Things Fall Apart?
A must have
Apologies to ?uestLove, but the headline seems appropriate based on today’s media reports surrounding Greg Oden and Mike Conley and their upcoming decisions on whether to or not to make themselves eligible for this year’s NBA Draft. Admittedly, I said all along Oden would come back based solely on his comment of wanting to be a dominating offensive player before declaring versus the reality of his offensive performance this past season. That said, the experts continue to chime in with stories of Oden’s departure. Andy Katz at the WorldWide leader certainly thinks Oden is history. Couple that with David Stern’s remarks today, and it’s time to order a Red Bull & Vodka and start facing the fact The Odenator’s time in Columbus is up.
Worse yet, it appears Mike Conley Jr. is leaning heavily toward throwing his name into the NBA ring. I had a feeling his dad’s comments a few weeks ago saying Mike was definitely returning were questionable, but it seems all the more real that Mike is outta here after reading Papa Conley’s comments in today’s Dispatch. On one hand, I understand why Conley would leave. His stock won’t get any higher than it is right now, regardless of whether he adds a consistent jumper next season or not. Plus, I’m sure he is smart enough to see what Joakim Noah did to his draft status by waiting a year. On the other hand, Conley could still benefit over the long haul by adding a midrange jumper to his game and Matta could help him out by having him defend bigger guards next year to get ready for a career of defending taller guards in the post.
If that isn’t enough to give you stomach cramps, Daequan is still considering turning pro even though he has disappeared from the first round in every NBA Mock Draft I’ve encountered. His pimped out high school coach, Al Powell Jr., was quoted as saying Cook wants to talk to Matta about his role next season before making a decision. That’s funny. Matta did all he could to help Cook grow up this year but Daequan was his own worst enemy. His shot selection, defensive lapses and lack of desire only reinforced what a lousy, enabling coach Al Powell Jr. was during Cook’s run at Dayton Dunbar.
On a positive note, Matt Turdwiggler has decided to forgo turning pro and will be back for another dominating season. Once the youngin’s have made their decisions public, 11W will take a look at what to expect next year. On your way out, make sure to read Rick Maese’s fantastic article about Greg Oden, the person, and how he’s dealing with the loss of his childhood buddy. Good stuff. Not that we didn’t already know, but Oden is a just as good a person as he is a hoopster.
Can’t blame the guys. Hang around dorms or outfit your mansion with plasmas and other toys..
money isnt everything to some people
I want to say that I love reading your posts. I find them funny and insightful. Yet I think that it is inappropriate to make that crack Matt Terwilliger. It must have been hard to get PT with so much talent on the team. I think that when given the oppertunity Twigs did a decent job, usually doing what was expected of him. We are all worried about the possible departure of some of the country’s best players, in Oden and Conley, but that is no excuse to rip on a member of the team you root for and cover.
Wow! Month 8: The Readers Attack!
Mike H: I agree that money isn’t everything, but I personally agree with the Gonzo college athlete exploitation line of thinking. Sure, they’re getting the scholarships and room and board, but it’s really not even close in terms of what they’re generating compared to what they’re receiving.
Nasty Nate (or Mr. Terwilliger): I’ve been lobbying for Twig to get his real name back around these parts, but every time I do he goes out and hits the bottom of the rim on a 3 foot unguarded putback. He did step up in in the tournament, though, so hopefully he’ll get his full name back around these parts soon.
Gloom, despair, and agony on me
Deep, dark depression, excessive misery
Nasty Nate:
First - Thanks for reading 11W. We value the input of all our readers.
Second - Dont mistake my sarcasm towards “Da Turd” as hatred or disdain. Nobody, and I mean nobody, defends him in public with as much fervor as I. He earned the nickname a few years back after launching about 4 threes in 5 minutes while getting hammered down low at the other end. Amongst our inner circle of Buckeye Fans the name stuck so I brought it with me to 11W. I polled the readers awhile back and it was decided we would continue to refer to Matt as “Turdwiggler” for the time being.
I agree that Matt really came on strong toward the end of the season and played extremely well when Oden was forced to the bench with foul trouble in the tourney. Hopefully, he’ll continue to improve because he’s going to see at least 20 minutes per game next season.
What is wrong with turds?
jason, i have to say that i see where you and a lot of other people are coming from when it comes to college players being poorly compensated. but it is my honest opinion that while the system needs some tweaking, fundamentally it should not change. all this is coming from the SI article about the program so im sure you already know this, but look at the fact that OSU’s atheltics department made 105 million dollars in revenue last year, while their profit was only 3 million. the vast majority of the money is spent improving our programs, adding new programs (926 athelets and 36 sports, more than any other school), and enhancing the normal student’s education. as a student at OSU, im glad that i can enjoy OSU football and basketball, and that some of the money from these great programs goes back to my education. like the 5 million dollars the athletics department gave for the library renovations. if i were a college athlete i think i would just be glad that i get to do something i love, have a great time with no monetary concerns while im in college, and then have the chance to play NFL ball some day.
All great points Mike. But to how do you tell a kid to turn down millions of dollars? It takes a special kind of kid to stay in school these days when they have first-round talent.
Not saying they don’t exist, but it’s safe to assume, that more often then not, the guys are going pro.
OSU has experienced this in football for the past 20 years and now they’re getting a chance to see what UNC and other schools endure in hoops.
Let’s just keep our collective fingers crossed and maybe one or two will stick around.
Has everyone seen this? Keith’s thoughts on Daequan are right on the money…The dude is definitely good enough to take over the team if he’d just get his sh!t together…he could easily be a lottery pick next year if he committed himself to it…
http://www.buckeyecommentary.com/files/earth-to-daequan-cook.html
If we cant call him “Turdwiggler” can we go with “Twigs n buries”. One could argue I think if the Twigs gets it down low he will bury it. I want to yell in a bar during a game “Send it down low to the Twigs n Buries so he can take it to the hole and score!”
hahahahahahaha franks n beans thats absolutely classic
Your observations on Cook’s game seem to be consistent with the majority and I tend to agree. However I cant help but disagree on your take that Matta did all he could to help Cook grow up this year. Matta IMHO rotation was inconsistent and Cook didnt play at all in the 2nd half in 4 or 5 games. I also must say that if you knew Coach Powell there is no way you would call him a pimped out, lousy, enabling coach. He is a great guy who has encouraged Cook to stay in school.
Britton - admittedly, I’m no expert on Powell or Dunbar hoops, but from what I’ve seen, his teams are wild and play with little discipline. They more or less “out-athlete” teams versus playing smart. The 3 or 4 times I saw Cook at Dunbar, it was clear that he was a pure scorer but that he wasnt being taught, or at least wasnt grasping what he was being taught, about being a complete player. He was lazy on defense then, he’s lazy on defense now. He had poor shot selection then, he has poor shot selection now. He was careless with the ball then, he’s careless with the ball now. I mean, how many ‘carrying’ calls can a guy be whistled for before he learns the BigTen isnt the same as the Worthington Summer League? As for Matta, the difference I see is that he actually held Daequan accountable by taking away his playing time whereas Powell did nothing of the sort to teach him a lesson - at least he didnt in the admittedly few games I saw.
As for Daequan, you can look back and see that I was his biggest supporter earlier this season but for whatever reason, his game regressed once the conference season started. To compound the issue, Lewis re-discovered his game and that led to even less PT for Cook. I really hope he comes back because with an attitude adjustment he could be a top 10 pick next year. He could take over the team and be the best scorer in the conference if Conley/Oden depart. I wonder if Cook has too many people giving him advice because they want a piece of his money. Maybe you have more insight on that? If so, what do you think?
I am somewhat close to the situation. I know that Cook’s plan for the last few weeks was to enter the draft and not hire an agent. I also know Powell and Conley Sr. are both well off and are the only true voices of influence, however Cooks mother’s situation could be the chief motivator on why he would take a chance on entering the draft. I do know that how well he performs in the combine will determine if he stays or goes.