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Basketball from a fans perspective

Say what

For several reading this post it’s not news in a sense, I was familiar with Skechers shoes but my immediate thought was walking or comfort type shoe styles. Shame on me for not being aware of this fact, truth is I was not aware they even manufactured an athletic line. Surprise on me, not only do they have an athletic shoe line but they are about to jump feet first (sorry about the pun) into the competitive shoe market. As this is written Skechers management is negotiating with Sixer center Joel Embiid for him to become the spokesperson of this new line of footwear. In a manner of speaking this might not be as surprising as first perceived. You might remember a report during the summer where Reebok announced it was entering the market once again and intended to become relevant as it relates to basketball shoes.

You might hear his name

As the saying goes, Youth will be served, and the 2024 NBA draft will be just that. One of the names you might hear announced by the commissioner is Ron Holland, a little background on him. Holland is a 6-foot 8 inch forward and he played his high school basketball at Duncanville. Duncanville in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro has been a longtime hotbed for basketball. Holland will begin play for the G-League Team Elite but how he arrived is interesting.

Holland is a McDonalds All American and 5-star prospect, when it came time to choose he decided to attend Texas over offers from Kentucky, Memphis, Kansas, Arkansas and UCLA. It was believed he would go elsewhere after Chris Beard was fired, that was not the case initially. Last April he requested Texas release him from the letter of intent he’d signed. Instead of choosing another school Holland decided instead on a pro career, shortly after receiving his release Holland signed with NBA G-League Team Elite. In the case of Holland there is no guarantee in October 2023 he will be in the June draft but that looks to be the case based on the evaluation by scouting websites. 

Bits n Pieces 

Now that NBA training camps are open how about a brief focus on the Spurs and their wunderkind Victor Wembanyama. The following are the figures three NBA websites utilize to provide us the measurements i.e. height and weight for Wemby. He’s not the 7-foot 5 height some early reports claim, so what exactly are we discussing? One NBA website indicates he stand 7 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 225 pounds. Another one claims Wemby is 7 foot 4 inches but a spindly 210 pounds, a third site also list him at 7 feet 4 but 220 pounds. Whichever site is correct it’s clear Wemby is nowhere near the height published a year ago leading up to the NBA draft. As for the weight question that might not be as easily resolved.

I cannot prove what you are about to read but here it goes anyway. What sport do you believe most favors the home team? I’ve always believed it’s basketball, it doesn’t matter if we are discussing high school, college or the NBA. Why do we suppose this advantage exists, there are probably several reasons? The chief one I believe is distance to the action. In a high school gym, college or NBA arena we are much closer than in a football or baseball stadium. A loud vocal crowd can often intimidate a visiting team in a high school or college game, however in an NBA arena to a lesser degree. As I said these are my thoughts alone, perhaps you can add factors I failed to mention.

There might be a belief by some I have a problem with the media, that is not the case. There are voices I routinely enjoy reading or listening to on television, one of those is Andy Katz. I’m unsure what year Katz first popped up on my television screen. Katz was a college basketball analyst for ESPN, in 2017 he was one of numerous employees laid off by the network. I always found Katz to be thoughtful and insightful in his coverage of college basketball. He currently serves as a studio analyst for the Big 10 Network. Katz has a journalism background having worked for three newspapers, the Fresno Bee, Albuquerque Journal and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Be on the lookout for Katz either print or electronic and be prepared to receive clear and perceptive information.

There is a new name on the basketball horizon for you to retain, his name is Bruce Zhang. This projected talented Big Man is from China, the 7-foot 265-pound center attends Skill Academy in Atlanta Georgia. Zhang had offers from Bradley, Coastal Carolina, St. Louis University and others. After a visit to SLU he decided in favor of the school. Zhang joins two other SLU prospects in the Class of 2024. Hometown for Zhang is Nanchang the capital of Jiangxi province, this city is located in the north central portion of the province. His home is located about 500 miles north of Hong Kong.