In life, it’s very difficult to get to the mountaintop, because one day leads to another day and leads to another day. There are small wins and losses in the process. You win an election or lose an election. You can close a deal or not close a deal. But in sports, what you can do as a team, a with your fans feeling part of it, is show what’s possible for human beings to achieve if they work together, if they care about each other. Winning the title gave resolution to people who didn’t have much resolution in lives, …
Building and Developing Great Teams
As the season ends for the Toronto Raptors, they are faced with the fact that success may be multiple drafts away. Consistent winners have built their teams through the draft, selecting talented athletes and developing them into great players.
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Leaving Nashville
On Tuesday, the Nashville Predators suspended two of their late season acquisitions, Andrei Kostitsyn and Alexander Radulov, for missing curfew during a playoff series with the Phoenix Coyotes. The players, ostensibly added to the roster in order to strengthen the squad for the postseason, appear to have lost focus at a critical time as they were allegedly sighted at 4:00am in a Scottsdale bar the night/morning before a lopsided loss that placed the team at a 0-2 deficit in the series. When a group of people comes together to form a team, nothing is more disheartening than when a few …
Did Derrick Rose Suffer an Overuse Injury?
Was Derrick Rose’s injury caused by overuse and a lack of recovery time or because he was adjusting to avoid aggravating existing lower body injuries?
Conflict in the Stanley Cup Playoffs
A week into the playoffs, the National Hockey League has surpassed the record for suspensions for the entire Stanley Cup playoffs (nine in 2012 compared to eight in 2011). Media outlets have been complaining about lax discipline and fans have been mocking the league and the apparent lack of oversight. While this has generated a tremendous amount of coverage and interest, it will ultimately prove disastrous for the sport.
After Timeouts
When they lose, the Toronto Raptors do very poorly after timeouts. They do not score enough and they do not get enough possessions in the paint. On Friday, they scored on 5/13 post-timeout shots and only got into the paint five times. The Raptors lost to the Cavs 80-84.
Tale of Two Transitions
Miami is a top ten team in fast break scoring and Toronto is in the top ten of fast break scoring defense. However, during their game on March 30th 2012, the Raptors had trouble coping with the Heat’s speed and aggression, in addition to their good habits while pushing the ball.
Free Kobe
During a 102-96 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, Los Angeles Lakers coach Mike Brown was criticized for leaving Kobe Bryant on the bench for about four out of the final six minutes. During this time, Memphis continued their run and sealed the victory (the margin would have been nine points except Andrew Bynum made a three-point shot as time expired). As the Staples Centre crowd chanted for Kobe, Brown left the N.B.A.’s leading scorer on the bench. When Kobe went to the scorer’s table to check in, play did not stop so he waited an additional minute of …
Four Factors at the Final Four
If the four primary basketball statistics prevail (Effective Field Goal %, Turnover %, Offensive Rebounding % and Free Throw Rate), the N.C.A.A. Final will feature Kentucky defeating Kansas. By the way, the 4 Factors suggested Kansas would beat North Carolina, even before Kendall Marshall was injured.
38 Days Later: Is Linsanity Over?
Contrasting the performance of Jeremy Lin between a 90-87 win over the Toronto Raptors on February 14th and a 96-79 loss on March 23rd. How has the return of Carmelo Anthony and the hiring of Mike Woodson changed Lin’s numbers?
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Watching the N.C.A.A. Tournament
As the 2012 N.C.A.A. Tournament reaches the Sweet 16 stage, more and more players, coaches and fans will be tuning in to watch the games. The volume of basketball has decreased significantly from the opening weekend but the viewers’ interest rises exponentially. The games are entertaining simply because of the excitement but they can also serve as a learning opportunity for elite athletes. Apparently, Generation Y prefers to talk more about an issue rather actually addressing it but there is no reason for players to forgo an opportunity to develop their game.
Duke Tournament Losses
Recent Duke losses in the NCAA Tournament, from LSU in 2006 to Arizona in 2011 to Lehigh in 2012 all follow a similar narrative. Duke’s strength is their consistency but it can fail them because they have a hard time adapting to adversity.
The Iron Lady
Following recent trends, Meryl Streep won an Academy Award for a convincing portrayal of a recent historical figure in a biopic that was enjoyed by many (following Sean Penn in Milk, Philip Seymour Hoffman in Capote and Jamie Foxx in Ray). Others portrayed dynamic characters and captivated audiences but Streep truly brought The Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher, to life. Looking back at a nearly forty year political career while suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, Streep (and Jim Broadbent who played Denis Thatcher) soar to heights that the plain film is incapable of reaching.
Tournament Experience
The one factor that might trip up Kentucky’s favoured team is that they all have their sights set on other goals. They could fall victim to a squad that is more experienced and more motivated to win the tournament.
Where’s Fab Melo?
What is Syracuse missing without Fab Melo? It may be time to re-do the East Regional part of your bracket given Melo’s ineligibility.
Decisions on Defense
LeBron James passes instead of taking a shot. Any time, especially Utah, would be content for someone else on Miami to take the game winning shot instead of James. The players with the ball in crunch time must read the defense, know the situation and make good decisions.