My observations after another week of basketball and another week of retirement…
Flipping My Opinion- I don’t know if others have had similar experiences or not. I could not stand Jeff VanGundy when he was the Knicks coaching and I couldn’t stand Reggie Miller with the Pacers. They eventually became two of my favorite TV announcers.
More Coaches Needed- Now that so many networks are trying to cover college, NBA, and WNBA games, the quality of announcers really has become watered down. My opinion is that most of the time former coaches are much more interesting to listen to and give more insight.
Great to Listen To- When I hear the following are announcing, I am excited to listen…
Announcer- Kevin Harlan (my top pick)
Color- (Hubie Brown/Jeff VanGundy- no one close to them), Tim Legler, Doris Burke, Stan VanGundy, Candace Parker, and Dwayne Wade- they all add to the game and give some insight.
Sideline- Lisa Salter in class of her own.
Studio Hosts- Ernie Johnson in class of his own
Studio Talking Heads- Charles Barkley, Shaq, Andraya Carter, Udonis Haslem, Dirk Nowitzki, and Steve Nash. The studio on Prime is different than the old TNT group, but the team of Nash, Nowitzki, and Haslem gives better basketball insight than the TNT crew (ESPN).
It’s a Long Night- When any of these are covering things, I find it not very enjoyable.
Grant Hill- sorry but he is the master of the obvious with very little insight.
Richard Jefferson- annoying.
Jay Bilas- I think I have a strong anti-Duke bias.
Rebecca Lobo- She tries so hard to be unbiased but just glows when talking about UConn players.
Chiney Ogwumaka and Monica McNutt- no thanks.
Wemby- I have been very impressed with Wemby off-the-court. When interviewed, he seems honest and even down to earth. He is going to be good for basketball both on and off the court.
Popovich- It was great watching a feather on Pop’s role with the Spurs today. He doesn’t seem to over step and get in the way, but he is at practices and gives one on one talks with the players and coaches. He’s on my list of four people to invite for dinner.
Caitlin Clark- It seems we still have four groups of people with opinions about Clark-Not Fever Fans, Fever-Clark Fans, Clark-Basketball Lovers Fans, UConn Clark Haters.
Clark-Basketball Lovers Fans are people like Lebron James, Charles Barkely who admire her skill level.
Fever-Clark Fans are the fans who love Clark because they want to win and winning is the top priority.
UConn-Clark Haters- I don’t need to explain.
Clark-Not Fever Fans are the ones right now that are all upset about Raven Johnson being drafted, and are upset that they think Clark is being removed as point guard. I listened to an analysis of Clarks game. Last year Clark ran more ball screens and more isolation than she did in her senior year at Iowa. Last year she scored lower percentage of time in backdoors and catch/shoots than at Iowa.
People need to relax, there is a lot for the Fever to figure out. They have only played three preseason games and one regular season game.
I realize that those of us who are Clark Fans and/or Fever Fans get annoyed by the UConn Haters, but we need to take a deep breath and realize Clark doesn’t have to prove she is the greatest WNBA player in each game.
Fouls and Refs- I watched the San Antonio vs Minnesota game 3. It was a blood bath, it was everything NBA haters say is wrong with the NBA. It was brutal how much the refs let go. I like the NBA but last night it was bad to watch.
Today I watched the Fever vs Wing, and it was the opposite. I know we complained about the WNBA being too physical, but the adjustment flipped it to another extreme. If the WNBA continues to call games that way, we will see a lot of free throws.
The Pitt- I normally am not big on medical shows. When my wife first suggested that we watch The Pitt, I was reluctant. After the first episode, we both weren’t sure we wanted to continue. By the third episode of season 1, we were hooked. We have watched season 1 and 2.
Each season is just one day in the life of a Pittsburgh emergency room. It is more about the workers than about medicine. For me some good sports analogies-
Who are good teammates?
Who struggles to leave their personal lives at the door?
How hard is it to go onto the next play?
How does the coach head doctor handle the team?
How do they handle loss?
Obviously the sports analogies are a stretch but thumbs up on the show!!
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