odanny
Diamond Member
Anyone watch the N.C. State / Duke matchup would have seen a feather soft touch from DJ Burns that Duke could not stop, no matter who guarded him, The guy really was the star of the weekend, he displayed some great shooting ability.
It's going to be the Dancing Bear against the Purdue Giant, and I think I'm taking N.C. State in this one.
Once the lone tape recorder on the table in front of him had been turned off, Burns was asked again, what do you really prefer?
“I mean that s—,” Burns said. “Nobody was knowing my name until we started winning, even with all those stats.” He paused, and then Burns the rapper came out with his way of summing up this incredible, inexplicable NC State run: “Nobody cares about a loser. That’s why I decided to be a winner.”
What Burns wants, Burns gets.
On Sunday afternoon, the nation’s new favorite player got played one-on-one by Duke, and that turned out to be the wrong decision. Burns cooked the Blue Devils for 29 points — 21 coming after halftime — in a 76-64 win that also gave America what it wants: the dancing bear against the Purdue giant in the Final Four.
The 11th-seeded Wolfpack, winners of nine straight, have now won more games in three weeks than they had from the time the calendar flipped to 2024 until the end of the regular season. No one saw any of this coming, if they’re being honest. “God, no,” his mom, Takela, said as she watched her son celebrate on a stage. “Couldn’t have imagined it.”
Her son and his well-traveled teammates, no matter what happens from here, are forever part of March lore. Their run is more improbable than just about any, including the Wolfpack’s 1983 championship, which was a team that was ranked in the preseason and at least had a winning record in ACC play. This one had to win five games in five days at the ACC tournament. This one trailed at halftime in the opening round of the ACC tournament to Louisville — Louisville! — a team whose coach was fired just about the moment the buzzer sounded. And none of this would even be possible if Virginia’s Isaac McKneely had not missed the front end of a one-and-one with 5.3 seconds left in the ACC semis, giving Michael O’Connell a chance to force overtime with a 25-foot banked-in 3 at the buzzer.
theathletic.com
It's going to be the Dancing Bear against the Purdue Giant, and I think I'm taking N.C. State in this one.
Once the lone tape recorder on the table in front of him had been turned off, Burns was asked again, what do you really prefer?
“I mean that s—,” Burns said. “Nobody was knowing my name until we started winning, even with all those stats.” He paused, and then Burns the rapper came out with his way of summing up this incredible, inexplicable NC State run: “Nobody cares about a loser. That’s why I decided to be a winner.”
What Burns wants, Burns gets.
On Sunday afternoon, the nation’s new favorite player got played one-on-one by Duke, and that turned out to be the wrong decision. Burns cooked the Blue Devils for 29 points — 21 coming after halftime — in a 76-64 win that also gave America what it wants: the dancing bear against the Purdue giant in the Final Four.
The 11th-seeded Wolfpack, winners of nine straight, have now won more games in three weeks than they had from the time the calendar flipped to 2024 until the end of the regular season. No one saw any of this coming, if they’re being honest. “God, no,” his mom, Takela, said as she watched her son celebrate on a stage. “Couldn’t have imagined it.”
Her son and his well-traveled teammates, no matter what happens from here, are forever part of March lore. Their run is more improbable than just about any, including the Wolfpack’s 1983 championship, which was a team that was ranked in the preseason and at least had a winning record in ACC play. This one had to win five games in five days at the ACC tournament. This one trailed at halftime in the opening round of the ACC tournament to Louisville — Louisville! — a team whose coach was fired just about the moment the buzzer sounded. And none of this would even be possible if Virginia’s Isaac McKneely had not missed the front end of a one-and-one with 5.3 seconds left in the ACC semis, giving Michael O’Connell a chance to force overtime with a 25-foot banked-in 3 at the buzzer.
The tactical and practical choices that made DJ Burns Jr. the breakout star of March
Burns prioritized winning, the Wolfpack made a defensive adjustment and they won nine straight games out of nowhere to make the Final Four.
theathletic.com
