News sport : The Cleveland Cavaliers traded for Timofey Mozgov because they had to

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Some NBA observers are calling the Cleveland Cavaliers “desperate.”


Well, yeah. That’s sort of what you do when you have LeBron James on your team. You do everything you can to win right, bloody, now. It’s the only sensible line of attack, and though we need to remain patient both this season and next as James and his new’ish teammates figure this out, you don’t want to waste any hours when LeBron James is on your roster.


The team’s front office proved as much on Wednesday when it dealt two future first-round draft picks to the struggling Denver Nuggets for center Timofey Mozgov. Mozgov (8.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 25 minutes a game, starting each contest) won’t be charged with solving all of Cleveland’s defensive problems – they ‘re currently ranked 22nd on that end and at times it boggles as to how they’re not ranked lower in that realm – but he can’t help but put a critical suture on an obvious wound.


The price Cleveland had to pay for such medical attention were picks owed to them by the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder – two winning organizations that could battle for the Western Conference crown this season if the seeds align right. These will eventually be solid picks, and the Cavaliers will miss them.


The Nuggets will take in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s first-rounder, which is protected through the first 18 picks of the draft this year and through the top 15 next season. OKC is currently in the 12th position right now, pre-lottery, but they’re expected to vault up the NBA standings after injuries to both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook led to a 17-18 start to the season.


Denver may miss out on the pick this year, but unless something catastrophic happens to the Thunder in 2015-16 the Nuggets will most assuredly receive the pick in 2016 (the same protections are in place for 2017, and it turns into two future second round picks should the catastrophic thing happen two seasons in a row).


Memphis’ selection is more appealing. The pick is currently protected through the top five and between spots 15-30 this year and next, 6-through-14 slots the championship-level Grizzlies aren’t falling into unless injuries hit or Marc Gasol shocks the world by leaving the Grizz as a free agent this summer. Beyond that, though, as the group ages it might be possible that the Nuggets fall into a very good pick as the protections (top five in 2017 and 2018, completely unprotected in 2019) dissipate.


This is why the immediate reaction to Cleveland’s deal seems to have sent the NBA into a tizzy. This is also why we need to re-introduce ourselves to the context the Cavaliers are dealing with.


The Cavs, due to the miserable work of their previous general manager, will have to swap picks with the Chicago Bulls this June if the Bulls (who are currently six games ahead of Cleveland) finish with a better record than Cleveland. Unless the wheels completely fall off in Ohio and the Cavs end up with a top ten lottery pick in 2016, they’ll have to send their pick in that year’s draft to Boston. They’ll have their 2017 selection, per NBA rules, but those two other assets in the Thunder and Grizzlies’ picks are gone for good.


On top of that? The trade exception used to acquire Mozgov on Wednesday was grabbed from the Boston Celtics in exchange for two second-round picks (and that 2016 first, in exchange for what could have been a needed player in Tyler Zeller and more cap space for LeBron). This move, coupled with other deals, means that the Cavs won’t have a second-round pick until 2020.


This is sort of how goes, though.


The Cavs have to win now. They have to put themselves in a place where a healthy LeBron and just now getting it Love, Irving and helpers can trump regular season records and make it to the Finals. Just as Kevin Garnett is the oldest 39-year old in NBA history and Kobe Bryant is the oldest 36-year old in NBA history, LeBron James is the oldest 30-year old in NBA history due to the ungodly minutes he’s taken in – his career arc isn’t comparable to Michael Jordan in his 30s. James working as a B-level version of his former championship self should be more than enough to build around as a championship contender, but he needs help. Now.


Many criticized the Cavs for bringing in the sort of players that tend to follow in LeBron’s wake during the 2014 offseason, shooters like Mike Miller and James Jones or a veteran former star in Shawn Marion, but the reality in retrospect (and even then, to those working through this stuff daily) was that the Cavaliers didn’t have a whole heck of a lot of options. Players like Mozgov (or better) just weren’t really available for the Cavs to either sign or deal for. The Cavs’ needs – defense, rim protecting – mainly were just listed as attributes as opposed to actual living and breathing NBA players that were available for acquisition.


Even now, players better than Mozgov weren’t really available. Cleveland lusted after Memphis’ Kosta Koufos, who is currently a reserve center luxury working on a team featuring (at worst) the second-best center in basketball right now, but there is absolutely no guarantee that the Grizzlies would take back their own future pick, the Thunder selection, and even an anti-efficiency type like Dion Waiters in return for that reserve.


Is that the wrong move for Memphis in the long term, especially considering the potential of the pick they owed Cleveland and now Denver? Sure. The Grizzlies would have likely passed on that deal for the same reason Cleveland just made this deal – for some teams, it is about winning now.


These are penny-wise moves made with the knowledge that the long term ramifications will be hard to swallow in a few years, and that’s just fine. In an era that seems to fetishize first-round picks and as-yet-acquired players that are only currently listed as “assets,” this was a refreshing move. All with Cleveland’s un-guaranteed Brendan Haywood contract still lingering as the last chance trade chip.


Sometimes a desperate move is a needed move. Sometimes they’ll fall flat on their face, but sometimes that’s what you have to risk with your back against the proverbial wall.


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Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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News sport : Maryland CB Josh Woods got a tattoo of the state flag on his leg (Photo)

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Josh Woods' left leg is proud of his home state and his college. The Maryland cornerback showed off an impressive tattoo of the Maryland flag on his leg Tuesday.



Here's another look from Instagram.


The tattoo will match Maryland's myriad of uniform schemes if he chooses to go without socks in 2015. Woods was a freshman in 2014 and a three-star recruit in the class of 2014 according to Rivals.


(H/T SB Nation's Fanshot)


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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : Yes, the Atlanta Hawks are very, very good: A brief primer

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Al Horford reminds LaMarcus Aldridge what time it is. (Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports) One of the things that surprised me most upon plugging back into the NBA after a month away was that the Atlanta Hawks had catapulted from their customary middle-of-the-pack position in the standings when I'd left all the way to the top of the Eastern Conference by the time I returned. "Twenty-five and eight?" I thought. "Wait — the Atlanta Hawks? You're kidding, right?"


I heard a similar tone struck while having a conversation Wednesday with an NBA-loving radio host who admitted that the last decade-or-so of mostly mediocrity had led his eyes to kind of glaze over any time he saw the Hawks' uniforms. That's something of a shame — for one thing, I kind of dig those red alternates — but it in came in the context of asking whether or not this year's version of the Hawks, the one that dismantled the league in December en route to overtaking the Toronto Raptors atop the East, is A) for real and B) worth keeping an eye on heading into what promises to be a marquee matchup with the (alas, possibly Z-Bo-less) Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night.


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The answer, near as I can tell based on the stinkfaces Atlanta's inspiring in its opposition these days, is a big affirmative to both. If you've been wondering, too, here's a brief primer on what's brought us here and why this might be the season to believe in the Hawks:


• They're surging. No, they might not win three out of every four games for the rest of the season, but they're in peak form right now, having won five in a row, 10 of their last 11 and a whopping 21 of their last 24 games stretching back to the night after Thanksgiving. Eleven of those wins have come against teams that'd be in the playoffs if the season ended today. Eight of them have come on the road. (In fact, it's been nearly a month since the Hawks lost on the road, with the Dec. 13 defeat coming at the hands of — naturally — the Orlando Magic.)


Five have come against Western Conference competition, including Monday's impressive 107-98 road victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, which improved Atlanta to 26-8, the third-best record in the NBA behind only the Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers ... whom the Hawks just beat Saturday, 115-107, in Oregon, on the second night of a back-to-back. And speaking of competition...


• They're not padding their record against lightweights. Sure, the general weakness of the Eastern Conference compared to the West means that Atlanta's overall slate might not necessarily match up to some Left Coast powers. (ESPN.com's strength-of-schedule rankings place the Hawks 25th among the NBA's 30 teams so far.) But Atlanta's rolled up a 9-2 record against Western Conference opponents, with the two losses coming by a combined seven points in a road game against the defending champion San Antonio Spurs and at home in Nick Young's season debut for the Los Angeles Lakers. (As if any force marshalled against the Lakers could've prospered that night.)


The Hawks outscored Western opponents by 4.9 points per 100 possessions over those 11 games, right in line with their full-season efficiency differential (+5.2-per-100), whole scoring and defending at top-10 efficiency levels against the fairer conference. And check out which team's got the best mark against winning opposition, per NBA.com's John Schuhmann:



Ca-caw.


• They're balanced. Heading into Wednesday's action, Atlanta's tied for ninth in the league in offensive efficiency, scoring an average of 105.7 points per 100 possessions, and tied for fifth in the NBA in defensive efficiency, holding opponents to just 100.6 points-per-100. They're one of only four teams to rank in the top 10 on both sides of the ball, along with the Warriors, Blazers and Central Division-leading Chicago Bulls.


Jeff Teague's breaking down defenses and leading the way. (Sam Forencich/NBAE/Getty Images) Both represent considerable improvement over last year's model of the Hawks, which finished smack dab in the middle of the pack in both categories, and while it's Atlanta's offense that's drawing comparisons to San Antonio, it's the Hawks' defense that seems to be a bigger story.


"Last year, we were one of the worst teams in the league defensively, and I think we stepped it up a lot," point guard Jeff Teague said Monday, according to Bleacher Report's Josh Martin. "This year, we’re more active defensively, trying to get into passing lanes, create turnovers. I think we’re doing a pretty good job so far."


It's awful hard to argue with the league's fifth-best defensive rating, sixth-lowest opponents' field-goal percentage, and third-best record, after all.


• No, for real, they're balanced. Nobody on the Hawks averages more than Teague's 17.4 points per game, but all five Atlanta starters — Teague, power forward Paul Millsap, center Al Horford, shooting guard Kyle Korver and small forward DeMarre Carroll — average at least 11.6 a night. Nine Hawks — those five, plus top reserves Dennis Schroder, Mike Scott, Pero Antic and Thabo Sefolosha — all chip in at least five points a night for an attack that ranks fourth in the league in both effective field goal percentage, which accounts for 3-pointers being worth more than regular buckets, and True Shooting percentage, which factors in 2-point, 3-point and free-throw averages.


Oh, that's another thing — Atlanta bombs away from deep. Only seven teams have taken more 3-balls per game than the Hawks thus far this season, and only six make more per contest. Leading the way, obviously, is the sharpshooting Korver, who's drilling 51.3 percent of his triples (just one-thousandth of a percentage point behind the New Orleans Pelicans' Luke Babbitt for tops in the league) while launching 6.2 long balls per 36 minutes of floor time.


But the strafing isn't limited to Korver continually getting open off curls, screens and off-ball marathoning. Under former Spurs disciple and second-year head coach Mike Budenholzer, an awful lot of Hawks have the green light — seven Atlanta players average at least two triple tries per game, helping provide all sorts of space on the interior for the bigs, driving lanes for the guards, and tough covers all over as the ball ping-pongs around the perimeter on a Hawks team that ranks in the top five in passes per game, total assists, secondary assists, assist opportunities and points created by assist per game, according to NBA.com's SportVU tracking data, as well as overall assistant percentage (the share of team baskets on which an assist is lodged) and .


• Seriously, though ... balance: Check out this neat little nugget:



No, the Hawks don't have a signature superstar — longtime Clippers announcer Ralph Lawler noted the other night, as the Hawks were putting the finishing touches on their second victory over Doc Rivers' club in as many weeks, that there isn't really anybody on Atlanta's roster that scares you. But there's a silver lining to that particular cloud, as veteran big man Elton Brand sees it, according to ESPN.com's Kevin Arnovitz:


“Not to dump on any specific team, but when you play against a superstar, you know exactly where the ball is going,” Brand said. “Certain guys are going to get the ball at certain times at certain spots. They're running their sets.”

The Hawks, to be sure, run their sets, too. But their sets take advantage of the fact that just about anybody can be dangerous if you give them the chance to be.


"Everybody's a threat, everybody's an option, and on different nights, different guys lead us scoring and hopefully it makes us dynamic, a little harder to prepare for and harder to guard," Budenholzer recently told Jeff Zillgitt of USA TODAY Sports. "There's really an unselfishness and there's a belief in each other."


Which comes back to another point:


• They're well-coached. Budenholzer came highly touted after spending nearly two decades with the Spurs, and the more you watch the Hawks' free-flowing motion offense, the more you can see why. That's especially true when you watch the beautiful plays the Hawks always seem to run, and the clean looks they always seem to get, coming out of timeouts:




It goes beyond just Budenholzer's facility with X's and O's, though. Atlanta doesn't beat itself, committing the fourth-fewest fouls in the league thus far. They cough the ball up at a middle-of-the-pack rate while creating turnovers at the league's seventh-best clip. They allow the league's ninth-lowest number of restricted-area attempts per game. And they're absolutely dynamite in the clutch, posting a 15-6 record in games where the score's been within five points in the final five minutes, and outscoring the opposition by a blistering 28.2 points per 100 possessions in such situations.


They don't get rattled, they don't get anxious; they just get the job done, consistently and thoroughly. The results have been remarkable, in stark contrast to the many prognosticators who looked at this Hawks roster prior to the season — with Atlanta's ownership, front office and everything else mired in scandal and misery — and expected roughly more of the same middling production.


"[...] we weren't mad about people not talking about us," Korver told Zillgitt. "We feel we have something to prove and we're out here trying to do that right now."


There's depth on the roster, belief in the locker room, a strong leader on the sidelines and, by hook or by crook, increasing interest in the homegrown product. All that's left now is to settle the ownership situation. Some had feared might result in relocation, but that doesn't seem to be the case:



The Hawks are not only here and for real, it seems, but are staying put, and just in time for the NBA world to stand up and take notice of the brilliance that's been brewing in the ATL. Pretty good timing, I'd say.


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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!



Stay connected with Ball Don't Lie on Twitter @YahooBDL, "Like" BDL on Facebook and follow Dunks Don't Lie on Tumblr for year-round NBA talk, jokes and more.






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News sport : Former Jet Bart Scott thinks Rex Ryan is great fit for Falcons

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In the eyes of former New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott, the pairing of head coach Rex Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons is a dream scenario for his former head coach.


Scott, who played under Ryan when he was the defensive coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens and then followed him to the Jets in 2009, knows that the defensive mastermind can turn around a Falcons defense that ranked No. 18 last year. Ryan interviewed in Atlanta on Tuesday and Scott thinks this could be a dream pairing.


The Achilles' heel of Ryan's six years as head coach of the Jets was the quarterback play, where Mark Sanchez then Geno Smith provided him with lackluster performances. But with the Falcons, the former Jets head coach would be paired with Matt Ryan, one of the best at his position.


There has been a lot of talk that Rex Ryan, if in the right scenario, could win a Super Bowl before the team that just fired him.


“I think it depends where he goes. If he goes where there is a quarterback, he has a very great chance of winning. He showed what he can do with a decent quarterback and a below-average quarterback in terms of performance,” Scott told Yahoo Sports. “You send him to a place where there is a leader in terms of a quarterback, who commands respect not just from other teams but from the skill position players in that building, it's dangerous. It's dangerous.


“It is dangerous to give that man a lead. Last time I played in that system when we had a lead, we put up 60 sacks and teams were afraid to play us. Down right afraid of us.”


Scott was referring to the Ravens franchise record for sacks set in 2006 with Ryan as defensive coordinator.


Ryan was fired by the Jets last week after failing to bring the Jets to the playoffs in the last four years as criticism mounted that he can't develop quarterbacks. In Atlanta, he could potentially be gift-wrapped an ideal situation on offense.


Sources tell Yahoo Sports that Ryan, who also has interviewed with the San Francisco 49ers, sees the Atlanta job “as ideal and preferable” due to the proximity to South Carolina. Ryan's son Seth is a preferred walk-on wide receiver at Clemson, meaning that “he can see his son play many weekends.”


“The Falcons job is ideal on many levels and is his top option,” a source said.


Seth Ryan suffered a season-ending injury during training camp but showed some potential in the 2014 spring game, with two catches for 38 yards.


Atlanta is a little less than a two-hour drive from Clemson, providing a good opportunity to make a Saturday afternoon game and be back in Atlanta by Saturday evening for Falcons home games.


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Kristian R. Dyer writes for Metro New York and is a contributor to Yahoo! Sports. Follow him on Twitter @KristianRDyer






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News sport : 2014 Driver Reviews: No. 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr.

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After doing exit interviews for Sprint Cup Series drivers in 2013, we're turning the tables. We want the drivers to sell themselves. So here are the resumés for all full-time Sprint Cup Series drivers in 2014. Then, at the end, we'll provide a summation of the driver's season in 150 words or less.


Name: Dale Earnhardt Jr.


NASCAR Experience: 15 full seasons in the Sprint Cup Series. 23 wins. 1998 and 1999 Xfinity Series champion.


Most recent team: Hendrick Motorsports


Most recent season finish: 8th


2014 accomplishments: Four wins, the most in any season since 2004. 12 top fives, the most in any season since 2004 and 20 top 10s.


Most memorable moment: Joining Twitter. OK, kidding. Winning the Daytona 500 is pretty unforgettable. And if you're looking for a way to kill time at work, here's a condensed version of the race, which definitely lasted more than 51 minutes.



Though sweeping Pocono is pretty good too.



Strengths: Well, being the most popular driver in the Cup Series is a strength, right? And winning races again is a strength too.


2015 goals: Make sure that 2015 doesn't have a dropoff from Steve Letarte to Greg Ives. And get past the second round of the Chase.


FTM's Take: About the Twitter thing at the top: Perhaps Junior's most memorable off-track moment for the public is Twitter. Because he and Brad Keselowski are must-follows as they have unfiltered accounts with unique insights. For as much as was touted of the early adoption to Twitter for many in NASCAR, it can be hard to find engaging Twitter follows at times.


Yes, it's going to be easy to fret about the loss of Letarte in 2015, but what if Junior's success with Letarte was helped by their ability to let loose and have fun? There can be valuable carryover in that for Junior, who seems to be enjoying everything about life.


There may be an adjustment period with Ives, but we're going to go out on a limb and say we won't be worrying about the partnership come June and July. Junior's still in a great situation to contend for a championship if he can avoid the fate that befell him in the second round in 2014.


Previous reviews: No. 9 Carl Edwards, No. 10 Kyle Busch, No. 11 Jimmie Johnson, No. 12 Kurt Busch, No. 13 AJ Allmendinger, No. 14 Greg Biffle, No. 15 Kasey Kahne, No. 16 Aric Almirola, No. 17 Kyle Larson, No. 18, Jamie McMurray, No. 19 Clint Bowyer, No. 20, Austin Dillon, No. 21 Paul Menard, No. 22 Brian Vickers, No. 23 Marcos Ambrose, No. 24 Martin Truex Jr., No. 25 Tony Stewart, No. 26 Casey Mears, No. 27 Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 28, Danica Patrick, No. 29, Justin Allgaier, No. 30, David Gilliland, No. 31 Cole Whitt, No. 32 David Ragan, No. 33 Michael Annett, No. 34 Reed Sorenson, No. 35 Alex Bowman


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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : Kevin Sumlin actually fired the pool boy who overheard him on the phone

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While Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin was having a phone conversation to finalize the hiring of the Aggies’ next defensive coordinator, an A&M student who was cleaning his pool sent out a tweet that ultimately cost him his job.



When Sumlin replied, people weren’t entirely sure if he was being serious, but in a radio interview with ESPN’s Mike & Mike on Wednesday, Sumlin confirmed that he was.


Sumlin said that he was actually on the phone with John Chavis, who he hired away from LSU the day after the pool boy, Rustin McFarland, overheard him on the phone. Sumlin said the decision to fire McFarland came down to an invasion of privacy.


(The pool boy question comes around the 15:00 mark)


“We try to teach lessons to young people and I’ve got a great company that built my pool and (McFarland’s) boss is a good friend – I’ve known him for a long time,” Sumlin said. “I was on the phone. Obviously everybody wanted to know who we were going to hire as a D coordinator and I was on the phone with John Chavis at the time and (McFarland’s) looking through the pool and I’m coming out of the car and he’s still standing around, looking.


“The message is if you come to somebody’s house and somebody hires you, whatever you’re doing – it’s a little bit personal. If you’re invading privacy, it’s not a public deal and Twitter is public. So, you know, guess what? Don’t come back.”


Sumlin said it’s a lesson for young people, including his players, to take social media seriously.


“Guys are going to make mistakes. Think before you tweet,” Sumin said.


McFarland definitely received that lesson loud and clear.


For more Texas A&M news, visit AggieYell.com.


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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : National Championship Preview: Ohio State's O-line

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The first College Football Playoff National Championship Game is finally upon us and Dr. Saturday has your pregame prep covered. Every day leading up to the game, we’ll breakdown a piece of each team and preview its role in the upcoming title game. Previous previews: Ohio State's front 7, Oregon's front 7, Ohio State's secondary.


Season highlight: Ohio State’s starting left guard Billy Price said he thought the Big Ten title game against Wisconsin completed the turnaround of the Ohio State offensive line and he was right. The game showed complete domination by a line that allowed just one sack and five tackles for loss while the offense rolled up 558 total yards and seven touchdowns in a 59-0 performance.


Player to Watch: Guard Pat Elflein was one of just two Buckeyes with starting experience on the line this season and as the year has progressed, he has become the anchor. In the semifinal against Alabama, Elflein actually slid over to center when Jacoby Boren was injured late in the first half. Three plays later, the Buckeyes scored their first touchdown of the game on a 3-yard run by Ezekiel Elliott.


Strengths: Ohio State can run the ball. There was definitely some doubt about whether the Buckeyes could do it against Alabama and one of the best defensive lines in the game, but those concerns were alleviated when the Buckeyes rattled off 281 rushing yards against a defense that was allowing less than 100 rushing yards per game and had not allowed a 100-yard rusher this season. Elliott finished with 230 yards. Since struggling against Navy and Virginia Tech, Ohio State has not rushed for fewer than 219 yards and has rushed for 300 yards three times.


Weaknesses: While the running game has been good, opponents haven’t had much trouble getting into the backfield. Teams average 5.21 tackles for loss against the Buckeyes and Alabama managed a season-high tying 11. The only other team to have 11 tackles for loss on Ohio State was Virginia Tech, the team's only loss of the season. The Hokies also managed a season-high seven sacks. The Buckeyes have been much better since that game and have definitely cut down the sack totals, but did allow three to the Tide.


Overview: Ohio State’s offensive line was the most talked about weakness leading up to the 2014 season. It had just two players with starting experience — not even fulltime starting experience — and was filling holes with a bunch of unknowns.


When quarterback Braxton Miller suffered a season-ending shoulder injury during fall camp, even more attention was placed on a line that needed to gel together quickly and protect and young, inexperienced quarterback.


It didn’t respond well.


The Buckeyes were shaky at best against an undersized Navy defensive front and allowed five tackles for loss and a sack while the offense had to come from behind to win the game.


Things got worse the following week when the Buckeyes allowed 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks to Virginia Tech. Quarterback J.T. Barrett threw three interceptions and the running game had its lowest output of the season with 108 yards. Overall, the Ohio State offense mustered just 327 total yards.


It was the low point of the season for Ohio State's offensive line and a rallying point of sorts for left tackle Taylor Decker, Price, Boren, Elflein and right tackle Darryl Baldwin. From that game on, the line steadily improved. There were hiccups here and there, but it opened holes for the Buckeyes to be one of the dominant running games in the country and it kept its quarterback clean.


The biggest test of the line’s cohesiveness and growth came in the Big Ten title game against Wisconsin when it adjusted to its third quarterback of the season and kept him fairly unscathed.


Oregon doesn’t present as big of a threat to the offensive line as Alabama did. The Ducks have been gashed in yardage this season and haven’t done a great job of getting into the backfield. However, where the Buckeyes offensive line will truly be tested is in the red zone. While Oregon allows a lot of yards, it doesn’t allow a ton of points and touchdowns are often hard to come by once teams get into the 20s.


Elliott has rushed for more than 200 yards in each of his past two games and quarterback Cardale Jones has shown he can use his big frame to bowl over defenders and pick up yardage. Oregon hasn’t faced a lot of good backs in the Pac-12 and definitely hasn’t faced a lot of good power backs. The ground game is definitely an advantage for the Buckeyes and if its offensive line can continue to open holes, it might be the difference in the game.


For more Ohio State news, visit BuckeyeGrove.com.


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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter!


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News sport : Georgia hires Brian Schottenheimer as offensive coordinator

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ST. LOUIS, MO - NOVEMBER 3: Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer calls a play against the Tennessee Titans. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) Georgia has its next offensive coordinator.


The school announced on Wednesday that it has hired Brian Schottenheimer, the long-time NFL assistant, as the Bulldogs’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Schottenheimer was the offensive coordinator for the St. Louis Rams for the past three seasons and hasn’t coached in college since 2000, when he was USC’s tight ends coach.


Schottenheimer will replace Mike Bobo, who had been with the program since 2001 but accepted the head-coaching job at Colorado State in December.


“This is a great opportunity to become a Georgia Bulldog for both my career and my family,” Schottenheimer said in a statement. “I'm thrilled to be part of an elite program with such national tradition and a great staff already in place. I look forward to working with young men and being a positive and significant influence on their lives as we develop them athletically, academically, and socially.”


Before his time with St. Louis, Schottenheimer was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the New York Jets from 2006-11 and also was the quarterbacks coach for the San Diego Chargers from 2002-05 and the Washington Redskins in 2001.


In addition to his one season at USC in 2000, Schottenheimer coached wide receivers at Syracuse in 1999.


The son of longtime NFL head coach Marty Schottenheimer, Schottenheimer played at Florida under Steve Spurrier from 1994-96 and was the backup quarterback behind Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel.


“I'm excited to have Brian join our coaching staff,” said head coach Mark Richt. "His NFL experience will be a perfect fit for how we like to play offensive football here at Georgia. He'll be excellent in developing our players in both the running and passing games which will benefit them while they are at Georgia and for their future.”


With Schottenheimer running the offense, the Rams were 28th in the NFL this season in total offense, averaging 314.7 yards and 20.3 points per game.


For more Georgia news, visit UGASports.com.


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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : Draymond Green's mom thinks he'd be an All-Star if it 'wasn't a popularity contest'

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Draymond Green campaigns. Loudly. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) There are plenty of reasons to love the Golden State Warriors right now. (I wrote about my personal favorite on Tuesday.) But while plenty of well-deserved praise continues to be lavished on Stephen Curry's ball-handling derring-do, Klay Thompson's career-best 3-point marksmanship and the free-flowing offense that's torching opponents to the tune of 108.7 points per 100 possessions, the league's fourth-best mark, more and more NBA fans and observers are taking notice of the phenomenal contributions being made by Draymond Green.


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Green's not quite a household name, but the third-year forward has gone from intriguing 2012 second-round pick to seemingly indispensable starter on the team with the NBA's best record this season, filling in all the blanks for a Warriors squad that has vaulted into the ranks of real-deal title contenders after a disappointing first-round playoff ouster last spring. As the Dubs' third or fourth option, Green's 12.1 point-per-game scoring average doesn't leap off the page, but he's in strong company as a stat-sheet stuffer — only Green, Tim Duncan. Marc Gasol and Paul Millsap are averaging at least 12 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a steal per game this season — and there's a strong argument to be made that his positional versatility and ability to fit seamlessly in just about any lineup combination ranks among the top reasons for Golden State's scintillating start.


The more you watch Green, the more you see what he adds to the Warriors — the communication, the passing-lane disruption, the surprisingly stout post defense, the extra floor spacing, the attitude and swagger — and the more you think that there ought to be an All-Star team for guys like that. Well, what if there was, and it was called the Western Conference All-Star team?


We can say, with some certainty, that the 24-year-old forward's got at least one vote — the #NBAballot belonging to his mother, Mary Babers-Green:



It's always cool when your mom's got your back. (Shouts to moms, especially Moms D.)


Mrs. Babers-Green definitely has a point when it comes to All-Star fan voting, which can often produce rosters heavier on established stars than the most deserving players. As of the second round of ballot returns, Green didn't place in the top 15 among Western frontcourt vote-getters, trailing not only the three players in position for starting spots (Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans, Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers and Marc Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies) but also at least a dozen other Western forwards and centers, from the exceedingly deserving (say, DeMarcus Cousins) to the, um, more questionable sort-of celebrity selections (looking at you, Nick Young).


But while the fan ballot's likely a lost cause — barring an epic get-out-the-vote campaign by the Warriors' public relations and social media teams, that is — Green's do-all-the-little-things game would seem to make him just the sort of player who'd earn recognition from the coaches who select the All-Star reserves that fill out the midseason exhibition's rosters. Given the paucity of available slots, though — just three dedicated frontcourt openings along with two backcourt players, plus two more "wild card" spots that can be given to players regardless of position — and the sheer number of other deserving prospective frontcourt candidates (off the top: Boogie, Duncan, Tyson Chandler, Dwight Howard, LaMarcus Aldridge, Dirk Nowitzki, maybe Kevin Durant and maybe more) — it could be awfully difficult to find a slot for Green.


In the event he doesn't receive recognition next month, then, let's give him some now. After two years spent coming off the bench under Mark Jackson, a season-opening injury to David Lee led new Warriors head coach Steve Kerr Green to slide Green into the starting five. The Michigan State product has proved a hand-in-glove fit in Golden State's lineup, responding to increased floor time by improving on the per-minute scoring, rebounding, assist-dishing and shot-blocking numbers he turned in as a freshman and sophomore, while also posting career-best field-goal (44.3 percent) and 3-point shooting (34.5 percent) marks.


He's been even more impactful on the other side of the ball, though, using his combination of length, strength and quickness to take on multiple assignments, sharply limiting the production of both opposing small forwards and power forwards and ranking third in the NBA (and tops among non-centers) in ESPN's Defensive Real Plus-Minus metric. The Warriors' meat-grinder D has kept choking out the league even with paint-protecting menace Andrew Bogut sidelined, and Green's capacity to guard multiple positions has been a huge reason why.


While Green's individual numbers might not properly illustrate his influence, collective statistics offer a better view of the bigger picture. With Green on the floor, the Warriors are holding opponents to just 93.6 points-per-100, a significant amount below Golden State's already league-leading mark; when he's sat, the Dubs have given up 101.9 points-per-100, a still-good mark that would put rank just outside the NBA's top 10 defensive units. The Warriors have been 16.8 points per 100 possessions better with Green on the court than off it, the second starkest on-off splits on the Warriors behind only MVP candidate Curry (an absurd +23.8-per-100). You'd be forgiven if you chalked the Warriors' official site's argument that Green might deserve "both the Most Improved and Defensive Player of the Year awards" as in-house hyperbole, but last I checked, Tom Haberstroh is on ESPN.com's payroll, not Golden State's:


According to SportVU data provided to ESPN Insider, Green has defended 38 drives by point guards this season, and those 38 drives have resulted in a measly 15 points, for an average of 0.39 points per drive. The league average on points per drive: 0.63. Also: Among the 18 players who have defended at least 75 post-ups, no one has held their opponent to a lower payoff than Green (0.68 points per post-up). The guy does everything. [...] For defensive player of the year, that's my leader in the clubhouse.

The closer you look, the stronger the case becomes. Green knows, however, that he might not necessarily have the full-throated support of opposing coaching staffs around the league, as he told Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News:


“I got into it, like, with every guy my rookie year,” Green said Tuesday, chuckling. “I had enemies on every team my rookie year.

“It was part of the way — I had to make my way, you know? But after everybody knows who you are, they get used to it, they say that’s how he is. Guys respect a hard worker.”

That respect means an awful lot, but as a slew of players told me a couple of years back, the validation that comes with being named an All-Star — with being recognized as part of the league's elite — matters quite a bit, too. For Green's part, though, he's trying not to keep his sights set on bigger prizes, according to Kawakami:


"I don’t get all up into the personal stuff, but [the idea that he merits All-Star consideration is] amazing, man. I mean, it just makes me think about how [far] I’ve come, from being a second-round pick to everybody really saying I couldn’t play in this league. From struggling offensively my rookie year to everybody saying, ‘Well, he’s pretty good defensively, but offensively, we just can’t have him on the court.’

"So I replay all that stuff in my mind and then to see that … I mean, it’s a blessing. It puts a smile on your face because I know how hard I’ve worked. To hear that, just to hear it … I don’t think it’ll happen, but just to hear that is amazing to me."

Amazing, yes, but given just how valuable Green's proven this season, not unbelievable. And if voters and coaches can't see that ... well, Mrs. Babers-Green might have to take a page out of Dwane Casey's book and resort to less friendly methods of getting out the vote. Nobody wants that, right?


Hat-tip to CSN Bay Area.


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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!



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News sport : Athletics successfully woo Brett Lawrie superfan

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(@blawrie13) The Oakland Athletics have gone to great lengths to win over a new fan. Thanks to a thoughtful gift from the ball club, it appears 6-year-old Amelia Lyttle is abandoning her former beloved Toronto Blue Jays for the Athletics.


The young baseball fan became an Internet hit when her father posted a video on YouTube of her crying, lamenting the blockbuster November trade that sent third baseman Brett Lawrie – her favorite player – from Toronto to Oakland.



The video eventually got the attention of Lawrie himself who treated the fellow Langley, B.C. native to pizza to cheer her up.


But thanks to a savvy PR-move Amelia has since been converted to an Athletics fan. When the Lyttle family returned home following a holiday vacation a care package full of Athletics swag was waiting for them.



In a bizarre presumed oversight, part of the care package included a doll with the likeness of Josh Donaldson – the very player that went from Oakland to Toronto in the trade.


Regardless, the move worked. Amelia’s father Alex told the Toronto Star that she was “super excited” and that the Athletics have won her over:



“I think she will forever be an Oakland fan because she’ll remember the time someone took to do that for her.”



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News sport : Jameis Winston accuser files federal lawsuit against Florida State

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Nov 30, 2013; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida State flag is held up before the team runs through it against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. (Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports) The woman who accused Jameis Winston of rape has filed a federal civil lawsuit against Florida State’s trustees saying that the university violated her Title IX rights.


According to the Orlando Sentinel, Winston’s accuser says the school did not properly investigate the alleged December 2012 incident in which the star quarterback has never been charged and was recently cleared in a school code of conduct hearing.


Winston, who announced his intention to declare for the 2015 NFL Draft on Wednesday, has maintained that the two had consensual sex.


Now, in the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Orlando, the woman is asking for a trial by jury for the school’s “clearly unreasonable response” to the allegations and is seeking damages from the school for allowing a “hostile educational environment.”


The woman, who is no longer a Florida State student, is listed as Jane Doe in the complaint. The school has long defended its handling of the case, but the accuser and her attorneys have said the school intentionally did not comply with Title IX policies and deliberately delayed the investigation into the star quarterback.


Part of the complaint reads:



“Had FSU . . . instead complied with its own policies and federal law by promptly investigating plaintiff’s rape and sanctioning Winston while protecting plaintiff’s safety, Winston would have been removed as a threat to plaintiff long before ever suiting up to play football in a Seminoles jersey, and plaintiff would be on campus progressing toward an FSU degree. Instead, plaintiff was forced to leave campus while Winston remains, having suffered no consequences.”



Additionally, the complaint says that Florida State stalled the Tallahassee Police Department’s investigation into Winston “so that Winston’s FSU football career would be unaffected.”


Per the Sentinel, the woman is seeking “an unspecified amount of damages but not limited to reimbursement and payment for her educational expenses; payment of expenses incurred as a result of the sexual assault; damages for emotional pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life and lost future earnings.”


The lawsuit focuses on Florida State’s Title IX obligations under U.S. Department of Education statutes and does not name Winston or the Tallahassee Police Department.


A separate investigation into Florida State’s handling of Title IX investigations is being conducted by the U.S. Department of Education.


For more Florida State news, visit Warchant.com.


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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : Pau Gasol echoes Carlos Boozer's year-old thoughts on 4th quarter benchings

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Remember the mid-point of Chicago’s 2013-14 season, when then-Bull Carlos Boozer was asked about his repeated fourth quarter benchings?



“I think I'm very productive in the limited minutes that I am getting so I can do even more if I was out there more. But as long as we're winning, that's the main thing. But yeah, I do want to be out there in the fourth quarter. Let's make that clear."



Remember the official Chicago Bull reaction, via general manager Gar Forman?



"I'm disappointed that Carlos didn't keep that in-house.”



Disappointingly, Boozer has continued his harangue as a current member of the Los Angeles Lakers. From a discussion following Tuesday’s practice:



"The times that I'm not (on the floor), as long as we win I can be OK with it. But I still want to be there when we're playing for the money. So it's just me, who I am, who I've been, and who I want to continue to be. I understand where it's coming from. There's dialogue and we understand each other … I want to be on the floor 48 minutes. I know I don't have to be, but at the end of the day when the game is played and it's down the stretch I like to be on the floor."



Actually, because you already read the headline (and because you might know that Boozer played nearly all of the fourth quarter minutes in his team’s last game), you know that it was Pau Gasol that said this. That it was Pau that pointed out that, yeah, he’s a competitor that would prefer to be in the middle of the action during the game’s most important moments.


Will there be any reaction from Forman this time around?


Hell no. The reason Forman won’t react is because the Bulls are winning at a far greater rate this year with Gasol sometimes sitting out nearly the entire fourth quarter, and because Gasol is a far better player than Carlos Boozer ever was with the Bulls. Forman won’t even be asked about this.


That shouldn’t be the reason that Forman doesn’t raise a similarly-toned hackle, however.


The reason for the silence should be because Forman should have stayed silent in the first place, in regards to Boozer. Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau was absolutely right to bench Carlos Boozer for entire fourth quarters at a time, but Carlos Boozer was absolutely right to honestly tell a reporter (that asked) that as a professional with a competitive streak in him he’d really, really like a chance to help his team in the fourth quarter.


What you don’t want in that situation is a check-casher that comes off as blasé about his 12-minute demotion. Boozer said the absolute right things, and the Bulls continued apace.


Carlos Boozer had many faults as a player, so many that the Bulls will eventually pay him over $13 million to not play for them this year, once his Los Angeles Lakers checks clear. He’s an easily mockable guy for various reasons, and we’ve all had our fun with him over the years … but he wasn’t wrong here.


Gasol?


He’s not being shut out of fourth quarters completely, as Boozer was almost by definition (only a playoff injury to Taj Gibson forced him into fourth quarter action during Chicago’s final 2014 playoff game) last season. On average he plays less than half of the fourth quarter, a sound move considering the 34-year old is playing his highest minutes per game average in three seasons. It’s hard to argue with the results, either, as Chicago remains the NBA’s best fourth quarter team. Taj Gibson remains an underrated low (really low) post scorer, and Joakim Noah is rounding into shape after a poorly-diagnosed knee injury.


Gasol ain’t arguin’, though. Neither was Boozer. They were just being honest about something that must be pretty fun – standing in triumph on the court, as opposed to in warm-ups on the bench, when the final buzzer sounds and John Deacon’s bass line from “Another One Bites the Dust” kicks in. It’s a sweet gig to begin with, but playing a decisive role in a win makes things so, so much sweeter.


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Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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News sport : Watch Matthew Stafford's reaction on the field to officials picking up flag

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While the talk of the NFL remains a controversial non-call in the Dallas Cowboys' playoff win last Sunday, there haven't been too many angry quotes from the Detroit Lions about it.


But quarterback Matthew Stafford was wired for sound for the game, and his reaction to the call to the officials presumably sums up the reaction of his teammates.


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When the flag on Cowboys linebacker Anthony Hitchens was picked up, after the penalty on Hitchens was announced by referee Pete Morelli, Stafford was understandably angry.


"That’s unbelievable!" Stafford said to Morelli. "That’s unbelievable and you know it!"


The rest of the clip (the full clip will be on NFL Network's "Inside the NFL" on Wednesday night) is of Stafford on the sideline, in disbelief and looking for an explanation. He is told face-guarding isn't illegal and there wasn't contact on tight end Brandon Pettigrew. Stafford seems flabbergasted that the call was overturned.


"Congratulations, man," Stafford sarcastically tells field judge Barry Anderson, as he is explaining the call. "First time in history that’s happened."


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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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News sport : National Championship Preview: Oregon's O-line

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The first College Football Playoff National Championship Game is finally upon us and Dr. Saturday has your pregame prep covered. Every day leading up to the game, we’ll breakdown a piece of each team and preview its role in the upcoming title game. Previous previews: Ohio State's front 7, Oregon's front 7, Ohio State's secondary.


Season highlight: This season’s game against Stanford’s second-ranked scoring defense and third-ranked total defense was definitely one of the highlights of the season. Not only did Oregon’s offense run for 269 yards, pass for 258 yards and score six total touchdowns, it also allowed just one sack against a team that ranked No. 5 nationally in sacks. It also only allowed four tackles for loss.


Player to Watch: Hroniss Grasu is not just the team’s center, he’s the anchor of the offensive line. Grasu missed the final three games of the year with a leg injury, but was back for the Rose Bowl against Florida State. In that Florida State game, the offensive line allowed one tackle for loss and no sacks.


Strengths: In the past few games, Oregon has really tightened up its offensive line. In the Pac-12 title game and in the College Football Playoff Semifinal, quarterback Marcus Mariota was hardly touched — three tackles for loss and no sacks — and the offense is playing about as well as it’s played all year. The Ducks have rushed for more than 300 yards in each of the last two contests — the first time all season — and have passed for more than 300 yards as well.


Weaknesses: If there’s one thing that has plagued this Oregon offensive line, it’s injuries. Consequently, Mariota has been sacked a lot (29 times) and there have been a lot of tackles for loss, but those numbers are a little misleading. Throughout the season, the Ducks had to piecemeal their offensive line with several younger players who were exploited in their first starts. While that was definitely a weakness early, the depth has become a bit of a strength as the Ducks head into their final game of the season.


Overview: Oregon was supposed to have one of the best offensive lines in the country this season.


It had five returning starters that had helped Oregon lead the Pac-12 in rushing, scoring and total offense in 2013. But those plans fell apart early in the season when left tackle Tyler Johnstone suffered a season-ending knee injury during fall camp.


That forced Jake Fisher to move over from right tackle to Johnstone’s spot and put Andre Yruretagoyena at right tackle. That worked well until Yruretagoyena suffered a foot injury against Michigan State in Week 2 and Fisher injured his knee against Wyoming the following week.


When those two players went down, things started to unravel quickly. During the following two games against Washington State and Arizona, Mariota was sacked 12 total times.


And the injuries didn’t stop there.


Tackle Matt Pierson suffered a knee injury against Stanford on Nov. 1 and then Grasu was injured against Utah on Nov. 8.


Yet somehow, the offensive line has rallied late in the season to look like the line many thought it would be when the season started. But a lot has changed. Fisher is back starting at left tackle and Hamani Stevens, who is making his 27th consecutive start and filled in for Grasu at center, is at left guard. Grasu, as noted above, is at center, while Cameron Hunt, who jumped in this season because of injuries, makes his 11th start at right guard, and Tyrell Crosby, who has started the past four games, will be the right tackle. Yruretagoyena and Pierson are both backups.


For the most part, Mariota and the running backs have gotten use to this line in some way, shape or form, and now the line has gotten used to each other. The offensive line is coming off its two best performances of the season, and will need to continue that trend against Ohio State's highly aggressive defensive line.


However, that aggressiveness has been used against Ohio State at times, and Alabama showed that the running game could be effective. Ohio State is allowing 142 rushing yards per game, but Alabama was able to rattle off 170, with bruiser Derrick Henry leading the way with 95. And that was in spite of Alabama going away from the run late. The Tide probably could have put up even more yards as the offensive line continued to knock the Buckeyes off the ball and open big holes for the running game.


Oregon is coming off back-to-back 301-yard rushing performances, their best performances of the season, and they’ve done it with a multitude of backs led by Royce Freeman and Thomas Tyner. Neither of Oregon’s backs are as big as Henry, but against Florida State, both players carried defenders for extra yards.


The offensive line was the key to Oregon getting on the board early, establishing the run and executing after turnovers in the second half. It doesn’t need to do anything special against Ohio State to be successful, it just needs to keep doing what it’s been doing.


For more Oregon news, visit DuckSportsAuthority.com.


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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter!


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