Most Unusual Move You Ever Saw

[JCrow]

Fun Topic. What is the most Unusual Move you have ever seen in basketball? I have two nominations:

1. Don Nelson "Palm -A- Shot" - Don Nelson had a really odd move where instead of using a conventional head-fake, he would go thru the shooting motion and just plam the ball. He'd end up with his right arm extended straight up holding the ball. I saw him do this to Wilt in the old Boston Garden in about 1968. It sent Wilt to the rafters. I've never seen any other player use it?

2. "Where's-the-Ball?" - In a situation where A1 is posting B1 and B1 is standing straight up in a "HANDS UP YOUR"RE UNDER ARREST POSE." A1 clamps the ball to his belly with his left hand and swings his right arm around B1, tapping his forearm to B1's thigh. B1 turns to see where the pass went and NOBODY behind him has the ball! My 9th Grade Coach did this to me once and it took me two weeks to figure out what happened? I use to see the New Bedford guys do it and Larry Bird did a "modified version" where he'd hold the ball in two hands and tap B1's thigh?

Any others?

[Mark Padgett]

I once saw Shaq make a free throw!

[ChrisSportsFan]

When? Can you post the video?

[TravelinMan]

I once saw the Knicks win a basketball game. hmmmm. guess it wasn't the coach's fault.

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

I once saw traveling called in a NBA game.

MTD, Sr.

[Rich]

Originally posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.
I once saw traveling called in a NBA game.

MTD, Sr.

I saw it called three times IN A QUARTER in an NBA game last week. All were legit travel calls.

One of them was such an obvious travel -- player A1 is posting up, leaves the floor with both feet and lands facing B1. The player AND the coach argued the call -- unbelievable.

I think the NBA is cracking down at bit. Although in the same game I was referencing above, a player caught the ball on one foot and then took three distinct steps with the ball after catching it. Perhaps this is one of those NBA differences I've never bothered to learn?

[Mark Padgett]

Originally posted by ChrisSportsFan
When? Can you post the video?

It was in a commercial.

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally posted by JCrow
1. Don Nelson "Palm -A- Shot" - Don Nelson had a really odd move where instead of using a conventional head-fake, he would go thru the shooting motion and just plam the ball. He'd end up with his right arm extended straight up holding the ball. I saw him do this to Wilt in the old Boston Garden in about 1968. It sent Wilt to the rafters. I've never seen any other player use it?

That was a Connie Hawkins trademark also. Hawkins, in his prime, was tied with Elgin Baylor as the greatest ballplayer that I ever saw. That includes Jordan too btw.

Unfortunately, Hawkin's prime was spent with the Globetrotters because the NBA banned him for years.

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.
I once saw traveling called in a NBA game.

MTD, Sr.

It wasn't on a star though. I think there's a rule saying you can't call it on them.

[26 Year Gap]

I remember a Pistons-Celtics matchup when McHale was leaning in on Mahorn while on offense and Mahorn stepped back, McHale fell on his Kiester and I laughed. But not as hard as when he did it to him AGAIN in the SAME game.

[JCrow]

Jurasic,

I saw Hawkins once in the Garden after he joined the NBA. He was well past his prime. Forget which Team he was playing for.....maybe the Suns? The Celts had Don Nelson. He and Hawkins were together very briefly in college before Hawkins got in trouble.

I had the feeling that Hawkins had something to prove because he absolutely went crazy on Don Nelosn that night. He just ate him up. Hawkins was quite a ball player.

I had the great luck to be at a game where Pistol Pete set a quarter scoring record at the Garden with 25. He and Jo-jo White were going at it that night. It was before the NBA 3 Point Line or Pistol would have had 30 or more in the quarter. He was unreal when he got hot.

As for McHale, I seem to remember him torching Bill Lambeer for like 50+? I don't think he traveled, either. He had great pivot moves and a supper variety of "slop" shots.

Speaking of, Lambeer...I think he was a disgarce to basketball. He may be a good guy and all but he did stuff that went way beyond competition. I saw Isaiah Thomas' last game at the Fleet Center. He went crazy on Sherman Douglas. Think he had 40 or 50. On one screen, Lambeer put his elbow out and almost tried to knock out Sherman's eye. Real nice guy, 6'-11" vs. about 5'-11".

I remember Reffing during the Bad Boys Era, I think the kids all went crazy for about 5 years. You'd have a kid take two hands and push a rebounder out of position like Rodman did and look at you like you were crazy when you called the foul? I'm not a big David Stern fan. I think permitting (and he had to have sanctioned it) the Pistons to play like that hurt basketball, alot. And.....Chuck Daley's suits hurt my eyes.

[JugglingReferee]

I called travelling in a community college final once. Tall black kid, 6-4. Post player. (Yes, 6-4 is tall in my neck of the woods.)

He says, "You can't call travel - you've never seen that move before." Cracked me right up.

The only thing I could muster: "You're right - I've never seen that move before. But I used to use it myself and it was travelling then too."

[ChuckElias]

Originally posted by TravelinMan
I once saw the Knicks win a basketball game. hmmmm. guess it wasn't the coach's fault.

In triple OT! And score 140 points in the process! Can you believe the Knicks scored 140 last night? Wow.