Words eye view 

Basketball from a fan perspective

Mizzou-Georgia

This is not a first-hand account, early on as I could feel my blood pressure rising, I decided rather than yell and scream at the television I would simply turn the game off.  This action might be shocking to some, but I had to do it for my sanity.  This is strictly box score, Mizzou beat Georgia 73-70, the Tigers shot 43% from the floor and 35% from 3.  Xavier Pinson led the way in scoring with his 17 points, he was assisted by Dru Smith and Kobe Brown both with 16 points apiece.  Now all Mizzou must accomplish is beat Arkansas tonight one of the hottest teams in the nation.  Despite this colossal impediment in the path of Mizzou I plan on viewing the game and remaining to its conclusion.   

Basketball sort of

A day after football coach Les Miles departed Kansas so did the guy who hired him, athletic director Jeff Long also left his position at the university.  A search will begin for a replacement AD and football coach.  This is an unusual situation, but the school must hire an AD first and then begin searching for a football coach, at Kansas we have a distinct dynamic at work.  Kansas University is reverse of most major universities in that basketball is the mover and shaker for athletics.  Regardless of a program won loss record most schools find football the money-maker, at Kansas it’s the opposite.  I’d bet money if I were a betting person, basketball coach Bill Self will be involved in the hiring process of the next football coach.   

Shame on you 

Luke Garza’s had an outstanding career at the University of Iowa, this latest issue shines a negative light on his tenure.  The decision to retire Garza’s 55 jersey certainly wasn’t his.  The judgment was made by the school, this was decided after Garza broke the school’s scoring record set by Roy Marble.  Marble held the record for 32 years however his number 23 has never been retired; he would die of cancer in 2015 at the age of 48. 

His son would later attend Iowa and play for the Hawkeyes probably due to his father.  With this announcement he’s made it known how upset he is with the actions of the school.  The elder Marble and Garza are the only two athletes in the school’s history to score more than 2,000 points.  As for Iowa they reached out to young Marble and apologized however there is no method to fix this egregious error.  Rest assured Garza bears no responsibility for this dilemma, it’s likely he was pleased by the school initially now not so much.    

The anniversary

Turner Network Television or TNT is celebrating an anniversary, the is the 30th Anniversary since the network first began telecasting NBA games.  As noted in the past the NBA has moved around over the years between several broadcast networks.  The first cable system to telecast the NBA was USA which began in the 1979-80 season, this would last until 1983-84. 

From 1984 through 2002 NBA games were telecast on TBS although Hawks games were exclusive to the network prior to that period.  ESPN became a broadcast partner in 2002 along with NBA TV.  NBA TV began its broadcast history before televising games and even their usage is different from the others.  NBA TV rarely uses their broadcasters; they utilize the local feed and the home team’s broadcast crew.  NBA League Pass will be covered later for those unfamiliar with it.   

Just shut up

As parents we attempt to guide our children in what we hope is the best direction for them. That statement is for your offspring and not professional basketball players.  The subject of our discussion is Dame Lillard outstanding point guard of the Blazers.  In the modern era in all professional sports athletes’ stories play out before our eyes.  The latest, Russell Wilson of the NFL Seahawks wants to be traded, in other instances free agency allows the player to pick the team he desires.  As for Lillard he’s made it clear in public at least Portland is the only city in the NBA he desires to play. 

In private perhaps that is not so true, but we are only as good as the information in front of us.  Despite the statement by Dame a media member has decided the player needs to re-locate.  In addition to the move this person provides us the address he believes Dame should seek…New York and the Knicks.  My statement prior to addressing the media person, who appointed him King of the NBA?  As King we guess he can execute a degree moving players around…Dame in this instance.  This person is a fan of the Knicks so we might question his integrity on his decree.  As for the other portion it's strictly Dame's move or non-move, this member of the media needs to just shut up.