International Iceman

[duncan228]

International Iceman
George Gervin assists with the NBA Cares program in India.
by Karan Madhok / @Hoopistani

Surrounded by a group of Indian schoolkids in New Delhi, India, 58-year-old NBA Hall of Famer George ‘The Iceman’ Gervin took a little break from the shooting drills. Beside him was Marty Conlon, former NBA journeyman who had also been involved with NBA programs in India for the last year.

Conlon grabs a microphone and points at Gervin. “His right-hand is a little tired now – it’s scored over 26,000 points.”

The audience, understandably, wasn’t exactly well-versed on Ice. Most of the 15-year-olds are Kobe fans who haven’t been fans long enough to remember that Kobe used to wear #8. And The Iceman, the man who pretty much patented the finger roll, is way old school, emerging as one of the bridges of the era between the ABA and the new NBA. I’m not even close to old enough to having been able watch Gervin or even the legacy that he left behind, but I do have a different type of connection. The Iceman is my favorite player’s favorite player. I grew up idolizing Gary Payton, who himself once said that George Gervin was his favorite player to watch as a kid.

So when the NBA joined hands with the US Department of State to plan a “Sports Diplomacy” trip, The Iceman and two-time WNBA Champion Katie Smith of the Minnesota Lynx were brought to India at the end of February, and it was an opportunity for me to meet a legend.

Keep reading...

http://www.slamonline.com/online/oth...tional-iceman/

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

With 56 points at halftime I would have left him in the game to see if he could break Wilt's record.

[SenorSpur]

Always as cool as the other side of the pillow. I so wish the Spurs would've prevailed against the Bullets in the 78 ECFs - just so Gervin would've had at least one le on his resume.

[Libri]

Most of the 15-year-olds are Kobe fans

Considering India's population, that's a whole lot of 15-year-old Kobe fans.