Month: February 2021

It was such an odd day/night of Big 12 basketball for pretty much the entire conference minus West Virginia and TCU who played the night before on Big 12 Monday Night.

First… the Big 12 announced O State will have to play both of their road games which were cancelled due to Covid protocol just prior to the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City. This means O State has to hit the road to play in Waco vs. Baylor on March 4 then head to Morgantown on March 6 to play the Mountaineers. Clearly—this is a tough ending for O State’s regular season heading into Kansas City. Brutally tough.

But for those us who love to see Cade play bigtime games it’s a plus. For Cade if he brings his Danning Manning game he could play his way into NPOTY if he shines in both games. We’ll see.

OU–conversely came out of the Covid reschedule smelling like a rose. Their home game versus Baylor will not be played and the Texas home game will be played at Lloyd Noble on March 4.

The Sooners as a Vegas 10 point road favorite then promptly went out and played their worst game of the Big 12 season and lost 62-57 to the Wildcats.

Other than Austin Reeves who scored 25 points and DeVion Harmon who had a good first half scoring 12 points no other Sooner scored in double figures. It marked the first time… both EJ Harkless and Moj Gibson were subpar on the same night. Circle that in red.

This is not a conference where you take the floor and sleepwalk to a win. You have to get your motors running and keep them running for forty minutes.

Just ask 2nd ranked Baylor from last night as well as they almost got beat in Waco by winless Iowa State.

Ask Bill Self’s Jayhawks as they went to sleep in the second half in Austin and consequently had their five game winning streak snapped by the Longhorns after blowing a double digit lead.

It’s a grind it out blue collar conference and if you don’t play hard forty minutes you won’t win.

Despite the fact Austin Reeves was fouled at the end shooting a three which would have tied the game…I’m not going to bemoan that fact because OU didn’t deserve to win the game.

O State at OU on Saturday afternoon…if that doesn’t get the Sooners’ motors revved then nothng will. OU doesn’t play an easy game from here on. I would expect the hard hats to be strapped on moving forward. I’m sure every member of the Sooner coaching staff was conveying that message in the locker room after the game last night.

That was a bad game you want to wash out of your system as fast as possible. A Marshall Tucker song would be good on a warm sunny day in Deer Creek. You learn from it move to the next game.

Tiger Woods’ Greatest Major Moments (updated!) – YouTube

As a kid growing up… Jack, Arnold, Billy Casper, Lee Trevino, Tom Weiskopf, Tom Watson, Ray Floyd and maybe Hale Irwin were the players I watched the most.

The only black player I remember from my youth was Lee Elder.

When Tiger exploded upon the golfing world it was different thing than I’d ever seen before.

You could not take your eyes off Tiger in his prime. One of the most uniquely gifted athletes to ever compete in any sport.

And there was that toughness his father Earl ingrained in him.

I couldn’t watch the second half of the Tiger docu film …it was just too dark.

Hope he gets better and can find some inner peace with his children after he puts this car accident behind him.

TIGER WOODS HYPED PLAYS (LOUDEST CROWD REACTIONS) – YouTube

JC Watts was the second black quarterback to play at OU from 1979-80. He was preceded as the first black quarterback at OU by Thomas Lott. JC earned a degree in journalism from OU as well. He won two Big 8 titles and two Orange Bowls in those seasons.

Former Congressman JC Watts on Obama – YouTube

JC Watts as a Republican became the first African American south of the Mason Dixon line to become elected to the U.S. Congress and to my recollection the only African American to the present day in Oklahoma to be elected as a congressman, senator or governor in my lifetime in the state.

After serving four terms in eight years he became a member of the Corporation Commission and became the first black in our state’s history to do cross that barrier as well.

After retiring from politics he became a minister.

In choosing JC for this slot on my blog’s Black History Month…I was moved by an opinion piece I read by JC Watts at of all places…Fox News.

Anyway–I thought it was both equally eloquent and applicable to the current state of our union.

Hope you take the time to read it because regardless of party affilation I think you might find it relevant.

JC Watts: After lockdown and George Floyd death, this still holds true – No one is nonessential | Fox News

No. I don’t think so because that train left the station when they decided not to tank all out earlier in the season.

But I will write this —you can’t tank again in Oklahoma City for the competitive sports disposable dollar which will be in place next season.

OU spring football will be a bigger story than the Thunder are this spring. Heck, OU basketball is a bigger story right now. The Thunder have to become entertainment disposable dollar worthy.

Minnesota, Detroit, and Cleveland all look like the potential top three worst teams in the league at this point and OKC’s schedule actually gets much easier the second half of the season.

As I pointed out on one of my hockey posts there’s real value in the NBA draft in the spots between 10 thru 18 or so if you pick a two way basketball player who can shoot the basketball. The Thunder in my estimation needs another wing player who can shoot the basketball, isn’t a defensive liability, and can play either the 1, the 2, or the 3.

The Thunder need a player who can make Shai Gilgeous Alexander a better player who doesn’t get wasted in Oklahoma City.

I actually hate the concept of tanking, but just for this one season I’m okay with it because of the uniqueness of the Covid situation with no ticket buying fans in the building.

I also think it’s important to still have a work ethic culture in your program where the concept of losing doesn’t become embraced beyond this season.

Plus, these young players need to develop every day to get better so there’s a viable supporting cast next season for Shai and whoever evolves as this season’s second best young player.

Who know’s bewteen now and then maybe Moses Brown down in the G League becomes that viable second center who can pound the boards and give the Thunder another big?

Who knows… maybe Poku stops shooting those low trajectory shots and tries to be the Serbian version of Ben Simmons instead of Tony Kucoc and can give the Thunder minutes doing other things to help the team?

But I do know this…Sam Presti needs to use the Thunder’s first round pick for a real basketball player who can help the Thunder become more competitive next season and sell tickets in this market.

Huge win for Coach Mike Boynton and his very young Cowboy ball club. I might even call it their biggest win of the year as it precedes the Bedlam twin set of games coming up against No. 9 Oklahoma.

It wasn’t just the fact O State won, but it was the tough-minded manner in which the Cowboys battled back in the second half after Cade Cunningham had to sit with his fourth foul with sixteen minutes left in regulation.

O State was down nine points when Coach Boynton sat him down, but that didn’t thwart the Cowboys as other players picked up the slack and in fact caught the Red Raiders at the ten minute mark. Caleb Boone, M.A. Moncrief, and rapidly improving Avery Anderson were key for the Cowboys in their 74-69 overtime win in Stillwater.

It almost felt like that Lincoln Riley moment when he sat Spencer Rattler down in the Red River Rivalry. Boynton’s message seemed pretty clear to his star one and done…”Calm down, play smart, and don’t foul out of the game.”

Mission accomplished. Cunningham didn’t shine like a star, but he did enough and he had a calming effect on his teammates by making a couple of clutch shots when it mattered.

The thing which has to please Coach Mike Boynton the most is the fact his team just beat ranked Texas Tech for the second time this year—and in this win he didn’t get particularly good nights from either of his top two players…Cade Cunningham and Rondel Walker.

It’s a death march in the Big 12 among the top seven ball clubs. Next up for Mike Boynton…No. 9 Oklahoma in a doubleheader version of Bedlam.

Thank God for other sports in my sphere taking up the slack from this aybsmal Thunder season of nothingness. They can’t even tank right. I have no fatith in Sam Presti after seeing what he came back with from last summer’s draft with the 17th pick.

Jack in the Bean Stalk > Sam Presti….just saying.

Keep this in mind…. Jrue Holiday a 17th pick, Nikola Vucevic a 16th pick, Giannis a 15th pick, Kawhi Leonard a 15th pick, Devin Booker a 13th, Zach Lavine a 13th, Donovan Mitchell a 13th, Sabonis an 11th, Klay Thompson (my favorite player in the league) an 11th, Paul George a 10th, and my buddy CJ McCullum who’s father almost had Easter dinner with us during the playoffs…a 10th as well.

So I’m tired of hearing all this bullshit from the sports media in this college fanboy market about there are no stars available beyond the 5th pick.

Sam Presti…you’re on my clock, buddy. Little Nick Gallo and Royce Young don’t write company line horseshit content on this blog.

So—where was I?

Hockey. Usually I don’t start really yearning for the stretch run and the glorius Stanley Cup Playofs until the third week of March….but this has been a a different winter for me. I feel restless. Like Joe Exotic wanting to get in the cage with his tigers.

This is just a tremendous video of the top thirty calls in hockey history from the contemporary era or else this video would be full of Bobby Orr highlights.

My three favorite hockey players of all-time are still 1 Bobby Orr (even though he voted for Trump), 2 Raymond Bourque, and 3 Super Mario.

I don’t want to spoil the video, but they didn’t put the Miracle on ice as No. 1…which shocked me.

Thunder hosting the Heat tonight…what do I care? Two years ago I would have easily paid a hundred to see the Thunder host the Heat. Not so much this season. Sam Presti…you’re in the entertainment business…never forget that, my bespeckled friend.

Cade Cunningham is hosting Chris Beard and the Texas Tech Red Raiders tonight so there’s that…and the Thirty Best Calls in Hockey History.

You’ll never guess who beat out the 1980 Miracle for the No. 1 spot.

I watched maybe ten minutes of the Thunder’s win at Cleveland yesterday because the Boston Bruins were playing the Philadelphia Flyers in an outdoor game at Lake Tahoe.

It wasn’t much of a game as the Bruins’ cruised to a 7-3 win behind a David Pasternak hat trick.

The afternoon NBC Game of the Week was excellent though as the Washington Caps roared back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the New Jersey Devils 4-3.

All four of the Washington goals were score by key players from Washington’s 2018 Stanley Cup Championship club which stunned the world with their improbable run to the Cup.

T.J. Oshie had two goals, Alex Ovechkin had one goal, and John Carlson had a goal as well. For me, the Bruins and Caps are my two favorite teams in the East while the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche are my two favorite teams in the West.

After yesterday’s Washington win…NBC Sports played an hour special film on Doc’s play by play broadcasting career at NBC. What I didn’t know…. Doc was the New Jersey Devils’ play by play man for eighteen years before he went to work at NBC. While doing the Devil broadcasts he had the good fortune of calling three different Stanley Cup championship teams in New Jersey.

So as I was watching the end of Doc’s film yesterday… I was a little teary-eyed and thinking to myself as a hockey fan—what was my favorite moment of a Doc Emrick call as a team clinched the Stanley Cup…. and the one below when Ovechkin won his Cup is the one to this day I remember most.

Doc’s call of the final two minutes…

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=doc+embrick%27s+call+on+washinton+capitols+winning+stanley+cup+youtube&docid=608006136700997480&mid=E5488CA47C8F3B6DF282E5488CA47C8F3B6DF282&view=detail&FORM=VIRE

This call below is from John Walton on the Capitols’ own broadcast…which was pretty amazing itself. Wouldn’t it be nice to have fans back in the arenas? Almost 40% of the Game 5 crowd in Vegas was wearing Capitol red.

Marilyn McCoo – One Less Bell To Answer (The 5th Dimension and Bones Howe) – YouTube

As someone who admired John McCain…I just know at this point he’d want Lindsey Graham to stop chasing Donald Trump around like a love starved high school girl. Enough already—stop it and go back home to South Carolina.

Don’t get hurt again, buddy.

Jalen Green Leads IGNITE Team To 4th Straight Win | Full Highlights vs Iowa | 22 Pts, 6 Reb & 5 Ast! – YouTube

This is mainly a Jalen Green highlight mix, but Johnathan Kuminga is on the same team G League as Jalen so the viewer can see some of these two together in a recent Ignite win. Jalen is No. 4 and Johnathan is No. 0.

Both of these guys are pretty much on eveyone’s top five draft list for this summer’s NBA draft.

Watch the defensive flow of both teams and how much space and time is given up in these higlights compared to what Cade Cunningham is seeing every night in the Big 12 where gadget zones are clogging the lane and taking away much of what Cade could be doing by playing in the G League.

The G League now has the Professional Pathway Program which allows top tier prospects from high school to pass on the obligatory one year of college basketball and get paid as they prepare their games for the NBA draft.

This seems fairly logical to me if you’re that type of an elite athlete. Kobe pretty mcuh did this before there was a G League.

This is what Jalen Johnson should have done at Duke. Johnson left Duke this past week and is now preparing on his own for the draft.

Meanwhile…Jalen Green is making some really nice money while honing his game for the NBA draft.

In retrospect—this is probably what Cade should have done, but his brother got a job on Mike Boynton’s staff and I’m sure Cade’s loyalty to his brother had a great deal to do with him spending this season in Stillwater.

Kentucky was Cade’s second college choice and it’s very much a good thing he didn’t go there this season as John Calipari’s team has been a trainwreck most of the season.

Keep these highlights in mind when tomorrow night in Stillwater…former Bob Knight defensive guru Chris Beard has two to three guys playing or shading Cade every time he touches the ball.

What Chris Beard will basically do is challenge the other O State players to beat him. From a college game standpoint it will be interesting to watch, but not relevant as to what Cade will see in the NBA.

It’s the same thing in hockey when the other team has an elite scorer. First guy hits him, second guys hits him, third guy hits him all game long.

I may or may not watch two of the NBA’s worst teams tonight as the Thunder host the Cleveland Cavaliers. I’ll probably watch one half and then watch Stanley Tucci’s show on Italian cusine and culture. We’ll see.

If a passionate hoops junkie like me is doing this and spending his disposable basketball fun money paying to see OU play in Manhattan and Texas Tech play in Stillwater–I would suggest to Sam Presto to not piss away his two first round picks this summer.

Have a nice Sunday.

Here’s some other takes on the Professional Pathway Program and how it should relate to present and future player development.

Wild Turkey Mating Ritual Dance – YouTube

It was a great Saturday out here in Deer Creek. I would call it almost balmy surreal. I was in and out feeding not only the eight turkeys, but other birds in our backyard. We put out around a hundred pounds of corn and sunflower seed this past week.

The bird viewing was simply amazing.

I had a great Saturday. I watched three Big 12 games and then the Heat beating the Lakers in the nightcap. I hope Tyler Herro’s contused hip is okay because once the Heat get full healthy I expect them to challenge Philly and the Brooklyn Thunder in the East.

In the Big 12 games Kansas beat Chris Beard’s Red Raiders. Texas choked a 16 point lead to West Virginia at home and lost—and of course Lon Kruger’s trending Sooners beat Iowa State on the road.

Just a beautiful day. I smoked a cigar on the back patio for the first time in 2021 and even got some ski slope sun with the reflection off the snow. Even had a pork chop for breakfast which is a rarity. Felt like I was at the base of Squaw Valley or Taos in my younger days.

I was worried about our eight wild turkeys on Thursday after the second snow storm. They looked whipped for the first time ever. Little Mike Gundy with his 1-15 orange sweater looked like he was done, but it’s amazing how quickly they’ve snapped back in the past forty-eight hours.

Little Jerry Seinfeld, Little Kendrick Perkins, and Little Baker Mayfield look better than ever. Life is good.

They’re strutting, they’re bobbing and weaving and hopping like’s it’s mid March.

It was the best day since we got back from Denver visiting the kids.

Have a nice Sunday.

I don’t think at this point either Lindsey Graham or Donald Trump would mind if I switch their music from the the make up sex thread and let the turkeys use it.

Minnie Riperton – Lovin’ You (Live 1975) – YouTube