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Basketball from a fans perspective

Bits n Pieces

For me this is the first time in recent memory there is no clear favorite for the NCAA Championship. I can project 4-5 teams who might wind up NCAA Champions the first Monday in April. Who are these teams, it could be Alabama or maybe Houston? On the other Purdue, Kansas or Marquette could also make a stretch run. It just might be none of the above, it could be a team I’ve failed to mention…stay tuned.

The last three years Kansas State was 11-21, 9-20 and last season 14-17. Bruce Weber departed, and Jerome Tang was hired in his place. Tang without head coaching experience managed to lead the Wildcats to a 23-8 record with play in the Big XII and NCAA Tourney remaining. Tang had two returning players when he took over the team and brought in 13 newcomers. He was selected Big XII Coach of the Year, a well-deserved honor for him. 

No irrational belief here, is this you, many in Mizzou Nation are superstitious it’s like they believe something bad is about to occur. Yes, in 1990 game officials lost track of the downs in the Mizzou-Colorado football game. Given the extra down Colorado beats Mizzou 33-31. How about the 1995 NCAA Tourney, UCLA’s 6 foot 1 Tyus Edney shooting over 6-foot 8 Derrick Grimm for the game winner with 4.8 seconds left in the game. Many in Mizzou Nation point to those two events and maybe others causes a fatalistic attitude about sports, I’m here to place all superstitions in the rearview mirror. This is the dawn of a new day; however I am cautious in stating I can only speak for myself.

The Clippers won the Sunday evening game against the Grizzlies 135-129. The win ended a 4-game Clipper losing streak, but they had to really scramble to win this one in the fourth quarter. The Clippers managed to give up 51 points in the third quarter of the game. That number hasn’t been reached very often, this game became the tenth time in NBA history a team has surrendered 50 points or more in a quarter.

I hope there is a lesson here

I failed to read in detail the defense Jalen Rose and Gilbert Arenas spoke on Ja Morant. Before someone confuses the issue, this is not a “take away the guns rant.” It’s a use common sense one, by now you are aware Morant’s been suspended, early it was reported to be two games now its indefinite. Morant posted a video on his Instagram account brandishing a handgun. We don’t know the untold number of youth and young adults who admire Morant, is he saying to them this is acceptable behavior? The Grizzlies are in second place in the west, they are not going to fall out of playoff contention. Finally Arenas is the last person I wish to hear on this type of issue. Arenas guilty of bringing a gun into the Wizards locker room to threaten a teammate. Morant’s issued a public apology so that should suffice for now. I hope this has been a learned lesson for the young man.

Load Management

I believe athletes of today are nutritionally superior to those of the past. Training regiments and other things have been contributing factors in these better conditioned athletes. This belief applies across the board to all professional athletes. In the NBA two words have come into our lexicon which are close to being profane. NBA players sitting out games, they are not injured or even recovering from injury. These players decide “I don’t think I want to play tonight.” The demands of today’s NBA players are certainly more intense than those of the past, travel being one of them. Although the league has attempted to cut back the number of back to backs, they continue to exist.

The “Texas Triangle” might be an example, the Knicks play the Spurs in San Antonio and the next night its Houston and a game against the Rockets. After a day break the trip is ended with a game in Dallas. I realize that might be a short flight, but it’s still travel. Nothing like travel to mess with your bodies clock, the East Time Zone Sixers travel across the nation to play the Pacific Time Zone Blazers, that’s three-time zone (and body) adjustments. This was mentioned previously, and I believe it’s worth exploring. A friend suggested the NBA should prohibit visiting teams from Load Management. As this account was being completed a Bleacher Report headline read: “Kawhi Leonard will Continue to Sit Back to Back Games amid Clippers Losing Streak.” How does a statement similar to that impact NBA fans? The question requires an answer, how valuable are you to a team without play?