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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 7, 1980)
Portland Observer February 7, 1980 Page 7 Sports Talk Am erican State Bank by Ron Sykes Sports editor _ ' ‘ The Bank that integration b u ilt ' 2737 N.E. Union SHOULD RAMSEY GO? In (he norm o f our lives when one becomes ill, a remedy is quickly called for. It ’ s usually in the form o f a medical doctor. The Trialblazers, as a team, is deathly ill and help is certainly needed. But please don’t send for a doctor. What the Blazers need now is to rid themselves o f the doctor, that is Doctor Jack Ramsey. Jack Ramsey has never been able to sustain a successful program. At Philadelphia he built a great team with such stars as Hal Greer, W ilt Chamberlain, Chet Walker, Luke Jackson and Billy Cunningham. This team compiled a fantastic 68-13 record while winning the NBA championship in 1967. But like Portland, that was only a one time fling with success. One by one they all had their disagreements, and eventually departed. Now we’ve all been told how important chemistry means to a a team. Then why aren’t Ramsey teams able to sustain this much needed chemistry? W ith all the trade talk going on involving Maurice Lucas and Lionel Hollins, one just has to know that something is drastically wrong. Maurice, well we can understand his situation because he has asked to leave. H ollin ’ s story is quite different because he hasn't asked to be traded. Then why such stars as Luke and Lionel? Are they destructive to the team? Have their talents diminished so that they’ re no longer productive? I say no and believe the problem is Jack Ram sey’ s ego. Yes E-G-O. The problem with Dr. Jack is that there’s only one way, his way. And that has been a problem wherever he travels. Now Portland needs Hollins like a locomotive needs railroad tracks. A lead guard o f Lionel’s caliber is sorely needed and badly missed. Lucas can be replaced by Kermit Washington and the injured Mychal Thompson. But there’ s no one on the roster to replace Hollins. Too much blame for the Blazer demise are being attributed to Luke and Lionel. Management should take a long look at Dr. Jack and a possible replacement. And that much loved offense o f his is really just another form o f defense. The Blazers lead the league in defense simply because it takes so long to run through their oltense. Ramsey wants to involve all his players ui the offense and not get caught relying on just one or two players. That’s fine, except that all players aren’t good offensive players, and something is wrong when a good o f fensive player like Ron Brewer only gets seven or eight shots per game playing within Ramsey’ s offense. Under another coach Ronnie would surely average 18-20 shots per game. And it ’s still hard to imagine Ramsey not wanting Lloyd Free. W hat can he see in Jim Paxson as a guard in the NBA and why hasn't Larry Steele been traded? I f memory serves me right, he publicly asked as much last year. I didn’t hear any reports o f management knocking on any doors to ac comodate Larry. O.K. so Hollins is still playing on sore knees. Is that why they’ re looking to trade "T ra in ? ” If so...then why talk o f picking up M itch Kupchak. Kupchak is a good big man but by his own admission is still injured with a herneated disc and is in much worse shape than Hollins. Luke and Hollins gone. How quickly they forget. Another question to be answered is why Ramsey is getting more o f a chance than that given to Lenny Wilkins. W ilkins, at Seattle, has at least shown the ability o f keeping his team together. Was Bill Walton really that great? And how about reserve center Jim Brewers lone start? Jim had 17 points and II boards. What the stats failed to show was activity. Jim Brewer is a very active player, and does many things that Tom Owens cannot. Rumor has it that he’s again headed down the waiver trail. Too RAILROAD DEPOT APPLIANCE SALES i SILVER SALE JACK RAMSEY bad. Inner City game of the week Grant 84 Washington 81 A tremendous game from start to finish. Reminiscent o f the old W illie Stoudainire days when the gym would be filled and packed to the rafters. Grant with superior talent but was outcoached by John Stilwell and finally prevailed in overtime. The Bruins scratched and clawed and never gave up, finally tied it up when Goliath Yeggins canned one o l two free throws with 54 ticks left on the clock. In a losing cause Goliath was a giant. The 6-4 senior dominated inside scoring 31 points, while grabbing 21 rebounds. Last Friday, it was inner city basketball at it’s best. We are repeating our Silver Sale for those of you who had your silver in the bank and were unable to cash in on the great values. So pull out your collection of genuine silver coins and take advantage of fabulous old time prices! Dollars, halves, quarters or dimes! As long as they are U.S. silver mint ed 1964 and before. 17.6 cu. ft. No-Frost Refrigerator-Freezer M Y -, r * * - fie >==© The last ro o k ie to start in a N a tio n a l Basketball Association A ll-S ta r game was the " B ig O ” Oscar Robertson o f the old Cincin nati Royals in 1960-61. Robertson was on hand fo r the 30th meeting between the East-West superstars and to watch E rvin "M a g ic ” Johnson, the Los Angeles Lakers rookie sensation become the first rookie since himself to start the contest. The "B ig O ,” who is the second a ll-tim e leading scorer in N .B .A . history, and third in field goal per centage helped the West old timers defeat the Eastern old timers in a " H o t Shot Contest.” George " Ic e m a n " G ervin welcomed "M a g ic” to the affair by pum ping in 16 points in the first quarter and finished with 34 points, 10 rebounds and a MVP trophy as the East won 144 136. Johnson finished with only four points. I t ’ s nice to be here as a rookie even though we did not win the game. This was like a relief from the pits o f regular season play, but everyone w ill be serious again this week. Some o f the players here I w on ’ t see fo r awhile because we only play them once, so it was good to see some o f them,” he told the Washington Post afterwards. One o f the most e xciting and colorful college athletes in many years, Ervin Johnson was the first player selected in the N .B.A. draft last year. The Lakers obtained the top selection iron New Orleans as part o f the Gail Goodrich compen sation and winning a coin toss with Chicago. "M a g ic ” was the Lakers first number one pick in 19 years. Johnson, a 6-8 guard out o f Michigan State University where he and Greg Keiser (currently with the Detroit Pistons) led the Spartans to a N C AA championship in 1979 as a sophomore. Magic was a unanimous All- American selection and M VP o f the N .C .A .A . tournament last season. In the N C A A cham pionship win over L arry B ird, another N .B .A . all-star, Johnson scored 24 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, and dished out five assist. In 62 college games Johnson averaged 17.1 points, 7 rebounds, and dished out 491 assist for a 7.6 average in tw o years. Johnson decided to turn professional after his sophomore year at State, having accomplished the primary goal o f w inning a N .C .A .A . title fo r the school. " I tried very hard to give MSU two o f the best years o f my life. I thought that it was tune for a new challenge. The N B A. offers that. I probably wouldn’ t have come out if this team h adn't wanted me. We have the best center in the league in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and an out standing organization. If they weren’t a team that made the play offs, I would have stayed at State,” he said. He was tagged with the nickname “ Magic” by a sportswriter after he scored 36 p o in ts, grabbed 18 rebounds, and had 16^ assist in a high school game. Johnson has been his team’s top scorer and rebounder on every team he’ s been on since the fifth grade at Main Street Elementary School in Lansing; at least until he left Ev- erette High School. He once scored 48 points in a ju n io r high school game and averaged 35 points, 22 rebounds, shot 52 percent fro m the fie ld , averaged five steals, and five assist to lead Lansing Everette to a Michigan Class A championship as a senior. Some critics label Johnson as a "h o t dog” or a "show-boater.” He calls it a terrible mistake. "M a g ic ” has charisma, style, and just loves to play basketball and let his emotions take him to another spiritual plane. " I love to have fu n ,” he said with a hugh smile. “ I f I don’t; if I ’ m not laughing and not jum ping up and C O M M E R C IA L ELECTRONICS INC. TV, FLOOR M ODEL $99 We also have microwave ovens. Full ser vice warranty on all TV sets sold. 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KILLINGSWORTH 284-0906 HOURS: Wsetnbys • I lo S Sal. • 1« Io 5 Sun • Noon Io J Lean Ground Beef 1 Fresh.............. lb. Arm Chuck Roast 8«.DA Cho v $17* Cross Rib Roast Beef Stew M e a t BoX Cho - , $1“ Pork Spare Ribs Pork Loin Chops Slab Bacon ’1“ Fresh Country Style Fresh . . lb Oregon Chief Deep Smoked Old Fashioned By the Piece. lb. Hygrode Regular or Beef 1-lb pAg. Ball Park Franks "M A G IC " JOHNSON dow n, y o u ’ ll know so m e thin g ’ s wrong. I like to get emotionally in volved in basketball.” Johnson has had several chances to jum p up and down this season because the Lakers are playing ex cellent basketball. C urrently, he is averaging 18.5 points per game, six rebounds, six assist, and leads the team in steals. "M a g ic ” is one o f the key reasons why the Lakers are 23-8 since December 1st, 1979, and 39-17 overall. The Lakers are to be con sidered as serious contenders for the N .B.A. title. “ Anybody who judges that guy strictly on physical ab’lity is making the biggest mistake in the w orld,” said Bobby Knight, head basketball coach at Indiana University. “ You judge him in the heart He does so many things thatit is amazing. He is one player who plays strictly for the team. He is one player who thinks o f everybody else before he thinks o f himself. He makes everyone else around him better,” he told the Detroit News. Don Ford, the Lakers four year forward agreed with Bobby Knight. A ll the attention Magic is get ting has helped Kareem a great deal," he said. "T h e crunch isn’ t all on Kareem's shoulders, so people see more enthusiasm with him. But it's always been there, i t ’ s just magnified now. He’ s taken a lot o f pressure o ff o l N orm N ixon and helps everyone to get the shots they like w ith his great p la ytn a kin g abilities.” Johnson then asked, “ why should I take a 20-footer when I have a open man under the basket fo r a lay-up?” "M a g ic ,” a telecommunications m ajor M ichigan State had a 2.6 grade point average and promise his m other that he w ill complete his degree requirem ents d u rin g the summer months. “ Even though I did leave school early, I do know the value o f ob ta in in g A sound education. Most people in my p o s itio n w ould probabl forget about school, but not me. 1 want a degree because it'll help me a fte r I ’ m fin is h w ith basketball,” he said. American Cheese Kroft Sliced 24-oz Singles ’1“ 98‘ ’1? $2« B an q u et M e a t Pies Chicken, s JB hjbv Frozen 1st 4, A d d tl at Reg Price 8 oz. Pkg. SE 20th b DIVISION SE 72nd b FLAVEL NE 15th b FREMONT W BURNSIDE et 21st SAN RAFAEL - 1910 NE 122nd Forest Grove 2329 PACIFIC Oregon City 87B MOLALLA Candy 1051 SW 1st LLOVD CENTER 14410 SE DIVISION 3956 SE POWELL NE 74th b GLISAN HILLSBORO 950 SE OAK —DDDQBEJOniH \ BROOKS 2 0 0 1 NSON B6GKN HIS U YEAR C A R « » IN '5 5 WITH THE BIRD» WHO WON THS W.S. THAT TSAR ? A. (SIANTS B YANK« c D o p e s « « ___________ N A T W O T C J4MSUE ENER Y. We can't a ff or to waste it.
