This former TCU RB is running for the money

IRVING - Ed Wesley drove TCU head coach Gary Patterson a bit nuts in his time with the Horned Frogs, but it's hard not to be a little more than sympathetic for Ed right now.

Ed may not have loved the school part of college, but he does sound like a man committed to earning his degree. He said he just needs two more semesters to finish. And he would have finished had his mother not needed the cash.

"That's what it boiled down to," Ed said.

In the early spring, Wesley planned to declare for the NFL Draft in April. He changed his mind, and planned to return for his senior year. But his mother's condition didn't get any better. Ed made himself available for the NFL supplemental draft, and was not selected.

June Gates is 46 is recovering from breast cancer, suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, can't work, and basically lives on $800 a month in government assistance.

"It's not enough," Ed told me on Friday, the day before the team departed for training camp in Oxnard, Calif. "My mom's health isn't getting any better so I had to do what I had to do. The NCAA is really tough on what you can get as far as help. Mom can't work, and she receives a $800 per month disability check. It's just not enough. It's not enough to cover a car payment, or a lot of things."

Wesley was picked up by the Cowboys as an undrafted rookie free agent. Basically, he's a long shot and he better embrace the kamikaze life on special teams fast if he wants to make an impression.

"I did get nervous for a second when I didn't get picked because I thought, 'Maybe I'm not talented enough,'" he said. "It's not until you get around these guys do you really know what the case is."

Ed said he has been told by TCU that he can return to school whenever he wants to earn the degree.

Running backs have become like diapers in the NFL, so ... you never know. Maybe he can stick for a while. For his mom's sake, let's hope he does.

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Breaking down the Dallas Mavericks schedule & march towards Dwight Howard

The NBA has released the full 82-game schedule for every club, even the Charlotte Bobcats. Unlike last season's 66-game sprint that featured back-to-back-backs, and double headers, this schedule will return to the normal pace. (Personally, I really liked the 66 game deal).

For Dallas Mavericks fans, circle these games:

10/30 at Lakers. Season opener where Steve Nash will laugh in the Mavs face as he rides Kobe Bryant's back off the court.

11/3 Charlotte. Home opener. Not sure if this counts in the standings, but this should be the ideal chance for Chris Kaman to go for 40 and 10 and OJ Mayo to score 50 points.

11/9 at NY Knicks. Tyson Chandler now Jason Kidd. That's a nice kick to the groin.

12/8 at Houston. The Jeremy Lin Show; the question is whether Lin will be starting the game on the bench by this point.

12/12 at Boston. Jason Terry will want this game so bad it may cause his head to explode.

12/20 Miami. The greatest team in any sport ever will come to town.

1/14 Minnesota. With Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio, the Wolves could be one of the sleepers in the West.

1/18 OKC. The Thunder should return to spanking the Mavs.

1/20 at Orlando. The Mavs are praying Dwight Howard is still with the Magic.

2/9 Golden State. My God; are the Warriors still in the league?

2/20 Orlando. Dwight Howard Bobblehead night at the American Airlines Center.

2/26 Milwaukee. It's the rare buy 1 get 3,000 free tickets promotion.

3/20 Brooklyn. Yeeeeah ... Deron Williams may want to sit this one out.

3/26 LA Clippers. Yeeeah ... Lamar Odom may want to sit this one out.

3/28 Indiana. Imagine the reception Ian Mahinmi will receive playing against his old team. Get chills just thinking about the indifference.

3/30 Chicago. If Derrick Rose is actually upright for this game and not hurt as a result of his endless attacks at the rim, a good ticket.

 

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UPDATE: Report says Dwight Howard wants the Dallas Mavericks in 2013

UPDATE: Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports! is reporting something that should thrill the blank out of Dallas Mavericks fans. Dwight Howard is pushing Orlando for a deal to LA or Brooklyn, or it's the Mavs next summer.

Wojnarowski sent out this Tweet on Wednesday night: "If (Dwight) Howard gets to free agency in '13 without having been traded to Nets or Lakers, Dallas is overwhelming favorite to sign him, sources say."

He added this report this morning that says D12 is threatening to go to the Mavs if a deal isn't worked out to the Nets or Lakers.

Wojnarowski has had a bang up summer breaking NBA news, and he is one of the more connected national writers. 

Now, anything that Howard says should be taken with a block of salt. He could want to play in Greece tomorrow.

Landing Dwight Howard in the summer of 2013 would make this summer of spare parts in 2012 worth the disappointment. Dallas Mavs owner Mark Cuban has loved Howard for years, primarily because he is arguably the best big man in the game.

A lot can and will happen between now and July 1 of 2013, and I still don't think Howard is going to land with the Mavericks. The Magic can't let him get to the open market and lose him for nothing, and the Mavs don't have enough to offer in return to create an enticing deal.

The Nets or Lakers still seem like the obvious choice, which means D12 will be dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks.

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The BCS held out as long as it could & now dispenses a "playoff" lollipop

Declining TV ratings and slow ticket sales finally pushed the power brokers of the BCS to create the playoff it never wanted.

The BCS people did it the right way. They waited as long as they could, made as much money as they could, and finally threw out this lollipop to an audience that is so desperate for change and the appearance of fairness that we will celebrate it as progress.

The four-team playoff model that was approved by the BCS people and is still up for approval by university presidents and a D.C. oversight committee is likely going to receive the green light so we can have a playoff by 2014.

This does not mean Boise State, or any non-AQ, is going to the title game. This four-team playoff model is a re-distribution of the wealth disguised as equal opportunity. Someone is going to get screwed. And that someone is not going to be Texas, Alabama or Ohio State.

The semifinal games will be at traditional bowl sites, and the national title will be up for bids. Expect the Dallas Cowboys and Cowboys Stadium figure to be a player for that game.

SEC boss Mike Slive (he is the white dude pictured; not Snoop) has wanted this four-team model, he got it, now expect their to be two SEC teams in the Final Four for a while. The people who run the Pac 12, Big 10, Big 12 and SEC are going to get theirs.

Would TCU's Rose Bowl team been in this Final Four? Yes. Would Boise State have made it once or twice? Probably.

If the non-BCS schools thought it was difficult to get an invite to the Fiesta, Rose, Sugar or Orange the Final Four figures to be an even tougher ticket.

Even though the playoff participants will be selected by a selection committee that will almost assuredly protect their own, this is the first step in what will eventually be a larger, more inclusive playoff format. It's going to start with four teams, people will complain, and it will grow.

It starts with four, it will eventually go to eight and then 16.

 

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Even with Deron Williams, here are the numbers why the Dallas Mavericks should fear the Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder made my earlier prediction of another Spurs' NBA title look stupid by winning four straight in the Western Conference Finals for their first ever NBA Finals appearance.

Seattle must be thrilled with these developments.

Watching the Thunder methodically destroy the Mavericks, Lakers and Spurs in this playoff run it seems that Oklahoma City could have the league's nexty dynasty.

David Stern must be thrilled with this development. His New York Knicks can't win a game yet the flea-market Thunder are rolling.

Even if your Dallas Mavericks can sign Brooklyn Nets guard Deron Williams this offseason and put him next to Dirk Nowitzki, we should all be scared to death of the Thunder for the next few years.

Here is why:

Kevin Durant, age 23, signed through '15-'16 (unrestricted fa in 2016)
James Harden, age 22, signed through '12-'13 (restricted fa in 2013)
Serge Ibaka, age 22, signed through '12-'13 (restriced fa in 2013)
Kendrick Perkins, age 27  signed through '14-'15 (unrestricted fa in 2016)
Thabo Sefolosha, age 28, signed through '13-'14 (unrestricted fa in 2015)
Russell Westbrook age 23, signed through '16-'17 (unrestricted fa in 2017)

Can the Thunder afford to keep this nucleaus together? Having Durant and Westbrook locked in are the keys, now the trick will be able to convince James Harden to stick around. It does appear, however, this team is loaded for an extended run at the top of the Western Conference.

 

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Report says Deron Williams prefers Nets, Lakers & maybe Mavericks

This is not offical, New Jersey Nets guard Deron Williams hasn't signed anywhere, and I am too big (fluffy?) to say told you so but ... the reports keep surfacing that DWill is not coming to the Mavericks this offseason.

The Lakers are the new twist to this scenario. According to this report from Sports Illustrated, DWill is more tempted at the idea of going to the Lakers than he is the Mavericks. But his preference is to remain with the Brooklyn Nets, and build from there with guys like Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace.

I have thought from Day 1 WIll was never coming to the Mavericks, which leaves this cap-clearing previous season left to look at guys like ... Steve Nash.

Maybe Michael Finley can come back.

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Mavericks' Shawn Marion gets no love: Not on any NBA defensive teams

Despite repeated lobbying efforts from both team owner Mark Cuban and head coach Rick Carlisle to convince the NBA nation otherwise, Dallas Mavericks forward Shawn Marion apparently isn't a good defender.

Never mind the fact that the league's defensive player of the year isn't even a first ballot all-league defensive player. What the what??!!!

The NBA released its all defensive teams today, and "Trix" didn't make either.

First Team
LeBron James, Heat
Dwight Howard, Magic
Serge Ibaka, Thunder
Chris Paul, Clippers
Tony Allen, Grizzlies

Second Team
Tyson Chandler, Knicks
Kevin Garnett, Celtics
Luol Deng, Bulls
Rajon Rondo, Celtics
Kobe Bryant, Lakers

The voting was completed by 30 head coaches, who could not pick players from their own team. This is the first time the league's defensive player of the year (Chandler) wasn't a first-team all-defensive player since 1995 when Dikembe Mutombo was a second-teamer.

As far as Marion? He was asked to guard as many as three positions per night and did it well. Apparently not well enough.

 

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Deron Williams, Josh Hamilton & the no Texas state tax income myth on free agency

Brooklyn nets guard Deron Williams is not yet a free agent, and neither is Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton, but that is no excuse not to project where either player will land when the time comes.

We have this report from Slam online that says the Nets and their Russian guhzillionaire owner are ready to bury DWill in money. 

We have this from Sportsline.com's Jon Heyman listing a whole bunch of landing sports for Josh, No. 1 being Texas.

Those crossing their respective fingers extra tight in hopes that DWill comes home to the Mavs, and Josh stays, usually point to the fact that Texas has no state income tax as one of the many benefits of signing with their favorite local team.

My personal take on this truth is that never once has it affected a free agent signing with their team of choice. The man weighing a five-year, $125 million offer from New York looks at that figure as greater than the five year, $120 million deal from Texas, despite the tax impact it will have on the net sum.

I called a long time CPA in Texas in an effort to determine if the other taxes levied by Texas, most notably our higher property taxes, make the no state-income tax a wash on contracts.

"It's complicated and it all depends on where you live," the CPA said. "Texas property taxes are very high. And Texas has a lot of little dinky (taxes). We also have a high sales tax. Now, if this player is in New York he's going to have to pay a high sales tax, a city tax, a state tax and a lot of other ones, too. He's just going to get taxed more there."

The CPA explained, as far as filing a tax return and trying to regain some of those lost wages, is a complicated labyrinth but possible.

I posed the following questions:

a.) Is a five-year, $100 million contract in Texas going to look the same in New York after taxes?

"No," the CPA said. "The player in New York is going to be taxed more, even though Texas has a higher property tax, etc. The player in New York is going to lose a little bit more money through taxes than they would in Texas."

b.) Is the tax difference on that hypothetical contract from Texas compared to a New York or a California substanial enough to really make a significant difference on the quality of living?

"Not really," the CPA said. "Again, it all depends on how the person spends it. If the player, or person, makes $10 million (the IRS) assumes they are going to spend all of it, and then some, because they usually do."

c.) In your best guess, is a person ever really influenced on varying tax rates?

"No. We should all be living in New Hampshire where there is no state or sales tax," the CPA said. "My experience in dealing with higher end clients is you are right - they don't think about it. They see the number and that's it."

Bottom line: A player is going to go where he wants, and taxes won't have a thing to do with his decision ... even if they should. 

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Is Kevin Durant, not LeBron, the best player in the game?

After watching the OKC Thunder kick the defending NBA champion Mavericks to the curb in the first round of the playoffs it was quickly apparent the Thunder are all grown up.

While LeBron and DWade are getting killed nationally for their performance against the Indiana Pacers, Kevin Durant has become as clutch as any player in the league. He is a very bad, bad man.

On Saturday night in L.A. with the game tied at 98 against the Lakers, Durant calmly drilled this monster 3 against Metta World Artest to win the game.

 

Not sure if the Thunder will have enough to get past Los Spurs, but the series should be compelling.

 

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Yu Darvish's 2012 start vs. Fernando Valenzuela's 1981 start

Time to think outside of the sports comparison box, and that means Yu Darvish is not to be compared with another Japanese import. The Big Mac Blog is looking to Mexico for the last time a rookie kicked this much MLB tail this early.

Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is 6-1 with a 2.60 ERA after going 7 2/3 innings and allowing 1 run with 7 Ks against the Oakland A's on Wednesday night in Arlington.

The last time the MLB was this impressed by an import pitcher was a Mexican teenager with the L.A. Dodgers in Fernando Valenzuela. Fernando may have had a weird delivery, and a bit of a gut, but he was a great athlete. He was also pitching in the National League in more of a pitcher's era. 

When he broke into the bigs with the Dodgers in 1980 he did so as a 19-year-old reliever. In his first full year, in 1981, Fernando was a starter and finished 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA with a staggering 11 complete games and eight shutouts. 

As impressive as Yu's start is, Fernando's was brilliant.

Yu Darvish's first eight starts: 
1. 4/9 v. Sea, 5/2 ip, 8 hits, 1 er, 4 BB, 5 K   W, 11-5  (1-0)
2. 4/14 at Min, 5.2 ip, 9 hits, 2 er, 4 BB, 4 K  W, 6-2 (no decision)
3. 4/19 at Det, 6.1 ip, 2 hits, 1 er, 5 BB, 5 K  W 10-3 (2-0)
4. 4/24 v. NYY 8.1 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 2 BB, 10 K  W 2-0 (3-0)
5. 4/30 at Tor, 7 ip, 4 hits, 1 er, 2 BB, 9 K    W 4-1 (4-0)
6. 5/6 at Cle, 6 ip, 5 hits, 3 er, 4 BB, 11 K   L 4-2 (4-1)
7. 5/11 at Angels, 5.1 ip, 3 hits, 3 er, 3 BB, 7 K    W 10-3 (5-1)
8. 5/16 v. A's, 7.2 ip, 4 hits, 1 er, 2 BB, 7 K  W  W 3-1 (6-1)

Fernando Valenzuela's first 8 MLB starts (in 1981)
1. 4/9 v. Astros 9 ip, 5 hits, 0 er, 2 BB, 5 K   W, 2-0 (1-0; shutout)
2. 4/14 at SF Giants 9 ip, 4 hits, 1 er, 2 BB, 10 K  W, 7-1 (2-0; complete game)
3. 4/18 at Padres 9 ip, 5 hits, 0 er, 0 BB, 10 K  W, 2-0 (3-0; shutout) 
4. 4/22 at Astros 9 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 3 BB, 11 K   W, 1-0 (4-0, shutout)
5. 4/27 SF Giants 9 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 4 BB, 7 K  W, 5-0 (5-0, shutout)
6. 5/3 at Expos 9 ip, 5 hits, 1 er, 0 BB, 7 K   W, 6-1 (6-0, complete game)
7. 5/8 at NY Mets 9 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 5 BB, 11 K   W, 1-0 (7-0, shutout)
8. 5/14 v. Expos W 9 ip, 3 hits, 2 er, 1 BB, 7 K   W, 3-2 (8-0, complete game)

 

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