We've moved!

Check us out at jamheads.wordpress.com

Decisions for Coach K and Team USA

Something we'd like to occasionally cover on jamheads is international basketball and Team USA. Mostly because I'm a bit of a nerd about our national team and get pretty pumped up for the Olympics. I feel like there were far to few of us who stayed up for that gold medal game against Spain in Beijing (at least in the straw poll I took after it). That was an amazing basketball game for those who saw it.

That being said, ESPN posted this article last week regarding Team USA. It seems the final rosters for London will be due on June 18, 2012, while the playoffs could still be going on. I'd worry about this more if Coach K wasn't in control. Whether you hate or love Duke (which obviously you lean one way), I am totally confident in the decisions Coach K will make regarding this team. If he decided to go with Lebron and a herd of cats I'd probably think, "yea he has a reason for that." This got me thinking as to which 12 players I'd want out on the court in London in 2012. Here is my shotgun list:

Guards: Paul, Rose, Wade, Bryant,Westbrook

Forwards: James, Griffin, Love, Durant, Anthony, Gay

Center: Howard

Yea, I don't know why I went with Rudy Gay as my 12th man either. I figure he's good for leapfrogging some small Spanish guard (ahem Rubio) for a monster jam. You could obviously argue another true center would be needed but I think this roster gives you the size you need to win.

Let's hear your thoughts on the 12-man roster...

We need a bracketologist...

Why is ESPNs Joe Lunardi the only one known as a bracketologist? I appreciate his work and like reading what he has to say but I think we can all consider ourselves amateur bracketologists. Except for the person in your work pool who wins off picking colors of teams. That will always make me mad.

Lunardi has still been leaning towards 10 or 11 Big East teams getting into the dance this year, but I'm not sure I see more than 9 making it. Marquette got a W today but I still it's tough for them or WVU to sneak in this year. A strong showing in the Big East tournament (which either or more than capable of) may seal the deal. Then again, I'm no bracketologist.

Fans from other conferences seem to argue the fact that the Big East consistently gets the most teams in and that 11 is even in the realm of possibility. I'm not sure how sound the arguement really is from them. Other conferences have clearly weakened in the past few years (I'm looking at you Pac-10 and SEC) and the Big East has remained the most competitive conference. There can be a great game any night in the Big East and we've seen many this year. When it comes to the Big East tournament, I think they are some of the most fun days of basketball all year, sometimes outdoing the first days of the dance itself. If 11 teams happen to get in from the Big East, I certainly won't complain and I think it could strengthen the tournament overall.

East Bound and Down

For our first few posts you might notice a bit of an east coast bias. Well, any of our first readers will most likely be on the east coast so let's consider it catering to the audience. Don't worry, if any Laker fans become readers we'll let you whine about Kobe not getting his due. And not to worry in the Midwest either, as plenty of gushing over Kevin Love and Derrick Rose will be emanated on here. It will be fair for all.

Thinking about what's going on in the Eastern Conference right now, I think the most debatable item is whether or not the Heat can actually beat the Celtics in the playoffs. My feeling before the Perkins/Robinson for Green/Krstic swap: Celtics. My feeling after the swap: Celtics. I'm still questioning the trade in my head and do feel the Celtics will miss Perkins come playoff time, but I don't see how it hurts them that much against the Heat. If only, because the Heat did not pick up the extra body they desired at the trade deadline. Joel Anthony isn't striking fear into the hearts of anyone in Boston and it's not the best sign for Heat fans when you are actually happy when Dampier comes back in to replace him. Time will tell how Jeff Green settles in Boston but he's certainly a talented player and I could see it working out.

In the end, I'm still not convinced Miami can take down Boston in 7 games. But I damn sure excited for what should be a great playoffs. I can't remember having a potential 2nd round like this in a long time in the east. It seems long overdue and something fans in the west have seen a lot more of in the last decade.

Welcome!

Welcome to NBA Jam Heads. We started this as a by hoops fans, for hoops fans blog. We would like to start up discussions about everything basketball; from college recruiting to the NBA. Any topics of discussion involving basketball are welcome. We are going to have several specific sections each week including a stats spotlight and a look current injuries from the perspective of an certified athletic trainer. The rest will be a centralized location of trending topics in the NCAA, NBA and international basketball. The goal is to cover this global game we love and create a forum for real fans. 

Enjoy and who wants to sex Mutombo?