FanHouse ToniKukoc

Tip-Off Timer counts down the days until the first game of the 2009-10 season. On Sunday, there are 72 days remaining.

The number 72 conjures up just one memory in the NBA: the marvelous Chicago Bulls of 1995-96, who racked up an unbelievable 72-10 record. No team has ever reached 70 wins, let alone 72. Not Russell's Celtics, not Magic's Lakers -- no one. Heck, even the Bulls couldn't match their own standard in the two title seasons that followed '96.

When Michael Jordan retired for the first time, there was a glimmer of hope among Eastern Conference teams that they might be able to finally overtake the Bulls. Maybe knowing MJ wasn't around to achieve the impossible was what fueled Reggie Miller's bravado that one fateful night on January 21, 1994 when he boldly took a bow at center court for the hostile Chicago crowd after sinking the apparent game-winner. But hey, who needs Jordan anyway when the mighty Toni Kukoc is around to save the day (and presumably, school the selfish and stupid)?

It's always nice to check in with has been retired NBA players to get their thoughts on how the game has changed since their days on the court, right? Well, maybe not, considering the fact that they rarely have anything positive to say. Toni Kukoc definitely falls into this category, ripping current players for what he views as a selfish and unintelligent style of play:

"The NBA is a league of selfish people and it is no longer a part of my life. Last year, I watched just three games of the Chicago Bulls.

"I hardly ever go to the United Center because there's little to see. It irritates me to see the poorness of the game of today and the lack of intelligence on the court."

Kukoc claimed that players are putting themselves before their teams and, by doing so, are sacrificing their chance of glory.

"There are too many selfish players in basketball nowadays. I could also have scored 30 points per game but, how many titles would I have won playing with that style?"

A couple of observations here. If Kukoc is referring to this year's incarnation of the Bulls, it's hard to blame him. Not that the team is selfish, they're just really horrible, starting the season 1-5 and losing at home last night by 30 to the Raptors. I wouldn't exactly be eager to head to the arena to watch that crap either. But what about the assertion that he could have scored 30 per game if he wanted to? I'm finding that one extremely hard to swallow.

The excellent site Basketball Reference dot com shows us not only that Kukoc's career average was a mere 11.6 points per game (topping out at 18.8 in just 44 games in '98-'99), but also shows us the other players in the league that his season statistics were the most similar to. With names like Danny Manning, Tim Thomas, and Darius Miles on the list, let's just say Kukoc comes across as nothing more than a washed-up blow hard who's more than a little full of himself.

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