Mike D'Antoni, Coach K and offensive basketball

On a basketball coach's site, I saw some marketing that said that Coach K adopted Mike D'Antoni's "seven seconds or less" offense while spending the summer with D'Antoni at the Olympics.

Since D'Antoni and Vance Walberg became household names, I have marveled at the way that people characterize their offenses.

Has everyone forgot about Duke University with Jay Williams, Chris Duhon, Mike Dunleavy and others? They spread the court with the low post opposite and ran a high on-ball screen to get penetration into the lane for a kick-out three-pointer or a lay-up.

I know this because, at the time, I used Duke's offense as the major influence for my Blitz Basketball system.

I think it is funny when people suggest that Coach K is using D'Antoni's system or Walberg's system. Coach K changed his system during the J.J. Reddick years to set staggered screens for J.J. Once J.J. graduated, he returned to the dribble penetration, high on-ball screen offense of the previous years. Singler sets the on-ball screen and pops, much like Dunleavy did back in the day.

Yet, now to market products, Coach K is using other the Walberg system or D'Antoni's system. It's all hype and marketing. It's basic basketbal: spacing, on-ball screen and ball movement. It's how the majority of high level teams in Europe play too.

Duke Excuses

Duke lost to Villanova in the Sweet 16 and suddenly Duke does not have enough talent:

A coach who once had the luxury of leaving McDonald’s All-Americans at the end of the bench is now desperate for an infusion of talent. He’s got too many nice kids and not enough great athletes.

Really? Was there a player on the court more athletic than Gerald Henderson, who Duke beat Villanova to sign? Well, maybe Elliot Williams, another Duke McDonald's All-American.

As for McDonald's All-Americans at the end of the bench, that's what he had last year with Taylor King, who is sitting out the season as a transfer at Villanova.

Every Duke starter last night is a former McDonald's All-American (Kyle Singler, Gerald Henderson, Jon Scheyer, Elliott Williams and Lance Thomas), plus the Blue Devils had Greg Paulus on the bench.

Since when is a roster of six McDonald's All-Americans not enough talent to reach the Elite Eight?

NCAA Tournament as "proof" or misleader of NBA potential

The Memphis Commercial Appeal has an article that touts Mike Conley Jr as proof of the NCAA Tournament's importance in evaluating players for the NBA Draft.

"In some cases, it changes radically," Griz general manager Chris Wallace said. "It is human nature that what you see last sticks most prominently in your mind," Wallace said. "We give more credence to what guys do late than what they do early. ... But it's not just the tournament. The (draft) workouts can be an important part of the process in terms of putting the final grade on a player."

While I don't doubt the importance of the NCAA Tournament - Chicago's Derrick Rose is another example with Memphis connections - I think an argument can be made for the tournament's role as misleading talent evaluators. Example: Toronto's Patrick O'Bryant, a lottery pick who burst on the scene in the tournament and then faded into obscurity during his, thus far, short and inconsequential pro career.

The problem, as I have argued recently in regards to college recruiting and rankings, is that development requires the right internal characteristics. How will a player react to becoming an instant millionaire? What are his goals? How does he handle failure? How does he handle success? How will he cope with adversity? How does he take care of his body?

Playing great or playing poorly in the NCAA Tournament does not answer these questions, which is why I have said before that a personal interview would be among the most important aspects of the draft process for me. If I can learn about the internal qualities of a player, I feel that I could make a better decision. I based my position that I would have drafted O.J. Mayo as the #1 player last year on several articles and interviews with Mayo and Beasley. Mayo appeared to have the drive and mental qualities consistent with a superstar, while Beasley seemed flakey (finding information on Rose's personality was more difficult, which is why I ultimately chose Mayo).

Cal vs. USC Women's Basketball ending

Saturday night, I watched the end of the Cal vs. USC game as USC did everything in its power to lose the game. With .3 of a second, the officials whistled a jump ball and gave possession to Cal. After a timeout, Lauren Grief threw a perfect lob pass to Ashley Walker who jumped, caught the ball and made the shot. Based on the clock, she shot the ball before the clock hit 0 to send the game to overtime.

After 15 minutes, the officials decided that the basket was no good. They said at the time that with .3 of a second, you can only tip the ball.

I have scoured the internet for 2 days to find more information. I have never heard of this rule and am interested in its origins.

In the NBA, you have to have .3 of a second to be able to catch and shoot (The Trent Tucker Rule). Why is the NCAA rule different?

This video shows Jason Kapono shooting a basketball and making a 3-pointer in .22 seconds.



On his initial attempt, It took Kapono .19 seconds to set the ball; it took .o9 to catch and .1 to shoot. So, without changing anything, the question for Walker was whether she took time to set the ball before she released it.

Of course, that is also subjective to this rule. I'm just interested where the rule originates and why .3 of a second means only a tip in NCAA basketball. Maybe the NCAA should watch Fox Sports and Sports Science.

Sports Science suggests keeping time in hundreths of a second, rather than tenths of a second. Similarly, with Walker's shot, who knows whether it was .39 or .31 seconds. So, again, where did the rule originate and why does a college player require .4 to catch and shoot?

Courtney Paris is a Baller!

I have a new favorite player. Several days after I dissed Courtney Paris by excluding her from my 1st team All-American list, I changed my mind. She's my new favorite player in any sport. Ever.

In a speech on senior night last week, Paris said that if the third-ranked Sooners don't win the title, she'll give back her scholarship money, valued at close to $64,000, according to a story in The Oklahoman.

"I have a passion for our fans and university, and I want to do something special," Paris said, according to The Oklahoman. "That's why I put my scholarship on the table. I meant what I said."

"So when you're good enough and don't do something, then you have to take accountability for that and that's your own fault. We can win a national championship. If we don't, I'll feel like I didn't earn my scholarship."

BALLER!! This is fantastic. Can you imagine Kobe Bryant giving up his salary if the Lakers fail to win the NBA Championship?

This is the greatest guarantee EVER! A college kid giving back her scholarship because she didn't earn it. Fantastic. I love personal responsibility. I met Courtney Paris when she was in high school. Great kid.

Tyreke Evans and the NBA Draft

Last year, I said that I would take O.J. Mayo as the #1 pick because I thought he had the attributes to be a star in the NBA, and when picking first, you have to draft a star. I favored Kevin Durant over Greg Oden for the same reason, and going back a couple more years, I favored Dwight Howard over Emeka Okafur because Okafur was going to be a safe pick and a pretty good player, but Howard had superstar potential. At #1, you cannot pass up the superstar.

This year, Oklahoma's Blake Griffin is everyone's #1 pick. But, most people seem to agree that there is not a superstar in the draft. Griffin should be a very good pro, and, to me, is probably a harder working, slightly bigger version of Michael Beasley, though Beasley probably has a better all-around skill set. Some call him the next Karl Malone - if he is that, then he is definitely the #1 pick.

I do not believe in the star potential of many of the top players. I like James Harden. Hasheem Thabeet will block shots, but he will never be a star. He's not a better player than either of the Lopez brothers or Roy Hibbert who were not top ten picks last season. I love Greg Monroe's skills, but I would not take a player who appears "soft" with the #1 pick because he likely does not have the mentality to be THE GUY on a championship team. Choosing #1, you have to pick the guy that you think can be THE GUY on a championship team.

Right now, if I had the #1 draft pick - before watching players in the NCAA Tournament - Tyreke Evans would be near or at the top of the list. I have not watched him closely enough to say for sure that I would take him #1, but, of all the players likely to be in this year's draft, Evans is the player who I believe has superstar potential. He's 6'5 and playing point guard and leading Memphis toward a #1 seed.

I checked some mock drafts and nobody has Evans in the lottery, so maybe I am crazy. We'll see in the NCAA Tournament when I can watch some of the top prospects a little more closely.

NCAA Women's Basketball All-Americans

I do not know if this has ever happened before, but UConn is so much better than everyone else in women's basketball that they deserve three 1st Team All-Americans. How do you choose only 1 or 2 from among Rene Montgomery, Maya Moore and Tina Charles? Montgomery is the consummate team leader and point guard; Moore is the most talented player in the country; and Charles is arguably the best all-around post player in the country. Who do you ignore?

In my eyes, there are at most seven players in the running for 1st Team All-American:
Montgomery, Moore and Charles
Kristi Tolliver, Maryland
Angel McCoughtry, Louisville
Courtney Paris, Oklahoma
DeWanna Bonner, Auburn

Picking which two to put on the 2nd Team is difficult.

1st Team
Rene Montgomery
Maya Moore
Kristi Tolliver
Tina Charles
DeWanna Bonner

POY Rene Montgomery

As much as I like Paris, in the games that I watched, I thought Charles looked like the better player, despite Paris' incredible double-double streak. The tougher choice, actually, was among Bonner, Tolliver and McCoughtry. Leaving McCoughtry off the 1st Team is incredibly difficult, as she's an exceptional player. However, I thought four Big East players was probably pushing it, and as much as I like McCoughtry, she's not better or more deserving than Moore or Montgomery.

I imagine the "real" All-American list will be more diplomatic and likely feature Paris, McCoughtry/Moore, Bonner, Tolliver and Montgomery with Charles as a 2nd Teamer.

Sports Pranks

I used to visit collegehumor.com in my younger days, but had forgotten about the site until I saw the new MTV show. Then, on twitter, someone linked this video, which is too funny. Helped me laugh off another job that I did not get.

Watch Prank War 7: The Half Million Dollar Shot and more funny videos on CollegeHumor

The prank that precipitated it:

Watch Prank War: The Yankee Prankee on CollegeHumor

Mt. Rushmore of Sports

ESPN and Rick Reilly announced their Mt. Rushmore of sports this week. They crowned Chicago. The four faces: Mike Ditka, Michael Jordan, Walter Payton and Ernie Banks. Reilly's explanation was that all four changed the sports that they played.

If that's his criteria, I have a better winner. I don't need an entire city. I nominate UCLA.

UCLA's four: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jackie Robinson, John Wooden and Arthur Ashe.

If you want people who changed their sport, can you name a better list? While MJ is GOAT, the NCAA outlawed dunking because of Kareem. Robinson is the key figure in the integration of sports and was listed on New York and Los Angeles' potential Rushmore line-up. Ashe was the first African-American to win a tennis open. If the U.S. named a "coaching laureate," like the poet laureate, I cannot imagine anyone receiving more support than Wooden.

Of course, there are several others who could make UCLA's list. Karch Kiraly is synonymous with beach volleyball. Jackie Joyner-Kersee might be the best female Olympian in U.S. history.

But, while Chicago's four are great, I don't see how anyone can argue those four influenced sports more than UCLA's four: Abdul-Jabbar, Ashe, Robinson and Wooden.