Three in three #1 Draft Picks a Bad Sign for the Cavs

Just over a week ago, it was revealed that the Cleveland Cavaliers won the 2014 NBA lottery, and with that secured the right to select the #1 draft pick for the third time in just about a three-to-four-year time frame. This means that for potentially the first time in the history of the league a franchise will be able to put out three #1 draft picks on the floor at the same time.

 

The possible history involved may seem appealing, but those who have a fair understanding of the draft process (not just in the NBA) will know that it’s not all fine and dandy. To have any shot of clinching the top pick, a franchise has to have one of the worst records of all the teams in the league, so while the top pick is enticing, it comes at a price.

 

It started with “The Decision”

 

Very few can argue against the fact that LeBron James’ ‘decision’ to leave the Cavs and take his talents to South Beach played a key role in their downfall. With “The King”, they were one of the most dominating teams in the Eastern Conference, but plummeted drastically the season after.

 

Simply looking at the figures, LeBron’s influence could not be overstated. In his final season with the team (2009-2010), they were the best team in the league during the regular season with a record of 61-21. At the end of the 2010-2011 season, the Cavs had a 19-63 record, which placed them at 29^th of the 30 teams.

 

Lebron James

 

In comes Irving

 

With the 2011 NBA draft lottery, the Cavs selected point guard Kyrie Irving out of Duke University. While Kyrie didn’t enter the league with the hype and profile of the last #1of the franchise, a lot was still expected of him. At the end of the season, the franchise could only muster a 21-45 record (that season was shortened from 82 regular season games to 66 as a result of a disagreement between the owners and the players), but their rookie point guard still managed to make a name for himself. Not only did he earn MVP honors in the 2012 Rising Stars Challenge during the all-Star weekend (scoring 34 points in the game, including making all eight 3-pointers attempted), he also earned the title of Rookie of the Year.

 

For various reasons the Cavs were not able to improve enough during the first couple seasons after drafting Kyrie, and ended up in the draft lottery yet again in the seasons after.

 

The Disappointment of Bennett

 

As pointed out earlier, falling into the draft lottery so soon after securing the #1 pick is certainly not a feat ideal for any franchise, but the Cavs were still excited about the reality and had every intention of making it work. With the #1 pick in the 2013 NBA draft, the franchise selected Anthony Bennett who had played his college basketball at the University of Nevada, Los Angeles. For many, this draft class was one of the weaker ones of the past few years, which arguably contributed to the fact that many analysts were surprised by the Cavs’ choice.

 

Anthony Bennett

Additionally, what really captured the attention of the nation was not related to his playing prowess or ability, but the fact that Bennett was the first ever Canadian to be drafted as the top pick in the history of the league. Unfortunately, that’s as far as it went for “good publicity” for Bennett – unless you believe that there is no such thing as bad publicity.

 

Unlike other top draft picks that hit the ground running, Bennett’s start could maybe be compared to a crawl – at best. Despite not coming into the league with any major injuries that would sideline him, he didn’t manage to record a double-digit scoring game until his 33^rd, scoring 15 points in January 2014 against the New Orleans Pelicans. Before him, no other top draft pick took more than 10 or so games to achieve the feat, with over 60% scoring double-digit points in their opening game.

 

In his debut season, only managed 4.2 points and 3.0 rebounds, poor figures for the two areas in which he was expected to display a bit of prowess. Needless to say, there are some that consider him to be the worst #1 draft pick – at least for the time period that they can remember.

 

 

Third time’s the charm?

 

The game of basketball involves so many variables to make a franchise excel, it’s hard to pinpoint what exactly the Cleveland Cavaliers need to get back to the level of dominance they had when LeBron was their talisman. Having said that, this year does seem to have a more talented draft class, with names such as Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid (both of the University of Kansas) and Jabari Parker of Duke University all being floated as the possible top three picks.

 

Whoever they choose at the end of the day, they will certainly be hoping that he is the last #1 draft they will be in contention for within the next decade or so (at least). At a minimum, the Cavs will be hoping that they have a greater impact than their last.

 

Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Joel Embiid.

 

Three in three #1 Draft Picks a Bad Sign for the Cavs

America Has Spoken: Nothing Compares to Wi-Fi

For establishments that encounter a lot of “foot traffic” throughout the day or are designed to have people there for an extended period of time, an efficient service is always integral to their overall success. While this is more than understandable, it would appear as though there are certain “add-ons” that make the time spent even more enjoyable, and based on a recently-concluded survey, there is nothing that falls within this category that is as coveted as free Wi-Fi access.

 

Comcast Business was the entity which sponsored the national survey of entrepreneurs and small business IT decision makers which was conducted by the Bredin Research, which revealed that being able to access the Internet with their supported devices free of cost ranks higher on their list of conveniences than many other popular items. Places that fall into the category are doctor’s offices, restaurants, coffee shops and bars.

 

It could be argued that the decision was made to support such a venture in light of the observation that access to the Internet – particularly Wi-Fi because of the mobility it affords – has ballooned in popularity in the past few years. Given that the Internet is one of their highly coveted and promoted services, the decision to sponsor such a project is sure to help them with their existing corporate subscribers, as well as attract those who are sure to be amazed by the figures.

 

 

 

Interesting Facts from the Survey

There were a series of questions asked during the survey, with a number of findings that were particularly interesting. Here is a look at a few:

 

• Wi-Fi (possibly) boosts sales figures

While providing access to the Internet has the ability to attract, in the opinion of many business operators it also causes people to act. Coming out of the analysis, it was reported that some 55% of those who took part believed that the free service contributed positively to their sales per customer visit.

 

• Traditional offerings fail in comparison to Wi-Fi access

Many business operators would readily admit to the fact that one of the biggest factors is enticing customers and having them stay there is to make them feel that they are welcome. Traditional offerings such as magazines, candy and water all register in the top percentile in making walk-ins feel “at home”, but interestingly are of the opinion that Wi-Fi works just as well or even better.

 

• People want to get in on the act

While it would certainly be great if all businesses in the United States offered free Wi-Fi to their customers, it is currently not the case. Having said that, however, it does not mean that they do not see the value of offering such an amenity. 61% of the businesses that took part in the survey that did not offer the service at the time acknowledged that they intend to, or would consider doing so. Not only would it raise the profile of the company, but more importantly, help them to stay within touching distance of their competitors.

 

The nation is plugged in, so it makes a lot of sense

 

With people across the country becoming more “plugged in” with every passing day, the reason for this appeal is certainly understandable. If one was to take a walk to any of the establishments that fit the criteria and take a look around, it would be of little to no surprise if more than 80% of the patrons present were either on their laptop, smart phone or tablet, or had one within reach. Stay there for another five minutes or so, and it is likely that the remaining 20% would have joined in with the lot.

 

There are some reports that indicate that people spend quite a bit of time with their devices, as some users unlock their phones up to 110 times within a day. With potential (and existing customers) having such an affinity to their devices and by extension the service, providing it is sure to do more harm than good for the overall image and perception of the company.

 

Whether it checking for an important email, updating their status on Facebook (probably with the details of where they are and what they are doing), or simply passing the time watching a show or browsing entertainment sites on the Internet, people are finding more reasons to be connected.

 

Something else to think about

Among the list of advantages and positives that accompany offering customers web connectivity service for free, there is another that may be overlooked – though it has the potential to be one of the more beneficial. For those establishments that may involve a bit of waiting – particularly during peak hours, the time customers spend on their web-enabled devices could serve as a great distraction until the service or product is delivered. As a matter of fact, the survey revealed that some 79% of businesses offering made the claim that it helps to keep customers happy while they wait.

 

With the evidence suggesting that some businesses are aware of the power of free Wi-Fi, it could easily be arguing that the others will be pursuing a similar option in the not too distant future. Not only will it work to attract new clientele, but keep them there for a long time.

 

 

 

America Has Spoken: Nothing Compares to Wi-Fi

Assessing ICT and its Benefits

In the past few years, the acronym “ICT” has been floating around in various domains and in relation to various disciplines, but how many actually know what it’s all about and what the benefits associated with it are? Throwing the missing letters into the mix, “ICT” actually stands for information and communication technologies.

 

ICT is regarded as the “mother” of all development and growth, as it encompasses innovation and a utilization of all the tools necessary to generate and disseminate information on a global scale. Interestingly, the emergence of globalization – the easy transference of knowledge and skills across borders through technologies such as the Internet – is argued to be a direct subset of ICT development.

 

Here is a look at some of the sectors in which ICT has had major positive impact:

 

Benefits in Education:

It is in the opinion of many that the biggest benefit of ICT lies in the classroom. With all the technologies available to children around the country, their learning is significantly enhanced with the use of certain products.

 

While it may not be the case for every child, access to devices such as tablets, and their utilization as a complement to what is being taught on the board helps tremendously to access the information required to excel. The same applies for the deliverers of the material, as they can use projectors and similar devices to display videos or diagrams that would help the students to understand what is being said.

 

 

 

Accessing educational resources has also been made a lot easier through ICT development. In times gone by, in order to complete an assignment, a student would have had to spend hours at the library skipping through the pages of printed materials in order to uncover the information they want. In today’s society, not only can they explore a lot more resources in a shorter time, but in the event that they need to purchase a book to assist them (well, their parents will do the purchasing, but you get the idea), that feat can be accomplished in mere seconds. No delivery of the hard copy is required – they will have access to every page in their device.

 

At a higher level, ICT makes it possible for an individual to receive world-class education without ever stepping into a classroom.  As a matter of fact, they don’t even need to be in the same time zone for them to access all the resources, produce and deliver all the assignments, or sit examinations. Computer? Check. High speed Internet? Check. Learning? Constant.

 

ICT and Job Creation:

While it is true that “job creation” could have been mentioned as a part of the educational benefit, given the wealth of information it deserved a category of its own. Getting straight to the point, there are many jobs that exist today that are directly a result of ICT and its growth in essentially all industries across the world – and these are not necessarily related to the computers and similar systems either.

 

One industry for instance, that pretty much everyone is a fan of now, is social media. In the past decade or so, social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Instragram have gained in popularity to such an extent that the time spent on these domains is no longer considered to be a “waste of time”. As a result, there have been many organizations that have gone as far as to hire individuals as their “social media coordinator”, tasked specifically with managing the various accounts on these domains, interacting with customers and driving the awareness of the brand.

 

 

Another phenomenon that is rapidly attracting an audience is freelancing. The original concept itself is nothing new, as individuals who wanted to make a little extra cash or were not employed with a “9-5” would do odd jobs to as a part of the practice. Now, however, there are multiple websites dedicated to facilitating specific needs – instead of hiring someone permanently, simply contract a freelancer and projects can be completed just as efficiently within the desired time frame. Incidentally, there are some individuals who are full time “freelancers”, as it is possible to work for multiple clients on multiple projects. Though the payments vary, there are some projects worth up to $5,000. Who needs a “9-5” when they can do one project of that magnitude each month for the year.

 

ICT and Medicine:

From an educational viewpoint, ICT has aided medical personnel by providing them with various equipment that increases their knowledge and their ability to be more efficient with their craft. Aside from a theoretical application, however, it is also coming in quite handy for those instances when they have patients under the knife.

 

 

Not only have there been documented cases of surgeons accessing information or consulting with others “mid-surgery”, but there have also been instances where the technology is directly utilized in the procedure. Confirming that there very well may be an app (mobile application) for everything, one doctor used an iPod-based app to perform a joint replacement surgery, ensuring that he was on the right track every step of the way. As the technologies improve, there is no doubt that similar stories will arise – not only in the United States, but in regions across the world.

 

 

Assessing ICT and its Benefits