Basketball from a fan’s perspective

I ain’t no model T-101

For some of you the headline might be confusing for others it’s understandable. Cyberdyne Systems from the Terminator franchise produced the first model T-101 a.k.a. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The T-101 was perfect but I ain’t, my blog is re-read after publishing each morning. Unfortunately there are grammar errors made from time to time, there are fewer in spelling thanks to spell check. Those grammatical misapplied sentences drive me wild. I am offering an apology for them, with a single proofreader (me) its sometimes difficult to snag all of them. Of course if I were a T-101 you wouldn’t be reading this, oh well.

I’m not ashamed

Mark Mitchell proved to be an unknown to me, Mizzou indicated this Duke forward was in the transfer portal and was headed to Mizzou. I watched fewer Duke games this past season than ever in my memory, I sure don’t recall seeing Mitchell in action. In any event Marcus advised me “He went to high school here.” At that point I began a research project on Mitchell and soon became enlightened. Turns out Mitchell was a 2022 McDonalds All American and rated a 5-star prospect out of high school.  

Mitchell completed high school at Sunrise Christian Academy in metro Wichita. Despite all the warning lights flashing about I must admit I missed him. He appears to have a body built to play basketball in the rough and tumble SEC, 6 foot 9 and 232 pounds. As this account was being completed came word Jordan Turner 7-foot forward would be entering the transfer portal. I hate for Mizzou to lose any player from its roster however it was clear this move was probably going to occur. I would say the same for Turner as any other player good luck in your new endeavor.  

A name from the past you should know

His name is Will Robinson, most reading this are likely unfamiliar with this basketball pioneers name. Robinson passed in 2008 at the age of 96, he graduated from West Virginia State an HBCU institution in 1937. In 1943 he was hired as head basketball coach at Miller High School in Detroit, he was at Miller until 1959. From 1960-71 he coached Pershing HS also located in Detroit, in the fall of that year Robinson was hired as head coach at Illinois State University. He became the first black head coach at a Division I program in the nation, he would remain at the school coaching until 1975.

After his retirement from Illinois State he became a scout for the NBA Pistons in 1976. He was solely responsible for the Pistons drafting Joe Dumars and Dennis Rodman having recommended them from his scouting duties. During this period Robinson was offered the Pistons head coaching job but turned it down, the team then hired Chuck Daley. And get this, for a time he also served as a scout for the NFL Lions, it was his recommendation the team draft Charlie Sanders and Lem Barney both now enshrined in the NFL Hall of Fame. His best player at Illinois State, Doug Collins, is in the College Basketball Hall of Fame. Collins played in the NBA for the Sixers and coached a number of NBA teams. Will Robinson a name from basketball’s past you should be familiar with.

The Porter’s

April has not been a good month for the Porter family. Michael Porter Jr. continues to play at a skillful pace for the Nuggets, as for his brother’s that’s a different condition. Both Jontay and Corbin have seen their hopes for a basketball career go up in smoke, the truth is they have been their own worst enemies. As you are aware Adam Silver handed down a lifetime ban to now former Raptor Jontay for gambling on games. Last Friday the youngest Porter brother Corbin was handed a 6-year prison sentence in a Denver court. In January 2023 Corbin was arrested for a drunk driving accident.

This accident caused the death of the opposing driver and serious injury to her passenger. The sad part both stories could have been prevented with a little forethought. It’s possible Jontay might be able to play in Europe, he’s got that much talent. The history indicates some lifetime bans have been lifted so its quite possible he could return to the NBA one day. Corbin was playing basketball at the University of Denver at the time of the accident. If Corbin held any aspirations of playing in the NBA one day they are likely over now. Arriving in the NBA as a 28-year-old rookie is highly unlikely. I’ve read accounts (not validated) NBA teams are reluctant to draft a 24-year-old, the NBA draft is weighted heavily in favor of younger players.

Who should we believe

The reason I asked the question is related to the media. You and I have read accounts of the NFL swamping the NBA with the Christmas Day and evening games. If they say it occurred I guess we must consider it a fact. This next portion I found quite interesting and it’s NBA television and attendance. This is the headline from a recent Clutchsports.com story, “League (NBA) sets historic record ahead of playoffs.” The story goes on to report that not only television viewership is up so is attendance.

This is where it becomes a question, who is responsible for reporting this stuff? The negative NBA news is usually followed by some guy claiming, “Nobody watches the NBA anymore” or this one, “I quit watching the NBA when Jordan retired.” The NBA is just like any other sport, you like it…follow it routinely or have no interest. If you don’t like NBA basketball that’s okay but I will leave you with this fact. I have 0 interest in the NHL, truth is as this is written I cannot name a single NHL player for you. I have no enticement to the sport but I ask the question, why should I trash a sport I have no connection with as a fan? I say it every time but hopefully follow through this time, quit paying attention to stories with no basis for proof.