Happy holidays, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all! Gaber and I have been traveling for the holidays and weren’t sure we could get a show in this week, but the sports world stops for no one, and with Week 17 upon us, we knew we had to make it happen. After all, there are 11 games this week with real Playoff implications, be it seeding, or teams just trying to get to the dance, so there’s no way we’re missing this! It’s the end of the beginning in the NFL, as the regular season wraps up and the Playoffs loom ahead. So sit back, the NFL regular season comes down to one more glorious Sunday and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

The future of the Dallas Mavericks has arrived, in the form of a 6’8”, 19 year old rookie from Slovenia named Luka Doncic, but here at the Roundup Pod, we just call him the Prodigy. We’re talking a future All-NBA guy, perennial All Star and a regular featured player in many Playoffs to come, but given his game and pedigree, that might not be all. Now I know, that’s a lot to put on a teenage kid just entering the league, but have you seen him play? With his preternatural court awareness, his playmaking ability and his natural leadership, he already plays like a veteran, and if he can continue to develop at this pace, the sky’s the limit. Meanwhile, in the NFL, the future means nothing. It’s all about the present, as teams scramble to lock down their spot in the playoffs. So sit back, the NFL Playoff race is heating up, the NBA’s new Golden Age is here and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

Everyone loves a playoff race. Even with the top seeds pretty much set, the NFL Wild Card scenarios are so vast, it’s almost incalculable. In each conference you have 5 teams within a game of each other, pretty much vying for one single, solitary spot. You can run the numbers, make an educated guess, but with 3 glorious weeks left to play, anything can happen. At this point, you just need to kick back and watch it play out, but isn’t that what makes it so great? And in the NBA, a third into the season, the playoff scenarios are already shaping up. In the East, four new contenders look to unseat the Warriors as champs, and in a historically competitive Western Conference, every remaining game counts if you want to get your ticket to the playoffs. So sit back, the NFL Playoff race is underway, the NBA’s new Golden Age is here and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

The NBA’s Western Conference is all bunched up, with 14 of its 15 teams all looking capable of making a run at the Playoffs. Problem is, there are only 8 spots, so six of these teams’ postseason aspirations will be in vain, but that won’t stop them from eyeing the prize, and the NBA’s game theory will be in full effect. Normally, the NBA regular season is a marathon, not a sprint, so teams have traditionally felt comfortable taking nights off throughout the season, via prescribed rest or just general team lethargy. But this year, if you’re the Mavs or the Pelicans and you want to go to the dance, you’re keeping an eye on all the teams around you in the standings, and their actions dictate yours. The result? Game theory says that all of the competing teams in the West are playing for keeps all season long, and the winners? The fans, of course, with more competition than we could possibly expect from an NBA regular season. So sit back, the NFL Playoff race is underway, the NBA is at the quarter-way checkpoint and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

Sunday afternoon and the remote is going klick, klick, klick. Granted, there’s not much better than a lazy Sunday afternoon, just laying in the cut watching RedZone and laughing at Andrew Siciliano’s inside jokes, but this time of year, with teams vying for that playoff bid, you need multiple screens and a strong remote control. What’s that? Baker Mayfield is on fire and leading the Browns downfield to set up another TD pass? Klick. Whoa, Danger Russ has the ball with the game on the line in Seattle? Klick. And don’t get me started on the NBA League Pass. Klicking from Giannis and his Bully Bucks, to the King in the North, Kawhi Leonard and his Raptors, to AD and his Pelicans, my remote is getting more than light work. I’m telling you, it’s hard work having all this fun, but praise the games and pass the remote control. So sit back, the NFL season is heavy into the stretch drive, the NBA is at the quarter-way checkpoint and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

The NBA brand is strong, no doubt. The influx of talent over the past few years has spawned a youth movement in the Association. As the next generation starts to take their places among the league’s elite, the level of competition seems to be steady rising, and the burning question seems to be, are players like the Brow, the Process and the Greek Freak ready to usurp the King, the Beard, KD and the rest of the NBA's MVP old guard? But the NFL made a statement in Week 11, and let the sports world know, don't sleep on the League. The Packers and Seahawks set the tone Thursday night with a nail-biter, and it just continued all weekend, culminating in the now-classic Chiefs/Rams tilt. This is your wake up call sports fans, the NFL playoff hunt is underway, and there’s a lot of teams that think they have a shot. So sit back, the NFL season is heavy into the stretch drive, the NBA is at the quarter-way checkpoint, and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

Lebron who? So recently departed, but so easily forgotten, as the new powers in the East fight to fill the void he left behind. Kawhi now reigns as a King in the North but Giannis may be King of the League by season’s end; with Jimmy Butler joining the Sixers’ ranks, the Process finally appears complete; and don’t sleep on the hibernating Celtics, or the dark horse Pacers. Meanwhile out West, things aren’t so sweet. The Warriors appear to be feuding, the Rockets have lost their way and the top 3 teams in the East may be better than anyone out West but our Dubs. It’s a new era for the perennial underdog conference in the NBA, but will anyone get their chance at the champs, or will internal dissension topple the Warriors first? It’s big-time drama in the Association already, and it’s only November! So sit back, the NBA is returned in all its glory, the NFL season is into the stretch drive and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

We’re in it, deep. The NBA has reclaimed our consciousness, and it really only took a few games before the narrative of the Association just had us hooked. There was a time when prevailing wisdom was that the NBA season was all prelude to the Christmas Day games; then the season really started. But those days are gone. The NBA comes in like a lion, and out like a freaking dragon. And don’t get me started on all the drama around the crapshoot we call the 2018 NFL season. As we enter the Week 10 slate, I count 12 teams that could end up in the Super Bowl, twelve teams that can hit their stride down the stretch and make a real move, and we’ll name them all and tell you how they make it happen. So sit back, the NBA is returned in all its glory, the NFL season is into the stretch drive and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

It’s easy to get tired of the same old storylines in our sports news. Year after year, it’s Tom Terrific and the Pats, and yes, our Warriors, running the slate and playing for a title, but have no fear true believers, there’s some new blood in the mix! How about those Bears, or the Washington professional football team, or even the Saints, Bengals and Chargers, all showing out and making moves. Or what about Giannis and his Bucks, at 7-0 the only undefeated team left in the NBA, or the upstart Nuggets or underdog Pacers? Ok, granted, they’re all, at best, long shots to win it all, but if we’re lucky, we just may get to see them stir it up a bit in the playoffs. So sit back, the NBA is returned in all its glory, the NFL season is going strong, MLB has a new World Series champion and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .

Breathe in, watch football on Sunday; breathe out, tune into NBA action on Monday; breathe in, CP3 and Rondo are going toe to toe; breathe out, the World Series is underway. At this point it’s all just become some sort of sensory reflex, my senses automatically on full alert at all times for the latest news on action from the NFL, NBA and MLB, and with so much on my mind, all I can do is recline and take it all in, just like breathing. Here at the Roundup, sports might as well be the air that we breathe. A sigh of relief when Puig hits a 3-run HR and your stupid Dodgers close out the Brewers in Game 7, a gasp when Justin Tucker misses a game tying PAT, Tom Brady holding his breath as Mitchell Trubisky’s Hail Mary falls short. Respiration, breathe in, breathe out. So sit back, the NBA is returned in all its glory, the NFL season is going strong, MLB loves their dream World Series matchup and we're breaking down how it's all unfolding, next on the Roundup Podcast, so let's get rolling. . .