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標題: [球員資訊] James White vs. 弹跳神话 [打印本頁]

作者: sylk    時間: 2009-3-8 10:04 AM     標題: James White vs. 弹跳神话

James White
VS
弹跳神话



某某人可以将钱币放在篮板上沿,我们对这个消息早就听过N遍。但是你真得曾经亲眼目睹过这个场景吗?这真得可能会发生吗?我想起了去年的扣篮大赛:神兽德怀特·霍华德(Dwight Howard)腾空,在离地12英尺半的高度左手将自己的大头贴按在篮板上的同时,右手将球扣进。霍华德身材如此高大,且拥有一切拥有跳跳男称谓球员一样出众的弹跳。

如果连他都无法摸到篮板上沿的话,那么我就不禁会想,还有谁能做到吗?

Todd Gallagher写了一本超级恶搞的书《安迪·罗迪克用平底锅击败我》。作者在书中尝试回答一些经常在球迷脑海中闪过的疑问:职业飞镖选手都是啤酒狂徒吗?运动员是否进行豪赌?安迪-罗迪克是否能手握平底锅击败一名平庸的网球手?




Gallagher和为他发行此书的三河出版社目前已经欣然接受ESPN TrueHoop栏目的请求--将此书里对有关篮球运动员是否真能把钱币放在篮板上沿问题的解答一章重新进行编辑、创作。而前马刺队队员,超级扣将詹姆斯·怀特(James White)也对此问题的解答提供了帮助。

Gallagher在其文章中写到:

尽管山羊--厄尔·马尼戈特(Earl "The Goat" Manigault)只在大学短暂效力,并从未参加过NBA比赛,但他仍被公认为篮球历史上最伟大的球员之一。山羊所创造的传奇故事影响深远,被各大报刊、杂志广泛报道,且还有一部由唐-奇德勒主演的山羊纪录片--《篮板球》:故事讲述了山羊的传奇经历。影片讲述了诸多有关山羊超众篮球天赋的故事,但是影片的主题却是展现其惊人的弹跳能力--他将几张美元钞票放在了篮板上沿。而其平庸的身高(对其身高没有固定说法,准确数字介于511寸到61寸之间)给让此举令人难以置信。想想看:篮板上沿距离地面有13英尺高,且一般六尺左右的球员平足起跳高度仅为8英尺高。而山羊做出此举,其垂直起跳高度至少在60英寸以上。这意味着山羊将钱币放在篮板上沿的动作,就象是迈克尔·乔丹在影片《空中大灌篮》中最后时刻在半场起跳飞身扣篮。换言之,绝无可能实现。

由于球迷普遍认为,联盟中许多球员可以做出将钱币放在篮板上沿的惊人之举,因此这些传奇故事早已流传多年。但是在这项个人功绩并令人作呕般地推崇的运动中,我们却未曾看到足以证实此传言的确凿证据。


我曾经去过篮球天才聚集地(不,不是希腊)--美国国家队寻找问题的答案。因为,如果篮板上沿放钱币的事是真的话,那么美国队众多球星中,必有一人能够完成这个动作。

当主帅迈克·舒塞斯基(Mike Krzyzewski)正在主持球队训练--强调团队精神,而非在演练区域防守和当拆防守的时候,我询问了前掘金队总经理吉基·范德维哥(Kiki Vandeweghe),不知道这位前全明星球员是否见过篮板上沿放钱币的惊人之举。

没有,我从未亲眼见过。那距离太高了,我认为那个动作没人可以完成。


那吉基的前队友大卫·汤普森(David Thompson)呢?这位身高64寸左右的后卫据称垂直弹跳达44英寸,可以把25分硬币从篮板上沿拿下来。


吉基郑重地摇头否认。

你听过许多传言。但我认为他也做不到。吉基仰头望着篮板上沿如是说。

当老K教练结束球队训练后,我采访了小斯(Amare Stoudamire--这位身高610的大个在膝盖受伤前曾是联盟中弹跳最为出色的球员之一。

我从未摸到过篮板上沿,也没亲眼见过有谁做到过。我自己只差34英寸的距离。如果你在找一个可以完成这个动作的人的话,那么你最好去找勒布朗·詹姆斯(LeBron James


所以我又去找勒布朗。他也摇头否定。

大家都说我能做到,但尽管我尝试过,可惜我并未实现。我确实很能跳,但是那的确太高了。德怀特是这个世界上唯一能够几乎可以完成这个动作的人,你应该去找他聊聊。

勒布朗是在指德怀特·霍华德--2004年状元秀,身高611寸,身体素质出众(译者补充之:世人称为神兽)。在网上简单搜索之,你会发现有关德怀特惊人弹跳的视频短片不胜枚举。而他的东家--奥兰多魔术队,也已经为其制作了纪录其更加惊人的弹跳能力,其中以其亲吻篮筐最为人所知。2007NBA扣篮大赛,他更是在用手将其自己的大头贴按在篮板上的同时,将球灌入网窝。

黄蜂队控卫克里斯·保罗(Chris Paul)告诉我说:“我想德怀特能(将钱币放在篮板上沿)。在今天的训练前我问过他这个问题一,他(霍华德)他自己可以做到,但是我从未亲眼见识过。”

我问克里斯(保罗)他能否让霍华德一试身手。

“我不知道。这要看他自己的感觉。我也想见识一下。”

那你是否曾经见过有谁做到过呢?

“额,额……”

所以当人们说身高仅有6尺左右的山羊可以做到时,那是否是无稽之谈呢?


“不过我相信山羊可以做到。你肯定也看过电影《篮板球》吧?”


你是说由唐-奇德勒主演的那部片子吗?

“对。”

但你知道那其实并不是纪录片,对吗?


当我和保罗来到霍华德身边询问他的时候,他开怀大笑。

“我可以。我从未听过还有其他人能够做到。但是我可以跳到那么高。我17岁还在上高中时就第一次完成了这个动作。不过现在,尽管我只能摸到,但是如果你在上面放个物品的话,我却无法跳起将它拿下。”

当我们要求亲眼一见的时候,霍华德礼貌地拒绝了我们的要求,不过他说自己可以在以后为我做出这个动作。他说我必须与魔术队进行沟通联系。所以,一周后,当我打电话给魔术队时,他们说告诉我,我自己完全没有必要亲自跑一趟。因为他们手中有各种纪录霍华德惊人弹跳力的视频资料,这其中就包括他手摸篮板上沿的场面。于是我们将拥有有关此动作记录的资料,这在篮球历史上还是第一次。


不过,我得到的视频资料片里所记载的场景却与手摸篮板上沿相去甚远。在视频中,霍华德仅是几次手触靠近篮板上沿的一角。于是我想让“好孩子”霍华德履行自己的诺言,于是就打电话给魔术队通讯部副总裁乔尔·戈拉斯(Joel Glass),询问何时球队可以象我和霍华德原先商定得那样,让其现场进行摸篮板上沿的表演。可惜乔艾尔告诉我,无论霍华德对我承诺过什么,这都是被禁止得,以防不必要的伤病出现。

但我在通话时指出,仅腾空跳跃一次,这要与其在联盟比赛中的大部分情况相比,受伤几率自然要小很多,而且我补充说,自己从未听说过在篮球历史上有哪个人因为腾空跳跃一次就受伤的事情。于是乎乔艾尔又开始罗列其他诸般理由,只是在我听来,一切都近似无稽之谈。

于是我又试图联系霍华德的经纪人--古德温·史鲍斯(Goodwin Sports),并表明一切活动安排,并愿意自费派人前往奥兰多记录此场面。我得到的答案是这主意听起来不错,他们会在与霍华德协商后再通知我。之后我便得到来自古德温手下--公关人士玛丽·福特(Mary Ford)的通知--霍华德可以这么做,但这确实太费时间。当我向其解释:只要他在一次训练后进行此活动就好,而且预计总共需要的时间大概只需10秒钟时,其经纪人却花了两周时间来拒绝我的要求。而这一次她开始选择委婉地拒绝:“好吧,他可以这么做,但是他却不能总是做这类事情。”

对于此事,你可以有以下两种不同的见解:

1. 霍华德其实根本摸不到篮板上沿,其经纪人以及魔术队在为其做掩护。所以,魔术队为其制作的视频短片也值得人们怀疑,因为尽管那些动作已经足以惊世骇俗,但是它们却不是最为人传颂的篮球史上最令人惊讶的场面。2007赛季,霍华德曾先后两次试图向世人展现其惊人的跳跃能力:一次是在扣篮大赛中,这之后当其队友质疑其仍否还能象在其新秀赛季那样,手摸到距离篮板上仅剩六英寸高的胶纸时,他又一次展现了其出众的能力。尽管如此,大头贴和胶纸的高度距离地面为12英尺6英寸,距离篮板上沿还差6英寸。加之当国家队队友要求其想自己展现其手摸上沿的功力时遭霍华德拒绝的事实,以及其经纪人和球队拒绝我的要求时做提出的种种理由,还有历史上有关此说的无凭无据,不免让人对其真实能力后面大打问号……

2. 完成手摸篮板上沿这个动作,此使命着实艰巨。霍华德的运动能力惊人,且绝对是一个品行端正,诚实守信的人。不过许多职业运动员,即使他们的初衷是好的,却常常因为过于高估自身能力而臭名昭著。当他们摸高高度距离篮板上沿仅差那么45英寸的时候,这很容易让人认为他们是在触摸篮板上沿。不过在这许多年的吹嘘之后,我需要的是有过此举的铁证!


我接下来的目标是肖恩·马里昂(Shawn Marion),因为传说中他有能力摸到篮板的上沿。于是我接通了太阳队的电话,这也导致了他们进行了一系列内部的调查,可是最后他们告诉我马里昂(Marion)只是“曾经”可以做到。虽然球队并没有出示任何的文件证明,但是也没有人担保他们所说的话的准确性。

但是但是但是……我又找到了希望!这个希望就在名为詹姆斯·“飞翔的” ·怀特(JamesFlight White)身上,这位来自圣安东尼奥,又高又瘦的新秀(身高67寸)。
TrueHoop:现在怀特(White)正在土耳其的Fenerbache队打球。)



从某种程度上说,灌篮是一门艺术(就像从某种程度上说,酒精含量极低的饮料--Boone's Farm是一种酒一样,但我显然把问题扯远了),也就是说灌篮就是在(观众的)品味和(球员的)表演中决出谁才是“最好的”。但是当怀特就读Cincinnati大学的时候,他在扣篮大赛中有一系列惊世骇俗的暴扣场面上演,其他人在其参赛之前,从未做出过如此这般的飞天之举。所以那些对手们只能看着怀特完成一次又一次的“惊世演出”,看着怀特将他们一一击败。如果一定要确切的描述出怀特(White)的跳跃能力的话,那么他给人的幻觉就好象是J博士在1976年所作出的罚球线起跳灌篮;就好象是迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan)在1987年所作出的令人吃惊的罚球线起跳灌篮;但是在2001年,詹姆斯·怀特(James White)作出了更加令人不可思议的灌篮——他从罚球线起跳并且跨下换手灌篮!

在职业篮球的历史上没有任何一个人——我再强调一遍,没有任何人——可以做出类似的动作。文斯·卡特(Vince Carter),科比·布赖恩特(Kobe Bryant),迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan),J博士,“天行者”肯尼·沃克(Dr.J,KennySkyWalker),迪·布朗(Dee Brown),土豆·韦伯(Spud Webb, 泰伦斯·斯坦斯巴里(Terence Stansbury),多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins),全部这些有名的灌篮手——他们中没有一个人可以实现这样一个扣篮。以塞亚·莱德(Isiah Rider)能够在1994年赢得扣篮大赛冠军只是因为他可以完成跨下灌篮,包括刚刚所提到的,乔丹(Jordan)和J博士所获得的扣篮大赛冠军也都只是因为他们的罚球线起跳灌篮。当然对于大卫·汤普森(David Thompson)或“山羊”俄尔·马尼格特(Earl Manigault)来说他们能否做出以上的两个动作都令人怀疑。但是詹姆斯·怀特(James White)却将这两种灌篮动作完美的结合在了一起。

所以当我在《印地案纳波利斯星报》(Indianapolis Star)上看到一篇关于怀特(White)的采访这样写道:


Q
:你可以摸到篮板的上沿吗?



A
:是的。

我立即拨通了他的代理人,比尔·麦克坎德莱斯(Bill McCandless)的电话,以确认和预定一些事情。

比尔(Bill)有他自己的顾虑,但是仍然对此产生了兴趣。

“这真的是我听过的最老(流传N次)的流言了。如果你一直接触篮球,你会一直听到有关某个球员可以做到这些(摸到篮板上沿)的流言,但这经常只是些胡言乱语。”

“虽然詹姆斯并不会像这样吹嘘自己,但我还是要告诉你,我不知道你是否意识到这点,但是他想成为一个十项全能的选手。成为一个拥有奥林匹亚运动会上(那些田经运动员一样)的跳跃能力,单脚起跳,他就是想成为这样的选手。”

麦克坎德莱斯(McCandless)表示即使怀特没有受过专业的训练来通过奥林匹亚的考核,但他仍然能在跳高中跳出74的高度,并且在跳远中跳出257的距离。

听起来他好象已经同意了。他在与怀特通完电话后又迅速的回到了我的边上。

詹姆斯表示他确定自己曾经摸到过篮板的上沿。现在,他也许只能在100次尝试中成功1次,但他却说如果你真想派人来拍视频短片的话,他确实愿意一试身手。”

怀特来到了辛辛那提(Cincinnati)大学的球场上并且准备“飞翔”,但是他首先要澄清有关他能摸到篮板上篮的一些事情。

“事实上我从来没有摸到过篮板的上沿。但是既然来到了辛辛那提(Cincinnati)大学的球场上做这样垂直的测试,我会尽我所能摸到篮板最高的地方。”

这和他之前的回答完全不吻合。当我回想起他在接受《印地案纳波利斯星报》(Indianapolis Star)记者采访时的肯定回答时,我开始怀疑是否NBA球员们表示他们能摸到篮板的上沿就像初中生说他们已经发生过性关系一样令人难以置信。

但是詹姆斯-怀特却想秀下自己的弹跳。既然他是单腿起跳,于是我们就在篮筐一侧放上一个标尺。这和摸篮板上沿并不完全一样。如果他不能摸到标尺上最高的高度的话,那么下一步摸篮板上沿的活动就没有必要进行了。,

那么他就不用进行下一步的摸篮板上沿的测试了。

詹姆斯很接近了。他真的T**很接近了。但是他跳的最高高度仍然离(最高的)标尺相差2英寸。

好吧,也许当我说他就不用进行下一步的摸篮板上沿的测试时我表现的太悲观了。在他起跳的一小时前,有许多流言都表示詹姆斯的膝盖有伤,
这也多少影响了他的发挥。所以一个月后我们再次进行了尝试,这次是在圣安东尼奥马刺的训练后。

又一次,虽然很接近但没有完全摸到。

至于究竟怀特是否可以摸到篮板的上沿,你可以自己得出结论。我所花的这些钱表明他可以的。他只是差那么几英寸,并且如果詹姆斯知道自己无法达到这个高度,我认为他不会再一次配合我们进行试跳,或者在我们的预定期限之前再次提出尝试。

但是在这次讨论中,究竟詹姆斯是否可以摸到篮板的上沿是次要的。关键是,如果一个67寸的拥有奥林匹克跳高运动员弹跳的家伙,一个可以做出文斯·卡特(Vince Carter)和迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan)都不敢做的灌篮动作的家伙都无法摸到篮框一侧的标尺,那么在历史上就没有任何一个运动员能摸到篮板的上沿了。并且也可以肯定的是没有谁曾经“改变过这个记录”。

当然,唐·钱德尔(Don Cheadle)在蹦床上的起跳不计算在内。
作者: sylk    時間: 2009-3-8 10:14 AM     標題: James White vs. a Jumping Myth

James White vs. a Jumping Myth
January 8, 2008 5:34 PM
We have heard it a million times. So and so can "make change" off the top of the backboard. But have you ever seen it done? Is it really even possible? I remember back in last year's dunk contest, much was made of the fact that Dwight Howard slapped a sticker 12-and-a-half feet up in the air while dunking. He's enormous, long, and jumps about as high as anyone.
And if it's a big deal to him that he was able to reach a distance well short of the top of the backboard, I wonder if anyone ever really has.
Todd Gallagher wrote the highly entertaining book "Andy Roddick Beat Me With a Frying Pan" that endeavors to answer the questions that burn in the souls of fans, like: Are dart professionals great beer pong players, do athletes really play high, and could Andy Roddick beat an average tennis player playing with a frying pan?
Gallagher and his publishers at Three Rivers Press have nicely agreed to let TrueHoop reproduce a whole chapter of that book that is hell-bent on addressing the question "can basketball players really 'make change' off the top of the backboard?" Super-dunker James White was enlisted to help answer the question.
Gallagher writes:
Earl "The Goat" Manigault is widely regarded as one of the greatest playground basketball players of all time. Although he never played in the NBA and only briefly played in college, the legend of Manigault has spread far and wide and led to his play being glorified in magazines, books, and even a movie starring Don Cheadle called Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault. There are a number of tales regarding Manigault's prowess, but the central story that propelled his legend was that he had such extraordinary leaping ability he could pull dollar bills off the top of the backboard and leave change. What made this even more amazing was that Manigault was, depending on who you talk to, somewhere between 5-11 and 6-1. Considering that the top of the backboard is at thirteen feet and the average six-foot-tall man can only touch about eight feet high standing flat-footed, Manigault would have had to jump at least sixty inches to even come close. That would mean the Goat's "making change" was a feat on par with Michael Jordan's game-winning dunk from half court in the film Space Jam. In other words, pure fiction.
The legend of touching the top of the backboard has gone on for years, and it has been excitedly attributed to so many different players that it's commonly assumed any number of guys in the NBA can do it. But in a sport where any individual achievement is promoted ad nauseam, we've never seen any proof of it actually being done.
I went to the epicenter of basketball talent (no, not Greece) to talk to the U.S. national team. Certainly, if it could be done, one of America's basketball stars would be able to do it.
While Coach Mike Krzyzewski had the players practicing cheers to boost team spirit instead of learning how to beat a zone defense or defend a pick and roll, I asked then-general manager of the Denver Nuggets Kiki Vandeweghe, a former all-star, whether he'd ever seen anyone reach the mountaintop.
"No, I've never seen it. That's a long way up there. I don't think it can be done."
What about Kiki's former teammate David Thompson? Presumably the 6-4 guard with what people claimed was a 44-inch vertical could grab a quarter off the top of the backboard.
Kiki shook his head solemnly.
"You hear a lot of stories." He looked up at the top of the backboard. "No, I don't think he could do that."
When Coach K was finally done passing out Amex applications, I talked to Amare Stoudamire, who is 6-10 and was one of the best leapers in the NBA before a major knee injury.
"I've never touched the top of the backboard and I've never seen it done," he said. "Myself, I came close, maybe three or four inches from the top. If you're lookin' for a guy who can do it, talk to LeBron James."
So off to LeBron I went. When asked, he shook his head no as well.
"Everyone says I can, but I can't do it. I've tried. I can get up for sure but that's a long way. Dwight's the only man in the world who could do something like that, you gotta talk to him."
"Dwight" was Dwight Howard, the first pick in the 2004 draft, who stands 6-11 and is an absolute physical freak. Do a search online and you'll see extensive video of Dwight's leaping exploits. His team, the Orlando Magic, has documented some of his more amazing stunts, most famously him literally kissing the rim. In the 2007 Slam Dunk contest, he dunked a ball while slapping a sticker shockingly high on the backboard.
Hornets point guard Chris Paul told me, "I think Dwight can. I asked him before practice today and he said he can but I've never seen him do it."
I asked Chris if he could get Dwight to try.
"I don't know. Depends on how he feels. I want to see it, too."
Have you ever seen anyone do it?
"Uh uh."
So that's total crap when people say Earl Manigault could do it, since he was like 6 feet tall?
"I believe it, though. You ain't never seen the movie Rebound?"
You mean the one with Don Cheadle?
"Yeah."
You know that's not a documentary, right?
When Chris and I approached Dwight and asked him, he beamed ear to ear.
"I can. I've never heard of anyone else that can do it but I can get up there. I did it in high school when I was seventeen for the first time. Now, I can't grab stuff off of it but I can get up there."
When we asked to see it, Dwight politely begged off but said he'd do it for me later. He told me to set it up with the Magic. So, a week later, I called the team and they said my trip would be unnecessary; they had all kinds of great video with Howard leaping, including Dwight touching the top of the backboard. For the first time in the history of basketball we were going to have documentation.
Well, the footage ended up being bunk. On the video Dwight ended up touching somewhere just north of the square on the backboard a couple of times. Because Howard seemed like a nice guy and I wanted to take him at his word, I asked the Magic's VP of communications, Joel Glass, when we could coordinate the jump per the original plans Dwight and I discussed. Joel stated that no matter what Dwight told me, he would not be allowed to jump, citing injury concerns.
I pointed out that jumping in the air one time would be less dangerous than most of the things Dwight did in a typical NBA game and I added that I had never heard of anyone, ever, in the history of basketball getting hurt this way. So Joel started giving a variety of other reasons, all bordering on the insane.
Next I contacted Dwight's agency, Goodwin Sports, to let them know that I would be willing to spend my own time and money having someone come to Orlando to document the leap. They said that it sounded good and that they'd check with Dwight and get back to me. The official response came from Mary Ford, Howard's publicist at Goodwin, who said he could do it but it was too time consuming. When I explained that it would literally be one jump after practice, the total time of which would be somewhere in the neighborhood of ten seconds, the agency took two weeks to say no. And this time she hedged. "Well, he can do it but he can't always do it."
You can look at this a couple of different ways:
1. Dwight can't touch the top of the backboard and the Magic and his agency were covering for him. Alarm bells go off since they have footage of different kinds of leaping stunts but not the most-talked-about one in basketball history. Twice in the 2007 season Dwight tried to impress with his leaping ability, once at the Slam Dunk contest and again when his teammates doubted he could still reach a piece of tape high on the backboard that he had touched when he was a rookie. However, both the sticker and the piece of tape were 12-6 high, which left him a full six inches short of our milestone. Combine this with him not trying to touch the top when the players of the U.S. national team asked, all the different excuses his organization and agency gave, and the historically murky nature of the claims, and there are certainly doubts.
2. Dwight really can touch the top of the backboard but the people surrounding him are awful.
It's a tough call. Dwight is astounding athletically and by all accounts is a nice and honest guy, but pro athletes, even ones with the best intentions, are notoriously bad about overestimating their own abilities. It's very easy for someone to think they're touching the top when really they're 4 or 5 inches below. After years of bulls---, I needed proof.
My next lead was Shawn Marion, who was rumored to be able to pull it off. A call to the Suns led to some internal research followed by them telling me he "used" to be able to do it. The team could produce no documentation, though, and no one who could even vouch for the claim.
But but but ... there was hope! And the hope was in the person of James "Flight" White, a

6-7 string bean rookie for the San Antonio Spurs. (TrueHoop note: now White's playing for Fenerbache in Turkey.)
Dunking, in a way, is an art (in the same way that Boone's Farm is a wine, but I digress), and in that respect it's often a matter of taste and preference as to who the "best" is. But while at the University of Cincinnati, White performed a variety of dunks so improbable that they had never been attempted in competition, let alone completed, before he flushed them down. To give an idea of White's leaping ability, it was mind-blowing when Dr. J took off from the foul line and dunked in 1976; it was jaw dropping the way Michael Jordan took off from the foul line and dunked in 1987; but in 2001 James White took off from the foul line and dunked while putting the ball between his legs!
There is no one -- and I stress, no one -- in the history of professional basketball who can even come close to doing this. Vince Carter, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dr. J, Kenny "Sky" Walker, Dee Brown, Spud Webb, Terence Stansbury, Dominique Wilkins, the entire cast of Slamball -- none of these guys could pull off this dunk. Isaiah Rider won a dunk contest in 1994 just by virtue of the fact that he could go between his legs and dunk at all, and as mentioned, Jordan and Dr. J won dunk contests by being able to dunk from the foul line. It's questionable whether David Thompson or Earl Manigault could do either. James White combined the two.
So when I came across an interview from the Indianapolis Star with White that read:
Q: Can you touch the top of the backboard?
A: Yeah.
I immediately called his agent, Bill McCandless, to set up something.
Bill had his concerns, but was intrigued.
"That's really the biggest old wives' tale out there. If you're around basketball, you grow up hearing all the time about guys being able to do that and it's always nonsense.
"I'll tell you this, though, James does not bulls--- about this kind of stuff. I don't know if you're aware of this but he had thought about becoming a decathlete. The guy has Olympic leaping ability. Jumping off of one leg, he's like no other."
McCandless said that even without training White qualified for the Olympic trials in the high jump by leaping 7-4 and the long jump with a distance of 25-7.
This sounded promising. He called James and quickly got back to me.
"James said he's for sure done it. Now, he might only be able to do it one out of one hundred times, but he said he'd give it a shot if you want to send a camera crew."
White arrived at the court at the University of Cincinnati ready to fly, but first he wanted to clarify something about his top-of-the-backboard exploits.
"I've never actually done it, per se. But doing the vertical test at the University of Cincinnati, I've touched as high as the top of the backboard."
How fitting for this topic. Thinking back to his "Yeah" response to the Indianapolis Star interviewer, I started to wonder whether NBA players saying they've touched the top of the backboard was like kids in junior high saying they've "gone all the way."
But James wanted to show his stuff. Since he jumps off of one foot, we put a yardstick off of the side of the top of the backboard. Not exactly the same thing as touching the top of the backboard, but one step at a time. If he couldn't get the yardstick, then there'd be no reason to go further.
There was no reason to go further.
James was close. Damn close. But his best jump left him more than 2 inches from the yardstick.
Okay, maybe I was being pessimistic when I said there was no reason to go further. There had been rumors of a "busted nut" (is that part of the knee or something?) that took place an hour before the jump, slowing James down, so a month later we tried again, this time after practice with the Spurs in San Antonio.
Again, close but not quite.
As to whether White can do it or not, you can draw your own conclusions. My money says that he can. He was only a few inches off, and I don't think James would have taken the time to jump for us twice, or offered to try again before we ran into a book deadline, if it was something he couldn't do.
But whether James White can or can't reach the top is secondary in this discussion. The point is, if a 6-7 Olympic-caliber high jumper who can do dunks that Vince Carter and Michael Jordan dare not attempt is struggling to reach a yardstick off of the side of the hoop, there is no player in history who has ever touched the top of the backboard. And certainly no one who has ever "made change."
And no, Don Cheadle jumping off of a trampoline doesn't count.(Photo: Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
International Basketball, League-Wide Issues, San Antonio Spurs, James White




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