WAKE UP! ON ETBLITZ.COM | A wild small-world story involving ETBlitz in Strawn, of all places; Flagg as good as a Maverick already
EDITOR’S NOTE: Here’s a special thanks to Cozy Coffee Station in Kilgore and Gilmer (and Allen, too, but we’re not near there – if you ever are, though, you can visit them there!), our ad partner for Wake Up! every day here on ETBlitz.com. See their menu, drinks, baked goods, snacks and everything, online at Home | Cozy Coffee Station, and then go visit them and pick those up to enjoy ‘em in Gilmer at 755 Highway 271 North, or in Kilgore at 110 Midtown Plaza!
Small-world story
So ETBlitz.com’s own Joe Hale and his wife Sonya went to Midland last week to visit their son.
Glad to report they had a great trip – he told me he’d never really been out there – but gave me this little story of coincidence.
They stopped in Strawn at Mary’s Café, and while I’d heard of it, I didn’t know all that much about it. Mary’s is known for its chicken friend steak. I knew that. And it’s been featured on Bob Phillips’ long-running show, Texas Country Reporter. Here’s that feature.
At any rate, so Joe and Sonya get inside, get their food, and Joe notices a couple of large teenagers at a table nearby.
He can’t quite make out the T-shirts they’re wearing, but they look like Sabine High School colors.
Joe tells Sonya he’s going to the counter to pay, and there, at Mary’s Café in Strawn, Texas – 220.8 miles away from Liberty City – stands Sabine football coach and athletic director Cody Gilbert.
“Coach Gilbert?,” Joe asked.
“Joe?,” Gilbert said.
And Cody explained to Joe that he and the Cardinals’ offensive line were out in West Texas at the State Lineman Challenge at Hardin-Simmons University.
Linemen from about 60 schools around the state completed in drills at all the different classifications, things like pushing trucks, tug-of-war, and even flipping massive tires.
Kingwood took first place in 6A, for instance, with 96 points. Azle was first in 5A, with 56. Brock won 4A, with 57 points, and nearby Lindale had 52 points. Lexington was 3A’s top finisher, with 64 points. And Alvord had 71 points to win 2A.
We had told you not long ago that West Rusk was there. Obviously, Sabine was competing, too. And stopping at Mary’s along the way.
The NBA Draft is Thursday, and Dallas is on the clock
Well, in case you haven’t been paying attention – and judging by the NBA’s ratings, you haven’t – the NBA Draft begins Wednesday (like tomorrow) at 7 p.m. Central time at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., and the Dallas Mavericks have the very first pick. Among the various places it can be seen live: on ABC, and on ESPN.
And unless there is an upset of CATACLYSMIC proportions, the Mavericks’ leadership will select Cooper Flagg from Duke University with the No. 1 overall pick.
Flagg, a Maine native, averaged 19.2 points, 7 ½ rebounds, and just over 4 assists a game for the Blue Devils in his only season on campus. He’s a 6-foot-9 forward and was named the winner of both the Wooden Award ahttps://www.cozycoffeestation.com/nd the Naismith Award this past season as a freshman, leading Duke to a 35-4 record and the national championship game.
Dallas shockingly (or maybe not, if you’re a conspiracy theorist) won the NBA Lottery, the right to the No. 1 pick, last month, having just a 1.8 percent chance to do so, the 10th-best odds, the fourth-longest odds to do so in the history of that format.
You know why I wrote that about it possibly not being a shock…
Dallas lost Luka Doncic in a trade to the Los Angeles Lakers. They did get Anthony Davis and a very little bit in return, but it was clearly a one-sided trade that favored L.A. It really feels like this was give-back by the league. But I digress.
The Mavs finished 39-43 and 10th in the Western Conference.
Camp Central
Still plenty of youth sports camps coming up, lots of time this summer if you know a child that would love to get to one, and they’re all over the ETBlitz.com area.
Check them out here: CAMP CENTRAL, presented by ENERGY WELDFAB | Upcoming youth sports camps, updated June 21.