Tag: Gail Goodrich

He brought a high-flying blend of …

He brought a high-flying blend of finesse and strength. He was a pioneer of spinning shots off the glass to finish at the rim and a savvy rebounder who players of his era compare to modern stars, Charles Barkley and Karl Malone. “If he’d get in trouble going to the basket in the air,” said Hall of Famer Gail Goodrich, “he would just throw it against the backboard before it came down, and then go get it and then put it up. That’s how smart he was.” Jerry West, Baylor’s close friend and teammate for that first decade in Los Angeles, put it best. “He was kind of a glimpse to the future,” West recently told The Athletic.

More than three decades later, some …

More than three decades later, some details of the classic slam dunk contest showdown between Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins are a bit fuzzy to Hall of Famer Gail Goodrich. One of five judges for the competition, the former Los Angeles Lakers’ great is, however, certain of a few things: His Airness soared to a slightly higher level than the Human Highlight Reel, there was no pressure to crown Jordan the slam dunk king on his home court and the judges were not in cahoots. “It was very, very close,” Goodrich said of the competition. “They both performed with excellence. I thought that Michael performed just a little bit ahead of Dominique. I cast my vote for Michael.”

TBS broadcasters Bob Neal, Rick Barry …

TBS broadcasters Bob Neal, Rick Barry and Steve Jones questioned the judging at the end, with a laughing Jones even half-joking: “Note was passed on to the judges.” Goodrich, however, insisted there was no thumb on the scale favouring Jordan, no pressure from the league. “No, absolutely none,” he said. “Nor did, as judges, we confer with one-another. Not at all.”