all photos: jamd.com
That’s right! I said it! STARBURY!
With 99.9% of the things recently written and said about the man in the mainstream media being negative, it’s time someone showed Mr. Marbury some love. And if the playground culture that nourished his dazzling game can’t nurture him when all else are hating, who will?
Lost in the sauce of the Knick debacle and the tabloid feeding frenzy is the fact that he’s STILL, at this juncture in time, one of the world’s best point guards.
And for those pundits who’ve called him every derivation of the word “Loser” that the English language can offer – the talking heads that hide behind their microphones and laptops who’d get laughed at for calling next at the Sheboygan Y, let alone never having played the game at its highest levels and on the unforgiving asphalt of NYC while an entire housing project, neighborhood, borough and city burdened them with the crushing weight of expectation, as a large extended family, simultaneously, thrust their hopes, dreams and financial stakes on their shoulders, all while having to navigate the treacherous underbelly of the ghetto and grow into adulthood under the unforgiving national media microscope – I offer up some simple advice.
In order to judge the man, not his game, but the mental machinery that’s been formulated through experiences that are as common to sports journalists as mud wrestling naked with one-armed, bow legged Cambodian midgets smack dab in the eye of a hurricane, you’d have to have walked in his shoes.
And until that’s been done, you’d be better served pontificating about the minutae of box scores, i.e. points, rebounds, assists, turnovers, etc. Because, although you may not understand who he is and why he does what he does, you have no authority to speak on that which you have absolutely no comprehension. People who are outside of the locker room and are not a part of the idiosyncracies of the dysfunctional family that can be a team and a franchise never know the full story. Now with that said, on with the show.
Stephon Xavior Marbury was born and raised in the Coney Island, Brooklyn projects. If one particular neighborhood deserves the label of basketball epicenter of the universe, it’s indeed Coney Island. Other than the Boardwalk, Nathan’s and a raggedy amusement park that’s a relic of past prominence, there are housing projects stretched along the peninsula as far as the eye can see.
And within this dizzying maze of high rise project buildings – all crammed within a radius of thirty seven streets by three avenues: Neptune, Mermaid and Surf – hoops is the currency that greases the local economy. The courts that dominate every housing development are all lighted. The game is THE thing, 24-7! And there is no name that represents Coney Island and the city’s rich basketball culture than the surname Marbury.
“The Marbury name is synonymous with New York City basketball,” former Lincoln High School coach Bobby Hartstein told the NY Times in 1994.
The joke around the city was that father Donald, who was known as the Mayor of Coney Island as well as by his nickname, “The Creator”, had D-I sperm. Oldest brother Eric, aka Sky Dog, was a 6′2″ scorer who balled at the University of Georgia from ‘79-’82. During one school break, he brought his good friend and college teammate, whose nickname was “Unique”, home to eat at the Marbury table and ball with him on Coney Island. Unique was actually Dominique Wilkins, who would later be known to the world as the Human Highlight Film.
Eric was invited to the San Diego Clippers camp, but got cut. Next in line was 6′3″ Donnie, aka Sky Pup. As a senior at Texas A&M in ‘86, Donnie, who possessed a lethal jumper, dropped 50 in one game and led the entire Southwest Conference in scoring.
When Donnie went undrafted, the spotlight shifted to Norman, aka Jou-Jou. Jou-Jou was touted by his father as “the purest point guard you’d ever want to see” and made All-City three years in a row. Yet Tennessee revoked his scholarship offer when he came up short on the S.A.T.’s. Banished to a nomadic junior college route, Norman played only one D-I season at Brooklyn’s St. Francis College in ‘94.
As each talented brother failed to reach the pros, the family’s NBA hopes cascaded down with resounding force, landing on the young shoulders of the wunderkind, Stephon. Steph seemed to inherit the best weapons in his older brothers’ aresenals – passion, the ability to finish, a sweet jimmy, night goggle vision and handles.
As soon as he could walk, Steph was handling the rock. He had to be bribed off the court with cash money as a shorty so the older players could run fulls at the O’Dwyer Gardens court, aka The Garden. He’d been told by his brothers that the little orange ball was powerful, it was to be valued above all else as it could one day take him around the world, and his family out of the projects.
“This is where I grew up,” Steph told the NY Times as surveyed the park in ‘94. “That’s where I got to be where I’m at. Playing with older guys. I value this court. We used to go out after midnight and just shoot a thousand shots.”
Under the watchful eyes of his older brothers, he sprinted on the sand of the Coney Island beach and up the steps of his building to fortify his stamina. Hoop Scoop touted him as the world’s best sixth grader when he was 11.
“The whole object was to teach the brothers under you to be better than you, to take this oath and accept this challenge,” older brother Eric told Sport’s Illustrated’s Alexander Wolff.
At Lincoln, the 5′8″, 140-pound Steph made a case for being one of the top freshman ballers ever in NYC. But outside of his exploits on the court, he was known as a narcissistic and arrogant young man. Writer Darcy Frey wrote an unflattering story for Harper’s Magazine that eventually became a book, The Last Shot.
He blossomed over the next few years into the nation’s top point guard recruit, averaging 29 points and 8 assists and became the first Marbury brother to lead the school to a city title. He copped the prestigious McDonald’s All-American nod before taking his skills to the college stage.
But before he left Coney Island, Steph’s Lincoln teammate Jason Sowell was gunned down, murdered a few steps away from the Marbury apartment. It was a cold reminder of the grim circumstances that would forever lurk if he failed, like his older brothers, to make it out for good.
During his one-and-done at Georgia Tech, he put up 19 points and 5 assists per game en route to ACC Rookie of the Year honors, leading the Yellow Jackets to a regular season conference championship and an NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance. In the ACC tournament final against Tim Duncan and Wake Forest, Steph dropped 27 in a nail biting 75-74 loss.
Picked with the fourth overal pick in the NBA draft, Steph, as a 19 year-old starting point guard, helped lead Minnesota, along with second year phenom Kevin Garnett, to the playoffs his rookie year. He put up 16 points and 8 assists a game and easily drove the lane against veteran defenses. In ‘97-’98, Minnesota finished with a winning record for the first time in franchise history as Steph upped his game to the tune of 18 points and 9 assists.
However, Steph’s homesickness, quirks and demands for a Garnett-like, $100 million plus contract extension got him traded to New Jersey. His supposed indifference at moving from a team on the come-up to a losing franchise in perpetual turmoil begged the question – was the dough or winning more important?
But the game is a business and no one, other than Marbury can speak to his personal happiness and motivations. Regardless, he still brought his A-game every time he stepped on the floor. In his first full season as a Net in ‘99-’00, he put up 22 points and 8 assists per game. The next year, he got his first All-Star nod. But Jersey couldn’t turn the corner and with Keith Van Horn’s untradeable contract, Steph was on the move again.
From there, it was on to Phoenix and later, the debacle that was his Knicks tenure. And the record seemed to show that every team he left got better. So let’s examine that.
His first year in jersey, Keith Van Horn is the only other weapon (if you can call Van Horn a weapon) and there’s no big man. Next year, it’s Steph and Van Horn again. Kenyon Martin is a rookie who rebounds and gets garbage buckets with no offensive game who avg’s 12 points and 7 re’s (that’s not exactly a full arsenal for Steph to work with).
Next year in 2001-2202, J Kidd hits jersey with a more mature K-Mart. Van Horn’s still there, but Richard Jefferson, Kerry Kittles and Todd Macollough (who gives you 10 and 6) are now in the mix. No doubt, Kidd makes everybody better and that’s when Jersey has its most successful run. But Steph avg’d 23 points and 8 dimes in Jersey playing with who? Jaime Feik? Evan Eschmeyer? Vladimir Stepania?
Steph’s 2nd year in Phoenix, they made the playoffs when all they had was him, Shawn Marion and a fading Penny Hardaway. Stoudamire was only a rookie and he gave you 13 and 9, but what else was in the cupboard? Joe Johnson was a pup, and you had Casey Jacobson, Jake Tsakalidis, Jake Voshkuhl, etc.
But Nash comes on board two years later and benefits from Amare, who has now matured into a beast, Marion, Joe Johnson who’s matured into a player, Quentin Richardson, Jimmy Jackson and Leandro Barbosa.
My point here is the saying works both ways – right place, right time and wrong place, wrong time. And yes, Steph has had his problems and his inflated sense of self has, at times, been detrimental to team chemistry. The man is human and has made mistakes.
And yet, don’t we live in a society that gives people second chances and the opportunity to redeem themselves? My goodness, if you’ve read anything about Marbury over the past few years, you’d swear he was in cahoots with the Son of Sam.
The human spirit, like a burned tree trunk, has the capacity to grow back from adversity and be stronger than ever. That time for Steph is now.
People seem to forget that he’s one of the best point guards to ever do it. If you’re shocked at that last statement, let’s look in the books. He’s the only point guard, other than the incomparable Big O, Mr. Oscar Robertson to average 20 points and 8 assists for a career. And when you factor in the sub par ending to his Knicks tenure, those numbers are even more shocking.
peep two of the greatest guards of this generation going at it
He has a golden opportunity to redeem himself during these last few years he has left. And, if no one else can get behind the man and wish him the best, the asphalt of NYC that birthed him can. Everybody, including me, is in love with this year’s rookie point guard sensation and first overall pick, Derrick Rose. But quiet as kept, his game is eerily reminiscent of Steph’s, minus the radar on the jumper.
And let’s allow the final chapters of the Starbury saga to be written before we hang the man in effigy. Who know’s, the ending could be worth waiting for. And say what you want. But what’s utterly undeniable is that Steph had, and still has, game on top of game!
Without the NYC playgrounds, Steph would never have shared his genius with the world and his family would still be stuck on the fourth floor of a project building in Coney Island. When it’s all said and done, that has to count for something.
THE PLAYGROUND IS NOT THE PROBLEM. IT IS THE SOLUTION!
March 2nd, 2009 at 1:21 pm
illest says:
with the right mind he should help the celtics. hes not as bad as everyone says, especially after seeing him crying non-stop during that katrina scenario and how he felt so bad those there.
i know his numbers. can you name 10 nba all time point guards that you would put ahead of him?
March 2nd, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Mr. Dimes says:
Skills-wise, Steph is as gifted a pg as we’ve ever seen. But finding 10 pg’s ahead of him isn’t difficult because of all his unfulfilled potential as far as LEADING a team. 10 nba all time point guards in front of Steph? Enjoy:
(In no particular order)
Bob Cousy
Isaiah Thomas
Nate Archibald
Magic Johnson
Gary Payton
Jason Kidd
Walt Frazier
Oscar Robertson
John Stockton
Earl Monroe (though he was more of a combo)
This doesn’t even include the other more recent guys like Steve Nash (who isn’t as good as Steph skills wise but is a much better pg with his leadership skills and sick passing) or Chris Paul & Deron Williams (who truly will be able to be top 10 pg’s, if they keep things up).
he ain’t better than Tim Hardaway either and I left Tim Bug off the list. He isn’t better than Mark Jackson, just look at the records.
Again, I like Steph’s game, but dude hasn’t done much more than show he’s a dope ass ball player that can’t win anywhere.
Finding 20 pg’s, all-time, wouldn’t be a tough call Ali.
March 2nd, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Jaquam says:
great piece on steph I feel that he has a lot of basketball left and I feel that he will redeem himself this season as a new yorker I wish him the best of luck in boston Im not gonna lie the way he acted Irked me a little but all that stuff is In the past but some people don’t understand that. I was able to see what he did uat lincoln when I was in high school ago my teacher had an old video of the 94 chip at the garden when my old school beat them I was like 6 at that time but I understand that the next season he beat robeson to win it I gotta feeling he’s gonna get a ring someway
March 2nd, 2009 at 2:52 pm
g says:
Steph gets a bum rap,he just didnt help himself with his attitude/indifference.
I’ve known X and his clan since he was a kid. My uncle played with Eric @ Georgia with Domo and the rest of the crew. X was groomed to make the league.
His stats dont show the turmoil he often inherited and unproductive teams he was on,especially with the knicks.
Although skill wise,none of the brothers were comparable to Ju-Ju,including X (Steph). Athletically, Zach was light years ahead of them,if only he were encouraged to pursue his favorite and best sport,baseball.
I truly hope he can redeem his image with the Celtics,he deserves it.
March 2nd, 2009 at 3:10 pm
funkalot says:
Fellas,
I agree with your sentiments that Steph gets a bad rap. There were plenty of situations beyond his control and some he exacerbated, however, he can still ball and by May, we will begin to see the real Steph.
He showed me 5 to six years ago up at EBC, the difference between a pro and a playground star. While others were eliciting oohs and aahs with east to west handles and athletic finishes (Oh, and I dug that too), Starbury was precise: a little in and out, strong shoulder and I am moving north with the unstoppable pull up, time after time. He was destroying cats with his nicety.
I would bring my enthralled shorties form the Bean (Boston) to peep real game and note the differences between a pro and the playground. So when we returned and worked on triple threat work and I emphasized moving forward, after an upfake instead of laterally, the message was cemented, from the EBC experience and I had Professor Starbury to thank for the lesson reinforcement.
funkalot – “game recognizes game”
March 2nd, 2009 at 3:32 pm
MOVEZ says:
ah he lead Minnesota to playoffs, he is one of the best point guards in the league hands down both assist and scoring when he is at his full potential…much love to you Steph, great post Bk all day!
March 2nd, 2009 at 4:11 pm
g says:
and since we’re on the Coney Isle kick,aint it nice to see Bassy having a good,solid year in Minnesota?
March 2nd, 2009 at 4:14 pm
g says:
and the idea/thought of being able to get some white on green Steph’s soon isnt such a bad prospect either……
March 2nd, 2009 at 4:42 pm
ali says:
it is great to see bassy having a solid year in minnesota. i’ve been telling folks, it’s too early to call him a bust. give the young fella some time and sit back and watch.
and i’m happy for steph, but he has to make the most of this tremendous opportunity. it’s now or never, but my instincts tell me that folks will rue the day that he went to the celtics. it’s the perfect situation for him to just run the point and do what he does. like my man ox said in belly, “the re-birth of the don-dada!”
March 2nd, 2009 at 10:21 pm
vancitykat says:
Nice piece man, Steph was always one of my favourites coming up and I really hope and I think he will do well in Boston.
March 3rd, 2009 at 10:25 am
woody says:
its gotta be tough for you knicks/marbury fans to root for him to win a title with the celtics.
March 3rd, 2009 at 11:08 am
ali says:
ay yo woody! why you got ‘ta pull a knife? i ain’t be got no weapon!
garnett, paul pierce and ray allen eased my pain of watching the celtics last year. i can’t front, i want them to do well. but my knicks will be back!
“and with the #4 pick in the NBA draft, the Knicks select Stephen Curry from Davidson…” can you dig it?
March 3rd, 2009 at 11:16 am
funkalot says:
Six degrees of separation. Paul Pierce when interviewed recently about the addition of Steph to the Celtics said, and I am paraphrasing, that he did not foresee any issues, since he has exchanged with Steph during the summers (on a what up tip in passing and they were cool), when Steph is living in his LA digs. Plus, he talked about the time they spent together, along with KG, during the 1995 McDonald’s game. They, also, played versus each other in the 1995 Boston Shootout. As such, Paul implied that Steph’s aquisition was just a reuniting of fraternal brothers.
March 3rd, 2009 at 12:08 pm
woody says:
yo ali,
i gotta admit that i have love for the knicks. i guess i became a fan sometime after i moved to the city, during the ewing years (it probably helped that the celtics were pretty horrible at the same time). i realized i had become a knicks fan when i started rooting for john starks! he was the danny ainge of the knicks, in that you only had love for him if you were a fan of his team (it seemed that everyone else hated him). the nba needs a nyc team in the mix and i hope the knicks do come back!
my question for you is, “what will you do when brooklyn has a team?”
March 3rd, 2009 at 12:24 pm
ali says:
hey woody,
i’ll have love for the brooklyn team, but they’ll have to be my lady on the side. i’ve got too much history with the knicks. and even though we’ve had our problems and ups and downs over the years, divorce is not an option.
and i like your ainge/starks comparison. that’s very true how both guys were loved and embraced by their home cities, yet despised everywhere else.
March 3rd, 2009 at 12:33 pm
ali says:
hey mr. dimes,
i feel you on the top 10 pg’s of all time being ahead of steph. no argument there. and i don’t think there’s any shame in steph falling short of that list. talentwise, he’s up there, but you gotta win something in order to occupy that rareified air.
but if we just look at skills and remove everything else, just picking sides in the park, i’m picking steph before cousy and stockton. take bill russel and karl malone out of the equation, and steph serves both of ‘em, no question!
and when it’s all said and done, chris paul will be up there w/ magic, tiny, the big o and isiah in the penthouse as one of the best pg’s ever!
March 3rd, 2009 at 12:47 pm
ali says:
hey funk,
was that ‘95 Mcdonald’s game funky or what? if there was ever a better group of high school players assembled in one place, i’d love to know about it – kg, pierce, marbury, vince, antawn jamison, mr big shot aka chauncey, shareef abdur-raheem, shamgod, ron mercer, etc.
March 3rd, 2009 at 1:14 pm
illest says:
i would easily take marbury over cousy and stockton.
ali….would you put paul in the same class as magic, big o, tiny and isiah if he hasnt won a championship? and dont forget deron williams who is just as good as paul is.
March 3rd, 2009 at 2:30 pm
dcardoni says:
Tough debate when folks are saying they would take Marbury over Stockton. Wow. Marbury has more skills than Nash (last I checked, shooting and passing were two of the most important point guard skills – and those two aren’t even comparable)? The NYC hype machine lives on.
Heck, Stockton only had 15,000 career assists (more than FIVE THOUSAND more than 2nd place), a Gold Medal, 10 all-star game, a couple Finals appearances, playing for one team his whole career – what’s any of that worth when you compare it to Marbury’s resume of a team-jumper.
Plus, I would add Lenny Wilkens and Mo Cheeks to the next ten list – and the aforementioned Nash, and probably Chauncey as well.
March 3rd, 2009 at 4:19 pm
illest says:
stocktons resume is way better than marburys. but like ali stated at the park he would take marbury. marbury doesnt shoot better than nash or pass better but his scoring and career assists numbers are better than nash.
March 3rd, 2009 at 4:57 pm
ali says:
dcardoni,
i said if i was picking sides in the park for a pick up run, yes i’d choose marbury over cousy and stockton. in terms of running an NBA franchise, there’s not much comparison when you look at their resumes. you’d have to be blind, deaf and plain stupid to not go with stockton. stockton’s passing is unparalleled, but he only averaged 13 pts per game. and if you take karl malone away, hmmmm.
and nash is one of the greats, i don’t care what anybody says. he could run my playground team any day of the week. but look at nash’s career numbers, 14 points and 8 assists. now put those next to stephs 20 pts and 8 assists. are you sure nash is better?
as a scorer, steph eats stockton’s lunch, hands down. but overall, no one is saying that steph is a better nba player. and i would also put mo cheeks and lenny wilkens up there as well.
March 3rd, 2009 at 5:00 pm
ali says:
hey illest,
if chris paul never wins a championship, playing for the remainder of his career with the trajectory that he’s on now, yes, i’d still place him with tiny, magic, the big o and isiah. he’s one of the best EVER!!!
March 3rd, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Donn says:
Would have been nice if Steph just stayed in Minny and team up with KG…
March 3rd, 2009 at 5:47 pm
dcardoni says:
ali, all respect – but if you and I chose park teams, and you got Marbury and I got Stockton, you’d be waiting for next quite a bit. Stockton played great man-on-ball defense, and even better off-the-ball defense – Marbury, not so much on the defensive front. Stockton got all of his players nothing but open layups and open jumpers all day long (he got Shandon Anderson a mega-contract, for crikes sakes and made Hornacek into an all-star – and all the talk about if he didn’t have Malone should be the other way around). So, while he may not look as “good” at the park playing against Marbury, he would still win games.
And, I’m pretty sure Nash is better than Marbury – taking into account relevant seasons, Marbury’s scoring numbers are truly better than Nash’s – of course, that’s because he likes to get his more than Nash (49% shooting percentage for Nash, 43% for Marbury). Am I really answering the question “Is a two-time LEAGUE MVP point guard better than Stephon Marbury”?
March 3rd, 2009 at 6:44 pm
ali says:
dcardoni,
the numbers say marbury is better than nash. and you’re telling me steph only scores and doesn’t set up teammates? i will again point you to his career assist numbers. they’re pretty impressive. i think he’s unfairly labelled as a selfish gunner, but you don’t average 8 assists in the nba having played over ten years by not distributing the rock.
and i think stockton would look very good at the park. it’s an interesting debate. i appreciate your thoughts.
i love stockton, don’t get me wrong. and i love nash. but i think you should ask the question, seriously, and at least consider it. my point being that steph should be in the discussion. the gulf, as i see it, is not so vast that the question can be summarily dismissed, when you seriously look at the corresponding levels of talent. i feel your points though. thanks for the discourse.
March 3rd, 2009 at 7:13 pm
dcardoni says:
ali, I think the man is simply bad news for any team he is on – maybe that will change in Boston when he’s no longer (or at least no longer thinks he is) the “man”. And, by my definition, a pure point guard is measured by his team’s play – and Marbury’s teams have never performed to a level of Stockton, Nash, etc.
Insofar as numbers, you really can’t include the Nash seasons when he was sitting on the bench behind J Kidd in the debate . . .
Having said all this, Steph surely is funny in those improv bus stop videos going around the internet.
March 3rd, 2009 at 9:55 pm
ali says:
i feel you dcardoni. if he can’t thrive on that team, then it’s hopeless. and his teams, have not performed up to the levels of stockton or nash, no argument there. but talent wise, the man put in work! and i wanted to present a slightly different portrayal than those that have dominated the coverage.
i think you do have to include the full resume. while nash was on the bench, steph was 19 and 20 years old running a team into the playoffs, getting busy. and he is kinda funny. ever see when he clowned stephen a smith? hilarious.
March 3rd, 2009 at 9:58 pm
O-Easy says:
Nice piece. Check this one out too, kind of gives the same sentiment….
SportsOnMyMind.com: The Incredible Mismanagement of Stephon Marbury
March 4th, 2009 at 9:54 am
illest says:
ali….marbury clowning stephen smith was comedy. he should always be clowned.
shouldnt winning a title account for something? once again the title is what would put those guys over the top ahead of paul. whats the point of winning a ring if it doesnt separate the greatness of a player? if paul is 20 and 10 for a career with no rings and magic is 19 and 12 for a career with 5 rings how can i put paul in magics class? you cant. and numbers can be misleading. because sugar ray richardson would of killed chris paul. fat lever (who almost averaged a triple double and who is forgotten) would of given paul fits.
March 4th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
ali says:
illest,
we put tiny in that class, right. now what if he never gets that elusive ring in boston? does that mean he doesn’t deserve that distinction. what if an aging oscar robertson doesn’t link up with a young kareem in milwaukee and the title eludes him. are you telling me that the only man who avg’d a triple-double for a season would not be included in that discussion of the greatest ever?
if paul never teams up with a supreme post presence, like magic had with kareem, or is surrounded with the complimentary parts like isiah in motown, i can’t knock him for that.
yes, sugar ray richardson would have given it to chris paul. but chris would’ve given it right back. and he would’ve given fats lever as many fits as he got from him. that lil’ fella, if he continues on this path, regardless of if he gets a ring, WILL be one of the all-time best point guards, in my humble opinion.
March 4th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
ali says:
yo o-easy,
thanks for that link on the mismanagement of steph. very good stuff. there’s two sides to every coin. and one thing marriage has taught me is there’s always three sides to every story – my side, your side and the truth which lies somewhere in the middle.
March 4th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
mark says:
man, it is what I have been saying to anyone who will listen for as long as I can remember thank you 100x over and the shaboygan Y comment was the icing on the cake.
March 4th, 2009 at 11:02 pm
ali says:
mark,
you’re welcome and i’m glad you got a chuckle out of the sheboygan y comment. thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts. and keep coming back, there’s more heat in the chamber.
March 5th, 2009 at 9:34 am
illest says:
ali….but tiny and oscar did get the ring.
and paul would have trouble with sugar just like magic, mike and isiah did.
March 5th, 2009 at 10:05 am
ali says:
no doubt sugar would give chris paul problems, illest. sugar gave everybody problems. but don’t think that when chris paul had the rock in his hands that sugar wouldn’t have a set of problems of his own.
and when tiny and oscar got the ring, they were no longer the dominant players that they once were. my point is, if they didn’t, are they still not two of the greatest that ever played?
March 5th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
illest says:
ali…i get your point, indeed. it wouldnt take away from their greatness. instead it adds to their greatness. oscar wasnt as dominant but very key on the bucks team. tiny was still an all star player on that celtics team. you saw that post game with oscar and jack twyman after the bucks beat the bullets and oscar saying i finally did it with tears in his eyes. that ring is the capper. you always hear he was great but he didnt win the big one.
barkley doesnt get mentioned with mike, magic, bird and isiah. if he won a title it would be different. same with ewing. how can ewing be the greatest knick of all time without capturing a chip?
March 5th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
Drew Peets says:
If I can provide a counterpoint…
“Of Mice Men & Marbury”
http://dallaspenn.com/weblog/?p=2179
Written during the maelstrom of the 2007-2008 season that lead to this season’s banishing and related shenanigans. Steph will never be great in my eyes. Especially when he’ll always have legions of people to bail him out with all sorts of excuses instead of accepting his own accountability. Will that happen in Boston? Who knows. Then again like his football counterpart Terrell Owens its always “gonna be different” in the new place.
March 6th, 2009 at 1:39 am
Seldom Seen says:
As a ball player he’s had his up and downs which is unfortunate because he was mad talented and I’m sure still has something left in his tank to prove…one of my favorites who for good or bad was seemigly caught up in too much drama…at G-Tech he was amazing to watch as was Allen Iveson, Kerry Kittles and Ray Allen during those years…as a humanitarian and someone who gives back to the community he’s done a alot and as was mentioned before his heartfelt and passionate out pouring of sadness over Katrina showed a real human side to Steph the person beyond bball…as a businessman he’s certainly proving to be one of the wisest with his most recent Starbury brand expansion and partnership deal as well as his various real estate investments…He will always be one of our own hometown heroes regardless of where he plays…like Pearl, Walter Berry, Sweet Pea, Ed Pickney, Felipe Lopez, Franciso Garcia, Ron Artest, Kenny Anderson, Bernard King, Kareem, etc …Steph is a NYC bball legend and this is his home as well as it is ours…
March 7th, 2009 at 1:27 am
inspiredworlds says:
i feel that half this article was defending marbury. he’s a tough subject to write about, because so many people hate him.
there’s no doubt that he has talent and can play at the highest level. however, i think its very telling that he’s been traded so many times and the teams have gotten better. there must be a reason why all these teams traded him and didnt want to build around him.
March 7th, 2009 at 1:27 am
inspiredworlds says:
and you didnt mention one of this biggest contributions – the $15 shoes!!!! the starbury brand.
March 7th, 2009 at 10:02 am
ali says:
inspiredworlds,
the $15 shoes and some of the philanthropy have gone unnoticed. and my intention was to present an argument in defense of marbury, playing a devil’s advocate if you will, because it seemed like the story being told was completely one sided.