Addendum
Music legend Stevie Wonder provided Darryl Dawkins the nickname “Chocolate Thunder.” I was mistaken believing Dawkins had anointed himself with the name. Numerous NBA fans and players expressed their condolences. I’d forgotten to mention Dawkins provided us names of all his dunks. Just a few Dawkins named; “the Rim Wrecker, the Go-Rilla and the Yo-Mama.”
Baseball playing’ brother
Klay Thompson is one half of the Warriors tandem dubbed the “Splash Brothers.”
He and Steph Curry are not related however both have siblings. Klay has a biological younger brother who plays for the Chicago White Sox? Trayce Thompson was called up from the minors recently by the Sox and has been on fire. He is a 6-3 210 pound right hand hitting outfielder and is batting at a meteoric .469 pace with 2 home runs and 6 runs batted in. Klay’s younger brother certainly will not continue hitting at this rate, the larger question can Trayce become an everyday outfielder for the White Sox.
Inside Shawn Bradley
The seismic shock registered 6.5 on the Richter scale but was only those in New York City noticed the movement. The seismic shift was based on the Phil Jackson comments comparing the Knicks first pick Kristaps Porzingis in the 2015 draft to Shawn Bradley. Anybody besides me remember Bradley the second pick in the 1993 draft by the 76ers? He stood 7-6 and weighed 276 pounds limited offensively was expected to clog the lane and grab rebounds. Bradley left the NBA in 2005 after a rather unspectacular career, in addition to the 76ers he played for the Nets and Mavs. His best year in the NBA might have been the ‘96-‘97 season when he played for the Mavs he scored 14.6 points per game and grabbed 8.7 rebounds.
Hollywood released a movie in 1993 titled “Inside John Malkovich” which wasn’t very good (I admit it I watched it). The premise a person could crawl inside of Malkovich’s head and see the world as he saw it, see how silly this was. I don’t remember much about the movie it should be available somewhere on video if you care to see it. I wonder if we had the capability of crawling inside Shaw Bradley’s head what would be his world view. Did he really love basketball or just played the game due to his height advantage? Finally none of us can accomplish every task we attempt at a high level; did Bradley maximize his basketball talent in those areas he excelled in?
It’s all good---maybe
Have events in Sacramento mellowed over the last few weeks? You might remember the reports indicating owner Vivek Ranadive after hiring George Karl was reported to be ready to fire Karl. The coach has/had experienced problems with the teams’ talented center ‘Boogie’ Cousins. I never read or heard any reports of a peace treaty but that appears to be the case. Recently an event was held in Sacramento and a photo was taken with Karl displaying a Cousins jersey.
Training camp is several weeks away; the season is even more distant. Has there been a meeting of the minds between Ranadive, Cousins and Karl? Before I published this report came word the Kings signed 6-2 shooting guard Marshall Henderson. What if the former Ole Miss player earns a roster spot? Henderson wasn’t drafted after his senior year in 2014 and the answer might lie with his actions on and off the court.
Depends on your perspective
Kentucky’s John Calipari made news by stating; “I’m glad I didn’t take the Cavs job.” Somebody looked at his comment as a negative considering the Cavs played for the NBA Championship, I didn’t take his remark in the manner several in the media did. Consider this tidbit, Calipari was offered the head coaching job prior to LeBron’s return. In addition David Blatt weathered quite a bit of grief for someone with his past coaching resume. Reports last winter circulated at times Blatt was about to be fired, I‘m sure Cal would have taken all the rumors in stride. Come to think of it so did David Blatt, we heard not one negative word that I remember from him while the vultures were circulating over his body.
Another life destination
Over the course of time Bulls management has often been at odds with its fans and the general public. As example the “in-fighting” that occurred between former GM Jerry Krause with Phil Jackson and Michael Jordan has been documented by scores of the media, the latest might be the firing of Coach Tom Thibodeau. There are probably other negatives but how about a time Bulls management did it correctly. If you are unaware of his background you might not believe ESPN’s Jay Williams was once an outstanding basketball player. Williams emerged from Duke with all the credentials to become an NBA super star.
An off-season injury would change the direction of his life. He was riding a motorcycle (in violation of his Bulls contract) and had no proper license, Williams would crash and suffer devastating injuries. He would never again don a Bulls jersey his NBA career ended before it actually had begun. As for the Bulls they could have refused to pay him after all he violated his contract. Guess what Bulls management did? They paid the full amount of William’s contract something they had all the rights to not do. Williams has become a valuable member of the media serving ESPN as a college basketball analyst. Williams also provides insight during the NBA Draft Combine.
