meta-Jay Bilas

[feldspar]

I am in agreement with you on most of that. Teaching team defense is fine. Learning helpside defense and proper team positioning is fine. Moving quickly and getting into a legal and established position is fine.

The question is, what do you do when you get there? Falling down isn't defense and it isn't skillful. Skill is the ability to play the angles, to challenge and alter the shot of the driving player, to force him to into a trapped position with the ball without making body contact and not hacking him when goes to the rim. Skill is being able to force him to commit and leaave the ground, skill is then getting vertical and defending it without fouling.

Duke plays wonderful team defense as far as proper positioning. I love watching Duke players position themselves and communicate. It is after that they sometimes lose me. Because they don't finish playing defense, they fall over. There is too much of it in college basketball and in my opinion when it is egregious, and the offensive player goes hard to the basket and has a clear lane, only to have a player slide in and fall over, the refs should swallow their whistle, look down at the defender and shrug.

It is just the way I was taught and just my opinion.

I agree, and the problem is that players don't recognize that when you fake a charge, all you are doing is giving an advantage to your opponent. 9 times out of 10 the ref is going to be able to tell if it's a flop or a legitimate charge, so it's better to stand your ground and play defense even if the contact is not enough to throw you to the floor.

[johnb]

I think the Bilas criticisms are overdone. He's smart, generally very attentive, thoughtful, and sounds pretty unibiased to me. I don't need guys on tv to be Duke enthusiasts; I can handle that role myself.

[devilirium]

^ Agreed. He's all of those things at times. He wasn't last nite, though. His analysis, in fact, was moronic at times. ESPN may want to go back to not having him call Duke games. It's too tempting, but then again this is ESPN's way of being "edgy".

[BlueDevilJay]

Speaking of Jay and the commentating, did either of the commentators point out the fact that there was a technical foul called on Reid, followed by NO FREE THROWS??? Since when did you not shoot a free throw from a technical foul?? Was there a double tech called or something? I still can't figure that one out.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

I think the Bilas criticisms are overdone. He's smart, generally very attentive, thoughtful, and sounds pretty unibiased to me. I don't need guys on tv to be Duke enthusiasts; I can handle that role myself.

I agree! I'm happy we won in Tallahassee and no one got injured.... by another player or the crowd. I'm focusing my energy on getting ready for Clemson!

[Matches]

Speaking of Jay and the commentating, did either of the commentators point out the fact that there was a technical foul called on Reid, followed by NO FREE THROWS??? Since when did you not shoot a free throw from a technical foul?? Was there a double tech called or something? I still can't figure that one out.

It was a double tech on Reid and Paulus.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

As you read the comments on this thread, particularly the negative ones, compare them to the comments on the thread about the FSU fan near the ESPN mike... not a good place for a commentator to be seated!

[watzone]

I have a foot on both sides of the ladder on this one and I am watching, waiting for someone to convince me how to come down Overall, I think he is fair, but I do feel there are times when he is a bit over the top on criticism towards Duke. I think the climate of anti-Duke sentiment makes it stand out more than it normally would. Besides, he seemed to bristle at me the last time he charted the waters. Seriously, I doubt K, JD, and Alarie would hold him in such high esteem if they didn't feel his comments or style were okay. But I have heard some close to Duke be a little concerned, but they seem to shake it off quickly and maybe that's what we should do. It does seem to come up a lot though ...

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

I have a foot on both sides of the ladder on this one and I am watching, waiting for someone to convince me how to come down Overall, I think he is fair, but I do feel there are times when he is a bit over the top on criticism towards Duke. I think the climate of anti-Duke sentiment makes it stand out more than it normally would. Besides, he seemed to bristle at me the last time he charted the waters. Seriously, I doubt K, JD, and Alarie would hold him in such high esteem if they didn't feel his comments or style were okay. But I have heard some close to Duke be a little concerned, but they seem to shake it off quickly and maybe that's what we should do. It does seem to come up a lot though ...

Being uncomfortable with "dead air," air with no human voice talking, seems to plague those on the air, Jay included. When he's not having his best night, I remind myself of the very fine letter he wrote back in June when he said so eloquently and thoroughly what many of alums were thinking and feeling.

The next game is now day after tomorrow. I'm ready to think about preparing for Clemson.

[redick4pres]

I don't think Jay's comments were that bad. I do believe he goes a little overboard trying not to sound like a Dukie. However, he is just trying to be professional and I think we are wrong is we critisize him for that. He is one of the best analyists in the college game now so let's give him his props instead of tearing him down!

[CathyCA]

I'm so glad that the biggest item of contention over last night's game was Jay's calling of the game. If that's what our fan base is going to complain about on the morning after the game, then our team must be good.

Enjoy it! We won last night. Celebrate!

[ugadevil]

Last night, Bilas started to remind me of Bill Walton the way he was talking about play of Jason Rich. "How did he do that!?!?!" & "When I grow up, I want to be Rich!!!!!!!" (He was probably waiting all night to get that line in.) It seems like because he was named as the temporary fill-in for Vitale's position, he's doing everything he can to be as enthusiastic as Vitale, which just seemed awkward.

[dcarp23]

Personally, I couldn't care less which player he hypes, how excited he gets, or if he treats Duke "fairly." His job is to analyze the game, which I think he does very well. He breaks down plays and offers insights that a number of analysts do not.

My only beef is that in EVERY close game I have heard him broadcast this year, at the five minute mark, he has said, "This game is going to come down to toughness. Whichever team wants this game more is going to win."

From my perspective that is a) lazy and b) incorrect. Jimmy Dykes went into the same crazed rant at the end of the Tech game last night, talking about how 10% of being a championship team is having "IT," apparently some characteristic that defines a champion.

Which team played tougher and had "IT" in the two games last night? Was it Duke? Was it FSU? Was it Carolina? Was it Tech? If Peacock's shot had fallen for Tech and Singler's three had missed, would Duke and Carolina be less tough and not have "IT?" Who the hell knows? And does it matter?

Perhaps Duke won the game by being tougher last night, but I'd be willing to bet that being smarter, being better shooters and better defenders probably had just as much to do with the win than being "tougher." I think statements like those that Jay continues to make are appropriate for coaches in the huddle at the end of games, but as his job is to explain the nuances of the game, I feel that he gets a little carried away and a little lazy in those situations.

[OZ]

Since reading DBR I have read a stream of criticisms about Packer, Patrick, Vitale, Elmore, any t.v. coverage (ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, ABC, NBC, BBC) and now Bilas. So, since no one seems to be able to please us, I guess our best option is to just wait and read the papers...no, we can't do that either, we don't care for any of the reporters.

And somehow, Bilas being "aloof" as an 22 year old is supposed to be relevant to his ability to be a sports announcer... To quote President Clinton, "Give me a break."

[dukepsy1963]

I can't think of a single game where announcers determined the outcome of a game! Maybe somebody does, but I've searched my own failing memory and can't come up with a single instance.

Talk is talk. Turn the sound off and play a recording of the crazies! Or, failing that, get a sound effects record of cheering and play that over and over! Or, only watch games with a large number of Dukies...their cheers and boos would drown out the announcer and color person! It really, really works!

As for me....
I love my Dukies and I frankly don't give a damn what the announcers say. Life is too short and I've created enough worries in my life...
If they bug me, I turn them off!

[DevilCastDownfromDurham]

Speaking only for myself, there are a fairly large number of announcers I enjoy. Raftery, Spanarkel, G-Man, and even Majerus (though he's fun to tease). My all-time favorite was actually Brad Dougherty, who we've lost to NASCAR. And Jay is usually one of my favorites as well. He's in a uniquely tough position re: Duke and I'm just not a fan of how he responds to that situation. Most pro announcers are good as well (the Ernie, Kenny, Sir Charles lineup is AWESOME).

Unfortunately, college basketball, and especially Duke, is stuck with some cruddy ones (Vitale, Patrick) and we seem to get paired with a few (Elmore, Packer) that have a specific, historically-based animus against us. I assume this is to draw in/feed the anti-Duke folks who watch our games.

[ghost]

I generally like Jay's commentary, but last night wasn't one of his better games. The comments on the under the basket thing WERE pretty bad.

This is a comment both on the commentators and the editors: There wasn't a single mention of Henderson's dunk on the missed free throw, or a replay of it from a different angle. I HATE that under the basket camera on free throws. It really doesn't show me anything good about the shooter, and if he misses, I miss ALL the action that ensues. Do a closeup of the shooter's face before the shot, then switch to the long view during the shot! If you aren't going to comment on what Henderson did to get there or show a replay, just use the regular camera so I can see it myself! That drives me crazy. I've missed TONS of plays like that the last couple seasons thanks to the "closer" camera views, especially on fast breaks. On fast breaks, you can't see the play develop AT ALL, and if the shot is missed, you're totally in the dark. I say, use the long camera angle and if there's something cool in the closeup, show it in a replay.

Finally, did Paulus ever get to shoot a free throw for the technical when he got punched? They were so busy analyzing the play that I missed that entirely.

Also, on my TiVo, watching it multiple times, it seemed to me from the long camera zoomed in from the other baseline that it was NOT Reid's punch that did the most damage. It seemed like the first player that went for the ball smacked Paulus right in the nose and mouth pretty hard, resulting in Paulus' initial kick, THEN Reid hit him in the side of the head. Did anybody else see that? The commentator's didn't comment on that either. It seemed like his lip was swollen afterward and he was using a towel on it a lot, NOT on the side and back of his head. Thoughts?

-Joe

I agree with the assessment on the "punch". #3 (who was on the right of the opposite baseline shot) smacked P in the nose in mouth in an "attempt" to pull the ball away. It was that hit that caused most of the damage. Reid's hit looks worse, because from the birds-eye view, you can tell he went in there swinging.

I believe they called technicals on both paulus and reid, resulting in no free throws

[ugadevil]

Most pro announcers are good as well (the Ernie, Kenny, Sir Charles lineup is AWESOME).

I also love Ernie, Kenny, and Charles. I say Majerus was turrible. Just turrible.

[greybeard]

Speaking only for myself, there are a fairly large number of announcers I enjoy. Raftery, Spanarkel, G-Man, and even Majerus (though he's fun to tease). My all-time favorite was actually Brad Dougherty, who we've lost to NASCAR. And Jay is usually one of my favorites as well. He's in a uniquely tough position re: Duke and I'm just not a fan of how he responds to that situation. Most pro announcers are good as well (the Ernie, Kenny, Sir Charles lineup is AWESOME).

Unfortunately, college basketball, and especially Duke, is stuck with some cruddy ones (Vitale, Patrick) and we seem to get paired with a few (Elmore, Packer) that have a specific, historically-based animus against us. I assume this is to draw in/feed the anti-Duke folks who watch our games.

I like Lennie. Think he's real smart and enjoy his insights. that said, he has no business doing college basketball games. None. He is an agent. This is a blatant conflict of interest, only there is no code of ethics concerning talking heads. It's almost an oxymoron. Against Len's deaf ear, Jay's going over-the-top to avoid any arguable appearance of bias is refreshing.

Wonder what Lennie does when he is covering a game in which a player who he'd like to represent is playing?

Come on, Lennie, in the words of Sabastian, it's time to "pick up on one and leave the other behind. It's not often easy and not often kind. . . . There's so many changes and tears you must hide." Even if there are no rules to be broken, you really do "have to finally decide."

[DevilCastDownfromDurham]

Quote:
"I say Majerus was turrible. Just turrible."


For me Rick "calves" Majerus is what Dickie V was 30 years ago (before he went senile) and Walton was 5 years ago (before he really got his act together): a clown that is both knowledgeable and hilarious. I've never heard any bias from him, he knows the rules and the strategy, and is simply off the chart on the (I think un-) intentional comedy scale. What a gem.