Johnson says, “My reputation is as a defensive player. I like getting the credit. But no one seems to notice me for anything else, and that’s hard for me to accept sometimes.”
Tag Archives: 1970s NBA
What Jerry Lucas Will Do for the Knicks, 1972
An All-NBA forward five times, he can also do a more-than-adequate job at center. And at either position, he can shoot from the outside about as well as any man his size ever has, and he can rebound with the best.
Never a Dull Moment with Norm Van Lier, 1974
Norm Van Lier just can’t hold back.
Did the 76ers Blow the Walton Deal? 1973
When the game was over, a horde of sportswriters chased Walton to the locker room, hoping to catch some kind of confrontation with the 76er people.
Tom Meschery: The Bill Walton I Know, 1978
The only way to describe how a man seven feet tall comes into a room is to say he entered. All of a sudden ceilings become lower and door jambs grow smaller.
Centers of Attention: Artis Gilmore and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 1975
Individually, Jabbar and Gilmore are the most assertive forces in their respective leagues.
Moses Malone: The Hardest Working Man in the NBA, 1980
His Houston Rocket teammates miss; Malone doesn’t. What they miss, he grabs.
Changing Times: Today’s Players Can Do More Things Than We Could, 1973
Modern players have bigger, stronger, and more flexible bodies than their predecessors; they can shoot better, jump higher, and run faster.
It’s Suddenly Over: The NBA Odyssey of Jim Barnett, 1977
After 10 years as a hard-driving guard and frenetic defensive player for the Boston Celtics, the San Diego Rockets, the Portland Trail Blazers, the Golden State Warriors, the New Orleans Jazz, and finally the New York Knicks, the 32-year-old Jim Barnett is through as a professional basketball player.
Detroit’s Leon The Barber, 1976
The NBA’s heavyweight heckler
From Way Downtown 