Dominique Wilkins waxes eloquently about Danny Ainge and the crazy old days

https://www.bostonherald.com/2018/12/14/dominique-wilkins-waxes-eloquently-about-danny-ainge-and-the-crazy-old-days/



Dominique Wilkins waxes eloquently about Danny Ainge and the crazy old days





BOSTON, MA – DECEMBER 14: Broadcaster Dominique Wilkins calls an NBA basketball game between the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts on December 14, 2018. (Staff Photo By Christopher Evans/Boston Herald)



By STEVE BULPETT | stephen.bulpett@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald
PUBLISHED: December 14, 2018 at 8:04 pm | UPDATED: December 14, 2018 at 9:58 pm



Take the highest priced ticket for Friday night’s Celtics-Hawks game and double it.

That’s what you would have paid to be standing on the sideline an hour before tipoff as Dominique Wilkins and Danny Ainge dribbled down memory lane, each story topping the last. There were tales of Larry Bird’s legendary trash talk and a full recounting of April 24, 1983 when Atlanta center Tree Rollins bit Ainge’s right middle finger as the two wrestled on the Old Garden floor.

Ainge even showed the mark that still endures two knuckles down on the palm side of the finger.

Later, after Danny had moved on, Wilkins laughed and said, “That is so great. I love that. We talk about all the crazy stuff from back then — stuff we did, stuff we said. You can’t buy them conversations, man. They’re priceless. I look forward to talking to guys like Danny and guys I fought against all those years.”

Wilkins continues to work the Hawks’ TV broadcasts, and he’s also a vice president in basketball ops and special advisor to the CEO. As such, he and Ainge are competitors once again.

“Guys that I played against and were big-time foes like Danny and Larry and all those guys, we weren’t playing anymore, but we were still competing trying to get our teams to win, helping building franchises,” he said.

Clearly Wilkins appreciates Ainge now, but back in their playing days? Nique laughed again.

“He was a pain in the [posterior] to the highest level,” he said. “But every team needs one. Every team has to have at least one guy like that, probably more. The thing with Danny was, he was not only a pain in the butt, but he could play. Danny could play. He was a legit 2-guard in this league for a long time. He hit big shots, played defense, did all the little things, good passer. He was a hell of a player.”

Ainge’s capacity to annoy reached critical mass that day in ’83.


“I remember it being a very physical game,” said Wilkins, “and Danny kept jabbing Tree in his ribs whenever Tree tried to set a pick on him. I remember Tree told the refs, ‘Somebody’s going to have to make a call, or somebody’s going to get hurt.’ The next thing I know, I see everybody jumping on a pile. And I wasn’t jumping on no pile, I was going to help guys on the pile up, but I wasn’t jumping on no pile.

“The next thing I saw was Danny getting up, and his finger looked like it was hanging. I didn’t see Tree bite him; I just heard somebody scream. Then they asked Tree why he bit him, and Tree said, ‘I didn’t know it was his finger.’

“Man, those days… The fact that people are still are talking about it today lets you know how great it was.”

Nique swears he’s happy now for Ainge and what he’s built and rebuilt with the Celtics.

“Of course we want to be on the same level as the Boston Celtics or Toronto and those teams, but I think we’re on the right path,” Wilkins said. “With our new ownership, for the first time I can actually say we have a group with real focus. It’s a wonderful ownership that gets it, and right now they’re in the beginning stages of starting their legacy. I’m glad to be a part of that.”

As for his take on the Celtics, he said, “They’re good, and Danny put the right pieces together. He stole one of our players, Al Horford, and Al has been great for this team. Danny put a good team together.”

Asked if he really isn’t bugged that his old rival has succeeded again, Wilkins smiled.

“Well, maybe a little bit,” he said. “Maybe a little bit.”



bob



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Hey Nique go lock him up....

There were so many athletic players, too many to name, all of them could still play in today’s game, that slow gritty Larry Bird would spit out and take to school, that was a joy to watch....

What other appendage of Danny's is four or five inches long that Tree could have confused with a finger?