Articles of Recreation

Sports enthusiasts, for simplicity's sake, have a reference language of their own reserved for memorable plays.

An article, "the", followed by the play in reference.

The Shot.
The Catch.
The Drive.

Already, I hope your mind's eye is able to picture these Great Moments. They are truly inspiring and generally labeled the pinnacle moments of their respective sports. Extra credit if for The Catch, you picture Dwight Clark and Willie Mays.

With me so far?

Other monikers are less inspiring, but still memorable nonetheless.

The Fumble, for one.

On my lunch break today, I went to Half Price to pick up some books for our up-coming vacation. While browsing the basketball section, I picked up a book John Feinstein wrote a couple of years ago called The Punch. Just seeing the title brought an almost-sickening feeling to my stomach.

I'm not sure if a video of the fight can still be found on the internet. I almost hope not. Every time I see Kermit's roundhouse, it brings a fright and cringe to my entire body. No matter how many times I see it, it's like I'm seeing it for the first time each time. It's just absolutely scary.

If you're not familiar with it, here's a quick re-cap:

1977 NBA Season. Rockets versus Lakers. Kareem got into a minor scuffle near the foul line. Rudy T. of the Rockets ran over to play peacemaker before a riot broke out, which was not uncommon in the pre-Magic and Bird league. Kermit Washington of the Lakers saw somebody coming up behind him and naturally thought he was there to escalate the fight. Putting his entire body strength (he was 6'8", 240) behind the full swing, it landed on Rudy's face as he was running full speed into it. As the hit landed, Rudy's feet were lifted off the floor and he landed on his head, immediately rendering him unconscious in a pool of blood. Doctors later said the impact of the punch was similar to hitting a windshield of a car traveling 50 miles per hour. The punch was hard enough to fracture his face from his skull; he leaked spinal fluid into his mouth.

Kareem described it as listening to a watermelon dropped from a 3-story building hitting a concrete surface.

Washington was suspended for 26 games. And that was after the penalties for fighting were increased from the previous season.

There's a line in Vanilla Sky - that "every passing minute is a another chance to turn it all around."

Not so for Kermit Washington. While he played for several more years, he's relived those few seconds every day since. He's been blacklisted from coaching and has since devoted his spare time and money to charity.

Also not so for Rudy Tomjanovich. He, too, has relived those few seconds every day. He was 29 when this all happened. He played in the NBA for several more seasons and then got into coaching. He was fortunate enough to 1) live and 2) coach in a Jordan-less league.

So far, Feinstein's book is a good read. I generally look at him as some sort of lovable oaf - the kid who loves sports but isn't any good at them. Instead, his gift as a wordsmith allows him to stay close to the sports he so loves. While his books offer greater access to detail that I don't have, his NPR reports are too watered-down for my taste; not to mention he's too ACC-centric.

Bobby Knight may have something else to say about him, also.