Basketball from a fans perspective                                                                                                                                                                                                 Bits n Pieces
Udoka Azubuike the 7-foot 280 pound center from Nigeria by way of Jacksonville (FL) is sidelined for the season.  The Kansas freshman recently tore ligaments in his left wrist during practice. Since I’m a ’glass half full guy rather than half empty’ allow me to place a positive spin on what might appear to be a negative outcome.  Azibuike had moved into the starting lineup and it’s likely he would have remained there.  At the conclusion of the season he might attempt to head for the NBA however I doubt it after this setback. Azubuike needs at least one year of competitive basketball before declaring he’s NBA ready.      

I missed Mike Dunleavy Sr. while conducting our head count earlier.  We covered NBA coaches who returned to the college level to coach.  Avery Johnson coaching at Alabama immediately comes to mind. Lon Kruger at Oklahoma has also coached in the NBA.  Until he resigned before the start of the season we could have included Larry Brown who left the SMU job.  Dunleavy Sr. had been out of the NBA coaching ranks since 2010.  In 2016 he took over the Tulane Green Wave.  

I’ve been guilty of offering platitudes of praise on high school prospects but this time its criticism and it’s warranted.  In a recent game the youngest of the three Ball brothers LiAngelo sank a half court shot.  Chino Hills (CA) was not in danger of losing nor was it taken at the end of a close game.  This shot was taken at the beginning of the 4th quarter of Chino Hills’ game and the coach did NOTHING!  I have no desire to seriously injure the young man however if he drove the lane after that hot dog move I would instruct my team to make sure he is fouled HARD!    

Two might be better
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer dropped a tidbit in the fall about Staples Center.  He indicated his displeasure with available play dates for his Clippers.  Ballmer said his team was last on the list, it is believed to be Lakers, NHL Kings, others and Clippers in that order.  Ballmer also said he’d explore building his own arena.  Well the guy has certainly got the money to do just that and it makes sense.  Two New City teams playing in two arenas, the Knicks at MSG and the Nets at Barclays Center.  Once upon a time the teams played in different arenas too.  Prior to Staples the Lakers played in the Great Western Forum from 1967-1999 and the Clippers called the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena home starting in 1984-1999.  

The Honda Center in Anaheim was used by the Clippers for selected games between 1994-1999.  I might be incorrect however I believe the Clippers were the last tenant to sign a Staples Center lease.  The Honda Center is ready made and only a few years older (1993) than Staples but there is a problem with the Clippers moving there.  The NHL Ducks play in the arena and the Clippers would place themselves in second place for dates if they were attempting to secure more lucrative dates. Three solutions for Mr. Ballmer, 1.  Build your own arena.  2.  Less expensive is to move the team to the Honda Center.  3.  Re-locate the Clippers to Seattle Ballmer’s home town.  There might be other options but those listed appear most viable, what do you think?

Oh my
Another coach I’ve been highly critical of is worthy of praise to this point of the season.  I didn’t expect much at the time the Rockets announced they were hiring Mike D’Antoni as head coach. It’s been a few years since he quit the Lakers over a contract extension so I don’t remember much. What I do remember especially from his days with the Suns was a high powered offense run by Steve Nash.  The Suns excelled during the regular season but never advance once the playoffs began.  In any event one of his first pronouncements caused me to laugh out loud.  

‘Say what, you moving James Harden to the point?’  The same Harden who never saw a shot he didn’t like I thought.  This was prior to the start of the season so I checked Harden’s assist numbers from last season and surprise, surprise they were much higher than I anticipated.  As this is written Harden is leading the NBA in assists at 11.9 but also a volume scorer (27.4).  The Rockets as this is written stand 22 up and 9 down.  The more surprising fact in third place in the Western Conference they are ahead of the Clippers, Grizzlies and Thunder.