Is Kentucky producing the best NBA products?

Alright. We've all seen how dominant the University of Kentucky has been in recent years, but they just don't keep people around. Most of their players jump ship after a year or two. And they're still as good as they are year after year. In the picture below, the number to the right of the year is the round drafted and the number to the right of that is the overall selection number. This past year, they had four players drafted in the first round, including the first and second overall. Wow. That doesn't just happen.

In fact, they've had two players drafted in the first ten for the past three years. Wait, what? John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins went first and fifth in 2010, Enes Kanter and Brandon Knight went third and eighth in 2011, and just this past year, Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist went in the first two spots.

Now, none of these players have made a huge impact in the league, but who really does within their first few years? Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and maybe Allen Iverson. But that's about it.

Either way, in my opinion, Kentucky puts out a higher number of top prospects than any other college. But I could be missing somebody. Duke? North Carolina? Marquette? What do you think?

Picture credit: http://www.bigbluehistory.net/bb/statistics/careernba.html

God told Derrick to rise. So Derrick Rose.

Seriously, when is D-Rose coming back? We're at the point now where we can expect Adidas to release a new Rose shoe on a more consistent basis than Rose actually playing basketball. Not to say I don't like his new sneaks. I'm not a big Adidas guy, but they're not bad.

The Chicago Bulls are in need of a 2nd wind. Thankfully, the Eastern Conference is weaker than Tyrann Mathieu at the Scouting Combine this year. Really, the Heat and the Knicks are the only legitimate threats. And maybe the Pacers. But they're the Pacers. Although they're in fourth, just losing a game could throw them back to sixth. That's not too great. And that means they'd go up against New York in the first round (provided the standings stay the same). Not exactly who you wanna start off against.

If Rose comes back, I see good things in the Bulls' future. If they were to win a championship, now would be the year. The Thunder are looking as if they really miss James Harden, despite their win over the Lakers the other night. The Heat can't seem to destroy teams anymore, and the Spurs don't have much postseason experience. If they step it up, we might have MJ smiling for the first time since he bought the Bobcats. You think he has any idea what he's doing?

Now, Rose has made a miraculous recovery from his injury (Maybe almost too miraculous *cough* PED's *cough*). We love you, Rose. Ignite a team, a city, a league, and a nation. Be Superman.

Picture credit: http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2012/01/20/Bulls-Rose-sits-out-third-in-a-row-O7S7A6E-x-large.jpg

The comebacks!

The Lake Show does it again! After being down 25 points to the New Orleans Hornets, the Los Angeles Lakers made a miraculous comeback, most of which was a result of a 20-0 run in the fourth quarter. That takes them back up to .500 at 31-31. But can they make a comeback?

I'll admit, the Lakers look pretty bad this year. But Kobe's been destroying his opponents. Against New Orleans he dropped a double-double off of 42 points and 12 assists. Crazy good. D-12, Nash, and Gasol have all been underperforming, but thankfully, the Black Mamba has been coming through.

The Jazz and the Rockets are in the 7 and 8 spots in the West, and the Lakers are only a game and a half behind. In fact, the Lakers are sixth in the league this year for points scored, and fourth for rebounds. Not to mention they have a pretty easy schedule to end the season. They play the Spurs and the Clippers once each and the Warriors a couple times. Other than those games, they really should win a good percentage of the games they still have.

But what's better for LA? When Kobe scores a lot or when he gives the ball up? The Lake Show is 2-4 this year in games that Kobe scores more than 40 and 15-22 in games in which he shoots the ball 20 times or more. When he has 10 or more assists? 5-1. That really makes one think. Same thing with Carmelo Anthony in New York or Lebron in Miami. The teams play better when they play selfless.

So how will things shape out? Is Kobe at his best when he puts up a lot of shots? And above all else, will the Lakers make the playoffs?

Picture credit: http://blog.lakers.com/lakers/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/160354940_10.jpg

Serge Ibaka fined $25,000 for violation. Hmmm.

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka was just $25,000 by the league for a low blow to Blake Griffin during their game against the Los Angeles Clippers, sunday. During the game, Ibaka was given a Flagrant Foul 1, which essentially means that he wasn't trying to make a move for the ball, but rather intended to harm another player. This violation sits somewhere between an intentional foul and a Flagrant Foul 2. However, the league bumped it up to a Flagrant Foul 2, which means Ibaka should have been immediately ejected from the game.

Now, I wouldn't usually make a big fuss about this, but the Thunder won 108-104. Ibaka plays a big role on OKC's squad. Did he make the difference in the game? The problem with flagrant fouls is that whether it was a 1 or a 2 is essentially up to the officials. Now, if they had called a 2, he would've missed the last 1:52 of the game, more than enough time for the Clips to stage a comeback.

I'm not gonna get too far into the fine, and if it was appropriate or not, because NBA players make too much money and can afford paying that back to the league for being out of line in any context. But this was clearly out of line. He straight up hit Griffin where it hurts. Now, being a teenager that does not play in the NBA, obviously I don't know how things work there. But as a basketball player, I do know that there are unwritten rules about these things to honor the game and the art of fair competition. And this? Definitely a violation of "the code".

As big and threatening as he is, look for him to catch an elbow with his jaw pretty soon. Maybe that's how they do it in Spain...?

Picture credit: http://nowthatsthunderbasketball.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/serge-ibaka-spain1.jpg

If you wanna see a GIF, here is the play.

Steph Curry - the Rainman

Anybody see the Warriors-Knicks game? In case you missed it, Steph Curry went berserk. He collected more points then showed up on the NASDAQ board last week. 54 stinking points. The most from any single player in the NBA so far this year, and the first to score 52 at Madison Square Garden since Lebron in 2009. That was a glimpse. Only but a preview of what Curry is capable of, besides providing flavor to many Indian dishes.

Going 18-28 from the field, including 11-13 from three point range. Filthy. Disgustible. I wish I could shoot like Steph Curry. I would like nothing more in life than to have his shooting stroke. But he didn't stop at 54 points, he also dropped 7 dimes, 6 assists, and 3 steals. Like the boss he is. Golden State needs to give that man something to work with, because he can take them somewhere That is, if he stays away from picking fights with centers (*cough* Roy *cough* Hibbert *cough* *cough*).

I think the most impressive ability in Curry's armada of basketball expertise is his transition shooting. If you did catch any of the game Thursday, you'd know that quite a few of Curry's points came off of 20+ footers during fast breaks. The best part is when he starts backpedaling as soon as he comes down from the jumpshot. He just knows. When he's on, and he's feeling it, it's a good time. Life is nice. The world is at peace.

The NBA needs more players like Steph Curry, but unfortunately, the sharpshooter is too often forgotten about in professional basketball. Jimmer Fredette, Jason Terry, Rashard Lewis, Ray Allen, Jason Kapono, all of these players have struggled to find their roles in recent years. But there is hope. You too can save not only the careers and importance of these players, but the well-being of their franchises as well. Start today. Write a letter. Buy a jersey. Hit those forums. And hope that soon, Curry will make those 54 points look small.

Picture credit: http://bostonherald.com/sites/default/files/styles/default/public/media/2013/02/28/Curry.jpg?c=bec77f7046fb72f46984303694ee9001