Basketball from a fan’s perspective

The ugly underbelly of basketball

Those of us who love the game hate the cheating that exists.  Every time it’s brought to my attention the hair on the back of my neck stands up.  In this instance the reference is not shaving points or players betting on games or anything of that sort.  It’s the illegal recruitment of players for high schools from the African continent.  CBS 60 Minutes program of March 29, you can check it out on cbs/news/com, or most cable and satellite services offer programming on demand.  View the program and draw your own conclusions, the seamy side of college recruiting of talent from Africa is distressing. 

That was amazing

I would never denigrate any scoring record set by the late Wilt Chamberlain.  At the same time, we must consider the fact he played the center position, he dominated the paint offensively.  During his playing career he probably never took a shot more than 10-15 feet from the basket.  Most of his scoring was done around the basket consisting of dunks or a fade away shot he loved to take.  Chamberlain’s scoring was totally unlike that of the late Pete Maravich. 

We’ve discussed the LSU sharpshooter in the past, in this instance we cover his exploits in college.  There was no 3-point basket in his era and secondly athletes during that period played on “freshman” teams.  The scoring records of Maravich reflect his sophomore (43.8 ppg), junior (44.2 ppg) and senior (44.5 ppg) year at LSU. 

In addition to his prolific shooting Maravich was skillful at distributing the basketball.  The only reason his NBA career fails to provide further proof his coaches during the NBA of the 1970’s forced him to tone down his shooting and flashy ball distribution.  Think of Magic Johnson type passes unheard of in college and certainly a no-no in the NBA of that period.  My barber and I agree Maravich was ahead of his time, he’s one of those talents that transcends generations.   

Coronavirus

The virus has impacted basketball more than any other sport.  The reason is quite clear, we were on the downhill side of the NBA season and the NCAA Tournament was pending.  In addition to athletes a number connected to the game have also been diagnosed with the virus.  They include ESPN broadcaster Doris Burke and Knicks owner James Dolan and the mother of Karl-Anthony Towns just to name a few.  Burke has since been cleared however Dolan is under a self-imposed quarantine, as for Karl-Anthony Towns we have no update. 

These persons are mentioned due to their basketball connections.  There are millions of others throughout the world whose family members are ill or have lost their lives to this plague.  Some might ask “why are you continuing to publish this with the world in turmoil?”  My response is simple, why not!  We cannot simply squat in the corner and pretend this devastating epidemic is not impacting us…it is.  According to the medical community it will continue however coronavirus will fade one day we just don’t know the date. 

“Who could it be now?”

The rock group Men at Work had a 1982 hit with the above title, that might be the question from Dub Nation and several other NBA fans.  Coach Steve Kerr answering in bleacherreport.com said, “We are looking at 7 or 8 prospects.”  Come on Steve can you be a little bit more specific?  We don’t expect names but how about positions, are you looking at forwards or maybe a center?  On the other hand, Dayton’s Obi Topping or the guy from Israel Deni Avdija could be two of the number Kerr is checking out. 

Also, Auburn’s Isaac Okoro or maybe it’s Onyeka Okongwu from Southern Cal.  LaMelo Ball could be looked at too, we realize he’s a point guard, but the Warriors could flip the script.  Steph Curry is certainly a skillful passer however drafting Ball would allow Curry to assume a more diverse role in the Warriors offensive scheme.  Then again, the Warrior choice might be the only legitimate center in the lottery James Wiseman.  We really have no idea which player or players Kerr might be focused on.  It’s safe to say they should gain additional help from the 2020 draft.