BASKETBALL FROM A FANS PERSPECTIVE
Prairie View’s best
Zelmo Beaty died in 2013 at the age of 73 he will be enshrined in the Naismith Hall of Fame this evening. Beaty’s name might be unfamiliar to the masses but it should be. His school Prairie View A&M is a historically black college of 8,000+ students located in Prairie View (TX) which is part of the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugarland metro. The 6-9 Beaty led Prairie View to the NAIA Championship in 1962. Later in the year Beaty would become the third pick in the first round of the NBA Draft by the St. Louis Hawks and remained with the team at the time they moved to Atlanta.
There is no indication why he left the NBA however he left to play for the ABA's Utah Stars. Beaty would play for them from 1970-1974, he played one more year for the Lakers before retiring and serving as a coach for the ABA Squires. After basketball he served in the financial field and a substitute physical education teacher. Beaty died in August 2013 of cancer complications. Accolades are noteworthy and proof of your legacy, its sad the College Basketball Hall of Fame and Naismith Hall enshrinement occurred after his death.
I agree with Fraschilla
Fran Fraschilla is one of those people I hear, you ask the question there are people you don’t hear. You better bet, I must research and review large amounts of information in order to publish Word eye view. If you have been reading this blog any length of time you realize there are large numbers of “entertainers.” These are folks who probably know the game, the problem for me is they often want to include themselves as part of the story they are reporting.
As for Fraschilia a totally different situation I value his commentary regarding an athlete’s ability and his assessment of talent. He’s got the background; Fraschilia has served as head coach at three universities in addition he serves as ESPN college basketball analyst. Fraschilia is the guru for international basketball. Contacted by a Laker fan website he said; “Brando Ingram has a chance to be an elite scorer” and Ivica Zubac “was a steal at 32”.
A different history
This is one of those “what-if” stories. Phil Jackson claims in an interview Kobe Bryant almost became a Piston instead of retiring a Laker for life. PJ says the youngster was upset with his reserve role on the team and the Lakers proposed trading him for Grant Hill. Laker history would have been significantly different if the trade had occurred for both teams. Hill would retire in 2013 but let’s check facts.
After the proposed trade Hill managed to only play two seasons where he appeared in the majority of games. As many might be aware a series of injuries caused him to miss large portions of 10 seasons. As for Kobe Bryant would his star have shone as brightly in a Piston uniform? Let’s just say his play might have been close to what it became however it’s likely the five championships might not have occurred. Just my thoughts doesn’t make it correct.
Another Thon Maker?
This should not be considered fact just a report, Hamidou Diallo is a 6-4 shooting guard. This Queens (NY) youngster is the number seven prospect in Rivals Class of 2017 and a 5-star prospect. As for the NBA Draft consider this Diallo’s already graduated from Putnam Science Academy, he plans a “post-graduate” course at Putnam this year. He will be 19 by the time the 2017 NBA Draft occurs.
Questioned about his status and whether he might enter the draft he uttered one word; possibly. Over 30 schools are on his list with the majority having made an offer. The likes of Kentucky, Kansas, Louisville and Duke are just a few of the high profile programs on his radar. There is no guarantee he’s headed the “Thon Maker” route however if he does remember where you heard it first. I maintained at the time the NBA Ok’d the prep to pro route this would not be the last it would occur.
