Because Kupchak is so versatile, he poses monumental problems for opposing teams. “He creates favorable mismatches for us,” says Bullet coach Dick Motta, who likes to compare Kupchak with Jerry Sloan, the hellaciously tough guard Motta coached with the Chicago Bulls some years ago.
Tag Archives: Elvin Hayes
It’s a New Year for Elvin Hayes, 1971
It’s a new year for a new Elvin, really. It’s all a selfless campaign, hard to imagine for the once-brooding rookie who caused so many problems for himself and his team two years ago.
The ‘New’ Elvin Hayes, 1973
He knew he had something to prove this season in Baltimore. Leading the Bullets to a championship would be the best way to silence his many critics. That’s why in 1972, the Big “E” stood for Effort.
Power Forward: Tracking the NBA Power Surge, 2000
Many all-time greats believe the term “power forward” was invented by New York sportswriters looking for a way to describe Dave DeBusschere, who played every minute on the court with reckless abandon.
Mike Riordan: Bags on the Run, 1973
For the next year, during the 1968–69 season, Mike’s uniform stayed clean and dry; mostly, he just mastered the art of giving fouls, an art now extinct, killed by a rule change.
It’s Murder Under the Basket, 1976
No officiating changes are going to eliminate rough play from professional basketball. It has become part of the game, every aspect of it.
Elvin Hayes: The Meaning of the Letter E, 1982
“I’ve achieved. I would be backtracking to compare myself with the younger players in the league today. They’re still trying to prove what I already have achieved.”
Wes Unseld: Oh, That Knee, 1974
“I was put in a cast, came back and played some, and then went back in a cast. I said, ‘Damn, somebody is not telling me something.’
David Thompson’s Leap to Fortune, 1979
There are, in all of basketball, only two players who can play their worst of games—play like any other jump shooter from Oshkosh for 47 minutes, 57 seconds—yet leave 15,000 people awestruck with one incredible moment. There are only two: Julius Erving and David Thompson.
George Gervin: Icing Down the NBA, 1978
“Everybody thinks I shoot the jumper funny,” Gervin said. “But I’ll tell you what, I think they shoot it funny.”
From Way Downtown 