“I firmly believe that respect is a lot more important, and a lot greater, than popularity.” – Julius Erving

Nov. 9, 1984 – Larry Bird and Julius “Dr J” Erving got into a fight during a game

Both teams came into this game undefeated, Philadelphia 76ers at 5-0 and Boston Celtics 4-0. The 76ers were the NBA Champions in 1983. The Celtics captured the NBA Championship title in 1984.

Larry Bird was ejected along with Julius “Dr J” Erving in the third quarter after an on court scuffle. At the point of both ejections, Bird had outscored Erving 42 to 6. During the game, Bird had continuously informed Erving of their tallies with every chance he got to score. Bird denies this stating that it was teammate “M.L. (Carr) talking trash from the bench” during that game. Eventually a shoving match ensued, then swings taken by both players, and finally a bench-clearing brawl.

Each team boasted a ‘who’s-who’ roster.

The Celtics with: Cedric Maxwell, Larry Bird and Robert Parish up front and Dennis Johnson and Danny Ainge in the backcourt and off Head Coach K. C. Jones’ bench were: Kevin McHale, Quinn Buckner, Scott Wedman, M.L. Carr, Rick Carlisle, Greg Kite and Carlos Clark.

The Sixers started: Julius Erving, Marc Iavaroni, Moses Malone, Clint Richardson and Maurice Cheeks, with Charles Barkley, Bobby Jones, Sedale Threatt, Leon Wood, Andrew Toney (injured this game and not with the team), Clemon Johnson and Sam Williams coming off Coach Billy Cunningham’s pine.

Erving thought Bird was taking a swing at him, “so I reach out, just wanting to make sure Larry can’t clock me. I end up with my right hand on his chest, and my fingers around his neck.”

The ensuing brawl resulted in a $7,500 fine for both Bird and Erving. But the two went on to earn big promotional dollars together. “I don’t hate Larry. I never hated Larry. I hated Boston. I hated the Celtics.”

“I keep both eyes on my man. The basket hasn’t moved on me yet.” – Julius Erving

#ThrowbackThursdays

The numbers game.

#‎ThrowbackThursdays‬

Julius Erving at Rucker Park, and in the background are people on bleachers, fences, trees, and building rooftops all gathered to watch Dr. J.

Here’s footage, from NBA TV’s The Doctor, of Erving at Harlem’s famed Rucker Park:

Erving, “…in the Rucker Park league in Harlem, when people started calling me ‘Black Moses’ and ‘Houdini’, I told them if they wanted to call me anything, call me ‘Doctor’.” Over time, the nickname evolved into “Dr. Julius”, and finally “Dr. J.”

“Basketball is very simple. You can stand out there and you can take what they give you. Or you can take what you think you want.” – Julius Erving

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#MJMondays

MJ and Dr. J

June 5, 1977 – The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Philadelphia 76ers to win NBA title

In the final game of the series Bill Walton scored 20 points, snatched 23 rebounds, blocked 8 shots and dished 7 assists as the Portland Trail Blazers, in only their seventh season, swept to the NBA title after losing the first two games. Walton was named Finals MVP.

The 1976-77 NBA season started with the ABA–NBA merger. Portland had benefited from the resulting ABA dispersal draft as they acquired Spirits of St. Louis power forward Maurice Lucas to partner with Bill Walton, and the Philadelphia 76ers had signed ABA All-Star and 3-time ABA MVP Julius “Dr. J” Erving, who had taken the New York Nets to the ABA title the previous year.

While it was no surprise that Philadelphia had made it to the championship series, having posted the best record in the east (50-32, #1), Portland’s appearance in the finals was a mild surprise. Portland, a team that was founded only seven years earlier, was not only making its playoff debut with its first winning season (49-33, #3), but it was also making its finals debut as well after sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers in four close games in the Western Conference Finals.

The series quickly went 2-0 in favor of Philadelphia, but over the next four games, Portland mounted a comeback that has rarely been seen in professional sports.

May 27, 1981 – Julius Erving of the 76ers named NBA’s MVP

Julius Erving is the only player to win MVP honors in both the NBA and the ABA.

Commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, Julius Erving helped launch a modern style of play that emphasizes leaping and play above the rim. Erving helped legitimize the American Basketball Association (ABA), and was the best-known player in that league when it merged with the National Basketball Association (NBA) after the 1975–76 season.

Erving won three championships, four Most Valuable Player Awards, and three scoring titles with the ABA’s Virginia Squires and New York Nets (now the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets) and the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers. He is the fifth-highest scorer in professional basketball history with 30,026 points (NBA and ABA combined). He was well known for slam dunking from the free throw line in Slam Dunk Contests and was the only player voted Most Valuable Player in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association.

Erving was inducted in 1993 into the Basketball Hall of Fame and was also named to the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time team. In 1994, Erving was named by Sports Illustrated as one of the 40 most important athletes of all time.

“If you don’t do what’s best for your body, you’re the one who comes up on the short end.” – Julius Erving