Over and Back: Stories About NBA History

One of the bigger non-Russell Westbrook-related stories at the end of this NBA season has been Lance Stephenson's return to the Indiana Pacers. Today, the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast looks at other second comings of significant NBA players from the obvious to the obscure. We look at stars who came home while still in their prime like Steve Nash and LeBron James, those who came home after...

It's almost MVP time and it looks like we have a tight race as the season comes to a close. We look back at the closest MVP races in NBA history in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Jason Mann and Rich Kraetsch discuss the following MVP finishes: Bill Russell beating Dolph Schayes in 1958, Willis Reed over Jerry West in 1970, George McGinnis and Julius Erving tying f...

NBA teams who outscore their opponents over a full season but have a losing record are relatively rare in the NBA. We take a look back at some of the most notable instances in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Jason Mann talks with Miles Wray of The Step Back about his investigation into recent teams who have managed to have a positive scoring margin and a losing record,...

In 2012, a fringe NBA player Jeremy Lin was given a chance to start for the Knicks when all other options failed. He thrived to lead New York with flair, pushing the Knicks to a winning streak and a few thrilling weeks in a global phenomenon that became known as Linsanity, before it came to just as quick of a halt. We look at what Linsanity means to us and the NBA world five years later with Kenne...

It's another episode of Hoop Quiz, our game show where two players battle for NBA trivia supremacy. Returning champion David Ramil of the Locked on Heat podcast competes against Matt Rutkowski of The Step Back. Before the actual quiz, we discuss weird NBA timeout spectacles, the Knicks' half with no arena noise, friends of NBA players getting into management, and the Heat vs. Pistons playo...

Since the 1973-74 NBA season, only 27 times has a player had a season with a 5.5 Box Plus/Minus or better while being under the age of 22 years old. This illustrious list features a who's-who of NBA legends: LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Bill Walton, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal and many more. Chances are if you're on this list, you're going to become an all-time great... but wh...

We look at the Washington Bullets, winners of the 1978 NBA championship and three-time NBA Finalists with Wes Unseld and Elvin Hayes, in the latest edition of Over and Back's Basketball Mysteries of the 1970s. Author Chris Elzey joins Jason Mann in discussing why the Bullets didn't excite many NBA fans during the late 1970s despite their success and having two top 50 all-time players, the...

We look at how more heavily offensive-oriented NBA players have been winning MVP at a greater rate in recent years and why we think the award has shifted away from more defensive-focused players in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Jason Mann is joined by Dar-Wei Chen of 16 Wins A Ring and Orlando Magic Daily to discuss his recent article looking at NBA MVPs and what the...

We look at the history of Los Angeles Clippers, the good, the bad, and ... well, mostly the bad in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Mick Minas, author of The Curse: The Colorful & Chaotic History of the LA Clippers, joins Jason Mann to talk about how much the Clippers' historical woes can be traced back to bad luck and how much were from the poor ownership and i...

The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame cases for Tracy McGrady, Chris Webber, Sidney Moncrief, Tim Hardaway and Rudy Tomjanovich are examined in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Jason Mann and Rich Kraetsch look at how McGrady's five-year peak compares to other NBA greats and whether his lack of longevity or lack of playoff success are major concerns. They talk about...

Earlier this week, Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson assumed control of his former team, becoming the Lakers new President of Basketball Operations. In doing so, Johnson joined a rare and elite class of former NBA players to achieve the career trifecta: player, head coach and executive. On today's show, we focus on Johnson and other elite/star-level players to go down the player, coach,...

We look at the 2004 Rasheed Wallace trade that led the Detroit Pistons to a championship and a run of Eastern Conference Finals appearances in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Kim Huston, co-host of the Basketball Party podcast, joins Jason Mann on the show to discuss what makes Wallace such a great player and character, his honesty and irreverence, his anger and passio...

We discuss some of the best, worst and wildest NBA trade deadline deals in history in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Adam McGee of Behind The Buck Pass joins Jason Mann to talk about some of the most fascinating trade deadline deals in NBA history: Dikembe Mutombo going from the Atlanta Hawks to Philadelphia 76ers in 2001, the Utah Jazz acquiring Jeff Hornacek from th...

From 1984 to 1993, NBA All-Star Weekend featured the NBA All-Star Legends Game/Legends Classic/Old Timers Game, an exhibition game between the NBA's aging elite. In today's episode, we look at the history of the Legends Game, its beginning in the 1950s and 1960s, why it was brought back in 1984 and why it went away in 1993. Along the way we look at the great individual performances in Lege...

We take a look at multiple-time NBA All-Stars who were big deals in their day but have been somewhat forgotten or overlooked with the passage of time in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Co-hosts Jason Mann and Rich Kraetsch first discuss some of elite superstars of their day: Larry Foust, an 8-time all-star who led the Fort Wayne Pistons to back-to-back NBA Finals in 19...

An interview with Julius Erving about his legacy in popularizing All-Star Weekend, what impresses Dr. J about a dunk, what the ABA means to him, who he most enjoyed playing against, comparing his 1976 Finals performance to LeBron James, expectations he faced moving on to the NBA after the merger, toughest playoff battles, adjusting to playing with other superstars, how the 76ers evolved during his...

We discuss the short-lived Women's Professional Basketball League and the pioneers of women's pro basketball, including Karen Logan, Molly Bolin, Ann Meyers and Nancy Lieberman, in the return of Over and Back's Basketball Mysteries of the 1970s series. Karra Porter, author of “Mad Seasons: The Story of the First Women's Professional Basketball League, 1978-1981,” joins the show wit...

We look at players who are having historically great or statistically uncommon seasons so far in 2016-17 in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Kris Fenrich of The Step Back joins Jason Mann to discuss the NBA’s statistical outliers, big men like Brook Lopez and Marc Gasol shooting 3s at an unprecedented rate, the explosion of triple-doubles from Russell Westbrook and othe...

Curtis Harris of Pro Hoops History joins us again to discuss the 1967 Philadelphia 76ers, the record-setting team that ended the Boston Celtics' 8-year championship streak, on the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. We talk about Curtis' project with the 76ers called Spirit of the Champion (http://www.nba.com/sixers/spiritofthechampion), commemorating the 68-win champi...

Rarely have players as great as Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins been stuck on such bad teams. We take a look at how other comparable players fared early on in their careers in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. We look how this season's New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings compare to other teams that struggled despite having an amazing superstar, including Kar...

NBA coaching legend George Karl talks about his 40-year career in the NBA and his new book "Furious George" in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast. Karl talks about his playing career in the late 1970s with the San Antonio Spurs, being a tough defender while guarding George Gervin, getting into a fight with Pete Maravich, what he learned in short 1980s coaching stin...

We look back at all the No. 1 overall picks in the NBA draft in the past 50 years and how their careers went in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA Podcast, hosted by Jason Mann and Rich Kraetsch. We discuss Anthony Bennett's recent release from the Brooklyn Nets and how he looks like the latest No. 1 overall pick to be a complete bust, how there are a wide range of outcomes fo...

We look at how bad things really got for the NBA in the late 1970s and early 1980s as the league suffered from financial issues, image problems, drug use and a downtown in popularity in the latest edition of Over and Back's Basketball Mysteries of the 1970s. We’ve all heard that the NBA really struggled with financial issues, drug use gone rampant, bad TV ratings, and a perception of aloof pla...

We look at how the Spurs, Nets, Nuggets, and Pacers adjusted to life in the NBA after being part of the 1976 NBA-ABA merger in the latest edition of Over and Back's Basketball Mysteries of the 1970s. Adam Johnson of Basketball Pantheon joins the show to discuss how the former ABA teams were at an initial competitive disadvantage because of the terms of the merger, how 1977 was the first season...

We watch and offer real-time commentary on Michael Jordan's 63-point performance vs. Larry Bird's Boston Celtics in the 1986 playoffs in the latest episode of the Over and Back Classic NBA podcast. We are joined by Curtis Harris of Pro Hoops History and Reinis Lacis of The Handle podcast to discuss the awesomeness of the Celtics and where they rate among the greatest teams, Bird's beau...