NBA FREE AGENT FRENZY!! by MP

Man, NBA free agency is goin nuts! Who is goin where? Is it true, do Bosh, James and Wade wanna play together? If so where are the dollars to sign and who are the spares on that squad...the regulars from the local YMCA??? One thing is for certain, it is gonna be awesome!

So reading today, Joe Johnson gets 119 mil from Atlanta and he is 29 and averaged 11 ppg in the playoffs. Wow, that is a bad deal for the Hawks and I love Joe. I just love Joe for 50 m not 120! Here is what else I know about today.....Rudy Gay gets 80 mil from Memphis and then scrubs like Darko and Drew Gooden get 5 mil a year?? Seems overpriced and over-hyped. Maybe the frenzy over LeBron and DWade has NBA GM's ready to open the checkbook and sign anyone with a pulse? You have to wonder if these teams really can sign two or three of these big fish now that spares are getting 5 mil a year?

Here is the deal: Pat Riley and the Heat can sign 3 max contracts by clearing the decks, meaning all they have returning are two players, Michael Beasley and Mario Chalmers. This is what makes Miami attractive. What makes Chicago attractive is the city and the fact they can sign two max deals to go with Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. The Knicks are in the game with their market and ability to sign a couple of the big boys. The Nets are probably fourth with a new owner and Jay-Z, which I guess is supposed to mean something.

Here is a rundown of the big timers on the market: Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Amare Stoudemire, Carlos Boozer and Chris Bosh. I think Dallas Owner Mark Cuban will sign back Nowitzki. Stoudemire is better than Bosh, but older and with brittle knees. James and Wade are the top dogs with Bosh, an athletic, left handed big guy next. It is hard to figure who will want Boozer, a potential head case and under-sized PF and Stoudemire who has maybe 3 great years left. There are also some interesting but more small time pickups out there like Paul Pierce, Yao Ming, Josh Howard, Ray Allen and Mike Miller. Mid-range guys on their way down can impact a team too, taking them from good to contender.

I am hopeful that Dirk signs back with Cuban and Dallas and that LeBron signs back with Cleveland. Loyalty should count for something right? I have wavered back and forth, but here are my final predictions on where the big timers will land. D Wade goes to Chicago, his home town, to team with Rose and Noah to be contenders in the East immediately. Notwitzki signs with Dallas and Cuban will get active to bring in some of those over-priced, moving past it, Ray Allen types to show Dirk he wants to make a run at the West. Stoudemire goes to the Knicks to reunite with Mike D'Antoni and another good front-liner in David Lee. Boozer and Bosh sign with Miami, they move Beasley cheap and start scouring the league for fill-ins. The Heat also start talkin about landing 'Melo next year. LeBron signs back with Cleveland and their new Coach Byron Scott, more or less saving the city of Cleveland.

I could be way off as usual but even if I am, it will be fun to watch! Oh yeah, look out for the Thunder to make a few moves as they have some cap room too and are quietly building a contender in the West!

Around the dial....VC asked me to write about the Rams, well here is the preview for the St. Louis Rams in 2010, bad, real bad!!! How 'bout those KC Royals?? They looked fantastic against the Cards. I told ya it would mean more to them than St. Louis! They even managed to beat Strasburg prior to that. Thumbs down to the 2010 NBA Draft, seemed to me like talent was gone after 25 picks or so. Coming up: British Open time!!! Thanks everyone for reading our blog!!! Have a Happy and safe Fourth of July!!