Basketball from a fans perspective

Published Tuesday, Thursday plus Saturday & Sunday 

I can’t prove anything

Stop me if you’ve heard this story please. Cooper Flagg to the Mavs after the Mavs trade Luka Doncic to the Lakers. To add fuel to the fiery inferno Flagg will eventually be traded to the Lakers. Conspiracy possibly that would prove to be the case there is only one problem. I have no method of verifying the story other than the facts in front of us. Flagg is yet to be drafted although all indications point to the fact that will occur next month, Doncic is currently a member of the Lakers that’s about all I can provide you as proof.

As I wrote on Thursday it is beyond my comprehension why these conspiracy stories continue to circulate. I conducted an unscientific survey at my workplace during a break, I asked 4 co-workers if they believed the NBA Draft was rigged. 3 of the 4 said they believed it to be a fact. Then I tossed them a secondary question, “Did Wilt Chamberlain score 100 points in an NBA game?” 3 said he didn’t while one believed the scoring output actually occurred. As I have mentioned in several instances we are living in a different age. An age that says, “If I didn’t see it live or on video it didn’t occur.” That certainly presents future problems as an example, AI is an ever growing entity.

We see it at work every day in a number of platforms most not connected with basketball or sport. It’s already occurred, I’m unsure if this individual’s intent was meant to be malicious or not. There was a claim to have “uncovered” lost film of Chamberlain’s 100 point game, this was placed on YouTube. The only problem the culprit had the incorrect jersey worn that night, the footage had Chamberlain in a San Francisco Warriors jersey while rather than the Philadelphia jersey worn that evening.

The Bucks are definitely at an intersection 

Dame Lillard will not return to action for the Bucks until he’s almost 36 years of age, coming off an injury he would be considered questionable. Brook Lopez is 37 as this is written and is certainly on the downhill side of his career. Bobby Portis and Kyle Kuzma are certainly valuable commodities but they definitely are not expected to lead this Bucks team to a championship. Who is left to accomplish the task, yes Giannis Antetokounmpo still remains but after him there is no one capable of leading this team to victory.

So with that said it is time for the Bucks to consider a trade for Antetokounmpo and infuse some youth into this team. If he is traded it must be to a team willing to unload talent to suffice for the loss of the valuable product of such as Antetokounmpo. My Lakers would love to have him but could they package enough pieces along with Dalton Knecht to seal a deal? How about the Spurs, they have ROTY Stephon Castle along with several young players including De’Aaron Fox they could trade to acquire Giannis. The truth of the matter the Spurs have more possibility for a trade without a third party having to be involved than the Lakers. We should pay close attention to the Bucks this summer for some movement even if it fails to involve Antetokounmpo. 

This might not always be the case 

According to reports, AJ Dybansta of BYU has secured a $7 million NIL agreement prior to arriving on campus. No breakdown is provided in this report but it’s supposed to include payment from Nike, Red Bull and other sources. The 6 foot 9 power forward prospect is/was the top high school player in the nation in the Class of 2025. Dybansta is just the latest athlete to benefit from Name, Image and Likeness. 5-4-3-2-1, that is the countdown, we can now allow the debate on NIL to begin and how this change is ruining college sports in general.

It is my firm belief that almost any artificial creation can be repaired or modified and that includes NIL. How did we arrive at this junction is college basketball history? We can look back at college coaches and universities earning millions and the athletes receiving little payment for their prowess on the basketball courts of America. Those athletes who could work were restricted on work hours due to classroom and practices. It would appear I’ve lined up on the side of the athletes, which is not completely the case. Let’s just say the task to “fix” NIL is huge, who is prepared to set guidelines? It certainly cannot be the NCAA, in my view this organization is partially responsible for the mess we are in currently.

Number 77

This is yet to be affirmed however I decided to publish anyway. Cooper Flagg is expected to wear jersey number 77 with the Mavs which is interesting. Flagg is reported to be donning the jersey in honor of his idol Luka Doncic. Doncic wears the number due to his hero Vassilis Spanoulis first wearing it. The substantial majority of NBA fans in the U.S. have little knowledge of Spanoulis so a brief bio is supplied for you. Spanoulis currently serves as head coach of AS Monaco of the French LNB Elite.

Spanoulis was a 6-foot 4 guard, he played extensively in Europe, he played for an abbreviated time with the NBA Rockets but problems over playing time and other issues would see him traded to the Spurs. The Spurs released him in order for him to return to the Greek League to play for Panathinaikos. It appears there were problems between Spanoulis and then Rocket coach Jeff Van Gundy. We cannot look at his brief time in the NBA in order to determine his relationship to the game. It’s clear to all he certainly must have impressed a youthful Luka Doncic with his play.