired with above average defense.

The Uwe Blog Awards

Three years and about 2,600 posts later and here we stand. It's still fun to come on here and comment about the bullshit from individual games to batshit crazy players, owners, fans, coaches, media folk and everyone else in between.

It's fun times even if no one really reads this little venture. It's fun to really dig deep into these franchises and people because we actually care so much about them for one reason or another.

Granted, we care about DeMarcus Ware as a person whereas we care about Terrell Owens for whatever stunt he'll pull next. Whether we want to admit it or not, we miss the TOs of the world when they're in Buffalo.

So, here's to another year in Dallas-Fort Worth sports. Hope it's a good one with a Rangers World Series.

Best Ranger
Elvis Andrus
Changed the way we watched Rangers baseball. No longer did we look forward to the Rangers at bat. Instead, we pined for a hard grounder as far away from Andrus as possible so he could make the play unmade by this team the last 30 years. Oh yeah. He could hit, too and steal a couple of bases.

Best Star
James Neal
A thin group to pick from. Most were injured or inept. Neal had a solid rookie effort last season and has continued that play through 2009-10. A probable 30-goal talent just waiting to explode.

Best Maverick
Dirk Nowitzki
Until further notice.

Best Cowboy
DeMarcus Ware
Do you look at other teams and wonder how they come out with a marquee, perfect, amazing player almost by blind luck in the draft? Well, the Dallas Cowboys did that five years ago with DeMarcus Ware late in the first round of the NFL Draft. Yes, Bill Parcells and Jerry Jones duped the NFL, all 20-odd teams that passed on the defender from Troy University. Today, they have a perfect defender. He plays the defensive end position to perfection -- like Charlie Parker and the saxophone or Picasso with oils and a canvas. A true master.

Best Owner
Jerry Jones
Oversaw the completion of JerryWorld, paid for it out of his nose, paid for a pretty competitive team. He was so busy with non-football stuff, we didn't really notice him doing football stuff like sticking his nose in junk. For better or worse, this was Wade Phillips' team all the way.

Best GM
Jon Daniels
Special thanks to ol' Nolan Ryan, who without him Daniels wouldn't have a leg to stand on. Daniels helped the Texas Rangers stay the course in pushing along the team's prospects being overly patient with kids (and Ron Washington) in the Majors. Partly handcuffed by the economy and his owner's bills, Daniels has made a career in frugal free agent signings and trades. The Rangers were competitive, fun and intersting. This year, they should be all of that and good this season.

Best Trade
Shawn Marion
The Mavs swapped dead weight Devean George, Antoine Wright and Jerry Stackhouse for Shawn Marion and Greg Buckner. It gave the Mavs a true perimeter defender who can play both forward positions and guard everyone from Kobe Bryant to Lebron James. Relatively speaking, Marion's been quite the disappointment considering his 2009-10 output, but any time you turn Wright, Stackhouse and George into a quality, everyday, starting player it's a good trade.

Worst Trade
Roy Williams
The swap of the disgruntled Detroit Lions receiver for a Cowboys first, third and sixth rounder took place in 2008. But not until 2009 did we fully realize what a heist that was for the Lions. Even if they strike out with the picks. They get out of paying Williams to be a half-assed No. 2 receiver plus get the picks. There wasn't a worse personnel moved made the last decade (and that's saying something) and the worst ever perpertrated by Jerry Jones.

Best Free Agent
Keith Brooking
At some point last spring, Wade Phillips walked into Jerry Jones' office. Jones asked Phillips what he wanted. Phillips: "Keith Brooking." Jones went out and got Phillips what he wanted. To the public and media, it was a lark move to help fill in the spot vacated by Zach Thomas. He was a cheap fill at middle linebacker. Who knows what Brooking would bring. Phillips knew he was bringing in a guy who knew his defense, who could bring leadership and quality play that he wouldn't need to worry about. And he'd keep everyone accountable. He changed the attitude of the Dallas Cowboys defense and helped turn them into a top 5 defense.

Worst Free Agent
Kris Benson
All apologies to Andruw Jones, but he at least was usable. Benson was brought in as a probability for the rotation. Then he proceeded to suck in every facet, on every level.

Best College Player
Ndamukong Suh
No defensive tackle effected college football games like Suh at the University of Nebraska. Hell, most running backs or quarterbacks didn't effect games as much as Suh did.

Best College Team
TCU Horned Frogs
Suddenly, on any given Saturday this November, you'd go to the grocery story in Dallas-Fort Worth and see a dozen purple sweatshirts, T-shirts or hats. Walk into a department or sports equipment store and you'd see racks and racks of Horned Frog wear. Oh, and Gary Patterson and Co. could play a little football.

Best Coach/Manager
June Jones
Actually a toughie. Rick Carlisle turned water into wine with the Mavericks. Gary Patterson, Mack Brown, Ron Washington, Bill Self and others deserve massive credit. But none of them inherited one of the worse teams in their respective leagues and turn them into winners.

Best Radio Personality
Craig "Junior" Miller, 1310 The Ticket
A dry wit with a love for the NBA and the NFL. His top 5/bottom 5, Friday Morning Scattershooting and You're An Asshole If... are must-listens at every opportunity. He doesn't "play" devil's advocate to partner George Dunham's aw-shucks, glass-half-full mindset. I think he is the devil to Dunham's inability to think nothing bad of anyone. His cynicism only makes him more genuine and likable to the Dallas-Fort Worth masses.

Best Newspaper Personality
Evan Grant, Inside Corner-Dallas Morning News
Got pushed out at the News only to be scooped up by D Magazine's Inside Corner. Then ESPNDallas came and picked the bones of the News. Thus, they had the cash to bring Grant back after Inside Corner went belly up. His injection into Dallas-Fort Worth sports writing is a Godsend.

Best TV Personality
Babe Laufenberg, CBS 11
I think he's won this all three years. I really like Mike Doocy, but Laufenberg has a bit of everything including the Dallas Cowboys radio gig and all the insider Cowboy interviews. Doocy gets Dallas Morning News writers.

Best Blog
Inside Corner
Alas, Inside Corner bit the dust months ago as it just kinda lost momentum. Or so it was explained as such to the public. Inside Corner was the product of D Magazine's online wing, spearheaded by Evan Grant, a Dallas Morning News ex-pat, who found himself on the outside looking in after the News co-oped their Rangers coverage with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Grant was fantastic as the brought along fellow Newsers like Mike Hindman to provide excellent, in-depth coverage of the Rangers. Bob Sturm was later added to provide depth for the Cowboys and Stars.

Top 5 DFW Sports Stories
5. JerryWorld/Video Board-gate
By far the most impressive thing built in this area in decades. Unfortunately, the positioning of the stupid gigantoid video board stole all the heads.

4. Tom Hicks Goes For Broke
Hicks made his fortune by buying companies, putting lipstick on them and selling them. With the Rangers, he bought the franchise, put A-Rod lipstick on it, held on too long and lost his ass. Hicks was entirely out of his element of unloading assets by buying a sports franchise.

3. Dirk's Gal Pal Has A Past
This story had several facets and incredible legs for being so TMZ-ey: First, disbelief. Then awe. Next, we hated her. Then we couldn't understand why he didn't realize she was a criminal drifter. Finally, resolution.

2. TCU's Perfect Season
As stated, everyone suddenly became a Horned Frog fan seemingly overnight. Suddenly, top 10 college football was being played miles from our homes.

1. Pirate Sails Into The Sunset
The most recent story. Adam James gets a concussion. Texas Tech head football coach thinks he should practice. Leach puts Jones in broom closet. Jones spills beans. Tech cuts bait while they can. Verbal attacks in the media. It was as messy and juicy as eating a grapefruit.

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Our year in YouTube:

Defending deep

J-Ho

The Dallas Mavericks limped out of the American Airlines Center 108-107, barely dodging an awful home loss to the lowly Milwaukee Bucks.

The big story out of this game is that the Mavs tied the league's mark for most consecutive 1-point victories at 10. This is quite a feat. Now, it's more or less a lesson in futility and luck. Winning or losing by one point in the NBA is a 50-50 proposition. You don't aim to beat anyone by one. It just happens. Two, the Mavs are beating really bad teams by one point.

Three of their last four one-point wins have come against Milwaukee, Washington and Charlotte. And all of this doesn't include the bad 2-point wins.

The Mavs were actually up by five or six with about two minutes left and were on their way to beating the Bucks by 10.


The Mavs actually had zero interest in winning this game. As bad as the Mavs played, the Bucks just got kind of unlucky. The Bucks shot 53 percent (on the road!), made nine three pointers and if not for four missed free throws, this is a different game.

It appears to me that the Mavs tend to unravel in semi-close games. I'm reminded of the Phoenix game last month (another 1-point win) when the Suns just lit up the Mavs late in the fourth quarter to make it a close game. Carlos Delfino's three pointer late killed the Mavs.

Yet, the Mavs aren't a bad defensive team. They're in the top 10 in opposition field goal percentage and smack dab in the middle for three-point percentage. I'd love to see their three-point percentage against in the final two minutes of a game. I'd guess 80 percent.

When the season ends, we may not remember these close shaves. Soon they may turn on the jets and start winning by 15 every game. But I think this is a bad sign and coaches need to take notice.

Notes:

1. Andrew Bogut absolutely abused Erick Dampier hitting 13 of this 14 shots for 32 points.

2. Roddy Beaubois needs 15 minutes a game.

3. Jason Terry's shot 16 of 27 in his last two games.

4. The Bucks backcourt shot 6 of 20.

5. No prob with Dirk Nowitzki's 28-8-5. Very complete game.

6. He also tied Brad Davis for most games played in a Mavericks uniform.

No one on the Texas Rangers is safe

Mitch rider: Hilligoss

Bodies are hitting the floor in the Texas Rangers franchise. No one is safe. Ian Kinsler had better watch his back.

The team DFA'd utility infielder Joe Inglett. He was picked off waivers from the Blue Jays and projected to start the season on the Rangers bench. Instead, he'll either get claimed (if the Rangers did, don't think another team won't) or he'll pass through and get an assignment to Oklahoma City.

Inglett is being pulled from the 40 man for Colby Lewis.

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Greg Golson, the former Phillies farmhand traded for John Mayberry Jr., was DFA'd last week and traded today to the New York Yankees for Mitch Hilligoss.

Hilligoss, 24, has hit .275 collectively with the Yankees organization. He played at High A Tampa Bay last season. I would suspect Bakersfield would be his destination unless the RoughRiders need a shortstop (he plays third, too).

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The Oakland Athletics won the ballyhooed Ben Sheets Sheets-stakes (unofficial name) getting him for one year and $10 million. Yowzas. Where'd small-market Oakland get that cash? Hot dog prices will skyrocket in northern California this season. I'm sure that was entirely too rich for the Rangers' blood.

What we learned about the Dallas Cowboys

I can see for Miles

Why was 2009-10 a successful year for the Dallas Cowboys? Because despite the stats, wins, playoffs and division titles, the Cowboys figured some things out.

Tell me, what did we really learn from 2008-09? Nothing. Left with more questions than answers. I think I could say the same for the 13-3 season. Still a lot of questions although we think we had a pretty good idea about some things. Still, it was a photo out of focus.

Fans should be happy with this last season because there are fewer questions than questions. And some of hte questions could be pretty easily answered with a few swift moves.

We Learned That Tony Romo Is Alright
Most people point to the first New York Giants game -- the home opener -- after Romo threw three interceptions as the game that a switch in Romo's brain was triggered and he finally got it. They say it's when the game slows to a crawl. When you step up to the line and you see the play unfolding before the ball's even placed in his hands. Peyton Mannings been this way for a while now. Romo looked like it for most of the season.

We Learned The Cowboys Have A No. 1 Receiver On Their Roster
Of course, Miles Austin. Can you believe the Cowboys star quarterback and receiver are both undrafted free agents? Crazy. Austin runs good routes, gets separation, great hands, good speed, ability to break tackles and is as reliable as Christmas Day.

We Learned That The Roy Williams Trade Is The Biggest Pockmark On Jerry Jones' Legacy
At least as general manager. We're quick to delineate because Jones the owner just wants to win and spends a lot of money to do it. Bitch about the Joey Galloway all you want, but this one's worse because you essentially traded all those draft picks and Terrell Owens for Roy Williams. Hell, Galloway at least had some output.

We Learned That Felix Jones Can Stay Healthy, Is Probably The Feature Back
Marion Barber can not run outside of the tackles. Even when he is healthy. And he's not healthy a lot. Jones, although, proved he can stay healthy and that he is a dynamic player who needs to touch the football 25 times a game.

We Learned The Cowboys Need A Kicker

We Learned Mike Jenkins Is Good
If you follow enough sports, you read and hear about players all the time "figuring it out" and "turning the corner." These often happen in practice and the off-season. Yet, when the games count those lessons are not learned, the corners not turned. This is not the case for Mike Jenkins. Before this season, he was best known for dogging it against the New York Giants feigning an attempt of a tackle on Brandon Jacobs. This season, we learned he's by far the the best corner on the team. With that said ...

We Learned The Cowboys Should Become Disloyal
Modern sports fans hate that players don't spend their entire career with one team anymore. But you must consider the situation from the team's point of view. What if that player just isn't any good? If Stan Musial was hitting .230 for the St. Louis Cardinals, I'd bet the team would take a different view of his career (Musial hit a career-low .255 before he retired in 1963). The Cowboys need to seriously consider the careers of Terence Newman, Flozell Adams and Andre Gurode. No, you probably shouldn't get rid of them like garbage. Just consider them. If you can draft or sign a free agent for offensive tackle, center or cornerback, take a shot.

We Learned Wade Phillips Can Coach Defense
Not that we thought he couldn't. But in sports the proof is always in the pudding. And Wade Phillips eats the pudding.

We Learned The Importance Of Special Teams
David Buehler and Mat McBriar's impact is exponential. Not having a reliable place kicker can mean the difference between playoffs or no. Solid coverage and field position turns losses into wins.

Mark Cuban's bane: NBA trade rumors started by blogs, Vol. III

It was the Butler the whole time

If Internet rumors are any indication (and I don't see why not), the Dallas Mavericks are buyers in a seller's market.

This entails severals things:

1. The Mavs can not only improve their team by leaps and bounds this season, but for the next three or four -- the remainder of Dirk Nowitzki's so-called "prime" before he hits the mid-30s.

2. They can do all of this on the relative cheap. In terms of the trade, anyways. Mark Cuban's forking over for one of the top five payrolls in the league anyway. Adding a costly veteran into the mix will only make his tab higher. However, much like what the Los Angeles Lakers did to absolutely steal Pau Gasol from the Grizzlies, the savvy Mavericks can possibly do the same for a cash-strapped franchise how may or may not need a complete do over.

Enter the Washington Wizards. Weeks ago, two Wizards were implicated in a locker room incident in which Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton (oddly enough, one of the players the Grizz got in the Gasol trade) pulled guns on each other after a card game.

All indications are that the Wizards may want to rebuild their team and if they can lighten the payroll along the way, so be it.

The Mavs could target (sorry) any Wizard sharpshooters (not doing this on purpose) in a swap and watch their own potential shoot (maybe ...) up the ranks with a bullet (doing it purpose).

Our man: Caron Butler.

The Player
Butler is a not-quite-30-year-old swingman. He's 6-7, but plays long with those pterodactyl arms. Bad news is that he's never played 82 games in a season (not even 80) and hasn't played more than 70 since 2005-06. He's never been fully healthy and he'll miss two or three weeks a season (although he's remained healthy this season).

Judging anything about Butler's career is tough. He has odd statistical anomalies that cloud what kind of a player he really is. I thought he was great at Miami and Los Angeles and why neither team had any use for him is a mystery. Kinda makes you wonder about the guy as a teammate. Nonetheless, I consider him a very good defender against two-guards or small forwards, who is long, a good rebounder for his position, a good passer and an OK scorer. He doesn't shoot the three pointer well. He's not going to the free-throw line 10 times a game, but he shoots from the charity at a 85 percent clip.

Just about every season there's ticks upwards and downwards in his stats. Nothing flows and there's little consistency from year to year. In 2006-07, Butler averaged 2.3 offensive rebounds for the season. He had never and has never approached that average since.

In his entire career, there's never been a season when his three-point percentage hasn't gone up or down at least three percentage points. At one point, it went from 31 to 23 to 30 to 34 to 25 to 35. Maybe it's his health. Maybe it's unfair expectations. He's not a No. 1 scorer. May not be a No. 2 guy, but he's best fit in a support role. Think a less-high (we assume), better passing Josh Howard.

The Money
Of all the guys we've kinda featured in Mavericks trade rumors, Butler has the least scary contract. It runs out after next season at $10 million. The Wiz are in an odd place because they have eight guys with expiring contracts. They should shed about $26 million after the season. If any team is capable of blowing up their team and still looking good for next season it's the Wiz. Nick Young and Andray Blatche (both under contract through 2011-12) are both desirable young men. Plus the expiring deals. They could be busy. With cash to spare.

The Team
Butler is not a scorer. He's improved in his shooting over the years, but I don't know if he fits what the Mavs need (a true No. 2 scorer) as much as other names out there. His ancillary skills like passing, rebounding and defense are really nice benefits, but do the Mavs need two long forward-types who can't score (the other being Shawn Marion)? Hardly. Add this to his health issues and his down 2009-10 season and it looks like a bad deal.

When Should Mark Cuban Pull The Trigger?
I wouldn't. But I'm an idiot. So don't listen to me. Butler's been rumored in potential deals for the Nets' Devin Harris or the Rockets' Tracy McGrady. Don't know if the Wiz are truly interested in those deals or not, but all indications are that they want actual talent (not cap relief) in return. Again, they'll have plenty of room to make a splash this off-season if they want.

It's also worth pointing out that generally speaking, the Mavs haven't got into heavy bidding wars with other players. They'd just as well get Eddie Najera, Shawne Williams or Antoine Wright to fix their bench. Was anyone breaking down the door for Raef LaFrentz or Shawn Bradley? Even the Jason Kidd deal looked like a two-horse race with San Antonio and even they seemed to back down. Not that Cuban or Donnie Nelson backs away from deals where many teams are involved, but it doesn't seem like something they like to do (essentially overpaying based on demand).

Rumors started in the past:
Kevin Martin
Andre Iguodala

Straightening out the Rangers starting rotation

Feliz it or not, pitchers and catchers report soon

The Texas Rangers, over the past two years, have found themselves int quite the conundrum. Increasingly, they've have more starting rotation candidates than they have spots.

This year, the problem/luxury is multiplied. I count nine candidates. Still, five spots.

All of this considering the Rangers traded Kevin Millwood opening up a spot and the potential that the Rangers might give Ben Sheets a good, long look.

The Shoe-Ins
Scott Feldman
Staked his claim with 17 wins and a 4.08 ERA last season. No brainer.

Rich Harden
He's the reason you need nine rotation candidates. Healthy, he's the team's ace. Should his 2010 follow the same suit as his previous years, he'll be lucky to get 150 innings.

Colby Lewis
All indications are that Lewis -- former first-round pick, current retrieval from the top of the Japanese pops -- is all but guaranteed a rotation spot. I don't know why. At 30, Lewis is suddenly this rotation's elder statesman.

Contenders
Tommy Hunter
I seriously don't understand how you just hand a rotation spot to Lewis and keep Hunter on the fringes when Hunter has proven himself at every level (including the Majors) and Lewis hasn't (except Japan). I'd consider Hunter a lock for at least the fifth starter's spot.

Brandon McCarthy
The Rangers just have to get 30 starts out of him. Otherwise, I think the Rangers stash him in the bullpen. I think they're sick of his song and dance. Nothing is guaranteed for this guy despite having as much talent as just about anyone else on this list.

Fringe Of The Fringe
C.J. Wilson
Wilson's stated on numerous occasions that he wants to start or close. His closing days are probably over whether he makes the rotation or not. He's a hard throwing lefty with an alleged five- or six-pitch arsenal ideal for a starter's role. Wilson was great last year, but he hasn't started since 2005 and that was limited. Rangers seem intent on making this transition.

Derek Holland
It's a tough one, pal. Holland was rushed to the Majors last season despite only a handful of starts above Single A. Naturally, he struggled with flashes of brilliance. I think it'd be hard to send him to the minors at this point. I'd think they'd put him in the bullpen in case a starter's spot doesn't open up.

Neftali Feliz
Electric in his second-half Major-League debut last season. Now they're stretching him to be a starter, a role he pursued for most of his minor league career. The Rangers would kill to get him into the rotation.

Matt Harrison
Put up as dominant three-game stretch last season as any guy on the team. Then he got hurt. I personally really like the guy and I hope it works out with him. However, there's a lot of talent above him.

Fringe Of The Fringe Of The Fringe
Dustin Nippert, Willie Moscoso, Eric Hurley (still rehabbing), Doug Mathis and Tanner Scheppers.

Ding-dong, Tom Hicks is dead

Adios, mofo

Tom Hicks is not dead, actually. Except for those creditors leaving messages on his machine, he's probably doing pretty well.

To every Texas Rangers fan in the world, good news on a large scale befell us. Chuck Greenberg and his group (which includes Nolan Ryan and oddly, Hicks himself) have come to an agreement with Hicks to purchase the Rangers.

Now, the MLB owners and the four billion creditors knocking on Hicks' door need to OK the deal. That'll take forever.

This is good stuff. For one, it's all coming down before the season (hell, before pitchers and catchers). All the coaches and players won't be distracted wondering if some Japanese conglomerate is going to sweep in, fire everyone and create a team of Hideki Matsui robots. Shake up in ownership is not good no matter what the company or if you're making $12 million a year to throw a baseball.

Two, Greenberg has stated that on July 30 if the Rangers are in a position to make a trade to get better, the trigger will be pulled. No matter how much payroll is added.

Yeah. We'll believe it when we see it.

Still, it's good to be optimistic. All I know is that Hicks won't spend money. Greenberg's unknown ideology on spending money to win games is at the very least comforting.

Greenberg is and, I guess, was a sports attorney. He helped Mario Lemieux get the Penguins. He helped Bernie Kosar get some franchise. But Kosar's broke right now. Not the greatest of signs.

The word on the street is that Greenberg is a savvy marketing guy. Hopefully he realizes that owners don't make money until they sell the thing. Good riddance, Mr. Hicks.

Brett Favre and his unseemly demise

Breesy

I proudly went 2-0 in predicting the weekend's conference championships in the NFL. And I am proud. Those were two bitching games to get a handle on. That puts me at a sad 4-6 for the playoffs. But nonetheless.

One aspect of the Minnesota-New Orleans game that no one is talking about (or so I've heard) is the previous plays before Brett Favre threw that "oh-shit!!!" interception in the waning seconds of the game.

With about 1:40 left in the game, Favre completed that fantastic seam route to Sidney Rice for 20 yards. The very next play, Chester Taylor goes for 14 yards to the Saints' 33-yard-line with a little more than a minute to play.

At this point, it's about a 50-yard field goal attempt for Ryan Longwell. And for these playoffs, that's not close enough.

The Vikings then run Taylor and Adrian Peterson on consecutive plays for no gain to run the clock from about a minute to under 20 seconds with third-down looming.

Why did Minnesota suddenly clam up, start running the ball and let the time run? Shouldn't you try to get 10-15 yards on first, second or third down?

Instead, they got nothing, lost another five on penalty and Favre threw the worst pass of his career. Game over.

Minnesota is the worst coached 12-4 team in the league.

The games:

Indianapolis Colts 30, New York Jets 17
I thought the Colts would simply be too much for the under-everythinged Jets. Unlike the Bengals and Chargers, there wouldn't be dropped balls, missed tackles, penalties, balls thrown 10 yards over receivers' heads, balls thrown 10 feet in front of receivers' feet. None of the bullshit that the Jets feasted on would be there on the plate with the Colts. And it wasn't. The Colts drove the ball regularly down the Jets' throats. They ran with ease (something they didn't do the rest of the season) and Manning was kept upright and throwing for 98 percent of the game.

What's amazing about the Colts is every one of their pass catchers has great hands. In fact, the guy with the best hands (Dallas Clark) dropped two passes. They're suddenly deep and young in this area which should keep Manning in the playoffs for the next eight years.

No love lost for the Jets, though. Rex Ryan is a great snake oil salesman, but I wasn't buying. Between his defense and Manning, I'll take Manning 10 out of 10 times. Mark Sanchez was impressive at spots, but it was the Colts' day.

New Orleans Saints 31, Minnesota Vikings 28
What can I possibly say about this game that you don't already know? You can't put the ball on the turf eight times and win a game. Simply can't. Vikings damn-near did. But they didn't.

Everyone's talking about Brett Favre and his protection (or lack thereof). Again, and like the clock management stuff discussed above, I think the beating he took hangs squarely on the coaching staff. Everyone knows that you stop blitzes and overanxious pass rushers by running the ball. The Vikings did run 36 times, but Adrian Peterson got it only 25 times in a close game over 60 minutes against the worst rush defense in the league. Peterson had a field day. With 35-40 rushes, he probably goes for 200 and wins the game. The Vikings would milk the clock a bit more, it saves Favre from breaking every bone in his body. The Vikings win if Favre isn't dropping back 46 times. Ridiculous!

Worth noting: The Vikings had little issue going up and down the field. How will Manning and the Colts do in the Super Bowl?

Go Knicks!

"Frodo, you must go to Mt. Doom and destory the ring!"

Life got you down? Shots not going in like they used to? Tired? Run down?

The solution: The New York Knickerbockers.

There is absolutely nothing better than watching your fav team just completely and utterly knock the living daylights out of another team. I think it's a tad better when it's at home, but, nonetheless, the Dallas Mavericks blowing out the Knicks by 50 points is as sweet as they come on a Sunday morning.

With games like this, there's always cool numbers. Here's 10:

58
The Mavs' shooting percentage for the game. Going 50-86.

45
Rebounds for the Mavs, which is ridiculous since the Knicks shot 33 percent. Without Erick Dampier, they were killed on the boards as the Knicks got 22 offensive rebounds and still lost by 50 points.

13
Points for Roddy Beaubois getting his most minutes in a month. Filled up the box score with six rebounds, five assists and three steals. Still say he has more than J.J. Barea.

15
Minutes for Josh Howard. Hurt? Slumping?

17
Free-throw attempts for the Mavs. Really low considering their point total and the differential.

12
Three-pointers for the Mavs in 22 attempts.

70
Points scored by the Mavs in the second and third quarters compared to 31 for the Knicks.

18
Rebounds for Drew Gooden. He had a double-double by the half.

12
Shot attempts by Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry to lead the team. Only four Mavs had double-digit attempts against seven Mavs having double-digit scoring. Efficient.

11
Double-digit wins for the Mavs this year. Oddly, not enough.

Prediction games like I'm not even trying

For the record, I'm 2-6 in picking NFL playoff games the last two weeks. Experts and media folk wish they could be as inept as me. I mean, you can't even try to do that poorly.

So, here my excuses for last week:

Dallas Cowboys
I got caught up in the idea that the Vikings were a bit overrated and that the Cowboys defense could stop Adrian Peterson (they kinda did) and force Brett Favre to throw 40 times in a close game (he did, it wasn't). I should know that teams don't go 12-4 by accident. Also, do not underestimate Vikings defense.

Arizona Cardinals
Frankly, I just hate the Saints. It was purely emotional and based on very little in terms of real entities. I should never predict with my heart.

San Diego Chargers
I am shocked every week the New York Jets keep winning. Ever watch kung-fu movies or any fighting movie or TV show were all the bad guys engage the good guy one on one. But if they just all ganged up, grabbed the guy and just slit his throat, they would win. That's the way I feel about the Jets. I don't understand why teams just don't walk up, gang up and slit their throats. Like Norv Turner's the Joker setting up some elaborate mousetrap contraption to kill Batman ... or in this case Rex Ryan, Fatman.

To this week's massacre:

New York Jets vs. Indianapolis Colts
As stated, I can't imagine the Colts losing if they play like they can. The Indy starters haven't lost a game all season. The only good part of their team (Peyton Manning) is great. However, the rest (defense, run game) is resilient and seems to come up when they need it. They've absolutely got to get ahead and stop the run (the Jets might run 40 times still down 21 points) and try to get the ball in Mark Sanchez's hands as much and as soon as possible.

Colts 23, Jets 17

Minnesota Vikings vs. New Orleans Saints
Last week, home-field advantage meant everything. Home teams went 3-1. Including the New Orleans Saints and the Minnesota Vikings, who finished 9-0 within the friendly and safe confines of the Metrodome or whatever it's called. The Katrinas have an infamous home-field advantage. A dome once filled with refugees is not filled with "die-hard" Saints fans, none of whom claimed the team the last 20 years as that place fell silent during the long era of the Saints lean years. The Saints and their whole connection with that hurricane and the mayhem and ensued makes me sick.

All eyes will be on Brett Favre this weekend. Deservedly so. However, this is a huge week for Drew Brees. I think everyone considers him a good to great quarterback and a pretty swell dude. Still, there's a stigma on the guy that Kurt Warner, Favre, the Manning Brothers and others don't have: Greatness as a thrower (which Brees has) and as a quarterback). Tons of guys can throw a ball far, hard, accurately, quickly, under durress, on their back foot and with touch. Very few lead their team to the ultimate greatness on the field. I don't know if Brees has a playoff win in his career. Never been to a Super Bowl, to say the least. Brees has the opportunity to move up the echelon of great quarterbacks with a win.

Hate saying this ...

Saints 30, Vikings 23

Mark Cuban's bane: NBA trade rumors started by blogs, Vol. II

Like Martin with no Gina

Yesterday, we discussed the rumors and general idea of the Dallas Mavericks trading for the Philadelphia 76ers' Andre Iguodala.

Today, another rumor is popping up thanks to ESPN's Marc Stein.

The Mavericks are apparently interested in the Sacramento Kings' Kevin Martin (who wouldn't) and the thought is some combo of Josh Howard, J.J. Barea, Drew Gooden and cash would do the trick.

The Player
Kevin Martin is listed at 6-7 but for some reason he seems shorter. Maybe it's because he's so skinny. Whereas Iguodala has some meat on his bones, Martin is skinnier and this probably plays into the idea that he's smaller more than anything.

He'll turn 27 Feb. 1. Due to injury, he's played just nine games this season, and he's had a history of injury problems playing in more than 70 games just twice in six years.

Otherwise, Martin is one thing and one thing only: A scorer. He's shot 40+ percent from three the last couple of seasons and makes about 87 percent of his free throws -- a place he got to 10 times a game last season. He averages about 25 points a game.

I liken him to a young Ray Allen except I think he's entirely better off the dribble and attacks the rim way more. Otherwise, you won't get big assists or rebound numbers. If you need a primary or secondary scorer, Martin is it.

The Money
Martin's contract is lofty. He has an ascending deal that pays him about $13 million in his final year, 2012-13. By then, he'll be about 30 years old.

The theme for this year's trade season as teams try to trim payroll and dump rotten contracts to contending teams is taking the bad with the good. The Mavs or any other team will be forced to take on Andres Nocioni's awful contract (about $7 million per through 2012-13) or Beno Udrih's deal (about $7 million per, with player option in 2012-13). Friends, there's a reason teams like the Kings are bad.

Honestly, Udrih wouldn't be the worst idea as a back-up to Jason Kidd at point guard. Nocioni is pretty spare and would be a bench power forward guy. But I don't think he's very good at all. However, the Mavs may not have a choice if they want Martin.

In general, the Mavs would be adding about $20 million to their payroll through 2012-13 and the Kings would get Barea and Gooden's efficient contracts with Howard's cap-friendly deal (both Howard and Barea have team options for 2010-11 ... but both are affordable).

The Team
Money is a big reason the Kings might be shopping Martin soon. Also, there are reports out of Sactown that Martin and the hotshot guard Tyreke Evans don't mesh well in the backcourt, although I suspect that after nine games it's tough to make any real conclusions. More than anything, I don't really feel Martin is that available or would be available in a month. I think it'd be nuts to give up on the Evans/Martin backcourt until you have a full season under their belt.

Martin's your shooting guard with Kidd, Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion and Erick Dampier rounding things out. One thing Martin's never had is a truly great point guard (Mike Bibby was OK, but not like Kidd) and he could benefit with some open shots and movement along the perimeter to buy him space.

He's an ideal smallish counterpart for Nowitzki despite both basing their game around the perimeter in different aspects (backing down a player in the past, where they catch the ball, etc.). Also, he improves the Mavericks' often fledgling three-point percentage by leaps and bounds.

Also, the word is that Sacramento would release Gooden allowing the Mavs to bring him back 30 days later.

When Should Mark Cuban Pull The Trigger?
Wait. See if the Kings get antsy with the Evans-Martin partnership. I'd much prefer Iguodala or even Caron Butler. Still, the idea of Martin as a Mav is one that I like to nurture and cuddle with. I don't know if Sacramento is as desperate to shed the cash and their thoughts about Howard are probably pretty down. Plus, between Evans and Howard, the amount of weed on the streets of Sacramento would plummet.

Sean Salisbury spills the gravy

The man, not the steak

Former NFL quarterback, ESPN pundit and Dallas sports talk radio talking head Sean Salisbury wants to take the last three years of vehemently claiming he didn't text a pic of his penis to a female co-worker and sweep it quietly under the rug.

Today, in an interview with Pro Football Talk, the man came clean admitting the penis text did happen. But only once. It's like a cock push-up. One's all you really need.

Since, Salisbury has fought tooth and nail with Deadspin about the then-alleged incident. After he was fired from The Fan in Dallas, he got into another very heated and very public iPhone e-mail battle with the dudes at Deadspin. He claimed it never happened, that he wasn't fired from the radio gig for similar actions, that he was going to write a tell-all book about the World Wide Leader. Weeks later, he actually filed a libel suit against Deadspin.

Why go through all that trouble to just admit to the initial indiscretion in the first place. Rich, famous or otherwise, I'll never understand that. Just ignore the criticism hold back for six months and get some kind of gig elsewhere. Right now, his career is bottomed out and I doubt anyone would ever hire him again due to the thoughts of the tell-all and him texting his fucking penis to a female co-worker.

There was also a report that Salisbury's Frisco home is being foreclosed on and maybe the best way to get some cash is to come forward and maybe score some interviews, probably a book deal.

Let's all think a good thought about our bud, Sean Salisbury.

Wade Phillips finally gets his contract

Go me!

Just had a press conference announcing a new two-year contract extension for Dallas Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips keeping him in Dallas until the end of 2011.

Phillips was just wired with giddiness constantly interrupting owner Jerry Jones with little quips and half-jokes. He was just ready to hit the Jack-in-the-Box drive-thru.

This makes entirely more sense than the three-year deal rumored the other day. This keeps him around through the uncapped year and the iffy 2011 season that might not happen. If the lock-out should happen, I don't know if Phillips is around in 2012.

He deserves it. Until next season when the team loses a game and we can all hate him again.

Dallas Cowboys Report Card, 2009-10 edition

Head of the class

I think this was a pretty successful season for the Dallas Cowboys. So much so that I don't understand why it's a debate.

You won 11 games (two or three more games than most predicted), took the division (second in three years for Wade Phillips), hit the playoffs on an unbelievable run (road win at New Orleans) and won an actual playoff game. How is this not a success?

Ridiculous Cowboys fans. You don't win a Super Bowl and the season's down the crapper.

To our report card:

Jerry Jones -- C
The draft sucked. The Roy Williams turned out to be a giant mess. But he brought Miles Austin back, signed Igor Olshansky and Keith Brooking. But I tend to think those were Wade Phillips recommended. He passed, but he cheated off another kid's paper.

Wade Phillips -- C
Give it a year. If they poop their pants and end up 8-8 Phillips is a knuckleheaded hillbilly again. But, that's not the case today. He's a defensive genius whose players give their utmost effort game in and game out.

Flozell Adams -- B
The guy had a pretty good season. At times, he had his troubles, but then you'd go weeks without watching him screw up anything major. Even against the Vikings he was keeping Jared Allen at bay.

Deon Anderson -- C
Quality special teamer. His offensive role seemed limited at times as the Cowboys went shotgun with empty or one-back sets. Every so often he'd lay down a pretty nice block.

Miles Austin -- A+
Through four games, had five catches and 81 yards. Then Kansas City happened.

Alan Ball -- D
Unless the rest of the secondary dies in a tragic gardening accident, Ball should not be in coverage. In a pinch, I guess he's adequate. Otherwise, when Ken Hamlin was out he showed his ass.

Marion Barber -- B-
Many folks are down on Barber considering the explosiveness and relative health of Felix Jones. However, the dreaded one wasn't that bad. His yards per carry was up. He scored seven touchdowns and nearly had 900 yards splitting time in a pass-first offense. He wasn't nearly as potent catching the ball nor did he necessarily "close out" games as much as he's use to. But, still, he was solid.

Martellus Bennett -- D-
A great blocker, but in general there could not have been a bigger disappointment. I like the guy and I think he definitely has something to offer, but he didn't show it this season. Maybe next season we'll not hold our breath for the guy to break out.

Stephen Bowen -- B
The Cowboys could not have a better back-up defensive tackle. Makes at least one notable play per game. Look it up.

Keith Brooking -- A
You can not actually put a grade or dollar amount on Brooking's importance. Sure, there's the tackles, sacks and coverage. Then there's the leadership and the moxy that this team's not had in 15 years. Hell, the city hasn't had it in that long. He's blacker than every Dallas Maverick since Marquis Daniels.

David Buehler -- A
You grade a guy based on his role. Buehler was one of the top five most important players on this team. And that's saying something.

Victor Butler -- C-
A rookie that is so far down the depth chart that plays the same position as the team's most solid starters (Ware, Spencer). Unlike most of his breathren of the 2009 draft, he at least played in all the games.

Bobby Carpenter -- F
In case you missed him, Carpenter's the one chasing the ball carrier.

Tashard Choice -- C+
The best third back in the league. Choice has a little something and it'll be a challenge to the Cowboys to find how to utilize that something. You can't just have him touching the ball in case of injury or a blow out.

Marc Columbo -- C+
Missed some time. Really, really solid and the heart of this team. Somehow the Cowboys need to get their really good offensive line on the field together for 16 games.

Pat Crayton -- B
Crayton's gonna make a ton of money if he accepts his role as a third receiver. He's ideal for it on a number of levels considering his skill set, skill level and body type.

Leonard Davis -- B
A perfect delight. I'd submit he's been worth every penny. The man just mauls opponents.

Doug Free -- B-
The Cowboys have a legit back-up tackle. The guy can play we found out. Makes Pat McQuistan pretty expendable if need be.

Nick Folk -- F
I don't understand the psychology of the yips. I feel bad for the guy. He was the absolute toast of the town for two years and then ... it all disappeared.

Andre Gurode -- C
There's not of a ton of centers that get absolutely beat on a relatively frequent basis. Gurode is one of them. In terms of being just a good center and student of the game, I think Gurode isn't very good at all. Doesn't seem that smart and I think you need some brains to play center. Seems like if it wasn't for Romo slapping him on the ass or kicking up his leg, he'd just hold on to the ball forever.

Ken Hamlin -- D
Do we all kind of agree that he's not that good? If the football is in the air, Hamlin is no where in the neighborhood.

Jason Hatcher -- D
Played his best ball later in the season. Three years ago as a rookie, he looked a lot more explosive on the line able to get to the quarterback. Not so much anymore.

Sam Hurd -- D
Ha ha. Remember that time in training camp when we thought the third receiver spot was between Hurd and Austin? Good times. Oh. Hold on. That was five months ago.

Bradie James -- B-
Just about from game to game James is one of the two or three best defenders on the field. Bar none.

Mike Jenkins -- A-
A few hiccups sandwiched between solid play from week to week. One of the guys that "got it" this season. Five interceptions and 19 passes defensed. Somehow, he wound up gaining no yards on all five picks mostly because most were long bombs thrown short that he got between.

Felix Jones -- B
Ain't seen a cat like this in Dallas in ... maybe ever. He's dynamic on so many different levels. Like a diamond. Just keep turning and you'll see something newer and more beautiful.

Jon Kitna -- A
Didn't take a snap, but he donned the headphones like a champ.

Kyle Kosier -- B
Really, really solid right guard. Totally solidifies that side of the line and puts two pretty nice bookends around Gurode at center.

L.P. Ladouceur -- A
I didn't notice an errant snap. Do the Cowboys have the best specialty guys in the league?

Mat McBriar -- A
Simply magnificent. Pinned 38 inside the 20, seven inside the 10 and just three touchbacks. Also had 23 fair catches. All but the inside the 10 numbers are career highs. One of the biggest, baddest weapons the Cowboys have .

Terence Newman -- C+
For the first time since 2006-07, he stayed healthy for 16 games, something that had to be worrying the Cowboys. Playing all 16 meant something. He had three forced fumbles and three interceptions. No, he's not a shutdown corner. Never really was or will be. Probably a joke of a first-round pick. Still, he and Mike Jenkins are a pretty stout set of starting corners.

Kevin Ogletree -- C
I think the Cowboys have something here. Prediction: He does and he'll have the opportunity to prove it sooner or later.

Igor Olshansky -- C+
Not overly effective. Generally good. Helped buoy one of the best if not the best run defense in the league.

John Phillips -- B
U-S-E-F-U-L. Phillips has fine hands and catch the ball and he's a pretty good blocker in pass protection or run blocking. Give me three Phillipses over one Roy Williams.

Jay Ratliff -- A
Not quite as good as in 2008, but I think that says more about his 2008 than it does his 2009. Still controlled the trenches and forced double teams on almost every snap.

Tony Romo -- A
There's little doubt this was his best season ever. And it had little to do with his career-year stats, but the way he carried himself on and off the field and took control of this offense. It's his. He gets it. I don't know how you get it or don't get it or even lose it, but he has it.

Orlando Scandrick -- C+
Really good third corner. The Cowboys have remade their secondary in a couple of short years by drafting Scandrick, Jenkins, Ball and Watkins and signing ...

Gerald Sensabaugh -- B-
Could get turned around in coverage at times, but over 16 he was really stout and helped solidify an inconsistent defense. One hundred times better than Roy Williams (the safety).

Marcus Spears -- B
We don't hear his name much a lot like Olshansky. However, it's impossible to notice how little opponents could run against them, especially up the middle. Teams turned one dimensional against the Cowboys. I hardly heard his name, but it wasn't Terence Newman or Pat Watkins up front stuffing everything up. Credit is due.

Anthony Spencer -- A-
Another guy whose switch switched. I think it came on during the November game against the Packers.

Shaun Suisham -- F
If you need a meaningless short field goal, he's your guy.

DeMarcus Ware -- A
Great without even trying. I notice him more now in pass defense and stopping the run. It's remarkable the acumen that he carries. A superstar without the ego. More refreshing than Kool-Aid.

Pat Watkins -- D
Relegated to special teams duty. A non-factor for 90 percent of the game.

Roy Williams -- F
The Detroit Lions took the Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys to the cleaners. It's shocking how invaluable this guy is considering his talent, tools and resume. It's almost like he's trying to suck.

Jason Witten -- A
There is absolutely nothing to hate about Jason Witten. Stupendously great season.

Incompletes:
Duke Prescott
Stephen McGee
Cletis Gordon
Mike Hamlin
Montrae Holland
Pat McQuistan
Curtis Johnson
Steve Octavien
Cory Procter
Brandon Williams
Junior Siavii
Stephen Hodge
Jason Williams

Mark Cuban's bane: NBA trade rumors started by blogs

I want to go to there

The Dunham and Miller team on The Ticket had a pretty interesting trade idea for the Dallas Mavericks and it's one that makes my basketball brain spin.

Dallas Mavericks package Josh Howard to send to the Philadelphia 76ers for Andre Iguodala.

I like it. I like it a lot.

The Player
Iguodala is a 6-6 guard/forward. A pretty tough defender and extremely athletic and durable (he's played 82 games in four of his previous five seasons). Very, very good rebounder for being essentially a two-guard, he gets about seven boards a game. Still, his passing is superb and he's a triple-double threat about every time he hits the floor.

I wouldn't consider him a scorer as in I don't think he can create his own shot. See: He's not Kobe Bryant. But he gets to the line, attacks the basket, loves to dunk and still averages about 18 points a game. After six seasons, he's everything we wanted Josh Howard to be, but still is.

Furthermore, Iguodala is about to turn 26 YEARS OLD. He hasn't even hit his NBA prime.

The Money
The 76ers signed Iguodala to a massive contract in the off season tying him up through 2013 at about $14 million per year. He has a player option for 2013-14. By then he'll be 30 years old. Give or take. There's a handful of teams that can handle that kind of cash. Mark Cuban's pocketbooks and hunger to win is one of them.

It is also suggested that the 76ers want out from underneath Samuel Dalembert's contract. He's signed through next season at $12 million per. With Erick Dampier still in the fold and getting paid well all the while, this would be tough because something would need to be done with him first before possibly taking on Dalembert, who is Damp-like but without the nice subtleties of solid screens. Still, he's younger, more athletic and a better shot blocker. He might not make you necessarily better, but he does make you more dynamic.

The Team
I'd suspect Iguodala to be the starting shooting guard, should this trade come even close to fruition, with Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki and Dampier. That's salty. Iguodala is a very solid second scorer that the Mavs need. He's a better defender than Howard. He boosts their already great rebounding numbers and automatically improves their passing by 75 percent because Howard may be the worst passing guard in the league.

Now, why would Philly want a guy I just ran down? Howard's a good player and if anyone needs a change of scenery, it's him. Plus, he's cheaper getting about $10 million this season with a team option for next season. His money could come off the books. Something that Philly allegedly wants.

When Should Mark Cuban Pull The Trigger?
Today. There's little doubt that I overrate Howard's appeal to other teams on the court, but he's still a young player entering his NBA prime. He needs a new set of colors and his contract is appealing to teams needing financial relief.

Secondly, the Mavs need a shake-up badly and the more athletic they can get the better. Frankly speaking, I'm tired of the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers collecting All-Star bits and pieces to make runs. Why can't the Mavs dupe some team into getting a young, desirable piece of NBA ass? Why can't the Mavs be electric? If the Mavs pull in Iguodala, they can go toe to toe with any team in this stupid league.

Block party

The dish

I wish someone that's not me would calculate by the game the worth of professional athletes. Maybe Elias or someone already does this. Either way, it's a good idea.

Shawn Marion is making $6.6 million this season from the Dallas Mavericks to play basketball. Last night, he just about sealed a victory on his own blocking Caron Butler's potential game-winning shot with a tick left on the clock. The Mavs won 94-93.

Now, the Mavs made the sign and trade with Marion and the Toronto Raptors and paid him $6.6 million and it's already directly correlated into one win. How much is that one win worth? Let's say they get 58 wins, it might not mean that much.

But in year's past, the only way Butler misses that shot is if he simply misses it himself. Who's guarding Butler on that play last season? Jerry Stackhouse? Josh Howard, if he's healthy? James Singleton? Marion was brought in for that very reason: When the game's on the line and we know the ball's going to Butler, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony or Tracy McGrady, we know that Marion will provide match-up fits due to his size and wingspan.

Particularly awesome is his play of late outside of his defense. He went for 12 points and 12 rebounds last night. It's his first double-digit rebound night in a month and third straight really good, efficient offensive night. I can't believe I'm typing this about Shawn freakin' Marion -- The Matrix! -- as if it's some accomplishment to score 12 points.

His resurrection is vital for hte lil' Mavs.

Notes:
1. If Dirk Nowitzki is not top three in MVP voting, then something's wrong.

2. Think Jason Kidd's playing on a high level? Another 15 assists. Although he did have the idiotic three-point attempt (he was 1-6 from the arc and 2-9 in the game) late that helped the Wiz eke back into the game late.

3. J.J. Barea went 1-10 and 0-4 from behind the arc. All in 14 minutes. He's playing really poorly even for J.J. Barea.

4. Randy Foye's turned into a really nice point guard.

5. Any interest in Brendan Haywood in a trade? Did I just type that? Shoot me.

6. Seriously. He's avering 10/11 a game with 2.2 blocks per. Shoot me.

7. Remember when Quinton Ross was going to remake this team defensively?

8. For now, Jason Terry needs to be in the starting line-up. I think.

Wade Phillips maybe apparently getting a possible, alleged three-year alleged contract ... maybe

About 24 hours ago, the Dallas Cowboys official website indicated that head coach Wade Phillips was getting a three-year contract extension.

Hell, even Phillips supporters had to be shocked at this.

Since, it hasn't seen the light of the Internet and, instead, we're left with reports of a three-year deal. Either way, it seems it's going to happen.

It's an odd move. I thought he'd get 2010 and 2011 (if there's a season). But three years? I guess there's little difference between two and three years. Hell, he could get fired tomorrow. Jerry Jones would just need to pay the bill, something he's never shyed away from.

George the Turd base

Mendoncadonk

First a few words about our man Hank Blalock. He's no longer a Texas Ranger. As of right now, he's not anything. It's hard to believe no team has picked up Blalock yet. He's 29 and had 25 home run last season in limited time.

He can play first base or DH. I would suspect third base is still an obstacle. Nonetheless, no one's signed him yet and it's late-January.

Blalock was a good guy and a good player. For a couple of years, he was the future and wasted little time in getting to the big leagues to start helping out. Injuries killed him more than inconsistency, but both had their place. I'd like to think Blalock's at a different place in his career had it not been for the nicks and knocks.

Now, for those still here. Third base, at a glance.

Mike Young
33
Texas Rangers
Young approached his best year in three years and one of his top three in his career last year before injury derailed his season. Twenty-two homers and 36 doubles is a nice 3/4 of a season for most guys. I'm convinced it's directly due to his move to third base as he's no longer exerting so much on the defensive end at shortstop. Considering his contract, I doubt Young's moving anywhere for a while.

Khalil Greene
30
Texas Rangers
The newest Ranger is most certainly going to spell Elvis Andrus at short and Young at third. If he hits .280 and plays some D, the Rangers would wet themselves.

Travis Metcalf
27
Texas Rangers
I've always liked Metcalf. Loved seeing him called up and produce a little at the plate and play some nice defense. I just don't think the Rangers are much interested in keeping a guy that can only play one position on the 25-man roster whereas Omar Vizquel, Esteban German and Greene can play up to three positions.

John Whittleman
22
Frisco RoughRiders
Probably his best year as a pro last season with 28 doubles, 10 home runs and a .345 OBP despite an awful average. I'd think the Rangers might see him as a trade chip if the price is right, but he's by no means an awesome prospect. Just a high-level guy to get a deal put over the edge. He might turn into a nice DH-type with his ability to walk.

Jonathan Greene
24
Frisco RoughRiders
Got bumped to Double A after hitting 28 doubles and 20 homers in Bakersfield. Strikes out entirely too much to be a viable prospect. The dude will pound the shit out of the ball, that's for sure.

Jacob Kaase
23
Bakersfield Blaze
Slowly inching up the ranks without any fanfare. Hit .262 between Hickory and Bakersfield. Probably one of the better defenders on this list among the lower ranks.

Tommy Mendonca
21
Bakersfield Blaze
A 2009 draftee. Known for two things: Hitting the crap out of a baseball and striking out. He has not disappointed yet as a professional logging nine homers and 12 doubles in 49 Spokane games yet striking out 78 times between Spokane and Bakersfield. When he makes contact, he's one of the better hitters in the Rangers' farm system. He just needs to make contact or learn to bat. Advancement to Frisco in 2010 would not shock.

Matthew West
21
Hickory Crawdads
The great next hope for the Rangers at third base. Although he hasn't learned to hit quite yet, his OBP was .336 last season thanks to 54 walks. I believe this is his four pro season so he needs to make a move. His defense sucks accounting for 33 errors last season.

Edward Koncel
21
Hickory Crawdads
Can't hit. A nice defender. Still very young.

Emmanuel Solis
20
Spokane Indians
The pop in his bat from the Dominican Summer League left this last season where he barely made a dent in limited time. One error in 12 games.

Past Editions
First Base
Second Base
Shortstop