The ebbs and flows of a 7 game NBA series. The excitement, the anxiety, the heartbreak. Its what sports is all about. There’s always that debate out there, what’s the best game of a 7 game series. It has to be the game 7 right? Or is it the third game when the series is tied at 1? I say both of these answers are incorrect. My money is on a Game 5 when both squads have split their home games and the series is dead locked at 2-2. And that, my friends is exactly what we here in the valley have on our hands tonight as all eyes of the sports world is on 201 E Jefferson street in Downtown Phoenix at Phoenix Suns Arena. The percentage of teams winning game 5 in a 2-2 situation in the NBA playoffs to advance in the series is at a staggering 82% The energy was at a very high level for game 1 last Sunday afternoon. Now with Suns announcing they are letting 4 more thousand hungry phonesians through the turn styles for this game bringing the attendance to roughly 16,000. That building is sure to be rocking and rolling. I’m going to throw down some thoughts and predictions on tonight’s game. Ways that the Lake show can steal it and ways that the Suns can stand their ground at home and take a commanding lead. Either way, this is sure to be one hell of a hot night in the desert.

How The Lakers could win. First things first, as I write this it looks like LA’s star forward Anthony Davis will not be participating in tonight’s match up. If this stands pat it is going to take a lot more than just Lebrons broad shoulders for the lakers to weasel their way back home with a win. But it can happen, let me explain. My biggest key, The King takes the role of AD down low in the post and in the paint. Why do I say this? As I watched sequences in the first half of game 4 I recognized the Suns were rightfully so, double teaming Davis in the post which opened up for the perimeter shooters for the Lakers. And Dog gone it, I tweeted it as it was happening. I tweeted if you need to double team AD in the post and you leave a wide open Marc Gasol for an open three ball on the outside and it splashes, the Lakers are unbeatable. In this series’ 4 games Lebron has not played much in the post, getting his shots from the field and beyond, launching up 28 three’s connecting on 9 of them. His lack of assertiveness is prevalent also when you look at the his free throw numbers. Only attempting 17 free throws sinking 10 of them. If the Lakers want to win this game Lebron is going to have to be more assertive down low to attract double teams to open the door for their shooters. Who exactly are these shooters I’m talking about? Well Marc Gasol for one :: balls fist:: Gasol for the series is shooting 6 for 10 from downtown. For a backup center coming off the bench just can kill a team. Another shooter who can be the difference in this game is Dennis Schroder. I’ve watched a lot of Schroder this year and one thing you can notice with his game you will know if he has his stroke within the first few minutes of the game. He is the Lakers most streakiest shooter. For the series Schroder is shooting 6 for 16 from three. If he could get the hot hand the Suns could be in for a long evening. Now outside of Lebron and Schroder the Lakers are going to have to hope that other players can help chip in on the scoring. With newly added Andre Drummond only scoring 38 points in the series so far and with cats like Kuzma and Caruso chipping in 21 and 28 respectfully for the series. If the Lakers want to win tonight minus the likes of a AD and KCP, those players I just mentioned need to come up in a big way. Not to mention Lebron James needs to go full blown GOAT mode and score over 40. Can his shoulders take that much responsibility? I don’t think so but if they do the Lakers will win.

How could The Phoenix Suns win? Sunday afternoon around 2 oclock or so here on the west coast Chris Paul, aka CP3 aka Point God, dribbled and slashed his way to his favorite spot on the floor, the right elbow. Proceeded to hit a 15 ft fade away jump shot. As he was running back on defense he turned to the camera and yelled “I’m Back!” twice. Immediately all of Laker nation collectively said “Uh Oh.” If you don’t want to admit it, it’s quite ok, I know you said it. Yes, a healthy Chris Paul is THE key component to a Suns victory tonight but that’s not breaking news to anyone reading this. Outside of a returning fully healed CP3 I need to bring up the injuries in the visitors locker room which will be the story of the game for the most part if the suns pull out the dub. Anthony Davis having a groin injury, knee injury and God knows what else, reportedly will not play in game 5 will be huge. His 87 points , 8 blocks and 32 rebounds will be terribly missed. Along with AD, Caldwell-Pope will also miss the game as he missed game 4. KCP was not lighting the world on fire with his scoring but his three point threat could have been a factor in the game. With Lakers injury woes out of the way lets get to the fun stuff. 16,000 post pandemic maniac fans rooting on a Suns team that hasn’t sniffed a game 5 of a playoff series in 12 years. The Lakers are going to have to deal with 4,000 more people in the stands than they had to deal with in games 1 and 2. The Valleys presence should play a huge role in the outcome of this game. As for as some numbers go, if the Suns want to go up 3 games to 2 against the champs Devin Booker has to channel his game 1 performance where he scored 34 points on 26 shots. I feel if Book even comes close to these numbers the Suns will win. Along with Book playing at an All star level, will be DA, Deandre Ayton. The coming out party on the main stage for DA it has been so far in these playoffs. He is shooting 81% from the field. Let me repeat that, 81% from the field! Grant it basically all the shots are from within the paint but my man still needs to get position down there and he is doing just that in bunches. Big man is averaging 20 and 10 for the series, if this trend continues put another feather in the cap for a Suns victory. If I can speak on Jae Crowder for a second and how the fact that Anthony Davis is not playing how it affects Crowders game. Crowder has had fits trying to guard Anthony Davis and has been tending to get into foul trouble fairly early which I believe was effecting his shooting on the offensive side of the court. With AD being in street clothes, adding 10 to 15 points from Jae Crowder just adds to the stew of a Lakers loss. With all that being said if Phoenix can also get a handful of points from some of the role players ie. Cam Johnson, Mikal Bridges and breakout player of the series in my opinion backing up CP3 Cameron Payne. These scoring scenarios along with Coach Williams lock down defense, I see the Phoenix Suns winning the game handily.

Like I said at the jump, Game 5’s are my absolute favorite and I cant wait to see how this whole things shakes out. My prediction for the game, with the absence of a top 5 player in the world in Anthony Davis and the now healthy Point God back in the building at 100%. I have to give the edge to the Phoenix Suns at home 110-94. Player of the game will be Devin Booker as he grabs another 30 plus points.

Enjoy the game tonight. Thanks for reading. #RallyTheValley

By: Hugh Patrick

Week 13’s Guarantor 4 Has me starting in my own backyard of Glendale Arizona but not for the game you may have guessed. I am referring to the 5-6 49ers of San Francisco hosting the 8-3 Buffalo Bills. 49ers giving a point (-1) Now if you jump in your time machine to just three short weeks ago the Bills played a game in Glendale against the Cardinals. If not for a last second Hail (Murray) Mary pass to Nuke they would have won. That cut is still fresh and still deep especially when they walk back into the threshold of State Farm stadium on Monday night. They are going to be pissed, and as a very bright person told me recently when someone is angry they play at their peak. I see this game still being tight with the Niners defense playing very well lately considering all the injuries along with my boy Aiyuk returning at WR on the other side of the ball, but it won’t be enough to top this Bills team that has a prize in mind and that prize is the number 1 seed in the AFC. GIVE ME BUFFALO 27-24 OVER THE 49ers.

Not once, not twice, but three times the 11-0 Steelers game their got pushed back due to COVID-19 cases last week against the ravens. That whirlwind of emotion and players getting knocked out of routine came into play with their close W over Baltimore on Wednesday and will certainly come into play against the 4-7 Washington football team Sunday. Washington with a top 5 defense currently has arguably the best pass rush in the NFL. On Offense the ageless one Alex Smith just has to game manage and feed the ball to their two rising stars. Receiver Terry McLaurin and running back Antonio Gibson, who last week against Dallas ran for 115 and 3 touchdowns on 2O carries. Following this formula may not be able to knock off the undefeated Steelers on the road but I am confident that they will cover the spread against the Steelers. GIVE ME THE REDSKINS COVERING THE 7 POINTS. FINAL SCORE STEELERS 21-17

Breaking news, I am DOWN on the Philadelphia Eagles currently. Last week against the Seahawks, their offensive game plan ( if that’s what you want to call it) in the first half was non existent. Bringing in Jalen Hurts for one play in the middle of a drive then taking him out after one play etc etc you know the rants. This team is in all sorts of a mess and the Vegas odds makers can see it. The Packers are giving up 8.5 points and I can’t for the life of me see the birds covering. Talking turkey here the Pack are a top 5 offense and the Eagles are a bottom 5 offense. Reports are star tight end Zach Ertz will be healthy enough to play but it begs the question how much and how effective will he be coming back from injury. Wentz is trying to figure out how to complete passes and A-Rod is trying to secure a MVP award. The Packers will be too much and the Eagles struggles will unfortunately continue. GIVE ME THE PACKERS 31-21

UPSET SPECIAL time to end this weeks G4. Yes I am fully aware that these two teams played two weeks ago and the saints gave them a whooping’ 24-9 but hear me out, in that game the Falcons offense couldn’t find their way out of a brown paper bag with Matty throwing two int’s and the running game of Gurley being virtually non existent. On top of that they didn’t really know what to expect on defense out of quarterback Taysom Hill who btw ran for two touchdowns. Now the rematch the 9-2 Saints and the 4-7 Falcons do the dance again. Atlanta being in the comfy confines of their own crib will come out more relaxed and with a better game plan. Getting up early is key as they can then work in the running game to grind out this very good Saints defense. Their defense is playing tremendously better as of late forcing 5 turnovers against the Raiders last week. If interim coach Raheem Morris who is 4-2 since taking over the team can contain Hill, keep him from running around and doing his thing, the falcons will pull off the upset. Added note, the Falcons this week are rocking their old school Falcons uni’s look for that to bring them that extra needed swag. GIVE ME THE FALCONS OUT RIGHT! OVER THE SAINTS 28-24

Thanks for reading. Check ya’s next week. 🤙🏻🌵

This will be more of a long winded rant disguised as a single game recap of a Monday Night Football game against the Seattle Seahawks from November 30th, 2020.

The Seahawks marched into south Philadelphia last night and did what they’ve done every time they’ve come here since 1989, they won. Even to put extra mustard on the soft pretzel, running back Chris Carson after a late touchdown did the Eagles wings flap and ESPN announcer Steve Levy said “Fly Seahawks Fly” The Seahawks beat the Eagles by a final score of 23-17 but it easily could have been a lot worse if the defense didn’t perform as well as they did but it sure as hell feels like it was a lot worse than it was. So how did we all get here? From the top of the world to the bottom of the barrel. Put on your wet suit, we’re going on a deep dive.

Let’s start at the head of this snake, Howie Roseman. Hired by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2000 as a salary cap staff counsel to then move onto director of football administration, to VP of football administration, to then the following year to VP of player personnel. He finally achieved his childhood dream in 2010 when he was named General manager. Now first off let’s give him his due, he has the Super Bowl in 2018 and that’s an incredible accolade but if we take that out of the equation for a few minutes let’s dissect Howie’s job performance. Mainly speaking the draft selections. Let’s list just the first two picks in the last ten years which are in the tenure of Mr. Roseman.

In 2010 the selection of Brandon Graham. Now at the time the city hated the pick as we all and I mean ALL wanted safety earl thomas there at that pick. I’ll never forget it as I was watching the draft with a packed house at Paddy Whacks on Welsh rd. That pick actually worked out in the long run as BG is still playing at a high level. 2nd pick was safety Nate Allen who played for the birds for four years and was an average safety at best. 2011 “The Fireman” Danny Watkins offensive guard played only two years with the Eagles and it was in all sense of the word a failure. He was out of the league a year later. Pick 2 Jaiquawn Jarrett…. yeah I have no recollection. ( this may be a common theme moving up this list.) 2012 first pick is Fletcher Cox, one of the top tier d lineman in the league. He has regressed since getting his cash a few years ago but a pro bowl player and a great pick. Pick 2, linebacker Mychal Kendricks, another solid pick for Howie in this draft, but eventually injuries and wear and tear was his downfall before getting shipped off to Seattle in 2017. Fun story, I worked a 76ers team event at the Fillmore Philadelphia in 2016 and Kendricks was a guest there. To say he was intoxicated, would be an understatement of a life time. Moving on to 2013, my man from the university of Oklahoma o tackle Lane Johnson. A very solid pick for the team as he’s been for the most part healthy and a trust right tackle for the offense since he’s been here. Pick 2 Zach Ertz who doesn’t need any talk up, a top tier tight end in the nfl since he’s been in the league. Good draft in 2013. 2014 Howie selected 24th DE Marcus smith and it was a whiff. Only in the NFL for five seasons. 2nd selection was wide receiver Jordan Matthews who had his moments but never lived up to his potential with the team. Added bonus wr Josh Huff was selected next who never materialized. This is where you can pull out your highlighter a d start keeping track of Rosemans track record of drafting wide receivers. 2015 sticking with this theme of receiver they select Nelson Agholor ohhh everyone’s favorite, played five years before moving on to Vegas. Agholor’s peaked in 2017 when he accounted for 8 touchdowns and snagged 62 balls. But as his tenure here staggered on the reputation of dropped balls, and laziness on his route running made him on most sundays enemy number one to the fan base. To the point where his exit was cheered by many including myself. The 2nd pick was Eric Rowe a cornerback we NEEDED to be a star and he ended up just being a dud. He then heartbreaking enough was dealt to New England and made a solid career for himself, currently playing for the Miami Dolphins. Enter 2016 and enter Mr. Carson Wentz. 10:44am April 20th 2016 I remember it clearly bc I was at work and the news spread like wildfire. The Eagles have traded a 1, a 3, a 4, and 2 other picks to the Browns to move up in the draft 6 spots to select the future of the franchise. Quarterback Carson Wentz. Now if you’re reading this you know and are still following the Wentz wagon saga so we will keep going. The pick after CW was guard Isaac Seumalo and your guess is as good as mine to where that dude is. 2017 DE Derrick Barnett a standout defensive player coming out of Michigan who I had watched a lot with the Wolverines and at the time was excited about the selection but his stats since coming into the league have been nothing to write home about. Although had a good game last night against Seattle. Pick 2 was corner back Sidney Jones which was a well documented risky pick due to injury concerns. Played a total of 22 games in three seasons with the Eagles before moving to Jacksonville and had stats that wouldn’t impress anyone. 2018 the Eagles didn’t have a first round pick so in the second round Howie to add to Wentz’ arsenal selected tight end Dallas Goedert who for my money is a solid backup tight end. I don’t feel he will ever be a number 1 tight end on any team in this league, but an ok player. Pick 2 Avonte Maddox another corner in the never ending search for the Eagles for good secondary. When I watch him play he just comes off to me as an average nfl cornerback. Who was beaten pretty badly last night on the corner fade to David Moore for the td. 2019 selected 22 overall Tackle Andre Dillard, the verdict on Dillard is still far too early to tell. His rookie season he played in all 16 games while starting 4 of them. Leading up to this season he needed to have surgery on his bicep and is missing the whole year so we will see. Pick 2 was Miles Sanders running back who I feel if gets enough touches could be an elite running back in the league but that of course involves… getting him his touches. Great selection. Finally 2020 where Howie may have went to Home Depot purchased a hammer and a case of nails to nail himself into his own coffin. With the 21st pick Howie selected a WR, a position where the Eagles needed help with since TO left for Pete’s sake. 5-11’ 206 lb receiver out of TCU. To be honest when the selection was made I didn’t know much about the player as I was hoping to get my ASU neighbor Aiyuk or Jeffries both players that are looking to be far superior to Reagor. Pick 2 was an Earth rattler in the selection of star quarterback Jalen Hurts. A pick that will go down in Eagles history. None of us can know yet how it will play out but at the time in my opinion was a stretch and tremendously bone headed. Especially when there was a ton of players ( good players ) still on the board in position of need specifically at linebacker.

The sad truth to this list that only three players listed above in the last ten years have been selected to a pro bowl. That harsh reality is just awful for a franchises draft picks and should shine the light on Howie Roseman’s evaluation skills or lack there of of players. To which from the look of owner Jeffrie Luries face and body language from last nights embarrassing lost to the Seahawks could spell the end of Howies tenure in Philadelphia. Every time I heard last night that the Eagles selected Whiteside over DK Metcalf I wanted to Bill Murray from Groundhog Day style throw myself off a building. Side note, Metcalf is not the next big thing in this league, he IS the big thing now.

With the sub par talent on this team, the horrible offensive strategy, and Wentz’s lack of confidence in his current staff of weapons which subsequently has made his confidence in himself as an athlete basically non existent. This team is in such bad shape that I haven’t seen since the 90’s and the dreaded ray Rhodes/ Rich Kotite era. On top of that the multiplicity of bad contracts on this roster are enough to pull your hair out, if you have any by this point.

In closing, being a life long fan of this Eagles franchise I felt for the first time last night watching that game not angry, not upset, for the first time I felt sad. Sad for realizing that the road back to prominence is going to be a long one. Come the end of this season whether we ridiculously win the NFC east or not, Howie needs to be future endeavored and if I can be honest Doug can go with him. Do me a favor and go back and listen to the broadcast of last nights game and notice how many times the MNF crew point out that Eagles offensive players were on different pages or that their was miscommunication. Now with it being game 11 in this season only one word comes to my mind and that’s coaching. The franchise needs a new head of the snake and that’s where they need to start rebuilding this thing. Yesterday I predicted the final score was going to be 38-17 Seahawks but it turned out to be 23-17 hawks, but it sure as hell felt like 38. Next week it’s at Green Bay and that should be another ass whooping. 2020 has been a dumpster fire, hopefully in 2021 owner Jeffrey Lurie can do what needs to be done and turn this franchise around.

-HP 48

Sunday morning, November 29th ESPN staff writer and former 97.5 the Fanatic in Philly main stay Tim McManus broke the story that Rookie Qb, former stand out at the university of Alabama and Oklahoma that the Eagles selected with their second round pick has been receiving a significantly increased amount of snaps in practice with the first team offense. This should not come to anyone’s surprise who has been watching this eagles offense since September. Carson Wentz is expected to start the game tonight against the Seahawks but after that we will have to see what happens next. Now in his fifth season with the team Wentz has already matched his career-high in INTs heading into week 12 with 14 interceptions. In addition to them he has also lost 5 fumbles which brings his number of total turnovers to 19 which leads the NFL. Numbers so putrid, Carson has been given the nick name “Give it to em Wentz” by FS1’s undisputed host and everyone’s favorite blow hard Skip Bayless. These numbers mixed with the Eagles record being 3-6-1 it doesn’t take a genius to realize that era of the Wentz Wagon may be rolling to an end. In comes the Seattle Seahawks for Monday night football. A Hawks team who has the number 1 ranked offense in points forced, number 3 in yards forced, a MVP candidate in Russell Wilson and a receiver in DK Mercalf who has exploded onto the NFL scene this season as one of the premiere receivers in the league. The Eagles will certainly have their hands full all night long.

From the outside looking in you may think to yourself this game is going to be a blowout win by Seattle say maybe 38-17 or in that range, which you may very well be correct, but the more I think about this game and what could happen tonight, the more and more the levels of intrigue start to stack on top of each other.

What possibly could be intriguing about this game you may be asking. Well let me show off my graphic design associates degree and paint you a picture. Mr. Wentz has been gettin demolished by fans and media alike all week long. As I mentioned reports leaked that Hurts has been receiving a lot more time with the ones in practice. What if Carson uses this opportunity with the whole sports world watching to show up and show out against the dead last ranked defense as far as yards allowed goes. Maybe he comes out and scores more than 3 points in the first half, which the team has not been able to accomplish in the last two losses. Maybe receivers Travis Fulgham can recapture the magic he had in October and Reagor, Ward and Rodgers can chip in as well. Adding to the heavy dosage of the air attack on this Seattle secondary to sprinkle in the two headed beast of Sanders and Scott could spell victory for Philadelphia. Of course there’s one too many maybes in that paragraph to feel in anyway confident about this win but I do feel it is possible.

Now for the darker scene I could paint. Eagles win the toss, the defer. Seahawks get the ball first and systematically March down the field the way we all know a Wilson ran offense can march. In comes Wentz and the Eagles offense to counter punch and they whiff worse than Nate Robinson against Jake Paul from Saturday night and go three and out. Que the real fans in attendance, the cardboard fans and the hordes of Eagles fans from the Delaware valley and beyond to boo their heads off. Next offensive series comes around and Dougy P gives old’ number 2 the call to get in. Now I’m not a betting man but I’d put my money on things would not change with hurts in at the shotgun. With the recent Seahawks addition on d lineman Carlos Dunlap and the returning safety Jamal Adams those horrid team defense numbers should start to turn around.

The last time Philadelphia managed to beat Seattle at home was in 1989 that’s a pretty hefty winning streak. So the odds are not in the favor of the home team tonight. Wentz has a big spot light on his ass tonight. He better shine and shine quick or he’s going to shine on the bench with a headset on. And god forbid Jalen Hurts comes in a performs well. The days of Wentzlvania may be a thing of the past.

My prediction 37-17 Seahawks