Also see today's News Digest, February 5, and News Digest for Yesterday, February 4, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, February 4
Our Daily Threads for February 5:
After last years 3 game skid I was nervous about tonight. We played badly at Texas and with inexperience I was concerned it would remain in our young heads.
And baylor was coming off a big win, and had KU coming to play them at home. I was nervous about momentum. Just before the half. We has frosh no shoes.
I've had a long, hard day at work. I'm tired. I'm driving home and all I can think about is a plate of grub then jumping in bed for a long snooze.
I'm driving too fast. I always drive fast at 6pm. It is my time to race home.
If I missed a previous posting on this topic then I'm sorry to bring this up again. BUT. Does anyone know, or has anyone read anything yet about what the NCAA and CBS have planned for making March Madness games available on internet next month?
Self subs Mason for Tharpe, but the lead does not narrow significantly.
Inference: Tharpe, despite his defensive limitations, was not the real problem.
As some of you probably realize, I am not partial to continuing to think in the box when the box is getting the shizz beaten out of you.
Well, if Self and Company cannot yet figure out how to beat long, strong and athletic opponents (LSAs) like Florida, SDSU, and Texas, let the Greek Chorus of KUBuckets.com become a hot bed of strategic and tactical thinking outside the box, if only to create a karma of problem solving that might free Self and Company to find their own path outside the box.
I really didn't feel like doing this award, so I'll make it brief. At first, I felt like planting a big goose egg on this one because of the lackluster effort put out by our Jayhawks in this loss.
I could barely watch this game and I needed to take breaks in the first half in order to keep myself together. I mean, come on, watching this team jog back and forth to both ends of the court was was... I'm not even sure what to say.
Nobody. Wanted. To. Compete.
That was for slayr, who said before the game he still had some doubts about this teams desire to compete.
Competing means fighting for what is needed to survive amidst scarcity, against long odds, when there is no help coming.
I find books on strategy and tactics from other fields help one think about strategy and tactics of basketball.
These are two military histories-one about Civil War generalship, and one about generalship from WWII to present. One completely rearranges your thinking about Robert E. Lee. Another rearranges your thinking about many generals of the post WWII Era. Both do so within the framework of assessing the great troubles generals have identifying effective strategy and tactics. Not much pussy footing around in these histories. About the only knock against them is that they both to some extent make the great mistake of most military histories not written by career military men--they largely overlook, or understate, the logistics that underpinned both the bungling and the astute strategies and tactics examined.
UNICAST, formerly known as Basketball Uniform Forecasts, Inc., of Netherland Antilles, now of Lichtenstein, has announced its expectation for the uniforms KU will likely wear in Austin, Texas, against the University of Texas Longhorns.
Some images are burned into our memories ... Hook 'em Horns!
So I saw a news story where someone went on to this web site and started a petition to have Justin Bieber deported and they already had over 120,000 signatures in about 10 days, it only takes 100,000 for the Presidents staff to have them look at it and make a statement.
So with that in mind can we start one to get Doug Gottlieb off of TV, radio and internet?
Self started the season with a shorter boot camp and less heavy workload. He said he did this to compensate for the longer season. Is KU's use current uptick due to the fact that many other teams did not do what self did, and so are hitting the midseason wall sooner than KU? Will KU miss the wall, or just hit it a few weeks later?
Motivation VS Competitiveness
There is a difference between motivation and competitiveness. Motivation is the fuel for energy, focus and execution leading up to and during the big event. Most of motivation isn't experienced by the fans because it is in use before the event... in the gym, video room, team room, etc. Motivation helps babysit players, keeps them directed away from bad avenues outside of their sport and focused on the big picture of winning.
Will you all please help assemble a collection of sites that provide stats that are interesting/useful? It would be most helpful if when you list a site, give its name, URL and what it's significance is or what it uniquely excels at.
I think this would be a useful reference for all the members of the site as the season matures.
Now THAT was some exciting basketball played last night in AFH! A supercharged explosion out of the blocks for Kansas, that set the tone for the entire night; big time energy for 40 minutes! These teams like to play each other because they create a powerful synergy when they go after it.
There were many things to consider this time, when picking the winner of the FLOOR BURN AWARD. Wayne Selden had a show-stopping save in the opening minutes that might have made the Sportscenter's Play of the Day reel had Naadir not fumbled it away trying too hard to advance the ball.
My wife must really love me. There is no other possible reason why she would tolerate me during basketball season. During this time of year, basketball rules our DVR hard drive. All other content eventually gets tossed away to make room for more game footage. Anything "basketball" gets targeted for recording; talk basketball shows, some NBA, all college ball, sometimes HS ball, documentaries about basketball, movies about basketball, vintage old games being rebroadcast, etc. etc. etc.
Often I get ideas by putting miscellaneous games side-by-side for my viewing pleasure. Last night, I caught the Oklahoma City Thunder's total beat down on the Miami Heat and then went directly to the tip-off of Kansas and Iowa State.
A few minutes ago I was writing to slayr about what a good selection Perry Ellis was for slayr's Floor Burn Award this week. At the end, I commented that Perry seemed to me to have moved beyond trying to be aggressive and finally became aggressive. He went from acting a role to being a role. This reminded me of the Actor's Studio TV show hosted by former Actor's Studio Dean James Lipton, in which he interviews former students agh the Actor's Studio that have gone on to fine careers.
Then it hit me.
JNew's story about Embiid and doubling has triggered some opining.
How much doubling KU sees depends a lot on whether Embiid is good to go, or a gimp being used as an early decoy.
If Lucas/Black play a lot of 5, ISU is quite likely NOT to double either, until one of them proves a threat in the paint.
Landen is quickly becoming a Jayhawk favorite because of his patience, positivity and performance. He must be the best post 5th-man in college basketball.
Could he be the difference in a league game this year? Yes, he could be, and the game he could impact most will be played tonight in AFH.
One inch.
One inch decides so many things in life. Vince Lombardi famously said that "Life's a game of inches." And every sport is decided by inches. Against TCU, our season may have been decided by one inch. The extra one inch that Joel Embiid's knee did not bend backwards. One more inch, Embiid’s ACL was done.
Some times board rats wonder how Andrew Wiggins can be rumored to be awaiting some kind of mega endorsement deal.
Think about this number: 300,000,000.
That is the estimated number of human beings that play basketball on planet earth presently, according to the ever suspect Wikipedia.
What if Dr. James Naismith was in Springfield, Virginia instead of Springfield, Massachusetts and didn't have peach baskets, only apple crates?
Would we be playing basketball today on a square rim?
~Insist on mis-spelling their school's name as follows: Eyeowa Steight Psiklonz.
~Tell them that Self-Stalking is caused by GMO corn.
~Remind them that corn-based E-85 has less energy density than 87 Regular.
For the entire college basketball season it has been said that the best freshman point guard in the nation plays for Syracuse. Tyler Ennis was a five star recruit, and a McDonald's All American, with offers from prominent colleges such as UCLA, Memphis, Illinois, Cincinnati, and defending national champion Louisville.
Ennis has helped the Orange to an undefeated start to the season, while starting at arguably the most important position on the floor he has averaged 12.0 ppg, 5.4 apg against only 1.4 topg, and 2.5 spg...
Kansas now seems back in the mix for a #1 seed. Seemed improbable three plus weeks ago. But here we are. Back in the discussion. This fact may be the most important development in our pursuit of a national title.
However, with four losses and a challenging conference road ahead, a #1 seed seems unlikely, doesn’t it? Right now, there are two undefeated teams that look like locks for a #1 seed: Arizona and Syracuse. Then there’s Wichita St., who might run the table; and a host of others -- San Diego St., Kentucky, Florida, Michigan St., or Michigan -- for that last spot. Lots of competition with two that have beaten us head to head.
Though it flew under radar, as in almost no one seemed to comment, Self deployed that rarest of rare zone presses, yes, a 3/4 court 1-1-1-2.
SAY WHAT?!
Yep the one and only time I saw it was against Arizona State a few years back, when that little known Okie Baller was interim head coach and was assisted by some connoisseur of weird defenses. Both names I now forget. They ran the 1-1-1-2 and it gave KU some problems beyond simple surprise and recognition. Why?
Hoiberg sends ISU stalker fan down to follow Bill around until Bill can't sleep the night before the big game.
The TCU game was not the most-exciting game in Jayhawk history, but it also wasn't the most-offensive commentated game we've had to tolerate either! In fact, the commentators did an excellent job!
How about a big Jayhawk shout out to Tim Welsh and Anish Shroff for doing the best commentating of a Jayhawk game in years... maybe decades!
Not for rebroadcast, reproduction, re-transmission or re-distribution in any form. Not intended for commercial exploitation of any kind.
StubHub is allowing people selling General Admission seats to post actual row and seat numbers and also state that "your seats will be together" even if a person buys 8 or 10 tickets....
~Try to visit all 1,000 natural gas wells tapping the Barnett Shale formation under Fort Worth. Each well site is a bare patch of gravel 2-5 acres in size. City ordinances permit them in all zoning categories. Some wells are secured by masonry fences, but most are secured by chain link.
~Skip the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and go straight to the adjacent National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame. Women already in the hall of fame include Georgia O'Keefe, Sacagawea, Annie Oakley, Dale Evans, Enid Justin, Temple Grandin, and Sandra Day O'Connor. As you view the honor to Sandra Day O'Connor recall It was reputedly at the 1985 National Press Club's Salute to Congress at 529 14th Street NW in Washington D.C. that Riggins drunkenly told Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor to "loosen up Sandy baby" because she was "too tight" when the two reputedly met at dinner.[29] Riggins then reputedly fell asleep under the table.[30] The incident created a national stir.[citation needed] The next time Ms O'Connor and John Riggins reputedly met at a function years later, she reputedly gave Riggo a dozen roses.[31] {The above was found at John Riggins wiki page.}
Thinking of the TCU game last year as a heavy surprise it wasn't a tough loss, rather it made a point and chance for coach to bring lofty team to reality, get ready for the rest of season and March in March.
Tough loss by coach: Ted Owens, Wichita State and Texas Western. Larry Brown, Oklahoma AFH & Duke Final Four Dallas Roy Williams, Arizona Elite Eight & Syracuse Bill Self, maybe it was Bill's 5th loss against Missouri, oops my bad, played MU 19 times and only lost 4 of them, sweet!
"Fixed fortifications are a monument to the stupidity of man."
--George Patton
George Patton was a general that spent most of his combat life invading places, not defending places. He had overwhelmed many fixed defenses. Thus it is not surprising that he would use his bold eloquence to say something pithy and pregnant with insight about attacking and scoff at fixed defenses.
Bill Self is talking about reducing turnovers -
http://cjonline.com/sports/2014-01-23/self-kus-offense-should-be-better ↗ ↗
A high rate of turnovers seem to be the norm for a Bill Self team. That fact seems to contradict the success Bill Self brings with him every year, or does it?
Why do Bill Self teams turn the ball over at a high rate?
I want to add a thread for today. Would anyone care to venture a very premature guess at this years elite 8 teams? I say that because IMO the field is still too wide open to pick just 4 teams out of the 20 or so teams that could possibly make it to the Final 4. But, there are some really good teams out there that have started to separate themselves from the pack. Back in November during the time KU played in the Champions classic with Dookie, Michigan St and Kenstinky, I made a guess that that line up could be the '14 Final Four. shakes head Nope, not gonna happen. And without further ado, but a lot of rambling because I work the night shift and I have been up since 6pm yesterday, I will start with my 8 teams whom I think at this point in the season will make it to Elite status.
John Gasaway, over at ESPN, wrote an op ed called "Top 25 Players in College Hoops", where he ranked current players based on his own value system for how they impacted the college game instead of how NBA scouts rank players for draft status, based on their potential at the next level.
Gasaway concluded that the top player in college basketball is Doug McDermott. Joel Embiid finished 9th and Andrew Wiggins finished 21st.
I was unable to finish reading his story because I don't find enough value in the ESPN media to warrant paying to read their opinions. But... I'll go ahead and post my own ideas around this story and the rankings that came from it
Also see today's News Digest, February 5, and News Digest for Yesterday, February 4, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, February 4
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