SHADES OF JACK MOLINAS & etc

 Should anyone be surprised that the NBA is embroiled in a gambling scandal? Pas moi, dudes and dudettes, Gamblers and basketball go back a long time. I was just graduating from St Mary's College in the Spring of 1961 when the Jack Molinas' orchestrated college scandal was uncovered. Many players I knew were involved, either as point-shavers or as players who knew about the gambling and kept their knowledge a secret. Players such as Connie "The Hawk" Hawkins, Tony Jackson, Doug Moe, and Roger Brown and others were banned for life from the NBA. All four mentioned above could have been NBA All Stars and even perhaps Hall of Fame inductees. I devote a page or two in my memoir The Mad Manchurian, to that scandal and how I was personally affected by it. 

What bothers me about this particular scandal are the two players, Chauncy Billups and Terry Rozier who appear to be significantly involved. Other than they might be gambling addicts, which the info I'm reading doesn't suggest, there doesn't seem any financial reward these two could achieve by their actions. Billups approximate net worth according to the info I found on the internet is 35 million. Terry Rozier's net worth is approximately ten million dollars based on his contract with the Miami Heat. Holy Dinero?  A California public school teacher with 30 years experience earns from ninety thousand to one hundred-thirty thousand per year. I could have used numbers from careers that more closely resemble professional sports, but I wanted to make a point of the disparity we're looking at in this scandal. Why in hell of logic would Billups and Rozier allow themselves to be involved in something that netted them a few measly thousands? I understand Dontae Jones, a fringe NBA player with a low ball NBA contract who was deeply in debt and probably addicted to gambling, helping gamblers. Rozier and Billups are not as far as the news goes, deeply in gambling debt. Are there there much greater $ bribes the public is not aware of? Not that I've read or heard. Billups and Rozier are connected to gambler friends. Maybe that's it, some kind of loyalty to old chums from the hood. I can't see that either. Scratching my head, and coming up with little else, I'm left with a Forrest Gump qoute, "Stupid is, what stupi does."

Etc:

Time for the Warriors to figure out a permanent solution to the prolonged Kuminga drama. They signed him to a fair and lucartive contract. It was thought to be the solution. It helpted but not enoght. Kuminga started the season playing well within Coach Kerr's system, but then regressed, became injured, and is no AWOL. I'll not second guess Warrior player management, but it's high time something happens because, at least for the moment, I'm looking at Kuminga still as an unhappy camper. In my opinion, it is not an advantage for the Warriors to wait too much longer to find the right trade, not if they want to accomplish anything other than a play-in sport in the NBA Western Conference Playoffs. If I were them, I'd be looking for a strong defender and first round unrestricted draft choices. A lot of teams might find a young athletic slasher with an advantageous contract like Kuminga's a good acquisition. 

CP 3 retiring at the end of this season. Chris Paul is a shoo-in HofF player. He has brought honor to the NBA. He was always edgy and tough, but never dirty, even though there were times when he guarded our Steph Curry in ways that made me want to go on the court and set a few hard picks on him. I can see Chris going into coaching. 

Two teams to watch as of today: The Toronto Raptors and the Detroit Pistons. There is lots of talk about OKC repeating as NBA Champs. I believe the Nuggest are the better team in the West. We'll see. 

i was unaware that Jalen Eillimas was Vietnamses on his mother's side. One more country heard from to make the NBA an international sport. One of these days, the NBA will surpass soccer. You read it here first. 

Instead of a poem, I'm offering a novel: The Proving Ground by Michael Connelly from a Mickey Haller Lincoln Lawyer series about Artificial Intelligence. I do so, alarmed by the possibilitie that AI, if it is not governed properly by some kind of government oversight can cause a lot of damage, particularly to our young people whose brains have not yet developed fully. 

PLUS/MINUS & OTHER OBSERVATIONS

I apologizes to my readers for my recent scanty blogging. I'm still recovering from a heart surgery and somethimes my energy level goes on a vacation. I find that extremly annoying, as my energy neve flagged as a player, teacher, or writer. Not rational? Okay, but at 87, I get to be grumpy. 

So, I start by being grumpy about the constant and insipid conseerns over frigging plus/minuses for players. For anyone who doesn't know what basketball plus/minus is, here's it in a nutshell: 

My Warriors: Jimmy Butler said, "We're not guarding nobody." Excusing Jimmy's double negative, he's right. The Warriors , win or lose, are always the best version of themselves when they let their Defense dictate their Offense. 

On Joe Mazzola on "having fun." I'm not sure where or from whom the concept of "fun" came into the NBA league's vernacular. Coach Steve Kerr introduced "Joy" I always translated his meaning to be that in order to play the pro game with its impossible long and stressful schedule, you had to go out on the court with joy for the game an for the fact that you could this, be this kind of superb athlete, be "happy in you work" as actor Sessue Hayakawa said in the role of camp commander in the movie Bridge on the River Kwai. But, "NOT Fun" The Brit General played by Sir Alec Guinees would never have been able to sell that to his troops. I agree with Coach Mazzola. Like Coach Joe, I was never very good with fun if it applied to playing on the big court of the NBA or any court from high school through college or even on the playground courts in pick up games. I reserved having fun to hanging with friends and playing pinball at the local arcade. As an adult, I reserved the notion of "Fun" with playing with my children. My point is that FUN should be stricken from the vocabulary of the serious sportsman and the word replaced with PLEASURE. Pleasure is what all players and coaches must feel as they step onto the court, a deep abiding pleasure a their good fortune that they are there, in the life of athletics. It is a sensory experience. It is not whoope or delight. It comes with an understanding that you and your body are honoring each other.      

Ah, well, enought with the philosophy. 

A team to watch this season as of today: Detroit Pistons. After years of being terrible, they are emerging as a top contender in the East behind Cade Cunningham and Coach J B Bickerstaf. J.B.'s father Bernie and I were inducted into the first WCC Hall of Fame - he from the U of San Diego and moi from St. Marys' College. J.B. and Bernie are the first father/son coaching team. Great guys, great coaches. After Lenny Wilkens, J.B. may be the best coach to call on if your team is losing and you neede an overhaul to get back on to a winning track. 

Speaking of Lenny Wilkins, My friend and teamate passed away recently. He was a super pt guard and outstanding coach. It is noteworthy to poing out to basketball folks that Lenny never went to his right. Hardly ever, and all his opponents knew it, but still could not sotp him. He and Zelmo Beatty when they were with the Saint Louis Hawks were, in my opinion, the first dynamimic pick and roll offense in NBA history. Now Pick and Roll offisen is almost a cliche. 

Things don't look good for my Sacrramento, Kings. Lots of consecutive losses until the night before last when they surprisingly beat the Timbervolves. Luck, timing and the Stars. While my wife's grandson and my basketball buddy belives the Kings need to blow things up, I'm not so sure. Sabonus is clearly unhappy, and suffering some injuries. His absence affects the Kings negatively. But I saw some promise finally from Keagn Murry recently that leads me to believe he is finally coming into his own and maybe that big stretch 4 the Kings have desperately needed. My biggest concern with the Kings is with Coach Doug Christie, who truly did not earn the job, but was popular with the Kings' owner V. Ranadive. Is see no substance there, no understanding of match-ups. His offense is pretty ho-hum and predictable. It's my opinion that the Kings should fire Christie now, bring in a coach with lots of experience to shore things up and perhaps encourage Sabonis to buy into his team again. Nique Clifford is a find, DeRosen is as always the master of the midlevel jumper. Lavine needs to perk up. Schroder at pt guard is adequate. Monk is a solid rotation player and and Westbrook is a terrific energy guy. I'm not saying they could compete for the West, but they sure as hell could be better than their recorord indicates. Firs Chistie, do it NOW. 

Recently I bought the new Tops trading cards for my grandson, Leo and he is now in possession of a Cooper Flagg signature card and a Dylan Harper rookie card. If I'd only known how popular trading cards would be and how much $ some of the elite cards would bring, I wouldn't have lost my signed Wilt Chamberlain rookie card. Ugh. I'd  be a millionaire. 

On the Life side of my blog: I've been reading about AI and how it can be used negatively. Avatar friends for teens? fake friends? How can that be good for teens whose ages make them vulnerable to peer pressure? If you want a fictional possibilities, read The Proving Ground by Miachael Connely in his Mickey Haller Lincoln Lawyer series. 

Latest article from The Athletic is about stars being injured. I'v ebeen calling for a shorter season and more innovative fitness training. I also believe we are starting our youngster should not be involved in such serious hoops as is the case these days with all the AAU pressure. 

To lighten the subject, here's a poem I wrote a while back about the philosophy my high School basketbll coach had about injuries. 

Spit On It

 

The first time he landed wrong
he came up lame and wished for a miracle
that never happened. All season
he limped, but sucked it up the way
the older boys said he must to be a man
and not a pussy, a dictum he carried
with him into other sports and into life.
 
Today, he hears on television that so and so
won’t play because of a bruised knee
or a sore shoulder or ankle, and he hears
his high school coach yelling, “Spit on it!”
which never worked. Or did it? He recalls
the passage from the Bible where Jesus cures
blindness by mixing mud with his saliva
and rubbing it into the blind man’s eyes.
Scientists have proven saliva contains
a healing agent called histatin. As for mud,
who knows? So, he does not complain
that his knees throb or his fingers
are arthritic, or raising his right arm
causes him to grit his teeth. He sucks it up,
spits and rubs. He says it see

AMAZINGLY LUCKY

 As a rookie first round pick by the Philadelphia Warriors in 1961, I was priviledged to begin my NBA career witnessing the greatest basketball player of all time, my fellow teammate, Wilt Chamberlain. No player at that time or players that followed could ever match the amazing athleticism and scoring ability of The Dipper. It is now my privilege at the end of my life - I will be 87 on the 26th of this month - to witness the modern incarnation of Wilt Chamberlain in the body of Victor Wembanyama. With apologies  to Nikola Jokic, presently the most skilled and efficient center in the NBA, who has a chance by the end of this career to be the NBA's GOAT, the Serbian big man does not possess the variety of skills that Wemby possesses, nor does he have the grace of function the 7'5" Frenchman is blessed with. I saw Wilt at the height of his power. I believe jokic's game is set. It is possible he will improve, but I doubt it. He is who he is. As for Victor Wembanyama, he has more in his bag. It will be a delight to see over the years what he pulls out of that bag. Oh, La vache!

The World Series set to begin, here's a haiku from my forthcoming collection of sports haiku:

34

Broom handle poised
On his shoulder ready to swing
For the window

W

NBA 24/25 SEASON OPENERS

 If anyone doubted it before this season, Alperen Sengun, the Turkish center for the Houston Rockets

in winning pocker, he'd be a Straight Flush to the Joker's Royal Flush. It would not surprise me if Sengun turnes out to be as good as Jokic. Bite my tongue, you say. Yep, maybe so, but the Rocket's Turkish Pasha has so much upside left, who knows what the future has in store for him. He is certainly the Hub of the Rocket's wheel. Note: The Rockets are sporting the tallest starting Five in NBA history. They will be a tough team to beat. Ok, so OKC beat them. But the Rockets took last year's NBA Champs to double OH VA TIME. I think most NBA fans already had the Rockets as a contender and perhaps even possible winning the West. My only problem that assessment is the coaching. I'm not on the Udoka bandwagen as much as most fans and talking heads are. He's tough and smart, but I do not see enough creativity in his approach to the game. He makes solid choices, but not the risky ones. He proved that to me last season with the Warriors outcoached him, especially in the closing minutes. 

As for the Thunder, they're still the team to beat in the West. Everybody that loves Curuso's game raise their hands. Mine's up. Ichabod Crane, oops, I mean Chet Holgren could have a break out season based on what I saw last night. No surprising, OKC missed Jalen Williams. 

Do the Lakers have any idea what their rotation will be? It doesn't look that way to me based on what I saw last night. Ok, LeBron was not there, but where were all the rest of the players? The Lakers will not win if they have to rely on Doncic playing 40 minutes a game. I also wonder how long it will take JJ Redick to figure out that DeAndre Ayton is playing for his check and not for his team. This guy has all the tools, but doesn't use them. The word is SOFT. It's only one game, so I'll cut him some slack. But I'll take bets Ayton is soon backing up some other big. At least Jaxson Hayes plays with energy.

Based on their firs outing, the Golden State Warriors, baring injuries, are going to win a lot of games. This is a team of players that know eachother and the system well. The Addition of Al Horford provides them with additional stability, smarts, rim protection and locker room presence. One may argue they are too old, but there is something to say for experience and intelligence. Jimmy Butler had a monster opening game. And I was impressed with Jonathon Kuminga, who played within himself and allowed the game to come to him, I have not been a big fan of JK, but I will own my mistake if he plays to his potential and proves me wrong. I'm crossing my fingers that Buddy Heild continues to play the way he did last night. Grandson, John Clark, a King's fan, says that won't happen. That Buddy only plays well when there is no pressure. Humm! Second Round draft pick, Will Richard impressed. And what can we say more about Steph Curry. Great dagger shot at the end. Did that shot originate on the east bank of the Mississippi? 

In honor of KD

KD       By Tom Mesche

 

From our seats

beneath the basket,
watching KD
before the game,
I’m wondering
where have I seen
such fluid grace before,
almost like liquid,
as if Durant
was out to prove
the truth
inscribed on Keats’ tombstone:
Here lies one whose name
is writ in water.
 

 

THE START OF THE NBA SEASON 2025/26

 i'm excited about my Warriors signing Al Horford, one of the great unsung super stars and glue guys in the NBA. If he can stay healthy, he will do for the Warriors what he's done for every team he's played for: Power in the paint, scoring from the 3, rebounding, and provising smarts, and locker room presence. The dubs signed Jonathon Kuminga, so that's a done deal. Proof there's a God. Both teams win. The Warriors retain the right to trade JK and JK gets the paycheck he felt he deserved. The later is in question in my mind. Look up the numbers, they should shock you. Coach Kerr said it best once the signing was announced that JK will be given every opportunity to be the player he believes himself to be. Ah, egos and Super Egos!!! It has been my experience that a great many athletes by the time they readch the collegiate level have a skewed view of their abilities. Mirror mirror, on the wall who's the . . . you get my meaning. Okay, okay, benefit of the doubt, JK is a super athlete. Maybe, just mybe, he will grow his game. I never want a player to fail. However, I believe as many coaches and talking heads do, that the Warriors still need to acquire a third young three-point shooter/athletic wing. In the meantime, let's see if Jk can fill the void. As for where the Warriors will wind up in the |Western Conference, I never sell Coach Kerr short. Remember, when Jimmy Butler joined the team last season, the Dubs were 20 wins to 8 losses before Steph Curry injured his ham-string. 

At this early stage of the season, the following teams appear to me to be the creme-de la-creme:

UGGETS: The acquisition of Jonas Valuncuna to back up Jokic creates a wall of strenght and talent at the five. Cam Johnson is a hundered percent better defender than M. Porter and a more conssistent 3 pt wing. Brown comes back for onball defense in the backcourt. Tim Hardaway Jr adds the increased bench strengh at the wing. A team that took the N\BA champs to the 7th game in the West has impromve their roster mightily. 

OKC: Not much to say here. They're the champs and check off all the positional boxes. I like the Nuggets over them.  

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS: I'm slipping my Dubs in here as a surprise team. The addition of Al Horford and a full year of Butler and Curry and Coach Kerr's smart. There are a few teams with greater athleticism and youth, but I'm going with experience and smarts.

The next two team have huge asterisks next to them.

DALLES MAVERICKS: I'm not a fan of Jason Kidd as a coach, that's one turn off for me. The other questions: Can Anthony Davis arrive at the playoffs healthy? Same goes for Kyrie Irving. Additional consideration: Will Cooper Flagg be ready as a rookie? On the positive side, there's talk that Mav's cent Lively grew three inches over the summer. Whoa! Making him 7'2"

HOUSTON ROCKETS: The Rockets would have been my third choice had not pt guard Fred VanVleet not been lost to the team for the season. The addition of KD, of course, makes the Rockets stronger, but they still remain young and in need need  of a team leader. The Rockets have a powerful young center in Alperen Sengun and two excellent backup centers in Capella and Steven Adams who will teach the team to do the Haka, the traditional Maori war dance, which mignt be worth a few extra fear points. Coaching in the clutch might be a problem. I sense inflexibility in Ime Udoka. 

LA LAKERS: It will all come down to Doncic. Can he be the leader of the team and its top scorer, and leader in assists. He damn-well almost did int the year before in the NBA Finals, so why not in LA? Then the question becomes how does LeBron fit in? Another questionmark: JJ Redick's coaching. I do not see anything better than average here. Hw made some questionable decisions in last season's playoffs. 

LA CLIPPERS: Okay, they are worth mentiong. But too many ifs for me. Those ifs: Can Kawhi state healthy? Can Brook Lopez help? Will they miss Norm Powell's creative shooting? Will Beale get his Wizards' mojo back? back?

From my collection in progress:  Landscape of Sports Haiku.  

On the outdoor court
Two boys playin basketball 
Ignoring the rain

HEAR ME WEEPING

 Over coffee this morning, I read The Athletic NBA News' article about the costs of watching this coming season's NBA games on television. By the end of the article, I was weeping. True. Tears in my eyes, tear drops down down my cheeks. Commissioner Adam Silvers made in clear that in reality we will no longer be watchin basketball games, we will be watching CONTENT. The Athletic article broke down the costs per platforms. It added up to much higher costs than in the past. The costs are in the nature of subscriptions over and above what we fans are now paying for our monthly cable television package. I will not try to explain what I could barely absorb myself, but read The Athletic or other NBA sources for the details. 

What made me weep was that all this portended for the future of televised sports in general and the NBA in particular. Commissioner Silver is asking us to walk down the aisles of the NBA/Media store and select our PROCUCTS/CONTENT. Each ITEM/GAME will have a label with a price printed on it, like any can of Pork and Beans in your local grocery store. You can shop by the month or the year. You can go cheap or go Whole Paycheck. However you chose, be certain that you will be paying considerably MORE than you did last season. 

It is not that I'm thinking entirely of myself when I say I am weeping. I weep for what this portends for the future for my children and my grandchildren. At my age, I will not be on this planet when this degradation is complete. It does not take much imagination to see the THEME of the movie, Rollerball Madness--when corporations will rule all aspects of the world. I am alarmed and dismayed. Listen and you will hear more people than me weeping. 

NFL Last night I watched a very impressive Green Bay Defense. Micah Parsons is one heck of a defensive end. I'm perplexed why the Cowboys would trade him. But since I'm not a super knowledgeable NFL blogger, I'll just leave the answer to to the experts. I personally believe the Cowboys have been cursed ever since Jerry Jones fired Jimmy Johnson. 

To finish this off, I'm excited that my new mystery novel in my Brovelli Brothers series: The Case of the Volkswagen Hippy Bus will launch on October 14 as 14 was my jersey number during my years playing for the Golden State Warriors. 

STOPING TANKING

 I just read an intriquing proposal from The Athletic about a possible solution to NBA teams tanking: It is odd at first glance, but the more I thought about it, the more it began to make sense: The idea is this: The two teams with the worst recoreds at the end of the season are gauraunteed pikc numer 4 and number 5. That leaves the the 3d, 4th, and 5th worst teams with the highest probabliiy of wining the top three picks. If this is implemented, I can see some serious competiion about the last five worst teams in the league competiing vigourously NOT to be the fust and second worst teams for the season. There would be a competion to be 3rd, 4th and 5th worst. This is a delightul reverse backhad solution to tanking. Imagine the last gaem of the season between the Wizards and the Pelicans. Whichever team wins will be in 3thired placd in the lottery. The loser will be 2nd and have no chance to get any of the top three draft choices. Could be one hard fought game. Score one for the fans, Right? And, just so the top two lop losing teams don't get shut out completly, allow me to suggest there have been plenty of greaat NBA players who've been seleced with the 4th and 5 picks. For example: Castles of the Spurs last year in the 4th; Aman and Amar Thompson with the 4th and 5th picks; Scotti Barnes in 21 with the 4th pick. D'Aaron Fox with the 4 pick in 2019 and in 2016 Tray Young with the 4th. Porzingus, DeAndre Hunter and Aaron Gordon  were all selected with the four pick. 

I've been thinking of my fatherer these days as my memoir The Mad Manchurian is now out in bookstoares andd being read. Memories of him thinking baskeball was no way for a real man to make a living. I wrote the following poem for him.

Journeyman

 

I admit sleeping in late at the Hilton,
ordering room service,
handing out big tips while other me
are opening their lunch buckets. I know
you would have scolded me:
Что это за работа для мужчины?
(What kind of work is this for a man?) 
Old immigrant, I admit all of this
too late. You died before I could explain
newspapers call me a journeyman.
They write I roll up my sleeves
andgo to work. They use words
lke hammer and muscle to describe me.
For three straight years on the job
my nose collapsed. My knees ached,
and I could never talk myself out of less
than two injuires at a time. Father,
you would have been proud of me:
I labored in the company of large men.

MIND BOGGLING

 Let's begin with life - as it exists in this country today. The key word is STUPIDITY. I'm in a quandary as to which is the most stupid stupidity that's happened recently: Is it the mind-boggling stupid Dallas Mavericks' trade of 25 year-old generational offensive wizard Luca Doncic for a 32 year-old All-Star center Anthony Davis who has a history of health problems & a decent bench player in Max Christie OR Donald Trump's administration's decision to remove anything in the U.S. military files that have to do with GAYs, has resulted in removing the iconic photograph of the Second World War bomber Enola Gay that carried the Atomic Bomb to Japan and Hiroshima to end the Second World War. In addition, it eliminated all "genetic" research because  they thought they were eliminating all "gender" research. When announced, the Republican side of the legislature actually cheered and clapped. I'm not through. This edict also eliminates all the records and flies of Major General Hobart Gay who served with distinction in the Koran War, YA GOTTA BE KIDDING ME. 

I'll leave you to decide. 

Now to the NBA. Just a few comments. 

A lot will depend on Jonathon Kuminaga's play once he returns to the team to determne where the Dubs will wind up in the playoffs. I very much enjoy the team as I'm watching it in its present form, but they will lack the twitch atleticism that the top teams like the Cavs, Delts, OKC and Nuggets have. More on the Lakers next.

Damm it, I hate to admit that the Lakers have a chance to win the West, but the addition of Doncic has done the trick. That, and all their players back healthy. Reeves as a third scoring threat is for mor potent than when he was the secondary go to guy. And the surprising shot blocking energy of Jaxon Hayes has filled enough of the paint protection gap lost after AD left. They can score in buckets and the have defenders who make up for Doncic's lack of enthusiasm for D. Except for Hayes I don't see where they are weak at any other position. 

Like the TWolves, I thought that the Randle trade would work. It hasn't. I can't figure out why. It can't possibly be that Randle operates most naturally in Rudy Gobberts domain, thus clogging up the paint? Are we missing some coaching here? 

All the talking heads are in agreement that OKC will win the West. Things have changed with the advent of the New Lakers, and I would not count out Jokic's Nuggets. And tje Warroprs could surprise because of their system that makes beating them over 7 games very difficult.

What about Boston? They are who they are: They live and die by the three point line. The X factor for the Celts will be if Porzigis and Jru Holiday perform well. If they do, the Celts beat the Cavs. If not the Cavs with the addition of a defender like Hunter win. 

One of the great ironies of this season are the two candidates for Coach of the Year: J.B. Bickerstaff the of the Detroit Pistons, the previous coach of the Cleveland Cavs, and Kenny Atkinson, the present coach of the Cavs who replaced J.B. This won't happen, but I vote for dual honors this year as both coaches have done equally magnificent jobs this season. Come on, NBA. let's think outside the box. 

A couple of last comments. 1) The teams that are looking for instant miracles from Cooper Flagg better have a plan to provide him with some solid help. He is a generational player, but he is not instant help as was the case with players like Magic, MJ, LeBron and Doncic.  2) I surprised myself this morning reading about the weat teams in the N|BA and tinking that the Wizards have some pretty damn good young players. I'd starft giving them a lot of playing minutes betwen now and the end of the season. 

It's March. I was planning to post this poem in February to remind people that Black Lives mater more than ever these days. 

HOODIE

 

A gray hoodie will not protect my son

from rain, from the New England cold.

 

I see the partial eclipse of his face

as his head sinks into the half-dark

 

and shades his eyes. Even in our

quiet suburb with its unlocked doors,

 

I fear for his safety – the darkest child

on our street in the empire of blocks.

 

Sometimes I don’t know who he is anymore,

traveling the back roads between boy and man.

 

He strides a deep stride, pounds a basketball

into the wet pavement. Will he take his shot

 

or is he waiting for the open-mouthed

orange rim to take a chance on him? I sing

 

his name to the night, ask for safe passage

from this borrowed body into the next

 

and wonder who could mistake him

for anything but good.

 

               January Gill O’Neil 

I

BIG AND SMALL

 Watching the Warriors defensively dismantle the Sacramento Kings last night with the smallest lineup that I can remember was impressive. Later, Coach Kerr stated that he believes this is going to be the Warriors' starting lineup of the future. This has caused a flurry of media and fan responses about Small Ball efficacy in a league that has been trending to Big Ball lately. How will the Warriors fare against teams with tall, long wings and huge 7 ft centers, like Jokic. Well, they did quite well against a team with 6'11" Domatas Sabonas and back up 7' Jonas Valanciunas. There will be Adebayo, Towns,  Antetocoupo to think about, but if last night's game is a predicter, then I'm not too worried. And, remember, Mr. Looney is ready at all times to provide some muscle if needed and Trace Davis and the suprisingly up and coming 7' Quinten Post. The key in my mind is consistent Defenseive aggressiveness. It's not enough to simply keep your man in front of you, it means making your opponent worried abd nervous, forcing him out of his comfort zones, which is what the Warriors did to the Kings last night. It is my belief that if the Warriors can keep this kind of defense going the rest of the way, no team will be happy to have to play the Dubs in a seven game series. Remember, also, that Jonathan Kuminga will be back soon. If truly healthy, coming off he bench, he will provide lots of athleticism on both ends of the court. It's important to remember that Kuminga is a very in-your-face defender. And, finally, let's be clear, the Warriors' transformation has come about with the addition of Jimmy Butler. Butler truly knows how to play basketball at both ends of the court. One could compare him to Draymond Green with a shooting touch. He balances both mind and instinct. And he does a lot of the little things that add up to wins, intercepting a pass at a crucial time, snagging an offensive rebound, shutting down a hot shooter, boxing off, etc, etc. I was very concerned about this trade, No longer. Butler is a baller, pure and simple. He has never forgotten what he learned on the playground, you don't get to stay on the court unless you win. 

My wife an I are looking forward to joining other retired Wariors' numbers on Sunday afternoon to be part of the cereemony to retire the number of Andre Iguodala, Wilt, Thurmond, and Atlles have passed but Rick Barry and I from the Sixties generation of Warriors are still standing.  Chris Mullins will represent the Dream Team generation. Iguodala will be the first Dub to rise into the rafters. He will soon be followed by Curry, Thompson, Green, and KD. 

Wilt Chamberlain's anniversary of his 100 point game is approaching, I'll be posting Wilt poems unti then. 

LOOKING UP AT WILT

There is, among the tallest of everything:
From ageless redwoods to light houses,
to tall tales of Biblical Goliaths
to the giant lumberjack, Paul Bunyon
to the tallest at the Court of Basketball,
the Lord Chamberlain of Height, Sir Wilt.

 

 

 

NBA ALL STAR WEEKEND 2025 & ETC

 I don't think I need to say too much  about Mac McClung's winning the dunk contest except to say in terms of creativity and athleticism it was the best I've ever seen, Remember the dude is only 6'2" tall. That little rim touch before dunking the last of his jumps was pure dunk contest desert. I'm writing on Sunday morning, so I'm holding off what I think of the new tournament format for the All Star Game, but I have a feeling the NBA might have a winner. It smells like it will be more competitive. 

As for the contests themselves, the addition of Stephen Castle proved that there are dunkers in the NBA, to make the competition meaningful. It's up to the league office to vet the contestants more thoroughly. The first two other leapers Andre Jackson and Matas Buzelis were mediocre at best. The 3- point-shooting contest remains the most competitive. The skills competition really needs a face lift. The shooting part needs to fit the concept of SKILL? This contest should be about a player's handle and passing, or if there must be shooting it should be floaters or reverse lay-ups. I'd love to see spin moves, crossovers and change of direction, etc. This would add a creativity component to the contest. Speed, yes, but creativity as well. The contest needs to get the fans up on their feet. Imagine, a Wembanyama vs Kyrie in a handle contest. See what I'm saying? Big Shout out to Sir Charles for donating $250,000.00 to the Glide Center. 

ETC

I've been critical in the past of the All Star game, particularly the game itself, as boring. I'm looking forward to the new format this afternoon. But my ETC (above) has to do with the negativity I'm reading from fan comments. Not just actual criticism, which can be constructive, but meanness. This kind of vitriol has increased since the Trump era began and is worse since his reelection. Trump has opened the Pandora's box of meanness and vitriol. It has got to stop, people. Let's be human again. Let's think kindness. One negative MAGA dude compared the NBA All Star Weekend to a CARNY side show. This guy needs to get a life. Instead of CARNY we should think CARNIVAL, like the Mardi Gras or Rio Carnivale in Brazil: music, dancing, spectacles, joy, fans and players mingling, good food, friendship, that's what the All Star Weekend is all about. As a nation, we need to jam all of Trump's meanness back into his Pandora's box, so the rest of us can live our lives positively. 

AIR McCLUNG

McClung pausing
on the last rung
of his air ladder
taps the rim
for good mesure
before he dunks
for fifty points.
And if my eyes 
didn't fail me 
stayed airborne
for a moment more
just for the legend.

HAS THE NBA GONE MADDOG & Etc

Is it only me, or has the TV sport honcho set sent out a memo to their sports commentators scream at the top of their lungs at every effective play executed, even if is not particularly spectacular? The Super Bowl was too much to bear. Any completed play over ten yards received an enthusiastic cheer that in years past might have earned a sincere well done and anything beyond ten yards--especially catches by wide-open receivers had me clutching my ears. 

Am I exaggerating? I don't believe so. It's been this way through the entire NFL and NBA season, commentators going  Ga-Ga over every frigging play--spectacular or not, and not is usually the case. Not that good plays are unimportant. But a simple back door pass to a cutter for a dunk does not require testing one's lungs to see how loud they can function. Every completed 15-yard pass a wide receiver snares and tiptoes out of bounds with is not the catch heard around the world. 

Where is the subtly and dignity of the play-by-play announcer gone, long time passing? Gone to Mad Dog everyone and Stephen A like everyone - with apologies to flowers and the seriousness of Pete Seeger's marvelous antiwar song. But, hey, is anybody out there in TV-sports-land just fed up with Stephen A and Chris "Mad Dog" Russo screaming over each other and other broadcasters who emulate their absolute nonsense. Can anybody understand what in the hell Shaq and Sir Charles are talking about when they're screaming at each other and Kenny is trying to get a point in that might have something to do with basketball and Ernie Johnston is simply looking silently silly. 

What's sad is that some very good announcers and color commentators who years ago would never have dreamed of screaming their lungs out for every dinky play are now on board with this Red Bull strategy. If you think I'm wrong, go back even two years and you won't find Chris Collingsworth and Mike Tirico shrieking at each other.   

I get it. This is theater of the absurd and sports is strutting on the stage. But I yearn for the savvy and dignity of Chick Hearn and Bill King in the NBA and Pat Summerall, Curt Gowdy & 49er Lon Simmons in the NFL and many more I listened to on radio and television. Even, as far as the talking heads on daily television like the Pat McAfee Show are concerned, I'd take even Howard Cosell over them any day. 

So I don't sound like a cranky old man, I'd like to shout out for Malika Anderson host of NBA Today and her color commentator crew: Richard Jefferson, Cheny Okwumke, & Kendrik Perkins for providing a show that is both enthusiastic and informative. I'm a huge fan of Big Perk with his very thick Texas drawl that does not interfere with a marvelous vocabulary and usage of the English language. Malika allows her crew to over-decibel, but brings them down to commentary level before they go too far. Bravo, the four do not carry on in the same histrionics of Stephen A and Mad Dog, And a shout out to Doris Burke, who is very knowledgeable, On occasion, however, Doris does get bitten by the screamer's bug. Come on folks most Dunks are dinks these days and threes are getting to be ho-hum. You can't make them more sensational by screaming them sensational.  

ETC

Warriors' news: so far so good, as Jimmy Butler has made life easier for Steph Curry, as Steph's point production has skyrocketed since Jimmy has come on board. It's best, of course,  not to get to enthusiastic, but better enthusiasm than depression, which was the state I was in watching poor Steph get double and triple-teamed all over the court.  

And what is the deal with the new owners of the Dallas Mavs? They had to sign off on the trade, which is leading to all sorts of conspiracy theories. Even IF Luka was not in shape, this trade of a 25-year-old offensive wizard for a 35-year-old AD with an injury history does NOT make any sense. Will we ever learn the true story? 

Coming up soon is the anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain's 100 point game, Here is a poem I wrote about The Dipper. 

WILT THE GLOBETROTTER   1958/59

                  For all the children of the world

 

Wilt the Stilt, his fancy tricks
were skyward done above the rim.
Kids in all the countries of the world
cheered the ball when from those heights
the ball dropped in. It was a miracle of flight
those balls and Wilt in uniform of stars and stripes.
And when he landed on the court
it was only for a visit that was short
before he bounded back into the air
of the arena, ball in hand, and waved hello
to the children of the world below: hello, hello!
I’m Wilt the Stilt, I Dipper dunk, I’m here for you
to have some fun & learn with all my pals
The meadow lark, the Goose and Marques
Haynes who dribbles with his forehead through
the gap between my legs set wide apart.
Then sing for us Sweet Georgia Brown
as we travel from town to town, the clowns
of basketball and joy. Globetrotter of the heart.
 

A PULLING THE TRIGGER

 Pulling the trigger is an apt metaphor for the trades that have just occurred. Will the bullets hit their marks or will they miss, and if so, how badly? I'm going to take a look at the two blockbuster trades to examine the trajectory of the bullets. 

THE LUKA/AD TRADE: The bullet is going to miss for both teams. For the Mavs, it may miss by a mile. In the first place, as great as AD is, he is prone to injuries. More importantly, why was AD needed on a frontline that is one of the Mavs strengths? Dereck Lively is going to be a super star center very soon, and Daniel Gafford at 6'10" is a power forward/center as rugged as they come. Then, there is PJ Washington, a talented stretch-4. The Mavs front court is better than solid. Of course, if GM Niko Harrison trades Gafford for perimeter offense (that they lost with Doncic gone),  AD's  trade makes sense. There is still a few days until trade deadline, so Harrison may have something up his sleeve. It better be a rabbit to make up for trading away one of the truly great scorers in NBA history. 

ABOUT THE LAKERS: Pulling this trigger was a no brainer most pundits say. I say, yes and no. Luka assures the Lakers a new face of the franchise when LeBron leaves, perhaps as soon as next season. But, for now, the Lakers are without a Big D presence in the post. Unless the Laker's GM makes another trade pronto for a center to fill the void left behind by AD's absence, this season is going nowhere. Luka is ball dominant, so is LeBron. What happens to all the other players watching Luka and wondering where they fit? The season could be over before they figure things out. The Lakers bullet will miss but by not as much as the Mavs. This could turn out to be as bad a trade as ever there was.

KINGS/SPURS TRADE: The Spurs' bullet will be a bullseye. Fox's ability to penetrate virtually at will facilitate a  Wemby dunkathon. That the Spurs pulled this off without losing their young core makes the bullseye more of a bullseye. Just in time for Pop to return to the bench. This is a long term fix and they were on target. 

As for the Kings. They are left without a true point guard. At the same time they filled a very important need. They now have a solid three-ball shooter. They traded two years ago for Heurter who was supposed to be that guy, but he was to unpredictable and couldn't play a lick of Defense. Levine is not a great defender, but his shot from distance is pure. The Kings missed the bullseye, but they didn't miss too badly. They still need an aggressive power forward and desperately need an athletic back-up center.

ETC: 

One has to believe LeBron James had to be consulted by the Lakers before they pulled The trigger on the Doncic/AD deal. Right?  I wonder what AD thinks of that. I also wonder if, and here I'm reaching, Lebron has a plan for his future for the remainder of this season and the next that does not include the Lakers. His last game time courtside interview was cryptic and his smile just a little too sly. 

When it comes to pulling the trigger on a Jimmy Butler trade, it's my opinion that in the case of Jimmy Bucket-of-tears, if it happens, the bullet will boomerang. Couldn't happen to a more worthy malcontent. 

Look for the Warriors to pull the trigger next.

No poem. Instead, I offer a recommendation for a book. Those of you interested in creativity, read |Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert. It is not just for artists, but for all people about thinking outside the box. For example, as it relates to the NBA - how the Pelicans should start thinking about Zion and the 76ers should start thinking about Joel Embid's health issues.  

THE CENTER WILL NOT HOLD

 Yesterdat I suffered a kind of depression that was both intensely personal and at the same time beyond personal.  I was witnessing the most immoral and unethical human being I could imagine being inaugurated as president of the United States, and knowing, horrified,  that a majority of Americans voted for him, even though Donald Trump's immorality and lack of ethics was and still is well known, How could they? What personal justification could have motivated them to vote for such evil? I thought of the following poem by William Butler Yeats

he Second Coming

By William Butler Yeats

Turning and turning in the widening gyre   

The falcon cannot hear the falconer;

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere   

The ceremony of innocence is drowned;

The best lack all conviction, while the worst   

Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;

Surely the Second Coming is at hand.   

The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out   

When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi

Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert   

A shape with lion body and the head of a man,   

A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,   

Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it   

Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.   

The darkness drops again; but now I know   

That twenty centuries of stony sleep

Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,   

And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,   

Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

Copyright Credit: n/a

Source: The Collected Poems of W. B. Yeats (1989)