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All Things Basketball with GD - Week 5 Roundup & Player Spotlight: Julius Erving

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Show notes:

Week 5 roundup (00:29)

TEAM OF THE WEEK:
MIL 3-0 (EAST)
GSW 4-0 (WEST)
PHO 4-0 (WEST)

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Giannis Antetokounmpo (47 pts vs LAL, 21 pts & 19 reb vs OKC, 32 pts & 20 reb vs ORL)
runner up: Stephen Curry (37 pts vs BKN, 40 pts vs CLE)

HIGHLIGHTS:
GSW travels to BKN & soundly beats them 117-99, leading fans chanting MVP to the visiting Steph Curry
Stephen A. Smith of First Take takes Kevin Durant to task for his decision going to Brooklyn because of the Kyrie Irving vaccine fiasco
LAL pretty much a .500 team when LeBron's not in the lineup
LeBron came back this past Friday; has altercation with Isaiah Stewart of DET; could face suspension or a fine
Luke Walton fired as SAC coach; Alvin Gentry takes over

INJURIES:
TOR: OG Anunoby (hip pointer) out "for a while" CHI: according to coach Nick Nurse
CHI: Nikola Vucevic (COVID) no return date yet; already missed 5 games
GSW: Klay Thompson (knee) practicing 5-on-5 drills; could be back before Christmas; James Wiseman (knee) could be back even sooner
DEN: Nikola Jokic (wrist) out "a while" according to coach Mike Malone
CLE: Collin Sexton (meniscus tear) out for the season; rookie Evan Mobley (elbow) out 2-4 weeks; Lauri Markannen (COVID) due back Monday
ATL: De'Andre Hunter (wrist) out for 2 months
BOS: Jaylen Brown (hamstring) available to play Monday; Robert Williams II (knee) missed last week's games so not sure when he'll return to the lineup
NYK: Mitchell Robinson is in the concussion protocols; will miss some games
DAL: Luka Doncic (knee, ankle) out all last week; may be back Tuesday
LAL: LeBron James (abdomen strain) back this past Friday; missed 8 games prior
PHI: Joel Embiid (COVID) still out; missed past 7 games (went 1-6 over that span)

HIGHLIGHTED UPCOMING GAMES:
NYK hosts LAL (Tue), BOS hosts BKN (Wed); NYK hosts PHO (FRI), GSW hosts POR (Fri), BKN hosts PHO (Sat); ATL hosts NYK (Sat), CHI hosts MIA (Sat), LAC hosts GSW (Sun)

FANTASY ADDS:
Lauri Markkanen (CLE), Kevin Huerter (ATL), Jalen Brunson (DAL), Aaron Gordon (DEN), Scottie Barnes (TOR)

Player spotlight: Julius Erving (21:07)
Born in Roosevelt, NY (Feb 22 1950)
A regular playing in Rucker Park in Harlem delighting the crowd
College: UMass, 3 years
Left UMass early to sign with Virginia Squires of the ABA (1971)
Drafted: Milwaukee Bucks (NBA - 1st rd, 12th pick overall)
Although drafted by MIL, tried to link up with Atlanta Hawks but to no avail thanks to VAS filing court injunctions against him signing there
Goes back to VAS to play his 2nd season with them 4 games in
Dealt to NY Nets (ABA) after season

In 1st season with NYN he, along with young players like Larry Kenon & Billy Paultz, led the team to an ABA title & his first of 3 MVP awards
His dunking prowess helped revolutionize both leagues; influenced by Connie Hawkins
Participated in 1st ever dunk contest (ABA) beating David Thompson, George Gervin, Kenon & Artis Gilmore
After the 1975-76 season the ABA folded with NBA taking in NYN, SAS, DEN & IND
In a salary dispute with NYN leading them to trade him to PHI for $3 million
Rumor: wanted to play for the NY Knicks; coach Red Holtzman didn't think he'd be a good fit

Lead them all the way to the NBA FInals in his 1st season with players like George McGinnis, Lloyd B. Free & Doug Collins; ended up losing to POR 4 games to 2 after a 2-0 lead
PHI mgmt decided to build winning team around Erving; traded for defensive stalwart Bobby Jones & later Moses Malone
Acquisition of Malone was the catalyst that would take the Sixers over the top to help Erving get his lone NBA championship beating their rivals BOS & then LAL
Decided that 1986-87 season would be his last as a player; teams paid tribute to the beloved legendary star on his farewell tour
Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1993

Before Michael Jordan's Space Jam Erving had his own fiim in 1979, The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh

We salute again one of the most popular players of his era as well as a class act on & off the court