Some thoughts on the year that was

I just wonder what makes Stephen Curry different from J.J. Redick. I see Curry in a similar role to Redick because I just don't think he's anything more than a great jump shooter.

It must really suck to be a Seattle sports fan. The Seahawks sucked this year and future Hall of Fame head coach Mike Holmgren is retiring and it doesn't appear that a quick turnaround is in the cards either given the talent there. Obviously, it also sucks that the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City to become the Thunder and play terrible basketball. The Mariners are a total train-wreck as well with no legit shot of competing in 2009 either.

I don't see what a salary cap does for Major League Baseball as so many people have been discussing given the New York Yankees spending spree that is nearing half-a-billion dollars. A.J. Burnett had a career year last season and hasn't come close to the 18 wins he accumulated in 2008 before. He also deals with a laundry list of injuries every other year. Think J.D. Drew as a pitcher. Speaking of names with periods or lack thereof now, the Yanks also signed CC Sabathia which doesn't mean the end of the world for the baseball either. Sabathia struggled for the second straight year in the playoffs and hasn't played in a major market in his career yet. I'm sure this will end well. As for the newest member Mark Teixeira.. well.. I'm just glad he signed so the rest of the dominoes can start falling soon free agent wise. Obviously the Yankees are legit title contenders with these moves but it doesn't promise anything because chemistry is a big part of baseball.

The NFL really sucked this year. When 85-year-old Kurt Warner is a legit MVP candidate for the Arizona Cardinals, something has gone horribly wrong. Outside of the Titans, Steelers and Giants, the talent level has been blah this year.

The Chicago Bulls are a mess. They don't have a ton of cap room for the 2010 shopping season and they'll probably lose Ben Gordon after this season. Derrick Rose is a stud but he doesn't have much to work with and I feel another lottery trip ahead which doesn't help. It has been a couple years now and I still don't know what to make of Tyrus Thomas, Joakim Noah and Thabo Sefalosha. I'd like to see more playing time for them so I can decide if the Bulls should just move on from these guys or not.

Chicago baseball should be good again next year. The Cubs didn't lose much this offseason outside of Kerry Wood. Wood's spot will be taken by Carlos Marmol so there shouldn't be much of a drop off. All the Cubs really needed is some good karma and lefty power. Sorry, but you don't want Adam Dunn's .200-ish average. Shell out the money like you always do and get Bobby Abreu. Platoon the Japanese disaster with Reed Johnson in center and everything is fine. The White Sox have taken the addition by subtraction route and while they won't contend for a title untill 2010, they should be fun to watch again. They lost Nick Swisher, Javy Vazquez and Orlando Cabrera from the 2008 regulars. Sure, Joe Crede and Ken Griffey Jr. are gone as well but they weren't key cogs of the operation. Come to think of it, neither was Swisher. That's why they should be in decent shape for 2009. They'll slide Alexei Ramirez over to short and offset the Cabrera loss with either Jayson Nix, Chris Getz or Brent Lillebridge. Will either of those three light the world on fire? I would guess not but they don't have to for the White Sox to contend. It really comes down to who mans third base and center field on top of the final spots in the rotation.