Basketball from a fans perspective
Down one
R.J. Barrett 5-star rated and the new number one in the Class of 2018 has come to a decision. The 6-7 forward from Montverde Academy and metro Toronto removed Kansas from his list of possible destinations. Borrowing from the Bee Gees hit song “Staying Alive” are Arizona, Duke, Michigan, Oregon and Kentucky.
He’s moving
We sit on the sidelines often unaware of why the movement might occur. In the first example is Bol Bol, he was attending a Kansas City Metro high school……Boom he’s history. His former coach first contacted had no idea Bol had transferred, later news reports indicated Bol had transferred to Mater Dei in Santa Ana (CA).
Although Bol was known nationally prior to transferring whether it’s the school or something else his profile has certainly been enhanced. We have a similar story this time it's occuring in Texas with Charles Bassey; Bassey is a 6-10 center and the number one prospect in the Class of 2019. The youngster is reported to have transferred from St Anthony HS in San Antonio to DeSales HS in Louisville (KY).
Chicago Blues
A number of cities across the nation claim to be the birthplace of the Blues. We have the New Orleans and Memphis version and we also have the Chicago Blues. In this instance the Chicago Blues is NOT the music its the basketball team. I’m attempting an assessment of the Bulls, those Michael Jordan/Scottie Pippen Bulls. The champion Bulls led by Phil Jackson and the architect of the triangle offense the late Tex Winter. Those Bulls are a distance memory of the 2017-18 version, Dwayne Wade and Rajon Rondo couldn’t save them. Management had enough of Rondo waving him in June however “Flash” Wade remains although he’s now age 35.
As this account was being completed I read Wade might be a buy-out. The Bulls under Fred Hoiberg have been a barely .500 team in his two years at the helm. Off-season trades brought them Kris Dunn and Zach LaVine arrived in trades with the Wolves however talented they appear still largely untested. 7-foot rookie Lauri Markkanen from Arizona was drafted by the Wolves however arrived in the trade for Jimmy Butler. The Michael Jordan Bulls once the scourge of the Eastern Conference appear relegated to the bottom half of the league. The Bulls have a number of “pieces” its necessary for this collection of talent to mold into a competitive team.
I’ve been thrown a curve
You might remember I wrote of my excitement regarding the 2017-18 Lakers. I even stated for the first time in years I was considering paying for NBA League Pass once again. Today’s news cause me reconsider, 35 Laker games will be televised nationally this upcoming season. NBA TV has 12 games, ESPN and TNT will each telecast 11 games and ABC will telecast a single game. I’m going to miss 47 games unless I subscribe to NBA League Pass……what to do, what to do.
He was joking….wasn’t he?
On several occasions I’ve mentioned the Border War issue between Kansas and Missouri. Since the departure of Mizzou for the SEC I’ve had less and less interest in reviving play in any sport. I ran into a Kansas graduate and mentioned how excited I was about the upcoming basketball season. His response; ‘Mizzou looks very good but wait for a couple of years.’ I’m sure I had a puzzled look on my face as he continued.
The acquaintance pointed to the fact his belief Mizzou might suffer some NCAA or in-house catastrophe. My initial reaction to this view to my knowledge Cuonzo Martin teams at Missouri State, Tennessee and Cal never experience any NCAA infractions. If I should uncover any negative news on Martin’s I certainly have no intention to avoid it. As for player troubles other than academic my friend might check out some of the “Animal House“ stories that emanated from the Kansas basketball program last season.
