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Archive for November, 2009

The Future Potential of Cybex Testing

Nov 30

Posted by Blake Murphy in Blake Murphy, Other Topics | 1 Comment

PhotobucketI recently read a piece on Kyle Korver discussing his impending return from injury, and why it was delayed. The piece said:

“Although he’d hoped to return in the coming days, Korver will have to wait a little longer. He said Thursday that Cybex testing showed he still has strength to regain in his hamstring and quadriceps following surgery.

As a result, Korver will cease court work for a week and focus on rebuilding strength in his leg. Korver said he would need to test at 75 percent to be “borderline” to play; his quadriceps was 70 percent and his hamstring 56 percent.”

To this point, I wasn’t really clear on what was meant by Cybex Testing. I had only vaguely heard of it from NFL Combine chatter, but the passage intrigued me. Here, it seemed, there was a scientific method in place for measuring the recovery of injured muscles and joints. Being the Sports Maven that I am, I had to do some research to find out what exactly Cybex Testing is, and what future potential it has for the sports industry.
More after the jump!

Hoops Addict Article - Iverson’s Place in History

Nov 27

Posted by Trev Smith in NBA Ball, Outside Writing, Trev Smith | No Comments

Trev is at it again at Hoops Addict, with a really strong look at Allen Iverson’s place in history. Fairly self-explanatory title, so I’ll spare you the intro line and you can just check it out!

Family, Fixings, and First Downs: NFL Thanksgiving Scattershots

Nov 27

Posted by Trev Smith in Football, Trev Smith | No Comments

As a Canadian, I joined my countrymen in the giving of thanks over a month ago. But as a sports fan, I cannot help but feel a part of the American version of the holiday. The reason for this is simple: the North American sports leagues flood us with content to coincide with the holiday.

How deep does my commitment to the holiday go? In high school, I had a tradition of playing sick every Thanksgiving Thursday, without fail, so that I could be assured of not missing a moment of watching the Lions get embarrassed and whatever mediocre match-up David Stern threw our way.

Let the most obvious of observations reign: Thanksgiving football is an institution on either side of the border. So, with the day of feasting and family upon us once again, why not use the opportunity to unleash a succession of NFL Tangents.

Nothing captures the spirit of the holiday season like a string of non sequiturs! Onward and upward…
More after the jump!

Raptors Republic Article - Bosh’s Decision in Strictly Financial Terms

Nov 26

Posted by Blake Murphy in Blake Murphy, NBA Ball, Outside Writing | No Comments

I have a new article up at Raptors Republic…it’s about Bosh again. This time, though, I’m analyzing his stay-or-go decision looking strictly at finances - I applied the NBA cap rules to all 30 teams, and adjusted for taxes and cost of living to see how many “real” dollars teams can offer CB4 this summer.

Check it out!

T-Mac’s Top 10: Sexiest Hockey Players

Nov 25

Posted by Blake Murphy in Hockey, Tieja Mac | No Comments

It’s no secret that hockey players are some of the best looking athletes on the planet (Editor’s Note: This is an extremely well kept secret to the male population). They’ve got the body, the grit, the attitude…oh, and did I mention the body? The question is how do you narrow it down and pick the cream de la crème of the NHL?<

To sort out all of the eye candy the league has to offer, I came up with a rating system and a list of criteria in an effort to separate one hottie from the next. Each player can earn a total of five +/- points per category in each Performance, Physique, and Swagger, for a combined maximum total of +15 points.

I present to you, the Top 10 Sexiest Hockey Players in the NHL for the 2009-2010 season.
More after the jump!

Raptors Republic Article - Will Bosh’s Hot Start Continue

Nov 20

Posted by Blake Murphy in Blake Murphy, NBA Ball, Outside Writing | No Comments

Here’s a tasty teaser:
“It is easy to get overexcited, as Raptor fans, about Chris Bosh’s performance through the first 12 games. There are reasons to be guarded, to be pessimistic, or to deem his success suspect thus far.

At the same time, it’s easy, as Raptor fans, to let his success thus far underwhelm you, to take the attitudes expressed above and use them to completely discount the tear that CB4 has been on.

Curiously, it’s a tough balancing beam for Raptor fans when Chris Bosh bursts out of the gate so hot, posting would-be career high numbers nearly across the board, dominating games for longer stretches than we’ve seen, and generally leaving fans asking for even more, especially late in games. After all, there are reasons to think Bosh won’t keep the pace up, reasons to think Bosh is guilty of the “contract year statistical inflation,” and, of course, the fact that the Raptors are 5-7 while Bosh has been lighting it up.

With all of that in mind I wanted to take a look at Bosh’s torrid start to 2009-10 and try to determine if it’s something he’ll be able to keep up moving forward, and how I should really feel about it as a Raptor fan.”

Click here to check out the entire article.

18/82 of What We’ll Know: Shifting the November Focus, and a Live Kadri Scouting Report

Nov 16

Posted by Blake Murphy in Blake Murphy, Hockey | 1 Comment

Since I last wrote, the Leafs have railed off three straight losses. I’m not sure why I’m surprised; perhaps, my concluding paragraphs last Tuesday were too optimistic, too hope-inspiring, effectively turning on the Blue-blinders that we as Leaf fans all too often adorn.

Upon closer reflection, it was the month as a whole that I was optimistic about, beginning with a “momentum” game against the Wild. The Leafs faltered badly, and followed up with a “measuring stick” type of loss to the Blackhawks and a “shoot me now” type of loss to the Flames. That is, the Leafs hung in there with a better Chicago team, but followed it up with a loss to Calgary despite severely outplaying them. This type of stomach-punch loss has been commonplace for Toronto this season, though this particular 40-22 shot advantage in a 5-2 loss was excruciating.

With last week’s intense face-slap now behind us, the Leafs sit at 3-10-5 and four points out of 28th in the league. While November could still be a promising month (Carolina is a must-win on Thursday, though), it might be time to shift our collective focus just a little bit, and appreciate a few smaller points to get over last week’s disaster.
More after the jump!

Hoops Addict Article - Nash and the Suns are Rising

Nov 11

Posted by Trev Smith in NBA Ball, Outside Writing, Trev Smith | No Comments

Like a Phoenix, Trev has risen back to writing prominence for Hoops Addict. Like a Phoenix, Steve Nash is back in the MVP conversation. Like a Phoenix, the Suns have brought back the run-and-gun style with success!

Are you getting this…PHOENIX…is the horse dead yet? Anyway…

Check it out!

15/82 of What We’ll Know: 28th With a Bullet

Nov 10

Posted by Blake Murphy in Blake Murphy, Hockey | No Comments

Idle hands are the devil’s playground, so they say. I guess, then, it’s good that I’ve been a little too busy (and under the weather) to write much in the way of coherent sports analysis the past few weeks. I say that, of course, because if I had wrote the latest Leafs’ update at the following times, the titles probably would have looked something like this:

October 25 (0-7-1) 8/82 of What We’ll Know: I Shouldn’t Have Come Back to Hockey Fanhood
October 27 (1-7-1) 9/82 of What We’ll Know: Holy F’N S! OMG They Won! ROFL BAHAHA I’ve Lost IT! GO LEAFS WHOOOO!
November 4th (1-7-5) 13/82 of What We’ll Know: As Much as I Hate a Point for an OT Loss, It Is Saving Toronto

As it is, today (3-7-5) the title is as above. Things are looking just a little bit brighter and more promising than a week or two weeks or three weeks ago. The Leafs have a few wins, haven’t lost in regulation in seven games (Is this worth boasting about? Yes.), and now sit tied for 28th in the NHL, with a chance to claim sole possession of 27th with a win tonight against the almost-as-lowly Minnesota Wild.

So what have we learned through 15/82 (18.3%) of the season?
More after the jump!

NBA Roundup: The Dark Side Of The Moon

Nov 9

Posted by Trev Smith in NBA Ball, Trev Smith | 2 Comments

With autumn disappearing, the world now begins to fade from view. The days have grown shorter and “right now” creeps into our lives more quickly than we might wish. The world is dying again, at least for the next five months.

But there is hope even as darkness falls earlier and earlier. For it is this emerging nighttime that brings with it the breath of air that accompanies every new NBA season. As Mother Nature goes back to sleep, hoop heads arise from hibernation.

So, with that new season now more than a week and a half old, it seems as good a time as any to take a first assessment of the state of the League. In order to do so, it would be helpful (or gimmicky? I always get those two confused…) to frame the discussion around something, a touch-point, a baseline that brings the arguments into focus as part of a larger picture. While I would have loved to use Mad Men’s impossibly awesome finale as that frame, I fear I could not do it justice, and so instead I’ll lean on Roger Waters and company for inspiration, mostly because I was listening to it on repeat Sunday afternoon and it fit with the night setting (sue me).

If the darkness and cold now rule our lives and we are turned away from Earth, we must be on the Dark Side of the Moon.

(End overwrought introduction)
More after the jump! –