Basketball from a fans perspective
Big Man’s Kryptonite
Fans of Superman Man of Steel are already aware; kryptonite was the only method to defeat him. The free-throw line is not made of the fictional radioactive material but it might as well be. A significant number of NBA Big Men have exhibited poor accuracy from the line dating back to the days of Wilt Chamberlain. ‘Free throws I make ‘em when we need ‘em’ was the word from Shaquille O’Neal. That’s not exactly the way I remember history in fact ’Hack-a-Shaq’ came into use during this time. How enduring was it for Shaq, the term endures to this day long after he's retired.
We hear it all the time when a team has a poor free-throw shooter on the court. Clipper center DeAndre Jordan is a terror on the basketball court except the free-throw line. Jordan certainly has company the Pistons Andre Drummond. The Piston Big Man is shooting nearly 45% this season which is an all-time high; his career number from the line is 39%. Joel Embiid says; “Thanks but no thanks; I don’t want any part of this team.” The Sixer rookie is shooting nearly 80% from the line which might be the highest number for any current NBA Big Man.
Face the facts
Mizzou fans lets face facts it is slim pickings for college coaches for the most part. I realize without naming names there are likely more than a dozen assistants desiring to become head coach somewhere. The problem for them Mizzou is in no position to take a flyer on an unproven assistant no matter how badly he might want the job. It’s time to hire an unemployed coach such as Seth Greenberg, Steve Lavin or Larry Brown. The coach Mizzou requires is not going to leave an established program and head to Columbia (MO) unless he’s paid $$$$. Let’s go back to Greenberg a moment; he was fired at Virginia Tech after a 16-17 record. His teams made the NCAA or NIT six of the eight years he coached at the school. Steve Lavin ex-UCLA, ex-St. John’s can coach, his overall winning percentage is .633. One losing season at UCLA and the school decides to terminate him.
Check Lavin’s ability to recruit good players based on his winning teams and the number he’s sent into the NBA. Larry Brown is available and we know his track record, the only coach to win an NCAA and NBA Championship. Okay I realize he’s 76-years old but who could be a better teacher of the game than Brown? Brown would be required to bring in an assistant who would take over for him once the Mizzou program is back on the tracks. Brown’s talking about wanting a job as a high school coach I’m sure he’d leap at the opportunity to coach at the collegiate level. Brown took over a team that finished 13-19 and they finished 15-17 in his first year and then it was 27, 27 and 25 wins. This years SMU team is 14-4 (as this is written) with athletes Brown and staff recruited. A number of unemployed coaches remain however I believe these are the best of the best.
Global Games
Devin Booker led the way as the Suns beat the Spurs 108-105 in Mexico City on Saturday evening; the game was played with 20,532 in attendance. The Suns managed to avenge their Thursday loss to the Mavs, that game saw 19,874 streamed into Mexico City Arena. The total of 40,406 attending the two games is certainly noteworthy.
Celebrity fans and owners
For the most part celebrity fans of NBA teams are located in New York or Los Angeles. In New York specifically the Nets former minority owner Jay-Z and his wife Beyonce are often seated court side. Also former president Bill Clinton, Rihanna and David Beckham have been in attendance. Across town the Knicks have Spike Lee, Katie Holmes, Woody Allen and Chris Rock to name just a few. In Los Angeles often spotted at Laker games is Jack, Denzel Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio and Salma Hayek and others.
The Clippers have Billy Crystal, Penny Marshall and Floyd Mayweather Jr. several celebrities have allegiance due to ties to the area. Jimmy Buffett with the Heat, President Obama for the Bulls, Donnie Wahlberg with the Celtics and Tiger Woods living near Orlando (Magic). Drake has adopted his home town Toronto Raptors and has become an official ambassador. A smaller number of celebrities are part-owners of NBA teams. Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are minority owners of the Sixers Will’s childhood home. Usher became a partial owner about the time Dan Gilbert purchased the Cavs; in Memphis Justin Timberlake is a Grizzlies part owner.
Question, is the school or the player?
NBA fans the majority of talent in the NBA comes from just a few schools. Don’t misunderstand my statement a Damien Lillard (Weber State) or Gordon Hayward (Butler) can become stars too. It just seems the majority of NBA talent arrives in the league from Kentucky, Kansas, North Carolina, Duke and UCLA. Have those schools and a few omitted cornered the market on basketball talent?
I believe there are two keys to those aforementioned schools attracting talent. A number of youngsters believe heading for one of those schools says it’s an NBA pipeline. Others have been winners throughout their middle and high school years, they love winning. They chose a school not only with a winning record but a history of winning. I don’t have a conclusion just a bunch of random thoughts, what do you think?
