ESPN & AP Snub: Dick Vitale Dunks Over Hakeem Olajuwan & Patrick Ewing
First things first: Congratulations to my man Patrick for bringing the sweat,blood, and guts EVERY night. The story of "the Ewing Era" is one of almost unparalled consistent greatness. Some have said that the Buffalo Bills four straight Super Bowls is one of sports greatest records. But just how great was the under-appreciated Ewing. How about the Knicks ADVANCED in the playoffs 9 out of 10 years during the 1990’s. Only a handful of greats can claim such consistent dominance over a decade (Russell, Magic, Bird, MJ, etc.). For reference purposes, Kevin Garnett has made it past the first round only once in his career. But Ewing would get no Ray Allens and Paul Pierce’s to save him… or a Pippen… or even a Rodman… …or McHale/Parish’s… or Worthy/Kareem… or a Stockton or a Kevin Johnson… like his other fellow championshipless colleagues received. Of course, history does not reward consistent greatness like it does championships. But the 2nd story of Ewing’s career was bad management. I could go on, but we’ll talk more Patrick in another column.
Congrats to Hakeem, Patrick’s only center superior in his era and the center with the best footwork and mobility of all-time. Congrats to Pat Riley who besides being a great coach is an authority on centers who played with Wilt Chamberlain and then coached Kareem, Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, and Shaquille O’neal. And a huge congratulations to the long overdue justice that has been eluding Adrian Dantley for so many years. Now if we can only get Hall of Fame voters educated on the truth that was Bernard King! But that too is for another column…
Last year’’s induction highlighted a broken NBA HOF system that does not value the actual people who play the game. Dantley’s absense was so glaring because not one single player made the cut — but 5 coaches and even a referee got inducted. It prompted this much needed criticism from John Hollinger who advocated a separate Hall of Fame that actually focused on players…and the NBA.
But look at the voting patterns in recent years — it’s not the Basketball Hall of Fame, folks, it’s the College Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame Plus a Few Other Guys. Over the past 10 years, the institution has inducted 25 coaches and nine contributors … but only 20 players. Wait, it gets worse. Of those 25 coaches, do you know how many got in for succeeding in the NBA — the game’s highest level? FOUR!!! Are you kidding me?This is like going to Cooperstown and seeing miles of plaques dedicated to the best AAA managers. …they’ve inducted only 14 NBA players in that decade … and 20 college coaches. .
..I’ve argued this for a long time, but it’s long overdue for the league to set up its own Hall of Fame and ditch any link to Springfield. Better yet, the collegians have helped out by taking the first step. In October, doors will open at the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, Missouri… ultimately, it seems like separation is the only way to resolve this thing. Springfield’s selections have become so absurd that they’re hardly worth taking seriously anymore (seriously … Mirko Novosel?), …But perhaps the best argument deals with history. In the big picture, I’ve long felt that the NBA cared less about its historical legacy than any other sport, and it’s high time they took better control of it. This would be one giant step in that direction.
Yesterday Jack McCallum of Sports Illustrated summed it up quite succinctly when he said: "No visitor goes up to the Hall of Fame to see a coach." Considering the love for coaches and college ones in particular, it is hard to disagree with Hollinger’s promotion of a new HOF. But until that happens, 2008 was to be a banner year for "the NBA player" that no fair and right-minded HOF voter or media member could ignore. With centers Hakeem and Patrick taking center stage in their first year of eligibility, perhaps, for just one year and one year only, some NBA historical order could be restored! Unfortunately, here was the article that the Associated Press disseminated throughout the country that is found at ESPN.
SAN ANTONIO – ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale, a man who had limited success as a coach but brought the game of basketball to millions of TV watchers, was selected to the game’s Hall of Fame on Monday alongside Pat Riley, one of the most successful NBA coaches of all time. Overcome with emotion, Vitale broke into tears during the announcement in San Antonio, site of the NCAA Men’s Final Four. "I can’t run, can’t jump, can’t shoot, but just have had a tremendous — I’d like to think — passion about the game," said Vitale, who had a short stint as an NBA coach in the late 1970s but made his name as a college basketball analyst.
Others in the Class of 2008 were Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing, two greats who battled on the court for years; player Adrian Dantley; coach Cathy Rush; and William Davidson, owner of the Detroit Pistons since 1974.
Over the decades, Vitale created his own lexicon with phrases such as "Get a T-O, baby," "You’re a P-T-Per," and "Awesome, baby." Monday, he said he "cried like a baby" upon learning of his selection and thanked Hall of Fame coach Bob Knight — now a fellow ESPN analyst — for spearheading a letter-writing campaign on his behalf. "When I saw those letters, whether I’d ever gotten in the Hall of Fame or not, that was going to be my hall of fame," said the 68-year-old who was forced off-air for two months after throat surgery.
No matter how strong their credentials, each member of the Class of 2008 seemed a bit star-struck. Riley, the third-winningest NBA coach ever, called his election "unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable." Riley won four NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers, then grabbed another one two years ago with Miami. He also has one championship as an assistant and another as a player. "Last night I lost my 64th game of the regular season," he said, referring to the Heat’s current struggles. "And the next day I’m in the Hall of Fame. I think there’s an integrity in the Hall of Fame that far surpasses whatever your record is, if you have a body of work." The new class, which Riley joked will be the best-promoted ever because of Vitale’s inclusion, will be inducted Sept. 5 in Springfield, Mass., home of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Olajuwon and Ewing both played in three Final Fours, with Ewing’s Georgetown team beating Olajuwon’s Houston squad for the 1984 national championship. "We both are warriors. We both want to excel. We both wanted to dominate, and when you play against the best you want to perform at your best" Ewing said. "So we both definitely looked at each other as the best. "Olajuwon got his revenge as a pro, leading the Houston Rockets to the first of two straight titles with a seven-game victory over Ewing’s New York Knicks in the 1994 NBA Finals — a team coached by Riley. "Growing up in Nigeria I didn’t really understand the magnitude of what it means to be a hall of famer," said Olajuwon, a 12-time All-Star. "I still cannot believe that I’m in the same company with all these great legends." Ewing, the Knicks’ all-time leader in points, rebounds, blocked shots, and steals, among other categories, remembered field trips to the Hall of Fame as a child and said he never imagined being a part of it. "And now I am," he said.
ARTICLE RECAP: 1) College basketball announcer (and ESPN employee) headlines the story. 2) Vitale also receives more print space than Olajuwon and Ewing COMBINED. 3) Pat Riley gets second billing before we get to those big guys. 4) Oh yeah, the article goes on to write a sentence or two on Adrian Dantley… and a couple of other inductees. 5) As Vitale might yell, "Are you kiddin’ me?"
How can this possibly happen? How can a man who admits that he "can’t run, can’t jump, can’t shoot" become the main story over two of the best big men ever that COULD run and jump and shoot? How could a man who coached the Detroit Pistons to 30 victories (Vitale) reduce another man who contended for a championsip with the Pistons to a footnote(Dantley)? How can ANY writer at Associated Press, ESPN, or any other place not get the priorities of this story correct? Why did an ESPN caption on the bottom of outside the lines read "Vitale and 7 others elected into the Hall of Fame"?
Finally, if Vitale’s headlining were some isolated incident, then we could chalk it up to ESPN shamelessly boosting one of its own. However, the AP author is not from ESPN and neither are many of the Hall of Fame voters. As Hollinger points out, this problem has been going on for a long long time. And it is time that a REAL conversation about this question:
"Why do so many Hall of Fame voters and sports writers undervalue the achievements of young black men who shoot a basketball over old white men who often teach, referee, and announce the shooting of that ball?"
Is it the Hall of Fame voters? Is it media members who disproportionately give accolades to coaches and others? Is it most fans who — consciously or subconsciously — would rather identify with Vitale’s "can’t run, can’t jump, can’t shoot" story and a media that know this fact providing customer service? Whatever the case, we simply need to stop making excuses and have an honest dialogue. Not just the usual no-nuance "is it racist" question? A discussion with more depth is needed. It’s time to talk… or else…
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Modi,
Great topics as usual.
College is part of the equation for players getting to the HOF, or Bill Walton(2-full seasons) would not be a member. When you look at Ewing’s work at Georgetown and his success in the NBA, then he was an obvious choice. Ewing played hard & had skills.
Akeem & the Dream Shake was like watching a ballet on the basketball court. The moves, the quickness, the skill, the tenacity, “Dream” was the truth and actually measured out at only 6:10.
Dantley great low-post skills, and scorer, but points were always a priority, as opposed to winning, in my opinion. Note*–Dantley was not a part of the Pistons championship team. He began the year w/ the club, but Isiah’s best trade was forcing the Pistons to trade Dantley for Acquire. Dantley hogged the ball.
Dickie V.–Never enjoyed his Scnick. I always thought that he was stealing Al McGuire’s material and style. McGuire was on NBC years before Vitale had a microphone. Whereas McGuire appeared natural and genuine, Vitale appeared scripted and forced. This lexicon that Vitale is being credited with creating was a rip-off from McGuire. McGuire introduced phrases such as “Air-Craft Carrier”(big-men), Diaper-Dandy(freshmen), and other material. Vitale
stole his schnick, material, and w/ ESPN help has hustled his way into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Passion appears to be the word for the year.
ESPN is so powerful that most have forgotten that Vitale washed out as a coach. ESPN power has RE-INVENTED the late Jim Valvano as a humanitarian, and made many forget that he was forced out at NC-State, for hustling and exploiting kids. Look for ESPN to exert its power by having Digger inducted into the Hall of Fame as a coach.
Peace & Blessings
April 8th, 2008 at 9:32 amAmen, MODI. My only quibble is most of the headlines I saw actually focused on Ewing and Olajuwon, not Vitale. That said, you couldn’t be more correct. There are dozens, not a handful, of worthy candidates who should be included before lesser lights like Vitale and Pistons owner Davidson are allowed in.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:32 amDitto on the Dantley ring thing in Detroit.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:04 pmMcGuire was a much better announcer than Vitale - and obviously a better coach. I don’t hate Dickie V but my best television basketball memories were of McGuire and Enberg doing games at Louisville, at DePaul, at St. John’s and Syracuse and so many other places where the greats of the game first emerged.
McGuire’s greatest gift was not his volume - in fact, he often whispered to make some of his strongest points. He was (like John Madden) the first announcer in his report that I could recall doing color commentating AND calling plays BEFORE they unfolded. To listen to him describe the HIGH-LOW offense that Louisville ran under Denny Crum was beautiful.
Vitale’s good but he’s not in that league - and the great thing about Vitale is that he KNOWS it.
“No shame to his game, he’s set to entertain…if it wasn’t for fame, skins would never know his name.” - Pete Rock and CL Smooth - from back in the day.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:10 pmMODI,
At this point, I can’t even waste energy getting mad at ESPN, they are what they are…
But two of the best centers in my lifetime are upstaged by a color announcer whose act wore thin five years ago? Are we so disrespectful of history that we can’t recall how great how great Hakeem and Patrick were? And what did Bill Davidson contribute besides a nice arena? And despite the fact that A.D. was an incredible ball hog, and despite Frank Layden’s determination to destroy his career when he was in Utah, good for him making it to the Hall.
But something needs to be done about the Hall. If baseball can have a separate wing for media, why can’t basketball?
April 8th, 2008 at 12:25 pmNope, you’re right, MODI. Vitale should’ve been an also-ran. I don’t know about AP, but ESPN usually has a wide spectrum of stories/angles on an event like this tho. One that focuses too much on an ESPN employee like Vitale is irksome, but if the rest of the stories/articles correct this crazy imbalance then…meh, it can slide.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:36 pmSTATESMAN,
If “Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.” is a part of Jimmy V’s legacy, then his pimping of Chris Washburn and Charles Shackleford should be a part as well.
T3,
The best CBB team was Dick Enberg, Al McGuire, and Billy Packer on NBC. Al loved the game, unlike Dickie V, he taught the game while he was working. Packer was the perfect foil, he was never as relaxed with anyone else. Keep in mind, back in 1984, he predicted that the USA’s days as the superpower in basketball were coming to an end. People called him an old fool, then 1988 happened.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:39 pmPacker’s always been a tight ass. He and McGuire had a testy relationship - no more so than Vitale and Packer. I’ve always considered Packer to be the “white-bread” guy who could never get enough of players like Gminski, Hurley, Laettner, Alford, etc.
Each of those players was exceptional - but only in recent years (to my mind) has Packer broken his grip in linking intelligence with white players and athleticism with black players. I believe he may not have completely cleared the hurdle but he is much better than he used to be.
I don’t recall getting that from McGuire - even though it’s been 2 decades almost 3.
April 8th, 2008 at 1:40 pmBtw - Des…you’re OLD!
April 8th, 2008 at 1:41 pmLOL
“ultimately, it seems like separation is the only way to resolve this thing.”
Ahhh - I’ve said that about so many things.
April 8th, 2008 at 1:44 pmT3,
I didn’t realize how old until I started remembering this info
April 8th, 2008 at 3:12 pmI love it that Dantley FINALLY got in the hall–four straight seasons of about 28ppg+ in scoring? Definitely about time.
Note the place stamp on the article; the article was written from the Final Four. The reporter was lazy and emphasized the guy who he had access to and who gave the best quotes (Vitale) rather than the true legends (Ewing/Olajuwon/Dantley).
April 8th, 2008 at 3:24 pmEwing is at the Final Four. No excuse. He was on the set of ESPN yesterday afternoon.
April 8th, 2008 at 4:06 pmRight on again, Modi. And T3 is right - Ewing was there at the Final Four yesterday… he would have been easy to get access to.
April 8th, 2008 at 8:03 pm– Thanks fellas
– Personally, I’d like if college and pros were separated HOF’s but if it has to be combined, I’ve got no problem with Vitale getting a spot considering how much he has promoted basketball. But Jesus…
– Statesman, I stand corrected on Dantley’s championship as I thought he was still there for the first one. Bad memory. I will make correction.
– About headlines: Yeah, most headlines rightfully began with Hakeem and Ewing. This particular headline had “Ewing, Hakeem, Vitale headline HOF class”… just sticking Vitale in the title is ridiculous. It should be Ewing & Hakeem only with Riley and Dantley rounding out 2nd tier — and then Vitale.
– Temple, I’m with you on Packer…
– Des, I’m with you all the way except the part about Vitale’s sctick wearing thin 5 years ago… at least 10 years! gotta admit though, i did love it when he first started…
– MC, if there is not something in a journalist that doesn’t click right away that Vitale is low on the list, then I’ve got to question the competence of that journalist. Since Vitale’s tears did make good copy, you still include it, but toward the end of the article after Ewing/Hakeem/Dantley/Riley. Perhaps you conclude with it for effect… but the Vitale lead is consistent with a long pattern of both HOF voters and media folk on HOF coverage.
– I think what pisses me off the most is the anonymity of these “associated press” writers. If your work is the blueprint for articles sent around the nation, someone needs to put their name on it.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:01 pmIn defense of Dantley:
Yes, Dantley could be a ball hog, but unlike other ball hogs today he shot an incredibly high shooting % routinely over 55% even while averaging 30ppg. That is unheard of today and he routinely got to the line. But he was more than a gunner for a bad Utah team.
It was the Dantley trade that brought the Pistons to the next level after routine first round exits. His first year was Detroits coming out party where they got within a Bird steal from the finals. The next year they took the Lakers to 7 and maybe a championship if not for a highly questionable foul call against Kareem. Dantley led the Pistons in scoring both years. Of course, the following year Worthy and then Magic got injured in the Finals so I suspect that they may have won with Dantley as well as Aguirre.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:02 pmMODI, Good read. Absolutely there should be a pro basketball HOF and a college HOF. That way the likes of Dicky V. can stick with the amateurs.
I long ago recognize the hall as political, how does a James Worthy gets in before Nique? If Tommy Hienson is in the hall, certainly you can find room for Moncrief, Bob Love, Dick Motta, Dennis Johnson, I can name others. OK, for you MODI, BKing.
Dantley is very deserving of the honor. I believed the pistons sent him a ring for that year that he was traded in midseason, and they went on to win a title. He was traded not becasue he was a ball hog (Isiah controlled the rock), but becasue Isiah wanted his buddy Mark Aguirre on the team. It was believed that with Aguirre, he would strech the defense. Whereas with Dantley being a low post player, the defense clogged the paint. Don’t think Dantley ever forgave Isiah for that trade.
April 9th, 2008 at 1:53 amDream and Patrick. Man I miss those cats. Talk about skilled big men? Even though the rules of the game have changed, these are two post players who could still do their thing in today’s guard oriented league.
Oh I forgot, I’m s’posed to be mad at the media for promoting Vitale over my dudes. Yeah I’m mad, I guess. But I already knew that the media’s priorities are out of order. And nothing can erase the fond memories I have of Ewing and Olajuwon. Nothing. Not even Vitale screaming his played out aphorisms over ESPN’s ubiquitous jingle… Dig that, yall, I finally worked the word “ubiquitous” into a sentence! I feel like Walt Frazier.
April 9th, 2008 at 8:35 pmLP, don’t get ahead of yourself… Clyde would have RHYMED “ubiquitous”
April 10th, 2008 at 1:33 amLOL!!! Sho you right!
April 10th, 2008 at 9:18 amYou said it best: a broken system. And another Freudian slip: The NBA HOF. It’s the HOF. And it’s broken, accidentally on purpose, as we used to say as kids. Great analysis that pinpoints and confirms with numbers what we already feel. And if Dantley and King could take this long, what about Henderson, Posey, Jenkins, Isaacs? Their turn will come, I think. Thanks to bloggers like you helping break the log jam. Thanks.
April 14th, 2008 at 12:02 pmClaude, what about Artis Gilmore? Another head scratcher…
April 14th, 2008 at 1:06 pm[…] perfectly not surprising that the ESPN headline read: “Dick Vitale Steals the Show”. ESPN pulled this same crap at the original announcement of the HOF inductees. Dick-freakin’-Vitale… And so the […]
September 21st, 2008 at 4:07 am