NBA

A Gauntlet of Aztecs Approaching [Originally posted on sportsblog.com 1/7//14]

Posted by

0

Bill Self described the upcoming five games against Oklahoma, Kansas State, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, and Baylor as “having to face five San Diego States”.

I knew the Hawks were in some trouble after they gave up 83 points to Toledo, a team without any NBA prospects on it. In fact the Jayhawks hadn’t played a complete game since their November win against Towson.

I hadn’t watched a single Aztec game this year, but I know what Steve Fisher is capable of as a coach, and he certainly had them ready to play. He and the Aztecs went into Lawrence with a great game plan and executed it near flawlessly.

They limited KU’s fast break points, out-rebounded the Jayhawks 51-39, and killed them in the paint–only attempting eight 3 pointers the entire game. The Aztecs did a great job of doubling the KU bigs on the catch and the Jayhawks’ front line only mustered 18 points; 12 of them coming from the always impressive Joel Embiid (the already lion quick Center tweeted this weekend that he’d be taking ballet classes this upcoming semester to help him with his footwork–I know this worked for former Longhorn and future NBA guard Royal Ivey).

Notables from Sunday’s game:

1) The Jayhawks are not a very good passing team. They can get out in transition, but when it comes to creating shots for other players, they come up short. This is in part to having guards who can’t create consistently. Doug Gottlieb touched on this during Sunday’s telecast and one of the few things he got right (Naismith Blvd,Massachusetts Ave, and Wiggins’ summer activities were three things he got wrong), was that the lack of a play maker at point guard is hurting the team’s offensive development. Gottlieb then went on to say that this has held up the progress of stars Wiggins, and Embiid (let’s throw Perry Ellis in there too who hasn’t played well since his neck injury against Georgetown).

Which begs the question of does Bill Self develop point guards? It could be argued that the last consistent play maker at point guard was Aaron Miles– a Roy Williams recruit. Sherron Collins was a good guard, but I feel like he was more a shoot first guard than passer. I’m sure one could argue Josh Selby or Tyshawn Taylor, but I’d just laugh at them.

The offensive woes they have had to begin games has been irritating to watch. Sunday they came out 3/19 on field goals, and 6/29 in the first half, and only shot 4 for 16 from 3 point range for the whole game. It may seem crazy to say this because of how talented this team is, but because they are such a young team, this would arguably be Bill Self’s best coaching job if he somehow manages to will this team to another Big 12 title.

Naadir Tharpe has not played as well as I hoped he would, and at the beginning of the season I wrote that the team would only go as far as he could take them. Depending on shoot first freshman Frank Mason to lead the team is expecting too much this early in his career. The Jayhawks need better guard play if they expect to win another Big 12 title.

2) I was happy to see a team (capable of beating the Jayhawks) come into Lawrence and compete. The Aztecs brought it on Sunday. Their interior passing and rebounding was beautiful to watch. I can’t recall seeing so many put back dunks in a college game. It was good to see at least one team brought some intensity (although the last five minutes of the first half was an eyesore).

3) Wiggins is so smooth;as graceful as a gazelle. He made me squeal a couple of times when he found a lane, lifted off, and took it to the cup When he develops that outside shot he will be unstoppable–people forget that Lebron and Kobe didn’t always have good outside shots early in their careers–people used to dare Lebron to shoot the jumper.

4) I’m not digging the Landen Lucas, Jamari Traylor front line combo. It seems like they basically the same skill sets. Neither have impressed me with their handles, or how well they move without the ball. Even though they got killed on the boards, I like how the small ball lineup of Embiid, Wiggins, Selden, Mason, and Tharpe opened up the floor. The lack of 3 point shooting is something that I didn’t see coming. I figured Andrew White III, Brannen Greene and Conner Frankamp would play bigger roles on the perimeter. All three players struggle to see consistent playing time.

5) San Diego State is going to cause some teams headaches come tournament time. They have a big, physical front line and they play good defense. But they’ll get beat once they encounter foul trouble and a team with a better bench. Of the 61 points they scored Sunday, only 6 came from the bench players.

It’s going to be a nasty stretch coming up for Kansas. It will be interesting to see what kind of adjustments that Self and the coaching staff make when conference play starts on Wednesday. I’m also excited to see if Kansas plays with the intensity and resolve they reserve for the last five minutes of every game. Self himself admitted that this team is not as good as he thought they would be at this point. He even shared some of the blame for being part of why they weren’t that good. It seems silly to say this early into season, but the next 5 games will reveal what kind of team the Jayhawks have. Maybe its time for a players only meeting. This might sound crazy, but anything less than a 4-1 start will have Jayhawks fans ready to hit the panic button.

This week will be a great stretch of games in both the NCAA and NBA:

For college we have KU vs. OU, KU vs. K-State, Michigan State vs. Ohio State tonight, Baylor vs. the Iowa State Hoibergs, Memphis and Louisville, and UCLA vs. Arizona.

I plan to sneak a peek at the (now) #8 ranked Wichita State Shockers with Ron Baker, Fred Van Fleet, and Nick Wiggins (yeah Andrew’s older brother). I’m certainly going to have to get out to Wichita and see them in person this spring. For now, I’ll have to settle for watching them on my laptop computer. It’s unfortunate that Self isn’t interested in scheduling them down the road, saying it doesn’t benefit the program to face them (perhaps he thinks this new found Shocker success is fleeting?) during the season. I personally think it would be great for the state of Kansas to see them face off every year and keep some of that money in state. It would be a fun deal for everyone, and I like that Wichita State is making some noise. Maybe if the Shockers keep it up, Bill will be more interested in putting them on the schedule. Hopefully I can make that trip out to Wichita and see for myself if they are legit.

The NBA games I plan to catch this week are Portland Orlando, Dallas- San Antonio, and Golden State- Milwaukee (Greek Freak!!!!).

I’m feeling a bit more honed in, after missing four key barn-burners over the holidays. I’m still kicking myself over missing the Warriors-Suns game from a week and a half ago (where Steph Curry almost got a triple double in one half), Portland-Miami (without Lebron) was a nail-biter. I fell asleep during the second half of the Kentucky- Louisville match 2 Saturdays ago and was stuck on a plane when Steph Curry (whose production has certainly gone up since the return of Iguodala) went NBA Jam all over the Heat last Thursday night (How was that game not on TNT?).

For the rest of this year I’m dedicating myself to sitting in front of the computer and watching basketball. No more nights off, no putting off hoops for romance, and no more going out. I’m putting all my energy into studying hoops. Nothing is worse than coming home, opening up the ESPN page and seeing replays of a game you vaguely felt was potentially intriguing and missing something amazing. Basketball never stops but……………..

Colin Kaepernick though ………

My little brother clowned on me when I told him that was my favorite qb in the league right now. I know he didn’t look great against Seattle in their first game, but I like his swagger. He’s only a 3rd year pro, first year starter, and he already seems like the heir apparent to Randall Cunningham. I love the fact that he didn’t wear sleeves during the Green Bay game. That 4th quarter was the kind of intensity that I love to see during the NFL playoffs. For some reason, SF-GB seem to more often than not have classic games. Some clutch play in brutal conditions provide for great theater.

I guess you could include KC-Indy in the great theater discussion, but that was more depressing than watching “The Pianist.” I knew the collapse was coming and still I kept watching and still the events that unfolded manage to surprise me. I’m not even a Chiefs fan and I was horrified.

I’m excited for this weekend’s games. I have watched more football in the last 48 hours then I have all season long.

Carolina-San Francisco might turn out to be the best game. I’m looking forward to seeing those defense square off. I think the Saints will play better this time against Seattle, but I still see them getting beat by 2 touchdowns. Denver-San Diego might be fun, and I’d like to see what kind of magic the Stanford boy produces against the Patriots.

While we are at it, how does anyone bet on that line from last night’s BCS game. Vegas probably made a killing. Florida State as 13 point favorites? Insane. Auburn will rue the fact that they didn’t try to score at the end of the first half, and the missed field goal early on in the game. They had FSU shook and couldn’t close the deal. It’s still hard to take college football seriously–more about politics than actual football–a bunch of rich old men investing in and betting on their alma maters. Although the NFL hypocrisy is pretty sickening. I don’t see how they can say they care about the players with Thursday night games, a push for an 18 game schedule and the legalization of Astroturf (you can tell how serious they are about alleviating concussions by the turf issue alone–they may as well been playing on concrete when the turf froze over in those stadiums).

Oh well, bring on the professionals. It’s going to be a fun week, and a really fun 2014.

Real fast before I go I wanna publicly admit that I did not think Trey Burke would be so good, nor did I think Michael Carter Williams would so spectacular. Also shout out to Kendall Marshall, who I’m very happy to see get another chance with the Los Angeles Lakers. Dude got 15 assists in his first game with them (and only 4th start of the season), and its not like he has that many people to throw the ball to. That Lakers team has been decimated with injuries. Keep fighting Lake Show. I hope they are able to get Westbrook and Kevin Love in the summer of 2015.

Enjoy one of the best months of the year. The doldrums of July will be here before you know it.

Fakin it til They Makin’ it [Originally Posted 1/10/14 on sportsblog.com]

Posted by

0

Big win for the Jayhawks the other night. The start of conference play and their latest mini-swoon lend to a visible increase of intensity for Oklahoma. They played like they were tired of losing, with Selden leading the way with 15 early points in the first half.

I liked the aggression, the Jayhawks were still making mistakes, but they were not lackadaisical. This was important to see because Oklahoma (and every team they will face the rest of the season) is capable of beating them. It almost happened too. Cameron Clark put on a show the other night, putting up 32 points. I was very impressed with his game, and he was so hot at one point, that I was surprised whenever anyone but him shot the ball. Nevertheless, OU is a jump shooting team, and KU put the ball inside when they needed to, with Perry Ellis putting up a very quiet 22 points and 11 rebounds. OU is probably NIT bound, but they are still a lot to handle. They didn’t quit and played to the final whistle. Respect.

It may take until the end of the season before this team gels into the collection of players everyone (including me) envisioned. There may be some clunkers, and ugly wins, but if they have some grit, then another conference title can be won. Jayhawks fans will have to endure the growing pains. I’m still not altogether sure if this season is only the build up for next year. Inexperience could be their fatal flaw in this year’s tournament.

Some random thoughts before I go:

I wonder how well a lineup of Connor Frankemp, Brandon Greene,Wiggins, Selden, and Embiid would play together. That’s a line-up that could really spread the floor against the right team. I wonder if Self will unveil that combination any during these next few games.

It seems like any combination Jamari Traylor, Landen Lucas, and Tarik Black at power forward and center will result in an extravaganza of outside shots and 3 second violations. The Jayhawks get slower and more predicable on offense when this clunky lineup is on the floor. It can get ugly sometimes.
I love watching Jayhawks games at the bar for the atmosphere as much for the game. Streaming it on the laptop and projecting it on the wall can be just as nice–especially when I’m trying to save money. One of my favorite things about streaming is the random channels that you end up on. For some reason commercials don’t seem quite as mundane and annoying when they are in Russian.

I have a hunch that Wiggins will unleash the beast for a game or two during this upcoming stretch. I could see it being in Ames; in a hostile environment. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was next Saturday against Oklahoma State. It might be a few years until Wiggins finally gets a hold of what Deion Sanders referred to as “his dog”. It took Kevin Durant losing the Western Conference Finals to fully embrace that nasty streak. I’ve noticed it come out when someone pisses Wiggins off, but he hasn’t quite harnessed that viciousness yet.

If Jamari Traylor decides to focus on passing, rebounding, setting screens, and defense, he will find himself with plenty of playing time. Traylor’s offensive game is not the most polished, but if he makes up his mind that he would focus on the above things and get garbage points when they arrived, Self would have trouble keeping him off the floor.

There seems to be a lack of a discernible defensive leader on this team;someone who sets the tone for the team, and makes sure everyone has their assignments. Part of this may be from a lack of cohesion; having not played together enough. This concerns me because the team is putting up points but still giving them up as well. It’s nice to know when you are on the road, in a hostile environment, that you can get a stop on defense whenever you need one.

I’m liking what is going on out in Wichita. I watched a game the other night on TV and decided I’m going to have to make a trip there. I like the team’s makeup and I like their coach Gregg Marshall. This team reminds me of those Butler squads that went back to back Final Fours. I think this team is good enough to make it to the championship game. If they were to play Kansas tomorrow, I would favor them to beat KU. KU has a more talented roster, but right now Wichita State is the better team (in fact, if the tournament started next week, I would not feel confident this KU squad had what it took to get past the sweet sixteen).

I like Wichita’s Ron Baker (in my opinion almost a good of a passer as Luke Walton). I like their point guard Fred VanFleet, I like Cleanthony Early, and I like Nick Wiggins (who is more of a grinder than his brother). It feels like there is something special going on right now in Wichita. It may not last longer than this season, but it is worth keeping an eye on.

I saw the “U” play UNC the other night. They really miss Shane Larkin, but I could easily see them making some noise by next year (this year, NIT bound). I have liked Jim Larranaga since his George Mason days, and Miami is lucky to have such a good player’s coach.

I need to see more Victor Oladipo. The backcourt of Jameer Nelson, Arron Afflalo, and Oladipo is almost worth watching Orlando Magic games. I’m not crazy about the point guard experiment with Oladipo, but I think he will be a great 2 guard. He is athletic and a great defender He definitely has that “dog” harnessed. I may go on to regret saying this, but he seems to have that nasty streak that Jordan had in him. What if Orlando lucked into a lottery pick and got Embiid, Parker, or Julius Randle? Any of those 3 players with Oladipo and Afflalo would put the Eastern conference on notice; something else to keep an eye on as the season progresses.

Louisville’s Russ Smith and Chris Jones may be the best backcourt east of Cameron Indoors. They are explosive.

UCLA games at Pauley Pavillion look like the pick to click. You know UCLA hoops is back when you see NBA stars going to the games on their night off. Doc Rivers, Steve Nash, Phil Jackson, and Baron Davis were all in attendance for the UCLA-Arizona game.

Last night’s game was very fun to watch. I would be surprised if there were less than 6 future NBA players from this game. UCLA has a tendency to put guys in the NBA who went on to have better pro careers than college. I think Kyle Anderson is going to be the rawest of anybody who played in this game. With his height and his handles, and his ability to finish, he could be the next Penny Hardaway. He could leave now and get drafted pretty high, but it may serve him well to stay another year in college. Unfortunately UCLA is a first half team. They played two entertaining first halves against Duke and Arizona. The second half of both games they would lose focus for long stretches of time with bad shots and careless turnovers. That being said, they will make for a very watchable NIT run.

Arizona looks like a very balanced team. I like the backcourt of Nick Johnson and A.J. McConnell. Aaron Gordon made me to squeal a couple times last night after throwing it down.
If there is a school with better looking basketball cheerleaders than UCLA, I’d love to attend a game there. Wow! I thought KU had some great looking cheerleaders. I’d take UCLA’s stable over half the squads in the NBA. Much respect.

UCLA has some sweet uniforms. Classic.

I forgot how much I miss Bill Walton’s musings and rambling. What a great ambassador for the game of basketball. Reading his autobiography “Nothing But Net” was a real influence on my love for the game. His affection and enthusiasm for the game is contagious.

We’ll see if there is any momentum tomorrow against the K-State Wildcats who won a share of the Big 12 conference title last year. They beat Oklahoma State last Saturday so this will be interesting. One thing for sure, there will be some intensity tomorrow–all day long. Bring on the weekend.

Maple Jordan Lifts Off [Originally posted 1/12/14 on sportsblog.com]

Posted by

0

I think that was the type of game Jayhawks fans have been waiting for. They picked the right game to break out the intensity. This was undoubtedly the best game they have played since the win against Towson. Kansas was dominant, efficient, and focused. The only mar to the game was the Embiid ejection, but I kind of liked the nasty side he showed. I know Bill Self thinks its “best for a player to think next play”, but I think him hitting K-State’s Nino Williams in the face will show opponents that he won’t be punked.

Quick thoughts from yesterday’s game:

How wet was Wayne Selden’s shot yesterday? He started out 5-7 from the field in the first half before he finished 7-10 with 20 points (3-5 from 3 point range). “Wet” Wayne set the tone early by being aggressive and looking for his shot. I like this new assertive Wayne Selden. He strikes me as the type who hates to lose. If he were to jump into the league today, he could compete in this year’s slam dunk contest. The powerful way he attacks the rim when he dunks physically reminds me of Russell Westbrook or Eric Bledsoe–two awesome physical specimens at their positions. I’m as excited to watch his progression through conference play as I am about any player.

Continue reading →

Kawhi Before Our Very Eyes

Posted by

0

When its all said and done, Greg Popovich’s face should be on a postage stamp, “Spurs Forever”
Besides trading away Luis Scola and signing Richard Jefferson, can you think of any other glaring mistakes that the front office in San Antonio has made (I bet their front office is about as tight lipped as the KGB on draft nights. Even the slightest rumor that the Spurs are high on a player will raise their stock)?

Drafting the Admiral and Timmy “Time Machine” were both no brainers, but how did they know Manu Ginoboli and Tony Parker would be so damn good? Now they have Kawhi emerging as a legitimate two way threat. I don’t think he’ll ever be more than an 18 and 10 guy (He doesn’t strike me as the kind of player who’ll carry a team by himself–nor should he be asked to), but the impact that he has on a game can’t be ignored. The guy made three pivotal, mouth gaping, “HOLY FUCK” plays last night.
Kawhi’s presence cannot be ignored. There is going to come a point where Tony Parker won’t have the wheels and will have to say “You have the juice now Kawhi.” And Spurs fans will solemnly nod and cheer their team on to another 50 win season. Kawhi fell to # 15 in a weak 2011 draft and I would argue that he is clearly the best player to come out that year. I see why Mavs fans hate the Spurs so much. Imagine how mad they would be if the Spurs somehow landed Rick Carlisle as the successor to Popovich. They’d be swollllllllll.

Embeast Mode [Originally posted on sportsblog.com 1/15/14]

Posted by

0

That loud crash you heard was the back axles straining from the weight of all those people jumping back on the bandwagon. After early non conference losses, people were ready to bury the Jayhawks for dead. If Kansas beats up on Oklahoma State on Saturday, then the same people who over hyped KU– only to abandon them after the San Diego State game–will be ready to crown them champs before we are even a third of the way through the schedule.

Let’s check out who the Jayhwaks lost to:

1)Villanova. They were unranked before the Battle of Atlantis tournament started. Now they are sitting #6 in the country.

2) Florida. They were top ten at the time they beat KU, and now they are # 7 in the nation.

3) Colorado. Also a top 25 team that was unranked during the time they beat Kansas. Now they are #21 in the nation.

4) San Diego State. Another top ten team that KU barely lost in a pretty physical game.

None of those losses were enough to justify the panic that some Jayhawks fans had. Critics outside of Lawrence were quick to write them off as too hyped even if they were the main culprits creating such media hype. It is a long season and there are still some highs and lows for the team to navigate. It seems silly to over react either way to how a team plays in January.

Notes from Monday’s game:

Big ups to Nadir Thaarpe for playing the way everyone was hoping he would. 23 points 6 rebounds and 4 assists may not get him out Self’s doghouse permanently, but it is a great start. As much as the Jayhawks need his outside shooting, I hope that Nadir doesn’t forget that his team needs his passing more than anything else. He has to get the ball into the playmakers’ hands. Every shot that went in for Thaarpe elicited a “Tharpeedo” yell from one of my buddies the other night. I know it’s kind of corny but I’m digging it.

After DeAndre Kane hit the 3 pointer to tie it up at the half, I was certain that the Jayhawks were in for a dogfight. I was severely disappointed that the Cyclones second half strategy was to flop and try to foul out KU’s big men. Besides Kane (who I believe could be a late round gem for a team like the Spurs–I think playing for Pops would be good for his development), I was not that impressed with any of the Iowa State players. This was the eighth ranked team in the country? It just goes to show how arbitrary the top 25 rankings really are. Iowa State played like some busters. As happy as I was to see KU perform like they did, I was just as disappointed that the Cyclones didn’t play better in the 2nd half.

I was even less impressed with the officiating. They fell for every flop that Iowa State attempted, and they blew the whistle way too much. It really interrupted the flow of the game and I hope that teams don’t copycat this strategy to try and get the KU big men out of the game. I also think people are over reacting about Embiid and teams are picking on him specifically to try and draw flagrants on him. That flagrant 1 call on him early in Monday’s game was a horrible call. The NCAA needs to nip this in the bud as soon as possible.

Embiid was in “Embeast” mode (courtesy of Sam) during one particular stretch of the game (he finished 7-8 with 16 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals and 5 blocks).To see a player take over the game on both ends of the court like Embiid did the other night, makes me wonder how good he will be come tournament time. There were some Kareem jokes made the other night concerning his goggles, but it doesn’t seem such a stretch to suggest that Embiid could be a franchise changing center in the NBA. It is unreal just how fast his game has developed since the start of the season. I came away from Monday night’s game convinced that Joel is the best player on the team.

I wonder if having an enforcer on the floor with Embiid like Tarik Black, would help alleviate the bush league tactics of other teams, trying to get Embiid off his game. Sometimes its necessary to have these kinds of guys. Charles Oakley is the first player to come to mind who fit this role. Rick Mahorn for the Bad Boy Pistons is another. Tarik Black is the only true grimy player I can think of on the roster (though Wayne Shelden looks like he isn’t afraid to alpha dog when need be) who can protect guys like Wiggins and Embiid from taking cheap shots from the other teams. I guess that would mean a front line of Jamari Traylor and Ellis, but maybe that would open the lanes up a bit. It would be interesting to see these wrinkles for a couple of minutes a game just to see how it looked. I’m going to keep an eye out for it.

Lastly, as much as I liked Saturday’s uniforms, I disliked Monday’s uniforms just as much. I couldn’t get past the intrusive pinstripes on the gray background. I liked the font and lettering on the jerseys themselves. I didn’t even mind the gray. But those red pinstripes though……..

There is a lot to look forward to this week and weekend:

UCLA vs. Colorado

Oklahoma vs. Baylor

Denver at Golden State

Portland and San Antonio

Golden State and Oklahoma City (Not quite the luster without Russ Westbrook)

Niners-Seahawks (I’m taking the Niners–my boy Kaepernick is going to get it done up there)

Patriots-Broncos (Just a hunch, but I think the Pats like being the underdogs.)

Kansas vs. Oklahoma State

I’ve had this game circled since the beginning of the season. This is the litmus test to see how difficult it will be to win the Big 12. I’ve heard some people say that they Cowpokes are going to be hurting without Michael Cobbins, but the rest of the team can pitch in to get 5 points and 5 rebounds. I get the feeling that Marcus Smart is going to want to show the nation what he has to offer as a player as well (this may or may not work against him–we’ll see). It’s going to be an exciting atmosphere especially in regards to how well Smart plays. I’m doing whatever I can to get in the building on Saturday. Wish me luck.

Just Ain’t Fair No More [Originally posted on sportsblog.com 1/27/14]

Posted by

0

he Jayhawks are gelling. They are finally learning how to play with each other; figuring out each other’s strengths and weaknesses. They look good. Just ask Trent Johnson how good this team is. It almost isn’t fun anymore; waiting in anticipation for the next opponent in hopes that they will give Kansas a legitimate challenge (kind of like when the US basketball team goes to the Olympics). This is not the same team that lost to San Diego State a few weeks ago. Watching this team play is like watching the old 90’s Cowboys every Sunday. It didn’t matter who the opponent was–I just wanted to see my favorite players–and see them play well. I’m sure the Iowa State, Baylor, and Oklahoma State rematches will be competitive, but please,just wake me when the Big 12 tournament starts.

Big ups of the week go to:

Andrew Wiggins did his thing on Saturday with 27 points 5 boards and 5 assists on 8-13 shooting, but a big UP has to go to Naadir Tharpe for his line on Saturday. Zero turnovers, with 0-0 shooting, 1 steal and 4 assists in 20 minutes of play. He is playing like the point guard everyone was hoping he’d become. Aaron Miles should be proud of dude. I can’t wait to see him next year when he is a senior.

Kevin Durant, the SLIM REAPER.

I missed the majority of his 41 points tonight (including the 13 4th quarter points he put in to help the Thunder rally against the Hawks), but I did catch the last two minutes of the game. The game winner had me krunk to say the least. As of tonight, his 30 points or more streak is at 11 games. Until he cools off, KD is must see TV status. He plays Miami and Lebron on Wednesday night.
LAMARCUS vs. the Nuggets on Thursday night. 44 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists. Thursday night’s performance was a thing of beauty.

While I’m talking about the Blazers, big ups to my boy CJ McCollum. I’ve been openly rooting for his success since he put it on Duke a couple of years ago in the NCAA’s. There are few things that make me more satisfied than knowing about this point guard out of Lehigh well before “Mr. Book of Basketball” Bill Simmons. Do ya thang CJ!

I’ll be the first to admit that I couldn’t stand the guy when he played at Florida, but I do love Joakim Noah’s love for the game. His willingness to express his fire and enthusiasm for the game of basketball is almost worth grinding out a Bulls game vs. an eastern conference opponent. I do hope he gets to play for a contender again. The man is real unique individual and what he brings to the NBA can’t be easily replaced.

It’s becoming ridiculous this sickness I have. Not only must I watch every single intriguing basketball matchup from now to the rest of the season, but now I’m compelled to write as many of my thoughts down as possible. I go to sleep thinking about the things that I have to do in order to afford myself time to watch games. I wake up in the morning with the same thoughts. My housemates think its funny–albeit peculiar–this sickness that I’m afflicted with. I could fall asleep to a CD filled with only the squeaking of sneakers on a gym floor, the sound of a dribbling basketball, and an occasional yell of “pick left”. I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one out there who has caught this “bug” I’d like to throw one last big UP’s out to my newest homey (and future road dog) Sam. It’s been great getting to talk, watch and play ball with you man. Can’t wait to catch a Blazers (or Warriors) game with you in the future.

Another great week of sports to come. Enjoy.

A Chance to Catch my Breath [Originally Posted on sportsblog.com 2/3/14]

Posted by

0

A wild week of basketball orgasms left me spent and I slumped into bed almost immediately after the Seahawks destroyed the Broncos last night. On Saturday I fell asleep in the middle of what people called the game of the year. I woke up just in time to see Syracuse outlast Duke in OT, but I was too tired to even be sour about missing the game. I saw the highlights, I was into it as much as my serotonin would allow; but I have Feb.22nd circled on my virtual calendar for the rematch in Cameron Indoor (also for KU-Texas but we will get to that later). As it is, I’m in recovery mode from a wild week and an even more enlightening weekend.

First off, how about a second to process what we witnessed from Kevin Durant last month? When I said last post I went on record as saying KDTV was must see until the streak was over, I never considered that he would shoot himself out into breaking it. His performance on Friday was a work of art. He shot 10-12 with 26 points in 30 minutes of action. Serge Ibaka shot 12 for 12, and by the end of the third quarter, it was obvious that OKC was going to pull their starters early into the last quarter of the game.

What has been so amazing about “Iceberg Slim’s” (credit Jalen Rose for the best nickname anyone can think of for KD) streak isn’t just the points he’s been scoring, but how easy the points have been coming. Anyone who ever watched Kobe or Allen Iverson play in their primes, can attest to the sheer volume of shots that both players put up to get high numbers. Kevin Durant is much more efficient and has not forced many of his shots. Many of them seem to come in the flow of the game. He almost always makes the right basketball play, passing the ball when necessary and getting his teammates involved. For the month of January he scored 550 points and had 90 assists. The last person to do that was Michael Jordan, and that was in 1987.

I actually missed the majority of the Kansas-Iowa State game on Wednesday to see KD go head to head with Lebron. KU is undoubtedly the reason I live in Lawrence right now, but I couldn’t forgive myself if I missed my favorite basketball player on the planet go up against the BEST player on the planet. I was not disappointed to say the least. The hype and atmosphere of the match-up felt bigger than a playoff game, and this sequence in the third quarter confirmed that feeling.

Even when the thunder were up big, it still felt like Miami had that final run in them. I must admit that I was wrong about this OKC team. Jeremy Lamb, Perry Jones III, and even Derek Fisher are playing better than I imagined at this point in the season. I knew KD would step up, but I didn’t think he would get much support. How much of this is KD being a great leader and making his teammates better? Does the absence of Westbrook, and Durant’s ability to take his game to an unbelievably high level mean that he is this year’s NBA MVP? I would like to think yes. Look at the record. Look at the conference OKC is playing in and then think about how many other players could do what he is doing. I thought Presti was a fool to let Harden go for so little, but a year removed from the trade and the Thunder look as dangerous as ever.

********************************************

It’s been fun watching some of these lottery bound teams and trying to figure out what player in the draft would be a great piece of the puzzle for such teams. Teams like New Orleans, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Orlando, Dallas and Sacramento could be one player away from being playoff contenders next season. Seeing what happens to these teams will be almost as interesting as seeing who will dethrone the champs this year.

********************************************

I really wanted to see Demarcus Cousins and Lance Stephenson on this year’s All-Star Teams. It would have been that much more entertaining weekend. If missing the teams make them improve even more, then look out NBA. I thought “Boogie” and “Born ready” were deserving this year though.

*********************************************

This week I experienced a bit of lull in my Jayhawk fandom. I had to watch the Iowa State game on replay, and the Texas drubbing left me (and probably the rest of Kansas and Missouri) stunned.

The Iowa State rematch was about what I thought it would be. The game anchored out at around 11-12 points. I had given someone 17 points thinking the blowout would be in effect because of the home crowd, but ISU actually showed up. I like DeAndre Kane. He plays like a grown man (how about that block–not a foul on Embiid early in the game?) and I hope he gets to play in the League next year. He has this “take no guff” attitude that I love. I think his aggressiveness and swag will get him far in life–even if its outside of basketball.

Iowa State may become the regional rivalry that has been missing since Mizzou took the money and ran to the SEC. KU fans respect the Hoibergs, much more than the ‘cats in Manhatten, and they actually make the Jayhawks sweat. A third game against the Cyclones in the Big 12 tourney could turn out to be really competitive.

As for the Horns……..well they done up and snuck up on everybody. I hadn’t had a chance to watch them this year, but I figured with Rick Barnes and the lack of NBA talent on the squad, they would be an after thought. It is never a good sign when a team out-muscles your team, out-hustles your team, while your team whines to refs and looks around for foul calls.

I don’t know if the team got a taste of that Austin nightlife or what, but they admittedly were not ready for Texas had to bring to the game. Cameron Ridley and Isiah Taylor were awesome. Texas was not intimidated in the least bit by the Jayhawks. They took it to them. The problem with having such a young team is that some games that team will look unbeatable, then the next game can look like a bunch of DIII players.

Consistency is something a team aims for but usually doesn’t achieve until they reach a certain level of maturity. Senior laden teams usually prepare better, because they know talent can only take a team so far (ask the 2010 Kentucky team if this is true). This butt whupping is exactly what KU needed. They looked soft on defense and on the boards, but take nothing away from Texas. This is a team that can actually push the Jayhawks for the Big 12 title. They a legit point guard in Isiah Taylor and they have a bruising front court. I was planning on going to a Shocker game on the 22nd, but Saturday proved that I need to stay in town and get tickets for when the Longhorns come to Lawrence.

***********************************************

Quick Big Up’s to:

Golden State’s second half D vs. Portland/L.A. Clippers a few nights ago. I know Portland hasn’t been playing all that well and the Clippers came off a back-back, but Golden State put on a show in both games. They scored a lot of points, but a lot of points came off turnovers as well. They are twice as much fun to watch when they play defense, because of the increased number of fast break points created. Seeing Iggy and Steph run that break is a thing of beauty.

How about LSU’s Johnny O’Bryant III against the Kentucky front line? 29 points and 9 rebounds. He gave Julius Randle and Willie Cauley-Stein the business. He single handedly put LSU on my must-watch list.

We’re expecting snow tomorrow night. Tuesday will be a good night to curl up and stream some hoops and not drink whiskey. Some cola beverages will just have to suffice.

Fighting the Doldrums [originally posted 2/10/14 on sportsblog.com]

Posted by

0

Winter has hit us pretty hard here in Lawrence. The snow we had shut things down for a few days. By Friday I was sitting at my desk watching the Pebble Beach Pro-Am just to have some sort of escape from out beautifully dreary weather. I think I’m going to start watching the golf channel whenever I need to take a nap. I find it oddly soothing. Something else I learned from watching golf this weekend, Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are pretty decent golfers. For all the talk about how ‘humble’ both players exhibit on the football field, their real life swag as rich white men couldn’t be more noticeable in their relaxed golfing attire of pullover sleeves and brown corduroys pants. forget what the scoreboard has read in past Super Bowls, both men are winners at life.

Anyway, I managed to watch a little basketball this weekend, but not nearly as much as I wanted. Living with 30 plus people during a snowstorm doesn’t lend to great bandwidth. It’s also embarrassing to admit that I fell asleep midway through the KU-WVU game on Saturday. Either I’m getting old and need more sleep, or I’m just bored with the way conference play has turned out. Either way I snored my way through the 2nd half. Impressive eh? I looked at the box scores and things seemed rather ho hum. Maybe the “little brothers” (who by the way put it on the same UT horns who thumped the Jayhawks last week)will provide some drama in the little apple tonight. Here are some random notes from the last week of Snowpocalypse:

From what little I did see of the game, Juwan Staten and Erron Harris make up a pretty good backcourt. I heard a couple of analysts say possibly best backcourt in the conference. I looked in the box score and saw they accounted for 39 of the 69 Mountaineer’s points. They definitely have my attention. The next time they face a good team, I’ll probably tune in and check out their game.

Melvin Ejim- WTF! 48 points 18 rebounds on 20-24 shots. Unreal. I know its just TCU, but the horny toads are still a D-1 school. He only missed four shots as well. Pretty dang efficient if you ask me. I don’t know what this means as far as his future in the NBA, but it certainly makes a person pay closer attention to what is going up in Ames.

I got to watch a little NBA action this week. Golden State vs. Chicago wasn’t as good of a game as I was hoping, but I did enjoy it. Besides reminding me about how good of a passer Joakim Noah is (his passes to Taj Gibson out of the High-Low sets not a surprise if you remember his playing days with Horford), this week gave us this tweet.
When his playing days are over, and he can keep it one hundred without fear of repercussions from the league, Noah is going to make a great interview. I’m officially a fan.

Illard!!!

Pacers vs. Trailblazers was everything you could ask for in a game. It was back and forth, a couple of game changing shots in the last minute, and overtime. There was an ILLard outburst, with a 38, 3, and 11 line for the box scores (in OT it felt like he was the only one with anything leftin the tank for Portland) and a humongous game by George Hill (37 pts, 9 boards, 8 assists, 2 steals and 1 blk). The back and forth nature of the game kept me squealing and you could tell that Jon Barry was getting into the excitement as well. David West was hitting clutch buckets, and Wes Matthews put on a show down the stretch too. This was one of the better games of the year. I’m glad I got to watch it in real time.

KD for MVP (revisited)

I’m hoping that KD’s performance yesterday can finally put to rest any doubt that Durant deserves MVP over Lebron. Guarding Carmelo most of the game, Durant managed to score 41, grab 10 rebounds, dish out 9 assists, and keep Melo scoreless for the 4th quarter. I have heard people argue that Durant is only a scorer, and that may have been true going into last year. But people c’mon. KD has done nothing short of step up when his team needed him the most. In fact, everyone on the team has stepped up in Westbrook’s absence (especially Serge Ibaka) and a lot of that is KD making everyone else around him better. You can even see it during the huddles and timeouts; KD directing traffic, and giving feedback when needed. No one knows how the second half of the season will play out, but if MVP were voted on today, I think he would have to be the winner.

Big game tonight against K-State. Although he’s been flashing bits and pieces of brilliance, seems like Joel Embiid has been slightly off his game (from what little I have seen the past few ballgames). He’s still rumored to be the number one pick; which got me to thinking about the ideal spots for Embiid to land next year, should he decide to leave Lawrence. He can’t drive a car yet so maybe that would affect the scenario a bit, but I’m going to give it a few days and chomp on this a bit, and get back to you. Hopefully he’ll get in a groove tonight and have a monster game. All Star weekend approaching and all this snow outside makes me wish I made plans to be in New Orleans this Saturday and Sunday. What perfect timing to be in the N.O.–warmer weather, a great line-up of festivities, Mardi Gras approaching, and of course, its New Orleans. I’m a little jelly of those who get to make it down there. As exciting as it would be to go to New York for next year’s All Star Weekend, it will still be February in New York. Not quite the same. One thing is for sure, I won’t be leaving the house unnecessarily for the next 6 weeks–perhaps this will result in more blog entries and less shenanigans. We will see.

Stay warm out there.

Low Seed For Embiid [Originally posted on 2/15/14]

Posted by

0

[This post is predicated on the possibility that Joel Embiid leaves for the NBA after his freshman year. I personally don’t believe he will go. Embiid has said himself that he doesn’t believe he is ready to leave school yet for many reasons;one of them being that he doesn’t even know how to drive yet. Taking into account how taxing an 82 game season (plus travel) can be on a player, it is hard to see an already “beat up” Embiid making the jump.But for the sake of this column to work, let’s pretend he is leaving.There are three categories: “Absolutely opting out of my rookie deal”, “this ain’t so bad but I’m gonna have to explore my options”, and “let’s talk about an extension already”]

“Absolutely opting out of my rookie deal”

Cleveland

Let’s just say there is a reason the act of giving someone a “steamer” is forever linked with the city of Cleveland. Were the Native Americans wrong when they dubbed Cleveland the “mistake by the lake?” Is it an accident that all the franchises are snakebitten? There are just some places should never be inhabited by people. I believe Cleveland is one of them. Lebron didn’t waste any time high tailing it out of there, and you will see the same thing when its time for Kyrie Irving to hit free agency. Its a hard place to run a professional franchise because no one would choose to move there unless they were paid gobs of money–and sometimes that isn’t enough. It is kind of a catch-22 for the city because I don’t believe the chances are high for a successful professional franchise, however; it would be even more of a depressing place to live if there weren’t any sports teams there. Just dissolve the city already and find better places to live why don’t you? Then again…..the city just gave us Bone Thugs N Harmony and this moment.

Utah

One day they may have a good team again. Gordon Heyward may leave or get traded this year. Trey Burke is an interesting player, and Joel and Burke could be an interesting tandem. But its Utah and he’s African. I know they love their basketball in Utah, but I’ll pay you 20 dollars for every black player outside of Karl Malone who enjoyed living in Salt Lake City. It’s not Cleveland but its not much better either.

Minnesota

Even white dudes don’t like playing in Minnesota. Kevin Love wants sunshine, and an organization that has some sort of plan. That ain’t Minnesota.

Milwaukee

Ask Kareem how much he enjoyed living there.

Washington (Chocolate City)

Socially this could be interesting for Embiid. Unfortunately the Wizards have been a mess since Gilbert Arenas decided to reenact the “Guns of Navarone” with Jarvis Crittendon.

Detroit No way this happens, because Joe Dumars would probably get fired faster than you can say “Matt Millen.” They have too many big men on the roster already (I’m doing my best to not shoehorn a Big Lebowski/Karl Hungus “log jamming” joke in here–let’s just move on).

“We’ll have to explore our options at the end of my contract”

Charlotte

I could see Michael Jordan wanting to create a twin towers with Al Jefferson and Joel Embiid. Throw in Kemba Walker and you have interesting nucleus. The problem is that you never know what the Bob–err Hornets will look like from year to year. They have been the epitome of an unstable franchise since they got a team again. It could work but I doubt it.

Denver

Another franchise without a long term vision. They are in constant transition–a a revolving door of GM’s and head coaches. Denver could be fun for Joel. I hear there are a lot of Jayhawk fans there. Someone could introduce him to that medical if he is vulnerable to migraines (to push the Kareem-Embiid corollary even further).

New Orleans

Pelicans……… this could be interesting if Anthony Davis and Embiid had a point guard. The jury is still out on this franchise. Who knows– they could be in Seattle in 3-4 years.

Orlando

They already have the building blocks with Oladipo, Jameer Nelson (however long he stays) and Arron Afflalo. Embiid would be a nasty addition. In the weak East, a team like this would be a couple of moves away from making the playoffs. Plus no state tax in Florida; which would mean more money in Joel’s pocket. He could be the third high impact big man to start his career in Orlando only to leave for Los Angeles as soon as his rookie deal was expired.

Sacramento

New Life or stale breath? The jury is still out on Sac-town. Boogie Cousins should have been an All-Star. Ben McLemore has yet to assert himself as an integral player. Derrick Williams and Rudy Gay have contributed at times. The Kings would be a really fun team on NBA 2K14. The problem is that most video game rosters are terrible to watch in real life. A competitor like Cousins could bring out the Embiidst mode in Embiid. I read a great article a few weeks ago by Jonathan Abrams about Cousins that confirmed a lot about what I already suspected. Cousins seems a lot like Rasheed in terms of talented but misunderstood “head cases”. This could be an interesting mix–especially with Shaquille helping out in the front office. He could pull Embiid’s coat tails and hip him to a thing or two about being an NBA big man.

“Let’s just sign an extension already”

Phoenix

What bad back? Phoenix has the best medical staff in the NBA, just ask Steve Nash and Grant Hill. Embiid, the Morris Twins, Jeff Hornacek, Eric Bledsoe and Dragic makes this an intriguing destination/outcome. Instant league Pass favorite. Am I right?

Los Angeles Lakers

It’s Los Angeles and he’d have to either learn how to drive or hire someone to get him around town. L.A. loves their big men and he’d usher a brand new era in Lakers’ folklore. Throw in the rumors of Westbrook and Kevin Love reuniting as Lakers, and suddenly the buzz is back in Tinsel town.

Boston

Quality general manager in Danny Ainge, and a promising young head coach. If Boston keeps Rondo, and gets another couple pieces via the draft, then suddenly the ceiling in Beantown gets raised faster. A green and white number #21 Boston Celts jersey would be pretty ill. Plus I hear Boston is nowhere near as racist as it used to be.

So there you have it. Boston and Los Angeles could very well end up with Embiid. I can hear the conspiracy theories already. But would that necessarily be bad for the league? For selfish reasons of course, I’d like to see him stay one more year to develop. We’ll see what happens. As of today, he is sitting out against TCU for rest, and the Bucks say they would take him at #1 if they got the lucky ping pong ball. Maybe we should pump the brakes on our “Low Seed for Embiid” chants.

Halfway There [Originally posted 2/14/14 on sportsblog.com]

Posted by

0

Happy Valentine’s Day and Happy All-Star Weekend. Had there been any forethought to my plans this year outside of getting into grad school, I would have planned around engaging in the madness that is going down in New Orleans. I don’t remember my first and only trip to New Orleans and want to go back and see it sober. This would have been the perfect backdrop to make my return. This is actually the first All-Star Weekend since I was a teen that I cared about the dunk and 3 point shooting contest.

I watched a little bit of hoops last night, Lakers vs. Thunder. KD did his normal thing, 43 points, 12 reb, 7 assists, and 3 steals. He struggled early on, but managed to pour in 19 points in the 4th quarter. What impressed me the most was that OKC started making stops in the 4th quarter;in contrast to the first 3 periods where Shawne Williams (was on fire the first half) and Kendall Marshall (17 assists for the game) looked like they were going to put a damper on OKC’s weekend. I never thought I would say this but its really hard to hate the Lakers right now, in fact, I kind of feel sorry for them. I just knew they’d find a way to lose to OKC.

It was the kind of game where they easily could have mailed it in and called it a good first half of the season. But KD went into Jordan mode and kept fighting–the whole team did. You can often look at games over the course of a championship run and see where teams win games they shouldn’t win. The Heat are at the point where they can play 30 plus minutes of bad basketball and still put things together in crunch time and gut out a W. The Spurs were renown for this, 2000 Lakers as well. The difference between home court advantage and a number one seed in the playoffs is often attributed to beating the teams to are supposed to beat. I think Durant understands this now. I can’t wait to see how the Thunder look when Russell Westbrook finally comes back.

Jayhawks get winged

Everything that could be written about Monday night’s game has already been written or tweeted about. K-State pulled out a gutsy win the other night. Every other play someone was going to the trainer’s room or getting looked at on the bench. Kansas got destroyed on the pick and roll; for some reason their guards would switch onto the rolling big men and the Wildcats would capitalize on the mismatch. Of course with a healthy Embiid (who hasn’t looked quite right since the TCU game) ,the result would probably have been different, but let’s just deal with the facts today.

The Jayhawks were so close to winning a game they had no business being in. When they came back to tie it and send it into overtime, I thought for sure the momentum would carry over into the extra period. Kansas just didn’t have the frontcourt depth on Monday (I would love to know what Jamari Traylor did to piss off Bill Self–Self runs a pretty loose ship so whatever it was must have been a serious bonehead move on Traylor’s part) to handle K-State’s bigs. The failure to defend the pick and roll, coupled with KU’s 17 % shooting (3-17) from 3 point land (in contrast to K-State’s 8-15 from downtown) culminated into one ugly performance on Big Monday, and the Wildcat faithful could not contain themselves. To show just how one sided the “rivalry” is, K-State’s fans stormed the court–something you would never see in Lawrence no matter who they defeated.

As I mentioned before, young teams can look like world beaters one week and then second round knockouts the following week. If KU and Wichita State played today, I’d lay my money on the Shockers.

I’m not sure if I’ll even bother watching the game Saturday afternoon. It depends on how well I recover from Friday night. Either way, its way too early in the game to get excited about how well or how poorly this team is doing. As I’ve pointed out before, its going to be an up and down year depending on which Jayhawks team shows up.

Have a Happy Valentine’s Day, and don’t catch VD.