Brian Scalabrine is long removed from his time in the NBA, but sometimes the 2008 Boston Celtics champion feels the need to humble the average Joe.
That’s exactly what happened in the streets of New York on Saturday, hours before Scalabrine was scheduled to clock in for sideline commentary duties at Barclays Center. The 46-year-old, now 13 years removed from his final NBA appearance, laced up his kicks and faced off against social media hooper George “The Messiah” and provided a humbling lesson that even Stevie Wonder could’ve seen coming from a mile away.
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Scalabrine, to no surprise, defeated the much-older and much-less experienced — and skilled — street baller in a game of 1-on-1. The 11-year NBA veteran endured constant taunts from the audience and flagrant-caliber physicality from his opponent. Scalabrine was so fired up that when the dust settled, “The White Mamba” returned the favor and free-styled a trash-talking monologue of his own.
“Put your hands on me, see what happens,” Scalabrine said. “Put your hands on me — no, it’s not whack. Put your hands on me. You gonna foul my ass every time, so that’s what it’s gonna be. Yeah, it’s all good when you’re carrying the (expletive) rifle, right? Until a (expletive) shows up like me. That’s right.”
Even though Scalabrine spends most days commentating on basketball rather than playing, he’s not completely retired. Scalabrine, from time to time, will get shots up at local gyms, getting some training time with the NBA stars of tomorrow. He worked out with Miami Heat forward Duncan Robinson, long before the former Division III athlete became one of the league’s most lethal sharpshooters, and caught early glimpses of Duke’s Cooper Flagg — both New England natives.
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Not that most of us with common sense didn’t already know, but challenging an ex-professional athlete while simultaneously trash-talking said NBA champion isn’t the brightest idea — even if it’s for social media attention. Scalabrine played three times in the NBA Finals, scored 29 points to mark his career-high and finished a career 34.4% 3-point shooter before retiring in 2012. That resume, coupled with the viral thrashing Scalabrine delivered his latest victim, should be enough to humble the next guy in line, right? Probably not, but let it be known that Scalabrine is ready, nonetheless.