The Guy Behind The Guy

Behind every charismatic college head coach, there is often a hard-working assistant.

When the leader is cracking jokes at booster functions or holding court in the home of a recruit, the loyal aide is often doing the grunt work of scouting, crafting game plans and running practices.

For Frank McGuire, that trusty sidekick was a crusty basketball lifer named James Ambrose “Buck” Freeman.

Most coaching careers follow the trajectory of assistant to head man. Freeman’s story flipped the script.

Freeman played at St. John’s from 1923-’27, averaging 7.4 points per game in those slow-paced days of center jumps after every made basket.

Freeman was immediately named coach of his alma mater upon his graduation. The game had taken root in New York City, and St. John’s had mined the best talent.

Freeman molded his best players —Mac Kinsbrunner, Matty Bogovich, Allie Schuckman, Max Posnak and Rip Gerson — into “The Wonder Five,” one of the great teams of basketball’s early era.

The Redmen went 88-8 in Freeman’s first four seasons on the job. The St. John’s teams under Freeman are often credited with bringing ball movement, the give-and-go and switching on defense to prominence.

McGuire was recruited by Freeman and averaged 5.4 points per game in three seasons. It was during their time together that St. John’s met Westminister (Pa.) on Dec. 29, 1934, part of the first regular-season college doubleheader at Madison Square Garden and a watershed event in the sport’s evolution.

Freeman was a confirmed bachelor, a night owl and a hard drinker. His battle with alcohol cost him the job at St. John’s, despite a 177-31 record in 10 seasons. Joe Lapchick replaced him.

Freeman became a basketball vagabond. He was head coach for two stints at the University of Scranton (going 12-9 in 1937-’38 and 16-36 from 1947-’48). Sandwiched between that was an assistant’s gig with the legendary Clair Bee at Long Island University.

During the summers, Freeman built his reputation as a first-rate basketball mind by working at camps and clinics in New York City.

McGuire eventually became coach himself at St John’s and, understandably, couldn’t bring his mentor back to that touchy situation. But when McGuire took the University of North Carolina job in 1952, he hired a clean-and-sober Freeman as the only assistant.

McGuire is often credited with creating an “underground railroad” that delivered talent from New York City to Chapel Hill. New York talent scout Java Gotkin, who often steered recruits toward the Tar Heels, was a former player for Freeman at St. John’s.

Some of those New York recruits — including Lennie Rosenbluth, Tommy Kearns, Pete Brennan and Joe Quigg — formed the nucleus of UNC’s undefeated national champions in 1957.

Freeman was obsessed with the game, often walking the streets of Chapel Hill deep into the night while devising strategies. According to Adam Lucas’ “The Best Game Ever,” Freeman even slept in a tiny apartment attached to Woollen Gym, where the Tar Heels played at the time.

The relentless drive to a title frayed Freeman’s nerves. After the season, Freeman retired due to “health concerns” —most likely a relapse with the bottle. That led McGuire to hire an eager assistant from Air Force named Dean Smith.

Freeman must have eventually cleaned up because McGuire hired him again after becoming coach at South Carolina in 1964.

The “underground railroad” moved farther south, and eventually New Yorkers like Brian Winters, Mike Dunleavy and Bobby Cremins were playing for the Gamecocks.

Freeman retired after 10 seasons as an assistant at South Carolina, where he had been in poor health for the last few seasons. He didn’t last long without the game, dying at 69 on Feb. 16, 1974.

McGuire was always gracious in his praise of Freeman. The head coach never hesitated to call Freeman “the best assistant in the business.” After Freeman died, McGuire said his mentor-turned-assistant was “a coach’s coach, one of the great basketball coaches of all time.”

'X' Marks His Spot

Xavier McDaniel found mainstream renown in 1992.

Drafted fourth overall by the SuperSonics in 1985, the "X-Man" toiled as a swaggering, hyper-rebounding, Wes Matthews-choking cult hero in Seattle for five seasons in the dark days before the Internet and NBA League Pass fully opened the West Coast to fans.

He was traded to the Phoenix Suns 15 games into the 1990-'91 season and then dealt again to the New York Knicks a month before the next season began.

Amid this career upheaval, McDaniel filmed his scene-stealing cameo in Cameron Crowe's Generation X treatise, “Singles." The film’s release was delayed until September 1992, but the “X-Man” had nailed one of the greatest walk-on parts for an athlete in movie history.

McDaniel also found a propitious fit with the Knicks. Coach Pat Riley was in the first season of bringing his bruising style to the Big Apple, and McDaniel formed a hard-hitting forward rotation with Charles Oakley and Anthony Mason.

McDaniel started every game that season for a team seriously lacking in depth. Looking at a list of bench players for the Knicks that season — Tim McCormick, Carlton McKinney, Brian Quinnett, Kennard Winchester and an over-the-hill Kiki Vandeweghe — the names sound more like a Princeton eating club than ballers ready for Madison Square Garden.

With McDaniel providing the muscle, the hardened Knicks advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals to face the defending champion Chicago Bulls.

The Bulls’ Scottie Pippen had earned legitimacy as an NBA superstar with an NBA title and a berth on the Olympic "Dream Team," but teams still believed the lithe forward could be bullied into passivity.

McDaniel was singularly wired for that kind of duty.

With McDaniel hounding Pippen's every step, the Bulls forward shot just 30 of 84 over the first six games of a brutal series.

Over those games, the Knicks committed five flagrant fouls, including John Starks' infamous clothesline of Pippen in Game 6. So there was quite a bit of bloodlust for Game 7 at Chicago Stadium.

It didn't take long for sparks to fly. After the Bulls took a 15-10 lead, Pippen and McDaniel went face to face after a timeout.

With 3:30 left in the first period, they were invading each other's personal space again after banging in the paint.

Thirty seconds after that, McDaniel was called for an offensive foul while backing down Pippen with his elbow. After the requisite jaw-jacking on the way down court, Michael Jordan settled the issue.

Jordan put his forehead right on McDaniel's, and even a novice lip-reader watching NBC’s telecast could see the Bulls star saying "F--k you, X" repeatedly.

Double technicals were called, meaning McDaniel didn't have much leeway over the remaining three quarters.

Pippen took the ball hard to the basket on the Bulls' next possession, gladly absorbing a hard foul and hitting two free throws. He seemed freed of McDaniel’s malice. Jordan was particularly juiced and had 29 points by halftime.

The Knicks, with only an eight-man rotation, were enervated in the third quarter, scoring just 13 points. The defanged McDaniel wasn't much of a factor after that rough-and-tumble first quarter.

The Bulls won going away, 110-81. Pippen finished with a triple-double (17 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds), easily his best performance of the series.

It was the last time McDaniel would wear a Knicks jersey. He signed with the Boston Celtics in the off-season and played five more NBA seasons.

Temperamental power forwards usually have a short shelf life, but McDaniel lasted longer than most. He's one of the archetypes of that particular breed, with that one punishing season with the Knicks galvanizing his reputation.

Passing Interest

When Scott Skiles first met Brandon Jennings, the Milwaukee Bucks coach sized up the young point guard and asked him:

“Do you know who holds the NBA record for assists in a game?”

The answer, of course, is Skiles, who handed out 30 dimes for the Orlando Magic in a 155-116 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Dec. 30, 1990.

In recent interviews, however, Skiles has seemed ambivalent about his record, often stating that he wishes someone would break it because he is tired of talking about the mark.

Everything surrounding the record seems strange. One would think that Skiles would cling to the fact that he owns a piece of NBA immortality despite being a slightly above-average guard who played for five teams in a 10-season career. Without the record, he might be remembered more for a flashy pass against Georgetown in the NCAA Tournament and also his brushes with the law while at Michigan State.

These days, Skiles is mostly known as a coach that demands defensive excellence out of his players, which is another reason why he might feel a bit awkward about his 30 assists.

A case can be made that the Denver Nuggets of 1990-’91 rank as one of the worst defensive teams of all time. Paul Westhead, that “Guru of Go,” was in his penultimate season as an NBA coach and didn’t seem to have much interest in anything on defense except getting the ball back and pushing it up the floor.

The Nuggets came into the game at the Orlando Arena with a 6-22 record, worst in the league at the time. They would finish the season allowing a mind-boggling 130.8 points per game.

Denver and Orlando combined for 226 field-goal attempts and 37 turnovers. Skiles lost the ball four times in 44 minutes. He also wasn’t interested in just piling up the assists as he contributed six rebounds and 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting.

Early in the fourth quarter, Skiles tied the record of 29 assists set by the Nets’ Kevin Porter in 1978. Skiles had 13 points in the final quarter and he had eight potential assists squandered by teammates’ missed shots.

The record finally fell when Skiles fed Jerry Reynolds for a 20-foot jumper with 19.6 seconds remaining in the blowout.

Surprisingly, Reynolds (27 points) and Terry Catledge (25) were the main beneficiaries of Skiles’ assists rather than Magic sharpshooters Dennis Scott and Nick Anderson, who combined for 35 points. This is likely because the Nuggets’ porous defense allowed so many shots around the rim.

Regardless of the opposition’s defensive indifference, Skiles’ record still stands. It’s likely to be around for a good while as well, with the NBA game played at a more reasonable pace than Westhead’s preferred style, and also the careful attention paid to stopping opponents by today’s coaches.

So Skiles should get used to talking about it.

Summer Dreams

It seems like an incongruous setting, but the Catskills resorts in upstate New York were the epicenter of summer hoops in the mid-20th century.

Hotels, wanting to provide their guests with top-flight entertainment, recruited pro, college and high school players for outdoor games. Well-paying bellhop jobs were given to stars like Bob Cousy (Tamarack Lodge) and George Mikan (Klein’s Hillside).

Spectators often bet on the games, creating an environment that helped foster the gambling scandals that almost brought college basketball to its knees in the early 1950s.

The Catskills also provided the stage for Wilt Chamberlain to go from regional curiosity to national sensation.

Haskell Cohen, the legendary PR man for the young NBA, helped Chamberlain get a gig at Kutsher’s Country Club in 1953 when the 7-footer was between his junior and senior years at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia. The forward-thinking Cohen likely saw Chamberlain as key figure in the growth of basketball, so it was smart to make inroads early.

Kutsher’s, another client of Cohen, had an established basketball tradition. Owner Milt Kutsher had scored a coup when a frequent lodger recommended his son to coach the hotel’s team. Red Auerbach didn’t have much to do after the Washington Capitals folded in 1949, so he agreed to help out at Kutsher’s and stayed on after he joined the Boston Celtics in 1950.

Imagine Auerbach’s salivation when the coach first laid eyes on the lanky and lithe teenage Chamberlain.

Auerbach pushed Chamberlain hard that summer. The biggest challenge came against Shawanga Lodge, which had the best counter-force for Chamberlain with post player B.H. Born.

Born had played a small role on the Kansas Jayhawks’ 1951-’52 national champions and was about to be an All-American in 1953-’54. Auerbach told Chamberlain that there was no way the youngster could handle the crafty Born.

Details are sketchy, but by all accounts, Chamberlain dominated Born. Writing for Sports Illustrated in 1965, the never-to-be-trusted-with-numbers Chamberlain recounted that at halftime he had 30 points and Born only two. Legend later had it that Born decided to forgo a professional career because he had been humiliated by a high school kid.

Regardless, it was clear to everyone that Chamberlain was the future of basketball. Auerbach tried to persuade the youngster to enroll at Harvard so the Celtics could get Chamberlain’s territorial rights. Eddie Gottlieb of the Philadelphia Warriors got word of Auerbach’s machinations and made sure that the hometown phenom didn’t end up playing with Cousy in Boston.

Born also spread the legend of Chamberlain, telling Kansas coach Phog Allen that Wilt would look good in a Jayhawks jersey.
Chamberlain indeed wound up at Kansas, and Gottlieb managed to keep Chamberlain’s territorial rights with the Philadelphia Warriors.

Even after he ascended to basketball stardom, Chamberlain kept close ties to Kutsher’s Resort. He was tight with Milt Kutsher, always coming back to the Catskills for a summer vacation or to play in charity games. They remained friends until the hotelier died in 1998.

Wizard of Providence

Other schools might have backcourts with better statistics, but few can claim a history of guards with stylistic flair like Providence.

In the early 1960s, the Friars boasted a lethal backcourt of high-scoring John Egan and a slick-passing defensive ace out of Brooklyn named Lenny Wilkins. The tradition of crafty playmakers continued with Vinnie Ernst, Jimmy Walker, Billy Donovan, Eric Murdock and God Shammgod.

But nobody exemplifies the lineage better than Ernie DiGregorio. The diminutive point guard from the Italian enclave of North Providence was, with all respects to Bob Cousy, perhaps the greatest behind-the-back passer in the history of the game. For Exhibit A, please see the :20 mark of the clip below.



In his three varsity seasons under head coach Dave Gavitt, DiGregorio set the school’s all-time assists mark. The beneficiary of many behind-the-back passes was Marvin Barnes, who hailed from Providence’s south side. The hometown duo formed the core of the 1972-’73 Friars, a team that is legendary in Northeastern basketball circles.

This high-sun period for Providence crested at the 1973 Final Four against Memphis State. The Friars had gone 24-2 with an inexplicable loss to Santa Clara and a tough defeat to the Bill Walton-led UCLA behemoth.

Despite Barnes’ growing “Bad News” reputation — allegedly hitting a teammate with a tire iron during the season — the Friars were expected to easily dispatch Memphis State and get a much-anticipated rematch with UCLA.

Playing on his biggest-ever stage, DiGregorio had his floor game in top form as the Friars raced to a 26-16 lead in the first eight minutes. According to Providence lore — and it may be apocryphal — legendary CCNY coach Nat Holman called it the best eight-minute start to a game he had ever witnessed. This was coming from a guy that had been around hoops since playing for the Original Celtics.

Unfortunately for Providence, Barnes hurt his knee at the end of that glorious eight minutes. DiGregorio had to bear more of the scoring load, netting 17 points as the Friars held on to a 49-40 lead at intermission. Barnes tried to give it a go in the second half, but his knee wouldn’t hold up.

The loss of Barnes was too much to overcome. Memphis State had a 54-39 rebounding edge with Larry Kenon (28 points and 22 rebounds) and Ronnie Robinson (24-16) having an easier time inside without Barnes, who averaged 19 boards a game that season. DiGregorio had 32 points but needed 36 shots to get there, and the Friars’ championship hopes were dashed with a 98-85 loss.

DiGregorio was drafted third overall by the Buffalo Braves, signing after an intense bidding war with the ABA, and he was the 1973-’74 NBA rookie of the year. Already having a tough time guarding the bigger pro guards, a knee injury eventually made DiGregorio a defensive liability on the court and he lasted only five years in the league.

Stories circulated during DiGregorio’s pro career about him being unable to leave Providence behind, flying back to his hometown on days off with Buffalo. Providence is the place where he is venerated most, a town that has certainly seen its share of great guards.

The Long Goodbye

North Carolina State's 110-103 victory over Wake Forest in four overtimes on March 4, 1989, stands as the longest game in ACC history.

The game seemed to be played with a sense of desperation by both teams. There was good reason for that: Dark clouds were gathering around the two head coaches.

Interestingly, Wolfpack coach Jim Valvano and his counterpart with the Demon Deacons, Bob Staak, had history together. Valvano was a young assistant under the legendary Donald "Dee" Rowe at Connecticut in 1970-'71, when Staak was a senior wing player for the Huskies.

In 1989, when the teams met in Greensboro, N.C., Valvano and Staak were in the crosshairs of the NCAA.

Valvano's trouble started in January that year, when word leaked out of a tell-all book about the Wolfpack program based on the recollections of a disgruntled team manager. When Peter Golenbock's "Personal Fouls" eventually hit the streets, it was riddled with factual errors but nonetheless got NCAA officials sniffing around.

Staak was under fire over alleged recruiting violations involving Anthony Tucker, a transfer player from Georgetown.

The setting also gave the game some added excitement. For a majority of the 1980s, Wake Forest had been playing many of its home games at the Greensboro Coliseum, which helped ensure that half of the crowd would probably be cheering for the other team if the Demon Deacons were playing N.C. State, Duke or North Carolina.

The players fed off the energy. Chucky Brown played a mind-boggling 59 minutes and scored a collegiate-high 34 points for N.C. State. Wake Forest was led by forward Chris King, who powered his way to 34 points. Freshman point guard Derrick McQueen, playing a day after a friend died in a car accident, was on the court for 52 minutes for the Demon Deacons and compiled 13 points and seven assists against one turnover.

The Wolfpack's vaunted "Fire and Ice" combination provided the clutch baskets. The cool Rodney Monroe had the play of the game. With two seconds remaining in regulation and Wake Forest clinging to a 77-74 lead, N.C. State's Kelsey Weems was fouled on a three-pointer. Because a player only got two free throws back then, Weems made the first and missed the second on purpose. Monroe was on the right block and curled around the back of the Wake Forest player designated to box him out. The rebound bounced right to Monroe, who hit a short fadeaway to force overtime.

The fiery Chris Corchiani (10 points, 10 assists) hit the big basket for the Wolfpack in the waning seconds of the first overtime, slicing into the lane for a runner that tied the game at 84. Monroe answered again in the second overtime, tying the game on a jumper with 45 seconds remaining. He finished with 26 points despite a 10-for-29 shooting night.

Fatigue made the game ragged in the third and fourth overtimes, with the Wolfpack having just enough to pull away.

The victory clinched a share of the ACC regular-season title for Valvano and N.C. State. Because of the NCAA investigation, the coach was stripped of his athletic director duties in the off-season. The Wolfpack was later banned from the 1990 NCAA Tournament, and Valvano soon resigned under pressure.

Staak didn't last much longer than the four-overtime game. The NCAA dropped the investigation of Tucker's recruitment, but Staak's 45-69 record (including 9-52 in the ACC) at the school was too much for him to overcome.

Even the crowd at the Greensboro Coliseum couldn't fully savor the epic game. They were forced to disperse quickly because the four overtimes had delayed a MEAC tournament game in the building.

Historical Footnotes

The 72-10 record of the Chicago Bulls in 1995-’96 is sometimes hard to comprehend. That winning percentage is absurd considering the 82-game season is such a grind of back-to-backs, injuries and cold-shooting spells. You’d have to be off your nut to think that an NBA team could ever go 82-0. That Bulls team might be as close as it will ever get. Here is a closer look at the 10 blemishes that season:

Nov. 14, 1995
Magic 94, Bulls 88: This was Chicago's first meeting with Orlando since the Magic bounced the Bulls in the Eastern Conference semifinals the previous season. In fact, Orlando had won eight of the last 11 meetings. Michael Jordan had spent the summer trying to get into top basketball shape in his first NBA off-season since his baseball hiatus. But Jordan seemed to tire against the Magic in the sixth game of the season with only five points in the second half. Shaquille O'Neal sat this one out with a thumb injury, so the Magic leaned heavily on Penny Hardaway (36 points). The Bulls struggled with 14 points in the third quarter but tied the game with two minutes left. Hardaway, Dennis Scott and Nick Anderson hit key buckets to salt away the victory.

Nov. 26, 1995
SuperSonics 97, Bulls 92: The Bulls also struggled in the third quarter of their second loss, shooting 4 of 20 against the team they would eventually face in the NBA Finals. Jordan had just four points after halftime. With Dennis Rodman unavailable because of a strained calf, Shawn Kemp busted loose for 25 points on 10-for-13 shooting. On the plus side for the Bulls, Luc Longley had a rare star performance with 21 points and eight rebounds.

Dec. 26, 1995
Pacers 103, Bulls 97: At Market Square Arena, Indiana snapped Chicago's 13-game winning streak. This time a bad start doomed the Bulls, who fell behind 24 points in the first half while committing 10 turnovers. Chicago shot 8 for 25 in the first quarter. Jordan had 30 points but needed 28 shots to get there.

Feb. 4, 1996
Nuggets 105, Bulls 99: Chicago's 18-game winning streak was halted by a Denver team that came into the game 18-26. Another slow first half (31.9% shooting) put the Bulls in a 31-point deficit. Jordan had 22 points in the third quarter to give Chicago a shot, but it wasn't enough against a jacked-up Denver team led by Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (32 points, nine assists) and Dikembe Mutombo (17 rebounds).

Feb. 6, 1996
Suns 106, Bulls 96: Amazingly, the Bulls had a losing streak this season. There was one more game after this matchup before the all-star break, so maybe Chicago was caught looking ahead. Jordan shot 9 for 22, continuing a cold stretch in which he shot 40.9% over five games. Phoenix was carried by a monster game from Charles Barkley, who had 35 points and 16 rebounds.

Feb. 23, 1996
Heat 113, Bulls 104: Miami pulled off the shocker despite a short roster. Tim Hardaway, Chris Gatling, Walt Williams and Ty Corbin were all unavailable after joining the Heat in a blockbuster multi-team trade. Miami still had Rex Chapman, who scorched the nets for 39 points, including 9 three-pointers. Jordan (9 of 21) and Scottie Pippen (4 of 18) suffered through tough shooting nights.

March 10, 1996
Knicks 104, Bulls 72: Jeff Van Gundy was coaching his second game in New York after Don Nelson stepped down. Van Gundy got his first victory on the strength of the Knicks' defense, which limited the Bulls to 32 points in the second half, including 12 in the fourth quarter. Patrick Ewing was a force in the middle with 26 points and 14 rebounds.

March 24, 1996
Raptors 109, Bulls 108: This ranks with the Heat loss as the most shocking defeats of the season for the Bulls. The expansion team scored the upset at the Sky Dome in front of 36,131 fans, the largest crowd for an NBA game that season. Damon Stoudamire hit 6 three-pointers and finished with 30 points and 11 assists. The immortal Oliver Miller hit the go-ahead free throw in the final minute and Tracy Murray knocked the ball away on the Bulls' final possession, leading to Steve Kerr hurrying a three-pointer that clanged off the rim after the buzzer.

April 8, 1996
Hornets 98, Bulls 97: This loss ended Chicago's 44-game winning streak at home. The Bulls, who were playing their fourth game in five nights, squandered a 10-point lead at halftime. Dell Curry sank two free throws to give Charlotte the lead. Toni Kukoc missed a shot at close range, then Jordan and Pippen each couldn't convert taps.

April 20, 1996
Pacers 100, Bulls 99: Indiana was the only team to beat Chicago twice, spoiling the Bulls' regular-season home finale. Chicago fans can point their fingers at a familiar scapegoat. Referee Hue Hollins called a foul on Jordan for closely guarding Eddie Johnson on the Pacers' last possession. Johnson hit a free throw with five-tenths of a second remaining. In the waning seconds of Game 5 in the 1994 Eastern Conference semifinals, Hollins had called a borderline foul on Pippen against the Knicks' Hubert Davis, who sank two winning free throws.