Looking back at the Lockout....a fan's perspective.

By Chris Bryant

NBA players are asked to do simple things, PLAY on an organized professional team and execute as hard as you possibly can. The ultimate goal is a trophy at years end crowing a world champion. This all sounds very familiar, as kids we played organized sports. We were put on teams and we PLAYED and executed as hard as we could towards that end goal either a victory or that glorious championship trophy at seasons end.

We never went to our league officials or presidents and begged for 50 percent of what they were making. The majority of all coaches were volunteers to teach children and young adults a GAME. I for one took many life lessons from my years of playing football, basketball, baseball, and golf. I have learned great discipline to respect my coaches and elders, and to show great sportsmanship towards the other team. I was not concerned while I was on the field or court about my Ferrari or Bentley parked in the parking lot. I also was not concerned about how I should act or PLAY on the court to show my team and others of my disinterest at the end of my multi-million dollar contract. Now I understand that the NBA has the worlds top basketball athletes and they are gifted for what they do. And I for one could not reach the level they PLAY at.

NBA team owners on draft day are looking to sign 19- 20 year olds to multi-million dollar contracts for a set amount of years. At 19 years old I was working at a local carpet cleaning business making 8.50 an hour and the excitement to make my overtime hours for extra bucks. Of course it’s a dream come true for all these kids entering the league. A majority of these players are brought up in tough situations and all they know is sports, never seeing a job or how to handle money. We can look at some of the worlds most sought after athletes and the poor decisions they have made with their millions of dollars. Most college athletes never finish their degree. They wind up getting their reward in cash and not the satisfaction of hard work in the classroom. College athletics makes it possible for students to earn scholarships for an education to progress further in life after graduation.

But with huge media outlets such as ESPN, they make it hard for young adults to say, “hey they have a really good educational program, and while I PLAY sports I can earn a full ride!” In recruiting processes it stands out more. ! A bigwig coach may say ,“We can get you on ESPN every week get you exposure so people like Mel Kiper can see your progress and rate your draft stock on his segment on ESPN!” Media outlets have tainted what college sports are about. Especially the biggest sports football and basketball. We even now have national high school football and basketball games on ESPN. C’mon really! Our high school was lucky enough to get pub on local sports shows in the evening.  Too much can be said on the money of sports and the people that PLAY them. When I plan my day at WORK I don’t say I cant wait to go and prep 35 pounds of carrots into a fine julienne cut, that is hard WORK! Plumbers don’t say I am going to PLAY with some wrenches and pipes today for my paycheck. Welders don’t go out and PLAY with their torches they WORK and build all day long.

If I could walk into any of these negotiation meetings to say anything it would be this. You all PLAY basketball for a living, your work consists of practicing free throws, jump shots, lay ups, dribble drills, and working out in the gym. Your owners provide you with stadiums full of fans paying your salary to perform the PLAYING of a sport. There are thousands of hard WORKING people waiting to get back to their jobs at where you PLAY! These people make nothing compared to what you do. They work so they can earn a paycheck to pay their mortgages, car payments, health care issues etc. Can you remember when you had no money? When your family was living paycheck to paycheck? So they could provide you with your tools to PLAY your best. Basketball camps, team fee’s etc. look upon your selves right now and focus on something else besides you! You PLAY they WORK so you can PLAY! I WORK in a field where the minimum I can get paid is 7.50 an hour you PLAY in a field where your minimum is over 400,000 dollars a year! We don’t need your sympathy from charity games we just need you to PLAY! 

My All-Time Starting Five

          One of the more fun things to do in the sports world is speculate.  Speculate on the outcome of games.  Speculate on “what if” situations.  Speculate on what the future will hold. 

            I consider myself a basketball historian.  So, I am going to “speculate” and try to come up with the best team I possibly can.  I have to throw a caveat in here, because otherwise the hate mail will pour in.  I am NOT, repeat, NOT picking the best player at every position.  I am picking a TEAM that could conceivably play together for the length of an NBA season. 

            Without further adieu, here is my list:

            Point: Magic Johnson. 

            A lot of reasons to pick Magic here.  He was 6’9” and yet played point.  He could see over anyone.  He could rebound and score in the post.  One of, if not THE, most versatile players ever.  He would be my trigger man.  He can play run-n-gun or slow it down.  He is a brilliant offensive force. 

            Two-guard: Jerry West

            I picked West because I needed a zone buster.  West’s jump shot is one of the best of all time.  But he was not a one-trick pony.  He could run faster than almost anyone.  He could defend like crazy.  Having him allows Magic to guard a bigger player while West guards the opponents point.

            Small forward: Scottie Pippen

            Pippen could do it all.  He was the greatest sidekick the league has ever seen.  He was a lockdown defender and a great team defender as well.  He could handle the ball and hit jump shots to spread the floor.  He could attack.  He rebounded. 

            Power forward: Dennis Rodman

            I have a lot of scorers on this team, so I need someone who is willing to do the dirty work and not complain.  Enter Rodman.  Rodman serves a lot of purposes on this roster.  For one, he is pound for pound the second best rebounder ever.  The guy just knew where to be and above all, wanted it more than anyone else.  Second, he is the most insane defensive player I have ever seen.  Call him dirty, I don’t care.  He got the job done.  I watched his Bulls beat my Jazz twice in a row in the late 90’s for the title.  It’s easy to say that Jordan and Pippen were the reason the Bulls won.  I would argue that Rodman was just as valuable, if not more so, to that team.  He was the only player in the league who could get in the head of Karl Malone.  And that is what won the Bulls the title, as much as anything anyone else did. 

            There is no discrete metric called “Basketball IQ”, but if someone were to come up with a way to measure a person’s “Basketball IQ”, I would stake my reputation on Dennis Rodman’s being in the top 5 of all time.  The guy knew his strengths, he knew the game, and he did exactly what his team needed him to do.  Yes, he was the most bizarre human that basketball has ever seen, but he was one heck of a player.

            Center: Hakeem Olajuwon

            Hakeem might be the greatest combination of power and grace that basketball has ever seen.  He remains my all-time favorite player to watch, and that is saying something when you consider how frequently he dominated my favorite team, the Utah Jazz. 

            Hakeem had great moves in the low post, a soft touch, and a power that came from tireless work.  He ran the floor like a guard.  He took personal pride in his defense.  He was a great shot blocker and resilient rebounder.  He was one of the most complete centers of all time. 

            This team could run a five-man fast break that would be very difficult to stop.  They would rebound the ball like there is no tomorrow.  My point and wings could all handle the ball and initiate the offense.  With the exception of Magic, all of my starting five are elite defenders.  Magic would be taught to force his man toward Olajuwon, where Hakeem would clean up any junk left behind.  My team could also play half-court basketball, which would be crucial in the playoffs. 

            This team does have some weaknesses.  West is the only dead-eye shooter with Pippen as a decent second option.  A quick guard like Chris Paul or Rajon Rondo might be able to get into open spots as well.  Finally, a big center, such as Shaq or Wilt Chamberlain, might be able to wear down my frontcourt, but that problem will be solved when I reveal who would be playing off the bench later this week……

            So there you have it, that is my starting line up.  What would you change?  What would your all-time starting lineup look like?

*Big thanks to NBA writer Charley Rosen for the inspiration for this post.  Pictures are from NBA.com and Wikipedia.

            

The triumphant return of "Five for Five"!

           Welcome back to the hardest-hitting, number-crunching, wanna-be blog on the internet!  Today, I am taking a look at Runnin' Ute basketball, BYU's situation, Utah in the Pac-12 so far, the NBA Lockout, and comment boards.

Runnin’ Utes

Hard to believe, but basketball season is here! 

For the Runnin’ Utes, it’s a new beginning; in more ways than one.  This will be the team’s first year playing “big boy” ball in the Pac-12.  It is also the first year under new head coach Larry Krystkowiak. 

For a storied program like Utah, the last several years have been very frustrating.  You probably know the history.  Legendary coach Rick Majerus steps down in ’04.  The school hires Ray Giacoletti and makes a run to the sweet 16 on the shoulders of Andrew Bogut.  Bogut leaves early for the NBA, a large chunk of his supporting cast seeks greener pastures, and the program has been teetering ever since.

Ever since the MWC title run in ’08-’09, there has been constant turnover in the program.  The team would show flashes of brilliance, only to take a step back in the next game.

Now the team is starting over again.  Fresh faces have come in to play for “Coach K” and the returning players seem to have a sparkle in their eye we haven’t seen before.

What can we expect? 

Who knows.  This is a collection of players from all over and it will take time to build chemistry and rhythm.  And since there is such a large influx of new players, it is difficult to know where the overall talent level is. 

And playing in the Pac-12 will be a step up from the MWC.  Sure, the top of the MWC was probably nearly as good as the top of the Pac-12.  But there aren’t any TCUs or Wyomings in the Pac-12 to boost your record either. 

Personally, I am looking for a few things this season.  I want to see an offense that features movement.  I want to see the chemistry grow and the team to get better as the season goes along.  I want to see the players gain confidence.  I want to see consistent rebounding.  Most importantly, I don’t want to grow to love these players, only to watch them transfer in the offseason, as I have had to do over the last few years.  If they can do those things, I don’t care how many wins they have.  I know that this program will get back on track; I just want to see movement in that direction. 

BYU to the Big 12?

If you are like me, you are tired of the constant and inconsistent rumors about conference expansion.  What will the Big-12 do?  Does the Big East really want to move all the way across the country?  Will the dominoes ever stop falling? 

In one of his talks, speaker John Bytheway referenced an interesting thought:  To find out how great a country is, open up its borders completely for a while and take note.  Do people run in, or do they run out?  For instance, if Cuba was all of a sudden completely open, how many people would drown off of its coast because they are trying to escape from Florida?

Let’s apply this conference realignment.  Let’s open the borders of the Big-12, is there a rush to get in?  Sure, from smaller teams.  But let’s stick to just AQ-teams.  If you open up the conferences, do you think anyone leaves the SEC?  How about the Pac-12?  For the life of me, I just can’t see anyone jumping ship.  The Big-12 is a completely different story…..as has been demonstrated. 

Look at what you have in the Big-12.  You have the dominant program (Texas), the second dominant program (Oklahoma).  The little brothers who just take orders and do as they are told (Oklahoma State and Texas Tech).  The moochers (Baylor and Iowa State).  And the pretty good programs who will say they are invested, but they would be gone in a second if the opportunity came (Kansas and Kansas State).  You open the borders of the Big-12, and there are teams that would leave. 

I get it.  BYU could be left out in the cold.  But this independence thing is pretty darn cool for them.  They have more flexibility.  And as long as they win, ESPN will help them out with scheduling.  In other sports, the WCC is a good place to be.  If I was BYU, I would avoid the Big-12 at all costs. 

In my opinion, the best option for the Cougars (assuming they want in) is to get on board with this Big East expansion, in football only.  That would be a nice mix of regional games and national exposure across the country.  If the Big East was able to grab Boise and BYU, along with Air Force, Navy, Houston, and SMU, that is an AQ conference in my book.

The joys of the Pac-12……

Earlier, I touched on a subject about competition in the Pac-12.  The football team at Utah has found out the hard way that things aren’t as “Rosy” as they thought they might be in their new conference. 

Every week is a new challenge.  The teams are bigger, stronger, faster, and more battle hardened than the average MWC team.  Utah has to adjust.

Clearly, Utah is not as bad of a team as they have shown so far.  Utah can and will compete in this conference.  A rash of bad luck and some program mistakes have put them where they are now. 

                There are too many factors that have been discussed to the point of beating a dead horse around the internet.  To sum it up, Utah was not ready at the QB position this year.  An average QB can get you a decent spot in the MWC if you have some other things; but it doesn’t work in the Pac-12.   

                As the years go by, I think you’ll see Utah win more than their fair share of games in their new conference, but it will take some precious time.  As with basketball, fans need to be patient and continue to support their team through thick and thin.

                NBA Lockout and the casual fan

                I should be excited to watch the NBA tip off in the next week, but instead I am fed an endless supply of “information from sources” about how close and far away the NBA and players are from reaching a deal.  

                Bottom line: these guys need to come to a deal soon.  There are people whose livelihood depends on the NBA and they are tossed to the side in this battle of egos.  I don’t have time or the interest in spelling it all out, but the players are going to have to cave sooner than the owners.  That’s just the way that the leverage works.  I don’t like either side, but the owners have more resources.                 

                Just get it done, you bozos.  If you wait too long, you risk alienating the casual fan, and they might never come back.  And you come off looking bad.  Just get it done, please.

                Online comment boards….

                If you want to find the corner of the world where the lowest forms of human life hang out, you don’t need to visit your local slum, or even your nearby state prison.  Just take a gander at your local paper and the comment boards. 

                For a sampling of what I am talking about, you should read the comments on the Deseret News website.  It is an endless battle of brain bankrupt Utah and BYU fans that battle over the most trivial things.  They are constantly trying to one up each other.  You can find more maturity at your local Daycare.

                And the funny thing is, the Deseret News claims to want to create an environment where civil dialogue occurs.  Their way of doing this is to screen and approve of every comment before it gets posted.  That’s a nice idea, not exactly the most American thing I have ever seen, but I see where they are coming from. 

                Still, they fail at it.  When I posted there, I had numerous comments “rejected” because of a breach of the rules.  I never swore, I never used inflammatory words, or anything.  And yet, I have seen numerous people get posts with curse words and posts that are meant to be inflammatory across.  Anytime you put people together where they can say things anonymously and not have any consequences, you are asking for trouble.  The fact that they pre-screen and still allow all of that junk boggles my mind. 

                Great Job Des News!  You get the “Epic Fail of the Day”!   

                If you want comment boards that really have civil dialogue, check out any of the SB Nation blogs, those are the best run blogs and message boards on the World Wide Web, and they probably have a blog dedicated to your favorite team.