Know Your Audience; Know Rick Robey

im guessing an old suns player though…

Am I missing anything else?

I will only remember him if he played for the Atlanta Braves, which seems unlikely in Robey’s case, because the first NBA team I can remember really trying to follow, like watching all the games I could and checking the paper every morning for box scores, was the 90-91 Sixers (when I was ten).

 It’s kind of a random team considering I had grown up in South Texas, but I had grown to love Charles Barkley in a video game called Lakers v. Celtics. And b/c I loved Barkley I started loving the Suns in 92-93.

So there you go. But Robey? No idea pre-internet sleuthing.

Three thoughts:

1) Really? 66% of the votes don’t even know who he is? Man I feel old.
2) Is this question supposed to be some sort of reminder that the current Suns administration doesn’t have a monopoly on idiotic trades?
3) I REALLY feel old.

Ouch.

wasn’t Robey the consolation prize in the Lew Alcinder (Kareem) coin toss? That’s about all I know, never saw him play. Whoops apparently he was our prize for giving Dennis Johnson to the Celtics. yay.

I saw Dennis Johnson play anyway Robey not so much

I mainly remember Robey from college because he won a national championship at Kentucky (beating Duke), the year before the Bird vs Magic game, I think. I take it he didn’t cover himself with glory for the Suns ….

OK, so I have about 35 years of Suns experience talking here, I’d say maybe a little less because I didn’t know what a basketball was until I was about 5 or 6 maybe. And Rick Robey causes a myriad of emotions for me:

Joy-that is mainly laughter, thinking about a big, pasty white, graceles,s tall guy with no physique and nut huggers on running around attempting to be a basketball player. Kind of like Jackie Moon. More laughter considering what a one sided, terrible mistake Mr. Jerry (Godfather of Phoenix) Colangelo made with this one. I’d love to hear him explain how and why this trade went down now.

Frustration-The Suns, for all, 40 years of their existence have been looking for the ultimate big man in the middle. And with the exception of an elderly Shaq, we’ve never been able to find that guy. I can think of some other names of the past: Rich Kelly, Andrew Lang, Nick Vanos (R.I.P.) that were supposed to be great big men in the middle for the Suns and never made it. Rick Robey was also supposed to be that guy. And um, no, needless to say, he was not that guy.

Sadness/Resignation-Dennis Johnson (R.I.P.), was a very solid, great at times 5 time NBA Allstar, 7 time All NBA Defensive team and 1978-9 NBA NBA Finals MVP. He was traded away for the infamous big man the Suns desperately needed. Robey put up some solid numbers for the Celtics, yet upon his arrival in Phoenix, turned into a, well, sucky player. Maybe it was the heat that melted the snowman, I don’t know. Robey barely played 100 games in three seasons for the Suns, averaged about 9 uninspired points a game and retired (or couldn’t find a job) after the 85-86 season.

Anger-alright, now I’m pissed again. What a stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid trade.

Fan since 1972. Robey was a stiff, and well DJ ended up in the Hall and described by Bird as one of the finest players he played with.
 This trade is so like, Thunder Dan for Hot Rod Williams, ouch.
 Suns always lose out on the big man, lose the coin flip for Alcinder ( Jabbar) Suns draft Neal Walk, lose the lottery to the Spurs, Spurs get David Robinson, Suns Draft Armon Gilliam, and so it goes.