Bucks
Are Cream of the Crop; The Rest — Anybody’s Guess
NBA Central by Bill Nichols
CLEVELAND- First is Milwaukee. The rest should get in line
in alphabetical order. That’s right, Atlanta, Chicago,
Cleveland, Detroit and Indiana. Now the Central Division is
in its proper order. This is how it should all look in the Central
when 82 games have been posted at the end of the 1981-82 National
Basketball Association season.
That’s how it should look, but excluding Milwaukee you
could put the clubs in a basket, shake up the names and come
up with just as good a guess.
There are plenty of questions in the Central Division. Will
Marques Johnson return and help the Bucks win their first since
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar graced the shores of Lake Michigan? Can
Bob Lanier stay healthy all year? Will Junior Bridgeman be content
as the games top sixth man-or second banana?
In Chicago there is a large question regarding guard Ronnie
Lester’s knee. Will he be healthy and lead the Bulls to
the promise land?
Can everyone remain healthy in Atlanta? Will those players know
how to play without Hubie Brown’s whip? Can Coach Kevin
Loughery handle all that talent?
In Cleveland, the question is: Can Ted Stepian buy a contender
or is he sending good money after bad?
Can Jack McKinney pull of his second successive coaching miracle
in Indiana by putting the Pacers into the playoffs two straight
years? Is George McGinnis too old?
Detroit may one day have a messiah, but right now its just Isiah.
Can Thomas put people in the Silverdome? Can he lead the Pistons
to respectability? Somebody has to do it and it might well be
the 6-1 floor leader.
Milwaukee won the division by 15 games last year with 60 victories.
If the bucks win 60 again they could lead by close to 20 games.
That’s how it is in a division with all these questions
and few answers.
Hawks Sickbay At Full Capacity
Last season the Hawks spent more time in sickbay than on the
basketball court and new Coach Kevin Loughery hopes fewer bandages
and aspirin will be used this season.
But before Loughery could say Florence Nightingale, starting
guard Wes Matthews broke his foot and forwards Dan Roundfield
and John Drew suffered leg and foot injuries. Also, All-Star
backcourter Eddie Johnson, recently released from psychiatric
treatment after a bout with drugs, is questionable.
Two years ago, the Hawks won 50 games and the Central Division
title, but fell to 31-51 last winter and Drew, Roundfield, Wayne
(Tree) Rollins and Johnson combined to miss 85 games because
of injuries.
Rollins has recovered from off-season knee surgery. When the
bell rings, he will team with Roundfield and Drew in the front
court.
In all probability, Johnson will be ready and will team with
either James McElroy, Charlie Criss or DePaul rookie Clyde Bradshaw
in the backcourt.
Mike Glenn, the smooth-shooting free agent guard from the New
York Knicks, has signed an offer sheet and when he becomes a
full-fledged Hawk, his jump shots will give Loughery an additional
weapon.
Al Wood, 6-6 guard-forward from North Carolina, is the Hawks’
No. 1 draft choice and will swing from the back to the front
court this season.
However, the biggest surprise in the early going is 6-7 rookie
forward Rudy Macklin, from Louisiana State. He wasn’t
picked until the third round in the college draft and Atlanta
folks still wonder why he has lasted so long.
Bulls Pray Lester Can Stay Healthy
Ronnie Lester hasn’t played enough with the Bulls to
break a sweat, yet he is the key to their fortunes this season.
Lester, who has lived with knee problems for a couple years,
is ready to play and Coach Jerry Sloan couldn’t be happier.
A healthy Lester puts the zip back into the Bulls, something
badly needed.
The former Iowa standout, a 6-2 guard, is the man who will get the basketball to Artis Gilmore, Reggie Theus, Ricky Sobers and David Greenwood.
“Lester continues to be the most impressive player in practices,” says Sloan, “and I can’t say enough about him. Ronnie is so talented at getting the ball up the court. He really adds a dimension to this team.”
Lester was the Bulls’ first draft choice last year after a deal with Portland involving guard Kelvin Ransey.
Lester is a positive story with the Bulls, but on the negative side is this year’s top rookie, 6-9 forward Orlando Woolridge, from Notre Dame. He has yet to agree to a contract.
The other absentee is veteran forward Larry Kenon. He simply hasn’t shown up yet, despite being under contract.
Along with Lester, the backcourt will be manned by All-Star Theus and Sobers, who had his best season last winter.
Gilmore, who so badly wants a championship, is back in the middle, with Greenwood on one side and either Dwight Jones, Coby Dietrick or Scott May on the other.
Cavs Load Up on Free Agents
Cavaliers Owner Ted Stepien looks at George Steinbrenner as the patron saint of free agency, but the blunders of Ray Kroc and Gene Autry haunt him, too.
“We signed three free agents and added four new players,” said Stepien, “and each was in the playoffs last year. This experience has to help our club.”
The Cavs have experienced players and an inexperienced coach in Don Delaney. The question persists: Can the rookie coach keep expensive egos happy and, more important, productive?
Stepien sees his team as good enough to challenge Milwaukee for division honors. Forwards Mike Mitchell and Kenny Carr are equally optimistic, but other observers simply aren’t sure what to predict for the Cavaliers.
“I look at 52 wins,” says Mitchell, a four-year forward who averaged 24.5 points per game last season when the Cavs bottomed out at 28-54. “I’ll be disappointed if we don’t win 50 games.”
“We’ll win anywhere from 47 to 53 games,” promised Carr, one of the league’s fast-rising power forwards. He was sixth in the NBA rebounding charts last winter, grabbing 10.6 per game.
Mitchell and Scott Wedman, a solid veteran, will share time at small forward.
Wedman and center James Edwards each signed for more than $700,000 per season. Those big contracts assure them considerable playing time. Edwards, a good shooter but weak rebounder, will split center duties with second-year pro Bill Laimbeer, who emerged as a competent player in his rookie season.
James Silas, obtained from San Antonio, can provide the glue as the point guard if his knee, which is questionable, holds out for one more season.
Silas will help third-year pro Geoff Huston hone his game as the playmaker. Free agent Bobby Wilkerson will see some time at both guard spots and at quick forward.
Richard Washington, who has yet to live up to his potential, will back up at power forward and center and Lee Johnson, from the Continental League, is under a guaranteed contract and will fill in at both power forward and center.
Draft Aims Pistons In Right Direction
Second-year Pistons Coach Scotty Robertson likes his team better than last year, when it was 21-61. Nearly everyone else does, too.
The college draft will have to help Detroit. The Pistons obtained a bona fide point guard in all-everything Isiah Thomas of Indiana. They also drafted workhouse forward Kelly Tripucka, from Notre Dame. It appears that these two can do nothing but help the situation at the Silver-dome.
“Coming to a team that has not been winning would be
difficult for me mentally if the guys on this team were jerks
who didn’t care,” says Thomas. “But everybody
on this club wants to win
and will sacrifice whatever they have to.
“I would hope everybody on this team would develop the type of mental toughness that Terry Tyler has. If everybody was as tough as Terry, we’d have a pretty good team.”
Tyler is the Pistons’ power forward who came of age last season. He will team with Greg Kelser, Phil Hubbard, Wayne Robinson and Tripucka.
Kent Benson is back at center, but there will be times when he plays center on offense but then moves to the defensive forward spot, with Edgar Jones, obtained from New Jersey, playing center. Jones also will see duty at forward.
The 1980 top draft pick, Larry Drew, was sent to Kansas City, giving the point guard spot to Thomas.
Holdovers in the backcourt include Larry Wright, Ronnie Lee and John Long.
[not shown: photo of Marques Johnson - caption in bold]
Whether or not forward Marques Johnson settled his contract
differences with the club, the Bucks were expected to be the
dominant team in the division.
McKinney’s Magic Pacers’ Only Hope
Pacers Coach Jack McKinney earned Coach of the Year honors last year and he just may be the best thing returning this year.
The Pacers made the playoffs for the first time last year on their 44-38 record, but few expect them to qualify for postseason play this time around.
George McGinnis is just a shell of the McGinnis who terrorized the old American Basketball Association and later played so well with Philadelphia. He’s back to give it one more try.
Big Mac joins a collection of wingmen, including Mike Bantom (truly a cut above the average), George Johnson, Clemon Johnson, who will swing from center to forward, and Louis Orr, a surprising rookie a year ago.
Tom Owens, obtained from Portland, replaces the departed James Edwards. Big Tom is solid, if not spectacular.
In the backcourt is talented but inconsistent Billy Knight, speedball Johnny Davis, veteran Don Buse and recently acquired Butch Carter. Reserve Jerry Sichting is out with a broken foot.
Herb Williams, 6-11 center-forward, is the top prospect among the draft choices. The former Ohio State pivotman has drawn raves during training camp.
Without Johnson, Bucks Still No. 1
With forward Marques Johnson, the Bucks should run away with the Central Division as it did last season, posting a 60-22 record. Unfortunately, however, Johnson was missing during the early weeks of togetherness.
Johnson was balking despite having two more years on his Milwaukee contract. First, he wanted to be traded. Those demands have subsided, but the differences remain basic. Johnson wants more dollars. The Bucks are willing to give more dollars if he agrees to more years—an extended contract.
The Bucks are division favorites, with or without Marques, but with him they just might be the best team in all of basketball.
Center Bob Lanier is healthy. When Lanier isn’t out on the court leaning on his enemies, veteran Harvey Catchings will fill the pivot spot. The veterans will share most of the center duties, but 6-11 ½ rookie Alton Lister, from Arizona State, will see some action.
Pat Cummings, who is struggling for consistency, also is available at center or on the wing.
Mickey Johnson is back at one forward spot and when Marques returns, Johnson and Johnson will be intact again.
Meantime, Coach Don Nelson is making overtures to Bob McAdoo, a free agent with New Jersey. The troubled McAdoo still has talent and Nelson, if he signs him, will try to harness it.
The backcourt is where the Bucks can match just about any club. There is play maker Quinn Buckner who came into his own last winter, a healthy Brian Winters, an active Junior Bridgeman, who also plays forward, and Sidney Moncrief.
This article by Bill Nichols
appeared in The Sporting News [date?]
Reproduced with permission of the author.