After a bye week on Throwback Thursday, the Coach is back for a Thursday and a Throwback of epic proportion. As I woke this morning to what is hopefully the return of Spring sunshine, the first thing that came to mind on my way to my AM hydration and opening set of pushups (also my closing set) was that tonight is one of the biggest NBA games in recent memory. With a victory tonight, the Celtics will defy the odds, prove the critics wrong and show the basketball world just how effective TEAM continues to be in comparison to one all-world talent. At the same time, there is a very good chance this is LeBron’s curtain call as a Cavalier. As stated in the Dime office earlier today and later tweeted furiously, “Tomorrow my LeBron jersey will be a throwback.” Read More »

From 1976 to 1990, Dennis Johnson didn’t just play in the NBA. He left a mark. But now we can finally say DJ is a Hall of Famer. By earning his place among the 2010 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class this week, the late Dennis Johnson will finally be recognized for his contributions to the game of basketball, which were about so much more than numbers. DJ was a winner, a clutch player, and most importantly, a terrific teammate. Read More »

Don’t let the fact that Chauncey Billups shows little emotion on the court fool you into thinking he’s any less fiery of a competitor than Kobe, Dirk, LeBron, Wade or any other big-time clutch player who punctuates his daggers by making funny faces. You have to be iceberg to have hit as many fourth-quarter threes and last-second free throws as Mr. Big Shot has hit, but you also have to have a fire inside you to show up in the kind of shape he does every year and bring it at the high level he brings it every night … After Chauncey (17 pts, 6 asts, 3 stls) made the go-ahead free throw with 0.6 seconds left in last night’s Nuggets/Bulls game, he missed the second FT on purpose, giving the Bulls only 0.3 to make a game-winner. Read More »

There’s a debate going in Major League Baseball circles about re-naming the Cy Young award (best pitcher in each league) after Satchel Paige, the reasons for which you can read HERE.

Taking it to basketball, it’s time to look at some of the NBA’s trophies and consider re-naming them, or giving them a name in the first place. The Finals MVP just got the Bill Russell stamp this year, so that’s not going anywhere. And the Red Auerbach Coach of the Year trophy will never change, no matter how many rings Phil Jackson collects. Read More »

With so much talk about how the ’09 Finals will define Kobe Bryant‘s legacy, no one is talking about what this means for Phil Jackson. Just as a Lakers win allows Kobe to step out of Shaq‘s shadow and prove he can win without The Big Tweeter, it also gives Phil 10 championships as a head coach, pushing him ahead of Red Auerbach for the most all-time.

But for both Phil and Kobe, the one player who will play the biggest role in helping them get those all-important rings is the one player they’re both terrified to trust: Lamar Odom. Read More »

“Red’s theory was 10 players, two baskets, 13,000 people, one basketball–and we will decide what is done with that one basketball.” -Bill Russell on Red Auerbach

In professional sports, there really are the Celtics and everybody else. After winning eight straight NBA championships and 11 titles during Bill Russell‘s 13 seasons, the bar was set. No matter how you look at it, it’s truly amazing. Yesterday I was privileged enough to meet the five-time MVP, and talk with him for a couple minutes about his new book, “Red and Me: My Coach, My Lifelong Friend.” As the two driving forces of the Celtics dynasty, Russell spoke on the dynamics of the player-coach relationship with the late, great Red Auerbach. Read More »