The Holy Land of Hoops

1992 First Team All-NBA

Michael Jordan
Clyde Drexler
David Robinson
Karl Malone
?????????

Who was the 5th member of that team?

Chris Mullin

That wasn't hard, was it?

Where were people who say he's not highly recognizable in basketball circles outside New York? Under a rock?

- 3-time All American
- National Player of the Year
- 5 time NBA All Star
- Dream Team
- Basketball Hall of Fame

This is not some guy who just had a pretty good career. He was a star in college as a freshman. He was on the national stage as a college and pro player for 20 years (1981-2001). At the peak of his college career, he was the best player in the country and took his team to a #1 ranking and the Final Four. At the peak of his pro career, he was one of the 5 best players in the game (1st team All NBA) and one of the top ten for a sustained 5 years.

It would be like saying no one outside the Pacific Northwest would recognize John Stockton if he came back to coach Gonzaga. People in basketball circles know who this guy is. Coaches especially know who he is because of the way he played the game. Fundamentally sound. Great passer as well as scorer. Made others around him better. Top 40 all time in steals and FT shooting. A coach's dream.

People in central Indiana know who he is. He was a key part in the Pacers run to the finals in 2000 and several good years surrounding that.

Bill Marsh wrote:That wasn't hard, was it?

Where were people who say he's not highly recognizable in basketball circles outside New York? Under a rock?

- 3-time All Americam
- National Player of the Year
- 5 time NBA All Star
- Dream Team
- Basketball Hall of Fame

This is not some guy who just had a pretty good career. He was a star in college as a freshman. He was on the national stage as a college and pro player for 20 years (1981-2001). At the peak of his college career, he was the best player in the country and took his team to a #1 ranking and the Final Four. At the peak of his pro career, he was one of the 5 best players in the game (1st team All NBA) and one of the top ten for a sustained 5 years.

It would be like saying no one outside the Pacific Northwest would recognize John Stockton if he came back to coach Gonzaga. People in basketball circles know who this guy is. Coaches especially know who he is because of the way he played the game. Fundamentally sound. Great passer as well as scorer. Made others around him better. Top 40 all time in steals and FT shooting. A coach's dream.

I think the point is that rising freshmen in college, born in late 1996 or in 1997, and those younger may not recognize him. Mullin was long gone from the Pacers by the time those kids were in elementary school. The St. John's days were 12 years, and counting, before they were born. Kids don't really know who was first-team all-NBA five years ago, much less 23 years ago.

Now, I'm just explaining that point of view, not agreeing with it. I certainly agree that these players' coaches and parents, especially in greater NYC and in Indiana, will know very well who Chris Mullin is. The players will just have to get a little history lesson because it's unreasonable to expect them to know all about a player who has been retired for a dozen years. There are very few former players I would expect live-in-the-now high schoolers to know about: Jordan, Pippen (by association), Ewing, Shaq, Barkley (because of TNT), others who are analysts for the pros, and a small handful of others. Mullin doesn't stand out quite THAT much. But again, just a little history about the game is all it would take to get them familiar with him.

They don't have to know him at first - their coaches and parents will know him. And when they find out who he is, they will sit and talk with him for sure. It's a home run.