Still crazy after all these years

Kobe and Gigi practicing many years ago Photo property of Washington Post … and she may have helped keep their marriage intact He was taking the time to be a teacher, not a superstar, and he was finding joy in the version of the game played by girls and women. Bryant might not have wanted to be an NBA coach, but he was happy to patiently bring the hardwood lessons he had learned to Gigi’s side. Cindy Boren, "Kobe Bryant had left basketball behind. His daughter  Gigi brought him back,” Washington Post, Jan. 27, 2020 Children can help bring out things in parents that some wish had remained buried. That was the case with Kobe Bryant, the famous Los Angeles Lakers player who had retired from the NBA game after 20 years and had hoped to leave the game behind him. Enter daughter Gigi, the child who perished in the helicopter crash on Sunday that killed her, her father, and seven others as they were flying to an AAU basketball tournament. In 2018, Kobe spoke about his seco...

Kobe and kids, above and Wilt Chamberlain  Photos courtesy of Pinterest and Philadelphia Inquirer … very different players from very different eras A few years ago, a former high school basketball coach in the Philadelphia area was asked who the greatest player in history was. Cecil Mosenson, then 87-years-old, never hesitated: Wilt Chamberlain. Mosenson, however, was biased, but he was able to make a great argument in favor of the former Overbrook High School athlete. As a 22-year-old, he became the high school coach of Chamberlain in the 7-foot, 1-inch center’s senior year. The ex-coach made that argument in a book entitled “It All Began With Wilt,” and he made it in a documentary film “The Greatest Player Ever,” according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. However, younger basketball fans may disagree, especially those from Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, a Philadelphia suburb. Kobe Bryant’s father, Joe, had been playing professionally in Italy, but the family moved ...

Ravens Coach John Harbaugh Photo courtesy of AP Coaches always look back at certain losses on the football field and ask, “How could that have happened?” John Harbaugh, the presumptive NFL/AFC Coach of the Year for the 2019 season, will be going over his loss to the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Division playoff game for decades after he retires. His team was the number 1 seed for the AFC and odds-on favorite to win the Super Bowl. Instead, they fell to the Titans in a monumental collapse, despite having the best record in the league, the best QB in the league this year, the best offense in the league … which really makes losses painful for the coaches and players. In fact, Harbaugh will think about this loss 20 years from now when he considers the worst losses of his coaching career. Such is the life for even very successful coaches. Bill Cowher, who was just elected to the NFL Hall of Fame, can commiserate with Harbaugh. He has one loss, this one in an AFC title game that cost ...

The best part of this is that the Alabama Crimson Tide is not in it. Clemson opening on fire. The LSU blitz takes Clemson out of FG range. LSU starting deep in its own territory.

… “can’t get no respect” Back when the first College Football Playoff seedings were announced, the undefeated Clemson Tigers, the defending NCAA Div. I champions who have not lost a game in years, were not even included in the top four. And even tonight, when they worked their way up to the number two spot and defeated the top pick at that time — Ohio State, they are not being picked to defeat LSU in the national title game. The Clemson Tigers have been in three of the past four national title games, winning two thus far. They decimated the SEC power Alabama Crimson Tide last year, and yet everyone continues to point to their “weak schedule.” The Clemson Tigers have the best pass defense in the country to throw against Heisman Trophy Joe Burrow of LSU. They also have the best balanced offense in the country with sophomore QB Trevor Lawrence and running back Ettienne. In addition, think of this from SI: The No. 1 seed has not won the national title in the first five years of the...