1. Mike Yeo – Minnesota Wild
What’s not to like about the rookie head coach in Minnesota? Yeo has taken a changed roster that saw the introduction of Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi over the summer and added in rookies Nick Johnson and the under rated Marco Scandella to a mix that featured quality, grit and leadership. That’s either a recipe for disaster or the best record in the NHL.

2. Ken Hitchcock – St. Louis Blues
A former Stanley Cup winning coach in Dallas, Hitchcock had less success in Philadelphia and Columbus although he did reach the conference finals with the Flyers in 2004. Hired by St. Louis after Davis Payne became the first coaching casualty of the season, Hitchcock has the Blues playing well and back in the playoff hunt behind the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings in the Central division.

3. Claude Julien – Boston Bruins
Now in his fifth year with the defending Stanley Cup champions, Julien gets much credit for what he didn’t do as much as what he did. Mired in a horrible post championship slump to start the season, Julien has guided the Bruins back to the top of the division to challenge the Pittsburgh Penguins for the best record in the Eastern Conference and cement them in a good position for NHL picks.

4. Dan Bylsma – Pittsburgh Penguins
Speaking of those Penguins, the current holder of the Jack Adams award may be doing a better job this year than last. The return of Sidney Crosby has been managed well and Pittsburgh’s fast start to the season was all the more impressive given the superstar’s absence.

The team’s general manager, Gar Forman, has this week spoken out in praise of his starting point guard, and has suggested that Rose will become the cornerstone of a massive rebuilding process to rival the star quality enjoyed during the club’s glory days of the nineties – and the sort of luxury currently enjoyed by the likes of the Miami Heat:

“Derrick is the centrepiece of what we’re putting together here – we want Derrick to be a Bull for a long, long time. It’s very important that we put the right pieces around him.”

Last year, Rose became the youngest ever NBA MVP aged just 23, and as a result much is expected from him in the future and next season’s Live basketball betting.

However, with stats from the previous season including an average of 25 points, 7.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game it is clear that he is already a star in his own right – and as a result has gone on the record to state that he doesn’t believe any marquee signings are essential to the Bulls’ continued progress this season, even though the Bulls finished as top seeds in the play-offs last season, eventually losing to the star-studded Miami Heat in the Conference Finals.

Clippers fans will be ecstatic that they have finally secured such a prestigious marquee signing, and the fact that he will be teaming up with the phenomenal Blake Griffin – recently voted 2011 NBA Rookie of the Year – will really turn their team into a force to be reckoned with for what remains of the 2012 season.

Making the long journey from California to Louisiana as makeweights in this deal will be exciting prospect Eric Gordon as well as the two front court players Al-Farouq Aminu and Chris Kaman – in what the majority of Clippers fans will see as a fantastic piece of business that will allow them to compete at the top level again after a slow start to the previous campaign.

Those who Bet on basketball might remember that both the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks have allegedly expressed interest in acquiring the services of Chris Paul in recent times, but with both teams failing to put together an enticing enough package to wrestle the star away from the Hornets, no deal was successfully struck.

However, with the Clippers finally putting enough on the table to strike a deal, they will start the new season armed with a point guard who was the 2006 Rookie of the Year, made the All-Star team four times, as well as having been the leading assist-maker in the NBA in both 2008 and 2009.

This move would be significant for two reasons: not only would it see the Nets considerably strengthen their line-up for the upcoming 2012 season, but it would also see the controversial point guard be given a chance to kick-start a career which has stuttered of late, with the former Washington Wizards star restricted to just 97 appearances from a possible 328 games.

Last week it was reported that the Magic were intending on waiving Arenas’ contract under the new collective bargaining agreement – a move that would mean other clubs could tender bids for the player’s services and sign him on a free transfer – but with the Nets so keen to sign him, they could resolve the situation in a quicker and easier fashion.

Certainly Arenas offers proven quality to whichever side acquires him – before a succession of knee injuries and a high profile and lengthy ban from the game for bringing a gun into the Washington Wizards’ locker room without a license he was averaging 25 points a game over the previous three seasons – but whether or not he can rediscover that form as he approaches thirty is questionable. It will be an often talked about issue in the Basketball betting odds.

Howard however is a player in his prime, and having made the NBA All-Star team for the last five consecutive seasons would represent a massive coup for any franchise within the league and it would consequently be in the Nets’ best interests to offload Arenas if it meant securing the talented guard’s signature.

Whilst that may sound like a lot of money for what is essentially an unproven player at the highest level, the Warriors’ general manager Larry Riley has made no secret of his willingness to invest in potential – and in Jordan who is aged just 23 and boasted an average of seven points and seven rebounds per game last season, they have attained just that.

Speaking about his new signing this week, Riley was pragmatic but optimistic for the future:

“He’s not an offensive player who’s going out and getting you 20 points every night… but he’s a young player who’s still developing skills, so there’s an upside associated with him.”

Already boasting a powerful backcourt pairing or Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis, a tall and athletic centre was top of Riley’s wish-list in the close season as he looks to improve on the Warriors’ losing 36-46 season in 2011. He has certainly been exciting to watch in the Live basketball betting.

Having already missed out on Tyson Chandler – who instead opted for a move to the New York Knicks – and with Nene expected to command an astronomical salary should he move on a free transfer from the Denver Nuggets, Jordan looks to be a sound signing both in the short and long term, and just to add to the occasion, the Warriors will host the Clippers in the regular-season opener on Christmas Day.

The Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks and Washington Redskins are all franchises in need of quarterbacking help. Landry Jones of the Oklahoma Sooners, Matt Barkley of the USC Trojans and Robert Griffin III of the Baylor Bears are the current candidates to go in the first round. The situation in Washington may be the direst as the Redskins flip flop back and forth between John Beck and Rex Grossman, quarterbacks that have shown conclusively that they are, at best, backups in the league capable for the odd game here and there. Neither is an NFL starter. Currently expected to pick behind the Carolina Panthers, St.Louis Rams and Minnesota Vikings all of whom have their franchise QB and potentially behind Jacksonville and Miami only the Dolphins project as a team that could take a signal caller ahead of Washington. That should leave Jones or Barkley as an option for the Redskins unless the Broncos or Seahawks attempt to move ahead of them in the draft.

Miami might well consider staying with Matt Moore for the year and instead go after a skill player such as running back Trent Richardson or wide receiver Justin Blackmon for a team that has limited talent at the positions. Those who Bet on NFL will recognise that Denver and Seattle are expected to be aggressive in the draft in search of their franchise quarterback. Denver has a difficult situation where Tim Tebow, who is obviously not a long term solution for the Broncos, is already a beloved figure in town and any move to replace him is fraught with backlash potential. That being said it would be a surprise if Denver didn’t take a first round quarterback. The Seahawks may end up the odd team out, the fifth franchise looking to take a quarterback but with only four available leading to a second round pick of the intriguing Ryan Tannehill from Texas A&M.

A high school star at Kentwood High School in Covington, WA, Stuckey attended Eastern Washington University and was taken with the 15th pick of the first round of the 2007 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons. A combination guard rather than a pure point guard, the 6’5 25-year old is nevertheless expected to be pursued by a number of teams in hopes of pulling him away from the Pistons.

The Dallas Mavericks will have to make a decision concerning J.J. Barea. The Puerto Rican had a phenomenal post season teaming with Jason Kidd in an effective 1-2 punch, but there are more than a few questions as to whether the 27-year old is the long term answer for Mark Cuban’s team.

The lack of pure point guards available is likely to see Jamal Crawford receive more interest than would normally be expected especially given the defensive deficiencies of the former Atlanta Hawk. Former Texas Longhorns star T.J. Ford is also an intriguing possibility. Beset by a couple of serious injuries that derailed his career in Milwaukee and Toronto, Ford has spent the past three years in Indiana with the Pacers and is reported to currently be playing in Croatia during the lockout. At age 28, Ford may be worth one more roll of the dice for a playoff contender looking for a seasoned veteran.

Those who Bet on basketball may notice that former Miami Heat team mates Mike Bibby and Mario Chalmers are also available, but their performances in the post season were such that it seems unlikely that any playoff team would be interested. Restricted free agent Aaron Brooks signed with a Chinese team and is widely believed not to have any opt-out clause. Nonetheless look for someone to try and find a way to bring him back to the NBA.

2011 has been a truly landmark season for Lulay after he finally he appeared to come of age following a few difficult seasons with the Lions where he has often struggled to dominate big games.

His new found maturity bore through in Sunday’s final where he overcame some early nerves to call some big plays which helped his team to run out 34-23 winners over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at B.C. Place.

The 28-year-old had already picked up the league’s most outstanding player award for the season and has now added the Grey Cup MVP trophy to his list of honours for the season after finishing with a record of 21 of 37 passing for 320 yards while passing two touchdowns in the final which gave his team a big enough cushion to easily see off a late Winnipeg fight back.

Despite his award, Lulay appeared to be disappointed with his performance and believes he could have done even better.

“Execution-wise it wasn’t perfect, it probably wasn’t as good as our last couple of games have been but we just kept battling and made the plays we needed to make,” said Lulay. “Winnipeg made it interesting at the end, kept us holding our breath a bit. It’s pretty sweet.”

Lulay, and those who Bet on CFL, is hoping his side can now go onto bigger and better things after coming back from a 0-5 start to the season and believes that experience will carry them through.

“It’s a very special group, a mentally tough group to battle back from being 0-5. You can’t say enough about that aspect of guys on this team” he added.

Australian captains who have tried to balance the role of leading the team, along with selecting it hasn’t worked well in the past. Steve Waugh and Michael Slater had a very public falling out during the 2001 Ashes tour, when captain Waugh dropped the batsman, effectively ending Slater’s international career in the process.

Ricky Ponting made it clear early on in his tenure that he didn’t wish to be a part of the selection process, although predecessor Clarke took up the option straight after taking over as skipper, something Buchanan feels could see discontent in among the squad.

“I just think there will be some pretty interesting conversations in the dressing room when Michael Clarke will be talking to one or two of his players, and saying, ‘You’ve played well, but you are no longer playing.”

“It is something that he was hoping to have. He seems comfortable in it. But whether all the other players will be comfortable with it, time will tell and we will see.”

Clarke will lead his Australian team out at Brisbane this week, against Buchanan’s current employers, New Zealand. For those who Bet on Australian cricket, The Aussies will be looking to follow up their impressive two-wicket victory against South Africa in Johannesburg, a result which saw the two-Test series drawn.

The Spanish sensation wowed the crowds with a display littered with his trademark range of passing, long shots and creativity, and although he eventually found himself on the losing side of the good-humoured match, he certainly did enough to convince the fans that ending the NBA lock-out before he moves back to his native Barcelona would be a smart move for all involved.

Rubio signed for the Timberwolves back in June, but still has the option to return to his home country – where aged just 14, he famously became the youngest player in a Spanish ACB League team. Now with the lock-out still raging, he has suggested that at the very least a short-term return to Europe might be the best move for both his fitness and his 2012 Olympic ambitions:

“I’m going to stay here for a while to see if we’ll play [but] I can always go back to Spain though, so I know I will be playing basketball somewhere this season… It would be nice to practice and play with the Gasols in Barcelona.”

Those who Bet on basketball will recognise the Gasols he referred to are Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol and his brother Marc Gasol who currently plays for the Memphis Grizzlies, both of whom are now training with FC Barcelona Regal until the may dispute in the States is resolved and competitive action is resumed.