Revisiting Durant trade? Kent Somers honored, NIL in AZ high schools, Freud movie review, more…

The late great Valley columnist Joe Gilmartin once told me, “Big Guy, sometimes you need to bring out the sledgehammer, and other times the fly swatter; you just have to decide.” This is the latter of the two. 

Is it fair to wonder if the Kevin Durant trade is a failure?…

We are just over eleven months into the future Hall of Famer’s run with the Suns, and so far, the answer to the question would have to be a “YES”. Durant is undoubtedly why I watch and occasionally attend from October through mid-April, but the only games that truly matter in the Association are played after April 15th. He has laced them up in 30 of the 37 games, is leading the team in scoring, and looks as good as ever.  A new head coach, a bunch of injuries, and new faces have led to our hometown heroes on the hardwood as one of the biggest(if not THE biggest) disappointments in the first half of the 23/24 season. Thankfully, there are so many average and below rosters that a burst of winning several in a row shouldn’t be that far away. 

Durant is 35. Using the “well, we couldn’t stay healthy and didn’t jell ” isn’t going to fly in my book if the Suns don’t have a Finals run this Spring. Father time is still undefeated…

This and that…

Hearty congratulations to former Arizona Republic columnist Kent Somers for being selected by the Valley chapter of the National Football Foundation with the 2024 Excellence in Arizona Sports Media award. He will be honored on stage as part of the NFF’s annual scholar-luncheon on March 2nd at Wild Horse Pass Showroom…

Dropped in on Perry basketball phenom Koa Peat. Name Image Likeness(NIL) for high school players has to start taking hold here in our state sooner rather than later. How else is the AIA going to keep or attract future pro athletes? I watched Jerzy Robinson, the best freshman female basketball player I’ve ever seen in our state(Sorry Nicole Powell), bolt Desert Vista after winning a state title for greener(NIL $$) in California…

Those in the high school football coaching world probably have heard the name Todd Dodge from Texas high school fame. Hamilton’s search committee for a new head coach has, too. But I still put money on former Hamilton QB Travis Dixon being named the Huskies’ next football coach. However, if I were on the search committee, I’d drive over to Riggs and Higley, park behind Chris McDonald’s car, and not let him back out until he agrees to come home…

Brock and Chubba Purdy in the same area code playing football next Fall?!!!…

The Arizona State campus will have some movie-making activities this week. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are producing a film on Sun Devil Wrestler Anthony Robles titled “Unstoppable, the Anthony Robles Story” which is back in production after the Hollywood writers’ strike shut down production last May…

Highly recommend “Freud’s Last Session” which hits the big screen later this week. Sigmund Freud(Anthony Hopkins) and C.S. Lewis(Matthew Goode) go back and forth over the existence of God. 

Over the last five years, how many D1 quarterbacks have started and finished their careers at the college they pledged and signed on the dotted line with in front of family and friends, live streamed to a few dozen, etc etc? Yep, “blessed, honored, and amazed”SMDH…