Former Mizzou Grad Invited To Warriors Training Camp

The Golden State Warriors are adding 3 players to the competition for the last roster spot on a lineup that could make history. One of those players is Phil Pressey.

After graduating from the University of Missouri, Pressey wasn’t drafted in 2013 and has since bounced around the NBA and D-League. He played in 75 games with the Boston Celtics as a rookie in 2013-2014, but has played in less and less games each season since then. He played in 14 games last season for the Philadelphia 76ers, but was waived in December.

For his career, he’s shooting just 34.1% from the field and 25.4% from 3-point range. On a positive note, he does average 7.7 assists per game for his career.

Pressey, in my opinion, is probably the least likely to get the spot but, as we all know, anything can happen.

Olympian To Play Football At Mizzou

He’s not your typical commit but he is a Bronze Medal winner from the 2016 Olympics. J’den Cox, the 2016 Bronze Medal Wrestler, announced that he will play football for the University of Missouri next season. Cox does have a football background as he played linebacker at Hickman High School located in Columbia, MO. It’s great to see the young man return to his hometown wearing not only the Bronze, but also the Black and Gold.

MIZZOU FOOTBALL SCHEDULE 2016

Cardinals Place Leake on DL

The Cardinals have placed right-hander Mike Leake on the 15-day disabled list with shingles and called up left-hander Dean Kiekhefer from Triple-A Memphis.

The Cardinals had Alex Reyes start for Leake on Saturday. Leake is 9-9 with a 4.56 ERA in 25 starts and he is eligible to return on Sept. 6.

Blues Upcoming Season: Should We Be Skeptical or Optimistic?

The St. Louis Blues played in the Western Conference Final for the first time since 2001 last season. This season the Blues look to expand on the recent success and use their youthful lineup to win their first ever Stanley Cup.

Here are four reasons for fans to be optimistic:

1. Vladimir Tarasenko continues to be an elite force in the NHL:

Tarasenko led the Blues in goals (40) and points (74) last season. He is my prediction to be the next 50 goal scorer in the NHL. Not much more to say about an elite talent such as him.

2. Jaden Schwartz needs to become a leader

Schwartz signed a five-year, $26.75 million dollar contract on July 15th. This shows the level of faith the Blues have in him. He did have an ankle injury last year that limited him to 33 regular season games. On the positive side of last year, he had 14 points in 20 playoff games so the Blues are hopeful that he can keep his level of play elevated to what he showed in the playoffs.

3. Robby Fabbri continues to build on solid rookie year

Fabbri had 15 points during the Stanley Cup Playoffs while he had 18 goals and 19 assists in the regular season. This kid has a large amount of potential and I’m excited to see what the Blues do to utilize him even more this upcoming year!

4. Goaltending Depth

Even with the loss of Brian Elliott, the St. Louis Blues retained their depth at the goaltender position with the signing of Carter Hutton. Hutton, who spent the last 3 years with the Predators, went 33-24 with a 2.56 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. The 30-year-old has seen his share of games and, heaven forbid, Allen gets hurt again the Blues have a solid backup to carry the load.

Here are two issues facing the Blues that can cause some fans to be skeptical:

1. Is Jake Allen ready to be a No. 1 goalie?

The Blues said yes signing Allen to a four-year, $17.4 million dollar contract extension on July 1st. Allen is 57-26-7 with a 2.34 goals-against average and .915 save percentage in 99 regular-season games. He also won a career-best 26 games last season. I’m still skeptical though…. Allen still continues to give up a lot of “easy” goals and he makes mistakes playing the puck. If it weren’t for all of the easy “should have stopped that” goals, I think my comfort level would be much higher.

2. How do the Blues replace the veterans they lost?

The Blues lost a great deal of veteran presence this offseason. Guys like David Backes, Steve Ott, Brian Elliott, and Troy Brouwer are now gone and the Blues did nothing in free agency or trades to add a veteran presence to the lineup. Is this a good or bad thing? We will just have to wait and see if the young leaders step up to the challenge.

Final Impression: Optimistic

I’m optimistic because the Blues always show a lot of talent when it comes to young players and goaltending. Yes, they lost a few key players but I don’t think it’s enough to hold back a talented bunch of young guns anxious to win it all. The Blues always seem to have a strong regular season and I hope that they can continue to move towards their goal of becoming first time Stanley Cup Champions.

 

 

Watch “David Backes EN goal 4-1. Giant scrum. last 1:30. Winnipeg Jets vs St. Louis Blues 3/17/14 NHL” on YouTube

Watch “Patrick Thomson on team Shakira: Reaction” on YouTube

Ryan Reaves Destroys McLeod

Ryan Reaves gives every player a reason of why not to mess with him… He just destroys this kid and makes him look weak. Looking forward to seeing more of this as the Blues and Avalanche are in the same division now.

Steve Smith Tells Talib To “Ice Up”

After Steve Smith and Aqib Talib went back and forth all night fighting, Smith got the final word… I think he got his point across….

The Baer Truth: Puig vs. Baseball

Over the past series we have seen on multiple occasions the childish attitude of Puig come out throughout the games. For instance in game 4 he hit a ball to opposite field and thought it was a homerun. We know he thought this because he threw his bat and did a huge dramatic pose pointing at the sky before running the bases. Then shortly after he began to round the bases, it became very apparent to him that he had not hit a homerun and that the ball bounced off the wall. Luckily due to his speed he got a triple but then continued to celebrate once at third. He made a complete idiot of himself! You look at a guy like Puig and tell me that he is not the cockiest player in the major league! He showboats on his first hit in the series! Its game 4 in the series and you dont have a hit!!!!! Then it comes back to bite him! He deserves every bad comment he gets because he puts himself in that position on an every game basis! You CANNOT dance around and sing to the music after you think you hit a homerun and then only get a triple. You look like an absolute idiot! You wonder why every team in the majors hates you? There is the reason why! Quit the showboating and play baseball! He has talent but it is so covered up by his childish actions that he becomes the most controversial player in baseball. Im surprised he doesnt get thrown at when at the plate more often. That may be the lesson he needs to learn. Someone in that organization needs to pull Puig aside and really let him have it before other teams do it for them!