2010 March Madness

[JayJay]

Originally Posted by indesertum

everybody's bracket was fucked up on day 2 if not day 1
I've thrown mine away.

 

[thekunk07]

so sad reading nba draft.net:

wittman-not athletic enough

foote-not athletic enough

bouldin-more athletic than people think

harangody-not athletic enough for next level

basically, my son has no shot at nba ever because he is a white kid. very sad.

 

[indesertum]

I find it so bizarre that I see wittman and dale on TV. I lived on the same hall as them freshmen year and occasionally talked to them in the elevator. I played a pickup basketball game with them once.

 

[gomestar]

Originally Posted by indesertum

I find it so bizarre that I see wittman and dale on TV. I lived on the same hall as them freshmen year and occasionally talked to them in the elevator. I played a pickup basketball game with them once.

I believe I was a junior when Foote was a freshmen and I used to always see him (not sure how one would miss) lurch from North to central, I was always outside of Rand.

 

[indesertum]

Originally Posted by thekunk07

so sad reading nba draft.net: wittman-not athletic enough foote-not athletic enough bouldin-more athletic than people think harangody-not athletic enough for next level basically, my son has no shot at nba ever because he is a white kid. very sad.
where are you reading this? i don't see an article on wittman or foote. jeff foote is so freakin tall. when you stand next to him you have to look up to talk to him. i do hope jeremy lin makes the draft. he played for my cross town rivals and never ceased to amaze me. that game against uconn was amazing. if he only had a better team to play with, I think he would've been on a lot of scouts radar

 

[thekunk07]

^well, i called out nba draft.net but it was across several sites and all over the radio this weekend. foote should be good enough to play in the nba.

i guess i was pissed to cause i went to a tourney this weekend and saw a bunch of kids from our local school kill a team of high-level aau and mcd's AAs 79-53 but the kids on our team are not even being sniffed at by big schools.

 

[gomestar]

from an SI article, Foote was being recruited D-III until a Cornell coaching member ended up in the ER where Foote's mom was a nurse.

 

[indesertum]

well foote did get into portsmouth. so we'll see what happens. and we'll see what happens this thursday. i'm a little worried because his free throw percentage is like 60% and cornell doesn't really have a backup center. if he gets in foul trouble (he is admittedly a little slow) we're kinda screwed. he really makes the cornell plays, with the give and gos, the screens, etc.

i'd like to see him in the nba, but he's going to hvae to be a little faster to get in.

 

[Tokyo Slim]

How's that East Coast superiority complex holding up?

Washington is looking pretty damn good right now.

 

[Ambulance Chaser]

Originally Posted by Brothersport

IMO the 1st half of your 2nd sentence doesn't agree with the 2nd. Obviously it's the adjectives you said, but whoever survives relies a lot on luck and circumstance and it's hard to call them invariably the best team in the country, which is what I think "champions" means.
There is quite a bit of randomness to the tournament, which is inevitable given the one-and-done format and the age of the participants. Nevertheless, you have to win six straight games, and beat some pretty good teams along the way, to be the champion. I'd say that the team left standing at the end is a deserving winner, even if they wouldn't win a best-of-7 series against every other team in the country.

 

[TheIdler]

Originally Posted by Brothersport

but whoever survives relies a lot on luck and circumstance and it's hard to call them invariably the best team in the country, which is what I think "champions" means.

But "best team" generally has nothing to do with "champions" in most sports. If you have any kind of postseason, you run the risk of having a champion who is arguably not the best team. The only major exception I can think of is soccer, where most national leagues don't have a postseason, and even then there's potential for dispute. Very very few people would argue that the '07 NYGiants or the '97 Marlins were the best teams.

 

[Brothersport]

Originally Posted by Ambulance Chaser

There is quite a bit of randomness to the tournament, which is inevitable given the one-and-done format and the age of the participants. Nevertheless, you have to win six straight games, and beat some pretty good teams along the way, to be the champion. I'd say that the team left standing at the end is a deserving winner, even if they wouldn't win a best-of-7 series against every other team in the country.
I agree with deserving winner, definitely. It's just a little disappointing that a great season like Kansas' can come to an end so haphazardly, with no second chance. Of course, I would say that being a Duke fan.

Originally Posted by TheIdler

But "best team" generally has nothing to do with "champions" in most sports. If you have any kind of postseason, you run the risk of having a champion who is arguably not the best team. The only major exception I can think of is soccer, where most national leagues don't have a postseason, and even then there's potential for dispute. Very very few people would argue that the '07 NYGiants or the '97 Marlins were the best teams.
I agree you run the risk, but isn't the chance much, much smaller in a 7-game series? I just like the NBA and the NBA playoffs, I suppose. The NFL definitely has had underdogs win the championship for a few years running now, but the fall from grace isn't so huge as in NCAA. Obviously having multiple-game series isn't feasible in NFL/NCAA. I hate baseball, so I have no idea there. Overall, I think "best team" and "champion" correlate very well in, say, NBA. Matchups and randomness are always going to play a part in games, but not nearly as much in a long series. It comes down to what you like to watch. March Madness could not be a better marketing tool and millions of people could not find a more entertaining tournament, so I'm not going to act like it makes no sense.

 

[Ambulance Chaser]

Does anyone give Cornell a chance against Kentucky tonight? I think Cornell will keep it close in the first half, but Kentucky pulls away in the second. Too much of a talent disparity.

 

[gomestar]

Originally Posted by Ambulance Chaser

Does anyone give Cornell a chance against Kentucky tonight? I think Cornell will keep it close in the first half, but Kentucky pulls away in the second. Too much of a talent disparity.

I agree, though I'm not sure how close the first half can really be. Kentucky has a great set of rental players.

 

[JayJay]

I'm excited about the Butler/Syracuse game tonight. It would be nice to see the Bulldogs come away with a win, but I'm not expecting it. Folks around these parts are hyped about the game, and rightly so. Go Bulldogs!