Total Pageviews

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

The Next Big Thing? The Ben Simmons Story

Written by Taylor Odenat 

Phenom prospects who display the extraordinary skill and talent to drastically alter the fate of a franchise don’t come around often. Over the last few years we’ve seen players drafted who exhibit the potential to drastically influence the future of an NBA team. In the last few NBA Drafts, players such as Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard, and Andrew Wiggins have all been lottery selections. Anthony Davis is a once in a generation player at his position, Damian Lillard is an All Star and clutch playoff performer, and Andrew Wiggins heads a young Minnesota squad with loads of potential moving forward. In June of 2016, LSU forward Ben Simmons potentially could be an addition to this list if he continues dazzling the eyes of basketball fans, announcers, and coaches everywhere.


Ben Simmons was born out of Melbourne, Australia and has been publicized for years as the No.1 overall prospect out of the 2015 recruiting class. Scouts foresee stardom in this young forward, as he delivers to the court several skills that not many players are adept in. His basketball IQ and court awareness are high on the list of abilities that he possesses that make basketball fans drool at the sight of him play. Many have gone as a far as to compare the Aussie to that of Lebron James, where both contain elite vision and superb knowledge of the game; Mike Greenberg of Mike and Mike being one them. He stated on the radio and television show that he believes “this kid is going to be the Next Lebron.” While some may believe this to be somewhat of a stretch, the remark was not outrageously far-fetched.


Lebron James is obviously a player of great stature so it’s not to say Simmons is directly comparable to James. However, in play style the two do share similarities in their abilities to be cognizant of the players around them as well as their uber athleticism. Both players defend efficiently, rebound effortlessly, and run the fast break with ease and at their own pace. Neither has a set position, because regardless of where they play on the court they’ll be productive. Their passing, shooting, and defending capabilities all allow them to lineup from the point guard to center position. Once he is drafted, Simmons will eventually make his own name for himself, but until that day arrives the Lebron comparisons will be relentless.


Journalists with widespread clout, and online publications with credibility around the world are comparing this forward to the likes of greats such as Lebron James, as previously mentioned, and Lamar Odom.  With such evident notoriety so early in his career, Simmons seems destined for long term production. Granted, Simmons has only played 4 games for LSU thus far. However, in those few games Simmons has averaged 19.3 points to go along with 14.5 rebounds and 5.3 assists topped off by a super efficient 57 % from the field. Recently, Simmons was even able to hold his own against another top ranked freshman, 6’10 post-player Henry Ellenson, in a loss to Marquette where he dropped a near triple double finishing with 21 points, 20 rebounds and 7 assists.


Along with his on court superstar potential, Simmons may possibly revise the landscape of the college picking process for a high school senior. Simmons chose LSU, a college not known for pushing out All Stars and NBA Champions. He bypassed the powerhouses of Kentucky, Duke, and UNC, to join forces with a university that hasn’t seen one of their players drafted in the lottery since Anthony Randolph was selected in the 2008 NBA Draft; who then produced rather lackluster tenures around the league. By electing to attend LSU, he showed future aspiring athletes that going to a lesser known school or a school not known for NCAA postseason success might be a better situation for them. Attending a school such as LSU puts the spotlight on the high ranked individual; in this case Ben Simmons. Whereas attending a college with the championship pedigree of Kentucky, there are a ton of players with hordes of potential all trying to get minutes. He may set a precedent that if you want to shine individually to NBA scouts and fans, then go to the college who hasn’t seen the NCAA tournament in a few years, rather than the program whose there year after year, with players struggling for consistent minutes.

Simmons has superstar potential with the metaphorical strength to cause a franchise to tank their season in the hopes of selecting him. Ben is an elite athlete with extreme versatility and quickness, controlled pace, exceptional defense, high rebounding and passing IQ, and a consistent lefty stroke; when he actually decides to take a jump shot. He is the next best thing and the talk of this Australian is guaranteed to be nonstop until he puts pen to paper on his first rookie contract.
http://espn.go.com/espnradio/show?showId=mikemike, http://basketball.realgm.com/player/Ben-Simmons/Summary/41364, http://scores.espn.go.com/ncb/boxscore?gameId=400827731, http://www.basketball-reference.com/friv/draft.cgi?college=lsu

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Iverson, Jordan, Kobe, Dirk, and Curry? Steph's Influence on Basketball Today

                                                      Written by Taylor Odenat


Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki, and now Stephen Curry are all individually completely different players on the basketball court. They play opposing positions, possess different playstyles and project various personalities in their locker rooms. However, with all these differences they all share one common characteristic; their ability to monumentally change the game of basketball. 

During the time of each of these players prime popularity they each brought something unique to the table. Allen Iverson was “The Answer”, rocked unparalleled cornrows, and carried himself with a street-style, “me against the world” persona that everyone noticed and adored. Michael Jordan is arguably the most marketable person on the planet and the most noticeable face and name in the sports industry. He owns a billion dollar shoe company ,Air Jordan, and majority control of the Charlotte Hornets, causing his name to remain in the public eye more than a decade after he retired. Kobe Bryant is debatably the only player that can be compared to Michael Jordan in playstyle, so of course his influence is worldwide and has reached European countries where he is practically a legend in China. Lastly, Dirk may not be as marketable as the others with his laid back, non expressive attitude; but he has altered the way basketball is played for a man of his stature. Young 7-footers no longer find themselves in the paint grabbing boards, trying to perfect their left and right hooks. They watch Nowitzki shooting from beyond the three-point arc and want to emulate the actions of the German native.

All these players have already made their mark in NBA history and in the hearts and minds of the millions that play basketball around the world. They have all made strong impressions on their fans and influenced the game greatly, and after winning his first NBA Championship in 2015, Stephen Curry is swiftly on his way to having that same influence.

Miami started a trend back in the 2012-2013 season of small ball where Chris Bosh, originally a power forward, played the five and excelled at it. However, Golden State took small ball to a whole new level and dawned a lineup with no player taller than 6-foot-8. Their strategy worked wonders, leading to their eventual championship win against the Lebron-led Cleveland Cavaliers. However, his team’s influence of super small-ball on the game of basketball is only the beginning.

Stephen Curry accomplished an extremely impressive feat of winning the Most Valuable Player Award in the 2014-2015 season as a guard. Guards winning the award is highly uncommon and hasn’t been done since Derrick Rose in 2010. His achievement displayed to young guards that is possible to be a smaller player and reach greatness without being super fast or uber-athletic. Curry isn’t the biggest guard at 6’3 and isn’t the strongest at 190, nonetheless with his limitations he is able to break countless records. He set the record for most made three-pointers in a regular season in the 2012-2013 season, then to top his own performance he broke it again in the 2014-2015 season.  He also owns the record for most made three-point field goals in the playoffs at 59; topping former Indiana Pacers guard Reggie Miller’s record. Additionally, he isn’t among the elite yet in career three-pointers made sitting at No.45 with 1,235; but he is creeping up on his father Dell Curry’s spot of No.42 with 1,245 made threes. By the end of Steph Curry’s career he is bound to be in the top-3 of this category with the 10 three-pointers he attempts per game.

In an era of basketball where mid-range jumpers are discouraged, Steph Curry is leading the charge of taking his shots behind the arc. Last season he excelled with a mindset of “if a play breaks down, I’ll just pull it back out for three”, and this season he came with the same mindset. For the second season it’s leading to results, as the Warriors stand as the lone undefeated team in the NBA at 9-0.

Curry’s name is reaching heights similar to Kobe’s and the branding similar to “Like Mike”, his electrifying shooting and crowd appeasing highlights remodel the way future guards  play basketball. He is showing in an age where guards are getting bigger and longer, see Michael Carter-Williams and Emmanuel Mudiay, that one can still excel at the position with less height than others. Curry is the face of the combo guard position currently and will maintain this honor as long as his jumper keeps falling and his handle is equally as amazing. With both of those aspects of his game still in tact, every ball player at parks and gyms will continue to scream “Curry!” when they rise up for a shot behind the three-point line.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/curryst01.html, http://khqtoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Screen-Shot-2015-02-06-at-2.31.47-PM.png

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Living Up to The Name: Royals vs Mets Recap

Written by Dylan Hunter Carter

After a long 30 year drought, the Kansas City Royals have finally won another World Series title. The Royals beats the Mets 7-2 in 12 innings to take the title in the 5th game of the World Series. A major run in the 12th inning by Christian Colon saved the Royals from a Game 6. Although the Mets had a fantastic season and a great playoff run, the Royals were the more well prepared team and overcame the fastballs of Mets pitchers Matt Harvey and Jacob DeGrom. Following a stellar season, dominating the AL Central division with a 95-67 record, the Royals fought hard for their title.


The Mets were most certainly underdogs in this matchup against the Royals, but they put up a great fight and exceeded all expectations prior to this season. The Amazin’s won the NL East Division with a 90-72 record led by team captain and all-time Mets legend, David Wright. Despite his season-long struggle with lower back and spinal injury, Wright fought through the pain and led his beloved Mets to win the American League. Wright has been a Met during his entire professional career since he entered the MLB in 2004 and now leads the Mets in many all time stats including runs, hits, and RBI. Wright had 10 hits and 7 runs in the postseason.
            
Second Baseman Daniel Murphy led the Mets batting during the postseason with 19 hits, 13 runs, and 7 home runs. Murphy clearly proved himself as a great hitter, especially after setting an all time MLB record of 6 consecutive postseason games with a home run. The concern with Murphy is his tendency to allow fielding errors. An important fielding error in the eighth inning of Game 5 led to the surge which eventually led to a World Series Victory for the Royals. Murphy is now a free agent and his future with the Mets is unclear, but a return to the Mets is imminent as his great batting stats are too good for the Mets to let go of, especially since the core hitters of the team are aging.


The most important aspect of the Royals which led to their victory is the immense depth. In the playoffs, Kansas City had a combined 146 hits, 17 home runs, and 83 RBI with different leaders in each category. Eric Hosmer led the team in RBI with 17, Alcides Escobar led in hits with 24, and Salvador Perez and Kendrys Morales tied with 4 home runs each. With such incredible team play and skill throughout their roster, it's no surprise that they won the World Series. Royals GM Dayton Moore carefully crafted this roster to be able to play off of the skillsets and faults of other players on the roster. The Royals have shown a level camaraderie and elite play that is unmatched in the MLB.

Both the Mets and the Royals are capable of returning to the World Series next year, especially with their new playoff experience, but now they prepare for an offseason full of contract extensions, new players, trades, drafts, and big decisions. We’ll see what the next few months have in store.

http://www.tripwire.com/state-of-security/wp-content/uploads/security94.jpg