Basketball from a fan’s perspective

Geography    

Once upon a time geography was important as it related to conference affiliation. In the 21st Century that holds little importance compared to what it once did. Next season the Big XII or whatever name it takes on will contain teams in the Pacific, Mountain, Central and Eastern time zones. After checking the weekend standings of the Big XII Conference it dawned on me. There are 14 members currently but it will not remain at that present number for very much longer. At the end of this this current season Texas along with Oklahoma will depart the conference and affiliate themselves as members of the SEC,

That leaves that the conference with 12 teams but that’s only going to be for a short period. In the fall Arizona, Arizona State and Utah arrive raising the number of conference members to 15. Clearly a name change will be required once the new teams arrive. As for me I have no suggestions for a new designation, that’s above my paygrade. This I know for sure to remain the Big XII Conference with 15 teams certainly doesn’t make a great deal of sense to me. A friend pointed out the Big 10 is practically in the same boat, this conference too will have teams from the Pacific to the Atlanta Ocean along with several Midwest stops.

Luka the Don 

We often talk of records being broken and this is one more example, I’m quite sure at the time we probably believed it would stand for ages. In 2017 Russell Westbrook then a member of the Thunder had 5 consecutive triple doubles establishing the record. It stood until Saturday March 9, Mavs point forward Luka Doncic is now the new record holder. Doncic’s game against the Pistons consisted of 39 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.

This was the 6th consecutive triple-double game for Doncic as he led the way to the 142-124 victory over the Pistons. Sometimes we tend to look at the game from an offensive standpoint only, that is not the case for a triple double. That player performing the triple-double in my view shows extra effort, he is pulling down rebounds and passing the basketball to teammates. His labor is often a contributing factor to a win. Although a triple-double might be view singerly it’s really team efficient and for me it tends to speak to an individual contributing to a team effort.

Thumbs up, thumps down

Earlier I gave my vote of confidence to Dennis Gates at Mizzou, Laker coach Darvin Ham not so much. I remain unconvinced Ham has provided the leadership necessary for this particular Laker team. Last season after the trade deadline the Lakers began playing improved basketball, this after wallowing around the basement for much of the season. They accelerated their effort and this saw them win the play in tournament and they managed to face the Nuggets for the NBA Western Conference title. Free agent moves over the summer led me to believe they were prepared to battle once the season started.

Once again the Lakers got off to a rough start, it was late December or early January they finally began a turn around. Despite the improved play the Lakers still appear to be treading water. The coach cannot score a basket nor pulled down a rebound, the coach cannot play defense either. The most bothersome thing has been the constantly changing lineup, over an unknown period the starting lineup was changed and appears to be finalized now. As this is written if the Lakers continue to play at the present pace they will qualify again for the play-in tournament. Beyond that I have no clue what the future holds for Darvin Ham.

The best combo

I wondered if there’s ever been a rookie combo similar to Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren. We could say 1979 might have been the best, Larry Bird with the Celtics and Magic Johnson Lakers began play in the fall of that year. There is no requirement to detail their exploits they are well known. How about another combo, I worked my way backwards 10 years in the past. This is my list so there is no requirement for you to agree to what I detailed here. 2019 is a little suspect in this regard, Zion Williamson’s missed games but he’s exhibited his tremendous upside despite negative comments expressed by some.

I could make the same statement about Ja Morant, of course most you reading this are aware he is injured now and out for the season. Morant’s not made good decisions off the court but the basketball skill is clearly unquestioned, they are standouts drafted in the same year. Prior to that date I had to return to 2018, The Don…Luka Doncic and Trae Young arrived in the NBA from that draft. The portion of this account I wish to clarify is simple, I am not claiming other skill players have not arrived in the NBA over the 10-year period. Clearly I could have missed a pair, those named appear to have made a solid contribution to their teams and the NBA in their rookie year.