Basketball from a fan perspective

What to expect

With the apparent hire of Tom Thibodeau, the revamp Knicks front office is ready for the 2020-21 NBA season.   The spring season witnessed the hire of Leon Rose as president, also added was General Manager Scott Perry.  There might be other changes in the executive management team, but those hires plus Thibodeau are probably the majors.  Thibodeau becomes the 11th head or interim coach since 2005, what to expect from the Knicks is very much on the mind of rabid but often disappointed Knick fans.  Talent exists in the form of Julius Randle, RJ Barnett, and Mitchell Robinson. 

The balance of the roster appears to be a mix of talent but no particular player that stands out.  The Knicks will have a lottery pick however unless one of those names is a LeBron James or Kareem type expect them to struggle even with a new coach.  There might have been a time New York City would have been a prime destination for a free agent but no more. Nothing to do with the city it is the poor play on the court and James Dolan.  There are plenty of unanswered questions, chief among them is the owner.  For reasons too numerous to detail Dolan is among the worst owners in the NBA, there are a select few who fit that role.  

Best college lineup

The UCLA teams of Lew Alcindor were exceptionally good, so were several other college teams.  If we look back in time the 1981-82 North Carolina Tarheels might have had the best starting lineup ever.  Who can compete with a lineup featuring Michael Jordan, James Worthy and Sam Perkins?  The Perkins name might be unfamiliar to many depending on your age.  The 6-foot 9-inch power forward had a 17-year NBA career playing for a few teams. 

Consider this tidbit of information, Michael Jordan, Naismith Hall of Fame, James Worthy, Naismith Hall of Fame, and Sam Perkins James College Basketball Hall of Fame.  There are likely other outstanding collegiate teammates who experienced NBA careers.  We doubt if there are any compared to this trio of Tarheels.  Keep in mind this account is strictly memory with a check of bio information on Jordan, Worthy and Perkins.  Perhaps I could be wrong there might be another tandem as noteworthy as these.   

I like Shaka Smart

The disclaimer so to speak is in the headline for a reason, I like Shaka Smart.  This man crush first occurred when he burst on the national scene in 2011 with his VCU team earning a Final Four Berth.  His VCU teams were always on the plus side in winning, when he left, they were 163 up and 56 down for a sparkling .744 winning percentage.  At the time Smart was hired at Texas I thought, “easy peasy”, he could just recruit in the State of Texas and turn out winning teams’ season after season.  A strange thing occurred on the road to consistent accomplishing wins, there is modest proof. 

Smart has a +.500 record however his crown is not sparkling at the manner it did while he was head coach at VCU.  Is Smart overmatched trying to compete in the Big 12 Conference, is there something else we cannot see with this view from 20,000 feet?  Last season Texas finished with a 19-12 record along with 9-9 in the conference.  Rest assured that record likely does not sit well with the Athletic Department, students, alumni, and fans.  I have no idea the length of Smart’s contract, but the coach must be skating on thin ice at this point.  Will the 2020-2021 season become the swan song for Smart?   

They moved too

We profiled the many moves of the Atlanta Hawks, there are other NBA teams with multiple moves.  Today’s Sacramento Kings are that team, beginning on the east coast there has been a steady westward migration.  The Royals as they were known began play in Rochester a city in upstate New York in 1945.  They were members of the National Basketball League but defected to the Basketball Association of America in 1948, the following season the leagues merged becoming today's NBA.  

In 1957 came a move to Cincinnati as the history indicate they failed financially in Rochester.  Once in the Ohio city they drafted the great Oscar Robertson and several other talents but always faced the vaulted Celtic Dynasty.  In 1972 the team moved to Kansas City-Omaha, they brought the talented Tiny Archibald and Sam Lacey with them however they were never able to sustain success on the court.  In 1977 Omaha was dropped and the team became the Kansas City Kings playing games in the Missouri city only.  In 1985 the Kings moved to Sacramento California, we have the Rochester/Cincinnati/Kansas City/Sacramento Royals/Kings history.