Blunders
May 31 is the
anniversary of JR Smith, not his wedding but the date he attempts to forget. To set the stage with seconds remaining in
the playoff game and the Warriors with a 107-106 lead the Cavs George Hill was
fouled and was sent to the line. Hill an
80% shooter hit the first shot but missed the second, Smith snatched the
rebound and dribbled up the court.
Realizing his mistake, he tossed it to a teammate in the corner who heaved
up a desperation shot which missed. The
game went into OT with the Warriors winning.
In 1993 Michigan’s
Chris Webber in the NCAA Championship game called a time-out in his mind to set
up a winning basket against North Carolina.
The only problem Michigan had no more time-outs, the technical foul shots
awarded North Carolina would be the games decider. In a 2014 playoff game Lance Stephenson then
with the Pacers was on the free-throw line next to the Heat’s LeBron James. LeBron was not shooting but Stephenson took
it upon himself to blow into LeBron’s ear.
Years later he claimed he was trying to distract LeBron which
Stephenson’s effort did no good.
We could write a
book about Nick Young or Swaggy P. as he was nicknamed. Swaggy P. on a hot streak could be a prolific
scorer, at the time he was a member of the Lakers and a game against the Knicks
he takes a 3-point shot from the top of the key. The ball appears to go down and Swaggy can be
seen raising his arms in celebration turning his back on the basket only to turn
around later to witness the result. The
ball circled the basket and popped out much to his embarrassment. There are numerous other bone-headed basketball
stories these are but a few.
????
Analytics is the
discovery, interpretation, and communication of meaningful patterns in data. It
also entails applying data patterns towards effective decision making. In other
words, analytics can be understood as the connection between data and effective
decision making within an organization per Wikipedia. I am not sure, but I believe analytics was
first used by the Oakland A’s baseball team and owner Billy Beane. Over the years it has become more a tool for other
professional sports including the NBA.
Reading it here is
the only time you will see it mentioned and for a good reason. I do not understand the intricacies of how it
works and any attempt on my part to detail mathematical probabilities indicates
I am way beyond my level of understanding.
It is totally ludicrous for me to offer you an explanation as to why the
numbers say Draymon Green plays better against Jayson Tatum over Blake Griffin. That of course was a hypothetical problem, it
was just used to get my point across.
Analytical discussions belong everywhere excepting Words eye view.
Change in the air?
The Big 12 Conference
race was always Kansas and the rest of those guys. No more, Kansas did win this past season as
both Baylor and especially Texas Tech were down slightly. As for Tech coming off a 31-win season and Final
Four appearance more was expected than 18 wins.
The 2020-21 season should see improvement in Lubbock, the pre-season
ESPN poll places Tech number 9 in the nation.
Although the poll
places Tech behind Kansas (6) the Baylor Bears are ranked number 3 in the
nation. Baylor came up short despite
their sparkling 26-4 record along with a 15-3 record in the conference. The key for all, playing the games so polls
are sometimes not a reflection of reality.
Injuries, mediocre play, and academics all impact a team’s performance
during the season. Is this the year, is
change in the air for the Big 12 Conference race? Only time will tell once play begins.
He was the first we believe
The records are
unclear however it appears Hakeem Olajuwon was the first. Olajuwon would be the first athlete from the
African continent and nation of Nigeria when he arrived on these shores in 1984
to play for the University of Houston.
Olajuwon was not very impressive as he adjusted to basketball in this nation. His freshman season witnessed the 7-foot
Olajuwon average a mere 8 points and 6 rebounds a game, his sophomore year
would see improvement. He averaged
nearly 14 points and 11 rebounds a game, his junior year close to 17 points and
14 rebounds…he was ready for the NBA.
It was a hometown
draft so to speak he left the campus of the University of Houston for the NBA Rockets;
it became a trip across the city to begin his NBA career. Olajuwon hit the ground running once he
arrived in the NBA. He would demonstrate
his patented “Dream Shake” to NBA opponents.
Olajuwon indicated soccer as a youth allowed him to perfect his footwork
around the basket. He was a key fixture
as the Rockets won back to back NBA Championships in 1994 and 1995. He retired in 2002 after a brilliant 18-year
career. In 2008 Olajuwon was enshrined
in the Naismith Hall of Fame.
