Uncategorized – Page 55 – From Way Downtown

Three Days in the Life of Walt Frazier, 1971

Dribbling and driving, dancing and defending, passing and penetrating, Frazier is the equal of any guard in the NBA. Stealing the ball, he has no equal. He has the fastest hands in the East . . . or in the West.

Is Pro Basketball Getting Too Rough? 1964

Wilt Chamberlain might object to this observation, but a lot of the excitement and color of pro basketball lies in the bruising body contact between big men in action.

Did Jerry Lucas Outsmart Himself? 1963

Seldom in the history of American sports, and certainly never in the history of basketball, has so bright a student and so brilliant an athlete faced so uncertain a future as Jerry Ray Lucas.

Ken Durrett: The Great Dream Dies Hard, 1978

I had talent, a God-given talent, and I miss expressing myself. When they start naming the great forward of the game, I wanted to play against them.

Who Are the All-Time Greatest Slam-Dunk Artists? 1977

Dr. J. is the slam-dunk champ of the ABA. Won it fair and square at halftime of the league’s All-Star game last winter.

Best of the Pros: The Big O, 1964

Number 14’s name is Oscar Robertson, and he is the best basketball player in the civilized world.

Flashback 1966-67: When Philadelphia Did Win the NBA Championship, 1977

But match us up against the team now, and we’d win, no doubt about it. They’d have nobody to compete against Wilt. Chet or Billy would chase Doc, and Doc would have to come to the hoop, where Wilt would be waiting.

Remembering the Cincinnati Royals, 1979

Now, there are rumors floating around that the city again is being considered for an NBA franchise, what with the shiny new Riverfront Coliseum sitting almost idle downtown. Could the NBA make it in a different age, in a different building?

Akeem Olajuwon: The 7-Foot Nigerian Who Jumped to the Pros, 1985

Olajuwon will now team up with 7-foot-4 Ralph Sampson to give the Rockets one of the most potentially awesome frontlines in the history of the game.

Has Success Spoiled Tiny Archibald, 1975

But what about shy Tiny Archibald? By being thrust into instant celebrity, had Tiny become the egomaniacal monster that coach Bob Cousy, in his fears, had envisioned?