Basketball from a fans perspective

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“It wasn’t just plumbers and carpenters”

Just in case the headline might be a little confusing allow an explanation. Several weeks-months ago current Laker coach JJ Redick was discussing the NBA of the ‘50’s and ‘60’s during his podcast. He claimed the league was full of plumbers and carpenters…of course we know that to not be true. It was his point to denigrate NBA players of the era mentioned. You’ve read several accounts of Wilt Chamberlain and his 100 point single game record, I’ve mentioned there are plenty of conspiracy theorists claiming it never occurred.

Despite the fact I cannot prove anything my research produced these interesting facts. There were a number of outstanding opposing centers matched early in Chamberlain’s career in the middle and toward the end. Who are they you might ask, below is the list and understand this fact. Each of the names is enshrined in the College and Naismith Hall of Fame with the exception of Clyde Lovellette. Lovellette is in the Naismith Hall only. Once again a number of the names might be unfamiliar to you plus there is no video evidence offered on their play. Despite that fact the hope is you won’t be lulled into believing Chamberlain had no major opposition, despite this fact he managed to dominate. By the way there were several very good post players of the time matched against Chamberlain, not mentioned in this account. 

Walt Bellamy

Kareem Abdul Jabbar

Bob Lanier

Willis Reed

Nate Thurmond

Bill Russell

Wes Unseld

Clyde Lovellette

Who moves?

When (not if) the NBA expands it will become a 32-team league. At the present there are 15 teams in the Western Conference and 15 in the Eastern. Who moves since Seattle and Las Vegas are both located in the western portion of the United States and will be added to the Western Conference. I have no idea what the NBA will utilize to determine who moves, I believe geography will impact the decision. I used the Mississippi River as the decider. The river flows past Tennessee (Grizzlies), Louisiana (Pelicans) and Minnesota (Wolves), see the dilemma? 

If I use latitude-longitude as a barometer the Twin Cities home of the Wolves lies further west than the other two cities. Based on my unscientific research I would suggest the Pelicans and Grizzlies would be the two prime candidates to move to the Eastern Conference while the Wolves would remain a Western Conference team. A portion of this conundrum was created by expansion, the Grizzlies began play in Vancouver Canada. Naturally, they played in the Western Conference, once the franchise was sold the new owners moved the team to Memphis however they remained in the west.

Bits n Pieces of information

The other day I mentioned the twin brothers of Carlos Boozer gave their verbal commitment to Duke. Everyone including me figured it was Dad’s influenced that cause Cameron and Cayden to affirm they would be headed to Duke, reports indicate it was more than family influence. Their decision was influenced by someone who will not be at Duke by the time they arrive next fall. Cooper Flagg the top NBA draft pick on all 2025 mock draft sites was reported to have been one of the voices the twins heard. As I indicated that’s interesting since Flagg will likely be history after June 2025. 

He recently celebrated his 54th birthday on October 12, Charlie Ward is the only NBA player who owns a Heisman Trophy. Ward played basketball while at Florida State but excelled as a quarterback despite his slight frame (6 foot 2, 190 pounds). Ward won the Heisman in 1993, despite this fact he was told it would be the Canadian Football League because no NFL team was willing to take a chance on him. There might have been a degree of racism as well, at that time the only black quarterback in the NFL was Doug Williams. In any event Ward spent the vast majority of his 11-year NBA career as a member of the Knicks.

Is Kawhi Leonard’s NBA career over, that question is on the mind of many NBA fans based on Thursday’s news. The Clippers announced he will be shut down for the immediate future, there is swelling in his surgically repaired knee. This is the latest event in what might be considered a trying spring and summer and into the fall. He missed the last portion of the season, later it would be Team USA. He was a member then he was sent home prior to the Olympic team being completed. Contractually Leonard has time on his side, whether he has the ability to play at a high skill level is another story. Stay tuned for additional updates on him and the Clippers.