COMMENTARY: JONATHAN SAYS

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Last week’s UNC-Duke game proved
two things: Duke is worthy of its ranking
and Carolina still has a long way to go
in order to win a title. The Blue Devils
ran their offense effectively and pressured
the Tar Heels into multiple mistakes.
For UNC, Wayne Ellington and Danny
Green couldn’t supply the jump shooting
that the Tar Heels desperately needed
to get back into the game and left Tyler
Hansbrough and Marcus Ginyard to
fend for themselves offensively. If the
Heels want to get back to the title game,
they will need to become more consistent
shooting the ball, especially if Tywon
Lawson’s ankle continues to be a problem.
If they don’t, Carolina will take an early
exit from this year’s NCAA tournament.

NFL

Seriously, Daniel Snyder, after all the
secretive interviews, you hired Jim Zorn?
I’m sorry Redskins fans, but this hire makes
absolutely no sense. Zorn could turn out
to be a great head coach one day, but a
proud organization has hired a position
coach to fill the position of head coach.
Proponents of Zorn will say that his ability
to turn Matt Hasselbeck into a legitimate
Pro Bowl candidate shows his ability
to coach. I agree – but that should qualify
him for an offensive coordinator position
(such as the one Snyder originally hired
him for less than a month ago), not the
top spot. At the end of the day, this
looks like nothing more than a desperation
hire. It was ridiculous of Snyder to
hire a staff before actually hiring a
head coach, and he is now paying the
price. I’m betting that Washington
wins no more than seven games next
season while Zorn gets adjusted to the
new position.

NBA

Phoenix’s trade of Shawn Marion and
Marcus Banks for Miami’s Shaquille O’Neal
in return is a day late and a dollar short
for both teams. Shaq’s age and physical
condition have kept him from being the
threat he was merely five years ago. The
Western Conference has better and more
physical forwards and centers. Shaq will
not be as dominant as he once was and
quite honestly does not fit the Suns’ style
of play. As for the Miami Heat – Marion
gives them an active presence in the post
and Banks gives a young, quick point
guard to spell Jason Williams; but nothing
is going to keep Miami from having the
top pick in this year’s draft.

ELSEWHERE

Are there any Knicks fans out there
freaking out about Stephon Marbury’s
season-ending ankle injury? I didn’t think
so. Marbury is just one of many problems
with the New York organization. The
faster he gets out, the better it will be
for the team. However, that would still
leave Isiah Thomas in charge and Jamal
Crawford, Zach Randolph and Eddy Curry
on the roster. The Knicks should take a
lesson from the rebuilding of the Portland
Trail Blazers – get rid of the problems
and rebuild with young talent and good
character. Until then, Knicks fans can rest
assured that New York will continue to be
down and out.