2011 NCAAB Early Rankings

Still hungover from Final Four fever? A quick dose of the way too early top 8 to help ease your pain.

1. Kentucky- Coach Cal's class coming in next year is his best so far, with 4 of the top 15 freshman in the country heading to Lexington. Add in upperclassmen Liggins, Vargas, and Darius Miller, plus the possibility Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones returning and this team has all the pieces to be a national contender.

2. UNC- Zeller and Henson have announced they will return, and now the key player is Barnes, who has hinted he will stay. If UNC returns all starters and with plenty of guard talent off the bench, we'll be looking at the ACC favorites. Also look for the talented freshmen PJ Hariston and James McAdoo to look nice in the tar heel blue jerseys.

3. Duke- I got the Devils right behind their rivals. Rivers, Dawkins and Curry will be the best 3 guard rotation in the country and all the Plumlees will be a force down low. Coach K will also get some solid contributions from 2nd year players Hariston and Thornton.

4. Texas- Depending on if Tristian Thompson and Cory Joesph declare for the association, the Horns will be the favorites in the "new" Big 12. Still, Myck Kabongo has all the hype to join past great Texas PGs like DJ Augustin and TJ Ford. A back court with Kabongo, Joesph and Hamilton shooting and penetrating on the perimeter plus Thompson down low is a hard team to match up with.

5. OSU- Aaron Craft will get a lot more credit with John "Threebler" now gone. Buford steps into the go to sharpshooter and keep an eye on freshman Amir Williams down low next to a guy named Jared Sullinger, who should be the pre season favorite for the Naismith award.

6. Syracuse- Another strong recruiting class by Coach Boeheim, who is a top 5 coach for recruiting, specifically for fitting into his 2-3 zone and shooters on the perimeter. The only loss on this team is Rick Jackson, who leaves big feet to fill. Can this be the year the Orange finally get back to the Final Four?

7. Kansas- They always seem to be a top 15 team year in and year out. Morris brothers are gone but Thomas Robinson is ready to burst out. Taylor and Elijah Johnson should have big years, but the big piece is whether Josh Selby comes back next year. I think he can be a top 5 PG in the country with the right attitude and commitment to workouts in the summer.

8. Lousville- The Card's lose Preston Knowles 15 ppg, but Peyton Siva and Terrence Jennings really excite me. Siva showed loads of poise against Big East foes last year, and with freshman Wayne Blackshear and Kyle Kuric with him on the perimeter, Siva now has 3 options: Lob to Jennings, pass it to Kuric for the 3, or drive and take it himself.

Teams to watch

Mizzou- If Kim English and Laurence Bowers return for their senior years, the Tigers will have 2 scorers in Enlgligh and Denmon to go with an all senior starting lineup to run, "the fastest 40 minutes in basketball."

Xavier-Tu Holloway is back to take the A-10 by storm again. He has pieces around him also and it wouldn't surprise me if they climb into the top 10.

Butler Part III?

Butler gave us a thrilling ride once again, even without top play maker Gordon Hayward, who left for the NBA after last year's run. This year's team once again showed the toughness and mentality Butler brings and shows going into every tournament game: We can play with and beat anyone. Even though coming up a win short in two straight tournaments has to be unbearable to the B-Town players, they will be back, rest assure. But back how far? Losing key players like Senior leaders Matt Howard, Vanzant, Hahn, and possibly Shelvin Mack will hurt Butler for next year. The youth, however, on this team has to excite any fan dreaming of another Butler run in a couple of years. We saw Andrew Smith step up and show he can rebound against some of the country's elite. Khyle Marshall and Chrishawn Hopkins really have loads of potential. Marshall was an offensive rebounding machine while Hopkins provided tons of energy off the bench. You will hear their names in the tourney down the road, guaranteed. Returning role players like Stigall and Nored give the Bulldogs still that hard nosed personality heading into next year. Plus, the future looks promising with recruiting. Brad Stevens has built Butler into a program that can now take away in state recruits from IU, Purdue and ND. Next year Butler doesn't haven't the talent to go as far as this year, but a future with Hopkins and Marshall, plus pipeline recruits coming in equals an underdog powerhouse growing in B-Town. But hey, every March Madness needs some Bulldog Fever.

MLB 2011 Season Predictions

Baseball season is officially here. Here are my picks in the Awards, Trade Rumors to watch until July, and Division and World Series Picks.

AL MVP-Adrian Gonzalez BOS- He’s ready to explode at Fenway, especially with that short right field fence.

NL-Albert Pujols STL- Albert will set himself up for a big offseason with plenty of zeros coming his way.

ROY

AL-Kyle Drabek-TOR- A key piece in the Roy Halladay trade, Drabek has stuff likened to Mike Mussina.

NL Brandon Belt-Giants- SF was so impressed with this kid they moved Aubrey Huff to RF for him. Belt, along with Posey is a scary thought for NL West pitching for years to come.

CY Young AL-David Price- Man on a Mission

NL- Cliff Lee- Lee has to feed off opponents being worn out every night by the Phil's staff. Can 4 pitchers win 15+? It’s a realistic possibility.

Most Improved AL- Chone Figgins-Its hard to imagine Figgins will hit .259 again. I like a nice bounce back season with 50+ bases stolen and a batting average around .300

NL- Chipper Jones- I'm going to go with Chipper, seeing this Braves team has a legit chance to challenge Philly and Jones will provide that leadership and power in the middle of the order.

Players on the move?

Prince Fielder- With him becoming a Free agent next year, the Brew Crew loaded up with pitching to try and make a run. If they're out of contention in July, Prince is going to get shopped.

Aramis Ramirez- I really like the Cubs to contend for the division this year, but there might be a point when Jim Hendry decides to blow up the roster.

Grady Sizemore- Its hard to imagine the Indians trading this guy away, but injuries and a new contract coming up might scare the Indians.

Predictions

AL West Texas NL Giants

Central White Sox NL Cards

East Boston NL Phillies

Wild Card Yankees NL Braves

Champ Boston Braves

Staying or Going?

With the NCAA tourney coming to a close, the NBA draft now comes into the picture. Underclassmen now make the decision whether to throw their name into the draft or stay in college for at least one more year.

Sullinger-He already said that he will be back for one more year, but will the lure of all those zeros make him back out of his comments? I think he sticks by his comments, and even with the loss of Deibler and Lighty, another top 10 recruiting class comes in to make OSU the early favorite in the Big 10

Barnes- He said before the start of this year he would likely stay 3 years, but his stock in the second half of the season has jumped higher than Rebecca Black and Mac Miller's popularity combined. If he comes out he's a lock for top 5.

Knight and Jones- The scary and ironic thing about this is Calipari will probably encourage them to go this year, just to make room for the #1 recruiting class in the nation. Now that they've reached the Final Four, Knight and Jones are lottery bound.

Same Butler, New Bulldogs

Butler launched onto the scene last year, become America's darling with a young coach and players who hustled and fought on every possession. This year's team may not have as many offensive threats with the loss of Gordon Hayward and Avery Jukes, but key roles players like Mack, Howard, and Nored have kept the Bulldog toughness intact. This years team focuses more on defense, especially helping on the weak side and switching on pick and roles. Coach Stevens has really elevated the communication on both sides of the floor, especially when it comes to defense. On the other side of the ball, Matt Howard is still a presence is the post, except he isn't usually found there alot. Now, with the development of a 3 point shot, Howard gives another long range shooter to go with Shelvin Mack and Zach Hahn. Sophomore Andrew Smith has shown significant improvement down low, which means Howard can play outside in the 4 -out offense. Smith and Howard will have their hands full with Florida's bigs, but the key to me is if Vanzant and Mack manage to slow the break of the Florida guards.

Mock NBA Draft

Heres a very early look to the top 15 picks in June:

1.Cavs- Kyrie Irving-Duke

2.Twolves- Harrison Barnes-UNC

3. Wizards- Derrick Willaims- Zona

4. Kings- Perry Jones-Baylor

5 Raptors- Terence Jones- Kentucky

6 Jazz- Enes Kanter-

7 Pistons- Jared Sullinger-OSU

8 Cavs- Jonas Valanciunas

9 Bucks- Jordan Hamilton-TEXAS

10 Bobcats- Kemba Walker-UCONN

11 Warriors-Kawhi Leonard-SDST

12 Rockets- John Henson-UNC

13 Jazz- Jimmer Fredette-BYU

14 Suns-Kenneth Faried-Moorehead St

Pujols Possible Suitors

Well, the Lebron like sweeptakes for #5 begins this spring and will continue all the way to around early December for a total of 9 months. Here's a look at the suitors who could sign Albert next year, not named the St. Louis Cardinals.

Cubs- I think most people would be in agreement that the Cubs will be throwing the kitchen sink at this guy, especially to get him away from a division rival. Lots of contracts come off the books for the Cubbies and he would be the most anticipated athlete to come to Chicago since Cutler....o wait...lets go Jordan after his first retirement.

Nationals- The Nats got the dough, but can they convince Albert to come to a struggling franchise? A lot will depend on how they do this year, especially with the addition of Jayson Werth.

Mets- People are speculating already 30- plus million a year for Pujols. The Mets, i can see, can go closer to high 30's and possible 40.

Yanks- You can never really count these guys out. Even with Teixeira, they might find a taker for him or move him to DH.