Sweet Home Chicago

"It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses." Ok, so his name isn't Jake or Elwood Blues, and the trip from Miami to Chicago is a whole lot farther than 106-miles, but you get the point. When Dwayne Wade officially becomes a free agent, he should make like the Blues Brothers and high tail it to the Windy City.

If we learned anything during the first round of the NBA playoffs, aside from the fact that the scheduling is brutal, it's that Miami's a one man show. It took a 46-point performance from Wade, including 19 in the 4th quarter, for the Heat to win one game against a senior citizen Celtics team that came into the post-season staggering. Wade is now 28, and to stay in Miami with the supporting cast by which he's surrounded, would be to waste the remaining prime years he has left in his career. Pat Riley and the rest of the Heat front office can certainly pursue the likes of Chris Bosh and Amare Stoudemire, but they can't guarantee what Chicago can...a young, talented nucleus led by an emerging star in point guard Derek Rose.

There are drawbacks, such as the lack of a stable coaching situation, Michael Jordan's never ending shadow, and the fact that Miami can pay him more, but they're far outweighed by the benefits. If Wade signs with the Bulls, they immediately become a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference, joining the ranks of the Cavaliers and Magic. He'll still get a max contract, and if money really is an issue, moving into the Chicago market will only help his marketability.

Finally, under the heading of "there's no place like home," Wade is a Chicago native, born on the south side. He doesn't have to be on a mission from God, but if his mission is to win another title, there's only one place to be...Sweet Home Chicago.

McDaniels + ego = Tebow

During my school days, I never was a strong math student, but this equation is elementary to me. It's the answer as to why Denver traded 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round picks to get back into the 1st round of the draft for the sole purpose of selecting Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. This is quite simply Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels letting his ego get the best of him.

It's the part of Bill Belichick that rubbed off on McDaniels from his assistant coaching days with the Patriots, that and the gray hooded sweatshirt, making him believe he can mold any QB into Tom Brady...And to be fair, there is some history on McDaniels' side here. He caught lightning in a bottle when he helped Matt Cassel go from career college and pro backup, to a one year wonder in New England. McDaniels also coaxed a 21-TD pass season out of Kyle Orton last year.

Here's the problem...nobody wasted a 1st round draft pick on those guys. Cassel was taken in the 7th by the Patriots, and Orton in the 4th by the Bears. In other words, if they didn't work out, no big deal. That's not the case with Tebow. By giving up a small ransom in order to select him with the 25th overall pick, McDaniels has married himself to the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner, essentially anointing him the QB of the future. And while Tebow fills the requirement of being a good character guy, an emphasis in Denver as evidenced by the trades of Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall the last two years, he's miles away from being an NFL quality quarterback.

Tebow's a project....a QB with questionable mechanics, and accuracy. A player adapting to taking snaps from under center, who has as much chance of figuring out a defense as I do a trigonometry question. You don't deal three picks, and jump back into the 1st round for a project. Not unless you're either blinded by ego, or looking to get fired. When it comes to McDaniels, it's the former, but it could very well lead to the latter.