Basketball from a fans perspective

Published daily except Tuesdays & Thursdays

Weather and natural disasters

The Wednesday game between the Bucks and Pelicans was postponed due to a snowstorm. NO, the game was not to be played in Milwaukee which certainly sees its share of winter storms it was New Orleans. Up to 10 inches of snow fell in and around the city becoming the first substantial snow the area had seen since 2009. As you were made aware earlier the Lakers had two games postponed and the Clippers had one deferred due to the highly destructive wildfires that occurred in the Southern California area.   

This should have been a win…but it wasn’t

Mizzou men’s basketball team was on a four game winning streak after losing to number one Auburn. The Texas Longhorns would be the opponent Tuesday night, there is always a danger when playing on the road but I felt confident the win streak could continue only that didn’t occur. The Longhorns beat my Tigers 61-53. Almost everything Mizzou’s accomplished this season from a positive viewpoint went away in the execution of this game. There was poor shooting…poor rebounding and poor…., okay enough of that you get the point.

Is there another “poor” I could add…no I don’t think so that just about does it. Whatever area Mizzou could perform poorly they did but guess what…this should have been a win. As evidence they shot a pathetic 31.3% from the floor, on the other hand Texas shot a “sizzling” 34%. Shooting from three was even worst for Mizzou (18.2%) however it wasn’t much better for Texas who managed to shoot 20%. This game needs to be locked away in a vault and forgotten as soon as possible. Next up for Mizzou on the schedule is number 16 Ole Miss, they will visit Mizzou Arena for a late Saturday afternoon game. It will be a tough match but hopefully Mizzou starts a new winning streak.

What about Steph

If the season ended today the Warriors would miss the playoffs, the 2024-25 season would become the third consecutive year without the team appearing in the playoffs. Has the time come for Dub Nation to begin a rebuild, that might be the belief due to the team lacking production in several areas. As this written the Warriors have 21 wins but also 21 losses, before delving further I am making no claims about my ability to see all there is regarding the Warriors just my observation. Leader Steph Curry is still Curry however he’s 36-years old now, similar to LeBron his play cannot remain at an elite level. 

The other member of the Splash Brothers, Klay Thompson is now sinking baskets for the Mavs, mercurial Draymond Green who is the heart and soul of the team is now 34-years old. The balance of the supporting cast fails to reach the level of those championship Warrior teams. If you check out the Warriors roster a portion of the problem is evident…lack of height. They have 7 foot Quinten Post but that’s it in the height department, are there efforts to address this prior to the trade deadline? The Warriors brought in Buddy Hield and more recently Dennis Schroeder, perhaps there was a belief they would become Splash Brothers II. Andrew Wiggins and Trayce Jackson-Davis add to the mix of seasoned veterans. It’s probably just me but I believe it’s time for the Warriors to begin a serious re-build. 

Is it reputation

This is written Tuesday evening January 21 regarding Kansas basketball. If you are part of Jayhawk Nation you should stop reading at this point to avoid being upset. The AP Top 25 poll places Kansas in the number 12 slot, the Coaches poll has them at number 11. Both numbers are decent however it makes for a question which must be answered. We are in Week 12 of play however if we check the preseason poll Kansas is number one in both polls, what occurred between then and now?

Currently Kansas is tied for 5th place in the Big XII Conference race, it’s still early in the season however that’s quite a drop from preseason number one to the present. Kansas has lost 4 games, to unranked Creighton, Mizzou unranked at the time the teams met, the other losses have come against West Virginia and Iowa State. Some might question the intent of this article and here it is warts and all. I have believed for a time Kansas has sustained its lofty position boosted by guys like Dick Vitale (whom I like) and others. The reputation of the school allows Bill Self and staff carte blanche with a number of high school prospects. This also exists for transfer portal players however there is a key…molding this mix of talent into a cohesive unit. So far at least that appears to be the chief issue for the 2024-25 Kansas Jayhawks.

We are still in January, there is adequate time for this group of Jayhawks to put it together. As for Bill Self he's a two time NCAA Champion, I hardly believe he’s forgotten how to coach, the problem is the changing college basketball landscape. It’s changed on Self and he’s scrambling to adjust to it. Perhaps the greatest question which cannot be answered until March will they be able to compete for conference domination?