Basketball from a fans perspective

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8-24

Why now and not when he was alive is the question? I don’t remember, this may be the first 8-24 I paid attention. The numbers 8 and 24 represent the two jersey numbers worn by Kobe Bryant while playing for the Lakers. Kobe Bryant was a lightning rod for a number of NBA fans, you either loved him or hated him. As for the haters at the top of the list is one Jason Whitlock who never ever had anything kind to say about Kobe in life. Once he died in the tragic helicopter crash even his words changed. Whitlock and several others wrote and made nice regarding Kobe.

What were the reasons for “I hate Kobe” and after his death it became “I love Kobe.” It was written he wasn’t a good teammate, he expected those on his team to work as hard as he did. That is the basis for the feud that developed between him and Shaq. As for others one story sticks out in my mind…working. An unidentified teammate once told Kobe he wanted to work out with him. So the story develops when the teammate shows up in the gym at 7 or 7:30 a.m., Kobe had been there since 6:00 a.m. He is reported to have said “I knew then he was very serious.” I believe he would have made a terrible coach for one reason alone, Kobe would have expected every member of the team to practice and play at the same level as him. None of us walk through life without controversy and certainly the most serious was the Colorado rape trial of Kobe Bryant.

I’m not going to comment other than to say it was a serious matter, despite that fact an agreement was reached between the two parties and it was over in time. The controversy was over for some but not others. Veteran news anchor Gayle King brought it up days after his death, this for reasons unknown to me and perhaps others. The Lakers unveiled a statue of Kobe and daughter Gigi which says it all for many. Next year I am going to look at August 24 or 8-24 a little differently remembering the legacy of one Kobe Bean Bryant.

The fix

If you are one of the many complaining about international players in the NBA draft I have the fix. The NBA should return to the 1990’s, back then only a small number of international players appeared in the draft. There I have fixed it for you, forget that statement international players are here to stay. The vast majority have been vital contributors to successful play, a number have become NBA champions. With that said allow me to really brighten your day, did you think the “French Invasion” was over after the 2024 draft…hardly.

This is early but I’m checking out nbadraft.net, their number 3 prospect in August 2025 is Nolan Traore. Traore is a 6 foot 4 185 pound point guard who plays for PFBB in the Euro League. At number 22 is Zacharie Perrin a 6 foot 10 220 pound power forward, Perrin plays for Sluc Nancy. We close this with the name of Noa Essengue a 6 foot 10 200 pound small/power forward, his current team is Ratiopharm Ulm. These names are listed as first round draft choices, although no French players appear in the second round don’t fool yourself. There are always unexpected names who popped up in this round and we might see other French players in the draft.  

No longer operating

It was mentioned earlier that NBA G-League Team Elite closed shop in March 2024. What occurred for the promise of developing talent for the NBA? Four years ago the landscape was different, I’m not going to attempt a chronological order but just events surrounding basketball which changed how Elite would operate. As you might remember high school prospects with the NBA in their future had two choices, they would play in Australia or attend college for one year. The NBA maintains an age 18 or one year after high school to play so that’s what faced prospects. The “ground began to shift,” a prospect might remain a one and done player however Name, Image & Likeness money was available. Once considered a no-no being (legally) paid in college was now okay.

In addition there were likely college basketball players earning far more income than those playing for Team Elite. Another downside, instead of spreading the players throughout the G-League all were concentrated on a single team. Despite this issue several Elite talent managed to find its way into the NBA draft although probably not the number anticipated. Let’s just say G-League Team Elite might have been a novel idea but circumstances changed that. Some of the changes could not be anticipated (NIL) while others should have been planned more carefully. So what’s left, for now Overtime Elite in Atlanta appears to remain in operation. High school prospects can play there if desired, at the same time the NBL in Australia remains a possible destination for others. The NBA Players Association along with the NBA appear in no rush to repeal the age 18-one year after graduation rule.

Bits n Pieces of info

There are individuals in Laker Nation who held out hope the Clippers would leave town. They believed Seattle would be the destination for at least two reasons. Number 1. Owner Steve Ballmer likely has connections from his Microsoft days. Microsoft HQ is Redmond Washington located in the Seattle footprint. Item 2., Seattle has a tremendous desire for the NBA to return, of course it ain’t happening soon but apparently someday. Now that owner Ballmer’s dream of his own arena is complete with the Intuit Dome you really believe he’s going anywhere. My belief is Los Angeles will always remain a two-team NBA city, the Clippers will never ever be the Lakers. In order to be successful the Clippers must be the best version of the Clippers. The Clippers have certainly tasted success in the regular season but have never extended that into the playoffs. Injuries to key players has been the key, how do you avoid them?

Is UConn on the move, we don’t know that to be a fact however reports continue to circulate that is the case. The reported destination for basketball play is the Big XII Conference (or whatever the name eventually becomes). It appears the conference wants UConn more than the other way around. The move is clear regarding basketball but what about football…how would this move affect the Big XII Conference. As for the football UConn is listed as a Division 1 FBS program, which totally confuses me. It says UConn does not play football at the same level as Kansas.

NBA TV ran a documentary titled Bad Boys, for those who might be unaware it dealt with the Detroit Pistons of the late 1980’s through a portion of the 1990’s. I’m unsure who tagged the team Bad Boys but the term certainly fit. I have no method to prove the point I’m about to make only a belief. Whenever a team wins there exists a number of fans who hate a team for winning. It’s my belief unlike the Bill Russell led Celtics, the Showtime Lakers or even the Jordan Bulls the Pistons have always been omitted in conversation of great teams. I believe part of that was due to the “roughhouse” style of basketball they played. If we look at the other teams mentioned they won championships and offended quite a number of fans. For the most part they never played the physical style of basketball of the Pistons, it’s my belief that might be the basis why they are not held in high regard as the other teams mentioned.