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Shanoff’s WUC: Capless, Bubble, C-Week, More

Mar 5, 2010, 1:31 PM UTC

Today’s Calls: NFL Free Agents vs. Capless, Antonio Cromartie vs. Darren Sproles, Dwyane Wade vs. Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant vs. LeBron, Jason Heyward vs. Stephen Strasburg, Barry Zito vs. Prince Fielder, Brett Favre vs. Jay Leno, Sandra Bullock vs. Meryl Streep and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: Who is sizing up to have a good weekend?â†µ

â†µâ†µ• NFL Free Agents. The league is going “capless,” but that doesn’t mean that teams can’t improve themselves by signing available players. Dansby to the Dolphins? The Lions as players?â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Northern Iowa. Most “Championship Week” league tourney champs this weekend are from one-auto-bid leagues, but UNI could lose the Mo Valley and still make the field as an at-large ... bumping out a “name” bubble team.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Thunder fans. Kevin Durant makes LeBron and D-Wade look like dopes by indicating that he will be happy to re-sign with OKC this summer.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Sandra Bullock. What is more unbelievable: That Bullock has a strong chance of winning “Best Actress” (over Meryl Streep!) or that the fluffy “Blind Side” is shaping up as the most decorated sports movie since “Rocky.”â†µ

â†µâ†µ• College hoops fans. Settle in, folks: “March Madness” officially starts ... here. â†µ

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â†µNFL goes capless! "Uncapped year" sounds so cool -- like one NFL owner could spend Yankees-style money to build a super-team of free agents. Unfortunately, it's not that cool -- and more closely resembles when the "cool-looking" Silver Surfer shows up ... just before Galactus arrives to consume your planet.â†µ

â†µâ†µFree Agent Watch: Karlos Dansby was my (and SN’s) “best available” FA. ESPN’s Mort is saying that folks around the league think that it will come down to the Dolphins and Giants for him. (Trenches has updates as they happen.)â†µ

â†µâ†µJets get CB Cromartie from Chargers. I understand that San Diego had soured on him, but under Rex Ryan, expect Cromartie to thrive -- a year from now, this will look like a lopsided steal.â†µ

â†µâ†µ(The Chargers did make one move to keep a player, opting not to let Darren Sproles leave town -- along with all semblance of San Diego’s running game, which still needs a second option beyond Sproles.)â†µ

â†µâ†µTiger Watch: Elin is reportedly moving back in. For many people who soured on Tiger, that will be a big step (along with getting back on the golf course) to rehabbing his image. If Elin forgives, fans will, too.â†µ

â†µâ†µBrittney Grimer gets ... two measly games? That is a complete joke. If Baylor or the Big 12 wants to be taken seriously, they need to take the game seriously. This is terrible for women’s college hoops, and it will be a sign of its relevance whether or not there is an outcry the league feels compelled to listen to.â†µ

â†µâ†µChampionship Week Mania: Forget the bubble; these small-conference finalists are playing for entry into the NCAA Tournament this weekend: Atlantic Sun, Big South, Horizon, Ohio Valley. That they will be seeded anywhere from 13th to 16th doesn’t matter; any number of “name” bubble teams would love to trade places for that guaranteed NCAA invite right now. (Keep an eye on the Missouri Valley: If Northern Iowa doesn’t win the conference tournament title, they will still earn an at-large bid ... and knock out a bubble team from a “power” league.)â†µ

â†µâ†µCBB bubble Mania: Games of the Weekend involving major-conference teams angling for at-large bids:â†µ
â†µ• Louisville (hosting Syracuse)â†µ
â†µ• Notre Dame (at Marquette)â†µ
â†µ• Mississippi St (hosting Tennessee)â†µ
â†µ• Florida (at Kentucky)â†µ

â†µâ†µIt’s hard to say anything too definitive, because every bubble team has a chance to help its cause materially in their conference tournaments. But a notable win to end the regular season would obviously help.â†µ

â†µâ†µ(Among teams locked into the Tournament already, watch Purdue at Penn State, which gave Michigan State a game in East Lansing last night. If Purdue doesn’t win, watch their presumptive seeding slip even further. I’ve had them as a 4-seed since Hummel went down. But if they can’t beat PSU, they’ll have a hard time escaping the NCAA first weekend, no matter what their seeding.)â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Talking Points: Hell of a game between Wade and Kobe in Miami last night. 39 for Bryant, and 25 pts plus 14 ast for D-Wade ... plus the OT win. It’s results like that that must nudge Wade into wanting to return to Miami.â†µ

â†µâ†µSpeaking of returns: You can’t possibly be shocked to find out that Zydrunas Ilgauskas wants to go back to Cleveland.â†µ

â†µâ†µKevin Durant is not the new LeBron: He’s better, in at least one way. Instead of leaving his team and his fans dangling over his future, Durant said that if the Thunder offered him a 5Y/$80M max extension this summer, he would sign it. Sam Presti is WAY too smart not to take him up on that offer.â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Season Preview: Jason Heyward Mania continues. He is a media favorite, and -- apparently -- a fantasy sensation, too.â†µ

â†µâ†µSpring Training: I’ve been hard on Barry Zito since he got to SF and became one of the biggest big-contract flops in recent baseball history. But this was kind of awesome. Hat-tip to you, Barry Z.â†µ

â†µâ†µ“Grand Theft Tebow”: This story is kind of hilarious.â†µ

â†µâ†µFavre on Leno: “Well Jay, it’s only been a month, and I know now that I’m just not going to say anything anytime soon, just going to kind of sit back, relax, enjoy the offseason.” (Did you really think that Favre would announce something on Leno? And, even if he did, whether that would acctually be his “final” decision?)â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: Oscar picks! â†µ
â†µPicture: Avatarâ†µ
â†µDirector: Kathryn Bigelowâ†µ
â†µActor: Jeff Bridgesâ†µ
â†µActress: Meryl Streepâ†µ
â†µSupporting Actor: Christoph Waltzâ†µ
â†µSupporting Actress: Mo’Niqueâ†µ

â†µâ†µPut your own picks in the Comments.â†µ

â†µâ†µDan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/danshanoff. â†µ

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