Keeping Score

The Dream Team

TOP 5 COLLEGE BASKETBALL PLAYERS PER POSITION

BY BRITTON HEADDEN The air is getting brisk, the holidays are coming, the work year is winding down, and college basketball is heating up. A number of factors went into determining who made the list: Stats, team’s potential this season, value to the team, and pro potential. So, here is your college Dream Team lineup for the 2021-22 season.

POINT GUARD

There are a lot of good Running Point Guard prospects from Freshman to Grad students, but one, in particular, stands out as an elite player on a strong team: Jaden Ivey [Purdue]. Ivey is a 6’4” sophomore who has proven himself an asset for the Boilermakers. What is impressive about Ivey as a player and teammate is his improvement from last year to this year. So far, his shooting has improved from 39.9% to around 50%, and his assist numbers continue to climb. Ivey is an excellent choice for a point guard who can get his offense the best possible shot.

SHOOTING GUARD

A familiar name to NCAA basketball fans in the Shooting Guard position comes from Kansas, Ochai Agbaji. This 6’5” shooter can make plays on both ends. Quick hands and a long build have proven Agbaji a detrimental defender, and he is shooting around 40% from the 3-point line this year. A highlight reel chock-full of dunks and sharpshooting shows lots of NBA potential with this one.

SMALL FORWARD

In the Small Forward position we have an all-around solid player from Villanova. Jermaine Samuels is a 6’7” forward who can score, rebound, and defend. What else do you need? Samuels is just as comfortable shooting as taking it to the rim. At 230 pounds, Samuels is not one to get pushed around easily. He’s a capable playmaker with an NBA build.

POWER FORWARD

From Duke comes maybe the best Power Forward in college basketball, Paolo Banchero. Banchero is a 6’10” slasher who can shoot from anywhere and handle the ball better than the average big guy. Banchero moves like a wing player with the body of an athletic center. Duke has a weapon in Banchero, and to leave him off of this list would be a travesty.

CENTER

At center is the 7’, 285 pounds, Jamaicanborn, NBA-bound Kofi Cockburn of Illinois. Averaging a doubledouble and around 70% from the field, no team has found an answer to this offensive force. Cockburn was an essential piece of the Illinois’ March Madness run last season and will be this year as well. He is a more than capable shot-blocker, and having Cockburn in the paint opens up outside shots as well on offense.

BRITTON HEADDEN Keeping Score

Britton Headden is a born-and-raised Franklin local and Broker/Owner of Headden Home Real Estate. Britton has a lifetime love of basketball and other sports, including playing and coaching experience on all levels elementary through college.

A SOUTHERN GENTLEMAN INTERVIEWS... Santa Claus

BY JOHNNY BIRDSONG

Happy holidays everyone. If ever there was a distinguished gentleman that comes to mind this time of year, it would be Santa Claus. Recently, I had the opportunity to have a conversation with him. There were so many things I wanted to ask and learn:

SG: Why do you wear a red suit? Why come down the chimney? Is your name Kris Kringle or Santa Claus? A lot of why, why, why… We have photographed the main man often but never had a conversation with him. So now, let’s do this: Straight from his own mouth - all the answers!

Santa: I receive a LOT of letters every day. Some asking for toys, others asking questions.

I, too, was a child once...a very long time ago. I was orphaned and raised by a loving, caring family, the Kringles. They named me Kris. They took me to heart and taught me all the important things: How to read, write and talk, of course, but more so, they taught me to be polite, mind my manners, say yes sir and no ma’am. Most of all, they taught me how to love. Oh yeah, and they taught me how to make toys. The Kringles were worldrenowned toy makers. I also learned the importance of working hard and being the best I could be at whatever I was doing. I also learned how to have fun. Being in the far North, away from other children, I also played with the animals. Strangely enough, the seals taught me how to laugh. Real laugh with meaning… HO HO HO!

Growing up, there was no way to get all the toys we made to all the children. So I made Mama Kringle Upon making it to the first city, I discovered a lot of doom and gloom, all work and no play, even with the children. Here I wanted to bring joy, giving gifts and toys, but so many seemed blue. I told the children, you better watch out, you better not cry and told them why. I was there to bring toys, compliments of The Kringle Toy Makers. I found immediately that kindness, a warm smile and gifts could melt even hearts of ice. Everyone’s outlook changed from bad to good. I wondered…would it last? There was still a lot of ‘Bah humbug.’

a promise that when I was older, I would find a way to make it happen. I became a young man and was ready to fulfill my promise. As I was loading up to make my first pilgrimage from the far North to the nearest city, Mama Kringle gave me my first red (OFFICIAL KRINGLE) suit. I have worn one ever since. Yes, it may be, now, my trademark, but I try and look my best. I love the cheery colors - it matches my personality - and to carry on a family tradition gives me great pride. On that journey, I met two very important people that would change my life. The first was a beautiful lady who was a school teacher, and she could see all the happiness I brought the children but, also, she was a child at heart… Loving, trusting, caring and believing in good. That lady, Jessica, later would become my wife, and without her, the rest of my story most certainly would never have happened. The second was a man, a magician, who initially seemed mad at the world. But, by showing him kindness and friendship, he shared magical powers with me that I could never have been able to

do all I set out to do without them. After returning home, I began getting tons of letters from children everywhere. I replied there would be plenty of toys if they behaved. With my new magical powers, I could check on them and tell them to be good, for goodness’ sake. Yes, I have always kept a list of each child and what they wanted. The Naughty or Nice thing…well they are all pretty nice. SG: What a gentleman. I see as I get older that we all have so many things to be thankful for. A family that loves us and prepares us for adulthood. The by-chance meeting of an individual or individuals that “magically” change our lives and help us on our journey to our destiny and that “very special someone” who becomes our lifelong partner and makes life worth sharing and enjoying together.

A short while later, I was planning my wedding, and Mama Kringle sat with me and told me how I was brought to her as an abandoned baby and how much she loved me. The entire family loved me but wanted me to know that my birth name was Claus. When Jessica and I married, we kept my birth name, Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

Yes, there are still today some naysayers that are negative around Christmas. But, they are missing the point. Doesn’t “ONCE YOU STOP Santa take a little bit of that away? Doesn’t a little bit BELIEVING IN of happiness on SANTA CLAUS, THE WHOLE WORLD GOES Christmas morning bring joy, a smile and laughter, and remind us of all the DOWNHILL” good in the world?

Our wedding was glorious. It was on Christmas Eve in the outdoors of the Kringle Home. We were showered with gifts placed under the trees, and at the moment of the ‘I DO’s,’ the trees lit up magically.

Now, every year on Christmas Eve, the holiest night of the year, it is my lifelong passion to share the joy with children of all ages worldwide. I have had an incredible life and looking forward to many more Christmases. “Once you stop believing in Santa Claus, the whole world goes downhill” – Tom Clancy.

What would happen if we all tried to be like Santa – learn to give of ourselves, talents and hearts? Maybe then there would be good will toward men.

Remember, Santa still has his “magic” and can see what you are up to.

Merry Christmas! - YOUR Southern Gentleman

YOUR SOUTHERN GENTLEMAN Johnny Birdsong

Johnny Birdsong, Publisher at YOUR Williamson Magazine, is a Kentucky native and Williamson County convert but above all, a Southern Gentleman. In upcoming issues, this column will feature Johnny to offer time-honored advice in the area of manners, hospitality, and what being a gentleman means as he chats and visits with such gentlemen from all over our county. You never know who he may be sitting down with next!

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