Open Court: Moments | Full Episode

As if I was crazy, I told them that I am the best player in this conference, we are going to play the Bulls for the championship, we are going to the final, so my pressure increased because when they traded me to Phoenix I no longer had any more, I don't have any help, I received to Van Martin, Kevin Johnson says we're going to the final, so once I got to the final I thought I had michael jordan mono amano what do I want, I tell myself, well, I'm the best player, I just didn't have any help in Philly, I got Michael Jordan, I like my chances and I remember one thing about that: we lost the first game before the second.

I'm talking to my daughter, she said, dad, you said everyone would win a championship but I said we were going to win the championship and I came home that night and she was crying, she said dad, I don't know if you guys are going to win, I said baby, I I don't know if we're going to win either. I told her I've never lied to you, but I told you we were going to win the championship, she says, uh, and I played really well. I think she was 42 or something, but Michael was like 50. And I remember sitting there talking to her.

I told him, I think this guy might be better than me and I never said that about another basketball player in my life, but I remember being so depressed that night that I said I don't know if I can beat this guy, so it was frustrating, but It wasn't until the worst night of my life in game six, uh, when paxton we lost game one and two at home we won game three, we lost game four and then we won game five and I say we're going to win this and He comes home, it's a great game, then Paxton hits the three-pointer and I was shocked when it was over because I had to.

I was frustrated because I couldn't manage my team beyond Michael and the Bulls and probably think in the first place. I don't think I ever got over it, but it was traumatic. I stayed awake for a day and a half. I just couldn't sleep and I was so frustrated because there were like two plays in that game where I had the ball and Scott and Harry's Grant doubled me so hard that we had to lead the whole game and Paul Westfall called my number twice and Horace and scott had passed the ball to me and I'm still angry to this day because he would do it, he should have been more aggressive but it would have been a bad basketball play but that to me was just a traumatic and horrible night in my life .

What's that locker room like Charles after that? There's anger, just frustration from him, it's just his head hanging. take us because we've seen the other side we've seen the celebration in a locker room take me inside the loser's locker room when you lose it that way uh it's emotional there's crying it's very calm um you cried I did it uh I did it because I did it, but the locker room is very quiet, it's very quiet because it's just your guys and the coaches there because you know we love the fans and all that, but we like your guys when you get that far, as cool as isaiah. thomas was as great as shaq was the best kevin said that you don't always make it to the finals, that you would lose more than you would win, you know there are a lot more losses, you know, isaiah, they won the championship twice, but he probably You probably played 13 to 14 years right, yeah thanks, then you lose a lot more, like Shaq played 20 years and was lucky enough to win the championship four times, so 16 times you're down and down and it sucks.

Just very calm and it's painful and you haven't gotten over it, no, because what you haven't gotten over is that you're like a man, I saw Scott fall hard, he had me, are you still there? Saying that, I've seen the game a couple of times. I'm like, man, I should have tried to split that double team, but because it was two plays in a row because we were up, obviously, they hit all three, so down two times we didn't score and I thought I saw that play and it was a bad play. basketball, but I'd rather lose it myself.

I can't make a good basketball play. Charles, how often did you fight with yourself? that I know how to deal with him, but knowing that most of the time you can split that double team, but are you thinking if I'm making the best play for the team or I let my ego take over because I knew I could beat these two guys ? Your biggest struggle with that you have to trust your teammates because I see guys all the time as a friend, you can't split a double team, especially Horace Grant and, uh, the Scots, there are two great long arms because the thing is not just see the other thing.

You have those two guys lock you up and then you see the black cat, that's what you call Michael? You see the black cat right there, he's in the safety position, like if you don't throw it perfect, he's gone with it, so I know I made the right basketball play, but he's like a man, 'cause you always say he could have done more, you always say when we come back last, kevin mchale, the good and the bad after this, this had to be a difficult duty for kevin. mchale to reduce little by little try to find a bad woman with a fine-tooth comb a lot a lot very good very bad what's the best you know I think the best thing for me was right at the moment the horn sounded in '86 when it ended the season because of how we had played since Christmas the team came together um everyone said okay look man we are dedicated we lost a Christmas game a double overtime game in New York we played really bad we had every chance to win that game and then we all got together and said, man, we have to play better than this.

I mean, you know, we've been in the finals three years in a row or this would have been our third year in a row. Getting to the final, it was the finals two years in a row. This is our best. Team we've had together and we all get together and you know, I remember Bill Walton, of course, Bill says we're not going to drink until we win the championships. We're planning on winning it this year, so Bill. I said well, of course, you know, so everyone stopped drinking and we all got together and from then on I think we were 16 and 10, including the playoffs, but that's how we won, it's the movement of the ball, you know, you go back and you look at that.

There were seven passes, the ball didn't touch the ground, everyone on the team touched it and there were guys who just dropped things and we were left without equipment and it was so fun to play that that moment was like the pinnacle of your career, I remember told my wife I was driving home and said, "I don't know how I can get better than this. I just don't know how we won the championship. We played. Unbelievable. The team was so involved." We synchronized and had the drink again. I was going to say that I already know the worst part of you.

You had to go half the season without drinking. I can't be worse than that, but what did they do? They made the league better. You know when they played so well, we were sitting there chasing trying to figure out how we were going to get better and we had film sessions on the Celtics about watching them play, you know, watching Walden, you know, on the pass split, dropping things. bird, I mean, everyone was so in sync and, but the chatter and the laughter, tell me, tell me this, when these guys walked into the gym, you saw I was there, that's why when it was like, oh, look at these guys, no, you.

You, that's all they did to us, we did to Chicago, I mean, because they went to the gym and you never had the idea that you were going to beat them, you just didn't want to embarrass yourself like when you played against them in '86 it was like, hey, look. man, we don't want to lose by 40. and I think that was in 86 that was one of the nights you got us down 60, oh yeah, that was 85, I think I got down 60. it was It's interesting about these two teams, Ernie , everyone hated them, like I used to tell people that when you played with the gun you called your family and said goodbye to them just in case because you knew they were going to have all these guys that were going to use their sex files.

So we're playing the sets in a preseason game and I'm playing with these. These guys hated the Celtics and what's interesting, we ran into these guys. I think I don't know anything. I'm a dumb tower. I met these guys in Vegas and they are the nicest guys in the world and I was like I was telling them the next day. I don't even know why. I don't even know how we ended up in Vegas. I'm hanging out with these guys and they're telling jokes and they're all cool and I try to tell the guys on the team the next day, man, the second one is cool, they're like, hey man, don't talk to the shelter. they don't talk to themselves, you're stupid because we like it, so we already knew that there is a big difference that we have to fight with these guys in the preseason, yeah, and since we like it, we would be joking before the game.

I would do it and, but then we played the Celtics in a preseason game, I thought, wow, something was going on here and before I knew it, it was throwing elbows and hitting people, they were two different dynamics of these tinkerers, they were really guys. nice and everyone hated the pistons because they were going to maim you, the east wouldn't be what it turned out to be today if the Celtics hadn't been great champions and grandmasters, I mean, and we were fighting hard with you, yeah, but after the game, you know. Hello man how are you?

Hey, good luck tomorrow we still won't kick, that was funny. I met Isaiah and I were roommates when the Pan Am Games and Coach Knight there were a lot of stories about that, that's for another show, but anyway, like before. the game you know my horn and my lambear would be there and nights ago hey zeke im gonna bust these two guys asses yeah why do you say they couldn't play dirtier? Yeah, here was the thing, so they would just do it. follow me more i would never forget my heart oh max i said i'm breaking your fat ass yeah i'll follow you every time i said well it's 12 free throws so remember when it was like we couldn't stop it? right, mikhail had this thing every time he signaled a free throw he had to go get the tile, right, he was going to put the towel under the basket, he was wiping his hands, so my horn started blowing his nose, okay, so you've narrowed it down to a moment, a disappointing moment, I guess I don't know a moment you could have back if yes, I don't know if it would have been different, but tell me, yes, a year later, it's 1987, we're back in the final.

We played the Lakers and starting in January my foot really started bothering me and back then coach was like, "You know you're fine," say yes, go out and play, and you know, I mean every week I feel like I don't understand. better and it bothers me more and more and more and more we get to the playoffs uh we played in chicago in the first round after the game I told the team doctor there I told him they needed some x-rays or something I mean there are some that they found I had a fracture. They fractured my navicular.

I've been playing for a couple of months, so I had to go back to my room and decide if I was going to play or not. I'm thinking, damn, I played in this thing. For two months we had the best record in the league. We had the opportunity to win again. I'll try. You know, I just made that decision. I said I'll try. It hurts, but. It's been hurting for two months. I'll be training. I'm going to tell myself it's okay. You know, yeah, so you come out and we were playing the Lakers and every game we had talked about before.

Each match is reduced. After a play or two at that level and you know where there is a rebound we go for it, they give it, they give the ball away. I thought it was horrible, the Lakers, they called us, there was no replay and stuff. I threw the ball and I was guarding the magic on the play and I came out and you know he started going to the right and my bad foot now now my back with my left foot so I wanted to push him from the baseline but I didn't have . confidence in, you know, that broken foot, so I shadowed him from the middle and I really wanted to push him where all the help was on the baseline and I didn't, I didn't get there and if there's a terrible movie of the thing Somehow I don't know how it happened, but they filmed it five seconds to go scores with two and that was one of those where you say hi-hat, you think what you want, one thing back, yeah, shot.

I went there, lifted my left foot up really high and forced it down the baseline on the right side, but you know that play still bothers me. I watch that play every time I see it, yes I dislike it but you should do it. You would have called me, I would have told you some great stories, guys, that's, uh, I appreciate it, going back, turning back the clock and taking us inside those great

moments

, those

moments

that you might want to forget, you appreciate it, guys, always, It is always a pleasure to be with you. shaq kevin mccabe charles barkley isaiah thomas and dennis scott that's all for the

open

audience until next time