Basketball from a fans perspective

Published Tuesday, Thursday plus Saturday & Sunday 

Points are good…great defense is better

Scoring more points than the other guy always guarantees a win. If you register a beat-down in the process you are making a declaration, “We are the best team on the floor.” That’s what occurred Tuesday evening as the Thunder totally destroyed the Wolves. Early on we had no indication the end result would see the home team winners. The Thunder were behind at stages of the game although it never appeared they were out of the game. The Wolves were led by Ant Man and Julius Randle. The first half of the game was even as both teams took the lead at times, down at half time by 4 points the Thunder demonstrated why they are the best in the west maybe the NBA.

Points are good but defense is what wins you championships, the Thunder defense or Wolves poor play at times saw them commit 19 turnovers for the game. Randle who led the Wolves in scoring with 28 points only registered 8 in the second half. As for Ant Man he appeared bottled up by the stiff defense of the Thunder, he would only score 18 points in the loss. In the meantime SGA who’d gotten off to a relatively slow start came alive in the second half of the game. He led with 31 points but had plenty of assistance, 3 of the other 4 starters scored in double figures. The final score read Thunder 114 Wolves 88, credit is due this Thunder team from top to bottom. If you play for coach Daigneault you better be prepared to play defense and that’s what the Thunder have managed to do season long and into the playoffs. Game Two of this round is scheduled for tonight at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

Meanwhile….

The following names are potential candidates for my Lakers to consider acquiring to play center, this is not indicative of importance. First up is Jalen Duren, he’s currently a member of the Pistons, is a 6-foot-10 player who has been contributing double-doubles and effective defense for his team, he is only 21 years old. Next up, Walker Kessler of the Jazz, standing at 7 feet, is also known for his consistent double-doubles and offensive rebounding skills. Bam Adebayo from the Heat, although only 6-foot-9, packs 255 pounds of muscle on his frame. Adebayo is a capable scorer and rebounds well plus he plays tough hard-nose defense, he is the oldest on my list being 27 years old, there may be others to consider however these are at the top of my list.

Thunder forward Jalen Williams has been fined $25,000 by the NBA for a profane statement on his tee-shirt. I’m unsure if you read one of many letter writers who claim “The league is overstepping its bounds, he’s got free speech privileges are something similar. That statement is partially correct, Williams as with most Americans has freedom of speech however there is an exception. Some of you are familiar with contracts containing morality clauses. I cannot verify this applies to the contract Williams signed however there are stipulations on NBA contracts. This might not be the same issue but consider this fact. Jay Williams now an ESPN analyst had a motorcycle accident which ended his NBA career, his contract had a provision prohibiting riding motorcycles. Despite violating the contract the Bulls paid him in full although he’d never play for them again.

If the proposed change comes about the NCAA will soon find itself removed from doting out punishment. Don’t misunderstand me I’m sure there were instances in the past that punishment to institutions was conducted fairly and evenly across the board. You’ve read them and so have I, complaints from mid-major schools severely punished and Power 5 schools receiving a slap on the wrist for practically the same offense. The NCAA will continue its operation, they will be responsible for academics and eligibility issues but will no longer issue punishment. Personal note, I am okay with the academics I have concerns with the NCAA still involved with player eligibility. The responsibility for issuing punishment falls to the newly appointed CEO of the College Sports Commission. Keep in mind this change is yet to be approved, at present we have no idea if it will be successful until it is implemented.

The last few days we’ve dealt with conspiracy theory’s surrounding the NBA Draft. Questions have been raised how could the Mavs with a 1.8% chance win the lottery? Shaquille O’ Neal added his name to those on the conspiracy side of the ledger with his version. He claims months prior to the draft he met with the late David Stern then NBA Commissioner. Shaq says: Stern asked him if he preferred a warm or cold city destination to begin his NBA career. He informed the commissioner he preferred a warm climate, although he played for several teams it was the Orlando (Florida) Magic who drafted Shaq into the NBA. Shaq's story about Stern remains, and with Stern's passing, there is no way to verify or question the story much further.

This was displayed just the other day, it was a posting of several NBA players who’d scored over 1,000 playoff points before the age of 25. Anthony Edwards earned a spot on the list along with 7-8 others. Based on this fact alone I’m guessing this was the basis for making the comparison to the late Kobe Bryant. I saw Kobe play live plus numerous times on television, I am sorry to report this news if you are a fan. Ant Man you are an exceptional basketball player however I for one find it very difficult comparing you to the Black Mamba. After reading this I am quite sure a legion of fans of Ant Man will disagree with me and that is actually okay. In addition there were a large number of detractors of Kobe Bryant’s game as well.

It's a losing battle, I must concede that fact 

For those who might not be familiar with the geography Missouri and Kansas share a border. A rivalry has always existed some unrelated to sports have existed on both sides. For eons, the University of Missouri and the University of Kansas competed in the same conference, over the years this rivalry intensified. The Kansas City (MO) metro lies in Kansas too which probably has intensified the rivalry. Missouri would leave the Big XII Conference in 2012 and since then a change has occurred in metro sports broadcasting. Kansas has been more successful on the court than Missouri so news relating to KU basketball began an upward trend. I attribute this to these factors, KU hiring Bill Self who led the team to outstanding records including two NCAA Championships.

In the meantime Missouri muddled along with head coaches either resigning or forced to resign or plain fired. Based on this fact the basketball program was on a downward trend until Dennis Gates was hired. The 2024-25 season began with KU ranked number one in the nation and Missouri coming off an O-18 season unranked. By the end of the season both programs were unranked but what occurred in the end? Both finished in 6 place in the SEC and Big XIII, Missouri experienced a 22-12 won-loss record and an NCAA invite. As for KU it was 21-13 and an NCAA invite as well, both teams lost their opening round matches so what’s next? Since the basketball season ended for both KU continues to dominate the local news coverage. Is it a closeness issue (Lawrence 50 miles away) versus the distance to Columbia (150 miles), local media has no issue dispatching a team of reporters to conduct interviews with Self and company. Rarely does this occur for Gates and Missouri basketball, am I jealous? Yes I am, there is no basis for unbalanced media coverage.