DR. J’S ERA OF BASKETBALL…. OR LEBRON’S ERA OF HOOPS….WHICH IS BETTER?
:10—You know, out of respect for some of “You People,” I’ve been tapdancing around some hardcore issues so as not to step on your “wish you were taller…wish you were a baller” attitude. So now, little Johnny, it’s time we sit down and have some ol’ school, grown up, man to wanna be a man, didn’t I tell you once conversation! (Sorry about that, I had a flashback to my pop’s talking to me…)
:09—First of all, please stop with this new age so-called NBA basketball…and for goodness sake, can you please start calling the European step-through move, traveling, because that’s exactly what it is! If there’s anybody out there 40 years old or younger who thinks today’s game is better than the ’70s and ’80s, it’s only because you just weren’t there! I know this is hard for you to accept, but trust me, you have never seen and you will never see in your life the likes of Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 points in a single game; Bill Russell’s 11 NBA rings with one team; Oscar Robertson averaging a triple-double for a season when men were men and you could actually touch a player; Julius “Dr. J” Erving, who quite simply changed the way the world looked at basketball; “Pistol Pete” Maravich, the only man in NCAA history to average 45 points a game at LSU, an SEC major Division 1 conference; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the single greatest player of all-time in high school, college and the pros; Connie Hawkins, the man Kareem said is the greatest player he’s ever seen; Michael “Air” Jordan, this one doesn’t need clarification, even you youngsters know that; Earvin “Magic” Johnson, listen people, these nicknames are given to players for a reason…he’s only the greatest point guard the world will ever know; Kobe “Black Mamba” Bryant, c’mon man, you already know. Then you just start running names —Isaiah Thomas, Karl Malone, Dennis Rodman, Willis Reed, Shaquille O’Neal, Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, James Worthy, Hakeem Olajuwon, Jerry “The Logo” West, Elgin Baylor, Scottie Pippen, Reggie Miller, Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, Walt Frazier, Bill Walton. C’MON MAN, STOP ME PLEASE. I CAN DO ANOTHER 20 NAMES BEFORE I GET TO LEBRON AND STEPH CURRY!!! And here’s this. Back in the day they wouldn’t think of tanking a game! Hey Commissioner Silver, do you wanna know how to stop teams from tanking? If you tank, you’re out of the playoffs…period, end of story!
:08—I know, I know, the pushback’s coming about LeBron, Curry, Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo, but I am tellin’ ya, they would come up short back in the day. For example…Steph Curry, who I love, may score 50 in Detroit against the “Bad Boys” who include Bill “I don’t care about ya” Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn and Dennis Rodman on a Tuesday night, but I promise you, he’s not gonna get 50 on Thursday night!!!!!
:07—What is wrong with you people who want to knock college NIL (name, image and likeness)? The only problem with it is it came 20 years too late. College athletes making money for schools and not getting paid, while others make millions has been a crime since the beginning of time!
:06—OK, let me be real clear on this, so that even you good ol’ boys and girls still think it’s OK. You mean to tell me that out of 32 NFL teams, only three have Black head coaches, and given that 70 percent of NFL players are African American or non-White. You think that’s fair??? Man, please! The three current Black NFL head coaches are DeMeco Ryans of the Houston Texas, Todd Bowles of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Aaron Glenn of the New York Jets.
:05—Here’s this difference. The legendary boxing we watched with Ali, Holmes, Sugar Ray 1 and 2, Duran, Hearns, Hagler and Tyson, just to name a few, was truly the sweet science of hitting and not getting hit. What you’re watching today is glorified studio wrestling… pure brutality at it’s worst! There, I said it, but don’t tell those WWE guys I said it. I am not looking for that kind of trouble.
:04—Here’s what I’ll tell ya about baseball…Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Pete Rose, Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, Sandy Koufax, Randy Johnson, Nolan Ryan, Bob Gibson, Barry Bonds, Micky Mantle, Rickey Henderson, and Frank Robinson…just to name a few…enough said!
:03—Flag football, pickleball, soccer, the X Games…all sports people play when they can’t play football, basketball, baseball and tennis for real! Now you can run and tell that one, cause I ain’t scared of no pickleball player. (Oh shut up please, I said it, but you were thinking it…yes you were…yes…you were!)
:02—I’ll really prove this point in another direction. Who you gonna go see, The Temptations, Four Tops, Diana Ross, Earth Wind & Fire, AWB, Chicago, Luther, the Doobie Brothers, War, Stevie Wonder, Aretha, Smokey, Blue Magic or….Jay-Z, SZA, Chris Brown, Taylor Swift, Drake, Bad Bunny or The Weeknd??? There’s no question, it’s not even close! I know, I know, it hurts you to hear it…but the truth does hurt! (OK, OK I will go see Beyoncé and Sabrina Carpenter…as the late, great Richard Pryor said, I may be old, but I ain’t no fool! (Mudbone!)
:01—Hey, I gotta go, I can see the phone lighting up now, but ya’ll know the ’70s was the bomb and we blew the rest of it up in the ’80s!
:00—Lock this in, coming your way Saturday, May 30, 2026 at Penn Hills High School, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., the Connie Hawkins “Legends” Youth Basketball Camp. Free—Free —Free to 7th, 8th and 9th grade boys and girls. Featuring some of Western Pa.’s former all-time greatest players as coaches. Including Ron Carter, Jr.—VMI, L.A. Lakers; Ulice Payne—Marquette NCAA Champion; Shawn Hawkins—European Pro League; Ron Brown—Penn State All-American; Bobby Franklin—Point Park College (now Point Park University) all-time leader scorer; Jeff Baldwin—Duquesne University; Chris Seneca—Bucknell, all-time assist leader; Dr. Karen Hall—UNLV; Darrin Walls—Waynesburg University, Houston Rockets; Margo Hinton —IUP Hall of Fame; Tim Appleton—European Pro League; Carlita Jones—Clarion University Hall of Fame; and Darren Morningstar—Pitt, Dallas Mavericks, just to name a few. Including officiated games, skills and drills, camp T-shirt, camp cap, water bottle, lunch and more. Call Achieving Greatness’ office at 412-902-5761 to register. Keep in mind, space is limited to 100 players! Call ASAP. More details to come.
GAME OVER.
