14 THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY,JUNE 14,2006
SPORTS
CAMPUS
Doing a dunk for kids
BY JACK WEINSTEIN
jweinstein@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Kansas coach Bill Self addressed a big huddle when he spoke to a group of 70 campers on Sunday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse. The boys, ranging in age from 8 to 19, listened to Self speak about having a good time and following the rules. Self's annual summer camp, kicked off Sunday and runs through Thursday at 16 gyms throughout Lawrence.
gyms through Even though the campers can require as much effort to coach as his Jayhawks, he said both were easy.
"The challenges with some young campers is they want to try to do what's right, but physically they can't quite do it yet," Self said. "The challenge with our players is that they can do it, but sometimes they won't do it the exact way a coach would expect them to do it. For one week, I'd say the campers are easier to coach, but if you had the campers for a whole year, you may change your mind about that."
whenever they get a chance to actually see us and communicate with us, it's good," Robinson said. "They're open, Some kids their age think they know it all, but they're open to what we have to say and they respond well to us."
Junior guard Russell Robinson said the campers were receptive to what the players had to say.
Self said desire was a big part of why the kids were there.
"They're big fans, they listen, they watch us all the time and
"The reason kids come to camp is they want to be around ball," Self said. "Hopefully they want to be coached and be corrected."
Asked to describe his teaching style with the campers, Sophomore forward Julian Wright said his style had two sides.
"I kind of have a balance between being serious and joking with the kids," Wright said. "You can't be too serious, sometimes kids won't listen. If you joke too much they won't take you seriously. I think that's key in terms of
helping kids out, You try to have a little fun, laugh, crack a joke or two, but also be serious when it's time to be serious.
A fan favorite, Wright gets specials requests from the campers.
"Everyone wants me to do a 360 dunk," he said.
Wright said he enjoyed both putting on a show for the kids and helping them become better basketball players.
Wright said he enjoyed working with the campers.
"I like it," he said. "It's a chance to give back and give advice."
— Edited by Adrienne Bommarito
Joshua Bickel/KANSAN
Campers at the Bill Self Basketball Camp play pick-up games in Allen Fieldhouse Monday afternoon. More than 700 campers are attending the camp, which runs through this week.
NBA BEATS NHL HANDS DOWN
BY FRED A. DAVIS III
fdavis@kansan.com
As I've watched the NBA playoffs, six months and counting, I got to thinking about the prospects of an NBA franchise coming to Kansas City, Mo. Then, after talking with my Russian friend, "Drago Gorbachev," about the NHL playoffs, the notion of an NHL franchise crept into my mind.
The reason I'm pondering another professional franchise making its way to the City of Fountains is because of the Sprint Center. The Sprint Center, is expected to "revitalize" Kansas City. The Big Fone, a nickname sure to take off, will almost certainly bring a new team to the area.
It's unlikely that a team will be in place by the time the Big Fone opens in the Fall of 2007, but one will come.
So that's why I - along with my friend Drago - will figure out what is the best choice for the Kansas City Metro area. I think by 2020, according to some mad social scientist Hugh Downs, Lawrence will be a part of the Kansas City Metro
I'll cut right to the chase, I'm a hoops guy. I love college basketball, I really like the NBA and I'm in a WNBA fantasy league. (The "We Love Kendra Weckers" are struggling right now). I'm all for the NBA calling Kansas City home again. Again? For those of you born post-1985, the Kings resided in K.C. for 13 years before moving to Sac-Town.
My boy Drago though, well, if you couldn't already tell by the name, stereotypes be damned, he's a hockey guy. In his Eastern European drawl, he tells me, "Fred, vat are you tinking? Ze NHL would crush de NBA!"
In a one-on-one fist fight, sure, maybe. But I think the entourage factor gives the NBA a slight edge. While NHL tough guy Tie Domi may knock out Detroit Pistons strongman Ben Wallace initially, Ben's barber, his 7th grade best friend and the woman who braids his hair brandishing a bag of nickels would finally get the last laugh. COMBAT EDGE – NBA.
Drago says, "Okay, okay, I'vegdat to de hoopers, but de hockeyplayers look better den de hoopers."
No contest. When it comes to who looks better, its Communist Bloc versus Hip-Hop. Missing Fronts versus Gold Fronts. Cold Streams versus Bling-Bling. The NBA wins this in a landslide. With the NBAs's new dress code, players looked sharp while still maintaining that urban vibe. Hockey players, sure some of them dress nice,
but missing teeth? Grills may not be for everybody, but at least they're something. APPEARANCE EDGE - NBA
Drago is very disheartened after losing that argument. His once proud, "I just killed Apollo Creed" moment is now swinging wildly as he looks for any edge the NHL might have. Wearily, he mumbles, "Ze hockey iz for everybody, ze people here in de Midwest vill love ze game and its speed and action, no?"
Okay, Drago, I'll give you that. The speed and action of hockey is unlike any other sport. Guys flying around on skates a la Nancy Kerrigan, pre-Jeff Gilooly, smashing each other into the boards and the fights. Yes, the fights. No team sport has fights. Actually...
The NBA does have fights. Though they not only fight each other in the NBA, they fight the fans. You're sitting in the Big Fone and you get this unmistakable urge to pelt Kobe Bryant with a hot dog. Imagine the melee that would ensue. Of course you'd get your brains beat out, but you'd be all over SportsCenter. Hockey can't say that.
Drago is now ecstatic about the idea of the NBA coming to Kansas City, and so am I. Stay tuned for when we break down the movie rating system. Thumbs are for suckers!
Davis is a Topeka senior in journalism and english