Basketball from a fans perspective

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This guy is a stud

I don’t watch BIG3 basketball, it’s never appealed to me however I caught a portion recently while channel surfing. In action on the court for one of the teams was Michael Beasley, I wondered what occurred for him. It seems such a brief time ago he was thought to be the beginning of the revitalization of Kansas State basketball. The 6 foot 9 235 forward was a Wildcat standout, there were no illusions he was not headed for the NBA after his freshman season. That was indeed the case, Beasly was made the number 2 pick in the first round of the 2008 NBA draft. That was the beginning and 11 years later it ended with Beasley playing for 6 NBA teams and the Heat would bring him back two more times. Is it safe to use the word journeyman considering the considerable number of NBA teams?

It’s interesting listening to Beasley discuss his life today, he indicates there were rather poor decisions made during his NBA career. His last year in the NBA 2019 his mom was dying and certainly basketball took a back seat in his mind, we have no idea what occurred with the Chinese teams and the lone one in Puerto Rico. This we do know, I have never read a single complaint from any of his coaches regarding his bearing on the court…as I indicated it was off the court issues that were the problem. Recently Beasley indicated he’d suffered some mental health challenges during his time in the NBA, we have no idea how that impacted him career wise. Beasley is 35-years old now his basketball career is nearly over and it’s a shame in a sense. Most of the world never saw the Kansas State version of Michael Beasley, you too might have said “this guy is a stud.”

Can he play

It’s unnecessary for you to agree with me in this instance and others. Regarding NBA players my belief has always been “can he play.” This is fact, for a time Euro players remained home few attempted to play in the NBA. I’ve mentioned in the past the number of factors that caused this to change but it did. We began seeing an ever increasing number of Euro players in the NBA. Despite the fact a number of Euros have been outstanding, Hall of Fame’s Dirk Nowitzki comes to mind first there have been a number of duds. Truth is we could make the same statement about several American duds, they exist on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The majority of sports media and fans in this country are often unfamiliar with Euro names, I have read and heard complaints along these lines.

The westward move from Europe to the U.S. is real, what about the eastward move from the U.S. to Europe, yes it exists too. For years, a number of NBA players with lack of opportunities here have traveled east to continue playing basketball. On the other hand there have been a number of American college players in Europe, this is due to more opportunities to play. After all consider this fact there are roughly 400 jobs in the NBA, there are not as many openings as one might believe every season. This is what I uncovered. “As of February 28, 2024, 84 Americans were playing in the Euro League, which is more than the next four countries combined. This is a significant increase from the 2000-01 season, when only 14.6% of players were from the United States. In 2019-20, that number had grown to 31.9%.” Basketball is unlike any team sport in the world other than soccer (football). The NFL, MLB and NHL are fractured world-wide but nothing like basketball, especially the NBA. 

Additional evidence

I am returning to a previously covered subject…Wilton Norman Chamberlain. I have a bother, the length of time since his death plus the fact it was 1973 when he last played. A number of fans question his scoring prowess along with much of what occurred during the time the 7 foot 1 275 pound Wilt played. A website compiled just a few of the opposition he faced night in and night out during his brilliant NBA career. He faced bonified competition more than some in this generation want to acknowledge.Depending on your NBA recognition all the names will not be recognizable to you, look it up if you are unsure. With that said here goes, of course Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul Jabbar are names familiar to most of you. This list by no means should be considered complete, there are a number of outstanding players omitted from this list. In addition all the names below are in the Naismith or College Basketball Hall of Fame with the exception of Smith. 

Artis Gilmore 7 foot 2 240       

Elmore Smith 7 feet 0 250    

Nate Thurmond 6 foot 11 225

Bob Lanier 6 foot 10 250   

Walt Bellamy 6 foot 11 225

New Jersey in Da House

Is the planned arena in Philadelphia on life support at this point in time, that is an unknown however the other party is loudly proclaiming they are ready. Who are the THEY, that would be elements in the State of New Jersey. Camden made noise a few weeks ago when 76Place at Market East began to slowly sink. The governor of New Jersey along with the legislature of the state appear to be firmly behind this effort to secure the Sixers.   

*“The project, which would be self-financed by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (the entity that owns the Sixers), would be eligible for hundreds of millions of dollars in tax incentives. Because the project would contain both an arena and a full-scale mixed-use component, HBSE could be eligible to receive two Aspire tax credits worth up to $400 million each.”

So there you have it, this is certainly nowhere close to being finalized however the chief question remains. Are the Sixers ready to move across the Delaware River? That question cannot be answered at this point however it appears New Jersey’s intent is certainly serious. Just in case you had a question I’m quite sure the team would remain the Philadelphia 76ers despite their address. Most fans in Kansas City MO indicate they would have no problem crossing State Line Road to see the Chiefs and Royals in action at a Kansas address, more than likely the same would occur in Philadelphia.

*roi-nj.com.

Do you remember

It was just a brief time ago, Makur Maker was on top of the world, born in Kenya from South Sudanese parents who later immigrated to Australia. He would become a 5-star basketball prospect at several schools the last being Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix. The 6 foot 11 236 pound Maker made news again, he announced his intention to enroll at Howard University. Maker became the highest profile athlete an HBCU school had recruited when he enrolled in 2020. That would appear to be an outstanding accomplishment however it was not to be, Maker played in but two games after suffering a groin injury which forced him to miss the entire season.

Oh well, there would always be his sophomore year. That would not be his future, at the end of his freshman season Maker declared for the 2022 NBA draft, with this move the hope to attract high profile athletes to HBCU schools died. I’m guessing at this point despite his notoriety the NBA did not consider him ready for play as all the teams passed on him. Maker returned to Australia and played the 2021-22 season for the Sydney Kings of the NBL. The following season it was the Wizards G-League team and then China. The 2023-24 season Maker played for the Raptors 905 the G-League affiliate of the Raptors. In the instance of Makur Maker hopefully one day he earns an NBA roster spot. As for the hope HBCU schools would begin recruiting high profile athletes it would not occurred at least to this writing. Of course the door remains open for that one or two athletes to make the move.