-
The Worm Goes to Mexico: Dennis Rodman and Liga Nacional de Baloncesto
I could fill an entire website with Dennis Rodman stories. But here’s one of the lesser-told tales about the 6 foot 7, colorful-haired, cross-dressing, 5x NBA champion – The Worm goes to Mexico. Never Wanted to be a Maverick Most fans fondly remember Rodman’s early years as a “Bad Boy” Piston where he steadily improved…
-
How the Clippers Ended Up Owning Larry Bird’s Draft Rights
During one brief moment in the summer of 1978, the Buffalo Braves (now the LA Clippers) owned Larry Bird’s draft rights. How this highly improbable circumstance came to be involves a Hollywood mogul, some legal technicalities, and the only franchise swap in NBA history. This is the story. The Origin of Bird Rights A controversial…
-
Don’t Mess with The Dipper: The Time Mel Daniels Tried to Fight Wilt Chamberlain
You had to be one tough SOB to willingly want to fight Wilt Chamberlain, who stood over 7 feet tall with a 7 foot 8 wingspan. Mel Daniels was this and a hell of a lot more and he wasn’t one to back down. This is the drama and comedy of their infamous 1974 skirmish.…
-
The Toronto Raptors’ Expansion Team Was Wild
Every expansion team’s inaugural season is memorable for one reason or another. For some, it’s because they didn’t suck as much as initially expected. For others, it’s purely for nostalgia and record-keeping purposes. But for the Toronto Raptors, their 1995-96 expansion season was memorable for all the wrong reasons before the team ever played a…
-
Fines, Suspensions, and BS: The Isaiah Rider Era in Atlanta
“It was the worst trade I was involved with in more than 30-some years in the NBA.” These are the infamous words of former Atlanta Hawks general manager Pete Babcock when asked about the summer 99′ deal that brought Isaiah Rider to the team. In theory, Rider was supposed to be the cornerstone of a…
-
How Billy “The Whopper” Paultz Got His Name
Earning an impressive nickname is a right of passage in sports. The way Billy “The Whopper” Paultz got his name and what it stands for is legendary. What’s in a Name? From Darryl “Chocolate Thunder” Watkins to Trajan “The Alaskan Assassin” Langdon, and most recently, Robert “The Timelord” Williams. There have been some memorable nicknames…
-
Charles Oakley and Jeff McInnis’ Love Triangle
Athletes have been finding themselves in personal entanglements since the time of Marn Grook. Charles Oakley and Jeff McInnis are no different, after ending up in a love triangle with the same woman in the early 2000s. Laid up in the Shack If two guys end up throwing hands, the root cause is usually either…
-
Chris Morris: Chicks Dig Listening to Picasso
How would you go about impressing a fine-looking female that caught your eye in a crowded bar? Perhaps you would try to make her laugh, tell her an interesting story, offer to buy her a drink? If you’re New Jersey Nets forward Chris Morris none of the above. You instead attempt to woo her with…
-
The Worst Pre-Game Speech in NBA History
Pre-game pep talks are about as common in sports as celebrities visiting Epstein’s island. But what about when a motivational talk doesn’t only fail to achieve the intended outcome of firing the team up, it leaves them completely deflated? This is the story of the worst pre-game speech in NBA history. It Looked Really Good…
-
The Team that has gone to every Final in Lithuanian Basketball League History
It’s June, your favorite team is playing in the finals, they’re the odds-on favorite to win it all, and your mom just made pizza pockets. Life is good. This has been the reality for fans of one Lithuanian basketball team every year for the past 27 years. Absoliutus Dominavimas The team is BC Žalgiris and…