(Reported) ROY possibly to Cleveland? (Reportedly)

This image might look familiar! That's right! It's right below this post! Except now it's all Cavalier-ed!

That's right! THe Cleveland Cavaliers got another part of their LeBron James severance package from the totally fair and not at all fixed National Basketball Association in the form of the first overall pick. The Philadelphia 76ers sold their fan base on the idea that "the 3rd pick is good enough, plus we got that 10th pick too so we'll be just fine."

Well apparently the Sixers don't feel as fine as they let on, because they are reportedly trying to get that first round pick that they had so heinously stolen from them.

There has also been talk ever since the end of the regular season about the possibility of trading ROY and teen-heart throb, Michael Carter-Williams. Is this the time where it happens?

A Tribe Called West: SPAB NBA Playoff Preview

Now that we've seen the first game of every match up, it's time to look at the NBA's Western Conference.

The West is much more competitive than the East. The Phoenix Suns, who just missed the playoffs in the West, would have been the 4 seed in the East. There are five teams I can see making it out of the West: The Spurs, Thunder, Clippers, Rockets and Warriors. Of those five however, I only see the Spurs and Thunder as legitimate contenders. They are my picks for the Western Conference Finals (I know big surprise, but hey this is the NBA.) The other three teams have upset potential but it is hard to see them going through both top teams in a 7 game series.

It seems like for the past 5-6 years, The Spurs have been counted out because of their age. That kind of thing can be expected when the man who leads their team, Tim Duncan, is so old that his social security number is 1! However to go along with that old age The Spurs have great young talent, and one of the best coaches ever. The Thunder’s hopes at their first championship in OKC were crushed when Russell Westbrook went down last year. This year Westbrook and MVP favorite, Kevin Durant, are determined to get back to the NBA Finals. Durant is on a mission this year, he led the NBA in scoring for the 4th time in 5 years at 32 ppg and he will lead the Thunder to the NBA Finals.

In a repeat of the 2012 NBA Finals which seems so long ago, the Heat square off against the Thunder. Lets take a trip down memory lane at some of the events waaaaay back in 2012.

• Gangnam Style became a mega hit
• The Dark Knight Trilogy came to an end
• Tim Tebow led the Broncos to an OT win in the playoffs over the Steelers
• The world did not end on December 21st (I was really wrong on that one)

What do these things have to do with this year’s NBA Finals? Well not much, its just fun to take a trip down memory lane. This year’s NBA Finals will come down to LeBron vs Durant. While Durant won the regular season battle, LeBron will win the battle when it matters most. Picking the Heat to win it all this year is not as easy as it was the past two years, but they still have the best player, and the best team.

In two years we can only hope that when the SPAB playoff preview comes out it will involve the Andrew Wiggins led 76ers winning it all.

Beasts from the East: SPAB NBA Playoff Preview

The NBA season is over, so lets take a look at the SPAB NBA Playoff Preview!

Milwaukee Bucks - The Bucks got the #1 seed with a 25% chance at the number 1 overall pick in the draft. The Bucks actually set out to be a playoff team this year which makes it pretty embarrassing that they finished with the league’s worst record. Bad news for the Bucks is it has been 9 years since the team with the best chance has actually landed the first overall selection in the draft.

Philadelphia 76ers - The #2 seeded Sixers have a 19.9% chance at the number 1 pick. Its no secret that the number 1 pick is what they have planned on getting ever since GM Sam Hinkie took over last year and traded away Jrue Holiday. The Sixers brought in and ended the season with wins against the Miami Heat. The real story in what was sandwiched in between those wins, 63 losses (including an NBA record tying 26 game losing streak), acquiring almost all of the second round in the draft, and putting a team on the court that had about 8 guys who belong in the D-League.

 Huh?

Are you sure?

I’ve just been informed that the NBA Playoffs is not the race for the #1 overall pick in the draft. I guess after a year of watching the Sixers I lost sight of what basketball is played for.

Well, I guess I’ll get into the ACTUAL Playoff Preview.

Sports Pro's Celebrity All Star Team

Really NBA? These are celebrities? Couple of WNBA ladies and the Secretary of Education?! Let me educate you Mr. Secretary: You aren't a celebrity!

Here is the perfect Celebrity All-Star team. Funny, Smart, and Tough. This team has the chemistry to compete with the greats. The late 50s early 60s Celtics. The Lakers of the 80’s. The soon to be Sixers of the future. So, without further ado, here they are:

PG- Ben Stein 

 A solid point guard needs two things, brains and vision. He needs to be able to see the floor, find the open teammate, and avoid any dumb decisions. He was Ferris Bueller’s Ecom teacher, so you know he’s got the smarts. And he starred in countless Visine commercials, so you know he’s got the vision. He’s old, sure, but he’s got the makings of a solid floor general.

No Matter What! Exciting Points of the Sixers Season

This has been a very confusing season for fans of the Philadelphia 76ers.

All logic pointed to the Sixers tanking this season. Their team did not appear very good. Their new executives seemed interested in starting over from scratch. The teams #TogetherWeBuild campaign shows their commitment to a new look team.

But they aren't tanking. They're not even losing. Like, at all. And they're playing good teams. And it is super exciting! And I don't have it in me to cheer against them. I'm excited and there are three things that I will be excited about if they win every game for the rest of the season or if they go 3-79. These things will keep my blood flowing no matter what.

The Rookie - So now you're thinking: "Well, duh! He's great!" But no one was so sure about Michael Carter-Williams just a week ago. My man is killing it! And he has the perfect Philly demeanor. He sinks his shot and runs back to defense with an ear to ear grin. Then you ask him about it and he's so chill! "Yeah, it's pretty cool. We're just having some fun out there." Like he's playing with some buddies down at the playground! I will agree, 3 games is a small sample set. He could start against Golden State and fall flat on his smiling face! But he's looking really good and getting really good results and playing against really good defenses. Instead of playing third banana behind Andrew Wiggins and Nerlens Noel in a few seasons, I see "The Hyphen" being the backbone of this team for years to come!

SPAB BIG Question! Andrew Bynum and the Sixers

Welcome to the Sports Pro and the Average Bro BIG Question! You ask us your big question, and we'll  pretend we know what we're talking about! Let's get right on with it!

Today's question: Where would the Sixers be if Andrew Bynum was playing right now?

Anyone who's a Sixer's fan or who has watched them play will tell you: They flat out stink! They're horrible! Good teams come in to Philly and either trash the team to pump their stats (because they know they can) or they do what Lebron and the Heat did and play the game like it should be in that situation, fun and casual. Like you're playing a pickup game at the neighborhood courts.

It's no secret that the Sixers were expected to be much better this year thanks to the blockbuster trade for one Andrew Bynum. The team gave up a decent amount in rookie Moe Harkless, center Nik Vucevic and defensive specialist Andre Iguadola. Anyone who says they were against this trade at the time is either lying or a Wizards fan. To this point, however, they have seen nothing in return.

So this begs the question: With the awful dreck the Sixers trot out onto the court night after night, would one play make that much of a difference? Could Andrew Bynum be the piece this team needed to put them in competition with the Pacers, the Knicks, and the Heat?

An open letter to the media. RE: Lebron James

Dear sports journalists, sports casters, game reporters, radio show hosts, and other media outlets,

Isn't Lebron James awful!

I mean look at the guy. He came out of high school in a blitz of fame and glory. We were told he was going to be the greatest player of the new era. He was dubbed "King James" and we were told we would "Witness". He dove right into the NBA. To his credit he remained in a struggling Cleveland for seven years, hogging all the credit and the ball. He went with the Cavaliers to four playoff games including the finals against San Antonio. He received the NBA MVP award back to back years. He made the Cleveland Cavaliers (and essentially the city of Cleveland) dependent on him. Little did they know he was about to flip everything around.

He became a free agent. He visited other teams during the course of the off season and at least 5 other organizations were in serious consideration. He spent the whole summer in decision of where he would go. America was beat over the head with where he was at every particular day. He was visiting New York. He just left New York. I wonder what he was talking about with New York. This went on for 2 months. Sports center had nothing but Lebron coverage.

Then he made his decision. In a glamorous fashion. He went on television to stab Cleveland in the back and take a short cut to get a ring, by joining with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in South Beach. And long story short, he lost in the big finals. He just couldn't cut it.

Now he'll never be the same player and he doesn't deserve any of our respect. Or so the media has so told us.

My Underdog Affections

Throughout the NBA Finals, I convinced myself I wanted the Miami Heat to win it all (after they beat out the Sixers of course). I, however, am a minority, along with the city of Miami. A couple of things have led to this decision.

• I like Lebron James. I don't know what it is about him. It's not like he's ever been described as a likable guy. Lebron James hate tops even that of Bernie Madoff in many places. I just think he carries himself very well and is a very articulate and intelligent speaker. He seems like he really thinks his thoughts through in press conferences. After Miami's win in game 3, a CBS reporter asked Lebron about "shrinking" in big moments of the fourth quarter. Lebron, calmly and intellectually proceeded to tell the reporter that his cohort, Dwayne Wade, had a hot night so they got the ball to him. He also informed him that he had a great night defensively and instructed the reporter to rewatch the game tape and "ask a better question tomorrow". I even find myself cheering for Lebron at press conferences!

• Another reason I've become an interim Miami fan is because of the legacy i think it could lead to. My uncle is a Chicago Bulls fan. He got to witness his team 3-peat...twice! He is one of those guys who knows Michael Jordan is the best player in history and no player will ever compare. I don't completely disagree (because disagreeing with that fact is punishable by a pair of cement shoes and a dip in the Chicago River). The problem is, I'm jealous of this. I want to see a legacy like this. The closest thing I have seen in any sport would be the Lakers 3-peat and follow up repeat. But the teams of Michael's and Kobe's are far different. Kobe was his team. He had Shaq and Fisher for his first run and then added Gasol, Bynum and Odom for his second. No player can be great without a supporting cast but Kobe was the only common denominator (aside from Phil Jackson) and the only way they got to their title. And in either run, he couldn't compare with the dream team of the Bulls. Some people may say this is an unfair and erroneous argument. I only have one other point. It was Kobe's team. Kobe's legacy. And for whatever reason, I don't like Kobe. I feel like Lebron and D Wade (and even Bosh if he doesn't end up getting traded) have made the Heat great and therefore it will be their legacy. And I will witness it.

• My final reason is a little simpler than my others. The Heat struggled in the regular season against good teams. They were highly criticized for coming together in such an extravagant manner and getting pummeled in big games. People said they weren't ready and that they would be great but it was going to take some time playing together before they could be actual contenders. They were booed in every major arena they entered. No one wanted them to succeed. They became underdogs. And there is nothing I love more in sports, than a good underdog story.