A basketball fan’s perspective 

Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Sunday

I have a request

If you’ve followed Off the Dribble for any length of time, I hope my love for the game has come through. I began this labor of love in 2011 with the goal of covering as much basketball, at every level, as possible while allowing the blog to grow and evolve. Over the years, there have been many basketball-related stories I couldn’t publish because time and space simply wouldn’t allow it. Still, I’ve tried to provide as much coverage as I can through research and writing. If you enjoy reading Off the Dribble, please share it with family and friends who might have the same affection for basketball. My opinion has never been intended as the final word, and if you disagree with something I’ve written, that’s okay too. To those who have remained faithful through the years, and to brand-new readers as well, thank you.

Nellie

We learned Sunday former NBA player and long-time head coach Don Nelson had passed. Nelson would spend a life-time playing in the NBA for the Celtics and coaching four NBA teams. He was an innovator as an NBA  coach and is given credit for “Nellie Ball,” ball or point-forward. As a player for the Celtics he was a 5 time NBA champion and while conducting research I didn’t realize he briefly played for the Lakers prior to becoming a Boston Celtic.

As for coaching Nelson was named NBA Coach of the Year three times and All-Star coach twice. His name is listed as one of the Top 10 Coaches in the NBA, in 2012 Nelson was enshrined in the Naismith Hall of Fame. His coaching and executive career ran from 1976-2010. After All-American honors at the University of Iowa he was drafted by the Chicago Zephyrs (Wizards) in 1962, he would later find his way to the Lakers and then the Celtics where he would become a valued reserve player for them. Below is video of the shot which directly led the Celtics to the 1969 NBA championship win against the Lakers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7u2-jOi2-0

Christmas Day games

Once upon a time the December 25th Christmas Day games were the property of the NBA exclusively. The NFL has played games on the date in the past however infrequently. More recently with NFL games butting up against the NBA they have become the viewership leader. That’s really okay with me because I believe true NBA fans will see “their” games and only check a few NFL games. In any event the NBA did its best to place hot ticket games in front of us. We have the defending champion Knicks matched against their Finals opponent the Spurs, but wait there is more. We’ll see LeBron James of the Sixers in action against his former Laker teammates, the balance of the matches will see the Heat at the Celtics, Thunder vs the Wolves and the Nuggets against the Warriors. The family of NBA networks will be primed and ready to entertain.  

The first jump ball 

NBA Europe is scheduled to begin play in October 2027 with 16 teams: 12 of them permanent clubs and four open spots the NBA plans to fill through a promotion system. Qualified Slots: Four spots will be awarded annually based on performance, including finalists from the FIBA Basketball Champions League. This was a  dream of the late David Stern while he served as NBA commissioner, the league would come into fruition but probably not in the manner he might have envisioned.

Stern, while serving as commissioner of the NBA was a proponent of extending NBA basketball play to the European continent. As additional detail is provided I will deliver continued updates until the launch of the league. 55 questions are more cannot be answered until we arrive close to the date however there is a question for me, will NBA Europe embraced the same period of play as NBA USA does, stay tuned for that answer? I mentioned the cities that were bidding for a franchise, in case you missed the earlier story located below are the proposed nations and cities as this is written:

England: London, Manchester

France: Paris, Lyon

Spain: Madrid, Barcelona

Germany: Berlin, Munich

Italy: Milan, Rome

Türkiye: Istanbul

Greece: Athens