Oh, c’mon, how could I pass that up? So, if you didn’t know, no sooner did I say nice things about Team USA than they turned around and reverted to NBA ball, playing a couple of closer-than-expected games, and getting bounced in the semifinals of the World Basketball Championships by basketball powerhouse Greece. I blame… Continue reading Greece Is the Word
Category: Basketball
White Men Can Jump. Sort Of.
A couple of guys goaded me into trying to dunk at the lunchtime basketball game today. “You’ve lost a lot of weight,” they said, knowing I’m a sucker for flattery, “You’ve got to be close.” So I tried, and much to my surprise, succeeded. It wasn’t what you’d call Jordanesque– I barely got the ball… Continue reading White Men Can Jump. Sort Of.
Actual Basketball
I want to take a quick moment to echo what Dave Sez about the World Basketball Championships: Now, I know what you’re thinking. You’ve seen the US play in past years and have been underwhelmed and maybe a bit disgusted. I’m with you. I felt the same way. Ever since the Dream Team in 1992,… Continue reading Actual Basketball
Aging Hoopsters
The Miami Heat won the NBA title last night, led by young superstar Dwyane Wade, and obtained championship rings for a bunch of guys who have been around for years without winning, like Gary Payton and Alonzo Mourning. It’s alo another title for Shaquille O’Neal, which probably gives him a conclusive victory over Kobe Bryant… Continue reading Aging Hoopsters
Special Bonus Duke Bashing
Via Dave Sez, Chris Chase has all the J.J. Redick DUI jokes you could possibly want: * Redick’s arrest could actually help his draft status, as the Portland Trail Blazers are currently sitting at #4. * To keep up with his pal, Adam Morrison plans on knocking off a Seattle-area liquor store this evening. Special… Continue reading Special Bonus Duke Bashing
Thrown to the Wolves
Last night was the third annual faculty-student basketball game, held as a fund-raiser for charity by a local sorority. This year the threw us a team that included five players from the varsity, including the only 2,000-point scorer in school history. Needless to say, we didn’t win… It was sorta-kinda close for a while, until… Continue reading Thrown to the Wolves
Methadone Basketball
In a previous post, I dissed the NBA as being a haven for ugly pseudo-basketball. It does serve a purpose, though, as a sort of methadone program to ease the way down from the hoops-jukie high of March to the Great Sports Desert between the end of the NBA and the start of the NFL.… Continue reading Methadone Basketball
Spinal Tap Fortells the Future
The New York Times Book Review section this week features a big two-page ad for the Penguin Classics/ NBA cross-promotion. This involves a handful (well, four– a shop-teacher handful) of NBA/ WNBA stars promoting books in the Penguin line, the best of the lot being Dwyane Wade talking about Pride and Prejudice. You can get… Continue reading Spinal Tap Fortells the Future
Hoops Hypothesis
Hypothesis: The outcome of any pick-up basketball game depends more strongly on the match-up between the two worst players on each team than the match-up between the two best players on each team. Argument: If the talent differential between the worst players is sufficiently large, then on defense, the better of the two is essentially… Continue reading Hoops Hypothesis
Final Four Preview
Because my bracket picks this year have been so uncannily accurate (tied for twelfth of 23 in the ScienceBlogs pool), I’m sure you’re all dying to know what my predictions are for the Final Four games, if only so you can bet the opposite. The short version is: Florida over LSU in the title game.… Continue reading Final Four Preview