NBC Washington had a good video piece on Kevin Grevey and the ’77-78 Washington Bullets championship team earlier today (video above, obviously …. unless you are getting this through an aggregator/reader, then click the link).

Ahh, the memories … before my time.

I naturally wanted some more on Kevin Grevey, so should you.

The first place you should go is Bullets Forever for a piece about Grevey, all-time BF #20, by Mike Prada … bonus is an old school video of Pete Maravich playing horse.

Then jump in the way-back machine and head to a story from the Sports Illustrated Vault about Grevey leading his ’75 Kentucky Wildcats to a big win over Alabama.

“Kentucky’s star shooter, Kevin Grevey, who had been benched [at halftime] for what his coach called “gutlessness,” returned from exile to score 12 points in the final 11 minutes and led the Wildcats to an 84-79 victory. ["They Let The 'cats Out Of The Bag," Curry Kirkpatrick, Sports Illustrated - March 3, 1975]

Or this other tid-bit from the SI Vault:

“At Kentucky, [Coach Joe] Hall has stayed a step ahead of potential recalcitrants. During his second season he suspended his best player, Grevey, for one game after he visited his room late one night and found him absent.

“He lets the players know from the start that it’s going to be tough,” says Grevey, now a member of the NBA Bullets. On the night Hall visited Grevey’s room,

Hall stayed—and Grevey stayed away until Hall left. That was at 6:30 a.m. For the rest of that season the players called Hall “Goldilocks” and “Papa Bear” and kept asking Grevey, “Who’s been sleeping in your bed?” ["Forty Minutes To Glory," Barry McDermott, Sports Illustrated - April 24, 1978]

But I got a kick out of this little gem from the Bullets championship playoff run, set in the conference finals against the Philadelphia 76ers:

“At a practice session before Game 2, Grevey, who had scored 26 points and helped hold Doug Collins to 12 in the opener, “felt something pop” in his neck while blow-drying his hair. It appeared for a while that he would have to join Unseld on the bench along with Guard Phil Chenier, who had been there for four months with back problems. But Grevey took 12 showers on game day to loosen his neck and scored eight points in the first half. ["Another Chapter In The Philadelphia Story," John Papanek, Sports Illustrated - May 15, 1978]

And then I can’t believe I read this:

“A win over Golden State last Sunday left [the Bullets] just 13-12 in the Capital Centre, with a seven-game road trip stretched over 10 days on the horizon following the All-Star break. Such arduous treks are usually regarded with fear and loathing in the NBA, but these days the Bullets seem to consider them a blessing. After what one player describes as “vicious booing” during home losses to Phoenix and Denver, the Bullets have begun to dread playing at home. “Our fans are spoiled. They’re used to winners,” says [Kevin]Grevey. ["These Tough Old Bullets May Be Spent," Bruce Newman, Sports Illustrated - February 04, 1980]

In Other News:

According to his agent, Mike James has picked up his player option for next season [via Washington Examiner] … no-surprise, no-brainer. Just the other day, James told Mike Jones of The Washington Times, “It’s already been taken care of, brother. Already done.”

Quotable

“I can’t wait to see Sam make that 7:30 meeting.” Nuggets Coach George Karl about Sam Cassell’s coaching career. [via Wizards Insider]

“I was a guy, when I played the game of basketball, I wasn’t fast, I couldn’t jump, I wasn’t a great ball handler, I just knew how to get it done.” Sam Cassell on the John Thompson radio show. [via Sports Radio Interviews]

‘Witnesses’ keep waiting – Mike Jones, Washington Times

“Man, this city is depressed. You get a look at it,” says lifelong Cleveland resident Marvin Connors, who is both jobless and homeless. “LeBron bringing us a championship is more than just basketball. If he brings us a championship, I think it will bring something nice that we’ve never had in Cleveland. It will bring businesses in here, help with the economy. When they made it to the finals the last time, I had a job for three days just cleaning up from the celebration.”

Damn. Didn’t know how sad it was in Cleveland. Kinda put Wizards fans whining about curses in perspective. Those people are desperate.

TalkHoops.net has a good run-down of the ’08-09 season in Exit Interviews: 2008-2009 Washington Wizards.

Blasts From the Past (found this while doing research on Grevey)

“The Philadelphia Phillies went from worst to first. Hollywood made a movie about the Jamaican bobsled team. Beavis and Butt-head stopped playing with matches. Even Roseanne Arnold found a key she can sing in.

So when is something good going to happen to the Washington Bullets?

[Mike Terry. "Remedy for Bullets' Woes Still Comes in Small Doses." The Washington Post. October 31, 1993. HighBeam Research. <www.highbeam.com>.]

Cheers.

In the Beer - Truth About It.net