Gator Country

**lhnewman** · 02-17-2013, 06:47 AM

[quote=grayg8rstevo;6415943]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lhnewman

Never have I seen....a more discipline( they bought into this )...focused...well coached...team-oriented...squad...as this one of Billy's...no real star...yet a team that can reach the final-4.........amazing judge of talent...and very-well coached

Was on the same high school basketball team with Neal Walk....great shot...from the baseline...couldn't jump.

Alan Goldfarb.?
Drew Cherner?

Narcisco Escobar.....6'2" center for MIAMI HIGH got the center jump. He could sky.
. Neal not so much.

Miami Beach High starting 5 ( year 1965 ): went to State in Florida gym...lost to Andy Owen's Tampa Hillsborough

Alan Goldfarb: 1 5'9
Jeff Shane: 2 6'2
Ricky Ascott:3 6'5
Neal Walk: 4 6'9
Drew Cherner: 5 7'

one of the best High School teams of all time...Miami High was very good Gray...and Hialeah had Ted Hendricks...good memories

**lhnewman** · 02-17-2013, 07:01 AM

a

born2beagator · 02-17-2013, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lhnewman

a

Interesting. Tell us more

PIMking · 02-17-2013, 08:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Al E Gator

Billy's coaching football now?

No team compares to the 2006/2007 BB teams...THE definition of teamwork/swag/come-and-get-it-and-let's-see-who's better. Best Gator team of all time in any sport.

those teams were "come and get it, if you think you're goint to take it from us you're gonna take a beating" type of teams

tegator80 · 02-17-2013, 08:27 AM

I have to give the nod to the '06 and '07 teams until further notice. Too much talent and cohesion to be denied the top spot (for us at least). But this team epitomizes the concept of the whole being more than the sum of the parts. And it is fun to watch.

Now if we get to the promised land, I hope our posters here don't think that Billy can just continue to recruit/coach the future players/teams to similar outcomes. Enjoy the present and stop all of the angst of what did or didn't transpire.

SavageGator · 02-17-2013, 08:55 AM

lhnewman, yes Beach was "dynamite" that year and they were as you described. However,
as much as Alan was a superb ball handler, I remember in that same game at Beach my teammate Larry Rentz stole the ball from Goldfarb and went the length of the court to score.

klgator · 02-17-2013, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tommyuf21

Three different teams and removed enough from each to stand on their own.

We'll see at the end of the season where this one ranks in the conversation. The benchmark has been set.

The one thing that's missing from this team is Joakim Noah gesturing to his teammates with his hand vertical and perpendicular to his face and moving it back and forth urging them to focus. We don't seem to have that kind of leader.

**lhnewman** · 02-17-2013, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SavageGator

lhnewman, yes Beach was "dynamite" that year and they were as you described. However,
as much as Alan was a superb ball handler, I remember in that same game at Beach my teammate Larry Rentz stole the ball from Goldfarb and went the length of the court to score.

he didn't get beat too many times...and was one of the first " flashy " ball handlers of the time...he ran the fast break like nobody's business...around the back passes were common-place...fun to watch...the legend that Goldfarb was...he used to practice ball skills/dribbling blindfolded at a local park...

SavageGator · 02-17-2013, 10:49 AM

As good as he was it was Ricky Ascott who was the Miami Herald's Player of the Year for Dade County. As I'm sure you know Neal went on to a Great career as a Gator being #2 in the NBA draft behind Kareem Abdul Jabbar. What you may not realize is another of my teammates Al Cueto went on to play at Tulsa and later in the old ABA.

**lhnewman** · 02-17-2013, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SavageGator

As good as he was it was Ricky Ascott who was the Miami Herald's Player of the Year for Dade County

good memory Savage...I played against Ricky when we were in the park system on the Beach...he played for Flamingo Park and I for Polo Park...he was huge as a 12 year old...was unstoppable on the wing on the fast break with Alan...he was also a very nice guy...regretfully, he died about 5-7 years ago while living in New Orleans I believe...I do not know the circumstances...

SavageGator · 02-17-2013, 11:05 AM

Sorry to hear that. He was the first to congratulate me for being high scorer after our game at Beach. He was a nice guy!

kellgator · 02-17-2013, 11:31 AM

The number that ends the argument for me of which Gator team was the greatest of all time is the number 1. During the '04's entire time in college (all 3 years) they lost a total of 1 post-season game. Not just NCAA tournament games, but any tournament they played in. Granted, Noah and Green didn't play that much as freshmen, but Horford and Brewer started and Humphrey played quite a bit. Their freshmen season we won the SEC tournament and then they lost to Villanova in the NCAA tournament. That was it. They never lost another post-season game of any kind: SEC, or NCAA.

2004-05: 3-0 SEC, 1-1 NCAA
2005-06: 3-0 SEC, 6-0 NCAA
2006-07: 3-0 SEC, 6-0 NCAA

That's 22-1 in the post-season. Unbelievable!

jmac83 · 02-17-2013, 11:36 AM

Agree with the original premise ... but what's up with ... the Capt. James T. Kirk ... overly dramatic pauses ... designated by ellipses?

Just teasing

SavageGator · 02-17-2013, 11:36 AM

kellgator-That's impossible to argue with!

**grayg8rstevo** · 02-17-2013, 11:37 AM

Newman..awesome...
Cherner..6'7" ..I remember.
Savage...Larry Rentz. Never met the guy. Obviously superstar for Coral Gables ..favorite Gator of the GATORNATION.
As a Red Raider, we locked up with Gables and Miami High every year..

**grayg8rstevo** · 02-17-2013, 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmac83

Agree with the original premise ... but what's up with ... the Capt. James T. Kirk ... overly dramatic pauses ... designated by ellipses?

Just teasing

ok to tease. I do it all the time. Can only use one hand at the moment typing. Getting ready for family viewing for my dad. Just finishing up.
like the Kirk reference. too funny. iPad fights me lol

**lhnewman** · 02-17-2013, 11:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grayg8rstevo

Newman..awesome...
Cherner..6'7" ..I remember.
Savage...Larry Rentz. Never met the guy. Obviously superstar for Coral Gables ..favorite Gator of the GATORNATION.
As a Red Raider, we locked up with Gables and Miami High every year..

Gray...yeah you're probably right about Cherner...7' probably wrong...but I thought he was taller than Neal...anyway Edison Red Raiders?? I remember a player you guys had that was awesome...a big guard I believe...maybe Italian or Greek name??

remember?

SavageGator · 02-17-2013, 11:46 AM

Gables football team ranked #1 as National Champions with Larry at QB back in the day.
The Miami Herald even wrote a column with a poem entitled "There's no defense for Larry Rentz" after we beat Miami High. As a sophomore at UF Rentz won All SEC as a DB. But people most remember the pass he threw to Richard Trapp to beat Georgia!

rserina · 02-17-2013, 02:10 PM

I don't think anyone saw this coming, even Donovan, But he seems to be having a great time with it. This is an experienced, versatile, intelligent, competitive, coachable group that enables him to make subtle adjustments on the fly.

Mark Wise had a telling comment on the radio broadcast when he described the difference between coaching a team on how to do something as opposed to when to do something. In the case of this year's team, Donovan doesn't tell them what to do, but how to react in a given situation, then trusts them to make the correct read and adjustment. It was the same way with national title teams. He always refers to how those teams would talk in the locker room before games about how they would adjust if the opponent took something away and that meant they didn't force things, but read and reacted. Coach's dream.

SavageGator · 02-17-2013, 02:54 PM

The shot blocking ability of our National Championship team was exceptional. However I've never seen a better defense or 3 point shooting group than this years.