I spent 6 hours in a car last night driving to and from Vermont. Between that and needing a break after all the hype surrounding the trade deadline I simply walked away from the Internet for a night. So I was shocked when I sat down to the Boston Globe for breakfast and learned that Dennis Johnson was dead. I was too young to truly appreciate the Dennis Johnson era but people who know basketball have raved about him for years. Here are just a few thoughts. 1. Whatever Antoine Walker’s legacy is, it has to be hurt by the fact that he feuded with Dennis Johnson during the 1996-97 season.
2. Johnson is a classic “you can throw the stats out the window” type of player. And while I'm on the subject here is one thing that kills me about sports. Fans, coaches, and management always preach team work and winning. However, to a certain extent guys who buy in suffer when it comes to contracts and the Hall of Fame.
3. According to this website DJ made a little over 6 million dollars from 1979-1989. That really was a different era. Heck Vin Baker is making over 5 million from the C’s this year.
4. Everybody has already linked to it. And in no way does that make me feel like I should not. Enjoy for the millionth time.
5. Bill Simmons wrote one of his best pieces in quite some time on DJ. I love it when he compares him to other players:
“An all-defensive team for the past 30 years cannot include anyone other than these five guys: DJ, Payton, Pippen, Ben Wallace and Hakeem. Nobody else qualifies.”
“DJ will be remembered by everyone who was there as one of the best big-game guards who ever played. Basically, it's Clyde Frazier, Jerry West, Sam Jones, Reggie Miller, Michael Jordan and DJ on the list.”
And a Simmons concept that I am fascinated by, “He's on the all-time 'We'll never see this guy again' team along with Barkley, Bird, Magic, Maravich, Gervin, McHale, Kareem, Adrian Dantley and wholly unique players from NBA lore. There's never been a guard like DJ before or since.”
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