Gus Johnson

Jim Karvellas is hoping the celebration of his 30 years as an NBA sportscaster at the Baltimore Arena tonight will be less traumatic than his debut as the voice of the then-Chicago Zephyrs, the forerunners to the Bullets, at the Chicago Stockyards in the winter of 1962."

Dec. 10, 2000: A 24-3 defeat of the San Diego Chargers earns the Ravens their first NFL postseason berth. Trent Dilfer passes for two touchdowns for host Baltimore (10-4), which wins its fifth straight game and will win six more. "The playoffs are great," safety Kim Herring says, "but we want it all. " Dec. 13, 1980: A dismal shooting night dooms fourth-ranked Maryland, which falls at defending NCAA men's basketball champion Louisville, 78-67 before a national television audience.

NEW YORK -- The cover of Sports Illustrated for Oct. 25, 1971 is inside a frame in Dave DeBusschere's office. DeBusschere, wearing his New York Knicks uniform, is sharing the cover with the headache that always seemed to come his way in the early spring.The headache had a name: Gus Johnson."His mouth is wide-open -- he's calling for the ball -- and his elbow is in my chest," DeBusschere said.The headline, "Classic Confrontations," gets no argument from DeBusschere. Or the New York fans who remember the playoff series of almost 30 years ago between the Knicks and Johnson's team, the Baltimore Bullets.

He was a gritty 6-foot-3 guard from the Bronx with boundless energy and a long, sweet jumper that seemed to kiss the Civic Center's ceiling before finding its mark. "Bullseye!" Baltimore Bullets broadcaster Jim Karvellas would exclaim as Kevin Loughery scored again. For eight years, Loughery starred for the Bullets, averaging 16.6 points and helping the club to five playoff appearances and the NBA finals in 1971. Only forward Gus Johnson (nine years) spent more time here before the Bullets, after a decade, moved to Landover in 1973 and eventually become the Washington Wizards.

Several years ago, after his team had lost at Mount St. Mary's, Marist coach Dave Magarity hopped onto the soapbox.The Mount had beaten his team handily that night, but Magarity's focus was not on a defeat; it was on the seemingly annual snub of Jim Phelan by basketball's Hall of Fame selection committee."

Former Maryland coach Lefty Driesell is making his first bid this year for the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., while Jim Phelan, Phil Chenier, Gus Johnson, Morgan Wootten, Charlie Eckman and Paul Hoffman are in the midst of repeat attempts to be inducted during ceremonies set for Oct. 13. If the seven men with close ties to basketball in the state of Maryland make it past the selection committee, they will go before an honors committee that...

Ask Phil Chenier for his most special memory of the Baltimore Arena -- then the Civic Center -- and he'll tell you about the night in 1972 when he scored 53 points for the Baltimore Bullets.Chenier can recall the points he scored that night -- the most ever by a Bullets player in that building. He just can't recall much detail on what happened."It's funny, I was in such a zone that night that I can't remember many of the details of that night," recalled Chenier, now a television announcer with the Washington Bullets.

He was a gritty 6-foot-3 guard from the Bronx with boundless energy and a long, sweet jumper that seemed to kiss the Civic Center's ceiling before finding its mark. "Bullseye!" Baltimore Bullets broadcaster Jim Karvellas would exclaim as Kevin Loughery scored again. For eight years, Loughery starred for the Bullets, averaging 16.6 points and helping the club to five playoff appearances and the NBA finals in 1971. Only forward Gus Johnson (nine years) spent more time here before the Bullets, after a decade, moved to Landover in 1973 and eventually become the Washington Wizards.

As delicious as those leftovers are, you could enjoy them even more. Rather than just scarfing them down whenever the spirit moves you, why not try making a game of it? In the fashion of drinking games tied to television shows, you could link your eating to your sports TV viewing. Have a slice of turkey, a forkful of mashed potatoes or a piece of pecan pie each time: * Brent Musburger over-enthuses about the game he is calling. * Chris Berman makes a pop-culture reference at least 30 years old. * Jim Palmer mentions how he never gave up a grand slam.

Dec. 10, 2000: A 24-3 defeat of the San Diego Chargers earns the Ravens their first NFL postseason berth. Trent Dilfer passes for two touchdowns for host Baltimore (10-4), which wins its fifth straight game and will win six more. "The playoffs are great," safety Kim Herring says, "but we want it all. " Dec. 13, 1980: A dismal shooting night dooms fourth-ranked Maryland, which falls at defending NCAA men's basketball champion Louisville, 78-67 before a national television audience.

Nearly half a century after he first wowed Baltimore Bullets fans with his windmill dunk, Gus Johnson was named Monday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Johnson's teammates said his selection was long overdue. "We were wondering, what took so long?" said Wes Unseld, a Hall of Fame center who played four years with Johnson, the Bullets' kangaroo forward who died of brain cancer in 1987. In nine seasons with Baltimore (1963-1972), the 6-foot-6 Johnson averaged 17 points and 13 rebounds, made the All-Star team five times and helped the Bullets to three division titles and five playoff appearances.

As delicious as those leftovers are, you could enjoy them even more. Rather than just scarfing them down whenever the spirit moves you, why not try making a game of it? In the fashion of drinking games tied to television shows, you could link your eating to your sports TV viewing. Have a slice of turkey, a forkful of mashed potatoes or a piece of pecan pie each time: * Brent Musburger over-enthuses about the game he is calling. * Chris Berman makes a pop-culture reference at least 30 years old. * Jim Palmer mentions how he never gave up a grand slam.

Jim Karvellas, whose courtside play-by-play as radio voice of the Baltimore Bullets during the 1960s and 1970s chronicled such legendary players as Earl Monroe, Wes Unseld and Gus Johnson, died of prostate cancer Monday at his daughter's home in Wesley Chapel, Fla. He was 71. Karvellas also had stints in the announcing booth with the Baltimore Colts and Orioles during a broadcast career that spanned more than 40 years. Born and raised Demetrie C. Karvellas, he was the son of a Greek immigrant grocer on Chicago's South Side.

Garnett "Gus" Dobbin Johnson, a Vietnam veteran and retired Baltimore County police detective, died Feb. 26 of lung cancer. He was 59. Fellow officers said he was an aggressive investigator who spent most of his career working armed robbery cases -- from bank robberies to street holdups -- solving about a third of all the department's cases. "He was a hell of a cop," said Gus Vaselaros, who worked with him for 20 years. "He led the show, he knew his job, and he was a damn good detective."

Former Maryland coach Lefty Driesell is making his first bid this year for the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., while Jim Phelan, Phil Chenier, Gus Johnson, Morgan Wootten, Charlie Eckman and Paul Hoffman are in the midst of repeat attempts to be inducted during ceremonies set for Oct. 13. If the seven men with close ties to basketball in the state of Maryland make it past the selection committee, they will go before an honors committee that...

If you manage your way into the Ravens' stadium about three hours before kickoff Sunday, you may notice a bunch of people in street clothes in a glorified pickup game.Chances are, the ringleader of the proceedings will be the biggest guy in the bunch, CBS analyst Brent Jones, who co-opts his broadcast partners into a game each week.And Jones, the former San Francisco 49ers' tight end, gets right into the action, shedding his jacket and tie and his shoes to join in the fray."I'm out there kicking 50-yarders barefoot," said Jones the other day. "I lost $200 to [Ravens defensive tackle]

Jim Karvellas, whose courtside play-by-play as radio voice of the Baltimore Bullets during the 1960s and 1970s chronicled such legendary players as Earl Monroe, Wes Unseld and Gus Johnson, died of prostate cancer Monday at his daughter's home in Wesley Chapel, Fla. He was 71. Karvellas also had stints in the announcing booth with the Baltimore Colts and Orioles during a broadcast career that spanned more than 40 years. Born and raised Demetrie C. Karvellas, he was the son of a Greek immigrant grocer on Chicago's South Side.

It was an evening of remembering for Paul Bloom, and as he sat in his courtside seat at Baltimore Arena last night, he couldn't help but think back to the days of the old Baltimore Bullets when he was introduced to the magic of basketball by Earl "The Pearl" Monroe."

Several years ago, after his team had lost at Mount St. Mary's, Marist coach Dave Magarity hopped onto the soapbox.The Mount had beaten his team handily that night, but Magarity's focus was not on a defeat; it was on the seemingly annual snub of Jim Phelan by basketball's Hall of Fame selection committee."

It was an evening of remembering for Paul Bloom, and as he sat in his courtside seat at Baltimore Arena last night, he couldn't help but think back to the days of the old Baltimore Bullets when he was introduced to the magic of basketball by Earl "The Pearl" Monroe."