In the NBA, the Spurs continue to distance themselves from the Mavericks in the Western Conference race, and the Pistons continue to come back and win close games, but how long can they keep that up? And how about that game between the Cavs and Heat where Bron went for 47, twelve boards, and ten assists and Dwyane Wade went for 44, eight boards, and nine assists. The Cavs won by the way, but I don't think anyone remembers that part. And why should they? This is what the NBA and ESPN wants, two of the biggest stars in the league putting up ridiculous numbers against each other.
Yesterday, I experienced my first D-League game. The Austin Torros beat the Fort Worth Flyers 106-95. I've got to be honest with you though, I wasn't that impressed. My guess is because it was late in the season and Fort Worth has already locked up the regular season title, while Austin on the other hand was fighting for a playoff spot. Some thoughts from the game:
- Some names you might recognize from this game -- Ndubi Ebi, Keith Langford and Aaron Miles from Kansas, and Pavel Podkolzin for the Flyers. Andre Emmett for the Torros.
- Despite recently named D-League MVP Marcus Fizer getting called up for the Torros, they played well throughout the game up until Fort Worth began to full court press. The Torros made a number of bad passes and even had an eight second violation.
- On the other side, Fort Worth looked terrible through three quarters until they started pressing and seemed to play harder. But at that point, the Torros had built a big enough lead that they were able to withstand the comeback attempt.
- It's easy to see why Ndubi Ebi was released by the Timberwolves. He was very quiet during the game. Despite his size, I don't think he could dominate in college right now, much less produce in the NBA. In this game he scored only four points and grabbed only five rebounds.
- Austin guard Ramel Curry had 25 points to lead all scorers. He shot an impressive 10-13 from the field.
- On Andre Emmett bobblehead day, he didn't disappoint. Emmett scored 14 points and displayed an excellent three point shot, something that wasn't shown when he was at Texas Tech.
- Former Jayhawks Keith Langford and Aaron Miles were also very impressive, with Miles scoring 22 points and six assists, though he also had five turnovers. Langford scored 19 points off the bench and had two steals and two assists.
- Ime Udoka had a strong game for the Flyers, scoring 24 points and grabbing 14 rebounds.
So there's the wrap up of my first minor league basketball game. I may have more notes on Friday when these two teams meet up again on Thursday night. Make sure you watch the championship game tonight. That's all I got. See you tomorrow.
