The Morning Dish – Monday, October 6th
Collison Out: Not that we cover much NBA news here in Hoopville, but we do monitor some of our recently departed NCAA studs as they make the transition to the “bigs”. That being said, former Kansas forward Nick Collison, the Sonics’ 12th overall pick in this past June’s NBA Draft, will miss the entire season with shoulder problems. Collison, a member of the 2004 United States Olympic team, separated his left shoulder in practice, and tests revealed similar problems in his right shoulder, both of which will require surgery. Collison’s new teammate Luke Ridnour, the 14th overall pick by the Sonics out of Oregon, last month had surgery on an abdominal muscle, and he’s still recovering.
New Duck Pond: The site for the new Oregon basketball facility has been selected. The new arena, which will replace “the Pit”, known more formally as McArthur Court, will be built upon the current Howe Field, one of seven campus sites under consideration. The new arena, expected to cost $100 million, will seat 16,000 and is expected to be completed in time for the 2006-07 season. The 9,000-seat McArthur Court will be kept to house smaller athletic and intramural sporting events.
New Trainer: Marquette University has announced the hiring of a new head athletic trainer. Jayd Grossman, who was the trainer for C-USA rival Cincinnati for the past 10 seasons, jumped to Marquette for the head trainer position, and to be closer to his Evansville, Wisconsin, hometown. As basketball staff trainer at Cincinnati, Grossman was head coach Bob Huggins’ go-to guy when the team was on the road, handling travel arrangements in addition to his regular duties. Meanwhile, Cincinnati replaced Grossman from cross-town rival Xavier, hiring David Fluker, who held the same position for the Musketeers for seven seasons.
