20 Second Timeout

Chet Walker Made a Significant Impact on and off the Court

Chet Walker--a key member of Philadelphia's 1967 NBA championship team that set a since-broken record for regular season wins (68)--passed away on Saturday at the age of 84 after a long illness. Sam Smith, who now works for Bulls.com after making his name covering the team for the Chicago Tribune and writing the best selling book The Jordan Rules, penned a must-read tribute to Walker, tracing the arc of Walker's life from childhood in Mississippi and Michigan to leading Bradley University to the 1960 NIT title to a great NBA career highlighted by seven All-Star selections, an 18.2 ppg career scoring average, and tremendous durability (he played at least 76 games in each of his 13 NBA seasons). Walker played seven seasons for the Syracuse Nationals/Philadelphia 76ers before playing six seasons for the Chicago Bulls. Walker averaged at least 21.5 ppg in each of his first three seasons with the Bulls, and he set a franchise single game regular season scoring record (56 points) that stood from 1972 until Michael Jordan scored 58 points in a 1987 game.

Walker was one of the "NBA 14" who paved the way for the huge contracts that today's players enjoy, but Walker's activism came at a price: his career ended abruptly when no team would sign Walker after a 1975 season during which he averaged 19.2 ppg in 76 games, and he had to wait a long time before being inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, an honor that he belatedly received in 2012. Walker chose Billy Cunningham, Adrian Dantley, Earl Monroe, and Isiah Thomas as his presenters, and those four legends represent a cross section of Walker's impressive life on and off the basketball court: Cunnningham was his teammate, Dantley incorporated Walker's moves into his Hall of Fame caliber arsenal, Monroe played against Walker in the late 1960s through the mid-1970s, and Thomas shares Chicago roots with Walker. Walker produced "A Mother's Courage: The Mary Thomas Story," a movie about Isiah Thomas' mother that won an Emmy.

Years ago, I asked Cunningham--a teammate of Walker's on Philadelphia's 1967 championship team who later coached the incomparable Julius Erving on Philadelphia's 1983 championship team--to compare those two legendary squads, and he told me, "Dr. J would match up against Chet Walker. Julius was obviously better in the open court offensively than Chet and a better shot blocker. Chet was a better one-on-one player offensively and would probably try to post up Julius and do things like that." I asked Cunningham to elaborate about the Erving-Walker comparison, and he replied, "Julius was the greatest open court player who ever played. Chet Walker was a better jump shooter and he had, I think, a little bit more of an arsenal in the set offense. But by no means am I taking anything away from Julius Erving."

There is statistical evidence supporting Cunningham's description of Walker's offensive arsenal. Walker finished in the top 20 in field goal percentage six times--including sixth during Philadelphia's 1967 championship season--and he ranked in the top 10 in free throw percentage six times, including leading the NBA in that category in 1970-71. Walker ranked in the top 10 in free throws made seven times. Walker was a dependable third scoring option (19.3 ppg) behind Wilt Chamberlain (24.1 ppg) and Hal Greer (22.1 ppg) on the 1967 championship team, and when the Bulls needed a clutch basket during the early 1970s they usually relied on Walker.

Jaylen Brown would not be a $300 million player without Walker's sacrifices. A role player like J.J. Redick who shamelessly mocks the basketball stars from the past would not be a famous multi-millionaire without Walker's sacrifices that helped transform the NBA into a multi-billion dollar business. It would be great if Brown, Redick, and everyone else who benefits from the NBA's huge pot of gold acknowledged their debt to Walker and the other members of the "NBA 14."

Labels: Adrian Dantley, Billy Cunningham, Chet Walker, Chicago Bulls, Earl Monroe, Isiah Thomas, Philadelphia 76ers, Wilt Chamberlain

posted by David Friedman @ 10:27 AM

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Remembering Earl "The Twirl" Cureton

Earl "The Twirl" Cureton passed away unexpectedly yesterday at the age of 66. The Detroit native had just substituted for Rick Mahorn on the Detroit Pistons radio network on Friday night, and Cureton was scheduled to call Sunday's game versus Orlando as well. 

Cureton enjoyed a 12 season NBA career. Like many NBA role players, he was a star in college, averaging 16.2 ppg and 9.5 rpg in 81 games for Robert Morris and Detroit Mercy. Cureton scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in Detroit's 95-87 loss to Lamar in the 1979 NCAA Tournament. Cureton began his NBA career with the Philadelphia 76ers in 1980 and he played three seasons with the 76ers. Cureton was a teammate of Julius Erving's on Philadelphia's 1983 NBA championship team before playing for his hometown Detroit Pistons from 1983-1986. Cureton was Michael Jordan's teammate with the Chicago Bulls in 1986-87, and he also played for the L.A. Clippers, Charlotte Hornets, Houston Rockets, and Toronto Raptors in addition to playing pro ball in Italy, France, Venezuela, Mexico, and Argentina. Cureton only played in two regular season games for the 1994 Houston Rockets, but he served as an effective rotation player in 10 playoff games as they won the NBA title.

Most recently, Cureton worked as the Community Ambassador of the Detroit Pistons. His Pistons teammate Isiah Thomas issued this statement: "All of us are hurting. He was a tremendous teammate, tough competitor, a champion and a great human being. Earl always held the Detroit community close to his heart and worked tirelessly to make a difference for the city he loved. He will be greatly missed."

You can get a sense of Cureton's upbeat demeanor in this video during which he reminisces about his NBA career:

Cureton recalled that when he was growing up he had Julius Erving's posters on his wall, never dreaming that one day he would be Dr. J's teammate and play on a championship team with him. Cureton called Erving the "ambassador for the NBA. I think he was that player who set the standard for the league. A class act. He had a certain air about him. When he walked into a room, you knew Doc was in that room...Always gave 110% out there on the basketball court. You can't have a better role model than that..I think that he was the best at going to the basket. No other player that played in the league went to the basket like that."

The 1983 76ers--featuring Hall of Famers Julius Erving, Moses Malone, Maurice Cheeks, and Bobby Jones plus Hall of Fame caliber guard Andrew Toney--will always be my favorite team of all-time. They set the all-time record (since broken in the expanded playoff format) by going 12-1 in the playoffs, culminating in a 4-0 sweep of the defending champion L.A. Lakers. If you loved the 1983 76ers, you remember Cureton hitting a skyhook over Kareem Abdul-Jabbar after Malone got in foul trouble in game two of the 1983 NBA Finals. In the commemorative championship video, Erving good-naturedly joked to the post-game media scrum that Cureton will now become so famous that he won't be able to walk the streets of Detroit without being recognized, while Cheeks said Cureton had seen Abdul-Jabbar shoot the skyhook against him so many times that he probably figured he might as well do it once. The 76ers had fun along the way, but they never lost sight of their mission to get Erving his first NBA championship ring to go alongside his two ABA championship rings. Bruce Newman covered the series for Sports Illustrated during a golden era for the league (and the magazine).

Cureton is the third member of that squad to pass away. Mark McNamara passed away on April 27, 2020, and Moses Malone passed away on September 13, 2015. The 1983 76ers brought a lot of joy not just to Philadelphia but to the basketball world with their teamwork, their unselfishness, and their determined focus to complete their journey; in the three seasons prior to acquiring Malone, the 76ers lost to the L.A. Lakers in the NBA Finals in 1980 and 1982, and they lost in the 1981 Eastern Conference Finals after building a 3-1 lead versus the Boston Celtics. 

The passage of time and the passages of life are sobering reminders of how important it is to cherish every moment of the journey.

Labels: Detroit Pistons, Earl Cureton, Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets, Isiah Thomas, Julius Erving, Michael Jordan, Philadelphia 76ers

posted by David Friedman @ 4:32 PM

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What is Next for the Milwaukee Bucks and Giannis Antetokounmpo?

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Milwaukee Bucks to the best record in the Eastern Conference each of the past two seasons, collecting the 2019 regular season MVP and the 2020 Defensive Player of the Year award; it will be a surprise if he does not win the 2020 regular season MVP. However, Milwaukee lost 4-2 to Toronto in the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals and then lost 4-1 to Miami in the 2020 Eastern Conference semifinals. In today's society, instant gratification is often elevated above all other considerations, so it is considered natural to assume that Antetokounmpo will leave Milwaukee to team up with another All-Star.

Every NBA title is meaningful and valuable, but some championships resonate more than others, and the ones that resonate the most for me involve a long-term partnership formed by a great player with his first NBA team:

1983: Julius Erving and the Philadelphia 76ers
1989-90: Isiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons
1991-93, 1996-98: Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls
1994-95: Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets
1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2014: Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs
2000-02, 2009-10: Kobe Bryant and the L.A. Lakers
2011: Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks

Erving won two ABA titles (1974, 1976) with the New York Nets prior to the ABA-NBA merger, and then he spent his entire NBA career with the Philadelphia 76ers. Erving led the 76ers to three NBA Finals (1977, 1980, 1982) before winning the championship in 1983. Erving could have left for greener pastures, or the 76ers could have decided to go in a different direction, but instead the legend and the franchise formed a partnership. Although free agency did not exist during that era in the way that it exists in the modern era, players who wanted to be traded could get traded--and teams have always been able to get rid of players who they do not want, so Erving and the 76ers only stayed together because both sides wanted to stay together. By 1983, Erving was the only 76er on the roster who played for the team during the 1977 NBA Finals. The 76ers put a team around Erving that complemented his talents, and they finally acquired the one essential asset for winning a title during the NBA's first several decades: an All-Star center (Moses Malone). With the exception of the 1975 Golden State Warriors, all of the NBA championship teams from 1951 (the first year that the NBA had an All-Star Game) through 1990 had a current or future All-Star at center (Bill Cartwright, the center for Chicago's 1991-93 championship teams, was a former All-Star and hardly an All-Star caliber player during his championship years). Pantheon level non-centers Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird only won titles when playing alongside Hall of Fame centers.

Isiah Thomas joined the Pistons in 1981 when the Pistons were one of the worst teams in the NBA, and eight years later he led a completely remade roster to the first of back to back titles. So much is said and written about the "Bad Boys"--much of it untrue or exaggerated--that it is easy to forget the deeper story: Thomas joined a dysfunctional organization, and his combination of talent and will power transformed the franchise into a team that could vanquish the legendary Celtics and Lakers squads, not to mention hold Jordan's Bulls at bay for a few years.

Michael Jordan joined the Bulls in 1984 when the Bulls were one of the worst teams in the NBA, and seven years later he led a completely remade roster to the first of three straight titles en route to winning six titles in an eight year span. Jordan embraced the challenge of elevating his game while also lifting his teammates. Jordan's Bulls supplanted Thomas' Pistons, beat Magic Johnson's Lakers, and then established the sport's most successful dynasty since Bill Russell's Celtics won eight straight titles/11 titles in 13 years.

Hakeem Olajuwon joined the Rockets in 1984 when the Rockets were one of the worst teams in the NBA, and 10 years later he led a completely remade roster to back to back titles. Yes, Olajuwon won his first ring during Jordan's baseball hiatus and he won his second ring shortly after Jordan's comeback, but that does not in any way diminish Olajuwon's two-way dominance, nor does it diminish the head to head superiority that he demonstrated versus David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, and a young Shaquille O'Neal.

Tim Duncan joined the Spurs in 1997 after the Spurs had a down year in the midst of a solid run of playoff appearances, and in his second year he led the Spurs to the title. The team changed the roster a lot over the next decade and a half, but Duncan remained the one constant as the Spurs captured four more titles. Duncan became the greatest power forward ever (even if it seemed like he played center at least part of the time), and he played the most important role in building the Spurs' championship culture.

Kobe Bryant joined the Lakers in 1996, the same year that Shaquille O'Neal signed with the team. O'Neal and Bryant led the Lakers to three straight championships in 2000-02, and then after O'Neal left the Lakers rebuilt around Bryant, who took the Lakers to three straight Finals, winning titles in 2009-10. Bryant changed his jersey number midway through his career, and it is remarkable that he had a Hall of Fame career with each jersey number.

Dirk Nowitzki joined the Mavericks in 1998 when the Mavericks were one of the worst teams in the NBA, and he persevered for more than a decade before outdueling Miami's star-studded superteam to lead Dallas to the 2011 NBA title. Early in his career, Nowitzki received unfounded criticism for being soft, but he did not run away to join forces with an established star; he stayed the course in Dallas, and the Mavericks eventually surrounded him with the right supporting cast.

In contrast, LeBron James and Kevin Durant both left the teams that drafted them in order to win titles with teams stacked with multiple All-Stars. Each player won two championships with his new team before maneuvering his way out of town: James returned to Cleveland from Miami and won a championship in Cleveland before leaving again to join the L.A. Lakers, a team that he remade by running off several players to lure Anthony Davis to L.A.; Durant fled Golden State for Brooklyn, where he teamed up with Kyrie Irving (one of James' All-Star teammates during Cleveland's 2016 championship season) but has yet to play due to injury.

Antetokounmpo may follow the path laid out by James and Durant, but it would be great if Antetokounmpo instead takes the route traveled by Erving, Thomas, Jordan, Olajuwon, Duncan, Bryant, and Nowitzki. The pursuit of instant gratification is no guarantee for success, much less enduring happiness; there is value in struggling to earn an accomplishment as opposed to seeking out shortcuts.

Labels: Dirk Nowitzki, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Hakeem Olajuwon, Isiah Thomas, Julius Erving, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan

posted by David Friedman @ 7:37 PM

13 comments

House Call With Dr. J Podcast Featuring Isiah Thomas

Since February 2018, Julius Erving has been doing a podcast titled "House Call with Dr. J." Erving is a genial, well organized and engaging host. The podcasts sound much more like conversations than interviews. His guests have included many prominent people--including more than a few who are not basketball players--but in this article I will focus on Isiah Thomas.

Yesterday during my lunch break I listened to Erving's podcast with Thomas and the interaction between my favorite player of all-time and one of my favorite players from the 1980s brought back a lot of positive memories and great feelings. I remember seeing footage of Thomas and Magic Johnson talking at the 1987 NBA All-Star Weekend--Erving's last All-Star Weekend as an active player--about one of the times that Erving came to Michigan and appeared at a youth basketball camp. They took turns describing how Erving marched to one end of the court, ran to the free throw line, took off and hung in the air long enough to talk to the campers before he dunked the ball! The sheer joy on their faces as they gave their (perhaps slightly exaggerated) description of Erving made a lasting impression on me. I remember feeling jealous that Erving went to their camp and wishing that he had made an appearance at my basketball camp (one of my counselors wrote at the end of the summer that I was preparing daily to go one on one with Dr. J).

Erving was a tremendous player, a vastly underrated player, but he also has a touch of grace and class that enables him to influence generations of not only basketball players but people in general.

Thomas' respect for Erving shone through during the podcast and it was equally apparent that Erving respects Thomas. This was not some vapid mutual admiration society but rather two men who beat the odds in so many ways talking about what specifically they each did to be successful and how they are paying forward the good fortune that they have experienced.

Erving brought up how Thomas overcame a severely sprained ankle to score an NBA Finals record 25 points in the fourth quarter of Detroit's 103-102 game six loss to the L.A. Lakers in 1988. Erving was modest enough to not mention that in game one of the 1976 ABA Finals he scored 25 points in the fourth quarter and 37 points in the second half. Erving asked Thomas what he was thinking as he was scoring those points. I remember that a similar question from ESPN's Dan Patrick years ago elicited passionate tears from Thomas as he talked about how hard he and his teammates had fought to have this opportunity to win a title. Thomas did not cry this time and he provided some interesting insights. Thomas said that players of his generation, like players from Erving's generation, played for the moment and were focused on winning the title right at that time. In contrast, Thomas believes that today's players focus on their legacy or on a business plan to play for 15 years and make X amount of dollars. Erving and Thomas agreed that it is unlikely that a modern player would or could do what Thomas did in that game. Erving said, "I watched what you did in that game and it did not go unnoticed."

Erving and Thomas also talked about their interactions with legendary Hall of Fame basketball coach John McClendon. Thomas correctly noted that the up tempo style often credited to Mike D'Antoni can be traced back to McClendon. Thomas said that when predominantly black teams used that style it was not called "Seven Seconds or Less" but rather "alley ball." Thomas said that when he was young he attended a basketball camp where McClendon spoke and that McClendon opened his remarks by holding up a basketball and saying that this could be their ticket to travel the world and to meet kings and queens. Thomas recalled being mesmerized and inspired. Erving shared some nice memories of working with McClendon on a committee with the Basketball Hall of Fame. 

Thomas described his childhood in Chicago, a time marked by nationwide unrest that hit very close to home. Thomas said that after the riots that took place in the wake of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, there was a time when it felt like his neighborhood was under military occupation. Thomas said that his father likely suffered from what would now be diagnosed as depression, though nothing was diagnosed or treated at the time. It fell to Thomas' mother to run the household and set a good example for all of her children. Thomas also recalled the positive influence of several coaches, of the Harlem Globetrotters (who did camps in the city) and of Erving, a dignified and respected figure who was universally admired.

Without prompting from Erving (who is typically reluctant to speak about his accomplishments and his place in history), Thomas noted that the mainstream narrative has become that Larry Bird and Magic Johnson saved the NBA. Thomas said, "I don't remember it that way." Thomas said that when he was growing up in the 1970s there was Dr. J, Kareem and then everyone else. Thomas acknowledged that there were other talented players but he insisted that Doc and Kareem set themselves apart not only on the court but also off of the court. Thomas remembered that whenever Doc or Kareem spoke, his parents and siblings told him to listen and to use them as role models.

One of Thomas' current business ventures is champagne distribution and Thomas said that he donates some of the profits to help the retired NBA players. Erving responded that some people talk but their actions don't back up their words and he was happy that Thomas is not just paying empty lip service to the pioneers who built pro basketball.

Early on, when both men talked about the influences in their life they mentioned their mothers. Thomas asked Erving why he has always been so gracious and helpful to so many people, including the generation of players that came into the NBA after Erving. Erving said that his mother taught him to treat everyone the way that you want to be treated--with respect. Erving said that he learned that even if you are poor you can share what you have and that when you share you ultimately find that everything you give is returned to you, while if you don't share that also is returned to you. As Erving's mother told him, "God don't like ugly."

The conversation lasts 42 minutes and I recommend that you subscribe to Erving's podcast (it's free!) so that you can listen to all of the previous episodes as well as keep up as new ones are posted. I am working my way through the archives--usually listening to one or two per day at lunch--and enjoying every minute. 

Labels: Isiah Thomas, John McClendon, Julius Erving

posted by David Friedman @ 1:08 AM

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Thoughts and Observations About the 2018 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony

In my article Maurice Cheeks, Charlie Scott and Rod Thorn Are Among the Basketball Hall of Fame's Newest Members, I focused on three of the 13 members of the Basketball Hall of Fame's 2018 class. Last night, those men and their classmates were officially enshrined.

Grant Hill was enshrined first. He and 2018 Hall of Fame classmate Jason Kidd will forever be linked not only as co-Rookies of the Year in 1995 but also as unselfish, all-around players who focused first and foremost on team success. Hill alluded to his tendency to be verbose and joked that his wife had urged him to remember the "Five Bs: Be brief, brother, be brief." Turning serious, Hill said that he "fell in love with the game of basketball" by watching Patrick Ewing dominate in both college and the NBA. Hill called Ewing his "basketball hero." Ewing and Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski were Hill's two presenters. Hill thanked Coach Krzyzewski for providing the "blueprint" for success. Next, Hill mentioned Isiah Thomas. Hill seemed uncertain whether or not Thomas was in attendance (perhaps that is why he did not choose Thomas as a presenter as well) but as soon as Hill realized that Thomas was in the building he called him up to the stage and embraced Thomas, who he called a "hero, a friend and an advocate for me." Hill thanked Alonzo Mourning for providing the inspiration for how to come back from health problems/injuries. Hill became emotional when he thanked his parents for how they raised him and when he acknowledged his two daughters and his wife. Hill asked his wife if his speech had been short enough and he promised that the other enshrinees' speeches would be shorter.

Rod Thorn spoke next. He was presented by Jerry West. Thorn thanked the Hall of Fame and Jerry Colangelo in particular. Thorn singled out three Hall of Famers who had a special impact on him:  Bob ("Slick") Leonard, Richie Guerin and Lenny Wilkens.

Younger fans may not remember or know that Thorn was a collegiate star at West Virginia who was selected by the Baltimore Bullets with the second overall pick in the 1963 NBA Draft. Thorn played eight seasons in the NBA before becoming a coach, general manager and league executive. After injuries forced him to retire from playing, Thorn considered going to law school before Kevin Loughery offered him a job as an assistant coach with the New York Nets in the ABA. Thorn recalled, "I knew in my heart I wasn't ready to let the game go."

Thorn said that since his career started as a player he wanted to mention three players "who all had a profound impact on my life": Julius Erving, Michael Jordan and Jason Kidd. Thorn said of Erving, "In 1974, my first season with the Nets, we won the league championship, sparked by the incomparable Julius Erving, who led the team in nearly every statistical category. Night after night, he would perform such incredible athletic feats that would have Kevin and I looking at each other and exclaiming, 'I cannot believe he just did that.' As great as Doc was as a player, he was equally good as a teammate. Thank you Doc for proving that superheroes can be humans, too."

These comments reinforce what Thorn told me over a decade ago about Erving: "I think that he was the best teammate of all the players I've been involved with in 40-plus years of NBA basketball. He was our leading scorer, our leading rebounder, our leading shot blocker, our leading assist guy--you name it, he led our team in it, plus he was the leader of our team. He guarded the best forward every night, whether it was a small forward or a big forward. He took most of the big shots. Not only was he a great player, but more importantly he was a great teammate. He had great lateral quickness and he was a tremendous jumper. He was a tough guy--that is one thing that is not talked about that much when you talk about Julius, because of his great athleticism, but he was a tough guy. I mean he would physically get after guys and play hard. He took a challenge. He played 43-44 minutes a game for us and guarded the best guy on the other team every night and was our leading scorer, so the energy that he expended during a game was much more than the average player did. It was just phenomenal what he did."

As the Chicago Bulls' general manager, Thorn drafted Michael Jordan. Thorn joked that without Jordan he would not have a Wikipedia page and he would not have people sending him items to autograph asking for his signature and "by the way" asking for Jordan's signature as well.

Thorn won the 2002 NBA Executive of the Year Award after acquiring Kidd and building the Nets into a championship contender. Thorn recalled that when he rejoined the Nets, "The team had challenges defending, rebounding and passing, which as you know are the ingredients of a 26 win season." After trading for Kidd, Thorn's Nets won 52 games, one of the best one season turnarounds in league history.

Maurice Cheeks followed Thorn. In the video tribute before Cheeks spoke, Erving said, "He had a very, very high basketball IQ. He was a champion, he was an All-Star and I loved playing with him." Erving and Billy Cunningham presented Cheeks. Cheeks is known as a quiet man of few words but he gave the most emotionally gripping speech of the evening. He opened by saying, "This is amazing and Grant, you're right, this will be short." Cheeks credited his experiences growing up on the South Side of Chicago for teaching him to look out for others as others had looked out for him. He said, "My life has been a string of small moments that led to amazing experiences." Cheeks mentioned his high school teammate William Dise, who was a highly recruited player who signed with West Texas State on condition that the school also sign Cheeks, a skinny and lightly recruited prospect. Cheeks said that his career would have gone much differently if not for Dise.

Cheeks thanked Coach Cunningham and said that he was the kind of coach that you never wanted to let down. Cheeks praised Erving for teaching him how to be a pro and Cheeks also thanked his veteran teammates Andrew Toney, Moses Malone, Bobby Jones, Caldwell Jones, and Henry Bibby. Cheeks said, "Over the years I have had many reasons to thank the Lord and two of them are my beautiful kids...I'm proud to be your dad and I love you both." Cheeks thanked his three brothers, one of whom was murdered in 1991. Cheeks started to get emotional at that point and mentioned that Charles Barkley told him not to cry but Cheeks broke down when he talked about "my very first coach, Mama Cheeks" and all that she did for him and their family--including calling out Maurice's name and his brothers' names so that they would come inside when it got dark. Mama Cheeks attended the ceremony and she looked very proud. As Cheeks wept, Erving walked over, gently grabbed his shoulders and said softly, "Come on Mo, you can do it," lending a helping hand much like Cheeks had lent a helping hand to National Anthem singer Natalie Gilbert years ago. I felt as a kid that the 76ers were a special team with special people and moments like this just confirm that. I am so blessed to have watched that team and then to have had the opportunity to interview Erving, Cunningham, Jones and Pat Williams. Cheeks concluded by thanking the Hall of Fame for "thinking enough of my contributions to the sport to select me for such an honor. I cannot think of a better way to celebrate my 40 years in the NBA and my 62nd birthday (on Saturday). Thank you and God bless."

Later in the program, Charlie Scott was presented by Jerry Colangelo, Dave Cowens, Julius Erving, Spencer Haywood and Roy Williams. During the video tribute to Scott, Erving noted, "He broke the color barrier very much like Jackie Robinson did (in baseball), except it was getting a basketball scholarship to the University of North Carolina and integrating the school. Charlie Scott was a monster on the basketball court. He could score inside, he could score outside."

Scott began by explaining how he selected his presenters. He said that they were each friends of his for over 40 years. Scott joked that his wife said if they have known him for 40 years and still speak to him then they all deserve to be on the stage with him. "This is an honor that I always dreamed of but could never imagine happening," Scott declared. He called Dean Smith "My mentor and the person who I admire the most in my life." Scott thanked his North Carolina teammates, including Larry Miller, for standing beside him during the sometimes difficult racial integration process. He individually thanked each of his presenters. Regarding Erving and Cowens, the never hesitant to shoot Scott quipped that he helped each of them become great rebounders.

Scott concluded by thanking his wife and children. He said that he once asked a friend to describe him honestly, good and bad. Scott asked his family to raise their hands if they disagreed with this characterization: "People sometimes might take your aloofness as arrogance. You can become very demanding in getting your way. You don't know when to let things go. You never give compliments. You think you're always right....The shocker was his next sentence: Let me tell you about your bad points!" Scott paused after each point and noted that no one in his family raised their hands. He laughed and said, "This was the individual you had to deal with. Your unconditional love and understanding have been my North Star."

In 2015, I wondered if Julius Erving had been a Hall of Fame presenter more than anyone else. At that time, Erving had been selected as a presenter nine times. Now, including last night, he has been a presenter 14 times (9/11/21 note: I just added Alex English to this list after confirming that Erving was English's presenter):

1995: Presented Cheryl Miller
1996: None
1997: Alex English
1998-2000: None
2001: Presented Moses Malone
2002-2003: None
2004: Presented Clyde Drexler
2005: None
2006: Presented Dominique Wilkins
2007-2010: None
2011: Presented Artis Gilmore
2012: Presented Katrina McClain, Ralph Sampson and the All-American Red Heads
2013-2014: None
2015: Presented John Calipari
2016: Presented Allen Iverson and Shaquille O'Neal
2017: None
2018: Presented Maurice Cheeks and Charlie Scott

That list of names spans multiple generations and includes teammates, opponents and players who grew up idolizing Erving. What a tribute to Erving's deep and continuing impact on the sport!

There is a lot of depth to Ray Allen beyond his basketball accomplishments. When you read his words or listen to him speak you understand that he is a remarkable person, not just a great basketball player. Allen spoke repeatedly of the dedication, discipline, perfectionism and sacrifice that it takes to become a great individual player and to become a two-time NBA champion. Those words resonate and are true but what resonated the most is when he talked about his children. Allen was the only enshrinee who talked to/about each of his children specifically and described why each child is so special to him. Allen emphatically declared, "All of you kids are my greatest legacy. I learned in life that our kids pay attention to everything we do, everything we say and everything we don't say and everything we don't do. So I have to be an example to these young people at all times and we got to make sure that we are an example to the kids in our lives at all times, because we do set the tone and the example in all of our communities."

Allen also said, "I don't believe in talent. I'm here because I worked hard my whole life. Without that work, no one in this room would know who I am except my family. So to all the kids around the world watching, paying attention and aspiring to be like us or even on this stage, put the work in and watch the magical ride you go on."

Labels: Basketball Hall of Fame, Charlie Scott, Grant Hill, Isiah Thomas, Julius Erving, Maurice Cheeks, Mike Krzyzewski, Patrick Ewing, Ray Allen, Rod Thorn

posted by David Friedman @ 10:15 PM

2 comments

Magic and Isiah Reminisce and Reconcile

NBA TV's recent Players Only Monthly "Isiah and Magic" episode featured a heartfelt conversation between two of the greatest point guards in NBA history. Unless you are at least 40 years old and/or a student of basketball history, you probably do not understand either the impact that both Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas had as players or the full nature of their deep friendship that suffered a very public feud.

Labels: Detroit Pistons, Isiah Thomas, L.A. Lakers, Magic Johnson, NBA All-Star Weekend

posted by David Friedman @ 7:37 AM

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The Celtics Were the First Bad Boys

ESPN's 30 for 30 episode "Bad Boys" originally aired last month. Here are three important truths to take away from that documentary:

1) Isiah Thomas is one of the most underrated players in pro basketball history. He was tough, he was fearless and he had an impeccable skill set: he was a tremendous ballhandler, he was a gifted passer who racked up legitimate assists (not fake ones given to him by generous scorekeepers), he rebounded well for his position, he was a solid individual defender who played heavy minutes for one of the best defensive teams of all-time and even though he was not a great outside shooter he made a ton of clutch jump shots throughout his career--and he was a good enough shooter that defenders could not just sag off of him. Thomas dropped 25 points on the L.A. Lakers in the third quarter of game six of the 1988 NBA Finals while playing on one leg, setting an NBA Finals single quarter record and tying the ABA/NBA Finals record set by Julius Erving during the 1976 ABA Finals; veteran NBA reporter Jack McCallum called Thomas' heroics "one of the top five offensive performances that there ever was." Thomas sacrificed a lot of his scoring and assist numbers to blend in with Detroit's team concept--so the "stat gurus" will forever underrate his value--but a strong case could be made that Thomas is the greatest 6 foot and under (don't believe his listed height of 6-1) player ever.

2) The Pistons were not the NBA's first "Bad Boys" or even the baddest of the bad. The Larry Bird-Kevin McHale-Robert Parish Boston Celtics were a brutally physical team--think back to McHale clotheslining Kurt Rambis in the 1984 NBA Finals and M.L. Carr undercutting Julius Erving in the 1980 Eastern Conference Finals and the way that their whole frontcourt mauled the Philadelphia 76ers' frontcourt in game seven of the 1981 Eastern Conference Finals while the officials swallowed their whistles. Erving was one of the classiest players in pro basketball history, someone who rarely received technical fouls and never got into fights--but during a November 1984 regular season game he took a swing at Bird after getting frustrated by Bird's roughhousing tactics (and verbal taunting, something that Erving never did on the many occasions that he outplayed Bird and other players). James Worthy put it best during "Bad Boys": "We knew that they (the Pistons) were a good team, a very physical team, but 'Bad Boys' was something that, nah, they didn't get much respect from us. Playing against the Celtics--it didn't get any tougher, no one got any badder. You could call the Celtics 'Bad Boys' back in the early '80s."

Erving's 76ers overcame the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals in 1980 and 1982 despite the Celtics' rough tactics and then in 1983 the 76ers brought in Moses Malone as the final piece to their championship puzzle; although the 76ers had proven that they could circumvent the Celtics' physical tactics without changing their own style, they needed Malone to match up with the Lakers' Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

The Pistons followed a similar path in the mid to late 1980s, adding Rick Mahorn, John Salley and Dennis Rodman in order to match up with the size, strength and physicality of the Celtics' frontcourt--but the idea that the Pistons did something fundamentally different from what the Celtics had been doing for years is nonsense. The Celtics taught the Pistons how to use physicality to gain an edge and win championships but then the Celtics got mad and lost their composure when they received a dose of their own medicine.

3) The Adrian Dantley-Mark Aguirre trade was not a product of politicking by Thomas on behalf of his boyhood friend Aguirre but rather a shrewd basketball move made by Detroit General Manager Jack McCloskey to put the final championship piece in place. Dantley resented Dennis Rodman's increasingly large role on the team and Aguirre was a much better passer than Dantley; bringing in Aguirre improved the Pistons at both ends of the court and the Pistons rolled to two straight titles with Aguirre and Rodman splitting time at the small forward position. Dantley wanted the Pistons to be his team, while Aguirre fit in perfectly; in his second year with the Pistons, Aguirre voluntarily gave up his starting role to Rodman, an unselfish act that Dantley would never have considered doing.

Labels: Bad Boys, Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, Isiah Thomas, James Worthy, Julius Erving, L.A. Lakers, Larry Bird

posted by David Friedman @ 7:03 PM

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Wayback Machine, Part VIII: The 1982 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

The front cover photo of the 1982 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball depicted the NBA's best early-1980's rivalry--not Larry Bird versus Magic Johnson (which peaked from 1984-87 when Johnson's L.A. Lakers won two out of three NBA Finals showdowns with Bird's Boston Celtics, capped by the Lakers' 1987 victory that prompted Bird to call Johnson "The best I've ever seen") but rather Julius Erving versus Larry Bird. Erving's Philadelphia 76ers beat Bird's Celtics 4-1 in the 1980 Eastern Conference Finals and took a 3-1 lead in the 1981 Eastern Conference Finals before losing three straight games, capped by a 91-90 game seven defeat in the Boston Garden. The back cover photo showed Houston's Moses Malone authoritatively pulling down a one-handed rebound against the Celtics, who defeated Malone's Rockets 4-2 in the 1981 NBA Finals.

The 1982 CHPB contained 319 pages, a 16 page reduction from the 1981 CHPB. In addition to 23 team profiles, the CHPB included lists of the 1981 NBA statistical leaders, a complete schedule, a list of all-time NBA records, a list of all 223 players selected in the 1981 NBA Draft and a "TV/Radio roundup." Bob Ryan, the long-time Boston Globe writer who is probably better known to younger readers as an ESPN personality, contributed a feature story titled "The Championship Flight of Boston's Rare Bird." Ira Berkow, who shared the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for national reporting, wrote "Isiah Thomas' Giant Step to the Pros" and Barry Bloom described "The Resurrection of Bernard King."

Steve Hershey and George White co-wrote the "Inside the NBA" preview, predicting that the Philadelphia 76ers would defeat the San Antonio Spurs in the 1982 NBA Finals. Most of the article dealt with the biggest NBA news of the offseason: the beginning of the era of "free agency without compensation." Previously, if a free agent signed with a different team then his new team had to compensate his old team and if the two teams could not agree on the proper compensation then the NBA Commissioner would make the decision for them. For instance, Houston signed Golden State's free agent forward Rick Barry prior to the 1978-79 season and Commissioner Larry O'Brien sent Rockets point guard John Lucas to the Warriors as compensation after the two teams could not come to terms. Hershey and White speculated that the new form of free agency could lead to the rich getting richer because wealthy owners who thought that they were one player away from winning a championship might spend wildly to get that player--but Hershey and White concluded that in the short run the balance of power would likely not tilt and thus they selected perennial contender Philadelphia to finally win the championship in Erving's sixth season with the team.

Erving and the 76ers lived up to part of the CHPB's prediction--making it to the Finals for the second time in three years (and the third time in Erving's NBA career)--but they ran into one of the most underrated teams in pro basketball history: the L.A. Lakers featured Magic Johnson nearly averaging a triple double for the season (18.6 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 9.5 apg), a 34 year old but still highly productive Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (23.9 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 2.7 bpg), All-Star guard Norm Nixon and future Hall of Famer Jamaal Wilkes. The Lakers were so talented and so deep that former MVP/future Hall of Famer Bob McAdoo and future Defensive Player of the Year Michael Cooper both came off of the bench. By the time the 76ers met the Lakers in the Finals, the Lakers had won 11 games in a row--including 4-0 playoff sweeps of the Suns and the Spurs--and had not lost a game in six weeks. The 76ers took a 61-50 halftime lead in game one and then watched helplessly as the Showtime Lakers blew their doors off in the third quarter with a 19-2 run. The 76ers won game two at home but the Lakers captured three of the next four--with each victory coming by double digit margins--to take their second title in three seasons.

Here are some interesting notes, quotes and quips from the 1982 CHPB:

1) Ryan painted a detailed portrait of the young Larry Bird, though Ryan's prose drifted a bit toward hagiography--most notably when he lauded Bird as "far better than average" on defense even though the Celtics routinely assigned Bird to check the least dangerous opposing frontcourt player regardless of position; Bird was a savvy team defender and an outstanding defensive rebounder but he was a below average one on one defender who rarely guarded top notch scorers. Ryan asserted that in just his second season Bird had already proved "If he's not the finest all-around player in the game, then surely he must be the standard of comparison."

Though Ryan made it sound like Bird was flawless, Bird shot just .419 from the field in the 1981 NBA Finals even though he rarely launched from long distance (Bird connected on one of his two three point field goal attempts during the six game series win over the Houston Rockets). Cedric Maxwell's clutch play--he led the Celtics in scoring with a 17.7 ppg average against Houston--earned him Finals MVP honors, while Bird's major contribution came on the boards (15.3 rpg), where he nearly battled perennial rebounding champion Moses Malone to a draw (Malone hauled in a series-high 16.3 rpg).

Many fans, especially those who are too young to remember Bird's entire career, think of him as a three point shooter and deft passer but Bird started out as a rugged rebounder who did a lot of work in the trenches. While he shot .406 from three point range as a rookie in 1979-80--the first year that the NBA used the three point shot--Bird shot .286 or worse from behind the arc in each of the next four seasons and he did not average more than six apg until 1983-84, the first of his three straight MVP seasons.

2) Berkow began his Isiah Thomas article--reprinted from the New York Times--with the now-familiar story of how Thomas' mother used sharp words and a shotgun to fend off local Chicago gangs who tried to recruit Isiah and his brothers. Berkow described how Thomas improved his grades during his high school years so that he could earn a basketball scholarship as a ticket out of the Chicago ghettos. Thomas went to Indiana University with the goal of becoming a lawyer and helping members of his community who could not afford proper legal representation but he left school early because playing pro basketball enabled him to provide financial security for his family. Berkow's story ended with Thomas leading the Indiana Hoosiers to the second of Coach Bob Knight's three NCAA titles.

After that victory, Thomas turned pro and was drafted by the moribund Detroit Pistons, a team that posted just 16 wins in 1979-80 and 21 wins in 1980-81. Who could have imagined that just seven years later this undersized point guard (listed at 6-1 but probably closer to 5-11 or 6-0 at the most) would help the Pistons replace Bird's Celtics as the best team in the East en route to winning back to back championships versus Johnson's Lakers? Casual fans do not understand or appreciate just how rare and difficult it is for a short player to dominate pro basketball at a championship level. Thomas' Detroit Coach Chuck Daly once said that if Thomas had been 6-6 he would have been the greatest player ever; there is a bit of hyperbole in that statement and a bit of bias in favor of the best player Daly ever coached but there is also a kernel of truth in the sentiment. Thomas achieved so much but his size placed certain irrevocable limitations on him; Thomas refused to admit that while he played but after he retired he stood next to Bird and Johnson at some function and mentioned that for the first time it had dawned on him just how much they both towered over him (Bird and Johnson are each 6-9) and how remarkable it was that he went toe to toe with them for so many years.

3) Many NBA fans know that Bernard King became the first player to make the All-Star team after blowing out his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) but that was actually King's second comeback. Prior to that, King overcame drug and alcohol addiction, as Bloom explained: "Adversity and courage. They have become a way of life for Bernard King...since January, 1980, King has been engaged in the fight of his life--a fight not only against alcoholism, but a fight to clear his name of a once-reckless reputation." After averaging 24.2 ppg as a rookie for the Nets in 1977-78 and then scoring 21.6 ppg for the Nets in 1978-79, King slumped to just 9.3 ppg in only 19 games for the Utah Jazz in 1979-80. King averaged 21.9 ppg for the Golden State Warriors in 1980-81, winning the NBA's first Comeback Player of the Year award. King did not make the All-Star team in 1981 but he won Player of the Week honors in the first week of January after shooting 59-72 (.819) from the field and then he earned January's Player of the Month Award after averaging 27.4 ppg in 13 games while shooting 141-194 (.727) from the field.

King averaged 23.2 ppg for the Warriors in 1981-82, finally earning his first All-Star selection and also making the All-NBA Second Team for the first time. He signed a free agent deal with the New York Knicks after that season and the Warriors exercised their right of first refusal before agreeing to trade King for Micheal Ray Richardson. King made the All-NBA First Team in 1984 and 1985--and was selected as the 1984 MVP by the league's players in a Sporting News poll, though King finished second to Bird in the official MVP balloting conducted by media members--but his devastating ACL injury in early 1985 robbed him of his explosiveness and cost him nearly two full seasons. King returned to action late in the 1986-87 season and he ranked third in the league in scoring in 1990-91, earning his fourth and final All-Star selection.

4) John Drew was a big-time scorer in the 1970s and early 1980s, averaging at least 20 ppg for four straight seasons and for five seasons in a six season stretch. However, Drew's CHPB profile noted that his game was a bit one dimensional: "Retained his spot on the All-Non-Passing team with a mere 79 assists...Went to the Larry Kenon school of defense and was saved his usual embarrassment in the playoffs when the Hawks failed to qualify."

5) Bird's CHPB profile began with these words: "Belongs in a higher league...Absolutely the best all-around player in the universe. Could carry the Celtics on a dynasty trip." Despite that lofty praise, a good case could be made that--contrary to the way things were reported by many media outlets at the time--Bird never equaled or surpassed Magic Johnson: Johnson beat Bird head to head in the 1979 NCAA Championship Game, Johnson won Finals MVP honors as a rookie--guiding the Lakers to victory over a Philadelphia team that routed Bird's Celtics 4-1 in the Eastern Conference Finals--and Johnson ultimately topped Bird five to three in NBA championships, including the league's first back to back titles since Bill Russell retired. Ironically, by the time that Johnson finally received his due vis a vis Bird a new star eclipsed both of them: Michael Jordan won the much heralded MJ versus MJ showdown in the 1991 Finals, bested Johnson's repeat accomplishment by leading the Bulls to a three-peat and then came out of retirement to win a second three-peat.

If the 76ers had not blown a 3-1 lead in the 1981 Eastern Conference Finals and/or if Maxwell had not come through in the 1981 NBA Finals then the media likely could not have continued to portray Bird as the game's best all-around player--that just would not have sounded right if Bird was the only player in the Abdul-Jabbar-Johnson-Erving early 1980's pantheon who had not won a championship ring (if Erving's 76ers had not collapsed in the Eastern Conference Finals they would have presumably beaten the Rockets in the 1981 Finals). The elephant in the room is that, for many fans and media members, Larry Bird was the Great White Hope in a league that was widely perceived to be "too Black." Bird was indisputably a great player but at times--particularly early in his career--the media got more than a little carried away in terms of lauding him at the expense of Johnson; for instance, Johnson was killed in the press for supposedly getting Coach Paul Westhead fired in 1981 and for playing poorly in the Lakers' 1984 Finals loss but Bird largely escaped scrutiny for his subpar play when the Milwaukee Bucks swept the Celtics in the 1983 Eastern Conference semifinals and for having any role in Coach Bill Fitch's resignation after that season. The two coaching situations were different and I am not saying that Johnson was blameless and/or that Bird deserved blame; the point is that during that era the media seemed to quickly jump to negative conclusions about Johnson while giving Bird the benefit of the doubt.

6) Earlier editions of the CHPB did not speak highly of Robert Parish but his 1982 profile noted that Parish "Made the difference" for the Celtics because he "Supplied the shot-blocking and intimidating defense the team lacked."

7) Rookie Kevin McHale averaged 10.0 ppg and blocked 151 shots. His profile contained this colorful description of his physique: "Chicken-breasted and his waist seems to start above his often beer-filled stomach but can run the court with anyone." Boston's Bird-Parish-Maxwell starting frontcourt had proved formidable, prompting this rhetorical question about McHale: "When will he ever start?" McHale won the Sixth Man Award in 1984 and 1985 before becoming a full-time starter in 1986 and an All-NBA First Team member in 1987.

8) George McGinnis shared ABA MVP honors with Julius Erving in 1975 but by 1982 McGinnis' career was just about over, as his CHPB profile noted: "What a waste...Has all the tools, but keeps leaving them on the work bench...Now in the twilight of an outstanding career, which just never seemed to completely satisfy anyone...Genuine nice guy."

9) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was often unappreciated during his career and he is arguably the most underrated great player of all-time; his name rarely if ever comes up in the ubiquitous greatest player of all-time conversations but he should be on the short list in any such discussion. His profile contained this lament from the man who would become the sport's all-time scoring leader: "There's a certain 'otherness' about me that makes it hard for me. I'm not a mainstream type of person." Julius Erving has often called Abdul-Jabbar the greatest player he played against and that is understandable considering that Abdul-Jabbar is the major reason that Erving's 76ers did not win the 1980 and 1982 NBA titles (Magic Johnson performed at an outstanding level in both series but Abdul-Jabbar presented an unsolvable matchup problem for the 76ers until they acquired Moses Malone).

10) As memories of Erving's ABA heroics faded and as young stars emerged, the dominant media theme about Erving's career focused not on how much he had accomplished but rather on the one goal he had not achieved: winning an NBA title to go along with his two ABA titles. Erving's profile declared, "Another magnificent effort wasted...The Good Doctor plays nothing but top stakes now...Anything short of a world championship is a disappointment...Averaged 24.7 in seven game playoff against Milwaukee and 19.9 against Boston, when he finally wore down chasing Larry Bird...Will be 32 before playoffs start again and must be wondering if he'll ever collect an NBA championship to go along with his MVP trophy...Decision to have him face guard Bird for last five games of Celtics' series cost him some offensive effectiveness, but he accepted the task without a question...Still king of the one-on-one."

It is interesting to note that Erving "wore down" during the 1981 playoffs guarding the younger and bigger Bird while the Celtics usually assigned Maxwell or McHale to check Erving so that Bird could defend Caldwell Jones or whichever Philadelphia player was the least likely to get the ball. Magic Johnson was never as praised for his defense as Bird--who somehow made the All-Defensive Second Team twice--but one of the key adjustments of the 1982 Finals saw the Lakers switch Johnson on to Erving to keep Erving off of the offensive boards after Erving hurt the Lakers in that area earlier in the series. Johnson, who was roughly the same size as Bird--two to three inches taller than Erving and at least 15 pounds heavier--could not stop Erving from scoring but he did limit Erving's offensive rebounding.

11) Four-time All-Star Doug Collins played in just 12 games for Philadelphia during the 1981 season and he missed the entire playoffs: "Still wants to try...Trouble is, there's no room at the inn...Would make somebody a fine coach...Has missed 240 games in his eight year career and has endured enough punishment...When he was healthy, he was one of the best." Collins retired prior to the 1981-82 season and got his first NBA head coaching job five years later, mentoring a young Michael Jordan. Collins is still coaching in the league now, so that CHPB blurb proved to be prophetic.

12) Dudley Bradley's profile started with something that sounded like a Zen koan: "If he could shoot, he'd make the All-Defensive Team...Stop and think about it. He's one of the best defensive guards but his lack of offense keeps him in a reserve role...Fifth in the league in steals." What is even more confusing about that quote is that Bradley actually made the All-Defensive Team in 1981 despite only averaging 22.8 mpg for the Indiana Pacers! Bradley never became a good shooter but he hit one of the most unlikely three pointers in NBA history--a game-winner for Washington versus Philadelphia in the first game of the first round of the 1986 playoffs, capping a miraculous 18-0 run in the final four minutes. Bradley shot just 17-68 (.250) from three point range that season and he shot just 5-22 (.227) from three point range during his entire postseason career but he banked in a turnaround jumper from several feet behind the three point arc as time expired to stun the 76ers in Philadelphia. The 76ers eventually won the series three games to two.

13) Before Freeman Williams played Duck Johnson in "White Men Can't Jump" he was a two-time NCAA scoring champion--averaging 38.8 ppg as a junior in 1976-77 and 35.9 ppg as a senior in 1977-78 at Portland State--and he still ranks second on the NCAA's career scoring list behind Pete Maravich. Williams could score at the NBA level, too: "Could find the basket if you buried it five miles under the most remote peak in the Alps...Clipper Coach Paul Silas calls him 'one of the easiest scorers I've ever seen.'...Despite his gunner reputation, he does make an effort on defense." Williams led the Clippers in scoring in 1980-81 (19.3 ppg) despite playing just 24.1 mpg as a reserve.

14) Paul Westphal spent three seasons as a reserve player in Boston before being traded to the Phoenix Suns and blossoming into one of the league's premier guards--a five-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA selection--but by 1982 his health and skills had declined dramatically, leading to this poignant question at the start of his CHPB profile: "What happened en route to the Hall of Fame?...Wanted to leave Phoenix, where he was as much a part of the landscape as a gila monster, got his wish and was traded to Seattle. After playing just 36 games, he suffered his second foot stress fracture of the season and became a permanent spectator. Was forced to spend the next 30 weeks on electromagnetic therapy." Westphal's career lasted just three more seasons, two in New York followed by a swan song in Phoenix. He is not a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame.

James Harden is trying to navigate a Westphal-like path from the bench to perennial All-Star status; Harden made the All-Star team this season but it will be interesting to see if he can maintain his productivity and his health for the duration of his max level contract.

Wayback Machine, Part I looked at the 1975 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Wayback Machine, Part II looked at the 1976 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Wayback Machine, Part III looked at the 1977 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Wayback Machine, Part IV looked at the 1978 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Wayback Machine, Part V looked at the 1979 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Wayback Machine, Part VI looked at the 1980 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Wayback Machine, Part VII looked at the 1981 Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball

Labels: Bernard King, Bob Ryan, Complete Handbook of Pro Basketball, Freeman Williams, Ira Berkow, Isiah Thomas, James Harden, Julius Erving, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Paul Westphal, Zander Hollander

posted by David Friedman @ 4:58 AM

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Can Jeremy Lin Really Save the Poorly Constructed Knicks?

Prior to the spectacular rise of Jeremy Lin from bench player about to be cut to international sensation, the New York Knicks were a sub-.500 team that lacked both style and substance; they were painful to watch because of their isolation-based offense revolving around Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire and because of their aversion to consistently doing the dirty work--rebounding and defense--that is essential to create a winning program. "Linsanity" briefly provided some excitement for the fans and some wins in the standings but now the Knicks are, to borrow the overused and yet entirely apt Dennis Green quote, "who we thought they were": an overrated and overhyped team.

The Knicks essentially tanked the 2009 and 2010 seasons to position themselves under the salary cap in order to make a run at LeBron James--but I never believed that there was a realistic chance that LeBron James intended to become captain of the Gotham Titanic. I expected him to stay in Cleveland--where he had a great chance to lead the Cavaliers to a championship--but in my 2010 All-Star Game recap I mentioned the only scenario that I thought could convince James to leave Cleveland:

"Despite all of the feverish speculation about James leaving Cleveland to play in New York or New Jersey, neither of those scenarios makes any sense; James understands that his resume will not be complete unless he wins an NBA title--10 or 15 years from now he does not want to be the butt of jokes on TNT a la Charles Barkley (with all due respect to the ring-less Round Mound of Rebound) and James is smart enough to realize that the New York and New Jersey franchises are not built to win championships. However, if James and Wade work out a way to play for the same team as a package deal then that team instantly becomes very formidable, assuming that the rest of the roster is not completely gutted to pay the two superstars. The only way that I see James leaving Cleveland is if the Cavaliers fall short of winning the 2010 title and he is able to partner with Wade in the aforementioned manner."

Cleveland's worst sports nightmare came to life in the months after I wrote those words--the 2010 Cavs fell apart in the playoffs as LeBron James quit and then James bolted to Miami to team up with Wade and Chris Bosh. Meanwhile, the Knicks--who apparently felt compelled to do something with all of that salary cap space they had cleared--signed Amare Stoudemire and prayed that he could be the franchise's savior. The 2011 Knicks feasted on a soft early schedule to start out 16-9 but they were barely above .500 (28-26) when they traded four players, three draft picks and $3 million in cash to acquire Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Renaldo Balkman, Anthony Carter and Shelden Williams. Stoudemire, Anthony and Billups were supposed to comprise New York's "Big Three" to match the "Big Threes" in Miami and Boston but it took quite a stretch of the imagination to believe that New York's trio compared with the Heat's three All-NBA caliber studs or Boston's collection of future Hall of Famers. New York went 14-14 after the trade, including 14-13 when Anthony played. The media then portrayed the Knicks as the proverbial "team that nobody wants to face in the first round"--and the Boston Celtics made that assessment look foolish by sweeping New York, 4-0. Portland was also considered a "team that nobody wants to face in the first round" last season and in my 2011 Playoff Preview I wrote, "Someone should go through the archives and find out the winning percentages of such teams, because I suspect that most "teams nobody wanted to face" actually did not go particularly far in the postseason (I think that Carmelo Anthony's Nuggets received that title several of the years that they lost in the first round)."

Before the truncated 2012 season began many media members continued to hype up the Knicks as a potential Eastern Conference power, while I picked the Knicks to finish sixth in the East. The Knicks "amnestied" Chauncey Billups and limped to an 8-15 record without a legitimate starting point guard before Lin led the team to seven straight wins--but now reality has set in again and the Knicks are currently 18-23, clinging to the eighth playoff spot. The media, the fans and the "stat gurus" relentlessly blamed Isiah Thomas for everything that went wrong with the Knicks a few years ago but the Knicks were 33-49 in 2006-07, Thomas' first season as coach. Granted, those were hardly the franchise's glory days but in the subsequent seasons the Knicks exceeded that win total just once (last season) and they are currently barely above that winning percentage now.

I wrote these prophetic words at the beginning of the Mike D'Antoni era:

"...there are two interesting dynamics to watch with the Knicks, namely what roster changes new team president Donnie Walsh makes in the next year or two and whether or not D'Antoni is willing/able to coax a better defensive performance out of this team.

'Defense' may be a four letter word to D'Antoni but if the Knicks want to spell a certain 12 letter word--'championship'--for the first time since 1973 then defense will have to become a part of their collective vocabulary."

***************

Further Reading:

Knicks Buy Ticket for "LeBron Lottery"

New York State of Mind

New York State of Mind, Part II

Why Would LeBron James Become Captain of the Gotham Titanic?

Labels: Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, Isiah Thomas, Jeremy Lin, Mike D'Antoni, New York Knicks

posted by David Friedman @ 4:30 PM

10 comments

Jeremy Lin Skill Set Analysis

Our culture is now fueled by instant hype/superficial commentary and it disdains patient observation and thoughtful analysis, but rather than rushing to be the first to say something about "Linsanity" I much prefer to examine a meaningful sample size of games before drawing any definitive conclusions. There is no way to know yet if Jeremy Lin has the necessary mental, physical and emotional stamina to be a top notch starting point guard for an extended period of time; what we have seen in his brief run as New York's starting point guard is that he has supplied some elements that the Knicks desperately needed: effective dribble penetration, timely scoring and deft passing. However, Coach Mike D'Antoni's system tends to inflate any true point guard's statistics (the Knicks' problem prior to Lin's arrival was that they did not have a true point guard and were thus using converted point guards at that crucial position or else experimenting with Carmelo Anthony as a point forward); Steve Nash became a two-time MVP playing for D'Antoni and under D'Antoni's guidance Chris Duhon emerged from obscurity to rank 10th in the NBA in assists in 2009 before promptly dropping back into obscurity after leaving New York.

Lin is quick, unselfish and deceptively strong/athletic--but he is also turnover prone, erratic on defense and an unreliable shooter outside of the paint. Until the past week or so, Lin did not likely even appear on the opposing team's scouting report but now the "book" on him will surely be to force Lin to play in a crowd when he has the ball with a live dribble but to otherwise concede the outside shot and to attack him at the other end of the court.

No one predicted Jeremy Lin's sudden rise and no one knows how his story will play out moving forward--but the numbers he has posted so far are stunning and it will be interesting to see if he can maintain anything close to this level of productivity.

Labels: Charles Barkley, Isiah Thomas, Jeremy Lin, Michael Jordan, Mike D'Antoni, New York Knicks

posted by David Friedman @ 3:21 AM

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McDonald's Selects 35th Anniversary All American Team

In honor of the upcoming 35th anniversary of the McDonald's All American High School Boys Basketball Game, the McDonald's All American Games Selection Committee created a list of the 35 greatest McDonald's All Americans. More than 800 players have been honored as McDonald's All Americans, so the 35 players on this list are the elite of the elite. According to the press release from the Selection Committee, each player was chosen "based on his high school career and performance in the McDonald’s All American Games, success at the collegiate and professional level, and post-career accomplishments." The press release adds that each of the 35 players listed below "will receive a custom-designed basketball, produced by Anaconda Sports® The Rock®":

Earvin "Magic" Johnson (McDonald’s All American class of 1977)
Clark Kellogg (1979)
Ralph Sampson (1979)
Isiah Thomas (1979)
Dominique Wilkins (1979)
James Worthy (1979)
Sam Perkins (1980)
Glenn "Doc" Rivers (1980)
Patrick Ewing (1981)
Michael Jordan (1981)
Chris Mullin (1981)
Kenny Smith (1983)
Danny Manning (1984)
Larry Johnson (1987)
Christian Laettner (1988)
Alonzo Mourning (1988)
Bobby Hurley (1989)
Shaquille O’Neal (1989)
Grant Hill (1990)
Glenn Robinson (1991)
Jason Kidd (1992)
Jerry Stackhouse (1993)
Vince Carter (1995)
Kevin Garnett (1995)
Paul Pierce (1995)
Kobe Bryant (1996)
Jay Williams (1999)
Carmelo Anthony (2002)
Amare Stoudemire (2002)
LeBron James (2003)
Chris Paul (2003)
Dwight Howard (2004)
Tyler Hansbrough (2005)
Kevin Durant (2006)
Derrick Rose (2007)

The list includes numerous current and future Hall of Famers, NBA MVPs, NBA Rookies of the Year and NBA scoring champions. It is interesting to note that three of the players on the list who attended Duke had their NBA careers either ended or curtailed by serious leg injuries: Bobby Hurley (who almost died in a car accident), Jay Williams (whose promising NBA career was ended by a motorcycle accident) and Grant Hill, an All-NBA First Team performer whose career was altered by a severe ankle injury that required multiple surgeries and extensive rehabilitation. Two of the regular members of TNT's NBA studio show are on the list: Kenny Smith and Shaquille O'Neal.

The 1979 class leads the way with five honorees, three of whom are Hall of Famers (Isiah Thomas, James Worthy and Dominique Wilkins) and two of whom are included on the NBA's 50 Greatest Players List (Thomas and Worthy). One memory that stands out for me from McDonald's All American history is a two handed dunk thrown down in the 1979 game not by renowned high flyers Wilkins or Worthy but by 6-2 John Paxson, who played his high school ball in my hometown of Dayton, Ohio before starring at Notre Dame and winning three championships with the 1991-93 Chicago Bulls teams headlined by Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Steve Kerr succeeded Paxson in the role as Chicago's designated sharpshooter and won three rings during the second Jordan-Pippen "three-peat." Casual fans may assume that Paxson and Kerr were similar players cut from the same stereotypical mold: non-athletic white guys who can really shoot. Nothing could be further from the truth, as Kerr told me a few years ago when I interviewed him for an article about how to define athletic ability and I mentioned Paxson's McDonald's dunk; Kerr replied that Paxson had a lot of "junk" (i.e., explosiveness) in his game, a marked contrast to the ground bound Kerr (Kerr was one of the few NBA players of his era who could not dunk and possibly the only one in that small group who is a legit 6-3). I did not include Kerr's comment about Paxson in my athleticism article (it did not really fit with the overall theme of the piece) but seeing the 1979 alumni dominate the McDonald's list reminded me about the time that a player from my home town had a highlight moment long before his clutch fourth quarter shooting in the clinching game of the 1991 NBA Finals helped Michael Jordan to capture the first of his six NBA titles.

Here is a special video featuring the members of the 35th Anniversary McDonald's All-American team:



Kobe Bryant is now the elder statesman among the NBA's elite players but 16 years ago he was a high school phenomenon:

Labels: Dominique Wilkins, Isiah Thomas, James Worthy, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, McDonald's All-Americans, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal

posted by David Friedman @ 12:05 AM

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Why Would LeBron James Become Captain of the Gotham Titanic?

The 3-13 New York Knicks own the third worst record in the NBA; they have no apparent plan to become successful any time soon, only a dream--call it a delusion--that LeBron James is going to leave a championship contending team in Cleveland to become the captain of the Gotham Titanic. More than a generation ago, Micheal Ray Richardson famously lamented that the Knicks' "ship be sinking," adding that "the sky's the limit" after being asked how far the ship could plummet--but the current edition of the Knicks is even worse than Richardson's team was: the Knicks rank 29th (out of 30 teams) in points allowed (107.9), 29th in rebounding differential (-6.6) 28th in point differential (-6.5) and 28th in defensive field goal percentage (.488). The Knicks opened the Mike D'Antoni era with a 6-3 record in 2008-09 but since then they have gone 29-60, a .326 winning percentage that is worse than the Knicks' record under the much criticized Isiah Thomas regime (56-108, .341).

Last year, many Knicks' fans--and even some national commentators--were thrilled at the prospect that D'Antoni and his fabled "seven seconds or less" offensive system would improve the Knicks so much that LeBron James could be the final piece that would make the Knicks a championship contender. However, by the latter portion of the season, I pointed out that D'Antoni's Knicks were clearly heading in the wrong direction; they were lousy defensively and on the boards and--most ominously--both of those trends steadily worsened throughout the season. Despite all of the buzz about D'Antoni, his Knicks finished 32-50 in 2008-09, one game worse than the Knicks finished in Thomas' first season as their coach (2006-07).

After I told the truth about the Knicks' plight, diehard Knicks fan Mike Kurylo wrote a barely comprehensible screed in response, misspelling my name and betraying complete ignorance not only about NBA basketball but also about basic journalistic methods (he suggested that I spelled out "fourth" instead of writing "4th" because of some diabolical psychological plot to "visually" mislead readers when the reality is that it is standard practice to spell out ordinal numbers less than 10th). I refuted Kurylo's nonsense, concluding "Mike K. declares that I 'cherry picked' numbers in a 'dishonest' attempt to tell a biased story but the reality is that I simply cited the relevant numbers regarding the 2007, 2008 and 2009 Knicks, indicated that the D'Antoni Knicks have yet to surpass the level that the Thomas Knicks reached in 2007 and suggested that the Knicks need to make personnel and philosophical changes in order to become a good team."

"Stat guru" Dave Berri also jumped into the mix, incorrectly suggesting that my article compared the 2009 Knicks to the 2005 Knicks--a lie that distorts the meaning of what I wrote and that Berri refuses to retract--and offering up his usual numbers-based rhetoric to suggest that the Knicks are in fact moving in the right direction.

The funny thing about this is that Kurylo's inability to write coherently or understand NBA basketball made his website a perfect candidate to join the True Hoop Network (and Berri's ramblings are frequently cited at True Hoop as well); making the "right" friends may help one out in the writing business even when a person is incompetent but in the real world outside of the basketball blogosphere clubhouse one actually has to be organized, competent and productive in order to be successful. D'Antoni's media-friendly personality--he truly seems to be a nice guy and he is always extremely accommodating to the media--has bought him time and earned him sympathy but it will not be able to indefinitely obscure the simple fact that the Knicks are a bad team that is not improving. The argument that the Knicks had to become worse before they could get better does not fly: in order to ever become a championship team the Knicks have to establish that defense and rebounding will be their cornerstones: that is how NBA championship-winning coaches like Phil Jackson, Gregg Popovich, Pat Riley and Larry Brown built their programs.

It really looks like the Knicks are essentially tanking the 2009 and 2010 seasons in order to slash their payroll and have enough money to sign LeBron James and/or another big-time free agent--but why would an MVP-caliber player want to sign with a dysfunctional team? If there is one thing that James has learned after playing for Cleveland Coach Mike Brown it is the importance of defense--and that lesson was reinforced by James' Team USA experience when he witnessed firsthand Kobe Bryant's dedication at that end of the court.

How will the Knicks be able to justify to their fans the suffering of the 2009 and 2010 seasons if the Knicks do not sign an elite player in the summer of 2010? Moreover, even if the Knicks bring in an elite player they still would struggle to win more than 45 games without doing a major restructuring of the rest of their roster and a complete overhaul of their all-offense, no-defense/rebounding philosophy.

Labels: Isiah Thomas, LeBron James, Mike D'Antoni, New York Knicks

posted by David Friedman @ 6:02 PM

1 comments

Magic-Isiah Feud is Just Sad

It is indisputable that Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas--two of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players--used to be as close as brothers; it is also indisputable that their relationship has suffered a rift that is likely irreparable. Determining who is to blame for causing that rift has suddenly become a very public controversy and the sad reality is that we will likely never know the full truth.

When Thomas and his childhood friend Mark Aguirre were young NBA players they spent a lot of time with Johnson and frequently went to the NBA Finals when Johnson's L.A. Lakers battled Bird's Boston Celtics; Thomas and Aguirre wanted to see up close exactly what the Finals were all about and they learned their lessons well, eventually leading the Detroit Pistons to NBA championships in 1989 and 1990, beating both the Celtics and the Lakers during that first championship run. I have always respected the studious--and relentless--approach that Thomas took when guiding the Pistons from being a laughingstock to a contender to a repeat champion during one of the NBA's most competitive eras, a period when he and the Pistons had to fight for supremacy not only against Bird's Celtics and Johnson's Lakers but Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls, Clyde Drexler's Portland Trail Blazers and several other deep, strong teams.

In Jackie MacMullan's new book When the Game Was Ours, a biography of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson written with the cooperation of both subjects, Johnson asserts that Thomas spread rumors that Johnson is gay and/or bisexual after Johnson retired from the NBA in 1991 due to his HIV positive status. Johnson also declares that Thomas alienated most of the players in the NBA and that no one on the 1992 Dream Team wanted Thomas to be a member of that squad.

Thomas feels completely blindsided by Johnson's comments and, in an interview with Sports Illustrated's Ian Thomsen, vehemently denies Johnson's accusations, adding, "I'm really hurt, and I really feel taken advantage of for all these years. I'm totally blindsided by this. Every time that I've seen Magic, he has been friendly with me. Whenever he came to a Knick game, he was standing in the tunnel (to the locker room) with me. He and (Knicks assistant coach) Herb (Williams) and I, we would go out to dinner in New York. I didn't know he felt this way."

MacMullan is a solid reporter and I believe that she accurately quoted Johnson--but the key source for the allegation that Thomas questioned Johnson's sexuality is not Johnson but rather Lon Rosen, Johnson's longtime agent, who claims that Thomas asked Rosen if Johnson is gay. Rosen says that after he denied that Johnson is gay Thomas replied, "I don't know what he's doing when he's out there in L.A." Thomas told Thomsen that the alleged conversation with Rosen never took place. When Tony Kornheiser and Mike Wilbon recently interviewed MacMullan on ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption," MacMullan said that Rosen has no reason or motive to lie and that she has "two or three" anonymous sources who also say that Thomas questioned Johnson's sexuality and/or spread rumors about Johnson in that regard. Interestingly, Bird--who faced Thomas in several contentious playoff series and who fired Thomas as Pacers' coach in 2003--apparently did not say anything negative about Thomas to MacMullan.

ESPN's on air coverage of this situation has clearly been slanted in Johnson's favor--which is understandable (though hardly excusable) considering that MacMullan is a member of the ESPN family; during Friday afternoon's SportsCenter, ESPN quoted Johnson's accusations against Thomas at length while giving short shrift to Thomas' refutations, so you really must read Thomsen's article to get the complete picture. Oddly, both ESPN and Thomsen erroneously said that MacMullan's book will be published on November 4 when in fact the book has already been in stores since at least mid-October (I saw copies of the book in the Highland Park, Illinois Borders on October 12).

Most people understand from personal experience that in "he said, he said" situations there usually is some truth--and some falsehood (or at least distorted memories)--in what both sides say. Of course, some times one side is simply lying while the other side is telling the complete truth. In this particular case, only Johnson, Rosen and Thomas know the truth but I am disappointed with MacMullan's comments to Kornheiser and Wilbon. Contrary to what she said, Rosen has discernible motives/reasons to lie:

1) Rosen would want to keep his story in line with whatever Johnson says or else Rosen could lose a valuable client.

2) Many agents did not like some of the actions that Thomas took when Thomas was the President of the NBA Players Association.

I am not accusing Rosen of lying--but I also do not see any reason to say that he should be considered more credible than Thomas. Think about it this way--if your best friend announced that he is HIV positive and that he contracted the virus via heterosexual sex would your first move be to ask your friend's agent/lawyer if your friend is gay? Wouldn't you feel like you know your friend better than his agent/lawyer does?

With all due respect to MacMullan, I am not impressed by her "anonymous sources," who could very well be people who have axes to grind against Thomas. I have long respected Al Neuharth's refusal to use anonymous sources when he ran USA TODAY; Neuharth explained, "There's not a place for anonymous sources. I think there are a few major historical developments that happened in journalism--the Pentagon Papers, maybe Watergate--where anonymous sources had a more positive influence than a negative impact. But on balance, the negative impact is so great that we can't overcome the lack of trust until or unless we ban them."

Although it is impossible to prove whether Thomas or Rosen is telling the truth, it is worth noting that the timeline of events does not support Johnson's claim that Thomas' comments led to Johnson not supporting Thomas' inclusion on the Dream Team; the Dream Team roster was announced on September 21, 1991, six weeks before Johnson made his announcement about being HIV positive (and thus long before the Thomas-Rosen conversation supposedly happened).

It also must be said that when the Dream Team roster was chosen four players should have been absolute, mortal locks: Johnson (winner of five championships), Bird (winner of three championships), Thomas (winner of two championships) and Michael Jordan (who at that time had just won the first of his six NBA titles). You could argue about the merits of various other players but those four guys simply had to be on the team--but Thomas was left off. Whatever the real reasons are for that decision, it was a disgrace to deny Thomas an honor that he had earned by literally leaving his blood, sweat and tears on the court, particularly since he had previously missed an opportunity to play in the Olympics due to the 1980 U.S. boycott of the Moscow Games.

We may never know the truth about Johnson's accusations and Thomas' refutations but Thomas should have been on the Dream Team--and no one who played a role in keeping Thomas off of that roster should be proud of that dubious achievement.

Labels: Isiah Thomas, Jackie MacMullan, Larry Bird, Lon Rosen, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan

posted by David Friedman @ 10:52 PM

10 comments