Basketball from a fans perspective
He’s in the draft
It appears Zhou Qi is headed to the NBA; the second priority for the 7-2 Qi is to gain weight he’s only got 212 pounds packed on his slender frame. That’s not to say he can’t play Kristaps Porzingis arrived “light in the pants” and managed to survive his first year in the NBA. Porzingis was a little heavier at 230 pounds I might add to the discussion. How does Qi rate on the NBA’s radar you might ask? Mock draft site draftExpress.com has Qi as the 27th pick in the first round. NBADraft.net has him the 16th pick in the second round. If drafted he certainly will arrive in the NBA with less fanfare than fellow countryman Yao Ming.
Shocked--better believe it
Often when a news event is concluded I say to myself; “I figured that would be the decision.” There are other occasions I’m downright shocked when a decision or judgment is rendered. This is one of those times; the NBA cleared 7-1 Thon Maker for the 2016 NBA Draft. If you remember the story age was not an issue Maker had already turned 19. The question involved his high school graduation of 2015 although he was technically in school. This is what I’ve discovered Maker did indeed graduate last June however he spent this year in “prep school." I’d written earlier Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports said Maker would require extensive time in the D-League.
There is no disagreement on Maker’s work ethic he appears driven to improve his game. The NBA ruling could prove a “slippery slope” for the NBA going forward. Could we see others believing they were talented enough attempt the same route. The fear of injury probably contributes to the rush to be paid. You certainly could be hurt playing at any level but why take a chance in college or Europe when you can just “sit” for a year. I’m not saying this scenario will play out in the future but it easily could. The NBA should either change the rule and allow high school players in the draft again or have a similar case play out in the future.
Working with youngsters
In a bit of surprising news to yours truly Kobe Bryant indicates “he’s going to work with the youngsters.” I guess I could see him in training camp working with the guards especially. What I find most interesting is the Kobe haters always say; “I don’t like him cause he’s arrogant.” Tell haters who was any more arrogant and aloof than Michael Jordan? Everybody can’t be Steph Curry or LeBron James, despite errors in his life he kept it real on the court. He made no bones about being an assassin, “I’m gonna bust down the door and force you to respect me on the basketball court.”
Canadian basketball
On more than one occasion Words eye view has mentioned the growth of basketball in Canada. Without conducting any sort of survey I’m sure NHL hockey is number one followed by CFL football. Based on the numbers of Canadian players playing in U.S. colleges’ basketball in Canada might be more popular than the baseball Bluejays.
Notice I said may be more popular just a view which may or may not be correct. In any event the number one college prospect in 2016 is yet to make his commitment that would be Thon Maker. He’s the 7-1 210 pound do everything player, he’s at Orangeville Prep in Orangeville Ontario. As for others these are names of note and their commitment:
Justin Jackson 6-8 210 pound forward UNLV
Isiaha Mike 6-8 200 pound forward Duquesne
Koby McEwen 6-3 175 pound guard Utah State
Eddie Ekiyor 6-8 215 pound forward Xavier
The disclaimer this is no indicator of future success by any of the names mentioned including Maker. This is intended to provide further proof of the growth of high school basketball in Canada.
NOTE: Prior to publication Thon Maker announced his intention to submit his name for the 2016 NBA Draft.
