Monday, September 2, 2013
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Is Summer Ross The Chosen One?
She may not be old enough to drink but she is good enough to beat some of the best teams in the world. She is a ways away from being called the best player in the world, but the fact remains that we have yet to see anyone this good this early into their career. Much like how LeBron James was anointed 'The Chosen One' on a February issue of Sports Illustrated in 2002, the only thing that may stand between Summer Ross and domination is time.
Regardless of how good you think she is now, just keep it in perspective that she is playing against veterans of the sport. No one that has gotten to this level of competition, just walks up and starts playing pro. No one gets drafted in the 1st round, and no one gets recruited when they are young. You gotta earn your stripes every step of the way, so even though many of today's top pros have only been playing the sport professionally for a handful of years, the amount of experience they have had to achieve prior to their success far outnumbers the amount of time that it has take Summer to get to where she is.
People will continue to force the argument of The King vs. His Royal Airness, but in the end MJ is and always be king. On the beach, we can always argue who is the best right now but no one will be better than Karch, and I figured I would remind those out there who are too young to remember who he is. Now that we got that out of the way let's get down to the meat of the argument...
On Paper...
She is listed at 6'1" which is a great size, which allows her to be a blocker and a defender which may come in handy as the current game seems to be trending toward split blocking, and bigger defenders.
Pros...
What stands out most about her when you watch her play is just how fluid she is on the court. For someone her age and limited experience she seems totally comfortable, with good footwork and court presence. For a game that demands perfection on hand sets, she has some of the best hands I've seen on the women's side, and her bump sets are quite good as well. That same ball control is clearly put on display on defense too, and at times it seems like she is making tough digs almost nonchalantly. It is almost infuriating how easy she makes it look. Eliminating unforced errors is the biggest aspect to beach volleyball in my opinion, and she has a great high reach on her swing which certainly helps her hit around blocks and keep balls in the court.
If you aren't completely convinced then just watch the plays at 14:15 and 16:22...
When you put all those pieces together in combination that she is only 20 and has already won tournaments at the highest level, I'm not even sure what category you put her into because quite frankly we haven't seen anything like her. Sean Rosenthal qualified for an AVP event when he was 16, but didn't win his first event until he was 23. For most volleyball players they are just getting out of college and still getting accustomed to the beach game, so to say that Summer is ahead of the curve would be an understatement.
Then her instincts are world class. Maybe her inexperience here has turned into a positive so that she isn't thinking that much on the court and is instead just reacting. She won't get to every ball or she may be a step late but she is never out of position, and when she does make a read it always seems to be the right one. I can't tell you how many times I've seen pros sit in the cross and not move an inch when the other team rolls high line. Her defensive style is a bit "unconventional" as she just lurks in the middle of the court a lot of the time, but it seems to work for her.
Cons...
Now that I'm done building her up, I have to knock her down a bit. She does have flaws (plenty of them). Even though she has the size to be a blocker, she is lacking good form and quick footwork. Blocking on the beach is very technical and too many times she wants to drop off the net or peels too early when she just needs to commit being big at the net. She is capable but she probably won't be a full time blocker.
She does have a high swing but she still has an "indoor swing", and by that I mean just hitting hard and deep. During serve receive she needs to learn to hit sharper angles, instead on hitting deep corner or seam. During transition those are the right shots to make, but during serve-receive there will always be certain shots that are open and she needs to take advantage of that.
Lastly, she needs to improve her shot making. Too many times I've seen her get blocked, or the other team get touches at the net on her roll shots or pokes. I'm not sure if it is her approach or that she just isn't hitting high enough over the block, but I think this will come in time as she gets a better feel for the game. Adding this component will make it much easier for her to sideout and will improve her kill percentage on her swings as well.
*
Is she really the chosen one? In beach volleyball no one gets shot out of a cannon. Instead you gotta grind out the long haul up the mountain, but at this stage in her career it is as if she was dropped out of a helicopter half way up that mountain.
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
How to speak beach #1
Nectar (nec-tir) adj. - 1) Pertaining to a hand set that comes out squeaky clean and in the perfect position. 2) n. An perfect hand set
Synonyms - Butter, dime
Example:
Player - "There is no way that was a double! THAT WAS NECTAR!"
Person 1 - "Dalhausser looks so dumb whenever he falls down when he sets"
Person 2 - "Yea, but dishes out the nectar"
Synonyms - Butter, dime
Example:
Player - "There is no way that was a double! THAT WAS NECTAR!"
Person 1 - "Dalhausser looks so dumb whenever he falls down when he sets"
Person 2 - "Yea, but dishes out the nectar"
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
New 'The Net Live' Podcast
It's time for back to school, and with the beginning of a new school year comes a new season for the women of the NCAA this volleyball season, and with that we will venture into the first season where beach volleyball will have its first season as an NCAA sanctioned championship sport.
More Sports Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with The NET LIVE on BlogTalkRadio
Monday, August 26, 2013
Big Fish In A Not So Small Pond
When news broke of Alex Rodriguez's season and a half suspension handed out by Major League Baseball, there was a echo that billowed throughout the league and a thunderous quake that trembled beneath the players as the verdict was struck down: the juiced of days of PED use will no longer be tolerated, or swept under the rug. When commissioner Bud Selig says that the exhibition All-Star game will decide home field advantage in the World Series, he means it, and not much can be done regardless of the amount of push back. Or when David Stern denies Chris Paul to be traded to the Lakers, fans and players collectively wince as they swallow their pride and move on with their lives.
We may not know all that goes on behind the scenes of some of the major sports in the US, but we get enough exposure to understand how much power players, coaches, manager, owners, and commissioners have when they speak out whether it is through a 2 hour press conference or a 140 character tweet.
Beach volleyball on the other hand is still small enough that the "playing field" is virtually leveled between players and executives. When they have significant grievances they are heard directly from the owners, not through a proxy, secretary, or assistant. And when the players push back, there is no army of yes-men at the ready to absorb the backlash from controversial decisions. So when Tarin Keith, a 7 year mid-level veteran and active social media user, spoke out about various clauses in the AVP's clause and was "banned" from the Manhattan Open this past weekend as a result, LOTS of people heard of it.
More importantly though, her message and growing concern and pessimism in the AVP's vision and business model was reverberated as players and fans prepared to take in "the granddaddy of them all" on this late summer weekend. The AVP, whether you are aware of it or not, did issue an unofficial "non-specific" rebuttal to Keith's concerns. But it seems as if the damage had already been done and all the horses have fled the barn.
So where is all of this leading us? You have players that are more visible, more recognized, and now whose opinions carry as much weight as the owners and person who are supposed to govern over them. Which means that either the owners of the respective tours, and the executives of USAV either give the players a seat at the table on issues that concern them, or I think the players should seriously consider unionizing so that people like Donald Sun with nothing more than a title aren't able to ban players from valuable tournaments in the future.
How plausible this is I believe will be up to the upper-echelon players, the mainstream and marquee names of the likes of Sean Rosenthal, John Mayer, April Ross, and Brooke Sweat. Will these players who have worked so hard to get to this level be willing to take a backseat to developing and future players? They would be in the right to say that it is a "right of passage" that every player must endure, but does it really have to be this way? To me the beach volleyball players of today hold much more power than I think they realize and are in position to create sustainable career for themselves in this sport, which they rightfully deserve, but who will be willing to take that step forward and speak out, not just for themselves for one another?
The ground is shrinking beneath the AVP's feet, and no longer can they consider themselves "top dog" when a single email, a single blog post and damage their glossy exterior. Maybe the pond isn't getting bigger, after all the sport is still rather small domestically. Instead, perhaps the big fish of the AVP, NVL, and USAV have just been as big as our imaginations allowed them to be.
We may not know all that goes on behind the scenes of some of the major sports in the US, but we get enough exposure to understand how much power players, coaches, manager, owners, and commissioners have when they speak out whether it is through a 2 hour press conference or a 140 character tweet.
Beach volleyball on the other hand is still small enough that the "playing field" is virtually leveled between players and executives. When they have significant grievances they are heard directly from the owners, not through a proxy, secretary, or assistant. And when the players push back, there is no army of yes-men at the ready to absorb the backlash from controversial decisions. So when Tarin Keith, a 7 year mid-level veteran and active social media user, spoke out about various clauses in the AVP's clause and was "banned" from the Manhattan Open this past weekend as a result, LOTS of people heard of it.
More importantly though, her message and growing concern and pessimism in the AVP's vision and business model was reverberated as players and fans prepared to take in "the granddaddy of them all" on this late summer weekend. The AVP, whether you are aware of it or not, did issue an unofficial "non-specific" rebuttal to Keith's concerns. But it seems as if the damage had already been done and all the horses have fled the barn.
So where is all of this leading us? You have players that are more visible, more recognized, and now whose opinions carry as much weight as the owners and person who are supposed to govern over them. Which means that either the owners of the respective tours, and the executives of USAV either give the players a seat at the table on issues that concern them, or I think the players should seriously consider unionizing so that people like Donald Sun with nothing more than a title aren't able to ban players from valuable tournaments in the future.
How plausible this is I believe will be up to the upper-echelon players, the mainstream and marquee names of the likes of Sean Rosenthal, John Mayer, April Ross, and Brooke Sweat. Will these players who have worked so hard to get to this level be willing to take a backseat to developing and future players? They would be in the right to say that it is a "right of passage" that every player must endure, but does it really have to be this way? To me the beach volleyball players of today hold much more power than I think they realize and are in position to create sustainable career for themselves in this sport, which they rightfully deserve, but who will be willing to take that step forward and speak out, not just for themselves for one another?
The ground is shrinking beneath the AVP's feet, and no longer can they consider themselves "top dog" when a single email, a single blog post and damage their glossy exterior. Maybe the pond isn't getting bigger, after all the sport is still rather small domestically. Instead, perhaps the big fish of the AVP, NVL, and USAV have just been as big as our imaginations allowed them to be.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Iceberg ahead?
If a few months ago I were to predict how this year would turn out, it would go a little something like this...
In the AVP's first full year back, they attract big names and big stages, and more or less par for the course by their standards while the NVL builds off of last year's momentum and reaches bigger audiences while the sport as a whole prospers and everyone eats cake and ice cream.
Ok, maybe that last part means nothing, and that was a little bit more than optomistic, but still here we are nearing the end of August and where do we find ourselves?
The NVL has managed to stream their matches, and hit major cities around the country, but due to scheduling and contract conflicts is unable to draw any of the big names in the sport, meanwhile the AVP is still par for the course, which as we know in business terms means they are shooting about 8+ for the round with 5 holes to go.
It may be difficult to gauge just how stable things are going right now, and that may be on the account that we aren't going anywhere. I mean have we really gotten any further than we have in the past? Does a year of bickering, infighting, table scraps payouts, and overlapping events really give you hope for the future? It may seem nice now, but if I'm reading the tea leaves, there's trouble ahead.
I knew it would be likely that the AVP would sign some of the star players of the sport to try and muscle out the "new" young gun tour, but I did not expect to see virtually EVERY notable take preference with the AVP over the NVL. Sure prize money has a lot to do with it, seeing as every NVL event looks to have a payout of only $7,500 to first place ($3,750 per person before taxes).
But just look at this past weekend. Long ago I scoffed at the idea that players would rather play for a tour that has shown that it has an unsuccessful business model in a city that has ZERO beach culture (although it has enough volleyball culture thanks to BYU) over a new tour that saved a lot of players their sponsors last year, and has a new refreshing model in a city that many of the same athletes live in within the mecca of beach volleyball. But I guess for the starving athletes of beach volleyball that type of decision isn't something that is worth placing on their conscience.
Sure the argument for free market competition sounds like it will strengthen the sport, but the sport doesn't even have any legs at this point, and despite its rich history it has basically reset back into its infancy years and is now crawling out of the gate.
We are all well aware that the AVP has gone bankrupt twice, but if that isn't stupefying enough, just consider that they managed to do that (twice) without a major competing tour, and with better sponsors and airtime with national broadcasts. Now you have to settle for early round matches streaming online, while another major tour takes away possible viewers, tickets, and merchandise. If the AVP couldn't succeed in the bubble then in what way are they or the sport for that matter be stronger when it seems like we are going to be in the same spot last year 5 years from now?
On the flip side of things, how is the NVL going to be able to develop their grassroots model if all the star athletes are flocking toward short-term prize money. At best the NVL will have to cater to the juniors and collegiate athletes (which isn't all bad since they can't pay out prize money to amateurs), but they still won't be the preeminent tour in the US. Worst case scenario, is that the AVP pushes the NVL past what their resources can accomplish, and they go belly up just before the AVP does, leaving everyone with no tour and a very bitter taste in their mouth.
For a while in this game of chicken, no one was budging, but I think the NVL is seeing what I see and is wisely using USAV to hash out a compromise. When we realized that the NVL and AVP would be competing against each other we envisioned that one would emerge as the tried and true victor but it may become more likely that no one emerges from this cage match, and the sport itself may be down for the count.
In the AVP's first full year back, they attract big names and big stages, and more or less par for the course by their standards while the NVL builds off of last year's momentum and reaches bigger audiences while the sport as a whole prospers and everyone eats cake and ice cream.
Ok, maybe that last part means nothing, and that was a little bit more than optomistic, but still here we are nearing the end of August and where do we find ourselves?
The NVL has managed to stream their matches, and hit major cities around the country, but due to scheduling and contract conflicts is unable to draw any of the big names in the sport, meanwhile the AVP is still par for the course, which as we know in business terms means they are shooting about 8+ for the round with 5 holes to go.
It may be difficult to gauge just how stable things are going right now, and that may be on the account that we aren't going anywhere. I mean have we really gotten any further than we have in the past? Does a year of bickering, infighting, table scraps payouts, and overlapping events really give you hope for the future? It may seem nice now, but if I'm reading the tea leaves, there's trouble ahead.
I knew it would be likely that the AVP would sign some of the star players of the sport to try and muscle out the "new" young gun tour, but I did not expect to see virtually EVERY notable take preference with the AVP over the NVL. Sure prize money has a lot to do with it, seeing as every NVL event looks to have a payout of only $7,500 to first place ($3,750 per person before taxes).
But just look at this past weekend. Long ago I scoffed at the idea that players would rather play for a tour that has shown that it has an unsuccessful business model in a city that has ZERO beach culture (although it has enough volleyball culture thanks to BYU) over a new tour that saved a lot of players their sponsors last year, and has a new refreshing model in a city that many of the same athletes live in within the mecca of beach volleyball. But I guess for the starving athletes of beach volleyball that type of decision isn't something that is worth placing on their conscience.
Sure the argument for free market competition sounds like it will strengthen the sport, but the sport doesn't even have any legs at this point, and despite its rich history it has basically reset back into its infancy years and is now crawling out of the gate.
We are all well aware that the AVP has gone bankrupt twice, but if that isn't stupefying enough, just consider that they managed to do that (twice) without a major competing tour, and with better sponsors and airtime with national broadcasts. Now you have to settle for early round matches streaming online, while another major tour takes away possible viewers, tickets, and merchandise. If the AVP couldn't succeed in the bubble then in what way are they or the sport for that matter be stronger when it seems like we are going to be in the same spot last year 5 years from now?
On the flip side of things, how is the NVL going to be able to develop their grassroots model if all the star athletes are flocking toward short-term prize money. At best the NVL will have to cater to the juniors and collegiate athletes (which isn't all bad since they can't pay out prize money to amateurs), but they still won't be the preeminent tour in the US. Worst case scenario, is that the AVP pushes the NVL past what their resources can accomplish, and they go belly up just before the AVP does, leaving everyone with no tour and a very bitter taste in their mouth.
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| Seriously, what are you guys doing? |
Saturday, August 17, 2013
AVP SLC live scores and live stream
The AVP season has officially kicked off in Salt Lake City, and assuming you aren't there live the next best thing to following the action is to go to the AVP's website and follow the live score updates.
You will be able to watch the live stream starting at 3 PM EST/2 PM CST until 7 PM EST/6 PM CST
Click here to watch the AVP Salt Lake City event live
You can also follow the AVP on Twitter at @avpbeach
 |
| Click here for the men's score updates |
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| Click here for the women's score updates |
You will be able to watch the live stream starting at 3 PM EST/2 PM CST until 7 PM EST/6 PM CST
Click here to watch the AVP Salt Lake City event live
You can also follow the AVP on Twitter at @avpbeach
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