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Basketball from a fans perspective

It’s all still good

As reported yesterday Mizzou faced its first road game in Wichita. The Shockers would be a worthy opponent especially with them playing at home. What to expect, I really had no idea however I would soon find out. Mizzou played a reasonably good first half and led 43 to 36 at the break. The second half would be much more competitive as the Shockers shot better and improved their rebound numbers. They returned to the court in the second half and played a renewed inspired game. How critical did it become for Mizzou you might ask; the Shockers held a 10-point lead (66-56) with 5 minutes remaining in the game? I thought (along with most in Mizzou Nation) the win streak is likely over.

I have no idea what Gates and staff said to the team, but they began a stretch run which saw Mizzou tie the game and at the buzzer we’d see OT. In the extra period Mizzou outscored the Shockers 13-9 leading the way to an 88-84 win. Despite the win several streaks ended, probably the most significant for me…. assists. Mizzou only had 14 assists after registering 20+ in the first 7 games, they shot poorly from the 3-point line (21.2). Despite the negatives Mizzou managed 6 steals and only 8 turnovers a good ratio. Mizzou took a few questionable shots however still shot 42% from the floor. I hate to repeat myself, but this is a team, there is no single Mizzou player for the opposition to focus. Whoever is on the floor for Mizzou must be considered a threat to score, they are undersized but still manage to rebound the ball.

Twin Towers

Basketball has always been about height, who’s got the tallest most talented lineup. A lineup of center and power forward has usually been known as Twin Towers. There might have been an earlier version however my research indicates the San Francisco Warriors might have had the first Twin Tower lineup in the 1963-64 season. They had veteran 7-foot 1 Wilt Chamberlain at center and drafted a natural center Nate Thurmond 6 foot 11 at the power forward.

We might debate the success of the paring, Thurmond accustomed to playing center was uncomfortable with the move. Chamberlain was later traded to the Sixers and Thurmond became the Warriors center; this duo only played two seasons together. Next up were the Houston Rockets with their center-power forward of 7-0 Hakeem Olajuwon and 7-4 Ralph Sampson. Later we’d see 7-1 David Robinson and 6-11 Tim Duncan form the most recent Twin Tower tandem as both played for the Spurs. At the present there exists no Twin Towers in the NBA or on the horizon.

Does he hold that much power?

A reader disagreed with my November 30 account of Gonzaga basketball. Gary appeared to have no problem agreeing Gonzaga is a national basketball power it’s the other thing he took issue with. He indicated his belief Bill Self might wield enough power to keep Gonzaga out of the Big XII Conference. We might ask the question would he, could he do this? What you are about to read is pure speculation on my part except for the games mentioned, let’s take a look at the recent past. Bill Self held a grudge against Mizzou for leaving the conference in 2012.

Self would never admit it publicly, but it was there. He didn’t like the fact Mizzou left the conference. Whenever it was mentioned the two schools could play one another in the non-conference portion of the season he refused to schedule the game. He did this despite the fact the schools had one of the fiercest and oldest rivalries in the nation. Self did this despite the fact his Kansas team played Colorado and Nebraska two former Big XII schools. I can offer you no further proof in this account other than the games played against Colorado and Nebraska. Could Self be vindictive, I cannot answer that question, you must draw your own conclusion.  

Hall of Fame

A number of NBA fans voiced their concern due to Dwight Howard being excluded. As the NBA announced its 75^th Anniversary team Howard’s name was no place to be found. I had no vote but agree with the selection committee regarding him being omitted. Do I hate or dislike Howard, that is not the case it’s the other things? The Dwight Howard we saw play in the first few years was a dynamo scoring, block shots and the like. Somewhere along the way in my view he “lost” his way.

Howard never appeared to improve his game at least to me, in addition he appeared unserious about the game. I looked at his stats for each succeeding time after the Magic, some of the numbers were very good however at some point after his first go round with the Lakers (Rockets, Hornets and Wizards) he began a slow steady slide downward. Howard moved from a starter role to that of a reserve. Does the Hall remain in his future? I’ve mentioned this story in the past, a former co-worker once asked me if I thought Dennis Rodman was worthy of the honor. I said no way yet 3-5 years later Rodman was enshrined, bottom line, never say never.

I discovered Ja Morant

Now that I have your attention allow me to explain further. Murray State Morant’s school is Division I but is considered a mid-major school. It’s funny thinking about his beginning, at the time he graduated few schools offered scholarships, he decided in favor of Murray State. His freshman numbers were good, but it was his sophomore season that saw many (including me) take notice of this speedy combo guard. The school is not on television much, but I had an opportunity to see Morant in action more than once. I also watched his stock rise significantly on mock draft sites that sophomore season.

It should be on note Morant is one of those athletes who might be better suited to the NBA over college basketball. There’s a question if it’s a practice issue but he continues to improve his stock in year four in the NBA. His scoring’s risen from 17 to 19 to 27 and so far, this season he’s at 28.5 points per game. Morant is not a shooter alone; he manages to deal out nearly 8 assists a game to teammates. One additional key is his rebounding ability, although he stands but 6 foot 3, he is averaging 6.4 rebounds a game thanks to his amazing leaping ability. Morant has Super Star stamped on his forehead and I did not discover him. This I believe, I spotted his potential earlier than a number of others.