Nostalgia is a wildly perplexing concept. Recounting any event carries an inherent bias from whoever is telling the story. The result is there are infinite “best dunks I ever saw” or “best crossover I ever saw” stories in circulation. A sporting event or moment in time where something renders a person awestruck does not have to qualify as “the best” to warrant serious praise, especially when my best is different than yours.
Many in the basketball world would have you believe that Allen Iverson’s crossover on Michael Jordan is the best crossover ever. The seemingly simple right to left cross holds monumental weight in terms of nostalgia, reverence for the great Iverson. This play was his right of passage into the league, but it’s not even his best crossover, let alone the best ever.
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As a 5-foot-10, young, Caucasian kid yearning for basketball greatness, I gravitated to guards; flashy ones specifically. Emulating their moves, the crossovers, the pull up jumpers, the behind the back passes, the facial expressions and the unadulterated flair was the ultimate goal for me as a 14-year old boy. I dunked a basketball once in my life. It was on the court in my yard, my mother was the only human who saw it, no one else believes us and the hoop may have been a little below ten feet.
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The dunk is the most emphatic vessel of momentum the game possesses. A vicious dunk, whether on an opponent or unguarded, can change the outcome of a game. Momentum is extremely fleeting and the most fickle of mistresses in the sporting world. While a dunk may be the most emphatic way to alter a single game’s reality, a nasty crossover is just as exciting for a crowd and teammates to behold.
Scroll back up and re-click that Iverson vs Jordan link. This time instead of waiting for the move or listening to the narrative, watch the crowd. Even before Iverson bamboozled Jordan, they knew what was happening. There was an aura of “awww shit somethin’ is about go down” in the air, and once that move dropped, the place erupted as if Shawn Kemp has just reigned down on Alton Lister, but instead of Iverson pointing at Jordan there was a quiet, terrifying tingle down the back of MJ’s neck. That quiet fear in an opponent is what I was after as a kid.
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Over the years there have been numerous awe-inspiring guards with handles of gold — Tim Hardaway, Jason Williams, Allen Iverson. In today’s game, we have Kyrie Irving, Jamal Crawford and Stephen Curry. Though these players may instill that elusive quiet fear in their opponents, at least defenders somewhat know what to expect.
Kristaps Porzingis is a scrawny, lanky Latvian who has taken the NBA by storm in just his second season. Along with Karl Anthony-Towns, Myles Turner and others, Porzingis is in the midst of redefining the center position, constantly bringing new things to the table.
Porzingis has a quiet, deadly weapon the others don’t yet possess; the killer crossover. Let’s preface this a bit — Porzingis is 7-foot-3, and not listed, at that height but actually smaller; he’s the real deal massive, have-all-the-length dude. Quite honestly he should not be able to do more than half of the moves he has already shown at that height; it’s just unfair and kind of rude to be frank. But he does, so here we are.
Here is the first example of the ruthlessness of this 21-year old juggernaut:
The fluidity of his movement from right to left with his 7-foot-3 frame is downright silly. He gets Marquese Chriss off balance pulls the string on the leather and raises up for the jumper. This came after fireworks earlier in the game where Chriss and Porzingis had a little tussle, and the fact Kristaps decided, “well I’ll just put you down with this crossover” warms my heart. Chriss undoubtedly watched film right after the game and let out an audible “he got me!” after he realized he had been quietly decimated in this play.
Here’s yet another version of the Porzingis killer crossover on an unsuspecting victim:
Look, man, this is absurd. He catches at the top, immediately poses the triple threat (like a damn guard), fakes to the right, pulls back and then goes back to the crossover for the jumper.
These don’t appear to be earth-shattering moves, but in reality they are. Reality tends to limit the abilities of each human conducive to their personal strengths and weaknesses, however when Porzingis’ parents gave the “you can do anything you put your mind to” speech he took it as gospel and now he’s unleashing it on the world. It’s terrifying and this is only a slight hyperbole.
Now, he picks on poor Salah Mejri out on the perimeter:
Some might watch these videos and think, “yeah, but this is good defense as most of these guys still get a hand up” and they would be correct, which is what makes it even more special. He’s 7-foot-3 and performing moves we see from guards and few forwards in this league, but let’s not stop there because he’s hitting the shots WITH A HAND IN HIS FACE afterward?! In the words of the great Cris Carter, “C’mon man“.
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Porzingis along with other freak 5s in the league right now are changing the game. He’s now opened our eyes to the wealth of talent a mere human being can possess and he’s tapped into the full extent of his potential at a mere 21-years old.
I’m fearful for the league and what’s still to come from the unicorn Latvian, but I’m joyful for fans because we get the privilege of witnessing his feats without having to grossly overstate them, because they are simply that fantastic.