Sims Signs, Smith the Spokesman

Barry Sims signed a one-year contract with the 49ers yesterday, returning to a reserve role. The 11 year veteran provides consistency and experience for an emerging young offense.

The Carolina Panthers are revamping their offense and getting younger on both sides of the ball. Steve Smith has always been outspoken, but now his role as team spokesman is official: he is the union rep for the Panthers. Smith's comments about the Panthers' personnel moves are somewhat more calculated and less candid than we're used to hearing from the vocal wide out. Is Steve Smith going corporate on us?

Bogut's Bucks

Andrew Bogut came up big for the Bucks again last night scoring 25 points, snagging 17 rebounds, and swatting 4 shots to lead Milwaukee to a 86-84 win over Boston. The Bucks have now won 10 of their last 11 games, climbing from 9th to 5th in the Eastern Conference, and their success is squarely on the seven-footer's shoulders. I recall a conversation dating back to before Bogut was drafted with someone who will remain as nameless as he was clueless when he said Bogut wouldn't make a good pro player. It has taken the former #1 pick a few years to overcome some injuries and other setbacks, but he's no Michael Olowakandi! He's one of the top centers in the Eastern Conference, and Bogut's Bucks are a contender!

ProDay 2010

The University of Utah held it's pro day workouts on Monday, with 16 prospects participating. Defensive end Koa Misi continues to impress scouts in all of his workouts, and is projected to be a possible second round/probable third round pick. Misi will convert to outside linebacker in the NFL like Paul Kruger did last year with the Ravens. The offensive line coaches of the Ravens, Seahawks, and Steelers came to this year's pro day to evaluate Zane Beadles, another top prospect. Wide receiver David Reed and linebacker Stevenson Sylvester are the other players who stand a good chance of hearing their names called during the new three day draft format, held on April 22-24. Twenty teams sent representatives to Salt Lake City, including a wide receiver coach and a linebacker coach from the Browns. Gil Brandt of NFL.com reports that two players who weren't invited to the combine, safety Robert Johnson and cornerback R.J. Stanford, also had stand out performances on Monday. That comes as no surprise to Utah fans who watched Johnson stand out all season!

Free Agent Moves

The Carolina Panthers parted ways with one of their defensive linemen yesterday. I'm talking about ProUte Ma'ake Kemoeatu here, not Julius Peppers. The latter is leaving Carolina for Chicago as a free agent, but the former was released yesterday along with quarterback Jake Delhomme. Kemoeatu ruptured his Achilles tendon during the first 30 minutes of training camp last summer and complications have required multiple surgeries, the Charlotte Observer reports. Kemoeatu is a casualty of injury as much as salary cap changes this upcoming season.

Spring training has already opened for the upcoming MLB season, and ProUte Chris Shelton is in camp with the Houston Astros. Shelton signed a $500,000 Minor league contract in December. He had a tremendous spring camp with Seattle in 2009, and now he has a chance to show Houston what he can bring to the Astros.

Aussie Abuse

Andrew Bogut abused David Lee last night (seen here in an earlier match up) to the tune of 24 points, 20 rebounds, and 5 blocked shots. Lee may have beat out Bogut for a spot on the All-Star team, but Bogut beat Lee soundly in the low blocks. Bogut shot a blistering 12-15 from the field en route to the third 20-20 game of his career. He's been on a tear since the All-Star game, with 54 points, 45 rebounds, and 15 blocks in his last three games. Sekou Smith finally gave Bogut some post-Valentine's Day love on his blog for NBA.com, but this blogger has had much love for big Bog since the beginning!

Ageless Andre

Andre Miller isn't finished yet. The wily veteran scored a career-high 52 points in his 864th NBA game on Saturday! Andre put on a clinic in Dallas, shooting 22-of-31 from the field and 7-of-8 from the line. The old pro didn't stand outside and rain threes (1-for-1) to amass that total, either. He drove to the basket time and time again. Think the aging point guard has lost a step? It didn't show in the fourth quarter, when Miller scored 18 of his points, including a running hook to send the game into overtime. It wasn't as pretty as Magic Johnson's hook against the Celtics but it went in! Dave Ivey wrote a great recap of Andre's tremendous performance for NBA.com, but I wasn't able to link to it. It's nice to see Andre wearing a red jersey with #24 on it again!

Tough Times

Today's edition of The Salt Lake Tribune features an article about former ProUte Luther Elliss, a tough defensive lineman who has come upon tough times. A first round draft pick and two time Pro Bowl player, Elliss spent 10 years in the NFL but as a result of poor investments he has lost homes in Utah and Michigan and has declared bankruptcy. A big man with a big heart and a big family (six of his eleven children are adopted), Elliss also has big debts that he cannot pay back. To his credit Elliss does not blame the NFL or the Lions organization, which provided financial seminars to players. That credit won't pay his bills or save his home, sadly. Since retiring from the Denver Broncos in 2004 Elliss has sold insurance but could not sustain an income equal to his expenses. He left the University of Utah a few classes short of graduating, which has limited his options. It may be time for Elliss to come back to where it all began and complete his education!