Tag: Dominique Wilkins

Celtics alum Dominique Wilkins on the racism that made him leave North Carolina

Two particularly racist incidents stuck out to him: a cross burning and an unjust accusation of theft.

Boston Celtics alum Dominique Wilkins recently spoke about the racism he experienced in North Carolina that led him to leave and avoid returning for 30 years in an interview with the “Vlad TV” podcast. Two particularly racist incidents stuck out to him: a cross burning and an unjust accusation of theft.

Wilkins shared a story about being falsely accused of stealing a tape outside a department store. Despite having a significant amount of money on him, he was targeted due to his decision to leave North Carolina to play collegiately at Georgia. Luckily, his cousin, a police officer, intervened and decided to take Wilkins and his family out of town to Atlanta that night, sparing them potential harm. This marked the beginning of his 30-year absence from North Carolina, only returning when his statue was unveiled.

To hear his account of what caused him to stay away from a place he called home for many years for the better part of his adult life, take a look at the clip embedded below.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Celtics alum Dominique Wilkins on growing up in Baltimore

‘Nique rose from humble beginnings to a top-75 player all time.

If you hear him tell it, Hall of Fame forward and Boston Celtics alum Dominique Wilkins began dunking at the tender age of 12, setting the stage for his remarkable career and nickname of “The Human Highlight Reel“.

Growing up in a tough neighborhood, basketball granted Wilkins a safe passage through the neighborhood’s gang dynamics. His growth spurt occurred during high school, where he shot up from 6-foot-3 to over 6-foot-8 in a year, fueling his potential as a high-level basketball prospect and setting the stage for his eventual success in the NBA. Later, after he had found that success, Wilkins’ proudest accomplishment was buying his mother a home.

To hear the tale of how ‘Nique rose from humble beginnings to a top-75 player all time, check out the link embedded below to catch an interview with the folks behind the Vlad TV YouTube channel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Former Celtic Dominique Wilkins on how friend’s death changed his life

The Human Highlight Reel recounted the accident where his friend slipped and was run over by a bus.

Dominique Wilkins, a Hall of Fame legend and former Boston Celtic, recently opened up about his traumatic experience of witnessing his friend’s death at 13, and how it affected him for years in an interview with YouTube’s “Vlad TV” podcast.

“The Human Highlight Reel” recounted the accident in which his friend slipped and was run over by a bus, leading to his death. He also talked about how, despite the distressing event, Dominique and his friends still engaged in bus hopping in his hometown of Baltimore, a risky but common mode of transportation in those days. Wilkins described the profound impact of losing his close friend, as they were like brothers and did everything together, in the exchange.

To hear more about this formative era of the Celtics star’s life, check out the clip embedded below.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Boston great Dominique Wilkins on growing up in the Baltimore projects

Long before Hall of Fame forward Dominique Wilkins would suit up for the Boston Celtics in the twilight years of his career in the NBA, The Human Highlight Reel was a preteen trying to stay out of trouble in Baltimore.

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Long before Hall of Fame forward Dominique Wilkins suited up for the Boston Celtics in the twilight years of his NBA career, “The Human Highlight Reel” was a preteen trying to stay out of trouble in Baltimore, Maryland when it had among the worst crime rates in the country.

Born overseas in France on a military base, he later moved to Baltimore to the projects of O’Donnell Heights and Westport. He started playing basketball at age 12. Wilkins was mentored by a local playground legend named Big Harold, who played a significant role in his development as a basketball player.

‘Nique sat down to talk to the folks behind the Vlad TV YouTube channel about his storied career in the league.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear what he had to say.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Dominique Wilkins pushes back vs. Dennis Rodman’s, JJ Redick’s criticisms of Larry Bird

“Larry Bird could play in any era and do the same thing he did in our era,” said ‘Nique.

Hall of Fame forward Dominique Wilkins, known for his battles with fellow Boston Celtics alum Larry Bird while he was still with the Atlanta Hawks, recently defended Bird against criticism from former NBAer Dennis Rodman. Despite the infamous trash-talking between Wilkins and Bird, they developed mutual respect over the years that the Human Highlight Reel still has to this day.

Wilkins confronted Rodman for his claim that Bird couldn’t excel in the modern NBA in a recent interview with Vlad TV via the Basketball Network’s Owen Crisafulli. “I have a lot of respect for Dennis, I know Dennis well, he’s a good dude, but that’s delusional,” said Wilkins.

“Larry Bird could play in any era and do the same thing he did in our era. It couldn’t handle him, today’s players could not handle him.”

Wilkins did not reserve his ire for The Worm alone, also addressing critiques from “Old Man and the 3” podcast host JJ Redick for suggesting the physicality of the modern game would be too much for Bird. “It’s a stupid comment because Larry Bird played in the most physical era ever,” he said.

“He’s 6’10, almost 6’11, and he was physical himself … it’s like, what league (are) you watching? Physicality is gone, it’s not like it was back then … that is the most idiotic thing I’ve ever heard.”

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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On this day: Wilkins, James sign; Wanamaker, Krstić, Olsen born

Former Celtics Dominique Wilkins and Mike James signed with Boston today, and Brad Wanamaker, Nenad Krstić and Bud Olsen were born today.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, Hall of Fame small forward Dominique Wilkins signed with the Celtics in free agency in 1994. The Human Highlight Film — as Wilkins had come to be called for his frequent, flashy dunks — went on to win a gold medal in the 1994 World Championship of Basketball with the so-called “Dream Team 2” before joining the team in the fall.

Wilkins would play but one season with the Celtics, putting up a very respectable 17.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game in his age-35 season, displaying an exceptionally rare high-level longevity.

After the season was over, Wilkins would head overseas to play for Greek club Panathinaikos, with whom he would win a EuroLeague championship.

On this day: Bird, Wilkins battle in ’88 ECF G7; Siegfried, Brown born

On this day in 1987, Boston’s Larry Bird went shot for shot with Atlanta’s Dominique Wilkins in that year’s Eastern Conference Finals.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, legendary Larry Bird went basket for basket with the Atlanta Hawks’ Dominique Wilkins in the final frame of Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Boston would somehow squeak out a 118-116 win despite the Human Highlight Film — as Wilkins was often called — scoring 47 points in the contest, while Bird logged 34, 20 of them coming in the fourth quarter. “The basket was like a well, I couldn’t miss,” recalled Wilkins via Uproxx. “He couldn’t miss. That’s the greatest game I’ve ever played in or seen played. It was two guys who just did not want to lose.”

The Celtics won the series against the Hawks to advance to the NBA Finals but would fall to longtime rivals the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.

On this day: Wilkins hits 25,000 career points; Corchiani born; Upshaw re-signed

On this day in Celtics history, Dominique Wilkins hit the 25,000-point plateau, Chris Corchiani was born and Kelvin Upshaw re-signed.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, then-future Hall of Fame big man Dominique Wilkins would move into eighth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. He did so after putting up 19 points, 7 rebounds, and an assist in a 126-115 win on the road against the Miami Heat, putting him at 25,207 overall points at the end of the contest.

While Wilkins was a short-timer with the Celtics — this being one of a mere 77 games played with the team in the 1994-95 season — he helped keep fans engaged in what was otherwise one of the toughest stretches of Boston’s history between the title runs of the 1980s and the arrival of Paul Pierce in 1998.

Even Wilkins couldn’t deal with the rebuilding Celtics for long though, skipping town to join Panathinaikos of the Greek League the following season.

On this day: Celtic Champ Andy Phillip born; Dominique Wilkins hits 25k points

On this day in Celtics history, Dominique Wilkins hit the 25,000-point plateau, and Boston Hall of Fame point guard Andy Phillip was born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Boston Celtics point guard Andrew Michael Phillip was born in Granite City, Illinois in 1922. Phillip played his college ball with the Illinois Fighting Illini on both sides of a tour in the U.S. Marine Corps at Iwo Jima during the Second World War, and then would be drafted by the (now defunct) Chicago Stags of the Basketball Association of America (BAA — a precursor league of the NBA) with the 31st pick of the 1947 BAA draft.

He would play with that team, the (then) Philadelphia Warriors (now, Golden State), and the (then) Fort Wayne Pistons (now, Detroit) before coming to the Celtics.

After Boston claimed him off of waivers from the Pistons, that is.

JJ Redick responds to Dominique Wilkins about his critique of Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird

Celtics alum Dominique Wilkins became the latest such elder stateman of the Association to challenge Redick’s characterization of the Hick From French Lick.

Whether by accident or design, former NBAer and current host of the “Old Man and the Three” podcast JJ Redick has found himself embroiled in debates about the quality of play by players from the earlier generations of the league.

After the kerfuffle caused by his words about Boston Celtics legend Bob Cousy, in which Redick was lambasted by a host of veterans, the former 76er waded into a new debate about Larry Bird’s shooting.

Former Celtic Dominique Wilkins became the latest such elder stateman of the Association to challenge Redick’s characterization of the Hick From French Lick, which the podcast host then prepared a video response we have embedded below for your benefit.

Take a look at the clip to hear for yourself what Redick has to say about Wilkins, Bird and NBA history.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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