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88-87 OT victory

The headline represents the final score as Mizzou beat Oklahoma in OT, Mark Mitchell is a very good player the best on this squad. Despite my statement I can say with conviction Mark Mitchell is not a good three point shooter, despite what you just read Mark Mitchell made the shot that led to the victory. I am warning you, I only saw the first half of the game. I didn’t see the second half or the OT however I did see the Mitchell shot live, I can say this account is somewhat incomplete. Mizzou Nation is happy with the win but this team is struggling currently, losing to Georgia and last week LSU this was a must win maybe for both teams. For the first time Mizzou had three players in double figures including Mitchell with his 25 points and 10 rebounds. The TO’s were even for the teams however Mizzou was horrific from the three line (29%).

At this point I will repeat my earlier statement this Mizzou squad remains a mystery to me, are they NCAA worthy might be your next question? At this point I remain unconvinced although I remain solidly in their corner. Although I did not view the second half or overtime, I witnessed Mitchell's impressive shot live. As such, this account may lack some completeness. The Mizzou fan base is pleased with the victory; however, the team has experienced recent difficulties, with losses to Georgia and LSU making this game critical for both sides. Notably, Mizzou had three players reach double figures for the first time, including Mitchell, who contributed 25 points and 10 rebounds. Turnovers were balanced between the teams, while Mizzou’s performance from the three-point line was subpar at 29%. Overall, questions remain regarding the full potential of this Mizzou squad and whether they are contenders for NCAA selection. At present, I am not fully convinced, though I continue to support them.

True Grit 

This is no reference to the 1969 western movie which starred John Wayne or its 2010 remake. As for the headline exactly what is true grit…rather than provide you my idea I decided to offer you a thesaurus definition. The word is defined as “courage and resolve; strength of character,” you think that might fit Warriors power forward/center Draymond Green? Take a look at his bio, his career numbers certainly are nothing to shout about, the truth is they appear below average so what is it? Let’s check the past, he played 4 seasons at Michigan State and almost missed the NBA draft.

Green was the 35th pick in the second round of the 2012 draft. There are players no longer in the NBA who were first round draft choices and here stands Green after 13 seasons continuing to play a vital role for the Warriors. Of course as a friend mentioned to me when discussing Green he said this “being drafted by the Warriors was being in the right place at the right time.” If Green had been chosen by a team other than the Warriors I might not be writing this and you wouldn’t be reading It either.  As for those players drafted ahead of Green, I decided to provide you the names of the first 10 players chosen in the first round. Even with the first 10 there are at least 3 names who are no longer in the NBA, check out the names: 

 1. Anthony Davis

 2. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist

 3. Bradley Beal

 4. Dion Waiter

 5. Thomas Robinson

 6. Damian Lillard

 7. Harrison Barnes

 8. Terrance Ross

 9. Andre Drummond

10. Austin Rivers

The connection

When discussing international players in collegiate or NBA basketball, Europe is often the primary region considered. While this is frequently accurate, there are notable exceptions. This article will highlight basketball talent from Australia and New Zealand, where the National Basketball League (NBL) has operated since 1979. The NBL currently consists of ten teams distributed across Australia and New Zealand, listed below are the teams as the league currently stands:

Adelaide 36ers-Adelaide

Brisbane Bullets-Brisbane

Cairns Taipans-Cairns

Illawarra Hawks-Wollongong

Melbourne United-Melbourne*

New Zealand Breakers-Auckland

Perth Wildcats-Perth

S.E. Melbourne-Melbourne*

Sydney Kings-Sydney

Tasmania JackJumpers-Hobart

The city of Melbourne similar to New York and Los Angeles has two NBL teams. The NBL has sent a number of players into the NBA and a number of college and NBA players have found a home in the NBL. What happened for JaVale McGee, he found a new home playing for the Illawarra Hawks. Back in Australia now is Matthew Dellavedova after playing for the NBA Cavs and Bucks. The 2021 NBA Rookie of the Year LaMelo Ball spent a season playing for the Illawarra Hawks before returning to the U.S. and being drafted by the NBA Charlotte Hornets. Also from Australia, Dante Exum, Josh Giddey and a host of players I’ve failed to mention in this short piece.

The conundrum

Lots of times we hold discussions that cannot be resolved, as the idiom goes; “It’s difficult to close the barn door when the cow has already gotten out.” Part of this was mentioned earlier, the Kansas fan complaining Darryn Peterson and the fact the school was only a stop on his way to the NBA. That statement is true for him plus Cameron Boozer, BJ Dybansta and others I’ve not mentioned. All are freshman who are likely to declare for the NBA draft, this time next year they will be NBA rookies. How did we arrive at this point might be the question? Once upon a time the NBA allowed high school talent in the draft, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Tracy McGrady and others not named. They came into the NBA and became superstar players but that was the upside, the downside are the high school players who declared for the draft and were skipped over. There were others who were drafted but were gone within a few years, they were found to not be NBA ready.

The NBA through its Players Association voiced their disapproval of high school players in the draft and then WHAM…no more. College coaches say okay, “We can’t recruit players headed to the NBA this rule change is good.” With an age 19 or one year out of high school there was an effort to circumvent the rule. A high school player would play his freshman year and then declare for the NBA draft. We heard again from college coaches; “We can’t recruit a player who is only going to be here as a freshman.” There were some coaches with no issues, they would recruit a kid realizing he’d only play for them one season. The drip…drip…became a trickle and soon it was a gully washer as more and more freshman declared for the NBA draft. I’m not going to add Name, Image and Likeness to this discussion. This issue has been compacted for space however the events occurred generally as they were spelled out. The fix in my view which will not occur…allow high school players in the NBA draft again.