Hoops update

During baseball season, I started to do monthly updates on progress in the NL Central. Now, I want to do occasional updates on the various pro and college teams I follow.



Milwaukee Bucks - Currently 16-18, they have played better than many expected. If the playoffs began today, the Bucks would be the first victim of the Boston Celtics (losing to the Celtics in the playoffs, something new for the Bucks). But, I am excited to see the continued development of Andrew Bogut into something more than serviceable as a center in the NBA. I believe the keys to a great NBA team are a good point guard, a good outside scorer, and a solid center. The Bucks have two of the three right now, and the point guard position isn't too bad with Luke Ridnour. I will get a good look at the Bucks in a week against the Timberwolves. Speaking of which...


Minnesota Timberwolves - They are 7-25 and may have already been eliminated from the postseason. They try hard, but are simply not good. When you blow a 29-point lead to anyone, you have problems. Kevin McHale deserves to coach the team he built. You reap what you sow, don't you Kevin? As it is, Al Jefferson is about the only player who is a real threat on the Wolves. OK, Mike Miller is decent (South Dakota shoutout as I know I have one native SoDak as a reader). But, the Wolves are in a competitive marketplace, so while this season is done, they need to get better soon before there is no interest left. The Wild are more compelling, as are the...


Minnesota Golden Gophers - 13-1, with a 1-1 start in the Big Ten against two ranked teams. The Gophers are a nice surprise. Sure, they feasted on some less-than-stellar competition, but they already have three good wins (Virginia, Louisville on a neutral court, and Ohio State). Tubby Smith is getting this team going, with several solid players. I really like Al Nolen Jr and Ralph Sampson III, two young guys who are already contributing. This also speaks to what Tubby is doing in recruiting. Keep top Minnesota players instate, and grab some top kids from elsewhere. At this rate, we'll see the Gophers in the NCAAs this year. The Big Ten is tough this year, as evidenced by the currently unranked....

Wisconsin Badgers - The Badgers just keep plugging away, at 11-3 (2-0 Big Ten). They pulled a slight upset beating Michigan in Ann Arbor, which could put the Badgers back in the polls. They have three players averaging double figures, and with Bo Ryan at the helm, should be just fine. They are not the best D-1 team in the state, though. That title belongs to...

Marquette Golden Eagles - Marquette is a team that is built for a long run in the tournament this year, provided Buzz Williams can coach them to that point. Like Wisconsin, they beat a highly-ranked team to begin conference play by beating Villanova. MU will need to continue to pull off wins like that in an insanely strong Big East, who could easily put 9 teams in the tournament this year. But, with the Big Three of Jerel McNeal, Dominic James, and Wesley Matthews, this can be done. I look for MU to finish in the top 5 or 6.

UWGB and UWM are playing decent basketball, and the Horizon League looked to be attainable for either of them...until Butler showed that they reload, not rebuild. Butler is going to be very difficult to beat. That's too bad. UWM could have been that team a couple of years ago. Maybe they will be.