A Look Back, Part 3

He's On Fire! Chances are you've heard that phrase before in relation to someone other than Michael Jackson or a Vietnamese Buddhist monk. It's time to celebrate the game that brought that phrase into mainstream jargon: the video game NBA Jam. I'm a bit biased towards NBA Jam Tournament Edition, the follow up to NBA Jam, so that's the game I'm going to devote this blog to.
What more is there to say about NBA Jam? Everyone who's at least sixteen years of age has heard of it, even if they haven't played it. It introduced phrases such as "Boom Shaka-Laka," "He's Heating Up," and the aforementioned "He's On Fire."
The designers of the game also had the foresight to make this a realistic game....at least in the sense of streak shooting. After three made shots in a row by the same player, that player is on fire. In what in my opinion, qualifies as a genius decision, the creators decided to literally have the ball set on fire and scorch the net as it goes in.
Another gem about this game is that you can shatter the backboard glass. Basically you have to dunk a lot through the entire game, and then in the fourth quarter, a guy who is rated highly in the 'Dunk' category can shatter the glass. The cool thing about this feature is that it represents a part of the NBA at that time that is now lost. Hoops are built now to withstand even more maximum force than Shaq could provide, so unfortunately, we will no longer see anything like this.

Speaking of parts of the NBA that have been lost to history, this game is great for remembering some of those random scrubs that you haven't thought about in years. Eric Montross, anyone? How about Todd Day? Or Rony Seikaly? And the best part is, that if you go on to beat all 27 NBA teams, the roster expands and you're able to play with even more players who have faded into obscurity.
The only two glaring omissions are MJ and Shaq. Apparently their names were too expensive to be included in the game. Shaq had his own video game for the Sega Genesis, and Jordan wouldn't have been on the roster anyway for the NBA Jam T.E. version released in 1994.
A few random thoughts on this game: My favorite player to play with is Derrick Coleman. He's an absolute beast, especially for his dunks and ability to knock even the biggest guys over. Every time I play with him I think about the Hall of Famer he should have been.
In this game, Scott Skiles bears a striking resemblance to Dennis the Menace.
The best upgrade from NBA Jam to T.E. in my opinion, was the option of playing with hot spots and power up icons. The hot spots were stars on the floor with a number in it. If you made a shot from that spot on the floor, you were given points equal to the number in the star. The power up icons were different hexagons scattered across the floor. Each one stood for something such as speed, on fire, etc., which you acquired if you picked it up. It was a good way to mix the traditional game up.
It was always frustrating to play the computer in this game. You'd have to be up by at least three at the end of the game, because you know they were never going to miss that last second full court shot to win the game. I'd try to plan the last few possessions out so that I'd be able to take the last shot, whether I was winning or losing.
As a kid, I always played with the Bulls. Scottie Pippen was a great player in the game, but always seemed to miss every shot you took with him in the clutch. In an interview, NBA Jam creator Mark Turmell revealed that there was a code programmed into the game so that any Bulls player would miss a last second shot against the Pistons. He says it's only against the Pistons, I'm convinced it's against everyone. For the full interview (a really interesting read, by the way), click here.
So if you have this game stored away somewhere in your closet or attic, dust it off. It will bring you right back to your childhood. When you had less worries and more Clarence Weatherspoon in your life.

A Look Back, Part 2

I had a unique experience growing up a basketball fan in Chicago during the mid 90s. Youngsters naturally gravitate towards the best players in the NBA, and it just so happened that the best player played for my hometown team. But what made my experience truly unique is that the aforementioned best player took two years off in between championships. And it just so happens those two years were when I fully began to comprehend the game of basketball and its star players.
Jordan was gone and I was too naive to appreciate how good of a player Scottie Pippen actually was, so I gravitated towards the newest NBA sensation. No other than the point/shooting guard hybrid known as Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway.
The funny thing is, I can't recall every watching Penny play. I'm sure I did at some point, but nothing sticks out in my mind about the type of player he was. What I remember most is the the way he was marketed. Kudos to his public relations team. The fact that I can remember so much about his brand and very little about his play counts for something. Or maybe it just illustrates that I was an impressionable seven year old.
I first read about Penny in an issue of Sports Illustrated For Kids. That magazine alone deserves a blog tribute. Anyway, I always loved reading about athletes in that magazine because they always broke things down very simply for young readers. They interviewed athletes about their favorite food and movies, etc. And they always found a way to gloss over serious issues for some of these athletes growing up such poverty and managed to tell stories in a kid-friendly way.
Firstly, I liked the cover with Penny on it. It was a penny (creative, I know), with his face on it instead of Lincoln's. In the article they explained that his nickname "Penny" was in fact a misunderstanding. His grandma used to call him "pretty" and people thought she was calling him Penny, and the name stuck. His first name was also supposed to be Anthony, but who ever was writing the birth certificate misheard his mother and wrote down Anfernee. At age seven, I thought Anfernee was the coolest name ever. I have to admit, I'm more partial to Anthony nowadays.

When discussing Penny, it's impossible to forget about his sidekick Lil' Penny. Lil' Penny was the precursor to the LeBron and Kobe puppets that Nike currently advertises. The puppet was voiced by Chris Rock and looked like an exact replica of Penny himself. The commercials were engaging, funny, and smart. The puppet was really a perfect marketing strategy because it appealed to both kids and adults alike. I remember I had a Lil' Penny shirt. It was mostly white, blue letters, with the faces of Lil' Penny and Penny in black and white. I dont' remember what the shirt said. I've been searching for it, but can't find a picture on the internet.
Here's a few of the classic Lil' Penny commercials:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AK88MQWsYj8 (One of the best sports commercials ever, period).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URNwiRPQf1A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMiQy4gDJE0 (This one came after Shaq left for LA, so they were trying to hype Penny up as the lone superstar in Orlando).

The last point I'd like to make is how tight the Air Penny I and II's were. The picture above is of the II's, my personal preference. They may not look like much nowadays, but I can't stress enough how popular these were back in the day. The Magic were a team growing in popularity in the mid 90s, and the Penny's with the Magic color scheme were a natural hit.
The thing that used to annoy me about those shoes is the people that wore them could never ball. Worse yet, most didn't even know who Penny Hardaway was. As a kid, there was nothing more frustrating than playing recess basketball in Payless shoes, while the kid who couldn't even make a layup had the new Air Penny II's.
Injuries derailed Penny's career, allowing fans to speculate about the type of career he could have had if he'd stayed healthy. Nonetheless, he will go down as an integral part of the 1990s NBA for the impact he created on popular culture alone. He's been in the news lately because he has said he wants to return to the Miami Heat, which inspired me to write about him in the first place. Stay retired Penny, your place in basketball history is already secure.

A Look Back, Part 1

This is the first of many blog entries that are dedicated to looking back on my sports related childhood memories. The first entry will be dedicated to mini basketball hoops.
I was in Dick's Sporting Goods a few years ago looking around and noticed the mini basketball hoop they had in stock. The official name of it was SKLZ Pro Mini Hoop. I glanced at the picture on the box, and it was the closest thing I'd ever seen to a real basketball hoop. Real rim, real net, rubber ball, plastic backboard (but looks glass), and a rim with a built in spring, so it won't break off when you dunk. All inside the comfort of your own home!
It was one of the coolest things I'd ever seen. I immediately wished it had been around when I was a kid. When I was a kid, we had to replace the hoop every six months or so. It couldn't withstand a barrage of dunks and terribly missed shots off the front of the rim. Just looking at this SKLZ hoop, I could tell that it was durable, and would never need to be replaced.
A few days ago, on a whim, I decided I was going to buy this hoop. I checked on the internet and saw that the cheapest price was 22 dollars. I didn't want to wait, so I ended up paying thirty for it in the stores. I know what you're thinking. How can a grown man possibly justify spending thirty dollars on a mini basketball hoop...for himself? Well, I'm going to try.
After purchasing this mini hoop, my confidence has skyrocketed. My entire life I've wondered what it would feel like to play like Shaq or LeBron James. Now I know. Anything within five feet of the basket I make easily. I can overpower imaginary defenders and dunk with one or both hands. My left handed hook is equally as effective has my right hander. I can soar through the air, bang my head on the rim, and make ridiculous reverse layups.
But will all of this comes a drawback. A major drawback at that. I can't shoot.
That's right, I can't shoot. You know how I was talking about feeling like Shaq in the paint, well I've also been feeling like Shaq at the free throw line. The hoop is hanging from my door, and its height is even with my hands when I raise them above my head. It's hard to get any arc on the shot. So needless to say, I've been banging the majority of my shots off the front of the rim. It makes a loud noise too, so it's obvious to anyone in the house that you've not just missed, but missed badly.
Second reason why the hoop is great: I get a workout. I don't know if it's been the heat of late, or the fact that I've been taking this a little too seriously, but I've worked up a sweat playing the last few days. I can't ever remember sweating while playing on a mini hoop as a kid. This probably speaks more to my lack of conditioning, but it's never a bad thing to get some exercise, regardless of how you get it.
Exercise and increased confidence are great, but neither trumps what will surely be the biggest payoff of this hoop: it will be there when I'm watching Bulls games. One thing I never grew out of was trying to imitate athletes and great athletic plays. To this day I get incredibly excited after watching a great play and desperately go looking for an outlet to express that excitement.
I finally have that outlet. I can see it now. Next time Derrick Rose abuses a defender and floats in a tear drop, I will do the same. Next time Joakim Noah grabs a rebound, runs the floor, and finishes the fast break with a dunk, I'll do the same. I love it. No more pantomiming a ball in my hand, ticking the last seconds down in my head, only to shoot an invisible basketball that always goes in.
Now I have the actual ball, actual hoop, seconds still ticking away in my head, but now I can actually miss. Oh well, let the big kid have his fun. Thirty dollars well spent if you ask me.