Basketball from a fans perspective

The first 

His name is Aaron Rowe and he’s a 5-star rated by 247Sports, he’s in the Class of 2025. Rowe becomes Mizzou’s first-Class of 2025 prospect to commit. You might find this part of the story interesting, Rowe is enrolled at Bishop Tolton High School less than a 15-minute drive to Mizzou Arena. Gates and the Mizzou staff were able to scout Rowe without leaving the city. I’ve not seen this 6-foot 155-pound point guard in action, despite this fact perhaps 247Sports will provide us a degree of insight into his skill based on their observation.

In addition to the 5-stars he’s rated the number 20 prospect in their Class of 2025 prospects. This is a verbal commitment in Rowe’s junior year of high school, he is prohibited from officially signing a letter of intent until November 2024. After playing at Link Academy last season Rowe returned to Tolton, he made his choice of a college over offers he received from Kansas State and Tennessee. Based on his statement at the time he commented coach Gates has kept close tabs on him, the young man explained “He (Gates) informed me of some things I need to work on to become a better player.”

Surprise

Oklahoma City residents overwhelmingly approved the vote to build a new arena. 71% of the residents voted in the affirmative, a larger number than originally believed possible. I read and heard several residents opposed the project for a specific reason. They expressed their belief Thunder ownership should pay a larger share of the cost. Those opposed made little impact on the vote with 29% disapproving.

There is much work to accomplish before the groundbreaking ceremony, since I’ve not read or heard anything official my best guess would be late winter or early spring. The timeline for completion of construction would be the 2029-30 NBA season, in addition there would be a 25-year commitment for the Thunder to remain in the city. There is a belief by city leaders that additional development would occur around the arena, in closing I could find no evidence of the planned street location of the arena. Was there fear of losing the team that lead to the overwhelming vote?

A rising star

I’ve mentioned the talent I believe the Lakers have allowed to leave from time to time. The number of Clippers traded might be smaller however there is one in particular I believe they might want a re-do. The player in question is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the 6-foot 6-inch combo guard for the Thunder, his numbers have been on an upward trend while playing in Oklahoma. After playing his rookie season with the Clippers Gilgeous-Alexander was traded to the Thunder.

He along with Danilo Gallinari were exchanged for Paul George in 2019. I’m sure there are many who claimed the trade worked out just as well for the Clippers acquiring the talented George. In this instance the age is my focus, Gilgeous-Alexander just had his 25th birthday in July, the Clipper forward is 33 years old. Bally Sports Oklahoma is available on our cable system so I’ve had an above average number of games to see the talented guard play. Last season Gilgeous-Alexander made the NBA All Star team and was All NBA First Team. As you can see his star is rising rapidly as he leads his Thunder teammates.

Who is he

Alex English scored 25,613 points during his brilliant 15-year NBA career. I wanted to place his numbers up front because of all the 20,000-point scorers his name is probably the least known. English was drafted by the Bucks in the second round in 1976. He found it difficult to break into any type of role with this veteran team, in 1978 English signed with the Pacers. Seeing increased time on the court he began to blossom, he was traded to the Nuggets midway through the 1979-80 season.

Playing for the Nuggets English further demonstrated his budding talent at the small forward position. He was an 8-time NBA All-Star and NBA scoring champion in 1983. English became a free agent but the Nuggets declined to extend him, he finished his NBA career as a member of the Mavs in 1991. Honors came his way after retirement, English is enshrined in the Nasmith and College Basketball Hall of Fame. In retirement he and his wife own several Wendy’s franchises in South Carolina. The 25,613 points places English at the number 21 spot for all-time NBA scorers, Alex English a name you should be familiar with from the NBA’s past.

Don’t fire the coach

The headline is for Pistons management, you know the routine. The team no matter the sport is not playing up to expectations, in addition there appears to be no improvement. The easy method is to fire the coach however that’s often not effective for a single reason. Often it’s not the coaches’ fault, the team is playing badly so success should come if there is someone else in charge. I submit for your study the Detroit Pistons mired in last place, they are on pace to equal or exceed an NBA team record for losses. I looked at last season’s record, the Pistons won 17 games but lost 65 so Monty Williams didn’t exactly inherit a smooth functioning team. In June Monty Williams signed a six-year contract to manage the Pistons and we are only in year one.

Other than highlights I’ve yet to see them in action. After checking the roster I understand a sizable portion of the problem…. youth. Bojan Bogdanovic is 34-years old, Joe Harris and Alec Burks are each 32 that’s it three players on the roster over 30 and the balance of the team is comprised of 20 somethings. Young players must be taught how to win in the NBA, I realize that statement might sound strange however its true. How does a team become better quickly, trading some of the youthful talent on the roster for a veteran presence? In my opinion it’s not necessary to gut the team but winning must become paramount. There is no doubt in my mind Monty Williams given time can have this Piston teams competing. He cannot do it without a degree of help from the front office.