Transition blog

As the focus of this blog shifts from all things Carolina basketball to other sports - namely the Nats, the Wizards and Euro 2008 football - I feel compelled to defend Roy and offer one last Carolina hoops poll.   

The last one, on the greatest Tar Heel of all time, fittingly ended in a tie between Phil Ford and Michael Jordan.  I think those two are the obvious choices; trust the voters in this one.  Of course, I may have to ask that question again next year if Hansbrough stays, breaks Phil Ford's Carolina and J.J. Reddick's ACC scoring records, and/or wins a national championship.

Today's poll is another good one, and also serves as a nice recap of the 2007-2008 season.

I am honestly surprised by the criticism of Roy's decision to stay and root for Kansas.  One of the things I like about Roy - and Woody for that matter - is how North Carolinian they are.  They remind me of the good things about my home state; both are nice, humble, polite, optimistic to the point of naivete, genuine, with absolutely no regard for flash or fashion.  To me they epitomize the state's slogan, which is (in English) "to be, rather than to seem."  Esse quam vedira in Latin.  

What could be more North Carolinian that to root for the place you once called home for 15 years?  What could be more humble than to root for the team that beat you?   Roy obviously loves Carolina (besides being an alum, I like that he has gone to the last two College World Series' to watch the Heels baseball team).  But he also still loves Kansas.  And that makes sense, and it's okay.  How could anyone be surprised or angered by his rooting for his former school, a school that I might add produced the grandest Tar Heel of them all, Dean Smith.

Finally, if you watch the game you are going to root for one team or another.  I wanted to root for Kansas but usually and habitually root against any of the other dynasty schools - for my money there are only six: Carolina plus UCLA, Kentucky, Indiana, Duke and Kansas - in the championship game so was mildly rooting for Memphis.   Everyone takes a side when watching a game where someone is taking score. Roy is no different from any college basketball fan; he watched, so he took a side.  If an ACC team had been playing the championship game, even if that team were Duke or State, would anyone question ol' Roy for sticking around another night to root for a team from the conference?  I doubt it.  So no one should be surprised that he was rooting for Dean's alma mater.  

Better to stay and watch than skulk home to Chapel Hill feeling sorry for yourself.   I like that Roy was secure enough in in himself to show up, and do not have a problem with him rooting for the Jayhawks while wearing one of their stickers.

I'll wrap this up by pointing out how great the season was, despite the lingering disappointment of the Final Four. Roy's on the court and recruiting successes should leave Heels fans feeling reassured that, as it was under Dean, Carolina is the dominant team in the ACC again.  Back to back ACC tournament championships, best regular season records in the ACC two years in a row, two Final Fours in four years, 4 wins over Duke in our last 6 games including 3 straight at Cameron, a National Championship, and taking the 2006 David Noel team to the NCAA tournament (perhaps the greatest feat on this list; ask Jim Calhoun and Billy Donovan how hard it is to recover from losing stars to the NBA draft) all point to a new dominant Carolina era in the ACC.  Despite the haunting loss to Kansas, things are going well and promise to keep heading in that direction for a long time. 

Random Notes:

• If I was wagering, I'd bet all three Carolina players come back next year.  Hansbrough is probably the only one seriously contemplating going pro.  It seems unlikely that his draft position or stock would change much after another year in Chapel Hill though it could if he continues to expand his range and game, something that has happened each year he has been at Carolina.  And by all accounts the 2009 draft projects weaker than the 2008 one so he could go higher if he waits a year.   Plus, I imagine he really wants to win a national championship and go 4-4 in Cameron.  
• Lawson's play against an athletic Kansas back court probably convinced many scouts that he is still not ready to face the superior athletes every night in the NBA.
• Ellington was probably the most improved Carolina player on the squad.  He made giant strides on both ends of the floor - augmenting his three-point shooting by developing a nice floor game on offense and dramatically improving his defense.  That said, he is still pretty skinny and could probably use another year to fill out his frame and develop the endurance on his way to becoming a fusion of Rip Hamilton and Reggie Miller.
• Obviously, if all three come back Carolina will be favored to win the ACC and NCAA championships.   The ACC should be a lot better next year.  Virginia Tech, Wake and Georgia Tech will be improved, Miami should be pretty good, Clemson will be better, and Duke will at least finish 8-8.   But no matter what those teams do, Carolina will be the team to beat.

Other Random Notes

• Nats finally ended their 9 game losing streak this afternoon against the Braves.  This team has no margin for error, so with Zimmerman and Kearns both struggling the offense has been terrible.  If those two hit, and Wily Mo does too, the Nats could be decent.  Milledge has played well, though on defense he is still a work in progress in center field.
• Do not be surprised if the Wizards make the Eastern Conference finals this year.  They will probably play the Cavaliers in the first round, a team they match up with fairly well and also a team they Zards really want to beat.  That would likely mean a series against the Celtics in the second round, and Washington has beaten the Cs three out of four this year.  Two of those wins came without Gilbert Arenas, too.  My man Brendan Haywood has held KG in check in each of those wins, and Caron Butler has owned Paul Pierce. Don't be surprised if they take Boston in six games.

Bragging on the kids

• For consecutive nights, Ariadne and Evan were the best kids on their respective stages.  On Friday night, our school put on the musical Annie.  Ariadne played Lily St. Regis, and she sparkled!  She's always been good on stage, whether we're talking about Greek school programs, dance recitals, or other school plays. I'm obviously biased, but she has IT.  On stage Ariadne's charisma is unmistakable and unstoppable.  She also has great comedic timing and has a great physicality, too.  It made us very proud to watch her, and I also enjoyed the kudos from other parents after the show. You should have seen her in her blonde wig, lipstick and high heels. Ariadne has it. 
• The next night Evan played in his first Little League game with live pitching.  He went two for two with a walk, including a bases loaded single. Trailing 9-10 entering the bottom of the sixth and final inning, Evan led off against the other team's best pitcher.  He quickly fell behind 0-2 - one called, one swinging - after two nasty pitches.  But Evan dug in, fouled off three other nasty pitches including one tough inside pitch, and eventually coaxed a walk out of their pitcher.  It was an impressive at bat.  He later came around to score the tying run, and his team won 11-10.  
• Evan also pitched one inning, and excelled on the mound too.  He pitched a shut out inning that featured two strike outs, one nice grab in the outfield by his teammate Max, and a nice little fist pump after getting a strike out to end the inning.  He had a great game and led his team to a nice come from behind win against an older team.
• Anyway, I felt very fortunate to be their dad this weekend.