Just Walkin'

Marvin Webster and his fiancee, Madeira Meadows, as they stroll across the Morgan State campus in the early 1970s. Madeira passed away in 1992 and Marvin, as you'll recall, passed away just two years ago. For a nice story about how Marvin Webster affected the life of a young Seattle boy, be sure to visit Sweva's P-Patch.

(Photo via Sports Illustrated).

The Sonics, Bob McAdoo, and What If?

I touched briefly on this in the review of What’s Happenin’?, but it bears repeating I think:

In the winter of 1976, the Seattle Sonics almost traded for Bob McAdoo.

And when I mean almost, I don’t mean “some hobo on a message board proposed dealing a fourth-rounder and Mike Bantom for McAdoo,” I mean the Seattle Times ran this banner headline:

Sonics Get McAdoo

Essentially, the deal was this: Seattle sent center Tom Burleson, forward Leonard Gray, and a sum of cash believed to be around $1 million to Buffalo for McAdoo and center Tom McMillen.

McMillen was another cash savings for the Braves, (he earned $200,000 a season). McAdoo, meanwhile, was expected to leave as a free agent at the end of the season, so the Braves and their new owner, John Y. Brown, figured it best to get something before he was gone.

Remember, Burleson was 7’2”, 24 years old, two years removed from being the #3 overall pick in the draft, and averaged 16 points and 9 boards the previous season– he wasn’t chump change. Gray, a bulldog power forward now long-forgotten by Sonic fans, was a strong contributor as well, although his NBA career ended abruptly at the end of the 1977 season.

So, digest all of that, as well as the fact that McMillen’s career, like McAdoo’s, lasted until the mid-1980s, and ask yourself: Would this have been a good deal for the Sonics?

Initially, the answer is an unequivocal YES. I’ll put it in the simplest terms possible; Burleson and Gray, the Sonics’ end of the deal, combined to score 1,285 points in their careers after the “trade.” McAdoo scored 2,097.

In 1978.

It’s not even close. McAdoo had led the league in scoring for three years running, would make the all star team five consecutive seasons, was two years removed from the NBA MVP Award, finished in the top ten in voting four times and in the top three in voting three times, ranked in the top ten in blocks, points, free throws, rebounds, and pretty much everything you could imagine.

Then you’ve got McMillen, a backup center who emerged as a key member of the 1979 Atlanta club that came within a whisker of knocking the Bullets out of the playoffs. By himself, McMillen would have been a good return for Gray and Burleson, but when you add in McAdoo, it’s no contest.

Of course, you’ve got to think about roster construction when something like this happens, and how the dominoes fall after you start tinkering with things. The secondary question you have to ask is, naturally, how would the McAdoo trade have impacted the Sonics’ run to the NBA Finals in 1978 and subsequent championship in 1979? It’s great to get a superstar, but if adding McAdoo means foregoing the glory of 1979, would it have been worth it?

The running backstory to all of this is the fact that Bill Russell was on his way out of Seattle and Lenny Wilkens on his way in. Would Russell still have left if McAdoo had arrived in January 1977? I’d hazard that the answer would be yes, simply because Russell and the NBA needed a break from one another.

And if Russell leaves, that means Lenny Wilkens comes to town, which means the NBA Finals runs Seattle made in consecutive seasons are still in play. With Wilkens in the front office and Bob Hopkins on the floor, here’s your roster (for the sake of argument, I’m releasing or trading the players Wilkens released or traded in the fall of 1977):

Tom McMillen, Bob McAdoo, Dennis Johnson, Slick Watts, Fred Brown, Bruce Seals, Jack Sikma, Joe Hassett

Of course, with McAdoo and McMillen on the roster, the Sonics might have opted to go with a choice other than Sikma in the draft, perhaps a forward such as Ernie Grunfeld or Cedric Maxwell. But the Sonics did love Sikma’s potential, and maybe as insurance for McMillen they might’ve still opted for the beanpole from Illinois Wesleyan. With Wilkens’ ties to Providence, I’m guessing Hassett still gets picked regardless of our alternative-universe scenario.

So far, so good then. The McAdoo trade hasn’t caused any rips in the fabric. There are eight guys on the roster, but some more moves are needed to round out the roster. Fortunately, acquiring McAdoo doesn’t preclude the Sonics from acquiring Gus Williams, so you can add him to the roster as a free agent from Golden State (although, to be fair to Sam Schulman’s wallet, McAdoo’s sizeable salary may cause some problems). And, John Johnson could still be picked up from Cleveland for a pair of second rounders. And, sadly, the Sonics could still surrender a first- and second-rounder to Portland to get Wally Walker, thus ensuring Shawn Kemp’s eventual departure from the city 20 years later.

Soon after, Wilkens could deal Watts to New Orleans for a future draft pick, and thereby close the book on the transactions for our hypothetical Supersonics. What does it all mean, then? Well, here’s the roster(s):

REAL SONICS – FAKE SONICS
Starters:
Webster – C –Sikma
Sikma – PF –McAdoo
J. Johnson – SF – J. Johnson
D. Johnson – SG – D. Johnson
Williams – SG – Williams

Bench:
Brown – Brown
Silas – McMillen
Walker – Walker
Seals – Seals
Hassett – Hassett

Essentially, we’ve got three big changes:

1. Jack Sikma replaces Marvin Webster as starting center
2. Bob McAdoo replaces Sikma as starting power forward
3. Tom McMillen replaces Paul Silas as big man off the bench

Without Burleson, you see, the Sonics would be unable to deal the 7’2” center to Denver for Silas, Webster, and Willie Wise. It’s difficult to say what impact those three changes would have had on the club. On the one hand, Marvin Webster was an indispensable component of the ’78 club’s run to the Finals. He led the club in minutes, rebounds (by more than 100 over Silas), blocks (more than twice as many as anyone else), and field goal percentage. It is entirely fair to say that without Marvin Webster’s performance the Sonics do not reach the NBA Finals.

Further, no Webster means no Lonnie Shelton, as Webster’s departure to New York in the subsequent offseason brought Shelton in return, who would prove to be a crucial part of the ’79 championship. (Or Vinnie Johnson, for that matter, whom the Sonics also picked up in the Webster signing … and then let go to Detroit for Greg Kelser. Darn.)

However, Sikma emerged in ’78 and ’79 as a terrific player, albeit one without the defensive bona fides of Webster or Shelton (or Silas, for that matter). With McAdoo and Sikma patrolling the lanes, we suddenly have two terrific offensive players, but no sizeable defensive presence. Granted, McMillen was a big guy, but his numbers do not indicate he was anywhere near the intimidating factor Silas, Shelton, or Webster were.

In essence, by acquiring McAdoo, the Sonics would have completely altered the personality of the team that reached consecutive NBA Finals, adding one of the league’s premiere offensive talents but sacrificing the fantastic, defense-oriented club with which an entire region fell in love. The fact the Sonics felt they needed something more than Sikma in the post is underscored by the acquisitions of Tom LaGarde, Lars Hansen, Dennis Awtrey, and Shelton in the offseason, and that was WITH Paul Silas on the roster. Even more troubling is the fact that both McAdoo and Sikma were more jumper-oriented big men, and forcing one of them to play in the post would have meant sacrificing their abilities.

It’s possible that McAdoo’s 25+ points a night would have been enough to offset any defensive shortcomings the McAdoo/Sikma pairing would have created, and, to be fair, McAdoo’s poor defensive reputation may have been overblown simply because of his greatness on the offensive end. After all, he did block a large number of shots, and picked up more than his fair share of steals. Would it have been enough, though, to offset the presence of Webster or Silas or Shelton?

The observer can’t help but conclude in the negative. While that trio of players never had the renown of the great Bob McAdoo, they still played a crucial role in the formation of the greatest team in Sonics’ history and without them there are no championship trophies.

Webster Services Today

This morning, at 11 o’clock eastern time, funeral services for Marvin Webster began at Greater New Hope Baptist Church in Baltimore.

Funerals are sad in and of themselves, and the younger the deceased, the tougher they are to take. The fact Marvin’s mother will be in attendance is hard enough to swallow, let alone the fact he was only 56.

But think about this for a moment – 31 years ago tomorrow, on April 18, 1978, Marvin’s team, the Seattle SuperSonics, was in Portland to face the TrailBlazers in the first game of their best of seven Western Conference Semifinals.

Remember, the Blazers were defending NBA champions. True, they were missing Bill Walton, but they were still the defending champs. The Sonics? The Sonics were a team that started out the season 5-17 and finished 11 games behind Portland in the Pacific Division standings. It was a 1 seed versus a 4 seed; no contest, right?

You couldn’t tell the Sonics that, or Webster, either. That night, 31 years ago tomorrow, Marvin Webster stood in against 12,666 Portland fans and poured in 24 points as the Sonics jumped out to a 1-0 lead, thanks to a 104-95 win. Seattle earned wins in 3 of the next 4 games, taking that series as well as the next one against Denver before ultimately losing to Washington in the Finals.

How did he feel that night? A young man, on the precipice of his greatest professional accomplishments, Webster would go on to lead the NBA in minutes played, defensive rebounds, total rebounds, and blocks, and finished second in defensive win shares and total win shares during the playoffs.

It was 31 years, but a lifetime ago.

In light of today’s service, I thought it might be a kind idea if those with memories of Marvin might post them in the comments for this article. Whether you saw him play in Seattle, New York, Denver, or as a collegiate athlete, pass it along. If enough people contribute, I’d like to put the thoughts together into a booklet and mail it to Marvin’s mother in Baltimore, so that she might see how many lives her son touched during his lifetime.

Correction

I should point out that my earlier reference to Marvin Webster being Martell Webster's uncle is, in fact, incorrect. While my sources for the information originally (a number of different websites, Wikipedia, among others) seemed to be pretty good, they weren't quite as good as the one that told me it's not true, which was Martell Webster himself (via the Blazers).

To all parties concerned, sorry about the mixup.

40

Among the players to have worn #40 in a Sonics jersey:

Shawn Kemp - Which, of course, you already knew.

James Donaldson - Who will, possibly, be the next mayor of Seattle.

Gar Heard - Former Sonic who became known as the coach of one of the worst teams in NBA history, the '92-'93 Mavericks, as well as for his famous desperation shot in the NBA Finals while with the Suns.

Dave Corzine - Nothing famous about Corzine, although his nickname of "Lumber" was certainly apt.

Joe Forte - A miserable career with the Sonics, during which he became more renowned for his off-court troubles than his on-court production. The fact the Sonics allowed someone to wear this number after Kemp left is an unspeakable disgrace.

Tim McCormick - Now a TV analyst for the Big 10 Network, McCormick combined the grace of Dave Corzine with the fluidity of Alton Lister.

Russ Schoene - His forgettable career will no doubt pale in comparison to the notoriety he will receive from Kevin Pelton's SCHOENE projection system.

Mike Bantom - Little known in Sonic history, Bantom has gone on to become the NBA's Senior Vice President of Player Development.

Marvin Webster - RIP.

John Brisker - A fantastic, albeit fiery, player, Brisker disappeared in Uganda in 1978. Was he killed by a firing squad bent on vengeance against Idi Amin's regime? Is he still alive? It's really anyone's guess.

So there you have it. A famed shot-blocker now gone, a top NBA executive, a man-child whose face graced posters across the country, the name of a top statistician's projection system, a possible future mayor, and a man (maybe) killed in the jungles of Africa.

If nothing else, it's certainly an interesting group.

More on Marvin Webster

Two more well-written stories about the late Marvin Webster appeared today, and both are well worth the time to read.

The first comes from the great Harvey Araton at the New York Times. Especially moving is this snippet:

At the time, I was the Knicks beat reporter for The New York Post. To celebrate, in part, and to interview him for an article, I took him to lunch in Chinatown. He mostly wanted to talk about his son, who, he said, would play in the N.B.A., just like him.

The second comes from Ken Murray, at the Baltimore Sun. Murray's story explores the lives that Webster touched as a collegiate star for Morgan State University, and how tragedy seemed to find him far too often. Murray also lets us know that Marvin's father, Edward Webster, passed away in February, which could not have helped the son's mental state any.

I can't help but feel for Marvin's mother, who is still alive. She's already lost a teenaged grandchild more than a decade ago, and now, within the span of two months, she's lost her husband and her son. Time may heal all wounds, but don't try telling Dorothy Webster that this Easter.

Marvin Webster Dies at Age 56

Marvin Webster - whose marvelous shot-blocking skills earned him the 70's-tastic nickname "The Human Eraser" - has passed away at age 56. (Reports here and here).

Webster, the uncle of Portland's Martell Webster (turns out that information, despite being reported in multiple locations is untrue), was found dead in his Tulsa hotel room early Saturday morning. Police said that foul play is not suspected, and that Webster's passing was likely health related.

Though the 7'1" center was an overlooked part of Sonics history, his lone season in Seattle was an exceptional one, especially when one considers his playoff numbers. Webster averaged 16 points, 13 rebounds and nearly 3 blocks a game over the course of 22 playoff contests, leading the Sonics to their inaugural appearance in the NBA Finals. While that series ended in a Game 7 loss to the Washington Bullets, it appeared as though the rain clouds hovering over the franchise were a thing of the past. Unfortunately, at the end of the season, Webster and Sonics owner Sam Schulman failed to reach a consensus on his contract demands, and the budding young star bid Seattle farewell and signed a lucrative (well, lucrative in 1978 NBA dollars) deal with the Knicks.

For a variety of reasons, Marvin Webster faded from the memory of Sonic fans, but for one brief season, he was an essential part of a fantastic team. How instrumental? Well, an article from the Wages of Wins Journal estimates that Webster contributed 15.7 win shares to the Sonics in 1977-78, nearly twice as many as the closest Sonic (that would be Gus Williams).

In a very sad way, though, Webster's career - and life - seems to have peaked at that moment in 1978, a fact he reflected upon later.

"I remember the locker room after the final game—how the champagne was on ice, guys with tears in their eyes," Webster told Sports Illustrated. "I loved being on that team. I had no idea I'd be gone so shortly."

As a young man who had led a team nearly single-handedly to the NBA Finals, and one of the top centers in the league, Webster had no trouble finding suitors, and he inked a five-year deal with the Knicks, seemingly poised for superstardom. The son of a Baptist preacher, Webster surely must have thought his prayers had been answered.

Instead, tendinitis and hepatitis (the latter an affliction he had suffered as a standout player in college) struck Webster down, and he never fully recovered. With health issues dogging him at every turn, the big man's life spiraled downward, resulting in bouts with depression and eventual departure from the league.

Divorce eventually followed, forcing Webster's son, Marvin Jr., to be raised by his maternal grandparents. But that wouldn't be the end of Marvin Sr.'s disappointments, as his son - a 6'11" center - enrolled as a prize recruit at Temple University, then died of a heart attack as a sophomore before ever playing a game.

It was a crippling blow to the now-retired Webster. Beset by all of this pain, and his failing health now further complicated by diabetes, you have to imagine that in the last decade of his life, Webster must have endlessly wondered how it all went wrong. It's an achingly painful story, one which ends with a former basketball star dying, alone, in the bathtub of a Tulsa hotel.

There are dozens of beautiful basketball stories, of players who overcame adversity to achieve greatness, of coaches and parents who give selflessly to help young men and women. It is those stories which draw us into the comforting life of a sports fan, and they sustain us when people such as David Stern and Clay Bennett stick their noses into our entertainment.

But the lying in wait on the flip side of those heartwarming stories are the stories of such men as Marvin Webster. Webster watched his career disappear, watched his marriage evaporate, watched his son die as a college sophomore, and then watched his health deteriorate to the point he died before reaching the age of 60.

In that same SI article, Webster mentioned Marvin Jr., who at that point was about to enroll at Temple. "They call him Eraser Jr.," Webster said. "One day he calls me up, says, 'Dad, everybody here knows who you are.' I smiled. Not all former athletes admit it, but I will. It's nice to be remembered."

Rest in peace, Marvin.