Basketball from a fan’s perspective  

“Must be the Shoes”

I am not the 2020 stand in for Mars Blackmon however this account is THE SHOES.  The Air Jordan’s worn by his Airness in 1984-85 were purchased over the weekend in an auction.  At the time these shoes became available the shoes retailed for $65.00, they were sold by Sotheby’s Auction House for $560,000.   The purchaser of the shoes is anonymous which is interesting.  Why acquire an item of this value if you must hide the fact you own it?  Just a curiosity testament on my part.

“Amazing Grace and Chuck” 
In a 1987 release the Nuggets Alex English was a cast member of the movie Amazing Grace and Chuck.  The interesting point the movie was not a sports or basketball movie although English was cast as a basketball player named Amazing Grace Smith.   Even more interesting in the movie English wore a Celtics jersey.  Drafted by the Bucks English would later play for the Pacers however it was the Nuggets where the NBA first truly took notice of his talent and ability. 

The slim smooth shooting 6-7 190 pound forward scored over 25,000 points during a 16-year NBA career.  English is one of the few players whose managed enshrinement in both the College and Naismith Hall of Fame.  His Nugget number 2 and University of South Carolina 22 jerseys have been retired at both locations.  That ain’t too bad a career for a guy drafted 23rd in the second round of the 1976 draft.  Just proves there is no scouting report available to determine the heart of an athlete. 

We never got to see him play (in the NBA)  

Roger Brown died at the early age of 54 of liver cancer in 1997.  Brown was one of those players most of the nation had no opportunity to witness play.  He was a NYC guy banned from the NBA by his connection to a known gambler.  He and Connie Hawkins knew Jack Molinas a gambler and point fixer, although college basketball was stung by a point fixing scandal neither Brown nor Hawkins were ever proven to have fixed games.  Their crime was simply being acquainted with Molinas and that was enough in 1961 America. 

Both players banned by the NBA the new American Basketball Association had no issue with allowing them to play which they accomplished quite successfully.  Brown a 6-5 Brown guard/forward was a 3X ABA Champion, the NBA would lift the ban later however by this time he felt an allegiance to the ABA for allowing him to play.  Brown retired from basketball in 1975, he was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2013 after his death.  Brown was an outstanding player however most are unaware, he played in a league with virtually no national television exposure and little media publicity beyond local radio/television.

The City Game

In 1970 a book was published titled The City Game, Basketball in New York City.  The book was written by the late Pete Axthelm and profiled a season of the Knicks but also covered many of the playground legends of Rucker Park.  Axthelm wrote of the game and its impact in a densely populated urban setting.  It has been a belief by many the game adapted itself easily in big cities for a variety of specialized reasons. 

The chief reason the game did not require a great deal of space like the requirement for baseball, football, and soccer.  A basketball goal and basketball were all that was required to play the game.  In some inner-city neighborhoods plastic milk cases can sometimes be seen nailed to utility poles.  In the other sports several players were required for play, there was no required number in basketball.  The game could be played 2 on 2 or 3 on 3, rarely were games played with 5 players on the court. 

Another rare sighting unless we are discussing the Rucker or some other league it was half-court basketball.  Players would suffer exhaustion but not from playing the game full court.  As you can see basketball was more adaptable to an urban setting due to equipment and number of participants.  Basketball will probably never exceed the NFL in popularity, but it is running a close second to baseball.  Although Axthelm’s book might be dated now it remains a valuable resource for understanding the impact of The City Game.