(AP Photo/Laura Rauch)

What Happens In Vegas…

Summer is in full swing, and that means Summer League basketball. Thanks to NBA TV basketball junkies can catch some hoops in the month of July.

Devoid of the pomp and circumstance that goes along with the regular season, Summer League hoops has a throwback feel to it. There are no player introductions prior to tip-off. The coverage is not state of the art – the audio mix isn’t always optimal. Commentators and play-by-play guys don’t follow a script. To top it off, commercials are minimal and sideline interviews seem less intrusive. All of that makes for rather enjoyable viewing on a rainy day.

Watching Summer League games lends a deeper appreciation to the level of play in the NBA. These games are a mix of rookies and youngsters trying to earn a contract. Several minutes can tick off the clock before a semblance a half-court offense shows up.

Managed to catch a little of the Bulls / Oklahoma City game. Good to see DeMarcus Nelson on the floor for the Bulls. Nelson still works hard on his defense. He played limited minutes for Golden State last season. Here’s hoping the Duke alum finds a bench to ride for the season.

Word has it that Hasheem Thabeet is struggling in Sin City. No surprise there. But with time Hash should contribute in the NBA.

It’s all about location.

Prior to the NBA Draft, many thought DeJuan Blair would be a lottery pick – if not, at least in the middle of the first round. Draft day arrived. The first ten picks came, and Blair waited. The first round ended, and still Blair did not have a team. Not until the 37th pick (San Antonio) did Blair hear his name.

Blair may not have been a lottery pick, but he landed in a great location. While many youngsters will struggle on weak teams, Blair will have the chance to learn from a bunch of veterans and experience playoff basketball. Wonder if a Tim Duncan / Blair commercial with the gnomes is in the making.

The Spurs who looked a step slow the second-half of the season have rebuilt themselves into contenders. Adding Richard Jefferson prior to the draft gives the Spurs a perimeter presence they lacked when Manu Ginobili went down with an injury.

Jefferson should enjoy a return to the playoffs. It’s been a while since he helped the Nets get to the finals. Jefferson on the floor with Tony Parker, Duncan, and Ginobili should provide more than just a threat for the Los Angeles Lakers.

San Antonio also drafted Jack McClinton from Miami. Although he is unsigned as yet, McClinton is a three-point threat who, along with Roger Mason, can provide a complement to the Spurs offense.

Cleaning out the skeletons.

What a summer for Derrick Rose.  He’s fended off more allegations than the Cambridge police department. First, we read about the bogus SAT scores. Then came the story about his high school grades.  Now, Rose is dealing with a picture from high school that portrays a less-than flattering image.

What’s a guy to do? Rose is spending time in the gym working with the USA National team. Sporting News reports that Rose is taking 500-800 shots a day.

That’s one way to avoid the negative press.

Got some insights? Take a seat on the Pine and share some wisdom.

by Doug Potter

In the Big East, one thing is for sure; there are no easy victories, no pushovers, and no games that ANY team can mark off as a win. That being said, like all conferences, the Big East has its power-houses (Pitt and UConn) and its weaker teams (South Florida and DePaul). This past week saw many great performances by teams as well as individual players. Here are some of them:

Individual Performances:
DeJuan Blair (Pittsburgh)- Blair had 20 pts, 17 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk this past Saturday. The 6’7” 265 lbs sophomore forward may lack in size but he showed last weekend that his toughness is of abundance. His strong performance helped the still undefeated Pitt Panthers (14-0) thoroughly handle the young Georgetown Hoyas 70-54, which coupled with a North Carolina loss, now has his Panthers team at the top of the rankings.

Luke Harangody (Notre Dame)- The reigning Big East Player of the year has certainly picked up where he left off last year. In a 65-71 loss to St. John’s on Saturday, Harangody racked up 28 points and 14 rebounds and on Monday in a 73-67 win over Georgetown he had 31 points and 11 rebounds, which gives him nine double-doubles this year. He’s averaging 24.1 pts and 12.4 rebounds per game, which is up considerably from his season of a year ago (20.4 PPG and 10.6 RPG) so look for Harangody to continue to rack up the double-doubles and quite possibly a second POY award.

Scottie Reynolds (Villanova)- Talk about efficiency at its finest, Mr. Reynolds had 40 points on just 17 shots in Villanova’s 89-95 overtime victory over the Seton Hall Pirates on Tuesday. Reynolds helped his team improve its record to 13-2 and his 15-16 from the free-throw line helped contribute to the 18 straight his team had to end the game, a big part for why the Wildcats came out on top in a typical grind-it-out Big East conference game.

Team Performances:
The Entire Big East- That’s right, don’t look now but the conference somehow continues to get stronger. The Big East now has nine teams in the top 25 AP Coaches poll. The conference continues to shine as they became the first conference to have seven teams in the pre-season polls, but on December 1st they became the first conference to have eight in the polls, just to increase that number to nine this past week. This could be the limit, however, as I don’t foresee any other teams cracking the top 25.

Pittsburgh Panthers- The Pitt Panthers not only defeated one of the hottest teams in the Big East in Georgetown by sixteen, but they just received the first #1 ranking in the polls in school history. With games versus St. John’s and South Florida coming up, it should stay that way for at least another week.

Marquette Golden Eagles- After stumbling out to an 8-2 start, the Eagles are on a roll and it started last Thursday when they defeated a good Villanova team 79-72. After a 34-point victory over Cincinnati and a hard fought road win at Rutgers, Marquette is now sitting at 14-2 and 3-0 in the Big East.

The Week Ahead:
No games are scheduled for Thursday or Friday, but the weekend has a trio of intriguing games in store for us.

Saturday
#21 Louisville @ #17 Villanova- 12 pm

#22 West Virginia @ #15 Marquette- 12 pm

#9 Syracuse @ Rutgers- 7:30 pm

Monday
#13 Notre Dame @ #21 Louisville- 7 pm