John Havlicek Defensive Breakdown

[@3isthenew1]

Finally, FINALLY something about John Havlicek on KZbin. I'm surprised how no one in KZbin's (almost) 16 years of existence uploaded a compilation of John Havlicek plays. He's one of his era's greatest wing defenders and can thrive in any role you give him.

[@Wowvod]

Honestly and he’s the greatest 6th man of all time, he mostly leads his team in points coming off the bench, and could defend 1-3, yeh any team from any era would want him on their team, he’s a freak athlete that had big lungs no wonder he could defend at high level up until the final quarter of a game.

[@philiptv2]

The Bill Russell defensive breakdown might take an hour and I would love to consume every minute of it

[@Max-kv8uw]

Agreed

[@fatalsniper3413]

The GOAT

[@jingqi9106]

Nice breakdown and footage, thanks for posting. Hondo is one of my favorite players ever and had extraordinary endurance which allowed him to play hard nosed defense for 48 minutes. He wasn't a great leaper but he had excellent timing and and basketball IQ on both sides of the ball so he could challenge any wing. His ball denial skills were so good, he could switch and recover if he had to intelligently, and he was an above average shot blocker for a wing. Maybe most importantly, Havlicek is one of the most clutch defenders ever and played his best when the game was on the line. John Havlicek is one of the best wing defenders ever.

[@fatalsniper3413]

Hondo eats old butter balls.

[@david.tousignant20]

@Jing Qi Very true my friend. Hondo also had long arms which help altering multiple shots and taking rebounds when he was off position. On the perimeter, his long reach bothered a lot of shooters. Most people want to talk about height when discussing about basketball, when we should put an emphasis on reach & timing (like a boxer or a NFL lineman).

[@jingqi9106]

@@david.tousignant20 Yes, Hondo had long arms and so many attributes that I could go on. He had the knack of being in the right place at the right time and that was no accident.

[@david.tousignant20]

@@jingqi9106 He was at the right place at the right time... you are speaking the truth. I just called that ability : basketball IQ. Positioning on defense is underrated... you don't need the steal or the block if tour opponent missed his shots.

[@fatalsniper3413]

2 old farts in this section talking about a has been...

[@ShinetheLightofTruth]

Great stuff. My favorite memory of Hondo was game 5 triple overtime against Phenix. Time running out in second OT and he makes a 15' leaner to take the lead with 2 seconds left. Then Gar Heard ties it at the buzzer. I was on the edge of my seat like no other game. Celts win by 2 and the series in 6.

[@fatalsniper3413]

Trash game. The 70s was a dark period of the NBA or the middle child.

[@Wowvod]

@@fatalsniper3413 it wasn’t their fault the crack epidemic hit.

[@DrJohnnyJ]

That was the old John. The young John was quick enough to play guard on defense. His two greatest strengths on defense were preventing his man from receiving the pass and blocking out on rebounds.

[@70sfan]

The video contains clips from all eras from 1965 to 1977.

[@BasketballJones48021]

Wow! Just great stuff, thanks for this. Hondo was amazing (on both sides of the court) very underrated and overlooked nowadays. I mean, if you consider him more of a Small Forward, he has to be (borderline) top5, right? I rarely see him listed as such, though… I’m talking more in terms of OVERALL career, of course, because in terms of prime/peak as a player you’ve got Bird, LeBron, KD, Dr J, Baylor, Barry, and also throw in Pippen, Kawhi, Dominique, and so on… but when you look at the whole picture, first of all Havlicek has tremendous longevity, then he’s won EIGHT championships (even if the majority not as the very best player on the team), has a FMVP, two times top5 in MVP voting, 13x All-Star, 11x All-NBA (4x 1st team), 8x All-Defensive (5x first team); that’s extremely good! You can put - in terms of career - SF’s such as Bron, Bird, Durant or Erving, in front of him… but really any more?! Baylor? Scottie?……. ?? John - at his best - had crazy stamina, always in perpetual motion, played great defense (as seen here), could score over 25 PPG (in many ways), very good passer as well as a rebounder, was really clutch, very high intangibles… then you add that crazy longevity (playing many different “roles”), all those individual and collective accolades… I mean…

[@CSABHOF]

Many thanks for uploading this!

[@dimedropperpod]

excellent video

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

Folks had a habit of underestimating Havlicek - Sam Jones

[@PoliticusRex632]

Sam moreso I think

[@PoliticusRex632]

Havlicek had very large lungs and phenomenal endurance. While rival players were tiring in the 4th, Hondo's performance rose.

[@Wowvod]

He’s Clutch on both ends.

[@manny4552]

John havlicek did everything for Boston at a very very high level for sixteen years ... The only thing he did not do was sell popcorn during time outs

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

Love this

[@dimedropperpod]

Hey 70s fan, any chance i can use some of your clips for a Bill Russell Sam Jones highlight video I was planning on making? I'm one of your patrons. If not that is totally ok but i want to do my best in showcasing the talent of the past as well. Thanks, and keep up the great work

[@70sfan]

Sure, you can use them as much as you want! Just please, mention the source of these clips - it would be highly appreciated!

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

Havlicek deserves to be in everyone’s top 20 of all time

[@fatalsniper3413]

What's your top 20?

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

@@fatalsniper3413 Russell Kareem lebron mj Duncan kobe wilt bird magic west Shaq Moses Hakeem Oscar Havlicek garnett dr J Dirk Isiah Baylor

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

@@fatalsniper3413 yours?

[@fatalsniper3413]

@@casualfandestroyer2503 Russell, MJ, KAJ, Wilt, Tim Duncan, Mikan, Shaq, Lebron, Magic Johnson, Bird. I really only have 10 because after that it's too much.. But here i go... #11 Sam the man, John H, Kobe, Hakeem, West, Oscar, Dr. J, Dirk, Moses and Walt Frazier

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

@@fatalsniper3413 Sam is historically underrated as well. Top 5 SG easily

[@jaivl1106]

You're the best, now do one about Iverson and you'll blow up in no time! :D

[@70sfan]

I'll make Iverson video when I watch all NBA games in history, including ones never filmed :D

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

It would help if u can use arrows to help us relocate the player(Havlicek) on each play, just a suggestion

[@70sfan]

Thanks for the suggestion!

[@edbea2]

Hondo is #17 in all of them.

[@3isthenew1]

@@edbea2 yeah but it's kinda hard for some people to track him on black-and-white film with poor quality. The "poor quality" isn't a knock on 70sFan; just saying you only get 2 types of old NBA footage: very good or very bad.

[@casualfandestroyer2503]

@@3isthenew1 exactly! So the time it takes to locate the player takes seconds away from your ability to analyze the play unless your putting it in slow motion or the player catches your eye immediately

[@The_favorite_Uncle]

2:15 his feet were up in the air, thats no where near a charge

[@carseye1219]

You know a person could take the video's title 2 ways...

[@davidmutchler2403]

Do bill russell

[@70sfan]

I'm collecting footage for now.

[@snareroll116]

John Havlicek is overrated he came in after the NBA completely sold out and widened the paint, to neutralize big men dominance so the smaller players can have a chance to dominate. If you can't compete then don't play.

[@70sfan]

So you call every post-1965 player overrated?

[@snareroll116]

@@70sfan yes players after are overrated... However, I was wrong as John played a couple of years under the old rules. He is a baller but him in the 70s is overrated. Also, the game after 65 was just a parody of what basketball once was before it. Basketball before then was so much more fluid and better to watch. The NBA at one time had rules for a reason and sadly not everyone can win and participate in it. Don't like the big men blocking your shot? Guess what become better...

[@robertcgordon]

@@snareroll116 in the 70s there were he, Dr J, Barry as SF. All 3 are all timers in any era. Hondo best defender of the 3. Won as 6th man, won as marquee guy. This is a great mix. 70s underrated era by most.

[@robertcgordon]

@@snareroll116 The top guys would be tops any era. And the top teams were way better than today's top teams, there were less teams, even factoring in both leagues, so greater concentration of talent. 77 Blazers, 70-73 Knicks,would beat any recent team with the possible exception of 17-18 GS. 79 Sonics would be tough today. Kareem would be just as dominant. The game hasn't evolved so much at the top. Bucks this year a nice team but less than great. Giannis is similar but not as refined as 70s Julius. Prime McGinnis, Thompson, Hayes, Clyde, Willis, Jo Jo, Cowens, old Wilt, West would be stars today like they were then.

[@robertcgordon]

Best traditional center today is Embiid, who is terrific but not close to prime KAJ, and he faces stiffs too many nights. 70s almost every team had HOF quality centers. Bob Lanier Cowens Walton Willis Wes etc. Embiid sees many teams who don't have real centers - he feasts against Celts, Lakers, Clips, Mavs, as they don't have traditional centers. And as for shot blocking/wider lane there still has yet to be better shot blockers than Wilt and Russ. Gobert pales in comparison.