The Lesson of The Late Mark McNamara: Enjoy Every Sandwich (as Warren Zevon Once Said)

by gordie | Dec 4, 2022 | NBA, Philadelphia 76ers

On April 27, 2020, Mark McNamara’s heart gave out as he stood outside a museum in Ely, Nevada. The long-retired NBA center, who began his eight-year career in 1982 as a first-round draft pick of the 76ers, died later that day at age 60. Before his time, as the phrase...

Sixers Fans Play Their Part in Latest Ben Simmons Drama; Sequels Expected

by gordie | Nov 24, 2022 | NBA, Philadelphia 76ers

The fan standing along the railing in the Wells Fargo Center’s lower stands was a guy in his 20s. No more than that. As Ben Simmons exited the court late Tuesday night, his Brooklyn Nets a 115-106 loser to the Sixers’ JVs, the fan’s eyes were bulging. His voice was...

To Tom Herr and Gene Garber — and Many Others — Bruce Sutter (RIP) Remains a Timeless Figure

by gordie | Oct 28, 2022 | MLB

Baseball’s timelessness was once the game’s blessing, the subject of sonnets. Now it is the game’s curse, the target of regulation. (Hello, pitch clock!) But what it also is, is something of a myth. Because while the sport has always been timeless, it has never been...

Jrue Holiday, the Ghost of Sixers Past, Haunts His Old Team at a Critical Moment

by gordie | Oct 22, 2022 | NBA

Game point, Sixers down one. Final seconds melting away. James Harden with the ball in his hands, Jrue Holiday in a defensive stance. Such a delicious matchup, on so many levels. Harden is an elite scorer, Holiday an elite defender – “the head of our snake on...

Life as a Corrections Officer: For Former Warwick Hoops Star Dennis Hurd, It’s Always a Matter of Having Eyes Wide Open

by gordie | Aug 27, 2022 | College Basketball, High School Sports

There was reportedly a murder in January at California’s High Desert State Prison. And another in February. And another in July. There was also reportedly a riot there in April. “It can be dangerous, but I don’t look at it that way,” Dennis Hurd said recently over the...