Bouncing around the
nation:
*News item: The NCAA Division I
men’s basketball tournament committee is going to discuss possible expansion of
the now 65-team event when it next meets in Orlando on June 26-30.
My comment: Discuss it all you
want, folks . . . and then leave it just as it is right now, thank you very
much.
There are currently 334 programs
classified as Division I, meaning that roughly one in five teams that compete on
that level were in the tournament last season.
I like that ratio. It makes getting
into the tournament something precious and (in most instances) hard
earned.
If you’re going to capitulate to
the cries of those coaches who want to see the field expanded, let’s go all the
way and make it a completely open event – everyone goes.
And, while we’re at it, let’s do
away with the 30 conference post-season tournaments (the Ivy League is the only
holdout to award its automatic NCAA Tournament bid to the team that demonstrates
that it’s the best over the course of conference play).
Well, there’s about as much chance
of that happening as there is that there will ever be a full-fledged NCAA
Division I-A football playoff, thereby doing away with the bowl system as exists
today.
*News item: Eddie Sutton makes it official Friday
by retiring and turning over the reins of the
Oklahoma
State program to his son, Sean.
My comment: That’s not the least
bit surprising. In hindsight maybe Sutton, who pleaded no contest on May 5 to
driving under the influence during a Feb. 10 accident in his SUV, should have
stepped down after the Cowboys’ Final Four appearance of 2004.
There haven’t been more than a
half-dozen coaches during his stint as a college coach who have been as well
respected by his peers as he is. His induction into the Naismith Hall of Fame is
both inevitable and deserved.
*Forward P.J. Tucker, the Big 12 Conference’s
Player of the Year this past season, signed with an agent, thereby forfeiting
his final season of eligibility at the
University of
Texas.
In reality, he’s an undersized
power forward and it’s going to be quite a chore trying to convince NBA decision
makers that he can jump shoot, handle and drive the ball well enough against
quality perimeter defenders to warrant anything more than selection somewhere in
the second round on June 28.
He’s far from the only guy who has
cut his ties with college or seems intent on doing so, yet isn’t considered a
likely first-round selection right now.
But, hey! This is
America! Anyone
is free to pursue that pot of gold that comes with being snatched in the NBA
Draft’s first round, right?
You betcha!
His Longhorns’ teammate, guard Daniel Gibson, also may keep his name
in the draft pool, although there is little “buzz” about his chances of landing
in the first round next month.
If Gibson joins Tucker and LaMarcus Aldridge as underclassmen
bolting Rick Barnes’ program for the
NBA, the Longhorns could have a starting lineup that has as much freshmen
influence as any in the country next season.
Point guard D.J. Augustin, wing Kevin Durant and post Matt Hill will likely start for Barnes
next season, as could forward Damion James (who is also considering Texas A&M after being released from the
letter of intent he signed with the
University of
Oklahoma last November).
*On the subject of the Big 12,
Texas A&M – which seems a pretty solid choice right now as the top threat to
Kansas for the conference 2007 conference title – is expected to be pitted
against UCLA in the Dec. 9 John R. Wooden Classic in Anaheim, Calif.
The other part of the doubleheader
is expected to be manned by USC and George Washington.
*Gonzaga continued on its path to
one of its best-ever high school recruiting classes next November when 6-8 Austin Daye (Woodbridge High in
Irvine, CA)
committed to the Bulldogs.
Daye, No. 76 in the Scout.com
Pre-Summer Class of 2007 Top 100, is skinny as all get-out (listing him at 170
pounds might be a bit generous) and you can bet a lot of those getting a first
look at him in July will refer to him as a “right-handed Tayshaun Prince”.
But his skills and approach to the
game are also very comparable to a 2005 McDonald’s All-America who is currently
red-shirting with Coach Mark Few’s
program – Micah Downs.
He is the son of a McDonald’s
All-America, Darren Daye (who played
at UCLA and for five seasons in the NBA, and was the MVP in the ’79 McDonald’s
East-West Game in
Charlotte).
And Daye appears to have the best
opportunity yet of any offspring of following in his pop’s McDonald’s
footsteps.
Inducted into the USBWA Hall of
Fame in April, 2005, Frank Burlison is Scout.com’s national basketball expert and is
also a columnist for the Long Beach (Calif.) Press-Telegram. He can be reached at
frank.burlison@presstelegram.com. Read more of Burlison’s pieces at
www.frankhoops.com