Basketball from a fans perspective

Prepare yourself
I have no broadcast experience, I believe as host of a program you must be prepared to defend the position you take as effectively as possible.  In this instance it was clear to me ESPN’s Mike Greenberg was not prepared for this interview and discussion.  In a conversation with former Spurs center David Robinson on his program Greenberg said; “There are no more back to the basket centers in the NBA” which is not totally true.  We can state a smaller number of Big Men play in today’s game but they haven’t disappeared all together.  Example the Spurs Tim Duncan will go down in history as the all-time best power forwards however he’s really a center.

There are others we could include in this discussion the Kings Boogie Cousins, Andre Drummond of the Pistons and Hassan Whiteside of the Heat.  If the center position is no longer required why was Karl-Anthony Towns chosen number one and Jahlil Okafor number three in the 2015 draft?  The Clippers DeAndre Jordan can’t shoot free-throws nor can he shoot further than 10 feet from the basket.  Despite his limits he’s got to be counted in our collection of centers strictly because he‘s a rim protector.  Those mentioned are just a few of the centers who play an important role on their respective teams.  Mr. Greenberg everybody in the NBA is not playing “small-ball” as you might perceive.  Next time you get into a discussion with David Robinson please arrive better prepared.  

Recruiting
The 21st century according to the Gregorian calender began January 1, 2001.  We moved into another century which brought about change.  New inventions of the 21st Century also led to changes in basketball recruiting.  The days of a head coach or assistants sitting in the family room have become outdated.  Unless we‘ve been the parent of a student-prospect its likely we haven’t realized the change.  Don’t misunderstand personal contact remains the most effective method to recruit however social media is used.  Snapchat, twitter, tumbler and instagram are just a few of the tools used to recruit talent today.  As younger coaches begin replacing those in their 60’s and 70’s we’ll see even more use of social media as other modes come into use.  A number of coaches might have first witnessed a prospect on YouTube rather than in person.

Bits n Pieces
I’ve stated on more than one occasion I believed Steph Curry has become the face of the NBA.  I further said “He’s replaced LeBron James as the face of the NBA.”  Now I’m not so sure, if your name (Steph) is mentioned every 20 minutes on ESPN it’s easy to see how we might come to this conclusion despite the fact it might not be true.

I thought it worth mentioning Brad Stevens again.  The guy has broken the pattern; remember the observation “The NBA is not for college coaches they cannot coach at this level.”  The former Butler coach has re-invigorated the Celtics; they won 40 games last season and have won 32 at the All-Star break.  They will eclipse last seasons win total and are a playoff caliber team again.

Thanks but no thanks, that’s my response to ESPN’s Kevin Pelton.  He writes “would Lakers or Celtics consider trading for James Harden.”  Harden is a “black-hole” the ball disappears once it’s passed to him and its dribble for 15 to 18 seconds of the clock before Harden shots or passes the ball to a teammate.