Basketball from a fans perspective   

Published Monday through Friday

Who is to blame?

We can say at this point in time the Lakers season has been epic thus far, epic in the wrong direction. Picked by writers and analyst to play for the championship we find them one game over .500 on January 6. What occurred between the end of the 2020-21 season for this kerfuffle to date? A series of moves to build the roster was made by general manager Rob Pelinka along with coach Vogel and staff. Two off season moves have not paid off, we are not discussing Russell Westbrook alone included are DeAndre Jordan and Kent Bazemore. Westbrook’s issues have been discussed at length but what about the other two? Without going into great detail let’s just state with all the moves these are the stinkers of the bunch.

Whose fault is it these moves have not worked, who is to blame? In the summer it was believed the off season moves would be winners which up to this point has not been the case. The chief concern at this point the often-injured Anthony Davis is out of the lineup again. This is all water under the bridge, but we could guess the Lakers might have made a more successful run last season without another AD injury. At the present pace, a playoff berth is within the Lakers purview but as for a deep run that remains questionable. Whatever occurs it’s hoped by this member of Laker Nation the team continue to be as active as possible in player acquisition. In closing this is funny, Malik Monk who’s been one of the positives was reported to have told this story. His left arm is covered with tattoos his right arm is tat free, the explanation. The right arm is “strictly for buckets.”

The 2019 NBA Draft

We knew in advance Duke’s Zion Williamson would be the top pick in 2019. During the 2018-19 season Ja Morant from Murray State burst on the college scene, most of us had no idea how talented the 6- foot 3-point guard would become once he reached the NBA. With the second pick in the 2019 draft the Memphis Grizzlies would chose Morant. Injuries forced Williamson to miss the majority of his rookie season, it would only consist of 24 games but provided us proof of his potential. On the other hand, Morant played 67 games all as a starter, the numbers nearly 18 points and 7.4 rebounds a game.

Instead of Williamson being chosen Rookie of the Year Morant was the clear winner. In his third year Morant continued his upward trend as he adapted himself even further to NBA play. As for Williamson he would become the invisible man in his third year, as of January 5^th injuries have kept him sidelined thus far. Morant would suffer a knee injury in November which kept him sidelined until December 20^th. Since returning from injury Morant has blown up even further, currently he’s scoring at a 25.1 clip along with nearly 7 assists a game. Many are claiming Morant is the best point guard in the NBA, and he just might be. There is no buyer’s remorse here a big man is always going to be drafted ahead of a small man, which was the case here.

Timing is everything

Have you read or heard the saying above, it simply implies success is based on the now? We can debate the validity of that but look back at basketball history. The NBA is recognizing its 75^th Anniversary, why did this league succeed when others failed over time? As you will note below professional leagues were begun however few prove successful until the NBA was established. There is no single explanation but let’s check out several professional leagues that fell by the wayside. This will not answer the why but give you a partial list of leagues.

 

American Basketball League I 1926-1931

American Basketball League II 1934-1947

American Basketball League III 1962-1963

American Basketball Association 1967-1976

Basketball Association of America 1947-1949

National Basketball League I 1899-1904

National Basketball League II 1927

National Basketball League III 1938-1949

National Professional Basketball League I 1930

National Professional Basketball League II 1933

National Basketball Association 1950-

There are several leagues omitted in this look back, this certainly should not be considered complete. The duration for some of these leagues was just one season while others lasted years yet still closed shop. Part of the explanation is simple; in those formative years professional basketball did not rank high in the minds of most sports fans. Baseball was the national pastime followed by college football, even the NFL had nowhere near the numbers it does today. College football was second then the NFL followed by college basketball and in last place (for fans) professional basketball.

The Canadians

Have you noticed the Raptors have returned to Toronto? We believe until the new COVID variant began fans were permitted in Scotiabank Arena. Recently we’ve seen the Raptors playing in front of 0 fans, no one is permitted in the building with the exception of the players, officials and arena personnel. What is this all about you might ask, it’s believed in addition to no appearance by Kyrie Irving at Barclays Center the same scenario will play in Canada. The Canadian government has one of the strictest COVID policies among the world’s nation. All this changes if Irving is vaccinated however, I wouldn’t hold my breath on that one.