The sixth man on the court: Winston Garland

Winston Garland may be a footnote in NBA history but the seven-year veteran was an errant bounce away from becoming famous.

You have probably never heard the name Winston Garland. I don’t blame you. He’s Darius Garland’s dad. That may be the extent of your Winston Garland knowledge. And that’s fine.

Garland was a seven-year NBA veteran with stints in Golden State, Los Angeles (Clippers), Denver, Minnesota and perhaps most famously, Houston. Most famously because Garland — who had played only a handful of minutes for Houston in the 1993 Western Conference Semifinals — nearly became the focal point of a game and series-clinching final play.

Below is a GIF of the famous play when Garland could have become a legend, a goat, a man with a famous rule named after him, who knows. It all depends on who you were rooting for and how much chaos you love in your life.

(Before this week, I was pro-chaos but it turns out I actually enjoy the calming boredom of normalcy.)

In the GIF below, you’ll see Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon attempt to score the game-winning basket for his Rockets in overtime. A score here would clinch Houston a spot in the Western Conference Finals, their first trip to the conference finals since 1986 — Olajuwon’s second season in the league.

You’ll also notice that Seattle — coached by George Karl — smartly blitzed Olajuwon in the post. The objective is “You can try and beat us, but it’s not going to be Hakeem that does it.” Olajuwon makes a hurried pass to the now open Vernon Maxwell. Derrick McKey, who had just missed a free-throw setting up this final play, runs back out to front Maxwell but nearly blows by him after a pump fake.

Sam Perkins, who was acquired by Seattle from the Lakers in a mid-season trade, helps out forcing a tough shot and a miss from Maxwell. Game over.

But watch the GIF again. Take note of No. 22 at the top of the screen.

That’s our friend Winston Garland.

You’ll notice he emerges from the bench, wanting to get a better look at the final play. But he does more than get up from his chair, ready to celebrate Maxwell’s triumphant game-winning mid-range jumper.

Garland takes a step onto the court, a few steps behind the 3-point line. Then, a few more steps. By the end of the play, Garland is inches away from his teammate Robert Horry. Garland even signals to the referees that it should be Houston’s ball.

This is madness.

There is so much that could have gone wrong — or right — depending on if you were a Rockets or Sonics fan.

The referees, who had a rough game to this point, did not notice Garland. And why would you? Your focus is on the shooter, the play down low, the 10, you know, actual players on the court. What referee would have his attention towards the Rockets bench looking to see if one of their players would run out and affect the play?

The referees should have stopped play and assessed a technical foul on the Rockets (NBA rulebook Section VII.E):

"If the ball is put into play and remains in play with one team having six or more players on the court, a non-unsportsmanlike technical foul will be assessed on the team with too many players."

There was, however, a little known loophole in the NBA rulebook at that time. Ethan Sherwood Strauss, who wrote about this play several years ago for ESPN goes into further detail:

"A sixth man incurred a technical foul, but the points he produced could not be taken off the board. Had Garland announced his presence by hitting a 3-pointer, the Rockets would have been up by two. The ensuing technical may have returned one point to Seattle — at most. A designed play to a sixth man may well have the smart move. For all Karl knew, Garland was a savvy cheater."

Oh man, so this leads us down an entirely different path. We all agree Houston should have been assessed a tech for having too many players on the court. Or, the referees could have ignored it since he didn’t have any discernable effect on the play or the rebound or anything. Just imagine though, the ball bouncing Garland’s way. He can either stop and let the referees know that he wasn’t supposed to be in the game (unlikely) or he could’ve put a shot up.

Now, the question: would he?

In Strauss’ piece he talks to Garland, who, ever the competitor says:

"“I definitely would have shot it.”"

I really wish he did.

Of course, the ball didn’t go to Garland, it fell into the welcoming arms of Shawn Kemp.

Kemp — a first-time All-Star and emerging superstar — sinks two straight free throws sealing the Rockets’ fate and punching Seattle’s ticket to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 1987.

Garland would play in Italy the following season and make one final stop in the NBA with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Today, he is a mere footnote in history, a man who will probably end up being more famous for being Darius Garland’s dad. If the ball bounced just a few more inches off the rim or just a few more inches in the right direction, he may have been a household name. The ultimate sixth man.

My podcast — Over and Back — will be doing a live rewatch/commentary of the entire 1993 Western Conference Finals Game 7 on Wednesday, March 18 at 7:30 p.m. EST/6:30 p.m. CST. Myself and Jason Mann will be joined by Curtis Harris (prohoopshistory.substack.com/) and Reinis Lācis (lamarmatic.com) to discuss and watch the game live with you. Discussions will include a recap of the 1993 NBA season, Seattle SuperSonics history, Hakeem’s legacy and so much more. You can join us live or watch a replay at the link below: