“I’m a hater? “
Superstar players make mistakes; superstar players occasionally have average games. Often specialized defenses are set up to disrupt play, sometimes they work. Superstars at times don’t respond to post-game questions in the manner we expect. They are given a “free pass” the majority of time. How come if you offer critical remarks regarding LeBron James you are considered a hater? Sorry basketball fans I believe James is extremely talented in fact I would use the tag superstar.

Offering critical remarks on James does not make me or anybody else a hater. I have noted an unusual trend here, these same folks have been highly critical of Kobe Bryant almost to the point I could refer to them as haters. These remarks have not centered on the 36-year old Kobe, they centered on the 30-year old and 25-year old Kobe. In other words the hatred has extended throughout Kobe’s career, is there any reason LeBron receives a complimentary pass and Kobe suffers hatred? .

Bits n Pieces
A major portion of the Heat problems lie squarely on the shoulder of their point guards. I know you are going to say LeBron is the de-facto point and I can agree with that view. Do you remember back to a point last season when Mario Chalmers pointed out he was “One of the best point guards in the NBA.” Up to the present I certainly couldn’t sign off on the Chalmers’ statement. The numbers will change by the time you read this, the teams played last night. The first three games Mario Chalmers has shot .366 from the floor and has almost as many TO’s (9) as total points 10. As for his backup Norris Cole he’s shooting .266 from the floor he‘s scored 10 points and had 6 TO’s.

Despite my explanation on Wednesday I do care who the Lakers chose as their next head coach. It appears the slow response to the hire indicates the front office is taking its time. The names mentioned and my preferences in order are Lionel Hollins, Byron Scott, George Karl or Kurt Rambis. If a Nate McMillian was hired I’d be okay with that as well. I actually agree with the delay in hiring, there is no need to rush the process. Take that back the guys interviewed might not like “twisting in the wind” waiting on a front office decision.

A fan pointed out a fact I wanted to share with you, the subject was 7-footer Joel Embiid and the possibility of him becoming the number one draft pick. One writer claimed his 11 point a game freshman average wasn’t that impressive. Another pointed to the example of the Spurs Tim Duncan. Duncan was in college for four years however his freshman numbers at Wake Forest were unimpressive. Duncan scored at a 9.8 point per game clip while snatching down 9.6 rebounds. This is certainly no intent to equate Embiid with Duncan simply stated we should not become caught up in in numbers. The key for Embiid and anyone else attempting an NBA career is to maintain health and avoid injury if possible.    

I don’t remember this history version however Quin Snyder was closer to the subject than me, I‘ll just take his word. Wednesday we discussed the Jazz hiring Snyder as head and my reservations with the hire. I implied I was upset with the former Mizzou coach when he resigned in February rather than finish the season. He claims in a recent Columbia (Mo) Tribune article he was fired and didn’t resign. If Snyder is correct in his view the school certainly had a valid reason for terminating his contract.

Rivalries
Schools changing conferences have down away with a number of former rivalries. Around here it was the Kansas-Mizzou “Border War. “ As a reminder Bill Self flat out refused to play Mizzou and the Kansas chancellor affirmed the position taken by the coach. Just in case you’ve forgotten Mizzou left the Big XII Conference for the Southeastern Conference three years ago. It should be noted a number of schools disregarded the fact they were in different conferences.  Their desire was to maintain the rivalry the two had in effect for a number of years.   As an example Rutgers and Seton Hall may be among the first to renew a rivalry. 

Both teams now play in separate conferences however they will begin a home and home series. Georgetown and Syracuse two former Big East Conference rivals will also meet in a home and home series beginning in 2015. The two schools will play one another for the next 4-years; Georgetown remained in the “new” Big East while Syracuse moved to the ACC. We must assume geography plays a role in the Kansas animosity. Colorado, Texas A&M and Nebraska all former Big XII schools receive a free pass from Kansas, their anger continues to be aimed at Mezzo alone. .

He wears a size 20 shoe
I remember Shaquille O’Neal’s signed with Reebok at the time he arrived in the NBA. I don’t remember if his shoe was the largest the company ever manufactured it was huge. One of the shoe stores her had a display model and I couldn’t believe the size or weight of the shoe when I picked it up. That was then this is now, Kentucky had to order a size 20 for one of its incoming basketball player. He’s not as gigantic as Shaq however freshman Karl Towns Jr. stands 6-11 and weighs 248 pounds. We have no idea at this point how this freshman will impact the Kentucky program one thing for sure we know he’s got big feet. I’d mentioned previously the Wildcats will certainly be the tallest collegiate team in the nation. All three cannot play at the same time but Kentucky’s’ front court could be quite imposing. In addition to Towns Jr. fellow freshman Trey Lyles is 6-10 and 255 pounds. Returning from last season is Willie Cauley-Stein who stands 7-0 tall and weighs in at 244 pounds.