THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2011
PAGE 21
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BASKETBALL 123
Former men's basketball players teamed up for a scrimmage for a good cause — last week's Roundball Classic in honor of children's cancer, held in Kansas City.
GAMEDAY FEUD?
Weekly Sports Trivia
Q: What is the 'green room' in the NBA Draft?
A: The NBA's top 15 draft picks are invited to sit in the green room with their families to wait for their selection and to shake the commissioner's hand.
— espn.com
Quote of the Week
"Both invited to green room, 1 step closer to my dream!! #hardworkingpaysof F.O.E."
— Marcus Morris via Twitter @KansasTwin22
Fact of the Week
Over their careers at Kansas, Marcus and Markieff Morris played for 2,611 and 2,100 minutes total respectively.
kuathletics.com
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Athletes in ESPN kerfuffle
MY MIKE VERNON mvernon@kansan.com
It started out as a joke of sorts, a way to stay entertained during the painfully long offseason. Two wide receivers on the Kansas football team, senior Daymond Patterson and junior A.J. Steward, released their first video of a series on Vimeo, titled, "D.P. & A.J. Take On KU," in which the two faced off in a soccer showdown with with sophomore goalie Kat Liebetrau and sophomore defender Brittany King.
What it turned into landed the receivers plenty of airtime on ESPN's College GameDay, and became much more than a way to kill time and bring smiles to Kansas fans' faces.
The video opens with 27 seconds of outtakes, as Patterson and Steward attempt to film their introduction, but end up making each other laugh over and over again. The following six minutes and 25 seconds of the video include the shootout, an extraordinary amount of trash-talk, and a collision that was heard around the college football world.
After Patterson deflected a shot to clinch the victory for "D.P. & A.J," the two receivers, as expected, began to celebrate. Patterson screamed and began to trot from the goal. Steward placed his shirt over his face and on top of his head, and ran at a decent speed straight into a cameraman, sending both Steward and the cameraman onto the turf. Laughter ensued from both parties, and the clip promptly landed the video a spot on College GameDay.
Mark May, the well-known ESPN personality and commentator on the show that day, did not take the video with jest. He went on to call the football players out, and suggested they take on the basketball team instead — something D.P. and A.J. had planned for their next video.
Instead of staying mum on the criticism from May, the two released a response video on Vimeo, in which they held a fake press conference responding to May.
In the video, Patterson and Steward made it clear they did not appreciate May's comments and, keeping things in jest, they extended a challenge to May.
"We'll debate you in any sport, any topic that you want to do," Patterson said. "We'll change the show just for you from D.P. and A.J. take on KU to D.P. and A.J. take on Mark May."
Steward added a quip of his own,
"Mark, we're coming for you."
Sure enough, the next episode of College GameDay featured the press conference from Patterson and Steward and a response from May.
The message from Bristol, Conn., was clear.
"Let's go ahead and debate any sport you'd like." May said. "It could be badminton, it could be basketball, it doesn't matter, because you know what? I accept your challenge."
Ben Pirotte/KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Wide reciever Daymond Patterson runs past Oklahoma State cornerback Andrew McGee in a November file photo.
GUEST COMMENTARY: NBA DRAFT
Smaller teams need extra help
BY NICK SCHWERDT editor@kansan.com
With the 2011 NBA Draft only days away, team executives are preparing crucial decisions that will affect their franchise for many years to come. Most teams will likely draft a player whose career will not be defined by his success, but rather by what they will fail to accomplish.
There's added pressure for smaller-market teams to maximize their draft potential. While big cities can attract star-free agents due to their media exposure, small market teams must rely on the draft. Come on, who
wants to end up in Milwaukee?
Paul Pierce and the 2007 Celtics ended the season with a 24-58 record — good enough for 2nd worst in the league. They were in dire need of a "game-changer," as they had whiffed on several pervious draft picks. Gerald Green 18th overall in 2005, aye carumba!
The Celtics ended up with the fifth overall pick. To avoid repeating draft failures it traded its selection in exchange for Ray Allen from the soon-to-be Thunder. They then orchestrated a trade to acquire Kevin Garnett from the Timberwolves. The "Boston Three Party" was born.
SEE COMMENTARY 122