Rocky Top Nation

      I would like to start out my first ever RTN report by saying a late merry Christmas to all!  I hope everyone got to spend valuable time with their familes and just had a good time.  I will be giving a report of everything Miami Heat and Tennessee Vols every week from now on. Hope you enjoy.

     Let me start with Miami Heat basketball.  Yesterday, they played the Knicks in Madison Square Garden on Christmas day.  The Knicks had won 6 of their last 7 games but the Heat came to spoil the party.  Dwayne Wade and co. beat the Knicks 93-87.  My boy Dwayne Wade scored 30 points while also gaining 9 rebounds and 4 steals. Michael Beasley had another solid offensive night with 19 points.  Jermaine O' Neal added 11 points. The Heat must continue to have solid productivity of the bench if they want to keep this up. At 15-12, the Heat would currently be a 5th seed in the East.  Also, expect Beasley to be depended on more as the Heat advance in the season.  Beasley will be a huge factor for the Heat this season.

   The Tennessee Volunteers Basketball squad picked it up against North Carolina A&T after what head coach Bruce Pearl called "the worst loss of the season" against USC.  On of the bright sports for Tennessee in the 99-78 victory was Skylar Mcbee.  Mcbee hit a much needed three straight 3's in a row and finished with a total of 12 points off the bench.  Tennessee three point struggles have been highlighted throughout the season and players such as Mcbee need to be making three's on a consistent basis.  Freshman forward Kenny Hall also got to play when Wayne Chisim was tooken out and responded by adding a total of 16 points in 13 minutes. The Vols must improve though as a critical stretch of the nonconference season approaches. Tennessee plays cross-state rival Memphis on Dec. 31, a Charlotte team on Jan. 6 that is receiving votes in the Associated Press top 25 poll, and finally a home date with top-ranked Kansas on Jan. 10.

   The Tennessee Volunteers Football team arrived in Atlanta on Friday.  After working out for the first time in Atlanta at Decatur High School, the Vols had a welcome party at Dave & Buster's.  Later in the week they'll visit the Georgia Aquarium and a hospital. They also have banquets, a trip planned to the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site and a handful of media events.  Though the Vols main  priorities are dealing with the  No. 11 Virginia Tech looming on New Year's Eve (TV: ESPN, 7:30 p.m.).  As far as the starting kicker for this game, Lane Kiffin said this: It’s still open,” Kiffin said. “We kicked all three of them again today and we’ll go back and watch this film, and we’ll figure it out pretty soon. It wasn’t very good again today."  Freshman running back Bryce Brown is still dealing with the effects of his concussion on Monday and was held out of practice, but both Dan Williams and Wes Brown returned from their head injuries.  Right tackle Aaron Douglas was also back on the field, though he was limited by his sore left ankle. The freshman is expected to be back at full speed Sunday.

    There are plenty of rumors going around in the recruiting front.  One of the newest rumors is coming from scout.com.  It basically states that Tennessee has a shot a landing Lache Seasnstruk, Corey Nelson, and Ahmad Dixon.  If this is true, it would be a huge achivement for Texas native and defensive backs coach Willie Mack Garza. UT wide reciver commit Markeith Ambles, also told fans that he "isn't going anywhere."  UT soft verbal commit Brandon Willis is expected to be choosing between UNC and UT during the Army All-American game.  I don't expect Brandon Willis to go to UNC because of his close relationship with Corey Miller but we shall see. UT commit Delvin Jones is visiting Arkansas and Ole Miss during the coming weeks to.  Georgia commit Nickell Robey is waiting to see who Georgia hires as their defesnive coordinator before he decide which school he will attend. It's also believed that the staff has their eyes set on a 3 sport and 3 star athlete out of Decatur, Georgia. His name is Marcques Johnson and on November 16 he states that: "Tennesse coach Orgeron has been recruiting me hard." On December 16th he said this: "I like Tennessee the best," he said. "I went down there and I love their facilities. Their facilities are about two years old so I like Tennessee. I know Alabama and Tennessee want me at cornerback and I talked to old man Kiffin and he said he'd use me at cornerback and maybe use me like Eric Berry and move me around to different spots." The next day he said: "I've been talking to Tennessee and plan on taking a visit there in January." It looks as if the recruiting front is heating up for Tennessee and i'll be sure to keep you up with the latest.

-Gorockytop

http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/basketball/story/1202354.html

Michael Beasley's attendance at a Houston-area rehabilitation center had been scheduled for weeks and is connected to a violation the Miami Heat forward committed during last summer's NBA rookie transition program.

Beasley has been in Houston for at least the past two weeks to work out, attend counseling sessions and undergo clinical treatment to help him cope with stress and substance-abuse issues, multiple sources said Tuesday.

Relatives and associates closest to Beasley, 20, said Tuesday they did not know when he would be able to leave the rehab program.

But two sources with direct knowledge of the situation, including one who has been in contact with Beasley, said the troubled but talented player is expected to be available well before the start of the Heat's training camp Sept. 28, barring any setbacks.

Heat guard Dwyane Wade used his Twitter account Tuesday night to send a message of support to Beasley.

``Everyone say a prayer for our lil brother, but please don't judge the man,'' Wade wrote. ``[We] all make mistakes, beas i'm here if you need anything fam.''

TOUGH ROAD

Avoiding missteps has been a challenge for Beasley since the Heat selected him No. 2 overall in the 2008 Draft. Beasley quickly fell under league scrutiny last August when he was among three players caught in a hotel room with unauthorized guests amid the scent of marijuana during the league's annual rookie symposium. Beasley was fined $50,000 by the NBA and also has been routinely tested for drugs since the incident.

Details of Beasley's rehab stay emerged Monday. But more information surfaced Tuesday, including confirmation he is officially in the league's substance-abuse program and was required to travel to Houston for rehab.

There was initial speculation that Beasley had checked himself into the program after he was strongly advised to do so by the Heat. It remained unclear Tuesday how many drug tests Beasley might have failed in his rookie season.

The league mandates a suspension of at least five games after a third failed drug test. Another set of concerns about Beasley surfaced Friday, when he used his since-deleted Twitter account to post comments that included suicidal references as well as a photograph that revealed what appeared to be two small bags of marijuana on a living room table.

Citing an NBA rule that disallows them to address substance-abuse matters, Heat and NBA officials declined comment.

But several spoke on Beasley's behalf, including a league source who claimed reports of Beasley being treated for depression were overblown.

Beasley's estranged father also did several radio and TV interviews Tuesday to defend his son. Michael Beasley Sr. said the birth of Beasley's daughter in May and the pressure to live up to NBA expectations were taxing.

But the elder Beasley also said his son passed recent drug tests and that if there were drugs in the Twitter photo, they did not belong to his son.

``We're just trying to figure out the best way to come together as a family,'' Beasley Sr. told 790 The Ticket. ``I can imagine it's been overwhelming for him. I know he's been under a little stress.''

Beasley's father said he has reached out to former NBA player and coach John Lucas, who runs a substance-abuse program in Houston, but that the younger Beasley could not receive calls or visits.

Other relatives have talked to Beasley on the phone and some planned to visit him in Houston. But a league source said Beasley was not in a program run by Lucas.

HEAT SUPPORT

Heat teammates Jermaine O'Neal and Mario Chalmers were supportive of Beasley, who averaged 13.9 points and 5.4 rebounds during a solid rookie season.

``What he is doing is not a negative as far as going to rehab, it's a blessing and a good thing,'' O'Neal posted on his Twitter account.

Chalmers, who was also fined by the league for his role alongside Beasley last summer, said he was surprised to learn Beasley was in a rehab facility.

``I hadn't talked to Mike in a couple of weeks,'' Chalmers said from Alaska in an interview Tuesday on Dime magazine's website. ``It kind of shocked me. But I'm sure he'll get through and he'll be fine.''

       There have been alot of rumors starting to surrond the Miami Heat. Part of the reason for all the rumors is the fact that the Celtics, Cavilers, and Magic all went out and got players and the Heat are yet to do so.  To make matters worst Dwayne Wade called out the Heat on ESPN and said that if the Heat don't start contending for championships this years he will not remain a member of the team. Since then Pat Riley(team owner) has gotten the message and has been working real hard to get some players to help out D-Wade and the Heat. One of the players the Heat may be going after is Lamar Odom. Odom was traded to the Lakers for Shaq and since then he won a championship with them. Lamar Odom is now a free agent and the Lakers recently  pulled there offer from Odom and it now appears the Heat may be trying to get him. It's belived that the Heat offered a five-year package that could be worth around $35 million.  Heres what Dwayne Wade had to say about the possibility of Lamar Odom returning to Miami: "I want Lamar to do what's best for him and his family because we love him as family, but on the other hand, we want him back home, to come home," Wade said Friday in a telephone interview. "His house is still there. It'd be exciting to see what happens." The Heat are also apparently trying to trade for Carlos Boozer. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Friday that Miami "has not entered talks ... but is monitoring" the Boozer situation. The essentials of a possible deal would include Miami sending forward Udonis Haslem(notes) and Dorrell Wright to Utah. Because Memphis is under the cap, Utah could move Wright?s $2.8 million salary to the Grizzlies and save itself approximately $5.6 million with salary and luxury-tax payments. Memphis would probably get cash and picks for its trouble. The Heat would have to send one more small contract to make the math on the salary exchange work.  Either one of these players could help the Heat tremendously. It's been said that the Heat could land both players Over the next few days expect the Heat should make a move and land player. 

 Lamar Odom

Carlos Boozer

       The Miami Heat have acquired the draft rights to Patrick Beverly, who was selected with the 42nd pick in the draft, from the L.A. Lakers in exchange for Cash and a 2011 second round draft pick. Beverly had spent two seasons in Arkansas before going to  BC Dnipro of the Ukrainian Basketball League(UBL) While there he appeared in 46 games (all starts) and averaged 16.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.15 steals and 1.35 blocks in 35.8 minutes while shooting 48.0 percent from the field, 38.0 percent from three-point range and 69.9 percent from the foul line. He also won the Slam Dunk contest in the 2009 UBL All-Star Game.

Patrick Beverly