“Caitlin's a great player,” said Louisville’s Mykasa Robinson, who likely will get the defensive assignment on Iowa’s ace. “I think really just being physical from the jump is what I’ll have to do.” (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
Well, whadda ya think?
The statement might have been made by almost any men's or women's player about any star opponent, so this isn't a critique of Louisville or Ms. Robinson. It's an observation about the long-time state of basketball. And that is this: the game was intentionally invented and designed to be a non-contact sport. It was not invented or designed to allow defenders to "be physical" in order to thwart an opponent. And I, for one, am sick and tired of watching basketball played the way it is today . . . by both men and women.
We all know about the MMA-style that has marred basketball for decades. It's way past time to put a stop to it and return to the game's intended emphasis on quickness and speed, not brute strength. "Being physical" is the antithesis of basketball. Defenders grabbing, pushing, and holding is simply wrong. And if fouls were called, it would stop. It's that simple. And on the offensive side of the "physical" game, someone please explain why "backing someone down" is allowed. The fact is, the backing down play is a foul EVERY damn time, no matter who does it. When an offensive player uses physical force to move a defender off their established position on the floor, it is a foul. Period. So why is it that basketball allows an offensive player to bump, bump, bump into a defender? I hate it. And it's not basketball.
I'll stop with this: We know that dribbling is optional now too, and that carrying the ball around like a bag of groceries is how basketball is played these days, but one of the most egregious examples of this baloney occurred in a women's tourney game this weekend. The guard was "dribbling" down the right side of the floor when she suddenly stopped about the top of the circle, put her hand under the ball and held it for a second, then took off again "dribbling" to the left and scored on a lay-up. I still can't believe what I saw.
Anyway, just had to get that out there, FWIW. Thanks for your indulgence. And go Iowa--beat Louisville!
BTW: Go back and look at videos on YouTube or wherever and see what great basketball was played in the 1970s when players had to dribble the ball according to the rules, when traveling and three seconds were called, and when "physical" basketball was the exception, not the rule.
Well, whadda ya think?
The statement might have been made by almost any men's or women's player about any star opponent, so this isn't a critique of Louisville or Ms. Robinson. It's an observation about the long-time state of basketball. And that is this: the game was intentionally invented and designed to be a non-contact sport. It was not invented or designed to allow defenders to "be physical" in order to thwart an opponent. And I, for one, am sick and tired of watching basketball played the way it is today . . . by both men and women.
We all know about the MMA-style that has marred basketball for decades. It's way past time to put a stop to it and return to the game's intended emphasis on quickness and speed, not brute strength. "Being physical" is the antithesis of basketball. Defenders grabbing, pushing, and holding is simply wrong. And if fouls were called, it would stop. It's that simple. And on the offensive side of the "physical" game, someone please explain why "backing someone down" is allowed. The fact is, the backing down play is a foul EVERY damn time, no matter who does it. When an offensive player uses physical force to move a defender off their established position on the floor, it is a foul. Period. So why is it that basketball allows an offensive player to bump, bump, bump into a defender? I hate it. And it's not basketball.
I'll stop with this: We know that dribbling is optional now too, and that carrying the ball around like a bag of groceries is how basketball is played these days, but one of the most egregious examples of this baloney occurred in a women's tourney game this weekend. The guard was "dribbling" down the right side of the floor when she suddenly stopped about the top of the circle, put her hand under the ball and held it for a second, then took off again "dribbling" to the left and scored on a lay-up. I still can't believe what I saw.
Anyway, just had to get that out there, FWIW. Thanks for your indulgence. And go Iowa--beat Louisville!
BTW: Go back and look at videos on YouTube or wherever and see what great basketball was played in the 1970s when players had to dribble the ball according to the rules, when traveling and three seconds were called, and when "physical" basketball was the exception, not the rule.
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