General Sports Talk
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69 members have voted
Quote: billryan
George Mikan was almost banned from basketball for being too tall. Instead, they made a number of rules because of him.
George Mikan dunk circa 1948 - he was probably the first to do it in a game
nobody is going to say that he was 𝙛𝙡𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜
but give the man credit - he was surely the first to show how dominant a big man could be in the game of basketball
I remember seeing Shaq pay him a visit to honor him when he was in a wheelchair - probably 80 or so - it was nice
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Edit: actually I looked it up and I was wrong about Mikan getting the first game dunk
that is credited to Joe Fortenberry in 1936 in a YMCA game - a New York Times reporter happened to be there and a pic happened to be snapped
here is the account from the New York Times:
Daley wrote of the moment: "This new version of a lay-up shot left observers simply flabbergasted. Joe Fortenberry, 6-foot-8 center…left the floor, reached up and pitched the ball downward into the hoop, much like a cafeteria customer dunking a roll in coffee"
the pic probably didn't catch him at the top of his jump
check out this amazing pic from 1936:
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It took a young coach named Ray Meyers to see the potential of large men. Supposedly, Mikan was very wary of playing as doctors had told him his heart wouldn't be able to handle so much running. Meyers ran a six month-long BootCamp to transform Mikan into someone who could dominate both ends of the court. In addition to being the tallest, he was known for having the sharpest elbows.
George was involved in the ABA and I saw him at a Nets game. I'd no idea who he was but everyone was getting his autograph so I went to get one but he was ushered away when the crowd got big. About two years later I read a book on the top players in the early NBA- Bob Pettit, Dolph Schanes(?), Bob Cousy and Mikan. Cousy was a guest instructor at a basketball camp I attended in high school but I was in the Big Man group and he worked with the guards.
Quote: billryan
George was involved in the ABA and I saw him at a Nets game. I'd no idea who he was but everyone was getting his autograph so I went to get one but he was ushered away when the crowd got big. About two years later I read a book on the top players in the early NBA- Bob Pettit, Dolph Schanes(?), Bob Cousy and Mikan. Cousy was a guest instructor at a basketball camp I attended in high school but I was in the Big Man group and he worked with the guards.
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Dolph Schayes
For many years, the owner of the 76ers set the entire NBA schedule. No one remembered why he was selected to do it, but it was an incredibly difficult task that no one else wanted and he did a good enough job. Back then, there were only eight teams in the league so scheduling a double-header meant having half the league's teams in one city at the same time.
The company that ran Madison Square Garden was a part-owner of Ringling Brothers Circus which drew bigger crowds than the Knicks or Rangers and gave them a priority for dates, even on playoff dates.
In the late 1970s, the networks wouldn't air even the NBA finals live- they were shown on tape delay at 1130 Eastern Time.
Magic and Bird changed everything.
Quote: billryanBob Pettit
he was an absolute monster
his 57 - ' 58 Hawks were the only team other than the 66 -'67 76ers with Wilt to beat Bill Russell's Celtics for a Championship
to win the Championship in game 6 he had 50 points
if you take the time to go thru this vid - you will see him use and abuse Bill Russell several times
and that was no easy feat
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Quote: billryanThe NBA was pretty low key in the 1960s.
it sure wasn't low key in 66 -'67 with the 76ers dominating
they had Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, Chet Walker, Lucious Jackson, Wally Jones (who hit from way, way out there) and Billy Cunningham - the Kangaroo Kid
that was maybe the greatest team ever - of course, the modern players have greater skills - but I'm talking about team play
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Quote: lilredroosterQuote: billryanThe NBA was pretty low key in the 1960s.
it sure wasn't low key in 66 -'67 with the 76ers dominating
they had Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, Chet Walker, Lucious Jackson, Wally Jones (who hit from way, way out there) and Billy Cunningham - the Kangaroo Kid
that was maybe the greatest team ever - of course, the modern players have greater skills - but I'm talking about team play
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Didn't they play some games at Hersey Arena, which was a hockey barn that held a couple thousand people?
Quote: billryanQuote: lilredroosterQuote: billryanThe NBA was pretty low key in the 1960s.
it sure wasn't low key in 66 -'67 with the 76ers dominating
they had Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, Chet Walker, Lucious Jackson, Wally Jones (who hit from way, way out there) and Billy Cunningham - the Kangaroo Kid
that was maybe the greatest team ever - of course, the modern players have greater skills - but I'm talking about team play
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Didn't they play some games at Hersey Arena, which was a hockey barn that held a couple thousand people?
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I'm not sure, but their main venue was the Philly Civic Center and the next year they moved to the Spectrum
but in '62 Wilt got his 100 points at the Hershey Arena -
IIRC that 66 - '67 team was so dominant that every member of the starting five was an All Star
https://www.pennlive.com/midstate/2012/02/76ers_to_give_away_pieces_of_h.html
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Quote: billryanI'm not going by the quality of the game, more about the public's perception to it. Hockey was a regional sport and the NBA wasn't much better.
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they didn't have the superstar marketers back then to enhance the hype surrounding the sports - and they didn't have the tech to broaden the appeal
even the NFL wasn't all that big - you could only watch one game a week on TV and only your local team - for a long time
the NBA was pretty much just hard core fans who just loved basketball
and a person could hardly get any info at all about even very strong college teams outside their locale
as I remember all I could find out about strong college teams came from Sport Magazine and Sports Illustrated - I think Sport Magazine was the best
and that info was really, really thin
the fans didn't care about the hype - they just wanted their team to be great and win
I remember when Earl Monroe came to the Bullets
that was huge for us in DC if you loved B- ball - no DC team - we took the bus to Baltimore to see him when we were very young
much too young to be alone at night in a big city like that - looking back I can't believe my parents let me go - it was a big fight
mainly what we knew about Monroe came from rumors - people talking - and a very few news stories - saying the Pearl was amazing
and believe me - he did not disappoint
but there was very little coverage in DC of the Bullets - I think mainly box scores - and once in a blue moon a game was televised on a tiny channel
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The ABA playoffs were dark. Luckily, the merger came about while he was in his prime, but too late for guys like Roger Brown, Gilmore and the like. It still amazes me the Knicks didn't accept Dr J for money owed instead of forcing the Nets to sell him to raise the cash.
I lived through those times without giving thought to the changes that have taken place.
Kyler Murray is a having a fabulous year and he's in the running for MVP
a little guy, just 5'10", he breaks the mold for what people expect a QB to be physically
I don't think there has ever before been a truly great QB who was that small - not that I can recall
he's a lot of fun to watch
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It's hard to describe- kind of like a version of tag. From what I gather, the defense puts out seven men and the offense puts out a single guy. It seems like the offensive guy has to tag a defensive guy and then escape back to his defense zone without being touched. The defense seems to try to work its way into a semi-circle and force the "raider" backwards . At one point, the defenders rushed the attacker and gang-tackled him, which brought great excitement from the fans and announcers, even though it seems they could do it at will.
It appears rather confusing, but it is a sport you can play with no equipment so I imagine it can be played by even the poorest of the poor, and the crowd seems to really get into it.
For those with Hulu, there seem to be games every night. So far, I've only glimpsed men's games but I'd think a women game might be more entertaining.
Quote: lilredroosterQuote: billryanBob Pettit
he was an absolute monster
his 57 - ' 58 Hawks were the only team other than the 66 -'67 76ers with Wilt to beat Bill Russell's Celtics for a Championship
to win the Championship in game 6 he had 50 points
if you take the time to go thru this vid - you will see him use and abuse Bill Russell several times
and that was no easy feat
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WOW. I've heard the name. BUT this is the first video of him I've ever seen. The most fundamentally sound play and players body I've ever seen. I wish I would've had this video to show my kids back in my coaching days.
He won his first championship the year I was born. And retired before I really started watching basketball. Who says the 3 point shot makes the game more exciting. I think it's a better game for basketball purist without it.
They'd have us doing forty reps of sixty-pound bench presses instead of pushing the maximum weight. In my Senior year we obtained a Nautilus machine, the newest gadget on the market but only varsity athletes were allowed to use it, in season. Our summer training was all wind sprints and agility training, no weights and no long-distance running.
Quote: billryanRemember when it was thought that lifting weights was bad for athletes? My high school football coach warned us that lifting regular weights would make us musclebound and less flexible. My school had two Universal gyms that we could use, but no free weights and the coaches would watch us like hawks on the machines.
They'd have us doing forty reps of sixty-pound bench presses instead of pushing the maximum weight. In my Senior year we obtained a Nautilus machine, the newest gadget on the market but only varsity athletes were allowed to use it, in season. Our summer training was all wind sprints and agility training, no weights and no long-distance running.
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My coach put me on a beer and steak diet the summer after my Senior year to beef me up a little. I worked in a gas station that summer for $1.75 an hour. A farmer brought in a tractor tire. No one wanted to fix them because it was dangerous. But I liked the workout it gave me. We had every farmer in the county bringing us their tractor tires. Some were rusted to rim. So we'd pour a can of Coke around the perimeter to eat the rust away.
Quote: billryanRemember when it was thought that lifting weights was bad for athletes? My high school football coach warned us that lifting regular weights would make us musclebound and less flexible. My school had two Universal gyms that we could use, but no free weights and the coaches would watch us like hawks on the machines.
They'd have us doing forty reps of sixty-pound bench presses instead of pushing the maximum weight. In my Senior year we obtained a Nautilus machine, the newest gadget on the market but only varsity athletes were allowed to use it, in season. Our summer training was all wind sprints and agility training, no weights and no long-distance running.
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My coach put me on a beer and steak diet the summer after my Senior year to beef me up a little. I worked in a gas station that summer for $1.75 an hour. A farmer brought in a tractor tire. No one wanted to fix them because it was dangerous. But I liked the workout it gave me. We had every farmer in the county bringing us their tractor tires. Some were rusted to rim. So we'd pour a can of Coke around the perimeter to eat the rust away.
Working on those tires in the hot late afternoon sun, the beer and steak. I was a stud going into college.🤣
Quote: billryanThe NBA was pretty low key in the 1960s. It wasn't unusual for teams to have ten-man rosters, to save a few bucks and teams were not the main tenants of their buildings. The Knicks used to regularly hold doubleheaders and even would have the Globe-trotters open for them to boost attendance. Some teams would have wrestling cards.
For many years, the owner of the 76ers set the entire NBA schedule. No one remembered why he was selected to do it, but it was an incredibly difficult task that no one else wanted and he did a good enough job. Back then, there were only eight teams in the league so scheduling a double-header meant having half the league's teams in one city at the same time.
The company that ran Madison Square Garden was a part-owner of Ringling Brothers Circus which drew bigger crowds than the Knicks or Rangers and gave them a priority for dates, even on playoff dates.
In the late 1970s, the networks wouldn't air even the NBA finals live- they were shown on tape delay at 1130 Eastern Time.
Magic and Bird changed everything.
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It is hard for someone today to get how different all sports was back then. I am too young to have seen it but did see how even from the 70s it all changed. Television changed it all, and color TV changed it all. An example from football is when Chuck Noll came to the Steelers he wanted to tape practices. The Rooney's lent him their Super-8 camera they used to film family gatherings. The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue was made to fill the hole between the Superbowl and MLB spring training. Even in the late 70s NHL and NBA just did not warrant much coverage. You had 3 networks that was it. Sports were for the weekend afternoons plus maybe one evening a week on one network.
Quote: mosesQuote: billryanRemember when it was thought that lifting weights was bad for athletes? My high school football coach warned us that lifting regular weights would make us musclebound and less flexible. My school had two Universal gyms that we could use, but no free weights and the coaches would watch us like hawks on the machines.
They'd have us doing forty reps of sixty-pound bench presses instead of pushing the maximum weight. In my Senior year we obtained a Nautilus machine, the newest gadget on the market but only varsity athletes were allowed to use it, in season. Our summer training was all wind sprints and agility training, no weights and no long-distance running.
link to original post
My coach put me on a beer and steak diet the summer after my Senior year to beef me up a little. I worked in a gas station that summer for $1.75 an hour. A farmer brought in a tractor tire. No one wanted to fix them because it was dangerous. But I liked the workout it gave me. We had every farmer in the county bringing us their tractor tires. Some were rusted to rim. So we'd pour a can of Coke around the perimeter to eat the rust away.
Working on those tires in the hot late afternoon sun, the beer and steak. I was a stud going into college.🤣
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After not playing a single down my freshmen year, one of the coaches told me I would be a strong candidate to start if I could gain 15-20 pounds. I spent the summer drinking beer with my high school buddies and reported back up almost thirty pounds heavier. The only problem was it was all in my middle as my pant size went from 33/34 to 36/38 and I lost almost .2 seconds running the 40. For all my efforts, I was rewarded with being sent to the Fat Farm, alongside about a dozen Freshmen the coach felt weren't physically capable of completing the rigors of his two-a-day workouts.
On Day 3 of 14 on the fat squad, I was sweating my az off when I started watching the rugby team workout. It looked like a lot more fun and then I noticed they had buckets of beer on the sideline. That day I had a heart to heart with one of the coaches, who told me they had zero plans for me this season after having penciled me for serious playing time and that because of my weight gain, I could look forward to being a tackling dummy for the season unless several people came down with injuries.
I joined the Rugby Club the next day.
Quote: AZDuffmanQuote: billryanThe NBA was pretty low key in the 1960s. It wasn't unusual for teams to have ten-man rosters, to save a few bucks and teams were not the main tenants of their buildings. The Knicks used to regularly hold doubleheaders and even would have the Globe-trotters open for them to boost attendance. Some teams would have wrestling cards.
For many years, the owner of the 76ers set the entire NBA schedule. No one remembered why he was selected to do it, but it was an incredibly difficult task that no one else wanted and he did a good enough job. Back then, there were only eight teams in the league so scheduling a double-header meant having half the league's teams in one city at the same time.
The company that ran Madison Square Garden was a part-owner of Ringling Brothers Circus which drew bigger crowds than the Knicks or Rangers and gave them a priority for dates, even on playoff dates.
In the late 1970s, the networks wouldn't air even the NBA finals live- they were shown on tape delay at 1130 Eastern Time.
Magic and Bird changed everything.
link to original post
It is hard for someone today to get how different all sports was back then. I am too young to have seen it but did see how even from the 70s it all changed. Television changed it all, and color TV changed it all. An example from football is when Chuck Noll came to the Steelers he wanted to tape practices. The Rooney's lent him their Super-8 camera they used to film family gatherings. The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue was made to fill the hole between the Superbowl and MLB spring training. Even in the late 70s NHL and NBA just did not warrant much coverage. You had 3 networks that was it. Sports were for the weekend afternoons plus maybe one evening a week on one network.
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True. Not many games on TV back then. But when one was one? We didn't miss it. I remember watching a MLB All Star on TV. We were all huddled around the console TV. It was the first time I'd seen a game in color. Man...the players in that game. Freddy Lynn, Carl Yaz, there were so many great ones.
Quote: moses
True. Not many games on TV back then. But when one was one? We didn't miss it. I remember watching a MLB All Star on TV. We were all huddled around the console TV. It was the first time I'd seen a game in color. Man...the players in that game. Freddy Lynn, Carl Yaz, there were so many great ones.
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Times change. When I was a kid and a family get together all the men were in the living room watching sports, sometimes the TV was BW but usually with rabbit ears and not the best reception. The women were in the kitchen gabbing. Fast forward to I am grown up. Two years ago I think. All the men are in the living room, but instead of rabbit ears or even cable we have one TV with one game on digital over the air antenna and a tablet computer with the other game on. Every man in the room had some sort of legal bet on one or the other of games. Because I was there first and it was the local team we had that game on the big TV and the other on the little one, at least me caring only about my bet and not caring the team. When my bet was in hand I said to switch the screens let the guys with the other teams bets watch.
The women were still gabbing in the kitchen just that the kitchen these days is five times the size back then.
One year, I guess they had some wine before dinner. Evidently, my Uncle had a little too much on an empty stomach.
We gathered around the table and bowed our heads in prayer. At the Amen, he went face first right into his mashed potatoes and gravy.
Thanksgiving Football has always been a tradition but Christmas games are a fairly recent thing.
Quote: mosesLol. Great story. Exactly the way it was at my grandparents house on Tgive. We'd huddle around to watch the Lions game. And lay around and hold our stomachs during the Cowboys game.
My dad told me about a classic Thanksgiving. Had to be Detroit vs. Green Bay as I do not think the Cowboys existed at the time. His mother hears something about the 2:00 warning so starts to put dinner out. Between time outs and clock stops it was over 30 minutes before the game was over, dinner cold!
When I was a kid I loved hearing all the men tell crazy stories about work or whatever. There were not really any cousins when I was young. Now I like having the stories. Something about men hanging around men discussing manly pursuits.
I knew there was something special about today.
One can pull up the entire game on you tube. Quite a memory. Same year as Nebraska vs Oklahoma game of the century.
Quote: billryanI just realized it today is the 50th Anniversary of Miami's double-overtime victory on Christmas Day.
I knew there was something special about today.
And that was a playoff game right...hence the need for overtimes? Now on Christmas Day we still have 3 weeks left in the regular season. LOL.
But I feel very certain Jalen Hurts is not the quarterback of the future. Not a quarterback that is going to take any team anywhere. So to that I am wondering if it would just be better to lose the remaining 3 games and get higher draft pick. (The Eagles have a total of 3 first round picks). In the end, it would be very difficult for me to actually root against them, so I probably will be pulling for them, but not too terribly disappointed if they lose.
Quote: kewljQuote: billryanI just realized it today is the 50th Anniversary of Miami's double-overtime victory on Christmas Day.
I knew there was something special about today.
And that was a playoff game right...hence the need for overtimes? Now on Christmas Day we still have 3 weeks left in the regular season. LOL.
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When I started watching football, the 14 game schedule was pretty new and there was some discussion about how to handle new records vs old ones. A thousand yards rushing was huge in the 12 game seasons but it was thought it would become common in the newly expanded seasons. Sure enough, it wasn't long until some teams had two backs threatening to break 1,000 yards. I think the Dolphins were the first to actually have two thousand-yard runners in the same season. Then the season went to 16 games.
The NFL Championship game used to be held before the New Years Day College Bowls.
KC beat Minnesota in Super Bowl IV. So that game was huge.
Dolphins lost to Dallas two weeks later in SB VI.
Then went undefeated the next year. Csonka and Morris were the first duo 1000 yard rushers. Kiick chipped in 500 yards.
The NFL changed the ruling on the play and awarded Morris six additional yards rushing, giving him exactly 1,000 yards.
A couple years later, an Oakland running back broke 1,000 yards for the first time ever and they stopped the game to give him the ball and a big ovation. The next play he got caught on a sweep and lost the yardage, ending the season with 997 yards or there about.
https://youtu.be/u4EGHsCB8og
Ironic, he fell 3 yards short the next year. But made the mark in 1975 against his old team Green Bay.
Quote: mosesI think maybe it was Dave Hampton. He had just came to the Falcons from Green Bay in 1972.
https://youtu.be/u4EGHsCB8og
Ironic, he fell 3 yards short the next year. But made the mark in 1975 against his old team Green Bay.
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I was thinking it was Mark Van Eegan but it appears you are correct.
Quote: billryanQuote: mosesI think maybe it was Dave Hampton. He had just came to the Falcons from Green Bay in 1972.
https://youtu.be/u4EGHsCB8og
Ironic, he fell 3 yards short the next year. But made the mark in 1975 against his old team Green Bay.
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I was thinking it was Mark Van Eegan but it appears you are correct.
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You were close. He had 1,012:yards the year the Raiders beat the Vikings in the Super Bowl. Also, gained over 1000 yards in each of the two next seasons.
After Super Bowl 4, the leagues officially merged and the two leagues became two conferences with the Super Bowl winner being the NFL Champion.
Although the leagues tied two-two in the four Super Bowls, most people thought the AFL teams were inferior and the NFC did win 2/3rds of the games in the first year of inter-conference play.
Bill are you good to come to our SB party this year? We are really doing it up this year the place is incredible.Quote: billryanPeople seem to forget but the Super Bowl has not always been the NFLs championship game. The first four years featured the NFL Champion vs the American Football League Champion. The NFL teams were only playing for pride and money. Win or lose, they were the NFL Champion.
After Super Bowl 4, the leagues officially merged and the two leagues became two conferences with the Super Bowl winner being the NFL Champion.
Although the leagues tied two-two in the four Super Bowls, most people thought the AFL teams were inferior and the NFC did win 2/3rds of the games in the first year of inter-conference play.
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Quote: AxelWolfBill are you good to come to our SB party this year? We are really doing it up this year the place is incredible.Quote: billryanPeople seem to forget but the Super Bowl has not always been the NFLs championship game. The first four years featured the NFL Champion vs the American Football League Champion. The NFL teams were only playing for pride and money. Win or lose, they were the NFL Champion.
After Super Bowl 4, the leagues officially merged and the two leagues became two conferences with the Super Bowl winner being the NFL Champion.
Although the leagues tied two-two in the four Super Bowls, most people thought the AFL teams were inferior and the NFC did win 2/3rds of the games in the first year of inter-conference play.
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Thank you for the invitation. I would like to, but it's a bit early to be able to say yes for certain. I hope a tentative yes is okay.
more b-ball memories or trivia if you prefer
Sam Jones was a great player for the Celtics - maybe not a superstar but still
he was the only player I've ever seen - anywhere - who routinely shot long shots off the backboard
the vid shows him beating Oscar twice with backboard shots - but I saw him shoot much longer shots than this off the backboard
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Only Bill Russell has more Champ rings than Sam Jones.
His replacement was Jo Jo White.
this is my fave pic of a Chamberlain throwdown
I kind of feel sorry for the guys trying to defend him - he was so far beyond most of the competition
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Bengals QB Joe Burrow - - threw for 525 yards yesterday - the 4th most in a game in NFL history
wow
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R.I.P. John Madden - one of very, very few in sports broadcasting that I really enjoyed
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https://www.nfl.com/news/john-madden-legendary-hall-of-fame-coach-dies-at-age-85
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1DLoY6btVU
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Quote: lilredrooster____________
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R.I.P. John Madden - one of very, very few in sports broadcasting that I really enjoyed
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https://www.nfl.com/news/john-madden-legendary-hall-of-fame-coach-dies-at-age-85
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1DLoY6btVU
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Gamers are going to hear, "Madden is dead," and ask, "Why would EA stop making the game!?"
Quote: Mission146
Gamers are going to hear, "Madden is dead," and ask, "Why would EA stop making the game!?"
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I know a guy has every version of the game. He is really into collecting them. It was the first good football video game.
Quote: AZDuffmanQuote: Mission146
Gamers are going to hear, "Madden is dead," and ask, "Why would EA stop making the game!?"
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I know a guy has every version of the game. He is really into collecting them. It was the first good football video game.
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I'm not sure how, but I was unaware he had a video game. I think the last game I played was Pitfall.
Quote: billryanQuote: AZDuffmanQuote: Mission146
Gamers are going to hear, "Madden is dead," and ask, "Why would EA stop making the game!?"
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I know a guy has every version of the game. He is really into collecting them. It was the first good football video game.
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I'm not sure how, but I was unaware he had a video game. I think the last game I played was Pitfall.
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I was in college when one of the first editions came out. We played it so many times. We started a big tournament maybe 30 guys but never had the time to finish it. We even set it up double-elimination to get a more accurate result.
