I think that the NBA did the right thing in taking a more measured approach to the synthetic basketball that is being used in the NBA.  David Stern recently said: 

"Right now our plans are to stay the course, but we will monitor it and if we find there is something to it and it is a serious issue, we will take the appropriate steps because the most important thing to us is the game,"

Earlier this week I got a phone call from Michael Curry who works alongside the executive office of the NBA.  He told me on the call that David Stern was going to order additional testing of the basketball and that the NBA really wanted feedback from the players.  This was great news to hear and I am really glad that the league office is taking feedback from the players so seriously.  I knew from the beginning that the league would listen to the players on this issue.  From all of the reports that I've heard, the main issue with the new basketball is that when it gets wet it gets extremely slippery and can slip out of players' hands causing turnovers, etc.    I'm excited to see how this unfolds.  I think that the additional testing will only confirm what the NBA players feedback has been about how slippery the ball is when it has moisture on it.

Early on, the NBA made the following statement describing the new ball as  "a better ball with a better grip and feel and more consistency from ball-to-ball."  I think that no one would doubt that all of the new balls are almost perfectly identical to a "t".  So there is most certainly "more consistency from ball-to-ball."  But to call the new synthetic ball "better" or that it has a "better grip" I think is premature.  I feel that once all of the feedback gets back to the league from the players, the verdict could be somewhat different.  When  the ball is dry there is no question but that the ball feels much more "tacky" or even sticky to some extent which could make shooting percentages go up.

Perhaps I am wrong though.  On my team there is one huge proponent of the new ball and it is Mike James.  Mike James says that "he loves the new ball."   And he hopes that the media does not go to him, b/c he will tell them he loves it.  Marko Jaric also is comfortable with the new ball, probably because he is used to international competition, where the synthetic ball is the norm.  However, other than Mike and Marko, I've not heard of anyone else loving the ball and I have talked to many many people and players.  And again, they key, prevalent complaint is how slippery the ball gets when it gets a little bit wet.  I think the other MAJOR concern is that all of the players just would like to have a voice in such a major decision.  This has been a common theme on my team inside the locker room.  I think the NBA is doing a great job of getting our feedback now and opening the dialogue by having people like Michael Curry reach out to us personally.

One of the big issues right now in the NBA is the new composite basketball that is now being used.  Let me share a few thoughts about this.

The new ball is a huge issue because it affects the experience that the fans get when they come to games.  On a personal note, it also slips out of my hand in ways that the old one never did.  I am not going to speak about what my teammates' views are about the ball or about how the decision was made to replace the old ball.  The truth is that I haven't gone to each player on the team to ask them, and I have no information on how the "new ball decision" was made. 

Let me just say this.  In my opionion the ball is much more slippery when it gets wet and I can't really control it nearly as well as the old, leather one.  I also understand that when my employer hands down a decision, I am going to embrace it and try to make the best of whatever the decision is.  So that being said, I am going to do everything I can to do my best with the new ball even though I view it as far inferior to the old ball in my opinion.

I also believe that the very best organizations and businesses encourage dialogue from the top to the bottom.  Bad organizations seem to encourage a lot of "yes-men/women."  Great organizations are hungry for feedback.  The NBA is a great league and a great organization.  I truly believe that they will listen to the feedback that the players give. 

I am going to do everything in my power to get the ball changed back to the old one.  As one of two "player representatives" on my team to the NBA players union and ultimately to the NBA, I am going to do everything in my power to determine my team's consensus about the ball and go into action to bring back the old ball.  If all of my teammates love the new ball, then I will drop the issue completely and move on and find a way to love the new ball.   But, based on some informal discussions with teammates I believe there are already some that would like to see the old ball back.

Regardless of the ball, training camp is going phemomenally well here in Mankato.  I look forward to our upcoming scrimmage this saturday night!

We have just finished day #2 of training camp and most of us are exhausted.  The biggest surprise so far to me is just how good our two new rookies are.  Randy Foye is a scoring guard who seems to be able to go around anyone on the perimeter at will.  Craig Smith is a beast.  Craig is about 270 pounds and he is really light on his feet and he scores really well inside with both hands.  It's hard to think of who you might be able to compare Craig Smith to.  Part of me wants to compare him to Charles Barkley, but I think a comparison to Elton Brand could be a good one too.  As far as Randy Foye, I would compare him to Baron Davis or Chauncey Billups.  Both of our rookies are extremely strong and  continue to impress everyone. 

Our first day here in Mankato started with having an awesome dinner at our team owner's house (Glen Taylor) in Mankato.  Glen has really done a lot of interesting things with his life.  The one thing he told us at our meeting was that if we ever wanted to just crash and get away from our hotel in Mankato that we could go over to his house anytime and crash, watch TV, play video games, etc.  I've never heard of a team owner giving an open invitation to his home to his team of NBA players but it was well received by the team.  The only problem is that none of us has been able to take him up on it because we are going two practices a day and we mostly just try to recuperate at the hotel between practices.

During our first team meeting, newcomer, Mike James told the entire team something like, "We're all grown men here....if somebody has a problem go to the person directly and say what's on your mind and let the repurcussions follow."  Mike is a GREAT guy to be around and has been playing really well.

Fred Hoiberg is now assistant GM!

It has been a tumultous past year for Fred Hoiberg.  Ever since he had major heart surgery last summer he has been dying to return to his playing days as one of the best shooters ever to play in the NBA.  A few days ago, the Timberwolves announced that they were formalizing his employment with the team as Assistant General Manager along with our old friend Rob Babcock. 

I think because of Fred's experience along with the tragic death of fellow NBA player and former teammate, Jason Collier, the NBA has made mandatory cardiovascular testing a requirement for all NBA players.  I will have to get on a treadmill with all of the cables attached to my chest next Tuesday in order to determine if I have any heart irregularities along with the rest of the NBA.  Trenton Hassell did his testing yesterday along with a few other of the guys.

Well, I promised I was going to write a little bit more about Randy Foye, but he has been off at "Rookie Transition Camp" so I'm going to wait until he gets back.  Rookie Transition camp was a very interesting experience for me.  Every single incoming rookie in the NBA has to attend or get fined $10,000.00.   When I was there, they brought in accountants, image consultants, financial advisors, and conflict resolution people who try to teach us how to stay calm when things get heated.  Overall it was good.  I remember when David Stern came in to talk to us about the NBA.  He was really cool to all of the guys and actually gave out his email address to all of us and said that if we ever had any concerns, complaints, or questions, to email him directly.  The one area that I have communicated directly with the league on is rules for cheap shots.  During a game, all of us can handle unintentional elbows to the head, throat, back, etc.  What really gets most NBA players mad though is when they get hit with a cheap shot.  I'm going to report back to all of you when they read us the new rules for the coming year, and if I don't like what I hear I am going to protest to the league and through our liason, Billy Hunter. 

Lastly, I wanted to let you all know that Daniel Santiago has been working out with us and he's been looking pretty good.  Daniel is a longtime friend of mine as we played a lot together in LA and we are the same age. Daniel is about 7'1" and he can shoot.  He is from Puerto Rico and has had huge games in international competition against guys like Tim Duncan, and the rest of the US team.   I think Dan brings a very intelligent, and tough big guy to mix.

I have been very impressed with our new draft choice Randy Foye!!!   You are going to like what you see out there!  The last two days a big group of us have been playing pickup ball at the target center.  This is the first time I had met or played with Randy.  I am going to tell you right now that Randy Foye is going to excite the fans at the Target Center a lot.  He is a very good shooter, but most importantly, he has a floater that he seems to be able to shoot over anyone.   I don't have a whole lot of time right now, but in the coming days I am going to write a little bit about each of my new teammates so that you can all get to know them a little bit.  I am going to write a little bit about each new teammate every two days leading up to training camp.

Coach Mike Krzyzewksi of Duke

Coach K had some interesting things to say about basketball in his recent Q&A with the Charlotte Observer.  At one point in the article, he compares young high school basketball players to 16 year old Michelle Wie who is a tremendous young golf talent who is able to reap the financial rewards of turning pro at a young age.  Coach K. stresses that he does not think the exodus of great high school players to the NBA will hurt the college game but that NCAA basketball is going to be fine regardless.  I guess it's just refreshing to see such a respected coach like Mike Krzyzewksi state publicly that opportunities like playing in the NBA should be based on merit---especially when most of the other professional sports are already allowing the best players to come join their ranks.

It is ironic that so many other sports allow high school athletes to make the jump directly to the professional level.  It is really a tough thing to say though given that for every Lebron James, Kevin Garnett, Dwight Howard, or Kobe....there are countless players who don't get drafted and never make an NBA team.  For those guys, (who could have been stars in college), they're thrust overseas or onto some CBA or NBDL team where they have to go against grown men who are ten years older and stronger. 

The quote I found most interesting in a different article by the Charlotte Observer was this one.  Here is the question that was posed to Coack K.  When asked about the biggest differences between the NBA game and the International game, Coach K. responded by saying:

I didn't know this because I'm not coaching the NBA game, but in the NBA, they really don't allow much physical contact. They're trying to make it more of an offensive game, so there's not the bumping and all that on the ball handler. There's no hand checking at all. The international game is 180 degrees different. ... That's their rule, and we have to adjust to it, instead of saying, "That's not the way we play."

                                                        
                                            for complete article, visit: Charlotte Observer

I think in the late 1990's the NBA game was truly a physical, gritty, and very punishing league in terms of physical contact. Granted I was at home in college watching the games from the sofa with a bag of potato chips, but that's my view.   Sometime in the early 2000's the philosophy of the NBA rules committee changed to promote more scoring.  The end result is that in some ways, high school and college basketball are more physical than the NBA.  You might think I am joking or that I don't know what I'm talking about, but I can tell you that when I first played in the Long Beach Summer League with NBA rules for the first time, I almost fouled out in the first game.  I still remember Kevin McHale telling me two years ago about how "if you so much as tough a guy with your hand on the perimeter, it's a foul," whereas, "you can absolutely tackle a guy away from the ball in the paint and there's no foul."  Perhaps the NBA should re-evaluate the direction of the physical contact rules so that we are more prepared for international competition.

At any rate, it is what it is, and we as players have to adjust to it.  To finish up, I wanted to share one line from the letter that Dwayne Casey sent out to all of us players dated August 22nd.  It was a letter that definitely got me fired up for the coming season. "Training camp will be demanding and everyone will have to earn their spot."  I haven't heard a sentence like that since my high school coach John Raynor who referred to every single player every year as a "varsity CANDIDATE."  I am very excited for camp to start and I'll be writing more about our informal team workouts in a few days.

The best free agent power forward in the NBA is Drew Gooden:  

Every summer I follow the NBA free-agency process very closely and I am frankly shocked that Cleveland is not doing everything in their power to retain Drew Gooden.  I've been playing against most nba power forwards over the years and Drew is the best one that is available in this year's class as well as being one of the top players in the league.  If Cleveland is foolish enough to let him go, it will be at their loss.  If there is any way we could get him up to MN to play some center alongside KG, our front line would be unbelievable. 

Mike James

I think that Mike James was one of the best point guards in the entire NBA last season.  I can’t express how excited I was when we signed him this summer.  We only played Toronto twice last season, but both times, Mike James absolutely killed us.  I know that Kevin Garnett has a lot of respect for Mike James and the way Mike James can play the game of basketball.  I only know Mike in the context of playing against him over the years but one thing that stands out about him is his confidence.

"If it wasn't for the game of basketball, I know what I would have done, and it wouldn't have been nice," he said, referring to his rough childhood in Amityville, N.Y. "The only other thing I knew was the streets. Basketball was my way out, so the only thing I can do to give back to the game is play with my heart."    Christopher Cornell - All Headline News Staff Writer

If you don’t love this quote then you probably don’t love the game of basketball.  This quote from Mike James shows his human side and the reality of the tough neighborhood of where he came from.  I cannot wait to play with this guy.  Having competed against him I can tell you that he is one of the best competitors in the world.  KG is going to love him.

I have quite a bit to say about our two new draft picks, but I will put all of that in my next entry.  In the meantime, let me share a little bit of what I’ve been up to in the Twin cities.

Minnesota Calendar of Events

Two weeks ago I attended the Basilica Block party with some friends.  The Basilica of St. Mary’s put on a great event along with Cities 97 and I especially enjoyed listening to Guster perform live.  I have to say that the crowd roared when one of the lead singers got up on stage between songs and admitted that he had used a few expletives in one of his songs personally apologized to the Parish.  I don’t think anyone in the audience really cared, and to be honest, I’m not sure if the head priest was going to put anyone on probation, but the crowd thought it was a great line.

Minnesota nice took on a new meaning on that Friday night when a Minnesota Timberwolves fan passed by my and my friends and whispered in my ear something like “Now I know for sure that the NBA height charts lie….there’s no way you’re 6’9”.”   We both laughed and he walked away.  I didn’t have time to explain the little “trick” that we use of getting measured in our shoes. 

Tonight I made the decision to run my first ever 5K.  If any of you have ever been involved with the Lifetime Fitness Torchlight 5K run, it is an event I will never forget.  One of my friends here in MN was a record holder in the 400 hurdles at BYU and he told me about the event.  About six of us got together to run the event.  For those of you that are non-runners, I have to paint the picture for you.  There were literally thousands of people lined up on Hennepin Ave and 11^th street which was the starting line.  Right at the front were the “hard core” runners who must have been waiting for a long time to get the prime starting spots.  They were the super athletic guys and girls with the running gear that looked serious.  In my mind I was going to try to win the race.  When the gun went off I stayed right up at the front of the pack and dreamed of winning.  After about four blocks, I realized that there was no way I could stay up there with the gazelles.  Serious runners go VERY fast—I was shocked at how fast the pace was.

When I finally settled into my pace, I was passed by two 45 year old men pushing strollers with two kids in each of them.  Finally when I finished the race this older gentleman came up and said to me “Good job out there Mark….what was your time?”  I responded by telling him that I clocked just over 28 minutes for the 5k and asked him how he did.  He got sheepish and said, “Well, I ran it in 24 minutes and I’m 60 years old as of two days ago.”   The kid who won the entire event must have been about 18 and I think he finished the 3.1 mile course in slightly over 15 minutes.  I think that young guy has a serious running future in store for himself.

The running community is really fun to be a part of.  It was especially cool at the end when everyone sat down and drank powerade and ate salty potato chips and power bars together.  I hope to see some of you at one of the next big Minneapolis Marathons, or a 5K in Minneapolis!  In the meantime I will reflect on the comment one runner made to me while he passed me midway through the run while it must have looked to him like I was standing still.  I think it went something like this.  “Don’t worry about it…you’re definitely a fast twitch athlete!” 

 PS--If any of you can find Marko Jaric's Myspace.com profile I will post your picture on this blog.  Marko told me he has one, but I can't find him for the life of me.  I finally updated my myspace page even though there is a fake one of me that looks real, but it's not and it says some crazy stuff.