Basketball from a fan’s perspective

Not a good feeling

A scheduling change allowed me to see the Nets-Lakers game on Friday, I thought ahead, “At last an opportunity to get a winning streak going.” Little did I realize the Nets had a surprise in store for me, the less than .500 Nets did a beat down of the .500 Lakers 130-112. The Lakers actually got out to a decent start for a change but it seemed every time they missed a shot the Nets especially Cam Thomas would score. Thomas emerged from the Nets bench and totaled 33 points as it seemed every shot he took went in the basket. At this point it should be of note I didn’t see the entire game, I was uncomfortable with how easily the 16 win 24 loss Nets were scoring the ball.

No need of punishing myself, not a good feeling regarding this game. I changed channels before the half and watched a movie or something more entertaining than what I was seeing. I checked out the final score Saturday morning on my phone. The Laker lineup has been changed back to the one at the beginning of the season, this was to infuse more scoring by them. Other lineup changes were made to stress Laker defense. “Fool me once shame on me, fool me twice,” and this from Darvin Ham the following day. “It’s over for the excuses, man. We got to play basketball,” I truly wonder who is supposed to be affected by his comment. The largest mystery for me, all the nicknames hung on AD in the past about missing games…the guy is ballin’ and it appears to be no help at all to his Laker teammates.  

Did I clarify this

I wanted to re-visit this story because it might not have been totally clear. In addition I wanted to provide some additional information. By 1976 the American Basketball Association or ABA was down to 7 teams, technically it was 6 the Virginia Squares had filed bankruptcy prior to the hostile takeover by the NBA. Two teams, the Kentucky Colonels and Spirits of St. Louis would be disbanded and their roster placed in a dispersal draft.

The Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York Nets (now Brooklyn) and San Antonio Spurs franchises moved into the restructured NBA. According to information I uncovered, “neither the settlement itself nor the years that followed have provided for ABA statistics to be officially recognized and integrated into the NBA canon.” I will use the term hostile takeover based on the actions occurring in 1976 and hereafter, you are free to continue to refer to the actions as a merger if you wish…not me. Although ownership’s changed over time I’m sure even today’s owners probably don’t like the term I believe applies.

A defender

I held a conversation with a co-worker recently, he’s from New Jersey on the metro side of New York City. I wanted to place that before you prior to me providing the balance of our discussion. He asked me, “What’s your issue(s) with Stephen A. Smith?” I repeated to him what I’d informed most of the readers, why must Smith insert himself into every basketball story. I then mentioned the Pacers Tyrese Haliburton and the claim “He’d (Smith) contacted a member of the Knicks and informed him they should draft this guy.” I cannot respond to that statement except why now, why is Smith’s part of the story coming to light three years later?

My co-worker said, “He (Smith) played the game and he might have seen Haliburton in college, Smith is a Knicks fan.” I can’t dispute my co-workers statement however I can question how much basketball knowledge Smith might possess. I haven’t read Smith’s book however he did play in college although the numbers he scored are rather microscopic. He claims he didn’t play much due to injury again I have no method of verifying his claim. As for the ability to spot talent that is debatable, some of the best coaches (Phil Jackson among the names) were only average players but very good coaches and analyzers of talent. At this point I will yield to my co-worker, perhaps Smith is not as bad as I believe. There is just one thing, he would be a tad bit more tolerable to me if he quit placing himself in the middle of his story’s.

Rules  

It doesn’t matter if the discussion revolves around college basketball or the NBA. Most rule changes generally are made to enhance the game to some degree. Allow this example, in the NBA the 1973-74 season saw blocked shots counted for the first time. From 1946 through the 1974 season we had no idea how many shots Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and others might have blocked. How about shooting, the American Basketball League and later the American Basketball Association both utilized the 3-point basket in their game.

As for the NBA they were late to the party, they reluctantly adopted it although it would be 1979 before the shot was introduced. There are probably other rule changes added over the years those come to mind without any great research on my part. Once again there is change, the 2023-24 NBA season has witnessed a rule change I never believed would be required. An NBA team member must play a minimum of 65 games to be considered for any award, this includes MVP, Scoring and Rebound leader, Rookie of the Year etc. It’s a shame the NBA was forced to add such a rule, evidently with load management being in place and other stuff the league felt this rule change was needed.

Turn around

It was a different NBA back then, this is my belief. There might have been the thought Victor Wembanyama going to the Spurs will make them competitive immediately. Talented as I believe the youngster is I don’t believe that’s possible for anyone in this age of NBA play. There might have been someone else you can name, the only athlete accomplishing the feat might be Lew Alcindor. He was made the first pick in the first round of the 1969 draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, the previous year the expansion Bucks finished with a 27-win 55 loss season. That was good enough for a 7th place finish in the Eastern Conference, what occurred a year later with Alcindor in the lineup?

The Bucks won 56 games losing 26 and finishing in 2nd place, did the addition of one talented player change the dynamics of the Bucks? You better believe it did especially with them earning a playoff berth in his rookie year. A superior talented Alcindor was able to make a significant difference. In 1971 Alcindor would convert to the Muslim faith and change his name to Kareem Abdul Jabbar and the balance of the story is NBA history. Some might argue in the 1969-70 season the NBA contained only 13 other teams compared to Wemby facing 29 opposition teams. On the other hand it could be looked at in this manner, today’s NBA might contain less talented players compared to that period. Just something to consider, this certainly doesn’t make it correct.  

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

ROY

This season’s Rookie of the Year race has been interesting. We have Chet Holmgren all 7-foot 1-inch and 195 pounds of the Thunder and 7-foot 4-inch 210-pound Victor Wembanyama playing for the Spurs. Who is probably leading in the vote count on January 19, I would give Holmgren a slight edge. The edge I believe is strictly based on the teams. Last season the Thunder finished close to .500 with a 40-win season as for the Spurs it was 22 wins and 60 losses. Although Holmgren took his rookie lumps he was inserted into the lineup of an up-and-coming Thunder team.

As this is written they have a 28-win record placing the Thunder in second place in the Western Conference. As for the Spurs they are winners of only 7 games while losing 33. Holmgren was added to a team on an upward path in the standings, as for Wemby it was totally different based on the team. The Spurs strictly based on won-loss record are not the worst team in the NBA but they are darn close. We probably haven’t had a ROY race this tight since 2003. If you check out scoring alone it would seem Carmelo Anthony should have been Rookie of the Year over LeBron James. Could we have a similar development by the time votes are counted in May…that’s quite possible.

KenPom

Once upon a time we attempted to determine how good a college basketball team was based on Top 20 ranking, later the number was increased to Top 25. More recently college teams have been evaluated by Quad wins and KenPom, what exactly are we talking about? I’m happy you asked the question because I’m prepared to provide you an answer. In this example KenPom will be discussed other examples will follow later. In addition this is written ahead of Saturday’s action on January 20, this is KenPom’s rating not mine.  Kansas basketball is number 3 in one poll and number 4 in another, KenPom says Kansas is the number 13 team in the nation.

How come the discrepancy in numbers might be your next question. The simple and quick answer is this, “The KenPom ratings are highly influential when it comes to betting on college basketball. In the words of creator Ken Pomeroy, the purpose of this system is to show how strong a team would be if it played tonight, independent of injuries or emotional factors. Without going too far down the rabbit hole, his ranking system incorporates statistics like shooting percentage, margin of victory, and strength of schedule, ultimately calculating offensive, defensive, and overall efficiency numbers for all teams in Division I.” I’m not prepared to defend or to become an advocate of KenPom, this represents just the surface there is more analytical information involved if one intends to utilize it.

Quad wins, what the heck is that all about you ask? This appears to impact the NCAA Tournament only, check this out. “A “Quad 1 win is one of the terms most often mentioned ahead of Selection Sunday. With 68 teams chosen to participate in March Madness, some might be baffled by the words and stats used. So, what is a Quad 1 win? According to Yahoo Sports, the quadrant system helps the selection committee pick teams to make the NCAA Tournament. This is based on NET rankings, which has been an evaluation tool used since the 2018-19 season. A Quad 1 win is considered good, a Quad 4 is considered a bad loss.

Fulfilled the promise

The league was founded in 2001 as the D-League, the D stood for developmental. The league’s first season was 2001-02, in 2017-18 the league was rebranded as the G-League. Gatorade the sports drink entered a multi-year agreement that year becoming the league sponsor. The intent was simple, it was intended to offshoot high school talent making its way to the NBA. 

The purpose was for high school players not desiring college to develop their basketball skills. Since the founding there is no barometer to determine success or lack thereof. Despite no proof the league will continue to be a farm or feeder system for NBA teams. The majority of G-League teams have affiliation with NBA teams. As we look toward the 2024 draft who are the top G-League prospects we should prepare to hear their names announced. At the top of the list is a name mentioned previously Matas Buzelis, he’s a 6-foot 10 207-pound SG/SF. Coming in at second is another familiar name, Ron Holland a 6-foot 8 206-pound small forward, Buzelis and Holland have never been drafted. 6-foot 7 230-pound Cam Whitmore was made pick number 20 in the first round of the 2023 NBA draft, its reported a crowded front court caused the Rockets to believe it would be more beneficial to Whitmore to play in the G-League. 

Number four is also a drafted player, Gradey Dick a 6-foot 6-inch SG/SF was the 13th pick in the first round of the 2023 draft. Rounding out the Top five is Brice Sensibaugh a 6-foot 5 235-pound SG/SF, Sensibaugh was also a 2023 pick he is the number 28 choice. Keep in mind those named only Buzelis and Holland can be drafted the others will simply be called up by their respective teams.

A correction and declaration

First things first, both involve the Clippers and they go like this. The correction, after some adjustment after the trade for James Harden they have played much better basketball than earlier. We’ve seen the Clippers win 16 of the last 19 games played as this was written, that’s an outstanding record. I said at one point they were certainly a playoff contender but not yet championship material. The declaration, Kawhi Leonard affirmed my thoughts. First of all the team signed Leonard to a 3-year contract extension. Despite this fact he indicates the team is not quite there yet, i.e., championship level. One of the difficulties for the Clippers has always been the health of the roster, I must state that at this point. Paul George has missed significant time and we are aware of Leonard’s health issues.

There is the Harden factor that must be taken into consideration as well…not an injury issue but the other thing. In 1897 early sci-fi writer H.G. Wells wrote a novel titled The Invisible Man, the book has become a screenplay for several movies over the decades. Where am I going with this, you know in advance. Harden’s playoff history no matter which team he played for is somewhat checkered. I know what you are saying, “Why not check his stats over making such a statement.” In this instance I believe it’s more than an accounting issue, Harden fails to come up big in the playoffs when needed. In closing allow me to repeat this once again, the Clippers are certainly better than the late November early December version. Despite this fact they must prove to me (and everyone else) they are a championship team.

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

“He should lead the league, he’s 7 feet 10”

I have a couple of co-workers who attended high school with Bol Bol. I questioned them wondering about Bol’s high school play. Of course, he only spent one year locally before he began a sojourn attending several high schools across the nation. He then spent one season at Oregon before he declared for the NBA draft. This is part 2 or 3 of a statement made by Shaq and his belief we’ve seen Wemby before, his name is Bol Bol.

The major problem Kaleb told me “He (Bol) never seem to have gotten any better although he certainly has talent. I then said, “Guess who’s leading the NBA in blocked shots?” Keenan smiled and said Wemby, he should lead the league, he’s 7 foot 10.” Wemby is tall however he’s not quite that towering, officially he’s listed at 7 feet 4 inches. If we look at wingspan its easy to see how Wemby was able to block a Trae Young shot without leaving his feet. He’s got an 8-foot wingspan versus the 7-foot 8-inch wingspan of Bol. Keep in mind Wemby is on a minutes restriction yet still manages to lead the NBA in blocked shots, I guess that might be easy considering he’s 7 foot 10.

2 + 2 = 5    

We are in the day and age of conspiracy theories, there is no requirement to provide proof just a hint of what one might believe. That is the case here and it involves minority owner Mark Cuban of the Mavs. At the time Cuban purchased the majority share of the Mavs I had no doubts of his business knowhow. Seeing him occasionally on the television program Shark Tank cemented my view of Cuban and now this. Today I found a website indicating “The NBA might be going out of business” and that’s the basis for Cuban selling his majority share of the Mavs.

As you are aware I have no working knowledge the amount any NBA team earns after all the financial matters are addressed. We are dependent on news reports, not having firsthand knowledge of any teams operations. If the NBA is in such dire straits financially wouldn’t it make more sense to divest yourself all together? It was made clear Cuban would retain a minority share in the Mavs, in addition this question. The Adelson and Dumont families are casino owners, according to reports they paid $3.5 billion to acquire ownership. I’ve always been led to believe those involved in gaming operations probably subscribe to the belief the house always wins. Why would these two families spend money if the NBA is going out of business, case closed.

Wow

Former players are becoming head coaches at a younger age or LeBron James is “old.” Thanks to Basketball Network we discovered this fact, LeBron played against each of these coaches over his NBA career.  

Chauncey Billups Blazers

Willie Green Pelicans

Adrian Griffin Bucks

Darvin Ham Lakers

Jason Kidd Mavs

Tyronn Lue Clippers

Ime Udoka Rockets

Jacque Vaughn Nets 

That’s an amazing bit of trivia, you have permission to use this against your friends.

It ain’t rocket science

Mentioned here and in other publications the difficulty of an NBA draft. After all the poking and mental prodding of a prospect a scout, coach or someone in the front office must determine…” Could ___________ play in the NBA at a high skill level?” Mock draft sites can also appear questionable as well, allow me to site an example. As this is written the Houston Rockets have Alperen Sengun at the center position, his numbers would indicate he’s playing adequate at the post for them.

6-foot 11 243 pound-Sengun’s numbers are 21 points, 9 rebounds and 5.3 assists along with 54% shooting from the floor a game. Sometimes mock drafts are not always correct pending trades and other house maintenance issues. If the positioning here is correct we discover the Rockets have pick 12 and 13 and this is what THEY SAY. 7-foot 1 226-pound Aaron Bradshaw of Kentucky will be chosen with the 12th pick followed by 7-foot 3 260-pound Donovan Clingan at 13. I have serious doubts if this occurs along the lines this mock site projects, not the order of the draft rather that both Big Men are added to the roster of the Rockets with Sengun apparently performing at an adequate level.

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

What do I do

Sometimes in an attempt to report all the “news” I often find myself in a quandary. Does a news item or court filing constitute anything? On the surface we could say it represents something but that is not always the case when we don’t have all the details of the account. This is a recent example, I reported on the hailstorm erupting around Thunder guard Josh Giddey a few weeks back. He was “reported” to have had an improper relationship with an underage female. The NBA began an investigation the young woman’s family hired a noted criminal attorney and then POOF, the story disappeared from our view.

Finally the Giddey story ends with a whimper, apparently not enough evidence was the report read. Was there something else to the story…we just don’t know. This story broke on Tuesday, a woman filed a lawsuit against James Dolan and another party. Dolan is the chairman of Madison Square Garden and governor of the Knicks and Rangers. In her suit the woman made allegations of an improper relationship between Dolan and the other party. Dolan has denied the charges but that’s where this matter stands, its yet to be resolved. At this point commissioner Silver indicates he is aware of the story however no more was mentioned. If there is basketball news good or bad I feel an obligation to report it however there are limits I believe. I don’t have the ability to determine a legitimate story versus one of fictional nature.  

Worst hires

There was another tough loss on Tuesday, on the road Mizzou lost to Alabama 86-71. So my fear has been well founded, the Tigers begin SEC play in far worse shape than I hoped. To compound the problem injuries have impacted Mizzou but that’s another story. I remain in the Gates corner despite some in Mizzou Nation being displeased with the coach. This is not the worst coaching hire YET, Jeff Goodman veteran basketball insider provides us his list of the Top 20 worst college basketball hires. This was actually the worst time because a tragic mistake was made in the hire.

As for the present I still believe Dennis Gates is okay until he proves to me he’s not. As for the Goodman list several well-known coaches made his list, unfortunately one of them is close to home Kim Anderson a coach it was believed had the ability to lead the program. Anderson I believe was a quick-safe hire by AD Mike Alden at the time, boy did this backfire. He began in 2014 and by 2017 new AD Jim Sterk decided a 27-68 record plus 8-46 in the SEC was far too much for all parties concerned. Anderson has tasted success at Division II University of Central Missouri so that might have been a factor in his hire and being on the staff of longtime coach Norm Stewart.    

$$$$

I’m watching a Knick game from MSG, although there’s been no shot of number one fan Spike Lee I wondered. How much does a courtside ticket cost him, I decided to Goggle the question. This is what I discovered, nearly 3 years ago according to Darren Rovell business sports analyst. “Spike Lee’s bill for two courtside sides for Knick games comes to $300,000 this year.” Rest assured ticket prices have gone up in price since then, how much is unknown. Brooklyn guy Lee indicates he could never root for the Nets, at the time they began play in Brooklyn he sent out this tweet (now X).

“I WILL NEVER DUMP DA KNICKS, come on Spike tell us what you really think. Out west in Los Angeles Jack Nicholson has routinely been absent from Laker games the last few years. How about his seats in Crypto.com arena, what do you suppose is the cost for them? Once again how current is this information is an unknown. At one point in time Nicholson was paying $5,350.00 a game for his ticket. I can make this statement in earnest, Spike and Jack have a substantial amount of discretionary income to afford them to spend in this manner. Before one gets the wrong impression there is no jealousy or envy intended with this post. A camera shot of those seated on the sideline included Tracy Morgan, John Stewart, Chris Rock but no Spike Lee.

Was this it?

Free agency has impacted the NBA over the last several years. However in an earlier time other than drafting that quality player trading for him was the only other method to move up in the standings and to that championship level. Over time the NBA has witnessed a number of blockbuster trades. As for the most lopsided trade in history I submit for your perusal the one that sent Kareem Abdul Jabbar to the Lakers the most beneficial in NBA history. Keep in mind one player fails to make a team however a super talented athlete can help place a team on the championship road. The Lakers had won a championship however during the time Kareem played for them there were 5 won in total.

June 16, 1975, the Milwaukee Bucks traded Kareem Abdul Jabbar and journey man Walt Wesley to the Lakers. In return the Bucks received Elmore Smith, Brian Winters, Junior Bridgeman and Dave Meyers. Don’t worry if you are unfamiliar with the names all were talented players but understand this part. After the trade Smith played but 5 additional seasons, Winters, Bridgeman and Meyers all were in the NBA 3 years after the trade. In addition to the 5 NBA championships Kareem was in the Laker lineup for 14 seasons. It should be of note Bridgeman went on to a successful business career after retirement. Today his accumulated wealth far exceeds what he earned while playing in the NBA. Kareem forced the trade indicating he no longer wanted to play in Milwaukee. So there you have it the most lopsided trade in NBA history in my view.

Taps

Just in case some of you are unfamiliar with Taps it’s the instrumental piece played at the funeral of a military individual. This has nothing to do with a person’s funeral although it certainly represents death. The death is the Pac-12 Conference, this was once one of the best basketball conferences in the nation and football wasn’t too bad either but that’s for someone else to cover. The basis for the Pac-12 going out of business are too numerous to detail here, let’s take a look at where member schools are headed:

 

Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah will depart for the Big XII

Washington, Oregon, Southern Cal and UCLA are headed to the Big 10

Cal and Stanford will join the ACC

Washington State and Oregon State will align with the West Coast Conference

Looking at this realignment and looking ahead we might come to this conclusion. The play of basketball in the Big XII and Big 10 should improve exponentially. I wish to reserve judgement on the ACC and West Coast Conference moves.

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

It was more than Westbrook  

Because I wasn’t a fan of Russell Westbrook it was easy for me to fall into the trap, the one generated by the media and several members of Laker Nation. Check this information out I uncovered, this disclaimer I haven’t checked for accuracy but believe it to be correct…here goes. Did you realize this time last year the Lakers had a 19-21 record, as for this year its 19-21. Last season during a bulk of this time LeBron missed 9 games…this season its only 4. Last season during much of this time Anthony Davis missed 15 games, this season its only 2. This causes me great difficulty attempting to determine the issues. There are probably more than one factor affecting play however Laker defense has been suspect.

The latest figures from NBA.com indicate they are number 18 giving up 113.7 points a game, that’s not terrible but its not great either. For a team that was reported to play tough defense based on these numbers that would indicate that is not the case. Excluding injuries the starting lineup appears fluid, the coach cannot seem to determine the best working number. It would appear I’m pointing my finger at Darvin Ham and that’s exactly what I’m saying. I don’t dislike Ham I believe he’s a likable guy but it appears he’s not getting the job done. I make that statement because unless there is another stretch run this Laker team will likely miss the playoffs. In addition even if they earn a playoff berth can they compete in the tough Western Conference playoff picture. In closing I am offering an apology once again to Westbrook, this account clearly indicates he might have been a part of the problem not the problem alone.

His thought

It’s been mentioned more than once the Ring of Honor ceremony held last week in the United Center and the crowd reaction. At the time the name Jerry Krause was announced, a few thought it appropriate to boo his name and reports are his widow was brought to tears hearing the crowd response. What did Krause have to say, how about this statement we uncovered prior to his death. “You know where my image is? It’s hanging from the rafters. That’s the only image I care about.”

The Krause reference was the 6 NBA Championship banners displayed at the United Center. That fails to take back the reaction from a few who decided to boo but I’d bet money the majority of them have no idea of the Krause contribution to championship Bulls basketball. I continue to believe they were probably heavily influenced by the ESPN documentary Last Dance. The documentary was somewhat critical of the role Krause played, the difference for me. Unlike Pippen the production failed to allow Krause the ability to defend himself from some of the criticism aimed at him.

The border war rivalry

Let’s detail a little history between Kansas and Missouri in sports. For unknown reasons its always seemed the rivalry in basketball is more intense in basketball over football. This rivalry between the two border schools existed in the Big 7, Big 8 and into the Big XII. It ended at the time Mizzou left for the SEC but did it end there? The history goes beyond basketball it actually goes back prior to the beginning of the Civil War.

Although Missouri was a slave state it did not join the Confederacy while Kansas was a free state. There were bloody clashes between the two leading right up to the war. A group of southern sympathizers from the Missouri side raided Lawrence Kansas burning down most of the town. So as this brief look at sports might have actually begun almost 170 years or so ago. In closing one more tidbit of information, as I indicated Missouri was a divided state having southern and northern supporters. Once the war started a number battles were fought between Union and Confederate troops all around the state of Missouri. There is one additional sports connection with the history, a group of Confederate soldiers were marching toward Columbia Missouri.

Those Union defenders of the town were referred to as “Tigers,” this would later be adopted by the sports teams for the University of Missouri. As you can see the border rivalry today is not as serious as the past leading up to a Civil War however this is where elements of it began. The “shooting” at this point is strictly exchanges between the two sides which is more evident on this side of Missouri. Folks on the Illinois side claims the rivalry is not as intense there as it is on the Kansas-Missouri border.

“You can’t tell the players without a program”

I’ve read in the early days of baseball before television and certainly radio that the headline was used. It’s reported boys would stand outside the entrance of ball parks selling programs and they used words similar to our title. This is a takeoff on the same premise, however we are discussing NBA arenas under construction or in the planning stage. Although it takes years from development to completion announcements of this type sometimes arrive rapidly.

Arena               Team              Opening

Intuit Dome     Clippers            2024  

Unnamed        Thunder           2029       

76 Place          Sixers              2031

Unnamed        Spurs               unknown

The voters of Oklahoma City approved a tax measure for an arena to replace Paycom Center so its included with a timeline on its completion. Although Las Vegas and Seattle were mentioned previously as far as I could determine there is nothing new to report regarding either location. There is an update from Dallas, Mark Cuban has expressed interest in a new arena for the Mavs. This arena would replace the existing American Airlines Center now 22 years old since its opening. In the preliminary stage is a planned arena for the Wizards and NHL Capitals.

Both teams could be moving to a new arena in Alexandria Virginia by 2028, the WNBA Mystics would remain at Capital One Arena. I’ve never traveled in that portion of the nation the information I uncovered indicates the Virginia location is only six miles from the existing Capital One Arena. This venture has caused controversy as well, notice the distance between present and planned location. The mayor of Washington D.C. indicates she intends to contest the move, in addition Wizard guard Bradley Beal is appealing to the owner to not move the team to Virginia. As there is additional news on both I will attempt to update you.

 

 

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

Who’s number one…how about the Top 5

Beginning on Monday throughout the college season we intend to look at the Top 25 college teams across the two most viewed polls, with that said here goes. The AP and Coaches Poll both place UConn as the number one team in the nation. They agree on Purdue, but the difference begins with number 3, AP places Kansas there while the Coaches have North Carolina there. At number 4 in the AP is North Carolina while Kansas is there in the poll. Both are in agreement with the number 5 team placing the Houston Cougars in that slot.

Youthful betrayal

The Spurs managed to place themselves in a position to win, they eventually succumbed to the Hawks 109-99. There was only problem they failed to win their Monday afternoon game against the Hawks which I clearly believed they could have. The Spurs fell behind by 75 points in the first half of the game, just kidding folks but they were behind by 35 points at a stage. The second half of the game would prove quite different although the youth of the Spurs betrayed them once again.

Trae Young was as hot as a Texas July 4 cookout, after scoring 29 points in the first half he scored 36 in total for the game. Wemby was just the opposite, he scored 0 points in the first half of the game, he was just as hot in the second half as Young had been in the first half. In 27 minutes of action Wemby shot 66.7% from the floor totaling 26 points plus he pulled down 13 rebounds 2 assists along with 3 steals and 5 blocked shots. He can impact the game in a variety of ways, the youthful Spurs must still learn how to play alongside Wemby. They are continuing to adjust and by the end of the season we might see a different Spurs team, a team more capable of closing out a victory.

Change in the NBA draft

This ain’t rocket science however most are aware of this fact. I regularly check three NBA mock draft sites to see what scouts and NBA front office folks are thinking. This is not accurate although one in particular I’ve found to be highly accurate through the first 10 picks. As the draft progressed that year the mock had a player at 8 while he was drafted 9 and vice versa. In any event let’s check two of the three sites I regularly utilize:

nbadraft.net

Cody Williams 6-foot 8 190-pound small forward Colorado

Ja’Kobe Walter 6-foot 5 180-pound shooting guard Baylor

Zaccharie Risacher 6-foot 9 200-pound small forward France

Carlton Carrington 6-foot 6 190-pound point/shooting guard Pitt

Aaron Bradshaw 7-foot 1 225-pound power forward Kentucky

nbadraftroom.com

Alexandre Sarr 7-foot 1 217-pound power forward France

Nikola Topic 6-foot 6 201-pound point guard Serbia

Zaccharie Risacher 6-foot 9 200-pound small forward France

Ja’Kobe Walter 6-foot 5 180-pound shooting guard Baylor

Cody Williams 6-foot 8 190-pound small forward Colorado

As you can see for the most part the names are not that different the order is the question. Keep in mind this will certainly change before the draft occurs Wednesday June 26 and Thursday June 27.

You are a stud!

I didn’t check the figures but this from MaxPreps certainly would appear to be correct:

If you play D1 you’re a stud

If you play D2 you’re a stud

If you play D3 you’re a stud

If you play NAIA you’re a stud

If you play at a JUCO you’re a stud

ONLY 7% of high school athletes becomes college athletes

We tend to forget this at times, I dislike saying this but the vast majority of high school athletes are not skilled or talented enough to play at the collegiate level. It would appear sometimes we tend to forget this fact, just a little food for thought.

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

He said

“There’s nobody on this team that doesn’t want to pass me the ball and there’s nobody I don’t want to pass the ball to.” Those are the words of Spurs wunderkind Victor Wembanyama, you remember the story don’t you? A few weeks ago a report circulated teammates were reluctant to pass the ball to Wemby. The account was unconfirmed so was it true, we have no idea however it was reported teammates were jealous of the media attention toward Wemby. Let’s just say he’s an incredibly talented player on a not so good team, check these numbers out. Over his last 8 games Wemby is shooting 50.8% from the floor and 34.1% from 3pt. It’s 87.2 from the free throw line 8.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists and 3.6 blocks a game.

Keep in mind despite the numbers he’s on a minutes limit and is coaching restricted to playing back-to-back games. It should also be noted that this 20-year-old rookie is leading the NBA in blocked shots. Still not convinced yet of his potential, a number of you refuse to acknowledge his talent. I’ve read fan letters claiming, “He should be scoring more” or this one “At 7 foot 4 his rebound numbers should be higher.” I’m going to mention weight here, Wemby is a reported 210 pounds which is thin based on his height. Remember back to the time Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo arrived in the NBA. Durant couldn’t power lift a specific weight and Giannis weighed slightly more than Wemby currently. As I continue to preach, I’m not worried about the weight issue for him my concern is the health of this youngster. He will be a SUPER STAR barring injury based on what I see presently so you might not agree with me but that’s okay.

A different age

This wasn’t intended, I had no plans to continue the discussion but felt it necessary. On Sunday I wrote of the Bulls Ring of Honor unveiled in the United Center. I also detailed some of the fans hearing the name Jerry Krause decided to boo when his name was announced, this was upsetting to his widow. Reading the story and the accompanying responses I couldn’t believe some of the comments. I attempted to point out the good Krause accomplished while GM of the Bulls during those championship years. One of the writers reported a majority of folks might have been basing their response having seen “The Last Dance.”

I can admit the ESPN documentary didn’t paint a complete portrait of Krause however most of those gathered in the United Center might not have realized Krause died in 2017. There is no doubt the former GM was a lightning rod for controversy based on many of the actions occurring while he was in charge. At least one writer claimed it didn’t matter Krause died “He deserved the booing based on breaking up a championship team.” My question I wonder if this writer holds a grudge for something that occurred in 2003? Evidently that might be the case based on his view of Krause. If we take this guy’s opinion on a subject whatever occurs negative it’s never to be forgiven. It’s really terrible to make a widow cry, I hope you are proud Chicago.

Basketball in the UK

If I were a betting person I would place a large wager on this fact. Did you know there is a professional basketball league in the United Kingdom? This is the British Basketball League and it began play in the 1987-88 season, the league is comprised of 10 teams spread throughout the UK. The northernmost team is the Caledonia Gladiators who play in East Kilbride Scotland, while the Plymouth City Patriots in Plymouth are the most southern and western team. The London Lions are in Stratford, East London England. I caught a game between the Manchester Giants and London Lions on Bally Sports Midwest, the league’s website indicates TV partners are Sky Sports and YouTube. Similar to the NBA the BBL is also expanding, three teams are pending inclusion. Edinburg in Scotland, Birmingham England and Reading about 40 miles from London will be added at a future date.

Warp speed

Trekkies need to be of assistance to me, is warp speed the fastest the Starship Enterprise could travel? Whatever the case Steve Ballmer is moving at that velocity and maybe a little bit more. As you are aware the Intuit Dome will be ready for play in the fall of 2024 for the Clippers. The Intuit Dome will serve as the location for the 2026 NBA All Star Game. In addition the former home of the Lakers the Forum will also be utilized for a number of the weekend events, the arena known as the Kia Forum today was purchased by Ballmer in May of 2020. As for the Kia Forum it was believed at the time of purchase the building would be demolished however that certainly has not been the case.

This is disappointing

The Lakers season thus far has been a huge disappointment to me. I believed prior to the season this was a team prepared to contend in the May-June playoff time. Instead of being contenders they are pretenders to bigger and better things. I’m unsure where the disconnect is located, is it the roster alone, or is the problem Darvin Ham? I remember back to last season, all the finger pointing was aimed at Russell Westbrook. The talented guard still can’t shoot from distance but suddenly it appears he wasn’t the problem. If we look deeper is LeBron James the obstacle, I can’t address that for this reason alone.

Throughout his career it’s always appeared LeBron was a willing passer, it was never necessary for him to take the last shot. That ability to defer to a teammate is certainly different from most players of his caliber. I may have mentioned this previously I am not an NBA League Pass subscriber. I prefer instead to view the Lakers on TNT/ABC/ESPN platforms however a strange thing has occurred. The last two games on one of the networks mentioned I haven’t seen, I’ve been home. I’m unsatisfied with what is presented on my television, rather than air my complaints it is easier for me to simply ignore the outcome of Laker games. Have I given up my allegiance…of course not, let’s just say I am a disappointed member to this date.

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

I’ve overlooked them

Are the Wolves for real this time around, we don’t know but they sure appear to be? With a 27-win record and first place in the West they appear ready for a deep playoff run. The mix of starters certainly is good, they have a veteran but not old presence. Mike Conley might be the last of the pure point guards, guys who pass the ball rather than looking to shoot. His 45% shooting informs us Conley can shoot the ball it’s just with all the talent around him its far easier to set up teammates. At shooting guard is Anthony Edwards maybe the most talented “unknown” in the NBA, he’s shooting nearly 26 points a game.

We move to Karl-Anthony Towns at power forward and Rudy Gobert at the post. The 7-foot Towns is scoring at a 21 point and 9 rebound clip while playing improved defense. 7-1 Gobert is known for his defense over the other stuff, he’s rebounding the ball at a 12.2 per game effort. He too can score when called on, his 63.4% field goal shooting provides the proof. I’ve not seen Jaden McDaniels play however as the starting small forward he must have proven his worth to the coaching staff. My only question is reserve depth, I’m unsure the effectiveness of the bench over the course of the season. In any event let’s not overlook the Wolves they appear for real.

Best of the best

The job certainly is considerable, for the record let’s just check won-loss records as we begin our search of active coaches. Jim Boeheim at Syracuse is in his last season, 47 of them and 1,015 wins prior to the 2023-24 season, he’s at the top of the list of active coaches. Now that Bob Huggins is retired in second place is John Calipari with the Kentucky Wildcats, Cal in 31 years has registered 790 wins at UMass, Memphis and Kentucky. On his heels is Bill Self Kansas coach, Self has 787 in 30 years at Tulsa, Illinois and Kansas.

And a surprise to some the name Rick Barnes, he’s got 779 wins in 36 years at George Mason, Providence, Clemson, Texas and Tennessee. In 34 years at Washington State, Oklahoma, Indiana and Houston Kelvin Sampson has 732 wins. Right behind Sampson with 731 in 34 years is Dana Altman Marshall, Kansas State, Creighton and Oregon. Jim Larranaga in 39 years might be a surprise, he’s accumulated 725 wins at American International, Bowling Green, George Mason and Miami (FL). With 711 wins in 35 years is Rick Pitino at Boston University, Providence, Kentucky, Louisville, Iona and St. John’s. Mark Few has compiled 688 wins in 24 years all of them at Gonzaga. In 38 years Tom Izzo’s never left the State of Michigan except maybe recruiting. He moved from an assistant to the head coach at Michigan State, that was 28 years ago, and since then his Spartan teams have won 687 games.

https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2023-07-26/mens-di-college-basketball-coaches-most-wins

A lighting rod of controversy

In the glory days of the Bulls the mention of the name Jerry Krause would upset a number of Bulls fans. Despite the controversy surrounding Krause he was the architect for the 6 NBA championships. Back then it would have been easy for a Scotty Pippen to miss the draft, Krause scouted him. When the Sonics drafted Pippen in 1987 Krause traded for him and the balance of the story is well known. It wasn’t just this one instance there were other players acquired or traded for aiding the Bulls during those years. We could add the name Dennis Rodman to the list of Krause attainments. Why this account on Krause who long ago left the Bulls the reason is simple, he died in 2017.

The Bulls held a Ring of Honor ceremony recently, players and other key members from the playoff success years were honored, among the names was Jerry Krause. When his name was announced a scattering of boos could be heard from those gathered in the United Center. It was said the widow of Krause was in attendance and clearly upset hearing the boos. Stacy King current Bulls broadcaster and former player was critical of those in attendance who expressed themselves in a derogatory manner. Later Bulls president Jerry Reinsdorf addressed the issue as well. Reading the headline its understandable Krause in his role created problems for Phil Jackson, Michael Jordan, Scotty Pippen and others. Despite this fact there would be no championships if not for Jerry Krause.

Not in this age

There is no doubt in my mind, there could be no case of Roger Brown, Connie Hawkins or others today. I wrote of the college basketball scandal that impacted the game in 1960, all were guilty being acquainted with someone. The name Jack Molinas was mentioned in an earlier account, he was one of the principle architects of the 1960 college betting scandal. Brown and Hawkins were introduced to Molinas while in high school, Molinas a former player himself but now banned from the NBA for gambling.

It was reported Brown never took any money although Hawkins borrowed $200 which his brother repaid prior to the scandal breaking. After the news story broke Brown along with Hawkins and others were banned from play in college and the NBA issued an edict as well. Before going further we’ll take a look at Brown’s career, from Brooklyn (NY) he played at Wingate High School. Brown was a 6-foot 5 205-pound small forward, he’d received a scholarship to play at Dayton. At that time colleges had freshman teams so he and Hawkins (Iowa) never played at the varsity level with the story breaking their freshman year. Brown competed in amateur leagues around Dayton until the ABA began play in 1967, the history indicates he became the first player signed by the Pacers.

Brown was a three-time ABA champion player, 1970 ABA playoff MVP plus a number of other honors. There is no indication of the year however the NBA later cleared Brown to play but he chose to remain in the ABA. After retirement Brown remained in Indianapolis serving on the city-county council at a point. He died at the age of 54 in 1997. Imagine this, expelled from college without any evidence of wrongdoing. In addition he was banned from the NBA because he was acquainted with a person of questionable reputation. Could a similar case occur in 2023, of course it could however there is a huge difference. I believe there would be attorneys offering their services pro bono to take on the case of Brown, Hawkins and others. An apology is overdue to the families however its likely many of the participants yielding the sword of justice have likely died as well.

Basketball from a fan’s perspective

I wonder

You might remember the account regarding the ABA, I believe if ABA owners had deeper pockets a true merger might have occurred. It was everyone connected with the young league eager to join the NBA. These are the surprising words of Doe Moe former ABA player and ABA/NBA coach.

“One of the biggest disappointments in my life was going into the NBA after the merger. The NBA was a rinky-dink league---listen, I’m very serious about this. The league (NBA) was run like garbage. There was no camaraderie; a lot of the NBA guys were aloof and thought they were too good to practice or play hard. The NBA All-Star Games were nothing---guys didn’t even want to play in them and the fans could (sic) care less about the games. It wasn’t until the 1980’s, when David Stern became commissioner, that the NBA figured out what the hell thy were doing, and what they did was a lot of stuff we had in the ABA---from the 3-point shot to All-Star weekend to the show biz stuff. Now the NBA is like the old ABA. Guys play hard, they show their enthusiasm and there is a closeness in the league. Hell, the ABA might have lost the battle, but we won the war. The NBA now plays our kind of basketball.”

So are the words of an old grizzled ABA guy few of whom are left or maybe willing to discuss the past, Moe’s words somewhat reflect what I believe. I remember reading Red Auerbach was one of those who was vehemently opposed to the 3-point basket. I’m sure his views were shared by others at the time the Auerbach reflection was easier to uncover.

Wikipedia

His name will be announced

It’s likely Adam Silver will announce his name early in the 2024 NBA draft. His name is Ron Holland and he is a 6-foot 8 200 pound forward, he attended Duncanville High School in Duncanville a city in the DFW metro. I have relatives/scouts in the metro so they informed me early on of this young man’s prowess. Holland was headed to the University of Texas to play for Chris Beard and then all that changed, you might remember the school terminated Beard over a domestic violence issue. Later the district attorney’s office dropped the charges against Beard and the coach would be hired by Ole Miss.

For Holland that would prove to be too late, he’d already made his commitment. He chose instead to begin play in the NBA G-League for Team Elite. As for the NBA if the mock draft sites are accurate projecting Holland’s draft status he is headed for an NBA team somewhere in the fall. Check this out, nbadraft.net places him as pick number 10 for the Hawks while tankathon.com details him as number 1 going to the Pistons. There are others, nbadraftroom.com has him at 2 for the Wizards…yardbarker.com list Holland at 4 for the Grizzlies. You might note a discrepancy the websites don’t agree with the positioning of the draft but they do agree on the player. So that’s the brief story of Ron Holland once headed to Texas until a change took place.

There is no super team

Earlier it was mentioned the top three teams all were losers last week. I’ve coined the Top 25 as a “beauty contest” the real winner is the NCAA champion crowned in early April. Perhaps there is more to the story, maybe the defending champion UConn Huskies, Kansas, Houston and Purdue are not super teams. They are good without being great, of course there is nothing wrong with being good. So what occurs going forward for the teams mentioned and perhaps others? I just checked the AP poll for this time last season and this is interesting.

In first place in the middle of January 2023 is Purdue followed by Houston, Kansas and UConn. Maybe I’m misreading this whole thing, perhaps rather than a dominant team is there more parity among the top 10 or so schools? Based on last year versus this season we could easily conclude that to be the case. I could pose the question, looking at last year and the present could we guess the 2024 NCAA champion might be among the five schools named? That certainly could be the case although in this topsy turvy season it could be Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, Arizona or Oklahoma winning it all. In any event maybe we should just enjoy the 2023-24 season for what it is…entertaining basketball.

Speaking of the draft

The proposed change in the 2024 NBA draft is only waiting approval from the players association. The draft will become a two-night affair, round one will occur Wednesday June 26. The second round will be completed on Thursday June 27, there are a number of reasons for the change. One of the keys for me is this, how many times in the second round have they returned from a commercial break to discover the announcing crew is in the middle of discussing the player just drafted.

We in the television audience must catch up to the action occurring during the commercial break. It’s mentioned over two nights teams will have more opportunity to consummates trades and prepare for the Thursday conclusion. Teams have complained about the limited time allowed in the second round to draft prospects. Once upon a time the draft lasted into infinity, in 1974 it was limited to 10 rounds. In 1989 the draft became a two round event but was conducted in one evening. If implemented this change will take effect this summer.

Where did Dub Nation go?

On Wednesday night I tuned into the game expecting the old Warriors to knock out the young Pelicans. To my surprise the opposite occurred. The Pelicans ran around, through and over the top of the exasperated Warriors. Has the “magic” worn out for Dub Nation, has post season play year after year taken its toll on the Warriors? We must first take into consideration the injury factor however that’s only a portion of the issues facing the team. It appears there are behind the scene concerns between Steve Kerr and at least two younger players on the roster. One has even gone so far as to express his frustration to the media.

There is no method to prove this but have selected players begun to turn off the head coach? One more factor to consider is age, this team has certainly gotten older over time. Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins have not played near the level of the recent past. Is it too late this season for the Warriors…of course not the calendar is yet to reach February. There remains much of the schedule to be played if the Warriors hope to resurrect this season. We shall see what occurs, the 141-105 beat down administered by the Pelicans certainly was not a good look. Even more shocking to me Steph Curry doesn’t appear to be the same lights out shooter we remember. He will turn 36 in March certainly not elder by NBA standards but he’s got a great deal of mileage on that body.