With the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons facing off in London, England today, we can only imagine the sort of trouble Pistons Head Coach Larry Frank must be have gotten himself into during his team's European field trip. To celebrate the historic trip for Frank, we do our best to hypothesize the zany adventures the Teaneck, NJ native has embarked on since arriving on foreign soil.
Riding the Tube - Having spent much of his life in the New York metro area, it's safe to assume that Coach Frank knows a thing or two about public transit. So you better believe that he was all about London's famous subway system. Frank obviously forced his players to ride just for the sake of riding during one of their afternoons off, vigorously pointing out the differences between the MTA and the Tube during the exhausting four-hour ordeal.
Visiting Big Ben - A coach must instill in his players the importance of punctuality. Frank absolutely gave a heartfelt speech about how "80 percent of life is showing up on time" on the team bus, timing it perfectly so they would roll up into view of the famous clock just as he hit the climax of his speech. He also threw in some points about time management and a Ben Wallace joke, just to make sure he hit all his bases.
Tea and Scones with the Royal Family - A leader is a leader is a leader—at least that's what Coach Frank probably thinks. And what better way to learn about being in charge of other people then by talking turkey over white flour and caffeine with one of the more ambiguous monarchies on the planet.
Meet and Greet With Tottenham Hotspur - The London-based football club sports two Americans on their roster, Clint Dempsey and Brad Friedel, so for Frank, the opportunity for his guys to mingle with the local footballers was a no brainer. Athletes are athletes are athletes, he probably hammered to his team before the small talk about how much it rains in London commenced.
Messing Around With the Bobbies - It can't be all work and no play during Frank and Detriot's glorious trip. Players were undoubtedly encouraged to fool around with the statue-like policemen of London and the best picture was awarded a prize to be named later. "What good is a trip like this without a few chuckles, right men?" The prize is likely to be a free-throw session with coach Frank after practice one afternoon.
About five years ago, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers bested the bullies of the East, the Pistons, and earned themselves a spot in the finals to play against the juggernaut that was the Tim Duncan-led San Antonio Spurs. Today, LeBron James and the Miami Heat host the San Antonio Spurs, a team that sports some of the same pieces it did when they swept the the King's Cavs in convincing fashion many moons ago.
We are not shy when it comes to sharing our undying love for Larry Frank. And for some odd reason, we have taken a similar liking to the concept of Kevin McHale coaching in the NBA. The motivation for the former is pretty simple and we have a solid understanding of it: He was top dog with the Nets and had relative success, is one of the biggest basketball nerds in the world, originates from New Jersey and reminds us of ourselves when we were in 6th grade (doing our best to turn a bunch of stale Fritos into a decent PB&J). The latter obsession is not as clear cut to us. We thought McHale was a decent analyst on TNT, but his hiring as the Rockets head coach freakishly fascinates and amuses us. I honestly can't figure it out why, but it's the truth and I think it probably says something about how we view the NBA. (And the simple fact may be that we view the NBA like a bunch of idiots, but that's our bull to lasso, not yours.)
Watching the Pistons isn't all that fascinating this year. Their 11-22 record leaves a lot to be desired.
