NBA legend Darryl Dawkins died at the age of 58. Dawkins was known as a fierce driver and rebounder during his 15-year career in the NBA.
Raised in Orlando, Dawkins was the first player approved to be drafted out of high school into the NBA. But beyond his back board braking dunks, Dawkins was also a poet who often came up with memorable catch phrases and nicknames.
Here are five must-see quotes from Darryl Dawkins.
On coming to grips with the end:
“When everything is said and done, there is nothing left to do or say.”
On the nickname of his backboard-breaking dunk:
“The Chocolate-Thunder-Flying, Robinzine-Crying, Teeth-Shaking, Glass-Breaking, Rump Roasting, Bun-Toasting, Wham-Bam-Glass-Breaker-I-Am-Jam.”
On his player persona:
“Take the strength of Shaquille O’Neal and put it together with the freedom of Dennis Rodman, and you have the Chocolate Thunder.”
On being named by Stevie Wonder:
“Stevie Wonder actually gave me the nickname Chocolate Thunder. So a guy who never saw me can give me that name. I think I can wear that well.”
On the origins of the planet he created, Lovetron:
“Lovetron was a planet that I even thought about in high school, and everybody’d say, “Man, you crazy.” It was just a planet in my own little mind that I could escape to. And it was a drug-free planet, you know. It was just, ‘you get your girl and you go off and y’all just chill out somewhere.’ And it was Lovetron. And it was a lot of fun for me. I started to talk about it in Philadelphia, you know, and I thought people would think I was crazy, but people said, “I like that!”
