Cool gesture and something a little weird
 

At the metro area MS season ending girls tournament, one 7th grade team comes out with temporary tattoos on their legs just above their socks. The tattoo is a basketball with the number 30 on it. I asked one of the girls what was going on. It seems one of their teammates had to leave their previous game at halftime two days earlier to go to the hospital to have her appendix removed. All the girls were wearing her number to show their support and to wish her a speedy recovery. She said the pics were just makeup and could wash off easily but they were going to leave them on until the girl was OK and could come home. I thought that was really cool of them.

The weird thing was with the other team. They had ten players. There starters wore numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 and the subs wore 11, 22, 33, 44 and 55. I just thought it was kind of weird.

The next tournament was MS boys and they sometimes wear "illegal" numbers. We're told to let them. One kid had on number 99. I asked him if it was to honor George Mikan. He replied "Who?" When I asked his coach (who looked to be in his 40s) the same question, I got the same answer.

How soon they forget.

http://www.croatianhistory.net/gif/mikan.jpg

Padgett is posting something weird.

In related news the sun will come up in the east tomorrow and a politician is caught up in a prostitution ring.

Film at 11

Holy Hands, Padgett ! That ball looks tiny! Do you know if it was? http://www.clicksmilies.com/s1106/sp...smiley-003.gif

Nope - Mikan was just huge (plus the camera angle makes it look smaller still)

I guess I better not let my wife see me from that angle then. :D

I was thinking that was a hand drawing/painting, Duane.

The man.
 

When I introduced the "Mikan Drill" to my 5th grade boys team this year I told them it was named after the greatest player in NBA history. It became a running joke on the team as Mikan became a my pretend "hero". I came up with different pictures and stuff.

Everything I've read about the guy indicates he actually had big balls.

And then he went on to become the commisioner of the ABA. Read "Loose Balls" for a great synopsis on the history of the ABA. My favorite story was about Marvin Barnes who was supposed to fly from Memphis to St Louis for a game. Departure time 9:55. Arrival time 9:50. Barnes takes the bus. He declares, "I ain't gettin' on no time machine!"

Once there was a big fight during a game between the Lakers and the Nats (Syracuse). Except no one would fight Mikan. He was the only player on the floor by himself. It wasn't that he didn't like to mix it up. In fact, he has said he gathered 166 stitches in his pro career. He was just so big, no one would mess with him.

Here's a quote from "Easy Ed" Macauley: "George knocked the filling out of my tooth one night in St. Louis. He came around with that elbow, and I was going up to block the shot with my right hand when he hit me on the right side of my face where my teeth are and really rattled me. I spit the filing out and went down the court and tried to score on him. His elbows should be in the Hall of Fame."

That would be cool - having your elbows inducted into the Hall of Fame.

BTW - Mikan wore another number with the Lakers after he wore number 99. Know what it was? I do.

21?

Yes! Go take a cookie out of petty cash.

Mikan played in the days of the 6 foot wide lane that sort of resembled a light bulb with the whole free throw circle included. Not sure if it was due to him or to Wilt that it went to 12 ft.

And in reading this, you'll know why that drill is called the "Mikan drill."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Mikan

Kinda shaped like an old fashioned key hole. Probably where the name "key" came from. ;)