Basketball from a fans perspective   

Published Monday through Friday

Players from both nations 

CBS Sports.com reports there are 7 Ukrainian basketball players spread throughout the U.S. They are as far west as San Francisco University, Grand Canyon University, and Utah State. The southwest portion of the nation at SMU, the east coast has Canisius University, the University of Maryland and Fordham University. Russia being a much larger nation than Ukraine has a greater number of players in the U.S. According to realgm.com there are 17 Russian players at various colleges and universities spread throughout the nation.

Play of the Year?

Outbound pass from the Grizzlies Steven Adams to Ja Morant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg2Uy6fYb_o

I’m scared

Last September small forward Aidan Shaw made his choice known. This 4-star prospect (Rivals, ESPN 100 & 247 Sports) chose Mizzou over several schools. The 6-foot 8 195-pound Shaw plays for Blue Valley High School in Stilwell (KS) a city in the Kansas City Metro. At the time he signed we had no idea the Mizzou basketball team’s record would turn out to be upside down by the first of February 2022. On the other hand, the poor play by Mizzou most of the season could prove beneficial for Shaw. If he is talented as it might appear Shaw could be in the starting lineup day one. The “I’m scared” part of this story, when Cuonzo Martin is fired after the season, we could hardly see Shaw honoring his commitment. Let’s face it, athletes don’t decide to attend a school based on its academics…it’s the coach. The question with the possibility of Cuonzo gone would Shaw remain?

The last time we remember this scenario occurring was Mike Anderson-Frank Haith. The departing Anderson recruited Kim English however Haith came in the door and sat down with the team particularly English. The player remained and was key to a successful run by Mizzou, English is now in his first year as head coach at George Mason University. Those in Mizzou Nation have two wishes and they are both tied to one another. Cuonzo is fired and Shaw despite the coaching change remains in place and honors his commitment to Mizzou. My chief concern, starting over again which must be done with a new coach in place. Depending on who leaves and who remains we could still be looking at 2-3 years (barring the transfer portal) of poor basketball. On the other hand, that’s pretty much what is present with Cuonzo as coach for the last 5 seasons. Exactly who the replacement coach might be is unknown at this point and we could only speculate?

Bits n Pieces 

I love me some Mike DeCourcy is the longtime writer for The Sporting News, his pursuit is college basketball. Listening to him discussing the game is a joy. No yelling and screaming over the mic, no hyperbole on the subject at hand. He talks about the game in the manner of one who breaks down various portions. His criticisms don’t come close to character assassinations our ears often hear. The X’s and O’s of the game in a calm and rational manner. Although DeCourcy’s been in the business for several years he probably earns far less in salary than the yellers and screamers. There are several I believe could adopt the radio/television mantra of Mike DeCourcy.

Is there NBA expansion in the future? We, take this story from Bill Simmons veteran NBA watcher. Simmons claims the NBA is looking at expansion, the city’s mentioned in his account are Las Vegas and Seattle. This is certainly not earth-shattering news in recent years we’ve heard both locations are prime candidates once the NBA decides to expand. What might be considered key is the ownership group, Simmons claims LeBron James will be part of the ownership for the Las Vegas team. Considering his world view even the prospect of LeBron as an owner is not particularly farfetched. Simmons provided no timetable for expansion, but the best guess is 4-6 years. By that time even LeBron should be retired…maybe.

We checked out a video construction update on Intuit Dome the new home of the Clippers. This arena will open in 2024 and the YouTube video clearly details progress being made in work. We might want to consider SoCal home of the most basketball arenas in the nation, let’s conduct a quick count:

Intuit Dome

Crypto.com Arena (Staples Center)

The Forum

Honda Center

Pauley Pavilion-UCLA

Galen Center-Southern Cal

Eagles Nest Arena-Cal State-Los Angeles

Gersten Pavilion-Loyola Marymount

Matadome-Cal State-Northridge