A fan’s perspective

Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Sunday

You get a car and you get a…..

This headline references a memorable television moment that may be unfamiliar to some readers especially those abroad. On September 13, 2004, media personality Oprah Winfrey told all 276 members of her studio audience, “You get a car, and you get a car.” The giveaway was projected to cost well over $7 million. In this instance the reference is Denzel Aberdeen Florida basketball player. His attorney has filed suit against the NCAA in order for Aberdeen to gain a 5th year of eligibility.

This from ESPN’s college basketball page; “The NCAA’s refusal to honor its current eligibility framework breaches its contract with UF, which is intended to benefit student-athletes like Aberdeen,” the lawsuit said. The troubling portion of this account Aberdeen joins a growing list of players totaling 30 as this is written. Will this issue of a 5th continue to crop up every season into infinity, I don’t have the answer? As I have continued to point out as recently as last Friday’s Off the Dribble someone, somebody must take charge of this problem.   

Is this franchise cursed

The question is asked of the Los Angeles Clippers, it seems there is always someone or something preventing them from reaching the championship level. Consider their birth, born in Buffalo New York as the Braves, years later sold and then moved to San Diego. New owner Donald Sterling then landlord watched the NFL Raiders move from Oakland to Los Angeles and the league sue them. Once the court ruled in favor of the Raiders Sterling decided to move his Clippers to Los Angeles in 1984. Never mind seeking NBA approval, Sterling moved them north and technically said “stop me.” He did this because Los Angeles was a larger market plus his business was located there. The Clippers were never able to compete effectively with the Lakers even during periods when the Lakers were not very good.

In the early 2000s the fortunes of the Clippers began to change, they reverted from perennial losers to consistent winners. The only problem….failure to advance to the next level. They earned playoff berths from 2012 through 2017 and again from 2019 through 2021 and followed that with a streak from 2023 through 2025. Despite the winning the Clippers only managed to play for the Western Conference championship one time, 2021. An injury to a key player or some other anomaly might occur preventing them from advancement. And now the Kawhi Leonard saga, now he’s gone a member of the Raptors. Despite his departure indirectly he’s caused the team to continue its present course. I began this exercise with the headline “Is this franchise cursed.” Despite the fact the Clippers have continued an endless cycle of never competing for the ultimate prize I don’t believe in curses. The problem of the Clippers is more of a human problem which must be resolved.

Music and basketball    

This might not be true for everyone, but over the years several songs have become closely associated with basketball, whether in the NBA or college game. In some cases, I had to do a little research to learn who recorded them. The following are just 6 tunes selected we’ve heard while viewing an NBA or college game in person or on television. You might be unfamiliar with the artist however perhaps you’ve heard the tune, an example is the longtime theme tied to the Chicago Bulls’ glory days. I remember watching games on WGN Chicago, where it always played at the start of Bulls broadcasts. You may have heard it even before it became linked to the NBA and the Bulls. The song is titled Sirius by the Alan Parsons Project—check it out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkC_oi0ksuw&list=RDOkC_oi0ksuw&start_radio=1

Composer/musician John Tesh wrote this next tune at the time the NBA was being broadcast on NBC, it remained in hibernation until this past season when NBA games returned to the network. This was named, Roundball Hard Rock:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qCEX4scaJA

This next tune had nothing to do with basketball, it might have been played in dance halls prior to it becoming associated with basketball. The Pointer Sisters Jump was heard throughout NBA arenas across the nation anytime there was a jump ball:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyTVyCp7xrw&list=RDuyTVyCp7xrw&start_radio=1

Another example and this might be a surprise to some reading this, it’s House of Pain’s rap tune Jump Around. One group member wears a Celtics jersey in the video, so perhaps that is the basketball connection:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=house+of+pain+jump+around

This is usually heard at the beginning of a number of college basketball games, we actually don’t hear the tune but we hear the student body in the arena hum it more than sing it, here is the tune. It’s title Zombie Nation by Kernkraft 400:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5LW07FTJbI&list=RDz5LW07FTJbI&start_radio=1

Finally this exercise is closed out with a tune we only hear once a year, it’s titled One Shining Moment and generally we hear the refrain prior to hearing the late Luther Vandross provide words, it’s played at the conclusion of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhTmvfxmFyU