David Adelman

tortured Cub fan - Hoops Coach who believes in taking care of the ball and toughness - Play Hard!

[Yogi @Houseofyogi]

Chicago lost the Bears this week. A team that's been in the city since 1921.

They didn't lose them to a bigger market or a better deal. The Bears decided they'd rather be a tenant in Indiana than deal with Illinois for one more year.

Think about how badly you have to run a place for that to be the smart move.

They lost them for two reasons.

The people running Illinois would rather villainize a builder than keep one. And they're bad at their jobs.

In 2021 the Bears spent $197M on the old Arlington Park racetrack.

Before they could break ground, Cook County valued the empty lot at $192M (Bears said $60M). They were salivating at the chance to extort a building that didn't even exist yet.

That fight dragged on for years.

The Bears were ready to put $2B into the stadium. All they wanted was a promise the county wouldn't reassess them into oblivion, plus $855M for infrastructure everyone uses. Roads, transit, utilities. A $3B project, two thirds of it private money pouring into Illinois.

Springfield had since 2021 to get this done. They dragged it to the final night of session, passed it through the Senate at 3:39AM, and the House went home without voting.

So now it's all gone.

The funniest part? This started because Cook County tried to grab the tax early. They knew a built stadium would pay $53M a year. Now they get under $4M on a vacant lot. No jobs, no buildout, no new anything.

Congrats on fighting for scraps and losing the whole prize.

Pritzker: they're "an $8.5B valued business" that doesn't need propping up.

But be smart for a second. Almost every NFL city throws in public money for a stadium. Not charity. The return is real. Tourism, hotels, restaurants, jobs, game days, property tax on a huge development. The math works.

Indiana did the math. While Illinois sat on it for years, Indiana passed a bill in months, put up $1B, and took the team.

And the Bears took a worse deal to get there. In Illinois they were going to own their stadium. In Indiana they rent it from the state. A team that wanted to build its own home gave up ownership just to escape Chicago.

Nobody won but Indiana. The Bears lost their stadium. Illinois lost the team, the $2B, and $53M a year in taxes.

Pritzker after they left: "I wasn't willing to give up billions of dollars of taxpayer money to give it to a billionaire-owned family or team."

There it is. "Billionaire-owned."

That's how Democrats talk about any business right before they run it out of town. Call them a billionaire, act like you're saving working families, take a victory lap while the tax base drives across the state line.

Meanwhile they're running the whole state into the ground. And you already know how this ends. You're living in it.

Pensions are $143B in the hole, worst in the country and not close. You pay $6,285 a year in property taxes, double the $2,969 national average, for a city that's $1.15B in the red. The mayor called its finances "the point of no return."

When you run things this badly, you sell what's left.

They leased the parking meters for 75 years to Morgan Stanley and a sovereign wealth fund in Abu Dhabi. Took $1.15B and burned through it in two years. The investors already made it all back, with 58 years left to collect.

Sold the Skyway. Sold the downtown garages. Every asset that made money, gone for one check.

But a fixed property tax rate for a team that's been here 106 years? That's "propping up billionaires."

Companies are leaving. Boeing for Virginia. Caterpillar for Texas. Citadel for Miami. In 2023 alone Illinois lost 56,000 people and $6B in income to other states. The ones who left earned a third more than the ones who moved in.

Indiana didn't outbid anyone. AAA credit, 16 years straight. A $676M surplus. Fourth-lowest debt per person in the country. They just weren't a disaster.

Illinois could have collected $53M a year. It chose zero. Ignore all the bad management but make sure to stick it to those evil, pesky billionaires.

[Derek Deprey @derekdeprey]

Unpopular opinion…

AAU doesn’t need to lead to college basketball to be worth it.

For a lot of players today, it’s simply part of becoming competitive enough to play varsity basketball.

Not every player is chasing a Division I scholarship. Some are chasing a varsity roster spot. Some want to make the rotation. Some want to help their high school team win. Some just love the game.

And that’s enough!

I think we’ve become too obsessed with using college basketball as the scoreboard for whether a player’s journey was worth it.

What if they never play another organized game after high school?

If they loved the practices… loved the tournaments… loved the road trips… loved the teammates… loved competing…

Wasn’t that valuable too?

Not every basketball journey has to end with a scholarship to be a success.

Sometimes success is simply getting better, building friendships, making memories, learning life lessons, and squeezing EVERY DROP out of a game you love.

If you’re playing on Court 1 or Court 37, play hard.

The love of the game doesn’t care what division you’re headed to.

❤️🏀

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

@tsnmike @sportingnews You are the dean smith of writing - the best at your job while also being one of the most generous and kind people who was at the top! Best wishes always

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

@franfraschilla I agree coach but the real culprit here is Jeff Goodman for putting it out there in this manner. Coaches make embellished statements all the time. Keep up your amazing work! disappointed in Jeff and hope he learns this is not what being a voice for college hoops is about

[Michael O'Brien @michaelsobrien]

Warren beats Kenwood 88-54 to win the 52nd Big Dipper Holiday Tournament.

According to the Warren scorekeeper, the Kenwood scorekeeper (and me), Jaxson Davis scored 51 points. The official book isn’t at the table any longer.

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

@jacobinfante24 That convo started in training camp but most wanted to dismiss it and still do

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

@ChaseDaniel Yes!

[Steve Parham @coachSPham]

Orlando Bohlen 2029 Payton

Lights out shooter. Has made atleast 7 threes in the game. But hes not limited to the 3. He knows how to get downhill and score in the heart of the paint.

@PrepHoopsIL
#PHfreshmanshowcaseIL

[Scott Lidskin @liddy17]

@SamOlbur Counsell fault. Don’t blame the players. Manager needs to put the right players in the right spots. He’s been bad at it all year!!

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

Way to go boys!

[Carmel Catholic Boys Basketball @CorsairsBBK]

Carmel basketball goes 4-0 this weekend at @DeKalb_Live tournament. Awesome facility and great hosts! Thanks for having us!

Matz, Dahm, Maloney, Bance and Barnes led us this weekend! Nice work seniors!

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

The very best - no one kinder with people!

[Darren Rovell @darrenrovell]

John Starks took pictures with Knicks fans for free at Fanatics Fest. Couldn’t be nicer.

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

@carmendefalco cannot believe no basketball diaries! Showed it to my kids to scare from doing drugs

[Scott Burgess @scottybscout]

This was a SHOW! Best performance of day

[Hoop Herald @TheHoopHerald]

LOVE THIS QUOTE

“I’m a firm believer if guys get lost in the dirty work of the game, those are the guys that are going to get great looks at the basket”

Rick Barnes has an amazing way of explaining things and motivating his team

(Via @Reece_VH 🎥)

[ESPN Chicago @ESPN1000]

.@ChicagoBears HC Matt Eberflus is NOT the only one who deserves A LOT of blame

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

This is perfect

[Dan Pompei @danpompei]

So if the Bears decide to make an in-season change at offensive coordinator, here are some coaches with coordinating experience who are not currently with teams: Luke Getsy, Mark Helfrich, Adam Gase, Mike Tice, Mike Martz, Ron Turner, Terry Shea, John Shoop, Gary Crowton and Matt Cavanaugh. Is there a trend here?

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

There is so much bad but this is the bottom line - game was over with 6 seconds if bears had a competent strategic coach

[Ciaran 🐻🇮🇪 @IrishBearsShow]

Eberflus let this happen. You could tell the players on the sideline were annoyed and Jaylon Johnson wasn’t happy with it either

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

@chrisbleck Thank u - this game was over with 6 secs and our coach gifted Washington the only chance they had to win

[Chris Bleck @chrisbleck]

If Eberflus would’ve played the defense straight up on the second to last play, they don’t set up with a) field position for the Hail Mary and b) run more than :02 off the clock. Play scared, deserve to lose.

[David Adelman @playhardhoops]

Crazy an interception cost buccaneers the game. Terrible job by announcers to not even mention it.