Basketball from a fans perspective
Monster game
The Cavs lost the game 124-122 to the Pelicans but through no fault of Kyrie Irving. The Cavs point guard scored 49 points on 15-28 (.536) and 8-14 from the free-throw line (.536). By the way Irving hit all his free-throws 11-11 (.1000), 2 rebounds and 4 assists.
Kansas-West Virginia
The Mountaineers have the Jayhawks number at least in Morgantown. They beat them once again last night 85-69. The final score might be a little misleading because Kansas was in the game until just about the middle of the second half. West Virginia’s defense certainly was much better than Kansas. We can stamp Josh Jackson’s gone after this season NBA bound. The 6-8 guard led the way for the Jayhawks with 22 points, Devonte Graham (17 points) and Frank Mason III contributed 15.
Bits n Pieces
Basketball cliches you know them you hear them often enough during radio and television broadcasts, a number apply to basketball only while others cover any sport. This is just a small sample of often over used cliches by those who broadcast the games we watch and listen.
“A lot of open looks at the basket”
“It doesn’t get any better than this”
“Charity stripe”
“It’s gut check time”
“Offense Wins games, Defense Wins Championships”
“Alligator arms” or “he short-armed it”
“They’ve been on fire”
“He’s a pure shooter”
“They play an up tempo game”
“He provides them instant offense”
I’m unsure D’Angelo Russell is the answer for the Lakers at point guard. That’s not to say he can play. Shooting guard might be a better position for this combo guard; I have difficulty seeing him at the point in the future. As for Jordan Clarkson he’s steady but he too is more a combo guard, the Lakers need a pure point guard but here’s the dilemma. They have no first round choice in 2017 unless they make a trade.
Zion Williamson is a 6-6 230 pound small forward and might be the next LeBron. Okay I‘m making an unfair comparison however his size and the fact he plays small forward leads me to this conclusion. Williamson is rated the number 2 prospect in the Class of 2018 and the number of schools with offers is quite extensive, far too extensive to list here. Williamson attends Spartanburg Day School in Spartanburg (SC).
Ahead of his time
While researching another story I came across a photo of the late Pete Maravich a player who was ahead of his time. Not the scoring part the wide-open game he played plus his snappy passing skills. Maravich died far too you at age 40 from a heart attack after a pickup game. If we play ‘what-if’ it’s possible today’s medicine versus 1988 might have detected his heart problem. Keep in mind Maravich played at LSU at a time freshman were ineligible to play varsity sports. His scoring average represents sophomore through his senior year. At that Maravich managed to score 3,667 points and average 44.2 points per game in three years.
Consider these two facts this was before the 3-point line was added to the college game as well as the shot clock. The advent of the shot clock speeded up team offense no more 4 corner offense or holding the ball. It’s no telling how much Maravich might have scored if the 3-point line and clock had been in place. The passing skills are the portion of ‘Pistol Pete’s game often overlooked. His career was cut short by injury only managing to play 10 years. Maravich is one of those honored by being enshrined in the Naismith and College Basketball Hall of Fame.
