Congratulations to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and congratulations to whatever non-Andrew Wiggins prospect the Cavs will overthink their way into drafting No. 1 overall in a few months. And RIP to Nick Gilbert, who I assume was sacrificed by his father to further finance this blood magik.
But hey, at least Bill Simmons melted down on national television like a teen princess who suffered the atrocity of being gifted the wrong-colored BMW on her Sweet 16 birthday. I assume a meandering 8,000 word column, complete with shoehorned Karate Kid references and covered in more salt than High Street before a snowstorm, will be published later today. It may be the first Bill Simmons column I've read since 2009.
As for me, I love Columbus, but I'm thinking about putting in my transfer papers to a little city on the lake that mortals call Cleveland. The tides are turning; it's a magical time to be alive.
If my transfer happens, my instructions are simple: BURY ME IN THE MUNI LOT WEARING NOTHING BUT MY TIM COUCH REGALIA AND BERNIE KOSAR GAME-WORN SOCKS. (I don't yet own the Kosar game socks, but they'll be atop my shopping list if I make the hajj to the Sleeve.)
CRAFT LEANING ON SULLY. Since we started with the NBA Lottery, let's stay on that vein and talk a little #NBADraft. Aaron Craft, who had a storied 22-year career at Ohio State, is finally moving onto professional pastures.
During the process of turning professional, he's leaned on a former teammate and a guy who's been there before: old friend of the program, Jared Sullinger.
“[Sullinger] just told me to enjoy the process,” Craft recently told Celtics.com. “There are so many things that are out of my control, too. So (he told me), ‘Go to it, enjoy it and keep playing the game that you love, and at the end of the summer things will work out how they’re supposed to.’”
[...]
“It always helps being able to go to someone who’s been through it, especially someone that’s as close as Jared has been, and the success that he’s been able to have,” said Craft. “He’s always been a guy throughout the years, even before we got to this point, that I could bounce ideas off of.”
Craft also called Sullinger a “calming force” and a “brother.” Soon, though, their tight relationship will become a bit more competitive. Craft revealed that he and Sullinger are planning to work out together in Columbus, Ohio, as the point guard continues to prepare for the Draft and the big man readies himself for next season.
Sullinger's slide in the NBA Draft reminds me: Most NBA general managers are stealing money from the companies that employ them. Why do you think a mediocre one like Joe Dumars was able to live off the fumes of a 2004 championship for so long?
Keep that in mind when the NBA raises its draft eligibility rule from one year removed from high school to two. It's about nothing other than protecting idiot NBA executives from themselves.
EGW: THE 130th BEST PROSPECT, SAYS RIVALS. While neither of Ohio State's 2015 commits appeared in the Rivals Top 100, Eric Glover-Williams — who is not enrolled or looking to enroll in Massillon schools — appeared on their Top 250 list at No. 130.
Some other Ohioans:
- No. 111: Shaun Crawford, DB, Lakewood. ("Committed" to Michigan)
- No. 118: George Brown, OL, Cincinnati.
- No. 168: Darrin Hall, RB, Youngstown.
- No. 193: Tyree Kinnel, DB, Huber Heights. (Committed to Michigan)
- No. 195: CJ Conrad, TE, La Grange. (Committed to Kentucky)
- No. 218: Nick Conner, LB, Dublin
Here's some other #crootin stuff I found interesting:
And this:
53 pct of #B1G HS players in '14 came outside footprint (44 w/ Mary/Rutg). #SEC outside its own -- 18.8. #ACC -- 11.9 http://t.co/hSMalDSOEN
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerCBS) May 20, 2014
We must raise our bagmen armies, folks. IT'S THE ONLY WAY.
HOKE TALKS "NO VISITS" POLICY. As you may have noticed, Michigan currently has twice as many Ohioan commits in the Rivals Top 250 as Ohio State. (Good thing it's May.)
Shaun Crawford, Michigan's second highest rated commit according to Rivals, visited Notre Dame last weekend and has plans to visit the University of Miami and The Ohio State University at later dates. Hoke has a famed "No visits" policy for his commits, but it's not as draconian as we've been led to believe.
"I know we don't pressure guys into making their commitments, we talk to them about how they feel about their commitment (because) we don't want them to back out of their commitment," Hoke said. "We have an obligation and an honesty when we do offer a guy and accept that commitment, we stop recruiting -- maybe -- a guy at that position because we've got one we can count on.
[...]
Hoke has explained this policy many times in the past. If a player does opt to go against his wishes and take visits elsewhere, he doesn't pull the offer or automatically consider that player decommitted. However, Michigan will -- in some cases -- begin to recruit for that player's spot in a particular class again.
Hoke generally says it depends on the situation, as is the case with each player in recruiting.
I'm a little salty Hoke isn't the crazy girlfriend who drives dudes away with their insane controlling antics. I would never understand why coaches — who left lesser programs on a whim for their current jobs — would ever pull a player's offer because he visited another program; that screams insecurity. It's not like these young men are choosing what they want on their burger for dinner.
THE TRUE WORTH OF A COLLEGE QB. Remember on Monday when I said West Virginia would agree Pat White was worth much more than the Corvette he allegedly spurned by refusing to sign with Alabama?
I'll just leave these 538 graphics on the true value of a college quarterback here:
So yeah, keep these numbers in mind when Braxton Miller takes a shot from a linebacker. You'll (almost) literally be watching a sledgehammer being taken to a Bugatti.
DAMN THAT'S COLD, D.J. The Columbus Dispatch put an article up behind their paywall about what open records say about OSU's recent presidential search.
I'm told it's interesting, but the opening graf is nuts:
A search firm hired by Ohio State University tried to recruit the president of Cornell University early in the search for a new OSU leader, and offered to call off conversations with all other candidates if he was interested. Records released by Ohio State this morning show no evidence that Cornell President David J. Skorton ever replied.
Whatever, Skorton... I HEARD URBAN MEYER HAD COOLED ON YOU ANYWAY.
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