Sports Poets Society

https://thegruelingtruth.com/basketball/nba/connie-hawkins-the-hawk-who-soared-despite-the-chains/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKVIiNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFuZ0RTa1lsdlU2ZEdxeFZZAR76GlzdU8xmqtCDR7Pc0gjAyf85ozZndoHXiZZd6H6UFGY1fxUHVYpTFBDbww_aem_hLJGwMkx8tWskWsgZqKpWA Mike Goodpaster -  The Grueling Truth Chief Editor Publish Date: 05/16/2025 Fact checked by: Mark Lewis Connie Hawkins, known as “The Hawk,” was one of basketball’s most transcendent and tragic figures. A playground legend who became an icon in the ABA and a brief but brilliant NBA star, Hawkins’ career was derailed before it began by a scandal he had nothing to do with. This is the story of a man whose potential was stifled by injustice, and who still soared high enough to earn a spot in the Basketball Hall of Fame. Early Life and Rise to Stardom Born on July 17, 1942, in Brooklyn, New York, Cornelius “Connie” Hawkins was raised in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. From an early age, it was clear that Hawkins was no ordinary ath...

https://from-way-downtown.com/2023/10/12/connie-hawkins-the-hawk-ages-gracefully-1991/ Posted by  bobkuska  -  October 12, 2023 [This is a nice article about Connie Hawkins as a 48-year-old NBA retiree living in his beloved adopted city of Pittsburgh . What’s doubly nice is the story’s told by Jim O’Brien, best remembered today for his 1970s ABA column in The Sporting News . As O’Brien gladly would have told you, he was a proud native Pittsburgher through and through and had known and admired Hawkins for decades from seeing him around town. The two were almost the same age, and, when he writes of Hawkins, O’Brien is writing about a friend—and vice versa. In fact, The Hawk once passed along the following note of mutual admiration: “To Jimmy O’Brien & Family. From one super player to one super writer equals two great persons. Peace & Love, Connie Hawkins #42.” In his retirement, The Hawk had taken up tennis. “I would classify myself as a moderate weekend hacker who...

https://from-way-downtown.com/2023/07/26/connie-hawkins-comes-home-1970/ Posted by  bobkuska July 26, 2023   [Here’s another feature on Connie Hawkins, his NBA banishment, and his million-dollar redemption with the Phoenix Suns. This article comes from the February 1970 issue of the popular men’s publication True Magazine . The feature also is clearly a follow up to the Life Magazine ’s 1969 blockbuster story on Hawkins that the blog recently posted. This True Magazine piece covers a lot of the same ground as the Life article. But reporter Al Stump , mostly remembered for his autobiography of baseball’s Ty Cobb, charts some new ground . . . and garbles a few facts to turn up the melodrama. But still, his sourcing is excellent and, for the quotes alone, Stump’s piece is still worth the read to understand just how ethically wrong-headed the NBA’s blackball of Hawkins really was.] **** The career of Connie Hawkins, now in his first season with the National Basketball Associatio...

https://www.gazzetta.it/Nba/14-12-2023/draymond-green-sospeso-dall-nba-a-tempo-indeterminato-dopo-il-pugno-a-nurkic.shtml Per l'ala dei Warriors, recidiva, è arrivata la decisione inedita della Lega: supporto psicologico, fuori per almeno 15-20 partite prima di valutare il rientro Simone Sandri Gazzetta.it - 14 dicembre 2023 (modifica alle 11:14) - New York I tifosi dei Warriors temevano il peggio, dopo la manata rifilata da Draymond Green a Jusuf Nurkic, ma il “peggio”, almeno nell’era Silver, sembrava poter essere quantificano in una squalifica di 10 giornate. Al limite 15. Invece la Lega, stanca delle troppe bravate di un giocatore che meno di un mese fa era stato sospeso per cinque gare per aver messo le mani al collo di Gobert, ha deciso di usare la mano pesante, arrivando a una decisione che ha sorpreso un po’ tutti. Il veterano di Golden State, infatti, è stato sospeso a “tempo indeterminato” e prima di poter tornare a disposizione di coach Kerr dovrà “superare alcuni step i...

https://eu.azcentral.com/story/sports/nba/suns/2017/10/07/connie-hawkins-charismatic-game-likable-personality-made-him-suns-first-star-connie-hawkins-death/743284001/ SCOTT BORDOW | The Republic | azcentral.com Al McCoy loves to tell stories about former Suns great Connie Hawkins, who died Friday at the age of 75 . Here’s one of them: After Hawkins’ autobiography “Foul! The Connie Hawkins Story” was published in 1972, Hawkins would do a series of interviews in whatever city the Suns were playing in that night. At the end of one long road trip, the Suns were in Kansas City to take on the Kings, and Hawkins was exhausted. But, as was his agreeable nature, he consented to the round of interviews that morning and afternoon. In the locker room before the game, McCoy noticed that Hawkins wasn’t around. He asked longtime Suns trainer Joe Proski where Hawkins was, and Proski said, “I don’t know. I’ve been trying to call the guy, but no one is answering in his hotel room.” Worried, the Suns ...

Finali NBA 1976, gara 5: Boston Celtics-Phoenix Suns 128-126 dopo 3 t.s. La più lunga gara di finale nella storia della NBA di CHRISTIAN GIORDANO © La serie per il campionato NBA del 1976 era sul due pari, con la cenerentola Phoenix Suns che aveva saputo vender cara la pelle ai Boston Celtics. Sotto coach John MacLeod, i Suns avevano a malapena fatto i playoff con un ultimo colpo di coda che consentì loro di finire con un record di 42-40, mentre i Celtics erano volati verso il titolo divisionale con un bilancio di 54-28. Innescati dai due grandi realizzatori, Paul Westphal e Alvan Adams, e dall’ala rimbalzista Garfield Heard, i Suns ce l’avevano fatta fino alla Finale. Dopo aver perso le prime due gare a Boston da Dave Cowens, Jo Jo White e compagnia, vinsero le successive due partite a Phoenix. Venerdì 4 giugno, una calda, afosa serata, Gara Cinque incominciò in un umido Boston Garden con i Celtics che si portano subito a un vantaggio di 32-12. Ma i Suns si ripor...

https://www.amazon.it/Hoops-Memories-Momenti-basket-americano-ebook/dp/B01JAC2GTQ Gara5 delle Finali 1976 è stata “La Partita” per antonomasia nella storia della NBA. Al Garden, i favoriti Celtics battono i carneadi Suns dopo tre supplementari incredibili. E sullo slancio, due giorni dopo, conquistano il secondo anello in tre anni… di Christian Giordano  © HOOPS MEMORIES - Momenti epici di basket USA Rainbow Sports Books © Più che una partita, un film: magari di John Landis («Tutto in una notte») o di Wolfgang Petersen («La storia infinita»), perché di tutto e di più è stata Gara5 delle Finali NBA 1976. Secondo molti, quel Boston-Phoenix 128-126 è La Partita per antonomasia nella storia della Lega; e stando agli almanacchi, la prima di una serie per il titolo a protrarsi per tre-dicasi-tre tempi supplementari. Ma non è solo per l’eccezionale durata, 3 ore e 8 minuti, che “The Game” è entrata nella leggenda e nel ricordo, indelebile, dei 15320 privilegiati presenti quel 4 ...

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/31761287/nba-finals-2021-know-phoenix-suns-vs-milwaukee-bucks-showdown In an NBA postseason filled with plenty of surprises, upsets and even more injuries, we've finally made it to the Finals. And it's a showdown no one saw coming. The Phoenix Suns vs. Milwaukee Bucks matchup features two franchises stuck in long title droughts: The Suns have never won an NBA championship in 53 seasons as a franchise, while the Bucks' last ring came in 1971, when they were led by legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson . This is the first Finals appearance for 16-year veteran Chris Paul , who joined the Suns in the offseason and provided Devin Booker , Deandre Ayton and a young Phoenix roster a healthy dose of leadership and clutch-time poise. A title is the only item missing from the future Hall of Fame point guard's long list of accolades. After failing to reach the Finals despite securing the league's best record in 2019 and 2020, t...