Basketball from a fans perspective

Published daily except Tuesdays & Thursdays

The best

Depending on your age or knowledge you might remember this college basketball history. Once upon a time the debate among fans and the media…which is the best and most competitive conference in the nation. The ACC with Duke, North Carolina argued against Georgetown, UConn and St. John’s in the Big East. Big 10 Michigan, Indiana, Michigan State and Ohio State would enter the discussion stating, “Hey look over here.” Sometime after that as the Big XII expanded Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas proudly said, “We here too.” Last season and into the 2024-25 season the SEC laid claimed to having the best men’s teams in the nation. As I once pointed out this was no overnight effort, there were many intangibles that saw the SEC rise to the position it holds today.

You can ask 5 fans the why and or liable to receive 5 different answers. SEC Athletic Departments in some instances took a chance hiring up and coming coaches, they managed to change the culture of SEC basketball. Other factors include NIL and the transfer portal, the SEC and other conferences were no longer dependent on recruiting top high school talent to their campus. The chief problem by the time the season ends in March SEC teams will have pounded one another, the won-loss record might not appear as outstanding as it does currently. There are a number of great teams in conferences other than the SEC, I certainly don’t wish to paint a misleading portrait regarding men’s basketball. Gary Parrish of CBS Sports says, “It’s possible the SEC could have 12 times in the NCAA Tournament in 2025,” that would set a new standard should it occur. The most teams ever invited in a single season is 11.

It’s a free throw

We’ve discussed free throw shooting in the past and how important it is to a team’s overall success. I stand behind the statement once made by Hall of Fame former player Rick Barry. He said, “It’s a free throw, no one is guarding you or contesting the shot.” Unfortunately, a number of players, especially in the NBA, fail to work at the task of shooting from the line. I thought it would be interesting to check out a list of the best free throw shooters in the NBA today, these are career numbers so these are compiled through the 2023-24 NBA season.

Below are the Top 10 free throw shooters in the NBA in order, unlike Shaq they are more about making shots over talking about sinking them. To this day the story I read resonates with me about Shaq’s free throw shooting, he said “I make em when they count.” Despite his audacious statement during his NBA career he managed to shoot a paltry 53.3% from the line. He alone was responsible for the term “Hack a Shaq” come into usage in the NBA. Long after his career ended in tightly contested games of today you might witness teams foul the worst free throw shooter to place him on the line. As for the players below, try to avoid fouling any of them.   

Steph Curry 91.0%

Dame Lillard 89.8%

Kevin Durant 88.4%

Kris Middleton 87.9%

Danilo Gallinari 87.6%

Trae Young 87.3%

Chris Paul 87.0%

Devin Booker 87.0%

Kyle Korver 86.9%

Kyrie Irving 84.4

Williamson v Flagg

Comparisons sometimes don’t make sense yet we do them anyway. Years ago Ford people argued their vehicle was better than Chevys, Chevy people countered with their vehicle was better than a Ford. Both sides were attempting to say which was better and that might be the case for Gilbert Arenas. He said recently “Duke’s Cooper Flagg is a complimentary player” which confused me and I am sure others. Just to ensure you have the correct outlook Arenas made no indication Flagg was lacking in talent. He pointed to his belief that Flagg was not justified in being the number one NBA draft pick in 2025.

That is not a decision for Arenas, he is not a decider here despite his NBA background. Recently I listened to a podcaster who covers college basketball and believe he provided some insight for me. This paraphrases his statement (along with providing stats) “Zion Williamson is a different basketball player from Cooper Flagg, they both played at Duke however the difference ends there.” Keep in mind the stats for Flagg represent his first 15 games played while those of Williamson are his complete numbers his first year at Duke. 

Zion Williamson 22.6 ppg 8.9 REB 68% FG 33.8% 3pt FT 64% FT

Cooper Flagg 17.5 ppg 8.5 REB 45.8 FG 30.8% 3pt FG 77.8% FT

On closer inspection it appears there are elements of the game the Williamson numbers are better while other aspects indicate the Flagg figures are superior. The one area I am unable to check effectively is the defensive side of the game, is one better at defending over the other or they about the same. If we compare the game Flagg plays it’s much closer to Larry Bird and LeBron than one might surmise. Although LeBron certainly has overwhelming physical skills his game in my view has “get my teammates involved,” I could make a similar claim regarding the play of Bird. As for the comparison Williamson while at Duke is 6 foot 7 and 285 pounds…Flagg is 6 foot 9 and 205 pounds. In closing allow me to say this, Gilbert Arenas and anybody else is entitled to his or her opinion, the question for you, do you share the same view as Arenas? 

He arrived in obscurity

The headline might be a slight bit misleading, if you are chosen in the first round of the NBA draft someone is familiar with your play. This is no criticism of the school nor the basketball program. Anytime someone connects the NBA to Santa Clara University the first name mentioned is Steve Nash. Soon it might be two names, Nash and Jalen Williams. In the 2022 NBA Draft there was Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren and others at or near the top who dominated the headlines.

Despite his name not in the conversation NBA scouts were familiar with him, I located three NBA mock drafts and all had Williams projected as a first round pick in 2022. If you look at the success of the Thunder the Shai Gilgeous Alexander's name is  mentioned, so is the injured Chet Holmgren. Despite this fact the power forward has been key to the success of this team this season. Across the board the numbers registered by Williams are on an upward trend. In addition he plays tough defense for the Thunder. This youthful team appears ready to contend for an NBA Championship, they currently have the best won-loss record in the NBA.