Basketball from a fans perspective

Welcome back…home?

We know the saga of the Sacramento Kings; they have been somewhat pathetic. If members of Kings Nation want to point out the Lakers poor record, there is a stark difference between the two teams. At least we fans of the Lakers can state, “We won it all in 2019.” When’s the last time the Kings even experienced a winning record? I’ll help you; it was 2005-06 when the team finished with a 44-38 record.

Not only was it the last season the team registered a winning record it was the last Kings playoff team. Maybe the futility of the team’s play might have prompted Kansas City’s Mayor, Quinton Lucas to extend an invitation for the Kings to “return home.” Of course, we realize it’s more difficult than simply acknowledging the offer extended by the mayor. Although the mayor like others would like the NBA to return to the city it’s not likely to occur unless those with deep pockets decide to enter the picture.

“Danger, danger Will Robinson”

That was the line uttered weekly by the robot from the weekly television series Lost in Space which ran from 1965-1968. In 2018 it returned to the airways in one of the streaming services. The warning was intended to prevent the youngest Robinson family member from pending danger. In this instance the danger could be a story regarding the Lakers or Mizzou basketball. This account is for members of Laker Nation. This time its Laker news, housecleaning has begun. We have no idea how next season’s team will appear, one thing for sure it will be younger with some veteran presence. Veteran Trevor Ariza was waived to clear roster space, the team then signed forward Wenyen Gabriel 6 foot 9 forward to a 2-year contract. Gabriel is 25-years old, he played at Kentucky and also briefly for 5 NBA and 3 G-League teams.

Also arriving in the middle of the season Mason Jones a 6-foot 4 guard who went undrafted in the 2021 NBA Draft, he’s 23-years old. Added earlier was 6-foot 6 242-pound power forward Stanley Johnson, Johnson is 25-years old. Signed to a two-way contract from their G-League team is guard Mac McClung (age 23), do you see a common theme here? These additions plus others added to the roster over the next several months will join Talen-Horton Tucker (age 21), Malik Monk (age 24) and Austin Reaves (age 23). Young legs who will not become exhausted sprinting up and down the court, young legs who will be able to play adequate defense, notice I didn’t say great. Keep in mind these moves will not become a solve all for this talented by flawed Laker team, they should provide proof whoever the coach is next season he will inherit a much younger team than Frank Vogel dealt with.

As this is drafted a report is circulating stating the Lakers might waive Russell Westbrook, his huge salary would then be spread over the next three seasons. This move should it occur would not only free a roster spot but make available additional cash as well. One of the key’s is a legitimate center, the offense is not built around a “Kareem Abdul Jabbar or Shaq” type center but one who can legitimately play the position. Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan were found to be deficient in skill at playing the post at times, that’s the reason we often witnessed the Lakers playing the 6-foot 9 LeBron James in the position. Yes, I remain enthusiastic…the Laker team will be much better than the 2022 version. They will be better since they will be capable of running and defending something this present roster was unable to accomplish.

He’s back

There have been a number of coaches hired some like Dennis Gates at Mizzou were relatively unknown. We know this name, no, not Michael Jordan rather it’s Steve Lavin. You might remember the former UCLA and St. John’s head coach; Lavin’s been working as an analyst for the networks off and on since 2003. He’s also provided coverage for the NBA during a portion of this period. Lavin takes over a struggling that’s not done much since 2018, that year the Toreros finished the season with a 20-14 plus 9-9 in the West Coast Conference. This recently completed season they were 15-16 and registered a 7-9 conference record. Good luck with the re-build Coach Lavin.

Bits n Pieces

The debate has been ongoing since the middle of the NBA season, the question who should become the 2021-22 Most Valuable Player? Without a great deal of debate allow this statement first, Sixer fans don’t become upset with me. My choice is a repeater, The Joker…Nikola Jokic’ is my selection. Could Joel Embiid win, of course he could it’s quite possible, but my best guess is the Nugget center will be a repeat MVP.

It might be our imagination however it appears true. There is so much off-season activity related to college basketball it is impossible to update this blog daily. The hope is to highlight those stories which impact as many institutions as possible. We’ll attempt to get through this busy off season as best we can. We have numbers declaring for the NBA Draft (although some will withdraw), the transfer portal, NIL plus the last few high school players choosing a college. This is all working at the same time.

Of all the pending NBA prospects probably the most difficult decision to make is that of Oscar Tshiebwe. Tshiebwe had an outstanding season at Kentucky as he led the nation in rebounding and aided the university to an outstanding record. That’s the upside, what about the downside we might ask? Tshiebwe is projected in the second round of most mock draft sites. Not a terrible thing but certainly not great beginning with his salary as a second-round choice. Does he return for his senior year and improve his draft stock? On the other hand, a Tshiebwe return to school entails risking injury impacting his potential NBA career?

I’m unsure if we covered Fanbo Zeng in the past, if not allow this short read. He’s a 6-foot 11 199 pound forward (think Chet Holmgren) and plays for the G-League team Ignite. Zeng hails from Harbin China however he attended Windemere Prep in Windemere Florida outside of Orlando. His plan was to attend Gonzaga until assistant coach Tommy Lloyd left to become head coach at Arizona. At that point Zeng de-committed deciding in favor of playing in the NBA G-League. Prior to him arriving on these shores he was termed the top prospect in Chinese basketball. Zeng turned 19 in January so don’t expect to hear his name called in the 2022 NBA draft, despite that it’s possible the NBA might be in his future one day. There you have it, a brief profile of Fanbo Zeng who plays for Team Ignite in the NBA G-League.

Do you think the NBA MVP race is tight in 2022? How about 1961, Celtic Bill Russell was the winner but there was plenty of competition. Wilt Chamberlain of the Warriors finished in 2^nd place with 50.4 points and 25.6 rebounds a game outstanding numbers. In 3^rd place was the Big O, Oscar Robertson of the Cincinnati Royals had numbers of 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists per game. From the MVP’s inception until 1979-80 the league’s MVP was awarded based on the votes of players. The following season and thereafter media members voted on the honor.