Hello Friends,

Well it  was a pleasant surprise to see the Golden State Warriors win their first round series for everyone except most Dallas Mavericks fans who had their championship locked in their minds at midseason. It will have to stay locked there for awhile along with Dirk Nowitzki's possible MVP performance in the regular season although I think guard Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns deserves that.

Once again a team coached by 30 year veteran coach Don Nelson used crafty and small ball lineups  with great and gutty performances from Baron Davis who pulled a hamstring and Stephen Jackson, Jason Richardson, Matt Barnes and others who really showed that if you play smart, believe in yourself and play as a team you can possibly win anything. I remember a Don Nelson coached Milwaukee Bucks team sweeping the Boston Celtics led by Hall of Famer Larry Bird and their great team in the 1983 playoffs. They were humiliated and were never beaten by the Bucks or swept away in the playoffs again. Sorry Dirk Nowitzki you or your team don't have a Larry Bird. But even if they did they still need a low post presence that drives to the basket and a leader like their coach Avery Johnson but only like a player that he was on the floor in his career.

So congratulations to the Golden State Warriors for becoming this years version of last years Los Angeles Clippers and ending a long playoff drought. They won't win the NBA championship most likely but they and their great, noisy and passionate fans made it a series to remember in these NBA playoffs and they sent the Dallas Mavericks packing for the golf courses and fishing holes of the world. Have a great and productive day friends.

Hello Sports Friends,

I thought I'd try a blog on here today where I talk about the state of my favorite teams. I saw another blogger on here do this. I think he was from the Boston area. Anyways in this past month we've had the State of the Union, the NFL has the State of the NFL with the commisioner at the Super Bowl this week so this is the state of my teams, we'll do it with the pro leagues in this post and see where it goes.

Anyways my number one favorite pro team in sports is the Pittsburgh Steelers who are defending champions for a few more days. They had a rough season being Super Bowl champs, Ben Roethisberger's on and off field injuries, Bill Cowher leaving as coach and now hiring only their third coach in the last 38 years Mike Tomlin. Still as tough a year as it was they rebounded from a 2-6 start to finish 8-8 and I'm proud of them for that.

Number two would be the Boston Red Sox. After winning the World Seies championship in 2004 they have had some injuries and roster changes and of course always have to deal with the Yankees in the AL East. Still they have David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Jason Varitek and Curt Schilling from that team along with a core of good or young players and if they can find a way to get a closer or Jonathon Papelbon, then I think they'll be ok and contend in the AL East again. Matsusaka is also an X factor that we have to find out about.

Number three is the San Antonio Spurs. I'm not the biggest basketball  fan anymore but I like this team and their rivalry with the Dallas Mavericks. With Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobli and the rest of the team they have won three NBA championships and still have a good veteran core that can contend although it's a lot tougher in the West with teams like Dallas, Phoenix and the two LA teams the Lakers and Clippers to deal with. Still if they stay healthy and play well in the playoffs they have as good a chance as any so we'll see.

Number four I'll pick the Dallas Stars, my local area team and the team in my second favorite sport after football,  hockey. I got to go to a Stars game a few years ago, I like following them as the local team and they have had a good contending team, changing every year of course but still in the mix every year since winning the Stanley Cup in 1999. Mike Modano is still there and they have a good mix of veterans and youngsters when their healthy. The only problem has been their lack of recent playoff success, but if goalie Marty Turco could turn it around and the team could stay healthy and play well then they could go a long way. We'll see wehat happens down the stretch and in the playoffs.

To round out my top five of teams I'll pick a team I like unconditionally the Milwaukee Brewers. I realize it is tough for them being a small market team in baseball withough any kind of salary cap which the players refuse so I root for them whether they're good or bad because they're my original hometown team from childhood, they play hard and I have memories of the 1982 World Series which they could have won if  relief pitcher Rollie Fingers among othyer things   had not been injured and I just like going out to the ballpark in the summer soI'll include them..

Anyways that's my top five teams in pro sports. Shortly my second five include the Chicago Cubs, Toronto Maple Leafs, Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Vikings who all can never seem to win the big one in a long team. Other teams I like are NFC North rivals the Chicago Bears who I'm rooting for in the Super Bowl, the Green Bay Packers who are my original home state team and who I take a lot of good natured grief from family and friends who want them to be my favorite team, sorry , but I still like and respect their team especially when they win. Other teams I like are the Canadian hockey teams because that is where the core of hockey fans is and finally the Texas Trio of the Rangers, Astros and Mavericks who have a good chance to win an NBA championship this year. We'll see. Well I hope you have enjoyed looking at my sports teams this week. We'll watch the Super Bowl and see what happens and we'll talk soon. I'm also excited to see how Wisconsin men's basketball does as they push for a possible #1 ranking and the NCAA tournament in March.Anyways have a great and productive day friends and we'll talk soon. Best wishes always. Fenfan67