Happy Friday friends, we are now in our third region of the Bracket as we head to the South Region. Please vote at the Sports Stew with Drew facebook page, @stewdrew on twitter #bestathlete. Or can even respond with your votes below the sports stew with drew youtube page in the comments section. I will tally them all up. Anyways to the South Region!
1 Tom Brady Vs 16 Victor Hedman
Tom Brady (Buccaneers Football) 2020 Season 4,633 yards, 40 touchdowns, 12 interceptions. Overview: Benjamin Button I mean Tom Brady just won his seventh Super Bowl championship. To put that into perspective he’s one more Super Bowl away from doubling the next closest quarterback on the all time list (Bradshaw, Montana). Doubt Brady at your own peril, I quit doubting Tommy touchdowns a long time ago.
16 Victor Hedman (Lighting Hockey) 2021 Season 3 goals, 9 assists, 12 points. Overview: Victor Hedman is widely regarded as the best defenceman in all of hockey for the best team in all of Hockey. Get comfortable people because Champa Bay will be on this list quite a bit. Think if the Rays won the World Series, Tampa would have 3/4 of the current team sports championships. Tampa is currently plotting for an NBA expansion team, haha jk.
8 Nikita Kucherov Vs 9 Ronald Acuna
Nikita Kucherov (Lighting Hockey) 2021 Season out for injury, 2020 Season 38 goals, 37 assists, 85 points. Overview: Nikita Kucherov is going to miss the 2021 regular season due to injury but we cannot leave the best player on the best hockey team off this list. Kucherov won the 2019 Hart Trophy and was a beast in the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs. Hope is Kucherov will be back for the playoffs and the Lighting are still the team to beat once the playoffs begin especially when Kucherov returns.
Ronald Acuna (Braves Baseball) 2020 Season .250 average 14 homeruns, 29 RBI. 2019 Season .280 average, 41 homeruns, 101 RBI. Overview: Just barely 23 years young Ronald Acuna may be the best young player in baseball. Acuna almost had a 40-40 season in 2019 and no one is doubting his ability to join Barry Bonds, Jose Canseco and Alex Rodriguez on that short list. Well maybe you don’t want to be on a list with those three but would be an awesome accomplishment anyways!
5 Derrick Henry Vs 12 Trae Young
Derrick Henry (Titans Football) 2020 Season 2,027 yards rushing, 17 touchdowns. Overview: The best pure running back in all of football Derrick Henry was able to accomplish one of the best feats in all of football. A 2,000 yard rushing season. What Henry did for all of the running backs in football is prove that the big money is still worth giving to the right back. We do not expect Henry to slow down anytime soon, watch out for that stiff arm!
Trae Young (Hawks Basketball) 2021 Season 26.7 ppg, 9.2 assists, 42.2 fg%. Overview: In his third season in the NBA Trae Young is finally starting to get some recognition for his ability to lead a team to respectability. Young’s Hawks are currently 7th in the Eastern Conference and Young’s ability to shoot the basketball from anywhere on the court cannot be ignored or taken lightly.
4 Jimmy Butler Vs 13 Christian McCaffrey
Jimmy Butler (Heat Basketball) 2021 Season 18.8 ppg, 6.9 rebounds, 6.8 assists. Overview: Some may ask why Butler is so high on this list I say go and see what Butler did with a young Miami Heat team in the bubble. As the number five seed in the East Butler willed his Heat team to the Finals and nearly pushed Lebron’s Lakers to the brink for a Championship. Sometimes stats do not tell the whole story.
Christian McCaffrey (Panthers Football) 225 yards rushing, 149 yards receiving, 6 touchdowns. Overview: The only reason why Christian McCaffrey is even rated this low this year is because of his injury plagued 2020 Season. However, McCaffrey in only three games still had 374 yards and 6 touchdown after having 2,392 total yards in 2019. McCaffrey is still one of the best all around backs in all of football.
6 Deshaun Watson Vs 11 Andrei Vasilevskiy
Alvin Kamara (Saints Football) 2020 Season 932 yards rushing, 756 yards receiving, 21 touchdowns. Overview: Alvin Kamara might be the most versatile running back in all of football with his ability to run, catch, return kicks, he could maybe play some safety too on defense. Alvin Kamara’s nickname to some will be the present man for his 6 touchdown game on Christmas Day which won many in the country their fantasy football championship.
Andrei Vasilevskiy (Lighting Hockey) 2021 Season 1.80 goals allowed per game. Overview: Sports Stew with Drew has to appreciate the best goal tender on the best team in hockey and Vasilevskiy is holding true to his status in 2021 allowing under 2 goals per game so far this season. The Lighting have only lost one regulation game all season so far and a big reason why is their elite goaltending.
3 Freddie Freeman Vs 14 Zion Williamson
Freddie Freeman (Braves Baseball) 2020 Season .341 average, 13 Homeruns, 53 RBI. 2019 Season .295 average, 38 homeruns, 121 RBI. Overview: A rare elite baseball player that was just as awesome in 2020 as he normally is Freddie Freeman won his first MVP award in the 2020 Season. The Braves are known to have one of the best offenses in all of baseball and Freeman you know will be batting 2nd or 3rd every night and right in the middle of the action for Bravos.
7 Justin Verlander Vs 10 Alvin Kamara
Justin Verlander (Astros Baseball) 2020 Season 1-0 3.00 ERA, 2019 Season 21-6, 2.58 ERA. Justin Verlander recently had Tommy John Surgery and is expected to miss a portion the 2021 Season but I still cannot hold him off the list. Recent success from many pitchers shows that Verlander will certainly be back to an elite status when he returns. In 2019 Verlander won the cy young award with a ridiculous by today’s standards 223 innings pitched and 300 strikeouts.
Alvin Kamara (Saints Football) 2020 Season 932 yards rushing, 756 yards receiving, 21 touchdowns. Overview: Alvin Kamara might be the most versatile running back in all of football with his ability to run, catch, return kicks, he could maybe play some safety too on defense. Alvin Kamara’s nickname to some will be the present man for his 6 touchdown game on Christmas Day which won many in the country their fantasy football championship.
2 Luka Doncic Vs 15 Alex Bregman
Luka Doncic (Mavericks Basketball) 2021 Season 27.8 ppg, 8.7 rebounds, 9.3 assists. Overview: Luka Doncic was the early vote by many for MVP in 2021 and even though his Mavs are off to a slow start Doncic is still having a monster season. Doncic ability to score and distribute is like nothing we’ve ever seen from a player this early in his career. If the Mavs can build more of a supporting cast around Doncic look out. Doncic is still only 21 years young!
15 Alex Bregman (Astros Baseball) 2020 Season .242 average, 6 homeruns, 22 RBI. 2019 Season, .296 average, 41 homeruns, 112 RBI. Overview: As the story goes with many of baseball’s best 2020 was an odd year to say the least. Alex Bregman was an absolute beast at the dish in his previous two seasons. Expect Bregman to get back to his .290 average and 30-35 homerun range in 2021 where his career norms were before the 2020 Season.