When a 21-year-old Vince Carter joined the NBA in 1998 as an athletic wonder, the Toronto Raptors knew they were getting a great player. Little did they know that VC would play a record-breaking 22 years and the third-most games (1,541). Only Robert Parish (1,611) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1,560) logged more NBA appearances. Vinsanity changed…
George Floyd’s murder last month at the hand of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin appears to have jolted much of America’s collective conscience from an apathetic slumber. People of all ages, races and backgrounds have taken up their First Amendment rights of assembly to redress grievances—namely the extra-judicial killing of unarmed Black men by America’s…
NBA Nation just finished consuming ESPN/Netflix’s riveting 10-part documentary The Last Dance. While the five-week Michael Jordan-centric show hit many of the highlights, die-hard Chicago Bulls and ‘90s NBA fans have longed for more. Most of Jordan’s teammates received shoutouts, ranging from dedicated episodes for Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, to specific segments for Horace…
Triple-doubles used to be uncommon, even as Russell Westbrook, James Harden and LeBron James have recently produced a spike in them. But San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson long ago one-upped these luminaries by recording the NBA’s last quadruple-double. Only three other players have ever registered such a feat: Hall-of-Fame centers Nate Thurmond and Hakeem…
Carmelo Anthony has done it all in his basketball career. An NCAA champion with the Syracuse Orange in 2003, ‘Melo’ is a 10-time NBA All-Star and scoring champion (2013), as well as a multi-time Olympic gold medalist. Critics, however, have always been quick to point out his ball-stopping style of play. Another common notion is that…
The 2001 Los Angeles Lakers’ postseason run was arguably the most dominant in history as they went 15-1 to get the middle title of their three-peat. During that run, Kobe Bryant had one of the best playoff performances of his career, scoring 48 points on May 13 to finish off the sweep of the Sacramento…
One thing ESPN’s The Last Dance has really hammered home for me is just how stark the contrast in playing styles is between the modern game and even 20-30 years ago. That premise has gotten my mind racing: What players from that era would seamlessly fit in the modern NBA? Remove the brutish post-ups and…
In 1992, Detective Comics issued #644, the first part of a Batman story called Electric City. At one point, Batman is killed by The Electrocutioner and Robin steps up to beat him into submission. Batman was eventually revived by a bolt of electricity and ultimately saved the day, but the brief period without the leading man…
Jim Barnett has been a staple on Golden State Warriors broadcasts for 35 years. But before that, he logged 11 NBA seasons as a player for seven teams (1966-1977). From filling in for Bill Russell, to figuring out broadcasting on the fly, to calling the Dubs’ darkest days and their finest hours, Barnett’s got some…
Jim Barnett has been a staple on Golden State Warriors broadcasts for 35 years. But before that, he logged 11 NBA seasons as a player for seven teams (1966-1977). From guarding Oscar Robertson and Jerry West to being coached by teammate Bill Russell, to being strong-armed by Red Auerbach and playing a supporting role alongside…
