Holiday Memories: HoopsHD interviews Ben Byrd about Hall of Famer Bernard King

Christmas is 1 of the loneliest days on the college basketball calendar because the NBA owns December 25th.  Tomorrow marks the 32nd anniversary of 1 of the greatest Christmas Day performances ever by 1 of the greatest Tennessee Volunteers ever.  In 1984 Bernard King scored 60 points in a loss to New Jersey, becoming the 10th player in NBA history to score 60+ points in a game.  He scored 40 in the 1st half and finished the game by making 19-30 FG/22-26 FT and finished that season as the league scoring champion.  King honed his craft in Knoxville as a 3-time All-American and 3-time SEC Player of the Year.  Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame sportswriter Ben Byrd passed away in September, but while he was alive HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with him about the “Ernie and Bernie Show” and the Vols’ memorable 1977 NCAA tourney OT game against Syracuse.  We send our condolences to Ben’s family.

In the mid-1970s Bernard went to Tennessee and formed the “Ernie and Bernie Show” with teammate Ernie Grunfeld: what made the 2 of them such a dynamic duo? Tennessee had some very fine players before those 2 showed up but never had 2 as plainly great as King and Grunfeld. There was more attention paid to them on offense but they were both complete players. King was the quickest inside player I had ever seen: he generally played in the high post and if he was facing a man-to-man defense he could always get his shot off.

He was a 3-time SEC POY/3-time All-American: what did it mean to him to win such outstanding individual honors? Grunfeld was 1 year ahead of him and was so good that he broke all the school scoring records as a freshman…and then the following year Bernard came along and took his place in the record book!

In the 1977 NCAA tourney he had 23 PTS/12 REB before fouling out in a 5-PT OT loss to Syracuse: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of his career? That game was played in Baton Rouge. Tennessee had good teams in the past but often finished 2nd to Kentucky and Adolph Rupp so they rarely had success in the NCAA tourney. I think the tourney trip the year before when they lost to VMI. I remember walking into practice a couple of days before that game and nobody was doing very much. Coach Mears told me that he had a little bit of trouble because Bernard got hurt during a scrimmage.

After being drafted 7th overall by the Nets in 1977 (1 spot ahead of Jack Sikma) he set a Nets franchise record with 24.2 PPG as a rookie: how was he able to make such a smooth transition from college to the pros? He was obviously so far ahead of everyone else due to his natural ability. He was not particularly tall but he could score against anyone in the post. He was also a good man-to-man defender even though he played a lot of zone defense in college.

In January/February 1984 with the Knicks he became the 1st player in 2 decades with 50+ PTS in consecutive games, and on Christmas Day 1984 he became the 10th player in NBA history to score 60 PTS in a game in a loss to the Nets: what was his secret for being a great scorer? I am sure that Coach Ray Mears told his team to get the ball to Bernie and Ernie as much as they could but there was no specific plan to try and get him a certain amount of points. He was a good friendly kid and I liked him.

In the decisive Game 5 of the 1984 Eastern Conference 1st round he had 44 PTS/12 REB in a 4-PT OT win at Detroit: how was he able to play so well despite having the flu and 2 dislocated middle fingers, and was Isiah Thomas just “in the zone” at the end of regulation (scoring 16 PTS in 93 seconds to force OT)? I think he was hit by cars on separate occasions but would eventually come back to play after each incident because he had a lot of heart in him. He was a good practice player who wanted to do things the right way.

In 1985 he led the NBA in scoring with 32.9 PPG: did you feel like he was the best player in the league? He was not short on self-confidence. I remember talking to him once in Atlanta and he thought the team was going to finish very high in the league. Grunfeld did not play 2nd-fiddle to anybody: he could swing that big butt around and knock 3 people out of the way! He was a good guy and a real hero in Tennessee. He felt he was the best forward in the league and Grunfeld agreed with him.

In March 1985 he scored 37 PTS before suffering a torn ACL in a loss to Kansas City that caused him to miss the entire 1986 season: what impact did that injury have on him either on or off the court? He came back to Tennessee to visit for a few days: it took a lot of determination to overcome all those injuries. He was determined to get out there and play again.

In 2013 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame: where does that rank among the highlights of his career? It has to rank very high. Anytime you make the Hall of Fame it is part of your legacy. Bernard deserved it: he revolutionized the college game as a power forward.

When people look back on his career, how do you think he should be remembered the most? I think he is largely remembered as the best basketball player Tennessee has ever had, which says a lot because we have had some very good ones. They have not done much lately but were good for a long time.