Marc Isenberg of Money Players: “When people make the argument for or against requiring players to go to college, there certain names that pop up. For every Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Tracy McGrady and Dwight Howard, there is MJ, Shane Battier, Grant Hill and Brandon Roy. And for every example used to support the benefits of college (Korleone Young, Leon Smith, Taj McDavid), there are players who screwed in the NBA up after attending college. Two names off the top of my head: Latrell Sprewell and Jason Caffey. Collectively they spent 8 years on college campuses (I hope it was ironic that they both went to the same school). Did college prepare Sprewell and Caffey for life in the NBA? Both have had financial problems and both filed bankruptcy protection. Sprewell infamously choked his NBA coach. Caffey sadly has an assault on his record too.”
Alan Hahn of The Knicks Fix: “Ask his teammates — some of whom had put him on iggy a long time ago but are still annoyed by his overbearing ubiquity — and they’ll tell you, with Marbury it never was about talent. It never was about the physical. It’s the mental. His inability to be a leader — which is OK, really, some people just aren’t natural leaders. The problem is, those people usually recognize that. Marbury doesn’t.”
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress: High School Class of 2009 (Top 10 recruits)
Paul Bessire of WhatIfSports.com: Top 10: NBA Champions
Pete Thamel of The New York Times: “LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony were more witnesses to USA Basketball’s meltdown at the 2004 Olympics than they were participants. The three young stars, fresh off their rookie N.B.A. seasons, barely left the bench as Coach Larry Brown’s dysfunctional team spiraled downward to a third-place finish that became the low point for USA Basketball’s Olympic performances.”
Mike K. of KnickerBlogger.net: “It seems that since Jordan’s second retirement, the NBA has been dominated by the West. For years the NBA’s biggest matchups involved the Lakers, Spurs, Kings, Mavs, or Suns depending on the year. Although the two conferences have split the last 6 championships, it’s generally thought that the West has more teams of championship caliber. For instance if the West’s 6th best team by record, the Utah Jazz, won the title it would be more plausible than the East’s 6th best team (Toronto). Eventually imbalances like this even out. For most of the 80s & early 90s, the NFL was dominated by the NFC as the AFC would go 14 years without winning a Super Bowl. But since then an NFC team has been crowned champion only 3 times in an 11 year span. So it’s not a question of if the East will catch up, it’s a question of when.”
