Another List

  Okay, the Denver Nuggets showed their grittiness and responded to the best the Miami Heat would offer by outplaying them in the fourth quarter to wrap up the franchise’s first ever NBA title. Nikola Jokic is a beast and he seems to be the best player in the world right now. Jamal Murray and Jokic entered some rarified air, joining Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Steph Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo as the only players in NBA history to average 25 points per game/5 rebounds per game/5 assists per game. Jokic is the only one EVER to lead the entire playoffs in all three categories. 

    While it was a well-deserved victory, let’s not jump to conclusions and believe that this team is likely to become a dynasty. Yes, it is possible that the Nuggets could win again next year. But the NBA landscape is ever-changing, with players coming into the league, plus there are trades, free agent signings and injuries. A team like San Antonio, last in the NBA, could become aggressive with Victor Wembanyama as the top choice overall and then surround him with enough pieces to become instant contenders. And what about up and coming Sacramento, or teams in the East getting better? It simply is foolish to prognosticate right now.

What was sad was the amount of gun violence which marred the celebration after the win on Monday then again on Thursday for the victory parade. Large crowds showed up for both—over 750,000 for the parade. Unfortunately, what has become an epidemic in this country could not be excluded from the celebration. 

So sad to see such a joyous event, so long in coming, to be shown on TV for what was a small minority ruining the day. My wife commented that maybe these events after hometown team championship wins should be curtailed. In this climate, who really is to blame?

Meanwhile, approximately 750 miles southwest of Denver, the Vegas Golden Knights demolished the Matthew Tkachuk-less Florida Panthers by a score of 9-3 to secure the franchise’s first Stanley Cup win. It came in a year when everyone anointed the Boston Bruins, the team which set the record for most regular season points, to be the eventual winner. Except that the Panthers said no dice and parlayed their early success into a run to the Finals. 

It was clear that Florida ran out of steam when facing Vegas. The Golden Knights looked hungry and even a bit desperate in Game 5. They took a 2-1 score and turned it into a rout. And insured that owner Bill Foley’s boast that the team would win a Stanley Cup by year 6 would come true. 

I watched the Yankees-Mets series this week. In the first game, the Yankees looked to be the superior team. In Gamer 2, the Yankee bullpen fell apart, allowing the Mets to earn a sweep. I was absolutely baffled why in the second game Yankees Manager Aaron Boone pinch hit for a relatively hot hitter—Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who had stolen home in this game—which didn’t work when Gleyber Torres failed to move the runner along.  

I also saw two good pitchers, Luis Severino and Max Scherzer get lit up on Tuesday, while aces Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole, former teammates in Houston, were excellent in the Wednesday contest. 

One more thing—evidently the Georgia football team has been piling up motor violations since the fatal January 15th crash attributed to racing. The ten new offenses go with the over 60 violations which have happened since the start of 2021. What is going on there? What kind of kids are the Georgia coaches recruiting? And what kind of accountability do they really have with such reckless conduct?

With the end of basketball season, I started to think about this question: who is my favorite player for each franchise? This isn’t a scientific analysis, but I am going to do this anyway. There are 30, so I will make my comments brief. 

Atlanta Hawks: Dominique Wilkins is my first selection. Man could he score. I did like Bob Petit who played in St. Louis.

Boston Celtics: It comes down to Bill Russell and Larry Bird. As much as I love Bird for everything he brought to the floor, Russell was one of a kind. 

Brooklyn Nets: I am going to use some license here and revert to the ABA days and Go with Julius Erving. The Doctor never played for the Nets in the NBA, but he was the best player in the ABA.

Charlotte Hornets: This franchise has not sniffed a title. I thought about Mugsy Bogues for a second, then Dell Curry. However, Larry Johnson, “Grandmama”, is the best the franchise has to offer. 

Dallas Mavericks: Jason Kidd gets some recognition. Not enough to beat out Dirk Novitski. The guy from Germany with the great touch.

Denver Nuggets: Maybe some day Jamal Murray will out do David Thompson on the list. Neither one of them is a good as two-time M.V.P. Nikola Jokic. 

Detroit Pistons: I hated the whole damn bunch. What a horrible group of individuals. Which is why I pick an old timer—Dave Bing. A great sharpshooter. 

Golden State Warriors: Wilt Chamberlain. Rick Barry. Chris Mullin. All Hall of Fame players. None can shoot or play like Steph Curry.

Houston Rockets: Two players are at the top of any list—Clyde Drexler and Akeem Olajuwon. By a narrow margin, it is Akeem the Dream.

Indiana Pacers: Some very fine players passed through Indianapolis. As much as he shot down my beloved Knicks, the pick is Reggie Miller, the second best place in his family after his sister Cheryl. 

Los Angeles Clippers: Another team which hasn’t reached the top. I have to go back to the Buffalo Braves days to salute Bob Mc Adoo. The tall, athletic shooter could do it all—he won three straight scoring titles and one M.V.P. award.

Los Angeles Lakers: Kareem. Kobe. Shaq. West. Baylor. Wilt. I think Kobe was the best. But my favorite will always be Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. I followed him from Power Memorial to UCLA to the Milwaukee Bucks to LA. The sky hook was unstoppable.

Memphis Grizzlies: Ja Morant has been a highlight film—on the court. Off the court, he has been a disaster. Shareef Abdul-Raheem, a mainstay scorer from the Vancouver days is my favorite. He could score. 

Miami Heat: Alonso Mourning gets Honorable Mention. As does Chris Bosh. Dwyane Wade is Mr. Everything in South Beach. 

Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis may surpass this guy. But for me, it is another mention of Kareem. Just loved the player he was. 

Minnesota Timberwolves: Maybe KAT—Karl Anthony Towns—will become the best player there. Until then KG—Kevin Garnett is the best in franchise history. 

New Orleans Pelicans: Another woeful team. The way Anthony Davis left town was disgusting. I am not a Chris Paul fan—except for his commercials. So I will say that Brandon Ingram is my favorite—because I have to pick somebody.

New York Knicks: Who didn’t love the two championship teams? I adored those players. Yet my favorite still is Patrick Ewing.

Oklahoma City Thunder: A heck of a lot of good players started out with this franchise. My favorite is Jack Sikma from the Seattle days. An unorthodox shooting motion from which he rarely missed. 

Orlando Magic: Shaquille O’Neill was dominant. He was young, lean and powerful. And fun to watch. 

Philadelphia 76ers: Dr. J was great. Wilt, too. But I liked the Round Mound of Rebound from Auburn—Charles Barkley. 

Phoenix Suns: This is a very simple one. Steve Nash. The point guard from Canada was tremendous. 

Portland Trail Blazers: Clyde “the Glide” Drexler is the best of a long line of really good players. However, I was always partial to Geoff Petrie, the shooing guard from Princeton. 

Sacramento Kings: The team was also in Rochester, Cincinnati, Kansas City and Omaha. I watched the Cincinnati Royals and was mesmerized by Oscar Robertson. The guard out of Cincinnati didn’t win a title there; he had to wait to join Kareem in Milwaukee. Vlade Divac also was impressive. And I wanted Bobby Hurley to succeed, but he suffered greatly with the car accident. So here I pick the Big O. 

San Antonio Spurs: The greatest player was Tim Duncan. Runner up was David Robinson. My vote goes for Manu Ginobili . Without his leadership, there would not have been championships for Greg Popovich. 

Toronto Raptors: Kawhi Leonard led the team to a title. Vince Carter soared to greatness. I like Carter better. 

Utah Jazz: At first blush one would think of Karl Malone and John Stockton. But they paled in comparison to the one and only “Pistol” Pete Maravich. There was no one like him. 

Washington Wizards: Let’s go back to the Baltimore days. For Earl “the Pearl” Monroe. He sliced and diced the league and the Knicks. Glad he joined New York for the 1973 title. 

Another list. You be the judge. Happy Father’s Day.