Great read from Charlie Pierce, who I read now on just about a daily basis on his blog on esquire.com. Charlie doesn’t do much sports now, but his background is in sportswriting. And he discusses that college meeting between Sidney and Larry Bird very well.
That NCAA game with Indiana State was my freshman year. I was working for sports information then. Thus, I didn’t see the ISU game. The baseball team played a doubleheader at home that afternoon with Baylor. Spring football practice was going on, and track, and Rick Schaeffer, who would have normally been at George Cole Field with baseball, was in Cincinnati for the NCAA tournament. So they stuck some dumb freshman – me – at GCF running the press box. I think I may also have been the official scorer that day; if so, the official scoring decisions were highly questionable. But since I was tied up with baseball, I didn’t see the trip, or Bob Heaton’s heave. Which probably was a good thing. I might have broken something.
Really good article by Pierce. And, he’s right on. It is ridiculous Sidney isn’t already in the HOF. If his knees hadn’t been shot, he would have played at a high level for 4 or 5 more years and he would have been a shoe-in.
I didn’t realize he was a finalist this year. He shouldn’t need it if these voters would just take a hard look at what he accomplished, but Good Luck anyway Sid!
Bird and the Celtics prevented Moncrief from achieving legendary status in the NBA, too. He was the best player on some really fine Milwaukee teams that might have won a championship in some later years. Unfortunately for him the Lakers, Celtics, and 76ers were three of the best teams in NBA history when Moncrief was at his peak. If Milwaukee could have acquired a HOF post player like those other three clubs had, they could have been just as good.
I read that article the other day, and it is a good read - however, he left out a compelling part of the story.
As I recall, in that Elite Eight showdown with Indiana State, Moncrief was in foul trouble much of the game. I don’t remember all of the details with precision, but my recollection is that Moncrief picked up his fourth foul early in the second half and had to sit. But Bird starting torching us, so with something liike 10 or 11 minutes left in the game, Sutton made the only play he could - he put Sidney back in and assigned him to Bird. Moncrief’s defense frustrated the great player so badly that he could only score one field goal the rest of the way. Bird tried everything he could to foul Sidney out, but he failed to do so. As described, the final play was designed to go to Bird, but he could not get the ball.
It was a tremendous display of skill, against one of the best players every to play the game, in a high stakes showdown. Indiana State won the game, but Moncrief - already an All America - cemented his value and ability to those who really know basketball that night.
Problem with that is both Sparty and ISU had to win another game before they could meet. Sparty won easily, blowing out Penn (the last time an Ivy League school made the FF) and ISU only beat DePaul by 2 in the semifinal.
Hate to think about that game and the BS walking call. Regardless, Sid should be in the HOF. He is to me the greatest of all the Razorbacks and a great Pro.
You could see it the first game he got in in a meaningful way. It was at Barton on a Sat. morning against Tulane I think (We beat A&M in football later that day to go to the Cotton Bowl. Great day for the Hogs!) When he went in, there was a stir in the gym. I had no idea who that skinny kid was. I soon found out! Number 32. He would somehow get a rebound around much bigger guys and then go up and score. I still have no idea how he did those things.