Tom Izzo shows concern over Michigan State injuries as fall workouts approach
Michigan State’s basketball team is coming off yet another trip to the Final Four and are expected by most to make a similar push this year under …
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NBA Finals 2010 Game 2: L.A. Lakers Should Look to John Wooden for Approach
Amid the the buzz between NBA Finals games in Los Angeles, the game and city lost legend John Wooden at age 99 Friday night. If Wooden had to die in any hospital, it’s appropriate that it was one only about 1,000 paces from The House He Built, Pauley Pavilion.
There was a time not so long ago, at least to those who can still remember the time when Coach Wooden leading the Bruins to the national championship was an annual rite of spring, when Wooden’s Bruins were essentially the only game in the sports cow town that was Los Angeles.
Wooden won his first championship in 1964, a time when the Lakers were a faded dynasty, with the only championship trophies the franchise could lay claim to taking up shelf space in Minneapolis.
Sure, the Dodgers had already won a few titles in Los Angeles, but having just gone westward ho in 1955, were still considered Brooklyn’s team (and stlll are by a vocal, if very graying, minority).
The Rams, then emigres from Cleveland, had made a handful of playoff appearances, but pre-Fearsome Foursome, were largely mediocre, presaging an ambivalent relationship between the sport of pro football and the City of Angels for decades to come.
Wooden was the first coach to win with a team that wasn’t some other city’s—for lack of a more dignified term given the subject—”sloppy seconds.” Wooden’s unprecedented streak of ten championships in 12 years put Los Angeles on the sports map and finally brought the city national championships it could truly call its own.
As a coach, he emphasized the importance of practice and self-discipline, but not discipline in the way one thinks of a Bobby Knight or the game’s other drill sergeants. Wooden believed in a player doing all he could to put himself in the best position to succeed. Whether that player did or not was practically immaterial; what did matter was that the player had played to his potential.
Of course, that’s easy to say when your potential equals ultimate success ten out of 12 times.
Wooden, though, was also the rare champion more humbled by victory than defeat.
Maybe it’s because he endured those years of falling short at Indiana State and UCLA before breaking through in 1964.
Or maybe he was just one of the lucky few on this planet touched with an amazing penchant for success and an almost divine sense of grace.
His was the kind of soul that had the equanimity to know that losing is sometimes what makes a winner and that death should not be feared, but rather looked upon as the next step and an opportunity to reunite with those whom we’ve missed so much in life, as he so missed his wife Nell. We should all be so lucky as Wooden, not because he was a winner, but because he had the winner’s attitude.
What also set Wooden apart from his peers, and most other sports figures, was the fact that he was as much the gentleman scholar off the court as he was a winner on it. In a time when sports figures fall short of our expectations as human beings, Wooden was the rare bird who seemed like he was a better man than even he was as a coach, an exemplar of a life examined and lived to its fullest.
If anything, his relationship to the game and city strengthened after he retired. Like Vin Scully, he was L.A.’s honorary sports grandfather.
Which brings us to our kooky hippie uncle. If the Lakers can avenge their 2008 loss and win this series against the Boston Celtics, Jackson would pass Wooden for the most championships won by a basketball coach, collegiate or pro. The Lakers would also pass UCLA mens basketball for most championships won in Los Angeles.
These Lakers, who, in spite of their success, have a maddening tendency to play not at their best level, but good enough to match their opponents. These Lakers, who are known to take nights off, a cardinal sin in the eyes of somebody like Wooden.
If I could offer one of the Coach’s many aphorisms to the Lakers right now, it would be this one: “Winning takes talent, to repeat takes character. “
The Lakers will show what kind of character they’re made of tomorrow. If they are to overcome their Boston bugaboo and repeat as champions, they should familiarize themselves with Wooden’s “pyramid” as much as they have Phil’s “triangle.”
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Is Fran McCaffery Taking the Ricky Stanzi Approach to Recruiting?
Fran McCaffery hasn’t been head coach at Iowa long, but that hasn’t stopped the drama and stress from heading his way.
In his first few weeks on the job, he hired a new assistant coach, released statements about two recruits de-commiting and announced that the starting forward was opting to transfer. Some might label this things ordinary for the Iowa basketball program.
Welcome to Iowa, Fran McCaffery !
Things started off on a good note for the new Hawkeye head coach, as he named his former Siena assistant Andrew Francis as a new assistant coach at Iowa.
“I am very happy to have Andrew be part of the Hawkeye basketball family,” announced McCaffery . “I’ve worked closely with Andrew for three years and he is the complete package. He’s a tremendous coach and excellent recruiter.”
The new hire excitement didn’t last long, as the following day pair of player defections were announced.
First came an announcement about incoming recruit Cody Larson, a 6’9″ forward from Sioux Falls, SD. Larson, a highly touted athlete and arguably the top incoming recruit for Iowa, asked to be released from his National Letter of Intent.
“Cody Larson has asked for a release from his National Letter of Intent but still has great interest in the University of Iowa,” McCaffery explained in his statement. “Cody would like additional time to familiarize himself with myself and the new coaching staff.”
Not long after that, McCaffery announced that Iowa sophomore Aaron Fuller had decided to transfer to another school closer to his family in Arizona. The transfer had been rumored on Hawkeye message boards for months, and finally came to fruition.
“Aaron Fuller has asked and been granted a release from his scholarship. Aaron expressed his desire to move closer to home and his family. We support Aaron on his decision and wish him nothing but success in his future endeavors.”
As if Fuller and Larson heading elsewhere wasn’t enough, another recruit opted to ask for a release from his letter of intent. Incoming guard Ben Brust de-committed from Iowa to open up his recruitment.
Some Hawkeye basketball fans are freaking out, wondering if there is a curse on the program. Others are more optimistic, and point out that it might be a good thing to have players leave at the beginning of the head coaching change, rather than year after year of defections.
As Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi would say, “if you don’t love it, leave it.”
Wait, is McCaffery taking recruiting advice from Ricky Stanzi?
Since the 2010 Orange Bowl, Stanzi has become a viral video sensation. It was his response to a question after that game that has caused the Stanzi fan base to increase exponentially over the last few months.
“There’s nothing better than being American. I mean, this is the greatest feeling. If you don’t love it, leave it. USA, Number One!”
With that homage to the movie Talladega Nights , the legend of Ricky “Americanzi ” was born.
Maybe Americanzi’s philosophy has inspired McCaffery in dealing with former head coach Todd Lickliter’s incoming recruits.
If you don’t love him, leave him; Franzi Number One!
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An Ivy League Approach: A Look at Boston College’s New Coaching Staff
It has yet to be a full week since Boston College hired Steven Donahue as their new head coach. Donahue came to Chestnut Hill from Cornell and has wasted no time in bolstering his coaching staff.
So far, Donahue has named three coaches who will join him at BC; coincidentally, all are from the Ivy League. Four different coaches from three different Ivy League programs will be coming together to try and lead the Eagles back into the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s a look at the newly assembled coaching staff:
Joe Jones, Associate Head Coach (Columbia)
Jones was the most recent hire for Donahue and is the most experienced assistant coach Boston College will have.
Interesting enough, Jones stepped down as the head coach at Columbia to take the associate coaching position at Boston College. The job at Columbia was his only head coaching experience, but Jones did spend time as an assistant coach at both Hofstra and Villanova.
Joe Jones was 86-108 in his seven seasons at Columbia. He joined Donahue’s Boston College on Friday, April 9th.
Nat Graham, Assistant Coach (Cornell)
Graham has spent plenty of time in the past alongside Steve Donahue and became the only other member of the 2009-2010 Cornell coaching staff to join him at BC.
Known as a fiery competitor on the sidelines and practice floor, Graham spent the past five seasons as an assistant coach at Cornell and also played three seasons at Penn where Donahue was formerly an assistant.
Nat Graham has also spent stints as both a player and a coach across the northern border at both Western Ontario and the University of Toronto.
John Gallagher, Assistant Coach (Penn)
A 1999 graduate of St. Joseph’s, Gallagher has spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Penn.
Gallagher has had much success in the Philadelphia area. He has ties to LaSalle, where he served as an assistant coach for five seasons. He also has past job experience at Lafayette College and Hartford, before eventually joining the staff at Penn in 2008.
Gallagher has a sister who played basketball at Boston College and now he gets the opportunity to help Donahue’s staff bring back tradition in Chestnut Hill.
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Louisville’s New Approach: What Needs to Be Done To Revive This Program?
The great team streak in February and March is one of the biggest aspiratons for any college team, but especially one like Louisville. This year they only managed half of that, but were sent home following a disappointing March.
Every time a team that has high aspirations coming into the season and fails to meet them they are always subject to “what-ifs.”
What if Kyle Kuric played more over the course of the season? What if there was a better backcourt rotation? What if Rick Pitino stretched out his young but talented bench? These are the questions I asked myself after watching Louisville’s season go down the drain.
Now while they are in the off-season, Pitino should take a new approach for 2011.
This season, the backcourt mostly relied on its streaky shooting to prevail—next season should be totally different.
The Cardinals have the two guards in Peyton Siva and Kyle Kuric that are not afraid to bang their body inside to get the basket, nor are they selfish enough to only think about themselves on the offense.
To go along with Siva at the point guard position, Pitino has acquired “Mr. Basketball” in the state of Kentucky, and flashy 6’1’’ Russell Smith. Both players can step right in and help the backcourt out a lot.
That doesn’t conclude the Louisville recruiting class.
Justin Coleman is the best recruit out of the three and Kuric will have a tough time grabbing the starting position with Coleman on the campus.
Coleman is a 6’5’ animal on the court. He has the athleticism, explosiveness, toughness, and the body to finish around the rim. Many teams backed off him early, leaving Louisville to make its approach.
He is one of the bigger steals in the recruiting process, and his commitment might help Louisville attract another great recruit.
A high school teammate of Coleman, Gorgui Sy Dieng has showed interest in Louisville and has decided to make his decision soon.
So what kind of approach is Louisville going to take next season?
Louisville has acquired players to spark the backcourt and compliment the frontcourt. Now it’s all about these kids coming together and playing as a team. Here are some things that should happen next season:
Consistency
Man, was Louisville excited after the season sweep of Syracuse. That was a great way to start the Big East conference tournament. But Louisville blew it. Louisville was an up-and-down team all season.
One night you will see a Louisville team that can compete with anyone in the country, then another night you will see a Louisville team play with no energy and settle for the jump shot.
For everybody and certainly in basketball you have to learn from your mistakes and improve. To get better next season, the Cardinals are going to need to play with the same energy every night and make sure they stay consistent throughout the season.
Defend
You cannot doubt the Louisville defense because it did its fair share of locking teams down. It was more of a “when” than anything, when it came to this Louisville defense.
Sometime you will see this Louisville defense play a tough zone that will aggravate the opponent, or if you are really lucky you will catch a perfect press and 2-3 zone.
More often than not, it was one or the other, and the Louisville defense broke down at the wrong part of the year. If they want to get better over the off-season, start by running more defensive sets to throw the offense off guard. Like a 1-3-1, half court trap, 3-2 zone, or just a plain out full court press.
Take better shots
The Cardinals’ shots weren’t the problem—it was when they took them. When down or in need of a basket, Louisville sometimes forced the action and it only pushed the deficit out more. With Pitino having to lean on prospective starter Siva, he will need to lead this offense and set him team up for better shots.
If this cannot be fixed, look for yet another disappointing season from the Cardinals.
Team Players
It is always bad when you have players that are all about “me” rather than “we.”
Last season there was no sign of this, but with these younger players with lesser experience, that possibility of that happening is more likely than not.
Pitino needs to force that his Cardinals play like a team, and give a team effort. No one player should be shooting the ball more than anybody—it should be a balanced team attack among the frontcourt and backcourt. One player can only take you so far. It’s the programs that have all-around efforts that win in March.
Following a disappointing season you are going to have that tag on your back. Everybody is going to be looking at you and observing how well you handled the losses, and the rebound from last season.
The new approach consists of: Score, rebound, defend, team basketball, and the little things. If Pitino can stick it to these kids early—which I think he will—Louisville will have a productive season.
My very early prediction for the Louisville Cardinals is, they will finish 23-11 overall and 11-5 in the conference.
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Back To The Future: The Utah Jazz Need a Newfangled Approach
Everything good needs replacing.
Some raspy-voiced, crooning dude holding a guitar said that once.
Forgot his name.
I doubt Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor’s heard the song, but it just so happens that unlimited lyric paints a pathway directly to the front door of O’Connor.
How can you gage this Utah franchise? Generally strong as the iron-rod, it took a catastrophic hit last season with the loss of owner Larry H. Miller.
Tattooed in fervent fearlessness, Miller held such a high ceiling for his beloved franchise that he would barrel through a concrete pillar for the chance at hoisting the NBA title.
Larry never got that chance.
Now, the current status and foundations of the franchise seem to be in great stature, right? The Jazz are winning. They’ve being ripping off wins like old, moldy band-aids since early Jan. There’s been All-Star play, coupled with pleasant surprises all around.
Who woulda thought? Wes Matthews. Who woulda thought? The resurrection of the mercurial Andrei Kirilenko? Who woulda thought Ronnie Brewer wouldn’t be on the active roster come late Feb. and Carlos Boozer would?
The typewriter could continue on all the way to 2057.
So, the Jazz, the little team that couldn’t forever and ever, finally are doing. Sitting at 36-20 and quite uncomfortably in the third spot in the public-transportation-at-rush-hour-tight Western Conference, questions abound still lur—like a miffed and starved daddy croc on Animal Planet.
Basically two-thirds of the way through the season, many Jazz fans have bought in. Not even, they’ve gone all in—not exactly playing with house money.
The backbone of the new Jazz: current boss Greg Miller, president Randy Rigby, and O’Connor were scoffed at earlier in the year. Somehow, Boozer was back in Salt Lake City after a slew of what an objective person would call “interesting comments”. Piddling along like a bad Jackie Chan movie, Utah impressed few.
Thank goodness for 2010, right, boys?
Suddenly, the Jazz are the hot gossip at the trendy, cool-kid table in the cafeteria.
Utah could put Lindsay Lohan, the troll of Jersey Shore and the Heidi “T-1000” Montag to shame. That’s how vogue this team has become.
But what will happen come playoff time? Can this team beat the Denver Nuggets in a seven-game tango? How about seven straight against Kobe and his starlight bunch?
Let that rest quietly on the backburner for a bit.
What about the future?
The messiah will be arriving in June. Or as so many believe. Thanks to the probable 2010 summer pilgrimage of NBA esteemed, the Jazz are in hold of a potential No. 1 pick. That is unless Tracy McGrady pulls a Barry Bonds in the remaining 26 games.
So, back to O’Connor.
The guy’s either a maniacal genius of the second-round pick or the epic failure of the first. He may hold a Ph.D in castoffs with a minor in nobody’s, but was he even able to even pass his generals first and foremost?
Go ahead and try to name the first-round picks of the franchise the last 10 years. Seriously, do it. You know the names.
I see you, DeShawn Stevenson. I got you, Raul Lopez and Curtis Borchardt. Let us not forget Kris Humphries and Kirk Snyder. Oh, how could I forget Sasha Pavlovic?
Now, granted, the whole spiel shouldn’t be blamed solely on the head of O’Connor. It’s taken a group effort over the year to fart away picks.
Just a few names passed over: Michael Redd, Tony Parker, Gerald Wallace, Tayshaun Prince, Josh Smith, Anderson Varejao. Now the typewriter really could go on till 2057 and keep right on going.
Yes, the draft is a crapshoot of some sorts. What you see isn’t exactly what you get. But after a decade of mediocrity on a small-market team in a niche that is Utah, when does one have to answer for their crimes?
It’d be one thing if the players the Jazz drafted had went on to other teams and done great things. Crickets…it’s that bad.
The Jazz, along with O’Connor, signed Boozer and Mehmet Okur when they were basically nobodys and they transformed into All-Stars. Cute? Sure. But do they make Utah a championship-level team?
The answer is no.
Pro-Kevo folks will clamor the drafting of Deron Williams and Paul Millsap. Well, let’s be frank: O’Connor and the Jazz were handed a pistol and had a crack-shot at two fish in one barrel. Yes, most believe they got the right one, but that goes without saying.
It wasn’t a win-lose. As for Millsap, the man’s a gamer. Subtract the painfully obvious trade up and selection of Williams and basically, you have Millsap to show for the past 10 drafts.
Morris Almond? Poof. Even Brewer got bounced out of town.
CJ Miles is still developing five years later. Kyrylo Fesenko is still buying hoards of cookies at Smith’s MarketPlace (yes, I saw it with my own eyes) and Kosta Koufos?
Ask again later.
At what point does it become a real issue? I think it is and has been for quite some time. Not to mention now that they have one of the premier players in the association in Williams, who’s will to win is insatiable as a drop of cold beer (or root, whichever you prefer) in the midst of indian summer.
Williams has said since the pen hit the pad that he wants to win. Not just win 50-plus games and be content with Nike ads. He wants to ascend Everest.
Has O’Connor and Co. assembled a roster that’s capable?
Well, there’s a schizophrenic 20-and-10 guy coming off the books in a few months, a bloated, expiring contract of a Spider-Man and every female heart in the state of Utah will explode into oblivion if the heartthrob, sharp-shooting Kyle Korver isn’t re-upped.
Oh, and the draft pick. Utah does need to send Isiah Thomas an entire case of whatever he wants, but looking at it from a logical point of view, the Jazz lucked out. What would have happened had the Knicks turned it around and the proverbial unprotected pick had ended up at about 15-22?
Hey, that’s O’Connor’s forte, ain’t it?
If you want to believe anything is possible, then go right ahead. I’ll agree with you. But there will (and should) come a time when proper repercussions are taken. Larry’s wish was to see this franchise win a championship.
If a team has continually regressed after hitting a peak three seasons ago, pick up the phone. Something’s obviously wrong.
And if dumb luck would have any say in O’Connor’s saga, it would be something to see the Jazz end up with the No. 1 overall pick.
Only to hear, with the first pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, the Utah Jazz select Donatas Motiejunas, power forward from Lithuania.
Then you can get your sweet bippy that Williams will start scanning the housing market in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area.
O’Connor has done a valiant job at assembling a winning team in a small market. He should be commemorated.
But at what point does conservativeness become an issue?
Are the Jazz always going to be good, but not great?
Utah is first-rate at covering up growing hostility within the organization. Deron Williams, for a change, introduced a little anarchy into the mix after voicing his tenacious displeasure after Brewer was dealt.
The surface level is tranquil, but the under-belly is boiling, and whether anyone admits it or not, there will be some sort of substance hitting the fan if the Jazz don’t change things up sooner or later.
Until then, sit back, relax, watch the Jazz win 50 games, and get no further than the second round in the playoffs.
Then hear O’Connor pirouette around questions and resign Carlos Boozer.
It’d be epic, wouldn’t it?
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John Pelphrey’s Unconventional Coaching Approach
John Pelphrey’s tenure as the Arkansas Razorbacks head basketball coach has been anything but calm. From dealing with the fallout of a dangerously low Academic Progress Rate (APR), to numerous player changes and extraordinary suspensions, Pelphrey has not had a lack of issues to address.
Right or wrong, in his philosophy of team discipline, Pelphrey has been consistent. The performance of the basketball team has been anything but. In the 2008-2009 season, the Razorbacks showed their youth with an impressive 12-1 record in non-conference play only to seemingly hit a wall in conference play, winning only two games—against Alabama and Georgia.
A 2-14 league record is tough to swallow for any fan base, but particularly for Arkansas fans that remember the “Glory Days” of Razorback basketball. In the minds of many, 2-14 was stretching the limits of what was expected to be a rebuilding year.
In 2009-2010, the Razorbacks, fueled by the return of Courtney Fortson, seem determined to shake off their ugly non-conference start (7-8) and treat SEC play as a new season (4-3).
On Wednesday’s game against Georgia, the Razorbacks appeared sluggish and unmotivated during the first half, and Georgia garnered a 15 point halftime lead going into the locker room.
After seeing it all during the ups and downs of his short Arkansas coaching career, Pelphrey trod into the visitor’s locker room and addressed his unpredictable squad: “I told the guys at halftime, tonight’s just not going to be our night. We’re not going to be able to get it done. Just go ahead and keep it close and we’ll try to get back in.”
According to Rotnei Clarke, that provoked some anger in the team.
Georgia fans saw a different Arkansas team emerge for the second half. Although the offense picked up (Arkansas scored 50 points in the second half as opposed to only 22 in the first half), the real difference was on the defensive side of the ball, as the Razorbacks crowded the lane and began attacking Georgia’s dribble.
One thing is certain—if Pelphrey’s unconventional coaching approach continues to bring SEC wins, it will be applauded instead of questioned.
What remains to be seen is whether this team can overcome a weak SEC West and win some quality games against SEC East opponents in the SEC Tournament. Two consecutive road wins was an important first step, the next step is to put together a complete, 40-minute game against Auburn at home.
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