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Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week they discuss the Philadelphia 76ers, Gregg Popovich, Royal and Ancient Golf Club and Bill Belichick. Bruce Arthur, National Post My thumb is up to the Philadelphia 76ers, proud possessors of a win streak for the first time since two weeks before the Olympics began. Any task worth doing is worth doing with commitment, and while you can argue whether tanking to get a good draft pick should be worth doing, thats the system, and the Sixers have been crafting a masterpiece. Before Saturday night they had lost 26 in a row, 29 of 30, and 36 of 39, and 27 straight losses would have a set a new record for consecutive defeats. But Saturday in Philly, the Sixers pulled one out, blowing out the hapless Detroit Pistons by 25 and getting a standing ovation. It was a raft in an ocean, a blip in the sky. But now, no matter what, they can say this: it could have been worse. Steve Simmons, Sun Media My thumb is up to Gregg Popovich, who just might be the greatest coach in the history of professional sport. And I dont say that lightly with terrific respect for the work done by Scotty Bowman and Phil Jackson and Bill Belichick, and yeah, certainly Vince Lombardi. Put your championships aside for a moment - this is the 15th straight season in which Popovichs San Antonio Spurs have won between 50 and 63 games in the NBA. To put that into perspective, thats the same number of 50-win seasons combined over that time that the Knicks, Celtics, Bulls, Warriors, Nets, Wizards, Pacers, 76ers, Bobcats, Hawks, and Raptors have won. Having Tim Duncan helps. But Duncan at 37 is slowing down. Heading to another 60 win season, Gregg Popovich doesnt seem to be. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated My thumb is up to the R&A, for finally entering a new century. The 20th. The Royal and Ancient is urging its membership to allow women to become members of the venerable St. Andrews golf club in Scotland when it votes in September. This is a mere 260 years after the home of golf was founded, which qualifies as progress. Two other courses in the Open Championship rotation, Muirfield and Royal St. Georges, have yet to tiptoe down this perilous path to equality. By comparison, the nice gentlemen at Augusta National, which started accepting female members in 2012 - hello, Condoleeza Rice! - look like wild-eyed progressives. Dave Hodge, TSN My thumb is up to New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick, for making me seem less crazy than others think I am. I have been saying for years that the complexities of video review are confusing and unnecessary, and that a better system would be a very simple system that allows anything to be challenged. And no less an authority than Belichick is leading a push in this direction in the NFL. Never mind "this can be challenged under certain circumstances, but not that under any circumstances"--as Belichick says, "if a coach thinks his team has been victimized by a bad call, he should be able to question it, and its up to him to use the limited number of challenge flags with that in mind." As I say, "challenges might actually be fewer--same with wrong calls--and replay rules would be simpler. You can challenge those assumptions, but Bill Belichick wont. Cheap Mavericks Jerseys Authentic . - Mike Magee converted two penalty kicks in a 10-minute span of the first half and the Chicago Fire beat Sporting Kansas City 2-1 on Sunday. Cheap Mavericks Jerseys .Bacca took advantage of Cristian Alvarezs hesitation to head a lobbed pass over the goalkeeper and then used his feet to roll the ball into an empty net in the eighth minute. The Colombia strikers 10th goal pulled him level with Lionel Messi as the leagues third-leading scorers, far behind Cristiano Ronaldos runaway tally of 23 goals. http://www.cheapmavericksjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-deandre-jordan-jersey . -- Ryan Gropp scored in overtime as the Seattle Thunderbirds shut out the Spokane Chiefs 1-0 in Western Hockey League play Tuesday. Cheap Mavericks Jerseys China . The Argentine midfielder made the announcement himself on Twitter on Tuesday and posted a picture of his swollen left foot. His message said he would be out "at least three weeks. Jason Kidd Jersey . TSNs Farhan Lalji reports the Edmonton Eskimos non-import DT has a workout scheduled with an NFL team next week and isnt expected to sign a deal with any team until then. GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Lambeau Field faithful will be able to scream Kuuuuuuuuuhn! at the top of their lungs for at least another year. Veteran fullback and local folk hero John Kuhn re-signed with the Green Bay Packers on Thursday, general manager Ted Thompson said in a statement. The one-year deal is expected to be worth just over $1 million, including signing, roster and workout bonuses, agent Kevin Gold said. The 31-year-old Kuhn joined the Packers in 2007 when he was claimed off waivers from Pittsburgh. Hes played in 107 regular-season games with the Packers and hes become a fan favourite. Hes also one of quarterback Aaron Rodgers closest friends on the team. "Great player, great teammate," Rodgers said at the end of the 2013 season. "(Theres) nobody I trust more on the field than John. Hes an exceptional guy, I love playing with him, and Id be really sad if we werent able to walk out of that tunnel together." In 2013, Kuhn carried 10 times for 38 yards and a touchdown, and caught 13 passes for 81 yards in regular-season play. For his eight-year NFL career, Kuhn has only 165 carries for 506 yards and 12 TDs. What role Kuhn will play next season is unclear. Packers coach Mike McCarthy said last week he wants all his running backs to be able to play all three downs. In addition to Kuhn, the Packers have NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Eddie Lacy returning for his second season; James Starks coming back after signing a two-year, $3.dddddddddddd166 million deal ($725,000 guaranteed signing bonus); and DuJuan Harris (knee) and Johnathan Franklin (neck) both expected to return to full health. They also brought back Michael Hill, who spent time on both the 53-man roster and the practice squad last year before signing with Tampa Bay late in the year. The Packers are loaded in the backfield. "Its important for all of them to be three-down players," McCarthy said. "For the way we want to play on offence, we want players to be three-down players, we want to keep our substitution limited. Thats an off-season goal of ours." At this point, no one pass protects for Rodgers like Kuhn, who helped save the Packers season by getting enough of a block on now-teammate Julius Peppers to allow Rodgers to side-step the Chicago defensive end and throw the winning touchdown pass to Randall Cobb in the regular-season finale. That road victory over the Bears sent the Packers into the playoffs. Asked what it takes to be an effective third-down back, McCarthy made it clear what still matters the most. "A-No. 1, it is pass protection. We protect the quarterback," McCarthy said. "Hes a franchise quarterback, hes the best football player on our team, and we have to protect him. Checkdowns will (also) be an emphasis for us. Because were very young with that group." But with a whole lot of returning experience in Kuhn. 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