To the rest of the world that loves basketball, the Oklahoma City Thunder loss, came as a shock to many, considering they were up in the series with three chances to close it out. Along with that, getting to this point, they beat the second best team in the league, the San Antonio Spurs, who, according to many experts, were the favorite to win the whole thing.
   The three fools (the TNT panel, of course), in all their wisdom, correctly noted how OKC got off to a 3-1 lead, acknowledging how they used a big line up versus going small ball. To their points, every other team, all season, went small against the Warriors, falling for their trap, so to speak. When OKC went big, they began to get all the rebounds, lifting them to a 3-1 advantage. The three wisemen also noted how Enes Kanter and Steven Adams were big guys that can play, versus big guys that are just out there bumbling around. They were getting all the loose boards, changing the series for OKC, giving Durant and Westbrook room to breath. The other factor was Waiters, getting rebounds, causing havoc on defense and providing a spark offensively. Then, as the Warriors came back it became clear that Ibaka was playing more, Roberson was playing more...Of course, the Warriors are going to hit their shots. The strategy up to game five was working well. Then, in Game 7, the bickering began on offense. It's okay to bicker on defense but never on offense. Once you have the ball you have to turn the switch and let everyones' idea be a "good idea." If it's not, then the coach will bicker with the player(s), correcting the hero ball, or what have you. So the bickering begins on the offensive side of the ball and this comes out of frustration from the spectacular shooting of the Warriors, and, to my estimation, a feeling among the players in regards to the stories of Durant leaving OKC, win or lose. It seems that Waiters, as good as he was playing, was looking for a promotion and saw an opportunity to take more of a leadership role within the team or with another franchise and he began to assert himself behind the scenes, causing friction. His agent must have told him, "Look, you're playing well, it's prime time coverage, against the defending champs, and you have an opportunity here to play a bigger role on this team, or another." I could be wrong, but he, Durant and Westbrook were going at it in the worst way possible during a Game 7, of all times. This caused the team's confidence to go down.
   All in all, the problem with OKC's loss came down to coaching decisions. For one, the coach needs to prohibit infighting and lay down the law: You can yell at each other on defense but on offense everyone's an artist. Then, line up issues kept them down. More bigs should've remained a strong part of the line up and Waiters should've been directed to full court press Curry at every given moment that Curry had the ball...particularly in all full court one v one situations. The idea is to get Curry tired. Sure, he's going to beat you on the dribble here and there, but once you wear out his legs, he'll become fatigued sooner and his shot will eventually suffer. (Watch any game pre-1999; there's a lot of one v one full court pressure.) It's better than allowing him three to five feet of a defensive gap every time he's on the ball. How does that help your cause? It doesn't, at all. This plays into the recent complaints of veteran players such as Isiah Thomas, proclaiming that "in his day Curry wouldn't have gotten away with all that," which is very true. The defense today is toned down so much compared to Thomas' era. There's too much room given to the star playmakers. Man them up, wear them out with an expendable player and work the boards. Never did the coach direct Waiters or Westbrook to full court press Curry one v one, on the dribble. The Cavs should learn really quickly to throw what's his name from Australia on Curry with a one v one full court press, and hope for the best. 

Great Things I Saw This Week, 1

1. A documentary on Stalin. The documentary, not his policies. 
2. Portlandia.
3. Kanye West on Ellen. Anytime someone wants to change the world, and improve peoples' lives with a line of clothing, that's pretty good. 
4. NBA on TNT.
5. Misery, which I've never seen before. 
6. Colors, which I've seen too often, but it's been a while. Pac Man, we're gonna get you now. Okay. That's enough. That's not Rocket! That's not Rocket! Okay. Seriously, that's it. 
7. Charlie Rose. 
8. Messi on Youtube. Maradona on Youtube. Anything Argentinean on Youtube. 
9. Ancient Aliens, Antarctica...works for me.
10. Back to Colors. Sean Penn, too cool as a punk cop. Don Cheadle, too cool as Rocket. Damon Wayans, too cool as a misunderstood guy wearing a diaper, dancing in a department store. 
11. Trump, Hillary...the greatest debates yet to come. 
12. Pardon the Interruption.
13. Anderson Cooper. 
14. I was reachin' for my pants, man. Okay, that's it. Directed by Dennis Hopper. Featuring Robert Duvall. Coming to a stage near you, starring Tracy Morgan as the old, savvy cop, Nathan Lane, as the young punk cop and Zac Efron as Rocket. Possibly Seth Rogen as Frog. Or Jonah Hill. No, no. Joaquin Phoenix. John C. Reilly, egh, too tall. Whatever. They'd more than likely turn it down b/c this is quite literally the worst idea anyone has ever had...Somewhere in the middle of the play Tracy announces to Nathan, "Wait, wait. I'm gonna play the young punk cop and you're gonna play the older, savvy cop." They switch roles. The audience has no objection. As the play ends, Tracy exclaims, "Thank God I read the script ahead of time. Where's the part where I tell the story about the cows and bulls?"

5-18-16
Liverpool played Sevilla for the championship, basically the warm up final for the Champions League Final between Athletico Madrid and Real Madrid in a few days. What is the Europa League Final? It's like the NIT for college basketball. It's not as glamorous as the Champions League. The teams that were right behind qualification for the Champions League qualify for it; which are top flight clubs to say the least. Is it just another game? Maybe. But it's a good final, nonetheless. Liverpool got out to an early lead, however Sevilla came back to win the game by a score of 3-1. 

There are a number of ways to improve the odds of your son or daughter earning a college scholarship for soccer. Some of them make sense, while others are a waste of time. As your son or daughter moves through high school there is a lot of discussion as to whether or not a college scholarship is attainable. Not only is it a possibility but it could be a real goal if the player in question concentrates on a few things at home, in the backyard. 
   "Set Goals." This is said a lot. Clearly, a player needs to set goals. But what should those goals be? There are a number of ideas as to which area of concentration will make a player better. Many people disagree on these points. And that's fine. There needs to be disagreement to reach the best possible answers. Some think fitness is the most important. Others think speed is the most important. If this is at the top of their list, they're wrong. Fitness and speed are absolutely necessary in order to being a complete player. There's no way around that. In part of my suggested training, the player should dedicate three nights a week to improving their forty yard dash and the hundred yard sprint. But, above anything else, a player with their eye on playing in college - regardless of their skill level - should concentrate on skills; improving them and keeping them at a high standard.
   A few fast track suggestions are: 

Limit the leg weights. Soccer players should concentrate on dribbling moves, sprints and jogging for lower body strength and endurance. Weights for the upper body are fine. 

Get the juggle above 500. 
Practice juggling every other day, for a 1/2 hour to an hour. Make sure both feet are being used. 70% feet. 20% thighs. 7% head and 3% shoulders. Or 8% head and 2% shoulders; whichever you prefer. Kidding. But make sure some headers and a few shoulder juggles are thrown in there. After a player reaches the marathon number of 500, then apply the skill to trick juggles which include the heel, outside of the foot, along with headers and shoulders. When doing trick juggles make sure they are done with success. Just flipping the foot out there, and not completing a "move" is unacceptable. If you're going to do it, then do it correctly. What do tricks have to do with the game? Very little, and quite a lot, all the same. They provide confidence for a player, which is the key to practicing them. Often, they will not be used in a game but mastering them provides more confidence to the fundamental skills.

Repeat the 30 plus dribbling moves ten times with each foot. Repeat every other day. Or, at least three nights per week. 

Shooting and Passing...
For more, read Why American Soccer Isn't There Yet. 

The Five Secret ways the USMNT will win the 2016 Copa America. 

1. Start Yedlin and Shea at outside defenders. Let them do what they do. Which is dribble and attack. 
2. Push Bradley back to center defense, alongside Ream. (Keep the two of them there, until they retire! How many years do US soccer fans have to watch central defenders who are ill-equipped to orchestrate the possession game? It's not enough to just defend. They also have to apply central midfield skill.) 
​3. Out possess each opponent. Concentrate on the long-term possession of each game and goals will naturally arrive. 
4. Embrace the underdog role, but don't allow it to define the one-on-one situations or battle for possession. 
​5. For more see Why American Soccer Isn't There Yet. 

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Photo: Copperfields Bookstore website, Author Events, May 2016


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The USMNT has a great opportunity to enter the world's elite hierarchy by winning the 2016 Copa America. It will be hosted in the US for the first time, celebrating the hundred year anniversary, where all the top teams of North and South America will compete. Should the US place well it would be seen as a great accomplishment by the US Soccer Federation. And it should. However, winning it all would be outstanding, to say the least. Argentina and Brazil will likely have their top players available. Injuries would be the only reason they wouldn't. For some reason, tournaments like this are more important to Brazil and Argentina than the Olympics, which is hosted by Brazil this summer. The history of the South American Cup is prestigious and generally it has been won by either Brazil, Argentina or Uruguay. And really, those are the true threats from the south. Columbia and Chile would be the other two, with arguments made on behalf of Bolivia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Paraguay. Yet, it's hard to argue that they're top teams. Columbia and Chile, yes. But the others are hit or miss, depending on what crop of talent they happen to have. So, with that said, the US has a good chance to show the world they belong in the conversation of the top teams of America. Currently, this is the case, however the US is considered to be the same caliber as Chile, which is no disrespect, but at the same time it's placing the US in a second tier category. A team which can win on any given day, but a team that is struggling to be as consistent as the top powers around the world, which would include Spain, Italy, Germany and Holland. And, that's where CONCACAF currently resides as a conference. Of course, it's less talented than Europe but any of the teams can give a good game for whoever they're playing. Which leaves the 2016 Copa America an interesting tournament which will provide the South American favorites a real challenge.