Hello Followers. Hope you’ve had a solid week.
Today we had scheduled the Khan to write a bit about the developments and hype over at Muttlake. But, alas, the Khan pulled a no-show.
You see, the Khan occasionally operates under the illusion that he is a university professor, and as such, he sometimes claims that he has to do some “real writing” in order to keep his job.
So, in an effort to accomodate another one of his illusions, we decided to take over his spot today with a few thoughts on the Cougs, the NFL playoffs, and of course, a whole lot less…
Read on.
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Followers, before the Pac-12 Hoops season began I gave you my two words of non-wisdom. The first word I gave you was “9th”, which was my predicted finish for the Cougs this year in conference, just ahead of the likes of USC, Arizona State, and Utah. The second word I gave you was “Aden” which was my way of letting folks know that, just like whipping posts Nick and Abe in the years prior, much of our success would depend on the play of the “X Factor” our own fan base likes to hate.
You see, as I’ve said for a long time, Faisel Aden is Washington State’s version of a certain NBA player that both SeanHawk and I learned to hate and love all at the same time. And that player was none other than the man called “Easy Eight,” Eddie Johnson.
You see E.J. typified the old cliché and song “When you’re hot you’re hot, when you’re not, you’re not.” And show nuff, Easy 8 would shoot the Sonics into games, and Easy 8 would shoot the Sonics right out of games. (and in case you were wondering, Eddie Johnson, like Aden, played NO DEFENSE whatsoever).
In any case, I still have memories of EJ’s 24 point outburst in Game 4 against the Utah Jazz in 1993. You see, the Sonics were down 2-1 in Utah facing elimination in a five game series when Easy 8 caught fire, brought the Supes back to the Coliseum for Game 5, where we disposed of the Jazz and moved toward a trip to the Western Conference finals.
Anyhow, as a part of that 24 points, EJ hoisted up seemingly countless wild runners and turnaround J’s in the lane, while going 3 for 5 from 3 pointland in the leading/winning effort. And, yes, virtually NONE of those shots were good shots. In fact, I think the echos of George Karl call yelling “No, No, No, No, No, No, YESSSS!!!” can still be felt in the halls of the KJR studios.
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So, last night, our Cougies beat Stanford behind Faisel Aden’s 33 points, 23 of which came in the second half.
And, of course, Aden’s outburst came shortly after Vince Grippi tweeted that Aden had missed his last 9 three pointers and probably needed to look to pass the ball. Of course Vince, like others out there, often miss the point of Aden altogether: Aden should hardly ever pass the ball. He’s either in there to score points OR its Ken Bone’s job to get him out of the game. And as we saw last night, deciding when to pull Aden is a difficult one. Because, just like Easy 8, a huge offensive outburst is just moments away…..And unfortunately for all the haters out there, for the Cougs to win games, Aden more often than not is going to have to take them there.
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Earlier in the week, our Director of Research and Development made the call that it was time to move toward a youth movement with Cougar hoops. And while there certainly are merits to his view, last night also showed us what Vince Grippi has been saying all season long: The Crap-12 is WIDE, WIDE OPEN this year. And so, even if we wind up pulling a Huddy this weekend, a close call against CAL on Saturday would show us that, on any given night, this Cougar team can beat anyone in conference. What’s more, as we saw last night with the Beavs win over UCLA, once we get past the Utah’s and USC’s of the conference, anyone can beat anyone in this conference. Meaning, there’s a decent chance that the semi-final of the Crap-12 tournament could pit a 6 seed versus a 7 seed (and a similar arrangement on the other side). Truly, it may be possible to win the thing this year without having to beat anyone of relative consequence.
So, as we all move forward through what has been and probably will continue to be a yawner of a year, keep an eye on this team’s progress as we head toward those days in LA in early March. They’ll be worth watching, even if the next 12 conference games are not.
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Moving on, don’t know about you all, but I’ve enjoyed this year’s NFL playoffs more than any year in which the Seahawks were not involved. And, a part of that enjoyment comes from the banter I’ve enjoyed on Twitter with my special friend over at ESPN.
In any event, in case any of you are heading over to Vegas this weekend, here are my picks:
AFC Championship: New England 30 Baltimore 21. At first blush, the score seems a bit high to me. After all, the Ravens D always seems to have Brady’s number, in part, because they are one of the few teams in the league who have been able to knock him down. But this year? Well, it just seems like the emergence of the Gronker has put the Patriots over the winning line.
And while I like the Cohesion of the Ravens defense, I think the Brady and the Gronk are going to make the Ravens pay for those blitzes all day in this one. No Harbaugh Superbowl, I am afraid.
NFC Championship: San Francisco 27 New York Giants 24: While I think that John Harbaugh will be watching the Superbowl from the cheap seats, his brother Captain Comeback will have a sideline view from the 50 yard line. And in so doing, Jimmy boy will convince the world, once and for all, that he is the greatest active football coach in the world.
I mean, don’t know if you watched last week, but what that guy has done for also-rans like Alex Smith is nothing short of remarkable. Not only does Harbaugh have a tremendous eye for talent, he gets his players to play with a belief and physicality that is nothing short of inspiring. And, while I LOVE what Eli Manning and company have brought to the table down the season’s final stretch, I think the Niners D will keep them contained for much of the day. And while Alex Smith is no world beater, the Niners kicking game coupled with someone named Frank Gore, will be the difference in this one.
I truly can’t wait.
Okay, enough of my yacking. Longball will be back on Monday with a recap on the weekend’s events, and hopefully, and will have an announcement or three about some defensive signees…
All for now. Go Cougs.
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