Basketball from a fans perspective

I resent this

My arrogance is showing through, I shared this with my wife the morning after the game. My wife sat down with me and viewed the Florida-Houston championship game and this was my statement to her. I’ve grown tired of ESPN types who talk football especially the NFL 8 months of the year. All the month of March and into this morning they dissect a basketball game with eyes most of the time focused on football. Okay now that my rant is out of the way let’s check out a few details of the game. The Florida Gators should be congratulated, they played a terrible game in the first half but ultimately won 65-63. Shooting for both teams was a paltry 38% at the half with saw the Houston Cougars hold a 31-28 lead.

The second half would see a different game as Houston built what amounted to a 12-point lead. All game long especially the first half Houston was much quicker to the ball racing to the boards for sometimes second and third shots at the basket. I’m unsure of the rebound total in the first half the game, at the end Florida outrebounded Houston by one (40-39). The shooting improved slightly for Florida ending the game at 39.6% while Houston was at 34.8% and a poor 24% from three. Despite the lead built by Houston they were unable to sustain it due to poor shooting and improved play by Florida's defensive effort. I’m unsure if it was the defense or poor shooting, unfortunately this game was not a thing of beauty. Florida won the championship but in my opinion this was an ugly ugly game. Check back with me later on this observation, I could change my mind.

There is no method to prove this

Julius ‘Dr. J.’ Erving has been retired since the 1986-87 season. Despite the decades that have passed since he and other players competed, this team continues to be a topic of conversation for NBA fans regarding their unfulfilled potential. Dr. J. was 26 years old when he began playing for the Sixers; he had started his professional career at the age of 21 with the ABA Virginia Squires. The team boasted an abundance of talent. In addition to Dr. J., who would later be enshrined in the Naismith Hall of Fame, his teammate, the late George McGinnis, also received that honor.

Other notable players included Kobe Bryant’s father, the late Joe ‘Jellybean’ Bryant, World B. Free, and the late Darryl Dawkins, known as 'Chocolate Thunder.' The Sixers possessed a strong roster of reserve players they could deploy at any time. During the regular season, they won 50 games and were favored to win the 1977 NBA Championship. In the Finals that year, they faced Bill Walton’s Blazers, a team many believed was inferior to the Sixers. However, the Blazers, led by Walton along with Maurice Lucas and Lionel Hollins, overcame the odds and defeated the Sixers 4 games to 2. In 1983 the Sixers, with several lineup changes, would redeem themselves and be crowned NBA Champions.

Job security…I don’t think so

Late Tuesday afternoon I was shocked to made aware that the Nuggets had fired head coach Mike Malone alone with GM Calvin Booth. Malone becomes the second playoff bound coach to lose his job, just recently the Grizzlies fired Taylor Jenkins. So in the coaching fraternity, especially in the NBA, there is no thing as job security. I could point to my Lakers as an example, Frank Vogel won a championship in 2020, by 2022 he was unemployed. Cavs coach Tyronn Lue won the championship in 2016, less than two years later he was out of a job.

Next stop Milwaukee and Mike Budenholzer, who led the Bucks in 2021 to their first championship since 1971, Budenholzer was fired after the team lost its playoff match in the first round. crowned NBA Champions. There are other winning coaches but those named come to mind first. The point I am attempting to make goes back to an old adage, I first heard it applied in baseball but it actually reflects any professional sports team. “Managers (coaches) are hired to be fired,” it becomes you knew the job was dangerous when you took it yet you did. I am sure Malone, Booth and Jenkins will find employment elsewhere in the NBA but you realize there is no safety net.

Arena updates

The development project involving the Spurs is proceeding, evidently previous concerns appear to be resolved. Friday April 4th, the City of San Antonio, Bexar County, and the Spurs signed a memorandum of understanding. This agreement encompasses more than just a downtown arena for the Spurs; it also includes provisions for upgrades to the Alamodome, construction of a bridge across I-37, as well as remodel of a convention center plus a hotel and shopping facilities. The overall price tag of this extensive project has not been determined, as individual components will have their own price.

The new arena, referred to by yours truly as "The House of Wemby," will replace Frost Bank Center, the current home of the Spurs. The estimated cost for the arena alone ranges between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion, details regarding the financing of the arena have yet to be disclosed. With this news all three planned arenas have now moved forward toward development. Not a shovel full of dirt has been turned over yet however the Sixers have an agreement in place with the city on an arena, however it will be in a different site than originally planned. The undertaking in Oklahoma City is the most advanced to date. This from AI, “Design is underway and construction will start in 2026, with completion scheduled for 2028.” As additional information is provided I will attempt to update you will the latest developments.

In all fairness

That’s the way it begins, the person says, “In all fairness” (or similar words) they begin to critique the individual or subject matter offering extremely critical remarks. That is the case for Seth Greenberg, he’s been a college head coach and the last few years Greenberg’s been an analyst for ESPN. What he stated recently caught me and others off guard. He said, “I doubt Cooper Flagg’s ability to come through in the clutch.” Interesting that he failed to mention what could have been the game winning shot he took against Houston.

Instead Greenberg returned to early season losses to Kansas and Kentucky, he detailed Flagg turnovers which led to victories over Duke. Now consider this fact Greenberg knows more basketball in his pinkie than I do in my entire body. Despite the coaches knowledge over me I don’t agree with his assessment. The other day I mentioned the famous Michael Jordan quote that contained the number of game winning shots he missed. Perhaps I am the one wrong and in the NBA we’ll discover Greenberg was correct in his assessment. For now we must wait for the fall of 2025 to discover the full Cooper Flagg effect, who has the precise view Greenberg or me.