Friday, June 27, 2014

Rens, Spurs & Hoyas great unselfish, team play

I guess you could say I'm still amazed at the way the Spurs dismantled the two time defending NBA champion the Miami Heat in 5 games of The Finals. I compared the Spurs to the legendary Renaissance Rens during the Black Fives Era of black basketball. Hall of Famer, and legendary UCLA Coach John Wooden once played against the Rens and said, “To this day, I have never seen a team play better team basketball,” said legendary coach and Hall of Fame member John Wooden – who faced the barnstorming Rens often during the mid-1930s while a player with the Indianapolis Kautskys and other all-white pro basketball teams in Indiana – in a USA Today interview in 2000. “They had great athletes, but they weren’t as impressive as their team play. The way they handled and passed the ball was just amazing to me then, and I believe it would be today.” 

John Wooden would be saying the same thing about the team that won this years NBA crown, and I also like the Georgetown offense team play. When I see the Gtown offense ran smoothly its a beautiful sight to see. Players just keep moving and quickly move the ball - this drives your opponents crazy and makes them fatigue chasing the ball around a whole game. I love it! It's the way the game is suppose to be played. Care, share, consideration, thoughtful, trust each other and have each other's back. It doesn't matters who touches the ball. It's beautiful and amazing basketball played the way it was designed to be played. The right way. 



Great to see to see great team basketball being played the right way

Georgetown Passing Offense I counted 10 PASSES the ball only touched the floor ONE time! Good things could happen when you play basketball the right way! 

Georgetown Passing Clinic 
 When the big guy is calling for the ball that gives you the confidence to throw it in there especially when he dunks the ball this gives you even more confidence to throw it in there... - Jay Bilas


The Harlem Rens were the "greatest basketball team you never heard of" for plenty of reasons. They compiled a 2,588-529 record during their 27-year existence, from 1922 to 1949. The Rens played basketball with what Abdul-Jabbar described as a "no-nonsense approach" -- quick passes, minimal dribbling, balanced scoring and "suffocating defense." And most importantly, the all-black Rens team helped spur integration by playing exhibition games against all-white teams.

After the championship victory, Douglas purchased jackets for the team celebrating the triumph. The jacket read: "N.Y. Rens Colored World Champions." When Isaacs saw the inscription, he asked to borrow a razor blade from Douglas and then proceeded to meticulously remove the word "Colored" from the jacket. Douglas responded, "You're ruining the jacket."…"No, I just made it real," said Isaacs.

This is a compliment from a Rens player,  "Wooden could “flat out play.” Rather than “flash and dash,” says (John Isaacs), Wooden preferred to “take it to the rack.”

There's a small clip of the Rens ball movement