All-Star Weekend is history now, but we couldn`t say farewell without saluting the best it had to offer . . .
– Best Chaperone: We nominate All-Star forward Charles Barkley, who flew in his relatives from Alabama for the weekend and was searching frantically for his mother after the NBA party Friday night. ”She had a midnight curfew,” Barkley told us with a straight face. ”I had my grandmother in by 11.” As for himself? The 76er smiled. ”Nine forty-five in the morning. That`s when the bus leaves for practice.”
– Best Controversy: In your heart, did you really feel Michael Jordan beat Dominique Wilkins in the slam-dunk contest? Spud Webb, a first-round loser, thought Wilkins was the winner and said so right after the competition. Advised Webb: ”Dominique should definitely go in the locker room and check to see if he`s still got his wallet.”
– Best Political Portent: The chumminess exhibited by Mayor Eugene Sawyer and Gov. Jim Thompson, who sat side-by-side in midcourt boxes and were all smiles on Sunday. We don`t know if they discussed any new stadiums, but Sox
(and Bulls) head man Jerry Reinsdorf was just a few seats away and certainly would have welcomed the chance to chat.
– Best Page: ”Will Tim Brown please report to Gate 7?” That was an announcement made by PA man Tommy Edwards and, yes, it was the Tim Brown. The Heisman Trophy winner from Notre Dame took in the game with friends. We never did find out what the page was about, but we did notice a lot of stargazers overlooked him in pursuit of other celebrities. In fact, Tim was spotted standing in line for Mike Tyson`s autograph. We just wonder what would`ve happened if the champ had grabbed his towel.
– Best Couple: How about Tyson and smashing companion Robin Givens (from TV`s ”Head of the Class”)? The coosome twosome left Sunday`s game at halftime, after surviving a blitz of probing TV cameras.
– Best Dressed: Coach Pat Riley`s enviable sense of style always pops out amid a sea of finery. Yet, he got a little touchy when we praised his attire. ”Contrary to what has been published,” he told us, ”my wife does not buy my clothes. The only things she has bought me are my handkerchiefs and my underwear. And contrary to what has been published, I don`t wear designer clothes. I`ve had one tailor for 17 years and I`ve been dressing the same way all that time. What`s important to me is efficiency and how it feels. I`m not into trend.” No need to get defensive, Pat.
– Best Booster: None better than Tommy ”Hitman” Hearns, who attended his first NBA All-Star gala accompanied by folks from the Pistons front office and talked of his love for Detroit and his friendship with Isiah Thomas.
– Best Legend: Nat ”Sweetwater” Clifton finally got some long overdue recognition this weekend. One of the first blacks to play in the NBA as a New York Knick, Clifton was an honorary captain for the old-timers game and had a seat behind the East bench during Sunday`s action. He told us this was the first time he has been to an All-Star game, adding: ”What`s so great about the game today is the creativity they let the players show. When I played, I could do a lot of these things, but they wouldn`t let me. You had to play in a system. I learned a lot from Hank Luisetti. He used to shoot one-handed, but they called it showboating.” These days, Clifton drives a cab in Chicago.
– Best Song: ”Remember When,” which was a fitting number for halftime entertainment at Saturday`s old-timers game.
– Best Power Play: Agent Steve Zucker made it by escorting University of Washington quarterback Chris Chandler to Sunday`s game while making certain his client, Jim McMahon, also had a good seat. Chandler, who could be the first quarterback taken in the draft, just finished strutting his stuff for the NFL scouts in Indianapolis.
– Best Enigma: The word is that Patrick Ewing, long under the control of Georgetown coach John Thompson, continues to confound even his new NBA peers with his aloofness. All 24 All-Stars were asked to bring baby pictures for Saturday`s Chicago Theatre blowout, and guess who didn`t come through? Ewing did give up his regular uniform number (33) in deference to Larry Bird, but the league, accustomed to squabbles over such matters, has a seniority-first rule to cover that sticky situation.
– Best Private Dinner Party: The soiree agent and former player`s union chief Larry Fleisher hosted at Harry Caray`s restaurant Saturday night for guests Don Chaney, Paul Silas, Junior Bridgeman and Jim Paxson.
– Best Bet: That the NBA All-Star game will be played in a domed stadium every odd year. The Hoosier Dome hosted it in 1985, the Kingdome had it `87 and the Astrodome snared it for `89. There hasn`t been a basketball game there since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was called Lew Alcindor and led his UCLA squad against the University of Houston in 1968.
– Best Reunion: Much was made of the return of Chicagoans Mark Aguirre, Maurice Cheeks, Glenn Rivers and Isiah Thomas-and then there was Randy Pfund. Randy who? He`s the Wheaton native hired by Pat Riley as a Laker assistant after Dave Wohl left for New Jersey. As West coach, Riley brings his staff to help in the All-Star game. Said Pfund: ”I`ve been with L.A. three years and I`ve been in three All-Star games. This was special, though. It was home.”
Afterward, Randy met with his father, Lee Pfund, who coached Wheaton College`s basketball team and just retired from the school`s development office.
– Best Show of Humility: Someone asked Mark Aguirre if he and his new wife, Angela Bowman, set Saturday as their Chicago wedding date back in September because he knew he`d be getting a free ride to their hometown. ”No way,” said Aguirre. ”I`m not Kareem. I couldn`t say I`d be in this game or at 17 in a row like him.” Furthermore, Aguirre labeled Michael Jordan as the best player ever to play in Chicago. ”He`s brought pro basketball back, not just in Chicago but all over the country.”
– Best Faces in the Crowd: Rick Barry and his wife wore matching white fur coats to the Stadium. . . . Julius Erving munched popcorn in the stands with his wife, Turquoise. . . . Football players Willie Gault, Boomer Esiason, Frank Reich and Dave Remington enjoyed the game as guests of the athletic marketing firm ProServ. . . . Dotting press row were journalists from England, France, Spain, Italy, Israel, Japan, The Netherlands and Argentina. . . . And finally, there was Hall of Famer Bill Russell sitting in the stands flashing scorecards along with the rest of the fans during Saturday`s slam-dunk contest.