Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / Oct. 26, 2006, edition 1 / Page 18
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2C ii«0 SPORTS/d^e C^arbtte Thursday, October 26, 2006 Pitching to Pujols very risky Continued from page 1C on out is likely to turn into a chess match.. Lejdand has considered giving up smoking more times this season than giving a hitter - any hitter - an intentional walk. So it’s a safe bet that every time the camera catches him during one, expect to see a lighted cigarette dangling fixim his Ups. The Tigers issued just 35 free passes during the regular season, the sixth-lowest total in the American League. Before Saturday the only time Leyland saw Pujols up clcee and personal was during a three-game series against St. Louis in June, and he walked him intentionally exactly once. And before this one, Lejdand was very cagey about his plans. But Verlander went right at Pujols in the first inning, mixi-ng fastballs and curves, snapping off a sharp breaking ball at 2-2 and striking him out. Then came Phijols’ first swing in the third, and it quickly made any debate about strategy irrelevant. ‘T just try to see the baU,” Pujols explained, “and put a good swing on it.” Shaq, Flash aim for seconds Continued from page 1C ‘Tt mi^t not be an every day occasion type of team, but there’s something about them, when it’s the right time, and it gets hot and it gets real competitive, that they’re formidable. I think they showed that.” So when the NBA’s new microfiber composite , Spalding baU - no, it’s not leather anymore — gets tossed up on Halloween night in Miami to open the NBA sea son against the Bulls, you can bet O’Neal will want to tip it to Wade. As long as it’s in his hands, the Heat might still be the best in an NBA that lacks a dominant team. “That guy is pretty good. I mean really, really really good,” Hornets assistant Darrell Walker said. “He’s gettir^ to the point, and Tm telling you I love MJ, but we’re goir^ to have to start putting the Jordan rules on him. He’s a pretty special player.” There are plenty of those. Kobe Bryant beat out Allen Iverson and LeBron James to win a thrilling scoring race last season, while Steve Nash won a second strai^t MVP award as recent rules changes allowed offensive stars to shine. Wade stands out as the Pee-wee football playolfs A place in the regional Junior Pee-Wee football play offs will be at stake Saturday The Freedom Drive Broncos will play the Plaza Rams at 10 a.m. at East Mecklenbui^ High. The win ner will get a berth in. the regionals in Charlotte next month. Both progi’ams have a histoiy of national success, witli the Rams finishing sec ond in the national midget playoffs in 2003 and the Broncos earning the junior midget title in 2004. For information, call Dexter Hayes at (704) 492-0671. Herbert L. White brightest of all after what he did in the finals, turning the Heat’s 2-0 deficit against Dallas into a six-game victory in a Flash - Shaq’s nickname for him - and earning that highest of NBA compliments; comparisons to Jordan. So for all those teams hop ing to pounce on what they see as a vulnerable champi on, take heed; “He’s going to only get bet ter,” Philadelphia coach Maurice Cheeks said. ‘T don’t know him, but he looks like a guy that loves to play loves to make his teammates better. Tb think that a guy won a championship in his third year and is only going to get better is a scary thoioght. “Everyone said he couldn’t shoot a jump shot. Well, he got bette* at shootii^ a jump shot, kind of Uke when people said Mfichael Jordan couldn’t shoot a jump shot, and then he made his jump shot even deeper into a S-pointer.” Don’t call the Heat wcsrld champs, by the way The only team that gets that title is Spain, which earned it by rolling through the world championships in Japan this svunmer. The United States, even with Wade, James and Carmelo Anthony finished third. Then two NBA teams lost to international clubs in exhibition games in Europe. So if you’re lookup for an up- and-coming team, consider Tbronto, in the NBA’s only non-U.S. city where No. 1 overall pick Andrea Bargnani fi'om Italy is among a handful of foreign players on the ros- tei’. Not that the Raptore claim to notice their own continen tal flair. ‘We don’t talk about those thii^. We’re the Tbronto Raptors, Canada’s team... we are an NBA team,” coach Sam Mitchell said. “And all our guys are proven players, and like all players, have a lot to prove once they get to the NBA. But basketball players are basketball players. As a coaching staff, we never walk out there and say. We have two guys finm Spain, a guy fiom Italy Rasho Nesterovic fiom (Slovenia). ’ We just don’t ... it’s not that big of a deal to us, it’s really not.” The Raptors aren’t the only team with a different look. Chicago signed Ben Wallace away fiom Detroit, possibly altering the balance of power in the Central Division and becoming Miami’s biggest threat in the Eastern Conference. Don Nelson is back on the sideline in Golden State, and former Warriors coach Eric Mussehnan is in Sacramento. Across the country Isiah Thomas replaced Larry Brown and is now coaching the Knicks team he assem bled _ thoi^h maybe not for long. He’s already been warned that he has one season to show “evident progress” with the hi^-priced mess he’s cre ated, or he’ll be gone, too. He might be able to pxiU it off in the East, where there are no more than a half-dozen strong teams. The West, on the other hand, remains a killer. Los Angeles might, have two playoff teams again - and for the second straight season, the Clippers might be the higher-seeded one. It took 44 wins to make the playoffs there last season, and the conference figures to be even tougher now with the improvements made by teams such as Houston, where Bonzi Wells joins a healthy Tl-acy McGrady and Yao Mir^, and New Orleans. The Rockets and Hornets are both in the Southwest Division, where San Antonio and Dallas each won 60 or more games last season but were forced to meet in the second round, ushering in a rules change; A division title no longer guarantees a team a top-three seed if the fourth- place team has a better record. ‘We’ve got the best division in the NBA, I don’t care what people say” Spurs guard Tbny Parker said. “Our division is tough.” The Mavericks beat the Spurs - one of three second- reund series that went seven games - as paiT of a thrilling postseason. The preseason, on the otiier hand, hasn’t been nearly as fun for the NBA. For ride and features, Chevy Avalanche wins by landshde Imitation is supposed to be the highest form offlatteiy Chevy’s Avalanche is a sweet crew cab truck with a neat mid-gate feature. So why has no othei* truck maker copied the design? I don’t know and I’m sm’e Chevy doesn’t care because they sell a good amount of these things. Even so, Chevy decided to make the 2007 better. Thank you, Chevy The Avalanche gets the same changes as Chevy’s other tnicks. The grUl is new and much, much cleaner-looking. The body has a more athletic stance as well. Actually the tioick gets a complete makeover. The interior gets the best makeovei'. All that awflil Playskool plastic is gone - banished to bad dasliboard pmgatory The new look is sleek and luxurious. Wood gi*am, expensive plastic and chrome accents are tlie mgi*edieats to tliis winning i-ecipe. Who knew? The engine’s a big ol’ 5.3-liter V8 which pushes 310 horsepower in all wheel diive form. Tbrque is 335 poimds-feet. The trans mission is a suiprisingly low-tech four-sjjeed that works to p^fection. The suspension is called premium smooth ride and that about says it all. You don’t mis take this thing for anythir^ but a truck, but there’s a comfort quality that will put a grin on yoToi' face. Handling is good as well. Again, it’s a truck, but somewhat nimble for its size. Until you try to park the thing. But even that’s not so hard with the optional backup assist - i.e. backup camera. There is a lot of standard equipment and even more optional stuff Air bags, antilock brakes, Stabilitrak, cruise, heated miiTors, AWD, programmable door locks and rear audio controls are standard. Twenty-inch wheels, real’ DVD system, power sunroof, rain sensing wipers and a $3,650 LT3 pack age gives you all but the kitchen sink. The as-tested price jumps fix)m $35,295 base, to $46,235. As midsize trucks go, that’s not terribly expensive, but it also ain’t cheap. Still, the new Avalanche is something to be seriously considered. All that awful Playskool plastic is gone - banished to bad dashboard purgatory. -'.-ffSf ovmn osiMani'"': Your source for championship sports coverage tKl)c Cljarlottc
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Oct. 26, 2006, edition 1
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