Basketball from a fan’s perspective

No campaign

I’m not in the forefront of those asking to change the Laker head coach however I believe it’s necessary. I have no issues with Darvin Ham, I like him I’m just unsure if he’s an effective head coach. Effective at least for a LeBron led team. Mike Brown “learned” to coach after the Lakers dismissed him so I can state if Darvin Ham is replaced it will not be the end of the world. Who replaces Ham near the middle of the season if the Lakers decide to fire him, how about Phil Handy veteran assistant and current Laker coach?

Then there is this to consider, is it always a promising idea to hire an assistant, this quote from the NFL longtime coach Bill Parcells. “Whenever you dismiss the head coach and replace him with one of his assistants, what you are saying essentially, the assistant had all the answers but wasn’t letting anyone know.” On the other hand you could look at it in this manner, suppose that assistant was making suggestions the head guy refused to utilize? Whatever the case something needs to be done and quickly if the Lakers hope to save the 2023-24 season.

Are you impressed yet?

The headline question is aimed at Shaq and not you the reader. Some might remember a few weeks back the Big Aristotle said this, “He talked about how he’s never seen a guy like Wembanyama. Yes you have, his name is Bol Bol. Wembanyama is just way more consistent than Bol.” Now let’s break down the Shaq statement, the last portion, “way more consistent than Bol” isn’t what all of us are supposed to be about is consistency? I have no desire to denigrate Bol but he certainly hasn’t been Wemby thus far. I insist he remains ahead of Chet Holmgren in the Rookie of the Year race for two reasons.

He’s more talented plus Holmgren’s team is light years better than the Spurs. Wemby is getting there, he’s not there yet but he’s close…he almost willed his Spurs team to victory on Sunday. The Cavs won the Sunday afternoon match 117-115 it was that close, as for Wemby all he accomplished was this. Wemby had 24 points along with 10 rebounds and 3 assists along with 5 blocked shots. With his block shot total he continues to lead the NBA in that department. I’ve noticed on occasion Shaq wears glasses, perhaps he might want to grab a tissue or cloth and clean them. It’s clear to me (and maybe others) his eyewear must require cleaning.

Home cooking

Kansas won their game against TCU 83-81, the game played in Allen Fieldhouse had tinges of home cooking by game officials. This is an area I rarely venture into in most instances giving game officials the benefit of the doubt, not this time. Allow me to set the stage in case you didn’t see the Saturday afternoon action. Hunter Dickinson of Kansas hit two free throws after a flagrant 1 foul was called on TCU’s Ernest Udeh Jr. Naturally with a flagrant 1 after the two made free throws the ball was awarded to Kansas. At this point a Dajuan Harris Jr miss was followed by a Dickinson layup with 3.4 seconds remaining in the game.

Timeout and a desperation shot by TCU came up short, the winner Kansas 83 TCU 81. Prior to writing this account I returned to review the video again after seeing it multiple times at the close of the game. My assessment, Udeh Jr. fouled Dickinson no disagreement on my part. The part in dispute by yours truly is whether the foul was flagrant or not. There is no method for me to prove this statement except what I believe occurred. Udeh Jr. was able to secure the rebound, an inadvertent backhand led to the foul. In addition Dickinson did an excellent job of selling the foul to the officials. You think officials would dare not call the flagrant with the boisterous Kansas faithful in Allen Fieldhouse.

Is this a debate issue?

Before I get into the meat and potatoes of this account allow me to say this. We are unable to look inside someone to see the “fire that burns within,” that fire that says I’m the best there is. In this instance the individuals are Phil Handy Laker assistant and Kawhi Leonard Clipper forward. Recently Handy made this statement, “Kawhi Leonard is cut out of the same cloth as Kobe, LeBron and MJ.” From the position he occupies Handy has seen a great deal more high-profile basketball than me however I have an issue with his statement. I don’t question the fact Kawhi desires to win but for unknown reasons I’m missing it. I “saw” the fire that burned in Michael Jordan, it was evident in Kobe Bryant and the same could be said for LeBron James.

The Raptors fail to win the 2019 NBA championship without the leadership and effort of Kawhi Leonard. Has the injury bug clouded my view of Kawhi, yes I can say that. Since his days with the Raptors he’s missed so many games it’s difficult for me to see the splendor he possesses. I just looked at some numbers, we must return to 2016-17 Kawhi played 74 games that season. Since then the most games played have been the championship year with the Raptors where he played 60 games. It’s difficult for me to place Kawhi Leonard beside the names Handy mentioned for a single reason. Those players were almost always ready to play, we cannot make the same statement for Kawhi. Before someone begins tossing rocks in my direction rest assured I know Kawhi has no desire to be sidelined, despite that fact the injury bug stands out boldly. Hopefully in the remainder of the season he can prove me wrong.

What do you think 

I have often believed a home arena might be worth a few extra points to a good team. The gathering cheering for the home team might have “willed” the home team to victory. What do you think is the number one college basketball cathedral in America? It’s not what you might believe…of course we are speaking of the observation of Jay Bilas. Most of us are familiar with the name Bilas, he’s the former Duke player and ESPN college basketball analyst, he provided us a list of his favorite top college basketball venues in the nation.

There might be a surprise or two for you, here goes. Number 5 he named Assembly Hall home of the Indiana Hoosiers, number 4 the Breslin Center the location of Michigan State basketball. Number 3, the Kentucky Wildcats Rupp Arena and tied for first Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium and Allen Fieldhouse home of the Kansas Jayhawks. This is the Bilis list not mine, I’m only the messenger. Would your list reflect these same names, do you agree with him but maybe exclude some on his list?