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Old school in the 21st century Posted: Wednesday November 20, 2002 3:09 PMUpdated: Wednesday November 20, 2002 3:11 PM
Sports Illustrated senior writer Grant Wahl answers your college basketball questions every Wednesday. Click here to send him a question. How do you define the term old school? That was the challenge for the college hoops gang at Sports Illustrated as we pursued the theme for our annual preview issue, out this week. We think you'll be pleased with the results, from Alexander Wolff's essay examining the decline in fundamentals to his bonus piece on Dr. James Naismith's 13 original rules for the game, from my profile of Kansas' Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison (the best old-school duo in the land) to my trip to the Theory of Basketball class taught by Miami (Ohio) coach Charlie Coles. We also unveil SI's All-Old-School Team, five guys who helped show that you can define old school any number of ways. The lesson: Old school can be crew cuts ... and mullets. Afros ... and Jheri curls. John Stockton shorts ... and high socks. Chuck Taylor's ... and vintage Jordan's. In short, old school can be just about anything, as long as it's tied to the way things were done right at some point in the past. It's why Collison and Hinrich can be old school ... and still lead the nation's highest scoring offense. Here are some B-sides from my interviews with our All-Old-School Team (Collison, Texas' T.J. Ford, Western Kentucky's Chris Marcus, Xavier's David West and Pittsburgh's Brandin Knight): Favorite Old Uniform
Best Thing You've Seen on ESPN Classic
First NCAA Title Game You Saw
Favorite Vintage Jordans
Exclusive! Mississippi State voter unmasked!After making way too many phone calls, the 'Bag finally tracked down the mysterious AP voter who has tabbed Mississippi State No. 1 the past two weeks. And you know what? Eric Waddell, the sports manager for WVLT-TV in Knoxville, Tenn., isn't a raving lunatic after all. In fact, Waddell was downright pleasant (and sober!) while describing his rationale for picking the No. 12 Bulldogs to win it all. "I'm not just being different to be different," explained Waddell, 33, a first-year AP voter. "The combination of [power forward] Mario Austin and [point guard] Derrick Zimmerman is as good as any in the country, they have a ton of size off the bench, and they have the ability to play multiple styles of basketball, which really helps in the tournament. I'm used to those other teams at the top underachieving, so I don't believe the hype anymore. If you look at Mississippi State, they overachieve year after year." And what if the investigation into Austin's eligibility continues to keep him out of games? "It all hinges on whether he's able to play," Waddell said. "If he can't, I'll have to move 'em down." What's more, Waddell swears he's not just some fringe kook with a ballot. "I vote for the major parties in elections," he said. "I like chocolate and vanilla ice cream. And none of my family members went to Mississippi State. I only know one alum from the school." Who knows? If the Bulldogs win it all, Waddell could be a latter-day version of Corky Simpson, the AP football voter who chose Alabama No. 1 every week of the 1992 season. Not one other voter picked the Crimson Tide No. 1 that year -- until Alabama upset Miami in the Sugar Bowl to win the national title. The funny thing? The legendary Simpson was (and still is) a columnist for the Tucson Citizen, home paper of the currently No. 1-ranked Arizona Wildcats. Many thanks also to reader Randle Reece of Boca Raton, Fla., who submitted a similarly thoughtful argument for Mississippi State cutting down the nets in New Orleans. I still think you're on crack, but the effort is much appreciated. Opening the 'BagSlim pickins this week, folks. We always need SABs, WATNs and, especially, any probing queries worthy of Astute Question of the WeekTM. (Notice there isn't one this time around.) Jamaal Wilkes' son Omar passed on attending his dad's alma mater in favor of Kansas. Bill Walton's kids passed, too, although I don't think they were heavily recruited by UCLA. Do you think the dads are steering their kids away from Steve Lavin? Does Steve Lavin get along with the John Wooden alumni?
Correct me if I'm wrong, folks, but the only sons of UCLA greats who've played for the Bruins are Marques Johnson's boys Kris and Josiah. Walton's four kids have all played elsewhere (Tuffy Walton, the youngest, came the closest to signing with UCLA but opted for San Diego State), Henry Bibby's son, Mike, went to Arizona, and now Omar Wilkes has spurned the Bruins (who at one point thought he was a lock) for Lawrence. I'd need to do more reporting before I spoke with any real authority, but I'd say a few things are in play here. For starters, it makes total sense that a son wouldn't necessarily want to deal with the expectations of playing at Dad's alma mater. Second, Bibby (an old-guard Woodenite) is coaching crosstown rival USC, which may give some pause to UCLA alum families. And third, there may be some real respect issues between old-guard members and Lavin. Some may have merit, some may not. (Until Lavin gets his own banner, it probably won't ever stop.) Certainly given what has happened, it's a worthwhile question to ask. I was impressed that you ranked Virginia in your Top 25. You railed on the Cavaliers most of last season (even when they were in the AP top 15) -- justifiably so, since they played no defense and had no chemistry. Does this mean you're sold on the possibility that the addition of assistant coach Rod Jensen will add defense and stability? Or is it just the new players they have?
Getting Jensen (the former Boise State head coach) should help settle things down in Charlottesville -- he has been laying off the recruiting trail and focusing on instruction and scouting. But I also really like the additions Pete Gillen has made, from Rutgers transfer Todd Billet at the point to Cal transfer Nick Vander Laan down low. Billet is an excellent shooter, and I saw plenty I liked in Vander Laan two years ago in the Pac-10, where he was a solid rebounder. Give it to me straight: Is Texas' ranking deserved, or are the basketball gods (the voters) setting us Longhorns up for a major letdown?
I liked what I saw from Ford in New York last week, though at times the Longhorns' inability to finish off Ford's divine feeds reminded me of the chronically inept French forward Stephane Guivarc'h making a hash of Zinedine Zidane's passes in World Cup '98. (Sorry, soccer reference.) Brandon Mouton and Royal (with Cheese) Ivey are catching some flak for not scoring much against Georgia, but a win is a win. James Thomas should play a bigger role in future games as well, which is why I think Texas should be a legit top-five team. Finally got some response to the revelation that Collison actually owns the DVD for When Harry Met Sally. Apparently, Nick's "impress the honeys" strategy works quite well. As Janice Willis from Norman, Okla., writes: "I'll be Nick Collison's 'Sally'if he'll be my 'Harry'!!!!!!!" Station break: Three random thingsOn CD: Can we recommend Wilco (Yankee Hotel Foxtrot) and Coldplay (A Rush of Blood to the Head) without sounding like shameless bandwagon-jumpers? If not, check out the N.E.R.D. disc In Search Of... by the producers-turned-performers polymaths. On DVD: Hard Eight (1997). The first feature film from the absurdly precocious writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch-Drunk Love) is worth tracking down. PTA standbys John C. Reilly and Philip Seymour Hoffman are joined by Samuel L. Jackson and Gwyneth Paltrow in a nicely restrained mood piece (set in Vegas and its environs) that deserves its comparisons to the work of David Mamet and Rod Serling. Did we say Anderson was 26 when he made this? WATN: Benny Anders still at-largeThe 'Bag pulled out all the stops trying to locate Benny Anders, the court jester of Houston's Phi Slamma Jamma best known for his famous quote about Akeem Olajuwon ("I dropped a dime on the Big Swahili") . Anders was one of a kind: Mark Bradley of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution tells an outstanding story about a Kentucky fan named John Gambill who attended the 1984 Final Four in Seattle. After the Wildcats were eliminated in the semis, Gambill and his buddies took a shine to Anders, who had arrived in Sea-town wearing a tux with a pink-bow-tie-and-cummerbund ensemble and sunglasses. For the Monday night final, the Kentuckians all wore sunglasses and held up a sign that read BENNY ANDERS FOR PRESIDENT. Benny liked the sign so much that he invited them to the Houston team party after the game (won by Georgetown) and they ended the evening (no joke) by riding around Seattle in a Jaguar with Anders and teammate Reid Gettys. A week later Gambill received a package in the mail. Inside was Benny's Phi Slamma Jamma warmup. Classic, classic stuff. Alas, Houston sports information director Rick Poulter told me nobody there has heard from Benny since the early 1990s, when he was playing in South America. Then I called the only "Anders" listed in Bernice, La. (his hometown), and spoke with Benny's grandma. What the sweet old lady said broke my heart. "I haven't heard from Benny in three months," she explained. "If you find him, tell him I'd love to hear from him." Journalistic obligations aside, I couldn't bear to ask Benny's grandma any more questions about what he's been up to. So, Benny, if you're reading this: Give your grandma a call. She's worried about you. Next week's WATN: Where in the world is former Ohio State sharpshooter Jay Burson? Separated at BirthThanks for all your SAB suggestions this week. (Keep 'em coming.) It'll be awfully hard to match this motley crew, though: Gary Williams and Moe Szyslak.
Mike Krzyzewski and Fredo Corleone, John Cazale.
And finally, from me, a pair of smiling assassins: Tom Izzo and Harvey Keitel.
Have a great week! Click here to send your college basketball question to Grant Wahl.
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