People are saying David Stern should be upset with what Labron James did with the 1 hour special last Thursday. I find that quite funny because what David Stern is upset about is HE DID NOT THINK ABOUT DOING THIS HIMSELF. Trust me in the future the free agent sweepstakes will be on TNT with major sponsors and David Stern himself on the microphone announcing who is going where because in the future David, being the smart guy he is, will have everyone announce on the same day. I am sure he really was all over some of his senior advisers for not thinking about doing this earlier and hates the fact they missed out on a huge revenue day with multiple sponsors.
Back to Lebron James and the others. Lebron had a right to sign where he wished. I for one am very surprised it was with Miami and not back with Cleveland. I guess when you make the money that these guys make, an extra twenty five million is just a drop in the bucket. All those ex NBA players struggling out there must be wondering why they were born so early lol. I would have loved Lebron James and others to give back to a fund for disadvantaged ex players and NBA employees. Maybe they can get the old Maurice Stokes game up and running at a location such as NY or Miami with all proceeds including sponsor money going to a special fund!
Playing wise I commend Lebron, Wade, and Bosh for all making this happen. But I doubt they will be the super power winning 5 NBA titles in 7 years. In fact I doubt they will win one in the next 4 years. They will however be a sell out at arenas across the country with 2 2/3 super stars and a bunch of USDBL type players on the squad. The real winners here are Chris Bosh and Carlos Boozer, the ex Duke stand out who is being paid more than anyone would have expected when he came out of college years ago. When the 3 amigos hooked up together it opened the bank vault for others because on a PR tip teams had to do something to prove they were attempting to improve their teams.
Jordan Farmer to the Nets? WOW! Why? They did not get Labron or anyone similar but they got Farmer! Nuff said!
The Knicks have reclaimed the NY metro area with the Amar'e Stoudemire acquisition. Trust me this is huge and many feel he is really better than Bosh! However please note the Knicks took a huge chance on this one, and much because of the PR factor, because not many teams were really interested based on the past condition of his leg. In fact many say the leg could not even be insured so if he goes down the Knicks will just loose the money the paid him. But if that leg holds up he will be a great addition to The Knicks.
Last NBA thought because I really am not a professional basketball fan but had to watch this past year because the local college scene was so dreadful. The Cleveland owner is human as is Labron. He has a right to be upset and express his thoughts any way he wishes. As a person who has experienced discrimination I get upset when guys take what he said and makes it into a racial thing! What he said had nothing to do with race!!!! He would have said the same thing if it was Larry Bird, or the Johnny Rocket the high flying 6 ft 11 forward from Mars who can jump, shoot, pass, and defend. Do not let the green skin fool you. Special announcement about him on TNT hosted by David Stern.
College and HS Basketball
I wonder how The University of Miami feels with all the NBA hoopla in the city? I would bet it will impact attendance. However that impact will be negative because everyone is embracing the Heat. The University of Miami has now moved down to the B Team category from JV. Even Luke will be more involved with the Heat in the future lol. I do think the hoopla will help Miami recruitment wise. All eyes have been on Miami for the past couple of days and the Miami Coaches are most likely milking the situation to the fullest.
Seems all quiet on the St. Johns front. I still say they are going to regret the day they let Ronold Roberts go to St. Joe's in Philly. But we all know St. Johns has returned to the sexy Status in the area they had years ago. With great returning talent, thanks to Norm Roberts, they will be a great team to follow. But thus far I see no headway into the homes of the elite recruits needed for St. Johns to get to the next level of the Big East. Still waiting for that top 20 type guy to commit!
Seton Hall is loaded! Willard could have not planned a better start for himself in his dreams. This team has no excuses. The talent is there thanks to Bobby Gonzales and Dermon Player and the experience factor is in their favor. The marketing department at Seton Hall should be working over time in an attempt to lift that curtain a notch or two this season and attract 13,000 fans to many games. I for one am very interested in seeing what the Pirates do this season. The talent is really in place for a special type of season!
Rutgers seems to have a very good staff in place and willing to work. The question is will Mike Rice be that Ambassador Rutgers needs all over the State of NJ and into NY and Pennsylvania?
Great staff in place with connections from the south to the north. Looking forward to running into Coach Rice this summer somewhere and seeing how approachable he is after watching the ex coach change right in front of our eyes from being a great personable guy to a paranoid person who no one could talk to and a guy who told his assistants who they could and could not speak with. Unfortunately the talent is not there for them to do much. But maybe Coach Rice will make them that special Providence type team Rick Pitino had years ago. Anything is possible. Those Rutgers kids might decide to leave everything on the floor and steal a bunch of games they would normally lose. Nowhere to go but up at Rutgers. Still waiting for the RAC facility improvement plan and really Hope they will do something soon. It is almost a crime what that place has become appearance and attendance wise.
FDU does not renew Associate Coach Ron Browns Contract!Classy guy who deserved better and got it. Ron Brown is now an Assistant at Binghamton University. Shows good guys sometimes land on their feet at better locations than where they were. Ron was hired based on Mark Macon remembering him from his days playing at Temple and Ron always being encouraging to all A10 players while at West Virginia. Ron Brown is CLASS with a capital C.
John Morton to Fordham? GREAT MOVE for everyone involved! I love John Morton and what he brings to the table. This guy is such a winner and will always be a favorite player to me going back to his days playing for Sol Frazier at Walton HS in the Bronx. John was classy then, classy at Seton Hall, and Classy at St. Peters. Go get them John!
Speaking of Fordham. Whats up with the GYM? A10 and a old matchbox gym? Please! That will always stop them from getting the very good A10 recruits. How do they compete for players being right off Fordham Road near the South Bronx Boarder? Yes the academics are GREAT! But kids love facilities more than anything else. how about 4 games a year in Madison Square Garden. How about working with the city to build a 10,000 seat arena in the Bronx for the entire boro to share? Well at least they have a very good coaching staff in place with Tom Picora in charge.
Iona? Iona fans can dog me and anyone else all they wish. As person who has ALWAYS talked about the great benefits of a Iona degree, especially for basketball players, I still feel they are behind the 8 ball and should have put together a better basketball staff. I will however wait until they play before saying anything else about them. But I will say it must be nice to go from HS Assistant to D1 Assistant without ever serving on a D1 staff anywhere. Especially with so many experienced guys looking for employment. Again not as much a knock on the person hired as it is on the process.
Manhattan? Will this be the year Manhattan returns to past glory? Will the Head Coach regret he did not join Steve Lavin at St. Johns? Again I hear the Head Coach at Manhattan is one of THE GREAT GUYS in College Basketball.
Monmouth and its new basketball facility is waiting for a winning team and fans flocking to games in record numbers. Will this be the year? Everyone is watching and many coaches are very interested in a school that has the potential to be the best mid major program on the east coast.
Hofstra? All I can say is they were smart enough to hire Wayne Morgan as an Assistant and that along with Steve Demeo (sp) alone will make them very good. Now Steve will hopefully not bolt to LaSalle which wants him very badly.
HS
Loved the story on Johnny Mathis in NYC Daily News. One of the great guys in NYC basketball and a guy I am proud to have as a friend. I hope he feels the same way about me lol.
Ran into new Rice Head Basketball Coach Dwayne Mitchell at an event on Saturday night. Had a nice talk with him and think we both see some things different. He will be an outstanding Coach and hopefully continue the tradition at Rice HS that has gone on years dating back to Dean The Dream Meminger and Charlie Yelverton and the big guy Lionheart (sp) who attended Georgia.
