Check back in a few hours and you’ll see two updated posts. It feels good to be back! 

People in Cleveland show the world exactly how the feel about Lebron's decision to leave town and join Dwayne Wade & Chris Bosh in Miami.

In the instant that those words came out of Lebron James’ mouth several Cleveland fans took to the streets to show public outrage for his decision.  Some going as far as burning his #23 Cleveland jersey; which I believe is a bit extreme.  I feel for the Cleveland fan, but at the same token Lebron gave the Cavs and it’s fans seven great years.  He brought that team back from the dead and made basketball relevant in that town again.  I truly believe that Lebron did all he could to try to get that city a professional championship and  even though he is “The Chosen One” he just didn’t have the pieces around him.

Now as he moves on to the Miami Heat I believe that in the next 5 years he will probably have the opportunity to win several titles.  No one knows how Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh will blend as teammates in 82+ games regular season, but you have to believe that having 2 of the top 5 five players in the NBA automatically puts them in contention.

Even though I feel that it would have been great if Lebron stayed and delivered a championship to his home state of Ohio, I believe that we shouldn’t paint him as a villain for following his dream to pursue championships in Miami alongside other superstars, let’s hope he accomplishes just that.

The new "BIG 3" - Lebron James, Dwayne Wade & Chris Bosh of the Miami Heat

Whatever Lebron’s choice will be, the world will found out tomorrow when ESPN will air a special at 9 p.m. EST time called “The Decision.”

Here at The Sports Bra Reports we believe he’ll be staying in Cleveland and try to deliver that elusive championship to the city.  Where do YOU think he’ll be playing next season?  Tune in tomorrow to find out!

The question on everyone's mind... Where will Lebron James play next season? Will it be the Cavs? Maybe the Knicks or Nets?

Kobe & The Lakers win the 2010 NBA Championship in 7 games over the Boston Celtics! Final score 83-79! Kobe claims his 5th NBA title; Coach Phil Jackson claims his 11th & the Lakers franchise get their 16th title!

Kobe Bryant cemented his legacy in Lakers history by winning his 5th championship for the franchise.  In a highly contested back and forth game, the Los Angeles Lakers outlasted the Boston Celtics 83-79 to claim the 2010 NBA Championship, 2nd straight and their 16th title in franchise history.

The Boston Celtics played a hard fought game but simply didn’t have enough to make good of the 13-point lead they had mid-way through the third quater.  All of the Celtics starters played more than 40 mins in this game and all scored in double figures but there just wasn’t enough left in the tank to win the game.

In the 4th quarter Kobe Bryant and his teammates seized the opportunity and came back to win the game with a total team contribution even though Kobe struggled for most of the game.  Ron Artest saved the best for the final game of the series scoring 20 pts and recording 5 steals. Another Laker who hugely contributed in the win was Spaniard Pau Gasol who scored 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds.

Kobe claimed the finals MVP trophy and when asked about how did it feel to win another title, he responded with “Just got one more than Shaq. You can take that to the bank. You know how I am. I don’t forget anything.”

Even though I’m not a fan of Kobe or the Lakers, congrats to their fans, players and team for claiming the 2010 NBA Championship.

Game 5 Winner The Boston Celtics... Game 6 Winner The Los Angeles Lakers... Game 7 Winner & 2010 NBA Champs?!? To Be Determined!

The 2010 NBA champs will be determined tonight in Los Angeles… Who do you think will win it all?

With the Celtics winning Game 5 in Boston 92-86 many believed that they we’re going to go to Los Angeles and claim the chip in Game 6.  Lakers thought different from most.  In Game 6 Kobe Bryant scored 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds while leading the Lakers to an easy victory over the Celtics, they won the game 89-67.

In what has become a rarity in the NBA tonight’s game 7 will be a classic with winner taking the 2010 NBA Champoinship.  What will be surely an instant classic we at the Sports Bra Reports think despite home-court advantage the Lakers will fall to the Celtics for a second time in the NBA finals and the Big 4 (Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce & Rajon Rando) will claim their second chip in 3 years.

What do you guys think? Lakers or Celtics?

2010 NBA Champs... Who will it be?

Many thought the shot by Dempsey had no chance of going of in, but long behold English goal keeper made a mistake and he paid for it.  Haven’t seen the highlights yet? Well have no fear, the folks at gaurdian.co.uk/worldcup2010 have put together this pretty cool video reenactment using Lego’s.

]]> http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/2010/06/14/world-cup-usa-vs-england-1-1-highlights-by-lego/feed/ 0 elizabeth1011 http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/2010/06/13/nba-finals-2010-game-4-series-tied/ http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/2010/06/13/nba-finals-2010-game-4-series-tied/#comments Sun, 13 Jun 2010 05:56:49 +0000 elizabeth1011 http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/?p=1131 ]]>

Glen "Big Baby" Davis helps the Celtics off the bench to defeat the Lakers. Series tied 2-2!

Taking care of business on their home court in the 2010 NBA finals, the Boston Celtics tie the series versus the Los Angeles Lakers 2-2.

The Celtics won the game 96-89 with the bench players coming through and contributing big plays in key moments.  The Celtics bench scored 36 points and the biggest contributor off the bench was Glen “Big Baby” Davis.  In 22 minutes, he scored 18 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.  Another contributor off the bench was Nate Robinson who chipped in 12 points.  Kobe Bryant scored 33 points in the loss for the Lakers.

Game 5 becomes a must win situation for the Celtics.  They hope to take the series lead as they head back to Los Angeles for games 6 & 7.

2010 FIFA World Cup Guide by The Sports Bra Report

Ladies and gentleman the 2010 FIFA World Cup is just a few days away.  On June 11th, 2010 in South Africa the world’s largest sporting event will commence.  Over 26 billion people will tune in to watch the World Cup games that will last approximately one month.

So what exactly is the FIFA World Cup?  Well, that’s what the Sports Bra Reports is here to help you out with.  Consider this a simple guide to “the beautiful game” of futbol or soccer to us Americans. We’ll tell you what FIFA is and how the World Cup works, then we’ll dive into the fun stuff – the 32 teams that will be participating!

So without further ado, the Sports Bra Reports 2010 FIFA World Cup Guide.

What does FIFA stand for?

FIFA stands for the Federation Internationale de Football Association.  It is the governing body of the world cup and organizes a multi-year tournament every four years with the culmination being the World Cup.

Where will the World Cup take place & how long will it last?

The 2010 World Cup will be in South Africa.  This is the first time in the history’s tournament that an African nation will play host.  The games will be played in 9 different South African cities  (Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Mangaung/Bloemfontein, Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, Nelspruit, Polokwane, Rustenburg & Tshwane/Pretoria).

The World Cup is a month long tournament starting on June 11 and ending on July 11 with the championship game in Johannesburg.

How many teams participate in the World Cup?

They are 32 teams that participate.  31 of the teams had to qualify through various tournaments in the years leading up to the World Cup and 1 – the host team (South Africa) gets an automatic bid.  The 32 teams will be placed randomly into 8 groups of four teams per group (Groups A-H).

It's World Cup Time!

How does the World Cup work?

The 8 groups, which have four teams each, will play each other for two weeks.  In those two weeks each team will receive a series of points for how they do in each futbol/soccer match.  3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss.  The two teams with the most points per group will advance to the Round of 16 (think of it as the Sweet Sixteen in NCAA basketball).  From here on out it’s a single game elimination, which means the winning team will advance and the losing team goes home.

** Just so you know in the Round of 16 there can be no draws – there has to be a winner and a loser.  If a game ends with a tie after the first 90 minutes of play, the game will go into “extra time” (over-time) for 30 minutes.  If in those 30 minutes there’s still no definite winner, the game moves on to penalty kicks to decide the winner.

Now ladies and gents, lets move on to the fun part!  Which 32 teams qualified? What is each teams strengths and key players?

Once again they are 32 teams in the World Cup – divided into 8 groups (A-H).  Let’s break it down by group.

GROUP A:

France, Mexico, South Africa & Uruguay

Group A: France, Mexico, South Africa & Uruguay

FRANCE:

World Ranking #9

Key Players:  Thierry Henry – Forward, Franck Ribery – Forward, Nicolas Anelka – Forward.

Strengths:  Great forwards that play in some of the top futbol clubs in Europe (Real Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, Lyon, Barcelona).  Expect them to score lots of goals.

Random Fact:  France’s nickname for their team is Les Bleus (the blues).  France won the World Cup in 1998 on their home soil.

Odds to win all:  18 to 1.

MEXICO:
World Ranking # 17

Key Players:  Cuauhtemoc Blanco – Midfield, Rafael Márquez – Defender, Guillermo Franco – Forward

Strengths:  Strong defense speared by Barcelona defender Marquez.

Random Fact:  Mexico is famous for… Tequila! It is the only country to have hosted the World Cup twice.

Odds to win it all:  80 to 1.

Thierry Henry - France

SOUTH AFRICA:

World Ranking #83

Key Players:  MacBeth Sibaya – Midfielder, Steven Pienaar – Forward, Benni McCarthy – Forward

Strengths:  Above average athleticism, host nation so there will be large crowds whenever they play.

Random Fact:  South Africa is currently the world champion in Rugby.

Odds to win it all:  150 to 1.

URUGUAY:

World Ranking #16

Key Players:  Diego Lugano – Defense, Diego Forlán – Forward, Cristian Rodríguez – Forward

Strengths:  Great defenders led by team captain Lugano, team is famous for it’s toughness.

Random Fact:  Are two-time World Cup champions.
Odd to win it all:  100 to 1.

GROUP B:

Argentina, Greece, Nigeria and South Korea

Argentina, Greece, Nigeria and South Korea

ARGENTINA
World Ranking # 7

Key Players:  Lionel Messi – Forward, Sergio Aguero – Forward

Strengths:  Have one of the best players in the world leading their attack in Lionel Messi, expect lots of goals from him.

Random Fact:  Are two time World Cup champions and one of the favorites to win it all.

Odds to win it all: 7 to 1.

GREECE

World Ranking # 13

Key Players:  Sotiris Ninis – Forward, Sotiris Kyrgiakos – Defender

Strengths:  They have a great ability to play strong defense and control the tempo of the game.

Odds to win it all:  150 to 1.

Lionel Messi - Argentina

NIGERIA

World Ranking # 21

Key Players:  Osaze Odemwingie – Forward, Obafemi Martins – Forward

Strengths:  Very tall and athletic midfielders and forwards.  Expect them to always be on the attack.

Random Fact:  Nigeria became the first African team to win Olympic Gold in Atlanta in 1996.

Odds to win it all:  150 to 1.

SOUTH KOREA

World Ranking # 47

Key Players:  Park Ji-Sung – Midfielder, Park Chu-Young – Forward

Strengths:  Great chemistry and will never give up on any play, very hard working players.

Odds to win it all:  200 to 1.

GROUP C:

Algeria, England, Slovenia and USA

Algeria, England, Slovenia and USA

ALGERIA
World Ranking # 30

Key Players:  Karim Ziani – Midfielder, Djamel Abdoun – Midfielder

Strengths:  A relatively young squad that lacks experience but have great potential to win games in their group because of their ability to control the ball with midfielder Karim Ziani.

Odds to win it all:  350 to 1.

ENGLAND

World Ranking # 8

Key Players:  Steven Gerrard – Midfield, Wayne Rooney – Forward

Strengths:  Great tactical team that controls tempo and the ball.  Expect them to advance well into the quarterfinals, as they are one of the favorites to take the World Cup trophy back home to the Queen.

Odds to win it all:  6 to 1.

Landon Donovan - USA

SLOVENIA

World Ranking # 25

Key Players:  Milivoje Novakovic – Forward, Robert Koren – Midfield

Strengths:  Great defense, in the past 12 international games have only conceded six goals.

Odds to win it all:  250 to 1.

UNITED STATES

World Ranking #14

Key Players:  Tim Howard – Goal Keeper, Landon Donovan – Midfield

Strengths:  A very athletic and scrappy team that can hang with most teams in the tournament if they hustle.

Odds to win it all:  80 to 1.

GROUP D:

Australia, Germany, Ghana and Serbia

Australia, Germany, Ghana and Serbia

AUSTRALIA

World Ranking # 20

Key Players:  Tim Cahill – Forward, Mark Schwarzer – Goal Keeper

Strengths:  Great teamwork, high intensity players.

Random Fact:  Nickname given to the Australian team, “The Socceroos.”

Odds to win it all:  150 to 1.

GERMANY

World Ranking # 6

Key Players:  Michael Ballack – Forward, Mesut Oezil – Midfield

Strengths:  Extremely organized and motivated team.  Expected to go deep into the tournament.

Odds to win it all:  12 to 1.

Michael Ballack - Germany

GHANA

World Ranking # 32

Key Players:  Richard Kingson – Goal Keeper, Sulley Muntari – Midfield

Strengths:  Can control the tempo of the game with their excellent midfielders and defense.

Odds to win it all: 66 to 1.

SERBIA

World Ranking # 15

Key Players:  Nemanja Vidic – Defense, Marko Pantelic – Midfield

Strengths:  Great defense that can steal the ball and contribute in the attack.

Odds to win it all: 66 to 1.

GROUP E:

Cameroon, Denmark, Holland and Japan

Cameroon, Denmark, Holland and Japan

CAMEROON

World Ranking # 19

Key Players:  Samuel Eto’o – Forward

Strengths:  Have the best forward in Africa leading their attack in Samuel Eto’o.  Expect him to have a strong performance.

Odds to win it all: 100 to 1.

DENMARK

World Ranking # 36

Key Players:  Nicklas Bendtner – Forward

Strengths:  Great attacking midfield.

Odds to win it all: 150 to 1.

Samuel Eto'o - Cameroon

HOLLAND

World Ranking # 4

Key Players:  Ryan Babel – Forward, Andre Ooijer – Defender

Strengths:  A team loaded with great players ready to make some noise in their group and world cup.

Odds to win it all:  12 to 1.

JAPAN

World Ranking # 45

Key Players:  Shunsuke Nakamura – Midfield

Strengths:  Can control the midfield and if given the opportunity can get creative when it comes goal scoring.

Odds to win:  350 to 1.

GROUP F:

Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay and Slovakia

Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay and Slovakia

ITALY

World Ranking # 5

Key Players:  Daniele De Rossi – Midfielder,

Fabio Cannavaro – Defense

Strengths:  The World Cup defending champs are a team loaded with lots of talent in almost every position; expect them to content to repeat as champion.

Random Fact:  4-time World Cup champions, nickname the Azzurri.

Odds to win it all:  12 to 1.

NEW ZEALAND

World Ranking # 78

Key Players:  Chris Killen – Forward

Odds to win it all:  2000 to 1.

Fabio Cannavaro - Italy

PARAGUAY

World Ranking # 31

Key Players:  Roque Santa Cruz – Forward

Strengths:  Aerial game and a very good defense.

Odds to win it all:  80 to 1.

SLOVAKIA
World Ranking # 34

Key Players:  Marek Hamsik – Midfield

Strengths:  Strong defense.

Odds to win it all:  250 to 1.

GROUP G:

Brazil, Ivory Coast, North Korea and Portugal

Brazil, Ivory Coast, North Korea and Portugal

BRAZIL

World Ranking #1

Key Players:  Kaka – MF, Luis Fabiano – Forward

Strengths:  The #1 ranked team in the world is the favorite to win it all. They are loaded with superstars on defense, midfield and offense.

Odds to win it all:  5 to 1.

IVORY COAST

World Ranking # 27.

Key Players:  Didier Drogba – Forward, Kolo Toure – Midfield

Strengths:  Their attack is lead by Drogba the number 1 goal scorer in the European league; expect them to super exciting throughout the tournament.

Odds to win it all:  33 to 1.

Didier Drogba - Ivory Coast

NORTH KOREA

World Ranking # 105

Key Players:  Jong Tae Se – Forward

Strengths:  A 5-man defensive backfield leads to great counter attacks with their speedy forwards led by Jong Tae Se.

Odds to win it all:  1500 to 1.

PORTUGAL

World Ranking # 3

Key Players:  Cristiano Ronaldo – Forward, Raul Meireles – Midfield

Strengths:  Led by the most famous soccer player in the world C. Ronaldo, expect the Portuguese squad to score lots of goals and advance far ino the tournament.

Odds to win it all:  28 to 1.

GROUP H:

Chile, Honduras, Spain & Switzerland

Chile, Honduras, Spain and Switzerland

CHILE

World Ranking # 18

Key Players:  Alexis Sanchez – Midfield

Strengths:  Great attacking team that never stops searching for goals.

Odds to win it all:  66 to 1.

HONDURAS

World Ranking # 38

Key Players:  Carlos Pavon – Forward

Strengths: Good defense with great counter attacking ability.

Odds to win it all:  1000 to 1.

Fernando Torres - Spain

SPAIN

World Ranking # 2

Key Players:  Fernando Torres – Forward, Iker Casillas – Goal Keeper

Strengths: Led by some of the greatest soccer players in the world, the Spanish squad is expected to go far in the tournament.  They are a team that loves to control the tempo and the ball.

Odds to win it all:  4 to 1.

SWITZERLAND

World Ranking # 24

Key Players:  Alexander Frei – Forward

Odds to win it all:  200 to 1.

So there you have it ladies and gents.  The Sports Bra Reports presents to you our simple yet, comprehensive guide to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.  I hope that this guide helps you enjoy the beautiful game of futbol aka soccer.

Which team will lift up the 2010 World Cup Trophy?

Derek Fisher & Kobe Bryant step up in game 2 of the 2010 NBA Finals to lead the Lakers to victory over the Celtics 91-84. Lakers take series lead 2-1.

Game 3 of the 2010 NBA finals proved to be another great game as the Celtics lose on their home court to the Lakers 91-84.  Derek Fisher was Game 3′s hero as he scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter.

Kobe Bryant also played a great game scoring 29 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks.   Celtic Kevin Garnett aka the Big Ticket finally played a decent game in the finals scoring 25 points and grabbing 6 rebounds, nevertheless the rest of his team struggled.  Ray Allen had 0 points going 0-13 on his shots after setting an NBA finals record with 8 three pointers in Game 2, Paul Pierce barely played because of foul trouble.

We expect the Celtics to bounce back in a critical Game 4 of the NBA finals and tie the series, but in order to do so the Big 3 + 1 (Ray Allen, Paul Pierce & Kevin Garnett + Rajon Rondo) have to play well together.  All 4 must defend, rebound and score.  Right now Lakers lead the series 2 – 1.

Who do you think will win Game 4? Lakers or Celtics?

]]> http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/2010/06/09/nba-finals-2010-game-3-lakers-take-the-series-lead-2-1/feed/ 0 elizabeth1011 NBA FInals 2010_Game 3 Kobe & Fisher - Liz's Toons! http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/2010/06/07/nba-finals-2010-game-2-boston-celtics-win/ http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/2010/06/07/nba-finals-2010-game-2-boston-celtics-win/#comments Mon, 07 Jun 2010 18:02:26 +0000 elizabeth1011 http://thesportsbrareports.wordpress.com/?p=1081 ]]>

Ray Allen sets NBA Finals record with 8 3-pointers while leading the Celtics to victory 103-94 over the Lakers.

Game 2 of the 2010 NBA Finals did not disappoint as the Celtics bounced back from their game 1 loss to beat the Lakers 103-94 and tie the series 1 – 1.

Ray Allen sets an NBA Finals record with 8 3-pointers (8-11 from beyond the arc) and 32 points, but he wasn’t the only Celtic to come up big in Game 2.  Rajon Rondo had a monster game finishing with 19 Pts, 12 Reb, 10 Ast, 2 Stl & 1 Blk.

Kobe Bryant (21 Pts), Andrew Bynum (21 Pts)  and Pau Gasol (25 Pts) all had decent games for the Lakers but wasn’t enough as Kobe was in foul trouble most of the game and they just couldn’t close the points gap.  Now series is tied 1 – 1 and I can’t wait to see who steps for the next 3 games as the team’s head to Boston.