A basketball fans outlook

Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday

Who wins tonight

Because I believe in living dangerously (not really) I’m going out to the edge of the cliff. I am peering over into the abyss to discover the winner. Will it be the Huskies of UConn and their mercurial coach Dan Hurley or the lesser known Dusty May who leads the University of Michigan Wolverines? Who will be declared the winner around 10:15 P.M. Central Time or so? As for the games on Saturday, UConn held a lead for most of its game against Illinois but had to hold on to win a 71-62 win. As for Michigan, their game against Arizona was almost opposite, the Wolverines raced out to such a huge lead I actually turned off the game with 6 minutes or so remaining. 

Based on the enormous lead I believed there was no way for a good Arizona team to win this game. It’s never good to lose games, it's even worse when you reach this level. At the end of this evening one of the teams unfortunately will be deemed a loser and that’s a shame. I make that statement because all four will put forth a maximum effort to win. As basketball fans all we can hope for is a well-played game and one without controversy or injury. With so much at stake a final score would be impossible to provide, a winner is a different matter. I have no intention to bore you with analytics, I’m just going to say I believe the Michigan Wolverines will be crowned 2026 NCAA champions. Of course I could be wrong and there could be celebrations occurring in Storrs Connecticut as the Huskies win another one.

The roof has sprung a leak

No worry, the headline is not a reference to our home, this is written Sunday morning prior to the evening game with the Mavs. I have no idea if the Lakers win this game and those remaining on the balance of the schedule. A playoff spot is already secure however with first Luka Doncic gone and now Austin Reaves the Lakers are in BIG TROUBLE. Reserve players will take on the role vacated by the pair, the issue of course is talent, they are reserves because they fill a role .

That says to me “You are not as good a player as the guy in front of you. Laker Nation must be asking the question, “We arrive at the end of the season with our main guys injured, not only that they are out for an extended period.” I’ve not read a timeline for the return of Luka, as for Reaves its 4-6 weeks.” At this point, the Lakers have 41-year old LeBron James to lead the way. I told a friend this morning with a healthy Luka and Reaves the Thunder and possibly the Spurs would cause them problems. From my friend; “I think this was their year even with the stiff competition they might face. I can’t speak for others in Laker Nation but this is my plan, root for them until they lose a series.

They hate us cause they ain’t us

Duke has become the team and school the media and some fans love to hate. This issue has festered for a number of years with those who follow the college game. As for the vitriol I believe it began first with Coach K. but you can boo the coach only so long, a player is easier. The ideal target is a player, he’s on the floor and highly visible especially if he’s good. This Duke hate I contend began with Christian Laettner and it’s all his fault. Laettner was the star player on back to back championship Duke teams in 1991 and 1992. During his tenure in 24 tournament games Laettner and Duke won 21 of them, Laettner was perceived as being arrogant and he was, he became the easy target for fans to point toward.

One cynic pointed out the number of high profile prospects that have played at Cameron Indoor and they claim out it’s not aided the winning, on the other hand it has, allow this explanation. This most recent Duke team won 35 games while losing only 3, they would have played in the Final Four if not for a 35-foot desperation 3-point shot by UConn. Go ahead and hate Duke if you must, it might be valid for you but not for me. Jon Scheyer is a good coach despite the second guessing by several in the media and fans, he’s a winner. He’s got a better winning percentage in four years than…..can I say it, Coach K. So with that said I’m out.  

There is another

Wemby has somewhat been excluded in any discussions regarding this seasons MVP conversation, there is another NBA player also missing from the conversation. I’m not saying he should be the league MVP however I am confused as to why we hear little if any mention of his name. You certainly are familiar with his name, it’s the Laker point guard Luka Doncic. Check out the numbers he’s presented thus far: 

No 1. points per game average

No 1. 3s made per game

No 1. 30+ point games

No 1. 40+point games

No 1. rebounds per game guards

No 2. 30+ point triple doubles

No 3. assists per game

But just like Wemby he’s suffered the same fate, Doncic has been ignored and excluded from any MVP discussions this season by most of the media. He will not win the award however I believe Luka’s having an outstanding season and should be given consideration….but I’m a party of one, in addition I’m part of Laker Nation. NOTE: This was written prior to the injury that ended his season with days remaining.