I think,

you know, I mean, everybody says, you know, good old days, right? Even before I started covering the league, there were all these guys like Peter Vesey and Mark Heisler for the LA Times that used to cover the league on a regular basis.

And all these guys could, you know, talk to you about... going on, you know, flying commercial with the, you know, like, I know people can't believe this now, but I think the 85, 86 Celtics flew commercial.

Like, think of that.

One of the greatest teams of all time.

And, like, so, like, Bob Ryan was on the flight with them.

Peter May was on the flight with them.

yeah, I don't

Here's former New York Times sports writer Mike Wise.

There are two ways to do things, his way and the wrong way.

That was Larry Brown.

You either did it his way or the wrong way.

And Allen Iverson always seemed to do things the wrong way.

It was the combustion of two alpha males on different ends of the spectrum.

There was racial components.

The Bucs may not have won the title that season, but for former New York Times sportswriter Mike Wise, the team's impact still lives on in the way the game of basketball has evolved.

Here's former New York Times sportswriter, Mike Wise.

There are two ways to do things, his way and the wrong way.

That was Larry Brown.

You did hi- you either did it his way or the wrong way, and Allen Iverson always seemed to do things the wrong way.

It was the combustion of two alpha males on different ends of the spectrum.

There was racial components.

There were generational components.

[upbeat music] The Bucs may not have won the title that season, but for former New York Times sportswriter Mike Wise, the team's impact still lives on in the way the game of basketball has evolved.

Here's former New York Times sportswriter Mike Wise.

Paul Silas was not just a guy who worked his ass off to get where he was, and was remembered as one of the fiercest, most tenacious rebounders of his day.

Paul Silas, just a special human being on so many levels.

If you're gonna take someone to task, he would be one of the last people I would.

And so for Paul Silas to get this second opportunity was a big deal, and he probably did have some animosity.

I would never hold anything over Paul Silas because he didn't feel like shaking Pat Riley's hand that day.

I think there was a lot of vindication for both Jamal Mashburn and Paul Silas.

For former New York Times reporter Mike Wise, it was clear Davis thrived under the spotlight.

According to former New York Times sports writer, Mike Wise, Karl's willingness to change his coaching philosophy is what made him a great coach.

Well, it wasn't his style.

That's an understatement.

I mean, this was a league in which a forearm shiver was how you guarded somebody, and an elbow to the throat was how you got a rebound.

So yeah, I think that was a lot for d- for George Karl, but he did the thing that great coaches do.

He molded his philosophy to his players.

It wasn't the other way around.

But the Knicks snuck into the playoffs as the eighth seed, and all of Ernie's bets started to pay off.

According to former New York Times sports writer Mike Wise, Carl's willingness to change his coaching philosophy is what made him a great coach.

Well, it wasn't his style.

That's an understatement.

I mean, this was a league in which a forearm shiver was how you guarded somebody and an elbow to the throat was how you got a rebound.

So yeah, I think that was a lot for George Carl, but he did the thing that great coaches do.

He molded his philosophy to his players.

It wasn't the other way around.

And all of Ernie's bets started to pay off.

New York Times reporter Mike Wise explained why he wrote at the time that this could be the year the Bucs could break out in the Eastern Conference.

One, George had a wealth of experience, including with the Seattle Supersonics when we led to the finals.

A lot of people thought very highly of George Carl as a coach.

There were just so many elements of timing and talent meshing together.

Old guys, new guys, and a coach that knew how to put it all together that made sense.

It made sense they would be there.

For New York Times sports writer Mike Wise, with the season on the line after a disastrous start, George Carl had to trust his instinct and risk losing the locker room in order to save the season before it fell apart.

Well, he's not the first person to blow a gasket.

New York Times reporter Mike Wise explained why he wrote at the time that this could be the year the Bucs could break out in the Eastern Conference.

One, George had a wealth of experience, including with the Seattle Supersonics when we led to the finals.

A lot of people thought very highly of George Carl as a coach.

There were just so many elements of timing and talent meshing together.

Old guys, new guys, and a coach that knew how to put it all together that made sense.

It made sense they would be there.

For New York Times sports writer Mike Wise, with the season on the line after a disastrous start, George Carl had to trust his instinct and risk losing the locker room in order to save the season before it fell apart.

Well, he's not the first person to blow a gasket.