Basketball from a fan’s perspective

Who is the King of Los Angeles?

Fans in Southern Cal arguing about which team is most popular. One side arguing the Lakers the other claiming the baseball Dodgers are the most well-liked. Almost comical one of the fan letters included the Raiders during the period Los Angeles was home, the Raiders won the 1983 Super Bowl. The Raiders moved back to their city of origin Oakland in 1995. Few writers mentioned the NHL Kings and not one vote for the NFL Rams or Chargers.

Is it Laker championships or Dodger World Series wins that have made these teams so ingrained in the psyche of Los Angeles? Not one letter writer claimed the Clippers which is telling. The Clippers led by owner Steve Ballmer have attempted to raise their footprint in the City of Angels. Will moving from Staples Center to their own arena in Inglewood aid the cause? As for which sports teams is tops, we can only make an educated guess, perhaps its something not connected with championships.

You might see this different

Sometimes outstanding college players fail in the NBA, generally its due to a talent issue. The ability to play successfully at the NBA level requires far more ability and effort than college. On the other hand, what about the question of injuries impacting an NBA future? As an example, Bill Walton was an outstanding player at UCLA, he continued that play for his first few years in the NBA. At some point injuries began effecting his play, no longer able to produce at a high skill level he would become a valuable 6^th man for the Celtics.

A website clutchpoints.com wrote, “Biggest Draft Busts in Bulls History.”  Eddy Curry probably so, we could make the same statement regarding Marcus Fizer. Both failed to reach the expectation first believed by the Bulls. They included Jay Williams in the number and that is where the argument began for me. Drafted out of Duke with star stamped on his forehead. Williams had an average but potentially improving outlook for his sophomore year in the NBA.

Unfortunately, a motorcycle would impact his career to a greater degree than any opposing player. Williams ignored the clause in his contract prohibiting him from riding a motorcycle. Suffering a devastating injury despite months of re-hab he was never able to return to his previous level. Today he covers the college and NBA game for ESPN. No, I refuse to include him in the list of Bulls draft busts, an injury forcing him to retire is not the same as lack of talent. It should be of note the Bulls paid him the balance of his rookie contract although they were not required since he violated a portion of the agreement.

“The sky is falling”

The headline read, “The NBA Might Have Ended College Basketball as We Know It”. That was the account written by Lane Higgins and Ben Cohen for the Wall Street Journal. I believe it is important for one to stay in their lane. This publication is well known in the realm of Wall Street and finance, lesser known in covering sports. In any event the writers use the G-League signing of Jalen Green as the basis for their view.

If we believe their take every high school player in the nation will decide in favor of playing professionally rather than heading for college. We cannot blame Green or Isaiah Todd who committed later, we all want to get paid. We had two high schoolers (Ball and Hampton) opt for pro careers in Australia. Now Green and Todd (and maybe others) will commit to the G-League. Four players choosing to play professionally is not exactly an avalanche leaving for the professional ranks.

The ball is clearly in the NCAA’s court at this point, this organization needs to emerge from the dark ages and provide rules and regulations that no longer reflect 1950 thinking. The NCAA has appeared to be the enemy of the athlete and has not always operated in a manner favoring them, there are serious issues which require a serious response. Example, James Wiseman and the ruling his coach was a booster for the Memphis program. The NCAA admits the financial pledge made to the school occurred several years prior to Penny Hardaway’s hiring yet who was punished, the athlete? Prior to us believing college basketball is dead wait and see how this plays out before we play taps for college basketball.