stephenrjking

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Date	Title	Body
6 hours 59 min ago	I completely agree, and I'm	I completely agree, and I'm willing to cut Al some extra slack during the season because of it. This is some of the best insight into a coach's process and philosophy that I've ever read.
1 day 7 hours ago	The Darko mistake is	The Darko mistake is overrated. There were three top guys that year, and while the Pistons got the bust, they are also the only team of the three to win a championship since that draft. In retrospect they should've taken Wade, but hindsight is 20/20 and they were in good shape at the 2 at the time. I don't think they'd have won the title with Melo.
2 days 11 hours ago	Oh my. Read to page 16 (make	Oh my. Read to page 16 (make sure you see the earlier posts first for context). The rant on page 16 is something to behold.
2 days 11 hours ago	The thread is very much worth	The thread is very much worth viewing. I made it through about 10 pages. So far, it features one sharp guy uncovering records of the divorce and felony fraud convictions of someone who is probably the same guy, lots of handwringing about how dumb the Charlotte Buckeye chapter must be, and a mysterious appearance by a brand new user--"coincidently" from a Charlotte IP--named "alwaysthere" trying to quash the controversy with hilariously disastrous results. Classic. Even for the rival team I admire a couple of the posters there.
2 weeks 17 hours ago	I like almost everything	I like almost everything about this. They're not monkeying much with the Fri-Sat series format, the schedule is backloaded, and good teams are on it. Double-header start times will no doubt make attendance in early games a bit dodgy, but having games staggered so die-hards can watch more hockey? Big win. Best guess is they they'll schedule games for 7pm Easter/8:30pm central, but that's only a guess. Now if we can just convince Michigan to come to UMD. Pleeeeeeeaaaaaase!
2 weeks 18 hours ago	I like this. All conference	I like this. All conference games, except for a cool football weekend OSU series, are backloaded. The most important games at the most important time of year--not like those lousy early-October series against, say, Miami that were impossible to get excited for on a football weekend. FWIW it wouldn't surprise me if there were a series on the Jan 17/18 weekend. Certainly space there for one. I'm just excited that Michigan is coming to Minnesota!
4 weeks 3 days ago	Thanks for the recap! I wish	Thanks for the recap! I wish cycling was a full D-1 sport, but the club system is decently robust and it is totally awesome to see UM cycling jerseys in action. Perfect thread for OT season. I know Michigan has made nationals before, but that's about all I know. And I know you really, really wouldn't have wanted to race in Wisconsin (not to mention ultra-snowy Minnesota) this last week. If any cycling fans are reading this and don't know about them, inrng.com is a fantastic pro cycling blog, and the How The Race Was One videos on cyclocosm.com are indispensable. The spring classics have just wrapped up, in splendid fashion at that. Lots of good stuff to review.
4 weeks 5 days ago	The great lakes seaway has a	The great lakes seaway has a minimum draft of 27 feet, which lakers use every inch of when full. 32 isn't enough for the largest tankers or container ships, but even the 1000-footers (with a capacity of 50,000+ tons) on the lakes here could take that tunnel without issue. How long is this supposed to be? That would be the biggest issue, I would think.
4 weeks 6 days ago	The question "why" has been	The question "why" has been asked frequently here. Is it professional development? Getting minutes to the best players? Depth? All good answers with, probably, some accuracy. But isn't one of the best reasons to make this move simply the fact that the players on the floor will be most effective in their natural positions? GRIII worked hard playing the 4 all year, but it's not his natural position and there was a lot of stuff you expect from someone with his skill set that he simply didn't do. He rarely had the ball and he almost never drove to the basket--I don't have actual numbers, but my impression is that "more than a shooter" Stauskas actually drove far more than GRIII.  Similarly, McGary is a good player but his game suits the power forward position better. He outplayed Withey in Dallas not by winning a post-up battle but by ballscreens, movement, and energy. When he posted up Withey, or Withey posted him up, Withey won at least 70% of those battles. Which is why Beilein kept Mitch from fighting them.  With those two in their natural spots, their individual production will be better, and the whole team will improve.   postscript: I have no idea how good Walton will be, but if he doesn't catch fire early the way Burke did, is there any chance Beilein spends a few minutes without a PG in the lineup? I'm not sure there's anyone that can carry the ball up properly, but if there is, this could keep Walton and Spike fresh while increasing minutes for all the guys he has on the wing.
4 weeks 6 days ago	I don't know if Morgan was	I don't know if Morgan was involved, or if the statement was for GRIII and McGary. Remember, Beilein is consulting with them about their pro decision. They want to play in the NBA. As part of the consultation, it is entirely reasonable for Beilein to tell them, "You will be well-prepared for your NBA career if you stay; in fact, you will be playing your natural NBA positions and have opportunities to demonstrate your skills next year." Makes total sense. Plus, keep in mind that the lineup this past season was based on the team's backcourt and wing strength, and that at the beginning of the year GRIII was much more ready to contribute than McGary was. McGary was only capable of producing 10-15 quality minutes at the beginning of the season; running a two-big offense, with Burke, THJ, Stauskas, and GR3 all on the roster, would have been insane. And when McGary emerged in the tourney there was no reason to change a good thing.
4 weeks 6 days ago	Agreed. Look at that depth	Agreed. Look at that depth chart--Michigan is going to have trouble giving everyone enough PT as it is. There are a lot of talented guys there. If McGary starts at the 4, one of Stauskas, lottery pick GR3, or Indiana Mr. Basketball Irvin is coming off of the bench. Michigan's "weakest" positions are the 1 and the 5, but they're not hurting in either--they're just not two-deep in NBA talent in those spots.
4 weeks 6 days ago	I was wondering why people	I was wondering why people weren't talking about this. Mitch seems like a natural 4 in the Association and has the mobility to keep Michigan's offense quick and aggressive. Gr3 is built for the wing. Using him as a 4 this year seemed more like a concession to having ridiculous backcourt talent. With Hardaway gone, we'll need GR3 and Irvin to pick up wing scoring slack. I would expect them to be the focus of the perimeter offense.
5 weeks 4 days ago	I'm sure this sounds worse	I'm sure this sounds worse than it actually is. No, wait, actually this is exactly as bad as it sounds. The bad guys win again.
5 weeks 5 days ago	Not that odd. Those guys have	Not that odd. Those guys have had a lot more time to think than Trey, who was busy playing basketball.
5 weeks 5 days ago	As has been said, there is no	As has been said, there is no way Trey will ever be higher on a draft board than he is now. If he declares he will be a millionaire, follow his dream, and have nothing missing from his college career. If I were advising him on his best interests I would tell him to go. But you've all had the same secret fantasy I've had. It looks something like this: McGary, Robinson, Hardaway, and Burke announce a joint presser. The board blows up in despair-they're all leaving, Basketball has to rebuild next year. The conference starts. McGary: "I'm coming back to Michigan to win a national championship." Robinson:" I'm coming back to Michigan to win a national championship." Hardaway: "I'm coming back to Michigan to win a national championship." Burke: "I'm coming back to Michigan to win a national championship." We're all secretly hoping. Won't happen, but we hope.
6 weeks 15 hours ago	#6 is a bigger deal than you	#6 is a bigger deal than you think. Lville started a fast transition play off of that "block" that resulted in Trey committing his first foul. Call the goaltend, Trey doesn't foul. For those counting,negate 3 of his fouls that shouldn't have occurred.
6 weeks 18 hours ago	Here's a serious question: We	Here's a serious question: We know Indiana's run with this core is over now that Oladipo and Zeller are gone. They won the B1G outright and a #1 seed, swept us, and had a great season. We did none of that. But we made the final. Looked great. Saw the Shot. Would any of us trade seasons with them, assuming both teams are rebuilding next year? I wouldn't. Not at all.
6 weeks 1 day ago	My Dad always took me to	My Dad always took me to games, up to the fall before he died. They remain cherished memories. Now I am building memories with my daughters. Sports, because they are actually just a recreational diversion, are a great way for family to connect with similar interests, without the high stakes that conflict of interests and politics and life can bring. My Mum and sisters and I will still call each other from thousands of miles away to talk about a game. It brings us together. What greater purpose can there be?
6 weeks 1 day ago	SEC is football first and	SEC is football first and only. That's true for the AD money as well as booster cash. And remember that in BBall southern schools have to compete with giants like UNC.
6 weeks 1 day ago	Not fouling for that long was	Not fouling for that long was definitely a mistake, no matter who made it. I don't think it changed the result, but you never know. I don't mind Trey not committing the foul-we needed him on the floor. I haven't been griping about the officiating, but since three of his four fouls should never have been called (we know about the block and the bogus three-point foul, but nobody seems to mention that his first foul came in the transition play after the uncalled goaltend early in the game and wouldn't have happened if the goaltend was called correctly) and without those he fouls quickly and we see the game play out differently, for good or ill.
6 weeks 1 day ago	Losing is an integral part of	Losing is an integral part of the sports experience. And having hearts ripped out is a consequence of having teams good enough to hope for and expect success. You know who wasn't super-disappointed last night? Minnesota fans. Washington State fans. Mississippi State fans. I wouldn't trade with any of them.
6 weeks 2 days ago	Of those, this is by far the	Of those, this is by far the disappointment that is the least soul-crushing; we have it pretty good for a football-first school that could barely field a competent basketball team for years. Schools with larger, more rabid basketball fan bases have endured much greater proportional heartbreak, especially if you look at the whole of the last 25 years. I'm thankful they got so good so quick.
6 weeks 2 days ago	Nothing wrong with backing	Nothing wrong with backing off. People were talking lottery, and you don't just blow that off--but with time, I think his stock will settle a bit and he'll come back.
6 weeks 2 days ago	You don't think that	You don't think that promulgating an elaborate, everybody-is-against-us conspiracy theory that is prefaced by protestations of sobriety is a bit too similar to the way MSU fans react to life to be considered quality Mgoblog material? This thread is one of the worst I've ever seen on Mgoblog. What's wrong with suggesting that it might not be well-suited for it?
6 weeks 2 days ago	RCMB-quality stuff here.	RCMB-quality stuff here.
6 weeks 2 days ago	No regrets. They played great	No regrets. They played great and lost to a better team. Disappointed? You bet, but not in them. We were right there. We'll always have the shot. And the ride. I'm glad I got to watch it.
6 weeks 2 days ago	I think all the complaints	I think all the complaints from a few weeks ago regarding the Blog's lackluster content have been answered.
6 weeks 4 days ago	What if I live 12 hours away	What if I live 12 hours away in Minnesota? That's a bit of a hike.
6 weeks 4 days ago	I told my wife this evening:	I told my wife this evening: "We're watching our season drain away at the free-throw line." Fortunately, I was wrong--but this team looks rather uncomfortably like that Memphis team that came so close to winning at all until their one achilles heel, foul shooting, finally cost them everything against Kansas.
6 weeks 4 days ago	Anyone else worried that	Anyone else worried that Burke may be feeling the effects of that back injury and flu virus? Sure, tonight's game wasn't a good matchup... but he still missed shots and didn't seem to have the "spark" he often does.  Of course he was suffering from the flu last Friday night, so there you go.

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