SWISH 4

SWISH Letter from the Editor MAGAZINE February 2006 Volume 2 Issue 1

PUBLISHER & EDITOR IN CHIEF Steve Kyler skyler@swishmagazine.com EXECUTIVE EDITORS Bill Ingram bingram@swishmagazine.com Jason Fleming jfleming@swishmagazine.com EDITORIAL STAFF Bill Ingram, Jason Fleming CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Bill Ingram, Jason Fleming, Steve Kyler, Darren Andrade, Greg White, Nikola Olic, Eric Pincus, Yael Shacham, Chris Monjoy, Wendell Maxey, Jr. and Karl Schneider

Can you believe we made it to Book 4? I can’t. As always, many thanks to all of you who have made doing this so much fun.

When we embarked on this journey to bring SWISH to life, we really had no idea what we were doing, but like many things, creating something new and unique became a job worth doing.

As we put our fourth book to market it is an amazing feeling.

Let me tell you that building and delivering a magazine is not easy, and clearly gaining advertising support is even harder. We trust that your support for us will continue, because we are very proud of the book and we are proud of what it means to many of you.

The comments we receive from each of you are very important to our process. I urge all of you to continue to give us feedback, as that is really what fuels this endeavor.

Inside Book 4, our All-Star issue, you’re going to find some amazing stories and commentary. We set out to insure that every player and feature in this book pertained to All-Stars… and when you can put Steve Nash, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant and Elton Brand next to Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Paul, Andrew Bogut and Dwight Howard your going to get a special outcome. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you.

Our team has gone to amazing lengths to get these stories and I hope you will agree with me when I say that this is by far our best book yet.

Sit back and enjoy SWISH 4…

DESIGN & LAYOUT Impact Graphic Design production@swishmagazine.com PHOTOS Nikola Olic, Steve Kyler, Donnie Arnick, Yaron Viner.

Cover photo courtesy of Glenn James/NBA Photos

CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscriber Relations subscribers@swishmagazine.com SWISH Magazine c\o Basketball News Services 12157 W. Linebaugh Ave Suite 329 Tampa FL 33626

SWISH MAGZINE is a quarterly basketball news publication, produced by Basketball News Services. With more than 50 basketball writers and contributors in almost every major basketball city, Basketball News Services offers year round coverage of basketball and the NBA. For more information please visit http://www.swishmagazine.com

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Steve Kyler Editor & Publisher Swish Magazine

Table of Contents

Features

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Rising to the Top

18

Falling Stars

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Andrew Bogut and Chris Paul have taken the league by storm. Take an indepth look at the league’s leading rookies.

There are many former all-stars who would love to help out the youger players, but whether or not that help is wanted is another story.

Dirk Wide Open: The Untold Story of Dirk Nowitzki Dirk generally avoids the media, but his story is one of the more interesting stories in the NBA. Read the untold story of Dirk and his unlikely journey to be among the NBA’s elite.

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departments

5 6 12 13 14 16 22 23 27 28 30 31

Still Standing Most Valuable Player The Lifestyle Sophomore Season The Man Behind the Name Inside the Arena Visions of Winning Underestimated & Underrated Heart and Soul Collector’s Corner Dog With a Bone The Last Word

February22006

STILL STANDING Brand New Day

By Eric Pincus When the Chicago Bulls made Elton Brand their top pick in the 1999 NBA Draft they hoped they were getting a player who would usher in a new era of greatness in the wake of Michael Jordan’s retirement. Brand has made an impact, but these days he works his front court magic in a Los Angeles Clippers uniform. As dominant as Brand has been, consistently averaging 20 or more points, along with double-figure rebounding, he has never tasted the postseason. This year the Clippers aim to change all of that.

After a strong offseason by Clipper management, the team ran out to a 14-4 start. Newcomers Cuttino Mobley and Sam Cassell seemed to fit in immediately; their veteran leadership nicely complementing Brand’s dominant play. Together they set their sights on a single purpose: making the playoffs.

As often happens in the NBA, that great start was diminished by a rash of injuries.

The most significant setback was the loss of Corey Maggette with a serious foot injury. The cost may be home court advantage, but midway through the Clippers’ season the playoffs remain a reality.

Undaunted, Brand is putting up the best numbers of his career, prompting Clipper fans to chant “MVP” when he steps to the free throw line.

“It feels good, but it’s about the team,” Brand acknowledges. “Once the team wins, the individual accolades come.

When I played with the Bulls I had 44 one game - I didn’t hear MVP once.”

Last season, the Clippers suffered through a roster depleted with injury, but still showed signs of life. They would compete for 3 _ quarters, consistently failing to close out games. Though still yet to field a healthy roster this season, the Clippers are finding themselves on the winning end of some very tight games.

“I think we matured. Bringing in Sam Cassell and Cuttino Mobley, it sounds like a cliché, but they definitely bring that vetFebruaryw2006

Elton Brand

eran leadership and savvy,” says Brand.

“The guys who were here last year losing those tight games, we watched hours and hours of tape on the wrong thing to do. Coach drilled it in us, so now we kind of know what the right thing to do is late in the game.”

The strong start gave the team confidence. “We expect to win now coming into any game. Even on the road, regardless of who we’re playing,” Brand said early in the season. “We have enough talent offensively and defensively to expect nothing but a win.”

Winning at a 70% clip before Maggette went down; the team has found it a challenge to replace his 22 ppg.

“The mindset is to go out there and give it your all,” says Brand. “It’s difficult dealing with injuries, especially Corey Maggette . . . but you just have to step up and play.”

Clipper history may be inglorious, but the team has recently made the financial commitment to change. Before settling in on the current mix of players, the team made major overtures to Kobe Bryant, Ray Allen and Gilbert Arenas.

“Honestly, I’m not sure the organization tried in earlier years so maybe we deserved what we got, but now we’re trying to win,” Brand admits. “We’re putting the right pieces together and we’re turning that corner.

“Now, it’s different. The guys have the contracts. Maggette, myself, we’re longterm. Mobley is here longer. Guys see that they can do the right thing and get a deal here. Back then it was let me showcase myself and move on around the league. Now guys want to be here and they see they can be here.”

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With faith in the team’s direction, Brand shed nearly 20 pounds during the offseason, improving his quickness but not limiting his strength. His jump shot from the high post has been impeccable, and he’s even displayed an occasional crossover dribble.

“I had all summer to work on my game.

I worked on my face-up game so you can’t just double-team me on the block. Hav-

ing guys like Cassell, Mobley and Maggette, you’ve got to respect all those shooters,” says Brand. “We’ve got four shooters on the floor with big Chris Kaman punching in. It’s hard to defend all those guys so I’m getting a lot of open looks.”

Brand has yet to find success worthy of a postseason berth, but the Clippers are confident that this is their year. When healthy, this may be one of the strongest teams the franchise has ever fielded.

Leading the way is Elton Brand, playing the best ball of his career.

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MOST VALUABLE PLAYER Most Valuable Person

By Greg White To say that Steve Nash is the Most Valuable Player is almost an understatement.

To try and put in words what Nash brings to the Phoenix Suns is almost an injustice. Steve Nash is more than just the Most Valuable Player to the Suns: he is also a Most Valuable Person. He is a rarity among today’s me-first athletes. When everyone is about getting their own points, their own shine, and their own pub Nash’s selflessness stands out.

Nash is the rare athlete that is all about winning and never about his own numbers. In fact, when I tried to speak with Nash about this story, he was pretty evasive about what he brings to the table for the Phoenix Suns.

This story almost didn’t make it because it is difficult to get him to talk about himself.

So I went another route. Instead of asking Nash, his teammates got the hard questions about just how valuable Nash is to both their team and each of them individually, and what he brings to the Phoenix Suns.

Coming into this season the Suns returned only five players from last year’s team. To make things even tougher, AllStar power forward Amare Stoudemire is out the first four months of the season.

Yet the Suns are still leading the Pacific Division and unless you are an ardent basketball fan, the names Raja Bell, James Jones, Eddie House, and Boris Diaw are foreign to you. These are the cats, along with Shawn Marion, that are running up and down the court with Nash.

If anybody can give you the true value of Steve Nash it’s his teammates, who are all having career years. Nash, meanwhile, is leading the league in assists while also scoring more than any other season in his career. In other words, he’s doing what it 6

Steve Nash

takes to get the W. “Nash is not just a great player by accident,” explains Assistant Coach Marc Iavaroni. “He is someone who is professional in his routine and his approach to the game. He doesn’t just show up (to practice) haphazardly and is successful.

He believes in getting a lot of shots in, and making sure he is taking game shots.” On making his teammates better, he says, “Steve is in tune with his

“He is the best point guard in the league, bar none.” – Amare Stoudemire teammates’ needs in terms of getting a shot, getting them the ball, and creating a shot for them.”

And that is where his teammates really seem to heap praises on Nash. What makes him so special to Amare Stoudemire is the playmaking. “Nash gets everybody open shots. He is the SWISH MAGAZINE

best point guard in the league, bar none.

He is very creative, he has been studying the game ever since he was a rookie and has become great at it.”

To hear his teammates tell it, the game is a cake walk playing with Steve Nash.

Shawn Marion says, “(Nash) controls the tempo of the game and makes it a lot easier for me. I am a high flyer and he makes it easier, getting me easier and closer looks to the basket. He knows where to find you.”

The real difference is how he has made names out of the aforementioned Diaw and Jones. Both of them recognize what Steve has brought to their game. “So efficient,” says Diaw. “He makes all of his teammates better because he is a great passer and a great leader.”

The way Jones puts it, Steve isn’t even playing the same game as everyone else. “He sees the game in slow motion. We are going fast and he is setting up a pass three seconds ahead of time. It is difficult because sometimes his thinking is so far ahead of everybody else. Anytime you play with Nash he will make a good player great! All you have to do is find the passing lane and he will get you the ball.”

When asked to rank Nash with other point guards, to a man they said he is the best in the game. Even with his teammates singing his praises, Iavaroni thinks Nash is actually underrated. “There is a certain talent to get by someone who is quicker than you and to get the ball in to the hoop against someone who is stronger or taller than you. He’s got those talents. But for whatever reason, culture or otherwise, he tends to be underrated in my opinion.”

Whether you think he is underrated, didn’t deserve last year’s MVP, or shouldn’t win this year’s MVP, you can’t deny one thing: “Steve is a winner,” says Iavaroni. “He loves to win. It is not about pass-first or shoot-first. It is about winfirst with Steve.” This season last year’s Most Valuable Player has shown that he is definitely the Most Valuable Person in the Suns’ locker room.

February22006

One Isn’t the Loneliest Number

By Wendell Maxey, Jr.

Nothing says welcome to the NBA was just what Milwaukee fans prayed they would get in Bogut: Part like a broken nose.

A n d r e w B o g u t f o u n d t h i s o u t giant, part legend in the making.

Then again, these are the same quickly. Bogut was selected first overall in the 2005 NBA draft by the Mil- Bucks faithful who appeared rewaukee Bucks and is making some luctant after NBA Commissioner realizations in a young NBA career: David Stern announced Bogut’s dealing with a broken nose is a lot like name on draft day instead of carrying a shoulder full of expecta- Marvin Williams (who went sections from the league, team, fans, and ond to the Atlanta Hawks). Who the media wherever he goes. It’s all can blame them? The organization once boasted Joe Wolf, part of the job.

Days before this past Thanksgiving M a r t y C o n l o n , a n d M i k e the Milwaukee Bucks were hosting Peplowski as centers of attention Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers. With Andrew Bogut the teams exchanging buckets and leads in the t h i rd q u a rt e r, t h e 6 ’ 0 Iverson introduced himself to the Bucks’ 7’0, 245 pound rookie center with an accidental elbow to the face. Goliath played on.

Minutes later a referee informed Bogut that his nose looked broken. The tough Australian casually went to the locker room, returned in the fourth quarter wearing a protective mask, and helped ignite a 108-97 Milwaukee victory over the Sixers.

It was a simple case of Goliath turned Zorro. It

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but that was many moons ago. Now at the Bradley Center janitors to General Manager can see Bogut is no bust.

“The thing that has impressed me the most is his competitiveness and he’s getting better each game,” says Milwaukee GM Larry Harris about his selection. “He has already established himself as a guy that is really unselfish. He’s been a great blessing for us.”

For Andrew Bogut it’s all part of being the most anticipated rookie in franchise history since Lew Alcindor, while learning how to make the necessary adjustments to the NBA. T h a t ’s w h y w h e n rookie point guard Chris Paul of the New OrleansOklahoma City Hornets and the New York Knicks forward/center Channing Frye received more press for their play earlier this year, Bogut simply embraced the anonymity.

“It’s always going to be like that because I’m not an American player.

There is a lot less scrutiny on me. I’m international and from another country,” said the Australian native of Croatian decent.

“People aren’t going to follow me around as much

February 2006 February22006

as they do, and I like it that way.”

The man from Melbourne speaks the truth.

The expectations have always been there: From rigorous youth basketball camps, the under-nineteen Australian National Team, to all-everything at Utah including winning the Wooden Award and being named consensus National Player of the Year in 2004-05. Bogut was built for this. When the ball is in his hands the guy covers more court than Judge Judy and Judge Joe Brown combined. Bogut can shoot inside or out, pass effectively, and unlike some European players he isn’t afraid to get dirty down low. It’s a part of his game that Bogut sees as a major adjustment from college.

“It’s very physical. You got to know who you are playing against. Their tendencies are going to hurt you a couple of times before you realize what’s going on.”

It’s a two-way street. Bogut admits the league has to conform to him as well. “Obviously the referees are tough to adjust to.

It’s tough for them to adjust to my game and it’s tough for me to adjust to the way they blow calls. I have to get used to that mode of the game.”

There are also parts of the NBA life Andrew doesn’t easily overlook. “Travel is the biggest adjustment.

It’s a lot different from college to here. From plane to plane, you get in at two, three in the morning with the time change. It’s not that much of a grind if you enjoy what you are doing, though. We get paid to play basketball and there is no better job in the world. You think of some people and what they have to do to earn $30,000 a year. We’re doing something we love.”

Bogut is letting love rule in his rookie season.

The Bucks big man ranks among the top rookies in points per game, rebounding, and assists with other first year stand outs Chris Paul, Channing Frye, the Toronto Raptors Charlie Villanueva, Deron Williams of the Utah Jazz, and the Houston Rockets Luther Head. Bogut is likely to anchor down the starting line-up for the Rookie/Sophomore Game at All-Star Weekend in Houston. And by year’s end Bogut is sure to make first team All-Rookie honors. There is also Rookie of the Year to consider. If players could cast a vote for the best rookie in the class, Bogut’s choice would be diplomatic.

“Chris Paul definitely is the Rookie of the Year in my book.”

“We get paid to play basketball and there is no better job in the world.”

Andrew Bogut

February 2006 Februaryw2006

Impact Rookie Re-Establishes Hornets

By Karl Schneider

One of the most impressive starts for a rookie point guard in NBA history belongs to Chris Paul of the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets.

The fourth selection of the 2005 NBA Draft made the move to the pros despite playing just two seasons of college ball at Wake Forest. He now leads all NBA rookies in scoring, assists, steals, and minutes. In 43 contests through the end of January (he missed one) he has recorded averages of 16.3 points on 42.8 percent shooting with 5.7 rebounds, 7.4 assists, and 2.26 steals in 35.9 minutes per game. His play has earned him Rookie of the Month Award honors in both November and December - as well as All-Star consideration.

Any questions about his ability to succeed in the pro game have been answered before the halfway mark of the season.

“It feels good, but it’s never about trying to prove people wrong,” Paul said of playing well. “You’ve got to play the game because you love to. Day in and day out you’ve got just try to get better.”

That attitude also helped him quickly establish himself at the college level - earning ACC Rookie of the Year honors over the Chicago Bulls’ Luol Deng, who as playing for Duke at the time. The adjustment from high school to college is one challenge, but the adjustment from college to the NBA is an entirely different - and much more difficult transition to make.

“You have to be a lot more precise with your decision making,” Paul said of the leap. “You only have a split second to decide ‘Is it your shot?’ or, ‘Is it your responsibility to get somebody another shot?’”

Of course, the NBA’s rookie orientation is a vital tool used to inform players what to expect. Being an NBA player consists of much more than splitsecond decisions, so the preparation process is key. “I think I took a lot out of the business of it,” Paul recalled. “I don’t think too many people understand how much of a business the NBA is.

While you do play basketball, at the same time, you have to learn how to carry yourself off the court and understand that each and every player in the NBA is their own corporation. So you have to try to build it and expand it.”

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The 20-year old has already built unbelievable command of head coach Byron Scott’s offense despite a lack of experience and a large amount of pressure. Paul’s high level a maturity has led to his teammate’s acceptance of him as a leader. The relationship he has with Coach Scott and his staff is another important reason why Paul has been able to contribute so early. “I think we have a great relationship,” Paul said of Coach Scott. “I’m coming in trying to learn as much as I can. Him coming from championships, I can only get better by listening to him.”

“The guys on the team and the coaching staff have really just welcomed me,

fielding a competitive team in 2005-06 as the rebuilding process took over.

Luckily, the franchise was blessed when the most NBA-ready player available fell to them in the draft. Selecting a poised rookie point guard being the best case scenario, Paul and the Hornets were a perfect match.

Paul’s quick adjustment to the NBA level is highlighted by his ability to avoid defenders and take care of the basketball. He is averaging just 2.4 turnovers per game as the primary handler of the ball. This is an area of the game which many experienced veteran point guards struggle with, so Paul’s performance in this regard has been fantastic. Of the qualified statistical leaders there are 12

“While you do play basketball, at the same time, you have to learn how to carry yourself off the court and understand that each and every player in the NBA is their own corporation.”

Chris Paul and pretty much just handed me the ball and said, ‘Lead us.’ I couldn’t ask for any more support than these guys have given me,” Paul added.

He also thanked the fans of Oklahoma City for helping the Hornets through the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. “The people here have just given us so much support,” he noted gratefully. “There are 19,000 fans at every game, on their feet, and we couldn’t ask for much more.”

The results have been exciting, as New Orleans/Oklahoma City is threatening for a Western Conference playoff spot. After 44 games last season the Hornets were 8-36 (22-22 this season) and in the middle of what would become a six-game losing streak. The Hornets finished the season on a ninegame skid which yielded little hope of 10

point guards in the NBA averaging more turnovers per game. Names like Steve Nash, Allen Iverson, and Jason Kidd highlight this list. Those three players in particular have been a source of great influence for Paul, who is a consummate student of the game.

“Yeah. I try to, but those guys are unbelievable players,” he said when asked about molding his game after Nash, Iverson, and Kidd. “So you can just try to take different things out of each one of those guy’s books, and I promise you, if you can get just a little bit from each one of those guys, you will be just fine.”

Paul has wasted no time in showing some of the traits all of those players bring to the table. He scored 17 points with 12 rebounds, nine assists, and five steals in an 89-76 win over the San Antonio Spurs on December 19th that SWISHMAGAZINE MAGAZINE SWISH

was perhaps his best all-around game to date. During a January 6th match-up against the Washington Wizards Paul suffered a torn ligament on the inside of his right thumb. The injury required a standard two weeks of rest, but the 6foot guard showed off his toughness by returning to the Hornets’ line-up after missing just one game.

His fearless competitive nature also helps him dive into the paint to create scoring, rebounding, and passing opportunities. The playmaker averages 6.0 free throw attempts per game - which places him directly below MVP candidate Kevin Garnett. A surgeon on the fastbreak and high stakes gambler in the passing lanes that can make an impact with a gamechanging steal, Paul is quickly becoming a fan favorite.

As an established team leader who registers stats comparable with some of the best point guards in the league, Paul is also the runaway leader for the Rookie of the Year Award. Despite his amazing success this early in his career the rookie is still humble enough to credit fellow rookie and the first pick of the draft Andrew Bogut on his play for the Milwaukee Bucks.

“We still have a lot of season to play, so I’m just trying to take it one game at a time,” he said. “Andrew is having a remarkable year in Milwaukee.

They’ve won a lot more games because of his presence.”

Paul will start in the February 19th Rookie/Sophomore Game in Houston.

The opportunity to take part in the AllStar festivities is a memorable experience which an NBA player is very lucky to earn. Playing with and against the best players from the last two draft classes is undoubtedly a solid way for the rookie to expand his knowledge of the league.

“That means a lot,” Paul said of the recognition. “That was definitely one of my goals at the beginning of the season. You’ve got to take it one day and one goal at a time. That’s just the beginning of it. There’s so many other things I’d like to accomplish in my career.” He’s certainly off to a great start.

February 2006 February22006

THE LIFESTYLE Taking Nothing for Granted

By Yael Shacham When a team drafts a player they never know what they’re going to get. Sometimes the expectations are high and the results are disappointing; sometimes it’s the opposite. In Channing Frye’s case the New York Knicks got exactly what they bargained for: A big man, desperately needed, who is ready to learn how to play and

keeps improving at a rate that surprises even his veteran coach, Larry Brown. Since he was drafted as the eighth overall draft pick, Frye has become an instant fan favorite in the Madison Square Garden and a most valuable part of the team.

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Channing Frye

So far Frye loves the NBA life despite the team’s rough start. “It’s a blessing and it’s an opportunity I want to take advantage of it every day,” Fry said about being a Knick. “With the teammates that I have and the coaching staff, it’s just an opportunity and I’m going to work hard every day and become the best I can be.”

When Frye thinks of his role models, he thinks about Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan. “I’ve seen them start from when they were rookies to where they are now, and I just like the progression and constant getting better every year.”

Frye has had a very steep learning curve, which he attributes to his eagerness to learn and his college experience. “I think I just come in here with an open mind, I came from college with a lot of good skills, but at the same time I understand that I don’t know everything basically, so I just come in here, and whatever they tell me I just try to go 110% and do it. I also think I learn pretty quickly because Coach Olson’s (Arizona head coach Lute) system is a lot like Larry Brown’s.”

New York City’s Madison Square Garden can be a very tough place for players, with all its history and its unforgiving fans. But Frye, a New York native born in White Plains, actually finds the fans to be supportive and dedicated to the team.

“The fans out there are so passionate and so good to us. Especially when we’re kind of struggling, they’re always optimistic with us. First there are their feelings of how long they’ve been a Knicks fan and then their memories. I love the fans and I love the place.”

Coach Larry Brown chose to sit Frye throughout the season-opening game SWISH MAGAZINE

against Boston, a decision he later on regretted and even apologized for. Still, it didn’t take him too long to realize how important this young player can be to the team offensively and how much energy he can bring to the court as soon as he gets out there. “I like everything about him,” said Brown. “This is a pretty special kid. He’s going to be fine in this league for a long time.”

Once he realized that, it was obvious Frye would not be going anywhere as long as Isiah Thomas and Coach Brown have a say in the team. Both the president and the coach made it very clear Frye is off limits when it comes to trading and Frye appreciates it, but knows he has to keep working hard in order to maintain that status. “It makes me feel good, but I want to live up to those expectations. I think every day I challenge myself to become a better player and every day I try to do things that may not be comfortable, but they are going to make me better. I think Coach Brown is a great coach [to help me] to flourish and to grow like this.”

It wasn’t always like this for Frye. Before he officially became a Knick there were a lot of naysayers who thought he was not good enough to become a top draft pick. They said he was too soft, lacked the “killer instinct,” wasn’t consistent enough, and must become stronger before he became a professional player. That didn’t faze Frye - now considered by his coach a “go-to” guy - at all. “That’s fine. I think a lot of people are always going to have doubts. Like Charles Barkley said – ‘50% of the people are going to like you, 50% of them won’t’ - so for those 50% that’s fine. I understand where they are coming from, but I’m out here just to do the best I can. I can’t worry about what people say I can’t do, I just gotta go out and do what I can do.”

His work ethic, his clear understanding of his abilities, his willingness to push his limits, and a lot of talent and spirit gave Channing Frye a good start in his NBA life.

Those are also the things that could one day make him one of the best players in the league.

February22006

SOPHOMORE SEASON King of the Kingdom

By Steve Kyler When the Orlando Magic selected largely-unknown high schooler Dwight Howard with the top overall pick in 2004, there were many who questioned how good he would be and how quickly he would grasp the game.

Midway through his sophomore season Dwight Howard has quieted the doubters and locked himself into a new place as a second-year player: the leader of the class.

“His first year was awesome,” says Magic teammate DeShawn Stevenson. “For a high schooler to come out and play the way he did was pretty exciting. This year he stepped it up a notch and whenever you have a player like that - who is young and still playing at the highest level – it’s very special.”

“Special” really does not do Dwight’s accomplishments justice; after all, in the month of January he became the youngest player to lead the NBA in rebounding. Not bad for the kid who just turned 20.

“I think his improvement has been dramatic,” explains Magic head coach Brian Hill. “He’s in a totally different role this year than he was a year ago.

Last year when he came into the league as a rookie and was on this team, he was basically not involved in the offense at all. He was just told to run the floor hard and try to get as many offensive rebounds as you can, stay around the lane and try to block shots defensively.”

The mantra last season for Dwight was really “be happy with what you could get from him” – there were no expectations. This year the Magic count on their top pick every night and are more than pleased with his progress and his production.

“He’s a tremendous young rebounder,” adds assistant coach Randy Ayers. “That’s something you can’t Februaryw2006

Dwight Howard

teach. In terms of his rebounding skills he’s as good as I’ve seen. He knows he has some growing to do in that area.

He’s a player you love to work with because he absorbs a lot of things you throw out.”

“He’s really had a lot thrown at him in a very short period of time,” says Coach Hill. “He’s handling it very well.

He’s obviously a very gifted player athletically, he does a great job rebounding the ball, and he’s getting better and better as an offensive player as we move through the year.”

Dwight has embraced his new role with a charismatic smile and boyish grin, saying this year has been different for him. “When guys look at me in the post, I get the ball,” jokes Dwight with a devilish grin. “I touch the ball a couple of possessions. That makes me happy.”

“My confidence level is higher than it was last year,” adds Dwight. “The biggest difference is the coaching staff we have here with the Magic.

I’ve learned so much in so little time, just being around them.”

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His teammates have noticed his improvements too. According to Grant Hill, Dwight has a lot more work to do but is making progress.

“He understands the game,” says an impressed Hill. “He’s taken, I think, a giant step this far. He just has to continue to stay hungry, continue to work hard and continue to listen, and he’ll continue to get better and better.”

For those that doubted Dwight, his work on the floor is what’s most important to him.

“There are always going to be people who are naysayers and doubters. My biggest thing is getting out there on the court and trying to be the best player I want to be. I am not really concerning myself with everybody else’s predictions. You know, going out there and showing everyone that I belong here and that I know I can play in the NBA.” Dwight is a very confident young man. He was confident from the moment he stepped onto the NBA hardwood. Unlike so many of his contemporaries, his confidence never ventures over into the realm of cocky arrogance. “I just want people to see what Orlando has as far as a basketball team,” says Dwight. “I am not really as concerned with myself as I am seeing everybody else look good.”

Now that Dwight in halfway through his sophomore season he’s beginning to get into some routines and find some comfort zones within the hectic NBA lifestyle. “Last year my game days went by so fast, I really didn’t know how to handle them,” confesses Dwight. “This year I am in my house. I can take my time, get the proper rest, eat and enjoy my day before I have a game.”

It’s rare in the NBA to find a top pick not lauding their own accomplishments, but with Dwight’s amazing athletic game and outstanding charm and charisma, this won’t be the last you hear of 2004’s top pick. He is absolutely All-Star bound.

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THE MAN BEHIND THE NAME Actions as Loud as His Words

By Nikola Oliæ You think scoring 81 points is impressive? Try playing 82 games. That’s how many games Minnesota Timberwolves superstar Kevin Garnett played last season. And the season before. And the season before. And in the three seasons prior he missed only one game each. No other top scorer in the league comes even close to those numbers.

Those numbers are not luck, they are physical and mental toughness coming together in a unique player. To best understand Kevin Garnett, just look at the Timberwolves’ logo and the reaction it inspires.

“He is the hardest worker I’ve ever seen, both in practice and during games” says Timberwolves coach Dwane Casey. “He has a relentless desire to succeed and takes losing very hard. Kevin is the consummate teammate. He takes responsibility for 14

Kevin Garnett

everything. It would be difficult to have a better player or a better person on your team.”

“Practice is repetition and then more repetition,” Garnett explains. About 70% of his points come from jump shots and Garnett gives them the repetition needed to bring the Timberwolves to where he knows they belong — holding the NBA trophy in June. “Come see him practice one day, you will understand,” says assistant coach Aleksandar Dzikic when asked about Garnett’s practice regimen. “He is the hardest working superstar in the league.”

Superstars work in mysterious ways.

Behind the smile that adorns every Garnett media profile is an imposing 6’11" figure that stands out in the locker room even when he is sitting. With ten years of MVP-level playing behind him, he is a 29-year-old who is both a veteran and a kid that loves what he does.

“At the end of the day, it’s basketball,” explains Garnett, adding a dramatic pause. “It’s beautiful.”

After the game, be it a win or a loss, Garnett remains serious and is not quick to put the smile back on. Sounding more like a rookie than this season’s most efficient NBA player, he admits he will watch the game on tape later in the evening. Most of his teammates are already on the team bus, but Kevin is still thinking and talking about the game.

“It’s a challenge. I have the confidence to make the big shots, but you also have to understand what your teammates can bring to the game and let them contribute. Even the best player has to have a balance of talent round him, and I try to take my shots when the team needs them, but also understand how to use my teammates to the best of their abilities.”

Recent NBA history shows us eventual champions post more then 50 victories during their regular season. The balance of talent Garnett speaks of is what the Timberwolves need to reach the championship level. Two years ago, SWISH MAGAZINE

winning 58 games was not enough.

Garnett led the Wolves in points, rebounds, steals and blocks all the way to the Western Conference Finals, where they lost to the Lakers in six games. Much has changed since, players and coaches included, but the focus remains on Garnett. When new teammates like Marko Jaric and Ricky Davis arrive, he feels it is important he welcomes them with open arms.

“My approach is to actually go out to them, look them right in the eye and let them know I am happy for them to be here. The more you talk about personal things and personal time, it helps the chemistry. I crack a couple of jokes, do some small talk and let that be the basis for the future. Let them know that I am happy that they are here, being really genuine about it and not just saying it.”

After the warm welcome, newcomers have catching up to do. Garnett sets the bar very high for how Timberwolves basketball is played.

Case in point: Garnett has missed only thirteen games in ten years in spite of injuries no different than other players of his caliber.

“I have a responsibility to this team to be the best I can be to help them build a winning program and win a championship. I feel like Minnesota believed in me. They drafted me, showed that confidence in me, and I’m not the kind of person to turn my back on that. I can’t imagine playing anywhere else.”

That certainly sounds good to fans in the Twin Cities and beyond. In 1997, Newsweek predicted Garnett to be one of the 100 most influential people of the next decade. In addition to his well-documented basketball accomplishments, Garnett has worked to revamp schools in Minnesota and donated generously to victims of recent natural disasters, all with the modesty and humility we have come to expect from him over the years. The decade is not yet over but Garnett already proved them right.

February22006

INSIDE THE ARENA Toyota: More Than A Naming Partner

By Bill Ingram One of the most difficult parts of building a new arena is finding the right naming partner. When the Houston Rockets finally convinced voters that it was time to retire the ancient Compaq Center, the team immediately went to work finding just the right naming partner to represent their team, their direction, and their city.

“The bidding for the naming rights was very competitive,” reveals Nelson Luis, Director of Media Relations for the Rockets. “Toyota jumped to the head of the class early on because they have a large commitment to this area. They’re building a new facility in San Antonio that will be the lead production facility for the Tundra, which is Toyota’s solution to the half-ton pick-up truck. For that reason it was very high on their list of priorities to establish a branding in Texas. At the same time, we wanted to have a partner who represented the international aspect of this team.”

Indeed, Toyota is working very hard to establish their membership in the Texas community. The newly redesigned Toyota Tundra will be built exclusively in San Antonio starting in late 2006. It’s an important move because of all that Toyota brings with them: not just jobs, but also a strong commitment to the community. Their involvement with the Houston Rockets includes support for the “Read to Achieve” program, sponsoring basketball clinics, and helping area students to prepare for the SAT. The Rockets could not have chosen a better naming partner.

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The Toyota Center

Next the Rockets went to work on their second short-term goal. “Our owner Les Alexander and our president George Postolos made it clear from day one that a major reason for building this new building was to bring another NBA All-Star Game to Houston,” explains Luis. “That’s one of the major events like the Super Bowl and the Major League Baseball AllStar Game. It brings a lot of energy and excitement to the city.”

Landing an All-Star game is more than making sure the building has all of the amenities required to host such a major event. It also means making sure the location is able to handle the 500 working

members of the media, the corporate sponsors, and the fans who flock to an event of this magnitude.

“You have to make sure you can secure enough hotel rooms and that the infrastructure is in place to accommodate the event,” says Luis. “It’s great for Houston because we’ve already gone through a Super Bowl and a World Series and the Major League All-Star Game, so by the time the NBA AllStar Game comes to town we should be pros at handling this kind of event.”

When NBA Commissioner David Stern and his team come to evaluate a prospective All-Star facility they do more than check out the arena. They also make sure the city itself is in favor of such an event.

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In the case of Houston, intimates Luis, “Mayor Bill White was very much in favor of it, was one of the big proponents who helped us with the bid. League officials left knowing that this was something the City of Houston could pull off.”

This will be the second NBA All-Star Game to be held in Houston. The first was in 1989, when the gala was hosted at The Astrodome.

“Back then it was not nearly what the event has turned into,” explains Luis. “Now we have the George R. Brown Convention Center next door and we can easily handle what is basically a weeklong series of events. Downtown is going to be vibrant for the entire week leading up to All-Star, meaning all of the restaurants and businesses are going to be affected in a very positive way.”

Latest Development: The Memorial Hermann Sky Court, a familyfriendly interactive area for kids with replica lockers and fun facts, like: • The Tundra Zone features the only in-arena vehicle display. It’s Toyota’s corporate box, which has an actual Tundra mounted on the front of it. Look up you can’t miss it!

• The escalator that leads from the main concourse to the top concourse is the longest of its kind. It’s all one escalator, rather than a series of escalators that go from one floor to the next.

• The ramp that leads from the loading dock in the underground garage was designed at a certain slope that would allow circus animals to walk down it. Larger animals like elephants can fall down if the slope isn’t just right.

• The designers did an underground 18wheeler rodeo with cones to make sure big trucks could maneuver and get in and out of the loading dock area.

The 2006 NBA All-Star Game is in Toyota Center, home of the Houston Rockets.

With local heroes Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming named starters, it will be the don’tmiss event of the season!

February22006

Old Legends Feel ‘Untapped’ by the New Generation

By Darren Andrade

The 1980’s and early 90’s are considered the Golden Age of NBA basketball, a time when the sport made a giant leap forward in global popularity. It happened through the emergence of some of the biggest stars and legends born in NBA history. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird all played with the fundamentals of their predecessors while adding a new flair and showmanship previously unseen on the hardwood. The league used those strong personalities and fresh style of play to market the game to new heights.

It is atop those skyscraping plateaus today’s NBA players are perched, a position created for them in large part by those Golden Age hoopsters. There is a feeling among some of the old All-Stars however, that the next generations aren’t using the knowledge at their disposal, that they are not seeking out the advice that helped make legends Abdul-Jabbar and Jordan and Magic so great… that it’s starting to affect the quality of their beloved game.

“These players today, they don’t even watch the players play back 20-30 years ago,” says Adrian Dantley, a six-time NBA All-Star in the 80’s. “When I came into the league I always watched those players – Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor and those types of players.”

Retired nine-time All-Star Dominique Wilkins, now the Vice President of basketball operations with the Atlanta Hawks, agrees.

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“I don’t think these guys really understand the knowledge they have before them,” says Wilkins. His voice rises over the phone from Georgia, and the frustration is quite evident. “(It’s) sitting right there in front of them that could help their game tremendously. How many guys can tell you how to play your position - like the small forward position - the way I can tell you how to play it? I played it on the highest level you can play it against the best that ever played! If I can’t teach you who can teach you?”

The answer is coaches, of course, but there is a problem with that too. The NBA’s all-time leading scoring icon AbdulJabbar sees a more grass roots dilemma.

“It has to do with the fact that they don’t get coached like they used to,” explains the 19-time All-Star. “All the money problems that so many school systems have had in the past twenty or thirty years – one of the first things they cut back on is athletics and a lot of the coaching that used to occur in grade school doesn’t happen. The most crucial time is when a player is still in grade school and impregnable and they can develop good habits at that point. The players today don’t really get serious coaching until high school and a lot of them don’t go to college. So there’s a whole lot that they don’t learn there in terms of the dynamics of the game and what the game itself is about. They’re physically gifted to a very high degree but the other parts of the game that have SWISHMAGAZINE MAGAZINE SWISH

to do with knowledge and wisdom, they lack there because it’s something they’re not aware of.”

That lack of proper tutelage has had an overwhelming effect on NBA basketball. Players getting drafted without an understanding of the game are forced to sit on the bench to learn what they’ve missed. The slowed education also helps to dampen the on-court product so to combat that trend, the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement now includes the much-debated 20-year age minimum, which should re-route kids to college or other professional leagues before they enter the NBA. “The professional game had people coming in who didn’t understand the game and had to sit on the bench and learn,” says Abdul-Jabbar. “While they sat on the bench enjoying their wonderful salaries they didn’t know the game and weren’t learning it and it took time.

The kid from Indiana, Jermaine O’Neal, sat for a long time before he blossomed because he had a lot to learn and he had more work to do than he imagined.”

But it also helped that while he was pegged as a bust early on, O’Neal had a yearning to learn that many of today’s young players don’t have, too easily discouraged or overwhelmed and unmotivated by the trappings of the NBA lifestyle. The hunger. That’s where that last generation guidance can really make a difference.

“Young players are good with advice,” February22006

says Magic Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar’s Lakers buddy and a 12-time All-Star himself. Unlike some of his colleagues, Johnson sees the young stars building a better NBA. “They do respect me and I respect them. That’s why I say this game has gotten so much better because they’ve gotten better. The problem has been they hadn’t been working in the summertime, and you hadn’t seen a lot of player’s improve. Now you are starting to see players improve because they are putting in the time in the gym in the summertime.”

They’d better. One of the knocks on the modern game has been the lack of fundamentals; the habits of the game that often separate the good from the great. For instance, what makes jump shooters like Indiana’s Peja Stojakovic and Seattle’s Rashard Lewis so coveted is that their tight mid-range games are now a rare commodity in this above the rim, pause-for-the-photo-era. Phoenix’s Steve Nash and Sacramento’s Michael Bibby are other guards of a dying breed.

Ditto for Seattle’s Ray Allen and LA Clippers guard Sam Cassell.

The only two players in the past 25 seasons to win a scoring title with a shooting percentage of less than 46 percent are Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson and Houston’s Tracy McGrady. In 2003 McGrady was the top scorer with a respectable 45.7 shooting percentage but followed it up by winning the next year with a painful 41.7 percent mark. Of Iverson’s four scoring titles his highest percentage was last season’s 42.3 percent. In 2002 he registered just 39.8 percent from the field in winning the acknowledgement. Before he won his first scoring title in 1999 (with a 41.2 FG percentage) the lowest field goal percentage to win the honor came in 1986 when Wilkins snagged it shooting 46.8 percent from the floor.

In the immortal words of outspoken NBA analyst and Hall-of-Famer Bill Walton, “Somebody hit a jump shot. Please .”

Consider too that since the 1979-80 season when the three-point shot was first introduced, field goal percentage in the NBA has been on a steady decline – down significantly from nearly 49 percent in the first half of the eighties. 1n 1981 the average team hit 48.5 percent of its shots. By 1991 that was down to 47.4 percent and in 2001 that number registered at 44.2 percent. The Februaryw2006

25-year low came in 2004 with teams hitting shots at a paltry 43.8 percent clip. No doubt the liberal use of the three-point arc has had its influence (what Abdul-Jabbar unlovingly calls “the lotto-shot”) and there are more teams too, thinning the talent to a noteworthy degree. Bigger, taller and stronger bodies making it more difficult to score? The bigger, taller and stronger concern is that fact that most players aren’t finding a way to adapt or giving themselves the tools to do it.

“Some of the young players listen, but you can’t put a blanket stereotype over everyone,” says Walton. “Look at what’s going on in San Antonio. Look at what’s going on in Detroit, Phoenix, and all the real bright spots around the NBA. When I played for Coach Wooden (at UCLA) I thought he was a crazy, silly, foolish little old man. I had no idea what he was teaching us – no idea whatsoever. It wasn’t until I left that I realized what a fool I had been, the mistake I had made by not recognizing the skills, the gifts, and the message of this master saint of circumstance.”

There have also been several rule changes over the past 15 years - ones that have made the game a lot less physical, from the hand-checking rule to the recently implemented zone defense. This is despite a stronger and more athletic brand of player. Knees to the back, holding, clutching and sharp, well-placed elbows are a thing of the past in the free-flowing allowances of the new millennium rules.

Have the old tricks of the trade been rendered useless by the evolution of the game? To an extent perhaps, but more has stayed the same than not in the NBA, leaving the association’s senior citizens with much to offer still.

“I think we live in a society where it’s ‘out of sight, out of mind’,” says Orlando Magic star Grant Hill. “I experienced that just on a little level, more on an ego level, when I was hurt and people forget about you, people move on. I know for this organization Julius Erving was a part of it when I first came on. I didn’t see him a lot but when I did see him I was still like a little kid in awe like ‘that’s Dr. J’. I’d see him out and about in Orlando and to people it wasn’t a big deal. You rewind 20 years ago and it would have been a huge deal if you saw him out and about, so it’s kind of the nature of SWISH MAGAZINE

“I think more guys would be willing to share if they were approached.

I think the top 50 legends, all those guys would be more than willing to sit down.

They’d be honored, flattered.”

Grant Hill

“When I played for Coach Wooden (at UCLA) I thought he was a crazy, silly, foolish little old man. I had no idea what he was teaching us – no idea whatsoever.”

Bill Walton

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FEATURE the world we live in. People forget.”

And whose job is it to remind them? If the kids aren’t pursuing the knowledge then whose job is it to stuff it down their throats? Like that medicine you think is bad for you but will surely do the trick?

“Whether they come to me or not, it’s my job as a coach to impart the knowledge that I have,” says Toronto Raptors assistant coach Alex English, 11th on the NBA’s scoring list with 25,613 career points. “If they want more I give it to them.

“I think with the young players that we have (in Toronto), we have so many young players that a lot of them need that knowledge and they want it. When I was with Philadelphia they had more veterans who were more established in the league and they may have felt that they didn’t need it as much.”

One of English’s charges, Raptors forward Eric Williams, sees much of the responsibility on the laps of each franchise.

“I think also the organizations gotta recognize them too and bring them back,” says Williams of the old greats. “Sometimes they bring in motivational speakers but what better motivational speaker is there than a legend of the game? It’s got to be on both sides, organizations bringing back these old legends and exposing them to some of the younger players.”

Williams recalls a closer NBA community when he came into the league ten years ago with the Boston Celtics, a franchise soaked with a rich history. He has also witnessed the decline of that atmosphere.

“When I was growing up I had a chance to really look up to those cats,” says Williams. “I got drafted by Larry Bird and got drafted by the Celtics where all the old Celtics always came back, so that helped me out.

“One thing about that Celtic pride… when Auerbach was still the president before Rick Pitino came and that organization went in a whole different direction, they had it like that. Right before the games you knew Red Auerbach was in the locker room because the [stuff] smelled like smoke. All the players would come back and forth through the locker room before the game and stuff like that.

Tight knit. That was how I knew the league and now I’ve had a chance to travel and play with a lot of other organizations and it’s not like that. With the Celtics all 20

the old players came back. Bill Russell came back, Jo Jo White was there all the time, even K.C. Jones was there. He was an assistant coach when I was a rookie. I always got the knowledge through that.”

“I think it has to be a mutual thing,” says Hill. “There are certain guys that I

“I don’t think these guys really understand the knowledge they have before them.”

Dominique Wilkins

“Young players are good with advice. They do respect me and I respect them.”

Magic Johnson

have admired and played against in my career who you feel a little uneasy about approaching in that regard. The game has been good for all of us and you want to see it continue to grow and evolve, not just in terms of going out there and making money but just in playing the right way. I think more guys would be willing to share if they were approached. I think SWISH MAGAZINE

the top 50 legends, all those guys would be more than willing to sit down. They’d be honored, flattered.”

This isn’t to suggest that the former stars of the game don’t have influence over the sport. They heavily populate the front offices and coaching staffs of the league, as well as the broadcasting end of the spectrum. Somewhere along the way the bridge between the current generation and last was left incomplete, the tricky crossing instead of a smooth, sunny ride. It has left some on both sides of the river unmotivated, unaware or both.

“I do think a lot of those individuals have a lot of knowledge. I played with a guy who when I was young was an older player and experienced, a guy like Joe Dumars. I learned a great deal from him on and off the court. Guys like Dominique, guys like Kareem, guys like…’” Hill cuts himself short and a smile crawls across his face. “I even thought about this past summer trying to approach Michael (Jordan) and just picking his brain, getting on the basketball court and spending an hour or two with him.”

The hunger.

“With guys like that you get the wisdom from experience, from the years,” adds Hill. “When you’re a great, great player you have that natural ability but you also have a great understanding and a great mind for the game. Unfortunately we as players and as young players don’t take advantage of that, we don’t seek that out like we should.

One thing I’ve noticed; people who’ve had success are willing to share.”

The passing of the torch has always been bumpy in professional sports. No generation likes to concede its own for the next.

The reality is some NBA greats do feel slighted by a perceived lack of interest from the new while others see that ignorance as a product of our environment; the cashquick, highlight reel school of basketball that creates the real barrier between now and then. Lost and found. In the middle lies a delicate balance, weighted slightly towards the hope Johnson sees for the future of the game and away from the ignorance Wilkins can’t stomach.

“Ultimately we have to remember that the important thing is not how young players or young kids respond to us today,” says Walton. “But rather how much of our message sinks in down the road.”

February22006

VISIONS OF WINNING Playoffs or Bust

By Eric Pincus Playoffs. That was the mantra set forth this summer as the Los Angeles Clippers deliberately put together a powerful combination of savvy veterans and talented prospects. After starting the season with a franchise best 14-4 record, the team is confident that they will indeed be a postseason contender.

The Clippers won 37 games in the 2004-05 NBA Season, a nine-game improvement over Coach Mike Dunleavy’s debut season with the team. Injuries were significant, but where the team struggled most was in end game situations, losing 16 games by three points or less.

D u n l e a v y, p a rt n e r e d w i t h Vi c e President of Basketball Operations Elgin Baylor, sought to put together a team capable of winning tight games. Part of that would mean bringing in more experienced players, and to that end the Clippers signed Cuttino Mobley to a long-term contract and acquired two-time NBA Champion Sam Cassell via trade.

“Cuttino and Sam are great guys.

They came into the mix and hit the floor running,” says Dunleavy. “They’ve very positive and caring. They try to teach the young guys. The way they try to share their past experiences has helped the team in a very positive way.”

The moves paid immediate dividends as the Clippers remained atop the Pacific Division for the first two months of the season before injuries began to take their toll. Off to a terrific individual start, Corey Maggette was lost for an extended period with a bad foot. Winning without such a potent scoring option has been a challenge for the Clippers, but the team has remained focused on the ultimate goal.

“We think we’re going to need 45 wins to get to the playoffs . . . and that’s the number we want,” says Dunleavy.

“Only one number matters to me and 22

Mike Dunleavy

that’s whatever that playoff number is.”

It’s clearly a challenge when a key player is down with injury. At full strength the team has great depth but with Maggette sidelined the team has been forced to adjust.

“We’re asking guys to step up and play positions they’re not used to. A guy like Mobley having to defend big threes takes away his size advantage. Gone are some of the post-up opportunities he’d usually get in a game. We’re in a situation that has thrown us off a little bit, but we’ll get through it, make adjustments and find our way.”

It helps that Elton Brand is having an MVP-caliber season. The All-Star forward is central to the Clippers’ success.

“He’s been huge for us when we’ve really needed him,” acknowledges Dunleavy.

The team’s depth has preserved their playoff hopes. Dunleavy may be coach, but the team’s personnel have been built to his specifications.

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“I’ve always been very active. All the general managers I’ve been involved with have been very open. They want to talk to their coach. What kind of players do I like? What are the needs for my system? It’s been a great working relationship.”

Dunleavy also takes on his share of management responsibilities. When Cassell was originally acquired, he threatened not to report. Dunleavy met with the veteran to assuage whatever concerns he may have had.

“It wasn’t that he didn’t want to come to us. He liked our team, but he said that Minnesota had promised him something,” Dunleavy recalls. “I tried to explain our side of the deal where we’re not going to give someone a twoyear extension when they haven’t played for us yet. I told him I liked him a lot as a player and I talked to him about how I would use him. After we finished our two meetings, he was totally on board and ready to come . . . he’s been terrific.”

Cassell’s leadership and experience have been especially instrumental in helping the team overcome its biggest Achilles’ heel: late game execution.

“Last year our guys played hard, I really believe that. We had so many close games. We were down a lot of points but always came back and fought. We just couldn’t sustain it. This year we’re changing the outcomes of these really close games by making bigger plays and getting stops at the end,” Dunleavy says. “I’m pleased with where our guys are, how hard they’re working, their mindset and chemistry. As long as we’re giving a good effort, the wins will take care of themselves.”

“It comes down to the fact that we want to win,” Dunleavy repeats. “We want to get to the playoffs. We want take the steps necessary to one day put rings on our fingers.”

For the patient fans of a team not known for its post-season success, that has to be sweet music to straining ears.

No longer on the outside looking in, the Clippers are ready to make their run.

February22006

UNDERESTIMATED & UNDERRATED Still Winning

By Chris Monjoy Sam Cassell is a winner.

Practically every year he’s been in the league Sam Cassell has made the playoffs. He even has two championship rings. Over the course of his career he’s averaged a solid 16.2 points and 6.2 assists per game. More importantly he’s consistently hit big shots, starting with those key three-pointers he hit as a rookie with the Houston Rockets in the 1994 NBA Finals.

Still, he’s playing for his sixth different team over the course of his 12 years in the NBA. The talking heads h a v e a r g u e d t h a t h e ’s a b a d lockerroom guy, a “me-first” player, but none of them have actually stepped inside a lockerroom with him.

In his thirteenth year in the league Cassell has transformed a Los Angeles Clippers team that is without a playoff appearance since 1992 (before Cassell even entered the league) into a serious contender.

In the first game of the season, Sam Cassell hit huge three-pointer after huge three-pointer during crunch time of a close opening night game against the Seattle SuperSonics. The Clippers, who had enormous difficulty last season finishing close games, knew from that moment Sam would be the guy who could help them get over the hump.

“I’m a winner. I know I’m a winner,” Cassell said emphatically. “No matter what people say, I win the way I want to win. I’m here now, and I’m trying to make this place a winner. People are going to laugh, joke with us, joke about it, but we’re going to do something.”

It’s that steely resolve mixed with a positive attitude which results in a burgeoning sense of confidence in this Clipper locker room. With the help of fellow newcomer Cuttino Mobley, Cassell is transforming the culture of a team that desperately needed transforming.

Februaryw2006

Sam Cassell

As coach Mike Dunleavy said, “Mobley and Cassell are great guys and they came into the mix, hit the floor running, and were positive.”

The team has noticed the change, too.

“I definitely feel less pressure this year with Sam and Cuttino,” said Corey Maggette. “We saw the chemistry was there in training camp.”

Keep in mind, Cassell isn’t all business. Part of that new attitude he brings is a sense of fun. Wor d around the locker room is that Cassell was the driving force behind the decision that all of the rookies on the team would be required to wear hideous tuxedos, complete with ruffled pirate shirts, to the home opener. This decision was about more than lighthearted rookie hazing - it was about developing camaraderie. The rookies all took it in stride, with James Singleton even going so far as to good-naturedly comment, “Hey, if they want me to wear a tux every night, then I’ll do it.”

“I always say, if you’re out there every night, and you’ve got be together for six or seven months, let’s make the best of it fellas,” said Cassell. “Basketball is a lot more fun when everybody likes each other, you know?”

Cassell is the type of guy who can talk seriously one minute, and switch to being playful the next. In the middle of talking about how important it was that the team give their maximum effort in practice, as well as games, he commented, “The second team, you know, they kick our butt every day in practice…led by my next door neighbor…the trash talking Walter McCarty!” - provoking a sheepish grin from a startled McCarty and causing a chuckle throughout the locker room.

Part of the misconception about Cassell is he’s all about Sam. The realSWISH MAGAZINE

ity is he just wants to win so badly he won’t accept anything less. Before he joined the Clippers last summer, he had to make sure he was coming to an organization that was committed to winning.

“I had to talk to Mike Dunleavy, at first,” Cassell replied, when asked about the process of joining the team.

“When I first got here, we had it out.

We just talked. He’s a former player, he knew my position. This is my thirteenth year, so I don’t have four or five years to [mess around], you know.”

That sentiment is certainly understandable, if not admirable. What’s wrong with a player who cares about winning? Shouldn’t that be what’s most important? One of the most impressive qualities that Sam Cassell possesses is that no matter which team is on the front of his jersey; he never lets perceptions get in the way of doing everything in his power to make that team a winner.

Consequently, no matter where Cassell finds himself, he’s still winning.

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The Untold Story of One of the World’s Top Athletes

By Bill Ingram Dirk Nowitzki. His name is virtually synonymous with the Dallas Mavericks, who have become one of the top teams in the league during his tenure. He’s also one of those always mentioned in discussions about Most Valuable Player candidates. Beyond that, however, not much is known about a man who is consistently among the elite players in the world. We decided to change that.

Dirk’s story begins in Germany, where he grew up as the child of two professional athletes. “My parents were both athletes, which was big for me,” explains Dirk. “I basically grew up in the gym. In my earliest memories I was already in the gym chasing some balls. My sister was always in the gym and we kind of grew up in that environment, so it was clear that I was going to play sports. I played tennis, handball, basketball, tried soccer a little bit. I always loved sports and obviously I owe that to my parents and my family.”

His love for basketball was what got Dirk noticed by trainer Holger Geschwindner, who thought he recognized something special. “I was playing with a youth team somewhere on the road and Holger saw me play. He came up to me after the game and asked me who was working with me individually and I said nobody, really, I was just having fun. I was like 15 or 16 years old and he said he would love to work with me if I was interested. I said sure, I’ve got nothing to lose. Nobody knew then that we would have the kind of relationship we do now or that he would teach me all that he has taught me. I was very lucky to have met him, and it’s pretty fair to say that if I hadn’t met him when I did I wouldn’t be here now. I would have probably moved on to another sport. I still work with him every summer and he has been a great influence on my life.”

Under Holger’s watchful eye Dirk caught the eye of Nike, who

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would become the catalyst for Dirk’s eventual move to the NBA. Dirk’s decision to play in Nike’s All-Star game resulted in a meeting with the Mavericks’ Donnie Nelson. “I was in San Antonio for the 1998 Nike All-Star game,” recalls Dirk. “I was already doing some things with Nike in Germany and they had asked me to come the year before, but I couldn’t. My club team was trying to move up to the next division and that was always our goal. I told Nike I couldn’t leave the team because it was too important for us to move up. The next year the situation came up again. It was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make, but I chose to leave my team behind and join the Nike team. I had no idea what I was getting into. I was 19 years old and had never been to the US before and I really had no idea what to expect. I wound up scoring 33 points and I missed one game while I was gone and my team ended up winning that game, so not only did we move up, but I had an awesome game here. So I showed up here, we had a couple of practices, and then we went out and beat the US. That was a dream of mine.”

At the time Donnie Nelson was serving as an assistant coach for Dirk’s international team. That 33-point outing planted the idea in Donnie’s mind that perhaps his team could use a little German influence. “We had seen some tape on him,” says Nelson,” but the first time that I really saw him was when he was playing in the Nike Youth Tournament. Then he went down to San Antonio and had a big game down there in front of all the NBA scouts, coaches, general managers. That was when we started really looking at him.”

No one was more surprised than Dirk. “I had no idea that he was scouting me. I was 19 at the time and I had never played at a high level. In Germany I played in the second division, which is really nothing. So I put my name in the draft, but I didn’t really think I was going to come. I was planning to play in Europe for a couple more years and develop my skills like (Toni) Kukoc did.

Then they drafted me and everybody flew in with Nellie and Donnie and Ross Perot at the time and they talked me into coming over. They flew me in and I met Steve (Nash) for the first time

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FEATURE at Nellie’s party and Samaki (Walker) was there and a couple of other guys and they really made me feel comfortable right away.

They told me that they were not a winning team, that they had work to do and that I could kind of work my way into it and develop slowly and if I didn’t like it I could always go back to Europe.

I made the decision right before I went back to Germany and I told them I would go ahead and try it.”

“Our real work was convincing him that he was good enough to be in the NBA,” recalls Donnie Nelson, now President of Basketball Operations for the Mavericks. “He had a lot of options. He had his team from Europe chasing him and he was wondering if a couple of years in Europe might be best for his development.

Obviously when you have a lottery pick you need to have your fans be able to see him play, so the pressure was on (thencoach Don Nelson) and I to convince him that he was better off in the Dallas, in the NBA, where he could learn the system. Looking back those were two very difficult years. They were also difficult years for Mavericks fans.

They don’t want to hear the word ‘rebuilding’ after you’ve already been out of the playoffs for a while. Looking back, he had so much desire, he had an outstanding support system around him – his family and his trainer Holger – and he made himself into a player.”

Dirk was stunned when the Milwaukee Bucks drafted him in the ninth spot for the Mavericks. “I had no idea I would go as early as I did in the draft. I didn’t really want to go because I didn’t feel I was ready. When I was heard I was drafted number nine I thought Dallas was crazy, that they had wasted their first round pick. Looking back now I guess it was a good decision.”

Mark Cuban doesn’t think much of his star player’s future as a talent scout given his own self-evaluation. “I’m glad he loves to play and has no plans to be a General Manager,” quipped the Mavs’ owner.

So Dirk made the decision to come to the NBA, leaving family and country to venture into a whole new world. “It was a big step for a 19-year-old, and my first year was one of the toughest I’ve ever gone through. I didn’t play much, I didn’t play well once I was in, everything was so new. But looking back it was the best thing

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I could have done because I got used to the NBA style early, learning from the veterans while I was still young. Going through that first year was the worst experience but it was also the most important year in my career.”

Dirk began his rookie campaign belatedly thanks to a labor disagreement that forced a lockout of the players. Donnie Nelson was impressed that Dirk got through it at all, as he explains.

“That first season with all the back-to-back-to-backs was very tough, a very weird situation. Then you have the fact that he had only played for a division two team in Germany, so to throw him in with the best athletes in the world and expect him to do well was tough. Then people compared him to Paul Pierce, who had a storied college career in the toughest conference in the United States and grew up playing basketball – that was just a lot of pressure for him. Add to that the fact that he was over here playing in a foreign culture, a hostile environment, playing against the best athletes in the world, and that’s a tough situation to be in.”

Dirk has a vivid, if not fond memory of that rigorous first season. “That first year was crazy. It was the lockout-shortened year so we only had a week of training camp.

Nellie had a hundred plays. I was lost out there, looking left and right trying to adjust on the court and off the court. It was a mess. And that year we had back-to-back-tobacks, so we played three games in a row. In Germany we played once a week. We drove with the bus and then we drove back. The rest was practice. I remember at one time we had a back-toback-to-back, a day off, a day of practice, and then another back-to-back-to-back, so six games in eight days. I didn’t know which hotel I was in or even what city I was in.” On top of that Dirk had to face the reality of being away from his family.

“The biggest challenge for me coming to America was leaving my family. A lot of guys over there play and they’re like an hour or two away from their families, so their moms could just drive over and take care of their babies. I was ten or eleven flight hours away so it wasn’t that easy for my family to be

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FEATURE there for me during my hard times. We have a really close family, so being away from them was the toughest part of my first year.

The good thing was that it was a lockout-shortened year, so the season started the beginning of February, and we were already done by the middle of May because we didn’t make the playoffs.

So I was here for like three months at the beginning and then I got to go back home and join the family again and by the second year I was more comfortable.”

As Dirk got more comfortable he began to produce. Yet even as he began to emerge as one of the best forwards in the NBA, he didn’t quite earn the attention and honors that come with players of his ability. Donnie Nelson has a theory as to why. “I think early on you had Steve Nash and Michael Finley and a nice supporting staff. Dirk’s not the guy who’s going to beat his chest and grab a microphone. He just prefers to let his actions speak for themselves. Certain guys play the game certain ways.

Dirk is more of a reserved person. I think that’s why he gets overlooked somewhat.

He avoids the spotlight. He’s very unassuming. It’s a team sport and he just wants to be part of the team.” Nonetheless, Dirk’s play wasn’t to go unnoticed.

Mark Cuban began to see the full potential of his new star player after he helped the Mavs get back to the playoffs in 2001. “After seeing how much he improved his game coming into camp in 2001-02 I really got excited about Dirk’s potential. I think his experiences in Utah and San Antonio during our first playoff appearance taught him just how hard he has to work to be a star and he accepted that challenge.” The same year Dirk was selected for his first All-Star game.

“My first All-Star game was amazing,” Dirk recalls. “I really wasn’t sure, once I got over here, if I was good enough or if I could really make it in this league. One of my big goals, my big dream, was to be a part of that once in my career. To experience that for the first time when I was 23, I was in heaven. I watched the All-Star game ever since I was 13. I would tape it at night and then watch it over and over again. I loved watching Jordan and Magic and Bird. It was weird being in the locker room with Shaq and Kobe and all those guys. I was just running around all weekend like a little kid looking at all there was to see. The great thing was that I got to experience it with Steve 26

(Nash), who was one of my closest friends. For us to go there together for the first time was just amazing. To be able to share that experience with my best friend was amazing. Looking back now I’ve already had four appearances in the All-Star game and I never would have dreamed that.”

Though he now plays with the Phoenix Suns, Steve Nash admits his first All-Star game was all the more special because he got to share it with Dirk. “I completely agree,” says the 2005 MVP. “It was special for us to go to our first All-Star game, but it was even more special for us to go together. We kind of elevated our games along similar paths and made ourselves into good players and then All-Star players. It was really exciting for us to share that.”

No one appreciates Dirk more than his head coach.

Avery Johnson is all about winning a championship, and he feels Dirk is the heart and soul of a championship run. “I think that’s pretty much all that’s left for Dirk. Guys go to All-Star Weekend and they have fun and go to the events, and playoffs are cool, but all these guys really want to do is win a championship. Your career goes by in a blink, and in one day your whole career can change. I think Dirk just wants to experience winning a championship. I sense that driving motivation in Dirk. I’ve heard him talk about it more than I’ve ever heard him talk about it. It wasn’t something I could get out of him playing as his teammate, but now he talks about it in practice a lot, like ‘we can’t win a championship playing like that.’ I think in a subtle way he feels time is running out. You can’t always be on a championship caliber team. Free agency changes things, coaches change, injuries happen in our league, so you can’t keep getting up there every year and not win it.”

Ten years ago Dirk Nowitzki was not even dreaming that a career in the NBA was possible. Now he is universally recognized not only as one of the best in the NBA, but as one of the top players in the world. Little did Holger Geschwindner know what he was starting when he first sat down with Dirk and discussed the possibility of pursuing a career in basketball.

Though he’s too humble to flaunt it, Dirk Nowitzki is clearly a star among stars. It’s only a matter of time until he takes the Dallas Mavericks to the Promised Land.

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HEART & SOUL Keeping Promises

By Bill Ingram Summertime is all about free agency for the world of the NBA and the summer of 2005 was no exception. With names like Shaquille O’Neal, Ray Allen, Tyson Chandler, and Larry Hughes topping the list of free agents it looked to be a very competitive time; a time when teams could be made or broken based on their ability to re-sign their own players. For the Milwaukee Bucks nothing was more important than keeping Michael Redd, who averaged 23 points per game while shooting 44% from the field, 36% from three-point range, and 85% from the foul line. Not bad for a player taken with the 43rd overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft.

So what was it that helped Michael find the strength and determination to become one of the elite players in the NBA? “For me my faith is everything,” Michael explains. “Everything that I am, everything that I have accomplished, God gets all the glory for it. That’s the one thing that motivates me every night to play. I don’t necessarily play for the Bucks; I play for Jesus Christ. If I’m doing my best for Him, it’s going to trickle down into everything I do.”

Michael’s faith is serving him well and as his prosperity grows his sense of responsibility grows. Over the summer he helped his parents realize a dream, and at the same time he made good on an old (but not forgotten) promise.

“I didn’t really want that story to get out, but it got out,” says a very humble Michael. “It’s a good thing that it got out, looking back, because God taught me that when it’s all said and done it gives Him glory. That was a gift to the Lord first, and then to my mom and dad. Their ministry was growing and it was time for a change. They needed a bigger church, and when I signed my new contract it was our first Sunday in that church.

When I was a little boy I promised my dad that I would get him a church, and that came true, so it was a very emotional first Sunday.”

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Michael Redd

What about the hotly debated “role model” aspect of being a professional athlete? The question has been asked many times and the answers are as unique as the people who give them.

Michael shares his view: “I think my responsibilities as a role model are huge. Kids watch us, and not just kids, older people watch us, as well. I think we do have a responsibility to stay clean, I would say. Kids are coming up after us and you don’t want to give them the bad example where they see that living a raunchy lifestyle, so to speak, is the way to go. That’s not a problem for me because I am a Christian and I try to reflect that.”

Of course, even role models need role models.

Michael tells us about the man who taught him to believe in himself and to do whatever it takes to live his dream: “My dad. He was a high school All-American basketball player when I was younger and he didn’t necessarily have an opportunity to play in the NBA, so he wanted me to carry on the legacy. He introduced me to the sport as a little boy and I’ve been doing it ever since. He wanted to see if I had the passion and the competitiveness to play and I did, so here we are twenty years later.”

Twenty years later Michael is considered to be one of the best at his position, and his team is one of the up-andcoming teams in the NBA. He has become a celebrity, but being a celebrity comes with a price tag and the temptations are everywhere. NBA players are constantly pursued and even stalked by aggressive women who want to cash in on million-dollar paychecks. How does SWISH MAGAZINE

Michael stay strong in his faith in the face of such temptations?

“My faith. I’m about to get married next summer, so the temptations of women are not always great for me. I’m still a man, I still see women and all that, but the Lord gives us a way of escape.

You have a choice to do right or wrong

and I choose to do the right things. I surround myself with great friends who will keep me accountable and will tell me when I’m doing right or wrong. Those are the things I rely on.”

Michael Redd is following his heart and allowing his faith to guide him, not just talking the talk but also walking the walk. We certainly wish Michael the best as he helps the Bucks build towards a championship, as we wish his parents the best as their ministry continues to flourish.

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COLLECTORS CORNER The Faces Behind the Logos

By Jason Fleming Many functions every year vie for a collector’s attention. There is The National every year in Chicago and various small shows in one’s neighborhood, but few events can rouse a collector like attending all the festivities surrounding an All-Star Game. This year in Houston for NBA All-Star Weekend fans can see the dunk contest, the three-point shootout, the rookie game, the All-Star Game itself, but the collecting crown jewel of it all is NBA Jam Session.

What is Jam Session?

It’s a place where fans can meet basketball legends, get autographs, shoot three-pointers, and experience all sorts of other interactive exhibits. The exhibition is also the biggest sports card show of the NBA season where dealers from all over the country set up shop for a few days.

“Dealers are usually excited about an event like Jam Session for a number of reasons,” explained Scott Kelnhofer, editor of Card Trade magazine, a trade publication for the sports card industry. “There’s the chance to sell to tens of thousands of potential new customers. That said dealers have to treat this show different than they would a traditional hobby show. There are going to be a lot of novice collectors at this event, so you have to prepare accordingly. Aim for more impulse-type of purchases, gift ideas, neat display items, etc., as opposed to the high-end items that might sell better at a pure collectors’ event.”

Dealers aren’t the only ones who relish the chance to show off for new potential customers. Topps and Upper Deck 28

Jam Session

will have two of the most popular booths at the show.

“We will once again be showing off their favorite players from around the league in creative card layouts or framed autographed pieces,” said Upper Deck spokesman Don Williams. “Plus, we always have the most energetic booth staff and lots of cool prizes and giveaways. Also, we have a cool new secret product lineup that we will be unveiling at the show.”

“Anytime you can put trading cards and collectibles in front of sports fans in general, it helps,” says Kelnhofer about

expanding the market. “Getting access to tens of thousands of sports fans in one location is valuable exposure for the industry. When the collectibles industry looks for new collectors, you are generally looking for sports fans first and foremost. A sports fan may not casually wander into a card store or visit a traditional card show. But when they see cards and other memorabilia at a show like Jam Session, they may take a few minutes to see what’s available, buy some cards for their kids, or see a collectible similar to what they had as a kid and get the bug to collect again.”

It’s no small endeavor for dealers to make the cross-country trek to Houston.

They have to decide which products to pack, what will sell, how much to bring, SWISH MAGAZINE

and they have to do all of this while running their own businesses. For the big companies it’s an even bigger project and it’s very complicated to pull off smoothly.

“The planning,” says Topps spokesman Clay Luraschi about the most difficult part of the process. “Getting the merchandise together, creating the graphics for the booth, prepping the highlighted products in the showcase, preparing our promotions such as the wrapper redemption program and creating those cards.”

“The biggest challenge is time,” says Williams. “We have a ton of shows that we support throughout the year that we work on simultaneously. Certainly the toughest part is keeping track of all of the shows, but we have an amazing in-house events marketing team that directs this for the company.”

Another aspect of seeing companies like Topps and Upper Deck in this kind of setting is collectors can put some sort of face with the product. Instead of just knowing the company as a logo on a box of cards, the companies want to make that oneon-one connection with their customers.

“It’s always important for any company to be front and center with their consumer base,” explains Williams. “Upper Deck attends these shows to gather market research, create brand awareness, and to show off our latest products. Conventions and All-Star events are great avenues to achieve these goals.”

“It’s an opportunity to expose Topps to non-traditional collectors,” says Luraschi.

“We will have a wrapper redemption program where if you open Topps packs at the booth you will receive a pack of 5 special cards made just for the event.”

NBA Jam Session is a blast for all those who attend and it’s a great place to look for some additions to a collection. On top of that, it’s good to know the big names are going all out to make the experience a fantastic one for the collector.

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A DOG WITH A BONE Playing to Win

By Eric Pincus

“He needs to learn how to make his teammates better.” – Magic Johnson Some view Kobe Bryant as the best player in the game today. Others consider him the antithesis of team play; representative of the modern NBA and all its shortcomings.

My editor asked me to track down Kobe Bryant; find the man who lives within the eye of the storm.

I catch him in the locker room pregame. The Los Angeles Lakers visiting the Clippers at Staples Center. Bryant is recently coming off a two-game suspension for clocking Mike Miller in the neck.

I approach cautiously, “Can I ask you a few questions?”

Not quite paying attention, he replies “It depends on what you ask.”

Why is it that you and your style of play are so controversial?

“That’s what you want to ask me?” he replies with a roll of the eyes.

Panic briefly sets in. That was supposed to be the focus of the entire interview. Quickly, I regroup.

Tell me about the game tonight (a standard pre-game question certain to return cliché).

Bryant doesn’t disappoint. “Well it’s just one of 82 . . .”` Did the suspension strengthen your focus?

“It’s important to keep the season in perspective. It’s important that when you go through losing streaks or lose a game to just forget about it. Just move on to the next one. Especially for a young team, it’s easy to get down and be harder on yourself than you really need to be.”

Has this been hard on you in particular? I don’t remember the team with you and Shaq going through patches this rough.

“Oh we went through them,” he laughs. “We lost four or five straight before. The important thing is to keep 30

Kobe Bryant

plugging away. Keep your energy at a higher level. When you lose games, all of a sudden things that are miniscule tend to blow out of proportion.

How have has the team responded to your leadership?

“They know how I am and they feed off of that. They see me smelling blood and I go in for the kill. They all swarm in with me. As the leader of this team I have to be the one that jumps out ahead of the curve and attacks and they follow suit.”

I bring up the team’s 2007 plan, which involves waiting for salary cap space.

Yao Ming and Amare Stoudemire won’t be available, but Laker management seems committed to the prospect of financial flexibility. Surely the team’s star would have some thoughts on the significant wait before the talent level is upgraded?

“What’s that? I don’t even know what you’re talking about. On who? Nobody’s indicated that to me, it sounds like it’s just talk. It’s more of a question for Phil [Jackson] and Mitch [Kupchak].”

Moving on . . .

Do you struggle finding the balance beSWISH MAGAZINE

tween making your teammates better and looking for your shot?

“You can credit [Lamar Odom] with making that easy for me. On this particular team, the roles are reversed. If this was a few years ago I’d have to concern myself with that, but with this team I don’t have to. I just turn the knob off the speaker, man. He’s the facilitator and it’s my duty when I get doubled to kick it out if I don’t have a good shot myself.

Other than that I can just go pedal to the medal because of him.”

Even after you scored 62 points against the Dallas Mavericks, there were writers criticizing you for sitting out the fourth quarter. Others mentioned that you didn’t have a single assist. What does that mean to you?

“Nothing. It doesn’t mean anything. I don’t play for the media.”

So who do you play for?

“I play for them,” he replies gesturing to his teammates.

“I play for me.”

“I play to win.”

That night he went for 50, including the game-winner. Over the next two games he became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to score 45+ points in four consecutive games.

Could it really be that simple?

Perhaps the noise of Shaquille O’Neal leaving town, Colorado and last season’s lottery appearance has made us media types lose sight of the big picture.

Bryant ultimately answers my original question—what we say and think doesn’t even matter.

History is Bryant’s judge and he’s not done making it . . . no matter how many write him off.

Two weeks later Bryant would stun the world with an 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors.

After the game Bryant bristled when compared to Michael Jordan. It’s not the player but the concept he’s being measured against.

Can we even consider Bryant in that league? It wouldn’t matter if we did.

It’s for history to decide.

February22006

THE LAST WORD Going For 81…

January 22nd was a special day for the NBA. It was a record setting day; a day set aside to celebrate and debate that which is purest about basketball: The jump shot.

Lakers guard Kobe Brant logged himself into the NBA record books like only one other player before him could and his resulting 81-point game has become legendary. Already it has been rebroadcast several times on NBATV and is currently a highlighted item on Video Google, where for $3.95 you can now own the game that many will talk about for months and years to come.

The caveat in the game that really has not gotten enough attention in all of the hoopla about the “81” is that unlike the great scorers before him, Kobe achieved this amazing milestone with his jumpshot. Not the dunk, not the tip-in, the jumpshot.

Few players in a normal NBA game shoot 60.8% from the field. The NBA game has changed so much that a player who shoots 50% from the field is considered great. Michael Jordan, who many consider the greatest ever, had a career average below 50%.

Kobe’s “81” established so many things in one game that its significance to players and coaches around the league has really never been seen in the modern era. The day after the “81” players on other teams would tell stories of players on various teams calling them and urging them to tune in and watch history being made. It’s not often the entire league will stop and watch, and Kobe brought the basketball world to a stop

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Steve Kyler

for a few moments in January.

While the debate will rage on as to whether it was as important as Wilt Chamberlain’s famous 100-point game in 1962, one thing’s for sure: It was a great day for basketball.

Taking Matters Into Your Own Hands…

In the wake of last year’s “brawl” in Detroit, when Ron Artest went into the stands to confront a fan, the world was shown what could happen when things go very bad in sports.

The NBA learned a valuable lesson that day and most NBA players learned a hard lesson, too. The league enacted tougher rules to suspend and punish players for those types of actions and the message was sent very loudly and very clearly that players do not go into the stands… which makes it even more surprising that on January 18th Antonio Davis, one of the very voices that enacted those tougher rules, charged into the stands to defend his wife, Kendra.

Again the NBA was thrust into the spotlight to defend a five-game suspension of Davis, one of the good guys in the NBA. What was lost in the discussion was the why… why was Antonio suspended?

Davis wasn’t suspended because he charged into the stands; rather the concern was the creation of an environment that could be dangerous to everyone in the building. The fear the incident created wasn’t about what Antonio would do, it was about what the fans would do… and when a player charges into the stands, it’s about the reaction that action

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will cause - not the actions of the player.

The NBA cannot protect its fans from themselves or the players. That was proven in Detroit last year. What it tries to do is reduce the odds that chaos will break out and cause serious, unbearable damage. Players charging into a situation will provoke a response, and that’s why Antonio was ultimately suspended - to send the message that even the best of intentions is not reason enough to risk mass chaos, which is exactly what could have happened at the United Center.

Good Player Or Bad Egg? All of us at one time or another have done things that we’ve regretted… and it’s for certain that if Ron Artest could take one day of his life and do things differently it would be that fateful November day in 2004. Unfortunately, it simply doesn’t work that way.

The Indiana Pacers did a noble and generous thing with Ron Artest. They forgave him for the damage he caused and the stains he brought to the franchise. They kept him in the family. They continued to nurture him and allowed him to return.

Ron’s repayment for that amazing gesture was to effectively bite the hand that protected him by demanding a trade. It’s a sad state of things when you go out of your way to help people and they stab you in the back. That’s surely how the Pacers felt and the decision to ultimately trade Ron to Sacramento represents closure in a very challenging year for the Pacers.

While Sacramento says welcome to their new “Tru Warrier”… the Pacers can finally said “Good Riddance”… and that’s The Last Word.

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