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Turpin Time

The Tale of Two Very Different Seven Footers

Posted by: Jim Turpin

Sunday, November 30, 2008 11:29 AM

Bill Self is a pretty good judge of basketball talent.

One day we sat on the sideline while the Illinois team was warming up. He looked at Nick Smith and said, "That kid could be in the NBA - if he wanted it bad enough."

Nick could shoot, handle, pass and wasn't bad at running the floor. With some hard work he could have been in the NBA and made some dough. Remember Scott Meents? He played a lot time in the NBA with minimal talent.

But, Nick didn't try. Oh, he played on two championship teams at Illinois. Even made a couple of big shots to win big games. But, he was a pessimist - complained about everything - walked around with a pained look on his face - not pleasant to be around - and most importantly he did as little as possible to improve.

Sorry, Nick, it shouldn't have been a surprise that it gets cold in Illinois in the Winter. Yes, the team does ride the bus to certain venues. You should have brought along your own chef if you didn't like the food. And, did you notice how hard your teammates practiced?

Another seven footer - Mike Tisdale - is showing Smith how it should be done.

Remember the groans when Tisdale signed on with the Illini? Sure, he got a lot of points and rebounds - but he played in Class A - against much smaller people. Wait until he gets to Illlinois and goes against guys his size. And - my goodness he is so thin.

No one is predicting the NBA for Tisdale at this point. But, his MVP performance at South Padre is reason enough to be hopeful that this hard-working sophomore from Riverton can be a good Big 10 player.

He has worked hard in the weight room, has put on some pounds, takes practice seriously, listens to his coaches, loves his teammates, and has plenty of time to compete before his basketball future is determined.

Maybe he's really a forward - with his facing-the-hoop shooting ability. Who knows?

But, one thing's for sure. He'll work at it.

Nick Smith - we hardly knew ye.