Good Piece About the Michigan Basketball Team Bonding from Playing Video Games
I got bored reading about Te'o and found an interesting piece on ESPN about the chemistry that took place on the basketball team from playing video games, particularly Tim Hardaway's participation.
I couldn't find this as having been posted....my apologies if it was.
http://espn.go.com/ncb/notebook/_/page/homecourt120117/home-court
MINNEAPOLIS -- Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. have bonded through video games, the universal passion of young men on campuses around the country.
Yes, an Xbox 360 helped the duo connect a year after they realized Michigan would become what is has become -- a squad that quieted naysayers after a Sunday loss at Ohio State and justified its top-five ranking when it stomped No. 9 Minnesota 83-75 on Thursday in Minneapolis -- only if they jelled.
They'd tussled with moments of inefficiency throughout 2011-12. Their on-court vibe occasionally felt more like punk rock than jazz, even though the talented players led the Wolverines to a slice of the Big Ten title that they split with Michigan State and Ohio State.
But what if they clicked more once they left the court? Burke figured "NBA 2K" and "Madden" could provide the platform for a union that would boost the entire program.
January 19th, 2013 at 12:52 PM ^
January 19th, 2013 at 2:23 PM ^
"They're now more like Miles Davis and John Coltrane collaborating in a 1950s studio. And we're the privileged spectators peering through the glass as they record another captivating track."
This is a rather good analogy, I would say, and it was extremely evident in Minnesota that, when Burke and Hardaway are on the same page, it is difficult to find a better backcourt in NCAA hoops. They were able to exploit Minnesota with an efficiency that perhaps no one has this season, and to be able to do such a thing against an otherwise solid squad is a great problem to have in the Big Ten's schedule this year.
January 19th, 2013 at 3:07 PM ^
It is a bit difficult to sometimes be objective about "your team", but when this team gets into a zone, as they did at the start of the second half at Minnesota, they are very special. The level of athleticism on this team is the highest we have had for quite some time and it shows. It is hard to tell we often have three freshman in the lineup.
I also think that the Ohio game woke these guys up. Even if we lose a few more games in the B1G, which is almost inevitable, anyone playing the B1G schedule will be very ready for the big dance.
January 20th, 2013 at 3:57 AM ^
Tim Hardaway Jr. must be an old soul. To read that he didn't like to play video games until recently was refreshing. It is rare that young men don't like video games. i'll keep my opinion about video game playing to myself (as I am more than just an old soul).