It's not glamorous in OK City, you can probably get some chicken fried baloney sandwiches from a guy wearing a zero U hat in the few restaurants that stay open past 8. HOWEVER, their fans and their team show up to rock in a college-like atmosphere. Odom and Artest have yet to show up and this team has no sense of urgency. Even though the Thunder is lacking at center, they have young fast talent to burn. Don't let Durant's skinny frame fool you...he is tough, getting to the line more than anyone since Michael Jordan and making 90% of those free throws. The Lakers need to wake up quickly or they are in trouble. Plus Kobe needs to get out of his physical and mental funk. In OK City, the young team shows up to play, and the fans turn out to cheer, not just to be cool or seen.
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If you wonder why college basketball is sort of a non issue during the regular season, keep in mind Kevin Durant and Bynum of the Lakers would be college seniors if times were like the good old days.
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Jerry Sloan, Nate McMillan and Greg Popovich are 3 of the best coaches in the League. Sloan is missing 2 starters and has his team ahead of a talented Denver team. McMillan has a patched up Red Cross Unit, and his team is still making Phoenix sweat it. As good as Steve Nash is, he puts his team at a distinct disadvantage on defense every night. Thats not a good position in the more half court oriented playoffs. Nate McMillan consistently does a great job. And then there is the old fox, Greg Popovich. He prudently rests his team in the regular season and now they are turning back the clock. Tim Duncan is frisky. Tony Parker seems to have regained his speed and mid range game. Ginoboli is Ginoboli, and Richard Jefferson is coming off a disappointing regular season and delivering difference making performances in the playoffs. They have the chic pick...the Dallas Mavericks, on the ropes. These 3 coaches are in the top 5 in the league. Some would say they are in the top 3.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Playoff Musings Early
Usually the first round of the NBA playoffs are just getting warmed up as a preliminary of what will come. The LA OK City matchup is one of the more intriguing 1 versus 8 matchups in awhile. Yes, LA is up 2 zero, but now they go back to OK City and will have their hands full. They still seem a little banged up and there seems to be a sort of disconnected synergy with the Lakers. Kevin Durant is the real deal at 21. Imagine someone almost seven feet with a wingspan of a 7 foot 6 player that can do all he can. Expect the next couple games in Oklahoma City to be very interesting.
Dallas seems to be exposing San Antonios age. Phoenix may get by a banged up Portland team, but they still don't show the halfcourt game or any resemblance of defense, especially when a key stop needs to be made. Denver is tough at home and Utah is very injured with 2 starters out. So it will probably be some form of Denver, Dallas and the Lakers, but don't be surprised if it's Dallas. Still, if LA is healthy and they jell, they could take it all....they just have seemed very dysfunctional this season.
In the East it will eventually boil down to Cleveland and Orlando, with Atlanta causing some problems. I just don't see the Celtics, they seem a few steps too slow.
Speaking of Oklahoma City, they are young and talented, but what free agent wants to go there? They will always have middle of the road draft picks and its very doubtful they will pick up high impact free agents. OK City is not a destination point even with the great young Durant.
I really look for him to go to a glamour team as quickly as he can.
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Have you ever had a being in your life that gave you unconditional love....real unconditional love with no strings attached? I did with my dear friend Buddy the Dog. Buddy died last month at age 13. He was a great athlete, with tremendous jumping ability and great low end torque. Okay, maybe he did have some motivation for loving me, food. But he was a constant companion, and was always happy to see me, even when other people were not. He had some funny tricks down pat, and would tirelessly chase and retrieve a ball. He fought a real battle with tumors that riddled his body for the last 2 years. You would never know he was in pain until the end, he was really frisky. Plus, he was the best mannered dog I have ever seen, not to mention a fantastic dancer. He is survived by his mate Itsy Bitsy, but he is missed by me. Buddy, rest in peace my man, you were the greatest. Sunday, April 11, 2010
Cindarella Almost, My Autograph Experience
It's old news by now, but Duke won in the most thrilling NCAA final in quite awhile. Every possession counted and what a hard played game. Butler went dry for 7 plus minutes and it was the big difference in the end.
One thing I really admire about Duke and Coach K is the demeanor in the game Coach K shows. He lets his players play. This is because they are so well prepared. He has trust in his players. It is refreshing to see a coach have trust in his players instead of strutting the sidelines like a banty rooster in an Armani suit. This doesn't mean he doesn't take control during crucial situations...he does. It's just that he will also let the game unfold. I noticed that Huggins has also gone this way much more than the old Bob Huggins. John Wooden never had to do the Pitino/Jim Calhoun strut the whole game. In an 82 game season you never see Jerry Sloan or Phil Jackson doing this.
Coach K is the one percent of coaches who could coach in the NBA from college and do so immediately and have success. Remember, he had the dream team undefeated in the last olympics. Larry Brown had roughly the same cast with Tim Duncan 4 years earlier and absolutely botched it. He let his ego get in the way and avoided playing certain players and it cost him. So on any level my vote is that Coach K is truly at the top on ANY LEVEL.
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I remember growing up that the great Bill Russell once said he did not give out autographs. He said that people asking for them should get the autograph of the people who really made a difference in their lives, such as parents and teachers. My first autograph experience came when I was 14. It was at the Prescott recreation center. I was visiting my grandma and persuaded her to let me attend the big card featuring the legendary Don "Bulldog" Kent as well as the Monroe brothers, Sputnik and Sattelite. I arrived at the arena early and was outside talking when I noticed a Caddy pulling up and out stepped the great one, Don Kent. I immediately sprinted, ticket in hand. Unfortunately, I didn't see a 2 inch steel cable about 15 inches off the ground. When my feet hit the cable on a dead run, I went flying in the air about 10 feet and landed on the gravel and rock parking lot at the legendary wrestlers feet. I immediately got up and said, "Can I have your autograph Mr. Kent?" He said sure kid and signed it.
My other time was in San Diego at a Miami San Diego state game. This was when Miami brought back basketball and had Tito Horford and San Diego State had a flashy guard named Tony Gwynn. I was there with my 4 year old son and spotted Jerry West at halftime while I was talking with Canes announcer Sonny Hirsch during commercial breaks. So of course, I asked for Mr. Wests autograph for my son of course...who never heard of Jerry West. The autograph was for me. I did what Bill Russell said all autograph seekers did..."will you sign it for my mom, son, grandfather." Anyway, the ticket is long gone, just like that moment.
I have since recorded a few commercials with Earl Campbell, who was gracious enough to let me come to his office for a few hours. I know John Lucas fairly well, Mike Newlin pitched our company on the radio, I have met a ton of Oilers and Spurs, but Jerry West was the last person I have asked or received an autograph. But the greatest of them all was the fabulous Don "Bulldog " Kent.
One thing I really admire about Duke and Coach K is the demeanor in the game Coach K shows. He lets his players play. This is because they are so well prepared. He has trust in his players. It is refreshing to see a coach have trust in his players instead of strutting the sidelines like a banty rooster in an Armani suit. This doesn't mean he doesn't take control during crucial situations...he does. It's just that he will also let the game unfold. I noticed that Huggins has also gone this way much more than the old Bob Huggins. John Wooden never had to do the Pitino/Jim Calhoun strut the whole game. In an 82 game season you never see Jerry Sloan or Phil Jackson doing this.
Coach K is the one percent of coaches who could coach in the NBA from college and do so immediately and have success. Remember, he had the dream team undefeated in the last olympics. Larry Brown had roughly the same cast with Tim Duncan 4 years earlier and absolutely botched it. He let his ego get in the way and avoided playing certain players and it cost him. So on any level my vote is that Coach K is truly at the top on ANY LEVEL.
*****************************************************************************
I remember growing up that the great Bill Russell once said he did not give out autographs. He said that people asking for them should get the autograph of the people who really made a difference in their lives, such as parents and teachers. My first autograph experience came when I was 14. It was at the Prescott recreation center. I was visiting my grandma and persuaded her to let me attend the big card featuring the legendary Don "Bulldog" Kent as well as the Monroe brothers, Sputnik and Sattelite. I arrived at the arena early and was outside talking when I noticed a Caddy pulling up and out stepped the great one, Don Kent. I immediately sprinted, ticket in hand. Unfortunately, I didn't see a 2 inch steel cable about 15 inches off the ground. When my feet hit the cable on a dead run, I went flying in the air about 10 feet and landed on the gravel and rock parking lot at the legendary wrestlers feet. I immediately got up and said, "Can I have your autograph Mr. Kent?" He said sure kid and signed it.
My other time was in San Diego at a Miami San Diego state game. This was when Miami brought back basketball and had Tito Horford and San Diego State had a flashy guard named Tony Gwynn. I was there with my 4 year old son and spotted Jerry West at halftime while I was talking with Canes announcer Sonny Hirsch during commercial breaks. So of course, I asked for Mr. Wests autograph for my son of course...who never heard of Jerry West. The autograph was for me. I did what Bill Russell said all autograph seekers did..."will you sign it for my mom, son, grandfather." Anyway, the ticket is long gone, just like that moment.
I have since recorded a few commercials with Earl Campbell, who was gracious enough to let me come to his office for a few hours. I know John Lucas fairly well, Mike Newlin pitched our company on the radio, I have met a ton of Oilers and Spurs, but Jerry West was the last person I have asked or received an autograph. But the greatest of them all was the fabulous Don "Bulldog " Kent.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Cinderalla Moves on and one Emotional Moment
Everyone has been telling us that Butler is not the Cinderella story, that they were ranked in the 11 spot early on. What these network gurus are missing is that this team is not a high major hoop brand, rated or not. And if they really were 11th best, why did they get such a crummy seed? Anyway, in my mind they are the Cinderella team in an upset laden tournament.
Butler won ugly versus Michigan State. My argument for pro basketball being far superior to college needed no more story line than Butler going scoreless for over 10 minutes and still winning. This would never happen in the pros, and remember, this is the 2nd best team in college basketball. The pro players are bigger, faster, better and stronger. The worst team, the Nets, would beat whomever wins tomorrow by 20 to 30. Much much better coaching in the NBA and a much faster game. College offenses are like comparing grade school math to a NASA rocket scientist when compared to the NBA. Remember college gurus Pitino and Calipari want nothing to do with the NBA. Just another pretty face in the NBA but on the college level the top dogs. Not downgrading college because the tournament turns what is basically a really irrelevant season into arguably the best event of the year.
Duke has made a believer out of me once again. They are big, and deep. Bob Knight had a talk with Johnny Orr once about Michigan when they were going to play. Orr was describing his team as having an all Big Ten champion sprinter, an All American long jumper as well as other track speed. As Orr walked away Knight said something to the effect of "Johnny, tomorrow we are playing a basketball game." This is what Duke has...basketball players. You hear how athletic the other teams are, but those teams still have to make shots. Duke makes shots. It reminds me of what Bum Phillips, the old Oilers coach said after a scouting combine. "I don't care how athletic these guys are, at the end of the day you still have to be able to play football."
Duke should win Monday, BUT, the charm of the NCAA tournament is that it is not best of 7, it is a one game shot. In an NBA best of 7 the best team comes out on top. This is a different game, so give Butler a shot. The team that was designed to beat Duke, with size and shooting and defense has been eliminated...Kansas.
Finally, I have never seen a more compelling scene than when Bob Huggins hugged his player, DeShawn Butler when he suffered a terrible injury competing against Duke. He cradled the players head and really displayed unconditional love like I have never seen at any level by a coach. Butler is a real quality kid who is graduating and won an award that basically named him citizen of the year, based on a combination of grades and voluteer work. I was sort of mad that the network kept the mike on long after Butler went down, capturing his screams. He was in terrible pain and it just seemed like they dwelled on it morbidly.
Have a happy tournament and Monday we will see if the slipper fits.
Butler won ugly versus Michigan State. My argument for pro basketball being far superior to college needed no more story line than Butler going scoreless for over 10 minutes and still winning. This would never happen in the pros, and remember, this is the 2nd best team in college basketball. The pro players are bigger, faster, better and stronger. The worst team, the Nets, would beat whomever wins tomorrow by 20 to 30. Much much better coaching in the NBA and a much faster game. College offenses are like comparing grade school math to a NASA rocket scientist when compared to the NBA. Remember college gurus Pitino and Calipari want nothing to do with the NBA. Just another pretty face in the NBA but on the college level the top dogs. Not downgrading college because the tournament turns what is basically a really irrelevant season into arguably the best event of the year.
Duke has made a believer out of me once again. They are big, and deep. Bob Knight had a talk with Johnny Orr once about Michigan when they were going to play. Orr was describing his team as having an all Big Ten champion sprinter, an All American long jumper as well as other track speed. As Orr walked away Knight said something to the effect of "Johnny, tomorrow we are playing a basketball game." This is what Duke has...basketball players. You hear how athletic the other teams are, but those teams still have to make shots. Duke makes shots. It reminds me of what Bum Phillips, the old Oilers coach said after a scouting combine. "I don't care how athletic these guys are, at the end of the day you still have to be able to play football."
Duke should win Monday, BUT, the charm of the NCAA tournament is that it is not best of 7, it is a one game shot. In an NBA best of 7 the best team comes out on top. This is a different game, so give Butler a shot. The team that was designed to beat Duke, with size and shooting and defense has been eliminated...Kansas.
Finally, I have never seen a more compelling scene than when Bob Huggins hugged his player, DeShawn Butler when he suffered a terrible injury competing against Duke. He cradled the players head and really displayed unconditional love like I have never seen at any level by a coach. Butler is a real quality kid who is graduating and won an award that basically named him citizen of the year, based on a combination of grades and voluteer work. I was sort of mad that the network kept the mike on long after Butler went down, capturing his screams. He was in terrible pain and it just seemed like they dwelled on it morbidly.
Have a happy tournament and Monday we will see if the slipper fits.
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