So last week got off to an inauspicious start as the Steelers upended the Broncos, but I'm back to try my luck again this week.
Truth: Kobe Bryant will score 80 points again this season.
Why not? The guy is out-of-this-world good, he's got no teammate who's worth anything, and he has no problem hoisting up 50 shots a game. Lamar Odom, Smush Parker and Brian Cook, while lacking the potential to score, are all decent passers and get Kobe good looks. And when they don't? Kobe takes over and creates his own shots.
I never thought I'd see a player capable of challenging Wilt's record of 100 points (David Robinson had the best chance, I thought). Now, not only do I see someone capable, I see someone who I think will break the record at some point. That being said, he will score 80 or more again this season.
Truth: If Martina Hingis had won the Australian Open, it would have been the greatest comeback in sports history.
Say what you will about Michael Jordan, Mario Lemieux or Roger Clemens, but Martina Hingis' story is incredible. To make it as deep as she has at the Australian Open in her first prominent competition back on tour is incredible.
Even though Hingis didn't win, instead getting bounced from the open Wednesday by Kim Clijsters, her comeback is already in the top three. Here's why: Despite the lack of exposure women's tennis gets, it is one of the most grueling, competitive, physically demanding sports out there. There is no team to rely on, no coaches taking timeouts, no taking points off to relax.
Thus, Hingis taking three years off from a sport like tennis and coming back cold turkey to dominate and perform at a high level is truly outstanding. Jordan struggled, Lemieux took time to regain his form and Clemens never really left, making Hingis a success story and a prominent figure in the women's game for years to come.
Lie: Duke is still the best team in the country.
No way, no how. It was a tough loss on the road to a good team in a hostile environment. I get that. But on the same day fellow unbeatens Florida and Pitt went down, Duke showed its vulnerability.
Only one other team in the nation, on that same day, went into a hostile environment against a good team, played a tough game and actually won. That team? The Connecticut Huskies. Jim Calhoun, the best coach in college basketball, took his team to Freedom Hall and beat the second-best college coach, Rick Pitino, and his talented squad. The combination of Rudy Gay and Rashad Anderson makes the Huskies the favorite to win the national championship. Come March, they will be battle-tested and have survived, ready to tangle, and will have the experience needed that Duke doesn't with such a young roster.
Take my word for it, because it's the truth... and a lie.
