The $10 Million Gamble to Save Pro Basketball: Bill Walton and Larry Bird, 1980

The Clippers and Celtics paid a fortune to get them. Now, they and the rest of the league can only hope Walton and Bird get back the fans and make pro basketball “The Sport of the 1980s.”

Roger Brown: ‘Now is Now,’ 1971

Sharman continued, “Roger Brown is the closest thing to Elgin Baylor when Elgin was at his peak. The way he handles the ball and shoots, his great ability changing directions and speed. One on one, he’s as good as there is.”

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. 

Super John Williamson: Nothing But Net, 1979

While Williamson was just one of a number of sideshows to Julius Erving’s main act during those winning seasons, he was now looked upon by his teammates as the Nets’ leader, the one to go to in clutch situations, and Williamson has proven that he thrives under those conditions.

Indy’s Roger Brown Makes Them Forget Big O, 1971

Most of the shell Brown had been hiding in for so long has been shed, and he has hatched into a beautiful bird of basketball, confident and immensely skilled.