There’s a Reason Isiah Can Relate to Hubie

After the Detroit Pistons had breezed to a win over the New York Knicks, Isiah Thomas was saying what a relief it was not having to deal with Hubie Brown, deposed coach of the Knicks.

“I absolutely hated playing against the Knicks when Hubie was the coach,” Thomas told Gary Binford of Newsday. “Because defensively, their press, it would always take me out of the game. It wouldn’t allow me to get into the halfcourt offense.”

Thomas added: “It’s a shame that as intelligent a basketball person as Hubie is, and as much as he has to offer to basketball with his knowledge of the game, that somehow, someway, he’s not involved in basketball. Because you know and I know he has a lot of intelligence for the game.

“Now in terms of his relationship with the players, that’s a totally different story.”

Still, he said, “I think I could play for Hubie.”

Why?

“Simply because I played for Bobby Knight.”

Dept. of Gallows Humor: Said Darryl Strawberry, noting that Dwight Gooden had been assigned the locker next to his at the New York Mets training quarters: “Look, it’s Assault and Battery together.”

Trivia Time: If Al Downing gave up Henry Aaron’s 715th homer, who gave up his 714th, the one that tied Babe Ruth’s record? (Answer below.)

Now that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has gotten a three-pointer, will Rony Seikaly be next?

Not likely. The 6-10 native of Lebanon who plays center for Syracuse has been begging for a chance, but Mark Kiszla of the Denver Posts says, “He has the touch of a mason.”

Anyway, Syracuse Coach Jim Boeheim said Seikaly won’t be allowed to take one until these conditions have been met: “We have to be up by 20 and he has to have 20 boards, which I don’t believe will happen on this planet in my lifetime.”

Said John Havlicek, after the NBA Legends game: “A lot of hook shots were taken out there. When the legs go, you can still get the hook shot off.”

Would that help explain why Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is breaking all the longevity records?

Jerry Reynolds, interim coach of the Sacramento Kings, wasn’t looking forward to their current trip, which lasts 14 days.

“It’ll be quite a big adjustment for me,” he said. “I’ve only got three suits.”

After a tough loss to the Boston Celtics, New Jersey Net Coach Dave Wohl was wondering if Darryl Dawkins, out for the season with injuries, would have made a difference.

Wohl: “When a player drove on Darryl, he really didn’t know what to expect. But usually he thought about it before he drove again.”

New York City Marathon Director Fred Lebow, back from the Philippines, where he watched a marathon, revealed that he went jogging in Manila and said, “I felt safer there than in New York.”

Supply your own tag line.

Mychal Thompson came to the Lakers with a clean bill of health but says he has developed a problem.

“My face hurts,” he said, “because I can’t stop smiling.”

Trivia Answer: Jack Billingham of the Cincinnati Reds.

Quotebook

Former Dodger slugger Babe Herman, denying he ever was hit on the head by a fly ball: “Once or twice on the shoulder maybe, but never on the head.”