Tag: Patrick Ewing

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Space Jam and Space Jam 2

Space Jam: A New Legacy

Tarlin and Mike are back again with a special bonus episode of Running It Back where we look for lessons learned from the Space Jam franchise coinciding with the recent release of LeBron’s new film, Space Jam: A New Legacy. To start, we give respect and a little tunefulness in honor of the late great Biz Markie, RIP.

Then we begin by digging back into the context around the first Space Jam movie which was fleshed out in The Last Dance documentary which we’ve covered on other shows. We bask in a little 90s nostalgia for MJ’s charisma and a cast of NBA Legends at the time including Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley, Larry Johnson, Mugsy Bogues, and Shawn Bradley.

From there, we jump to the Summer of 2021 and the release of the new Space Jam vehicle featuring LeBron, Diana Taurasi, Clay Thompson among others. How does the new version stack up against the OG Space Jam? What are our thoughts on Don Cheadle’s performance as Al G Rithm in the WB Serververse? What marketing advice do we have for Warner Brothers and who is Mike’s pick to star in Space Jam 3?

Listen in to find out!

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The 1999 NBA Playoffs, the Cinderella Knicks, and the Rise of Pop and Tim Duncan

Tarlin and Mike run it all the way back to 1999 to cover the season that was shortened due to a work stoppage. Through a series of fortuitous events, the New York Knicks get hot and tear through the early rounds of the playoffs before overcoming the loss of The Big Fella, Patrick Ewing, in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers. Despite losing their Captain, the Knicks go on to beat the Pacers by virtue of the heroic play of Latrell Spreewell, Marcus Camby, Alan Houston, and Larry Johnson. They go on to face Greg Popovich and Tim Duncan in the Finals where they were quickly dispatched as the Spurs dynasty begins to take shape.

What can we learn from this? How do the stories of 1999 resonate with life in the NBA Bubble amid the tumult of 2020? As leaders, what lessons can we learn from Van Gundy, Spree, Tim Duncan, and Pop?

Listen in as we run it back to help make sense of things today.

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Coach John Thompson’s Georgetown Hoyas and the Ewing Era

We begin by reflecting on the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman, aka Black Panther, before diving into the history of the other legend who passed recently, Georgetown Coach John Thompson. Coach Thompson was a towering figure who established a program whose legacy we’re still experiencing to this day. We explore his impact on college basketball by focusing on getting young black men access to education while giving them support as men. We extol the timeless ways in which he connected with his players for good times and bad as we tell the stories of Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, Allen Iverson, and Michael Graham. And we explore the lessons in his decision to walk out in 1989 to protest Proposition 48 and its impact on traditionally underserved student-athletes.

And, of course, we dive into Ewing and Thompson’s storied run from an appearance in the NCAA Finals against Dean Smith, James Worthy, Sam Perkins, and Michael Jordan in 1982 to a Championship in 1984 to a legendary run in 1985 which culminated in the shocking upset by Villanova in the Finals in 1985.

While we mourn the loss of Coach Thompson, we take some solace in running it back to another time and learning from the life of a man who had the courage to stand by his conviction and the vision to establish a legacy that changed the world.