Originally published March 25, 2008 at www.oursportscentral.com
Barre, Vermont - As some know, I have been one of the more outspoken critics of the American Basketball Association. (ABA) I have been critical of the way CEO Newman responds to the media, and the countless teams that have come and gone since 2000-2001. This commentary though is not about the league and its problems, this is about some of the fun the ABA can give.First off, this year's All-Star Game was the brainchild of Frost Heaves owner and CEO Alexander Wolff. Wolff wanted to host the game not only as a way of showcasing the best in the ABA, but also to give the fans of Vermont one more game. Somehow, I think the game was a way of saying "thank you" for the support of the cowbell ringing fanatics at the Aud in Barre.
Through my work broadcasting the Premier Basketball League, I got to know one of the great guys and one of the rising young talents in the coaching ranks: Texas Tycoons/Dallas Defenders coach Jean Paul (JP) Afif. Afif has played all over the world with stops in Lebanon, Italy, the D-League, and had a cup of coffee or two with the Sacramento Kings in the NBA. Afif has an incredible amount of knowledge, and his coaching style is very motivational and positive. I remember hearing JP during the Dallas/Quad Cities "Triple S Scouting Showcase" game in Chicago yelling encouragement at guard Mario Kinsey. Afif yelled to Kinsey, "Mario, I see how hard you are working down there. I see you are doing the things we talked about in practice. Keep up that work and you will go places!!" I swear, I could see Mario's confidence surge, and his other players seemed to respond as well.
When I got to the Aud in Barre, one of the first people I saw was JP. We caught up on the PBL playoffs, some of his players, and talked about assistant coach Mike Setters who was not with the team. According to Afif, "We haven't been home in the last two weeks and Mike really needed a couple of days off and some time with his wife." After catching up on things, Afif asked if I was working and I told him I was writing an article on the game. Jokingly, I asked JP if he needed another assistant coach so I could get a courtside seat. He told me, "Heck yeah, you are more than welcome." So, instead of sitting in the stands, or in the press area, the scope of my article changed in about three seconds flat.
Before the game, Afif was fairly loose and looking forward to the contest. Afif had one of his own players in Tycoons guard Mario Kinsey, with Randall Williams scheduled to play but was out with a bad ankle. Taking the place of Williams was volatile Manchester power forward Cedric McGinnis who came to the Millrats after being released by the PBL's Wilmington Sea Dawgs following a confrontation with head coach Kevin Whitted. The one thing Afif was concerned with was players not coming out and playing defense. With NBA scouts in the stands, Afif didn't want the day to turn into a playground contest and wanted his guys focused on the game at hand.
When it came to the start of the game, the players were pumped up, and so were the 1,500 cowbell ringing fans. The biggest ovations came when Vermont's Issa Konare and Antonio Burks were announced. These are two guys, along with Vermont head coach Wil Voight who have brought quite a bit to the table when it comes to the Heaves. We Vermonters do love our basketball, and our hometown players.
Right before the opening tip, Afif went to work on his players. He told them he wanted to see an up tempo offense, solid defense, and to give the scouts a show. Afif could not have been happy with what he saw in the first quarter as the West went down seven at the break. At the first media time out, Afif said to his guys, "I want you to push the tempo and start running the baseline. You need to work!!" The East looked as if it was playing harder and more together than the West squad who seemed to be more in this game for themselves than actually winning the game. The East set the high screens, had some patience, and seemed to be more in the game than the West.
The frustration was all over Afif's face who tore into his players during the last time out of the first quarter. Afif said, "Guys, how you play in the first half determines how much you play in the second. For the first half, it is hey, you are in an All-Star Game, you play, thank you very much. The second half is about winning this thing."
In the second quarter, the officials seemed to get the best of the West. When calls weren't made under the hoop, the guys from the West would sulk and then in turn not get back on the defensive end. What the West failed to realize is that this is an All-Star Game and they won't get close calls, the officials want the guys to play. During a timeout Afif emphasized that point when he said, "Don't even think about looking for a call in an All-Star Game, you won't get one. Now get out there and play basketball."
The frustration continued in the second as the guys from the West just did not seem to be in the game and the East took advantage with a couple of big runs and a pair of Crookshank slams. When Cedric McGinnis came out of the game I asked him, "So Cedric, are you having fun?" His response was, "Nope". At one point, the frustration of Orange County's Robin Kennedy came out when he said to no one in particular, "I am the only one scoring and I am on the end of the bench?"
Overall in the first half, the West was just terrible on both ends. Shots were being forced, there was no defense to be seen, and when a shot was missed or a call wasn't made, players would just walk back up court which led to more fast breaks than I could count. On the other hand, the East continued their strong play behind Anthony Anderson, Eric Crookshank and Issa Konare. The thing that stood out was I could hear the guys from the East communicating with each other. On the offensive end they were motioning for screens, calling out screens on the defensive end, and seemed to be more in tune with each other than a very lackadaisical West team. The defensive effort was so bad that at the half, Afif said to me, "I am going to need to pay these guys to play defense." After the game he told me he actually offered to do just that. "Chris, I pulled out my wallet, threw a hundred bucks on the table and said to the guys I would give the cash to the defensive player of the game, but only if we won. Can you tell how well that worked?" With the East leading 72-54 at the half, Afif needed all the motivational tools he could pull out of his bag of tricks.
The poor play continued in the third quarter for the West as Crookshank, Konare and Anderson took over. Crookshank, who played for the Halifax Rainmen, has the potential to be a dominant player, but it wasn't known if he would even be able to play in the game. Earlier in the week, the Rainmen withdrew from the playoffs and the ABA because of differences with the way the league has been run. Crookshank didn't seem to be fazed by the whole episode as he hit for 28 points and pulled down 14 rebounds.
On the bench, I had an interesting conversation with San Diego forward Jerome Hamel. Hamel, who is averaging 18 points a game for the Wildcats
, is looking to catch on somewhere as a role player. Hamel said, "I don't care if I score two points a game. I will do what I can and do what it takes to win; regardless of individual stats." Ironically, Hamel picked up a rare All-Star Game technical after he ran his mouth to one of the officials about a no-call.
I hate to bash on the West squad, but they just didn't seem to be in the game at all. There were countless occasions where guys like Robin Kennedy would miss a shot, or not get the ball and then sulk all the way down the court. In the case of Kennedy, after not getting the ball when he thought he was open, he sulked so badly that he stayed in the corner while the East went on a five-on-three break. What they failed to realize is that there were NBA scouts there and they did not create a good impression. Even though it was an All-Star game, guys had to go out and play hard and prove they can play at the next level. Having a terrible attitude and complaining about everything does not give that solid impression to the scouts. All it says is "Me, me, me, me and I don't care about the team, I just want to look good for myself."
The rest of the game was more or less a track meet with the East picking up an easy 161-140 victory. The real story of the game was the play of Crookshank and Manchester's Anderson who won MVP honors. Anderson finished with 33 points that included seven three pointers. For the West, it was San Diego's Cardell Butler who had a game high 34 and seemed to be the only player for the West who was interested in playing a team game.
I have to say that sitting on the bench for a game was about as fun as it gets. First of all, Jean-Paul Afif will be an NBA coach. Even in an All-Star game he teaches, he is intense, he is a motivator, and not the slightest bit demeaning to his players. He is tough, but not in a nasty sort of way. I saw him at the PBL's "Triple S Scouting Showcase" and was impressed then and that impression continued in Barre. Being able to see and listen to the players in the huddle and on the bench was something. When broadcasting a game, I don't hear those conversations. Guys like Cardell Butler were doing some coaching and trying to get guys into the game which is the sign of a solid floor leader. Hearing the officials talk to guys, hearing the coaches coach, and even feeling the floor vibrate when a big guy like Atlanta's B.J. Puckett hit the floor really gave me a unique perspective on things. Thanks JP for letting me sit on the bench.
Notes and rumblings:
Sources are saying Atlanta owner Quinton Townsend may be purchasing a part of the ABA. When asked about this, Townsend denied the claim.
CEO Joe Newman said next season there will be a team in Oakland, CA and two teams in Las Vegas.
Merger talks between the CBA and PBL seem to be heating up. Multiple sources say a deal could be reached shortly after the end of the season. There is the possibility that ABA teams such as Manchester, Vermont, Montreal and the former Halifax franchise may be invited to join the new league.
The Texas Tycoons are rumored to be leaving the ABA but that could not be confirmed. One source says it is due to issues with the ABA, another has said CEO Newman may be removing the Tycoons from the ABA due to the fact some Tycoons players have been playing for the PBL's Dallas Defenders who are coached by Tycoons coach Jean-Paul Afif.
