Ryan,
Yeah it happens. We agree at times.
Kak,
Until a few years ago I spent my entire life on the basketball court. Hours and hours and hours a day...heat cold, rain....I used to shovel the snow off my street and play....so I've been down that road brother.
I've played with most of today's stars..Iverson Stackhouse Wallace Garnett and many more, even your buddy Wally.
I thought I might get to the "league" when I was younger - I was highly regarded in HS and on my way, or so I thought....sometimes things happen in college that no one can plan for...and I decided after graduating that I didn't want to play overseas and hope for that phone call one day so I could maybe be Mike Penberthy (though in all honesty when I was playing I would have destroyed that guy).
It's sad to think how many guys go overseas for 15 years and never get there, then come home without much money...so few college b-ball players graduate at the higher levels.
So yeah I know this game.
And I know Panama City, the location of your avatar photo. I've spent many days there, when I lived in Atlanta I used to drive down all the time. Do you remember what hotel that was? I've probably been there.
Now as for Duke, well....I have to respect them, because they are the best program year after year, but they do it with great college players....who really don;t go on....yes there are exceptions like Grant Hill and Brand...think how good this year's team could have been with Brand, William Avery (though J williams is better) also Corey Magette, and Boozer, Battier - they would have all been there this year if they all stayed.
But Duke will always suffer the indignity of Chris Collins, who was the worst player in Division 1 for four years, Steve Wojo.....who inherited Collins's title (these guys suck. I mean they were terrible.)
And Hurley-Laettner was the best NCAA duo in a long time, and made the worst NBA transition ever.
And then, the 103-73 game against UNLV....the following year when they won, it was fixed...or the way that Jason Kidd dropped Bobby Hurley about 5 picks in the draft by outplaying him as a freshman.
I met Coach K at an AAU tourney. My brother was playing against Ron Mercer (that's who Krzyzewski was there to see) and I talked to him a little bit. Nice guy.
Duke is the #1 program. But they;re hard to like.