Remember when Wilt...

[Black Adam]

My guess is LBJ would flop once, get the call and the Pistons would be like, "Next time he goes down, he will have earned the F.T." LBJ would get blasted for the rest of the game...

yep. defending the paint was something DEAD serious for bigs back in the day...

drive the lane and take your chances lol...

 

[HammerDown]

My guess is LBJ would flop once, get the call and the Pistons would be like, "Next time he goes down, he will have earned the F.T." LBJ would get blasted for the rest of the game...

Absolutely. Lebron'd flop and you'd see Mahorn, Laimbeer and Donaldson huddling. He'd earn the next one and think twice about mixing it up with the trees next time. The D these clowns play these days is laughable.

 

[HammerDown]

yep. defending the paint was something DEAD serious for bigs back in the day...

drive the lane and take your chances lol...

Yep!

"Come on down here. Try it. Come on, do it."

 

[HuskerCradle2Grave]

Damn that would be great!

 

[celticsintheoc]

hilarious. so i'm NOT the only one. my son's a Raiders and Suns fan. following the Lakers and the Chiefs all my life pretty made games a war zone in my parts...

love my son, though. and a proud grandad to boot...

the competition between father and son is a time honored tradition the old man loved the dodgers so I love the Angeles he is also a kings fan so when Anaheim got the ducks that was my team ....he was and is a die hard lakers fan so at nine years old I became a Celtics fan....

 

[celticsintheoc]

Yep, I remember in 1979 I had never watched basketball before and my Dad called me in and said watch these guys you might like it. Saw these guys as tall as trees in amazing purple/gold uniforms and fell head-over-heels in love with the game that night. I used to get into fights at school. If someone said something about the Lakers, it was almost like those guys were my friends and I had to do something about it.

Just don't feel the same anymore. Everything changed with free agency.

felt the same about my Celtics and growing up in so-cal I was fighting for my life on the daily....lol

 

[Retroram52]

This is a great retro discussion. I am probably one of the oldest dudes on this board as I started watching the Lakers in 1960. I can tell you unequivocally that Russell was not taller than 6'8" and wasn't as great as a player as everyome wants to believe. Hammer has this one down cold!!

 

[mrwallace2ku]

1st of all a SHOUT OUT to Dick Bevetta...BEST NBA Ref alltime!


2nd...The shot that ended Rudy T's career from Kermit Washington...DEVESTATING! Fast forward if you want too..

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgqUZ1IAA_8]The Kermit Washington Story - Redemption 4 of 7 - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Shanemansj13]

Another thread full of bitter Laker fans trying to belittle the greatest... Russell LEAD his team to 11 rings thats it. End of story. Don't bring me that Horry strawman.

I'm not a Laker fan. And Russell never led any team, he was a decent player surrounded by HOF'rs.

 

[Jims_Doors]

Not according to NBA stats. D.R. 6'7 B.R 6'10 And Hakeem was 6'10. (note: Now I am seeing 2 different heights for Hakeem. Google him and his bio on the right side of the page says 6'10. Maybe that is what he is now. The NBA stat site has him as a 7 footer. So my previous statements may be erroneous. And I am not going to try to guess height from an old picture. But feel free to post one. Would like to see it.)

Hakeem was 6'10. It was just sexier to say a player was 7 foot and promote Houston at the time with having the "twin towers" along with Sampson.

Very common list bigs taller than they are, unless you're Kevin Durant. He's listed at 6'9 but closer to 6'11

 

[Jims_Doors]

My guess is LBJ would flop once, get the call and the Pistons would be like, "Next time he goes down, he will have earned the F.T." LBJ would get blasted for the rest of the game...

That's what happened to MJ (not the flopping part). He kept getting hammered by Detroit , then Stern implemented the flagrant foul rule the following season. Admitted he should have a few years before that.

 

[Jims_Doors]

Absolutely. Lebron'd flop and you'd see Mahorn, Laimbeer and Donaldson huddling. He'd earn the next one and think twice about mixing it up with the trees next time. The D these clowns play these days is laughable.

Not nearly as much money invested in players back then. James would have been a cash cow to Stern, just like MJ was. That's why Stern eventually protected MJ so much. Can't have the superstar sidelined because of cheap shots.

 

[HuskerCradle2Grave]

Absolutely. Lebron'd flop and you'd see Mahorn, Laimbeer and Donaldson huddling. He'd earn the next one and think twice about mixing it up with the trees next time. The D these clowns play these days is laughable.

Yep!

"Come on down here. Try it. Come on, do it."

That's what happened to MJ (not the flopping part). He kept getting hammered by Detroit , then Stern implemented the flagrant foul rule the following season. Admitted he should have a few years before that.

It was getting a bit out of hand...

 

[LALakersboy24.7]

This is a great retro discussion. I am probably one of the oldest dudes on this board as I started watching the Lakers in 1960. I can tell you unequivocally that Russell was not taller than 6'8" and wasn't as great as a player as everyome wants to believe. Hammer has this one down cold!!

I honestly believe he was more like 6'7" he was pretty much irrelevant & redundant on his team. Plain & simple he sucked.

 

[HuskerCradle2Grave]

I honestly believe he was more like 6'7" he was pretty much irrelevant & redundant on his team. Plain & simple he sucked.

Stop it. To say he sucked makes you sound like an uniformed moron. You are better than that...

 

[LALakersboy24.7]

Stop it. To say he sucked makes you sound like an uniformed moron. You are better than that...

Oh please cant we have a little fun? or is this illegal on the Hoop? Cheer up don't take it to the heart.

DJ MBenga>>>>>>>>Bill Russell

 

[HuskerCradle2Grave]

Oh please cant we have a little fun? or is this illegal on the Hoop?

DJ MBenga>>>>>>>>Bill Russell

That is fun. The statement that I commented on prior was stupid. There is a difference. But by all means, have fun...

 

[trojanfan12]

I beg to differ. Points is points. Or would you rather have Kevin McHale's 17 PPG to Shaq's 23 PPG?

And again with the limited competition thing. The man could only play who was on the court at the time. And some have made the argument that the league was less watered down then. That is why you have to look at these players while considering the era...

I would take McHale. McHale was a better scorer. Had he been on a team that didn't have other scorers such as Bird, DJ, Ainge, Parrish, etc. he would very likely have been one of the highest scoring players in the game. Shaq had the advantage of being bigger and stronger than everyone else, but he also typically only had one other player on his team that he had to share shots with.

I agree that he could only play who was on the court at the time, but that doesn't change the fact that the competition wasn't the same.

As for the talent being less watered down, that is also a fallacy. In Russell's era, the NBA didn't have anywhere near the popularity that it has enjoyed in the "modern era". The result of this is that the best athletes, many of whom now look to basketball and the NBA, were more likely to play baseball or football.

 

[trojanfan12]

Yep, I remember in 1979 I had never watched basketball before and my Dad called me in and said watch these guys you might like it. Saw these guys as tall as trees in amazing purple/gold uniforms and fell head-over-heels in love with the game that night. I used to get into fights at school. If someone said something about the Lakers, it was almost like those guys were my friends and I had to do something about it.

Just don't feel the same anymore. Everything changed with free agency.

Became a Lakers fan in 1970 when I was 8. My 2 aunts had season tickets to the Suns and when we would visit them during basketball season, they'd always take me to a game or 2.

The idea was that I'd become a Suns fan. Well, the first game they took me to was vs. the Lakers. I got hooked on the Lakers and never looked back. I was very upset when the Bucks ended the 33 game win streak in 1972 and hated Kareem for it until he became a Laker.

Even begged out of a family outing in 1972 so that I could stay home and watch the Lakers clinch the title vs. the Knicks.

 

[trojanfan12]

Didn't see that. Funny stuff...

Missed that one too. Anytime I can see Magic and Bird being interviewed together, I try not to miss it. They have some awesome stories and you can tell that they genuinely like and admire each other.