g practices and hearing from coach Pete Carroll.He also draws on his e

TSNs Jack Armstrong offers his thoughts on Metta World Peace, Brian Shaw, Eric Bledsoe, Trey Burke, and Jerry Sloan. 1. METTA WORLD PEACE (Lakers): The Lakers decided to exercise his $ 7.7 million player option for this upcoming season. Watching him play this past year, I see a guy whose skills are in decline and his best days are behind him. It will be interesting to see if the Lakers use their Amnesty Provision on him; wouldnt surprise me. 2. BRIAN SHAW (Nuggets): Shaw was hired as the Nuggets new head coach. Hes walking into a good situation with solid talent level. Questions about the return of Andre Iguodala, who opted out of his deal, and the health of Danilo Gallinari make the situation a little more challenging. Add to the fact that theyre coming off a 57-win season when they fired George Karl and the expectations will be high. Karl only got the Nuggets to the second round of the playoffs one time. The key for Shaw will be lots of regular season wins and better playoff success than Karl. I like Shaw and think hes got the potential to be a good head coach. He paid his dues with the Lakers and Pacers after his playing days were over; hes ready. He walks into a situation that is a much more positive one than most young coaches get a chance at. He knows all about expectations from his Lakers days and will be able to handle it. 3. ERIC BLEDSOE (Clippers): Bledsoes name is being tossed around in trade talks. A lot of teams are big fans of his and in the likely case that Chris Paul returns to LA, I see a new location being the best thing for him in his young career. Hes ready to take the next step as a player and needs to be in a situation where hes counted on to play major minutes and produce as a top-flight point guard. The only way well find out what his true potential is, is if he gets the opportunity to be the lead guard for a team. 4. TREY BURKE (U of Michigan): Burke will likely be drafted somewhere in the first eight spots tomorrow evening in the NBA Draft. In spite of his lack of size, he has off-the-charts quickness; I like his game. Hes sound fundamentally and a consistent player who knows how to play the game. Hell be a good pro. Very good or great? Im not sure about that, but hell be a good fit for the team that drafts him. This is a weak draft and as long as teams are realistic about players ceilings and upside rather than looking at the draft slot he was picked in, youll get the proper return on investment. Burkes a winning player. 5. JERRY SLOAN (Jazz): Sloan re-joined his old team as a consultant. Its a good move by the team. Hes an outstanding coach and person. Im a bit surprised that he wasnt hired as a coach by a team looking for a new boss. He obviously didnt want to deal with the frustrations of coaching a team not ready for primetime. Hell be a terrific mentor for his former assistant coach, Tyrone Corbin in Utah. The NBA needs older coaches with great wisdom to help. More teams should tap into men like this with great leadership ability to serve as consultants and advisors. Paul Molitor Blue Jays Jersey . -- Eastern Kentucky thrives off creating havoc for others. George Bell Jersey .4 million title. Ryan Riess emerged with the title after a session in which he started behind, but used expert skill to gather the chips to his side amid the unpredictability of no-limit Texas Hold em. Riess put his final opponent Jay Farber all-in with an Ace-King. http://www.bluejaysonline.com/blue-jays-dave-winfield-jersey/ . "Trying to breathe," he said with a grin. Bernier stopped 42 of 43 shots on Monday night, including all 22 in a hectic middle frame, his heroic performance propelling the Leafs toward an undue point in their final game before the Christmas break. Roger Clemens Blue Jays Jersey .ca look back at each of the Top 10 stories of 2013. Today, we look back at Boston Strong - a citys recovery from tragedy. Devon Travis Blue Jays Jersey .J. -- Josh Cribbs was in the Pro Bowl in February and out of a job six months later. PORTLAND, Ore. -- These days Terry Porter often finds himself thinking back to the day he showed up on the campus of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.There had been no schools battling to recruit the young point guard from Milwaukee. The Panthers showed interest but couldnt offer him a scholarship. He arrived, like any freshman, unsure of his decision.But he did know one thing: He loved basketball.The journey that started at the Division III college a couple hours drive from his hometown long ago has brought Porter to the University of Portland, where hes charged with guiding a team of kids that are in so many ways just like he was.I liked the coach, and they had a couple of kids that were from my conference down in Milwaukee, so I knew I could room with them, Porter recalled. I tell our players all the time that theyre so far ahead of me when I was their age, because I didnt get a scholarship to play basketball. At Stevens Point there were no scholarships to be had. I was on grants and work study and things like that.Porter is in his first season as coach of the Pilots after some 17 seasons as a player in the NBA, then more than a decade as a coach or assistant in the league. He replaced Eric Reveno, who was dismissed earlier this year after 10 years with the Pilots.Tapping Porter, who is beloved in Portland, was a savvy move thats generated excitement for the Catholic universitys program.It was a great hire, I think, for the school, said Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who played for the Pilots. Hes one of the Rip City legends in Portland. He has such a great class and reputation about him in the Northwest. I think its a fantastic fit. He brought more interest in the program just from him signing on than weve had in probably the history of the program.Porter played for the Trail Blazers from 1985-95, with a team that went to the Western Conference finals three times from 1990 to 1992 and to the NBA Finals twice. The starters on that team were Porter, Clyde Drexler, Jerome Kersey, Buck Williams and Kevin Duckworth, but the group would never win a title: In 1990, the Blazers lost to the Detroit Pistons, and in 1992 they couldnt overcome Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.Porter also played for the Timberwolves, the Heat and the Spurs over his NBA career. A two-time All-Star, he averaged 12.2 points, 5.6 assists and 1.2 steals a game. His 7,160 assists rank 14th on the NBAs all-time list.After his playing career was over, Porter was head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks for two seasons from 2003-2005 and for the Phoenix Suns during the 2008-09 season. He had stints as an assistant coach in Minnesota, Sacramento and Detroit.ddddddddddddHes not sure the young players on his team knew he was that Terry Porter when he was introduced as head coach. The only exceptions were his sons, freshman Malcolm and sophomore Franklin.They knew I played pro, but they didnt know if I had won championships, or all the teams I played with, or all the players I played with, and they wouldnt have known all the coaches I was blessed to work with, Porter said. They were just like, `Oh, he played in the LEAGUE, and he played for a long time. I think it made it a little bit easier for me, my body of work, because they were like `OK, he knows what hes talking about.Porter has never coached at the college level before, but hes already excited about sharing his experiences.Hes drawn on his contacts for advice. Porter even traveled to Miami to pick Spoelstras brain.We just met and talked shop, and it was fun. Swapping stories and talking about when he was here years ago and how excited he is about the job. I told him whatever he needs from me, Im here to help him, the Heat coach said.Porter also used his contacts in the sporting world to come up with some unique team-building activities. The group went to Seattle to spend a few days with the Seattle Seahawks, watching practices and hearing from coach Pete Carroll.He also draws on his experiences at Stevens Point, and his coach there, Dick Bennett.My college coach was the first coach I really learned a lot about basketball from, because my high school years were good, but I wasnt a great basketball player, Porter said. There was a huge amount of learning as my game progressed, and I definitely fell under the late bloomer category because I didnt have a great start.After four years at Stevens Point, Porter was the 24th overall pick by the Blazers in the 1985 draft. He remains Portlands career leader in assists (5,319) and is its third-leading scorer (11,330). He made 773 3-pointers on 2,006 attempts.At the Moda Center, just five miles away from the Pilots campus, Porters No. 30 hangs from the rafters.Ive been around basketball my whole life. The journey has been amazing. Its taken me to places I never could have imagined, he said. I have young men now, some who aspire to do the same thing as me, get to the pros or play overseas, and just to be able to talk to them and share my experiences is something Im proud to do.---AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed to this report.---More college basketball at www.collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '