Kyle Taylor, Valdosta Today Sports
It was an eight day layoff for NBA action until Game 1 of the Finals on Thursday night between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors.
The wait was well worth it, as the the two teams took a hard fought game into overtime. Lebron took the game over with a 44 point performance, but it was not enough against the Warriors and league MVP, Stephen Curry. Curry put up 26 to lead his team to the 108-100 victory.
Game 2 will be played in Oakland at the Oracle Arena at 8 PM ET.
The last time the Warriors were in the NBA Finals, legendary player, Jamaal Wilkes, was on the team. It was 1975 and Wilkes was in his rookie season for Golden State. The man they called “Silk” won the championship that year and went on to win three more with the great Lakers teams. Jamaal also won two titles with the UCLA Bruins under Coach John Wooden.
On Friday, I got the opportunity to sit down and talk with Wilkes about a number of different topics, including his new book, “Jamaal Wilkes: Memoirs of the Original Smooth As Silk” which is currently available on Amazon for purchase.
The one thing that I took away from the interview was the level of respect that Wilkes had for teammates and coaches.
Especially the amount of respect he showed for Coach John Wooden.
When I asked Jamaal what it was like to play for the late coach he had this to say, “As great of a basketball coach and genius as he was, he was an even finer person.” Wilkes went on to say, “He was an English teacher by trade and he had a way with words. He could say so much in few words. Things like, “be quick, but don’t hurry” and “failure to prepare is to prepare to fail”.”
The hall-of-famer also told me about a few of his teammates that he spent his 12-year career playing for. Players such as Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, and Rick Barry.
We also took some time to talk about the current NBA Finals. When I asked Wilkes about his first NBA Finals appearance with no previous experience, I was wondering how much the experience factor favored Lebron over Stephen Curry. Wilkes responded, “Yes I believe it does. The advantage that Curry has is that his coach, Steve Kerr, has been there multiple times as a player and can guide Steph Curry as to what to expect.”
The one question I could not leave out was where the nickname “Silk” came from. Jamaal told me the story of how he made a move in game as a freshman in college and an intramural player who was watching the game saw the move and hollered “Silk, that move was smooth as Silk.” From then on the name caught on with his teammates.
My southern roots came out as I got the opportunity to talk to a former player in Los Angeles, CA from right here in Valdosta, I made sure I let him know that Hawks will be back stronger next season and ready for his boys on the West Coast.
