On The Watch “It’s All About The NBA Season 2020/2021”

The NBA Season 2020/2021

The NBA Season is set to start this upcoming Tuesday December 22, 2020 but with 10 games shorter than the previous seasons due to the Covid-19 pandemic still looming over the World.

So many things are going to be different and unpredictable for this upcoming season but one thing is for sure, the Los Angeles Lakers will be looking to repeat as Champions regardless of the obstacles ahead. The Lakers’ squad is still well-intact and well-built for the long haul. As for the Los Angeles Clippers, they may have fallen short in the Playoffs last season but redemption will be their motivation throughout this season. The Houston Rockets are an uncertainty right now considering they have done some major changes starting with their front office and the coaching staff and their star player, James Harden, looking for a way out of the city. Assuming Harden’s indecision to still run with the team, only time will tell how they will look as the season progresses. The Western Conference will still be competitive as usual with the strong play coming from the Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers, the Oklahoma City Thunder and let’s not forget The Golden State Warriors who may still have a say in the Western standings, – they are not done yet in my eyes.

The Eastern Conference is steadily improving with major players changing conferences to help balance the forces. The Milwaukee Bucks fell short once again at reaching the Finals but have managed to secure their MPV player Giannis Antetokounmpo to an extended contract giving them another opportunity at the task at hand, an NBA Title. With a few added pieces to the team, things could be looking up for them. The Miami Heat shocked the league last season when they worked their way to the NBA Finals. They showed they belong and plan on getting it going right back where they left off. The Brooklyn Nets will be looking for a “Takeover” type season with a healthy Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the pack along with a new coaching staff to draw up the winning format. Our own Canadian team the Toronto Raptors are still in the running and still have the ability to stay competitive with any team from any conferences. The Philadelphia 76ers have done some revamping with their team and the coaching staff in the hope of changing their future outcome. Let’s see how everything unfolds throughout the season. The Boston Celtics is still a major player with a proven squad that can definitely upset the apple tree once they get going. They are a proven squad that can definitely disrupt the standings in the Eastern Conference. As for the Indiana Pacers, the Washington Wizards, the Charlotte Hornets, the Detroit Pistons, the New York Knicks and the Orlando Magic, the jury is still out on what they can bring to the table.

We are entering the unknown with this year NBA Season. There is no script on how things will evolve and for that alone we should all tune in this Tuesday night December 22, 2020 and be part of another roller-coaster type NBA Season 2020/2021.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Canelo Alvarez vs Callum Smith”

Super Middleweight Supremacy

Last night’s Matchroom/DAZN Main Event at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas between Canelo Alvarez (54-1-2, 36 Kos) and Callum Smith (27-1, 19 Kos) was the perfect way to end the Year 2020.

Canelo, who was clearly the shorter fighter standing at 5 foot 8 to the towering Callum at 6 foot 3, displayed some serious Boxing IQ that had Callum confused all night inside that squared circle. It was a thing of beauty to watch the smaller man walk down his opponent the way he did considering Callum had all the physical advantages coming into this bout.

I was surprised by the fact that Canelo showed absolutely no fear at all throughout the rounds. Canelo’s jab and body attack were so vicious and precise that Callum stayed on his back foot trying to avoid the heavy pounding he was receiving all night.

I expected Callum to be Canelo’s toughest challenge to date but judging on how Canelo dominated and dismantled Callum from round one to twelve, Canelo proved once again why he is the Pound-for-Pound best in the World today. Real Talk!

There are levels to this Boxing sh*t and Canelo’s masterclass performance last night showed us just how superior he can get when faced with so many drawbacks.

Callum, who was rated as the No. 1 Super Middleweight in the Division, took the worst beating I’ve ever seen him take in his career to date. The “game plan” that his corner drew up had absolutely no effect on Canelo whatsoever. Dude got heart though and he withheld the onslaught coming his way like the fighting man that he is.

That said, after 12 rounds of one-sided action, the Judges scored it 117-111, 119-109 and 119-109 in favor of Canelo. With this convincing win, Canelo is now the New WBC/WBA “Super” and Ring Magazine Champion of the World and now the No.1 168-Pounder in the Division.

With a new Division to dominate, Undisputed Super Middleweight Champion is the latest task at hand for the No. 1 Pound-for-Pound King they call Canelo Alvarez.

Congratulations Canelo on your latest accomplishment.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Anthony Joshua vs Kubrat Pulev”

IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO Heavyweight Challenge

Last night’s Heavyweight Bout inside the SSE Arena, Wembley in London, UK was a homecoming fight for Unified Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (24-1, 22 Kos) and Kubrat Pulev (28-2, 14 Kos) that did not disappoint.

AJ looked good last night, focussed, assertive, poised and did not deviate from the “game plan“ at hand. His jab and uppercut were key last night and he handled his opponent the right way, dropping Pulev four times throughout the bout to a convincing stoppage in the 9th round.

Pulev, a worthy opponent, tried to keep up with AJ but was simply met with a better, complete and motivated fighter in AJ. Anthony worked the ring well and controlled every round while wearing Pulev down.

Kubrat couldn’t put any type of a convincing offence together long enough to deter Anthony who showed much improvement in his repertoire. Pulev showed some durability at times throughout the bout but Anthony’s size and power proved to be too much.

The “End Game” was inevitable and in the 9th round when AJ connected with a vicious strong and accurate right hand to Kubrat’s jaw that put him down indefinitely for the 10 count.

With this emphatic win by AJ, he now retains his IBF/IBO/WBA “Super” and WBO Heavyweight Titles. This was a much-needed win for Anthony last night. He needed to make a statement of Pulev and show the Heavyweight Division that he is nothing to play with inside that squared circle. The road to undisputed is still the mission at hand.

Congratulations AJ on finishing this turbulent year 2020 in a strong fashion.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Errol Spence Jr. vs Danny Garcia”

IBF/WBC Welterweight Challenge

Last night’s Main Event between Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 Kos) and Danny Garcia (36-3, 21 Kos) at Arlington Texas inside the AT&T Stadium, answered a lot of questions that we the fans had when it came to EJ. After 12 rounds of action all was revealed to the boxing world.

EJ dusted off his shoulders last night inside that squared circle and showed all the doubters and his supporters that your Boy was back 100%. Spence’s car accident in October 2019 left a lot of us fans wondering if Errol could ever get back to his championship form, he once held before the car crash and, with last night’s dominant performance against Danny, your Boy EJ defied all odds.

EJ is “The Truth” inside that squared circle hands down. Errol made Danny, who is one of the top strong Welterweights, in the Division, looked like a pedestrian inside that squared circle. Spence kept that pressure on Danny all night with a stiff effective jab that prevented Danny from applying any type of successful offence.

Whatever “game plan” Danny’s corner constructed for the night became obsolete the minute EJ’s jab started touching Danny at will. EJ’s jab was key last night and clearly marked Danny up from all angles. Danny showed some grit and a strong will to compete but just didn’t have the right output to keep up with EJ. Had Danny applied more pressure the outcome could have definitely been different.

That being said, EJ showed us once again that he’s levels above all competitors who dare to challenge him for that No. 1 Spot inside that squared circle. The Judges were all in agreeance tonight with the score of 116-112, 116-112 and 117-111 for Errol Spence Jr.

With this dominant performance by Spence, he now retains his IBF and WBC Titles while putting the 147-Pound Division back on notice that “The Truth” is back like he never left.

Congratulations Errol on another great performance.

Who’s next?

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Daniel Dubois vs Joe Joyce”

Heavyweight British Throwdown

Tonight’s highly anticipated British showdown between “Dynamite” Daniel Dubois (15-1, 14 Kos) and Joe Joyce “The Juggernaut” (12-0, 11 Kos) at Church House, Westminister in London was an exciting bout from start to finish. Real talk!

Tonight, Joe silenced all the naysayers by forcing Dubois to gracefully bow down by taking a knee in the tenth round. Joe had his jab working Dubois all night and definitely made a dent in Dubois’ armour when he severely damaged and closed Dubois’ left eye shut.

Dubois came out the gate and tried to physically assert himself with his heavy punches. Normally his presence alone would have deterred his opponents but tonight Dubois was met with a formidable and durable adversary and couldn’t get by Joe’s steady and accurate jab successfully.

That said, it was a competitive and interesting bout with both warriors going at it hard but tonight the young lion met his match when fatigue and a worrisome bummed eye prevented him to continue in the 10th round and got counted out. I personally never anticipated Dubois quitting in any of his fights but only a fighter can truly know when enough is enough.

This is a major win for Joyce who was confident from the time this bout got announced. Experience, patience and a very good chin is what carried Joe over for this victory. Joe is steadily creeping up the Heavyweight ladder and now holds the British, Commonwealth and European Titles but best of all, is he now moves one step closer to a world title opportunity in 2021.

Congratulations Joe on a very convincing win. Job well done.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Daniel Jacobs vs Gabriel Rosado”

Super Middleweight Grudge Match

Last night’s DAZN and Matchroom main event between Daniel Jacobs “The Miracle Man” (37-3, 30 Kos) and Gabriel Rosado (25-13-1, 14 Kos) at the Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida did not live up to the anticipated so-called grudge match up that we were all waiting for. Real Talk!

I’m a big fan of both them Dudes but real talk, neither one of them backed up their tough talk inside that squared circle. Them Dudes talked a heap of sh*t to each other to being out right disrespectful. Respect had to be earned and given so I was expecting some serious fireworks from round one but instead got two Dudes who barely threw any leather at each other.

Jacobs was treating this bout as a stay busy fight but clearly forgot the part about getting busy active wise inside that squared circle. I’m not sure if the fact that there was no crowd unmotivated him but he visibly didn’t look his usual self inside that squared circle.

There are levels to this boxing sh*t and your boy Jacobs did not show any superior levels against Gabe last night. In fact, Rosado executed his “game plan” to a “T” and boxed a good fight with low output but he definitely didn’t look like someone who was not meant to be there.

Although the bout didn’t turn out the way we all expected, Gabe showed discipline and fought well enough to deserve the win or a draw in my eyes but, left in the Judges hands, two of them saw it 115-113 for Jacobs and 115-113 for Rosado. Definitely a disputable outcome.

Jacobs may have been declared the winner of this bout but if he has any aspiration of challenging any of the belt holders in the Super Middleweight Division, he needs to come in with his head in the game and with a way better “game plan” then what we saw last night cause this version of Jacobs doesn’t cut it at the top of the 168-Pound Division. Real Talk!

Blaze

DJ Blaze/50 Cent/The Game Takeover!

50 Cent f/Trey Songz & A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie-Big Rich Town (rmx)
The Game-Lets Ride
50 Cent f/Destiny’s Child-Thug Love
The Game f/Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Akon-Kush (rmx)
50 Cent f/NeYo-Baby By Me (rmx)
The Game f/50 Cent-Hate It Or Love It
50 Cent f/Joe & G-Unit-Ride With You
The Game f/50 Cent-How We Do
50 Cent f/Kandi-Cheated
The Game f/Problem, Too Short, Eric Bellinger & AV-Or Nah
50 Cent f/Choo Biggz & Tank-Tonight

On The Watch “It’s All About Terence Crawford vs Kell Brook”

WBO Welterweight Title Defense

Terence Crawford (37-0, 28 Kos) silenced all the naysayers once again at last nights Main Event inside the MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas when he annihilated the tough and worthy former IBF titleholder Kell Brook (39-3, 27 Kos).

It took Crawford a few rounds to get going while Kell was looking good in the early rounds with a stiff jab causing Crawford to rethink his approach. By round three Crawford had switched stance to southpaw and started moving in on Kell like he had figured out the right angles to press the action. The bout started to heat up and was looking really competitive. Kell was holding his own, moving and boxing well until the fourth round started when Crawford caught Brook slippin and connected with a powerful right hand that staggered Kell all the way to the ropes. Crawford continued administering further unanswered assault before the referee intervened to rule a knockdown on Brook and separated them for the standing 8 count.

Seeing that Brook was clearly hurt, Bud wasted no time in finishing his wounded opponent with a flurry of heavy punches that forced the referee to halt the bout at 1:14 in the round.

As good and strong as Brook was last night, Crawford made sure his own power was felt when he stopped Brook dead on his feet. With this destructive win, Terence retained his WBO Welterweight Title that he effectively defended for the fourth time.

Since entering the 147-Pound Division, Crawford has knocked out or stopped all of his opponents in convincing fashion. That being said your Boy Bud is the silent killer in the Welterweight Division. Your Boy got pop in them hands and is nothing to play with. Real Talk!

Peeps can talk all they want about who Bud fought or hasn’t fought to date, but all I want to know is Who’s next?

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All about Katie Taylor vs Miriam Gutierrez”

Lightweight Title Defence

In tonight’s Main Event at the SSE Arena, Wembley, London between Undisputed Lightweight IBF/WBC/WBA/WBO Champion Katie Taylor (17-0, 6 Kos) and WBA mandatory challenger Miriam Gutierrez (13-1, 5 Kos) was nothing short of a clinical display of exceptional boxing by the Champion.

Katie asserted herself from round one and never took her foot off the gas. Katie made it clear tonight that she was not in the mood to play around with her opponent. Katie punished Gutierrez with flurries of punches that stung so hard that at times Gutierrez looked puzzled and overwhelmed by Katie’s none-stop pressure.

It was clear as the rounds wore on that Gutierrez was absolutely no match for Katie. However, I got to give it up to Gutierrez for taking her punishment and not giving up on the fight even after hitting the canvas in the fourth round for a quick 8 count, Gutierrez showed a lot of heart and still managed to make it through the end.

Katie showed us tonight why she is the Queen of the Lightweight Division. Her boxing IQ is something serious and not easily matched. After 10 rounds of action the Judges scored it 100-90, 100-89 and 99-91 in favor of Taylor.

Another dominant performance by the Undisputed IBF/WBC/WBA/WBO and Ring Magazine Champion Katie Taylor.

Job well done Katie. I can’t wait to see who will step up and challenge the Queen in your next outing.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All about Gervonta Davis vs Leo Santa Cruz”

WBA Super Featherweight and Lightweight Challenge

Last night’s Premier Boxing Champions on Showtime Pay-Per-View Main Event at the Alamodome in San Antonio between WBA Regular Lightweight Champion Gervonta Davis (24-0, 23 Kos) and WBA Super Featherweight Champion Leo Santa Cruz (37-2-1, 19 Kos) was an exciting bout for as long as it lasted. Real Talk!

This bout was “Blazin” from the start of the first bell. Leo looked focused and determined. Leo came out the gate and asserted himself by not shying away from Gervonta and actually boxing his way towards him. Leo was giving Gervonta some good work and looking good doing it.

However, as good as Leo was doing so was Gervonta. Tank was just as focused and definitely took this bout seriously. Gervonta showed patience while boxing beautifully with exceptional quickness to go along with the powerful shots he was throwing accurately at Santa Cruz.

As the rounds wore on you could clearly see the power shots were getting to Leo as he was more cautious and tentative with his usual output. Still, I have to tip my “B” hat to Leo for standing there and actually going toe to toe with Gervonta.

That being said, I think Leo may have been believing his own hype a little too much by the sixth round. Leo tried once again to go toe to toe with Gervonta one time too many and brutally got caught with a vicious left uppercut that landed Leo’s first ever knockout of his 14-year pro career. Leo was lights out cold with an official time of stoppage at 2:40 of the sixth round.

With this destructive performance by Gervonta, he now regains the WBA Super Featherweight Title and retains his WBA Regular Lightweight Title to now simultaneously become a two weight Division Champion.

Hate him or love him your Boy “Tank” is nothing to play with in the 130 or the 135-Pound Division hands down.

Both Divisions have some serious talented competitors waiting for their opportunity. I can’t wait to see what’s next or better yet who’s next in line for the young “Pitbull” Gervonta Davis.

Congratulations “Tank” on your latest accomplishment.

Blaze