While this week was slightly less dramatic than last week, the world of sports still saw plenty of action. The home team continued to dominate both the NBA and NHL Playoffs. Kyle Busch continued to dominate the track. The Marlins, Penguins and Red Wings suddenly cannot lose. The Tigers, Mariners, Reds and Padres cannot win. The Yankees near the basement, while the Twins and A’s lead their divisions. We saw Joey Votto hit three bombs in one game, Carlos Gomez hit for the cycle and Greg Maddux, a sure first ballot Hall of Famer, become only the ninth pitcher in MLB history to win 350 games. Manchester United furthered their dominance of the soccer world. Without further ado, here are this week’s award winners.

Kobe Bryant: RootZoo Athlete of the Week

Kobe seems to be a favorite here at RootZoo, seemingly winning every week he is nominated. This past week, Kobe was officially named the NBA Most Valuable Player. He even showed us his lighter side, but joking around with Luke Walton during the press conference. In winning once at home and losing twice on the road against Utah, Kobe proved why he is the MVP, averaging 33.6 points, 7.6 assists and 7.3 rebounds. Congratulations, Kobe Bryant!

Special thanks and recognition to John Challis, who provided us with an inspiring story of courage amidst cancer. It is remarkable that he finished second to Kobe Bryant this week, out of all the athletes in the world. He gave us COURAGE + BELIEVE = LIFE! Thanks also to Blazzter, who provided us with the story, A Tale of Courage: One Last At Bat. Congrats to John on his pinch-hit single during Freedom's varsity baseball game on April 14th! Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your loved ones. We admire your strength and selflessness. We consider the way you have put life into perspective for us all. You have already touched so many people, and this week you touched the RootZoo population in a way this site has never seen. We thank you.

Florida Marlins: RootZoo Team of the Week

***A special thanks to apandey this week for the following writeup about the RootZoo Team of the Week:

After trading away their prized 3b Miguel Cabrera and their ace pitcher "D-train" Willis to Motown, many projected the Marlins to finish last in a NL East that was reserved for the Mets, Phillies, and Braves to contend for. But the Fighting Fish, as with previous seasons, continue to prove the experts wrong; and this season seems to be no exception. The young and talented Florida Marlins are currently riding a 7-game win streak by going 6-0 this week and now have 1st place in the NL East as well as the best record in MLB at 23-14. The reason behind this amazing winning streak is due to great starting pitching from studs like Andrew Miller, who went 2-0 this week with a 1.38 ERA and a WHIP of 0.69, and Scott Olsen, as well as great support from their bullpen thanks to guys like their closer Kevin Gregg. The Marlins also got great run support from a stacked line-up that consists of studs such as 2b Dan Uggla and their premier SS Hanley Ramirez, who batted .562 this week. If the Fish continue to play like this the rest of the season, don't be surprised if you see them representing the NL in the Fall Classic come late October.

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WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS

RootOff of the Week

Gold Medal (+500 points): AgentZer00 and jboskoff I Edinson Volquez has been the best pitcher in the MLB in 2008 I 45 Voting Points

Silver Medal (+250 points): dikembe1 and TOUR I Create a non-HOF all time MLB roster I 35 Voting Points

Bronze Medal (+100 points): Tie (30 Voting Points)

Brewersfan21 and Sketch I Best #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft since 1988 I

Siegert4 and bballer2295 I THIS SEASON ONLY, best players at each position I

Honorable mention to other top nominees: Dino301 and AndrewColtsfan18 (15), HotSpurFC and dikembe1 (5)

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­­­­­­­­­­­­­Poll of the Week

Gold Medal (+500 points): AgentZer00 I Best NBA Playoff Game Since 2000 I 35 Voting Points

Silver Medal (+250 points): Tie (30 Voting Points)

Sketch I Which of these matchup against great athletes would you most likely win? I

rrileybc I Which of these athletes is more likely to have NEVER taken steroids? I

Bronze Medal (+100 points): Tie (25 Voting Points)

Smokindadozer I RootZoo Injuries: Which one is more Serious? I

mariners4 I You are a GM for a NBA team, the NBA has granted you permission to put six players on the court versus one of these players I

Thread of the Week

Gold Medal (+500 points): Tie (30 Voting Points)

Joe I NBA top 10 duos of 2007-2008 I

wpm5587 I What athlete fits your personality more? I

Silver Medal (+250 points): BronxBlogger I RootZoo Rosters I 20 Voting Points

Bronze Medal (+100 points): GR81 I Underrated to Overrated I 15 Voting Points

Honorable mention to other top nominees: wpm5587 (10), HoustonTexansPride (5), chg (0)
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Article of the Week

Gold Medal (+500 points): fantasyyankees123 I Sports and Their Effect On Life I 45 Voting Points

Silver Medal (+250 points): Hippeaux I The Shrinking Strike Zone I 30 Voting Points

Bronze Medal (+100 points): Tie (25 Voting Points)

baseballnerd423 I Frustration, Grow Up People I

Saints Are Like Whah I Gifts For the Famous Sports Moms I

Special K I Special K's Monthly Math: April I

Honorable mention to other top nominees: abence22 (10), rrileybc (5), PiratesFan123 (5), SoCalBengalsFan (0)
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Some RootZoo News

1) I'd like to request that the threads asking for a root in order to play where you're required to make a difficult prediction be put to an end. The root is meant for rewarding members for something thought provoking, funny, or otherwise positive and should be used for this purpose. Any artificial roots (such as the cost for admission to a game) toy with the integrity of something that many members value as a symbol of achievement and hard work.

2) Look for the launch of our videos section REALLY soon...that's all I'll say about it for now. You'll also see a couple small changes in the site's layout when our videos section hits.

3) As of tonight (Monday, May 12th), a new Daily Challenge tradition will take effect. Each day, the first place finisher in the Daily Challenge will win him/herself a free RootZoo Store t-shirt. The first place finisher will be determined by the person with the most correct answers for the day, even if they haven't gotten every question right. In the event that two people have the same amount of correct answers, the person with the higher winning percentage will get the prize. In the event that two people have the same number of wins for the day AND the same winning percentage, the tiebreak will carry through to the next day where the person who finishes better that day will win the shirt. Additionally, someone who wins the contest two days in one week (week defined by the 6 days that follow the date of their win) will win a $100 Amazon.com Gift Certificate in addition to the shirts.

4) We've recently partnered with the Break Men's Ad Network, so in the coming days (once we get the ads running), you'll be seeing less of the "Man eats spider" ads and more ads that cater to the brands that many of you already enjoy.

5) Our upcoming trivia section is making some nice progress on the developmental end and we'll be shooting to bring that to the site next.

6) The MLB Pick 'Em Challenge leaderboard will be posted by Wednesday. The "Overall" MLB pick 'em leaderboard will show the standings for the contest that'll be sending its winner to the All-Star game in New York.

7) Another surprise section will begin development within the next week, and I'll share more details once we're closer to its completion.