Words eye view

Basketball from a fan perspective

You can tell

I’m ole skool to my detriment sometimes, I believe the game should be played with your head as much as your athletic ability.  As football coach Herm Edwards once said during a press conference, never mind check out the video below.    

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5-iJUuPWis

Down 112-110 to the Wizards with seconds remaining the Nuggets grab the rebound, they sprint down the court with a 4 on 1 break and each spread out at the 3-point line.  One takes the shot and misses, final score Wizards 112 Nuggets 110.  You have a clear path to a layup or dunk, and you take a 3-point shot hoping and praying you sink the basket, perhaps another video will aid the picture.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drsCI6uLHwk

Big Man basketball

The change in the game from post play to small ball’s created a problem.  Several players don’t fit the current trend, they stand 6 feet 11 inches and taller.  How do they continue playing the game we love?  Many have adapted their game; former Mavs power forward Dirk Nowitzki is headed to the Hall of Fame.  Dirk stands 7 feet tall, when he arrived in the NBA in 1998, he moved to the position which leads to his future enshrinement. 

Consider this, if Dirk had arrived 5-6 years prior, he would be a center but that’s another story.  The late Pete Newell began a Big Man’s Camp in 1976 with a single player, the idea was to aid the player in post moves and assorted play.  As the camp grew in importance an increasing number of athletes made their way to become better schooled in post play.  Just a few of the names who attended Newell’s camp in the past include Shaq, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Bill Walton.  Although Newell died in 1993 at the age of 93 the camp remains open, how did this question come about you ask?  Recently it was mentioned Mizzou has freshman Jordan Wilmore all 7 foot 3 and 245 pounds of him. 

Wilmore’s played little thus far, since he is unlike typical Cuonzo Martin recruits there was a question regarding who coaches him.  Coming from high school is he simply matched against Jeremiah Tilmon in practice or is a coach working with him.  We don’t have an answer but this we do know; Pete Newell’s camp remains open.  The focus in this instance was Newell however I managed to locate other Big Man camps across the nation, you can still be taught skill and moves if you seek them out. 

We don’t know the man

A 10-day contract is just that, sometimes a player is extended beyond the time limit or he is released.  In the instance of the Lakers picking up Damian Jones it’s hoped this move is more than 10 days for a couple of reasons.  The Lakers released guard Quinn Cook so they have two roster spots open.  I noted at least 4 players the Lakers could explore acquiring, it might require managing player movement but in the long run it could work.  Jones is a mystery, so I decided to go back in time and check how nbadraft.net rated him out of Vanderbilt. 

The strengths and weaknesses were noted however this is the overall assessment.  “Jones is a springy, skilled center who has the potential to make an impact at the next level, but often struggled to consistently make an impact at the college level … He’ll need to become more tenacious and a bit stronger in order to find the consistency to stick in an NBA rotation, but the framework is there and he’s by all accounts considered a high character kid.” I borrow this term from others, this appears a high yield low risk move by the Lakers, I will leave this assessment with the balance of Laker Nation for your evaluation.