Friday, March 30, 2018

Penn State and Utah put bow on seasons with unforgettable NIT experience

Penn State capped off late surge with 2018 NIT championship, Nittany Lions' first in nation's oldest postseason tournament since 2009. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Ray Floriani (@rfloriani)

NEW YORK -- There is no need to convince those who realize the significance of the National Invitation Tournament. 

The television deals may not be as lucrative, nor the ticket sales as brisk, but to more than a few purists, the nation’s oldest postseason tournament has its validation in place, signed and sealed.

There are reminders. Even if the date and score may be forgotten, the memory refuses to be erased. On Tuesday, Rick Stansbury was chatting casually about an hour prior to game time. His Western Kentucky team was facing Utah in the semifinals. Stansbury had previously been the head coach at Mississippi State, and a memory of eleven years back once again came into focus. 

“It was right there,” Stansbury said, pointing to another end of the court. “We had John Beilein and West Virginia beat. Then after a timeout, they ran a play and got a step-back jumper in that corner to beat us at the buzzer. They went on to romp (over Clemson) in the championship.” 

Don DeVoe, on the NIT selection committee for years, was a young coach at Virginia Tech. On a March Sunday afternoon, his guard, Bobby Stevens, became part of NIT lore. DeVoe once pointed out the exact spot Stevens’ corner jumper at the buzzer sealed a one-point win and championship over Notre Dame.

To remember such details, eleven years -- and in DeVoe’s case, over 35 years at the time -- proves how significant this tournament is. Getting to New York is a goal. Winning it all is truly an honor.

In the championship game, there was no last-second shot to store in the memory bank, as Penn State rolled to an 82-66 verdict over Utah. Leading by five at the half and getting a good challenge from Utah, the Nittany Lions thrilled their legions of adoring fans by outscoring the Utes 24-14 in the third quarter. Taking a 15-point lead into the final ten minutes, the Nittany Lions were not challenged.

“Our defense,” point guard Tony Carr -- whose 15 points and 14 assists were one rebound shy of a triple-double -- answered when questioned about the run. “You can’t go on a run if your defense is not working. Once our shots started falling, we got on the run.” 

Defense meant contested shots. While the turnovers for Utah were not extreme, there were miscues forced by the Penn State defense that helped turn the tide. 

“It was the turnovers,” the Utes’ Justin Bibbins admitted. “I had a few of them in that third quarter and they scored off them. It was turnovers.”

With the defense locked in, shots started to fall for the likes of Lamar Stevens, whose 28 points on 11-of-15 shooting cemented his most outstanding player honors to offset the disappointment of not being on the board on Selection Sunday. 

“We proved Penn State basketball is here to stay,” head coach Pat Chambers said. “This is a springboard. Twenty-six wins, cutting down the nets, it increases ticket sales, creates excitement, helps recruiting. This is a validation of the staff and all the work they put in, and a validation of the players that took a risk to come here because they believed we were building something.” 

All along, the mantra was New York. 

“Whenever we might get tired during a drill or had a tough situation in a game,” Shep Garner said, “Coach would simply say ‘New York’ as a reminder of getting through the tough times and what we were working toward.”

While Larry Krystkowiak’s Utah team came up short on the scoreboard, that was not so in the experience of New York and the NIT. 

“It’s the time of my life,” the Utes coach and NBA veteran said following the final. “I’ve always been on the outside, never been in the final four of the NIT, but talked to coaches who were here. I actually talked to a coach -- won’t say his name -- who actually went to a NCAA Final Four, and went to the NIT one year and won it. Of all his experiences, he said the NIT was the best experience.” 

“Looking from outside-in, you’re always kind of watching the NIT and think of it as a consolation prize, but man, when you are in the middle as a competitor or a coach, you’re winning games and in the Garden and some of the tradition around here. People may be writing articles, but they have no idea how cool this was for us.”

In a moment to reflect on the significance of the tournament and its respected place in the college game, it is hard to find a team advancing to New York not thinking along the same lines as Chambers and Krystkowiak. In fact, it just may be impossible.

Thursday, March 29, 2018

Penn State NIT Championship Postgame Photo Gallery

Postgame photos of Penn State's celebration of a National Invitation Tournament championship, won with an 82-66 victory over Utah on March 29, 2018:

(All photos by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

Nassau County officials make push for MAAC Tournament

Nassau County officials and local business owners began attempt to lure MAAC Tournament to Long Island with sales pitch Thursday morning. Below, a bracket backdrop shows MAAC schools who would contest conference tournament in 2020. (Photos by Vincent Simone/Daly Dose Of Hoops) 
By Vincent Simone (@VTSimone)

EAST MEADOW, NY -- As winter turns to spring, baseball fans aren’t the only ones pushing hope into the emerging season. 

Nassau County officials and local business owners, led by Town of Hempstead Receiver of Taxes and Canisius College alumnus Don Clavin, gathered at Borrelli’s Restaurant CafĂ© & Pizzeria in East Meadow Thursday morning to make an official pitch for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament to make its way to Long Island.


Located just a little more than a mile from prospective host site Nassau Coliseum, Borrelli’s is one of a number of local businesses which stand to benefit should the league settle on Nassau County as the tournament’s new host.
“It’s a slam dunk for the alumni,” Clavin said. “You have eleven schools that have a massive amount of alumni residents here in Nassau and Suffolk County that would love to come see this tournament.”
The league tournament is set to remain at Albany’s Times Union Center in 2019, but the process of choosing a site for the three-year 2020-22 cycle is scheduled to conclude in the coming months, with a decision due in May. Nassau Coliseum is one of three finalists, along with Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City and an extended stay in Albany.
The Times Union Center underwent a facelift to modernize and enclose its entrance atrium in the last year, but will have played host to the tournament for five consecutive years by the end of the current cycle. In addition, while Albany is a geographic center point for the conference, there have been enduring calls to move the tournament away from the home court of league member Siena and make it a truly neutral event.
Newly renovated in April 2017, Nassau Coliseum has already undergone use for multiple basketball events. The building serves as the full-time home of the NBA G League’s Long Island Nets, and played host to a game between Hofstra and Villanova, as well as a MAAC tripleheader during the 2017-18 season.
That tripleheader – featuring league members Fairfield, Quinnipiac, Marist, Monmouth, Iona, and Manhattan – drew an official crowd of 2,600. Those same teams are scheduled to participate in a repeat of the event during the 2018-19 season.
Piggybacking on that growing presence at the Coliseum, Clavin notes the postseason tournament and associated importance of each game would certainly be an attractive draw for all alumni and college basketball fans.
Clavin estimates a MAAC tournament move to Nassau Coliseum would bring in up to $5 million of revenue to the arena and surrounding businesses each year. As part of his pitch to the MAAC Council of Presidents, Clavin emphasized his willingness to promote the conference and its member programs through events at local schools involving team mascots and event-themed special offers at Nassau businesses.
“We want this tournament,” Clavin declared. “It fits in here.”

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Penn State vs. Mississippi State NIT Semifinal Photo Gallery

Photos from Penn State's 75-60 win over Mississippi State in the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament on March 27, 2018: (All photos by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

Utah vs. Western Kentucky NIT Semifinal Photo Gallery

Photos from Utah's 69-64 win over Western Kentucky in the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament on March 27, 2018:

(All photos by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

2017-18 MBWA Haggerty Award and All-Met ballot

The honors will not be handed out until April 25 at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown, but voting for the MBWA Haggerty Awards got underway Monday to recognize the best in the New York metropolitan area.

A proud voter six years running, I have made somewhat of a tradition out of revealing my ballot either via Twitter or through a post on this site, and I am pleased to be able to continue that exercise through the latter in preparation for next month's festivities. Let the debate begin:


Haggerty Award: Shamorie Ponds, St. John's (21.6 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.7 APG, 2.5 SPG) (Photo by the New York Daily News)
Already an all-city talent before taking the floor for the first time last season, Ponds served up an even greater encore as a sophomore, transcending the New York and Big East stages to help resurrect the Red Storm with a late surge to offset their 0-11 beginning to conference play. Ponds' superhuman stretch of games against Xavier, Duke, Villanova, and Marquette -- the latter three resulting in wins and the Marquette game bearing witness to a Carnesecca Arena record-setting 44-point outburst -- is what clinched the first of what could be back-to-back awards if the Brooklyn wunderkind returns to the corner of Union and Utopia as expected, with all due respect to last year's recipient, Angel Delgado. If Ponds is indeed the choice, he will be the third Red Storm honoree in the last five years, and first since Sir'Dominic Pointer's unanimous coronation in 2015.

Also considered: Angel Delgado, Seton Hall; Justin Wright-Foreman, Hofstra

Rest of All-Met first team, in alphabetical order:
Angel Delgado, Seton Hall
Joel Hernandez, LIU Brooklyn
Tyler Nelson, Fairfield
Desi Rodriguez, Seton Hall
Justin Wright-Foreman, Hofstra

All-Met second team, in alphabetical order:
Khadeen Carrington, Seton Hall
JoJo Cooper, Wagner
Rokas Gustys, Hofstra
Myles Powell, Seton Hall
Corey Sanders, Rutgers

All-Met third team, in alphabetical order:
Raiquan Clark, LIU Brooklyn
Blake Francis, Wagner
Stevie Jordan, Rider
Rickey McGill, Iona
Justin Simon, St. John's
Dimencio Vaughn, Rider


Rookie of the Year: Geo Baker, Rutgers (Photo by On The Banks)
Baker showed a glimpse of the future during Rutgers' improbable run to the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Conference tournament earlier this month, and the New Hampshirite proved his worth with a captivating blend of huge three-pointers and aggressive drives inside for a Scarlet Knight team poised to take the next step toward prominence under head coach Steve Pikiell. Whether or not Corey Sanders returns to Piscataway for his final season has no bearing on the fact that Baker is an integral, and much-valued, piece of the puzzle for Rutgers moving forward in a pivotal 2018-19 campaign.

Also considered: Jordan Allen, Rider; Deion Hammond, Monmouth


Coach of the Year: Kevin Baggett, Rider (Photo by Vincent Simone/NYC Buckets)
Picked seventh in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference this season, Baggett took a Rider team that many felt was a year away from competing and turned it into a 22-win outfit that not only went 15-3 in the MAAC, but shared the conference's regular season championship and represented the league in the National Invitation Tournament behind five double-figure scorers, all of whom return next year. The arrival of Ahmad Gilbert, who sat out last season when transferring from Minnesota, will only make the Broncs a more formidable challenger to Iona's attempt at an unprecedented fourth consecutive MAAC crown.

Also considered: Kevin Willard, Seton Hall; Bashir Mason, Wagner

2017-18 MBWA women's basketball award ballot

Voting for this year's MBWA All-Met awards is currently underway, with the winners to be announced on April 25 at the annual gala inside the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown.

The women's awards are distributed in a rather unique manner, with a committee chaired by Doug Feinberg, the national women's basketball reporter for the Associated Press. However, if there were a formal ballot to be submitted, the awards would look something like this from the vantage point of this writer:

Player of the Year: G'mrice Davis, Fordham (16.5 PPG, 13.4 RPG)
Davis made the most of her senior season for head coach Stephanie Gaitley, completing her career at Rose Hill with a second straight year of averaging a double-double per game for a Rams team that won 24 games and reached the round of 16 in the Women's National Invitation Tournament. The Philadelphia native graduates this May, but she has left the foundation for a successful front line that helped average 37 team rebounds per night.

Rest of All-Met first team, in alphabetical order:
Samantha Cooper, Fairfield
Rebekah Hand, Marist
Tyler Scaife, Rutgers
Maya Singleton, St. John's
Camille Zimmerman, Columbia

All-Met second team, in alphabetical order:
Bre Cavanaugh, Fordham
Sierra Clark, Wagner
Alana Gilmer, Marist
Kayla Grimme, Manhattan
Madison Hovren, Army West Point

All-Met third team, in alphabetical order:
Kamila Hoskova, Rider
Shania Johnson, Stony Brook
Stella Johnson, Rider
Amani Tatum, Manhattan
DeAngelique Waithe, LIU Brooklyn

Rookie of the Year: Qadashah Hoppie, St. John's 
Also considered: Toyosi Abiola, Iona

Coach of the Year: Stephanie Gaitley, Fordham 
Also considered: C. Vivian Stringer, Rutgers; Brian Giorgis, Marist

Utah, Penn State prove NIT success can still have positive impact

Utah's Justin Bibbins made right plays when it mattered most for Utes, who will play for NIT championship Thursday. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose of Hoops)

By Ray Floriani (@rfloriani)

NEW YORK -- There were a few reminders of the meaning of the NIT. You hear a lot of talk regarding how the nation’s oldest postseason tournament used to be a big deal, and the like. 

Granted, March Madness -- NCAA-style -- is the tournament very much in vogue these days. The NIT, though, is still respected and a championship  that is more than a consolation prize. A few cases in point:

About 40 minutes prior to game time, Western Kentucky Athletic Director Todd Stewart was chatting with ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla. Stewart then turned to a visitor and remarked, “I think this experience has been great for our program. If we go to the NCAA, we might be gone in a game. Here, we had three wins and play at Madison Square Garden with the hopes of winning a championship.”

Larry Krystkowiak, the coach of opposing Utah, shared a special moment with the media. The Utes’ mentor told how he recently received a good luck e-mail from Arnie Ferrin. A star of the 1947 Utah team that won the NIT, Ferrin was sending his well wishes to the Utes. The morning of the semifinal meeting with Western Kentucky, Krystkowiak quizzed his players on some NIT history, hoping to instill their appreciation for the opportunity to advance and compete for a championship. 

“The NIT is something I really value,” the Utah coach said in a soft tone, not long after his group eliminated Western Kentucky in the first semifinal Tuesday night, 69-64.

The first game saw 13 lead changes and ties, and to no surprise for those watching, was decided in the final minute, a type of game both coaches will study ad infinitum, with the one coming up short agonizing over what happened against would could have been.

“Whether you are in the NCAA, NIT or whatever tournament this time of year,” Krystkowiak mused, “you hear about the little things.”

“Well, this time of year there are no little things. Failing to box out on a free throw things like that are magnified. They can keep a team from advancing and sending them home early.”

Utah was able to draw offensive fouls twice in the last three minutes, with one taken by point guard Justin Bibbins in the final minute all but sealing the deal. The game was tied at halftime, but Krystkowiak, the former NBA veteran and head coach, knew what needed fixing: Turnovers. 

“We were down 15-2 in points off turnovers at the half. That had to improve,” he said. The final two quarters saw the Utes commit just five turnovers -- against eight the first half -- while allowing just two points on giveaways over those last twenty minutes.

For Western Kentucky, they built a double-digit lead on success beyond the arc, but head coach Rick Stansbury deemed it fool’s gold. 

“It’s not who we are,” he reflected. “We shot too many threes.” 

The percentages gradually caught up with the Hilltoppers. In the final minutes, in a cruel irony, they were victimized by the three. “A kid (Tyler Rawson) who was 1-of-6 hits a three,” Stansbury lamented. “Credit Utah, they made the plays the last few minutes. We didn’t.”

Tony Carr's versatility was key for Penn State in NIT semifinal victory Tuesday. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

The nightcap was a definitive contrast to the first game watched, as Penn State, fueled by a 21-0 first half run, charged out to a 42-23 lead at the intermission behind an 8-of-13 display from distance. For all the talk about feeling it or the shooter’s stroke, the Nittany Lions simply had it. Mississippi State mentor Ben Howland paced the sideline, encouraging his team, yet there were times he could just stop in his tracks and watch bewildered as the Nittany Lions dialed long distance. The second half started off with much of the same, hot shooting by Penn State, negating any chance of Mississippi State making a serious run. Entering the fourth quarter, that 19-point edge at intermission grew to 24, as Penn State led, 65-41. Scoring on three straight possessions brought Mississippi State within 18 with eight minutes remaining. Following a timeout, Penn State scored on the ensuing possession. For the Bulldogs, the rally was ultimately too little too late.

The 75-60 final score did not accurately tell the story. Penn State dominated. The Nittany Lions had three in double figures, led by Tony Carr’s game-high 21 points and an 11-for-20 team effort from the three-point line. However, Penn State coach Pat Chambers focused on more than the hot outside shooting. The essence of this victory, in Chambers’ opinion, came down to the opposite end of the floor. 

“We got rebounds and were able to push it,” he said. “Our guys were really receptive and prepared for a great SEC team. Mississippi State is a good basketball team. We watched them on film, but this was new for them. We were here before, playing in the Big Ten Tournament and playing here before that. You saw the benefits of that.” 

Chambers again referred to defense as the key. “We held them to 11 and 12 the first two quarters,” he said. “I told our kids, ‘Take care of that end, and offense will take care of itself.’”

It did, in a big way.

Monday, March 26, 2018

Schott's Book Review: From The Outside: My Journey Through Life and the Game I Love

(Photo by Jason Schott/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Jason Schott (@JESchott19)

From The Outside: My Journey Through Life and the Game I Love
By Ray Allen, with Michael Arkush
Dey Street Books, Hardcover, available Tuesday, March 27

Ray Allen is one of the greatest shooters in NBA history, especially known for draining them from behind the arc, and set the record for most three-pointers made in the process.

Allen, who displayed an incomparable work ethic in his 18-year career, won two NBA championships, one with the Boston Celtics in 2008, and a second with the Miami Heat in 2013.

In a very engaging and revealing work, From The Outside: My Journey Through Life and the Game I LoveAllen writes about growing up in a military family, one that taught him about responsibility and respect, and led to the laser focus that made him one of the greatest players in NBA history. It was this unwavering commitment to routine that he learned at a young age that translated into a sharply defined philosophy of how the game should be played – one that inspired players like LeBron James, and at times, divided Allen from power-hungry colleagues and coaches.

From The Outside reveals the nuanced man underneath the driven superstar, one whose outward manifestations are the result of his internal sense of identity, purpose, and at times, struggle. Allen tells plenty of stories of what it was like to join up with Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett in Boston, and then the challenge of jumping ship to join LeBron James and the Miami Heat in 2012.

Allen joined the Celtics in the summer of 2007, while Garnett came soon after from Minnesota, to join Pierce, who was already the star in Boston. The question of who would be the leader among these three elite players was inevitable.

Allen writes of what his dynamic with Garnett and Pierce was like in the beginning, “One thing we had in common, however, was our willingness to sacrifice. For me, that meant I’d no longer be counted on to score at least 20 points a game, as I did in every season from 1999 through 2007. No problem. What exactly did those points get me, anyway? Not a trip to the Finals, I’ll tell you that."

“Still, not being the number-one option would take some getting used to. In Seattle, I averaged roughly 19 shots per game. By comparison, during my first five starts in Boston, I averaged about 13. So, instead of taking almost any shot to work myself into a good shooting rhythm, I had to be more selective, waiting for the best first shot that was available; my goal, you see, was always to shoot at least 50 percent. That’s how efficient Michael Jordan was. People say Michael took a lot of shots, and he did, but he averaged almost 50 percent over his whole career – 49.7 percent, to be exact."

“If anything, I might have been too unselfish. It wasn’t that way at first. Any time I had a decent look at a three, I let it go. Except (Celtics head coach) Doc (Rivers) would then get in my face during the next timeout."

“‘You see Kevin Garnett in the block,’ he said, ‘you throw him the ball.’"

“Nothing against KG – he was almost automatic in the lane – but to that point in my career, in similar situations, the coaches had always urged me to take the shot. Which I did, and it made no difference who was in the block. Some years, I hit over 40 percent of my threes. Besides, if I had thrown the ball to KG he would have given it right back and come out to set a screen for me. There were times we had to tell him to shoot more."

“As the season wore on and he saw how hard I worked to prepare myself for each game, Doc became more comfortable with me taking the shot and actually encouraged it. The three became a weapon for us."

“‘You guys have the best shooter in the NBA on your team,’ Doc told the others. ‘Get him the ball. I never mind if Ray Allen takes the shot.’"

“Yet I still didn’t get enough touches, which frustrated me the most when I was going through a rough stretch. Usually, in those situations, the coach calls a play to get the guy a good look. See the ball fall through the net just once, and it’s amazing how quickly your confidence will return. Doc called plays constantly for Paul Pierce."

“‘We got to get Paul going,’ he’d tell us."

“I wish, every once in a while, he would have said, ‘We got to get Ray going.’ I was someone, after all, they counted on to hit a three or make the free throws to put the game away."

“‘Mariano, we need you,’ my teammates would say, referring to the New York Yankees’ star closer, Mariano Rivera. ‘Go in there and make a shot.’"

“I was ready to do just that, but it would’ve been much easier if I had been able to warm up, as Rivera did, instead of going through long periods without touching the ball. In Seattle, I rarely missed a free throw during the fourth quarter. Having had the ball in my hands on most of the possessions down the stretch, I stayed in rhythm.”

While most Celtics fans would agree that he was the closer of that team, hitting one game winning shot after another, they will probably cringe when reading that he was nicknamed after a Yankee closer.

There was a big difference between Allen and Pierce, and Ray writes about that, “Paul and I had less in common than KG and me, especially when it came to how we approached the game. he was focused when he was matched up against LeBron or Kevin Durant or any of the other top players, but not necessarily if the man he was guarding wasn’t among the elite."

“‘I’m taking the night off,’ he’d tell us."

“Paul was obviously joking, but the fact he even said it bothered me. Because you never knew if that mindset might affect his performance and cost us the game. We were fighting hard for home-court advantage for the whole playoffs (in 2008), and one game might make the difference."

"Once, he tried to get me to think along the same lines."

“‘Hey Ray, you got a night off,’ he said after noticing that the player I would be defending wasn’t highly regarded. “‘No, I don’t,’ I told him emphatically. He didn’t say another word.

“No player should ever take a night off. The worst player in the NBA would not be in the NBA if he weren’t good, which means he has the potential to beat you on any given night. And if you think you have to put forth a greater effort against the top players, you clearly aren’t giving enough of an effort against everyone else.”

The Celtics made it to the NBA Finals in 2008, and they would beat the Los Angeles Lakers in six games. The turning point was when the Celtics made one of the greatest comebacks in NBA history in Game 4, and it possibly was Allen’s best game as a Celtic. Allen had 19 points and nine rebounds.

Ray writes of that game in Los Angeles, “Game 4 took place on June 12. I played 1,471 games during my professional career, including the postseason, and another 101 in college. No game means more to me than this one."

“It sure did not start out very promising, except if you rooted for the purple and gold. The Lakers took a 21-point lead in the first quarter, were up by 18 at the half, and were still ahead, 70-50, with six minutes to go in the third. You don’t come back from a deficit that big. Not in the playoffs, and especially not on the road."

“Doc used to tell us, whenever we were down by 20: ‘Let’s get it under 10, and we will turn it into a game.’" "The other team, he said, will begin to feel the pressure and make mistakes."

“We got it under 10, all right, and it took only four minutes: After Paul completed a three-point play, the score was 73-64. We had gone five or six from the field; the Lakers were just one of six. Scoring the final ten points of the quarter, we trailed by just two going into the fourth. Game on!"

“I knew one thing: No way was I coming out. Normally, Doc gives me a breather with about five minutes to go in the first quarter until early in the second. No breathers tonight. We couldn’t afford to fall any further behind. Yes, I was exhausted. In addition to running around screens to get my own shot, I guarded Kobe. Every timeout felt like the 60 seconds between rounds of a heavyweight championship bout. Get me the water, Gus. Put a towel on my head. Don’t forget the mouth guard. Now send me out there for another round. Ding!"

“‘If you need to come out, let me know,’" Doc said during a timeout in the fourth.

“‘No, I’m okay,’ I told him. ‘I got you.’"

“‘Good,’ he said, ‘because I need you to stay in.’"

“I couldn’t believe it. We had really done it. We had come from 24 points down on their floor! The fans were stunned. Our guys were ecstatic. When I got to the locker room, however, I didn’t feel like celebrating. I felt like collapsing. I played hard game after game after game for 18 seasons, but this was the only game that, when the buzzer sounded, I had absolutely nothing left to give. It wasn’t because I played the full 48 minutes, although I can’t recall doing that before; it was because of everything in my career, and life, that had led me to that moment."

If that was Allen’s greatest overall game, his greatest moment came when he was a member of the Miami Heat. The Heat were facing elimination in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals, trailing the Spurs 95-92 with just 19.4 seconds left.

“Anything could still happen,” Allen writes. “This is a sport where the ball can take some strange bounces, and I’d seen my share since I joined the league in 1996. Bounces that can almost make you believe there were other forces at work. Besides, we had one clear advantage during those waning seconds. We had Chris Bosh."

“At six-foot-eleven, CB, as we called him, was the tallest player on the floor. That’s because Tim Duncan, the face of the San Antonio franchise, was on the bench. (Spurs head coach Gregg) Popovich had replaced him with another big, Boris Diaw, for quickness to chase us on the perimeter in a pick-and-roll, a smart move by a smart coach. Lo and behold, when LeBron missed a three, CB grabbed a rebound Duncan might have gotten. Nine seconds to go."

“Of course, we still needed the three ball. Desperately. From someone. Anyone. I wanted that someone to be me."

The second I saw the ball in CB’s hands, there was only one place for me to go: Behind the three-point line. Which meant backpedaling three steps, maybe four, toward the right corner of the court. Granted, it wasn’t the most ideal way to get in rhythm, but for as long as I could remember, in gyms from one end of the country to the other, I had prepared for this very moment."

“Few moments in basketball are as chaotic as an elimination game in the NBA Finals, your team trailing by three, the clock the enemy as well as your opponent. You need something stable to fall back on so your body won’t go into shock. You have to feel as if you have been there before even if you haven’t."

“CB saw where I was, thank goodness, and got me the ball. Now it was my turn. First, I needed to avoid stepping on the out-of-bounds line, which sneaks up on you in the corner of the court. No easy feat, let me tell you. I played in Milwaukee with a guy, Tim Thomas, who could shoot lights out, as long as he stayed in bounds. His first move was to take a step back, which often resulted in a turnover. That drove our coach, George Karl, crazy."

“‘Timmy, you got to know where you are!’" George would yell.

“Spacing is everything in basketball. That is why I went toward the lane as soon as I saw LeBron launch the three. Doesn’t make sense, does it? Shouldn’t I have stayed where I was, close to the three-point line, so I would be ready to shoot a quick three if CB, or another teammate, pulled down the rebound? Two points, remember, wouldn’t do us much good."

“Not really. Because I moved in, Danny Green, the man guarding me, went in too, and wasn’t in the best defensive position when CB threw the pass. If I had remained on the perimeter, Green would have been right on me. He had probably assumed: Ray is not going to shoot a three. I don’t have to worry about him."

“Of course, there was still the matter of making the shot, and that was going to be tough. I had not been an integral part of the offense the entire night. (Miami head coach Erik) Spoelstra believed the bigger the game, the more he needed to rely on the Big Three. Of our 92 points, LeBron, CB, and D-Wade had 52. Meanwhile, I had made just one basket, and that didn’t come until midway in the fourth quarter, after I missed my first four shots. Let’s just say I’d had better nights."

“Whether the ball would find the bottom of the net – and we would find new life – I didn’t have a clue. At least I knew I had done everything I could to be prepared. That day alone, I must have taken close to 200 jump shots at practice before the game. From the top of the key, the elbow, the right corner, the left corner. I took shots from everywhere. I took more shots than usual at the half, too, knowing I would be receiving fewer minutes of playing time to get loose, and always aware the moment might come when there would be one shot I would have to make. Or else. Now that the moment was indeed here, the ball – and our fate – out of my hands, I feared the worst."

I didn’t jump high enough. I didn’t get the ball up enough. This isn’t close to going in."

“Just then, I saw what everyone else saw: Swish! The game, suddenly, remarkably, was tied at 95. From then on, we took advantage, stopping the Spurs on their final possession – Tony Parker missed a fadeaway – and outscoring them 8-5 in overtime to win, 103-100. No one was happier than LeBron."

“‘Thank you, Jesus,’ he said. ‘Thank you, Jesus.’ He was referring to Jesus Shuttlesworth, the character I played in Spike Lee’s film He Got Game, back in the late ’90s."

“‘I’m just glad I could play my part,’ I told him."

“Two nights later, in the deciding Game 7, we survived another close one, 95-88, LeBron leading the way with 37 points, including five threes, and 12 rebounds. Shane Battier, our backup forward, also came up big, nailing six of eight threes. I didn’t score a single point but couldn’t have cared less. I scored the three points we had to have in Game 6 and we were the world champions."

“Was I thrilled to win a second ring? Absolutely. Is there any better feeling in sports? Hell no.”

This book is a must-have for any basketball fan that wants to read about an amazing player whose career spanned nearly two decades, and he left his indelible mark on the game From The Outside.