October 2010: A Month In Review

We are getting close to the two month mark (3 months if you count training camp/pre-season) of another great season of pro basketball. The action is unbelievably fast with little time to view so many games. It's easy to miss a news item or notable result over the course of weeks/months, so it's always cool to take a step back and review what has been going on.

The month of October and fall in general is an exciting time period for basketball fans due to the start of Regular Season Basketball in most professional leagues around the world.

The early season is not always a great indicator of how a team or league will end up at the end, but it remains a special time for the professional players & coaches because this is when everyone believes they can win;it's special for the fans because we are right there witnessing our favorite players and teams as they begin their journeys. It does not get much better than getting hyped to an early season game (after a long off-season) while watching our Buckeyes hoop out.

October transfers/signings - From following the game we all know player movement is a continuous aspect of the sport which occurs all season long. In following international basketball we have grown accustomed to reading about former Buckeyes & others joining clubs late or even switching teams in the middle of the season (all about finding the right situation)

Such was the case for George Reese who returned to Poland for AZS Koszalin, his team of the last 3seasons, in mid- October. The 33 year old forward (pictured left) made his season debut on October 30 vs Polonia in a 87-76 W. G-Money was eased into the action with just 16 minutes of play, he had 4pts, 3 rebounds, & 2 assists. It was the first win for a Koszalin team team that got off to a disappointing 0-3 start.


There was speculation before the season about Terence Dials possibly returning to France where he has played in the past, but in Mid-October the former Big 10 MVP (pictured left: May 2010 China) ended up signing with a club called Primetel Apollon of Limassol, Cyprus. The Cypriot Regular Season began on October 22. Apollon opened up with a 1-1 split in their 2 games of the month. Dials scored 15 points in a win over AEK in round 2.

(Image #34 preparing to dominate - Cyprus Nov. 2010)

Also in October, Tony Stockman switched from Penarol to Libertad in Argentina before ultimately returning to Brazil in late October/early November. And after being rumored to Turkey & Lithuania, Scoonie Penn got in serious talks with his current team Prima Veroli in Late October. Both of those signings became 'official' in early November so they will be covered in next month's review.

-Out, but not forgotten..

In the event where you put your heart into something, it is extremely tough when you are not able to do what you love, especially if you're a competitor & good at what you do. That's why we have to give shoutouts to Buckeyes Michael Redd, James Sullinger, & Greg Oden, all of whom could not be apart of late 2010 season play due to rehabilitative work.

Jamar Butler & Velimir Radinovic were in Germany during the preparation stage, but they could not continue because of physical setbacks. Jamar suffered a severe shoulder injury which will keep him out for the remainder of 2010 (he was briefly with Bremerhaven before being let go in mid Sept.). Radinovic had surgery in late September (meniscus) He missed all of October, but just recently returned for MBC in the Bundesliga.

(Short Clip of Jamar during a September exhibition game in Germany)

Player of the Month: Nobody had a better month of October than Buckeye Mike Conley Jr. The major question coming into the season was could Mike start the year like he has ended the last two campaigns. But Conley's fierce & agressive preseason play quickly vanquished those doubts. His highlights from the preseason included a career high 28 scoring outburst vs Spanish power Caja Laboral, & 19 pts vs New Orleans.

He made another statement in the season opener with 23 points & 8 assists vs the Hawks. Mike has already shown big time ability in running an offense & scoring points, but he is also gaining a defensive reputation as one of the league leaders in steals.He closed out October with a 14 point, 11 assist, 7 rebounds, and SEVEN steals performance vs Minnesota on October 30th. His month of great play (averaged 13/6 in Oct.) would culminate into a phat $45 million max contract extension. Just another example of what hard work can achieve..way to go Mike!

Honorable Mention - Brandie Hoskins: Former Buckeye Brandie Hoskins is currently the top player on one of best squads in Portugual, Boa Viagem (5-1). She had a fabolous October with a four game average of 21 points & 8 rebounds (all victories)

Team of the Month - Dexia Mons (Belgium) : Ron Lewis & Mons ripped off five straight victories in October. Four of them were in the Belgian league from the 16th to the 30th , one was in Poland over Sopot which earned them a birth to the Eurochallenge Regular Season in November. We'll have more on Mons in a later post.

Victory of the Month- Dinamo Sassari 92 Caserta 87 (10.23.2010) : The biggest victory of the month had to have been Dinamo Sassari's stunning home win over Caserta, their very first ever W in Italy's top division since being promoted in the off-season. Buckeye Othello Hunter contributed 16 pointsto the historic win. (Honorble Mention: Memphis over Dallas 91-90 on October 29, it was Memphis' first win of the season, and first W over Dallas in 5 years!)

Most Memorable Moment - Evan Turner crosses D-Wade! - All eyes were on Evan Turner on opening night to see how the #2 overall draft pick would fare in his debut. The former Buckeye had a solid night on his 22nd birthday (28 mins 16 points (7-10) 2-3 ft 7 rebounds 4 assists 1 block) ET had some nice plays vs the mighty Miami Heat including a sick crossover on Dwayne Wade to cap the evening.



First Team All-October 2010

-Mike Conley Jr. (Memphis)
-Brandie Hoskins (Portugal)
-Ron Lewis (Belgium)
-Star Allen (Portugal)
-Jessica Davenport (Russia)

A Final Goodbye to former Buckeye great Larry Siegfried who passed away on October 15, 2010