A 365 days project on Flickr showing a figuring of the Portland Trailblazers star in various settings I love examples like this of people using a prop to experience and document their environment.
basketball
Stewart already addressed the issue I had about floorball, that is that tricks have more value than fundamentals. This is true of all sports, really, but it's also true that teams that best exploit the regime (the infrastructure of the sport, including the rules and how the refs call it) are the ones that dominate, not necessarily those that are the most skillful. Think the New Jersey Devils of hockey and the Detroit Pistons of basketball. But practicing tricks makes you better at the fundamentals: in basketball, getting better control of the ball involves playing around with what you can do, and the same goes with floorball. The more you're able to control the ball the more you're able to go around people and put it in the net.
Basketball is the sport I have most knowledge in, having played it most of my life. I'm relying on my basketball positioning in floorball, to possibly humourous effect. In basketball, when the defensive team gets the ball, if I'm not inside the key, my first instinct is to go towards the sidelines for the outlet pass. Same with floorball, but I'm learning to go from sidelines and cut to the middle if I can see that someone particularly skilled at passing has the ball. Also, I'm used to standing in front of the net in basketball, using my size to intimidate the offense. In floorball, this isn't necessarily ideal, since the goalie might not be able to see the ball as it's shot. I need to train myself to either not fear the shot and block it, or make a lane so that I'm not an unwitting screen. Another thing borrowed directly from basketball is to not cross my legs when the offensive player is in front of me while on defense. Instead, shuffling my feet from side to side may be a little slower, but at least makes it harder for the player coming on me to turn me around.
Things I've picked up watching other players: on defense while an offensive player is behind the net, their temptation is to come right out and wrap it around. As a counter-measure, I've been cutting off that angle. Another positioning moved I picked up in observation is to use my feet, placed one in front of each other and then putting my stick in front of both, forcing the player to thread the needle between my legs if they want to make a pass. This instead of facing the player directly, which makes a bigger five-hole.
I didn't know he was from Vancouver until they showed a photo of him wearing a Pitt Meadows t-shirt while hiking.
Mostly played pickup ball in college, like me (though I played intramurals a few years). And unlike him, I prefer posting up. But I went 11-20 from 3-point range one season in high school.
I can think of better reasons to study the language than for what would amount to a two-week stay in the country, but I support his decision.
Damn! I had an article in draft arguing for less timeouts after watching the Suns-Clippers double-overtime game (which was exciting despite stupid mistakes by veterans).
“So when he walked into the Palace for Game 4 with his hair blown-out and on freeze, you knew the game was over before 9:24 ET, which is when they tossed the ball in the air.”
Tall Chinese girls, just like the tall Chinese boys, are earmarked for basketball, despite lack of skills (Yao Ming is very much the exception in many ways).
I agree: whenever the media pointed out a weakness in Jordan's skillset, he would lead the league in the next year.
Much debate as to whether the shots are real. I'm with mathowie: they're real alright, they just took dozens of takes on each one.
