NBA: Ron Harper - retro baller, hoops ambassador, and the legacy of a role player

When I saw Ron Harper come out to a smattering of applause as he was introduced at the SM Megamall Event Hall last October 6, I couldn’t help but feel like the crowd wasn’t showing him enough love. You know the tactic that hosts do to hype up a crowd, where they have to repeat the name of the performer by screaming louder? That’s what the event host had to do for Harper.  

As a former Chicago Bull and LA Laker in the 90's and early 2000's who was visiting the Philippines, shouldn’t he have been met with thunderous applause and screaming? As one of the few players who was teammates with both Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, while getting five rings out of the deal, where was the love? Where was the appreciation? This guy took the court alongside MJ and Scottie Pippen to do battle against John Stockton and Karl Malone! He eyeballed Travis Best, Jalen Rose and Reggie Miller rocking the Purple and Gold! Was this irrelevant to everyone now?

As I was rolling my eyes in faux-elitist-basketball-snob mode,  different participants who won in the NBA Philippines activities came up on stage to meet Harper and take pictures with him. There were the usual guys wearing NBA shirts and caps who looked excited to meet Harper, but then a little kid, who couldn’t have been more than 12-year-old went up to take a picture by Harper’s knees. I did the math, and realized that this kid most likely was born in the same year that Harper’s Lakers beat Allen Iverson’s Philadelphia 76ers, back in 2001. I also made a (snap) judgement that there was a Dwight Howard free throw percentage chance that he had no idea who Ron Harper was, just that he talked with a cool drawl, and thought that Michael Jordan would destroy Kobe Bryant 1-on-1.

My initial reaction was sadness and disappointment, that as a late 20s basketball fan, there wasn't enough done to educate the young ones on the great role players of the 90s. I mean, Harper was a guy who teamed up with Pip and MJ to make life a living hell for Bulls opponents. There were times that opposing point guards couldn’t even get the ball across halfcourt against Harper! He was the main point guard also on the Lakers, a trusted player by legendary Coach Phil Jackson. He started alongside Kobe and Shaq to provide Yoda-like presence and wisdom, guiding them as they broke through and won a ring in 2000.

Was Harp really destined to be forgotten? Didn’t his contributions to the game of basketball matter anymore?

Do you know who Jerry Sichting is? I barely know him. He played for the Celtics in ’85-’88, helping them win a ring in ’86. I only saw him play in the NBA Greatest Games features on TV, but he obviously never really had an impact on my basketball viewing, because I despise the Celtics.

I mention him because he was one of my dad’s favorite players to watch. My dad is a huge Celtic fan who patterned his jumpshot after Larry Bird’s, and can talk for hours about Kevin McHale’s post-game. But he really loved the role players on that team. He loved Sichting, Bill Walton, Danny Ainge and Dennis Johnson, guys who were under the radar, but performed for the Leperchaun Green. My dad loved Schichting. I, on the other hand, had no idea what he meant to the Celtics.

Therein lies the beauty of basketball. It’s an ever-changing presence in all of our lives, with memories and heroes shaping our psyches, but in different ways. This generation’s Lebron James is my generation’s MJ, the way that my dad generation’s was Magic Johnson or Larry Bird. This generation’s Ray Allen three-pointer in game six of the 2013 NBA Finals is my generation’s Steve Kerr jumper against the Jazz, the way that my dad’s generation was Magic’s Skyhook against the Celtics. The names and teams may change, but the feelings of excitement, exhilaration, heartbreak and disappointment don’t.

Going back to Harper: As he went through the usual round of questions from the media about the Bulls, Lakers, MJ vs Kobe and who would win the historic preseason game between the Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers in the Mall of Asia Arena, I noticed that he was completely calm and at peace answering questions that didn’t necessarily involve him. I guess it goes with being an international ambassador of the game. Harper’s good-natured answers to all the questions thrown at him, as well as his very casual (read: stuck in the 90s) attire put a lot of people around him at ease. Even in this stage in his life, he was a great role player helping to expand the game of basketball internationally.

So while I look at Harper with fondness and nostalgia as one of the best defenders on my beloved Chicago Bulls, I can’t help but be excited for the next set of role players  this generation will discover. Whether it’s someone like Lance Stephenson of the Pacers or Patrick Beverley for the Rockets, there’s a whole new generation of players out there who are ready to make their mark on the game.

Just like what Ron Harper has undoubtedly done for the NBA. - AMD, GMA News