Basketball savvy

Kansas fans would do well to read SI.com Seth Davis's latest column. Davis is stating with conviction and very eloquently many of the same views I'd expressed earlier. There is a prevailing thought by the Kansas faithful that when Big 12 breaks up conferences will come rushing after Kansas. I'm not going to steal Davis's thunder read it for yourself. People unfamiliar with the area are sometimes confused, you state "I'm from Kansas City" and their usual response is "you live in Kansas right?" That conclusion is totally incorrect however if you were to leave any location in metro Kansas City Missouri and drive 15-20 minutes you're in Kansas. In addition Kansas City Missouri is about 45 miles from Lawrence Kansas home of the Jayhawks and that's the problem. A percentage of the populace even on the Missouri side are KU fans, these I contend are "brain-damaged" they don't realize what side of the state line they live in.

The strange saga of Greg Oden

After reading the first report on high school player Greg Oden I looked forward to his appearance on ESPN later that season. I try to refrain my praise about high school big men, most often their competition is not as talented as they are. Once Oden enrolled at Ohio State I watched every game available to view his development. Although I could clearly see he was talented he appeared extremely raw at times. In truth I can state I wasn't real surprised when he chose to enter his name in the 2007 NBA draft. The Blazers had the first draft choice but who should they choose? Their choices were the Texas scoring machine Kevin Durant or the 7-0 285 Greg Oden. NBA logic is "draft the big man" which resulted in the selection of Oden, Durant was selected second by the Seattle Sonics. You know the balance of the story although drafted in 2007 he's managed to play just 2 full years in the NBA and in neither did he come close to 82 games. Injury on top of injury have continued to plague this young man since his arrival in the NBA. The question might be asked can he play, after being drafted in 2007 he missed the entire 2007-2008 season. The following year ('08-'09) he managed to play in 61 games before injuries once again forced him to the sidelines. The 2009-2010 Oden was limited to 21 games, 2010-2011 0 games. You can definitely see a pattern here despite the limited number of games he's played when fully healthy he's been a defensive center with a limited offensive game. Folks continue to mention him in the same breath as LaRue Martin or Sam Bowie which I think is unfair.

Continuing international updates

Thanks to Draft Express I was able to discover Steven Adams. Adams is a 6-11 240 pound center from Wellington New Zealand, this talented athlete will be playing for Jamie Dixon at Pitt in 2012-13. Interesting that Adams admits he's never visited Pennsylvania but his brother played basketball with him in New Zealand. I was unsure how much basketball was played in the nation so I did an internet search. The National Basketball League (New Zealand) has been in existence since 1982 and currently has 9 teams in the league. The Auckland Stars have been the most successful team winning 9 championships since the league was founded. In a nation dominated by soccer and rugby basketball has managed to gain a toe hold. (Google)

The downhill side

Over the course of this summer I'm sure you read many of the same stories I have one in particular Kobe "Bean" Bryant is on the downhill side of his career, "he'll never play at the level he once did." At age 33 Bryant's knees, legs and feet have absorbed a great deal of wear and tear over other athletes of a similar age. The Lakers with few exceptions have played deep into the playoffs during the course of his NBA career. Bryant has played well into June most years of his illustrious career. The Lakers didn't defend their NBA Championship but it wasn't entirely Bryant's fault the team after successive championships appeared to run out of gas. I can't predict the future with any degree of accuracy but I can make this statement with assurance. When the NBA season opens Bryant will be there, in addition he will compete at a high skill level. 5x NBA Champion, 2x NBA Finals MVP, NBA Most Valuable Player and so many more highlights and awards. In the 5th year of his retirement Bryant will be enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame that's fact.

It's funny

This story is not funny ha-ha but funny how a persons perspective might change after time. Louisiana State University honored Shaquille O'Neal recently by erecting and dedicating a statue in his honor. Earlier he'd expressed to Clearwater patch two of the three highlights in his NBA career were as a member of the Lakers. "When I scored 61 points on my birthday (March 6, 2000, against the L.A. Clippers); winning the three-peat (from 2000-02 wearing a Lakers uniform); and winning the championship with Miami (in 2006)." I was as upset with him as I was Kobe at the time that team was broken up, I really thought they could have won 2 maybe 3 more championships. As you can see Shaq looks back on his Laker years with fondness I'm anxious for his jersey to be retired at Staples Center. (Los Angeles Times, September 9, 2011)

 

"Some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple."Barry Switzer former Oklahoma football coach