BEVERLY HILLS (MI) — The 2013-2014 edition of your University of Dayton Flyers men’s basketball team officially hit the practice floor for the first time this past Saturday. It’s been 11 years since tempestuous NBA superstar Allen Iverson gave the ultimate smartass response to a reporter’s question about him missing a 76ers practice:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vw-Vu-SyMu4

— Obviously, the NBA superstars included in that YouTube clip don’t feel quite the same way as Iverson does about practice. It stands to reason then that AI wouldn’t share Flyer Fan’s enthusiasm for the first open-to-the public UD practice, the annual Red & Blue Game to be held at 2:00 PM on Saturday, October 18th:

http://daytonflyers.com/news/2013/9/30/MBB_0930131149.aspx

— When it comes to practice, clearly, Allen Iverson feels that “ain’t nobody got time for that”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFEoMO0pc7k

I dare any of you to sit motionless and not start tapping your feet and singing along to that music mix. The various versions of that vid have garnered something on the order of an aggregate 120 million views on YouTube!

— The pre-season college hoops predictions have started to roll in:

College Chalk Talk has the Flyers finishing a disappointing #10 in the A-10:

http://collegechalktalk.com/2013/09/29/atlantic-10-conference-cheat-sheet/

(Always thought Chris Disano was smarter than that!)

College Sports Madness picks UD for #48 in the country:

http://www.collegesportsmadness.com/article/7381

(Unless there are nine A-10 teams in their top 47, that’s an improvement)

CBS Sports panel of college hoops experts have Dayton as an almost-unanimous #5:

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/23932001/college-basketball-preview-conference-predictions

(UD fans can live with 5th–don’t mean squat once the season starts, anyway)

— While Archie waits for fellow Pittsburgher Ryan Luther to decide between Duquesne and UD, he has taken out a little AFLAC. His name is Chaise Daniels:

http://coxsportsonline.com/2013/08/putnams-chaise-daniels-stock-is-rising/

Daniels is now attending Putnam Science Academy in CT, alma mater of UD frosh Dayshon “Scoochie” Smith.

— Now that UD has a verbal commitment from Class of 2014 Detroiter Darrell Davis of Douglas Academy, Archie is trying to re-build the old BG Motown pipeline with 2015 SG Claude Finley from Chandler Park Academy:

http://theprepballreport.com/2013/09/14/player-profile-chandler-parks-claude-finley/

— Coach K thinks that it is time for the NCAA to either make all transfers sit out a year or let anyone transfer, any time they want, with no waiting period:

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/23750070/its-time-for-the-ncaa-to-eliminate-restrictions-on-transfers

— The cautionary tale of straight-to-the-NBA prep phenom Korleone Young, courtesy of Grantland:

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9687657/the-life-former-prep-pro-nba-player-korleone-young

— As a former WVUD Burnout, I had to do a double-take when I saw this pop up on someone’s Twitter timeline:

https://twitter.com/wvudsports

— One of the guys I got to play pick-up hoops with in Stone Harbor, NJ in August was Bucknell assistant coach Charles Lee. He may have graduated in 2006, but he can still play:

http://www.bucknellbison.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=810387&SPID=137628&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=32100&ATCLID=209044532&Q_SEASON=2013

— Super Agent Scott Boras thinks the World Series should be played at a neutral site:

http://www.baseballnation.com/2013/9/23/4762642/world-series-neutral-site-proposal-scott-boras

How about no?

— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar provides us with a list of 20 things boys can do to become men:

http://shine.yahoo.com/team-mom/kareems-20-tips-son-150200306.html#!kFOXq

— The history of Howard Johnson’s, the iconic 1950’s restaurant and hotel chain:

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130901/LIFE/309010302

— Welcome to the world’s largest lunch box museum:

http://laughingsquid.com/the-worlds-largest-lunch-box-museum/

— The Harvard Sports Analysis Collective delves into the phenomenon of the rise in babies named Shaquille now coming of age. Here comes the science!

http://harvardsportsanalysis.wordpress.com/2012/05/02/shaq-attackthe-rise-of-the-baby-name-shaquille/

That’s it “From the Swamp.”
You can email me at: [email protected]