THE GOLDEN AGE OF BASKETBALL: Recent Episodes
THE GOLDEN AGE OF BASKETBALL
STEVEN ROSEBORO, FORMER NBA PHOTOGRAPHER, AUTHOR AND BASKETBALL FANATIC TALKS ALL THINGS NBA FROM A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE.
The 1985 NBA Championship Series found the Los Angeles Lakers in a familiar positon; tied two games apiece with the Boston Celtics after 4 games, a carbon copy of 1984’s classic 7 game matchup. Dennis Johnson’s Buzzer-Beater to win Game 4 brought ugly flashbacks of the Laker’s Game 4 loss just 12 months earlier which pulled defeat from the jaws of a series victory. There was also the stench of the “Boston Massacre”, a 43-point annihilation of the Purple and Gold in game one that dredged up the Ghosts of Celtics Past which hovered over the Laker Franchise for two decades. However, the NBA’s new 2-3-2 Home Game Format gave Kareem, Magic, Worthy and company the pivotal game 5 in the friendly confines of the Fabulous Forum vs the sweltering heat, maniacal fans and hidden leprechauns of the Boston Garden. All that was left was to seal the deal. Steve relives Games Five and Six of the Finals rematch that defined the Golden Age of the Eighties, joined Magic and Bird at the Hip forever, certified Kareem as a living Legend and jump-started the explosion of the NBA into a Global Sports Power.
The 1984-85 season began with Magic Johnson and the Los Angeles Lakers looking up at Larry Bird, MVP of the World Champion Boston Celtics; Bird had dominated the 1984 NBA Finals and willed the Celtics to a comeback victory in 7 games (Boston’s 8th consecutive win over the Lakers in a Championship series), while Magic bore the brunt of his “tragic” performance. Johnson and Coach Pat Riley used the overwhelming negative criticism of Johnson and the Lakers as fuel which propelled Los Angeles back to Boston Garden for a Bird-Magic rematch in the 1985 Finals, but the oldest player on the court would ultimately shine brightest. 35 year old Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would turn back the clock and lead the Lakers back from a demoralizing 34 point loss in game one to the NBA Title in six games, the Lakers becoming the first team to eliminate Boston in a Championship series on their home floor. Abdul-Jabbar’s brilliant performance was rewarded with his second Finals MVP award, a remarkable 14 seasons after his first with the 1971 World Champion Milwaukee Bucks. Steve relieves the 1984-85 regular season and Games 1-4 of a Classic NBA Finals Rematch.
The Summer of 1984 was an eventful 3 months for new Commissioner David Stern and the NBA; on the heels of an epic 7-game Finals slugfest between Larry Bird’s World Champion Boston Celtics and Magic Johnson’s Los Angeles Lakers, the first of 3 heavyweight bouts in the Decade, the NBA Draft was held in New York City; the Draft would introduce fans to 4 future Hall of Famers who would each write their own chapter in the NBA’s History Books. There was Forward Charles Barkley of Auburn, the rowdy, raucous “Round Mound of Rebound”, his polar opposite, little-known Guard John Stockton of Gonzaga, the majestic Nigerian Center and Number One pick Akeem “The Dream” Olajuwon from the University of Houston, and the electric (Cue Chicago Bulls Public Address Announcer …”6 foot 6 Guard from North KAR-O-LINA!”)…Michael Jeffrey Jordan. These next-level players would secure the NBA’s rapidly growing stature as the Sport of the Future, with Bird and Magic now at the peak of their powers. Jordan, Georgetown Center Patrick Ewing and 10 of College Basketball’s best would represent USA Basketball in the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, led by iconic and infamous Coach Bobby Knight of Indiana University. Knight, known lovingly as a “Raving Maniac” by his players brought his no-nonsense, drill-sergeant mentality to the USA program and molded yet another Gold Medal Winner. The agony and ecstacy of the Draft process, with its Franchise-changing consequences were never more evident than the summer of ’84.
The table had been set over the past 5 seasons and now the main course had finally arrived; Larry Bird would meet Magic Johnson for the NBA's biggest prize, the first of a Championship Series Trilogy that would change NBA History. The storied rivalry between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers would add an unforgettable chapter in this seven game classic, a passionately fought battle up until the last seconds of the final game. The NBA's Most Valuable player in 1984, Bird would draw first blood with a magnificent performance while Magic suffered the slings and arrows of defeat, a burden he would shoulder until the sequel, The Revenge of the Lakers in 1985.
In Part Two of this series, Steve relieves the 1984 Season and NBA Playoffs featuring a round one Classic between scoring machine Bernard King's New York Knicks and "Pocket Magic", Detroit Guard Isiah Thomas, who took turns electrifying their fans with spectacular play after play. King would move on to face 1984 MVP Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics in another memorable 7 Game slugfest. Magic and the Lakers would win the West, challenged in the Conference Final by Walter Davis and his upstart Phoenix Suns...Bird and Magic would move on to the Finals, and Boston would meet Los Angeles in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1969.
In the first of a series, Steve takes us back to the Tipping Point of modern NBA History, the 1984-85 Finals Classics between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, where Larry Bird and Magic Johnson would finally meet with the World Championship on the Line. This episode sets the table for what would become the gold standard for competition in the NBA. The subplots were just as compelling,as the League was stocked with stars such as Bernard King, Isiah Thomas, Mark Aguirre, The Doctor, Moses, Walter Davis, Sidney Moncrief, and their newest Star, Houston Center Ralph Sampson. We would see the legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ascend to the throne of the NBA's alltime scoring leader, surpassing former rival and Laker Legend Wilt Chamberlain. Behind the scenes a new force would take the reins of the league and begin to mold its future...Commissioner David Stern. But the Basketball world would finally get what it was waiting for, the winner-take-all matchup between the irresistible object and the immovable force...Bird vs. Magic.
Once again NBA Finals Bridesmaids in 1982, The Philadelphia 76ers roll the dice on Free Agent MVP Moses Malone and never look back. Malone, now teamed with the incomparable Julius "Dr. J" Erving, Guards Maurice Cheeks and Andrew Toney and Forward Bobby Jones toyed with the competition to the tune of 65 regular season wins, then set an NBA playoff record winning 12 of 13 games. The Finals sweep of Magic, Kareem and the Lakers was the exclamation point on the Doctor's crowning achievement as a professional. Steve gets a golden opportunity to grow as an NBA Photographer, and discovers the international media market.
Steve continues his review of the 1981-1982 Season with the Eastern Conference Finals, the third meeting in 3 years between Larry Bird's Boston Celtics and Julius Erving's Philadelphia 76ers. Dr. J would prevail in a grueling seven game series only to face Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the newest Lakers, much-maligned Forward Bob McAdoo and rookie Coach Pat Riley for the World Championship.
The Lakers regain supremacy of the NBA in 1981-82, but not without drama worthy of Daytime Soap Opera. The honeynoon is over for Magic Johnson as he suffers his first taste of negative publicity, when fresh off of his record 25 million dollar Contract extension, his negative comments lead to the abrupt firing of Coach Paul Westhead and the promotion of Assistant Coach Pat Riley. Riley takes the challenge, and with the mid-season addition of Forward/Center Bob McAdoo, Los Angeles returns to Championship form. In the East, Larry Bird and Julius Erving lead their teams to their third consecutive Eastern Conference showdown, another 7 game classic. Magic and Kareem would once again stand between Dr. J and his elusive NBA Title.
Steve Reviews the NBA in 1981...Larry Bird wins First NBA Title (Technical difficulties with (9PM Show!)
In Part 3, Steve Recaps the 1980 NBA Regular season and Playoffs, featuring the classic 1980 NBA Championship Series as Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the Los Angeles Lakers take on the magnificent Julius "Dr. J" Erving and his Philadelphia 76ers.
Part Two of Steve's recap of the 1979-1980 NBA season, a dawning of a new era that introduced Magic Johnson and Larry Bird to the professional ranks, and showcased the duel between Julius "Dr. J" Erving and regular season MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the unforgettable 1980 NBA Championship Series.
In this week's episode, Steve will talk about his first trip to the Basketball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Springfield, Mass. Sept 8, which featured Bernard King and Gary Payton,which brings up the question "What is the Criteria for a Hall of Fame Selection?.". He also will reflect on the death of of 1973 Knick Guard Dean "the Dream" Meminger, a vital contributor to the Knick's last Championship Team.
Relive a dynamite decade of the NBA with Certified Basketball Fanatic and former NBA Photographer Steven A. Roseboro, author of The Golden Age of Basketball: The NBA in the Decade of the Eighties. Steve talks all things NBA from a historical perspective as he takes you back to the days of Magic, Bird, Kareem, the Doctor, Isiah and Jordan, the Early Years. Its all about Hoops, past, present and future!.