Darryl Dawkins, NBA player, died at age 58.. One of the more entertaining players though he always was MUCH MORE POTENTIAL than production. The NBA was hurting at the time as they had stars but not a lot of personality.. You had big guys like Kareem Abdul Jabbar but Wilt was at the end of his career and the league didnt really have a personality to carry them through as it was a big mans game then with good players but no flashy personalities.. You could argue for Pete Maravich but he was stuck on a bad team in Atlanta, at the time.
Enter Dawkins, who came out of Orlando, Florida HS straight to the NBA.. He was a big and talented kid at the time.. Philadelphia had made a major transformation, unprecedented at the time. A few years earlier, the 76ers were 9-73 as one of the worst teams ever in the NBA. The ABA was the competing league with flashy players but not the status of the NBA. The ABA was losing money so a few franchises joined the NBA. In the joining of leagues, some players jumped ship from their former teams. So Philadelphia went all out and signed 2 of the ABA's finest ever in Julius Erving and George McGinnis.. They had drafted 1972 Olympian Doug Collins, a couple years before and was developing. They signed Henry Bibby, who was a steadying force and former UCLA player under John Wooden. They got solid role players in Caldwell Jones and Harvey Catchings.. The owner brought in a coach, Gene Shue, that could handle the talent. More flashy talent though from small colleges in Lloyd Free and Joe "Jelly Bean" Bryant.... They had an NBA all star in Steve Mix(a Toledo native who still lives here today) that went from all star who started in Philly to being benched after signing Dr J and McGinnis. Dawkins was the man child and a marketing tool for the 76ers as a HS center that had a mountain of natural talent as a player.
At the end of the day, Dawkins really provided the NBA with a player to market, more based on personality and potential than anything else. He shattered numerous backboards with his dunks. Did not start but always got a standing ovation.. Big hearted as I understand though injuries and his partying caught up to him.. A young guy that had lots of money early in life that probably did not know how to handle it at the time. Self promoted similar to Muhammad Ali Would be hard for anyone that is 18-19 years old, especially with the popularity. Would have parties for the Philly single women that lasted for days. Dressed in flashy clothing. Probably did a lot to "marry" the entertainment industry in music with the NBA, for the good or for the bad. The timing was right as you had disco and funk mixed with groups like Earth, Wind, and Fire plus the sounds of Motown and others that Dawkins had mixed with and used at his parties. Plus the local exposure of American Bandstand so groups were headed towards Philly at the time and Dawkins' celebrity was another good marketing tool.
Philly was the team to watch.. Dr J with his dunks and super smooth moves on the floor. McGinnis with athleticism not seen at the power forward position. Lloyd(soon to change his name to World B) Free with the rainbow jumpers, David Zinkoff with his distinct public address voice that will never be replicated. Then, Dawkins power dunks that shattered backboards at times. Breathtaking at the time, when he would go up strong. He squared off to fight Maurice Lucas in the 1977 championship series against the Portland Trail Blazers.. Philadelphia was in control of the series up to that point and you could argue that the moment that Dawkins and Lucas squared off, that changed the focus and complexion of that series to Portland's favor as they went from being down 0-2 to sweeping the next 4 games. The irony of that series was the coach of the Trail Blazers, Jack Ramsay, was an institution in the city of Philadelphia throughout his life.
I hope he is remembered fondly. You could argue that the NBA and the 76ers 'prostitituted' him for their gain.. You could argue most of his problems were self-inflicted. Injuries hurt him. But man, was he fun to watch out there for how he could attract a crowd for the short bursts he had on the court.. Darryl Dawkins, passed away at age 58.
Enter Dawkins, who came out of Orlando, Florida HS straight to the NBA.. He was a big and talented kid at the time.. Philadelphia had made a major transformation, unprecedented at the time. A few years earlier, the 76ers were 9-73 as one of the worst teams ever in the NBA. The ABA was the competing league with flashy players but not the status of the NBA. The ABA was losing money so a few franchises joined the NBA. In the joining of leagues, some players jumped ship from their former teams. So Philadelphia went all out and signed 2 of the ABA's finest ever in Julius Erving and George McGinnis.. They had drafted 1972 Olympian Doug Collins, a couple years before and was developing. They signed Henry Bibby, who was a steadying force and former UCLA player under John Wooden. They got solid role players in Caldwell Jones and Harvey Catchings.. The owner brought in a coach, Gene Shue, that could handle the talent. More flashy talent though from small colleges in Lloyd Free and Joe "Jelly Bean" Bryant.... They had an NBA all star in Steve Mix(a Toledo native who still lives here today) that went from all star who started in Philly to being benched after signing Dr J and McGinnis. Dawkins was the man child and a marketing tool for the 76ers as a HS center that had a mountain of natural talent as a player.
At the end of the day, Dawkins really provided the NBA with a player to market, more based on personality and potential than anything else. He shattered numerous backboards with his dunks. Did not start but always got a standing ovation.. Big hearted as I understand though injuries and his partying caught up to him.. A young guy that had lots of money early in life that probably did not know how to handle it at the time. Self promoted similar to Muhammad Ali Would be hard for anyone that is 18-19 years old, especially with the popularity. Would have parties for the Philly single women that lasted for days. Dressed in flashy clothing. Probably did a lot to "marry" the entertainment industry in music with the NBA, for the good or for the bad. The timing was right as you had disco and funk mixed with groups like Earth, Wind, and Fire plus the sounds of Motown and others that Dawkins had mixed with and used at his parties. Plus the local exposure of American Bandstand so groups were headed towards Philly at the time and Dawkins' celebrity was another good marketing tool.
Philly was the team to watch.. Dr J with his dunks and super smooth moves on the floor. McGinnis with athleticism not seen at the power forward position. Lloyd(soon to change his name to World B) Free with the rainbow jumpers, David Zinkoff with his distinct public address voice that will never be replicated. Then, Dawkins power dunks that shattered backboards at times. Breathtaking at the time, when he would go up strong. He squared off to fight Maurice Lucas in the 1977 championship series against the Portland Trail Blazers.. Philadelphia was in control of the series up to that point and you could argue that the moment that Dawkins and Lucas squared off, that changed the focus and complexion of that series to Portland's favor as they went from being down 0-2 to sweeping the next 4 games. The irony of that series was the coach of the Trail Blazers, Jack Ramsay, was an institution in the city of Philadelphia throughout his life.
I hope he is remembered fondly. You could argue that the NBA and the 76ers 'prostitituted' him for their gain.. You could argue most of his problems were self-inflicted. Injuries hurt him. But man, was he fun to watch out there for how he could attract a crowd for the short bursts he had on the court.. Darryl Dawkins, passed away at age 58.
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