With the NBA season winding down, there are a number of awards still up for grabs (not the MVP, that would be LeBron’s). SherdianHoops’ own Moke Hamilton believes New York Knicks’ enigmatic guard J.R. Smith, is well deserving of his first sixth man of the year honors, more from Hamilton: “Today, the Knicks are in position to win the franchise’s first division title since 1994 and still have a chance to win 50 games for the first time since 2000. For that, Smith deserves an immense amount of credit, and – despite the recent struggles of the Knicks – deserves serious consideration for the NBA’s Sixth Man Award.”
In the spirit of the NCAA Tournament, there was big news from the Los Angeles Times today. According to reports from the LA Times, UCLA star freshman, Shabazz Muhammad, is not the age he has been representing while with UCLA: “According to the UCLA men’s basketball media guide, he was born in Los Angeles on Nov. 13, 1993. But a copy of Shabazz Nagee Muhammad’s birth certificate on file with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health shows that he was born at Long Beach Memorial Hospital exactly one year earlier, making him 20 years old — not 19 as widely reported.- More from the LA Times: “How and when he lost a year of his life are unclear. But competing against younger, smaller athletes, particularly in the fast-growing years of early adolescence, can be “a huge edge,” said Eddie Bonine, executive director of the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Assn. “People naturally look at the big, strong kids.”
Muhammad was getting buzz as the possible No. 1 at the start of the season. Now it's questionable whether he makes the top five.
@SHowardCooper
Scott Howard-Cooper
The real problem isn't that Shabazz Muhammad faked his age. It's the NBA killing him for selfish play. Much bigger blow to his draft stock.
@SHowardCooper
Scott Howard-Cooper
Ben Baroff is a basketball journalist who blogs for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter here.