Predicting the upcoming USA roster

photo by Reuters

The U.S. national team expected to take on Argentina and Paraguay next week is expected to be announced later today. But before we find out who will play in the two upcoming friendlies, I'm going to predict who makes the team.

With this being the last chance for head coach Bob Bradley to get a look at players before having to pick the roster for this summer's Gold Cup, you can expect most of the regulars to be there. From Landon Donovan (pictured) to Tim Howard, most of the veterans will be called up.

Some relatively new faces, such as Tim Ream, will also make the squad, as Bradley looks to incorporate these players into the team.

Here's my predicted 22-man roster:

Goalkeepers (2): Brad Guzan (Hull City, England), Tim Howard (Everton, England)

Defenders (8): Carlos Bocanegra (St Etienne, France), Jonathan Bornstein (Tigres UANL, Mexico), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96, Germany), Eric Lichaj (Leeds United, England), Zach Loyd (FC Dallas), Oguchi Onyewu (FC Twente, Netherlands), Tim Ream (New York Red Bulls), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United, England)

Midfielders (9): Michael Bradley (Aston Villa, England), Clint Dempsey (Fulham, England), Mikkel Diskerud (Stabaek IF, Norway), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Maurice Edu (Rangers, Scotland), Benny Feilhaber (AGF Aarhus, Denmark), Stuart Holden (Bolton Wanderers, England), Jermaine Jones (Blackburn Rovers, England), Sacha Kljestan (RSC Anderlecht, Belgium).

Forwards (3): Jozy Altidore (Bursaspor, Turkey), Edson Buddle (FC Ingolstadt 04, Germany), Herculez Gomez (Pachuca, Mexico).

Projecting who will win the 2011 MLS Cup

photo by Getty Images

When the Los Angeles Galaxy and Seattle Sounders open the MLS season on Tuesday at 9:30pm (ET) on ESPN, they will kick off the most anticipated season in the league's history.

From U.S. national team forward Charlie Davies attempting to complete his recovery from a devastating car crash, to the addition of two expansion teams (Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps), there are several intriguing story lines to follow for casual and hardcore soccer fans alike. Throw in other interesting stories such as the progress of budding stars Teal Bunbury and Juan Agudelo and the second year of Hans Backe's technically-gifted New York Red Bulls, and there's quite an exciting MLS season on tap.

With 18 teams taking to the field this season, MLS will see more teams competing than ever before. So who do I predict will get to the MLS Finals? I'm going with the obvious choice of Los Angeles and New York.

Both teams have improved already-stellar rosters after looking like the favorites to lift the MLS Cup last year. Los Angeles acquired former Red Bull, Juan Pablo Angel, as well as Frankie Hejduk, while New York has added a European midfielder/defender in Teemu Tanio and will have international stars Thierry Henry and Rafael Marquez with a full pre-season under their belt.

So who's my pick to win it all? I'm taking the Galaxy. With Landon Donovan and David Beckham (who is entering the final season of his five-year contract) leading the team, and with the addition of Angel, Los Angeles should have enough fire power to make its way back to the MLS Cup Final after losing it in 2009. Head coach Bruce Arena has added more depth to one of the deepest teams in the league, and that should pay dividends during the grueling season - a season I see ending with Beckham leaving with a trophy to his name.

Heat get payback with 30-point win over Spurs

photo by Getty Images

The photo above was taken 10 days ago during the Miami Heat's 125-95 loss to the San Antonio Spurs amid Miami's well-covered losing streak that put a dark cloud over everything regarding the Heat.

How time changes things.

Having just beaten the Los Angeles Lakers and Memphis Grizzlies, the Heat won its third consecutive game with a 30-point triumph of its own, beating the Spurs at the AmericanAirlines Arena on Monday night. The 110-80 win didn't only serve as retribution for Miami for the embarrassment suffered in San Antonio on March 4 as it also reminded NBA fans, coaches and players just how good this Heat team can be.

Bolstered by performances from Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat put forth one of its most complete games of the season. Wade and Bosh led the offense, scoring 29 and 30 points, respectively. LeBron James also chipped in with 21 points as 10 of the 11 Heat players to see the court scored (Mike Bibby was the one who did not).

What may have been more impressive than the offensive effort put forth by Miami was the defensive domination over the Spurs. The Heat played intense defense throughout, keeping sharpshooter Manu Ginobili to 12 points and Tim Duncan to 14.

Duncan, especially, got a taste of how bad Miami wanted this one as the much-smaller Wade stepped up, leaped in the air and blocked two shots in the paint.

That pair of plays might have highlighted just how badly the Heat wanted payback, but they also helped show that Miami is still a serious contender.