Summer ‘16 Bold Sports Predictions

1. Ryan Fitzpatrick will give in to the Jets demands and sign a contract under $10 million

With Fitzpatrick having little leverage against the Jets, there is little he could do to drive their asking price up. Reports say the Jets offered a $7 million contract while the Fitzpatrick camp is essentially asking for double that. While Fitzpatrick has been a journey-man quarterback for most of his career, he carved a nice little niche with the Jets; throwing for 3,900 yards and 31 touchdowns last season. Pass catchers Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker certainly helped his cause, as both receivers went over 1,000 yards and hauled in 10+ touchdowns. The combination of the right pieces to win now and a familiar offensive system will get Fitzpatrick back in Green and White, even though the money isn’t all there.

2. The Golden State Warriors won’t win the Championship, in fact they won’t even get there

They broke the record for most wins in the regular season, topping MJ’s 1995-1996 72 win team by one win, but their luck will run out against the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals. Gregg Popovich always has a trick up his sleeve and every time we think the Spurs are done and we write them off for being too old, there they are again; making another deep playoff run. For all the attention paid to Warriors and their pursuit of the single-season wins record, the Spurs quietly went 67-15 and also had one of the best seasons of all-time. With the emergence of future superstar Kawhi Leonard and a plethora of big-men like Tim Duncan, LaMarcus Aldridge and David West, the Spurs have the tools to topple the leagues’ best team.

3. LeBron James will win the championship and leave Cleveland

Due to an Eastern Conference that is average at best, the Cavaliers will go pretty much untested on their way to the NBA Finals. They will have to deal with the Warriors, Spurs or Thunder most likely, and the reason they’ll come out on top is #23. LeBron has played in over 100 playoff games and understands what it takes to win. His teammates need to get involved and when that happens, it allows LeBron to dictate the offense and play his way. If that happens, they’ll be hard to stop. After lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy and getting his third ring, LeBron will mull over his free agency and jet from Cleveland back to Miami and team up with his buddy D-Wade for another run at the chip.

4. Noah Syndergaard will be in the Cy Young discussion

It’s actually a knock to call Syndergaard a no. 3 starter, but that’s what most Mets fans tag ‘Thor’ as. Even though he has pitched less than a season in the bigs, Syndergaard sports an ERA just north of three and just shy of 200 strikeouts in 170 innings pitched. Oh yeah, and he’s only 23. In 2015, he averaged 97.7 mph on his four-seam fastball, the highest average fastball velocity of any starting pitcher, minimum 100 innings pitched, in any season since the stat starting being tracked in 2002. With a fastball, often times coming in at high-90s and occasionally in the 100s, Syndergaard will dominate the porous offenses in Atlanta and Philadelphia and pitch his way to the top of the Mets rotation, which is saying something, and into the Cy Young discussion.

5. The Yankees will trade one of their Big 3 in the bullpen

The Dellin Betances – Andrew Miller combination was unhittable in 2015 and looks the same in early 2016. With Aroldis Chapman sidelined until mid-May, the Yankees will play it out when he resumes gameplay. If the trio are lights out at end of games as expected, no one would think to mess with the formula that has been so successful. The Yankees always inconsistent starting rotation could easily be bolstered if Miller was shipped out. Put it this way. If the Big 3 are lights out and they are striking out hitters left and right, one of them will be pitching games in a different uniform come the trade deadline.