Friday, July 24, 2009

Garret Siler

Came to the Hawks mini-camp.

The team needs a guy big enough to bang with Shaq and Dwight Howard, someone with the temperament to push and shove and do the dirty work. It's been forever since the Hawks have had a player like that.

Doesn't have a jump-shot, doesn't need it.

Siler vs. Morris

I don't know if Siler is the guy, but if the Hawks can get a true big for cheap, I say, do it.

Tackle and Bait

The Junkyard Blawg talked to UGA Coach Mark Richt about his approach to practice.

Sounds like Richt is prepared to push his team. Goal line stands, tackling to the ground, blocking below the waist. The coaches will do their best to simulate game conditions, without getting players injured. UGA needs to get tough. No doubt about it.

Blawg

Is Coach Richt's plan for practice asking for trouble? What happens if Jeff Owens goes down with the other knee? If we lose A.J. Green?

Sundiata Gaines Interview with the AJC

Thought I should post the corresponding article with the AJC.

It's similar to the Athens Banner Herald's article, but it does have different quotes and additional information about Gaines' chances to make the Hawks.

Sundiata

Sundiata Gaines

Good job by Online Athens in interviewing Sundiata Gaines.

Lots of information in the article on how Gaines did in Italy, his hopes to play in the NBA, and the possibility of playing for a new team in the Italian league.

Gaines

More on Kendrick

from Meyer's Mailbag.

I know that Mark Fox has been out watching Jelan Kendrick. The problem is that so is every other coach in America, including elite recruiters like Calipari, Billy Donovan, etc.

Good review from Rivals. Do you think UGA has a chance to get Kendrick's commitment?

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Circle of Honor

Awards for Kim Arnold, Bernadette Locke, Matt Stinchcomb and Brent Noon.

These guys have had very successful careers. Wow. Appropriately recognized.

Circle

Bliss is Ignorance?

"Bliss is Ignorance." So said a post on a blog that I stumbled across.

Coach Bliss, formerly of Baylor University, brought college basketball to new lows. If you follow the sport, you know of the saga. Murder, cover-up, lying.

Well, Coach Bliss is back in Texas, and he has been talking to high school coaches about integrity and accountability. He has not shied away from telling his story.

Bliss

What do you think?

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Jumaine Jones back to Italy

Jumaine Jones has signed a 1 year contract with JuveCaserta.

Jones, played this past year in Russia, after a contract dispute prevented him from playing the season in Italy.

JuveCaserta plays in Caserta, the capital of the province of Caserta. The province is located in the Campania region of Italy, in the southwestern corner of the country.

For more information on Jones, click on his name in the label section beneath this article (hypertext).

Monday, July 20, 2009

Kevin Brophy

Passed away three years ago today in a tragic car accident.

Seems like longer, because so much has happened at UGA since that time.

Remembered with admiration for his hustle, love for UGA, and his contributions to Georgia basketball.

Kevin Brophy, 1985-2006.

Garrison Smith to Dawgs

Elite defensive tackle Garrison Smith made the call yesterday. Smith committed to Mark Richt and the Dawgs.

OnlineAthens has the story.

Gaines has his chance

Here is the roster of the Atlanta Hawks mini-camp invitees.

Camp

There's some talent among the guys who will participate. Still, you have to figure that Gaines has a great shot at making the team.

The Hawks have been weak at point guard forever. They made a move to address the issue by selecting Jeff Teague in the draft. He'll help.

Mike Bibby is a good shooter. But he's a step too slow to drive the ball. If he ever was a good defender, those days are pretty much gone.

Jamal Crawford can play some point, but he really is a two-guard. Haven't heard anything definitive on Flip Murray. They should have signed Flip instead of Crawford, in my humble opinion.

At any rate, even with Teague and Bibby, the Hawks still need a back-up point guard. The players that the team tried over the last couple of years were all disappointments. Salim Stoudemire never learned the position. Acie Law wasn't able to develop behind Bibby. Speedy Claxton never got up to speed. Tyronn Lue helped the team on offense, but he was for the most part a defensive liability.

They need a lock-down defender, someone who can distribute the ball. Mario West with handles, if you will. The situation is almost tailor-made for Gaines.

Camp begins in earnest tomorrow. Good luck, Sundiata!

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Ellen, are you gellin'?

So asks the guy from the Dr. Scholl's commercial. And just like the commercial, you can tell when one of the other guys is definitely not gellin'.

Well, the Dawgs football squad is gellin'. Bonding as a team. All pulling in the same direction.

Anybody notice? Zero arrests. Can that be right? All summer long? None? Richt did have to discipline a couple of guys for a serious infraction. But unless I am missing something, the players have otherwise been on their best behavior.

I don't want to jinx the team, and there is still plenty of time before practice officially starts. Don't anyone get too casual with their motor scooters.

Still, you have to like the focus. That and all the studs on the offensive line.

Could be a great year for the Dawgs.

Pope Gives up Medical School, Joins Fox

Mark Pope left medical school to accept a position with Coach Mark Fox.

Bonehead decision? Probably.

He was almost done with school. Just one more year to go. Graduating with a medical degree from Columbia? The guy could have had his choice of options for a residency. A career of helping people lay just ahead. Lots of respect from the community. And he turns it in to try for a future as a basketball coach?

Pope is smart enough, obviously, to weigh the plusses and minuses. Giving up medicine has its minuses. And college coaching itself has its share of challenges. Keeping up with all the NCAA rules. Unreasonable expectations from the fans.

What if the team doesn't win? Pope could end up fired if Georgia decides to make another coaching change in 2 or 3 years. What then?

On the other side, there are the plusses of doing what you really love, working with student-athletes, being paid to do what you would gladly pay somebody else to be involved in--

If you can't be two places at once, sometimes you have to follow your dream.

Dawgs Working Hard During Summer

New attitude. Higher expectations. Focus on winning.

I like it. I don't think that Coach Fox did a lot of full-court press at Nevada, but I hope he will. We don't have strength at the guard position, so he'll have to be judicious with it. But if Demario Mayfield can play, and Ebuka Anyaorah's surgically repaired legs are serviceable, I say amp up the defense and try to create easy baskets.

Georgia used the 1-3-1 under the Felton regime to get back into games. At times Coach Felton extended the pressure to 3/4 court. Felton was always an injury or a suspension away from success. Mike Mercer knee injury, Takais Brown dismissal, Jeremy Jacob leg problems, back injuries for Terrance Woodbury and Dave Bliss. However, the biggest issue was that Coach Felton either didn't like the press, or he didn't want to risk it, given the limited bodies he had. At some point, though, when the team is not winning, you have to throw caution to the wind.

If Coach Fox is willing to implement the full-court as a staple, then it could work wonders for Jeremy Price, Chris Barnes and Travis Leslie. As Albert Jackson correctly states, if you have athleticism, you don't need as much of the skill game. Now Jackson still needs to develop post moves. The SEC is not Oak Hill Academy.

We'll have to try some new things to compete in a very tough SEC East. Hopefully the guys we have will step up their games this summer. Sounds like Thompkins has done just that during international play. If he, Ware and Jackson lead the way, we might be alright.

Summertime.