So you're tellin me there's a chance!

I knew better than to put my hopes on this team but I did anyways, as long as a Michigan team is playing I will always be behind them. They didn't let me down this time as they picked up a big W against Michigan State last night. With the game tipping off at 4 pm on the west coast and still being at work I followed along on gamecast. The only highlight I was able to see was the Jerret Smith to Brent Petway alley oop which was the #1 play on Sportscenter last night.

So now we head into the last game of the regular season with all that I could have asked for considering the 4 game losing streak. A chance. A chance to play Ohio State and finally get the marquee win that this program desperately needs. A chance to make our case for an NCAA Tournament berth. Sure many have given up on TA and this team but I still will believe until the clock hits 0:00 on Saturday. For all the years I have followed this team I won't give up, I'm a sucker like that. Ohio State can be had, I do not believe they are the #1 team in the country, I would definitely take UCLA or North Carolina ahead of them in a game. With the Big Ten wrapped up who knows what team will show up on the floor for them, especially with a team as young as they are. So whoever is out at Crisler on Saturday make all the noise you can, give this team as much help as possible and let's see Michigan walk out with a victory. Let's Go Blue!

That's exactly what I'm looking for

Other guys starting to step up, hit shots and make plays. The Lakers picked up a big win last night with the 102-94 victory at Utah. That makes 3 in a row, 2 from a back to back on the road and that's always big. Sure dominating victories over Boston and Golden State were nice, but a road win against a playoff team that is ahead of us in the standings is definitely huge. Lamar started get back to form coming up one assist shy of a triple double. Smush had 24 on 6-8 from behind the arc which definitely helped out.

Also for the third straight game Shammond Williams and Aaron McKie played a decent amount of minutes taking the spots of Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic in the rotation. Phil is usually more comfortable playing veterans down the stretch and it looks like that's what's happening. Shammond and McKie have actually played pretty well considering they haven't had much game action all year and I believe they will definitely help us out as we head towards the playoffs. It also sends the message to Jordan and Sasha that they have to keep working hard in practice to get some run. Especially to Sasha who is so inconsistent it drives me crazy.

The Lakers get a few days off until Sacramento comes to Staples on Friday followed by a 4 game road trip starting at Phoenix on Sunday. Let's hope the team can keep this streak rolling, only 3 games back of Houston for the 5th seed and 5 back of Utah for the 4th.

Turning the Corner?

I hope that's what's happening now with the Lakers as they have won back to back games they should have but the good part is they won convincingly as they should both games. Phil shook up the lineup by bringing Shammond Williams and Aaron McKie off the bench to play meaningful minutes and they both responded. It's good to see everyone contributing as both games everyone on the roster played. It also sends a message to the rest of the team that no one's job is safe. I knew Shammond could contribute to this team but he hadn't been given an opportunity until now. It's good too see these guys make the most of their chance and are taking advantage of it. Maurice Evans had a great game last night notching a career high 26 points along with his circus and one shot. With the injuries not healing it is necessary for everyone to contribute and they are. On the radio yesterday it was said that Kwame may be closer to returning than Luke which is disappointing to hear as Luke was only supposed to be out a week or so. We need both of them back for the stretch run to get back in the flow with everyone and Lamar needs to get it together as well. There are a lot of games to make up with the 6 game losing streak that just concluded so it's gotta start now, we've got 2, now to keep it going.

I can only dream that Michigan is doing the same after the win at Minnesota but knowing this team they are just getting my hopes up only to be crushed later this week when we play Michigan State and Ohio State. The tournament dream is still on life support but at least we've still got a chance. I know many have given up on this team and this coach but as long as that team has Michigan across its chest and Tommy Amaker is the coach of Michigan I will continue to support them. It's unfortunate that the two biggest home games of the season against our biggest rivals MSU and OSU are during Spring Break when most if not all the students are gone. So many times this happens and it sucks but when your spring break is at the end of February I guess you gotta deal with it. As much complaining is done about this team it's not like they're just going to lie down with the sparties and the bucknuts coming to town so let's see what this team is made of. Let's Go Blue and Let's Go Lakers!

I'm running out of words here

to describe how terrible our basketball team is. Not only that, the Lakers have to go on the worst losing streak of a Phil Jackson led team ever so I've got that to deal with as well. Putting up only 42 points is unacceptable as well as losing to this Illinois team if we were to have any shot at the NCAA's. Now we must win out to have any hope and after being strung along all season I don't know if I can put up with it anymore. Looks like we'll head to the NIT again where the team will probably win a few games and make it to the Garden for the 3rd time in Tommy's reign.

At that point TA will probably spin it as being a positive for our players to get extra practice and improve and all that junk but it's pointless with him as our coach. I remember what an old music teacher told me "Practice doesn't make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect." Meaning that just going through the motions at practice won't do anything to improve you. You have to practice the right way and with TA I don't know if that's actually happening or not. All our players seem to regress as they keep playing in our program and it probably will continue to happen. Unfortunately the end is nowhere in sight and we'll have to deal with this for another year before our administration wakes up and makes a change, I hope not but knowing the Michigan athletic department it probably is.

The Lakers on the other hand have the talent and have shown the ability to play well but are just playing like crap. Perhaps Luke Walton is necessary more than any of us imagined but I don't know what it is with this team right now. Lamar is a shadow of his former self before the injury, I have never seen a player miss so many point blank layups. There was hope for a possibility of Jason Kidd coming to town but that looks like that's gone as well. Andrew Bynum was never part of the discussion from the beginning and he never will be, I do not want to give up the future for 2-3 years with Jason Kidd. Bynum is only 19 and will continue to improve and that is way too much to give up at this point.

The only possibility of an addition may be Scottie Pippen who at his age will probably not contribute much but I'm willing to take a flyer on him. Especially if Luke is out longer than we expect, maybe Scottie can step in where Luke left off. He knows the triangle as well as anyone and would be able to step in immediately and have some impact. All I know is this team needs a shot in the arm and a trade or new signing would hopefully do that for them. The Lakers have been playing horrible ball and need to turn it around otherwise it'll be a first round exit in the playoffs which is unacceptable. Still half an hour to the trading deadline I guess I can still hope.

The weekend that was NBA All Star

A lot of people complain about NBA's All-Star Weekend, how the game is boring and how everything is played out now. I am not one of them. I love the NBA All-Star Weekend although I would like to see some changes but I will always watch the game. Starting on Saturday, sure there are all the other skills competitions and 3 point contests and the shooting contest with the current, former and WNBA player but the main event is still the dunk contest. It was definitely disappointing to hear that Dwight Howard requested the league to raise the rim to 11.5 and 12 feet for some of his dunks but the league denied him. Supposedly he was ready to do a 360 dunk at 12 feet and then between the legs at 11.5 but we will never know.

My favorite dunks were Gerald Green's first one where Paul Pierce threw it off the side of the backboard and then Green dunked it. The other was the Dwight Howard sticker dunk at 12 foot 6 inches that was not given enough credit by the judges. It's much more difficult to win as a big man because the judges don't give you enough credit while giving the smaller guys more credit for the same dunks.

The Nate Robinson rule for two minutes max plus two dunks afterwards was of course only used by Nate Robinson, who took 10 or 12 tries to finish his last dunk, similar to last years where he threw it off the backboard but this time did it with 360. Robinson shouldn't have won last year and he definitely didn't deserve it this year although his first dunk throw the ball up and cock back with one hand was impressive.

My ideas for the NBA dunk contest, which many others have proposed as well are as follows. Allow dunkers to raise rim if they want to, which would allow more big men opportunities to showcase their leaping ability as well. Also start upping the prize money considerably but say it will be donated to charity. Imagine if the league and sponsors say they will put up 250 or 500 thousand for the winner to donate to charity then don't you think the league's great dunkers, Vince, Kobe, T-Mac wouldn't want to take part? The dunk contest lacks the star power it used to and it needs to be brought back. Say 3 veterans like the ones I just named and then 3 rising stars as the league likes to market them and have them go at it. That would bring plenty of excitement back to the dunk contest.

Then came Sunday and the game itself. It was great to see Kobe get the MVP and his array of dunks which we do not see as often in real game situations. Vince Carter definitely threw down his share as well. I guess my friends and I are in the minority but we love watching the All-Star Game, with every dunk and almost dunks it got all of us fired up. LeBron trying to throw it off the backboard and over Amare was funny and then a couple of almost alley-oops that would've brought the house down. It's fun to watch these athletes play in this exhibition style where they can try new things and not worry about the outcome as much as a real game. For me the NBA All-Star game is still one of the must watch sporting events of the year and it will continue to do so for many years to come.

And we have a pulse

As gametime approached I debated if I wanted to put myself through it. Knowing the way the Michigan basketball team has played this season I didn't want to get my hopes up but considering the way that I am about my school I knew I couldn't miss the game since I rarely get to see the team out here. It was a very ugly game at times and although Indiana wasn't doing anything we weren't doing much either.

When DJ White picked up his fourth foul in the middle of the second half I got excited knowing that he would have to sit for most of the game until crunch time. But we could not get anything going and allowed the Hoosiers to stick around. Our guys were doing just enough to keep the lead but we could not extend it. As we had a one point lead with under two minutes to play I can't describe what I felt as Jerret Smith drove the lane and hit a floater to give Michigan a 3 point lead. Plays like that have been missing from whenever I have watched and also from my friends accounts of games they have seen this season.

Of course the team couldn't have ended it without nearly giving me a heart attack as with a 5 point lead and under a minute to play Lester Abram made a stupid foul before the inbounds giving Indiana two FT's to cut the lead to 3. Then on ensuing possession Smith inexplicably threw the ball straight to the Indiana defender and Indiana was able to cut it to 1. Fortunately our guys made the free throws when they were needed and were able to hang on for the 3 point victory. This win keeps our slim tournament hopes alive. Currently sitting at 18-9 and 6-6 in conference with 4 to play I think 22 wins could get it done. I think 3 wins out of 4 and one in the Big Ten Tourney would get it done but to ask for 3 wins out of games at Illinois and Minnesota as well as home games against Michigan State and Ohio State is asking for too much. I'll take 2-2 in this stretch and 2 wins in the Big Ten Tourney, although that still may not be enough for the team unless one of those wins is against Ohio State. I guess it's the optimist in me but I'll keep following this team, they've broken my heart too many teams before let's see if this is the year it doesn't.

Welcome back Coach Bedford and scheduling

I know I'm late but felt I had to mention the hiring of Vance Bedford as the Michigan DB coach again. Coach Bedford was the Defensive Coordinator at Oklahoma State the past two years but to Michigan fans he is well known as the DB coach for the Wolverines from the 97 National Championship run after which he took the DB job for the Chicago Bears. Bedford was also known as a good recruiter bringing a number of players in from Texas. That strength is probably enhanced by his experience in the Big XII with Oklahoma State. Can't complain about the hire and hopefully he will get the DB's close to that 97 level.

Plenty of rumors floating about the 12th opponent. With the insistence upon 9/1/07 as the date there are not many options out there. Apparently there are only 7 other IA schools that have that date open so there is talk that we may play Appalachian State aka Appalachian is HOT HOT HOT. Can't say I'm pleased by this development but considering the lack of opponents there's nothing that can be done, unless the Big Ten allows teams to play after Thanksgiving then it would open up some more opportunities so we will have to wait and see.

F*&^#%! Pathetic

That's what I have to say about last night's performance. Maybe the great start has blinded us to some very big problems this team has but they are there. As I stated before missing Luke Walton has hurt much more than any of us could have imagined. In addition the defensive rebounding is atrocious. I don't know of a team that allows more offensive rebounds than the Lakers do, especially in critical situations. It happened against San Antonio a couple weeks ago and then last night as LeBron missed his 2nd FT leaving it a 2 point game the Lakers allowed Anderson Varejao to out work them and get an offensive rebound which sealed the game. It is extremely frustrating to see this team lose like that because allowing offensive rebounds so consistently comes down to hustle. The other team is willing to hustle while the Lakers are waiting for the ball to come to them.

The other thing that was pathetic was the large exodus of "fans" when LeBron was shooting the FT's as the Cavs were still only up 1 with less than a minute to play. I've said before I get so disgusted when I see these people who have the prime seats at Staples leave early before the game is over and this takes the cake. I hate people who leave early even when the outcome is no longer in doubt but to leave when the game is still in the balance? Ridiculous. No wonder people hate LA fans so much because they pull crap like that.

The only positive of last night came before the game as my friend and I were walking around Staples and he was chosen to shoot the half-court shot at the end of the 3rd quarter for $155,000. Of course he missed terribly, he claims he tripped as he was shooting the ball but it was so bad even I started to boo him.

Scottie Pippen says he wants to play again, could this be the move the Lakers have been waiting to make? With Luke out for who knows how much longer and the fact that the Lakers have looked terrible without him, I wouldn't mind taking a flier on Scottie. He is old yes, but he is experienced in the triangle and with Phil, there were numerous rumblings back when he was with the Blazers that the Lakers wanted to bring him over so who knows, it wouldn't surprise me and with the way we're playing I'd welcome the move because we can't play any worse. Besides I want to see Phil stand up hold up the triangle and yell out Scottie!! just like Bernie Mac did the impression at the end of the Kings of Comedy.

Last game was on me

Anytime this season I've posted what I expect out of the Lakers they've gone out and done the opposite. I said a 4-4 roadtrip at worst, they go out and lose the last three games. Then the other day I posted I expected two victories out of them before the All-Star break but then they blew the game against the Knicks. Not only does this make a 4 game losing streak but also a 3 game home losing streak which is absolutely unacceptable.

The chance for redemption is tonight against Cleveland. Good news is I will be there and I am so far undefeated on the year when attending Lakers games. Bad news is the way that we have been playing lately as Lamar is struggling to get back into the groove and we really miss Luke Walton, never thought I'd say that ever. Part of it probably also has to do with the road trip so hopefully an extra night of rest at home and then the all-star break will help out, although we know Kobe is playing in the game as well as Bynum and Farmar in the rookie game and Lamar will be out in Vegas for his new clothing line so who knows how much rest the team will get. Gotta turn it around, it starts tonight.

Just when I thought we had a chance they broke my heart

Much like the same cycle that's happened for years the Michigan basketball team will play a great half against a team we don't expect to beat and then get blown out in the second half, much like last night, or they will play a good couple games only to be brought back down to earth, last year's season end or even the beginning to middle of this season. It was the scenario that I exactly envisioned as I drove home last night from work. As the game tipped off right as I was done with work I called my friend back in NY to get a score update but he had none. I told him that it would probably be a close game, enough to keep me interested and watch the 2nd half and then we would lose. Of course exactly how it happened.

It's been extremely frustrating all these years to watch our program. Whenever it seems we're about to turn the corner there's another setback. I'm at a loss now, I don't know what else there is to say. Hopefully they can get it together and kick start it back with a big win over Indiana on Saturday at home on Junior Day for football recruiting, but I doubt it. I'll be the sucker and still watch but won't expect much.

Disappointing

After heading into the home stretch of the longest roadtrip in 20 years the Lakers sat at 3-2 with 3 games to play. At worst case scenario I figured they would pick up one win and finish 500 which would not have been bad. But instead they lost all three to finish the trip 3-5. Now they get two home games before the All-Star break, two games they should win against New York and Cleveland, the latter of which I'll be attending on Thursday night. That would bring the record to 32-22 at the all star break which wouldn't be terrible but could be worse considering how many games we've blown this season. I believe this team can get as high as the third seed and hopefully with a full healthy squad they can do that. But it won't happen for a while as Kwame is out for another month. The depth the Lakers had was such a plus for this team but it isn't there anymore with all the injuries. Hopefully coming home for two games plus the all-star break will get everyone ready to go for the stretch run. As I said preseason I expect to at least win one series in this years playoffs.

Signing Day is Here

No surprises on the Michigan end as all expected letters came in, the only remaining recruit on the board Jerimy Finch decided to change his mind again and signed with Florida. That said, as disappointing as this class is, considering all the talk about how great it was going to be, I am still very excited to have these 20 kids signed and ready to see them suit up for the Maize and Blue. Welcome to all our signees for 2007.

Unlike previous year's there's not much anticipation as we do not have any signing day announcements so I can sit back and watch the carnage across the country as kids make last second decommitments and sign with someone else. There has to be some efforts to put a stop to this. I couldn't imagine if something like that happened to Michigan and it happens to other schools every year, especially in the south. Vijay over at IBFC had a good post about his proposal about a cease and desist letter recruits would file after verbal commitments, not sure if that would ever work but I would be open to the early signing period option that many have mentioned, they have one for basketball, don't see why it wouldn't work for football.

But of course for recruitniks like myself today is not the end it is just the beginning. Now that the letters are signed for 2007, it is on to 2008. Boubacar is a great start and we must keep it up. There's a long list of players I hope we can land this year but I'll wait a little bit before going into that. I'll enjoy this class for a few more hours.

Time to keep it rolling

The Lakers after a rough start to the roadtrip won back to back games starting with the big win in Washington on Saturday and followed it up with a win in Atlanta last night. This team should have been able to win all 5 games but didn't and I'm not one to complain considering I said I'd take 500 on the trip and we are close to doing that. Two nights off before back to back in Detroit and Toronto followed by Cleveland on Sunday. I see no reason the team can't take all 3 but I fully expect them to take 2 of them.

There's a good article on Kobe today at ESPN.com. It discusses Kobe's transformation this year as he gets more of his teammates involved and how he has become a leader. I think people are starting to come around with Kobe and a lot of the hating is dying down. To hear fans in Boston and Atlanta chant MVP for him is just crazy. I wrote a post on Kobe a while back about how he can't win no matter what he does but I'm glad to see that it is changing. As I say in that article I truly believe Kobe will lead the Lakers to another title soon and when he does then the haters will have nothing left but to realize how truly great he is. Sure if he was on another team I probably wouldn't like him as much either, but I'm just glad he's on my team.

Only one target left and Welcome Boubacar!

Turns out it was a trade as Ronald Johnson decided to go USC where he will be brought in as a WR after Donovan Warren committed to Michigan on Thursday night. There's a lot of rumors as to what caused the change from Michigan to USC but he's made up his mind so I'll wish him well and move on. It's a lot easier to move on when we picked up Boubacar Cissoko as the first commitment for the class of 2008. Cissoko went down to the US Army Combine for juniors the week of the All American game and impressed so much he was named MVP there. He will be one of the top corners in the country, and should be the #1 CB in the midwest at least. Only concern with him is his height, currently listed at 5-9, but he's only a junior, he still can grow a couple inches.

The reason there's only one target left is due to Rashad Mason's commitment to North Carolina. Mason would have been a great pickup but I can't fault his decision when UNC has early playing time available, closer to home and when Butch Davis gets the last in-home visit I figured he would be going there. Now we wait on Jerimy Finch and who knows there may be a last minute surprise or two of some local sleeper that the coaches take a flyer on.

Welcome to Michigan Donovan Warren!!!

Early yesterday reports started looking good and I started getting my hopes up. Then by early evening it had been confirmed, Donovan Warren was committing to Michigan. I am so excited about this commitment for so many reasons. First and foremost it adds a much needed CB to our recruiting class, especially one as highly ranked as DW is. Second to pull a kid from Long Beach Poly that USC was also after is amazing. LB Poly is a feeder school to USC much like Glenville is to Ohio State and most know that Poly is known as one of the best high schools in the nation when it comes to football, I believe they have the most NFL players from one high school that are currently in the league. Finally and I say it all the time I love it when our staff is able to get Cali kids to go to Michigan.

My internet at home is down so I wasn't able to be online when the articles started coming but I got plenty of phone calls about it. I patiently waited until 10:30 pm PST to watch the High School Spotlight show and see the announcement on TV. I have the segment DVR'd so if anyone knows how to pull that off my DVR and onto my computer let me know and I'll try to get it done. He had friend and family behind him as Lindsay Soto was interviewing him about Michigan and USC. His responses to the questions pretty much gave it away when asked about immediate playing time he said it was a big factor and when he was discussing the narrowing of schools he said earlier in the week he had eliminated USC and Cal, and had to be corrected by the host "you mean UCLA" and he said yeah. Even though I knew what was going to happen watching the announcement got me so fired up. Welcome to Michigan Donovan Warren, you've made a great choice. This is the second year in a row that the staff has been able to close with a bang, something we hadn't done in previous years as we pull a highly rated player that most thought we had no chance with. Last year it was Steve Schilling and Carlos Brown, this year starting with Warren and I hope we can keep the momentum going.

The other news was the commitment of Renaldo Sagesse, a DT from Canada who had initially committed to Ron Zook and the Fighting Illini. But Illinois was having problems with his transcripts coming from Canada while Michigan has had plenty of experience in the past with that and he changed his mind. With Alan Branch leaving and no other DT's in this class it is definitely a good pickup. Coming from Canada we don't know what to expect hopefully he can turn out as good as Tim Biakabutuka did.

Now we wait for the remaining three recruits on the board as we approach signing day. The biggest being Ronald Johnson. Rumors floating out there about a potential visit today by the coaching staff but there is so many rumors flying I don't know what to expect. I'll just wait to see what unfolds. Same goes for Jerimy Finch who says he's 50/50 and I will wait until the LOI is faxed to the office before I believe where he will attend next year. Finally there is Rashad Mason, the WR from Tennessee who has burst on to the scene late. Rumors of him committing with the Maize and Blue are out there but many feel that North Carolina and Butch Davis have made a big push and some think he will end up there.

This is why we follow recruiting. The roller coaster ride we have been on the past few days as Michigan fans has been crazy. The highs and the lows and to get on a high like the Donovan Warren commitment are what bring recruitniks back every day for more and more. Hopefully we can finish on an even higher note with the last three guys on our board and in closing It's Great To Be A Michigan Wolverine!

And the season is done

I have long been an optimist when it comes to Michigan basketball. It is the program I grew up with along with UCLA and when I finally enrolled at Michigan I thought this was going to be my chance to watch in person all those great teams I had seen while growing up. I thought this year we could get some things done and held out hope for an NCAA tournament bid. How wrong that turned out to be. By blowing last night’s game at home to a bad Iowa team, barring an unforeseen miracle, Michigan has sealed its fate as an NIT team at best. This is a sad sight for a program that has almost as much tradition as any other team in the country. Sure we are seen as a football school but Michigan is one of I believe 3 or 4 teams that had gone to the NCAA Championship game in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s.

Many had given up hope earlier but now I am among them. I don't believe this team/program can get where it needs to be with Coach Amaker at the helm. From my encounters with him he is a great person, has represented the University well and has done what he can with the hand he was dealt but after the teams performance these past few years it's time to face the fact that he is not the right coach for this job. The frustrating part is I doubt he will be fired this year either. Bill Martin will not make the move and we will be stuck with a mediocre basketball team again next season, even with the stacked recruiting class of Copperyale "Manny" Harris, Alex Legion and Kelvin Grady. I have constantly stated to my friends with every incoming recruiting class that this is it and we will turn the corner but we haven't. It was supposed to happen when Daniel Horton came, then when Dion Harris came, but it hasn't and I don't see it happening.

The worst part about the inability/stubborness of our athletic department is that we are no longer the athletic program we once were. As a kid growing up in California I watched Desmond Howard, the Fab Five and the winged helmets and dreamed of one day playing for the Maize and Blue. My athletic prowess never allowed me to but my academic record did and when it came down to it I had to follow my dream of attending Michigan not only because of the excellent academic tradition of the school but in large part due to the athletic tradition that I grew up with. That allure was strong for me as I'm sure it is for a lot of out of state kids that end up attending Michigan. But the sad part is that allure is gone for most kids growing up now. To the kids growing up today they see Troy Smith, the "Thad" Five and the Buckeye stickers as the standard for athletics, or maybe Chris Leak, Joakim Noah and that orange helmet with Gators in cursive. These kids will grow up looking towards Ohio State or Florida as the standard as I did with Michigan and that is what upsets me. I truly believe in what Coach Fielding Yost said:

"What you remember as the Michigan Spirit is still throbbingly alive. This spirit is based upon a deathless loyalty to Michigan and all her ways; an enthusiasm that makes it second nature for Michigan men to spread the gospel of their university to the far corners of the earth; and a conviction that no where is there a better university than this Michigan of ours."

But unfortunately we are not showing that right now. Some may say I'm overreacting, which I'm sure somewhat I am but things must change not only in basketball but in football as well before we end up having a bad run much like other traditional powers have. We would be foolish to think that it can't happen to us and something must be done to ensure it doesn't.

The wrath of Kobe

The league suspends him for something that was completely unintentional and unfortunately for the Celtics they were the team that got to face him coming off the suspension. Kobe went at it last night dropping 43 on the C's and they picked up the 111-98 victory in Boston. The best part of it was the fact that the crowd in Boston started chanting M V P! M V P! for Kobe, which is unheard of at an opposing teams home court. Good to see the Lakers snap the losing streak, hope they can start a winning streak now as they got two tough games back to back against Indiana and Washington starting tomorrow. This 8 game road trip consists of 3 sets of back to backs, I will gladly take a 4-4 trip but expect more out of this team. For those that missed it, here's Kobe last night, similar to the dunk he had against the Knicks a couple years ago:

Optimism

All is not lost down the stretch run of the recruiting season as signing day is less than a week away. I’m not ready to write off Ronald Johnson yet, I believe we still have a shot and Donovan Warren announces tonight and I feel much better about our chances than I did a couple days ago. The other positive is that Jerimy Finch is back to Michigan and Indiana as his final two. The other day it was reported the final two were Florida and Indiana but that has changed and we’re back in the picture. I’m still hopeful that we can get all three but wouldn’t be shocked if we struck out with all three, we’ll just have to wait and see, only a few days until signing day.