蜜柚直播

None of what Dr. J has accomplished was as easy as he makes everything seem.

Erving will turn 75 next month. He retains the elegance with which he played basketball. As Magic Johnson once said of Erving鈥檚 most iconic move 鈥� his against the Lakers in the 1980 NBA Finals 鈥� Dr. J played as if he were 鈥渨alking in the air.鈥�

But as Erving revealed during 鈥淎n Evening with the Doctor鈥� on Thursday at Palo Verde High School 鈥� the latest in the African American Museum of Southern 蜜柚直播鈥檚 鈥淔ireside Chat鈥� series 鈥� he is a grounded person who came from humble beginnings.

Erving shared the stage inside the PVHS auditorium with former teammate, longtime friend and co-founder Bob Elliott. As Elliott joked afterward, he had a tough job: 鈥淎ll I had to do was lob softballs and get out of the way.鈥�

Erving still knows what to do with a lob.

Asked to tell his personal oral history in the spirit of some of the exhibits at AAMSAZ, Erving delivered a string of tales that would have earned perfect-score 50s if they were being judged like the dunk contests he practically invented.

He began by talking about his childhood. The last surviving member of his immediate family of five, Erving grew up in a housing project in Hempstead, New York, in the 1950s and early 鈥�60s. His parents split up, leaving his mother, Callie Mae, to take care of Alexis, Julius and Marvin.

The state of New York wouldn鈥檛 acknowledge the teaching certificate Callie Mae had obtained in South Carolina, so she did 鈥渄omestic work鈥� at a dental office and people鈥檚 homes, her middle child said.

鈥淪he just did what she had to do to get by,鈥� Erving proudly recalled. 鈥淪he was my hero.鈥�

Callie Mae eventually became a hairdresser. She always insisted that Julius introduce himself by his given name, not Dr. J, between himself and a teammate in high school.

鈥淭hat goes back to Mom,鈥� Erving said. 鈥溾�橶e gave you your name, and I want you to use it. All this 鈥淒octor鈥� stuff, what鈥檚 that all about?鈥�

鈥淭hen I got a couple honorary doctorate degrees. I said, 鈥楢ha, now I can use this. There鈥檚 truth in advertising.鈥欌��

As a youngster, Erving played basketball at Campbell Park near his home. Per a video shown during Thursday鈥檚 chat, it was too cold to play one day. So Erving and his friend, Archie Rogers, went to a gym to see if they could join a Salvation Army team.

The team鈥檚 young coach, , who鈥檇 later become Hempstead鈥檚 mayor, accepted the pair of 12-year-olds 鈥� even though they were Black and that area, at the time, was all white.

鈥淣obody on the team but me and Julius was African American,鈥� Rogers said in the video. 鈥淏ut we were children, and we didn鈥檛 feel the racism.鈥�

They became a team that would pile into the back of a station wagon to travel to games. The lessons Ervin learned from the Salvation Army 鈥� to 鈥渓ive not for ourselves but for others鈥� and to 鈥渃arry the books and the ball鈥� 鈥� stuck with him for the rest of his days.

鈥淚f you didn鈥檛 get good grades,鈥� Erving said, 鈥測ou couldn鈥檛 play.鈥�

The Ervings moved to the Roosevelt neighborhood, where Julius attended high school. He played baseball and football as well as basketball, but hitting was hard and the heavy football cleats suppressed his ability to jump.

鈥淏lack man can鈥檛 jump,鈥� Erving joked. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a problem.鈥�

So basketball it was. But back then, Erving was 6-3陆, 170 pounds. He wouldn鈥檛 grow into the prototypical small forward 鈥� 6-7, 210 鈥� until college.

Erving said he had about six offers. He attended UMass. Dunking was banned in college basketball at the time. Can you imagine? Sorry, Doc: No dunking. That鈥檇 be like telling Hank Aaron he couldn鈥檛 hit the ball over the fence or Randy Moss that he couldn鈥檛 cross the goal line.

It didn鈥檛 matter. Erving averaged 26.3 points and 20.2 rebounds over two seasons. He got an offer from the NBA鈥檚 rival league, the ABA, to join the Virginia Squires after his junior year. They would pay him $500,000 for a four-year contract with the payments spread over seven years. It was an unimaginable sum for someone who鈥檇 grown up in a housing project.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 have to think too long,鈥� Erving said, drawing laughter from the crowd of about 1,000 at PVHS. 鈥淚 just had to get her blessing.鈥�

That would be Mom. She made him promise he鈥檇 finish school. He eventually did, walking with the class of 1987.

鈥淪he was so happy,鈥� Erving said. 鈥淚f you say you鈥檙e gonna do something, do it.鈥�

Erving鈥檚 move to professional basketball came amid tragedy. Marvin, his younger brother, contracted Lupus and died when he was 16 years old. Erving was 19 at the time. His father already had passed. Although his mother had remarried, Erving felt as though he needed to be the man of the household. He carried their spirit with him on the court.

鈥淎nytime I went mano a mano against anybody,鈥� Erving said, 鈥渋t was three against one.鈥�

Erving dominated in the ABA, playing an above-the-rim style that had even the greats of the time in awe. He was a pivotal figure in the . The Philadelphia 76ers bought Erving鈥檚 contract from the New York Nets. The rest was history. Erving became an 11-time NBA All-Star, an MVP (1980-81), a champion (1982-83) and a Hall of Famer (1993).

Toward the end of his playing career, Erving would lose his sister, Alexis, . She was 36. Julius was 34.

So even though he enjoys reliving the glory days, you can understand why Julius Erving prefers to look forward.

鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to keep the carrot out in front of me,鈥� he said. 鈥淢y carrot is, I鈥檇 like for the best day of my life to be ahead of me as opposed to behind me. I try to orchestrate that. Sometimes it feels a little bit like a pipe dream. But to have that feeling, wake up in the morning, 鈥楾his could be it 鈥� best day of my life.鈥� I鈥檝e had some good days. I鈥檓 not conceding.

鈥淕ood things will happen to people who allow it to happen. Look for that best day in your life to be tomorrow, not yesterday.鈥�

Doctor鈥檚 orders.