- 09:22 PM
- 11/23/24
Weedy, you clearly are smoking something. Bowie was an OK player, but he had nowhere near the potential that Oden has/had. Plus, the thing that made Bowie such a bust was the fact that he was drafted ahead of Michael Jordan.
Oden thus far this season had been borderline dominant at times. And the thing that hurts so much as a fan is that he seems like such a good guy, one who cares so much for his team. He was slowly growing into a leadership position -- something Bowie never did.
A better analogy is Walton. While they had very different skill sets, and Walton was better than Oden, they both had the potential to be absolutely dominant big men. For a very brief time, Walton was. We may never know if Oden could have realized his potential.
posted by hercher at 10:55 PM on December 06, 2009
Great piece! Thanks for posting this. I think I just learned of another cool job. How cool would it be to be able to go through those archives, and watch a bunch of old baseball footage?
posted by hercher at 05:36 AM on October 09, 2009
Not sure why you find this curious. The two teams did this because the boy has Down Syndrome. Anybody else, anybody without a story, and you just take a knee so nobody gets hurt by accident.
It's a great story, almost as good as the girls softball players that carried the opposing player around the bases for the winning run.
posted by hercher at 09:18 PM on September 19, 2009
I remember that team so well. I was 16 years old, and became hooked on the game of basketball. I don't think I have ever seen the game played so well -- and that includes Jordan's Bulls that won 72 games. The Blazers didn't win because they had the best talent, or even the best player, as great as Walton was, but because they had the best team. The backdoor play was money for them -- other teams knew it was coming, but couldn't stop it because Portland ran it so well. They seemed to see the game, before it happened. The next year the magic continued: 50-10, Brent Musberger saying every Sunday, several times, "It's like watching a clinic." Then Walton broke his foot, and Weinberg broke our hearts. I'm still a diehard Blazer fan, even living in Pennsylvania. I loved Clyde, Porter, and Kersey, I loved Sabonis, I still think they should have beaten the Pistons, and would have with a better coach. But no team will take away the memory of the 77 Blazers. Rip City!
posted by hercher at 06:33 PM on June 12, 2007
"I just don't understand the continued contempt towards baseball while football seems to be getting a free pass." Because we all assume football players are using.
posted by hercher at 05:33 PM on August 28, 2006
The fact is that these numbers really don't matter much. In my mind, 60 and 714 are still the key numbers. Why? With all due respect to Roger Maris and Henry Aaron, who were fine ball players and and better people, only Babe Ruth remains larger than life. Passing Babe Ruth on the all time list will be a bigger deal to Bonds, A-Rod, Pujols, and anybody else in the foreseeable future because that name and that number are part of our (sports) cultural identity; 61 and 755 are not. Steroids don't matter: Ruth would have hit 100 home runs in the steroids era because he would have been more juiced than anybody. Aaron and Maris would have been bigger and stronger because they would have had the benefits of more modern medicine and training facilities and science. The new numbers are fine because they are both irrelevant and appropriate. Keep in mind, to do what Ruth did in 1927, Bonds would have had to hit 240 home runs: Ruth hit more than most teams!
posted by hercher at 05:31 PM on August 28, 2006
I still don't understand why he didn't go to the Cavs. A front office job would be a lot less physically taxing the being head coach, plus it would allow him to abandon several more clubs over the next few years.
posted by hercher at 07:38 PM on July 29, 2005
I agree - this is a tremendous piece. I remember Ellis as a really good pitcher and a controversial figure. It's a pity he didn't translate that intelligence and "dangerous" honesty into a more productive and long term force.
posted by hercher at 03:53 PM on June 23, 2005
7-foot hoops nomad finds home
It is a good story. I hope it turns out well, and that he isn't the next Billy Ray Bates, or Lloyd Daniels. He has another year of eligibility, and I suspect that it is critical he uses, and doesn't start dreaming of the NBA. He needs it not so much for basketball skills (though that may be true as well), but for the education, and to learn proper work ethic off the court.
It is also a great piece because someone had faith in him, and believed in him, and needed him.
Thanks for posting the story.