Nothing But Net and etc

If you're looking for good reading about basketball, try Nothing But Net, by Alexander Wolff. Check out the Wall Street Journal review first to get a preview.

Shades of Johnny Football: Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma QB bragging he's the numero uno NFL draft pick. The Cleveland Browns have first pick. Is there a syllogism to be made of this?

March Madness is fast approaching. Is there any clear choices for the Final Four? Top picks have been upset, and played lots of close games against unranked opponents. Michigan State might be peaking at the right time. But this is an up for grabs years. Bookies are going to make a lot of bucks.

JR Smith throws a bowl of soup at assistant Cavs coach. Can't wait to hear the story. How hot was the soap? Could be a law suit here.

Warriors are beginning to show last years championship defensive form. Finally. I was beginning to think their defense hadn't returned from its off season vacation, you know, like hanging out on the beach at Cabo or playing baccarat at Monte Carlo. I say this, then watch aghast as they let the Hawks have their way with them in the last night's fourth quarter.

I love my adopted city team, the young Sacramento Kings. But here's the problem, fellows: Before you can play strong team D, you need to have your individual defensive fundamentals in place. Footwork, Attack, Anticipate, Toughness. Some areas to consider working on in the off season.

Joel Embid is the real deal as in the great centers of the past: Russell, Wilt, Jabbar, Malone, Walton, Hakeem the Dream. Notice I don't mention Shaq, a center who, were the refs ever to have called smashing the defender backwards with his gigantic butt, could not have scored half his points.

I'm worried in the West about the Houston Rockets this season. The addition of Chris Paul has made a difference. However, I still feel they are not solid on defense, and the Big Games are always, and I mean always, won by the best defensive team.

If Love come back and can play the way he was before his injuries, the Cavs will win the East and be a dangerous foe in the Finals. Without Love, they don't have that je n'est ce quoi, that little extra something that seals the deal.

Good luck to Olympian Aly Raisman as she sues the US Olympic Committee and USA Gymnastics. Take all their friggin money. The perp-doctor goes to jail and rightfully so to rot and suffer at the hands of some cons who'll make sure of it.  But some administrators need to be locked up as well.

Instead of a poem, here's a quote from the great Pat Conway book about his varsity basketball experience at Citadel called My Losing Season. Fabulous read.

"What strange joy is felt as you leave the flatness of your daily life, 
the fatigue of routine, and the killing sameness of jobs to move
among thousands toward a brightly lit fieldhouse at night."