As we begin to straddle the quarter-post of the NBA season I believe the Spurs and Warriors have the best and deepest teams, with the Spurs retaining the mantle of “league best”. I have Memphis and Chicago on the next tier. It’s an almost imperceptible difference.
The 3rd tier includes Dallas, Portland, Houston, and Oklahoma City. Obviously OKC can and likely will rise as they re-incorporate and heal their stars. The Clippers, Cavaliers, and Raptors fill out the 4th tier. Toronto has a bullet with the DeRozan injury. With him healthy they’re in the 3rd tier.
The 5th tier includes Phoenix, Sacramento, and Washington. It’s incredible to me that Anthony Davis is not on any of my top 14 teams. The Pelicans will simply be far behind until they can locate a difference-maker on the perimeter. Including New Orleans, those are the 15 teams I care about. I love Teague and Giannis; I care about Rondo and Vucevic. The rest really bore me.
Friday night featured four of those teams going head-to-head. While I watched SAN/MEM in it’s entirety, I presume that you the reader did as well. It included a spectacular triple-double from Tim Duncan; if you missed the game then please re-evaluate your life’s priorities before completing my humble article.
Instead I’ll examine the PHX/DAL tilt. Monta Ellis is alive. Monta Ellis is well. Monta Ellis will drive his Ferrari to the rim each moment he has the ball unless you build a sufficient barrier. Feasting on deadly picks the Mississippi native compensated for his inadequate defense by roasting Phoenix’ guards off the dribble as often as possible. The renowned spacing of Rick Carlisle’s offense was apparent as Ellis finished with 33 points on 22 shots.
That’s where the good news ended for the Mavericks. In addition to Dirk Nowitzki’s shooting woes, his defense was among the worst on this night. Indeed his position as power forward dictated that his failures would be located close to the tin, where the shots were of a higher percentage. Additionally Dallas is playing one Richard Jefferson significant minutes these days (17 minutes against the Suns). I can’t think of a veteran in the league, with at least 3 years of experience, who looks any worse.
Of course, the night belonged to the Suns. They leveraged a 40-point first quarter and hot shooting from long distance (8 makes in their first 10 3-point attempts) to create some early embarrassment in Dallas. In particular Phoenix’ best 3 players, Markieff Morris, Eric Bledsoe, and Goran Dragic, played to their strengths and took turns violating the Mavericks’ hospitality. Dragic was perhaps most sensational, finishing with 28 points, 13 assists, and multiple correct decisions down the stretch. Morris enjoyed being guarded by Chandler Parsons, and Bledsoe provided chase-down block of Jefferson in the second half which was the defensive highlight of the game. Gerald Green, the enigmatic swingman off the bench, remains well suited to the role of chaos-provider with his elevation, liberal shooting habits, and transition defense.
In opposition to our coverage of the Suns earlier in this season, this Phoenix team seemed not just composed but organized – as if they remembered who they were from last season. One can’t help but point toward the absence of Isaiah Thomas, officially sidelined with an ankle bruise, as a major contributor to their cohesion. The signing of Thomas was an obvious hedge against the possibility of Bledsoe’s departure, and early in the season we saw a Suns team whose leaders were stifled. Though 4 years and 27M for an undersized, shoot-first point guard may seem difficult to deal, Suns fans should hope that subtraction is the first addition their franchise makes this season.
Monday December 1st, don’t miss the premiere of ‘THE FOLLOWING‘ a new series from BallIsLife.com covering high school and college basketball around the Bay Area. The collaboration from @WhoGotNext and @HaightStreerHardwood will feature highlights and player mixtapes, accompanied by game recaps, team analysis and player profiles. http://instagram.com/p/vhPmzMEPR-/?modal=true
This in-depth look at Northern California’s up-and-coming talent is tailor-made for any local hoops junkie. Check it out this week and start FOLLOWING.
Your league has t-shirt cannons. It has trampoline dunkers. The cameras shame attendees pre-game by showing their embarrassed faces until they wear your lemming t-shirts. Your scoreboards implore us to MAKE NOISE. I have a crazy idea. How about you ensure that we fans get to see as much quality basketball as possible!?
Friday night’s Kings/Suns tilt had bits of everything. DeMarcus Boogie Cousins overpowered the post (25/18 in only 35 minutes). Markieff Morris continued his emergence as a reliable post option. Goran Dragic tempered an off-shooting night by euro-stepping his way to layup after layup. Darren Collison married his defensive quickness and offensive opportunism with forced fadeaways and blown layups. Miles Plumlee looked great on offense.
Despite all this tasty NBA goodness, the referees removed the game’s 2 best players (Markieff and Boogie) by the end of regulation. The final offense was a dramatic flop by Marcus Morris as Boogie set a handoff pick. The refs sent Boogie to the bench, robbing the fans of a double overtime look at these two terrors. Mr. Silver, can we please add an additional foul for any overtime period? Alternatively, can we give teams the option to keep a 6th-foul-player on the floor if they consent to a technical free throw? There must be an alternative. Also, please don’t argue that it would compromise the sanctity of the game. There is no sanctity in a t-shirt cannon.
(steps down off of soapbox)
Like New Orleans, Sacramento has an excellent frontcourt and a suspect backcourt. Boogie is the player we’ve always wanted him to be, legally bullying his way to excellent post position, finishing with his soft touch, and grabbing rebounds with disgust. After his final foul, he forcibly prevented his coach (Mike Malone) from arguing further with the refs. He has become the mature heartbeat of this Kings team who may just make this year’s playoffs.
Dragic’s shot was a bit off all night, and Bledsoe made some critical errors in crunch time. Yet the two of them remain spectacular to watch. On one sequence midway through the 3rd quarter after his own missed free throw, Bledsoe dropped down to double Boogie, blocked the shot, beat Collison for the loose ball, penetrated and found Dragic, collected the rebound and reset the possession (which ended in Boogie fouling Marcus Morris). These Suns clearly miss Channing Frye’s 3-point shooting, and the signing of Isaiah Thomas as a hedge against Bledsoe’s possible departure was clearly a mistake. They badly need a small forward who can shoot (PJ Tucker, though I love his game, is not the answer. Gerald Green, who I love less, is also inadequate).
The Suns led for the gross majority of this game, often by double digits, but were never able to string together multiple defensive stops when the time came to seal the win. With the exception of PJ Tucker’s efforts, the Suns were not able to prevent entry to Boogie or sufficiently deter the timeless Carl Landry. Instead the Kings hung around, received heady bench play from Nik Stauskas and Ramon Sessions, and treated fans to embarrassing late-game execution before finally sealing a win.
At the end of regulation, with the game tied and having just lost Boogie to fouls, Collison bricked a wide-open 14-footer. Dragic was stymied on his drive that followed, kicked it to Thomas for a contested 3, which caught nothing at the buzzer. In the first overtime with the Suns up 3 Bledsoe dribbled off his leg, leading to a pair of free throws for Ben McLemore. On the following possession Collison made a great steal but rushed the layup, resulting in a swat for the bottom of the rim. Out of a Jeff Hornacek timeout Marcus Morris missed a LONG 3, Collison used a head-fake to draw a foul on Bledsoe (made only 1 to tie), leading to a miss from Bledsoe on a nice step-around move. Tied at 106 with 14 seconds left Rudy Gay forgot how to dribble, leading to a 30 foot desperation heave at the buzzer that missed.
In double OT the Suns jumped out to a 4 point lead before McLemore sunk a corner 3. On the Kings’ next possession Gay hit a pretty turnaround from the baseline to take a 1 point lead. Dragic’s ensuing jumper rattled in and out and when Landry rebounded a 3-point miss from Gay, the Suns were forced to foul. Down 2 PJ Tucker missed a corner 3 and Marcus Morris rebounded, only to miss a 13-footer. The Kings acted as though they had won a playoff series.
Stan Van Gundy has begin the long road of transforming his young Piston’s team into a contender –via USA Today Sports
Welcome to a new series at Haight Street Hardwood: Game of the Night. From the title contenders to bottom dwellers tanking their way to the highest lottery pick possible, we here at HSH are consumed by all the NBA offers. In this series we’ll cover a non-Warrior game on many nights of the week in order to give you a flavor of the rest of the league that is our greatest preoccupation. You’ll hear game reports, catch up with notable narratives, and check in on the game’s emerging talents. Enjoy.
In the classic comedy Anchorman, Ron Burgundy has a difficult time incorporating the newly-learned term “When in Rome” into his vocabulary. In one delightful post-coital scene Burgundy misuses the term, causing his newfound girlfriend Veronica Corningstone to reply “You’ll find it.”
Her comment was what came to mind when watching Stan Van Gundy’s Pistons Thursday evening. Van Gundy has been out of the league for 2 years now and he seems to have forgotten a thing or two. Principally, he clearly forgot that Ricky Rubio can’t stay in front of an NBA guard. Maybe “can’t” is the wrong word. I’ve never seen him in a proper defensive stance, so I don’t know that he “can’t”. I just know that he doesn’t. Like ever. Van Gundy (I’m being a touch unfair, most NBA coaches would have done the same) called for the same high screens over and over again which had the unfortunate (for the Pistons) consequence of bringing another defender into the fold and slowing any positive development. On the scattered occasions in which DJ Augustin or Brandon Jennings simply took Rubio off the dribble, they were granted catered, red-carpet access to the rim.
Before diving into the rest of this game, please understand that Greg Monroe was not available (suspended) and both teams had played the night before. I’m sure we’ll see cleaner performances from both squads later in the season (Piston starters scored but 41 points); blame me for not checking the schedule when deciding to cover the game.
Van Gundy was treated to a stirring, throwback performance from Caron Butler (24 second-half points), an aggressive Augustin, and a second-half comeback that saw the Pistons tie the game after trailing by 19 late in the 3rd quarter. Yet their chances had long been damaged both by their high pick-and-rolls as well as Andre Drummond’s foul trouble (Drummond sat with his 4th foul at the 7:34 mark of the 3rd quarter and was far more accommodating to Nikola Pekovic upon his return).
Here are some other items you might find interesting, amusing, or maybe both:
Josh Smith still likes to shoot really long 2-pointers (you’re not going to believe this, but he shot 5-16 from the field).
Thaddeus Young looked fantastic. Past his solid offensive game was an inspired defensive performance that scuttled many Piston possessions. I’m not sure Wolves fans have seen such defense from their forward position over the past few years.
Andrew Wiggins looked every bit his age of 19. The first overall pick had a few nice buckets in the second half including some impressive athletic displays. Yet his turnovers and nervousness belied someone just getting started.
Anthony Bennet’s jump shot looks much better!
This might have been just a coincidence. I really hope not. Upon being replaced with foul trouble in the 3rd quarter, Andre Drummond found his seat and immediately stared directly into the court-side camera trained on his face. It was a hard stare, one that he held for a long time, as if he was saying “WHAT? WHY ARE YOU STARING AT ME?” The stare lasted until the broadcast changed the shot. It made me happy. Thanks, Andre.
Last night in the season opener Anthony Davis showed that he has arrived as one of the league most elite players, finishing with 26 Pts, 17 Reb, 2 Ast, 3 Stl, 9 Blks and staring the season with a win. –image via Sportal
Welcome to a new series at Haight Street Hardwood: Game of the Night. In this series we’ll cover a non-Warrior game on many nights of the week in order to give you a flavor of the rest of the league. From its title contenders to its bottom dwellers tanking their way to the highest lottery pick possible, we here at HSH are consumed by all the NBA offers. You’ll hear game reports, catch up with notable narratives, and check in on the game’s emerging talents. Enjoy.
Oct. 28, 2014 Magic @ Pelicans …..the terror that is Anthony Davis is back
By Jack Keane
Nikola Vucevic seems like he will end the 2014-15 season as the least-appreciated star in the NBA. This guy can really play. Matched up against two dominant defenders Vucevic was a force with 15 points, 23 rebounds, and 4 blocks. More than that, Vucevic often made the extra pass, gave the proper spacing on the pick and roll, and showed relentless pursuit for rebounds and loose balls alike. Unfortunately, he’s not only paired with an overmatched Kyle O’Quinn, but the Magic are missing Victor Oladipo, allowing Evan Fournier and Ben Gordon to play 55 minutes. Those guys are not…….really good…..at preventing dribble penetration.
All that to say, the terror that is Anthony Davis is back. The superstar already had 20 points, 14 rebounds and 6 blocks with 2:06 left in the 3rd quarter (he finished with 26/17/9). In an early first quarter possession he defended a high pick and roll with an aggressive hedge, hustled back to deter the slip pass to the rim, reset his feet, anticipated and intercepted a Tobias Harris pass, and then outran O’Quinn to the cup for a dunk. He seemed to be MORE of a factor, if that’s even possible, now that he’s playing with Omer Asik in that he is more aggressive in defending a smaller area (that which is not patrolled by Asik). This smaller assignment unleashes the dynamo, allowing him to explode for blocks at will.
And oh how delighted Omer Asik must be to be playing with Davis instead of Dwight Howard. “Oh”, you can imagine him thinking “you mean I get to actually play at the same time as this guy? Like I get to shoot 70% and play great defense and rebound like a 7-footer should and they’ll leave me on the floor?” I hear you crediting Davis’ superior shooting for their compatibility, but the naked eye tells me its more than that. Davis makes plays for others and doesn’t require the isolation plays Howard pleads for. The fit is obvious, even against a terrible team like the Magic (Asik finished with 14 points, 17 rebounds, and 5 blocks).
The game took a permanent turn at the end of the 3rd quarter. A terrible first quarter (3/10 FT’s) left the Pelicans down a point, and they had been carried since by a positive night from Davis, Asik, and Tyreke Evans. Yet they were only up 2 with 2:20 to go in the 3rd when Vucevic sat down for his normal rest. Davis and Ryan Anderson quickly scored six sandwiched around an and-1 from Fournier. Anderson then caught fire, hitting three consecutive 3’s, the final a great find from Austin Rivers in mid-transition. A 16-3 run, and the Magic would never recover.
The fourth saw a resigned Magic team incredibly sad for this time of year. Acknowledging the Pelicans had the key sealed off, they settled for flat-footed jumpers or late-shot-clock heaves in the half-court set. Anderson carried his solid play over to the 4th, finishing with 22 points and 9 rebounds. The Pelicans still have a lot of work to do as Jrue Holliday and Eric Gordon are not good defenders, but the Magic lacked the talent or interest to expose such deficiencies on this first night. They might someday have a decent 5 in Vucevic, Oladipo, Payton, Tobias Harris and Aaron Gordon.
We would be remiss not to mention the NBA debut of Payton, who began his career tonight in his hometown of New Orleans. No doubt suffering from jitters his shot looked the part and he shied away from the jumper throughout the night. Yet Payton’s passing chops are there, he dances through defenses in search of an opening for his teammates, and he rarely makes a poor choice. He had his lunch handed to him on a couple of drives and certainly needs to defend like a pro, but it says here he’ll have a long career in the NBA. Pelicans win, 101-84.
After recently representing his country at the 2014 FIBA U17 World Basketball Championship in Dubai, Bishop O’Dowd’s Ivan Rabb returned home sporting a gold medal around his neck and a walking boot on his left foot. The nation’s number one ranked incoming senior suffered a high ankle sprain during the team’s tryouts in Colorado Springs. Though he did show flashes of his usual dominance, most notably a perfect 4-4 from the field in the team’s 99-92 championship game victory over Australia, the bum wheel slowed him significantly throughout the tournament. Now back stateside he will begin to nurse his ever-so-precious lower extremity back to strength. This includes opting out of the many all-star showcases he was scheduled to attended like August 23rd’s nationally televised Elite 24 in Brooklyn and the following day’s NorCal Clash at Contra Costa Community College. It’s an intelligent decision and one that illustrates that the Oakland phenom has his priorities in order; gutting out a Willis Reed-esque performance while representing your country is far different than taking the chance of exacerbating an injury while playing in exhibition games.
While there was obvious disappointment surrounding Rabb’s absence at the NorCal Clash, there was also added intrigue in finding out which Northern California star would fill the big man’s void. As fate would have it, Rabb’s Bishop O’Dowd teammate Paris Austin would prove to be more than up to the task, as the hard-nosed 5’9 point guard impressed the crowd from opening tip to the final buzzer. The Oakland floor general took home the game’s MVP and was one of many players from both the 2015 Team and 2016 Team that spent the afternoon proving that there is far more talent in Northern California beyond the nation’s top senior.
This year’s NorCal Clash clearly illustrated that the upcoming season of high school basketball could be one of the best that Northern California has seen. These are players whose names will likely be mentioned for many years to come; each is capable of going on to make an impact at the next level. The following are a few observations about August 24th’s NorCal Clash and a few predictions based on those observations. Without further ado….
Bishop O’Dowd will be a force
Let’s immediately get the obvious out of the way. Any team with an agile 6’10 power forward/center should have a pretty good high school basketball season. If that athletic 6’10 power forward just so happens to be the nation’s top ranked, in-coming senior then the team should be down right dominant. But when that agile 6’10 top ranked big man is paired with one of California’s most elite point guards and the two have played together for years, the word “great” becomes a much more fitting adjective. Paris Austin and Ivan Rabb are more than capable of fulfilling these lofty expectations. With a healthy Ivan Rabb a dominant season is virtually inevitable, but the Oakland catholic school’s most important player this coming season could very well be their experienced floor general. Austin was pretty close to flawless in the way he controlled the NorCal Clash for every second he was on the floor, as a two in the turnover column was the only blemish to his masterful stat line that saw him come just two rebounds short of a triple-double.
As impressive as it was to watch him carve through some of the golden state’s best juniors, the main reason scholarship offers have come from big time programs like Florida State is his unique ability to dissect the defense while running an offense. This was most apparent in the way he ran the pick and roll to perfection with Elk Grove’s Marquese Chris and Modesto Christian’s Anthony Townes. A senior point guard of Austin’s skill and intelligence is arguably the most valuable commodity a team can have in the high school ranks. Bishop O’Dowd will go as far as their diminutive leader takes them, which very well could be a state championship. As for where they stack up nationally we should get a pretty good idea on February 6th in the finale of the Nike Extravaganza, when they take on a school that has featured the likes of Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony and 13 other first round NBA draft picks since 1995 in Oak Hill Academy. With Rabb already established on the national scene as the top player overall, the enormous game will be more important for Austin as he tried to prove the country that he belongs among the most elite point guards.
IF YOU ARE ANYWHERE REMOTELY NEAR THE SACRAMENTO/FOLSOM AREA, GO WATCH JORDAN FORD SHOOT A BASKETBALL!
Folsom High’s slender six foot tall incoming junior Jordan Ford is far from an imposing presence. That is until you watch him start getting up shots. Whether he is pulling up off the dribble or catching and letting it fly, the point guard is absolutely deadly from long range. His spot up shooting is so effective that if he continues to grow some coaches at the college level may elect to have him play shooting guard. That said the way he handles the ball and distributes such a move would be doing his game a great disservice. One of the NBA’s most solid point guards and greatest shooters for the past decade has been Spain’s Jose Calderon and while it may not be the most glamorous of comparisons, Ford’s game is very similar to the versatile Spaniard. His jump shot is one of those strokes that demands the most flowery of descriptions. During one timeout while sitting in the bleachers of Contra Costa College’s gym, after the class of 2016’s sharpshooter had gone on a particularly impressive run, Ball Is Life’s camera man George Nguyen, who covers the nation’s most elite prep players year round, looked over at me and said: “His jumpshot is so pretty, I could watch it all day.” I laughed and handed George my notes, pointing to what I had last scribbled down, which read: “Ford’s jump shot is gorgeous!” The aesthetics of his shot often overshadows his playmaking ability. Whenever I was able to shake myself out of the trance I had been put in by the beautiful jumper, I began to notice each player on the team of juniors was receiving the ball from their point guard in the exact place they needed to get off an open jump shot or in many cases a thunderous dunk. With such dangerous range, defenders were forced to crowd Ford, who in turn used this aggression against them and went right by them to operate freely in the paint. He is most certainly of a point guard’s mentality in the way he looks to make the right play every possession. When you make the pilgrimage to Folsom for the Jordan Ford show, you’ll go for the mesmerizing perfect shot and stay for the playmaking.
Noah Blackwell: The Closest Thing To Russell Westbrook In Northern California
Once you watch Woodcreek High’s incoming senior Noah Blackwell operate it is easy to understand why he has been such a YouTube sensation since his sophomore season. The Roseville product is at times so electrifying that a fan’s overall viewing experience can be downright hijacked. I often found myself involuntarily ignoring the other nine players on the floor in favor of tracking his every move so as to not miss the next spectacular play that would inevitably come. While this rare domination of a fan’s attention on a court filled with other stars is a feat most commonly associated with Lebron James, Blackwell’s fearless attack on a game will conjure memories associated more with one of James’ rivals. Blackwell’s explosive ability to get by a defender, stop on a dime, explode once again towards the rim or into a high leaping jump shot has made Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook a top five player in the league for years. For both of these California bred guards, everything begins and ends with explosiveness. The younger of the two used that explosion to make the class of 2016’s afternoon miserable. He dangled the ball in front of himself with stylish crossovers until his defenders stumbled or naively reached for a steal, at which point he would powerfully burst straight up for pretty jump shots before they could even react. Blackwell also shares Westbrook’s defiance of the confines attached to an ideal point guard, often the recipient of lob passes leading to emphatic dunks for which most point guards are usually designated to throw rather than finish. Blackwell was a high flyer at a very early age, throwing down highlight-reel dunks by his sophomore season, while Westbrook was not able to add this elite aerial assault until the very end of his high school career. Despite the Placer County guard and the NBA superstar’s strikingly similar styles of play, the most intriguing quality about the class of 2015 guard may be what he’s done differently. Blackwell is a far better passer than Westbrook ever was, even during his time at UCLA. The argument can be made that Westbrook is still is not in the discussion with the NBA’s best passers, whereas Blackwell is one of the best you will see in high school basketball. Not only does he pass well out of the converging double and triple teams when attacking the lane, his extremely high awareness finds teammates cutting to the basket and masterfully works with his big men in the pick-and-roll.
Blackwell may be the single most entertaining player to watch in Northern California this season. His athleticism and speed is a must watch, just make sure you also appreciate the way he gets others involved.
Dominant big man and University of Washington signee Marquese Chriss, with 2016 point guard Jordan Ford to his left, fellow seniors to be Noah Blackwell and Armani Collins
Washington Has Another Athletic NBA Prospect On His Way In Marquese Chriss
Elk Grove’s incoming senior and University of Washington signee Marquese Chriss looked like a man among boys for most of the afternoon, as he continuously plucked lob passes out of the air and slammed them home with a complete indifference for the bodies helplessly watching below. The high flying big man from Sacramento was utterly dominant on both ends of floor at the 2014 Norcal Clash. While he will still need to develop a consistent outside shot and add muscle to his already broad frame, Chriss was by far the game’s most likely NBA prospect. He possesses the same raw athleticism that many Huskies have had before him. Coach Lorenzo Romar has of course refined a few into NBA players over the years. While the Elk Grove big man is much more of a traditional back-to-the-basket player, he often displays the same stunning finishes with his head above the rim like player Romar signed and refined – Toronto Raptor and NBA Dunk Contest champ Terrence Ross. In years to come keep a look out for Chriss to be the next superior athlete from the University of Washington to climb up NBA draft boards.
Cal needs to sign Carlos Johnson
The transfer from Phoenix used the afternoon to make it known that he has arrived in the Bay Area. At 6’4 and a very solid 220 he impressively held his own while banging with the senior squad’s bigger post players and was a monster on the glass. For most of the first half Johnson had some nice post moves and got some good looks, but came up empty on the offensive end. In most cases he was just forcing things that simply were not there. Once he settled into a rhythm it became very clear why the Golden Bears are in such hot pursuit of the El Cerrito junior, as he began to finish strong at the rim and knocked down a barrage of open threes on his way to a game high 31 points. As staggering as Johnson’s big numbers may have been, it was his versatility that most stood out. The power forward effortlessly transitioned from throwing his weight around in the post on one possession to handling the ball in the pick-and-roll on the next. Such a well-rounded and physical player will always have a spot in college basketball. Cuanzo Martin and his Cal staff will likely try to add this Swiss Army knife to their arsenal sooner than later.
El Cerrito Will Challenge Bishop O’Dowd for East Bay Supremacy
Along with Carlos Johnson, Sayeed Pridgett and Tyrell Alcorn help make up a team that will have speed and athleticism to burn. Pridgett and Alcorn are both able to handle the ball and blow by their defenders with elite quickness. While Pridget is more of a scorer, Alcorn is a classic facilitator and will provide the team with senior leadership at the point guard spot. They also share a willingness to play suffocating defense on the perimeter as well as an elite athleticism to do so. This ability to defend and force turnovers will demoralize opposing offenses and lead to countless highlight fast breaks from the athletic trio. El Cerrito’s three players was the most from one school in this year’s Norcal Clash. In a game that features Northern California’s most elite juniors and seniors, a team that has three of those top 23 players is one that cannot be ignored. It should be interesting to see how the team that came up short to O’Dowd in last year’s NCS Championship game does this year after adding Johnson and bringing back a more experienced Pridgett and Alcorn. If this year’s NCS bracket shakes out correctly a rematch this March would more than likely serve as the Bay Area’s biggest game of the 2014-15 season.
Christian Terrell and Armani Collins Have The Look
There’s certain players that don’t look like much at first glance who turn out to be legitimate players once you watch them play. There’s also players with the body of a prototypical NBA swingman that can’t survive five minutes on a court with a decent junior varsity team. Then there are the players with a game that lives up to their elite body type, such is the case for Sacramento High junior Christian Terrell and Stuart Hall of San Francisco senior Armani Collins. Even at 16 and 17 years of age the two already have the appearance of college basketball’s elite perimeter players. More importantly, during the NorCal Clash they both lived up to the stereotypes that come with their ideal frames. Long with broad and bulky shoulders, Terrell looks like a shorter, more muscular version of former Stanford star Josh Childress: able to get to the basket with just a few long strides when he’s not exhibiting his smooth stroke from the outside. Collins is well built at 6’6, athletic, and shoots the ball well from beyond the arc. He basically looks like any one of the talented young prospects the Oklahoma City Thunder stockpile at the end of their bench. Unless my eyes deceive me, remembering these two names will come in handy when filling out your March Madness bracket in a couple years.
Anthony Townes Is and Will Continue To Be A Beast
Modesto Christian’s power forward and senior to be is the type of player coaches love. He sets great screens, relentlessly pursues every rebound and finishes extremely strong around the basket. This is all before detailing his passionate effort on the defensive end. At an extremely strong and fast 6’6 he is able to effectively body up much bigger players in the post and agile enough to stay with quick guards when switching on screens. During the NorCal Clash he would routinely negated his man’s height advantage with his superior strength, rarely budging when being backed down and many times keeping his man completely out of the lane altogether. The Class of 2016’s big men were not the only victims of his tireless defensive wrath, as the University of Pacific signee got his hands on multiple passes thrown by the junior squad’s guards and made them think twice about entering the lane by contesting every shot that came his way. With the same incredible effort put forth on the defensive end he filled the lane like a sprinter on the fast-break to consistently beat his man down the floor. More often than not he was rewarded for his efforts with a Paris Austin pass for a two-handed tomahawk. The future UOP Tiger’s amazing strength and motor should more than compensate for being slightly undersized for a D-1 post player. Like another undersized big man from Modesto Christian before him by the name of Chuck Hayes, height does not get in the way of the fact that Townes was simply born to take care of the dirty work down low. Applying his extraordinary work ethic to developing an outside shot could easily put him among the WCC’s most elite big men during his time in the conference. Until that time comes let’s just enjoy watching him toss around and outrun high school post players.
One of the great appeals to high school basketball is the uncertainty that comes with a game dictated by sixteen, seventeen and eighteen year-olds. Rankings are turned upside down with a late bloomer exploding on to the scene and just one injury will topple a projected powerhouse. By mid-season there will more than likely be a few statements removed from this list and certainly a few players to be added. With such treacherous variables looming over a season the reliability of this list dwindles down to one cold hard guarantee: Any fan who takes the time to witness these players live and up-close will not be disappointed. Fortunately, this is the only assurance any enthusiast of the game ever needs.
There is a certain unknown that has always contributed to the excitement in attending a San Francisco Pro-Am game. As they enter the old pavilion every fan, young and old, shares the same lingering hope when examining the two shuffling groups of physical specimens going through layup lines; they will be greeted by the sight of another star dropping by the storied league to pay it homage. Such a gift has become one of the league’s greatest traditions and a large reason so many flock to the historic gym on Stanyan Street each summer. While such an experience takes place only a few nights each summer, those few nights will always be some of the league’s most celebrated. Of equal significance to the adoration the league has sustained for 35 years are the talented players that, instead of making a solitary cameo, commit to being on hand each and every week. Kezar diehards have come to rely on these consistent players as they maintain the exceptionally high level at which the league has been played for the last three and a half decades. No team had more players embody that cherished dependability than the 2014 San Francisco Pro-Am champs.
From the first week of the season in June until the final game last Friday, the Bay Raiders put out a full rotation of unrelenting competitors. Each week, without exception, Bryan Thomasson would have a full roster of players ready to give everything they had for however long he asked. “We never had any arguments,” Thomasson said, “no locker room problems, no guys yelling for me to put them in or calling me after the game for playing time. There wasn’t one single incident of anything close to that.” With such a strenuous defense fueling a fast paced offense, the Raiders required a dedication from their players that is simply unheard of in summer pro-am leagues. They rode this unmatched commitment all the way to the league finals and it was never so apparent than in Game 2 of the series. When facing elimination and an SF City team of stars, they rallied from an early deficit to force a decisive Game 3. The proud coach recalled one specific example of his guys’ unique dedication, “I stopped the guys right before we went out to the floor and explained what a guy like Caredell[Butler] means to this team. For him to go from last year being the MVP runner-up to Austin Nichols, the captain and leading scorer of a team that went to the league championship, to being the ninth, tenth, eleventh man and still be a positive influence on the bench, never complain and mentor young guys, thats huge. I made sure to give Cardell that shout out.” The rubber match of this series unfortunately featured a depleted SF City lineup, with many of it’s stars having already departed for professional obligations overseas. Once again the Raider players’ unconditional devotion was on display, as a full roster and almost identical to the one that had opened the season, was on hand for the series finale.
In an attempt to jump out to an early lead by capitalizing on the terribly short-handed SF City lineup, the Raiders opened the game with their signature full-court press in overdrive. It wasn’t easy though, as a remarkably gritty SF City team traded leads with them for most of the first half. The only player in SF City’s Friday night lineup with any previous experience as a starter was Eryk Thomas. Thomas was always an important part of the team’s usual full strength roster, but never a featured scorer like he would have to be Friday. Nevertheless, the veteran power forward embraced the challenge and shouldered much of the team’s post offense, while still fulfilling his usual duties as a tenacious rebounder and defender. Building on Thomas’ experience was back-up point guard Sam Allen, who served as defensive specialist and spark off the bench for most of the season. Friday Allen would share the majority of the ball handling duty with Lucas Chavez, the baby-faced 20-year-old son of Pro-Am legend Bucky Chavez. While the younger Chavez had made spot appearances early on in the summer, he hadn’t been on hand for an SF City game since June. Despite the daunting task of taking on such unfamiliar roles in the summer’s biggest game, both Chavez and Allen held their own against league MVP guard Marquel Hoskins.
As much as the entire SF City team rose to the occasion of replacing their missing star teammates, no player picked up the slack quite like the former Colgate guard Kyle Roemer. The former De La Salle High sharpshooter was sparingly used as a deep threat off the bench in the few playoff games he had attended. But with SF City’s high powered guard duo of Chauncey Leslie and Justin Dentmon off on the other side of the globe, it was up to Roemer to pick up the slack on the perimeter. Through an array of deep threes and midrange jumpers he more than adequately filled the void left by the professional stars. More importantly he kept his team’s championship hopes alive. Soon the pavilion echoed with questions about this shaggy-haired dead-eye, as the crowd attempted to figure out the identity of this unlikely star. Behind their man of mystery, SF City rattled off another run late in the third quarter and pulled even with the Bay Raiders at 66 apiece. The team deprived of all it’s stars, had now tied a game that many assumed they would struggle to even keep close.
When he wasn’t raining in threes, SF City’s Kyle Roemern was stuck with the unfortunate task of chasing around the Bay Raider’s own deep threats Mac Peterson(4) and Rob Jones(12).
For the Bay Raiders, this fight to a standstill was not a result of any oversight or underestimation of their own. Rather it was the product of inspired players taking advantage of their rare opportunity to perform on a big stage. As a result, the top seeded Raiders had no adjustments to make to their game plan. They remained under the assumption that the breakneck style of play that wore down so many teams earlier in the summer would eventually do the same to their motivated opponent. Thomasson explained his thinking, “If were able to get 5-7 of our guys to score in double digits, teams won’t be able to keep up, thats always been my philosophy. If we share the ball, we’ll always be fine.” The self-confidence paid off and the game slowly began to swing. After an early fourth quarter three from Eryk Thomas, the Raiders responded with a run of 8 unanswered points and never looked back. The team that had stood atop the league standings all summer long would finish there, as they would end the third and final game of the championship series with a 92-80 victory and a 2014 San Francisco Pro-Am championship.
The team’s final run came largely behind Hoskins’ superb ability to lead his team on both ends of the floor. He began wearing down the outmatched opposing guards, spending much of the final quarter getting into the lane for his signature floaters or dishing out pinpoint passes to get his teammates going. Mac Peterson and Rob Jones were the main beneficiaries of such passes as the two routinely knocked down open looks from the wing. Peterson had his best game of the postseason and served as the team’s second leading scorer behind Hoskins. Jones, the team’s only late addition, contributed a well-balanced performance of timely putbacks, a steady mid-range to deep jump shot and strong drives. On the defensive end, Hoskins’ constant steals and ball pressure was complimented perfectly by the always reliable rim protection from center Chris “Big Dook” Adams.
An argument can be made that a blowout should have taken place given their opponent’s missing players. For a team that fought for everything they earned all season, such an ending would not do the story of their summer justice. This was a team that captivated fans through relentless effort and should forever be remembered as such. Great players and individual performances will always make up the majority of the Pro-Am’s fondest memories. However, the summer of 2014 has altered the league’s great legacy ever so slightly, by adding one group to the storied list of individuals. Ideally, years from now, when discussing the history of this great league, those lucky enough to have witnessed this summer will point out how one selfless group of guys knocked off so many great players on their way to becoming league champs. How fun it was to watch.
Veteran guard Chauncey Leslie confidently squared up at the top of the key, shot-faked to let his man fly by, attacked the congested lane and calmly swooped underneath various defender’s outstretched arms, before masterfully putting the ball off the glass with some english for his fourth consecutive field goal. It was the longtime professional’s elevnth straight point and part of a flawless 13-3 run for SF City, as they started the game making every one of their first five shots. For a team already coming off a dominant 120-86 Game 1 victory, such a staggering start had many of those packed into the old Kezar Pavilion benches convinced they were experiencing deja vu and beginning to contemplate early exit strategies. It looked to be the makings of a sad ending to an otherwise storybook summer. For a Bay Raiders group that routinely climbed over teams of more proven talent, it appeared they had approached a final hurdle they could get over.
After an early timeout to stop the bleeding, it became clear coach Bryan Thomasson and his troops had a far less pessimistic view of the situation. The Raiders began an impressive run of the very team ball that had earned them the top seed that go them there in the first place. The team’s always reliable big man Chris Big Dook Adams first started to trim away at the lead with his balanced mix of up-and-under moves, mid-range jump hooks and set shots from behind the arc. The real dent was then made by the scorching hot Rob Jones, the teams newest addition knocked down corner threes from both sides of the court. Jones also gave the team a significant boost in the lane and at free throw line, as the former Notre Dame recruited tight-end’s wide body consistently gave SF City problems inside. Capping off the first quarter comeback was Trevor Dunbar, as usual the future Washington State point guard brought the crowd to its feet with some amazing drives leading to amazing passes or acrobatic layups. Dunbar debilitated the defense with a gorgeous spin move that he flicked in from around his hip, to end the quarter with the game knotted at 30.
The team’s real inspiration came from the play of league MVP Marquel Hoskins, who spent time slowing down both Leslie and recent China Professional League signee Justin Dentmon. Often overlooked by the casual fan is the outstanding rarity of a player like Hoskins. For an amateur player to go head-to-head with one of the greatest non-NBA players in the world like Dentmon, or a long time star in Asia like Leslie is unheard of these days. While Hoksins defense is paramount for the Bay Raiders, his pull up jumpers and incredible floaters over SF City’s huge shot blockers, were vital in extending the team’s halftime lead to 57-49.
The second half saw new players emerge for both teams. Eryk Thomas kept SF City within striking distance while knocking down shots from inside and out, most notably his timely corner threes that consistently slowed the Bay Raider’s momentum. On the other end, SF State’s all time leader in assists and points Nefi Perdomo, completely caught fire from three. Dunbar continued to keep the crowd on it’s feet as he found Perdomo and Cardell “Ballaholic” Butler with some amazing passes. As the bench unit extended the Raider’s lead to double digits late in the third.
SF City made a final push to close the gap in the fourth, behind deep threes from Leslie and Dentmon. Leslie, who ended up with 23 on the night, was great from start to finish, while Dentmon scored many of his 18 late in the game. Also giving the team a second half lift was John Bryant, who gave the star backcourt some significant help in the paint. Bryant and Big Dook had a phenomenal battle in the post for much of the second half. While Dook probably won the battle as a whole, the crowd did come to it’s feet during a stretch in which Bryant got the better of Dook on three spinning post moves in a row. Dook ultimately got the last laugh, on what would prove to be the games most decisive sequence. With SF City down just six, Hoskins got a steal in the backcourt and almost in one motion kicked it out to Perdomo who rattled in a three. On the very next possession Dook blocked a shot which he corralled and threw a Kevin Love-like(or Wes Unseld, depending on when you were born) outlet pass to a streaking Rob Jones, who stepped through two defenders for a layup. The ball had touched the deck a total of two bounces while in the Raider’s possession and gave them a them a double-digit lead they would only extend, as the game closed with the Raiders on top 112-93. The quick spurt served as a precise illustration of the team’s summer long success.
While this selfless unit routinely overcame teams of more accomplished rosters, through artfully employing a suffocating defense to fuel a devastatingly quick offense, it wasn’t until facing elimination and their most talented opponent that they performed their ultimate masterpiece. From the middle of the first quarter on, they were nearly flawless defensively and on the offensive end it was the best they’ve shot all summer. Over the course of the series they have certainly turned doubters into believers and going into the series’ final game, they are the odds on favorite. The recent role reversal shouldn’t be much of a factor, as they proved long ago that they could care less about expectations.
In blowouts like SF City’s 120-86 win over the Bay Raiders in Game 1, there is often a specific tipping point when such a game becomes a lost cause. The first place finishing Bay Raiders fought back from a first half double-digit deficit to trail by a manageable seven points at halftime. Again, for most of the third quarter, they battled to stay within striking distance. Until a costly sting of turnovers and missed layups led to an SF City run that eventually sealed their Game 1 fate, as the overwhelmingly talented lineup of veterans finished the quarter up 20 . This series of missteps would serve as the game’s aforementioned tipping point and the lead continued to balloon throughout the 4th quarter. It was like watching a wiped-out surfer finally manage to pop up for air, only to have another demoralizing wave crash down and pull him back under. It was hard to watch such a beloved team among Kezar regulars take this beating and even the most die-hard of optimists slipped out long before the final buzzer sounded.
There is no complex explanation or specific player to point out. They made some mistakes against a really talented team, it happens. When it does you usually don’t win, simple as that. There is very little reason for the team to dwell on such a lopsided loss. If you take the time to figure out one time you did wrong, there’s still 20 more to understand. With that said, there is one adjustment that can be expected from the league’s reigning regular season champs. When SF City forced turnovers to fuel a run to an insurmountable lead in Game 1, they were really giving the Bay Raiders a taste of their own medicine. All season long the Bay Raiders were a team based on there suffocating defense and the fast break opportunities it brought. Monday they got away from their successful pressure and it was ironically used against them beautifully. Now facing elimination, getting back to the relentless pressure that made them so successful has to be on their mind.
It’s a virtual certainty that the trailing Raiders will come out Wednesday night at a breakneck pace. They’re too intelligent and good of a team not to realize the importance of getting out to an early lead when facing elimination. Their best hope at evening the series slowing down the devastating SF City guard trio of Dominique Johnson, Chauncey Leslie and Justin Dentmon. To do so means harassing them for every second they’re on the floor and eliminate the penetration that created so many open looks Monday. With their elite defender and league MVP Marquel Hoskins leading the way it’s a task of which they’re more than capable. If they are to recapture the defensive success they enjoyed most of the season, the beginning of the week’s devastating loss will simply be a blip on the radar. However, if the ultra talented SF city veterans prove to be immune to the Raider’s infamous press, we very well could see more of the same. It should be apparent very early on what type of Bay Raider’s game the crowd will get. Based on the Bay Raider’s I’ve seen all summer, I’m not making any plans for Friday night.
After close to a month sitting stagnant, Monday night the Bay Raiders will finally take the court in the Pro-Am championship game they have been so anxiously awaited. The regular season champs will take on an SF City team fresh off a semifinal comeback victory over South Bay. While spotty attendance saw SF City finish the season fighting just to earn a playoff spot, many of their veteran professionals have since trickled in as they climbed through the playoffs. Now finally armed at full strength, the roster far and away featured more accomplished careers than any other team. Player’s like Justin Dentmon, Sammy Yeager, Austin Nichols, Dominique Johnson, Kevin Galloway, Darian Townes and Will Cherry have all made NBA or D-League stops during their careers. All but Cherry have also played in high level international leagues, much like teammates John Tofi and Eryk Thomas. When counting single game cameos from the Warrior’s Steph Curry and German league star John Bryant the finally tally comes to a daunting eleven players with experience in the world’s top leagues. In the Pro-Am, that usually features teams with only a few players of this kind of pedigree, such a roster should elicit understandable intimidation from even the most confident of teams.
With a core group of players that have had post-college careers largely limited to local semi-professional teams, The Bay Raider roster is made up of far less imposing professional backgrounds than their Pro-Am Finals companions. Former Archbishop Riordan and St Mary’s star Rob Jones, who will make his 2014 summer debut in the finals, recently added Canadian Professional veteran Eric Crookshank and former UC Santa Barbara star Ivan Elliot, who just signed with an Italian team after years in the German professional ranks, are the team’s only players with full-time professional experience. While appearances from recent NBA summer league participants Jabari Brown and Davion Berry are still possible, the team is largely defined by a mentality where relentless team play outweighs any previous individual accomplishments. The mantra has been near flawless, as their impressive first place finish was fueled by the consistent dismantling of teams featuring high level professional players. Such a track record should explain the Raider’s unphased demeanor Monday night, despite the many years of professional experience they will be giving up to their fellow finalists.
Strictly based on the rosters, this year’s Pro-Am championship looks like the age-old narrative of an underdog trying to pull off the impossible and take down a powerhouse. However, a more in-depth look shows two teams evenly matched, almost to a standstill. As different as the two may be, when comparing SF City’s stacked line-up of talented profession with The Bay Raider’s tenacious team defense and fast paced offense, they basically cancel one another out. I have watched these two teams play the entire summer and still have no clue as to what team has the greater advantage. In such an evenly matched series, it is simply a matter of who can get hot at the right time. Whether the Bay Raider’s catching fire as a team or SF City getting a huge game from one of their many stars, whoever gets hot and takes Monday night will set the tone for the whole 3-game series. As uncertain as the favorite may be, the crowd’s entertainment will never be in doubt
Quick Notes To Watch For:
– The last time these two teams met Chris “Big Dook” Adams out played SF City’s freighteningly talented and large post player rotation. The night’s most underrated battle may very well be in the paint, as Darian Townes, John Tofi and (possibly)John Bryant try to return the favor.
-All eyes will most certainly be on the guard battle, as the league’s MVP and possibly toughest defender Marquel Hoskins, tries to slow down one of Europe’s top players in Justin Dentmon. At the other guard spot, The Raider’s Mac Peterson and SF City’s Chauncey Leslie are almost mirror images of one another. They are both deadly shooters from long-range and share a common ability to carve through the lane on their way to scoring in traffic.
– Wild Cards
For SF City Sammy Yeager has been one of the league’s best shooters and overall scorers for the last couple summers, but after signing a recent professional contract in France he has missed the teams last few games and is questionable for the series.
Trevor Dunbar put on an absolute show in the 4th quarter of the one game he played this season, before taking off for summer obligations at Washington State. He’s now back and while he will definitely play, it is unclear how much after being out of the team’s rotation for so long. Fortunately, whatever chunk of time he does play will more than likely serve as the games most entertaining.
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Tim Coyne
Haight Street Hardwood 