OK, so now that I am officially a blogger, I figured I would start out my blogging career here on kall700sports.com by giving you, the listener, a little insight into who I am as a person, and more specifically, what has happened over the years to help shape my sports opinions and passions…I have always been a sports junkie; quite frankly, from as early on as my mind will allow me to remember…I honestly believe that sports are in my DNA. I really enjoy what I do, and specifically enjoy interacting and engaging with our listeners; offering my opinions and hearing/reading yours. This is a dream job for me and I hope that you guys enjoy the show and find the content entertaining and informative in this space as you read my blog now and in the future.
Anyone who knows me or listens to the show knows this: it’s my opinion that basketball is the greatest game; the most exciting sport to watch, the most enjoyable sport to play, and the most interesting athletic pursuit to study. I’m sure much of this has to be attributed to my very earliest memories of the sport, watching the Lakers/Celtics do battle on CBS with the great Dick Stockton and Tommy Heinson on the call, and going to the old Salt Palace to watch my first hoop hero, John Stockton, run the Jazz like a Conductor leads an orchestra. Sure there were other players who I loved to watch play on those old Jazz teams: Thurl Bailey and his smooth running jump hook, Ricky Green and his unparalleled speed baseline to baseline (Hot Rod appropriately called him “the fastest of them all”) Darrel Griffith, his rainbow jump shots and his breathtaking breakaway dunks (before his knee injury derailed what was sure to be a perennial all-star type career and ripped his athleticism right out from under him) Adrian Dantley and his uncanny ability to find space in the post to either score or draw a foul, despite the fact he was 6-5 on a good day (still one of the best low post scorers the league has ever seen) Mark Eaton who was mostly an offensive liability (many times Frank would just tell him to stand in the corner on offense), but evolved into a world-class shot blocker and solid rebounder, and of course, John’s running mate for nearly 20 years, the Mailman, Karl Malone who worked harder at improving and refining his game than just about anyone who ever picked up a basketball. When he came into the league, his free throw shooting was…let’s just say an “adventure.” Nor could he knock down a jump shot to save his life. But due to his tireless work ethic, it was his ability to get to the line and convert, mixed with his reliable jumper that made him a viable all-star year after year, and allowed him to prolong his career once his athleticism began to dwindle.
Quick side story about Karl: I was six years old when the Jazz drafted him out of Louisiana Tech. One of my earliest basketball related memories was going with my dad to pick Karl up from the airport when he first flew into Salt Lake City. Karl rode shotgun in the truck (that was purchased as a welcome to Salt Lake City gift for him by the organization), as my dad drove while I rode in the back seat, amazed as a six year old at the size of the man sitting in the front passenger side. All I knew at the time was that a week earlier Frank Layden (who, by the way, is the single most important figure in the history of the Jazz franchise…I’ll blog about why at a later date) stood at the podium at the Salt Palace on draft night and announced to the fans who were eagerly anticipating the Jazz’s first round selection (13th overall) that “we’re taking a Mailman”. As a six year old, I’m sure you can imagine the images that ran through my head. Um…why would we draft a mailman? Why don’t we take a basketball player? I mean, do the players have other jobs outside of playing basketball? Is John Stockton a bank teller? Maybe Adrian Dantley is a school teacher? For all I knew, we had taken some guy who actually delivered the mail…and I wasn’t sure why. But then we picked up Karl and I realized that he wasn’t your typical mailman…and the pieces finally fit together…ah, the mind of a six year old.
Anyway, after we picked Karl up I listened intently in the back seat as he and my father basically began to negotiate Karl’s first contract with the Jazz. Honestly all I can really remember is that Karl wanted a four year deal and my dad was offering him a three year deal. If only such things were so basic…
That night we went to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus at the Salt Palace, where Karl was introduced to a standing ovation. I can remember the spotlight shinning in my eyes, as I sat on the Mailman’s lap throughout the show while we ate popcorn and cotton candy, watched the clowns and animals and had a great time, as I continued to wonder how a mailman could possibly be so big. When he was introduced, he set me down and stood to acknowledge the cheering crowd. I squinted, looked up to see a gigantic right hand waiving back and forth as the attending patrons went crazy for their new power forward. I now know how much hype surrounded Karl, as the Jazz had him ranked second on their draft board and were borderline suspicious when he fell to them at 13. As history now indicates, 12 teams, (with the lone possible exception of the New York Knicks who took Patrick Ewing at #1) would jump at the chance to take Karl in a heart beat if they could somehow go back in time…Wayman Tysdale, Benoit Benjamin, Joe Kleine, John Koncack, Kenny Green and Keith Lee are just a few of the names that were off the draft board before Karl.
Blinded by the spotlight, I quickly turned my head to hide my eyes, and bumped my mouth against the railing in front of me…suddenly, I felt a hole in my mouth and blood began dripping down my chin. I had lost my first tooth! Frantically, I began to search around as I looked up at my dad and Karl to inform them of the world changing event that had just transpired in my life. That stubborn old tooth had been loose for the better part of a month and it had FINALLY fell out. And wouldn’t you know it, it was this big, nice mailman who found it.
“Here ya go little buddy…don’t forget to put it under your pillow so the tooth fairy can leave you a quarter.”
“Wow…what a guy”, I thought to myself. “He takes me to the circus, lets me sit on his lap so I can see the show, eats popcorn and cotton candy with me, and on top of it all, he finds my tooth on the floor when I thought it might be lost forever. I think I just might like this mailman guy…I hope he’s good at basketball.”
And he was…and I have been a fan of his ever since that fateful day.
But nobody could ever match what John Stockton brought to the table for me as a young basketball fan. My dad put a basketball in my hand as early as I could remember. I was always one of the smaller guys on the court, so I was basically forced to play point guard. I remember being amazed at the way John controlled the game with his mind, and tried my best to pattern my own game after his. In backyard games with my little brothers, cousins and friends at our house in Salt Lake I was always wearing my Stockton jersey, and when I played Jr. Jazz I was #12 every year. He was my idol…I loved those Jazz teams in the mid to late 80’s.
There were others that I didn’t previously mention: John Drew and Carrey Scurry who were unbelievable talents but never became the players they could have due to off court issues, Rich Kelley, Billy Paultz, Kelly Tripuca, Kent Benson, Darrel Dawkins (I have a great Dawkins story that I will share at a later date) Jim Les, Jim Farmer, Bobby Hansen, Eric Leckner…I could go on for days…but I truly loved these teams and lived and died with every win and loss.
My heart was ripped out of my chest when I found out my family was re-locating to the east coast in 1990. I would miss my family and friends terribly, but I would also miss the Salt Palace, the Jazz Band, listening the Hot Rod call games, eating nachos during half time, trying to catch Jazz mini balls from our seats, but mostly, I was going to miss watching my hero, John Stockton run the offense and lead the Jazz with his gritty determination and unparalleled basketball I.Q.
When you grow up with a dad who is in professional sports, you learn to switch your team allegiance pretty quickly…it’s a double edge sword, but the silver lining for me as a sports fan regarding our move back east was I was about to discover a team and an organization that would change my life forever: The New York Knicks.
Now, I will always hold a special place in my heart for the Jazz…they were my first team and I learned the game by watching John, Karl and their surrounding cast play. I felt like I knew them personally and I’m sure I wouldn’t consider the game as sacred as I do today if it wasn’t for them, but the Knick teams throughout the 90’s will always and forever be the collective group of players who took me from being a basketball fan to an obsessed basketball lunatic.
When it comes to my love affair with the Knicks, it all starts with the Garden. We’ve all heard the greatest players in the game call it the “mecca of basketball” or the famous tag line of “the worlds most famous arena.” Well, I can tell you it’s all true beyond even a shadow of a doubt. As a spectator, there is nothing quite like watching a game or a concert at Madison Square Garden. I remember the first time I walked into the building…there is just something, different about it. It’s hard to put into words, but as I looked up to the rafters and saw names like Frazier, Reed, Bradley, Monroe, Barnett, DeBusschere and King, as well as the NBA title banners from 1970 and 1973, I knew I was in a place that had hosted some great teams and historical basketball moments. I mean, who hasn’t seen the footage of Willis Reed limping out of the locker room for game seven of the 1970 finals against the Lakers? (more on this at a later date)
What I didn’t know at the time was that over the next decade, I would witness in person some of the greatest moments the Garden had ever hosted, courtesy of Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, John Starks, Anthony Mason, Mark Jackosn, Charles Smith, Derek Harper, Doc Rivers, Allan Houston, Latrell Spreewell, Larry Johnson and Marcus Camby, just to name a few…not to mention Pat Riley and Jeff Van Gundy, the two head coaches that brought my beloved Knicks to the brink of an NBA title, only to fall to the Houston Rockets in 1994 in 7 games when Starks suddenly lost his usually reliable jump shot in game seven, while Riley refused to play veteran swingman Rolando Blackman, even for a few minutes, and in 1999 to the San Antonio Spurs in 5 games, with a bruised and battered Patrick Ewing forced to watch from the bench as nothing more than a glorified spectator. I lived and died with those Knick teams.
The amazing moments were many, so I will be brief for now and perhaps in future posts delve into a few in greater detail, but here’s a quick hit list, in no particular order:
-Beating the Pistons in the playoffs, then stretching Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls to seven games in the 1992 Eastern Conference semis behind Ewing and Starks, who, in his prime, played Jordan tougher than anyone in the league, with the possible exception of the great Joe Dumars.
-Winning 60 games in ‘93, after trading Mark Jackson to the Clips for Doc Rivers and Charles Smith, advancing the the Eastern Conference Finals before once again, falling to “His Airness” and the Bulls, this time in six games, after Charles Smith blew four layups at the Garden in game five (one of the worst nights of my sports life, and no, he wasn’t fouled, he was just soft).
-Making it to the finals in 1994, thanks in large part to a certain Chicgo Bulll hanging up his sneakers in exchange for a pair of cleats, a suspect foul on a Hubert Davis three against the Bulls in the Eastern Conference Semis, and huge wins in games six and seven against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, despite Reggie Miller’s incredible game 5 performance, that included 25 points in the fourth quarter alone and a memorable back and forth with Super Knick Fan, Spike Lee…little did we know at the time, Reggie’s finest Garden moment, much to the chagrin of Knick fans, was yet to come (more on this later). The Knicks played an NBA record 25 post season games (a record broken by last season’s NBA champion Boston Celtics) before eventually losing to the Rockets in seven games in a grind-it-out, low scoring defensive series that killed NBA ratings, but kept us Knick fans on the edge of our seats. The man who replaced John Stockton as my next hoop hero, John Starks, was an all star in ‘94 and if it wasn’t for him, the Knicks don’t even sniff the Finals, but his 2-18 shooting in game seven will always stand out in the minds of Knick fans when they think of John…which is sad because he provided so many memorable moments that are often overlooked, one of which can be found here. And again, why Pat Riley kept both Rolando Blackman and Hubert Davis on the bench when John was so clearly struggling baffles me to this very day.
-The ‘95 playoffs where, after easily defeating the Cavs in the first round, Reggie fired the shot (or shots) heard round the world when he scored eight points in 10 seconds in game one at the Garden. This was one of those situations where you wake up the next morning still wondering to yourself, “what the hell just happened?” The Knicks recovered to stretch the series to 7 games, and in a hard fought battle at the Garden, it was a missed Patrick Ewing finger roll that did the Knicks in, allowing the Pacers to advance.
-Pat Riley showed his true colors as a person the next week as he faxed in his resignation, leading to an investigation into his hiring by the Miami Heat and club owner Mickey Arison…it was clear that some sort of tampering was at play…but Riley’s resignation led to the eventual hiring of Jeff Van Gundy, the best coach in Knick history not named Red Holzman, so at the end of the day, it was basically “don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out Pat”. Riley’s defection down to Miami also sparked one of the great modern day NBA rivalries, as the Knicks and the Heat would do battle in the playoffs four times over the next five seasons, with the Knicks going 3-1 in those series.
-The only time the Knicks lost to the heat was Van Gundy’s first full season as head coach. The 1996-97 Knicks were actually the best Knick team in the 90’s, in my opinion. They played well all season long, hit the post season in full stride, and cruised to a 3-1 series lead over the Heat. But a brawl ensued at the end of game four in which PJ Brown pulled a Superfly Jimmy Snuka on Charlie Ward near the end of regulation. Several Knicks were suspended, including Patrick Ewing, John Starks, Larry Johnson, Allan Houston and Charlie Ward. Starks and Johnson for game seven, Ewing and Houston for game six, while Ward was suspended for both. Without the complete team on the floor, the Heat came back and won the series in seven games…the rivalry that would continue for the rest of the decade was born, and bitter Knick fans such as myself always point to that season as the one that got away.
-The 1997-98 season was tough, as Ewing went down early with a wrist injury that would sideline him for the majority of the season, but he did come back in time to help the Knicks defeat the hated Heat in the first round, before Reggie would once again lead his Pacers to a second round victory over the Knicks.
-1998-99 would prove to be one of, if not the most memorable post season runs in modern day Knick history. I was devastated at the news when I heard that the Knicks had shipped John Starks to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Latrell Spreewell, who at the time was most famous (or infamous) for chocking P.J. Carlisemo during a Warriors practice. While I’ll always remember John as a Knick and continue to remember his passion for the game and the energy he brought to the table night in and night out (I wore #3 in High School because of him) it didn’t take long for me to become a fan of Spree. In his first game at the Garden, he erupted for 25 points including three breakaway dunks in which he attacked the rim with down right bad intentions. (side note: people think Allan Iverson was the first NBA player to sport the corn rows, but it was actually Spree when he came to New York…I’m just sayin) The team also traded Charles Oakley to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for Marcus Camby, another transaction that was tough to swallow as Oak had given so much to the franchise. But Camby (when healthy) was dominant, especially in the post season, that included two of my favorite memories as a Knick fan: Allan Houston’s last second shot to beat the Heat in the first round and Larry Johnson’s 4-point play in game three of the Pacers series. The 1999 Knicks became the first 8 seed in NBA history to advance to the NBA finals by dispatching the Heat, Hawks and Pacers, in that order, before falling to Tim Duncan, David Robinson and the San Antonio Spurs in five games, despite 35 points from Spree in game five. Patrick was hurt and missed the majority of the post season, and his absence was felt more against the Twin Towers of San Antonio than in any of the previous three series.
-The 2000 Knicks season would prove to be the final year we would see Patrick Ewing don a Knick uniform (I still can’t picture him as a Sonic or a member of the Orlando Magic…it just doesn’t seem right). The only memorable moment from this season was yet another post season victory over the Heat, the third consecutive season in which the Knicks sent the Heat home early…suck on that Pat.
-2001 would prove to be the final season my father was with the Garden, and the Knicks lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Toronto Raptors, featuring Vince Carter, and none other than our old friend Charles Oakley (not to mention former Knick Chris Childs) in what proved to be Van Gundy’s final year at the helm as well, as he would resign early on in the 2001 campaign.
It was a heck of a ride, and as you can see, left many lasting memories for me as a young sports fan learning this game at the highest level. It was also a decade of much success for the Knicks, including many runs deep into the playoffs, but not titles to show for it, thanks to that guy named Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon and Reggie Miller…oh, and the NBA, for suspending half our team in 1997…sense the bitterness yet? Yeah, it’s there…even a decade later. But that’s the great thing about sports, when a team captures your imagination, you relive every moment over and over, both the good and the bad. It’s the hope of something special that keeps us hanging on during the times when even the very thought of hope itself seems unreasonable.
Our move back east also allowed me the chance to finally find a MLB and NFL team within an hour’s drive from our home. Starting in 1992, my family had access to Yankee season tickets, and we would also frequent Giants Stadium to see the Giants and the Jets play from time to time. I fell in love with the Yanks right away, even though they struggled to find success when we first started going to games. My earliest Yankee memories comprise of watching players like Danny Tartabull, Roberto Kelly, Randy Velarde, Bob Wickman, Charlie Hayes and of course, the great Don Mattingly struggle to a 76 win season and finish fifth in the AL East (silver lining…the Red Sox finished last)…but this was also the year the Yanks drafted a guy named Derek Jeter in the first round of the MLB draft, so the turnaround was about to begin…over the next decade the Yanks would change managers, hiring the great Joe Torre to replace the loveabale but unsuccessful Buck Showalter, while bringing in guys like Bernie Williams, Paul O’Niel, Andy Pettitie, Jorge Posada, John Wetland, Mariano Rivera and even Wade Boggs to surround Jeter. In Torre’s 11 years as Manager, the Yankees would win four World Series titles, six AL Pennants and qualify for post season play every single season…I was sad to see him go out west to manage the Dodgers last season, but that, perhaps, is another topic for another day.
The only source of family contention and disagreement when it comes to our pro sports teams is with the NFL. My brother Andrew and I are Jets fans, while my dad and brothers Ben and Nate cheer for the Giants. There really is no explanation for this; I would say that growing up we saw both teams play about the same number of times, but I never found anyone on the Giants likable. Tiki Barber, Michael Strahan, Eli Manning…they all came off as a bunch of soft whinny babies to me. The Jets were the lovable losers and always played second fiddle to the Giants (when your home stadium is named “Giants Stadium”, it’s safe to say you’re second choice). So, to use a phrase that has become popular on the Bill and Spence show, “for whatever reason”, I decided to cheer for the Jets. I am optimistic about Mark Sanchez and like most everyone else who cheers for good old gang green, I say good riddance to Brett Favre.
The Garden also provided a platform for me to learn to enjoy one of the greatest spectator sports known to man: hockey. The NHL is full of class guys who are some of the most underrated athletes on the planet…lets not forget the simple fact that they do what they do WHILE ON FREAKING ICE SKATES! It’s a tough sport to follow on television unless you’re a die hard fan, but if you ever have the chance, check out an NHL game live; I’m convinced you’ll be instantly converted.
For obvious reasons, I was a New York Ranger fan and was fortunate enough to see them win the Stanley Cup in 1994, the first time the Rangers had hoisted the cup in 54 years. Guys like Mark Messier, Brian Leetch and Mike Richter became good family friends and represented the Ranger organization and the sport of hockey very well. These days I am an avid St. Louis Blues fan, as SCP Worldwide now owns the Big Blue Machine…side note: St. Louis is one of the most underrated hockey towns in North America…once again, a different topic for a different day.
Finally, there’s soccer…when my dad told me he was looking at buying an MLS franchise, it was all I could do to not laugh in his face. It’s not that I didn’t like soccer…I HATED it…but I have to say that after five years of learning this game, it really has grown on me. In this blog space you can expect to see plenty of RSL and soccer related content, which five years ago would have been laughable to even consider. But soccer really is a great game and Rio Tinto Stadium is a beautiful facility that provides a wonderful atmosphere and backdrop for a soccer match or a concert…I really have enjoyed the events we’ve housed their thus far and eagerly look forward to what the future holds, for both the stadium and RSL. Following and working with this franchise has been an experience I’ll never forget, for both good and bad reasons, but I think all of the people who have put in so much work since day one are finally starting to see a well deserved payoff.
So there you have it…sorry if I got a little sidetracked. I have hundreds of stories and experiences as a result of my upbringing in pro sports and my own career in and around the world of competitive athletics that I’m excited to share with all of you. I really have passion for most every sport, and I eagerly look forward to sharing many of these stories with the listeners over the coming months and years, both on air and in this blog space.
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog; I’ll try to consolidate a bit next time, but I wanted to give you all an idea of the teams, players, coaches and memories that have shaped my views and help formulate my opinions, as I have developed a passion for all things sports, since I was just a pup.
Until next time.
Spence
Questions? Comments? I welcome all feedback at spencer@kall700sports.com
