Basketball from a fans perspective

The dollars

This is written ahead of the Oklahoma city vote, you and I will discover if the taxpayers of Oklahoma City are willing to pay for a new arena for the Thunder. These are the numbers provided by the city, the cost of the arena is projected to be in the neighborhood of $900 million. Thunder ownership has pledged 5% or $50 million toward construction, in addition there is a previously approved $70 million sales tax which will be rolled into the project, in addition the Thunder would also agree to remain in the city for 25 years after completion of the arena. The balance of $780 million will be the responsibility of Oklahoma City taxpayers. So as we can see Thunder ownership will pay about $50 million for a $900 million project. As you can see this is why some residents are displeased with the project.

I’m confused

This account is only partially related to basketball, I recently discovered something I probably should have known but didn’t. There is no method for me to remember back in time, I cannot even remember the first time I heard the name of the Boston NBA team. All my childhood and adult years I’ve heard announcers and members of the media refer to the team phonetically as the Sell-ticks. Recently I discovered all things not connected with basketball there is a different pronunciation for the word. It is pronounced (phonetically) Kell-ticks, how do I know, check this out

From the dictionary “Relating to the Celts or their languages, which constitute a branch of the Indo-European family and include Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, Manx, Cornish, and several extinct pre-Roman languages such as Gaulish.” Someone help me please, the history side of me indicates a substantial percentage of the Greater Boston population can trace its ancestry to Ireland, truth is Boston is actually 3rd in the nation. New York City is first followed by Chicago and then Boston in that order. The part that continues to puzzle me, how did the word journey from Kell-tick to Sell-tick, I wanna know?            

“Who are those guys?”

As a loyal member of Jayhawk Nation reminded me "There is no such thing as a moral victory." Okay I can agree with that observation however I do have concerns about some of the letter I've read beginning Sunday after the Saturday Mizzou-Kansas basketball game. s a loyal member of Jayhawk Nation reminded me “There is no such thing as a moral victory.” This doesn't apply to every letter writer but here goes, you are not the coach of the basketball team. That job belongs to Dennis Gates who was hired to perform that task, he doesn't need or require your help. That message is intended for me as well, the coach doesn't need my help either.  

If Connor Vanover desires to imitate Jason Momoa or Ian McKellan when he portrays Gandalf that’s his business, he can grow his hair and beard as long as he desires. In addition if Gates wants him shooting three’s that is not your decision. What I find interesting is the boo birds have come from all over. I hope this doesn’t appear to be an excuse but Mizzou played the number two team in the nation, they lost to Kansas by 9 points in the cauldron of Allen Fieldhouse. I am disappointed of course but peering into the future I see brighter days ahead for Mizzou basketball under Dennis Gates, I say that despite the negative comments by some.

Zoologist

The definition of the headline, “The study of animals, those both in captivity and in the wild, and how they interact with their ecosystems. They focus primarily on undomesticated animals and their behavior, as well as on the impact humans have on wildlife and natural habitats.” You are probably wondering the purpose of this exercise, you are aware teams no matter the sport usually adopt ferocious animals as mascots. Therein lies the problem for yours truly, I should have consulted a zoologist. The Hornets kept the name when they moved from Charlotte, under the new ownership they wanted a name more closely identified with Louisiana.

At the time the team chose Pelicans I laughed to myself thinking what a blunder. After conducting research I discovered the bird consumes turtles, insects, fish, frogs and mammals. That says vicious to me something I hadn’t envisioned when I first wrote an incorrect account of Pelicans. I didn’t repeat the mistake but in another story pointed out Florida Atlanta University might have the only team in the nation with Owls as their mascot. Owls are predators consuming mice, frogs, lizards, snakes, fish, rabbits, birds, squirrels, and other creatures. Although I’m unsure if a pelican would attack a human being I’m not so sure about an owl. With that my zoologist/basketball account is complete and no more laughter by me without research.

Georgetown basketball

In the recent past the Georgetown Hoyas struck fear in the hearts of opponents. Georgetown long played college basketball but the arrival of John Thompson changed all that. Over the course of time he coached them the Hoyas became one of the most competitive and feared teams in the nation. Every season meant NCAA postseason and one year they won it all and then it stopped. Big John retired in January 1999 and successive coaches had limited success.

Those succeeding him named as head coach were Craig Esherick, John Thompson III and Patrick Ewing, all three were eventually fired although Esherick and Thompson III did have a degree of success. The administration would turn to Patrick Ewing who led the Hoyas to prominence hoping he would re-energize the program. The problem Ewing the coach didn’t have Ewing the player available, the result was 75 wins and 109 losses in 6 years. March 2023 the school hired Ed Cooley who led Providence basketball to success. Cooley teams registered 242 wins and 119 in the Big East. Unsure of what talent remains Cooley must be allowed time to build “his” brand of Hoya basketball.