A - Again. For the second time in just over half a season, Gerald Green has a new home. Minnesota traded him to Houston for Kirk Snyder. The only place Green has shone in his brief career is the slam dunk contest. Beyond that, the athletic freak who was drafted out of high school has been disappointing. He's from Houston, so maybe the change of scenery will be just what he needs. If not, though, this could be the end of the line. He's not a bust yet, but the fat lady is warming up her voice.

B - Bibby, Mike. Bibby's first game for Atlanta was a successful debut, just not for him. Pau Gasol won his first game in his new home arena as his Lakers rolled over the Hawks by 29. Bibby only had five points and three assists, but he only played 16 minutes so not much more could have been expected. Thankfully for Atlanta fans, Bibby has been much better while playing more minutes in his three games since that ominous start.

C - Crown of Thorns. This impressive colt jumped into the heart of the Triple Crown trail with an impressive victory in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes on Feb. 2. A couple weeks later he showed us just what an emotional roller coaster being a horse racing fan can be. A stress fracture in his left front shin will keep him off the track for several months, and makes the Derby an impossibility. He's the first major contender to fall to the side, but sadly he sure won't be the last.

D - Drake. I've written about the Bulldogs quite a bit this year, but I am still unsure what to think of them. Their loss at home against Bradley on Tuesday was their second loss in three games. That's a bit of a concern. Or it would be if they hadn't come out and beat Butler soundly in their BracketBuster on Saturday. That game alone would have you believe that they are very much for real. In the end, I guess I just have to keep holding off before taking a real stand on this team.

E - End of a streak. Duke hadn't lost to Miami since 1962. That's a long time. The streak came to an end this week when the Hurricanes shocked the Blue Devils in Miami, winning by a single point. It was a huge win for a Miami team that is suddenly hot, and suddenly could make the tournament. For Duke the loss sound alarms - it was their second setback in four days. They righted the ship with a big win on Saturday, but it was it was only against St. John's, so it doesn't tell us anything about how the team is really doing.

F - Fountain of Youth. This prep race for the Florida Derby at Gulfstream on Sunday was by far the biggest and best collection of youngsters we have seen in one place this year. All 12 horses had something interesting to offer. In the end it was Nick Zito's Cool Coal Man who came out on top. The 7/1 fourth choice got pretty much a perfect trip to secure the first stakes victory of his career. Monba, the Todd Pletcher trained favorite making his season debut, never fired and finished last.

G - Garnett, Kevin. KG finally returned to action for the Celtics after a longer-than-expected absence. Unfortunately, and somewhat surprisingly, his return didn't light a fire under his team - they lost his first three back before finally beating Portland on Sunday. That's certainly not what you would have expected, and it is especially confounding since Boston had won five in a row before Garnett returned.

H - Habs. The Montreal Canadiens have more history than any team in hockey - they are the Yankees on skates. Given all of their accomplishments, it seems surprising whenever they do something they have never done before. That's just what they did this week, though, when they came back from a five-goal deficit to win, 6-5, in a shootout against the Rangers. The story would be even better if the streaky Canadiens hadn't lost their next two after the heroic comeback.

I - Indianapolis. All of the eyes in the football world are trained on Indianapolis this week for the Combine. As I write, the offensive players have made their way through the annual meat market. As always, some players have been very impressive - Jake Long looked like a man among a bunch of offensive linemen boys, Darren McFadden ran like a rocket and proved why most think he is the top back prospect, Joe Flacco threw well and rocketed up draft boards, and Appalachian State's Dexter Jackson was ridiculously fast and made himself a lot of money.

J - James, LeBron. That sound you hear is the world's loudest sigh of relief. King LeBron finally has players to play with. The Cavs went out and added Ben Wallace and Wally Szczerbiak. To do it they had to ship away a big part of their starting lineup. That would be a big concern if the starting lineup wasn't so lousy. The debut of the new lineup was a success - both new additions played well and the Cavs won by 20. It was only against Memphis, but a big win is a big win. This move makes the East's playoff picture even muddier than it already was.

K - Klitschko, Wladimir. Did you know that there is still a heavyweight division? Neither did I. Klitschko beat Sultan Ibragimov on Saturday in one of the most boring decisions in boxing history. With the win, Klitschko now has two of the four major heavyweight titles. In theory he will continue to collect belts in a bid to unify the belts. Boxing desperately needs that. In reality, though, it is more likely that some bizarre, ridiculous development will lead to him forfeiting the belts so that guys we have never heard of can win them. That's the kind of thing we have come to expect from boxing.

L - Lasorda, Tommy. The great manager is coming back to manage a few games, but unlike the return of Eddie Sutton, another ancient legend, this return doesn't make you cringe. Lasorda will be managing a Dodgers split squad for eight games while the main team heads to China for two exhibition games. It's a great tribute to a great Dodger. It's also a series of games that I will be watching instead of betting on. I love gimmicks, but not as a bettor.

M - Maria Sharapova. The Russian tennis princess won the WTA event in Qatar this weekend to take home the biggest prize of the year outside of the majors. She improved to a perfect 14-0 on the season. Incredibly attractive, and a consistently profitable bet to boot. If I weren't already married I'd fly over to Russia and propose to her - she's the perfect woman for a sports bettor.

N - New man. The Calgary Flames are unquestionably the streakiest team in the NHL. When they are reeling off the wins they look unbeatable. When they are losing they look as bad as any team can look. What they have lacked this year compared to previous seasons is the stellar goaltending they have gotten used to from Miika Kiprusoff. This week, though, Kipper appears to have recaptured that familiar form. He has allowed just one goal on 79 shots in his last two games against division leaders Detroit and Minnesota. If he continues to play as only he can the Flames are a serious contender down the stretch.

O - Ouch. Brad Lidge is clearly cursed. It was not that long ago that he was the nastiest closer in baseball, but then Albert Pujols crushed his fastball out of the park in the NLCS and he has never been the same. A trade to Philadelphia in the offseason gave him the fresh start he desperately needed. The next part is almost enough to make you cry - on his very first pitch of spring training, Lidge injured his knee and will likely be out at least until the start of the season. Some guys can't get a break.

P - Perfect. Memphis lost to Tennessee on Saturday thanks to some monumentally cold shooting down the stretch. It's a setback for the Tigers, and it elevates the Volunteers to the top of the heap for now. So much for perfection in college basketball this year. Or not quite - New Jersey Institute of Technology finished their second Division I season with an unblemished record - they lost all 29 games they played. Needless to say, they are already in the market for a new coach.

Q - Quite bizarre. Rex Grossman did everything in his power last year to prove that he was not a long-term solution for the Bears at quarterback. Most of the time, in fact, he looked like he was trying to prove he wasn't a quarterback. With his contract mercifully over, what did the Bears do about their woeful QB situation? They re-signed Grossman. It's just a one-year contract, but it's among the more unexpected and inexplicable developments of the offseason. On the other hand, if Eli Manning can suddenly figure out how to play, there is hope for Grossman.

R - Reunited. After many false starts, IRL and Champ have ended their divorce and merged back into one league. From a spectators' perspective, there is a huge advantage to the new arrangement - now there is just one North American open wheel league that we only care about one week per year instead of two. That's half the effort for the same level of satisfaction. Somehow, I don't think NASCAR is too worried about this development.

S - Shaq. I am optimistic that the giant one will be a good addition to the Suns, but apparently it will take a while. The Suns have won just one of the three games since Shaq started playing. The first loss, against the Lakers, showed that defense could be a bit of a problem without Marion - the Suns scored 124 in regulation and lost by six. They beat Boston, but then lost to Detroit by 30 on Sunday. That's the biggest loss of the year for the team, and a clear sign that there is a lot of work left to do.

T - Tiger. Tiger Woods goes out every single week and makes the rest of the golf world his bitches. For a brief moment it look like J.B. Holmes might beat him. That didn't last long, and it was the only point during the entire Match Play that he looked vulnerable. The final against Stewart Cink was an absolute joke - he won 8-and-7, and it wasn't that close. Tiger is making a mockery of the sport, and draining all the fun out of betting on golf.

U - Ugly. Kelvin Sampson disgusts me. Indiana had no choice but to fire him and send the program into turmoil after Sampson had committed at least five major NCAA violations. The sad part is that it's the kids, and not Sampson, who have to endure the chaos. The post-Sampson era didn't get off to a flying start. Six players boycotted a practice, and then the team only barely squeaked past lowly Northwestern. Here's hoping that an impressive season isn't wasted because the school made the mistake of hiring a total waste of oxygen.

V - Villanova. The Wildcats are not a team that I can figure out. A month ago they embarked on a disastrous five-game losing streak, and it seemed as if their season was over. Since then, they have won four of five. The most recent win was impressive - they ended UConn's 10-game winning streak. They've turned it around from a betting perspective, too - they have covered four in a row after previously paying off just once in 13 games. With the win over the Huskies they are now back in the hunt for a tournament bid.

W - War Pass. You can never be sure how the two-year old champion is going to look when he returns to the track as a three-year-old. There was no need to worry with War Pass. He came off a four-month layoff to win a one-mile allowance at Gulfstream by more than seven lengths. It was against a field of nobodies, but it was still a comfortingly impressive win that re-asserts his prominent place on the road to the Derby.

X - Xavier. Another week, another series of accomplishments for the mascots of this column. There were three games for the team, and three impressive covers. They beat Rhode Island on Monday, blew out Duquesne on Thursday, and clinched at least a share of the A-10 title with a win over Dayton on Sunday. That's 10 wins in a row, and 16 of 17. I don't want to get too ahead of myself, but I love the way this team is heading into the postseason.

Y - Yikes. I want so badly to believe in Kansas State because Michael Beasley and Bill Walker are so darned good. They showed on Saturday that believing in them might not be a good long-term plan. Beasley unleashed 44 points and 13 rebounds against Baylor, and Walker added 31. The sad part is that that wasn't enough - the Wildcats lost to Baylor by six. The two freshman are brilliant, but they can't do it alone. The rest of the roster combined for just 11 points. That's almost unbelievably bad, and it is a recipe for a quick exit in March.

Z - Zzzzzz. It is going to be a truly unwatchable year for baseball fans in Miami. The Marlins have traded away pretty much every asset they have, and they stand a good chance of making that other pitiful team in their state look decent by comparison. As proof of just how out of touch the team's management is, they have come up with the worst idea in the history of ideas in a desperate attempt to entertain fans - they are holding auditions for the Manatees, an all-male, plus sized cheerleading group. Maybe it's time for contraction again.