Howard will need to be at the top of his game to keep thwarting the Blackhawks.

Right now, the Pittsburgh Penguins are trailing the Ottawa Senators 1-0 in game four of their Eastern Conference Semi-final game. The Pens were just 28 seconds from having a three games to zero lead before squandering it and then losing in double overtime. Should the Sens hang on tonight (and there is much time left to be played), this series would suddenly a best of three.

That’s the nature of the National Hockey League Playoffs where a single play can turn the fate of an entire series completely around.

Coming up tonight, there are three monstrous games in the NHL. In New York, the Rangers are playing for their lives down three games to zero and have no room for error. In Detroit, the top-seeded Blackhawks are down 2-1 to the seventh seeded Red Wings but I don’t sense any panic here and I’ll explain why later. Finally, out in Los Angeles, the defending Stanley Cup Champion Kings are knotted at two games apiece after San Jose took both games at home.

While every game in any playoff series is huge, these games have the potential to be true turning points in all three series.

If anyone can fire up his troops it’s John Tortorella, but it may be too late for his offensively challenged club. The Rangers have been outscored 10-5 through the first three games and if they have any chance they have to get more than two goals past Rask. Interestingly enough, the Rangers are 1.5 goal favorites tonight. I like Boston to get the broom out and win a tough game by a goal.

Chicago at Detroit (Red Wings lead 2-1) - The Wings entered this series having lost seven straight time to Chicago but have turne the tables with aggressive fore-checking and huge goaltending from Jimmy Howard. Because Detroit is not a prolific scoring team, Howard has to be good especially with the loss of defenseman Danny DeKusyer.

I look for the Blackhawks to keep pouring pucks on Howard tonight and that only matter if Corey Crawford holds up on his end. Chicago entered the place number one in the league in goals against with just two per game, but it’s there inability to score goals that has haunted them.  Chicago will be hopping on the ice at Joe Louis Arena not wanting to return down 3-1. Take the ‘Hawks.

San Jose at Los Angeles (Series tied 2-2) – I really like the aggressiveness that LA goalie Jonathan Quick plays with. He isn’t afraid to smack opposing players in a scrum or give guys a whack with his stick but sometimes I wonder if it doesn’t backfire on him. Quick got himself involved in a couple of scrums early and it seemed to fire up the Sharks who went on to win 2-1 tying the series.

The Kings will need to address the speed the Sharks displayed in game four because it was clear the Sharks wanted an up tempo game and although the score was low, it was played at the high pace they wanted. If LA can slow up San Jose then it allows them to dictate even more on the offensive end. The Kings enter as 1.5 goal favorites and I’ll take it. No reason to break the home team streak anytime soon.

Will LeBron and Erik Spoelstra have smooth sailing through Indiana?

The Eastern Conference Finals get underway tonight in Miami while the Western Conference Finals seem like they’re almost over. There are very few people picking the Indiana Pacers in this series and that’s quite understandable. The Pacers are an excellent team who seem to be made for the playoffs the way they’ve gone through opponents New York and Atlanta.

The Pacers aren’t flashy. They’re big, long and athletic and they can create serious match-up problems for any team and that may include Miami. I keep hearing about different keys to this series but I really think it will boil down to just a couple of things. First of all, I said earlier this week that I believe the Heat will win this series in seven games, but that doesn’t mean Indiana can’t pull of the upset. Here the keys as I see them…

It’s Not Hibbert, It’s Bosh – Rightfully so, many people feel Pacers’ big man Roy Hibbert is the key to the series as he totally dominated the Knicks and will look to do the same in Miami. There is a major difference between playing the Knicks and playing the Heat however when it comes to the big men.

Chris Bosh is a big man who can play down on the block but he can do the one thing the Knicks’ bigs couldn’t and that’s knock down the outside jump shot. If Bosh can routinely move Hibbert away from the basket by hitting the 10-12 footers then the Heat will have accomplished two things; they get scoring from Bosh and more importantly they get more access to the paint area where Hibbert will have been forced to vacate.

The Most Important Knee in Basketball – A few weeks ago this title belonged to Russell Westbrook but now it belongs to Miami’s Dwyane Wade. If that knee is not 100%, Wade can still be effective, but should it cause him enough problems to where he misses minutes or even a game then that drastically alters the series.

My question is, can George be effective at both ends against Miami?

Can Paul George Be a Factor at Both Ends? – It’s no secret that Paul George will be locked on LeBron James quite a bit throughout this series and the question will be can he play great defense on the league’s best player and still be effective on the offensive end? It might sound like this is something these guys do all the time anyway and it is, but not with the intensity required in the playoffs.

The goal for George isn’t so much to keep LeBron from scoring so much as it is making him work to get those points.

The rest of the factors in this series will work themselves out, but I really believe those are the three key ones to focus on.

So Long Vinny – I can’t say it came as much of a surprise, but Los Angeles Clippers Head Coach Vinny Del Negro has been fired by the team. Pretty amazing considering his Clippers’ team won 56 games this year and the organization’s first Pacific Division title. Most people will point the finger at Chris Paul who may not have been happy with the direction of the Clippers’ offense under Del Negro.

Never mind the fact they were blitzed by Memphis in four straight games after winning the opening two… Obviously the first guy on the short list of replacements is Phil Jackson but let’s remember that the 11-time champion is engaged to be married to Lakers CEO Jeannie Buss. I think the term ‘awkward’ would be useful in this situation.

Duncan had plenty of help in limiting Gasol and Randolph in the middle.

No one in Memphis has hit the panic button  over the Grizzlies 105-83 loss to San Antonio in game one of the Western Conference Finals and there’s a good reason for that. In round one, the Grizzlies dropped games one and two to the Los Angeles Clippers and then won four straight to advance. In round two, Memphis again opened with a loss in round one to Oklahoma City but ran off four straight again to advance to this point in the season.

While it’s good that this team has been there before, it could also be some dangerous territory. The Spurs are certainly not the Clippers and falling behind two games to none to them is a far different scenario than it was the Clippers. Therefore, it is expected that the Grizzlies will come out with a significantly different level of energy tonight in the Alamodome.

Earlier this week, I predicted that the moment for this Memphis team was here and that they would win this series in six games. I’m still sticking to that after just one game, but there are serious concerns if I’m Head Coach Lionel Hollins.

Randolph will play better in game two. He has to quite frankly.

First, Tony Parker won the point guard battle over Mike Conley. The wily vet Parker finished with 20 points and nine assists while Conley scored 14 points with eight assists. It wasn’t a terrible performance by Conley, but with other guys not on their games, his became magnified. Another area I didn’t see an issue with was Zach Randolph. He was about as bad as bad can get in scoring just two points on one of eight shooting. I really felt like he and Marc Gasol could dominate the paint by neutralizing Tim Duncan even a bit, but it wasn’t to be.

The Spurs were successful in running three different guys including Matt Bonner and Boris Diaw at Randolph who clearly struggled to find position and comfort in the paint. Hollins will need to adjust to that as will of course Randolph.

Offensively, the Spurs have to be one of the NBA’s best-ever teams in terms of moving the basketball. They are currently assisting on 73% of their made baskets which is just incredible when you really think about it. To reach that percentage one of two things, or both has to be happening. You have to be finding guys for extremely high percentage shots which means within about 6 to 8′ of the bucket and/or you just have guys that can flat-out nail shots.

San Antonio was over 50% shooting from the field and was almost at 50% shooting from beyond the three-point arc. They were almost 10 percentage points better than Memphis in each of those categories. Amazingly, the Griz shot 20 free throws to just 14 for the Spurs which sends the message that the refs were letting them play but also that Memphis needs to get to and hit more foul shots.

So how do the Grizzlies bounce back? Memphis enters the game as five-point underdogs in Riverwalk City and to me that is telling. Normally the five-point spread says odds-makers have more confidence in the favorite than they do the underdog which is why you often see teams listed at +4.5.

I’m going to go ahead and stick with my original thought that the Grizzlies will win this in six games and they’ll bounce back tonight with a big win. To do that, they obviously need to get off to a better start and much of that will center around how Zach Randolph gets off as well. I believe Randolph will have a much better game, but it won’t matter if the defense can’t slow down Tony Parker which I believe they will tonight.

Manuel had better play well if he thinks the Bills' offense is so easy.

There are times when I sit down at the computer to crank out my daily articles for the site rarely do I find myself without anything to discuss. The National Hockey League Playoffs are in their second round series while the National Basketball Association is already into the conference finals. In case you missed it, the Bruins took a 2-0 lead over the Rangers while on the hardwood, the Spurs sent a very clear message to the Grizzlies with a blowout win in game one of the Western Conference Finals.

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators are scoreless through one period up in Canada as I type.

There was one snippet from the weekend that caught my eye and it had to do with a league whose season is still a few months away. The National Football League is in the midst of what they call their “OTA’s” or Official Team Activities and for any organization the number one goal in these practices is to remain healthy first and foremost.

What caught my eye was a statement by the first round pick of the Buffalo Bills. Quarterback E.J. Manuel said in a radio interview from the rookie symposium that “The Bills offense is easier to learn than the one I had at Florida State.” On the surface, it’s rookie making an obscure comment but there really are no such comments in the sports world today.

The fact that the Bills took Manuel as high as they did already puts pressure on the organization and Manuel himself to produce soon. Toss in the fact that this class will no doubt be compared to the rookie quarterback class of last year, but the pressure to produce for long-suffering franchise will be immense. Personally I don’t think its’ fair for Manuel or any other QB to be compared to Andrew Luck, RGIII or Russell Wilson but such is the nature of today’s 24/7 NFL.

Kolb may be on the bench if the Bills choose to go with Manuel.

The issue I see with Manuel’s comment is that all he does by making it is open himself up to criticism should things not go so well for him. Remember, this was seen as a fairly risky pick by the QB-starved Bills because most of the top draft experts and gurus had Manuel going in the second, third or fourth round.

Obviously Manuel has tremendous physical skills and is potentially a big-time quarterback, but the red flags on Manuel go almost hand-in-hand with his comments. While physically gifted, Manuel made a lot of mental errors at Florida State which resulted in poor decisions and turnovers. If Manuel has some real poor games to open the season, assuming he is the starter of course ahead of Kevin Kolb, then this comment will surely come back to haunt him.

New Bills’ coach Doug Marrone will be in an interesting position with regard to his quarterback as the season nears. The Bills signed Kolb with the expectation that he would more than likely be the starter with whomever they would draft waiting in the wings. Of course many thought Marrone would draft his former Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib but that wasn’t the case. Kolb of course comes off a brutal stay in Arizona where he was signed to a big contract following a good showing in Philadelphia.

My guess right now is that there will be a lot of pressure on Marrone to start Manuel and he will if the pre-season determines the two men to be even, but if he isn’t picking up things as well as claims to be, the Kevin Kolb era in Buffalo will be underway.

George and the Packers bounced the Knicks and now face the Heat.

I honestly thought the Knicks overcame the poor coaching of Mike Woodson to beat Boston in six games in a series that should have been over in four or five games max. There was no over-coming his poor coaching last night as the Indiana Pacers beat the New Yorkers 106-99 to win the series four games to two.

Woodson’s biggest gaffe in my opinion was sitting Iman Shumpert in the second half way too long. Shumpert had 19 points including 15 of these on five three-pointers. I have no idea why Woodson chose to keep him on the pine as long as he did. Shumpert had become the perfect compliment to Carmelo Anthony who scored 39 points and had seven rebounds in the losing effort.

The Knicks at times get into offensive dead zones where the ball movement is zero and four guys stand around and watch Anthony go one-on-one. Woodson obviously did something right this season in getting the Knicks to an Atlantic title and 54 wins, but I thought he was badly out-coached by Frank Vogel and to a certain degree even Doc Rivers in the opening round. The way teams hire and fire coaches in the NBA these days, I wouldn’t be shocked one bit if Woodson was sent packing but I don’t think that will happen.

Gasol and Zach Randolph will pose big problems for the Spurs.

Western Conference Finals

Memphis at San Antonio (series 0-0) – Once Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook was lost for the season with his knee injury, this match-up became almost too inevitable. It’s a classic series pitting the grizzled veteran Spurs against the young Grizzlies. Much of this series will no doubt center around the big men for each team. Memphis will rely heavily on Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol while future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan will be asked for one more great performance in an effort to get the Spurs back to the finals.

(Season series was 2-2)

In my mind, that will certainly be a huge part of this series but it may in fact come down to the guards. Tony Parker either had big games or big moments for San Antonio during their series’ victory over Golden State. His counterpart for Memphis is Mike Conley who also came up huge for his team. Whoever gets the better of this match-up could ultimately tip the balance of the series.

Prediction: Grizzlies in six. Youth, size and speed will send the Spurs home disappointed.

Eastern Conference Finals

Indiana at Miami (series 0-0) – People forget that last year in the playoffs Indiana led the eventual champion Miami Heat two games to one before losing the series in six games. I fully expect this series to be every bit the battle that one was. Pacers’ big man Roy Hibbert dominated the big guys from the Knicks and will need to do the same against Miami.

League MVP LeBron James was not what I would call ‘outstanding’ in the second round series against Chicago but he played well when he needed. Part of LeBron’s lesser than stellar series against the Bulls had to be the physicality used on him and I expect the Pacers will go a similar route.

(Pacers won season series 2-1) 

This series, like the Western Conference Finals, could hinge on guard play. How healthy is Dwyane Wade and is George Hill 100% from his concussion? The Heat have seen Norris Cole be an extremely effective weapon for them in the playoffs to this point and they’ll need that to continue.

Prediction: Heat in seven. It honestly would not shock me one bit to see the defensive-minded Pacers behind Paul George win this series, but I just can’t go against LeBron and the Heat.

The Preakness has another small field this year which could mean good things for Orb.

It’s hard to imagine but the Kentucky Derby field of 19 horses has been reduced by more than half for the 138th running of the Preakness Stakes today outside Baltimore, Maryland. Just nine horses are in the field as of this writing and Kentucky Derby winner Orb is an overwhelming favorite to win the second leg of the Triple Crown.

Conditions for the late afternoon start at Pimlico Race Track appear to be ideal. The temperature is predicted to be in the mid seventies with little if any chance for rain. The track conditions are currently listed as fast with the turf conditions stated as firm. For all things “Preakness,” make  sure you check out www.preaknessstakesbetting.org after you read my predictions.

Here’s a brief write-up for each of the horses in today’s event. (Starting from the first post position.)

Orb 1/1 - The Kentucky Derby champion is the clear-cut favorite with Joel Rosario once again on board. Common sense would have to tell you that if Orb ran as well as he did in the Derby in those cool, rainy and muddy conditions then he should do even better here. The biggest difference for Orb and Rosario is that they are on the inside whereas they came from the 16th position at Churchill Downs.

Goldencents 8/1 – The Rick Pitino co-owned horse was extremely disappointing in the Kentucky Derby finishing 17th. I had he and jockey Kevin Krigger picked to take third so I wasn’t the only one they let down. The good news is that Goldencents will certainly do better than 17th, but my confidence in him shaken right now.

Titletown Five should be easy to pick out today at the Preakness.

Titletown Five 30/1 – The longest shot of any of the nine horses in the field, Titletown Five will be a sentimental favorite for any Green Bay Packers’ fans out there betting the ponies this weekend. Co-owned by Paul Hornung and Willie Davis, jockey Julien Leparoux will be wearing the colors of green and gold while on the mount. In three races this year, the horse has finishes of fourth, ninth and second. His last four races in 2012 were first, second, fourth and third.

Departing 6/1 – This horse’s last five races have finished with four firsts and one third place. While this will be a greater test for the horse in terms of length, it’s hard to ignore those credentials. His third place finish came behind Mylute and Revolutionary who both are in the field and had strong Derby finishes as well.

Mylute 5/1 – Rosie Napravnik is coming off a great run in the Derby aboard Mylute as she finished fifth. This horse has raced ten times in the last calendar year and has two wins, two second-places and two third-places among those. This is Napravnik’s first ever go in the Preakness but she should be able to handle the attention.

Oxbow 15/1 -  Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens takes the mount on Oxbow who has been a very busy horse this year. This will be Oxbow’s sixth race of the 2013 year and is one of trainer D. Wayne Lukas’ three entries in the field. Stevens has twice won this event and is no stranger to the pressures of the Triple Crown events which should help ease Oxbow.

Will Take Charge 12/1 - Another Lukas-trained horse and another hall of fame jockey in the saddle in 47-year old Mike Smith as Will Take Charge looks to follow an interesting pattern in his last four races. Eighth, first, sixth and first are the orders of finish for this horse in his last four events. If you like trends, here’s one to jump on.

Governor Charlie 12/1 – Trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, Governor Charlie has three races under his belt and that’s it. His finishes however are impressive as he earned two wins and a runner-up finish.

It’s My Lucky Day 10/1 – In 11 events dating back to June of 2012, this horse had five wins in those races. His lowest finish was a sixth place showing until the Kentucky Derby happened. Clearly the conditions and the distance affect the horse as he struggled to a 15th place finish.

Prediction: Orb, Mylute, Will Take Charge

Darvish is 6-1 for the first place Rangers.

It’s often pushed to the back burner this time of year but Major League Baseball has five division races right now that are worth paying a ton of attention. With the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League each deep into their playoffs, it’s often easy to forget that baseball is still going on.

With the excitement of opening day long over, baseball has started to find its’ groove in the 2013 season and we as fans are the beneficiaries of some really good stories and some tremendous races. Yes, it’s only May but if history tells us anything then these races look to be ready to go the distance.

Out in the American League West, the Texas Rangers have opened up a seven game lead over both Oakland and Seattle. Sitting eleven games back is one of the pre-season favorites in the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. This is the only race in Major League Baseball that sees a lead bigger than two games.

AL West Prediction: Go with the Rangers and don’t give it another thought.

In the AL East, you have to hand it to the New York Yankees who continue to overcome injury with good pitching and outstanding relief pitching behind the incredible Mariano Rivera who is 16 for 16 in save opportunities this year. Not bad for a guy over 40. Baltimore and Boston are both two games back while the Tampa Rays sit four and a half deep.

AL East Prediction: The way the Yanks are playing right now gives them more time to bring Derek Jeter back. This will ultimately come down to who is healthiest down the stretch. I’m actually going with the Orioles to claim the division.

The American League Central is shaping up to be a tremendous race and one that really was not expected. Heavily favored Detroit has three teams within three and half games and the White Sox are just five games out. The longer the Tigers allow the Indians, Royals and Twins to hang around the more doubt will creep in.

AL East Prediction: If the Tigers fail to make the playoffs it will be a tremendous failure. They have too much talent to not win this division but I just don’t see them running away because of their weak bullpen.

Harvey has been one of the few bright spots for the Mets.

Over in the National League East, Atlanta has cooled off significantly since their hot start but still leads the Nationals by a game. To the surprise of many, the Phillies are hanging in there and sit just three and half games out of first. The New York Mets are six games out and are getting a great year on the hill from Matt Harvey, but the rest of the team is struggling.

NL East Prediction: I like the Braves, but I also like the pitching of Washington and I see them over-taking the Braves at some point. Do not count out the Phils just yet though.

The amazing St. Louis Cardinals lead the NL Central by two games over Cincinnati and three games over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Cardinals always seem to be left for dead in the seasons following Albert Puljos’ departure, but here they are again behind great pitching and timely hitting. The Cubs and Brewers are sadly already planning for next year as they both sit nine games out of first.

NL Central Prediction: The Cardinals have such a nice mix of pitching and hitting that I have a hard time seeing them relinquish the lead, but Cincy will push them.

And finally in the NL West, the defending World Champion Giants lead Arizona by a half game and the Colorado Rockies by two. San Diego is four and half back and the Los Angeles Dodgers are five and a half deep. The surprise here has to be Colorado who most experts never saw coming. A tip of the cap to San Diego as well, but the Rockies have just not shown any signs of going away.

NL West Prediction: The Dodgers have Zack Grienke back now and he looked good in his return, but I still like the Giants to take the division.

Can Orb repeat his Kentucky Derby win with a victory in the Preakness?

The 138^th Preakness Stakes will be off and running this Saturday in Baltimore at Pimlico Race Track with just nine entries as of this posting. That is down significantly from the 19 that ran at Churchill Downs in the Kentucky Derby.

Derby winner Orb enters as the favorite. After looking more like just another ‘also-ran’ through the first portion of the race, Orb came on strong and passed then-leader Normandy Invasion as if the horse were standing still. Orb ended up winning the roses by three lengths ahead of Golden Soul. Revolutionary took third place.

Obviously the big question entering the second of the three Triple Crown races is “Can Orb take the next step towards a Triple Crown?”

My immediate thought is “why not?” This horse showed the ability travel a long ways and then still have the stamina at the end. The horse also is streaking too. Orb has won five straight races now and is unbeaten in the 2013 year.

Jockey Joel Rosario is a veteran with over 1,000 wins but has only raced in the Preakness Stakes on one other occasion. Is that enough to scare off some potential wagers in Orb’s direction? Personally I don’t think it is. This guy just pulled off an expected, yet big win in the slop and cool temperatures of Lousiville two weeks ago and now will run for the Preakness title in very favorable conditions of 75 degrees and partly cloudy.

With just eight other contenders on the track, Orb will have much less traffic to deal with and will obviously not have to come all the way from the 16th post position as he did in the Derby. While Orb will no doubt be a significant favorite heading to the gate Saturday afternoon that doesn’t mean that other horses are just going to stop along the rails and beg for apples.

Will Take Charge is another Lukas horse and stablemate of Oxbow who finished 8th in the Derby. If you look at his list of most recent events you’ll see it’s kind of feast or famine for this horse. In his four races this year, Will Take Charge has a first, a sixth a first and an eighth. Lukas has another hall of fame jockey on this mount in 47-year old Mike Smith. That pattern of finishes is hard to ignore if I’m wagering.

One of the horses that received a ton of attention prior to the Kentucky Derby was Goldencents who disappointed greatly by finishing 17th. This is a horse that in his previous four races had three wins and a fourth place finish. Goldencents started strong in the Derby but quickly faded which makes me wonder how jockey Kevin Krigger will take him out on Saturday.

As of right now, I just don’t see a horse that makes me want to move my money off of Orb. Make sure you get over to www.preaknessstakesbetting.org for the latest Preakness Stakes action that I can’t deliver you. Redemption will certianly be the order of the day for Goldencents but I’m not convinced he’ll be ready. Stay with Orb right now and check back in with me on Saturday.

Kane and Chicago have seven-straight against Detroit.

Tonight is a sports fan’s dream. Whether you are a basketball fan or a hockey fan doesn’t matter. In fact, I would encourage you to be both as the each offer exceptional athletes doing amazing things on their respective playing surfaces. In the National Hockey League this evening, you have the opening of the second round for one series while in the National Basketball Association you have two second round series nearing their end.

On the ice you have one of the great rivalries in not just hockey, but in sports in general. In the Western Conference, the top-seeded Chicago Blackhawks host their long-time rivals the Detroit Red Wings in the best of seven series. Ironically, this is the final time the two foes will face each other in the conference playoffs as Detroit heads to the Eastern Conference next season. Therefore, the only way these two will see each other in the future is in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The ‘Hawks are heavily favored and well they should be.  They beat the Wings in all four meetings this season and beat them the last three games of last season as well. A seven-game winning streak against Detroit will not be taken for granted by either team. Chicago is just a few years removed from their Stanley Cup title and much of that team remains while Detroit continues to be in transition from the loss of guys like Niklas Lidstrom and Tomas Holmstrom.

Robinson must do better than 0 for 12 from the field as he was in game four.

In the land of hoops, the Miami Heat have an opportunity to put the ‘tough as nails’ Chicago Bulls out of their misery at home in South Beach. On a track to the Northwest, the Oklahoma City Thunder will be trying to stave off elimination at home against the Memphis Grizzlies. Both the Heat and the Griz have 3-1 series leads, but each have different types of challenges.

In Miami, the Heat return home after taking both games in the Windy City. The last of those wins was a dominant performance at both ends of the court as the Bulls look like they have finally reached their end. Both Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng are expected to miss game five which isn’t anything new, but worth noting nevertheless.

Over in the Sooner State, Oklahoma City is fighting for it’s life. After losing a heart-breaking overtime game in game four, they have no choice but to rebound. Kevin Durant has been incredibly valiant in trying to take some of the load left by the injury to Russell Westbrook. The Thunder were actually pretty impressive in game four but they lost their way in the OT period and for perhaps the first time in the playoffs, they looked tired.

Detroit at Chicago (Series 0-0) – The Red Wings enter Chicago having lost those seven-straight games to the Blackhawks and are an easy goal and half underdog in this one. Detroit will need to create offense and screens in front of Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford while getting a huge game from their own net-minder Jimmy Howard at the other end. I expect a one-goal game but take the ‘Hawks to win game one.

Chicago at Miami (Heat lead series 3-1) – Are you surprised that the team that actually won game one on this very court is now a 14-point underdog? Ya? I’m not either. I expect a valiant effort by the Bulls but I expect the Heat to cover and win going away.

Memphis at Oklahoma City (Grizzlies lead 3-1) – Memphis is a four-point underdog on the road tonight in Oklahoma City and frankly I like the Thunder to win by more than four. The Grizzlies are still a relatively young team and I expect to see a little lethargy from them while the Thunder will play with urgency.

There just isn't a viable excuse for Rose to not be on the court at this point.

As severe knee injuries go, Chicago Bulls’ all-pro guard Derrick Rose’s was pretty routine according to doctors. I’ve never suffered a severe injury (knocks on wood) so I’m not going to sit here and tell you I know what Derrick Rose has gone through, but something just isn’t right.

I can’t even begin to tell you how many conversations I’ve had with friends and colleagues about Rose’s situation but I know I’ve had a lot of them. They’ve ranged from “he’s being given bad advice from his agent” to “he’s just scared to play” to “he knows the Bulls have no chance so why risk it.” Talk to actual Bulls’ fans and you’ll find that sentiments are similar yet have much more inappropriate language.

What we know is that Derrick Rose injured his knee in last year’s playoffs and was pronounced ‘physically ready to play’ back in early March of this season. He has yet to appear in a game since he left that court that night and now that we are more than two months past the time doctors said he was ready, questions have emerged about Rose’s mental state.

It doesn’t help of course that Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings returned in just nine months from his knee injury to rush for over 2,000 yards and claim the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award. The pressure has been so intense through the playoffs that his teammate Joakim Noah had finally heard enough and snapped hard at reporters he sensed were questioning Rose’s toughness.

If Rose just hasn’t reached the point where he is mentally ready to compete, I respect that. Injuries affect all of us differently and if he is laying awake at night worrying about damaging that knee the next time he comes down the court I get that. The problem I have with that argument in Rose’s case however is that he has participated, allegedly, in full-contact practices with his Chicago teammates. If his mental readiness were truly in question then how was able to compete so hard in practice?

Again, these are just reports that say he was playing hard and in game conditions but they come from several players and even team doctors who cleared him. If I’m the Chicago Bulls, I have to be beside myself. My best player is refusing to play even though he has been 100% cleared to do so.

There is growing sentiment that his agent, former Bulls’ guard B.J. Armstrong, is spear-heading the decision to keep him on the bench. Rose was traded by the Bulls back in 1997 almost immediately after criticizing the front office and insiders say he has never really forgotten that. Could his grudge be affecting Rose? Or is it Rose’s brother who is also believed to be meddling worse than Scooby-Doo and the gang.

Chandler had some comments about the Knicks poor offensive showing.

Whatever it is, Rose is not doing himself any favors by continuing to sit. His teammates have left it all on the floor in beating Brooklyn in seven games and now in their duel with Miami. That can’t sit well in his gut as he sits there on the bench. I can’t think for Derrick Rose but I certainly can’t find any reason why isn’t playing.

Tonight’s games

New York at Indiana (Pacers lead 2-1) – The Knicks are squabbling and the Pacers are great at home. New York is a five and half point underdog which I’ll take the action on. Problem is, I like Indiana to win.

Golden State at San Antonio (Series tied 2-2) – After the overtime thriller won by Golden State, we have a best of three remaining. The Spurs are favored by seven and I like them to win, but I like the Warriors to keep it tight.