Ed Davis announced a week ago or so that he's leaving college for the NBA Draft. At the time, I expected a rash of Carolina fans jumping off of cliffs about next year because of this. Surprisingly for me, the reaction- at least what I read- was that this wouldn't matter all that much as far as next season's final record goes.
Frankly, I agree. Here are 3 good reasons why Ed Davis playing in the NBA won't hurt the Heels next year. In fact, I would go so far as to say that we'll be better off without Davis.
1. Davis doesn't fit in well as a key in the Heels' offense. A lot of folks like to focus on Roy's primary and secondary breaks as the key to UNC scoring points, but there's a second part that is equally, if not more, important. Going back to Dean Smith, UNC has needed a post player through whom they could run their offense. What Smith, and now Williams after him, prefer to do is work the halfcourt offense through the post to create the best shot. This requires that the Heels have a post player that is an elite scorer, who they can to in crunch time. Don't believe me? Look at the best Heels teams of the past 20 years. All have elite post players- Montross, Rasheed, Jamison, Sean May, and Tyler Hansbrough. Ed Davis, for all of his talents, is not that. His offensive game is spotty at best, and while he may be a great rebounder and shot-blocker, I think those assets are more easily replaced with guys like John Henson. Tyler Zeller, on the other hand, if he can stay healthy, I believe has a chance to become that kind of go-to post scorer.
2. If Davis came back, there would be too many post guys. A lot of Carolina fans like to complain about Roy using Henson at the 3 last season, but they forget easily that at the time it was almost necessary. At the beginning of this season, Carolina had 6 post players (if we include Henson as one). That's too many. There's just no way to keep all those guys happy, or (more importantly) for the team to get into any kind of game rhythm when they're trying to cycle 5-6 guys through 2 post positions. Next year, without Davis, there will be 4, a much more ideal number, and I think it will show in the team's offensive rhythm.
3. Harrison Barnes, Reggie Bullock, and Kendall Marshall. At the end of the day, these 3 guys are going to be the key to whether or not UNC returns to contention in the ACC next season. I've said many, many times that the biggest problem this team had is that in close games in the 2nd half (of which UNC lost more than you might remember), it was just so hard to create a good shot. As we covered above, Davis didn't and won't help that. Barnes and Bullock, in my opinion, are going to be the key because they both come in with the reputation of being able to create their own shot, a talent that was missing from this year's team. Combine that with the improved point guard play of having Marshall and Drew instead of Drew and Strickland (and then sliding Strickland over to the 2 spot, and giving him some outlet passes on fast breaks but not making him run a halfcourt offense), and I think the Heels will be much improved next year. But I don't think it would have had anything to do with Davis. Sorry, Easy Ed. Just the facts.
Also, Heels fans, take solace in this- at least you're not Wake Forest. The Deacons just fired a coach who earned the school's first NCAA Tournament win since Chris Paul and replaced him with Jeff Bzedlik. Or however you spell it.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
You Have to Love Phil
You just do. For some reason, I know that some golf fans don't like him. I have no idea how this could possibly be. He wears a constant smile on his face, he high fives fans, he hugs his wife and kids after he wins tournaments, and he pulls off shots like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXbeMwLzMW8
Are you freaking serious? Who tries that shot? Phil has taken some heat over the years for his flamboyant way of playing golf (see: 2006, Winged Foot, 72nd hole, driver), but you have to respect his consistency. He has lost majors playing like this, and now he has won them doing so. The only difference is, this time Phil pulled that shot off in the middle of a bogey-free 67, which has to rank among the best clutch rounds I've seen.
How could you not love that guy? I mean, seriously? Can someone explain this to me? Apparently some "insiders" claim that he's cocky. Fine. He might be. But I'm not going to ignore overwhelming evidence to the contrary (see above) just for the sake of trying to be seen as an "insider."
Now, to G's point. On the surface, it sounds absurd to rank Phil among the best golfers of all time. But he has a point about the Masters. This win gives Phil 3 green jackets, which ranks behind only 3 players in history. I would say that at this point, his record at the other majors is probably a little too scant to rank him among the greatest of all time. However, what this win MIGHT do is make him the currently reigning king of Augusta National, even ahead of the Almighty Tiger himself. Phil has won 3 Masters since 2003; no one else, including El Tigre, has more than 1. I think that right now, in 2010, you might have to say that Phil's blend of shotmaking and large cajones might make him the best player at golf's most famous course, a place that traditionally rewards birdies as much as any major championship venue.
And who knows? At Pebble Beach, Phil's chances have to be high. If he raises that trophy, we may have to revisit this all-time question. Can't wait for that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXbeMwLzMW8
Are you freaking serious? Who tries that shot? Phil has taken some heat over the years for his flamboyant way of playing golf (see: 2006, Winged Foot, 72nd hole, driver), but you have to respect his consistency. He has lost majors playing like this, and now he has won them doing so. The only difference is, this time Phil pulled that shot off in the middle of a bogey-free 67, which has to rank among the best clutch rounds I've seen.
How could you not love that guy? I mean, seriously? Can someone explain this to me? Apparently some "insiders" claim that he's cocky. Fine. He might be. But I'm not going to ignore overwhelming evidence to the contrary (see above) just for the sake of trying to be seen as an "insider."
Now, to G's point. On the surface, it sounds absurd to rank Phil among the best golfers of all time. But he has a point about the Masters. This win gives Phil 3 green jackets, which ranks behind only 3 players in history. I would say that at this point, his record at the other majors is probably a little too scant to rank him among the greatest of all time. However, what this win MIGHT do is make him the currently reigning king of Augusta National, even ahead of the Almighty Tiger himself. Phil has won 3 Masters since 2003; no one else, including El Tigre, has more than 1. I think that right now, in 2010, you might have to say that Phil's blend of shotmaking and large cajones might make him the best player at golf's most famous course, a place that traditionally rewards birdies as much as any major championship venue.
And who knows? At Pebble Beach, Phil's chances have to be high. If he raises that trophy, we may have to revisit this all-time question. Can't wait for that.
One for the ages
Was this year's Masters one of the best ever? Well what else had this...
-A HUGE storyline entering the tournament...the world's best golfer (maybe ever) returning to competition after a long hiatus
-Old guys making charming runs - Tom Watson, Fred Couples
-Young guns showing that they're going to be heard from - Anthony Kim
-A "best player to never have won a major" so close to shedding that tag - Lee Westwood
-Tiger in the hunt from start to finish, always begging the question "he might be a few back, but can he do it? Is now the time?"
-Masters history in Phil Mickelson making back-to-back eagles (only the third time that's ever happened)
-One of the most ridiculous cojones shots ever in the tournament - Mickelson from the straw onto the green from two hundo away
-Tremendous weather
-Tiger revealing his past character is still there ("God damn it Tiger") as he says he's getting back to his values
-A sap story with Mickelson getting the win while his wife undergoes treatment for breast cancer
...I honestly can't think of a Masters that compares. Now, there have been better Masters in some respects - more thrilling finishes, unique winners, dominating performances - but I'm not sure any of them had suck a package as this one.
And on a similar note, where do we rank Phil now among golf's all-time greats? Before you answer, consider this: only three golfers have more Masters titles than him, and those three are Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods. Wow.
-A HUGE storyline entering the tournament...the world's best golfer (maybe ever) returning to competition after a long hiatus
-Old guys making charming runs - Tom Watson, Fred Couples
-Young guns showing that they're going to be heard from - Anthony Kim
-A "best player to never have won a major" so close to shedding that tag - Lee Westwood
-Tiger in the hunt from start to finish, always begging the question "he might be a few back, but can he do it? Is now the time?"
-Masters history in Phil Mickelson making back-to-back eagles (only the third time that's ever happened)
-One of the most ridiculous cojones shots ever in the tournament - Mickelson from the straw onto the green from two hundo away
-Tremendous weather
-Tiger revealing his past character is still there ("God damn it Tiger") as he says he's getting back to his values
-A sap story with Mickelson getting the win while his wife undergoes treatment for breast cancer
...I honestly can't think of a Masters that compares. Now, there have been better Masters in some respects - more thrilling finishes, unique winners, dominating performances - but I'm not sure any of them had suck a package as this one.
And on a similar note, where do we rank Phil now among golf's all-time greats? Before you answer, consider this: only three golfers have more Masters titles than him, and those three are Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods. Wow.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Upsets
Duke and Butler are playing for the national championship tonight. Pause for a moment. Let that sink in.
Duke and Butler. Any of you out there have that one in your bracket? I, for one, did not. I actually had neither one in the Final Four, and I didn't even have Butler in the 2nd round. Yoltzy.
This isn't your daddy's Duke team either. This is a team that hadn't beaten better than a 5 seed in 8 years and didn't have a single player on the team that had participated in an Elite Eight, let alone a Final Four.
So how did we end up here? Well, in a word, upsets. Upsets have been everywhere this tournament ever since Ali Farokhmanesh decided to hit the ballsiest 3 in roughly a decade to sink the overall number 1 and media pick, Kansas. Since then, we've watched Syracuse fold up in the Sweet 16, John Wall disappear in the Elite 8 (though losing to West Virginia can't be an upset), and Tennessee win despite having most of its team participate in a different kind of court this season instead. Crazy, random stuff has happened in this tournament. And, as a result, we're left with a crazy, random final.
Duke vs Butler. By the way, it should be known that despite my own feelings on Duke none of that previous paragraph was meant to denegrade what those two teams have done. They've absolutely been the most consistent teams over 3 weeks and they deserve to be here.
But, still, Duke-Butler?
Wow.
So how can Butler win and pull off the greatest NC game upset since 'Nova in 1985? Well, for me there is one key to beating Duke. It's not getting out on their 3-point shooters, though that will help. It's not breaking their man-to-man, though that would too. It's not even picking one of the Big Three to shut down and make someone else step up; that actually probably won't work- ask Baylor. The key for Butler tonight will be whether or not they can keep Brian "Moving Screen" Zoubek off the offensive glass. Duke absolutely KILLS you with offensive rebound/kick out combo punches which end with Scheyer nailing a 3. Roll back the West Virginia tape, and you'll notice that Zou doesn't even look to score most of the time, he just looks for something thin and white flashing around the 3 point line and fires it out there. Inevitably, with the defense focused on boxing out, Scheyer is open and free to rain daggers down from out there. It's brutal.
If they can keep Duke off the offensive glass, I really believe they'll win. I think that Duke's offense will struggle if they can't get second chance points. Their Big Three have just logged too many minutes to work that hard on the offensive end. Although Scheyer will contort his face about 1000 ways trying.
I, for one, am skeptical that the Bulldogs can do it. But this should come as no surprise to anyone, since I was skeptical they could beat UTEP. Either way, I'll be interested in watching.
Here's to random national championship games. Check back later this week for a recap of the tournament as well as thoughts on the end to the Heels' season and the Masters. Busy week.
Duke and Butler. Any of you out there have that one in your bracket? I, for one, did not. I actually had neither one in the Final Four, and I didn't even have Butler in the 2nd round. Yoltzy.
This isn't your daddy's Duke team either. This is a team that hadn't beaten better than a 5 seed in 8 years and didn't have a single player on the team that had participated in an Elite Eight, let alone a Final Four.
So how did we end up here? Well, in a word, upsets. Upsets have been everywhere this tournament ever since Ali Farokhmanesh decided to hit the ballsiest 3 in roughly a decade to sink the overall number 1 and media pick, Kansas. Since then, we've watched Syracuse fold up in the Sweet 16, John Wall disappear in the Elite 8 (though losing to West Virginia can't be an upset), and Tennessee win despite having most of its team participate in a different kind of court this season instead. Crazy, random stuff has happened in this tournament. And, as a result, we're left with a crazy, random final.
Duke vs Butler. By the way, it should be known that despite my own feelings on Duke none of that previous paragraph was meant to denegrade what those two teams have done. They've absolutely been the most consistent teams over 3 weeks and they deserve to be here.
But, still, Duke-Butler?
Wow.
So how can Butler win and pull off the greatest NC game upset since 'Nova in 1985? Well, for me there is one key to beating Duke. It's not getting out on their 3-point shooters, though that will help. It's not breaking their man-to-man, though that would too. It's not even picking one of the Big Three to shut down and make someone else step up; that actually probably won't work- ask Baylor. The key for Butler tonight will be whether or not they can keep Brian "Moving Screen" Zoubek off the offensive glass. Duke absolutely KILLS you with offensive rebound/kick out combo punches which end with Scheyer nailing a 3. Roll back the West Virginia tape, and you'll notice that Zou doesn't even look to score most of the time, he just looks for something thin and white flashing around the 3 point line and fires it out there. Inevitably, with the defense focused on boxing out, Scheyer is open and free to rain daggers down from out there. It's brutal.
If they can keep Duke off the offensive glass, I really believe they'll win. I think that Duke's offense will struggle if they can't get second chance points. Their Big Three have just logged too many minutes to work that hard on the offensive end. Although Scheyer will contort his face about 1000 ways trying.
I, for one, am skeptical that the Bulldogs can do it. But this should come as no surprise to anyone, since I was skeptical they could beat UTEP. Either way, I'll be interested in watching.
Here's to random national championship games. Check back later this week for a recap of the tournament as well as thoughts on the end to the Heels' season and the Masters. Busy week.
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