Basketball from a fan’s perspective

Half-way point

The NBA season is an 82-game schedule and we are at the half-way point.  After several years of poor play this Lakers fan hoped better days were in front of the team.  The positives for improved play include the trade adding Anthony Davis plus free-agent signings.  Laker Nation hoped for…no, they expected improved play.  If you’d asked me last August what I estimated the Laker record to be on January 15 I probably would say “They should be above .500?” 

Yes, that’s all this Laker fan hoped they would be plus .500, did I think they would have 33 wins and only 8 losses?  With the possibility of injuries and load management no serious Laker fan would expect the team to only lose 8 games the entire season.  The 2015-16 Warriors lost 9 games while winning a record 73 that season.  The Laker record now is great and meaningful however the true test is playoff basketball.  Will this fan be displeased if they don’t win the championship?  Yes, however it will be tempered, after six seasons of less than .500 basketball I’m easy to please. 

Circle the date

Hopefully ESPN or NBA TV telecast the January 22 Pelican game.  I didn’t include TNT in my hope because their schedule is usually Tuesday-Thursday games on the NBA calendar.  What’s the importance of the date, the over-achieving Pelicans will have Zion Williamson in the starting lineup?  After being sidelined with surgery and recovery it now appears Zion is ready for his NBA debut.  Am I excited yes, I am, as excited as a 5-year old in a toy store?  I am going to allow plenty of time for the 3-4 months of “rust” to wear off before we see the Zion Williamson we witnessed at Duke and Spartanburg Day High School.    

“We can’t have games like this” 

Those were the words of Mizzou coach Cuonzo Martin in his post-game press conference.  As impressive as Mizzou had been on Saturday they were just as disappointing Monday evening.  Over the weekend they had beaten Florida 91-75 and on Monday lost to Mississippi State 72-45.  The game was played in Starkville however that’s no excuse for what many of us witnessed.  From tip off till the end Mizzou was on the court but certainly not in the game. Poor shooting plus far too many turnovers, to detail how bad, at one-point Mizzou’s turnovers matched their scoring total with 7. 

I am reluctant to make this statement but I’m becoming extremely disappointed in coach Cuonzo Martin.  Mizzou Nation wants consistency not highs like Saturday or lows such as Monday evening.  At Missouri State, Tennessee and Cal the coach turned out winning teams although he only spent three seasons at each stop.  As for Mizzou lets check the record, the 2017-18 record (20-13) can be discounted it was his first year at the helm.  Last season’s 15-17 record was disappointing, but most believed the 2019-20 season his third year we’d begin to see evidence of an upward trend.  Instead we see games where Mizzou is extremely good or extremely poor. 

The only negative we heard after his hire he was not a good in game manager, no big deal we’ve heard that same comment about Kentucky’s John Calipari.  As for the recruiting question, Jay Wright’s Villanova team is always a winner, yet Wright never recruits Blue Chip athletes to his program.  If I can sit in my Man Cave see the issues of this team on television, why can’t Martin and his coaching staff see them as well?  This coming from a faithful but disappointed member of Mizzou Nation.  There is no call to fire Cuonzo Martin, it simply states your time is nearing an end, either produce or begin looking for another job.   

Will the NBA ever return?

It’s been detailed in Words eye view NBA teams began moving from medium size cities in the 1950’s to larger urban areas.  The question might be is the NBA willing to ever return, this relates to those larger metro areas with NBA basketball.  As an example, the Hawks abandon St. Louis for Atlanta in 1968 and have never looked back.  We never read or hear of the NBA returning one day to St. Louis I wonder why?  Buffalo NY is another metro the NBA once called home; the Braves left in 1978 for San Diego.  Will Buffalo ever see an NBA team with the cities name on the front of a jersey? 

How about Cincinnati once home to the Royals who became the Kansas City Kings who later moved to Sacramento.  Baltimore is a far different situation, although the Bullets left for Washington D.C. geography would likely prevent the city from another NBA team.  Google maps indicates the cities are no more than 50 miles apart.  Lastly, we have Seattle and Kansas City, the NBA is not vocal but certainly wants a return to Seattle.  As for Kansas City that might be a different reason why the NBA will never return. Many believe the NBA is not anxious for Kansas City unless a potential owner with ties here and deep pockets desires an NBA team.