The 2024 NBA Legends Brunch Honors Tamika Catchings, Jalen Rose, Reggie Miller, and Larry Bird While Also Featuring ABA Panel Discussion
The NBA Legends Brunch is the highlight of NBA All-Star Weekend. I covered this event six times as a credentialed journalist (2005-10), and I watch it every year on TV when I am not able to attend. TNT's Ernie Johnson is a wonderful host/master of ceremonies, and you can tell that he genuinely enjoys his role.
Retired NBA player Harvey Catchings presented the Pioneer Award to his daughter, Tamika Catchings, who starred for the WNBA's Indiana Fever. Harvey recalled that Tamika had an insatiable love for basketball right from the start; when the whole family went to the gym together, Tamika did not want to leave, imploring her father, "Daddy, can we play one more game?" Harvey said that he never let Tamika win, because he knew that the world can be harsh and that she faced challenges because of her hearing issue and her speech impediment. He told her that she has to set the standard for herself, and that if she does that then she can become one of the greatest basketball players ever.
After receiving the award from her father, Tamika began her speech by remembering when her father first brought her to the NBA Legends Brunch and she wondered why she had to sit next to old people, but she grew to understand that this was a blessing. She said that she could have never imagined standing on the NBA Legends Brunch stage as a Legend, let alone as the Pioneer Award winner. Tamika modeled her game after players that her father played with or against--including Julius Erving, Larry Bird, and Bob Lanier--but her favorite player of all-time (other than her father, she hastened to note!) is Alonzo Mourning. Her father told her that to be a great player you have to be great at more than one thing, and Tamika felt that Mourning's game embodied that.
The Bob Lanier Community Impact Award--named in honor of the Hall of Fame center who played for Detroit and Milwaukee--was first presented at last year's NBA Legends Brunch. Pau Gasol was the inaugural winner. Jalen Rose received the award this year, presented by Hall of Famer Dave Bing. Bing has known Rose since Rose was a young child, and Bing said that Rose is like a son to him. Rose's biological father, Jimmy Walker, was the number one overall pick in the 1967 NBA Draft and he was Bing's teammate with the Detroit Pistons. In addition to praising Rose's devotion to community service, Bing also mentioned how much the National Basketball Retired Players Association and the NBA Legends Brunch have grown over the years. Bing was one of the NBRPA's original founders, along with Oscar Robertson--who he described as his "idol and role model"--plus Archie Clark, Dave Cowens, and Dave DeBusschere (who was a player-coach for Detroit when Bing first joined the Pistons).
Rose was overcome with emotion after receiving the award, and he fought back tears for the first few moments of his speech as he talked about his mother Jeanne, who passed away in 2021. Jeanne raised him as a single mother, and she created the name Jalen by combining the names of his father and his uncle Leonard. Rose said that he is awed that Julius Erving knows his name, that one of Erving's grandsons has that name, and that Jalen has become such a popular name in general. Rose remembered that Jeanne's car had a hole in the floor covered up by a mat, and he described that car being like the ones used in the Flintstones. Rose thanked his family, the Pacers organization, Reggie Miller, and Larry Bird. Rose said that Bird coached him at a pivotal moment in his career and was a positive influence. Rose said that he expected to average a triple double like Oscar Robertson but instead only had one triple double during his entire NBA career. "I wasn't the Big O," Rose admitted, but he decided "I am going to be a Big O, a Magic, an Isiah in the community." Rose held up his award and concluded, "Hey Ma, we are in the Hall of Fame for philanthropy and giving back to the community." Turning back to his children, Rose mentioned that the life of a professional athlete involves sacrifice and missing out on a lot of milestone family events--but he said that he plans to be around for another 75 years and to use those years to make up for lost time.
The NBA Legends Brunch features a tribute to members of the basketball community who passed away in the past year, and it seemed like this year's list was particularly long, including David Benner, Denny Crum, Earl Cureton, Walter Davis, Bobby Knight, George McGinnis, Willis Reed, and Stan Von Nieda. Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds provided musical accompaniment during the tribute, singing "When Can I See You Again?"
Bob Costas led a panel discussion featuring ABA players Julius Erving, Artis Gilmore, Spencer Haywood, and Darnell Hillman. Costas opened the discussion by noting that even though he treasures the years he spent covering the NBA for NBC, at heart he will always be an ABA guy despite only spending two years doing play by play for the ABA's Spirits of St. Louis. Costas provided wonderful introductions for each player as the players entered the stage one by one. Costas introduced Erving last, concluding that Erving is "the signature player of the ABA and one of the greatest of all-time--any generation, any league."
After all of the other panelists joined Costas on the stage, Costas noted that the ABA was immediately validated in the first season after the ABA-NBA merger because 10 of the combined league's 24 All-Stars and half of the starters in the 1977 NBA Finals had played in the ABA. Gilmore spoke about the ABA's uphill struggle to survive. Erving echoed Gilmore's remarks, and added, "I thank God for the ABA." Erving said that, although he enjoyed his 11 NBA seasons, the ABA had an "All for one, one for all" camaraderie "that I did not feel in the NBA."
Hillman said that the ABA featured versatile big men plus players who had exciting all-around skills. He said that the Indiana Pacers "were a family" to the extent that even after they came back from long road trips they still hung out together. Costas declared that the Pacers--who won three championships during the ABA's nine seasons and had a fierce rivalry with Gilmore's Kentucky Colonels--were the ABA's "flagship franchise." Costas mentioned several Pacers by name, including Mel Daniels, Roger Brown, Bobby "Slick" Leonard, and Bob Netolicky. Costas singled out Freddie Lewis--who attended the NBA Legends Brunch--as one of the greatest guards in ABA history.
Haywood described himself as "an experimental player” because he left college early to become a professional in the ABA at a time when the NBA would not sign underclassmen. He felt that the rest of the basketball world was watching him to see if a player could successfully make that leap. The Haywood signing resulted in a U.S. Supreme Court case and led to the "hardship rule" (now called "early entry," though it should be called the "Spencer Haywood rule"), which paved the way for a host of great players to leave school early and become professional basketball players; early entry players after Haywood include several Pantheon members: Julius Erving, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James. Haywood recalled that 54 years ago he was the MVP of the ABA All-Star Game in Indianapolis; as a rookie that season, Haywood also won the regular season MVP, the scoring title (30.0 ppg), and the rebounding title (19.5 rpg) in one of the most sensational debut campaigns in pro basketball history.
Erving appreciates that the ABA's uptempo play and usage of the three point shot provided opportunities for smaller players to thrive. In response to a Costas question about dunking, Erving deflected attention from his dunks and graciously suggested that if Darnell Hillman had been eligible--in the ABA, a player had to be selected as an All-Star to participate in the Slam Dunk Contest--then Hillman would have won the now legendary 1976 ABA Slam Dunk Contest that Erving won with his free throw line dunk. Haywood asked Erving what he thinks about having that kind of rule now, and Erving agreed that the fans would love it if the bigger name players participated in the Slam Dunk Contest, though Erving hastened to praise the players who have participated in recent Slam Dunk contests. Erving said that in the modern game the stars only participate in the Three Point Contest and the Skills Competition. Costas mentioned that the Stephen Curry-Sabrina Ionescu three point shooting contest was a highlight this weekend, and Haywood suggested that the NBA add a Three Point Contest for retired players. Haywood asked Larry Bird if he would participate, and Bird raised his index finger in the same gesture that he used while winning the 1988 Three Point Contest.
Costas turned to Erving--who he again called the ABA's "signature player"--and asked him about his most memorable dunks. Costas noted that Bill Walton--who Erving dunked over several times in the 1977 NBA Finals--was in the audience. Erving said that the highlight reels show his dunks over Walton but don't show the time that Walton blocked his shot. What great player other than Erving would mention something like that? So many players are quick to call themselves the "GOAT," but Erving is comfortable enough in his own skin to deflect praise away from himself and toward his peers. Erving emphasized that he scored more than 30,000 career points and that most of them were not on dunks. As noted above, Erving generally deflects praise to others and does not focus on his substantial achievements, but it was clearly important to him to rebut the notion--apparently mentioned by Costas and George Gervin during a recent podcast--that his jump shot was subpar. After setting the record straight, Erving reminisced about his dunks over Walton and over Michael Cooper during the 1983 regular season, plus his incredible reverse layup in game four of the 1980 NBA Finals.
Hillman said that one particular Erving dunk made a lasting impression on him, and he described Erving waving the ball in the air at the Pacers' bench before slamming the ball home. Erving, with his characteristic modesty, laughingly said that didn't happen.
As the panel discussion ended, Erving said that he and the other panelists enjoyed finishing their careers in the ABA, but he returned again to the ABA's attitude of togetherness, which he called the league's "esprit de corps." Erving said that when any ABA player received recognition the other ABA players were happy, not jealous or resentful. Erving concluded by saying playing in the ABA "is a part of our lives that we will never forget and we will always cherish."
After the ABA panel discussion concluded, Sam Perkins introduced the winner of the Hometown Hero Award: Reggie Miller. Perkins said that before there was "Dame Time" there was "Boom Baby!" (Slick Leonard's signature call after Miller made a three pointer). Perkins remembered that during a game in Utah, Coach Larry Bird called a play for Miller to take a shot but after the players left the huddle Miller told Perkins that he should take the shot. Perkins' point was that Miller was a great teammate who instilled confidence in his teammates. After Miller came on stage, he returned the compliment, noting how great Perkins would be in today's game as a big man who could pick and pop. Miller said that he was shaking while speaking in front of the assembled Legends because he does not consider himself to be a Legend compared to them. Miller believes that we are put on Earth to help other people, and that this responsibility is even greater for him and other people in prominent positions. Miller referred to Mel Daniels as "My first uncle," noted that he was wearing a number 34 pin in Daniels' honor, and said that it should be mandatory for today’s players to attend the NBA Legends Brunch to hear firsthand the stories from the game's greatest players.
Miller presented the Legend of the Year award to Larry Bird. Miller mentioned that Bird is the only person honored as an NBA MVP, NBA Coach of the Year, and NBA Executive of the Year. Bird said, "I have not hit a jump shot in over 30 years and here I am. Come on!" Bird became emotional when he talked about shaking Freddie Lewis' hand at the All-Star Weekend opening ceremonies. "That touched me," Bird said. Bird added that he grew up as "a big ABA guy." Bird summarized his career: "I competed hard. I played the game the way it was supposed to be played. I played injured and I played with a lot of pride. I owe everything to the NBA." He added, "I'm proud of today's players and I like the game they play." Bird made one request that, sadly, went unheeded: "The one thing I would really like to see is they play hard in tonight's All-Star Game. I think it's very important when you have the best players in the world together you've got to compete and you've got to play hard."
It is unfortunate that today's players did not heed the admonition of Bird and others that they should play hard in the All-Star Game, but this NBA Legends Brunch was a tremendous celebration of how great the game of basketball used to be--and how great it could be again if today's players learn from the Legends.
Selected Previous NBA Legends Recaps:
NBA Legends Brunch Honors Bill Russell, Karl Malone, John Stockton, and Pau Gasol (2023)
Jerry West Gives Powerful Speech After Being Honored as NBA Legend of the Year (2022)
Legends Brunch Honors Alonzo Mourning, Five Great Mavs (2010)
NBA Legends Brunch Honors Phoenix' Rich Basketball History (2009)
King James Reigns in Houston (2006 NBA All-Star Weekend)Labels: ABA, Artis Gilmore, Bob Costas, Darnell Hillman, Indiana Pacers, Jalen Rose, Julius Erving, Larry Bird, Reggie Miller, Spencer Haywood, Tamika Catchings
posted by David Friedman @ 11:07 AM
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