St. John’s returns to the National College Basketball Converse.

The red storm won its first Big East tournament in 25 years and will start the NCAA tournament on Thursday in Providence against Omaha.

This isn’t only a revival of St. John’s, but basketball resuscitation in New York. ST John’s wears a flag for the Great East and I’d argue that greater than any team in the lads’s tournament, St. John’s carries a flag for the basketball fame of the town he represents.

When I began to incorporate St. John’s in 1983, this system near Lou Carnescca was an emblem of a city game. St. John’s attracted a neighborhood talent, which originally went to school and found the best way back. St. John’s was a member of the Big East conference, which began in 1979. Big East gave St. John’s national profile during a strong conference just for basketball.

St. John’s reached the ultimate 4 for the second time in 1985 (first in 1952) anchored by family players, comparable to Brooklyn Chris Mullin and born in Manhattan Walter Berry. Berry played in Benjamin Franklin High School, went to San Jacinto Junior College (Houston) and returned to St. John’s, where he became the national player of the yr.

For so long as I can remember, New York has all the time been considered a mecca of basketball. Each city had great players and legends of the playground, but New York seemed a step ahead, higher.

While editing “City Game”, books about basketball in New York, I talked with Kenny Smith, Marek Jackson and Charique Holdsclaw about what made basketball in New York. Smith, a former ALL-American High School player on the Archbishop of Mollo, became the Star of the University of North Carolina and the two-time NBA champion at Houston Rockets.

At its foundation, Smith is a fiercely proud New Yorker and a chauvinist in the case of basketball in New York, which he places at the highest of the mountain.

“We’ve all the time had guys who shouldn’t not do it, guys who shouldn’t play uniwmer basketball, but because he had intuition concerning the game, he made his team of uniwers. A man who shouldn’t go to St. John’s, but gets a scholarship to St. John’s; a man who shouldn’t do NBA, but he gets a 20-year profession.

Mark Jackson, to which Smith mentioned, was a highschool star on the bishop of Loughlin in Queens. While Smith decided to go away New York, Jackson stayed at home and went to St. John’s. He was a second -year student in St. John, who reached the Final Four in 1985. Jackson carved a 17-year NBA profession, trained Golden State Warriors for 4 seasons and enjoyed the successful profession of the sender.

I asked Jackson if he agreed with Smith’s basketball assessment in New York.

“I agree and disagree,” said Jackson. “I believe that we had one of the biggest players who have ever played in this game: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a New York guy, Dr. J (Julius Irving) is a New York guy, little archibald, Lenny Wilkins, Bernard King. We have amazing great players of all time,” he said. “But we also have people who carved a niche and found a way to influence the game because of their knowledge because of their competitive spirit because of their readiness to sacrifice, because of the grind mentality.”

From Nate “Tiny” Archibald after Cole Anthony, New York was all the time known for the production of outstanding guards. The yr in which Smith left highschool, Pearl Washington left for Syracuse, and Kenny Hutchinson went to Arkansas. A yr later, Rod Strickland from the Truman High School in Bronx went to Depul, and Boo Harvey went to St. John’s after attending San Jacinto Junior College.

Quickly forward 40 years, and the belt conveyor to supply talented players modified drastically in a way that influenced the claim in New York about being a mecca of basketball. The conveyor belt is now global. Like players everywhere in the country, players in New York usually tend to leave highschool for a postgraduate yr outside of Stan.

“New York is still Mecca,” said Kenny Smith. “But it happened, however, that preparatory schools changed basketball. Parents stop their child for a year, giving him a better opportunity to obtain a Division scholarship and at a higher level.”

He cites Cole Anthony from Orlando Magic as the very best example, Anthony played the Archbishop of Molloy for 3 years, and then moved to Oak Hill Academy before he went to the University of North Carolina, where he spent one season.

Anthony remains to be a player in New York.

“When he went to North Carolina, they said he was from Oak Hill Academy,” said Smith. “It seems that no player leaves New York. They leave, but many players leave the city to go to preparatory schools. Faller because of the whole movement.”

Legendary players in New York, comparable to Charique Holdsclaw, said that the brand new system that players provides players once diluted the visitant basketball community. Holdsclaw grew up in Queens and led Christ the King High School to 4 consecutive state championships. At the University of Tennessee, Holdsclaw won three consecutive women’s basketball championships. She was the debutant of the yr in 1999.

“New York will always be a mecca of basketball only because of history, but in recent years it falls out,” she said. “It’s just different.

“Then everyone went to school in the city, so if I didn’t have a game, I try to get up to watch the game Felipe Lopez. There was more a sense of community. You wanted to be in the gyms. I don’t know if we already have it. Everyone will be preparing for school. They are sent because they are good players. Deep turns.”

This yr’s team John reflects the brand new reality of great university basketball. Current Red Storm players come from California, Georgia, Texas, Greece, Africa and Portugal. Two players come from New York: Kadary Richmond, first -year student Jaiden Glover comes from Brooklyn.

Richmond reflects the culture that Carnescca created in St. John’s: You can all the time come back. After graduating from highschool, Richmond played a postgraduate yr at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire before accepting the scholarship to Syracuse. Richmond moved to Seton Hall in 2022. Last yr, Richmond moved to St. John’s to play with Pitino.

Pitino, 72-year-old coach St. John’s, also reflects the culture that covers native sons. Pitino was born in New York and served as a coach at Boston University, Providence, Kentucky and Louisville. Pitino led Kentucky to the NCAA Championships in 1996, and Louisville to the National Championships in 2013. The 2013 National Championships and the ultimate performance in 2012 were released, and Pitino resigned from the position of coach Louisville in 2017. He was employed by Ion, where he trained from 2020 to 2023.

Now it’s at St. John’s and you’ll be able to argue that each the college and the trainer have been revived.

After his team won the Big East Tournament on Saturday, Pitino told journalists how much New Yorker was and led the revival of St. John’s revival.

“As New Yorker I am as proud as any person,” he said. “When I hear the ST John’s band is a New York band, we’re strong New York and we represent New York, it makes me feel amazing in the center. I used to be enthusiastic about Louisville, once we got here here and won thrice, but it surely is a singular feeling of being a New Yorker who grew up (here It is exclusive because I share it with every fan, which is great, which has achieved what has achieved what has achieved what has achieved what has achieved what has achieved this yr is a spot where they achieved this yr, this yr, this yr, this yr, it is a yr, it is a yr.

In many respects, this reborn team of St. John’s embodies the basketball ethos in New York: solid players, roles, nobody dominates the player and a terrific team.

“We don’t have the best players,” said Smith. “We haven’t got Michael Jordan, although he was born in Brooklyn; we haven’t got Kobe Bryant; we haven’t got Lebron, but we have now a Jackson brand. We have 1 million Jackson’s brand, which isn’t there. You haven’t got a man who shouldn’t do anything except who stayed in NBA for 15 years.

“We’re not the best. We’re just Mecca.”

Stephen A. Smith doesn’t release Lebron James after their viral one on oneN within the match Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks on March 6. The sports commentator sat outside when the 4 -time NBA champion turned to him during time.

The tight moment was captured to the video and quickly became viral. Those who watched the video saw that in fact James nervous gave his mind to the journalist. From the angle of fans, who recorded order from a few rows within the stands, James rose over Smith, who also stood, but only showed from the back.

Lip readers imagine that the basketball icon said: “Hold my son away from this s – t”, in relation to the comments of the commentator regarding the fight of Brony James to gain a position in skilled basketball.

When he left Ohio, Smith shook his head and sat down. “Stephen A. Smith suddenly forgot that he had vocal strings when Lebron drove up,” read response up to the new moment.

Second person Tweet“Although Stephen A. is not a small man, he would have to wear a full exoskeleton to compensate for the difference between him and Lebron height, width and weight. What should he do beyond maintaining peace? All this animated conversation applies to television. “

.@Stephenasmith He describes his moment with Lebron James last night in Lakers-Knnik. pic.twitter.com/zzyunowyz

– First Take (@FiRSTTAKE) March 7, 2025

For comparisons, James has 6 feet 9 and 250 kilos, while Smith has 6-1 and has a drastically slimmer compilation than the Olympic.

“Lebron coped with how a child … Smith has 5 feet 4 and 123 pounds, soaking. Lebron is a giant. This is not about being a man or father. This is the narcissist who presents the program to the man by half his size, “read the third comment. And vice versa, someone’s perspective was: “Look at Lebron’s escape. He was afraid of Stephen. “

ESPN personality for the primary time broke the silence about the incident within the episode “First Take” of March 6, admitting that he was surprised.

Stephen A. Smith for the performance of the bronze last night vs. 76ers:

“I am begging Lebron James as a father. Stop it. We all know that Brony James is in the NBA because of his dad … “

(By @FiRSTTTAKE)pic.twitter.com/afpfop8v0d

– Hoops Legion (@Legionhoops) January 29, 2025

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“It was Lebron James approaching me, I can unexpectedly add to confront me to make sure that I have nothing against what I am saying about his son. I can’t repeat the words because they are not suitable for FCC air waves, “Smith explained. He recognized the athlete for being a family man stand-up, but he didn’t bit his tongue when he shot at probably the most shooting scoring within the league.

Smith said that the sport was not a place for them where they may get out and that if he was asked to a private meeting, he would oblige James. “At that moment I was not going to get involved in confrontation,” he said.

But behind the closed door: “I would tell Lebron James, I would never talk negatively about your son. I talked about you (Lebron) … I wish him nothing but the best. I hope it blooms into the NBA star. “

After the show, the user X remained convinced that NBA Great reached Smith. They wroteLebron put Stephen a shock shock. He uses his inner voice in the primary shot today. Lol. “

Two men were never on the identical side, and the “first shot” was only the primary of Smith’s public statements about spitting. Later that evening, during “The Stephen A. Smith Show” on YouTube, Smith offered an much more sincere shot.

Smith began with the statement that he wanted to clean the air and overthrow the claims that were previously reported within the media. The ESPN veteran said that despite some reports, James didn’t call him by his name. He could say, nonetheless, that the good NBA man was very bad.

“He came to me during the game and said:” Stop with my son! This is my effective son! Stop developing with my son! Smith began. “I saw him angry, and I said:” We can talk about it “(he said):” No, that! F to! Stop getting out with my son! I said, “It’s okay, a dog. Good ”and he left. That’s all he said.

Smith admitted that he knew which comments rejected James and that he had previously received criticism of other players, including Drayymond Green. Once again, he condemned James for not getting to him privately about it. Although Smith admits that he’s “sad” due to what happened, he “respects” as a father.

“I’m not here to blame Lebron James,” said Smith. “He wasn’t a basketball player talking to me last night. It was dad. He turned to me as a father. “

Finally, we now have an agreement on the race.

Yesterday, between the starting of March, madness and the developing NBA season, a match of injuries between the golden medalist Olympic Noah Lyles and the wide receiver of the Miami Dolphins star, Tyrek Hill, began to shape. After months of garbage talks on Lyles social media (27 years old) and Hill (31 years old), they apparently agreed to satisfy the match race to find out who’s the unofficial king of the hill.

Lyles and Hill said People Magazine last week that they might compete in the 60 yards race this spring or summer.

“It’s time to close your mouth and take money for lunch,” Hill said in the post, later adding “the path to be in Fambles.”

I’m undecided if Shambles is the right word, but Hill’s victory would definitely be embarrassing for the sprint community, which believes that fast players simply play at speed. Lyles won a 100-meter gold medal at the Paris Olympic Games; Hill, generally known as a cheetah for his football speed, was won by the Super Bowl Ring with Chiefs Kansas City.

I actually have doubts that the match race will ever happen.

Will dolphins allow Hill to risk an injury through Lyles racing? And Lyles focuses on defending his 100- and 200-meter world titles at the World Championships in Tokyo in September. First of all, it must make the team and American athletics residents in Eugene, Oregon, from July 31 to August 2. Hill will have time to race at the end of April, at the starting of May and mid -June to mid -July.

Despite this, I’m intrigued by the external possibility that for the first time in over 60 years the fastest man in the world can be a NFL player.

Bullet Bob Hayes won 100 meters a gold medal at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo. In borrowed shoes, Hayes set an Olympic record, covering the course in 10 seconds. Six days later, Hayes followed his record efficiency, leading a spectacular leg of anchoring in a 4 × 100 relay to catapult the United States to the golden medal (overtook half of the field and passed the anchor leg, estimated at 8.6 seconds).

Immediately after the Olympic Games, Hayes announced that he was withdrawing from the track to proceed his profession at NFL. Dallas selected Hayes in the seventh round of the draft in 1964. Hayes forced NFL teams to vary the way they played defense and have become one among the biggest deep threats of their era.

Hill is the latest of the Fast NFL receivers, but he will not be Hayes. As for this, Lyles too.

I film Hayes through the prism of time and generation. He was a part of the era when most of the great black athletes attended historically black universities and universities. Hayes played for the legendary football coach Jake Gaither at Florida A & m University. He became the first NFL player who won the Gold Medal and the Super Bowl Ring and was introduced to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009.

It was also the starting of the era of awakening for black athletes. February before the Tokyo Olympics, a daring 22-year-old boxer named Cassius Clay (who would change his name to Muhammad Ali), upset Sonny Listona to turn into the world champion in heavy weight.

The world would never see an athlete like Ali. NFL has never seen an Olympic speed buyer like Hayes again. Slightly and the pitch didn’t see a footballer like Hayes, who Gaither is legendary as “a footballer who was the fastest man in the world.”

In any case, I’m joyful to see how Lyles and Hill race pure entertainment value, in addition to home, that football speed and track speed exist on completely different plans.

Hill led to tracking the college, but he didn’t publish any results since 2014, when he was in Oklahoma State. This yr, his best results of 60 yards was 6.64 in the room. He ran 10.19 in 100 and 20.14 in 200 in 2012, when he won a 200-meter bronze medal at the Junior World Championships.

“I think he is a great football athlete,” said Tevin Hester, assistant to teach of short sprints in Clemson. Hester trained sprinters at the University of Pittsburgh and hung out on an expert track. He was a 4 -year sprinter in Clemson. “But it is a significant difference in the case of linear speed and football speed. In most cases, I would not even call it speed. I’d call it speed.

“When I think I follow, I think about speed or fast. When I think football, I think speed, the possibility of quite fast on the side. Athletics are simply a straight line. Can I get quickly from point A to point B? It has nothing to do with the side of the side. In football, you need to cut the pitch and you must avoid defenders. This is just a different approach. Some football athletes can be great athletes on the track, but when you focus on specific sport, of course, he must satisfy the sport that you get for the game. “

A big a part of the initial discussion consisted in determining the length of the race. Lyles boasted that if he had a race on a 100 -meter hill, the race wouldn’t be competitive. “I mean that if it were 100 meters, it would be a blow,” said Lyles in the post. “You know, we must meet inside.”

Hester agreed. “Football is able to speed up because they practice for the combine, so they are able to push, cover and accelerate at the early stages of the run,” he said. “But the longer it runs, the worse it is usually.”

He thinks that the sweet place of the race will be 50 meters. “I think the distance should be inside.” – he said. “Of course, Tyrek Hill runs a 40-jard dashboard, and Noah Lyles is the world champion of 60 meters and the Olympic champion of 100 meters. But I think maybe 50 meters would be an honest distance for them. This would allow Tyrek not to get tired of the speed aspect. For Lyles, because his strength is the highest class speed, and the strength of speed (distance) will allow him to speed and see who is the best of the best. “

If they ever race, I put Lyles a cheetah for breakfast. Hester doesn’t think the race will be competitive.

“No, not at all,” he said. “Noah Lyles just won the 60-meter championship, I need to say last yr or two years ago, and led 6.43. It is at its best. Tyrek Hill at its best, which was over ten years ago, led 6.64, after which he ran.

“I think it would be very difficult to defeat Noah. There is no top -class speed. There is no speed strength. I just think it would be for a long, but short day if it makes sense. “

It is unlikely that the fastest man in the world is the NFL player again. But if Hill and Lyles ever race, the winner will be athletics.

There are many meetings on the track throughout the yr, nevertheless it is difficult to seek out them.

“Few people do not know how to tune up for these events,” said Hester. “We know that NFL will be on Fox every Sunday. We know where to find these events. But it is difficult to find athletic events because they are on a lot of different stream transmission services and it is difficult to keep up with different athletes. “

We know Noah Lyles and we all know Tyrek Hill. All they should do is finally discover a song.