Bob Lanier on Changes to the Game, Position

Every year about this time, Bob Lanier starts thinking about what might have been.

He may have gone on to an outstanding NBA career, an eight-time All-Star center who finished in the Basketball Hall of Fame, but that NCAA Tournament of 40 years ago still sticks in his craw.

Lanier had rejected an offer to turn pro early because he was intent on leading St. Bonaventure to a national championship. And as arguably the nation's best college player, he was on that path -- until a devastating knee injury late in the 1970 NCAA Regional final against Villanova.

His team went without him to the Final Four, but it lost to Jacksonville and Artis Gilmore. Lanier still became the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft three months later, played professionally for 15 years -- averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds -- and now works for NBA Cares, the league's community relations program.

He travels both the country and the world on behalf of the league. He was in Orlando this week promoting the Vaccines for Teens program.

Lanier, now 62, spoke with FanHouse about a variety of topics, including the NCAA tournament, the NBA's lack of good centers today, and why he never got a real chance to coach in the league, despite a great understanding of the game.

FanHouse: What was it like 40 years ago not being able to finish the NCAA Tournament after you had taken that team so far?

Lanier: It was devastating. I could have gone early to the ABA, but one of the things I wanted to do was get a national title first. I didn't want to leave those guys (teammates) behind. We were on a mission to become champs. Getting hurt, I felt like I let everyone down, myself, my team, the community. We were underdogs, and everyone was behind us. It was unbelievable. We mostly played only five or six guys, and I let them down. It still bothers me.

FH: You played through a lot of knee problems in the NBA. You still played 82 games that rookie year with Detroit, despite coming off surgery. Would things have been different if you were healthy?

Lanier: Rehab wasn't very sophisticated back then. I came back way too early. It was sore as heck, but there was pressure to play as the No. 1 pick. I didn't have any flexibility or mobility that first season. It caused problems the rest of my career.

FH: How many surgeries did you have on those knees?

Lanier: Twelve times. Ten times during my basketball career.

FH: You had a great career, but you never won a championship, saddled with some bad teams early in Detroit. How disappointing is that when you look back and know you never won it all?

Lanier: It's very disappointing. It still leaves a bitter taste in your mouth and a pit in your stomach. When they start talking about championships, you can't even enter the conversation. It's not a good feeling.

FH: Who is the one player you played against that you respected the most?

Lanier: In my day, every night you were respecting somebody because those guys were awfully tough. If it wasn't Willis Reed, it was Wilt Chamberlain. If it wasn't Wilt, it was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Artis Gilmore or Bill Walton. If you didn't respect them, they would whip your butt. They'd embarrass you. Guys then had an immense amount of pride and toughness. It was a very physical game.

FH: Where are all the good centers today?

Lanier: Back then, everything went through the center position. Centers had to learn how to catch, to pass, to post up with power. And one move led you to another. That's where the game within the game came from. There was a better understanding of playing the position back then. People taught that all the time. They aren't teaching it today. You go to clinics today, and you don't see people teaching the the post up game now.

FH: Again, where are all the great post players today?

Lanier: They are gone. They don't teach it. Tim (Duncan) is probably the best now. Dwight (Howard) is getting there. He's got quickness and power and strength. As he grows to understanding other things in the game, how are you going to handle that. I don't know. They are coming off the heels of Shaquille, who had it all.

FH: Anyone out there today remind you of your game?

Lanier: (long pause) Closest guy, because I had a combination of post up moves and a 15-foot game, although he doesn't look like me at all, is Chris Bosh. He can post up inside, and he can take you outside and beat you.

FH: You were an interim coach in 1994 for 37 games in Golden State after Don Nelson stepped down, and spent a little time as an assistant, but you didn't stick with coaching. What happened?

Lanier: I thought I was in a perfect situation to coach, starting with someone I truly respected and admired like Don Nelson. But everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong. Chris Webber didn't come back, Sprewell was upset, the team got sold. Then I was gone like that.

It's interesting, as well as I understand the game, and can express it with young people, teaching the game, it's almost like they've wasted some of my preciousness by me not being there. My passion is basketball, and my other passion is young people, and touching their lives. If an opportunity arises in basketball development, or in coaching, I would really think about it now. I still have a lot to give to the game.

FH: Why do you think you never got another real shot?

Lanier: I've been involved in the social responsibility side for so long. It's kind of out-of-sight, out-of-mind thing. If you're running a team and you sit and talk with me, you'd know how I think, how I convey things. But if I'm not on your radar screen, you forget Bob Lanier is smart, he understands the game, he has a passion for the game, and he understands people.

FH: Could you step in today and coach an NBA team?

Lanier: Of course I could. I'd be a good coach, too. Today's player is different than in my day, but I can still relate. You pick your spots. As good as I think I am with my own kids, if you gave them $20 million, would they listen to you the same way? They have to experience things. It's like my Daddy said, 'the stove is hot, but sometimes you still have to touch it.'

FH: Do today's players appreciate the past?

Lanier: Their history of the league is from Michael Jordan on, which is understandable. We have to do a better job of teaching it.

FH: Who are the three best centers of all time?

Lanier: That's easy. In no particular order, Wilt, Russell and Kareem.

FH: Who do you like to watch now?

Lanier: You have to like Kobe. How can you not like Kobe? He's the ultimate competitor. I love watching LeBron. Chris Paul is a heckuva player. Dwight (Howard) is exciting because he's so enthusiastic and bubbly. Watching him share that personality with fans, he really gets it at a young age. It's not all about him. He's a man making a gazillion dollars and he gets it. Those are things I watch. It's not always about talent. It's about character.

FH: Speaking of characters, does Dennis Rodman belong in the Hall of Fame?

Lanier: You have to look at how tough he was, how smart he was, how he got under your skin, and he has championships up the ying-yang. How do you not allow him in? He rebounded. He defended, and he understood the fans, that this was entertainment. He was pretty phenomenal. His body of work might say yes. I'm not sure if the other parts of him would.

FH: If you had stayed healthy, how different would your career have been?

Lanier: Being healthy allows you to be more effective and impactful for your team. If I didn't get hurt, we would have won the NCAA championship. Of course, I believe that, but unfortunately, it didn't happen. You have to live the rest of your life with that.

FH: What are you most proud of in your career?



Share Lanier: That basketball allowed me to touch some people's lives that I probably would not have been able to touch otherwise. Here's an example: I remember a guy stopping me in a gas station, of all places, in Milwaukee, near the end of my playing career. He said 'Mr. Lanier, would you come upstairs?' My father is a die-hard Bucks fan, and he's not doing well.' He lived in a house next to the gas station. I went upstairs. He was scrawny, dying of cancer. All he could do was give me a smile. I stayed for awhile, just talking to him, then left and never saw him again. Three weeks later, his son sent a letter to the Bucks front office. His father had died, but he was so appreciative. He said 'you put a smile on his face before he died.' That's the kind of stuff I'm proud of.

FH: What about the Hall of Fame?

Lanier: I'm proud that I'm in the Hall of Fame, but that's something you never expected, never think about. When you reflect on your body of work, I guess it's deserved. When you first come into the league, you ask yourself can you perform with these great players that you've only seen on television. And secondly, after you proved you can perform, you're just trying to win a championship. They don't come about very often, so you have to take advantage of that situation, which I never got an opportunity to take care of because we just weren't good enough.