We could’ve have been more thrilled to see Northwestern’s Chris Collins hire former Peoria Central & Indiana University stand-out A.J. Guyton. The former Chicago Bull will be an instant splash with the Wildcat Program. Guyton, has always been one of my favorite Illinois Warrior Alum’s.
The 2017 Basketball Hall of Fame Ceremony over this past week-end in Springfield,Mass was highly impactful. Head-lining the star power occasion were inductees Rebecca Lobo, Bill Self, Mannie Jackson, the late Jerry Krause, George McGinnis, Muffet McGraw, and Tracy McGrady. I thought the speeches that were presented captivated the audience leaving an empowering message. This Ceremony was one to remember.
Kudos to Chicago Phillips football Coach Troy McAllister for having the wisdom as well as the confidence to push his program for excellence, instead of opting for small school titles. McAllister has elected to petition the IHSA to move his Program up to Class 5A, his Phillips squad currently competes in 3A. Which leads me to several basketball programs in the area performing in the State 2A and 3A format, while clearly having far more superior talent than their opponents and happy to amass multiple titles. Hopefully McAllister’s vision will set a trend of goal-standard for our hoop Coaches.
It’s un-fortunate that the once customary scouting service bureau has lost its value in recent years, much to the wave of social media outlets & analytic tools which allegedly provides a rapid source for data. Today, scouting services are viewed as a misty-eyed venture especially for minorities/Afro-Americans, simply because most of the Blacks in the College Coaching don’t look to lift/support or empower their own. Mannie Jackson’s Hall of Fame speech was enlightening, it stroke a cord in some of us, that fellow Hall Fame Coach George Raveling resonated in my head years ago. We have so many guys in the business today zoned out; their mission is landing the next gig! Afro-Americans take out each other so often; just look at the general service industry communicating with the population they serve can be emotionally draining. “I’m not instigating trail blazer either.”
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