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by Jim Storey
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Cactus Classic: Final notes
Posted May 15, 2008 by Justin Adler 2 Comments
If five posts of blog coverage and much more GOAZCATS.com coverage weren’t enough for you, I’m now going to completely wring out my recorder and tap my notepad dry to post the final notes from the Arizona Cactus Classic.
• The picture above was taken during Nic Wise and Terrence Phillips’ (Brandon Jennings’ little brother) one-on-one match. For those of you who can’t tell, Terrence is the one not wearing a t-shirt with Bugs Bunny dunking on it. It’s hard for me to even describe the outrageousness of Terrence Phillips, but I’m going to make my attempt.
The entire weekend Phillips had free reign of the McKale Center and he walked around like he owned the entire place. He seemed to know everyone and everyone seemed to know him. This would make sense if he were Wyking Jones, but Terrence Phillips is just a sixth grader.
It was fascinating because one minute Terrence would be holding a conversation with an AAU coach or any big name at the event, and the next minute he’d be doing normal sixth-grader things such as randomly knocking something out of Josh Gershon’s hands or hitting another member of the staff in the back of the head.
In his game against Nic Wise he hit a couple 3-pointers in a row, after each he would calmly back pedal down the court, already possessing the this-is-too-easy demeanor. Granted Nic was playing at maybe 5 percent and he was being handicapped by a waste full of about 13 cell phones, but it was still impressive to see the 12-year-old fearlessly go at Nic. The argument has been made that Terrence is better than Brandon at his age, while I can’t confirm this because I wasn’t watching Brandon’s under-13 games when I was a sophomore in high school. However their mom says that’s the case, so watch out.
Read the rest of this story…
Cactus Classic: AAU at its finest
Posted May 14, 2008 by Justin Adler No Comments
At first Bay Area Hoosiers’ coach Philippe Doherty appears to be like many other AAU coaches as he paces up and down the sideline, screaming like a frenzied maniac at his team. But upon watching him closer it becomes obvious that their is a great deal of method to his madness.
Doherty prides himself and his team on being one of the most respectful and loyal squads in the AAU circuit.
“If we’re the only team in the country that cleans our benches after games, shakes our officials’ hand and shakes the tournament director’s hand than I shouldn’t be different that should be the way it is,” Doherty said.
Just as Doherty expects his players to Doherty leaves everything on the court as he coaches.
“My energy is the only way I know. I work out guys a lot, I have to get guys going and I carry that over to the floor,” Doherty said. “My style is positive yet structured. It’s a reactionary game and I don’t want them to rely on my enthusiasm or energy, but I want them to make sure that the moment that they are playing is extremely important. It takes a lot of focus.”
Doherty’s positivity-driven coaching style was the result of his experience playing at Santa Clara University.
“The only reason I’m in coaching is because my first day in college,the assistant coach was negative for no reason,” Doherty said. “It almost took my whole confidence away and to that day I promised myself that when I coach I am going to try to be positive almost every second of the day.
Cactus Classic: For the kids
Posted May 13, 2008 by Justin Adler No Comments
While watching an AAU game the casual spectator will probably come to one of the following conclusions: “Wow, No. 20 can really shoot!” “I can’t believe these kids are get to travel around the nation playing basketball.” “These coaches are contributing to the downfall of society!”
The play on the court was often just a sideshow to the hilarious, if not scary antics on the sidelines. If you sit anywhere near the benches odds are your going to witness a cross between an NFL Films presentation of Inside the NFL and a Richard Pryor routine.
As I sat behind the bench of a quarterfinal contest between coach Gary Ward’s Northwest Panthers and coach Shaun Manning’s Team Odom, one of my friends said to me, “Man, this is the most entertaining game of the weekend and I haven’t even watched a minute of the game.”
While the court featured an intense battle of Abdul Gaddy and Avery Bradley against Jordan Hamilton, the sidelines were filled with more drama as the boisterous Ward took on Team Odom’s assistant coach Ivory.
Coach Ivory continuously mocked Gaddy for his Arizona scholarship, arguing that many of his players should have the scholarship instead.
“That’s why he’s going to Arizona, ’cause he can’t play any defense!” Ivory shouted with his raspy voice that sounds like he began smoking a pack a day when he was a toddler.
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Cactus Classic Q&A’s
Posted May 12, 2008 by Justin Adler 1 Comment
The Arizona Cactus Classic ended Sunday as the Houston Hoops won the championship game. Much like GOAZCATS.com, the blog will have extended coverage of the event throughout the week.
Today we’ll catch up with former AAU stars who have decided to give back to the teams and help out as coaches.
Marcus Williams sat on the bench of his former squad the Seattle Rotary Select as he offered some helpful pointers to the kids between games. GOAZCATSBLOG.com spoke with Williams in between games to find out how his life’s been post Arizona.
GOAZCATSBLOG: How’s life been for you one year out of Arizona?
WILLIAMS: I’ve had my ups and downs, it’s been a good learning experience though. I just try to take the positives out if it.
GOAZCATSBLOG: Between playing for the Spurs, NBDL Austin Torros and Clippers, what’s was the best learning opportunity for you?
WILLIAMS: Everything has been great as far as getting to know the league and the professionalism with it. As far getting a chance to go out there and play and learn the game
GOAZCATSBLOG: What was the coolest part about playing in the NBA?
WILLIAMS: Just being with the guys you watched on TV, now I get the chance to have them as teammates and be under their tutelage. The head coaches are geniuses too, they’re not the head coaches for no reason. I was cool on the practice court, but the first game was when it really hit me that I was in the league.
Arizona Cactus Classic: Day 2
Posted May 11, 2008 by Justin Adler 5 Comments
As ridiculous as it might sound, I enjoy watching AAU coaches just as much as I love watching five-star recruits. I’m not sure if it’s the absurd attire, the coaching with a bluetooth headset in the ear or the excessive profanity shouted in the direction of young teenagers, but something about their aggressive, passionate coaching intrigues me.
Of all the well-known coaches in the circuit, few are as popular as Inland Empire’s coach, who goes by Kool-Aid. As his assistant coach Louis Santos told me, “Nobody knows his real name, but everybody knows Kool-Aid.”
The coaching techniques of Kool-Aid or as nobody calls him, Elvert Perry, are just as outlandish as his sideline behavior and there was no better example of that than Inland Empire’s first-round bracket game against Belmont Shore. Belmont Shore used a zone defense against Inland Empire, in an effort to compensate for their lack of depth and speed.
For one reason or another Kool-Aid was offended by Belmont’s decision to play zone as he decided to freeze the game three minutes into the first half. The result was Inland Empire swinging the ball around the perimeter for minutes at a time as there is no shot clock inAAU basketball.
“He’s the only man who understands himself,” former Inland Empire and current Arizona State Sun Devil Jeff Pendergraph said of Kool-Aid. “So whatever he does works for him.”
Pendergraph watched the game from the Inland bench, just as all others watched from the sidelines in disbelief as the halftime buzzer sounded and Inland Empire held a 11-9 lead.
Arizona Cactus Classic: Day 1
Posted May 10, 2008 by Justin Adler No Comments
The third annual Arizona Cactus Classic featured some big-time match-ups in the first night of the three-day tournament. Fans got to witness AAU basketball at its finest as nearly 30 of the nation’s top 50 recruits competed. Many proved why they are ranked among the elite, others gave reason to doubt their ranking (*cough Renardo Sidney cough*) and as always the AAU coaches provided enough sideline entertainment to make even a sub par game entertaining.
Here are some notes from Friday night’s action:
• Reggie Smith (2010) of the Mac Irvin Fire caught my eye in his pregame warm-ups. To me a good player will treat the lay-up line like a good dunk contest and Smith is able to grasp this fundamental aspect of the game at a young age, which shows a lot about his game. Smith repeatedly threw off-the-backboard alley-oops to himself, to let fans in attendance know his game was worth watching. He finished with 11 points, 8 dimes, 8 steals and 1 missed 360-lay-up in the Fire’s route of the Portland Legends.
Pastner has left the building
Posted May 8, 2008 by Justin Adler 1 Comment
If there was still any doubt that Josh Pastner wasn’t leaving the Arizona program, this shot of his office should make the picture that much clearer.
Unless Pastner is doing some heavy-duty remodeling, there’s probably a good reason that an old calendar is the only sign Pastner ever occupied the office.
Review: Gunnin’ for that #1 Spot
Posted May 7, 2008 by Justin Adler 1 Comment
“Gunnin’ for that #1 Spot” is a documentary which showcases the lives of eight incredibly talented high schoolers leading up to the first ever Elite 24 Hoops Classic. The documentary focuses on Jerryd Bayless, Brandon Jennings, Kevin Love, Michael Beasley, Tyreke Evans, Lance Stephenson, Donte Green and Kyle Singler.
There are many problems with the film, which hits theaters June 27, as it has several themes but presents none of them clearly.
Hardcore hoops junkies, which I’d assume to be the film’s target demographic, will learn nothing from the film and walk out the theater wondering where their hour and a half went. Non sports fans may enjoy the overly basic introductions to the players, but then again I don’t know many non-hoops fanatics who would be interested in a documentary about high school basketball stars.
The film oddly opens with grainy, shaky, inaudibly narrated footage being shot by one of the players through what appears to be a Handycam; and at first I thought I was watching a bootleg. It then cuts to black and begins with normal footage describing the background behind the first annual Elite 24 Hoops Classic, which is set to take place at the famed Rucker Park.
The audience is then bombarded with vintage clips, while Rucker Park staples like Greg Marius, Bobbito Garcia, Chris Rucker talk about how historic and godly the park is. At one point Marius loses his mind and says, “(The Rucker Park) level is just as big as the NBA level.”
The next 45 minutes are spent profiling the eight aforementioned players one by one. While it is slightly interesting to see teenage ballers in their home city and just how young they all looked two years ago, little is said in the interviews. Most avid fans with little knowledge of the players will learn nothing from each interview. All that is offered is the generic “rise of above the struggle” story, except in the case of Love and Singler who were raised in Oregon and apparently encountered no childhood struggles.
Odds and ends: UA undefeated under water
Posted May 6, 2008 by Justin Adler 3 Comments
• There’s one simple solution to all of Arizona Athletics problems: put every sport under water. The Arizona swimming and diving brought home the national championship, whether you noticed it or not. Now the Arizona Splashcats won its third collegiate club championship in the last weekend’s U.S. National Synchronized Swimming Championships. Not caring about water polo or any other club sports, this makes Arizona 2-0 on the year in aquatic sports.
• Because of the graveness of the situation I can’t joke about it, but NBC Sports 2008 mock NBA draft has Bayless going to the New York Knicks. If it happens Bayless will learn the NBA guard position from Stephon Marbury, Jamal Crawford, Mardy Collins, Quentin Richardson and Nate Robinson, who all combined make up one decent NBA guard.
• Reading Russ Pennell brag about coaching Bryant Reeves really put me at ease about him being only secure assistant coach.
• Random Brandon Jennings fact of the day: Brandon’s favorite class at Oak Hill Academy is lunch.
Say it ain’t so
Posted May 4, 2008 by Justin Adler No Comments
There has been plenty of amazing happening, but the NBA playoffs have also offered their fair share of disappointments thus far.
My Phoenix Suns were again easily defeated by the San Antonio Spurs and now General Manager Steve Kerr has so many problems on his hands that his hair will probably look like Lute Olson’s by the end of the summer.
Despite playing in the most blogger-friendly series of all time, Gilbert Arenas and Soulja Boy’s Wizards were yet again knocked out by the King James’ Cavs and Mike Bibby and the Atlanta Hawks finished a win short of becoming the ‘08 Golden State Warriors.
Additionally only two of the NBA-high eight former Wildcats in the NBA playoffs advanced to the second round. Gilbert Arenas, Andre Iguodala, Jason Terry, Mike Bibby, Salim Stoudamire and Loren Woods have all gone fishin’, while Luke Walton and Damon Stoudamire are the only two former Cats still playing for the Larry O’Brien trophy.
But the most gut-wrenching disappointment of the NBA playoffs is the shocking news that Gilbert Arenas will be retiring from the blogosphere.
