Basketball from a fan’s perspective

The name’s the same…that caused the confusion

Corrections should not be buried where you might never locate it, the preference is they should be out in the open where they can be easily found.  I’m unsure if the incorrect information was communicated by me.  The interim coach of the Knicks named is Mike Miller, not the Mike Miller first believed.  We thought the former Florida Gator and retired NBA player had been named interim coach for the Knicks. 

That Miller is an assistant coach with the Memphis Tigers under Penny Hardaway.  The other Miller also is a former player however he never experienced an NBA career, he began a long coaching college and pro career almost immediately on graduation.  This Miller also has served as head coach of the Winchester Knicks the G-League affiliate.  Sorry if the incorrect information might have been communicated earlier in Words eye view. 

Luka

“How come Luka Doncic wears jersey number 77?”  I’m glad you asked the question because very few are familiar with the story.  A Euro player Doncic admired wore number 7, he took the number due to his administration.  At the time he joined the Mavs Dwight Powell wore number 7, 77 became a compromise for him.  It should be of further note basketball reference.com provides us with nicknames of players its profiles. 

The site provides us with several nicknames for Doncic several downright strange.  “Cool Hand” we guess this is from the 1967 Paul Newman movie Cool Hand Luke.  “The Don”, a reference to the head of an organized crime family, then we have “Wonder Boy”. That one has me totally confused, finally we end with “Swaggy L.”  Remember former NBA player Nick Young, his nickname was “Swaggy P.”  Just my opinion I hate all of them, surely great minds could hang a better nickname on Doncic. 

This year more than ever

The early portion of the college basketball season has witnessed a few interesting games.  Consider this fact, there might be no super teams this season.  As ESPN said, " Does being (or beating number one matter?)."  Sure, the usual suspects are in place North Carolina, Duke, Kansas and Kentucky.  We do have a surprise at least for this writer…Louisville.  No need of repeating the recent history however Louisville basketball has returned to the level they possessed in the past. 

This revival can be traced to the hiring of Chris Mack from Xavier.  If you check his coaching bio you will note after moving from the assistant coach seat to the head, he kept the engine running.  Mack’s 9 years at the helm witnessed his Xavier team missing the NCAA only once, in the number is one final four and two elite 8 finishes in that time frame.  Louisville is not likely to remain undefeated in the tough ACC, but this certainly provides us an early indication they will be a factor in the conference race.   

Not likely

The sun will not rise in the west and set in the east, Clipper fans are not Laker fans and vice versa.  You could probably conclude there are other occurrences unlikely to transpire.  Several years ago, I worked in a Kansas City office with Chicago headquarters.  A few engineers and staff were originally from the Chicago area but were transferred here.  During breaks or lunch, I discovered my co-workers were either White Sox fans or Cubs fans. 

Not one of them claimed allegiance to both baseball teams.  I offer no proof, but I’ve read and heard the same exists in New York City, you have Giant fans who are not Jets fans and vice versa.  This holds true for the Yankees and Mets, those who are loyal to the Knicks don’t believe they owe that same loyalty to the Nets. 

In Los Angeles we could look toward the Dodgers and Angels, I don’t think you’d find an Angel fan who claims they root for the Dodgers.  In other words, you can live in a city with more than one team, but your love and appreciation only exist for one.  I believe that to be the case with the Clippers and Lakers, both fan bases support their team however both hate the others team.