Joined: 17 Apr 2008 Posts: 4077 Location: New York, NY
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 10:45 am Post subject: RIP Darryl Dawkins
Dead at 58. Damn.
I mean, how do you top: The Chocolate-Thunder-Flying, Robinzine-Crying, Teeth-Shaking, Glass-Breaking, Rump-Roasting, Bun-Toasting, Wham-Bam, Glass-Breaker-I-Am-Jam.
Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 8488 Location: The (real) short corner
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 11:06 am Post subject:
Just yesterday I was watching a video on a plane (NB80's) where Chocolate Thunder was explaining how Stevie Wonder of all people gave him his nickname.
Just yesterday I was watching a video on a plane (NB80's) where Chocolate Thunder was explaining how Stevie Wonder of all people gave him his nickname.
RIP.
Yeah, I was watching that too. He was a guy who was really fun to watch play and listen to. He brought personality to the game. Much different than todays' boring, plain vanilla "superstars" who all say the same thing in interviews.
Joined: 27 Jul 2004 Posts: 18222 Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 1:36 pm Post subject:
Just heard. Very sad to hear of his passing. Very exciting player in his day. _________________ "Suck it up. Don't be a baby. Do your job." - Kobe Bryant
Joined: 17 Apr 2008 Posts: 4077 Location: New York, NY
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 1:41 pm Post subject:
All right, hours after this broke and NPZ still hasn't come in to grace us with a story or actual video of Dawkins throwing a dunk down on Mark Landsberger in some random game from January 1981 that no one else would remember but him, complete with Chick's reaction to the throwdown. Come on, NPZ.
I always remember Dawkins also talking about Kareem's skyhook and the futility of trying to stop it in those Finals.
Joined: 27 May 2010 Posts: 49180 Location: LA to the Bay
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 8:05 pm Post subject:
Oh no! RIP Chocolate Thunder...
EDIT:
fiendishoc wrote:
Just yesterday I was watching a video on a plane (NB80's) where Chocolate Thunder was explaining how Stevie Wonder of all people gave him his nickname.
RIP.
Yeah he was great on NB80's. I've kept a couple on my DVR.
Last edited by TDRock on Thu Aug 27, 2015 8:24 pm; edited 1 time in total
Joined: 02 Jun 2009 Posts: 2415 Location: Far from home
Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2015 9:11 am Post subject:
Sad to see the big lug gone so soon. What a character.
Dawkins will be probably remembered around our household for being The Big Laker Victim in what is probably our club's most famous game.
He was the Sixers center in 1979-80, the guy who was unable to capitalize on Kareem's absence from Finals game six, in 1980. One recalls instead that Magic Johnson held his personal pro "coming out party" that day, playing all five positions. Magic is no center though.
If Dawkins' had been the player he wanted to be and easily could have been that day, he could have demanded the ball every possession and perhaps gone for 50p and 30r to power them to a series-evening 3-3 Philly win that day.
Of course, some would blame coach Billy Cunningham for not exploiting the one game tactical advantage in the post. He had the point guard capable of delivering the ball (Cheeks) to DD on the money. Dawkins could easily have been the loudest voice in the huddle on that day and he wasn't. Maybe he deferred to others when he should not have, but he became our greatest big victim ever, the guy who should never have let us win.
Talent he had, but probably the needed direction, instinct and coaching he didn't have.
I think he could have pulled off something like that, that is, against a Laker center tag team of Jim Chones and Magic. My gawd, Magic weighed maybe 215 and Dawkins ran near 260. Anything DD wanted to do in the paint was his for the taking that day. Agree that he was not necessarily self-assured enough to recognize it without prompting.
Sad to see the big lug gone so soon. What a character.
Dawkins will be probably remembered around our household for being The Big Laker Victim in what is probably our club's most famous game.
He was the Sixers center in 1979-80, the guy who was unable to capitalize on Kareem's absence from Finals game six, in 1980. One recalls instead that Magic Johnson held his personal pro "coming out party" that day, playing all five positions. Magic is no center though.
If Dawkins' had been the player he wanted to be and easily could have been that day, he could have demanded the ball every possession and perhaps gone for 50p and 30r to power them to a series-evening 3-3 Philly win that day.
Of course, some would blame coach Billy Cunningham for not exploiting the one game tactical advantage in the post. He had the point guard capable of delivering the ball (Cheeks) to DD on the money. Dawkins could easily have been the loudest voice in the huddle on that day and he wasn't. Maybe he deferred to others when he should not have, but he became our greatest big victim ever, the guy who should never have let us win.
Dawkins wasn't that good. And it's not like Magic was covering him. As I recall, Jim Chones covered him a lot that game and contained him pretty well. I think Dawkins only had 14 points and 4 rebounds compared to Chones 11-10. Chones was the better player; Dawkins just had the nicknames, the weirdness, and the broken backboards.
Yup - Magic did the tipoff (and lost it) but he didn't really play center that game. But it makes a good story so everyone likes to think he did.
Last edited by activeverb on Fri Aug 28, 2015 12:27 pm; edited 1 time in total
Sad to see the big lug gone so soon. What a character.
Dawkins will be probably remembered around our household for being The Big Laker Victim in what is probably our club's most famous game.
He was the Sixers center in 1979-80, the guy who was unable to capitalize on Kareem's absence from Finals game six, in 1980. One recalls instead that Magic Johnson held his personal pro "coming out party" that day, playing all five positions. Magic is no center though.
If Dawkins' had been the player he wanted to be and easily could have been that day, he could have demanded the ball every possession and perhaps gone for 50p and 30r to power them to a series-evening 3-3 Philly win that day.
Of course, some would blame coach Billy Cunningham for not exploiting the one game tactical advantage in the post. He had the point guard capable of delivering the ball (Cheeks) to DD on the money. Dawkins could easily have been the loudest voice in the huddle on that day and he wasn't. Maybe he deferred to others when he should not have, but he became our greatest big victim ever, the guy who should never have let us win.
Dawkins wasn't that good. And it's not like Magic was covering him. As I recall, Jim Chones covered him a lot that game and contained him pretty well. I think Dawkins only had 14 points and 4 rebounds compared to Chones 11-10. Chones was the better player; Dawkins just had the nicknames, the weirdness, and the broken backboards.
Ya, I think Chones played something like 35 minutes in that game, which is becoming increasingly apocryphal as the years go by.
Joined: 02 Apr 2006 Posts: 3079 Location: Portugal
Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 8:08 am Post subject:
Shawn Kemp game, with Nick Young mindset.
At a time players were less athletic he was expected to score 50 just because of his size and leap.
Well, the point is that he made some impact, we are still talking about him today. _________________ -----------------------------------------------------
http://www.youtube.com/user/NBAMadeira
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Just heard. Very sad to hear of his passing. Very exciting player in his day.
