Mark Twain

This quote is attributed to him. "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on it's shoes." The link is from the Miami Herald, and before you do keep in mind Frank Haith might indeed be guilty! The problem believing the statements of a convicted felon offering no proof other then his word I find difficult. I'm on the side of truth no matter the outcome. By the way remember "balloon boy?"
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/09/02/2385623/um-hoops-player-dequan-jones-mom.html

Basketball in the great north

Last week in our discussion of Canadian basketball I overlooked Sim and Tanveer Bhullar. In an earlier story I detailed how his parents emigrated to Canada from India. Sim (7-5 338 pounds) had committed earlier to Xavier (OH) he's now switched to New Mexico State University due to an eligibility issue. Credits from Canada to the United States were not all honored he would have been enrolled but ineligible to play in the 2011-12 season. He was led to New Mexico State due to it's lower tuition and the five Canadians on the roster several he was acquainted with. Ineligible to play might be a blessing in disguise, Sim towers over his competitors and is a standout on offense and defense. The problem, at 7-5 there were probably few in high school who could really challenge him. Other than playing high school talent the other issue might be his conditioning he appears a little slow moving up and down the court.

While researching information on the brothers Bhullar I came across a story I thought might detail the continued growth of the international game. There are 4 boys and 4 girls from India training at IMG Academy in Bradenton Florida for three months. One of the players is 7-1 242 pound Satnam Singh Bhamara who is all of 14-years of age. He was spotted along with the other kids by IMG coaches on a visit to India, Satnam's dad is 7-2 and paternal granddad 6-9. At age 14 it's extremely difficult to determine if he's headed to the NBA, at this stage college is not guaranteed. It proves one point the game continues to grow in popularity around the globe. (NDTV.com, August 27, 2011 & Yardbarker.com August 25, 2011)

Is it broken?

Stan Van Gundy is a nice enough guy, I'm unsure if his view is correct. He says in a CBSSports.com column "the NCAA should drop the myth about amateurism and education." I'm sure his response was based on the improprieties at the University of Miami and earlier at Ohio State. It seems every year a major institution is caught with it's hand in the cookie jar, Southern Cal and Reggie Bush and O.J. Mayo. Van Gundy says "do away with all the rules" which sounds simple but could open a gigantic can of worms. Maybe the amateur system is broken beyond repair and the NCAA cannot properly police member institutions. In fairness to the NCAA they have a limited enforcement staff to oversee scores of football and basketball programs. The NCAA must depend a great deal on the institutions to maintain policies in keeping with the guidelines. Unfortunately the failure to win often forces schools to cheat, students, alumni, boosters and university presidents all want winning programs no matter the cost.

The Chief

I saw a Robert Parrish interview on NBA TV the other evening and his comments were interesting. We think of Parrish we routinely see him in Celtic Green and automatically all those Celtic Championships come to mind. He reminded the host the Celtics didn't originally draft him the credit goes to the Golden State Warriors. My research pointed to the fact he played from 1976-1980 before he was traded to the Celtics. What did Parrish accomplish, 4X NBA Champion, NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team and enshrinement in the Basketball Hall of Fame.  "His nickname was "The Chief", after the fictitious Chief Bromden, a silent, giant Native American character in the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. According to Parish, former Celtics forward Cedric Maxwell gave Parish this nickname because of his stoic nature." (Wikipedia)

The time is always right to do what is right.
Martin Luther King, Jr.