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Kevin Martin:
I'll take former NBA first-round picks for $2,000, Alex. If you know who he is, you probably know the forecast for Cullowhee, N.C. The Kings guard torched the Suns for a career-best 25 points, giving him 23.5 ppg in the last two. Who needs Peja?
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The Lead Item
Two Words For You:
FLIP. FLOP.
For a guy so astoundingly adept at making up his mind in a fraction of a second on whether or not to swing at a pitch, Alex Rodriguez took his time vacillating over which team to play for in the World Baseball Classic.
Less than 24 hours after Rodriguez was included on the Dominican Republic's initial 60-man roster, he announced he'll play for the United States. There are legit issues of heritage and self-identity at play here, but in the wake of yet another postseason flop from the NFL's best regular-season quarterback, is this just one more example of why A-Rod is the greatest hitter you wouldn't want at the plate with two outs and everything on the line in the World Series?
Can anyone imagine Michael Jordan or even Derek Jeter suffering through such a prolonged and public flip-flop?
Even Freddy Adu -- who, it could be argued, has far more compelling ties to Ghana than A-Rod has to the Dominican -- hasn't wavered an inch on his desire to play for the United States in the future, despite a chance to star in the World Cup right now for a good Ghana side.
Youthful Discretion
Jets fans shouldn't be concerned that the team's new coach is only six years older than Chad Pennington; they should be concerned that Eric Mangini might have a stronger arm than Pennington at this point.
And if Mangini learned anything in 10 years with Bill Belichick, it would be that it's easier to look like a genius with Tom Brady as your quarterback than with Vinny Testaverde or Mike Tomczak (as was the case in Belichick's Cleveland days).
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CHECK OUT THE QUICKIE EVERY WEEKDAY MORNING! |
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| WHO'S GOT THE MOMENTUM ... |
Andrei Kirilenko: Sharapova? AK is real Russian fantasy
Andy Roddick: Speaking of Sharapova, romance rumors swirl
Martin Brodeur: Chasing Roy, moves to fifth in all-time wins |
| ... AND WHO'S GOT NO MO' |
Joey Porter: Even Cowher says his rant was "ridiculous"
Suns: Look awful against Kings; face Clippers tonight
Livedoor: Internet company "crashes" Japan's economy |
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Mangini will sink or swim in the Big Apple based on what he does with a backfield that shouldn't include Pennington and Curtis Martin next season.
Killingsworth Plenty
Is Indiana the new Villanova in college basketball?
In losing to Texas over the weekend, the Wildcats put on one of the worst displays of marksmanship this side of the bad guys in the "A-Team," but No. 11 Indiana pulled out its own mini-lineup to shock No. 5 Illinois in Bloomington.
Without forward D.J. White, likely out the rest of the season, the Hoosiers got exactly 12 minutes from players taller than 6-foot-5 not named Marco Killingsworth.
The win should get the Hoosiers back in the top 10, but it would be a lot easier to crank up the Killingsworth-for-POY bandwagon if the big guy didn't average more turnovers (4.5) than Adam Morrison and J.J. Redick combined (4.4).
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Perplexing Pick
It's no surprise the New Orleans Saints would seek a promising quarterbacks coach to develop either Matt Leinart or Vince Young, but did they need to hand him the keys to the whole place?
Sean Payton takes over as head coach after stints as an assistant with the Cowboys and Giants, but for all of his promise, it's a curious choice.
Sad as it might be, running an NFL team based in New Orleans likely will remain a daunting logistical task for at least a couple of years, especially with the Saints' stated intention to play at the Superdome next season. Asking a neophyte like Payton to handle such a literal and figurative rebuilding project is asking for trouble.
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Nathan Mallett:
Fan who ran on field during Browns-Steelers game and -- like Peyton Manning -- was slammed to the turf by a Pittsburgh linebacker, was sentenced to miss the Super Bowl? Come on, he's a Browns fan. Make him sit in the slammer during the draft.
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Today on ESPN.com
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| Quickie: Live! |
| NFL playoffs: Who wins? |
| Page 2 Index |
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| Youngest Ever ... |  Theodore Roosevelt
| U.S. president (42)
|  Dwight Gooden
| Cy Young Award (20)
|  Prince Albert von Thurn und Taxis
| Billionaire (18)
|  Marjorie Gestring
| Olympic gold medal (13)
|  Marlee Matlin
| | Best Actress Oscar (21) |
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University of Washington hoopster Kayla Burt ends career after heart defibrillator goes off during game. Kudos for having the spirit to return and the wisdom to call it quits.
Best point guard in women's basketball? Don't hand it to Cappie Pondexter or Ivory Latta just yet. Notre Dame's Megan Duffy leads upset of No. 10 DePaul with 23 points, 9 assists, 8 boards.
Mel Kiper's initial mock draft has the Colts taking Minnesota RB Laurence Maroney. Could Edgerrin James, Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin make Kurt Warner look like a regular-season Peyton Manning in Arizona?
Nick Saban says he's open to the Dolphins acquiring Terrell Owens. It kind of makes sense. Ricky Williams hates talking to the media, and Terrell Owens can't stop himself from talking. Just put a visor and wig on T.O. and he can do Ricky's interviews.
Dan Shanoff is off this week. Today's guest writer: Graham Hays
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