Basketball from a fans perspective

A shot doctor needed?

I stated this previously I’m not worried about Lonzo Ball’s shooting that statement still rings true however I’ve noticed the same thing you have.  Ball’s shot is rather unorthodox for a right-handed shooter as he brings the ball up and across his body almost from his left hip area before taking aim.  What looks like unnatural motion causes Ball’s shot to be somewhat erratic and one that fails him in gaining any type of rhythm. 

Sometimes to correct you might make it worst, you remember the story regarding my co-worker?  Olympian Usain Bolt holds the world record of 9.58 in the 100-meter sprint.  A co-worker who once worked as a track & field coach told us this story.  “I had a kid who was a natural sprinter, he ran a 9.9 without any coaching.  I decided to work with him on his start and other aspects, when I finished he was running a 10.1 or 10.2.”  The point sometimes you can “over-coach” what appears to be natural.  Do the Lakers hire a shot-doctor to work on Lonzo’s mechanics?

They got a real beat-down

Remember the warning I provided earlier, I’d checked UMKC’s schedule but failed to discover their first game was versus Wichita State.  Wichita State the number seven team in the nation and UMKC was playing them in their arena.  In any event UMKC did put up a fight but was pretty much out of contention after the first 20 minutes.  Wichita State won the game running away from the Kansas City team 109-57, on the other hand, I really like their new jerseys. 

The new road uniforms are neat they are blue, the chest area contains a representation of the top half of a basketball the downtown KC skyline with the words Kansas City across the front.  On the back portion of the jerseys at the collar area are the superimposed over an image of the downtown skyline, on the back near the collar is the letter K on top of a C.  Back to the game for a few final words I can understand Coach Kareem Richardson’s view how do you ever improve without playing against better teams.    

They claim him

It’s interesting while researching the history of NBA from Australia I came across this bit of trivia.  Did you remember the Celtics Kyrie Irving was born in the Land Down Under?   His dad moved from the U.S. to Australia to play professionally in Australia.  Irving holds dual citizenship in the U.S. and Australia.  As for others Luc Longley (Canberra) was the first player from Australia to play in the NBA. 

Longley first played at the University of New Mexico before beginning his NBA career with the Wolves would later be one of the keys to Bulls championship success.  There has been a succession of others from Australia Matthew Dellavedova, Andrew Bogut and Patty Mills to name a few.  In recent years Dante Exum and Ben Simmons have arrived on our shores and are now in the NBA.  Without research I'm sure at some campus somewhere in American there is an Australia youngster bouncing a basketball.   

NBA All-Star Game

On Thursday the NBA announced its 2020 All-Star Game will be played in Chicago at the United Center.  In 2018 the game will be held in Los Angeles at the Staples Center, 2019 it’s Charlotte and the Spectrum Center.         

Is this his break-out year?

He weighs nearly 300 pounds but looks thin, when you stand 7 feet 6 inches tall I guess you could look thin.  Tacko Fall has made steady progress while playing for the University of Central Florida.  Across the board while certainly not eye-popping the only downward number was his free-throw percentage.  He was nearly 11 points a game last season up from the 7.4 his freshman year. 

As I indicated previously sitting in my Man Cave in Kansas City I witnessed several UCF games on television and I could clearly see improvement in his game. When I first read reports of him possibly attempting a leap to the NBA I screamed loudly NO, NO.  Fortunately, Tacko withdrew his name and decided to return to the UCF campus.  Will his junior year be truly that break-out year expected by those around him?