Though it's been going strong for the past few years, and has been strengthened tenfold by my involvement in fantasy and especially the Cluj, my prior enthusiasm in the NBA has been one of fits and starts. I've also gone through different stages of awareness/interest: whereas nowadays my fantasy team and League Pass access make league-wide fandom possible, I started (like so many of us) as a mere superstar follower (Jordan/'Nique/Ewing in my youth). In high school, the DeYoung and Associates' quarter-season ticket package and Home Team Sports made me a Bullets fan. In college, I was an NBA playoffs guy: not only was it the era of some exciting post-season teams (the Webber-Vlade-White Chocolate Kings, the Shaq-Kobe Lakers, my beloved Pippen-Sabonis-Grant Blazers), but also the playoffs always coincided with final exams, giving me the perfect excuse to stop studying. Had I been blogging a Playoff Power Rankings back in those days, one of the most random appearances would have been the 2000-2001 Toronto Raptors. I certainly have no Toronto connection, and even then I recognized that adopting the Raptor as a mascot, seemingly due only to the popularity of Jurassic Park, was a totally ridiculous move. But consider: Vince Carter was at the height of his dunking, half-man-half-amazing powers. Tracy McGrady was young, innocent, and had not yet revealed that his legs are made of porcelain. Antonio Davis exemplified the sleepy-eyed cool that later came to characterize the Black Prezodents. Yet of all these stars, it was a role player that rose to the position of a true BP. His stats were wildly unimpressive. His energy was unmatchable. His mustache was incredibly thin. In a four-game playoff series that signaled the death of the Knicks (back in the best-of-5 days), and a truly classic seven-game series against the eventual Eastern champ 76ers, he established himself as a true great, worthy of his shared nickname with one of the greatest wrestlers of all time.
The Junkyard Dog, Jerome Williams, our 23rd Black Prezodent.By the way, this guy is like the Jimmy Carter of Black Prezodents, doing more good in his post-Prezodential career than he ever did while in office. Check out
this blog of his experience as an ambassador of the NBA in Africa. Good shit.
The Junkyard Dog, Jerome Williams, our 23rd Black Prezodent.
Sovic, the history column is usually my least favorite part of this blog. Most of the time, I skim it briefly or skip over it altogether. However, I'd completely forgotten about the junkyard dog. Thank you for the memories; he was a complete badass who could completely change a game. That said...I'll probably still skip over this column in the future.
ReplyDeletein the future, i'd prefer you just lie to me and allow me to continue in the illusion that you hang on my every word. really don't need to know that you find my shit boring.
ReplyDeleteHmmm...I'm guessing my attempt to be tongue in cheek actually came out rather rude. I apologize. I don't want to do anything that would make you not want to write an article. I did love some Jerome Williams, though.
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