A lot of stuff went down yesterday. Some quick hits:
- It's all but official: LaQuinton Ross will turn pro. Not sure why people are killing Q for this decision, but I don't think they realize there are other professional basketball leagues in other countries that pay real good money. The kid has a young daughter, but let these people tell it and suddenly earning six figures and traveling the world is failure for a 21-year-old.
- On Wednesday, Amedeo Della Valle will sign a five-year, fully guaranteed contract with club Pallacanestro Reggiano of Italy's Serie A. He'll debut in early April.
- Urban Meyer sat down with CBS and discussed a wide range of topics. Gene Smith, in a separate interview with CBS, says Urban Meyer won't get a raise until his team posts "an elite performance."
- Ohio's Mr. Basketball, a five-star shooting guard from Franklin and an OSU target named Luke Kennard, spurned the in-state Buckeyes and picked Duke, the worst school in college basketball. For those interested, Birm has a breakdown on Thad's continued quest for shooters in the 2015 class.
THAD MATTA CALL-IN SHOW. Thad Matta is normally preparing for the Sweet 16 this time of year, but yesterday he held his last call-in show of the year.
In it, it was revealed Ohio State will play North Carolina around Christmas. It will be part of an annual double-header also involving UCLA and Kentucky. (The teams will rotate yearly.)
Then there's this:
Revealing quote from Matta asked about players' shooting: "You've got to want to be a better shooter." #buckbk
— Bob Baptist (@BBaptistHoops) March 24, 2014
Passing generality or subtle signs of frustration with players on their way out? It's not as if any of the kids found their stroke in the later years. Thad even mentioned Craft will have to "start from scratch" in rebuilding his shot in preparation of the NBA draft.
STAN DRAYTON NEEDS THREE. Yesterday, ESPN's Austin Ward wrote about the Buckeyes' quest to replace El Guapo. Ezekiel Elliot is the presumed front-runner, but Rod Smith, Bri'onte Dunn, Warren Ball and Curtis Samuel are all in the mix.
But as Stan Drayton tells it, it sounds like we could see more of a platoon at running back in 2014:
But Drayton doesn’t necessarily need one candidate to emerge as the best individual rusher in the country to get what he’s looking for this spring. The only thing that really matters to him is making sure Ohio State has the best backfield, any way he can get it.
“I’m always going to operate under the notion I need at least three [guys],” Drayton said. “I need at least three, and there’s five of them.
“All those guys are in the mix. They’re so competitive, they all bring something different to the table, they all have a different style, different strengths and weaknesses and they can all help this football team. ... I just prefer a guy who is going to be productive, period.”
Soooo... Ezekiel Elliot, Rod Smith and... Mystery-Man-X... come on down!? (I got $3.47 on Dunn! I got $3.47 on Dunn!)
ANTONIO UNDERWOOD STILL HANGIN' TOUGH. Shaker Heights product Antonio Underwood, after finally buying into Urban Meyer's system, was having a helluva spring camp last year before he stepped on a teammate's shoe and tore his ACL.
He missed the 2013 campaign, but after having to regroup from injury, he's ready to earn a starting spot. From Doug Lesmeries of Cleveland.com:
“Last spring was a big decision-making (time) and a challenge for me. I just decided I wanted to be a dude and step up and help this team,” Underwood said after Ohio State’s spring practice number five on Saturday. “Getting hurt came as a shock. … When I got injured, it was a setback, but I had to regroup and figure out what I was going to do to keep moving forward.”
So far this spring Underwood has been working as the first-team left guard on the offensive line, replacing three-year starter Andrew Norwell. That’s the spot on the line that’s most up in the air, with incoming freshman Demetrius Knox positioned to potentially pose a challenge in the fall. The other challenge may come from senior Joel Hale, but he’s making a late move to offense after spending his entire Ohio State career on the defensive line.
I think the offensive line is going to be alright next year. #InWarinnerITrust
THIS LADY IS HUSTLING FINAL FOUR TRIPS LIKE A BOSS. I guess this shouldn't surprise me, but has anybody heard of "sweepers?" Apparently they're completely normal, well-adjusted folks who enter myriads of corporate giveaways and sweepstakes in their free time.
Enter @LetsGoLakers086, who is going on a full-expenses paid trip to the Final Four on Burger King's dime. Last year, she got the same hook-up courtesy of college basketball superfan Wheat Thins.
How is this possible? From Deadspin:
There is no foul play here. @letsgolakers086 is a "sweeper," one of a small but devoted group of Americans who spend much of their free time to entering any and every corporate sweepstakes. There are two separate TV shows devoted to them, and they are remarkably successful—not because they have any particularly skill, but because of their perseverance.
There are so many sweepstakes out there at any given time, many of them with relatively small numbers of entrants. @letsgolakers086's Twitter timeline is filled with literally thousands of replies, retweets, and hashtags entering her into various contests, so she's bound to win at least some of them. There are websites, newsletters, even seminars that offer to teach you how to become a sweeper, but the fundamental lesson is the same—Enter enough contests, and the odds of winning something are in your favor.
This lady has won stuff from McDonald's, Applebee's, GrubHub, El Pollo Loco and more. As somebody who detests corporate #brands and #branding, it's hard for me to hate on this woman's swagger. That's just hustler ingenuity and true grinding. As a Marionaire, I guess I can respect that.
MICHIGAN BASKETBALL COULD LOOK DIFFERENT. Ohio State isn't the only basketball team that could be undergoing a massive overhaul this off-season:
ESPN's @chadfordinsider says that Michigan's Nik Stauskas is "One foot out the door" and Robinson and McGary are 50/50 to leave for NBA.
— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) March 24, 2014
Mitch McGary is a perfect example of why kids should turn pro when they have the chance. His draft stock was never going to be higher after last year's tournament run, but instead he came back and got injured. And for what? (This lesson applies to Marcus Smart as well.)
THOSE WMDs. OSU's mumps outbreak is now in the community... Urban Meyer apologizes for saying Columbus "has no professional teams"... Alabama Greeks win their right to be racist dicks... If Sparty got into heroin... Most Americans oppose pay for college players... This week's worst writing on the internet... Beneath cities, a decaying tangle of gas pipes... It's apparently legal to arrest Judge Joe Brown... Etienne Sabino is the newest member of the St. Louis Rams...
