He said he could take four players from his hometown (Edit: Petersburg Virginia) and beat the 1981 Celtics.terrynever said:Totally unique player in pro basketball history. If memory serves me correctly, Moses went straight from high school to the ABA and made an immediate impact as a teenager. Then on to the NBA with Houston. Boston fans got to meet him in the NBA Finals during Bird's second season. Didn't he say something really ribald that Bird responded to in equally colorful fashion?
As a Sixers fan, I remember Mo for his prediction prior to the 1983 playoffs. Asked how he saw each series going, Moses said, "Fo, Fo and Fo." You needed an interpreter sometimes because Moses retained his Virginia accent and never pretended to be a Rhodes Scholar. He was one of a kind and loved in every city he played in. Boston Celtics loyalists may may have Moses but true hoop fans saw him as the greatest rebounder ever. Better than Wilt or Ruseell when it came to cleaning the boards. Wide body, big ass and plenty of ups.
HomeRunBaker said:Can someone please check in with Harvey Catchings and Caldwell Jones?
Great observation about Moses and the 1983 Sixers. Julius was beyond his prime but Toney was right in the middle of his brief reign as an unstoppable shooting guard with deep range. The Celtics traded for DJ in part to stifle Toney, right?snowmanny said:He said he could take four players from his hometown (Edit: Petersburg Virginia) and beat the 1981 Celtics.
He was the best player in the NBA in that 1981-83 time frame between peak Abdul-Jabbar/Dr. J and peak Bird. Absolutely incredible. That 1983 Sixers team gets overshadowed in history by the Celtics/Lakers but that was a great great great team, basically wire to wire no doubt champions. I think he himself has been forgotten, a little bit, by history as well. Malone at his peak, I believe, was as good or better than any center since.
Seems that being a very, very, very large human is not good for long term health.Devizier said:Wow. Shocking. Seems far too young, but I suppose that's the life of a 7-footer.
snowmanny said:He said he could take four players from his hometown (Edit: Petersburg Virginia) and beat the 1981 Celtics.
Yeah, never believe weights especially. Moses probably weighed 250 in his prime. 215 was high school.YTF said:I saw several stat sources that listed his playing weight at 215 pounds. That can't be right unless that was his weight out of high school and sources just stayed with what had been previously listed.
That is the remark I remember. Classic Larry Bird. I think even Philly fans had to like Bird when he said that. In fact, it was hard not to like a guy who played such a beautiful unselfish style. The Sixers were not known for passing the ball well, except for Cheeks.The Allented Mr Ripley said:He did, and Larry Bird responded at the championship rally at City Hall Plaza by telling the massive crowd, "Moses can eat shit."
As a Rockets fan I loved Moses until the moment he forced his way to Philly.Mugsys Jock said:Any Celtic fan of the era HATED Moses Malone... but every Celtic fan of the era RESPECTED Moses Malone.
As hard-working a player as I've ever seen, and played selfless basketball on a pretty selfish team.
Fo' Fo' Fo' for you, Moses. R.I.P.
terrynever said:That is the remark I remember. Classic Larry Bird. I think even Philly fans had to like Bird when he said that. In fact, it was hard not to like a guy who played such a beautiful unselfish style. The Sixers were not known for passing the ball well, except for Cheeks.
To be exact, there was a sign held by a fan that said "Moses eats shit", and Bird referred to that sign in his speech, saying, "Moses does eat shit"The Allented Mr Ripley said:He did, and Larry Bird responded at the championship rally at City Hall Plaza by telling the massive crowd, "Moses can eat shit."
I didn't write that clearly enough.Remagellan said:Moses was on the Rockets when he made that remark.
But as a Philly fan, I can assure you we never liked Larry Bird. NEVER!
RIP, Moses, our deliverer.
Yes, that was one of the games that sticks in your head forever. The Havlicek stole the ball game was one of my first lessons in a season ending badly. Not repeating with Wilt in 1968 and then trading him for three stiffs ... Rooting for the 76ers is the hardest thing to do for a Philly fan. ... But Moses gave us that one magical season, the 76ers' last title, 32 years ago.Remagellan said:Well, you had a perspective those of us in Philadelphia lacked. Most of us never got over the refs swallowing their whistles at the end of Game 7 of the 1981 ECF and allowing the Celtics to use thuggish tactics to steal that game. Back then I hated the Celtics as much as I've ever hated the MFYs.
But I'm sure Celtics fans had similar feelings about our players, particularly Moses, who was very physical yet never seem to foul out. I used to joke back then that the only reason why Marc Iavaroni was on the team was to put his hand up whenever a defensive foul occurred near Moses.
Yup, backup center Rick Robey to the Suns for one time Finals MVP Dennis Johnson. Available for so little because he had become a locker room lawyer in Phoenix, turned out he just didn't like losing. Celts management knew getting past Philly would require someone to guard Toney so got one of (maybe the) best big defensive guard in the league. For practically nothing.terrynever said:Great observation about Moses and the 1983 Sixers. Julius was beyond his prime but Toney was right in the middle of his brief reign as an unstoppable shooting guard with deep range. The Celtics traded for DJ in part to stifle Toney, right?
Johnny Most used to call Toney the Boston Strangler. When he was hot, he was unstoppable. Bad feet did him in.terrynever said:Great observation about Moses and the 1983 Sixers. Julius was beyond his prime but Toney was right in the middle of his brief reign as an unstoppable shooting guard with deep range. The Celtics traded for DJ in part to stifle Toney, right?
I was there. Larry punched the DOES.Lose Remerswaal said:To be exact, there was a sign held by a fan that said "Moses eats shit", and Bird referred to that sign in his speech, saying, "Moses does eat shit"
http://basketbawful.blogspot.com/2007/01/quotables-starring-moses-malone-and.html
We're looking at you Shawn Bradley!TheoShmeo said:First Chocolate Thunder, now Moses. Time to amp up that life insurance policy, Sixers centers.
GeorgeCostanza said:We're looking at you Shawn Bradley!
60 years old, that sucks. Way too young. The tail end of his career coincides with the very beginning of my basketball watching life so I don't have much to go by way of personal experience watching him, but I've always had a soft spot for guys who rebound the shit out of the ball and play fuck you defense. The unglamorous stuff. RIP big fella.
Was (Not Wasdin) said:Moses deserved better from the Sixers front office. That 82-83 Sixers team was one of the best single season teams ever, and they had 3 first round picks in 1984. Hit a home run with Barkley, but really blew the #10 pick (Leon Wood, leaving John Stockton, Michael Cage and Kevin Willis on the board, among others). Then, two years later, they traded the number one overall pick for the immortal Roy Hinson, and shipped Moses out for Jeff Ruland. That team should have been heading into the late 80s with an older but still effective Moses, Charles Barkley, and Brad Daugherty up front.