From Larry
Thanks for reminding me how great Len Bias was. He was awesome and as a Boston fan it makes my green heart hurt.
Who is on the Rushmore of best college basketball players you ever saw?
Larry -
Thanks for the question, and I too occasionally let my mind roam to what would have happened with Bias in Boston.
As for your question, well, we'll go here:
Best I ever saw: Lenny Bias, Christian Laettner, Ralph Sampson, Danny Manning
GOATs Rushmore: Laettner, Alcindor, Maravich, Walton
As for this week's Rushmores, well, here we go:
Rushmore of summer: Suzanne Somers, Boys of Summer, Summer of '69, Summer School
Rushmore of John Goodman movies: Raising Arizona, O Brother Where Art Thou, Revenge of the Nerds, Big Lebowski
Rushmore of Moe: Moe from the Three Stooges, Moe from The Simpsons, Uncle Mo (as in momentum - RIP Al McGuire), and Mo' Money
Rushmore of incredible sequels: Godfather II, Empire Strikes Back, Terminator 2
Atlanta Hawks guard Jeff Teague (0) goes up for a basket as Golden State Warriors guard Andre Iguodala (9) defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Friday, Feb. 6, 2015, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore) From Ross
Who you got the hawks taking at 3? I'm praying they're smart enough to take Doncic if hes still on the board.
Ross (and others) -
We got a slew of online draft questions during the process last night. This one - which we received Thursday during the day - seems like the best specific one to get into the proceedings.
First, we'll cover the Hawks. Atlanta drafted Luka Doncic at No. 3 and promptly dealt him to Dallas, and this will almost assuredly mean that Doncic will be a 10-time all-star.
Why the cynicism? Well, Atlanta may be the single worst drafting team in all of sports and here are the Hawks last 15 first-round picks before Thursday night:
2017 - John Collins
2016 - DeAndre Bembry
2015 - Kelly Ombre Jr.
2014 - Adrian Payne
2013 - Shane Larkin
2012 - John Jenkins
2011 - None
2010 - Damion James
2009 - Jeff Teague
2008 - None
2007 - Sheldon Williams and Acie Law
2006 - Shelden Williams
2005 - Marvin Williams
2004 - Josh Childress and Josh Smith
2003 - Boris Diaw
Shall we keep going? Sure, why not.
2002 - None
2001 - Pau Gasol (who was traded for Shareef Abdul Rahim)
2000 - DerMarr Johnson
1999 - Jason Terry, Cal Bowdler, Dion Glover and Jumaini Jones
1998 - Roshown McLeod
1997 - Ed Gray
Shall we keep going? Sure, why not.
1996 - Priest Lauderdale
1995 - Alan Henderson
1993 - Doug Edwards
1992 - Adam Keefe
1991 - Stacey Augmon
1990 - Rumeal Robinson
1989 - Roy Marble
1988 - None
1987 - Dallas Comegys
Holy buckets of drafting bleep. You could not have 30 years of drafting futility this bad if you tried to make the worst pick on the board every year. So maybe dealing their first-round pick for someone else's first-round pick was the right play.
The Hawks also added a shooting guard and a center in round one last night, but the future of this draft will be determined by Trae Young.
And while the experts are raving about Doncic's all-around game and headiness, the Hawks more than any other team in the NBA needed identity and a face, and there was no bigger personality in this draft than Young, who has drawn a slew of comps to the lovable Steph Curry and who was the most electrifying player in college hoops a year ago.
We understand the deal from both sides, but the Hawks' history does not bode well. On the bright side for the Hawks, if Doncic turns out to be what a lot of folks are expecting him to be, Atlanta got another first-rounder from Dallas in the deal.
Well, considering how the Hawks use those first-rounders, maybe that's not a good thing after all.
Former University of Kentucky point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, right, poses with NBA commissioner Adam Silver after the Hamilton Heights Christian Academy graduate was picked 11th overall by the Charlotte Hornets during the NBA draft Thursday night in New York.From several of you
Best move/worst move of the NBA draft?
Gang -
Let's review some thoughts other than the Mavs-Hawks deal. (One more side note on that: Are we 100 percent sure the Hawks got the best point guard in this draft considering Collin Sexton and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also went in the lottery? No, no we are not.)
OK these are three best picks, in order:
Michael Porter Jr. The Nuggets getting the best offensive player in the draft - and the best overall player in this age cycle before his injury - at 14 is a big-time home run. The West Conference next year is going to be a total fist fight. The Nuggets are going to be sneaky good. The Utah Jazz came into this draft desperate for a shooter and they got better with Grayson Allen. The Clippers got better, too. The Suns added DeAndre Ayton and Mikal Bridges. The Spurs' pick of Lonnie Walker IV was nice. Dallas made the head-turning trade and then made a sneaky great pick of Jalen Brunson in round two.
Robert Williams. The Celtics getting the best defensive player in the draft - and a top-10 pick if he had entered the draft last year - at 27 is a big-time home run for a team that has to be considered the favorite in the East next year if everyone is healthy.
Mitchell Robinson. The Knicks had a really good night, even though their fans were less than thrilled. We love the Kevin Knox pick at 9. Then at 36, the Knicks picked Robinson, and if you're wondering, "I don't remember seeing him play last year" well, that's OK. He did not play last year. He was a top-10, five-star prospect - and the nation's No. 1 prep center prospect in the 2017 signing class. He signed with Western Kentucky before leaving school and sitting out the season. He may be completely out of shape but a second-round pick on a guy who, if he's motivated, was a top-10 prospect is a great gamble.
Three worst moves:
The Clippers taking Jerome Robinson at 13. We loved the deal the Clippers made to get Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at 11, and if they had added Michael Porter at 13, well, the Clippers would have won the draft.
Wizards taking Troy Brown. Brown is a fine player, but dude is a guard and the Wizards have John Wall and Bradley Beal.
The Nets trade many moons ago for Pierce and Garnett that left them fleeced for first-rounders. The Nets were absent from round one. Again.
Things that will make LeBron go hmmmmm:
The Lakers added two elite deep shooters with Michigan's Mo Wagner and Kansas' Svi Mykhailiuk. That's a couple of spot-up pieces that would fit into LeBron's ball-dominant, draw-the-double-and-dish style.
The Cavs added an exciting young point guard in Collin Sexton, who actually addressed James and a possible return during his post-pick interview.
The 76ers made a ton of deals, some that were even questionable. Those picks were made, in part, to ease salary-cap space. As these moves were happening, there were airplanes pulling LeBron-Philly banners overhead.
Hmmmmmm, indeed.
Luciana Paoluzzi and Sean Connery are seen during the filming of the 1965 James Bond movie "Thunderball" at Pinewood Studios in England. (AP Photo)From Mike C.
Friend or foe Bond movie: Octopussy?
Mike C. -
This was from the conversation of which was the better five-plus movie franchise, Bond or Balboa?
As for the question, there's really not a Bond movie that is a foe, but there are not many of them that are guaranteed "Stop when you see it on the scroll" like a majority of the Rocky series.
And it's a fair way to compare. Let's go to the tail of the tape:
Smoothness of the lead character: Bond. James Bond of course.
Eye candy: No contest.
Series at its apex: No Bond movie will ever be as good as the original Rocky. Edge, Balboa
Series at its lowest point: No Bond movie will ever be as bad as Rocky V. Edge, Bond
Side kicks: Rocky had Paulie and Apollo. Bond had M and a parade of scantily clad smoke shows. Edge, Bond.
So which is better? Rocky of course. The reason? #Merica.
This week's back and forth
OK, we had a slew of emails on the Ward or Munson question on Thursday. Some were even printable.
We'll run one from each side:
From a UGA grad: True or False: John Ward was better than Larry Munson. With due respect, false.
I was once at a wedding in Miami with a bunch of Michigan football fans. One of them heard I was a UGA guy and for the next 20 minutes or so he talked to me about Larry Munson calls. He wouldn't have known John Ward from mental ward.
Hope all's well
And from the other side:
Ward>>>Munson. Not. Even. Close.
God bless Al Ciraldo but thankfully he had Kim King (RIP to the both) riding shotgun all those years. To wit: "There's a flag on the field." "I think that's a leaf, Al."