Maddux Sports Blog

I’m posting late because I was at the Calgary Flames game tonight. I managed to score a seat from a friend of a friend – fancy, expensive corporate seats. We sat right in the front row against the glass. I wouldn’t want to sit there all the time – you can’t really see the opposite end very well – but it is a truly incredible view when the play is right in front of you. Three or four times during the game there was a big hit right in front of us, and it was amazing – your whole body shook. If you like hockey then you really need to see a game from that viewpoint – you see things you don’t notice from other places, and you get areal appreciation for the size, strength, and speed of these guys.

(more…)

1. There’s an article today on ESPN that suggests that Notre Dame is going to go 11-1 and return to the BCS this year. Apparently they aren’t kidding, either. I’m not sure I have ever read anything more stupid. They are returning a bunch of players and all, but it’s not like they are returning BCS caliber players or anything. Experienced garbage is still garbage. Eight or nine wins is believable, but 11 is a joke – even against the puffball schedule they have given themselves this year.

(more…)

The Cleveland Cavaliers, down three games to one, survived one more day by beating the Orlando Magic 112- 102 in game five.  That’s old news by now. The news on the Eastern Conference front will be made Saturday when these two teams meet again.

(more…)

This is how sure I was of the likely outcome of yesterday’s Cavs game – I didn’t even bother to watch it. I watched a movie instead (Incidentally, it was the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie which was on TV – what a piece of crap. Talk about wrecking a good thing). I like watching the NBA playoffs, and I think this series is fascinating, but I was sure of how it was going to turn out. I mean, think about it – the Cavs had lost just twice at home all year, they were looking all but invincible in the playoffs, they were well rested and prepared while the Magic were coming off a tough, long series, and they have the best player on the planet. I thought that the Magic could keep the series interesting, but I gave them almost no chance in this first game. Neither did the oddsmakers, apparently – the Cavs were favored by a healthy 8.5 points.

(more…)

The late spring into the early summer is a great time for professional sports. Here are a few observations regarding some of what’s happening in the NHL, NBA, NFL, NASCAR, PGA and MLB.

(more…)

The Cleveland Cavaliers are the most rested team in the NBA playoffs, having beaten the Detroit Pistons four games to none and the Atlanta Hawks four to zip. Thus far they have dismantled their post-season opponents. On the other hand, their next opponents, the Orlando Magic, are coming off a long, hard seven game series against the Celtics. The Magic will play the Cavs with just two days rest. Plus they have to travel to Cleveland as the Cavs enjoy home court advantage. This could be a short series if the Magic have a tough time rebounding from their semifinals match.

(more…)

It’s about freaking time that the Lakers looked like the Lakers. If it took them that long to get their act together this time, though, then I really have to wonder how they will fare against a tuned up and focused Denver team. They still obviously have to be the favorite, but the margin of error is much smaller than it has been so far, and they have been far from powerful up to this point.

(more…)

The first seed Cleveland Cavaliers easily handled the Detroit Pistons in round one of the NBA playoffs, winning the series four games to zip. However, the fourth seed Atlanta Hawks had a much tougher time dispatching the fifth seed Miami Heat, finally taking the series in the seventh game.  In the regular season, the Cavs took the series 3-1. However, one game was a one-point win and another a six-point victory.

(more…)

The first seed in the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers (66- 16), meet the eighth seed Detroit Pistons (39-43) in the first-round of the NBA Playoffs. In the four-game season series, the Cavs won three of four. The Cavaliers won seven of their last ten, while the Pistons, who finished the season under .500, lost three straight and were four and six in their final 10 games.

(more…)

- In perhaps the least shocking development in the history of sports, the Giants cut Plaxico Burress today. Good riddance. Sadly, he’ll be rewarded with a new contract from somewhere else soon, and it will be like nothing ever happened. Idiot.

(more…)