Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
Another reason to love Mongo.
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Interesting Rarely Known Sports Facts/Tidbits Thread
- Thread starter HarleyQuinn
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Another reason to love Mongo.
alfdogg
Alfdogg
There have been 14 players in NBA history that have represented 3 different franchises in the NBA Finals. John Salley was the first player to win a championship for all 3 (89-90 Pistons, 96 Bulls, 00 Lakers). Three of the other players have since joined him -
Robert Horry (94-95 Rockets, 00-02 Lakers, 05 and 07 Spurs)
LeBron James (12-13 Heat, 16 Cavs, 20 Lakers)
Danny Green (14 Spurs, 19 Raptors, 20 Lakers).
Some others on the list weren't so lucky.
Larry Foust went to the Finals in back-to-back seasons with the 1955/56 Fort Wayne Pistons, coming up short against the Syracuse Nationals and Philadelphia Warriors. He later got three consecutive cracks against the Bill Russell Celtics dynasty from 1959-61, first with the Lakers in their final season in Minneapolis, then with Bob Pettit's St. Louis Hawks, but was again unsuccessful.
Max Zaslofsky is the only player whose last name starts with the letter "Z" to make an NBA Alll-Star team. Unfortunately, he is also 0-4 in the NBA Finals, despite getting chances with three different teams. He was on the losing end in the very first NBA Finals, as his Chicago Stags fell to the Philadelphia Warriors. He would later join the Knicks, losing two 7-game heart breakers in 1951 and 1952 to the Rochester Royals and Minneapolis Lakers. In his last Finals appearance, he would suffer the same fate as the aforementioned Foust with the Pistons against the Nationals.
Gary Payton, Sam Perkins, and Eric Snow all went to exactly three Finals, with different uniforms on each time, the only three players in NBA history to accomplish this rarity. Payton would manage to get that elusive ring with the Heat, but Perkins and Snow weren't so lucky. Also, in an amazing coincidence, all three players were teammates on the 1996 Seattle SuperSonics.
Payton (96 Sonics, 04 Lakers, 06 Heat)
Perkins (91 Lakers, 96 Sonics, 00 Pacers)
Snow (96 Sonics, 01 Sixers, 07 Cavs)
The remaining five players on the list:
Danny Ainge, 6 appearances (84-87 Celtics, 92 Blazers, 93 Suns)
Wilt Chamberlain, 6 appearances (64 Warriors, 67 Sixers, 69-70 and 72-73 Lakers)
Shaquille O'Neal, 6 appearances (95 Magic, 00-02 and 04 Lakers, 06 Heat
Clyde Lovellette, 5 appearances (54 Lakers, 60-61 Hawks, 63-64 Celtics)
Kendrick Perkins, 4 appearances (08 and 10 Celtics, 12 Thunder, 15 Cavs)
Steve Mix is not on the list, but this is some bad luck worth noting. Mix played 9 seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers from 1974-82, appearing in three NBA Finals but coming up short all three times. In the 1983 season, he signed with the Lakers just before the playoffs, who had ended the Sixers' two previous Finals bids. And, as luck would have it, 1983 would be the year the Sixers finally figured it out, and Mix would go home ringless once again.
Robert Horry (94-95 Rockets, 00-02 Lakers, 05 and 07 Spurs)
LeBron James (12-13 Heat, 16 Cavs, 20 Lakers)
Danny Green (14 Spurs, 19 Raptors, 20 Lakers).
Some others on the list weren't so lucky.
Larry Foust went to the Finals in back-to-back seasons with the 1955/56 Fort Wayne Pistons, coming up short against the Syracuse Nationals and Philadelphia Warriors. He later got three consecutive cracks against the Bill Russell Celtics dynasty from 1959-61, first with the Lakers in their final season in Minneapolis, then with Bob Pettit's St. Louis Hawks, but was again unsuccessful.
Max Zaslofsky is the only player whose last name starts with the letter "Z" to make an NBA Alll-Star team. Unfortunately, he is also 0-4 in the NBA Finals, despite getting chances with three different teams. He was on the losing end in the very first NBA Finals, as his Chicago Stags fell to the Philadelphia Warriors. He would later join the Knicks, losing two 7-game heart breakers in 1951 and 1952 to the Rochester Royals and Minneapolis Lakers. In his last Finals appearance, he would suffer the same fate as the aforementioned Foust with the Pistons against the Nationals.
Gary Payton, Sam Perkins, and Eric Snow all went to exactly three Finals, with different uniforms on each time, the only three players in NBA history to accomplish this rarity. Payton would manage to get that elusive ring with the Heat, but Perkins and Snow weren't so lucky. Also, in an amazing coincidence, all three players were teammates on the 1996 Seattle SuperSonics.
Payton (96 Sonics, 04 Lakers, 06 Heat)
Perkins (91 Lakers, 96 Sonics, 00 Pacers)
Snow (96 Sonics, 01 Sixers, 07 Cavs)
The remaining five players on the list:
Danny Ainge, 6 appearances (84-87 Celtics, 92 Blazers, 93 Suns)
Wilt Chamberlain, 6 appearances (64 Warriors, 67 Sixers, 69-70 and 72-73 Lakers)
Shaquille O'Neal, 6 appearances (95 Magic, 00-02 and 04 Lakers, 06 Heat
Clyde Lovellette, 5 appearances (54 Lakers, 60-61 Hawks, 63-64 Celtics)
Kendrick Perkins, 4 appearances (08 and 10 Celtics, 12 Thunder, 15 Cavs)
Steve Mix is not on the list, but this is some bad luck worth noting. Mix played 9 seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers from 1974-82, appearing in three NBA Finals but coming up short all three times. In the 1983 season, he signed with the Lakers just before the playoffs, who had ended the Sixers' two previous Finals bids. And, as luck would have it, 1983 would be the year the Sixers finally figured it out, and Mix would go home ringless once again.
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
I was going to say that '95-'96 Sonics team would've won a 'ship in 99% of NBA seasons but were unlucky enough to play at the same time as the '95-'96 Bulls but then I remembered their coach was George Karl and Idk.
Not having Gary Payton guard Michael Jordan until they were on the verge of getting swept is an all time underrated dumb coaching decision.
Not having Gary Payton guard Michael Jordan until they were on the verge of getting swept is an all time underrated dumb coaching decision.
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
Atlanta Braves made it until Game 161 this season without making a sacrifice bunt.
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
Michael Harris II bunted runners to second and third with no one out. Anyone want to guess how many runners scored in the inning?
ZERO
BruiserBrody
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alfdogg
Alfdogg
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
The Phillies once had a pitcher whose nickname was "Losing Pitcher." Hugh Mulcahy played for the Phils from 1935-46, posting a 45-89 record in the process. He lost 20 games twice. His career ERA of 4.49 gave him an ERA+ of 90.
In 1938 Mulcahy finished 10-20, ERA of 4.61. The Phillies finished 45-105, 43 games behind first place and 24.5 games behind 7th place. He finished 25th in an MVP vote. Someone actually looked at this season and put it on an MVP ballot. I thought that was extremely odd and scoured the old Sporting News to see if anyone mentioned it. Nothing on the MVP race, though Mulcahy was mentioned several times in trade rumors.
The thing is Mulcahy was a good pitcher. You can dig through the numbers and find things like getting hammered fourth time through the order and such. Mulcahy soaked up innings. He had a terrible defense behind him. Until mid-1938 he pitched in a brutal home park. I think someone looked through all that and saw Mulcahy's talent. Maybe.
In 1940 Mulcahy kind of broke through. 13-22 but his ERA fell to 3.60 and he made the All Star team. After that season Mulcahy was drafted and spent four years in the service. He came back briefly after the war but threw less than 100 innings. He was the ace of a bad team and was an All Star. With different circumstances he probably has a much better career.
In 1938 Mulcahy finished 10-20, ERA of 4.61. The Phillies finished 45-105, 43 games behind first place and 24.5 games behind 7th place. He finished 25th in an MVP vote. Someone actually looked at this season and put it on an MVP ballot. I thought that was extremely odd and scoured the old Sporting News to see if anyone mentioned it. Nothing on the MVP race, though Mulcahy was mentioned several times in trade rumors.
The thing is Mulcahy was a good pitcher. You can dig through the numbers and find things like getting hammered fourth time through the order and such. Mulcahy soaked up innings. He had a terrible defense behind him. Until mid-1938 he pitched in a brutal home park. I think someone looked through all that and saw Mulcahy's talent. Maybe.
In 1940 Mulcahy kind of broke through. 13-22 but his ERA fell to 3.60 and he made the All Star team. After that season Mulcahy was drafted and spent four years in the service. He came back briefly after the war but threw less than 100 innings. He was the ace of a bad team and was an All Star. With different circumstances he probably has a much better career.
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
Caught a tidbit that Bill Melton set a record for the White Sox with 33 home runs in 1970. That was the first 30+ home run season by a White Sox player. By comparison, the Yankees by 1970 had 51 30 HR seasons.
alfdogg
Alfdogg
I made a post about this previously but it looks like it was lost in the server move.
Teams to make it to at least the NBA's Conference Finals with no All-Stars:
1975 Chicago Bulls (lost 4-3 to Golden State Warriors)
1976 Cleveland Cavaliers (lost 4-2 to Boston Celtics)
1978 Seattle SuperSonics (beat Denver Nuggets 4-2, lost 4-3 to Washington Bullets)
1994 Indiana Pacers (lost 4-3 to New York Knicks)
2021 Atlanta Hawks (lost 4-2 to Milwaukee Bucks)
Not only are the '78 Sonics the only one of these teams to make the Finals, but the Bullets' only All-Star, Elvin Hayes, only made the team as an injury replacement.
This post was inspired because I had thought that the 2000 Trailblazers had no players named to the game, but it turns out Rasheed Wallace made it.
Teams to make it to at least the NBA's Conference Finals with no All-Stars:
1975 Chicago Bulls (lost 4-3 to Golden State Warriors)
1976 Cleveland Cavaliers (lost 4-2 to Boston Celtics)
1978 Seattle SuperSonics (beat Denver Nuggets 4-2, lost 4-3 to Washington Bullets)
1994 Indiana Pacers (lost 4-3 to New York Knicks)
2021 Atlanta Hawks (lost 4-2 to Milwaukee Bucks)
Not only are the '78 Sonics the only one of these teams to make the Finals, but the Bullets' only All-Star, Elvin Hayes, only made the team as an injury replacement.
This post was inspired because I had thought that the 2000 Trailblazers had no players named to the game, but it turns out Rasheed Wallace made it.
alfdogg
Alfdogg
Only two players among the four major sports have won back-to-back MVP awards with two different teams: Moses Malone (82 Rockets/83 Sixers) and Barry Bonds (92 Pirates/93 Giants).
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
The publishers of PWI produced a commemorative magazine about Michael Jordan’s ‘01 comeback.
“Grandest Wizard” doesn’t seem to be the best choice of terms tbh.
“Grandest Wizard” doesn’t seem to be the best choice of terms tbh.
alfdogg
Alfdogg
Rob Van Adam
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
This season is the first time LeBron James' team has gone 0-4 to start the year since his rookie season.
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
I'd be curious to find out when the last untelevised MLB, NBA, and NHL games were. I know even into the '00s, there was the rare Celtics game that I had to listen to on the radio.
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
Google search was fruitless, but there was mention of Felix Hernandez's MLB debut being untelevised with just a home plate, fixed camera stream online.
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
Yeah, there's definitely been MLB games in past 15 years that weren't televised. It's hard to imagine as a Red Sox fan but I can imagine barely anyone being up in arms if an early May, small market game goes untelevised.
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
I figure it's not uncommon, but for both teams not to have a broadcast would be rare.
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
Yeah, it's got to be combination of time of week, time of season, and teams. Looking it up on Retrosheet, King Felix's debut was a Thursday night game in early August against the Detroit Tigers (two years removed from having 2nd worst season of modern era). Mariners were in the midst of last place season. It's kind of easy to see how no TV network would find that matchup appealing
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
Multi-team markets in the spring. Philadelphia has the Phillies, Sixers and Flyers and when the latter two are in the playoffs the Phillies get third priority. Cities like Detroit probably get that occasionally.
Big Beard Booty Daddy
Canadian Destroyer213
There's been times, as recently as last year, where the Knicks, Rangers, Islanders, and Devils have games on at the same time. In NY, all are covered by the same Network, MSG. There's MSG, MSG 2 and MSG+. When all three networks have a game, the fourth is usually untelevised. The Knicks are top priority, even in bad seasons. The other 3 would rotate which game wasn't televised.
alfdogg
Alfdogg
Tonight:
Thursday Night Football: Philadelphia @ Houston
World Series Game 5: Philadelphia @ Houston
Thursday Night Football: Philadelphia @ Houston
World Series Game 5: Philadelphia @ Houston
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
Pops Kamala was at this game.
Cackling Co Pilot Kamala
Integral Poster
BruiserBrody
Integral Poster
- Messages
- 31,071
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- 3,237
- Points
- 293
In 1910, Death Row Inmates Played Baseball For Their Lives - History Collection
The Wyoming State Penitentiary All Stars looked like your average baseball team. Healthy young men swung their bats and ran to their bases just like any other. For a prison team, you would think that this was some kind of reward for good behavior. But in fact, it was quite…
historycollection.com
alkeiper
Welcoming our new insect overlords
In 1910, Death Row Inmates Played Baseball For Their Lives - History Collection
The Wyoming State Penitentiary All Stars looked like your average baseball team. Healthy young men swung their bats and ran to their bases just like any other. For a prison team, you would think that this was some kind of reward for good behavior. But in fact, it was quite…
Baseball by the Book: Episode 227: "The Death Row All-Stars"
In the summer of 1911, a group of murderers, rapists and other hardened convicts at the Wyoming State Penitentiary garnered national attention through their prowess at baseball. Author Chris Enss joins us to discuss a remarkable tale of corruption, politics, violence and home runs in a state...
baseballbythebook.libsyn.com