Roy Tarpley RIP (1 Viewer)

[BroncoFreak_2K3]

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/roy-tarpley-drug-plagued-former-mavericks-center-dies-015535601--nba.html;_ylt=A0LEV7qfkrBU5zkATzUPxQt.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

:(

 

[Christo]

What could have been

 

[Da Guru]

I remember seeing Tarpley playing in HS a few times. What a talent.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

I remember seeing Tarpley playing in HS a few times. What a talent.

Me too, he went to the same HS my Dad graduated from and we'd go see some games. Funny that they didn't win all their championships until after he left (Michael Talley) because they couldn't beat Southwestern or the Rice/Rison/Grayer/Pendleton Flint NW teams.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

84-85 Flint NW team went 55-1 (At that time Michigan HS basketball might have been the best in the country, there were a ton of good teams including Tarpley's Cooley Cardinals)

"Good" was an understatement. Seven players from those two teams went on to Divison I schools: Grayer (Iowa State), Rice (Michigan), Rison (Michigan State football), Pendleton (Iowa, USC), Nunn (Wisconsin-Green Bay) and Avery and Darryl Miller (both to Central Michigan). Grayer and Rice had long careers in the NBA.

i remember watching them play Detroit Murray Wright (always a top city program) and Grayer had 35 and Rice 30 and NW won by 25 or so. I think Murray Wright was top 5 in the state, it was incredible. The Detroit SW teams of Rose/Leonard/Orr might have been close to NW, but they weren't nearly as deep. Man I loved HS hoops growing up, I'd go all over watching games when we weren't playing.

 

[Mr. Retukes]

That '86-'88 Mavericks team was STACKED -- Rolondo Blackman, Mark Aguirre, Derek Harper, Sam Perkins, Roy Tarpley, Uwe Blab, Detlef Schrempf, James Donaldson, etc. They could never quite figure out how to get all that talent to mesh together, though.

The Dantley trade ruined everything.

 

[Mister CIA]

What could have been

 

[The Captain]

RIP

Loved me some Tarpley

:sad:

 

[TakiToki]

Damn, was actually thinking about him tonight. Watching the Thunder/Jazz game, and the way Utah's center Gobert's name is pronounced made me think of 80s Michigan guard Antoine Joubert. Then starting thinking about other players like Gary Grant, and of course Tarpley, and how the Thunder sure could use a guy with Tarpley's skills and talent inside.

Anyway, sad story. Always hate hearing about stuff like this. Always afraid that Richard Dumas' name is gonna pop up in one of these stories.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

84-85 Flint NW team went 55-1 (At that time Michigan HS basketball might have been the best in the country, there were a ton of good teams including Tarpley's Cooley Cardinals)

"Good" was an understatement. Seven players from those two teams went on to Divison I schools: Grayer (Iowa State), Rice (Michigan), Rison (Michigan State football), Pendleton (Iowa, USC), Nunn (Wisconsin-Green Bay) and Avery and Darryl Miller (both to Central Michigan). Grayer and Rice had long careers in the NBA.

i remember watching them play Detroit Murray Wright (always a top city program) and Grayer had 35 and Rice 30 and NW won by 25 or so. I think Murray Wright was top 5 in the state, it was incredible. The Detroit SW teams of Rose/Leonard/Orr might have been close to NW, but they weren't nearly as deep. Man I loved HS hoops growing up, I'd go all over watching games when we weren't playing.

Man, that's a who's who of early 90s hoops.

I was fortunate enough to be decent in the late 70s and had a coach who would send us to Morgan Wooten's summer camp. Saw most of the college greats at that time and got to play against some guys who would go on to be stars - Johnny Dawkins (great then), Lenny Bias (sucked then but got great.... ) - as well as some then-current college stars: Al King, Gene Banks, etc...

Out of all of the HS guys I saw during that time, the best was (at the time)......Derek Wittenberg (sp?). Everyone remembers his air ball in the '83 finals that Lo Charles dunked, but he was a shell of his former physical self by then. In HS, that dude had a 48" vertical leap AND could shoot from anywhere in the gym. Closest thing I've seen to David Thompson in my life.

Anyway, Tarpley had as much physical talent as any big man I've seen. The times got to him.....just wasn't strong enough to keep the #### out of his nose. RIP, big guy.

 

[Da Guru]

I remember seeing Tarpley playing in HS a few times. What a talent.

Me too, he went to the same HS my Dad graduated from and we'd go see some games. Funny that they didn't win all their championships until after he left (Michael Talley) because they couldn't beat Southwestern or the Rice/Rison/Grayer/Pendleton Flint NW teams.

84-85 Flint NW team went 55-1 (At that time Michigan HS basketball might have been the best in the country, there were a ton of good teams including Tarpley's Cooley Cardinals)

"Good" was an understatement. Seven players from those two teams went on to Divison I schools: Grayer (Iowa State), Rice (Michigan), Rison (Michigan State football), Pendleton (Iowa, USC), Nunn (Wisconsin-Green Bay) and Avery and Darryl Miller (both to Central Michigan). Grayer and Rice had long careers in the NBA.

i remember watching them play Detroit Murray Wright (always a top city program) and Grayer had 35 and Rice 30 and NW won by 25 or so. I think Murray Wright was top 5 in the state, it was incredible. The Detroit SW teams of Rose/Leonard/Orr might have been close to NW, but they weren't nearly as deep. Man I loved HS hoops growing up, I'd go all over watching games when we weren't playing.

I remember going to watch Chris Webber as a JR play at Redford Thurston. Just went because of all the talk I heard about Webber. Watching the game Webber looked lazy and totally unenthused. When it was over he had 28 points and 15 boards..without trying at all.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Damn, was actually thinking about him tonight. Watching the Thunder/Jazz game, and the way Utah's center Gobert's name is pronounced made me think of 80s Michigan guard Antoine Joubert. Then starting thinking about other players like Gary Grant, and of course Tarpley, and how the Thunder sure could use a guy with Tarpley's skills and talent inside.

In the first NCAA tournament pool I entered, I had that Michigan crew winning it all. They were a 1-seed that got knocked out in the second round by 8-seed Villanova, a slightly less famous Nova victory over a 1-seed that season.

Not much to add about Tarpley that hasn't already been said. Great talent, got drafted by a team on the rise with some veteran leadership, could've had it all. But cocaine is a helluva drug.

Anyway, sad story. Always hate hearing about stuff like this. Always afraid that Richard Dumas' name is gonna pop up in one of these stories.

Damn. That guy was fun to watch. Underrated weapon on that 93 PHX team that went to the Finals. He'd run around and dunk on guys, wear down the opponent, and then Westphal would bring the spot-up shooters in who now could whip the ball around faster than the tired rotating defenders could recover.

 

[jon_mx]

Sad. He was quite a talent and fun to watch.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Out of all of the HS guys I saw during that time, the best was (at the time)......Derek Wittenberg (sp?). Everyone remembers his air ball in the '83 finals that Lo Charles dunked, but he was a shell of his former physical self by then. In HS, that dude had a 48" vertical leap AND could shoot from anywhere in the gym. Closest thing I've seen to David Thompson in my life.

The Whittenburg game I remember vividly is the game he scored 27 in the first half against a very good Virginia team with Ralph Sampson and Rick Carlisle. I hadn't seen NC State play much and was mesmerized by this one guard who could score from anywhere and this other guard (Sidney Lowe) who had the most bizarre free throw shooting form I had ever seen.

Anyway, Whittenburg broke his foot a few minutes into the second half so he left with 27 that game, but he recovered and finished the job in the NCAAs, leading the Pack over the Cavs in a rematch to get to the Final Four.

Anyway, Tarpley had as much physical talent as any big man I've seen. The times got to him.....just wasn't strong enough to keep the #### out of his nose. RIP, big guy.

The Mavs welcomed him back with open arms after some rehab and a stint overseas. Just never got it fixed. Sadly, one of many from that era lost to drugs.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Out of all of the HS guys I saw during that time, the best was (at the time)......Derek Wittenberg (sp?). Everyone remembers his air ball in the '83 finals that Lo Charles dunked, but he was a shell of his former physical self by then. In HS, that dude had a 48" vertical leap AND could shoot from anywhere in the gym. Closest thing I've seen to David Thompson in my life.

The Whittenburg game I remember vividly is the game he scored 27 in the first half against a very good Virginia team with Ralph Sampson and Rick Carlisle. I hadn't seen NC State play much and was mesmerized by this one guard who could score from anywhere and this other guard (Sidney Lowe) who had the most bizarre free throw shooting form I had ever seen.

Anyway, Whittenburg broke his foot a few minutes into the second half so he left with 27 that game, but he recovered and finished the job in the NCAAs, leading the Pack over the Cavs in a rematch to get to the Final Four.

It's a shame he kept getting injured. College fans never really got to see that athletic marvel he was. Whit was still a damned fine player at State, because he knew HOW to play thanks to his innate smarts and having played for Wooten.

 

[Nigel Tufnel]

A Dallas legend for all the wrong reasons. RIP.