Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
Toucher & Rich asked Ainge about Charles Barkley’s comments about “taking out” a Cavaliers player. Ainge said that type of strategy no longer can exist, and that if you don’t want to allow a historic number of 3-pointers, the only way to do it is to defend the perimeter. But it opened up a larger discussion about the way the game used to be.
“I understand where Charles is coming from, you just can’t do that in this era,” Ainge said, noting that such discussions were commonplace back in his playing days. “We [used to have] those discussions, and we had those discussions often. Matter of fact, I remember when we were at shootaround the morning of the Kevin McHale-Kurt Rambis clothesline incident. And they had just beaten us by 30 and they were just fast-breaking on us, and it was the Hollywood Showtime Lakers all the way. And we were humiliated. And we came to practice the next day and we had some guys chirping about that, saying, ‘We’ve got to take some hard fouls. We cannot let these guys just fast-break over us and dunk on us in transition and we’ve got to take some hard fouls.’ And I said to the whole team, I like screamed at ’em, I said, ‘Hey, listen, I’m booed in every arena in this league because I’m the only guy that takes hard fouls. I need some of you guys to take some hard fouls.’
“And, sure enough, Kevin clotheslined Kurt Rambis, and that was sweet.”
CBS Boston – Danny Ainge Reminisces About A Time When The NBA Allowed Players To Be Physical
I roll my eyes when someone says today’s NBA is “soft.” Of course it is – the players have no choice. Ever since Ron (Metta World Peace) Artest provoked the Malice at the Palace, bad behavior has been legislated out of the league. Every on-court movement is instantly reviewable in high-def video. Flagrant 2 fouls are issued the day after the game. Fans hold their breath over potential suspensions for even the most minor transgressions.
Today’s players would have difficulty in the former NBA environment. LeBron staggers and grabs his face in feigned agony – and gets a whistle – when anyone brushes him, but Jordan had to deal with Laimbeer and Mahorn of the Bad Boy Pistons when there was no such thing as a flagrant foul. Back in the day, it wasn’t sufficient to have talent; the stars also had to be tough enough to stand up to the goons.
Check out this newspaper article from a 1962 Boston-Philly playoff game, and note that two brawls were mentioned as an afterthought in the last paragraph. It’s just how the game was played then. Today there would be 24/7 dissection of the incidents, including a Twitter meltdown.
It was awesome to hear Danny get nostalgic about his era, when a hard foul was a common tactic. And he was one of the worst perpetrators. That link above contains some embedded videos of fights and incidents where Ainge was featured prominently. You just won’t believe some of the insanity that happened, including what Danny did to Mario Elie at the end of a playoff game. And remember that as recently as the ’80s, seldom did throwing punches result in a suspension or even an ejection.
If you’re not an old school fan (or if you are and enjoy the memories), watch some of these videos and prepare to be amazed. Warning: You might end up down the YouTube wormhole of classic NBA mayhem.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_V_s1e8VBro] [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gG2lalnHXY8]Related: MassLive – Boston Celtics’ Danny Ainge disagrees with Charles Barkley but fondly remembers Kevin McHale’s clothesline | The Score – Millsap calls Cavaliers’ 3-point onslaught in Game 2 unprofessional | ESPN – Tyronn Lue calls out Charles Barkley, defends Cavs’ chase of 3-point mark
On Page 2: The real G.O.A.T.
Look, you can stand at a bar and scream all you want about who was the greatest athlete and which was the greatest sports dynasty, and you can shout out your precious statistics, and maybe you’re right, and maybe the red-faced guy down the bar–the one with the foam on his beer and the fancy computer rankings–is right, but nobody really knows. The only thing we know for sure about superiority in sports in the United States of America in the 20th century is that Bill Russell and the Boston Celtics teams he led stand alone as the ultimate winners. Fourteen times in Russell’s career it came down to one game, win you must, or lose and go home. Fourteen times the team with Bill Russell on it won.
But the fires always smoldered in William Felton Russell, and he simply wouldn’t suffer fools–most famously the ones who intruded upon his sovereign privacy to petition him for an autograph. He was that rare star athlete who was also a social presence, a voice to go with the body. Unafraid, he spoke out against all things, great and small, that bothered him. He wouldn’t even show up at the Hall of Fame when he was inducted, because he had concluded it was a racist institution. […]
Tommy Heinsohn, who played with Russell for nine years and won 10 NBA titles himself, as player and coach, sums it up best: “Look, all I know is, the guy won two NCAA championships, 50-some college games in a row, the [’56] Olympics, then he came to Boston and won 11 championships in 13 years, and they named a f—— tunnel after Ted Williams.” By that standard, only a cathedral on a hill deserves to have Bill Russell’s name attached to it.
Sports Illustrated Vault – The Ring Leader: Bill Russell helped the Celtics rule their sport like no team ever has
While we’re in old-school mode, here’s a terrific piece by one of the great sportswriters, Frank DeFord. It’s from two years ago but for some reason was being promoted on the SI home page yesterday. I love Bill Russell and welcome every opportunity to learn more about him. Jordan may have been the most all-around talented player ever, but Russell was the greatest teammate and winner in sports history, and that’s not debatable.
On Page 3: No-brainer
1. Isaiah Thomas (1): Outside of the 5-foot-9 point guard, only six players in the NBA averaged at least 22 points and six assists per game in the regular season this year. With a well-deserved All-Star appearance and a top-10 postseason scoring average to boot, Thomas established himself as one of the league’s best offensive creators. He’s a piece that Ainge will be looking to build with, not move, this offseason.
Boston.com – Celtics player power rankings: Isaiah Thomas takes 2015-2016 crown
Who could or would disagree?
And, finally: Building a team isn’t so easy, right Phil?
Knicks president Phil Jackson has tweeted photos from Sioux City, Iowa, and Nebraska in the last two days.
You don’t need me to tell you that Jackson is on vacation at the moment.
The interesting thing here is this: league sources say that some involved in the Knicks’ coaching search have been informed that Phil is away right now. The implication is that the search is on hold.
ESPN New York – Phil Jackson on vacation; Knicks coaching search on hold?
While Danny Ainge and most of his counterparts in NBA cities are putting in the long hours to prepare for the draft and free agency, Phil Jackson has abandoned his office at Knicks headquarters for some R&R. Hilarious.
Jackson is thought of by many as the best coach in NBA history, because he won 11 rings to Red Auerbach’s nine. What’s left unsaid, however, is that Red had to build his team from the ground up, including pulling off the brilliant heist of acquiring Bill Russell through trade, and drafting eventual Hall of Famers such as Frank Ramsay, Heinsohn, Sam and KC Jones, Havlicek, Cowens, JoJo White, Bird and McHale.
On the other hand, Jackson’s coaching career consisted of taking the Chicago job just as Jordan and Pippen were about to dominate the league, and then moving to LA where he rolled out the ball for not only Shaq, but Kobe too. Winning an NBA championship is far from easy, but it‘s a helluva lot more do-able when you are coaching the league MVP plus another of the top 10 players. Jackson had that at both stops. (By the way, you didn’t see him win any titles when MJ was playing baseball, did you?)
Now that Phil is tasked with running a franchise and acquiring the right players and a quality coach (which is not Rambis) to fit his triangle system, he’s finding that to be actual hard work.
Full disclosure: I’m a lifelong Knicks hater, so it’s wonderful that he’s failing in New York (right, Chuck?). I hope Phil stays at Madison Square Garden for a long time, because the Knicks will remain terrible and therefore Spike Lee will be miserable. Only one thing could be better: If the Lakers never win again.
The Rest of the Links:
ESPN Boston – Draft kings: With eight picks, Celtics start bringing in prospects
MassLive – Boston Celtics rumors 2016: Danny Ainge wants shot blocker, would be open to pleasing star target with other moves | 2016 NBA Draft Combine participants list: Ben Simmons out, Brandon Ingram in
CSNNE – Which Players Fill Celtics’ Top 5 Draft Needs?
Washington Post – In 2007, the Celtics created a monster in one summer. This summer could be scarier.
SB Nation – The greatest buzzer-beaters everybody forgot about because the team lost in overtime
Boston.com – Larry Bird on why he won’t hire Kevin McHale to coach Pacers: ‘I respect him too much’
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