Basketball
from a fan’s perspective
David Stern
It’s
been mentioned previously of all the major sports the NBA is only 73 years old.
Contrast that with the NHL which is 102 years old; the NFL is 100 and baseball is
over 150 years old. There have only been
five NBA commissioners in that time. Maurice
Podoloff served as commissioner from 1946-1963, he was followed by J. Walter
Kennedy 1963-1975. Larry O’Brien was
commissioner from 1975-1984, David Stern who was Executive Vice President of
the NBA succeeded O’Brien as commissioner.
Although
the NBA had grown under previous commissioners it appeared the league moved at
warp speed once Stern took over. Stern left
office in 2014 and Adam Silver took on the role of commissioner. The list of innovations and changes under Stern
are far too numerous to list. I once
read Stern wasn’t responsible for all the innovations and changes however, he
was steering the ship when they occurred.
One word to describe him, unflappable comes to mind.
He always
appeared calm even when discussing crisis issues. Wednesday afternoon the league announced Stern
died at the age of 77, in early December he suffered a sudden brain hemorrhage
which ultimately led to his death. The
Kings called Sacramento home, but it could have been Seattle except for
Stern. Chris Paul might have retired a
Laker if not for Stern vetoing the trade.
Who can claim they performed a task without upsetting several folks? Leadership forces one to on occasion render sometimes
tough decisions.
$$$
DePaul, Northwestern
or SMU or different from Mizzou or Kansas.
DePaul and the other two are private schools, on the other hand Mizzou
and Kansas are state institutions. Who
is the highest paid state employee is our question, this next portion might
surprise some and shock others? In
Missouri Governor Parsons earns $133,000 while basketball coach Cuonzo Martin
is paid $2.8 million. Next door in
Kansas Governor Kelly is paid $99.600 annually, while coach Bill Self earns
$4.1 million.
The
State of Missouri and Kansas are not unique by any means, perusing the list
compiled by ESPN.com provides us interesting information. The figures might not be far apart, but the basketball,
football coach or someone associated with the university is the highest paid
employee in each state. The link below
provides details on other states besides the two mentioned. Rest assured most of you were likely aware of
this although lacking specifics. I guess it might provide us a picture of our
priorities.
A look ahead
Our
calendars have flipped over to 2020, what’s ahead in the basketball world? This is a look ahead from April forward and is
a preliminary listing, it should not be considered complete. At this point it appears August is the only
slow month with little activity of note.
April
NCAA
Championship
College
players declare for the draft
NBA
season concludes
Portsmouth
Invitational Tournament (NBA)
May
NBA
Draft Combine
NBA
Draft Lottery
June
NBA Championship
NBA Draft
July
NBA free
agency begins and signings
NBA Summer
League play
Aug
---
September
Naismith
Hall of Fame induction
College
teams can begin practice
October
NBA regular
season
November
Basketball
season begins for colleges
Collegiate
Hall of Fame induction
Tournament
and non-conference play
Speak it into existence
The Lakers have been salivating since the season started regarding Andre Igoudala. Iggy has hinted he wants to play for the Lakers but that’s not possible without a trade. Unfortunately, the Lakers have no assets the Grizzlies might desire in an exchange. Darren Collison who “retired” now wants to return to the NBA, rumor is he wants the Clippers or Lakers. Finally, we have sitting at home Jamal Crawford. Crawford is 39-years old; Crawford is instant offense off the bench. Did I mention he’s 3X NBA 6th Man of the Year?
The Lakers have been salivating since the season started regarding Andre Igoudala. Iggy has hinted he wants to play for the Lakers but that’s not possible without a trade. Unfortunately, the Lakers have no assets the Grizzlies might desire in an exchange. Darren Collison who “retired” now wants to return to the NBA, rumor is he wants the Clippers or Lakers. Finally, we have sitting at home Jamal Crawford. Crawford is 39-years old; Crawford is instant offense off the bench. Did I mention he’s 3X NBA 6th Man of the Year?
