SportsTalk

This past Sunday in San Francisco, actually it was in Santa Clara, WrestleMania 31 was held at the Levi's Stadium. I haven't watched wrestling since I was 17 so I didn't know anything about the event until yesterday when everyone on my Twitter timeline were tweeting about how this was perhaps one of the best WrestleMania events in a long time. Technology today is proof that you don't necessarily be at an event to experience how awesome it is, as Twitter is still on fire about WrestleMania. Even though I no longer watch wrestling, if I had the opportunity to go to a wrestling event it would be WrestleMania. WrestleMania is like the Super Bowl of wrestling, it's the most pinnacle event in wrestling. It's a strategically planned and produced wrestling venue that has generated legends in wrestling and has elevated the sport to it's current status over the last 31 years. This year didn't disappoint we exciting matchups, a pretty good performance from Kid Ink, and a special appearance from Rhonda Rousey. I wasn't a Rousey fan until Twitter blew up about the Vegeta t-shirt she was wearing. In my opinion, any woman who is up on game on that Dragonball Z steez is marriage material. It was epic to have her there with the Rock, Triple H, and Stephanie McMahon, even though when I first heard about the situation, I was a little worried for Stephanie. Thought she was gonna be hospitalized or something.

Over 9000!!

The NCAA tournament has also been epic this year. The Final Four starts on Saturday and for the first time since 2008, three #1 seeds have made it this far. Kentucky is still alive and are two games away from taking it all and going undefeated. They almost lost on Saturday though to a tough Notre Dame team who actually made it a very interesting and close game. Notre Dame lead most of the second half, but Kentucky shut them down defensively down the stretch for the victory. Duke and Wisconsin advanced also, but the surprise team is Michigan State. Tom Izzo has somehow gotten his #7 seeded team one step closer to the National Championship and what makes it so interesting is that he always seem to do it when his team isn't highly seeded. This year they're #7 and they have a tough matchup against Duke. If anyone is going to beat Kentucky (which I highly doubt), it'll probably be Duke. Coach K's squad is solid, as is all four teams in the Final Four, but Duke's team looks to be more of an all around team to challenge Kentucky than the other two teams, Wisconsin and Michigan State. Wisconsin has a good team with probably the best player in Men's College Basketball, but Kentucky has the best team. It'll be a good game between Kentucky and Wisconsin, and the Michigan State/Duke game will be good also, but in the end, I'm still sticking with Kentucky.

Baseball season starts on Sunday and there's a few interesting things going on this preseason. Alex Rodriguez is back from suspension and it looks like after not playing in about a year and a half, he's going to come back to be the everyday DH hitter. The DH stands for designated hitter and this player only bats and does not play offense. This player usually hits for the pitcher who does not bat, and this position is only in the American league. The national league does not use a DH hitter. Many people had questioned whether A-Rod would come back to be a productive player, but it appears that he has exceeded Spring Training expectations and will be in the daily lineup when the season opens.

Sidebar: This segment started as a suggestion and at first I was going to name it SportsSteez GT in order to give some credit to the person who suggested it, +G. T. Niña . During writing this post SportsTalk came to mind, because that's basically all I'm doing, and I thought it's more simple than SportsSteez. This could be changed or modified, depending on how many SportsTalk segments there are out there on the world wide web.

The NCAA Tournament Brackets: The Greatest Fantasy Game of Them All!!!

Over the past two weeks, I've been majorly distracted by the NCAA Tournament. All I've been doing is watching college hoops, and the weird part about it is that I have actually stayed awake during these games because usually I fall asleep watching TV. I haven't even made any progress on the new SportsSteez GT segment (Spoiler Alert) mainly because along with watching these games I've been caught up in my bracket. I'm not winning my group, but I'm tied with my friend Stephanie who I have a bet with, so that's all I'm really worried about.

I was talking to my boy Victor (who is also in my group but he's not doing too well) when I had an interesting thought about the whole bracket situation. I asked Victor, "Could filling out brackets be one of the greatest fantasy games of all time?" It didn't take him long to agree, but he asked me if filling out a bracket could even be considered a fantasy game. I figure why not, it's basically the same concept as all fantasy sports with the exception of you're picking teams instead of players. You pick who you think is going to advance just as you would pick who's going to start in your lineup in the other fantasy sports. In most online platforms, you get points when the team you picked advances, just like you get points when your player scores a touchdown, hits a homerun, or drains a three pointer. So why wouldn't we consider the brackets as a fantasy sport?

Filling out brackets also provides us with the same extracurricular fun that comes along with fantasy sports. There is usually some kind of bet or pot that is involved with fantasy sports. Whether it's an office pool or a group of friends that came together for the group, usually money or some other attractive prize is on the line. Plus, bragging rights is always up for grabs in fantasy sports and the brackets are no different. We all know whoever wins the your bracket group is going to be talking major trash until next March. Also, when you're in a group with other people, you're likely to watch the games and/or interact more with those people in your group about the game just like in the other fantasy sports. I know this to be especially true in fantasy football where many groups get together to watch NFL games.

I believe there are multiple reasons why the brackets should be considered one of the greatest fantasy sports of all time. Starting with the length of the games. In most fantasy sports, your fantasy season is going to last the whole regular reason of the respective sports. In most cases, you're talking about 16 to 36 weeks depending on if you're playing fantasy football, baseball, or basketball. The NCAA tournament lasts for about three to four weeks, so you really don't have time to get cute. Actually, you can get cute all you want when you're picking your teams, but once the tournament starts, you're stuck with your picks. When the tournament starts you can't change your picks like in other fantasy sports where you can edit your roster through free agency or make trades. Your picks are truly your picks and your bracket lives or dies with those picks.

Strategizing for the brackets is definitely one of the reasons why filling out brackets is so intense. Many people haven't watched a lick of college basketball all season and are just picking teams they are familiar with. Some people have bizarre methods of filling out their brackets such as picking teams whose team colors are blue and white, or random selection. There aren't major publications or draft kits floating around where so called experts are suggesting who to pick. There are sports reporters and so called bracketologists, but they'll be the first to tell you that anything can happen in the tournament. You always have to look for upsets because these upsets will bust your bracket so quick. Many people including myself will tell you one of the best ways to strategize for the brackets is to watch and pay attention to the conference tournaments that goes on right before the big dance. Watching these games are a good way to see which teams are hot and also have a good momentum going into the tournament.

So now let's imagine (and in some instances remember as this scenario has probably happened to most of us) that you just filled out your bracket, it's the end of the first weekend and you're feeling absolutely overwhelmed by your bracket. Some of your picks lost and you're thinking "I knew I should've picked UCLA." Then you realize that you can't pick UCLA for the next round because your picks are locked for the whole tournament. You start panicking because you realize your bracket is completely screwed and there's nothing you can do about it.  However, this weekend isn't the end of the game as the game lasts for the whole tournament. So you're watching and waiting week after week, hoping your remaining picks can pull out a victory. Yeah, I think filling out brackets should definitely be considered the greatest fantasy game of them all.

Fantasy Basketball Playoffs

The Fantasy Basketball Playoffs started last week and the reason why I'm just now getting to it is because all my teams had byes last week. One of my three teams didn't even make it to the playoffs. I was off two games from sixth place. I guess I'll play in the consolation bracket, but my other two teams are on fire. Even though these should be easy victories, anything can happen on that PhantasySteez.

The two teams I have that made the playoffs both came from leagues that I was invited to by friends. In my boy Big Mike's league, I finished the season in first and had a bye last week and in Stephanie's league I finished second with a bye last week. In Mike's league, a couple of months ago I traded him Kyrie Irvin and Kenneth Faried for James Harden and Jonas Valanciunas. Since the trade I moved up from fourth to first. I won Mike's fantasy football league, and I'm looking to win his basketball league after coming in second last year. Weird part about this league though, Mike has two teams, and they're both in the playoffs.

 In Steph's league, I've been stuck in 2nd since December and whoever it is that is in first has held on to the top spot since the season started. I find this interesting because of two things. First, there are only six teams in the league. When Steph created the league, she invited enough people to have ten teams, but not everyone accepted the invitation, probably because most people are only used to playing fantasy football. Secondly, of the six teams, I think only three players are actually participating. I know this because the transaction list is hella low, there's been no trades, and free agency is crazily stocked with key players who can get picked up at will. Regardless though, I can't catch this dude who is first place. Looks like I'm going to have to take him out eventually, if I can get past whoever I have to play this coming week. I don't have any master plan or anything, I'm just not going to get cute with it.

I wrote a post during the fantasy football playoffs about not getting cute with your lineups during the playoffs, and the same principle applies here. Trade deadlines should all be passed and by now all the sleepers have awaken and most likely are owned by other players in your league. I honestly feel like unless someone is coming back from injury, there really isn't much need to be looking for somebody to pick up from free agency (unless you're in a league like Stephanie's where there are key players available because the league is only six teams deep). The reason I think like this is because I've spent most of the season adjusting my team just as I'm sure most of you have also. At this point of the season I've been fortunate enough to have team that can produce in just about every stat category. Messing with that would be foolish. Even if someone gets injured, I have key players that can come off my bench. If you're in the playoffs, you should too.

March Madness

Unless you've been living under a rock, you all know that March Madness is in full effect and the brackets have been released. Aside from neglecting responsibilities such as work, school, and anything else you would normally occupy your day with to watch these intense college basketball games, many of you will be filling out your own brackets for various pools or groups or bets or whatever. Now, filling out brackets isn't necessarily considered a fantasy sport, but shouldn't it be? When you think about it, it's almost the same thing with the exception of you're picking teams instead of players. A lot of online platforms score your picks, just like you would get scored in a regular fantasy game. And in most cases, the winner is usually rewarded somehow and is talking major trash until next year. Sounds like a fantasy sport to me.

Brackets are interesting because they're so unpredictable, it's very difficult to predict a perfect bracket. The brackets are broken down into four tiers of 17 teams and the higher ranked teams play the lower ranked teams. The tournament is single elimination, so once you lose, you're out. There are always upsets and these games are the ones that can screw up anyone's bracket, including those experts who sometimes refer to themselves as bracketologists.  Most people usually put their marbles on the #5 vs. #12 game as that has been where the most upsets have occurred, but it can happen anywhere within the brackets. They usually call these underdog teams the "Cinderella Team," presumably because that team was invited to the "Big Dance," but wasn't expected to do anything.

This year most people including myself are running with Kentucky to take it all. The Wildcats are undefeated and victory should be certain, but for some reason it doesn't seem like it's guaranteed. I was watching SportsCenter this morning and my two dudes Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless were talking about how Kentucky should take it because there aren't any other teams who are on Kentucky's level. I agree, but keep in mind what I was talking about earlier with the whole upset situation. There aren't many teams who can pull off this kind of upset, and it won't really get interesting until the Final Four. Depending on how you pick your brackets, you probably have Kentucky, Wisconsin, Duke, Virginia, Arizona, Gonzaga, or maybe even Oklahoma going to the Final Four. All of these teams are very efficient on offense, but what separates Kentucky from this group is their immaculate defense. They have tall, athletic guys that has bought into the team concept of defend first. As we all know defense wins championships, but if anyone is going to take out Kentucky, it'll probably be one of these teams.

Even though I am a UCLA fan, I'm kind of confused how they got in. They did not have a great season but they got in as a #11 seed. They were on the bubble and in the Pac-12 tournament they lost to Arizona in the semifinals. For the first time ever, I did not pick UCLA to get out of the first round. With my luck, UCLA will be the one who scores the upset, but I doubt that. They're playing SMU and I have them going to Sweet Sixteen. Also, don't sleep on Northern Iowa. They have a #5 seed and even though that's considered a decent rank, should they win people are going to throw the Cinderella tag on them because they are not from a powerhouse conference. Interesting people got them going as far as the Final Four. I have them losing to Villanova in the Sweet Sixteen.

I'm not going to sit here and tell you who to pick because as I said earlier, the brackets are so unpredictable. That's why they call it March Madness, anything can happen at any moment. John Calipari, coach of Kentucky, is already talking about how they could lose, but it's very unlikely. I do know one thing, my friend +Stephanie Smallsen picked Duke to win. Good pick but not good enough my friend. Stephanie and I have our brackets on ESPN.com and we would love if you joined our group. Click this to join: LA to BC Worldwide. The password is champions.

SportsSteez

Around here at PhantasySteez, I like to say that PhantasySteez is getting better everyday. This post is prime example of that statement as this post is not about fantasy sports. No my friend, this post is about real sports. You see, I was proposed by one of my blogging buddies +G. T. Niña to create this segment so that she could appear to know what she's talking about when she goes to barbecues. We kind of tossed around ideas as to what to call it such as "Sports for Dummies" and "Sports for Girls," but when I shared the idea with some of my Facebook fans the ladies didn't really like the idea. While I took their opinion into consideration, I decided I would still do the segment. I haven't really decided on the title yet, but I dig the concept.

Today, March 15, 2015, is one of the most important days of the NCAA Men's Basketball Season... SELECTION SUNDAY. Selection Sunday is the day when the NCAA committee selects 68 teams that will play in the infamous March Madness Tournament, or The Big Dance (I could've swore it was 65 or 66 teams, but it's like the let more teams in every year). The winner of this tournament wins the coveted NCAA National Championship. This year is interesting because there is one team, Kentucky, who is going for a perfect 40-0 undefeated season. I think they have a good chance, I have been watching college basketball all week and they have the most complete team from top to bottom. Any team can be beaten though, and if any team has a chance I would say that it is probably Wisconsin, Arizona, or Duke. Also, don't sleep on Northern Iowa University and SMU. I haven't seen much of Northern Iowa, but SMU is solid and their coach Larry Brown is known as the Godfather of Basketball. Anyone who knows me on a personal level knows I can never count out a true Don. Sidebar, +Stephanie Smallsen my bracket is coming for YOU!!!!!!!!!

Hasn't this year's NFL Free Agency been crazy? Who would've thought DeMarco Murray would end up with the division rival Philadelphia Eagles? Who would've thought Patrick Willis would retire from the San Francisco 49ers? Who would've thought the 49ers would get Reggie Bush. Let's talk about that for a minute because I thought Bush would end up with my New England Patriots, but instead he's going going, back back, to CALI CALI. This kind of fits because I believe that Carlos Hyde will be the feature back but Reggie Bush will come in and do what Reggie Bush do; catch the ball out of the backfield and make people miss. This should be interesting as I can't recall the last time the Niners had such a player. This will definitely help out Colin Kaepernick as he won't have to make so many ill decisions, he could just dump the ball off the Bush!

In the NBA, it's all about Steph Curry. Curry is the man. He makes shooting 3s look like a walk in the park. His game on Saturday was prime example as it was his birthday and he was doing what Steph Curry does best; making it rain. Curry is probably going to win the MVP over LeBron James and James Harden aka The Beard. I've always been a low key Curry fan ever since he played his college hoops at Davidson. His shot has always been incredibly wet and he doesn't just shoot jump shots, he can take you to the hole too. It looks like this could be the year for the Golden State Warriors as long as Curry stays healthy. The have the best record in the West right now, but you never know because anything can happen in the wild wild west.

Well, that's enough for now, I gotta write another post soon before the NCAA tournament begins. This was fun though, but I gotta think of a legit name for this segment. I would love your feedback on this, I'm not scared of negative critism. Hit me up, comment on my blog, hit me up on Google+, or Twitter @donofalldons.

Absent Minded

Is this really the last week of the fantasy basketball regular season? I've been so absent minded as of recent it's been ridiculous. Not only did I neglect the fact that this is the last week of fantasy basketball, but I've also been forgetting to set my lineups until about 5:00 p.m. westcoast time (pacific time). I was tired. I spent all yesterday sleeping, watching college basketball and keeping up with the NFL free agency. So when I finally thought about looking at my teams, players I had on the bench were already playing. No bueno.

You know it's funny because those hardcore fantasy guys hates when players are absent minded on that Phantasysteez. I was in a fantasy basketball league where I was basically taking over a team that was deserted. When I inherited the team I went straight to work in free agency as half of the team was injured. After that I must've forgot about the team for like two days. I went in to find out that I was no longer managing that team. Now, what I ask is was it really necessary to drop me after two days of inactivity? Is fantasy sports really that serious? Or am I just absent minded?

If this is the last week of the fantasy basketball regular season, two of my three teams are good. The third team is in a must win situation. I'm in 7th place and I'm only one game behind the guy in 6th place. Right now I'm up in the stat categories 6-3 and the guy in 6th is 4-4 against his opponent. All of my bench players are injured; Tyreke Evans, Jamal Crawford and Paul George who I stashed. I got an outside chance to lock up that final playoff spot, but I should make a move, probably un-stash George. Kemba Walker is coming back today, he is available and I should consider picking him up, but who knows. I've been so absent minded lately, I might not get to it until Sunday.

Random Phantasy Thoughts

I heard Blake Griffin might be coming back this weekend and I'm wondering how that will affect the Clippers. They have been surprisingly good running behind CP3, DJ and Jamal Crawford. Unfortunately though, it looks like Spencer Hawes did not have the impact that many including myself had anticipated.

I'm part of this fantasy basketball group on Facebook and it's an okay group to be in, but at the same time it's kind of weird. I like it because it's a very active group, but most of the times the only thing the people are talking about is silly trade proposals. It makes me think, should a player really be that active when it comes to trading players? And I'm not talking like a handful of trades in a season, I'm talking about like 2-3 trades per week. In the fantasy basketball and  baseball, that's a lot of trades. I'll have to touch on this later...

The Chicago Bulls are looking like their headed towards a downward spiral. First the lose Rose, who lasted longer this season than he has in the previous two or three, and now Jimmy Butler is out for about six weeks. Who do you think you're picking up for in replacement. I'm not sure myself, I don't have either one of them on any of my squads. This week, I haven't done a lot of pick ups. But if I run into something, I'll expand on it later.

Lastly, just to touch back on the whole trading situation and weekly pickups, I do think that it's absurd to completely change the dynamics of your team with multiple trades every week. I also am very bad with weekly pickups in fantasy basketball and fantasy baseball because I like to ride with my players. I like to think I draft well so I just rotate my players. If someone is injured or is consistently inconsistent, then I'll look for a pick up or a trade, but for the most part, I roll with my picks. Am I wrong for this?