DG Update on 06/29

After a week for the Cubs that was kind of a downer, I didn't feel like posting much.  However, there were two important items this week that were worth checking in on.  First of all, the NBA Draft went down on Thursday night from the WaMu Theater in New York's Madison Square Garden.  In that draft, the Bulls selected Memphis' Freshman PG Derrick Rose with the very first pick.  Rose is expected to be a special player who can lead the franchise to success, just like Deron Williams (Jazz) and Chris Paul (Hornets) have done with their teams in recent years.  As expected, Michael Beasley went second to the Miami Heat, followed by a flurry of other NCAA and International stars.  In some of the more notable picks, SoCal freshman stars O.J. Mayo and Kevin Love swapped spots at #3 and #5 ending up in Memphis and Minnesota, respectively.  Portland also landed top PG talent Jerryd Bayless to lead their young nucleus of Roy, Aldridge, and Oden.  On the Bulls front, Rose is expected to be the starting PG (in spite of GM John Paxson's comments that he'll have to earn his spot), meaning that Kirk Hinrich is expendable.  He could be traded for another big-man up front.  Denver has been mentioned as a possibility (Nene? Camby?).

In other news, Indy Racing was under the lights Saturday in Richmond, where Tony Kanaan ran away with the checkered flag.  Helio Castroneves finished a distant second, as Marco Andretti finished ninth.  After the race, Kanaan commented about his first win this season, how they're charging up the standings, and how "I feel bad about Marco.  I think he has as strong a car as I had."  Said Helio about finishing second: "I wasnt' the fastest, but second is pretty darned good."  Andretti Green Racing had a good race, as winner Tony Kanaan led 166 of the 300 laps, Marco led 90 laps, Danica finished sixth, and Hideki Mutoh was competetive until DNF'ing on lap 220.  The drivers will be back at it next Sunday from Watkins Glen at 2:30 PM CT on ABC.

DG Photo Quickie-Your Sports Update in a "Flash"

This week was a fun week in sports, and that fun is only just beginning.  Let's recap some of the big events in photos.  Starting with Tuesday's big news out of the NBA Draft Lottery:

With this pick, the Bulls have gained the potential to improve drastically next year.  They can now draft one of the two elite players in the June's draft: Derrick Rose, PG out of Memphis, or Michael Beasley, PF out of Kansas State.  Then, the pick would give them flexibility to trade a couple of guards/forwards they already have for other key pieces.  It is still early, but at this point I would choose Rose; the Chicago kid looks poised to follow in Chris Paul's and Deron Williams' footsteps as the next elite, NBA point-guard to lead his team to big things.

Next, we had Wednesday's UEFA Champions League Final, which pitted the two English clubs against each other for the title:

Late into the Moscow night, Manchester United and Chelsea FC battled for the crown in the pouring rain.  During regulation, Christiano Ronaldo headed in the goal for Man U, but after over 120 minutes, the teams were locked in a 1-1 tie.  For the fourth time in eight years, the UEFA final went to a shootout, as Manchester United took the crown after seven rounds.

Next up during the week, we started the Conference Finals in the NBA, as both the Lakers and the Celtics took leads over their opponents.  The Lakers, dominating the Spurs with good team play led by Kobe Bryant are 2-0 and will play Game 3 on Sunday.  While the Celtics, after losing their first game at home in Game 2, came right back to win on the road in Game 3 to go up 2-1 in their series.  They'll challenge the Pistons in Game 4 Monday night on ESPN.

In the other playoffs underway right now, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings started their final journey to hoisting the Stanley Cup on Saturday night.  The Pens came into Hockeytown and took a 4-0 loss to the Wings, as the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals started with authority.  The star power was also on hand for the ceremonial puck drop, as past Pen and Wing captains Super Mario Lemieux and Stevie Yzerman kicked off the festivities by dropping the pucks to current captains (and former teammates) Sidney Crosby and Niklas Lidstrom.

And finally, tomorrow it's time for ladies and gentlemen to "start their engines" as the 92nd running of the Indy 500 starts.  Danica Patrick, Tony Kanaan, Marco Andretti, and Helio Castroneves are all positioned to start towards the front, as a thrilling day of racing should be expected.