Defending Kobe

Andrew Sharp comes to the defense of Kobe Bryant. An excerpt:

"...The only rational way to blame Kobe for the state of the Lakers is to say that his presence in L.A. has kept them from adding Paul George and Kevin Love and God knows what other theoretical superstars who would have signed there. But that assumes the mere idea of the Lakers and Los Angeles is enough to make players magically demand trades or leave more money behind to go play for an empty roster in Southern California..."

Kent liking Dunbar

At the Pac-12 Media Day, Matthew Snyder tweeted: "Fun to hear Wazzu coach Ernie Kent rave about Cougs frosh g Trevor Dunbar's skill set. There'll be an adjustment period, but he can do work."

An ode to Kyle Smith

Sure wish some team would get Kyle Smith back on the West Coast -- Matthew Snyder offers a Q-and-A with the Columbia coach whose team finished with 21 victories last season.

One bad dude

The Sacramento Bee reports: so-called basketball academy founder sentencing for abuse delayed.

Wu to the Hornets

From MC Basketball: "It's official! Jeff Wu has committed to Sacramento State! Congratulations, Jeff"

Wasn't sure he'd make it into DI so a big congratulations goes out to him for this achievement.

Langston Morris-Walker at Pac12 Media Day

Oregon State Coach Wayne Tinkle and Langston Morris-Walker repped the Beavers at Pac-12 Media Day.

Johnson cut but may be headed to DLeague

Ira Winderman writes:

Facing a 5 p.m. Monday deadline to reduce their roster to a maximum of 15 players, the Miami Heat on Thursday released rookie guards Tyler Johnson and Larry Drew and Hialeah-born forward Shawn Jones.

The moves leave the Heat with 16 players on their preseason roster.

Of the players released Thursday, Johnson was the most intriguing.

Johnson, who went undrafted out of Fresno State in June, impressed the Heat with his athletic play during summer league to the degree that they offered him a $75,000 guarantee to attend training camp.

Held out of the the Heat's first five exhibitions, Johnson made the most of his lone preseason opportunity when, with Dwyane Wade being held out during Saturday's overtime road victory against the San Antonio Spurs, he scored 17 points off the bench. He then was held out of Tuesday's preseason victory over the Houston Rockets.

As with all players released from their training-camp roster, the Heat can designate Johnson for assignment to their NBA Development League team. It then remains up to Johnson to decide whether to accept the assignment to the Sioux Falls Skyforce...

Do track Sacramento State this season

The votes from the league coaches and media and Weber State is an overwhelming choice to win the Big Sky Conference this season. Sacramento State did receive a first place nod.

A snippet from the announcement:

",,,On paper, Sacramento State has its best team since the Hornets joined the Big Sky in 1996. All five starters return from a squad that advanced to the conference tournament for the first time since 2006. The Hornets, coached by Brian Katz, will be led by senior guards Mikh McKinney and Dylan Garrity. McKinney was a First Team All-Conference selection who averaged 16.6 points and 4.6 assists per game as a junior. Garrity ranks 10th in league history with 443 assists. He picked up his scoring last season, averaging 13.2 points per game, and made a league-best .472 percent of his 3-pointers..."

The Aggies checking out AVC

Mel Grussing reports that UC Davis Coach Jim Les and his staff have been very active with Antelope Valley College players of late and one of the junior college talents will soon be visiting the Aggie campus.

Thomas and Andrews powering Sheridan

From the Sheridan College Generals site:

"...The [Sheridan] men’s basketball team had their first test on Saturday night, as they faced Medicine Hat College from Canada. This was the first time the 2014-15 team was on the court together in a game setting. After a slow start, the Generals were sparked by defensive intensity and transition baskets. The Generals showed some strengths, and also showed many things that still need some work. At the half, Sheridan College was up 48-31, and sophomore guard Jamir Andrews led the team with 11 points. A few minutes into the second half, the team turned it up defensively and set the tempo for the rest of the game. Sheridan College got the win with a final score of 92-61. Sophomore guard Kyi Thomas and freshman forward Pablo Rivas paced the Generals with 17 points each..."

Thomas also won the dunk contest:

"...Each member of the men’s basketball team was introduced to the crowd. Following introductions, the men’s and women’s basketball team had a freshman vs. sophomore scrimmage. Directly after the scrimmage, Kyi Thomas, Bennie Lufile, and Pablo Rivas took the floor for a dunk contest. Each member threw down some impressive dunks, but Kyi stole the show after he jumped over the emcee..."

Will Davis' Anteaters picked to win again

From the Big West Conference media release:

"...Coach Russell Turner’s Anteaters received 20 of a possible 26 first-place votes for 221 points. Last year, UCI finished 13-3 in Big West play to secure the program’s third regular season title, and the second outright, with the 23 total victories tying for second-most in history. Returning players include Luke Nelson, the 2013-14 Big West Freshman of the Year, who averaged a team-best 11.8 points per game and knocked down 74 three-pointers. Sophomore 7-6 center Mamadou Ndiaye earned the Big West Defensive Player of the Year award after setting a school and conference single-season record with 106 blocked shots last season. The Anteaters also will rely upon a pair of upperclassmen in senior Will Davis II and junior Alex Young. Davis II is UCI’s career leader in blocked shots with 174, while Young’s 305 assists rank No. 7 in school history..."

and

MEDIA PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMName, School, Pos., Yr., HometownMike Caffey, Long Beach State, G, Sr., Corona, Calif.Isaac Fotu, Hawai‘i, F, Jr., Torbay, Auckland, New ZealandCorey Hawkins, UC Davis, G, Sr., Goodyear, Ariz.Stephen Maxwell, CSUN, F, Sr., Woodland Hills, Calif.Mamadou Ndiaye, UC Irvine, C, So., Dakar, SenegalAlan Williams, UC Santa Barbara, F, Sr., Phoenix, Ariz.

But do watch for Will Davis to make a move for a spot on this unit.

Delon Wright at Pac-12 Media Day

From Kyle Goon: "Larry Krystkowiak talks about his star Delon Wright and what he's worked on this offseason." Hit this link to access the video.

Here's a nice photo of Wright at Media Day.

Two Broncos in the WCC shooting guard top five

Santa Clara players nab two spots in the Mark Kramer's detailing of the top shooting guards in the West Coast Conference.

1) Jared Brownridge, Santa Clara

5) Brandon Clark, Santa Clara

How to win an NBA title

Coach Bob Walsh's latest offers an interesting point -- the play of the Spurs this past season and the Knicks of the 1970s results in less NBA titles than if there are a big two on a team or a superstar and so-called sidekick.

Can't argue the statistics but Jerry West and Elgin Baylor always came up short with the Lakers versus the extremely team-oriented Boston Celtics. The same with Wilt and Hal Greer of the 76ers in going up against those same Celtics. Maybe that's going back too far.

Hadnot out this season

Don't forget that former Sacramento High forward James Hadnot will be back on the court next season. He's at Yuba College sitting out this season while rehabbing his ankle.