When we think of NBA Christmas, we definitely think of Christmas great legends who left their mark on that classic day. Glorious names like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Larry Bird, among many others. However, these days have witnessed some Christmas miraclesrole players or completely secondary players, enjoying an inspiring night in the most watched window of the Regular Season.
Throughout history, we’ve had all kinds of these surprises, and below, we’ve decided to review some of the most relevant ones. Here they are, these are; stars for a day, phenomena for a night.
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Christmas 1954
Chuck Cooper He is a pioneer in the history of the league, being the the first black player selected in the draft (1950), which led to his induction into the Hall of Fame in 2019. However, the truth is that his career in the league was not particularly brilliant: he played six seasons, averaged 6.7 points and never exceeded 9 points average . However, on Christmas Day 1954, in what would be his penultimate season as a professional, he had the night of his dreams.
The Pittsburgh native scored 26 points on the Boston Celtics, with a near-perfect 14-15 on free throws. It was the second-highest number of his career (he had scored 27 against Fort Wayne a month earlier) and although he didn’t help in the victory (108-99 Celtics, with 35 from Bob Cousy), it’s impossible to take credit. what about cooper’s. Especially considering the racial context of the time.
Christmas 1966
We travel back in time 12 years and arrive at a classic venue for Christmas games: Madison Square Garden in New York. There the Knicks beat the Chicago Bulls 133-132, with 28 points from Walt Bellamy and 27 from Kazi Russell. On the visiting side there were 40 points from Bob Boozer, Carlos’ father, but the story went by a much less recognized name: Erwin Mueller, just a 22-year-old rookie.
Mueller was sent with 27 points, 7 rebounds and an excellent 11-17 from the field. In all 445 games he played in his NBA career, he scored a higher score on only one occasion (31 against San Francisco, a month earlier). And although his rookie season was really promising (12.7 ppg), he would quickly lose his place in the league: he retired with an average of 7.4 ppg and only once again averaged double figures (10.1 in 1969 -1970).
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Christmas 1969
Just three years later, we find another very special story: his Jim Fox, center of the Phoenix Suns. His team beat the Boston Celtics 127-116 in a complete blowout, but with the caliber of John Havlicek, JoJo White and Don Nelson on their roster. Not only did Fox score more than all (31 points plus 10 rebounds), but also went above and beyond the call of duty for peers such as Gail Goodrich, Paul Silas, Dick Van Arsdale, and Connie Hawkins. An ordinary man who stands out among legends.
Fox had a solid NBA career, playing 10 seasons between 7 different teams and retiring with averages of 9.3 points and 7.4 rebounds. That 1969-70 season was the best campaign of his career, averaging 12.9 points and 7 boards, and although he twice topped the 31 he scored against the Celtics on Christmas Day, no game carried the weight of that night in Arizona. The fox shone in the desert.
Christmas 1974
We now move to Christmas 1974 and specifically in the American capital, where Washington beat Atlanta 110-92. Aside from the Bullets’ comfortable victory en route to the final of the competition, starring Wes Unseld and Elvin Hayes, the most special story of the day came from the hand of John Brown, Hawks forward, just 23 years old. What did the man who was born in Frankfurt, Germany do? He finished top scorer of the match, with 28 points and an excellent 12-19 from the field.
Brown averaged double figures only once during his NBA career: exactly in that 1974-1975 season, when he averaged 11.2 points. But the most relevant detail is this He never topped or equaled the 28 points he scored against Washington. Beyond the extensive defeat, the German left with an indelible memory.
Christmas 1975
A year later we return to Phoenix, where the Suns beat the Kansas City Kings 122-111. Although the match featured the likes of Tiny Archibald, Paul Westphal and Dick Var Arsdale, the scorer of the match was none other than Curtis Perry27-year-old center who played 8 seasons in the NBA, averaging 9.5 points and 8.8 rebounds.
Perry was the key to the Suns’ victory, finishing me off 27 points and 11 rebounds, thanks to a shocking 12-16 from the field. As previously mentioned with John Brown, those 27 points ended up being his career high. The trainee had never before had a performance of this magnitude, let alone on a stage as important as the Christmas Games.
The special thing is that Perry was not the only wonder of that year. About 1,500 miles away, the New Orleans Jazz beat the Houston Rockets 101-99, who were in the game thanks to his work Kevin Kunert, 23 years old, 2.13m pivot. The Iowa native scored 28 pointsin what would be the third highest mark of his career.
Although it wasn’t enough to give his team the win, This performance was the culmination of a nine-season career.in which he averaged 8.3 points and 7.3 rebounds, among the Rockets, Braves, Clippers and Trail Blazers.
Christmas 1979
Fast forward four years to Utah, where the Jazz beat the Denver Nuggets 122-111 in what was perhaps the best Christmas surprise: Terry FurlowThe 25-year-old guard finished with 37 points, trailing teammate Adrian Dudley’s 27 points. It was the highest mark of Furlow’s career.who played 239 NBA games, averaging 10.7 points.
Unfortunately, the story of the Michigan native ended with a tragic ending: just 5 months after that wonderful performance at Christmas, he died in a car accidentwhile driving under the influence of cocaine and valium.
Christmas 1981
Just as Furlow’s was the best performance by a second-class player at Christmas, there is no doubt that the most special occasion came in 1981, at the hands of Pete Verhoeven, rookie center for the Portland Trail Blazers. The Californian scored 28 points and 12 rebounds while going 12-14 of the field for 34 minutes on the field. His contribution was fundamental in the Blazers’ 99-94 victory over the Sonics.
Why are we highlighting it as such a great story? So was Verhoeven’s career. Not only was it a career high in points, rebounds and double-doubles, but it was also just one of two times he scored more than 20 points and one of three times he topped 10 boards. The Hanford native played six seasons in the NBA and He never averaged more than 4 points or 3 rebounds. A real cover-up, on a magical evening.
Christmas 2017
He Grinch seemed to make its presence felt in the following decades, as between 1981 and 2017 great performances from roleplayers were very hard to come by. Until a couple of years ago, Turkish appeared Enes Canterin the Knicks’ 105-98 loss to the 76ers.
Enes Kanter is the first player since Moses Malone in 1986 to score 20 points and 20 rebounds. #Christmas
Malone’s game came against him as well #76ers#NBAVote #EnesKanter#NBAXmas #Recordpic.twitter.com/puikjyO0ld
— Muhsin Varlı (@PermanentAid) December 28, 2017
What Kanter did that afternoon was amazing:31 points and 22 rebounds, leading the game in both divisions! For the current Celtics player it was the second highest score of his career and only one of three times he exceeded 30 points. In addition, it was also his third-best rebounding record and second-most converted double-doubles (12).
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