re: not saying I dislike BB but I'm not that into it

I fell in love with basketball when Frank McGuire came to South Carolina in '64. I was 12 years old and it was like a god of sorts had come to the Gamecocks.

My first game my brothers took me to was in the old field house ... then he built the Carolina Coliseum. SC was Top 5 every year. In '71 they were the first team ranked #1 ahead of UCLA in something like five or six years ... John Roche was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, teams hated playing us at The Frank. Every kid in the state put up a backboard on a tree somewhere, scribbled the #11 on a t-shirt and that's what we did all day - played basketball.

(It's also why SC still produces some of the best basketball players in the country. Every team in the SEC has had at least one star from SC, except the new guys at A&M and Mizzou.)

I was at the game when (Maryland coach) Lefty Dreizel (ran out on the court and) got his nose broke by John Ribock for instance ... the ACC hated us because we owned the league - which is why we ended-up leaving after the Mike Grossman incident.

Electricity, there is nothing like it when your basketball team is playing, driving up and down the court going on scoring runs, playing good defense, crowd going crazy ...

Anyways, that's just me ....



Hint ... LSU has had a couple of South Carolinians, the most obvious was:



... but who are the less obvious?

Frank McGuire, one of the truly greatest gentlemen to ever coach the game. His Son Frankie, Coach used to let me wheel Frankie around in his wheel chair at basketball camp, every year. We'd have a blast racing around through the Coliseum ... those are some great memories, with him laughing and Coach hollering at me to slow down on the ramps.



Cocksucking UNC fans used to hang Frankie in effigy from a noose when we'd go up there to play. Frankie always sat right behind Coach at all the games.

At NC State they hung John Roche, Bobby Cremins and Kevin Joyce in effigy from the rafters with their heads in plaster of paris toilet bowls ... and we'd kick all their asses on the court.

Man the ACC hated us.

Bobby Cremins before he grew all that white hair.



Kevin Joyce would go-on to Captain the '72 Olympic team ... they had their gold medal stole from them by the Russians. Video Joyce could jump through the ceiling .... they didn't allow dunking back then but he would put on a dunk show at the camps for the kids.



Mike Dunleavy would go-on to a great NBA career both as a player and a coach. He was the toughest college basketball player I ever saw play the game. Always had that damn tongue hanging out those ... he about bit it off a few times. The guy's knee and elbows were permanent scabs.



So would Brian Winters ... both as a player and coach.



Alex English ... we called him "Stilts" back then because he was so tall and lanky, but the guy could score. Ended up being one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. Total class act. He's on our Board these days and still a total class act.

(I'd post a picture of Alex but Getty bought-up all the rights to his college images some years ago)

Frank McGuire .... I loved that man. He kept coming to the restaurant to eat almost right up until his death. He was truly, truly, a great great man.

Upvote on the history. I was watching UF in the early 80's. We don't have the history of the big schools but had a few good players roll threw.

It's boring till conference and NCAA starts.

Unless a team is Kentucky losses don't meant that much.


That's my biggest beef. These games right now other than for bragging rights are almost meaningless.

The officiating is just so god awful it makes the games almost unwatchable.

Not sure if Bert B. or Basketball.

cool story bro

quote:

---

Now it's just a game where they hand it to be the best player and let him shoot. It may be a better strategy, but I miss the teamwork.

---

What a horribly, awful hot take. Ball movement and spacing is at a bigger premium than it has ever been before.

The best basketball player in the world (LeBron) has gotten chastised massively for choosing to make the right basketball play in late game situations instead of just doing it himself.

If anything CBB has had a problem with over passing. Teams choosing to turn down good shots because they got it too early in the shot clock.

Don't get me wrong about not appreciating Florida players. I am a little miffed that they just ignore Vernon Maxwell. Playing in alligator alley was cool and then they moved to the O-dome.