The article from the Cincinnatti newspaper is really good. The moment it starts off with... Conference playoffs against Louisville, brought back some memories. I try to watch as many UK and Louisville games as possible and I remember thinking, "this one kid is going to beat the whole Cardinals team"

I can't wait for JMax to get some playing time. The footage from summer league and the block party is amazing.

Here's a little quote from his coach at Cincinnatti:

He maximizes his strength against taller opponents on the blocks, plays excellent help-side defense (where he registers the majority of his block shots) and seemingly always defends switches and picks correctly. Plus, as DeRogatis recalled from his AAU days, he always "could block anything."

Sounds alot like my favorite Center in the NBA. Also reminescent of a certain 6'9" center:

All indications, according to Patricia, are that Maxiell is not big enough to be a power forward in the NBA. At 6-foot-7, he is a good two-to-three inches short than the average NBA No. 4 man. Experts have told her that Maxiell will be a small forward at the next level. According to his coaches and one NBA scout, these indications are dead wrong.

"No way [Maxiell is a small forward]. No way in a million years. He's a power forward. That's what he is," Kennedy said. "That's what the NBA knows he is. They have no misconceptions about him being anything other than a power forward."

Yeah, and Ben is too small to play center.

I guess I am a fan of that Bearcat style, because even though I hated playing against him, Kenyon Martin is an awesome competitor. And Danny Fortson is a great player too. (Seattle is wasting him in an "enforcer only" role). Nothing excites me more than tough, hardworking cats willing to clean up the glass and play some D.

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"Eastern Conference regular-season champs, baby," said Chauncey Billups. "This is what we set out for when we started the season in training camp. We did it and we're happy." (2003)