Sometimes the hardest workers go unnoticed. While some rappers lust for the plush accessories to signal their success, others crave the more admirable things. It isn’t the latest cars or gaudy jewelry that fuels Jon Connor’s drive. His guile alongside his poignant wordplay are his marquee attributes in this competitive rap world. Read More »

The media doesn’t often come to a consensus, but regarding this year’s NBA Draft class, there seems to be widespread agreement: it blows. From bloggers to radio show hosts to television pundits, everyone is saying this could be the weakest draft class in years.

“I tend to think that there’s so much media out there that there’s no way we’re going to think just one way,” says basketball analyst Jay Bilas. “Sometimes it pays to be contrarian in the media. [But] you just don’t hear the contrary view this year.” Read More »

If Kemba Walker hadn’t decided to turn into Tiny Archibald in Maui, tonight’s Duke vs. Michigan State matchup (ESPN, 9:30 p.m. EST) would be a meeting of the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the nation.

Despite their blemished record, No. 6 Michigan State is still considered a Final Four favorite and regarded as the toughest challenge the defending national champion Blue Devils will face in the regular season. Currently, these are the top two teams in college basketball. How do they match up historically? Read More »

It’s only natural that point guards eventually go into coaching. Just like catchers in baseball or quarterbacks in football, PG’s are expected to know everything that’s happening on the court during a basketball game: Time, score, who’s hot, who’s hurt, who’s needs the ball soon before they mentally check out.

Look around the upper echelon of college basketball and you’ll see it. Coach K, Tom Izzo, Billy Donovan and Tubby Smith are among the active coaches with national championships who ran point for their teams in college. Read More »

Yesterday was my 25th birthday. I know, kinda crazy. So with the National Championship game last night, I figured I’d look back at the past 25 years of the Big Dance. At the end of the Final Four, the Associated Press always selects a Most Outstanding Player (last night being Duke’s Kyle Singler). The MOP need not be a member of the Championship team, but they almost always are. In fact, the last player to win the award in a losing effort was Hakeem Olajuwon back in 1983. But not everyone goes on to have a career like The Dream. With that in mind, I’ve tracked down the MOPs of the past 25 years… Read More »

This was supposed to be about Georgetown. About Allen Iverson and Victor Page and Joey Brown and the rest of John Thompson‘s finest pupils. But since my Hoyas dropped a doggie-sized deuce in the first round of this year’s Tournament, I had to find new teams to root for as we hit the Sweet Sixteen.

The hometown Huskies were an easy choice, and over the weekend I found myself gravitating toward Michigan State. Read More »

Kelvin Torbert was, undeniably, The Man back in 2001. Coming out of Northwestern High School in Flint, Mich., the 6-4 shooting guard was named Sporting News and Gatorade National Player of the Year over future NBA classmates T.J. Ford, Dajuan Wagner, Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry and Kwame Brown. Torbert averaged 26 points and eight boards as a senior, then dropped 21 points in that year’s McDonald’s All-American Game.

At Michigan State, Torbert was naturally expected to continue the legacies of Magic Johnson, Steve Smith, Shawn Respert and the “Flintstones” — the four-man crew of Mateen Cleaves, Mo Peterson, Charlie Bell and Antonio Smith that hailed from the same hometown as Torbert. However, Torbert never delivered on that potential in college. Read More »

Tom Izzo has built himself nothing short of a dynasty in his time at Michigan State. It’s no secret, but the Spartans are built top to bottom again this year. From reigning Big Ten POY, Kalin Lucas, to future NBA check collectors Delvon Roe and Durrell Summers, Sparty is looking good. Read More »

Before all the Jeff Capel, Willie Warren and Griffin brothers hype surrounding the University of Oklahoma, a 6-1, buck-seventy pound point guard ran Soonerville. Hollis Price, originally out of New Orleans, was the star of Norman throughout his four years on campus. Read More »

It’s too bad YouTube didn’t exist back in the year 2000. If it did, I guarantee a lot more people would know who Eddie Robinson is. E-Rob’s hops were straight up ridiculous. He was the sixth man for those Charlotte Hornets teams that boasted guys like Baron Davis, Ricky Davis and Eddie Jones. Even with all those high risers on the squad, E-Rob’s crams might have been the nastiest. Night in and night out, he was good for at least two Sports Center worthy crams. My favorite was his signature showboat dunk: a self alley-oop on the fastbreak (see vid below). Read More »