I’m a few months late to the party
I missed the “we won a title” thread. If we continue to assume winning Atlantis means you win the title like the previous two years Michigan is your 2020 national champion, right?
Since COVID and politics are crushing my soul at work, what was your favorite memory from the shortened season?
1. Smokin' hot start @ Atlantis
2. Beating lil' bro in Feb.
2. Coach Howard exceeding most everyone's expectations in his first season.
I really wish Franz returning from his injury would have restarted the unstoppable machine.
How random is it that Wisconsin won the B1G this year? I keep forgetting that actually happened.
And the way they did and who they did it with. They were dead in the water it looked like.
Wisconsin is the poster child for somehow winning a lot of games with tall, un-athletic, gangly-looking kids who all wouldn't look out of place on a basketball court in Hickory, Indiana.
Speaking of small Indiana towns, I've been watching a lot of old Bball videos on YouTube. While grainy with shit resolution, Larry Legend was unreal. Probably the most clutch or second most clutch (after Jordan) player in NBA history.
I always had Magic clearly ahead of Larry in my top 10 players of all time, but I'm kind of rethinking my rankings now. Larry's shot was unreal. Further, I think he would have translated better to this era than Magic, given the ascendancy of 3-point shooting.
They both had some crazy good teams, but given that Magic had Kareem and Worthy while Bird had Mchale and Parish as their main running mates, Magic's 5 titles vs. Larry's 3 doesn't really sway my opinion towards Magic anymore. Really tough to decide who was better.
At least with respect to 3 point shooting, Larry was solid, not great in totality. He shot .406 in his rookie season, but then in his next 4 seasons he went .270, .212 (ouch), .286, .247 (ouch again). His next 4 seasons were all over 40 percent and very good. On his career he was .376. Lifetime in the play-offs he was .321 (very pedestrian). I'm guessing those old videos were highlights, not full games.
As an aside check Youtube for Nick Stauskas NBA highlights, and you'd think he became an NBA star, as he drains 3 after 3. As for Bird, he was no Glen Rice as a shooter. Of course he had many other attributes and was a great player overall. FWIW, I think McHale and Parrish were stronger support than late career Kareem and James Worthy. Magic extended Kareem's effectiveness by years and he made a star out of Worthy. Neither Magic nor Bird are the players that Jordan or Kobe were. The latter two's defense separated them.
Few things in sports upset me more than Wisconsin basketball. If it wasn't Bo Ryan coming in and running an antiquated slow-as-molasses system that sucks the fun out of the game, or them draining multiple buzzer beaters over Michigan, then it was coming into Ann Arbor and watching them shoot at or just over 50% from 3 to win an extremely ugly game.
I don't mind losing to basketball teams that win because they are just flat-out better than you. But the way Wisconsin basketball teams beat Michigan basketball teams are always in such a way that they make you want to punch multiple holes in the wall, and scream into a pillow until your vocal chords give out.
I too needed a cigarette after that rant - damn
Mr Falcon
That’ll never stop being funny.
Initially I thought this was about football and you were posting from the future. Wasn't sure how Atlantis figured in this, but it could have been something to do with Ancient Aliens and time travel.
1) Putting a whuppin' on UNC and Gonzaga in Atlantis. I know UNC turned into dogshit this season, but it was still a fun game to watch. And then when you saw them do the exact same thing to Gonzaga the very next day, it was so much fun to imagine just what the team could be capable of for the rest of the year. When Michigan was on its game, they could play with and beat anyone. They had the most impressive win of the college basketball season for a solid chunk of the year.
2) Watching Howard notch his first win over Izzo.
3) Just seeing that the team looked pretty well-coached. They weren't always hitting shots but you could tell the blueprint was there and Howard has a system he believes in and can teach. I'm sure having a steady hand on staff like Phil Martelli really helps, but hiring him was also an incredibly smart move by Howard. Really excited to see what Howard can do when he has a team full of "his guys."
Watching Juwan cut the rug after that Zag whupping.
That win over Gonzaga turned my expectations completely irrational. I was so pumped.
It sucks X and Teske didn't get a shot at the other two big tourneys (Atlantis is #1 clearly).
Those dudes were 19-4 in B1G/NCAA tourney games!
Beating little bro. But I will say I’m very excited about Michigan hockey next year. A lot of talented freshmen. Should be a good chance they make it to the tourney.
What Booted Blue said: hot start, beating mooshu, and Juwann juwonderful.
The way they played in Atlantis had me dreaming of multiple trophies for the season. It's a crying shame they didn't get the chance to earn any more hardware in the post season.