90s Night

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90s Player Cards

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To celebrate Kohl’s Flashback Friday: 90s Nickelodeon Night, we partnered with Mitchell &amp; Ness, New Era, Rock ‘Em and Windcraft  to bring you exclusive offerings to the Bucks Pro Shop. These limited edition  pieces mix Nickelodeon 90s nostalgia with our new brand identity for a fun way  to commemorate the evening. Full details on Kohl’s Flashback Friday: 90s Nickelodeon Night are available here.

The 90s Nickelodeon Night  Collection is available beginning Friday (March 4th) only at the  Bucks Pro Shop at the BMO Harris Bradley Center (10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) and at  Moda3 in Milwaukee's Third Ward (320 E. Buffalo St., 11 a.m.-7 p.m.).  Quantities for each piece of the collection are limited.

New Era Bucks Ren & Stimpy Snapback ($35)

Mitchell & Ness Bucks Nickelodeon Sublimated T ($50)

Mitchell & Ness Bucks Nickelodeon Crew ($60)

Bucks Nickelodeon Lanyard - BMOHBC Only ($8)

Bucks Nickelodeon Button - BMOHBC Only ($3)

the-milwaukee-bucks-90s-nickelodeon-night-collection

The Milwaukee Bucks 90’s Nickelodeon Night Collection

The 1990’s were an interesting time  for the Milwaukee Bucks. Coming off of a successful decade of basketball when  the team went a combined 522-298, the ’90s Bucks were only able to amass two  winning seasons in the decade. This wasn’t ideal, but the ’90s was also a time  of promise for the Bucks, who added several key players that would go on to  become fan favorites. They drafted Vin Baker in 1993 and Glenn Robinson in  1994. They traded for Ray Allen on draft night in 1996. In 1999, they traded  for Tim Thomas and his double headbands. All of these guys went on to make  significant impacts for the franchise.

The ’90s were also special because  some of the greatest to ever play the game were taking the court every night.  As the Bucks continued to grow and build (does that process sound familiar?),  legends would be lacing up on the other side of the court. What a time to be  alive, indeed.

Keeping that in mind, let’s roll  through some of the best players from the ’90s. Here are our top 15.

’90s stats: 30.4 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 5.1 APG, 2.3 SPG

I mean, duh. The best basketball  player of all time dominated the 90’s. In that decade, Jordan won six titles,  six Finals MVPs and four league MVPs. He was also a seven-time All-Star, a  seven-time All-NBA selection, and a seven-time NBA All-Defense honoree. He also  starred in Space Jam, which has to  count for something. The ’90s belonged to MJ.

’90s stats: 23.4 PPG, 11.5 RPG, 3.4 BPG

There’s a reason you hear reports  every summer of post players going to work with Olajuwon. The Dream was one of  the best post players ever, utilizing tremendous footwork and touch in the  paint to his advantage. When Jordan retired in the middle of the ’90s, Olajuwon  led the Rockets to back-to-back titles in 1994 and 1995, besting the likes of David  Robinson, Shaquille O’Neal and Patrick Ewing along the way.  Those three guys are fantastic players, and  even they had great difficulty stopping Olajuwon’s signature “Dream Shake”  move.

The Mailman still ranks second all  time on the NBA scoring list with 36,928 points. He wasn’t just all offense,  either. Malone was a very consistent rebounder, and his toughness fed into that  area of his game. Malone was also three-time All-Defense selection in the ’90s.  If it weren’t for Jordan’s Bulls teams, who knows what the Jazz could have  accomplished in the decade.

’90s stats: 19.1 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 5.9 APG, 2.2 SPG

It’s definitely unfair to refer to  Scottie Pippen as a second fiddle to Jordan on those Bulls teams. Pippen was a punishing  defender, making the All-NBA Defense team nine teams during the ’90s. Averaging  close to 20 points per game for the decade also proves he wasn’t a slouch on  the offensive end, either. Pippen also made seven All-Star teams during the  decade.

’90s stats: 22.4 PPG 11.6 RPG 4.2 APG 1.5  SPG

There are plenty of reasons to  enjoy Sir Charles, but his playing day accolades are the most impressive part.  The Round Mound of Rebound averaged a double-double for his career despite  being just 6 feet 6 inches tall, and led the Phoenix Suns to an NBA Finals  appearance in 1993, Barkley’s MVP season.

’90s stats: 24.4 PPG 11.5 RPG 3.0 APG 1.6  SPG 3.4 BPG

The Admiral was an eight-time  All-NBA Defense winner and won the Defensive Player of the Year award in 1992.  But he was so much more than that. Robinson could defend, rebound and score,  perhaps most notably by scoring 71 points on the final game of the year in the  1993-94 season to win the scoring title.

’90s stats: 14.9 PPG 2.9 RPG 11.9 APG 2.3  SPG

Karl Malone was a lucky man to  have John Stockton alongside him. The NBA’s all-time assist leader with 15,806  assists, Stockton was just as critical to the Jazz’s success as Malone  was.  Stockton was obviously known for  his passing, but he was well regarded around the league for his toughness as  well. He was also one of the last players to let go of the short shorts from  the older generations. Maybe those will make a comeback. Maybe.

’90s stats: 20.9 PPG 6.4 RPG 5.7 APG 1.8  SPG

If you enjoy watching these young  Bucks in transition, you would have loved to watch Clyde the Glide in Portland  and Houston. Drexler had one of the smoothest games in the league, leading the  Blazers to two NBA Finals appearances before getting a title of his own with  the Houston Rockets in 1995. Drexler, like many players on this list, was a  member of the 1992 US Olympic Team, more commonly referred to as “The Dream  Team” – quite possibly the greatest basketball team ever assembled.

’90s stats: 24.1 PPG 11.0 RPG 2.2 APG 0.9  SPG 2.7 BPG

It’s hard to think of ’90s  basketball without being reminded of those New York Knicks teams led by Ewing.  A star coming out of Georgetown, Ewing was an eight-time All-Star that had the  misfortune of running into those Bulls teams at the wrong time. Averaging a  double-double throughout the decade, Ewing also was a good defensive anchor,  blocking almost three shots a game.

’90s stats: 16.3 PPG 3.8 RPG 6.8 APG 2.3  SPG

Bucks fans should be familiar with  Payton – arguably the best defensive guard of the ’90s. He is one of only four  guards to ever win the Defensive Player of the Year Award, which he won in  1996, the same time he helped lead the Seattle SuperSonics to the top of the  Western Conference. Payton was a member of the Bucks in 2003, helping lead the team  to the playoffs before falling to Jason Kidd and the New Jersey Nets in six  games.

’90s stats: 27.1 PPG 12.2 RPG 2.5 APG 2.6  SPG

You could make an argument that  Shaq is the most physically dominant player the game has ever seen. Nobody  wanted a piece of him in the ’90s. Shaq won the 1993 Rookie of the Year Award,  and by 1995 was leading the Orlando Magic to the NBA Finals. He also ripped  down an entire backboard, which will never not be amazing.

’90s stats: 16.7 PPG 9.5 RPG 1.9 APG 1.2  SPG 1.5 BPG

The Reign Man was more than just a one-dimensional player,  but nobody who saw him play will forget how athletic and ferocious his dunks  were. Alongside Gary Payton, the Sonics would have been League Pass darlings if  it had been around back then.

’90s stats: 21.0 PPG 3.1 RPG 3.2 APG 1.2  SPG, 40.5 3P%

Eight points in nine seconds. That  still doesn’t compute. One of the best shooters and clutch performers the  league has seen, Reggie Miller was a four-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA  player in the ’90s. He may have gotten under players, fans, and movie  directors’ skins frequently, but there was no denying that Reggie Miller could  flat out crush your hopes and dreams with a flick of the wrist.

Dennis Rodman was only 6 feet 7  inches tall, but that didn’t stop him from being one of the most relentless  rebounders of his time. He was certainly a personality off the court, but  Rodman brought that same personality into the game, where his energy and  toughness were critical on the teams he won four NBA titles with.

’90s stats: 12.9 PPG 12.1 RPG 1.5 APG 3.6  BPG

Mutumbo was a defensive force in the ’90s, winning the Defensive  Player of the Year award three times in the decade.  He also helped the Denver Nuggets become the  first eighth seed to beat a first seed in NBA Playoff history in 1994. We  considered leaving him off this list, but Mutumbo rejected the idea with his  signature finger wave.

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Best 90s Players

This may come as a shock to some of you, but chances are  your clothes from the ’90s are outdated and won’t look cool in 2016. It’s  okay, it happens to everyone. The times are always changing and trends can fall  out of style before you can blink. Sometimes that’s for the better. In most  cases, it’s for the better.

In the NBA, however, there are some clothing choices that  should never have been changed, namely some specific jerseys. The decision to  upgrade is understandable, but some of the jerseys rolled out in the ’90s  weren’t just clothes, they were pieces of art. They were timeless, as evident  by people still clamoring to get  their hands on them to this day.

In honor of ’90s night, here are our top five ’90s NBA  jerseys.

What’s not to like about these jerseys? They are clean, the  color scheme works, and it’s hard to not associate the Payton-to-Kemp  alley-oops with these jerseys. Simple and fun is a hard design to beat.

You are free to disagree with this selection, but come on.  These jerseys are wild, though. Using a block type that screams “Survivor” and  somehow blending turquoise, red, bronze and black is nothing short of amazing.  Plus, look at how terrifying that grizzly bear looks holding the ball. You’re  not going to want to drive through the paint against it. You’d get clawed up  easily.

It’s pretty simple. Pinstripes are excellent. The stars on  this jersey aren’t overbearing, the pinstripes are cool, the font is fun, and  PINSTRIPES.

The dinosaur is a classic look. The vertical “stripes” just  put it over the top. The purple, red and black somehow tie it all together.  It’s crazy and wonderful.

Oh did you think we would forget these gems? Not a chance.  Green and purple together again, with a full-bodied Buck across the front? Yes,  please. These jerseys were brought back for the NBA Hardwood Classics series  during the 2012-13 season. There were two types of reactions to the revival of  this alternate: those who loved it and thought they were awesome and those  whose opinions were incorrect.

best-90s-uniforms

Best 90s Uniforms

The 90’s was one of the most talked about decades in NBA  History. It may not have been the best decade (that’s an argument you can have  on your own time), but the 90’s was huge in bringing about a more modern  culture and style throughout the league. This could be spread across several  areas: music, entertainment, fashion, etc.

For this flashback post though, we are going to look at some  of the best…

You read that correctly. We’re talking about hair, folks. As  the NBA continued to grow, players were expressing themselves in different ways  than normal. Sometimes it would be in the clothes they chose to wear, and  sometimes it was adopting a unique hairstyle. Anything was fair game back then.

We won’t keep you waiting any longer. Here are some of the  best hairstyles of the 90’s in the NBA.

Dennis Rodman and the  Amazing Technicolor Hairstyle

What more can you say about this? It would have been wild  enough had Rodman picked just one of these colors, but he went with (at least)  five all at once. Maybe the blonde look would have been the wiser choice, but  who’s to say that that’s the look to  go with?

Blonde Jason Kidd, that’s who! Looking sharp, coach!

No frills here, just all business. Mullin rocked this look  his entire career, saving his flash for on the court, where he rode his success  to a spot on the 1992 Dream Team.

In Game 1 of the 1994 NBA Finals, the late Anthony Mason  decided that there was no better way to represent his team than to rock the Knicks logo on the side of  his head. We’ve heard of wearing things on your sleeve, but this is a whole new  level of dedication.

The late Dwyane Schintzius came into the league rocking this  impressive mullet. At the time, Spurs GM Bob Bass didn’t like the hairstyle, so  he told Schintzius to cut it. He obliged, cutting his mullet, but sent the  shavings to Bass in an envelope. It isn’t clear if the following was a direct  result of that, but Schintzius was traded to the Sacramento Kings shortly after  that.

Cage picked up where A.C. Green left off at the end of the  80’s, rocking the impressive jheri curl of sorts. Cage was referred to as “John  Shaft” or “Windexman” during his playing days for his ability to “clean the  glass” as an incredible rebounder.

You can’t have a conversation about hair in the 90’s without  mentioning Pat Riley’s classic look. Those Knicks and Heat teams of the 90’s  were nothing to mess with, and you can bet that Riley’s look on the sidelines  played a part in that.

best-90s-hairstyles

Best 90s Hairstyles

It’s time to dust off the Starter jackets and slap bracelets as the Bucks and Nickelodeon are teaming up to transport fans back to the ’90s when the Minnesota Timberwolves visit the BMO Harris Bradley Center on Friday, March 4. This special ’90s Nickelodeon Night edition of the ongoing Kohl’s Flashback Friday series will be highlighted by a special on-court performance from two-time Grammy nominee Warren G, along with a limited number of seats available for the ’90s-era throwback price of just $7. Additionally, the first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a free ’90s-themed Bucks poster courtesy of Kohl’s.

Nickelodeon is bringing its special brand of ’90s nostalgia to arenas throughout the NBA this season, allowing fans to participate in games and activities inspired by their beloved ’90s shows like Double Dare and GUTS (complete with iconic green slime, of course). Fans will also have the opportunity to meet classic Nickelodeon characters like the Rugrats’ Chuckie, Tommy and Angelica, and the Temple Guard from Legends of the Hidden Temple. Additionally, the Nickelodeon ’90s-themed festivities will be hosted by Nickelodeon’s Kel Mitchell, who currently stars on the network’s hit live-action series “Game Shakers” and is known to Nick ’90s fans the world over for his starring turns in iconic shows like “All That” and “Kenan &amp; Kel.” Limited edition Bucks/Nickelodeon co-branded merchandise will also be available in the Bucks Pro Shop, and there will be special giveaways for fans throughout the game.

Nickelodeon recently launched “The Splat,” a new content destination spanning television, social media and a dedicated website celebrating the iconic Nick shows from the 1990s and beyond. The Splat’s programming block, airing daily from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. (CT) on TeenNick, dives deep to create a retro experience filled with landmark Nick programs, original promos and on-air stunts.

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Bucks Turn Back the Clock for Kohl's Flashback Friday: 90's Nickelodeon Night

They never  won a playoff series. They won a playoff game.  They only had three winning seasons, and one of those was during the 50-game  lockout-shortened year. They are the 1990s Bucks.

None of that  matters. Not if you were born between, say, 1979 and 1989 or so, not if you shot  baskets outside after watching the NBA on NBC.

So today we  are here to misremember things as better than they were in reality. Today we  are here to search for the most 1990s Bucks player of them all. The only thing  objective about this story is that it is patently absurd, a guarantee ensured  by using phrases like patently absurd.

Here are the 19  and only 19 candidates, ranked in reverse.

Three points in  his favor. He Got Game came out in  1998. His 1999-00 season was arguably the best by any Bucks player that touched  the 1990s. No one did better things in a Bucks uniform in the decade, over a  short period of time or a long period of time, statistically or aesthetically.  Yet he barely makes this list, because his post-1990s career and his post-Bucks  career leave this chapter as merely one among many. The 1990s Bucks are not the  first or second thing you think of, when you think of Allen.

Played more  NBA ballgames in the 1990s than anyone on this list. And more than guys like  Tim Hardaway, Chris Mullin, Steve Kerr, Charles Barkley, Steve Smith and Kevin  Johnson.

I remember  that Sports Illustrated cover and  story that declared him “The Best Point Guard In the NBA” in 1997. Looking  back, that was probably accurate. In particular, his 1995-96 season was  probably one of the five best seasons of any point guard in the 1990s. Things  stopped pretty abruptly after the decade.

Played three  seasons for the Bucks in the middle of the 1990s. Played 82 games in each of  them.

Before he  joined the Bucks, he was selected in the 1990 draft (witness those first five  picks: Derrick Coleman, Gary Payton, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Dennis Scott, Kendall  Gill) and played for the Washington Bullets, which are pretty 1990s things to  do, if you want to know.

Bonus points  for being traded by the Bucks for a fellow Top-19  Bucks 1990s Player by the name of Sherman Douglas AND for playing with  fellow Top-19 Bucks 1990s Player Marty Conlon and almost-Top-19 Bucks  1990s Player Frank Brickowski on by far the worst Celtics team of all time  in 1996-97.

If you  watched any NBA season in the 1990s, he was a part of that season.

Avent started  78 games as a rookie with the Bucks in 1992-93. He scored 28 points in his  sixth NBA game against the Nuggets of Dikembe Mutombo, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf,  Laphonso Ellis and Marcus Liberty. That remained his NBA career high for  forever.

Right in the  middle of the 1990s, Marty Conlon played two reasonable seasons for the Bucks.  That includes the best season of his career, in 1994-95, when he played all 82  games. After shooting 0-7 on 3-pointers throughout his first three pro seasons,  Conlon for some reason made 8-29 that year. He played 6,316 career NBA minutes,  all but two of them in the 1990s.

Here is a  partial list of statistical categories in which he leads all Bucks as far as  the 1990s are concerned: games played, minutes played, points scored. When he  is defined, he is defined first by his selection as the number one draft pick  by the Bucks in the heart of the decade. He loses some points here for  featuring so prominently on such an iconic non-1990s Bucks team in 2000-01.

Three  straight All-Star appearances in a Bucks jersey in the 1990s for Baker. Every  other Bucks player in the 1990s combined to make four All-Star appearances. He  was a very good power forward throughout the entire decade. Soon after the  2000s hit, less so.

No one looked  more 1990s. Consult Google.com for evidence. He only played 43 minutes over the  span of nine games for the Bucks. He also only played in the 1990s. In by 1993,  out by 1997.

I could  regale with you stories about how Edwards was honestly in the 1991 Slam Dunk  Contest (though not with the Bucks), how he led his team in scoring in 1992-93  (with the Bucks), or why his nickname was Blue (next time). What matters the  most here is that Edwards was in the original NBA Jam for the Bucks.

Scored 20  points three times in a week thrice upon April nights in 1998.

He played  nine seasons in the NBA. A full 96.2 percent of his games played were in the  1990s. He also played three seasons with the Bucks, which happened to be  exactly his three best NBA seasons.

Rumors  suggest that his Hall of Fame probability according to basketball-reference.com  may be 0.000. But we don’t live in a solar system where that matters. We live  in a solar system where he was half of the Bucks in the original NBA Jam in  1993. Big Bird (his nickname was Big Bird) played the prime of his career with  the Bucks, and by prime we refer to things like a career-high 10.0 points per  game. Not only did Lohaus play one minute, miss one shot, and otherwise do  nothing in a win over Michael Jordan and the Bulls on Jan. 6, 1990 to  kick-start the decade (the Bulls went on to “beat” them in the playoffs later  that season), he also played five straight seasons in mostly green-tinted  jerseys in Milwaukee to start the 1990s. That counts for a lot, the fact a guy  who otherwise bounced around the league on seven different teams managed to  stay with the Bucks for five years in a row, almost every single minute of it  in the 1990s.

Orva Lee  Mayberry Jr. never played a tenth of a second in the NBA in the 1980s or 2000s.  He played four seasons with the Bucks (the majority of his career), and played  in all 82 games in each of those seasons. Mayberry also played with Top-19 Bucks 1990s Player Todd Day in  the 1990s, both in college with Arkansas and in the pros with the Bucks.

Eternal merit  is earned for his Upper Deck basketball card with this caption: Kickin’ it “Socks” style with “E.P.” in his  new home with the Milwaukee Bucks. The photo on the card is Perry draped  full of socks in a literal tub of socks and only socks. He wore his socks high.  He played almost exclusively in the 1990s. He wore goggles. He weighed 150  pounds in the NBA. He was and is.