Basketball from a fans perspective

New schedule

The late spring and summer months is not prime time for basketball. Yes, there is NBA playoff basketball, the Finals are yet to be played. The college game has been over for several months. The cycle of coaching hiring, and firings have slowed to a crawl, most coaching positions have been filled. The majority of player transfers is complete as well and based on these lesser number of events change is in the air. Beginning Monday May 30 Off the Dribble will be published Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. This change will only exist in the off season. Thanks for being a loyal reader and hopefully you will continue into the future.

The dream is still alive

We’ve been reporting on Kai Sotto for a number of years. Sotto’s dream is twofold, but actually they are one in the same. He wants to earn a spot on an NBA roster and become the first native born Filipino in the NBA as well. The question Is the 20-year-old Sotto ready for the NBA after a season in the Australian Basketball League. There is scant information indicating how the youngster might have adapted to professional basketball as he looks forward to the 2022-23 season.

Sotto’s journey began in The Philippines moved to the Skill Factory in Atlanta, from there it was on to the G-League and last season it was the Adelaide 36ers in the Australian Basketball League. We might not here Sotto’s name draft night, but he is working out for several NBA teams. If he fails to be drafted there is always signing with a team as a free agent, remember that’s what Austin Reaves did with the Lakers last season. Then again consider this fact, Sotto could begin play in the G-League for tutoring and then be called up by the big club. We read today the Kings will draft Sotto in the second round although this is only conjecture as this is written. We must wait to June 23 to discover how this turns out; this we believe to be true. Sotto will have a pro career even if it’s not in the NBA.

Legends

Recently while traveling in New York City, we passed the legendary Rucker Park in Harlem. Over the ages the park has seen a number of basketball legends play on its court. Wilt Chamberlain, Connie Hawkins, Dr. J. and others are just a few of the pros playing at Rucker. It’s the other guys you might be unfamiliar with, the one’s who became legends although they never played in the NBA. Some played briefly in college such as Earl Manigault while Herman “Helicopter” Knowings was only known for Rucker. The nickname is clear, former Knick Bernard King made this statement about this legend.

“When I was in the 9^th grade, I saw the Helicopter, with my own two eyes pick a quarter off the top of the backboard to win a bet, and I was in complete shock.” It is up to you to believe the story or is it an urban legend. Another Harlem legend, Richard “Peewee” Kirkland, unlike some of the legends Kirkland did play at the collegiate level but established his celebrity at Rucker and other courts. We must include Rafer “Skip to My Lou” Alston, as with some of the others he played in college. There is little history of Alston at Rucker although he certainly was a New York City playground legend too. This short account should not be considered complete just a thumbnail sketch of the legendary Rucker Park and a brief list of participants.

The one event might have changed NBA history

Carroll Iowa is located about 100 road miles northwest of Des Moines. Today Carroll has a population of 9,000 folks slightly larger than its 1960 inhabitants, what occurred in 1960 you ask? January 18 a DC-3 airplane landed in a Carroll Iowa cornfield. The plane had gotten lost and was running low on fuel, this was no ordinary passenger aircraft. This was the Minneapolis Lakers charter aircraft; they had taken off from St. Louis where the Lakers had played the Hawks and were headed north to Minneapolis. The aircraft ran into a blinding snowstorm and the team described it as terrifying. The plane was flying so low according to reports the pilots were following an automobile on the highway.

With today’s advanced avionics and FAA controls nothing similar could occur today but that was 1960. The pilots spotted a cornfield and circled looking for telephone or power lines anything that could impede a landing. Did I tell you there was no power inside the aircraft, reports indicate cabin lighting had gone off previously? The pilots managed to land the DC-3 in a cornfield safely without radio communications or defrosters working. Despite the safe landing a question has endured to this day, what might the NBA have done if the aircraft had crashed and there were casualties? Most of the names might be unknown to you with the exception of one, future Hall of Fame player Elgin Baylor was in his rookie year with the Lakers. As for the worst possible scenario there are provisions in place.

With few details publicly shared we are aware the NBA would hold a lottery and players from throughout the league would be drafted to re-stock a team. How about ending this tale with a bit of humor, it goes back to the days of the American Basketball Association? The late Marvin “Bad News” Barnes on a road trip was given this information and this explanation. “There’s the one about the Spirits (of St. Louis) getting set to depart on a flight from Louisville at 8:00 a.m. That would get into St. Louis at 7:56. After one look at his ticket, Barnes exclaimed “I ain’t getting on no time machine” and promptly rented a car for the trip home.” We believe no one bothered to explain to Barnes Louisville was on Eastern Time and St. Louis Central.