The ’96 Draft Was A Study In Elite Talent and GM Mistakes
The 1996 NBA draft ushered in elitism, athleticism, and dominance.
The NBA and Hip-Hop Have Survived Each Other, For Better or Worse
The NBA and hip-hop have come a long way. Once upon a time, the league’s evolution fueled a dichotomy that elicited fear. Here was a black league keenly aware of its reliance on a predominantly white fan base. Outsiders deemed failure inevitable. Former Commissioner David Stern recounts, “People forget, but there were articles about ‘the…
Goodbye ’96 Draft Class: Iverson, Ray, Kobe and Nash
If a draft class produces one Hall of Famer, that’s a good thing. But when you have four Hall of Famers in a class, and at the end of their career(s) they post this stat line: 7 NBA Titles, 4 league MVP’s, 2 Finals MVP’s, 6 scoring titles, 4,777 NBA games, that’s special. Allen Iverson,…
Allen Iverson: If Only
How many times have we said if only. If only things had been different. If only Allen Iverson had in his soul the desire to conform. If only he could have met others halfway. If only he could have eased up and hadn’t been stubborn and willful. If only Allen Iverson had a superstar teammate…
Shaq and A.I. Together Again
When Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson are shoulder to shoulder tonight, when they are inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame as the most extraordinary and iconic players of their generation, and after their numbers are reduced to a sum, there they will stand, two brilliant NBA scorers who, once upon a time, were the…
Lakers vs. 76ers: The Iverson Game
Every now and then extraordinary things happen in ordinary time. Such was the case on June 6th 2001 when Allen Iverson arrived in L.A. to play the defending champion Lakers who were 11-0 in the playoffs. It was supposed to be a NBA Finals rout. The Lakers incentivized dominance. Teams feared the Shaq-Kobe duo, the…