Gonzaga poised to have a special year
A GRIP ON SPORTS
There have been rumblings up around Boone St. and Hamilton Ave. You know, about how this may just be the best team Mark Few's put together at Gonzaga. Looking over the roster, the talent certainly is there. But talent is only part of the equation. Solving for FF, as in reaching the Final Four, is always about the other variables. Read on.
• The West Coast Conference held its media day yesterday in Los Angeles and the Zags were, surprise, picked to win the darn thing again. It's a rare year when Few's team isn't, of course, but this may be as close to a lock as the Zags have had since, I don't know, a couple of years ago. Back when they were ranked No. 1 in the nation for a while. That team was somewhat of a surprise – who knew Kelly Olynyk would make such a leap? – due to circumstances. This team has been a couple years in the making. The pieces have been put together with painstaking care, from long-cultivated veterans to upper-class transfers to precocious freshmen. The three returning starters, guards Kevin Pangos, Gary Bell and post Prezmek Karnowski – have played more than 50 games together. Transfers like Kyle Wiltjer (Kentucky), Byron Wesley (USC) and Eric McClellan (Vanderbilt, eligible later this season) have competed in the top conferences in the nation. The freshmen – three guards, Silas Melson, Bryan Alberts and Josh Perkins, and post Domantas Sabonis – not only are athletic but have enough skill and savvy to contribute this season if needed. The returning role players, like Angel Nunez and Kyle Dranginis, have been around long enough to know what's expected of them. There is enough depth that practices have been intense and competitive (at least from what I've heard), which bodes well for the season. That depth is a blessing – if anyone is injured, there are others waiting in the wings – and, can be, a curse – playing time will be at premium. And that is the key. The Zags have a solid core but are blending in a lot of new parts. A team isn't just a collection of pieces. It is a group not only playing together but pulling together. The best teams have talent, sure, but, more importantly, has talented players who are willing to, at times, sublimate that talent for the greater good. And know when that is appropriate and when it isn't. That's the challenge Few and his staff face. Blending this group of players into a team. Let's face it. There is enough talent in McCarthey to win the WCC without that happening. But to reach the ultimate goal, a trip to Indianapolis in early April, that takes some players reaching beyond themselves, giving up some individual goals for team ones. It's always been that way from Phog Allen through John Wooden to John Calipari. Talent is key but selfless talent is crucial.
• This new look Zag team will strut its stuff for the first time Saturday at the Kennel in an exhibition game against a Canadian school, Thompson Rivers. (The Kamloops school's athletic director is Ken Olynyk, Kelly's father, so there is a connection.) After that, though, the schedule is challenging. SMU and St. Joseph's at home, Georgia and either Minnesota or St. John's in New York, Arizona – there have been some special games against the Wildcats – and UCLA on the road. Mixed in are enough palate-cleansers like St. Thomas Aquinas to work out flaws. Then comes the WCC regular season schedule, the conference's post-season tournament and, if everything works out as planned, the NCAA tourney. It should be a fun year.
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• WSU: Jacob Thorpe had his usual busy Monday and it is reflected elsewhere on this blog. He's got video of interviews with Mike Leach, Connor Halliday, Vince Mayle and Jeremiah Allison (pictured). And that's just the start. ... The Pac-12 announced a series of changes in how it will deal with its athletes starting next year. Jacob highlighted those changes in this blog post and others around the conference's footprint also examined them. ... "So you're telling me there's a chance?" Yes, Jacob is saying that about a bowl game in this story. ... He also has a morning post with links and a first look at Saturday's opponent, USC. ... To beat the Trojans, WSU will have to contain this guy. ... The kickoff time for next Saturday's game at Oregon State will be the seemingly perfect time of 1 p.m. ... This week's Pac-12 games include the always-important Oregon/Stanford matchup.
• Gonzaga: Jim Meehan has a story on the men's team and another on the women, coming out of the WCC media day. Both were picked to win the conference in the preseason coaches' polls. ... BYU was picked second in both and that led to some stories from the Salt Lake papers. ... St. Mary's is the third choice among the men while Santa Clara is well down the list.
• Chiefs: We can pass along a WHL notebook from Everett.
• Preps: Lake City solidified its hold atop the NWPrepsNow power rankings.
• Seahawks: Pete Carroll did his best yesterday to bury the reports Marshawn Lynch was a problem and would be leaving the Hawks before the trade deadline, though the running back's future after the season remains murky. With the trade deadline looming, the question is will the Hawks make any moves? ... Looking back at the Carolina game, the Hawks did just enough to win. We also have the snap counts from that game.
• Mariners: D.J. Peterson was selected to play in the Fall League's all-star game. ... The Giants will try to close out the Royals tonight behind veteran pitcher Jake Peavy. Peavy's son let the cat out of the bag yesterday.
• Sounders: The MLS yesterday made officially something everyone has known: Chivas USA is folding. Losing the Los Angeles-base team means the league needs to re-align. Two teams from the middle part of the country – Houston and Kansas City – were switched from the Eastern Conference to balance the 20-team league. ... Sigi Schmid met with the media yesterday and talked about the realignment, among other things. ... The Sounders didn't set an attendance record this season. Of course, their average per game was still nearly double the next best team in the MLS. ... Marco Pappa played some 20 minutes over the weekend. He won the MLS's player of the week award.
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• I remember a lot of advertising jingles from my childhood. If anything is a soundtrack to my life, it may be those ditties from Slinky to some really odd toy having to do with a sixth finger. Man alive. That may be why I have such a soft spot for "Mad Men." Anyhow, there was one about the best part of waking up. Remember? Well, it's still true, even if I don't drink my morning half-cup of coffee from that company anymore. My tastes run a little more toward coffee that has a connection to doughnuts. It's a Homer Simpson-like thing. Until later ...
