All you little guys out there who have been a ”pipsqueak” or a
”shrimp” all your lives: This Spud`s for you.
On a memorable Saturday afternoon in a state where big is always better, a 5-foot-7-inch dynamo named Anthony ”Spud” Webb struck a blow for everyone who ever wore elevator shoes or stretched himself out hanging from a bar. The National Basketball Association`s smallest player outdunked competitors a foot or more taller in winning the Slam-Dunk Championship and the accompanying $12,000.
Webb did for all of us midgets what William ”the Refrigerator” Perry did for the large of girth.
It is refreshing to gaze upon a pro basketball player without incurring the usual neck cramps. For that reason alone, Webb might have captivated the sellout crowd at Reunion Arena. But they had other reasons to cheer on the Dallas-born Atlanta Hawks` guard.
Webb played the crowd like a veteran of stage and screen. Before every dunk, he would clap his hands or wave his fist in the air.
It worked. Anytime the judges awarded him anything less than a perfect score, the arena vibrated with boos. After Webb and finalist Dominique Wilkins, another Hawk, had finished, the crowd let loose with a chant of
”Spud, Spud, Spud.”
His most amazing dunk? Try this one. Webb lobbed the ball 20 feet in the air, let it bounce high off the ground and, timing his ascent perfectly, caught it with his right hand and jammed it through. (After all, his hands are too small to palm the ball.)
There is something inspirational in watching this Spud-nik in orbit. He`s probably really only 5-6, but when he performs a 360-degree slam dunk, it`s the dream-come-true for every short stuff who ever fantasized about life above the rim.
”He`s America,” Atlanta coach Mike Fratello proclaimed. ”Tomorrow, every father and son will be out in the driveway trying to dunk. If Spud can do it, anyone can. People will be talking about him on their way to work or riding the bus.”
Spud was a guest on ”The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson before his high-flying achievement. Can David Letterman be far behind?
”When I was at North Carolina State, my vertical leap was measured at 42 inches,” Webb said.
”It must`ve been 50 today,” Wilkins said.
Webb suspended himself in the air long enough Saturday to perform a double-pump, two-hand dunk and a twisting, turning two-hand backwards slam. Webb was 17 when he pulled off his first dunk. Back then, he was only 5-4.
”He`s been the same height since birth,” Wilkins cracked in a refrain Webb has heard all his life.
How does he explain the incredible leaping ability?
”When I find that out, I`m going to write a book about it,” he said.
”Right now, I`m just going to enjoy my God-given talent.”
And now, the one thing that has always been a detriment for Spud Webb as a basketball player–his size–is providing him with a unique notoriety.
Can Spud Webb dolls–miniatures, of course–be far away?
