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Austin Collie is going to die: The dudes you should hate this week

Ken — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 15:34:02 +0000

Austin Collie got his third concussion of the season Sunday. Once more he was lead by a perfectly-thrown Peyton Manning pass that perfectly led him into a skull-crushing hit from a Jaguars safety.

I remember when Carson Palmer predicted before the start of the season that somebody will die some day playing football. If that is going to come true, my guess is that somebody is going to be Austin Collie.

Three concussions this season. And he doesn’t seem to get the more mild-seeming concussions that used to be called “getting your bell rung.” No. His concussions have been the kind that have left him motionless on the field for minutes.

Austin Collie, if he does not retire, will die because the style of play he has to play leaves him vulnerable to the big blows from oversized, overly fast defenders. He’s not an outside edge of the field, high speed guy. He’s not the extremely tall, athletic feature receiver that mostly stays on the edge of the field. No. He succeeds at wide receiver only because he is willing to spend all his time running routes in the middle of the field. His tenacity and fearlessness are his best attributes. And it’s those same attributes that are going to kill him when combined with the fact that he’s got an apparently fragile dome.

Austin Collie either abandons the attributes that make him marketable as an NFL player, rendering him useless, or he retires or he dies.

He will die so that everyone will continue to think Manning is such a perfect quarterback. Really, Manning just doesn’t care if he leads his receivers directly devastating spinal and cranial injuries. Did you see Manning storm off the field after the latest pass that caused Collie to get clobbered? He looked less like he was angry at himself for causing Collie all sorts of future migraines, memory loss, dementia and more like he was angry at failing to convert a third down.

Fuck him.

Moving on to more important matters. I lost last week and missed the playoffs by a half game in my fantasy football league. The playoffs started this week and I had to sit back and watch as my players blew the fuck up. Ray Rice? A rushing and a receiving touchdown. Where the fuck did that vulture McGahee go this week? That guy’s a fucking taint rag. Rice was my keeper from last season and that fucked me hard. And Collie came back to bust out two TDs before Manning made another attempt at killing him. I hate fantasy football.

Also important: this. You’re welcome.

And, hey, how ’bout those bowl games this weekend, huh? Yeah, I didn’t watch them either.

3. UConn’s women’s basketball streak

The UConn women’s basketball team under Geno Auriemma has won 88 straight games, tying the men’s record set by John Wooden’s UCLA teams from back when your uncle was acquiring PTSD in Vietnam. UCLA teams made up of legends. Lew Alcindor was on some of those teams. So now the ESPN-led hype machine for the UConn women’s streak is in full force and based entirely on the idea of the watching in awe as the women’s streak surpasses the men’s streak. *dismissive wank*

This is not comparable to the UCLA men’s streak so stop comparing them. It has possibly one-fifth of the significance. No. Not that much.

It’s two entirely different sports and anyone who has actually watched women’s basketball knows that and will tell you that after they wake up from that nap.

I believe the big day is Tuesday when UConn takes on a bunch of ugly girls from who-gives-a-fuck. Seriously, just who gives a fuck? There’s no competition in NCAA women’s basketball, and even when there is, nobody gives a shit about a really boring game that looks a lot harder than it is. Fuck you, Geno Auriemma. It’s not sour grapes about girls breaking a boy’s streak. It’s about comparing apples to oranges, or legendary accomplishment with meh.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars

This could’ve been the year the Colts would have finally missed the playoffs, destroying their fat, spoiled, Manning-apologist fans. The Jags just had to beat them Sunday. I know, too good to be true, right? I mean, fetushead misses the playoffs and Indiana residents have to go back to fucking their pets while they blame the offensive line for ruining their hopes and dreams.

Nope. Instead the Colts win the game, control their own destiny, and will likely host a playoff game in which they’ll shit the bed.

But then what did you expect from a team with David Garrard at quarterback.

1. Post-Christmas depression

I hate the day after Christmas. All month long I genuinely enjoy the Christmas spirit as well as the anticipation of the good feelings and the giving and receiving of gifts that accompanies drinking on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

But then it’s all over. The day after I’ll have to pack all my shit up and make the long drive from my parents comfortable house all the way back to my shitty apartment in a shitty town. And suddenly the early sunset will not mean I can turn on the Christmas tree lights earlier. No, it just be depressing and dark, though I’ll still keep the tree up and lit for at least another week.

At least this year, we have a full day of NFL games to soften the blow. Hey, even the Packers still have a playoff shot. Merry Christmas to me.

LARPers vs. Quidditch lovers: Who ya got?: The dudes you should hate this week

Ken — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 14:00:31 +0000

Because sports is a pretty safe outlet for all the hate, failure and aggression in your life, here is a list of dudes at whom you should direct those death threats you like to whisper under your breath during those degrading moments that seem to fill up the days. You can follow Ken on Twitter or catch him at 1yellerjournalist.com.

Purchased Mario Kart for the Wii at a pawn shop this weekend. That was a great purchase.

Also wanted to point out I got a double colon into the title of this entry. Pretty awesome, right? You’re damn right it is.

Now on to the hate!

3. Baseball Writers Association of America

For those who don’t know, this is the group that decides what baseball writers get to vote for the sport’s awards and coordinates all that ruckus. So, this lame-ass group of nerds is just now getting around to announcing the winners of the major awards for Major League Baseball. About a month too late. Slow old bastards.

And this means more stupid baseball discussions and arguments about the 2010 season which everybody was only too glad to finally be rid of after the damn thing took, like, 3 years to complete.

Slap hard the first person who asks you, in a disbelieving, outraged voice, if you can believe that Player X won the Cy Young. Dude, Player Y had the lower ERA and yadayadayada. Blow me.

You wanna know the worst thing about this timing? According to this article, the ballots for all these awards were sent in BEFORE THE PLAYOFFS EVEN STARTED. These bastards held on to these results for a month and a half and waited till two whole weeks after end of the World Series to announce this shit. When all healthy people were ready to move on, these guys are trying to force their baseball-is-life agenda onto the rest of the sporting world.

They should have announced this news starting the day after the Series ended. Then there would have been a couple of fun-filled, news-significant days of baseball as sort of a wild finale to the season. But instead, baseball has to make everything happen slowly and drag it out as long as possible.

Snore.

Are they not aware that many people have already emotionally distanced themselves from caring? Well, at least I have. And this is the exact reason why I never remember who wins any of these awards.

2. Quidditch enthusiasts

Don’t act like you don’t know what quidditch is. I’ve never read a Harry Potter book or seen any of the movies and I still know what this is, unfortunately.

And too many college kids are now trying to pretend this game is legit. It is not. Here and here are a couple stories from last week about this terrible trend coming from the university that brought you God’s nephew, Tim Tebow. *cue armpit fart*

The popularity of this thing is seemingly riding this ever building wave of retardery as some people with too much free time have realized there were other people with too much free time who also don’t understand the concept of taking irony too far. They take comfort in not being alone in this handicap and these quidditch enthusiasts (I will not refer to these people as quidditch “players.” Ever.) grow ever more bold in their public displays of unfunny stupidity — the worst kind of stupidity. They’ve even deluded themselves in to taking it seriously.

Don’t people see this is just another form of LARPing? You fucks are pretending to fly on brooms!

I would support NCAA-sanctioned LARP championships before I would support this. I mean, LARPing can be dramatically awesome or totally hilarious (LIGHTNING BOLTS!). Quidditch is none of those things.

I’ve tried to ignore this stupd craze but recently it’s been getting way too much press for my taste. I remember working for the University of Wisconsin student newspaper (the good one) when a small group of students first brought this game to campus and someone wrote about it. And someone wrote about it again. I had hoped it would live a short irony-filled life and go away. It has not.

I don’t know what it will take to get these people to stop trying to legitimize their lameness but I hope it happens soon. Those Ultimate Frisbee kids are getting really angry over someone threatening their monopoly on stupid college pseudo-sports.

1. Duke Blue Devils

Yay, college basketball is back to keep me mildly intrigued for a few months before it actually gets interesting and meaningful! And with that comes the team we love to hate, Mike Kzryzewski’s Duke Blue Devils and the team’s immensely annoying fans, the super self-congratulatory Cameron Crazies. I assume the bathrooms in that arena are just loaded with people smugly smelling their own farts.

But is it the fault of the Duke basketball team that they are the team at whom we all channel our hatred for classist, entitled wealthy pricks? Who cares? Why question it? You don’t question the existence of Jesus, do you? Of course not. Then you’d clearly go to hell. That’s science.

And as if God smiles down on us and our hateful ways, the Blue Devils are even ranked number one in both major polls, providing even more fuel to the fire. It’s time to hate, folks, and hate hard.

Hey, remember when Duke won the national championship last season? Yeah. That sucked. But I also remember when the Wisconsin Badgers beat the Blue Devils during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. That was awesome. That is all.

A Modest Proposal for Big Ten Expansion

Ty — Tue, 11 May 2010 12:01:48 +0000

Apparently, the Big Ten Conference wants to expand; a novel concept to say the least (sarcasm implied). If, as is widely assumed, the conference expands past twelve and to at least fourteen, few can deny that a new Big Ten would be the catalyst for a major reactionary chain of events which will leave the world of college athletics looking quite different. Before this can happen, a final decision must be made by Jim Delany and the boys over at the Big Ten office. So, beyond a general consistency with respect to region, what appears to be their criteria? Here’s a quick breakdown of what may be the top three requirements:

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Member of the Association of American Universities

The Big Ten, perhaps more so than any other conference in America, recognizes it’s purpose as an academic institution. Each of it’s eleven current members are also a part of the Association of American Universities. According to it’s official website, the AAU “works to maintain the productive partnership between the nation’s research universities and the federal government.” In Layman’s terms, these schools form a conglomerate which pulls a lot of weight in the area of federal research funding; the type of funding which ensures that member universities can maintain a strong faculty and have their names stamped on new and innovative developments in all realms of science, sociology, medicine, and so on. The newest members of the conference would need to be members of the AAU, so that all departments of all universities within the new Big Ten could benefit, not just the athletic departments.

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Television Ratings/Market

The Big Ten already operates the extremely successful Big Ten Network. There appears to be a belief within the conference offices and member schools that expanding the network’s reach to larger television markets will be the most beneficial way to grow the Big Ten brand. Moving to a large market would only help the conference in it’s negotiations with the major national networks which already cover the bulk of their games. This criteria measure holds the key to the true longterm success of the conference, as it needs to be weighed and balanced well with the third and final major measure to ensure that the competitive product it generates keeps the conference relevant against other major conferences in all sports.

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Competitive Balance

As mentioned above, competitive balance will need to be weighed accurately against television ratings and markets in order to at least maintain and, in a best case scenario, improve the Big Ten’s already robust image as one of the “big six” conferences. In recent years, the Big Ten has been inconsistent in extra-conference competition in both of the major money making sports. In football, the Big Ten holds the most BCS bowl births since it’s inception, but their overall record is only 10-11. In men’s basketball, the ACC ran off a ten year streak of dominance in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge before the Big Ten won it’s first this past season.

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After considering these three major measures for criteria, who fits best with what the Big Ten wants? Some would say that conversation includes eight possibilities: Connecticut, Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, and Syracuse.

First, let’s eliminate the elephant in the room: Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish have said they’re more than happy with their independent status. They have a lucrative television contract with NBC (which I’ve always thought might mesh well with the Big Ten Network and a potential weekly triple-header with Notre Dame’s conference game in prime time, but the powers-that-be obviously disagree). Notre Dame doesn’t want to share revenue, and as long as the BCS is formatted in it’s current fashion, it will never need a conference to do so. While they make no money from the current format if they don’t make a BCS bowl, they also don’t have to share the money when they are involved, unlike any member of a conference. Notre Dame’s independence allows them to travel all over the country, playing home games in places like Yankee Stadium and Cowboys Stadium. This helps with exposure, which obviously helps with recruiting (although you wouldn’t know it when looking at their recent history). Everyone agrees that adding Notre Dame would be a dream come true for the Big Ten for a number of reasons; (1) No individual television market can compete with what the Fighting Irish does ratings-wise, (2) None of the other seriously considered institutions is even close in academic prowess, and (3) South Bend is right in the heart of Big Ten country. Alas, the bottom line remains the same as it’s been since 1999, when these two parties last flirted with the notion of going home together: Notre Dame is the pretty girl who isn’t going to put out.

Now that that’s out of the way, we’ll sink our teeth into realistic possibilities:

In one scenario, the Big Ten could ransack the already weakened Big East Conference and steal the three schools closest to the largest television market in the country, New York City. By adding UConn, Rutgers, and Syracuse, the Big Ten would no doubt improve it’s television ratings. As a unit, this group of three has the potential to benefit the conference more than any other three combined. As with any great reward, this scenario presents great risk as it has considerable weak spots when all three schools are considered individually.

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While it is consistently relevant in basketball and regionally close to the headquarters of ESPN, UConn isn’t a member of the AAU and has yet to prove itself as an annually competitive football program. Connecticut alone isn’t directly linked to Pennsylvania, which suggests the Big Ten may be weary of the Huskies as it’s own entity. Connecticut seems to be a reach at best.

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On a similar note, due it’s close quarters with the city, Rutgers appears to be the key to the New York market. This is highly debatable, as Rutgers’ athletic program, while seeing a recent jump from putrid to average in football, is traditionally sub-par in all of the major money making sports. This historical lack of competitiveness calls into question Rutgers’ ability to bring the bacon with the market that appears, on the surface, to come with the school. Furthermore, leaving the weaker Big East can only lessen Rutgers’ ability to compete with the powers of it’s conference. While Rutgers is a member of the AAU, without that athletic competitiveness, the fans simply won’t tune in, which is counter productive to the purpose of bringing in the school closest to the New York market. Rutgers’ flaws in two of three major criteria areas suggest that it may not be among the best choices for the Big Ten.

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Of the three, Syracuse is the best fit. While not immediately affiliated with the New York market, it can be argued that Syracuse may pull more attention from the city than Rutgers, as the school is actually in the state of New York. The Orange are an annual power in men’s basketball, and while it has fallen on tough times recently, they have the 15th winningest football program (based on winning percentage) in history, currently tied with Georgia Tech at 673 wins. Finally, Syracuse is a member of the AAU and the state of New York directly borders Pennsylvania, the eastern most state already in the Big Ten. Market? Check. Athletic competitiveness? Check. Academic prowess? Check. Regional compatibility? Check. Syracuse seems to be a natural fit for Big Ten expansion.

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The fourth Big East school that can seriously be considered for expansion, Pittsburgh, also states a strong case. The city of Pittsburgh boasts a relatively medium television market, but one that has a disproportionately strong passion for football. This idea suggests that it may be strong enough to outweigh both Connecticut and Rutgers when the uncertainties of those two schools are taken into consideration. Pittsburgh has recently developed a nationally competitive basketball program, and it’s football program is only ten wins behind Syracuse, ranking 18th all-time. The Panthers also have a long history as a rival to current Big Ten member Penn State, having met the Nittany Lions ninety-six times. Lastly, the University of Pittsburgh is a member of the AAU, and it’s location in western Pennsylvania is essentially halfway between Penn State and Ohio State. Market? Check. Athletic competitiveness? Check. Academic prowess? Check. Regional compatibility? Check. Common sense would suggest that, just as with Syracuse, Pittsburgh is a natural fit for Big Ten expansion.

Much like the three New York market schools, the three schools to the west of current Big Ten territory seem like a strong unit, but when broken up they have their flaws. This is good, as through the process of elimination, there appears to already be two schools from the east which fit perfectly into the Big Ten. So, which of the Big 12 schools fits best? Let’s look at them individually:

Colorado University brings with it the Denver television market. Athletically, the Buffaloes have been very inconsistent of late in football and irrelevant in basketball. The school is, however, a member of the AAU. Colorado is perhaps the weakest of all the possibilities when looked at individually. The only logical reason for the league to seriously consider Colorado would be as the final piece to a completely western expansion of the conference, and the idea of total western expansion has even more holes than that of complete eastern expansion.

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The Nebraska Cornhuskers have as strong a tradition on the gridiron as any school in the country. With 827 wins, it ranks 8th all-time in winning percentage among all Bowl Subdivision programs. This strength would easily overrule it’s relative ineptitude in basketball and the lack of obvious regional television market it brings to the table (although, it could be argued that the true size of Nebraska’s market is immeasurable, as their success, much like Notre Dame’s but to a lesser degree, has bred fans all over the country). Nebraska also borders Iowa, a current Big Ten state. Academically though, Nebraska is ranked 463rd by Forbes on their most recent list of American colleges and universities, lowest of any AAU member. With asterisks on it’s market and academic prowess, Nebraska has some questions with regard to it’s inclusion in a new Big Ten. That said, it’s football program has such a strong history, that it may outweigh any other argument.

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The University of Missouri may offer the most balanced candidacy of the three Big 12 schools. It offers the 35th winningest football program in history, lower than both Colorado (22nd) and Nebraska, but a far superior basketball program to both the Buffaloes and Huskers. The Tigers already have an annual rivalry with current Big Ten school Illinois. Missouri is a member of the AAU (ranking 90 spots higher than Nebraska on that same Forbes list), and it offers two fairly large television markets to the conference in St. Louis and Kansas City. Market? Check. Athletic competitiveness? Check. Academic prowess? Check. Regional compatibility? Check. When one considers that the Big 12 would probably fight harder to keep Nebraska’s overbearing football history than it would for Missouri’s across-the-board consistency, it’s clear that Missouri, while perhaps not the most desirable, is the most realistic of these three for Big Ten annexation.

If this happens to be the case (which, while it may seem logical after reading the arguments, isn’t necessarily the case with the Big Ten), then the conference could be broken into two division: East and West. The East Division would consist of the seven schools that are eastern most within the conference’s region, and the West would follow suite. And for the logistical arguers: beyond the traditional reasons for keeping the name “Big Ten,” the conference would now have schools in, count ‘em, ten different states. Hence, the name remains Big Ten. Here’s how the new Big Ten Conference would look:

EAST DIVISION

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WEST DIVISION

Under this new format, the Big Ten could host a conference championship game in football. This game could be played at any number of places in the ten states and multiple markets that the Big Ten would now control. A game in the elements of Green Bay’s Lambeau Field, Chicago’s Soldier Field, or Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field could alternate yearly with a game in a controlled climate like that of Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium, or St. Louis’ Edward Jones Dome.

The division alignment maintains such yearly rivalries as Ohio State-Michigan and Missouri-Illinois, while reestablishing the Penn State-Pittsburgh matchup. It also creates potential new rivalries by infusing the conference with new blood. The only current rivalry that would suffer from this division alignment would be Indiana-Purdue, which can be remedied with an inter-divisional scheduling rule, much like the conference has now to remedy it’s current eleven team format. Each school would be required to play one school from the opposite division yearly, alternating between home and away. Here’s one possibility for the set up: Indiana-Purdue, Michigan-Wisconsin, Michigan State-Minnesota, Ohio State-Illinois, Penn State-Iowa, Pittsburgh-Missouri, and Syracuse-Northwestern. On top of this, each school would play two other non-division teams yearly, but the selection of those opponents would rotate between the six other non-mandatory, non-division schools. In total, the conference would require nine conference games per season; six divisional games and three non-divisional games.

In basketball, traditional powers like Indiana and Syracuse would now play a home and home series each year, with a potential third game in the conference tournament. The basketball schedule would be a bit more complicated, as it’s impractical to play thirteen teams twice a year, but each school would definitely play each of it’s divisional opponents in a home and home series. Much like the ability to move the conference championship football game around, the basketball tournament could take place in different locations each year, perhaps having different rounds of the tournament in different cities in the same year.

Ultimately, it’s my belief that this is the way to go for the Big Ten. All three of the schools they would add meet all of the obvious criteria quite well. The immeasurable components obviously lie within what those guys at the Big Ten office want. Where are their priorities? If they’re so consumed with television ratings that they’re willing to take a chance with the east coast, then they would obviously consider the risks with Rutgers and Connecticut as worthwhile. If they feel the need to expand west, perhaps to break into the Big 12’s market and maybe pipeline more closely to the talent rich west coast, then the last three schools would be their direction. What I’m suggesting is simply a “best-of-both-worlds” scenario. Ultimately, this expansion will cause other conferences to look at their position and membership. It could be as drastic as delivering a death blow to the Big East, or as minimal as the Big Ten adding only one more team to get to twelve. Only time will tell.

Why the NBA Reigns Supreme Over College Basketball

Matt — Fri, 07 May 2010 12:00:07 +0000

The NBA playoffs are rocking & rolling, and it got me thinking: I need to write a mini-column why the NBA is better than college basketball. I’ve always been a bigger fan of the pro game. I find it disturbing that when I tell most people that I like the NBA better, they react to me like I just told them I have herpes. Here are my reasons, in no particular order:

1. The talent level doesn’t compare: Obviously, in the NBA, we’re seeing the best players, by far. Where else are you going to watch LeBron James play?

2. We get to see player’s careers unfold: So, let me get this straight, strictly college basketball fans: you’re going to pour your heart and soul into rooting for, say, John Wall, then not watch his career develop over the next 15 years?! Really, you’re going to forget he exists? Don’t you want to see his basketball destiny? Gimme a break. It’s not like he’s playing a different freakin sport in the NBA. Basketball is basketball.

3. Players can switch teams: Not every situation works out, so sometimes players are forced to leave. NBA players have the freedom to play wherever they want, once their contract is up. College basketball transfers are extremely rare, so you’re basically stuck in one spot in college.

4. Year to year, unless you’re getting paid to study the game, you have almost no idea who’s coming through college basketball: These strangers show up, disappear, and there’s just not much familiarity. Sure, some people like this, but not me.

5. 48 minutes vs. 40 minutes: More action! No brainer.

6. Better refereeing: Seriously, college referees stink.

7. Wacky team owners: Mark Cuban & Mikhail Prokhorov are going to be dueling it out for years, seeing who can rack up the most fines from David Stern!

8. 82 games: More action! No brainer.

9. Players get paid/rewarded for their hard work: The NCAA takes advantage of their student athletes, and makes tons of money off of them. Scumbags.

10. The best team always wins a 7 game series: The best team will win the NBA title. The best team doesn’t always win the NCAA tournament. Just ask Kansas. Or Northern Iowa.

Also, let me say this: College basketball diehards say that the atmosphere of games is so much better, but have you noticed how empty a lot of the arenas are in the NCAA tournament?

I can’t stand when college fans or non-NBA fans say “Oh, they don’t call traveling in the NBA, that was a travel!” Guess what, pal, these same players that are in the pros came through college basketball, and did the same exact moves to get to the basket. So screw you.

“NBA players don’t play defense. They don’t try. They just want money and that’s it.” Really? You really think that? Sure, there’s isolated incidents and players, but the overwhelming majority of the pros do care. Most of them thirst for a title. This isn’t the 70’s & 80’s when guys were doing coke.

I rest my case. I love this game!

Suck it, Dick Vitale.

High schooler Trey Starks with the dunk of the year?

Bob — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 06:14:43 +0000

Literally an ankle breaking crossover in the Duke vs GA Tech game

Bob — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 05:58:45 +0000

The race is over; it’s a no-brainer who the Player of the Year is

Bob — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:09:48 +0000

I said it at the beginning of the season and I’ll say it again; Evan Turner will boast the John R. Wooden Award at season’s end, only now I won’t hear as many chuckles.

This year’s Wooden Award, better known as the Player of the Year award, has come down to a two man race between Ohio State’s Evan Turner and freshman Kentucky star John Wall. Although most people were ready to hand Wall the award prior to the season, Ohio State’s do-it-all guard has emerged as the front-runner. In terms of NBA potential, John Wall certainly takes the cake. UK’s extra-terrestrially athletic PG has lived up to the hype and is exhilarating to watch, but don’t get it twisted; the title of best player in the country and the POY award belong to Evan “The Villain” Turner.

After stuffing the stat sheet and posting 2 triple-doubles through his first 5 games, Evan Turner quickly inserted his name into POY talks. Subsequent to fracturing his back against Eastern Michigan, Turner’s chances to win the highly coveted Player of the Year award were slim to none. Determined to make a speedy recovery and save his team’s season, Turner dedicated himself to rehabbing his back and returned to the court just one month after fracturing his second and third lumbar vertebra, one month sooner than expected. During his absence, Ohio State went 3-3 and struggled miserably.

Expected to slowly ease back into the swing of things both physically and mentally, The Villain picked up right where he left off. In his first full game back, Turner dropped 19, 8 and 7, albeit in a loss. Following this, the Buckeyes went on the road to Purdue. Despite Robbie Hummel’s 8 first-half 3s and a 41-29 deficit at half in a hostile environment, Turner came out motivated in the 2nd half and dropped 23 of his 32 points to lead his squad to an awfully impressive comeback win. It was one of those games where you watched him and thought, “this kid is not going to let his team lose tonight.” If you’ve ever watched LeBron James or Kobe Bryant get in the “failure is not an option” mode where they single-handedly take over the game, you should know what type of look I am referring to.

But it wasn’t just that night against Purdue where the junior point guard had that look. Turner’s will to win is rivaled by few at the college level. He works on his game, both physical and mental, almost around the clock. I mean, he dribbles a ball around campus on his way to class! I wouldn’t be surprised if he pops in a tape of John Wooden quotes before he goes to sleep with his mouth guard in and cuddles up with a basketball in one hand and a pair of Jordans in the other. Hell, he probably dribbles in his sleep!

Viewed as a first rounder had he declared after his sophomore season, ET decided to return for his junior season because he didn’t feel his game was ready for the next level. Well, I believe it’s fair to assume he is indeed ready for the big league. Turner has drastically improved his game and has escalated himself to a level of his own at the college rank.

With a lack of depth at Ohio State’s PG position and a desire to put his 5 best players on the floor, head coach Thad Matta considered moving his junior superstar to the PG position. At 6’7”, making the transition to PG is no easy task; however, Turner jumped at the opportunity and has never looked back.

Having dropped out of the rankings and practically off the map following his injury, the St. Joes product currently has his team ranked 9th in the country and a half-game back of first place Purdue. The versatile PG leads the Big Ten in scoring (19.5) and rebounding (9.3) and is second in steals (1.9) and assists (5.8).

Don’t get me wrong, John Wall is an excellent player, I’m not taking anything away from him. As a true freshman, Wall is averaging 16.8 PPG, 6.3 APG and 4.1 RPG and has his Wildcat team sitting at 2nd in the nation behind Kansas. In his impressive freshman season, Wall has made a number of clutch plays in crunch time. There is no ceiling on his potential and he appears to be destined for multiple NBA All-Star appearances. However, not only does Turner have significantly better all-around numbers; if you took John Wall off the Wildcats team, they would still be competitive. With a roster that includes another freshman superstar and future lottery pick in DeMarcus Cousins, coupled with Patrick Patterson, another future first rounder, as well as freshmen Eric Bledsoe and Daniel Orton (most likely future first rounders as well), there is no doubt in my mind that they would continue to compete and win games.

Now take Evan Turner off of OSU’s roster. If lucky, a Turner-less Buckeyes team might make it to the NIT, and at the very worst, might have a slightly better record than UNC (I have to get a jab in while I can). We saw how much Turner’s absence crippled his team when he missed 6 games with an injury. He essentially creates everything offensively for the Bucks and is the engine that makes OSU run.

There’s no arguing that Evan Turner, who has drawn comparisons to Portland Trail Blazers All-Star guard Brandon Roy, is the most versatile and complete player in the nation. Furthermore, it’s difficult to argue that he isn’t the most important player to his team’s success.

In case you’re not convinced that OSU’s do-it-all guard is the Player of the Year, think about this; Turner is on the verge of averaging 20, 10 and 5. Let me say that again; 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists; numbers that virtually only show up on the box score after a game of 2K10 . According to SI.com, the only players who may have averaged these numbers (these are their best guesses) are Larry Bird at Indiana State and Bill Walton at UCLA. I’d say the kid they call The Villain is in pretty good company.

With Evan Turner at the helm, Ohio State will go as far as he wants to take them. When you consider his versatile skill set, leadership, high basketball IQ and determination to win, he is an absolute nightmare for the opposition and has the potential to single-handedly take over a game on any given night (ask Purdue).

Taking all of these things into account, if Evan Turner somehow doesn’t win the John R. Wooden Award this season, it will be borderline criminal.

Nike Spells “Kentucky” Wrong on John Wall’s Jersey

Matt — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 14:22:10 +0000

Another Brick in the Wall – The Future Home of John Wall

Matt — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 13:35:04 +0000

A few weeks before the college basketball and NBA season started, I was sitting around with some buddies, and talking about John Wall. My buddy Mike and I knew about him, and Mike said “I think John Wall is going to make college basketball look silly.” I agreed with him. Well, we were right. Kentucky is undefeated.

Let’s check out 10 possible John Wall NBA destinations:

The “God….Please….No” Group:

New Jersey: God…please no. They probably won’t be moving to Brooklyn for a while, and this team is in shambles. Plus, Devin Harris plays the same position as Wall, so, I guess you could play them both at the same time? Maybe?

Minnesota: They’ve got 2 first rounders. Crap. Ricky Rubio didn’t want to play in Minnesota, and John Wall won’t be thrilled about it either.

Milwaukee: With Brandon Jennings there, and him also playing the same position, I don’t know how this would work. The city is in danger of losing the team, and Wall would probably skip town like Kareem did.

The “Eh, fine, I guess that would be okay” Group:

Sacramento: Tyreke Evans isn’t a point guard (trust me), so pairing Evans and Wall would work. Now that’s a backcourt! Holy cow. What a foundation.

Golden State: Run and gun. That’s their mantra. Monta Ellis seems to be their future point guard, though. That could create a controversy.

Indiana: Interesting, because pairing Wall up with Danny Granger could be potentially lethal, and catapult them back into NBA relevance very quickly again.

The “Alright, that works” Group:

Utah They have New York’s first round pick, so him landing here is definitely possible. How interesting does it become if Deron Williams and John Wall are on the same team? Does Utah trade Deron? Do they play them together? I would. Start Deron at shooting guard. What the hell, give it a whirl.

Detroit: Surprisingly, a real possibility. The Pistons are terrible this year, but adding a stud like Wall to the mix could definitely make them a playoff team again.

The “Yeah, that would work nice” Group:

Philadelphia: The 76’ers are terrible this year, so this is a scenario I would root for. It’s a good market with great fans, and a proud franchise. Wall could be the reincarnation of Allen Iverson.

Washington: The Gilbert Arenas situation makes this interesting. With Arenas behind bars, Wall could run free, but the Wizards would still stink. Man oh man, could the city of Washington use something positive…

John Calipari is finally called out for compromising the integrity of college basketball

Bob — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:48:59 +0000

It was only a matter of time, really. We have featured numerous articles in regards to current University of Kentucky coach John Calipari and his sleazy antics, the majority of which received a great deal of criticism and outrage from Memphis and Calipari enthusiasts. Granted the allegations we made preceded his actual violations at Memphis (which may explain why so many Memphis fans were enraged), Calipari still receives praise around the nation despite putting his two previous programs on probation. Well, The General isn’t buying it, and you shouldn’t either.

If for some reason you are unaware of who “The General” is, I am referring to Bobby Knight, the winningest coach in college basketball. The Hall of Fame coach asserted that college basketball lacks integrity. His example: John Calipari.

“We’ve gotten into this situation where integrity is really lacking and that’s why I’m glad I’m not coaching,” he said. “You see we’ve got a coach at Kentucky who put two schools on probation and he’s still coaching. I really don’t understand that.”

Not only is John Calipari still coaching, he was promoted for his wrongdoings.

If anyone knows the meaning of integrity, it’s Bob Knight. Through all his years of coaching, not one of his teams has been sanctioned by the NCAA for recruiting violations, not one. That is outstanding. Additionally, “The General” graduated the majority of his players from college.

On the contrary, John Calipari had UMass’s Final Four vacated for violations in the recruitment of Marcus Camby, and most recently had Memphis’ NCAA record 38 win season nullified. While Knight was graduating his players, Calipari was helping his players cheat on the SATs (Derrick Rose).

I’m surprised it took this long for someone to address this issue. As we all know, the ex-Hoosiers coach has a low tolerance for BS and won’t hesitate to let it be known. It’s no surprise that Bobby Knight has a short fuse; he’s forced to watch sleazy, low-life people like Calipari compromise the integrity of his one true passion, college basketball.

Bareknucks.com » NCAAB

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