Connie Hawkins was one of my two favorite basketball players of all time. He landed with the Lakers after squandering his talents with the Globetrotters and then in the old ABA, followed by a great run with the Phoenix Suns. By the time, he got here, the Hawk was still capable of dominating games in brief stretches though no longer of the consistency to carry a team.
Hawkins played here in the years after Wilt but before Kareem, when the Lakers had no chance of winning, when no one could believe in the team except for a kid. There’s something wonderful about rooting for a team without a prayer. It’s like rooting for an indy band. The Rolling Stones don’t need you and neither do the Yankees.
Tonight, the Lakers face Orlando. This team is going nowhere. Why not trade Kobe and really have some fun?
Jack Silbert, curator