Peter Robert Casey's 150 Reasons to love the game of basketballo

Thursday, July 9, 2009

This was blog written by Peter Robert Casey

150 Reasons to love the game of basketball

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In spirit of my 150th blog entry, I decided to canvass theTwittersphere and probe my Facebook friends list to come up with "150 reasons to love the game of basketball."

For those of you who share in my addiction of Dr. Naismith'screation, the aggregated and alphabetized list below should keep you sleeping soundly at night. Obviously, by no means exhaustive, I ask you to please leave YOUR unlisted reasons for loving the game in the comments section below.

And, if you don't mind, please share this list with fellow hoops junkies. Many thanks to all who had participated.

1. #15 vs. #2 upsets in NCAA Tournament
2. 1979 NCAA Championship Game: Magic vs. Bird
3. 1980's shorts
4. A crispy pair of Jordans
5. A.C. Green's 1,192 consecutive games played
6. Above The Rim
7. Adjustable rims
8. Air Force 1s
9. American Basketball Association
10. And 1 Mixtape Volume 1
11. Any Bob Knight interview
12. Bill Russell's 11 rings
13. Blue Chips
14. Bo Kimble's lefty tribute
15. Bob Cousy dribbling out the clock
16. Bob Hurley Sr.'s impact on HS basketball and Jersey City
17. Bruce Pearl, exhibit A or B
18. Bryce Drew's buzzer beater
19. Cameron Indoor Stadium
20. Candace Parker, Chamique Holdsclaw, Carol Blazejowski, Cheryl Miller, Lisa Leslie, Anne Donovan, Nancy Lieberman, Lynette Woodward
21. Chain nets and park rims with no nets
22. Christian Laettner's "Shot"
23. Chuck Taylors and tube socks
24. Cleveland Cavs pregame rituals, including LeBron's signature chalk throw
25. Connie "The Hawk" Hawkins ahead of his time
26. Darryl Dawkins naming his dunks: I.e. The Chocolate-Thunder-Flying, Robinzine-Crying, Teeth-Shaking, Glass-Breaking, Rump-Roasting, Bun-Toasting, Wham-Bam, Glass-Breaker-I-Am-Jam
27. Derrick Rose's ability to leap and elude defenses on the ground
28. Detroit's Bad Boys
29. Dick Vitale calling a game
30. Dikembe Mutombo's finger wag
31. Double Dribble for Nintendo
32. Dr. James Naismith inventing the game as a class assignment
33. Dr. J's cradle dunk in the '80 Final
34. Dream Team
35. Duke vs. UNC
36. Dwyane Wade's love letter to the game
37. Earl "The Pearl" Monroe's spin move
38. Empty gym workouts
39. Filling out NCAA brackets
40. Final Four Weekend
41. First trip to the Basketball Hall of Fame
42. Five-Star Basketball Camp
43. George Gervin's finger roll
44. Gerry McNamara's 2006 Big East Tourney performance
45. God Shammgod's signature crossover
46. Grandmama
47. Grinell College's offense
48. Harry Statham's 995 wins over 43 years McKendree University
49. He Got Game
50. Heaven is a Playground, by Rick Telander
51. Hoop Dreams: Book and Movie
52. Hoop-it-up 3-on-3 tournaments
53. HoopsTV.com, now defunct, but never forgotten
54. Hoosiers
55. Hubie Brown lecturing or breaking down a game
56. Indiana's old high school playoff system
57. Jason Kidd's passes
58. Jason McElwain's 20 points in four minutes
59. Jason William's off the elbow pass
60. Jerry West's silhouette in the NBA logo
61. Jim Boeheim's press conferences
62. Jim Phelan's bowties
63. Jim Valvano looking for a hug after winning the 1983 NCAA Tournament
64. Joe Jones vs. James Jones Ivy league rivalry
65. John Thompson's towel
66. Jordan's final shot
67. Kareem's sky hook
68. Kenny Anderson in HS and College
69. Kevin Johnson's dunk over Olajuwon
70. Knee-high socks
71. Kobe Bryant's 4th ring; first without Shaq
72. Lakers/Celtics rivalry
73. Larry Bird: A Basketball Legend DVD
74. LeBron James in high school
75. Let Me Tell You a Story, Red Auerbach with John Feinstein
76. Life on the Run, by Bill Bradley
77. Loose Balls, by Terry Pluto
78. Lou Carnesecca's sweater
79. Louisville vs. Kentucky rivalry
80. Magic Johnson leading the fast break
81. Manute Bol burying 3s and blocking shots
82. Marbury vs. Iverson in college
83. March Madness opening rounds
84. Marv Albert: "a SPECTACULAR move by Michael Jordan!!"
85. McDonald's All-American Game
86. Michael Jordan's entire career (pick one)
87. Michigan's Fab 5
88. Muggsy Bogues overcoming a lack of height
89. NBA Draft Suits
90. NBA Fantasy League Rotisserie
91. NBA Jam
92. Nike commercials: I'm Not a Role Model, Mars Blackmon, Lil' Penny, Freestyle, LeBron/Kobe puppets
93. Nique and Bird's duel in '88
94. Olaf Shorts
95. Olajuwon abusing the Admiral during the 1995 Western Conference Finals
96. One one One with Robbie Benson
97. One Shining Moment
98. Oscar Robertson averaging a triple-double over an entire season
99. Patrick Ewing sweating at the foul line
100. Pearl Jam's original band name: Mookie Blaylock
101. Pee Wee Kirkland talking in the 3rd Person
102. Pete Maravich's LSU days
103. Phi Slamma Jamma
104. President Barack loves the game too
105. Princeton's Offense
106. Rebound: The Story of Earl "The Goat" Manigault
107. Red Auerbach lighting up a cigar on the sideline
108. Redeem Team capturing gold in the 2008 Summer Olympics
109. Reebok Pumps
110. Reggie Miller owning the Knicks, putting up the choke sign
111. Rick Barry's underhand free throws
112. Rock Chalk Jayhawk Chant
113. Rodman's hair
114. Rucker Park
115. Run TMC
116. Scott Odom starting stand-up amputee basketball
117. Seeing the Globetrotters as a kid
118. Selection Sunday
119. Shaq dominating the NBA on Twitter
120. SLAM Magazine
121. Soul in The Hole
122. Spud Webb's '86 dunk title
123. Squeaking sneakers on a clean gym floor
124. Starks heft-handed dunk
125. Stephen Curry in the 2008 NCAA Tournament
126. Steve Nash's creativity
127. Stockton to Malone
128. Tark's lineup of LJ, Augmon, and Greg Anthony
129. Team Flight Brothers
130. Texas Western's '66 NCAA title
131. The Bone Collector, Larry Williams, dominating NYC playgrounds
132. The Breaks of the Game, by David Halberstam
133. The City Game, by Pete Axthelm
134. The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh
135. The Harlem Rens' barnstorming brilliance
136. The impossible becomes real
137. The Last Shot, by Darcy Frey
138. The Miracle of St. Anthony, by Adrian Wojnarowski
139. The passion of Drazen Petrovic
140. The Wizard of Westwood (his legacy and philosophies on life and the game)
141. Throwback jerseys
142. Tim Duncan's bankshot
143. Tim Hardaway's killer crossover
144. Venice Beach runs
145. Villanova stuns G'town in '84
146. Vince Carter over Frederic Weis
147. West 4th Street - The Cage
148. White Men Can't Jump
149. Willis Reed limping from the locker room
150. Wilt's 100 point game