06-23-2004, 04:53 PM
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#4 (permalink)
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Kwisatz Haderach
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Coatesville, PA
Age: 25
Posts: 24,241
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Quote:
Originally posted by Dakota!
Again, like you said they probably won't make it into the NBA, but I still admire the guys for giving it all they can, even with a lowly team and for a lowly league for that matter.
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Same, it is inspiring to see some still strive to play to reach their dreams when the odds are against them. I honestly think someone should do a documentary on the whole thing (if it hasn't been done yet), to show how things work. We really get a different view on things just reading them. Like, I had no idea that it was so hard for players to get their money from Foreign teams.
Oh yeah.. and I'm not sure if you saw this or not, so I decided to link it:
Quote:
Joe Crispin perked up and had the type of second-half shooting performance that brought a huge smile across the face of Pennsylvania ValleyDawgs general manager and vice president Sam Unera.
Crispin had a season-high 35 points, including 28 in the second half of the 'Dawgs' 118-110 victory over the Florence Flyers in the USBL regular-season finale Sunday at Liberty High's Memorial Gymnasium.
Crispin, a Penn State graduate who has played briefly in the NBA, shot just 3-for-11 in the first half for seven points. But the former Big Ten Player of the Year torched Florence (9-21) for 19 points in the third quarter.
He finished the game 12-for-27 from the field, including 8-of-18 on 3-pointers. He's had 20-point games this season, but the main reason Unera so aggressively pursued Crispin was because of his shooting ability.
In the second half, Crispin showed his touch all too well to the Flyers and it helped Pennsylvania (20-10) secure its second straight 20-win regular season and earn a top-four playoff seeding for next week's USBL tournament in Salina, Kan.
''It was a great time, except for when I missed about three or four weeks there with a head injury,'' Crispin said. ''It's always interesting in the minor leagues, especially travel-wise, but we had a great group of guys, and on the whole it was enjoyable. I'm glad I did it.''
So is Unera, who just completed his third season as GM and vice president. Wearing two front-office hats has been fun this season because he's been able to bring in most of the players he has sought.
One such player is Crispin, who started the season with the team. There were key acquisitions throughout the season such as 6-7 Jayson Wells, Antonio Meeking and more recently 6-7 Darrin Hancock, who at 32 is the oldest 'Dawg. But Hancock is also the most experienced and will likely start in the playoffs.
''When you take care of your players when they are here they will always want to play for you and come back,'' said Unera, who has been recruiting players for 26 years, including teams in the Philippines Basketball Association. ''That's what happened to Frantz Pierre-Louis, and guys like Tim Winn, and Joe Crispin.''
Coach Darryl Dawkins has decided who plays and often he's had tough times deciding because of his depth, but it's a problem Denver Nuggets scout John Coridea said most USBL teams probably wish they had.
''They are one of the most talented teams that have been put together,'' Coridea said on Sunday. ''They have talent up and down the bench from one to 12. deserves a lot of props.''
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__________________
Who cares about a championship drought?:
My teams will never win a championship anyway, so why don't you discuss everything else at my forum? Good idea, right? Yeah, I thought so. It's called.. Booing Santa Claus. See you there.
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Originally Posted by Henry Rollins
“The average is the borderline that keeps mere men in their place. Those who step over the line are heroes by the very act. Go.”
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