Staff Report
No big man in the history of basketball had a sweeter jump shot. Somehow, though, the greatest basketball player that Smith High School ever produced doesn�t get the respect he�s due.
During this 50th anniversary season of the NBA, McAdoo is watching from the sidelines as an assistant coach for Pat Riley and the Miami Heat. The Smith alumnus somehow was left off the NBA�s list of the 50 greatest players in league history. McAdoo, another North Carolinian, Dominique Wilkins, and former Detroit center Bob Lanier were the biggest omissions from the team.
�I was overlooked,� McAdoo said. �Any anytime you�re overlooked, it bothers you. Maybe it�s because Buffalo isn�t in the league anymore. I don�t know.�
McAdoo graduated from Smith in 1970 and is the school�s only hoops all-America. After graduating from Vincennes, Ind., Junior College, he played at North Carolina and led the Tar Heels to the Final Four. He then played in the NBA for the now defunct Buffalo Braves and then the Los Angeles Lakers. The Greensboro native won the league�s MVP in Buffalo and a world�s championship in Los Angeles, teaming with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and James Worthy. His career averages of 22 points and 9 rebounds would earn him a pretty penny today.
�I�d demand $100 million,� he said. �I won the MVP after my third year. I�d have been a free agent after three years, so I know I would have been well paid. It�s all about timing, I guess.�
Return to WordSmith homepage.� 1997 [email protected]
Get your own Free Home Page
