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With each passing day I think about all the time spent in the schoolyard playing basketball.
We had all sorts of players. We had good outside shooters, a few good point guards and some guys who were bangers inside. We also had a few guys who could jump. I mean really jump. I’m talking really, really high.
As Jackie Ryan would often say, “he was talkin’ to the Lord!”
A few guys stand out when you think of ball players from the neighborhood who “got up!”
Timmy Kemp, one of the highest jumpers from the neighborhood sent me a few pictures.
T.K. was a cool dude. I used to play basketball with him all the time in the schoolyard. He had that ‘Walter Davis’- type game; hence the nickname, ‘The Greyhound’.
Notice the Pony T.K.’s rockin’ in the picture. Those sneakers were in style. I recall getting a pair from Modell’s. Matter of fact, I probably saw Timmy wearing them one day in the yard and decided to pick up a pair for myself. He’s also sporting the down vest that everyone threw over a sweatshirt when they played in the cold weather.
TK is living in Alabama and doing well.
-Red
Hoops135@hotmail.com
Brooklin said:
McBear’s Summer League Lineup
Timmy Kemp
Allan Lang
Johnny Ginda
Mike Laffin
Kenny Ebanks
Barry Welch
Gammy Martinez
Barry The Owner of McBear’s
Stephen Gottleib
Can any one add another name to this list?
hoopscoach said:
Tito and Curtis Walker. I think Jose was on that team too…
Brooklin said:
Curtis “Sky” Walker along with the brothers Tito and Joselito
Martinez round out that squad for sure! How did I miss that one?
hoopscoach said:
I don’t know how you missed that either. Curt was tough-he had that midrange game. Plus, Tito shared the PG duties with Alan Lang. They were like Chris Duhon and Nate Robinson LOL…Jose was a solid role player. Grabbed some rebounds and defended inside. We should start a Scouting pamphlet on all the players from the Summer League, sorta like, “Who’s Who in HN Summer League”.
Rich Ferraiolo said:
But just remember one thing Coach, you, Glen and the boys had the biggest upset in summer league history when you beat them. even if some of the players might have been a little off in their game that night
hoopscoach said:
That was a great win!
JIMMY VAC said:
Jackie Ryan had hops,, the late Bundy was a quck jumper .. hardly bent his knees and got up ..
D Leary said:
Hoopscoach had some hops
hoopscoach said:
LOL…thanks D-Man. Remember Tommy Walsh and Warren Whitlock, those guys had some hops.
Andrew Purdy said:
In the summer league one year Jackie Ryan did a 360 dunk during warm-ups which prompted ref Pete Iulo to tell him in his jovial manner “Get off the damn rim – this aint the NBA”
hoopscoach said:
That’s a classic line. Pete Iulo, wonder how he’s doing?
richiek said:
hey Steve, i heard there having a holy name, neighborhood reunion in april, i think at bishop ford, did you hear anything on this.
hoopscoach said:
Yes Rich, I heard. They sent me some info, need to post it on the site.
D Leary said:
Yeah Tommy had the hops and Warren too. Warrens freshman year at Princeton, he was playing in the jv game before the varsity game. He got a break away at the end of the game and bent the rim on his dunk. The varsity game was next and it was on TV and it was delayed for about an hour while they changed the rim. Little trivia for ya.
hoopscoach said:
Walsh was my hero! Used to love watching him in warmups, #44. How about this, I had the chance to work with him when I did some Ironworking!
Great trivia on that Whitlock story. Wonder how he’s doing?
Rich Ferraiolo said:
The kid from Loughlin could get up. Tighe i think his name was.
hoopscoach said:
Donnie Tighe had hops for sure. Was also a great guy. Got to know him pretty well. Rode his bike everywhere!
Brooklin said:
Donny Tighe was the master at the fake the behind the back pass and keep it wrapped behind the back and when the defender bit he would just go by his man! Donny had great hops but was a very good fundamentally sound player and real good guy! I wonder what he is up to these days?
hoopscoach said:
I used to love running the break with him down Manhattan Beach-he always got out wide, running the lanes. You knew he would finish too when you gave it up to him.
D Leary said:
Donny was the man on the break. Real good guy too. 2 other guys from Loughlin with crazy hops. Dave Green and Timmy Shephard. Shephard was one of the only guys I ever saw slam it in the Holy Name summer league. That was pretty tough with the pole there.
hoopscoach said:
Wonder if Tim was assessed a Tech for dunking?
The Greek said:
No Pete Iulo was probably talking to someone on the sideline with his head turned and missed it!
jimmy vac said:
Coach,
I got one .. they reinstated dunking about ’76-77 but only during games and I dunked hard during warm ups to show our main rival Delehanty, that we meant business.. The ref teched me and I played the rest of the game scared out of my mind if we lost by one.. thankfully we won. My coach let me have it practice the next day, rightfully so…
Dannny is right… I never saw anyone dunk in a game.. I saw a couple of missed ones though.. The pole was a hazard…
I went to dunk in a pickup game and the defender half tacked me in mid air and we came down on my ankle.. I tore a ligament the defender Raul hit his head on the pole and needed to get checked out what a fun day that was!!! I was cursing him all the way to the hospital..
I admired the guys who could explode … I was about 6’4 so I could dunk pretty easy but I could not explode like Ryan and some other guys..
Brooklin said:
If my memory serves me right there was no dunking in the Middle League although dunking was indeed allowed in the Big League or Open League. I guess the popular wisdom at that time were players that played in the Big League which consisted of high school varsity players and Holy Name College guys could in fact actually dunk the ball as opposed to the Middle League guys that could just hang on the rim and and as a result either bend the rim or worse break it off completely (a la Michael Bundrick). I remember Loughlin’s Tim Shepard dunking up there in a game as well as others such as Bruce Clarke also from Loughlin. Others that dunked in a game up in HN during the summer league that I remember were Wendell Alexis of Christ The King and later Syracuse University, Stew Granger of Nazareth and later Villanova and the late Arturo Brown also of Nazareth and Boston University. Chris Logan of Bishop Ford and later The College of Holy Cross
hoopscoach said:
Dunking the ball back in the day for most of us was just a dream-we’d rather shoot the jumper!