Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

This past Sunday's CFB post led to an very interesting series of comments, some of which involved the current state of the BCS picture. While this does not have any direct effect on the Bruins, it was suggested that my comments on the subject may be of interest.

With the advent of the National Championship Game in addition to the existing bowl structure, 10 teams participate in the BCS. The champion of each BCS member conference (ACC, Big 10, Big XII, Big East, Pac-10, and SEC) gain automatic berths, leaving 4 "at-large" spots. The at-large teams are chosen by each BCS bowl that has an open berth, by an annually rotating order.

While at-large berths are, by definition not predetermined, there are certain BCS rules which apportion at-large spots.

The #1 and #2 ranked teams in the final BCS standings play in the national championship game, without regard to conference champion status. If either of those teams did not win its conference (such as Nebraska, 2001) or is the champion of a non-BCS conference, that team takes one of the at-large spots.

The #3 ranked team in the final BCS ranking, if not the champion of a BCS conference, is guaranteed an at-large berth (unless another at-large team from the same conference has qualified for the national championship game). If the #3 team does not require an at-large berth, the #4 ranked team may qualify in the same manner.

Another at-large rule comes from the compromise made a few years ago, with the intent of allowing greater access to highly ranked teams from non-BCS conferences. An exception allowing up to one team per year from a non-BCS conference to gain an automatic bid was created, as follows:

3. The champion of Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Sun Belt Conference or the Western Athletic Conference will earn an automatic berth in a BCS bowl game if either:

  A. Such team is ranked in the top 12 of the final BCS Standings, or,
  B. Such team is ranked in the top 16 of the final BCS Standings and its ranking in the final BCS Standings is higher than that of a champion of a conference that has an annual automatic berth in one of the BCS bowls.

No more than one such team from Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Sun Belt Conference, and the Western Athletic Conference shall earn an automatic berth in any year. (Note: a second team may be eligible for at-large eligibility as noted below.) If two or more teams from those conferences satisfy the provisions for an automatic berth, then the team with the highest finish in the final BCS Standings will receive the automatic berth, and the remaining team or teams will be considered for at-large selection if it meets the criteria.

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Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

With only 3 days to go until the big night, Chad Ford of ESPN has released his latest mock draft; this update includes a projection of the 2nd round in addition to the common lottery or 1st round projections popular with most outlets.

While the top 2 spots are considered to be set with some combination of Derrick Rose and Michael Beasley, and Juice Deuce a strong contender for the 3rd pick, the real news at the top of the board is the steady rise of Russell Westbrook. Ford now has Westy being selected 4th overall by the Seattle Sonics.

The skinny: We've had Bayless at No. 4 since our first mock draft, but we've gathered enough information over the weekend to suggest that the Sonics may be leaning in another direction.

GM Sam Presti is notoriously tough to read, but sources say it appears that Westbrook, Lopez and Indiana's Eric Gordon are strongly in the mix at No. 4.

So why Westbrook? Two reasons: upside and defense. The Sonics have time to let players develop and Westbrook could turn into a better shooting version of Rajon Rondo down the road

While Westbrook's draft stock is taking a last minute jump, Kevin Love's status has remained steady. Ford has him going to Charlotte with the #9 pick.

The skinny: If the draft plays out this way, Charlotte will have a very difficult decision to make. The Bobcats have been looking for a big man so they can slide Emeka Okafor over to the 4 full-time, and Brook Lopez would be a great complement to Okafor up front.

But a lot of teams are questioning Lopez's upside ... That's where Love comes in. He's a Larry Brown type of player -- he knows how to "play the right way." Love would bring toughness, rebounding, basketball IQ and the ability to step in and contribute right now. While he doesn't have ideal size, he knows his way around the basket

The Lottery status of Love and Westbrook has not been subject to much doubt, particularly here, but the professional prospects of Luc Richard have been up for a lively debate. For Luc's sake, let us hope that Chad Ford's projection is correct.

37. Milwaukee Bucks

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute | SF | UCLA
The Bucks want to keep adding toughness and Mbah a Moute has the potential to be an exceptional defender. He's not going to score a lot, but he can guard just about anyone.

Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

In the ongoing saga of Reggie Bush and his one-time relationship with the aspiring sports agents/marketers of New Era Sports, New Era partner Lloyd Lake had been scheduled to give a deposition today in San Diego. While this meeting was not interrupted by Bush's armed posse, Reggie did find a new way to cut this one short.

Yahoo Sports reports that at the start of Lake's deposition, counsel for Bush filed a motion which would have effectively barred Lake from talking, under a theory that the settlement reached last year between Bush's parents and New Era partner Michael Michaels (regarding allegations that Mr and Mrs Bush received approximately $300,000 in benefits from the firm) prevents Lake from giving testimony regarding Bush's relationship with Lake and New Era

Proceedings halted less than 10 minutes after Lake’s deposition was to begin. Bush’s attorney David Cornwell said the motion was to compel Lake to adhere to the terms of the settlement reached between Michaels and Bush’s parents – LaMar and Denise Griffin.

An irritated Superior Court Judge Joan M. Lewis admonished both sides, but ultimately agreed to postpone all depositions in the case and schedule a hearing for Aug. 1 to discuss the motion.

The motion filed by Bush's counsel is the first confirmation of the previously reported settlement between Michaels and Bush's family; while the general discussion regarding the continuing course of litigation between Bush and Lake has presupposed that Lake is free to testify as to his relationship with Bush (and as rumors of settlement offers between the parties may support), counsel is now asserting that: 1) Lake is bound by the settlement between Michaels and Bush's family, and 2) Bush is covered under the settlement as an "intended beneficiary" of the settlement.

Cornwell [ed. Bush's counsel] said the settlement with Michaels included Bush as an “intended beneficiary” of Michaels, releasing the family of any liabilities. A copy of the settlement filed with the court was heavily edited, removing almost all detail of the transaction.

My own knowledge of Civil Procedure, Depos, and other relevant law covering this sort of settlement in California is limited, so anyone that can shed some light, please feel free.

The big point to come out of this, at least as the agreement is interpreted by Lake and his counsel, is that Bush and/or his family did take money from New Era.

“They’re conceding that they received this money,” Lake’s attorney Brian Watkins said. “But now their argument is that: ‘We got this money, but we paid it back already. We paid it to Michaels and that satisfied Lloyd’s debts.”

Lake was more succinct.

“The key thing is (they said) they never took money before,” Lake said. “Now, they’re saying they did.”

ESPN reports that Stanford has offered its open head coaching position to Duke assistant coach Johnny Dawkins, and that Dawkins has accepted. Dawkins currently serves as associate head coach at Duke; he played at Duke from 1982-86, and was twice named to the  All-America team at point guard, and where he returned as an assistant coach in 1998. He also serves as an assistant on the US National team under Coach K.

In one sense, Dawkins is not a bad choice to enter the farm, in that he has experience in recruiting to a school that has strong academic requirements (whatever we may think of Duke/Coach K, they are not Memphis, or SC). It seems that Dawkins is held with some esteem by the Duke fanbase; a quick look at the Duke boards paints a picture of a well respected assistant, with some seeing him as a possible successor to coach K. On the other hand, the track record of Coach K's former assistant coaches after being given head jobs does not strike fear into opponents' hearts (see messrs. Amaker and Snyder).

Not a bad hire in my opinion, but not a hire that I see threatening UCLA's leadership of the Pac-10.