couldn't post this when my internets were down, so I'm doing it now, sans my oh-so-witty commentary which probably didn't make sense. Deleted my blather anyway, there is no use living in the past any more than necessary.
The shot went up and they battled for the rebound, with the Clippers' Chris Kaman reaching up for the ball and Denver's Reggie Evans reaching low for Kaman's ....The classless move by Evans was caught on video for the whole basketball world to see. If anyone in the NBA was surprised, they weren't paying attention to the “Collector” and his career.
From Kevin Garnett to Brian Scalabrine, players in the visitors' locker room at KeyArena sang this tune for all of the years Evans was a Sonic.
Evans' tactics push the limit on a nightly basis. His repertoire is vast -- grabbing a jock strap in order to pull it tight and then snap it, as well as nicely timing pinches to prevent a player from going for a rebound.
Evans has taken a valid part of the basketball world, the tricks of the trade, and pushed it beyond its limits.
and a little history:
Early in a game, whenever John Stockton was being run into a pick, he would try to drive his knee into the thigh of the big man trying to screen him. The pick never seemed to be set with the same authority the rest of the night.Reggie Miller was notorious for his tricks, whether letting his elbows fly in every direction when running off picks, or throwing his feet forward on a jump shot, putting the defender in jeopardy of having his voice increase a few octaves.
Isiah Thomas was a tripper. When defending, he would take a jab step, and then when the offensive player went by, he would trip him to force a turnover.
The tricks exist throughout a game. Jake Voskuhl is known for grabbing players' shorts while running in transition.
Before the hand-check rule, defenders would grab a player on the hip by his waistband, thus holding him still while reaching around to steal the ball. Derek Harper used that trick on Nate McMillan on the opening two plays of McMillan's first playoff game.
Bruce Bowen slides his feet underneath the shooter, putting them in peril when they land.
Charles Oakley was notorious for fouling after the whistle had already blown.
more
update (5/11/06) basketbawful has more, including this from the master of the cheap shot, Karl Malone
Tags: Basketball, /History, /NBA
