SportsNet - January 2013

The San Francisco 49ers are looking to tie the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most Super Bowl wins of all-time this weekend, while the Baltimore Ravens are looking to capture their 2nd Super Bowl title in franchise history. The head coaches of both teams that are facing off this weekend just happen to be brothers, and damn good leaders of their respective franchises. It's also Ray Lewis' final ride into the sunset before he goes on to his next chapter after football life. These are just a few of the story lines that have taken a hold as everyone awaits kickoff in New Orleans on Sunday evening.

This has gone on long enough. Yet again Chelsea won a game that they should have easily won, especially considering they had a 2 goal lead with just 3 minutes remaining. Now usually a manager at this point would look to see out the game by maybe bringing on another defender, to shore things up at the back, but not Benitez. When it got to 2-1, every Chelsea fan was screaming for Terry to brought on, and yet he brings on Demba Ba for Torres? This of course leads to Chelsea conceding again and drawing the game 2-2. Unbelievable.

This was a game that Chelsea should have had wrapped up, and would have given them a 6 point lead over Spurs & a 10 point gap with Arsenal. But once again, as Chelsea have so famously done in the past, they didn’t take advantage of results around them. It is just classic Chelsea and has happened for many seasons, only this season it’s been happening a lot more than usual. The reason for these recent collapses and the teams inability to see out a lead of course sits at interim manager Benitez’s very big feet, and the negative tactics he's employed.

It’s safe to say that the last thing the Baltimore Ravens needed was another distraction.

On Tuesday, Sports Illustrated broke a bombshell of a report detailing one of the latest product being used by athletes looking for an edge:  a deer-antler spray containing the performance enhancer IGF-1 that is also available in pill form.  Several prominent athletes were identified as users, but Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis has to be the biggest name on the list.  Lewis, who missed much of the season with a triceps injury and is retiring after the Super Bowl, has strongly denied the allegations and is set to play in the game on Sunday.

As the NBA season reaches its halfway point, there’s no shortage of candidates for the league’s Most Valuable Player award. Defending MVP LeBron James is having another sensational season, but he’s far from a sure thing to take home the trophy this year.

These five players are making the best cases for MVP honors in 2012-13:

5. Tim Duncan, Spurs

At the ripe old age of 36, Tim Duncan just keeps rolling along as one of the top big men in the league. He’s 12th in the NBA with 9.8 rebounds per game, not to mention third with 2.8 blocks a night.

Add in Duncan’s 17.5 points per game, and there’s little question about how much he’s doing for the Spurs. Considering that San Antonio holds the league’s best record at 36-11, even Duncan’s lack of flair shouldn’t keep him from earning serious MVP consideration.

4. Carmelo Anthony, Knicks

Although they’ve cooled off considerably since an improbably fast start, the Knicks are still one of the leading contenders in the Eastern Conference. Without Carmelo Anthony, though, New York (10th of 30 teams in the NBA in scoring) would barely have any offense at all.

With trade talk swirling around the league and the All-Star break looming in the distance, you get the feeling that some changes are about to be made. Teams are scrambling to make offers as the trade deadline approaches, and negotiations are in the works as we speak. Non-contenders will be dumping players and clearing cap space in an attempt to salvage what’s left of a lost season, while contenders will be looking to add to their stacked rosters in an effort to fine tune their lineups for a playoff push.

The major focus of this trade season will fall upon players like Dwyane Wade, Rudy Gay, and Andre Bargnani as their teams look for a way to deal their aging stars while they can. Doing this in the hopes that they can aquireg something of equal value in return. Owners and general managers are constantly finding ways to prolong their team’s success; it’s not easy but it’s something that they can never stop thinking about. How else would teams like the Lakers and Heat manage to sustain such a high status within the league? It’s because these teams aren’t afraid to make the blockbuster moves that ultimately decide the fate of their team for years to come.