Marquette and the NBA

So it turns out I didn't have enough to do to keep me busy until 3:55 when I leave tonight, so here is my other post. I apologize for the shortness and poor quality of the last one, hopefully I do better with this one.

I watched the Marquette/Memphis game last night and thought I would see a good game. Unfortunately what I saw was what the Marquette program will be for the foreseeable future. It was a team which never looked like they were playing together, committed 25 turnovers, and just waited for Diener to do something in a 78-68 loss. The bad thing is that the game wasn't even that close for much of the game. Players were passing up open shots just so they could give the ball back to Diener and watch him try and create a shot. What happened last night is sadly what fans of the ...ahem... Golden Eagles will see all season. Sophomore Dameon Mason and Freshamn Ryan Amoroso showed some signs of life, but the team just played so poorly there didn't seem to be anything to get excited about.

With Marquette so dependant on Diener and Steve Novak (who combined for just 22 points last night) teams will continue to force other players to beat them. As we saw last night, this is not a good situation for the Golden Eagles. I can't wait to see Diener try and dribble for 30 minutes against the defenses of Cincinnati and Louisville. That's pretty much what the offense seemed to be last night, let him dribble and then try and do something when the shot clock gets under 10. How many conference games do you think Marquette can win, 5, maybe? Diener could have a good season if he can get through all of the elbows and cheap shots, but he won't lead the Golden Eagles very to any post season success.

The only good thing about the game is I watched the second half at my favorite hometown watering hole, The Brazenhead Pub. Great music, great beer (nothing domestic on tap, save for micro-brews), good food, and great people. If you're ever in West Bend, WI, pay a visit to this wonderful establishment.

Getting back to the column, I sat and watched Marquette try and come back in the game. They at least made it interesting enough for us to keep watching until the final two minutes when we turned our attention to the NBA game du jour, Cavaliers at Lakers.

This game was to feature one player who was supposed to supplant Michael Jordan as the greatest basketball player ever (Kobe Bryant) and the player who probably will replace Michael Jordan as the greatest basketball player ever (LeBron James). Even though two of the best players in the sport were playing each other, I just couldn't get excited for this game. I don't know if it was the constant suckitude (am I the first writer to use that word?) of the Bucks since the 2001 playoffs or what, but the NBA doesn't appeal to me anymore.

It's kind of like Friends (yes, I watched Friends) after Rachel had a kid and her and Joey tried to hook up, the show just wasn't as good, had its moments of watchability, but the ending was predictable. The Bucks have not been very good since that season. Sure they have had some moments which make you think this team has potential, but then they remember they are the Bucks and lose 3 or 4 straight. The ending is predictable, either they are a lottery team or a one-round-and-out playoff team. Thing is I don't even care that much about the Bucks to begin with.

When Jordan was in the league and Kemp was with the Sonics, Malone and Stockton had the Jazz rolling, and the Shaq was coming into his own, I was a huge NBA fan. I watched every game that was on TV. Now I just don't. The league over the past few years has just gone into a lull of no defense and one-on-one basketball. There is no team play anymore. The Pistons played as a team last year, but many people aren't excited about the NBA's version of the Ravens winning the title. We want offense, we want players we can get excited about, and not because of what crazy thing they might do during the game, but because of what plays they may make during the game.

I didn't even know LeBron and Kobe were playing each other last night until one of the patrons at Brazenhead asked for the channel to be changed. I was more excited about the game after Kobe went out because I could see what kind of a team this was without that cancer. What happened? The Lakers won. This season has seen a resurgance in the kind of basketball which made the league so popular in the 80's. We have players to get excited about (Wade, Amare, and LeBron) and teams running up and down the floor, playing together (Seattle and Phoenix).

The NBA is experiencing the kind of resurgence Dr. Dre's career enjoyed after he signed Eminem. Consider Wade, Amare, and LeBron the Eminem to the NBA's Dr. Dre, without the lawsuits, abrasive lyrics, and hatred from old white men. Hopefully, these three core players will lead the NBA back to being one of the sports I watch all the time. Bill Simmons says he is one of only 20 die hard NBA fans left; but who knows, maybe by the end of the year the Association will have 21.

-Until next time...