Basketball from a fan’s perspective

Clarification  

I posted this a little while ago, Spurs center Victor Wembanyama was leading the NBA in blocked shots. Despite this fact imagine my surprise when I looked at the totals. As of January 9, Bucks center Brook Lopez has 107 blocked shots, Wemby has 101. What’s the difference you might ask, the Lopez total represents the Bucks center play in 37 games while Wemby’s been in action in 31 games.  In addition the minutes are different as well, Lopez has been in action for 32.9 minutes a game while Wemby’s number is 29.2 instituted by coach Popovich.

Nate the Great 

A portion of this account popped up on my social feed, just in case you are acquainted or related to former NBA center Clifford Ray this is not intended as a criticism. The late Nate Thurmond is enshrined in the Naismith and College Basketball Hall of Fame, Thurmond is the only NBA player to ever record a quadruple double. He once scored 22 points along with 14 rebounds and 13 assists with an outstanding 12 blocked shots. Thurmond could shoot however it was rebounding and block shots he would excel at. This from Wikipedia, “NBA All-Star center Bob Rule recalled Thurmond blocking six of his seven shots during the first half of their first encounter.

After his coach urged him to “Keep putting ‘em up. He can’t block ‘em all,” Rule responded “Yeah, well if I hadn’t made that layup it would have been all of ‘em.” Thurmond was drafted by the San Francisco Warriors but forced to play power forward. Playing the center position at the time was Wilt Chamberlain, after Chamberlain was traded the 6 foot 11 inch Thurmond moved to his natural position. He would later play for the Bulls and Cavs, as for his connection to Ray it’s simple. Ray certainly wasn’t on the same level however he was younger and not paid as much as Thurmond, the trade became an effort by the Warriors to reduce their cash flow. It should be of note LeBron James was not the first great basketball player from Akron Ohio, that honor belongs to Nate Thurmond born in July 1941. Thurmond passed away in 2016 at the age of 74.

The NFL can do no wrong…. okay

You remember a couple of weeks ago, various podcasters were proclaiming the NFL a winner. The league had faced off against the NBA on Christmas Day and won the ratings war. These naysayers had nothing positive to say about the NBA and the issues they believed the league faced. Fast forward to the present, the NFL in its infinite wisdom decided to place the Dolphins-Chiefs game on the Peacock Network. Unless you live in the footprint of either team you are not going to be able to view a key playoff game. New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and other large metro areas will be unable to view the game unless they are Peacock subscribers.

Now my mind says the NFL does nothing purposely that will cause the league to lose money. The revenue from this playoff game will probably equal the other games. The question for me, I wonder who decided this was a good move for the NFL. I believe it goes to show you they don’t always make moves with the NFL fan in mind. It’s a little difficult to compare “apples to oranges” both are some fruit. The NFL only plays once a week, NBA teams can play three times during a single week. How accurate are the viewer numbers, 17 games in the NFL (less playoffs) to 82 games (less playoffs) in the NBA. The NFL clearly beats the NBA in television viewership in the U.S. no argument on my part, worldwide is a different matter.  

A shooting star that’s gone dim  

Ja Morant was suspended for the first 25 games of the season by the NBA. On January 5 Morant returned from that suspension and took up where he left off last season. From that first game it appeared he’d lost nothing from his time being sidelined. Despite his swift start it’s all over after he played but 9 games in the 2023-24 season. Monday evening came news Morant was facing season ending surgery this the result of a labrum tear in his right shoulder. The Grizzlies have 13 wins versus 23 losses as this is written, this is a sharp contrast from last season.

It’s highly unlikely they manage to win 51 games this season and a playoff berth although it certainly remains possible. At this point it would appear the Grizzlies will likely qualify for the lottery over earning a playoff berth. Who should they be looking at in the 2024 draft? Two mock draft sites place Matas Buzelis 6-10 small forward from the G-League, the other mock claims the Grizzlies will choose Ja’Kobe Walter 6-5 shooting guard from Baylor. The prospect of incoming talent next season probably fails to satisfy Grizzlies Nation but at least it’s a positive that might help deflect the negative Morant news.

The tough SEC

I’ve mentioned this on more than one occasion, SEC basketball is much tougher than I originally believed. I once thought it was Kentucky and a bunch of other guys I’ve since discovered its more than that. A major reason for the increase in the number of wins is the fact schools have hired a number of quality head coaches, I have no intention of naming them you are aware of them. 

In any event Mizzou continues to navigate its way through the SEC minefield. Saturday Mizzou suffered a home loss to Georgia 75-68, on Tuesday they face Kentucky on the road. I have no idea the schedule of these SEC teams but consider their won-loss records. South Carolina is 13-1, Auburn 12-2, Kentucky 11-2 while Georgia and Tennessee round out the top at 11-3. The SEC race might be extremely difficult for Mizzou to steer its way through this upcoming season.