Hoops fans, I am utterly beside myself as I post this entry. The self-proclaimed "Worldwide Leader in Sports" is off their collective nut. My personal favorite cable network must have missed the memo that our great state of Indiana may not have invented the greatest sport on earth, but we certainly raised and reared it, making it what it is today. Currently, ESPN's high school magazine is doing a piece asking readers and fans to determine which state reigns supreme as the king of basketball. The choices? New York, Illinois, California, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and New Jersey. Astonishing. Michigan? New Jersey? Over the Hoosier State? You have got to be kidding me. The state that gave you the Big O, Bird, Oden, and too many others to name is battling it out as a play-in vote?!?!?! My first thought, like many of yours, is that this has got to be a misprint or an oversight. Alas, it's the real deal. My advice? Go to the link below and vote our great state in as one of the two final seeds, and we'll see some early March Madness or Hoosier Hysteria as Indiana upsets the favorites in the poll. Here's the link:
http://sports.espn.go.com/highschool/rise/basketball/boys/news/story?id=3843743
As it states at the bottom, voting will run from January 26-28, so be sure to go back on those dates and speak the truth on behalf of the real basketball state!
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Best Basketball State in America: NO INDIANA???
Posted by p-hoops at 2:03 PM
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9 comments:
Pretty ridiculous! I could understand the first two, but they should be labeled Illinois (Chicago) and New York (New York City) Other than those two, the amount of D1 talent that comes out of this state is second to none. Those other states being ahead of Indiana is a joke.
Here's what I had to say on ESPN's comment section-
Indiana. Hoosier Hysteria. Basketball. When you're talking about one, you have no choice but to talk about all three. Here are some very basic reasons why Indiana should be considered for (at the VERY least) a play-in seed:
1. Hoosiers- The single greatest sports movie of all time. Are you doing to deny Milan and Bobby Plump?
2. Hinkle Fieldhouse- You haven't seen a basketball game until you've taken in a game at the historic Hinkle Fieldhouse
3. New Castle Fieldhouse- The largest high school basketball gymnasium in the country seats around 10,000... the school has a poputlation of around 1,000. Indiana is home to the top 5 largest, and 9 of the top 10 high school gyms in the country.
4. Current teams- Butler/Purdue/Notre Dame are all currently ranked in the top 20. All based on primarily Indiana talent.
5. Recent talent- Sean May, Eric Gordon, Greg Oden, Mike Conley, Josh McRoberts, Tyler Zeller, Dominic James, Jeff Teague etc etc
6. All-time Grears- The Big O, Larry Legend, George Mcginnis... oh and some guy named John Wooden... 'wiki' him kids.
7. The Indiana Hoosiers and Bob Knight- No explanation needed.
8. HS Success on the National level- Lawrence North won I think 3 'mythical titles' in a row. Currently have ~6 teams in the top 100 depending on the source.
9. These videos- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_2krAi6dbQ AND http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7N-qQfgn9MA
10. This quote- "Basketball may have been born in Massachussetts, but it grew up in Indiana"
Excellent blog by the way! Moved away to Chicago last fall for school but check back here almost daily to see whats new around the area, thanks!
Garrison-
Excellent response to ESPN. Thanks also for the compliment on the blog. Keep reading!
Indiana sucks ass at sports what r u guys smoking? What Indiana athletes matchup with badasses from LA or Oakland? May I add that the "greats" what's his face mentioned played back when the pros just about wore thongs. And actually, statistically California, Texas, and Florida produce the most D1 talent of any states ask ESPN experts. But I agree NY, NJ are complete BS.
Oh and Indianas full of hick. Seriously.
And P.S. Last time I checked movies don't count. But if u wanna go there I bet more basketball related films are made in Hollywood,CA
Oh and ur right John Wooden is a BEAST and so is Greg Oden.
Actually 19 of the 20 largest high school basketball gymnasiums are in Indiana.
The largest crowd to ever watch a high school basketball game ANYWHERE was in Indiana during the 1990 state basketball championship. Over 41,000 were in attendance.
Dating back to 1987, and probably even way further, Indiana has the most Gatorade National Player of the Year recipients for basketball of any state.
No other state could even come close to assembling an all-time state high school team that could compete with the likes of Larry Bird, Glenn Robinson, Greg Oden, Eric Gordon, Damon Bailey, Oscar Robertson, Sean May, Jared Jeffries, Steve Alford, Mike Conley, and Deshaun Thomas coached by John Wooden.
I grew up in Indiana and have lived in other states for the last 40 years...I can tell you without doubt that Indiana IS the king of high school basketball. Other states may turn out comparable talent and may be able to spout statistics to back up their arguments, but when you factor in the enthusiasm and passion that people show for the high school game I have seen nothing close to the Indiana experience!
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