Tag: Dominique Wilkins

It is still the dunk contest by which …

It is still the dunk contest by which all other dunk contests are measured: Two stars, at the peak of their powers, the players who finished first and second in that season’s scoring standings, going head-to-head to decide a winner. Jordan left the old Chicago Stadium that night with the trophy. To this day, many believe Wilkins was the rightful winner. Either way, it was a never-to-be-forgotten show — and now, for the first time since that night 32 years ago, the dunk contest is returning to Chicago on Saturday night. “I did have a homecourt advantage, yes,” Jordan said this week in an interview with The Associated Press. “The fans got their money’s worth,” Wilkins said in a separate interview with AP.

“It’s a little bit different today. And …

“It’s a little bit different today. And it’s probably much harder today because how many times can you do the same dunks over and over again?” Jordan said. “So, they are trying to create things that people haven’t seen and that means jumping over people and cars and stuff like that. We didn’t have to do that because we didn’t have anything preceding us.”

To this day, Wilkins believes he should …

To this day, Wilkins believes he should have won. And to this day, he still tips his cap to what Jordan did that night. “We were foes and we had some great battles, but he understood the moment,” Wilkins said. “He understood what we did, you know? So, for us, there’s no hard feelings. There’s no animosity. We love the fact that they still talk about it because we knew what we brought.”

Atlanta legend Dominique Wilkins has high praise for Jaylen Brown

Boston Celtics East Player of the Week Jaylen Brown was on the receiving end of some high praise from Atlanta legend and ex-Celtic Dominique Wilkins Monday.

Georgia is Boston Celtics starting shooting guard Jaylen Brown’s home state.

It just so happens to be the home of Atlanta Hawks legend (and former Celtic) Dominique Wilkins as well.

So, it was not a minor deal when said Hawks legend sought out the Marietta native to laud Brown’s growth as a player while both were in town for Boston’s 123-115 win over Atlanta Monday.

Wilkins, who carved out a Hall of Fame career over a dozen years with the Hawks before a short stint with the Celtics in the mid-1990s, had praise for the Cal-Berkeley product’s development and poise.

The fourth-year guard is putting up career-high numbers this season that, in retrospect, probably warranted an All-Star reserve nod.

Logging 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 37.8 % from deep and 56.5 % overall, Brown garnered Player of the Week in the East for the second time this week despite the All-Star snub.

“You’re representing home well,” noted the Atlanta legend (via the Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett), to which a potential future local luminary responded simply “I’m trying to”.

And Brown has been doing more than trying — he has been a key driver of the Celtics’ unanticipated levels of success this season, keeping the team in the contention hunt despite losing two top-50 players over the summer as part of a four-man hydra that has made Boston almost impossible to guard.

“You there, brother,” added Wilkins. “Don’t even worry about that.”

Wilkins, as a matter of fact, is also a buyer on Brown as an All-Star, and is pleased with how the Georgian guard has blossomed into a elite player.

“I’ve know this guy since he was a kid. I saw guys like Lou Williams and Derrick Favors and Jaylen grow up. I knew them as kids. I remember how big he was for a guy his age — and he was physical. He had size and he was athletic. He was big for his age.”

What Wilkins likes even more about the former Golden Bear is his consummate professionalism in the throes of the chaos of last season, which saw Brown forced to take a step back after carrying his team to the brink of the NBA Finals to a bench role.

“He’s acted like a consummate professional … There were times when he heard different things, like was he going to get traded or not, and he hung in there and he grew as a basketball player. He grew as a person. He’s always shown respect, and I love guys like that.”

Brown has grown immensely as a player in the last two seasons, both in skill and how he’s navigated complicated situations.

He arrived in Boston an uber-athletic, intellectual kid — but in a few short years has learned to direct his physical and intellectual gifts with precision and not just intensity.

It’s that fine-tuning that has made the Georgian such a potent on-court force.

It’s also the driving force behind Brown’s off-court achievements that has helped him use his platforms in ways which extend far beyond basketball.

The 23-year-old carries the mantle of budding star well in a league known for chewing up and spitting out prospects who take their opportunities for granted, not only excelling as a player but as a person, representing himself, the league, and the communities he’s called home quite well.

Take it from ‘Nique, if not us.

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Bird’s 60 points that day in March of …

Bird’s 60 points that day in March of 1985 remain the Celtics’ franchise record. He managed it on a mesmerizing array of shots. He knocked down one long jumper while twisting to his left, almost behind the backboard, with a defender in his chest. He hit a floater from just inside the free-throw line that threatened to scrape the ceiling before falling gently through the net. He nailed a fadeaway over Dominique Wilkins even though Wilkins had guessed exactly what he would do. “That was a magnificent display,” says Rick Carlisle, a guard on that Celtics team. “We didn’t have the internet or Instagram or Twitter where some of these shots could go out in the universe in real time. Otherwise, the legend of Larry Bird would even be bigger than what it is now.”

Hall of Famer offers Kevin Durant advice regarding comeback

It turns out NBA legend Dominique Wilkins is a fan of Brooklyn Nets superstar forward Kevin Durant.

In a few days, Brooklyn Nets fans will be able to say, “Kevin Durant is expected to be back this year.” Though that doesn’t mean the superstar forward will be able to play in the 2019-20 season. The calendar is turning over, and the franchise has expressed Durant isn’t expected to return this season, but he should be able to suit up for the Nets in the latter half of 2020.

But quite a bit of time has to pass before Durant is back on the floor and making his Nets debut.

When he does come back, a certain Hall of Fame small forward has some advice for the superstar.

Via Mike Mazzeo of Yahoo Sports, Atlanta Hawks legend Dominique Wilkins told Durant, “Don’t listen to your critics.”

The reason Wilkins is offering advice to Durant is he had to bounce back from a torn Achilles, too. So he’s heard everything Durant will when he officially starts his Nets career:

I heard all those negative things. And I used it as fuel to prove [my critics] wrong. So that’s what he has to do. Because you’re going to have your doubters. You’re going to have your naysayers. You’re going to have all these people that have an opinion of what you’re going to be like when you come back.

Wilkins continued:

They’re going to be quick to say, ‘Well, the guy can shoot the ball and he’s talented, but what about the explosion?’ You get people saying stuff like that. So again, it comes down to, ‘How do you prove people wrong?’ You go out there, believe in yourself and work hard to get back to that star level. And I think everything else will take care of itself.

Wilkins also told Mazzeo the forward’s worst days will come at the beginning as he works to overcome the mental scars from the injury. But the Hall of Famer believes Durant will power through that, like he did himself:

We’ve talked a little bit. Not much. But I’m always willing to give any type of insight or advice on that injury. It’s a time-consuming injury, but if you put in the work you can get back from it.

Warriors on pace for worst drop in winning percentage in NBA history

After their first twelve games of the 2019-20 season, the once-mighty Golden State Warriors currently have the worst record in the league.

After their first 12 games of the 2019-20 season, the once-mighty Golden State Warriors currently have the worst record in the league.

Their roster has been absolutely decimated, mostly due to injuries to their two franchise cornerstones Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. But their wild offseason also included the departures of two former NBA Finals MVP in both Kevin Durant and Andre Iguodala. Golden State hardly resembles the team that won the Western Conference five years in a row.

While the offense has struggled without these players, it has been especially bad on the other end of the court. Their defensive rating (117.2) ranks as the worst in the league. Overall, their winning percentage (.167) is a far cry from their mark in 2018-19 (.695).

According to our research, that would be the largest year-over-year negative difference in NBA history. This pace would be worse than the Cleveland Cavaliers after they first lost LeBron James in 2010-11 and the Chicago Bulls after Michael Jordan retired for the second time.

The good news is their eerie similarities thus far to the San Antonio Spurs in 1996-97. Much like the Warriors who added an All-Star (D’Angelo Russell) in the offseason and have started 2-10, the Spurs signed a former All-Star in Dominique Wilkins before the season began and started 2-13. San Antonio received just six games from David Robinson due to an injury while Golden State lost Curry after only four appearances.

The Spurs finished the season 20-62 and ended up with a lottery pick that was used to draft Tim Duncan. Once he returned from injury and played alongside Duncan, they went on to win two titles together following their rough speed bump in 1997. If Golden State gets a high lottery pick to add alongside Curry and Thompson, perhaps a similar fate is coming to the Bay Area.

For context: This is not the first time that the Warriors have experienced an incredibly poor change in their year-over-year performance. They made the NBA Finals in 1964 behind 36.9 points per game from Wilt Chamberlain, who was traded the following season. Later the year, the team then finished with the worst record in the league.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

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