Wow, that was worth staying up late, and feeling kind of miserable this morning, for.
\nAll the pre-game chatter amongst KU fans, at least the ones I interacted with, was, \u201cWell, I just hope we make a game of it and the kids get some experience that will pay off later.\u201d Funny what a sloppy season opener can do to expectations. Some of that pessimism was because unlike KU, Duke returned several players from last year, and added a transfer with D1 experience. And, to be honest, as much as we all love Bill Self, his teams are often kind of lackluster early and reach their peak after New Year\u2019s Day. We had talent, the thought went, but between Duke\u2019s experience and Coach K probably having his team a little further along in their development, it was looking like a loss for KU.<\/p>\n
But it was KU that imposed their will last night in Chicago. They countered every Duke run. Self made adjustments to slow down Jabari Parker. Andrew Wiggins got hot. Perry Ellis was outstanding all night.1<\/a><\/sup> Wayne Selden and Frank Mason showed zero fear. Joel Embiid was good more than bad. And Jamari Traylor started to show some more of that \u201cLittle T-Rob\u201d potential many people think he has.<\/p>\n Oh, and KU knocked down their freaking free throws while Duke missed theirs. How often does that happen?<\/p>\n In the end, it was Duke players fouling out while KU made steals, grabbed rebounds, and converted on the other end to put the game away.<\/p>\n It\u2019s only November 12, but man, was that fun.<\/p>\n Other assorted thoughts:<\/p>\n Beating another traditional power is always sweet, no matter what month of the year. But the wins like this, where it\u2019s back-and-forth all night, close late, and then your team finishes out on a big run, might be the best. This one had a KU-Carolina, 2012 feel to it.<\/p>\n It\u2019s weird that KU and Duke have only played ten times, all since November 1985. With the exception of the 1990 game, when KU was on probation and got hammered at Cameron, they\u2019ve all been terrific, important games. Four NCAA games, three in the Final Four, one in the title game. Games in the preseason NIT, Maui Classic, and now Champions Classic. If memory serves, at least five of the games haven\u2019t been decided until the final minute. Hopefully they\u2019ll play again before the next Champions Classic meeting, scheduled for 2016 in New York.<\/p>\n Funny how different Wiggins looks, physically, from Parker and Kentucky\u2019s Julius Randle. Randle is a beast. Parker has an NBA body now. But Wiggins clearly needs to add size and strength. As I said, that\u2019s why he has all the hype. The other two will get better, but the belief is Wiggins has a higher ceiling. Whether he reaches it or not is another matter. At this moment, he looks like a college player. The other two look like NBA guys.<\/p>\n The persistent rumor a year ago was that Randle loved KU. On the day he announced, I read through a list of recruiting \u201cexperts\u201d predicting where he would go. It was like 80% KU. Then he shocked everyone and picked Kentucky. And then Wiggins, who pretty much no one thought would pick KU, ends up in Lawrence. How are things different if Randle picks KU and Wiggins goes to Lexington? Not that I\u2019d trade, but it will be a fun \u201cWhat If?\u201d game to play all year.<\/p>\n I love Frank Mason. So cool and steady and clutch. And this is a kid who was a couple points on a high school test away from being a sophomore at Towson right now. I told my buddy E in Texas that he reminds me a lot of a dude we watched play when we were in school: Adonis Jordan. Similar build and size. Deceptively quick. Probably will never be the best point guard in the country, but does everything better than most. If he can get to being a consistent shooter the way Adonis was, I might have found my new favorite player.2<\/a><\/sup> Another freshman who had huge plays late, and he was playing against older guys. Oh, and he\u2019s a Bill Self player. Self will keep recruiting point guards for the next three years, but no one is moving Mason off the starting line once he claims a spot.<\/p>\n Brannen Greene has a lovely shot. As I predicted, that will be important this year. I don\u2019t think he\u2019s ready to contribute more than a few minutes a game yet, but he\u2019s going to be a big player in the future. And he has a little Ron Kellogg in his game, another of my all-time favorite Jayhawks. And he wears my favorite number. And he has a great (if slightly misspelled) first name. OK, two guys in the running for my new favorite Jayhawk.<\/p>\n Who am I kidding? I love all these guys.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t mean to be cruel, as I know he\u2019s had health issues, but it\u2019s really hard to listen to Dick Vitale. Most of the game I kept the volume turned down a lower than normal just so I had to make an effort to hear him. He miscalled Wiggins first basket,3<\/a><\/sup> then went on for several minutes wondering why Wiggins wasn\u2019t in the game before someone reminded him that it\u2019s because he had two fouls. Dick\u2019s done a lot to help make college basketball popular and deserves immense credit for that. But he\u2019s been a chore to listen to for years for a variety of reasons. Age and health are making it harder to tolerate him.<\/p>\n In general, ESPN does a crappy job of letting you know the details of the game. The broader narrative is always more important, regardless of who the announcing crew is. How often do they miscall who a foul is on then not correct it? It\u2019s almost to the point where you have to keep a live box score up to see the foul situation.<\/p>\n One shouldn\u2019t get too up or too down for a game in November. Winning last night doesn\u2019t guarantee anything for this squad, and they\u2019re sure to have nights when their youth is a burden. But seeing how almost all the young cats responded in a game like that was a beautiful thing. It\u2019s scary how good this team could be if they all figure it out and harness their individual and collective potentials. Of course, it\u2019s even scarier how good Kentucky could be if they do the same. But I stand by my preseason belief: this is going to be one fun-ass year, even if they look like crap some nights.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Wow, that was worth staying up late, and feeling kind of miserable this morning, for. All the pre-game chatter amongst KU fans, at least the ones I interacted with, was, \u201cWell, I just hope we make a game of it and the kids get some experience that will pay off later.\u201d Funny what a sloppy season opener can do to expectations. Some of that pessimism was because unlike KU, Duke returned several players from last year, and added a transfer with D1 experience. And, to be honest, as much as we all love Bill Self, his teams are often kind of lackluster early and reach their peak after New Year\u2019s Day. We had talent, the thought went, but between Duke\u2019s experience and Coach K probably having his team a little further along in their development, it was looking like a loss for KU. But it was KU that imposed their will last night in Chicago. They countered every Duke run. Self made adjustments to slow down Jabari Parker. Andrew Wiggins got hot. Perry Ellis was outstanding all night.1 Wayne Selden and Frank Mason showed zero fear. Joel Embiid was good more than bad. And Jamari Traylor started to show some more of that \u201cLittle T-Rob\u201d potential many people think he has. Oh, and KU knocked down their freaking free throws while Duke missed theirs. How often does that happen? In the end, it was Duke players fouling out while KU made steals, grabbed rebounds, and converted on the other end to put the game away. It\u2019s only November 12, but man, was that fun. Other assorted thoughts: Beating another traditional power is always sweet, no matter what month of the year. But the wins like this, where it\u2019s back-and-forth all night, close late, and then your team finishes out on a big run, might be the best. This one had a KU-Carolina, 2012 feel to it. It\u2019s weird that KU and Duke have only played ten times, all since November 1985. With the exception of the 1990 game, when KU was on probation and got hammered at Cameron, they\u2019ve all been terrific, important games. Four NCAA games, three in the Final Four, one in the title game. Games in the preseason NIT, Maui Classic, and now Champions Classic. If memory serves, at least five of the games haven\u2019t been decided until the final minute. Hopefully they\u2019ll play again before the next Champions Classic meeting, scheduled for 2016 in New York. Funny how different Wiggins looks, physically, from Parker and Kentucky\u2019s Julius Randle. Randle is a beast. Parker has an NBA body now. But Wiggins clearly needs to add size and strength. As I said, that\u2019s why he has all the hype. The other two will get better, but the belief is Wiggins has a higher ceiling. Whether he reaches it or not is another matter. At this moment, he looks like a college player. The other two look like NBA guys. The persistent rumor a year ago was that Randle loved KU. On the day he announced, I read through a list of recruiting \u201cexperts\u201d predicting where he would go. It was like 80% KU. Then he shocked everyone and picked Kentucky. And then Wiggins, who pretty much no one thought would pick KU, ends up in Lawrence. How are things different if Randle picks KU and Wiggins goes to Lexington? Not that I\u2019d trade, but it will be a fun \u201cWhat If?\u201d game to play all year. I love Frank Mason. So cool and steady and clutch. And this is a kid who was a couple points on a high school test away from being a sophomore at Towson right now. I told my buddy E in Texas that he reminds me a lot of a dude we watched play when we were in school: Adonis Jordan. Similar build and size. Deceptively quick. Probably will never be the best point guard in the country, but does everything better than most. If he can get to being a consistent shooter the way Adonis was, I might have found my new favorite player.2 Another freshman who had huge plays late, and he was playing against older guys. Oh, and he\u2019s a Bill Self player. Self will keep recruiting point guards for the next three years, but no one is moving Mason off the starting line once he claims a spot. Brannen Greene has a lovely shot. As I predicted, that will be important this year. I don\u2019t think he\u2019s ready to contribute more than a few minutes a game yet, but he\u2019s going to be a big player in the future. And he has a little Ron Kellogg in his game, another of my all-time favorite Jayhawks. And he wears my favorite number. And he has a great (if slightly misspelled) first name. OK, two guys in the running for my new favorite Jayhawk. Who am I kidding? I love all these guys. I don\u2019t mean to be cruel, as I know he\u2019s had health issues, but it\u2019s really hard to listen to Dick Vitale. Most of the game I kept the volume turned down a lower than normal just so I had to make an effort to hear him. He miscalled Wiggins first basket,3 then went on for several minutes wondering why Wiggins wasn\u2019t in the game before someone reminded him that it\u2019s because he had two fouls. Dick\u2019s done a lot to help make college basketball popular and deserves immense credit for that. But he\u2019s been a chore to listen to for years for a variety of reasons. Age and health are making it harder to tolerate him. In general, ESPN does a crappy job of letting you know the details of the game. The broader narrative is always more important, regardless of who the announcing crew is. How often do they miscall who a foul is on then not correct it? It\u2019s almost to the point where you have to keep a live box score up to see the foul situation. One shouldn\u2019t get too up or too down for a game in November. Winning last night doesn\u2019t guarantee anything for this squad, and they\u2019re sure to have nights when their youth is a burden. But seeing how almost all the young cats responded in a game like that was a beautiful thing. It\u2019s scary how good this team could be if they all figure it out and harness their individual and collective potentials. Of course, it\u2019s even scarier how good Kentucky could be if they do the same. But I stand by my preseason belief: this is going to be one fun-ass year, even if they look like crap some nights. I TOLD YOU! ↩ Some of you may recall my first ever email address was RexandAD(at)aol.com, for Rex Walters and Adonis Jordan, the KU backcourt from 1991-93. ↩ \u201cTHAT\u2019S HIS FIRST COLLEGIATE BASKET!!!\u201d ignoring the game last Friday. Dan Shulman had to awkwardly correct him. ↩<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[31,58],"class_list":["post-2958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-basketball","tag-kansas-jayhawks"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2958","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2958"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2958\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14406,"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2958\/revisions\/14406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dsnotebook.me\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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