Basketball from a fans perspective
Draft Lottery
Who goes number one in the 2017 draft is the question now the order has been established; it’s Celtics, Lakers and Sixers. We must wait to actually determine the selection. I continue to believe the Celtics will select Markelle Fultz the Lakers might be a totally different matter. Given the opportunity to draft Lonzo Ball, Josh Jackson or De’Aaron Fox we must wait and see. Although this draft like must in recent years is young it’s stocked with a vast amount of potential talent.
Stepping up
Game 7 in TD Boston Garden the Celtics should be expected to win…..maybe. I always compare games of this type as heavyweight boxing matches. The Celtics delivered the knockout blow 115-105 despite the 38 points Wizards guard Bradley Beal scored. As for the Celtics they were led by Isaiah Thomas however he was ably assisted by Kelly Olynyk. Yes I said Olynyk, the Celtic reserve came off the bench scoring a career high 26 points. Next up for Boston the Cavaliers of Cleveland.
“I’m tired”!
Perhaps the Wizards plain ran out of gas, all five starters played heavy minutes with Beal topping out at 46 minutes. Three reserve players with 16, 11 and 3 minutes that’s all. We could make the same statement regarding Russell Westbrook however his issue occurred during the season. Playing heavy minutes in an attempt to tie the Oscar Robertson mark its likely he too ran out of energy once the playoffs began.
Witness the Rockets and James Harden, key to their success was worn down from heavy minutes. I’m sure if we questioned Westbrook, Harden and the Wizards starters it’s likely they don’t admit it but consider this fact. By the time the playoffs roll around teams have played 100+ games counting exhibition and 82 regular season. The NBA is not going to reduce the number of games played but just to put this in perspective, Team A loses and sometimes the reason might be simple they are tired.
His shot
We’ve watched Lonzo Ball’s funny looking shot all season long at UCLA; it appears he’s shooting it sidearm. I’m no “shot-doctor” so I certainly am making no claim Ball’s shot is not effective or might not work in the NBA. A number of players have arrived in the NBA over the years with “funny looking shots.” Off the top of my head Reggie Miller is the first player that comes to mind.
Reggie could shoot the basketball maybe it was his form that always looks strange to me. Michael Jordan’s Bull teams had Bill Cartwright at center during several championship runs. See if you can locate him on YouTube and you will discover what I’m talking about. As for Shaq its clear why he most often dunked the basketball his shot looked terrible. There are others click on the link below and check out a number of other NBA players from the past and present.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0ec9R8rNuk
San Francisco
Call me a purist if you wish, there are some issues which require correction. The Warriors name needs to be re-introduced. Once the Warriors move across the bay I hope to see resurrection of the iconic “The City” jersey. You say it’s not that big a deal, probably not but it would ease my conscious.
Most of us are Golden is attached to the State of California, after the team moved in 1971 to Oakland. Teams are not always named after the city they play. As an example; Arizona Cardinals, Texas Rangers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Wolves. See where I’m going with this in the instance not the state precedes the team name Golden State says nothing, It might be better if they were the California Warriors.
