The Boston Celtics lost the 1987 NBA Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers in 6 games, but basketball purists and diehard fans will probably tell you that the Eastern Conference Finals between the Celtics and the Detroit Pistons was the real highlight of the playoffs that year. The particular legendary moment that a lot of NBA fans probably don’t even realize they’re viewing a few dozen times per season took place in Game 5, as the Pistons were on the verge of jumping out to a 3-2 series lead, before Larry Bird stole Isiah Thomas’ inbound pass and chucked it to Dennis Johnson for a game-winning layup. Even if you don’t think you’ve seen it, you have. It’s right here. Watch it and then say, “Ohhhhhhh yeah.”

Anyway, the reason that I bring this up is because a group called “Lift the Children” is trying to raise $56,000 via FundRazr to help some orphans in Kenya build a quality sports field so they can have a little fun and be better than my lazy ass at sports.

GRACE CARE CENTRE is home to over 200 children. There is nowhere for them to safely access a playing field. Please help turn their dreams into reality by contributing to this campaign, so the orphanage can purchase a field they desperately need.

Like most wise fundraisers these days, this group is trying to raise awareness by creating a viral video and job well done, folks. Lift the Children’s brain trust created a video of the orphans from the Grace Care Centre reenacting footage of the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals, complete with the original game announcers, and it is just spectacular.

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New York Daily News writer Frank Isola is the kind of reporter that Bart Scott would love to have covering the New York Jets, because he has a reputation for covering the Knicks rather favorably (among other things). But sometimes being in a team’s pocket can have its benefits, which is why Isola is the best in the business when it comes to providing insider Knicks info, and he dropped quite the horrifying Knicks Knugget yesterday.

According to Isola’s “source”, Knicks owner James Dolan is trying very hard to re-hire Isiah Thomas. That sound you hear is a million Knicks fans slapping their foreheads.

“Isiah is very close with Jim Dolan but he’s told me that he’s not ready to jump back into the NBA just yet,” said the source, who was with Thomas on Friday at the Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Springfield, Mass. “There’s this perception out there that Isiah is desperate to get back, but that’s false. I think it will eventually happen but just not now.”

Isola also points out that the Knicks only have two job openings right now – D-League coach and an assistant coach position under Mike Woodson. If Zeke took the assistant job, it would just add more fuel to the comedy fire, because he sucked as an NBA coach (.341 career winning percentage) and he was horrendous as the head coach at FIU (26-65 career record). I can’t imagine that Woodson would be too pleased adding that legacy of excrement to his staff. And as for the D-League gig, well, please see: college coaching record.

Regardless, until this hilariously unbelievable idea that Thomas isn’t desperate to get back in the NBA and work for the Knicks again to repair his tarnished legacy dissipates, it’s safe to say that Dolan is simply trying to do everything short of moving the team to make sure that every last Knicks fan is wearing Brooklyn Nets gear this season. If he’d really like to complete the bandwagon exodus, he should just have his band play halftime of the season opener.

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If you are anything like me, you spent a substantial chunk of your childhood parked in front of the television watching VHS tapes of people doing dunks. I mean, you did other things, too — rode your bike, chucked rocks at stuff, got grounded for cussing, etc. — but, primarily, you wore out the tape on those videocassettes while eating cereal. There were a lot of these videos released in the early-to-mid ’90s, but the gold standard was the NBA Superstars series put together by Hardwood Classics.

NBA Superstars was collection of videos that contained 3-4 minute highlight packages set to popular music from the time, typically focused on an individual player, but occasionally based on a unifying theme. The first one was released in 1990, and contained montages dedicated to Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Dominique Wilkins, Charles Barkley, Isiah Thomas, and Julius Erving, as well as one about players from years past. I love it like a child. So when I found all the clips on YouTube recently, I could not have been more excited, and I felt it was important to share them all with you. Put on your doofy sweaters and grab your synthesizers, people. We’re taking a trip in the Wayback Machine.

NOTE: Did you know there is no Wikipedia entry for the NBA Superstars series? This upsets me on a number of very deep, personal levels.

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Last night, the NBA network aired the highly anticipated Dream Team documentary to celebrate the 20th anniversary of arguably the most talented and dominating team in the history of any sport. As a child of the 80s, I’m fortunate enough to remember watching the Dream Team play and God only knows I wish I still had my Michael Jordan USA jersey, because I’d sell it to a hipster for $500.

But like anything good that is celebrated as legend by the majority, people out there now want to crap all over the Dream Team’s legacy, because Isiah Thomas was snubbed and Michael Jordan is a big ol’ dickhead for keeping him off the team (which is mentioned in the special). Either way, Zeke preemptively took his name out of the debate last night when he issued this statement.

Obviously, Thomas is “taking the high road” because he wants to get back into the NBA, either as a GM, team president, or maybe even a coach again. And he can’t do that if he’s bad-mouthing all of his fellow Hall-of-Famer legends. However, that does not mean this is an invitation for every John Q. Blogger to take up the fight in Thomas’ name.

If he’s really still bitter about it, then he should come out and say, “F*ck those guys, I deserved to be running point for the gold medal team.” Hell, I’d respect him more if he did. But until he does open up about it, let’s stop ruining our childhood memories of what may have been the peak of America’s global dominance at everything.

And in case you missed the special, you can watch it here while it’s available, and you should also check out the NBA’s extra footage. It’s a definite must-watch for any sports fan, or anyone who owned the Mo Money soundtrack.

With the table now set for the NBA Finals, as the Miami Heat will take on the Oklahoma City Thunder starting tomorrow night at 9 PM, I wanted to address a very important topic before we get all analytical on your asses. People have been talking and complaining about the rapidly-spreading fad of NBA players wearing “nerd glasses”, with the most notable attention directed at Dwyane Wade and LeBron James. For some reason, the fact that Wade even wore glasses without lenses has been something that should be talked about.

Fine. Let’s talk about it. Let’s talk about how this fad isn’t anything new. NBA players have always been notorious trendsetters, starting with their eyewear. It goes back to the very first days of the NBA, as star players like Joe Dribbleguy and Kevin Bouncepass were generating buzz with their own ridiculous glasses.

After the jump, I’ve put together a gallery of the NBA’s biggest legends all wearing their own unique eyewear, on and off the court. And if these players are guilty of anything, it’s wearing glasses that apparently don’t have arms. I mean, what’s up with that?

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The sports world is abuzz with the news that a Magic-Johnson fronted group broke the dang old bank in order to purchase the Dodgers for over $2 billion, which is a figure so absurd that it may as well be written like a comic strip character says cuss words.

“Yes  Mr. McCourt, and our counter-offer is #!%*& dollars.”

Anyway, it’s no secret by now that Magic Johnson, while not a billionaire himself, is a mega-entrepreneur and philanthropist. Already in 2012, he’s bought a baseball team and announced he’s launching a television network. What’s next, a chain of restaurants that are like Applebee’s, but with edible food? A series of Wal*Mart-style superstores? It’s almost like he’s some kind of business wizard. Almost like he’s … gathering spectacular assets.

Wait a minute. Wizard … gathering … Magic … I think we may be on to something here, ladies and gentlemen. In the spirit of Magic Johnson’s spectacular purchase, I am pleased to present the nerdiest sequence of jokes to ever appear on With Leather. It is my pleasure to present to you a very special type of card game: a collectible one.

Faithful readers, I proudly present Magic Johnson: The Gathering.
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