1986 New Jersey Nets Thanksgiving & Press Conference

[RPF]

Alright, alright, settle down everyone. Put the notepads away for a second and grab a plate. Carlos, I saw you eyeing that green bean casserole—my wife made that, so you better say it’s good.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. I know you’d rather be home with your families, and frankly, so would I. But in this business, your team is your family. And looking around this room, even you vultures in the media are like the weird cousins we have to invite.
Before we eat, let’s talk turkey. Literally and figuratively
We’re sitting here today with a bad taste in our mouths, and it ain’t the cranberry sauce. Five games. That’s all it took for Milwaukee to send us fishing in the Eastern Conference Finals. I tip my cap to them. They went on to win the whole thing, so there’s no shame in losing to the champs. But looking at that film... we were soft in the middle. We had the finesse, we had the flash, but when McHale and those guys turned it into a street fight, we blinked.
Which brings me to the empty chair at the table.
You all know the news. We traded Darryl Dawkins this morning. “Chocolate Thunder.” A champion. A legend. Moving a guy who helped hang a banner in 1980... that’s the hardest phone call I’ve ever had to make. Darryl brought the flavor. He was the dessert at this dinner for a long time.
But you can’t win a title on sugar alone. You need meat and potatoes. You need grit. That’s why we went out and got Charles Oakley.
I see the looks on your faces. "RPF, he’s young." "RPF, he’s unproven." Let me tell you something. I watched this kid at Virginia Union. He doesn’t play basketball; he plays foreclosure. He evicts people from the paint. We have the beauty with our shooters, now we have the beast.
Now, open floor. Ask your questions, then eat.

[Eazy P]

Was it tough to part ways with Dawkins?

[RPF]

Was it tough to part ways with Dawkins?

Very tough. He was an integral part of our championship run. When he retires, his jersey will hang in the rafters of the arena next to the championship banner he led us to.

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[Mike Lowry]

This team is absolutely loaded!
What are your expectations for performance?
And who do you expect to be your toughest competition?

[RPF]

This team is absolutely loaded!
What are your expectations for performance?
And who do you expect to be your toughest competition?

Thanks but did eye fcuk us. Obviously the biggest competition for everyone here are the defending champions

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[RPF]

No further questions? I've answered them all.

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