May 1, 2018 8:15 pm

Investigate the Evolution of the NBA with Dr. J, Rasheed Wallace, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

We’re pulling out all the stops on the first part of our two-part mini-series on the evolution of the NBA. We sent hosts Gary O’Reilly and Chuck Nice to the “Art of a Champion” event hosted by Nike. The event and shoe line will commemorate each round of the NBA playoffs with 16 pairs of shoes that evoke the shoes we love from the past and push us into the future.

The great thing about this event is that it was buzzing with basketball royalty and we had the chance to talk to the greats. Our hosts chat with NBA Champion Rasheed Wallace and the legendary Julius Erving, a.k.a. Dr. J. Not to mention, we also hear from NBA all-time leading scorer, and previous guest Kareem Abdul-Jabbar alongside our very own Neil deGrasse Tyson. (Listen to Game Changer – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s Skyhook.)

If you sense some extra excitement from Chuck, that’s because Rasheed Wallace and Dr. J both share a special connection to the City of Brotherly Love. (Chuck’s home town, Philadelphia, if you haven’t been paying attention!)

You’ll hear Dr. J discuss the modern game and whether he sees his influence throughout the league. Listen to Neil and Kareem talk about the physics behind the skyhook. And you won’t want to miss Rasheed giving basketball advice that can be used in everyday life. Rasheed and Dr. J also give their take on the secret to succeeding in the NBA playoffs and much more.

All that, plus, hear Rasheed’s dream team – hint, it’s more familiar than you think. Last, but not least, stay on the lookout for Part 2 of our basketball mini-series where we dive into the evolution of shoe technology!

Please join us tomorrow night for NBA Evolution of the Game, with Julius Erving, Rasheed Wallace, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar right here on our website, as well as on our Playing with Science channels on Apple Podcasts, Google Play Music, SoundCloud, Stitcher, and TuneIn. If you’re an All-Access subscriber, you can watch or listen to this episode ad-free.

That’s it for now. Keep Looking Up!
–Ian Mullen